001[Music] thank you good evening everybody [Music] I'd like to call the uh the March 15th regular meeting of the Brookfield Board of Education to order would you all please join me in Rising for the Pledge of Allegiance I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all can I have the kids all come up here for a second all the kids Carter you can come too so today this is a little impromptu but you guys can come too if you want yeah come on we're gonna have a little fun [Music] yeah we're not doing a presentation so Dr Pearl saying it's okay it's okay he doesn't know Dr Burrell's birthday so we are gonna
002all sing Happy Birthday to Dr bro you know right guys ready one two three happy birthday to you happy birthday to you yeah a deck of cards [Music] all right we have uh we have five members of our board here today um uh oh my guess we now have six members of our board you snuck in there on me um and Mrs uh Brooks has uh conflicting Town meetings this evening and had to uh go to the other one because I understand she's presenting so it's kind of hard for her to not miss that other one um uh first on our agenda is public comment but we have nobody who signed up for public comments so we will move on um and I I've always loved this part of the agenda which is our student
003Spotlight and today it's a student Spotlight for Huckleberry Hill so Dr Brill I'll turn it to you for introductions absolutely and I don't see Dr P here yet but that's okay because we have wonderful Huckleberry students soon to be CLE s students next year that we are so excited to have with us and we have the wonderful Mrs tally with us tonight and she is going to get the presentation started for the mock Congress and they're going to Spotlight tonight Mrs tally would you like to come up Congress people can just kind of stay up here with me okay make a line please okay all right so thank you so much for having us this evening um one of the fourth grade social studies units that we do each year is a government unit and
004I am not gonna you're not gonna listen to me you're going to listen to them because it really was a student-led activity um it's focused on the legislative branch but I'm going to let them tell you all about it and then if you have questions afterwards that I can answer or that the children can answer more specifically feel free all right and moms and dads and grandparents feel free to take pictures you come a little closer if you need to it's okay hello my name is Drew freeze in social studies we were learning about how government is formed what is a law rules that are needed in and have consequences if broken why do we need laws or rules Keep Us Safe make sure things are fair for all keep order and organization and at
005hhts we ensure we all learn to the best of our abilities we talked about local state and National levels of government and even visited the Capitol building in Hartford this the capital of our state of Connecticut hi my name is Jack Dunkerton this activity we focused on are National or federal government the government in our country this capital is in Washington DC we learned about the the Constitution which outruns the three branches of our government legislative executive and judicial we mainly focused on the legislative which has Congress the two houses which make up Congress is Senate and House of Representatives each state elects two people for the Senate which is a total of a hundred based on the population each state elects a different number of representatives of for the house Connecticut Lex 5. so
006we all got a graphic organizer and wrote our own bills first we brainstorm things that are issues pet peeves or have bothered us during our through our school day from the bus in the morning from the bus in the afternoon any part of our school day then we came up with our claim the claim became our title for our bill we had to have at least two supporting reasons that bill was needed for examples of our school experiences hello my name is Elijah healing IV after our bill was written our names were removed and a letter and a number was assigned to our bill if it starred in the House of Representatives it was H1 or H6 if it starred in the Senate it was S1 or S6 each of us was were then assigned
007to be a senator or a representative we met in our committees first the leader was appointed there there were readers and only one speaker at a time you have to be holding the speaking stuff toy to talk we established our rules so we all felt comfortable for example once speaker must be respectful and listening to how to how other people think about the build as being presented and if you did not like the build you would have to say it in a nice way that that you that you did not like it hi my name is Delaney Kelleher after each bill was read and discussed we voted each bill was either passed or tabled if a bill passed in the Senate it was then passed to the House of Representatives and if it started in
008the House of Representatives and passed then it would go to the Senate only bills that passed in both parts of Congress will be read by the president he can then veto the bill pass the bill by signing it or ignore it but if he ignores it it becomes a law if he leaves it for 10 days in Congress is in session if Congress is not intention for those 10 days it does not become a law if it does not become a law the bill can go back to Congress and they can discuss and vote again if the bill passes it by two-thirds of majority it can still become a law we learned that less than 10 percent of the bills become laws on average so we were pleased that tobel's passed the author of these
009two bills are ready to present to the president hi my name is Natalie Freeman there should not be teams for each of the hallways the teams or communities should not be separated by assigned hallways one reason is that you cannot see people from other teams if you have friends on the other team you can't go out to recess with them or eat lunch with them or even go on most field trips with them also if you have friends on the other team not being separated by teams will help you keep in touch with them right now I can only see my friends on the other team if I do things with them outside of school so instead of teams there could be different recess groups for different months that way everything can still be organized
010but you can still see other people if you were good friends with someone who was in your class last year but they are on a different team this year then you can't hang out with them at school I strongly suggest that the teams or communities be given more opportunity to mix it up so let's start with the placement of the classes not being by teams in the hallways hello my name is Natalie carroza at lunch we should be allowed to sit with other fourth grade classes we should be allowed to sit with other fourth grade classes at lunch because you might have a friend in a different class that you want to sit next to you might want to talk to your friends that are in a different class especially if you are feeling lonely
