001Exactly. Good evening everyone and welcome to our April 8, 2025 school board meeting. Um, let the record reflect that member Sanchez, member Dinger, Vice Chair, uh, Garrick, and myself are present along with the, um, superintendent, the school board, Attorney Cole Palmer, and Jill. Um, superintendent, do we have someone presenting the invocation this evening? We do. Uh Samantha Austo, an eighth grade student at Sanford Middle School, will provide the invocation tonight and lead us in the pledge of allegiance. And she will be introduced by her school counselor, Maria Lucas. Thank you. Thank you. Uh, good afternoon. I would like to introduce Samantha as she leads us in the pledge of allegiance. Yes, please. I didn't know she was going to say something. I pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and
002to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. phenomenal a phenom. Oh, sorry. As loud as I am with my teacher voice, uh, we want to introduce you tonight. Thank us. Thank you for allowing us to come to talk about the phenomenal program that is find your voice. Find your voice has been instrumental in changing the lives of girls across uh, Simol County. And we are just delighted that the board felt that it was not robbery to invest in our young women. And we want to thank Miss Faison and the committees and the persons and the superintendent of course and the board for allowing us to have time to take up space in these young women and to pour into them wisdom, understanding, ability to grow,
003ability to connect with other persons. So without further ado, I've been involved with the program since its beginning for three years. uh at Sanford Middle School and we've seen the growth and change in our young ladies uh esteem, ability to communicate, conflict resolution and the list goes on and on and on and that's kind of one of the things that we want to do. Such a small investment reap such great rewards. So with that being said, I think it's better to always hear it from the from the person that has benefited and participated. This is Samantha Austo. I met her three years ago as a little sixth grader. Uh, and we had our first session, you know, right here at the school board. So, how fitting is it to come full circle as she now
004is a eighth grader actually getting ready to go to Semino High School uh to come back to this space. So, in her own words, she's going to share a little bit about what the program has meant to her. So, I would like it if you guys give her attention and give her a little round of applause because she's a little shy. Yeah. So, first uh when I came into Sanford Middle School, I was always like I was confused but also kind of like felt like a piece of freedom. But then I was also confused and I didn't know anybody and I just kept to myself. But then when I was called to come and go to the girls group, I would just like like first it felt like therapy cuz we were sitting down talking
005about our we were sitting down talking about our feelings and Yeah. But Oh my gosh. No. Yeah. Uh, and then I also, as I said, I didn't know how to talk to anybody. I was introverted. I didn't like I barely even looked people in the eye. But then I started getting more comfortable with these people that are at our school. So, I started being able to talk to people more and I found a transfer adult to talk to when I needed it. And I learned Yeah, I learned how to talk to people. And uh it's like you're able to walk around cuz like in elementary then like you were only like walking in one line and they would yell at you when you weren't in line. like just just a foot out the line and
006then they yell at you and it was scary and yeah. Oh my gosh. A lot of people in the girls group. Yeah. Kind of it pretty much. My bad. Thank you. Well, thank you for so much for being brave and sharing your experience and it feels like you've really blossomed. So, I'm glad that program was available for you. Um, at this time, we're going to acknowledge I have one acknowledgement. Uh Katie Murphy, Semino County Council, PTA, all in the back. Thank you. Thank you for being here. Um Superintendent, do we have any agenda modifications? Yes, we do. The addendum for good cause is marked on our electronic agenda by a green flag named addendum item. And I have one additional modification and that is to have section five public comment agenda items appear before section
007four board items for discussion on the agenda outline. So moved. Second. Is there any discussion? We I will just add that when we did our master board training this was something that we thought would be helpful. So okay let's call the vote. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any oppose? Thank you. Okay, board members, do you have any agenda modifications? The roll call order this evening is Vice Chair Garrick, member Dinger, Member Sanchez, and then myself. So, Vice Chair, any agenda modifications? No modifications. Chair, thank you. Member Dinger, no. Thank you. U member Sanchez, no modifications. Thank you. And I have none. Thank you. Um, no items removed. Is there a motion to approve the agenda outline with the updates? So moved. Uh, Dr. Gallinger first and member Sanchez second. Any
008discussion? All those in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Motion passes. Um, superintendent, do we have any presentations or recognitions? Yes, we we do. We will start with the introduction of our veteran of the month, Miss Melissa Barnett by Principal Robert Frasa. Thank you. Board members, will you join me? There we go. Thanks. Here's you. [Applause] Good evening, Superintendent Bean and board members. It is my honor to congratulate and introduce to you our veteran of the month, Sergeant Promotable Melissa Barnett. Sergeant Melissa Barnett was born in New York, New York. Right after graduating high school, she joined the US Army as an automated logistics specialist. She completed basic training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and advanced individual training at Fort Lee, Virginia to become an automated logistics specialist. Her first active duty assignment was
009at Camp Casey, South Korea. In 2007, she was deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom for 15 months. Melissa's various duty assignment locations include Georgia, Virginia, upstate New York, and South Korea. During her military service, she achieved the rank of sergeant with promotable status and was honored with numerous awards. Some of her biggest accomplishments while serving were graduating on the commonance list from warrior leaders course and and as a distinguished leader from the advanced leaders course. While serving as a non-commissioned officer in charge of a multiclass supply warehouse, she led her team in earning the coveted chief of staff army supply excellence award. In addition to her military career, she pursued her education, earning an associates degree in general studies from Central Texas College and a bachelor's degree in psychology, military resilience from
010Liberty University. Melissa is currently pursuing a master's degree in school counseling from Liberty University with a proposed completion date of the spring of 2027. Melissa joined the Hagerty High School Seminal County family in January of 2023, serving as our student services secretary. During her time there, she has earned recognition as the August 2023 employee of the month. She also received the SCPS Spark award in April of 2024. Due to the great love for her co-workers at Hagerty, her husband of 15 years, Richard J. Barnett Jr., a retired Army warrant officer agreed on retiring and planting their roots in the Ovido, Florida area. They have five children, Daniela 16, Christian 14, Javanni 13, Isaiah 8, and Yennia 5. Please join me in thanking Melissa for her service to our country and to the SCPS community. [Applause]
011All right. Good evening, Superintendent Bean and board members. It is my pleasure this evening to introduce you. We have many great athletes in our county and our winter sports uh seasons just concluded and we want to recognize some of our state champions and runners up as well this evening. So to start this off, I'd like to recognize the 2A state champion for cheerleading extra-large tumbling team from Lake Mary High School. Good job. The Lake Mary Varsity competition cheer team made up of an incredible group of 27 student athletes who once again made history by securing their ninth consecutive ninth consecutive FHSAA state title in the highly competitive 2A extra-large tumbling division. Year after year, the pressure to maintain the winning standard grows, but so does their determination of this group. These athletes train with grit.
012They perform with passion and rise to every challenge with unwavering focus. With a fifth place finish at the UCA Nationals, these girls have shown that Lake Mary cheer is not only dominant in Florida, but respected all across our country. Joining us here this evening are the ath is the athletic director of Lake Mary High School, Coach Rick Wyers, and the head cheer coach, Paige Black. Congratulations, Lake Mary High School cheerleading team. Congratulations. [Applause] Next up, also from Lake Mary High School, the 7A state champions, the girls soccer team. The Lake Mary girls soccer team finished the 24-25 season with an overall record of 19 wins, three losses, and two ties on their way to being crowned the conference, District, region, and state champions. This gritty team performed the best soccer of the season. In seven
013playoff games, the team outscored their opponents 25-2, including six different shutouts. What a truly inspirational season, and we are proud to have, as I just mentioned earlier, the athletic director, Rick Wyers, as well as their head coach for the girls soccer team, Mr. Christian Eley. Congratulations to the Lake Mary High School girls soccer team. Congratulations. Great job. Next up, moving into the category of weightlifting, the individual state champion from Hagerty High School, Amaya Jamie. After a season ending injury last year, along with a lengthy rehab, Amaya was cleared for participation just three days before the start of this year's season. Her commitment and dedication culminated in a district and regional title leading into the state championships. At the finals, she recorded a personal best in school record in the snatch at 120 lbs. Her final
014lift in the clean and jerk at 160 lbs proved to be the difference and solidified the state championship in the 110 weight class with a 260lb total. As impressive as this was, the most important accomplishment is that Amaya did all of this while maintaining a 4.526 GPA. She is the ultimate example of what it means to be a Hagerty High School Husky. Joining us to celebrate this evening is head coach David Adaway along with Mr. Frasa, principal of Hagerty High School. Congratulations, Amaya. Staying with Hagerty High School, like to also recognize the 2A FHSAA cheerleading state champions for small non-tumbling division. Please welcome the Hagerty High School cheerleading team. The Huskys encountered intense competition in the small non-tumbling division with three top teams competing with boys giving them an edge. The allgirl team rose to
015the challenge and came out as the state champions for Hagerty and route to the state title. The team also captured the spot at the seminal athletic conference and the regional championships as well as a program. This is the seventh state championship for Hagerty High School in the sport of cheerleading. Also joining them here this evening is head coach Sarah Graham and as mentioned earlier, principal Rob Frasa. Congratulations Hagerty High School. [Applause] Congratulations, Hagerty Cheer. Next up, we move to the home of the Bears. We have the individual state runnerup for weightlifting as well. Oh, hold on a second. This is Yes. from Winter Springs High School, Ava Bell. [Applause] After capturing conference, district, and regional titles in the 129 weight class, Ava returned from the FHSAA state championships with a silver medal as the 2025
016state runnerup with a 330 lb total, which included 175lb bench press and a 150 lb 55lb clean and jerk. Joining us here to celebrate this recognition from Winter Springs High School is the principal, Mr. Pete Gaffne, athletic director Scott Gomerad, and I hope they were able to join us here this evening, coaches Bill Rikert and Heather Zakardi. Congratulations, Ava. [Applause] Congratulations, [Applause] Ava. And our final recognition this evening, we have a individual state runnerup for wrestling from Lake Brantley High School, Dario Dwani. [Applause] Daria was the 3A state runnerup in the 132 pound weight class. He was also a two-time regional champion, threetime conference champion, and threetime district champion. He was also the wrestler of the year for the seminal athletic conference. Joining us here this evening to recognize uh Daario is the head coach
