GRPS Board of Education Meeting -- February 10, 2025 (en español)

001Good evening everyone, welcoming you to the GRPS council meeting for February 10th. We respectfully ask that you turn off your cell phones. Please refrain from making audible comments. We invite you to make public comments during the designated times in the agenda items, or both. Those comment cards are back here where the tickets are. If you would like to make public comments, please fill out one of these. You can go and get one, and that way we can make sure you can come here and speak. Julia, our assistant, is here, and she collects them. Comments are limited to 3 minutes, and we always make sure our students get to speak at the beginning of the agenda. We're going to start with roll call. Very good. Can you all hear me? TR Moreno, Melvin here, Rodriguez here,

002Williams, Williams Davidon Davis, yes, K Patrick, yes, President Davis, here we have Chorus. Very good. Approval for the agenda. We pass. We all support. Yes. Opposing. Okay. Continuing with the celebrations, we're going to invite Ms. Col to speak to us about the 20th annual Social Justice Contest. The winners of Martin Lu King's contest. We support. Can you all hear me? Good evening, Doctor. Robin, Council members, thank you for the opportunity. We're here in the Equity and Inclusion office. Excuse me, could you use the microphone so we can hear you here on the recordings? Everyone can hear me. Yes, that's better, thank you. This is the 20th year of the MLK Justice Competition, and in that time we've had an incredible partnership with Nor Cross Warner. They've been our sponsors, and we want to congratulate them

003on this. And the important thing is to announce this year's winners: Isaac Riscala. If you 're in the audience, please stand. Oh, here I have your certificate and the Hamilton book. Very good, Ali Pito and Karen Davis. Now we're going to hear about our winners. Over the last two decades, this competition has grown quite a bit, both in participation and in the work. At first, students were asked to reflect specifically on the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and in terms of format. In recent years, we've expanded this to include a variety of supplied formats, and students can reflect on social justice issues that are important to them. We've seen how this has impacted students' creativity and allowed them to bring history into the present where we... We found the partnership between the firm and

004Grand Rapers Public School over the past 20 years to be incredible. The student involvement, the staff dedication, and the way the community comes together to honor these students is so encouraging. We at Warner are so proud to be able to partner with Martin Luther King's legacy through the years. It's as relevant as ever, and we're so proud to take a small part in this and continue Martin Luther King's legacy through the incredible work of these students. I created the drawing format I did because I like to draw, and I think I can draw something to express how I feel, like Martin might have felt. In my piece, I think my writing and my art, my drawing, symbolize that it's okay to be angry or things like that. These things happen to people, to African Americans,

005and to all people. I made my drawing and thought it could mean something, to show people that police brutality isn't okay. It's not good at all. Martin is supposed to be like that, and the kids are covering their eyes, and I have the drawings like with Blood, and I have the red and blue for the police, and it says I don't have a gun because the person who shot him didn't have a gun. And I wanted to represent what happened, what happened to him. For me, my song means a lot. I wanted to write my song because I wanted to show the person that it doesn't matter the way you are because you can't choose how you're born, how you look. No, it's not like you come into life and you say, 'I want to

006look this color, I want to look this way, I want my skin to be this color.' You don't have to choose. We're listening to a song from the piece that the student submitted. The message I was trying to send is that we're all the same. You don't have to change yourself to please someone else. Other people can adjust, but when you change, you're looking low, you fall apart. The two things that inspired me to participate in this course were my teachers and the poem "The Mask" by Maya Angelo. "The Mask" is about how she felt about her race, how she had to hide her true emotions. The message I was trying to convey is that people like me have a privilege. Instead of abusing those privileges, we should use them for the greater good and

007help people who don't have that privilege. I ca n't heal their wounds alone, but I can stand up and not set aside the truth, and I can see beyond my own head because they also belong in this life, and this is a fight they must have, and we must all walk with our heads held high because justice must prevail. I would like to think that the two teachers who definitely taught me how to write a good poem were my fourth-grade teacher, Mr. Dolphin, and my teacher, Mr. Mar. Mr. Dolphin taught me how I could use metaphors and similes and other vocabulary. Mr. Mar also taught me how to make sense of things, so thank you. [Applause] I just want to say that their work is incredible, and that shows their genius. What they received was

008an Apple iPad and two tickets to Hamilton, also one with a charger and two tickets to Hamilton and a $ to go to the store. Also, in the two Hamilton tickets, this year we are going to see 185 submissions. Of the three winners, we have 46 students who They each received honorable mentions and each of them won a 2es for the library. I have a positive here with their name, but I wanted to share the classes from the Cosmat Dien Mon Riv Academy. So these are the students who received honorable mentions. Right now, they are showing the slide with the students' names. I would like to send a thank you to the students and teachers who participated. Their work was extraordinary, and a final thank you. I would like to share with the board that

009for the second year in a row, the museum will be exhibiting all of MLK's work throughout the month of February to celebrate African American culture. So you can stop by and see it. So thank you for allowing us this time. Thank you very much, and congratulations to everyone. This was wonderful. Very well, moving on, we have the report from the student representative, Vima. Thank you for being here. Thank you. One thing quickly, a few things. These next few weeks we will have the elementary council. We will update you next month on what we talked about and the topics. We also have a blood drive, and that will be next Wednesday, February 19th, and on Wednesday, Thursday, Union High School will be doing tests that will... to help and give the students a break so they

010can continue studying, selling, and then we're going to finish the tests, and it's all work, and that's all. Thank you, thank you. You've noticed that we have many students here. It seems they are from STEM. And if we have some public comments, I have two public comments from the students. We're going to allow them to go and make their comments before entering the closed session. Is there anyone else? I have two here. Very good, J, Alfer, and more. Okay, and then I have another one. So I have three. You can go here to the podium. Excuse me, good evening everyone. Thank you for having my students here. I'm J, the director of the STEM Greenhouse program, and our mission is to create an environment where we have proficiency in mathematics, leadership, and exploration. It's a

011very impactful program because one day we can fill this auditorium with a sea of ​​blue. I have two gentlemen here who are going to make a comment for the group, and we're going to keep it brief because they're going to have to go to sleep soon. Good night everyone from Grand Rapids High School. I'm very grateful to be here with you today in this STEM program. It has impacted my life before. Joining this group, I knew I liked ST, but I didn't know how many opportunities there were. I have tremendous mentors who help me a lot, and I know these are things that will help me in the future. One thing I knew was when I first arrived at school, at GRCC. Everyone welcomed me, and in the first week, I met many people. The

012experiences and things helped me know what I want to do when I grow up, and also in my social life. I wouldn't have these opportunities without the support and generosity of helping me grow and dream big. They are making a big impact, and I want to inspire others. Thank you for believing in us and investing in our futures. Thank you, Lord and Lady Devas. We are very grateful. Good evening, members of Grand Rapids School and guests. My name is AJ, and I am honored to be here. Today, I want to thank M and Lord and Lady Devas. I have had a great opportunity to participate in the ST academy and be one of the ST academy students. These programs have made a big change in my life through... Through these experiences, I've learned so much.

