12/12/2023 - Regular Meeting

001Karen Perez: HI, I AM KAREN PEREZ, CHAIR OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD. I WANT TO WELCOME YOU TO HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. THAT INCLUDES CHILDREN IN PRESCHOOL AND ADULTS THROUGH OUR WORK FORCE PROGRAM. Jessica Vaughn: HI, I AM JESSICA VAUGHN, 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 P.M. THE BEST WAY TO SERVE OUR STUDENTS IN 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 SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS AND FOLLOW OUR DISTRICT ON SOCIAL MEDIA. SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS ARE

002COVERED LIVE BY HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOLS TV ON SPECTRUM 635 AND FRONTIER CHANNEL 32. Stacy Hahn: MEETINGS ARE ALSO STREAMED LIVE ON OUR WEB SITE AT HILLSBOROUGHSCHOOLS.ORG. CLOSED CAPTIONING IS PROVIDED ON ALL BROADCASTS AND PAST MEETSES ARE AVAILABLE IN OUR ONLINE ARCHIVE. Nadia Combs: WE ARE INTERESTED IN WHAT THE PUBLIC HAS TO SAY. WE WILL INCLUDE TIME FOR AUDIENCE COMMENTS BEFORE WE ADDRESS OUR BUSINESS ITEMS. OUR AGENDA AND ANY SUPPORTING MATERIALS CAN BE REVIEWED ONLINE IN ADVANCE. THEY ARE POSTED SEVEN DAYS BEFORE EACH MEETING ON OUR WEB SITE AT HILLSBOROUGHSCHOOLS.ORG. Nadia Combs: 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. Jessica Vaughn: THE BOARD MEETING

003OF DECEMBER 12, 2023 IS CALLED TO ORDER. MEMBER RENDON WILL LEAD US IN A MOMENT OF SILENCE FOLLOWED BY THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. Patti Rendon: THANK YOU. PLEASE JOIN ME IN A MOMENT OF SILENCE. [MOMENT OF SILENCE] THANK YOU. NOW PLEASE STAND FOR THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. [PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE] Jessica Vaughn: MEMBER RENDON WILL NOW PLEASE ACKNOWLEDGE OUR STUDENT ENTERTAINMENT. Patti Rendon: THANK YOU. I WOULD LIKE TO THANK PROGRESS VILLAGE MIDDLE MAGNET SCHOOL, VICTORIAN CAROLLERS ALONG WITH PRINCIPAL PETER MAGARA AND DIRECTOR KRISTEN FRAZAN. THESE WONDERFUL STUDENTS ENTERTAINED US PRIOR TO THE START OF THIS BOARD MEETING. AT THIS TIME, WE WOULD LIKE TO INVITE THE STUDENTS UP TO INTRODUCE THEMSELVES. THEY ALSO ENTERTAINED US ALL AFTERNOON BY GOING FLOOR BY FLOOR IN ROSAC AND ENTERTAINING ALL OF OUR STAFF. THANK YOU SO MUCH. PLEASE COME

004AND INTRODUCE YOURSELVES. HELLO, MY NAME IS TAYLOR ALVAREZ AND IN 8th GRADE. I AM KRISTEN NICOLE MARTINEZ AND IN THE 8th GRADE. I AM EMMA NGUYEN AND IN THE 8th GRADE. I AM CAROLYN FOYT AND I AM IN THE 8th GRADE. I AM ALEXIS MARIN AND I AM IN THE 8th GRADE. I AM ZOE AND IN THE 8th GRADE. I AM IN THE 8th GRADE. I AM OLIVIA ELLSBURY AND IN THE 8th GRADE. I AM AERIAL AND IN THE 8th GRADE. I AM ISABEL ROSS AND I AM IN THE 8th GRADE. GIANNA NOLAN AND IN THE 8th GRADE. ZOE AND IN THE 8th GRADE. I AM VIRGINIA JACKSON IN THE 8th GRADE. SAMANTHA IN THE 8th GRADE. MICHELLE TORREZ IN THE 8th GRADE. I AM THEIR DIRECTOR KRISTEN FRANZEN AND TEACHING 25 YEARS SO I

005AM IN THE 25th GRADE MAYBE. THANK YOU FOR LETTING US SHARE OUR HOLIDAYS WITH YOU. I AM SANTA CLAUS, AND I AM FROM THE NORTH POLE. Jessica Vaughn: PARENTS, COME UP AND TAKE PICTURES, IF YOU WANT. YOU GUYS WERE AMAZING. Jessica Vaughn: SO GOOD. SO CUTE. WE HAVE NO WITHDRAWN ITEMS TODAY. 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? PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. MEMBER RENDON. AND THE MOTION PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. LET THE RECORD REFLECT THAT ALL BOARD MEMBERS ARE PRESENT. WE HAVE FOUR SETS OF MINUTES TO BE APPROVED TODAY. NOVEMBER 9, 2023, SCHOOL BOARD WORK SHOP. NOVEMBER 14, 2023, SCHOOL BOARD MEETING. NOVEMBER 28, 2023, SCORED BOARD MEETING. DECEMBER 5, 2023, SCHOOL BOARD RECOGNITION MEETING. I

006NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THE MINUTES. PABLO, COULD YOU CLEAR THE BOARD, PLEASE. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER WASHINGTON AND A MEMBER BY -- AND A SECOND BY MEMBER GRAY. ANY DISCUSSION? IF NOT, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND THE MOTION PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. Jim Porter: IF WE CAN TAKE A PAUSE FOR A SECOND. MISS PEREZ IS NOT PRESENT TONIGHT AND THE VOTING IS NOT ACCURATE, SO WE NEED TO HAVE PABLO CORRECT THAT. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. Jim Porter: SORRY. INTERMISSION. Jessica Vaughn: DO YOU WANT TO RETAKE THAT VOTE? Jim Porter: THE MINUTES WILL REFLECT. PRESIDENT FIRST VOTE PASSED 6-0 ABOUT MEMBER PEREZ BEING ABSENT. THE SECOND VOTE 6-0 WITH MEMBER PEREZ BEING ABSENT. THE MINUTES WILL REFLECT THAT. YOU CAN MOVE FORWARD, MADAM CHAIR. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU BEFORE BOARD

007MEMBERS, THE FORMAT OF TODAY'S MEETING. AS A REMINDER WE ARE A NONPARTISAN BOARD THAT ALL CHILDREN SHOULD BE EMPOWERED TO LEARN AND SUCCEED. OUR DECISIONS ARE MADE WITH THAT UNDERSTANDING PAVE THE WAY WITH EFFECTIVE AGENDA. 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 ARE ASKED TO GET BACK IN THE QUEUE. MEMBER RENDON WILL READ THE BOARD GUIDELINES. Patti Rendon: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. IF AS WE BEGIN TODAY'S MEETING, LET ME REMIND YOU OF THE FORMAT OF THE SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS. SILENCE ALL ELECTRONIC DEVICES. THERE ARE SPEAKERS IN THE ROOM BEHIND ME AND ALLOW BOARD MEMBERS TO HEAR THE MEETING UPON STEPPING AWAY FROM THE DAIS. THIS MEETING CAN BE VIEWED WITH CLOSED CAPTIONING ON LIVE BROADCAST ON CABLE

008TV AND ON VIDEO MONITORS HERE IN THE AUDITORIUM. IT ALSO WILL BE VIEWED WITH CLOSED CAPTIONING IN THE ONLINE VIDEO ARCHIVE. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. WE HAVE ONE ITEM SCHEDULED FOR TIME CERTAIN, 6 P.M., EMPLOYEE INPUT. PUBLIC COMMENT. THE BOARD WELCOMES COMMENTS FROM CITIZENS AND VALUES YOUR INPUT TO THE BOARD. IN ORDER TO PROVIDE THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE RESPONSE RESPONSE TO YOUR COMMENTS, OUR STAFF WILL FOLLOW UP WITH YOU AND KEEP OUR BOARD INFORMED ABOUT THE RESPONSES. OUR SCHOOL BOARD RESPECTS THE PUBLIC'S RIGHT TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD, AND WE APPRECIATE YOU TAKING THE TIME TO BE HERE; HOWEVER, IT IS REQUESTED THAT YOU ADDRESS THE BOARD -- THAT WHEN YOU ADDRESS THE BOARD COMMENTS ARE NOT DIRECTED PERSONALLY AGAINST A BOARD MEMBER OR A STAFF MEMBER. BUT RATHER DIRECTED AT THE ISSUES. ANY BEHAVIOR INTENDED

009TO INTERRUPT THE ORDERLY CONDUCT OF THIS MEETING WILL NOT BE ALLOWED. OUR CIVILITY POLICY IS IN PLACE. 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 SPEAK CAN. WHEN THERE ARE 30 SECONDS LEFT, YOU WILL SEE A YELLOW LIGHT ON THE LECTERN. A RED LIGHT AND CHIME WILL INDICATE WHEN YOUR TIME IS UP. IMNOW CALL UP THE FIRST FIVE SPEA SPEAKERS. MARK KLUTHO, LARGO. 7.02 -- NO, 7.01, APPROVE APPOINTMENTS OF ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN AND STRUCTURAL MANAGEMENT FIRMS FOR CONTINUING SERVICE CONTRACTS. OH, SAME, SAME. NOT GOING TO GET ANYWHERE LIKE THIS. 7.02, 03, 04, 05, MORE BAD BUILDINGS. YEAH. AND SO THE KEYWORD IS "CORRELATION." THE HEADLINE, CLIMATE CHANGE WILL BE A FISCAL DISASTER. AND

010THE CORAL. RESEARCHERS SAY MASS MORTALITY AMID FLORIDA KEYS BLEACHING CRISES. UNPRECEDENTED LOW. ATLANTIC HURRICANES ARE INTENSIFYING FASTER, STUDIES SAY. UN REPORTS SPELLS OUT DIRE CONSEQUENCES OF CLIMATE CHANGE. C 02 LEVEL, HIGHEST IN HUMAN HISTORY. AND, OF COURSE, I HAD THIS MANY TIMES. BETTER BUILDINGS BY DESIGN. WINSTON CHURCHHILL AND "TIME" MAGAZINE 1960, WE SHAPE OUR BUILDINGS AFTER THEY SHAPE US. THE FUTURE IS DIM. VERY DIM. OH, AND THEN THIS COLUMN IN THE SUNDAY PAPER. DANIEL RUTH. THE RICH IRONY OF MOMS FOR STUPIDITY CO-FOUNDER CAUGHT IN FLORIDA SEX SCANDAL. HA, HA, HA, HA. YEAH. DOWN THERE IN SARASOTA TODAY, THERE IS AN EFFORT TO OUST HER FROM THE SCHOOL BOARD. YEAH. THEY ARE NOTHING BUT A BUNCH OF HYPOCRITES. YEAH. YEAH, THEY -- YOU KNOW, BUT IT IS SO TYPICAL OF THE REPUBLIC-CONS. DO AS I SAY,

011NOT AS I DO, RIGHT? Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS COLLEEN BIANUCCI, MOM OF A FIRST-GRADER NAMED VICTOR SITTING IN THE AUDIENCE AND A KINDERGARTENER WHO IS ALSO IN THE AUDIENCE TODAY. MY CHILDREN ATTEND APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY AND ONE OF THE CHAIRS OF THE K-8 NEGOTIATE I HAVE IT AT APOLLO BEACH, TO SPEAK TO MANY FUTURE, PAST ABES FAMILY. AS IS OF TODAY 1700 SIGNATURES OF THE IDEA OF A K-8 IN APOLLO BEACH. I CAN'T SPEAK FOR EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THEM I WANT TO MAKE SURE AS MANY VOICES ARE HEARD AS POSSIBLE. WE RECENTLY POLLED 200 APOLLO BEACH FAMILIES TO FIND OUT IF THEIR CHILDREN WOULD RETURN TO APOLLO BEACH IF GIVEN THE OPTION FOR A K-8. OVERWHELMING MAJORITY SAID YES. THOSE WHO SAID NO BECAUSE THEIR

012CHILDREN WERE ENTERING 8th OR 9th GRADE. OF THOSE POLLED, 75% SAID THEIR CHILDREN ARE CURRENTLY ATTENDING A CHARTER SCHOOL. IN ADDITION TO THAT, 50% SAID THEY PULLED THEM OUT BEFORE 8th GRADE TO SECURE A SPOT FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL. BECAUSE SO MANY OF OUR STUDENTS ARE ATTENDING CHARTER AND PRIVATE SCHOOLS, EACH YEAR THE DISTRICT IS LOSING FTE FUNDS. IF WE HAD A K-8 AT APOLLO BEACH, THE SCHOOL DISTRICT WILL BE ABLE TO RECOUP A LOT OF THAT MONEY. OUR COMMUNITY IS NOT ASKING FOR A FANCY AUDITORIUM. WE ARE NOT ASKING FOR WORLD-RENOWNED SPORTS PLEX. OUR COMMUNITY IS ASKING FOR A PUBLIC SCHOOL OPTION THAT ALLOW OUR CHILDREN TO STAY TOGETHER FROM KINDERGARTEN THROUGH 8th GRADE. WE WANT OUR CHILDREN TO ATTEND A SCHOOL STAFFED WITH QUALIFIED, PRESENT, AND VESTED TEACHERS. WE WANT OUR CHILDREN TO ATTEND

013A SCHOOL THAT IS FILLED WITH THEIR PEERS FROM THEIR COMMUNITY. WE WANT OUR CHILDREN TO CONTINUE TO BE CHALLENGED AND TO HELP THEM BE 3R5PREPARED FOR HIGH SCHOOL. WE BELIEVE THAT APOLLO BEACH IS THAT SCHOOL. PLEASE TABLING INTO CONSIDERATION WHAT WE ARE ASKING. WHILE WE KNOW THE COST IS A CONCERN, PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THAT WE ARE TRYING TO COME UP WITH A VIABLE OPTION THAT WILL MAKE EVERYONE HAPPY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU. AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU IN JANUARY. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. HELLO, NATALIE BAILEY. I CURRENTLY HAVE A FIFTH GRADER AT APOLLO BEACH WHO WILL BE SPEAKING NEXT. AND WE, TOO, WOULD LOVE TO SEE APOLLO BEACH BECOME A K-8. WE FEEL THAT K-12 OFFERS A GREATER SENSE

014OF COMMUTAL WITH ENVIRONMENT TO ENSURE THAT EVERY STUDENT FEELS THEY BELONG. WE ARE TRYING TO CREATE A NURTURING COMMUNITY TO ALLOW STUDENTS TO FIND UNIQUE VOICES AND EXPLORE THEIR PASSION. K-8 WILL ALLOW KIDS WITH MUTUAL INTERESTS CREATING AN ENVIRONMENT THAT ENCOURAGES LEARNING WITH THEIR PEERS THAT THEY ARE FAMILIAR WITH. THEY FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH EACH OTHER AND HAVE BEEN TOGETHER SINCE KINDERGARTEN AND AS WELL AS BEING NEIGHBORS. NOT ONLY DO THE KIDS KNOW EACH OTHER VERY WELL, US AS PARENTS DO TOO. WE HAVE GROWN WITH THESE KIDS IN OUR FAMILY AS THEY ARE OUR FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS. WE FEEL FAITH AS WE ARE RESPECTED AND HAVE THE SAME GOALS AND VALUES. WE BUILT POSITIVE RELATIONSHIPS IN THE COMMUNITY AROUND OUR SCHOOL. K-8 WILL CREATE SAFE AND SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENTS IN THE SCHOOL BY EMPHASIZING ASPECTS OF THE

015SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT THAT ENCOURAGE STUDENTS TO BE MORE ENGAGED IN THEIR SCHOOL LIFE AND FEEL CONNECTED WITH IMPORTANT ADULTS AT SCHOOL AND AT HOME. KIDS ALREADY BUILT THE TRUST WITH THESE SCHOOL'S TEACHERS AND THEIR PEERS. K-8 WOULD BE AN EASY TRANSITION FOR THEM. APOLLO BEACH IS NOT THE LITTLE TOWN IT ONCE WAS. WE ARE A GROWING COMMUNITY AND CONTINUE TO GROW WITH THE RAPID GROWTH AND CONTINUE TO SEE HOME DEVELOPING AND MANY OF THE FAMILIES MOVING TO APOLLO BEACH. IN ADDITION TO THE HOME GROWTH, INCREASE OF RESTAURANTS, FAST FOOD, GROCERY STORES, HOSPITALS, ROADS, ETC., BUT NOT PUBLIC SCHOOL OPTIONS. WE SIMPLY DO NOT HAVE THE PUBLIC SCHOOL OPTIONS FOR KIDS FOR OUR GROWING COMMUNITY. WHICH NEED MORE OPTIONS. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. HI, MY NAME IS MASON. AND I AM VERY

016NERVOUS ABOUT LEAVING MY SCHOOL BECAUSE I REALLY LOVE MY SCHOOL. MY FRIENDS AND I TALK ABOUT HOW SAD WE ARE THAT WE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO SEE EACH OTHER NEXT YEAR. IT MAKES ME VERY SCARED AND VERY NERVOUS. I LOVE THAT I CAN WALK ACROSS THE STREET TO MY SCHOOL FROM MY HOUSE. I MEET UP WITH ALL MY FRIENDS AND WE WALK ACROSS THE STREET AND THEN GET TO CLASS. I FEEL SAFE KNOWING THAT ALL I SNEED TO DO IS JUST WALK ACROSS THE STREET TO GET TO MY SCHOOL. I MADE SO MANY FRIEND AND I DO NOT WANT TO LEAVE -- I DO NOT WANT TO LEAVE THEM NEXT YEAR. MY SIXTH GRADE FRIENDS TELL ME HOW STRESSFUL IT IS THAT THEY HAVE TO SIT IN TRAFFIC ON THE WAY TO AND FROM

017SCHOOL. THIS GIVES ME A LOT OF ANXIETY KNOWING THAT I HAVE TO SIT IN TRAFFIC TO AND FROM SCHOOL AND I REALLY LIKE THAT I AM ABLE TO GET HOME FAST AND PLAY WITH MY FRIENDS AND START MY HOMEWORK QUICK, THAT WAY I CAN GET GOOD GRADES AND IT BE SUCCESSFUL AND I ALSO GET TO PRACTICE MY BASEBALL. K-8 WILL HELP ME TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. CAN I HAVE THE NEXT FIVE SPEAKERS LINE UP, PLEASE. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. GOOD AFTERNOON. MY NAME IS ANNIE BROOKS. THANK YOU FOR HEARING FROM US ALL TODAY. I BELIEVE IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS. I AM A K-12 HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM ALUMNI. I WENT TO LITHIA SPRINGS ELEMENTARY, RANDALL MIDDLE AND NEWSOM HIGH SCHOOL. THEN I WENT ON TO

018GET TWO DEGREES FROM TWO PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES, FLORIDA STATE AND THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY. I LEFT HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. AND THEN I LEFT FLORIDA, BUT I CAME HOME TO RAISE A FAMILY. MY SON IS A FIRST-GRADER AT APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY. MY HOPE THAT HE WILL ALSO BE A K-12 GRADUATE OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOLS. UNFORTUNATELY, MANY OF THE KIDS IN HIS SCHOOL WON'T CONTINUE THROUGH PUBLIC SCHOOLING IF THINGS STAY THE WAY THAT THEY ARE. THEIR PARENTS WILL MAKE THE SAME HARD DECISION THAT MANY IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD HAVE, OPTING FOR ONE OF THE MANY CHARTER SCHOOLS THAT OFFER WHAT THEY FEEL IS A SAFER AND MORE RELIABLE MIDDLE SCHOOL OPTION. THESE CHARTER SCHOOLS OPERATE WITH GOVERNMENT FUNDING AND OPERATE INDEPENDENTLY FROM THE SCHOOL SYSTEM. INCREASING CHARTER ENROLLMENT CALLS A DIRECT INCREASE IN FUNDS ALLOCATED TO TRADITIONAL PUBLIC SCHOOLS, BECAUSE

019PUBLIC SCHOOL FUNDING IS BASED ON ATTENDANCE. TO KEEP STUDENTS IN OUR LOCAL PUBLIC SCHOOLS, WE NEED APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY TO BECOME A K-8 SCHOOL. UNLESS THERE ARE ENOUGH LOCAL OPTIONS FOR THE NUMBER OF 6th, 7th AND 8th GRADE STUDENTS, FAMILIES WILL CONTINUE TO SELECT OTHER OPTIONS AND I BELIEVE STRONGLY THAT ISN'T BEST FOR THE COMMUNITY OR THE DISTRICT. PLEASE HELP US EXPAND OUR NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOL AND KEEP OUR STUDENTS IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. THANK YOU Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. HELLO. MY NAME IS SHANNON LACY. I HAVE THREE CHILDREN IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SOUTH SHORE SCHOOLS. THEY ARE CURRENTLY IN 4th, 6th AND 8th GRADE. ALL THREE ATTENDED APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. I HAVE BEEN INVOLVED WITH THE K-8 INITIATIVE SINCE THE VERY FIRST MEETING. I WISH TO THANK YOU FOR LISTENING TO OUR

020CONCERNS OF THE ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS IN APOLLO BEACH AND MAKE A SPECIAL REQUEST -- OR POINT TO SAY THIS IS NO IT THE A GROUP OF PARENTS PICKY ABOUT THEIR SCHOOL OPTIONS. THESE ARE FAMILIES STRUGGLING TO HAVE A VIABLE AND CONSISTENT MIDDLE SCHOOL OPTION TO SEND OUR KIDS TOO. I ASK WHEN YOU HEAR MY PERSONAL STORY YOU THINK HOW IT WOULD BE AFFECTED IN YOUR FAMILY. MY ELDEST CHILD WHO NOW ATTENDS YORK INNOVATION ACADEMY AS A 8th GRADER WAS THE START OF OUR JOURNEY WITH THE MIDDLE SCHOOL DEBACLE THAT IS THE SOUTH SHORE. WE APPLIED LIMB FOR LT. HE LANDED FIRST ON THE WAIT LIST AFTER THE FIRST ROUND OF PLACEMENT. WE WERE EXCITED A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO GET IN A SCHOOL. HE SPENT FEBRUARY, MARCH, APRIL, MAY, JUNE AND AUGUST AS FIRST

021ON THAT WAIT LIST WHILE LLT UNDERSTANDABLY LET SIBLINGS IN AHEAD OF HIM. HE NEVER RECEIVED REPLACEMENT AT LULLLT AND WE EVENTUALLY SENT HIM TO SLAM. HE IS A GREAT KID AND DID ACADEMICALLY WELL AT SLAM, HE WAS SEPARATED FOR ALL OF HIS FRIENDS AND A STRUGGLING YEAR FOR HIM. AS A SIXTH-GRADER YOU ARE STILL YOUNG AND YOU WANT TO BE CONSISTENT WITH YOUR FRIENDS AND TO NOT HAVE THAT IS HARD. ESPECIALLY STARTING OUT MIDDLE SCHOOL. MIDDLE SCHOOL IS NO JOKE. WE ALL KNOW. WE HAVE BEEN THERE. SO HE DID ACADEMICALLY WELL AND STRUGGLING WITHOUT FRIENDS. ONCE ENROLLED WITH YORK, HIS PREALGEBRA FROM SLAM DID NOT TRANSFER. I UNNECESSARILY REPEATED AN ENTIRE CLASS. ANOTHER I THINK THAT PEOPLE FACE IF THEY DO GO TO A DIFFERENT SCHOOL THE CLASSES THEY ARE TAKING DON'T MEET UP WITH

