5/6/2026- Regular BOE Meeting

001It is now 7 o'clock and I would like to call the May 6, 2026 Board of Education meeting to order. Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty, justice for all. First, I would like to call Dr. invite Dr. Amy Martino to provide a few words tonight. about a student in our town. Um, I'm going to let me introduce. >> Thank you. On the previous slide, you'll see that there is a remembrance section for one of our students, Ryan Silva. On behalf of the Bristol Public Schools and the Department of Pubil Personnel Services, we extend our deepest condolences to Brian's family, friends, classmates, and all who had the privilege

002of knowing him. For any of you who had the ability to meet him, he truly was a light in the lives of so many people. Despite any challenges that he faced throughout his life, he met every day with a smile that radiated joy, warmth, and love. His presence reminded us all that the power of resilience, connection, and unconditional kindness and love is what matters. Whether listening to his favorite music, he had some oldies but goodies, enjoying time in the community, or sharing special moments with those he loved most, he truly brought happiness to others simply just by being himself. He leaves behind a legacy of strength, love, and inspiration that will continue to live on for all of us. We are grateful to have known Ryan and will forever remember the joy he has brought

003to those around him undoubtedly watching. And as he is in other places right now, we know that he is watching over us with his signature sunglasses and beautiful smile. Thank you. >> We have a board member who also would like to say some words tonight. Um, Commissioner Pari. >> Thank you. Um, I'd like everyone to know here what a pure and kind soul Ryan was. In my previous career, I was the director of the special education school that Ryan attended, and I was lucky enough to have gotten to know him when he was a young boy and watched him grow into a teenager. Ryan had a smile that could light up a room and was always genuinely happy to be around his friends and teachers at school. The smile was infectious, and he had a

004unique way of making people feel good about themselves, even when the day wasn't going as well, especially when you're a director of special education. Right, Amy? Even though Ryan's ways of communication were non-traditional, he always got his point across to make sure people knew what he was thinking and why. In a world that seemed so divided and full of hate, Ryan showed us how all how we all should be to each other. Farewell, Ryan. You're off to your next adventure and you will do a great job at whatever it is. You'll be missed by so many and I thank you for the time we got to spend together and for everything you taught me. Godspeed. >> At this time, we ask that you please join us in a moment of silence to honor the life

005and legacy of Ryan Joseph Silva. Thank you. As a reminder, please be sure to turn on your microphones when speaking and voting to ensure those online can hear you. And please silence your cell phones. The next item on the agenda is staff and student recognitions. I will turn this over to Superintendent White. Thank you, Chair Ponds. Good evening, everyone. It's wonderful to have you all here. So, welcome. Um the first recognition is Italian scholarship winners. As part of their scholarship requirement, each winner is asked to share their experiences with the community. And tonight they are here with Mrs. Gina Gallo, wonderful teacher for Bristol Central. So I invite you to come up to the podium students and you can certainly introduce. >> Good evening everybody. I'm so so happy to be here with this incredible

006group of lovely lovely girls. Um it was a privilege to travel with them, but it was also um really wonderful to see their perspective and I can tell you how great these trips are and I can tell you how I feel about it, but I think it's much more impactful to hear directly from the kids. So we have Isabella Alves, Lucy Pons, Kayla Vilio, and and Ava Sarni, and they applied for scholarships, won the scholarships, and had a product to share with you. >> Good evening. My name is Isabella Alves, and I was the Turk social media blogger. Um, with this scholarship, my role was to run the Instagram account for the Italian page for Bristol Central. And with this, I did this both when we went to Italy and when the Italian students came

007to Connecticut in October. Um, I know that with an exchange like this, it's stressful for parents and families because you're sending your child to a different country and you're not going with them. So, I just wanted to be able to ease some of those anxieties by sending home some bits and pieces of our trip and how we were doing with the with the spare account. Um, another thing that I wanted to focus on was making sure that all perspectives are represented on the account. Um, this is a very unique experience for each and every person on the trip. And although we had some amazing scheduled activities thanks to Miss Gallow and the other um exchange teachers, there was also a lot of times where we were on our own with our exchange partners. And I

008really wanted to make sure that those unique memories were represented in the big picture to send them to families. Um, with this scholarship, it not only helped to ease financial costs, it also allowed me to be able to see this trip through the eyes of so many different people on the exchange. Um, with the pictures and the stories that my classmates shared with me, I was able to see this trip through their eyes and see the connections that they've made with their Italian exchange students. And I feel like this is what's so important about an exchange and what makes it so special is that it's not just a trip that you go on with your friends to a different country for a vacation. It's an experience to be able to fully immerse yourself in an

009entirely new culture and to be able to make connections with people that you would have never met otherwise. I know for me personally, I have an amazing friendship with my exchange partner and we still talk every day like to this day. So being able to see my classmates make these same connections and to be able to send that home to families and what and have them see that same thing was an opportunity that I'm beyond grateful for. So thank you. >> Hi, I'm Caleb Bullier. I was the trip journalist and I won the scholarship for that. And I would say my like main goal with like the journalism was basically to show it through my eyes how I saw Italy. the exchange program through my point of view and I'd say we did so many

010fun activities as a group. We went to so many different places and I'd say that this trip just really like really immersed me into the culture of Italy and it helped my understanding with the language and it also helped my understanding with the culture which applied to my class. I would say that also with like the journalism while it was through my eyes I also got to see it through other people's eyes. I was able to journal a little about what everyone else did. And I do have a book. Unfortunately, I know you guys are on a time crunch. So, I don't have it here with me, but I am more than happy to share it with you guys. We took so many pictures. Everything is all included in it. So, if you guys would

011like to see, I'm very happy to share it with you. Um, this was just like the experience of a lifetime. Like Bella said, it's more than just a vacation. It was it really helped all of us all of us upper classmen with our ability to speak the language to understand the culture and I was really grateful for this experience and to win the scholarship. So thank you all so much. Good evening. My name is Ava Zarnki and I'm the scholarship winner for the trip artist and this is the painting that I created based off of two buildings that I saw while I was in Italy. And what caught my eye about this um image was because it depicts two very different buildings side by side that worked so perfectly together. And I felt like that

012was a really good representation of our entire exchange program of how you have kids from Italy meeting with kids from America. And we have completely different cultures and experiences and learning abilities and just interests. And yet we came together and had such an amazing trip together and we became like the closest of friends and we shared our interests and we learned about these cultures and so we were two completely different schools um halfway across the world from each other. we still came together and I feel like fit so perfectly. And I'm just so honored um for this scholarship because again like Kayla and Bella said, this was an experience I never would have thought would happen for me and this scholarship just meant the world to me and it just it was amazing. So thank