013Not only about science, technology, and math, but also about teamwork, problem-solving, and believing in myself. The projects they gave me, the encouragement they gave me, and the opportunities they provided have helped me see a future where I can make a difference. One memory I have is from last year when I was in seventh grade. I was introduced to a team called Blind Retriever. It was a lot of fun, but it's an activity that helps you build confidence. One person is blindfolded, and the other person acts as their guide. The guide leads the person in a way that prevents them from seeing, but they are guided with their voice. Their partner has to guide them with instructions so they can be successful. I not only learned about these impressive projects, but my eyes hurt for a

014few days from laughing so much. I know that none of this would be possible without your generosity and what you have given to the GRCC students. That has helped me become more confident, and I'm very excited about what the future holds. I want to say, thank you so much. From my heart and for my future and for the future of many more, I hope one day I can share what you have given me with others, just as you have given me. Thank you so much for sharing that with us and thank you for being here with us. Well, you can take this to a closed session. Okay, then we're going into a closed session. We're going to talk about collective bargaining. It's about Acts 81c. Well, we moved, we supported. Well, if you need to

015take a roll, by name, Moreno, I have to say, well, I support Mr. [Name], I don't like the time, but I do agree to vote. William Trust D, and present. Okay, well, let's stay here in the laudatory. Yes, it would be easier to go downstairs. So, we'll go downstairs. Okay, now we're going to move on with the agenda. Next, comments. This is just for the committee. Comments are 3 minutes. Tonight, there are some comment cards. Before we begin, well, you can go up next. J Nan, okay, okay. Okay, yes, we'll read. You first, go ahead. Well, my name is [Name], I'm the chairman of [ Name], thanks to Dr. [Name] and the committee. I've provided an information packet in [Number]. What is essentially the Rochester public school district, which has a community of 14,000 children,

016is a similar size, and there are also the Kanamu public schools, and well, KTH. So they are all in the range of 14,000 children. What you're going to look at in the first part is basically this: how many administrators, how many teachers, and also assistants and aides. So it's more or less a comparison of situations in different districts. These are the staff numbers they have. I've also included at the end of the package all the properties that are GRS public schools, and on the page there are 67 different schools. And so many properties. When I talk to different presidents, it's about approximately 26 buildings to have 14,000 children. So I understand there's a history with the district having 28,000 children at the same time, but the process of the year... I don't think it's anyone's

017fault, but I think we have many properties that maybe we could use in the future. The use, I mean, in terms of selling, there's always the concern: we don't want to sell something that they're going to do something different with in the schools. Perhaps it could be something residential, then it could be just a single sale. If you sold the building, you would avoid the cost of maintaining one building. But apart from that, if you sell the property, the one who is going to develop that property will have families, and then those families will have children and more children, so the number of children will increase. The number of children has already decreased in recent decades, so these are things the committee can consider. I know you went to a closed session to look for

018different solutions, and we appreciate that. If you have questions, this is some information I was able to get from the City of Grand Maps website. Thank you for your time. Thank you, Jim Nean. Ismael Nñas. Good evening, Superintendent President Davis, and committee members. I want to say something to my colleagues. At Union High School, the representative said that for the first time, we had students take approximately 2,000 WIA exams. Each student takes four, and we were able to accomplish a lot in several days. Lately, what this does is remove what is their Their interruptions make them consistent with classroom work, and that allows them to have that learning time before taking the exams in April with the SAT and the PSAT in the spring. So I want to thank my colleagues. Well, I also looked

019at what's on the agenda, and I wanted to emphasize that J has made a deal with the union to allow it to be live so people can listen or watch what's happening at that time, or have a live audience if they want to witness that process. They can allow it; the law allows that. So we need to ask permission for that to be done. Then I also wanted to mention the teachers we have in this district and the value they have here. Our first concern is the students, but if you don't value the teachers, it's difficult for them to value and love our students. And we've seen that we have many members with health problems, and that's the issue with the contract, the increase in health insurance. And we have many teachers who are looking

020elsewhere. For the jobs, and we know we had many absences last year. But we were told that we couldn't reach a 1.3 increase, but 16.5 went to funds, and we're not going to look at an official one. No, we're not going to continue looking at the official one. So we're going to have this $40,000 in what is the balance. So I want to let you know. If we want to stop what is happening, we need to value our teachers. It's time. It's over. Thank you. Good night, everyone. My name is Ismes Núñez, and I sent you this letter before, and I think it's my responsibility to also let you know this. I'm a concerned member of the community, and I also spoke about a letter from GRPS to be a sanctuary district, and I'm very

021sad that at some point, a decision was made for development to silence these voices instead of engaging in dialogue. As leaders in this district, the public trusted you to listen to community members as well as teachers, but you made a show of how GRPS works. And what I saw in the committee was this behavior, and what happens when it comes to our families who aren't... documented actions that can measure their impact to hold the superintendent accountable. You have emphasized the role while the superintendent determines the Why. How is this process handled differently? I don't understand. I've seen districts adopting formal policy because they believe all educators want what's best for students. Unfortunately, that has never been the case here in Forward, Texas. A substitute teacher went on social media to tell the ACE about undocumented

022students at the school. I want to believe that all teachers are involved for the well-being of the students and their families, but we shouldn't assume that this is always true. I'll send you the article if you didn't know about it from Texas. So, if something like this happens, how would you handle that as a district? What policy will guarantee me that your students' families are truly safe? Without a measure in place, there is no guarantee. A commitment is not a guarantee. We need a commitment for the safety of all students. You listened to us, you committed to listening to us, but it didn't happen. We have this conversation about what happened and why this decision was made. I want to trust you, I really do, but it's difficult when you make a commitment and then

023break it. I urge you that you may reconsider how you will approach this procedure through all the voices that have been heard for the betterment of students and families. Thank you, Erica Ham, followed by Yinda Swanson. Good evening, Dr. Roby, Council Member. I am a parent and a GRPS representative for the public school and the nurses. The nurses have asked me to come here to speak with you and take a moment to talk to you about this in our health leadership. We would like to say that we are a well- oiled machine. We have 19 nurses with many experiences in various intensive care, pediatric emergency, hospice, and rehabilitation. As registered nurses, we are members of the nurses' association. We supervise all GRPS buildings to care for one to three students, depending on the medical care

024they need. Registered nurses have organizations and staff that respond to emergencies and have FEDR for peptic conditions. We also have Narcan for opioid overdoses. Not the entire district has this. The next time you are in a school building, I urge you to go to the health office and speak with the nurse. Ask about the ADA and emergency boxes we handle We monitor and care for students with chronic conditions such as asthma, fractures, and other illnesses, and we do all of this through a lens of equity and without the bias that exists. We also have CVPR training for staff and tourniquet training for healthcare personnel. We offer PVE classes as staff members monitor the health and safety of all students and residents. This month, one of our nurses noticed a change in Stil and asked him

025to go to the emergency department where he was admitted with ARDS. We are trained and prepared for emergencies and are deeply concerned about the safety of the student population. To support their academic success, we often do so with less compensation than other professions in the nursing environment. I appreciate your time listening to the value that nurses bring to the school, and I am always available to answer any questions. Thank you, thank you, followed by good night. My name is [Name], I am a Rapid resident for over 20 years, I am a retired political science professor from Western Michigan University, and this is very close to my heart. I am speaking about Agenda 2.3. Following the February 27th meeting, many immigrant families called to request that schools and the superintendent work with local groups like Grand

026Rapid Response and Cosecha GR. I'm wondering if that started after the January 27th meeting. Superintendent Roby mentioned that GRPS has been working with the Michigan ACL and the immigration group known as M. I would like to know if the superintendent can explain to the community what they have been doing to supplement the list of concrete and specific recommendations that the ACL and MUR made on January 27th in that letter to the superintendent. Here's a 10-15 page document. For example, GRPS is educating all staff about the difference between administrative procedures and arrest warrants. They are going to train everyone not to allow ACE officers to come here and interview students. And the list goes on. I would also like to ask if the superintendent and the board will follow the example of Lancing and remove students'

027information—their addresses, places of birth, and phone numbers—from their directory, which can be used by immigration officers. And this is also consistent with ACU and Murk. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Good evening everyone. Tonight I'm going to share a story about an immigrant who moved here from Puerto Rico not knowing any English. He was empathetic and concerned. The first time I spoke in a classroom after I learned a little English was in third grade at Wilson Elementary, which no longer exists. They tore it down. He asked a question: "Who is the President of the United States?" My dad was a CNN addict watching the news, and I knew the answer to that question. I raised my hand. The first time in the classroom, I said, "Ron McDonald." All the kids did what you did;