022THE NEW SCHOOL THEY ARE ATTENDING. AT THAT TIME OF MY OLDEST TRANSFERRING TO YORK, WE HAD PLANNED TO TAKE MY SOON-TO-BE FIFTH GRADER AND THIRD-GRADERS OUT OF APOLLO BEACH TO SAVE THEM A SEAT. THE FIFTH GRADER EXCITED TO BE A SAFETY PATROL AND STAY WITH HIS FRIENDS BEGGED ME TO LET HIM STAY AT APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY AS DID MY THIRD-GRADER. SPIRALED INTO MONTHS OF UNCERTAINTY THIS YEAR -- IS THAT IT? OKAY. 30 SECONDS. I WILL JUST SAY THE INCONSISTENCY OF LETTING SIBLINGS RULE AFFECTED OUR FAMILY ON BOTH SIDES. SIBLINGS NOT GETTING IN AND GETTING IN. OUR LACK OF CHOICES OF APOLLO BEACH PUT UNNECESSARY STRESS ON FAMILIES THAT TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR SCHOOLS, OUR SCHOOLS AND NOT CONDUCIVE OF BUILDING AND CULTIVATING COMMUNITY. PARENTS WANT TO BE INVOLVED. YOU SPREAD THEM OVER DIFFERENT MIDDLE SCHOOLS,

023THEY ARE NOT ABLE TO BE AS INVOLVED. TO LEAVE BEHIND A BELOVED ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TO SAVE A SPOT IN ANOTHER SCHOOL IS COUNTERPRODUCTIVE AND DAMAGING. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. HI, MY NAME IS MAXIMUS WATSON AND I AM IN THIRD GRADE AT APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY. I'M HERE TO ASK YOU TO TURN MY SCHOOL INTO A K-8 SCHOOL. THERE ARE THREE REASONS WHY I WANT THIS. FIRST, APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY IS ALREADY A REALLY GOOD SCHOOL. AND -- GOOD SCHOOL. IT WILL PROBABLY BE A GOOD K-8 SCHOOL SINCE IT HAS A STRONG FOUNDATION AND A COMMUNITY THAT LOVES IT. SECOND, A LOT OF FAMILIES ARE BEING SPLIT IN MY COMMUNITY. THE CLOSEST MIDDLE SCHOOLS ARE HARD TO GET IN. SIBLINGS END UP AT DIFFERENT SCHOOLS. IF MY BROTHER AND I DON'T GET ACCEPTED AT A

024K-8 SCHOOL BY OUR HOUSE, WE WILL BE AT TWO DIFFERENT SCHOOLS. NEXT YEAR WHEN HE STARTS KINDERGARTEN, THIS IS HAPPENING TO A LOT OF PARENTS. I KNOW THIS IS STRESSFUL AND SAD. LAST, I LOST A LOT OF FRIENDS WHO HAVE ALREADY MOVED TO CHARITY AND MAGNET SCHOOLS. SO FAR NINE OF MY FRIENDS LEFT APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY WHEN THEY GO INTO ANOTHER K-8 SCHOOL CLOSE BY. THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK ABOUT THIS IMPORTANT ISSUE. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. S. HI, BRYCE EASTERWOOD. I AM THIRD-GRADER AT APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY. I'M HERE TO ASK YOU TO TURN APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY INTO A K-8 SCHOOL. THREE REASONS I WANT THIS SO I CAN STAY WITH MY FRIENDS AND MY BROTHER AND SISTER. NUMBER TWO IS BECAUSE I DON'T LIKE FEELING NEW AT A NEW

025SCHOOL. AND NUMBER THREE, I TRIED CHARTER SCHOOLS, AND THEY ARE NOT A GOOD FIT FOR ME AND MY FAMILY. THANK YOU. AND PLEASE TURN APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY SCHOOL INTO A K-8 SCHOOL. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. HELLO. MY NAME IS. THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS THAT HAVE ALREADY BEEN SAID FROM THE KIDS THAT REALLY HAVE TO LIVE THROUGH THIS. AND OBVIOUSLY I HOPE THAT MY TWO SONS THAT JUST SPOKE WITH STAY IN THE SAME SCHOOL WHEN THEIR SISTER STARTS AS WELL. I JUST WANT TO SAY WE HAVE SUCH A BIG FOLLOWING THAT I CAN SEE ON SOCIAL MEDIA THAT THERE ARE SO MANY PARENTS THAT SUPPORT THIS AND THEY ARE NOT ABLE TO COME BECAUSE OF THE MEETING TIME. AND I JUST WANT TO MENTION THAT SO THAT WE KNOW THAT THEY ARE HERE IN SPIRIT

026SUPPORTING THIS INITIATIVE. WE APPRECIATE ALL THE TIME THAT YOU GUYS HAVE ALREADY CONTRIBUTED TO THIS. WE ARE ASKING NOW TO TURN OUR SMALL GLIMMER OF HOPE INTO REALITY AND THAT IS A REALITY THAT I THINK YOU CAN SEE FROM HEARING FROM THE OLDER STUDENTS THAT WILL HELP SUPPORT THE MENTAL AND SOCIAL WELL BEING OF THESE KIDS THROUGH THEIR DEVELOPING YEARS. I CAN SPEAK FROM A DUAL WORKING HOUSEHOLD THAT COMMUTE AND MAKING THINGS WORK WITH MULTIPLE CHILDREN IS SUCH A CHALLENGE. SO PLEASE, CONTINUE TO FOCUS ON THIS. PLEASE HELP US MAKE IT INTO A REALITY. LIKE COLLEEN SAID, WE ARE NOT ASKING FOR A GLAMOROUS PLACE. WE ARE ASKING FOR A SAFE PLACE TO HELP OUR KIDS CONTINUE TO MOVE IN THE DIRECTION THEY ARE NOW. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, AND I

027HAVE BEEN H SIX YEARS, AND THE SCHOOL BOARD IS REALLY INVOLVED. I HAVE A CONFLICTING ATTENDANCE ISSUE BETWEEN THE SCHOOL AND THE COUNTY. I REACHED OUT, AND IT WAS RESOLVED THE SAME DAY. I MEAN, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT THE DAY OF REGISTRATION. SO I KNOW THAT THIS BOARD IS INVOLVED. THAT. JUST TO UNDER SCORE. WE ALL KNOW THAT. IT IS IMPORTANT TO COMMUNITY. OUR CHILDREN ARE AGREEING UP IN THIS COMMUNITY TOGETHER. MY DAUGHTER IS IN FIFTH GRADE. SHE WILL SPEAK IN A MINUTE, BUT SHE WILL LIKELY HAVE TO GO TO ANOTHER SCHOOL AND THAT MEANS THAT BRIEFLY IS IN SECOND GRADE AND SHE HAS THE OPTION POTENTIALLY DEPENDING ON THIS BOARD TO STAY IN THE K-8 OPTION OF APOLLO BEACH. IN SUMMARY I APPRECIATE YOU TAKING THE TIME TO CONSIDER THIS. AND THANK YOU FOR

028YOUR TIME AND CONSIDERATION. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. HI, ANY NAME IS LINDSEY. I AM IN FIFTH GRADE. IT IS IMPORTANT FOR ME TO BE HERE TODAY AND VOICE THE IMPORTANCE FOR US TO HAVE A K-8 OPTION. I WILL BE GOING INTO SIXTH GRADE NEXT YEAR. AND WILL LIKELY BE GOING TO A DIFFERENT SCHOOL THAN A LOT OF MY FRIENDS. OUR COMMUNITY IS CLOSE. AND IT IS SAD THAT WE CAN'T ALL BE TOGETHER. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. HI, I AM ALANA. I AM IN SECOND GRADE. AND IT WOULD BENEFIT FROM K-8 OPTION. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND CONSIDERATION Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. I GOT TO PUT ON MY GLASSES. JESSICA INCOMENEEB. I HAVE TWO BOYS THAT ATTEND APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY AND

029I WOULD LIKE TO READ A FEW HIGHLIGHTS FROM AN ARTICLE ON TAMPA BAY PARENTING IN 2017. EDUCATORS PARENTS, INSTITUTES HAVE UNCOVERED BENEFITS FOR STUDENTS AT K-8. STUDENTS THRIVE IN THE VIBRANT SENSE OF COMMUNITY, DEVELOP IMPORTANT LEADERSHIP AND SKILLS, BETTER ACADEMICALLY THAN THOSE WHO ATTEND A TRADITIONAL K-5 AND 6-8 ENVIRONMENT. FIVE ADVANTAGES OF K-8. CULTURE OF COMMUNITY. A CULTURE OF COMMUNITY IS BUILT ON RELATIONSHIP WHICH EMPHASIZE ON COMMUNITIES BEING CENTRAL TO ITS CULTURE. YEARS AND YEARS AFTER THE COMMUNITY NURTURES THESE RELATIONSHIPS RESULT IN INCREASED STUDENT SELF-ESTEEM AND SPIRIT OF SUCCESS. NUMBER TWO, COMMUNITY OF PARENT INVOLVEMENT. KEY FACTOR OF STUDENT SUCCESS OF PARENT INVOLVEMENT THAT IS STEAD HE THROUGH A K-8 AS IT FALLS THROUGH AS IT COMES THROUGH MIDDLE SCHOOL. LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES. WHEN THE EXPECTATION OF AN 8th GRADER IS TO BE A ROLE MODEL

030FOR THE REST OF THE STUDENTS, THEY RISE TO THE OCCASION. WAITING UNTIL HIGH SCHOOL DELAYS THE CHANCE FOR STUDENT TO GROW AND THINK AS LEADERS. STUDENTS IN K-8 SCHOOLS CAN PUT LEADERSHIP IN THE SCHOOL IN PRACTICE -- SORRY, LEADERSHIP AND SKILLS INTO PRACTICE AT SCHOOL. TIME TO DISCOVER THE STRENGTHS IS NUMBER FOUR. K-8 STUDENTS GRADUATE AS REQUIRED AS COMPOSITE OF LEADERSHIP AND PERSONAL EXPERIENCES THAT ALLOW HIM OR HER TO TRANSITION TO HIGH SCHOOL. AND NUMBER FIVE, ACADEMIC AND SOCIAL SUCCESS. QUOTE, TOP DOGS. TEST SCORES MAY IMPROVE AS WELL. S.A.T. SCORES IN READING, MATH AND SCIENCE ARE SIGNIFICANTLY STRONGER IN K-8 SCHOOLS. STUDENTS FROM K-8 SCHOOLS WERE 11% MORE LIKELY TO BE ENROLLED IN SLICK I HAVE IT HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAMS. STUDENTS FROM K-8 SCHOOLS ALSO DEMONSTRATE A HIGHER GPA IN NINTH GRADE. WE HOPE THAT

031YOU GUYS TAKE THESE ADVANTAGES ■INTO CONSIDERATION FOR OUR COMMUNITY SCHOOL. THANK YOU, GUYS, FOR YOUR TIME. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. GOOD AFTERNOON. WHILE I DO WANT TO ISSUE AN EXPLICIT CONTENT WARNING AGAINST. THIS IS THE WORST. I KNOW I SAID THAT MANY TIMES BEFORE, BUT YOU NEED TO KNOW ARE THIS IS THE ABSOLUTE WORSE. BRACE YOURSELF AND I ASK IF YOU HAVE CHILDREN TO TAKE THEM OUT. SO I ASK YOU, WHERE IS THE LINE? EVERY RESPONSIBLE ADULT WILL SAYS THERE A LINE. AND YOUR CONSTITUENTS NEED TO KNOW WHETHER YOU ARE WILLING TO DRAW THE LINE. UP TO THIS POINT IT APPEARS YOU HAVE NOT. YOU SAY YOU DON'T WANT PORNOGRAPHY IN SCHOOL LIBRARIES YET YOU SIT ON YOUR HANDS AND DO NOTHING. YOU HEARD ME TALK ABOUT BOOK AFTER BOOK IN YOUR

032SCHOOL LIBRARIES AND NOTHING IS DONE. ALAN GINSBERG IS THE NAME YOU NEED TO WRITE DOWN. YOU NEED TO KNOW THIS NAME. 44 BOOKS WITH ALAN GINSBERG POETRY AND HIS LIFE IN MIDDLE SCHOOLS AND HIGH SCHOOLS. I DON'T KNOW WHAT ALL OF THEM SAY BUT I HAVE SOME SAMPLES. HE WAS NAMBLA'S MOST FAMOUS MEMBER AND DEFENDER. THE NORTH AMERICAN MAN-BOY LOVE ASSOCIATION, PETITIONED FILL LA AND ADVOCACY PROGRAM TO ABOLISH THE AGE OF CONSENT AND LEGALIZE SEXUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN ADULTS AND CHILDREN. I HEARD THAT THEIR MOTTO IS SEX AFTER EIGHT IS TOO LATE. HERE IS A QUOTE FROM GINSBURG. I AM A MEMBER OF NAMBLA BECAUSE I LOVE BOYS TOO. EVERYBODY DOES WHO HAVE A LITTLE HUMANITY. HE AND IN NAMBLA'S DOCUMENTARY READING ONE OF HIS POEMS AND FEATURED ON THE WEB SITE TO THIS DATE. CAN

033YOU GUESS WHAT MANY OF HIS POEMS ARE ABOUT? THE ONE ENTITLED, SWEET BOY, GIVE ME YOUR ASS. OR PLEASE MASTER -- REPEATED OVER AND OVER, PLEASE MAKE ME GO MOAN ON THE TABLE. PLEASE F ME MORE VIOLENTLY AND THROB FIVE SECONDS TO SPURT OUT YOUR SEMEN HEAT. LET ME NICK YOUR HEAD, FINGER THROUGH THE HAIR. EVER SLEEP ABOUT A MAN BEFORE. GO TAKE DOWN YOUR BLUE JEANS AND WE WILL HAVE SOME RAW FUN. LIE ON YOUR BELLIES. AND I WILL STOP THERE. ONE THAT REPEATS SPANK ME AND F ME OVER AND OVER. WHAT IF HE, LIKE OTHER AUTHORS THAT I HAVE SEEN COME TO OUR SCHOOL WANT TO MENTOR KIDS OF WRITING. IS THAT A LINE YOU WOULD CROSS? THIS IS NOT A FIRST AMENDMENT ISSUE. PUTTING PORN IN FRONT OF KIDS IS NOT YOUR

034FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHT. THIS IS NOT A BOOK BANNING ISSUE. THIS IS ABOUT PROTECTING CHILDREN AND THAT IS ALL! DO YOU HAVE A LINE? WHERE IS IT? I IMPLORE YOU GET OFF YOUR HANDS AND DO SOMETHING. ALAN GINSBERG DESERVES NO SHELF SPACE IN OUR SCHOOL LIBRARIES. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. YOU CAN START. THANK YOU. GOOD AFTERNOON. CARMEN EDMONDS AND I AM MERE TO ASK THE SCHOOL BOARD TO NOT ADOPT THE ADDENDUM FOR THE 7MINDSETS ACADEMY LLC. THIS MONEY NEEDED TO PAY AN OUTSIDE VENDOR TO LOOK AT OUTCOMES MUCH SEL LEARNING AND REDUCING SCHOOL DESCRIBE LENS IS NOT NEEDED. ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS GO OUT TO THE SCHOOLS AND ASK THE TEACHERS WHAT IT IS EVERY DAY IN THE CLASSROOMS. I REACH OUT TO SEVERAL TEACHERS AND THEY SAY THE CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT

035IS MORE HOSTILE THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS. CAN WE DEDUCE THAT S.E.L. IS NOT WORKING? I SAY YES. YOU LOOK THE ARTICLES I GAVE YOU. S.E.L. IS LEAVING KIDS MORE DEPRESS AND LEAVING THEM BEHIND IN THE AREAS OF READING, WRITING AND ARITHMETIC. OTHER STUDIES CORRELATING ILLITERACY INCREASES AGGRESSION, ASSAULT, ARSON AND SADISTIC ACTS AIMED AT THEIR PEERS AND SIBLINGS. IN FACT, ONE ARTICLE STATES, IT IS POSSIBLE THAT READING FAILURE IS THE SINGLE MOST SIGNIFICANT FACTOR IN THE FORMS OF DELINQUENCY DESCRIBED AS ANTI-SOCIALLY AGGRESSIVE. AND ALSO WE HAVE KNOWN FOR A LONG TIME THERE IS A CORRELATION BETWEEN DELINQUENCY AND ACADEMIC FAILURE, INABILITY TO READ. CARL KLEIN A PSYCHIATRIST OF EXPERTISE IN CHILDREN'S LEARNING DISABILITIES STATES "EVERY POOR READER WHO DOES NOT RECEIVE APPROPRIATE HELP WILL DEVELOP SIGNIFICANT EMOTIONAL PROBLEMS." SO WITH MANY OF OUR SCHOOLS FAILING IN

036THE AREA OF READING AND MATH, WOULDN'T OUR TAXPAYER MONEY BE BETTER PUT TO USE IN PROGRAMS THAT TEACH OUR KIDS THESE SKILLS. S.E.L. IS NOT WORKING. SOCIAL, EMOTIONAL LEARNING IS NOT WORKING. AND WE SEE THAT EVERY DAY. PLEASE TAKE THE CORRECT STEPS TO GET ALL OF OUR SCHOOLS UP TO READING AND MATH PROFICIENCY. S.E.L. IS A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER GRAY AND A SECOND FROM MEMBER WASHINGTON. PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APP APPEAR. AND THE MOWING PASSES WITH ALL PRESENT MEMBERS VOTING YES AND MEMBER PEREZ BEING AWAY FROM THE DAIS. I WILL NOW CALL ON SUPERINTENDENT AYRES TO HIGHLIGHT OUR ADMINISTRATIVE APPOINTMENT. Superintendent Ayres: THANK YOU, MEMBER VAUGHN. WE HAVE

037ONE PRINCIPAL APPOINTMENT ON THE CONSENT AGENDA. IF I CAN HAVE CONRAD McCREE PLEASE STAND. CONRAD McCREE IS THE NEW PRINCIPAL AT FRANKLIN BOYS ACADEMY. MR. McCREE -- YES, GIVE HIM A HAND. COME ON UP MR. McCREE, COME ON UP. THE NEW PRINCIPAL OF FRANKLIN BOYS PREP. GAVE HIS EDUCATION IN PINELLAS COUNTY AS A TEACHER A.P. AND PRINCIPAL, IN 2023 HE JOINED HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS AS A ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL AT HILLSBOROUGH HIGH SCHOOL. MR. McCREE IS A DOCTORATE CANDIDATE AND SERVES ON MANY ADVISORIES AND PHILANTHROPIC BOARD. MR. McCREE, CONGRATULATIONS, THE NEW PIN PAL OF FRANKLIN BOYS PREP. Jessica Vaughn: CONGRATULATIONS MR. McCREE. Jessica Vaughn: FOLLOWING ITEMS IN DHULC-103, KRUL 402CC 601,C 706 ANDC 901. 1.03, PURCHASE ADDENDUM WITH 7MINDSETS ACADEMY LLC SUPERINTENDENT AYRES WILL HIGHLIGHT. Superintendent Ayres: OUR 7MINDSETS ACADEMY LLC ACADEMY. HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

038WAS AWARDED THE BUREAU OF JUSTICE. STUDENTS AND TEACHERS AND OFFICERS STOPPING SCHOOL VIOLENCE GRANT. ALL SIX STOP VIOLENCE SCHOOLS GRA HAVE BEEN THE 7MINDSETS ACADEMY LLC INFLUENCE WITH THEIR STUDENTS AND STAFF. THE STOP SCHOOL VIOLENCE ACTIVITIES IS AIMED TO TRAIN SCHOOL PERSONNEL AND EDUCATE STUDENTS USING RESILIENCY AND LIFE SCHOOL STRATEGY WITH THE SEVEN MINDSETS CURRICULUM. THIS WAS APPROVED IN THE FALL OF 2021. THIS IS ALL GRANT FUNDED TO THE GRANT I JUST MENTIONED. THERE WAS A ONE-YEAR EXTENSION ON THAT GRANT AND THIS AGENDA ITEM IS TO PURCHASE THE SEVEN MINDSETS CURRICULUM TO GO ALONG WITH THE GRANT THAT WE RECEIVED BACK IN THE FALL OF 2021. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE C 1.03. I HAVE A MOTION -- I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER WASHINGTON.