013you. >> Thank you girls. And the other winner, the fourth scholarship winner, Lucy Ponds, is not feeling well tonight. So, she did send her video. Um, and I think Jeff Telki is going to play it >> there with me. Uh, one second. We just have to uh a video download here just to make sure it's Um, unfortunately it's in a format that this computer is not set up to play. So, >> move on. >> The next item on the agenda is the board of education student representatives. Before we move on, before you leave, ladies, just want to say thank you for coming. So impressed with your poise and confidence up at the microphone or the podium. You did beautifully. So, thank you. Very impressive. >> Yeah. >> Great job. So, we have our two board

014of education student representatives who are seniors who um have just done a wonderful job. This year, we did not have junior representatives, so they presented at each of our board meetings and we would like to honor both of them, Paige Ansa and Amelia Brown. Um they have served as the board of education student representative since 2024. Paige Ansa from Bristol Eastern High School and Ameilia Brown from Bristol Central High School. And I don't Are they in the room or online Paige? Hi Paige. >> Hello. Good evening. Tonight's report will focus on events as we slowly approach the end of the school year. I want to start up with a huge shout out to our outstanding teachers and staff during teachers appreciation week. They do so much for our school and I want them to know

015that their hard work and dedication do not go un unnoticed. So, thank you so much teachers and staff for all that you do. This year's chapter of Science National Honor Society is slowly but surely coming to an end and a new chapter is about to begin. SNHS has informed eligible students if they have made it in and new members will be inducted at the next SNHS monthly meeting on Thursday, May 14th, right after school. Congratulations to all the new incoming members. Beta recently finished their showing of the production Legally Blonde this past weekend and he did a phenomenal job. performers showed a great amount of talent, energy, and dedication throughout the entirety of the show, and Tech did an amazing job making sure the musical ran smoothly. I know for certain that an immense amount

016of work went into making this production happen. So, a big thank you to everyone involved for all your hard work. This year's chapter of National Honor Society members are working on our annual service project. This year, we'll be doing a tour drive and all donations will be sent to the Bristol Boys and Girls Club, which will benefit their school-based programs and summer camps. More information will be coming soon. Bster East High School's concert band has been working hard preparing the music for the spring concert which will be held on Thursday, May 14th at 6:30. This concert will showcase the talents of a jazz band, percussion ensemble, woodwin quintet, saxophone quartet, and concert band. This will be the final concert of this school year. That's all for tonight. Thank you so much. Thank you so much.

017>> Best of luck to you. >> Can we get a quick photo, superintendent? Okay. You want me to get it? Next, we have the Cave 202526 Student Leadership Awards. Tonight, we would like to honor our CAVE 2025 2026 Student Leadership Award winners. Students are nominated to receive this award by their school administration team. Students nominated exhibit the following leadership skills. Willingness to take on challenges, capability to make difficult decisions, concern for others, ability to work with others, willingness to commit to a project, diplomacy, ability to understand issues clearly, ability to honor a commitment. I invite the representative of each school to come to the podium to honor their student with their award this evening. Beginning with Principal McCabe from Bames. Oh. >> All right. We're gonna start tonight with Hi everybody. I'm Leam McKe uh

018from Bames. Miss Amani Gonzalez. Uh Amani is a valued member of our eighth grade team at Brisl Arts and Innovation Magnet. As a student in our visual arts concentration, Ammani has distinguished herself through her creativity, determination, and positive attitude. Her art teacher describes her as creative, driven, and someone who truly perseveres through challenges, qualities that are evident in everything she does. Amani is a consistently kind, thoughtful, and hardworking student who makes a positive impact both inside and outside of the classroom. She approaches each day with a willingness to support those around her. Whether that means helping a classmate, assisting a teacher, or being some simply someone others can count on. Her positive attitude and cooperative spirit helped create a welcoming environment for everyone around her. This year, Ammani became involved in the newly created girls

019STEM group started by Mr. Grant. Through this program, students participated in workshops here at school where they explored a variety of science concepts not typically covered in the curriculum. The experience culminated in a trip to Yukon to participate in the 30th annual Barangano Institute for Impacts Multiply Your Options Conference attended by more than 150 middle school girls. Yay, girls in STEM. Um Ammani particip Amani's participation in this program highlights her curiosity, willingness to learn, and eagerness to take on advantage of new opportunities. Academically, she consistently performs at a high level, earning honors throughout her through her dedication, responsibility, and strong work ethic. She takes pride in her work, approaches challenges with integrity, perseverance, and genuine desire to succeed. Most importantly, Ammani's character shines through in everything she does. She leads through kindness, quiet confidence, and

020determination and is truly a deserving is truly deserving of this recognition. In this fall, uh this fall, Ammani um will be attending Bristol Eastern High School where she'll continue to grow and thrive and we're incredibly proud of all that she has done. >> All right. this guy, Paige's little brother. Um, he's never heard that before. Paige's little brother. Uh, Elvin Ansa is one of our outstanding students in 8th grade. As a member of our instrumental concentration, Ela Elmer Elvin has emerged as a leader in band and a positive role model within our school community. He is engaged, inquisitive, and consistently takes advantage of opportunities to learn, grow, and contribute. He plays an important role in our trout project uh where he is one of two students responsible for monitoring the tank's pH levels, feeding the

021growing fish, and helping ensure that everything runs smoothly so everyone can keep on swimming. This Friday, he will proudly lead the way down the boulevard as we release the trout into the Pquabic River. So, happy fishing everyone. Um in the classroom, Elvin demonstrates responsibility, curiosity, and a genuine enthusiasm for hands-on learning. He is a consistent he consistently participates in class activities and has earned honoral recognition throughout his time at Bames. Just as importantly, he treats both peers and adults with kindness and respect, helping to create the positive and supportive environment we value so much. Outside the classroom, Alvin has also been active in athletics. He previously played on the Boys and Girls Club basketball team and this year earned a spot at Chippens Hill. Uh Elvin also stepped outside of his comfort zone in a

022new and exciting way this year when Miss McDonald created due to choir uh to expand the male participation in choir. Elvin was one of the very first students to sign up and not only did he join but he also encouraged many of his friends to take the leap and try something new alongside him. His involvement speaks to his willingness to embrace new learning experiences and be an active part of the school community. In the fall, Elvin will follow his siblings to Bristol Eastern High School where he will be taking many accelerated classes. We could not be prouder of all that he has accomplished. Good evening everyone. I just wanted to make sure that our first award recipient is currently tuned in. Mr. Telkkey, is she there? All right. Thank you so much. Um I'm going

023to start with our other recipient first and hopefully you can get Kira. She's so deserving of the support. So, first I'm going to start with Jacobe Fry. Come on up, Jacobe. You guys met Jacobe in the fall. Uh Jacobe was named um or Jacob's accolades for being in boy state were um were quite impressive and you're going to hear about him again tonight as Jacobe is our award winner this year. Uh it's my intro uh my pleasure to introduce Jacobe Fry, an exceptional student at Bristol Central High School whose leadership, character, and commitment to excellence have made him one of the most respected student leaders in our school community. Jacobe consistently demonstrates the ability to balance outstanding academic achievement, athletic success, and meaningful service to others while serving as a positive role model for both

024his peers and younger students, including his younger brother. His dedication, humility, and work ethic embody the very best qualities of a Bristol Central student leader. Jacobe has distinguished himself as with an impressive list of leadership experiences at both school and state levels. As the class of 2026 president, he's worked hard to strengthen school spirit, represent student voice, and help organize activities that positively impact the student body. His leadership extends well beyond Bristol Central High School, having been selected as a Connecticut Senator for American Legion Boys Nation and earning the prestigious Cornell Award as the most outstanding boy at Connecticut Boy State, where he also served as governor. These honors reflect not only his leadership abilities but also the respect he earns from peers and adults alike through his integrity, communication skills, and commitment to service.

