001six welcome everyone uh we have a um tight agenda so I'm not going to hold up too much time Miss Tanner could you please call the role the scene here Clon present Gabriel present Jordan here Martin present here we're going to move on to 2.01 Dr Birdsong thank you um good afternoon chair Buffalo Vice chair Dr Gabriel members of the board Administration members of our community um our first presentation entails an update on related to the number of accredited schools as a school board goal and so Dr pole is prepared to share a recommendation on behalf of the administration thank you Dr Bon good afternoon Madam chair Miss Buffalo Vice chair Dr Gabriel members of the board this afternoon I'll present a proposed goal one and measures for discussion let me just here I'll get
002it for you I I've got it Mr oh you got it yeah thank you with the change to the accountability system of Virginia there will no longer be accreditation statuses um as the previous goal one was measuring instead there will be four categories of or score B schools will be placed based on several factors as presented by Miss McGarity previously during the October board work session as a reminder the four score bands are distinguished 90 plus points on track 80 to 89 points off track 65 to 79 points and needs intensive support for below 65 points therefore the administration is recommending the goal to change to the following some percentage of schools will be at the distinguished or on track Levels by the 2728 accountability year test Administration year of 2627 the 2425 data year
0032526 accountabil year will create a new Baseline for data as the new accountability system is implemented with there being no crosswalk year to gain a better understanding of the new system all schools and divisions will be rated on the new accountability system using this year's data for the first time as of October 31st yes last week October 31st there were still updates on how to use this year or last year's data to create estimates of how norvi schools would have performed on the new system currently the best estimates are that no schools will be distinguished would be distinguished 15 or 35 15 schools or 37.5% of our schools would be on track and 24 or 60% would be off track and one or 2.5% would be needs intensive support this this makes an estimated Baseline
004for a starting point for the goal of 37.5% based on what we know at this moment from the booe again these are not final numbers from the VOE there are best estimate calculations from all the data and information shared by the vooe as we have other goals and measures the administration recommends not setting a final Target for this goal into a baseline data for the first year of implementation as we have in the past with goals and measures additionally the highest percentage of schools accredited over the past decade has been 67.4% which would make a goal of 100% on what is more rigorous accountability process and unrealistic goal to meet in just two years as we continue to measure this work the administration believes continuing with the chronic absentee chronic absenteeism and Dropout measures are
005vital to this work with graduation rates now counting for 20% of each High School's index score attendance and Dropout rates are crucial to improve additionally both elementary and middle levels have direct points related to Chronic absenteeism with their final index score since there are academic indicators for reading and Mathematics and other goals Dropout and chronic absenteeism are the key indicators that must also be tracked Within These board goals I now pause for discussion or questions board members you've heard the presentation by Dr pole you have any questions Mr Jordan um thank you for the consideration um just for the sake of discussion with my board colleagues so I can make sure we're all on the same page so you know I've always had some reticence about this goal um largely because we said we're going
006to be student outcome focus and I don't think that school accreditation of itself is a student outcome Focus goal but with in um within being accredited are obviously student outcome measures so um I guess the first thing I just like if you can reset for me so I can have this conversation inside of the current accreditation system that we've been working on can you just remind us again uh what the major buckets are that determine accreditation as it exists today um so as it was existed when we had on the previous goal I understand so as you know it was the the three areas where we could fall were accredited accredited with conditions or accreditation denied and the the areas of data that where where it fell where I think you're really looking for Dr
007or Mr Mr Jordan are um math so scores that included growth points reading so scores that included growth points and then you had math and reading Gap scores as well is what they call them but we refer to them as subgroups um that that all you know had to reach certain growth areas or certain benchmark scores so the reading was 75% math was 70% then science it was just the science there were no no growth and no Gap groups but science had to reach the Benchmark of 70% or show growth over time um then there was chronic absenteeism um and then for high schools you also add dropout rate and CCC which is also no longer did I M mcar did I hit them all okay very good so uh so I have two recommendations
008uh based upon that uh for the board to consider uh one would be um not doing this recommendation But continuing with the bo it sounds so loud continuing continuing with the with the board measuring these same components that Dr pole mentioned um let's just call it the NPS accreditation standard uh with the data that we can continue to um measure you know I know you mentioned like for example in high school CC C is no longer required but if if the if locally we can still continue to measure that then the math so the growth the reading so the growth the gaps the science The Chronic gaps andm the high school measures all of those indicators that have been driving the the percentage of schools that meet that that we just continue uh to do
009that and not call it um know St accreditation but just call it NPS board accreditation and continue on the path towards the goal that we have that way we would not have to reset um for 25 26 we don't have we can continue to have um like data from where we've been tracking since 2019 and just continue down that down that path with that data for our own version of accrediation so that would be one recommendation for the board to consider and the second recommendation would be to just delete the goal and have four goals um so I offer that for forth thought and consideration thank you Miss Bing um first thank you for the presentation and um I appreciate uh the response to the question I had submitted uh prior to this meeting to
010get an understanding of where we are U today and you just shared that information uh with us using the new accreditation system so so that gives me a sense of where we are now to know where we might be going in the future and so I'm in the I'm of the mind of having you know I to uh in the same camp we we agreed to go with this goal but I also um because it's not a student outcomes Focus goal had hesitation about this particular goal um so I'm I'm honestly leaning toward the recommendation of deleting this goal and because I think having the the the one thing that is common over time are the Pass rates so those things will remain the same correct correct right and those that is what will drive
011the point system in the new accountability system and just if I may the only difference is you know with new standards and everything else things will change but pass rate is still pass rate but pass rate is still pass rate and the way that it's calculated is still the same right or is it for pass rate correct pass rate corre cut scores and everything else changes at the St level but pass rate is pass rate right so I think given the goals the other goals that we do have have I think that um we need to get in a Groove with this new accountability system and have that walkth through period and then also have continued discussion among the board about um about our board goals you know and our monitoring of them and perhaps
012and then doing a deep dive into looking our need you know doing a deep needs assessment of where we are um with that new accountability system and then reexamining all you know all of our goals at some point you know down the road because right now we're already I feel like in the middle of this cycle uh that we're in and so I hesitate changing the schoal um and I also um I appreciate the recommendation Mr Jordan put up and I would I would agree with that that we either keep it the way it is or delete it um but I my preference is for consideration is to just delete it um because I think if we focus on the other four goals I think and and allow us to work through this um accountability
013system we will have a better sense of what our student outcomes Focus goal may be um around this any yeah comments questions I mean I'm I'm listening um to both of my colleagues in regards to what you're offering as an alternative um Let me let me just ask this question here I'm sorry and you have to forgive me I'm waiting for the capping to kick in um is there anything anywhere else that talks about accreditation other than this goal schools accredited so so in other words when I think about this particular goal here um I'm not necessarily saying that it's um it's not for the internal just school student Focus but it's an outcome and it's an important outcome because it's an outcome that the average person whether or not they have children in Northford
014Public Schools or not will assess the quality assess the performance of what our students are doing and so when we say fully accredited which my colleagues in Hampton I've been around some of them my colleagues school board members they love to say it we're 100% fully accredited and there's a sense of Pride with that norford public schools has been able to say that in the past 100% fully accredited I understand that the state's moving some things around but I think it's important to our community to keep that as a forward thinking that everything else that we're doing if we're doing it with Fidelity will lead to 100% accredited and I think that that also sends a message um as we start looking at attendance we start looking at individuals who will consider nor for public
015schools and consider moving their children back into public schools as another byproduct of that um so I'm not so much on the I know you've worked hard with the administration to come here um with a recommendation of how we can make this flow um I just don't know if I'm I'm of the nature of you know because we've talked because I've said get rid of some stuff and we' said no if we said we're GNA go with it and I think we should do the same thing with this here the state's changed some things but I think that we as a board have said that accreditation is an important metric because the community has said that it's important to them and so um I would recommend um accepting the um administration's recommendation on how we
016can make that adjustment with what the state has put in place for us and still allowing this to be a Forward Thinking outward um goal as it is for the community um because I I think it speaks Valance for us that we're doing what we need to do the S and then uh Dr Gabriel well I'll I'll yield to Dr Gabriel since she hasn't spoken yet no go ahead no no no go go all right so um I like how you put that um Mr Clinton because that's as I'm thinking about what Mr Jordan had said and um your presentation Dr Paul the language is changing from the state which the language changes about every couple of years and we just have to kind of adjust how we are putting forth basically the same data
017um because you all are always tracking graduation you're tracking math you're tracking science you're tracking history I think for next year when the standards go into full effect the new language the new 100% distinguished versus fully accredited that will be the new language um but to the parent it is important for them to see that language whether it's 100% accredited 100% distinguish because that's what they go to they Google and then they look and that's the language that they interface with and so um I I don't know that I'm ready to give a suggestion of take it away or you know leave it but absolutely we have to continue monitoring the data because that is where the rubber meets the road on our student performance which goes back to student outcomes so I I I
018would say for right now we kind of keep it as it is um but I think that the conversation with next year um will be necessary as to if they want to you know continue with this goal change the verbage in it so those those are my thoughts can point of clarity I just want to ask quick point of clarity of are you saying you're agreeing with me or you're disagreeing with me um so you proposed two things get rid of the goal first one was what I thought what I thought you were just saying leave it alone but continue to um monitor or have the goal associated with the data as we know it and then second the second thing I said was delete it so I just trying to when you say let
019it stay I I say just just let it stay for right now okay which which to me aligns with my first option well how I interpreted what you said was call it NPS board accreditation only only because the state the state doesn't use the term so if if we're if if what we're communicating to the public and representing what the public is interested in then when I hear you say continue to use a terminology that is aligned with what we've been doing that was what I was trying to get to with the with my first recommendation without confusing it with whatever the state verbage may be okay so with that in mind I appreciate that clarification this year we're we're in November right now so when we are reporting out our school performance come June
020the terms that will be used are the distinguished the other things so um correct right right I mean I would say NPS accreditation I'm fine with that I don't know Dr B on you yes I was just going to add that this is the language just to be clear um even though they're still working out some of the Kinks with the system this is the terminology that will be used they're going to use distinguished on track off track needs intensive support as opposed to fully accredited accredit Deni and those kind of things so I just wanted to make that really clear yeah I mean I I would say we still keep it then yeah I'm I'm fine was that the the first recommendation yeah I'm I'm fine with that again Jordan I'm sorry what did
021you call the first one again I just made I just you just you call it X but I just said s accreditation whatever term okay but making it more inhouse to us you it would it would just be us measuring the same things that we have now but using whatever verbiage that we wanted to use for it got it okay Miss so a couple things I want to point out so just to argue it's just for discussion purposes here that is counterintuitive to what Mr Clanton is arguing that we should have you know it's the language that the community knows the language that the community will know going forward is is this distinguished on track so the accreditated accreditation language will be different although it's what they've known in the past but going forward we're
