001clock. Now call [clears throat] the meeting to order. I'd like to welcome you all to the Decal County Central United School District Board of Education special meeting. Today is Monday, January 5th, 2026. At this time, I ask all that are able to please stand for the pledge of allegiance. [clears throat] >> I aliance 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. [clears throat] >> Angie, could you do roll call, please? >> Armstrong, >> present. Baker >> present. >> Tony O'Neal >> present. >> Thank you, Angie. At this time, I will ask the board um for a motion to adopt and amend the agenda. >> I'll make a motion. >> Second. >> I have a motion
002and a second. Any discussion? All those in favor signify by saying I. >> I. >> Motion passes. Item E, we'll begin with the report of the superintendent. >> Thank you, Valerie. Appreciate that. There's just one item for this special um board meeting this evening and that's the interviewing of potential school board member candidates as a result of the resignation of one of our uh board members uh in December. Uh by law the board has 30 days to fill this position and I believe that 30th day lands on January 13th. What made this a little more challenging, as I'm sure most of you sitting in the audience who are candidates for this position, is having it uh occur over Christmas and New Year's holiday. That just tightened the the schedule and the window and the time
003frame to get everything in order to to make tonight happen. So, this is the initial round of the uh school board uh candidate interviews. uh by policy, every candidate that submitted um um an application uh is interviewed and that happens tonight. And then for future reference, uh the final round of interviews will take place uh this coming Thursday, beginning at 6 o'clock uh not five o'clock like today, 6 o'clock on Thursday the 13th right here in the boardroom. So with that, I'm going to turn it back over to our board president, Valerie Armstrong. Thank you. I'd like to just welcome everyone here tonight and we appreciate your willingness and um wanting to be involved in the district and at this special role. Um we will begin tonight. You each were given the questions that we
004will be asking you when you come up to the podium. Um I will begin the first round of questions and then um we'll move on from that point forward. Each individual will be um selected based on being drawn randomly. Um, so if you're the lucky person to go first, [laughter] we welcome you. Um, Angie, would you like to draw the first candidates's name? >> Yep. >> With our live stream at home, we got to have you in front of a microphone so our viewing audience can >> understood >> hear your response. >> Thank you for being here tonight, Nate. Um, I would like you to first introduce yourself to the board and to the audience and those listening at home. >> Okay. Unfortunate I didn't finish the essay here, but [laughter] we'll work on it.
005Um, so my name is Nate Vance. I actually moved here to the Tical area my sophomore year of high school. Um, I had I graduated. I went to I was in marching band. Uh, I moved away for a little bit. Got a little lost in life. uh until kind of God showed up in my life and set me straight. And then coincidentally around that same time I God put in me a passion to want to serve others. And coincidentally at the same time I was offered a position here at DAB and where I served for 11 and a half years. Um so while here at DAB I worked in the technology started off in the technology department. uh spent several years there and then moved on to the maintenance department where I worked there for
006a few years [snorts] under uh the Pebbles and Mike Benbo and then I moved back to technology as the IT director. Um after my time here at Tical I went on to Alb Services and uh became a network engineer there continuing to serve the community there. uh when that happened the very same week that I started there uh something happened where there was a huge shift in leadership and so it was kind of a do I stay or do I go kind of thing but honestly I wanted to stay because I didn't want the community to suffer for what happened there so I wanted to make sure things kept going >> um so that's kind of like my where my heart's at. I like to serve. Um I like to hold my own. I like
007to be present and attentive and I ask questions. Um, do you want me to go ahead and answer the first? >> I'll go ahead and ask the question and then you can answer it. Okay. >> Sorry. >> Okay. Number one, um, what interests you about serving on the board and why do you feel you are the most qualified individual to be appointed? >> Um, so I I think a little bit differently than other people being in the tech field. I think we all anybody in the tech field kind of does. Um, so I I have experience in the district. I am understanding of processes. Um, I'm familiar with a lot of the staff uh that are in this area and having been here and did Calb County for a long time, I also understand a
008lot of the community members and I like to listen to what they have to say. Um, I as far as um interests about serving, I just want to continue to serve to be honest. Um, I think that there's a lot of opportunity for DALB to grow. Uh, there's, how do I say this? I think there's so much potential that DAB has because I I'm familiar with the teachers and the staff and having worked here, I've seen the passion [clears throat] of a lot of teachers here and and not just teachers, but support staff as well. I think there's a lot of potential to elevate DAB to become something much more amazing than it already is. Um, so that's kind of what I that's my interest and my passion, my drive as to why I want
009to serve. >> Thank you. The second question is, if a parent approached you about an issue with a staff member, how would you handle this as a board member? >> I would first ask a lot. It ultimately depends on what the issue is. I mean, there could be lots of issues. Um, first I would like to ask them as many questions as possible to find out as much information. I would ask them who they have talked to or who they've addressed this with prior to talking to a board member. Um, I would discuss it with my peer board members. I'm assuming there's already an established process for trying for dealing with things like this, but um generally I think by by in the bylaws it's stated that you're supposed to if there's an issue with
