001Good evening everyone. Thank you all for being here. Uh ready to uh call to order our regular meeting for the month of September, which is hard to believe. Um I'm I'm I understand this camp is not going to be able to make it tonight and our new student uh board member is not going to be able to make it tonight, but I'm sure we look forward to welcoming uh Elena Sheridan as our student board member uh next month hopefully. um she'll be a real good addition to the board, I think. Uh board members, in your packets, you have a proposed agenda for tonight's meeting. It would be open for a motion that we approve or add or subtract as you would like to suggest. Make a motion to approve the agenda for the September 2nd
002meeting. >> Okay. Have a motion. >> Second >> and a second. Any discussion? All in favor say I. >> Anyone oppose say no. Thank you. Everyone will please stand for the pledge of allegiance. >> Aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Thank you. >> Uh board members, you had uh in one of the emails that Miss Williams sent you the draft minutes uh of the August board meeting. Forward would be open for a motion to approve those subject to any changes. Make a motion to approve. >> Thank you. Got a motion >> second. >> And a second. Any discussion? All in favor say I. >> I. >> Anyone oppose say no. Thank
003you. Uh you also in today's email from Miss Williams had financial matters. If you wanted to look at those financial reports, um, dispersements for the month specifically. Make a motion to approve August dispersements. >> All right. Thank you. Got a motion. >> And a second. Any questions or discussion? All in favor say I. >> Anyone oppose say no. >> Great. Thank you very much. Our principal's reports tonight. Good evening. So, we've had a great first month of school at Asins. Our teachers and students have been working hard and they've settled into a nice routine. Our afterchool program started last week and we have 88 students that are staying this year in our afterchool program and it's a great program. They get to have snack. Um, they get to help with their homework and we even
004have Mr. Brad who's working who's teaching them how to line dance. So, we're very proud of of this program and we're happy that we can serve 88 students in that program. We do have a few events coming up in September at Asens. This Friday, we will celebrate grandparents day. Our grandparents are invited to come in, join their grandchild in the gym, and they're going to make friendship bracelets. So, we're excited to do that, and Miss Barnett came up with that idea, and we look forward to seeing them this Friday. Also later this month during the week of September 15th, we'll have our yearly Scholastic book fair which falls in the week of our parent teacher conferences. They're Tuesday the 16th. And so we'll have that open um that night so that the parents can come
005in and shop with their children. Um we also will be celebrating college app week that week. So we got a lot going on that week. So the kids can dress up and it's fair week as well. Might as well throw that out there. But um they'll get to dress up like the career they want. um dress up for an interview of the job they want and even wear like their favorite college or school shirt. And um we don't have school that Friday. The students don't. It's a staff day. So we have a go to work with a family member challenge. So they can go to work with any family member. They can either write a paragraph about their day or they can take a picture while they're at work with their family member and turn
006that in and they'll receive free admission to an FHS ball game. So we thank Fateville High School for working with us to provide that. So we have a lot going on, but that's it. >> Awesome. >> Anyone have questions? >> But I love the friendship idea. It's >> It is a cute idea. >> Okay. All right. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> I appreciate all you're doing, Miss Taylor. >> Hey, good afternoon. Good evening. Uh, Febable Middle School is also off to a great start. Um, and y'all, it's been a blast. Like, I've just really enjoyed getting to know the kiddos and getting to know the staff and we're just we're we're on track. Everything is great. Um, we started our mindfulness program with Miss Shia Hicks where students are learning ultimately the goal is
007to learn to focus on their breath so that it can help with calming themselves whenever they're feeling anxious or irritated or whatever. We started with Miss Shia's in Miss Shia's class with just closing our eyes and paying attention to details first and then we'll focus on breath as they get more settled with their mindset and and calming breaths and those kinds of things. So that program is underway. We also officially started today our clubs. So we have I'm just going to read them off. We have an arts and crafts club. We have the gamers club that met today. It was a huge success. We have a gardening club, tiger spirit club. And then we have a book club. And the book club will involve those that want to silent read since we don't have an
008official star program or AR program anymore or those who want to be involved in the book discussion. So there's something for everybody this year. I hope if you think of any other programs that or hobbies that we may have left out because we want to be very inclusive and make every student feel like they have something to do at our school. Whether it's um with gardening or reading or arts and crafts or just decorating posters for game days. Uh we will have um excuse me Sus morning tutoring sessions for math and ELA. Um we're still in the process of nailing down our tutors, but we think we have two candidates. So hopefully as we could soon as we can get confirmation from them, we'll sign contracts with them and have them start our tutoring program.
