001ation meeting. Uh noticing that we have majority of the board members here. I have determined a quorum. Um please take a minute to look at your agenda and let me know the pleasure of the board. Motion by Mr. Wyoff. Do we have a second? Second. Second by Mr. Johnson. All those in favor indicate by saying I. I. Those opposed names. Eyes have it. The agenda is approved. We are going to go ahead and observe a moment of silence. Uh led by Mrs. Taylor. Dear Lord, we thank you for bringing us once again to the end of another school year. We thank you for the blessing of joy. Thank you for our schools and for the opportunities that you gave them, for the students um success this last year. We thank you for our teachers that
002you placed in our district who have given their time and talents all year. And we ask that you show them the impacts of their labors in the weeks to come. We ask that you be with our administration and leadership teams as they close this school year. Be with our school support staff who have been working tirelessly behind the scenes. and we pray that they feel appreciated and seen. Lord, we ask for love and comfort to surround the Sput Pow family during this time of loss. We praise you for the life he lived and the service he gave to our community. I have no doubt that the greeting he received when he left this world and entered into your presence was well done, good and faithful servant. And God, we come before you tonight as a
003school board. We ask for your guidance and wisdom as we begin this meeting. Help us engage in meaningful discussion. Help us speak respectfully with humility with one another. Clear our minds from any admodosity that we may face and face issues with open mind. We pray that all decisions made tonight be in your will and beneficial for our school district and to all those who have placed their trust in us. Keep us humble before you, Lord, and remind us of your purpose and in our positions. May the words of our mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight. In your name we pray. Amen. Amen. Thank you, Mrs. Taylor. Um, please stand for the presentation of colors and the pledge of allegiance. To the flag of the United States of America and
004to the republic for it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. [Applause] Thank you. Eastburg High School JOTC color guard led by Colonel Arthur Scott. All right, moving forward on the agenda, we have student recognitions. Good evening everyone. This is our favorite time of board meetings when we get to recognize our students. So, thank you all for joining us tonight as we celebrate and recognize them. Uh, tonight I will be recognizing the first place winner of our elementary Battle of the Books competition. I want to express the incredible effort, teamwork, and love of reading shown by this group. Each team member participated in reading 16 titles from a wide variety of highquality literature. They collaborated, engaged in critical thinking, and demonstrated a true appreciation for books and a love of
005reading. During the course of this year, each member challenged themselves to read the 16 titles, participated in hours of practice, discussing themes and the tiniest of details in preparation to answer questions that challenge their comprehension and recall. Each student here has demonstrated commitment, perseverance, and a deep enthusiasm for reading, which is an accomplishment in itself. Today, we honor not only their hard work, but also their growth as learners and teammates. So, for the fourth year in a row, I would like to recognize the Mole Elementary Battle of the Books team and coaches as the elementary Battle of the Books champions um for the 25 uh 2425 school year. So, please come forward as I recognize and read your name. Trevor Hester, Sam Lidle, Skyler Moses, Maxwell Olsen, Georgia Pucket, Railan Subtles, and our coaches, Miss
006Lauren Powell, Miss Angela Anders, and Miss Kim Gregory. Let's give these readers a round of applause. [Applause] On April 9th, we held our second annual art exhibition at the City of Morgan Municipal Auditorium um for our elementary art show. We want to recognize the following first place winners in 2D art representing Salem Elementary, Kate N. [Applause] We had three students competing together coming in first place for 3D for 3D art representing Valdas Elementary. Ariela Kirk, Ember Davis, and Avery Wright. Come on [Applause] down. And for our superintendence and directors award representing Salem Elementary, Rosalyn Hog. Come on down, Ros. [Applause] While they're greeting, I would also like to say a word of thanks to Miss Kristen Smith, who is here with us uh from the North Carolina Museum of Art. She is the manager of
