001e e e good afternoon today is Tuesday June the 11th 2024 and we want to welcome all of you to the school board meeting for valua County in just just a moment I'm going to ask that you stand to join us for the Pledge of Allegiance which will be by the students at Heritage Middle School followed by the national anthem which is staff at mcginness elementary following the Pledge of Allegiance and national anthem I ask that you remain standing for a moment of silence and reflection so at this time please stand to join me for the pledge and the national anthem good afternoon everyone I'm neck fance the proud principal of Heritage Middle School and this is Mrs Bartholomew's class who's going to lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance I pledge aliance to the
002flag the United States of America and to the for it stands one nation under God indivisible with liy and justice for all hi my name is T Thomas on music teacher mckinness [Music] Elementary oh say can you see by the da early light what so proudly we hailed at the Twilight last heing who SC stripes and bright stars through the perous fight for the rites we watched were so gly streaming and the rocket red GL the bombs bursting in air gave Pro through the night that our flag was still there oh s us that let Star Spangled Ander yet wave for the land of the free and the home of the bra thank you you may be seated we want to welcome those of you that are here in the boardroom with us along with
003anyone out in the Overflow area and individuals that are listening at home or will be watching this at a later time at this time I'd like to introduce those that are here with me at the front on my far left I have Mr Mr Carl persus representing District 4 then I have Mrs Jesse Thompson representing District three followed by Mr Aron wolf our Schoolboard attorney over on my far right we have Mrs Celeste Gilmore our agency clerk followed by Mr rben clone representing District 5 then Mrs Anita Bernett our vice chair representing District Two then our wonderful superintendent Dr Carmen Balaban and I'm Jamie Haynes the chair this year representing District One items for approval on this agenda are items 1 point 1.03 2.02 5.01 20.01 20.02 and 20.3 later in the evening we will
004have public participation times we offer public participation times for items on the consent agenda also at 6: PM or slightly after for items of general interest pertaining to public education in Valia County with a total of up to 15 minutes will be provided for public comment at that time time will also be provided for public comment on any action item before a board vote is called on that item time is also provided at the end of the meeting for public comment for items of general interest pertaining to public education in valuch County before items from the board superintendent or attorney are up for discussion or announcement each speaker will have a total of three minutes to speak please respect the time clock during public input no signs placards or other visual forms of communication are
005authorized except as a part of an individual speaker's presentation speakers shall not engage in personal attacks abusive language or other conduct which interferes with the meeting as a chair I have the right to terminate any speaker's privilege to address the board if this rule is violated members of the audience should be courteous to all speakers and shall refrain from making audible comments or applauding or any other signs during the meeting however we start off each um board meeting with our recognitions and that's what all of you are here for so when we announce the recognitions we encourage you please to clap and cheer for the people that are being recognized item 1.02 our district vision statement and board member comments we are here to create lifelong Learners prepared for an everchanging Global Society at this
006time I invite my fellow board members to share anything that they would like to share since that has gone on since the last board meeting Mr perses uh thank you madam chair I just wanted to say I look forward to recognizing all of these wonderful students that we have out here in the audience and I know they're they're here with their proud parents and friends and Guardians and we look forward to that and also to con congratulate our our new uh principles and other administratives uh administrators who are going to get promoted this evening so it's going to be a good night yes it is Mrs Bernett thank you um I just um again yes welcome all for coming here as Mr persus said but um I got to um to have my Two Worlds
007Collide the other day or last week with the project graduation that was held at Halifax Medical Center for those students and um that is such a such a great project the the the students that participate in that program they feel like they have a purpose they have a job and there's a path for them and I think it's very important and not all them are going to work at Halifax they have other jobs out in the community but um so great gracious to all those companies that help find roles for students in um in our project search but it's always a great um experience to watch them and their families be so excited to to get to participate in that so thank you thank you Mrs Thompson thank you madam chair and thank you to
008everyone who's out here especially you students that are taking time from your wonderful Summers to come be here thank you so much I can't wait to see and hear everything that you all have done um I also was at the project search graduation and thank you to Halifax and everyone who put that together because if that's one of those graduations that just pulls at your heartstrings and one of the young young men who graduated works at the Beachside Publix in new samna so I see him now and uh it's just really cool to see them I also wanted to thank all of the schools the elementary schools that did the clap outs for all of our seniors who graduated it was so cool and I know that the elementary students loved it just as much
009as the seniors if not more seen all those older kids coming through in their capping gowns so just thank you to everyone who put together all those ceremonies as well as those end of the year ceremonies I know it's extra work and it took the community and PT principles and teachers and everyone involved but uh speaking as a mom I I know it means so much and those are memories are going to cherish forever so thank you everyone Mr cologne I won't speak much about the admin Institute I'm sure but a lot of people are under the impression that when school lets out everything stops and the reality is that it uh keeps going uh sometimes a little faster because we're getting ready for the next school year but I do want to recognize uh
010some schools that were uh given early recognition as the data is starting to pour in uh specifically uh and so Delona middle was recognized and so that was uh awesome work on their part as well as Delona high and pineridge now there were others mentioned I'm sure Dr B has it in her list if you don't I'd be more than happy to read them uh but I was really really proud of the work that you know our our teachers our uh parents our students uh have done to bring us this year to you know they they they've teased us several times in saying that uh the results that we're seeing are are just amazing and we haven't seen the results just yet but um again thanks to everyone and everyone who's helped to not only
011bring uh the the school year to an end but the custodians who are working on our classrooms even now and I didn't realize it until one of my uh own family members is working as a custodian and I realized you know the hard work that they do Flipping from 3:30 to 11:00 at night to 700 a.m. for 10 hours that's that's quite the flip uh and so again I just want to send a shout out to all those folks that are getting our schools ready so our students can return in the fall so thank you so I'd like to add um just a few other things but I do want to say something about project search um yes we were at Halifax Hospital for that graduation again this year and for doors at their Port
012Orange site their Daytona site and their Deltona site and they bring these young ladies and gentlemen in and they train them throughout the year in three different areas or departments at the hospital and in that training they prepare them to be able to get a job and there is nothing greater than to sit in a room and listen to these young ladies and young men say I learned this this year and I already have a job and here's here's where I'm already working especially when one or two of them say and I've already gotten my first paycheck and I've heard from parents each year after we hold this graduation that they said I didn't know if my child would ever have the opportunity to do that and it's just a wonderful opportunity so if you're
013listening and you have a student in high school that you're wondering well what's going to happen when they finish high school and they fall into any of those categories I would encourage you to reach out and see if your child would call qualify for project search and get them hooked up with one of our Halifax sites so that they can have that opportunity because every child deserves an opportunity and when they are excited about what they've learned and they get they get jobs everywhere like there was a young man last year his goal was to get a job at Panera and he did he got that job at Panera there's just nothing better because every student is valuable and we want every one of them to feel the value and be able to be a
014productive citizen but then also um since we were here last time I'm going to give a shout out for another group that is located here on the West side of the county that I don't think a lot of our families know about but kellyanne marks who sits on the Orange City um commission she runs backpack for backpack buddies and what she and a whole team of volunteers do is every week they pack backpacks of food that go home with our students on the weekend so that they're sure to have meals over the weekend but what she does every year is at the end of the school year and I will tell you we were all a little tired 15 graduations and she reached out and I said I will be there um on Saturday June
0151st right a school finished in Orange City at the veterans um Park she put on an entire schools out party and it was free for all families to come to and at the same time kids got booked for free they played games and got prizes for free they had snow cones and hot dogs and popcorn and you know all that fun stuff that kids love to eat but there were bounce houses and water slides and I will tell you after five hours of kind of being out there in the Sun that day I think that I was wiped out at that point but the excitement on the kids faces was wonderful so if you've never heard about it and you want to be you want to help in some way they're always looking for ways
016to help or if you know you can just say hey I'll volun when school starts back and I'll help pack the backpacks you know one week to go home with the kids I know she would love and the help but the other thing that we did and several of us participated in is we went and got on a bus and uh you know I'd like to say at my age I'm finished with riding school buses but we're not we went and got on a bus and um we spent the day driving around valuch County and surprising seen support staff members and the elementary principal of the year and the secondary principal of the year and I just want to share every one of them is so deserving that was honored that day and we went
017and surprised them but our schoolway Cafe manager at Citrus Grove Elementary here in Dand she was one of the support staff members she was a school-based support staff member for this year and her name is Robin nesto and what people don't know about Robin is she gives of her heart every day to those kids and you know so many of our school Way Cafe people they show up every day to ensure that our children are fed and that is so important but during um the pandemic time Robin herself was battling cancer but she was one of the first schools to open up to serve meals during that time to make sure that children had food so she didn't tell everybody what she was going through but she made sure that the kids were fed and
018so it was an honor um just a week ago to be able to go to Citrus Grove and surprise her and honor her for everything she does for our students but those are the kinds of things we like and that's why we're excited to see all of you here this evening because the highlight of what we do is being able to honor students staff and community members for the things that you you do every day and so we are excited that you're all here so thank you for being here at this time we're moving on to item 1.03 approval of the minutes so board members you've had a chance to look at the minutes from the last um Schoolboard meeting I need someone to make a motion and a second move approval of the minutes
019Madam chair thank you Mr persus I'll second that motion thank you Mrs Thompson any discussion then I'll call for the vote all those in favor please say I I I any opposed it passes unanimously now we are at item 2.01 agenda changes Dr balaman are there any agenda changes before the agenda is presented to the board for approval Madam chair I have no changes thank you board members I need a motion and a Madam chair there's two uh items I'd like to have removed for the agenda for further investigation 16.05 and 16.06 16.05 is the reclaim water connection project for Heritage and 16.06 is the reclaim water connection project for uh pineridge this will come back at a later date okay those are the under the agenda right agenda they're in the agenda so if
020we keep them off for now they're gone okay so you want which ones 16.05 16.06 so you don't want to have just a discussion on them you want them totally remov it's not ready yet h on thank you okay all right anything else from anyone all right so superintendent has no change Mr clone has suggested we remove items 16.05 and 16.06 off and those are under the consent agenda piece not on the main agenda okay so do I have someone that would like to make an approval motion to approve as amended do I have a second a second anyone have discussion I have something Mr clone they answered your question question about that and said that it was partially what we had to do for the St John's Water Management did you see that email
