001[music] >> Ah. >> [music] [music] >> I want to call this meeting to order. This time, please stand for the pledge. 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. Under provisions of the public meeting law of the state of Missouri, the board must adopt a roll call vote and agenda that includes the time, date, place, and tentative agenda for the meeting. A copy of the notice and agenda for this meeting was posted on Tuesday, April 7th, 2026 at the Administration Center located at 8855 Dunn Road, Hazelwood, Missouri online and sent to local newspapers. May I have a motion to adopt the agenda as posted? >> So moved. So moved. We had a
002so moved. I second. I'll second. Thank you. Call for the vote. Uh Dr. Graves? Yes. Mr. Tyson? Yes. Ms. Meazhery? Yes. Secretary Rose, yes. Dr. Martin? Yes. Um President after Dunn? Yes. Yes. There we go. We're now going to go into the Missouri School Board Association update. Okay, while we're waiting, what go ahead and um I'd like to do a recognition. The Ferguson-Florissant School District acknowledges with deep respect the passing of members of our school community during this school year. We extend it We extend our condolences to Ms. Susan Lyda in the loss of her father-in-law, Mr. Robert Bobby Lyda. Additionally, we recognize the tragic loss of a student student lives due to gun violence, including Norman Williams, a junior at McClure High School, and two students from University City School District during a district-sponsored
003event. We honor the lasting impact of each of these individuals made on our students, colleagues, and the in the broader community. Our thoughts remain with their families, friends, and all of those who were affected. We extend our sincere condolences during this difficult time. This time, could we stand for a moment of silence? Thank you. Welcome to the April edition of the Missouri School Boards Ass Sound's working. Welcome to the April edition the gate budget season, there are a lot of variables that are uncertain at the moment. MSBA Senior Director of School Finance, Linda Quinley, says that as boards begin work sessions and discussions, they should have this approach. One of the most important things we can be doing right now is thinking long-term financially. I believe with my whole heart that we're headed into the
004three toughest financial years we've seen in a very long time in Missouri related to funding. It's going to be about revenue challenges. So, we really encourage you to be looking long-term during the budget process, three, four, and five years out, so that you can make sure that your district is stable financially and safe and secure for as long as possible. Long-term thinking requires a look at revenue coming from federal, state, and local levels. I wanted to talk to you really specifically today about what's happening related to funding at and the local level, particularly um thinking long-term. We mentioned those local impacts going forward, those bills that have happened, new legislation this year, we don't know how that's going to come out. April elections, whether your levies pass or don't pass, we're seeing several Prop C
005elections, some debt service transfer elections out there, so good luck on those. I hope those have all passed maybe by the time you see this video. But also, we're seeing Prop C decline at the state level, the state adequacy target is declining, classroom trust fund is declining, and the federal allocations, remember last year they were late. In addition to being late, they were also stagnant. And what that means for us is if you've been paying 10 title teachers, 10 teachers on title in recent years, and you don't get an increase in that title funding, then the cost of their step on the salary schedule, the cost of their improvement for insurance, title's not covering it any longer, because it's the same money you had last year, but the teacher costs more than they did before.
006So, those dollars now have to be picked up locally. But let's take a peek at the state, because that's where the real challenge is right now. I've given you some history there on the three primary categories. I won't read those numbers to you across the top, but look forward down to the 25-26. Originally, for the state adequacy target this year, which is abbreviated there as SAT, again, we love our acronyms, the budget this year that the state produced said we were going to get $7145 was going to be the state adequacy target per per weighted average daily Now, they're saying that's only going to be 6964. So, we are almost $200 short this year, about $180 short this of what they told us last spring when budgets were established. Already, we have heard from DESE
007to expect that 6964 to drop to 6742 next year. That's another $220. So, we are consistently seeing that number decline. Linda had far too much important information to fit into this version of the Board Report. To see her full 8-minute presentation on the key things to know for budgeting this year and beyond, visit the MSBA website or the MSBA YouTube channel to see the extended Board Report. School finance is a complicated topic. Watch for the MSBA weekly and legislative voice newsletters for the most recent developments that affect districts and for information about upcoming webinars and other learning opportunities. Make plans now to attend MSBA Summer Summit June 14th through the 16th, which is back at the Lake of the Ozarks this year. Join school board members and leaders from across Missouri to learn about emerging
008trends and hot topics in education. Also, be sure your board is represented at the June Delegate Assembly to be held in conjunction with the Summer Summit. Delegates will be electing state officers for the coming year at that meeting. The summit concludes with a day of workshops on finance for new leaders, new board member training, and the board president's workshop. Registration information for the Summer Summit is posted on the MSBA website. And last, but certainly not least, if you were elected to your school board for the first time this month, welcome to school board service. Missouri law requires all school board members to receive 18 and 1/2 hours of training within their first 12 months of service. MSBA's new board member training fulfills this requirement and provides the foundation for becoming an effective board member. MSBA