028they laughed. I cried. The first time I took the opportunity, he said, "No, no, no, no, no, no, he's fine. He's a clown, Ronald Reagan, right?" That moment changed the course of my life and my relationship with education. And it's because of these actions that happen daily in groups in different school systems. These are the impacts we can have every day, and if we as a community can see what is happening at a national level... Federally, the federal government is going to do what they want to do. Whether we say we are a sanctuary or not, they are going to try to shut down the education system in the United States and privatize it for their own benefit. Right now, what we are asking for as a community of concerned individuals is to do the

029right thing to prevent this from happening. The visions of the Black, Latinx, and LGBTQ+ community are to join forces and say that we will not allow this to continue. So that students who don't know English feel supported beyond what you can know individually. Every day I work with parents of Latino students, and the fear is real when they go to the classrooms, when they go there, to what exists in GRPS, and they are welcomed with open arms. Alberto, you are going to be successful, and you are going to change that. That changed me. I wanted to work in social policy, I wanted to work in the Detroit school system, I wanted to be part of this community because I know that we have the capacity to make this happen. So I urge everyone to do

030the right thing, not semantically, but with real policies so that all of us individuals understand what those policies are and how they work. Policies are going to be implemented and what will the development of this be? Thank you, thank you. Very well, I think that concludes our agenda. Um, the public comments on our agenda. So, we're going to move on to the Secretary's report. Very well. So, excuse me, we have the Ad Hoc Facility. They're going to be in until December. The second Monday at 4:30 pm there in the library. The Finance Committee meeting will take place on March 10th, and the fourth Monday at 5 pm. And the next meeting will be on March 24th, and that will be here in the auditorium. So, Ad Hoc Facility on March 10th in the library at

0314:30 pm, and here in the auditorium, Finance on March 24th. Thank you. Financial report. Finance Committee. We're going to vote on our action item. Um, the budget. The committee is going to bring in general funds for equipment, supplies, services, support materials, and services as well, and also a few projects that we're going to vote on. Later, Ad Hoc Facility with you, ma'am. For Ad Hoc, we had a meeting to update our new members on the work that had been done. There's going to be a There's an opportunity to review the schema, and there will be opportunities for Council members to see it, so if you need to know anything, please let me know. Thank you, and I think we'll be staying with you because we have a conference report for the National Equity and Advocacy

032Association. Well, I'll be brief. One of the different things that are taking place in the second four-year term is that we've been advocating for a long time about one-way funding, and those things did happen. We met, or planned to meet, with some of our representatives, but we met with one person personally, and they couldn't make their flight. We're going to do that in conjunction with other districts of the ISD. And again, we're going to raise those talking points regarding the executive orders, different changes that are going to take place, and it looks a lot more like we have to get that through the judicial system to know where we stand. But there was one presentation in particular regarding branding and marketing. This stood out to me: the Council's responsibility to be part of this plan,

033and marketing takes place in the way we conduct our meetings, as we talk about it. From our district and the problems, there's always room for growth and improvement, and how are we going to talk about our brand, uh, positivity? We work to improve the deficient areas, and I think that's sometimes a message that should be encouraging. That's basically legislative business. Thank you. We don't have a foundation report. So we're going to continue for the superintendent's report. Good evening, everyone. I'm going to bring here our lawyer, Dan Homme, to talk about some legislative updates and give you an overview of what's taking place across the state regarding immigration information. So, welcome. Okay, I'm going to put the slide here quickly. We're going to start while this is being presented. As many of you know, there have

034been many changes in this protocol, to say the least. But as a reminder to all Council members and associates, we only have the state legislature and policy. Obviously, what's happening at the federal level comes here and affects us. So we're going to link all of this together. But as far as executive orders or decrees are concerned, we're going to follow them, but it's nothing that we directly have anything to do with. Rather, it's our legal representatives and senators. Having said that, well, this week, as some of you saw The governor came with her recommendations for her area, and before we go into details, we saw some of the executive orders regarding the freezing of federal funds. The budget that the governor's team presented was based on the notion that we're going to have all our

035working money—about 40% of the state of Michigan—coming from the federal government. So if that happens, frozen again, even though the budget was pushed back, the recommendations that were brought to us are going to look quite different, obviously, and we have to go back to the drawing board to fix it. So today I'm going to review a few of the points and recommendations of the budget. Well, many times it's following what's at the federal level, but it's a divided government. In the House, as you know, we have a Democratic governor and in the Senate, but we have a Republican in the House. So, in the House, we see the Speaker forming and signing it, and so he's creating what's federal at the state level. And what we're seeing is something that's being presented with the Republican

036party. So, we normally see what is the committee, additionally... We see what are education and culture committees. There are about 10 different committees being formed right now. This is something new that we're seeing, and the policies and how it's being successfully formed. These are some of the details and recommendations from the governor, as you all probably know. They are just recommendations. This is her list. If she had the means, tomorrow, that would be something she would want, but there are still many things that need to happen. So the speaker is expecting it to go until October. So for us, it's not favorable because we need programs, and we don't know if we'll have these different programs. We hope to finish in May or June as we typically do, but right now it looks like it's

037going to go until September or October before continuing. So people can understand how this might affect schools from June to July 30. So if you do n't know what the finances are until October, it's difficult to know what your resources are, and obviously, school starts in August. So this is something that happened many years ago, and the last TR to Five years ago, they started getting closer and closer to the spring when they were finalizing their budget. So, our hope is that it will be at least in June. But it's something we'll have to look at. Having said that, as I mentioned, the exact number is 41.7 percent of the 83.5 billion. That comes from federal funds. The governor and her team are saying that their recommendations indicate we have 100% of the funds. Having

038said that, the emphasis of the governor's recommendations is positively on education and different areas of education. So, I apologize for the number of figures, but we'll look at all of this specifically, and we've included some examples as well. If you have any questions, please let me know. So, the budget is 21.2 billion for 2024-2025. The 2024-2025 budget is 21.2 billion, sorry, and 2025 is 18.5 billion, which is an increase of 2.7 percent. 4.8 percent of the funding for the school is $10,000 per student in that program, every 12 students, a 4.1 percent increase. And all of their investments are to provide more money for schools and their incentives. And these purposes include the 75 percent increase in students in fourth grade and the 76 percent increase in children in eighth grade. They want to continue.

039Well, another emphasis of theirs is to provide money for preschool programs, and of the $ million that the governor has allocated, it's going to help the state get smart in education. It's focused on student metrics and results with transparency. The funds include $232 million for the District to have better tutoring and also to have 10% for children who are at risk. On this other page, I'm not going to say everything on this page, but I just want to let you know that the committee that is here last year, on the 31st, received shortfalls from the Senate. You might... You heard, it was a big moment in our state. The Democrats, they increased those funds last year, and then the governor continued to increase that money, and those funds, which was $150 million for mental health

040in Michigan. So, going on with what is... uh, I've touched on some topics. I'm going to go into a little more detail, and if you have questions, we can ask them. And as we can, our job is to advocate for groups, for teachers and students, and we can't know all the laws, but we try to do the best we can, and we work hard for everyone. And people on both sides make decisions, and our job is... as soon as everything passes, one of them... uh, has been Speaker Hall, who... ah, quickly... he's involved in national decisions at the White House, and he doesn't have the ability to make all the rules, but he does have the option to make resolutions in his committee, and they have to be approved by the Senate and the governor.

