001for I good afternoon Pete wildor Melissa Mason Jayy Barnhart Pat Bradford Stephanie Kel H mcmanis and Stephanie Walker now spe l testing all right everybody on Miss Crable are you on yes I'm on thank you all right so we have a first and second again we're back on thank you uh Miss Bradford okay a couple things I need your Indulgence um let's say one at a time tonight we have a full agenda and closed session very tight schedule I um it's already going to be a challenge to meet it so under old business um we have yet another discussion of the vocal Law Firm I move that we lay that matter on the table in the seven months this firm's contract it's we've gone over it at least five times we've given the people's time
002to this discussion it's a distraction I moved to substitute under new business a discussion to create a student Safety Committee okay so get my paper out here so you're moving to lay the discussion of the Vogal Law Firm on the table um and to could you uh say Safety Committee under also under new business yeah substitute um under new business a discussion about creating a student Safety Committee student Safety Committee okay is there a second I'll second you have a first and second on that discussion Miss Walker I we we went over this last week the agenda I don't know why we're removing things now that we had prepared from last week I don't agree with removing it we've all prepared for this meeting I think it should continue on the agenda and substituting something
003for something else that wasn't that doesn't make sense it doesn't make sense others Mr MCM just all okay Miss barart I'm in favor of having a safety discussion but I don't think it um postponing it to a month later is anything end dangerous so I I like the idea of adding that to our March agenda Okay so any other discussion Miss graville um yeah um two things um if we're going to go forward with that I think we should have two motion so that people can be clear on they don't want this or they do want that I think that would be better so um and also and and I'll make a motion to that effect in just a moment um I wanted to also say that our policy says that we have to get
004this get topics on the agenda within two meetings and I have asked asked for the Vogal Law Firm to be on the agenda since October and it keeps getting moved and now we have much more data um we have um bills from July all the way through the end of December um we've got plenty of information to discuss so um with that I'd like to make a motion that we vote on Miss Bradford's motions separately so you are actually I believe you're I'm going to amend the motion to um add new no to no I'm no I'm not going to do any of that because I don't want either one of them so but I think that we need to vote on them separately so I don't know how we I believe how should I
005make that Mo way is I've moved to divide the question I believe okay I've moved to divide the question okay is there a second to divide the question second okay for second discussion on dividing the question so basically having two separate motions if not miss buy would you please let me get my paper would you please call the role so oh no I'm sorry want to discuss it I know yeah so we are now voting again board members whether to divide Miss Bradford's motion uh the motion to lay Mr Vogal the discussion of the Vogal Law Firm on the table and the motion to um add a Safety Committee to two separate motions Miss buy please call the role Mr mcmanis yes Miss crille yes Miss Barnhart yes Miss Walker Mr wior yes Miss Mason
006no and Miss Bradford no okay that passes five to two so they will be divided so the first motion that Miss Bradford brought up was to lay on the table discussion of the Vogal Law Firm taking that as a separate uh entity uh any other discussion on that just one thing to say I agree with Miss crille when we talked about our policy is clear about how long we take to put things on the agenda and discuss it it has been longer than two months so I think this is due to be discussed and we've already planned it so I think we're going to be going against our policy if we we remove it okay else ni chance okay Miss Miss buy we are voting on whether to lay the discussion of the Vogal Law
007Firm on the table Miss buy Miss Mr mcis no Miss Crill we're voting to delay the discussion delay it on the table yes no not a yes I'm it's a no yeah Miss Barnhart no Miss Walker no Mr wildbore no Miss Mason yes and Miss Bradford Yes again uh is defeated 5-2 and then we have the second part of M Bradford's motion which is to add a discussion of a Safety Committee to this month's discussion to um agenda excuse me discussion Miss Walker we um went over our agenda last week we have a certain amount of time we have for this agenda which means we've already said that we are not we're going to stop at a certain time and I don't think there's room to add more things Miss crra took the time last
008time to add add our minutes up and we are there so adding more things is not it's against policy again Bradford the Department of Public in uh instruction put out uh tables this week that said then our school district in 2022 23 they had 167 cases of Acts of school crime and violence 167 of those um one were Controlled Substances two were sexual assaults one was an assault with a weapon possession of a weapon 30 cases uh in possession of a firearm four and on Friday we had another possession of a firearm I think it's quite Germaine oh and in North new han County assaults resulted in serious injury five I think it's quite Germaine that we take it up immediately who else I think Miss barnhard was did you have your hand up no
009ma'am okay I do then I have my hand um so I think that student safety is the utmost of importance we are we already have some things in place where we're dealing with some of these issues we spent a lot of time on our agenda review the ad hoc committee made it very clear what we can and cannot do at the agenda review and part of that includes not adding new things even at the agenda review the other thing that I have been vocal on and I'm hoping that people feel the same is that first of all our staff may or may not be prepared to talk about all the things we want to talk about it's not listed on the posted agenda on the rightand side where it says main points um what we're
010going to talk about who we're going to hear from and I just don't think it's right for us to keep on trying to force things on we we are going to go over four hours and in fact one of the reasons that we talked about with moving Mr mcmanus' discussion on cell phones was to a work session was because we knew we couldn't get there in 4 hours so why are we going to set ourself up for just having to table that discussion when we get to four hours the I I don't think it's appropriate for us to be springing this kind of important information on our staff at this time okay M Walker um I'll just add to I'm not against the discussion I just think not now I think we should do the
011way we normally do which is ask for it and put it on for their next month I think that's fine and appropriate Miss Billy please call the role again this is to whether to add a discussion of safety to this month's discussion Mr MC I'm sorry I see hand thank you Mr chair we've talked about focusing on discipline schools for 6 months I know several of the board members and I appreciate Mr bord saying that and for me to say that to her that means I really approve we did discuss it but we're not going to resolve that problem in two weeks and I think it's something we really need put a lot of time into and we've agreed to shut down in 4 hours because we've been going to 6:00 and 7 and getting
012home at midnight which is not even safe but long story short I agree Miss Bradford with what you said but I do not agree tonight but that said Miss boy would you please call the rooll Mr McMahon is no Miss crille no Miss Bart no Miss Walker no Mr wbore yes Miss Mason yes and Miss Bradford yes unfortunately that's defeated or it is defeated four to three so okay one more um under old business mosle I have looked at and listen at the last meeting and I seriously don't think that we can do that in 20 minutes I would like an opportunity to speak and we have some people who like to speak longer so I was going to make a motion to double that time um but miss Barnhart had suggested that we separate
013all business into Mosley and Mosley Mosley the career Readiness Academy what's going on there and then mostly the building what was proposed there I can go either way with that but I think we need more time on the agenda for that discussion okay so how much time are you a double doubling so 40 minutes so 40 minutes okay is there a second I'll second that okay first and second any discussion all I have a discussion for that M sorry um Mr chair looking at it we we see a draft newcomer program estimate and conversation and so I I just want there to be Clarity with the board um while speaking to the career Readiness Academy if we're going to also speak to facility use I think there should be an opportunity for the board to
014have a formal opposition to the newcomer Center here in new han County Schools so if that is I mean I seconded the motion but it's my understanding that that is what Miss Bradford is getting at to ensure that we're talking having a conversation of career Readiness Academy at Mosley as well as the facility usage in regards to a newcomer School Walker um thank you Mr chair uh again uh we have set our time limit so what's going to what is going to suffer and I say that if we get to the time in discussion and we want to extend it then we do it and if not then we don't because we have limited ourselves to a certain amount of time so I would just say that approving it now it's almost like saying what
015gets bounced off or if we'll get if we'll even get to it because it's it's the last thing that we really talk about on here so we might cut our time off okay yes M crille so um I concur with that um what Miss Walker said but also what she's proposing is basically adding another item to the agenda and if you go down and look at where we are on what was posted the PO we we were supposed to be just talking about the career Readiness Academy at Mosley looking at the uh cost benefit analysis that we asked for um and looking at drafting the newcomer things so I do not I don't think that we need to extend that time I agree that if we if we get there then we should we can
016extend but I believe based on what an email that I saw that someone forwarded to me from another board member who left me off the email um said saying that we are going to do a resolution um in a sort of CopyCat style to the County Commissioners so if that's what we're we're trying to make time for then I am definitely opposed okay and just a quick reminder to everyone in the audience uh we have several people standing please remain seated uh anyone who is not uh part of the law enforcement please have a seat thank you very much okay so we have a first and second um to double the time for the Mosley discussion Miss buly please call the role Mr mcmanis no Miss Grey Bill no Miss barnhard yes Miss Walker no
017Mr wior yes Miss Mason yes and Miss Bradford yes okay so that will be doubled any other discussions if not uh we have a first and second to approve the agenda uh the amended agenda all in favor please signify by saying I I I all opposed 70 passes thank you very much board members uh at this point we will have our invocation uh to this evening that will be led by Reverend Deacon Ronda Thomas from the church of the servant welcome thank you for the opportunity to provide an invitation here at the uh school board meeting tonight take a moment close our eyes and take we're all here because we care about our children our School Employees and teachers and we care about the future of this community during tonight's meeting let respect be the
018Cornerstone Zone upon which our interactions are built let our words be guided by a deep appreciation for the diverse perspectives that enrich our discussion with each exchange let us honor the uniqueness of every individual and through this invocation of respect let us Foster an environment where every voice is heard and valued let us strive to respect the Dignity of every human being let us keep open minds and listen with Open Hearts amen thank you the uh colors this evening will be presented by the hogard high school uh NJ RC Color Guard um under the direction of Commander David Everett and staff sergeant Richard uh gello gacho was that and our national anthem will be sung by the new han County me new han High School singers directed by Hannah James new han High School chorus
019teacher [Music] at the last [Music] the [Music] still [Applause] we've asked board member uh Miss Bradford to lead us in the pledge to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liy jce all thank you may be seated if we could have the singers please remain love to meet you all if you introduce everyone please and we could have the uh RC come back up too please all right this is new Handover High School Handover singers we're missing a few members but these well represented us tonight um we have Michaela fredlaw Emily Barbosa cardinas Mia kumler Matt bado Liam me Caleb Green St juice Sophia Cella sandre Wilson e clinic Emma steel Arlette Laura Hanny Ortega Lopez no Ortiz Lopez sorry
020um and Abby MCH that was beautiful thank you so much thank you and our RC members if you guys would introduce yourselves please hello I'm Cadet Conor mcol I'm Cadet Zachary Brooks I'm Cadet Mark Evans let's give them all one more round of applause they did a great job thank [Applause] you all right next we will have our approval of the minutes uh do I hear a motion to approve the minutes so move second we have a first and a second any discussion if not all in favor please signify by saying I I I all opposed pass to 70 moving on to recognitions and I do apologize for the quickness tonight but we have a lot on our agenda so going to kind of just run through things but here we go good evening because
021last month's meeting was remote we have a full roster of recognitions tonight um this is a really exemplary group of students staff and Educators the common thread I think you'll see in them is that whether they ensuring the Financial Security of our school system or ensuring Equitable access to opportunity for every student they are serious about doing the right work for the right reason and they think of service to others not only the first time but every time we're really fortunate to have this caliber of people working and learning in our district so first up we have two recognitions tonight for academically academic and intellectually gifted Educators recently our a AIG team learned that they were named a promising District in our state for how well their practices align with the NC dpi's equity and
022Excellence critical actions the DPI recognizes that inequities in our community often lead to inequities and gifted education while schools can't f fix larger societal inequities on their own the DPI says they can ensure that we don't compound them New Hanover County Schools AIG coordinators are taking intentional strategic steps to ensure that our gifted education promotes both equity and Excellence they not only work with students who come with easily recognizable gifts but they are active talent scouts working to develop talents and students that are not yet tapped and they're looking um they are willing to look at their own mindsets and bu es so that no students miss the opportunity to reach their full potential we are very proud of them for helping our district earn the Statewide recognition Marine Mian is our lead EIG AIG
023teacher Marine come on forward to accept your [Applause] award [Applause] and also from the AIG team tonight we're thrilled to recognize Angela Jeffrey AIG [Applause] specialist come on up now you have to stand up here while I say all the good words about you so um AIG specialist for Laney and New Hanover high schools who is a finalist in the North Carolina outstanding teacher of the gifted award Angela serves more than 600 students but excels at seeing the strengths and possibilities in each of them in her nomination letter Marine Mian wrote that Angela actively seeks out students in underserved populations to work with and that she collaborates with teachers to ensure learning environments Challenge and Inspire her her students so thank you Angela for your exemplary service congratulations next we have congratulations for Jackie Brun
