001Okay. I would like to call this meeting to order. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. All right, we have all members of the board present along with the administration and members of the public. Make sure you've signed in. Up first is public comment. Public comment is reserved for items that are not on the agenda. It is for members of the public to give input on public matters, not personal issues. To avoid violations of privacy, a member of the public wishing to address the board will not be allowed to make comments about any student, staff member, or member of the public during his or her designated time to speak. To maintain
002order and allow everyone the opportunity to speak, the chair shall limit an individual's time to 3 minutes. Does anyone wish to speak at this time? Okay. Thank you, Diane. Yeah, sorry, Shannon. It's actually a little [clears throat] long. I'm here tonight in support of our administration, something long overdue. Generally, I keep quiet and keep opinions to myself. However, when I can't even go downtown without someone cornering and questioning a rumor they heard about school and operations, enough is enough. First, a little about me. I started working for the district in 2013 as a sub, then a para, and in 2014 the secretary. My job requires me to work in close daily contact with administration. I have worked under four other superintendents. Mr. Gaines is the fifth, and I will tell you without hesitation this administration
003is by far the most ethical and supportive I've worked under. I'll be honest, I was close to leaving due to the district being able to retain strong leadership. Wages did not reflect the responsibilities of my position, and the school culture and climate was unhealthy if you weren't part of the in crowd. For reasons I still can't fully explain, I decided to give it one more chance. I'm glad I did. With this administration, I'm sorry. I hate talking in front of people. I'm glad I did. What this administration may have lacked in experience was way it made up for with passion, integrity, and genuine commitment to doing what they believe is best for students, staff, and the district. This administration is why I am still here. What I have personally witnessed from some adults, including former
004staff, make me embarrassed for them. I see behavior that makes kindergarteners look more respectful. For what? Over different opinions or somehow know all the facts about situations? Or you can run a district better from sitting on the bar stool or behind closed doors? I've seen harassment, yelling, stomping, and outright hostility over differing opinions regarding the 4-day week. Any chance of a rational discussion over an opposing view goes out the window. I understand passion. I don't understand negativity, hostility, and disrespect. It's like T V S. From the start, I told this administration they need thick thick skin. But no one should be expected to endure the orchestrated harassment they have faced. It's common knowledge that some that for some the game is to run another administrator off. I watched it happen with two other administrators. Then
005what? Start over? It's been well established that there is a national teacher and administrator shortage. If we're lucky, we might get someone in here with no ties to our community. Doesn't have a stake in the game with family members as students. They go home to wherever they are from on weekends because they're only here to collect a paycheck. If that's the goal, congratulations. You eventually might get your wish. But I believe we are fortunate to hire local leadership who actually have a stake in the game in this district. Because of personal vendettas, misinformation has been spread and needs to be addressed. Number one, the claim that this administration actively recruits and only hires Anaconda people because they want to turn us into Anaconda is false. Here's some facts. Miss Rose, Miss Beath, Miss Baumgardner, Miss
006Parent, and Miss Harrison All right, anyone else? All right, moving on to our items for action. Item A. >> [clears throat] >> Items for action A, offer elementary contract to fifth grade teacher. Uh my recommendation is the board approves to offer an elementary teaching contract to Joanne Crockett for the remainder of the 2025-2026 school year. Okay. The Board of Trustees of Philipsburg School District number one moves to approve the offering of the contract to Joanne Crockett for the remainder of the 2025-2026 school year. Any comments or questions? What are her certifications? Sorry, what was that? What are her certifications? They need some This is what we just talked about. So, it's comment. So, people don't get to ask questions during this time. If the board has questions or the board wants to know if the
007person is fully certified, that's a question you ask your administrator. So, yes, the >> [clears throat] >> the candidate is fully certified. I emailed OPI. OPI sent me an email that I can share with board members. It says she's fully certified. Does the board have any questions? All right. All those in favor? I. All those opposed? Did you get your vote? So, I. Sorry. All right, motion passes. Next item B. Hire substitute. My recommendation is the board approves hiring Philip Wool as a substitute teacher for the Philipsburg K-12 Public Schools for the remainder of the 2025-2026 school year. And then an added comment, he's filling in for a teacher on maternity leave. Does the board have any questions? Any comments? He's currently filling in? Mhm. He's filling in because he's filling Mhm. Do you have
008a motion? The Board of Trustees of Philipsburg School District number one moves to hire Philip Wool as a substitute teacher for the Philipsburg School for the remainder of the 2025-2026 school year. I second. I'll second. Any other comments or questions from >> [snorts] >> Any comments from the public? All right, all those in favor? I. Any opposed? All right, motion passes. Uh next item on the agenda is a closed session. I have determined that the next matter to come before the board for consideration involves a matter of individual privacy. Further demands of the individual privacy in this matter clearly exceeds the merit of public disclosure. Therefore, I am declaring this portion of the meeting closed. So, we'll be doing that in the classroom again. Okay. Mr. Gaines is responsible. You know what I'm going to
009do? I'm going to turn the video off. >> Not at all. I don't think so. No. I'm just going to turn it off.