001It's >> okay. >> Mr. Sige >> here. >> Mr. Dunn >> here. >> Mr. Reese. >> Miss Avery >> here. >> Miss Evans. >> Mr. Evans. My apologies. >> Miss Hickman. Miss Spooner. We're ready for our meeting, regular schedule meeting. Please stand for the presentation of the colors and the pledge of allegiance to the US and the Texas flag. Go. Ready, go. Forward. Good evening. Tonight's colors are presented by the Westbrook High School National Junior ROC color guard. Cadet Senior Chief Petty Officer Carter Deerhog. Cadet Petty Officer First Class Kaden Mitchell, Cadet Petty First Officer, First Class Christian Tenorio Rios, and Cadet Petty Officer Third Class Kaden Tran, under the direction of Commander Mitchell Norman, US Navy retired. The pledges will be led by Marshall Middle School 8th grader and student council president Annayia Mills
002Tate. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Honor the Texas flag. I pledge allegiance to thee, Texas. One state under God, one and indivisible. Go. Ready, go. Let's give him a hand. >> Great job. Now we'll hear from Miss Simeon as we do do some recognitions. Good evening, President Sige, board trustees, Dr. Allen, and audience members. This evening, we are proud to recognize the Regina Howell Elementary PTA for being named a National PTA School of Excellence for the 2024 2026 term. [Applause] The distinction awarded by both Texas PTA and National PTA was given to only 330 schools nationwide. The National PTA School of Excellence program celebrates and supports PTAs that build
003strong partnerships among families, schools, and communities to enhance both the educational experience and the overall well-being of students. Regina Howell's PTA has worked tirelessly to embody these principles, ensuring that students and families feel supported, connected, and empowered. Their efforts reflect not only a commitment to academic success, but also to the heart of what makes Bumont ISD schools thrive. Strong collaboration between parents, teachers, and the community. Please join me in congratulating the Regina Howell Elementary PTA on this prestigious national honor. Speaking on behalf of the group tonight is PTA President Sarah Bruma. [Applause] Thank you, Mrs. Simeon, Dr. Allen board. I would just like to say thank you for the opportunity to recognize the team behind me. They along with Principal Lond, all of our teachers, administrators, and staff have stood behind us for the last
004two years joining our PTA. Without their support, we could not do what we do. I want to thank everyone who took the time to complete the surveys because without y'all letting us know what we need to fix, we can't fix it. So, thank you for putting up with my emails and thank you for helping us reach School of Excellence. [Applause] Tonight we are proud to recognize a very special milestone in our community. The Heert High School class of 1975 is celebrating celebrating its 50th anniversary since graduation. Heert High School holds a meaningful place in Bumont's history and the class of 1975 has carried its proud legacy forward for five decades. This remarkable group of alumni has not only remained connected through the years, but many have continued to serve as leaders, mentors, and role models
005in our community. We are especially honored that their class includes one of our very own Bowont ISD board trustee Denise Wallace Spooner, who continues to exemplify the Heert spirit of excellence and service. Please join me in celebrating the Heert High School class of 1975 on their golden anniversary and in honoring their continued contributions to Bowmont ISD and the community at large. Speaking on behalf of the Heber class of 75 tonight is reunion class president Jude Davis and trustee Denise Wallace Spooner. [Applause] We ask all class members to come forward. Thank you. I'd like to start off by giving honor to God. To God be the glory for 50 years. Let's give us another round of applause. Yes, that we are still here after 50 years. And it is an honor to stand here. I do
006not. Uh, has Jude made it in yet? >> Who's okay? James Boyce is going to He's an officer and sergeant-at-arms. >> Keeps us in order. He's going to come to the microphone and address the board. Thank you, James. >> I want to thank you guys for letting us be here today. We have nothing but pride to be here and honor you guys. And I want to thank y'all and above all thank these beautiful people behind me. For 50 years we endured everything that God put in front of us and we're still here. Thank you guys [Applause] everybody. And uh our secretary correspondence secretary Liz Williams has something for our board members from the class. And I would be remiss not to ask Miss Tilly Hickman to just stand. Tilly, one of our Heird High >>
007school teachers, Miss Hickman. Yes. Yes. Yes. And so we are thankful for each one of my fellow board members, Dr. Allen, and to you for continuing to lead this district in excellence, and we are elated to be here tonight. We have a class reunion. Uh well, the class reunion starts on August 31st. It's a week long from uh the 31st until September 7th. Church Sunday 31st to church Sunday the 7th and a lot in between. I could go on and on, but we are thrilled. Uh one of our highlights is our movie night. We're going to partake of Jaws which was made in 1975. the in the month that we graduated and a lot of other activities. But thank you all very very much. Thank you, Miss Simeon. [Applause] Yeah. Stop. Yes, she did. I
008believe >> I know. >> We should be We didn't know right in. You got to let the people see you. >> Just take this out of the way. [Music] the worst. >> If you can see the lens, you good. >> All right. two. All right, we do it. [Applause] The class of 75 is looking really good, aren't they? >> Oh, thank you very much. This water might be their secret. I'm going to drink a couple of bottles of this tonight. And the hot sauce. Okay. Yeah. Finally, tonight we are honored to recognize and celebrate the remarkable service of Georgia Anwine. [Applause] Mrs. Anwine has faithfully served as the coordinator of board affairs for Bumont ISD. For decades, she has been the steady hand and guiding presence, steady hand and guiding presence with a little sass
009behind the scenes ensuring that the work of this board is carried out with excellence, integrity, and professionalism. Her attention to detail, wealth of knowledge, and unwavering commitment have been valuable not only to this board, but also to the district as a whole. Colleagues and trustees alike will attest that Mrs. Anwine has been more than a coordinator. She has been a trusted advisor, a problem solver, and a constant source of support and laughter. Her contributions have helped keep our governance strong, our processes smooth, and our mission focused on students. As she prepares to retire, we extend our heartfelt appreciation for her 30 years of distinguished service. And while we will certainly miss her presence in this role, we celebrate this welldeserved new chapter in her life. On behalf of Bumont ISD and the board of trustees,
010we say thank you, Mrs. Anwine, for your dedication, your leadership, and your lasting impact. Congratulations on your retirement. [Applause] I would like to thank all of you all. Dr. Allen, the board, and especially the cabinet members. I am going to truly miss all of you. I was telling Mr. James this morning that um or yesterday I said just remember if you ever want to smile look at this picture and remember this young lady here is the one that could really get the board to let their hair down. Um I just want you to know that I've always wanted to put my all into everything that I've ever done. I wanted to make sure that when I left here, I came in kind of quiet and I wanted to leave kind of out with a bang,
011but a good bang. But I am going to miss everyone and I wanted to make sure that I didn't leave anything undone. I wanted to make sure that my work was done and finished when I left. So, thank you all. [Applause] Hold up. Wait a minute. Don't go nowhere. I have a remedy for the fact that you don't miss. Don't leave. On behalf of board trustees, we have a gift for you. I'll tell you what it is. You have to open up this pretty bag. Hopefully, you'll enjoy it. We are really going to miss you. You kept me in check and that's hadn't met anybody do that yet, but you have been able to do that. Spoon is going to present you with a bouquet of flowers. >> And if you all do not know,
012we have a pet for it's gorgeous. >> So, we present the board of trustees present this to you, gorgeous. >> And as we said, don't go too far because You will always remember this be in our hearts. We love you. [Applause] >> And she's giving uh Miss Smith crash course. I think we're going to be all right. We going to miss you. And I know we can call on you, right? >> Yeah. >> Don't block no numbers. Don't be blocking no numbers. We all might, you know, give you a call. >> But we love you. >> Like I said, remedy join us now for a picture. Don't cry. I'm looking at her now. Joe, give me a little man power on the other side. Beautiful lady man. [Applause] That's a golden ticket. Y'all watch that