022we're throwing out so much terminology the second thing I want to bring up is that this is a lot more than just terminology because as you can see we are here we're at 65 uh oh well that's our Target but we're currently at 61% accredited whereas according to what Dr pole has shared with us we are at 37% on track so if this was distinguished and on track we would be at 37% the numbers are very different the calculations are very different so just saying that this is a matter of terminology I think is is not correct so this is much deeper than that which is why I'm suggesting that we take the time to have an understanding and you know to be frank there's there's a change in language up here but there really
023isn't a recommendation because right now we don't have a percentage we don't have what are current um you know it's not up a real recommendation is not up there right now and so either you know we have that discussion about what that is um but I would really caution Us in going forward for the next couple of years with language that is going to be changing out in the community and by the state so that's why I was saying suggesting that we delete it um because we need the time to really uh understand this accountability system number one and be in line if if it's about communication that our communication has to be in alignment with with what the Statewide communication is because I think it's too confusing and right now the other third point
024I want to make is that while families know uh you know yes they look for accreditation it does mask what is really happening in our schools and that to me is why this new ass accountability system is in place so for me like you know we get so focused on accreditation that we don't actually know how many students are reading on a on grade level we don't know how many students are proficient on in math and to me ac if we keep pushing out that accreditation is the most important thing we are going to lose focus on whether our children can read whether they can do math whether they can write and to me that needs to be the focus of our goals and not just you know accreditation so that's why I am advocating
025for deleting it at this moment and um I I appreciate my colleagues um comments however um there there's a saying you know write the vision make it plain and I think that write the vision make it plain that I think that making things over complicated for the out side individual you know they they often say and I remember when I was um in when I first got here that public education has more acronyms than the than the Department of Defense um and in many cases that's what parents the average parent here they get intimidated by this over complication of things that doesn't mean that we don't track things because honestly if we're tracking and doing what we're supposed to do and allowing the administration to do what they're supposed to do all of these things
026that we have that build up if they're not happening I don't care what you try to say masking it's not going to show it whether or not it's accredited or distinguished or whatever else so if we're doing the work and we're still tracking it at another level we still need to have something forward that makes it very clear if we're on track we're not on track and I know that the state because let be honest we have a new Administration it'll probably be in another year we'll have an opportunity to appoint new members of the Department of Education board we'll probably be looking at this again another two three years okay so how can we I would challenge at at our level and I think that's where I agree with Mr Jordan in respect if
027we do something on our level um here at norick that communicates out I'm not saying that I disagree about those other things we need to be tracking the reading we need to be tracking all those things but I'm just saying we need to also look at the outside individual who doesn't get into all of that who can look at it because that's what they do we know person come moving into the area they're looking okay well I'm living in I want to move into this ZIP code this neighborhood what schools of my child going to there are websites out there that have you know and it it puts it all out there so I'm just trying to say can we find a way to kind of Meet the Middle Road because deleting this to me
028then is is further masculine because we're not tracking it no I I think that's so these are our Focus areas that's not to say that we're not tracking all these other things cuz like we can make that argument for CTE we can make that argument for anything saying that we're not doing X Y or Z because it's not on it's not up here and that's not accurate you and I you know we know that we've had that conversation many many times that there are lots of things that we're monitoring that aren't our primary focus and so that's what this is so I'm talking about not deleting it as if we're never monitoring we have we're required to monitor whether we're distinguished on cont we're we we're that's our accountability system but whether it's a focus
029of our goal or not uh of our board goals that's what I'm saying that's what I'm having discussion around and that that's where I'm I'm challenged I feel like it still needs to be because if we're doing all these other things it's going to make that and that's what we should be looking at that we can't focus on every single thing and we got to identify some key things I was U I know we talked about that in governance training that will raise the tide to help us get there so I to me I I think the administration's taking time to come back and give us a Way Forward on this particular goal here um that will be very we what percentage of our schools then you're giving us the number um that's pretty clear
030um but it doesn't get into the other stuff that where we are monitoring and other things reading Pass rates all that stuff is being monitored on a monthly basis on the calendar that we take an extensive time to put in there it should roll up and we will see it here um so I I'm again I'm not going to be labor because I know we on time but I think that I like the recommendation and even if we just wanted to call it something else I could go with that um but I I think that it gives us what we need um this particular goal isn't just internal this is a goal that should be outward focused to the community to see where is Nori Public Schools are we moving in the right direction not
031saying Pass rates and all those other things because we're monitoring that as well but it's a very easy goal that you can go to are we on track year to year yeah Miss Bing I appreciate that and this is good dialogue um I do want to remind us all like so right now knowing our school accreditation data is already outward facing um whether we put it on on paper here or not it's already that's the first thing when you go to the the school quality reports that's the first thing you're going to see is where what our accreditation stating but is the board saying it's important the the board is can say it's important but right now I hear what you're saying because yours but we have to ask ourselves why are we saying it's
032important are right now what I'm hearing a lot about and correct me if I'm wrong that we're saying that it is important because that's what the Comm Community expects to see us focus on but in the meantime what are we really focusing on in terms of student outcomes because right now that accreditation isn't telling us it it's not showing a picture of and again this is our Focus but but I would but I would challenge Miss Vine the community or the taxpayers the community are the individuals they're the customers I mean they're sending the children here so yes we need that the if the board takes it away and we keep saying board goals and we take it away as a board goal then we are the representatives of the community and we're saying that
033the community is telling us they accreditation is important to them is anybody around this table that's Schoolboard member not heard anybody from the community tell us accreditation or whatever it is is not important we've all heard it yeah that's not the first thing I hear when I you know well I I mean is that for you I'm saying we've had the conversation about accreditation doesn't mean that every child is is meeting their marks as exactly and that's where I think that we've gone in with the monitoring calendars and said yes now we got to dig down to make sure that I I just think that if we're doing the stuff at the Baseline and those other things it rolls up again I'm and not belaboring it I think that reason why we put this here
034was it showed us at a high level if we're doing everything we're supposed to at the low level it's going to roll up and we can look at it and say all we from year to year improving and that the target was to get to what 100% so if we're doing what we're supposed to do at the lower um the uh the micro level inside reading you know attendance all those things down there and then at board level what are we doing to put those resources that's why I asked at the last work session we were seeing that we've got a dramatic increase in the reading so my request as a board level member was okay what can we do to support you you came back and said probably more tutors so my mindset is
035when we get to the board because cuz guess what I'm not in the schools my job is to make sure that we advocate for the resources so that you can do what you all need to do so that that's just my thinking I mean I might be totally wrong but that's what I'm thinking Mr Jordan yeah so um I feel like we we have this conversation at each work session and as Mr Clanton was was was talking I I I share where he's going but I think where where I get off is so we have other goals like reading for example so the the monitoring of the reading and the interim goals that we're looking at is focused on reading ultimately like you said all that stuff bubbles up but I think when we have
036this conversation about it bubbling up then we bubble everything up as though we no longer have separate individual goals it it all gets meshed together so like I say I I still support either deleting it or maintaining it with still having the the info inside but the other thing I just wanted to to share uh as a parent who had children that went through the school system and um when when we have graduation um and the students are celebrating their achievements in their graduation ation nobody talks about is the school ACC credit or not they talk about how each child has done which we talked about in governance chaining right each child um even in the accreditation system that exists you know you're can to have a large number of children not performing and still
037the school can be accredited but doesn't mean that each child is performing to the maximum level that I think we all would like each child to do so uh I understand the the conversation about um valuing the the input of the community and why we did this um that's why I think we've struggled with it for four years each time we we talk about it but if we are going to um keep it or even if we're going to modify it the interim goals that are identified still have to lead towards reaching the the the goal at self and I think what we end up doing is having a lot of conversations about adults you know I still argue that attendance is an adult issue not a student issue and and so that's why I
038just think if we set it aside and let the new board come back in and deal with it based upon the current data and information let them have that that option but just to maintain continuity and focus right now at least for the continuation of this school year just keep going and um and and monitoring that progress and if the board wants to make changes then let them make changes with the benefit of whatever at some point may get solidified with the with the State Board system because like you said it's not solidified now and it's not going to be solidified next month and then the moment you think it's solidified it's going to change again so why not stick with some continuity until everybody's everybody's on the same page and and not cause even
039more confusion at least from the board's perspective so that's it all right so what I'm hear we're moving forward don't hear anything I don't know I'm just miss m good conversation conversation U again and I'm glad we are having a conversation because we have two of our new board members um with us this evening so it's good that they're hearing this this uh discussion as well all right so miss Dr po Dr bur song is that it as far as no we have a just as a followup Madam chair just for clarity what are we doing okay because please either if we're keeping this then the board has to have a discussion the board the goal belongs to the board yes so the board has to have a discussion around what goes in the question
040marks and the exit or if the board is going to let it stand then nothing really changes or if the board is going to delete it then I would suspect sometime soon the board would would delete it as a goal but the board in my opinion needs to make a decision around what direction is going to do what direction is going to take so that Administration is clear on what to bring back the next time this goal comes up for discussion and consideration okay then go around the table Mr Clanton um with keeping the administration recommendation Mr Jordan which is to say distinguished on track um on track off track and needs to change is to change it so it's not keeping it the same I just want to be clear so wait a minute
041your recommendation just to keep same terminology this year and then give it to the new board basically okay then I'm good with that because it ultimately um because we'll get to more information as we go throughout the year so I'm just saying absenteeism absenteeism doesn't count toward accreditation in the new system right it does does it why don't we may I make a proposal why don't we just delete the first sentence and we just have the 2024 2025 dat data year um we'll create a new Baseline for data as the new accountability system is implemented not a smart goal but we're still what no no I was just repeating what you were saying but it's but we're still tracking the DAT the data and you're still going to come out with a breakdown of what
042it is we just are not giving you a percentage at this point in time because creating a baseline you're creating your Baseline based on the new stand standards in other words you're you're saying option one my option one creating a new option which is to not have it just to have it as as a statement which is that so the second sentence of that which is a third Dr burong you are asking for clarity from the board because you have two highlighted areas here question mark question mark and the percentage okay so right now we have new terminology that the division is going to be and all divisions will be um having to report out the information the uh measures are different as we have discussed and therefore our goal is is different as well