007school outreach, as well as Miss Katherine Irvin, who's with us tonight. They are representatives of Burke Toss. Thank you for your support. [Applause] Good evening. On April 15th, uh we had our third annual chop competition. Anybody that's familiar with the show, uh we replicated that here in Burke County in partnership with Chartwells, our food service provider. We had our high schools Freedom Eastber, Patent Drone, and Hallebertton participated this year. And we here to like to uh recognize the winners. Uh for the actual chop competition, the overall winners, Freedom High School, when I call your name, please come forward. Zachary Carson, Dela Jones, Allison Yang, Elizabeth McCall, and their teachercoach, Miss Heather Smith. Congratulations, Freedom. while they're going through the time and preparation went into this event was phenomenal uh both on students and staff end
008and we'd like to thank Eastburg for hosting uh the chop competition this [Applause] Second part of that competition was a dry rub of ribs that were worked on by each uh high school and their food students. And the rib uh winners were Eastburg High School. Please, when I call your name, please come forward. Taylor Lennin, Natalie Bell, Vega Bradshaw, Caleb Deal, Job Snow, and their teacher/coach, Miss Laura Min. Congratulations, Eastburg. [Applause] Good evening, Madame Chair, members of the board, and the community out with us tonight. It's a pleasure to be here to celebrate some of our uh incredible accomplishments of our high school students. We will begin with the high school art competition. Their work has been on display at the comma in downtown Morgan and it features some truly outstanding pieces. As I call
009your name, please come forward and remain at the front for a photo after. First place in 2D art from Patton High School, Avalon Smith. First place 3D art, Dolce Rios Adrian from East High School. Superintendence Award, Cababrina Garrett, Freedom High School. Director's Award, Sophie Chapman, Eber High School. Let's give these folks a round of [Applause] applause. Donce and um Sophie reached out to us this evening and said they had previous commitment were not able to be here, but they appreciated the recognition. [Applause] Next, we would like to recognize the Freedom High School math team. They recently competed at CBCC in Hickory against 30 other high school teams, and we are proud to say they brought home first place. [Applause] As I call your name, please come forward. Cash Baker, Parker Bigger Staff, Olivia Carter, Nicola
010Kyota, Avery Clants, Cameron Cox, Eva Epley, Caitlyn Hagman, Maddox Keller, Leah Kirsy, Avery Linda Campamp, Raelio Rodriguez Morales, Feifer Settle Meyer, Emma Shores, Jacqueline Soop, Chloe Spencer, Jason Telo Lopez, Nevin Ta, Emily Basquez Vincent, Carara Wisnet, and we would also like to recognize their coaches if they're in the crowd. Mr. Brent Baker, Mr. Justin Fortune, Mr. Will NPir and Morgan [Applause] Smith we app we appreciate the time that they've also spent with our students. Congratulations to us all. [Applause] Good evening, Chairwoman Beechler, board of education. Thank you for the opportunity to be here this evening. For the past several years, BCPS has celebrated Disabilities Awareness Week, a special week where all students learn about disabilities, the power of inclusion, and pledge to accept, respect, and include all students. As we planned this annual week of
011celebration, our team had the idea of creating a collaborative art project that each school in the county would contribute to. Having worked last year with Mr. Dwayne Brown, art teacher at Walter Johnson. I knew he was the man for the job. He created this beautiful design to celebrate the spirit of disabilities awareness week and gave each school a 12 by 12 canvas to paint by numbers based on his design, not knowing what the entire design would look like when all the pieces were put together. As you can see, the result is very impressive and will be proudly displayed in the gallery of the new central office building. Thank you, Mr. Brown, for your leadership with this project and for creating a beautiful work of art that will last for many years and truly shows Burke
012County Public Schools commitment to creating inclusive and welcoming spaces for all students. [Applause] Good evening. Tonight, I'm honored to recognize the school resource resource officer of the year. Her presence on campus has been a source of reassurance and positivity for students, staff, and families. She exemplifies what it means to be a school resource officer, building meaningful relationships, responding with compassion, and helping create a supportive learning environment. Please join us in congratulating Officer Megan Chapman on this extending achievement and thanking her for her service to Patton High School and Burke County Public Schools. [Applause] Tonight I'll be presenting our Trailblazers Grant Awards. Each year, the North Carolina Youth Outdoor Engagement Commission awards Go Outside NC Trailblazers grants to help schools launch clubs that promote team building and outdoor education. This year's recipients include Tim Barnesback at