013show, right? Golden ticket. We all heard you promise. us not to block our numbers. So, finally tonight, we invite you to watch Beyond the Bell, the official podcast of Bumont ISD. Episodes can be found on our YouTube channel and on Spotify. You can also get information on other events in the district by following us on social media and visiting bmtisd.com. Thank you very much. >> Thank you, Miss Simeon. We are now at the time for the superintendent cabinet reports. Good evening, Mr. President, board of trustees, and the Bowman ISD community. As we begin every presentation, please join me in reciting our vision and mission statement. The Bulman ISD vision statement. In collaboration with the entire community, we will create an inclusive environment of academic excellence that supports the diverse needs of all learners. And our
014mission statement, we will inspire and prepare all students for lifelong success by providing an exemplary education in a safe learning environment. Our vision and mission is founded on our six core beliefs. And tonight's presentation focuses on core belief number one, all children can and will learn. And core belief number two, we can achieve higher levels of performance within every facet of our organization. Tonight's presentation, I'll highlight information about our district, review our 2530 board outcome goals, talk a little bit about accountability and growth, and provide a few additional updates. Last Wednesday, we welcomed currently 15,568 students as of today. That's the number from yesterday. students who are currently being educated on 25 campuses throughout the district. 2,700 employees are working all in all year to educate our 15,568 students to ensure that we meet the
015needs of every single student and that they reach their goals. We've had such a great start to the 2526 school year. You know, I haven't made my rounds to all campuses yet. However, my team has shared such phenomenal feedback and I can share phenomenal feedback and really want to thank our leaders for doing great work and making a seamless transition to the start of the school year. When you walked on campuses on the first day of school, it was just like we we had been in school the whole time. And that takes a lot of planning and preparation. So, I'm just so thankful for the work that's already happening and excited about the work that's going to happen this year. Just a review of our 2025 2030 board outcome goals. You know, we finished our
016first fiveyear set of goals. We didn't meet our targets all the way. We made some progress, but we're anticipating making additional progress within the next five years. We will continue to focus on ensuring that third grade students when they leave third grade they score at meets grade level or above on the STAR reading exam. We will ensure goal number two that our third grade students will score at the meet's grade level or above on the STAR math assessment. Goal three, we will continue to work toward our graduates meeting the criteria for college career military readiness. Goal number four, we will continue to work on our perception in our community. And goal number five, increasing the percentage of students attending A and B rated campuses. Last week, the accountability scores were released for school districts across
017the state of Texas. The 24, 2024, and 2025 ratings were released simultaneously. And I want to make certain that I highlight and share, you know, data with our community on the progress that we have made as a district. While we are definitely not where we want to be, as you can see from this slide, there has been improvement on several campuses and the district overall performance as a whole increased by three points from 65 to 68. But 16 out of 22 campuses improved their overall accountability score or maintain a strong performance. The number of struggling campuses decreased and the number of campuses rated C or better actually increased. Very excited about Marshall Middle School with a significant jump. They improved the letter grade as well as Cwood Elementary improved the letter grade. Give them a
018round of applause. Phenomenal work. Phenomenal. Phenomenal work. You see in yellow on this chart, early college, meaning they had the exact same score from the prior year to the current year, but the score was an A. Curtis Elementary, same score from the prior year to the current year, their score was a C. And guess elementary. You also see on the bottom campuses that actually declined or decreased in enrollment. I want to highlight Fletcher Elementary School. Fletcher decreased, but they're still a B-rated campus. and Regina How still a B-rated campus. So, can we give them a round of applause for maintaining strong performance? Now, there are some some significant decreases that we we certainly have to work on. If you notice on this chart, Fail Elementary, Fail Price Elementary and Smith Middle School, these are campuses
019that were not operated by Bowman ISD for the past several years. We have taken over management of those campuses. We know we have a lot of work to do, but I'm excited about the work that's going on, the leadership that we put in place and the excitement and enthusias enthusiasm that I've already seen for going in and executing the work. You know, we are we are focused on getting the work done. I know there's been a lot of distractions in the media about the accountability system and about potential sanctions for Bowmont ISD, but I want to ensure and make certain that our team understands we're not focused on that. We are focused on doing the work every single day for every single child. The commissioner has not made any decisions regarding Bulmont ISD. We have
020lots and lots of work to do and I'm very optimistic about the direction that the district is going. So I want our team to really know that we are we are focused in. We are focused. We are committed and we are going to execute the work and execute the plan. In order to do that, we need our community. We need our community to support us. Those campuses that are in red on this list, we need community support. The campuses that have green on the list, we need community support. There's a tremendous amount of work that needs to be done. And I shared with the parents at our supper with the superintendent on Tuesday when we talk about our number one board outcome goal, which is ensuring that our students read on grade level by the
021end of third grade. In order for students to read on grade level by the end of third grade, that's not going to happen in the seven and a half hours that we have our kids at school. We can teach them everything every single day, every minute of that seven and a half hours, which we will. But in order to be a better reader, you have to do what? You have to read. And you have to read outside of the hours and the time that you are in school. So, we're really pushing for our community and our parents, our guardians to invest in your child's education. In order for us to really and truly improve the way we want to improve, we need a level of investment from our community that we haven't seen in prior
022years. So, I'm asking our community to support your child's schools. Support the work that they are doing. It's always frustrating to me when you see these accountability scores. You walk on our campuses and you see the work that's happening and we're graded based upon the results of one snapshot in time, one day. We're not graded on the heart. We're not graded on the passion. We're not graded on how hard our staff works for those 175 days of the school year to prepare our students. But but when you are in a situation where you see the red and you're going to see more green, it takes a commitment from every individual associated with that school and with that child. So I'm making a plea, you know, to our community right now. If you haven't invested in
023our schools, you need to invest in our schools. You need to invest in our kids. Our kids need to be reading on grade level every single child. So make certain that as a as a parent, as a community member, if you are a community member, that you make an investment in the schools that are in your neighborhood because they need they need individuals who are investing and spending time and helping. And I'll share some opportunities for you to do so at the conclusion of the program. But I certainly want our our community and our team to know we're doing the work. The work is hard. The work is hard, but we're up for the challenge and we've been up for the challenge and we're going to continue to keep driving, keep moving, keep moving the
