0015:30 on 99. I'm hearing some feedback that Thank you, Dustling over there. I still hear from the superintendent computer and I'll try not to have that throwing. >> Perfect. There we are. Uh, so welcome everyone to the the regular meeting of the SVUSD, uh, September 9th. Um, I'm Chris Murphy. I get to serve as chair and I would first are there any proposed amendments to the agenda? Just not aware of any. So, we're good to go. So, we can move right into our agenda. Uh item number one is the pledge of allegiance. So, I would invite anyone who cares to to stand and join us, please. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. Amen. >> And to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty
002and justice for all. Thanks folks. All right. Uh, agenda item two is public comment. So, uh, I see one member of the public with us. >> Hi, Kathy Clark here from Shaz Elementary School. Um, last meeting I did put a request to add something to the agenda and I was just wanted to make it public. I was very disappointed to see that that has not been added. um the saying of the pledge of allegiance practice at Chastbury School, we are still not allowed to say it with our whole class. I was really hoping that that could be um added and come up for discussion again because we still are not allowed to say it with our class and it's just very disappointing that I did not see that on the agenda when I printed it
003out yesterday. Pain, you want to see if any other folks are present online to join us public comment? Y See any others? Great. Uh so that brings us to agenda item three, the consent agenda which was attached. We have minutes from August um to be approved and we also have a resation from P. Uh I did not know however in the board packet there was a let this up there's a letter Bruno just noting um she would be resuming um teaching kindergarten elementary school I don't know that we necessarily need to act on that as part of the consent agenda but fits in with the nomination resignation retire retirement sort of thing so I want to at least noted here so um any first I'll ask any proposed modifications to the minutes from August Okay,
004hearing none. All those in favor of approving the consent agenda as published, please signify by saying I. >> I. I. >> Any opposed? Motion passes. Great. That brings us to the finance report agenda item four. Uh we have a treasures report which was not posted. So the hope is we can take action on that uh next month when we see that. We also have a uh proposed donation from Bloomac River Theater Company to make Fence Elementary School. So the amount of $99. Very good. I'm getting the sense from the letter that the Bloom Sack River Company sent us that they're closing up shop. They're no longer doing that at all. That's distributing their funds. They would like some of those funds to go to Bington Elementary >> And some goods as well. Yep. And so
005I would uh entertain a motion to accept the donation from the Woomsac River Theater. >> Make that motion. >> Thanks, Stephanie. Do we have a second? Chris first and second. Great. Any discussion about accepting this uh this gift from the Loomac River Theater Company? Hearing none. All those in favor of accepting the donation, please signify by saying I. I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Any extensions? Great. And it passes. Um Jeff, as clerk, would you please write a letter? Thank you. Thank them. Um our first number five is a report from the policies committee. We don't have one. And our second number five is a report from operations. So to that we will turn it over to director. Yes. So, can I just do a really quick introduction because we have a couple new members.
006Holly. >> Sure. >> Okay. Thank you. >> So, uh just for folks who may have joined us, um this is part of a coordinated effort with myself and the directors. Uh we came to see you in uh August, talked about staffing and where you stand as a district moving into the new school year. Holly is going to be joining me for the next couple weeks. will be in front of boards giving you updates on buildings that would fall under your school district. Uh next month we're going to talk about grants and then in November we'll be visiting student services. All this is in preparation. Hopefully we're giving you information that will help you with your work in December and January as we work on the budget. So Holl's been here great. I've seen her slideshow.