011we should be allowed to sit with other fourth grade classes at lunch because you couldn't meet new people and make new friends meeting new people can help us become more social we should be allowed to sit with other fourth grade classes at lunch can you imagine finally sitting with different friends that were in your third grade class can you imagine making new friends outside of your homeroom foreign [Music] my own fourth grade experience which my teacher put in uh Schoolhouse Rock hell bill becomes a law and we didn't discuss it again [Music] living Congress these guys they made it real Mrs tally made it real and a favorite question I asked is and I'm going to ask you again with respect to sitting wherever you want in the cafeteria if I were to sign that
012as a law how many of you think that it would increase my popularity rating or approval rating yeah so that great brought in a great discussion on sometimes the president signs laws for that very reason well so certainly I signed that into law and you want to sit where you want in the cafeteria they went through the entire process they've earned that it is a law you will be doing that with respect to communities in the hallway they were very agreeable in gosh all the teachers are already moving at the end of the year so to move them now just would be mean but our promise was in the new building which certainly lends itself to this we have one great hallway per grade level so we can mix those communities so you guys blew
013me away and I remember when I went in there I said hey I've got three choices [Music] right away they knew what the three choices were hey you could pocket veto you could veto or you could just pass inside his law and one child said but if you veto it's gonna come back to us and we're going to vote on it so I definitely applaud you upon Mrs Holly thank you so much [Applause] Dave microphone oh phenomenal to work with and they really did just kind of take this into their own hands and really went through the process I wanted to you met the speakers but I also have Riley Evan and Brynn from my class that were willing to come to support those that were speaking and they are acting as Congress they were
014ready for questions they were ready to answer pocket veto questions if that's okay they were here to support and I just that's what I mean my class this year it's just they're just there for each other and it's just fun to teach and work with them and this is a prime example so thank you for letting us come and brag and share a little bit because they worked hard on this and let's not quite let you off the hook if you guys can come up here okay it's all it's all good guys I'm here in case I promise easy favorite part about being a member of Congress if we should um pass it or redo it okay same question favorite part about being part of Congress probably that the only people that could speak were
015the people that had the stuffed animal and I felt that we did very good with that my favorite part was discussing and voting on bills nobody said president that's okay that's okay thank you thank you that's fantastic that was just fantastic right parents you ought to be very proud of your uh of your kids we're going to go on with the agenda you are welcome to stay and then watch what we do it's not Congress but it's part of a part of government but if you do need to go home because it is uh 7 15 at night and it's a school night we would understand completely okay we'll give them a second you guys are okay [Music] bye [Music] that was fun so uh all right so uh next up on our agenda and
016Caitlyn are you ready to follow that all right next up on our agenda is our student representative report uh Caitlin says let's give them a minute okay yeah I figured the noise was abating a little bit all right hello everyone um I just have a few updates for you all today so the Brookfield High School play The Little Shop of Horrors will be performed this week Thursday through Sunday Saturday night there will be a dinner and the play option so please buy your tickets now to support our students SATs for juniors will begin next week most have been practicing through local or online programs so they are ready to do their best one student at BHS Kayla Zimmerman just began a brand new Cub called club called Morgan's message this club will revolve around removing
017the stigma surrounding the mental health of student athletes in remembrance of Morgan Rogers a Duke lacrosse player who lost her battle with mental illness the information for the 2023 senior prom was recently announced with a theme of red carpet which we are very excited about the junior prom will be held March 31st at the Amber Room uh tickets are on sale now for both the boys locker room project will begin this Monday and the new track construction will begin following graduation all spring Sports will be beginning this Saturday the 18th lastly happy birthday to Dr Burrell and thank you for everything that you do for us that's all thank you thank you Caitlin learning questions for Caleb all right thank you thanks um all right moving on on our agenda next up is written correspondence
018Aaron scolaro wrote regarding the March first board meeting Ron Jaffe wrote regarding the Strategic plan Nick Schmidt wrote following up on opt-out programs surveys and assessments and cardiac screenings for athletes Denise rice wrote regarding a complaint Mike einzig wrote regarding a Brookfield High School library book Claudio and Sarah Amaral wrote regarding the admission to the Chicago AG stem program Monique Matthews and Marnie mcniff wrote regarding the Sirac focus groups and Andy Korea wrote regarding a board member's comments at the March 1st meeting and a request to edit those meeting minutes okay thank you uh approval aboard minutes I'll move the board proved the minutes from the regular meeting on March 1st it's been moved and seconded um I didn't register on Mr Korea's request to edit the minutes does anybody want to edit the minutes
019okay hearing none any other comments on the minutes okay all in favor okay all right when we're on to the superintendent's update all right well thank you for the warm reception tonight everyone very much um so I have three items tonight uh the first one is just a brief update on um our director of business and operations search we all know that we have dreaded the day but Mr post retirement is coming up uh in September and so I want to let everybody know that uh Dr Mann is actually going to be running point with her responsibilities and personnel and we're at a point now at the end of March where we'll be interviewing um close to a half a dozen candidates strong candidates and we have some board members involved in that process and