043because the measures are different and so I agree with Mr Jordan when he he says let's just keep monitoring what we're monitoring right now um and as far as an offering to you as far as the percentages of schools that will be I don't I don't think we can say that at this point in time we're here in November and so if we just want to take that sentence out of the goal yes it's not technically a smart goal but we're still keeping the measures and we're saying that the 20 24 2025 data year will create a new Baseline for data as the new accountability systems implemented and then that gives the new board the ability to review the data and create a goal around this if they choose to do so does how does
044that sound to you Dr Burton does that sound realistic does that sound well it does sound realistic and um I I think it would be important for the board um to move forward with a new terminology just because I I think that's critically important um because at the end of the day that's how we're going to be measured and so um I certainly support this year being a baseline year because we don't know what we don't know yet and so it would be important um for us to know to for the system to be finalized and even while they're making changes every month certainly we can continue to monitor our progress along the way but I do think it's important to at least be able to create a baseline because that's important you have a
045new system you have a new way of looking at things so you're going to need a new Baseline for that just like the board created a baseline when we you know started with the old system with this new goal for for this board so that makes sense that does make sense okay did everyone hear what Dr Gabriel's recommendation was mhm we use the new terminology and we will use the share this 25 school year as the Baseline Baseline okay Mr Clon I'm good I just no I thought we were going around yeah Mr Jordan okay so we know where where are we so Mr Clinton had a recommendation I had mine Dr Gabriel has her are you keep going or what do you well this is the thing CU I we have the administration's recommendation
046right and we have um which is number two to delete is a recommendation as well Dr Gabriel's recommendation is just to for the 20 2024 25 data year uh we'll create a baseline for data for the new accountability system um in Implement and use the terminology um for the new system as recommended by Dr bson so there's some consistencies those are the three I hear right now am I missing anything I would like clarification on Mr Jordan please I I think I heard you and then I didn't Mr Jordan do you mind what I was originally recommending recommending what are you recommending so one was delete that was one option right delete but the the consistent option was accreditation under the current goal that we have that's not shown on the screen but on the
047current goal that we have we say that the goal is to be 100% accredited by a certain period all I was trying to say is the elements of the formula that determines accreditation we can continue to put to monitor that input so let's say at the end of the school year whether or not right now we're that the target for the end of this school year is not up there oh that's right we haven't created a Target yet well let's just whatever it was before let's just say it's 70% I'm just making that up then that would mean that the target would be that 70% 70% of the schools under the same formula and measures that we are using now they gave us the 56 Point 1% that we're at now would be utilized to
048tell us at the end of the the year how we're progressing and then totally separate from that you shaking your head that's not what I'm saying no I oh I know you don't agree with it but but no I'm following what you're saying but so at the end of so ultimately whatever the the board decides to do on the the new system that can still be monitored that Baseline data can still be achieved and some determination can be made whether or not um the board wants that as a goal with distinguish or on track or and on track or whatever whatever it is that the board wants wants to do I was just trying to Simply say that right now we at 66.7% 57.1% 61% 56.1% and at the end of this year with that
049same information it can be determined whether or not uh whatever makes 70% you know 29 out of 41 schools were were met based upon that formula that's what I was trying to say I am a little bit it sounds like you want the the old the former system of accrediting schools you you just want us to look at it just based on the same indicators that we previously looked at and Report out on those things as it relates to accreditation for this year while while all the other new factors are being considered for the for the upcoming year or the Baseline data is being collected for the upcoming year so what I'm hearing is just stay the course of what we're doing now until the Baseline is created around the the new the new system
050or delete it this more Buffalo or delete it okay this more Buffalo may I go yes I I just want to make sure I'm I'm saying it correctly what I just said I heard the same thing you heard the same thing okay so all right Miss Bine um respectfully this conversation is why I'm suggesting deleting it because we can't have a our shared understanding of what the current where the former system and the current system is is we're we're all over the place we don't understand even what we're monitoring here to be to be honest and so I'm suggesting deleting it because I do agree with what Dr Birdsong is saying and Dr Gabriel is saying in terms of knowing let's get into this accountability system and figure out where we are so that we
051know where we're going right now we can't even have a conversation around what the accountability system is and how the gooal should even be structured that I don't agree having a with a goal that is not smart I don't agree with having a goal that we don't understand therefore I um and I'm also not in support of given this discussion that we're having I'm not in support of saying let's maintain what we're doing with the former system because I don't think that we're disciplined enough to be able to uh uh follow track and monitor where we're going um so that's just my my feeling around it so my suggestion is to delete it the that is not going to stop right Dr bird song it's not going to keep the administration from doing what they're
052required to do which is to to still collect uh I mean to still monitor where we are with the new and follow the the standards of the new accountability system so you're still going to move forward with that even though it is not a written goal on paper right that's right we will still be monitoring math proficiency reading proficiency looking to see if our children are coming to school with chronic absenteeism we're still going to be looking at those indicators right the new system just provides points instead of the old system so we're just going to be looking at the data in a different manner different manner right so I think we should just get a handle on that before we dive into this so I'm suggesting deleting this current girl goal Dr Mar um
053so Dr Birdsong yes ma'am um if we kept this goal you used next year's data as the Baseline to create a smart goal would you would this be redundant to what you're already to do with the new system repeat that one more time please so if we kept this goal this goal as written yeah go one and um use this year's school this school Year's data as the Baseline to create to fill in those blanks those so goal one making it a smart goal MH would that be redundant to what you will be doing under the new system what I'm saying you okay I heard I heard she was tracking in a different way though well in terms of you know deciding where School Falls in terms of are they their on track or off
054track or accredited or or not accredited because now you know a school can be accredited now and under this new system it may be off track yep so it it would just be again I would just say it's important for us to move on at some point we we've got to wrap our arms around this new system otherwise we're going to keep going back and forth and and it's just a lot so let's just this is where where we are right now you know the state has put forward this new or forth this new system we have to embrace it whether we want to or not I mean this is the system this is how they they will be looking at schools and so I I think it's important for us to move forward it
055is important for us to Mo asking because I don't think that you need to be reporting data out in two different ways moving forward so I would say delete it I just point one other thing out if uh you have can you just scroll so that so what the board is actually monitoring the the accreditation is the end of the year how we performed at the end of the cycle what the board is actually monitoring right now on on some periodic basis towards whether or not we are likely to achieve that goal right now is chronic absenteeism rates and Dropout rates so it as of right now based upon the goal that we have that's what we're monitoring and at the end of the year here or at the end of the cycle we're saying
056you know what percentage of the schools meet the accreditation standards which is beyond just those two things that we're that we're monitoring so I don't want us to get too confused at least even more confused like we are monitoring the end of the cycle uh accreditation indicator or the whatever distinguisher is being used what the board is really going to be monitoring between now and the end of the cycle right now is how we're doing Dropout rates quarterly and how we're doing chronic absent ISM quarterly that's really what what the administration will be coming in presenting on they're doing already and and to Mr Jordan's point we previously shared that um we do believe that these two um areas are very important and critical for the board to monitor but in addition to that the
057other goals speak to some academic areas they speak to the math proficiency they speak to reading proficiency which you know those things are critically important and at the end of the day with the old system you know your school was accredited or not based upon meeting certain benchmarks so it's not that we were only thinking that if you you know if your Dropout rates were appropriate and if the children were coming to school that you are automatically accredited those other areas are important as well and we just wanted to give the board a full opportunity to look at all the indicators and this was you know an area that we had an opportunity to do that because at the end of the day if the children are not in school they're not learning and so
058and as you can see even with the new system chronic absenteeism you know children coming to school not dropping out it is an important part of the new system which we need to continue to Monitor and because you have monitored it we have done exceptionally well we're improving so that's a good thing okay so I hear Dr Martin I hear uh Miss Bine uh they uh would like to delete it am I I have you go with the new system and go with the the new system are that you miss so delete and keep is that what you're saying Dr Martin delete and keep or okay yeah I'm not I I think we as a new governance team need to come together and do the work of really figuring out what the student outcome goal
059is going to be based on the new system and new data that comes through throughout at the end of the school year I think that's what yeah I feel like we're saying Dr Martin is saying I think she saying I'm not I yeah but I for the rest of this year don't want to see this goal okay I don't want to have this I I agree because just looking at the framework the performance categories The Waiting of the framework and how it different you know Elementary Middle it is um it's a lot so Mr Jordan I hear three deletes right now well that was one of one okay so are you four it's four no keep keep what we have up here okay so I know Mr Clanton would like to keep so I have
060four deletes and two to keep so Dr song The go and that's democracy all right thank you you're welcome okay Dr bson we're going to move on to 2.02 update on campus Academy at R thank you um chair Buffalo we are very excited to bring forth this presentation to you this afternoon um we have Amber Brown our new Chief schools officer along with Tracy Flemmings our illustrious principal of the Ruffner school who is excited about having the babies in her school and excited to share um some updates regarding the program so Miss Brown good afternoon Madame chair Buffalo Vice chair Dr Gabriel members the board Dr bird song and of course our community members I'm Amber Brown Chief schools officer here with principal Tracy Flemings the proud principal of Ruffner school for an update on
061our R Ruffner Compass Academy to sharing some of our programs progress today Miss Flemmings will highlight the Elementary schedule the win block for support curriculum overview for each grade level the Capstone project planning professional development the application updates which will be within the curriculum overview Community Partnerships and Community highlights following the presentation we will be available for questions and discussion and at this time of course I'll turn the presentation over to miss Flemings thank you Miss Brown good afternoon um school board members Dr bird song Thank you for having me um to provide this update what's going on with our school here this slide outlines the daily schedule for grades 3- 5 highlighting its uniqueness compared to other schools in the division key features include a win block wi stands for what I need it's
062a dedicated time for personalized student support Pathways exploration we have daily opportunities for students to engage with Middle School communities our subject allocation is broken down as follows we have one hour each for ELA math science social studies ensuring a comprehensive coverage we also have an integrated literacy instruction during this time we have small group literacy instruction which is woven into social studies and science blocks this approach supports a well-rounded educational experience tailored to student needs the Wind Block is designed to provide targeted daily support for individual student needs focusing on literacy and math tutoring through programs like Lexia ignite zern and adum this dedicated time allows teachers to work closely with students in small groups or one-on-one settings fostering both acceleration and enrichment opportunities this intervention aligns with the MPS strategic plan and the
063board's goals to for early literacy three for students in the black subgroup reading performance and goal four for closing gaps the intervention period also aligns with the school Improvement Grant application by supporting the implementation of identified evidence-based interventions in reading and math by addressing individual needs we aim to enhance students reading and Mathematics skills to meet or exceed grade level expectations and improve their performance on growth and end of year assessments during the daily Pathways exploration time students engage in a structured career exploration process this includes awareness for our grade three students and this is introducing students to various career options so there hearing grade four is more seeing and that is observation so they're providing they're being provided with opportunities to see potential careers in action and then doing is happening at grade five