025In athletics, Jacobe has established himself as a highly accomplished multisport athlete while maintaining outstanding academ performance. He has earned varsity letters in football, golf, and wrestling while also receiving multiple CCC all academic honors. As a senior captain of both football and golf, Jacobe has demonstrated the ability to lead teammates through accountability, encouragement, and consistent effort. His accomplishments include helping lead his golf team to two state runner-up finishes, earning a CCC championship, and receiving the Jack Hines Scholar Athlete Award for excellence in academics and athletics. Beyond competition, Jacob's willingness to mentor younger athletes through his volunteer coaching roles with youth football and wrestling programs highlights his dedication to giving back to the community and developing future student athletes. Jacob's involvement in programs such as the CAS CIA student athlete advisory board, sportsmanship committee, Bristol Central High

026School athletic leadership council, and ambassadors further demonstrates his commitment to leadership, mentorship, and creating a positive school culture. Whether he is leading on the field, mentoring younger students, volunteering in the community, or representing his peers in leadership settings, Jacobe consistently carries himself with maturity, professionalism, and compassion. He is a student who elevates every organization and team he's part of, and I'm confident he will continue to make a significant impact in all of his future endeavors, starting at Ohio State next year. Congratulations, Jacobe. Hold on. >> Yeah, Kira. Jeff. >> Uh, unfortunately, it looks like Kira's having some uh camera issues. Hello. I'm here. Sorry. >> Yay. Hi, Kira. Thanks for coming. >> I'm currently at jazz band practice. So, >> yes. So, I'm going to talk a little bit about your band leadership. So, it's

027perfect perfect segway. Hey, there you are. >> You probably can't see me, can you? >> Oh, no, I can. Hi. >> Oh, great. Hey. >> I'm sorry. I have to mute myself because you can hear them in the background. >> That's okay. We like the music. So everyone, this is Kira Ryan, an outstanding student at Bristol Central High School whose leadership, dedication, and commitment to service have made her a tremendous asset to our school community. Kira has consistently distinguished herself through her academic excellence, involvement, and extracurricular activities and her ability to positively influence those around her. She approaches every opportunity with enthusiasm, responsibility, and a genuine desire to help others succeed with a giant smile. There it is. Kira's leadership can be seen across many aspects of school life. As president of the Interact Club,

028she has played a major role in organizing volunteer opportunities and expanding outreach efforts throughout the community. Through this work, she has demonstrated compassion, initiative, and the ability to inspire others to become involved in meaningful service projects. Her leadership extends beyond community service through her role as ambassador, where she mentors incoming freshmen and helps ease their transition into high school by building relationships and fostering a welcoming environment. In addition to her service leadership, Kira has become a respected leader within our music and performing arts programs. As you can see live, she has served in numerous positions including drill struct drill instructor, section leader, uniform captain, assistant choir director, magical manager, and BC flats manager. These roles require organization, communication, accountability, and the ability to motivate peers. All qualities that Kira demonstrates that Kira demonstrates consistently. Her

029dedication to both choir and band has earned her multiple recognitions, including the band directors award and coral music directors award, highlighting the positive impact she has had on our music community. Beyond her formal leadership positions, Kira exemplifies the qualities we value most at Ripple Central High School. Creativity, collaboration, conscientiousness, and committed. Whether she's supporting classmates, volunteering in the community, mentoring younger students, or contributing to school spirit activities, she brings the energy and positivity to every environment she enters. Kira is a type of student leader who not only excels personally, but also elevates those around her. I am confident she will continue to make a meaningful impact in all of her future endeavors. Congratulations, Kira. >> Thank you so much. >> Don't move. if we're going to get a picture together. >> Thank you. Welcome. >>

030And principal Higgins is next. And we would unfortunately car is not with us physically, but we do want to get a picture with all of the winners and the principles before everybody leaves. So, I want to say that don't leave yet. We want a picture with everybody. >> Good evening everybody. Um, in case you haven't heard, the answers are in the house tonight. Come on up, Paige. And also, I'd like to welcome Shaun D Gonzalez Miranda to the podium as well. You're going to hear a lot of they both in in the words that I have to say. Um, in short, when I when I think about the future, I know we're in good hands. These two right here are fine examples of of the greatness that awaits uh all of us in the future.

031So, we'll start with ladies first. Paige Ansa, look at that smile. So, look at it. An incredibly bright, hardworking student at Bristol Eastern High School who has served as a leader ever since she set foot in the building as a freshman. um if there was an initiative she would look at me or any of the adults and say we need to do this. Um she is mature beyond her years. She devotes herself to to many clubs and initiatives to possibly name here. Um she holds all of them dear and gives tremendous amount of time, energy and effort to all of them. Most notably, she has served as our school's uh student representative to the board of education for the past two years, dutifully checking in, uh writing reports, uh coming in in person and online

032to deliver the latest and greatest at Brisley Eastern High School. Um she meets monthly with the board to report out on the important happenings at our school and to suggest multiple ideas for school and community improvement. And that's the best part. um she doesn't just simply report out on what's happened, but she has great ideas on how to make our place even better. So, not only does she make those suggestions, she's often the one who puts those ideas into action by rallying her fellow students around her. And that might be her greatest gift, her ability to rally people around her. Um she truly is a voice for the betterment of our school, um Bristol Public Schools, and the community at large. Again, her resume is vast and diverse in the work that she has accomplished

033and the legacy she is leaving behind when she graduates. She is truly remarkable in the work she's done for and with our student council, Model United Nations, the United Way Youth Board, and other organizations. In addition, she's a vital contributor to our school's diversity club, where students come together to celebrate diversity and learn and share about the many different cultural representations that make up our school and our community. She will be dearly missed at BEHS. We are all excited to see where she'll make great contributions next as she goes off to pursue a degree in chemistry. >> Wow. >> Congratulations, Paige. >> Collective. Wow. Yes. >> Next is Shandi Gonzalez Miranda. It took me a little bit of time to get to know him because he he he moves about the building. so so quietly

034but so um effortlessly and he is one of the hardest working selfless selfless is the word I would say about Shawn D Gonzalez Miranda individuals at Bristol Eastern High School his resume speaks for itself with the level of dedication to athletics most notably our swim and tennis teams and academics but even this strong resume in athletics and academics does not truly and fully define and what kind of person he is inside and out. Shondi is a person who's always willing to pitch in and help. No matter what the initiative is or task at hand may be, Shandi is always the first to roll up his sleeves and get to work. Literally and figuratively, he's not afraid to get dirty. He's not afraid to do the work. This is most noticeable in his service to others.