024needle. It doesn't move as fast as we want it to move and that's frustrating. We wanted to move super fast, but in order to escalate it again, we need the support of our families to make certain that kids are doing what they're investing in their learning, that they're coming to school. One of the things that I was disappointed about first three days of school last week, I received the attendance for the first three days of school and our attendance rate was 95.1 I think or.3. When you think about the fact that we'd only been in school three days, we should have had 99%. Just for three days because you can't be absent on the first day. So the second and the third day between out of three days we were we were at 95%. So
025what I'm saying is in order for us to do the job that we need to do, we need our kids to be present in the learning environment every single day and we need our families and parents invested in the learning. Next week we start goals night. You know, every every parent of a child should be at their school's goals night. High schools begin next Wednesday. Every high school parent should be there to hear the individual data from the school. If you want to know how your school is performing individually, you need to be at 6:00 at that at your child's school on Wednesday for high school, Thursday for middle school, and the following week elementary school so that you can hear the plans how we're going to implement and execute change on our campuses. But
026again, you know, this is a new year. We're going all in all year, but not just the staff and the people who get a paycheck. We need our whole community to go all in all year. So, I'm I'm you know, sending out that plea right now and and believing and very optimistic that we're going to get the support that we need in order to continue moving our students forward as as we move forward into the 2526 school year. You know, you've heard us talk during multiple presentations about some key changes and things that we're doing to to continue to accelerate and increase student performance and implementation of blue bonnet curriculum for uh our elementary schools is big is going really well so far. Excited about the progress that we're seeing. We're continuing with our literacy
027intervention plan. You know, we started last year with phonics in third, fourth, and fifth grade. We're continuing that plan because we saw uh great growth there. Datadriven instruction, small groups, we changed our schedules. We added advisory periods at the secondary campuses for intervention. And then of course leadership coaching and targeted instructional support. Now this is not all but these are some of the key strategies that we are implementing or continuing to implement in order to drive change in order to drive student uh student outcomes. One of the things that I really want to celebrate is our performance on college, career, and military readiness. According to the 2425 accountability ratings, Bulmont ISD CTE industrybased certifications, the results for CCMR, we are tied with the state. The state was at 35% and Bulmont ISD was at 34.9%.
028Yes, give our team a round of applause. Excellent job, Dr. Prudin and her team. And additionally, our level one and level two C certifications exceeded that of the state. The state was at 1.1% and Bulmont ISD were at 8.1%. So just a few additional updates. You know, a major change this year is the implementation of House Bill 1481 creating phoneree schools in Bulmont ISD. Everyone knows because we've spoken about the implementation of the yonder pouches prior to this legislation being enacted. We've talked about our plans to, you know, reduce the distractions, increase the engagement, and we started on the first day of school. I've touched bases with several principles. I've spoken to Mr. Phillips, Miss Long, Miss Ferris. I've spoken to a couple of middle school principles just to get an idea of, you know,
029how's the implementation going and overall they've shared with me, you know, their growing pains. Miss Long told me today, she said, "Well, Dr. Allen, it's going really well." She said, "However, some kids are going through withdrawals." And that's the truth. They are going through withdrawals from not having access to their phone. So they're doing what kids do and they try to circumvent the system. Okay? And there are consequences for circumventing the system. I would say, you know, over 95% of our kids are really working hard with making certain that they follow through on the execution of the plan. But kids who don't, unfortunately, they're going to suffer the consequences. Parents cannot opt out. Parents cannot opt out of students putting their phones in the pouches. Students cannot intentionally destroy the pouches. There are consequences for
030that. And one of the things that I asked our parents during the presentation on Tuesday night, did anybody really know why the state implemented this bill? Like why did the state implement the bill? And nobody raised their hand. And I gave the analogy that was given to me when my husband told me that when he was in school, they could smoke in the 70s. They had smoking areas for high school students. We're appalled by that today, but back in the 70s and 60s and 80s, you could smoke at school. Well, the reason you could smoke at school was because what? They didn't know better. Nobody knew of the implications for addiction, cancer, all of the things that we know now. So this is the same scenario with students having access and being on the cell
031phones all day long. Nobody really realized the implications when it first started with students having unfettered access to the internet and the fact that you know man anxiety, depression, students not being able to process, students not being able to think, you know, all of those things are factors that really causes us, hey, you know what? This is really not a great thing. This is not a good thing for our kids. So the yonder pouch, it is a tool that is working despite what you may see on social media. You see kids breaking a rule, but kids do that sometimes. And again, there are consequences for that. But it's a tool that we are utilizing to ensure that our schools are cell phone free. Kids are talking more. There's much more engagement. And we know it's
032going to continue to get better over time. And I'm expecting and anticipating that, you know, once we get through the pains of, you know, students going through the withdrawals that they're going through, recognizing that, you know, this is a rule. You are going to follow the rule. You have to follow the rule. Parents can't tell their students not to follow the rules at school. And I'm saying this publicly. Parents, you cannot tell your children that they don't have to follow the rules at school. We don't tell our kids, "Well, don't follow your parents rules when you go home. Just do what we said, do, but don't do what your mom and dad told you to do." We don't do that. We don't do that. So, we don't expect our parents to tell our kids not
033to follow. This is a law. This is actually a law. So, I appreciate all of the kids and the the parents that are actually doing the right thing and making good choices. And and I'll tell you this, you know, as we cuz we're going to survey kids and we're going to survey families in a couple of weeks, but I know that kids, many of the kids are liking it. Many of the kids are going to over time really start realizing how much better they feel being able to what talk to each other and not be so connected to, you know, connected to that cell phone and how much better they're going to be able to learn. So, just wanted to provide an update about our yonder implementation. And again, you know, as we go all
034in this year, we have a couple of things that we want to encourage our community to do. Number one, volunteer. If you want to volunteer and support our schools, the QR code is there. You can also go to our website and you can follow through on the prompts and the steps. It's pretty simple, but you can volunteer. You can also apply to be a Bulmont ISD influencer. Formerly, we had the ambassador program, but this is a new advanced program, BISD influencers. So, we would like for individuals who are really interested in a deeper understanding of Bulmont ISD and to help continue to build trust and foster partnerships to join our Bulmont ISD influencer program. And of course when you volunteer we have multiple opportunities for you to actually work on a campus to actually support
