001separation. >> Is there a motion to these modifications? >> Motion to approve. >> So move second. >> I'll second. >> All those in favor signify. Signify by saying I. I. All those opposed. Same sign. >> Any extensions? Motion carries. Um, recognition of visitors and comments from the audience. Anybody like Oh, Mr. Steel, perfect timing. >> Good evening. >> You're on. >> You're up. >> Oh, are there any visitors that would like to speak this evening? Thank you all for coming. We appreciate all presentation this evening regarding middle school softball. >> All right. Uh good evening. Thanks for having me. Um just wanted to come and talk a little bit about um the opportunity to potentially create two new programs for Brown County Schools under the athletic department. Um it's something that um Mr. Steel and
002Mrs. Callahan and I have been talking about for a little while and I think it'll benefit um our students and our programs. So, um, we currently don't, um, have school sponsored baseball or softball programs. Um, everything's been ran, uh, either through our parks and wreck or as a club program. Um, kind of like a hybrid program, somewhat school affiliated, somewhat non-school affiliated. Um so this is um basically our proposal to try to bring middle school baseball softball under the umbrella of the athletic department where we have full control over it. Um get more involvement from our head high school coaches and those types of things. So uh just a few things I wanted to run through tonight for um you to think about and consider. Um kind of what we are proposing is one head
003coach uh per program to get it started. um that um stipen amount is consistent with our other middle school head coaching stipens. Um hopefully these programs take off. Um we know we have lots of interest already. Um so if numbers warrant an assistant coach for each program, we would also keep that assistant coaching position consistent with our other middle school assistant coaches as well. So those were those are where those two numbers um come from. Um, we're saying approximately 16 games uh per sport. That's just me thinking an eight-week season with two games a week. That's a rough estimate. Um, that's pretty typical middle school scheduling for just about any sport. Uh, we don't try to overload them with more than two games a week unless we have to, which basketball's experiencing right now because
004of the weather. But, um, roughly 16 games per sport. One of the good things is our new conference. We're going back to the Mid Hooser Conference. Um, all of those schools already have middle school baseball and softball programs. Um, and all of those schools have already said that they would be interested in going ahead and scheduling with us. So, we'll be able to build a schedule pretty quickly. Um, additionally, um, Coach Doss has been heavily involved with the club program previously for softball. He's got a lot of contacts with other schools that we've played in the past. So, I don't think building a schedule is going to be any problem whatsoever. Um, to get to that number of games, uh, we would use Eagle Park, um, use our both of our diamonds at Eagle Park.
005Um, we would just be strategic with how we schedule it. Obviously, if the high school has a game at home, maybe the middle school's on the road that night or vice versa. Um, and then also being strategic with practice times or maybe there's an opportunity where sometimes our middle school kids could practice jointly with the high school every once in a while to kind of um, align the programs as well. Um, but we would just be strategic with that scheduling um, and use Eagle Park as our facility. Um, really rough timeline here, but um, if you were to approve this, we would look at getting workouts started pretty much as quickly as we can. um early March um ideally if we can get approval. Um official practice start just roughly March 23rd is the Monday
006we come back from spring break. That seems like a a really um easy time to start official practice for this group when we come back from spring break. Um with games starting in April and basically running through the end of the school year. So that's kind of where that eightweek season comes in. >> Any questions about any of this? >> Are you sorry be will be one team six through eight. >> Yeah, great question. Um I reached out um to some of the other schools um because a lot of the schools in the new conference are junior senior high. So they're 7 through 12. Um but they do allow sixth graders to play on their middle school softball and baseball teams. Um and they said they would have no problem with us having sixth graders
007play um because we're sixth grade. ultimately be one team and you've got all three grades >> potentially if numbers if um if numbers are high we might have more than one team but ideally we'll have one team but I know re in past years they've had >> we've had an A and B team >> and a B team in the softball club so >> okay >> and they're all both softball and baseball are in the spring >> correct >> okay but they have different fields I guess right because they have different distances and things okay so The the women are playing on one side, the men are playing over here, and then they're sharing with the high school men's and women's. >> Correct. >> Got um why why are we proposing this now? Um some
008of this has come out of our athletic ambassador group. There's been a huge push to create more programs. How can we make our programs better? Um strengthening our middle school programs. Um, so this seems like a logical step in that direction to expand our programming, especially when the interest is there. Um, the spring season at the middle school currently is actually pretty light with sport offerings. Um, really the only two sports that we offer are track and field and then girls tennis um, at the middle school. Whereas in the fall we offer volleyball, cross country, football, and boys tennis. So we have a lot more offerings in the fall than we do in the spring. Um, so this is kind of leveling up the offerings um in the spring to equal the fall, give kids
