10/28/2025 - Regular Meeting

001Jessica Vaughn: I'M JESSICA VAUGHN, CHAIR OF THE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD. I WANT TO WELCOME YOU TO HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. WE SERVE MORE THAN 200,000 STUDENTS INCLUDING CHILDREN STARTING WITH OUR EARLY LEARNING PROGRAMS AND CONTINUING WITH ADULTS THROUGH OUR WORKFORCE PROGRAMS. Karen Perez: I'M KAREN PEREZ, THE SCHOOL BOARD'S VICE CHAIR. OUR DISTRICT IS THE SEVENTH LARGEST IN AMERICA AND OUR TEAM IS MADE UP OF 24,000 PEOPLE WORKING AT CLOSE TO 250 SITES ACROSS THE COUNTY. OUR DISTRICT IS DIVERSE AND DEDICATED. OUR BOARD MEETINGS ARE HELD IN OUR BOARD AUDITORIUM ON SELECT TUESDAYS AT 4:00 P.M. THE BEST WAY TO SERVE OUR STUDENTS AND OUR COMMUNITY IS TO INVOLVE YOU, THE PUBLIC, IN WHAT WE DO. Henry "Shake" Washington: YOU ARE WELCOME TO MEET OR E-MAIL ANY OF OUR BOARD MEMBERS AND FOLLOW OUR DISTRICT

002ON SOCIAL MEDIA. SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS ARE COVERED LIVE BY HILLSBOROUGH SCHOOLS TV ON SPECTRUM 635 AND FRONTIER CHANNEL 32. MEETINGS ARE ALSO STREAMED LIVE ON OUR WEBSITE AT HILLSBOROUGHSCHOOLS.ORG. CLOSED CAPTIONS IS PROVIDED ON ALL BROADCAS AND PAST MEETINGS -- BROADCASTS AND PAST MEETINGS ARE AVAILABLE IN THE ONLINE ARCHIVE. WE'RE INTERESTED IN WHAT THE PUBLIC HAS TO SAY. WE'LL INCLUDE TIME FOR AUDIENCE COMMENTS BEFORE WE ADDRESS OUR BUSINESS ITEMS. OUR AGENDA AND ANY SUPPORTING MATERIALS CAN BE VIEWED ONLINE IN ADVANCE. THEY'RE POSTED SEVEN DAYS BEFORE EACH MEETING ON OUR WEBSITE AT HILLSBOROUGHSCHOOLS.ORG. OUR VISION IS PREPARING STUDENTS FOR LIFE, AND THAT MEANS ALL STUDENTS EVERY DAY. TODOS LOS ESTUDIANTES, TODOS LOS DIAS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR INTEREST IN EDUCATION. WITH YOUR HELP, WE ARE MAKING DECISIONS THAT SHAPE OUR COMMUNITY'S FUTURE. (SOUNDING GAVEL) THE BOARD MEETING

003OF OCTOBER 28 IS NOW CALLED TO ORDER. MEMBER COMBS WILL NOW LEAD US IN A MOMENT OF REFLECTION FOLLOWED BY THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. Nadia Combs: THANK YOU. THIS AFTERNOON, OUR HEARTS ARE HEAVY AS WE REFLECT ON ONGOING DEVASTATION CAUSED BY HURRICANE MELISSA. WE HOLD IN OUR THOUGHTS THE RESIDENTS OF JAMAICA AND ALL THE NEIGHBORING ISLANDS WISHING THEM STRENGTH IN THEIR RECOVERY EFFORTS IN THE DAYS AND WEEKS TO COME. PLEASE JOIN ME IN A MOMENT OF REFLECTION. THANK YOU. NOW PLEASE STAND FOR THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. (PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE) . Karen Perez: MEMBER COMBS, WILL YOU PLEASE ACKNOWLEDGE OUR STUDENT ENTERTAINMENT? Nadia Combs: I'D LIKE TO THANK THE BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL CHAMBER ORCHESTRA AND PRINCIPAL TOBY JOHNSON AND DIRECTOR JASON GERALD. THESE WONDERFUL STUDENTS ENTERTAINED US PRIOR TO THE BOARD MEETING AND AT THIS TIME

004I'D LET THEM INTRODUCE THEMSELVES AND WANT TO SAY IT WAS BEYOND, BEYOND INCREDIBLE. YOUR TALENT WAS AMAZING. STUDENTS, PLEASE COME UP AND INTRODUCE YOURSELVES. I'M A SENIOR AT BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL AND PLAY VIOLA. MATEO VALDEZ, A SENIOR AND I PLAY THE VIOLIN. MY NAME IS ANDREA. I AM A JUNIOR AT BLAKE AND I PLAY VIOLIN. MY NAME IS TELLER. I'M A SENIOR AT BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL AND PLAY VIOLA. HI, I'M AVA AND A SENIOR AT BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL AND PLAY VIOLIN. HELLO, MY NAME IS LUCA, I'M A VIOLINIST. I PLAY VIOLIN AND I'M A SENIOR AT BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL. MY NAME IS NAHIM MARTIN. I'M A JUNIOR AND PLAY BASS AT BLAKE HIGH. MY NAME IS JACOB, I'M A SENIOR AND I PLAY CELLO. I'M A SOPHOMORE AND I PLAY VIOLIN. HELLO, MY NAME IS

005SASHA. I'M A DOUBLE BASS PLAYER AT BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL AND I'M A SOPHOMORE. HELLO, ELAINE. I'M A SOPHOMORE AT BLAKE HIGH AND I PLAY VIOLA. HI, OLIVIA, I'M A SENIOR AT BLAKE AND PLAY VIOLA. I'M DELANEY AND I PLAY CELLO. ANIKA, SENIOR AND I PLAY VIOLIN. HI, MY NAME IS CLEMENT WILLIAMS. I PLAY THE CELLO AND I'M A SOPHOMORE. MY NAME IS ALLEY AND I'M A SENIOR AT BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL AND PLAY THE CELLO. GOOD AFTERNOON, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. I'M JASON GERALD AND I ALSO PLAY VIOLA. AND I AM SERVING AS THE ORCHESTRA DIRECTOR FOR 23 YEARS NOW AT BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL. IT'S BEEN MY PLEASURE. THANK YOU. Nadia Combs: THAT'S AWESOME. IT REALLY DOESN'T SEEM THAT LONG, AND THAT'S JUST A TESTAMENT TO YOUR INCREDIBLE SUPPORT AS A BOARD AND THESE AMAZING FINE MUSICIANS.

006THIS IS TRULY A TREASURE WE HAVE IN OUR COUNTY, AND I THANK YOU FOR YOUR INCREDIBLE SUPPORT. THANK YOU FOR HAVING US TODAY. Nadia Combs: PARENTS, PLEASE COME UP IF YOU WANT TO TAKE ANY PICTURES. Karen Perez: BOARD MEMBERS, I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO ADOPT THE AGENDA. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER COMBS AND A SECOND BY MEMBER GRAY. ANY DISCUSSION? SEEING NONE, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. IT PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. LET THE RECORD REFLECT THAT ALL BOARD MEMBERS ARE PRESENT WITH THE EXCEPTION OF CHAIR VAUGHN AND MEMBER HAHN. WE HAVE TWO SETS OF MINUTES TO BE APPROVED TODAY. OCTOBER 7, 2025, SCHOOL BOARD WORKSHOP AND OCTOBER 14, 2025, SCHOOL BOARD MEETING. I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THE MINUTES. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER GRAY. AND A

007SECOND BY MEMBER COMBS. ANY DISCUSSION? SEEING NONE, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. IT PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. BOARD MEMBERS, I WOULD LIKE TO GO OVER THE FORMAT OF TODAY'S MEETING. AS A REMINDER, WE ARE A NONPARTISAN BOARD WHO BELIEVE ALL CHILDREN CAN BE EMPOWERED TO LEARN, TO SUCCEED AND OUR DECISIONS WILL BE MADE WITH THAT UNDERSTANDING. TO PAVE THE WAY FOR EFFICIENT AGENDA STATEMENTS AND QUESTIONS, BOARD MEMBERS WILL HAVE FIVE MINUTES TO SPEAK WITH 30 SECONDS FOR FINAL THOUGHTS. AFTERWARDS THE SUPERINTENDENT CAN RESPOND. IF YOU HAVE FURTHER QUESTIONS YOU'RE ASKED TO GET BACK IN THE CUE. MEMBER COMBS WILL READ THE BOARD GUIDELINES -- BACK IN THE QUEUE. Nadia Combs: AS WE BEGIN THIS AFTERNOON'S MEETING, PLEASE ALLOW ME TO QUICKLY REVIEW THE FORMAT OF THE SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS. PLEASE SILENCE ALL ELECTRONIC DEVICES. THERE ARE

008SPEAKERS IN THE ROOM THAT ALLOW BOARD MEMBERS TO HEAR THE MEETING UPON STEPPING AWAY FROM THE DAIS. THIS MEETING CAN BE VIEWED CAN CLOSED CAPTIONING ON TV AND IN MONITORS IN THE AFTERNOON AND ALSO IN THE ONLINE VIDEO ARCHIVE. Karen Perez: WE DO HAVE ONE ITEM SCHEDULED FOR TIME CERTAIN, AND THAT'S 6:00 P.M. FOR EMPLOYEE AND STUDENT INPUT. THE BOARD WELCOMES COMMENTS FROM CITIZENS AND VALUES YOUR INPUT TO THE BOARD IN ORDER TO PROVIDE THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE RESPONSE TO YOUR COMMENTS, OUR STAFF WILL FOLLOW UP WITH YOU AND WILL KEEP OUR BOARD INFORMED ABOUT THE RESPONSES. OUR SCHOOL BOARD RESPECTS THE PUBLIC RIGHT TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD AND WE APPRECIATE YOU TAKING YOUR TIME TO BE HERE. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO SPEAK ABOUT ANY ISSUES YOU'D LIKE, AND YOU'LL NOT BE INTERRUPTED. HOWEVER,

009ANY BEHAVIOR INTENDED TO INTERRUPT THE ORDERLY CONDUCT OF THIS MEETING WILL NOT BE ALLOWED. WE DO REQUEST THAT YOU TRY TO FOCUS ON THE ISSUES. WHEN ADDRESSING THE BOARD, PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME AND SPEAK CLEARLY INTO THE MICROPHONE. THIS AFTERNOON, EACH SPEAKER WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES. REMINDER THAT YOUR THREE MINUTES START WHEN YOU BEGIN SPEAKING. WHEN THERE ARE 30 SECONDS LEFT, YOU'LL SEE A YELLOW LIGHT ON THE LECTERN AND HEAR A CHIME. THE RED LIGHT AND THE CHIME WILL INDICATE WHEN YOUR TIME IS UP. I WILL NOW CALL UP THE FIRST FIVE SPEAKERS. THE FIRST SPEAKER? HELLO. MY NAME IS SUE BATIGLIARI AND I'M A PARENT OF TWO CHILDREN AT DOBE IN APOLLO BEACH. I'M HERE TODAY ON BEHALF OF PARENTS AND FAMILIES ADVOCATING TO EXPAND DOBE ELEMENTARY INTO A K-8 SCHOOL. MY HUSBAND AND

010I HAVE LIVED IN APOLLO BEACH FOR 11 YEARS. WE BUILT OUR HOME IN WATERSET BECAUSE WE LOVED THE COMMUNITY. A SAFE PLACE WHERE KIDS WITH RIDE THEIR BIKES AND PLAY WITH FRIENDS AFTER SCHOOL. WE WANTED TO RAISE OUR CHILDREN IN A CONNECTED NEIGHBORHOOD WHERE FAMILIES LOOK OUT FOR ONE ANOTHER. AT THE TIME WE DIDN'T KNOW MUCH ABOUT THE SCHOOLS. ONLY THAT WE WERE EXCITED TO GROW OUR FAMILY IN A PROMISING AREA. FAST FORWARD TO TODAY, OUR DAUGHTER IS IN SECOND GRADE AT DOBE AND OUR SON JUST STARTED KINDERGARTEN. WE REALIZE CHARTER SCHOOLS ARE NOT THE RIGHT FIT FOR OUR CHILDREN AND FOR THE LAST THREE YEARS, WE APPLIED TO YORK MAGNET WITHOUT SUCCESS AND LIKE MANY PARENTS WE'RE RUNNING OUT OF OPTIONS. MY HUSBAND SAID IF DOBE DOESN'T EXPAND HE WANTS TO PROVE AND --

011TO MOVE AND THAT BREAKS MY HEART. MY KIDS HAVE FRIENDS ON THE STREET THAT PLAY TOGETHER AFTER SCHOOL. MY IN-LAWS LIVE NEARBY AND HELP CARE FOR THEM. THESE ARE PRICELESS THINGS, THE SENSE OF SAFETY AND BELONGING WE MIGHT HAVE TO FACE BECAUSE OF OUR ZONED SCHOOL EISENHOWER. NEW CHARTER SCHOOLS AND SCHOOLS SHAPED PARENT PERCEPTION AND PARENTS ARE ANXIOUS ABOUT WHAT COMES NEXT AFTER DOBE. THEY'RE MOVING AWAY. OUR COMMUNITY HAS COME TOGETHER IN AN INCREDIBLE WAY. WE GATHERED 1100 SIGNED PETITIONS AND COMPLETED TWO COMMUNITY SURVEYS REPRESENTING NEARLY 500 PARENTS AND RESIDENTS WHO SUPPORT THE EXPANSION. THE MOST RECENT SURVEY OF 260 RESPONDENTS, ABOUT HALF WERE DOBE PARENTS, 16% YORK, 12% PRIVATE, 8 CHARTER, AND 3% HOME SCHOOL. MOST FAMILIES JUGGLE MULTIPLE SCHOOLS AND LONG COMMUTES. 80% OF CHARTER, 80% OF PRIVATE AND HALF OF THE HOME

012SCHOOL FAMILIES SAID THEY'D RETURN TO DOBE IF IT BECAME A K-8. THAT'S A CLEAR MESSAGE. FAMILIES WANT TO STAY IN THE COMMUNITY AND PUBLIC SCHOOLS. MOST PARENTS CONTINUE TO HOLD A NEGATIVE PERCEPTION OF EISENHOWER AND THAT'S A REALITY WE CAN'T IGNORE. WE ALL HOPE EISENHOWER IMPROVES BECAUSE WE WANT WHAT'S BEST FOR EVERYBODY. UNTIL THOSE CHANGES TAKE HOLD AND PARENTS PERCEPTION IMPROVES, FAMILIES WILL CONTINUE TO LOOK ELSEWHERE AND THE DISTRICT WILL KEEP LOSING STUDENTS AND FUNDING. OUR AREA IS GROWING QUICKLY. WE HAVE THE NEED, THE PASSION, AND THE COMMITMENT TO SUPPORT A DOBE K-8. PLEASE CONSIDER OUR CAUSE. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER PLEASE. GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS ALEX MONT O,YA AND I'M A PROUD RESIDENT AND PARENT OF APOLLO BEACH. WHEN I CHOSE TO MOVE HERE, I WAS PLANNING FOR THE

013FUTURE, FOR MY FAMILY AND CHILDREN'S EDUCATION. APOLLO BEACH HAS GROWN INTO A STRONG FAMILY-CENTERED COMMUNITY AND DOBY IS AT THE HEART OF IT. AS THE CHILD OF IMMIGRANTS, I KNOW FIRST-HAND THE POWER OF EDUCATION TO CHANGE LIVES. IT'S THE FOUNDATION MY PARENTS WORKED TIRELESSLY TO GIVE ME AND WHAT I WANT TO PASS ON TO MY CHILDREN. WHEN I FIRST VISITED DOBY, I FELT THE SAME HOPE FOR MY SON. I SAW STUDENTS RETURNING FROM SUMMER BREAK RUNNING UP TO THEIR TEACHERS WITH HUGS AND LAUGHTER AND THOSE TEACHERS REMEMBERED EVERY SINGLE NAME. THAT MOMENT SET EVERYTHING. THIS IS A PLACE WHERE CHILDREN ARE TRULY KNOWN AND CARED FOR AND THAT'S THE CONNECTION THAT EVERY PARENT WANTS FOR THEIR CHILD. BUT AS OUR KIDS REACH MIDDLE SCHOOL, FAMILIES LIKE MINE ARE BEING FORCED TO LOOK OUTSIDE THE COMMUNITY.

014NOT BECAUSE WE WANT TO, BUT BECAUSE THE CURRENT OPTIONS SIMPLY ARE NOT GOOD ENOUGH. WE'RE RACING AGAINST THE CLOCK. TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR CHILDREN CAN CONTINUE LEARNING AND THRIVING RIGHT HERE IN APOLLO BEACH. THAT'S WHY EXPANDING DOBY TO A K-8 IS NOT JUST IMPORTANT. IT'S ESSENTIAL. IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT CONVENIENCE. IT'S ABOUT GIVING FAMILIES A REASON TO STAY, KEEPING CHILDREN IN AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE THEY FEEL SAFE AND SUPPORTED, AND INSPIRED TO FRO. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND -- TO GROW. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND CONSIDERATION IN EXPANDING DOBY TO A K-8 SCHOOL. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. COULD SPEAKERS SIX THROUGH TEN COME UP? GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS SHAUNTE DAVIS. I COME TO YOU AS A GRANDPARENT IN THE WATERSET COMMUNITY. WE MOVED TO WATERSET 12 YEARS AGO WITH THE INTENTION OF

015RETIRING. WHEN MY GRANDSON WERE FOUR YEARS OLD, WE WERE GIFTED HIM SO WE WERE THROWN INTO FULL-TIME PARENTING NOT HAVING A CLUE WHAT THE SCHOOL SYSTEMS WERE SET UP AROUND. WE DIDN'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT THAT WHEN WE BUILT OUR HOME. BUT WHEN WE HAD TO FIND DAY CARE AND PRE-K AND SCHOOL FOR OUR GRANDSON, WE WERE SO THANKFUL TO COME ACROSS DOBY ELEMENTARY. DOBY HELD OUR HAND AS WE FAST TRACKED 30-SOME ODD YEARS TO WHAT EDUCATION OR THE ELEMENTARY EDUCATION SYSTEM WAS. WHAT WAS REQUIRED AND WORKED REALLY WELL WITH US. WHEN WE -- FROM THE DAY WE STARTED WITH THAT SCHOOL, WE HAD THE INTERACTION. WE HAD THE COMMUNICATION. WE HAD EVERYTHING WE NEEDED FOR OUR GRANDSON BUT AT THE SAME TIME HE WHO IS A VERY SHY CHILD WAS VERY COMFORTABLE AT THE

016SCHOOL. HE WOULD HIGH FIVE HIS TEACHERS AS HE WALKED THROUGH THE GATES IN THE MORNING. THIS GRANDSON DID NOT WANT SCHOOL BREAKS. HE DIDN'T WANT SCHOOL HOLIDAYS AND BREAKS BECAUSE HE'D MISS HIS TEACHERS. HIS KINDERGARTEN TEACHER WAS WONDERFUL, AND THAT'S JUST A SAMPLE OF WHAT WE'D HAVE FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS. HE GRADUATED AND WE CHECKED PRIVATE SCHOOLS AND KNEW WE WOULDN'T USE THE MIDDLE SCHOOL WE WERE ZONED FOR WHICH IS EISENHOWER. WE NOW HOME SCHOOL HIM. SO AS A FULL-TIME GRANDPARENT AND PREVIOUS EDUCATOR, NOW I'M EDUCATING IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL BECAUSE I DO HIS -- I DO HIS HOMESCHOOLING EVERY DAY. I CANNOT TELL YOU HOW MUCH I WISHED THAT DOBY WOULD HAVE GONE TO K-8. ON OUR LAST DAY THERE, I BEGGED MR. FULLER, I SAID, IF YOU CAN GET THIS TO A

017K-8, WE'LL BE BACK THE NEXT YEAR. IT WAS THAT IMPORTANT TO US. AND IT'S MY SINCERE HOPE THAT GOING FORWARD, DOBY CAN BE EXPANDED BECAUSE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD IN WHICH WE LIVE, WE'RE GROWING EXPONENTIALLY. OUR CHILDREN ARE -- WE WANT OUR CHILDREN TO GROW UP TOGETHER, TO EDUCATE TOGETHER, AND I REALLY ENJOY THE TIME WATCHING A CHILD THAT IS FROM BIRTH COMING THROUGH OUR NEIGHBORHOOD, NOW SHE IS SIX YEARS OLD. I'VE KNOWN THAT LITTLE GIRL -- THERE IS A LITTLE GIRL BACK HERE. I'VE KNOWN HER SINCE SHE WAS ONE WEEK OLD. THERE ARE OTHER CHILDREN AT THE SAME -- WE ATTENDED BIRTHDAY PARTIES AND ATTENDED DANCE REC RECITALS. THIS IS THE COMMUNITY THAT I'D WANT TO SEE IN THIS LATE PART OF THE 2000s. SO IT'S MY SINCERE HOPE THAT YOU'LL CONSIDER AND THAT WE

018WILL BE ALLOWED TO EXPAND DOBY FOR ALL OF OUR CHILDREN FOR GENERATIONS TO COME. I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER. . HELLO, MY NAME IS JUAN HERNANDEZ AND I LIVED IN TAMPA MY ENTIRE LIFE. MOVED TO SOUTH SHORE REGION 2010. I'M A PROUD DAD TO MY WONDERFUL FIFTH GRADER, DAUGHTER, JAYA AND AN EXCEPTIONAL SON, TRISTEN IN KINDERGARTEN. CURRENTLY SHE GOES TO A MONTESSORI SCHOOL AND MY SON GOES TO CORA ELEMENTARY PUBLIC SCHOOL. WHILE THAT MIGHT BE UNCOMMON WE FELT THIS WAS THE BEST APPROACH FOR THEIR DIFFERENT EDUCATIONAL NEEDS. I'M A PROJECT OF A FAITH-BASED PRIVATE INSTITUTION AND PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN TAMPA. MY DAUGHTER THRIVED IN HER ENVIRONMENT WHICH NURTURED HER CREATIVITY WHILE TRISTEN WHO HAS BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH AUTISM AT AGE TWO REQUIRED ADDITIONAL SUPPORT WITH PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM

019WHICH HAS BEEN PREPARED AND ADEPT TO GO AHEAD AND PROVIDE BEFORE HE REACHED KINDERGARTEN. BEING THAT I HAVE KIDS IN DIFFERENT SCHOOL SYSTEMS, I'VE BEEN ABLE TO TALK TO DIFFERENT PARENTS IN THE SOUTH SHORE REGION FROM ALL KINDS OF BACKGROUNDS WITH VERY DIFFERENT THOUGHTS. BUT THE ONE COMMON THEME BETWEEN ALL THESE PARENTS IN MY AREA THAT'S A SHARED CONCERN IS WHAT TO DO WITH OUR CHILDREN ONCE THEY AGE OUT OF ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS IN THE AREA. EISENHOWER DOESN'T AN EXCEPTIONAL REPUTATION IN THE COMMUNITY. THIS HAS DRIVEN THE MAJORITY OF THE COMMUNITY TO LOOK FOR OTHER OPTIONS WITH VERY LIMITED PRIVATE SCHOOL OPTIONS IN THE AREA. THE MOST FREQUENT IS APPLYING FOR THE CHOICE LOTTERY AT YORK MAGNET. THE DEMAND IS MUCH GREATER THAN THE CAPACITY AND HAS BECOME SUCH A POINT FOR PARENTS IN THE AREA