010something with a staff member, they're supposed to go to their superior and then escalate as necessary. Um but honestly, I would just ask lots of questions and try to find out what really happened. I would try to get both sides of the story and try to understand things uh as objectively as possible. >> Thank you. >> Question number three. What factors will guide your decisions as a board member and whose voice should be prioritized in school governance? >> This might rub some people the wrong way, but for me personally, it's it's God. It guides my moral compass to be honest mostly. Um and then it's the the law like we have to be transparent and following the legal processes. Um I I believe we should be completely transparent and I think the school has made
011tremendous um progress towards doing that. Um I think again I think there's still room to grow. Um whose voice should be prioritized in school governance? Um, again I for me personally this is just a a me thing is God. So >> thank you Nate. >> Yep. >> Angie, you can draw the next applicant. [snorts] All right, welcome Brian. Thanks for being here. If you want to take a minute to introduce yourself to us and give you a give us a little background information. >> Yep. Brian Graves. Um I've lived in Auburn since uh 97. I have two older kids that graduated from Decal. Um my youngest is in eighth grade in middle school going to ninth. And um I've owned a cabinet shop for 28 years. I've employed high school kids for pretty much my
012whole career um up until recent years. It's that's fallen off a lot. And I think that's a shortfall. And um I've done JA did quite a few years of doing JA. I've worked with the band kids when my daughter went through band and with props and stuff. Yeah. >> Okay. Well, thank you. All right. Question number one, what interests you about serving on the board and why do you feel you are the most qualified individual to be appointed? >> Well, I feel like I've had a lot of experience with working with kids and seeing what's needed and what's not needed and um of course trades is my thing and so I think that's where my strong part would be is more involvement there. >> Okay. Um, number two, if a parent approached you about an
013issue with a staff member, how would you handle this as a board member? >> Um, I would figure out exactly what's going on, what's being said, and come up with a list of questions and then I imagine protocol. You guys have a certain list of protocol probably going to the president initially and discussing it and then finding the next steps to deal with the situation. And the final question, what factors will guide your decision as a board member and whose voice should be prioritized in school government governance? >> Um, parents, [clears throat] the parents and the kids paying attention to what's going on there. And then of course the taxpayers and the funding that goes along with any decisions that get made have to be put first and forward. >> Okay. Thank you. We appreciate
014your time. >> Thank you. Thank you, >> Angie. Next. Hello. >> Hello. Good afternoon. >> Afternoon. >> Why don't you tell us a little bit about yourself and then we'll go [clears throat] through the questions. >> Okay. I am Dana Ice. I um live in the Greenbryer edition close to J.R. Watson where my two youngest children go to school. I have lived in Auburn for 11 years and my [clears throat] children have attended Dalb Central schools from elementary through high school. Um, I'm genuinely grateful for the investment this school system has made in my family and it's clear to me that our educators and families care deeply about student success. >> Okay. Question number one, what interests you about serving on the board and why do you feel you are the most qualified individual to
015be appointed? >> So, serving on the board is to me a tangible way to improve the community's future. um being able to influence how education adapts to changing academic workforce and community demands and I find it's a meaningful form of public service. Um professionally I work in a leadership role where I'm responsible for oversight, accountability, and [snorts] making datainformed decisions in complex environments. I bring a collaborative mindset, a respect for expertise, and [clears throat] a focus on long-term outcomes rather than short-term reactions. >> If selected, my approach would be to listen first, ask good questions, and work constructively with the superintendent, administrators, educators, and fellow board members to serve the best interests of our students and community. Okay, question number two. If a parent approaches you about an issue with a staff member, how would
016you handle this as a board member? >> I um was kind of going back to what Nate said, which is, you know, to understand what the processes are within the school system first. And in that situation, I think it would be best to defer the parent to the appropriate um school administrator and then report it directly to the school administrator to figure out how to handle it depending on what the issue is. >> Question number three, [snorts] what factor will guide your decision as a board member and whose voice should be prioritized in school governance? So, I think the most important thing you have to consider is who is impacted and who is going to [clears throat] benefit the most from the decisions. Um, you know, there there are many compromises that have to be
017made. Um, especially when you're dealing with a limited amount of money. Um and and so I think it's important to understand who benefits from the resources and what the ultimate um ultimate outcomes are going to be. Not just short term but long term. So it's also going to determine or you'd have to determine what the long-term uh results would be for uh long-term stability. I think it's important to consider being a good steward of public resources. Um and then also you need to understand how it's going to shape your educational policy and the direction. Um does it support uh accountability for leadership and does it ultimately preserve and strengthen the district culture? [snorts] >> Very good. Thank you very much. >> Thank you. >> Thanks Dana. [snorts] [clears throat] Go ahead. >> Good evening. >>
018Hi. >> Uh, please introduce yourself to the board and give a brief description and a background about yourself. >> Okay. I'm Karen Norick. I have lived in Decal County for a little over 10 years. I have three children, one who graduated from Decal and he's at IU and then I have a senior and a sophomore. Um my husband is in the military and we are both also optometrists. So that's me. >> Thank you. What interests you about serving on the board and why do you feel you are the most qualified individual to be appointed? >> Um so shortly after we moved here my son was diagnosed with dyslexia and then um through more testing he was found to also be high ability. And so at that time there was a high ability committee created here