009Um Britney mentioned about the parent conferences on the 16th. And then our homecoming uh is also during fair week. Uh, homecoming eighth grade night is September the 18th for the middle school. Any questions? >> It's a lot. Sorry. >> Yep. All right. Thank you all very much. >> Thank you for all you're doing. >> Thank you. >> Good evening everyone. Uh, we have also had a good start. It's been a fast start. Uh, honestly, as we were talking this morning, the first month of school has flown by for us. Um, this year, uh, actually, I guess this week, MLO and TCAT have both started. So, we've got several of our students that take advantage of dual enrolling. Um, we have 12 students this year that are a part of the middle college program. Last year
010we had 10 and then, uh, Vincent Rulander graduated. um with that program. So, we've added a few um that that's been a great success. Our kids that have gone into that program really seem to like it and being pushed. Um we have seven TCAT welding students this year. Um so, that's a big jump uh from last year. So, that's great for those students. um our student advisory boards um have already met and all of our students are excited about those and look forward to uh making a positive impact on our community through those. Um our fall sports of course they're in full swing. Um Elena's a volleyball player that's where she they're in St. Andrews tonight. So, um, but I can tell a difference, uh, across the board, uh, in improvements on all of our
011teams, and I look forward to see how they end up in their district or region standings there. Um, our homecoming will be fair week as well. So, uh, Friday, September 19th is our homecoming game. That's versus Forest, and we look forward to seeing all of our former graduates and all of our supporters come out that night. Um, the last bit of news I have, um, I don't know if you guys saw it or not, but we are excited. Um, FHS has been selected as one of the few schools to be in the Tennessee direct admissions pilot program. Um, so this is kind of a firstofits-kind program where uh based on different eligibility, our students will be automatically accepted into Tennessee schools without even having to apply. So that is very very uh big news for
012our Tigers. So >> yeah, >> that's all I have. >> All right. Any questions, Mr. P? Thanks for all you're doing. >> Appreciate it. >> Thank you. >> Uh, next on the agenda is our time for public comment. If we have anyone request time, we'll move on to our supervisor's reports. Um, let's see. Dr. Styles is on the agenda tonight. >> I'm on the agenda, but I am turning it over to handler number one and handler number two and our friend Henry. Hello everyone. Thank you for having us today. Um, as most of you know, I'm Britney Barnett. I'm the librarian at Rafaskins. And this is Miss Jennifer Walker, our guidance counselor, and we want to introduce Henry to you. He's our facility dog. Henry joined Rafaskins in April of last year and has been
013a most supportive companion, furious sidekick, and best friend of everyone at Raph, kids and adults since then, and we all love him dearly. Henry was trained and attained from a nonprofit-based program out of Nashville, retrieving independence. We began our journey in August of 2024 when Dr. Styles approached me with the idea of a facility dog. We got the application turned in and the process began. We spent many months preparing for Henry. Lots of emails and Zoom meetings, in-person trainings, skill assessments, home visits, school visits, and much more. We worked side by side with Miss Rebecca Gesler, director and training clients and services of RARI through the process. We learned so much in a very short time. Retrieving Independence is made up of many people to help the program be successful. They have volunteer breeders, volunteer
014puppy razors, and weekend furlow volunteers as well as an extremely knowledgeable trainer. RARI also is a part has a partnership with the Tennessee Department of Corrections. RARI works weekly with inmate trainers to provide a significant portion of the training throughout the two-year process. RARI believes in love, dignity, and change. the love poured into each dog, the dignity it gives the inmate trainers, and the change the dog provides the recipients, and in our case, our Raphains tigers. Henry is a facility dog, which is different from a service dog. A facility dog is trained to provide services in a professional setting. Henry is only welcome at Foville City School settings. He is trained in skills and tasks that are given to in his environment or clients. A facility dog plays an important role in increasing motivation, encouraging