020we'll be working that through our best hope is that by the end of April or very beginning of may we have a finalist to share with the board and so I wanted to update you on that the next one is on the correct special education program review actually we had some great parent feedback regarding setting up uh evening focus groups and so we have a few of those established they'll be posted on Facebook tonight and then work through with the principles in terms of scheduling so we're excited about that for everyone give more parents an opportunity um outside of work hours if they work during the day so that's really really helpful there the other piece is it's likely that by the end of next week the parent and staff surveys will be disseminated as
021well for the program review the next thing is that it's important to note for everyone that with the survey or with staff focus groups observations in the classrooms parent focus groups if crack sees that they need more information they'll seek it they'll schedule more time in the buildings or they'll have more consultation opportunities so that was one question that had come up in some interactions I've had and so they want to do a thorough program review for us and so they are going to make sure that they do that so when they need more information they certainly will seek it out the other piece working with um correct is that the board had inquired and asked me to check in and I've done that with what correct can do to look at the Genesis of
022out of District placements and kind of our process as we go through and what led to some of those decisions over time and so I've actually been in several conversations now with Dana corvo who is the lead for the project and krek can provide us with an out of District study it would be a study that is separate from the current study that's underway it would be a summer study and into early fall and also working with Mr post on that our idea funds could be used in terms of the timing for that as well so that is something in terms of cost would fit within the authorized amount that the board authorized me for a few months back and so I'm going to continue to pursue that if we're comfortable with what that proposal
023looks like we can enter into an agreement as well to move forward on that but it would not start at all until this project is this first project is completed thorough and a report is delivered so that's a lot on correct but I wanted to make sure I got that out to everybody and then the final thing is yesterday as we all know we had our thankfully only our second snow day with the school closure it's important for everybody to know and we'll get this out we'll get this posted for everybody the original last day of school for students was Monday the 12th with faculty working on Tuesday the 13th of June now since we have had the two snow days the last day of school for students will be Wednesday June 14th and our
024faculty will work June 15th that's the last day for the faculty and that of course is a very important day because our Pre-K to five folks will be doing a lot of their packing and I have a lot of information on Candlewood Lake but I'll share that when that time comes and that's all I have okay thank you any questions for uh Dr parole thank you let's move on um so we'll go through the subcommittee reports and there's two facilities committees I'll let you do both of them at the same time we reviewed the school did reports and discussed Water Systems control mice and a steam leak some updates on the capital projects HVAC is coming to an end to ABS will develop a list of deficiencies and a planter rehabilitated boys locker room some
025subcontractors are in many days a week are looking to do most of the work during April break there's track and field equipment in the showers that need to be removed moved out of there and located somewhere else the electrical service at the middle school the parts are coming on May 5th and it's still on first as a summer job seminar seating we're still struggling to find someone to do the work flooring in the Middle School in the cafeteria there's concerns about possible moisture so we need to use six hundred dollars that was already allocated for the project to do a moisture test mitigation to give the contractor some peace of mind and we discussed requesting additional funding needed for this project as well maintenance vehicle we found one but we just may need to ask
026for additional funding for the utility body and a liftgate security projects many of the security projects recommended in the recent Karma vulnerability assessment are projects that are already being worked on we're installing hardware and wiring for door alarms there are five cameras left to install and we have a bid for the first floor security film ordering repeaters still looking into concrete barriers and we're getting a quote from gordian on the auditorium entrance we also requested new door closers building conditions study Dan and Ken and the custodial staff at a kickoff meeting with Marcus ocubo they discussed the scope of the work and the timeline they're excited to get going April 10th the 12th they'll be in to do a site visit about one and a half days at each school and by May 31st we
027should have the final report we didn't have any new business and miscellaneous discussion Dan reported on the condition of the Wolves after the lockers were removed to the high school that's part of the voice for change Grant project Dan also met with Harry Shaker and they took a tour of Center School to discuss the possible use of the building for a library in parks and rec the cost of bringing the building up to code is extremely high you just can't come in and use it so there's nothing really to reuse and we inquired about the actual cost of reusing it where the cost of keeping it open and heating it moving forward and maybe at a lower temperature also so a suggestion was made to do a walk through with the library board as well
028um I'm gonna talk about the guidance sewing roof but that kind of was what our special meeting was about on Thursday March 9th we discussed and motioned and it was approved unanimously to request additional funding for the high school guidance swing roof replacement and the purchase of a maintenance vehicle we requested that the board of selectment and board of Finance we're going to bring it to them to allocate an additional 142 200 to the high school guidance Wing roof replacement project for a total of 467 200. and we also approved unanimously to request an additional fifteen thousand three hundred thirteen to the purchase of a maintenance vehicles for a total of 65 313. so for the guy and Swinging roof that's on the agenda for later this evening for approval for the board so that