017Jason Jesse and the principal of Lake Brantley High School, Mr. Brian Blazewoods. Congratulations Daario. You're being paid. We'll move on. Couple of [Applause] Superintendent, do you want to introduce our presentation this evening? I sure do. board members, the the FOSA presentation tonight is on the finding your voice girls summit which has been a great success for our district and our team starting with Dr. Cummings and Miss Faison are here um to walk us through this year's finding your voice. Superintendent Bean and board members, we're excited to be here. Um, just as uh a reminder and for those of you not familiar, the program was really born out of a a lunch conversation between myself and Mrs. Faison really in an effort to um have a positive impact on a subgroup of girls that we were
018working with um that were in grades five and grade six. Um we started the programs three years ago um really to help those girls really work on finding their voice um so that they could discover their passions, ambitions, really have the ability to speak out on their behalf to problem solve um and to be effective communicators. So we are excited to um share information from this year's program. Would like to thank uh board members that joined us this year. Um um certainly I'm sure they enjoyed the opportunity to be there. This was our third annual summit um that was held at UCF. Um and with this subgroup of girls um they had been with us, some of them since fifth grade and some of them now current eighth graders. Um and so they appreciate the
019opportunity to come together in this culminating day. Um and to meet each other and share some of their experiences. The finding your voice planning team consists of all of the members that you see uh pictured here. It's really a group effort. We appreciate the involvement of our other departments um to help us make the day a great success. So, thank you to everyone that served on that committee. We actually started informally planning um in August and we had our first formal meeting I believe in October. So, we um takes a while to plan everything and pull everything together. So, as I said, this is our third year. In year one, we had 12 schools and 120 students. And as you heard tonight, we started that first year in this boardroom. Um, we knew very quickly
020we needed more space. So, year two, we had 19 schools to participate and 211 girls. And then this year, year three, we had 23 schools involved, 302 students. those schools that are listed in black lettering were the schools that were added this year. So, those were our new schools along with all of the schools that were originally um included returning. So, our goal is to continue to add uh more girls um and to need more space at UCF. Let me set the scene. On Thursday, March 13th, the University of Central Florida Student Union was transformed into a vibrant, welcoming space for the Finding Your Voice Girls Summit. Karen Hinrich's team from Community Involvement beautifully decorated the room in pink, purple, and gold hues, featuring an ivy colored photo wall with finding your voice displayed in
021neon. As the students entered on a red carpet, guided by their dedicated school-based facilitators, they were greeted by receiving a cheering line and creating an atmosphere of excitement and celebration. This empowering event began with our featured keynote speaker, Russellyn Ali. She is the CEO and co-founder of XQ Institute and has been a leading advocate for educational fairness and innovation for over two decades, including serving as the assistant secretary for civil rights in the department of education. The summit was a collaborative effort involving 18 dedicated social workers led by Asia Smith. The social worker team provided lessons coordinated by two school counselors on assignment, Marissa Ellis and Jessica Monahan. The sessions focused on decision-making skills, helping students understand the tools they need to resolve conflict and feel confident in their choices. These sessions included Cross the
022Line, If You Really Knew Me, and Total Drama Island, which aimed to empower students to make informed, positive decisions, as well as our annual teddy bear ceremony organized by Felicia Naidu and Melissa Brown, where the girls crafted messages for their future selves and placed them as the heart of their newly adopted plush toys. Community partners also provided sessions and support. The girls participated in teen dating safety led by Meg Johnson from Safe House and personal growth activities like the yoga play lab led by Yolanda Dion. Dearra Garns and Mrs. Mills coordinated breakout sessions for the eighth graders to ensure we provided a fresh experience for our returning girls. The sessions covered high school transition with a college tour and scavenger hunt. And the girls also explored career interests with Sandy Frink, an e- pathways college
023and career specialist. Our high schools participated with topics covered by Datasha Dukes from Lake Mary High School, Amber Welch and Jennifer Moran from Lake How High School, and Dr. Jamie Washington from Simino High School's 9th grade center, who all played a crucial role in making this event a success. Let's enjoy a brief video of the event. [Music] Heat. Hey. Hey. Hey. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. Heat. N. [Music] The finding your voice program is strategically aligned with Simino County public schools initiatives to foster innovation and create optimal conditions for learning. Under system initiative C, the program supports innovation for college careers and citizenship by allowing school counselors to provide direct support through workshops and activities. Counselors engage with students, helping them develop essential skills for their future. Under system initiative D, the program addresses conditions for
024learning by fostering relationships between students and trusted adults, enhancing the sense of safety and support on campus, offering inclusive activities that aim to reduce disciplinary issues among at risk subgroups, and providing access to mental health resources and behavioral support services. This ensures that students receive vital assistance to foster well-being. So last year was the first year that the girls started to participate in a small groupoup counseling session prior to attending the event. Um and last year in our finding your voice small group intervention, all of the students received the same six lessons. As we've expanded, um the girls will now receive 18 different lessons over the course of their experience in finding your voice. So, in fifth and sixth grade, our facilitators continue to utilize the girls in real life situations curriculum. Our fifth grade
025lessons focus on self-concept, emotional regulation, and building healthy relationships. In sixth grade, the lessons go further and explore self-t talk, conflict management, and finding your support system at home and at school. In seventh and eighth grade, the facilitators use the Why Try curriculum to focus on resilience, overcoming obstacles, and the perseverance needed to reach your goals and become your most authentic self. And this slide really highlights the truly collaborative nature of finding your voice across the district. School counselors, social workers, behavior interventionists, teachers, and administrators all bring their unique skill sets together to help facilitate these groups. The variety of facilitators in finding your voice represents the wide range of adults on our campus who are available to support student achievement and success. This is a list of all of our facilitators across the district.
026To measure the impact of the intervention on student success, outcome measures were collected for attendance, discipline, and academic achievement. This year, overall, 65% of participating schools saw a decrease in one or more of those outcome measures. And tonight, we'd like to take a moment just to highlight some of the schools, facilitators, and most importantly, the students who decrease in two of those outcome measures. Our first group was at Altimont Elementary. Their finding your voice small group was led by school counselor Regina Marina who saw a 50% decrease in the number of referrals from quarter 1 to quarter 3 in her group and a 50% decrease in the numbers of D's and Fs in ELA and math from quarter 1 to quarter 3. Another elementary school at Idle Wild Elementary, facilitated by Stephanie Wright, school counselor,
027saw a 26% decrease in the total number of days absent from quarter 1 to quarter 3 and an 83% decrease in the numbers of D's and Fs in ELA and math from quarter 1 to quarter 3. Great job, Idle Wild. Again, at Midway Elementary, our Finding Your Voice small group, led by school counselor Pton Riker, saw a 100% decrease in the total number of referrals from quarter 1 to quarter 3 and a 75% decrease in the number of D's and Fs in ELA and math from quarter 1 to quarter 3. We also saw some success in our middle schools at Tuscowilla Middle. The finding your voice group led by school counselors Vanessa Hernandez and Shakira Barrett saw a 75% decrease in the total number of referrals from quarter 1 to quarter 3 and a 15%
028decrease in the total number of days absent from quarter 1 to quarter 3. And then at Rock Lake Middle School, the Finding Your Voice group, led by school counselors Tara Caesar and Alicia Kimble, saw a 80% decrease in the total number of referral referrals from quarter 1 to quarter 3 and a 29% decrease in the total number of days absent from quarter 1 to quarter 3. So we also surveyed the young ladies who participate in the the groups to capture their perceptions regarding the impact of the small group counseling sessions on their connections with their peers, the staff and their own personal growth. And you all can see the respondents um from the young ladies. 96% of them reported learning valuable lessons as a result of the small group sessions. 87% reported feeling more connected
029to their peers as a result of small group and 89% of the girls reported having a trusted adult on campus as a result of the small group. And so from the feedback that we're getting from these young ladies, we know that we're having the attending effect of these uh counseling sessions and the cumulative uh girls summit at the the end of the year. Um if you look at the word cloud um that is uh represented on this slide. It is a collection of responses to the following question that was posed to the young ladies. What is the most important thing that you learned in finding your voice small group and to see that the girls realize that they are not alone and that it's okay to be vulnerable and that it's okay to be kind
030and that their voice matters. Um so we're having the outcomes that we we hope to have as a result of this um initiative. Lastly, we would like to thank um all of our supporters. Um our young ladies are able to participate in this um initiative at zero cost um to them and it's because of the the team here at Semino County Public Schools and these departments really prioritizing this initiative uh in their budgets. We start with a zero budget at the beginning of the year and we pulled off this amazing fantastic um event. So, I wanted to public publicly thank our e- pathways department, Dr. Shanar Harold, Dr. Nola Williams for their support. Um, the community involvement office, Karen Hinrich and her team did an amazing job. It was really a beautiful event. Um, and
031also her management of our volunteers. We had 25 volunteers that were there between 700 a.m. until 5:00 pm. So, it's a long day. So, thank you to our volunteers who have been coming every year to support um this initiative. also uh Katherine Cernovage in the communications office for the beautiful signage that we had. Um and she also purchased these beautiful finding your voice bracelets that the girls uh were able to take as um a keepsake. Uh Dr. Cody from the office of the deputy superintendent for sponsoring lunch and Mike Rice, the assistant superintendent of high schools for sponsoring our Teddy Bear ceremony time capsule. uh and he's been supporting that every year. Um and I would also like to thank uh Don Bonds and the wellness team for uh sponsoring our t-shirts every year. I'd
032also like to thank the ladies of the uh Stanford Alumni Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Incorporated. They have been volunteers since our first year and also uh financial sponsors. Um, so I really appreciate uh their commitment to this um event and also HCA Florida Healthcare joined us this year as a um sponsor because it is a long day for the young ladies. So we were able to provide them with a healthy snack at the session 4. Um so specifically the Lake Monroe Hospital and the Ovido Medical Center. Uh thank you for your sponsorship. Board members, do you have any questions or comments? Uh, Vice Chair Gary, you're first. Um, my first comment is thank you very much for inviting us. Um, I've had the honor of being there since the beginning. It's it's been great