009Director of Board Development Lisa Neider says that although that sounds like a lot of training, the leadership development team has worked to make it as convenient as possible. The training is broken into two parts. For phase one, you'll complete a series of online modules at your own pace on your own time. These modules are designed to increase your knowledge of important topics related to board service. In phase two, the remaining 8 hours of your training will be done live with other board members where you'll discuss and apply the information you learned online. You have the choice to do this in person at locations around the state or virtually over Zoom. Training topics include board operations, school finance, student achievement, school law, and more. Once you complete your training, you'll be certified and ready to serve
010your community effectively on the school board. Plus, you'll help your district fulfill an accreditation requirement. The training is free for all new board members. Check the MSBA website for a schedule of training opportunities along with registration information. That's it for this month. Thanks for allowing us to have some time at your board meeting and we'll see you in May for the next MSBA Board Report. patient at board meetings. The board allocates a portion of each meeting to allow stakeholders the opportunity to comment on agenda items. The board president will read aloud comments that have been submitted in advance. All written comments will be included in the board materials for this evening and may be viewed under public comments. The board may limit the number of comments read aloud based on length or repetition. The total
011time allocated for in-person public comments shall not exceed 30 minutes. Before the public comment period begins, in-person participants are asked to complete a comment card including their name, address, phone number, email address, and topic to be addressed. Speakers will be allowed up to 3 minutes to represent their to present their remarks. Individuals wishing to address the board are asked to speak from the podium, identify themselves and in keeping with policy B DDH1, and personnel law, refrain from making person- personally identifiable or negative comments about individuals. While the board will not directly respond to speakers during the public comments period, the board president may provide brief clarifying remarks at the end of the session to correct any misstatement of fact. Following the meeting, Dr. Fields will confer with leadership team with the leadership team of the
012Ferguson-Florissant School District and privately assign a staff member to respond to public comments. If a response has not been received within five business days, please contact Dr. Fields directly. And at this time, I have a couple of things. We do have a couple of requests that we are going to I'm going to to have to turn over to Dr. Fields. One, we are we cannot talk about the CBA. So, that will go to you. And also, we have someone who wrote something. It's anonymous. We don't do in Ferguson-Florissant School District. How are you? I didn't know I'd be here tonight. I would have worn my red, but I didn't know I'd be here tonight. I got a little red in my shirt. I'm Ryan Young. I've been teaching here in this district for 20-plus years.
013I was a PE teacher for 18 years. Um about 3 years ago, an opportunity came up within our district to head a new program at a middle school. I'll go ahead and identify the middle school, Ferguson Middle School. That's where I am. Those are my people. Um the class that they created was called is called sustainability and outdoor ed. And And I was ignorant as to what sustainability meant as well. Uh I'll just tell you real quick. It means take care of the planet. The planet, our mother Earth. And I'm here to speak for mother Earth. Uh that doesn't qualify me as a pagan or anything. Um I just care about our planet and our district and by the way, I've come up here and spoke This is the third time I've spoke on this
014topic. Every I come here about every 3 years and every time I feel obligated to speak for the planet cuz I don't think it's being covered. Well, I took this job. I left PE. I'm getting older and so it's not as easy to teach PE anymore. But sustainability is in my heart and I see a lot of waste in our district and it just really upsets me. I do lunch duty every day and they're serving food on Styrofoam trays which they need to go away. We need to have reusable items. We can put children make them more responsible, give them more skills towards life such as caring for things such as for appreciating what they get. I don't see much appreciation in our cafeteria. I see a lot of food being thrown away. I see
015single-use plastics which are the bane of any environmentalist. We We are in education. We need to be promoting how to care for the planet and we don't do that. We're not doing it. We can't say we're a green district. We might have Little Creek. That's great, but we need to do more. Our buses sit out in front. Their engines are always idling. How come they can't turn off their engines? Diesel smoke is carcinogen. I go on and on. I see waste. I see unorganized schools. I see closets full of books. Nobody knows what we're doing with the books. Sometimes I see televisions and and electronics thrown into the landfill dumpster. I mean I could keep going, but I'm not because I only got 10 seconds. But we need to start more programming and save the