020THEY APPLY ELEMENTARY AGED KIDS BEFORE THEY EVEN NEED A MIDDLE SCHOOL BECAUSE THEY FEAR NOT GETTING THEIR KIDS INTO A SCHOOL THEY FEEL COMFORTABLE. WITH THE RAPIDLY GROWING POPULATION IN THE SOUTH SHORE REGION, THIS IS ONLY GOING TO BE EXACERBATED AS WE CONTINUE TO GROW. THE RECENT EXPANSION OF APOLLO TO K-8 HELPS ADDRESS THE ISSUE BUT THERE ARE LOADS OFPARENCE WITH THE SAME CONCERNS WITH THEIR KIDS AT APPOLLO BECAUSE IT'S STILL CHOICE AS WELL. DOBY IS A SHINING EXAMPLE OF A SCHOOL IN THE COMMUNITY WELL BEFORE THE POPULATION GROWTH. THE FAMILIES AND COMMUNITY FEEL STRONGLY ABOUT IT BECAUSE OF THE LEADERSHIP AND FACULTY THERE IN PLACE. THE EXPANSION WOULD GIVE MORE PEOPLE IN THE AREA THE PEACE OF MIND THEIR CHILDREN HAVE PROPER ACCESSIBILITY TO A SAFE SPACE TO FOCUS ON BECOMING THE BEST VERSIONS

021OF THEMSELVES. THIS IS NOT A DESIRE SPECIFIC TO DOBY PARENTS. MY CHILDREN ARE BOTH IN PRIVATE SCHOOL AND PUBLIC SCHOOL, NEITHER OF THEM NAMED DOBY. I'M HERE BECAUSE MYSELF AND MANY OTHER PARENTS IN THE AREA WANT THE PUBLIC SCHOOL OPTIONS IN OUR AREA TO IMPROVE. PARENTS LIKE MYSELF CAN ONLY WORK WITH THE OPTIONS IN FRONT OF US AND GIVEN THE CURRENT STATE OF THINGS, IF THERE IS NOT A PUBLIC SCHOOL I FEEL COMFORTABLE SENDING MY DAUGHTER TO AVAILABLE THEN I'LL BE ONE OF THE PARENTS IN THE GROWING LIST WHO OPTS FOR HOME SCHOOLING BECAUSE I DON'T BELIEVE THE COUNTY WAS MEETING THE NEEDS OF THE GROWING COMMUNEDYTY. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER. GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS MICHAEL ANN DEMAYO AND I'M A CONCERNED CITIZEN. I'D LIKE TO EXPRESS MY CONCERNS ON

022THE SCHOOLS OF HOPE RULE THAT ALLOWS THEM TO TAKE OVER THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS THAT SCORED BELOW C RATING FOR THREE OF THE LAST FIVE YEARS OR ARE UNDER ENROLLED. IN FACT, PARENTS OF THE SARASOTA SCHOOLS STATED, QUOTE, THE IDEA THAT A MIAMI-BASED CHARTER CHAIN COULD CLAIM SPACE INSIDE OUR HIGH PERFORMING PUBLIC SCHOOLS, SCHOOLS THAT HELPED SARASOTA EARN AN A RATING FOR MORE THAN TWO DECADES IS PREPOSTEROUS. IT TRAMPLES ON PARENTS' RIGHTS, UNDERMIGHT KNOWS LOCAL CONTROL AND IS CAUSING HARM TO PARENTS, STUDENTS AND COMMUNITIES. WHEN PUBLIC SCHOOLS ARE NOT PROVIDED WITH ENOUGH FUNDS TO SECURE ADEQUATE TEACHING STAFF OR PROPER SUPPLIES, THE STUDENTS WILL UNDERPERFORM. THEN YOU TAKE AWAY PORTIONS OF THE SCHOOL AND GIVE THEM TO SCHOOLS OF HOPE CHARTER SCHOOLS WHO MAY NOT EVEN BE PART OF THE COMMUNITY. OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS HAVE TO

023SHARE THEIR CAFETERIA, PROVIDE FOOD FOR THE CHARTER SCHOOL STUDENTS, PAY FOR MAINTENANCE, JANITORIAL, SERVICE AND MORE. IN THE MEAN TIME, THE CHARTER SCHOOLS ARE ALREADY RECEIVING MONEY FOR EACH OF THEIR STUDENTS WITH NO ACCOUNTABILITY. THIS IS NOT -- THIS WILL NOT HELP OUR PUBLIC SCHOOL CHILDREN THROUGH NO FAULT OF THEIR OWN. THEY'RE LITERALLY GETTING THROWN UNDER THE BUS. WHEN THE SPACES ARE TAKEN AWAY AND GIVEN TO LITERAL STRANGERS, HOW DO YOU THINK THEY'LL FEEL? HOW DO YOU THINK THEY'LL REACT? THIS IS A CANCER THAT WILL GROW CHOKING OUT THE LOCAL PUBLIC SCHOOLS. IF WE NEED -- WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT TO FIGHT AGAINST THIS TAKEOVER. IF IT IS ALLOWED THE LOCAL CITIZENS OR SCHOOL -- OR THE SCHOOL BOARD WILL HAVE NO SAY. OUR CHILDREN WILL BE LEFT BEHIND. AND THE TAXPAYERS WILL CONTINUE TO

024FOOT THE BILL. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND ATTENTION TO THIS SERIOUS MATTER. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER. GOOD AFTERNOON, SCHOOL BOARD, SUPERINTENDENT, AND PANEL. MY NAME IS TINA WILLIAMS BRUSTER AND I RESIDE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. TODAY I'LL COME BEFORE YOU -- IS ANYONE HERE THAT COULD TALK TO ME AFTERWARDS OR LATER ON ABOUT THE FOCUS PORTAL? I DO KNOW THAT WHOEVER WAS IN CHARGE OF THAT, THAT HAS BEEN VACANT FOR SIX MONTHS. SO SOMEONE WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THAT. WE HAVE STUDENTS BEING MARKED ABSENT AND THEY'RE NOT ABSENT. THERE IS STILL GLITCHES. ONCE AGAIN, WE HAVE A NEW SYSTEM. WHEN IS HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS GOING TO START SPENDING THE MONEY ON AN ADEQUATE SYSTEM THAT ADDRESSES THE LARGENESS AND ADEQUACY AND DUALITY AND COMPLEXITY OF OUR STUDENTS? STOP BORROWING FROM OTHER SCHOOL

025DISTRICTS THAT DO NOT MIRROR US, DO NOT HAVE THE SAME ISSUES WE HAVE. I CHALLENGE THE BOARD MEMBERS, THE NEXT TIME ANOTHER ORGANIZATION COMES IN TOWN TOTING THAT THEY'RE GREAT FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, WE NEED TO TAKE A BETTER LOOK AT THAT. MY DAUGHTER HAS BEEN MARKED ABSENT OR TARDY, AND SHE'S A DUAL ENROLLMENT. SHE IS GOING TO SCHOOL FOR FUN. SHE'S A STRAIGHT A STUDENT. I'VE GONE TO THE SCHOOL, NOTHING. AND THIS IS ANOTHER THING. YOU'RE ALL REALLY NOT LISTENING TO PARENTS. YOU DON'T SEE PARENTS AS A PARTNERSHIP. PARENTS ARE NOT GIVING YOU THEIR TRASH. WE'RE GIVING YOU OUR BEST STUDENTS. THAT A THAT GAITHER HIGH SCHOOL HAS, I'M PROUD TO SAY THAT'S PART OF MY CHILD. SHE HAS COME A LONG WAY BUT GAITHER DIDN'T PROVIDE A SAFE ENVIRONMENT. I FOUGHT FOR HER. SO

026I'M ASKING HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS, FIGHT FOR OUR CHILDREN. LET'S GET A SYSTEM THAT IS MADE AND TAILOR MADE FOR US. STOP WASTING MONEY THAT WE ALREADY ARE LOSING BECAUSE OF THE CHARTER SCHOOL SITUATION THAT IF PEOPLE REALLY UNDERSTOOD HOW THAT GOES, THEY DON'T -- THEY HAVE TO VOTE FOR THE CHARTER SCHOOLS. IT'S THE LAW. DO YOUR HOMEWORK. GUYS, COME UP HERE AND YOU BITCH AND MOAN ABOUT STUFF THAT DOESN'T MATTER, BUT WHERE ARE YOU IN THE TRENCHES WHEN THE STUDENTS ARE NOT GETTING NEEDS TAKEN CARE OF. WHEN THE GUIDANCE COUNSELORS ARE NOT DOING THEIR JOBS. WHEN PRINCIPALS AT THE HIGH SCHOOL IS GETTING ARRESTED BECAUSE THEY'RE FAILING TO PROVIDE SAFETY FOR THE STUDENTS. LET'S GET REAL. MR. AYRES, I'M GOING TO CHALLENGE YOU AGAIN. WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO START HOLDING THE PRINCIPALS ACCOUNTABLE.

027NOT HOW MANY YEARS YOU'VE BEEN IN THE SANDBOX TOGETHER. THERE NEEDS TO BE A SWEEP. JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE PRINCIPAL, JUST BECAUSE YOUR SCHOOL HAS AN "A" DOES NOT MEAN YOU'RE GREAT. EVERYBODY CAN USE IMPROVEMENT. LET'S GET ON BOARD. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER. I'M RACHEL DOYLE. I'M A PARENT OF TWO IN THE SCHOOLS. SINCE THE LAST MEETING I GOT INTERESTING MESSAGES FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT'S FORMER STUDENTS SAYING THEY'RE NOT SURPRISED THE ENVIRONMENT YOU CULTIVATED AS A SUPERINTENDENT. I GOT AN INTERESTING MESSAGE, MOMS FOR LIBERTY, PEOPLE ARE NOT PUBLIC SCHOOLS PARENTS AND ARE WORRIED I MIGHT GET THREATS FROM A FAMILY. I GOT A MESSAGE ABOUT THE MISLEADING INTERVIEW YOU DID ABOUT THE SCOPE OF THE BOOK REMOVALS. JUST ANOTHER GREAT MONTH AS AN ACTUAL HCPS PARENT. LIKE SOMEBODY SAID, OUR VOICES MEAN NOTHING. BUT LET'S

028TALK ABOUT AN ACTUAL ISSUE THAT MY KID IS FACING. MY OLDEST IS READING ABOVE HIS GRADE LEVEL NO THANKS TO YOU. MY YOUNGEST KID IS ONE OF YOUR STUDENTS WHO IS STRUGGLING WITH READING AND HE WAS 30 POINTS -- HE WAS AT 30 POINTS IN AUGUST AND LUCKY FOR HIM, HE HAS A HIGH QUALITY TEACHER WHO USES EVIDENCE-BASED METHODS AND IS VERY COMMUNICATIVE WITH ME AS A PARENT. WE DEVELOPED A PLAN AND WE'RE SEEING RESULTS THROUGH THESE EVIDENCE-BASED DECISIONS WE'RE MAKING AND THROUGH PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT AND HIS SCORE WENT UP 20 POINTS IN JUST TWO MONTHS. IF YOU NOTICE, I DIDN'T WANT OR NEED INVOLVEMENT FROM NON-PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN ORDER TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN. I KNOW. WHAT A WILD AMAZING OPPORTUNITY FOR THEM TO MIND THEIR OWN BUSINESS AND THEY TOOK IT BUT NOT WITH LIBRARY

029BOOKS. IN FACT YOU ENCOURAGE IT. THAT GOES OUT THE WINDOWS WITH LIBRARY BOOKS. WE HAVE STANDARDS AND INDIVIDUAL PARENT INVOLVEMENT BUT NOT ANYMORE WITH LIBRARY BOOKS. MR. AYRES, YOU FORCED THE SCHOOL SYSTEM TO REMOVE A BOOK OVER A TWEET. THE BOOK WAS REMOVED BECAUSE YOU EMPLOY A BIGOT WHO I COMPLAINED ABOUT. NOTHING WAS DONE. THEY GOT THE ATTENTION OF ANOTHER BIGOT WHO HAPPENS TO BE THE COMMISSIONER FOR EDUCATION WHO YOU BEND OVER BACKWARDS FOR. I HAVE TO ASSUME THAT IF THE DAY COMES WHEN ANOTHER TWEET COMES THAT ASKS YOU TO REMOVE A BOOK LIKE IT FEELS GOOD TO BE YOURSELF OR THIS BOOK, CEMETERY BOYS BY AIDEN THOMAS WHICH CONTAINS NO OBSCENITY BUT IS ABOUT A TRANS KID, I HAVE TO ASSUME YOU'LL REMOVE THIS TOO JUST BECAUSE YOU WERE ASKED TO ON TWITTER. YOU

030MADE US NO BETTER THAN CLAY COUNTY WHO ALSO BANNED THIS BECAUSE IT'S ABOUT A TRANS KID. ON THE THEME OF DECISIONS MADE WITH NO EVIDENCE, YOUR MEDIA SPECIALISTERIZE TELLING ME IN PRIVATE THEY'RE REMOVING BOOKS BECAUSE THEY DON'T THINK THAT YOU SPECIFICALLY WILL BACK THEM UP WHEN THE COMMISSIONER FOR EDUCATION COMES KNOCKING SO THEY'RE REMOVING SPECIFICALLY IF YOU NEED AN EXAMPLE DEAR MARTIN. MY KIDS ARE DOING BETTER IN SPITE OF YOU. YOU GOVERN BASED ON THE WHIMS OF BIGOTS AND USE MY PARENTAL RIGHTS IN EDUCATION AS A TALKING POINT IN CONVERSATIONS THAT YOU IRONICALLY WOULD PREFER THAT I DON'T PARTICIPATE IN. YOU'VE GIVEN US PARENTS LESS AND LESS SAY, SPECIFICALLY THE PARENTS WHO WORK FOR YOU WHO HAVE TRANS KIDS IN THE EDUCATION SYSTEM. THEY FEEL THEY HAVE NO SAY AND WHEN I TRY TO TALK

031TO MY DISTRICT MEMBER, I DON'T GET A PHONE CALL BACK. I THINK THIS IS PATHETIC. YOU GET NO CREDIT FOR MY KID'S READING SCORE IMPROVEMENT. NOBODY HERE GETS THAT CREDIT BUT ME. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER. ALLEN BRUSTER, BOARD MEMBER, SUPERINTENDENT. TODAY ME AND MY WIFE, WE HAVE REGULAR BUSINESS MEETINGS AT MCDONALDS DOWN THE STREET FROM GAITHER HIGH SCHOOL. AND AS WE WERE HAVING OUR BUSINESS MEETING, THERE WERE SEVERAL KIDS IN THAT MCDONALDS AT 10:00 A.M. 10:00 A.M. RIGHT? AND THERE WAS A COUNSELOR THAT WAS IN THERE. HE CALLED A COUPLE OF THE KIDS OUT, LIKE HEY, YOU KNOW YOU SHOULD BE IN SCHOOL. RIGHT? YOU SHOULD BE IN SCHOOL. AND THIS IS NOT THE FIRST OCCURRENCE. IT'S A REOCCURRENCE. AND WHAT I DON'T UNDERSTAND IS HOW IF A KID DOESN'T GO TO FIRST

032PERIOD, SECOND PERIOD, OR THIRD PERIOD, BUT THEN THEY SIGN IN FOURTH PERIOD, HOW COME THERE IS NO ONE QUESTIONING THEM, WHY ARE YOU SIGNING IN FOURTH PERIOD. THIS IS ONGOING. ONGOING. I SAID IT AT THE LAST BOARD MEETING. THERE -- THE LEVEL OF EXPECTATION NEEDS TO BE HIGHER. IT'S TOO LOW. THAT'S WHY THESE STUDENTS DO WHAT THEY DO. THE FACT THAT YOU CAN THINK THAT YOU CAN GO TO MCDONALDS AND SIT THERE AND LOGY GAG WITH YOUR FRIENDS -- LOLLY GAG WITH YOUR FRIENDS AND THEN SAY, OKAY, IT'S TIME TO GO TO SCHOOL AT 10:30, WHERE IS THE LEVEL OF EXPECTATION? WHO IS MANDATING THE LEVEL OF EXPECTATIONS? BECAUSE THE STUDENTS ARE MAKING IT ON THEIR OWN. THEY'RE TELLING ADULTS, THE PRINCIPALS, THE TEACHERS, THE STANDARD AND THAT'S BACKWARDS. LIKE I SAID WHEN I WENT

033TO SCHOOL AND HIGH SCHOOL, YOU COULDN'T GO TO MCDONALDS. YOU COULDN'T GO TO THE MALL BETWEEN THE HOUR S OF 7:30 TO 3:30. THEY DIDN'T ALLOW IT. WHY THESE BUSINESSES IN THAT AREA ALLOWING THE STUDENTS TO BE IN THEIR ESTABLISHMENT FROM 8:30 TO 3:30. WHY? BECAUSE THE SCHOOLS DON'T HAVE NO PARTNERSHIP WITH THESE BUSINESSES. THERE IS NO CLEAR UNDERSTANDING, EDUCATION IS A HIGH PRIORITY. NOT YOUR DOLLARS, THE DOLLARS YOU'RE RECEIVING FROM THE STUDENTS. WHERE IS THE HIGH STANDARD IN THIS SCHOOL DISTRICT? IT'S NOT THERE. IT'S REALLY NOT. AND YOU SEE IT ON A YEGGULAR BASIS. I WORK FOR HART. MY CO-WORKER SAID THE STUDENTS AT CHAMBERLAIN ARE UNRULY ON THE BUS. THEY'RE UNRULY. WHERE IS THE STANDARD. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER. HELLO. I'M CINDY RICHARDS, THE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL PARENT. THANK YOU

034FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK AGAIN TODAY. MY FAMILY'S LIFESTYLE WAS VERY ISOLATED AND I READ A LOT OF BOOKS AS A CHILD. MY FAVORITES WERE THE CLASSICS. CLASSIC LITERATURE LIKE WUTHERING HEIGHTS, JANE AIR, TO KILL A MOCKING BIRTH, HOBT, ET CETERA. THEY WERE MY FRIENDS AND MY REFUGE. LATER A BOOK CALLED IT, ANGELA'S ASHES, KITE RUNNER AND OTHERS HELPED ME IDENTIFY, SEEK THERAPY AND COME TO TERMS WITH THE ABUSES I SURVIVED. I WAS THAT CHILD THAT YOU DESCRIBED, MEMBER RENDON. THE CHILD ALONE IN A CORNER. I WISH I WAS -- I HAD BOOKS TO HELP ME IDENTIFY AND UNDERSTAND THE TYPES OF CHALLENGES TOO BIG FOR ME ALONE. A BOOK YOU MAY VIEW AS PORN MAY ACTUALLY HELP A CHILD LIKE ME FEEL LESS AFRAID AND ISOLATED, GAIN THE CONFIDENCE TO REPORT ABUSE, AND FACILITATE

035POSITIVE CHANGE. IF HARD WORDS IN A BOOK MAKE YOU FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE AND YOU CAN'T IMAGINE A CHILD BEING EXPOSED TO THAT, MAYBE THAT'S A GOOD THING FOR YOU BUT THOSE WORDS DESCRIBE HARD TRUTHS AND CAN BE A LIFELINE TO SOME CHILDREN. SCHOOL LIBRARIES ARE A SAFE PLACE AND OFTEN ONLY THE WINDOW TO -- THE ONLY WINDOW TO THE OUTSIDE WORLD FOR AN ABUSED CHILD. EDUCATED AND AWARE CHILDREN ARE MORE EQUIPPED TO PROTECT THEMSELVES FROM PREDATORS AND MUCH MORE LIKELY TO REPORT ABUSE. IGNORANCE MAKES THEM VULNERABLE. THAT, IN MY BOOK, IS VULGAR. PLEASE MAINTAIN LOCAL CONTROL. KEEP PUSHING BACK AGAINST STATE AND FEDERAL OVERREACH. EFFORTS LIKE STATE CONTROL OF BOOK BANNING, YES, THAT'S WHAT IT IS, REJECT THE GOVERNOR'S NEW SCHOOLS OF HOPE RULE. IT'S AN ATTEMPT TO HIJACK OUR SCHOOLS FOR PROFIT. DON'T LET THEM

036REMOVE THE EXPERTISE AND INTEGRITY OF THE SUPERINTENDENT POSITION. THIS POSITION SHOULD REMAIN TRANSPARENT, APPOINTED BY, AND ACCOUNTABLE TO YOU, THE BOARD. KEEP WORKING TOWARD HOLDING ALL OF OUR SCHOOLS ACCOUNTABLE INCLUDING ALL CHARTERS. PROTECT OUR CHILDREN AND COMMUNITY WITH THE ASSET OF AN EDUCATED CONSTITUENCY. PLEASE DON'T ALLOW OUR CHILDREN TO BECOME TARGETS OF PROFITEERING AND ABUSE. I TRULY APPRECIATE THE CHALLENGES YOU'RE FACING. I SEE YOU LISTENING TO THE COMMUNITY AND I SINCERELY APPRECIATE YOUR HARD WORK, DEDICATION TO OUR CHILDREN AND THE REPRESENTATION OF YOUR COMMUNITY. I'M SEEING MORE AND MORE FROM YOU LATELY. THANKS. KEEP FIGHTING FOR US. YOUR COMMUNITY NEEDS YOU AND WE STAND BEHIND YOU. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. CAN I HAVE SPEAKERS 11 THROUGH 15 LINE UP? NEXT SPEAKER PLEASE. GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS RICHARD STOKES. I'M A RESIDENT OF

037HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. I'M ALSO A RETIRED TEACHER IN FLORIDA. I'M ALSO RETIRED TEACHER FROM THE STATE OF MARYLAND. I'VE BEEN A 40-YEAR TEACHER. THE LAST 35 YEARS WERE SPECIAL ED OR ESE THAT YOU CALL IT IN FLORIDA. AND MY BIG SUBJECT HERE IS THE ELIMINATION OF THE CERTIFICATION FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES WHEN THEY GRADUATE HIGH SCHOOL. TO ME, THAT'S REALLY LIKE A GUT PUNCH FOR THESE STUDENTS BECAUSE I CAN SEE IT IN THEIR EYES WHEN THEY DO SOMETHING GOOD IN CLASS AND I GIVE THEM PROPS FOR DOING WELL. IMAGINE -- AND YOU MAY IMAGINE THIS BECAUSE SOME OF YOU HAVE BEEN TO GRADUATIONS. I WORKED AT CAVANETI WHICH IS A SPECIAL ED CENTER AND SOME HAVE BEEN TO THE GRADUATIONS AND GIVEN CERTIFICATES TO THE STUDENTS. NOW YOU WON'T BE GIVING THAT TO THEM. THE FAMILIES,

038THE STUDENTS, THEY'RE GOING TO FEEL LIKE, WHY DID I GO TO SCHOOL FOR 13 YEARS AND YOU'RE NOT GIVING ME ANYTHING FOR IT EXCEPT A REPORT CARD FOUR TIMES A YEAR. THAT'S NOT ENOUGH. THEY HAVE PEERS THEY CAN SEE GETTING A DIPLOMA, AND WHAT ARE THEY GOING TO GET? WHAT ARE THEY GOING TO GET? CAN YOU WORK WITH OUR COMMUNITY AND SPEAK TO THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION AND SAY, CAN YOU PLEASE LET STUDENTS GET SOME TYPE OF RECOGNITION AND SOME KIND OF HONOR FOR GOING TO SCHOOL AND WORKING HARD AND MAKE THEIR FAMILIES BE PROUD OF THEM. THEY'RE GOING TO BE PROUD OF THEM ANYWAY, BUT TO BE EVEN MORE PROUD IF THEY CAN SEE THEIR STUDENT, THEIR CHILD, THEIR GRANDCHILDREN -- I'M A GRANDPARENT, BY THE WAY, SEE THEM GET A REWARD FOR

039GOING TO SCHOOL. AND WORKING HARD. AND I THINK EVERYONE LIKES TO SEE SOME KIND OF REWARD FOR WORKING HARD. THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. I'M NOT GOING TO KEEP GOING ON AND ON EXCEPT ONE THING. I HEARD YOU TALKING ABOUT BANNING BOOKS. YOU NEED TO TELL TALLAHASSEE, PLEASE STOP DOING THIS. LET STUDENTS -- DON'T LET ONE PERSON DECIDE WHAT EVERY STUDENT IN THAT WHOLE COUNTY CAN WATCH OR SEE. AND ONE OTHER THING I DID AS A TEACHER, YOU MAY HAVE HEARD OF MEASURED PROGRESS. YOU EVER HEARD OF THAT COMPANY? THEY MADE THE TESTING FOR SPECIAL ED STUDENTS. I WAS PART OF THAT. AND I WAS REALLY PROUD -- ACTUALLY, I HAD TO FLY TO TALLAHASSEE AND SIT IN THE BOARD MEETING WITH THEM. AND IT WAS ONE OF THE HONORS OF MY LIFE TO DO THAT.