064where they are experiencing different things so it's allowing students to actively participate in career related activities this staged approach helps students understand and connect with future career possibilities in grade three the pathways exploration class serves as the initial introduction to academic and career planning key components include self-reflection where students assess their interests their skills and abilities career exploration which is when the students are introduced to the 16 career clusters helping students identify potential path they also will have a culminating event where students will showcase their learning through a project focused on a selected career the grade three curriculum lays the groundwork for students to begin thinking of career choices and lays a groundwork for their time at Compass Academy and Beyond in grade four students will further their career exploration in academic and career planning
065through career interest surveys career exploration and creating an exploration portfolio students will begin to see themselves in any career they choose one key activity includes hearing from professionals across various career Fields providing real world insights into different occupations this experience enhances students understanding of career options and helps them to make informed decisions about their future pathways in grade five students will concentrate on selecting a community pathway for grade six key components include pathway selection students engage in academic and career planning to choose their future Direction Focus courses each student will take a 9we course related to each academic pathway an experential learning which are opportunities for job shadowing and visiting job sites to gain hands-on experience in various careers this program supports deeper career exploration and prepares students to select their pathway or academic Community
066for grades 6 through 8 as students transition to middle school they have the opportunity to take courses that align with their chosen career Pathways this alignment helps them build relevant skills and knowledge further supporting their academic and career planning as they prepare for future opportunities in addition to in-class offerings we are providing after school enrichment programs through our equity and Excellence Learning Center these programs are designed to further engage students in their chosen Pathways allowing them to explore their interest and a supportive environment in the engineering and science academic Community students have the unique opportunity to engage in a robust curriculum that combines core academic classes with specialized electives in engineering and science this program allow students to deepen their understanding of these fields while fostering critical thinking and problem solving skills by participating in
067community electives students can explore various engineering and science courses that complement their core studies providing a well-rounded educational experience this approach not only enhances their academic Journey but also prepares them for future opportunities in stem disciplines the fine and Performing Arts Community currently boasts the highest membership among our academic programs this Vibrant Community offers students the chance to immerse themselves in multiple courses across various artistic mediums including dance visual arts music performance media television production music technology and theater by allowing students to explore and develop their talents in different areas simultaneously we Foster a rich environment of creativity and collaboration this multidisciplinary approach not only enhances their artistic skills SK s but also promotes critical thinking teamwork and self-expression we are proud of the enthusiasm and engagement within this community and are committed to supporting
068our students in their Artistic Endeavors the technology academic Community provides students with valuable elective opportunities focused on information technology and Computer Sciences each year currently we offer an after school enrichment program in coding and Robotics through our equity and Excellence Learning Center enabling students to enhance their technical skills and Foster a passion for programming additionally we are proud to support our young inventors Through The Invention Convention program this educational initiative teaches students essential skills and problem identification problem solving entrepreneurship and creativity by participating ating students build confidence in their ability to innovate and create preparing them for future challenges and technology and Entrepreneurship the leadership and service Academy Community offers students a comprehensive Pathway to develop their leadership skills as they progress through their education this community provides opportunities to engage in multiple leadership courses
069guiding students from foundational concepts of leadership to active roles as leaders in their school and community Through programs such as the student council Association National Junior Honor Society and the after school Leaders of Tomorrow initiative students gain valuable insights into effective leadership and service oriented careers these experiences not only Empower students to make a positive impact but also cultivate essential skills such as teamwork communication and civic responsibility all Pathways at the middle school level include increased opportunities for students to take High School credit-bearing classes which supports board goal five to increase the percentage of advanced studies diplomas the 2026 school year will serve as a culmination of program roll out through their Capstone projects students will bring their ideas to fruition embodying the skills and competencies outlined in the MPS strategic plan as eighth grade
070students will apply their Knowledge and Skills to solve real world problems within their academic communities this will not only necessitate them applying their academic capab capabilities across multiple contexts but they will also have to demonstrate to the school Community their effectiveness as communicators via their school [Applause] presentations we continue to provide comprehensive professional development for our faculty to strengthen ongoing programs and effectively launch new academic programs at Ruffner as students progress through them elementary teachers receive targeted support to implement the components of the grade three schedule ensuring a smooth transition for our younger students not Littles meanwhile secondary teachers were equipped with the necessary tools and strategies for teaching new courses and integrating the career Pathways into the Core Curriculum this professional development was designed to enhance instructional practices and ensure that all educators are
071prepared to support student learning and growth this included professional development for teachers on the reading and math support blocks these offerings are structured and aligned with the tier one evidence-based interventions of the school Improvement Grant application that are aligned with the learning needs of students based on the comprehensive needs assessment conducted at the division level the school level needs assessment aligned with those identified at the district office we are committed to providing ongoing professional development for our faculty each quarter tailored to meet the evolving needs of our teachers and students this responsive approach ensures that professional learning is aligned with teacher requests observed needs in the classroom and insights drawn from student achievement data by focusing on these areas our goal is to enhance instructional Effectiveness and support Educators in delivering High high quality learning
072experiences within the specialty program model we are continuously building Community Partnerships to support and align with our academic communities through our equity and Excellence Learning Center in title one we are also developing ways to have parents to partner and program efforts to include attending and participating in an engineering and science field trip to the Chrysler Museum them to learn and apply the elements of glass blowing and demonstrating Financial leadership via our goal set Setters program of our leadership and service pathway beginning in January here's what our students are saying Xavier said I like it we learned to lead other people in the right way and ask them to do the right things Avery told me when you're a leader you learn how to talk to people and learn the right words to say I also
073have to remember to count myself as a leader desiah said that we learn to be a leader and not a follower if someone is roaming the Halls you go to class by yourself and mind your business we do projects on how to be kind to people and lead people to success and finally Josiah told me the thing that I like about leadership class is my teacher he NE he's never disrespectful and he teaches us how to be a leader we learn what to to do and what not to do say if there's a person messing with me I should leave them alone without arguing or fighting just because someone else does something bad it doesn't mean that I have to do it too over the past two summers students from our engineering and science academic
074Community have had the opportunity to apply for the prestigious ODU summer stem Institute this competitive application-based program program requires students to submit a series of essays and an academic transcript for consideration we are proud to share that each summer we've had two of our students from Ruffner to successfully be accepted and participate in this enriching one-week residential program and thanks to the generosity of ODU and offering a discounted tuition rate we were able to support our students accepting their um being able to attend I'm sorry being able to attend and um participate in this valuable experience as one student noted Jamir I liked it I was in a space with like-minded people in one of our projects we got the chance to grow bacteria and check the pH we are also proud of our partnership
075with Nauticus and sale Nauticus Academy our participating students are learning not only about sailing but the maritime industry in our area which in turn may spark their interest in learning more deeply about these careers and potentially look to explore them as they continue their academic Journey students are enjoying the experience and are working to encourage their peers to join one student said sell Nauticus teaches us how to sell a boat and we also swim if students want to learn to sell they're welcome to join us Eastern Virginia medical school has also been a community partner for the past two years through their teach BP program our students are not only learning from current medical school students but they're also becoming the voices and ambassadors for the importance of blood pressure monitoring and good health in
076their homes and communities as our student Delilah notes you can save people's lives just by taking blood pressure I liked we got to meet different doctors get to know them and learn from them Compass Academy at Ruffner is dedicated to supporting all high school and Career and Technical education pathways our primary goal is for every student to apply to and successfully enter one of the specialty programs or CTE credential programs available at our high schools and Technical Center we aim for all students to enter high school with at least one high school credit and reading skills at or above grade level as well as possessing the foundational skills necessary to PR to pursue advanced mathematics most importantly we want our students to begin n9th grade with a clear understanding of what their future paths whether
077that involves a career in Industry military service or post-secondary education before entering the workforce we are committed to equipping our students with the knowledge and skills they need to thrive in their chosen Pathways and we appreciate your support and helping us achieve these ambitious goals metrics to determine success will be connected to the number of students completing High School Credit courses the number of students being accepted to Specialty programs ac across the division and the overall academic performance of rner as a whole thank you for the opportunity to provide this update on Compass Academy at Ruffner excellent board members you have heard the presentation are there any questions Dr g i I really don't have a question I'm just thrilled that that um that you all are incorporating so many Community programs within the school
078and you're allowing the students to have such wonderful opportunities with EVMS and Sal Nauticus and ODU and just the possibilities for them in the exposure is priceless and you never know what they're going to take away from those experience or what Tiny Seed might be planted from that exposure and it's just a unique um opportunity for them and I applaud you all for number one making those connections with those Community Partners and having the students do that what are you hearing from the parents what am I hearing from you so actually I'm working with Dr Clark with the equ Excellence Learning Center they're calling around a lot of our parents they're helping to help us get them engaged and um there was a parent we talked about the leaders of tomorrow's program and she just
079went on and on about how she said that program isang changing her child's life and so I thought that that was you know and we get a lot from our parents that have engaged with us that they are very happy that their kids have something to do that takes them through you know all the way through school really late but also they here at home where they're starting to talk about different things we talked about Delilah Delilah she she harassed me I need to take your blood pressure are you okay you know so I'm sure I can imagine what she's like you know yeah right and so you know she's like and we have a health fair and so we're you know we're looking possibly doing something you know in the spring with them being
080able to demonstrate that they do know know how to take accurate pressures and provide you with the information about what they're learning and so the kids are great and they that's the thing with our kids um the more they're exposed to new things you know just their whole level of Engagement and their excitement um about coming to school you know um and and doing their best you know they still will have challenges cuz they're kids you know but um I I I love seeing their faces across the board 3 through eight so it's just great well I hear great things about the leaders of Tomorrow program after school I got to get back and um visit I'm hearing great things about that and we're having our specialty program um night tomorrow for the community so