033to watch the evolution of this vision of yours. Um, I know I I I was like, "Hey, if there's an extra t-shirt and you hooked us up, I appreciate that." But I'll tell you why. Wh why I love a good pink t-shirt. Um I that earlier that morning I was at a breakfast with a buddy uh event at Midway Elementary and there were some young young ladies and I was wearing the shirt and they were wearing their shirts and they're like, "Oh, you're going to be there too." I said, "Oh yeah." So um we met up at the at the uh at the girls retreat and um so I'm beginning to foster a relationship and I know that relationships are the key to success for all of our students. So, I appreciate being part of
034that and that's that's thanks to you and your generosity. Um, I did have a question. I noticed that some of the uh metrics that were shared were different from different schools. I was just wondering if those were uh selected because those guidance counselors were were particularly interested in um in seeing changes for for instance some were on grades and some were on attendance. So, there were three measures that we measured. It was attendance, discipline, and an academic achievement measure. Okay, so the ones highlighted hit two out of the three. Okay, so some of them were attendance and behavior, some were achievement and attendance. Um, but they hit two out of the three. Those were our five schools that were able to accomplish them. Well, thank you. Thank you for uh giving me a little bit
035of insight. Member Dallinger comments. Well, I just want to say it was a lot of fun. Uh, I really enjoyed it and um I was in a small group um drama island I think it was. That was pretty interesting and um reminded me of my middle school years. Um but anyway, just thank you for inviting us and including us and um keep on doing it because it was fantastic. member Sanchez also. Thank you so much and I know that so much work goes into this and to all the staff and from the schools as well for everything that they do to encourage the young ladies to participate and to speak up. Um and I know that there's in the works for uh finding your voices for the young men, right? Am I correct? So when
036is that event? Next Friday. I couldn't remember the date. Our calendars are so full. So, that's coming up. So, you know, thank you again and we really appreciate you all. And I would just like to add first of all, uh the timing could not have been better right before spring break. Um the lessons that you know they probably got to share with their families when they were off. And we're going to have to find a bigger venue for 400 next year, right? Year 400. So the return on investment is invaluable. It you're you're making a difference. The proof is in the in the pudding and it truly does take a village. So I'm very very grateful for this program. We'll find a way somehow. We'll find a way. That's right. Thank you. Thank you. Thank
037you. Thank you. You Okay. Vice Chair, um, we made the agenda modification. So, if you could read the public comment section, please. Uh, certainly, chair. The purpose of the public participation segments of the board meeting is to allow the public to address matters within the board's jurisdiction and not to resolve individual grievances or disputes. Public comments related to education, the board agenda, and the district are welcome and encouraged, but public comment segments are not forums to engage in personal attacks against school system employees or board members. To maintain orderly conduct, the public comment segments of the meetings may not be used as open forums to discuss matters unrelated to education, to support or oppose candidates for public office, including presentation of political and or campaign issues, announcing candidacy and/or campaigning, or to engage in commercial
038speech, attempting to sell a service or product to the board or public. Nor are they forums to address matters involving disciplinary actions of any kind pending claims or complaints or litigation against the district or district personnel. Public comment segments durations are as follows. For the agenda items, you are limited to three minutes. One group representative speaking on a proposition has a maximum of six minutes. Speaker must remain on topic for agenda or proposition. non-aggenda items limited to two minutes. Speakers shall direct their comments only to the board and may not address the audience or other speakers. No speaker may yield his her time to any other person. Generally, substitutions of speakers will not be allowed. Thank you, vice chair. I have two agenda speakers, um Kathy Swedllo and Jessica Tilman. If you'll make your way
039up to the podium here, please. Good evening. You can move that down. Yes, I have to do that. Thank you. So, um I am going to speak on the agenda item that related to instructional support um and the breadth of the different services that uh Seminal County offers. So, my name is Kathy Swerdllo. I've been a resident of Semino County for over 40 years residing at 115 East Windham Court in Longwood. I'm currently the president of the League of Women Voters of Semol County. Our League was founded in 1966 and is part of League of Women Voters US, which is a 105year-old organization founded in 1920 after the passage of the 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote. Since 1974, our membership has also been open to men, and currently 20% of our membership
040is men. We are civic-minded, nonpartisan, and patriotic, dedicated to improving our communities through good governance and strong policy, public policies. The league is organized around seven core principles. These principles have guided the organization for over 70 years and include in part, and I'm going to quote, "The League of Women Voters believes every citizen should be protected in the right to vote and every person should have access to free public education that provides equal opportunity for all. Additionally, after study, debate, and consensus in 2012, an extension of that principle was established that includes a policy in support of federal role in public education. The full policy statement covers a page and a half in this book on issues and impact. But I want to share with you the opening paragraph. The League of Women Voters believes
041that the federal government shares with other levels of government the responsibility to provide an equitable quality public education for all children, preK to grade 12. A quality public education is essential for a strong, viable, and sustainable democratic society and is a civil right. On a local level, our league has been a stalwart supporter of public education in our county. We have advocated for our schools, our teachers, and our students. Considering recent events by our state and federal governments, we are here tonight to voice again our support of and confidence in Semino County Public Schools. I'm a parent of five Semino County Public School graduates. When you have more than one child, one of the first lessons you learn is that each child is a unique individual. And as each one of them entered public school,
042they had different needs and those differences needed to be addressed. Each was able to find their own way with the support of their teachers and community. But my youngest child's story was perhaps the most difficult for me to navigate. He was developmentally delayed and was receiving speech and language therapy out at the UCF clinic as a two and a halfyear-old. But when he turned three, I was told that he would qualify for VE preK, varying exceptionality at the school in my neighborhood. I walked up to the school to meet the teacher and see the classroom. I walked home in tears. I couldn't believe that this was what he needed, but it was. He got extensive speech, language therapy, and occupational therapy. He had an early October birthday and the benefit of extra time before starting
043kindergarten. And he had the most amazing teacher. I refer to him as the poster child for early intervention because he caught up with himself and entered a regular kindergarten class. Not only that, but 12 years later, he stood in this very room as a national merit scholar and the saludiatoran at Lake Brantley High School. Our schools deserve our support, not because they are perfect, but because they strive to meet the needs of every student in our county. I ask that you join me as as the league proudly stands with you, our educators, as we defend public schools from the attempts to defund and corrupt the public education process that is absolutely vital for our students, our community, our state, and our nation. Thank you for your time. Thank you so very much. Order, please. Order.
044Order, please. Allow the next speaker to come up. Thank you. Thank you. Good evening. My name is Jessica Tilman. I am a Simino County resident and I just wanted to point out a couple of agenda items. Uh the request to go to a training in California. I'm a little concerned about that. um how are we involving this training program to better the education of our students? Um we have so many programs that we pay for that we really don't have information or support that either tells us that it does or doesn't help the education of the students. So I just really would like more information on how that training program in California is going to help the education of the students. I also noticed that there's quite a lot of policy changes on the agenda.
045Um, I understand that there is a process for doing this and it has to be noticed to the public and it it it's concerning to me because when I first started coming to policy workshops, every all the policy changes were up on the screen. Everybody in the room could see them. And now it's just not. the board used to ask questions in the workshops and now you don't stating that you met individually with the superintendent and the attorney. So there's really no transparency in what is being changed and what you what questions you might have had because if you have those questions, community members might also have those questions. Um, and it's just more transparent if you're upfront about it because at this point, if we want to see the policy changes that you are
046changing, and some of them are no big deal, they're gram grammatical errors or something along those lines. So, can we go back to being transparent and putting the policy changes up on the screen so everybody can see them? um instead of making us wait till the Friday before school board meeting to see it in the agenda packet or I have to do a public records request which will take much longer than waiting for the agenda packet to come out. I I even have an um a couple of public records requests in right now and it just takes months to get simple records. Um so if we could just go back to being more transparent about the policy changes that would really be wonderful for the entire district. Thank you. Thank you. Order, please. Order. Thank
047you. Okay, those were all of the agenda items uh paperwork that public comment papers that I had. So, now it is time for um board comments for discussion. Vice Chair Garrick, you're first. Very good. Um your your microphone. colleagues. Um, while preparing for today's meeting, I reviewed our budget with the superintendent and with our CFO, Mr. Palvichek, and there is zero fat. Um, this isn't new. We are a fiscally responsible district, and we operate with high efficiency. However, this is especially important to discuss this evening as both the Florida House and Senate are hearing bills to slash our most poss most popular AP, dual enrollment, IB, and career tech budgets by 50%. That would leave us with a shortfall of $8.3 million per year. Um, so what does th this mean in our roles? It
048means that this board is going to have some tough choices. What do we do? Do we consider scaling back on sports, on arts, on m music? Do we charge families for transportation as some other districts throughout the country have done? Do we close a school? I if passed, these bills will have a profound negative impact on Semino County Public Schools. And we are the number one school district in the state of Florida. Here in Seminal County, our schools, if our schools decline, our county and every city will feel the impact. Our schools are our claim to fame. They're the number one reason people move here. We don't have beaches or theme parks or rocket ships. What we have is our A-rated academically high-erforming district. And that's not just a catchy slogan. That's that's the truth.