021I did I discussed it with staff and they were okay okay thank you all right then at this time I'll call for the vote all those in favor please say I I any opposed okay it passes unanimously now we are up to item 3.01 announcements by Dr Babin thank you madam chair board members members of the audience and those of you listen at home it is so nice to look out here and see our parents and our students and all with your smiling faces and I can see that our our students are excited our parents look a little bit tired because you are definitely on full Duty right now but um it's so nice to see all of you thank you for being here we are so excited to share with you that in Volusia
022County Public Schools we take great pride in providing quality educational experiences to our students and it's it I want to say thank you on behalf of our staff we have about 8,500 staff members and I want to say thank you for choosing vucha County Public Schools to be your Premier service provider for your students it's a job that we don't take lightly we're deeply committed to and I want you thank you for choosing us so thank you so very much to all of you all right so with that said I'm going to make my announcements very short this evening because we want to get into some recognitions and our kids our students are excited for that and so are our parents but I do have to share with you Madame chair to your point of
023our buz Brigade um I would like to extend we would like to extend our congratulations to Jack whiz Copeland who is a former principal of Southwestern uh Middle School um she's been appointed executive direct now for director for except exceptional student education she has been selected as the 2024 secondary principal of the year so congratul gratulations to miss copelan her parents her staff her community because you know it's your support that makes us who we are also bless you also Miss Angie polite Mrs Angelie Angela polite she is the principal of champion Elementary and she has been selected as the 2024 Elementary principal of the year so congratulations staff and community of um Champion also miss Karen tub she has been selected at student transportation services as the 2024 non-school-based support staff of the year
024so Karen thank you for showing up 4:30 5:30 in the morning and six o'clock every single day because the first point of contact for our students that are riding the bus it's that bus operator as you know and the staff that are in your bus so thank you for what you do for our students [Music] and last but not least you've said this beautifully I always say that this lady has a heart of gold miss Robin Nest miss Robin Nest she is the Citrus Grove element she is at Citrus Grove Elementary and she has been selected as the 2024 school-based support staff of the year um again thank you Miss net nest for everything that you do for your 900 plus students there at Citrus Grove and your 120 family members that you have thank
025you for your service so I do have a short video but I will show that right at the end I have two more announcements um you talked about this Mr colong and I would like to thank the board for being there Monday at our instructional Leadership Institute so boys and girls the same way you show up to school every day to learn right your administrators also in the summer they're actually not off like some of you might be partially off they show up to work and they're part of something called learning they take they're engaged and this year to be precise with you they have this entire week that they are attending an instructional Leadership Institute and that is they're looking at the school Improvement plan for their schools they're looking at our strategic plan
026and we're looking at what's next for VCS so all of these trainings have been designed specific specifically for the needs of our students and our administrators are engaging in those trainings thank you to to our tll division um Dr VA under your leadership and your entire team but also to many of our school-based administrators who have actively participated in the designing of these trainings and also facilitating these trainings I can't tell you about how your administrators are raving about learning so I expect our students to be raving about learning as well but they are ra ring and they're excited they can't wait to come back and serve you for the 2425 school year now on the June the 19th it's um vuia County School offices will be closed that's a Wednesday and that's in observation
027of jun 10th so let's take on this on June 19th we're celebrating freedom freedom for all and we know how important that is so um and last but not least I will never disappoint this audience I have a short video for you you ready we are going out on our annual bus Brigade we celebrate our principal of the year and our support staff of the Year nominees once again getting ready to surprise our malucha County families [Music] you have been selected as the support person of the year for 2024 for Bia County public I love my job I love my people I just love what I do I do and I have a check for $250 for you wow [Music] all of you are this lady's family here and she's dedicated 18 years to Bia
028County serving you know what when you make the heart happy that's the most important thing for the day right there I knew that every single day I tried mying lovingly Robin Nest C's gr of Elementary support staff of the Year 2024 for outstanding leadership and commitment to Excellence and education you are the epitome of e commitment to Excellence you have no idea how much time she devotes to make sure children are fed and what a lot of people I think still don't know is that during Co she went up the cafeteria and she prepared meals every single day so the kids had food and she did that while she herself was battling illis and it didn't stop her because that's the person she is this is the best group and I've always said I found
029the best home when I found citus Grove I've said that from day one and a lot of you know me for a long time and I just I love all of y'all so so [Music] much you have been selected as the secondary principal of the year I've been in valua for 20 years an administrator here at Southwestern for eight and it is team tiger that makes this award happen it is not me by myself at all but it is the team because we do it every day together for our students [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] you have a staff that's truly engaged in the work that we do and you give to them and they've given back to you so this is all their work they've nominated you for and you've been selected as
030the elementary principal of the year for 2024 I'm just so glad that you're here at Champion yes you are amazing thank amazing I appreciate the work it's it's great work we've made great gains and movement and growth and just so much more to come so I'm excited about [Music] [Applause] that I have to say that one point when um they had her turn around if you weren't there what you don't realize is her daughter flew in to surprise her for Angie plate the principal at Champion I mean and we we knew her daughter was hidden in the back but I was like when's she going to come out and that's when her son like kind of stopped her and said turn around and so that was her daughter there which was really nice so at
031this point in time we're moving on to our recognitions the reason why all of you are here tonight and so we're going to start with our first one item 4.01 recognition of our students for the Valia County Council PTA Reflection State winners Dr B thank you madam chair um each year valuan County uh County BTA they chooses original work of arts from our students to move at to the state level and that includes dance choreography it literature music composition Film Production and visual arts so I would like to invite the representatives from our VCC PTA Ford and I think they are here in the audience there we go go um Patty Edwards Patty Edwards is the come here please take a seat Patty she's the vccp reflections chair and Patty do we have Miss wesler
032here okay but we all know who Miss wesler is she's our vccp president so I want to say thank you thank you first and foremost for the work that you do supporting our families and our students here in vucha County Public Schools thank you for encouraging students to explore their feelings and ideas but also increasing their confidence at the same time and love for Learning and I think you have a short presentation for us um not that I'm aware of no okay so then do you have a few words because I have here the name of the students that we will be calling up I just want to say that I'm very proud to be the visha County Council Reflections chair for our PTA for over 15 years maybe I believe Carl should probably know
033but and I really love what I do I'm very proud of all my students that participate in this awesome program that our PTA provides for the children yeah um we had six of them that did go on to our state level we do have one that was Award of Excellence that went on to National we had at least 30 33 different schools that participated this year I had at least four middle schools that was really awesome this year so again I thank the students for being there to keep me going to do this I'm very proud of them all right and thank you for all that you do 15 years and you we have a number of years more to go right that's right P long as Carl stays yeah car has no option but
034you're choosing to that's all right so as I call on these students you are our Superstars this evening so remain standing so we can take pictures of you in the audience but also you'll come up here so we can present you with your certificates of of Distinction so students as I call your name stand and and remain standing please okay miss miss Emily pedrasa she is from Creekside Middle and Emily Award of Merit in the dance competition wow awes Emily they're taking pcks of you because you're a celebrity now miss Oakley Maloney and she Oakley where's Oakley outside okay all right let me tell you a little bit about Oakley she's from Pine Trail Elementary and she's earned the award of Merit for Film Production J uh josua Castro jeshua castra [Applause] he Joshua is
035from Sweetwater Elementary Award of merits Visual Arts um not able to attend here today but I would still like to recognize the following students Camila kamach and she's from Citrus group she is here okay Camila please stand my love so Camila has earned uh the awards of Excellence for dance the dance competition Blake Ferguson no unfortunately he couldn't make it okay he's citus Grove though huh he's a Citrus Grove he's yeah he's from Citrus gr see you're doing the presentation so photograph special arts right special artists and then Aubrey Raymond from Pathways Elementary Award of Merit from for photography as well so congratulations to all of these students for amaz for their absolutely amazing amazing [Applause] work so CH would we like for them to come up now so we can present so if you
036will come forward students principal School staff families and VCC PTA representative we are going to present present you with your um recognition at this time it's not in there this they wer I have like they were not gonna be okay that's fine we'll tell them that we're GNA get it to them Dr V they us Celeste had it join just finished kindergarten all right if you want to join me oh that would be great yes that makes it a lot easier all the parents can come over here to the center and get a center Shot all right well just one with just the kids first I know but just the kids first [Music] hold it up time for parents come child child [Laughter] okay ready keep keep Dancing Keep dancing congratulations should we are now
037moving on to item 4.02 recognition of students for the state cyber launch cyber Patriot Dr balabin yeah thank you madam chair and board members um members of the audience so I am pretty sure that we all know that when it comes to cyber security it has been deemed the top stem career for 2024 and not just 2024 but beyond right um Tanya nen she is the teacher at Pine Ridge High where is Miss Tanya and she's setting the stage for Student Success in this Arena she started a cyber security program this past school year at Pin Ridge her student competed in two competitions this year their for which is as we know their first year and they Place among the top contenders you heard that Mr colog listening I'm listening top contenders at State and
038National levels so I don't want to recognize these students for leading the way in this program and achieving the state and National levels the following pin Ridge High students made it to the semifinals in the Cyber Patriot National Youth cyber defense competition as well so students as I call your name please stand because you are fullblown celebrities also we will take pics with you and then you will be able to come up so we can recognize you Alex Constantino where's Miss Alex [Applause] Marcos Castillo sto Mr [Applause] Marcos and Yoda ma Yoda mangar where's Yoda she is sick she's she's allowed to be sick but congratulations go sou tooda now not able to attend with us here today but would still like to recognize them by calling their names it's Isaiah will son and Jamie
039Rachel dorand so these students like to congratulate them and as you have well done I give them a round of applause in addition most of the the team competed in cyber launch as well and this is Florida first ever Statewide High School cyber security competition and pine Rich was there representing so [Applause] now also this cyber security in this is this competition connects directly with the cyber security industry in Florida with local school districts as well so out of 1991 190 team Statewide this team placed fifth [Applause] y so I would like to ask for the students that come up their principals teachers staff the whole everybody parents everybody okay everybody that's here to celebrate and chair very cool congratulations thank you J I see Jen Taylor for science right they've all graduated is she
040gonna do it or she want all graduated and they came back to be recognized so yeah yeah yeah I wonder Jen wants me to do it Jen you want me to do it or you'll do it charge on job my do graduated thank you you're gonna be a p next year I leave this with you too we have the best teach out of all the districts [Laughter] [Applause] best of luck in college fun good to see you oh thank you so much thank you now we're moving on to item 4.03 recognition of students the state science fair winners Dr baban yes Madam chair where is Miss Jen Taylor here Miss Jen Taylor come here I will do the presentation but just sit up here with your team look at her hiding in the corner how