007It's fantastic. She is going to be skipping some slides. The chair has asked her to please focus on elementary schools under this district. So Paulie, thank you very much for coming on. >> No, thank you very much. Let me let me switch over and then I'll get started. Uh there okay doing something wrong Ah, success. So, friends, thank you so much. I'm really excited to give you an overview on what we've been doing um in the elementary schools uh over the recent past. Uh this this presentation is for the whole district. So, I'm going to kind of um go quickly by uh some of the slides. I also wanted to let you know uh I invited the director of the elementary district, Todd Zinclary, to come and um and be president if you have any
008questions or concerns. None of this would be possible without him and his team. So, I just want to make sure um you guys know what an important asset he is to the district. >> Can you guys hear me? Okay. Okay, so these are some of the funds uh that we received as a district um for some of the construction projects in the recent past. Uh the ARP esser funds were from the federal government as part of COVID recovery. Um IAQ, same thing uh but it came through in a different way. Uh the SVSU applied for the energy prize through the Department of Energy. We got a check for $100,000 and then a subsequent check for $50,000. Uh we got 1.6 million through the EPA for the electric school buses in Arlington. Local funds share grants
009through the state for both of our biomasses. And then incentive money, anytime we do energy efficiency, uh we work closely with efficiency Vermont and and they help subsidize that. Uh so this is our building inventory. We have a little over a million square feet. Our oldest building is Woodford. 1809 was its first uh operating year. And the newest building is in 2004. Uh and we have every flavor of construction and deferred maintenance and uh everything in between in the other buildings. So, uh, we have Arlington, SPS, uh, SPSUSD, and so we'll just go Fisher. These are your guys. So um in in the elementary district with the ARP erds, we worked with a design team for the HVAC uh upgrade projects to make sure we were uh meeting industry standards and we were addressing some
010of the deficiencies in the existing HVAC system as well as adding what was needed. We also took up uh lots of old carpet flooring. Um, we installed two different playgrounds, one on each side of the building, and we replaced the roof on both the twotory section and then the section that was adjacent to the gym this summer. Um, it was it was active, so we took care of that. While I start, uh, same thing. We we did HVAC improvements for indoor air quality flooring. Uh we replaced the kindergarten roof which hadn't started leaking but it was it had lived its useful life and it was on the verge of failing. And they also got one playground um installed. Um monument same thing we uh covered uh hazardous flooring. We upgraded the HBAC system. Um, monument
011was in pretty good shape comparatively. There we go. Uh, ponel, same thing. We went through and upgraded the HVAC. We renovated uh some bathrooms. Uh, did a great deal of painting. And, uh, the stair tread upgrades are in progress. But you can tell we got a new sign uh for Connell and that's just really exciting for me. Shaffsbury, we painted the outside. We addressed a lot of the rooftop units as part of the HVAC uh system. Uh Todd worked heavily on the sewer pump repairs. And we uh painted the outside of the building. We replaced all the exterior lighting so there's more lumens and replaced floor. We uh we put in a whole ventilation system. It had heating and cooling but no ventilation before that. Uh we put a whole new roof on and repaired
012a corner of the building that had brought it away and put in a new playground. And then so just just as an overall um in addition to the master planning work we've done internally and the the way that the state is looking at uh funding uh construction of uh K through2 facilities moving forward. Uh these are some of the replacement values for our buildings. uh the average annual need coming moving forward over the next uh so this is the annual need yearly to keep our buildings the way they are and then um basically that this is what we're going to spend over the next 10 years to keep all our buildings in the condition they are >> just for uh for Richard can you go back and just give the total amount u total expenditure
013of >> sorry the average annual need this is Not just cleaning and things like this. This is replacing doors that have outlived their life, windows that need to be replaced, things like that. So, it's the figure on there is $2,280,000. >> Correct. >> And then an expenditure for total that's every that's every school. That's not just schools in the the ESD, but the total expenditure over 10 years you estimated about 22,82,000. >> Yeah, that's true. And that's that's keeping things uh status quo and up to date and all our systems moving. Um and with that we know that uh like paddle elevator the elevator has lived its useful life. Uh I just put in a couple of different um things that we know are coming coming uh as as immediate needs. So, uh, yeah. Uh,