015participation in certain activities, promoting the use of language, encouraging trust in a therapist or a teacher, increasing social interaction with the staff, and much more. Henry works 5 days a week at Rafaskins, going home with me each night. He has a busy schedule that keeps him on his game. He spends most of his time in the library, giving the chance for every Tiger at Rafaskins to see him. He also takes daily walks with officer Darren checking and securing our perimeter. Henry also visits classrooms, walks the halls, plays playgrounds with students at recess, rides the green bus in the afternoon with me, and um extra support with Miss Jennifer for students in need. Even though Henry has only been with us a few months, it feels like he's always been at Rifask. Walking him down the
016hallway and hearing kids call his name or wanting to give him a pet is means that it's much longer larger than just a dog. At the end of the day, the impact of a facility dog isn't just about a wagging tail or soft fur. It's about the sense of comfort and belonging it gives to each student. They remind us that school is not just academics, but also supporting the well-being of every student. And Henry's mastered that. >> Thank you. Appreciate it. >> Henry's been a great addition. >> He is a great >> He's visiting every utilized every day. And one of the things that I've been impressed with is how much the teachers have responded. I think the teachers have responded as positively as the children. And you'd expect little children to be very excited
017about having a talking about. Uh but he's got an absolutely positive calming effect. And um I mean I think you know just here right now everybody can see how evident that is. He's a good tiger. He is >> and they do a great job with him too. >> They do. And he's a real dog, too. When you see him out of his vest, he can get wild. Don't don't be fooled by how he is now. But he's wonderful. >> So, did you all have to have specific training to become the trainer uh the handlers? I assume >> it was from August till April. And it was it was intense. >> It was a lot of training. Lots of requirements we had to >> That's awesome. >> Check off. >> Well, thank you. That's you can
018only imagine what what as I think about it just what a calming effect that has to have on certain children in life situations they're facing at home and whatever just to have that calming effect >> is is bound to open up doors to to learn to actually now hear some academic >> uh thing that you need concept that you need to learn and and you've got to get you've got to get in the right emotional state and I I can't imagine that Henry isn't a big help in that way. >> Oh yeah. >> Thank you for all you do. >> That's awesome. That is awesome. And thanks for letting us see anytime. >> We've heard all about it. >> All right. Uh our CFL report, Miss Williams. >> So today the year-to- date revenue and
019expenditure reports through email to you and I would just entertain any questions you may have. This is her information on them. >> Yeah, we appreciate those each month. Um, and as always, board members, if you have questions or anything, she is here to address them, right? So, just let her know. Uh, committee reports, uh, facilities and transportation. >> Okay. Um, everything is going smoothly. We have a lot of students riding the buses. Um we do have um all of our buses are up and in service with the exception of one. Um it's still got parts on order, but uh we anticipate we'll be able to get it back in service, but we still have two spares, so we're in great shape as far as transportation. Um we have probably the only school system in the
020state of Tennessee that has all of our driving spots filled plus a spare and potentially a couple more. Um we've we've really been blessed and fortunate to have some great people want to be involved in that and uh uh it just continues. We've got such good people. Um it's attracting more good people with interest. So like you know it's kind of taken on its own momentum and I'm really pleased with that because that's a hard that's a hard task driving a bus. I do it from time to time and it's it can be stressful. Uh but I enjoy it. You know, you got absolutely see the fruit of your labor when you pull up and child gets out and goes into their house safe. It's it's rewarding. >> And the laws on that have tightened
021in recent years have really tightened up on that. >> There's a we're really blessed. >> The biggest the biggest uh part of the involvement has to do with the Department of Homeland Security, believe it or not. Um there's a lot of work there and then uh by the time people go through all the training for it, there's just one other test that they would do to be able to drive a tractor trailer. Um and some of the people that drive those don't have the certifications in the CDL testing to do the bus driver. So, uh you know, you think we pay about $15,000 for people to drive a school bus, but if you're on a different truck, you could make potentially six figures. Uh so it's it's hard to attract, but we've been uh we've