009more opportunities um as well. Um, it's just going to strengthen our baseball and softball programs at the high school level. Um, the interest is there. Um, and so just by bringing it into the school, expanding the opportunities, getting our high school coaches more involved, it's just going to strengthen those programs and help build numbers at the high school level. Um, I know this year, high school softball, we're we're hoping, it looks like right now we're going to have enough to have a JV team, and we want to be able to keep that up, um, in the future. We want baseball to be able to have JV teams. So, um, this is just going to help strengthen those numbers. Um, and really, I think what makes it the easiest transition is that both of these programs
010have been operating the last few years as club programs. Um, so it makes for an easy transition into a school sponsors board. It's not like we're just starting completely from scratch. Uh there's interest there. There's somewhat of a structure there. Um and so it just makes for a smooth transition to bring in under the umbrella of the school. >> Is club the same as travel teams or is that different? >> Kind of like a hodge of >> you know it's just basically putting kids together. Usually it's a parent that steps up and coaches and they just have a team so that they the kids get opportunity to play and they just find other schools or teams that will play them. >> Um so this is a lot more >> yeah this is a lot more
011official a lot more structured. Um so >> um two slides is all I had. I tried to keep it as short and asformational as possible but any I will entertain any questions. Um, does park I don't think parks and w offers this age either. Is that right? >> Yeah, they they offer a program, but it's um everything I've heard is that um parents and students are wanting more county age group. kind of starts to get limited because you get a lot of kids going to travel other middle schools other things. So that this age group starts to limit down level. >> Okay. >> So have you talked to them? Obviously this would probably impact whatever program they do have. >> Yeah. Uh I think it would um it would be no different than our other
012programming we run um in terms of you know we run school basketball at the same time they run parks and rec. So, um, just working with them and trying to keep a good relationship. They know that we're wanting to expand our programming and the goal of this is not to eliminate parks and rest by any means. It's just to expand on what we offer. >> Yeah, we will. Um, tonight's just a presentation. Um, we would um I will put a recommendation on the February 16th board agenda to approve both programs. we didn't want to present something to you and then ask you to vote on it just after hearing the presentation. So, I would like to recommend um February 16th. >> I was just also going to say my um my understanding of of students
013we knew who did travel programs is that they can be really expensive. >> Um so, when you say we're going to be doing this within our conference, they're not going to have to travel very far and then not have some of those extra And it looks like you're going to do at least part of the uniform. [clears throat] Um so there's not going to be a cost issue here. >> Yeah, we're hoping to make cost minimal. Um we have the athletic department's um got a healthy balance right now and so we we feel like we can we can do this without putting a huge burden on families or on the department. >> Well, plus with school more kids can try out where if you have the parents have to take them places. A lot of
014parents They can't, you know, so with school at least they would ride a bus or >> Yes. transportational. >> Yeah. It would help, you know, the kids could play and then it would help the parents in the time frame also wouldn't keep them from doing both. I mean, they could do >> both. We've had some do both in the past years and I can tell you because my kids have been in trouble as well. Um, depending on run anywhere $600 700 to $3,000. It just depends on per kid. Um in the last couple years we ran a club. Uh last year was a little more because we had 20 some games and we paid the umpires. So it was around 85 90 if they did not already have a jersey and that so that was
015included in the jersey and that was per player. Um just to break that down that was paying all of ours >> everything. I've heard those higher numbers. So, plus hotels and travel, you know. >> Yeah. In this instance, we we kept it local to the local schools. So, >> that's good. Okay. >> Well, I think it's great because I know when I taught at the junior high, like there was a whole of kids, you know, you got this big you got all these younger kids who are playing baseball and softball and then Yeah. kind of and it kind of goes private. So, >> good. >> It's great. >> Any other questions for >> Yes, [clears throat] Josh. I I think this is a wonderful idea. Anytime that we can bring younger kids into sports, what's
016the future of soccer? >> It's a great question. >> I think it's something we'll have to look at and consider. Um but >> I'm just curious. I mean, >> yeah, I would say um soccer has not operated um even as a club >> right >> through the school yet. Um so I think that would be step one for soccer. I just curious field. >> It's true. >> Well, and my kids would have would have I mean they did parks and recck soccer through 8th grade and then they were really disappointed at ninth grade it wasn't offered anymore but they also were playing another sport in the fall so they couldn't play soccer anymore. >> And now one of them plays soccer two or three times a week as an adult. So, you know, I really
017would have loved that. really appreciate this. >> Great. Thank you. Appreciate your consideration. >> Thanks for being here. Shows that you support. >> Oh, yeah. Of course. I want to go. [laughter] >> Maybe. >> Uh, next item. Discussion items. Still none. uh the approval of the minutes from January 20th, 2026. Is there a motion to approve the minutes? >> So move. >> Second. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. >> Those oppos same sign. >> Any obstensions? Motion carried. Next on the agenda is the action items. And we'll start off with the recommendations for the following ECA positions for the 2526 school year at Brown High School. Um, as presented, starting with the academic social studies, Alicia Adams through the Honor Society, DA Hunter. Is there a motion to accept the recognition? >>