024who obtained School business management Academy certification through the North Carolina Association of school business officials it was a rigorous process involving 21 courses and everything from accounting to Legal responsibilities and plenty of tests along the way in her role in accounts payable in New Hanover County Schools Jackie is an incredibly diligent detail oriented worker but she also ensures that the human element of school Finance is covered she builds relationships with everyone from our major vendors to school treasurers and she patiently teaches people who aren't in finance like me how to uphold the highest standards of financial stewardship Jackie understands that every dollar counts when it comes to educating students and we are in good hands with people like her managing our resources so congratulations [Music] Jackie okay New Hanover High School student Sanders Lewis has
025made a vocation of service to others she dedicates every free moment to serving the community from tutoring a third grader struggling with reading to cleaning up trash on local beaches and waterways as part of her involvement with the surf writers Foundation club last year she was the New Hanover County volunteer of the year so not just for students but every adult in this County and she then went on to receive the governor's Medallion award for volunteer service the highest honor in the state for volunteer contributions which Governor Cooper personally presented to her at the State House Sanders demonstrates that Excellence is not only measured by what we achieve in the classroom or in a grade book but but by what we add to the lives of others and while she's still a student she is
026a role model for us all in her tenacity generosity and heart congratulations Sanders please come forward to accept your [Applause] recognition [Applause] this year is the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the State Department of Natural and cultural resources has set up an America 250 Fellowship for teachers to explore North Carolina's diverse History George nips of ctec high school was selected as one of just 17 America 250 fellows from across the state the theme of The Fellowship is to explore how inhabitants of North Carolina from throughout the last three centuries have interacted with our nation's most cherished ideal Freedom he will learn from historians and Scholars and excavate historic sites while considering how we can make history more relevant and engaging for students George strives to expose students to difficult
027topics with care inclusion collaboration and encouragement to see others perspectives we are so proud to have George representing our region in this incredible opportunity and we're exced exced to see what teaching and learning Innovations he brings back to New Hover County George congratulations please come forward to accept your [Applause] award Owen Alfred of New Hanover High School and Sophia Ponte of Laney High School serve as ambassadors for School meals for allnc a group that advocates for no cost School meals for all high school students in the state you may remember Owen from the November board meeting when he spoke during public comment and said we believe that no child should go hungry in North Carolina Owen and Sophia's leadership has included advocating to leaders such as yourselves organizing fundraising events and analyzing neighborhood and school
028data to look at the impact that School meals have on students success and well-being and most recently they were selected to speak at the national service learning conference in St Paul this spring their commitment to giving voice to students who might not otherwise be heard and being champions for those in need is Service Learning at its finest congratulations Owen and Sophia on this opportunity to Advocate on the national stage [Applause] Castle Hane Elementary principal Christian May prefers to be an under the radar leader she said she couldn't be here tonight because of a title on parent night but we suspect she may just be avoiding the spotlight Christian is our current principal of the year for New Hanover County and last month she was surprised with the announcement that she is the 2024 Wells Fargo
029Southeast region North Carolina principal of the year she's one of eight Regional finalists for the state principal of the year which will be announced in May her success as a school leader is in many ways measurable she steered Castle hanne from not meeting growth by state standards three years ago to exceeding at two years running but her leadership also shines through in quieter ways like when she roams the hall with with a literal Airline trolley cart Lo loaded with snacks for her staff or greets any child in that building by name she has built a culture where teachers are supported to do their best work and students know that nothing matters to her more than to see them learning and growing in fact when asked for the secret to her success she said simply we
030put kids first Christian is the kind of leader that would be the Envy of any school system because she never loses sight of what we are all placed here to do what's right for kids congratulations and Christian on this recognition and we look forward to you taking it home at [Applause] state next we are pleased first off again congratulations to everyone who has been honored let's give them one more round of applause this time we are very pleased to ask our student voice members to come forward and to share with us welcome good evening board members thank you as always for the honor of having this time to speak with you all as our student voice policy is on the policy committee agenda for review and edits we wanted to take some time to share
031about the importance of student voice and what we hope for the future of our team with you you we will hear from a couple of the original members of our team some new student ambassadors from this year and a student who isn't on the Ambassador team but has been inspired by it to start I would like to share my experience uh my name is Cassidy Thompson I am a senior at hogard high school and as a student who has grown up in new Haner County schools from first grade to my current senior year I have benefited tremendously from this school system I have had wonderful teachers and incredible opportunities that have set me up for Success After High School I have experienced firsthand how decisions the school board makes affect students like me and I
032believe the voice of students is an essential part of decision making my experience as an author of the student voice policy and now co-leader of the student ambassador team has been one that has shaped me into the person I am today I have developed skills in public speaking compromising listening leading bringing in diverse perspectives and so much more I have been inspired to consider a career in education myself as I have seen the tireless work in sacrifices of Educators and decision makers like you that is so valuable and essential to the shaping of young minds in the future of our world so above all I want to thank you for this opportunity we have had and will hopefully continue to have I have learned more from this experience than any other in my life and
033in any classroom setting I hope that the student ambassador team along with other student voice structures will live on after me and continue to provide a way for future students to find their voice and learn how to use it this opportunity has empowered me and Tau taught me more than I could ever describe so thank you and now I would like to invite Lillian and Lucy two new student ambassadors um on our team this year to share their experience good evening more members it's great to see you all again um my name is lilan remble and I'm a 11th grader at new han High School um as again like Cassidy stated our team thanks you for the opportunity um to speak here tonight and we appreciate your consideration for the topics that we have to
034discuss um I would like to be by saying how amazing it is to be a team on a team like ours as students of various backgrounds in schools we've been able to speak listen and collaborate with one another on various topics in our County we've been able to been taught vital skills in the world of policymaking but also been taught vital skills and this the um skills and World in life itself we have discussed what true Equity means in today's society as well as how it can be applied to our very School District here with this group of students I and many others have have had the freedom and pleasure of bring lights light topics and unfair circumstances that may be present in our County today it goes without saying at least for me that
035the ability to make positive change through our community even as a student is a great privilege considering each of these benefits for the sake of my team and my own personal goals for our school system that you reflect on the the upcoming decision vote for our policy thank you my name is Lucy Titus I am a sixth grader at Noble Middle School this is my first year as a student ambassador I would like to thank the board of education for letting me share about how the student ambassador program has affected me I have been a new hver County School student since kindergarten as a student ambassador I have learned so much about our school system for example my former School Ogden Elementary is 118% overcrowded yet their brilliant staff creatively makes it work without affecting
036the student appearence experience the student bassador program helps prepare me for my future by teaching me leadership skills and teamwork among a diverse group of people student ambassadors is a really cool experience and I love having a voice on students behalf I was inspired to be a student ambassador because I have been told I am a very ambitious young girl when I found out I could help make new hanare County Schools better I jumped at the opportunity as a middle schooler I have different experiences as the high schoolers I love connecting with other middle schoolers and comparing our experiences I respect the Board of Education because they reporter program that takes into account the students perspective and opinions thank you for letting me speak today at board meeting good afternoon board members I have been
037a part of student voice in New hver County since my 7th grade year even though I have always been the type of student to vocalize my beliefs and my concerns as a middle schooler I was taught how to communicate with those that I was afraid of sharing my concerns with going into high school I felt prepared to step into my role as co-leader of student ambassadors due to having that training as a middle schooler and also being around other high schoolers to help me be more open to having controversial conversations and coming up with Solutions on how to make school a better experience for me and my peers student voice has given students permission to be honest about their perspectives listen and communicate with other students and adults and do research on CHP on topics
038that are affecting our school life I take my role very seriously when it comes to me being an advocate for students who look like me and also younger students especially like my siblings especially since my time as a nhcs student is winding down I want them to have a space after I'm gone to continue to be heard and seen by their peers and adults I appreciate those who have supported us during this journey and I hope that we can continue to see our students as primary stakeholders and give them a space to use their voice thank you good afternoon board members thank you for having me I am not a member of student voice but I am a student at TR Middle School the best school Under the Sun I watched when the student voice
039group started and it was inspiring inspiring excuse me one of the things I have struggled with is not being seen or heard when I found out what they were doing it inspired me to speak with community members teachers and my peers to try to help us get access and an opportunity to things we like I appreciate you all for giving these students the space to talk to you and be of service and I hope this will continue thank you uh good evening board U my name is Shala Harper thank you for having me um throughout the student voice Journey these students have transformed from reserved individuals into confident contribut rors they've eagerly embraced the opportunity to collaborate with their school system and feel valued and recognized they have owned their skills in leadership public speaking
040and become more receptive to diverse perspectives and lived experiences of every person that they meet research has highlighted that when Educators and adults collaborate and create spaces for genuine student involvement in important conversations that involve them it not only boosts participation but it also enhances their learning outcome comes it Fosters a sense of achievement and it cultivates self-efficacy often they express to me and other adults how much they have learned but it's I who have learned from them if we challenge ourselves to embrace a growth mindset through collaborative efforts we can support our students like none ever before we can untap the potential of their ideas to empower them into shaping a brighter future for all students and adults in New Hanover County Schools thank you [Applause] as you've heard from students today we are
041incredibly grateful and hopeful about student voice in our County this is something new that hasn't been done in many school systems before ours so we thank you for your patience and figuring out how this new structure can best be implemented and run smoothly we are so grateful that you've taken the time to listen to us and that you care about hearing the voices of students we look forward to working on policy edits with you and to continue collaborating with you on current topics of discussion as you are making decisions to benefit new hanb County students you're already hard at work collecting information and student perspectives on issues like class rank overcrowding in schools and mental health we're excited to share with these helpful perspectives with you as you were considering these topics you don't get
042thanked enough for the hard work you do and we were more than grateful than we could ever express thank you thank you all for being here and uh it's always good to hear from you thank you very much thank you thank you good [Applause] job thank you next we will have our teacher voice uh and I I hope I say this name her name right uh Miss uh the Theo philis is that is that oh wow look at that welcome welcome welcome and thank you for helping me out with that that was great thank you so much good afternoon thank you so much for allowing me the opportunity to speak here today when initially asked I was unsure if I wanted to speak as a teacher I'm much more comfortable in front of my students
043in my classroom however I constantly encourage my students to advocate for themselves and to use their voices and what kind of leader would I be if I didn't take my own advice my name is elanie theophilis and I'm a proud alumni of Newan County schools and part of the first graduating class at Ashley High School my first six years of teach teaching were spent in Charlotte meinberg and I'm now in my third year with new han County schools and I work right next door at Lake Forest Academy teaching Middle School language arts for those who are unfamiliar with Lake Forest we are a K8 alternative school and day treatment setting where students who are referred and eligible typically stay for 6 to 18 months our students have an identified mental health diagnosis some much more
044severe than others this is all supported by collaboration between Coastal Horizons and new han County Schools this collaboration allows us to better serve the whole child in ways that would not be possible in a Traditional School setting for example we're able to provide medication management and therapy services for the student as well as their entire family we're also able to meet in person with parents every single month to ensure their child's needs are being met all of this is possible because we have a much smaller student to adult ratio this allows us the ability to teach essential social skills and replacement behaviors that are required to receive instruction in the traditional classroom this would never be possible without the smaller class size a large focus is placed on building frustration tolerance flexibility and problem solving