039AND A SECOND FROM MEMBER GRAY. MEMBER RENDON. YOU PULLED THIS ITEM. DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? Patti Rendon: YES, THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU TO STAFF FOR TAKING THE TIME, JULIE, FOR MEETING WITH ME. AND HAVING A CONVERSATION AROUND THIS. AS WE TALKED EARLIER, I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE UNDERSTAND THAT ALTHOUGH THERE ARE SOME REALLY GOOD KEY ASPECTS OF SEVEN MINDSETS. AND I SAY THAT IN GENERAL BECAUSE THERE ARE SOME GOOD CHARACTERISTICS OF BEING A PART OF YOUR COMMUNITY, ENGAGING IN EXECUTIVE INFORMATION AND TAKING POWER OF YOUR OWN THINGS AND THINGS. I WANT TO MAKE SURE WHEN WE LOOK AT THINGS IN THE FUTURE WE CAN LOOK AT WAYS TO EMPOWER OUR OWN STAFF. WAYS TO HAVE A PLETHORA OF 25,000 EMPLOYEES WITH EXCESSIVE TALENT AND HISTORY,

040AS WELL AS HUGE KNOWLEDGE. AND SO I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE -- AS WE LOOK TO THE FUTURE, WE ARE LOOKING TO LOOK WITHIN, EMPOWERING OUR STAFF TO BUILD SOME MORE CURRICULUM AND EMPOWER OUR ADMINISTRATORS TO BE PART OF THAT BUILDING PROCESS SO WE HAVE MORE CONTROL OVER EXTRA EXACTLY WHAT WE ARE DOING IN OUR CLASSROOMS, FIRST OF ALL. SECOND OF ALL, WE ARE EMPOWERING OUR TEACHERS AND STAFF MEMBERS TO BE BUILDING THEIR OWN CAREERS, BUILDING THEIR OWN RESUMES SO THEY ARE GOING OUT AND LOOKING WHAT THEY CAN DO FOR THE FUTURE. AND I THINK THIS IS PART OF THE EMPOWERMENT PROCESS THAT WE LOOK TO OUR OWN STAFF TO DO MORE AND MORE OF THINGS WITHIN OUR OWN COMMUNITY. WE ARE THE THIRD LARGEST DISTRICT IN THE STATE. THE SEVENTH IN THE

041COUNTRY. WE SHOULD BE PUTTING THIS CURRICULUM TOGETHER. WE SHOULD BE IN THE FOREFRONT OF THE NEXT GENERATION OF WHAT WE ARE DOING AND OUR TEACHERS SHOULD BE LEADING THE WAY. THEY HAVE THE TALENT. AND I WANT TO SEE THAT BEING USED MORE. AND SO THAT'S WHY I PULLED THIS ITEM, BECAUSE I THINK WHEN WE ARE LOOKING AT DIFFERENT ITEMS AS WE MOVE WE NEED TO LOOK AT TO THOSE THINGS IN THE FUTURE. THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO HAVE THAT CONVERSATION WITH ME. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER RENDON. MEMBER GRAY. Lynn Gray: THANK YOU, MEMBER VAUGHN. YOU KNOW, I OFTEN THINK WHEN WE HAVE S.E.L. ITEMS COME, IT BECOMES A PHILOSOPHICAL MATTER WHEN IT COMES TO EDUCATION. PHILOSOPHICALLY, WE HAVE TO ASK OURSELVES, IS THE CHILD MENTALLY READY TO LEARN? IS THE CHILD SOCIALLY

042AND EMOTIONALLY READY TO LEARN? AND IN MY BOOK, THAT IS FOUR DECADES OF TEACHING AND LEARNING. I BELIEVE THAT IS A PRIORITY. THE CHILD MUST BE MENTALLY, SOCIALLY, EMOTIONALLY READY TO LEARN. NOW, THE OTHER -- THE FLIPSIDE OF THIS. SHOULD WE NOT PAY MORE ATTENTION TO MATH, SCIENCE, READING, WRITING AND ARITHMETIC? ABSOLUTELY. YOU HAVE TO THINK IF A CHILD COMES TO SCHOOL WITH TRAUMA, FOOD INSECURITY, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, LACK OF EYESIGHT BECAUSE THEY CAN'T AFFORD EYEGLASSES. THINGS THAT YOU WOULD NEVER EVEN THINK HAPPENS TO CHILDREN. HOW CAN THEY LEARN? I SAY THIS. 7MIND SETS IS PART OF THE CURRICULUM. SO IS TRAUMA-BASED TEACHING BECAUSE WE PUT IT IN THE CURRICULUM. AND I THINK IT HAS TO BE SAID OVER AND OVER, OUR CHILDREN NEED EVERY BIT OF MENTAL SUPPORT, SOCIAL SUPPORT, EMOTIONAL SUPPORT THAT WE CAN,

043SUPERINTENDENT AYRES, AFFORD. AND THAT IS HOW AND WHEN A CHILD WILL LEARN. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. MEMBER COMBS? Nadia Combs: THANK YOU. I ALSO REALLY STRONGLY SUPPORT THIS CURRICULUM. AS MUCH AS I KNOW HOW AMAZING OUR TEACHERS ARE, AND HOW THEY CAN WRITE YOUR RICK LULL, IT DOES TAKE A MASTER'S IN CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION. AND WE REALLY -- IF YOU TALK ABOUT MORE AND MORE TEACHERS WRITING CURRICULUM, THAT IS LESS TEACHERS IN THE CLASSROOM. YOU LOOK AT THIS PROGRAM, WHAT YOU ARE SEEING IS YOU ARE SEEING A NATIONAL PROGRAM THAT IS VETTED, THAT IS RESEARCHED, THAT IS BUILT. SO THAT IS WHY THIS HAS BEEN AS A GRANT WE WERE GIVEN. IT STARTED IN 2021. AND IT ENDS IN 2025. THIS CURRICULUM IS USED AROUND THE NATION. YOU HAVE PEOPLE WHO

044ARE Ph.d.s WHO HAVE DONE RESEARCH TO SEE IT IS EFFECTIVE. AS MUCH AS I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT. OUR TEACHERS WRITE CURRICULUM CALL THE TIME. AS A TEACHER I WORKED AT TRAINING ALL THE TIME. I CREATED CURRICULUM AND WROTE CURRICULUM PEOPLE ARE WORKING MORE AND MORE HOURS AND NOT ENOUGH TIME TO COMPLETE THAT. HOW DO WE KNOW IT IS EFFECTIVE? HOW DO WE KNOW IT IS RESEARCH BASED? HOW DO WE KNOW IT BUILDS THE CAPACITY AND MAKES SURE THAT KIDS ARE MAKING GOOD DECISIONS, SO THEY ARE NOT MORE AT RISK. WHEN YOU HAVE A NATIONAL CURRICULUM THAT IS REALLY, REALLY STRONG. I DON'T KNOW HOW YOU CAN COMPARE THAT AND SAY THAT OUR TEACHERS -- I COMPLETELY KNOW HOW HARD TEACHERS ARE WORKING IN THE DISTRICT. TEACHERS ARE ALREADY WORKING TWO OR THREE JOBS. AT

045THE DISTRICT LEVEL THEY ARE DOING MULTIPLE THINGS, IF WE CAN CREATE A CURRICULUM AND HAVE IT OUT THE NEXT YEAR. NOT A BIG HEAVY LIFT. NOT THAT THE CAPABILITY OF HAVING Ph.d.s IN CURRICULUM INSTRUCTION AND 24E7 WORK WITH TEXTBOOK COMPANIES AND WORK WITH 7MINDSETS AND HELP ESTABLISH THE CURRICULUM. WHEN THEY ESTABLISH, THEY OFTEN LEAVE THE SCHOOL DISTRICT BECAUSE THE SCHOOL DISTRICT IS ASKING FOR SO MUCH. SOMEONE INVOLVED IN CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION AND WORKED WITH TEXTBOOK COMPANIES AND I AM VERY INVOLVED AT USF. USUALLY THOSE PEOPLE HAVE MASTER'S AND Ph.d. INSTRUCTION WITH GUIDANCE AND LONG-TERM RESEARCH. A BOOK IS NOT JUST CREATED AND SENT OUT. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER COMBS. MEMBER RENDON. Patti Rendon: THANK YOU. I WAS NOT DIRECTING OUR TEACHERS TO TAKE ON ONE MORE RESPONSIBILITY. I WANT TO CLARIFY MY

046STATEMENT. AS A DISTRICT WE CAN EMPOWER ALL MEMBERS OF OUR STAFF TO LOOK AT ALL LEVELS TO LOOK AT CURRICULUM AS WE MOVE FORWARD. I WANT TO MAKE IT VERY CLEAR THAT I BELIEVE TEACHERS HAVE QUITE A BIT ON THEIR PLATES. THEY ARE DOING A PHENOMENAL JOB IN THE CLASSROOMS AND DISTRICT-WIDE LOOKING AT FUTURE PROGRAMS. SO THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER RENDON. MEMBER WASHINGTON? Henry "Shake" Washington: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. I THINK ABOUT A YEAR AGO, I DID MAKE A COMMENT ABOUT THE 7MIND-SETS. ALL I HAVE TO SAY GO 7MINDSETS, WHAT A GREAT PROGRAM. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER WASHINGTON. I THINK IT HAS BEEN SOME REALLY GOOD DISCUSSION. I DON'T DISAGREE WITH MEMBER RENDON IN THE GENERAL SENSE THAT IT WOULD BE NICE IF WE ARE ABLE TO WRITE SOME

047STUFF FROM IN-HOUSE INSTEAD OF GOING OUT-OF-HOUSE. HOWEVER, SPEAKING TO 7MINDSETS, WE HAD THIS DISCUSSION LAST YEAR AND I CANNOT SPEAK HIGHLY ENOUGH ABOUT WHAT AN IMPACT IT HAS AND THE SCHOOLS THAT I HAVE BEEN IN THAT IT IMPLEMENTED AND GETTING FEEDBACK FROM THE TEACHERS WHO HAVE TO USE IT. AND TO MEMBER GRAY'S POINT, TO LOOK AT THE WHOLE CHILD WHEN WE ARE TALKING ABOUT EDUCATION, WE ALL KNOW REGARDLESS OF WHAT STATISTICS THAT WE CAN PULL, IF A CHILD IS HUNGRY, IF THEY ARE TIRED, IF THEY HAD TRAUMA THE NIGHT BEFORE, THEY WILL NOT BE IN A POSITION TO LEARN. SO MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE ADDRESSING THE WHOLE CHILD, THEIR NEEDS, THEIR EMOTIONS SO THEY ARE IN A PLACE TO BE ABLE TO RECEIVE THE INFORMATION THAT OUR TEACHERS AND STAFF WORK SO HARD TO

048PRESENT TO THEM HAS GOT TO BE A PRIORITY OF THE THIS SCHOOL BOARD. AGAIN, EVERY SINGLE TIME I HAVE GONE INTO ANY SCHOOL WHERE THERE IS 7MINDSETS, ALL I HAVE GOTTEN IS THE MOST POSITIVE FEEDBACK WHAT AN IMPACT IT HAS. OF ALL THE THINGS I AM EXCITED ABOUT PASSING WHEN WE TALK OF THINGS WE ARE GOING TO PASS, I AM REALLY EXCITED ABOUT PASSING THIS AND GIVING MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO OUR SCHOOLS THAT NEED IT THE MOST TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO USE IT. THANK YOU. AND SEEING THAT THERE IS NO MORE DISCUSSION ON THIS, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND THE MOTION PASSES WITH ALL MEMBERS PRESENT VOTING YES -- SORRY, THE MOTION PASSES WITH ALL MEMBERS PRESENT EXCEPT FOR MEMBER RENDON VOTING YES AND MESH PEREZ BEING AWAY FROM THE DAIS. LET'S TRY

049THAT AGAIN. I WILL GET THIS RIGHT. THE MOTION PASSES WITH MEMBER RENDON VOTING NO. ALL PRESENT OTHER MEMBERS VOTING YES. AND MEMBER PEREZ BEING AWAY FROM THE DAIS. GOT THAT ONE. THANK YOU. Henry "Shake" Washington: GOOD JOB. Jessica Vaughn: ALL RIGHT. THE NEXT ITEM 3.02, INCREASE EXPENDITURES FOR PIGGYBACK CONTRACTED SERVICE AGENCIES FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION. SUPERINTENDENT AYRES WILL HIGHLIGHT THIS ITEM. Superintendent Ayres: THANK YOU, CHAIR VAUGHN. WITH ITEM 3.02, BOARD MEMBERS, BACK ON MAY 9 OF THIS YEAR, THE BOARD APPROVED THIS AGENDA ITEM FOR CONTRACTED SERVICES. AND AT THIS TIME, EXPENDITURES HAVE EXCEEDED OUR ORIGINAL EXPECTATIONS. AS WE HIRED MORE INTO THESE POSITIONS AS WE EXPECTED WHICH IS A GOOD THING. I WILL GO REAL QUICK WHAT WE ARE ABLE TO DO AND THIS ITEM IS FOR INCREASING EXPENDITURES OF AN ITEM APPROVED MAY 9, 2023.

050THE PIGGYBACK AGREEMENTS HAVE ALLOWED HCPS TO UTILIZE STAFFING SERVICES OF SIX LOCAL AGENCIES THAT ARE CURRENTLY PROVIDING SERVICES FOR HCPS STUDENTS AT VARIOUS CAPACITIES AND THREE NATIONAL AGENCIES TO ADDRESS OUR CRITICAL SHORTAGE AREA. SO FAR THIS YEAR WE FILLED THE FOLLOWING VACANCIES WITH THESE CONTRACTED SERVICES. 59 ESE TEACHERS FILLED. 171 PARAPROFESSIONALS. ONE REGISTERED BEHAVIOR TECH, ONE VISION TEACHER ARE, UNONE SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGIST, ASSISTANTS AND 86 SPEECH THERAPIST. WITH THIS AGREEMENT AGAIN APPROVED MAY 9, 2023, WE EXCEEDED THE ORIGINAL EXPENDITURES OF $4 MILLION. THIS AGENDA ITEM IS REQUESTING AN ADDITIONAL INCREASE IN THOSE MONIES ALLOCATED FOR THIS PARTICULAR AGENDA ITEM. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT AYRES. I NEED A MOTION AND SECOND TO APPROVE ITEM C 3.02. A MOTION BY MEMBER WASHINGTON AND A SECOND BY MEMBER COMBS. MEMBER GRAY, RENDON AND I PULLED THIS ITEM. DO

051YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? MEMBER GRAY, DO YOU WANT TO GO FIRST? Lynn Gray: WE ARE JUST GETTING USED TO OUR BUTTONS HERE. BUT AT ANY RATE, I REALLY WANT TO ALSO IN MY REMARKS WELCOME SHANNON LESPRANZ AND I HOPE I PRONOUNCED THAT NAME CORRECTLY. WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO YOUR ENGAGEMENT IN A VERY, VERY MUCH-NEEDED AREA OF THE ESC. I ALSO WANT TO THANK HOLLY SAYA FOR ALWAYS BECOMING A VOICE FOR THE MENTAL WEALTH, HEALTH -- MENTAL HEALTH AND WELFARE OF OUR ESC POPULATION. HAVING SAID THAT, MY ONLY QUESTION AND CONCERN IS WHEN WE HAVE AGENCIES, AND REALLY THIS GOES TO SUPERINTENDENT AYRES, BECAUSE SHANNON, YOU DON'T HAVE TO ANSWER THIS. I WILL JUST GIVE HIM A LITTLE BIT OF A HARD TIME. WHEN IT COMES TO OUR AGENCIES, JUST AN EXAMPLE, THE

052NURSES. I WORRY THAT THE CTA AND OUR TEACHERS -- ESC TEACHERS, THE AGENCIES ARE MAKING MORE MONEY PER HOUR THAN OUR TEACHERS. NOW THIS IS TRUE IN THE AREA OF NURSING. AND IT HAS CREATED DISSIDENCE AMONG OUR CTA MEMBERS. I THINK IT IS TIME THAT WE ASSURE THE CTA, ESPECIALLY, AND OUR TEACHERS, THAT THIS IS NOT THE CASE IN THE ESC. IF YOU CAN JUST ELABORATE? Superintendent Ayres: WITH THIS AGREEMENT HERE, THE ONES HIRED THROUGH THE CONTRACTED AGENCIES, THEY, IN SOME CASES BEFORE DO MAKE MORE PER HOUR AND NO FRS BENEFITS OR MEDICAL BENEFITS THAT COME WITH THE EMPLOYEE. IN SOME CASES THEY MAKE MORE PER HOUR, BUT THE BENEFITS OF BEING OUR EMPLOYEE FAR OUTWEIGH WHAT THEY RECEIVE THROUGH THESE CONTRACTED AGENCIES. AND OUR GOAL ULTIMATELY IS WE -- AS WE GET THROUGH THIS

053YEAR, WE WANT -- WE WANT -- WE WENT HERE TO TRY TO FILL VACANCIES THAT WE HAD. BACK IN MAY OF 2023, WE REALIZE WE HAVE A CRITICAL SHORTAGE IN ESC. HOW THESE AGENCIES CAN COME IN AND HELP US FILL SOME OF THESE VACANCY. OUR GOAL IS NOT HAVE CONTRACTED AGENCIES AND HAVE ALL OF THESE FILLED IN HOUSE. THIS WAS -- THIS WAS SOMETHING WE LOOKED AT IN MAY TO TRY TO FILL THOSE VACANCY AS FAST AS WE COULD AND WENT OUT WITH THIS TO OPTION. MY GOAL IS THAT ALL OF THESE ARE INTERNAL AND EMPLOYED BY HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. Lynn Gray: I THANK YOU FOR THAT. BECAUSE THE GOAL IS TO GET THESE POSITIONS FILTD WITH OUR OWN TEACHERS. AND I KNOW THAT THIS WAS -- WELL, LISTEN. IT WAS AN EMERGENCY. WE

054HAD TO DO THIS. SO I AM GRATEFUL THAT YOU INVESTIGATED AND FOUND A WAY OUT. JUST -- THAT IS THE ONLY CAUTION. Superintendent Ayres: I WILL EVEN ADD, THE 59 ESE TEACHERS IN OUR SCHOOLS WITH THE CONTRACTED AGENCIES. THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY WITH THE 59 AS A POSITIVE TO THIS AGENDA ITEM. 59 ESC TEACHERS WHO WILL HAVE THE ABILITY TO COME OVER TO JOIN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS AT THEIR SCHOOLS THEY ARE WORKING AS PART OF US AND NOT THE CONTRACTED AGENCIES. THIS IS ABOUT GETTING US THROUGH THE END OF THE YEAR WITH THE CONTRACTED AGENCIES THAT WE ALREADY APPROVED BACK IN MAY. INCREASE OF EXPENDITURE TO GET US TO THE END OF THE YEAR. THE POSITIVE HERE, WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO BRING A LOT OF THOSE EMPLOYEES IN-HOUSE. IF THEY CHOOSE. Lynn Gray:

055WE MAY HAVE UP AND COMING PARAS WHO MAY BE INTERESTED IN THOSE POSITIONS. THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT, I AM DONE. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. MEMBER RENDON? Patti Rendon: WELL, AS YOU GUYS KNOW THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE BEEN AROUND, YOU WEREN'T THERE WHEN WE VOTED IN LAST. DR. PATTON AND SHANNON, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE. ONE OF THE ISSUES I HAVE WITH THIS CONTRACT AND I CONTINUE TO HAVE, WHEN IT CAME TO US LAST FINAL, I ASKED FOR IT TO BE REMOVED FROM THE ESC DEPARTMENT. AT THE END OF THE DAY, YOUR FOCUS ON STUDENTS AND ISPS AND PROGRAMS. I WANT TO PUT IT UNDER HR. A CRITICAL NEED THAT HR SHOULD HANDLE. 10% OUR STUDENTS AND 90% OUR LIABILITY. AT THE END OF THE DAY WE NEED OUR HR DEPARTMENT TO

056HAVE A PRIORITY WITH EARN IT COMES TO OUR ESC STUDENTS. ONE THING I DID NOT ASK, A REDUCTION IN OUR ESC TEACHERS. IS ANY OF THAT BASED ON OUR NEW COUNTS? OR ALL BEEN HIRED? Superintendent Ayres: POLICE RENDON, WHAT REDUCTION. Patti Rendon: LAST CONTRACT, 243.9 OPENINGS. WE CURRENTLY SAY 212 OPENINGS. A DIFFERENT OF 1 OPENINGS. WERE THERE A DIFFERENT IN THE ACTUAL NUMBER OF UNITS? OR IS THIS ALL BECAUSE WE ACTUALLY HIRED 31. IT'S A COMBINATION OF BOTH. Patti Rendon: OKAY OKAY. SO THE NUMBER -- THE 243 WAS IN THE SPRING. SO WHEN WE DID FALL UNITS, WE MAY HAVE LOST SOME UNITS, BUT ALSO, WE DID HIRE SOME INDIVIDUALS. WE HIRED -- WE DID A LOT OF HIRING. AND THEN WE FILLED OUT OF THOSE VACANCIES -- RIGHT NOW WE HAVE 213 VACANCIES FOR

057ESC TEACHERS AND USING 53 CONTRACTED SERVICES -- SERVICE PROVIDERS TO FILL 53 OF THOSE POSITIONS. Patti Rendon: OF THE CURRENT OPENINGS? OF THE CURRENT OPENINGS. Patti Rendon: SO WE STILL HAVE THE 213 OPENINGS? WE HAVE 213 MINUS THE -- Patti Rendon: THE 53 USING FOR CONTRACTED EMPLOYEES AND THEY ARE NOT PERMANENT EMPLOYEES UNTIL THEY DECIDE. HOPEFULLY WE HIRE THEM. Patti Rendon: I WANT TO THANK -- OUR SPEECH AND LANGUAGE, SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS, OUR SCHOOL SOCIAL WORKERS, OCCUPATIONAL THERAPISTS AND PHYSICAL THERAPIES, THESE ARE THE ONES WE PREDOMINANTLY USED THESE CONTRACTS FOR. CORRECT. Patti Rendon: I WANT TO ILLUSTRATE STRONGLY THIS PIGGYBACK DOES NOT PULL FROM OUR LOCAL VENDORS AND I THINK THAT IS CRITICAL TO KNOW. I WILL CONTINUE TO VOTE NO ON THIS. NOT BECAUSE ESC IS NOT A PRIORITY, BUT AGAIN SIX MONTHS AFTER WE

058WORKED ON THIS CONTRACT AND WE TALKED ABOUT THIS AGAIN. WE HAVE NOT REACHED OUT TO ANY LOCAL VENDORS WORKING WITH US ON A PLACEMENT BASIS WITH THE HR DEPARTMENT TO NOT BE PAYING THE SAME STAFF, DOING THE SAME JOB IN THE SAME SCHOOL, TWO DIFFERENT SALARIES. WE HAVE OTHER VENDORS THAT ARE CURRENTLY BEING USED WITHIN OUR DISTRICT THAT HAVE THE ABILITY TO WORK ON TAKING UP SOME OF THESE VACANCIES AND WE HAVE NOT REACHED OUT TO THEM. UNFORTUNATELY, THAT IS WHERE I COME HERE. THIS MAKES US SAD. ESC IS SOME OF THE MOST VULNERABLE STUDENTS IN OUR DISTRICT. I WILL CONTINUE TO VOTE NO UNTIL WE CONTINUE TO MAKE THE CHANGES. WE ABSOLUTELY NEED TO LOOK AT OUR LOCAL VENDORS TO BE ABLE TO FILL SOME OF THESE POSITIONS WHICH THEY CAN. AND THEY CAN

059DO IT AT A RATE EQUAL TO WHAT WE WOULD BE PAYING OUR STAFF. WE ALSO NEED TO BE LOOKING AND MAKING SURE THIS COMES UNDER OUR HR DEPARTMENT SO OUR ESC DEPARTMENT GETS THE SAME EQUITABLE OPPORTUNITIES FOR STAFF AS EVERY OTHER ONE OF OUR STUDENTS. SO I THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT. I THANK YOU FOR EVERYONE WHO MET WITH ME. BUT, AGAIN, I AM GOING TO VOTE NO ON THIS UNTIL WE GET IT RIGHT AND MAKING ESC A PRIORITY. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER RENDOM. MEMBER COMBS. Nadia Combs: THANK YOU. AS YOU CAN SEE I THINK THIS IS A VERY COMPLEX ISSUE AND A BIG CHALLENGE THAT WE HAVE. I AGREE WITH MR. RENDON, IT SHOULD GO UNDER THE HR. I WAS OUT THIS WEEK AND

