Board Meeting March 19 2026

00119th 2026 Fairfield District Board of Education meeting. Mr. Phillips, would you call roll, please? >> Mrs. Bing Miller, >> present. >> Mr. Clark, >> present. >> Mr. Klein, >> present. >> Mr. McDonald, >> present. Mr. Napier, >> here. >> Mr. Abby Burning Miller, would you please lead us in pledge? >> My pleasure. 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. >> Thank you, Miss Birdie Miller. >> Presentations, resolutions. Mr. Smith. >> Yes, Mr. Clark. Members of the board, we do have two presentations this evening. Our first one is a school spotlight on our academy. At this time, I will turn it over to our director, Miss Saboral. >> Good evening, everyone. Is

002this on? Yeah. Um, thank you for having me tonight. It's been a while since the academy has spoken, so there are several board members that I have not presented to. So, um, if I need to stop and and, you know, give you some more information on anything, please feel free to stop me. I would love to answer any questions that you have. Um, so I we have so many amazing kids in our building and we're a building for we're a school for kids who just struggle with doing school. Um, for a lot of those kids it's overwhelming in the big building. There's a lot of anxiety. It's too many people. It's just stressful. So our kids come to us for very many reasons and I'll I'll go through a few of the benefits that they

003find once they get to us. But I wanted to talk first about some of the wonderful things that we do at our building. Um, we're not just there to get our kids the credits and move them through and and get them to graduation, although that is the ultimate goal. Of course, we want our kids to graduate. But while we have those kids, we want to do things to help them prepare for their future as well and have some fun along the way. So, we have started the last several years trying to be more intentional with bringing in speakers for our kids, college and career speakers. Um, this year we did a a our first week that we planned got cancelled every day because of snow days. That was the snow apocalypse week that it was

004freezing cold. And so what was a wonderful week that we had planned got scattered and and shuffled around. But we did manage to get all of them in. We had the Butler Techch adult program come in. We had Galen College of Nursing. We had um UC Blue Ash. We've had Miami Hamilton. Um, just the Army came in. We like to give kids just the idea of what's out there, what kind of things are available once they graduate. This year we've partnered with a group called Edge Works and what they do is help kids get involved in the community. So we have a group of kids that goes out every other week with this um Edge Works leader and they go do community volunteer work in in different places. They've been through great parks in the

005back in the fall. Today they went to um they went to set up for an Easter activity happening for kids with special needs. So they set up tables, they planted Easter eggs, they hid at things and decorated tables. They really have a good time. It also gives them um volunteer hours towards a seal on their diploma and it gives them Ohio means jobs seal towards their diploma. So we are giving them not only a wonderful experience that they enjoy and get a lot out of but they also earn towards graduation seals. really cool thing that's happened over the last couple of years is some mentoring going on with our older kids and our middle school kids. So, there's a couple of natural friendships that have just kind of formed in the lunchroom. Um, middle school

006kids back there eating, high school kids getting in there and then just interacting and they find things that they have in common. These seventh graders and these 12th graders and so we've kind of facilitated some mentoring type of things. um a particular seventh grader is very ADHD and he's just a lot needs to move and needs some reminders on how appropriate school behavior looks like. And so this this 12th grader has kind of taken him under his wing and gives him better advice than any adult can because it means more when it comes from someone closely related. He looks up to this guy. Um I have a another senior who's interested in going into education and she wants to work with special needs like kindergarten preschool kids. So, she's been working with some middle school

007kids trying to help them, you know, encourage them to do their work and get things done. So, it's really cool to watch those friendships form and develop. Uh, some different live school rewards that we've done. We try to give the kids incentives to, you know, to want to get work completed, to want to make the right choices. So, we do some different rewards. You'll see those coming up here in a minute. Uh, we have envisioned partnerships that come in and run some groups. Um, depending on the group. So for middle school kids, they're talking about school and social media and appropriate behavior and things like that. For our older kids, they kind of talk about here comes adulting. The real world is on its way. What can we do to help you prepare? And they

008they have some really cool groups that go on for that. We do a lot of social emotional learning. And then of course we always have our Thanksgiving feast that the kids look forward to. Um I do dress as a turkey for that day. So it's the struggle is real when you're trying to be a turkey. This year, our kids are also doing wonderful things outside the academy. We have kids involved in a lot of different things this year. We've got kids that played football. We've got kids working out to play football, try to try to try to play next year. We've got kids on the girls volleyball team, the boys volleyball team, track. We have someone in the marching band who also does orchestra. We have for the first time ever, one of our kids

009was on the drill team this year. We have kids in show choir, soccer, basketball, some pre-apprenticeship programs that the high school put on here. We've had a couple of kids that went over and participated in that. And then on the flip side, we have some kids that participated in that through the high school and were offered jobs. And so those kids came to me and said, they told me I can start working full-time as soon as I'm done with school. They're going to pay me this much. They're going to train me. I can get my CDL. Like wonderful plans. So, yeah, let's help you. Let's help you get there and and take on that job. We have kids this year doing college credit plus classes and several already admitted to Butler Techch for next year.

010These are just a few of the examples of the things that I talked about. Some of the live school things that we did. We had a dance party. We had a family feud day, academy family feud where we pulled the kids. It's pretty obvious that the kids don't watch family feud because they weren't real clear on exactly how that game show works. But um we did a camp out where Mrs. Anderson, our EA, had us all bring in our outdoor popup tents and she lowered them so that it looked like a camp out. They had pillows. They made s'mores on little indoor samores, burner things. It was really cool. They had a good time. There's me as a turkey. Um, and just some fun pictures of our kids doing things that they enjoy. So, these

011are a lot of the reasons that the kiddos come to the academy and and ultimately why they choose to stay. They have the ability to work independently. Um, they have the ability to work differently. So, a lot of kids struggle with sitting in the classroom and listening to the teacher teach. They need to see it. They need to hear it multiple times. They need to be able to reread it so they're able to pace themselves and and do things a little bit differently. Class size is definitely smaller. The help is individualized. Many of my kids say, "I'm never going to ask for help. I won't ask for help." But here in our building, nobody knows what you're doing. When you're in a class of kids working on all kinds of different things, no question is

012stupid is what I tell them. I know you feel stupid. Your questions aren't stupid. They weren't stupid to begin with, but now you can you can at least feel safe in knowing that nobody knows what question you're asking. Kids report that they have better grades. They like the flexible scheduling, the half day that they can do, flexible pacing, and definitely credit recovery is a huge is a huge piece for a lot of our kids. Being able to work at their own pace to recover those credits where they wouldn't be able to graduate on time. So, I wanted some kids to come here and talk to you and that was a hard no. They were not interested in in speaking in public, but I was able we were able to get them to talk to the

013camera. So, we asked their kid, the several of the kids, what is the favorite thing about the the academy? And most of our kids talked about the relationships that they have with the staff. We are a relationship building kind of place. We're so small. We get to know all of these kids personally. We know their story. We know their history. We know what they want to do. We know what makes them angry, what makes them happy. We get to know these kids very well. And that's that's one of the greatest things that we can do, especially when we have some of these kids for four and now up to six years. You get to know these kids pretty well. So, I don't know why that one showed up. Here's what some of the kids had

014to say. One of the things I really like about the academy is how welcoming the teachers and students are. When I first >> The best thing of the academy is I feel like I'm most successful. >> I like the academy because of the size and it's not overwhelming. One of the best things about the academy is the teachers because they are nice and they help me a lot. >> One of the best things about the academy is the culture and how everybody's just friendly and the teachers how they respect you and how they have time for each student to help them because we're all different. >> What I like about the academy is that the teachers are great. The best thing at the academy like for me is the last part because they got all

015good snacks. >> I appreciate our math teachers friends because she's helped me get through all of my math classes and she has helped me get um information about the classes at Florida Tech and she just never fails to show that she cares. >> One of the things I really like about the academy is how involved the teachers are. One of the things I like about the academy is the one-on-one teacher help. >> I appreciate Mr. Hipper because he makes class fun and he's do that explain itself. >> One thing I like about the academy is how kind and supportive the teachers are. Um, two examples is Miss Coons and Miss Grimes because they have pushed me to get my work done and get it done on time. And because of that, I am ahead. And

016I'm very, very proud of them. Basically, I'm so grateful now for doing that for me because now I might possibly be able to graduate early. >> Um, my favorite thing about the academy is the live school events, which we did uh camping, we we did s'mores, we did we had a dance party. >> Yeah. And then we did the 37 temple. >> Yeah, that was really good. >> I really like the academy. I can go my own pace and my grace has never been better. >> One thing I like about the academy is that you can work in a fast pace environment and you can also take your laptop home and work at home too. So you can get done with quicker and your teachers are always there to help you out in any like