022made our progress by utilizing teachers and uh people uh coaches, people affiliated with the school system and get them their license and then they can uh take a supplement um drive the school bus and then that all goes toward uh for the people who've been in it a while goes toward their retirement if they're in the legacy retirement plan. So it's a good situation. everybody benefits and we're much better off. Um awesome. >> As far as um facilities, everything is in good shape. Um mowing the grass has been an adventure this year with the amount of rain we've had, but it's that's about to slow down. Um everything's in good operational working order. It looks clean. Um I'm pretty pleased with where we're at. Uh as the fall starts up in earnest and the weather
023begins to cool, we have a lot of work orders to catch up on, though. So, um the Deep building has it's purchased, acquired, uh work on it gone on the back burner, um until we can get some of the um work orders taken care of that directly serve students in the buildings. Uh but we're thinking between fall break and Christmas a lot of work will be done there. That's the plan right now. But everything is in good shape. And I think since our since our August board meeting, we had a chance to all experience the new facade and cover at uh at Asins and just what a what a difference that made for students and families to drop off and pick up. And that's that's really that was well done and so timely. Very impressed
024by the contractor who did that. The organization of that uh of that project was the best that I've I've had involvement with at any level. It it was just phenomenal. They did a great job. >> I know the Tigers will benefit that from that for many many years. That's great. >> Uh each month I was give everybody an update on the FEMA project. Teima has sent to FEMA. FEMA still has documentation. They're well past the 60-day deadline, but we're up there. You know, we're kind of at their mercy, so we won't await any word. >> Okay. >> And I'll let everyone know as soon as we hear anything. >> I'll bet you will eagerly anticipate that. That's awesome. >> Thanks for tracking that for us. Um under finance uh board members we have um in
025the email the first email from Miss Williams uh late last week uh you would have seen a letter uh from the state about insurance premiums increasing 5%. And so we discussed uh today uh at the finance committee meeting uh the possibility of having the system absorb that 5% so that the employees rates don't increase uh this this year uh which would be an ideal situation. So uh I would certainly make a recommendation that the system absorb that 5% health insurance premium increase for for 2026. >> I second that. >> Okay. I got a motion in a second. Any discussion of that? Okay. All in favor say I. >> Anyone oppose say no. >> Thank you very much. Uh insurance and policy back in action this month. >> I have a few today. On the first
026one, I make a motion to approve policy 5305 on the first reading. >> Okay. Got a motion and a second. Any discussion for the family and medical leave policy? All in favor say I. >> I. >> Anyone oppose say no. >> Thank you. >> Next one is I make a motion to approve policy 4 2110 on the first reading. >> Okay. A motion and a second. Any discussion of the policy on credit recovery? All in favor say I. Anyone oppose say no. Thank you. >> I make a motion to approve policy 2.806 on the first reading. >> Okay. Have a motion. >> Second. >> And a second. Any discussion about the policy on bids and quotations? All in favor. Was that? Okay. All All in favor say I. >> Anyone opposed say no. Thank you.
027And I make a motion to approve policy 6.312 on the first reading. >> Okay. Have a motion. >> Second. >> And a second. >> Any discussion on the policy on use of personal communication devices and electronic devices? >> Okay. All in favor say I. >> I have a question. Oh yes. I'm sorry. This is not like controvert. Is this is this a new policy that was given to us based on the new legislative change with >> Yeah, we have modified our old policy to come in line with the new uh results of the legislative session that just passed. Okay. >> Um it does give us a lot of liberty to make some choices. Um I anticipate more legislative action in the future on that. We'll continue to adapt to make sure we're always in line.