035Through the multiple National Honor Societies that he's a member of, he leads many service projects and is always looking for additional ways to make our school a better place. This is evident in his involvement with our city's cadet program. He's one of the few, I don't know that there are that many cadetses these days, but he is one who represents the program with tremendous pride. He's given hundreds of hours to this program, as well as kids in the middle, all aimed at community safety, and betterment. He's also the guy who comes around and picks up a lot of uh materials around the building for recycling efforts. Um, he's a true environmentalist, and I dig that. That's great. Sha has a winning personality. You can tell again by his smile, an incredible work ethic. He displays

036an empathetic and enthusiastic attitude everywhere he goes. We're happy and lucky to have him with us at BHS these past four years and we wish him the best as he will soon head out to pursue his education at the next level majoring in exercise science. Fine representative, fine lancer. Great young man. Congratulations. Peter. Peter, can you take a picture? >> Thanks, buddy. Thanks. >> Thank you. >> Next is BPA. Good evening everyone. Uh bear with me because I know right where my reading glasses are. They're at my house. Okay. So if this blurs a little bit, I'll right through it. So this is Bria Bernett. Uh she has been a student. Pardon me. No, these are regular ones. Listen, instead of paying $500 for progressives, $200 and $1.99 for the readers at Ocean State. >>

037Well, this is Bria Barnett. She has been with us since 2023 and she came to us with freshman credit. And like many students uh there is sometimes an adjustment period but not for her. Right from the beginning she showed an aptitude for artistic and creative endeavors as well as strengths in the humanities. Her confidence in these skills and growth mindset steadily led Bria to make her mark in the classroom. Currently in her senior year with the program she has expanded her influence from work with the Bristol Boys and Girls Club. She dugles morning and afternoon hours in the school programs and yet continues to excel as a student and citizen in our school community. She came forward with this idea. I got a plan. What if I go to work in the morning, come to

038school and then go back to work in New York? She hasn't missed the day. So perfect. She commits to involving herself. She is a definitely a leader. We have a program where we don't have a cafeteria. So the food comes in and we have students. She has coordinated that thing all year and she hasn't missed a grinder drop yet. So during the current school year, she has maintained a 90 average or better in her four classes plus her electives. And she has been a unanimous choice by the staff of Bristol Press for Bristol Prep for recognition of the Cave Students Leadership Award. We have a Bristol Prep pledge. Okay, it's be present, be prepared, and be a persevering positive member of our school community. It's clearly that she is one of our shining stars and

039if there's any inschool service program that she can volunteer for, 100% she does it all. I wish her luck in the future. And this is the type of student you say, "Darn, I hate to see you graduate, but good luck. Oh, wait. Papar. Next we have Chippens Hill Middle School. Fitzpatrick. I would like to invite Jana Guzman and Kayen Bush. All right. I have progressed this, but my prescription has apparently changed because I can see better than I. So, they're not working for me. Anyway, I always like to share what the teachers have said about our students. Um, and so this is what your teachers had to say. when I did share I they already know this because when they are announced as cave um leadership award recipients they are invited downstairs to my office

040and I share it with them um and Janae uh started crying so we were both crying because she was so surprised that that's how teachers see her so I'll share what they said about Jana Gusman Janae is an excellent is an exceptional student who approaches every classroom challenge with remarkable positivity and genuine care for her peer success. She is consistently tackling difficult tasks headon while actively supporting her classmates in their learning journeys. What stands out most is her transformation from an independent learner to a collaborative scholar who thrives working alongside diverse peers. She embodies the Avid philosophy, not only applying academic strategies with intention and consistency, but often doing her but often doing so proactively without prompting. Her initiative extends across all her classes where she willingly assumes leadership responsibilities and models excellence and collaboration

041beyond academics. Her genuine compassion for both peers and staff members create a positive, supportive classroom environment. She leads leads with quiet confidence rather than volume, a powerful form of influence that commands respect. Her classmates naturally turn to her for guidance during group work, trusting her judgment and valing valuing her contributions. She is unquestionably deserving of every opportunity that comes her way. And that's what they said about Jana. >> Congratulations. >> All right. Kayn Bush. Kayn's Kayn student is a quiet leader who consistently works hard and approaches every task with diligence. She takes on challenges without hesitation, makes thoughtful decisions, and shows genuine concern for others. While she may not always seek the spotlight, she collaborates effectively, demonstrates strong understanding of complex issues, and handles situations with diplomacy. Her commitment to her work and ability to

042honor responsibilities make her a reliable and respected member of the class. Congratulations to Caitlyn. Next do we have Green Hills principal? >> Good evening everyone. As we get closer to the end of a chapter at Green Hills and uh lose our 68, um I could not think of two better role models uh to bring before you um for the last time that we get to um mention our eighth graders at being as being a part of Green Hills. I introduce to you uh Angel Walton and Grace Walters. I'm going to start with Angel. Angel's a valued member of Green Hill School community and truly deserving recipient of this award. Since joining our school from East Windsor, he's demonstrated impressive academic growth, earning all A's in his eighth grade classes. His commitment to excellence reflects both

043his strong work ethic and his determination to continually improve. Beyond his academic success, Angel is also known for being a kind and considerate student who consistently leads by example. He's always willing to help classmates when they need support and embraces opportunities to collaborate and work as part of a team. His positive attitude and cooperation and cooperative spirit contribute meaningfully to the classroom environment. Angel shows maturity and character in the way he treats others. He expresses gratitude for the friendships and support that they have shaped his experience with and he genuinely wishes success not only for his friends but all of his peers. His thoughtful nature, generosity, and quiet leadership makes him a role model within our school community. Congratulations, Angel. And our second recipient is Grace Walters. Grace has been a dedicated member of the