018I had a question. >> Well, I guess we need >> um is this the academic teams they because that's I couldn't figure out what academic meant >> and then I just read it and I thought oh these are the fall or the spring teams that you usually Okay any other move >> I'll second >> it's been moved and seconded to um accept the recommendations that ECA all those in favor signify by saying I >> oppos same Any abstensions? Motion carried. The next is a recommendation to approve the following donation from art to remember in the amount of $3996 which will go to Spernica art account. There motion to accept this donation. Uh any discussion? >> Thank you. >> Is that one where they like take their art and turn it into a giftful. I didn't
019realize that we got back from so it's been moved and seconded to approve the donation from art to remember member. All those in favor signify by saying I oppose. Same sign. Abstensions. Motion carried. Next is a recommendation to approve the updated BCS wellness policy. Motion to accept that. >> Second. Any discussion? All those in favor of >> um I really really read in depth with this part of the policy obviously I feel like well done covering all the basis so I appreciate how that >> yeah thank you really I I was I'll say it again again in my update, but um Holly Gordon has worked really really hard um with the wellness committee and it just feels like it's been a piece that's been missing um since Holly was here the first time with us.
020Um and so she's really just picked it up um and still bringing it back together and alive and um so just excited for the future of of where it goes and some of the things um we're talking about focusing on um just feels good. So yeah, thank you. >> Is there anything you'd like to elaborate on there? >> Oh my gosh. [laughter] Thank you. >> Oh my gosh, I can't nervous. [laughter] Um it's been moved and seconded to approve the updated um bre school uh wellness policy. All those in favor signify by saying >> I oppose. Same sign. >> Motion carries. Uh the next and I'm not going to read all the policies by name but starting with recommendation to approve the second reading and adoption of the following the board policies starting with P
02102410 the revised policy audio video and digital recording meetings through through PO4122 replace the policy of non-discrimination and equal And I'll second with a comment again the care of students with diabetes and care of students with chronic health condition. I deeply appreciate how well that was. >> Actually that leads into legislative update because there's actually a bill about that. So it's been moved and seconded to approve the Mola policies. All those in favor signify by saying I. >> Oppos same extensions. Motion carried. Moving on to the consent agenda items. >> Start with the separation. >> We'll start with the separations of EEC custodian Katie Underwood effective February 6th, 256 through Brown County Middle School, right? Girls tennis coach, Maline Furlo, effective February 2nd, 26. Is there a motion to approve the consent agenda items? >>
022So move second. >> I'll second discussion. All those in favor signify by saying I saying abstensions motion. There are no transfers this evening. That rolls us into the superintendent. >> Yeah, I will make it brief tonight. Um again, I just want to reiterate, thank you to Holly Gordon for her leadership with the um wellness committee and and getting people together around a table to to talk about and and think deeply about wellness across the district um for our kids and our staff. So, thank you for all of your work on that. I also want to thank Josh um on the work with um the middle school, softball, and baseball potential programs. Um, I think I think you you've just done a really really great job at taking data and um narrative and comments and questions
023from athletic ambassadors and and using it data to to put some things in place for our kids. And um so I just really really appreciate you always finding opportunities. And again, we will take that recommendation to the board on February 16th. Um, Spertica held their invention convention um and had 10 finalists um that will participate in the state event. So, um Mrs. Magner continues to do a really really incredible job. Um so, just really excited for those kids. I believe that that compet state competition is in March. So, we will look forward to that. Um, want to wish the girls basketball good luck. They they have their sectional tomorrow. I believe they play Switzerland County. Um, so wishing wishing them all the good vibes. Um, and that's that's all I have for tonight. >> The
024band. >> Oh, the band. >> Um, I don't have specific details on the band. >> First in Isma. Yeah, they got a gold and I don't know if it looked like it was individual students a separate competition that's the picture looked like it was >> Yeah, they came home with a gold. >> Y next legislative update. Uh so um this is week five of an eight week session. So things are moving very fast. Um [clears throat] I've said that before, but it's really crazy fast. Um last week the um actually last Thursday all the bills had to be out of the Senate by Thursday. And I just looked online, the House is still debating one of these bills right now. Um probably go on for a while still. Um, but anyway, they're finished today. And
025if if a bill has not passed its original house by either Thursday or today, then it is officially dead. So that's how we get rid of like a thousand bills. Um, [laughter] [clears throat] and then we can narrow it down and only focus on a few others, which is actually kind of nice to sort of uh do that. And so these are a couple of the significant bills that are related to schooling that um have been I think mostly passed and I'm just going to go over those. Um I had mentioned the cell phone bill a couple of times and I just looked it up. It did um it did pass through the uh Senate. It's Senate Bill SB78 and it passed 28-19 out of the Senate. So it'll be going over to the House.