040AND WHY MAKE UP TESTS NOW IF THEY'RE NOT GOING TO RECEIVE ANY KIND OF REWARD FOR TAKING A TEST. I DON'T WANT TO GO ON AND ON LIKE I SAID. THANK YOU FOR LISTENING TO ME. I HOPE YOU DO SOMETHING TO TELL THESE PARENTS AND STUDENTS WHAT THEY CAN DO IN THE FUTURE THAT THEY CAN BE PROUD OF AND HAVE SOMETHING TO SHOW FOR IT. THANK YOU AGAIN. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER. HI, MY NAME IS TAMARA PEREZ AND I REPRESENT THE NOW 3200 MEMBERS OF PROJECT ABA RIGHTS. WE SPOKE OUT AT A BOARD MEETING BACK IN JULY 2023. WE HAVE SINCE BEEN IN CLOSED DOOR MEETINGS WITH THE DISTRICT FOR THE LAST TWO YEARS WORKING TO ENSURE THAT STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS HAVE ACCESS TO HIGH QUALITY AND ETHICAL

041PRIVATE THERAPIES. I WANT TO FIRST THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR CONTINUED GUIDANCE AND SUPPORT. THESE MEETINGS HAVE BEEN EXTREMELY POSITIVE AND COLLABORATIVE. A SPECIAL THANKS TO TRACYE BROWN, SHANNON LESPERANCE AND THE REST OF THE TEAM. WE HAVE COME A FAR WAY AND I THINK THE TEAM CAN AGREE WE'RE PROUD OF THE WORK THAT'S BEEN DONE. WE STILL HAVE WORK TO DO. AND FIND OURSELVES AT A STALEMATE ON A FEW ITEMS. NUMBER ONE, PARENTS ARE STILL REQUIRED TO SIGN A DISCRIMINATORY IDEMNIFICATION, ONLY PARENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS ARE REQUIRED TO SIGN UNDER DERES OR THERAPY FOR THEIR CHILD WILL BE DENIED OR REMOVED. NUMBER TWO, THIS YEAR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS UPDATED THEIR PET POLICY AND WILL NOW DENY AUTISTIC STUDENTS ABA THERAPY, EVEN WITH A MEDICAL DIAGNOSIS AND EVEN WITH A 504 PLAN. THE DISTRICT STATES

042THEY'LL NOW ONLY APPROVE ABA FOR STUDENTS WITH AN APPROVED IEP. I COULD UNDERSTOOD THE DISTRICT TAKING THE STANCE IF YOU WERE GOING TO PROVIDE AND PAY FOR THESE SERVICES, BUT YOU DON'T. PARENTS GIFT THIS THERAPY TO SCHOOLS FOR FREE. IN A DISTRICT THAT'S UNDERSERVED, UNDER FUNDED AND UNDER STAFFED, ESPECIALLY IN ESE DEPARTMENTS. THE STATUTE DOES NOT STATE THAT AN IEP IS REQUIRED. DENYING THE POTENTIALLY LIFE-CHANGING THERAPY IS NOT A STATE REQUIREMENT BUT A CHOICE. I CAN'T THINK OF ANY GOOD REASON AS TO WHY YOU WOULD CHOOSE TO DENY THERAPY TO CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES. I HOPE THAT YOU CAN APPRECIATE JUST HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO ASK THIS MANY SPECIAL NEEDS PARENTS TO SHOW UP IN THE MIDDLE OF A WORK DAY. MANY OF WHOM WANTED TO BE HERE BUT COULDN'T. IT IS NOT EASY TO

043FIND CHILDCARE FOR CHILDREN WITH HIGH SUPPORT NEEDS. SO WE COME BEFORE YOU TODAY TO SHARE OUR EXPERIENCES, EXPRESS OUR CONCERNS, AND TO ASK THE BOARD TO WRITE THE OFFICIAL SCHOOL BOARD POLICY THAT WAS PROMISED TO US YEARS AGO. WITH A POLICY IN PLACE, WE CAN ELIMINATE THE INCONSISTENCIES ACROSS YOUR 230 SCHOOL SITES AND ENSURE EQUAL ACCESS TO EDUCATION FOR ALL. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER. GOOD AFTERNOON, BOARD. MY NAME IS STEPHANIE NOBLE. I'M A HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY RESIDENT. IF I GET EMOTIONAL, PLEASE UNDERSTAND, I LOST MY SON WHO HAD AUTISM IN A TRAGIC ACCIDENT IN 2023. THE CHALLENGES I FACED SINCE ARE WHAT KEEP ME FIGHTING FOR CHILDREN LIKE HIM AND FOR MY DAUGHTER WHO STILL NEEDS SUPPORT TODAY. I'VE BEEN ADVOCATING FOR MY CHILDREN FOR YEARS BUT HAD TO PULL THEM FROM

044PUBLIC SCHOOL MORE THAN ONCE. JUST TO MAKE SURE THEY COULD RECEIVE THEIR MEDICALLY NECESSARY ABA THERAPY. RECENTLY MY DAUGHTER WAS ENROLLED AT HAMMOND. DESPITE REACHING OUT MONTHS IN ADVANCE TO COORDINATE SUPPORT, THINGS FELL APART RIGHT BEFORE THE SCHOOL YEAR STARTED. AT OUR FIRST PET MEETING I WAS TOLD THEY'D CONSIDER MORE BEHAVIORAL SUPPORT BUT LATER WE WERE TOLD NO, EVEN THOUGH THE DATA SHOWED SHE NEEDED IT. WE TRIED AGAIN HOPING FOR A BETTER OUTCOME. AT FIRST, THE PRINCIPAL SEEMED SUPPORTIVE BUT AFTER SPEAKING WITH HAMMOND'S PRINCIPAL, THAT CHANGED. I WAS TOLD MAYBE THIS IS NOT THE RIGHT SCHOOL FOR HER. THAT WAS DEVASTATING TO HEAR AS A MOTHER TRYING TO EVERYTHING RIGHT FOR THEIR CHILD. MY DAUGHTER DOES WELL WITH STRUCTURE AND ROUTINE. SHE LOVES SCHOOL. BUT WITHOUT ABA SUPPORT, SHE STRUGGLES AND WHEN UNTRAINED STAFF TRY

045TO MANAGE HER BEHAVIORS IT CAN MAKE THINGS WORSE INSTEAD OF BETTER. I'M ASKING THE BOARD TO PLEASE LOOK CLOSELY AT HOW MUCH POWER INDIVIDUAL PRINCIPALS HAVE TO BLOCK ABA SUPPORT. THESE ARE MEDICAL NEEDS, NOT OPTIONAL ONES. WE NEED A CONSISTENT DISTRICT POLICY THAT ALLOWS ABA THERAPY IN SCHOOLS SO FAMILIES LIKE MINE DON'T HAVE TO KEEP PULLING OUR CHILDREN OUT JUST TO GET THEM WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. AND FOR CONSIDERING HOW WE CAN MAKE OUR SCHOOLS MORE INCLUSIVE AND SUPPORTIVE FOR EVERY CHILD. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER PLEASE. HI, GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS STACEY MALIN. I AM A FORMER ENGLISH TEACHER IN THE DISTRICT AND A PARENT OF A 3-YEAR-OLD LITTLE BOY WITH AUTISM WHO MAY ONE DAY ATTEND OUR LOCAL HILLSBOROUGH PUBLIC SCHOOL. I'M HERE TODAY AS

046A MEMBER OF PROJECT ABA RIGHTS WITH ONE CRITICAL ASK. THAT HCPS WRITE AND ADOPT A CLEAR DISTRICT POLICY AFFIRMING EVERY FAMILY'S RIGHT TO ACCESS PRIVATE INSTRUCTIONAL PERSONNEL INCLUDING ABA, SPEECH AND OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY IN SCHOOLS AS GUARANTEED UNDER FLORIDA STATUTE 1003.572. THIS IS AN APPEAL FOR OUR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES TO HAVE THE SUPPORT THEY ARE LEGALLY ENTITLED TO AND THE OPPORTUNITIES THEY DESERVE WITHOUT DELAY, CONFUSION, OR BARRIERS. IN ASKING FOR YOUR SUPPORT ON THIS ISSUE, I'D LIKE YOU TO CONSIDER A NEW PERSPECTIVE. THE QUESTION SHOULDN'T BE, WHY SHOULD WE ADOPT THIS DISTRICT POLICY. BUT RATHER, WHY WOULDN'T WE CREATE A UNIFORM POLICY FOR THIS. THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS, ALLOWING PRIVATE THERAPISTS IN SCHOOL, IN ALL SCHOOLS, IS A WIN/WIN. IT'S A WIN FOR THE STUDENTS AND IT'S A WIN FOR THE DISTRICT. IN A

047PERFECT WORLD THE SCHOOL SYSTEM WOULD BE ABLE TO PROVIDE ALL STUDENTS NEEDING SUPPORT SERVICES WITH THE PROPER AMOUNT OF TIME AND ATTENTION TO FOSTER GROWTH AND SKILL BUILDING, BUT THE REALITY IS WE NEED HELP. THE SOLUTION IS A UNIFORM POLICY ALLOWING PRIVATE THERAPY ACROSS ALL CAMPUSES. HAVE YOU EVER SEEN ABA PROFESSIONALS AT WORK WITH A STUDENT? THEY'RE AMAZING. AND THINK OF THE IMPACT A THERAPIST WHO KNOWS JUST WHAT A STUDENT NEEDS CAN HAVE BY FREEING UP A POTENTIALLY O OVERBURDENED TEACHER BECAUSE WE KNOW TEACHERS DO A LOT TO FOCUS ON RUNNING A CLASSROOM. BESIDES THAT THOUGH, WHATEVER HESITANCIES YOU MAY HAVE ABOUT THIS, I GUARANTEE YOU THERE IS AN ANSWER. AND THERE IS A LOT OF PEOPLE HERE TODAY WILLING TO HELP. LET'S MAKE THIS HAPPEN. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: NEXT SPEAKER. HI, EVERYBODY. GOOD

048AFTERNOON. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. MY NAME IS LUCE BARBIE. YOU CAN CALL ME LUCY AND I'M A BOARD CERTIFIED BEHAVIOR ANALYST AND I'VE BEEN WORKING IN THE FIELD ABOUT 12 YEARS. PARDON MY ACCENT. I WANT TO TRY TO BE AS CLEAR AS POSSIBLE. I'M HERE BECAUSE I HAVE A PROPOSAL. FIRST I WANT TO START TALKING ABOUT WHAT ABA IS BECAUSE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ABA AND SOME PEOPLE MAY BE LIKE, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN. SO ABA STANDS FOR APPLIED BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS. IT IS A SCIENCE-BASED APPROACH THAT HELPS CHILDREN LEARN NEW SKILLS AND REDUCE CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS BY UNDERSTANDING THE WHY, WHY BEHAVIORS HAPPEN AND HOW TO SUPPORT THE POSITIVE CHANGE. WHEN A CHILD IS DIAGNOSED WITH ASD, AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER, MANY FLORIDA HEALTH INSURANCE WILL COVER THE ABA SERVICES TO SOME EXTENT. SO AS AN ABA

049PROVIDER I'VE SEEN HOW POWERFUL IT CAN BE WHEN SCHOOLS AND -- WHEN SCHOOLS STAFF, WHEN THE STAFF IN THE SCHOOL AND ABA TEAMS COLLABORATE. MANY SCHOOLS HAVE EMBRACED THIS PARTNERSHIP. SINCE THE ABA PROJECT STARTED, I'VE SEEN TREMENDOUS PROGRESS. HOWEVER, I ALSO HAVE SEEN THAT THE LEVEL OF COLLABORATION CAN LOOK VERY DIFFERENT FROM SCHOOL TO SCHOOL. SOME SCHOOLS ARE AMAZING AND WANT TO PUT ALL THE KIDS IN THAT SCHOOL, BUT IT'S IMPOSSIBLE, RIGHT? IN SOME CASES ACCESS TO MEDICAL ABA SERVICES IS VERY LIMITED, EVEN WHEN THE CHILD NEEDS CLEARLY ARE THERE. SO ONE OF THE MOST COMMON BARRIERS THAT I'M SEEING AND WE'RE FACING IS WHEN A SCHOOL DECIDES OR THE PRINCIPAL DECIDES TO REDUCE ABA TIME BY DISREGARDING OUR RECOMMENDATION, OUR CLINICAL MEDICAL NECESSITY FOR THE CHILD BECAUSE THE REASON IS THIS. THEY ALREADY HAVE

050A ONE ON ONE IN THE CLASSROOM. THERE IS AN AIDE. IT'S LIKE, I CANNOT IN A COLLABORATION MEETING EDUCATION YOU ABOUT WHAT ABA. I BELIEVE A SCHOOL SHOULD ALREADY KNOW OUR ROLE. WHAT'S THE POINT -- I FEEL LIKE SOME OF THOSE MEETINGS ARE REALLY, LIKE, PULLING TEETH. IT'S A DISCUSSION BETWEEN WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO BE HERE, NEGOTIATING, I'LL BRING THE TEACHERS SO YOU KNOW I'M NOT LYING. IT'S KIND OF SILLY. I'M NOT GENERALIZING. SO A SCHOOL HELPS A CHILD STAY SAFE AND DO ROUTINES AND ACTIVITIES. ABA PROVIDERS IMPLEMENT INTERVENTION STRATEGIES TO HELP THE CHILD SUCCEED, TO REDUCE THE BEHAVIORS AND SYSTEMATICALLY MAKE CHANGES IN THE ENVIRONMENT SO WE PROMOTE INDEPENDENCE. I PROPOSE YOU THINK OF AN INITIATIVE TO EDUCATE THE SCHOOLS. I'LL DO IT FOR FREE. YOU CONTACT ME. LUCE BARBIE AND I'LL DO

051IT PLEASE. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER. . HI, MY NAME IS NICOLE. I HAVE AN 8-YEAR-OLD WHO IS ON THE SPECTRUM FOR AUTISM. THIS PAST SUMMER WHEN HIS PAPERWORK WAS SUBMITTED, IT WAS DENIED IMMEDIATELY AFTER HE'S BEEN RECEIVING SERVICES SINCE KINDERGARTEN AT CLEVELAND. AND THE REASON WHY WE WENT TO SEMINOLE IS BECAUSE THEY AGREED TO DO ABA. WE STARTED WITH ABA -- OR WITH ABA IN SECOND GRADE AT SEMINOLE WITHOUT A 504 OR IEP BECAUSE HE DOESN'T QUALIFY BECAUSE TEST WISE, HE LOOKS GREAT ON PAPER. THIS SCHOOL YEAR THEY SAID NO. WHEN HE WENT TO CLASS, MR. ALEX, HIS ABA THERAPIST WASN'T ALLOWED TO COME IN AND THE TEACHER PROCEEDS TO PUT HIM OUT THE CLASSROOM WHEN HE STARTS HAVING THESE ISSUES. WE RECENTLY GOT IT COMPLETED AND APPROVED YESTERDAY BECAUSE IT

052SHOULD HAVE NEVER BEEN TAKEN AWAY. BUT FOR MY CHILD TO NOT WANT TO GO TO SCHOOL IS VERY MUCH ANXIOUS AND OVERWHELMED BECAUSE HE ACTUALLY NEEDS THE THERAPIST IN THE CLASSROOM AND THE THERAPIST IS -- ONLY OR ACTUALLY ON CAMPUS FROM THE START OF HIS DAY UNTIL THE END. IT'S CRAZY. BECAUSE HE'S IN THE SCHOOL. SO I JUST REALLY WOULD LIKE FOR YOU GUY TUESDAY HAVE A POLICY SO THAT CHILDREN DON'T HAVE TO GO THROUGH THAT, BECAUSE EMOTIONALLY THAT'S NOT GOOD. SO THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER. GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS GIANI HUNT. I'M THE PARENT OF THREE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY STUDENTS. I'M A PROUD ADVOCATE FOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS. AND I WANT TO THANK YOU GUYS FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK AND I WANT TO THANK THE PARENTS, ALL THE PARENTS HERE TODAY.

053ESPECIALLY THE ONES -- IF YOU HAVE TO BRING YOUR KIDS HERE, THANK YOU SO MUCH. AND THE ABA TEAM WHO ARE ADVOCATING FOR OUR STUDENTS, THANK YOU. TODAY I WANT TO SPEAK ON SOMETHING. I READ THE 220 PLUS PAGES OF THE FINANCIAL REPORT. MY BRAIN IS A LITTLE MUSH BUT I DID IT. I WANT TO ADDRESS THE FOLLOWING DISCONNECT BETWEEN THE SCHOOL BOARD'S FINANCIAL DECISIONS AND ITS RESPONSIBILITY TOORY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. THERE ARE 51 CHARTER SCHOOLS CURRENTLY SPONSORED BY THE DISTRICT. THESE CHARTER SCHOOLS ARE LEGALLY SEPARATE ENTITIES. ACCORDING TO YOUR FINANCIAL REPORT, CHARTERS ARE LISTED IN SEPARATE COLUMNS UNDER SEPARATE JURISDICTIONS AND AUDITED INDEPENDENTLY. THEY ARE NOT PART OF OUR SYSTEM WHEN IT COMES TO ACCOUNTABILITY, YET THEY'RE TREATED AS SO WHEN IT COMES TO FUNDING. ACCORDING TO THE LATEST POSTED FINANCIAL REPORT, CHARTER SCHOOLS EXPENDITURE

054INCREASED BY 13% WHILE PUBLIC SCHOOLS INCREASED BY LESS THAN 4%. ALL THE WHILE OUR SUPPORT STAFF STRUGGLED TO EARN A LIVING WAGE. AND OUR TITLE 1 SCHOOLS FACED ENROLLMENT DECLINES. WE CONTINUE TO APPROVE NEW CHARTER PIPELINES AND FEEDER AGREEMENTS WITHOUT PUBLIC IMPACT ANALYSIS. NOW I ALSO WANT TO TOUCH ON THE SCHOOLS OF HOPE. THIS POLICY THAT ALLOWS CHARTER OPERATORS TO BYPASS LOCAL BOARD APPROVAL AND SET UP SHOP IN STRUGGLING SCHOOLS. THESE SCHOOLS ARE OFTEN UNDER RESOURCED BECAUSE OF SYSTEMIC NEGLECT, NOT THE EDUCATORS OR STUDENTS. THIS IS NOT A FAILURE ON THE INDIVIDUALS THERE. THESE SCHOOLS OF HOPE, THEY ACTUALLY DON'T OFFER HOPE. WHAT IT'S OFFERING IS AN EXTRACTION. IT DRAINS STUDENTS, STAFF, AND FUNDING FROM THE VERY SCHOOLS THAT NEED THE MOST INVESTMENT. THESE ARE THE SCHOOLS THAT NEED THE MOST SUPPORT. IF CHARTER SCHOOLS

055ARE LEGALLY SEPARATE, WHY ARE THEY ALLOWED TO COMMINGLE WITH OUR PUBLICLY FUNDED SCHOOLS. WHY ARE WE SUBSIDIZING GROWTH WHILE OUR OWN SCHOOLS ARE ASKED TO DO MORE WITH LESS. YOU HAD PARENTS SPEAKING HERE TODAY ABOUT -- AND THEY WERE ASKING TO INVEST MORE IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS. DOBY IS A PRIME EXAMPLE. PARENTS ARE LOOKING FOR A SOLUTION WITHIN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS. I URGE THIS BOARD TO REQUIRE EQUITY AUDITS BEFORE APPROVING NEW CHARTERS OR FEEDER AGREEMENTS TO PUSH BACK AGAINST SCHOOLS OF HOPE EXPANSION AND DEMAND LOCAL CONTROL. AND PRIORITIZE SUSTAINABLE INVESTMENT IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND STAFF THAT REMAIN UNDER YOUR CURRENT CONTROL. YOU KNOW WHAT, WE CAN'T AFFORD TO FUND BOTH SYSTEMS AND WE KNOW THAT ONE IS ACCOUNTABLE TO THE PUBLIC AND THE OTHER ONE IS NOT. SO I URGE YOU TO MAKE THE CORRECT