029we can move forward to the board of selectment and board of Finance okay any questions for joy okay next up is uh Kate Mike so we met uh March 8th last Wednesday and Mr Andrew Hill led a discussion on the new AP environmental science book he did a really good comprehensive analysis of the current well the book that we're going to vote on and the the book that's currently being used from 2007 really broke it down nice I I if he's listening I thought that was a really good job and I commend him and his committee for breaking down that book so and I see we got a copy of it which was cool so that's that must be fresh off the well this is the one that is not the official copy oh that's
030just the complimentary don't use the copy yeah so we were told I said the new one's actually not uh okay we got a nice little sneak peek there so uh next uh Dr man LED discussion on the Strategic uh this the Strategic plan and how that affects Kate I'm gonna skip down to the last part of the agenda because we went over the Strategic plan but the exercise that you let I thought was really helpful uh basically she turned our agenda upside down I was like okay how does the environmental for example how's the uh the new AP environmental science fit into the Strategic plan and uh you know Debbie and I wrote down how that affects the you know certain goals and how that uh plays into a collaboration and uh so I was
031really really that was a good exercise so I commend you for that it's more of an active instead of just sitting there listening stuff so I I had a good time with it so and lastly the we had an update on the desktop assessment uh around 2 400 students took the assessment and we will be sorry teachers screens yes uh 24 100 students were evaluated by the teachers and more the follow-up will be done at the end of the school year and happy birthday thanks Mike this is the most happy birthdays I've received in a long time on a birthday it's quite nice thank you all and I just wanted to add that Mr Hill is hoping to be here at the point in the agenda where we're going to be talking about the AP
032environmental science textbook but he is actually has a cameo in Little Shop of Horrors and they have their dress rehearsal tonight so he is on stage as we speak I hope to see him before regalia tonight it would be quite nice right it would fit the environmental textbook that's why I'm ready to go Finance all right uh so we met on Thursday March 9th um uh we met very briefly just before um I think all of our board members were at the board of Finance meeting that was scheduled for that same night and the purpose of this special meeting was really just to discuss some potential adjustments to our operating budget for next year that were identified um sort of in the in the face of the 400 a 400 000 reduction that we are
033potentially looking at so I know that's coming up later in the agenda so um that was really that was it okay I'll move that the board approve the items on the consent agenda which are new hires and transfers second okay it's moved and seconded um any comments yeah um I thank you Mr Belden I just wanted to share we're very excited you might see a familiar name there Kristen lenise Kristen was recently our special education para a few months ago a special education secretary excuse me a few months ago prior to that was one of our valued para Educators and um took a job with the town in the first electman's office and that isn't working out the way everybody anticipated and Kristen is actually applied for an opening we had back at Center School
034as a paraprofessional and she was just brought on this week and she is thrilled and couldn't be more excited so and she sent me a personal note this morning to tell me so so I wanted to share that with everybody we're just so happy to welcome her back into uh into the building that's great that's great all right all in favor of approving the consent agenda okay to prove to unanimously okay we'll move on to new business uh healthy food options certification right my favorite motions of that pursuant to CGS section 10-215f the Brookfield Board of Education certifies that all food items offered for sale to students in the schools under its jurisdiction and not Exempted from the Connecticut nutrition standards published by the Connecticut State Department of Education will comply with the Connecticut nutrition
035standards During the period of July 1st 2023 through June 30th 2024. this certification shall include all food offered for sale to students separately from reimbursable meals at all times and from all sources including but not limited to school stores vending machines School cafeterias culinary programs and any fundraising activities on school premises sponsored by the school or non-school organizations and groups second okay it's moved and seconded does anybody have any questions that we should bring Mr post up for we've approved this in the past I'm presuming nothing has really changed nothing has changed he says so [Music] so no questions all in favor hi all right unanimous we'll move on to the next one healthy food healthy food food and beverage exam exemption I will move that the Brookfield Board of Education will allow the sale
036to students of food items that do not meet the Connecticut nutrition standards and beverages not listed in section 10-221q of the Connecticut General statutes provided that the following conditions are met the sale is in connection with an event occurring after the end of the regular school day or on the weekend the sale is at the location of the event and the food and beverage items are not sold from a vending machine or school store an event is An Occurrence that involves more than just a regularly scheduled practice meeting or extracurricular activity for example soccer games school plays and interscholastic debates are events but soccer practices play rehearsals and debate team meetings are not the regular school day is the period from Midnight before to 30 minutes after the end of the official school day location
037means where the event is being held and must be the same place as the food and beverage sales okay we're moved and seconded same question any questions from the board anything changed Mr post nothing has changed since before [Music] okay all in favor unanimous okay item C policies uh policy number 5125 this is a policy that we have that we want to replace with cabe's version um it's pretty straightforward oh yeah let me make the motion that the board will approve to replace brookfield's policy number 5125 FERPA with cabe's version and approve regulation number 5125 FERPA for a first reading as recommended by the policy and Communications subcommittee second okay we're moved and seconded now I'll let you okay yeah it's pretty straightforward we want to replace it with caves the regulation is very lengthy