026it will go to the ed probably the education committee and it'll go through the whole process again. So, we'll we'll see what happens there. Um the uh there are a couple of big deregulation bills that's been very popular. Uh and and some of those are really great for schools because sometimes they're doing multiple reportings of the same information. So, in theory, that's supposed to make Debbie's job a lot easier for one um all of our administrative staff, but sometimes then they will um these are also gigantic bills full of very dense language. So, it's kind of hard to figure out what is actually in there. But um what ISBA has identified out of one of the house priority bills called is um that there were some uh there was some information about diabetic students that
027they took out. They were like I don't know what it actually was but then they have put it back in because you know you can deregulate and then you realize oh we shouldn't have done that. It's what it sounds like to me. [clears throat] Anyway, it's talked it relates to the administration of of meds for diabetic students and sounds like it actually adds training for teachers and health aids who need to deal with diabetic students. So, may have added something there. It also has something related to um taking out a bond for curricular materials and um so we were like I read that and I thought oh well you know we sometimes have trouble paying for curricular materials. They have now modified that an amendment that says it is only for the technology for curricular
028materials. It's not for the actual books program. So I thought that was going to help you Debbie, but I don't think it is. Um but those could still change. So that um passed 67 to 26 um which is almost on a party line vote. Um and it would go over to the Senate. Um, another bill is, um, it was just on the on for today and I don't think I was listening up until about 4 o'clock. Um, I don't think it got heard yet before then. It was HB 1086 and that is the ten commandments bill. Um it is a house bill as I said 1086 and it originally said that um it required the ten commandments to be in every classroom and library of a school and uh a durable version of it. And
029it has now been modified and amended to say that it has moved from a must to a may meaning that it is an optional that the principal and the teacher decide they want to do it. Um however it says that the teacher cannot read it. Um, and it does say it still must be in the school library. So, that's where that bill is right now. And I I anticipate it passed this evening, but I don't know. Um, another one is SB25. a Senate bill [clears throat] and it was um it was amended in committee and it was one about schoolboard races and it indicates how schoolboard race how schoolboard candidates will appear on the ballot and so now that we have the ability to do parties um I understand from the election commission that they
030they didn't know clerks were asking them how do I put these names on the ballot so if I've got Republicans and Democrats and independents and nonpartisans. You know, there's a very specific order in which people are listed and they didn't know how to do it. So, this bill is um Senate Bill uh 25 and ISBA is supporting it and um they say it's just really a technical fix, but it would put the people who are claiming a party at the top. So, um another one is um there is a bill that um affects um transgender students. It's SB 82. Um it did pass the Senate 37 to8 and it would um require transgender students in K12 schools and state universities. Um they would have to use a restroom, a locker room or a changing room
031that match their biolog biology of birth. So um as I said that'll move on to the house. The next one is um we talked about a social media um bill is SB 199 and that is a ban that not not a ban necessarily. It would have required parental permission for children under 13 to log on to a social media platform. Um and then parental permission for ages 13 to 17. Um and I think that one has not moved on. I think that one has died now. could still come back in some other bill, but that specific bill is not going anymore. Um there is also a couple a number of well let me finish a curriculum bill. There's Senate Bill 88 um that is a bill by um that is talking about something called the
032success sequence um that that some uh the bill author would like to have go is things that we would teach in school. And so the three things that are considered this um I I've never heard of this before called success sequence is that schools would specifically teach that we would um that you would finish high school, get additional training for the workforce and wait until marriage for children. Um and they believe that that would then help kids improve. Um it did pass the house I'm sorry pass the senate 39 to9 which is almost party line vote and um it also accredits the classical learning test that that could be used from a classical learning school to be used like an ACT or an SAT to go to college. So that's what's in there and it'll
033go to the house. Um the two charter school um related bills um one of them is SB 239 um and that add pathways, additional pathways to convert existing public schools, and I think there's public schools that are active, not buildings, um, into charter schools. Um, there were a couple of amendments that I think would have made it better that were voted down. Um, there was an amendment to require any conversion of this to be on a ballot for voters to decide, and that was voted down. and also an amendment to better regulate charter schools and to prevent oversaturation in a particular community and that was also voted down. So that is going to move on to the house and we'll see where that goes. And then the last bill is one that is um sort
