School Board Meeting - June 17, 2025

001[Music] Okay. The date is June 17th, 2025. The time is 1803 hours and I would like to call the Frederick County School Board meeting to order. We have an agenda before us. Do I have a motion for approval? And Mr. Chair, if before we Sorry, I I did overstep. I apologize. No worries. If we could just get uh our two fellow board members into the meeting that think then we can proceed. But we have two requests to pro to uh participate. There we go. Big word P participate remotely. A request from Dr. Brian Erskin to participate remotely. Dr. Erskin has requested to participate in the meeting remotely for a personal matter specifically due to a family vacation in South Carolina. I move to allow Dr. Erskin to participate in this meeting remotely. Second. Motion has

002been made. Properly second it is. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Any opposed. That carries. All right. Dr. Erskin, welcome to the meeting. We have we have a second request by Daryl Bell to participate remotely. Mr. Bell is requested to participate in the meeting remotely for a personal matter specifically due to a family vacation in Chinkatig, Virginia. I move to allow Mr. Bell to participate in this meeting remotely. Second. I have a motion and has been properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed. That motion carries. Mr. Bell. Welcome to the meeting. Thank you. Now we have an agenda before us. Do I have a motion for approval? Mr. Chair, I move that we

003approve the agenda before us. Second. We have a motion and it has been properly second. It is. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? We have an agenda. Madame vice chair, what's the pleasure of the board? Mr. Chair, I move that the county school board of Frederick County, Virginia, enter a close session meeting for the following. One, to review and discuss appointments, administrative leave, declined offers, dismissals, non-renewal, resignations, support staff hires, and volunteers pursuant to Virginia Code section 2.2-3711, 2-3711 paragraph A.1 and to review and discuss individual student matters that would involve specific students and particular information contained in their scholastic records including requests for release from compulsory attendance for religious reasons pursuant to Virginia Code section 2.2-3711 paragraph A.2. Three, to review and

004discuss the superintendent's evaluation pursuant to Virginia Code sections 2.2-3711 2-3711 A.1 and to review and discuss the contracts for the assistant superintendent pursuant to Virginia code section 2.2-3711 paragraph A.1. We have a motion. Do we have a second? Second. Motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? Oh, I keep forgetting that part. We are now in closed section. [Music] Madame vice chair, what is the pleasure of the board? Mr. Chair, I move that the board reconvene from close session. Second. We have a motion to return from close session. It has been seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. I. I. Any opposed? We are now back from closed

005section. And m Mr. Mr. Chair, I move that to the best of each board member's knowledge, only public business matters lawfully exempted from open meeting requirements under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act were discussed in the close session and only such public business matters as were identified in the motion by which the closed session was convened were heard, discussed, or considered by the school board. Point of order. Um, the open session doesn't start until 7 p.m. as advertised. Correct. We will go through these and then we'll reconvene. We'll recess and reconvene. Thank you. Okay, motion has been made and properly second or has been second. Properly seconded. Any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? Mr. Chair, we'd have to do a roll. We do roll call.

006Roll call, please. Oh, all right. I'm sorry, Madam Vice. Uh, Madam Clerk, call the role. Mr. Luso, I. Mr. Bell. Hi, Mr. Certivan. Hi, Fine. I Dr. Erskin. I Mr. Atkins. I All right, that passes. And Mr. Chair, we have three motions out of close session. I move the board approve the personal actions as recommended by the superintendent. Second. Second. Motion's been made, properly seconded. Any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Any opposed? I. No opposed. That carries. And Mr. Chair, I move the board approve the release of students A, B, and C from compulsory attendance. Second. Motion has been made, properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. That motion carries. And finally, Mr. Mr. Chair, I move

007to approve the assistant superintendent contract as presented. Second. All right. Motion's been made and properly seconded. Any discussion? All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. That passes. And Mr. Chair, that con that concludes the motions out of close session. I move that the board recess for approximately 5 minutes and reconvene at 1900 hours 7 p.m. Second. All right. Motion's been made to recess for a brief few minutes and reconvene at 7:00. Any discussion? It's been properly seconded. Hearing no discussion, all those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? We will reconvene at 1900 hours. [Music] Mr. Chair, I move that we reconvene from our recess. Second. All right, we have a motion to reconvene. Has been properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify

008by saying I. I. I. I. Any opposed? We are now reconvened. If you would please join me in a minute of silence. Tonight, we would like to hold the minute of silence in honor of uh shoot Frank in honor of Frank Funes who passed away last month. So, if you would just join me in that moment of silence, please. Thank you for that. Uh if you would please uh stand with me for the uh pledge of allegiance. Pledge algiance to the flag of the United States 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 for all. All right. Uh, next is a consent agenda. Do I have a motion to approve? Mr. Chair, I'd like to make a motion

009to approve the consent agenda as presented. Second. We have a motion. And it has been properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. I. Any opposed? We have an agenda. All right. So, next is our student slashstaff recognition. So, I'm going to turn that over to our fabulous superintendent, Dr. Hummer. Thank you so much, Mr. Chair. Can you guys hear me? Is my microphone kind of weak? How about that? Is that better? There we go. All right. Well, good evening everybody. It is so great to see you all. Uh, this is our awards of excellence program. Before we proceed, I would like to ask that everyone stay here throughout the entire program out of respect for each individual who is being recognized. Once we have

010completed all the presentations, you will have an opportunity to leave and enjoy the rest of your evening. In addition, when you come forward for your certificate, please take a moment to pause with the chair and myself for a photograph. I'll now have Mr. Sturvant and I come on down. Thank you, sir. Okay. And we're going to start off tonight with a special staff award, the 2025 computer science champion award. Congratulations to Dr. Deb Crawford, winner of this year's 2025 computer science champions award in the administrator and counselor category. This award recognizes educators for their commitment and excellence in the K12 computer science education. Congratulations [Applause] [Music] And the rest of the war the awards this evening are the community stakeholders excellence awards. The excellent excellence award is given to a community member, group or business

011that has demonstrated exceptional dedication and support for Frederick County Public School students and staff. This prestigious accolade recognizes those who can whose contributions have significantly enhanced the educational experience and well-being of the FCPS community. And we're going to start tonight. I don't think anyone's here to represent, but we do want to recognize Shannondoa Summer Music Theater. We are grateful to the Shannondoa Summer Music Theater for their generous donation of tickets to an upcoming show. These tickets were offered as part of a drawing for administrators attending the summer leadership academy. Thank you for your support. [Applause] And next up, um, they couldn't make it tonight either, but we do want to recognize HN Funkhouser and Company. They have generously, uh, provided $500 grants to each of Frederick County's 21 public schools to support math and science

012programs. The grants, which total $10,500, are the result of a partnership between HN Funkhouser and Company and the Exxon Mobile Educational Alliance. We appreciate their generous support. [Applause] And next up, we want to appreciate Navy Federal Credit Union. Tonight with us, Mr. Joe Dewald, uh, Miss Caitlyn Edinger, and Mr. J.R. Mandelle. Please come forward. Joe, Caitlyn, and Jr. are champions for our FCPS students in creating pathways for supporting youth in career exploration and career ready readiness. Navy Federal has created an education partnership with FCPS where they supported our classes through lesson engagement, our students through mentorship and e externship opportunities, and our community through service efforts and opportunities for students postgraduation. Thank you for supporting our students. [Applause] And next up representing Carmuse of Winchester that is Logan Thompson. Please come forward. This local community

013business plays a vital role in supporting students, teachers, and families. They generously provide meals to welcome new teachers, helping them feel appreciated and at home from the start. During staff appreciation week, they stepped up again with food and treats to celebrate the hardworking educators and staff at Stonewall Elementary School. Beyond the classroom, they helped to enhance the school grounds by donate donating mulch, plants, and flowers and landscape rocks to create a more inviting environment for all who visit. In the future, Carmuse has extended the an invitation for students to experience realworld hands-on learning opportunities and a schoolwide assembly. Their ongoing support strengthens the connection between the school and the broader community. We are truly thankful for their continued support and their commitment to our school community. Thank you. [Applause] And next up, representing the Jameswood