041she always you bring bring your team up just sit so I can uh talk about this green the color for the day huh not for you and I green is the color of the day so I am not going to miss on this opportunity we are very proud of the work that we do here in VCS very very proud but I'm going to share this with you the field of science this field VCS on a continuous vas basis has been per outperforming every other District out there that's right and that is that is primarily because we have the right people in the right seats and under Jen Taylor's leadership and her team her entire team these guys are fanatic they love what they do I mean they breathe oxygen just to do what they do
042that's how much they love what they do and I just want to thank you guys we were the second highest in the State of Florida last year for science we are doing great again this year and I'm gonna say every single division you guys are my family so I'm going to tell you I'm going to brag a little bit every single division here our our primary re reason for existence is to provide a quality educational experience to every learner and there's 11 components in our report card every single one of those 11 components have been trending upward and it's primarily because we have the F the right families that are engaged and involved in the work that we do we have students that comes to school and they're motivated to learn we have a staff
043that motivates them each and every day just all the right configuration I feel so blessed to be your superintendent but you know here I go I had to say that I'm so proud so proud of this guy so with that said the largest state science and engineering fairs in in in in the State of Florida our team has been per um uh participating in that fair and we have with us today the students who were awarded the opportunity to attend the state competition students as I call your name again you are celebrities please stand and remain standing so we may recognize you so from Burn Science and Technology Charter abigael Aldridge here we [Music] [Applause] [Music] go and Amy King oh Amanda King are you here yes oh but you two have to be related
044with the same last name all right so congratulations now Brooklyn Bernstein where is brookin berstein she's from new samna Beach [Applause] High I believe I see her proud principal back there too and some of her staff um Lily DS from Galaxy middle [Applause] Lily she won the first place in [Applause] engineering let me tell you how special this young lady is we have not had a first place winner in over 10 years all right wow sweet in traffic by the way she is here she's [Music] here right in front of me never mind okay this student also is a top place winner in the state Science Olympiad is that correct wow all right fantastic Jordan Platt Spruce Greek high he was unable to attend Jordan actually received honorable mention in the environmental engineering um the
045next is a brother SLS sister team from Spruce Greek High School who plays fourth in Earth and environmental Sciences so Sal sail Sal sail yes and you're settling admed L deep where's admed why okay okay all right he he graduated he'll be attending Harvard well you know what but we're going to have to excuse him is that okay okay um I want to congratulate you guys and they also receive invitation to compete in the international science and engineering fair in Los Angeles California and May so congratulations to all of you make us so proud you make us so proud all right I will also like to recognize the students that were not able to attend today uh Kaden Jania from River Springs Middle um kaisha Patel from Hinson middle Caroline Savage from the landh high
046and from Spruce Greek High Jon aish and Benjamin Kim along with Matthew Sanders so again a congratulations to all of you [Applause] future scientist these are a future scientists so chair are you ready absolutely here we go your name now as we call your names come on up but you have family members you have your your your principals your uh school-based Team here come on up I don't know what tart sparer is but you know I expected him to be here I know South Dakota South Dakota he's receiving a scholarship well that's a good reason a congratulations to you wow good it's all good [Laughter] thank you [Music] [Laughter] [Music] everybody families families you guys in get behind your child get behind your come on up get get behind your child thank you conrat congratulations
047have a great summer too conratulations do do whatever Jenifer um give me just a minute to have that out do your I Lear to accept it come T you love that very cool now comes the what what are you calling this is not a talk show he wasn't calling me you okay everything okay you sure got an alert volution for a missing team I didn't hear we get on this what is this okay at this time we're moving right along to administrative appointments and we know that there are lots of people listening at home for this part this is the time of when we get to May and June everybody's listening to see what's happening so we're bringing in the last group so just give me just a moment of patience so we have everyone
048seated Miss Johnson do we have everyone all right thank you we want to welcome all of you here here this evening thank you for taking time out to come to be here to be a part of whoever in your life is making a change tonight and as I said those at home are listening closely to see what the changes are going to be and so at this point we're moving on to item 5.01 administrative appointments and or transfers Dr balaman thank you madam chair um again you know we're so proud of our VCS family we're very proud of our staff because we have a truly highly dedicated team of individuals that Prides thems in always putting children's first so I want to congratulate all of you that are being recommended to the board eight of
049you this evening because you understand clearly our mission whether you're changing from one position title to the next the mission is still the same we always put Children First so thank you again for committing to this new roome if approved by the board and we wish you the world of success and our team knows that we are successful when you are successful so we exist to support you so with that said this position is really important shair as you know we've taken our Deputy of operations position and not that position has been it it's been changed to now a chief of staff position and it's a cost savings change as well but it's really important who's in this position because because one of the areas of oversight or that they will be um supervising is
050Safety and Security as well so I'm very proud to share with you that one of the individuals that went through the interviewing process but also came up to the top and that I'll be recommending is someone who has been working with he has been a liaison for Safety and Security Department here at um for valua County public school so I would like to ask Mr John Cash to join us at this point Mr Cash just to share a little bit with you John Cash is truly committed to valua County Public Schools he um knows our school system very very well the landscape of our VCS Community he's obtained his bachelor's degree from the University of Central Florida a master's degree from Nova Southeastern University he holds certification in the following areas at leadership English for
051speakers of other languages he's been with vucha County chair Hayes since 1991 he started as a teacher at Holly Hill School John you look great I like how we noded 1991 don't bother with the you look great he started as a teacher at Holly Hill school then became the assistant principal at T small Elementary then he went on to becoming a principal at RJ Long Street Elementary and then he served as a principal also at Palm Terrace Elementary currently been the Principal at Creekside and um with your blessings here this evening and I am recommending that Mr John Cash joins our team as a chief of staff effective July 1 2024 very confident in what he brings to the table and in helping us to get to the next level here in bisha County board
052members you've heard the recommendation of the superintendent do I have someone that would like to make a motion move approval and I'll second that motion thank you Mr persus thank you Mrs Thomas Thompson is there any discussion yes Miss Thompson go ahead are you sure okay um I just want to say when I first got this position I went around to all the schools the tours of all my schools got really familiar with them and you were a princip Le that not only took me around and showed me all of what I asked for through the school but you showed me the teachers and the students and you had amazing things to say about everyone I think that's a sign of a fantastic principle is when you can see the good in every single person
053whether they be student teacher staff and you've done that continue every time I'm on your campus it's a delight and there have been so many emails that I've gotten from parents that you've been on as well and you respond and you're you're direct and you're honest and you're transparent and you have so many amazing qualities it is not a shock to I think any of us that you have an a school over at Creekside Middle School and you've taken every single alcohol Challenge and you attack it like right then and there and so I am so proud to see your name up here I know that you are going to do absolutely amazing things it makes me a little bit sad it's bittersweet because yes Creekside is one of my schools you know I hate
054to lose you there but I know that the school will continue on and there will be someone wonderful there but I'm Happ happy to see you up here so a little preliminary congratulations you want to say something yeah yeah if uh well you said it you said it everything I mean he he is he is all those things and uh and besides that he's just a nice guy you know you are you're just a nice guy you you you are and uh uh I uh I told my wife that this was coming tonight and when Susan was a principal uh she and uh John had um many lunches during the uh principal meeting times together uh along with Matt KUSI who is a deceased now and another just super principal but uh Susan said you
055know that she could tell stories that you guys you guys solved all the problems of the world during those lunches and uh but she just said the same the same thing just a quality person and a nice guy so happy for you thank you so I have to say something I think you and I have known each other I feel like almost right after you started because I'm glad to know he looks great and wonderful which I agree with but I started long before he did but no I've had the honor and privilege and if I could have one person here tonight um and maybe somebody will tell her and she can watch this later at home I really wish Miss Betty Powers could be here to see this um because that was the first
056place you were the assistant principal with Miss Betty powers and um what it's always an honor to work with her you know and I think we all learned something from her over the years but I also had the honor to work with your wife when we opened a very Elementary and I see her back there and so I think you're absolutely the right person um to step into this job role because what you bring that someone from the outside can't bring to this role is you've been a part of aluia and you've built relationships with so many individuals across the county and you know who the people are and it's good to have that knowledge at times and to understand you know what people have gone through and everything and so I appreciate your willingness
057to put your name in and step up and be interviewed and um agree to do this position but before you can speak we have to vote so at this time I need to call for a vote all those in favor please say I I I any opposed it passes unanimously congratulations so much um I did prepare some remarks but it appears based on your remarks you've pretty much read my speech before I uh before I came up here so uh pardon me for the redundancy but I I would like to share a few things and I did jot them down so I wouldn't forget anyone so uh good afternoon chair Haynes board member superintendent balabin it is a pleasure to be here this afternoon to continue another chapter in my career of serving vucha County
058schools now my affiliation with valuchi County Schools began in 1973 as a kindergartener at Hurst Elementary some people might know where about Hurst um and culminated my graduation in 1986 from Mainland High School and of course Buck Pride Never Dies um I never expected to go into public service especially teaching school but my mother encouraged me to serve and now I sit here with 33 years under my belt now I've had the great Fortune to serve many schools and communities and if you would indulge me for just a moment to thank them it started when Mary K piles hired me in 1991 to teach fourth grade at Holly Hill Elementary there I was blessed to have a veteran group of still uh skilled teachers who took me under their wing and I'm forever grateful to
059them I then had an opportunity to go to ortona elementary now ortona was a hidden Jewel and I thoroughly enjoyed my short time there now that summer I received a call from area superintendent David Hinson who informed me that my next assignment would be as assistant principal at Terry T small Elementary working with a true advocate for all children principal Betty Powers Betty was a Powerhouse and I learned so much from her and the community that is where I cut my teeth and the lessons I learned there I still take with me every day my next call to service was my first principal ship at long straight Elementary home of the Cardinals it was a wonderful school I have great memories there of five years next I received a call telling me I was needed
060to take the Helm of Palm Terrace Elementary I immediately began to get to know the faculty staff and community and we made some positive Headway academically and culturally and as about that time we found out and many of you will remember that boner Elementary was being Consolidated and would become part of the Palm Terrace family it was arduous work but those two amazing faculties came together as one and they worked day in and day out they worked their tails off and that year Palm Terrace received a b grade from the state to this day I will say it's probably the highlight of the work that I've done in valuch County Schools next I was told another change was coming and that was become principal of Creekside Middle School home of the Cougars which has been