017work that you need help in. >> For me, it's similar. I like how your own pace. And if you want, you can go home and do your work. And I have three credits to go. >> All the employees, the teachers, even you, Mr. >> You're wonderful. One of my favorite things about the academy is like the teachers. They bring me in speakers to help you like talk about your future and what you want to do in your life. >> I appreciate this because she is the secondand teacher. She works really and I just appreciate that. So, thank you. >> Hi guys. So, my favorite thing about the academy was when the colleges came in and after the colleges came in to talk to us. I think I want to major in psychology. I app I

018appreciate Mrs. Left because she's always somebody to talk to and she always helps me with my work. >> I've worked at the academy since it opened. Um, and one of the things I've enjoyed watching is how we've grown into a college and career focused program. We bring in um college and career speakers uh twice a year and try to let our students know all the options that are available for them after high school. Um, and that and to see them come back after they graduate and um, express their appreciation for their time here um, has also meant a lot. >> One of the best things at the academy for me is the smaller environment because it makes me feel less anxious. >> The teachers have a lot of patience and the connections between teachers and

019students. I really enjoy the academy because before whenever I was in the school, it was really hard to understand and learn. And I feel like since I've been at the academy, I've been able to understand and learn and just do things that normal people are able to do. That's hard for me. So, >> one of the best things about the academy is when they got me information about sports. The teacher when I have a question teacher is always there to help like Mr. >> Thank you, Mr. Right. >> I appreciate Mr. World because she shows up every day. She does her job well. She may be tough on us at times, but it's just because she cares and she's a good principal. >> I like because of the different relationships I get to build like

020some of the old counselors like Miss Melody, Miss Emily, and relationship with the teachers and how helpful that is. The best thing at the academy for me is that the community is small and I get the help that I need. >> The best part of the academy is how helpful the teachers are and how they always want to see you succeed. >> I appreciate Miss Morris because she's our computer lady. She's our nurse. She does everything. She has great advice, too, and she greets everyone in the morning. My favorite thing about the academy is that the staff is very understanding and helpful. >> What I like most about the academy is that I get to learn at my own pace and can go as fast as I want, which has opened more opportunities for me

021and I can choose my own classes as well, which helps a lot with my interest in what I want to do. >> The academy has taught me almost everything that can make me a better student and a better person in general. The best thing about the academy is that I get to work independently and if I need help, I can find it here. >> The best thing about the academy is the history teacher, Miss Kun. She's always so helpful and respectful and she helps out whenever you can get. >> And you know, uh, for me it's the work schedule and how everything goes on around here. um doing a lot better here than >> I appreciate our English teacher, Mr. Richmond, because he motivates me and he makes me feel like I should work harder

022on all my school subjects and he entertains me by all the daily pools. >> I appreciate Miss Martin because she makes learning easier. My name is Rayan Roer and what I like most about the academy is when on my birthday, Miss Martin bakes the best cupcakes and I like when I get to go half days. >> What I like about the academy is that it's a small environment and I get to concentrate. >> One of the best things about the academy is the social and emotional work. adults to talk to here. I can >> One thing I like about the academy is that we got to go to IFly. >> Field trips are always fun and I appreciate the donator that got us the opportunity to go to >> my favorite staff member at the

023academy is Miss Anderson because she's a very bright and relatable person. She is just one of those stepmothers that you can have a relationship with and that you can go to institution at your hand. So, for those of you that have not been to the building to visit, that wall of photos is our graduate wall. And we actually already have run out of walls. Um, I'm one of my summertime projects is to find a way to make them into like posters so I can shrink and get all of the faces on the walls because the kids stop by from time to time and right away, can I go find my picture? And they want to go find their picture on the wall. Um, this is a number that I didn't realize was coming until I

024started putting this together and actually counting over the years how many graduates we had. We're going to hit 500 this year. Um, we've got we're up to 493. Um, when I first put this together, we had 492. I had to go back in and edit this week because we got another one this week. So, um, we're up to 493 graduates since the academy opened. So, you know, we've got gosh, probably 18 or 20 more coming this year and then, um, you know, looking into the future. So, um, thank you very much. Any questions I can answer or >> No, I just want to say you guys do a great job. It takes a special kind of teacher and EA to work with these students. Uh I used to deal with some of them over here,

025but you guys should be applauded for that. >> I appreciate that. Our teachers are absolutely amazing. For sure. >> Mr. If there was one thing that you wish the community knew about the academy, what would it be? >> That we are not a place for bad kids. Um you know, we're we're seen as the alternative school down the road. And then and parents call me sometimes when an administrator says, "Let me recommend this." And they're like, "I'm not sending my kid there. We don't have kids hanging from the rafters. We do we have behavior?" Of course, they're teenage kids, but minimal. I mean, we're we're so present and we get to know these kids so well that you can walk into our building at any given time and it sounds like this boardroom right now.

026It is silent during class time. Kids are working. Kids are doing what they're supposed to do. They are really good kids. Some of them made some really bad decisions. Some of them just couldn't be in the big building, like I said, for many, many reasons. They're great kids. They're great people, and they go on to do great things. >> I just want to say thank you and thank you for giving almost 500 or over 500 kids the opportunity to graduate that may not have had that opportunity if they'd have stayed in traditional classroom. So, thank you. Um, I had a couple questions and I apologize if I missed them in the presentation. Um, so what's the process for a student to get uh recommended or to apply to the academy? >> Depends. There's many ways

027for our seventh, eth, and nth graders. There's a much smaller number of spaces available. So those typically come through administrative placement. It could be the building administration, could be Mr. Crapo um could be counselors that that have had many conversations with parents and they're just say this just isn't working. We need to try something else for our older kids 10th, 11th and 12th grade. It could also be administrative placement through the building or through Mr. Crapo. It could also just be an open application process. The majority of my older kids just apply. They just say, "I can't do this. This isn't working. Um we have kids that need to help support their family." There's just so many reasons why they choose to leave the big building and come over to us. Um, so it lots

028of reasons any there's there's multiple ways. And how many students are you currently serving? >> On the high school side right now, I think we have about 105 in person, another 20 or so on virtual. On the middle school side, I've got 202 and another one that's doing virtual. Um I think that the academy is an amazing program. Um during one of our community engagements while we were sitting down you know as you are aware that was one of the topics that was discussed um in my table openly fully agreed that you know the academy is super integral to our district to provide alternative learning for students be that just aren't able to learn in the high school. Um, and I know quite a few students that um almost went the academy route. Um, was

029able to eventually find their way in the big schools, but you know, like it it is a wonderful option. The fact that you're able to provide that for so many students is absolutely amazing. And it just goes to show you that all of these students are connecting with your staff. So, thank you so much for what you do every day and thank you so much for your staff for helping these kids, you know, meet the meeting meeting them where they are. we're meeting the kids where they're at and that's part of what we do as a district and so I just appreciate everything you and your staff do. >> Thank you. >> Well, it's clear that uh the students have a great connection to the teachers and that there's a real community built there. Um

030even though you know it's it's people coming from different backgrounds like you said, some are helping their families, some have different things going on. Um, what a great community though to see that and what a great testament for the kids that don't want to talk, you know, to get in front of the camera and just share what they like about the academy is really, really awesome. Um, and it's again for our community. I mean, this is these are kids that that you're teaching college and career, giving those opportunities and helping them find their way post high school in the community in the Fairfield community. And, uh, again, this is it was a hot topic at at the at our table as well at the community event I went to. and and a lot of support

031for it. And uh this is just another example of how, you know, our school district connects with our community, preparing kids to to live in our community and and thrive. So, thank you for what you guys are doing. >> Yeah, thank you for the presentations. Also, I love the graffiti right there. Was that is that the chat or is that really on the wall some? >> That is really on the wall. >> Okay. Um I have visited the academy. Um it's been a year, I think, and it is an incredible place. You're right. You walk in and it's as quiet as this. And uh my son, one of my sons played ball with a young man that attended and he was a outstanding student and he actually spoke here a couple years ago and was

032was uh it brings them out of their shell kind of in that environment, culture, community as I've heard and that's exactly what that's about. Some of them feel isolated or just feel um uncomfortable where they're at and uh the academy helps them overcome that. So that's huge. And uh to Mr. from McDonald's point over 500 probably by the end of this year will have graduated and that that's outstanding. And so we applaud you for that and the u the the college career or apprenticeship program whichever you want to call that bringing these students that ability to see or that opportunity to see some of those opportunities for them out in the real world is big um because they're back in the day and I think DECA is DECA still around? >> I don't know. It

033was a where you went half a day and then you went to work uh after school type thing. And it sounds like that's similar what we can do here with these kids. And that that's huge. Uh to Mr. Klein's point, too. Some of them have to uh maybe help out with family bills and and things like that. So, gives them the ability to be flexible with their studies at home. The teachers are always there and I know the teachers are there more than 7 to 3:00. I I know that. So, thank you to your team and just just an outstanding program. Thank you so much. And the volunteering that's that's something else. And and is that mandatory? >> No. The first semester we offered it to kids who were going to need Ohio means jobs

034and that we're going to need seals that were seniors that did not have the test scores. And so we were looking at ways to fulfill those requirements. Second semester, we took care of most of those seniors. Now, I've got some kids who aren't ahead. Um, and instead of letting them get squirrely and get themselves into trouble, what? >> Um, we said, "Let's let's give you this positive experience. Let's send you out into the community. You will be great at this." And they are loving it. They're really enjoying their, you know, they're friends to begin with, and now they get to go and they get to do this, and they're really enjoying that experience. >> Yeah. A lot of times when you're you're feeling down, depressed or whatever mood that is, it's not a positive that

035giving back can bring that other aspect out. It becomes positive. You you see a new a new view of life when you do that. There was a young man a while back that was sort of dark, quiet, and he he went to serve at a at a it was a a puppy atmosphere. I forget where it was, but he ended up changing his dress and how he approached people and he ended up going into veterinarian school because of that pro program, a visit like that to serve. So, I applaud you. Thank you so much for what you do. We appreciate you. Thanks for coming today. >> All right. Our second presentation is a spotlight on our Butler County success liaison program. At this time, I'll turn it over to Mr. Pray for >> and Barrett.