014High School Athletic Association, we have Megan and Judy Tingle. [Applause] Megan and Judy Tingle work tirelessly to support the Jameswood High School Athletic Association. They spend several evenings a week running concessions at our athletic events and cheering on our colonels. Thank you for your support. [Applause] [Laughter] And next rep representing Anony's Pizza in Steven sitting we have Hannah Amari and Melanie Amari. Please come forward. and the rest of the crew. This locallyowned family business continually goes out of their way to support Sharando High School through partnerships, donations, and working with our learning center students to provide valuable work-based learning experiences. We are grateful for their kindness and dedication to the Warrior community. Thank you so much for your support. [Applause] And next we have Ashley Grooms, the Orchard View Parent Teacher Organization President. Ashley tirelessly

015leads the PTO in areas that not only raise money to support the various initiatives of Orchard View, but also focuses on providing enriching family activities for the community of Orchard View. These activities include our trunk or treat event, bingo, movie night, spring fling, and the parent support breakfast for new kindergarten families dropping off their precious children for the first time. Mrs. Grooms maintains a full-time career and is a mom of a toddler, an elementary student, and a middle school student as well. She is the first to show up and the last to leave with a smile on her face. Ashley Grooms is all business when the business is Orchard View Elementary School and the Cardinal community. Thank you for your support. [Applause] And last, but certainly not least, representing CMA Subaru of Winchester, we have

016Cindy Bouch and Chuck Hannah. Please come forward. In a true testament to the power of community collaboration, Orchard View Elementary School and CMA Subaru of Winchester have forged an exceptional partnership, redefining what it means for local businesses to invest in education and community well-being under the inspiring leadership of Mandy Hley, CMA's general manager. This year has has seen a remark remarkable deepening of their shared commitment creating impactful and authentic learning experiences for the OVES students. Their collaboration includes a go green recycling club and integrating Subaru STEM insights into the curriculum, giving students valuable real world experience. Beyond academics, CMA Subaru provides substantial support from holiday and essential supplies for families to teacher empowerment via Adopt a Classroom and community fundraising through NESFest. Current and past OVES principles have all expressed heartfelt appreciation for their generosity,

017kindness, and self selflessness of those at CMA Subaru. Mr. Burke Ali, Mr. Bobby Williams, and Mrs. Mandy Hley have been truly remarkable, making the school feel special, exe exemplifying how strong community ties can transform education and foster a more vibrant community. Thank you so much for your support. No, it does. All right, we're at the point of our agenda. Oh, I guess we're I have admin appointments first. Yes, Mr. Chair. Um, all right. So, we have some admin appointments. Thank you, Mr. Chair. First, I would like to call up Mrs. Wendy Thousand as she joins us as the new coordinator of specialized programs. Please come on up. Give a round of applause. She previously served as coordinator of special education in Shannidoa County since 2022. Mrs. 000 was also a supervisor in SIS at FCPS

018for nine years, a special education teacher in various Virginia school districts since 1998. So a plethora of experience. She holds a bachelor's in psychology from Sunnia Suego, a master's in special education from Syracuse University, and a certificate in admin and supervision from Shannidoa University. Please join me again in congratulation congratulating Mrs. Wendy Thousand. Congratulations. Thank you. Mr. Chair, members of the board, Dr. Hummer, I wish to thank you for this opportunity to serve as the coordinator for specialized programs. I thank you for the opportunity to serve the students, the families, the teachers, and administrators of Frederick County Public Schools. Thank you again. Thank you. Next is Mr. Jamal Wamble. Please come on down as the new principal of Evenenddale Elementary School. Mr. Wamble previously served as the assistant principal at Jameswood Middle School since 2024.

019Prior to his time in Frederick County Public Schools, Mr. Womble served as a principal at Eastern Panhandle Preparatory Academy in Kernersville, West Virginia. assistant principal, dean of students, and classroom teacher at Fairmont Senior High and West Fairmont Middle School in Fairmont, West Virginia. Mr. WBLE holds a bachelor of arts and physical education from Fairmont State University, a master of educational leadership, and a master of curriculum and instruction from Salem University, and a masters of being an amazing dad. We see you on full display here this evening. So, please again join us in congratulating Mr. WLE. Congratulations. So, so, so first I would like to thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for everything he's done for me and for opening this door in my life. Um, and also like to thank my wonderful wife, um,

020who's been supporting me along along the way and everything that I do. Uh, Dr. Hummer, Mrs. Knight, Miss Goodwin, and our school board, thank you for believing in me and entrusting me with this great opportunity at Evendale. To my administrative team and staff at Jameswood Middle School, uh, thank you all for embracing and supporting and helping me to grow throughout this school year. Um we have an amazing team, not just uh teachers, but as you can see our administrative staff. Um we truly have a dream team uh led by Dr. Terara Woolover. Um I've learned so much from her and our team this year and I'm just so so thankful for them. And then last but certainly not least, I want to uh say to the even community that I'm humbled and truly honored to

021be your next principal. Um I hear great things about our our student staff and community and I'm eager to work with you and build relationships with you and uh for for great things moving forward. Thank you, sir. And to keep that energy going, we also want to announce the new assistant principal at Evenendale, Mrs. Melissa Cole. Please come on up. Having Yeah. Have the green on there. I like it. Having served as interim assistant principal at Evendale Elementary School for part of the 24-25 school year, Mrs. Culp formally steps into the role as new assistant principal at Evendale. She was a teacher in Washington County for 14 years before joining FCPS in 2015. She then moved into the role of instructional coach in 2019 and also served as the summer academy coordinator in 2024. Mrs.

022Mrs. Culp holds a bachelor's in education from Shepard College, a master of reading education from Frosburg State University, and has an educational leadership certificate from James Madison University. Please join me again in welcoming Mrs. Culp. Thank you, Dr. CR and the board. Thank you so much for entrusting me with this incredible responsibility. When I entered into Evenendale in the spring, that was um quite a surprise. It came quickly and immediately I felt at home in that school. It's a great community. I enjoyed getting to know the staff and the students and the families and I look forward to continuing that momentum and those relationships in the coming years. So, thank you. Congratulations. All right, just a couple more, Mr. Chair. Next, I would like to call up Miss Alyssa Moody as the next assistant principal

023at Gainesboro Elementary. Please come on up. Hey, Miss Moody joins FCPS from High-Rise Consulting. Since 2024, Miss Moody has served as a high school teacher in various sciences, adjunct instruction, and higher education, middle school technology specialist, and senior instructional technology coordinator in elementary school. Miss Moody will holds a bachelor's in biology from Stson University, a master's in educational leadership from Louisiana State University, and a certification in secondary education from St. Petersburg College. Please join me in congratulating Mrs. Moody. Welcome, Dr. Hummer, members of the school board, and Dr. Reeves. Thank you for the opportunity to serve Gainesboro Elementary School as assistant principal. I'm honored and grateful to join this community and I'm looking forward to forming deep connections with all of you and supporting our students and staff in a vibrant and joyful learning adventure.

024Let's do this. Thank you. Next is Miss Sage Jenkins as the new supervisor of special instructional services. Please come on down. Let's give her a round of applause. Since 2016, Miss Jenkins has worked for Stafford County Public Schools in a variety of roles in K5 self-contained autism as a specialist and a special education coordinator. She holds a bachelor's in education, a graduate certificate certification in autism spectrum disorders and a master's in special education from Bowling Green State University as well as a graduate certificate in educational leadership from George Mason University. Welcome, Mrs. Jenkins, and please join me in congratulating her. Thank you to the Frederick County team for bringing me on board. I am excited to support our students, families, and staff. Thank you. Okay, I would like to now call up Mrs. Sonia Sneeden.