060I SPOKE TO THE PRINCIPAL, AND HE SAID IF I DIDN'T HAVE THIS CONTRACT, THERE WOULD BE THREE LESS PEOPLE AND THEY HAVE BEEN GREAT. AND ONE HAD CAUGHT AN INTERLOPER THAT DAY -- THAT WEEK. INTERLOPER. SOMEONE UNDER CONTRACT. IT IS A VERY COMPLEX ISSUE. IT COMES DOWN TO NOT BEING ABLE TO PAY OUR TEACHERS ENOUGH OVER AND OVER AROUND R AND NOT REALLY A LOCAL ISSUE BUT A STATE ISSUE GOING ALL NOT NOT ONLY THESE PEOPLE HERE BUT LOCAL PEOPLE AND HOW TO RECRUIT OUTSIDE PEOPLE IN THE DISTRICT TO MAKE SURE BECAUSE THESE IN NEEDY STUDENTS AND THE NEEDS ARE SO HIGH. WHEN I WAS AT THE BAZAAR THE OTHER DAY. THE NEEDS ARE SO HIGH AND WE ARE SEEING A HUGE INCREASE OF STUDENTS WITH EXCEPTIONAL NEEDS AND HOW MUCH HELP THEY NEED WHEN

061WE DON'T HAVE THE PEOPLE. I WILL SUPPORT THIS BECAUSE WE HAVE NO OTHER CHOICE. IT IS A COMPLEX ISSUE. WE HAVE TO SUPPORT THAT. I KNOW THE PRINCIPALS NEED PEOPLE WHO ARE GOING TO BE THERE TO SUPPORT THE STUDENTS. I DON'T WANT SOMETHING HORRIBLE OR AN ACCIDENT TO HAPPEN BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THE SUPPORT THERE. BUT I DO THINK WE NEED TO LOOK AT A BIGGER PLAN. AND I KNOW AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT IS ALL ABOUT HR AND RECRUITING AND BRINGING PEOPLE IN, BUT IT IS A VERY COMPLEX ISSUE. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER COMBS. MEMBER GRAY. Lynn Gray: YEAH, I AM JUST TRYING TO DECIPHER SOME OF THIS. I AM COUNTING 29 AGENCIES. SO ARE THESE AGENCIES NOT LOCAL? SO THERE ARE NINE ON THE PIGGYBACK. SIX ARE LOCAL. AND THREE

062ARE NATIONAL. WE PRIMARILY USE THE LOCAL VENDORS, AND THEN WE USE ONE, WHICH IS A STATE -- WHICH IS NOT PART OF THE PIGGYBACK, BUT WE ALSO USE A 22nd CENTURY, WHICH IS A STATE BID. WE USE THAT FOR PARAS BECAUSE THEIR RATES ARE MORE COMPATIBLE TO WHAT OUR PARAS ARE PAID. Lynn Gray: IS THAT BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THE LOCAL VENDORS TO ASK FOR THE BID? I MEAN I SEE YOU HAVE RATED THESE DOWN THE LINE. OR IS IT -- WHAT IS THE RATIONALE THAT WE DIDN'T USE ALL LOCAL AGENCIES? SO THE CURRENT RFPs THAT WE HAVE DOES NOT INCLUDE TEACHERS AND PARAS. SO WE USE THE PIGGYBACK TO ADDRESS THE TEACHER AND PARA ISSUE, BUT DOESN'T MEAN WE CAN'T LOOK AT THE RFP FOR FUTURE. Lynn Gray: OKAY. SO THE OTHER QUESTION IS

063-- IT IS NOT REALLY A QUESTION. THE ESC POPULATION IS NOT BEING SER SERVED AT THE MOMENT BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THE EXPERTISE IN THE CLASSROOM UNLESS WE HAVE THESE AGENCIES. I FIND THAT THIS IS -- THIS IS A STOPGAP -- STOPGAP SITUATION SUPERINTENDENT AYRES THAT WE MUST DO NOW. BUT WE CERTAINLY TO THE ARGUMENTS AND TO THE -- TO THE VALIDATION OF PREVIOUS COMMENTS, CERTAINLY, WE DEFINITELY WANT TO HAVE OUR TEACHERS TO BE IN THESE PLACES. SO -- AND I AM LOOKING AT THE REALITY. I AM PRAGMATIC. WE HAVE -- IT LOOKS LIKE WE MUST DO THIS FOR THE WELFARE OF THE STUDENTS. AND I DON'T KNOW ANY OTHER WAY ABOUT IT. SO TO MY PERSONAL CHAGRIN, I AM GOING TO SUPPORT THIS. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. MEMBER RENDON. Patti Rendon: YES,

064ONE THING I WANT TO BRING TO MIND IS ONE OF THE THINGS IN THE LAST RECENT WEEKS, TALKING WITH USF, THEY HAVE AN INCREASE OVER 10% OF LOOKING FOR ESC DEGREES. SO I THINK THAT IS ANOTHER THING WITHIN OUR DISTRICT THAT WE NEED TO LOOK FOR THOSE INTERNSHIPS. WE DO NOT HAVE ONE ESC INTERNSHIP IN THIS DISTRICT. I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT THAT WE FOLLOW UP WITH THAT AND THERE WAS A SHORTAGE WITH STUDENTS. THEY WERE NOT. BUT ACCORDING USF WE HAVE A 10% INCREASE OF PEOPLE SEEKING ESC DEGREES WHICH IS EXCITING TO KNOW. AND I ALSO WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT -- AND I KNOW THAT OTHER MEMBERS OF THE BOARD FEEL THE SAME WAY THAT OUR TEACHERS AND OUR PARAS AND ALL OF OUR STAFF THAT ARE SUPPORTING OUR ESC PROGRAMS ARE DOING

065A PHENOMENAL JOB. WE ARE SO PROUD OF WHAT THEY ARE DOING IN OUR CLASS ROOMS AND DOING THAT. I DON'T WANT ANY COMMENTS TO BE MADE ON THIS DAIS TO BE TAKEN LIGHTLY THAT IT WAS PERSONAL WITH THEM. AS A BOARD, I KNOW WE ALL SUPPORT OUR ESC PROGRAMS. WE SUPPORT OUR TEACHERS THAT ARE HERE AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY KNOW WHAT THEY DEAL WITH ON A DAILY BASIS. IT'S A STRUGGLE. IT IS A STRUGGLE. WE ARE HERE THAT THEY ARE GET ALL THE SUPPORT THAT THEY NEED. I NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ACKNOWLEDGES AND R AND THANK THEM FOR THE WORK THEY ARE DOING. SO THANK YOU FOR THAT. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER RENDON. I AGREE WITH A LOT OF THE COMMENTS MADE. THIS IS CHALLENGING. MEMBER RENDON, YOU

066ARE NEW AND WELCOME. A LOT OF WORK TO DO. IT IS A COMPLEX ISSUE. YOU KNOW, I HAVE ALSO RECEIVED A LOT OF FRUSTRATION FROM OUR CURRENT EMPLOYEES WHEN THEY SEE ADVERTISEMENTS FROM THE OUTSIDE VENDORS AT SUCH -- YOU KNOW, AN ENORMOUS PAY INCREASE. AND YOU KNOW, YOU CAN SAY THAT THE BENEFITS MAKE A HUGE DIFFERENCE, AND THEY DO, BUT WHEN WE ARE ALL LIVING PAYCHECK TO PAYCHECK AND INFLATION IS SO HIGH AND SOMEBODY CAN SEE -- YOU KNOW -- SOMEONE COMING AFTER THEM AND MAKING A PAY DIFFERENTIAL. A DEMOTIVATING PIECE FOR PEOPLE WORKING IN OUR DISTRICT. WE ARE DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN AND THIS IS AN OPTION. WHAT I AM HOPING IS, BECAUSE SO MANY BOARD MEMBERS ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT IT AND I KNOW OUR SUPERINTENDENT IS AND OUR CABINET IS, WE WILL PUT

067OUR HEADS TOGETHER AND FIGURE OUT HOW TO SOLVE THE CRISIS WE HAVE WHEN IT COMES IN ESE. NOT JUST OUR ESCE AND PARAS. WE DON'T HAVE PSYCHOLOGISTS IN OUR SCHOOLS TO DO THE IEPs AND THE 504s TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR STUDENTS ARE IDENTIFIED TO RECEIVE THE SERVICES. ALTHOUGH I KNOW THAT WE ARE FACED WITH THE FACT THAT WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH FUNDING AND WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR MORE FUNDING TO PAY OUR EMPLOYEES, I DO THINK WHEN WE HAD A BUS DRIVER CRISIS, WE WERE ABLE TO RAISE THE BUS DRIVER PAY AND PRIORITIZE THAT. I REALLY THINK WE OWE IT TO OUR KIDS WHO MANY BOARD MEMBERS HAVE SAID ARE OUR MOST FRAGILE CHILDREN WHO NEED SOME OF THE MOST SUPPORT TO SEE IF WE CAN LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, LIKE WE DID WITH

068OUR BUS DRIVERS, PRIORITIZING THE PAY FOR THESE EMPLOYEES WHO WORK WITH OUR ESE STUDENTS. BECAUSE JUST AS MUCH AS A CRISIS TO GET OUR KIDS TO SCHOOL OF KIDS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS HAVE THEIR NEEDS ADDRESSED AND HAVE THE SAME OPPORTUNITY AS THE REST OF OUR STUDENTS TO SUCCEED. HOPEFULLY IF WE HAVE A WORKSHOP WHERE WE TALK ABOUT THIS MORE AS A BOARD, THAT IS SOMETHING WE CAN ALSO PRIORITIZE AND THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS ON IT. THANK YOU. MEMBER COMBS. Nadia Combs: THANK YOU, MEMBER VAUGHN. I WAS ALSO GOING TO SAY, YOU KNOW, AS FAR AS RECRUITING PEOPLE INTO EDUCATION, I AM SO HONORED TO BE ON THE USF DEAN'S ADVISORY COUNCIL. I AM VERY ACTIVE THERE. ALTHOUGH WE DO HAVE A 10%, IT IS NOT EVEN CLOSE TO WHAT WAS FIVE TO TEN YEARS AGO.

069IF YOU LOOK ACROSS THE UNIVERSITIES IN ALL OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA, THERE IS A SHORTAGE NATIONALLY, BUT REALLY EVEN MORE OF A SHORTAGE BECAUSE THE COST OF LIVING HERE IS SO EXPENSIVE AND TEACHERS ARE WORKING MULTIPLE JOBS. THAT IS JUST THE FACT. MOST TEACHERS ARE WORKING TWO JOBS AND PAID 48th IN THE NATION FOR EDUCATION. NO MATTER WHAT -- I MEAN, A FEW YEARS AGO WE WERE SAVING THE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AT USF. ALTHOUGH ENROLLMENT HAS GONE UP, WE ARE STILL BEHIND IN GETTING TEACHERS TO STAY, AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, EVEN WHEN THEY DO COME BECAUSE THE STARTING PAY IS GREAT, IT IS RETAINING THEM FIVE YEARS LATER. THEY ARE NOT STAYING AND THE NUMBER ONE REASON IF YOU ASK THEM WHY THEY LEAVE, IT IS BECAUSE THEY CAN'T AFFORD TO LIVE AND PAY THEIR

070BILLS. AND THEN ON TOP OF IT, ALL THE REQUIREMENTS AND ALL THE THINGS THAT ARE EXPECTED OF THEM. I THINK IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT IT, WE DON'T JUST TALK ABOUT IT LOCALLY BUT AS A WHEN WE START TIME PAYING OUR EDUCATORS. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER COMBS. SEEING NO FURTHER DISCUSSION, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND THE MOTION PASSES WITH MEMBER RENDON VOTING NO AND MEMBER PEREZ BEING AWAY FROM THE DAIS. ITEM 4.02, CONTRACT ARE FRONTLINE TECHNOLOGY FOR THE EXTENSION OF APPLITRACK RECRUITING. SUPERINTENDENT AYRES WILL HIGHLIGHT THIS ITEM. Superintendent Ayres: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. THIS AGENDA ITEM IS THE EXTENSION OF THE CONTRACT FOR APPLITRACK UNDER FRONTLINE TECHNOLOGIES. THE GO LIVE DATE HAS BEEN MOVED TO JANUARY OF NEXT YEAR, 2024. IT WILL INCLUDE A TALENT ACQUISITION MODULE THAT WILL

071BE DEVELOPED DURING THIS EXTENSION. APPLITRACK WILL BE USED FOR CANDIDATE APPLICATIONS AS WELL AS POSTING VACANCIES TO SOCIAL MEDIA SITES, JOB BOARDS, HCPS WEB SITE AND THE EXTENSION IS FOR JANUARY 1, 2024 TO JUNE 30, 2024. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT AYRES. I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE ITEMS C 4.02. A MOTION BY MEMBER WASHINGTON. A SECOND FROM MEMBER COMBS. MEMBER COMBS, GRAY AND I PULLED THIS ITEM. DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION OR COMMENT? Nadia Combs: OKAY. THANK YOU. YOU KNOW ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT IS THAT I AM REALLY, REALLY CURIOUS TO SEE THE IMPROVEMENTS WITH APPLITRACK. AND I HAVE TALKED ABOUT THIS COUNTLESS TIMES. PROCESSING PEOPLE MANY YEARS AGO IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY THROUGH HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, I WOULD -- EVEN PEOPLE --

072MOST OF THE PEOPLE WHO WORKED IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, I WOULD PROCESS THEM IN PASCO AND PINELLAS COUNTY, BECAUSE IT WAS SO MUCH FASTER. THE FINGERPRINTING FOR A DISTRICT THIS LARGE TO HAVE ONE AREA WHERE PEOPLE HAVE TO BE PROCESSED. WE TALKED ABOUT THIS DR. PATTON. TO THINK OF SOUTH COUNTY -- IF YOU ARE IN SOUTH COUNTY, YOU HAVE TO COME ALL THE WAY FOR AN APPOINTMENT FOR THE ISC TO BE PROCESSED. FOR ME IT IS GOING BACK, LIKE, 50 YEARS. WHEN YOU LOOK IN PINELLAS COUNTY, THEY HAVE DIFFERENT PLACES THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY WHERE YOU CAN CAN BE FINGERPRINTED AND PROCESSED. THE APPLITRACK SYSTEM, THE PRINCIPALS WORKING WITH CUSTODIAN AND LUNCH ROOMS, NOT AN EASY SYSTEM. IT TAKES SO LONG. IT IS STILL BROKEN. I THINK 20 YEARS LATER WHEN I THINK OF HOW I PROCESS

073PEOPLE, IT IS STILL TAKING A LONG TIME. A VERY BIG ISSUE AND I HOPE THAT THOSE CHANGES ARE THERE AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, WE NEED TO THINK OF HAVING OTHER SATELLITE PLACES. BECAUSE IF I AM LIVING OUT IN PLANT CITY. AND I HAVE TO BE PROCESSED ALL THE TIME -- ALL THE WAY TO ISC, AND SOMETHING GOES WRONG OR THE BUS IS LATE AND SOMETHING HAPPENS AND YOU ARE ASKING ME TO COME BACK WHEN YOU ARE PAYING ME $15 AN HOUR OR $16 AN HOUR OPINIONED ACHE WORK AT -- A FAST FOOD PLACE AT THE SAME TIME. I MEAN, IT IS JUST ASKING A LOT. AND WE REALLY -- WE REALLY NEED TO TIGHTEN UP ON HIRING AND RECRUITING. IF WE CAN'T PAY PEOPLE MORE, WE NEED TO MAKE IT EASIER TO BE PROCESSED TO WORK.

074OF COURSE SAFETY OF STUDENTS IS NUMBER ONE AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THE FINGERPRINTS. IF OTHER DISTRICTS ARE DOING IT SO MUCH FASTER, I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE ARE DOING THE SAME THING. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER COMBS. MEMBER GRAY. Lynn Gray: THANK YOU, MEMBER VAUGHN. AND ABSOLUTELY, YOU KNOW, THAT FINGERPRINTING, THAT WHOLE PROCESS, OUR HISPANIC POPULATION IS DUMFOUNDED AS WELL, BECAUSE IT IS VERY COMPLEX. AND I THOUGHT WE HAD IT STREAMLINED BY NOW. BUT NOT WHAT I AM HEARING IS WE DON'T HAVE THAT -- I THOUGHT WE DEALT WITH THAT SITUATION. WITH THE FINGERPRINTING AND THE APPLICATION PROCESS FOR THOSE WITHOUT THE LANGUAGE AND FOR THOSE WITH THE LANGUAGE WAS STREAMLINE ELIMINATED ALREADY. Superintendent Ayres: DR. PATTON, IF YOU WANT TO JUMP IN ON MA PROCESS? WE DO HAVE IT STREAMLINE. WE

075WANT TO PROVIDE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THOSE WHO MAY HAVE CHALLENGES. WE HAVE APPLICATION TUESDAY WHERE THEY CAN COME AND WORK WITH SOMEONE TO HELP THEM FILL OUT AN APPLICATION. I AM GLAD TO BE PART OF THE ORGANIZATION, BECAUSE WE DO SEE SOME OPPORTUNITIES OPPORTUNITIES. AND WE ARE SEEKING FEEDBACK HOW TO MAKE IT BETTER AND THIS IS ALWAYS A GOOD CHANCE TO HEAR FROM YOUR THOUGHTS. WE ALREADY MET WITH OTHERS. DONE FOCUS GROUPS AND HAVE A RECRUITMENT TEAM IDENTIFIED SO WE CAN FOCUS ON THAT. AND MAKE SURE WE ARE ADDRESSING THE NEEDS AND ALSO FOCUSING ON HOW WE CAN RECRUIT QUICKER AND FASTER AND MAKE PEOPLE GET IN THE ROLES AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE. THAT IS ONE OF THE GOALS. WE ARE WORKING ON THAT. Lynn Gray: I WANTED TO THANK YOU, DR. PATTON. WHEN WE

076TALK OF RECRUITMENT. I AM SWITCHING GEARS. AND WE HAVE MORE WORK TO DO AS -- AS -- AS WE HAVE MENTIONED. MEMBER COMBS WITH THE PROCESSING. WITH THAT BEING SAID, I DID WANT TO SAY THAT YOU -- YOUR INNOVATION SO FAR HAS BEEN VERY IMPRESSIVE, BECAUSE WHEN WE LOOK AT THE APPLITRACK, YOU ARE NOW GOING THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA SITES, YOU ARE GOING THROUGH JOB HIRING SITES, AND THE MORE INNOVATIVE WE CAN BE, THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX, CERTAINLY WITH THE RECRUITMENT, THE MORE SUCCESS WE WILL FIND, ESPECIALLY AS IT ALSO RERATING TO THE ESE POPULATION AND ALSO THE NURSES. PRESIDENT BOARD MEMBERS HAVE SPOKEN. WE ARE SHORT OF SOCIAL WORKERS, SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS, BUS DRIVERS. WE CAN GO DOWN THE LINE. BUT WE NEED TO DEFINITELY BE THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX. AND I APPRECIATE YOUR WORK. AND

077I FIND IT TO BE VERY COMPELLING. AND EXTREMELY WELL-DONE. SO AND EXTREMELY WELL DONE SO THANK YOU. THIS IS NOT REALLY MORE TOWARDS YOU BUT DR. WEEKS. YOU KNOW, THIS EXTENSION IS ONE MORE AREA IN WHICH THE EXTENSION OF OUR COMPUTER SYSTEM IS CAUSING US FINANCIALLY MORE MONEY. AND SO I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE GO ON RECORD TO SAY THAT EVEN THOUGH WE HAVE TOTALS OF THE DIFFERENT CONTRACTS WE'VE GOT COMING ON, WE'RE LOOKING FOR THIS SYSTEM TO BE IMPLEMENTED AND BE DONE BECAUSE THESE EXTENSIONS ARE ADDING UP IN DIFFERENT AREAS OF OUR BUDGET THAT ARE NOT ALWAYS ACCOUNTED FOR WHEN WE TALK ABOUT BRINGING ON NEW CONTRACTS. AND I'VE SAID THIS FROM THE BEGINNING, I'M GOING TO BE ON IT TO MAKE SURE WE GET THIS DONE AND NOT BE A CONTINUOUSLY

078APPROVING MONEY. THIS I WILL APPROVE BECAUSE OF THE FACT THAT IT'S DIRECTLY AFFECTING OUR STAFF, AND I KNOW WE NEED THIS APPLICATION SO NO MATTER WHAT STAFF, WE CAN GET THEM IN THE DOOR. BUT BECAUSE OUR SYSTEM WAS NOT IMPLEMENTED ON TIME, WE'RE HAVING TO PUT OUT MORE MONEY FOR AN EXTENSION OF A CONTRACT SO IT'S CRITICALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE GET THESE THINGS DONE, SO THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER RENDON. I ALSO PULLED THIS ITEM. FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU FOR MEETING WITH ME, DR. PATTON, BECAUSE I WAS FRUSTRATED WHEN I SAW AN EXTENSION OF THIS. I AGREE WITH MEMBER RENDON AND THE FACT THAT IT FEELS LIKE WE HAVE ALL COLLECTIVELY IDENTIFIED SOME OUTDATED EITHER PRACTICES OR APPLICATIONS THAT WE'D LIKE TO SEE SOME NEW ONES COME FORWARD, SO WE HAVE MORE

079ACCESSIBILITY BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT I'M HEARING. WE WANT APPLYING TO THE DISTRICT TO BE EASY AND ACCESSIBLE AND CONVENIENT AND I KNOW THAT'S A PRIORITY OF YOURS, DR. PATTON, BUT IT IS FRUSTRATING TO THINK WE'RE MOVING TOWARDS THAT AND SEE WE END UP NOT MEETING THE GOAL LINE AND HAVE TO KEEP APPROVING THESE OUTDATED APPLICATIONS OR NOT CHANGING OUR POLICIES BECAUSE WE ARE AT SUCH A CRUCIAL POINT WHERE WE NEED TO EMPOWER AND GET AS MANY EMPLOYEES IN THE DISTRICT AND MAKE IT AS EASY AS POSSIBLE. I AGREE WITH MY FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS THAT IF WE NEED TO VOTE FOR THIS TO MAKE SURE WE DON'T STOP THE PROCESS FROM HAPPENING THAT'S A PRIORITY, BUT I UNDERSTAND THE FRUSTRATION OF WANTING TO MOVE TOWARDS THINGS THAT OFFER MORE ACCESS OR MAKE IT EASIER AND CONTINUALLY KIND

080OF HAVING TO RENEW THINGS THAT WE FIND OUTDATED. SO HOPEFULLY THIS WILL BE THE LAST TIME AND WE'LL BE ABLE TO MOVE FORWARD AND I KNOW THAT'S YOUR COMMITMENT AS WELL, DR. PATTON. SO SEEING THERE ARE NO FURTHER COMMENTS, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND THE MOTION PASSES WITH ALL MEMBERS PRESENT VOTING IN FAVOR OF IT, AND MEMBER PEREZ BEING AWAY FROM THE DAIS. BUDGET AMENDMENTS FOR PERIOD ENDING NOVEMBER 30, 2023. CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER JOHNSON WILL HIGHLIGHT THIS ITEM. GOOD EVENING BOARD MEMBERS, SUPERINTENDENT AND CONSTITUENTS. WE HAVE A BRIEF PRESENTATION FOR OUR BUDGET AMENDMENT FOR NOVEMBER 2023. THE PRESENTATION WILL BE GIVEN BY MS. GARCIA, OUR BUDGET DIRECTOR. GOOD EVENING, BOARD MEMBERS, SUPERINTENDENT AYRES. THIS FIRST SLIDE YOU'VE SEEN MANY TIMES. IT'S THE ORIGINAL BUDGET THAT WAS APPROVED SEPTEMBER 7 OF 2023 WITH A