014we can go through those if you'd like. >> Could you highlight just a couple of those elementary schools that these folks? >> Certainly. >> So, uh, Benella, the next roof replacement, we've got to replace the gym and we've got to replace the roof in the connecting section between the twotory in the gym during that hallway. Uh, that roof um needs to get done. the castle, the building behind Molly Stark that was built by the facilities department. Um requires uh a gut renovation if not something else entirely. Uh it has structural issues, it has insulation issues, roofing issu all of the issues it has. So that's good. Um monument, we still have yet to put a new playground there. We still have pea gravel uh and not wood chips. and Chefsbury, we need to work on
015the sprinkler system. And in the library, it's much like Panel where the walls don't go up to the underside of the deck. So, it's hard to teach when people are always walking around in that space. So, that's that's on the list as well. Um, and as you know, the state is moving forward with Act 72 >> 73. Um, and as part of that and how they're figuring out how we're going to pay for uh construction and facilities moving forward, they've developed a uh construction advisory committee uh and which I'm happily going to serve on. So hopefully we'll get some more in on what they're thinking and what the what the grand scheme looks like going forward. >> Director Anderson, could you talk to us a little bit more please about the sprinkler system install at
016Shbury? >> Sure. Uh there are exterior there are exterior exits to there are doors to the exterior of the classrooms. However, the the way the type of construction it is um really does require a sprinkler system. So that's something that we looked at as part of the artbesser funds and it just didn't rise to the top of the needs. Most most of the need was indoor air quality. >> Gotch. Okay. Thank you. Any other questions for Holly? >> I've got one. Uh, the 22.8 million projected over 10 years, is that in today's money and accounting for inflation in there? >> Excellent question. Does the state anticipate >> all that good stuff? >> Yeah, the state anticipated uh inflation at 4.32 >> or right around. Isn't >> one last the replacement value for the buildings? Is
017that the state number? >> That's the state number. Um >> that's probably not a true number. >> The in my mind's eye, uh it they're using like 250 as a renovation, a renovation number. Um the numbers they're using for new construction uh in today's market would be inadequate. But the surveys were done >> four or five years ago. Yeah. >> Yeah. But they all looked a little low to me. Yeah. Well, like what presented last year. >> Yeah. >> Like a hundred million dollars and that's a smaller building than RMA. >> So s I was just surprised where those numbers came from. So yeah, it's not accurate numbers. >> Yeah, they're they are provided in the state reports that they have given us. Did I answer your question, Jess? >> I answer my question. >>
018Good deal. Holly, for the paving that is being done or hopes to be done at Woodford, is that along the side in the front or is that the parking area? >> So, we've been looking at that. Uh, one of the issues, as you know, is the the right of ways in the state. The the first phase of the paving at Woodford. Uh, the state took care of, we met with them. Uh, we reviewed it. They have taken care of care of that. In this year's local budget, we have about 40 grand um to look at circulation circulation paving and also storm water mitigation because there's there's so much water coming down from the mountain, right? Uh and and so the the storm water infrastructure is undersized and or non-existent. Um and then we need to
019figure out how to capture storm water before it gets to the parking. So, my intent this year is to work on a design and and get estimates on what that design will cost uh so that so that we can put it in next year's budget to do a a holistic approach. >> And you're coordinating with the TAP? >> No. Um no. Uh I've put out uh feelers for an engineering firm to get to get pricing for design services. If it's all right, maybe we could chat for a few minutes later on. Sure. >> Absolutely. >> Yeah. >> Any questions? >> Participating. All set. Holly, thank you very much. >> Thanks, director. Thank you. And this this has been shared with everybody correct some comments from folks that so if you want to look at the
020numbers more closely that's our bill is shared with the public or teachers or our website. >> So it's this presentation is on the uh morning for this meeting I'm happy to share. It's none of it's confidential. >> Yeah. No it's it's through the if you go to the SV SVSU website under under current boards board documents it's right there. It's it's part of the packet for tonight and director Anderson, thanks for for putting the time in to get get this to us ahead of time. It's it's helpful just for us to be able to come prepared to know we're going to hear about. So, thank you to Thank you for Mr. Clark. Thank you so much. >> Hear your name but never see you. >> Oh, that brings us to uh number six, which is