036He's hard at work. >> Much like you. >> Uh first of all, thank you guys for having me uh tonight. I get the privilege of talking about a program that is just so meaningful to kids and families in our community. Um so many things take place in our schools throughout the day that don't get noticed on the report card and this is one of them. Um, we work closely with uh outside agencies in our community that help support families in need. Um, challenges throughout life, um, challenges that are not known, surprises in families and so forth. And this program really does help lift up families and allow kids to come to school uh, to to be successful at their their day-to-day operations. First of all, the success program, the mission is uh the Butler County

037Educational Service C Center's uh success program removes non-cognitive barriers to learning by building bridges between home, school, community to improve school success and self-reliance. Uh we are one of eight districts in Butler County that work with the ESC to have this program. It started back in 2003 in Lakota as a pilot program. uh Fairfield adopted it uh two years later 2005 2006 and we've worked with the program ever since. Uh it's now in like I said eight districts across 73 school buildings in Butler County with a total of 29 liaons. The liaison are housed in our school buildings. They receive office referrals regarding children in need from school staff. Uh the referrals are things around uh food, clothing, eyeglasses, mental health services, housing, cars, transportation, fuel cards, you name it. If there's a challenge in

038the community and it's brought to our attention, we try to solve this. And this it's not Fairfield that's solving the problem. It's the community organizations, churches, uh groups that get together and help donate to help solve these problems for our own our own students in the community. The liaison connect families experiencing hardships um with the needed resources. Once a referral is received, the liaison reach out to the family to explain the program and to determine if they're interested in talking further. We need to make sure that the families are comfortable with the program, comfortable with the assistance. Uh some some families do say no, but we're able to reach out and offer the support. An appointment scheduled to review the situation. There are all kinds of situations out there for something that's short, quick. We

039can solve this problem now to long enduring problems. If you think of medical treatments, cancer, houses that burn down, cars that, you know, don't work, there's a lot of different scenarios that would require different amounts of time. And then follow-ups provided throughout the relationship and ongoing support is offered as needed. For Fairfield, we have five liaison that service our students. It's about two uh two buildings per liaison. Uh they're split throughout the buildings uh to make sure all the needs are met. Uh in 2024 2025 school year, 756 students were served. Um so it's about seven or eight% of our district got support from these uh the ladies. In addition to their core duties, the liaison also coordinate with neighborhood bridges, Fairfield Christian leaders, and other community partners. Uh, neighborhood bridges is a program that

040we have adopted about two years ago. Um, it's a way that we're able to post needs on Facebook, Twitter, something like that. Um, so that more eyes can get to get get their eyes on the need so that more people can help donate. Um what what happened in the past is we would have a connection with local organizations and we would go to them over and over again. And now we have the ability to post a need publicly and then anybody that's following this group can fill this need. And I'm we're we're often talking about things like socks, shoes, t-shirts, uh gas cards, stuff like that. Liaons help families become more involved in our in the child's education. A lot of times there's barriers. Um, uh, second shift, third shift, families that are working jobs

041after the school hours. Uh, transportation is often a barrier. Um, but they they help them attend school meetings, especially if you've got an IEP meeting in the middle of the day where the parent does need to be there because it affects the child's education, we're able to help support that need. um school events get kids to it's I mean it may be easy for some to get to baseball practice, others it's a challenge to just get to practice, let alone uh be able to play and have all the equipment that they need and then assist between uh with communication between school staff and families. Uh the program is evaluated by by Miami University. So it's housed in the educational service center. Butler County schools use this program. it's evaluated by the university. So, we're talking

042about a big community that's involved here. It's it's a big family. Um that we're all working together to support the needs of our of our students in our community. Um the uh the needs are met by donations um and grant funds. So, we do get grant funds each year. And then there are things like the Fairfield Community Foundation, um other organizations, uh churches in the city that all help support these needs. And like I said, they're anything from little needs like a pair of socks, um toothbrush, toothpaste, I mean Valentine's Day cards, these needs pop up regularly, all the way up to bigger needs, uh housing situations, electric bills, water bills, stuff like that that would come up. Um, and it's funded in part by the Butler County Department of Job and Family Services. So,

043again, this program's been around for a while. It helps hundreds of students each year do what a lot of us take for granted, uh, waking up, coming to school, uh, enjoying our time at school, participating in after school events, and then going to bed in a bed at night. So, uh, they do a lot of things behind the scenes. None of it will ever get posted on a on a state report card. And Mr. Smith says it a lot of times. We're not measured by our state report card all the time. There's a lot of things that go on that we work together as a team to make sure that we're we're a community. So, any questions? >> I just think it's great that you guys do this. Our community pitches in. Uh to me,

044this needs to be out there. Let other people know about it more than just what we're hearing tonight. I mean, there's a way you can get it out and let people in Fairfield know, you know, how we serve the students. >> Well, I do get to have this presentation tomorrow at Rotary. So, we are working hard to spread this word and neighborhood bridges is a big part of this program to get the needs out and we were able to present that a lot. Um, Mr. Clark would would know, but a lot of churches and organizations are are posting it in their site. So, we're trying. There is a there is a large network. So um several of these programs have social media pages. Neighborhood bridges I know they have one and um so and and

045again inside those different groups and organizations a lot of people in those groups and organizations are all t it's just like a very large group of people from all these groups and organizations working together. And so it's word of mouth and and each, you know, as we're doing this presentation here, I'm sure that those groups are telling their congregations and and people they interact with on a regular basis just to try to spread the word. >> That's good. Good point. >> Anybody else? >> I I you know, this Mr. Mr. Smith always talks about getting to care for the whole student and I think this program probably embodies that more than just about anything um that that we do. So, thank you for doing that. I mean, the the numbers in terms of those supported

046kind of speak for themselves. Um the need is uh the need in every community is great and we're we're not immune to that here in Fairfield. So, um you know, I it it's not it's not lost on me, I guess. And you know, our teachers are probably way closer to this every day. you know, with kids coming into their classroom um and and staff and administration in the buildings, but the the barriers that some kids have just to get to school, let alone to actually be in a mental state to focus. if I'm if I don't have socks. Yeah. >> If I don't have a bed to sleep in, if I don't like, you know, I had to find a ride to school, you know, whatever it is. Um I I I think anything that

047we can do to help remove those barriers and give them a chance um to succeed in the classroom um is is admirable and and worth our time. I love that the community is involved um and and the organizations uh so that it's it's not just the school kind of bearing the burden of that, but the whole community gets to gets to help out. So, thank you for all you do there. Thank the leaison for us as well. I sure will. >> Um, I'm going to sound like a broken record because I said something similar about our other presentation tonight. Um, you know, we're meeting the kids where they're at. um the fact that we have so many amazing programs that we're able to provide what our students need because we are taking care of our

048students. We're not just educating them. We're not just shoving a book in their face and telling them to learn. We're providing them life skills. We're providing them socks. We're providing them shoes and food. And we're we're making them human and not just another number. And so, thank you so much for everything that you do. I know that um this is just one of our many amazing programs. Um and the fact that we are able to um lean our community and work together to serve our students is amazing because a lot of people would say this is just, you know, this is why we're in our budget strains, but we don't use our funding for this. This is something that we work on with our community to provide funding for so that we can provide for

049our students. Um and this is a great resource that we use. So, thank you so much for presenting to it. Um, I love seeing programs like this get highlights because it does show our community like what we're doing for our students. That's not just, you know, a curriculum. >> Yeah. Again, just highlighting that community piece that, you know, how this is the community supports it through donations and grant and we get grants from funds like that. So, it's not something that we're funding, you know, funding this. we're connecting people with resources that that imp improve the opportunities for their students and for their families. So, what again what a great connection between community and school and how those things are tied together. And um you know, removing those barriers is is huge because again, we