081PROJECTED FUND BALANCE OF 336 MILLION WHICH IS 20% OF OUR REVENUE, SO THE FUND BALANCE IS 20%. THIS PARTICULAR SLIDE, THERE WAS VERY FEW CHANGES TO THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET. AS YOU CAN SEE IN COLUMN D, THE ONLY CHANGES WERE $27 BETWEEN TWO FUNCTIONS. OTHER THAN THAT, THE BUDGET DIDN'T CHANGE. AND COLUMN E, YOU CAN SEE THAT WE HAVE EXPENDED YEAR TO DATE -- $571 MILLION AND RECEIVED $4001 MILLION. -- $401 MILLION. WE EXPENDED 33% OF OUR EXPENDITURES FOR AN ENDING FUND BALANCE OF $160 MILLION. THIS IS APPROXIMATELY 11% FUND BALANCE. WE SHOW THIS SLIDE EVERY BOARD MEETING, SO HERE YOU CAN SEE THAT IN THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER, WE HAVE A $248 MILLION ENDING CASH BALANCE AND YOU CAN SEE THAT IT STARTS PICKING UP IN DECEMBER AND CONTINUES TO PICK UP. IT STARTS

082DECREASING AS THE EXPENDITURES START CATCHING UP WITH THE REVENUE, BUT YOU'LL SEE AN INCREASE IN DECEMBER AND JANUARY WHEN WE START RECEIVING OUR PROPERTY TAX DOLLARS. DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? Jessica Vaughn: FIRST I NEED A MOTION AND SECOND TO APPROVE ITEM C6.01. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER GRAY AND A SECOND BY MEMBER WASHINGTON. MEMBER GRAY AND I PULLED THIS I ITEM. MEMBER GRAY, DO YOU HAVE A COMMENT OR QUESTION? Lynn Gray: COMMENT AND QUESTION. THANK YOU, MEMBER VAUGHN. MY QUESTIONS ARE GOING TO COME VERY SHORTLY BUT FIRST, A VERY BIG ACCOLADES AND GREAT JOB, MS. JOHNSON AND TEAM. YOU HAD CONSERVATIVE PROJECTIONS AND YOU'VE HEARD MY QUESTION AND I'LL JUST SPEAK TO MYSELF BECAUSE I'M THE ONE THAT WAS WORRIED ABOUT THE FTE LOSS FOR HOME SCHOOLING, CHARTER SCHOOLS, PRIVATE SCHOOLS, AND, YOU

083KNOW, GIVEN THE HOUSE BILL 1. HOWEVER, IT DID NOT COME INTO THAT FRUITION, THAT NIGHTMARE. IN FACT, A 20% FUND BALANCE IS VERY IMPRESSIVE. SO IMPRESSIVE AND I WANT THE PUBLIC TO HEAR THIS, THAT YOU'RE USING THAT MONEY -- WHAT WAS IT? 28 OR 38 -- YOU'LL CORRECT ME, TO INVEST IN TREASURY BONDS. NOW WHEN WE LOOK AT RIGHT NOW, I THINK WE'RE AT 12% FUND BALANCE, AND THAT'S EVEN WITH THE RETROS -- THE TEACHER RETROS, WITH THE TEACHER SALARIES, WHICH WE INCREASED. IT WAS STILL COMING OUT 12% AND MIND YOU, IN 2018, WE WERE AT 3% AND IT WAS A NIGHTMARE AND WE HAD TO GO THROUGH TEN NOTES AND ALL THE OTHER EMERGENCY SITUATIONS WHICH I HOPE THIS BOARD NEVER HAS TO GO THROUGH. BUT AT ANY RATE, MY QUESTION IS THIS. WHEN

084WE HAVE -- AND I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE INNOVATIVE BECAUSE I SEEM TO LIKE THAT WORD AND I LIKE THE ACTUAL PRACTICE. YOU INVESTED IN TREASURY BILLS, AND WE HAVE AN INTEREST RATE WHICH IS STATED 5.4%. I'M JUST CURIOUS, WHAT WAS THE AMOUNT THAT WE HAVE ACCRUED AND HOW WILL WE BE USING THAT -- WILL THERE BE FINANCIAL MOVEMENT WITH THAT CATEGORY? WELL, WE HAVE BEEN INVESTING BECAUSE OUR INTEREST RATES ARE VERY HIGH AT THIS TIME. WE TOOK THIS MONEY AND PLACED IT IN TREASURY BILLS. SO WE LAST YEAR, WE RECEIVED OVER 13 MILLION MORE IN OUR INTEREST RATES. THIS YEAR WE ARE ON TRACK TO RECEIVE THE SAME AMOUNT BECAUSE THE INTEREST RATES ARE HIGH AND NEXT YEAR WE'RE PROJECTING THE INTEREST RATE TO BE LOWER. WE'RE LOCKING IN AT A HIGH RATE AND PLANNING

085TO LOCK IN AGAIN BEFORE WE CLOSE OUT THIS FISCAL YEAR AT THAT HIGH RATE BECAUSE THE INTEREST RATE NEXT YEAR IS PLANNING TO PLUMMET A LITTLE BIT. SO AT THAT TIME, SO I'LL BE ALREADY LOCKED IN AT 5% SO I'LL BE STILL EARNING THE HIGHER RATE. WE PLAN TO END THAT YEAR CLOSE TO 13 MILLION MORE IN INTEREST INCOME. Lynn Gray: SO WHAT I'M HEARING IS, AND I KNOW WHAT THE PUBLIC IS HEARING IS WE'RE FINANCIALLY HEALTHY AND FINANCIALLY STABLE AND THAT'S VERY, VERY IMPORTANT BECAUSE EVERYONE HAD THOUGHT THE OPPOSITE BY THIS TIME OF THE YEAR. CERTAINLY I WAS, RIGHT? SECOND QUESTION. WE HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE MONEY FROM THE ESSER 3. 31 MILLION. AND I SHOULDN'T SAY A LITTLE BIT BECAUSE THAT'S A LOT, REALLY. BUT WHERE WILL THIS MONEY BE GOING IN

086FEBRUARY, I THINK WE'RE GOING TO PUT IT IN -- HOW WILL IT BE USED? PRESENTLY WE'RE USING THE 31 MILLION AS WE SPEAK. WE'LL BE MOVING EXPENDITURES TO ESSER 3, 31 MILLION WORTH OF EXPENDITURES AND BASED ON THE TEAM TOO, WE MET WITH THE ESSER TEAM AND HAVE OTHER RESOURCES TOO THAT WILL INCREASE THAT FROM 31 MILLION UP TO CLOSE TO 40 SOME MILLION. WE'LL BE MOVING EXPENDITURES TO ESSER. IT ENDS SEPTEMBER 20, 2024. SO WE'RE PLANNING TO SPEND ALL THAT BY JUNE 30 SO WE CAN STILL INCREASE OUR FUND BALANCE. Lynn Gray: OKAY. ARE WE SPENDING IT ON TECHNOLOGY? JUST HELP ME OUT. WE'RE MOVING ELIGIBLE EXPEN EXPENDITURES, SALARIES, TO ESSER 3 THAT QUALIFY. Lynn Gray: TO ESSER 3. IT DOES GET A LITTLE CONFUSING BUT I'M TRYING MY BEST. AND I JUST WANT

087TO THANK YOU -- THIS TEAM BECAUSE YOU'RE DOING AN EXTRAORDINARILY GOOD JOB CONSIDERING THERE IS FIVE OR SIX OF YOU BUT NO ONE WOULD EVER KNOW, SO KUDOS TO ALL OF YOU. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. I ALSO PULLED THIS ITEM AND I JUST WANTED TO CLARIFY SOME THINGS, YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S EXCEEDINGLY IMPORTANT THAT MOVING FORWARD, ESPECIALLY IF WE WANT TO REALLY ILLUSTRATE TO THE COMMUNITY HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO GET THE MILLAGE THAT WE BE EXCEEDINGLY TRANSPARENT WITH THE BUDGET AND MAKE SURE WE'RE PRESENTING THIS STUFF AND THE PUBLIC CAN UNDERSTAND IT. I APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION AND I WANT TO MAKE SURE EVERY TIME WE HAVE AMENDMENTS THAT WE HAVE A VISUAL AND PRESENTATION FOR THE PUBLIC TO UNDERSTAND. I DID HAVE SOME QUESTIONS AND I JUST WANT TO

088CLARIFY THAT EVEN THOUGH IT LOOKS LIKE THE FUND BALANCE TOOK A BUG HIT, THAT'S BECAUSE OUR REVENUES FROM OUR PROPERTY TAXES DON'T START TO ROLL IN UNTIL AFTER DECEMBER AND FEBRUARY AND THAT FUND BALANCE WILL GO BACK UP THAT YOU'RE REPORTING REALTIME. SO THERE HASN'T BEEN SOMETHING WE HAVEN'T TALKED ABOUT OR CATASTROPHIC THAT HAPPENED TO OUR FUND BALANCE. THAT'S JUST THE FLOW AND EBB OF OUR REVENUE VERSUS EXPENDITURES NOW AND WE'LL SEE THAT GO BACK UP AFTER DECEMBER AND JANUARY AND FEBRUARY WHEN THEY START ROLLING IN. THAT'S CORRECT, RIGHT? WE ACTUALLY RECEIVED A BIG CHUNK OF PROPERTY TAX DOLLARS A COUPLE DAYS AGO, SO IT WAS ABOUT $512 MILLION WE RECEIVED SO YOU'LL BE SEEING A BIG DIFFERENCE. Jessica Vaughn: OKAY, THANK YOU. AND ALSO I WOULD JUST -- AFTER THE LAST MEETING WHERE I

089KIND OF MADE SURE THAT WE HIGHLIGHTED THAT, THE FINANCIALS WILL BE ATTACHED TO THE AGENDA ITEMS SO THE PUBLIC CAN GO BACK AND LOOK, I GOT FEEDBACK THAT THE PARTS THAT WE ATTACHED WERE A BIT HARD TO FOLLOW. SO I'M WONDERING, I KNOW THAT THE BUDGET THAT I LOOK AT IS THE ONE THAT GOES VERTICALLY WITH THE NUMBERS THAT SUBTRACT AND ADD AND YOU CAN SEE IT RIGHT NEXT TO THE LINE ITEM. IF WE COULD ATTACH SOMETHING LIKE THAT SO IF PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO FOLLOW THROUGH, THEY CAN SEE, YOU KNOW, IN AND OUT OF WHICH PART OF THE BUDGET THAT FALLS BECAUSE AGAIN, I HAD PEOPLE WHO SAID IT WAS HARD TO FOLLOW AND THEY COULDN'T REALLY TELL WHERE THE MONEY WAS MOVING FROM. AND AGAIN GOING FORWARD I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE

090AS TRANSPARENT AS POSSIBLE SO THE PUBLIC UNDERSTANDS THAT. WE ATTACH ALL OUR REPORTS, SO THAT REPORT IS INCLUDED TOO. Jessica Vaughn: IN THE VERTICAL? YES. Jessica Vaughn: OKAY. I'LL HAVE TO GO BACK AND LOOK BECAUSE AGAIN, I GOT FEEDBACK WE HAVEN'T ATTACHED IT. I HAVE NO OTHER QUESTIONS. SEEING THERE ARE NO OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND THE MOTION PASSES WITH ALL MEMBERS PRESENT VOTING IN FAVOR AND MEMBER PEREZ BEING AWAY FROM THE DAIS. 7.06, FIRST AMENDMENT TO THE RAMPELLO GARAGE PARKING LEASE AMENDMENT BETWEEN TAMPA BAY ARENA LLC AND HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. SUPERINTENDENT AYRES WILL HIGHLIGHT THIS ITEM. Van Ayres: THANK YOU, CHAIR VAUGHN. THIS IS OUR RAMPELLO PARKING GARAGE AGREEMENT. THE TAMPA BAY ARENA TO RENEW ITS REQUEST WITH HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. THIS IS THE FIRST AMENDMENT

091TO THE RAMPELLO GARAGE PARKING LEASE AGREEMENT SINCE 2018. THIS CURRENT AGREEMENT EXPIRES DECEMBER 31, 2023. THIS AGREEMENT ASSISTS TAMPA BAY ARENA WITH ITS PARKING NEEDS. THE LEASE ALLOWS THE SCHOOL DISTRICT TO ENTER INTO A PARKING AGREEMENT FOR PARKING SPACES THAT ARE CURRENTLY NOT BEING UTILIZED BY DISTRICT STAFF. THE TAMPA BAY ARENA WILL HAVE USE OF THE RAMPELLO DOWNTOWN PARKING GARAGE FOR SIX MONTHS AT A RATE OF $81,522. THIS AMENDMENT WILL COMMENCE ON JANUARY 1 AND TERMINATE ON JUNE 30 OF 2024. THAT 2024 MONTHLY RENT WILL BE 13,587 FOR SIX MONTHS OR 81,522 FOR THE TERM OF THE AMENDMENT. THIS IS A SIX-MONTH AGREEMENT AND THAT'S AGENDA ITEM 7.06. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER WASHINGTON AND A SECOND BY DR. HAHN. MEMBER COMBS AND

092I PULLED THIS ITEM. DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION OR COMMENT? Nadia Combs: YES. THANK YOU, MEMBER VAUGHN. I THINK IT'S REALLY GREAT THAT WE'RE GETTING REVENUE FOR PARKING. I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE REALLY LOOK AT EVERY -- YOU KNOW, EVERY OPPORTUNITY WE CAN GAIN REVENUE THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT AND MAKE SURE AND I -- MR. FARKAS, I HAVE TALKED TO YOU ABOUT THIS QUITE A BIT. YOU KNOW, AS WELL AS -- IT'S GREAT THAT WE'RE GENERATING 121,000. I'D LOVE TO LOOK OUTSIDE THE BOX AND THINK WHY ARE WE NOT DOING A LONG-TERM LEASE TO SOMEWHERE BECAUSE WE DON'T NEED THAT PROPERTY SO THAT WAY WE CAN BE GENERATING HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS TO BRING BACK TO OUR SCHOOLS. Christopher Farkas: SO THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. WE DEFINITELY NEED TO LOOK AT ALL OUR

093PROPERTIES FOR ADDITIONAL REVENUE. THAT PROPERTY IS USED FOR PARKING RIGHT NOW DURING THE DAY FOR RAMPELLO AND SOME DRIVERS HERE, SOME EMPLOYEES HERE AT ROSACK. RIGHT NOW IT'S USED. THEY USE IT AFTER SCHOOL, AFTER SCHOOL HOURS AND THEN ON THE WEEKENDS AS WELL. SO THIS ONE WOULDN'T APPLY BUT WE TALKED NUMEROUS WAYS THAT OTHER THINGS COULD BE USED AND RENTED OUT. I KNOW MR. AYRES DIRECTED STAFF TO LOOK FOR OTHER WAYS TO DO THAT, SO WE LOOK FORWARD TO BRINGING TO THE BOARD OTHER WAYS TO LEASE OTHER OPPORTUNITIES FOR PROPERTIES. WITH THE REPURPOSING OF SCHOOLS, IT WILL ALLOW US TO MOVE SOME OF THE DISTRICT STAFF OUT OF DISTRICT BUILDINGS AND WE'LL HAVE MORE FLEXIBILITY FOR THINGS GOING FORWARD. Nadia Combs: WE TALKED ABOUT THIS A LOT. WE HAD A WORKSHOP. I'D LIKE TO BE

094INNOVATIVE AND LOOK AT WAYS TO DO THINGS AND EVEN IF YOU LOOK AT THE PROPERTY HERE, YOU CAN ADD A SECOND OR THIRD FLOOR AND BE ABLE TO GIVE OUT THE PROPERTY AND GENERATE A LOT OF MONEY. WE NEED TO START REALLY LOOKING AT THINGS IN A DIFFERENT WAY AND EVEN WHEN I LOOK AT THIS ROSACK BUILDING, THIS IS PRIME PROPERTY. IF WE'RE NOT GOING TO GET MONEY FROM OTHER PLACES, WE NEED TO BE REALLY -- THIS PROPERTY HERE IS WORTH SO MUCH MONEY AND TO NEVER SELL IT BUT TO DO LIKE, A 90-YEAR LEASE OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT THAT PARKING LOT, I REMEMBER OUR FORMER SUPERINTENDENT TALKED ABOUT SELLING THAT FOR, YOU KNOW, $20 MILLION. IT'S LIKE, WE COULD REALLY BUILD A SECOND FLOOR RIGHT HERE, TAKE THAT PARKING GARAGE

095AND HAVE THAT PROPERTY AND LOOK AT IT IN A DIFFERENT WAY. I WANT TO CONTINUE THAT CONVERSATION, CONTINUE TALKING ABOUT IT AND BEING REALLY INNOVATIVE ON HOW WE CAN GENERATE REVENUE SO WE CAN PAY PEOPLE MORE. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER COMBS. DR. HAHN? Stacy Hahn: THANK YOU, DR. VAUGHN. GOSH, WE HAVE BEEN RENTING THAT OUT FOR YEARS NOW. Christopher Farkas: FIVE YEARS NOW. Stacy Hahn: LONGER THAN A LOT OF FOLKS ON THE BOARD HERE. I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR LOOKING AT DIFFERENT AVENUES OVER THE YEARS THAT I'VE BEEN ON THE BOARD TO GENERATE FUNDS. CERTAINLY I DIDN'T REALIZE MAYBE ROSSAC WAS IN THE CONVERSATION AGAIN. THAT'S KIND OF INTERESTING CONSIDERING FOUR YEARS AGO OR MAYBE TWO YEARS AGO IT WASN'T -- WE DIDN'T HAVE THE APPETITE FOR THAT, BUT CERTAINLY WE'D

096WELCOME THAT CONVERSATION TO COME AROUND AGAIN. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER HAHN. SO I JUST HAD A QUICK COMMENT AND I'M NOT TRYING TO REHASH AN OLD BOAT, BUT I WAS SURPRISED WHEN I THOUGHT ABOUT THIS, HOW WHEN WE WERE TALKING ABOUT AT BLAKE DOING THE EXPANSION AND SOME OF THE BOARD MEMBERS ADVOCATED FOR BEING ABLE TO USE PARKING PROCEEDS TOWARDS THE DISTRICT, WHEN I SEE SOMETHING LIKE THIS, IT DOES MAKE ME WISH THAT WE COULD RELOOK AT THAT, ESPECIALLY TALKING ABOUT EVERY SINGLE PENNY. AND I THINK IT WAS A GREAT THING. I'M GLAD WE PASSED THAT. I THINK IT WAS GREAT FOR THE SCHOOL AND I KNOW THE PRINCIPAL WAS ON IT. DURING THE TIME WE TALKED ABOUT HOW WE DON'T HAVE PRECEDENCE FOR THAT AND WE'VE NEVER REALLY DONE THAT AT

097ANY TIME SOMEONE USED OUR SCHOOLS, WE HAVE GONE AHEAD AND ALLOWED THEM TO RENT OUT THE PARKING, BUT WHEN I SEE SOMETHING LIKE THIS, IT DOES MAKE ME WONDER IF WE CAN REVISIT THE POLICY TO MAKE SURE WE'RE, YOU KNOW, SUPPORTING OUR SCHOOLS AND GETTING AS MUCH MONEY INTO OUR DISTRICT AS POSSIBLE. SO I WANTED TO POINT THAT OUT. THANK YOU. MEMBER COMBS? Nadia Combs: MR. FARKAS, I WAS GOING TO MENTION IT BUT THEN I SAID I'M NOT GOING TO MENTION IT, BUT THE OTHER DAY WHEN I PULLED INTO BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL AND THAT BEAUTIFUL PARKING LOT, ALL I KEPT THINKING WHEN I LOOKED AT ALL THE POVERTY AND NEEDS AT BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL, ALL I KEPT THINKING IS WHY DID WE NOT GET ANY MONEY FOR THAT PARKING THAT COULD HELP BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL.

098I COULDN'T AGREE MORE, MEMBER VAUGHN. I THINK WE NEED TO LOOK AT EVERY WAY TO GENERATE MONEY AND BRING IT BACK TO HAD SCHOOLS SO I APPRECIATE THAT. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: SEEING NO FURTHER COMMENTS, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND THE MOTION PASSES WITH ALL PRESENT BOARD MEMBERS VOTING YES AND MEMBER PEREZ BEING AWAY FROM THE DAIS. ITEM 9.01, 2024 DISTRICT AND SCHOOL-BASED INSTRUCTIONAL CULTURE SURVEY. SUPERINTENDENT AYRES WILL HIGHLIGHT THIS ITEM. Van Ayres: THANK YOU, CHAIR VAUGHN. THIS IS OUR LAST ITEM ON DISCUSSION THIS EVENING. SO TNTPs INSTRUCTIONAL SURVEY PROVIDES A ROAD MAP BY COLLECTING FEEDBACK ON SPECIFIC PRACTICES FROM TEACHER, FAMILIES, SCHOOL SUPPORT STAFF AND DISTRICT STAFF. LEADERS ARE PROVIDED TOOLS AND RESOURCES TO USE THE FEEDBACK TO IDENTIFY STRENGTHS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT AFTER SCHOOL DIVISION RELATIVE WHERE PRACTICES ARE STRONGEST.