056DECISION HERE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. WE WILL NOW MOVE ON TO THE CONSENT AGENDA. SUPERINTENDENT AYRES? Van Ayres: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. AND MADAM CHAIR, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, FOR THE SAKE OF TRANSPARENCY I WANT TO CONFIRM THAT ALL ITEMS ON THE CONSENT AGENDA HAVE BEEN THOROUGHLY REVIEWED WITH EACH BOARD MEMBER AND STAFF AND ANY REQUESTED CLARIFICATIONS HAVE BEEN PROVIDED. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER COMBS AND A SECOND BY MEMBER WASHINGTON. PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. IT PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. THE CONSENT AGENDA HAS BEEN APPROVED. I WILL NOW CALL ON SUPERINTENDENT AYRES TO HIGHLIGHT OUR ADMINISTRATIVE APPOINTMENTS. Van Ayres: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. BOARD MEMBERS, WE HAD ONE PRINCIPAL APPOINTMENT ON THE CONSENT

057AGENDA TODAY. I WANT TO TAKE A MOMENT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT. THERE IS HIS PICTURE. IT'S GREAT TO SEEO SO MANY OF THE COLLINS TEACHERS AND PARENTS IN SUPPORT OF MR. RON SMILY. COME ON UP AND COME TO THE CENTER HERE. THIS IS MR. RON SMILY, THE NEW PRINCIPAL OF COLLINS K-8. AND BOARD MEMBERS, JUST A LITTLE BIT ABOUT MR. SMILEY. HE BEGAN HIS CAREER IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY IN 1999, PART-TIME IN THE ESE DEPARTMENT AT BING ELEMENTARY FROM 1999 TO 2000 AT CLAIRE MONT AND BING. 2000 TAUGHT VE STUDENTS AT BING ELEMENTARY EXCLUSIVELY. 2007, SERVED AS AN ESE SPECIALIST -- I DIDN'T KNOW THAT. 2010 , HE WAS APPOINTED AP, ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL AT KINGSWOOD ELEMENTARY. HE TRANSFERRED TO DOBY IN 2014 AS ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL. AND IN 2018, MR. SMILEY WAS APPOINTED ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL AT COLLINS K-8

058WHERE HE IS CURRENTLY SERVING UNTIL NOW, OUR NEW PRINCIPAL AT COLLINS K-8, MR. RON SMILEY. CONGRATULATIONS. CONGRATULATIONS, MR. SMILEY. AGAIN, GREAT TO SEE SO MANY OF THE COLLINS TEACHERS IN SUPPORT. I HAVE WITH THAT ANNOUNCEMENT, THE REASON WE HAVE THE NEW PRINCIPAL OF COLLINS IS BECAUSE WE HAVE A RETIRING PRINCIPAL. REBECCA, IF YOU COULD COME DOWN PLEASE. SO EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY FOR MR. SMILEY BUT I THINK EVERYONE ON THE BOARD KNOWS THE IMPACT THAT REBECCA GABLE HAS HAD ON THE SCHOOL DISTRICT. A LITTLE BIT ABOUT REBECCA. SHE BEGAN HER CAREER IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS AT SULFUR SPRINGS IN 1996. SHE WAS APPOINTED TO AP AT ROOSEVELT IN 2008. AND IN 2012, SHE WAS APPOINTED PRINCIPAL AT LANEER AND THAT'S WHERE I GOT TO KNOW REBECCA REAL WELL. WE WERE BOTH PRINCIPALS IN AREA ONE. IN

0592015 SHE WAS APPOINTED PRINCIPAL AT COLLINS WHERE HER EXCEPTIONAL LEADERSHIP GUIDED THE SCHOOL THROUGH ITS TRANSITION TO A K-8 CAMPUS AND THIS IS NOW YEAR THREE. I KNOW THAT WAS QUITE THE TRANSITION MOVING FROM COLLINS ELEMENTARY TO -- YOU'RE GIVING MR. DARK IS A DIRTY LOOK. I SAW THAT. AND INTERESTING ENOUGH, SHE WAS OUR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY FIRST COHORT IN 2018 SO WE TALK ABOUT OUR FELLOWS WE HAD. IT'S BEEN A BIG PART OF THE DISTRICT SINCE 2018 AND SHE -- SHE NOW SERVES AS A CON ADVISOR TO ADDITIONAL MEMBERS FOLLOWING THE PROGRAM'S COMPLETION. HER DEDICATION INSPIRED COUNTLESS EDUCATORS AND STUDENTS CREATING A LEGACY THAT WILL BE CHERISHED FOR YEARS TO COME. REBECCA, CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR RETIREMENT. YOU'LL BE MISSED GREATLY. MADAM CHAIR, THAT'S THE ONE APPOINTMENT. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: I DON'T KNOW IF ANYONE

060WANTS TO GO TO CELEBRATIONS AND EXIT THE ROOM. I'LL GIVE YOU A COUPLE MINUTES TO DO SO. Van Ayres: NOW IS YOUR CHANCE. Karen Perez: AND CONGRATULATIONS AGAIN. THE FOLLOWING ITEMS WILL NOW BE HEARD. C6.01, C7.11, C7.13, AND C10.01. C.01, BUDGET AMENDMENTS FOR THE PERIOD SEPTEMBER 1, 2025, ENDING SEPTEMBER 30, 2025. DAN DANIELLE SHOTWELL, GENERAL MANAGER OF BUDGET WILL HIGHLIGHT THIS ITEM. GOOD EVENING. I'M HERE TODAY TO PRESENT THE SEPTEMBER BUDGET AMENDMENTS. AS A REMINDER, SEPTEMBER 9, WE WERE ABLE TO ADOPT THE FINAL BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR '26 AND THAT WAS APPROVED BY THIS BOARD ON SEPTEMBER 9. THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, WE WILL DO TEN BUDGET AMENDMENTS AND DOING THOSE BUDGET AMENDMENTS IS SO THAT WE CAN REFLECT ANY ADJUSTMENTS IN THE BUDGET BASED ON ANTICIPATED REVENUES AND EXPENDITURES WITHIN EACH FUND. CURRENTLY I'M SHOWING,

061WHICH WE HAVE ALL GONE OVER, BUT THE GENERAL FUND -- REMEMBER, THIS IS THE SEPTEMBER BUDGET AMENDMENT. SEPTEMBER 9 TO SEPTEMBER 30, ONLY THREE WEEKS, THERE IS NOT SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN THE GENERAL FUND IN THAT TIME. IN FACT, THE BUDGET ITSELF HAS BEEN UNCHANGED. WHERE WE DID MAKE AN ADJUSTMENT IS WITHIN THE FUND ITSELF WHERE WE DID MOVE SOMETHING TO WHERE IT IS ACTUALLY HITTING THE FUND WHICH WOULD BE FOR FOOD SERVICES FOR OUR REFERENDUM. ALL REFERENDUM PAYMENTS ARE COMING OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND. WHEN WE LOOK AT THIS HERE, THIS SHOWS WHERE IT'S BEING MOVED FROM THE 5,000 FUNCTION DOWN TO FOOD SERVICES. WE WILL CONTINUE TO DO THAT EACH MONTH BECAUSE FOOD SERVICES DOES NOT PAY FOR THE REFERENDUM PAYMENTS. THAT COMES OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND. LOOKING AT OUR ACTUALS AT THIS

062TIME OF YEAR, WE DO KNOW THAT AT THIS TIME OF YEAR, OUR EXPENDITURES OUTPACE OUR REVENUE. AND THAT'S IMPORTANT TO MAKE NOTE OF BECAUSE THAT IS DUE TO OUR LOCAL PROPERTY TAXES THAT HAVE NOT STARTED COMING IN YET. THAT'S ANTICIPATED. IT'S EXPECTED AT THIS TIME OF YEAR. SO BECAUSE OF THAT, YOU DO SEE A NET CHANGE IN THE GENERAL FUND BALANCE BUT THAT'S DUE TO US PAYING OUT THE REFERENDUM TO START THE YEAR, WHICH WE STARTED PAYING OUT JULY 1 BEFORE THE PAYMENTS WERE COMING OUT BUT WE KNEW THAT WAS THE RIGHT THING FOR EMPLOYEES AND WE COULD DO SO. THE LOCAL PROPERTY TAXES WILL MAINLY START COMING IN NEAR THE END OF NOVEMBER WITH THE BULK IN DECEMBER AND JANUARY WHERE THAT WILL CATCH UP. AND THAT IS THE SYNOPSIS OF OUR BUDGET AMENDMENTS

063FOR SEPTEMBER. IF THERE IS ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD? Karen Perez: I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE ITEM C6.01. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER GRAY AND A SECOND BY MEMBER WASHINGTON. MEMBER GRAY, YOU PULLED THIS ITEM. DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? Lynn Gray: THANK YOU, MEMBER PEREZ. AND THANK YOU, MS. SHOTWELL. I DO HAVE A QUESTION. YOU DID EXPLAIN THE 7% NOW WE'RE DOWN TO ON THE FUND BALANCE. AND WHAT I WANTED TO KNOW, ISN'T THERE ALSO A VARIABLE THAT INCLUDES THE RATIONALE THAT WE HAVE ALSO PAID FOR THE INSTRUCTIONAL EXPENDITURE BECAUSE WE GAVE THE EACHERS AND THE ADMINISTRATORS A RAISE. IS THAT PART OF THE REASON WHY THE DECLINE IS TO BE SEEN IN THE FUND BALANCE? FOR THE SEPTEMBER BUDGET AMENDMENT, THAT WON'T BE EVIDENT. THAT WILL BE

064EVIDENT WHEN WE BUILD IN RAISES TO THE BUDGET BECAUSE THOSE RAISES WERE NOT EFFECTIVE UNTIL THIS OCTOBER. WHEN WE DO THE OCTOBER BUDGET AMENDMENT, YOU'LL SEE THAT POTENTIALLY HITTING THE BUDGET. IT'S MOSTLY BECAUSE OF THE REFERENDUM BEING PAID STARTING JULY, BUT NOT HAVING ANY OF THAT REVENUE IN YET. SO THAT IS THE MAIN REASON THAT YOU SEE IT AS WELL AS THE CASH FLOW AT THIS TIME OF YEAR. EVEN BEFORE THE REFERENDUM WE ALWAYS HAD A LOWER CASH FLOW AT THIS TIME OF YEAR. SO YOU WILL ALWAYS SEE US DIP MORE INTO OUR AVAILABLE CASH IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO PAY OUR EMPLOYEES APPROPRIATELY UNTIL THAT LOCAL PROPERTY TAX REVENUE COMES IN STARTING IN NOVEMBER AND MOSTLY DECEMBER AND JANUARY. Lynn Gray: AND THANK YOU FOR THAT REPLY. I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SOFT

065MORE AND PERHAPS MR. GETIES, YOU CAN ANSWER THAT. WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE FLUIDITY OF STUDENTS, WHICH IS EQUAL TO OUR FTE REVENUE FROM CHARTER SCHOOLS BACK TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS. FROM PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO HOME SCHOOL AND KEEPING TRACK OF THE STUDENTS. DO WE HAVE THE SOFTWARE TO REALLY -- TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ON -- WE'RE TALKING ABOUT FUND BALANCE. AND THANK YOU, MS. SHOTWELL. BUT THIS IS A SITUATION WHERE THE FUND BALANCE CAN BE IMPACTED PER MONTH, POSSIBLY. I WANTED TO GET YOUR TAKE ON, YOU KNOW, THE AMOUNT OF SOFTWARE THAT WE HAVE TO REALLY DO THIS WITH FULL FIDELITY. I'M TALKING FTE, STAFFING, AND THOSE KINDS OF WAYS OF WORK WE SEE A LOT OF FINANCIAL ADJUSTMENTS. YES, MEMBER GRAY. I'D SAY WHAT WE'RE SEEING SO FAR WITH FOCUS COMING IN ON BOARD

066AS COMPARED TO SYNERGY LAST YEAR, OUR NUMBERS ARE MUCH MORE ACCURATE. I THINK LOOKING AT SURVEY TWO GOING THROUGH THE ADJUSTMENTS WE'RE AT 99% ACCURACY AS COMPARED TO WHERE WE WERE SITTING LAST YEAR WITH FOCUS -- OR SORRY, SYNERGY. SO I'D SAY THE SOFTWARE IS PERFORMING MUCH BETTER AND WE'LL BE ABLE TO MAXIMIZE OUR FTE BUDGETING WITH THAT SOFTWARE MOVING FORWARD YEAR TO YEAR. Lynn Gray: THAT'S GREAT NEWS, SUPERINTENDENT VAN AYRES. WE'RE TALKING 99% ACCURACY. 99% ACCURACY SO FAR AND WORKING THE LAST FEW AREAS COMING THROUGH FROM THE STATE. Van Ayres: I'LL SAY MEMBER GRAY AND THE FOCUS TEAM ARE WORKING WITH THE TEAM THROUGH THE WHOLE FTE PROCESS HAS BEEN PHENOMENAL. THE AMOUNT OF UPDATES AND THE TEAM WORKING WITH THEM AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO PROVIDE THE UPDATES. IT'S BEEN VERY REMARKABLE TO SEE

067WHERE WE'VE COME FROM ONE YEAR'S TIME TO WHERE WE ARE NOW WITH THE FTE REPORTING. PROUD OF OUR TEAM AND THAT COLLABORATION. Lynn Gray: GREAT NEWS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK, MR. GETTIES AND MS. SHOTWELL. THAT'S IT. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. MEMBER RENDON? Patti Rendon: THANK YOU, MEMBER PEREZ. WE TALKED ABOUT THE 51 CHARTER SCHOOLS AND HOW THE EXPENDITURES WERE DIFFERENT THAN OURS. THEY RECEIVE THE SAME FTE WE DO. THEY CHOOSE TO USE EXPENDITURES DIFFERENTLY THAN WE DO. AT THE END OF THE DAY I'D 100% AGREE WITH YOU. WE AS A DISTRICT, ARE WE FOCUSING ON OUR SCHOOLS AND OTHER DEPARTMENTS THAT CHARTER SCHOOLS DON'T HAVE. SO I THINK THAT NEEDS TO -- WHEN IT COMES TO SCHOOLS OF HOPE AND CHECKING AND MONITORING WHERE STUDENTS GO, I ENCOURAGE THAT INDIVIDUALS IN THIS

068AUDIENCE THAT HAVE A CONCERN OR ISSUE OF THAT HIGHLY, HIGHLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU CONTACT THE INDIVIDUALS WITHIN OUR DISTRICT, WITHIN THE STATE THAT ARE MAKING THE DECISIONS. BECAUSE HERE IN THIS DISTRICT AND I'LL SPEAK FOR MYSELF, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE TAKE CARE OF THE STUDENTS THAT ARE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. WE BELIEVE WE PROVIDE THE BEST EDUCATION IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY THAT WE CAN PROVIDE AND WE WANT TO DO THAT. SO WHEN IT COMES TO THE BUDGET, I'M 100% BEHIND YOU THAT I THINK THERE ARE WAYS IN WHICH WE SHOULD ALWAYS BE LOOKING AT AND MAKING SURE WE'RE PROVIDING OUR SCHOOLS WITH THE RESOURCES AND NEEDS THEY INDIVIDUALLY HAVE. I THINK THAT'S AN ONGOING PROCESS WE'RE TRYING TO WORK WITH. I'LL SPEAK FOR MYSELF. I CAN'T SPEAK FOR OTHER BOARD MEMBERS. I'M SURE THEY'D

069BE INGREEMENT THEY'RE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR WAYS TO IMPROVE OUR SCHOOLS. WE BELIEVE WE HAVE THE BEST SCHOOLS WE'RE WORKING WITH. SO MAKE SURE WHEN WE LOOK AT THE BUDGET AND THE AREAS ARE DEFINED DIFFERENTLY, IT'S NOT BECAUSE THEY RECEIVE DIFFERENT MONEY. IT'S THE BUDGET, THEY'RE CHOOSING TO SPEND IT DIFFERENTLY THAN WE DO. WE ALL GET THE SAME REIMBURSEMENT. IT'S JUST A CHOICE OPTION. WHEN IT COMES TO THE FUND BALANCE, THANK YOU FOR KEEPING US ABREAST OF THAT. WE UNDERSTAND WE'LL DIP BELOW THE 3% UNTIL WE REACH BACK UP UNTIL WE RECEIVE THE REVENUE AND REFERENDUM PAYMENTS. I THINK THERE IS ROOM TO GROW AND IMPROVE AND WE NEED TO LOOK BETTER AT, ALTHOUGH WE'RE GAINING OUR ATTENDANCE BETTER, WE STILL NEED TO HAVE A BETTER SYSTEM IN WHICH WE'RE ABLE TO RECONCILE WHAT WE BILL

070AND BRING IN. I THINK IT'S A CONSTANT NEED OUR DISTRICT NEEDS TO IMPROVE ON AND I'M THANKFUL THE I.T. DEPARTMENT IS WORKING WITH THE ACCOUNTING DEPARTMENT TO MAKE SURE THAT HAPPENS THE BEST WAY WE CAN BECAUSE WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT'S LESS -- A NON-FLAWED SYSTEM SO WE'RE ABLE TO MAXIMIZE OUR INCOME AND MAKE THE BEST DECISIONS WE CAN. THANK YOU FOR WORKING HARD ON DOING THAT. Karen Perez: THANK YOU, MEMBER RE RENDON. MEMBER COMBS? Nadia Combs: I ALSO WANT TO THANK, THANK YOU MEMBER RENDON FOR MAKING EVERYONE AWARE THE FUNDING IS THE SAME. THE RESULTS ARE DIFFERENT AND THERE ARE HIGH-QUALITY CHARTER SCHOOLS BUT OVERALL, A LOT ARE DEFINITELY LESS ADEQUATE OVERALL AND YOU CAN LOOK AT THAT BECAUSE THERE IS A LACK OF OVERSIGHT. ALSO, YOU CAN HAVE NON-CERTIFIED TEACHERS. LIKE LAST

071WEEK WE SAW SOMEBODY RUNNING A SCHOOL FOR 20 YEARS THAT HAD NO EDUCATION BACKGROUND AND ADMINISTRATION BACKGROUND. YOU CAN'T FIND A SINGLE SCHOOL IN OUR 236 SCHOOLS THAT YOU'LL FIND THAT. AND ALL THE INITIAL FUNDING FROM CHARTER SCHOOLS AND GETTING LAND MONEY LIKE MONEY PAID LIKE THE LAST TIME SOMEBODY BEING A LANDLORD AND PAYING SOMEBODY $12,000. I'D TEND TO DISAGREE THAT WE HAVE -- THERE IS GREAT CHARTER SCHOOLS BUT OVERALL, IF YOU COMPARE THEM TO THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS, OUR SCHOOLS ARE EXCEEDING BY FAR. I CAN LOOK IN MY AREA AND WHAT VICTORY CHARTER SCHOOL CLOSED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE YEAR. DIDN'T LET ANYBODY KNOW. THEY HAD NO OPPORTUNITY AND ALL THE SCHOOLS AROUND THERE WERE As. SO AS MUCH AS I APPRECIATE YOU TALKING ABOUT THE POSITIVITY, I THINK THAT I'LL CHOOSE THE PUBLIC

072SCHOOLS ANY TIME WITH THE FUNDING AND I THINK OUR RESULTS FROM WHAT WE HAVE AND WHAT WE'RE GETTING FROM THE RESULTS AND HOW WE'RE SPENDING OUR MONEY, HAVING BOARD MEMBERS OVERSEEING IT AND HAVING A LARGE GROUP OF PEOPLE -- THERE IS A GREAT DEAL OF OVERSIGHT WITH LARGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS COMPARED TO THE LACK OF OVERSIGHT IS DEFINITELY FACTUAL. Karen Perez: THANK YOU, MEMBER COMBS. SEEING NO FURTHER DISCUSSION, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. IT PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. NEXT ITEM IS 7.11, 2025-2026 DISTRICT EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES PLAN. SUPERINTENDENT AYRES WILL HIGHLIGHT THIS ITEM. Van Ayres: THANK YOU. BOARD MEMBERS, YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH THIS ITEM AS YOU SEE THIS EVERY YEAR TWICE A YEAR. FLORIDA STATUTE REQUIRES THE SCHOOL BOARD TO ANNUALLY ADOPT A DISTRICT FACILITIES PLAN. ALSO KNOWN AS A FIVE-YEAR WORK PLAN OUTLINING FACILITY NEEDS OVER 5,

07310 AND 20 YEARS. IT COVERS PROJECTED REVENUES, ENROLLMENT GROWTH, CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS, RENOVATIONS, CLASS SIZE IMPACTS AND THE USE OF MOD MODULARS ALL ALIGN WOULD COMPREHENSIVE PLANS. THE TENTATIVE PLAN WAS APPROVED IN 2025 AND FOUND CONSISTENT WITH ALL COMPREHENSIVE PLANS BY THE PLANNING COMMISSION SEPTEMBER 8. WITH DIVERSIFIED FUNDING FROM MILLAGE AND THE INVESTMENT TAX AND IMPACT FEES, IT EXPANDS CAPACITY AND ADDRESS LONG-TERM STUDENT POPULATION NEEDS. MADAM CHAIR, THAT'S 7.11. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE ITEM C7.11. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER RENDON AND A SECOND BY MEMBER COMBS. MEMBER RENDON, YOU PULLED THIS ITEM. Patti Rendon: SO OVER THE COURSE OF THE LAST TWO MONTHS, MANY THINGS HAVE COME TO LIGHT HERE IN THE DISTRICT. WE HAD MANY CHANGES AND MANY LETTERS THAT HAVE BEEN SENT TO THE

074DISTRICT ON PROPOSED CHANGES THEY'D LIKE TO MAKE IN FLORIDA AND INCLUDING 24 DIFFERENT SCHOOLS HERE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. WITH THAT IN MIND, THIS PLAN WAS NOT ADDRESSED AND NOT LOOKED AT OR CHANGED IN ANY SORT OF WAY TO ADDRESS THOSE CHANGING NEEDS. ALSO, THIS PLAN BUZZ NOT TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THE EAST COUNTY PLANT CITY AREA FOR POTENTIAL ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOL. I WOULD ALSO SAY THAT BASED UPON CONVERSATIONS I HAD WITH THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS AND ASKED OVER THE PAST FIVE MONTHS AND NOW DETERMINED THE INABILITY TO PROVIDE, WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT WHAT DOES IT COST TO PUT A STUDENT IN ONE OF OUR SCHOOLS. WHETHER IT'S A MAGNET SCHOOL OR -- ONE OF OUR TRADITIONAL SCHOOLS, WHAT IS THAT COST PER CHILD AND HOW ARE WE MAKING DECISIONS TO MAXIMIZE THE GROWTH