041So, he has done this in his new role on the committee. So, what is... what is the budget... the governor... The new resolution would be in communities, this in the policy of sanctuary cities, and work with the state and receive state funds. So anyone who doesn't want to comply with immigration laws might be affected by not receiving state funds. And Hall defines what any municipality is that isn't speaking about the word "sanctuary" and its definition. So that's the reality. The speaker is being very clear that this kind of way of thinking, that's why he's not going to pass this law that's being drafted, and it's something very important that you should know. So when you're making your decisions, keep that in mind. One thing: Excuse me, I had a clarification because I was also reading,

042and I want to clarify that it's only for municipalities, right? So I'm reading that the law applies to a municipality, which is the county. But that's not for school districts. But think about how schools are supported by the city. Even so, maybe state funds could be affected. Right now, yes, it's going to be interesting to see how all this develops because he has received letters, and he She's saying that this is going to be at a state level but also at a local level, so I'm expecting that these are steps that will be taken at every level. Well, I just wanted to make that clarification here. Okay, yes. Oh, going back to the governor, what is her purpose? She talks about food for children. Yes, right now, yes, that's included. That's one thing, thank you.

043That's one thing that the Republicans are saying they'd like to remove. They don't support it. So, because of political discussions, that will be an interesting thing to see if that stays. But that's one thing that the Republicans are expressing, and the governor has it in her budget right now, thank you. In addition to this rule, we then see the three main priorities that the governor has named. It's simple: she says that there must be funds, a security fund, which would increase taxes. It's also very clear from the governor that she doesn't have much interest in doing anything else, but the priorities for her constituents are not a priority for her, and those are the three things she wants to achieve. So, having said that, let's look at... For the people who were here last year,

044we're talking about the... Bill 6058 Here's an update on what happened. I'm going to try to explain it as best I can, but if you have any questions, please let me know. This thing they call "LMDA" is something that happened in a session where we saw that all the Republican members who were there had a Democrat with them as well, and the House didn't have a majority of members present to be able to check this bill. So they had a day where nothing got done, and then the bill was shut down. But for reasons... these bills went to the Senate, most of them left, and I think it was one of the longest sessions in the state of Michigan. It was two days straight, and we were all pretty sleepy after that. Then they made

045hundreds and hundreds of different new bills, and with those, they had to go to the Senate, and they didn't make any changes to those bills. So it went back to the House, and the next process in the government was that it was presented to the governor for her signature, and with a different, a different bill, with the governor at a different time so that it would be transferred to the new government and the new speaker. And then there were nine different bills that were presented to the governor, and she continued to choose not to present them to her. One of them was this one, 1060-58, which I won't go into all the details of, but you have it in front of you. It briefly supports public employees and their benefits, and it includes a percentage

046contribution to the health plan benefit. A very detailed summary: I'm going through this process with you because the majority in the Senate has decided to bring a formal lawsuit against the Speaker to force her to introduce this bill. In the current political dynamic, failing to come to the table and work together, it would be interesting to see how that conversation between the chambers will go with that pending lawsuit. And again, so you can review, these aren't major bills like the ones the Speaker had. She formed a committee in the last week or two and hasn't given much space to its members. So it's moving slowly. They're going to introduce more bills, but they're in the minority and don't have much certainty that they can move forward. But here they are. So you can review it.

047And if any of them spark interest and you want to know something, please let Dr. Roby or the Chair of the Board know so we can arrange a meeting and talk with the sponsors and committee members. If there's a problem with the board, or if you have questions and want to see something happen or not, the members can let you know. So that they are available, we can have a Zoom meeting. You can join us to continue this conversation. So please know that we are here for that. One last thing, just for the new Council members, when you ask about the Michigan meal program, Grand Rapids has a significant partnership to consolidate services for the state of Michigan, where numerous schools around Grand Rapids, including, for example, the East Grand Rapids Aviation Academy, are involved.

048And that's why, as the bill was written, some funding that was supposed to go to the state of Michigan was taken away. It was a little shortfall. We are working diligently to try to bring back those supplemental funds. And the bill, if it had passed and half the House hadn't left, this would have been successful. And the supplemental bill—we had a vehicle, but we didn't have the House to move it. This past week, there was a supplemental bill that was introduced in the Senate. But the question is, will Speaker Hall sign it? Will he accept this or not? But we are working with the Governor's office and the Senate majority to include the $1.2 million shortfall so that it can be supplemented. GRPS and with that I would add for the drama. During this, L

049Dog, it was like highs and lows. What we were doing the last few hours, the last few days, Stepan already had it prepared to have this supplement, to do it just once. But in addition to our great efforts, well, we're back here, no, we're not. So in the end, uh, over there, we lasted quite a while, until the last hours of the night. Well, just for assistance with that, if there are any questions, future discussions about any of these items, you can talk more about the Governor's budget proposal in terms of language and how it's going to affect us here. Yes, that's a good question. I'm going to have to look for more information. I can email you. I would say this part of the conversation, as you know, in lancing, and not specifically the

050Governor, but rather the Senate, the disagreements, uh, where transparency should go. So let me look into that before I say more, and I'll let you know. Thank you absolutely, anyone else, thank you for your work. Thank you. Now we're going to the update from the Bond Commissioner, and then after that, on the Real Estate Owners Representation Service. Good evening, everyone. Welcome, President David Doora, Roby, member of the Council, I want to send a greeting to the new members. The gentleman from CICA who is back here says hello. He is our new Director of Construction and Design. He joined us in December and is still learning quite a bit, but we are very happy to have him. So, I think Dr. Roby sent a summary with the letter we prepared for Friday to try to get

051all the new members up to date on the things we are doing. So, I'm going to do a lot of presentations and spend some time here, and if you have any questions, they are all referenced here. Very well, thank you. What I want to do is briefly review the construction projects, the active construction projects that we are going to focus on. We're going to talk briefly about the renovation of CB Housman Field and Brickfield, a few parking lots, and the Chávez Elementary Dickenson Central Auditorium. That's what we're going to start. Many have already started, but we're going to start the rest as soon as classes are over. We're not going to start the auditorium; maybe before then, it 's possible. We haven't done this yet; they are still planning and designing. We have a presentation

052that we are going to do. Hills renovation auditor renovation and the Union pool, so we have quite a few projects that we're doing. I don't want to keep it here too late, so I'm going to bring that up for you individually later. Starting with SIBL, we want to complete phase two. As you may recall, we started phase one last summer, and I know the board has agreed that construction should be done whenever possible without students in the building. Many times this won't be possible, I think. We'll work with this, but when possible, we can do it. So you'll see phase one and phase two because we want to do the work during the summer and not affect the school year. And CO is in phase two, and as you can see, we're close to completing

053it. We're going to replace the water features, the lighting, the HBAC flooring, and the temperature controls. If you have any specific questions about a project, please let me know. Phase two is a little more robust because we have a lot of HBAC maintenance and emergency generators for the building and the parking lot. You can see the list; I don't have to read this to you both. We're working with construction managers on these projects and haven't identified any problems so far regarding the supply. We expect to have it by today. We're doing well. This is really good. It's under construction, as you can see. This is the current state of the Sixp building. We've demolished it, as you can see, down to the bare bones, and we're in the process of rebuilding it and preparing the

054building. Construction is moving quite quickly. Our intention is to receive students next fall. When August comes, we'll be opening our doors to receive the students who are currently at Jefferson. This is one that Trusty mentioned. We're going to do maybe a tour. We're going to work with Dr. Roby's office to do a small group. We can't have large groups, and we're also going to work with the construction manager to figure out how we can do it without distracting or interfering with the construction and their schedule. It's just for our new members. The intention is to train this school so that it can receive high school students. This is the elementary building, and we want to make all the necessary changes to the appropriate size and create those new spaces for new students. We're very excited