044Green Hill School community since kindergarten and is currently completing her eighth grade year. Throughout her time here, she has distinguished herself not only through her academic commitment, but through a level of maturity that is truly beyond her years. One of Grace's favorite subjects is history, as she believes that understanding the past is essential to shaping a better future, a perspective that reflects her thoughtful nature and forwardinking mindset. Outside of school, Grace enjoys writing, singing, and dancing, embracing her creativity with confidence and authenticity. She credits her family for instilling in her a strong sense of self and encouraging her to explore her interests fully. Grace demonstrates leadership in quiet yet powerful ways. She consistently models integrity by following school expectations, accepting new directions with grace and standing firm in her values even when faced with peer

045pressure. Her ability to remain true to herself sets a positive example for others and reflects her belief in the power of positive influence. Grace is a visionary young woman who understands that leadership does not always require the loudest voice in the room. Instead, she leads by example, paving her own path, focusing on her goals, and inspiring others through her actions. With her strong character, clear vision, and forwardthinking perspective, there is no doubt that Grace will continue to make a meaningful impact and will one day be a respected leader within her community. Congratulations, Grace. Next we have Northeast Middle School principal sonrom. >> So I'm going to invite Lillian Herks and Kaden Vernaglia as I read from my 18point bold defont. Mr. So, I'm going to read what the blue team has to say. These are

046both uh students on our eighth grade blue team. I'll start with Lillian. Lillian has fully involved herself in our school community between sixth and eighth grade. She has made her mark by participating in the NEM's news debate club, yearbook club, and band. She has been especially involved in band and played all three years of middle school. She also auditioned for and made our honor band which meets weekly for an hour before school. Additionally, she auditioned for and was chosen to represent Northeast Middle School bands at the Northern Regional Middle School Music Festival, which is for the top musicians in the state. This was held at Central Connecticut State University during the first weekend in March. Lily also keeps herself busy outside of school by participating in swim, Girl Scouts, and private music lessons. Lily exemplifies

047our school, our school's overreaching expectations, including respect, ownership, and achievement on a daily basis by serving as a role model to her peers. Thank you, Lilian. Next, we have Kaden. Kaden has fully involved themselves in our school community. At school, Kaden has involved himself in many different activities, including robotics, Dungeons and Dragons, chess club, band, and the citywide gifted program. Recently, Kaden has shown leadership through his involvement in the student council. He was involved as a seventh grader and has really taken on a leadership role with the group this year. He's extremely motivated, always comes up with new ideas, and is willing to take on most any project the group is looking to implement in the school. Outside of school, Kaden keeps himself busy with playing electric guitar and through his participation in Boy Scouts.

048Kaden has been a scout since second grade and has positively contributed to the community through many scout sponsored activities. Thank you, Kaden. Next is West Fris West Fristol, principal ambassador. Good evening, everybody. I am so happy to be here to recognize Ian and Gabby in our final year with middle school students as well as um the same as Green Hills. It's a pleasure to be able to recognize them. So, I'm going to start with Ian and I'll share what your teachers have said about you. Ian is an exemplary student. He is a leader on the field, in the classroom, and most importantly, when no one else is watching. Ian does the right thing because it's the right thing to do. He is not looking for special accolades or a shout out. He is deeply motivated

049by kindness and concern for others. Students look to him as a model for academics, athletics, and behavior. He is a dependable student, friends with everyone, and kind to all of his teammates. Ian follows through with projects and assignments, and he is a conscientious student who prioritizes academics. He is consistently on the honor role and is able to discuss academic content with the maturity and depth of a high schooler. Ian is trustworthy, collaborative, and seeks out ways to resolve problems. He is also funny, and a pleasure to be around and have in the classroom. He brings a light to everything he does. We could not be more proud of everything he has accomplished in 8th grade. Congratulations, And next we have Gabby. When you think of the words genuine and kind, Gabby comes to mind. She

050is one of the warmest students anyone has ever had the pleasure to teach. She is a friend to all and others gravitate towards her because of her quiet leadership and steadfast dedication to doing what is right. She makes sure all students are included and never leaves anyone out. A natural peacekeeper and mature beyond her year years, Gabby is someone others look to for guidance. She shines in the classroom, on the field, and when volunteering. Gabby is dedicated to her schoolwork and is always on the honor role. She rises to the occasion and pushes through any difficult challenge. She is a determined student and athlete and has found a great deal of success because of her perseverance. Gabby works well with the other students, shares her knowledge with others, and keeps the focus whenever completing a

051task. Gabby is the definition of community. We couldn't not be more proud of everything she has accomplished in a B. You're welcome, >> Sydney. We're gathering around all right to the front so I can take photos. All the students. >> Yes. If you guys can open them, that would be great. So you guys are all I need you guys to speed in a bit. Panoramic. >> Yep. >> Thank you. So now they still have this and this >> Lily seen She keeps staring at me. So weird. >> I haven't seen you. I thought you were dead. And now you come and you stare at me like that. Thank you. Thank you very much. We just want to give a minute for folks to leave, but I think we can go back to the agenda. We

052wanted to recognize Danielle Fedoritz, an eighth grade social studies and avid teacher at Chippen Hill Middle School, who was one out of a hundred teachers in the nation to be a delegate for we the teachers preparing the next generation through history and civics. So Danielle is here. So we invite her to come to the podium. Hi, >> congratulations. >> Thank you. Uh I'm super excited to be part of this program. Uh we the teachers. Um it is a connection with William and Mary University at Williamsburg, Virginia in the National Council for History Education. Um it's the first year of a three-year program. I will just be part of the first year um where they want to make a Congress of teachers. So they selected two teachers from all 50 states uh to be part of

053this. and I am repping Connecticut and Bristol um at this conference. Uh it's a fellowship where we immerse ourselves in US history all the way up to the revolution with the 250th anniversary right now. Um and we get provided resources, materials um to bring back to our districts but also to our state. Along with this um I'm also on the state of Connecticut's America 250 commission um as an education adviser on the ed uh commission. So, uh, as part of this, I'll take what I did and create a professional learning that's not just for Bristol students, but, uh, teachers, but for teachers all over the state, um, in the fall sometime. Um, and then also currently I'm on, uh, Bristol's America 250 commission where I organized, uh, and ran a local history project. Um, I'm

054actually skipped out of the meeting to come here. They're at the historical city right now. Um, we got in the city of Bristol, we got 85 students to complete a local history project and they in order to qualify they had to score an 80 or higher on the rubric. So to have 85 kids um 75 were from Chippens and 10 were from Green Hills. Uh so they are judging them right now. Um, and also all of those students will be receiving a certificate from the governor um, as a c like as a congratulations for completing local history with the 250 and those will be given out at their promotion ceremonies in June. So, as you can tell, I really love American history and I love teaching 8th grade. So, um, and AVID. I was at