075THAT WE CAN HAVE IN A SCHOOL AND STILL BE ABLE TO UTILIZE THE MONEY IN OTHER AVENUES WHETHER IT'S CURRICULUM, SPORTS OR WHAT HAVE YOU. WE HAVE NO BASIS OF UNDERSTANDING THAT SO THEREFORE WE HAVE NO BASIS OF KNOWING, IS IT WORTH IT TO ADD ON A WING WHEN WE HAVE NO GUARANTEE OF ENROLLMENT WHERE WE'RE POTENTIALLY PUTTING UP ANOTHER AREA FOR ANOTHER SCHOOL TO COME IN AND TAKE OVER. IS IT MORE BENEFICIAL TO LOOK AT WIMAUMA AND MAKE IT A K-8 BASED UPON THE FACT THAT WE CAN COMPLETELY ENROLL WHEN WE OPEN. THOSE ARE THINGS WE DON'T HAVE ANSWERS TO NOW THAT I BELIEVE IT'S IRRESPONSIBLE FOR US TO APPROVE A PLAN WITHOUT MANY OF THOSE QUESTIONS BEING ASKED. WE HAVE NO IDEA THE LEGAL GUIDELINES NOW ON WHETHER SCHOOLS OF HOPE HAVE THE

076LEGAL ABILITY TO WALK IN AT ANY POINT IN TIME, WHETHER WE AGREE, HOW ARE WE IDENTIFYING TRULY WHAT'S NEEDED IN A SCHOOL. CAN WE HAVE STAFFING THAT DOESN'T TAKE UP FOR THAT. WE DON'T HAVE A LOT OF QUESTIONS ANSWERED TO BE ABLE TO APPROVE SUCH A PLAN ABOUT WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS. THE FACT THIS WAS NEVER AMENDED OR CHANGED AFTER SUCH A LARGE EVENT HAPPENING IN THE LAST MONTH, I CAN'T APPROVE WITHOUT HAVING SO MANY OPEN ENDED QUESTIONS OF SAYING, THIS IS THE RIGHT MOVEMENT FOR OUR DISTRICT. AND ONCE THIS IS APPROVED, IS THAT THE DIRECTION OF OUR DISTRICT. IS IT GOING TO COME BACK AND SAY. I KNOW THAT PEOPLE SAID, IT'S ONLY A PLAN. BUT THEN I ALSO HAD PEOPLE SAY, WE'RE DOING THIS BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT

077YOU AGREED UPON ON A PLAN. I CAN'T AGREE ON SOMETHING WITHOUT LOOKING AT ALL THE FACTORS. LOOKING AT THE FINANCIAL GAINS AND WILL WE LEAVE A WING OPEN. WHEN IT COMES TO ALONSO, I FEEL STRONGLY THEY NEEDED A CULINARY PROGRAM WHICH I BELIEVE THIS IS WHAT THAT EXPANSION WAS GOING TO DO. BUT YET WHEN WE HAVE SCHOOLS OF HOPE AS BEING A POSSIBLE THREAT TO A SCHOOL THAT DOESN'T FULLY GO TO CAPACITY, I'D LIKE TO KNOW WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE AND ARE WE GOING TO BE ABLE TO ABSORB IT OR BECAUSE I DON'T FILL WITH 300 MORE STUDENTS, ARE THEY GOING TO TAKE OVER THE CULINARY PROGRAM. THEY WANT TO TAKE OVER A SCIENCE LAB AND AUDITORIUM. I WANT TO MAKE SURE WHATEVER WE'RE GOING TO DO AND PLAN TO DO WILL BE SAFE FOR

078THIS DISTRICT AND GO TO THE STUDENTS IN OUR DISTRICT AND THE NEEDS OF OUR DISTRICT. AND SO RIGHT NOW, I DON'T BELIEVE THOSE QUESTIONS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED. AND WITHOUT THOSE QUESTIONS BEING ANSWERED AND TRULY LOOKING AT ALL THE POSSIBLE NEEDS IN THE STRICT, I CAN'T SUPPORT THIS AT THIS TIME. THERE IS JUST TOO MANY CHANGES WITH TOO MANY UNANSWERED QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU, MEMBER RENDON. MEMBER GRAY. Lynn Gray: I APPRECIATE -- THANK YOU, MEMBER PEREZ -- THOSE COMMENTS AND REMARKS. BUT ALSO -- WHAT NOW? MEMBER PEREZ. I'M SORRY. SO, THE PROBLEM WHEN WE USE THE WORD "WE" I FEEL VERY CONFIDENT AS I'VE SEEN PLANS PUT BEFORE ME FOR THE LAST EIGHT YEARS I'M NOT DOUBTING, SO I'D LIKE TO BE ON RECORD TO AT LEAST -- DO NOT PUT "WE" BECAUSE

079I'M NOT AGREEING WITH THE STATEMENTS. THAT'S WHAT I WANTED TO SAY FOR THE RECORD. THANK YOU. Van Ayres: JUST FOR THE RECORD, FOR THE OTHER BOARD MEMBERS ON THIS PARTICULAR ITEM, THIS EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES PLAN IS FLORIDA STATUTE THAT IT'S ADOPTED ANNUALLY AND THERE IS TWO PARTS TO IT. STARTS ON JULY WITH THE PRE THEN MR. FARKAS AND HIS TEAM SEND IT TO THE LOCAL MUNICIPALITIES TO REVIEW AND APPROVE AND THEN IT COMES BACK TO THE BOARD. THAT HAPPENS ANNUALLY BY FLORIDA STATUTE. I WANT TO ADD SCHOOLS OF HOPE, WE'RE LOOKING AT THAT, BUT KNOW THIS LAW WAS PASSED JUNE 30 AND THEN WE JUST GOT BOARD RULE ON THAT SEPTEMBER 24. SO THIS IS AS MEMBER RENDON MENTIONED, A PLAN. NOTHING IS APPROVED UNTIL IT COMES BEFORE THE BOARD AS A GMP. THANK YOU, MS.

080RENDON. I HEAR YOU. Karen Perez: IF THERE IS NO FURTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND IT PASSES WITH MEMBER RENDON DESCENDING FROM THE VOTE. THE NEXT ITEM IS ITEM 7.13, INCREASE IN EXPENDITURES FOR INVITATION TO BID WATER AND WASTE TREATMENT FACILITIES SERVICES. SUPERINTENDENT VAN AYRES WILL HIGHLIGHT THIS ITEM. Van Ayres: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. THESE ITEMS COME BEFORE AND YOU LEARN SOMETHING. THIS IS OUR WATER AND WASTEWATER TREATMENT FACILITIES. WE CURRENTLY -- OUR SCHOOLS PROVIDE WELL WATER. THAT'S 11 SCHOOLS. THIS PROVIDES CERTIFIED SAMPLING SERVICES FOR THE DISTRICTS WASTEWATER AND PORTABLE WATER PLANT STATIONS AS REQUIRED BY FLORIDA STATUTES TO HELP DISTRICT STAFF WITH SAMPLING, TESTING, MINOR REPAIRS AND CERTIFICATION PROCESS AS REQUIRED BY THE STATE. AGAIN, THIS ITEM IS FOR THE 11 SCHOOLS THAT REQUIRE -- THE WATERS THROUGH THE

081WELL AND NOT CITY WATER IN OUR DISTRICT. Karen Perez: THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT. I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE ITEM C7.13. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER RENDON AND A SECOND BY MEMBER COMBS. MEMBER COMBS, YOU PULLED THIS ITEM. DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? Nadia Combs: YES, THANK YOU, MEMBER PEREZ. I ALWAYS PULL AN ITEM WHEN I SEE AND MR. FARKAS, WE TALKED ABOUT THIS. IN 2022, IT WAS A $32,000 COST AND NOW IT'S 360,000. I ALWAYS LIKE TO COMMENT WHEN YOU SEE AN INCREASE IN EXPENDITURE LESS THAN $50 PER CHILD WHERE THERE IS LESS AND LESS FUNDING AND YOU'RE SEEING A HUGE INCREASE IN A LOT OF OUR CONTRACTS AND I KNOW YOU EXPLAINED TO ME WHY THAT INCREASE WAS, AND IF YOU COULD JUST REITERATE IT. I'D APPRECIATE IT.

082Christopher Farkas: YOU BET. I APPRECIATE THE QUESTION. WE HAVE 11 SITES THAT WE PROVIDE THE WATER FOR. THERE IS A CERTIFICATION -- YOU HAVE TO GO THROUGH A WHOLE PROCESS FOR THAT. AS I WORKED WITH DR. PATTON, THE REALITY IS WE DON'T PAY AS MUCH AS THE OTHER WATER TESTING FACILITIES PAY. WE HAD OPEN POSITIONS THERE. SO IT WOULD BE A LOT LESS EXPENSIVE FOR US TO DO IT AND THAT'S THE INCREASED COST. WE'RE PAYING SOMEONE FROM THE OUTSIDE TO DO THE TESTS. WE'RE GLAD THAT DR. PATTON AND THE HR DEPARTMENT WAS BROUGHT IN TO DO SALARY STUDIES AROUND SOME OF THE POSITIONS. THIS IS A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF ONE THAT WE NEED TO TAKE OUT AND LOOK AT PAYING OUR OWN PEOPLE MORE MONEY RATHER THAN PAYING A VENDOR. IN THE MEANTIME WE HAVE

083TO PAY SOMEONE AND TEST. THERE IS LAWS MAKING SURE WE HAVE CLEAN WATER AND WASTEWATER THAT GOES OUT THERE. SO YOUR QUESTION IS RIGHT. IT'S GONE UP. BUT UNFORTUNATELY IT'S NOT BECAUSE OF ANYTHING OTHER THAN THE FACT WE HAVE TO PAY AN OUTSIDE VENDOR TO DO IT BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH CERTIFIED PEOPLE IN HOUSE TO DO IT. Nadia Combs: SO HOPEFULLY WE CAN FIND THOSE KEY JOBS AND MAKE SURE THAT WE DO AS MUCH AS WE CAN IN-HOUSE. I WAS TALKING TO SOMEONE THE OTHER DAY. AS MUCH AS WE CAN DO IN-HOUSE, WE'RE THE SEVENTH LARGEST DISTRICT IN THE COUNTRY. WE HAVE THE LARGEST NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES. I FEEL LIKE AS MUCH AS WE CAN DO IN-HOUSE AS I SAID, I HAVE A BUSINESS MIND SO FOR ME, I'M ADVOCATING FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC

084SCHOOLS. THE MORE WE CAN DO IN-HOUSE, THE LESS WE CAN RELY ON OUTSIDE VENDORS AND THE BETTER. HOPEFULLY WE CAN MOVE TOWARDS THAT ON THIS ISSUE. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. MEMBER RENDON? Patti Rendon: THANK YOU, MEMBER PEREZ. MR. FARKAS, APOLOGIZE. I WASN'T ABLE TO ASK YOU THIS QUESTION EARLIER. WE HAVE 11 SITES ON WELLS AND MANY AREAS, ESPECIALLY SOME ON THERE, THERE HAS BEEN URBAN CORE EXPANSION ON THE WATER LINES. IS THERE A BENEFIT OF STAYING ON WELLS COMPARED TO TAPPING INTO THE WATER LINES? DO WE HAVE ANY WE CAN AT THIS POINT? WHAT IS -- WHERE DO WE LAY ON THAT. Christopher Farkas: WONDERFUL QUESTION. MY STAFF WOULD LOVE TO GET ON CITY WATER. Patti Rendon: CLOSE. COUNTY. Christopher Farkas: I SHOULDN'T SAY THAT. IN MY OPINION, THERE IS NOT A BIG

085BENEFIT STAYING ON WELLS. AS THE AREA EXPANDS ANY OF THE SITES -- BECAUSE IT'S RANDOM. IT'S STRAWBERRY CREST AND DOVER AND THINGS LIKE THAT. IF THERE IS A WAY TO TIE INTO CITY WATER WE'LL DO IT EVERY TIME. WITH THE COST IT MAKES MORE MONEY. THAT'S JUST THE COST OF INSPECTION. THERE IS THE COST OF EQUIPMENT AND MAINTAINING THE EQUIPMENT. IT'S BENEFICIAL FOR US TO TIE IN EVEN IF THERE IS AN UPFRONT CAPITAL COST. THE MAINTENANCE GOES DOWN TREMENDOUSLY. IT'S A GREAT QUESTION. ANY OPPORTUNITY WE HAVE, EVEN IF WE HAVE TO PAY THAT, YOU'LL SEE US BRINGING THAT TO THE BOARD TO TIE IN. Patti Rendon: IS THERE ANY WE'RE GETTING CLOSE TO? I KNOW SOME ARE GETTING CLOSER AND EAST COUNTY AND WE HAVE A LOT IN EAST COUNTY. SO ARE WE GETTING CLOSE?

086COUNTY WATER. Christopher Farkas: GREAT QUESTION. IT DEPENDS WHERE THEY START. WHERE THE COUNTY STARTS. THEY HAVE NOW LABELED THEM AS URBAN SERVICE AREA. SO WHEN ARE THEY GOING TO START PUTTING THE PIPE IN AND WATER AND THEN WE'LL TIE THAT INTO WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE. BISHOP ROAD AND THE SOUTHEAST PART OF THE COUNTY WILL NOW BE ON CITY WATER AND SAVE US MONEY. THAT'S WHY MORGAN AS YOU KNOW BERT THAN ANYONE WAS A BIG -- BETTER THAN ANYONE WAS A BIG ISSUE BECAUSE THAT WAS ONE OF THE LAST THINGS TO GO THROUGH. Patti Rendon: COUNTY WATER. Christopher Farkas: YES, EXACTLY. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. I'M CURIOUS TO FIND OUT, HOW OFTEN DO THEY COME OUT TO INSPECT THE WATER, TEST THE WATER. I KNOW AFTER TROPICAL STORMS OR HURRICANES OR WHEN SCHOOLS ARE CLOSED FOR

087THE SUMMER, OR EVEN DURING THE HOLIDAYS, SOMETIMES THE WATER NOT MOVING THROUGH THE PIPES AND THINGS LIKE THAT, IT CAN CAUSE ISSUES. HOW OFTEN FOR THIS PRICE AMOUNT -- I KNOW YOU SAID TO INSPECT THE EQUIPMENT. THAT'S A LOT FOR INSPECTION OF EQUIPMENT. DO THEY TEST THE WATERS FOR -- THAT ARE -- OUR BABIES ARE DRINKING. Christopher Farkas: IT'S NOT JUST WHAT IS REQUIRED BY STATE. WE DO IT ON THE TIME WE HAVE IT. WE'RE OUT FOR TWO WEEKS FOR CHRISTMAS OR SUMMER, THINGS LIKE THAT, WE MAKE SURE THE TESTING COINCIDES AT THE BEGINNING OF SCHOOL BECAUSE EXACTLY WHAT YOU SAID. SEDIMENT BUILDS UP. THAT'S WHY WE RUN THE WATER FIRST AND THEN TEST IT AFTERWARDS TO MAKE SURE IT'S THROUGH THE LINES. I'LL GET OW YOU THE NUMBERS. I DON'T KNOW IT OFF THE

088TOP OF MY HEAD BUT WE ENSURE OUR TESTING PEOPLE, BACK TO MS. COMBS' QUESTION, IT'S EASIER TO HAVE IT AS OUR OWN PEOPLE BECAUSE WE CAN SEND THEM OUT WHENEVER WE WANT. AFTER THANKSGIVING BREAK, AFTER CHRISTMAS BREAK AND SUMMER BREAK AS WELL IN ADDITION TO NORMAL TESTING. Karen Perez: DO YOU DO IT AFTER A HURRICANE OR TROPICAL STORM? STUFF GETS, YOU KNOW,PISH PUSHED THROUGH WITH WATER. Christopher Farkas: IT DOES. THE BENEFIT OF US BEING ON OUR OWN WE DON'T HAVE AS BIG AN ISSUE. THAT HAPPENS IN COUNTY AND CITY MORE OFTEN THAN WELLS BECAUSE WE INSPECT THOSE AND KNOW IF THERE IS A BREACH. IF THERE IS, WE HAVE A PROCESS WITH BOTTLED WATER UNTIL WE GET IT TESTED AND THAT PART DURING HURRICANES. THAT'S THE ONE ADVANTAGE WITH THE WELL. YOU'RE NOT TIED INTO

089THE CITY SYSTEM. NONE OF THAT AFFECTS THE WELL SO THAT'S THE ONE POSITIVE. MAYBE THE ONLY POSITIVE. GOOD QUESTIONS. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. MEMBER GRAY? Lynn Gray: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. JUST WHEN I THOUGHT YOU KNEW EVERYTHING ABOUT OPERATIONS, NOW YOU KNOW ABOUT WASTEWATER. HERE IS A QUESTION YOU CAN'T ANSWER. MAYBE YOU CAN. DID THE -- DID THE REQUIREMENTS CHANGE FOR WASTEWATER QUALITY AND WITH MEMBER PEREZ'S REMARKS WHICH ARE VERY IMPORTANT, YOU KNOW, DID WE CHANGE ANYTHING? WAS IT CHANGED? Christopher Farkas: THERE WAS. FOR ALL THE OTHER WATER TESTED, WE USED TO TEST IT INTERNALLY TO THE CITY AND COUNTIES. NOW WE HAVE TO CONTINUE THE WELLS BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THE CITY OR COUNTY TO TEST THOSE. IT DID CHANGE. THE NEW PUSH IS FOREVER CHEMICALS. YOU'LL HEAR AND SEE ARTICLES IN THE PAPER

090AND THAT WAS TEMPLE TERRACE. THIS BOARD BEING PROACTIVE AS THEY ARE ALREADY APPROVED THE $1.7 MILLION IN FILTER PRERE PLACEMENT WHICH TAKES OUT 98% OF THE CHEMICALS. EVEN IF IT'S COMING FROM THE CITY OR COUNTY OR WELLS WE HAVE FILTERS THAT TAKE OUT -- NOT ALL OF THEM BUT WE'RE IN A BETTER SPOT THAN A LOT OF HOMES ARE AND OTHER PLACES IN THE CITY ARE. WE'RE AHEAD OF THE CURVE ON THAT BECAUSE THE BOARD APPROVED THE FILTER REPLACEMENT PROGRAM. IT'S HARD TO THINK OF PAYING 1.5 OR $1.7 MILLION FOR WATER FILTERS BUT THAT'S WHY YOU PAY FOR IT, TO TAKE OUT THE FOREVER CHEMICALS. Lynn Gray: IT'S GOOD FOR PARENTS AND GRAND PARENTS TO KNOW ABOUT THIS. THANK YOU, MR. FARKAS. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. Karen Perez: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. SEEING NO FURTHER

091COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS, PLEASE VOTE -- OH, MEMBER WASHINGTON. MEMBER WASHINGTON HAS A QUESTION. Henry "Shake" Washington: I CAN'T LET YOU GET AWAY, MR. FARKAS. MR. FARKAS GOT SOME ANSWERS. I'M TELLING YOU. HE'S PRETTY GOOD. HOW OFTEN DO WE TEST THE WATER? THE WELLS. Christopher Farkas: THAT WAS A GREAT QUESTION. I'LL GET YOU THE EXACT NUMBERS. I DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER. Henry "Shake" Washington: WHAT? Christopher Farkas: YOU WON THAT ONE. THANKS, SHAKE, I APPRECIATE THAT. NO. HEP I'M JUST TEASING. YEAH. Christopher Farkas: TO MR. AYRES'S POINT, IT IS NEAT TO LEARN THAT STUFF AND THE DIFFERENT PARTS THAT GO INTO THE SYSTEM. WE'RE SUCH AN ECLECTIC SYSTEM THAT WE HAVE CITY AND COUNTY AND RURAL AREAS THAT IT'S NEAT TO LEARN THAT PART. MY GUYS AT HOME ARE PROBABLY KILLING ME, WHY DON'T YOU KNOW THAT.

092JUST MEANS I'VE BEEN IN THE POSITION TOO LONG. Henry "Shake" Washington: YOU'RE GOOD, MR. FARKAS. Karen Perez: THANK YOU, MR. WASHINGTON. YOU WON TONIGHT FOR THE HARDEST QUESTION. SEEING NO FURTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND IT PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. NEXT ITEM IS 10.101. RENEWAL AND INCREASE IN EXPENDITURES FOR SUBSCRIPTION SOFTWARE LICENSES AND SERVICES FROM INFOR US INCORPORATED. Van Ayres: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. BOARD MEMBERS, YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH THIS AND THIS IS OUR ERP SYSTEM WHICH IS INFOR. THIS SERVES TO RENEW OUR ERP SOLUTION THAT THE DISTRICT EMPLOYS FOR MANAGING PAYROLL, EMPLOYEE BENEFITS, HUMAN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT AND FINANCIAL APPLICATION. THE ANNUAL COST HAS RISEN BY 15% DUE TO A 7% PRICE INCREASE AND 8% INCREASE ASSOCIATED WITH ACQUIRING ADDITIONAL LICENSES NECESSARY TO SUPPORT OUR CURRENT WORKFORCE WHICH COMPRISES FULL-TIME, PART-TIME AND OTHER

093EMPLOYMENT CATEGORIES. THE SUBSCRIPTION ENCOMPASSES THE CLOUD-BASED INFRASTRUCTURE TO OPERATE AND SUPPORT THE OPERATIONS INCLUDING PRODUCTION AND TEST AND TRAINING ENVIRONMENTS. LEVERAGING CLOUD SERVICES MITIGATES THE DISTRICT RISK AND PROVIDES OPERATIONS AND MONITORING ACROSS VARIOUS GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATIONS WITH SPECIALIZED EXPERTISE. THAT'S ITEM 10.01 AND OUR CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER, MR. GETTIS IS HERE IF YOU HAVE ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS ABOUT INFOR. Karen Perez: THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT AYRES. I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE ITEM C10.01. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER GRAY AND A SECOND BY MEMBER WASHINGTON. MEMBER GRAY, YOU PULLED THIS ITEM. DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? Lynn Gray: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. AND ACTUALLY THEY WERE ANSWERED DURING THE 6.01 FINANCE AND MR. GETTIES, THANK YOU. IF YOU'D LIKE TO GIVE ANY FURTHER EXPLANATION OR, YOU KNOW, INSIGHT INTO THIS PARTICULAR ITEM. FEEL FREE. THANK

094YOU, MEMBER GRAY. I THINK THE ONLY THING I'D LIKE TO MENTION IS THE COMMITMENT AS YOU SAID BETWEEN FINANCE, MYSELF, AND HR. TRYING TO PUSH THE SOFTWARE TO THE MAX POTENTIAL. WE HAVE A GROUP GOING TRYING TO LEVERAGE IT TO ITS FULL CAPACITY MAKING SURE WE'RE BEING REALLY DILIGENT ABOUT USING THE SOFTWARE AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE GETTING EVERYTHING WE NEED OUT OF IT AND NOT LEAVING ANYTHING ON THE TABLE. WE DO HAVE KIND OF THAT COMMUNICATION PLATFORM GOING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN US. REALLY TRYING TO MAKE SURE WE'RE DOING BEST BY THE BOARD AND DISTRICT. Lynn Gray: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. Karen Perez: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. SEEING NO FURTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND IT PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. WE WILL NOW GO TO EMPLOYEE AND STUDENT