050have kids that come from all kinds of different situations and families that are going through all kinds of different things and for us to be able to support them and the community support them as well is is awesome. So, thank you, >> Mr. Great. I can't thank you enough for leading this and partnering with the liaison and um know all of them and they're super super passionate, caring, heartfelt caring people for these kids and I know that there was a a liaison that had a child that was being made fun of because wearing the same clothes day after day and she ended up having to commit every morning literally changing shirts, changing socks. So he had the confidence to go in with a different shirt on and then she would wash it, bring it back

051and then it would rotate out. So there's almost 60% load of free to reduce lunches in our in our district. That doesn't even count those that don't sign up and they can't afford a lunch. They can't afford clothes. They can't afford deodorant, toilet paper, toothpaste, all the things. So um it's sad and unfortunate and it's not just our district. I mean it's it's even even other districts around have that issue. Not as high of a number that we have as far as free to reduce, but thank God we have these programs. And Mike, to your point about getting it out there, you get on Facebook and share that page, like it, share it, comment, it gets to your friends, to their friends that go to Florida, Colorado, wherever, and it starts making that circulation. And

052then the the groups of residence groups like Mr. Smith mentioned and uh you can't fix, can't feed, can't clothe every child, but just the fact that it's getting out there uh is is a big deal for a lot of these kids. So, both these presentations kind of tug on the same same feel almost. So, but thank you to all the thank you and appreciate them what they do and we thank you. Appreciate you, too. >> Thanks, guys. All right. Communication. This is a portion of the meeting where you're invited to share your thoughts with the board in order for the board to fulfill its obligation to complete the planned agenda in effective and efficient fashion. A maximum of uh 30 minutes of public participation may be permitted at each meeting. Uh please know that at

053this time has been set aside for the board to listen to you. Your comments are valued and will be taken into careful consideration. Uh the board will not engage in dialogue at this time. Presentations are limited to 3 minutes each. And Mr. Perry has a timer and every one minute he'll bring up a nice uh laminated uh flag type paper thingy. Thank you. And looks like we have three to speak. And the first one is uh Mr. Joel Gentleston. Is that correct, sir? >> Close. Well, thank you. I apologize. >> That's okay. It's like gentlemen change man to son. >> Gentle son. I like it. Thanks for coming. >> That's why I tell the kindergarteners. >> Um, okay. Uh, so I'm a resident and a taxpayer in in Fairfield City School District and I want

054to share my perspective regarding the upcoming tax levy. First, I want to express my gratitude uh for the work being done by the teachers in this district. My niece attends Fairfield South Elementary uh and her teacher, Mrs. Tracy has done an outstanding job. She clearly does uh cares about her students and is making a meaningful difference in their education. Uh now I've never met her just just as a side. Um just through my niece I can tell all this. Um teachers like her absolutely deserve strong support and a raise. That's why I'm uh want to be honest about something that affects my willingness to support this future tax levy that you put on the ballot in May. Uh in my view, the mission of public school district should be to focus squarely on educating students.

055Uh teaching them history, science, math, literature, and the skills they need to succeed should be the highest priority. Historical topics such as the history of Native American tribes in the Ohio Valley absolutely belong in the classroom um where they can be taught with depth and context as part of the curriculum. I'm concerned about the use of ceremonial land acknowledgement statements. When these appear outside the classroom as official district practices, they can shift focus away from education and uh towards symbolic statements that many community members see as political or performative. Because of this, I would have difficulty supporting additional tax increases while uh such practices remain part of district policy. Uh, I would much prefer to support levies that focus squarely on core educational priorities like teacher pay, classroom resources, and student learning. For that reason,

056I will be voting no unless the policy changes. Thank you for your time and for the work you do for our students and community. >> Thank you for coming up today. >> Do you have any questions or are you not allowed to ask them? >> Yeah, we we don't dialogue back and forth. Okay. Okay. Well, >> if you want, we can have someone reach out to you for >> if you'd like to email me. That's probably the best way to get me. I I work a job where I can't answer the phone, you know, not practically. >> We'll have a district representative reach out to you. Is your email on the sheet? >> Uh, no, I don't think it is. >> Um, you mind if we could get your email? >> I have a pen.

057>> You got it, Mr. Perry? >> Actually, I'm gonna give you this paper. I'll just >> Perfect. Thank you. >> Thank you, sir. >> All right. Next, I'm going to put these two together, I believe. So, we have Miss Laya Smith and Maya Ramirez. Thank you for coming up ladies. >> Hello everyone. Good afternoon. My name is Leila and my name is Myra Ramirez and I'm a junior at Fairfield High School. >> And I'm a junior as well. And today we're going to be speaking to you guys about a club at the high school called the Mayor's Youth Committee. So, um, D, would you would you like to explain what it is? >> Um, so the mayor's youth committee is it's not really a select group of students. Students can come and go as they

058please, but it's really a group where we can learn about the community of Fairfield and the local government system. And yeah, we work with a lot of different departments um around Fairfield and our community. So, one of the departments we're doing currently research on is the school board. Um, so we're taking p pictures and we're speaking um for our next presentation March 27th with the new mayor. And then we're gonna kind of dive into why we chose um the school board and why we chose to be a part of the club. So I chose NYC because I'm really interested in local politics. I think the community volunteer work is really interesting and I chose schoolboard because I thought it was really interesting to dive in the behind the scenes of what goes on and like

059how you guys make your decisions. Um I chose to join MYC for the unique opportunities it provides specifically school board because there's a lot about the local school system I don't know like with your presentation I learned so much about the academy that I did not know before. So, it's a great educational tool as well. And in the future, I hope to pursue law. And this club gave me the unique opportunity to work um in person with the head of the Fairfield legal department, which is great for my future. So, this is something that, you know, I thought would be great to like gain exposure to. Um, this club has presented us both with a lot of opportunities. We both were actually selected to go to Utah in November for the National League of Cities

060conference where we meet other members from other um states and other mayors um to talk about youth and government. So that's probably one of the favorite things that I've done. And then >> um I guess I could expand on some of um the opportunities as well like um students can have particular leadership um positions such as the board members that we have. We have a great president Brandon Valenzuela. Um Leila is the leader of the um of our department here. Um, and she mentioned the NLC. That was a whole like a whole another world of studentled relationships. We b we made great connections with the students we stayed at the hotel with and we just learned very valuable lessons about the community and how to help it. >> Yes. So, we really love talking to

061you guys about the mayor's committee and we really love participating in the schoolboard aspect. So, um, that's that's it. We are so excited that you guys are listening to us and thank you. >> Thank you both for coming in. >> All right, >> superintendent recommendations and reports. Mr. Smith, >> Mr. Clark, if you don't mind, could I >> sure say just a few things and especially to our students tonight, >> Maya and Mr. Want to give a shout out. We normally get >> Yeah. Frozen. >> Big blew out soon. >> Yeah, exactly. Thank you. >> Summer blowout. >> Um well, hey, I just want to let you know in the past it was um uh myself and and Mr. Begley who was the board president. I'm sure Mr. Clark would be willing to do this

062as well. Uh we would have maybe like a lunch group meeting in the office here and order some pizza and salad. That's everyone's favorite usually up here, so that's what we do. and just talk about the school board and administration and how they interact and and just have, you know, 30 minutes to chat and answer any questions. If that's something you're interested in, uh, please send me an email and we'll put that together before the end of the year if you're if that's something you would like to do. Okay. >> All right. Awesome. You're welcome. >> Uh, it's smith_bfieldcityschools.com >> and it's on the website that we talked about. >> Yeah, you can. or you can email me and I'll give it to you. >> Yeah. >> Okay. You're welcome. You're welcome. >> Thank you,

063ladies. Appreciate you. >> And then very quickly, I also just want to say about our two presentations this evening, you know, we we um I just can't let this opportunity go by. You know, we we talk about meeting students where they are and and most people in our community um they don't realize how many of our kids come to school stressed, um tired, hungry. Um, and for some of those kids who are at the academy, you know, they may come to school, they they used to come to school stressed, anxious because again, there's there are 2,000 kids here, right? And you can see some of that in the hallways with with our kids. And and so we, you know, again, we we provide this different environment, which by the way, to Mr. McDonald's question about,

064hey, what's the one thing you would like people to know? It is it's not uncommon for students and parents to resist a placement at the academy and but it is very common it is the norm for that resistance to go away very quickly. >> Um and because and again you saw the student testimony student voice on the video. They get there and most of the time they love it. They thrive there think everything just gets better for them. Right. Uh and then to to move on to the second presentation, the liaison. Again, I just don't think people realize the number of students and we talked about seven or eight% were served this year. Again, similar to the um students who are on free and reduced lunch being 58%, that number, the need is much higher.