055the AVID training earlier today, too. Um, and so, um, I'm just really excited to be part of this and to bring all this back to my co-workers, uh, here in Bristol and also in the state. So, thank you so much for the chair. And before you go, um, I just wanted to brag a little bit on this amazing teacher. I'm a little bit biased. My son, um, has Mrs. Fed or Mrs. federal, as he calls her. Um, as a teacher and, um, for my son to be impressed with a teacher, um, that doesn't come easy. And, um, he's very selective. Um, and I actually see three of his favorites in this room. And again, it doesn't come doesn't come easy. But I I I want to share that not only do you have the highest

056accolades from students, but your your peers and colleagues as well. And I think that's a testament to your commitment. And I think it's probably one of the greatest compliments you can receive when you have your peers and students um loving the way that you engage them and engage students and your school community. So I wanted to say thank you for everything that you do. >> Thank you. Next is staff recognition days, month of May. May is a special time at Bristol Public Schools as we recognize the many dedicated individuals who support our students every day. May 1st through May 7th is National Physical Education Sports Week. Friday, May 1st was school principal day as well as school lunch heroes day. This week, of course, is teacher appreciation week. Uh today is school nurse day and

057May 18th is speech pathologist day. To all of our incredible staff, thank you for the care, commitment, and passion you bring to our schools each and every day. You make a difference in the lives of our students and families, and we are grateful for all that you do. And I want to also say a thank you to the school administrators, PTO's, PTAs, booster clubs, um, who do such a good job organizing the recognition activities and events and awards for our staff members. So, thank you very much. And I understand that there were some local businesses that also made some donations to schools in order to recognize the staff. So, we thank them as well. And that concludes staff and student recognition. Thank you. >> The next item on the agenda is the approval of the

058minutes. You have all received a copy of the April 1st, 2026 regular meeting minutes in your packet. Are there any corrections or abstensions? Hearing none. Can I have a motion? >> Motion to approve minutes. >> Second as presented. >> Motion's been made and seconded. All in favor? >> I opposed. >> Motion passes. You have all received the April 23rd, 2026 budget workshop number three meeting minutes. Are there any corrections or abstensions? I have a motion. >> So moved. >> Second. >> Motion's been made and seconded. All in favor? >> I motion passes. Okay. So, the next item on the agenda is committee reports. Um, the student achievement and outcomes committee met on April 29th. We were informed about a new CNA pilot program that will be grant funded that you will be hearing about tonight,

059so I won't say much more about that. In addition, we reviewed um curriculum revisions, a bunch of them. So, chemistry, academic and accelerated, um 9th grade health and English 1 through three, as well as a new PE elective, which you will be hearing about also tonight, so I won't spoil all of that. Um, and that's really it. Thank you. >> Thank you. um from the committee on student family and community partnerships. Um we did not have a meeting this month so we will continue or last month so we'll continue this month. >> Thank you. >> Good evening. Um so I will start with policy uh policy committee. We met on April 8th. We had a very robust agenda. Um I won't go into too many details because we have six of those policies which we'll

060be learning more about tonight. Um, our next policy committee meeting is next week on May 13. And then we did have our school our quarterly school safety committee meeting right before our board meeting. We got updates on the Alice trainings. It was reported that the Alice trainings are going well. Um, the drills have been conducted in the elementary and middle schools. Full drills will take place at the end of the school year. Um the camera project is still in the works and it's underway. Uh we did discuss a little bit about some urgent concerns regarding cell phones um specifically in the elementary schools. So that's something that's being kept keeping an eye on. One of our policies does kind of coincide with um some of those concerns that we'll talk about tonight. Um and then

061the VEP sensors um all are up and running and it has cut down on usage. So they're seeing that those have been working. Thank you. I'll share out on finance and operations. Finance and operations met on Wednesday, April 8th. Um it was business as usual with our agenda items. We did hear uh the 2026 budget update through March 31st. uh cafeteria report, appropriation transfers over 10,000. We had our pupil personnel services report and student activity accounts through um 33126. Of note, and something you will hear about later on tonight in the agenda, uh solar arrays at Bristol Eastern High School and Bristol Central High School. There was um a rather informative presentation which you again will hear more from tonight. Um, and our next meeting is Wednesday, May 13th. Thank you. Uh, I know that

062uh, Bristol Eastern already did their student representative report. Did is Bristol Central here? Amelia on? >> I do not see her online, unfortunately. >> Okay. Um >> well uh I would like to make a motion to move two agenda items and they are agenda items that are in new business. 13.1 encroachment of Southside school property and 13.2 solar arrays at Bristol Eastern High School and Bristol Central High School. Uh if we can move those to the spot now, the current agenda. Um so it would precede the chair report. So, I'd like to make that motion. >> Second. >> Motion's been made and seconded. Any discussion? >> All in favor? >> I >> opposed. Motion passes. We know that it was um a really exciting and long presentation of celebrating all of Bristol's amazing students and

063recognizing everyone. But our guests that are here uh have a time limit when they can be here. So that's why we move the agenda. So if we can bring uh what is he where is Yes. So, it's the encroachment of Southside school property. >> Yes. Uh, good evening. My name's attorney Jeffrey Steve. I'm an assistant corporation counsel for the city of Bristol. I'm also the legal counsel for the real estate committee, which is a subcommittee of the city council. With me is chairman, Councilman Glenn. I did send a letter last month. I hope you have it all in the package. Um if not I do have copies that I could give to you. Uh let me well let me introduce you to Paul because he wants to tell I just want to give you a

064little background on what we've done. Uh we have a list of encroachment properties that are encroaching on city property and for not just ownership issues but also liability issues. we we have to address this. And so we've sent out several uh letters uh to these homeowners stating that we want to resolve the issue and encourage them to come to uh real estate committee meeting. On this particular case was discussing uh Tuttle Road. Uh a woman did come and discuss with us uh the issue and she asked if we would consider uh selling that small piece of property behind her house uh to her and would eliminate the encroachment issue. Um there's a lot of detail behind this and I think I'm going to have Jeff get into a little more detail what the ask is.