013Burke Middle College and Carla Sain May and Justin Han at Hallebertton Academy. Their schools will each receive $10,000 to start a trailblazers club outdoors club. This grant will help fund student field trips, club club activities, equipment, and professional development with an emphasis on community engagement and mental and physical health. Activities could include outdoor experiences such as kayaking and hiking, leadership, adventures, and taking history and science classroom outside. Congratulations to Mr. Barnesback and Miss May, Mr. Han, and their students. We're excited for these opportunities that they will have to explore nature's playground and beyond while also building confidence, leadership skills, and physical and mental health. Congratulations, [Applause] Thank you. Thank you. [Applause] I'm delighted to present Excellence in Communications Award for Burke County Public Schools. In April, the North Carolina School Public Relations Association honored Burke
014County Public Schools with 10 Excellence in Communication Awards and one best of the best award. The association recognizes outstanding communication through its annual blue ribbon awards program. Burke County was one of 35 school districts statewide to receive awards. Burke County received one best of the best, three gold, five silver, and two bronze awards for outstanding photography, image, graphic design, digital media engagement, electronic media, special events and programs. The photograph triumphed beyond the stage. One student's inspiring graduation moment received the best of the best award in photography with the judges saying it shows tremendous emotion and forth for thought of the photographer Miss Cheryl Shuffler to be in the right place at the right time. Cheryl, could you put that image up for me if you could find it at your fingertips? These awards are a
015testament to the power of storytelling and the critical role it plays in public education. The district's public relations and communications team is made up of Miss Shuffler and Miss Bethany Duncan. Congratulations, ladies. You'll get to see it before the end of the night. Hallelujah. All right, moving on to public comment. Vice Chair, do we have anybody signed up? We do not. Awesome. All right, moving on to staff update construction delivery methods presentation. Dr. Akre, Dr. Swan, and Mr. Lawson. Good evening, Madame Chair, vice chair, board members. Last week at your uh planning session, you heard from the architect about three different delivery methods for construction of a new elementary school. Design bid build, construction manager at risk, and design and design build. So, one of the takeaways from the planning session was for Mr. Dr.
016Lawson and myself and Dr. Swan to reach out to some other districts, kind of pick their brain a little bit, see what kind of things they were doing in their district and how school construction kind of worked for them. So, I talked to seven different school districts across the state. Um, interviewed them. It was probably a 20 20 minute 30 minute conversation. So, I just kind of summed it up into into one couple sentences there uh for you. So the first district that I talked to was currently building a 900 student elementary school with the same grant funds that we received. Um they were using design bid build simply because it's the traditional method for the district. It's the it's the one that they had always used. They built several schools over the last couple
017years and and that was their traditional delivery method. District number two had used both design uh bid build and construction manager at risk but they preferred uh CM construction manager at risk for better price control lead times on materials resources and most importantly timelines. So I'll go ahead and kind of frontload for every everyone who used construction manager timelines always came up in the discussion how those timelines timelines were much easier managed in their project. District number three uh they used construction manager at risk extensively as a delivery method. Uh they said that this allowed them to tailor their schedule and their timelines and stay on a good timeline for completion. District number four, they used design bid build to construct their new elementary school. Again, this was their traditional method. And in folks who