025Please come on up as the new supervisor of professional learning and federal grants. Give her a round of applause. She moves into the role of supervisor of professional learning in federal grants from her position as a literacy coach and reading specialist at Bass Hoover Elementary School since 2015. Prior to her time in FCPS, Mrs. Needen was a reading specialist in Lowden County and a classroom teacher in Winchester City. She began her career as a registered nurse in pediatrics and she holds a bachelor's in nursing from James Madison University, a master's of education from Marrymont University, a reading specialist certification from Shannondoa University, and a certification administration and supervision from James Madison University. Please join me in congratulating her on her new role. Welcome. Thank you. You can tell I'm a lifelong learner for all of

026the schools that I've been to. I appreciate it. Board members, Dr. Hummer and Miss Knight. Um, over the past 10 years here at Frederick County, I've gotten to work with some absolutely amazing educators, and I'm just so honored to carry forth and collaborate on our professional learning mission and vision. Thank you. Thank you. All right, Mr. chair. Last but not least is our new hearing officer and our admin building administrator who is not able to be here this evening, but it's Mrs. Mary Moore. She's stepping into the role of hearing officer and admin building administrator, having been a home services support specialist in Frederick County since 2016. She was also a student support specialist, attendance officer, and homebound teacher in FCPS from 2003 to 2016. Prior to her time with FCPS, she was a case

027manager and secondary educator with Timber Ridge School as well as a lead community support specialist and mental health technician with each East Ridge Health Systems in Martinsburg, West Virginia. She holds a bachelor's in psychology with a minor in sociology from Shepard College, a master's in education at Old Dominion University, and a certification in educational administration and supervision from Shannidoa University. As you can see, all these administrators like to go to school, which is what we like to see. Um, so again, please join me in congratulating her and she said she'll be at the next meeting to say hello to everybody. So, thank you. With that, Mr. Chair, that is our admin appointments. Okay, we'll take a few minutes for those of you who would like to leave. Uh, we give you this opportunity to do

028so. And then, uh, after everyone who's wanting to leave goes, we will continue with our meeting. [Applause] [Music] Thank you very much. I feel very tall. Okay, we ready? All right, we'll uh get back into this meeting here. All right, we are at the point of our agenda to open up the public comment portion of our meeting regarding the strategic plan Ignite 2030. All comments should be related to this matter only. Madame clerk, do we have any signed up for comments on our strategic plan? We do not. No, sir. No one has signed up to speak on that. Is there a uh what's the pleasure of the board on that then? Mr. Chair, I suggest we just move on to public comment. Okay. Is there Mr. Chair, if I can recommend and then please, Mrs.

029Jordan, I would just recommend you just close um public comment and or close the plan and just move forward. I don't you don't need a motion. I would just recommend you close it and then move on to public comment. But Mrs. Jordan, please. All right. I I would agree with that. You could just close it. Okay. Then we will close that portion of the meeting since no one has signed. Next is citizen comments. Before I read this rather long spiel, is Frank from Gainesboro here? I was really hoping Frankenstein was going to speak tonight, but I guess not. Seeming as there is only one person signed up and I don't see any monsters in the audience. Um do we need a motion or can we dispense? Is Mr. Chair. Is there anyone else signed up

030on the list and I would suggest you move forward. Yeah, there's no and we will close public comments. Moving right along. Next is the reports. Dr. Hummer, you're up next with your superintendent report. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Um, welcome to our our new administrators. And also, just to be clear, those were all to fill vacancies. None of those were new positions. I know we got some questions on that. Um, we are very excited for these new individuals to be joining this amazing family, and we're looking forward to seeing the great things that they will be able to accomplish. Thanks again to our partners for all that they do for our students and for our community and our staff. I also want you all to know that we recognize that there are other partners in this

031amazing community that we work very closely with. And if there are any of those amazing partners that wish to be recognized at our yearly recognition, please just let us know. We're more than happy to recognize you, but we just want to make sure that we recognize these amazing staff or these amazing partners that support our staff and students. I also want to thank our staff who were recognized this evening. We have a lot of wonderful individuals and always go above and beyond and it's always to see a delight of our staff being recognized for additional work that they do. And just to brag a little bit more about Dr. Crawford, that was a state recognition. She was recognized at the state level for the great work that she does for our students and for our

032staff. And she is absolutely amazing. I think she already has headed out for the evening. But if you have ever worked with her or talked with her, you know that we are very lucky to have that gem here in Frederick County. So please um continue to thank her for all of her hard work for our students. So, with that being said, I do want to take a moment to highlight the work that is completed over the summer. Now, I know this won't be popular, but I've been working in the summer my entire career, and I do not like summers because I miss the kids. And I know that might not be popular. I know some folks need some need a break sometimes, but I miss the kids running in the halls and working and um

033and I just miss them. So, but with that being said, we do have a lot of work that is happening in our schools every day over the summer. First, I want to recognize our custodians. They do fantastic work to get the schools ready for the start of the school year. From our floors to cleaning carpets to getting in the crevices, doing everything they need to do so our schools are spotless. Literally spotless for the start of the school year. Our schools don't start that way. It takes a lot of work for our custodians to do that amazing work. I also want to thank our technology staff. I was in Jameswood High School the other day and there was some technology staff walking around saying, "Hey, what are you guys doing?" And they're updating technology, installing

034technology, getting things ready for the start of the school year. There's a lot of work that goes into that. Um, we also have our central office folks. We spend hours on end of hiring and working through our finances, getting stuff ready for budget, conducting training, preparing materials for the VA and the strategic plan. There is a lot of work that happens over the summer. Facilities and planning, not only they working during the week, they're working on the weekends because they have a timeline to get things done before kids come in for the start of the school year. So, there is a lot of accelerated work that is working at behind the scenes every single day to make sure that our schools are running pleasantly with no issues. We also have summer school. Summer school started

035last week. We also have our English, excuse me, our end of school year services for kids with disabilities. So, our bus drivers are on the road. We have our bus drivers, our bus aids, we have teachers, we have administrative assistants. So, not only are administrators getting ready for the start of the year, they're also maintaining students as they come into the building. So, we greatly appreciate all of these individuals for all of their hard work for keeping our schools running smoothly as we prepare for the start of the school year, which is right around the corner. So, with that being said, I do have some important dates because I know we're still going back and forth if we are going to have a board meeting in July that I want to make sure that everybody

036keeps on their radar. I will continue to communicate these dates to you in the community, but for for information sakes. First, we have our new staff coming back on July 28th. That is called our staff ignites week. And I in I invite each board member to come on July 29th where we do a big kickoff for all of our new staff. I know some of you have attended that in the past. We have a red carpet that comes out. We provide them with professional development learning. We say a few words to them. So, if you're interested and you want to say a few words, then please let me know. More than happy to sign you up for that. We are also going to be doing something new this year and doing a kickoff to the

037school year and we're going to do a virtual kickoff. So, we're going to almost do like a like a news station type thing. We'll be at a school and we'll put something up virtually and we'll say, "Hey, how is Evendale doing?" And they'll do a big shout and a big celebration. We'll say, "How's Milbrook doing?" So, Mrs. Helcowsky and her team are currently working on the logistics there. I know our media and communication guys are super excited about that to get to every single school, but it is going to be amazing and we're looking forward to kicking the school year off on the right foot. So, with that being said, if you recall, we had a little tailgate kickoff here at Jameswood Middle School last year, which went very well. So, well, we need more

038space this year. So, we actually are going to hold it at Milbrook on August 5th, and we are going to have all the same resources that we had last time. Free haircuts, so our kids will be looking sharp on that first day of school. Free book bags, we'll have materials, we're going to have our safety fair folks there, we're going to have our sheriff's office there. So, again, another great way to start this school year off on the right foot. So, we're getting really excited about that and we invite each of you to attend. Lastly, we continue to receive a lot of positive feedback on transition day. And as a reminder, that's something that we started 2 years ago where we have one day of only rising kinder, rising sixth, and rising 9inth. We continue