049Two years ago or two two years ago, two weeks ago, sometimes it feels like two years, um I happened to meet the CEO of one of our major hospitals. Um they came to me and the hospital was trying to recruit a world-renowned surgeon from out of state to lead a team here in Seminal County. The surgeon loved the job, was super impressed with the facilities and the sunshine, but the family was very concerned about the quality of Florida schools. As you can imagine, outside of the state of Florida, there is some um some concerning information about the quality of Florida schools. So, the CEO asked me if I had some hard data which they could share with this potential employee. and I shared the data and I pointed to our website and just this past
050Friday I followed up and I learned that the surgeon and family were impressed and decided to make seminal county their home. You see whether our schools attract worldrenowned surgeons or homegrown homegrow them with advanced and technical classes we need more opportunities for our students not less. And so I'm asking all of you here, all of you listening to please, please call and write your senators and representatives. This vote is tomorrow. Please implore them to vote no on HB5101 and and Senate Bill 2510. Thank you. Thank you. Um, I would like to say a couple of things and as most of you know that come to board meetings, we attend a lot of events and I don't want to spend a whole lot of time talking about them except to point out one that we went
051to last Saturday at Lake Hell High School and that was a strings concert. And I just want to tell you that I got goosebumps listening to those children from fifth grade all the way through 12th grade. hundreds of them playing violins and cellos and big bass instruments. I don't even know the names of all of them. It was very inspiring and this is something you don't see every day and it was seriously goosebump raising and so just in it's just one more thing that makes our district special. Not every place has that. Not every place has been able to preserve the arts, athletics as well as our academics. I also would like to speak to the same thing that member Garrick was talking about and just maybe share a little bit of further information because
052we do need your help. Um the bills that member Garrick referenced would reduce by 50% the weighted funding for AP, IB, CAPE, and dual enrollment courses starting next year. As you all may know, these programs are incredibly popular. Thousands of our students are engaged in these programs. They earn college credit uh or industry certifications that create opportunities as they advance in their college or even employment and careers. This proposed reduction is of great concern because um these are skills that are needed in the workplace and regardless of their educational educational pathway, students benefit from them. The the funding that's generated is 100% utilized to pay for the expenses related to the programs. They're very specific. You can't spend the money anywhere else. And it includes the cost of administering the exams. I'm sure some of
053you have had kids take AP exams or industry searchs. All of those things cost money to administer. So, we pay for that. We pay for the materials. We pay for professional development for teachers, equipment such as computers or even something like a welding machine, you know, which I happen to get to try out at Lyman High School and I can tell you that was pretty amazing. Um, so it's important and also provides for teacher compensation. We have highly skilled teachers working in these courses and um believe me people are out to recruit them and we want to be able to keep them. So just to give you an example, I'm sure everybody probably has heard of AP and IB and dual enrollment, but you may not know some of the examples of of courses that
054earn cert um industry certifications. So for example, auto mechanics, welding technology, building trades and construction design, engineering, emergency planning, entrepreneurship, hospitality and tourism, biomed sciences, nursing assistant, emergency medical responder, aviation maintenance, automotive maintenance and repair, culinary arts, air conditioning and refrigeration, something we definitely need in Central Florida, early childhood education and many others that I can't I could sit here all night and tell you about them. If you want to know more, you can look in this resource guide. We have this produced every year and it has every single high school and also our other magnets that offer different types of coursework. Thousands of students take these accelerated courses. As Miss Garrick said, the reduction is a 50% reduction. This school year, Simino County received 17.2 million to support these programs. If that funding was
055cut in half, it would be a loss of $8.6 million for this school year alone. The reason we're talking to you about it is because we hope that you, your students, and business leaders in the community will share their stories about the importance of these programs with your legislators and with members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committee. We need to let them know about the potential impacts to your children's education and also respectfully request that they maintain funding for 25 26 and beyond. Let our elected officials know you support funding the programs that our students, parents, and community value. And that's it for me. Thank you so much, Dr. Zinger. Member Sanchez. So along the same similar lines and I don't want to repeat everything that they just said. Dr. Dillinger and I had
056an opportunity to be up in Tallahassee and um I serve on the legislative committee for the Florida School Board Association. So I meet on a weekly basis and if any time that you would like to listen to the recording of our conversation, it is public record and I'd be more than happy to share it with you. Also, I have been blessed to have an amazing um well, college student that helps me, Haley Donahghue, wherever you are. I know you're out there, raise your hand back there, who has done some short summaries of all the different bills um in layman's term for all of us to understand. And if you would like a copy of those, we will get them to you. Um, it's extremely important and I know before I, you know, when my children
057were younger, we're all in our own little bubble and we don't really know what's going on around us and it's no fault to us. It's just that we are so busy in our own lives that we don't really have time to look at everything else that's going on around us and then before you know it, it's too late and this is what's going to happen. And it's very, very scary if we do not stay on top of this. And I can't explain to you how critical it is for you to reach out to our delegator delegation, speak to our legislators, speak to them, email them, not a copy and paste, but really get into it and talk to them about it and find out what's going on. Because if we if we get cut $8.6
058million, we're talking a lot of programs that will not be there to benefit our children. And we are getting away from saying where are you going to college? It's what do you want to do with your life? And not everybody's collegebound. Everybody has a different path. And that's what we have built here. And we have built a very strong strong programs here in our county with our own plane, our own helicopter where aviation mechanics can take place. All the different programs that are beneficial for our students to be industry certified, ready to go into the workforce immediately. And if we don't share all these things as well as our API IB programs, we are going to lose half of the funding and then we're not going to know where to go. And that's just one
059of the many different bills. Now, honestly, if you listen to the the videos, there are a lot of bills going on. I, you know, truly don't think that all of them are going to pass because some of them are moving at a slow pace. But you just never know. We have three weeks left of the session and it's extremely important that everybody speaks up and if you don't know what to say, please feel free to reach out to us. We will be more than happy to share the information. We have information for you that we can share with you that we were able to get and based also on our career tech programs as well. Um it's important for you all to be as vocal as possible on this. Um because without your voices, we
060don't know what's going to happen. And there's a lot of freshman senators and representatives up there that have absolutely no idea. And it's no fault to their own. They're drinking out of a fire hose. So, it's our job to educate them on all the different things that are going on so we can make sure that they know what to do and to make sure that they are giving us the benefit of the doubt and doing what we need to do and make sure that they understand that we're not double dipping, that we have to carry money over in the summer so we can buy certain pro uh programs and products for those programs. And we need you to speak up. If you don't know what to say, we'll be more than happy to share you
061share with you all the different things that um everybody can understand because there's a lot of misconceptions out there. And verbally we need you to explain to them reaching out to our legislators. And I also wanted to and I know like we've all said before, there's a lot of things that we all are going to right now. There's a ton of different conferences and workshops and awards ceremonies that we're having fun celebrating and we're dividing and conquering. We're texting each other saying, "Okay, who's going to this place? Who's going to that place?" So, you may not see us at all at the same place because we're all doing different things. Um because we want to have representation as much as possible wherever we can go. And um but I do want to state this and
062this is something my first meeting I missed probably in I think in nine years. I was sick last month with the flu. And um this is from me. This is not from the board. Um I want to say that I was really disappointed that prom um that two of our high schools scheduled prom on the first night of Passover, which happens to be Saturday night. Um as someone who is part of the Jewish faith, and that's me, I know how important it is to make sure that this doesn't happen again. I helped create a calendar many many years ago reaching out to different culture uh pastors and ministers and you know leaders of our organizations to make sure that we were respectful of everybody. We're not about religion in our schools but it's all about
063respect. And I I would truly appreciate that. You know, I I appreciate everybody that has reached out to me and I want to be clear that I'm speaking on my on behalf of myself, not for any other board member. It's upsetting that students have to choose between their faith and prom and that's just not right. And then I find out there's events going on in Good Good Friday as well. We teach our children that when we make mistakes, we own up we own up to them. We apologize and we learn from them. This is no different. This was a mistake and I'm truly sorry. Now that it's our responsibility to do better and move forward and make sure it doesn't happen again. When I was elected, like I said, I helped create the calendar committee
064to ensure that we were being mindful of all religious and cultural observances and we worked together with different religious leaders to be inclusive and respectful as possible. Moving forward, I want to make sure that our committee is working with all stakeholders so that this doesn't happen again. And now I do know that things will happen, but going to somebody else's prom is not a solution because you want to be with your friends. I appreciate your understanding and I promise I will do everything I can to prevent this from happening again. Um because I don't want to see this happening again in the future. Uh and I'm not going to speak on behalf of anything else except that this is a very busy month with autism awareness month, child prevention month. We have over 4,000 students
065that we know of that are abused. That's of what we know. There are speakout hotlines. There is a 211 number which has more resources or a 98 suicide prevention hotline 247. When in doubt, you don't know, reach out to these numbers. They're anonymous. If you know something's going on, please speak up and call these numbers because our children need us. Thank you. Thank you. Um I have two events that I want to speak about. One was the national merit recognition where we had the highest number of students recognized over 170 I think there were 190 total. Um, this doesn't happen without phenomenal teachers, without the rigor of difficult classes. Um, so I'll leave it at that. Thank you, Lake Brantley, for hosting. Um, we all got to cheer on some of the brightest of the
066bright. We also um hosted our annual student government workshop with SGAA students and we um we hear from them how stressed they are, how much anxiety. Um it makes all of us in the end very hopeful because they too have good ideas about how we can make the school environment better. Um, but these students, many of them want to go to college without being able to offer the full full gamut of classes. Um, way back in the day, my daughter took AB calculus, then CD calculus, AP. We may not be able to continue. These students may not get into college as a result of the bills that are being considered in Tallahassee. Um I too am available to reach out. Um it feels like education is being attacked from both the federal government and the
067state government and we're just swimming as hard as we can to plan accordingly because we all want the best for our students um and opportunities for all. Thank you. Okay, with that we're moving on to the uh consent agenda. Superintendent, do you have a recommendation? Yes, I do that the consent agenda be approved as presented. Thank you. Is there a motion to approve? So moved and a second. Dr. Dinger, any discussion about the consent agenda? All those in favor, please signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? The motion passes. Okay. Thank you. Um there was a committee assignment I'm sorry um purchasing that I want to call out and when I looked um Jill provided me the sheet and I think that you are the next one if you're willing to serve on that.