038but I think it's pretty standard it was yeah it was just it was important to update the policy and uh all the policies will present tonight are mandatory policies as well this is for first reading policy committee reviewed it over the course of several meetings okay and uh and our lawyers reviewed it Council has reviewed all the policies we'll discuss tonight all right good all right so just for I'm going to speak to the TV audience we do this in two steps the first read means the board has accepted it for review we have then a 30-day waiting period for us to review and send comments back to the policy committee it's the second route the second reading which is a month from now where we would actually approve the policy so if anybody is
039interested in the policies we're talking about tonight that are posted under the agenda for tonight's meeting and you can review them and send input to us if necessary so um so um and when is our next policy meeting we're supposed to have one tonight at least April 19th so that's when you need the input I would say yeah we would like to get the input when you know within two weeks which is March 31st because then we only have one week then there's the break and then we're back so I think by March 31st would be reasonable first again and put it all right so uh so input will uh be due to the uh policy committee by by the end of the month okay all in favor of accepting the uh approving the motion
040and accepting this as a first read say hi hi it's unanimous policy number 5131.911 oh yeah that's you coming and going I know today all right I will move that the board approved to replace brookfield's existing policy number 5131.911 bullying with cape's version and approve regulation number 5131.911 bullying for our first reading as recommended by the policy and Communications subcommittee second okay it's been moved and seconded go ahead Amy another um required that has also been reviewed by Council we want to replace it with cape's version I believe we adopted it 2011 and it was and it was updated around 2014. just some minor changes in it um due to a new law that was passed in 2021 it's the wording the student is being changed to individual so it's not just including students this
041include staff adults adults yep um one question do I mean I know we don't approve regulations um although the motion does actually just for the last one too does say approve regulation do we need to amend that motion at all no um with these lengthy policies with these very prescribed regulations it's recommended to include the regulation with the policy you'll notice specifically in FERPA the first one we did uh the policies of paragraph and then there's almost 50 pages of Regulation yeah so there's a lot of process that is also uh under legislation that we need to follow so it's important to bring that fully to the board okay are we going to do two weeks for all these for comments for this one as well they're going to be quite a bit of reading
042yeah it's because we need to act on it and have some fruitful conversation at the April 18th meeting we need to have the input and be able to do our research and through diligence you just at some point someone provides like who this um safe School climate coordinators for each building and the specialists so okay any other uh any other questions on that one all in favor of accepting it approving the motion and accepting it as a first read ing okay next one up is policy 5144.1 restraint and seclusion I will move that the board approved to delete current policy number 5144.1 restraint and seclusion and accept an updated version based on language adopted by Wallingford public schools and approve regulation for a first reading as recommended by the policy and Communications subcommittee second in
043any comments this is another is another one we adopted I believe in 2013 and we just recommend deleting ours and adopting wild birds um Mrs D Nicola Hickman joined us at our last policy meeting and she also reviewed the policy and made some edits it was really a great example of collaboration not only checking in with another District who had an Exemplar um that they based off Cave and then work through themselves we also worked with our Council as we typically do especially with these very lengthy and important policies and bringing in Amy her expertise in many years in in regard to this topic as well as working with Council I think we really did a nice job on this particular policy really the substance of the policy is outlining and defining for the public
044and for staff um the training that goes on with our staff in addition to that really the spirit of the policy is limiting restraint and seclusion we there's not an educator I know that I've worked with that wants to engage in that it's a very unplanned event even though you need to be prepared for it um and they're very traumatic events for everybody involved obviously including the student and their family so getting people trained in de-escalation and how to safely work with students going through very traumatic times is the most important thing we can do in that regard so this policy really outlines that and will be helpful to all of us going forward I remember when we went through it a number of years ago the first paragraphs were all about training people not
045to use them correct right and not about how you must do it right though the idea is not to do use restraint if you can avoid it absolutely so I did have specific questions but I'll refer them obviously so should I um refer them to Debbie or NCC you can or you can email include me with the policy committee yeah yeah that's fine very helpful okay any other comments or questions all in favor of approving the motion and accepting this for our first read ER next up is BHS guidance Wing roof and maintenance vehicle requests for funding the Board of Education requests the board of Selectmen and board of Finance allocate additional funds for previously approved capital projects in the amount of 142 200 for the Brookfield High School guidance Wing roof replacement and fifteen
046thousand three hundred and thirteen dollars for the purchase of a maintenance vehicle second it's moved and seconded I was just going to add that um just the rest of the board members at Elisa for the guide swing roof you know it's gotten worse um the roof was shot back in 2014. and it's been leaking since then um you know we sometimes have up to nine receptacles at one time in the hallway and we need to act on immediately to get it fixed and the reason I know the answer to this but I'm going to ask the question but so I don't want it to feel like it's staged but could you just share the reason why we need to go get more money so the original amount that we had approved in the budget was