095COMMENT. I THINK WE GOT SOME FOLKS UP THERE. WE WILL NOW TAKE EMPLOYEE AND STUDENT INPUT. EVEN THOUGH WE HEAR FROM THE PUBLIC COMMENT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MEETING, IT'S SOMETIMES DIFFICULT FOR EMPLOYEES AND STUDENTS OF OUR DISTRICT TO ATTEND MEETINGS AT 4:00 P.M. THERE ARE MANY WAYS FOR EMPLOYEES AND STUDENTS TO MAKE THEIR VOICES HEARD. INCLUDING THROUGH UNION REPRESENTATIVES, E-MAILS, PHONE CALLS, ONE ON ONE CONVERSATIONS AND PUBLIC COMMENT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MEETING. THE BOARD WANTS TO HEAR FROM YOU. WITH THIS SECTION OF OUR AGENDA, WE ARE CREATING ANOTHER AVENUE FOR EMPLOYEES AND STUDENTS TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD. WE'RE SETTING ASIDE 30 MINUTES FOR EMPLOYEES AND THE DISTRICT TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD ABOUT ANY ISSUES THAT ARE ON YOUR MIND. IT'S NOT INTENDED TO BE A DISCUSSION ABOUT SPECIFIC AGENDA

096ITEMS ON TONIGHT'S AGENDA BUT RATHER AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD ABOUT ANY ISSUES RELATED TO YOUR JOB OR DISTRICT. EACH SPEAKER WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES. I'LL CALL THE FIRST THREE SPEAKERS. ANYONE? OH, OUR BUDDY, ROB. ROB FROM CTA. I WAS GOING TO DEFER TO THE STUDENTS FIRST BUT I THINK THEY'RE KIND OF HUDDLING UP AND FIGURING THAT OUT. HEY, EVERYONE, ROB KRIETE, CTA. FIRST OF ALL I WANT TO PUNCTUATE A POINT I MADE THE PAST FEW TIMES THAT THE TAXPAYERS OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY ARE GETTING A GREAT DEAL FOR THE WORK THE EMPLOYEES ARE DOING IN OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS. EVERY SINGLE MORNING I'M GETTING UP AND AT A DIFFERENT SCHOOL EVERY DAY AND WAS AT THOMPSON THIS MORNING. EISENHOWER MIDDLE SCHOOL YESTERDAY. I WAS AT A SLEW OF SCHOOLS THE WEEK BEFORE

097AND WEEK BEFORE THAT. THERE IS SUCH AMAZING THINGS GOING ON AND I THINK WE SHOULD BE PROUD OF THE GREAT WORK FROM THE TEACHERS AND CUSTODIANS AND BUS DRIVERS AND SUPPORT STAFF. THERE ARE TRULY AMAZING THINGS GOING ON OUT THERE. IT'S THE SEASON TO BE THANKFUL SO WE SHOULD BE CLEAR THAT WE'RE THANKFUL THAT WE HAVE ALL THEM. WE'RE ALSO THANKFUL FOR YOU GUYS AS BOARD MEMBERS AND TALKED ABOUT THE FUND BALANCE AND I HAVE SPOCKEN AT LENGTH ABOUT THE FUND BALANCE FROM THIS SPOT MANY TIMES OVER THE YEARS. WE'RE VERY APPRECIATIVE OF THE WORK THAT WE WERE ABLE TO COLLABORATE ON FROM THE MILLAGE REFERENDUM AND YOUR WILLINGNESS TO FRONT THAT MONEY FOR THE EMPLOYEES. WHILE I'M OUT THERE EVERY DAY AT THE SITES, IT'S SUPER CLEAR TO ME HOW THAT'S HAD A DEEP

098IMPACT ON THE EMPLOYEES'S ABILITY TO NAVIGATE THE TOUGH TIMES WE'RE DEALING WITH. INFLATION, JUST ISSUES THAT WE HAD IN THE STATE, THE LACK OF FUNDING. AND THAT MILLAGE MONEY COMING TO THEM AT THIS TIME AND YOU GUYS BEING SO CLEAR AND MAKING SURE THEY'RE GETTING IT FROM THE BEGINNING HAS BEEN DEEPLY IMPACTFUL TO ALL THEM. SO I WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU AND WE'RE HAPPY TO WORK WITH YOU AND CONTINUE THE COLLABORATION. THANK YOU, MR. SUPERINTENDENT. THANK YOU, GUYS. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER PLEASE. GOOD AFTERNOON, SUPERINTENDENT, SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. I'M FRANK RAEZ AND AN EDUCATOR IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. GO EAGLES. I'M HERE AS A FLORIDA PTA STUDENT EMPOWERMENT CHAIR. WE'RE DOING A MONTHLY ASK AND THAT IS FOR STUDENTS ACROSS THE STATE ON OUR

099COMMITTEE TO COME TO A SCHOOL BOARD MEETING TO GET A CHANCE TO SEE HOW THINGS WORK AND SAY THESE ARE THE DECISION MAKERS AND PEOPLE MAKING THE CHOICE YOU EVERY -- CHOICES FOR YOU EVERY DAY. I HAD A COUPLE MORE STUDENTS AND STUDENTS THAT COULDN'T MAKE IT. WE HAVE 18ALTOGETHER ON THE COMMITTEE FROM THE STATE OF FLORIDA FROM ESCAMBIA TO MIAMI-DADE. WE'RE EXCITED FOR WHAT WE'RE DOING THIS YEAR AND ALL THE WORK WE'RE DOING. I'M EXCITED BECAUSE THESE STUDENTS ARE LEARNING TO ADVOCATE FOR THEMSELVES AND SPEAK THEIR MIND AND SHARE THEIR THOUGHTS AND WANTS AND NEEDS IN THE COUNTY AND SCHOOLS IN THE COMMUNITIES. I HAVE TWO HERE THAT ARE EXCITED TO TALK. HOPEFULLY THEY ARE -- THEY KNOW THEY HAVE THREE MINUTES, RIGHT? THREE. OKAY. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR WHAT EACH DO

100EACH AND EVERY DAY. I KNOW IT'S A TOUGH JOB SITTING UP HERE AND LISTENING BUT WE'RE VERY THANKFUL FOR YOU AND I'M THANKFUL FOR EVERYBODY HERE AND THE STUDENTS. MR. FARKAS, GOOD SEEING YOU AGAIN. THANK YOU AND ENJOY OUR STUDENTS. HELLO, GOOD EVENING, EVERYONE. MY NAME IS IZA CEP AND I'M A PART OF MARTINA MIDDLE SCHOOL AND I'M IN THE EIGHTH GRADE. I'M MILA AND ALSO PART OF MARTINEZ MIDDLE SCHOOL IN SEVENTH GRADE. I WANT TO TAKE A MOMENT TO THANK HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY FOR ALL THEY DO. YOUR HARD WORK, CARE, AND DEDICATION AND TO KEEP OUR COMMUNITY STRONG AND GLOWING FROM OUR SCHOOLS, PARKS, TO OUR SAFETY AND SUPPORT SERVICES. YOU MAKE A REAL DIFFERENCE EVERY SINGLE DAY. WE APPRECIATE EVERYTHING THAT YOU DO TO MAKE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY A BETTER PLACE FOR ALL OF US.

101WE THANK YOU. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU. AWESOME. AND NOW WE WILL MOVE ON TO SUPERINTENDENT COMMENTS. Van Ayres: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. AS PART OF MY SUPERINTENDENT COMMENTS THIS EVENING WE'LL ALSO PROVIDE A SUSPENDED AGENDA UPDATE AROUND PM1 SO MR. BRADY AND HIS TEAM WILL PROVIDE THAT UPDATE SHORTLY. BUT TO BEGIN I WANT TO FIRST NOTE THAT ON OCTOBER 16 I WAS JOINED BY MEMBER RENDON AND MEMBER HAHN AND DISTRICT LEADERS AND COMMUNITY PARTNERS. WE GATHERED AT HILLSBOROUGH HIGH SCHOOL FOR THE NOPE CANDLE LIGHT VIGIL NOW ON ITS 13TH YEAR HONORING THE LIVES LOST TO SUBSTANCE RELATED DEATHS AND PROVIDES SUPPORT AND RESOURCES AND EDUCATION TO SURVIVORS. IMPORTANT NOTES THERE. SINCE 2012, NOPE HILLSBOROUGH HAS PROVIDED -- PRESENTED TO OVER 157,000 STUDENTS AND 3700 STUDENTS THIS YEAR ALREADY. ALONG WITH THEIR ANNUAL VIGIL,

102THEY ALSO HOLD MONTHLY SUPPORT GROUPS FOR THOSE THAT LOST A LOVED ONE AND TO DATE THEY PROVIDED OVER 79,000 IN SCHOLARSHIPS TO OUR HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS. ALL THIS GREAT WORK WITH A TEAM OF VOLUNTEERS. I WANT TO THANK -- I KNOW BOARD MEMBERS ARE FAMILIAR WITH NOPE PRESENTATIONS. THE VIGIL WAS OUTSTANDING AND THANKS TO THE TEAM AT NOPE FOR WHAT THEY DO FOR OUR SCHOOLS ALL YEAR LONG PROVIDING PRESENTATIONS TO OUR HIGH SCHOOL AND MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS. ON OCTOBER 15, I JOINED MEMBERS OF THE TEAM TO PRESENT IN FRONT OF THE FLORIDA SENATE EDUCATION PRE-K12 COMMITTEE ON THE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND EDUCATION AND MR. BRADY, I WANT TO THANK YOU AND YOUR TEAM AS MR. BRADY WAS THERE, DR. KATE WHITE, CHRIS HOLT, MICHAEL LEWIS AND KRISTEN DAVIS AND A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO MEMBER

103RENDON ALSO IN ATTENDANCE THERE. AZTEC TEACHINGNOLOGY CONTINUES TO E -- TECHNOLOGY CONTINUES TO EVOLVE EMBRACING INNOVATION AS A POWERFUL TOOL FOR LEARNING, CREATIVITY AND SUCCESS. WE'RE PROUD TO BE LEADING THE WAY FOR STUDENTS. AND WITH EXCEPTIONAL TALENT AND OUR STRATEGIC PLAN I HAVE THIS GREAT ANNOUNCEMENT. OURS TRULY, MS. SHAY McRAE. CONGRATULATIONS. SO OUR DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT SHAY McRAE FOR BEING RECOGNIZED LAST WEEK'S COUNCIL OF GREAT CITY SCHOOLS CONFERENCE. SHE WAS SELECTED AS ONE OF 11 SENIOR EDUCATION LEADERS FROM ACROSS THE COUNTRY TO PARTICIPATE IN THE THIRD COHORT OF THE MICHAEL CASSERLY URBAN EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE FOR SUPERINTENDENTS. CONGRATULATIONS, SHAY. I KNOW THIS ENTIRE BOARD, OUR TEAM IS VERY PROUD AND LUCKY TO HAVE YOU AS PART OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, SO CONGRATULATIONS. AND GOT NOTIFIED YESTERDAY -- I'LL LET MR. FARKAS DO THIS ONE. HE IS EXCITED

104ABOUT THE ENERGY STAR RATED SCHOOL. I DON'T WANT TO TAKE HIS THUNDER. HE'LL GET MAD. Christopher Farkas: YES, ANGRY. NO, WE'RE EXCITED TO HIGHLIGHT IT. WE TALK A LOT ABOUT CONSERVATION AND SUSTAINABILITY AND WHAT WE DO. WE'RE A HUGE FOOTPRINT AND HAVE 29 MILLION SQUARE FEET WE'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR AND Y'ALL ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. WE HAVE A LOT TO DO AS EDUCATORS AND A LOT OF PASSIONATE STUDENTS AND KIDS AND THAT IS WHO RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS. TO BE AN ENERGY STAR SCHOOL YOU NEED TO USE 35% LESS ENERGY THAN WHAT YOU STARTED WITH. YOU'RE SPENDING 50 CENTS PER SQUARE FOOT. 54, TO BE EXACT. THEY'RE SPENDING LES. WE'RE ALMOST HALFWAY THERE. OUR PARTNERS WITH GENERATE ARE THE ONES GUIDING IT AND ANDREA WHO IS IN THE GROWTH MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT IS LEADING THE WAY

105AND HAVING MEETINGS AND VOLUNTEERING HER OWN TIME TO LEAD IT AND WE HAVE GREEN STAR SPONSORS VOLUNTEERING THEIR TIME BECAUSE IT'S SOMETHING THEY FEEL PASSIONATE ABOUT. HAVING 100 ENERGY STAR SCHOOLS WHEN FOUR YEARS AGO WE HAD ZERO IS A VERY IMPORTANT KIND OF ROAD MAP FOR WHAT WE HAVE FOR ALL THE SCHOOLS TO GET THERE, AND WE'LL PUSH FOR THAT. BUT IT IMPACTS US AS YOU GUYS KNOW, THE -- IT'S PAID THROUGH GENERAL PART ONE FUNDS. ANY TIME WE'RE BEING MORE ENERGY CONSCIOUS, NOT ONLY SAVING THE PLANET AND CARBON FOOTPRINT BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY ALSO SPENDING LESS LESS MONEY ON THE TECO BILL. WE HIT THE 100 SCHOOLS TODAY. SO APPRECIATE MR. AYRES PUTTING US IN -- WE'RE GOING TO KEEP PUSHING AND YOU'LL SEE MORE RECOGNITIONS BUT 100 SCHOOLS AS OF THIS MORNING. Van Ayres:

106THANK YOU FOR THAT UPDATE, MR. FARKAS. AND ALSO JUST A COUPLE MORE UPDATES. DON'T FORGET TO SUBMIT YOUR DESIGNS FOR THE HILLSBOROUGH READS BOOKMARK CONTEST CREATING A COLORFUL AND ENGAGING BOOKMARK THAT CELEBRATES THE DISTRICT-WIDE LITERACY INITIATIVE. DESIGN A BOOKMARK TO HAVE YOUR ARTWORK PROFESSIONALLY PRINTED THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT AND SUBMIT IT BY FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, WITH WINNERS ANNOUNCED IN DECEMBER. ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY REMINDER AROUND THE SCHOOL CHOICE AND MAGNET WINDOW. I HAVE STATS TO SHARE AS WELL. IT OPENED LAST MONDAY AS WE ALL KNOW. WILL CLOSE ON DECEMBER 7. WE HELD OUR FIRST EXPO FOR STUDENTS AND FAMILIES TO EXPLORE MAGNET SCHOOLS AND CHOICE PROGRAMS AT JEFFERSON. SINCE WE OPENED THE APPLICATION WINDOW, WE HAD 7,938 APPLICANTS FOR OUR MAGNET PROGRAMS WHICH IS 61% INCREASE FROM LAST YEAR TO THIS YEAR. GREAT NUMBERS THERE ON THE MAGNET

107SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES GOING ON AND APPLYING FOR MAGNET AND CHOICE OPTIONS. WE HAVE THREE MORE EXPOS SCHEDULED BEFORE THE WINDOW CLOSES SO MAKE SURE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE EVENTS TO TAKE ADVANTSAGE OF THE BEST EDUCATIONAL FIT FOR YOUR CHILD. AND FINALLY, BUILDING YOUR FUTURE COLLEGE AND CAREER NIGHTS. MARK YOUR CALENDAR FOR OUR SPANISH LANGUAGE COLLEGE AND CAREER NIGHT AT LETO ON NOVEMBER 5 FROM 6:00 TO 8:00. STUDENTS AND FAMILIES CAN GET ASSISTANCE ON GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS, SCHOLARSHIP AND CAREER PLANNING AND SESSIONS ARE COMPLETELY IN SPANISH AND THOSE ARE OUR BUILDING YOUR FUTURE COLLEGE AND CAREER NIGHTS AND IT'S AT LETO FROM 6:00 TO 8:00 P.M. AND FOR SUSPENDED UPDATES, LAST BOARD MEETING, I WANT TO UPDATE ON THE PM1 READING UPDATES AND WHERE WE STAND FOR OUR PROGRESS MONITORING THROUGH THE STATE. AND I'LL HAND

108IT OVER TO MR. BRADY AND HIS TEAM. THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT AYRES AND BOARD MEMBERS. GOOD EVENING AND THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME AND THE ACADEMIC SERVICES TEAM TO PRESENT LITERACY UPDATES AND AN OVERVIEW OF THE PROGRESS MONITORING ONE RESULTS. THE STATE WINDOW FOR PM1 CLOSED SEPTEMBER 26 AND FRIDAY, OCTOBER 10, MARKED THE END OF THE FIRST GRADING PERIOD. THE DATA HAS BEEN SHARED AT ALL LEVELS ACROSS THE DISTRICT INCLUDING THE PRINCIPALS-MEETING A FEW WEEKS AGO. THIS ILLUSTRATES THE I-READY READING DIAGNOSTIC DATA FALL 2024 TO FALL 2025. THE COMBINED PERCENT OF STUDENTS EARLY AND ON GRADE LEVEL AND ON AND ABOVE GRADE LEVEL IS AS FOLLOWS. THIRD GRADE WAS 39% IN 2024 AND 40% AT THIS POINT IN 2025. FOURTH GRADE, 31% IN 2024. 34% IN 2025. FIFTH GRADE 32% IN 2024 AND 36% IN 2025.

109AS A REMINDER THE STUDENTS ARE CONSIDERED TO BE ON TARGET WITH CONTINUED HIGH QUALITY INSTRUCTION, THE STUDENTS ARE EXPECTED TO REACH PROFICIENCY BY THE END OF THE YEAR. FAST ASSESSMENTS ARE ADMINISTERED THREE TIMES DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR. ONCE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR. WE CALL THAT PM1. ONCE IN THE MIDDLE, PM2, AND ONCE AT THE END, PM3. EACH PM EVENT IS TIED TO A BLUEPRINT SO AS THE SCHOOL YEAR PROGRESSES AND STUDENTS LEARN THE CONTENT, THE SCORES WILL IMPROVE. BECAUSE THE ADMINISTRATION OCCURS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR IT'S TO PROVIDE A BASELINE SCORE SO TEACHERS CAN TRACK STUDENT PROGRESS AND LEARNING THE BEST STANDARDS FROM PM1 TO PM2 AND ULTIMATELY PM3. NOW BECAUSE WE'RE LOOKING AT THE DATA THROUGH THE LENS OF HOW ARE HILLSBOROUGH LITERACY PRIORITIES IMPACTING STUDENT RESULTS, THE FOLLOWING

110DATA SLIDES REPRESENT THE PERFORMANCE OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY NONCHARTER STUDENTS ONLY. PROGRESS MONITORING ASSESSMENTS MEASURE END OF THE YEAR ON GRADE LEVEL EXPECTATIONS. THIS SLIDE ILLUSTRATES HOW OUR STUDENTS NON-CHARTER PERFORMED PM1 LAST YEAR VERSUS THIS YEAR. SO WHEN YOU SEE 2024, 2025, THAT REFERS TO LAST SCHOOL YEAR. AND 25-26 REFERS TO THIS SCHOOL YEAR. TO CORRECTLY INTERPRET THE DATA LOOK AT THE NUMBERS CIRCLED IN YE YELLOW. THE NUMBER 33% INFORMS US DURING LAST YEAR'S PM1 WINDOW, 33% OF STUDENTS DEMONSTRATED ACHIEVEMENT THAT WE'D EXPECT OF A STUDENT AT THE END OF THE SCHOOL YEAR. THE NUMBERS CIRCLED IN BLUE INFORMS US THAT DURING THIS YEAR'S PM1, WINDOW 34% OF OUR STUDENTS DEMONSTRATED END OF YEAR ON GRADE LEVEL EXPECTATION. SO THERE WAS A 1% INCREASE ON PM1 FROM LAST YEAR TO THIS YEAR. AND NOW I'LL GO

111DOWN THE LIST FOR GRADES 3 THROUGH 10. GRADE 3, 2% DECREASE. GRADE FOUR, 3% DECREASE. GRADE FIVE, 1% INCREASE. GRADE SIX, 2% INCREASE. GRADE SEVEN, 1% INCREASE. GRADE EIGHT, 4% INCREASE. GRADE NINE, 2. AND GRADE TEN, 3% INCREASE. IF WE LOOK AT THE STUDENT PERFORMANCE BY SUBGROUP IT INCREASED FOUR OUT OF FIVE OF THE SUBGROUPS. THE BLACK STUDENTS INCREASED FROM 20% IN FALL 2024. WHITE STUDENTS INCREASED FROM 47 TO 48. OUR HISPANIC STUDENTS INCREASED FROM 24 TO 26. OUR ELL STUDENTS DECREASED FROM 14 TO 13. AND OUR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES INCREASED FROM 10% TO 12% AND THIS IS FROM PM1, 2024, TO PM1, 2025. THIS SLIDE ILLUSTRATES GROWTH FROM HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY NON-CHARTERS FROM FALL PM1 TO SPRING PM3 FOR THE PRIOR 24-25 SCHOOL YEAR. SO WE ADDED THIS SLIDE AND THE NEXT SLIDE TO ILLUSTRATE

112THE GROWTH POSSIBLE AND EXPECTED OVER THE COURSE OF THE YEAR FROM PM1 TO PM3 WITH SOLID CORE INSTRUCTION. HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY NON-CHARTER STUDENTS CHARTED AT 33% ACHIEVING A LEVEL THREE OR HIGHER ON FALL PM1 AND WE FINISHED LAST YEAR WITH 57% OF THE STUDENTS SCORING A LEVEL THREE OR HIGHER. THAT'S AN INCREASE OF 24%. THIS SPEAKS TO SOLID CORE INSTRUCTION OVER THE COURSE OF 180 DAYS. IN ADDITION I'LL HIGHLIGHT THE GROWTH FROM PM1 TO PM3 LAST YEAR AND SPECIFIC GRADE LEVELS. GRADE 3 AN INCREASE OF 35% LAST YEAR FROM PM1 TO PM3. GRADE 4, 25. GRADE 5, 25. GRADE 6, 17. GRADE 7, 19. GRADE 8, 21. GRADE 9, 19. AND GRADE 10, 25. AND OUR LAST DATA SLIDE TAKES A CLOSER LOOK AT THE SUBGROUP GROWTH FROM THE PREVIOUS SLIDE AND AS YOU CAN SEE

113WE HAD SIGNIFICANT PROFICIENCY GROWTH FROM PM1 TO PM3 IN 2024 AND VARIOUS SUBGROUPS, YOU CAN SEE BLACK STUDENTS INCREASED 22 PERCENTAGE POINTS. WHITE STUDENTS, 25. HISPANIC STUDENTS, 24. ELL STUDENTS, 21. AND STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES, 18 PERCENTAGE POINTS. ALTHOUGH THE PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS SHOWING PROFICIENCY MAY SEEM LOW, THIS CHART SHOWS HOW MUCH GROWTH OUR STUDENTS SHOWED FROM PM1 TO PM3 WHICH IS OUR ULTIMATE ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURE. WE CONSISTENTLY DISCUSSED INSTRUCTION AND ALIGNMENT AND TEACHING TO THE DEPTH AND BREADTH OF THE STANDARDS. NOW DESPITE OUR INCREASE IN PROFICIENCY FROM PM1 TO PM3 WE KNOW THE DISTRICT NEEDS TO CLOSE THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP. THAT'S THE GAP UP THERE, GUYS. SO OVER -- OVER THE NEXT FEW SLIDES, WE'LL SHOW YOUR LITERACY PRIORITIES, ACTION STEPS, SUBGROUP SUPPORT AND COMMUNICATION SUPPORT. I'D LIKE TO ALLOW TRACY BERGMAN AS WELL AS SARAH