081you all are welcome to come at 5:30 at the school 5:30 to 7: and so we'll be there students will be showcasing some of their um talents and talking to parents and those who are interested in applying to the specialty program letting the kidss vote you know voice be heard you know and not just the adults so the parents can see you know and hear from the kids as well so Mrs fings can you make sure miss Tanner gets that information and good by there miss Bine yeah I have a couple thank you first of all thank you for the presentation and um I enjoyed my visit recently at Ruffner um I have a question about if you could speak to a little a little more and you you just started to touch on it
082the alignment with this community school model and um CU I know you touched on the Community Partnerships and but if you could talk about the family engagement like what you're doing um and the other pillars of that EC model that that is described here if you could talk about how that's being integrated into this um so um with like the family engagement piece so we're working um with my closely with my family engagement specialist and also um with our Title One funding to create opportunities for parents to um engage in activities that are helpful and supportive for kids there's a whole big push that we're trying to have with social emotional learning and helping parents to understand just simply about some you know um brain development and how smart is something that their kids become
083the brain is a muscle you know working them out and so having a book study um with a group of parents um with that book mindset and also having parents there's a um an aligned app with that where parents can work with their kids at home um working through some projects um with their children so supporting the parents as they're doing that with their kids you know teaching them how to use the app teaching them you know the conversations um I think it's a really great opportunity um for them along with um integrating opportunities for like our goal setting goal Setter I was going to say goal setting goal Setter program which is um a find fincial literacy um program that has an app but there has a parent education component to it where the
084parents will come into um the school and receive um professional development or seminars on um financial literacy so that they can um you know work with kids about budgeting and you know it's almost like I had an app once with my kids you can set them up with the debit card set chores set goals you know and this is what we want to do and also look at um investment um management and stuff and then also um we talk about Community Partners um we have some Community Partners who are willing to come in like if you wanted um information on good nutrition so we can have families to come in to our what we're calling our parent Resource Center room 103 in the school we're developing is our old homech room where we are are
085running um after school a home um class with um some of the kids but they can come in and um receive that type of of um support um and training and just trying to work with like the Housing Authority when we talk about um chronic absenteeism and kids like we go looking for our kids you know especially if we know that you know we saw them last week but we haven't seen them you know and sometimes you walk into situations where you now know that additional wraparound supports are needed and so having to get those in place you know so we're it's a lot so I don't know if that addresses all your your question or not but yes thank you for that and I have one one question which is more a logistical uh
086question so you talked about you know your specialty night tomorrow night so I was wondering if we could hear a little more about what the specialty program piece entails is this like what I guess what are we doing are we opening it up Citywide are we can you can you speak to that sure um the applications are open you know right now um they just have to complete the application uh show an interest um to attend um it's open online and so we did have a district-wise you know specialty program night for all of the specialty programs for the division and so this is our individual school program so our parents that we spoke to there we told them come out you'll be able to learn more about our program specifically and hear from the
087kids you know bring your kids and let them talk to our children about you know what is it like to be in dance class or what is it like to uh study in the the biotechnology class that they have a science um interest so that answer well I guess what I'm asking is is this program open to the to any student in our school division yes yes yes yes and I just Jordan thank you also for the presentation I love all the exploration opportunities I just want to ask a followup to what Miss bassine was just asking can you just redescribe for me so how the school how the school comprehensive school program works and the I guess the Academy school F school if I'm saying it right so do all the third fourth and
088fifth graders do everything that you had for third fourth and fifth grade and then when they get to middle school they choose an academy and then each student chooses an academy is that how that works yes so at the end of their fifth grade year after they've gone through that sequence they pick the pathway that they they feel is their interest they want to study on okay and so um it's really integrated across like it's not you know over here we have technology over here it's within their content classes that's the PD that the teachers have get are getting they're integrating um those pathway components like in The Core Curriculum but what's unique is that their electives your electives if you are in the leadership pathway will be different than mine let's say if I'm
089in the technology pathway and so that's how that's um different but they still have access to the same general curriculum the same honors classes you know PE the the foreign language all that there's no differentiation it's really those um those pathway specific um electives that have been designed specifically for the school so just just like I can say so third fourth and fifth grade everybody's doing the same thing or getting exposed to the same thing different ways y different ways and then in the Middle School component that's when they get to elect the pathways and it's the middle school component that the parents outside of their attendant Zone get to opt into is that correct or they get to opt in they can opt in grade three so Rising someone who's in second grade and
090then also fifth grade so rise in six right so you can opt into third grade third grade and you can opt into sixth grade okay thank you is there any other question Mr Clanton yeah um Mr Jordan actually answered one of them there because I was looking at um to principal Flemings what's your student population just average right now the number of students oh three uh 532 right and um cuz I was looking at the number of students that are action each one of the different pathway programs um of course and I think you answered it for when you um your three grade um well I guess second grade on up um they wouldn't be considered in one of those third grade and up wouldn't be considered in one of these um like you your
09159 engineering 140 those are Middle School those are the middle school so those are actually only just sixth and seventh graders those are just sixth and seventh gr because this is what year this program is year two year two so we're phasing it in each year okay got it so just I guess for me here I'm happy I um I support programs like this that really um allow students opportunity exposure early I guess just for general for us here you've given us a lot of information um what would you say is a um a bright spot um and adversely what would you say is a challenge um that um you're having with this particular program or implementation I know everything's great but in reality I think a bright spot specifically is the increased level of
092student engagement okay really um that is truly what I would honestly say um as with all programmatic uh rollouts I think the struggle will continue to be um Staffing um as we um come as we fully roll out the program for some of the specializ um electives just because of the Rarity and how hard it is to identify those candidates um that I think that would be the next big um challenge thank you all right Mr can I ask a followup to Mr clanton's Question um so um in your response I guess you're so around Staffing as being a big challenge are you uh finding that the stiens associated with the e Es are I mean it's too early to say whether you know how effective they are but does that seem to be um
093I think that with some of my um recruiting over the summer and whatnot to get it was definitely a draw to get people to like even okay let's really engage you know in this this interview and let's hear about this program and helping people to really see okay where do you fit or where do you see your fit you see yourself fit in getting them to kind of commit but it it definitely was like um a cookie or or an incentive for people to have a real time conversation with you now when they received them it was like Christmas time you know um recently they were just so happy you know and so that was that was great it really was I I think it was very very helpful with that Staffing piece for us
094I've got to follow and I don't want to believe it I know we run all time um I'm just thinking about the Staffing component of it um are these so when you say specialized so let me just say um engineering um so someone who has an engineering degree background so it be a tech ed te education um endorsement and those are very very hard um to find the it side with the business education we really easy you know and so we are um still working to um staff that position um with technology education so we're getting a lot of support from the central office with our staff member that we have who's teaching who's teaching those courses to the kids right now so they've been very great so with the 59 students that are in
095engineering um is that one teacher that's going to see that those students are a certain period there and I guess the further connection um the specialized programs are they working with the science um the well the English the math your core um uh instruction that's taking place in developing and supporting and lesson plans I know we kind of talked about some other things but is that occurring in your program so occurs my program coordinator um does a lot of that interconnectedness with that but the teachers have received um training we're starting them first with Choice boards and c and I came in to give them um training on that so that at the end of the semester they will students will be given a choice board um within each of their like core academic areas
096and those have been identified so that if you're in math these are your choices for your project if you're in technology if you're in um find and Performing Arts so the kidss get to pick what project they want to work on in math class and it'll be the same in English social studies and science so that's how the teachers are starting to you know that's the first time I've heard that term um and I think that's kind of cool Choice boards Choice boards so we're giving students the choice to kind of so they'll do it with enthusiasm and rigor well that's what I'm um and what I'm alluding to because often times I hear it in the respect that students are unot moated and if you're giving them Choice kind of I know we got
097a lot I'll be quiet of with me all right any other questions comments all right thank you Miss thank you all thank you for having me okay let's move on along 2.03 Dr bird song 2.03 yes Equity report all right so in annually as you know um aligned with the school board's uh Equity policy we provide to the board an update um as it relates to the data related to our Equity report and so um Dr Paul will start us out with um pertinent data and then um we have our new well she's not new anymore and I don't even like her to call herself new um uh Jerry will come um forward and present some additional data to support the equity report so without further Ado thank you Dr bong uh good afternoon again
098Madam chair Miss Buffalo Vice chair Dr Gabriel members of the board and Dr Birdsong this afternoon I'll be presenting information on the annual Equity report related to the data and then our director of diversity equity and inclusion Affairs Miss Smith will follow up with pertinent information about what we're doing in the area of Dei so this presentation will consists of an overview of the division level data the connection to the school level reports and finishing with an update for Miss Smith starting with the enrollment Divi data provided for the three years is from the fall state report and it includes pre kindergarten and postgrad as seen on this Slide the enrollment has been declining over the past 3 years while the racial breakdown has remained relatively consistent the two areas that saw an increase in
099our demographics of over 1% were students with disabilities and students in the economically disadvantaged subgroups this slide contains data on student attendance averages for 3 years as seen in the data attendance rates improved for all subgroups except for Asian from school year 2023 to school year 2024 as the student achievement data has been presented the board for Star Pals and S so since this is all last year's data in the report the next few slides are an overview is what of what is included in the report um English reading so data is provided at all levels for the division report in regard to the so data from the annual Pass rates reported by the bdoe since the reports from the Boe do not include gifted students as a group this part of the data was
100locally calculated for our Equity report over the past three years there have been relatively minor movements in scores and gaps regarding in regard to the reading so results mathematics so data is provided at all levels for the division report as well within the three years of data the all students group grew by eight points while the students in the black and economically disadvantaged subgroup groups grew by 11 points showing the highest gains and starting to close some gaps science so data is provided at all levels as well and while science scores have been seen increases for all subgroups except for students in the Asian subgroup over the past three years students in the black and economically disadvantaged subgroups saw the largest amount of growth over three years at 14 points our Pal's data which is
101now turned to Val so the report will change a little bit next year as we know is provided for kindergarten in grade one since grade two um takes the star assessment that's what's included instead of grade two Pals data again over the three years Pal's data has seen a decline of students identified as needing reading support in kindergarten by nearly 5% for the all students group with students in the black subgroup seeing a decrease of 7.5% two or more races seeing a decrease of nearly 20% and students with disabilities nearly 9% showing gaps closing with early literacy for first grade all students declin by 11.5% with students in the Hispanic subgroup dropping 22% two or more races decreasing by 12.8% students with disabilities by 15.4% and in the economically disadvantaged subgroup we saw declines of