035kids. We have the rural louder program. Miss Henrietta Seavo is going to talk a little bit about that in the next presentation. We also have the be the one mentor program. Miss Tar Gage Chavis will be uh is our atrisisk coordinator. We are looking for mentors for our kids. And of course we shared about campus champions which are churches that come in and adopt a school. We have other opportunities for you to support what's happening on your campuses. But first, you have to volunteer. You have to reach out and volunteer. And last, again, I've already mentioned goals night, but goals night is happening August 27th for high schools at 6:00, August 28th for middle schools, and September 3rd for our elementary schools. So again, save those dates and we look forward to seeing all of
036our families at goals night. Any questions? This concludes my presentation. Thank you. >> Report Good evening. Tonight's cabinet report will provide an update on BISD's preK partnership initiative and ROAR program. The beginning of the presentation will be delivered by Miss Valerie Mlin. I'll ask her to join me now. She is our coordinator of elementary reading and language arts for grades K1 and also our early childhood uh coordinator. Miss Mlin has served as the lead for our prek partnership initiative since its launch in 2021. She is our early childhood champion. Thank you everyone. Good evening board, Dr. Adeline and community guest. Tonight I have the privilege of sharing a story. You know in prek the read aloud is everything. Okay. So here we go. This is a story not just about data or programs but about
037how BISD has been working to transform opportunity into reality for our youngest learners. This is the story of where we started, the challenges we faced, the partnerships we built, and the future we are creating together for children's families and our community workforce. There you go. Thank you. There we go. Okay, you see. Thank you. Let's begin in 2021. That year, the number told a sobering truth. 775 three-year-olds in Bulmont were eligible for prek, but did not receive services through the district. Another 46 were eligible four-year-olds. They were also without access. These aren't just statistics. These are our children in our neighborhoods. Children starting kinder already behind, no fault of their own. We looked closely at the barriers. Three-year-olds who could not get into Bingman Head Start had no public school option. Many community daycare classrooms
038had no certified teachers. And perhaps most significantly, these students weren't in our data systems, meaning we couldn't track their progress or include them in statewide accountability. It became clear that if we wanted a different outcome, we had to do something different. Sorry. The solution began with a simple powerful question. What if we could take BISD quality instruction into the places where children were already attending? We began conversation with local daycare centers looking for a way to merge the heart of early learning in the community with the rigor and resources of the district. In 2021, our very first prek partnership classroom opened its doors. That first partnership was with World of Color Daycare. From day one, a BISD certified teacher stepped into that classroom every day, bringing our district's prek curriculum and instructional expectations. The students
039were officially connected to Peach MacArthur PreK8, making them part of the campus community, not just visitors. In essence, we brought the district into the daycare and the daycare into the district. And it worked because these students were now in our data system. We could benchmark their learning through CLI Engage. At PMAC, the beginning of year data for 2024 showed that 48% of students were meeting tier 1 expectations, but by the end of that year, the number grew to 76. At World of Color, growth moved from the 50th percentile to the 62nd percentile. These gains weren't abstract. They represented real skills gained and children more prepared for kinder and beyond. Well, success bought momentum and this year we are adding two more daycare partners, Creative Learning Center and Totttown 2, each paired with a BISD elementary
040school. Amelia with Creative Learning, Blanchett with Totttown 2. Each will have a certified BISD teacher providing daily instruction, data tracking, and campus connections. We anticipate 16 to 20 students per site, all fully integrated into the attendance counts and accountability measures. Our launch date, August 28th, just few days from now. But our work isn't just about serving more children. It's also about creating a pipeline to the future. We've extended the Child Development Associates PreK Partnership Certification Pathway to Paul Brown Learning Center students. This means our high schoolers are not just studying early childhood. They're stepping into a real BISD prek classroom at World of Color to gain experience and earn credentiing while they're still at school. This dual credit collaboration with Lamar Institute of Technology provides over 120 hours of coursework plus 480 internship hours. At
041the end, students graduate with a level one CDA certification. This is more than workforce training. It's growing our own future BISD teachers and assistants, many of them who will come back to serve the same community where they grew up. So, where do we go from here? We continue to expand. We continue to innovate. And we continue to say yes to opportunities that make early childhood education accessible, equitable, and effective. In BISD, we believe that preK partnerships aren't just about readiness for kindergarten. They're about readiness for life. At this time, I'd like to recognize those who have made our journey possible. I'd like to begin with our partnership principles. When I call your name, would you please stand? Peach MacArthur principal Ariana Moore, Paul Brown, Principal Dr. Calvin Rice, [Applause] Amelia Elementary Principal Fred Owens, [Applause]
042and Blanchett Principal April Johnston. I would also like to have our daycare director stand and be recognized. Courtney Lynch, World of Color, our very first daycare to partner with Sabrina Delos, Creative Learning, [Applause] and Leela Cormier, Totttown 2. I'd also like to recognize our BISD PreK Partnership teachers, Megan Thomas, World of Color, [Applause] Glory Jones who will be at Creative Learning. [Applause] And I'd like to acknowledge Ashley Heert. She will be at Totttown 2. And Dr. Gatsy Gibbs, our Paul Brown workforce teacher. They were unable to make it today. [Applause] And lastly, we would like to recognize our Bingman principal, Valencia Greenwood, who is [Music] [Applause] Mrs. Greenwood has hired our first CDA graduate as a peer professional at her campus, helping us continue to move forward. >> Thank you, Miss Greenwood. [Applause] >> Thank
043you all for your dedication, collaboration, and vision that have turned this idea into a true success story for our children and our community. And I'd also before we close like to thank our board for being such an advocate and our cabinet members. Thank you so much for your support. At this time I would be happy to answer any questions that you may have. >> Thank you President Miss Mlin. Uh no questions just a comment. We are thrilled beyond belief because as a board we have been requesting additional partners. I know Miss Hickman may have something to add after I finish, but I want to c congratulate everyone that you announced, but um what do you want to say? It's positive. This is positive. Thank you. Uh what is the cycle of continuation of adding because
044we are thrilled uh creative learning tat town >> town too >> two and she has a one and a three. >> Yes ma'am she does. >> I won't get into that. >> Yes. >> We're we're going to try to bring them into we've already had that conversation. Okay. >> Well you have thrilled us this evening and we want to thank you and Dr. Frank and the team and Miss Angelo for doing all of this because this is our foundation. I'm an early childhood person. I just have to add that >> you cannot proceed further without the foundation. Just like a home, the slab has to be legit >> and you are doing that. >> Thank you so much. >> And we want to thank you. >> Well, thank you. Thank you for your support. >>
045Thank you, Miss M. I'm sorry. Go ahead. D Odum, Miss uh Wallace Spooner, I I can't think of anything that is better for our district than than expanding these uh partnerships. So, thank you and thank you to the groups that have agreed to do it. >> Thank you so much. And if there are no more questions, I'd like to now continue our partnersship story. Please help me welcome Mrs. Angelo and Mrs. Seavo Seavoi, our district roar coordinator to give an overview of ROAR, [Applause] >> the queen of ROAR and the queen of community partnerships, Miss Henry Edway. Good evening um to our board president, our trustees, to our superintendent, and of course to our community members. Before I begin the report, I would like to do something. So bear with me. It's it's it's good.