021the uh ESD best educational use of facilities update. Superintendent Payne, do you have any updates for us or do we do we know when the committee the sub committee will be meeting again? >> Um Holly and I have talked about it. I have I the only thing I can report is that I have read the report that was handed over to the committee a year ago. Uh and so just some direction from the board as far as moving forward and getting folks together. I'm happy to do that. >> So we had again this was under the previous superintendent's tenure. Um, but there was committee that was that was put together. Um, I recall that at least Jeff was a rep from this board. Um, Glenn Glenn was as well. Um, the notion there were other
022stakeholders though. It wasn't just members of the board. Um, uh, Glenn or Jeff, can either of you speak to who was on that board or what sort of who say represented those various stakeholders who were on that subcommittee? >> A couple administrators, community members. Yeah, all you can tell us. >> We know you were there. >> Yeah. So, uh there were a few parents from different schools, uh community members, uh a couple board members, and yeah, and me and Jen. >> So, I think what we'd like to see is I I don't want that. We spent a lot of money on the report. Clearly, there's a need for us to optimize our use of the building. So if if somebody who has the authority to order other people to do things can pull together a
023meeting a meeting of that subcommittee. >> So Paulie and I can revisit the list, send out invitations and set a date for folks to open. >> Happy Thank you. Thank you. >> All right. Um the SVSU report is agenda item seven. Which one of our SVSU reps would like to tell us what's going on with that one, please? So we have had our second uh board retreat and as part of it we're talking about the goals and goals for our SU as well as our superintendent and we should be set we need to be set by the policy with the goals by September 30 and uh I hope we're going to make it >> summation. >> That's good. >> Great. Anything else add Jeff or or Jeff or Glenn? >> Right, Neil? >> It's been
024interesting work. Everybody's been very forthcoming about, you know, the ways that the board functions, the things we're getting done, the things we can use getting better at. >> It's a good good experience all all. >> And Mr. Payne announced that they were going to look for interim assistant superintendent. >> Great big one there. And the other piece of this about the retreat is that it isn't limited to just the SVSU board. Every board has the option of having a retreat to each year. >> Is the the BSBA organizing a retreat? Who is organizing the BSU retreat? >> Uh somehow we have contracted uh with with a um >> Tracy, right? >> Yes. >> I think it's still BSBA employer. >> Okay. >> To facilitate She's done a lovely job. >> Okay. Thank you. Oh, that
025brings us to the superintendent report. Superintendent P. >> So, I'll do this in two parts. Um, one, I'm I'm going to try to make sure I provide even if it's a short update on Act 73 and what's going on. Uh, of course, educational reform law passed and uh they're working through at the state level. Now, uh I just want to tell folks that I have been meeting regularly with regional superintendent. So that's southwest corner of uh of the state. Uh I had another conversation with uh superintendent low who is superintendent of BRSU this week. Um I am slated to travel to Killington on Thursday. There'll be a statewide meeting of superintendents. We got the agenda this morning. It is almost entirely dedicated to act 73 and how it may impact our lives. So I look
026forward to taking copious notes and bringing that back for the board. And then I also um was invited to attend a meeting of the rural school community alliance. Some of you may be aware of this group. uh they've been pretty active in the most uh in the latest legislative cycle uh lobbying and advocating in the uh the run-up to act 73. Uh they have a meeting next Friday the 19th. It'll be a zoom. I'm going I want to be really clear with all the boards and I'll say this in front of all the boards. I am going as an audience member. Um they have asked for um they have asked uh some superintendent uh some school districts and some supervisory unions uh for support. Um I'm going to go sit I'm going to come back
027to the board. I'm going to ask I think it's a board's uh prerogative to say yes we would like to sign on to this or yes we'd like to know more about this but this is my first meeting with them on the 19th. So I will bring that back to the group as well and say hey these are what these folks see as important as they move through the educational reform piece. So I'll stop there. I have school safety as my next piece. This is in uh followup to our meeting that we previously had. I've invited two folks to join us this evening. One is Vic Milani who is here with us through Zoom. He is uh safety coordinator for the school district and also uh Beth Bourge who is principal at Powell. Um so