019and I was asked to be on it because having a learning disability and being high ability makes him twice exceptional which [laughter] I've never heard of before. So, I started out on that committee which um just brought a parents input to special ed and to high ability. Um and I I don't remember I think that lasted about two years um that I was on that committee and then shortly after that the portion of the portrait of a baron um thing started thing what do you call it? >> Graduate. >> Yeah. Um, and so I also was a part of that and I was um I've just been very involved as involved as I can be in the district since then. I started attending schoolboard meetings probably gosh I don't five years ago or so and
020I attend as often as I can. Um, I as a professional I work hard to listen to all sides of of every argument. Um, and ask questions and try to remain calm and work together and collaborate and and do all the portrait of a parent. We want the kids to do too. >> Okay. If a parent approached you about an issue with a staff member, how would you handle this as a board member? >> Um, I think first and foremost, I would probably explain to the parent that the board is there for the overall vision of the district and not really involved in day-to-day operations. Um I as a parent of three kids in the district, I have had a couple of issues with staff members myself. Um and the steps to be followed are
021to try to talk to that person first um or have the child if they're old enough. Um and then the next step would be to go to that school administrator, the principal or assistant principal, and then it can go up the line. I haven't had to go up the line from there, but go up the line from there. But as a board member, I don't I don't think we should really be involved in that. >> What factors will guide your decision as a board member and whose voice should be prioritized in school governance? >> I think most importantly, it's the kids. It's the students and the kids. Um what we're doing for them and what that um projects into the community. So if we keep the kids in our minds first, I think then that
022should follow that we should respect the people who are educating them. Um and then to follow that we should work with the administration to make sure we can keep the qualified best educators that we can bring that we can attract to DALB and keep in DALB so that our kids can thrive here um go off into the world but then hopefully come back. >> Thank you very much. >> You're welcome. Hi, Ekko. Thanks for being here. If you would like to introduce yourself and give us a brief background. >> All righty. My name is Ekko Catateral. I graduated from DecalB uh quite a while ago. Um but I am currently the HR manager for the Family Dollar Distribution Center in Ashley. Um I've been a DeCalb resident um at least 40 years. We'll go with
023that. Um but so born and raised in the county in the district. I've also raised three kids through Decal Central. Um very proud of those three. Um all three are currently in college. So, it's been really awesome to see them grow. Um, so yeah, it's a little bit about me. >> Thank you. The first question is, what interests you about serving on the board and why do you feel you are the most qualified individual to be appointed? >> All right. Um, so I think the number one thing that interests me is I am so excited the direction that Decal Central is headed. Um, raising the three kids through Decal Central. Um, we've seen some of the rough patches. We've been through some funness with Decal Central. Um, but at the end of the day, we're
024all baronss in my household. Um, very passionate about Decal Central. My kids, I've taught them to thrive and persevere through that adversity and I just really want to see Decal Central continue to grow. Um, and I'm just really excited about that. So, I would say having my HR experience, I've been in HR now for 13 years. Um, I would say I bring a lot to the table when it comes to seeking to understand, hearing multiple sides of the story, leading [clears throat] through change. Um, that's something that I do a lot of in my role now at work. Um, I'm also involved in like a lot of investigations. Um, and there's a lot of confidential information um that I have a lot of training on how to handle that when people approach me, different tactics
025and things along those lines. Um, I think HR gives a really good foundation. Um, as I'm sure as a board member, people approach you all the time or they're always in your ear and um, you really have to build those walls and separate yourself to be able to have those friendships, but then also you have a role and a responsibility as a Decal Central School Board member. [snorts] Thank you. Second question is, if a parent approached you about an issue with a staff member, how would you handle this as a board member? Um, so a lot of that translates also into what I do now. Um, I would first ask them what steps and what processes they've already already followed and who they've went to. Um, so again, I also think that the school board
026members, it's not really our role to be in those little detail things. Um, I know if it were to lead into a larger investigation and a bigger issue, depending on the severity of it, then that's when we would be pulled in. Um, but I would definitely ask them what steps they've already taken, who they spoken to, did they talk to the administrators? Um, as a parent, I know that I've never had to go beyond that. Um, any experience I've had with administrators, like once it gets to that point, if it has to get to that point, they're always very open to have meetings and talk things through and work things out through the kids. Um, so that really I don't feel that should come to our plates, but then also just reminding the parent like,
027hey, there's a process. Um, and I am very proud of the school district and I know that the administrators would handle things appropriately. >> Thank you. Question three, what factors will guide your decisions as a board member and whose voice should [clears throat] be prioritized in school governance? >> Um, ultimately it's the kids. Um, the future barons that we have coming up. Um, getting the enrollment up, thinking of those different things, how to attract people into the community. Um, so the kids are always number one. They always should be number one. Um, and then also thinking about how to attract talent. um more teachers um and that into the district to help us along that pathway, whether it be teachers, coaches, choir, band instructors um just trying to elevate Decal Central to want to be
028the place to go to and send your kids to. So, so yeah, um I think that's all. So, >> thank you. >> Awesome. Thank you. >> Thanks, Eko. >> Welcome. Hello. Um, wasn't too sure. >> Thank you. [clears throat and cough] >> Thanks, sir. >> [clears throat] >> All right. Hi. Um, sorry about that. But for those that you know me and don't know me, my name is Kevin Hoe. Um, a little bit about me is I grew up here, a graduate of class of 2006. Um, I went off to Purdue University and I came back and whenever I decided to come back to the community was when I or sorry, my wife and I found out we're having a kid and I was like, you know what, I had a great experience here. So,