016district money and I can help us get there if you give me the chance to talk. >> [music] >> Thank you. Thank you. I appreciate that. We have one other submission and I will read it and this is to be timed too. I'll read as fast as I can, but it's very very long. And this is from Nicholas Ebner. Dear members of the Board of Education, first, to our student rep Apriana, I'm proud of all of the amazing things that you're doing. Keep being so so great. Good evening. My name is Nick Ebner and I serve as the science department chair at McCluer High. I come before you tonight respectfully to raise two urgent matters that directly affect the quality and and equity of the education we provide to our students. One is air comp-
017I think this is fair compensation for our long-term permanent substitute teachers and the equitable distribution of certified teachers across the district. First, the compensation for permanent subs. I urge the board to consider reconsider the planned change in how individuals who are not certified, but serve as full-time teachers are compensated. These dedicated education educators will no longer receive a salary or benefits despite shouldering every responsibility of a full-time classroom teacher of record such as daily planning, grading, parent communication, attending meetings, and enduring um continuity of instruction for our students. Many of these permanent substitutes have served in their roles for numerous years and possess the experience and commitment of full-time teachers, yet they will now be comp- when they will now be compensated at the I think that's not not I'm going to read it like
018it says. They will now be compensated at the same rate as a daily substitute who walks in with virtually no ongoing responsibilities. We We must ask ourselves, why would any substitute choose to remain in these demanding year-long positions without salary or benefits? I ask that the district restore a year one teacher salary and benefits for the permanent substitutes who who commit to our students for the entire school year. These educators have proven their dedication and we need to re- reward that commitment. Second, the equitable distribution of certified teachers. Certified teachers are now one of the most limited resources in our district and we need to assess how we are allocating these resources. Certified teachers have become one of our district's most limited resources and we must examine how we allocate them. At McCluer High School,
019we're currently having only two certified science teachers. As a direct result, we can no longer have Project Lead the Way. We cannot guarantee a certified teacher for biology, a required end of course testing test its tested subject, and we have not offered courses like physics, a course expected for most college bound students in nearly a decade. When we compare these staffings across the three high schools, the disparity is striking. STEAM High School is fully staffed with >> [bell] >> I'm going to finish this sentence. STEAM High School is fully staffed with the same number of certified science teachers as McClure and North combined and while serving both serving roughly half as many students. And STEAM High also maintains roughly the same number of science FTE positions as McClure despite having roughly half the enrollment. And
020I'm sorry, I'll have to stop there. And We will definitely be receiving Uh-oh. a response. Okay, so we are going to go to our student rep at this time. Hello, Prianna. We're happy you're here. Is mom here tonight? Where is she? Right there. >> Oh, hi. How are you? I'm fine. Good evening, everyone. I am glad to be back once again at a meeting. And I don't have any concerns so far, but I would like to shout out for the seniors on class of 2026. I am happy that they're able to graduate, and I'm wishing the best for them after their graduation. And so also for reaching a hand reaching for a hand of support, we have senior grade principals all over this district. And this is a great time to support programs that help
021seniors as they prepare for graduation and a life outside of high school. And that's really it. Brilliant idea. Thank you for sharing. FFNEA Good evening. Board members, Dr. Fields, FFNEA educators, families, and community partners. Thank you for being here. We are in the final stage stretch, excuse me, of the school year. Our students and educators deserve to finish strong. But that requires an honest conversation tonight about the state of this partnership. This year, the administrators at the table told us directly the relationship between the board and FFNEA has to start from scratch. After 50 years. After every crisis we navigated together start from scratch. That choice, and it was a choice signals a disregard for the trust, history, and agreements that hold this district together. Rebuilding trust takes time we don't have right now. Time
022that belongs to who? Our students. The board dedicated abrogate our agreement and start over directly violates Article 3 Section 2 of our collective bargaining agreement which requires any new contract to be built on what we already agreed to. Let that sink in for a moment. They walked away because we insisted they follow the contract they signed. Why does FFNEA stand firm on this? Because that protection exists for a reason. It ensures educators can trust the process and that students have stability in their classrooms. Without it, every agreement we have ever reached can be wiped away at will. Article 3 Section 2 of the collective bargaining agreement provides that the successor agreement shall serve as the foundation for developing a new agreement. This provision exists to ensure stability and continuity. When the district chooses to ignore
023what it already agreed to it sends every educator and every parent a message the rules only apply when it is convenient. This is not paperwork. It is the conditions teachers work in, the stability students depend on, and the trust this community places in its schools. Walking away after three sessions when five were agreed upon was not a failed negotiation. It was a refusal to negotiate. Since 2022 four HR directors four CFOs three chiefs of staff four superintendents, two of them actively acting simultaneously and a former superintendent still on the district payroll today. Through every one of these changes two things held this district together. This board and the educators and staff of the Ferguson-Florissant National Education Association. We are the continuity. We are the anchor. For over 50 years, FFNEA educators and staff has shown
