001We all stand for the pledge. I pledge algiance 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. So the first portion of our meeting is going to be the public hearing for save legislation documents conduct attendance protocol and district safety plan. So it's a 15minute public hearing that we will just keep open. If anyone has something they'd like to say on that, you're welcome to step forward. So we'll just leave it. Madame President, can I say something? >> Certainly. >> Um, with the district safety plan, uh, there was a question posed and so we made sure that we reviewed that and there were some additional refinements that we made to it and that refinement has been
002updated and was also placed on the district website for today as well, just in case if somebody was looking for the additional refinement. So, >> okay. Thank you. Um, we do have one board member who is excused tonight. U, Miss Rasheed will not be here. and Mr. >> Yeah. And our additional board member is should be here any moment. So um >> should we wait? >> Okay. So can I have a motion to approve the minutes of our regular meeting of August 4th, 2025? So >> okay. Moved by Kirsten. Can I have a second? >> Seconded by Jen. All in favor? >> I. Motion's carried. We do have um a few amendments to our agenda. If you look at page four under human resources consent agenda, letter D, Jenny Jenny Tyrese should be a BS30
003step five with a salary of 57,490. >> I'm sorry. BS >> 30. >> Gotcha. For >> step five. Yeah, >> with a salary of 57490. >> Thank you. >> Okay. And we also have a deletion under human resources consent agenda page six letter K. Please remove uh Cynthia Reevac Baker for the appointment of instructional non-instructional substitutes. We all set with that? >> Okay. Okay. Can I have a motion to accept the deletion on the agenda? >> So move. >> Okay. Moved by Kirsten. Have a second. >> Seconded by Jonathan. >> All in favor? >> Okay. Motion's carried. So that takes care of that. Okay. under board recognition and achievements. I would absolutely like to commend our support staff. Um, every individual within our school district trying to get the school ready for opening is never
004an easy task. Combined with all the additional moving that we've had to continue doing, they did an exceptional job and they certainly should be commended for their hard work. And I also want to thank right now is the time where students are getting ready to go back into school. So our nursing staff and our athletic department is extremely busy with physicals and getting some new students kind of integrated within all that. And I want to thank them also because it's it it's a tough job and it really puts a lot of emphasis on how well we do with our own school district and customer service-wise. I've heard great comments from people. So, I think it's excellent that we have that. Would anyone else like to add anything to that? >> Um, I recently had to
005uh run into one of the schools and uh with my son and the nursing staff really it was they were great. Um, they went I feel like above and beyond what they needed to do and make sure that they did set us up for success. So that's something that I truly do appreciate >> that. And I don't if I'm speaking out of turn, just tell me. With that said, too, I know a lot of parents it's busy summertime. Just remember on those parent portals to be checking on some a lot of stuff that's on there right now for especially seniors cuz I almost forgot myself and the kids can't go to school without menitis this year for all seniors, you know. So just always they do a great job at posting it, but you know
006when it's summer and you see a school thing come through sometimes you don't always look. So we really need to make sure that we're checking those even though it's summer time as parents of the district. >> Good recommendation there. Okay, moving on to public comment on agenda items. Do we have anyone who signed up? policy. So that would be agenda. This one. >> Okay. Okay. First agenda item would be U. Jackie Nelson and she is on the cell phone policy. >> Right. Just a quick question. Madam President, you are going to do the second reading tonight. Just wanted to make sure. Do you? >> Yes. Please go over there. Thank you. Okay. Um, good afternoon. Um, I'm Jackie Nelson. I'm speaking tonight as the Western Region Education Chair for the NAACP um, New York State
007Conference. And I wanted to speak on the cell phone ban, the um policy that um the direct directive that was given by the governor for all schools to um all school districts to not have um students have access to their cell phones from bell to bell. And I I I came here with a different attitude, but I went on the website just before I got here and I saw that there was a little tweaking done with the draft that I had missed before. So, I just wanted to say to everyone and have it on record that um this is something that the NACP is in favor of. Um if if for no other reason, it gives kids a break from the the bullying and the the things that go on throughout the day that they're
008trying to deal with and it takes away from their studies. So, I just wanted to take some time and and point that out because I know um I know there's going to be some maybe some push back from some parents and stuff that don't quite don't get it. But I do want you all to know that we are here to help with that, to educate people. We could hold community conversations or whatever needs to be done so that this this rather difficult task can be done more smoothly. So, thank you Thank you, Mrs. Nelson for uh talking about the policy. I also like to thank the entire policy committee which consists of three of our board members and again with New York State School Board Association who does the uh work the lift actually for
009every district because the New York school board association they take they do take regulations and act that are passed down and make sure they word it in a way and provide it to districts so that we can really implement it within our system. and the board did a great job with reviewing what was sent to make it Rome but in alignment with all of the act. Um so really appreciative of the board members for coming together and other people within the district including the RTA who gave us feedback as well on the cell phone policy with any policies. I just want to remind everybody that the policy committee is open. So when the board is meeting and having conversation to look at policies it is open to the public. So if anybody wants to join
010they are welcome. And again, thank you to all of the folks who had an eye on it and who provided feedback along the way. >> A qu and I may have missed it because I unfortunately I'm sorry I missed the last meeting. I was sick. Um, real quick to touch on that cell phone policy and I'm asking you this as a board member, not as a parent, not as anything else. I'm just concerned with are we going to be responsible for these cell phones? So Johnny brings in his cell phone. Okay. Mrs. as safe and as the teacher. Okay. I don't look at Johnny's cell phone. I lock it up. Okay. >> Jen Jen gives me her cell phone and I lock it up. I don't look at it. You Everyone gives it to me.