018used design bid build, the word traditional came up in their discussion. It was their it was their usual way of doing school construction. District number five was probably my longest interview. Uh they use construction manager for everything. Uh school construction primarily because it's it's it's they have so many on-site replacements. Old school build a new school beside of it. Um so that is that that is their uh chosen method of delivery is construction manager at risk. Again the the the key word of timelines came up several times in this discussion. Also, um, district number six that I interviewed, they'd used design bid bill for 20 years. Uh, again, traditional uh, method. They said it it met their needs. That's what they were comfortable with. District number seven, they had used uh, construction manager at risk
019uh, to build two buildings since 2019. Uh, elementary school renovation to the high school. They felt like their projects went well. they stayed on on timeline and on budget. So, taking a look at the project for Burke County Schools, I know this will ultimately come down to the board deciding your delivery method for for building a new elementary school, but the construction manager at risk is an option that as we've talked through and interviewed folks that with the timelines for the building, uh, the complexity of an on-site replacement like a couple of the other districts has had. Um this early development of a partnership between the architect, the CM at risk instead of waiting until the project is be is designed and then the contractor gets the gets the designs. They're a part of that
020design from the get-go. uh working with the architect and the owner being Burke County Schools also give some good project estimates early on uh design assistance and feedback and a known cost of the project um from through the um partnership between everybody working together early on in the process. Questions? I have a really quick question. Um, in your interviews with these other districts, you mentioned that the um design bid build versus the CM at risk. Um, basically they were referred to traditional and better controlled timelines. I noticed in some of your notes you referred to the cost of the project, but what did any of the people that you spoke with or any of the districts mention especially the ones that had done it both ways if one way was more likely to come in
021on or under budget than the other. Was there more extra cost in one or the other or did you did you get any of that information? I I think one of the things to think about is when you bid out with design bid build, you have a you have a number and then if at any point in the process of building that you decide or the school system would decide they want to change something, they want to add something to that that keeps bumping your cost up. Right. I was just curious as to whether any of them made comment on We've done three this way and four this way and we seem to come in on on or under budget better and with this method, but they didn't really not really. Um there a lot
022of the folks that I talked to, like I said, it really came down to what was their traditional field, what they were used to. Um, for some folks, especially larger districts with the ones who were doing those on-site replacements, that was the way they went strictly for timeline. Um, but on the other side of that, with a money situation, a budget situation, nobody really dived in on, you know, one way or the other. Um, but like I said, it just it kept coming down to, you know, your project and what you're doing. You know, do you have a timeline to get people into this building? You know, because on one on one last day of school, kids are going to get picked up here. On the first day of school, they're going to get picked
023up somewhere or dropped off somewhere else. you've got about a two-month time frame there u to make those changes to prepare for August 28th. So in in conversion with my colleagues, you know, and taking a look at, you know, that's pretty tight timeline to have this one ready. This one over here is closing or going to be finished open in June. Here's your new one setting here. you know, we got to make something happen here between June the 1st and August 28th. And and I believe at the at risk, there's less there's less availability for uh change orders coming to the board to say we need to add we need to request x amount of thousands of dollars if we do the CM option. That's pretty much off the table unless there's major issues. Yeah.
024One one of the things there is you get your uh construction manager involved so early on in the project that they and the architect and the owner me and Burke County Schools are working so closely together. There's there's less of a chance of something getting skipped over more than if the design goes in goes to them to bid it and then six months down the road you decide we need awnings out back. We didn't add that in on the initial be a lot less need for changes. Yeah, because you do run into things and and you know being part of the building Mountain View Elementary School, we did add awnings. We did add some other things, some kitchen equipment. Uh there was some change orders, some seating that was in the um um auditorium area.