055about this. FY Bricks, we're ready to get started. As you can see, the coordination meetings with both contractors are underway. When we can do this next week, we're going to mobilize for construction for House Manfield Bricks. We're going to do it a little earlier to start in early March. For that, we have the natural grass, and we're going to replace it with artificial turf. We want to get ahead of ourselves so we can use the bricks building in the fall. That was a change that was originally made. We had seating, but that was going to take us up to an additional year. So we made the change so the building will be available. Any questions? So far, it's good. The parking lots—we have six school parking lots originally designed and documented. Once we received the

056base, we reduced it to three. So, based on the current conditions of the parking lots, one is Innovation Central and the other is Montessori. Both of those are going to have a new surface, and Congress Elementary is probably going to have the biggest impact because we're going to take the opportunity to create a place where parents can drop off and pick up students. It's quite difficult, but we're going to make it work. But we're very optimistic that this change is going to improve circulation for staff. Parents and students are hoping to return for the next phase at Congress to see if we can develop the same thing for buses. Because right now it's on the streets. We've had conversations with the city of Grand Ridge to see what other options we have. So when we

057are, we'll bring it to you. Future projects: Frost, Ken Hills, and Lion Street parking. We're waiting for that. There's a note in Ken Hill; we have a renovation project in Ken Hill, and we're starting to put all the numbers together, and we're hopeful that the budget we have will be able to support doing parking as well. At the center, the IC HS auditorium, we received the latest package, and we're in the process of evaluating it. We're having a meeting with the team this week, and we're trying to reconcile this type of work with the budget, and we're hopeful that in the next couple of weeks, we'll be able to identify and start construction. I know that package has been brought here for approval. Once we have that, we can move forward, and we're also trying

058to replace the seats, so it's going to be something very beautiful. Chavez Elementary, phase one, that's one of the ones we're looking at to see how much work we can do on the In the summer, one of the goals we want to achieve is to replace all the flooring in all the classrooms. The carpeting is in very bad condition, and we wouldn't want to have another school year with the same carpeting. So we're working hard, and we also want to improve all the outdoor play areas for the children. That's the design we have: barrier-free. So if you have the opportunity to go to Coit, you can look at the project we did last summer, and it's beautiful. The children loved it, and we're very proud of it. We also want to try to do the

059same here. The last school is Dickinson, and the emphasis this summer will be on the entrance, making it safe. So that's a priority for us. The architects are already working on the designs. So if you have any questions, I'll try my best. It seems that's all. Thank you. I'll wait until you tell me what's next. This is just a brief update on real estate. So Alex and L are continuing. Well, regarding real estate representation, the process, if we ask for a quote, it was basically out for three weeks, and we received four responses: Community Weal Partners, JLM, PL, Maren, and C. We're currently in the process of interviewing two different people, and we're going to do two this week. We want to be able to come back here with a recommendation for you in the

060next week or two so we can continue. We're going to talk a little bit about what Rub is, what we've asked you to use. Please, yes, in your application, we included this criterion. So everyone who applied to the companies had that information, and we included the value in each category. For example, experience in special projects would be like 30%. So, I can make this available. Well, this is on the website so you can look at it. If you want me to mention everything, Doctor, but that refers to people who are local, and that has been a policy of the committee, that it be someone local, and that they be local people in 5% of what is the decision they would make. Well, what is 30% experience? I have a question. How does that open up

061an opportunity for a person and a process? With that 30% process, because we want them to have some experience, but at the same time, that can make us look suspicious. How can we work with and look at that? I think we do business with the same people for the same reason, but how can we be more inclusive when it comes to that? Well, the 30%, I can share with you that 20-25% is how they get to the job, 20% is their involvement in the community, and 10% would be the final result and references they have. So I think if they take all of that into account, there are other opportunities for different companies as well, so they can also shine. Maybe the experience in one place isn't so much, but here in that other company,

062they have many strategies in the community. I don't know how we can change that. At this point, I'm available for suggestions. But from here on out, do you want us to look at that? I think we as a district can do it with the same vendors. And that 30%, I think if that's based purely on experience, and the opposite, if we do all their work, and if they They are capable of doing the work, so I'm just asking because I think it's important that we create the opportunity for them to be salespeople with us. We have a scale, and if we're always using the same ones, how can we move forward and try to bring in a small man and not just have the same ones all the time because we've already had the same

063ones? So don't use the big box, but use the small man as well. Thank you. I think those are good points. You mentioned that the RFP, that document you have, is available online. I 'm looking at it online, and that will be announced in January. So they haven't uploaded it to the website. Well, I think you have to scroll down a little bit, and it says "Work Ken and different schools." Maybe it's already closed. Maybe that's why. So I was trying to find that, but we can make that available so they can look at it, and we'll make sure they can. Excellent. Thank you very much. Well, thank you very much. That would be all. Well, we have the report now. So let's continue with action items. Let's talk about the purchasing agenda. Any questions?

064If there are no questions, we have a request to approve the agenda. Yes, everyone in favor? Say: I, I, anyone, no, no. Okay, then. Okay, so we're going to continue with the approval of the K-intermediate district and the school of choice. There's a motion... Excuse me, to agree with K-intermediate school. So, I support it. Everyone in favor, I mean, I don't disagree. Okay, let's move on to the committee phase. To support our immigrant families, I'd like to give each person on the committee some time to ask questions, to share what they feel. Oh, I want to do something new and let each member speak without comments from other members, and then we can discuss a little bit before taking a vote. I'm going to follow the order of business. Every time is different, but I'm

065going to start with Trusty Moreno. I'd like to go ahead and applaud everyone on the committee for creating the website to engage our families, and I want to acknowledge her work. Dr. L in communications, I've been notifying many people and telling them to go check out the great work she's done for our families. It's greatly appreciated. I know that the last committee meeting was very intense, but I appreciate the dialogue that took place, and I also want to mention José's work in the last few weeks and acknowledge that. I know it's a very important conversation. It's difficult to see the conversation and see how language can affect us. I'm not 100% saying that I can achieve something in terms of the attention we receive as a School District, but I know that we are all

066working as a team to ensure that we do our best for our students and the group. My job is to work with the policy. So I hope that what we can do with our partners and the committee members will go hand in hand with what moves forward and is bigger than just this group. And so I'm hopeful to work with Trusty Milton. Well, I would say the same as what he shared. So thank you so that we could meet with the ACU. What I want to note tonight is that we have received many comments from the public who want us to talk about something, but well, I'm going to talk about the policies. And so, the policies—we have policies for many things. Because I only have 3 minutes, we have different ways of talking about

067policies. For example, if they want to talk to us, we have policies for what they can do to volunteer, and they can volunteer at the school. And what are the policies? Rules, if possible, and it also talks about how we should encourage people to use our buildings. This is what you have to go there for. How much you have to pay. It also talks about receiving gifts, and where we have to do with that money. And students who are teachers, where they can use their services. Different agencies that do surveys and more. It's important that we have pools of our students, and we, the parents, have to give permission to talk to the children. So, in terms of who can talk to them, but it's not clear in this situation with immigration what to do

068despite all these policies. So, I want to let you know that it's not something we can do. We make a point of trying. What we're going to do is work together with our community. So, this shouldn't scare anyone. This is something we've done for decades. Don't think we're going to do anything different. The language will be in line with everything we've done for many years, and nothing has changed. And I encourage you. And there are many that I haven't mentioned. Oh, in the policy, on the page, sorry, of GRPS So the intention is to create a policy with the collaboration of our members in the community and also those who are working. So the easiest way is to give it to any legal officer who is going to arrive here first. That would be the

069best place for him to go. And the community is nervous, so you can know that this is not going to be something that happens in our offices and schools. So those two pieces... something has to be written down again, nothing crazy, but the intention of the committee, and two, what the procedure is. In my opinion, we should ask federal agents and law enforcement officers to come through the central office to train them on the paperwork so that what can happen, Mr. Rodriguez, I didn't try to... it sounded good, you know what, it was weird the last time we were around this table. A lot of this I want to say to the council, to the public: This is something I'm very passionate about: protecting our immigrant community, the refugees. It's something that in 2022 I