061my home for the last 12 years it was not an easy decision to leave Creekside to my outstanding faculty my amazing students and all the supportive parents I thank you now onto a new challenge as Chief of Staff I want to thank the board and the superintendent for your faith in me I will try to get it right each and every day and continue the barometer I have always used make decisions that are in the best interest of students in the school district of Luchia County my home and lastly in closing I want to thank my wife Jen who's an amazing teacher at Sweetwater Elementary and my son Ryan who is starting his senior year at UCF your support is steadfast and I cannot do it without you and by the way honey if you
062wanted to get me out of the house a little more often I think you just got your [Laughter] [Applause] wish we ask that you return to your seat but do not leave because we're going to go through all the appointments and then bring everyone up for photos at one time thank you Dr B yes thank you Madam chair so to appointment number two I would like to ask Mr William reer to please join us share to share a little bit with you and I think you know a lot about this young man but I still will have to do that because this is almost like a a graduation for him so I'm going to talk a little bit about you Mr reer for the folks that may not know he's obtained his bachelor's degree from
063Ganon University Erie Pennsylvania a master's degree from youngston State University Ohio he's got certifications in the following areas at leadership social studies 6 through 12 he started as a teacher in 2000 in Ohio schools and then became a middle school principal then he went on to high school and served as an assistant principal design for a magnet coordinator in Broward County Public Schools he went on to become an interm principal in Broward County and in 2022 he started in valuan County Public Schools and currently serving as the principal at Pine Ridge High with your blessings here this evening your approval I'm recommending that Mr reer Mr William reer becomes the next director for secondary schools and if so his effective start date will be July 1st time frame dependent TBA Dr V for members you've
064heard the recommendation of the superintendent do I have someone that would like to make the motion I would be happy to make that motion thank you Mr clone do I have a second I'll second thank you Mrs Bernett anyone would like to speak all right I absolutely go ahead have to do this without getting emotional thank you thank you for loving our students at pineridge for transforming a culture oh take that camera off for showing them love appreciation Pride you hear talk about Panther Pride there is no greater Panther Pride than this guy right here and so as as uh hard as this one is uh I know you are going to extend the work that you've done at pinr for all 65,000 we'll just call it that students in valua County your reach is
065going to far exceed uh where you are and I know that you'll always be there for your Panther family as well so thank you you did a really good job you did tissues I'm just tagging on to what he said because having previously taught out at Pin rid years ago we do thank you we truly thank you for the change in the culture out there and I I too have to admit that when they called to tell me I was like oh hold and I in no way do I ever want to stand in your way and I think that you're absolutely um the right person for this position we just want to see pinr continue on the path um that you have laid for those kids out there because we do appreciate all the
066work you've done out there so at this time we will call for the vote all those in favor of Mr reer becoming the director of secondary schools please say I I I a post it passes unanimously [Applause] [Music] congratulations good afternoon board chair Miss Haynes Vice chair Miss brunette board members Mr persus Miss Thompson Mr cologne Dr B Dr Val I do love Panther Nation I'm deeply honored to accept this appointment as director of secondary schools and will continue to lead with the fire in my heart that you have all come to know me to have I've strived for 19 years to be a servant leader in middle schools and high schools to be the best I could be and thank you for the opportunity to lead it's been my great honor to serve as
067the panther nation's proud principal proud and thankful principal of pin Ridge High School I've been inspired by the resiliency and passion of the students and staff of Panther Nation as we have risen up together to change The Narrative of Pine Ridge High School and become one of the finest schools in valua County I'm especially thankful to my Panther Nation leadership team our faculty and staff and their courage to lead with love and structure to produce results for our students that soared Beyond expectations I'm thankful to you Dr B for truly igniting a love of learning in me in my entire School family I'm thankful to Dr V and Dr Drayton for your mentorship and teaching me to be the instructional leader that I am today I'm thankful to all of my brothers and sisters the
068principles in the secondary Division and commit my tireless support to each of them and their school families finally I sit here today inspired and very thankful for my own family my son Jake serving in the Army and his wife Betsy serving as a nurse my daughter Sarah serving in the Navy and her husband Jack who's been deployed in the Navy to the Middle East for most of the past year lastly I'm inspired by my sweetheart Tracy leading the superstars at Woodward Avenue Elementary and thankful that to her that she's the love of my life now I set about my work as director of secondary schools as a member of the teaching leading and learning team ready to truly Empower a culture of Excellence to ensure a love of learning is ignited in every school every
069staff member and every student in valous schools thank you for the [Applause] opportunity once again don't leave Dr Babin yes Madam chair there you guys are not allowed to leave listen to the chair all right appointment number three um Miss Jessica Duncan can you please join [Applause] us so I think all of us know who has worked with Miss Jessica and Duncan that this is this is among one of the hardest working young ladies that we have in our VC as part of our VCS team she's obtained her bachelor's degree from Lee University Cleveland Tennessee master's degree from Stetson University certifications in the following areas Elementary Ed K through six started as a teacher in 2004 at Burns oakill Elementary um became a teacher at Edgewater public went on to become a teacher in assignment
070and then a resource teacher with Early Learning currently serving as a specialist with Early Learning today I'm recommending with your approval that Mr Jess and Duncan becomes the coordinator of early learning and our effective date will be July 1st 2024 Bo members you've heard the recommendation of the superintendent do I have someone that'll make the motion I move to approve thank you Mrs Bernett I'll second that motion thank you Mrs Thompson anyone want to say anything I do I've known Jessica since she was a teacher and actually then came into the early learning program and what I will say is this what she does every day there are so many people in education that they'll do a lot of things but when you talk about working with threeyear olds and four year olds they all
071go like this no and they won't do that but that's not what she does every day she shows up and she coordinates everything for our three-year-old program and our four-year-old programs which are getting them ready for kindergarten and as we know that's the pathway to get them into school and get them ready because they need that and so I have watched her progress through this and trust me whatever they've thrown at her she's figured out how to do it and has definitely earned this position because she has a heart for those little ones and we need people that have a heart for the little ones so you know yes there's the group that says I'll never come down I mean I have people tell me all the time I'll never teach kindergarten but she's preparing
072them for kindergarten which is so important and so I'm honored to be able to cast my vote for you this evening so at this time I'll call for the vote Salone M Thompson Mr purses and superintendent Dr Balan I am honored and I'm gonna try not to cry because I'm very honored and very humble you can cry the tissues I was super excited about this because they're not in my anyway I'm truly excited to have this opportunity thank you for entrusting me to lead the Early Learning Department as we make a positive impact on vucha County School's youngest Learners Early Childhood has been a passion for me since I started education 20 years ago the Early Learning Program is our students and fam's first experience with Belia County Schools therefore it is important to leave
073a positive lasting EXP experience and lay a solid foundation for future academic success I am proud to say that our Early Learning Program has expanded to include most elementary schools providing successful inclusion models and a VPK dual language program in selected schools the VPK program is now available in 36 schools with a total of 51 classrooms I am looking forward to expanding this program even further and continue to see our youngest fuchia County students thrive in kindergarten and Beyond I would like to thank my family who has always supported me unconditionally throughout my career who I didn't know was going to come I have six wonderful children and five of them surprise me my husband was not able to make it but he tried really hard my husband Tim who constantly gives him himself to
074allow me the opportunity to grow professionally and fulfill my pass passion thank you to Wendy re for giving me my first opportunity in a district position to desire rinsky for trusting me and encouraging me to take steps into my leadership role further you've always seem to know the right things to say to Christy castanos for always taking the time to listen when I know she's extremely busy I admire your leadership and appreciate your mentorship as I grow as a leader and to my team this part I'll try not to cry they make my job look really easy they often almost always go above and beyond the things that I ask without saying anything um their continued optimism and positivity encourage me daily which I'm all about and I just I can't thank them enough I'm
075very very truly great grateful once again thank you all for providing me this opportunity and for believing in [Applause] me Dr balamin yes Madam chair number four Miss Stephanie De Gracia can you join us so let me share with you about Miss the Gracia she's obtained her bachelor's degree from the University of Central Florida a master's degree from Nova Southeastern University certifications in the following areas Ed leadership math 5-9 gifted business Ed 6 through 12 and exceptional student education started as a teacher in 2000 at Galaxy middle then became a teacher at Pin Ridge High and then went on to becoming the assistant principal at Deltona midle and is currently serving as the assistant principal out Southwestern middle school today I'm recommending with your approval that Miss Stephanie De Gracia becomes the coordinator of secondary
076exceptional student education if approved her effective start date will be July 1st 2024 board members you've heard the recommendation of the superintendent do I have someone that would like to make the motion I will gladly make that motion thank you Mr clone do I have a second I'll second that motion thank you Mr persus any discussion absolutely so Mr grower you're not getting tears because I'm glad you're back um you know Stephanie is a definition of a true true Soldier and a lot of her work wasn't seen at least I didn't think it was but she's one of the first people I met at Pin Ridge many years ago and she later went to Delona middle and just loved on those ese students just loved on them and uh at one point we needed her
077at Southwestern and as much as it hurt her to leave her babies at Delona midle who have by the way now graduated high school actually project search um she went to Southwestern and served and oftentimes you all have heard me say something along the lines of we've got some leaders out there that are in our schools who are doing such a good job that they don't rise to that level of moving up because they're doing such a good job where they are we don't ever want them to do go anywhere else and anytime you heard me speak about that that was I was talking about her and so to see her here today as a leader as someone who's going to shape ESC in our district it's it's an honor so again congratulations and uh
078welcome back to D5 what do you mean welcome back to D5 everywhere back this way now she went your side for a little while now I get to share her we're on the same side she's on everyone's side Yes actually what we're doing is we're going to share with the whole District that's so that the honor that the kids on the west side of the county have had because we've kept you on the west side all this time now the East Side gets to see what a great job you're doing too that was so well put Miss Haynes that was good look she's unless something's wrong I have done she's going to be the coordinator of secondary exceptional student education yeah so welcome to the entire District thank you all right at this time I'll
079call for the vote all those in favor please say I I I any opposed it passes unanimously congratulations good evening Dr Balaban School Board chair Miss Haynes Vice chair Miss Bernett Mr cologne Mr purses and Miss Thompson I deeply honored to be seated before you as a newly appointed secondary coordinator for exceptional student education this role is just not a position sorry now you make me cry um it is my commitment to hold values of inclusivity diversity and educational Excellence I here to advocate for every student to ensure that our exceptional Learners have the resources and support they need to thrive together with a dedicated team of Educators parents and our school communities we will continue creating an environment where every child's potential is recognized and nurtured I would be remiss if I did not