045skills all while still maintaining our focus on teaching North Carolina Standards for each grade level most of our students at Lake Forest have seen and experience more trauma than many adults in our community ever will they've experienced violence abandonment housing insecurity negle NE abuse and severe emotional trauma we have the opportunity and pleasure of working with a population that others never get the chance to experience or ever understand the reality isn't pretty when it comes to what educators are being faced with every single day we're on the front line facing learning loss from covid continuing funding Cuts within education and an increasingly divisive society as a teacher academics is our primary focus and in an ideal world that would be our sole Focus but but we're not in an Ideal World we're in the real
046world and in our real world academics cannot happen without basic needs being met first every day parents send us their best and that's their children it's our job to work along with parents to water the seeds they've planted and develop students into productive thoughtful members of society I'd love to share a few things that are taught in my classroom every single day to listen first if you want to be heard to always ask questions before drawing conclusions to read everything everything you can get your hands on you don't have to agree with what you read but if you limit what you read you only limit your understanding of yourself and the world around you the only correct point of view is a 360 degree view support your arguments with evidence and last but not least
047with insight and perspective our disabilities can become our greatest abilities I recently received a message from a former student the kind of message every teacher hopes to get at least one once it was a reminder to silence all the noise around me and to remember why I'm here and I'd love to share a little bit of that message with you guys today hey Miss Theo it's Melody I don't know if I ever expressed how much you really impacted my life I was going to become a teacher because I wanted to be for other kids what you were for me but I decided that first they need to give teachers not only the pay they deserve but the respect out of everyone I know you had the biggest most beautiful impact on my life and I'm
048so grateful more people need to recognize what it truly means to be a teacher it takes a lot more than just the coursework you have to build interpersonal relationships I wouldn't be who I am today if our paths never crossed you taught me to care about the world around me you taught me to be open-minded and most importantly you allowed me to express myself because of you I'm a better daughter sister employee and humanitarian the world has lost its sense of community but it's well and alive in my heart because of you as I stated earlier the reality of what we face is not pretty many days I'm unsure of how much longer I want to do this only because I'm unsure of how much longer I can do this students stories are so intense
049their lives are so fragile and their needs are so great but on those days I think about my former students words and I'm immediately reminded of why I do this and why I am here thank you so much thank you I just want to thank everybody that has spoken it's great uh I do want to welcome I see we have many candidates out uh in the audience so welcome to all our candidates I see at least one former Board of Education member here so welcome uh and again thank you all for being here today at this point we will continue with our uh superintendent report Dr fa special observances for February um this month is Black History Month love the bus month CTE month this week actually is National Counselor week um last week we
050made surprise visits to five schools to announce the rookie teacher of the year finalist TR Middle School brillan Young cottington Elementary Sarah Wood Johnson prek Center Melissa Lawrence international school at Gregory Devin Pierce ypes Academy arts and design Maggie sellers rookie teacher of the years of partnership with the Wilmington Rotary Club and it honors teachers in their second and third year the overall winner will be announced next Tuesday February 13th during an awards Bank fo Myrtle Grove Middle School teacher beginning Myrtle Grove Middle School teacher was named beginning teacher of the year finalist sixth grade teacher Madison aers has been selected as a finalist for for the North Carolina Center for advancement of teaching 2024 empowerment beginning teacher of the year award that's a long title um Madison is one of 27 finalists and will
051have the opportunity to participate in state professional development throughout next week they will participate in a week of professional development at nccat um or incat as we call it February 12th through the 16th hogard was named the national Federation of State High School associations honoral hogard earned its level two status in the nfhs school honor roll program for the 2324 school year the nfhs School honor roll program recognizes schools that have their coaches complete professional development through nfhs Learning Center coursework Parent Academy math night um math lead Ryan red recently hosted a a math night as part of the parent and caregiver Academy an incredible turnout of 45 families wanting to learn about our math curriculum and how to support their students at home more events are scheduled throughout the semester and details can be
052found at the nhcs website in late January the district held a specialty school and signature program showcase that featured every single uh specialty school and program in the district over 100 participants learned attended and learned more about the opportunities the best foot forward we are happy to share that our Performing Arts showcase best foot forward will return this year for the first time since 2019 there are 10 acts from across the district performing at the Wilson Center on March 8th that concludes my um thank you Dr pal so you can hear me next up um the the board Chairman's report uh mine's very short but I will hit some highlights uh congratulations going out to Christian May principal of Castle H elementary school on being selected as Southeast region principal of the year uh we
053held a great meeting with our counterparts and the County Commissioners as we began our budget uh discussions congratulations uh as Dr F just mentioned to our rookie of the year finalists they were all great uh huge thank you to the students faculty and and parents of the career Readiness Academy at Mosley your voice was heard and I was especially impressed with the students that spoke at the public hearing and board members in case you didn't know we have some thank you letters from them that I'm were passing around so thank you to them uh the board will also also held separate budget meetings discussions and will continue to meet uh as as early as next Monday uh to bring a workable budget that will support all our classrooms so that ends my discussion or or
054my report uh at this point we will continue with the call to audience Miss Mason all right let's get to it uh Yolanda Hernandez good evening it's been a long time since we've heard any out of school suspension data from Miss vman why is that is it because for the past six years years the New Hanover County schools has been sanctioned by the federal individuals with disabilities Education Act for the significant disproportionality quote unquote of out of school suspensions for black special education students at 4.5 the rate times the rate of their peers by last year this our special education students had over 4 million dollar of funding withheld from their program this year it's over $5 million withheld and about and how about our kindergarten first and second grade students last year our youngest
055students received out of school suspensions for things like aggressive behavior inappropriate behavior and excessive display of affection all of those are violations of your current short-term suspension policy 4351 board authorities and and duties policy 1010 states that one of your duties is to acquire reliable information that will enable you to make the best possible decisions about educational programs and that's a quote okay Miss Warman has that information it's time to invite her to speak publicly about the current out of school suspension data parents have a right to know how our our our children are being treated and how money is being spent thank you man Kavanagh Nan Kavanaugh okay evening since September I've attended every general meeting in person I've watched I've listened I've spoken what has become clear to me and was confirmed by
056Natasha too in her recent interview on National Television is the Republican members of this board aside from Mrs crel have been radicalized by the altright which is rooted in the white nationalist movement this is why no matter how many students parents citizens employees or fellow board members who speak against policy 7205 the disbanding of the Dei committee or book bands Miss Barnhart Miss Mason Miss Bradford Mr wildar you vote against us the majority it's undemocratic it's from a place of compassion as a mom that I honestly don't think you understand why these policies are radical and designed to intimidate your employees our children's teachers to keep them from important and healing discussions about American history conversations to build understanding and compassion to keep history from repeating itself when I see Republicans talk about book bands
057and burn books on TV as the mother of two Jewish children I see history repeating itself and if you don't see it then you need to ask yourselves why during Mrs 2's interview she weaponized the Grassroots organizing of the Mosley Academy families by calling immigrant children Invaders as if kids to Wilmington were here to pillage and Destroy Steve Bannon using Jesus's image as a pro and the background it was bizarre it was Radical and it was racist I am the descendant of enslavers and Confederate leaders I know white supremacy when I see it and whether you know it or not you are engaged in the white nationalist movement in honor of Black History Month I ask you to end this here show us you are not members of the racist radical right and vote no
058on 7205 thank you maryan long dear board members and Dr fa I'm Maryann long CC parents would like to address some issues that have happened at this ctec this school year openhouse night parents were presented with new school hours which was an 11th Hour decision and at least communication to the school since that is the day they heard about this change the timeliness of this decision was very inconsiderate for all involved and caused a hardship to many families who had to prepare prepare for alternative transportation some parents were faced with the possibility of being late for work while the other families whose children rode buses had an entirely different hurdle our buses still picked up the children at their regular time therefore causing these students a much longer wait time at Laney High School while
059getting home much later the new complications for our school was that students taking classes at cfcc were unable to take many of the classes due to the start times it also complicated classes at ctec and cfcc due to scheduling of classes students would start a class at ctec then have to depart that class in order to go to their cfcc class since both schools have attendance policies the staff was faced with yet another obstacle instead of the change that was made maybe you should have consulted the school and parents perhaps it should have been made to start our school day earlier to take advantage of cfcc lastly as a parent I feel we have been singled out since no other schools in our district were faced with any changes such as this at the 11th
060hour please take a moment to reconsider this decision for the next school year thank you miss your time's up Valerie [Applause] Noel good evening my family and I have been part of the Wilmington Community for about two years when my husband and I first visited there was a moment that we knew we'd found home while exploring downtown we saw it black lives do matter in racism now gasping our mouths hanging open in shock we turned around and drove by again slower this time not wanting to peel our eyes away we've been living in a place where that art could never exist overcome with hope we knew we had to be here 2 years later I am wholly disappointed not in Wilmington but in you over the last two years my children have been taught by
06122 teachers in our schools who have been nothing but dedicated professional caring and engaging yet you seem intent on making their jobs and their lives harder you say that you support staff that you need to take things off their plate that you recognize ize their essential role in our community but your actions repeatedly show us that you're willing to undermine our staff's expertise professional judgment autonomy and well-being to solve problems that don't even exist there are real problems for you to solve a budget crisis massive cuts for next school year dilapidated and overcrowded buildings teacher retention inadequate transportation and a pervasive climate of distrust and retribution that has rendered staff terrified to speak up yet tonight you will pass another policy that will increase confusion and fear lead to self-censorship Rob our children of the
062truth and make it easier to harass staff you will remind us where your values really lie policy 7205 will pass however just because it passes won't make it right we may be able to we may not be able to change this decision tonight tonight but our hope lies in November when we can begin changing the people making the decisions thank you Karen Clark this is what the Lord says don't let the wise boast in their wisdom or the powerful in their power or the rich in their riches but those who boast should boast in this alone that they truly know me and understand that I am the Lord who demonstrates unfailing love and who brings Justice and righteousness to the Earth and that I Delight in these things who then ascends into the presence of
063the Lord and who has the privilege of entering into God's holy Place those who are clean whose works and ways are pure whose hearts are true and sealed by the truth those who never deceive whose ways are sure they will receive the Lord's blessing and righteousness given by savior God for they seek the pleasure of God's face I pray the Lord is your Revelation light to guide you the source of your salvation defending you every day that you fear no one you will not be shaken for God is in your midst for the one one thing you seek above all else is to live your life so close to him that he takes pleasure in your every prayer seeking his face with all your heart may he teach you about his ways and tell you
064what to do making it clear to understand as he Reveals His secrets to you even if you were surrounded by waiting enemies you trust in his goodness you remain entwined as one with the Lord be brave and courageous never losing hope for he will never disappoint you your kingdom come King Jesus amen Nelson [Applause] Buller the majority that governs this board does not represent a community you represent an ideology you are facing a massive budget shortfall that is likely to result in the loss of personnel your primary focus should be on working with the Commissioners day and night to address it you've done nothing any losses are now on you your schools are overcrowded in a need of expansion and repair you are already four years behind your bond cycle but instead of working to
065put a bond on the November ballot to address it you continue to govern as a group driven by grievance when a group of children stand up and tell you that you are not correct about what you fear is happening in our classroom rooms that our teachers educate and don't indoctrinate first you work to silence them then you try and force them to disband because how dare they the audacity to think and speak and question the adults that are there to work on their behalf the superintendent suggest creating a welcome center and tells the community of a wide need 10% of your population are ESL speakers so you try to get rid of him six months after praising his work and extending his contract you've all claimed that you wanted our district to focus on reading