065the need is also much higher to be served, but people don't come forward and and um you know, they're stressed about and they're they're tired maybe because they were taking care of their sibling. They were up late taking care of their sibling. There's no food uh for breakfast. Then they're coming to school tired, hungry, and wondering what they're going to eat for dinner that night. That there's a there's a ton of that. And once again, our liaison, those other community groups, those they all close those gaps for us and that's why they're so important. And so again, just I thought those two presentations just did a great just a beautiful picture of what happens here dayto day. So I just >> had to say that out loud. So thank you to both of you for

066highlighting that. So >> yeah. >> All right, Mr. Smith, I want to make clear because it may sound weird over the community, but Maya and her club and I have been communicating by email and we met. >> Yeah. >> So, when I said you got you can email me, I'm not trumping Mr. Smith. Just we've already had that that uh that communication going. So, you can email whoever you want. >> And if you if you have all your questions answered, that's okay. But I just thought, hey, if you want to >> free lunch, >> want to do that and we'll get together and have some more conversation and all the things. So, great. Awesome. >> Okay, Mr. Smith. >> Thank you, sir. All right. Um, at this time, Mr. Hustle will be covering the items

067listed under personnel professional and personnel support. >> Thank you, Mr. Smith. Mr. Clark, members of the board, I have three items for your consideration this evening under personnel professional. Number one, resignations letters A through C. Number two, unpaid leave of absence, letters A and B. Number three, employment letters A through C. That concludes all the items I have for your consideration under personnel professional. >> Okay. Can I get a motion to accept these recommendations? >> I'll make a motion. >> Mr. Napier, >> second. >> Miss Birding Miller. Mr. Phillips, you call roll, please. >> Mr. Napier, >> yes. >> Mrs. Bing Miller, >> yes. >> Mr. Clark, >> yes. >> Mr. Klein, >> yes. >> Mr. McDonald, >> yes. >> Mr. Clark, members of the board, I have four items for your consideration this evening

068under personnel support. Number one, resignations, letters A and B. Number two, unpaid leaves of absence, letters A through C. Number three, employment, letters A and B. Number four. Number four, support substitutes 2025 2026. And before I conclude, I'd like for you to see under number one, resignations, you can see uh Miss J Gina Gentry Fletcher has announced her retirement for uh June 30th, 2026. So, um the the voice of the snow days will never ever be the same. Um that's all I've known since I've been in Fairfield City Schools is the voice of uh snow days. And so uh Gina Gina began in the district in 2011. She arrived shortly uh after I I began my career here in Fairfield. And uh we appreciate your years and service and dedication to Fairfield City Schools to

069the district. I know we worked a lot together when I was principal at South with various events like 911 ceremony and covering school events. So appreciative of that. So, best of luck to you and your new chapter, Gina. So, thank you. >> And that concludes all the items I have for your consideration under personnel support. >> All right. Uh motion to accept these recommendations, please. Motion. Mr. Klein. >> Second. >> Mr. McDonald. Mr. Phillips. Call ro please. >> Mr. Klein. >> Yes. >> Mr. McDonald. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Bing Miller. >> Yes. >> Mr. Clark. >> Yes. >> Mr. Navier. >> Yes. >> Mr. Clark. Members of the board, we do have three items for board discussion this evening. Is first uh first up, precautionary financial status. This time, I'll turn it over to Mr.

070Phillips. >> Thank you, Mr. Smith, Mr. Clark, members of the board. Uh, I made you aware earlier earlier this week and I I think I've talked about it previously in our community engagements uh and other board meetings just about the fact when you start getting into fiscal trouble like we've been talking about for pretty much all of this year um there are some things that come into place with the Ohio Department of Education and workforce. And so this is the first step in that. We've talked about a little bit about fiscal caution, fiscal watch, fiscal emergency, those types of things. Um the letter that we got this week was because in FY28, so the 2728 school year, our cash balance goes below zero. Um and so when that happens two years out, so this year

071plus two years, uh you get put on precautionary fiscal um it's not really fiscal watch, but they call it precautionary fiscal oversight. Um so what we have to do with that is we have to uh develop a plan. They basically send a workbook that you have to fill out and you have to talk about what your plan is to and and for us specifically, it's just to eliminate the million dollar deficit, cash deficit that we're we're expected to have in FY28. We already have that plan. The board has already approved $4.5 million in reductions if the May uh ballot issue fails. So, I think we're ahead of the game. Mr. Smith and I had to meet with a representative, a fiscal representative from Odo this afternoon. Um, part of this is that she will track

072us and ask to meet with us periodically until uh this either uh fixes itself through either a levy or through reductions. Um, but just keeping you guys in the loop. I will continue to keep you in the loop. we have to pass a a board approved plan which we already technically have done but this has to be the budget worksheet filled out and then the board has to approve it by April April 30th we only have one board meeting in April. So I wanted to bring it to you tonight since even though we just got this two days ago or three days ago whatever it was um I wanted to bring it to you tonight make it make you aware that we will have to approve that plan in April. Um, and like I said,

073I we already have a good plan in place. Uh, and we also have phase two um, in place should November, we get to November and that not be successful either. So, just an FYI there. Any questions? >> No questions. Just comments. I know you're way ahead of the game and even Miss Lane when she was here, she kind of was knowing things like uh, that type of activity could be in the future. So, uh, as Mr. Smith and all the admin team up here and the whole district have always kind of known the future so to speak of where that was and why and be prepared for it and what we've done over the last 10 years to be prepared for this moment kind of speaks to why you're prepared now. >> Yeah, we're here.

074So, thank you. >> Thank you. >> All right. Our next item for discussion, adoption of selected materials. I'll turn it over to Mrs. OG. >> Thank you, Mr. Smith, Mr. Clark, members of the board. I have one item for your consideration tonight and that is our annual adoption of materials. So, um, as you know, we had several adoptions this year. Um, in addition to reviewing resources, teachers also examined standards, aligned assessments, and updated curriculum maps and calendars. teachers, instructional specialists, and administrators all contributed to the process in different ways, and we appreciate their time and thoughtful input in selecting highquality resources for our students. The list I shared with you earlier in the week is available in your board packet tonight, and I'll I want to briefly highlight a few key areas. First, uh for

075KTO 5 health, uh the teachers chose Quaver Health with no Ohio State standards. teachers rely on uh the Ohio Revised Code requirements and also national standards from shape America. Uh this resource stood out to our teachers for its comprehensive lessons and also ease of use for grades six through eight math. The district uh is adopting Edge Gems Math. The program provides both online access and uh interactive student workbooks which are just workbooks. They just gave them a fancy name. So they liked the combination of online and like a physical uh workbook for the students. Uh this program has received the highest green rating from Ed Reports for focus, coherence, usability, and rigor. I'm bringing up Ed Reports because we learned a few years ago when the state created their list of highquality instructional materials for

076ELA that they started with the ED reports ratings. Um so there are rumors that the state might soon have a list um of approved materials for math. Um so we have made it a part of our practice to select materials that received high ratings in ed reports and uh edge gems math was green across the board. The K8 science adoption was probably our most complicated uh one this year. Um just had a lot lot going on different group. we had K2, then we had 35, then we had 68. Um, so in grades K2, it's very common for science and social studies to take a backseat to reading and math. So teachers are really looking for resources that are highly engaging, but also easy to use. Um, teachers at these grade levels decided to continue to

077use uh mystery science and also picture perfect science. So both resources um are familiar to our teachers but also well suited to the need for engaging easy to implement lessons that the kids really enjoy. Grades three through five and grades six six through eight went through the adoption process as independent groups but selected the same program which was Ohio interactive science. One of the factors here is that there are simply not many Ohio science aligned curricula available. Um the majority of states um use next generation science standards and publishers cater to that. Um so since Ohio does not use nextgen standards, it makes any science adoption a challenge especially when it comes to resource selection. There is a rumor right now that Ohio might be moving to nextgen standards. Um but ODO can't give us

078any concrete answers around the timeline. So we adopted the Ohio interactive science but the publisher gave us complimentary access to their nextgen platform with our purchase. So if anything would change in the next six years we have that available to us for social studies. Uh studies weekly will continue to be used in grades one and two. That's a resource that they have used for many years. um in grades three through five um they are moving away from studies weekly and they um would like to implement Ohio social studies explorers a newly available program developed by an Ohio educational service center educator uh with strong alignment to the Ohio to Ohio's learning standards. It's a really cool program. uh you don't get a lot of Ohio specific things for elementary either and so uh this is

079a great program um and the teachers are really excited about it. So again I want to thank everyone who contributed to the work this year. While this is an important step the real work begins next year uh with implementation and to me that's the more exciting part. I think most people would agree. Um so this concludes my item for board discussion and I'm happy to answer any questions you might have. Oh, it will be on for approval at the next board meeting. >> So, do you have a group of teachers that help you figure out the best books to use? >> Yeah, >> that's good. >> That's all I got. >> Miss, can you talk just briefly about uh the actual implementation process and is that take is that just something that happens in between