034of important. I talked I think last time about Southbend schools and a bill that died um also where they were trying to um have elect have appointed school boards and not elected school boards without the permission of the school corporation itself. Um this one is HB1 1423. Um you're you're hearing about it on the news because this is the IPS bill and what it would do is um make sure I say it correctly. What it would do is it would have um you would still have an elected IPS board, but you would also have a corporation called the Indianapolis Public Education Corporation, IPC. And um that is called a new centralized education authority and they would provide oversight that is unified between public schools and charter schools um under one umbrella, one corporation. So basically
035IPS would do curriculum and everyday things and the operations would be buildings and buses type of things. And what is really happening there from my perspective is it is giving them charter schools property taxes because they're going to be qualified then for the property taxes that IPS would be qualified for. And I guess some of them do already cooperate for busing on their own because charter schools start with knowing that they will not have property taxes for their buildings and they will not have busing. So, you have to take your kid to a private to a charter school is generally v agreement. Um, but I did hear there are 50 to 60 charter schools in in Indianapolis um alone and just in IPS. So, that is a a large number. One of the biggest issues
036here again is the IPS school board would still be elected by the voters, but this corporation um would have nine members on it and they are all appointed by the mayor of Indianapolis. Uh so, we would have again non-elected people who are determining where tax dollars are going to go and also putting it into charter schools and again I think the point for all of us is always that charter schools do not have to tell you where the money is going um there's no transparency we can't see their books they don't get audited by state board of accounts and we don't know who is running their schools they don't have elected boards and sometimes they're secret boards so that's certainly for those of us who do what we do on elected boards. We think that's
037pretty important. So, those are um some of the provisions of that bill. Um I just look they're arguing it right now. Um and it's 6:30, so I don't know how long it will go, but um I really, if you ever want to, you know, watch anything that all of the committee hearings, all of the floor debates are on the uh Indiana General Assembly website. I actually have the very front page um.gov and you can watch it live or you can watch recordings of those. So, if there's a bill, you're really looking to see what the debate, you know, some of them have real debates and some of them they don't talk about at all. So, um there was an immigration bill this morning that was um four or five uh four or five hours of
038testimony. >> Do they use closed caption? >> Uh I Yeah. Well, I can do closed captioning um if I choose to turn it on. Yeah. >> Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Because I just regular thing I would have a hard time trying to understand. >> Yeah. Close caption. >> No, I think I think it can. It does do that. Yeah. I turn on close captioning all the time. So, um that is so so what happens next is these bills are going to go to their opposite house. Um I know the senate is we they think this even though this bill is just passing the house tonight and I anticipate it will pass uh for about the IPS schools that Wednesday there'll be a committee hearing. So, it's one of those things. How do you get there to
039testify if you want to on a bill when you only have 24 hours of notice? Um, so that's been really difficult between that and the snow days and all of that to for people to get to do that. Um, just to remind people, you can um contribute to these bills. You don't have to go to the state house to do that. Um, you can email or use regular mail or you can make phone calls to your representatives um because they do count. So, even if you don't have a lot to say, you're like, "Hey, I heard about this bill. I don't like it." Um, you know, you just give them that you call whatever house it's in and talk to that representative. You talk to the legislative system. You say, "Hey, I'm for against this
040bill and here's why." But mostly, they're just counting. They're if they get like 50 phone calls in a day on a particular bill, then they're going to go, "Something's going on. I probably ought to pay attention to it." So, sometimes it is about volume, and we learn that during redistricting as well. So anyway, if anybody has, you know, is is concerned about any of those bills and wants to participate, um that information is out there. There are also a lot of bill trackers out there now. Um really pretty common depending on the organization you want you're looking at and they follow bills that are important to them. Like I follow Citizens Action Coalition that does environmental, energy, and utility bills or the environmental groups will follow the environmental bills. So you can look at those.
041But that's it for the schools. Thank you. With that motion to move second, >> we're not hearing.