066and math but have any of you the district has seen tremendous success in those subjects if that truly was your focus you'd join in celebration you'd thank Dr F and every single employee of this district for helping us realize your stated goal but for you there is no time for celebration for some you are driven by your unstated goal your goal to bring National magga politics into our local schools and force all of us to worship at the feet of your orange master so I have run request for this majority buy a case of budlight and blow it Skyhigh if you must work with Steve Bannon and Jesse Waters to prepare for the Deep State Taylor Swift Super Bowl scop if you absolutely have to I do pray that you find the help you need
067but please keep your culture War crap away from our [Music] kids Kimberly McDuffy Kimberly McDuffy McDuffy Kimberly McDuffy there Dr Kimberly Murphy I remember when Lakeside High School became Mosley performance Learning Center to consider closing down a school where students are thriving is absolutely asinine with all of the overcrowded stools that need to be expanded or new schools that need to be built why upset Mosley I believe that that if it were left up to you Dr fa that CRA will be closing down this summer the announcement that CA was closed and devastated our students and their parents families went for weeks in distress over this do you not understand how emotionally traumatic that was for these families especially our students you our students home for Christmas break with them believing that their school would
068be shut down it took your actions and upsetting an entire Community for you to resend closing CRA these children and their parents experienced unnecessary grief imposed by you their leader who claimed to care about children and in the same breath you proposed opening a newcomer school as you announce the immediate closing of an established successful school there is no punt return turn for this Dr F you have disappointed a lot of students and their families including me as a community I have lost faith in your judgment and leadership board members I am extending my support of any efforts that are in place or will be put in place to resend the contract of Dr Charles fa a contract that should have never been renewed in the first place we are New Hanover County schools and
069we are better than this and our children deserve better lastly an response to your statement regarding the US Constitution I stand on the Constitution and it was written for me it was written for all people we the people I am Dr Kimberly MC Duffy Murphy an educator for Education Tracy Bannon Tracy Bannon Christina Mercier I'm here this evening to talk about real problems facing real Educators in New Hanover County who have communicated with me within the last two weeks one there's a school that doesn't have money to buide classrooms with soap or paper towels flu and other illnesses are rampant how is this not a public health issue two art positions are already being put historically these positions are always get hid and it makes little sense the Arts provide an outlet for the kids
070and for some kids they're a Lifeline a place where they can relax and express themselves and now art teachers are having to go between schools and students are getting less music and art and the teachers are stressed with carrying supplies and never being in one place long enough to build relationships three field trips have been um an amazing part of school forever taking learning beyond the classroom and many students are exposed to new experiences because of these trips now grade levels get two per year and they have to stay in the county how does this expose our students to new places it's another cut that affects our kids four class numbers teachers are leaving at a steady rate there's a hiring freeze this means core subject classes are reaching untenable numbers especially in middle and
071high school ask yourself would you want your child or grandchild to be in a math class of 45 students is it even safe how could they learn five cutting technology positions how does that work when the school system depends on technology who's going to train teachers now six student voice this loyal group of students have stuck their necks out to be visible and represent the students in our district you need their voice like you need teacher voices seven and I see that while you're keeping Mosley open you're essentially decimating it with budget cuts so keep it open and try to do more with less is that retaliation how do you fix these issues well anywhere there's a cut it needs to be central office or non-student facing positions it need we need to keep the
072jobs that serve our students priority is always what's best for students in that smaller and safer classes thank you m mer Loretta stack [Applause] house short-term suspension policy 4351 includes a session a section on the pre-suspension rights of the student in that section it states quote the student has the right to be present at the informal hearing but does not have the right to have a parent or other representative present end quote love our children believes parents of our youngest Learners should be allowed to talk to the school principal in person through Zoom or on the phone before a decision is is made to kick the kid out of school this is not extra work for the principal usually the principal contacts the parent after a determination has been made to suspend a child this
073does not make take any power or authority away from the principal the decision to suspend is still totally up to the principal what the what this does do is allow the parent the opportunity to talk with the principal about the Positive Behavior Support Alternatives that may be used to keep the child learning in school love our children is asking you to change policy 4351 to read quote the student has the right to be present at the informal hearing but does not have the right to have a parent or other representative present with the exception of students under the age of eight or under grade three thank you Justina [Applause] Gardina good evening first I'm here to call for the termination of Dr Charles fa on the behalf of the people of New Hanover County there's
074compromising with Marxist Dr fa has proven that for years the Grassroots conservative of this County have been calling for the termination of Dr fa since 2021 now since his public showing of disdain for the Constitution and his tyrannical attempt to unilaterally close Mosley High School and open a new quote unquote newcomer School AKA Refugee Center the entire nation is calling for Dr fa termination hi please listen to our voices this time he will push his agenda behind your backs every chance he gets please fire Dr fa for calls secondly citizens and taxpayers of new Handover County we have a primary election coming up early voting starts on February 15th this decides on who will run in the general election for the new Handover County School Board we need true conservatives on this school board not
075another cray Bill hey how are you please vote for Natasha to your America first most conservative Schoolboard candidate thank you Alicia Ogen Deli where is she Felicia oand Deli good evening February is Black American History Month I have some black American history for you on August 18th 2023 love our children requested the policy committee Revis short-term suspension policy 4351 and let the parents of the five six and seven-year-old children participate in discussions with their principles before a determination is made to suspend a child 60% of out of school suspensions are black American children on May 16 2023 the policy committee discussed policy 4351 but not love our children's proposal no action was taken on June 20th 2023 the policy committee met but did not discuss policy 4351 on August 15th 2023 the policy committee met
076but did not discuss policy 4351 on on September 19th the policy committee met but did not discuss the policy 4351 on October 17th you see where I'm going with this the policy committee met but did not discuss the policy 4351 on November 21st December 12th and even January 16th of this year the policy committee met but did not discuss 4351 let's celebrate Black American History Month on Tuesday February 20th and everyone attend the policy committee to see if they care about black American children I will be there let's make [Applause] history Matt Cole Mack Coyle Peter rowt de Carolina estover rri a stas a El Leandro Alor Lee Arlo gracias this love our children speech was for our Spanish speaking families Michael Sheridan will translate it during her turn to speak thank you Brittany aslinger
077hello I wasn't sure how to start this or what to actually say I'm not political I'm not well versed in educational policies I'm simply the mom with a dyslexic son my son is attended the Hill school for a year and a half now a school that is there for dyslexic children in our community I've watched him grow academically and emotionally tremendously since starting I often hear from him and his teachers that he is meeting his goals how his teachers help him more than ever and how being around other dyslexic students has shifted his mindset from feeling dumb defeated and the problem child in school to Unique talented and smart the Hill school has attended my son's IEP meetings at the request of the school to assist in writing his IEP my son has also stood
078with the Hill school at mayor sapo's invite to declare dyslexia month just last year unfortunately last month everything changed at the start of the semester out of nowhere we received a phone call from my son's principal that my son's release to the Hill school was being denied without any change in my son's diagnosis and without any additional testing they were taking away this Lifeline the school started threatening our family with DSS for accumulated School absences and a zero grid for my son to fail him this year if we continue to take him to the Hill School we've asked questions to try to understand the shift since prior to this the Hill school has been an incredible and welcome resource for my son the only answer we have is that we cannot appeal this decision the
079releases are only being denied when in violation of local or state board policy is what we're told so here I am I'm coming to the local school board for answers with my son's diagnosis he receives an Esa plus grant from the state to partially help pay for the Hill school this grant lists the Hill school as an approved option along with the question if the student will still be attending the public school system we are under complete loss on how the county appointed school board can suddenly overthrow the state appointed Grant designations along with many many other families that are impacted by this rash decision we are looking for answers we are hoping for a change thank you Michael Sheridan [Applause] good evening my name is Dr Michael Sheridan and I will Begin by translating
080Peter wwi's earlier message he said many children in North Carolina are being denied the sound basic education guaranteed by our state constitution in New Hanover County look no further than our low performing schools imagine if we could hire more teaching assistants counselors and social workers imagine if we could enroll more prek students there is already money in our state to do just that it's called the Leandro plan and it would mean an additional $ 57.2 million annually for our schools here support the Leandro plan and tell Senator Lee he must fund it Peter's message about the Leandro plan is relevant to love our children's plea to you to revise short-term suspension policy 4351 to allow the parents of five six and 7-year-old children to participate in a discussion with the principal before a determination is
081made to suspend a child as he said we could hire more counselors social work workers and teaching assistance which would go a long way towards reducing disruptive behavior thereby lowering the number of suspensions one more thing about this if it was your young child facing suspension wouldn't you want the right to be there so if you don't want millions in additional funding and you don't want resource that would benefit our students and you don't want to honor parental rights then do nothing but if you do want these things thank you Dr Sharon and your time is support Leandro and revise policy 4351 Katie Gates he's not here Katie Gates good evening board as you consider the $1 million to be cut from the budget next year please consider the inequity between administrative salaries and teacher
082salaries 34 people in the new han County Schools administrative staff make over a 100,000 a year yet teachers make 39 to 70,000 about 63% of our state budget goes to education but our teachers are compensated half of what admin makes a more Equitable redistribution of salaries is necessary to support teachers on the front line who are face Toof face with our children the mean superintendent salary in North Carolina is $170,000 yet Charles fou makes almost 249,000 and his salary includes a special contracted salary differential of 100,000 when considering budget cuts is fa really worth his Elite salary when he dece F brought in sofic Solutions in 2021 said the Constitution doesn't apply to him and worked subversively with Dr fasen for three years to close Mosley in order to open a newcomer school without the
083Board of Ed even knowing about it Dr fa has seven employees under his perview collectively making $813,000 Dr fasen oversees the instructional and academic Department of seven who collectively make 812 th000 I question the necessity of our chief Dei officer and his HR salary of 118,000 that's a lot of numbers but just with the 15 combined total salaries I just mentioned we could hire 31 High Caliber teachers obviously we need admin but with such inflated salaries it is an injustice to the students and teachers to maintain a hugely disproportionate admin staff that represents big government overreach unnecessarily uh micromanaging our students and it is budget bloat thank you for your consideration thank you Miss [Applause] Gates NAA Taylor NAA Taylor good evening my name is NAA Taylor and I am a junior at CCH high
084school I'm here tonight to speak about the school hours and transportation okay good evening my name is and I'm a junor at CCH high school I'm here tonight to speak about the school hours in transportation and how it negatively impact students like me each morning I catch the bus at 7: a.m. to get to Laney at 7:15 I have to wait for over an hour for the shuttle to get to CCH then I wait for my school to start at 9:30 Lany is my traditional home school so that is why I ride their bus to go to their campus first there are five other CC and witer early college students who are there with me we are treated like trespassers we are there we have to wait for over an hour without shelter because we
085are not allowed inside unless it's below 30° on the morning of November 17th my friends and I went inside of Laney to wait in the cafeteria because it was below 30° out of nowhere a lan assistant principal began to yell at me asking me who I was and why I was there he wrote down all of my information and told me that I was trespassing he called over one of the off safy I was talking to my mother and officer threatened to put me in handcuffs if I didn't want back after this I submitted an Ethics 360 report try this one okay where do you want me to start from we just want to be able to hear you that's all because you're saying something very important so okay so what from which part start
086over Okay okay okay good evening my name is n Taylor and I am a Junior at CC high school I'm here tonight to speak about the school hours in transportation and how it negatively impact students like me each morning I catch the bus at 7:00 a.m. to get to Laney High School at 7:15 I have to wait for over an hour shuttle to go to CC then I wait for my school to start at 9:30 Laney is my traditional home school so that is why I ride their bus to go to their campus first there are five other CC and wom early college students who are there with me we are treated like trespassers when we are there we have to wait for over an hour without shelter because we are not allowed inside unless
087it's below 30° on the morning of November 17th my friends and I went inside of Laney to wait in the cafeteria because it was below 30° out of nowhere a Laney assistant principal began to yell at me asking me who I was and why I was there he wrote down all of my information and told me that I was trespassing he called over one of the officers when he did this I stepped to the side to call my mother for safety measures I was talking to my mother and the officer threatened to put me in handcuffs if I didn't walk back to him after this I submitted an Ethics 360 report it has been almost 3 months and this report is still listed as pending nothing has been said or done it makes me feel