039to receive a lot of feedback on that for not only academic purposes, but for operational purposes. Let me give you an example of that. We had a bus driver on transition day that had a new route because again it was the first part of the year and they recognized they missed a stop. Now, if it was the standard first day of school, because of the routes and because of how many kids are on the bus, they would not have been able to go back. So, they were able to go back, get the kids, come into school with no delay, and then the next day when all the kids were ready, they knew where to go for for the next day. So, operationally, it really helps. It helps with administrators get used to new buses. And

040I love to say share this. This is not a judgment please, but it really helps our rising kindergarten parents too for especially letting their firstborns go to school where they need that extra time to walk their kid to the front door. Sometimes there's some tears that I don't mind wiping off for them. But it's just a good time to get excited for the school year and help our kids to transition in, especially for a rising 6th and 9th. That can be a really big deal and intimidating coming into a new school. So, we're very excited about that. And then the first day of school will be August 14th um for for the rest of of our our students. So, we're really really excited about that and uh getting the school year started. Um a as

041uh m Mr. Funez, um that was that was hard and and Scott, I I really appreciate you commemorating that that moment of silence and I I can't believe that he's not sitting here with us. Um that that was hard. But please keep his keep his family in in our our thoughts and prayers and um he will never be forgotten. He was a great guy and um we we're going to miss him. So thank you. Thank you for that. And I would add that we've placed Frank's picture back up on the wall so we keep him in our thoughts all the time. So, uh, sorry about that. Um, all right. So, lastly, for those that don't know, we got some mixed emotions here this evening. We have Mr. Goodwin who is leaving us. Um, he is

042going to be the next superintendent for Greenwood School District 50 in South Carolina. Uh, he is he has touched many many souls in this community. Uh, and he is going to be truly missed. Um, we are so proud of you. Um, I know that we'll we'll always keep a place in our heart in this for this amazing community. Um, and he leaves behind a very very big shadow to replace and his impact on the school division and community will never be forgotten. Um, please never lose your people first mentality. Always keep kids first. And I shared with them, stay humble. You you have a a very very big job and you can do it. And you we're just proud of you and we're going to see the great things that you're going to do. So,

043I do have a small token to to um show our our our thankfulness and um if you can come on up and we'll we'll take a picture and give him a round of applause. Everybody, [Applause] just a small little token. Pick the design out myself. Mr. And then Mr. Sturan has a little Don't run off. Um, as I've said time and again, I have appreciated you, your your faithfulness, your dedication to do. You've been a pretty good guy. He even came and heard me preach once. So, he blew off his own church service to come all the way to Maryland to hear me preach. and I and I thought, how could I um honor you and and and and show you how much I appreciate everything you've done? So, uh if you'll recall back at

044the Little Feet uh uh Special Olympics we had, I I got a picture of you and I threatened to use it. But not only did I use it, I I've also given you a uh slogan for your new job, which is game on. So, I want to present this [Applause] Scott, if I had pom poms, you would [Applause] take a moment of privilege if you don't mind at the podium. Absolutely. Um, I just wanted to simply say thank you for the privilege to serve this community. Uh, Dr. Hummer and the members of the board, Mr. Chair, Madame Vice Chair, members of the board, it's been a privilege and an honor of my life and I won't ever forget it. not only you, but the people that I'm able to serve and meet and spend time

045with. So, just thank you for believing in me and trusting me to do this work, and I look forward to the next time we see each other again. So, thank you for the opportunity. All right, Mr. Chair, that's all I had. Thank you. Thanks, guys. Man, I thought this was going to be easy breezy, but this has been an emotional roller coaster. All right. So, up next we have new business. So, first we have uh unfinished business. I'm sorry, Mr. Chair. Unfinished business. First, it says new business on here. Nope. Superintendent report. Okay. I'm just reading from the script. Oh, apologies. It's next up is strategic plan. It is on the agenda. Okay. So, my apologies. Um, so next up is the approval of strategic plan. We presented this to the instructional committee. We also

046presented at the last board meeting. We just had the um the public comment in regards to the strategic plan. So, it is up for your approval this evening. We're here to answer any questions that you have. It is posted to the website. You all have seen that. We did get a request to see all of the data that went into that plan. We're more than happy to provide that. I'll put that in the weekly and if anyone else wants to see that, we're more than happy to share that as well. Um there was a lot of work that went into this plan as we've discussed. Mrs. Knight and her team uh did a fantastic job of of scrubbing it and getting it to meet and tailor the needs of of the direction you guys want

047us to go in and I feel like we captured that. So that is up for your approval this evening, Mr. Chair. Okay. Well, I apologize for the kurfuffle here. So, do we have a motion? Mr. Chair, I move that the board adopt the proposed Frederick County Public Schools 5-year strategic plan, Ignite 2030, as presented. Second. Get the steps. I forgot to get this. We have a motion and it has been seconded. Is there any discussion? Mr. Chair, Mr. Atkins, I wanted to say thank you to Miss Knight and her team um for really knocking this out of the park. Um this strategic plan, if anybody's uh breezed through it, it's not a breeze through, it's pretty lengthy. Um but um it it really puts core academics first and that's something that you know I feel

048that we were missing with Inspire 2025. Um I think this will set our students up for success later on in life um and through their academic careers. So um thank you once again for all the hard work, all the tireless hours. I know there's been a lot of other folks out there working on this with you. Um, so thank you to you and your staff once again. Mr. Chair, I also have a comment. So, um, Mrs. Knight, again, echoing Mr. Atkins accolades. I have heard from so many people in the community that were part of the focus groups that you worked with and everything I have heard has been positive. I have not heard one negative thing and these individuals would have told me if there was any negative. So, um, all positive things and

049I love the feedback I got from them was they loved and I love too the fact that you pulled people from different different walks of life, different opinions and you put them all in one room and you were able to hear everyone and glean everyone's opinion and bake it into this Ignite 2030. So, kudos to you. Thank you for producing this product. It's 16 pages of of solid hard work and I really look forward to seeing where we are in five years as a result of a result of the processes and procedures that are going to be put in place to make this effectuate this plan. So don't let Shane copy and paste it. Take it with him. Yeah. Mr. Chair, [Laughter] Dr. Erskin, is that you? Yes, sir. I just wanted to take a

050brief moment to say thank you to Miss Knight um for the work that went into this. One of the things I think I'm most proud of that we got to see during the instruction committee is the number of voices that ended up in this plan. Um the student involvement, parent involvement, teacher involvement, staff. Um this is a community plan and I'm really proud of that because this is something we can all say that we invested in and we created. It wasn't something done, it's something we did. Um, I also appreciate the boldness with which some of these academic markers have been laid down. Um, there is no better better team out there um to meet them and I and I'm certain that we're going to meet them. Any other discussion? I guess I'll be the

051bad guy then. Um, several months ago we had the discussion on the uh last plan. What was it? Inspire 2025 and I had several issues with that that I brought up and we got into a discussion on um DEI and I made my uh comments known on that subject and during the presentations on this current proposal uh some of the words that I said if I found them in there I was not going to vote for it made it into the uh uh presentations that led up to this. and I thought long and hard on this. Um has been a lot of hard work and and I've read it several times. Those words that I detest are not in this thing. So I am going to give it my approval, but I came very close

052to saying no. Uh because those words kept creeping up and not trying to start World War II here. But um there are just certain things I don't think should be in our policies and those three words are uh them. So I just had to speak my piece. So, with that said, hearing no further discussion, the motion has been made and properly seconded. Do we need to do a roll call vote on this? You can roll call anything you desire. It's up to you guys. Yeah. Uh, Madam Clerk, call a roll on it then. Mr. Atkins, I. Dr. Erskin, I. Mrs. Klene, I. Mr. Sturdivan, I. Mr. Bell. That's a big I, Miss Caruso. I, Miss Martin, I. All right. We now have a strategic plan. Okay. Uh, next is new business. Am I correct this