011Today, Miss Nurlan comes. Whether it's a mistake, it's on purpose, or it's not. She takes Johnny's cell phone home. She's gone. She left now because that was in that box. She took Johnny's phone home. Johnny's looking for his phone. at the end of the day also and it comes back broke. So I didn't look at I don't know if it was ever broke. Who is responsible for that actual cell phone if that is brought into our schools? >> As a matter of fact that is addressed in the policy that we are not responsible for lost, stolen or broken phones. >> So thank you for that question >> very much. Okay, moving on to the superintendent's report. >> Oh, it's already my turn. >> It's already your turn. >> Well, uh, similar to some of the
012commendation that you have been given, it is a pleasure to let the community know that new teacher orientation began today. We kicked off this morning at the Jervis Library and I had the privilege of welcoming our newest educators to the Rome City School District and they bring tremendous energy, ideas, and passion. And you know I keep reminding them that Rome is about to do this education thing world class and therefore if they are a member of Rome they can expect to be world class every day. So we are excited that they have been added to the team. But more importantly, we want to say a special thank you to the leaders of the teacher center for planning this orientation and ensuring multiple departments including HR cuz after I left HR was there giving them information
013in terms of all of the paperwork that they needed to complete to get paid on time. Um so our teachers are fully prepared for the opening of school. So well done the office of instruction working in collaboration with our teacher center and the teacher center does a great job. They do have a place at the library. They meet regularly and their job is to support the teachers um in our district. Um in terms of bus route, I know a lot of people are asking when are bus routes, when is uh uh we're going to receive the schedules, etc. Bus route information, this is directly from our do director of transportation for students in grades 1 to 12 will be sent to families this Friday through Parent Square. And he all and I said, "Well, what
014about kindergarten?" So he answered that, too. He said, "Kindergarten families will receive their bus information during the week of September 1st. And families who are in grades 1 to 12, if you do not get your information this Friday on Parents Square, he is asking that you will contact the director of transportation for assistance. More acknowledgement and celebration. So, we want to highlight the professional development and summer learning opportunities that took place over the summer. Again, many individuals think that departments are not doing much, but I can tell you the district office has been very busy and in particular the office of instruction, of course, HR making sure that people are hired and business department and facilities making sure that we get ready for school. So many of our educators participated in workshops, curriculum planning, literacy,
015math sessions, and leadership institute just to ensure that we are investing their time in growth to support student learning. We also want to make sure that we're recognizing the community partners who have supported our students through summer programs and continue to assist. As a matter of fact, they're getting prepared to assist with back to school readiness. They include the NAACP, the Rome Art and Community Center, the YMCA Community Connected School, the Griffith Institute, Sunni Pali, MVCC and Boseies, as well as local nonprofits, businesses, and the Jervis library. Their collaboration made it possible for students to participate in enrichment programs, STEM camps, summer arts, athletics, and various experiences throughout the summer that I've had the opportunity to also participate in. We are just grateful. It doesn't happen in every community, y'all. I know sometimes people don't
016think about it cuz when you have something, you don't appreciate it. That's why sometimes you say you can't be a prophet in your own land. I tell you, the community connection that we have here where individuals come together to make sure that our students and families get what they need even before they return to school is like amazing. And so we are definitely grateful for these strong connections both between the schools and the community. Finally, we also want to acknowledge some important national and state celebrations at this time of year. We know that August is National Back to School Month. Everybody's gearing up for that and we are too. We're excited about kickoff. September 2nd is our kickoff. We're going to be a family under the same roof at RFA. And then on September 4th,
017we are so excited to welcome our wonderful, brilliant children back into our school building for a stellar and worldclass education. National Hispanic Heritage Month also starts in September. It's coming up before you know it. It's going to run from September 15 through October 15. again making sure that we are inclusive and recognizing the rich cultures and contribution of Hispanic and Latino communities. In addition, you know, I always preach about attendance. School is about to open. The bus is coming on to pick up your children on September 4th. Make sure that they are in school ready to receive the education. So, attendance awareness month is also in September, which is very appropriate as we open the school year. That concludes my report unless you have a question for me. >> The only question I would have
018is on our website are listed all the opening um the open house information for parents to go to schools prior. Correct. I know it's I've looked at our own website. There was some in on there. >> So, right now >> so I just wondered if we could make sure we put the information out there for individuals. >> Great feedback. we will make sure we take it to our PR team to ensure that they do that. So, we'll do that tomorrow morning to double check. Okay. So, sometimes I may not have a yes cuz I don't check the website every day, but I will make sure that the team checks on that. Okay. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Okay. Moving into our workshop which is our UPK update and we have >> I can set the
019tone if you don't mind Madame President. So with joy I am excited to introduce you to Mali who is our uh principal for the early education. When we talk about this district really focusing on academic rigor and excellence. It really start at the early intervention stages. And so we are pri in September going to give you an overview of how well we did in 2425. when you look at our district priorities in terms of ELA, math, participation rates, all of the areas that we were intentional about. But again, we don't forget UPK cuz if the little ones are doing well by the time they get to kindergarten, then we should expect that they will continue to do well. And that's how you make a movement. That's how you move academic progress. And so as we
020were meeting with all of the principles to review their school improvement plan, I can't tell you how joyful we are, how excited we are, and I hope that you will see that when we move as one band and one sound and on one accord, things begin to change for the better for our little ones because our little ones don't have time for adults to get their act together. So we got to get our act together. And we did that by you not only adopting the district priorities last year, but also making sure that you adopted a strategic plan that you are holding us accountable to. And I'm so excited to present her tonight. You will hear from other people along the way when we start talking about some of these things in September, but it
021starts with early intervention. And so our sister superintendent will introduce. I get so excited, as you can see, I get into my preaching mode because it's just it's just great stuff is beginning to happen. and we want people to catch that fire. >> Okay, so without further ado, because nor Superintendent Anselm has actually done an incredible introduction, uh, principal Molly Midik and she's up here to talk about all of the things that she's talking about and following up what we did in April. So for the board members that were not here for the April visit, there's a lot of pieces in here that she will go through and review so you don't miss out on the amazing information and also this forever growing program. Boy, did they grow. So Molly, come on up. >> All
022right. Well, thank you. Thank you for having me and allowing me this opportunity to share all the great things that are happening. I I'm a mover, so this is going to be tricky for me because I I like to move. So, um if you can't hear me or Carl, if something happens, just just let me know. Okay. So, um I first want to start with our vision. And um the early childhood program is dedicated to providing an equitable, inclusive, and developmentally appropriate learning environment for all preK students. Our model supports the whole child development through structured play-based learning, embedding social emotional instruction and datadriven decision-making. Rome ECP aligns directly with our our district strategic priorities in early literacy, SEAL, equity, and family partnerships anchored in the belief that early learning is foundational to long-term academic
023success. So, a little bit of background about our program just so that you have some some guidelines and some basis and some foundation. We have 13 sections of prek. Two of those sections are special education classrooms that are housing our 813 students. And then we have um excuse me, 11 other sections that are our general education. We um support 206 students. We are currently at capacity and have a waiting list for the 2526 school year. And um we are introducing a new model, well it's not a new model, but it's new to UPK and we're having a consultant model come in where we'll have a special education teacher pushing in to the classroom to support um some of our students and their needs in that model as well. So exciting things to come for the