024up through budget cuts leadership changes, and a global pandemic because our students cannot afford for us not to. That is what a real partner looks like. Right now, that partnership is broken. And fixing it requires action, not acknowledgement. We cannot move forward divided. Our students did not cause this division. They should not inherit it. Trust is rebuilt by honoring your word. The agreement is in writing. Honor it. The time to It's my understanding It's my understanding that negotiations are still ongoing, so they are supposed to continue and not spill out to the board meeting. The one thing I want to say though as a new superintendent, and I've had a chance to be in many of you all's buildings, have conversations, and I want to say specifically for the record and for the public we
025are pro teacher we are pro union for all staff, certified and support we are pro CBA and I am pro telling the truth. That means the full truth. And so with that, willing to have a conversation with anyone, not shying away from that. But I want to be very clear, especially on the day that we are supposed to be celebrating, taking a step in the right direction as a full community. If things are not where they are supposed to be, that is what the process is for. But again, for those that are taking notes pro teacher, pro union for all staff pro CBA and pro telling the full truth. And so that conversation will continue. I trust that the board will be able to make any decision that they deem necessary. I do appreciate each
026and every one of you being here. I saw some of you today, but I want to make sure as the superintendent and one of the leaders in this district, we are very clear with respect to pro teacher pro union including all staff pro CBA and pro telling the full truth. Thank you. And I'll yield over to Anya Holman for the start of the superintendent update, and then I will proceed with the substantive component of the superintendent update. But I wanted to say something before she started. Please do. About last night. Oh, yeah, me. Thank you. Donna Paulette Thurman, we I just want to say thank thank you to the community for trusting us to do the job and to It is It is a pleasure to serve. This is time that we give to the
027community that we want to give back to the community. On our dime, on our time and we appreciate this. Don't take this for granted at all. Every vote to me is is personal. It is very personal. And I'm speaking for myself. I will allow the other two board members, if they would like to say something tonight, to do that if they want to. But I just wanted to make sure I took this time to say thank you to the community, to the to and especially to our young students who voted for the first time. Uh let's give them a round of applause because that >> [applause] >> that is so important Isn't that what we're supposed to be doing? Isn't that what we're supposed to be doing as leaders? Uh making sure that our students
028have the opportunity to take part in in our government. So if any of our board members, the new board members would like to say anything, you can at this time. I just want to say thank you, but more importantly, thank you for the community speaking out and supporting Prop S. That means more than re-election because certainly it's a sign in the faith of people and what they have in the district and the direction that Dr. Fields and the board's taking. And so certainly appreciate everyone who spent time spreading information, not how to vote, but to spread information. Certainly appreciate that and also the community support. I know we didn't know going into this where we would land, and 59% around is a great number that shows that people are willing to particularly in today's economy
029give up more money for a district to help people and we know we have a lot of people who are not necessarily have students in the district that are willing to help support because we know great schools equal great communities and great schools, great communities all come with great staff as well in size. So thank you for everyone and certainly prop S I think is I appreciate that more than a vote just because I think it shows that they support the district and as a home uh owner in the district certainly I want our property values to continue to go up and great schools do that. So thank you. Well I would be remiss. Uh they they mentioned a lot of things um that I agree with. I'm just it's nostalgic being in the seat
030uh being a former student um being a alum is just my my math teacher out there. Taught me algebra. Um but it's just nostalgic being here and being in this space. Uh there's really not much to be said. It's one of those things where I keep my head down. It's time to work um but it's working for our students. It's working for our teachers. It's working for our community and just thank you for letting me come back home and serve. I appreciate that. That means the world to me and I'm going to continue to go as hard as I possibly can because I'm home. This is my home. Thank you guys. And I I do also want to echo what Dr. Kevin M. Martin said which was going to be my next comment was thank
031you to the community for supporting the board and supporting our school district with prop S and there will be more to come. Uh I also want to say on behalf of the board I wanted to thank the team that worked so hard to to pull prop S off. So I would like to first of all start with our one employee. So I would like for us to give him a round of applause if we could standing and give him a to Dr. Fields. We could not have done this without your leadership. Yes. And I know that and I uh-oh and I know that he is going to recognize his team but he's our only employee so I had to start with him. Okay. I'll start it off with one of our all-stars uh Anya Coleman.