047325 000 and our lowest bid from Barrett Roofing came in recently as at 434 000. so um you know inflation and then more recently they said we needed even more than that right because of continued inflation so um they're ready to get the roofings ready it started it's a low-tech roof so it should be a pretty fairly easy job so we'd like to get this moving quickly and could you talk a little bit about the vehicle on the vehicles right so um like I stated in my report before we finally found one it's taking it's taken a long time to find a new vehicle but the original price of the vehicle what we had um as part of the project was for a total of 64 313. um but we need an additional fifteen thousand
048three hundred thirteen for the liftgate and uh the the body right the utility body the original allocation was fifty thousand dollars was how much fifty thousand fifty thousand do we need the extra fifteen thousand fifteen bringing it to 65 313. stay there Ken I have a question for you okay um one of the things we talked about at the at the facilities committee was to connect with Mrs Marion about what possible sources of funds have you had a chance to do that or is she still out she's still out do you have a sense of well we have be able to connect with her before the board of selectman meeting if we approve this tonight uh I should be I'll email her she has been doing some emails so I'll email her I've been trying
049not to I think that's very important before we go further right I know we can we can approve the need but they need to think about where is it going to come from sure [Music] is this a new or used vehicle no and and just physically describe it a little it's a pickup truck with a with a lift gate in the back or is it bigger than that yeah it's kind of a heavy duty pickup truck it's a forty nine thousand dollar pickup truck with uh and then when you add the utility body in the liftgate and originally the estimate was that 50 for everything and it says cost of vehicles have gone up way up anybody had a recent experience buying a vehicle I know exactly why not enough man okay thank you you're
050welcome any other questions on this Mike no no okay all right all in favor hi all right it's unanimous uh approval of textbook [Music] I will move that the board approved the following textbook as recommended by the cape subcommittee and assistant superintendent Dr Anna Mann of course AP environmental science Miller G and S spoolman 2021 exploring environmental science singage current edition of previously used book second okay it's been moved and seconded hi Dr Ho how are you we expected you to come in full regalia tonight is that it are you implying this isn't different enough all right you're in full regalia so you want to give us a bit of an overview yeah so um there's actually uh on the document you have in front of you it actually lists two textbooks so I just
051want to explain that really quickly um we actually is uh we formed a little committee to reevaluate the textbooks that we're using for this course all the both of these are college board approved textbooks so it was more a matter of um the instructor wanted to switch textbooks um and the one they wanted to switch to um is the one on in the left column um the one on the right column is the new latest edition of the one that we had been using for the course [Music] um but the uh one on the left is actually it's going to be a brand new edition uh copyright 2023 um so uh it's obviously full really up to date and we had a library media specialist and one of our literary special literacy Specialists join us
052to review the textbooks and with no input from me or the class instructor they unanimously preferred the new book due to various things with the layout and the student friendliness that you see outlined on the um in the left column and the copy you see there is paperback because that is a technically a preview Edition because like I said it hasn't actually that Edition hasn't actually been formally published yet so this would be for next school year and I just wanted to clarify that this is actually the motion is to approve the environmental science for the AP course Bedford in the left column yep yeah well that's not what the motion says I'm not sure that it was red yeah so in the minutes that from Cape it reflects the um environmental science for the
053AP course well the motion is to approve the other one I know I mean I'm looking at the motion it's it's to approve the the other book correct so so uh would you like to amend the motion okay um I will move to amend the motion um replacing Miller G and S spoolman 2021 exploring environmental science engaged well okay I think you're myself again yep thank you um so I move to amend the motion um replacing um the book title Miller G and S spoolman 2021 exploring environmental science cengage with Friedland a and Rayleigh R 2023 environmental science for the AP course Bedford Freeman and worth a second okay it's moved in second it any comments on the amendment all on all in favor of approving the amendment please say aye right so now it's
054the right motion correct and I just wanted to add to um what Mr Hill uh just presented is that you know as you can kind of see in the uh t-chart the graphic organizer that um he submitted um Not only was it kind of a collaborative effort with a variety of uh different instructors um but the Criterion that they used uh you know followed the regulations of um the the what the board has set out for new uh resources and it was really I I thought that it was a really nice way of not just kind of choosing a book that was recommended by college board kind of unilaterally and going through the perfunctory process but actually doing a a systematic compare and contrast between what we currently use to make sure that which we
055were going to update one way or another whether it was going to be a new edition of our current book or a completely new text and so in order to to do that they kind of did a very judicious process of comparing the two texts with the criteria that they were focused on that effort thank you I forgot the most important part it saves money and it saves money yeah it's actually a cheaper text what's up all right thank you good thank you thanks Mr Hill I think the other thing that's important to note as we begin our transition in talking about agendas and subcommittee meetings where we align them to the new strategic plan um the process that Anna was just discussing really is is a a nice alignment to strategy four where we