029I wanted to raise my family here one day. Um, DAB was very important to me. Um, it shaped me to who I am today. Like I said, I moved home. I own a small business here. My family owns another business here. And I just want to do my part to make the community and the school the best it can be. And so my kids one day have an experience like I have. Yeah. >> Excellent. [clears throat] Forgot it was my turn. Sorry. [laughter] [gasps] Okay. Question number one. What [clears throat] interests you about serving on the board and why do you feel you are the most qualified individual to be appointed? >> Um like I briefly stated, uh I it's important to me to serve the board is because I want to be a part
030of this community. Like I said, I want to be a part of this school and more importantly, I don't have kids in school yet. So, [clears throat] I want to leave a foundation for them. I want them to be able to come into this school and like I said, feel what I have and or what I had. And and I'm proud to be here. I know there's people who leave and they don't come back. And then some people do come back or never leave. And I kind of do both. I left, I came back because I love it here. Um and like I said, I don't have, you know, kids in school now. So everything I base my decisions off of will be like, [clears throat] is this going to be better for what they're
031getting into? Um and I think that's what makes me most qualified. It's not my job titles or my position. It's the, you know, the love I have for my kids and and what I want to give to them. >> Okay. Question two. If a parent approached you about an issue with a staff member, how would you handle this as a board member? >> You know, I thought about this question a little bit. This kind of stuck with me, but I think the first thing I would do is just listen. Um, it's not our job to go out there and talk about the little nuances going on within the [snorts] board. It's my job as a public servant would be to listen to them and then bring back um you know what they had their grievances
032[clears throat] were to the board. Um I do believe in having United Front with all board members. So you know I wouldn't go directly into agreeing or disagreeing with them because I wouldn't want anyone in the public to think that we aren't united because we're doing everything that we're supposed to do for the kids, the staff, the teachers, um everyone in the school. >> Thank you. uh what factors will guide your decisions as a board member and whose voice should be prioritized in school governance? >> I think that the number one priority or the number one voice we should be listening to are our kids and the parents of those kids because they need a reason to want to bring kids here. So the best way to get kids here is to just have a
033good community. You know, it starts with the top down. It starts with us in the community, members of the board. Um, so I would listen very carefully to what the community has to say. Um, taking in consideration everything they want because if I were to get a seat on the board, the number one um, role in this is to know that we're public servants. So it's not our own agendas, it's [clears throat] the community. So I I would do, you know, a lot of I guess doortodoor sales just to kind of listen to the community. Um, and I think they have the most important voice. >> Thank you, Kevin. >> [clears throat] >> So, go ahead and uh introduce yourself, tell us a little bit about yourself, and then we'll go into the questions. >>
034Sure. Uh my name is Rodney EML. Um, I'm a transplant to Decal County. I'll be honest with you. Um, I graduated from New Haven High School in East Allen County schools. Uh, my wife graduated from Decal, so she's from this area. Her family farms up in Ashley. Um, we started out in Fort Wayne, moved to Decal. Um, I'm impressed with it so far. So, we've been here about seven years now. I've got two young kids that are at McKenna Harrison. One that will be there probably next year. She's right on the the age bracket there for kindergarten. So, we'll see. Um, yeah, we have made uh made Auburn our our home and we love it here. I mean, kind of I don't want to say we escaped Fort Wayne. [laughter] Um, but we wanted to
035find a place that was partially between Fort Wayne where my family is at and Ashley where her family is. So, we've settled on Auburn and Yeah. So, that's that's my background. >> Great. >> Okay. So, question number one, what interests you about serving on the board and why do you feel you are the most qualified individual to be appointed? Sure. It's it's a little bit self- serving because I have kids that are going to the school system here. Um and I just as an example, I think it was a couple months ago, there was some students that were here from um the biomed classes and some of the electrical engineering or well I'm electrical engineering but it was a engineering program and I was just I was shocked. We dissected worms and built mousetrap cars
036when I was in school. These kids were dissecting hearts. and building robots. >> Um, and I I kind of look at it almost like at a collegiate level. What do we want to do to bring more families to attract people to DAW to go to school here to know that we have quality education, retain and attract good teachers, um, you know, and just and just make it the most attractive we can. Um, you know, it's it's something that's important to me to make sure my kids have a great education. everyone's kids have a great education. Um that we're using taxpayer money wisely and that whatever we're doing is benefiting the students, that we're not being careless with taxpayer dollars. Um so that's something I'm really interested in. Um I I don't think this should be
037a political thing, but I do pay attention to politics. I think probably everyone does. So I I know like I said, taxpayer dollars is very important and I want to be spent wisely. Um, but I just love that what we see with students in the classroom, what the teachers are teaching is so much further advanced when I was in high school. And I mean, even some of the stuff that they were talking about in that biomedical classes and engineering classes is stuff I was learning in college, my engineering classes. So, um, I just think that's amazing and I want to make sure that that continues going forward. >> Okay, question number two. [clears throat] If a parent approaches you about an issue with a staff member, how would you handle this as a board member?