053time? Yes, sir. All right. It takes a minute, but I usually get there. All right. First up is the student and conduct support meeting from May 22nd. I believe Miss Caruso is going to be reading that for us. Yes. So, a meeting of the student conduct and support committee of the Frederick County School Board was held on April 22nd, 2025. The meeting was called to order at 4:02 p.m. and a copy of the minutes has been provided to each board member. During the meeting, the committee went into a close session to review and discuss individual student matters that would involve specific students and particular information contained in their scholastic records, including disciplinary matters pursuant to Virginia Code section 2.2-3711 A.2. After reconvening and certifying the closed section session, the committee voted to uphold the hearing

054officer's recommendation on a 3 to zero vote. The meeting adjourned at 5:54 p.m. Additional details regarding the information covered at the committee meeting are included in the minutes provided to board members. I move the board approve the minutes from the student conduct and support committee meeting held on May 22nd, 2025. Second. All right, we have a motion that has been properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Any opposed? Next, we have the personnel committee meeting from June 2nd, 2025. I believe that's also Yeah, I'm warmed up now. A meeting of the personnel committee of the Frederick County School Board was held on June 2nd, 2025. The meeting was called to order at 4:33 p.m. and a copy of the minutes have been provided to each

055board member. During the meeting, Miss Ranker gave uh Mrs. Ranker gave a staffing update which included professional vacancies of FY26, teacher vacancies by content FY26 and support vacancies FY26 and professional vacancies filled as of May 23rd, 2025. She also shared the celebrations of recruitment efforts and gave a recruitment and retention update. Mrs. Edward Johnson discussed the FCPS employee services update to include the FCPS employee benefit highlight of retirement investment and Miss Freley shared a grievances and concerns process and protocols review. The meeting adjourned at 4:58 p.m. Additional details regarding the information covered at the committee meeting are included in the minutes provided to board members. Are there any questions from board members about information shared at the personnel committee meeting held on June 2nd? I move the board approve the minutes from the personnel committee

056meeting held on June 2nd, 2025. Second. Motion was made and properly seconded. Any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? Next is the instruction committee meeting report from June 2nd, 2025. And Mr. Chair, I'll go ahead and read that. Mr. Bell, if that's okay with you, just in case we have any uh disconnects in the virtual link. Um, right. Excellent. Excellent. The instruction committee report for June 2nd, 2025. A meeting of the instruction committee of the Frederick County School Board was held on June 2nd, 2025. The meeting was called to order at 5:35 p.m. and a copy of the minutes has been provided to each board member. During the meeting, Dr. Zeiss concluded or correction discussed Chromebooks and the role of instructional technology in learning and instructional

057technology and the plan and role of artificial intelligence AI. Mrs. Hindgardner, did I get that correct? Hinduard. Yes. Thank you. Mrs. Hindgardner shared title one part A, title two part A, title three part A, and title four part A. Mrs. Hedley disc discussed title three part A and Mr. Strong review title one part D. Mrs. Knight discussed migrant education and Mrs. Jordan shared the proposed new policy 214P, student representative to the school board. The meeting adjourned at 6:41 p.m. Additional details regarding the information covered at the committee meeting are included in the minutes provided to board members. Are there any questions from board members about information shared at the instruction committee meeting held on June 2nd? Hearing none, there are five motions, so bear with me. The first being I move the board approve the

058proposed title one part A, title two part A, title three part A, and title 4 part A grants. Second. Second. Motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. I. Any opposed? That's carried. I move the board approve the proposed Title One Part D grant. Second. Motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. I. Any opposed? Carries. I move the board approve the migrant education regional program memorandum of understanding and certification and authorize the chair and superintendent to execute the memorandum of understanding and certification in substantiality in substant instant insubstantially the same form is presented. Second second motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there

059any discussion? Hearing none all those in favor signify by saying I. I I I Any opposed? Mr. Chair, I move the board adopt the proposed policy 214P, student representative to the school board as presented. Second. We have a motion and it has been properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. I. Any opposed? Carries. And finally, Mr. Chair, I move the board approve the minutes from the instruction committee meeting held on June 2nd, 2025. Second. Motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? That carries. Next is the building and buildings and grounds committee meeting from June 9, 2025. Mr. Chair, a meeting of the building and grounds committee

060of Frederick County Public Schools was held on June 9th, 2025. The meeting was called to order at 4:30 p.m. and a copy of the amendments have been provided to each board member. During the meeting, Mr. Davis discussed the cap uh capitalist highlights. Mr. Kenny gave an update on the capital improvement plan uh projects and Mr. Shepard shared uh updates for the fourth high school. He also discussed contract awards for dairy products, janitorial supplies, school nutrition service, school nutrition services, paper and plastic products, and a boiler replacement at Bass Hoover Elementary. Um, the meeting adjourned at 50:01 p.m. Additional details regarding the committee meeting are included in the minutes provided to each board member. Uh, do do board members have any questions about what was covered at the building and grounds committee meeting held on June

0619th? All right, hearing none. I've got several action items. Um, first one, I move uh the board approve the contract award to Galky Dairy Company for dairy products in the amount of $548,19918. Second. Motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Mr. Atkins, if I if I remember correctly, you asked a question about that. Could you clarify for the audience, please? Yeah, so my question on that was we already pro uh contract with a nutritional services that provides um school lunches for instance. Um however, they don't provide the little tiny milk cartons. Um so this is for milk cartons um for the schools throughout the county. That's all that is. Thank you. Be nice to roll it all into one though. It would be but any further discussion hearing none. All those

062in favor signify by saying I. I. I. I. Any opposed? We have milk. Drink your milk. Ne. Next. Hold on. I I move the board approve of the contract award to Weiss Brothers of Hagertown LLC janitorial supplies in the amount not to exceed $275,000. Second. Motion was made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. I. I. All right. Next. I move the board. hearing none. That passes. There you go. Jump the gun. Um I move the board approve the contract award to Weiss Brothers of Hagertown LLC for school nutritional service papers and plastic products in the amount not to exceed $250,000. Second. Motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. Mr. Chair, Mr. Chair, I have a question

063if I may. Yes, Mr. Bell. Um it I guess the answer doesn't uh completely matter, but I'm wondering do we uh when we go out for these bids, do we look at uh local vendors first, Virginia vendors as opposed to going all the way up to Maryland? So to to um our understanding or to my understanding, we go what we're obligated to do and that is take the lowest bidder. Um, however, if there are local vendors who want to um get in the bidding process, there is a process to do that on our website and they are more than welcome to sign up for that. We're getting head nods from our executive director of finance. Thank you, Mr. She coached me up before. Uh, thank you. All right, any further discussion? Motion was made, properly

064seconded. All those in favor signify by saying I. I I. Any opposed? Next, I move the board approve a contract award to Valley Boiler and Mechanical, Inc. for boiler replacement at Bass Hoover Elementary School for the amount of $378,800. Second. Motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? Last one. I move the board approve the minutes of the building and grounds committee meeting held on June 9th, 2025. Second. Motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? Next is the committee report student conduct and support committee meeting from June 9th, 2025. A meeting of the student conduct and stu uh support committee

065of the Frederick County School Board was held June 9th, 2025. The meeting was called to order at 5:32 p.m. and a copy of the minutes has been provided to each board member. During the meeting, Mrs. Jordan gave general updates to the code of con code of student conduct. Mr. Bolan shared a bus conduct update and Dr. Meyers and Mrs. Muldown gave an update on the dress code. Mrs. Jordan discussed portable communication devices and shared next steps. The meeting adjourned at 6:19 p.m. Additional details regarding the information covered at the committee meeting are included in the minutes provided to board members. Are there any questions from the board members about information shared at the student conduct and support committee meeting on June 9th? All right. I move the board approve the minutes from the student conduct