070campaigned on, and I was looking at this a lot. One of my goals... I appreciate the work and the conversations that have led us here. Yes, I think that... We're going to make a statement. I'd like to have something because we're going to put ourselves in some danger. Some hotspots. We want to make it clear to all the people who are going to create this. When I read it, it says, "Well, yes, we follow the law, but this is the commitment we're focused on." And that's fine. I think the work is more important than the statement itself. It's something I continue to talk about, and the resolution is a vehicle for... the work, for policy that's quite clear about what we do with the Department of Homeland Security. I agree with the... Mr. Milton, we

071need to direct the federal officers on the Franklin campus, where we have security, somewhere away from direct contact with the students. And I know this might not be a possibility in our schools, and I don't want to act as if it's never going to be a possibility because even an incident in our schools is going to be a tremendous shock to our community. So, other than that, I have nothing more to say. Yes, I appreciate the work of the Supervisory Board. I do n't think it requires a statement of commitment. So, I don't necessarily feel that I should support this to continue the work, although I do appreciate the work that has been done so far. And that's what I think. Thank you, Trusty Ray. No comments, Trusty Williams. Yes, one of my main concerns

072is putting a target on our district, and I'm not sure if the statement is good. Frankly, it's like the old one. I think the district has made a similar statement. So, I'm confused as to why the board should make a different one when they work under our direction. But the other part of what we have before us that concerns me is this board advocating when we say we're giving them the authority for others to create policy. That's our job. I'm concerned about this. I don't think it sets a good precedent. It's one thing to make a policy recommendation, and another to say, "We're going to give them the authority to create this policy." And for me, that's a problem. It goes in direct violation of what we were sent here to do. So I'm definitely

073open to refining, reviewing, and updating the recommendations. What I have a problem with is whether we're going to give other people the authority to do our work. So ultimately, if our council is supporting it, and this makes our families feel better, great. I want us to be intentional about the work. As I mentioned before, I do n't know if a statement will do anything, but I know that the work will, and that's what concerns me. One second, I want to start by saying that, in terms of priority, what we do as the District Council is intentional. The work we've been doing up to this point is directed toward that, working together to make this statement to create a council of advisors. Maybe it's not legal for us to advocate for this, but nevertheless, the council

074group—and you can change the language—is to make recommendations. We, as the council, can't act on this. This is a little separate from the purpose. From the discussion, I think it's a great thing for those points we made. At the beginning, to bring in people who are affected, the people who work in this space, to make recommendations. So, to move forward, it's something that's objectionable and it's going to keep families and students safe and sound. I think there's merit for us as a council to promote this. I'm proud that the district has been responsible. This is something unanticipated, unprecedented, but we can always move more quickly. Having said all this, I think it's appropriate and we should enact it. And there should be ongoing work and some cases moving more quickly. Right now, I ca n't

075get into the language. Maybe I could change some of the language. And for Trusty William's point, I think the statement has merit, and I think that as a counseling group, you can make recommendations. Thank you. I think the work I've seen all of us do is important, and I want to show my gratitude because you've made this decision quite quickly. I haven't been particularly happy to make a statement. Yes, I want to do the work, get together, have the conversations, and address the things that haven't been mentioned by the community. I want to see the results of these families and this community feeling safe. I'm not against the statement. I know other colleagues have mentioned that it may not be necessary, but I do want to continue working and not make decisions too quickly, but

076to protect the people who are here to protect Patrick. I want to echo much of what has been said and express gratitude to our superintendent and the other team members for putting this information out there urgently in a meaningful way. I also want to say that I am very grateful for the energy and time the council is putting not only into the statement but into creating this. I also want to say that clear communication is important; communication is our words and our behavior. So I think this will go well with the statement as well as the policy that will come after this. I think every additional gesture we make in terms of our behaviors and words is a reaffirmation of our commitment to the safety and well-being of our students, their inclusion, and strengthens the

077message that we believe everyone belongs here and that we are here with our most marginalized members. Thank you. I just want to say thank you to everyone for your thoughts. I think there was a little bit of each of you that was in tune with what I wanted to say. I think first of all, I am so proud of our District, I think we're dealing with this. We have a lot of communication thanks to Dr. Robi and her team, and also the staff training that has started. We have some things on the website responding. Although the pamphlet that came here in public commentary shows many of these things that we have already committed to, so I feel that a statement worries me a little. How could that possibly put us in a difficult position, especially

078listening to the update from the House of Representatives and how that's going to play out? What will the outcome be? Yes, I think that even though it's very repetitive of what has come out of the district outside of the counseling committee, I support everything the statement says, and if it benefits our community, even if it's against the district, I'm fine with that. My hope is that our council and our district won't put forward anything that isn't aligned with the council, and I think this points to the work that has already been done. And as for the counseling committee, Ms. William, I agree with you. I don't think any of us wanted that group to decide our policy, but rather to advise the council so that the council members can vote on what to put forward

079or recommend for their I vote, so we need to clean up the language. I would support this, and in line with what Merin said, we have a lot of power. The policies are there that are addressing all the issues. If we need a specific policy for this that is n't in another policy, or if we're reviewing and adding to the current one, we'll leave that to the counseling committee. Yes, regarding the statement, if there's anything else you want to have before seeking a motion, now would be the time for that. We're discussing that here. We have two versions. Which one are we focused on? They're not different; the wording is a little different. One is just a recent update with the update from the lawyers. We're focused on that one. Which one do you think

080you want to focus on? I think we should consider the language update. To consider this, if I can add something so that people know what we're talking about, on the 27th we made a draft of what a statement could look like, and we left the meeting because it was a first draft to send it for communication clarity, editing, and things like that, and also to ask our lawyers to put together a clean version and what their recommendations are regarding the impact. The District so they can consider. And that's what the white copy is. It's the clean, edited version of the 27th, and the orange one is the attorneys' version, legally by law. If that helps, well, Richard, I think that's fine. I think Trusty Williams is wanting us to just focus on what is the

081yellow copy we have here. Everyone in favor? Is no one disagreeing? Well, then, let's just look at this sheet, the new edition. Any comments? Yes, I think the comment that was made in what is the second part, grps, this is going to stay with this agreement. This agreement, this, we're going to have a committee. I think, well, before the word update, I mean, recommend the policies. Sorry, update, sorry, recommend what are the policies and the resources so that it's something clear and that there's nothing for errors or that the committee can consider. I just want to say, if anything, anyone? Yes, is anyone recording? Yes, yes. Well, yes, this update what are the policies and resources? Yes, yes. Anything else? Well, I'm still wanting to know about the part above that. Well, again, maybe it's

082appropriate. I think, well, do you think it's okay to recommend it? What is the procedure? Well, maybe " procedure" isn't the right word, but in the part where people can vote, if you're talking about the part where they go to security first, we can't just say, "No, we ca n't say this is what's going to happen." When we've already done training, I think it might be possible in that committee, but I think it would be part of talking with Dr. Rble and her colleagues to see what they think because ultimately they would be the ones who would tell us about that. Well, I also want to clarify the work of what's still missing: the advisory committee. One of the things we're trying to do is, like the policies, that can deal with what it talks

083about visitors, that we can look at, where there are parts where we're failing or where we need to qualify, and do it as a group, and look at what's around us to look at systems—well, excuse me, policies that maybe aren't very clear—to ensure that we're talking about those articles and what is the desire and the will of what has been shared, and that The group will then present those to the committee for a decision, whether it's up or down, and make that decision clearly to the committee and their recommendations. We're not asking them to create policies, but to review the policies we currently have and ensure they align with our current procedures. If you understand, if there's a violation, they might bring it to our attention. They'll notify us. Yes, that's what I understand. This