028to the chair I can have Vic talk in general terms or your prerogative if you want to move us into executive session. I know there was some more fine detail that the board was asking for some followup. >> Yeah. So I think what I'd like to do is we'll have you pause in your superintendent report for now. Um I'll give a brief chair support. We'll do our FYI. and then we'll move into our final piece executive session at which point we can invite those folks in. Um chair I will keep it brief. The one thing I will say that um that directly bumps up against what we had chatted about last week or last month rather we were talking about um structuring our agenda in such a way that they match in terms of form
029with all the other boards agenda and one of the things we had discussed was putting having a standing executive session on our agenda just like we have a standing SPSU report and operations report and so on. Um, for those of you who I think we all receive the uh Vermont School Board Association's emails, um, I would I would recommend we all read it. It just so happens the latest one talks specifically about that saying that with the new statutes that was passed um, we shouldn't be doing we shouldn't be having executive session as a standing um, agenda item. So, we won't we won't do that. >> Um, but it's, you know, always good information in those emails. It's rare that it is pertinent to something we had just discussed. And that's certainly was the gate
030there. Um so moving on to agenda item 10 there the FYI the budget status report uh was there we have um oh the Melanie Bruno thing I was mentioning in the consent agenda is right there at the FYI. So um having exhausted the agenda except for the executive sessions uh I would entertain a motion to enter into executive session as per one Vermont statutes annotated section 3137 which allows us to discuss the academic records or suspensions or discipline of students and also for one section 31310 which allows us to discuss security or emergency response measures the disclosure of which could jeopardize public safety. And I would ask that we invite our superintendent and Mr. Milani and Principal Lorge in and Dr. Milani, pardon me, and Principal Lorge in as well. So, anyone want to make
031that motion, please? Miss Glenn, I saw Cindy. >> Yeah, I have a question. >> Okay. >> Um, where on this session are we going to talk about the pledge of allegiance? >> We're not there. There would be nothing in executive session that would allow us to discuss that. There's nothing in the executive session law that would allow us to discuss the pledge of allegiance in executive session. It would need to be open discuss in public. >> I don't know that we have anything >> another person another teacher. >> We had the same teacher that we've had before. Yes. >> And you we didn't deal with it then and we're not dealing with it now. >> So So what happened uh for those of you who get your email and read your email? Um I had
032addressed an email to each of us individually explaining why this was not why I was not inclined to bring this back onto our agenda. Fact is we had made a decision. It's a decision that hopefully will suit the most people understanding we're now going to find a solution that will that will make everybody happy. Case in point, last month we had two teachers saying they wanted the pledge at a certain time and four parents call who said no, it shouldn't be given at that exact same time. So we will not find a solution that makes everybody happy and we as a board need to be comfortable with that fact while still addressing the desires of the most. But we as a board should have discussed it, not just you. >> So we as a board
033have discussed this more than any other topic at any point in my almost 10 years of serving as a board. So we certainly have and I would say Cindy, not for nothing, like you have seconded one mot, one of the two motions and you voted for both of the motions that have brought us to this point. So we have all as board members supported the decision that was made first made in December, then fine-tuned in April. >> Not all. and >> you were I think I wasn't on the board but I was here for the meeting and with numerous other people and I'm still very well you know how I feel about it. So anyways I think that in that meeting when all of us came you said if there was an issue with it
034we would revisit it. I don't think you're revisiting that. I think you're just passing it. I think you need to >> get the teachers together and discuss it. I I there's a lot of animosity going on. I I hear it. Let me tell you though, I get my phone off the plug me in the >> So, this is what I would say. What we're doing right now is talking openly about a thing that was not posted on our agenda. So, so we should not be talking about >> Sorry. So, can we bring the proposed policy next meeting and then talk what we voted on and see if there's evidence? >> It's policy. >> It's it's a recommendation. It's it's a directive from this board and I I don't know f first of all nothing's changed