068Yes, I told the superintendent I'd be happy to. Thank you. Okay. There were several people that volunteered but I think you were the next one up. Okay. Item is removed for se separate consideration. Um, superintendent, do you have a recommendation regarding student discipline hearings? Yes, I do. That the school board of Simol County approve the student disciplinary recommendations from March 3rd, 2025 and March 24th, 2025. Is there a motion? So moved. Second. Thank you. Any discussion? All in favor, please signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? Motion passes. Um, new business. Superintendent, did you want to speak to that? Yes, chair. I have a recommendation and that is that the school board of semino county adopt the instructional materials recommendations of the social studies adoption committee for advanced placement micro and macroeconomics and authorize
069the superintendent to purchase the committee's choice. Is there a motion? second and a second by member Sanchez. Any discussion? If I may. Yes. I just would like to say thank you to the committees and thank you superintendent for putting the uh very detailed reports of the gatherings of the committees. Um while I'm looking at the books that are sitting upstairs for us to peruse, I'm no expert when it comes to micro and macroeconomics. So, it's helpful to have the input from our educators as well as uh community members. So, thank you. Again, another funding source for AP, right? Okay. Any other discussion? Thank you. Okay. All in favor signify by saying I. I. I. Any oppose? Okay. Motion passes. Superintendent, do you have a report? Um I I have a report that is read only
070and it's included in the book. Um, I do want to say thank you to our board members for attending um, last night's SAS Awards night. Um, and want to say congratulations to Mr. Russy out there who is the recipient of the above and beyond service award. Um, Dr. Yay, you can [Applause] clap. And also Dr. Cummings who is the recipient of the Raymond L. Gains Leadership Award and and a shout out to Dr. Mahaland over at Goldsboro who is the Dr. Cody Excellence and Equity Award recipient this year. And did Dr. Guard Herald Dr. Dr. Ryan um Guard Harold was the recipient of an award, the lamp award? Yeah. Thank you. Yes. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Um, board comments committees. So, we'll start with you, Dr. Miss Member Garrick. Sorry, Vice
071Chair. Thank you. Um, I did Thank you very much uh Dr. Dinger for uh for sharing and um uh member Sanchez as well for uh sharing your comments. I realized as I was listening along, I'm like, "Wait a second, I skipped over something." So yes, these uh the House bill and the Senate bill will impact AP dual enrollment IB career and career tech budgets. And the correct amount of shortfall for our district would be $8.6 million. So I want to correct that for the record. um my committee meetings, I was able to uh attend both the Midway Coalition and the Boys and Girls uh Club Westside, um where Commissioner Wiggins did his um did his monthly meeting. Uh great communities, all very invested in education. Um so it's great to be there and hear their
072reports. Also to hear the additional um supports and potential programs they have to support our kids with uh with particularly interventions as well as um uh direct homework help and and that type of thing. So we love to have partners in the community. Um I want to share I've not yet yet yet um started the invested uh uh committee with the United Way but I was invited by the United Way to attend the annual woman United lunchon. So that will be this Thursday and I will bring you a report next time. Um foundation both the superintendent and I had to uh play hookie from the foundation meeting um because we were doing our master board training. So, as soon as I get those meeting minutes, um, our clerk will forward them to you. However, on
073behalf of the foundation, I was able to make a couple of school visits. I was able to present checks for the arts, which is always wonderful. We have to thank um our um Central County Schools Foundation for filling in the gaps. And this is one of the the wonderful programs they do every year is to make sure that they provide additional support to um the arts throughout our schools. So, I was able to visit Markhamm Woods Middle School, Hamilton Elementary, and Sanford Elementary. And um just real quickly, I want to thank you, Superintendent, and Assistant Assistant Superintendent Elwood for our school visits. Um we have been talking about uh our accelerated learners very much this evening, but um as I believe Dr. Dinger pointed out and as we heard from a speaker um it is
074imperative that we serve every single student in our district and I had the pleasure of attending um Endeavor Elementary which is under the direction of principal principal Jarzanka. It is his first year there and he is doing amazing work. In fact he too was recognized last year from SASA as the leader of the year, the emerging leader and thank you vice chair. Shout out to Mr. Jarzinka. Congratulations. Yes. And for those of you who don't know about Endeavor, it is um it is a specialized small school for um students with varying exceptionalities. Some um are on behavioral tiers. Some have um uh some have um educational challenges but for whatever reason um they have had difficulty uh assimilating in in the traditional schools. So this is a place where they can um regain their confidence
075as students, get extra support and get the skills that they need to come back to their main school. So, um, can't say enough. And for the first time ever, um, our, uh, teacher of the year for Seminal County is from Endeavor School, a teacher, um, for the, uh, a teacher for students with exceptionalities. So, that was fabulous. And then also, um, we got to visit, uh, Jouri's Academy. Um, again, a phenomenal resource that other counties don't provide. I have sisters that work in other districts and very often if there is a student that makes a poor choice, they're expelled and that person is now out in the public with no services. In our district, we value each and every child and we know kids are going to make mistakes and some of them are are
076pretty tough lessons for them and for us. But that's why we have Journeys Academy led by Principal Sho Walter and we also have Eugene Gregory which I look forward to to visiting later in the year. But I want to assure everyone that those schools in addition to working with the kids on on some of their behavioral circles and making sure that they have the the the proper social skills to head back to school also are academically challenged. They are doing hand on experiences. They are they are doing science. they are doing, you know, algebra. I mean, everything that we would expect of our students in the traditional classrooms are happening on the um and same thing at Endeavor. Lots of good good work based on the on the students ability level. But um everything that's
077happening in traditional school is happening in our in our special center. So, thank you for indulging me. Thank you, member Tallinger. I just have one meeting uh committee to report on this time and that is the business advisory board. Uh we met last week and continue the deep dive that we are doing into custodial services. As you can imagine that's a pretty big topic. Um this time we had some folks from the schools come to answer questions and share experiences and concerns and and kudos and all of those kinds of things. It was very informative. Um it was very thoughtful and informational and the board will continue to do its work. Um I would like to thank Dr. Mullins and his team ops uh specifically Jose Montban and John Wils for their meticulous preparation for
078these meetings. They've given us a lot of material um and some thoughtful documents to think about moving forward and it's pretty amazing. So appreciate that committee and I'll keep you posted obviously throughout the year. That's pretty much it for me. Thank you. Member Sanchez, committee reports. Um yes, before I forget, I don't know if we mentioned it, but page 73 about the U RFP request for the um construction manager contract services that did you have me down that I was going to do that one or did somebody else want to do it? And I'm Yeah, I selected um Oh, you did? Okay. I don't either. So, she was the next up on the list. Okay, perfect. I didn't know. Okay, thank you. That's fine. I didn't know that. I didn't hear it. Okay. Any committee
079reports from you? Um yeah, just a couple quick ones. Um the first one, zoo meeting is tomorrow. The um zoo the what is it called? Bruise around the zoo is Friday night. Um and of course that's an adult only, but it does raise money for our zoo animals. And uh keeping in mind that the cost of maintaining the food and resources for the animals is extremely important. Um I did want to mention that uh my legislative updates are still weekly. Um also wanted to make sure that everyone knows that the congressional art um exhibit for Congressman um Mills is this week. Um I believe on what? Thursday night. tomorrow night, Wednesday night at the Ritz Cedar. And um we also have Military Day coming up and I believe many of the schools are already passing
080out information on that. And then also the Ritz Cedar does minions um on Friday night. It's free. If you bring in canned food drive, canned food items, that would be extra beneficial for a lot of our schools. But it's open to all children and families. It's a movie night there at our rich theater. So, anybody that would like to attend with their children, it's a great evening out. And um I also wanted to mention that uh Alley's Hope had their 5K um not 5K, I'm sorry, their golf tournament. We raised quite a bit of money for mental um wellness and for more social workers and mental health support counselors which is something else that we are asking from the state to get and um I know when Mrs. Swllow Kathy was speaking about her son
081and ESE services. Um I had two children in IEPs and 504s and I want people to realize and something that always has bugged me that people think that children that are that receive special services are different than anybody else. They are not. They just learn differently. Just like every single one of us, we all think out of the box and most of us learn by hands-on activities, by doing. And so when I go in a classroom and I see a bunch of people just sitting there listening to a teacher lecturing, that's not teaching. Teaching is hands-on and integrating and acting and and really roleplaying and and having the groups working together. So it's just something that's always bugged me when I hear somebody say, "Oh, ESC." And then they think that their a child has,
082you know, that they're not capable of doing what everybody else's kid can do. Um because that is not true. Also, summer camps are available. I want to make sure that everybody's aware that it's uh the time to sign up for those camps, making sure that you're doing so and that uh you know, autism awareness month uh and they have their 5K coming up. And like I said before, I can't stress this enough. Um please reach out to those hotlines. Latinos in Action. Thank you for everything that you guys are doing and all the speaking that you guys did in Tallahassee as well as all the wonderful awards that you all just won. I was trying to look for it many, but I couldn't find all the different awards, but I know you all Seol County
083rocked the house um in Central Florida and beyond. So, thank you. Um and once again, don't forget about BPK and K registration. Thank you. Thank you. Um I had uh sort of a committee meeting. Um the science center is an an informal committee that we support and they had their inspire science breakfast um in the in the dinosaur room. There were about 300 of us that were there and thank you to Holton Mills for including me. Um they are also doing their um the science of wine night for adults 21 and over. look at the website and it's it's very informative and also very good in this in these days we sometimes need a glass of wine. Um, so we all attended the Rube Goldberg uh event that went on, the Battle of the Books,