084group wants this because we do n't want to limit immigration unless necessary. That's why we're discussing resources. We need to keep in mind that there are six of one kind and another dozen of another, so we need to be clear about what we're doing, creating policies for any situation, even before we've been working nationally on all the changes. Visitors are important to our buildings, but we need these changes coming in 2025. So it's important that we review the policies and... It's a way that adjustments can be made to the current conditions. So, we need to keep in mind that we need to be flexible in what we do with these different new policies. I'm going to briefly share that being in DC with these other districts was something that really encouraged me: they are guiding

085the work of other districts and they are looking at the leadership that GRPS is taking with its policies, and I wanted to share that with you. Something else on that: Well, there's a motion to approve the committee to support and make these changes for immigrant families. I'm making the request, and everyone in favor? Say: I, I, anyone disagree? Well, then, we can continue. Let's continue with the policy. Let's discuss the policy. Everyone in favor? Any disagreements? Then we'll continue. Let's move forward with an announcement. Well, that's up to me. Well, I'm sorry. Well, then, on the topic of... I don't know if... Well, I put BPW in charge of that committee, and I also put Trusty Davis and Trusty Moreno on that committee. Dr. Rble is working... In getting a cabinet member to work on

086that committee, they're looking for building leaders and also community partners. So we're close to having someone, and we're going to work with Julie for an hour so we can get all these people together. So as soon as possible, I know we have a lot of work to do and we're eager to get started. March 4th is a Tuesday. We're going to have our first committee coffee that evening from 5:30 to 7:30. We have Trusty Morena, Trusty, me, and thank you. They're going to be from us. We're working on something, a casual place, you know, it's going to be the southeast side, and Luke is working on some places I mentioned. So we're waiting to hear. But I wanted to announce it today, but unfortunately I couldn't. But we're going to announce it on social media,

087maybe as early as tomorrow, I don't know. It would be from 5:30 to 7:30 on March 4th. And then I want to remind my colleagues if you can fill out the survey for our retreat. I'm also very eager for that retreat, so we can get to know each other better and grow this team. Also, take the online training; it's a lot of good information, and it helps us do our jobs better. Yes, you can watch those videos. And that would be all for me. Now, public comments. Does anyone have any comments? Well, we have John Vanden, who wants to see what the process is like before. The Trusty Rodriguez, uh... I'm sorry, I think we skipped that part. So maybe the basics. This is the second portion of our public comments. You have to fill

088out the card and speak specifically during that time. One person at a time is welcome. Before saying your comment, say your full name. And we're going to give each person 3 minutes. Note the clock there behind BPW. Committee members cannot make comments. We value your comments and thank you for sharing with us. Thank you. I also have a request to extend the meeting because we're already going past 9:30. Everyone in favor, not a single disagreement. Okay, okay, Morgan SM will be here right away. Okay, committee members, and Dr. Roby. My name is John and I'm a teacher at City High School. So I want to talk about myself and my colleagues and what the pay is currently. We GRPC are one of the ones who receive the pay The lowest in the area, so despite

089all the other districts paying 10% more than we do, we're at the lowest level. For example, I make $44,900, which is the same experience level as in Forest Hills, where teachers receive $9,000 a year, or $11,000 for more. Not many teachers come here for the money; many come to do the job, but we can't live on this amount. And the teachers at the highest level, who earn $ 85,000 a year, are typically 94% of what they earn in Forest Hills. So it's 10% more than in all the other schools. As I mentioned, teachers are already looking for other jobs, and the main reason is because we're paid less than the other districts in the area. If we want to keep good teachers here, we have to do something about the finances and teachers' salaries because

090what happens to the children daily is that if teachers are paid more, they won't be able to focus more on teaching our students, and they'll have to look for other jobs. Work or better pay should be respected so that we can feel good about the work we do. Our salaries are decreasing every year, and to try to get ahead, the GRPs should make some changes regarding the cost of living and working with the union to encourage teachers to come to the schools. They are leaving preparation programs in each location where they are graduating, where they should work, where they should graduate. So I think if they want to find this kind of talent, they should do something better with their salaries so that there is respect. Thank you. Good evening, Council Member. My name is

091Smith. I am here as a concerned mother about the amount of food provided at Grand Rapids Public School. My daughter's lunch was lost, and I had to find food to be sent to her so she would have something to eat. Instead of acknowledging this problem, the school's response was to focus on why food deliveries weren't allowed, not taking into account that the only reason that delivery was needed was because the school doesn't provide a healthy and equitable meal. First, Grand Rapids students say the district must provide nutritious and palatable food that meets students' nutritional requirements. USDA guides report this obligation by serving expired food, which is unacceptable and a violation of this policy. This is not an isolated incident; student dissatisfaction has been well-documented. And instead of addressing the problem, the district is making it

092harder for families like mine to do anything when the system fails. The Grand Rapids public school system cannot guarantee that the food is nutritious. Parents and family members should have the ability to intervene without restrictions, causing such a major disruption that they have to seek food at the office. I urge the board to take immediate action: Number one, investigate the quality of the food to ensure it complies with safety guidelines; number two, increase transparency by reporting mechanisms so that students and families can prioritize the well-being of students over rigid policies that limit access to healthy food. No parent should have to worry that He's being served a meal that isn't good. Grand Rapids needs to do better. Thanks, Andre. Followed by: Good evening, Jolin Andro. I'm a teacher. Believe me, the hardest part of making

093public comments isn't public speaking, but choosing the topic I want to make. Everything has changed this fall, and the staff hasn't been trained. So now I don't know what to do during rehearsals, nor what to do with the students. I hope there is n't an actual event. I must bring up again that nothing is being done about the children's attendance after school. So, on each day of class, I've only had one day when all the students have been present, and where have they ever been present? How difficult it is to pay... Additional work on the 108-minute contract. We have a new procedure: we have to fill out a form, put it online, and then fill it out again. We're not trained for the new procedure. I think we should use this opportunity to discuss how

094the district insults us and doesn't give us a necessary raise. Instead, the 1.5% increase doesn't cover anything. The district is looking for ways to spend money that haven't been approved, and how expensive these programs are! They're asking us to take a survey about new opportunities, and they told us we want more resilient students and more help. This is a problem that's already driving us crazy. We're going to save time. You know what educators need? More pay, fewer students, more follow-up, more adult planning time, as promised in the contract two and a half years ago. What does n't help is that they make you feel like it's your fault under these conditions. Again, no change from the district. You, as an educator, can work harder at your job, and if you don't feel supported, please collaborate

095with someone else. What time do you have? If you're struggling, ask more questions. We work in a district where asking questions can be retaliation, but when all these students are already... At the edge of the burning, something must change. Pay me, Montessori teacher. Every day I find myself asking my colleagues how I can support the school or how I can help it better than we are doing. Every day [Music] I see Mr. Brand giving instructional classes. Every day I see Mr. also helping the students who are struggling with the classes. Every day I see Mrs. Di progressing and saying what she has done well. Every day I see Mr. Ma sitting with the calm students. Every day I see Mrs. Kate making sure they have a healthy place. Every month I see Mrs. Ola doing

096her monthly planning, her acceptance courtesy queue, and looking at all the summaries from the past month. This means so much to them. We take all these pictures to celebrate these students, and they do it without any additional pay or extra time, and they leave after 11 hours. Every day I see these teachers, and I see that many times they are overwhelmed with everything they have to do during the day, and they are always putting on their best face for the students. I feel like they don't sleep last night. How are they going to help those students? What do they think? How are they going to be able to Leaving the classrooms if the worst happens. How are they going to pay their bills? Can they pay their rent? Do they have to move an hour