080school years? Does it take multiple years? what what does that would look like? >> So, are you asking about our our next steps >> uh in terms of the implementation of these new programs? >> So, um we will actually everyone is is a little bit different, you know, like for larger ones like a math or science, we typically try to offer some summer training that will be optional for teachers. Um but there are teachers who really want to get ahead of the game. So, if we can't get in a training before the end of the school year, we typically offer something in the summer. Um, from there we use our inservice time. So that first inservice day right before Labor Day. Um, that's huge for us. We'll do a lot of training um, and implementation

081work. And really the focus of these groups next year for inservice days will be all around implementation because, you know, nothing is perfect. We'll get into like the calendars and the mapping and and assessments and we might think uh, we need to tweak that a little bit. And all of that continues to be part of the work. Year one. We also continue to meet with our small groups typically um during year one. The people who were part of the piloting and selection process, we bring them back in to make sure that the implementation is going well. >> Thank you. >> Anybody else? >> Just a quick comment that I love that that we involve teachers. I remember going through some of these things as a young teacher and the excitement that happens with new curriculum

082and getting into reviewing it and then implementing it and and it really showcases the professionalism of our our teachers and and that implementation choosing that adoption of or that um development of that calendar and what teachers are going to follow in sequence and things is is awesome for our teachers to to tailor that to our students. And so just great process and you know that adoption process is really important. So >> um I want to just thank you and your team and I appreciate that you work with the staff and get and work with not just you know your administration staff but the actual teachers to get insight on what they want to be using in the classroom. Um, and I love the fact that you're looking forward, you know, like this is a potential

083mandate, so we're going to start working towards it now so that it's an easier transition if, you know, two years from now they implement those mandates. Um, and I think it's wonderful that that are um, super great that we got access to the nextgen from that, you know, so that's not an extra step, an extra barrier later on if that does move. Um, and I just appreciate everything you guys do and the constant upgrading. Um, I remember doing a school tour when we implemented the new reading program in the elementary schools and just seeing the boxes of all the materials. Um, so just thank you for all all of you and your staff do for the implementation and the pre-planning and the figuring it out. Um, because it's not an easy task, you know, and

084at the end of the day, making sure we have programs to educate our students for every student in every, you know, step of life is uh very important. So, thank you for everything you guys do. Yeah. It'll almost be like Christmas for them, wouldn't it? Yeah. Boxes. >> That is teacher Christmas is getting a box of new material. >> Yeah. Yeah. No, I I agree with my fellow board members. The uh again, you're you're we're getting ahead of it, right? We're implementing something that could come. Kind of foreseeing that. And thank you for putting all the time and effort into it. I know you're probably jealous that you don't get to do the policy manuals like Miss Howard does and spend all that time that you had to do the the learning piece. So, >>

085I I am. And I feel like I could just throw it to her right now because I think she's next on the agenda. >> Well, thank you for everything you do. Appreciate it. Well done, Miss. >> How often do we change curriculum, change books, change? >> Is it like a yearly thing or do we keep some of the books for three, four years? >> Six. Yeah, we're on a six-year cycle. >> Okay. >> Which is pretty typical. I think most districts are six or seven years. >> So, Oh gosh. Oh my gosh. I just >> look how happy Mr. Smith is. >> Walked right into it. I'm sorry. >> I'm not sorry. >> Just six. >> Dang it. >> Walked right into it. >> Mr. Neighbor had a serious question. >> Oh yeah. What was

086it? >> I think I think she already answered. >> She did. She did. Six years. We'll leave it at that. >> We are six years. Every six years. and we have that calendar all laid out so people know when their their time is is coming. >> Okay. >> Thank you, Mrs. O. >> All right. Our last item for board discussion, some board policies. I'll turn it over to Mrs. Howard. >> Thank you, Mr. Smith. Mr. Clark, members of the board, I have two pieces of policy for discussion this evening. These policies can be found in your board packet and they match what I sent you earlier this week to review. Letter A, policy JB, entrance age for mandatory kindergarten. This is revised due to House Bill 114, which changes the kindergarten entrance criteria. Now being

087a child must be 5 years old by the first day of instruction of the school year in order to register for kindergarten. That date was previously August 1. So moving forward, it will be whatever the first date of the school year for instruction is for us. And then letter B, policy EFD, misbranded foods and cultivated protein food products. This is a new policy requirement due to House Bill 10. Ohio Revised Code now requires us to adopt a new policy to prevent purchase of foods that are either misbranded as a meat product or an egg product or a cultivated protein food product that's prohibited by revised code. Both House Bill 114 and House Bill 10 go into effect March 20th, which is tomorrow. And so due to that, pending any questions you have, you will see

088both of these policies listed under board action for tonight. All right. >> All right. Mr. Clark and members of the board, I do have one item for your consideration this evening. Under letter D, other items for board action. Number one, recommend approval of the following board policies, letters A through C. That concludes the items that I have for your consideration this evening. >> Thank you, Mr. Smith. May I get a motion to accept this these recommendations? >> I'll make a motion. >> Mr. Napier, >> second. >> Miss Birdie Miller. Mr. Mr. Phillips, you call roll, please. >> Mr. Napier, >> yes. >> Mrs. Bing Miller, >> yes. >> Mr. Clark, >> yes. >> Mr. Klein, >> yes. >> Mr. McDonald, >> yes. >> Motion passes. Treasures recommendations and reports. Mr. >> Yes. Thank you, Mr.

089Clark. >> Mr. Phillips. >> Yeah, it's okay. Mr. Clark, members of the board, >> I have several recommendations this evening. My first recommendation is letter A, approval of the minutes for the following meetings. February 19th, 2026 regular meeting and the March 5th, 2026 work session meeting. Letter B, recommend approval of the financial reports for the month of February 2026 as was submitted to you. Letter C, recommend approval of the FY26 amended appropriations resolution. Letter D, recommend approval of the resolution accepting the amounts and rates as determined by the budget commission and authorizing the necessary tax levies and certifying them to the county auditor. Letter E, recommend approval of the resolution to establish the senior high student activities legacy account and authorize the treasurer to transfer any remaining balances from the graduated class accounts of the

090classes of 2016 through 2025 into the legacy account and close the dormant accounts. And letter F, recommend the approval of the following fund transfer. um $300,000 from the general fund to the O24 employees benefit self- insurance fund to support projected employee benefit self- insurance claim expenditures. Um every several years we transfer money from the O1 to the O24 to support this account. Um $17,000 $17,329 from the O2 public school support fund. That was the old Latchki uh program fund that we no longer have. So, we're going to transfer that to the O1 general fund. Um, and Mr. Crapo and our administrative team will be able to use those dollars as fit for operational purposes. Um, and then 785,000 from the 035 termination benefits fund to the O1 general fund. And just to give you a

091little explanation of that, um, we wanted to streamline that and pay our termination benefits through the O1 general fund, which is recommended through through the auditing process that we've already established. Um, though either of those funds, you can pay those benefits, but we want to streamline it so that it fits the auditor regulations uh, more precisely. Um, and then letter G, approval, recommend approval of the following donations. a donation of $1,300 from the book bus of Fairfield North Elementary's bookf fair um totaling donations for the year of $1,800. And then letter H recommend approval of the disposal of all the following uh fixed assets. >> Motion to accept these recommendations, please. >> I've got a quick question. >> Yes, sir. on the disposal of all these items like when we have school buses and stuff,

092do we take anything in? >> Sometimes. Yeah, sometimes we do uh you know for like a school bus. Um oftentimes we junk them and but sometimes somebody will pay us for the parts lands. You can probably speak to the bus piece a little bit more accurately than me. >> Yes. Um we have the majority of the buses actually go for metal scrap uh because we do use them um to the end of their life. So yes, we do get money returned. In fact, we just got a check this week >> for it's about $1,100 a bus. And Lance, is it is it accurate to say that we you know those buses are parted out, right? That I mean absolutely. Yeah. So it's kind of a skeleton by the time it gets to that point. We've

093taken the parts off of it and used them for other buses. >> Like the the laptops, what do we do with them? >> Same type of thing. We use those for replacement like buttons, parts, and then once they're completely used up, then we then we scrap them. Okay. >> Yeah, they go to recycling. >> All right. >> Yep. >> Good. >> Motion to accept these recommendations, please. >> Motion. >> Second. >> Mr. Klein. Mr. McDonald. Mr. Phillips. Call RO, please. >> Mr. Klein. >> Yes. >> Mr. McDonald. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Burning Miller. >> Yes. >> Mr. Clark. >> Yes. >> Mr. Napier. >> Yes. >> Motion passes. Committee reports. Legislative update. Mr. Klein. >> Don't have a whole lot right now. Um, still keeping an eye on some of the House bills that are