056talk about policies developing policies that support teaching and learning we applied our textbook adoption policy right to that and that's why policy is so important so thank you all any other questions guys okay all in favor of approving the emotion please say hi hi it's unanimous all right old business um uh an item one policy and regulation number five one one four suspension expulsion and due process I'll move that the board approved policy regulation 5114 suspension expulsion due process for a final reading as recommended by the policy and communication subcommittee the first reading was on February 15 2023. second okay it's moved in second did you want to say anything this is another one required by cave that was last updated in 2015. we use some updated language from Cabe and attorney Murphy had also
057made some edits I think you guys reviewed This Joy had some questions that Dr Burrell addressed I don't did everything else or just because she's policy committee okay yeah to your satisfaction yeah okay if anyone else had any other questions or that's not the only input yep okay any uh any questions from the board all in favor of approving it all right okay next up is the board of education's adopted budget this is just an action item that we continue discussion on the board of education's 2023-24 adopted budget if necessary there's not a lot of new news we we all had a very brief meeting with the board of Finance I thought was positive and effective and that was last week on Thursday Thursday and uh so they've gotten everything they need from us I
058understand that we've locked in uh heating oil and diesel fuel as of today at very attractive rates which is been provided to the board of Finance for their final deliberations Ken did you give them you don't have to come up you can just say yes or no Did we tell them in a revised amount of how it would adjust our budget okay um tonight the board of Finance is still doing departmental reviews that's actually why Mrs Brooks couldn't be with us tonight because she's presenting the library budget as the acting Library director in the town um and uh um so that I'm not expecting anything new tonight their deliberations start in Earnest I think either tomorrow night or Thursday and they need to finalize reasonably soon so they can publish their recommendation before the public
059hearing and if you all remember the process is the board of Finance comes up with their first recommendation they have a public hearing to get input on it and then they deliberate again and they have a final one before it goes to town meeting on the first week in May so the other tidbit that I will share is the capital projects go to a town meeting I think the 30th or 31st the 30th of the month and because the capital they will be on the same referendum but any Capital that requires bonding it has a 45-day waiting period so unlike the budget where it's two weeks right from the town meeting to the referendum like any any bonding request actually has a required under our Charter 45 days so they have to do that meeting
060well in advance of everything else my understanding and I'm not an expert on this is It's really just the items that the board of Finance is recommending for bonding not the stuff that's in the regular budget and all of our stuff is in the regular budget so I don't think it really affects the Board of Ed that much but you'll hear that there's a town meeting coming for bonding the one item that I do know if it's in there is a Parks and Rec item signifi second Parks and Rec item about our field and refurbishing the track and the feel of the the main field out there and so that will probably be part of that even though we don't carry it forward it's very important to us that part of that town meeting so
061that's everything I know Rose anything you've been hearing that's different than this or joy okay so that's everything that's going on I expect that by the time we meet again we will have we will have truly seen what the where the board of uh finances coming out so okay next item is Candlewood Lake Elementary School building project and it's another action item to get an update on what's going on with the new new project and uh I've been going I you know we have all of an open invitation to attend it's fun walking through I will just I'm going to steal Thunder but they had the whole second floor a main hallway the the terrazzo tiling was down it hadn't been ground ground down and shined and all of that but it's going in which
062is great to see so so with that I'll turn it over to you Doctor sure so I I have I certainly have some Rosie did you have anything no no I was gonna turn it over to you oh great okay so um the terrazzo was one of mine Bob but it's not a thundersteel that's for sure um there there really is a lot going on with the move and kind of culture and getting people acclimated to the building in the updates this week um and for the April 5th meeting we'll certainly have made a lot more progress three weeks from now and we'll have another PowerPoint with uh slideshow to from the project so just want to let everybody know that um and Bob you were on the tour actually on Friday morning we had
063a good portion of the grade four with us Dave was able to bring them around and they were able to actually go into wait which classroom is mine and they what number is this one going to be where's the floor map and kind of see where they were going to be and um look at the colors and the carpeting and you know it was just great it was just wonderful to have them with us um this coming Friday uh St Patrick's Day it happens to be with conferences at the elementary schools are Perez voluntarily are being invited to the elementary Paris to tour uh in the afternoon uh Candlewood Lake so we're looking forward to that our para Educators getting a chance to get over there in addition to that on the PLC day next
064Friday while the teachers are in PD we're gonna it looks like we'll have an opportunity for our grade five pair Educators to go over and see because they haven't had a chance yet um so it just it's just so exciting for everybody to really get a good look at things in addition to that we continue to fine tune a small squares and the playscape work and we're working with Mr checo on that also very exciting I know the faculty especially and our secretarial team and our nurses have really been waiting the move manual that's what we're calling it The Move manual we met about that about five or six of us were on the call today with the project manager going through what ultimately is a 24-page document there's probably eight to nine pages that
065have real directions in there but the move memo will be disseminated We Believe next Wednesday afternoon to all of our Elementary faculty and staff and a meeting on Friday May March 24th which is our PLC day next week at each of the moving schools so CES will have a meeting Huckleberry will have a meeting and the grade five teachers will have a meeting with the project manager to walk through just like we did today right Dave Page by Page and have an opportunity as well to ask questions everything from how you pack your boxes how the labels work samples of the labels really really specific so um I know I'm carrying on a little bit about that but I know our teachers have been asking for this for quite a while the one thing I