024new year. So what happens in preK? A lot happens in preK. Um, I can't speak enough about the joy that our staff and our students bring every single day. We are not a daycare. And I want to debunk that myth. We are we are an institution of learning, but we are an institution that is getting our students ready for kindergarten and beyond. So you will see in our classrooms students playing, building towers, taking turns, acting out stories. We have a whole dramatic play um section center where they can try on costumes and they can act out. They can be chefs in a kitchen that is purposeful. It's intentional and it's done with learning and inquiry in mind. We want our students to ask questions. We don't want our students being told, "Hey, that looks like
025a tower." We want our students to say, "Well, actually, no. You know what? What is it that you're building today?" Well, this is my house, and this is the king that lives in the house. And you know, using their imaginations and building that inquiry so that as they continue on in their education, they have that foundational skill to ask questions or to answer questions that are being asked of them. that brings them out of the box, brings them out of that realm of a house doesn't necessarily have to look like a house in a child's mind. It's what the child wants it to be is what's important. And so when you come into our classrooms and you visit us, you will see that we are joyful, we are laughing, we are smiling, but we are
026also intentional. There's a purpose behind what we're doing and it's working that and I'm about to share with you how well we are doing. So the next slide, please, Carl. Here's some pictures. It's joyful. It's intentional and it works. So, here you will see children at play. You will see uh Miss Riner working with a student. Again, I just wanted to show you just a a this is just a glimpse. I encourage if you want to come to our program, please visit us anytime. Um this is what this is just a glimpse of what you will see. Go ahead. >> Can I ask one question? What what are your time? How long are the children with you? Students arrive at 9:00 and they leave at 2:30. So, as I said, we're building a foundation. PreK
027is a highquality early childhood education program that serves children ages 3 through 5. We focus on language and literacy, social emotional skills, foundational math and science concepts, motor skills, and physical coordination. And as I stated, we are not a daycare. We are their first classroom. So these were the priorities for the 24-25 school year and I would like to highlight them because they are certainly certainly a foundation of how we grow and how we build. And so district priority one was around academic rigor and excellence and the Rome City School District is committed to engaging relevant, rigorous and inclusive curriculum and instruction for all students and to increase and maximize academic achievement. And when you first look at that overview, you think, how can our two I mean, we have students that come that have
028not yet quite turned three. How do we build that around a 2-year-old? How do we make that work all the way up to a 5-year-old? And the developmental stages between that of a 2-year-old and a 5-year-old is grand, is large. And so we need to encompass our learners and encompass our staff with the foundational skills to be ready when they enter kindergarten. So this is a lot and a small slide, but I did feel important to give you this information because the data that I'm about to show you um is relevant to these domains. So in our teaching strategies gold curriculum, we use what is called domains to help assess and see where our students are at and performing at the three checkpoints that we do every year. And in the graph that you're about
029to see, you're going to see some acronyms. So I wanted to give you a little bit of background because you know in education we are all about acronyms, right? So social emotional you'll see is SED and that's about emotional regulation, building relationships, cooperation, social problem solving, physical development and health. Those are our gross and fine motor skills, self-care and health practices. Language, oh my goodness, immersion of language, receptive and expressive, conversational turn taking, vocabulary and grammar, cognitive, how can they how can they attain to a task? What is their memory? Can they reason? Can they problem solve? Do they have any symbolic thinking? Again, I go back to that tower that was their house, right? Um, literacy, funological awareness, alphabet knowledge, print concepts, comprehension, and emergent writing, and math, number sense, and counting, operations, measurement,
030and data patterns, and geometry. All that's happening in preK with our 2 to 5 year olds. The purpose of teaching strategies gold is that it's an ongoing authentic observation tool collected during daily instruction. results from these collections of data. And I mean staff taking pictures, staff asking students questions. It's gathering information all day long. The results help us guide our planning, our differentiation, and how we're going to target some supports that may be needed. We can aggregate that data by classroom, by program, by student to monitor our students growth and identify next steps. So here's a graph. I love I'm very visual. So, um I wanted to share with you how our three year olds did for the 24 25 school year. So, again, they come in September, some of them are still two, and
031we're moving all the way up to the three-year-old range. And as you can see, we have the fall, which is the first orang-ish color, and then it's a really kind of all orange in the middle, and the last line is spring. So you see the you can see the separation of fall, winter, and spring and the domains down at the bottom. And you can see that if you look across that chart horizontally, our students in our three-year-old classrooms grew in all of those domains. That in of itself to me just brings me so much joy. Um, it it shows our our staff, it shows our community, it shows our students you're learning. And not only are you learning, you're getting ready for the real world and what that's going to bring you and how you
032can navigate that and how you can be successful in that as early as 2 and 3 years old. Carl, the next slide, please. So, to highlight some of the growth of our three-year-olds, we had a 40 to 60% increase in meeting or exceeding expectations with over 93% meeting or exceeding by the spring in every single one of those domains. We had a significant reduction in students that were in were in the category of below expectations. Rates dropped by more than 50% in all those domains. Our highest gains were in literacy, math, and SEAL. Literacy and math growth were driven by targeted strategies. Social emotional growth reflected improved emotional regulation, social functioning and participation. Advances in language, expressive and receptive, how students receive their language or hear the language and how they talk. Right? So, we
033are talking all day long. The kids are talking all day long. Through modeling and structured commun structured communications and supports, students are learning how to engage appropriately, not only peer-to-peer, but peerto adult or peer to their mom or peer to their sister, whatever it may be. They're learning how to engage and how to ask questions and and wonder. And that's the that's the blessing of UPK, right? They're so full of wonder and excitement. And then mastery of motor and cognitive skills. Our students strengthened their motor coordination, problem solving, reasoning, and memory with um physical health routines mastered programwide. Our three-year-olds knocked it out of the park. And now on to our four-year-olds. So again, you can see it's the same type of graph. We have the fall, we have this um winter, and we have
034the spring. And again, you can see growth. Now, please don't be um discouraged when you look at like for example, you see literacy, right? You see a drop in literacy, and you see a drop in mathematics. I've talked with the staff and I have an idea of why that's happening, but the overall picture for our four-year-olds is similar to that of the three-year-olds. They grew in all domains from fall to spring. Again, motor coordination and health routines improved consistently. They're beginning to become more independent. You know, those three, four, five year olds, they're really starting to learn what their independence is and what that means and how to function independently and how to function properly independently. Growth within communication and vocabulary, approve improved attention and memory. Their progress was strong in that that spring regression
035that I just touched upon on the last slide. We've realized that, you know, you get to April, May, June, there's a lot of things happening in UPK and, you know, we have fun days and we have a lot of events and we believe the staff believes that we really need to hone in on that April, May, June time and hone in on how can we increase our literacy and math scores. Not again, everybody, all of those domains increase, but we did see that regression. So maybe we can build in some nightly workshops for math where it's parents are coming in and doing projects and activities with their with their kiddos. Um again that language immersion. So we really are going to fine-tune our practices from April to June to make sure that that learning is
036continuous and growing. District priority two was about wellness and equity. We ensure the well-being of students and employees in a sa safe nurturing learning environment through authentic family and community engagement and a whole child approach. So what does that look like in UPK? So we have fully integrated tier 1 social emotional learning practices using the pyramid model strategies. So a little bit about pyramid model is essentially it's a program that builds our foundation of the social emotional growth for our students. How do we talk with our students instead of saying no you can't do that? It's can you tell me why you're doing that and can we come up with a solution that works right? So it's how we talk with our students. It's how the students talk with each other. It's building a capacity