094going on. House Bill 671 and 7:15. Um, and uh, we had a presentation a few weeks ago on recess and there's a bill now in front of legislators to look at that and they're reviewing that in committee um, to kind of mandate recess time. So other than that, not a whole lot to report. Just kind of watching some things as they're going through committees and and the process recess. >> But tech, Mr. Birding Miller, >> uh, it was a very busy week at Butler Techch. Um so Monday they had their ribbon cutting for the aviation ribbon uh the aviation building. Um it was a huge success. I unfortunately was not able to go. Um but there was a ton of people. There's a lot of coverage. If you go to the Butler Tech page, you

095could actually see a little mini tour of the building. It's absolutely beautiful, absolutely standing. Uh there was leg uh there was elected officials from all different forms of levels. Um, and uh, it was so successful that they're already working on applying for capital funding to expand it >> and they're hoping to open a whole another hanger that'll allow some adult education. >> Um, so that's super exciting. Um, and then that was Monday. So Tuesday we had a board meeting which was amazing as always. Uh, little fun fact, we get to get served by the Cafe Lee students. They make a meal beforehand. So although I never get to make it out to cafe Lee, I always do get to enjoy them once a month when I get to the board meetings. Um and then yesterday

096they had an open house at the aviation that was actually partnered with Midpoint Libraries. So that allowed the community to come in and do tours of it and that was also a huge success. And then tonight they had a Duncan donate fundraiser. It ran um it raises money to help fund students covering costs for uh materials like the cosmetology student. Fun fact, the firefighters cost about $900 for all the equipment for those students, each student. Um and so this works towards helping fund all those um fund all of those materials for those students so that they're able to participate in those programs. Um and it was very successful. Um just two to just two of the items went for 650 each. um as far as the raffles. Um and so it was a great event.

097I was there literally dropped the baby off to the husband and then ran over here, switched my name tags real quick. Um but it was a lot of fun. Um I gave all of you guys a little uh invitation just like the aviation invitation was a sweet boarding pass. Um >> it was a sweet boarding pass. April, they have a bioscience ribbon cutting. And so this is a medical chart. As you open it up, you will see um for their biocience ribbon cutting that they're having in April. Uh so definitely check it out. And just to put on your calendars, just to kind of give you guys a preview, you guys will be seeing an invitation sometime very soon, but uh April 20th is the student showcase. Now, it's not the all boards meeting. You'll

098get a separate invitation for that, but this is the student showcase where they have all their students from all their different programs across all of the campuses um providing just a kind of a demo of their showcases. Um it's a lot of fun. Um you can go and try some food from Cafe Lee. The business students all do like a Shark Tank kind of im innovation. So, you can go and hear pitches from them about projects that they're working on. Um so, it's a lot of fun. So, definitely keep that on your radar. Also, >> I've went to that before. It is a blast. It is a lot of fun. >> Fairfield won one year of the all student showcase. Um they have a kind of a competition to see how many um each school

099could see how many like showcases each school could see. Um >> they typically are on a Thursday. So our board usually doesn't go excitedly. It's not on a Thursday this year. It's on a Tuesday. So we'll be able to go this year. Um so I'm super excited to make sure to check that out. Um last bit is there is a regional um act um um conference happening in Sharonville and so they're having people from all over the region come and they're going to do some tours at Butler Tech. So people from all over are going to be touring Butler Tech and seeing our community because they're going to be right next door. >> Yeah. Nice. Awesome. >> So that's up to Wednesday. >> Yeah. Uh that's up to today. Uh there there's also all kinds

100of stuff. There's a graduation tonight and lots of good stuff. >> Thank you, Miss Birding Miller. Appreciate the update. Uh see, student achievements, Mr. McDonald. >> Oh, yes. Thank you. Um first of all, I want to say congratulations to Simone Blair on being elected the Ohio Business Professionals of America State President. Uh Simone is the first student from Fairfield to hold this position. So, congratulations and way to represent Fairfield. Um, congratulations to the members of our freshman choir and our select choir, Vocal Impact, who both participated in the OMA large group contest this past weekend. Uh, freshman choir received a rating of excellent and Vocal Impact received a rating of superior, which qualifies them for the state festival. So, awesome job by them. Um, also I I was able to attend the uh community lunchon

101last Wednesday, I believe. Um, and we had two students that came and for anybody that's never like tried that, like they're poised to be able to just stand up in front of a room of uh, officials and folks from out city. So, huge shout out to uh, Amy Massie and Izzy Rous um, uh, for coming and and sharing what they'll be performing in late April in the musical. Uh, two pieces from that. And I I just crazy impressive to that they can just stand up there and do that. So, um, thanks for, uh, for that. Um, also want to congratulate, uh, Mr. Baker and all the members of the Fairfield Show choirs for putting on an amazing Crystal Classic on, um, the 7th. Uh, we had schools from all over the country. I was there

102from 6:30 a.m. to about 2 well, I saw the time change >> over midnight. It was over 11. Said >> cleanup wasn't I actually saw the time change, which was fine. Um, so but but it when you hear schools from all over the country come up to you and tell you what an amazing experience it was um and and just a chance to showcase what we're all about um in Fairfield. It's it's worth every minute. So um congratulations to them on on putting on an amazing show. Um also want to say while these three folks that I'm going to recognize aren't students uh anymore. They once were. uh they're not students anymore, but a lot of the uh students that I highlight in my updates are cared for by these three individuals. Um and it

103is National Athletic Training Appreciation Month. Uh so to Brad Frasier, Ashley Goolick, and Chris Conungle, um our athletic trainers here at the high school and uh the middle school want to thank you for all you do to take care of our student athletes. So thank you. Um, and finally, speaking of our show choirs again, uh, they will be singing the national anthem at the Reds game on Sunday, April 12th, uh, in conjunction with the Purple Monkey Project. Um, it's Purple Monkey Project day at Great American Ballpark. Uh, so the Corers and Pure Elegance, so it's a large group of kids uh, get to stand on the field and sing the national anthem. Uh, also uh, three Fairfield alums uh, one of which may or may not be my daughter. Uh and two current seniors will

104be seeing God Bless America in the seventh inning. So um another great chance to showcase the talent in our district uh as well as support uh Purple Monkey Project. So that's all I got. >> Go Fairfield. >> Indeed. >> Thank you, Mr. McDonald. Uh parks, I didn't get a chance to go to the meeting, but we had a special special meeting the previous Wednesday at the city so on Marsh Lake. And I would encourage encourage folks to go to the city's website or Facebook page and link to the website and uh take a look at Marsh Lakes presentation. It is going to be absolutely incredible what they're going to do there. Um it's going to keep sort of its natural look but then over the hill so to speak. Um it opens up still looks

105very nice aesthetically pleasing to the eye if you're a nature lover just for that little area there. a place to launch boats, launch kayaks, building for restaurant, um, and then widen paths, and then, uh, you still have the the 27 acres of of the of the and more of the lake. So, take a look. It's a great presentation that's being done. Uh, should be broke ground next year and, uh, be finished by 2030, I think it is. So, yeah, >> things they talked about at the lunchon, it was beautiful. >> Oh, yeah. Yeah, it is. Um, I'm super excited about the connecting bike path that's going to connect our community um and allow more free movement. >> Yeah. >> Throughout the community on an easier path. So, >> it's going to be beautiful. Mr. Smith,

106uh, planning commission, sir. >> Uh, their last meeting was canceled. So, as a result, there's no update this evening. >> All right. Thank you. Uh, announcements, uh, community conversation with Mr. J. Phillips and Mr. Billy Smith 9 to 11:00 a.m. at Fairfield Administration Building Conference Room A. Please contact Angie Neil by 4:00 p.m. on Friday for March 20th, 2026 to schedule your appointment or you can email her at neil_fairfield cityschools.com or call at 5138588568. Community conversation with Mr. J. Phillips, Mr. Billy Smith 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Fairfield East Elementary uh media center. Again, please contact Angie Neil by 4:00 p.m. on Monday, March 23rd, 2026 to schedule your appointment. And you can email her also again at neil fairfield cityschools.com or call at 5138588568. March 26, CareerFest, 8:00 am to 2:30 p.m. here at

107the Fairfield High School uh Arena. Um that's a great time right there, too. March 30th uh through April 3rd, 2026 is spring break. There's no school. Uh April 6, 2026, school resumes after spring break. April 9th, 2026, board meeting, regular session, 6:30 p.m. here in the Katherine D. Milligan community room. So that's all the announcements. Board member comments. Mr. Napier. >> Yeah, I want to thank Chrissy for a presentation on the academy. It's it's a great job you guys do over there. Uh Matt for your presentation on the leaison zone. I can't say it. The thing that help people. Uh I'm just glad that everybody in our city helps each other. It's a it's an amazing city to live in. M. McDonald. >> Uh, again, I I kind of gave my comments on the on