066will remind everybody is our generous Community voted for this project for the funding of this in 2019. so every faculty member and staff member and administrator and nurse and custodian who has been with us since then has had four years to prepare for this this is not anything last minute everybody knows it's been time to be we've had four years to work through files and Shred what needs to be shredded and we're still going to have that opportunity um but this isn't being sprung on anyone in any last minute fashion whatsoever talked about the terrazzo floors the other piece that's really really important that's exciting and we'll get a presentation April 5th from Dr rudel is that our admin team took a field trip to um Peck place was it Peck Place school day Peck
067Place School in Orange um a colleague of mine who's the superintendent down there has a principal and a team that has brought in an app for parents and staff called pick up my kid one of the things we've continued to talk about is managing an efficient uh dismissal procedure and as Dr P leads the development of that with the team right now this app is not only for parent pickup and make it more efficient smooth and safe but also it could be used for students who go on the bus and the parents could get acknowledgments that the child is actually on the bus it's just really a smooth process I think it was less than seven minutes 60 students were dismissed in a parent pick-up line six minutes 27 seconds there you go so we're
068we're running it like the military except gentle and so we will have a wonderful safe and efficient um arrival of course and dismissal procedures so that is something that we're actually looking at engaging with the firm and again we'll talk about this on April 5th for the remainder of this year and practicing with it then we would be able to trans transition it to summer school and esy and practice with our parents there and then have it all set for Candlewood Lake so we're really really excited about using technology to make things easier on parents there's also an opportunity the app can be used with the parents like a remind app as well so there's quick quick hits you can get out there for announcements so there's a lot of application for this app and
069and we're looking forward to it and then the last thing that people will notice I believe is going to happen tomorrow again I believe that's because that's what I've been told let's hope it happens the trailer um that Ong and arcadis have been working out of um by the end of the week will be off the property making and and the ONG and arcadis folks will actually be running their offices from inside the school which tells us that the infrastructure is working just fine and they'll be in there running their office work from there for the remainder of the time on on campus the trailer will be removed making way for more parking which means part they need the parking for more workers to come and be doing more work on the school and that's
070also the area where eventually over the summer the temporary parking lot will be put so that is just another great sign in terms of progress on school that's my Candlewood Lake update okay roast anything you want to have no no I will just add I took one picture I wasn't allowed to take pictures inside but they I I brought this along with me but you know the entries have that kind of very uh the woodwork above them is kind of unique I just will pass that around it's just the heavy Timbers are heavy Timber beams that kind of go with funny and we'll see the the wood from oh yeah outside oh yes yeah that's the outside that's what it will look like okay that's really nice and as board members look at that I
071think it's important to let the the public know it and even for the board members as a reminder The Candlewood Lake um webcage on our website is really chock full of historical documents but updated pictures and recently we put um which was developed by our Candlewood Lake planning team last spring the actual mission statement for the school is right there front and center now and under that is actually the rationale the architectural rationale for why the building was designed the way it was obviously student-centered but also to really be natural and fit into the uh and incorporate the historic pieces of Brookfield so I think it's an exciting opportunity for people that just go engage with that and take a look at the resources in a lot of the pictures that are on there as
072well okay well thank you thank you thank you all right uh we don't have public comment uh three main points are you covering three main points I guess so yes Debbie did tell me she will watch the video to work on the three main points whatever is decided here I think the Huckleberry the Huckleberry Spotlight and the Candlewood Lake yeah perfect on Facebook Lisa and I can do that the Huckleberry Spotlight the correct update during John's update and the Candlewood update that he just gave and a student last day is a full day or half day oh happy early dismissal and lunch will not be served I always have to I get eaten I even get confused on elementary middle and high school on that one we'll get back to you we'll post it all
073right um I'm sorry upcoming events okay we have the Penguin Plunge is this Saturday to benefit Special Olympics that's it Candlewood Lake um parent-teacher conferences are at Center and Huckleberry tomorrow and Friday that's an early release lunch will be served at the elementary schools tomorrow all schools will have an early release on Friday March 24th for PLC day at Center school on Friday the 17th is Dragon movie day Wednesday March 22nd is Touch a Truck and Friday March 24th is dress up like your favorite character from one of the Dragon Stories this is part of their one book one read um Huckleberry the book fair is done tomorrow Dr P or Friday 's the last day for the book fair at whiskaneer on Friday March 24th there's the seventh grade career fair and an assembly
074with motivational speaker and athlete Chris poulos for 8th graders on Thursday and Friday March 30th and 31st author Sherry L Smith will be meeting with all grades during the day and she will do an evening presentation with parents at the Brookfield Library on Thursday evening and at the high school as mentioned before The Little Shop of Horror starts tomorrow night and runs through Sunday and the dinner and a show option is Saturday evening the school day sat is March 22nd through 29th there's a PTO meeting March 23rd at 6 30 here in the library and Junior Prom is March 31st at the Amber Room and that's it okay questions for me all right hearing none and without objection we are adjourned thank you all for