065>> Right. So we have done this before. Uh I believe on Stafford school somebody had approached and asked for 0.56 of an acre and it went through the board of ed they agreed and then that person came to us and asked the city to sell it which we did. Uh but we required that person to pay for all the expenses. We also had our tax assessor's office do an appraisal of the property. Uh now we're not looking or this person is not looking to buy all of South uh school southside school. Uh just a very little portion of it. Uh she currently has a um looks like a play swing and it looks like a shed. So, uh, last year or so, the Bristol City Council did pass a policy that said if it's not

066if you're encroaching on city- owned property that is not open space, then you can either uh purchase or try to purchase that, but you have to pay for other costs including surveys, lawyers fees, and so forth. Um, or remove the the uh equipment or whatever is encroaching the city. Now, that doesn't apply to open space, which our policy is you have to remove it no matter what. Um, most if not all these people who are encroaching, there's not an evil intent. They didn't know. Most of them when they bought the property, they didn't realize where the property line was or sometimes the fence was a little misleading and the previous owner had put the fence inadvertently on city- owned property. So, we're not saying people are doing this on purpose. It's just a mistake. Uh,

067most of them. Um, so we're here tonight to see what this uh committee would want to do with this particular person on Tuttle Road. And I don't think it's going to be a big portion. My understanding is it's small because the property cuts off and it's wetlands and it's not a lot of property. If I could uh the last thing I would say is the property in discussion is uh tucked behind if you have southside school near some wetlands and on the other side of the wetlands there's about a 10 to 12 foot piece of land that's elevated right behind the schoolman's house. Uh so it's not something that is usable by the school being behind the wetlands. And what we're asking today is if there's an appetite to pursue this, not that we're going

068to do it, but we didn't want to pursue it and start put the motion things in motion uh only to find out that that's not something we would entertain. >> I can open up discussion if anyone has any questions or comments for the chair. >> Yeah. So, I did see the um the letter Attorney Steak sent out in the um the picture and it's it's off of like there's like terrain there and um so it is not really um useful and it's a small small space >> small school, >> right? >> We're not here to advocate one way or the other. >> No, I just as understanding you know the um it doesn't really take away from the school because it's not usable. You can't. Students aren't going to go over there. There's nothing you

069could do. Oh, there you go. >> No. Oh, yeah. Perfect. >> So, it's just beyond that. What is the >> We're trying to figure that yellow. We think it's a sand box area, but clearly the one on the south side. just the line that they're looking for to just be out of it. >> Thank you, >> the chair. >> Yes, >> it sounds like they're um from what I from what I'm reading that a sale is potentially allowed that the homeowner is interested in a purchase and um it doesn't appear to me that it would impact the school operations or any of the grounds in any negative way. So I have no reason not to support this. It sounds like it resolves the matter quite >> quickly and without expense to the board or the

070>> so city. >> Why don't I just ask does anyone have a problem with it? >> Okay, it seems like you can pursue. >> Thank you very much. And what we'll do is we'll report back here once we have the details and everything about uh the issue. Okay. >> Thank you very much. Thank you for your time. >> Next item on the agenda, solar arrays at Bristol Eastern High School and Bristol Central High School. >> Good evening, commissioners. It's >> Hi, Tara. >> How are you? >> Good. >> Hold on. Let me see if I can get my camera to work here. I'm downstairs, but the um building the room was very full. So, I'm going to report from my office. Anyway, we met um last month at our operations committee meeting and we had

071invited Shawn Dunn from our um energy commission over at the city side and Adam Teff um from Titan Enterprise, I think it is Titan Electric or Energy, Titan Energy. um and he came and did a little bit of a presentation on some potential solar opportunities that we could have at our Bristol Central and Bristol Eastern high schools at our operations committee. I think we uh were leaning definitely towards the potential of carports. So, we had invited them back to speak and give their presentation to the full board. So, on that I can see them standing up at the podium. I'm going to ask that they can take it away. >> Thanks, Tara. Mayor Ellen Zapo Sassu from city hall and I'm here just to really facilitate the in the uh introduction of Adam Tuf who

072is someone that we've been working with over the course of several years actually. Energy is a hot commodity, no pun intended, and we have tried to be very collaborative as well as creative in terms of really harnessing that energy in order to make it work for our facilities, our energy bills, and frankly be um aware of what we're doing with the community and our long-term goals. So, we're hopeful that this is something that is going to have some long-term benefit for the board of education. So, I'd like you to have a minute of Adam to explain to you and answer any questions that you may have based on the materials that we submitted. Thank you. >> Thank you, mayor, and I appreciate everybody having me in tonight. Um, just a little bit of background context

073on Titan. Um, we actually we work collaboratively with the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities as the renewable energy program manager essentially um through CCM. It's a service that's offered to municipalities that uh are interested in exploring renewable energy um but really need an expert on their side of the table to help guide them through that process. So uh we've been partnered with CCM for the last eight years or so. I've been with Titan doing this um both for both the public sector and private sector for approximately 15 years. Uh and as the mayor mentioned, I'm a hired energy consultant working with the city. So through uh the work on the energy task force, we really wanted to make a concerted effort to identify locations within the city that would lend themselves well to renewable energy application,

074particularly given the sensitivity uh timing wise related to federal tax credits that are associated with with solar which are about to expire. So there's um a very attractive program from the federal government that helps incentivize these systems. There's also a very um interesting program from the state of Connecticut and Eversource that helps subsidize them as well. So when you put those two pieces together and combine that with energy prices which seem to just consistently increase over time, we wanted to make sure that we were taking advantage of every opportunity that was out there to help lower um the board of ed's costs where we could. So, the two primary candidates that we identified, uh, Bristol Central and Bristol Eastern, um, really two components of what's possible there. Uh, on the one hand, there's, uh, fairly

075significant parking lots that could be used to host parking canopy systems and also we were made aware of a plan to uh, redo the roofs at both schools. So being able to dovetail with that to also utilize that space for a renewable energy project, you really get a one-two punch between our ports and rooftop solar. That would save the school district in our estimate a substantial amount of money. So um within this material here, I just wanted to give folks an overview. Basically, this is more or less what I've already told you, but um in terms of numbers based on other work that we've done with municipalities of this size, with project portfolios of this size, we estimate that the 20-year savings associated with these projects without any out-of- pocket spends from the school district

076be approximately $8 million or so over 20 years or roughly $400,000 in year one. Once these are built, um the revenue or the value of those projects could either be recognized as cash payments coming in or as a tool to lower your ever source cost. So you do have some flexibility there and how that value is realized. Um, and again, timing is really critical here just because in order to achieve these numbers, we'd really like to make sure that we give solar developers who would bid on these projects, and I'll walk you through exactly the work that I would do, where I fit into this process, but given that looming deadline um for solar developers to act to safe harbor their equipment to still be eligible for the investment tax credit, we do have a

077plan to roll out an RFP that Titan would manage um in conjunction with the facility ility staff and the board of ed to select a company that would come in, build, own, and operate these assets and create that value um for for the Bristol public schools. So, that's where I fit into this mix. And some what we do is we help municipalities structured RFP process to select a company to come in and then act as the the owner operator of those systems. We've included the initial layouts that we've put together. This would form the the spec that we would put out to bid. Um, and we've had a number of different conversations with the folks in facilities about timing on the roof, when that will get done, any potential changes that may need to be

078made to a layout like this should the air handling equipment location and size change. So as part of the process we would run we would build in flexibility of course so that as the plan for the roof and the mechanicals on top changes at all you know we can maintain some flexibility um for a rooftop system but this is really included just as a you know to give you a sense of what we would be specking into the RFP and uh we do the same here for the carports and um we did have an opportunity to walk these sites Of course, we wanted to make sure that we were being cognizant of um you know any wetlands issues. Wanted to minimize the need to clear any trees wherever possible. Wanted to utilize the areas of