032>> [applause] >> All right. Thank you all. Good evening board members. I hate attention. >> [laughter] >> Good evening board members, Superintendent Dr. Fields and members of our community. Thanks for giving us a few moments to share some of the district's celebration and highlights. First we would like to recognize >> [music] >> um congratulations to Dr. Kevin M. Martin on his re-election to the St. Louis Community College Board of Trustees sub-district number one. He earned nearly 50% of the vote um and we appreciate his continued partnership and commitment to serving not only our district but to the North County community. So congratulations to Dr. Kevin M. Martin. >> [applause] >> Next we are proud to share that our director of Ferguson-Florissant Foundation for Education and Community Engagement, Dr. Ebony Shaw, has been elected as the
033new mayor for the CITY OF BERKELEY. >> [applause] >> SHE EARNED AN overwhelming 91% of the vote and it really speaks to the strong trust the community has placed in her leadership. We look forward to her service both within the district and in the broader community. So congratulations to Dr. Ebony Shaw. >> [applause] >> Next we want to congratulate Rebecca Lee from Halls Ferry Intermediate. [applause] She has been named the Ferguson-Florissant School District Teacher of the Year and we just really appreciate her impact that she makes and the difference that she continues to create in the lives of our students. So we are so proud to have Rebecca representing Ferguson-Florissant School District. So congratulations. And last but certainly not least we want to give a special thanks to the voters, staff, families and community of
034Ferguson-Florissant School District for supporting prop S. It passed last night with nearly 60% of the vote and we are thankful to our staff, families and community who worked so hard to educate voters about a tax levy, what it can do, what it is for and helping others understand the impact that it will have on our district. So thank you each of you for showing up, making your voices heard and supporting our schools. We are really really grateful um for the support of the community. Proposition S has been a labor of love for the last couple months. So we were happy to see it go over the finish line and it took a lot of people uh to make this happen and um and so we are so grateful and so thankful and very committed to
035uh being transparent and showing the impact that prop S will have on our school community. So thank you to everyone who participated. >> [applause] >> All right. Thank you. Good evening everyone. Um I have a fair amount of information I'm going to go through today um starting with here in a moment proposition S and then I will go into um some information related to um restructuring for an update. And so um before we get started I always want to make sure we center things with alignment. Since November I think it was when we had the state of the district address this notion of Ferg Forward has been introduced to the district. It followed the first 100 days and that level of alignment is something that you're seeing play out here today. As a reminder for
036the community um and everyone that is in attendance here today Ferg Forward is a commitment to immediate strategic steps that I will lead to help our district overcome current as well as existing challenges while simultaneously making sure that all learners graduate believing that anything is possible and prepared to realize those possibilities. Now those three areas I won't go into all of which but it was to create a new future together, expand community partnerships with intentionality and to maximize every resource for learning. Now as it relates to proposition S um I know we're being modest but last night was a big deal. It was a big deal because we have our our board members back. It was a big deal in a lot of regard because it was the culminating event of a lot of work
037and coordination. To quote a superintendent passing any type of referendum is one of the most difficult things there is to do. So much so that it had been over 10 years in which our district had an opportunity to do so. And so before I go into some of the prepared remarks I don't want to miss out on that notion. Last night was a big deal. Today is a big deal and a major step in the right direction for the Ferguson-Florissant School District. And so with that I do want to begin this portion of the comments with two simple words. Thank you. With the passing of proposition S last night our our community has take a substantial step forward. This is the first voter approved operating tax rate increase since 2014 and it appears to be
038only the second since the 1990s. That matters. But what matters even more is how we were able to get to this particular point. When I came back home to North St. Louis County and began my tenure as superintendent nine months ago it became evident very quickly from the students, the staff and the community members that I had a pleasure of speaking with that we were ready. Ready to lock arms. Ready to restore what makes this place special. Ready to do the hard work of rebuilding trust, strengthening our schools and reminding ourselves of exactly who we are in Ferguson-Florissant. Proposition S did not pass by accident. Nor did it pass by luck. It passed because we listened and we responded. We listened to the community. We listened to the challenges that we currently have. We held
039ourselves to a higher standard. We did not ask people to simply believe in a catchy slogan but to believe in a district committed to honesty, transparency, and accountability. I want to thank every single person that helped canvas. Every single person who knocked on doors, who made phone calls, talked to neighbors, attended meetings. We were so lucky that we had not only our teacher of the year, but I'm convinced Missouri's teacher of the year to join some of those meetings. We had a pleasure of being able to share information. We had a pleasure of being able to respond to difficult questions that were asked. There was critiques of past decisions. And we stood up publicly for our district. Your work matters. Your belief matters. And your willingness to invest your time and your energy into an