10214.7% so we're starting to see some caps close with star mathematics data it's included for grades 2 through eight and although most grade levels showed minimal increases or declines in Star mathematics as mentioned on the so mathematics data slide gaps have been decreasing at the state level data install reading is included for grades 2 through eight and similar to so scores there have been minimal changes over the past three years the report then goes on to uh monitor grade level promotion and it's reported for all grade levels on the division report this is reported by the number of students and the percentage of students in each group grade nine continues to have the lowest promotion rate however there was a 1.3 percentage Point improvement from school year 23 to school year 24 addition Al there
103is an upward Trend over the past three years with a growth of 21.4% for students in grade nine while students in the black subgroup grew by 24.6% closing the Gap by 3.2% over those three years and the gap between students in the black and white subgroups decreased from 25.6% to 13.5% over the three-year period a 12.1% um Improvement in that gap between our black and white student subg groups the next data set being reported in the annual report is discipline data the numbers are the numbers of incidents and the percentages are the percentages of that group that received the discipline the report includes in school and out of school suspensions and the out of school suspensions are categorized by short and long term over the past three years there have been slight movements towards meeting
104the division demographics with averages with students in ISS and short-term suspensions however the data show very slight movement away from the divion a division averages with long-term suspensions this slide has the overview of the annual budget details for operating and Grant funds for the past three years the fund includes textbook funds but not capital Improvement funds and the final pieces of data relate to teacher data the highly qualified data is from the ipal state report and the Highly Effective Teacher data includes any teacher that is not on a plan for growth and performance Improvement plan the teacher experience data is reported in bands from 0 to 3 years 4 to 10 years 11 to 20 years and 21 plus years of consecutive years of employment with norfol public schools and the final piece of data
105relates to teacher retention which is the percent of classroom and non-classroom teachers who remain employed through June 30th of the given year which has seen increases over the past three years from 87.3% to 91% the individual school reports are laid out identically to the division Report with a side-by-side comparison of the division data and the school data to make comparisons easier to the reader and the report is also bookmarked um if you hit the little flag on the left it'll bookmark it for you um to make it easier to jump from school to school at this time I'll turn the present presentation over to Mrs Smith to provide an update on work being done across the division to support equity and Excellence for all Miss Smith you all right good afternoon Madam chair Mrs bu
106Buffalo Vice chair Dr Gabriel members of the board and Dr bird song I'm Jerry Smith and I am the director of diversity equity and inclusion here in norfol oh there we go sorry wrong slide all right um at the 2024 School Leadership Institute Dr bird song called on us as Leaders to be equalizers dedicated to fostering equity and Excellence for all students no matter what the department of diversity equity and inclusion Affairs is committed to ensuring a Level Playing Field for every student and family to provide equity and Excellence for all our our Dei office is focused on bridging gaps and providing Equitable access some key priorities include diverse representation we ensure that diverse voices are considered across multi-disciplinary teams from division-wide committees to equity and Excellence Learning Centers task forces inclusive culture through cultural
107competence professional development and Trauma informed practices we can create a culture of safety collaboration and belonging bridging opportunity gaps we use data to close opportunity gaps which are also known as our achievement gaps we refer to them as opportunities by expanding early interventions providing rigorous programming tutoring also with scheduling priorities to include dedicated remediation time in our elementary schools empowerment and ownership equity and Excellence Learning Centers Empower our students to discover their potential while events like our Norview High's Hispanic Heritage Month program which actually was initiated by students which is very exciting um and another example our Crossroads Latina Festival aimed to celebrate diversity accessibility and Alignment we connect with families through various Platforms in over 40 languages as you know we have many languages here in norfol to include tools like Bing and platforms
108such as our website Blackboard Facebook and x and we make sure to allocate resources equitably to meet Community needs family and Community engagement we strategically partner with Community organizations to maximize impact based on school needs one example is our Parent Connection partnership which is focused on fostering collaborative Partnerships within the community to support family engagement as well as empowerment recognition and celebrations we celebrate our Dei successes through newsletter social media board reports um and promoting positive examples we are also supporting Dei champions in each school by providing professional development that's focused on cultural competency to create Broad and lasting impacts across our division we have prioritized recognize our recognizing our amazing teachers for the work that they are doing and commitments they're making to students and families that we serve through opportunities like our Rockstar
109a Awards to continue to strengthen cultural competency the office of Dei Communications and Community engagement is implementing a Strategic Training rollout for the 2024 2025 school year by providing multip monthly excuse me cultural competency professional development series that will develop knowledge in the vooe cultural competency domain Ms which include self-reflection pedagogy learning environments and Community engagement participants recently completed What's called the IDI Intercultural developmental inventory which is a widely used effective cross-culturally valid assessment for building cultural competence that's designed to help support individual growth as well as school-based implementation and practices and we also have our cultural competency canvas course that's available multi-tiered systems of support is our framework supporting each student's academic behavioral as well as social emotional growth through equity and accountability some Focus areas needs assessments throughout the month of October division
110wide we are doing a variety of needs assessments to include to name a few Panorama surveys for our students as well as our family engagement surveys these have been conducted to support data driven decision making for example recent feedback obtained during a division-wide committee meeting highlighted the need for additional behavioral as well as some mental support mental health supports in the preschool setting leading to targeted support conversation mapping and allocation considerations smarty goals our comprehensive School support plans include smart goals and for the first time we're excited to start to integrate smarty goals which incorporate inclusion and Equity inclusive practices we prioritize inclusive language and an inclusive curriculum in order to provide more options creating increased Choice uh for our students with a focus on Equity centered instruction practices related to scheduling tutoring for example
111our all-in tutoring professional development and collaborative planning to best meet the needs of our students data driven decisions regular data analysis informs Equitable decision-making across departments collaboration is key collaboration among different departments from Title One just to name a few curriculum and instruction learning support ESL student wellness allow us to identify root causes and address systemic barriers and align actions division-wide meetings and structures ensure that schools students and students with the greatest needs receive the focused attention and support that they need trauma informed practices in schools with significant needs like our equity and Excellence Learning Centers incorp ating trauma informed practices are a priority to Foster safe supportive spaces for students we are also monitoring and focusing efforts to continuing to increase access to wraparound Services while addressing barriers uh such as awareness accessibility transportation
112in order to ensure that students and families can fully U utilize the available resources collabor collaboration and Equity focus our Dei office collaborates widely as I shared before um but we also partner with norfol City agencies to also division-wide and school level support working with different departments to include nutrition services purchasing human resources and student Support Services we are able to address disparities in accessibility and work together to build Bridges to increase inclusivity family and Community engagement through A needs assessment like our family engagement survey and our climate surveys and other initiatives such as parent workshops including literacy training for parents and Guardians we are able to address family needs and align Community Partnerships based on school priorities to maximize impact and last inclusive communication clear accessible communication is essential we continue to use multiple
113platforms and languages to ensure that our fam all of our families receive critical information fostering two-way communication and strengthening School connections our expanded use of language Services continue to improve access for a broader range of our families these initiatives align with norfol Public School strategic plan are big rocks policies reports to create a safe supportive and Equitable learning environment for each and every student thank you so at this time we will open the floor for some discussion and [Music] questions Mr Buffalo had to step out for just a second so board members are there any questions Mr Jordan maybe for I have questions on first on the portion that U Dr Paul went over with the okay with the with the reports okay um I guess my opening comment is um to the board um
114we have a equity policy I've I think I bring this up each time we discuss the report I feel like we either need to uh delete it or amend it so that the the equity policy calls for a task force and that task force is supposed to be working with the administration on these Equity things and then the task force is Task with the making an annual report and so it's been I think it was 2016 was it 2016 I think it was 2016 when we first adopted it and I think we may have uh we started on the task force but it's probably been six years at least maybe seven where the where the PO what the policy calls for has actually been implemented and at least as far as the task force is
115concerned so I just feel like we need to either implement it or take it off the take it off the table and I think that that rest with the board to review and considering taking action on that I don't think that's an administrative responsibility other than the board clearly communicating that we want that policy implemented or the board not wanting that and then the board taking the action to to correct it uh but on on the one one of the attachments that we received is the annual Equity report for Nora Public Schools I think it's the division wide report the division level Equity report yes sir and so I don't really have a question I just want to bring something uh to the board's attention and to your attention that that I that I paid
116attention to one of the things I paid attention to when you look at the star reading um performance for all students and for black students for each grade level uh I'm just reiterating uh I know we're on a good path and I know that the data is showing we're going to make progress in that area as students go from grade to grade as cohorts but uh I'm going to still in my view bring some attention to uh what I feel is a sense of urgency so in Star reading for all students grade level two uh it's about 57% of our students are onade level if I'm if that's correct then grade three 58 grade four 64 grade 5 55 grade 650 uh grade 7 53 and then it even drops to 42% for grade eight
117so if we were to then see what grade nine and then as students are entering into high school and what our high schools then are being asked to um support students towards graduation on time graduation right now somewhere between to 60% 65% of our of all students are arriving in ninth grade not on grade level and so I think when we talk about this cohort pathway that's something that the board should be paying attention to and I know you all as the administration are paying attention to if you do the same thing with black students which both of these fall align with board goals so at grade two uh 47% on grade level grade three it jumps up to 59% grade four 53% grade 5 53% grade six 39% grade 7 36% grade 8 31%
118so close to 7 out of 10 of our African-American eighth graders are going into high school at least you know I don't I shouldn't say it that way because it may not be that all of them are tested I don't know if that's the case but whatever the number of students are that are taking that test um 31% of our black students are going into ninth grade uh not on great level and so I just think as we were just having a conversation earlier about goals and what we're monitoring and what we stay focused on um to me that is a significant number of students that we as adults need to find ways to support and I'm not it's not an Administration thing it's not a blame thing it just a fact based upon the
119data that we're looking at and so when we have conversations about accreditation and uh who's on track from the state perspective to me that's the core of uh of what I think I do math I just chose reading um where we've got to really drill down and make some leverage um supports as Mr Clinton talks about budget wise whatever it is if we don't move that cohort which is probably representative of you know 50 to 55% of all students in the school division all the other goals and measures that we're looking at um are going to be challenged and I bet if we looked at discipline and other things I bet there's probably some connection between the number of students who are involved in disciplinary actions and what their reading level is um as well
120so I just wanted to put that out there for we talk about equity and goals and monitoring and supports that we don't lose sight of paying attention to that to that alignment and I guess my comment is too six seven and eighth grade so that says middle school so what's going on in at the middle school level that you know you see kindergart I mean I'm sorry Elementary and then it falls in middle school and you know what is going on at at the um at that age or grade levels cell phones cell phones so and it's truly not an uncommon Trend it's National yeah it's a national National say it's acceptable but it is a national Trend absolutely Middle School is uh not acceptable interesting a lot going on in middle school middle school