080take this opportunity to thank the Ed UC ational leaders who have believed in my abilities since I became my leadership journey within vucha County schools first I would like to thank Mr John ainson and Dr Rick inch for stealing me from Galaxy to be their testing coordinator at pineridge High School and then on to becoming the ESC assistant principal at Deltona Middle where I continued to work under Dr in's leadership both leaders have taught me to believe in myself and to work hard so the results would speak for themselves next I would like to thank Mrs Kim feltner for her leadership when she was principal of Deltona Middle as we worked together to ensure our students with disabilities had many inclusive opportunities I would now like to thank Mrs jaquis Copeland for polishing me over
081the past four years at Southwestern middle school as her ESC assistant principal while giving me the confidence to push through adversity and persevere through anything thrown in my path because I know things and to trust myself and my abilities I am honored to continue to work under your leadership in this new role ensuring access inclusivity and equity for all students finally I would like to thank my family here tonight and my family and friends watching online I would not be here without our copious amount of coffee late night talks and your unwavering support I eager to get to work and to contribute to our District's mission of igniting a passion for learning for all students to be productive citizens thank you all for entrusting me with this [Applause] responsibility Dr P keep going Madam chair
082all right very good we're approaching the end guys this is five out of eight um I would like to ask at this time that Miss Carrie and deaney joins us please let me share a little bit with you about Miss deaney she's obtained her bachelor's degree from the University of Central Florida a master's degree from Nova Southeastern University Fort Lauderdale certifications in the following areas Ed leadership element ed prek through primary education she also started as a teacher in 2001 at friendship Elementary then became a teacher and assignment at pineridge high school then went on to becoming in an assistant principal at the Barry Elementary and then Citrus Grove Elementary became principal intern at Westside Elementary and then she was appointed as principal at the following Pride Elementary Spirit Elementary and South Daytona Elementary this
083past school year she served as the as the principal on assignment at University High and also at Delona medal today I'm recommending with your approval that Miss Carrie dainy becomes the principal of Pride Elementary and if approve her effective start day will be July 1st 2024 board members you've heard the recommendation of the superintendent do I have someone would like to make the motion I will gladly make that motion thank you Mr clone do we have a second I'll second thank you Mrs Bernett anything for discussion okay I will say I've had the privilege of knowing Carrie for a long long time and I you know until I saw it on paper when they put it here I was like yeah that's right she was there and she worked with this person and that person
084and what's interesting about all of this is you started your first principal ship at Pride Elementary and you're returning to Pride Elementary so I believe they'll still be some staff there I don't think they've all scattered although you know people seem to move around in val County that you'll be going back to and I think that that is such a positive that you'll be able to go back and you'll already have some staff that you know on campus and everything and um so thank you so very much for stepping up to do this position and so we have I have to call you're gonna say something now no okay I have to call for the vote all those in favor of Miss Carrie deaney being the principal of Pride Elementary please say I I I
085any opposed it passes [Applause] unanimously to the school board chair Miss Haynes board members Miss Bernett Mr cologne Mr persus Miss Thompson and the superintendent Dr balabin Chief academic officer Dr VA and executive director of el elementary schools Miss castalanos I want to express my sincere gratitude for this opportunity to opportunity to serve as the principal of Pride Elementary my educational Journey began right here as I am a proud product of Lucha County schools go Panthers from my earliest days as a student in the City of Deltona to my years as a devoted educator with experiences at both the primary and secondary levels I have had the privilege and honor of count countless leaders coaching me across my journey into the leader that I am today my passion for education has only grown stronger over
086the years now I am thrilled to share my experience and devotion full circle as the new principle of Pride Elementary Pride Elementary will continue to be a place where every child Roars with the heart of a courageous Noble lion where every student teacher staff member and family will know they are seen heard and valued my leadership will be built on the foundation of always being ready to listen to solve problems and to support our teachers staff and students every step of the way I look forward to scheduling listen and learn sessions where I can listen to what is important to them together we will continue to foster a community that is a family where the involvement of our parents and wider Community is cherished because when we work together there is no limit to what
087our pride lions can achieve I am proud to lead Pride Elementary and will pour my heart and soul into every student teacher and staff member thank you and go liines [Applause] our sixth appointment unfortunately this gentleman could not be here today because he had a planned vacation with his daughter but I believe that there is a script so at some point yes Dr V okay so my next appointment is Mr Christopher Merz um he has obtained his bachelor's degree from the University of West Florida Pensacola master's degree from Stetson University certifications in the following areas Ed leadership math 5-9 English of speakers English for speakers of other languages eson he began teaching in 2006 in Orange County Public Schools in Orange County he was or served in the following roles algebra math teacher at Walker
088middle at admin administrative Dean at a popka middle administrative Dean at Chain of Lakes Middle acting assistant principal at positive Pathways transition Center administrative Dean at Walker Middle testing coordinator for gotha Middle then he went on to work for seminal County Public Schools as an assistant principal for South SEAL Academy and then an assistant principal mil middle school with your approval today I'm recommending that Mr Christopher Merz becomes the new principal of Discovery Elementary if approve his effective start date will be July 1st 2024 the bo members you've heard the recommendation of the superintendent to have someone that would like to make a motion I will gladly make that motion I'll second it thank you Mr cologne and Mr persus any discussion board I had the opportunity to meet Mr MZ in days past and
089I can tell you he is someone who is uh up for the task he loves hard schools uh he's got a passion for students for Learning and uh I I think he's you know just personality wise I mean there is no other Jenny Deets in the world uh but uh I'm saying it like she's not sitting it back there but no I I think it's going to be a great fit and he is so excited to serve the students in valua county and so um I happily make that motion and look forward to um meeting him when he gets back from being away with his family okay then at this time I'll I'll go ahead and I just want to say I'm happy that he's getting the job so miss Deets can go to Holly
090Hill and uh get that thing going over there so con congratulations to both you're welcome Mr P you're welcome okay at this time I'm going to call for the vote all those in favor please say I I any Nays it passes unanimously YY so miss Christy Castellano have a few words from um Mr Christopher MZ yes I do thank you good evening Schoolboard chair Haynes board members Miss Mrs Bernett Mr colon cologne sorry he got it wrong Mr purses and Mrs Thompson superintendent Dr balamin and chief academic officer Dr V I want to express my sincere gratitude for this opportunity to serve as the principal of Discovery Elementary I am sorry I could not be here in person today as I am in Pennsylvania visiting my family with my beautiful daughter Ember who is truly
091my world I am deeply honored and Incredibly grateful for this opportunity Discovery Elementary has a rich history of academic Excellence strong sense of community and devoted staff I am committed to building upon these foundations and working collaboratively with our staff parents and most importantly our wonderful students together we will strive to have an environment where every student feels valued supported and inspired to reach their fullest potential I am eager to listen learn and Lead as we embark on this new chapter together it is important that I think my dad and acknowledge my mom that is no longer with me they taught me hard work can get you places thank you for trusting me to be the new Proud principal of Discovery Elementary I look forward to the great work we will accomplish as a team
092God bless and go dragin [Applause] y all right two more to go now I would like to ask Miss Marcia Owens to join us so as Miss Owens is coming up I want to share with a little bit about Miss Owens with you she's obtained her bachelor's degree from the University of Florida a master's degree from Nova Southeastern University certifications in the following areas Ed leadership English language arts 5 through n exceptional student education ESC in 2007 she began teaching at Robinswood Middle School in Orange County served in as administrative Dean at lockart middle Orange County and Winter Park High Orange County then became the acting assistant principal at Cypress Creek High Orange County and in 2019 was named the assistant principal at Apopka high in Orange County where she's currently working this young lady
093has what it takes so with your approval here today I'm recommending that Miss Marcia Owens becomes the principal at cample middle and if approve her effective start date will be July 1st 2024 board members you've heard the recommendation of the superintendent do I have someone that would like to make the motion move to approve thank you Mrs Bernett I'll second that motion thank you Mrs Thompson is there any discussion I'd like to say this although we have no part in interviews my understanding is they also involved community members in your interview and what I heard was only positive things and so it's one thing to step into an interview interviews are hard I don't think people realize sometimes how hard they are but when you go into an interview and you also have members of
094the community there asking you questions that's a lot and so everything I heard about your interview was nothing but positive so we are looking forward to this so at this time I will call for the vote all those in favor please signify by saying I I I any opposed congratulations good evening to the school board chair Haynes board members Bernett col purses and Thompson to superintendent balabin Chief academic officer Dr V and executive director of secondary schools Dr Drayton I want to express my sincere gratitude for this opportunity to serve as the net principal of the great Campbell Middle School becoming a part of the Valia County family reassures me that you believe in my abilities it experiences and commitment to ensure the success of all the students and staff of Kimbell middle I would
095be remiss if I did not give honor to God he constantly reminds me of my favorite scripture Jeremiah 2911 for I know the plans that I have for you says the Lord eyes have not seen ears have not heard to the students staff parents community and Valu stakehold ERS as you know Campbell is rich in Tradition and pride and as your n leader I intend to uphold that with Excellence together we will be Spartans that are warriors Spartans that are fearless Spartans that are victorious in the classroom and in our community I want to thank my mentors Dr Doyle Miss Dina to Bert Miss Kesha green and Dr Holland H head for their wisdom leadership and guidance to my sons Trevor Jr and Trent I thank you for your love support and patience as I
096work to pursue my goals and aspirations to my loving family my extended family and friends whether you're here with me today or watching online I would not be to educator I am without you my granny who is 92 years young and served as a fourth grade teacher for nearly 40 years I admire her tenacity and the love she had for her students to my gods sons taon and Lon God mommy loves you to my school kids they gave me the name Mama o some who are present here this afternoon in the audience I will always be grateful to each of you for your role in my life and being a part of my journey to all of my teachers and again some are who here with me this evening that I had the opportunity to
097work alongside over the years I want you to know that our teamship all right our teamship would not have been as solid structured or successful without each of you in our teamship whereever sorry our teamship will forever be cherished lastly to my entire heart and soul my husband Trevor thank you for being my biggest cheerleader on a nights and Miss family time I want you to know I could not express how much I love and appreciate you for your understanding and continued support again I thank each of you for helping to fuel my passion for teaching and learning let's go to battle Spartans let's go Spartans [Music] [Applause] [Music] Dr Dr Ty Swift please join me join [Applause] us so I'm going to share a little bit with you about Dr Tai Swift but I
098also am going to tell you that this is a very brilliant and dedicated young lady who has a bright future ahead of her she's obtained a bachelor's degree from bethon cookman University a master's degree from University of Central Florida a doctorate degree from Nova Southeastern University certifications in Ed leadership biology exceptional student education she's been with valua County Public School since 2011 started as a teach teacher at Southwestern middle then became the teacher in assignment at Southwestern middle went on to become the assistant principal at Southwestern middle she veered away a little bit and went to Galaxy where she was assistant principal for a little and then now um participated also in the principal preparation program and now faith has brought her back so I'm recommending with your approval that Dr Ty Swift becomes the