037of being ready to learn because if students are not socially emotionally regulated and ready to learn, learning isn't going to happen, right? So, we need to identify what makes our kiddos tick, what will help and support them along the way. And what it looks like for me may look very different for somebody else. And it's so important, especially in these early years, that we are able to help our students grow socially and emotionally so that they can effectively communicate between each other and with everyone else that approaches them in their world. Um, our tier 2 and tier three support plans, those are for students that may be struggling with social emotional regulation. Perhaps there are some tantruming or some um relinquishing of having to leave an activity. It sounds very s simple in our minds,
038but if a student is engaged in building blocks and it's time it's time to go to PE, sometimes there's a little bit of a back and forth of how we're going to get to PE, right? So really working on having skill having the students navigate those skills and and and recognizing their emotions for what they are and how to appropriately deal with the emotions that they're experiencing and we're there to help them along the way. So we create or not we we create excuse me we have what's called behavior incident reports. It's similar to I'll equate it to school tool and how discipline is placed into our school tool data data system. Our behavior incident reports rose from 77 in the fall to 300 in the winter. And I I I got thinking about that
039and I was thinking, you know, why why all of a sudden are we having so many behavior reports? And what was happening was that there was a disconnect between the use of what the behavior incident reports are for and how they were being used. And it was a conversation to have with the staff to say, "Hey, those behavior incident reports are used for when you have exhausted all of your tools in your toolkit and you need some help." And then we bring in our team, right? We bring in our school psychologist. We bring in our school counselor. We bring in folks that can help and support a student who may be struggling. And we also had Dana had provided to our staff um pyramid training as well. And so that the the birds the behav
040behavior incident reports are part of that pyramid model. So in addition to recognizing how to use the behavior incident reports, they also decreased because the staff that came to Dana's training were utilizing the tools and the strategies within that Pureman model to help and support our kids. So within still wellness equity and behavioral supports as I just touched upon we meet monthly sometimes weekly to discuss our students how they are how they are doing not only academically but how are they doing socially and emotionally? What is it that we need to put in place? How can we help and support? Um and those meetings are so productive because we're really able to hone in on what are the root causes? Do we need some additional outside support? Does is there something that connected community schools
041can bring to us? Is there something more that that the child needs? Does a child need to perhaps be um maybe having initial intake and really finding the the root causes of what's going on with our kiddos so that when they do go to kindergarten, everything is in place for them to maintain and continue success. You can skip that. I already talked about that. And then oh the physical aggression piece. So many times, and I say this, when you when you say the word physical aggression, it's not a fight back and forth. It's really more of a student really trying to deescalate themselves. And sometimes that happens in an unsafe manner, which is developmentally actually appropriate for a 2, three, or fouryear-old to throw a block, right? Or to hit a student. And it's our
042job in UPK to teach students alternate choices and alternate behaviors. And so we know based upon the data that Mondays and Tuesdays are typically tricky days in preK. And the reason being is because they've had the weekend, right? They've been home with their families. They've been home with their brothers and sisters or whoever it is that takes care of them. And now it's back into school, right? And so we noticed that there was an uptick. So into this upcoming year, we know Mondays and Tuesdays might be a little bit of a tricky day. What are we going to do to get in front of that to help our students be successful and decrease those Mondays and Tuesday, I'll call them blues, right? Coming back to school and by Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, it's like they never
043left, right? But then they come back on Monday and they're like, "Oh, I'm back here again." But then the smiles come in and the teachers come in and there's just joy and tons of learning. Um, this is the behavior supports that we have in place, which is similar to the academic model. Have you heard of the triangle with the tiers, right? You have tiers of support. So, everybody's at a tier one receiving all the same supports. And then students that may be struggling either academically or social emotionally, then we bring them to a tier 2 or a tier three where more interventions may be necessary to support our kiddos, our our attendance. Next slide. I think. Yep. So, we do quarterly well, we do actually weekly reviews of our attendance um in UPK students um
044miss if students miss 10 days of school, we have we've had convers we have conversations prior to that 10day mark. But when students reach 10 days, that's when we have to say to the parent, you know, we want your child here, but 10 days is a lot of school to miss and what is going on and what can we do to help and support you so that you can remain in in in our program. And many times we find that it could be like a transportation issue or a job change and we work with those families to help and support them. And while we didn't reach our 95% mark, I am pleased to say that we were at 91.36%, 89.57% and 89.335. And I want it noted that this is parent transport. This isn't busing,
045right? So our parents are bringing the children, their children to school and picking them up or a guardian or whoever it may be. And so that those numbers are vital because that's how our how our parents perceive our program. They know that attendance is important. They know that their children need to come to our program to thrive and they are our family and community engagement piece. Um just a few things to highlight that we did this year. This does not encompass all that we did, but we did an ice cream social. We did a small and tall small and tall gala dance. We did touch a truck. We have ongoing classroom events, literacy nights, family art nights, parent teacher checkpoints, conferences. Um many times throughout the week, classroom um staff are inviting parents to come
046in and just come in and be in the class for a period of time and and hang out and play with the kids, right? And that builds such a sense of community in our building. And I will share that a parent came in today to speak with me and um her children are going into kindergarten this upcoming year. And she had shared that when she walked in through the doors today, she still felt like she was coming home. And that really resonated with me and I was so thankful that she shared that because I feel that that's a testament to the work that our staff is doing to help and support our community. Rome is home, but so is UP and so is UPK, you know. And so that parent coming in and saying that,
047it was just I'm like, "Wow, I need to share that tonight because that just is a testament to how welcoming and affirming our environment is for our littlest learners." So there are some pictures of some of the events that we had. Touch a truck was a huge success. The horns blowing. Oh my goodness. They let the kids get in the trucks. They were blowing the horns. They were doing the police sirens. It was It was fantastic. We had actually we had neighbors calling to make sure everything was okay. Um we had the bubble manor ice cream social, the dance, a fire safety presentation. Again, this is just highlights of what we what we've done, but we do so much more. So what what does this all mean? What are what are our action steps? I've
048given you a lot of information, right? But with that information comes action. So what's planned? We know and I spoke about how our domains all showed meaning meaningful growth particularly in language, math and physical development. We talked about the spring regression. We talked about how the impact of our embedded assessments meaning the teachers are constantly collecting data on the kids, taking pictures, asking them questions. What are you learning? How are you learning? Talk to me more about that. That all supports not only our TSG objectives but also the pyramid model. and then a continued focus on those tier 2 interventions and professional collaborations to solidify the gains and reduce the number of students below expectations. So the spring regression, right, it suggests a loss of momentum and our action item is going to be from
049April to June and academic focus on units in math and literacy embedded with a spiral review. And our measure, I'm hoping that at least 75% of our students meet or exceed expectations in literacy and math by the spring 2026 checkpoint. our instructional supports for enhancing tier 2. While below percentage below percentages dropped across domains, social emotional still shows us some opportunity. So I would like to expand our tier 2 small group interventions by continuing to use and build upon the pyramid model and to measure that decreasing student scoring below expectations and social emotional and literacy by 10% by this winter. expanding our professional learning on data. Our team this year, woof I we we went in hard with data this year. And you know, there's that saying, you know, get get comfortable with the uncomfortable.