046It's legit. Okay. So to you all, if you I want you to clap your hands with me. Okay. Happy. [Applause] [Music] [Applause] All right. >> Did y'all see the way she strolled up here? I knew she had something going on. >> And now for the roar report. I had to do that because I'm giving you a report, but you need to know that it's important to volunteer. Uh, and that's for our board as well as our community members. Okay. Am I supposed to click this? Okay. I'm sorry. I'm sorry y'all. Bear with me. Okay, so August 2025, as you can see, these are some of our uh volunteers. Look at the smiles. I think the smile says it all. All right. So, our growth and I heard our superintendent today talking about growth and growth
047is the number one thing from my understanding. So in 23 24 as you can see we have an active one onone volunteer of 138. And you may ask what is that 101? That one on one is when a volunteer sits with one student because roar also consists of guest readers. So our numbers tonight will not reflect the guest readers only the oneonone. So, as you can see, for 2425, which was last year, we had 197, look at the increase. I think it says 42% increase. Wow, that's amazing. But I think we can do better. So, I'm expecting for this year to be even greater. Okay, so roar by campus. I have the campus. I have the number of roar students. At the bottom, you can see it says 471. Then you see it says 270.
048That 471 means that's what we started out at the 47 uh 471 students. But those students either they left our district, went to another campus, but the most important thing is some of them began to read at grade level or above. So they exit out of roar. Amazing, right? So that mean does Roy really work? The answer to that is >> Oh, y'all got it. Yes. >> All right. So, our reading level, um, this here was from our MC class. It's the BO, MO, and the EO. And you may ask, what is that? That's the beginning of the year, the middle of the year, and of course, the end of the year. And if you can look at that, of course, this is our second grade, but look at the BOI score 324, 375, and
049the EO says 427. Again, data don't lie. Right? >> I see growth. Do you see growth? >> All right. All right. Okay. We're going to continue this growth because I really wanted you to see the graph for it just to see. I mean, look at the growth. Are y'all happy about that? All of our principles ought to be excited about that. All right. And now for our store reading outcomes. And of course, I have to partner with my literacy partner in crime here, Miss Angelo. >> So, and we what are we seeing? Growth. We're seeing growth again because we added of course third through fifth grade students this year. Um 196 of them participated for the full year and you can see the outcome speak for themselves. So out of the 70 to 73% of
050those students who participated full year passed the star test and these were students who are identified at the start of the year as not passing the star test. So big growth [Applause] for 2425. We added some new partnerships uh with our roar program. We added Baptist hospital. They have been coming on board with our roar as well as the city of Bowmont Police Department and of course our very own BISD police department. uh as well as the uh Bowman Fire and Rescue Department and of course the 100 plus black men. And guess what? We are we are going to add more and more partnership. And today I talked to Chief and guess what Chief said? I can't let the city of Bulma police outdo us. We got to do better. So we're expecting even more
051growth. And of course, this is just a few of our uh survey questions and answers that I put out to our parents, to our volunteers, to our community members. And one that I really wanted to read says, "The child I volunteer with made amazing progress. She went from struggling to being excited about reading. What a transformation. I think if our students enjoy reading then they will enjoy learning. Do y'all agree with that? >> Okay. [Applause] And of course September next month is National Literacy Month and we will have a roar kickoff on September the 8th with our roar liaons. So that is me, yours too, Miss Ariana, your program coordinator at this time. Do you have any questions for me? >> Anybody? I think she answered all questions, the queen of roar. And I want
052to thank our board president uh because he has already filled out his volunteer application which means that he is setting examples for us all to what to follow. So community members let's get on board and roar. >> Thank you Miss Boy. We have come to the time in the uh regular scheduled meeting for public comments. The board will now hear comments from those persons who have signed up to speak. This portion of the meeting is set aside for parents, students, employees, and community members to speak to the board about any matter of interest to them pertaining to the school program. Each person who signed up by 4:30 yesterday may speak for no more than 2.5 minutes. Those who signed up after that time and prior to the public comments today will be allowed to speak
053for 1.5 minutes. During public comments, the board will listen, but it is forbidden by the Texas Open Meetings Act from discussing any topic raised or making any decisions unless the matter is already on the agenda for this meeting. The board reminds speakers that public comment is not the time to bring up board complaints about a particular program, employee, or student. Should a speaker remarks include complaints directed a particular student, employee or program, I will respectfully ask that that individual stop speaking and utilize the board adopted grievance procedures. As a reminder, your time is monitored. When your time to speak is up, you will hear a buzzer that will indicate your time has expired. Miss Smith, do we have anyone signed up to speak? >> Yes, sir. The first for two and a half minutes. Our
054first speaker will be Corey Cole. >> Mr. Cole. Yeah, Mr. Cole here. Miss Smith, can you call the next person? >> The second person would be Cohen Cole. >> Cohen Cole, are you here? Mr. Cole, are you here? Is there anyone else? >> The third person to sign up is Jewel Cole. >> Jewel Cole. Jewel Cole, are you present? Miss Smith, the next person, >> the final person for two and a half minutes is Jennifer Moore. >> Miss Moore, are you here? >> Come on down. when the price is right. >> Come on now. >> Hey, we put you in a pinch. >> I wish I wish that excitement. >> Well, clap it up. Let me see. >> Thank you so much for allowing me to speak to you guys again. I'm back. Um, first
055I would like to start with good news. My daughter and my son are both adjusting to brand new schools very well. Um, they're doing great. My daughter, I thank God, is back at Regina Elementary, which is where I bought my house, which is where I wanted her to go. Um, thank you to Miss Principal One for sending me the correct paper to request the 2526 camera in her classroom, which I did fill out. Thank you to Miss Brooks for approving that request in a timely manner and getting it back to me. I do appreciate that. My next step is to request cameras at my son's school and my son's class at Marshall. But I'd like to ask, what's your next step? What about the kids in Ameilia? What about the 84 other self-contained classrooms that