035since last month. Nothing's changed since the month before that or the month before. Nothing has changed except we have a teacher who's come a number of times. Sometimes here as a union rep, sometimes as an individual, sometimes as an employee saying she would like the pledge of allegiance on the agenda. We as a board again have spent hours talking about this. >> I think she said she would like to say it with her class, >> right? And this board has made a decision that that's if she can, but it's before classes begin. That was the last adjustment we made. Was the last adjustment we made and so that's that directive that everyone on this board voted for. Everyone who was here at Wex I don't recall maybe there are some people. Everyone who was here
036voted in favor of that and it's to say the pledge is going to be said every day in school before classes start >> inside. issue. Why? >> I have no idea. I have no idea except the teacher we had come here tonight wants to say it with her class after this after classes begin. And that's not what this board voted for. >> Well, what happens is the I should have said on >> Well, what else? But just I think I I think I can guess where you're going to go. And then this has to be the last because we are discussing a thing that was not warranted and we should not be talking about. I would say this as with any directive that comes from the board. If a staff member is not abiding by
037that directive, there is a chain of command to include the superintendent that that's that's the chain of command that should be addressing such things. It should not be coming to this board. If there are teachers who have ch difficulties or disagreements with their colleagues or their building principles, this is not the arena for that. You have a very clear policy in >> You have a very clear policy in 1025 that says if you have a complaint about personnel >> there's a written there's chain of command I would caution using public comment to heir your concerns about a decision made in a building >> regardless of you are as public citizen or employee you're still an employee. So policy 1025 there's a very as the chair has said there's a very clear written chain of command
038of how you would raise that concern and it wouldn't public comment is not listed in there. >> Yeah. So >> maybe we should put it on the agenda for next month. >> To what end? To like an I1 or to what end? >> I am I am confused about it. >> Okay. So you I I think what we should do is I think everybody goes back and read the directive and you know follow up with Chris and if you're confused follow up with Chris and if we need to put it on you consider >> Sure. I mean what I I I sent the email two people got responded back to me. I had an I I engaged with that conversation with with those two board members. I would encourage people to go back and read
039the minutes and watch go to YouTube and watch those two meetings of the SVUSD that are on the Catamounts television YouTube page. Just go to go to YouTube and type SVUSD. They will come up. Watch them. Listen to the conversation. Listen to the motions that were passed. Pay attention to how you voted during those motions. And then if people really want to talk about it more in open session, let me know and we can and maybe we will. I'm not saying we definitely maybe we will. >> That date was 10:25 when that meeting. >> No, it was it was the December meeting and the January and the April meetings. >> Okay. December and January. >> December and >> Okay. Thank you. >> because we had initial you know directive in December and then we said
040we revisit it and then we revisit it back in. Yes. >> So after that we said a second vote in April. So all for sitting on that board for the April >> pulp and and one last thing truly more than any other topic ever. We've discussed this pledge. Not special education services, not unhoused families, not students who go hungry, not our crumbling infrastructure, but the pledge. And we've had a solution. And just because it doesn't make everyone happy doesn't mean this board needs to get mired down in that. We have other responsibilities. We have a thousand plus students we need to be looking out for. And it involves far more than this one thing that we have already made a decision that passed unanimously with this board. So any further discussion about going into executive
041session? Great. Thank you. All those in favor of moving into executive session as described with the invitees, please signify by saying I I session please. So we are recording. Okay. Let's join this. The CB is not there. Do we know if Richard stuck around? >> I have not, >> but we are recording for that purpose. >> Okay, perfect. Um, so I would uh entertain a motion, please, to exit executive session, please. >> I'll make a motion to Exit executive session. >> We'll call Jeff first. One second. Any discussion about exiting executive session? Hearing hearing? None. All those in favor of exiting executive session, please signify by saying I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Extension to appear. So, we're out of that. I see Richard there. Uh, so having exhausted our agenda, I would indicate a
042motion to adjurnn, please. >> Thanks, Stephanie. >> Thanks, Clint. We have a first and a second to adjurnn. Any discussion about adjourning? >> Hearing none. All those in favor of journeying, please sign by saying I. >> Any opposed? Any extensions? We are adjourned. Thank you very much, everyone.