050We we did this year. We we dived into a lot of data practices and how to best capture relevant data and those conversations. Uh, every Tuesday I offer an optional meeting for our staff. So, um, the this when the students leave at 2:30, we have our planning and prep time. So, every Tuesday I would put myself in our gymnasium. I'd set up a table, some chairs, and it became a very conversational time for staff to come in to ask questions, talk about the data that they're collecting. What do they do with the data that they're collecting? Can you look at this data and tell me what you think? Right? These collaborative pieces happened organically. I wasn't anticipating what those Tuesday meetings were going to look like. I really had no set agenda, but teachers and
051staff came to me with talking points that they wanted to talk with each other about. And it was really me just kind of sitting back and letting them talk and learn from each other. And that became such a a highlight of our year. I looked forward to those Tuesday meetings because so much came out of those meetings, especially for our newer staff who are really trying to navigate what UPK looks like here in the Rome City School District. Um the rationale for our spring uh spring regression may relate to school transitions or our program winding down. Um this is a repeat of what I had said, you know, talking about literacy and math showcases embedding routine and goal setting into year-end experiences. Okay, our highlights. So, curricula curriculum and instruction are teaching strategy goal checkpoints.
052They happen three times a year. They are aligned to our New York State New York State prek standards. I we did a lot of walkthroughs and coaching. Um we had um targeted TSG objectives and an EERS 3 environment indicator which is another way for us to measure the learning environment in our classroom. And I'll talk more about that in just a minute. We did 127 walkthroughs in addition to observations, eer's three um evaluations, quality stars, which is um think of quality stars as like Dana, you said it nicely the other day. Think of it like a hotel rating, right? So that you can be rated from 1 to five. Our past rating was a three. We were again having to do a standards inventory this year and um Amy, our liaison from Quality Stars, I'm
053Amy. I am aiming for that four or five and we haven't had we haven't received news yet as to whether or not we maintain or maintained a three or move to that four or five but my competitive piece is coming out and I told her I said I'm I'm really aiming for that four or five. Um, also we had um, state come in in January and do a review of our program. And suffice to say that that review led the director of the office of early learning, Eric, to come to Rome to our district in early June. and he spent time with us in our UPK classrooms visiting our visiting our students, visiting our staff because he had heard from the review that was done in January how great our program is and he wanted
054to see it firsthand and that was just a testament to our staff, right? Just they're doing such great work. and he also went to I believe joy to see the progression of play-based learning and how that transitions from UPK to K12 and beyond. So that was very exciting. I'd also like to highlight that we had um numerous districts surrounding districts come and visit our program to see what we're all about. How do we work? What do we do? Um, some programs or some districts already had UPK up and running but wanted to see what we were doing and others are just starting and they came to see our program and to um gain insight as to what we're doing and what we're using and how it's effective and and and beneficial to our youngest learners.
055Um, professional development, we did focus on trauma-informed care, the tiered behavior responses, data informed instruction, and equitable equitable teaching practices. myself and our two teacher coordinators um Sherry Fleet and Mary Mutillo, we ran a workshop series last week. It was three days, three evenings from 5 to 8. There were four workshops in those three nights and we talked about executive functioning and how that supports the early learners. And then we went into the TSG objectives and we highlighted seven core objectives that were going to highlight the first six to eight weeks of school that focus on the social emotional learning of the child and how we can then embed those objectives and those practices into the first 6 to 8 weeks of school because if children are not socially emotionally ready to learn, learning is
056not going to happen. And so we had a 9-hour series and we had the first we had on average 14 teachers and staff come. So it was well attended. It was um it was great. We had lots of laughs but there was a lot of collaboration. Um Mary Mutillo set up her room as a model room so staff could go in and look at the room and look at what Mary had put together, ask questions. Um, we even, you know, critiqued Mary's room and said, "What have you thought about maybe moving this over here and why?" And, you know, the the room itself is really the third teacher. And so, we highlighted that in that instructional or workshop series that we did just last week. And then our team culture and communication, strong leadership expectations,
057peer collaboration, increased transparency with scheduling, coverage, and planning. And with that, I have a last slide. Every block stack, story read and friendship made is a building block for a lifetime of learning. PreK is where curiosity takes root, confidence blooms, and the future begins. The smallest learners make the biggest leaps and their success starts here. >> Questions? >> That was an exceptional um presentation to us. And I want to say her third picture there, the depressed state that we all felt by the end of our winter cycle could kind of correlate back to when you're saying they regress because and I don't mean that it's funny, but it's true. I mean, we all fall into a >> Yeah. Mo, it's horrible. So, I just want to >> That's a That's a That's a very good
058point. I hadn't I hadn't thought of it in that way, but yes. I mean, with the with the weather that it was this winter, um certainly that definitely could have played a role or a factor. Um but man, am I so proud of our students and our staff. They they come in. They're here now. You know, they're they're they're setting up classrooms. We we hit the ground running. There's no there's no stalling. There's no waiting. They're coming and we're ready. And we're we're welcome welcoming them with open arms, caring, and love. Superintendent Unsalm tells us all the time. I mean, prek is the building block. I mean, like you were saying. So, I mean, it's so imperative that we have a strong program. But one question I do have a real question. Yes. >> Is
059um >> so when we have a child who's acting up and you fill out the um report that you do, >> how then does that go back to the parent and >> through me and the classroom teacher and our team? So, it's a team approach. If if a student is um acting unsafeely, it's a team approach to reach out to the team to find out, you know, what what was the circumstances leading up, give us some more information, gathering information, and then bringing in the families to say, you know, these are things that we're seeing. Are you seeing them at home? What are some things that we can do collaboratively together to help and support your child? >> Okay. Thank you. >> You're welcome. Mommy, one of the things that you talked about doing your
060school improvement plan, you really highlighted the fact that as a leader, it was important for us to have a northstar and that northstar has helped you. I know you gave a lot of credit to the staff and students. Can you just talk about that because sometimes at the board's table when we hear in strategic planning and district priorities now you are a leader in the district really implementing those things and why is it important that you had that so you can anchor yourself into that? Yes. So, the north star, you know, there's, how do I want to say this without thinking it too much? I just need to say it. Having information to guide our learners and our staff is so critical. And part of that is the feedback that the staff receives from leadership
061and how to improve and how to grow and to have something to lean into meaning data because you know over the years data has become I you know like a four-letter word almost and it's not something that we should stray away from. It's something that we should lean into and help guide our practices to best support the needs of our students. And so, you know, when I'm when I'm walking into classrooms, I'm looking for our staff to be engaging with the children in a way that is promoting inquiry and growth and excitement and simultaneously gauging what it is they need to help to improve and to grow. And that guiding north star is this information that I've given you. And you know, I could I could have given you a hundred slides of of data
062of of how well our students are doing. But our students aren't just a number, right? They're not just a number on a page. They're little human beings who need that growth and support and love that our staff gives. And through modeling and encouragement and collaboration, I'm confident that our ECP staff is just they're in it for the kids. And that's why we're in education, right? That's why we're here. We're here to help and support our youngest learners be exceptional adults. And that starts at UPK. So, I don't know if Nurlan if I don't remember exactly what I said to you when we met, but I am Am I hitting the point that you wanted me to hit? >> Yes, you are. Okay. >> Yes. Yes. >> Absolutely. Because I knew that I I mean, it's