038>> I think that's a tough question. It's probably the toughest one of them all. Um, I think first of all is listen. You know, there's a lot of people that probably are just looking for someone to listen to hear their concerns, to know that there's someone out there that's going to hear. You know, if we're a board member, we're a public figure. Um, we answer to them. So, at least you first thing you do is just listen. Find out what their issues are. or if maybe that's all they want is just a listening session. Um if there's if there's something that does [snorts] warrant immediate attention and hopefully it's nothing legal that doesn't require law enforcement. Um but [clears throat] other than that, you know, you need to direct them to the to the right
039channels. There's there's chains of command. I think someone earlier said ask a lot of questions. See who they've already reported it to. Um there's also concerns of privacy. you know, if if if a parent's making an allegation towards a a teacher, you can't just bring it into a public forum, public setting without investigation or knowing what's what's really going on. So, I think as as a duty, it should be brought to the board like behind closed doors. I mean, as as a board member, if a parent or a member of the community brings an issue to you, you do have a duty to report that, hey, this might be going on. This is something I heard. But behind closed doors, because like I said, there's there's privacy there. I don't know. There's two sides to
040every story, you know. So, you want to make sure that you're getting all the information and sending it through the right channels, making sure you're not just unilaterally making decisions and doing things and telling someone, "Yeah, you're right, you're wrong," so on so forth. So, >> okay. Question number three, what factors will guide your decision as a board member and whose voice should be prioritized in school governance? Well, the biggest thing is students and kids. Um, I wouldn't say that's going to be all of it. Otherwise, if it was up to my kids, I've eaten ice cream for lunch every day. [laughter] So, taxpayers is a big a big part of it because [clears throat] not all taxpayers have students. You know, not all taxpayers are are going to sporting events and they're not involved
041with the school. So, that's a big thing um because everyone's putting in it's it's it's funded by the the taxpayers, but students is the main priority. Like I said, I want to make sure that everything that we do is to a benefit to the students and that it's financially responsible. You know, there's got to be a costbenefit analysis there. So, this is how much we're spending on this addition. This is what we're doing. Um how is this going to benefit the students? How is this going to benefit the future? You know, what is this going to do down the road? You know, and things like that. And also, I kind of I told my wife I was going to bring this up. Um, one of the last board meetings was um some discussion about the
042special needs co-op >> and that kind of hits close to home because my wife without going too much details has worked ever since I've met her with uh medically fragile children and like she's always said you know how much that affects the family as far as just routine. You know, if you've got medically fragile kids or special needs that are going to classes, they're going to programs. A lot of times these parents are working multiple jobs or multiple shifts or they have multiple kids in the home besides just that special needs child. So if anything changes in that routine, it can really affect their lives. That's something I'm going to be watching for sure whether I'm on the board or not. Um so that's that's one of those things with families and taxpayers and students
043who really got to weigh how is this going to affect students? How is this going to affect taxpayers? How's this going to affect parents? Um it's just a huge ripple effect decision you make. So, it's all going to be it's all going to be weighed. >> Thank you. [clears throat] >> Good evening, Austin. Uh, introduce yourself to the board and give us a little background of who you are. >> And Mr. O'Neal. Uh, my name is Austin Macy. Grew up here and for my whole life all the way back in the first time I [clears throat] identified as a Baron was probably 2001 watching Decal unfortunately lose to Pike at the state championship basketball game where we lost to Adam Liddell for a couple minutes of the game. [gasps] That's neither here nor there. [laughter]
044Uh, grew up here my whole life. Always planned to come back. um got a uh major uh double major with uh secondary education and school psychology. Uh well, school psych was the masters and psychology was the undergrad. Um and uh always felt like I was going to teach and then kept wanting to go more and get into policy work. So that's why I went into school psychology, [snorts] went that route [laughter] and um realized what um school psyches do and how they impact the district and then got into fell in love with some of the more educational policy at the state level and local level. I worked for um education chair at the state level and really trying to understand policies and how they impact uh the community. Um, other than that, currently I work
045for a nonprofit here in town where I help connect and prepare uh juniors and seniors typically in high school for their next steps post high school, whether that be workforce, uh, military or, uh, university. Um, so I love working with our students and interact with them quite often. Question one, what interests you about serving on the board and why do you feel that you are the most qualified individual to be appointed? >> Well, what interests me about it is the ability [clears throat] to affect students life in a different different aspect. Um, I have always been drawn to um working at the policy level for what goes on in decal. Um, I think I have a data analytical background and an ability build bridges with the community and workforce as I do that um for