028Okay. And while we're discussing, I really appreciate the highlighted language that changed in the real class. Those that's really super handy for us as we as we review these. So, anything else on this policy? Okay. All in favor say I. I. >> Anyone oppose say no. >> Great. Thank you all very much. Uh Mr. Jones. >> Yes, sir. Um sadly, I would like to ask that the board approve the resignation of Amanda Moses. Amanda started with me I think in 2001 here at city. Uh she's phenomenal teacher. We're going to miss her. She has an opportunity to work at Lynchburg Elementary which is like less than a mile from her home. >> So I understand her decision. She's uh she came in met with me because we've been colleagues for a long time and she's
029like everything's wonderful. I love everybody. Everything. She's like it's just going to help me and time frames and the day. Uh I completely understand that but we'll miss Samantha. He sure will. >> If the board would please approve her resignation. >> It's always a hard >> It is. >> Make a motion to approve. >> Okay. Got a motion. >> Second. >> And a second. >> All in favor say I. >> I. >> Opposed say no. >> All right. Thank you. >> And that concludes my report. >> Okay. Um last on the agenda is uh of course as you know throughout the school year we take each month to honor u a group of employees and this month we have a resolution before you resolution of uh of appreciation for our bus drivers. Uh and when
030you think about the transportation that they provide uh every day we're in in session not to mention all the many extracurricular uh activities. Uh I think it's we all understand that they have a unique opportunity and the res resolution states this a unique opportunity to greet children and students with kindness to provide encouragement and to set a positive tone uh for those students as they begin their day. Um they truly are the first employees of ours who touch the lives of children each day and they're the last uh employees who touch the lives of so many of our students. And so we want to honor them and uh for their dedication, alertness you alluded to earlier with all the training and u and the professionalism of theirs. And so we would, as you see in
031the resolution, resolve that Fable Board of Education hereby proclaims September 11th, 2025 as bus driver appreciation day in Fable City Schools, encouraging our students and staff and families to join us in recognizing and thanking them for their tireless dedication, steady hands, and kind hearts. >> Make a motion to approve resolution. >> All right. Thank you. Got a motion. Second >> and a second. All in favor say I. >> I. >> Anyone oppose say no. >> All right. Thanks very much. Uh last thing I have is just a note that our next regular uh board meeting would be on Monday the 6th of October. Turns out that's fall break week. And so would the board be open to perhaps bumping that to October 13th, Monday the 13th, a week later? I will note that that is
032Columbus Day on the calendar. So, um we don't have to do it that day. We can do it whatever is convenient. >> I don't have any plans for Columbus Day. >> Okay. >> Did I? >> Yep. >> So, >> all right. Well, then we'll plan to do that and we'll publicize that uh accordingly >> uh to to make sure that that notice is given to the public. And uh that's all I all we have on our agenda today. Bradford, anything from the city that we >> Well, believe it or not, we are still working on getting Third Avenue fixed. >> It can't come soon enough because I'm up and down it quite a bit picking up, >> but we're hoping that it's coming soon sooner than later. The group that's working out there has been
033very accommodating uh with our bus schedules and uh of course FU's been really good to try to help us uh try to adapt those. Uh we're appreciative all that and it's uh we haven't had really any days where students were delayed getting in because of traffic or anything. So it's been you know in spite of good progress on on repairs and investments in infrastructure it's been working nonetheless. I appreciate it. >> The plan is to go in and mail >> from Washington the all the way down and put the new pavement in. >> Be nice. >> Awesome. Well, that's a big >> our new pavement can join y'all and smooth be awesome. >> All right. Thanks. If no one has any additional business, we will stand a journ. Thank you.