114GARCIA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND ULE VAZQUEZ TO REVIEW THE LITERACY PLAN ALONG WITH SPECIFIC SUPPORTS AND KEY ACTIONS RELATED TO ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND OUR SUBGROUPS. GOOD EVENING, AFTERNOON. SO THESE PRIORITIES LISTED ON THE SLIDE WERE IDENTIFIED BY THE PRE-K-12 LITERACY TEAM AS CRITICAL TO MOVING THE NEEDLE ON STUDENT PERFORMANCE. TOGETHER THEY ACCOUNT FOR US ALIGNING THE PRACTICES TO ALL ASPECTS OF THOSE FOUND WITHIN THE RESEARCH EMBODYING THE SCIENCE OF READING. FIRST, AS YOU KNOW, WE'RE IN YEAR THREE OF OUR UFLI IMPLEMENTATION. WE KNOW OUR K-2 TEACHERS ACROSS THE DISTRICT ARE USING THE PROGRAM AND LOVING IT BUT WE RECOGNIZE THE NEED TO TIGHTEN THE PRACTICES IN THE CLASSROOM AND FOCUS ON THE QUALITY OF INSTRUCTION AND FEEDBACK. OUR ELEMENTARY SUPERVISOR WILL SPEAK MORE SPECIFICALLY TO THAT IN A MOMENT. EARLY LITERACY SKILLS ARE

115NOT JUST IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. THEY'RE PREVALENT IN THE SECONDARY SCHOOLS. SPECIFICALLY IN OUR INTENSIVE READING COURSES WHERE STUDENTS ARE ENGAGING DAILY IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL WORLD WITH LANGUAGE LIVE AND HIGH SCHOOL WITH LANGUAGE LIVE OR THE BETA PROGRAM, READ 180. NEXT UP WE HAVE KNOWLEDGE BUILDING. WE KNOW THAT THE READING ROPE INCLUDES TWO PORTIONS. FOUNDATION SKILLS AND LANGUAGE COMPREHENSIVE AND THAT'S WHERE KNOWLEDGE BUILDING COMES IN. UNDERSTANDING THE WORLD AROUND US. LET'S THINK ABOUT THIS. DO YOU GUYS EVER PICK UP A BOOK AND SAY, GEE, TODAY I'D LOVE TO READ CHAPTER 3. TOMORROW I'LL READ CHAPTER 4 FOR AUTHOR'S PURPOSE. AND THEN ON CHAPTER 5, I CAN SUMMARIZE IF YOU OPERATE YOUR BOOK CLUB THAT WAY, PLEASE DON'T EVER INVITE ME. SO WE KNOW THAT'S NOT IT. READING IS SO IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT GIVES US A

116WINDOW INTO THE WORLD. THE TIME, THE SPACE, THE CHARACTERS AND SITUATIONS THAT ARE RELEVANT TO OUR LIFE. WE WANT OUR FOCUS TO BE AROUND THAT AS WE ENGAGE STUDENTS IN TIER 1 INSTRUCTION SO THEY SEE THE RELEVANCE AND EXCITEMENT A TEXT CAN HOLD AND USE IT TO CONNECT TO OTHER THINGS ACROSS CONTENT AREAS. WRITING. WRITING HASN'T BEEN PART OF THE STATE ACCOUNTABILITY FOR SEVERAL YEARS. BUT IT IS STILL PART OF OUR BENCHMARKS. AND ITS IMPACT ON LITERACY CANNOT BE FORGOTTEN. SO MANY TIMES WE GO INTO CLASSROOMS AND SEE STUDENTS STRUGGLING TO PUT WORDS TOGETHER IN A SENTENCE, A SENTENCE INTO A PARAGRAPH AND MENTION THE WORD ESSAY AND THE WHOLE CLASS GROWNS. THE EMPHASIZE IS TEACHING SYNTAX AND LANGUAGE AS A PART OF WRITING TO HELP BUILD STUDENT CONFIDENCE AND KEEP IT CONNECTED TO WHAT

117KIDS READ, BE IT UNDERSTANDING HOW WORDS WORK TOGETHER IS CRITICAL AND THAT'S OUR PRIORITY. LASTLY, OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL. ALL STUDENTS MATTER. PERIOD. AND OUR LITERACY TEAM HAS WORKED TIRELESSLY TO ENSURE GUARANTEED AND VIABLE QUALITY CURRICULUM PROGRAM AND ALL STUDENTS ESPECIALLY THOSE WITH LANGUAGE NEEDS SUCH AS ESE AND ELL STUDENTS NEED TO ACCESS THE MATERIALS TO ENGAGE AND DEEPEN THEIR LEARNING. THE TEAM IS WORKING TOGETHER WITH THE ESE AND ELL TEAMS THIS YEAR OUT OF THE SILOS TO MAKE SURE THE MATERIALS MEET THE NEEDS OF THE LEARNERS IN FRONT OF THEM. WE'RE EXCITED TO SHARE TRAINING MATERIALS AND RESOURCES ON A FUTURE SLIDE. SO TO BRING OUR ACTIONS TO LIFE, WHAT ARE WE DOING? WELL, WORKING HARD, THAT'S WHAT. FIRST OF ALL, WE'RE PRIORITIZING PROFESSIONAL LEARNING. REALLY THINKING OF THE WAYS TO GET TO THE TEACHER

118LEVEL. ULE WILL SHARE EXAMPLES OF THAT IN A MINUTE. THE FOCUS IS ON TIER 1 INSTRUCTION. USING OUR RESOURCES TO BEST MEET THE NEEDS OF OUR STUDENTS. COMBINING CURRICULUM TRAINING WITH INSTRUCTIONAL IMPLEMENTATION AND ALIGNING IT WITH THE DISTRICT MODEL OF INSTRUCTION AND HIGH YIELD INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES. THE SCHOOLS ARE IN THE WORK OF DEVELOPING COLLABORATIVE TEAMS TO SUPPORT DATA PLANNING AND PROBLEM SOLVING INTO THE RESPONSE TO DATA BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY TALKING ABOUT INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES AND REFINING THAT QUALITY INSTRUCTIONAL MODEL AT THE SCHOOL LEVEL. WE WANT TO SHARE DATA IN ALL CONTENTS AND MAKE SURE WE INCLUDE OUR SUBGROUP DATA SO THE SCHOOL SAID CAN MONITOR THE PROGRESS AND MAKE APPROPRIATE DECISIONS. AND AGAIN, RESOURCES. DEFINING BEST PRACTICES TO MEET THE NEEDS OF ELL AND ESE STUDENTS IS CRITICAL AND ALSO CRITICAL FOR US TO ENSURE STUDENTS

119HAVE ACCESS AND TRAINING TO THOSE RESOURCES. SO LET'S TALK ABOUT SUBGROUPS. IN PARTICULAR, ESE AND ELL. I WANT TO SAY I'M MOST PROUD OF THE COLLABORATIVE WORK WE'RE DOING IN THOSE DEPARTMENTS TO SUPPORT OUR LEARNERS. WE RECOGNIZE HIGH EXPECTATIONS AND TIER 1 INSTRUCTION WILL MOVE STUDENTS TO NEW LEVELS AND AS THE SUBGROUP MOVES, SO DOES THE DISTRICT AS A WHOLE AS THE DISTRICT IS SO DIVERSE. THE SUBGROUPS ARE ABOUT ACCESS. ACIS ESIN -- ACCESS IN AND ACCESS OUT. MATERIALS HAVE TO BE PRESENTED IN A WAY THAT MAKE SENSE TO STUDENTS MEETING THEIR UNIQUE LANGUAGE NEEDS AND STUDENTS NEED TO ENGAGE IN THE CONTENT AND SHOW LEARNING. EVEN IF THEY HAVE LANGUAGE GAPS. THE CAPABILITIES OF OUR STUDENTS IS ENDLESS. BUT WE NEED THE STRATEGIES AND PROFESSIONAL LEARNING AVAILABLE TO OUR TEACHERS TO ENSURE THEIR IMPLEMENTATION.

120TRAINING FOR TEACHERS AND ADMIN BEGAN THIS SUMMER AND PROVIDING ACCESS AND WILL CONTINUE OUR TEACHER TRAINING IN NOVEMBER AND JANUARY WITH THE ESE AND ELL TEAMS. WE HAVE ONE PAGE OF RESOURCES BEING DEVELOPED TO SUPPORT THE LANGUAGE NEEDS AS WELL AND IN ADDITION OUR K-12 ACADEMIC TEAM IS EXCITED TO INTRODUCE MISSION VOCABULARY TO SUPPORT ACADEMIC LANGUAGE. GOOD EVENING, BOARD MEMBERS. I'M EXCITED TO SHARE OUR ELEMENTARY LITERACY INITIATIVES TIED TO THE WORK WE'RE DOING TO BUILD STRONG READERS. THE FIRST IS OUR UFLI STRONG ALL YEAR LONG. THERE IS MANY FACETS TO THIS BUT THE MAJOR FACET HAS BEEN BUILDING UP UFLI MODEL CLASSROOM TEACHERS. WE IDENTIFIED SEVEN TEACHERS. ONE IN EACH REGION. AND WE PREPARED THEM AND COACHED THEM UP TO BE READY TO WELCOME BETWEEN 25 AND 30 TEACHERS, COACHES AND ADMINISTRATORS INTO THEIR CLASSROOM

121TO LET THEM SEE UFLI LIVE IN ACTION WITH STUDENTS. WE FINISHED THIS INITIATIVE TODAY AND THROUGH THIS WE WERE ABLE TO PROVIDE THIS LEVEL OF JOB EMBEDDED PROFESSIONAL LEARNING TO 165 TEACHERS, ADMINISTRATORS AND COACHES AND 55 OF OUR SITES. THEY ARE WILLING TO TAKE THAT BACK AND DIVE INTO THE WORK WHICH IS WHAT WE'RE MOST EXCITED ABOUT. ANOTHER INITIATIVE WE LEANED INTO IS OUR HCPS UFLI ACCELERATED SCOPE AND SEQUENCE AND THIS CAME IN RESPONSE TO OUR I-READY DATA WHERE WE LEANED INTO THE PHONICS DOMAIN AND NOTICED THERE WERE DEFICITS IN THE THREE THROUGH FIVE STUDENTS AND WANTED TO PROVIDE TEACHERS WITH A STRUCTURED APPROACH TO ADDRESSING THE SKILLS SO WE USED THE HIGH LEVERAGE STEPS IN UFLI TO DEFINE A THREE-OPTION INTERVENTION SUPPORT FOR OUR INTERMEDIATE TEACHERS WHERE THEY CAN CHOOSE TO EITHER INTERVENE TWO

122TIMES A WEEK, THREE TIMES A WEEK OR EVERY DAY FOR TEN MINUTES SO WE CAN KEEP THE FIDELITY OF THE INSTRUCTIONAL BLOCK IN THREE THROUGH FIVE AND HAVE RECEIVED GREAT FEEDBACK ON THAT INITIATIVE AS WELL. OUR FINAL INITIATIVE IS THRIVE IN THIRD STRATEGIC SUPPORT WHICH WAS DESIGNED IN RESPONSE TO THE PM1 DATA MR. BRADY SHARED WITH YOU ALL AND THIS SUPPORT IS SPECIFICALLY FOR OUR THIRD GRADE TEACHERS. WE ARE -- OUR MESSAGE WAS SIMPLE. WE KNOW THAT THERE IS A GAP AND WE ARE HERE TO DO THE WORK AND BE IN THE WORK WITH THEM. AND IT'S BEEN REALLY WELL RECEIVED. WE PROVIDED ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONAL TOOLS FOR THEM AND ALSO LAYERED IN POWER HOUR WHICH HAPPENS BIWEEKLY VIRTUALLY AND WHAT WE DO IN POWER HOUR IS PROVIDE THE BENCHMARK BREAKDOWN AND TEXT ANALYSIS AND THROUGH

123THIS POWER HOUR WHICH LAUNCHED IN OCTOBER WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO PROVIDE SUPPORT TO 300 PLUS THIRD GRADE TEACHERS. THANK YOU. AND I'LL WRAP IT UP HERE. I'LL BRIEFLY COVER THE SUPPORTS FOR SECONDARY WHICH ARE LIKE ELEMENTARY, AN EMPHASIS ON CORE 1 INSTRUCTION STANDARDS ALIGNED COLLABORATIVE TEAMS, INTENTIONAL DATA USAGE AND EMBEDDED SUBGROUP SUPPORT. IN ADDITION WE'RE EXCITED TO SHARE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF READ 180 IN 14 OF THE 29 HIGH SCHOOLS THIS YEAR. ON ANY GIVEN DAY YOU CAN WALK INTO A READ 180 CLASSROOM AND SEE STUDENTS ACTIVELY PRACTICING FOUNDATION LITERACY SKILLS TO DEVELOP FLUENCY. TRADEMARK OF READ 180 CLASSROOMS ARE THE ROTATIONAL ROUNDS WITH SMALL GROUP TEACHER-LED INSTRUCTION. THIS IS ONE OF THE ONLY OUTCOMES BASED CONTRACTS IN THE DISTRICT AND WE'RE AWAITING THE FIRST GROWTH ASSESSMENT IN DECEMBER TO SEE THE IMPACT THE PROGRAM IS

124MAKING ON STUDENTS. AND FINALLY, I WANTED TO POINT OUT THAT SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR, OUR TEAM HAS PRESENTED THE INFORMATION TO PRINCIPALS, ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS, DISTRICT LEADERS, REGION SUPERINTENDENTS, THE CABINET AND NOW SCHOOL BOARD. ULTIMATELY IT COMES DOWN TO IMPLEMENTATION AND EXECUTION. WE HAVE A SAYING YOU DON'T RISE TO THE LEVEL OF GOALS. YOU FALL TO THE LEVEL OF THE SYSTEMS. WE DO HAVE A PLAN, MORE IMPORTANTLY, WE HAVE THE PEOPLE TO EXECUTE THE PLAN. OUR DISTRICT HAS INCREDIBLY TALENTED AND DEDICATED TEACHERS WHO GO ABOVE AND BEYOND EACH DAY AND PRINCIPALS ARE COMMITTED TO REMOVING BARRIERS TO ALLOW TEACHERS TO THRIVE. SO WE'RE EXCITEED FOR THE CHALLENGE AHEAD WHICH IS ROUGHLY 130 DAYS REMAINING OF STRONG INSTRUCTION WHERE EVERY DAY COUNTS. THE URGENCY IS FELT WITHIN ACADEMIC SERVICES AND ACROSS ALL DEPARTMENTS. AS

125ALWAYS, WE APPRECIATE THE SUPPORT AND LEADERSHIP OF THE SCHOOL BOARD AND MR. AYRES. AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. Superintendent Ayres: THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. THOSE ARE OUR UPDATES. Karen Perez: THANK YOU SUPERINTENDENT AYERS. NOW FOR OUR BOARD MEMBER COMMENTS. BOARD MEMBERS, YOU'VE JUST -- JUST A REMINDER, YOU WILL HAVE FIVE MINUTES EACH TO SPEAK WITH 30 SECONDS FOR FINAL THOUGHTS. AND MEMBER GRAY? Lynn Gray: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. I WANT TO THANK TRACY BERGMAN AND TEAM. WHAT A WONDERFUL COMPREHENSIVE JOB YOU DID WITH THE REPORTING IN THE YOU FLY PROGRESS AND THE SCIENCE OF READING. WE ARE VERY, VERY PROUD AND WE ARE VERY COGNIZANT OF THE HARD WORK THAT YOU ALL DO. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. ALSO HE WANT TO THANK -- AND I GUESS GARY BRADY AT THIS POINT WILL BE

126PRETTY FAMOUS WITH SUPERINTENDENT AYRES AND TEAM FOR BRINGING -- ACTUALLY MAKING OUR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT THE LEADING FORCE IN AI TEACHING AND LEARNING. SO I HAVE THE POWERPOINT. AND VERY EXCITED. SO THAT'S -- THAT'S WHAT I WANT TO SAY ON THAT. AND PABLO, IF YOU CAN PUT UP -- I THINK IT IS THE PDF. THURGOOD MARSHALL CLUB. AND SHAKE WASHINGTON IS ON THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN TASK FORCE. BUT THREE YEARS AGO, WE HAD -- WE HAD A -- FRED AMERICANS AND I, WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAD A CLUB THAT WAS EMBLEMMATTIC OF BLACK HISTORY, SO FAST FORWARD, ALISON EDGECOMB JUST TOOK THE PLACE OF FORMING ONE, BUT NOT JUST ONE, AFTER THREE YEARS, SHE IS UP -- HER LEADERSHIP IS UP TO 105 SCHOOLS, WHICH NOW HAVE A THURGOOD MARSHALL CLUB. AND

127WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT? WELL, FOR MANY REASONS. NUMBER ONE, THEY HELP INSTILL VIGOR AND ENTHUSIASM AND MOTIVATION FOR OUR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY BRAIN BOWL. AND LAST YEAR WE HAD 189 SCHOOLS. OUR BLACK HISTORY MONTH, OUR AXO TEAM. OUR BLACK HISTORY DOORPOSTER CONTEST, AND MANY OTHER RELEVANT INITIATIVES. SO GREAT JOB. AND THEN ALISON EDGECOMB WANTED ME TO SHARE THIS. AND PABLO, I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO IT, BUT IT WAS A BREAST CANCER -- THERE IT GOES -- SHOWING THAT THEY ARE MAKING OTHER ITEMS OF CONCERN -- THEY ARE BRINGING AWARENESS TO THE STUDENT BODY. AND THIS EXEMPLIFIES RIGHT NOW OR JUST A FEW WEEKS AGO DURING THE BREAST CANCER MONTH FOR ROBINSON HIGH SCHOOL. SO GREAT WORK, ALISON EDGECOMB AND THANK YOU MEMBER WASHINGTON FOR ALWAYS BEING PART OF OF THAT COMMITTEE OR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY TASK

128FORCE COMMITTEE. REALLY, REALLY NICELY DONE AND THANK YOU, PABLO. NEXT SLIDE. THE NEXT SLIDE -- NO, IT IS NOT A LEAD IS. IT IS A PHOTO. I AM GOING TO WAIT BECAUSE THEN I HAVE SOMETHING TO REFER TO. WELL, I DON'T WANT TO WAIT TOO LONG. MY MINUTES WILL HAD BEEN USED UP SHORTLY. PABLO, ARE WE THERE? WE ARE GETTING THERE. OKAY. SO HERE WE ARE BOTH MEMBER WASHINGTON, MEMBER HAHN, MEMBER RENDON AND MYSELF, WE WERE HONORED TO HEAR FROM MASTER SERGEANT EARL D. PLUMLEY, A MEDAL OF HONOR RECIPIENT. OF COURSE THIS IS A WONDERFUL EXAMPLE OF CIVIC EDUCATION, PATRIOTISM. AND I WANT TO GIVE KUDOS TO THE NEWER PRINCIPAL -- IN NEW -- FAIRLY NEW PRINCIPAL TWO MONTHS. WHAT A WONDERFUL ORGANIZATIONAL SITUATION SHE PUT TOGETHER. IT WAS PRINCIPAL DUREN OF ROGERS MIDDLE SCHOOL.