099JUST SOME HISTORY ON THE INSIGHT SURVEY. WE BEGAN IN 2021. JUST TO -- WITH TEACHERS AND THE LAST TWO YEARS 2023, 2023 IT WAS ALL STAFF INCLUDINGPARENCE AS WELL. THIS WILL BE THE THIRD YEAR, THIS YEAR, UTILIZATION OF THE INSIGHT SURVEY FOR LOUR STAKEHOLDER GROUPS. SO JUST SOME NUMBERS. SO THE STAKEHOLDER GROUPS RECEIVED THE SURVEY THE LAST TWO YEARS ARE TEACHERS, SCHOOL SUPPORT STAFF, CENTRAL OFFICE AND THE FAMILY SURVEY. WE UTILIZE THIS INSIGHT SURVEY. WE HAD PRETTY DECENT INCREASES IN RESPONSE RATES SO TEACHERS IN 20 WERE AT 61% AND THAT NUMBER JUMPED UP TO 63% FOR TEACHERS IN 2023. SO A 2% INCREASE IN RESPONSE RATES FOR TEACHERS. 2% INCREASE FOR SCHOOL SUPPORT STAFF. CENTRAL OFFICE, 7%. AND THE FAMILY SURVEY, WHICH WE HAVE ALWAYS STRUGGLED WITH IN THE PAST WAS 5% IN 2022. STILL

100A LOW 12% RESPONSE FROM FAMILIES BUT THAT WAS UP 7% WITH A TOTAL OF 18,790 RESPONSES. SO THIS IS OUR INSIGHT SURVEY THAT ARE USED AND Y'ALL ARE FAMILIAR, WE UTILIZED THE SURVEYS THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT TO REALLY LOOK AT IMPROVEMENT PRACTICES, CULTURE AROUND HOW WE CAN GET BETTER SO THAT IS THIS AGENDA ITEM AND WE'RE HERE FOR ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT AYRES. I NEED A MOTION AND SECOND TO APPROVE ITEM C9.01. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER RENDON AND A SECOND BY MEMBER COMBS. MEMBER RENDON, YOU PULLED THIS ITEM. DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION OR COMMENT? Patti Rendon: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. THANK YOU, MR. YOUNG, FOR MEETING WITH ME AND HAVING A CONVERSATION ABOUT THIS. AND ALTHOUGH I KNOW THAT WE ARE REQUIRED TO DO THIS SURVEY AND

101CAN'T REALLY SKIP A YEAR AND I APPRECIATE THAT, I DO WANT TO LOOK AT WHERE IN WHICH WE DON'T HAVE TO SPEND MONEY. SO AGAIN, WE'VE GOT PEOPLE THAT ARE ABLE TO PUT TOGETHER A SURVEY. WE CAN DO IT IN HOUSE. IT DOESN'T HAVE TO CHANGE THE NUMBERS. WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF OUR FACULTY AND STAFF AND STUDENTS AND FAMILIES. BUT IT'S A MATTER OF WHO IS GOING TO DO THE SURVEY. IT'S NOT A MATTER OF WHETHER WE NEED A SURVEY OR NOT. WE ABSOLUTELY DO. BUT IT'S A MATTER OF WHERE WITHIN THE DISTRICT CAN WE LOOK AT AREAS WHERE WE DON'T NEED TO SPEND THE MONEY WHERE WE HAVE THE TALENT TO BE ABLE TO PUT TOGETHER A SURVEY WITHIN OUR LOCAL DEPARTMENTS AND BE ABLE TO USEALIZE

102THAT. I KNOW AT ONE TIME WITH OTHER SUPERINTENDENTS WE HAD BEEN UTILIZING AN IN-HOUSE SURVEY, AND IN THE NUMBERS -- THE NUMBERS WERE NOT MUCH DIFFERENT. IT WAS ABOUT THE SAME AND SO IF WE COULD GET BACK TO DOING SOMETHING LIKE THAT, I WANT IT TO BE ON THE TABLE. HAVE A DISCUSSION ABOUT IT. SEE WHERE IT CAN BE INSTEAD OF AUTOMATICALLY USING AN OUTSIDE VENDOR AND COSTING THE DISTRICT MORE MONEY. IT'S JUST SOMETHING TO DEFINITELY BE CONSIDERING AND THINK ABOUT AS WE MOVE FORWARD. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER RENDON. MEMBER GRAY? Lynn Gray: NO, I -- I AM IN SYNC, MEMBER RENDON. THE MORE WE CAN DO IT IN HOUSE, THE BETTER. BUT THE IDEA TOO IS WHAT DO WE DO WITH THE DATA. SO, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO COLLECT INFORMATION

103AND I'M JUST REMINDED AT JESUIT WE HAD CHANGED TO VARIOUS INSIGHT SURVEYS, AND IT GOT OVER -- ALL THE WAY, SPREAD TO THE TEACHERS SO THE KIDS WERE ACTUALLY SURVEY -- WRITING THEIR EVALUATION ON TEACHERS. AND THE SURVEYS, YOU KNOW, THEN GOT A LITTLE MORE UNCOMFORTABLE. AT ANY RATE, WHEN YOU GET DATA, I GUESS IT'S IMPORTANT FOR THE PUBLIC TO KNOW WHAT EXACTLY WILL WE DO WITH THE RESULTS THAT ARE -- THAT IS FOUND. NO MATTER WHAT TYPE OF SURVEY, PERHAPS -- OWEN YOUNG? WOULD YOU LIKE TO RESPOND? THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY, FOR THE QUESTION. I THINK YOU BRING UP A VERY VALID POINT. I KNOW WORKING WITH DR. LEWIS AND JUST REALLY, REALLY THINKING OF HOW WE BECOME INNOVATIVE WITH REACHING OUT TO FAMILIES. WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE RESULTS, I THINK THE NUMBERS

104THAT STANDS OUT MOST ARE -- BASICALLY IS HOW DO WE CONNECT WITH FAMILIES. PART OF THE WORK WE'RE DOING WITH DR. LEWIS AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT IS TRYING TO RETHINK AND REIMAGINE WHAT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT LOOKS LIKE, HOW DO WE GET PARENTS TO REALLY BUY INTO SUPPORTING THE STRUTEAMIC PLAN AS WELL AS ACHIEVEMENT AT ALL SCHOOLS, AND PART OF THE WORK WE'RE DOING, YES, WE'LL FOCUS ON THE SURVEY, BUT IT'S MORE SO ABOUT EMBRACING A CULTURE OF PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT SO THIS IS PART OF HELPING THE DISTRICT TO GROW AND SCHOOLS TO MAKE BETTER DECISIONS AROUND DEVELOPING CULTURAL PATHS TO SUPPORT FAMILIES AND COMMUNITY. I THINK PART OF THE ONUS IS REALLY ON US TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO DECONSTRUCT SOME OF THE BARRIERS THAT WILL ALLOW PARENTS TO BE MORE INVOLVED. I THINK THE OTHER PIECE THAT

105STICKS OUT FOR THE DATA IS THAT WE EQUALLY ON THIS SIDE HAS TO -- YOU HAVE TO DO A BETTER JOB OF HELPING SCHOOLS TO UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF THE SURVEY. I THINK RIGHT NOW WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE PREPONDERANCE OF DATA THAT SCHOOLS ARE USING TO DEVELOP WHETHER IT'S CULTURAL OR INSTRUCTIONAL PRIORITIES, WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO ENCOURAGE THEM TO UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS DATA AND THIS DATA CAN BE USED AS A PRIMARY SOURCE VERSUS A SECOND OR THIRD SOURCE IN TRYING TO HELP SHAPE SCHOOL CULTURE AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT. Lynn Gray: I APPLAUD THE IDEA OF COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT, AND IF THIS HELPS THE COMMUNITY BECOME MORE INVOLVED IN OUR SCHOOLS, THEN THIS IS WONDERFUL BECAUSE THAT IS A HUGE, AS YOU SAID, IT'S A HUGE INITIATIVE YOU'RE REALLY DOING THAT. I THANK YOU

106FOR THAT, BUT AT ANY RATE, YOU HEARD THE QUESTION. WHAT DOES THE DATA SHOW, HOW ARE YOU USING IT BECAUSE IT'S OPM, OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY, THEY'RE PAYING FOR THIS, TAXPAYERS ARE AND WE'D LIKE TO MAKE SURE WE'RE USING THE DATA WISELY AND WITH GREAT -- JUST VERY STRATEGICALLY FOR THE COMMUNITY. SO I CAN TALK LATER WITH BOTH OF YOU ON THAT. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. I ALSO HAD SOME QUESTIONS REGARDING THIS ITEM. I APPRECIATE THE CONVERSATION AROUND WHAT DO WE DO WITH THE DATA BECAUSE THAT'S IMPORTANT AS MUCH AS I LIKE DATA, IF WE'RE NOT USING IT TO MAKE CHANGES TO THE DISTRICT TO BE RESPONSIVE TO ALL OUR STAKEHOLDERS, THEN IT IS A WASTE OF ENERGY AND TIME AND MONEY. MY QUESTION IS, WHICH SURVEY, IF EMPLOYEES WANTED TO GIVE

107FEEDBACK ABOUT THE CULTURE AND CLIMATE OF THEIR SCHOOL OR IF WE WANTED TO LOOK AT THE CULTURE AND CLIMATE OF THE SCHOOLS, WOULD THIS BE THE SURVEY THAT YOU WOULD SAY WOULD BE THE KEY PIECE OF INFORMATION FOR THAT? OKAY. BECAUSE I WILL SAY I HAVE GOTTEN FEEDBACK. I DON'T KNOW IF THIS REPRESENTS THE LOUD VOCAL FEW OR MAJORITY, THAT ALTHOUGH YOU SAY ENGAGEMENT LOOKS LIKE IT'S UP WHEN YOU HIGHLIGHTED THE NUMBERS, THAT EMPLOYEES IN GENERAL DON'T FEEL LIKE THE SURVEY IS AS EFFECTIVE AS PREVIOUS SURVEYS TO REALLY BEING ABLE TO EXPRESS THE CONCERNS OR CELEBRATE THE THINGS ABOUT THEIR SCHOOLS THAT THEY LIKE. THE FEEDBACK THAT I'VE GOTTEN IS THAT IN GENERAL, OUR EMPLOYEES LIKE THE PREVIOUS SURVEYS NOW AND DON'T REALLY FEEL THIS IS NECESSARILY GEARED TOWARDS THEM OR THEY NECESSARILY HAVE THE

108OPPORTUNITY TO EXPRESS THEMSELVES. AND I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS THE ONE BUT I KNOW IF IT'S TIED TO A LOSS IN NUMBER WHERE EMPLOYEES HAVE TO LOG IN, THERE IS ALWAYS A FEAR AND CONCERN THAT AS MUCH AS IT'S ANONYMOUS, IF THEY'RE USING THEIR NUMBERS, THEY'RE NOT REALLY FREE NECESSARILY TO GIVE FEEDBACK WITHOUT IT BEING PUNITIVE. SO I WANTED TO SHARE THAT INFORMATION AND FEEDBACK SINCE I HAVE GOTTEN THAT FROM MY SCHOOLS. Van Ayres: THANK YOU, CHAIR VAUGHN. I APPRECIATE THAT FEEDBACK. WE WENT TO TNTP WITH THIS CULTURAL SURVEY IN 2021 AND IT WAS -- AND IT UTILIZED A DIFFERENT COMPANY. WE DID IT IN HOUSE. I AM OPEN TO, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT ALL OPTIONS WITH REGARDS TO, YOU KNOW, HOW WE TAKE A LOOK AT CULTURE WITHIN OUR SCHOOLS AND THOSE SURVEYS

109THAT GO OUT TO ALL OUR EMPLOYEE GROUPS. I KNOW MR. YOUNG AND FELIDA ARE LOOKING AT WHAT THAT MIGHT LOOK LIKE IN FUTURE YEARS. THIS PARTICULAR AGENDA ITEM WILL BE YEAR THREE FOR US TO BE ABLE TO COMPARE FROM 2021, 2022 AND 2023 TO SEE HOW WE'RE DOING IT IN COMPARABLE WITHPRIEVE YANGS YEARS. BUT ABSOLUTELY WIDE OPEN TO LOOKING AT OTHER OPTIONS AND HOW -- DO WE NEED SURVEYS? ABSOLUTELY. DO WE WANT TO SURVEY ALL OUR EMPLOYEE GROUPS? ABSOLUTELY. WHAT INSTRUMENT WE USE? I'M OPEN TO WHATEVER THE BOARD AND OUR TEAM LOOKS INTO. Jessica Vaughn: I'D LIKE TO ASK, WHEN IS THE SURVEY GOING TO GO OUT? I KNOW SOME OF THE CONCERN LAST YEAR WAS IT WENT OUT AFTER THE SCHOOL YEAR ENDED AND EVERYONE WAS TRYING TO PROCESS AND GET OUT OF THE

110CLASSROOMS. SO WHEN IS THIS SURVEY GOING OUT THIS YEAR? MARCH IS THE EXPECTED EXECUTION DATE. Jessica Vaughn: OKAY. SO WHAT I'M HEARING IS MAYBE NEXT YEAR BEFORE THIS ITEM COMES WE'LL GET MORE FEEDBACK FROM OUR EMPLOYEES AND MAYBE HAVE A LITTLE MORE DATA TO SUPPORT OR TO INCLUDE AROUND THIS AGENDA ITEM WHEN WE DISCUSS IT. YES, MEMBER VAUGHN. I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR ASK. WE'RE ACTUALLY WORKING ACROSS DIVISIONALLY WITH JULIE SAMANTO AND DR. LEWIS TO REALLY EXPLORE WHAT IT MIGHT LOOK LIKE GETTING FOCUS GROUPS AND ASKING THEM TO REALLY DIVE INTO THE SURVEY. THE POINT YOU BROUGHT UP WITH EMPLOYEE NUMBERS, I.D. NUMBERS, WE SAW THAT AS A MAJOR BARRIER, EMPLOYEES FEELING AS THOUGH IF YOU CAN SEND ME SOMETHING SAYING I DIDN'T DO IT, HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT I DIDN'T DO IT. SO WE

111ACTUALLY -- WE'RE BRINGING THAT UP AS A DISCUSSION, AS WE'RE EXPLORING OPTIONS WITH OTHER COMPANIES TO SEE IF THERE ARE OTHER STRATEGIES TO USE IN ORDER TO CAPTURE FEEDBACK AND REALLY CREATE AN ANONYMOUS CULTURE THAT PEOPLE CAN FEEL FREE TO GIVE MEANINGFUL FEEDBACK WITH -- WHICH WOULD GIVE US MORE ACCURATE DATA TO MAKE DIFFERENT DECISIONS AROUND HOW WE BUILD CULTURE. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. SEEING THERE ARE NO OTHER COMMENTS, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND THE MOTION PASSES WITH ALL MEMBERS PRESENT VOTING IN FAVOR AND MEMBER PEREZ BEING AWAY FROM THE DAIS. I KNOW WE HAVE ABOUT 15 MINUTES TO EMPLOYEE COMMENT. WE WANT TO HONOR THAT, SO I THINK WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON TO THE SUPERINTENDENT COMMENTS AND THEN COME BACK TO EMPLOYEE COMMENT. THANK YOU. Van Ayres: OKAY.

112MY SUPERINTENDENT COMMENTS THIS EVENING -- HERE WE GO. JUST A COUPLE THINGS I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT. A REMINDER, THIS MONDAY, DECEMBER 18 IS A FULL INSTRUCTIONAL DAY. DUE TO THE HURRICANE WE WERE SHORT HOURS SO WE ANNOUNCED THIS BACK -- A FEW MONTHS BACK THE 18th WAS GOING TO BE A FULL INSTRUCTAL DAY. IT'S JUST A REMINDER AGAIN, NEXT WEEK IS EXAMS OF COURSE FOR OUR HIGH SCHOOLS. BUT MONDAY, DECEMBER 18, IS A FULL DAY. SO WE TALK ABOUT -- WHAT WE'LL GET INTO TODAY IS WE TALK ABOUT WITHIN YOUR STRATEGIC PLAN WE TALK ABOUT ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE, FISCAL AND OPERATIONAL RESPONSIBILITY. WITHIN THAT, WE'VE GOT OUR COMPONENTS OF ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND EXCEPTIONAL TALENT THAT ULTIMATELY LEADS US TO OUR REAL ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURE WHICH IS ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE. TOWARD THE END I'M GOING TO HIGHLIGHT ASPECTS LIKE

113I DO OF THE GREAT THINGS HAPPENING IN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT BUT WE'LL LOOK AT SOME SCHOOL GRADES THAT CAME OUT LAST NIGHT. SO DOROTHY C. YORK KINDNESS DAY TO HELP KICK OUT THE HOLIDAY SPIRITS, STUDENTS AT YORK K-8 FORMED A CARNESS GROUP TO SPREAD WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT TO THEIR PEERS DURING THE MORNING CAR LINE. JEFFERSON HIGH SCHOOL BROUGHT BACK THEIR STUDENT INCENTIVE EVENT CALLED DRAGON SLAYER AND STUDENTS WERE ABLE TO PLAY GAMES, HEAR FROM MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKERS AND RECEIVE TICKETS TO EXCHANGE FOR PRIZES PROVIDED BY THE SCHOOL AND DONATED BY PARENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS. SO THE ACPS SECURITY HOLIDAY SHOPPING. CHIEF JOHN NEWMAN AND SECURITY AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT TEAM CONSIDERED THE HOLIDAY TRADITION PURCHASING GIFTS FOR STUDENTS ACROSS THE DISTRICT. 15 SCHOOLS WILL RECEIVE $1,000 WORTH OF GIFTS WHICH WILL BE DISTRIBUTED TO STUDENTS RIGHT BEFORE

114WINTER BREAK TO -- SO SHOUT OUT TO CHIEF NEWMAN THERE. TO THE RIGHT THERE, NELSON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND A FEW OTHER PURPLE SCHOOLS OF DISTINCTION ARE WRITING LETTERS WHO MIGHT NOT BE ABLE TO MAKE IT HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS. IT'S A SEASON OF GIVING AND OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS ARE GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND. LAST WEEK THE BRINK FOUNDATION DONATED A TOTAL OF 75,000 WHICH WILL BE SPLIT AMONGST 15 SCHOOLS FOR STUDENT INCENTIVES, CLASSROOM SOURCES AND MORE. AND IN THE MIDDLE, KIWANIS CLUB 82ND ANNUAL CHILDREN'S CHRISTMAS PARTY. THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME I GOT TO ATTEND THE EVENT AND IT WAS REMARKABLE. THE CLUB OF TAMPA HELD THEIR 82ND EVENT WHERE THE TAMPA MET KIWANIS MEMBERS ADOPTED A CHILD OR TWO FOR THE EVENT AND PROVIDED GIFTS TO 140 STUDENTS SO THE CLUB ACTUALLY SELECTS 40 ELEMENTARY

115SCHOOLS, THEY EACH -- EACH OF THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS PICK FOUR STUDENTS AND IT'S USUALLY KINDERGARTEN, FIRST AND SECOND GRADERS. IT'S NEXT YEAR -- IF YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY, I'LL REMIND YOU TO HEAD OUT THERE WITH ME. IT WAS A COOL EVENT. SANTA COMES IN AT THE END AND EACH OF THE KIWANIS MEMBERS GIVES THEIR GIFTS. IT WAS INCREDIBLE. ALSO GIBSONTON ELEMENTARY ALSO RECEIVED CLASSROOM SUPPLIES AND GIFTS FOR 101 STUDENTS COURTESY OF THE LIFETIME COMMUNITY PARTNER CLEARVIEW LAND DESIGN. SO WE TALKED ABOUT OUR STRATEGIC PLAN THAT YOU'VE BEEN VERY CLEAR ABOUT. I THINK WE HAVE DONE A REALLY GOOD JOB AND IF YOU LOOK AT THE FISCAL AND OPERATIONAL RESPONSIBILITY AROUND OUR OPERATIONS, WE JUST HAD A BUDGET UPDATE. YOU CAN SEE THAT FISCALLY OUR OPERATIONAL RESPONSIBILITY, WE'RE AT PLACE NOW OF ADDING CULTURE AND EXCEPTIONAL

116TALENT THAT WE GET TO A PLACE OF ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE. WHAT I'M GOING TO COVER TODAY ARE THE INFORMATIONAL BASELINE GRADES ANNOUNCED LAST NIGHT, I THINK AT NOON YESTERDAY SO WE WANTED TO GET THE INFORMATION OUT. THIS IS OUR REALITY AND THIS IS WHERE WE ARE. I'LL COVER THAT TODAY. SO JUST A REMINDER THIS 2023, THE SCHOOL GRADE CALCULATION, THIS IS THE BASELINE YEAR FOR THE BEST STANDARDS AND FAST TEST AS THEY SERVE, AS I MENTION AS AN INFORMATIONAL BASELINE FOR SCHOOLS AND DISTRICT TOWARDS IMPROVING IN FUTURE YEARS. WHAT IS KEY TO REMEMBER IS IN THE CALCULATION LEARNING GAINS AND BOTTOM QUARTILE LEARNING GAINS FOR ELA AND MATH WHICH REQUIRE TWO YEARS OF DATA WERE NOT INCLUDED. WHY DON'T THEY INCLUDE THIS? IT'S THE FIRST YEAR OF THE ASSESSMENT SO THERE IS NOTHING TO SHOW GAINS

117ON. SO ALSO, WHAT'S INTERESTING ABOUT THIS 23 SCHOOL GRADE CALCULATION IS THE GRADES ARE STATISTICALLY EQUIVALENT TO THE PERCENTAGES OF 2021-22. THE STATE SAID, BASICALLY IF I HAVE 32% OF OUR STATE GRADES EARNING AN A AND IT'S TIE, WE'LL HAVE 32% EARN AN A. 23% WILL EARN A B THIS YEAR. SO HERE IS WHERE WE ARE. SO I WANTED TO LOOK AT OUR LETTER GRADES BY GRADE BAND. WE LOOK HERE AT ELEMENTARY AND WE WERE EXPECTING THIS. WE KNEW WHAT MOVING -- MOVING INTO THIS ASSESSMENT, KNOWING IT WAS GOING TO BE JUST BASED ON PROFICIENCY, WE HAVE ALREADY BEGUN PLANNING AND KNEW WE'D EXPECT THE RESULTS. THIS WAS NOT A SURPRISE TO ANY OF MY TEAM AND THE PRINCIPAL. WE HAD THE DATA AND WE HAVE BEEN WORKING. THIS IS YOUR BASELINE. THIS IS MY

118BASELINE. HERE IS WHERE WE ARE. AND IF WE LOOK IN ELEMENTARY, OUR CURRENT SITUATION IN ELEMENTARY, WE HAVE 23Ds AND FOUR Fs ON THE INFORMATIONAL BASELINE. MIDDLE SCHOOLS YOU CAN SEE, HOW FROM 22 TO 23, I'LL GIVE YOU A SECOND TO LOOK AT THOSE NUMBERS AS YOU CAN COMPARE FOR ELEMENTARY, MIDDLE, HIGH AND COMBINATION ARE K-8 SITES. SO YOU CAN SEE ELEMENTARY, As GO FROM 2022, 38, TO 34 IN 2023. YOU KNOW, ON DOWN THE LINE. I DON'T NEED TO READ ALL THE NUMBERS OFF. EVERYONE CAN SEE WHAT STANDS OUT TO YOU IS OUR ELEMENTARY INCREASE IN Ds AND Fs AND, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN SEE ACROSS FOR THE REST. BUT AGAIN, I WOULD ADD AND I'LL SHOW YOU IN A MINUTE WHAT I'LL GO THROUGH NEXT IS HOW IS THIS CALCULATED SO I THINK

119IT'S IMPORTANT FOR THE BOARD AND PUBLIC TO KNOW HOW THE GRADES ARE CALCULATED, WHERE DOES THIS COME FROM WHICH I'LL DETAIL IN A SECOND. HERE IS WHERE WE ARE. I OWN IT. MY TEAM OWNS IT. MY GOAL IS TO NOT HAVE ANY Ds OR Fs. THAT IS ONE METRIC THAT YOU CAN HOLD ME ACCOUNTABLE TO, IS IN THIS DISTRICT WE SHOULDN'T HAVE Ds OR Fs. WE HAVE THE MEASURES TO MAKE THE MOVEMENTS AND ADJUSTMENTS. WE JUST HAD OUR PM DATA SO YOU HAVE ALREADY SEEN SOME OF THE PM-1 DATA. SO IF EVERYONE TAKES A LOOK, THIS IS THE '23 SCHOOL GRADE CALCULATION. SO IF WE LOOK AT ELEMENTARY, ELEMENTARY THIS YEAR WHEN WE LOOK AT THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL GRADES, OUR LAMENTRY SCHOOLS AS A REMINDER, WE'RE ONLY GRADED ON THREE CELLS. ELEMENTARY ACHIEVEMENT, THREE AND