056we have in the district with kids that can't speak themselves and kids who can speak now be validated? There needs to be cameras in all self-contained classrooms across the board, across the district. I really and I I'm so excited about the prek programs and all of that. I have a heart for early education. I there's a lot of wonderful amazing things that are happening at BC. I don't want to be the person that speaks bad against them, but I need to know that my kids and the other kids, not just my daughter, but all kids with disabilities are being taken care of and not just moved to different campuses because that's what happens when something's going on and it gets reported. The kid gets moved and nothing is actually done about the incident. And that's
057a problem. I thank you very much for hearing me and I would really like for there to be a policy made to be put in black and white for if there is an accused teacher for them to be removed from the classroom until the investigation is complete instead of based on the merit of the claim or whether or not it has validity in somebody else's personal opinion. Thank you for hearing me. I appreciate you today. >> Thank you for your comments. Is there anyone else? >> Yes, sir. >> Next person. >> Yes, sir. >> For one and a half minutes. Larry Gocha. >> Mr. Gocha. >> Come on down. Price is right. >> Good evening, board. Even superintendent, I normally don't speak. Uh I I normally sit back and listen. I learn a lot by
058listening. And tonight I learned something that sometime God puts you in places where you get a chance to see things that open your eyes. And this happened on July 4th of and I was at Star Break. There was a old magazine from Texas Monthly dated March 2023, not 24, 2023. And an article caught my eye. the campaign to sabotage Texas public schools. That didn't sit well with me because y'all doing a great job. Didn't sit well with me at all. Anyway, uh for myself about my qualifications, an A operator, Exxon Mobile, mobile cooperation for power plants one, two, three, and four. on the hurricane shutdown and startup team, water treating technician two and three. And that's just a little bit about me. Put in 48 and a2 years. And with all of that, again, y'all
059do a great job. Keep >> Thank you, Mr. Go. [Applause] On to ourformational items. Personnel Good evening board. >> Evening. >> You have before you this evening a listing of newly hired and separated employees uh for the month of uh July. Uh next month you'll see uh the uh the report uh with many uh pages uh added because uh as of today we've hired across our district this summer 395 employees. Of those 395 employees, 195 uh were teachers. Uh of that, half of those teachers were certified. Uh half of those uh teachers are in the process of being certified. Any questions? >> Yes. You said 195 are certified. >> 100 uh 195 teachers is what is what we hired. The amount that we hire of that half of those teachers are certified. The other half
060is in the process of certifying. questions. >> How are we? Uh I can tell you that we are well under 100 and so it was uh 100 before the uh the start of uh the summer and so I think that I think we're around 75. Around 75. >> Any other questions, Mr. Samuels? Thank you. I'm sorry, Mr. D. >> I'm sorry. Um, of the ones that are not certified, are they in a program in region five? >> Not all of them, no sir. So, uh, our, uh, adjunct program, we give them a time frame >> uh, to gain their certification. Uh, a a lot of the vacancies that you saw was that we did a uh, did did a purge of those who did not meet that time frame u this year and so we
061have uh, ex extended that for one year for for those who actually showed growth. And so uh our principles uh dug deep into the data and identified those uh agent teachers that showed our student uh show growth within our students uh academically and we extended them for an additional year. >> Thank you. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Miss Hernandez. >> Good evening. Okay. >> Um, for the tax office report, we had tax collections in the amount of $497,7362 for maintenance and operation and $110,33462 in debt service. So, uh, for the month of July, we are 97.3% collected. Any questions? For the general fund, we had um revenues. This is the first month in our new fiscal year. So, our revenues were $1,254,678. And then we also had expenditures of 4,954,466. We had outstanding purchase orders
062of 5,538,232. The campuses collected $2,860 in the month of July, and we do not have any donations to report this month. We're also going to uh report our quarterly investment report for the um period May 31st of 2025. So, um, the quarter started in March of 2025 and it goes through May 31st of 2025 and we had, um, 102,356,81746 in investments. Any questions about those? We also have a new report uh tonight at the request of a board member for our uh federal and state grants. Um reflected on here are our title grants through the ESA. Um the title one, two, three, and four. the district receives um close to $10 million from title grants. And then for IDAB, this is to ensure uh students with disabilities receive um appropriate public education. We receive just
063under $4 million in the idea grants. And then for our other federal grants which um Head Start is one of our federal grants and we received Perkins money through the career and technical um education program and then we had three lasso grants. Those total just over $5 million. And then we also received some state grant awards for um Strong's Foundation technology lending grant or state depth at estimated amounts and those are just under $2 million there. You're very welcome. >> Yes, >> Miss Mon. >> Yes. I'm not sure, Miss Hernandez. who to target besides Dr. Allen and to you making this report. Uh we have been asking it's like Christmas in uh August I guess you know you get one present you want another one uh like the uh partners with the uh daycarees we
064have been asking for an in-house grant writer and this would only be to suffice what you just reported the more we can bring in will benefit our district. So, I'm just going to uh just check with Miss Hickman on that again. That's something we definitely have been asking for someone that is dynamic that can bring money to our district, an in-house grant writer. Dr. M Hernandez, you may want to say something about >> we'll talk about that, but I don't think Miss Hernand is under her purview to get a grant writer. We'll have a discussion superintendent. >> Yes. So, President Sige, that'll go back to Dr. Allen. That's why when I started out, I said I'm not sure where to plant that seed, but it's something we've been requesting. >> Thank you. >> Okay, >>
065that concludes my reports. >> Any more questions for Miss Landis? >> Thank you. We're now ready for the consent agenda. Is there anyone who wish to pull anything, any item off the consent agenda for discussion? Well, is there a motion for the consent agenda? >> Second. >> Has been moved by Miss Hickman and second by Mr. Evans. Any discussion? All those in favor raise your right hand. Motion carries 6. We are now ready for our action items. Is there anything we discussed in close session? >> Yes, sir. Mr. President. Uh, I move the board authorize the superintendent to take any and all action necessary to withdraw Bulma ISD from the legal proceeding in the matter of social media adolescent addiction/personal injury products liability litigation case number 422-md3047- YGR MDL number 3047. >> Is there a