088as if the people in charge of these reports just don't care at Laney we are told we cannot enter the building to use the bathroom and we cannot leave their campus for any reason leny's Administration has told us that it is a privilege to be inside of their building and there we are lucky that they even let us enter we rely on school transportation we are trying to get to school and we are being treated as less than I have unreasonably long school days my day starts when I get on the bus at 7:00 a.m. CC doesn't get out until 4:45 but my bus doesn't get there until sometimes 5:15 I don't get home until after 6:30 my school day is so that I had to miss instructional time today to attend this board meeting
089my school day is just over 12 hours my fellow classmates and I are being treated unfairly and no one except those at CCH seem to care that this is happening to students in lover County I thank you for taking the time to hear my voice and I hope that someone with the power to make a change cares enough to do so thank [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] you Anna Marie Atwood anamarie Atwood Veronica McLaren Brown so which one do I use okay I want to draw your attention to policy 10:05 the mission and vision statement for the New Hanover County Schools the mission in collaboration with our parents and Community is to strive to provide children with an opport Unity for a superior education and a safe and positive learning environment the vision underscores the importance
090of strengthening family community and business Partnerships through collaboration and communication parents our community and love our children North Carolina believe in the school system's mission and vision but at least four of you do not because if you did there's no way on God's Earth that you would refuse a five six and 7-year-old child the right to have a parent or other represented participate in a discussion with the principal before a determination is made to suspend the child policy 4351 abuses and disrespects our parents and it exposes our youngest Learners to needless trauma it is an abusive policy and that is why love our children North Carolina has been asking you for the past 10 months to just allow parents to talk with the principal by phone through Zoom or in person before they kick a
091child out of school so how many more months will our youngest Learners be exposed to needless trauma how many more months will it be before you stop abusing and disrespecting parents how many more months will it be before you live up to your mission and vision thank you Tim mer hi my name is Tim Merck and as you probably know I'm looking to sit up there with you and start to make some of these tough choices uh we really need to talk about money uh here's one place where Katie Gates and I are really going to agree with each other there are some real concerns about the inequity of our spending with covid money drying up and the vouchers siphon siphoning even more of our already poultry State funding we're looking at what is it
092like $10 million shortfall and you want to fire a superintendent during budget season I don't know I don't approve of all his actions but I also I haven't seen you working with him enough how often Pete do you work and sit down with Dr fa and have meetings about what needs to be done from my experience in boards it should be at least weekly maybe twice weekly if you haven't why not firing him will cost another quarter of a million dollars at least to buy out his contract we can't afford it and then there's policy 7205 a similar policy was already shot down in the federal court in Florida it's clearly unconstitutional and we will absolutely be sued fear not and when we do we will pay Mr Vogal how much money to drive from
093Charlotte how often he's not on contract he judges Us by the hour and it's a lot okay so while it's criminal that the Republican legislature won't fund education I don't think that our children they don't think our children are important so we have to be extra careful with how we spend our money as does Dr fa we can't afford policy 7205 forget that it's wrong on so many ways that you've heard people here talk about tonight but we can't afford policy 7205 and we can't afford to fire Dr fa we need to work with him he's done a lot of good and we need to recognize it and hold him accountable it's starting to me to the question I actually have now is can we afford this board of education up David Perry which one's
094the work is this the work this work this one oh hi I'm David Perry and as you know I want to sit up there with you so um quickly on Dr fa I've already expressed my opinion on on this matter in every which way to Sunday uh he's a destructive force in this school district he's alienated our teachers his contract should have never been renewed he's going behind your back no amount of policies are going to be able to control him uh and Mr M talks about wasting $250,000 he's being destructed to us our students I think our kids are worth $250,000 if it even comes to that I I do believe you can fired for cause but the real reason I wanted to talk concentrate more on is the 7205 I think you should
095send this back to policy committee I the 13 things listed under Section Z are all extremely offensive to me I I agree with none of them and some of the historical matters I think they're bogus uh I was a history major and I know but what needs to be clear in this policy is is that a discussion of those matters is fine mind as long as it's a balanced discussion of a theory I want my grandson to grow up to be a critical thinker I'm not afraid of of evaluating um Concepts like this because I know they could be thoroughly debunked so what I don't want to see is indoctrination I do want to see discussion in a high school um setting under social studies or something like that and I don't think like I
096said before you know let's talk about you want to talk about communism you want to have your kids read K marks great but did you should also be reading Adam Smith and about capitalism let's see have the opposing ideas going back and forth with with our kids and let them develop the critical thinking skills so that they can be the citizens of tomorrow thank you Natasha too good evening can you hear me is that the right one good evening my name is Natasha T I'm running for the new han County School Board um I'm here to let people know that you can actually fire f for Just Cause let me list a few of those reasons why you could poor decision- making and lack of leadership when it comes to the covid-19 response seclusion rooms
097sopic uh solution survey teachers fear of Retribution uh closure of Mosley without board approval poor academic performance and improvement with our kids only 60 60% are not proficient at math one think we're in a little bit of trouble I think there's plenty of Just Cause to fire fouls and we wouldn't have to pay the I guess the 300 his salary or whatever the agreement is I would like to touch back on the acts of violence thank you Pat for sharing or who shared the current acts of violence within our school system I have a child who's actually experienced that I know this uh stats for the North Carolina state school system was recent released um pretty staggering if you do not know 13,193 reported acts of violence and crime within our school system in the
098last school year that was an 18% increase from the year before 38% increase from the prepandemic years what's going on was why are schools unsafe why has the North Carolina State Board of Education added new policy codes that would address our kids having pornographic material in our school H let's think about how that would happen perhaps because we have that in our schools already just saying I'm ready to get up there on that dasis with you and make real change I think people know why I'm running if you don't know why I'm running go visit my website Natasha for schools.com I look forward to being able to serve this community and making real change thank you Gail major Gail major Rebecca TR trell make sure I'm saying sorry traml I'm short if the North Carolina
099Supreme Court sinks Leandro then most of North Carolina public schools and school children will go down with it Saturday Night Live Weekend Update joked recently that the menu on the Titanic the infamous ill- fated luxury ocean liner included not only gourmet food but also bottomless water perhaps innocent joking about this has become acceptable and yet this preventable tragedy was no joke the most fundamental lesson is that there is no such thing as sinking half a boat roughly two-thirds of the Titanic's passengers and crew died horribly as it sank to the bottom of the Atlantic is there a connection to North Carolina today absolutely within the next month the North Carolina Supreme Court will rule yet again on the landmark case Leandro since the original ruling in 1997 North Carolina's justices have consistently ruled in favor
100of Lee Andrew confirming every child in North Carolina has the constitutional right to a sound basic education this right has been violated for a huge number of our students across North Carolina a comprehensive plan for delivering a sound basic education was carefully and created by respected Educators agreed by all parties and approved by the lower courts and a majority of the North Carolina Supreme Court ruled in November 20 22 that this plan must finally become a Statewide reality using already earmarked public funds we're talking about $ 5.54 billion over eight years for new han County 51.6 million for public schools $5.6 million for every child to go to um pre prek it has taken 27 years to study and prepare this educational Arc for its maen voyage that process was remarkably bipartisan with Republican judges
101and politicians playing a leading role and making it plain to the B to leeandre Wright's needs and remedies applied Statewide now however your time is up sorry I'll just email it to you guys I'll send it to the Press thank you guys so much for your [Applause] time Janette kosher Janette kosher last call for Mt Coy oh sorry good evening I've been attending Schoolboard meetings for over a year and a half and it's SE known evidence that you are following your K through 2 grade suspension policies my take on your lack of response sends the signal My Mind Is Made Up don't confuse me with the facts so I'm here to tell you a story our second daughter was born with a chip on her shoulder my husband and I jokingly said that if she'd
102been our first child she would have been our last in the second grade she got into a skirmish not an assault with another kid a behavior not part of your suspension policy and yet last year 28 K through 2 graders were suspended for exactly that the school principal and her teacher met with my daughter the other child his mother and me we were informed of school policy and included in the decision uh were they suspended no instead the consequence was more appropriate both children had to miss lunch recess for three days the teacher had them work together to do chores in the classroom if my daughter had been in one of your schools I I would not have been included in any of these decisions she could have been suspended a punishment she would not
103have minded as she strugg l in school due to what was later diagnosed as dyslexia more importantly there would have been no lesson learned these two kids learn to work together and get along a lesson we adults should take to [Applause] heart all right I think this concludes our call to audience thank you for all who participated for e for e for Das paging all board members of the Das one two three yeah all right as long as we got four one two three four okay all right we are back uh those in the audience if you please would have a seat we will carry on to our next bit of business uh next we will you know we are on a very tight schedule so again if you would please take your seats back
104uh our next bit of business is consensus items uh is there a motion to accept the consensus items we have a motion is there a second a second first and second any discussion if not all in favor please signify by saying i i i two three four five that passes five to zero any any opposed no okay five passes 5 to Z next on the agenda is our policy amendments I'll turn it over Miss barnhard thank you Mr chair we have two sections of policy amendments we have um one policy per second reading and then four for policy amendments um Miss kble did ask to for Dr fasen to speak to the different changes in 1310 402 and so I I I don't I don't know if I give you a heads up about that
105but um really the big one of the biggest consensus changes was a link to the portal and Dr Bas I'd love for you to elaborate on anything addition just Clarity good evening so um the only um big change in addition to the parent Bill of Rights portal that is up and live now um for our parents to see so we invite you to go you can see curriculum um anything that's occurring in the school so it is on our website and it is called the parent Bill of Rights um website we invite you to go and uh please see what we are doing in our district so the only change with the policy itself is if I will direct you to page 10 we added our number 12 if if everybody's with me under the
106component that with their parents have to provide permission so our parents have to provide permission for our grade five growth and changes class um not class but unit and our 6 through eight m life or stepping stones and both of these you can see in policy 3540 so that is a change we made sure we put that parents have to provide permission for those any questions board members yes Miss crille so in that policy I I noticed that change but um in the um when you go in in letter G when you go to the Community Services section and it says that you can CL click here to um um look at the resources um I click here and it takes me to the main page it doesn't take me to any resources and I
107doing something wrong yeah go ahead so that um link is supposed to go to the main parents Bill of Rights page which has the connection to the Community Resources so I'll double check that link and then also in that same section at some point we're going to take out the direction part right where it says this statute requires a board policy provides links insert here a list of blah blah blah we're going to take that part out right at some point that should have just been replaced with the link okay no I'm looking at the link and and you click on it and it um takes you to the main page out of those five circles what would I clip on page five page five say to student achievment parent involvement student physical and mental
108health additional parent and student rights student surveys and then request for information form and parent health concern request for reconsideration I need to test that and see give me one give me I'll get back to you on that I want I need to test it any other discussion is it just that policy Poli yeah I mean Mr chairman I just started off with that policy but the other three I'm happy to speak to we had been um reviewing policy 3200 3210 and in part of the discussion of updating those two policies the discussion eliminated equality review checklist which the previous board had um enacted and the reason why that was enacted is because there was multiple instances where teachers in the classroom were overstepping specifically when talking teaching about racism and slavery so then the
109discussion became about a policy of professional expectation and this is where policy 7205 and I know that's technically in the second um readings for second discussion till that time all of these are connected together is what I'm trying to get at Mr chairman of talking about accountability and expectation and trying to lay that out for our staff as clear as possible fav okay so um um in the 3200 I just wanted to thank the the curriculum committee um Dr fa staff um for taking a lot of time in looking at it reorganizing it making sure our definitions match um we had some discussion about some things that were tried to be inserted and we decided those weren't good so I appreciate that robust discussion um on so that one was good 3210 though I wanted