063it's in black and white, right? Like we're talking about academic rigor and we're talking about equity and wellness. and moving into our strategy strategic plan. I'm so excited to to begin to build upon not only what we've done for the 2425 school year, but what we're bringing to the 25 26 school year and beyond. And you know, looking at the strategic plan and having an opportunity as leaders at our retreat to come together and dissect that plan together and highlight what we as leaders felt was important to touch upon and delve into for the 2526 school year gives that gives us as leaders an opportunity to say this is where we're going. this is I think how we're going to get there, but I need your input and support as well. And to be able
064to have that open dialogue and communication was crucial and is crucial as we continue to move forward in this district. >> You're welcome. >> Thank you very much. >> Thank you. Okay, moving on to our consent agenda which will be from pages two through number 14. Can I have a motion to approve? >> Okay, moved by Kirsten. Have a second. >> Seconded by Jen. Any discussion? All in favor? >> I. >> Motion's carried. Moving on to our regular meeting with finance. Um, first action item, a resolution for the contract health and welfare services with Jamesville Dwit Central School District where section 912 of the New York State Education Law authorizes school districts to enter into agreements for the provision of health and welfare services for residents students while attending non-public schools in another school district.
065whereas four children residing in the Rome City School District attended non-public schools located within the Jamesville Dit Central School District during the 24-25 school year. And whereas the Jamesville Dit Central School District provided health and welfare services for said students which consisted of psychological physic physician and nursing services including but not limited to vision and hearing tests, the taking of medical histories, administration of health screening tests, school psychologist services, and the provision of medical supplies and equipment for use by a physician and/or school nurse. And whereas the cost of providing such services was computated based on the actual district cost divided by the total public and non-public enrollment as of October 1st and the total cost for the 2425 school year was $2,8.96. Now therefore, be it resolved that the board of education of the
066Rome City School District hereby approve the provision of health and welfare services by the Jamesville Dwick Central School District for four resident children attending non-public schools within said district for the period of September 1st, 2024 through June 30th, 25 at a total cost of $2,8.96. And be it further resolved that the board president and/or superintendent of schools was authorized to execute the contract on behalf of the Rome City School District. Can I have a motion to move it? >> So move. >> Okay. Moved by Jen. Have a second. >> Second by Paula. Any comments? >> I have a Are these um like specialty or Catholic school? >> They are non-ublic school. So it could be a combination. Yeah, I was just wondering that's all. Thank you. >> Okay, any other questions, discussion? >> All in
067favor? >> I motion's carried. >> Second action item, resolution to confirm school tax role in issuance of warrant for collection 2526. Whereas in accordance with section 1306 as amended of the election law of the state of New York, this board of education has caused to be prepared a school tax role based upon the assessment roles of the city of Rome and towns of Lee, Ansville, Western, and Verona for the tax to be levied as stated in the Rome City School District budget for the fiscal period July 1st 25 to June 30th, 2026 inclusive. Now therefore be it resolved that the school tax role so prepared by the same hereby is in all respects confirmed in the delivery of said tax said school tax role together with this board's warrant for the collection of such tax
068and next here to thereto is hereby authorized and directed and be it further resolved that the rate of interest payable on school taxes remaining unpaid shall be the rate of interest on unpaid city taxes in the city of Rome New York. Um, and let's see. Board of Education, City School District, State of New York versus County of Anida. To the tax collector, City School District, City of Rome, County of Anida, and State of New York. You are hereby required and commanded to receive and collect the total sum of 39,699,88 which sum has been calculated in accordance with the real property tax law including the provisions of section I306- thereof relating to the star program and includes the library tax from the several persons and corporations named in the tax list to which this warrant is
069annexed or filed as the case may and the several amounts of taxes specified opposite their respective names as hereafter provided. And for the purpose you are required after the giving of appropriate notice they set forth in the real property tax law to receive and collect such taxes in two installments as follows. An installment of 1/ half of such taxes shall be paid and collected without penalty during the month of October 2025. even a second installment of 1/ half of such taxes shall be collected without penalty during the month of April 2026. If the amount of said tax is not paid at the time a said installment is due, the rate of interest payable on unpaid city of Rome taxes according to law shall be the rate of interest payable on the school district taxes remaining
070unpaid on the respective installment dates. In honor before the first day of June 2026, you are required to return this warrant together with the account of unpaid monies then reming remaining in your hands received by you for said taxes as provided by law. This warrant is issued by authority of the real property law and is effective immediately upon its execution by a majority of the members of the board of education. Can I have a motion to move it? >> So moved. >> Moved by Kursman. You have a second. >> Second. Seconded by Jen. Is there any discussion? All in favor? >> I. Okay. At the end of the meeting, we do all have to sign. It's a document we have to sign as a warrant that we have to return to the city. So, if
071you can could start over there on that side. Okay, that motion is carried. Uh, action item three, resolution to approve a transportation agreement. Whereas the board of education of the Rome City School District recognizes the necessity of providing safe and reliable student transportation services, including services during the regular school year and the summer session. And whereas the district has identified Mobosis as a qualified transportation provider capable of delivering such services in accordance with all applicable laws, policies, and safety standards. And whereas the board desires to enter into agreement with Mobosis to provide regular and summer student transportation services for the 2526 school year. Now therefore be it resolved that the board of education hereby authorizes the district to enter into a transportation and summer transportation agreement with Moouseies for services as described at a total
072cost not to exceed $200,000. Can I have a motion to move? >> Moved by Jen. Seconded by Paula. Any discussion? All in favor? >> I. Motion is carried. Audit committee. We did have an audit committee report on August 6th and our finance meeting. I'm sorry, we didn't have an audit meeting. That will be in September. Correct. Or in October. >> October. I'm sorry. We have to have four of them a year. Um the finance committee met on August 6 and we reviewed some of the budget versus actual expenditures which were obviously just beginning because the budget year just started. Um um our audit will be starting or starting now and we will have the reports normally early in October. Um we also have a risk assessment audit that is required by the state four times
073a year and we are in the process of going through that. Um our budget process will beginning in October. It comes up very quickly and uh so the timeline we will be discussing it at our next meeting to go through because there are some legal dates that have to be um decided on and agreed to. Um let's see. We also discussed some of our grants, but again the upfront lump upfront costs, dollars are kind of what drives how we go out and administer those grants and put them into play. So we are always trying to look for more grant opportunities. Um, and also the bleachers from the capital project, we were able to take the amount that was left over, I believe, from the 2022. Am I correct? Okay. Our project from 2022, we were
074able to take some dollars that were left over. So, the bleachers from the graduation were actually able to be moved from our expense side of our budget into this project. And so, that was covered that. And I believe that was 40ome,000. Was it the rental? >> Yes. So I guess that kind of concluded what we discussed that day. Um we are looking at and if you'd like to address it uh Georgia about the bleachers for the high school. We are currently working on um putting together a quote for two ADA compliant bleachers and two sets of regular bleachers. That would be um on the same location as where we had those bleachers for graduation and those would be permanently ours. We'd be buying those. Um that's roughly 160,000 that would also be coming out of
075the 2022 capital project. So we would receive building aid on those. Um, and once we are able to put the stadium um, back together with actual bleachers or um, something more permanent, those movable bleachers would then be able to be moved over to RFA um, so that we'd still be able to use them in our sports complex. >> Um, with that, Georgia, um, two questions. Um, that'll be for the games also at the stadium. >> Yes, that would be for um, all lacrosse games, football, everything. We plan to have those in place before our first game here in the fall for football. >> Okay. And also um and I know again I'm not throwing this to blindside anyone at all because you were not here you were not here when this first capital project started.