046my job. And I think that's a big piece of what's going to go on uh going forward as some of our graduation [clears throat] requirements have changed um and helping the um school districts build bridges with um employers and the workforce so that we can help these students uh best prepare for their next steps. Um we that's what I do every day. Um and I know that's going to be a big piece of helping our guidance office and our whole staff here at Decal and I I can absolutely help with that and I have an ability to communicate um make a story out of data which is a big piece that sometimes the community can um could use help with that um both ways understanding what this data means and why this is important going
047forward um no matter what the project is. >> Question two, if a parent approached you about an issue with a staff member, how would you handle this as a board member? I've >> heard a lot of pretty similar answers and this one's pretty straightforward. You always Uh, anytime you're in a position that you're representing people, which this position would be, yeah, you hear them out, be respectful, and try to follow the proper channels. There's rules and steps that take them forward. And most of the time, um, you trust that the parents want the best thing for their student in the same way that you try to trust that the uh, administration and staff that are involved probably want the same too. Um, hearing about and connecting them towards the right direction is probably [snorts] the
048best route. Question three, what factors will guide your decisions as a board member and whose voice should be prioritized in school governance? Thought >> this was a [snorts] really interesting question. The [clears throat] idea of priority um is interesting. Obviously, anything with schools, students or doesn't really make sense. Um but um outside of the students piece, um being able to be a bridge builder with the community is another huge piece that I think the community knows that the better we prepare and uh the student we bring out into the community benefits everybody in the community. Um the employers, everyone else is benefited by the student. Um any dollar amount from taxes and other stuff. Uh if it seems like everyone is working towards the same goals and I believe most of the time we are
049um just trying to communicate that and show everyone why this is a win and um how this is going to make stuff better for them in the future. Uh I know for me my big motivation coming into this uh we're getting ready to expect our first and I got five and six years to prepare to help them be the best [snorts] parent they [clears throat] can be and help prepare what these next two years look like. Um I think it makes um yeah I think the community piece along with the focus on students is really where the answer lies there. [snorts] >> Thank you. I appreciate the Mr. O'Neal too. [laughter] Thanks, Austin. [snorts] [clears throat] >> Welcome, Shane. >> Thank you. If >> you'd like to give us a brief description of yourself and
050what brings you here. Yeah, first of all, I want to thank everybody in this room, all the candidates, uh, this tremendous turnout. Um, kudos to all of you, um, for taking an initiative to put your name on the map. Um, it's awesome. Um, yeah, my name is Shane Turner. Uh, I've been a lifelong, uh, Auburn Dalp County resident. I'm a 1999 decal alumnist. Um, I've worked in the community. Uh I am now a uh local business owner. Um I care deeply about this community and the students that move through this school every day. Uh Karen kind of stole some of my thunder here about the portrait baron because I kind of use that uh uh every day in how I work with uh working people and uh just the values that it brings forth is
051is one of the biggest things that I try and um yeah that that's really about it. Been a local business owner now for about a year and uh have two children in the school system uh middle school and elementary. Um and uh I just want to be here to kind of [snorts] put forth best effort for them forward. >> Thank you. Your first question is, what interests you about serving on the board and why do you feel you are the most qualified individual to be appointed? >> I think the biggest thing for me uh and trying not to sound redundant like everyone kind of said, uh giving back is kind of the biggest thing to the school district, the community. Um I you know, I I have had great success uh [clears throat] coming through
052the school system here. Uh I've made a lot of friends. Uh still communicate with them every day. Um and it's been a it was a great experience for me. Uh and would love to continue to have every student move through the school system uh have the same success. Um I believe that my background uh business. Uh I also have a background in technology. I was IT manager for 23 years um and now business owner. So I think you know handling all the balance sheets and hiring and firing and all that good stuff, it would be a great fit. The second question is, if a parent approached you about an issue with a staff member, how would you handle this as a board member? >> Again, trying not to be redundant. Um, listening is the top
053key. Um, you got have to listen to all the community members because this is a public facing position and uh explain to them there are policies and procedures that must be followed and if they have done that then uh sure um I can take it to the board and we can discuss it if procedures haven't been followed uh but to to that point and I don't know the circumstances it's not for us as a board member to uh manage the dayto-day of the school district that is up to the administrative staff >> [snorts] [clears throat] >> Um, question three, what factors will guide your decisions as a board member and whose voice should be prioritized in school governance? >> Uh, the number one voice is student success. Period. Um, we have to have our children
054moving through the system uh have the best opportunities and facilities uh available. Uh yes, we have to balance budgets and uh not have [clears throat] it be a uh detriment to the community taxpayers because that is a big issue with I know a lot of folks. Uh but in the basic thing I want to contribute, I want to learn, I want to help support the district and prepare students for success. Thank you, Shane. >> Thanks. [snorts] >> Hi, Lauren. Thanks for being here. >> Thank you. >> Go ahead and take a minute to introduce yourself to us. >> Yes, I have been a lifelong member of Decal County. I was born and raised here. Um, my family has been community business owners. My grandfather was a family physician here in town uh throughout his life.