066second? Second >> discussion. All those in favor? Motion passes 6. Mr. President, I recommend that the board approve budget amendments from the general fund to accept amendments from special revenues 3, four, and five. >> Motion. Second. >> Discussion. Get a motion first. >> Oh, >> motion by Mr. Evans, second by Mr. Dunn. >> Discussion. Mandis. >> Thank you, Mr. Sige. Um, we have a a few carry forward purchase orders from the previous year as we're closing out things. Um for transportation uh we had purchase order for $10,000 and then in uh technology we had $2,398 and then also in it 2011,601 and then we have one movement between the functions. So we're asking the board to appropriate the funds in this year for purchase orders issued from the previous year. And then we have um
067moving between the functions in our title one part A and SR3. And then um some movement between functions in title three part A and S SR4 and SR5 is title four moving funds between the functions for them to be able to appropriate those funds. Any questions? >> Question. All those in favor? Any opposed? Motion carries. 6. >> Mr. President, I recommend that the board approve purchases over $50,000 from the general fund in the amount of 1,119,350 from federal funds in the amount of $284,93841. and from the instructional materials aotment in the amount of 1,46,270.34. >> So move >> second >> motion was made by Mr. Dunn and second by Miss Avery. >> Mr. Hernandez. >> Thank you Mr. Sige. The first purchase for Thomas Bus um in the amount of 1,119,350 $350 is from our
068one-time funds that we appropriated to begin a replacement program for all all the buses that were purchased at one time. We're going to try to purchase between eight and 10 depending on the price each year and this is the beginning of that. um for our federal fund purchases. These are continuations for online um software programs that we utilize. Um and then relay GSSE is for the uh school-based executive level coaching and training. And those total $284,93841. And then these are instructional materials that we will be utilizing the funds that the state allocated through um instructional materials aotment and those um are listed Carnegie Learning, McGra Hill and then CEB Multi Multimedia LLC and these are all in the classroom. Are there any questions about the instructional materials or any of the other purchases? >> Any
069discussion? >> Yes, sir. person, not so much a question, just a comment on the on the school buses because I just remember a time when I wasn't on the school board, maybe several years ago, maybe 10, 12 years ago, I don't I don't quite remember, but we bought an entire fleet of school buses and it was really really expensive and it was because we had kind of overlooked or neglected the fact that we needed school buses kind of often. >> Correct. >> So, I I just want to commend you, Dr. Allen, of course, uh you, Miss Hernandez, and your and your foresight and your vision to to make these small uh gradual progressive changes instead of us being in a situation where we have to buy or replace an entire fleet of school buses. So,
070it's it's obvious that you're paying attention to those types of things and learning uh great deal lessons from the past. So, uh, I just want to commend you on that cuz it it blew my mind maybe a decade ago when it happened when I just kind of sat out in a audience and I always said, you know, if I was on the school board, I wouldn't do it like that. So, >> you're on there. >> Well, it was a bad deal. >> Okay. All right. So, so, so thank you. You >> 100, you got to place 100. >> Right. Right. Right. So, so thanks for for for uh approaching that in a in a gradual and progressive way. I think that that's commendable. So, thank you, >> Miss Hickman. I've never seen such a long
071list of specifications. I think it would be interesting if the public knew this that exactly what's going to be on these buses goes on for page after page after page. >> I think it's really impressive. >> Yeah. >> Have seat belts. They are required to have seat belts now, which we already had seat belts on our buses, but with new legislation that recently passed, all buses have to have seat belts. And these will definitely have cameras as well. We do put cameras on our new buses. >> Anyone else have a question, discussion? All those in favor? Motion carries. 6. >> Thank you, >> Mr. President. And I recommend that the board approve the agreement between World of Color Development Center, Tattown 2, and Creative Learning Centers in the Bmont Independent School District for the 2526
072school year. >> Can I get a motion? >> So move. >> Second. >> Motion was made by Mrs. Dunn, second by Miss Hickman. >> Thank you, President Sige. This evening, the administration is seeking board approval to continue and expand its prek partnerships. We recommend that the board approve agreements to continue our partnership with World of Color, begin a new partnership with Creative Learning Center, and also a partnership with Tattown too. Any discussion? Anyone in a great they gave such a great presentation. I think u all answers questions were answered. All those in favor? Motion carries 6. >> Mr. President, I recommend that the board approve the appointment of Miss Valencia Greenwood as director of the Bigman Head Start program. >> Motion. >> So move. >> Second. >> Motion was made by M Mr. Dunn and
073second by Miss Avery. >> Thank you. Miss Greenwood is here tonight. Miss Greenwood, can you come forward? >> That's my classmate. That is a 1979 Bowman Charlton Pilot Cougar. >> Hey, >> I said wait, they haven't voted yet. >> I'm sorry. The Office of Head Start requires that all key positions receive approval from the board of trustees and then be submitted for final approval to the office of Head Start. Tonight, the administration recommends the appointment of Valencia Greenwood as director/principal of Beingman Head Start. [Applause] Miss Greenwood was selected for this role based on her demonstrated leadership, strong fiscal management skills, and proven success in early childhood program administration. >> Any discussion? >> All those in favor? You got anything you want to say, Valencia? The floor is yours. >> Superintendent Allen, board president, and to
074the board and also to this illustrious cabinet. And to my wonderful Bingman family and also to my family, my husband is here, my family is here, my children, my grandchildren. It is an awesome opportunity. I am humbled to serve as the principal director of a program that I am passionate about. Uh for me it is because of the love that I have for young children um four decades of in education. I love what I do. Uh you all who know me know that it's real. So I want to thank each of you for giving me the opportunity and I uh will you can entrust me to do the job. Uh I'm of the trailblazer. Uh so we are empowering uh new leaders. I'd like to ask the leadership team of Bingman Head Start to stand.