110to just call this out to fellow board members who didn't have a chance to listen to it and we really never discussed it much at all but if you look in um it's in the where it says about the um theills process which policy please 3210 number three it's the appeals process but it was in there I just when it says that the board can um decide however they want to in 3210 I think under Appeals number three is that correct yeah it is your committee has the same possible Ops that no it's on I made notes to myself in the notes it says the last paragraph on procedure for last last last paragraph there any further appeal of the decision of the district mpac committee will be bo um perhaps Mr Bo can help
111us out with this because the words are where it says that we can do whatever we we can set up the procedures however we want who can speak how long they can speak it was it it leaves it very arbitrary and I just was having a little bit of AA about that my thoughts were that we didn't want to have that the staff didn't want to take that up does anybody else have Walker I I'm trying to understand what everybody's talking about here I just heard earlier that there is a change in 3200 which is related to this one that we're discussing right now and I just want to make sure I know what's happening is this all related to the appeals process and is this kind of related to the book band we just
112did or I'm trying to understand that because that was a hearing from an appeal from a parent that led to a hearing and so I'm trying to decide what got changed here that we've already done can you tell me that um policy chair yeah I mean if you look at the red writing and the policies that are before us that those are the recommended changes and there are striketh through so that's the stuff that is being taken away um and so this I I do not know the question exactly that miss kraal is asking about the appeal so I cannot speak to that so but these are these have been gone through through for months with Dr FAS and a team and curriculum committee to go through and incorporate um a more articulated process of
113how the things look and I it's my recommendation that the board adopt these changes at this time know iot in my we can how we determine if we're going to have a hearing and what that hearing looks like bring a bell with you Mr chair may I the current policy 3210 at the end includes a link to a document that is called media and instructional appeals process this is right before legal references and that uh process you know or procedures are important and it's something among other things that the board relied upon um several months ago when it uh had a book ch challenge appeal the current document in front of the board for its consideration 3210 doesn't include that link at all it doesn't show that it was deleted um and it's not there
114so uh unless I'm missing unless there's something I don't see but I it's it's not there so I point that out to say that that's a a change that doesn't show up as a change in this document and it's up to the board to decide whether it wanted to put that link and that and that document back in I must have something else um I look I'd have to look back and see I'm fine with I I mean I'll let you you see your face hand raised over there sorry it is it will be added or is added you're talking about the um media appeal process the form sir is that what you're talking about yeah it's a link yes that that that link will be I think we have it it's where is it
115because we have it it's called a reconsideration form so that is part of that that's the that's the link that I think you're referring to it's a name change we have a motion second Mr chair just want to point out too there was a discussion uh in policy committee so I wanted to bring it to before the board about potential adding language to include a reference to both not only uh the standard course of study but also General statute so that is not in here at this time but if it's something that we want the policy committee to move forward and look into further I just wanted to bring it to the board attention to do it for these two policies 32 3210 if is the will of the board Mr so we did discuss
116that at length and voted um not to put that in there um for reasons um and we do have um a letter from Mr Vogal that said that we could put it in there but um when when we were were pressing trying to get why we would need that um we decided that um DPI and ncsba covers that so that we don't need to have those words in there and that was a very lengthy discussion Mr can I just clarify like I I think these these policies are all together to vote on at the same time and I feel like we're having a separate discussion about two distinct policies I wouldn't mind pulling those out for a separate vote because I'm not happy to vote on all of them at the same time considering I
117don't think this is all complete or as it is so would it be too much to can I just pull those two and then vote on them separate like the 3210 and the 3200 and the 3210 okay so and if we're pulling I want to pull off 2230 because I want to ask a question about something okay well okay well I will can I is it a motion that I make or do I just request to pull them off can I I would like to make a motion to pull 3210 and 3200 off as a separate vote personal vote for each of us second and 2230 I just wanted to ask the question or or point out that this this is an easy one that we can resolve um where we need to have a
118link to the universal application form the board has already approved that form and um we need to have a link to that um in I think it's letter e where we're talking about um board responsibilities um in um hold on a second I'll find it it is at the very bottom um and it is letter e where it says um the has 1 2 3 4 5 and six and under number five is where I think we should um insert a hyperlink that people can go straight to um the universal application form make second second any discussion by saying I I allst remember thank you Mr chairman that is on this docket for the February meeting and Miss Mason is now the chair of policy so I she's able to see that draft of 2660
119which will have the liaison position for soil and water already outlined as well as the cross out of we do we no longer appoint people to the Kate Fear Community College Board and so that will be strike too and we did talk about that at policy committee meeting all right uh on3 uh 13 I make a motion to adopt iOS I I guess I just need to understand how those two policies are linked I guess they are I I think I was at a a curriculum committee when they were discussing one of these um I guess there's just it seems there a lot of red in here I just want to make sure I know how much of this is substantial change and is not substantial change the there's a lot of red in there
120because they reorganized the wording so there's not much taken out you the things that were taken out you'll see clearly with the red strike out line um that's up in the very top you know it describes that for us so um this policy was basically Rewritten reviewed and analyzed by the curriculum department and so um that is I mean they did a great job in doing that I just wish I could find what I was talking about on the 3210 because it really informs on how we do hearings I add to that that most of the changes were structural um they were they were not um about any changes that were substance it was more of positioning so just keep that in mind so motion to accept policy 3200 is there a second yes second
121disc I all oppos like sign 3210 second um can can can the policy committee members or anybody else that is involved with the changes let me know I see the Appeals you're just giving it another header there and are you just are y'all just making it where it's outlined for future is that something we've already done or is this a new process I'll speak to that so one of the things that was in discussion with Dr fasen and brought back to the team was to understand the process and how it's outlaid that there are different outcome options and different things to be able to be considered so trying to add a section to talk about that and if Dr FAS want wants to go further into where that came through but um that's just to
122try to provide more clarity is it is this based in law or just a procedural thing that we're adopting I'm sorry I didn't hear the question okay so we're we're in a policy 3210 part I guess I'm specifically looking at the number three appeals section there seems to be a lot of red words that are like new I know we've kind of been through one book whatever so I'm just fig fig out is this kind of the setting up for the next challenges that we're going to get or is this not procedure we've had before we have procedure but outcomes that could come so there are particular outcomes that K of action that you want to speak to that yeah the the procedure is basically the same um in the reconsideration form it had the
123different options that could come at the different levels whether it be you know take no action uh remove the book from the materials or place the book in another grade level band so it's the same options that they had on the reconsideration form we just kind of listed it in the policy but the process is the same okay so I guess the section says regulate its availability I feel like that's kind of a broad thing um it's just that that's just one of the choices is that what we're saying I that's correct I know it okay it's kind of big I know where it was problem with that one um when we click on the link to the um to the reconsideration form yes yes all right so you click on that and you go
124all the way down to the the bottom the very last paragraph is it says the board May Grant or deny a hearing at its discretion if the board denies the petition for a hearing the decision of the superintendent is final if the board grants a hearing the following procedures shall apply the board has final Authority and discretion to determine whether a challenge has Merit and whether challenged material should be retained removed from New hanare County Schools entirely whether it should be removed to another school level or whether its availability should be restricted the board has the authority to determine the procedures to be followed for such appeals including the authority to determine the manner in which the evidence will be presented whether by written documentation only or live testimony whether to allow the complaintant and
125others to make oral statement and the length of the hearing and other procedural matters so that paragraph is what gives me a lot of heartburn because that means that we could take a different approach to a different book depending on what we felt like and I think that we need to have something a little more clear on you know are we going to allow only one person to talk or are we going to allow two are we only going to in I I don't have a problem with us deciding whether we're going to hear live testimony or paperwork but once we get into the live testimony then um I think that we need to be pretty consistent otherwise I think we're setting ourselves up for some um discrimination kind of things like you reviewed my
126book differently than we reviewed your book you or material so that's that's all I wanted to call attention to that does that make sense yeah and I just want to make you aware that's been there this form hasn't changed that was closely enough and then when I was going back and doing all my clicks I read that and that just really surprised me and that's my fault for not catching it um earlier and when I listened to the curriculum committee meeting so yeah I guess I guess we've gotten to a place where that's I guess getting down to what I'm trying to figure out because we've had a hearing already that I've never been a part of since I've been on the board and we had a determination and it's not it's not been time
127there's no the book is still not on our shelves and we had made a decision to do something an action that has not been done and I feel like there should be some time restriction on these kind of things if if we're going to remove a book we remove a book but if we're going to do it in lie of something else then that needs to be honored and I don't think we've done that so if this is just vague I mean maybe we need to strengthen the terminology when it comes to this these decisions um cuz you know I mean I'm I'm hoping to ask for that to be back on the agenda again because we made a decision and it's not been finalized so like if we're going to just do these things
128and hopefully we won't get many of them we shouldn't had that one in my opinion but we we've made a decision and it's just lingering out there and so we need to honor what we do I don't know what that looks like in this policy but I don't feel like if it's too vague I would not support it so for the sake of Simplicity the bottom line on every policy particularly these of recent basically says the board will make the final determination and this policy that's going to come up again we are just throwing our staff under the bus and basically for votes control anything no matter what the policy says so I just have to say it's a full vote on any policy no matter how it's worthy of what it says so I
129will vote no M Dr B I was just going to add we could actually look at um the language in this document um sorry yeah the the procedures in this this document we can actually look at that and bring that back to the board because we don't have to put this in the policy right at this moment um so we can if you want to approve it with looking at um this form has to be changed or I just wanted you to know we can look at the language of um the um reconsideration form then um I'd like to make a motion that we send the um the reconsideration form back to the curriculum department for further review but adopt 3210 um at this time because I think it's fair 3210 you said 32 second
130discuss by all oppos no thank you Mr chairman like I said um in reviewing some of the processes and that we just approved for 3210 and 3200 one of the conversations was the quality review checklist and that came about from a few instances in our district of teachers who should have taught a lesson differently let me say it nicely that and so the previous board had implemented a quality review checklist upon reviewing and conversations with our staff it was heavily emphasize about race and so the conversations became how do we have these complex conversations in a way that as a district we can say here's the expectation laid out for them so I understand that there are differences of opinion with 7205 some of you would like to see further language in that section Z
131um and others not at all the whole premise of this policy is to outline professional expectation so that there is not a gray area of interpretation that being said I would recommend adopting this policy as written Miss Miss Walker had her hand up first oh thank you m chair um gosh I have so many questions I mean I just heard gray areas and I feel like this leads to Greater gray areas um there was mention of teachers there's no mention of how many teachers that um people feel have violated these and so I don't I like I'm a data person I'd like to know what the statistic is on that um also um to me this is a punitive policy because specifically it's under an HR policy what are the consequences those are begged questions
132it's not based in law it's um it's already going to add to the low morale and the trust that we have it's damaging to the district I've spoken to a couple of board members before about this and um there are a lot of things in here that are very very great and could potentially just kind of cause teachers to feel like they can't speak freely and teach their students um um other people have spoke to it at called audience and probably said it a lot better than I have but the fact that it's under HR policy to me is to me it's a very punitive policy and potentially could be a punitive policy without knowing what consequences there could be I don't want any consequence I don't feel like I don't support this part z
133um but I would like you know hopefully someone can help me answer these questions yes so I've been doing a little bit a lot more research on this since it was finally coming back to the board and I wanted to call our attention to the um State Board of Education policy and um the policy ID number is qp- c-14 and um the actual policy titles are regarding the code of ethics for teachers and if you read through that um nowhere in there does it say anything regarding letter Z and this is by the State Board of Education so then I went to the standard course the DPI standard course of study and looked under Civic literacy section B 1.3 and 1.4 and the American history hisory um section B 1.3 1.6 and 1.7 um to