040effort made the real difference. I also want to take an opportunity to thank people who, frankly, don't like attention, but they have to receive the recognitions in moments like this. That being our building, our district, and our department leaders. You embraced the responsibility of informing our community. You answered difficult questions with honesty. You stayed present. You communicated with care. You helped our families and staff understand not just what proposition S was, but why it mattered. You represented this district with integrity, and I am truly grateful for that. To the communication department. Where is Anya? She I know she left cuz she doesn't like attention. >> she is she is up top. To the communication department under Ms. Holloman's leadership, your hard work, your framing of our story, your holding the media accountable to make sure
041they report on accurate things happening in the in the district, your humility, and your steadfast approach and commitment was absolutely fantastic. From the start, >> [applause] >> from the start, you took proposition S and never looked back. Most people don't see the hours you put in to make sure the details are spot-on. I do not believe we could have gone from what we went through as a district last year to passing an operating levy in less than a year without you. And to the Board of Education, thank you. You are a major reason why I continue to use the hashtag dreamjob, and I really use that hashtag. You trust the work that is being done. You hold high expectations. And at the same time, you allow me to lead authentically as [snorts] anyone could ever
042ask. That combination matters personally to me. Trust and accountability together creates the kind of environment where leadership can continue to do the work, partnering with all of our community partners to ensure success is not something that happens only periodically, but it becomes the standard. I do not take you or your work for granted because this is not the norm in many other places. And in closing, I want to make this next statement crystal clear. Tonight is not a victory lap. Tonight is a reminder of the responsibility we collectively have to serve the students and the staff in this community. Tonight, we move forward, but we do so with gratitude must be honored in order to keep it. So, tonight, to our entire school district community, I do mean everyone. I thank you. Thank you for
043believing in the Ferguson-Florissant School District, and thank you for believing that it is still worth investing in fighting for. You have been provided an opportunity for us to continue to do the work, and in other words, we say that your trust has been given to us, and it is our responsibility achievement for students. It was to increase fiscal efficiency. It was to expand early education. It was to reconfigure grade spans to support transitions. It was to transform high schools to prepare students for future success. The current grade configuration that you will see on the screen, the 2018 grade restructuring was approved in October of 2018, and the implementation began to start the 19-20 school year. Given that we are a district with declining enrollment, we can no longer assume a highly transitional model remains the
044most efficient or most educationally sound design. Students are currently required to transition after grades 2, grade 5, grade 6, and grade 8. Multiple data points support the necessity to at least review the current grade configuration in the Ferguson-Florissant School District. I will provide you with many of those data points. The first of which looks at our declining enrollment. Since the 16-17 school year, we have lost 1,877 students, or 18.3%. Since the 18-19 school year, the district has lost 1,307 students, or 13.5%. Our enrollment is expected to fall an additional 355 residential students from this year to the 2030-2031 school year. Non-residential enrollment fell from 478 in 18-19 school year to 180 for the 25-26 school year, and 94 by the 2030-2031 using the mid-series projections. As we look at the enrollment decline by grade span
045or band, you will see that K-5 enrollment declined from 4,242 students to the 3,751 in the 18-19 school year, and it is projected to hit 3,684 by the 30-31 school year. Grades 6-8 enrollment has declined from 2,190 students to 1,811 with the projection of 1,879 by the 2030-2031 school year. High school enrollment falls from the 2,768 to the 2,357 from 18-19 to the 30-31 window. As we look at the financial impact, and there certainly has been an impact, you will see that the average unrestricted fund balance from 2010 until the restructuring, on average, was about 17.7%. Since the restructuring, it has dropped to, on average, 15.1%, and it is lower than that right now. As we continue with the financial impact, since the restructuring, four out of the six years, there have been deficit spending.
046When you look at the prior eight years, there were three, although one was roughly around $5,000 or so. As we continue with the financial impact, and this is a point that I want to make sure that we know exactly what we're looking at. Fund 11, you are seeing and that shows a going from 40 plus million dollars to 73 plus million dollars since the implementation of the um restructuring. You will see that the transportation department in to 20.9 million dollars, or 91.8%. You will see that classified {slash} support payroll plus benefits rose from 30 million dollars to 43.5 million dollars. And again, because this is specific to fund 11, this is not certified in as it relates to salaries and benefits. This would be classified or support staff. Back in the fall of 2025, the
047data was presented to the community. It was one of the first opportunities I had to present on that particular level and there was data showed from before. I believe it was the 6 years before the actual restructure and the 6 years after. You can look on the board docs, I believe, in August to check that report out. But we also took a survey from those who were both attending the actual town hall as well as those who did not get a chance to attend. And so the data that I will show you now are the feedback from those individuals. You will see the percentage with parent and guardian, followed by student, followed by staff member, which makes up the most or 53.9% and then the community. A question was asked that after reviewing the pre
048and post uh restructuring data, to what extent do you feel the restructuring has improved learning and achievement for students? You will see 43.3% stated or surveyed that it did not. That same community um survey, you will see that based on the financial data that was um provided at that community meeting, which was fund balances, expenditures, cost categories, do you believe that restructuring has increased fiscal efficiency in the district? You will see 51.9% stated no. Do you believe restructuring has expanded access to early education for families in the district? You will see that 34.6% said no noticeable change and 20.7% stated decline, although there is 26.5% that stated somewhat but limited. That same community survey, and this is the last chart that I will show from a community survey perspective, the question was just asked, to