075[Applause] All staff that at Bingman, all of our staff at Bingman Head Start, please stand it. All staff. [Applause] And so, thank you. Thank you for everything. And you I I promise to do my best. >> Now, now I got all excited. to I skipped some stuff. Can I get a motion? You might need it. >> I thought you >> Can I get a motion? >> So move. >> Second by Miss Avery. All those in favor. >> Any opposed? Motion carries 6. Thank you, classmate. Wait. BCP carries the way. Her husband is a graduate from Bmont Child. Kansas, you still here? Belinda still here. Cougars lead the way. We've come to a close in this meeting. I appreciate all of you standing all the way through. We're going to start with Mr. Evans. >> Uh,
076thank you, Mr. President. I just want to say first of all, Georgia, >> Georgia, so you you know I love you if I had to pull that out. So, uh, Miss Georgia, we're going to definitely miss you. I love you so much and I appreciate everything you've done for me. Uh from my first day on the school board when I knew nothing to uh I still don't know very much but uh but I appreciate your help and your guidance and just uh sometimes being a listening ear for me complaining about whatever it is I need to complain about. Um so so thank you. Um happy trails and enjoy yourself. and to our principles, teachers, cabinet, Dr. Allen, fellow board members, Chief Maxwell. I don't I can go on for days. During YouTube, two, listen. Forget
077about what you see in the media. Put your blinders on and laser focus on the goals that we know we have in front of us. Yes, you you are. Yes. Yes. You are most definitely doing God's work. And I heard Miss Spooner give this scripture and I won't go into it, but it's something about Never mind. But anyways, stay focused y'all and know that we're in it together and um we're going to be all right. So, just stay on it. So, thank y'all. Miss Avery, >> great job tonight. Great job. Such great presentations. Thank you so much for those amazing presentations tonight. They were I'm on top of the world seeing those collaborations in the community. That's what it takes. All those collaborations. Thank you so very much for that. Roar. She's still here. >>
078You're roaring. We're roaring. Thank you so very much. And keep your energy at all times. Keep your energy. The community needs that and we do, too. staff, friends, all that are here. We are all in all year. All in all year, every day, all day, we are in. Thank you so very much. I've only been here a very short uh time, but Miss Georgia, thank you. You are amazing. >> You are amazing. Enjoy retirement. >> Love you. Oh, one more thing. >> I'll be at goals night for CTE. Thank you. I'll be at goals night. Thank you, >> Mr. Dunn. Chief, >> for the last six years, Miss Georgia has kept me straight. She has told me when you need to tone it down a little bit. She has my back the whole six years
079I've been on the school board. She keeps us informed about everything. Even when we a little bit late, she has told us 20 times today. So, I'm going to miss you, Miss Georgia. So, you can block my number, but I know where you live, but I just wanted to say thank you for all the uh hard work that you've put in for the district of the last 30 years, and we appreciate you. For everyone else out there, you got this. with the uh induction of these uh pouches, I am 100% 100% knowing that this is going to be one of our best years ever. Keep focused. Keep focused. I just I just want to appreciate the way that this school year has has started out. Everybody is focused on what you're doing right now and
080it's worth it. and you're going to see the results of your labor and don't worry about nothing else outside of what you're doing for these students because that's the only thing that matter. So, Dr. Allen, you and your staff, I really appreciate your efforts that you've been putting out and y'all just keep on keeping on. Thank you, >> Miss Boner. >> Thank you, President Sige. I'd like to concur with my fellow board members on everything that has been said thus far, but I th this far. But I want to say Georgia, I tell you, we've had many moments together and she is definitely a phenomenal woman. And uh as I mentioned earlier, uh you may go far or go somewhere. I'm telling her she's going to be back anyway, but she will forever be in
081our hearts up here. She has a wonderful relationship with all of us. And this is uh targeted to President Sige. Dear old Heert High, we love you and will always be true. Part of our song and our motto that rings out even uh today uh coined by Mr. James F. Jackson, the principal of Heert High School. He did this many years ago. That's what impact is. And just to say it tonight as I close, it's whatever Hebrew does must be the best. And we're still the best. And so I'm giving sending a shout out to my classmates that are watching right now. I'm sure they're still viewing us, but they're the greatest. And um I'm glad they showed up tonight in a big way. And I know this district loves them because they are a
082product of what? Us. Thank you, President Sigman. >> Blah blah blah. >> Miss Higgman. >> Well, since I grew up outside of Bumont, I'm not going to get into this particular rivalry. Miss Voy, thank you for my lion. And thank you, Georgia, for an awful lot, excuse me, an awful lot of good things over an awful lot of years. We appreciate you. We love you and we'll miss you. >> The two of us got carried away. The two of us. >> Hold on. Miss, are you done? >> I think so. >> Okay. I want to make sure you finish. >> And I'm sure you were going to do this, but you will add the whipped cream to it. Okay. >> We welcome Tish Smith. We love her. She's over there with Georgia. We love you
083kids. >> Yes. Okay. >> Just thank you so much to all of the team for such a great start to the school year. I think everything that has been said is wellreceived. I I just appreciate our team in advance for really going all in all year. You know, last Friday we had a I asked everybody to wear the yellow shirts and everybody wore the yellow shirts. It was so special to just see that people really and truly appreciated it and it's really nice to be in the community and you go out after work and you see these yellow shirts all over that represent Sunshine and Bowmont ISD. So, I really like that. So, we will be doing it several more times this year. And and last but certainly not least, you know, just so appreciative
084of Georgia. You know, they don't make them like Georgia anymore. Georgia has been phenomenal in her work, her professionalism, her drive, her execution. She stays ahead of everything for everybody. And when you work with individuals and you just don't have to worry about them doing their job, that is so precious. and she knows, you know, how much I appreciate her and the fact that she's going to be back. She's going to sit out her 30 days, but we've already worked out her little sub schedule, so I'm not too worried about it. She'll be coming back for a few months helping and assistant in some things. And I told her she will definitely be bored, so you know, she can dance around here all she want for a little bit, but then she'll be calling, "You
085know what? You got something for me to do, doc?" Always. But just really appreciate her and welcome Miss Tish Smith who's going to be coming in who's already coming in doing a doing a great job. So happy Friday team. And it is 8:06. >> Yep. Yep. We are smoking. Okay. Can I tell y'all a little short story? You know, in in 2005, I was in Iraq and uh it was common for them to shoot at the planes when we traveling and I'm coming from the south in Iraq going to Baghdad and they was shooting and we could hit bouncing off the plane and everybody's nervous. I'm sitting up basically in the cockpit and uh one of the engines went out and that along with the bullets hitting the plane. The captain said, "We're going to
086be all right. I've done this before. It's not a problem." Sorry, major. I relay that message to the soldiers. Just hang tight. Buckle up. We got an experienced pilot. Then we start the corkcrew coming down to land the plane. He's still confident. He tell me, "So our major, I'mma land this plane. I don't care what goes on. You are going to be all right. You're in good hands. We going to be fine." Cat lands the plane. We come screaming down the runway. That engine's on fire. One of the tires blow out, but he lands the plane. Sticks and landing. All my soldiers get off. He come out and I shake his hand. Man, I say, "I'm so confident in you. I'm glad you done that." And you know what he tells me? I've never landed
087a plane under those circumstances. I've never landed a plane. He say, "But you know what, son? If I would have told you I was worried and I was concerned, you and everybody else would have freaked out. >> But listen, we have a captain. >> We have a captain. [Applause] And listen, you are captains as well of your campuses. I don't care what the media says. You are a captain. You are going to stick the landing with your teachers, with your students. That's what we need you to do. Stick the landing. Don't pay attention to all of this mess, all of these comments, all these naysayers. Stay focused. Put your ill muffs on. You don't have to pay attention. We are charged with educating children. We cannot stop educating children because we read some comments in
088the newspaper. Stick the landing. I don't care if the wheels fall off. Stick the landing. All in all year. That's what we need out of this district. All in all year. That's what we need. Miss George, I'mma call you later. I don't want to cry when I'm talking to you. I'm I'mma call you later. Listen up. Thank you all for staying. We appreciate you. I'm going to support you all in all year. I've been to every campus. The only one I didn't get to see was Miss uh Gillery. She was doing some on Fletcher, but I went to every campus. Did I miss anybody? That's what I thought. But I'm coming out again. Y'all have a good evening.