066and support committee meeting held on June 9th, 2025. Second. Motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Any opposed? [Applause] Next on the new business is calendar update. Did you want to make that or do you want me to read it? Um if I could just make just a little quick little note on this, Mr. Certivant. So after having conversation with the instructional team in our schools, we just wanted to switch those days in that particular week because the divisionwide PD was typically done. But with Mrs. Knight and her team, if we can do that on Wednesday, so that gives them the rest of the week to get ready to process that information so they can also process the next two

067days for the following week, which is typically the back- tochool nights. And it just made sense for us as a whole. I also want to make a quick little note, too. This is the second year of our two-year calendar. So, in the fall, we are going to be developing the next two years of calendar and we're going to be using this information to put that in for next year, but we do have to make this adjustment on the calendar because you already approved it and we just want to bring it before you before we just make that change. So, that's it in a nutshell. So, you want me to just read it then? That'd be fantastic. All right. And if there's any questions, of course. Thank you. We are going to make August 6, 2025

068a divisionwide professional development day and August 8, 2025 a collaboration learning planning day in respective buildings. We don't need to vote on that. I would say so move. I would make a recommendation. Yep. And Mr. Chair, I move the board amend the 202526 school calendar as follows. August 6th will be changed from a teacher correction. in August 6th, 2025 will be changed from a teacher work day to a division professional learning day and August 8th, 2025 will be changed from a division professional learning day to a teacher workday. Second motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. I. Any opposed? Have it changes to the calendar. Next on the agenda is the appointment of a deputy clerk. Yes, sir. Mr.

069Chair, so we had a changeover of one of the executive assistants. So Mrs. Whitney Scrugs is now joining Mrs. Knight as her executive assistant and to provide support for Mrs. Dantis in case she's out or needs someone to step in. Each of the executive assistants step in as a deputy clerk, they have to be sworn in and you all have to approve that before that goes downtown. So that is up for you for approval this evening, sir. All right, sounds great. Mr. Chair, I move that the board appoint Mrs. Whit Miss Whitney Scrugs to serve as deputy clerk and to approve the resolution setting for the bond for the school board deputy clerk that sets the amount of the corporate security bond shy bond at $10,000 and authorize the per payment of the shity. Wow,

070reading tonight is difficult shity bond on behalf of the deputy clerk. Wow. Second motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. I. I. Any opposed. That passes. I know. You want me to read it again? I should. I should get the practice. Next, we have U. Dr. Hummer with his communication plan. So, I will turn it back over to you, sir. Yes. Thank you, Mr. Chair. This was something we developed two years ago with the previous board. And as you all know, communication is very, very important to me from how we interact, from how I interact with my staff, from how you interact with our staff. And it's very important that we all stay on the same page with that

071communication. So that's not something that we had ever brought before you all in regards to making any adjustments. You've seen it and because I presented it to you all, but we did have some discussions and and we made a recommendation for an addition which is in red in the plan and that is up for your approval. And of course, if you have any questions or discussion or if we want to add anything else on there, I do want to make something very very clear as well is that I as as you know I have very high standards for a lot of things that we do and communication is a high standard I have for all of my staff as well. Um and they know that we need to be communicative and that we need to

072always be on the same page. So if there are any issues with any level of communication, please let me know because that is something that I address because as you know that's something that I hold to a high standard. So with that open up for discussion and it is up for your approval this evening, Mr. chair. All right. And Mr. Chair, I move that the board approve the proposed amendment to the superintendent's communication plan as presented. Second. Second. Motion has been made, properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? No. All right, we had one no, so that motion carries. And next up is weapons detection system. Okay. So, um, first and foremost, I want to thank the the school board for all

073your support with these additional layers that we've added into our schools as I've promised and hopefully you see that I've I'm following through on is safety and security is very very important to me. It's my top priority. Mr. Conlin and Mrs. Williamson have done a fantastic job of making sure that all these layers are being implemented with fidelity. We've added on supports at our schools. We've changed locks. We've just done a numerous things. We have a fantastic relationship with our sheriff's office and one of those areas that we wanted to add on as another layer is is weapons detection. We had this awful traumatic incident at Jordan Springs that um we are very lucky that gun did not go off and we have received nothing but support from this community in regards to adding on

074this additional layer. I know you all have been very vocal about that as well. So, we're very thankful for the board of supervisors to support this extra layer of capital dollars so that we can add on this this equipment. As I've mentioned to you, when we put this uh estimate together back in March, it was $852,000. We recognize that. Remember, we added those wands on. So, that is why you see the difference in that cost, but the board of supervisors approved the 852 and then we have money in our fund 59 for those wands. So, that's why you see two separate motions there. And I I I mentioned that to you all. So up for any discussion and again I thank you and the board of supervisor for adding these on adding this additional layer

075for the safety of our students and staff and community. Thank you Mr. Chair. Excellent. Mr. Chair, I move that the board accept the capital fund transfer from the board of supervisors in the amount of $852,557 for the purchase of weapon detection systems. Second. Motion has been made and properly seconded. Is there any discussion? Mr. Chair, Mr. Mr. Chairman, let Mr. Brad can go first and then I'll get you next. Dr. Erskin. Um, I guess my question is for Mr. Conlin. Um, if you wouldn't mind coming up. I think you already know. I'm going to ask. How quickly can we get them in? When's the first day they'll be implemented? Um, so that people in the community can know that the tax dollars that they're spending, it's I mean, it's not our money. It's not the

076board of supervisor money. It's taxpayers money. and they expect these kids to be safe. How quickly can we get these things ordered, installed, and people trained? So, we'll be ordering these tomorrow. Um, I believe they said approximately 7 weeks. When we initially looked at this, they had them in stock, but because of events, recent events around the country, they've gone through all their stock. Um, but they they assured us that we'll have them within 7 weeks. Um, we're going to have Chia out here to perform training and if all goes as planned, we'll start implementing around the second or third week of school. I want to let our students and staff get get into the buildings first and then we can roll those out. Understood. My question about that and on timing with that is

077last year um toward the beginning of the school year, we had the first um incident across several counties and uh I think across the country where people were calling in with bomb threats or gun threats or active shooter threats or some sort of threat. I think it was a shooter threat. Um it it happened in Winchester City, happened here um in some of the other schools across the valley. Um, I just want to make sure that that we're prepared in time because people want to want to like celebrate, you know, celebrate is probably a bad word, but um other active shooter anniversaries um or first days of school um and I I just want to make sure that we are prepared and and on track for that. We'll we'll work with Dr. Hummer and with

078Shia to make sure that they're implemented and the training is is done correctly so that our staff and our students are all very comfortable with the system. I appreciate you. Thank you. May I uh let Dr. Erskin go his Dr. Erskin? I'm happy to defer to Miss Cruso if she wanted to make a comment. Okay. I just wanted to see if you could clarify who was being trained. Our staff. Our administrative staff. Okay. Great question. Um and m can I Mr. Chair, if I may. Great question, Mrs. Caruso. So what we do is we work with each school and they assign staff. They're going to be working with those devices and the school will let us know those staff. Of course, our administrators will be trained and then we go out and provide that a

079training. I'm more than happy to have you guys come out and you can see these um in in action and to see the work that goes into them. So we're more than happy to have you guys come out and invite you there, but that we usually utilize the principles in regards to who needs to be trained. So thank you for that. Miss Grusa. Dr. Erskin, did you have a comment, sir? Yes, sir. I just wanted to say a couple of thank yous to the board of supervisors as well as Dr. Hummer and his staff for pushing so hard for this. Um, Mr. Dunn, Mr. Leo, uh, Mr. Wells, Miss McCann Slaughter, uh, I think I'm forgetting somebody. Um, I really, Mr. Jewel, Mr. Juel, John Juel, thank you for your support of this very important