097out of town to cover those expenses? All this comes from just one school in District 11. I say this to ask you, what are these teachers working for? What is their value? They are the lowest paid in County 25, where they are located. They only see 44,017 because the superintendent received a 3% raise. Do you truly believe that's what we're worth? Federica Brown. Good afternoon, my name is Federica Brown, Director Robin, President, and members of the Council. I am here tonight to talk about some items. I want to draw your attention first to what I spoke about last month at the Council. That is anti- Blackness. Maybe you don't see it all, but it does exist. In my experience, I was acting as a parent organizer, and it affects me. Likewise, I wouldn't want any

098parent, no matter what race, to feel like they are not seen, like they are not heard. I have interpreted it, I have identified with it. We must ratify the rights and advice of parents. This must be done so that there is equity. Parental involvement in every district building, whether it's in a primary school or not, is crucial. We need a healthy culture now more than ever. Everyone should feel welcome and represented and share in leadership and decision-making. Secondly, we know there are executive mandates threatening our immigrant population by banning books that fail to acknowledge 400 years of repression, and it's more evident than ever. I ask the District what better steps can be taken to ensure our curriculum is accurate and based on truth. During my time here today, I want to acknowledge the Black

099parents working in the district who have used their voices, like my daughter Wal, an individual who has a daily impact on students, and Assistant Coordinator Dixon, who goes above and beyond to ensure all families have what they need to succeed. And finally, the students at Charmen Hill, where my son attends, Miss Jessica, who is always involved with the parents and present every day, I thank her for her dedication. These are just a few of the many professionals we have in the district who do it no matter the obstacles. As a mother, I thank them and the others, and I hope they know. That she is appreciated and valued. Thank you Francis Neville, then Leonora Pickett. Good evening Dr. Rob, council members, and especially to the new members Eric Davis K, Patrick Moreno Mr. My name

100is Francis Neville. I am a retired teacher. During my retirement, I completed my specialization. My exam is in accordance with the standards for TR and 4 years. It was published in October 1993 and was internationally recognized. I just completed the Staffer's Manual. I am coming out of retirement and have applied to districts and local schools, including GRPS. I applied in October for a position in Harrison as a substitute teacher, and the call on the website changed. The start date also changed. I called Al Romer for clarification, and she told me that the start date was incorrect and changed it to be determined. I also applied for Abdin, which was closed without an interview. Although I applied the same day it was posted, I wasn't given any recommendation to close my application without an interview. I

101was also interested in an opening as a principal, and Daisy Romer told me that I had already been recommended by the council. Then she asked me if I knew anyone on the council. No, and that's why. I called Dr. Roby. This suggests that this is a friends and family scheme to get someone hired. I called Daisy Romy, Chris Matt, and Chad Nelson asking for clarification regarding the job I applied for. My conversation with Matt said he would investigate why my application was closed without an interview. I gave him an email reminder because I had already called three weeks ago. I still haven't received a response from Matthew due to the multiple conversations I've had and the failure to communicate a clear message from the hiring team. This raises questions about the integrity of the employee

102system, from employees to students to teachers. Hello, my name is Lora Pickett, and I'm here with a complaint from Southwest. It seems we have a racial problem there. I had an appointment with the principal, and I also met with his boss, the lady on the education committee, because it seems we're not allowed to go to the office. When I went, I was one of the parents. I'm also upset. My daughter works for the district, and she can't even go into the office. Then he says that the The children are afraid of us, and that's the reason why we or the parents can't go to the office. So, from here, I need to make an appointment to go to the classroom. That's what they told me. So, I think the school has a policy that for

103any school, I could go to the office, sign in, and say the reason why I 'm here. So, I didn't have a problem going to the schools while I showed my ID. My granddaughter is there. We are involved parents; I've always been involved. So, I helped the school district. Any school my children were at, I was involved in their classroom. My daughter has also been an involved mother with her daughter. And she's not just any parent. The main one told my daughter that she's just a mom, that she couldn't go into the school. So, I feel... and I also had several parents who said they were treated the same way. Well, I remind you, on Friday, I went to pick up my granddaughter from school, and they allowed me to go into the school. And

104being inside the school, but the person told me... I said, "I want to do the right thing because I want the school to do the right thing with me." So, I said, "No, I have to..." Going to the office to sign, then there are so many things. My daughter was sick. Well, she had an accident at school, and the school, uh, didn't tell me. Her eye was bruised. The school didn't tell me, uh, they didn't tell me that her eye was bruised, and they say no, it wasn't like that. That wasn't the first time. I'll tell them. Thank you, Mrs. Peque. Thank you for the public comment. That's it. Comments are over now. So, congratulations again with this mlq. The schoolchildren, I'm always happy to see students who want to express themselves in different ways,

105through art, their written word, and their language, to be able to increase the work we are trying to do and how they can imagine the legacy of Dr. King. How to this day it continues to impact us. Now in 2025, when they do this with the things he did 60 years ago, how have we gotten to this point in 60 years as a nation, and also how far we haven't come. And I think it's important that we talk about that when we talk about reality and also how that manifests itself. So, I'm always very enthusiastic about having the voices of our young people speak in the world, like them. They look at it, and how we as adults can provide that space even when it feels maybe uncomfortable, and many of the conversations aren't comfortable.

106So I think we're trying to do our best to make the best of what we have, not for something written down or something for a resolution, but simply to make it something that's right. And I think we need this, even though we're in strange times in our community and in our nation, and the kids are watching how we're doing this, so I appreciate that as a reminder. We have our... Well, I say my first... I've been to the schools, and that's going to take place at Ara Hills for the rest of the week. We're thinking there's going to be some snow. So we're... to look at the work, the work we have to do and how we're going to accomplish it together. So we're going to mention those two things... well, comments. I'm going to

107continue on what is perhaps... to continue... Trusting Moreno... I just want to say something... to mention the students who were appointed today... to continue... to mention the voice of the students and in the work that we do. I think that's very successful, and I think Trustrick and I are committed to going and looking at their work. It's going to... It's been an adventure. I think I think more can follow us, and want to continue with my colleagues who are strong in this difficult time. They have inspired me, along with other leaders in our community and in the country who are working hard to make decisions. And I say, I want us to be aligned in the same way. So I am grateful to each of you for adopting the language of this agreement and the

108practices for engaging these sponsors in the community to look for things that may be difficult or different. Thank you, Trusty. Yes, we had a conference where I was able to listen to Dr. Roby speak. They did such a good job, and we were in the audience listening. And I want to say that I appreciate when our District takes care of us, which is the most important thing, but also how we do it with others. Thank you, Trusty Rodriguez. No comment, Trusty. Thank you all for staying here with us. I want to mention the nurses who work here. They are very valuable. I remember being a parent when my children were in school, and they would say, "I don't feel well," and I would tell them, " Go see the nurse," and she would say, "No,

109they're fine." So I am grateful to have those resources in the schools. So I want to mention the work they do and also congratulate MLQ. The winners of the contest and everyone who participated, and especially the teachers and colleagues who were also supporting that ministry, that program, is something we've been trying to do from the beginning in the district to break down barriers and engage students. Their work is amazing, it's so important, and I appreciate them coming out to talk about their program. And also to the Ara basketball team. Well, I was there on Friday, and I wasn't cheering for Ara because I don't usually do that, but I was cheering them on, and I was involved with the team in the game, and I was so excited. Those kids played so hard, and then

110they won. So congratulations to them and their coaches, and to everyone who was there with the winners from Ara Hills. Trusty Williams, no comment. Trusty Davis, I want to say thank you to everyone for taking the time to use their voice. I also want to mention the same thing in a comment, but much gratitude to everyone who comes here. You are always trying to advocate, and I have no further comments. We're finished.