084and I had a privileged invitation from my sister, the Castleberry Library. Um, they did a renovation of their young readers room and had Blueie Story Time. There were over 250 babies and up to probably four year olds there. And then they uh did the ribbon cutting for the new renovated um young readers room. So you all need to go check it out at the Castleberry um library. And I I too wanted to offer a special thanks Mr. Pavloch and your team. Um you're holding our hands walking us through the big unknown and I'm just very grateful for your experience and your ability to help us understand um and prepare as best we can prepare. Thank you. Um those that concludes my reports and I have a number of speakers tonight. Um if you could line
085up along the wall. Um Erin Harper, Pamela Ferrante, and Tynette Mcclinton Trinet. I'm I'm sorry if I mispronounced I'm sorry. Who is first? Erin Harper, please. Thank you. Thank you. Good evening. Good evening, school board members, chair Miss Krauss, and Superintendent Miss Bean. My name is Aaron Harper. I live in Longwood. I'm speaking tonight as a former graduate of SCPS, a former educator of SCPS, and as a parent of a child who attends Seminal County Public Schools. Seminal County Public Schools influenced my life positively in many ways. As a student, I was inspired by my fabulous teachers to become an educator. Years later, I became an SCPS math teacher and cheer coach at my alma mater. Working with students each day brought tremendous joy to my life. I feel lucky I was able to be
086part of the amazing staff. These individuals dedicate their lives to making sure all students have the tools available to succeed. The idea that the Department of Education could be eliminated concerns me greatly. Our district has many students who need these programs and funds to assist them in their educational journey. As a dean years ago, I worked very closely with students with disabilities, some very severe. To think schools will not have the funds to help their students be successful and to employ the appropriate school personnel to work with these students is devastating. Funding provided through Title One is critical to support their unique needs. Many students will be negatively impacted if we're unable to meet their needs. Please ask our representatives and senators to support maintaining the department of education when they have the chance. Thank
087you to all the wonderful teachers and staff in Semino County Public Schools. I appreciate all you do. Thank you. Thank you so much. Pam Verante. Order. Please allow the next speaker. Good evening. Good evening school board members and our superintendent, Miss Bean. My name is Pam Fanty and I live in Winter Springs. I appreciate the opportunity tonight to speak to you. I'm a retired educator having taught in Semino County for over 36 years. Over the course of my teaching career, I had the privilege to work with thousands of students and teachers in our district and always thought of my students, whether they were fourth graders, middle schoolers, or new teachers, as my kids. Today, I want to take a moment to publicly thank all of the amazing Semino County teachers and administrators who over the
088years thought of my personal kids as their own. I have four, by the way. These dedicated public servants helped my children grow into the wonderful humans they are today. They created safe places in their classrooms for growth and empowered exploration. Thank you to Miss Fallon for helping all four of my children love learning and value collaboration with others. Thank you to Miss Moragula for s seeing beyond Jenny's learning disability and acknowledging her talent and passion for chemistry. She's now pursuing a PhD in chemistry in part because of the support from Miss Moragula all those years ago. Thank you to Coach Vaul for teaching Matthew the importance of teamwork and leadership skills he uses today in his law enforcement career. Thank you to Miss Register for helping Amy believe in herself and her own ability to
089succeed. Today, she nurses the sickest of children in Arnold Palmer's pediatric cardiology unit. Thank you to Mr. Roby whose support and encouragement led to Deanna's National Merit Scholarship and a full ride at UCF preparing her to be an outstanding educator herself. And thank you to Dr. Dillinger who is my principal for many years always encouraged me to advocate for my kids my personal children and my students. The most important attribute that all of these educators have in common is the unconditional way in which they make children feel your time has expired. If you have written comments you can leave it with the clerk. Thank you. Order please. Order. I'm sorry if I mispronounce your name. Is it Trinetta? It's Trinetta. I'm quite used to it. Thank you. Welcome. Thank you. And good evening to everyone.
090I'm here to sound the alarm. The alarm is that we need to wake up before our students in Simino County and all over the United States are being held to different fires. I will say we must um wake up, call our legislators to really ex express our disappointment about the bills that are in um circulation at this time that steer to dismantle the public schools. Why is this important? This is important because I feel that it will negative negatively impact the educational system and its equity. This will disappropriately affect schools in underserved and marginalized communities. The taking over of these schools and the educational system often reduces local input which can lead to decisions that don't reflect the priorities or the challenges of our communities. We also need to be in arms about these bills
091because they will also worsen the inequalities and the centralization and control that could be exacerbated in our systems. What does this mean? Our decisions about funding, curriculum, staffing decisions will be made without consideration of the specific needs of our communities. We also need to be alert and to speak out about the support for all of our students with diversity in diversity. Cutting diversity out of our schools means cutting our students out of their own lives, their history. Thank you. Your time has expired. If you have written comments, you may leave them with the clerk. Thank you very much. Order, please. Order, ladies and gentlemen. Jamie Davis, followed by Jessica Jenkins, followed by Deborah Donahghue. Good evening. Good evening, members of the board and Superintendent Bean. I come before you today as a concerned stakeholder in
092our school district, compelled to speak about the unacceptable mismanagement of special education files, the repeated issuance of hollow apologies, and the persistent pattern of setting lowered expectations for our students with disabilities. The mishandling and misplacement of critical special education documentation is not just an administrative oversight. It is a violation of trust, a threat to compliance, and most importantly, a direct disservice to the students who rely on individualized support to thrive. These files are not mere paperwork. They represent students rights, progress, progress, accommodations, and legal protections. Losing them jeopardizes their educational journey and calls into question the district's commitment to upholding federal and state special education laws. Equally concerning is the response from district leadership. Apologies without action, transparency, or accountability ring hollow. We have heard we're sorry too many times, and it no longer carries
093the weight that it once did. What we need now is not sympathy, but responsibility, not words, but results. Moreover, there appears to be a dangerous culture of lowered expectations for students in special education programs. This is not just disheartening as a parent of a child with autism. It is discriminatory. Every child, regardless of their ability, deserves access to rigorous instruction, high expectations, and the belief that they can can succeed. Anything less is a failure of the institution and betrayal of its mission. I urge you to take immediate corrective steps. Conduct a full audit of all special education programs and processes. implement transparent pro protocols for documentation and accountability. Offer meaningful training for staff and leadership on compliance and equity. And most importantly, set a tone of high expectations for all students because our children your
094time has expired. Nevertheless, thank you Jessica Jenkins followed by Deborah Donahghue followed by Haley Donahue. Good evening. Good evening. Um thank you school board and um superintendent. I don't have mine planned out that nicely. Kind of more um by the seat of my pants, but uh I am a teacher in Semino County and I also have two students that have decided to come to school to Seminal County with me versus another district. So, um that's how much we love it. But I'm really concerned as you are about HB5101. Um I'm an AP teacher. My my children teach a AP classes and again all the offerings CTE. um IB, all the different levels are needed. But as far as AP, that's my experience. Um I'm worried because right now our students don't have to pay for
095those classes. And I'm sure hopefully you're already considering this and I think parents need to consider this too. What is going to happen um in the future if that is cut by 50%. Will students have to start paying for their AP exams? Some states do that. we're one of the lucky ones that don't. This offers great opportunity to, you know, other students who wouldn't be able to do that. The second, as an AP teacher, uh I don't think people realize the amount of time and effort and education that goes into the pass rates that we um earn here in Seminal County. Um, I I wonder, am I still going to put in 50 to 60 hours a week to get a 95% pass rate for the 100 to 130 students I teach every year if
096I don't get that extra little bonus? And it's sad to say that, but it takes great time out of our personal lives and our family lives. And there has to be some type of tradeoff for that. And most of your AP teachers also have master's degrees as I do. So there's going to be a big brain drain. Um and also these students will not be ready for colleges such as UCF where now you need a 4.2 weighted. You can't get that without AP. Your time has expired. Thank you. Thank you so much. Deborah Donahue followed by Haley followed by uh Chandler is the last name. Good evening. Good evening school board and superintendent. I wanted to talk a little bit more about the IB program and what it meant to my family. Um, the IBA
097pro AP programs and dual enrollment programs are an opportunity for high achieving students to gain college credits and compete to be competitive at top universities. Without that, our kids aren't going to be competitive. They rob our students of opportunities if we take them away. And I just want to talk about my own child for a minute. The IB program allowed my child to get a full scholarship to UCF. She is there on bright futures plus the prov. In addition, she found out last week she is the top honor grad in her college at UCF, which is effectively putting her as validictorian first in her class on May 3rd when she graduates. IB helped her do this. It allowed her to learn how to research when she did her EE. She now has a 600page thesis
098that is published as a result of that foundation laid in IB. We can't take these programs away from our high achieving students. We can't deny them these opportunities because without that, their dreams are gone. Please call your representatives and your state senators and preserve these programs for all students. Thank you. Thank you. Order, please. Next speaker, followed by Mr. Chandler, followed by JJ Holmes. Good evening. Omnes at Bon Westparam School Board Springs High School lat three years ago I graduated high school graduated in the top 10% of my class went to UCF on a full scholarship. My mom just saved me like 30 seconds of speaking. I credit almost all of that to Daniel Roby. He was my Latin teacher for four years. But he was so much more than a megistister or teacher to
099me. He coached my curtain team. He tutored me on the ACT, which I got a perfect score on. He advised me on my college apps. And most importantly, he pursued me to in follow my passions and dreams, which he was able to do in his role as an IB teacher. He promoted the IB learner profile for four years and here I am and I just opened my speech in Latin which is also saying something that he taught students a dead language. Uh he tutored kids in the SAT and ACT for free. He has a successful tutoring business but any student in his class he tutored for free. He would open his classroom before school, after school, and during lunch for all of his students. And it wasn't just me he influenced. Of my three best