080initiative. I can maybe name on two fingers the things that everybody in every party can agree on when it comes to education. And one of those two things is keeping uh keeping the people in our schools safe. Um that is a completely nonpartisan issue. Shame on the two of the people on the board of supervisors who opposed this. Um but I am very thankful to those of you who supported this uh because it is the right thing to do. Mr. Chair, Mr. Bell. Yes. Thank you. Um, I just want to say thank you to uh the board of supervisors uh for coming to us in the very beginning and asking us if we wanted to have these in our schools and then going through the process and uh getting it done um in their last

081board of supervisors meeting. I also want to thank uh Dr. Hummer and his team for the complete transparency in which they showed to the committee when presenting the information that was requested by the board of supervisors and uh doing such a great job that we ended up getting uh getting what we needed to ensure that our children um are safe in our schools because that is the number one priority um of of what we should be thinking of. um because if they aren't safe, they can't learn. And if they can't learn, then well, we're failing. So, this is a good step forward. Thank you very much, Dr. Hummer, and to your team for uh getting this done for us. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Bell. And uh I will add that uh for all those

082naysayers over the fa past few months where I've read the comments in the papers and in on social media that we don't care about the safety of the children, partnering with the Center for Missing and Exploited Children, being the only school system in the country to do so so far. And and this weapons detection system proves that we are dead serious about the safety and security of our schools. and anyone who says otherwise is talking out of their backside because that is not the case. So with that said um sorry uh with that said motion has been made and properly seconded. Um no any more further discussion. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Any opposed? That has passed. And Mr. Mr. Chair, I move the board appropriate 16,000 from the unobligated capital

083projects fund for the purchase of weapon detection systems. And specifically, just for clarification to the public, this is the or didn't I? No, no, there's two. There's two. We're good. Um, this is, as Dr. Hummer mentioned, this is for the pro to acquire the wands that will be necessary at all of the locations. So, that's what this extra 16,000 is for. Okay. Motion has been made and properly seconded. Any discussion? hearing none. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. I. Any opposed. Alrighty then. With that said, next we have board member comments. Would anyone care to make a comment from the deis? Oh, me. Please go ahead. I just wanted to thank um the board, the school system, the administrators, and all the teachers that I've got to work with so far

084and being so welcoming and showing me the ropes because this is not an easy position. And um thank you for believing me. It's not lost on me that I'm here because Mr. Fnaz is not and um my thoughts are with him and obviously the community. Um he deeply affected a lot of people. So, um I look forward to working with more of you. Um please continue to reach out. I love hearing from you and I want to work with um as many parents in the community and teachers, administrators as possible while I'm getting warmed up and I truly thank you. That's over. All right, Mr. Chair, Mr. Atkins, uh well, Miss Cruz, you're hitting the ground running. So, we appreciate you being here and uh thank you and everybody who stepped up. Um, you know,

085went through the interview process. I know that can't be fun. Um, but yeah, we appreciate community support and I I think it speaks volumes to this community. I see there's people out there right now that are running for school board and you know, thank you to you guys for doing that. Um, it's it's all about community involvement. you know, back in I I think a few years ago, it was hard to find somebody to even run for school board or anything like that. So, thank you. Um, and people going on advisory committees as well. Um, I wanted to say uh congratulations and uh to our staff and our uh community members who uh received awards tonight. Uh congratulations to those folks um for being part of the community once again and um and and going

086that extra mile and being recognized. um our new administrative appointments. Welcome to the team. Um some people just changing roles, but you know, glad to have you in those roles. Um thank you for sticking with us. Um graduations, wow, how awesome was that? Um I was able to attend all graduations except for Sharando this year. Um had an out of town trip planned. Um, but the work that goes on behind the scenes with security, with the media guys, we we had a discussion yesterday about that. Um, you guys are just nonstop. You think school's out during the summer, but these guys are here and we're keeping them here longer with me yapping and everything. So, I'll try to make it a little bit shorter. Um, but thank you uh for everything you do. Uh Shane,

087man, I'm I'm happy for you. I am I'm proud to see the trajectory that you're on. Um I know that you'll take a lot of the great stuff we have here at FCPS and blessed upon those people down there in South Carolina. Um so I'm going to miss our our Monday meetings. Um you know, you know, little little inside baseball. Um so I chair the building and grounds committee meeting. So my uh assistant superintendent that I am on point with for that was Shane. And every month or one Monday a month, we would meet uh prior to our meeting and we would discuss what was on there. Uh what we had going uh uh toward Fourth High School, toward appropriations of funds, just allocating land, trying to get land, uh working in and out on

088on just uh uh deals with other uh vendors. So, he's kept me informed every step of the way. He's went above and beyond to to meet the high demands I've had at times of, hey, can we put this on the agenda or I want to see it done this way. Um, you know, can we get um all the bids put on there? So, I appreciate everything you've done, all the hoops that have made you jump through, but I I definitely definitely appreciate it. um he's he's just been fantastic to work with. So, unfortunately, we're losing you. But fortunately for you, you know, and in your career trajectory, we want to see you do good things. And that school down South Carolina, I don't even want to mention their name right now. I'm so mad. Um

089but uh you they're they're really lucky and blessed to have you. So, thank you for all you've done. Um, and lastly, um, you know, Frank, uh, was one of the first people I met when I moved here. Um, he had this old, um, uh, pistol. It was bred of 92. He kept locking up on him and stuff. And we took it apart and started discussing his his, uh, military background. He was in the Navy. um served for for a few years, served one last minute term, and um you know, he's type of guy that uh always put uh service above self, whether he was going to the military, volunteering to be on this board, helping out with other community stuff. Um during my campaign, he helped me door knock. Um which if you if you've

090ever noticed, Frank didn't move too good. Um but but he was out there beating on doors with me. So um man, anything that you needed from that guy, he would bend over backwards to help you out. He's he always had that gruff sounding voice and it was hard to hear him sometimes when he'd read his reports, but um man, he he was just a hell of a guy. Uh he'd show up at over at the house, just come by and check on you and see how you're doing. So, um I'm really thankful uh for having that friend uh his family, you know, sharing uh Frank with us. So, thank you, Mr. Chair. Yeah. Yeah. Go ahead. Uh thank you. Um I finally get to say this. Shane. Shane, Come back, Shane. Um, we're going to

091miss you a great deal, sir. And I have enjoyed the time that I've gotten to know you. Um, I've enjoyed the, uh, discussions we've had, and I am thoroughly impressed with the work that you've done on behalf of the citizens, students, teachers, and staff of Frederick County Public School and Frederick County in general. Um, I wish you all the luck in the world. I hope that South Carolina becomes a great family to you and helps you to grow even more into the role that you are are going to be taking. Um, good luck to you. I hope that we can remain in contact with you. Um, certainly want to hear all the good things that you're doing. Um, and uh, you can always reach out to us at any time. Um, so good luck and

092you will be missed. Um, thank you or sorry, congratulations to all of the administrative appointments and all of the kudos that we gave out today or tonight. Um, and about Frank, I have to say that he was uh the first candidate that spoke to me um at a meeting that was held at one of the farms in the area and we had a nice conversation. Um, at one point a gentleman came up and started talking to both of us and uh, he thought I said that I was a physics teacher and apparently he was somewhat of a physics person and started telling me all of these things in about physics and Frank and I would just kind of look at each other. We had no idea what he was saying but we always got a

093good laugh out of that. Frank had an incredible sense of humor. an incredible sense of humor and I think I'm going to miss that the most. Um, and you know, if if I just wish I had been able to get to know him even more uh because he was one heck of a guy. Um, and as for the strategic plan, Miss Knight, kudos to you. You did an incredible job with your team. I've thoroughly enjoyed sitting in our premeings and our meetings, getting to know how you work, getting to know how your team works, and it's extremely impressive um how you work and I I I'm blown away. I you know, I think it was Miles that or someone said that they can't wait to see what it's what things are going to be like