120UP. MATH ACHIEVEMENT THREE AND UP AND SCIENCE. THAT'S IT. MOVING INTO NEXT YEAR WHICH I'LL SHOW YOU IN A SECOND, MULTIPLE CELLS, THAT'S ALL OUR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS WERE GRADED ON WAS JUST BASED ON THEIR PROFICIENCY FOR ELA AND MATH. YOU CAN SEE MIDDLE AND THEN YOU CAN SEE HIGH. THE NEXT SLIDE WILL SHOW YOU WHAT IT WILL LOOK LIKE FOR '24 AND YOU CAN SEE THE DIFFERENCE. SO -- AS WE LOOK FOR 2024, SO LET'S LOOK AT ELEMENTARY FIRST. SO LET'S -- LET'S TAKE A DEEP DIVE INTO ELEMENTARY AND WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE ON HOW SCHOOL GRADES ARE CALCULATED. SO WE CAN SEE FOR ELEMENTARY, IT'S GRADE THREE THROUGH FIVES ELA ACHIEVEMENT, MATH ACHIEVEMENT THREE THROUGH FIVE AND SCIENCE THREE THROUGH FIVE. LOOK DOWN AT THE BOTTOM NOW. LOOK AT THE NUMBER OF CELLS THAT

121WILL BE ADDED FOR 2024. WE HAVE ADDED ELA LEARNING GAINS, ELA BOTTOM QUARTILE GAINS, MATH LEARNING GAINS, MATH BOTTOM QUARTILE AND HERE IS A KEY ONE TO REMEMBER FOR THIS YEAR IS GRADE THREE ELA IS ITS OWN CELL BY ITSELF. SO YOU ASKED A QUESTION, DO THEY COUNT TWICE? YES, THEY DO. SO GRADE THREE PROFICIENCY WILL COUNT FOR A CELL DOWN THERE IN GREEN AND IF YOU LOOK, IT ALSO WILL COUNT UP AT THE TOP. IT'S IMPORTANT. THE SCHOOLS HAVE KNOWN ABOUT THIS BUT IT'S THE ADDITIONAL CELL WHICH I AGREE WITH. GRADE THREE PROFICIENCY, WE TALKED ABOUT HOW IMPORTANT -- AS WE LOOK TO LEARNING TO READ FROM KINDERGARTEN TO -- PRE-K TO THIRD GRADE AND THEN READING TO LEARN MOVING ON, GRADE THREE IS AN IMPORTANT METRIC FOR US TO LOOK AT. SO YOU

122CAN SEE FOR ELEMENTARY, THE NUMBER OF CELLS THAT INCREASES IN MIDDLE AND HIGH. WHAT'S AN EXAMPLE OF THIS? WE LOOK AT SOME OF THE SCHOOL GRADES, WHAT IS NOT CAPTURED BACK IN '23'S DATASET, WE COULD HAVE A STUDENT THAT MADE GAINS. LET'S SAY WE HAVE THE STUDENT START AT THE YEAR AT LEVEL ONE AND AT THE END OF THE YEAR MOVED TO LEVEL TWO, THAT STUDENT IN ACHIEVEMENT PROFICIENCY IS NOT CAPTURED. SO WHEN WE LOOK AT THE GRADES THAT JUST CAME OUT, IT'S BASED ON PROFICIENCY. IT DOESN'T CAPTURE GAINS. THIS YEAR IT WILL CAPTURE GAINS SO WE'LL GET CREDIT FOR LACK OF A BETTER WORD FOR STUDENTS THAT SHOWED GAIN, FROM A ONE TO TWO, A TWO TO A THREE. SO THERE IS GAINS THAT WILL BE A BIG PART OF THIS GRADE CALCULATION. SO

123THIS 2024 SCHOOL GRADE CALCULATION WILL GIVE US A BETTER INDICATION OF OUR SCHOOLS AND HOW THEY'RE -- HOW THEY'RE PERFORMING. WE WANT ALL OUR STUDENTS TO BE PROFICIENCY. PROFICIENCY IS WHAT WE'RE AFTER. IT TAKES TIME TO GET PROFICIENCY AND IF FIRST WE CAN GET -- SHOW GAINS, WE'LL DO SO. OUR ULTIMATE GOAL IS TO GET TO PROFICIENCY. I WANTED THE PUBLIC TO UNDERSTAND THERE WAS A LOT OF CELLS NOT CALCULATED IN THIS PARTICULAR SCHOOL GRADE. IT WAS JUST PROFICIENCY. THEY JUST TOOK A SCHOOL AND HOW MANY STUDENTS WERE PROFICIENT AND IN MATH. WHERE THIS NEXT YEAR IN 2024, IT'S NOT ONLY GOING TO BE PROFICIENCY. ELA AND MATH. WELL, GRADE THREE WILL HAVE ITS OWN AND YOU CAN SEE WE'LL HAVE LEARNING GAINS FOR MATH, LEARNING GAINS FOR ELA. SO IT WILL BE A MORE

124COMPREHENSIVE LOOK AT SCHOOLS AND GRADES. BUT THIS IS WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW. THAT'S A FACT. THAT IS WHERE WE ARE. AND OUR SCHOOLS HAVE ALREADY, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE -- AGAIN, WE HAVE ALREADY -- WE'VE KNOWN THIS FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR. THIS IS JUST THE STATE'S OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE GRADES. WE OWN THESE AND LIKE I SAID, MYSELF, MY TEAM, WE DON'T WANT ANY Ds OR Fs AND THIS IS YOUR ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURE TO ME ON THE STRATEGIC PLAN AROUND OUR STRATEGIC PRIORITIES AND LEADING TO ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE. I THINK I THINK WE HAVE A DONE A GOOD JOB GETTING A FOUNDATION AND NOW IT'S TIME TO ATTACK THIS. AND THAT IS ALL I HAVE FOR MY COMMENTS. BUT I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAD AN UNDERSTANDING, THAT THE BOARD HAD AN

125UNDERSTANDING, THE PUBLIC HAS AN UNDERSTANDING OF HOW THESE GRADES ARE CALCULATED. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT AYRES. WE'LL NOW MOVE ON TO EMPLOYEE COMMENT. EVEN THOUGH WE HEAR PUBLIC COMMENT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MEETING, IT'S SOMETIMES DIFFICULT FOR EMPLOYEES OF OUR DISTRICT TO ATTEND MEETINGS AT 4:00 P.M. THERE ARE MANY WAYS FOR EMPLOYEES TO MAKE THEIR VOICES HEARD INCLUDING UNION REPRESENTATIVE, 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'RE CREATING ANOTHER AVENUE FOR EMPLOYEES TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD. WE'RE SETTING ASIDE 30 MINUTES FOR EMPLOYEES OF THE DISTRICT TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD ABOUT ANY ISSUES THAT ARE ON YOUR MIND. THIS IS NOT INTENDED TO BE A DISCUSSION ABOUT SPECIFIC

126AGENDA ITEMS ON TONIGHT'S AGENDA BUT RATHER AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD ABOUT ANY ISSUES RELATED TO YOUR JOB OR THE DISTRICT. EACH SPEAKER WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES. I WILL NOW CALL THE FIRST TWO SPEAKERS -- THE FIRST SPEAKER. HOLIDAY GREETINGS TO THE BOARD, SUPERINTENDENT AND THE CABINET. COMMON THEME FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR IS JOY. JOY, YEAH. AND ON FRIDAY, MOST EMPLOYEES WILL HAVE A REASON FOR JOY. THEY'RE GOING TO BE GETTING THEIR RETRO PAYMENTS AND BEFORE THE HOLIDAYS, SO THAT HASN'T HAPPENED IN THE LAST FEW YEARS. AND THIS IS A DIRECT RESULT OF THE CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS THAT WERE PRODUCTIVE AND COLLABORATIVE. IT REALLY TRULY IS A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. LAST WEEK I WAS IN A MEETING WITH SOME OF OUR -- A MEETING WITH SOME OF OUR MEMBERS

127AND THE TONE HAD SOME FRUSTRATION IN IT. UNFORTUNATELY IN THIS LINE OF WORK I GET A LOT OF FRUSTRATED PEOPLE AND DECIDED TO FLIP THE SCRIPT A LITTLE BIT. I ASKED, WHAT BRINGS YOU JOY IN YOUR LINE OF WORK? EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM, EVERY SINGLE ONE, MEMBER RENDON ALREADY KNOWS WHAT I'M GOING TO SAY. IT'S BEING IN THE CLASSROOM, RIGHT? IT'S THE KIDS. IT'S WHAT HAPPENS IN THOSE FOUR -- WITHIN THOSE FOUR WALLS. SO THEN I ASKED, ALL RIGHT, WELL, WHAT'S CRUSHING THAT JOY? WHAT'S BRINGING THIS FRUSTRATION. AND EXTRANEOUS MEETINGS AND PAPERWORK, NO SUPPORT FOR NEW CURRICULUM, PARTICULARLY ACE. NOT SURE WHAT'S GOING ON THERE BUT ANYBODY I KNOW WHO IS TEACHING ACE, THEY DON'T FEEL SUPPORTED OR THERE IS A LOT OF DIRECTION. EXCESSIVE PROGRESS MONITORING TESTING, CONSTANTLY HAVING TO LEARN NEW SYSTEMS

128ESPECIALLY IN TECHNOLOGY. AND THE BIG ONE OF COURSE WAS CLASS SIZES. I DON'T CARE HOW YOU CUT IT. WHEN YOU HAVE 38, 40 KIDS IN WORLD HISTORY CLASSROOM, I DON'T KNOW HOW THAT IS GOOD FOR STUDENTS. EVER. AND EVERYBODY HERE WANTS WHAT'S BEST FOR OUR STUDENTS. I KNOW YOU DO AND WE DO. THE LAST FEW YEARS TAUGHT US, ESPECIALLY WITH COVID, THAT THE PEOPLE WORKING DIRECTLY WITH OUR KIDS HAVE THE GREATEST IMPACT, RIGHT? SO I THINK WE REALLY SHOULD BE WORKING TO RESTORE THE JOY IN ALL ASPECTS OF THEIR WORK. SO A NEW CALENDAR YEAR OFTEN PROMPTS REFLECTION AND LEADS US TO MAKE RESOLUTIONS. SO IN THE SPIRIT OF THE HOLIDAY, I'D LIKE TO SUGGEST A NEW YEARS RESOLUTION FOR DISTRICT LEADERSHIP AND HCTA TO WORK COLLABORATIVELY TO EVALUATE PRACTICES THAT WE'VE IMPLEMENTED IN THE

129LAST FEW YEARS AND DETERMINE IF WHAT WE'RE ASKING OUR EDUCATORS TO DO IS TRULY IN THE BEST INTEREST FOR OUR STUDENTS OR ARE WE JUST CHECKING BOXES FOR ADULTS. WE MADE A LOT OF PROGRESS BOOSTING MORALE AND REPAIRING THE CULTURE HERE WITH CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS. LET'S CONTINUE TO COLLABORATE TOGETHER TO IMPROVE THE WORKING CONDITIONS AND WORK TOWARDS MAKING THIS DISTRICT THE BEST IN THE STATE, BECAUSE I KNOW WE TRULY CAN BE -- OR THE NATION. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL OF YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER PLEASE. GOOD EVENING. HAPPY HOLIDAYS. I'M KIM HENRY FROM LORI ELEMENTARY, KINDERGARTEN TEACHER AND I WANTED TO COME DOWN AND SAY THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR THE RAISE. IT AFFORDS ME THE ABILITY TO JUST BE MORE GENEROUS, TO BE HONEST WITH YOU. SO I

130THANK YOU FOR THAT. I CAME IN -- TANYA, THANK YOU FOR NOTICING THAT I WAS THE WAY I WAS. AND THANK YOU, SUSAN -- SUE. NOT SUSAN BECAUSE THAT'S -- THAT'S WHAT SHE IS CALLED WHEN SOMEONE IS MAD AT HER. SUE AND COLLEEN. JUST THEM TAKING ME ASIDE AND TALKING TO ME MEANT -- I CAN'T TELL YOU WHAT IT MEANT. SO THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. IT MAKES ME EVEN PROUDER TO BE IN THIS DISTRICT. SO I KNOW I'M NOT GOING TO SAY ANYTHING OTHER THAN THAT. SO THANK YOU FOR JUST LISTENING TO US AND WORKING WITH US. I REALLY DO TRULY APPRECIATE IT. AND THE CLASS SIZES IS AN ISSUE, SO. I'LL LEAVE IT THERE. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU. WE'LL NOW MOVE ON TO BOARD COMMENTS. BOARD MEMBERS, JUST A REMINDER, YOU'LL HAVE FIVE MINUTES

131EACH TO SPEAK WITH 30 SECONDS FOR FINAL THOUGHTS. MEMBER HAHN? Stacy Hahn: THANK YOU, MEMBER VAUGHN. SUPERINTENDENT AYRES, THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT DATA. I KNOW WE'VE HAD -- YOU SHARED SOME OF IT WITH US TO DIGEST THE OTHER DAY. AND YOU'RE SO RIGHT. IT'S A BASELINE. IT'S YOUR BASELINE AND WHAT YOU INHERITED UNFORTUNATELY, BUT, YOU KNOW, WHEN I -- AND YOU'RE SO RIGHT ABOUT THE GOAL IS PROFICIENCY, MOST CERTAINLY, BUT THOSE GAINS ARE SO IMPORTANT TOO BECAUSE THEY HELP US STRATEGICALLY PLAN HOW WE'RE GOING TO GET KIDS TO PROFICIENCY. SO I'M GLAD WE'RE GOING TO TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT THE GAINS YEAR TO YEAR AND PROBABLY DAY TO DAY ACTUALLY IN THIS DISTRICT. WHEN I LOOK AT THE SCHOOL GRADES STARTING, YOU KNOW, WITH ELEMENTARY, MY BIG BELIEF IS WITH MY FOCUS ON

132EARLY CHILDHOOD IS, YOU KNOW, STRONG START MEANS A STRONG FINISH IN MOST CASES. AND I'M VERY WORRIED ABOUT OUR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS BECAUSE AS THEY START TO MATRICULATE THROUGH MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL, THOSE HAVE IMPLICATIONS FOR GRADUATION RATES AND FUTUREER CAREER OPPORTUNITIES AND ALL DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF WHAT REALLY PREPARES STUDENTS FOR LIFE, WHICH IS OUR MOTTO. AND SO, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, I'M GOING TO JUST SAY DRILLING DOWN, LOOKING AT THE KINDERGARTEN READINESS NUMBERS ARE SO CRITICAL AND MAKING SURE THE STUDENTS HAVE SUCH A STRONG START, YOU KNOW, WHEN I WAS A TEACHER, KIDS DIDN'T LEARN HOW TO READ IN KINDERGARTEN. THAT WAS LIKE, THEY JUST STARTED LEARNING STUFF ABOUT THAT IN FIRST GRADE AND KINDERGARTEN WAS MORE, IDENTIFY YOUR LETTERS AND NUMBERS. DO SOME SOUNDS AND BLENDING BUT NOW OUR YOUNGEST LEARNERS WHO ARE PROBABLY

133NOT ENTERING REALLY DEVELOPMENTALLY READY TO READ HAVE A VERY HIGH BAR TO REACH. SO I DON'T THINK PEOPLE UNDERSTAND OR REALIZE THAT EITHER. I DON'T THINK THEY THINK THAT FAR BACK FROM WHEN THEY WERE IN KINDERGARTEN BUT FOR A LOT OF US IN THIS ROOM, WE'VE BEEN EDUCATORS FOR SO LONG. WE CLEARLY REMEMBER WHAT THE EARLY YEARS WERE LIKE, AND NOW WE'RE ASKING STUDENTS TO DO SO MUCH AT SUCH A YOUNG AGE, AND A LOT OF THE STUDENTS -- AND WE TALKED ABOUT THIS, DO HAVE TRAUMA AND DIFFICULT PERSONAL LIVES THAT ADD ON TO THAT. SO MUCH MORE GOES INTO THE SCHOOL GRADES THAN WHAT HAPPENS IN THE SCHOOLHOUSE, AND I THINK THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT JUST FOR EVERYBODY TO REMEMBER, ESPECIALLY OUR TEACHERS WHO WORK TIRELESSLY EVERY DAY TO MAKE SURE OUR STUDENTS MAKE THOSE

134GAINS, THAT THEY -- THERE IS SO MANY COMPOUNDING VARIABLES THAT THEY DON'T CONTROL. BUT THE BIGGEST FACTOR IN STUDENT SUCCESS IS PARENT INVOLVEMENT. AND, YOU KNOW, I REALLY APPRECIATED MR. OWENS, THE MEETING THAT YOU SET UP WITH MS. LEWIS AND THE PTA TO REALLY TALK ABOUT HOW YOU'RE GOING TO INCREASE PARENT INVOLVEMENT AND THAT REALLY GAVE ME A LOT OF HOPE AND I THOUGHT WAS VERY EXCITING CONVERSATION. SO I THINK THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT WORK RIGHT ALONGSIDE OBVIOUSLY EVERYTHING ACADEMIC THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE DOING, BUT I KNOW WE HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO. BUT I THINK THAT A LOT OF THE THINGS YOU ALREADY IMPLEMENTED, SUPERINTENDENT, ARE ALREADY BEARING FRUIT. SO I'M VERY HOPEFUL UNDER YOUR LEADERSHIP THAT THIS TIME NEXT YEAR, THIS WILL BE A VERY DIFFERENT PICTURE. SO I APPRECIATE THOUGH YOU

135GOING OVER THOSE, AND I THINK MAYBE WE TALKED ABOUT KIND OF CHECKING WIN THE DATA QUARTERLY JUST TO, YOU KNOW -- SO THIS TIME NEXT YEAR, WE KIND OF KNOW. WE WERE INFORMED ALONG THE WAY SO TO SPEAK. AND SO WAS OUR COMMUNITY AND OUR PARENTS. LASTLY, I JUST WANT TO SAY IT'S A VERY EXCITING TIME OF YEAR. IT'S THE HOLIDAY SEASON. EVERYONE'S GOT THAT, YOU KNOW, HOLIDAY-ITIS. YOU DON'T HAVE TO BELIEVE IN SANTA TO HAVE IT. I'VE GOT IT. IT'S HARD FOR ME TO FOCUS AND CONCENTRATE RIGHT NOW. I WANT TO BE WITH MY FAMILY AND CELEB CELEBRATING, BUT WE HAVE A LITTLE LONGER TO GO. I'M EXCITED BECAUSE THIS WEEK IS MY HOLIDAY BOOK TOUR SO I'LL BE OUT AT SCHOOLS. I GIFT EVERY PRE-SCHOOL STUDENT IN K-2 WITH A BOOK FOR THE

136CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS SO I'LL BE DELIVERING THOSE BOOKS. THAT'S SO MUCH FUN BECAUSE I GET TO INTERACT WITH THE KIDS AND BE OUT IN SCHOOLS AND, YOU KNOW, PLAY SANTA CLAUS FOR A COUPLE DAYS. BUT I WANT TO TAKE AN OPPORTUNITY TO WISH EVERYBODY HAPPY HANUKKAH AND MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR. WISH YOU ALL MANY BLESSINGS FOR THE NEW YEAR AND THANK YOU FOR ANOTHER WONDERFUL MEETING THAT SEEMED TO BE VERY EFFICIENT. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER HAHN. MEMBER GRAY? Lynn Gray: OKAY. SO -- AND INDEED I WROTE TO SUPERINTENDENT VAN AYRES THAT THERE IS A SILVER LINING IN KNOWING THE REALITIES, WHERE WE'RE AT, BECAUSE IT MOTIVATES US TO GET BETTER AND BRING THOSE SCORES UP SO THERE IS ALWAYS -- GOT TO KNOW WHERE YOU ARE BEFORE YOU CAN MOVE IN ANY

137DIRECTION, AND WE'RE GOING TO MOVE UP, AND I'M VERY CONFIDENT. REFERENDUM. ALWAYS A PLEASURE TO COME BY THE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE. I CAN'T HELP BUT WANT TO THANK THEM PUBLICLY WITH OVER -- WELL, THEY OVERSEE WITH CHRIS FARKAS TOO, AND THANK YOU, MR. FARKAS AS WELL, BUT OVER $696 MILLION HAVE BEEN INVESTED FROM OUR 2018 REFERENDUM MONIES. AND YES ESPECIALLY WAS APPRECIATIVE OF THE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE BECAUSE THEY'RE EMBLEMATIC AS TO HOW THE OVERSIGHT SHOULD BE ON REVENUE COMING IN FROM ANYTHING FROM A REFERENDUM, CERTAINLY MILLAGE, ET CETERA. SO INDIVIDUALLY, BETTY CASTER, I THANK YOU. THE HONORABLE BETTY CASTOR, SHE SHERIFF BRAD CRONISTOR, JOSE VALENTE AND ALL THE STAFF MEMBERS, KRISTEN DAVIS WHO IS THERE EVERY TIME. WE ARE SO PROUD AND THANKFUL OF THEIR WORK AND ALL OF WHAT THEY'RE DOING AND PLUSES AS WE LEARNED

138AND MEMBER RENDON WAS THERE AT THE LAST MEETING, OVER 50% OF THE PROJECTS HAVE BEEN INVESTED INTO THE MINORITY WOMAN-OWNED OR SMALL BUSINESS ENTERPRISES. WE MUST REMEMBER THE MINORITIES. WE MUST ALSO TAKE GOOD CARE TO INCLUDE THEM IN ALL BIDS AND I WOULD SAY TO YOU AT THIS TIME WE HAVE. THANK YOU, MR. FARKAS, AND I KNOW THAT YOU HEAR THAT OFTEN AS WELL DESERVED. ALSO, PABLO, CAN YOU GO AHEAD AND PUT THAT ONE SLIDE UP? THE STUDENT ONLINE SAFETY, I ORIGINALLY WANTED TO DO A TALK, CHRISTMAS, HANUKKAH TIME, SO I'M NOT, BUT THE IMPORTANCE OF NOT HAVING CELL PHONES ON SCHOOL -- IN SCHOOLS BECAUSE, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THERE IS A LOT OF SAFETY ISSUES GOING ON. AND RIGHT NOW WE HAVE THE TOGETHER WITH SHERIFF CRONISTER, THE FBI OF TAMPA BAY, CITY OF