055I graduated in 2002. Um, had the opportunity to go to Indiana University on an athletic scholarship. And, um, met my husband there, um, who also played football. So, go Hoosiers. And, >> [laughter] >> um, we, uh, we took some time and moved to Columbus, Ohio. Lived there for a few years post college. And then when we were ready to start a family, you know, we decided to move back to the community that I was born and raised in. And so, you know, it's been a tremendous honor to be able to stand in front of you guys and have the opportunity to to serve on this board. And um I'm really thankful to be here. >> Thank you. All right. Number one, what interests you about [clears throat] serving on the board and why do you
056feel you are the most qualified individual to be appointed? I'm here for advocacy for all students, all teachers, and our community members. You know, we really um need to focus on not only the outcomes of our students, but also ensuring that our teachers are supported and that our community members are being heard. And my mission is to ensure that, you know, we're creating collaboration amongst all parties. You know, our student is our greatest investment to our community. and I'm driven to, you know, really ensure that all needs are met, all voices are heard, and that we're moving everyone forward in the best possible direction, um, while maintaining, you know, being as fiduciary as we can in our decisions in in what we're doing for the district. >> Um, number two, if a parent approached you
057about an issue with a staff member, how would you handle this as a board member? [clears throat] I think as board members, we are definitely the bridge between our community and the school system. So, it's very important for us to be very diplomatic and and ultimately listen to those voices and and let that individual be heard. But, you know, the reality is we need to direct them to, you know, the principal, the teacher, the superintendent at hand. You know, it's their job to facilitate and take care of the day-to-day um interactions, but, you know, we want to make sure that those voices are being heard and that we can direct them in the best manner possible. Okay. Um, what factors will guide your decisions as a board member and whose voice should be prioritized in
058school governance? >> Um, ultimately our student outcomes are going to be the most important um thing to consider. Um, we have to be very thoughtful in our consideration. You know, we need to strive, you know, for academic excellence for our students. you [clears throat] know, we need to make sure we're creating a a culture and getting the communication out to our students, out to our families, and out to the community members of the great things that Decal has going. Um, as multiple people have said, you know, this district has made tremendous strides moving forward. you know, I'm here to help facilitate and ensure and driven um that we can continue to move the district in a positive direction, having family members or having families, excuse me, move into the district, maintaining really strong teachers that
059can help advance these students post their time here at Decal. >> Excellent. Thank you. >> Thank you. Hi, Lori. >> Hello. >> Why don't you introduce yourself? >> Sure. I'm Lori Guyer. Um, my family, we are transplants to the Decal County. Um, I work part-time, semi-retired. Um I work for the Auburn Corp Duesenberg Automobile Museum as volunteer coordinator. I attract, train, recruit, um manage a roster of 70 volunteers. Um and we are um our family's heavily involved in the classic car community which led us to invest in this community [snorts] and uh make it our home. >> Okay. What interests you about serving on the board and why do you feel you are the most qualified individual? Um the opportunity to serve on the Dic County Central United School Board um would be deeply meaningful
060um because it offers me a chance to give back and serve um this community and um get to share the experiences um I had in the roles um I served 27 and a half years in public school um in several different roles in Warsaw Community Schools and Typ School Corporation. Warsaw is about double the size of Decal and Valley smaller. Um I've had amazing opportunities with these roles. Um some of [clears throat] my experiences I was executive assistant to the superintendent and to the school board. Um at Warsaw. Um it involved high degree of confidentiality, organization, scheduling, public media, crisis communications. Um I trained the new school board members. Um, I taught them um their roles and responsibilities, board ethics, um, communication, um, Indiana open door law. Um, I enjoyed that. I attended many, um,
061ISBA conferences and trainings, um, to help support my board in those roles. Um, I was a researcher collaborator collaborator on, um, the WCS Lily endowment grant. Um, it was a $700,000 grant. So fiscal um stewardship of grants um is a priority. Um I was member of um different committees, accountability, calendar, staff development, system leaders, NEOA board policy revisions, facilities. Um I um we had several big district initiatives um redistricting um a referendum. So, I collaborated and managed organized um town hall meetings um to bring the community, the parents, administrators, and the school district together um to a su successful end. Um I would love to bring those opportunities to Dic County. Um we're invested here. We love the community and um I would be happy to serve. If a parent approached you about an issue