099new principal at Southwestern middle school and with your approval or effective start date will be July 1st 2024 board members you've heard the recommendation of the superintendent to have someone that would like so I've been waiting to see who goes to Southwestern middle school because my nephew will be starting there and I not to make this personal I never do but I kind of wanted someone that was awesome and amazing so when I got the call and going through your rest I was like okay this is great this is good and so I called my brother and I was like this is going to be good and he was fine uh he's a teacher but my sister-in-law I know she was sweating bullets wondering who's going to be there so I'm very excited I cannot
100wait to see what you do there so great work all right I was expecting you to like be upset that you were losing her she know she knows how I feel we had this conversation she she came back into the right part of the West side just kidding all right she stayed on the west side so let's just be happy right compromise okay at this time we'll call for the vote all those in favor please say I I any nay it passes unanimously congratulations good evening board chair Haynes school board members brunette cologne persus and Thompson and superintendent Dr balabin I am deeply grateful for this opportunity to become the principal of Southwestern Middle School I am aware that I have big shoes to fill and I'm confident that I am the right person for
101the job Southwestern has always had a special place in my heart and is where I had the opportunity to receive my start as a teacher in valua county and to develop my leadership skills as a teacher on assignment and assistant principal my passion for Southwest is unmatched and I promise to give it my all to the faculty and staff of Southwestern it is my intent to work as a team for the betterment of all students whom we will serve I will make every effort to provide the resources that are needed to help the students and you be the best that you can be students the expectation is that you will succeed in all that you do and your teachers staff members and I will be there to support and encourage you along the way for
102I believe all students are capable of excelling parents it is my desire to partner with you to ensure that all students reach their fullest potential to the community your support and input is welcomed and vital to the continued success of Southwestern it has been said that it takes a village to raise a child indeed this is true therefore I invite all stakeholders to become involved in our school to my husband Emmanuel thank you for your love encouragement support and being my educational thought partner to my children Aiden saai and aani thank you for your unconditional love that keeps me going and reminds me to always do what's best for kids to my parents thank you for your support encouragement always believing in me and being my role models in life and education because of the
103two of you I am who I am today I would like to extend a special thank you to miss m Otis Mrs jacquis copelan and Dr Edie valz for being exceptional leaders and pro and for providing me with opportunities that have allowed me to enhance my leadership skills and prepare me for this new journey to Dr Andrew Olen thank you for your inspirational support in your previous role as director of secondary schools to Mrs Brandy hog thank you for your efforts in preparing aspiring leaders for their various roles your guidance is truly appreciated to my Galaxy Middle School family I have enjoyed working with you these last two years you are truly an amazing team I am so glad to have been a part of the rocket family and hope that you will continue to
104do the great work I have had the privilege of experiencing remember the sky is the limit unless you're a rocket finally team tiger the saying is true once a tiger always a tiger I am so elated to return home and look forward to working alongside the Delan community and you to empower a culture of excellence and take Southwestern Middle School to the next level thank you [Applause] so at this time we're going to start with photos we're going to actually go in the order that um we did the appointments this evening and so I'm going to ask that Mrs Johnson help us with that so we'll be starting with Mr John Cash [Applause] I do 1991 you there so you are ohen know we [Applause] thank you again [Music] s in this way let's do
105this do [Applause] ready did you not you didn't take any guys can you take one more that way that's awesome all right I'm gonna do what I need to do [Applause] congratulations children it's against the wall there [Applause] okay here we go thank you I [Music] know love that [Music] yes now we're ready congratulations yes com to take it everybody you get [Music] come pi for the flow of traffic [Laughter] thank you for supporting her and loving her and Tak [Music] take baby [Music] did tell me what I good luck [Laughter] [Applause] you have like a wide angle lens to get every [Music] how wide it gets yeah many cards do you have yes good to see you [Laughter] [Music] tell her I'll be there I'll be [Applause] there thank you so much [Music] family
106yes taking a break right okay yes it was what excitement we've had tonight between recognitions and administrative appointments it's so nice when we have families that are here and they make trips in to be a part of it board members if it's okay with you at this point in time we're going to take a short break and then we will be back in for public input and so let's return at 655 you have F Madam chair do we have any other appointments yeah no that's it we've done all the appointments so we're going to return at 65 five you have a 15minute break thank you e e e I'm missing where's your partner welcome back at this time we're going to go into public the public participation for just items Rel educational items so I'm
107going to announce I'm going to go ahead and announce the first Speaker the second speaker and the third speaker um are there any more cards all right so first up will be Miss Kathy nolles then Miss Christine serier followed by Miss Laurel Robinson followed by Miss Christine serier again so welcome misss thank you good evening um I just kind of listen to a few I listen about all the board meetings still even though I'm not with y'all and I listen to the teachers negotiations so some of the things as the representative had asked me I felt like I needed to come up even though they're gone I still feel like they're they're still my people is people talking about time how we account we don't you know we don't know who's coming and who's going
108sometimes and doing and I know the teachers have asked for the last a school in the bargaining session for them to work at home so on my side I've had three managers that was fired for stealing time and we've had some maintenance people that I know of soon and I'm sure there was others that done because we have to clock in and we're have more accountable on our side to make sure we do our eight hours or whatever we're scheduled for but then we have people on the other side that we're not holding accountable for their time and they come and go and they're not using sick time and so then we get on the safety side oh well this is the reason why we're doing this clocking in and doing all this so if
109something happens at a school we know who's on campus well if we have all the teachers that don't clock in they sign in on a piece of paper and if you look at them every one of them their times are the same 8 to 3:30 8 to 3:30 every day for 190 days of the school year so I just think that we need to start holding everybody accountable for the time worked not just certain groups and that people have lost their career over for the same thing because if they needed to leave for a doctor's appointment you know they left or whatever and came back and didn't use sick time but we have other people on the other hand that they do the same thing they leave and come back and they don't use their
110sick time and then their sick time bills up and they cash out and go on and they've not lost their career over so I just think that we need to make sure that we're holding both sides of the bar both sides of the table accountable for their time thank you thank you Christine serier welcome thank you good evening board members chairwoman Haynes and Dr balabin I am pushing back on your educational censorship and book removal that has taken place in valua County Schools over the past several years books addressing social justice family Dynamics acceptance and recovery from trauma are being taken out of our school libraries with no guarantee of return even if students request them sold by Patricia McCormick was written in 2006 for ages 12 and up Publishers Weekly notes that this hard-hitting
111novel exposes the plight of a 13-year-old napali girl sold into sexual slavery readers will admire her grit and intelligence and be grateful for a aray of Hope for this memorable heroine at book's end kirkus book review writes that sold is written as a Pros poem and focuses on the essential question of whether it is possible to trust when all that one is trusted has been proven untrustworthy McCormack provides readers who live in safety and under protection of the law with a vivid window into a harsh and cruel world one most would prefer to pretend doesn't exist Florida ranks third in the nation for human trafficking with over 75% of the reported cases involving children Florida statute 1342 requires health education that addresses the prevention of child abuse exploitation and human trafficking sold is a book
112that supports our health standards and should be in our school libraries blushi County public records indicate that sold was one of 14 books challenged for pornography at the beginning of this year and remains unavailable to our students this book was removed and put back in circulation last year by an official District appointed reconsideration committee they voted to keep it in the library however after the challenge of pornography this year County Schools removed it again without going through due process some of our neighboring school districts have allowed the same book to rightfully remain in school libraries Dr Paul Burns Florida Department of Education Deputy Chancellor recently clarified the confusing language surrounding book removals specifically statute 1000 6.28 he recommended that districts thoroughly review materials that have been removed rather than making permanent removal decisions based on
113one excerpt from a book bring back sold to vuia County School libraries thank you thank you Miss Laura Robinson followed by Christine seret Laurel Robinson Norman Beach Madam chair members of the board Madam superintendent Laur pull down oh Laurel Robinson Orman Beach Madam chair members of the board Madam superintendent earlier this year uh persons that we don't know in the Bia County school system removed The Kite Runner a book by khud housei from the high school shelf pursuant to a claim of pornography this decision Remains inforce the bravard County School District also removed the book but the author subsequently shared his thoughts with the board and I here withth read a condensed version of his letter to the bravard County School Board High School students from all across the US have shared with me what
114impact reading The Kite Runner has had on their lives for some the book is a claran call to stand up to bullies defy intolerance others hear familiar Echoes In Air's strain bond with his father in his struggles to measure up the book's de facto tagline there is a way to be good again speaks to volunteerism tolerance and the courage to do the right thing just no matter how difficult it is often often The Kite Runner is the student's first window into Afghan culture most openly admit to knowing little about the country outside its media depiction as a violent unhappy land perpetually racked by War and misery but because they find in the story of Amir and Hassan re resonant parallels to their own lives around friendship family love courage and yes cowardice Afghanistan becomes a
115real place they gain a more nuanced and comp passionate perspective on the country and its people and they Express gratitude for it perhaps the most recurring word I hear from students is empathy books remain our most powerful teachers of empathy they remind us of our immutable connections as a species sharing this planet Books open the world to us they help us feel less alone and find solace in one another their gift is immeasurable stripping students of this gift is a tragic mistake High School students are more than sophisticated and mature enough to digest and contextualize the themes raised by the kit Runner they're appropriately and constructively challenged by the book and they are more than up to the task of learning about Injustice discrimination tyranny and The Perils of religious extremism Banning books like The
116Kite Runner does not protect students at all it betrays them it robs them of the chance to broaden their human Community to let them walk the world in another shoes for a while to Foster empathy for others to be challenged by the experience and perhaps take a small step toward becoming Fuller richer versions of themselves sinceri khude heni this year the bravard County School Board reinstated The Kite Runner to the high school bookshelves this board you must have the wisdom and courage to do the same you have the authority to do it please see that it gets done thank you thank you can you please State who you're reading for this time I am Christine serrier reading on behalf of Carter serrier yes to be at work early in the morning wasn't sure if he
117was goingon to make it thank you um G good evening I am pushing back on educational censorship in the last few years by Belia County Schools where books have been removed without following the full and proper reconsideration ation process Belia County Schools chose to remove Smoke by Ellen Hopkins at the beginning of this year good reads reviewed the author Ellen Hopkins as a best-selling author who continues the riveting story she began and burned to explore what it takes to Rise From the Ashes put ghosts to rest and step into a future public record confirms smoke was one of 14 books challenged by someone at the beginning of this year it appears these book challenges base their views on short passages and do not look at the book's content as a whole this is one reason