139TAMPA, MAYOR JANE, A HOST OF EXPERTS, NO MORE FOUNDATION AND TESTIMONIALS OF WHAT HAPPENS TO OUR CHILDREN WHEN THEY'RE EXPOSED TO SOME OF THESE NEFARIOUS MEN, WOMEN WHO BRING THEM INTO A HUMAN TRAFFICKING SITUATION AND/OR BRING THEM INTO REALITIES THAT LITTLE ONES, THE AVERAGE AGE NOW, STARTS AT 10 YEARS OLD ARE SEEING, AND WE DON'T WANT THAT. SO A LOT OF THE CELL PHONES HAVE CREATED -- THEIR USE CREATED BULLYING, FIGHTING AND THERE IS A HOST OF OTHERS. THIS IS A HAPPY TIME, SO LET ME JUST SHARE -- THIS IS OUR SCHEDULE. AND I HAVE TO THANK THEM ALL AND THERE IS A SLEW OF THEM, SO I GUESS I DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THAT BUT DRUCIA DIAZ, SHE IS MY RIGHT-HAND, LEFT-HAND PERSON AND KEN HART AND THANK YOU, MS. BURKETT FOR SHARING ALL

140THE MEETINGS TO THE PRINCIPALS. JANUARY 25th WE'LL HAVE ONE AT WALTON, AND I DON'T EVER PRONOUNCE THAT RIGHT BECAUSE I HAVE A NEW YORK ACCENT. AND THEN AT -- OH, WE HAVE ANOTHER ONE AT MABRY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL FEBRUARY 8. WE'LL GET THAT ON THE CHART. WE HAVE MIDDLETON HIGH SCHOOL FEBRUARY 29 AND I KNOW THAT OWEN YOUNG, YOU'LL BE INTEGRAL IN GETTING THE COMMUNITY AS WE KNOW SHOULD BE THERE AS WELL. AND APRIL 24, PLANT CITY HIGH SCHOOL. SO WE HAVE QUITE A LOT OF PARENTAL AND STUDENT SAFETY AWARENESS WHEN IT COMES TO THE PHONE AND I CAN'T SAY ENOUGH. SO I'LL STOP THAT AND JUMP TO ANOTHER SUBJECT. SO WHAT WE DID AND SUPERINTENDENT VAN AYRES, MY GOODNESS, HE DIDN'T DO ANY OF THE WALKING AT THE SANTA FEST PARADE. I SAID, VAN, WHY

141AREN'T YOU WALKING? BUT I DID THE WALK. IT WAS A SHORT WALK. I WANTED TO RECOGNIZE SHAKE WASHINGTON WAS THERE, AND SUPERINTENDENT. NICOLETTE BARONE, THE TEACHER OF THE YEAR. MUHAMMAD CONTEND, ID AY BAKER, AND SHENOVIA CEDRIC, THE INSTRUCTOR SUPPORT OF THE YEAR. THEY SPENT EXTRA TIME IN THE PARADE AND IT WAS WONDERFUL. THANK YOU, MAYOR JANE. I'M OUT OF TOWN. GOLLY, IT GOES SO QUICK. THANK YOU. I'M DONE. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. MEMBER WASHINGTON? Henry "Shake" Washington: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. ALSO SUPERINTENDENT, THANK YOU FOR THAT INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL GRADES BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT AND A LOT OF THE SCHOOLS IN THE AREA, I KNOW AND -- WE'RE WORKING ON IT. THAT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT PART. WE'RE WORKING TO IMPROVE. SO THAT WAS REALLY GOOD, THE INFORMATION THAT YOU GAVE OUT

142BECAUSE YOU WERE VERY TRANSPARENT. BECAUSE A LOT OF TIMES THEY SAY WHEN YOU'RE DOING GRADES, YOU TRY TO HIDE SOMETHING BUT YOU WERE TRANSPARENT AND WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THAT. BECAUSE WE KNOW HOW MUCH WORK WE HAVE TO DO. I ALSO WANT TO THANK DR. PATTON. WE HAD A GREAT CONVERSATION YESTERDAY AND YOU THINK OUT THE BOX QUITE A DEAL AND I LIKE THAT. THANK YOU FOR THAT CONVERSATION. ON DECEMBER 1, WE WRAPPED AT LEAST 1,800 GIFTS TO BE PASSED OUT THIS WEEKEND ON THE 16th. THE PWC AND WE'LL BE PASSING THEM OUT AT COLLEGE E. WOODSON FOR THE NEIGHBORS IN THAT AREA AND ALL THE STUDENTS IN THAT AREA, SO WE HAVE 1800. WE COUNTED. THAT'S A LOT WE WRAPPED. AND WE'RE TRYING TO GET SOME MORE BECAUSE WE JUST HAD A COUPLE

143NEW PARENTS THAT CAME AND MOVE INTO THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND THEY NEED ASSISTANCE. ALSO, I HAD A GREAT TIME AT THE SANTA FEST CHRISTMAS PARADE BECAUSE I WAS THE DJ. I HAD PEOPLE JAMMING ON THE SIDELINE. DANCING ON THE SIDELINE. THAT MAY BE A SECOND JOB FOR ME. I DON'T KNOW, I MAY TRY IT. BUT ANYWAY, LET'S MOVE ON. I WENT TO -- I HAD OPPORTUNITY TO GO TO -- A SCHOOL, I TOURED NEW SPRINGS WHICH WAS QUITE AN EXPERIENCE FOR ME. THE MISSION AND NEW SPRINGS FOCUSED ON COMPREHENSIVE K-8 EDUCATION WITH A SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON STEM AND THEY'RE COMMITTED TO CONTINUING TO GROW INNOVATION AND POSITIVE RESPONSE, AND I THINK THEY DID A GREAT JOB. I ENJOYED MY TOUR THERE. I REALLY DID. MOVING TO DECEMBER 6, I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO GO TO THE

144TOUR OF -- I HAD NEVER BEEN THERE BEFORE. VERY INNOVATIVE. GREAT WORK. IN FACT, YUREALIZE, THEY RECYCLE INSTRUMENTS AND PEOPLE DONATE INSTRUMENTS TO THE PROGRAM AND THEY PASS THEM OUT TO STUDENTS AND THERE ARE A PARTNERSHIP WITH THE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT WHICH IS PHENOMENAL AND REAL GOOD. FROM THERE, I GETS, I MOVED ON AND I FORGOT I HAD THE INVITATION AND WENT TO MANISCALCO -- OKAY, TO VISIT WITH THE PRINCIPAL WHICH WAS AN EX-STUDENT OF MINE. YES, YES. SHE IS DOING A GREAT JOB OVER THERE. WE HAD A GREAT VISIT AND I HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO MEET STUDENTS AND TALK TO THE TEACHERS AND SO FORTH. IT WAS REALLY NICE. I ENJOYED IT. I ENJOYED IT A GREAT DEAL. SO IN WRAPPING UP, I WANT TO SAY I HOPE EVERYBODY HAS A MERRY CHRISTMAS

145AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR AND WE'LL LOOK FORWARD TO COMING BACK. THANK YOU SO MUCH, MADAM CHAIR. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER WASHINGTON. MEMBER RENDON? Patti Rendon: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. YOU KNOW, IT'S A BUSY TIME OF THE YEAR AND WE'RE ALL INVOLVED IN SO MANY THINGS BUT I WANT TO THANK THE STAFF FOR THEIR DUE DILIGENCE AND WORKING FOR THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS ON MANY OF THE DEREGULATION BILLS. YOUR INPUT HAS BEEN INVALUABLE. I WAS BLESSED TO BE AT THE COMMITTEE TODAY WHICH PASSED ALL 3D REGULATION BILLS UNANIMOUSLY IN THE SENATE. ON TACHE OF THAT, THEY INCLUDED MUCH LANGUAGE THAT WE HAVE ACTUALLY ASKED FOR AND PUT IN IN BOTH THE AMENDMENTS AS WELL AS PART OF THE BILLS SO YOUR WORK HAS GONE VERY NOTICED, AND THE SENATE STAFF ARE VERY APPRECIATIVE. THEY

146RECOGNIZE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY AS BEING ON THE FOREFRONT OF A LOT OF WHAT WE'RE DOING. SO I WANT TO THANK THE STAFF FOR TAKING THE TIME OUT TO REALLY PAY ATTENTION TO HOW OUR SCHOOLS CAN BE GIVEN THE BENEFITS OF YOUR WORK. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. I ALSO WANT TO THANK OUR DELEGATION AND THE LEGISLATORS FROM HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. YOU HAVE BEEN ADVOCATES FOR US THROUGH THIS ENTIRE COMMITTEE SEASON AND I KNOW AS WE MOVE INTO LEGISLATIVE SESSION, THAT YOU ARE GOING TO KEEP HILLSBOROUGH ON THE FOREFRONT OF EVERYTHING YOU'RE DOING. WE'RE VERY THANKFUL FOR THAT. I WANT TO SAY MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY HANUKKAH, KWANZAA, THREE KINGS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE. I MEAN, THERE SO MANY. BUT THANK YOU AND I THINK IT WAS DEFINITELY RELEVANT TO TELL THE STAFF HOW MUCH WHAT YOU

147ARE DOING IS MAKING A CHANGE FOR NOT JUST HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY BUT THE STATE. BUT YOU GUYS ARE DEFINITELY INSTRUMENTAL IN WHAT'S HAPPENING IN TALLAHASSEE SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER RENDON. MEMBER COMBS? Nadia Combs: FIRST AND FOREMOST, I WANT TO THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT AYRES FOR GOING OVER THE GRADES IN GREAT DETAIL. I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS WE'RE GOING TO SEE IS REALLY WHEN WE LOOKED AT PHONICS AND MADE SURE IT WAS BEING TAUGHT EXPLICITLY, I REMEMBER TALKING TO THE FORMER SUPERINTENDENT AND SAYING IT WAS GOING TO TAKE TWO OR THREE YEARS WE HAVE GREAT PEOPLE. I'M LOOKING AT TRACY AND THE OTHER PEOPLE IN THE LITERACY DEPARTMENT THAT IT'S GOING TO TAKE A FEW YEARS TO SEE THAT AND UFLI AND SO MANY THINGS HAPPENING, IT MAY NOT HAPPEN REALISTICALLY

148NEXT YEAR BUT WE'LL KEEP WORKING AT IT. I REMEMBER, YOU KNOW, YEARS AGO WHAT WAS TAUGHT IN THIRD GRADE IS NOW BEING TAUGHT IN SECOND GRADE. SO BY THE TIME, YOU KNOW, KIDS ARE REALLY -- THE EXPECTATIONS ARE SO HIGH IN KINDERGARTEN AND BY SECOND GRADE THEY'RE READING BOOKS THAT WERE THIRD OR FOURTH GRADE LEVEL. IT'S GOING TO TAKE TIME AND I'M GLAD YOU MADE THAT A PRIORITY. I WANT TO SPEND A LITTLE TIME. I WANT TO THANK THE BRINK FAMILY FOUNDATION. PABLO, THE FIRST SLIDE. WE HAD THIS GREAT EVENT WHERE 13 SCHOOLS WERE SUPPORTED AND GAVE OVER $75,000. IT'S $5,000 PER SCHOOL AND THEY CAN USE IT AS IS. THE BRINK FAMILY FOUNDATION DOESN'T JUST PROVIDE A CHECK ANNUALLY. THEIR FAMILY GOES IN AND TUTORS, WORKS WITH THE SCHOOLS. WHENEVER I NEED ANYTHING OR

149NEED A PBIS ROOM, THEY HAVE BEEN THERE AND IN TOWN AND COUNTRY AND NOW EXPANDING INTO DISTRICT FIVE TO SUPPORT THAT. I REALLY WANT TO THANK THEM. I ALSO WANTED TO SHARE THE NEXT SLIDE WHICH IS I GOT A CHANCE TO GO TO THE EXCEPTIONAL CENTER WHICH WAS SUCH AN EXCEPTIONAL PLACE AND I WANT TO THANK THE GENTLEMEN WHO WAS A PARAPROFESSIONAL, MR. LATORI WHO HELPED DESIGN ALL THESE BEAUTIFUL THINGS AND BROUGHT THEM TO THE BIZARRE LAST FRIDAY WHERE ALL THE STUDENTS FROM THE ESE SCHOOLS WERE SELLING DIFFERENT THINGS. BUT ALSO MR. HILLS BUSH, THAT ENROLLMENT HAS GONE FROM UNDER 50 TO ALMOST 100 STUDENTS AND 90s STUDENTS AND THEY'RE DOING SUCH A GREAT JOB THERE. AND THEN ONE LAST SLIDE, WE DO A LOT OF EVENTS. AND THE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SHERIFF INDIAN ADVISORY COUNSEL

150AWARDS GAVE MONEY TO MORE ELEMENTARY, PROVIDES BACKPACKS AND ALSO RECOGNIZED A LOT OF THE KEY INDIVIDUALS IN OUR DISTRICT THAT SUPPORT ALL OUR SHERIFF, ALSO MR. COLLINS AND JUST SO MANY -- SO MANY OF THE SECURITY AS WELL AS TEACHERS AND INDIVIDUALS, THAT IS SUCH A LARGE COMMUNITY, THE INDIAN COMMUNITY AND THEY WANT TO GET MORE AND MORE INVOLVED WITH HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. AND THEY WANT TO SUPPORT US MORE. AND THEN FINALLY, I WANTED TO SHOW A SHORT VIDEO. JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT, THE 3D E PROGRAM AT CHAMBERLAIN. THE CHAMBERLAIN LEGACY ALLIANCE, TERRY CISCO HAS DONE AN AMAZING JOB. WE WERE OUT THERE AND A BUNCH WERE SHARKS WHERE WE OBSERVED THE STUDENTS WHO ACTUALLY NOT ONLY CREATE PRODUCTS BUT THEN ACTUALLY MAKE THOSE PRODUCTS AND THEN THEY SELL THEM IN FEBRUARY, BUT THE MOST AMAZING

151PART OF THAT IS THAT TERRY CISCO AND THAT GROUP AND 3D E IS LOOKING AT CHANGING THE GENERATIONAL POVERTY AND TRAJECTORY OF PEOPLE'S LIVES. IF YOU WALK AROUND CHAMBERLAIN, THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT THE MILLIONAIRE'S CLUB. THESE AMAZING PRESENTATIONS, THERE WERE SO MANY INDIVIDUALS FROM THE COMMUNITY THAT CAME OUT, GILLETTE AND SO MANY -- THERE WERE SO MANY PEOPLE THAT ACTUALLY SUPPORTED. THESE KIDS CAME UP WITH A CONCEPT AND T-SHIRT AND SHIRTS AND THEY'LL MANUFACTURER AND SELL THEM IN FEBRUARY. THAT'S AMAZING AND YOU CAN SEE THE SALES PEOPLE AND INDIVIDUALS THERE AND THAT WAS TRULY, TRULY AMAZING. THERE ARE SO MANY PEOPLE IN OUR COMMUNITY THAT SUPPORT OUR SCHOOLS THROUGHOUT TIME AND I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT A FEW OF THEM AND THANK EVERYBODY BECAUSE IT REALLY TAKES SO MUCH MORE OF LEANING INTO OUR COMMUNITY AND GETTING

152COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT AND THAT'S WHY I REALLY APPRECIATE MR. OWEN YOUNG, YOU'RE DOING A GREAT JOB REALLY GETTING INVOLVED WITH THE COMMUNITY BECAUSE IT WILL TAKE SO MANY OF US TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE. SO THANK YOU. I HOPE EVERYBODY HAS A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY SEASON. THANK YOU. Jessica Vaughn: THANK YOU, MEMBER COMBS. FIRST OF ALL, SUPERINTENDENT AYRES, I APPRECIATE JUST LIKE THE OTHER FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS DO THE CONVERSATION ABOUT THE GRADES AND REALLY TRYING TO EXPLAIN TO OUR FAMILIES AND THE PUBLIC THAT UNLIKE PREVIOUS YEARS, THIS DOESN'T MEASURE GAINS. RIGHT? AND FOR ME, THE TAKEAWAYS OF LOOKING AT THE DATA AND UNDERSTANDING THAT WE'RE NOT MEASURING THE GAINS, ARE NUMBER ONE, WHAT A SPOTLIGHT ON THE OPPORTUNITY GAP THIS IS. THAT OUR CHILDREN BASICALLY ARE NOT COMING IN OUR ELEMENTARY SKILLS, ESPECIALLY AT THE MOST MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES

153WITH THE SAME ACCESS TO PRESCHOOL AND EARLY ELEMENTARY -- I MEAN, EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AS SOME OF THE OTHER SCHOOLS AND THAT REALLY SHOWS WHEN YOU'RE JUST LOOKING AT PROFICIENCY AND YOU'RE NOT TALKING ABOUT THE GAINS THAT OUR TEACHERS AND EMPLOYEES WORK SO HARD TO GIVE OUR STUDENTS EVERY SINGLE DAY, SO THAT WAS A HUGE TAKEAWAY TO ME AND I THINK IT OPENS UP THE CONVERSATION ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY GAP AND WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. FOR US TO ADDRESS AS A BOARD. I ALSO WAS -- IT WAS INTERESTING TO ME TO ALSO SEE THATFLECTED IN -- REFLECTED IN OUR CHARTER SCHOOLS AND SOME OF THE MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES AND HOW IN A LOT OF THE COMMUNITIES THEY'RE NOT DOING ANY BETTER AND SOMETIMES OFTEN WORSE THAN WE ARE. SO THAT REINFORCES TO ME FOR A MAJORITY OF

154STUDENTS, OUR TRADITIONAL PUBLIC SCHOOLS ARE THE BEST FIT FOR OUR STUDENTS, EVEN WITHIN THIS DATA. ALSO, IT REALLY SHOWED ME THAT OUR K-8s ARE VERY SUCCESSFUL BECAUSE MINUS THE CHARTER SCHOOLS, THE COMBINATION K-8 SCHOOLS DID REALLY WELL EVEN TALKING ABOUT REGARDLESS OF LOCATION OR WHERE THEY'RE AT WHEN IT TALKS ABOUT STUDENTS. I THINK THAT SHOWS AGAIN THAT AS WE PUSH INTO MIDDLE SCHOOL AND HAVE EMPLOYEES WORKING SO HARD, THEY REALLY DRIVE UP THOSE READINESS RATES AND WHAT A TESTAMENT IT IS TO OUR EMPLOYEES AND OUR CABINET AND OUR STAFF AND EVEN THOUGH IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S A STEPBACKWARDS, IT REALLY GIVES US AS OTHER BOARD MEMBERS SAID, AN OPPORTUNITY TO TALK ABOUT HOW A LOT OF THIS HAS TO DO WITH HOW OUR STUDENTS COME IN AND WHETHER THEY'RE READY AND WHAT SUPPORT THAT LOOKS

155LIKE AND TALKING ABOUT THE WHOLE CHILD AND SUPPORTING THEM HOLISTICALLY. ALSO, PABLO, DO YOU HAVE A SLIDE SHOW? I HAVE BEEN OUT IN MY SCHOOLS. WE HAVE LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES TO MEET WITH LEADERS FROM AROUND THE COUNTY AND THAT'S FANTASTIC, BUT I REALLY LIKE TO SPEND LOT OF TIMES IN MY SCHOOLS SPEAKING TO OUR EMPLOYEES AND AS I'VE MENTIONED A BILLION TIMES, I'M TALKING TO ALL OUR EMPLOYEES. OUR NUTRITIONAL WORKERS, OUR RESOURCE OFFICERS, OUR NURSES. ALL OUR SUPPORT STAFF. AND REALLY GETTING GOOD FEEDBACK AND AMAZING THINGS ARE HAPPENING IN OUR SCHOOLS. THIS IS ME WHEN I -- WELL, THIS IS -- THIS IS -- THE GOAT WAS NOT ME, BUT THIS IS -- THIS IS ME WITH PRINCIPAL CROOK IN BUCHANAN. HE IS PHENOMENAL. WE'RE SO LUCKY TO HAVE HIM IN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT. THE

156OTHER IS A MEDIA SPECIALIST FROM MANISCALCO. AND THIS IS WHEN I WENT TO MARTINEZ. I WAS ABLE TO SEE THE AGRICULTURAL PROGRAM AND PET THE GOATS. THEIR GOATS ARE BEAUTIFUL AND WHAT AN OPPORTUNITY WE OFFER TO OUR STUDENTS WHO WERE SO EXCITED TO SHOW ME ABOUT THE GOATS AND FOR ME TO LEARN ALL ABOUT THEM. I KNOW A LOT ABOUT GOATS NOW. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. ALSO, MEMBER PEREZ HASN'T BEEN ABLE TO BE HERE BECAUSE SHE IS OFF CELEBRATING BOTH HER BIRTHDAY AND THE HOLIDAY WITH HER FAMILY ON A BEAUTIFUL ADVENTURE BUT SHE WANTED TO -- FOR ME TO LEAVE A MESSAGE TO ALL OUR EMPLOYEES AND STAFF TO SAY THANK YOU, HAPPY HANUKKAH, HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND THE WISH -- WISH A VERY HAPPY HOLIDAY AND A GREAT NEW YEAR AND CONVEY HOW MUCH SHE WISHES

157SHE COULD BE HERE AND HOW MUCH SHE APPRECIATES EVERYONE. SINCE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT BEING IN SCHOOLS, I'D LIKE TO FORMALLY INVITE CABINET MEMBERS TO COME WITH ME DURING A LOT OF MY VISITS. I KNOW WE HAVE AN AMAZING REGIONAL SUPERINTENDENT WHO DO A GREAT JOB BRINGING BACK THE CONCERNS BUT IT'S NOT THE SAME THING AS BEING THERE IN PERSON AND I HAVE NEVER SEEN SO MUCH APPRECIATION FROM OUR EMPLOYEES JUST HAVING SOMEONE FROM THE DISTRICT COME DOWN AND REALLY LEAN IN AND LISTEN TO THEM AND TAKE THE TIME TO SAY THANK YOU AND JUST THE EXCITEMENT ABOUT THAT. I WOULD LOVE FOR YOU GUYS TO COME OUT AND SEE AND HEAR SOME OF THE THINGS I HEAR WHEN I'M IN MY SCHOOLS. AND AS WELL, THAT GIVES ME AN OPPORTUNITY TO SAY THANK YOU AS

158I DO EVERY HOLIDAY TO ALL OUR STAFF INCLUDING OUR STAFF HERE IN FRONT OF US, CABINET, EMPLOYEES, TEACHERS, SUPPORT STAFF, AMAZING ADMINISTRATORS. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE WORK YOU DO. HAPPY HOLIDAYS, HAPPY HANUKKAH, HAPPY KWANZAA AND I HOPE WE USE THIS TIME TO RECHARGE, SPEND TIME WITH THE PEOPLE WE LOVE AND REALLY FOCUS THIS HOLIDAY SEASON ON TOLERANCE, PEACE AND KINDNESS BECAUSE IT'S SO IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW IN OUR SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITY AND ACROSS THE COUNTRY. SO THANK YOU. HAPPY HOLIDAYS. AND SEEING THERE IS NO FURTHER BUSINESS, THIS MEETING IS ADJOURNED. (SOUNDING GAVEL)