025Uh some different seating. So there were some change orders that were done well after the design was bid. Um, so early on, you know, when the architect and the construction manager are working together, those kind of things get kind of fleshed out early on so you don't run into them six, eight months down the road, right? Eyes on the project, right? And we'll be available. Um, I believe you guys will vote on this on the 16th of June. So, from now until Z June, if you have any questions or would like clarification on anything, please don't hesitate to reach out to myself or the team on I'm sorry. You had mentioned before about, you know, if you felt like we felt like we had enough information that we possibly could go ahead and make that
026motion this evening to proceed with which route we'd like to go. So, you make that motion. I'm guess I'm asking if there are any more discussion. Does everybody feel like they have all their questions answered? I'd like to make the motion that um we accept construction manager at risk as our method of construction delivery. All right, we have a motion on the table by Mrs. Taylor. Second by Mr. Camp. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor indicate by saying I. I. Those opposed, nay. Eyes have it. See if we can get it started. Thank you. Thank you. All right, moving on to consent agenda items. Take a minute to review the items listed. Um, there's any questions, let us know. If not, board will entertain a motion. Okay. Motion by Mr. Wyoff. Do
027we have a second? Second by Mr. Johnson. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor indicate by saying I. I. Those opposed? Nay. Eyes have it. Consent agenda items have been accepted. All right. Moving on to action items. We have a resolution for land purchase. Mr. Lawson. Yes, ma'am. Good evening. Tonight's resolution is for the purchase of land for the intent to construct a new elementary school in eastern Burke County. The land consists of two parcels. Partial one 305A 3rd Street Southwest Gilderbrand consisting of 10.06 acres. Parcel two adjoining zero US Highway 70 West Kilderbrand consisting of 3.91 acres. The purchase price of $675,000 was approved by the county commissioners prior on March 17th. Uh due diligence investigations have been performed by architectural and engineering consultants. Uh and they have advised that the property
028appears to be suitable for school purposes. So be it resolved by the board hereby affirms its intent to acquire the property. The superintendent, board chair, and finance officer are hereby authorized to execute on behalf and as an act of the board and in consult consultation with the board's legal counsel such documents as they shall deem necessary or expedient to the acquisition of the property. In section three, the final finance officer is hereby authorized to extend the purchase price and such other funds as are required to pay the cost of acquisition of the property. Thank you questions. None. Do we have a motion? Motion. Motion by Mr. Johnson. Second. Second by Miss Taylor. All those in favor indicate by saying I. Those opposed? Nay. Eyes have it. Thank you. Thank you. All right. Moving on to
029the personnel board action report. If there are any questions, please remember to use the number associated with the name. If none, um, I'll be asking for a motion to approve. Yes, ma'am. I'll make that motion to approve. Second. Second by Mr. Beck. Any other discussion? All right. All those in favor indicate by saying I. I. Those oppos. Eyes have it. Personnel board action report has been approved. Thank you, Mr. Ricker. Uh, now we have the CTE plan for 2526. Mr. Rogers, would you like to be heard? Oh, we're good. All right. Any questions? Do we have a motion? Motion. Second. Motion by Mr. Beck, second by Miss Rocket. All right, that was a lot. Um, any other discussion? All those in favor indicate by saying I. I. Those opposed, nay. Eyes have it. CTE plan
030has been adopted. Thank you. All right. POE meeting scheduled for 2526. Questions or do we have a motion? Motion by Mr. Beck. Second by Mr. Whiteoff. All those in favor indicate by saying I. I. Those opposed, nay. Eyes have it. The BOE meeting schedule has been approved. Now we have the second reading of board policies. Dr. Autton. Yes. Thank you, Madam Chair. Um this is these are brought to you tonight as a second reading. I will note that we made a couple of changes based on our work session last week. Uh one was to policy 3000. Um we changed number six as requested I think M Miss Taylor. We've also added some language in the 3400R um about the documentation procedures and provided a link for an example to a contract for teachers to use
031um again with Miss Taylor's recommendation. So, any other questions? I would just like to extend a huge thank you to you, Dr. Odden, Miss Rocket, Taylor, for working on this grading policy. It's a lot better as well. I think there was one more other change. I think Mr. Beck had some clarifying language he requested. So, we we changed that as well. So, hopefully that's that's good. Yeah. Thank you, Mr. back for your contributions. All right, y'all. We have the policies before us. Do we have any questions or do we have a motion? Motion. Motion by Mr. Johnson. Second. Second by Mrs. Taylor. Any other discussion? If not, all those in favor indicate by saying I. I. Those opposed, nay. Eyes have it. All of the policies have been adopted. Thank you. Do we have a
032need for close session tonight? We do not. Awesome. I am making a motion to adjourn. Second. I would like to draw your attention to the screens. That was the photograph that won the award. Uh it was Freedom High School last year. Miss Lisa, one of my students. Um she was at Freedom I want to say when I was there and Casey was there, Coach Rogers. So phenomenal photograph. Um just it was a great day. This is the one that won that won the Yes. Awesome. You want to do another round of applause across the state. [Applause] Sorry. No, you're good. We have a motion to adjourn by me. Um, we have a a second by Mr. Beck. All those in favor indicate by saying I. I. Those opposed, nay. We are adjourned.