118that the chancellor received or recently clarified the confusing language of the statute after receiving feedback from multiple District stakeholders he recommended that districts review materials that been that have been removed rather than making permanent decisions based on one excerpt fell County schools has the obligation to revisit the hasty decisions they made to remove books without allowing the opportunity for the community to be heard through public review process step into the future bring back smoke to valua County schools libraries thank you Miss steppie Parker are you reading for yourself okay Pam crra okay you're reading for Pam thank you thank you I'm pushing back on your censorship in valua County Schools books addressing social justice family Dynamics acceptance and recovery from trauma are being removed from our our school libraries without guarantee of being returned even
119if students request them as addressed by a student at the last meeting high school students should be allowed School library access to You2 by Janet girtler You2 is a collection of stories teens need to know that no young person should be subjected to sexual harassment assault peer pressure or made to feel unsafe or degraded you was not easy to read it made me uncomfortable to remember things is this appropriate for elementary school libraries no however older teens can find validation and power from reading these personal stories it can help them to approach and start a conversation with safe adults parents friends and siblings perhaps it can prevent another young child from being victimized the author and editor's message to readers for everyone out there who needs a hug I know there is a person who
120wants to give you one I hope you find each other public records indicate that You2 was one of 14 books challenged for pornography there was no record of aluia County Schools following their own instructional policy number 320 in a timely manner for book reconsideration process nevertheless you remove the book If you followed your policy you would know the true stories in this book are not not pornographic as the objector claimed media Specialists and Librarians got it right when they originally approved this book for age appropriate students pay tribute to those who had the courage to tell their stories to help others don't victimize them again by Banning their stories as pornography help Empower our students to speak up bring back you two to valua County Public School libraries where it belongs Pam crra thank you
121um now Miss Parker you filled out a second card is that for you yes I know okay go ahead and then we'll be finished with public info thank thank you good evening thank you for the opportunity to speak I'm speaking for myself and hoping to shift the narrative maybe we can learn about and understand and try to view issues from another perspective from a positive perspective for example we can say at potential instead of at risk let's start referring to All uchia County students as young people with potential kind of interesting when you think about students that attend vucha County schools in a way they are marginalized childhood is marginalized little to no power with others making decisions and they have less access to needed services but their engagement and their perspective is valuable maybe
122we can ask students how can I help you get there as and ask to be a part of their Community ask for information listen let the young person be the expert and listen and learn we need to change systems need to Res and they need to result in meaningful change we need to create safe spaces for communication between the community and systems and each sector how can we ensure systemwide changes be seen be heard take action can't be eras which was an ed trust webinar be loud be local get uncomfortable tanji Dr tanji Reed Marshall said those words and I believe those are important Advocates and interveners we can all be those we can all be allies and accomplice we need to stay committed can't stop don't be shy demand respect and have joy and
123a sense of hope with all of this sending signals around bravery is also important exciting people to take that step and join in I'll just mention a gentleman maybe some of you are familiar with JJ Holmes and his mother is Allison Holmes JJ lives in Central Florida he's 20 years old he has a 4.0 GPA in college and is an advocate for people with disabilities and for Medicaid expansion he's one of 40 under 40 this year he is had was born with Cerebral paly he writes with his nose on an iPad that is in front of him his mother helps him with all of their advocacy he advocates for the people that he represents but also for all the others we want to recommend that all are are thought of positively thank you thank you
124at this time we're moving on to item um 7.01 removal of items from the consent agenda Dr bman do you have anything you wish to remove from the consent agenda Madam shair I have none okay Mr cologne will you remind us of what you removed from the consent agenda item 16 point0 five and 06 and 06 all right any other board members wish to have anything removed or anything um taken off for discussion under tonight's consent agenda no okay then at this time I need a motion to to approve the consent agenda as amended removing items 16.05 and 16.06 yeah I move approval of the consent agenda minus items 16.05 and 16.06 thank you do I have a second I'll second that motion thank you so Mr persus made the motion Mrs Thompson seconds any
125further discussion okay then I'll call for the vote for the consent agenda items all those in favor of approving the consent agenda as amended with a removal of items 16.05 and 16.06 please say I I any opposed it passes unanimously we are now moving on to item 19.1 District advisory Council annual report Dr bovan Madame chair at this time I would like to ask um for Mr Greg tetta to join us he's our public information officer and also in our audience here we have Miss Jennifer Miss Jennifer Miss marinu as you know she is our vice chair for the district advisory Council um they have an annual report that they will share with the team here today so thank you for being here and welcome right did you want to say anything okay now before
126I go you know I'm not the most technologically advanced do I just hit the little arrow key okay on the bottom right there okay we all you're familiar don't let me near the computer for the presentation hello I'm Jennifer maroso thank you chairman chairwoman haes to having me board Dr balabin uh I'm not Angela kupnik um who was our chair I know she was on the agenda for this evening um but you know sometimes the meetings conflict as you know so you get me again um thank you so much for having us I always love giving this report almost as much as I love serving on the committee um and so we're going to start with having our presentation aligning to the following um part of our strategic plan guardwell for communication and Community engagement
127look at me scrolling right through those um so uh this is um not just for for um you all who are always been very involved but also for anyone listening um our uh DC is our district advisory Council as we changed our name this year to align with our statute because it's always called us a council and we used to be a committee we are a council and we are made up of Representatives of an appointed member from every school's School advisory Council so we meet um every month with the opportunity to talk with every single School in the in the county and we also have additional Representatives each of our school board members um appoint one per their District in addition so it's a Community member or someone who they can be teachers we
128can be community members you can be parents anyone is eligible as long as you are appointed by one of you all or by your school advisory committee so I'm just going to put a little plug in for anyone listening get involved in your school advisory committee they're doing tremendous work they're kind of unsung heroes and if you go you'll be very surprised at exactly how much they're able to support our schools through support of our school Improvement plans the Departments and groups that also appoint a someone to our Council are ESC programs Title One Futures F County Council ptas view we always have those Representatives on there um ask me is always had a representative on there we do miss Carol shout out um and as I said all of these folks come together once
129a month just as you do to um meet and we alternate on the east and west side of the county to accommodate all our um uh schools I do want to also give a shout out to Mainland High School and Deltona High School because those are our homes on each side of the county and what that means is they open up our learning Commons at Deltona and their Media Center at Mainland an administrator has to stay they help us with our computer presentations they make sure we have any equipment or microphones that we need their students come um it's really something that they've done as long as I've been involved with District advisory committee Council so it'll take me another year to get used to that um so I want to thank their administrators and
130um any their supports um faculty and staff for allowing us to have a home on each side of the county so that we can get this important work done we have eight meetings this year we did cancel one because we have everyone come all of our schools travel on each side of the county and we want it to be safe but um as you know this is where I would like to give a shout out to you all um you all travel across the county as well to be with us you do have Representatives where if you're on the west side of the county go to the West Side meetings East Side school board members represent the school board on the east side of meetings but you all know and I want to thank you
131all very much you go to all the meetings we have our West Coast folks come to our Mainland meetings East Coast folks go to our um Westside meetings so I just want to thank you all and um move on to the next one because it ties into that our dist District advisory council members serving an advisory capacity of the school district it was created by Statute alongside the school advisory councils um but it serves a unique uh point in the in the district communication goals where it is as I said the opportunity for every single school to have a representative and collaboratively collaboratively meet with school board members we can discuss things in real time and in addition Dr balabin you're always there you have an and we all have our District staff there as
132well it is such a unique opportunity to have this um Council and all our members which include you all and our District staff get together every month to talk about um systems upcoming things past concerns and solve problems in real time and I just want to express my gratitude for your support it's it's unfailing to what we're able to do and it it makes and I have spoken with a number of other districts um as over the years and we have the best process going as far as I can um tell from the communication with them so thank you for that um in addition we have the opportunities for our high school representatives to come um because we're all about the students and you know we don't want to tax younger students uh parents with
133driving them but high school students can drive themselves we do offer um membership on the council to a high school student also appointed by their sack they can alternate they can all sign up for for a meeting from their ska and these are the high schools that we have had this year we want to give a shout out um they've been coming every year um our high school representatives are always encouraged to participate in the meetings even if they already have a representative there from their school Atlantic High School the land High School Delona Mainland New smna seab breze sebr and Spruce Creek and um we have had numbers of of high school students if your high school's not mentioned my apologies this was based on me and the signin sheets but I know you
134were there and we appreciate you and every time a high school student is there we do hear from them so I want to express my appreciation for them being also participating in the process um as we go to meeting topics you know I don't limit myself to this um I also want to give a shout out to to Mr shetta thank you you're gonna be you're gonna be front and row next year but also to Danielle and Lisa long um our meeting topics are set with uh a meeting prior to the school year they're based on um interest from uh council members they email a lot of our stuff is talked about in meetings any concerns that they may have and it's driven also by typical things that happen over the year um budget code
135of conduct those are standard changes but um and Dr baman you and your um District staff are incredible at compiling whole other presentations just for these meetings and coming and presenting and staying and answering questions and being available after the meeting um and uh and um our Community Information office as well as and Lisa long does all of our attendance compilations and scheduling all this stuff are responsible for bringing that all together so I want to also give a shout out to your office and um say thank you for doing that these are our meeting topics that we covered this year of course we did our academic update budget code of conduct um but we also did our selection of school curriculum materials because we had some approvals this year so we get to learn
136about that process have input into that our technology um career is mental health awareness and um security operations update we had our Sheriff there at at our meeting um lots of informative uh topics happen and that one in particular was some things are hard to hear but it's important that we are able to share this with our um District advisory council members and they're bring it right back to their schools so that was something we were able to do as well and the last thing I want to add about that is the biggest shout out goes to those folks that are attending the meetings for their schools and bringing this information back to their schools bringing their school's information to the meetings you know they're not only just attending their school meeting right near where