134talk about there are certain things in those categories that we are required by DPI to teach and so I printed some of those off where it says we have to evaluate American identity in terms of perspective change and continuity and it lists things perspectives through American exceptionalism um perspectives through opportunity and prosperity um a perspect Ive with oppression stereotypes diversity inclusion and incl exclusion um critical multiple perspectives of American identity in individuality and con Conformity you know you can read through some of these um and in the other one in history it says explain the impact of social movements and reform efforts on governmental change both current and past explain how the experiences and achievements of minorities and marginalized peoples contributed to the protection of individual rights and equality and justice for all over time
135and there's a lot more that we could all read so what bothers me most is that a teacher is trying to meet the DPI standard course of study and yet we are criticizing him or her they on how they're going about talking about such things as slavery xenophobia disenfranchisement intolerance and how they affected all Americans so for us to put those kinds of things where we're just the teachers are just trying to provide historical context in our country where we were how we got there to put this in place is completely punitive um and I don't the those of you who weren't able to attend um the invitation from one of our teachers where she invited us to listen um to her Civics lessons in direct um I don't um because we said that we
136weren't teaching Civics she invited us to come to the classroom and watch the Civics um lesson where they talked about the Declaration of Independence different parts of the Constitution and students gave presentations on it was really very informative on um the breakup between the United States revolutionists and the Great Britain and they did an excellent job of bringing their perspective so they all had the same information came at it from a different angle and for us to try and put the Pas squash or the thumb on teachers on what they can and cannot say um it's just going to come down to a he said she said the kids's going to say well the teacher said this and the teacher's going I didn't say this this is in my um this is in my lesson
137plan so are we going to ask them to record every lesson so we can scrutinize everything that they do um one interview that we had um after this came up policy Miss barnhard said that our policies are created based on based on laws there is no state law there is no federal law that brings this in there are however 18 states who have gone one step further and have made this law and those teachers are getting fired for saying the wrong thing and is that what we want for our teachers to come to work every day feeling like if they say the wrong word because of one student or maybe even multiple students we would have to investigate that and how are we possibly ever going to enforce that and track that and make sure
138that we are being fair policy Z number nine says that our teachers will not teach the United States government should be violently overthrown there's no law that says that that's treason um these are things that we teachers shouldn't be teaching the United States government should be violently overthrown really um how about One race or sex is inherently Superior to another race or sex we don't want that taught an individual solely by this is number two solely by the virtue of his race or sex is inherently racist sexist or oppressive we don't want that taught we don't want that taught it's that simple oh you going to go you haven't been yet well I'll go after you okay I'm being a gentleman let her go first I agree with what you read and how you said
139it but those who will look at this very closely and everything that has preceded this from a certain group of our board basically says we dare you to go out on a Ledge if you make a mistake and you step out on the ledge we're going to push you off we've had board members who stood up and want to fire the superintendent right in the middle of nothing we've had EDI voted on immediately to do away with it without any discussion now we're going to pass policy Z which gives majority of the board the power to go after Any teacher now you think our teaching staff is happy right now with just just everything that they're dealing with the environment that's been created we're getting ready to go into probably the most important budget meeting
140we've had and if we've ever needed to give up our personal views and those things we favor is now to be cohesive for the budget we've got staff based on everything they've heard lately some of it incorrect some of it may be correct you think they want to stay here and work you think somebody sitting at that table over there thinks that the super not going to be fired they're going to be looking for a job have you thought about the ramifications of when and what and how you say things that's for closed session and if we make a decision in closed session we come out here and share it whether we won lost or agreed but that's the place that you talk not for teachers to take it and have to figure out where
141it bounces or where it doesn't in addition to us we're just absolutely ravaged we destroyed our teach morale and I can't ask I guarantee you the people that Ser over in front of us what we say so I cannot support this policy but I'm sure it will pass thank you um a lot of these things listed here are presuming teachers are doing this but I have seen no evidence that they are doing it this is not based in law but this is based in law the Constitution so I would just the gray areas I'm talking about are very gray areas for teachers it's under an HR policy which is p potentially be punitive and we don't have consequences tied to it we shouldn't because it's not based in all so I will not be supporting
142it either yeah I I forgot to mention this um before is that um going back to the point that this is not um this was not precipitated by policy um the it was not particip precipitated by law our general assembly doesn't think that it is necessary because they can't pass it but I do want to call us back to the earlier discussion um and I'm not opposed to policy 7205 without if you take out letter Z there's nothing wrong with the policy because everything in there goes back to and can be traced back to according to Dr Dr Barnes when he explained that to us all last time at the policy committee meeting there's nothing new in here letter Z is what it's like when the legislators put together some Bill and then they cram
143in all this secret stuff and all of a sudden you've got something going on that you didn't even know about but if we go back to the very beginning when we were we sort of were being led to believe that Dr Barnes brought this policy forward and it turns out that it was not Dr Barnes that brought this policy forward it was somehow either Mr vogle or miss barnhard and miss um um Bradford and that can be proven that can be proven through our invoices and all you have to do much as possible that is our policy Mr chair may I address you yes ma'am okay so Mr chair if you look at our invoices it says very clearly who discussed what and so I can retract that I said those names but anybody can
144request those public records and look for that so that's what I'm saying to you all right and I'm going to go back to the chair does rule that the point of order is well taken um at this point we've had everybody uh has spoken twice Mr mcmanis would you like to speak again on this Mr mcmanis no anyone else like to speak if not miss buy please call the rooll do we have a motion it was a motion in a second to accept okay I would like to amend the motion to accept policy 7205 without letter Z second first and the second to accept 7205 without letter Z and second with Miss Walker okay any discussion on that Miss buy would you please call the rooll on the amendment that Miss Crill has brought forward
145this is on the amend I'm sorry I I apologize this is again on the amendment that Miss crille brought forward make sure everybody knows way Mr McManus yes Miss kille yes Miss Barnhart no Miss Walker yes Mr w war no Miss Mason no and Miss Bradford no okay that's defeated go back to the original motion uh that motion is to accept policy 7205 as written um Miss bu would you please call the role Mr mcmanis Miss Crill no Miss barnhard yes Miss Walker no Mr wildor yes Miss Mason yes and Miss Bradford yes I passes four to three caring on our next discussion topic is the Vogal Law Firm um I will start the conversation with um I'd like to begin the discussion by pointing out the doogal law firm's contract runs through June of
146this year we need councel at all times during the year I would suggest that we form an ad hoc committee to explore our options there have been questions in the past about the purpose of such a committee the only purpose I see for that committee is to bring down the number of firms to no more than three if there are three or less firms that apply there's no need for a committee to meet uh further I would like to name or I will name Mr H mcmanis Miss Melissa Mason and Miss Josie barnhard to serve on the committee the reason is simple none of the three of these board members have served on ad hoc committee relating to attorney searches before anyone asks why isn't the superintendent named to this committee simple reason is that
147when there was a split vote last year I was asked to decide uh when the the superintendent chose not to superintendent will be asked to super uh to advise this committee but not to vote I have uh the timeline to report this committee uh excuse me the timeline that of the report of this committee will be heard in the April meeting allowing the board to interview the top three firms and make a final decision in May to be effective at the end of June this is no slight to Mr V uh to the Vogal firm and we encourage them to apply so I make that motion is there a second second a first second discussion M crell so to your point that we always have to have legal counsel we are always at able to
148hire legal counsel in addition to who we have for general counsel so that's really not a good um reason but for to to do that but does this mean that we're taking off the table perhaps the option of hiring in-house counsel in lie of a um general counsel I think that that would be up to that that committee we can open it up an RFP Q all those letters okay and then so the other thing I would ask is that in other super intendent searches that when I superintend we're not doing superintend sech sorry I mean that um legal searches that um that the superintendent and the Chief Financial Officer also got to weigh in and do rubrics so we cannot discount our um our employees word I mean um opinions on this you know
149having a superintendent as the tiebreaker is not good because then somebody's not going to like him and then it's not going to good but um the other thing too I just wanted to make certain that when we have this committee that one person no one person on the committee gets to Strongarm the others to say we must hear this this presentation even when they scored the lowest which has happened here and it also happened in other um counties and it has caused strip so I wanted to just throw that out there um with that and I will speak next if you don't well I've already kind of spoken so I'll give my second turn I'll cut myself off after that um but um I I think that you know it's it's valid I think that's
150why I said the superintendent would be there to advise that committee not saying we're going to keep him out of the out of the loop but he would be there to advise but then we would have a threers committee our Chief Financial Officer should be included in that I don't know wish she has she been in the past yes Mary Haz on every one of them they present they present to tell the rules okay abely you can be part of it too then very good I have no problem with that Kevin Kevin okay all right Miss Walker I attend to agree um with Miss krael I got to watch another County and they they had a much more robust group of people that weighed in I know the first time I we looked we had
151we at least got to hear from staff and hear what their concerns were what they felt like we would use Council for the most so I I agree we can't discount that that but I also say as a person that's been on it and i' I came to it in good faith and I scored based on what I read and I I I honestly feel with the Looking Back Now I don't feel like my time was respected I don't feel like um my opinion mattered and so I feel like if it going forward we've got three board members that's fine and with the discussion we've had I just don't want this process to be as bad I guess as it was before and I don't mean bad in like it was the most horrible thing
152ever but at the same time I've seen other systems do it a little bit more robustly and that's what I would like to see going forward with the next search thank you Miss Walker Bart so two clarifying things Mr chairman um the decision lies with the board not the committee absolutely and the second clarifying thing is you are saying name a committee in the event that we have more than three applicants so at least four or more applicants is only when the committee and you named me and Melissa and Hugh as the committee but if only two applicants apply we don't have a committee it's just the whole board so just clarifying okay thank you you know and I'm not supposed to speak third time but I'm going to I mean I I definitely understood
153what you said and that's why I said it the way I said it because they really you know when you have two PE the only two groups that show up then you know why you know you're not pairing it down to any smaller number I think hopefully we'll have eight or 10 people and or firms but you never know yes well I would like to say that too like I'm I I felt like we because I was on both committees I felt like um I think and I don't know this because I wasn't there in the room when they when people were contacted but I feel like the search we have to keep our options open Miss cra's point about potentially thinking about any house counsel any way that's going to make us save money
154anyway we're going to feel like we're going to get the best advice that we can possibly can and so I'm hoping um that we search just do a do a good search I mean and and and I guess the new members if they want to hear from me I would love to give my opinion on what I think going through that process twice that would help them can I ask me something you know and and please clarify for me there's an RFP and RFQ is that correct and which is the one we use or can we use both to to expand the number of people we normally use RFP because that way we can evaluate other than just price we look at the um different qualif appliations of who's applying and then also what's a
155good fit for us in addition to price so that's why we usually go with the RFP instead of an RP okay um I'd like to offer amendment to yours that we do both an RFP and an RFQ um we did the P if I remember correctly last time and we got just very tiny uh response so why not broaden the search and do both um I don't think there's any cost to doing it per se is there I mean you're publishing it on um sources but different rules if we're not sure I understand do both a RFP and a RFQ is that what you're saying yeah or you know I mean I would I my experien is in rfps and not RFQ I don't think um there's a benefit of doing both I because you're
156gonna get maybe I'm not understanding but I don't think you're GNA get additional people apply because you you send it out as a RFQ versus RFP all that has to do with RFP versus RFQ is about how we evaluate what's submitted to us um it's not going to limit the people that would submit proposals and and I I'm I'm aware that you said that that last time but we just got so few people and I'd ask attorneys around town I'd ask attorneys and they'd say no I haven't seen it posted anywhere um so I just you know I'm familiar with the other process and so so that we are fair and we get a a good selection of people um if we're going to go forward and do this I would just prefer that we