100friends, one of them is in the Air Force doing a linguistics focused program. One of them is a game designer that is doing a project based on Greek mythology. And one of them went into architecture because of his interest in Roman architecture. All of that came from Roi's IB or AP Latin classes. He listened to me. He listened to all of us. And that was so important. Gracias. Gracias proto. Please continue to support the IB program. Call your senators. Call your representatives. Tibby gratas. Omnes prome oriento. Thank you. Order please. Uh Chan Chan Mr. Chandler followed by JJ Holmes followed by David White. Good evening. Evening. How are you? Good. Thank you. Great. Okay. Thank you. I'm a little nervous, but this is my first and won't be the last. I want to first start
101off by thanking the board, chairs, superintendent for this meeting. I am a resident of Simino County. I grew up in Simino County and I've gone to school in Semino County all of my my years, my adult years. I speak on behalf of the kids that are going to be affected by the decisions that are made by our politicians. I want to speak from a perspective of having being educated in the school system. Semino County school system provided a safe haven for me to be able to escape the dangers of what we see every day and to be able to come out of our neighborhood to get education and it made a very difference to us. The lives that we impact and the people that are impacted by us, we never ever begin to know. But
102I want to be able just to speak up for those at risk children who look to school to just getting out of the hardships of just everyday life of what they see at home. If there's nothing else they think they can be, you can go to school and be told that there's a possibility that you can become anything. And in today's time, we have to continually to to protect making sure that our children know that they can be anything they want to be in this world. And I believe we all have children regardless of party, regardless of of of anything. We all have the interest of wanting to do the very best for our children. So I believe that we all can come together in that breath of wanting to see the very best done
103with our children and from that being able to try to do all that we can. So very thank you all and that's it for my time. Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you JJ Holmes followed by David White. Order followed by Steve Barnes. Good evening. Public education is literally the foundation of a strong democracy. And that's why it's under attack. Not because it's failing, but because it's powerful. Because people who are educated are way harder to fool. way harder to control and way harder to silence. Which brings me to Elon Musk and education. Imagine how different things would be right now if Elon had some great teachers in his life. First off, Elon Musk clearly could benefit from a great woodworking teacher. Someone to explain that chainsaws are for cutting wood, not for swinging
104around like a toddler with a lightsaber. and a civics teacher could teach Elon campaign optics 101 and explain to him why wearing a slice of cheese on his head while endorsing a judge isn't exactly the cornerstone of effective persuasion. If there's one thing people like Laura Loomer and Donald J. Trump have taught us, it's that someone else's bad education can absolutely become your problem. We cannot stay silent. We must rise up and oppose the reckless cuts to the Department of Education and the dangerous slashing of funding happening right now in Tallahassee. Our students, our teachers, and our future depend on it. Thank you for listening. Thank you, JJ. Order, please. Order. [Music] David White, followed by Steven Barnes, followed by Rebecca Shot. Good evening. Good. Good evening. Tonight, I speak not just as a father
105fighting for my child, but as someone who has watched this district work harder to silence parents than to solve the problems we're bringing to you. From the beginning, all I've asked for this district is to listen, not to me personally, but to the experts, the doctors, and the clear medical guidance given to ensure my son's safety at school. Instead of collaboration, what I have faced is obstruction. What my family has faced is stonewalling. What this community sees is a district more interested in defending flawed policies than in defending children, defending the children these policies impact. It is clear to me and to many families that this district does not want to hear uncomfortable truths. You do not want the public to hear about mistakes or see the real consequences of decisions made behind closed doors.
106But I am here to tell you, you cannot silence the truth. You cannot silence parents who are fighting for their children. And let me be clear, I am allowed to speak here in this public forum. It's protected by my First Amendment right. You may not like what I have to say. It may be uncomfortable, but it is my right to address this board in this setting on matters of deep public concern. Efforts to suppress my speech do not just violate public trust, they violate the law. No amount of procedural games or policy interpretations will stop me from speaking out. And I know I am not alone. There are many families across this country who have been let down, push I'm sorry, across this county who have been let down, pushed aside, or told to just
107accept it. We will not accept it. Our children deserve better and this community deserves transparency. So tonight, I say this to each of you, the board members, the superintendent, and the attorney sitting before us. Either you start standing up and truly representing the constituents who elected you, or step aside. If you will not lead with integrity, then make room for those who will. This is not just about my family. It is about every f Thank you. Thank you. Your time is expired. Thank you. Steven Barnes, followed right by Rebecca Shot, followed by Deanna Shot. Good evening. Good evening. Good evening, schoolboard members. Uh, Chair Krauss and Superintendent Bean. Uh, thank you for being here tonight. Uh, my name is Steve Barnes. I live at 400 West Crystal Drive in Sanford. Uh, thank you for your
108time and and thank you to all the members of the public who are here to support the Department of Education. Thank you for being here. We had more than 100 people attend the rally before this meeting to support the Department of Education which is uh in danger. I'm speaking tonight as a parent, taxpayer, and one of the organizers of the rally rally which brought together a broad partis broad nonpartisan coalition of organizations dedicated to public service in civil rights. These groups include the seminal education association, the League of Women Voters, the NAACP of Seminal County, and the Semol County PTA. Tonight, we're asking that you publicly oppose cuts to the Department of Education, which protects the civil rights of students, provides funding for special education programs, research into the best teaching practices, and manages financial
109aid for college students. As you know, the Trump administration has slashed funding for the department and is trying to dismantle it altogether. Eliminating the department, however, will require congressional approval. We ask that you pass a resolution opposing these cuts and elimination of the department and forward it to Congressman Corey Mills and Senators Rick Scott and Ashley Moody and ask that they vote no when this comes before them in Congress. We also invite you to write your own letters to these officials. I know it's uncomfortable to oppose those in power, but cuts to the department will hurt Seminal County students and I hope you'll act quickly to help protect them. Representatives of our coalition stand ready to assist you in any way that we can. We thank you for our service, your service to our community
110and to our students. Have a good night. Thank you. Thank you so much. Rebecca Shot, followed by Deian, please followed by Michelle Dus. Good evening. Good evening, school board members and superintendent Bean. My name is Rebecca and I live in Longwood. I'm a proud graduate of Semino County Public Schools. Today I'm equally proud to have my own children attending seminal county public schools as well and chose to return here after college because of the strong reputation and support offered by our school system. I'm here to speak to support in support of our schools especially in light of recent federal changes regarding the department of education. I want to voice my concern about the continued funding for IEP and 504 programs. As a mother of a child with autism, I've seen firsthand the life-changing impact of
111these programs. Because of the support of the of programs like these through her IEP and some wonderful teacher advocates, my daughter has not only thrived academically, achieving principal honors, honor role, and excelling in AP and honors classes, but she has grown personally and socially. These programs make a real difference in the lives of students and families and I hope to see the funding and support remain a priority. Thank you for your time. Thank you so much Danna Shot followed by M Michelle Des Deus and Raquel Molen. Good evening. Good evening. Um I Good evening to the board and to Superintendent Bean and to all my fellow citizens here. Um, I also want to speak in support of our board, in support of the great uh reputation that our school system has. When I moved from
112uh Wisconsin to Florida, it was very important that I bring my family to a place where I felt that they could get the kind of education that would benefit them in their futures. And I have to say, my kids were all educated here and they are all very successful people. Now I am very proud to be the grandmother of students here at Semino County Schools and I really am afraid about the funding not only for the department of education which of course we don't have a whole lot of direct um response other than um reaching out to our senators and congress people but I just want to continue to encourage you to what you are doing reaching out being in front of our legislators And then I'm hoping because of all that positivity, we have
113a reputation, right? We have a reputation up in Tallahassee as being an outstanding school. And therefore I feel when the students, the citizens are all standing up with the same story that we need this money no less to continue to produce the kind of teachers, support staff and students that we have. So my ask is that not only of the board and superintendent, but my fellow citizens and advocates, we stand up strong and let our legislators know that we are in charge and they need to listen to us. So RAW, for what you're doing, I thank you for all the time and passion you put in and um I'm proud to be here and support you. Thank you very much. Thank you so much, Michelle. followed by Raquel Molina, followed by Tina McClory. Can you
114pronounce your last name? I'm sorry. De Jesus. Okay. Thank you. All right. Good evening, uh, the board and, uh, Superintendent Bean. My name is Michelle De Jesus. I'm currently a special education teacher. Um, and, uh, here in Seminal County. I live at Altimont Springs. Public education is my life. Um, I just want to briefly share some concerns regarding funding and enrollment in Sean County's traditional public schools. While I understand and respect a parent's right to school choice, I'm deeply concerned about how this shift is affecting our exceptional uh student education services. As more families take advantage of private school vouchers, some of which restrict or limit ESSE enrollment, we're seeing an increase in ESSE student populations within our public schools. However, the resources and staffing support for ESSE teachers and pair professionals have not been
115adjusted to reflect these changes. This growing imbalance raises a serious concern that our ESC students, some of our most vulnerable, may not receive the full support and services they are legally entitled and genuinely deserve. At the same time, uh, with public school enrollment slightly declining in state funds being spread across an expanded voucher program, I worry that Seml County Public Schools is being asked to do more with less, especially in terms of individualized support. As you move forward with planning and budgeting, I urge you to prioritize uh, prioritize equitable funding and staffing for EFC services. These students and their dedicated educators need our full commitment. Thank you for your continued work and for your service to our schools and community. I hope to see ongoing genuine support for all educators and staff in this county.