121yeah Miss Pine um yeah sorry thank you U for that and I appreciate Mr Jordan's comments I was going to highlight that but not only that subgroup but also so um what's also very concerning is our students with disabilities and our elll class uh elll students um because those those we have to put Focus um in those areas as well and so when you talk about inclusive uh what you call it inclusive um engagement or inclusive communication and including that in just smarty goals so this is kind of spanning both presentation but because that is an area that I believe as a board that we need to put a great focus on um I want to hear more about what we are doing uh with with our populations around um making sure that the supports
122are in place and not only just that we have the two-way communication but we have real authentic engagement um and that's what I think not just here but School divisions often miss because they think communication is engagement and that's we know that's not true um so could you speak a little more to that because that is certainly going to um impact what we see here academically yeah and and great Point um sorry um you know student engagement is just one level but in in communication um the goal is two-way and so doing that really through different forums where we can actually hear from parents um and so we've done a couple um stake what we call stakeholder and Community engagement sessions which is really designed to provide information but also provide an opportunity to hear
123the voice you know so make a connection not just receive information but that two-way opportunity for dialogue um as well as conducting um you know we're going in some spaces door to door and connecting with families um interviewing you know having dialogue with our families to really talk through what are your specific needs not just what do we want to provide for you but what do you need from us so really having those personalized conversations and then if you could expand on that and then when you receive that information how what is that follow-up look like to ensure that we are you know we're not just also just listening but we're acting on what we're hearing right and so sharing that information um building that in because right now what we're doing as I shared
124with you is really the the time for needs assessment so what do we need so collaboratively sitting together um with multidisciplinary teams to have those conversations this is the information we received and how collectively are we hearing that from different lenses so it's not just one not coming from one space it's coming from multiple um individuals and if I can add to that too um Mr Mr Newman our senior coordinator for World languages and and and ESL has actually they've been doing school by school presentations too on Communications and on using the language group and on making sure you know that not just the front office knows but everybody who would be communicating knows what resources are out there and how to best communicate for that kind of a collaboration so we've gone School level
125with that as well okay and um a couple more questions related to that so so I touched on this earlier could you give an example of us what a smarty like a smarty goal that you have in place yeah that um integrates inclusion and Equity I believe he said um let's see so so really what smarty goals are um it includes you know considering others input um from the inclusive lens Equity addresses unique needs to add disparities and to really talk through that so one example of a goal o so sorry all right um so one smart goal uh smarty goal uh by June 2025 collect comprehensive Baseline information on school leaders through cultural competence academic performance attendance and discipline this data will be gathered through surveys and data analysis of attendance and performance data
126the Baseline information will serve as a benchmark to evaluate the success of this initiative to increase inclusivity and improve outcomes for all students especially those from under represented backgrounds thank you so that kind of connects to another question I had is how how is that being measured and what tools are we collecting you know as a division to to get that standard information so as as we're as we're starting the implementation that's where're growing so really looking at our current smart goals and how do we add the IE to it to make sure that we can go deeper into it because we do you know all our cssps have smart goals and and how do we remind them of what that is since the terminology Chang so the the specific measurable attainable um realistic and
127time frame oh I'm talking about the support plans oh oh sorry it's so many as as you remember we used to have cips but now we have CS um and it's the the the continuous School support plans um that that all of our schools do um and they have to have goals related to their academic performance as well as some seal um goals in there and those are the ones this year we're working on how do we look at the IE on that as well um and the the example that was given here was like we're looking at specific under representative um areas or what specific um inclusivity group do we want to make sure that we have in that goal where we see either large maybe larger gaps at that school so that's that's
128what it would come and it would still have that measurable part into it with the SC thank you anyone else comments questions Dr Gabriel some thoughts that I have been pondering as we have been receiving all of the data um that you have presented to us over the course of time I'm going to dive a little bit into the students with disabilities that is a very broad category there are uh any any student that we are discussing who has a disability has been identified as a student with a disability they have been identified through a very specific means psychoed um educational testing that Identity or are th those means of identification point to some very specific uh categories um they can be medical they can be learning uh and so I think for me at
129a board level it's important to have that very broad understanding of this category but I want everyone to understand at least for me this is a very very deep category with a lot of variety within it and I think that the expectations that we have for every child that is in that category is going to be different so uh there are students with disabilities who have very severe disabilities and they are still counted in our data as they should be but I think that expectations for those students we have to be very realistic about what those expectations are on the flip side there are students who are very very capable of meeting the standards based on some of their perhaps learning disabilities decoding dyslexia those things and so what I would like to have a
130better understanding of and forgive me Dr berong if this might be going too deep is is do you all piece out of the students with learning disabilities this percentage of students have a issue with dyslexia we have on staff these amount of providers that have training on dyslexia and these students are in a class with a provider a teacher or an instructor who has this amount of trading do it are those the things that you all are looking at when you are uh trying to um bridge the gap that we have with the students with disabilities uh because to to me that's where we want to see uh Effectiveness in teaching for them so I apologize for the long breakdown but to me this is this is a category that we have um it's a
131growing population that we have it's a category that we are constantly discussing and I feel like um you know where are you on those items that's a great question Dr Gabriel and and I know um Dr Walter probably perked up and she's going to be you know saying how my answer is so if you need to interject Dr Walter please do um actually yesterday we we just had a inservice for all of our building level administrators and that was one of the points of topic is is is the IP development to support the child and the goal collection and data collection around the IP and the child's needs um because they are vastly different so as each individual IEP is written and there are goals made and accommodations made absolutely if there's a deficiency um
132with dyslexia and there's an accommodation then we make sure there's a staff member that can help with that and if if not that's why you know board wise budget-wise we've asked a lot in Contract Services to be able to find the providers to to offer those supports to students as need so on a on a student level student by student absolutely that's where we we we do everything to match up the supports with the disability um that's been identified and to match the accommodations to meet those needs as well um and and now the another large Focus we have is on the data collection um connected to the student goals and we have in place um software it's called rethink um where where teachers put the data so that we can start monitoring that data
133even better um and see what we're what we're seeing on individual student goal growth um in in an online platform that can help put it together for us instead of having to go IEP to IEP and meeting note to meeting note so absolutely we do look very closely at the student needs and we do monitor that and we do um ensure that students have the accommodations in place and the support to meet those accommodations and then as an Administration if you feel like there is a need as you did with the last budget cycle we need more Specialist or teachers who have certification in x uh type of instruction you bring that forth to the board I've already started begging Dr bird song okay beg they never have to beg what our kids need never
134have to we never have to beg no we don't okay in fact every time I've come with something she's like you sure yes okay I appreciate and then what comes to the board right it's not going to give me free everything but you know I we can justify our needs and um and every year Dr Walter um spends her budget and then some of my budget and I think some of SLT budget and wherever we can pull in from where we need which is why also mid year we we did you know the the budget so and and I'm sure you recall that espec um over the last several years um there have been a lot of requests for to support our children with disabilities and the board has supported those requests and so we
135certainly appreciate that yes and and I know the training is extensive for those students and I I thank all the teachers who have gone out to get additional training for that and I think MPS for providing the extra professional development so appreciate it okay anyone else all right thank you time now is 604 we have two policies 3.01 and 3.02 Dr Bon yes um chair Buffalo tonight or this evening this afternoon this evening um we have a couple of policies that we'd like to bring to your attention um the school wellness policy um on a trienal basis is uh Lisa winter who is a rockar she's our senior um director of Child Nutrition School nutrition nutrition um she works closely with the Virginia Department of Education on um reviewing our policy making sure that it
136meets certain standards and as a result of that review um we have some recommendations that we'd like to bring forth to the board and then certainly um we want the opportunity this evening to discuss um the personal electronic communications device or cell phone policy with the board um we have a proposal for you and I know you probably had an opportunity to review that um we would like to hear your feedback because as you know in accordance with Governor yunan executive order number 33 um we are mandated to roll out a new policy effective January 1 2025 and we feel that we're prepared to do so but certainly we need your input so Dr pole uh you really Dr Birdsong you hit the nail on the head with the wellness policy those are all recommendations
137made through the trianal review um from the vdoe so th th those are why those are being brought forward to the board it is not a a cycle policy with vsba at this point but it is these are recommended um as far as the personal electronic communication device with executive order 33 establishing cell phone free education to promote a healthy and safety the health and safety of Virginia's K through 12 students um the executive order was established since parents public health professionals Educators and other stakeholders across the Commonwealth are expressing concern over the alarming Mental Health crisis and chronic health conditions affecting adolescence such as depression and anxiety driven in part by extensive social media usage and widespread cell phone possession among children um cell phone free education will significantly reduce the amount of times
138students can be on phones without parental supervision um and studies in fact indicate that students who use their phones during class learn less and Achieve lower grades um the issue extends Beyond mere distraction but substantial phone and social media use can have a culminating uh lasting and detrimental impact on adolescent ability to focus and engage in their studies um therefore creating this policy um or the cell phone free education environment in public schools is not only prudent measure but an essential one to promote the healthier and more focused educational environment where every child is free to learn um and as you all are aware this executive order mandates local school boards to adopt and Implement cell phone free policies by January 1 2025 which is why we brought it to you guys in November so
139we can have a second reading on it in December and as a part of developing that policy there was a stakeholder survey early on um before the policy was fully developed then a fireside chat uh where we conducted it with local parents and I believe we're actually the only division on the southide who held the fireside chat um there was principal input and teacher input received as well um and then once the survey was posted to B board docs in public view a survey that specific to the policy was sent to stakeholders to begin receiving feedback prior to the tenative board vote on December 18th and part of the reasoning for This was um to meet the board's two-e deadline and upload data by the 21st of November we wanted to make sure parents had
140more than two weeks on that survey and if we would have waited till now we wouldn't have had time to go through that data and post it for the board as well um so that is out and about already um so with that um we're ready to take any questions you may have on either policy Dr I'm Sorry Miss Bain yeah um thank you can you share regarding the cell phone policy do we are we this is the survey still open or do we have information already collected back from that the the the one we just put out is still open which is the one where we're asking for input on the actual policy right there was a survey early in the fall just around here's executive order really raise awareness about it um to