157do both all right so amendment is there a second to doing RFP and RFQ do not hear a second so we'll carry on with the initial discussion on the uh Amendment me on the uh a motion M crille so oh Hugh had his hand up first go ahead Hugh Hugh has not spoken yet Mr mcmanis you that's right thank you um may I suggest that we do some type of in receive input from the central office about what's good what's been doing well what needs to be improved so that as a committee we don't have our own personal biases and or that we'll have the data and I think I heard a couple of board members say they were data driven as I am and we'll have the data that speaks about those who are
158attorney support make decisions versus our own personal M so yeah the um this may be for after we take that vote so you tell me if you want me to hold it off is that so the timeline we've given is for us to select in May right so that we're ready to go in June um with telling that um telling the um making a decision so but one of my concerns still is there between now and may we have a an attorney that doesn't cover our needs and um he says over and over that he has people to cover but he has never show we hired him based on the resumés he gave us and he gave us the resumés of himself Terry Wallace Jonathan sink Leah sink and we have some of our bills
159we have a lot of new letters on there um JD k something um charged at different rates so we don't know who those people are what their qualifications are um and he says on the website he they have sign ific experience but we can't even judge that so I'm concerned that we when you say we don't have coverage just because we have a person's name down there does it mean we have coverage um with that and Mr if if I don't mean to stop you but is that the right place to do I mean should I bring this up again yeah let's you can bring it up right after let's go ahead and vote on my motion and then bring it up right after that okay I'm fine with that all right Miss buy would
160you please call again this motion is to follow my motion which was could you just repeat it for the I actually wrote it down so I can I can do that sure um form an ad hoc committee to explore uh all our options there um okay committee blah blah blah blah I name Hugh mcmanis Melissa Mason and Josie barnhard to serve on the committee uh the the um committee will meet and we'll have a report back to the Board of Education in April by the April meeting allowing the board to interview the top three firms and make a final decision in May to be effective at the end of June can I just ask Miss Sutton is that enough time like for us to get an RFP um put together and um sent out and
161for us to review it we should be able to do that we'll just have to get with every I mean we'll just have to look at our calendars and go ahead and get things on the calendar as fast as possible so we can make sure we have time cuz we did it with Arington Smith that one time February we had it done by May so just making sure that we it'll be a quick turn around still do it y we won't be able to leave it posted as long because we turn around Miss buy if you call the rooll please yes you MC Manis I gu he yes pray yeah if this the only way to get rid of him then yes M Bill sorry I I retract Miss barnhard yes Miss Walker yes Mr
162wior yes Miss Mason yes and Miss Bradford no and that passes 6 to one miss uh Mr krael yes so I would just like for us um to discuss as a board or give our feedback to the members of the committee what exactly that we're looking for but I also want us to get a report from Mr Bogel on who exactly is in his firm what their credentials are and how they are going to best serve us so that we know if we have to look elsewhere um on his website It also says that the experience that that they have is defending families students teachers against school systems there's nothing mentioned on there at all not even his cabis County stint on representing a school board so I just think that we need to he
163we deserve that updated information if he can give it tonight that would be great um if he needs to send that to us tomorrow in an email then that would also be acceptable to me but will the board his bonart thank you Mr chair looking over our policy 2610 this policy allows for the board to work with multiple attorneys and tonight I believe it is in the best interest to name Council to help our district with EC matters I will not be discussing closed session details but the seven us on this Das know them due to the fact that the board has already extended the contract under the pretext that we will be looking working alongside the bogal law firm sync law firm and Terry Wallace and we were notified as of January 1 the
164sync Law Firm PLC is no longer working with bogal I make a motion tonight to extend specific EC matters to allow our staff to work with the sync Law Firm pllc there's a motion is there a second um I'll second that discussion so what happens if the I mean are you specifically wanting the sinks or can we um use our staff who have have other experience with lawyers that are specialty EC I mean I don't have a problem with what you suggested but we would have to vote again if if that's what we're voting on um so that's all that I'm asking if the staff wants to respond to my my motion as far as being in favor or that they're welcome to do so um but the their regards it's the the law firm
165and its entity so it's not naming a single person but specifically and solely for EC manners it would allow that opportunity Mr chair yes sir I don't think it's right to expect the staff over there to make have an opinion at this point I think that's kind of throwing everybody under the bus just just just happen what I'd like to see though that we are allowed to get input I mean Mr vogle may be the best saying since kot of cheese but i' like to know and I've never had words from Mr Bogle ever so I I'm just once again we serve our students and our staff and I'd like their input on everything usually we ask them for input on everything so I think it's important that we consider their input as far as
166it's concerned and since we've got to do something by April it's important that we get moving Miss Walker thank you um I am not sure if this appropriate or not whether we can maybe have a friendly amendment to that to not just include the sinks but perhaps other law firms that specialize an EC because I feel like I I don't know I don't know if I I feel comfortable voting just for the sinks for that advice because I feel like there's a lot of people out there that do have a lot of experience with e matters if we can just open it up to just other firms period I mean um I feel like that is just such a definite only kind of thing I'm not opposed to them I just would like to be
167open to more than just them if that's possible okay thank you Bradford I don't understand if I am correct in the last two years we have had a total of three EC cases two under fingon one transferred from Theon to vogle and one more to vogle I think we're artificially creating a crisis here um I I I I I've got to say this I believe this is a personal Vendetta I believe it's just way off the grid for unhinged and I I want no part of it I apologize as a person to be abusing a vendor I can't imagine the example we set for all the vendors out there that they might annoy one board member to the point that they would go on a personal Vendetta against them to destroy them point of it's
168just against my remarks okay all right and I do find that I do find that uh to be well taken thank you um so again we have the motion in front of us now to um Mr reach out to the syns for the E for EC matters J I offered a friendly oh I'm sorry yes you did Amendment iard wants to answer to that or not I just feel like maybe we can open okay yeah no you're right and I'm I'm I'm saying we need a second though for that okay we have first and second we uh friendly motion Amendment Amendment sorry if if Miss bar wants to answer or not don't another additional EC Council and then we can decide barart thank you so looking at our policy I was under the impression that
169we had to name a specific Council so with that being said I'm open to naming multiple and if we are going to go that route then I would amend my motion to say um to allow the district to work alongside specific EC matters with either the sync law firm pllc and or pointer spru yes does that need a second you've already said seconded that this is because this is an amendment second it okay thank you all right so the motion now okay we have a motion and second to extend opportunity to either the s w firm or peror spu any the EC matters uh Miss buy would you please call the role Mr chairman may I have an opportunity sure yes sir okay thank you very much um the board has already voted to put
170together some kind of committee to look at options and um choices beginning in July right knowing that our Law Firm has a contract through June um now out of left field we're hearing a concern about our law firm's ability to support the school board and the school district in the area of EC special education um it's a very strange point to make I I have to say Mr chair um I mean point of order Mr chair I brought this up in the January meeting this is not yes the gentle lady did bring it up in the January meeting point please the G lady not part of our board he doesn't get to interject he did this in the I'm going to let him finish his his the gentle lady did make a point in January
171and I spoke to the gentle lady to to down from the right from me about uh what she said about you know a concern about EC and we spoke about how we are covering EC and how the lawyers who used to work for our firm uh didn't do much work uh generally and didn't do much work in in EC um speaking of special education just today uh our firm me in particular spent the entire day with the assistant superintendent Julie varum and the EC director Joanna soua working on a very important uh EC case we get along terrific we were collegial we were collaborative we made a lot of progress on a on a pending uh e C case uh that we'll be happy to brief the board on in close session and we've spoken
172to the board again um I don't believe any board member has had a conversation with EC director Joanna Souza um she and I work closely together and very collaboratively I understand that no board member has spoken to her so this idea that our Law Firm or me in particular has trouble uh uh handling the the work or the workload from the EC department or C cases um is simply not based on fact and it it makes one wonder why I mean there are 115 school districts and school boards across the state they're all meeting this week and next week and they're talking about really important issues of academic achievement and fiscal responsibility and student safety and they're not talking about their Law Firm month after month after month they're talking about transparency and accountability they're
173talking about the parents Bill of Rights implementation they're talking about fairness for women in sports point of order we are the we are talking about our decision not Mr Vogal to defend himself at this point in time um he can apply again um if he wants to do that um did want to dispute I wanted to support Miss barnhard in that this has not been um out of the blue we've discussed this for several months now the sinks account for accounted for 25% of the work of the voal law firm the majority of that being in EC and not and and the rest was in fines and forfeitures so this this meeting is not for him to defend himself and talk about what other boards are doing and what people across the state are doing
174and to interject to us what we should be prioritizing if we believe that this is what what we need to prioritize then we believe that and his opinion on that doesn't matter may I finish Mr CH 20 minutes and I would say Mr chair and to the board to and as I said before be careful not to be fooled by misinformation that you may be getting from people who have an ulterior motive people who may be disgruntled people who may have been disloyal to this board or to our law firm and people who may have a a hidden perhaps political agenda I said it before order um Mr V I am going to have to liit you because we are running out of time so yeah we're out of time at this point Mr buoy
175would you please call the rooll this is to uh make a motion to uh extend EC Services uh EC um law uh needs say say what you said again I'm sorry forart I did not write down my motion is to allow new hver County Schools to reach out specifically with ET matters to either the S Law Firm PL LC and or pointer spr Mr J one more thing if I may say there is no sync Law Firm pllc that is not the name of of that legal entity we can figure that out ourselves okay thank you m Mr mcmanis yes Miss crille yes Miss Barnhart yes Miss Walker yes Mr wildor no Miss Mason no and Miss Bradford no I passes 4 to three that will be in effect we are moving on we had
176given a lot of 20 minutes for the career Readiness Academy at Mosley we've now doubl that and we need at least an hour for Clos session so we need to get right on to that um Mr W um is it um I I think I recalled you saying that Clos session was kind of important tonight um we are an hour out um May I make a motion to go into Clos session now and then talk about the career rting this Academy with the time that's left have a motion is there a second I'll second since we have a policy that says we have a time stop so if we have important close session and stuff we need to do that okay second um we have a motion to go into close session this time and
177uh to pick up the career Readiness academy uh Mosley afterwards uh um any big discussion running out of time if not miss BL please call the rooll Mr mcmanis Miss crille yes Miss Barnhart yes Miss Walker yes Mr wo yes Miss Mason no and Miss Bradford I passes 5 to two all right all right I entertain a motion at this point to go and close session pursuant to General statute 143 3181 for the following reasons to prevent the disclosure of information that is privileged or confidential pursuant to General statute 115c 402 and not considered public record within the meaning of chapter 132 of the general statutes to consult with an attorney in order to preserve the the attorney client privilege between the attorney and the board uh including to respect to John do's 15- 17
178versus new han County Board of Education and new han County Board of Education versus Liberty insurance company and BH versus new han County Board of Education and to consider the qualifications competence uh bless you bless you uh performance character Fitness conditions appointment or conditions of initial appointment of an individual employed or considered for employment within the school system or to hear or inv investigated complaint charge grievance by or against any individual employee do I hear such a motion yes is there a second yes thank you is there a second any discussion if not all in favor going to close session please signify by saying I I all opposed we're in close session got four board members three got all right that's okay all right we are back in Open Session because of the time um
179I would entertain a motion to table the discussion of the career Readiness Academy at Mosley I would make a motion to postpone the postpone excuse me postpone the discussion until the March meeting okay is there second first and second any discussion if not all in favor please signify by saying I I I all opposed like sign that passes I don't think Mr MCM has joined us yet so that passes 60 one second to get back in here so I can read minute I got it right here quickly um announcements the Board of Education will hold a budget session on Monday February 12 2024 at 10 a.m. in the Board of Education Center the general public will have the option to view remotely on new han County uh schools tv YouTube the title 9 committee will
180hold a meeting on Monday February 12 2024 at 3M in the Board of Education Center the general public will have an option to view remotely also on the same the policy committee will be meeting on Tuesday February 20th at 10: a.m. at the Board of Education uh Center general public will have an option to view remotely for that also new han County Board of Education will hold an agenda review meeting on Wednesday March 6 2024 at 2: p.m. the Board of Education Center general public will have the option to view remotely also and the Board of Education will hold its March regular meeting on Tuesday March 12th uh at 5:00 P pm at the Board of Education Center the general public will have an option to view remotely on the new hanur County Schools tv
181YouTube at this point um I would entertain a motion to adjourn so Mo we have a motion is second all in favor please signify by saying I I all opposed like sign we are adjourned if you hang out