116Thank you. Thank you so much. Raquel Molino, followed by Tina McClory, followed by Lawrence Steffy. Good evening. My name is Raquel Molina. Good evening. Stop abuse and special with special needs children. Please stop it. too much abuse occurring in the system and it's being covered up by you guys. Thank you. SCPS board members should not impede someone's right to speak truth about systemic matters such as bullying, disability discrimination, gaslighting, denial of fate, predetermination in IEP meetings and retaliation against David White's family and many others. SCPS board policy has an unconstitutional restriction of our first amendment free speech right because Mr. White and others are only advocating for all students including ESC students still have the first amendment right to speak to the board if the issue is a matter of public concern and not just
117a personal disagreement or personal complaint. Matters of retaliation, discrimination, abuse, and educational standards are matters of public concerns. If I'm wrong, please stop me and correct me. If parents are standing up for what is right while keeping it peacefully, why is SCPS so quick to raise a point of order during a gender non-aggenda public common forum like in March 11th, 2025 board meeting? Why you all allow parents to read excerpts from books that contain profanity and pro and prostitution in the 919 2023 board meeting, but not even one board member raised a point of order and requested chair to enforce SCPS rules and regulation. Why rules for thee but not for me? You all failed to follow so many laws and including those that denied students with special needs with special needs a free appropriate
118public education. Last but not least, thank you Abby Sanchez for your time. Thank you. I appreciate you Abby Sanchez. Thank you for accepting the letter. Tina McClory followed by Lawrence Stephy followed by Katie Murphy. Good evening. Good evening, Superintendent Beman and board members. My name is Tina Mccclary and I live and work in Semino County. I recently spoke to a representative and invited them down, my representative to come visit our schools because in the 25 years of working at my school, I have yet to see a representative come to our school. I said, "Come on down. I'll show you some good things that are happening in our school. Let me take you to other places. Come on down. Come down. I have a a board member that you know. Why don't you come visit us
119and we'll show you the good things that are happening in public schools. And I said it takes a village. Today I stand before you to shine a light on a vital component to public education, educational support professionals. Our ESPs directly impact student success. They are the backbone of our education system. Whether driving, monitoring a bus, cleaning schools, cooking health meal, healthy meals, supporting schools and students in libraries, classrooms, front offices, and clinics. Support staff members can also be found in the IDT department in various departments throughout the ESC building. As we celebrate public schools and public education, let us not overlook these unsung heroes who pour their hearts into their work every day. Together, we can continue to cultivate an A+ educational environment for all our students. We all need to celebrate and support public
120schools. Thank you. Your time is expiring. It takes a village. Thank you so much, Mr. Stephy. Followed by Katie Murphy, followed by Jessica Tilman. Good evening. Hi. Thank you. Nice to be here. Thank uh my name is Lawrence Stephy and I live near Lake Hall High School. I'm here to talk about the swimming pool at Lake Hall High School, which I know is not one of the biggest issues that you folks are here to deal with. As you may know, the school was gifted the pool about 10 years ago by an anonymous donor. There have been repair issues at the pool which are now being addressed. However, I am concerned about the pool going forward. Why am I involved with this? I was a member of the Lake Howell sack for seven years until my
121youngest daughter Michelle graduated in 2008. She was a state qualified swimmer who had to practice at Lyman because at the time Lake Cowell had no pool. Michelle swam for Trinity Tre swim club. The coach there at the time was Roco Asedo. Roco was currently the vendor tasked with overseeing the Lake Howell pool. When Michelle was home this past Christmas, she bumped into Rockco at the Lake Hull Pool and he expressed concerns about the pool that Michelle brought home to me. That is how I became involved. After a meeting with a num member of the Semino County Schools administrators, including Lake Howell Principal Michael Howard, we were able to make progress on most of the maintenance issues at the pool. But now it seems the administrators wish to be rid of coach Roco. For the past
122two and a half years, Rockwell has been attending the pool on a 7 day a week basis. It's a lot of work. Finding another with that level of dedication is going to be problematic. So, I fear for the future of the pool when his contract is up in August. I may be back before the board for future more details, but I do appreciate your attention and any questions you might have. Thank you so much. Thank you, Katie Murphy. Followed by Jessica Tilman, followed by TJ Bugos. Good evening. Good evening, Superintendent Bean, Chairman Krauss, Vice Chair Garrick, and members Dillinger and and Sanchez. Thank you so much for being superintendent and board members that Seminal County PTA is proud to have. ones that we brag about when we go to meetings like the recent um All
123Together Now or other PTA meetings. This is a board that we know is out and about in our schools and our community that knows our community, the residents, the activities, the glows and the grows in our community and that responsibly works to fix the issues that are brought forward. Thank you for helping to make the best better. Thank you for your expanded work with the PJI to improve our students knowledge and skills and modeling better personal choices and building strong interpersonal relationships. Everything that you've done has been been so helpful helpful for our students. I went through the um and reviewed Miss Bean's primary areas of focus on the website which have been mentioned by several people today because those are the areas that are being put forward for cutting. Those are the areas almost
124identical to what the funding cutings are looking at. Like um Mr. Barnes talked about the group that was out front and mentioned that we had overundred people out there from five different organizations to bring attention to the community what's going on. So, um, just know that as PTA members, we're going to continue advocating for the funding for those programs and supports that make CP Seminal County Public Schools the highest rated school and give our children the best opportunities when they graduate into the world. Thank you for what you're doing. Thank you, Jessica Tilman. Good evening. Good evening. My name is Jessica Tilman. Uh, first I'd like to say Miss Sanchez, thank you very much for pointing out the uh prom during Passover. That's a really important topic for quite a few of our students. So,
125thank you for pointing that out and making sure that gets corrected next year. Um, I was actually disappointed to uh receive a picture this week of one of the walls in a middle school. Um, last year the district removed over 150 inappropriate books and these books, some of them are now painted on the walls of a middle school. So, I don't see how you can remove a book for inappropriate ages and then have it painted on the wall at the same time. Um, my real statement is, um, Miss Dinger, um, I listened to you at the last board meeting and I completely agree with you that parents are in charge of the health and medical care for their ch their children. Um, something as simple as providing Tylenol has to have parental consent. Our schools
126are not hospitals or medical facilities. schools are schools. So, I have put in a public records request um to review all of theus with the health department and I would really like to remove theus with the health department. I know that one of them is for um providing the DTAP for the seventh graders. Um but there's no need for this to be on our campuses. They can go to the health department at any time and get these vaccines or any of these services. There's um there are errors that happen. A couple of years ago, there was a fifth grader that her mom told her she wasn't supposed to watch the sexed videos and she told her teacher that and her teacher still made her watch the videos. That was at Layer Elementary. Um we need
127to get back to educating our students, reading and writing. A few years ago that you discontinued the flu shot because of um no interest in it. So, please review theus with the health department and um we are not hospitals or medical facilities. Thank you. Thank you, TJ Bugos. Good evening, school board members, Superintendent Bean. 45 years ago, almost to the day in May 1980, the Department of Education was opened its doors to support the most needy of our students. for millions of students in poverty, students with disabilities, and those working towards college or trade. If it's and when, it's not if, when it is dismantled, the students of Simol County Public School could lose access to vital support, free and reduced lunches, special services, and uh for individuals with disabilities and education through the education
128act, the career and technical education CTE. If it happens, the burden will fall directly on the state and local district. And as you have mentioned in this school board meeting tonight, it the legislation moving through Hala Halitassi Tallahassee is already making plans to cut funds for programs that directly benefit our students. That means Simino County Public Schools must step up step up and fast. This isn't about politics. It's about making sure every child in our community has a fair shot. If federal support disappears, we can't afford to stand by while our most vulnerable students will fall through the cracks. if it was up to Simol County to ensure these students still get the support needed to learn, grow, and succeed without making drastic concessions. Yes, we all want deficient systems and less bureaucracy. But we
129can't let that become an excuse to slash funding, weaken protections, or redirect public dollars into private vouchers and tax breaks for the wealthy. Our schools should reflect our values and that means standing up for equity, opportunity, and strong public education for every student. Now is the time for Seminal County Public Schools to lead. I ask you that you stand up and make our voices heard that we cannot accept the drastic cuts that are coming to both sides of our students, those in the most vulnerable and those with the most to achieve. We have to stand up. Thank you. Thank you very much. Order, please. Uh, that concludes the public comment section, non-aggenda items. Board members, any final comments before we leave? No. Superintendent? Nair. I do have a request. Sorry. Okay. Uh, thank you, Madam
130Chair, board member, superintendent. I'd like to request a close litigation session at the next board meeting May 13th at 11:30 a.m. to receive advice from the board on a litigation Parson Zaling versus School Board of Simol County in the Southern Owners Insurance Company case number 24 2024-CA0000113. Also present at the litigation executive session will be outside council Michael Beggy as well as associate counsel and court reporter. Thank you. And you've placed a hold on our calendars for that date. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you. Now finally, nothing further. Nothing further. Sheriff, thank you. Thank you all very much. Thank you for being here and supporting public ad. Thanks. Stands adjourned.