094in five years. I I can't wait to see what things are going to be like next year because that's how good this plan is because I think that we will see real change and positive momentum um within a year easily. Uh the last thing I want to talk about is a program that my daughter attended through Frederick County Public Schools at Laurel Ridge and with uh Winchester Medical Center. It was an incredible experience for her. I understand it's been going on for a number of years. And for my daughter, she's been struggling within herself at 15 to figure out what it is that she wants to do with her life. And my wife and I keep telling her, "You're 15. You you don't need to know." And of course, that doesn't sit well with her

095because she's 15. Um, at any rate, she believes that because of this program, it has solidified uh the idea in her mind that she wants to do something in the medical field. Now, as far as narrowing it down to being a doctor, being a nurse practitioner, being this, that, or the other, she's not sure about that, but she knows definitely that she wants to be a um be in the medical field. And that's something that Frederick County Public Schools has done for me and my family. And I want to thank Frederick County Public Schools for the amazing talent, for the amazing work that all of you do in all of your schools. And I just think that that's something we should shout from the from the treetops. the the types of these programs that that

096can make a difference in a child's life, in a child's learning. So, thank you very very much for that. And uh I I guess that's it. I don't have any receipts. Sorry, Mr. Chair. Dr. Erskin, I promise to be quick because I can see the excitement on everybody's faces. Uh, Miss Cruso, thank you for holding down the fort for me and reading those committee reports as well as for being such an amazing new member to this board and to the committee zero with me. I sincerely appreciate you. Uh, to Mr. D Santis and to the uh, AV expert uh, the wizards behind the curtain, thank you for making virtual attendance a meeting um, uh, an option for me this evening. I appreciate it very much. I think it's something that allowed us allows us to

097continue conducting business. Um and and having missed my first meeting, I don't really feel I missed missed it and I appreciate you guys for that. Uh Mr. Goodwin, I as I've told you many times, I think the world of you. Um even before I um worked with you here in Frederick County, working with you in another school system, um these people have no idea what a class act of a human being they're getting. Um, and I want you to know that I think you're leaving Frederick County Public Schools in even better shape than you found it. Uh, and that's probably the measure of good leadership and thank you for that. U, Dr. Crawford, congratulations on your award. All the other students and staff, um, congrats on the accolades tonight and Mr. Chair, thank you for

098your patience. Mr. Chair, I will make this very quick folks. I understand it's almost 8:30. So, first of all, Shane, congratulations, but at the same time, my heart breaks because I loved having you as part of the staff. The only silver lining I can see is there's no no more 2 am getups to go survey roads for winter winter operations in South Carolina, unless there is some freak storm, but then you'll be the superintendent and you can delegate that. So, so, but I wish you all the best. Godspeed and good luck. Um, also too, just to kind of get back to serious here, talking some finance numbers, the 852,000, it's actually 868,557 for the total of the weapons detection systems, the wands and the actual systems themselves. I think there's a lot of misinformation in

099the public about our funds and how we ask for funds and how we procure funds. We are not as a school division allowed to have a savings account with an emergency fund in it like many of our personal finance endeavors have. I know we have an emergency fund most families do. We're not allowed to have the Frederick County Public Schools emergency fund flush with cash for things of this nature that we feel are emergency needs. So when these things come up, and they often come up when you least expect it, meaning it's not in a budget cycle. None of us are clairvoyant or omnipotent, although many people I think somehow think that we should be, but we are not. Thanks for the compliment. But no, there's only one entity in this universe that is that

100person. That's not us. Uh so in instances such as this, we saw a need. It was an urgent need. I did not hear a single negative comment from anyone in the community and I talked to a lot of people that did not want these. So um thanks to Dr. Hummer and his team for pushing it forward. We do have to go to the board of supervisors and ask for an allocation of funds. That's what we're required to do according to Virginia State Code because we're not allowed as per Virginia State Code to have that emergency fund in place for things like this. So again, to those five members of the board of supervisors that Dr. Erskin was so kind to name, thank you Dr. Erskin. I had that on my list to do. Thank you

101to the five of those individuals who fully understand how our funds are appropriated and the fact that we needed this now and not next budget cycle. So, and thank you to the public for supporting us in that decision as well. That's all I have. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Miss Martin, thank you. I would just something very personal like to say to the community. I am so thankful that I was able to attend the graduation for the Jameswood High School. It was uh it was very nice. Very nice. Very well put together. I enjoyed the singing. That was great. and all the people that spoke. But one of the things that touched me the most was I was able to go up and turn the tassel for my granddaughter. She graduated and it meant a lot

102to me. Thank you. Guess that leaves me, huh? This will only take about 30 minutes. Look, they're all getting ready to leave. Um, couple things. I'm not trying to drag this out either. It has been from June to June an interesting 12 months for me. I would like to thank a couple people. The first being the vice chair who I have bugged her and called her at various sunundry hours night and day and she always gets back to me and she's always been that steady rock. I I she amazes me and I wish to thank you for everything that you've done not only for this board but for me personally. Um, it it's meant a lot. Um, there are two people that are leaving the school system. Can I say the name of the other

103one or is that not public yet? You know who I'm talking about. Actually, I don't. I'm sorry. Who? Who? No. Over. Right. The person was here tonight. I don't want to let the cat out of the bag. You told me. Yes. Yes. So, I can. Yes. Yes. two of the people who have been very welcoming and the first one that that I the first school I ever went to was um Jameswood Middle School here and she is a doctor right I don't I don't screw up her type Dr. Oliver welcomed me with open arms. Every time I see that lady, she has given me the biggest smile. She has been fantastic and she's leaving and I really hate to see her go, but she has been wonderful to work with and to be around and

104she was always welcoming. When they had their graduation over here, I was standing in the back. I had a hat on. There was tons of people. I wasn't even in the auditorium. I was standing outside the door to try and get out of the family member's way cuz it was jam full of people. And from the stage with the lights in the eyes, she sent one of her assistants, "Go find him and tell him to sit right here cuz I saved him a seat." I mean, that's just the kind of person she is. And we're truly going to miss her. And Shane has been I I have I I can't say enough about you. You've just been a pleasure to be around, brother, and I am seriously going to miss you. Just one thing you

105have to learn to perfect one southern word when you go down south. You have to be able to say sugar properly. Okay? So, you need to work on that. Um, the media staff, the staff here in this building, fabulous jobs as always. Um, I I was in a lot of schools this year and I was impressed by what I saw. There was no earbuds. I never saw any phones out. I I Our test scores have gone up. Yes, we have to work on some, but discipline has gone down. It's been an amazing year for our staff. Um I I I was lucky enough to attend five of the attend five of the graduations, all three high schools and two of the middle schools. And and it was phenomenal. I want to congratulate all our graduating

106seniors who are being sworn into the military. And we had two seniors, one from Milbrook went to the Air Force Academy, correct? Or West Point. West Point the other one uh Shir Shando went to the Air Force Academy. So the dedication of our students is we really want to thank you for all the things that you did. Um and then here we go again I I'm I'm seriously missing Frank. I I he would call me and and we'd have some discussions about some personal matters and and my heart broke. I got to meet his wife and his daughter at the Jameswood graduation and and I got to see his son graduate and I um was deeply I deeply felt that he couldn't be there. So, we were there for him. Um, but uh, Frank's going

107to be missed. And again, I and those of you, some of you in the audience, um, who have been supporting me and and those that send phone calls and text messages and and all those things that have supported me over the years. I I thank you for all your support. This isn't an easy job and it sometimes gets a little difficult but uh through the Lord Jesus Christ I have always maintained but this has been a fantastic year for me and I uh looking for forward to this next year and uh with that I will say that the next school board meeting is July 15 2025 maybe 17th says July 15th here it is July 15th is it 17th 17th 15th Okay. Did I say 17? No, it was on the agenda. So, it's July

10815th. So, I don't say I told you this job ain't easy. All right. So, the next school boarding meeting is July 15th. Somebody make a motion. Mr. Chair, Mr. Atkins, I'd like to make a motion to adjurnn. Second. Motion has been made, properly seconded. Is there any discussion? All those in favor signify by saying I. I. We are adjourned.