141get input from parents on on that and that one closed that one that that one's closed already well I I guess um I'm asking is there like a summary report of what the key find what key findings were as a result of that I don't have an official report but I do have some summary I absolutely have some summary of that so we had uh about 1550 responses total um we had about 300 a little over 300 comments um uh with the community feedback and uh 35% fully supported the ban um 25% supported it conditionally wanting like students be able to use it during lunch or for safety concerns wanting my child to have a phone and 40% opposed the the policy in total um some of the key concerns were around safety um um
142and just the need to have access to phones in emergency um situations in the school um some of the benefits of the ban were improved learning environment uh the supporters really were talking about the benefits of producing distractions um um and then the um there was also you know concerns about enforcement of the policy um from some of our teachers but we did talk about that at teacher Forum as well um and they came up with some good suggestions for us too that we're going to put into place um and then there you know some of the suggestions for modification like I said were like during Hall changes or launch to be able to use it but the the executive or is very clear from Bell to Bell so when students walk in Cross the
143threshold of the door in the morning the phones are away until the the end of the day at high school at 205 when the bell rings they can take that phone right out as soon as they want um but from all instructional time including lunch and Hall changes no phones allowed um and then there there were um you know some concerns around technology use and education that some teachers have you know become accustomed to using phones and education um as well um but again the the the executive order was very clear that we had to follow okay and the teacher forums were is the same so teacher Forum every year we do every school has an elected uh representative who comes in okay um and and and we spent I I think about 45 minutes
144to an hour of our um hour and a half together on the cell phone policy okay and that will the information that you've gathered the concerns and you talked about some of the great solutions that um were suggested will be um I guess um integrated or and shared in something really simple that the the teacher form came up with was um you know one having parents and students sign an acknowledgement of this is a new policy I understand the policy but even further than that is when a phone might get confiscated and the parent has to come pick it up if they don't have one of those signed forms on file the parent has to sign the form before they can get the phone back saying that so we have acknowledgement of knowledge of the
145policy because we know a big hill to climb here which why why we started with the survey in the fall is that communication the parent to make sure everybody has an understanding of it when it's in place January 1st coming back after the break when some students may have a brand new phone okay and one more question so and related to uh those and I know what the executive order says but as it pertains to the the policy for those fam students where they were relying on their personal devices uh as health monitoring tools um how can you explain how the the policy itself will help guide parents on you know because I know some are looking for that information and they go to the policy to look for it and so it would actually
146the the the policy would wave if the students have it in their IP okay or if they have it in their student wellness or health um like the 504 yeah or or 504 so like like a common one is is our students with diabetes they use it for monitoring they just need it in their 504 or their health monitoring form with the clinic and then there's an understanding that they have a need for that phone for medical reasons um but if you know if they're playing a game on all day that's something different but if they're using it for medical reasons of course that's course right okay uh I have a question Dr Bon do you um or the administration consider the cell phone policy acknowledgement form part of the student handbook probably every year
147yeah absolutely absolutely and we'll actually do an amendment to the student handbook in January um with the cell phone policy information with the one that's online and that'll be shared with parents too is there any other questions of Mr Jordan yeah on for both policies it has the nor Public Schools Z designation what what makes it Z for for each policy so the for each policy so for the wellness policy that that was developed a few years ago um before my time and there was a lot of conversation around that I understand and both um actually Miss Winters myself and Dr Moore have all talked about when the when the vsba one comes out next time about seeing how can we thin this back down because ours ours has ours it has a lot it
148just has a lot we would do it with input and everything else of of who did it um but that's that one there's a lot Mr Jordan and then the cell phone policy is z because vsba does not have a model policy for it right now so it is every every division has to create their own policy right now so that would be a z and the xxs are just placeholders right now until we have where it fits in the policy document in the policy manual so I'm not trying to go down the the wellness policy I just wanted to make sure that there was nothing new in there that was unique to us on top I knew why we had a z I just didn't know in the recommended changes understand was there anything
149in there that was deepening the the something unique to NOA Public Schools versus yeah those those were all based on recommendations from the vdoe trianal review when they looked at our policy as a part of that and said these these need to be a part of your policy and then for the personal electronic communication policy the the executive order guidance um at least as I re as I recall it said these were some uh minimum recommendations and guidance that local school divisions could consider and that you could be even more comprehensive so in what's being put forward here is this considered implementing the the minimum or is there something more comprehensive that's being recommended here Beyond just assuring minimum alignment with the executive order uh this is really just in alignment with the executive order
150uh some of the things they they uh put on local localities was like what about school buses and and we without having AIDS on every single bus having a driver trying to do that we thought was unreasonable um and unsafe so th this really follows the framework of this is what schools need to be doing to start with and and then you know we figure we'll build from there as as as we move into it and then are there other policies then that were aligned with um what what we currently have that are also impacted by this recommendation that we should be reviewing and considering yes so after this after this one assuming it's going to pass the board then we'll look at our BYOD policy because that talks about bringing your own device right
151um and and how that would be either defunct now or or rewarded then in my last comment um guess was a couple weeks ago I was invited to speak to a group of students at grany High School in one of their uh one of their clubs and in my conversation with them about what a school board member does I brought up well who you think sets these policies and one of the ones that we talked about was the cell phone policy and the student obviously their eyes lit up and they had lots of thoughts so can you describe the engagement uh with the student population in terms of what's being recommended here so when we engage with principls most our High School principles have engaged with their students um I don't know if Dr C
152if you had specific student group meetings we did have them on the surveys and they were able to um on on on the initial survey to give feedback on that and then when we talk teacher form we we talked about what students were saying in there as well but nothing nothing more direct I would like to for the board to to consider maybe something we do but trying to recommend that that the and we have our two student Representatives um to the board but trying to make sure that the students are aware I mean adults going to make the the decision but I think the students at least in my experience come up with a lot of good creative ideas and um voice from their own experiences and so I would like to see some
153type of effort being made to make sure that the students are truly aware of uh what's being discussed and that their feedback is uh is being sought inv valued I don't I don't know what that looks like I don't know how you do that but maybe we maybe we text it to a wink during the school day but uh whatever whatever whatever is huh yeah and maybe that's something that we can ask our student reps to work on but but I do think making sure that the students are aware uh what's happening and making sure that we value their voice I think it aligns with the the goals and the Norms that the board board established around student voice and I I believe Dr White is sending me smoke signals over there about doing a
154a a PSA as well including students in that too currently that will be going out will be featured yeah I think that's great I just want to I'm just recommending that we make sure it's targeted to the students and not not just to the adults right um I just keep wan to say Dr Bine uh Miss Bine um yes so I do want to what you're not talked her yet I I do want to go back to the the wellness policy so um one of the things so so this this policy was intentionally crafted to be comprehensive um and so some of the things that I notice that are have are seem to be stried through are things like the school health index and one of the things that uh the purpose of that was
155to kind of align our school School Wellness practices with what we're finding are the needs of our students and so I want to hear a little more about why um you're recommending deleting that piece even though I know it says no later than June I understand not having a date in there but deleting it um as something that we would conduct um I want to hear a little more about why the recommendation is to remove that from the policy so um when miss witer and I talked about that it was because those have been completed um the this the school health index were completed and I believe they're a part of the trienal now okay um so it it was just this was something that had been completed that hadn't been completed when the policy
156was put into place which is why it was a dated item in the policy right right so the the the school health index is a part of that Tri it's part of the trianal okay all right okay that's helpful um to know and um yeah I and and I I just think as we consider Community School models where we're uh examining you know the health needs also of our students that that having a policy is comprehensive as this and this is something that's been I know has been um uh I guess other division have said that's a great policy that you have in place that um that we don't consider reducing it or you know because I think we've been real intentional about what we're doing here I think a lot of the discussion we
157had around it was more of how can we organize it better so we see what because when vsba comes out with the legal updates or the requirements through vdoe sometimes they get missed because they're hidden in here so making sure that it's organized in a way where we can see the differences and not not cutting out things that because we know there was a lot of thought put into this policy clearly there was a lot of thought put into this policy so it's more of you know some of these things I I think in in previous VBA updates might have been a part of it but it didn't make it to our policy because it it's just so deep and and I don't think you know it's the vsba part's not noted as well so
158just organizing it better okay thank you just Mr Jordan not so much a question one I just want to say with the wellness policy just as with the equity policy I know Miss bassine and I joke about it all the time that U there's some things in here around fundraisers and what you what you're supposed to have and not have that don't seem to get uh implemented so so if we're not going to be doing sugary stuff and all this stuff then I think we need to do a better job of communicating to the to the schools the the dos and the don'ts and um and then my other General comment is um just overall from a policy perspective um you know we were sending emails back and forth dealing with the Gent pathway program
159uh we had um we've had out of District transfers for uh other programs that from a board perspective not know that we even knew existed but where were granting out of District transfers like with the um Project Lead way classes at some high schools that don't exist at other high schools and so I just think it's important that one we're we're clear on those policies two we're clear what the Board responsibility is around enrollment and um establishing Pathways versus what we have granted the administration to do um without Board of guidance or so forth so because when the when I started receiving the calls about the Mory pathway program it took me back to the uh Southside STEM Academy zoning where the board decided one thing and somebody decided something different and now 10 years
160later we still have this disconnect and so my reading and maybe the the policy committee and the attorneys can look at it but my reading of the policy whatever it is BBA that deals with board responsibilities that it's the board that determines enrollment it's the board that determines attendance zones and so if a individual staff person is making decisions around who gets enrolled I don't to me that is not in alignment with the policy and if I'm wrong I need somebody to tell me but I think those types of things need to be communicated because it's so much turnover in the division that anybody can come in tomorrow and just not be aware of something and we can unintentionally undo things and cause uh all kinds of uh disruption whereas if we're just clear that
161if you have the authority to do something you have the authority to do it then it's a matter of communic communicating that change but if they don't have the authority to do it and rest with the board then the recommendation should be coming to the board to be able to act on and just like we're doing with these policies as our process has been when we have controversial policies we do se you know readings and allow for Public public comment so I just want to raise that again from a policy perspective because I think at times and no no Mal intent anywhere but I just think that not always clear on um what rests with the board and what what does not so thank you thank you Mr Jordan for that comment any other questions
162or comments well thank you Dr Pole thank you guys very much have a good evening board members uh we have exhausted our agenda and with no other business this meeting is a jar