129AND SHE ORGANIZED WITH THE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE, THE RIVERVIEW HIGH SCHOOL BAND, THE CHEERLEADERS, THE ROGERS CHORUS BAND, THE BUCCANEERS, AND, OF COURSE, OUR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL LEADERSHIP STAFF AND SO MANY LEADERS WERE THERE. AND IT WAS ALL FOR THE PRINCIPALS OF -- AND THIS IS A VERY GOOD CIVIC EDUCATION. I KNOW MEMBER COMBS ALSO -- I TAUGHT CIVICS, AND I THINK YOU DID TOO. IT WAS ALL ABOUT COURAGE, COMMITMENT, INTEGRITY, SACRIFICE, CITIZENSHIP, AND PATRIOTISM. AND THIS BASS JUST EMBLEMATIC OF SHOWING EACH OF THOSE CHARACTERISTICS OF CIDUTY AND CIVICS. I AM RIGHT ON TIME. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR, DONE. Karen Perez: YOU'VE 25 SECONDS. Lynn Gray: STILL DONE. GIVE IT TO SOMEONE ELSE. Karen Perez: THAT IS A FIRST. MEMBER WASHINGTON. Henry "Shake" Washington: APPRECIATE THAT. GIVE KUDOS TO SUPERINTENDENT AND STAFF WORKING

130HARD TO MAKE THIS A BETTER DISTRICT. YOU WORK HARD TO DO WHAT IT TAKES FOR STUDENTS IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY AND I WANT YOU TO KNOW WE REALLY APPRECIATE THAT, 100%. MOVING ON, LET'S GO TO THE -- TO THE -- ROGERS. DO YOU HAVE THAT? WE HAD A GREAT TIME LIKE MISS GRAY SAID. WE HAD A GREAT TIME. PATTI FOR COMING, MISS RENDON, MISS HAHN AND LYNN. WE HAD A GREAT TIME. IT WAS INTERESTING BECAUSE WE HAD STUDENTS UP THERE ALSO. AND YOU TALK OF THE MEDAL OF HONOR WE IS THE GREATEST HONOR YOU CAN HAVE. AS I SAT THERE LISTENING TO HIM SPEAK OF HOW HE SURVIVED AND THE THINGS THAT HE DID, HOW HE LED PEOPLE. THIS GUY IS TRULY HONOR. HE IS TRULY WHAT THE MEDAL OF HONOR IS ALL ABOUT. AND THEN

131WE HAD THE KIDS TO SPEAK. AND ALSO THE FORMER LINEBACKER FOR THE TAMPA BAY BUCS. AND HE SPOKE ABOUT HIS DETERMINATION TO BE A GREAT PLAYER, THE THINGS THAT IT TAKES. THE DEAD CA IGS T-- THE DEDICATION THAT IT TAKES. THAT CAME INTO PLAY. ONE THING, THE DETERMINATION TO SUCCEED, NO TO THE BE DEFEATED. TO WORK HARD AND DO THE THINGS IN ORDER TO SURVIVE. THAT REALLY TOUCHED ME. TOUCHED ME A GREAT DEAL. WE HAD A GREAT TIME AND WE HAD THE EMCEE WHICH IS COLONEL RONALD TUCKER FROM HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS THERE AS THE EMCEE. LET'S MOVE ALONG. THE NEXT THAT WE HAVE IS THE -- THAT IS THE ONE. THE COMMUNITY THINK TANK. IT WAS PHENOMENAL. IT WAS SOMETHING DIFFERENT THAT BE NEVER DID BEFORE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. AND I LIKE -- BEFORE

132I GET STARTED, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALVIN SIMMONS FOR ORGANIZING, MATT AND RICK. YOU GUY DID A GREAT JOB. SOMETHING DIFFERENT THAT WE NEVER DID BEFORE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY BECAUSE WE HAD A COMBINATION OF COMMUNITY, ALONG WITH PRINCIPALS AT THIS THINK TANK. AND WHAT WE DID WAS, WE -- WE ARE TALKING ABOUT BEHAVIOR. YOU KNOW SOME OF THE THINGS THAT HE CAN DO TO IMPROVE BEHAVIOR IN THE SCHOOL AND WE PROVIDED EVERYBODY, THE COMMUNITY, INPUT, THEY COULD INPUT AT THE TABLE AND SEPARATED THEM AND THEY WERE TABLED TOGETHER AND TALKING ABOUT SOME OF THE THINGS THEY CAN DO. AND WHAT REALLY GOT ME ARE THE THINGS WE CAN TO IN THE COMMUNITY TO HELP OUT. THAT IS IMPORTANT. AND I TOLD -- I TOLD CHIEF, HE TOLD RICK, I SAID, YOU KNOW WHAT, WE

133NEED TO TAKE THIS SHOW ON THE ROAD. BECAUSE IT IS REALLY, REALLY, REALLY GOOD. IT REALLY WAS. I ENJOYED IT. BECAUSE ALL THE PEOPLE THERE ENJOY IT BECAUSE SOMETHING LIKE I SAID. THERE WAS SOMETHING DIFFERENT. AND WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD, MR. GRAY, TO TAKING THE SHOW ON THE ROAD NOW. SO WE CAN, YOU KNOW, GO ALL FOUR CORNERS OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. I THINK IT IS GOOD TO HAVE THAT COLLABORATION WITH THE COMMUNITY, WITH THE PRINCIPALS. WE HAVE PRINCIPALS THERE. WE HAD COMMUNITY PEOPLE THERE. IT WAS JUST A COLLABORATION OF A LOT OF PEOPLE THERE. OKAY. THANK YOU. LET'S MOVE ON. WHAT IS THE NEXT ONE I HAD? OH, OKAY. THEN WE HAD THE FALL FESTIVAL AND MANGROVE ELEMENTARY. THANK YOU MISS RENDON FOR COMING. WE HAD A GREAT TIME WITH THOSE KIDS. THEY WERE DRESSED

134UP. THEY WERE PLAYING GAMES AND HAVING FUN. AND I LOVED THE PART ABOUT THE DUNK TANK. BOY, THEY WERE REALLY TRYING TO DUNK THAT TEACHER IN TANK. AS YOU CAN SEE THAT ONE YOUNG LADY -- I PAID FOR HER. $5 -- I JUST PAID. AND YOU DID TOO. WE BOTH GAVE MONEY. AND YOU CAN SEE ON THE RIGHT, THAT IS THE SECRETARY. SHE WORKS THERE. AND SHE HAS A GARDEN. AND -- SHE SAID, WELL, CAROL, WHAT DO YOU DO WITH YOUR GARDEN. SAYS WE GROW STUFF AND LET SOME OF THE TEACHERS AND AS WELL AS SOME OF THE -- SOME OF THE COMMUNITY PEOPLE COME BY AND TAKE -- YOU KNOW TAKE WHAT THEY WANT. AND IT IS A NICE LITTLE GARDEN. A LOT -- IT IS SMALL A, BUT IT IS VERY EFFICIENT WHAT

135SHE NEEDED TO DO. BOY, THIS TIME IS RUNNING REAL FAST. BUT ANYWAY, WE ENJOY AND WE HAD A GREAT TIME. AND THE PRINCIPAL DID A GREAT JOB THERE AND WE THANK HER FOR WHAT SHE DID. WE WILL ROLL ON TO THE NEXT ONE. AND THANK YOU SO MUCH. Karen Perez: THANK YOU, MEMBER WASHINGTON. MEMBER COMBS. Nadia Combs: YES. I FIRST WANT TO THANK, YOU KNOW, MR. BRADY AND THE ENTIRE ACADEMIC TEAM FOR COMING. I REALLY APPRECIATE THIS. THIS IS SOMETHING I WILL REALLY LOOK AT. I KNOW IT WILL TAKE A COUPLE OF YEARS FOR THE YOU FLY TO REALLY INPUT AND SOME OF THINGS WE HAVE DONE FOUNDATIONALLY WILL TAKE A COUPLE OF YEARS. BUT I WANT TO SAY YOU LEADING THE ACADEMIC SERVICES. I HEARD NOTHING BUT GREAT THINGS. LISTENING TO YOUR TEAM AND

136GETTING FEEDBACK. UP WANT TO SAY THANK YOU AND GREAT TO HAVE THE ENTIRE TEAM HERE. ONE OF THE THINGS WE NEED TO DO AS A BOARD OR REALLY AS A DISTRICT IS REALLY KIND OF PUSH AND TALK TO THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION OF THE RETENTION IN FIRST AND SECOND GRADE. I THINK THIRD GRADE, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE COMPLEXITY OF THE LET A SEE AT THAT TIME. IF THE CHILD IS TRYING TO REACH ON IFFIC AWARENESS AND SOUNDING OUT THINGS AND LOSE A WHOLE THING IN THIRD GRADE AND ANOTHER YEAR OF RETENTION, TWO YEARS OF AT SHIELD WASTED NOT FEELING GOOD ABOUT THEMSELVES. SOMETHING AS A BOARD WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT AND SEE HOW WE CAN WORK ON THAT AS A TIS STRICT. ALSO, SUPERINTENDENT, JUST AS I TALK OF SCHOOLS OF HOPE, I

137APPRECIATE HAVING THAT ON THE SUSPENDED LIST. AND DO YOU HAVE ANY UPDATES OR OCCURRING AT THAT TIME -- AT THIS TIME WITH THAT? Superintendent Ayres: NO UPDATES, JUST THE INFORMATION I PROVIDED OF THE SCHOOL STATE BOARD RULE PROVIDED SEPTEMBER 24. SO WE WILL WAIT. NOVEMBER 11 IS THE TIME THAT SCHOOLS OF HOPE CAN SEND REQUESTS TO SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND THE LATEST WE HAVE ON THAT IS THE NOVEMBER 11 DATE. SCHOOL OF HOPE SENDING OUT ACTIONS TO SCHOOL DISTRICTS ACROSS THE STATE. Nadia Combs: THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THE SPEAKERS. SCHOOL OF HOPE. WHAT KIND OF HOPE ARE YOU GOING TO HAVE WHEN THERE IS NO OVERSIGHT. YOU DON'T HAVE CERTIFIED TEACHERS. WE ARE NOT SURE OF ADMINISTRATION. WE HAVE ONE SCHOOL OF HOPE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY AND THAT IS A D SCHOOL THAT JUST BECAME A

138C SCHOOL. AND THAT HAD HUGE TURNOVER WITH TEACHERS. HUGE TURNOVER WITH STUDENTS. HUGE TURNOVER FOR ADMINISTRATION. SCHOOLS OF HOPE. WHAT KIND OF HOPE FOR MA SHIELD AND LET'S THINK OF CHILDREN AND NOT THINKING OF PROFIT. KEEP PUSHING AND MAKING SURE THE COMMUNITY KNOWS ABOUT THAT AND UNDERSTANDS THAT. I WILL KEEP SAYING THAT. WHAT KIND OF HOPE IF THERE ARE NO CERTIFIED TEACHERS AND NO OVERSIGHT. AS A MATTER OF FACT, I WAS TRYING TO GET DATA, I CAN'T EVEN GET DATA BECAUSE NOT AT THE UNIVERSITY OR HELD HERE LOCALLY AT THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS. I WOULD LOVE FOR PEOPLE TO DO A RECORDS REQUEST AND WHAT IS HAPPENING AT THE SCHOOL OF HOPE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. THAT IS ALL I AM GOING TO SEA ON THAT PART. I HAD GREAT SCHOOL VISITS BUT I WANT TO SHARE

139A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT WERE REALLY SPECIAL. ONE IS THE LEADERS IN ACTION IN SICKLES HIGH SCHOOL. GABRIELLA BORREGO STARTED THE ORGANIZATION TWO YEARS AGO. SHE HAD 56 STUDENTS. THE OTHER DAY I MET WITH 130 STUDENTS. SPOKE TO THEM WHAT YOU NEED TO HAVE IN ORDER TO BE A LEADER. I SAID THREE IMPORTANT THINGS ARE RESILIENCY, PASSION AND EFFORT. IT WAS SO GREAT. AND I HAVE TO THANK THE TEACHER, MESS SULLIVAN, WHO IS SPONSORING THIS TO HAVE ALL THOSE STUDENTS -- THIS GROUP CAME OUT WITH ME AND REDID THE AGRICULTURE CENTER. THESE ARE JUST WONDERFUL STUDENTS, AND IT WAS JUST A GREAT DAY. SOME I LOVE, LOVE THAT KEEPS ME GOING, GOING OUT THERE, CONNECTING WITH STUDENTS, SPEAKING WITH STUDENTS. IT WAS JUST A GREAT EXPERIENCE. LASTLY, HE JUST WANT TO THANK OUR EARLY LEARNING

140TASK FORCE TEAM THAT WE HAVE BEEN MEETING FOR A YEAR AND A HALF. THAT IS, SUPERINTENDENT, YOU WERE NOT THERE, BUT SO MANY GREAT DISTRICT LEADERS, TRACY BRUIN. EMILY, TINA, VERONICA, MELISSA, SO MANY PEOPLE. AND WE HAD ALL THESE GREAT LEADERS FROM HALF. WE HAVE DR. TANGALO. THRIVE BY FIVE. DR. HICKS. REBECCA BACON FROM THE CHILDREN'S BOARD. MR. CROWDER FROM KAHN MEMORIAL. JUSTIN KLEIN. ALL THESE PEOPLE WORKING TOGETHER AND THE COMMUNICATIONS TEAM. ONE OF THE MOST BORP THINGS IS EARLY LEARNING AND THE THING THAT IS LEAST FLOODED IN THE STATE. AND IS TO IMPORTANT. WITH IF HE PUT A LITTLE MORE MONEY IN EARLY LEARNING WE WOULD HAVE HUGE OUTCOMES. THE BIGGEST IMPACT. TOP HAVE THIS GROUP OF LEADERS WORKING TOGETHER. TOGETHER WE ARE ABLE TO INCREASE WITH THE COMMUNICATION THE NUMBER OF SLOTS THAT

141HAVE BEEN INCREASED HERE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, BEING ABLE TO WORK TOGETHER WITH TRACYE BROWN AND THE COMMUNICATION TEAM TO MAKE SURE WE PUBLICIZE THAT. OUR KINDERGARTEN READINESS IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY IS 88% WHICH IS SO HIGH. YOU CAN IMAGINE WHAT YOU CAN DO IF THIS WOULD BE FUNDED. JUST AMAZING WITH HALF DAY, THE OUTPUT WE ARE HAVING. COMMUNITY OUTREACH, ELC, THRIVE BY FIVE, AND A PARTNERSHIP TO GO OUT TO THE DAY CARE PROVIDERS AND PROVIDE THEM MORE SUPPORT. WORKING AS A TEAM TOGETHER TO REALLY EDUCATE THIS COMMUNITY. SO I JUST WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY ON THAT TEAM. WE ARE EXCITED TO CONTINUE THE WORK. THANK YOU, AND I HOPE EVERYONE HAS A HAPPY HALLOWEEN. Karen Perez: THANK YOU, MEMBER COMBS. MEMBER RENDON. Patti Rendon: THANK YOU, BOARD MEMBER PEREZ. HE WANT TO START OFF ACKNOWLEDGING DEPUTY

142LAWRENCE THOMAS FROM SHIELDS MIDDLE SCHOOL. AT THE SHERIFFS BLACK COMMUNITY RELATIONS AWARDS GALA. HE WAS NAMED DEPUTY OF THE YEAR. WITH HE CAN SAY ENOUGH ABOUT DEPUTY LAWRENCE AND WHAT HE DOES AT SHIELDS MIDDLE SCHOOL. TREMENDOUS JOB TO MAKE THOSE RELATIONSHIP WITH OUR STUDENT AND MAINTAIN A HEALTHY AND SAFE CAMPUS. NOT ONLY THAT HE AND OTHER DEPUTIES THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY PLAY SUCH A CRITICAL ROLE MAKING SURE EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THOSE CAMPUSES ARE SAFE WITH THE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE STUDENTS. CONGRATULATIONS TO DEPUTY THOMAS, JOB WELL-DONE. THANK HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY ACADEMIC SERVICES FOR K-5 SCIENCE OLYMPICS. IT WAS FUN TOP SEE THEM DO THEIR SCIENCE EXPERIENCE. WE HAD THE STATE ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, THE PUBLIC DEFENDER OFFICE, MANY OF OUR JUDGES WERE THERE, PARENTS, STUDENTS, ALL LEARNING OF HEALTHY SAFE WAYS TO INTERACT IN OUR COMMUNITY AND

143AVOIDING GUN TRAGEDY WITH OUR STUDENTS. I WANT TO THANK PROGRESS HE WILL HAVE LAGE FOR A JOB WELL-DONE FOR "LEGALLY BLONDE." THEY DID AN AMAZING PERFORMANCE AND PERFORMED BOTH FRIDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHTS. ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC. THANK THE FLORIDA ORCHESTRA FOR THEIR PERFORMANCE WITH 35 OF OUR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS REALLY DEMOCRAT TREATING AND PARTNERSHIPING WITH THE FLORIDA BALLET, AND WORKING THE IMPORTANCE OF ORCHESTRATING THE INSTRUMENTS AND HOW THAT CAN IMPROVE STUDENT ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AND THEIR EMOTIONAL AND MENTAL HEALTH. THANK ALL PRO DADS WHERE THEY HAD 150 DADS AND KIDS THERE REALLY TO THRIVE OF DOING THINGS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THEIR KIDS. HE WANT TO THAT THE McDONALD TRAINING CENTER TO TOUR WITH THEM AND OPPORTUNITIES WHERE STUDENTS CAN TRANSITION FOR TRUE CERTIFICATE PROGRAMS WHERE THEY CAN LOOK FOR DIFFERENT JOB OPPORTUNITIES. I WANT TO THANK THE BRANDON RIVERVIEW

144CHAMBER TO HAVE A DAY OF EDUCATION AND COMING TO SPEND THE DAY WITH WINGSWOOD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL WITH EDUCATORS THROUGHOUT HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY AND BRANDON HIGH SCHOOL FOR SEEING EXACTLY WHAT OUR SCHOOLS ARE DOING AND COMING IN AS COMMUNITY PARTNERS WITH THAT. I WANT TO THANK REPRESENTATIVE VALDEZ FOR THE $1. 7 MILLION JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT THAT WORK WITH FIFTH THROUGH EIGHTH GRADE AND ENTREPRENEURIALSHIP REQUEST CURRENTLY FOUR BUT UP TO SIX HIGH SCHOOLS TO SHOW STUDENTS WITH DIFFERENT ACHIEVEMENTS. THANK REPRESENTATIVE VALDEZ AND REPRESENTATIVE DISCOL TO BE TWO OF OUR DELEGATION MEMBERS FOR COMING AND SPENDING A DAY IN OUR SCHOOLS. REALLY SITTING IN OUR CLASSROOMS. SEEING THAT ACADEMIC ACHIE ACHIEVEMENT. WHAT OUR TEACHERS AND CURRICULUM ARE DOING AND RECOGNIZING THE GREAT THINGS THAT OUR STUDENTS AND TEACHERS ARE DOING WITHIN ALL OF OUR SCHOOLS. I LOOK FORWARD TO ALL

145OF THE DELEGATION MEMBERS VISITING ALL OF OUR SCHOOLS. THEY MADE A COMMITMENT AND WE WILL HOLD THEM TO THAT. A CRITICAL PART TO HAVE THEM SITTING IN OUR SCHOOLS, BEING IN OUR CLASSROOMS AND I WANT TO THANK THOSE THAT HAVE COME AND LOOK FORWARD TO OTHER ONES THAT WILL BE IN OUR SCHOOLS AS WE MOVE FORWARD. THEY MAKE THE DECISIONS THAT AFFECT OUR STUDENTS AND THEY NEED TO SEE CRITICALLY WHAT IS HAPPENING IN OUR SCHOOLS. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING A PART OF THAT. I DON'T HAVE ANY PICTURES, BUT I AM SUPER EXCITED FOR ALL THE THINGS HAPPENING IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. OUR TEACHERS, PRINCIPALS, OUR DISTRICT STAFF OF SPENDING DAY IN AND DAY OUT MAKE SURE OUR STUDENTS HAVE A FUTURE AND WE CAN'T THANK YOU ENOUGH FOR THE COMMUNITY'S PARTNERSHIP AND SUPPORT AS

146WE MOVE FORWARD. THANK YOU. Karen Perez: THANK YOU, MEMBER RENDON. I WANT TO THANK OUR BOARD MEMBERS BECAUSE WE ARE CONSTANTLY RUNNING AND PARTICIPATING WITH OUR STUDENTS AND THE PARENTS AND THE TEACHERS AND THE SCHOOLS. YOU KNOW, WE KIND OF RUN INTO EACH OTHER AND DO THINGS TOGETHER, BUT TEAMS WE ARE IN DIFFERENT PLACES OF THE DISTRICT DOING DIFFERENT THINGS. SOME I ATTENDED THE FOOD FOR THOUGHT WITH FREDDIE BARTON AND ELIZABETH TANNER. THAT WAS AMAZING. AND MEMBER RENDON WAS THERE WITH ME AS WELL. AND, ALSO, I WENT FOR DIAMONDS IN THE ROUGH. THAT IS OUR -- DR. FREDERICK WHO HAS SERVED OVER 5,000 OF OUR STUDENTS. DUNBAR -- HE HAS SERVED 300 OF THE STUDENTS TO IMPROVE -- WHAT WE HAVE SEEN ARE IMPROVED GRADES. SLIGH MIDDLE. HE SERVED MORE THAN 80 STUDENTS IN THE

147LAST THREE YEARS. AND TAMPA BAY TECH, SERVED MORE THAN 300 STUDENTS SINCE ITS INCEPTION. IT HAS OPINION AROUND FOR 20 YEARS. THAT WAS AN AMAZING EVENT. BUT I AM GOING TO TOUT A LITTLE BIT ABOUT -- ALSO, I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO, BOARD MEMBERS. IN 2021 AND '22, MYSELF AND SOME OF OUR FABULOUS CABINET, WE STARTED A MENTAL HEALTH TRACK IN TAMPA BAY TECH. SINCE 2021-'22, A STARTED OFF WITH 22 STUDENTS. AND TODAY AT THE ENDS OF THIS YEAR WE WILL HAVE 135 STUDENTS GRADUATING FROM THE MENTAL HEALTH TRACK IN TAMPA BAY TECH. WHAT THAT DOES IS, YOU KNOW, IT EMPOWERS OUR STUD STENTS ACADEMICALLY BUT INTRODUCING STUDENTS TO THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES AND SKILLS AND CAREERS, AS FAR AS THE MENTAL HEALTH FUTURES AND CAREER PATHS AND SUPPORT EGG T-- SUPPORTING AND UNDERSTANDING SOCIAL

148WORK AND ACCOUNTING. OUR STUDENTS ARE EARNING DEGREES IN THREE CERTIFICATIONS: TEEN MENTAL HEALTH, REGISTERED BEHAVIORAL TECHNICIAN AND CERTIFIED MEDICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANTS. WE ALSO ENGAGED WITH SEVERAL OTHER AGENCIES TO SUPPORT THEM, LIKE GRACE POINT, THE CRISIS CENTER OF TAMPA BAY INSPIRE HEALTH AND MANY MORE. TOMORROW, I WILL BE SITTING WITH FOUR UNIVERSITIES TO SUPPORT OUR STUDENTS AND LOOK AT MORE CERT FIR OCC-- CERTIFICATIONS TO GET THEM ON A BETTER TRACK INTO THE FIELD OF MENTAL HEALTH. BECAUSE OUR CHILDREN ARE DEALING WTH ISSUES LIKE SUBSTANCE ABUSE, LOCKDOWNS, GUN VIOLENCE, TEEN SUICIDE, BULLYING, BODY IMAGE, ACADEMIC PRESSURES, JUST TO NAME A FEW. I WANT TO PIGGYBACK ON MEMBER WASHINGTON'S COMMENTS. I WOULD LIKE TO THANK DR. GRAY, ALVA SIMONS AND THEIR TEAMS FOR YOUR RESPONSIVENESS. ALTHOUGH I WAS NOT THERE, I HEARD A LOT OF CHATTER IN

149THE COMM COMMUNITY. AND I WANT TO PROVIDE SOME FEEDBACK OF THIS COMMUNITY THINK TANK. I REALLY LIKE THE CONCEPT AND THE FACT THAT YOU INCLUDED THE VOICES OF OTHER DIVISIONS AT THIS TABLE, LIKE MENTAL HEALTH. YAY! SCHOOL SECURITY, TRANSPORTATION, TO HAVE AN AUTHENTIC CONVERSATION WITH PRINCIPALS AND THE COMMUNITY. PRINCIPALS WERE ABLE TO TELL THE STORY, AND WE NEED MORE LIKE THIS. I HEAR RUMOR AND GOSSIP THAT WE HAVE FOUR MORE COMING OR THREE MORE COMING. IS THAT TRUE? THEY ARE NOT PLANNED YET, BUT YES. Karen Perez: YES, THEY ARE COMING. SO NOW WE HAVE THAT. THEY ARE PLANNED NOW. Karen Perez: OKAY. SO -- SO NOW WE HAVE THAT HE ON RECORD. SO I'M REALLY EXCITED. BECAUSE IT PROVIDES THE COMMUNITY A BETTER UNDERSTANDING WHAT IS HAPPENING AND NEEDED IN OUR SCHOOLS AND OUR SCHOOL

150LEADERS AND STUDENTS DESERVE TO HAVE ANY ADDITIONAL SUPPORT IN WE BELIEVE PROVIDE. SO HE WANT TO THANK ALL THE COMMUNITY REPRESENT THAT I WAS TOOK TIME TO JOIN ARMS WITH THE DISTRICT TO SUPPORT OUR SCHOOLS. WHICH INCLUDED TAMPA BAY COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT DEPARTMENT. THANKS -- ALSO, WANT TO THANK LITTLE CAESAR'S AND WALMART WHO SUPPORTED THE FOOD FOR THIS EVENT. AND OTHERWISE, SEEING NO FURTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM MYSELF OR ANYBODY ELSE, THIS MEETING IS ADJOURNED.