076So with that project down there was there in the original plans was there supposed to be bleachers for the girls because the boys have a whole grand stand and the girls don't have bleachers at all for softball and also bathrooms. my as far as I'm aware with the scope, there's neither of those things included. Um, we do have some financing available still within the 2022 project. So, I can look into the bleachers for the girls side of the program. Um, but we have begun putting in electrical and some of those components for the bathrooms and concession stands, but they will not be part of this project. >> So, they would be like in another phase maybe. >> Correct. They would be later on when we um look at another phase or another project. >> Okay.
077Thank you. >> Next finance meeting will be on September 9th at 8 a.m. >> here and it will be here in >> here, right? >> Yes. Here. Yeah. >> Okay. >> That's our district board. >> Okay. Paul, I'm sorry I didn't get back to you on the time, but 8 a.m. Okay. All right. And that concludes the finance committee report. We will move on to the educational program. Action item number one, resolution to approve consulting agreement. Whereas the Rome City School District D district recognizes the importance of establishing a comprehensive multi-tered system of supports MTSS that promotes student wellness and resilience and aligns with the New York State Office of Mental Health grant requirements. And whereas KB educational consulting consultant possesses the expertise and qualifications to provide specialized consulting services in accordance with the regulations
078of the commissioner of education of New York State and regulations of the New York State Office of Mental Health. and whereas the consultant shall perform services in full compliance with these regulations and in accordance with specific guidelines from the Rome City School District Board of Education, the superintendent of schools and the director of counseling services. And whereas the scope of services shall include but not limited to one, working in coordination with the district staff to implement a district-wide MTSS model beginning with an evidence-based universal screening tool. Two, developing progress monitoring tools to capture student progress data. Three, assisting in exploring, selecting, and training staff on a data tracking system. Four, establishing and embedding MTSS meeting schedules and processes in each building. Five, advising on MTSS recordkeeping procedures. Six, supporting the rollout plan for the universal
079screener. Seven, identifying and addressing gaps in tiered mental health interventions and resources. Eight, providing additional staff training as necessary. Nine, ensuring project timeline align timelines align with grant requirements. 10, ensuring project data collection and reporting align with grant requirements. And 11, performing other related service mutually agreed upon by the district and the consultant. Now therefore, be it resolved that the board of education of the city of of the Rome City School District hereby approves the consulting agreement with KB Educational Consulting to provide the services outlined above for the 2025 2026 school year for a total cost not to exceed $50,400 in accordance with the terms and conditions set forth in the agreement. And be it further resolved that the superintendent of schools is authorized to execute the agreement and take any and all action necessary
080to effectuate this resolution. Can I have a motion to move the resolution? >> Okay. Moved by Kirsten. Is there a second? >> Seconded by Jonathan. Any discussion? All in favor? >> Motion's carried. Uh human resources. We have one action item resolution to create positions. Resolve that upon the recommendation of the superintendent of schools, the board of education hereby creates the following positions to bus drivers to school monitor for the buses. And I move can I have a motion to move the resolution? >> Moved by Jen. I have a second. >> Second by Jonathan. Any discussion? >> So are these just so everyone knows these are um correct? So, we're going to get some help here so it doesn't just seem like we're trying to remove and add whatever. So, bus drivers are not aidable. Monitors
081are aidable if they're following an IEP. In this instance, we actually pay currently uh for a student a set dollar amount for every bus run that we have. If we hire two bus drivers based on the number of buses that we've currently have available, we're looking to save somewhere in the neighborhood of $150,000. >> Sorry, I I misspoke when I said the word adable. I apologize, but thank you for clarifying that. Thank you very much. >> It's okay. We understand what you mean. >> You know what I know what I was putting out. >> That's okay. >> Okay. Any more discussion? Go ahead. >> All in favor? >> Oh, sorry. I >> I motion's carried and we're up to policy. Jeff, uh policy action item number one, resolution to approve the second reading and adoption
082of policy. Resolve that upon the recommendation of the superintendent of schools, the board of education hereby approves the second reading and adoption of the following policy number 5695, Students and Personal Electronic Devices. I moved the resolution. So move >> moved. You second. >> Second. >> Yep. Second by Kirsten. >> Any further discussion? >> All in favor? >> I. Motion is carried. >> And I forgot the date of our Sandy. You sent out the email, but I forgot the date. It's I know it's September. It's in September. >> Yeah. We'll make sure next month. >> I was waiting to hear from everybody. >> Right. Yep. Yep. >> Very good, Jeff. You're doing great on policy. You're moving right along. Moving right along on that one. >> Yeah. Go ahead. >> For miscellaneous business. Uh, one resolution
083to adopt the 2025 2026 board documents. Resolve that the Rome City School District Board of Education hereby approves of and adopts the following documents for the 2025 2026 school year. Board norms. Board proposed goals, Rome board and superintendent communication plan, board of education meeting and professional development workshops, policy review and protocol, board of education committees, and board member representatives. Can I get a motion to move the resolution? >> So moved by Paula, >> seconded by Kirsten. Any discussion? All in favor? Motion's carried. Two, resolution to approve save legislation documents. Resolved that upon the recommendation of the superintendent of schools, the board of education hereby approves the school against violence and education legislation documents code of conduct districtwide safety plan attendance protocol. Can I get a motion to move the resolution? Moved >> by Jonathan. Can
084we get a second? >> Seconded by Paula. Any discussion? All in favor? >> I I motion's carried. >> Three. Resolution to approve combined contract referendum of boys varsity wrestling. Whereas the board of education recognizes the value of intercolastic athletics in fostering student growth, school spirit, and community engagement. and whereas to ensure the Rome City School District student athletes with continued access to a competitive and comprehensive boys varsity wrestling program. The district has agreed to enter into a combined sports agreement with the Clinton Central School District for the 2025 2026 school year. And whereas the combined team will operate in accordance with section 3 of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association, NYSPHSAA, including submission and approval of the appropriate combined teams application. Now therefore, be it resolved that the board of education hereby