137they live but they're crossing the county every month committing to it so that they are able to keep their school connected and share their concerns so I want to act actually give a shout out to every single District advisory council member um they're listening that's the kind of people they are they are um some of the most committed dedicated people to not just their schools but fla County as a whole um that I've ever had the pleasure to meet and it's just been um a wonderful honor to be be able to be on the council and to be able to serve in this way so I want to thank them in particular as well and that is Angela's contact information so listen if you have any questions or concerns this is the number you have
138any questions that is is great thank you for all that you do you and the entire team um not just coming and receiving information from us but also going back and sharing and the commitment that everyone makes on a monthly basis much of appreciate it it takes it takes the village but I always say it's all the right people in the village so thank you thank you Mr col and so again I just want to thank you all I know that it's you know even though it's once a month it seems like it's every other week and it does creep up on you quickly and so again I want to thank you for your steadfast commitment to our schools to our district to our students more importantly uh and uh it's hard to deal with
139lots of people from lots of places but you all do it well so thank you thank you for your service persus yeah just to Echo what Mr cologne just said uh thank you for you have been doing this a few years and uh you do it so well and you're always so positive and you just bring a lot of energy to all all of the the meetings you make everyone feel welcome you always do um I also want to thank all the teachers and parents who serve on the committee just just as you said they're making a a sacrifice and commitment as as well as well as the District staff who usually they're the presenters right and so that's extra time to do it and uh so yeah there's a lot of people to thank
140and they're all in it for the right reasons just to communicate communicate communicate answer questions clarify things especially in today's social media uh um you know we have U Fearless keyboard Warriors out out there and uh so it's nice to get get the truth out and get that back to the school so Jen thank you very much I also want to say thank you um and the only thing that if I could change anything I wish that sometimes we could get the information to larger groups of people because I I will say this though the um individuals that come from schools I've actually attended their sack meetings after a DAC meeting and I've heard them like give some great reports and great information but I even think about our topic this morning during the workshop
141about vaping um you know when um Mr Craig Pender came and he shared like the numbers about that as as well as some of the other things that discipline referrals are written for that information that was shared I I feel like all parents needed to hear that you know um and so my only thing is you know we're limited to just one person from each school so we're not hitting everyone because everyone then does not come to the sack meeting either because the sack meeting is made up of a smaller group and sometimes I think if we could get that information out to a larger group of parents I think they need to hear what's happening especially at our elementary level because I think sometimes Elementary parents don't realize but thank you for everything that
142you do there's no further questions oh do you have something you like to say okay then did you want me to talk more back up back up than thank you we are moving on to item 20.01 authorization to advertise proposed amendments to Schoolboard policy 307 student progression plan thank you madam chair we have with us here Mr penley and um he has policy 307 and the subsequent policies which is 307 and 511 welcome Mr penley thank you Dr Bala Madam chair board members tonight item 20.01 requests the board's authorization to advertise amendments to the student uh progression plan which is our policy 307 as you will recall board members this is an annual or semiannual occurrence where we uh update our student progression plan to be in compliance with uh updates in legislation this year
143we're looking at issues PR predominantly in the matters of English language Learners graduation requirements um course credits and um this is an annual revision so I understand that Dr Drayton and Miss um yeah Dr Drayton and Miss cast castalano we also have um our not he's not new anymore our executive director for student services and grad Assurance he will join if there are specific questions if there are specific questions Mr this would be to advertise those amendments in in compliance with chapter 124 statutes okay so board members does anyone have any questions about about the changes if you know like one of them that stands out is the half a credit for financial literacy that's coming into play now for 9th grader so like that's a change Mr clone you have something ready to make
144a motion all right let's just do anyone have any questions at all and this will just quickly we were just at uh which High School were we just at uh university university university and uh I noticed students were coming in for some summer school I guess or something so I asked one I I said hey what are you doing here and he said I'm going to take the financial literacy course and he was a freshman I think or sophomore so I guess they are able to do that in the summer just knock that out so they won't have to because I understand that financial literacy requirement only um only the I guess the sophomore coming in has to have that credit and the Juniors and seniors they are not required to have that credit so
145you know I'm just saying that's I mean that's all good you know just how kids take PE to knock it out in the summer they don't have to won't have to take it during the day but I I thought it was interesting that they're already aware and wanting to get it done and it said it's a half a credit is that what you said that's awesome no I think it's all good I was just surprised you know to see it yeah we act quick Mr pures all right any other discussion okay then I need someone to make a motion to approve to advertise policy 307 the student progression plan for the 2425 school year do I have someone that would like to make a motion motion to approve thank you Mr clone do I have
146and Mr persus all right then I will call for the vote all those in favor please say I I I any opposed okay it passes unanimously we are now moving on to item 20.02 authorization to advertise proposed amendments to policy 511 safety of facilities Madam chair item 20.02 requests the board's authorization to advertise proposed amendments to our safety of facilities policy 511 these uh amendments will bring policy 511 which has been a relatively light safety of facilities uh policy into compliance with the new Florida requirements under house bill 1473 for campus security uh Captain has worked diligently to make sure that this our school safety plan is appropriate and securing the campus was the main focus of that bill so this policy will now be in conformance with that effective provided it's board's pleasure to
147advertise this prior to the beginning of the uh 2425 school year which is the reason for bringing this policy out of cycle okay so board member Dr bman yes Madam chair I recommend The Authority being granted to advertise the proposed amendments to school board policy 511 safety of facilities okay board members you've heard the recommendation of the superintendent do I have someone who'd like to make a motion to advertise the proposed amendments to policy 511 safety of facilities motion to approve thank you Mr clone do I have a second I'll second that motion thank you Mrs Thompson is there any discussion my understanding is when I looked at it it it matches what we the law says that we have to do basically right I mean this is the law it's not us making a
148decision on it it's the law that's right okay then if there's no further discussion I'll call for the vote all those in favor please say I I I any opposed it passes unanimously thank you we are now moving on to item 20.3 the Florida School Board Association fsba aacy committee representative and alternative this is one of the positions um that were required to vote on and submit um a name to fsba so if we look at this currently Mr persus you are the advocacy liaison um for our board and Mr clone is the alternate because this is one of the positions that they require us to to vote in so I don't so I don't know how the meetings have been going this year and if you've both been able to cover them and are
149you interested in staying in those positions I nominate Carl to be our representative that's fine as long as you're the alternate and I'll be happy to serve as the alternate okay so at this time um the recommendation is to create to keep Mr Carl versus as our advocacy liaison with Mr Ruben clone as the alternate is there anyone else that wants to serve in this position at this time do you have a card on this oh okay all right then at this time we I will call for the vote all those in favor of Mr Carl persus remaining as our advocacy liaison for the Florida Schoolboard association with Mr Ruben Colonus alternate please say I I any opposed it passes unanimously I didn't ask for like a motion because good guys have volunteered all right
150at this time then we are now moving on to item 21.1 public participation appears we have a card um I hope that I pronounced the name correctly is it corani Yamada Toledo okay please come forward and welcome hello I'm corani ma last time I was here I was speaking uh about the concerning allocation of funds and the mass displacements of teachers throughout the county from the end of last school year um at first when I came here I was only concerned about my acquired teacher that was displaced uh I didn't realize how big the problem was at the time um but after showing up to these meetings I saw all of the other teachers that were being displaced and all the other students that were being affected by it and my focus pivoted to the
151the funds that are not there to pay for the the teachers jobs um and so uh I'm simply here asking for updates um it's been a while and um I was just wondering if there are any plans to fix the problem the budget problem as of right now and if so what is it and I know it won't be fast but how long do you think it will take to solve the problem and reinstate the positions that were lost thank you thank you all right at this point in time we are now on item 22.01 items from board members superintendent Schoolboard attorney for discussion or announcement I have nothing what I have nothing okay Mrs brunette thank you um I just wanted to bring up what Miss nolles had talked about and that is um
152making sure we have a process in place where we verify people's time not necessarily the exact thing she was came to discuss but that hopefully that we do have a process in place where we are making sure everyone is accountable and they are truly here working the hours that they say they're working and um that we don't have people taking advantage of things and ruining it for other people so I just wanted to kind of make that comment and you're welcome to get back with me at a later time or Mr CE or whoever but thank you yeah if I can add just to what you said go ahead just uh I think part of the part part of her point was treating everyone the same I mean not everyone the same everyone fairly ab
153and so regardless of what title you have at the school that and everyone has personal as a principal you know people come to me all the time I can I take off early one hour for a doctor appointment or go this or or or go there and you know you just have to use good judgment with those things and you help out everyone but you you certainly wouldn't want to you know charge one person for time off and not charge another I mean that's just not wise at all so I'm glad you right well and if we have a policy that says that you put in for personal use time if you're leaving for an hour then we should be following that you put in personal use time for leaving for an hour I mean
154if we have a policy we should follow it yeah absolutely yeah and um I'm going to add to that because this has even come up you know in the internal audit committee piece you know when you're looking at the time whether you you're looking at a time clock or a time sheet or whatever I think what people don't stop to think about sometimes is let's just say 15 minutes okay if you come to work 15 minutes late or you leave 15 minutes early 15 minutes just once each day over a 5ay period is 75 minutes and whether people agree or disagree with this if you sign your time sheet that you were there for those 15 minutes and you weren't it's fraud yeah and that's you know and even that I used to have to
155go to all the federal programs fraud trainings each year and you know when you look at that and you look look at the time that that adds up to over a year it's a lot of time and so it is very important because we do have a policy and we need people to follow the policy and there needs to be things in place and it has to be followed by everyone I can say during my career I'm a rule follower okay and so I I tended to be there early um and sometimes stay late and I'm not asking people to do do that but the person in charge okay whether it be a principal an assistant principal um a district you know Department lead someone you know over Transportation whatever they set the tone for
156this okay and what I've always said is when you're in a position such as that you actually have to do more because if you show that you're not working the time that you're supposed to then you're basically telling everyone that works for you or with you that they tooo can do that and it is fraud plain and simple and so I do appreciate Mrs NES coming and talking about it I had no idea that we had had people that had lost their job in the schoolway cafe area or under ask me um because there does seem to be a double standard but I think the standard needs to be the same and fair for everyone anything else all right uh madam Che I I'm the young lady that just spoke about the displaced teachers and
157has there been an up update I think Dr alaben can address that that can follow up with the fact that the team will follow up thank you okay okay sure good all right anything else no that's it all right then at this time it is 7:44 and we are adjourned Dr