049what degree do you think the reconfigured grade spans of pre-K through 2, 3 through 5, 6 grade center, 7 8, and then high schools have supported smoother transitions? You will see that the overwhelming majority, 36.9%, are on the side of no smoother transition with about 14.8% that are at a two and you will see about 12.2% that stated that the restructuring did, in fact, lead to smoother transitions. Out of all of the slides, this is the most important one as far as I'm concerned. We are celebrating tonight the passing of Proposition S. We understand that we have a lot of work to do and we are up for that task. But the absolute last thing I want to do is put the board, the community, our staff, and our students in the position where history
050repeats itself. For those of us who have shown up to many of the town halls, you will see that or you had a chance to see that the district did reach a low point in terms of fund balance in 2013. There was a passing of Proposition S, a 50 cent operating tax levy increase in 2014. And so on the screen, what you will see, that fund balance dipped right above 20% right in about 2016. And then the numbers continued to go down. You will see the two lines that are there as well as the projection. And the red line is critical because it's a hypothetical example of what the model shows if we did not receive federal funds. We received ARRA funds back in 2012, 13, etc. for a few years. And we received ESSER
051and COVID funds and they have at least stopped. And so what the model shows you essentially is that if we keep things exactly the way that they are, even with the passing of Proposition S, we would go up and in 2027, we may even feel like we're headed in the right direction. But the history has shown us, at least on two occasions looking back over the last 15 years, that if we keep things the same, we would be back in this same or at least a similar situation based off the model by 2030. And so wanting to avoid that, these are the recommendations that I have, Board of Education. There are no action pieces here and you'll see why momentarily. Number one, starting the 27-28 school year, that is not a typo. Starting the 27-28
052school year, the recommendation is elimination of the current five transition structure within the school district. The recommendation is that consolidation and/or reopening of sites that takes into account current and projected enrollment as well as building maintenance costs. The recommendation is that at the April the 22nd reorganization meeting, which I will also call special board meeting, I will share the next phase of this recommendation including how each location will be impacted. And last but certainly not least, the recommendation of continuous meetings and conversations with staff, students, leaders, community will continue. I state continue, I have been having conversations with principals and scheduled to meet with buildings. I do not want any building to have to tune into the board meeting for them to find out what the recommendation will be for 27-28. I believe that is
053the right thing to do and as we continue to work and strengthen relationships, it appears to be the peace that we need most importantly right now. And so Board of Education, as we move forward with Ferg Florissant, you have seen the critical alignment from the 100-day plan to the state of the district address from Ferg Florissant and because of the community and because of you all, the passing of Proposition S. I'm excited even though it may not look like it, but we do have a lot of work to do and it is my duty to make sure we do not end up in a similar position 5 to 6 years from now. And so with that, Madam President, I will yield over to you for any questions as it pertains to either Proposition S or
054the final transition update. Thank you for your thorough report. And again, thank you to all the key people who played a part in uh pulling that report together and also Prop S. Any Are there any comments, questions on this end? Any over here? Okay. Thank you so much. Thank you. As we transition, I do want to make one other uh recognition. I would like to recognize the new, the honorable Dr. Ebony Shaw, who was elected. Did she leave? Ah, I wanted to catch her. To to recognize her as becoming the new mayor of Berkeley. Did y'all Oh. You all stole my thunder? Okay. Well, as long as she got recognized. Okay. We will go into the consent agenda. The items listed under the consent agenda are have gone undergone board subcommittee review and documentation concerning
055these items have been provided to all board members and to the public in advance to assure a thorough review. The consent agenda is voted up on in its entirety and any board member who may Any board member may ask to have any item on the consent agenda removed to be voted on separately. We had nothing removed from the consent agenda. Uh so may I have a motion to approve the consent agenda as presented? So moved. Second. All in favor. I All in favor? I. Any opposed? Okay. This part Oh, hi. Hello. Go right ahead. Okay. >> We are ready for you. Mr. Chance. All right. Okay. All right. Good evening, Board of Education, Dr. Fields, administration, and community members. Tonight I will be presenting the disbursement report for the month of February 2026. The mission
056of the Ferguson-Florissant School District is to provide high-quality instruction to every student in every neighborhood while prioritizing equity and compassionate relationships. The vision of Ferguson-Florissant School District is for all learners to graduate believing that anything is possible and prepared to realize those possibilities. Uh for the month of February 2026, payroll was $8,766,718.98. Operational disbursements were $2,985,806.19, which gives total monthly expense of $11,752,525.17. These are the descriptions for the four funds used in the budgetary process. Okay. Revenue totals by fund, uh current revenue for the month of February is $114,974,279, which represents 77 76% of overall collections. You'll notice in the capital fund that there's uh uh 121% collected. That's essentially due to the district receiving more than budgeted for M&M surtax and also for state assessed revenue, uh railroad and utilities in that particular category.