085approves the formation of the combined boys varsity wrestling program with the Clinton Central School District for the 2025 2026 school year and authorizes the superintendent of schools or their designate to take all necessary steps to formalize this agreement including execution of any required documents in coordination with section 3 of NYSPHSA. Can I get a motion to move the resolution? So move >> moved by Kirsten. Can we get a second? >> Seconded by Jonathan. Any discussion? All in favor? >> I. Motion's carried for resolution to approve combined contract referendum for girls varsity gymnastics. Whereas the board of education recognizes the value of intercolastic athletics in fostering student growth, school spirit, and community engagement. And whereas due to small participation numbers in the Vernon Verona Cheryl School District and in the interest of providing student athletes with
086continued access to a competitive and comprehensive girls varsity gymnastics program, the Rome City School District has agreed to enter into a combined sports agreement with the Vernon Verona Cheryl School District for a combined girls varsity gymnastics team for the 2025 2026 school year. And whereas the combined team will operate under the guidelines of section 3 of the New York State Public School Athletic Association, NYSPHSAA, including submission and approval of the appropriate combined teams application. Now therefore, be it resolved that the board of education hereby approves the formation of a combined varsity gymnastics program with the Vernon Verona Cheryl School District for the 2025 2026 school year and authorizes the superintendent of schools and/or their designate to take all necessary steps to formalize this agreement including execution of and required documentation and coordination with section 3
087of NPHSA. Can I get a motion to move the resolution? Some move. >> Moved by Kirsten. Can we get a second? >> Second by Paula. Any discussion? All in favor? >> Motion's carried. >> Okay, we're moving on to discussion items. Um, some of our upcoming events. I guess the only two I would really um highlight at this point is our August 28th the meet and greet with administrators. Again, it was just a thought that since we have new board members and many new administrators for our many of us, it's always nice to put a face with what we're hearing. So, we're having just a very small meet and greet. Um the time on that again 5:30 >> 5:30 correct. >> 5:30 right here. >> So, hopefully if you can't stay very long, even if you
088just pop in just so we have a chance to meet people, that would be awesome. I'm sure they're looking forward to meeting us also. Oh, it's at RFA. So, it's at RFI. >> You are correct. >> Yes. >> My bad. >> And September 2nd, opening day for staff. We're all looking forward to that and >> seeing what it brings. So for board members and I guess Jen, one item that we definitely said that we would discuss is um after our last board meeting, we wanted to have an action afteraction review and um just so we can be transparent with everybody and amongst ourselves to continue, you know, learning. We felt like as a whole that the meeting was structured well and that it flowed very nicely and based off our retreat information that we had
089a few weeks ago um we are wanting more board input which I think that we have seen and felt here today and encouraging board members to be more forward and that's our input that we have. The only thing I'm going to add to that is if we as a board member know that we are going to be traveling out for any period of time, I mean on for a board meeting, could we please let Sandy know well in advance just so we're always sure that we have enough board members present to do our business. So along those lines, I will not be at the meeting on September 18th. So you can mark me down right now. So just >> September >> No, I'm sorry. It's September 22nd. >> Don't September 22nd. >> No, no, yes.
090Yes. I apologize. 223rd. Oh my gosh. Yes. >> So, just if you know, just as board members, we can please do that ahead of time. It would be appreciated. Um, I don't Oh, okay. We have no old business, but we do have a public comment and non-aggenda items. Um, Mr. Joe Mrangelo, would you like to come forward? Um, let's see. Superintendent, President, members of the board. Uh, couple months ago, I was here representing the town of Lee, uh, about the situation up there at the Stoke School with the traffic. Uh DOT is working on it. Uh but we still have a few concerns and uh the town has asked me to get into this a little deeper. Uh it's not only the traffic getting in and out with the busing. We got a lot of
091problems like with the Halloween parade cuz both my girls went up there and it was a few years back and I think it's worse now. Um what else do they have? The I think it's the Eagle Soaring Eagle Awards. They have uh quite a crowd for that graduation. So, they asked me to put a petition together to ask the district to look into doing something with the parking lot because the road is one thing, but the parking is terribly inadequate up there. So, uh I'll read what I got here. And this was handwritten. No AI or uh what's the one we just had delivered to the town for something? Uh, they went through an app. Oh, I don't know. I'm still old school, I guess. Uh, petition for traffic changes at Stoke Elementary School. Uh,
092we, the citizens of the town of Lee, as part of the Stokes Elementary School District, petition the Rome City School District to make improvements to the parking area at Stokes Elementary School. We demand that the school district take immediate action to increase the parking and traffic flow at Stokes Elementary School. The current situation is extremely dangerous and outdated. New York State DOT is doing an evaluation on the roadway. Now it's time for the school district to step up and make the parking area safe for our children, parents, and town citizens. And we got about 153 signatures. So, as a board member of the town of Lee, I'll give you a copy of this. And >> would you like a follow-up conversation? You didn't mark that. Okay. >> Oh, I forgot to mention that, too. Uh,
093After the last meeting, uh, some I tried looking up his name again. Somebody from the district office did contact me and put me in the loop with uh, DOT and I appreciate that. And I said, we're all working on it, but you can only do so much. We got our own problems up in Lee. So, all right. Thanks for the time. >> Thank you. Yeah, here we go. Okay, at this point I will it's in we're going to be going into an executive session to discuss the superintendent's formative goals. We will not be returning. So, can I have a motion to adjurnn? >> Okay. Moved by Kirsten. >> Well, actually, I have to have a motion >> to go into executive session. Yeah. >> Kirsten have a second. Second by Paula. All in favor? I.
094>> Okay. Motion's carried. Thank you all.