108the presentation for the academy. I I and others as well, but just to to to think that that program or or any portion of it might be at risk um due to the you know, budget issues is just unimaginable to me. um anybody that can sit here and listen to uh what that program has meant for so many of our uh students over the years uh and and still does and and the things that you're doing to go above and beyond taking them out of the classroom and and helping and uh giving them opportunities to serve the community. Um teaching them how to mentor each other. Um, I it's those lessons go way beyond the classroom and I I'm very very grateful and and I really hope the community um really understands the value of

109the academy and um so thank you for your presentation. Uh Mr. Crapo, thanks again for continuing to highlight this program. I'm so glad you're going to Rotary uh tomorrow to to talk about it more. Again, I think this is another thing that uh the the community needs to understand. And I had uh had a community member send me a message uh just yesterday asking me about the the percentage that qualify for free and reduced lunch because it's such a it's a number that most people can't believe. Um and and so even Mr. Hustle, I think when you first told me that uh over, you know, a year ago, I I was just stunned. Uh but the needs in the community are are that great and and again it impacts our students ability to to learn

110and um so thank you for all you do there. Uh to our public speakers uh you know uh regardless of the topic the fact that people uh take their time and come and and speak to us about whatever it is that is important to them. Um I just would encourage more people to do that. Um our students our two juniors Ila and Maya uh what a wonderful uh opportunity for them with the mayor's youth committee. Uh Mr. Clark, thanks for always being a proponent of that as well. Um, but uh, great opportunity for them to again just see kind of how things work um, in the community. So, I think that's a great program. Uh, Miss Gentry Fletcher, thank you very much for all you've done. Um, I know all good things must come to

111an end, but uh, I wish you nothing but the best in your retirement. Thanks for all you've done for the for the district and the community. Um, Miss OG, thank you for the thoughtful approach to selecting curriculum. I know I messaged you earlier this week just trying to understand a little more and you know, unfortunately the state always doesn't make it as easy as maybe as it could be um if they had the same standards and but I appreciate the the additional work and the thoughtful approach um for that. And then uh finally uh Miss Hower, thanks for always keeping us compliant. Um it's not always the most exciting topics like what food to buy and not buy, but the these things keep us in the good graces of the state. So they're extremely important.

112So um I I hope nobody uh ever thinks like why are we talking about that? Well, we're talking about it because it's super important. So thank you. >> Thank you for the presentations this evening. Um I stand by my comments earlier. No, great programs, the academy, our liaison and the success program there. Um, great for our our community and great for our students. Um, thank you again for for sharing that with us because it's always great to see those things. Um, because there's a lot of things going on in our district. So, thank you for highlighting those and and sharing the great things that are going on there. Um, thank you for the update on the curriculum stuff. That's it's exciting to get new curriculum um and and get that into our students and and

113get that implemented. So all the extra work that's going into that next year as well and and over the summer for people that are coming in, thank you for making that available and policy updates are always exciting. So they are fun to read also. Um but uh yeah, that's it. Thank you. >> Um I want to thank both of you for your guys' presentation tonight. Um, I was really bummed when we had to reschedu due to some power outage and technical difficulties. So, thank you so much for coming tonight and it and it is um meaningful that they're both on the same night because it once again continues to just show how we meet our students needs and meet them where they're at. Um, I want to thank Mr. Gentilson, Laya, and Maya for coming

114and talking to us. Um, that's not an easy task, especially for young students. Um, I think the mayor's commission, youth commission is a super cool committee. I'm super uh proud that students are super excited that students want to come. This isn't the first group we've had come learn about the school board, but it is cool to hear things like them going to Utah and being part of the National League city thing, which is something I didn't even know existed. >> Um, so that's super cool. I also had the pleasure of attending Crystal Classic. And not just attending, I volunteered. Um, I got to be here in this room at the director's lounge. Um, and so I was listening and interacting with a lot of the directors that were traveling from all over. Um, and they

115had nothing but wonderful things to say about our school, our comm our community, and our students. So, great job. It was a wonderful show as always. Um, I think once again, it goes to say that like this is just something that's huge and that could be impacted shall things not progress the way we want them to or need them to to per se. Um, I did not mention Cafe Lee. Next week, Cafe Lee is Soul Food, so make sure you make your reservations. I think it's going to be a fantastic menu. They haven't released it yet, but check it out on their Facebook. >> No matter what they're serving, it's fantastic. >> Oh, absolutely. They post pictures on the Butler Tech Culinary Arts of Creme Brulee that each of the students just learned to make

116creme brulee. And I'm like, now I really want creme brulee. Thanks a lot. Um, I don't know what to say. Um, with you leaving, um, there's going to be a hole in my heart. You are, you've been an absolute joy to work with. Um, it's hard to see people go and move on, but I'm so excited to see what this next chapter brings for you because everybody who I know who's gotten to make take that opportunity to retire um, loves the next step. So, I wish you luck and excited we get to keep you for a couple more months before you you take your next journey without us. Um, Mr. Phillips, thank you so much for everything you do. You know, you prepared us and we were ready and knew this was coming. Um, so

117when they asked for that plan, we already had it. So, thank you so much for being, you know, a a great steward and being consistent and on top of the um what we need you to do. I'm excited to see what dollars and cents shows tomorrow. um because it's going to be a good presentation based off of our conversation we had. >> Um >> uh Mandy, thank you so much. I'm sorry, Miss OG, thank you so much for your team and everything you guys did. I know I spoke about a lot a lot, but it's a lot of work and it's not um an easy task. So, thank you so much for, you know, tiptoeing around what mandates we don't know about and making sure that our students are getting the best education they can.

118Uh, Miss Howard, I think that policy is exciting and I enjoy when you give a presentation. Um, uh, and I think it's great that we have a great partnership with OSBA that's able to provide samples like that one policy about food so that you don't have to like start from scratch digging a pole there. You know, there's already some template there for you. Uh, I wanted just to say, um, you know, I every week I've been challenging you guys to go out and make your voices be heard to legislation and making sure that you, if you have a a strong opinion about like, I don't know, school funding, you reach out to your, you know, local and higher ups, like state representatives. Uh, I just want to let you know that like that's not just

119me speaking. Um, I'm putting my money where my mouth is. You know, next week I'm attending a legit legislation conference with a lot of other board members and we're going to be meeting face tof face with state legislation and letting them know the impact that these bills and house um house and senate bills and the budget has on our students and our community. >> That's it. >> Is it where I say >> Yep. >> Yeah. Um Miss Gina Fletcher, Gentry Fletcher. Miss Gina Gentry Fletcher, congratulations. as it's already been said, it's it's your your time here has been uh been valuable and we thank you for what you do. And I hear when people retire, they have less time to do stuff. So, I think that I hope that happens to you, too. But I

120hope it's stuff that you really really have a passion for. Thank you for serving in in at in our school district. Appreciate it. Um Chrissy and Matt, thank you so much. I think uh you know, again, the fields come together with both of those really. um even though they're separate, but it's it's a it's a great um program we have with the academy and to partner with the community and sometimes those families cross in in those two items in those two programs. So, thank you so much for your passion and doing what you do. Appreciate you both. Um this is all again, thank you. It's a that is a lot of work. Even if you got the Christmas boxes that come in, it's still a lot of work to get there and to set up

121the training for all the new stuff and keeping up with that. Thank you so much. Um, Miss Hower, the policy. Good job. Appreciate you doing that. Mr. Phillips, man, you just you just continue to to kill it with the um the hard stuff you kind of keep to yourself, I think, and then bringing it down to the the the uh elementary level for people like me and just really make it uh palatable and and to understand the best way um the complex financing can be for a school district. And the videos that you do every by week, they're are amazing. So, thank you for putting the time into that. It means a lot. And I I I want the community to to watch those, see those, and and really take those to heart so that

122uh when these community events come, you attend them and you can ask those questions and just to know more to know. Yeah. >> Um is it Oh, neighborhood bridges. I do want to put that uh go to Facebook, look up Neighborhood Bridges Fairfield, like that page, share those posts, and when you like and share and you comment when you share, the algorithm makes it work better. I don't know how, but that's what happens. So, make sure you do that to support our our uh our kids. So, um I think that's all we got. So, we'll uh recess to executive session to discuss employment of public employee 121.22 22 G1 court action 121.22 G3 pending or uh imminent litigations. Motion to uh move to executive session, please. >> I'll make a motion. >> Mr. Napier, >>

123Miss Bernie Miller. >> Mr. Phillips, you call roll, please. >> Mr. Napier, >> yes. >> Mrs. Burning Miller, >> yes. >> Mr. Clark, >> yes. >> Mr. Klein, >> yes. >> Mr. McDonald, >> yes. >> Motion passes at 706. 86.