057This graph shows the actual revenue to date compared with the budget by fund. There we go. Okay. Expenditure totals, uh year-to-date expense is $93,053,638. The available budget is $64,290,057, which represents 59.1% thus far. This graph compares the budget by fund, the actual expenditures to date, and the available budget. Uh these are the descriptions of the six object categories used in the budgetary process. Salaries for the month of February 2026, uh year-to-date $49,000,000, $426,934, and available budget of $39,988,417, which represents 55% of the budget. For benefits, year-to-date expense is $18,042,835, with the available budget of $12,000,000, $542,562, which represents 59% of the budget. Purchase services, uh year-to-date is $12,888,730, with an available budget of $2,955,612, which represents 81% of the budget used. So, uh that percentage might seem a little bit higher than the rest of
058the categories thus far. Um a lot of that pertains to uh homeless transportation that we have paid for this year. However, however, um there are uh district the district is receiving funds um from other districts uh to pay for those uh homeless services that we're providing as well. And also, there will be a set aside of federal funds that will offset some of these costs as well. In addition, uh there's included expenditures for our electric buses, although we do have a federal grant on the revenue side that will be paying for those. And also, there's maintenance uh purchases and repairs that are ongoing throughout the district that's in this particular uh category of purchase services. Uh supplies, year-to-date $5,452,125, with an available budget of $3,327,074, which represents 62% of the budget. Capital outlay, $2,107,751 year-to-date,
059uh available budget of $2,962,748, which represents 42% of the budget. Long and short-term debt, year-to-date $5,135,263, with an available budget of 2. uh $2,513,642, which is 67% of that budget. Through February, tax disbursements from St. Louis County are running ahead of last year by approximately $6.3 million. And that is the financial report for February. This is for board action, correct? Yes. Someone left. May I have a motion to accept the report? Second. Discussion? Do you have any questions on this end? No. I have a Sorry, I have a question. So, while looking into the pre preliminary budget with Holly Moore, I had a question for you, Mr. Chance. My question is regarding what items are included in the other expense line, and I was also wondering as well is I'd like to ask if it's
060possible for some of the funds be redirected into capital projects. I'd have to look specifically into what other items are in the category, but it's generally those things that don't fit into the other expense categories. But, I can I can clarify that. Um as far as transfers, um that is something that we look at at the end of the year. So, we need to examine what the expenditures are for all of the budgeted items that are um in the budget, and then if there are things that happen to be over, then we have to look at what other categories might have surpluses in them. So, uh with any budget, um if you are over budget in one, it has to come from somewhere else. So, we have to re-examine and see if there's something that
061has a a positive variance, and then we would be able to make a transfer from there. Okay, thank you, sir. I just wanted more clarity because many students have raised concerns about the conditions of the bathrooms, water fountains, or even the tiles in the schools. So, since capital projects are meant for fixing and improving physical damages or spaces, that's why I asked if maybe you or the board could look deeper at how the funds can be used to directly directly improve students' everyday life. Yeah, we won't have to make transfers for those. We we have a budget available. Um however, we have a a staff that is in our maintenance department that's a little bit short at this particular time. So, we are getting to those projects as best we can. Okay, thank you, sir.
062>> Sure. I'm just so proud of her. Thank you for those questions. Um uh we had talked a little bit before, and I I wanted to I really wanted to hear your questions, and I I know you wanted to have an opportunity to talk to Mr. Chance. But, what I would like to know is, Mr. Chance, is there a time that you can sit down with Prianna and maybe go through some of this some of this budget information so that she can see it and you know, kind of understand it a little bit more. Would you be willing to do that? Yes, ma'am. Certainly, that'd be great. So, I'll leave it up to the two of you to do that, and I'll check and make sure that you have an opportunity to do that. Dr.
063Fields, and you'll help him to Absolutely. >> Thank you so much. Appreciate that. She's taking this job very seriously, and we appreciate that. Okay, I think that if we have nothing else, then we can call for the vote. Dr. Martin? Yes. Ms. Mazur? Yes. Dr. Graves? Yes. Ms. Tyson? Yes. Secretary of the Board, Ms. Voisey? President, Madam Doctor Thurman? All of that, yes. Yes. Okay, at this time, is there any new business? Any new business? Seeing none, may I have a motion to adjourn into closed. Second. Okay. Ms. Tyson? Yes. Secretary Robles, yes. Ms. Mazeray? Yes. Dr. Graves? Yes. Yes. Dr. Morton? Yes. And Madam President. Yes, thank you. And thank you, community. Again, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We appreciate you.