062with a staff member, how would you handle this as a board member? >> Sure. Um, knowing already knowing the the roles and responsibilities of the school board, I'd graciously um refer that parent um back to the principal or supervisor um or I'm sorry. Yeah, back to the um principal or supervisor of that staff member to the staff member first. Um and then it's it's very important to know the chain of command and the communication chain of command. Um the board serves as a leadership governance role, not a management role. Um but we would support our our our parents um as best as we could um for um a resolution. >> What factors will guide your decisions as a board member and whose voice should be prioritized in governance? >> Sure. I think it's collaborative um
063[clears throat] student success. Um I love um making every decision through running it through the vision, the mission. I love the portrait of a baron. Um every um decision in the school district should really run through those filters. um that's your final goal and your um I think um it's easy to um get [snorts] confused with um the minutia of little details but um when you boil it down to um making decisions with the students community um in mind um you'll make you'll make strong schools and strong communities. >> Thank you very much. Thank you. >> I believe that was our last applicant. So, I'd like to thank everyone for being here tonight. I know this is not easy to come up and speak in front of everybody and be put on the spot to
064answer questions. Um, I was there at one point in 2019, so I understand everything and the stress that you go through. Um, so I thank you all for being here tonight and for your investment in the future of Decal. Um at this time we will um move to our miscellaneous portion. So I will open this up to our board members if they have anything this evening. >> School started. So if you're not aware and you don't have kids or grandkids, they're back. So your parents are relieved again. Kids are out of your hair. So it's a good thing. So let's keep second semester going like we did the first semester. >> Good. I just want to thank everybody that took the time to come out and um like Valerie said, this is not easy. It's
065not easy for us either, [clears throat] but I could feel every single person's passion um and energy. And I really hope no matter what happens tonight or Thursday or whatever, you continue to be involved. Um that's the biggest thing. Whatever and however you choose to do that, but there are a million ways to be involved at Decalb. and um whether it if it isn't on the board, I hope that you find a way to be involved in a school or on a committee or somewhere because we would love to have as all of you uh somewhere in our buildings. So, thank you and please find a way to to stay keep that passion involved at Decal. >> I'd like to echo on that. I when talk to people and say, "How's the board going?" I
066said, "Well, we we're looking to fill fill a void." And they said, "Well, how many people applied?" And I said, "Well, we're going to interview 13 on Monday." And they said, "13?" I said, "Well, I I think that's a good problem that we have a diverse group of people that we can listen to. We read all the applications." And that took quite a while. And so I'm I'm impressed with our community that we've have this people that want to >> kick in and see what's going on and keep things rolling at DAB. >> So, thank you. Yeah, >> I agree with both with what what we both said. I mean, it's this won't be an easy task for any of us, but we do encourage you all to um stay involved if you if you
067aren't selected, but anyways, um Steve, do you have anything else? >> Uh again, just echoing what's been said, but got to meet some new people in the community, and it's nice to meet some some new faces. >> Um and to revisit some old relationships from years gone by. Can't believe Shane didn't reference my coaching eighth grade basketball as one of the reasons why he was so successful [laughter] in life, but we probably needed to skip over that anyway. So, >> it was seventh grade world history. >> Oh, there it is. There it is. Sorry. >> Life changing. >> No, but I just appreciate everyone taking the time. This is not an easy thing to do to put yourself out there. Um, it's a testament to this community to have so many uh great individuals step
068forward from so many different backgrounds from from different uh time frames within our community. It's just great to see you here tonight because this this doesn't happen everywhere. There there are a lot of school boards that are looking to fill a position and they're out begging some one person >> to step forward to take it on. So, this is truly impressive. >> So, great job. >> Yeah. Thank you. Um I will now open it up to the audience. If you have anything um that you would like to share, you can come to the podium. >> All right. Well, I guess we will turn to adjourn our meeting. Um, I'd like to read into our minutes that our next special board meeting will be January 8th um here at central office and that will be at
0696 o'clock p.m. instead of 5:00 p.m. And um our next organization regular board meeting will be January 13th um that will be here at the central office at 6:00 p.m. Um tonight we will be holding an executive session immediately following this meeting and that will be to consider applications and the appointment of public official. um we will be planning to um narrow down our candidates to no less than three. All right, I will take a motion to adjurnn. >> I'll make a motion. >> Second. >> I have a motion and a second. Any further discussion? All those in favor signify by saying I. >> I. >> Meeting adjourned. Thank you all for being here tonight. >> Thank you.