079the parking which may be less utilized um as opposed to others. And also be mindful of snow clearing and how that would all kind of interplay with um the layout here. And luckily we've we started doing this a couple months ago. So, we did get to see the parking lot when there was snow, you know, post. Obviously, this last year was a little bit of an anomaly, but these are long-term arrangements. So, we'd like to see the worst case scenario and how a system like this would integrate with that. So um you know again I think that site visit was um illuminating for us just to make sure that anything that we would recommend to the school district wouldn't encroach on the operations you know ingress or egress for m emergency vehicles school buses trash

080trucks etc. Again, just another visual for Eastern and carport system as well. So, and these are just some example photos of other projects that we've done in school districts across Connecticut. Um, you know, our goal here, of course, is always, you know, maintain the number of parking spaces that you have. Um, you know, we don't want to create, um, you know, water runoff issues and things like that. So that um you know is a big part of how the systems ultimately get configured and built. Um and much of you know this will come down to you know we'll have to do geotech studies and things like that to make sure that there's nothing hiding under the soil that um you know would make a carport not feasible but that's a very rare situation but it's

081part of the due diligent process in uh in addition to hiring third party engineers to assess structural integrity of the roof etc. So, we have a number of steps that we would take, you know, as safeguards for the school district to make sure that this gets done right. Um, that provides the kind of long-term value that you would anticipate. And I I think the request here is, you know, um, to be able to move forward with issuing the RFP that would allow us to then come back to you with the results from that process and be able to walk you through what the numbers are, what the plan would be in more detail. So really just you know we have a concept now and we're poised and ready to put this out but um obviously

082the board support is a major part >> through the chair. >> Yes. I just want to add if this RFP um option is approved, I believe that he would have to work collaboratively with the purchasing agent over at city hall that I don't I don't think that the RFP would be issued through him directly. I think it would be something that's issued through our our purchasing department. >> Yes, I would um every time we put out an RFP on behalf of the city, it's gone through the the city hall. So I just want to make sure that there is clarification and that that committee understands that. >> And the other thing I would add too is even if the results of the RFP came back and they were wildly different from you know what my

083estimates are for some reason city didn't wish to move forward, you're not bound to the results of that process. Um the only instance in which you would then become bound to a project would be when you sign a contract with the company that would install it. So, we're really in the exploratory phase with the goal being to bring back to the board an actionable plan for consideration. >> Okay. >> Through through the chair. Yeah. >> Um, so in that in the finance committee meeting, so we were talking about the roofs and how potentially that would pose an issue, but for the RFP, would you be able to do one just for carports and then one for carports and the roofs in or do we have to have it all together to get the tax incentive

084just in case we run into issues and you can't do the roof piece within the three years I think was the time limit. >> Yeah. So, how we've handled this before, especially for situations where the roof maybe isn't done yet or putting out the RFP in advance of the anticipation of the roof being done, we generally uh build in a few safeguards into the RFP itself. One of those being that solar developers need to understand that the the city is within the right to select some or all or none of the projects. So um it would be bid in such a way where you maintain that flexibility and also the other safeguard that put in place is raising this issue as hey this plan is not 100% final yet the city needs to maintain the

085ability you know the flexibility to ultimately not move forward with the project if for some reason the roof doesn't get done in three years. So, it doesn't set you up for a financial penalty or an early termination clause, but um that would all be written into the agreement that would also get signed with the solar, but it's a very easy thing to to navigate that we've done past. >> Thank you, Mr. Chair. >> Um I do have a few handful of questions. I don't think they're long or involved questions, but um we were sent the presentation today. So, I just collected my sent them to um >> they were responded to. >> Okay. Well, I didn't >> in writing by email. >> Yeah, by email. >> Okay. Because I just sent it at 4:30 and

086then I was driving here, so I I didn't say that. >> I'm that good. >> Yeah, you have all the >> No, I I Yeah, so >> that's why I saw it come through. >> Yeah. So, feel free to ask again, but I did provide answers to those questions. >> Oh, good. So then you have them ready and maybe we can that this way the public can hear what some of the questions were quickly. It won't take a lot of time I don't think. >> Um and I just think it's timing was an issue that's all. >> Um the uh so the and some of these might have to wait until the exact contractor gets hired but the for the construction in the parking lots um would that obviously not occur during the school year?

087would we be able to say that we want certain times of the year when it when it would be constructed because the parking lots are pretty full and in use. So do they I'm assuming they schedule that with >> for summertime. Yeah. So the idea at least as it's currently framed in my in my mind I think what the plan would be and how the RFP would go is to specify that summer 2027 would be the construction window for the carports. >> Okay. And then summer 2028 would be the anticipated window of opportunity to do the roofs. Uh again, barring any potential plans, you know, plan change with the re- roofs, things like that. But in schools generally, we set we we carve out that time to do the work. And if an ongoing maintenance

088or any type of repairs for the carports would be um in the agreement, could we have it arranged so that when um if at all possible to minimize disruption to you know shutting down those parking lots during the day? I think those would just be some extra protections that the district would look for because we don't want to interfere with the use of the parking lots for any of the maintenance that has to go on with the car parks. >> Hopefully, it's not a lot. >> Um 100%. How does the liability work both um for the um any damage to cars that might be under the carports and and also in the reverse that there's any you know vandalism to the company's um carports? How is that all handled in the RFP as well? Will

089that be spelled out? >> Yeah. So insurance coverage, we set basic insurance coverages and and the extent to which they need to be prepared for things like vandalism. Um if for some reason there's ever any active vandalism directed to the equipment, it's covered under the insurance policy for the solar company. Um and if you know they cause any damage, be it to cars or otherwise, that's also um financial responsibility that they bear as well. >> Um I know that um from from the research that I did, which is not a lot because I don't have a lot of time, but I did try to do a little bit. Um the any noise concerns. Are there going to be any inverters or transformers on the outside near where the residential areas are that help support the

090carports? >> Yeah. So generally we want the inverter. So depending on if we're talking about the carports or the rooftop, some of the equipment might actually be in the electric room itself, in which case you have uh you know the general noise that you'd have in electric room. um for anything that gets placed outside and this you know again this we don't have an exact spec yet so I can't point to exactly where the equipment you know inverters or transformers would go generally from a noise perspective it's anywhere from 40 to 70 dB which is basically you know on par with like a conver like a facetoface conversation in terms of noise and then the further you get from that um you know the the lower that that decel level comes down. The other piece

091of it too is so it's certainly much quieter than like rooftop heating and cooling equipment with fans and compressors and things like that. Um significantly wider than something like a generator. Um so but we try to keep the utilities all together so that you know we're not taking you know put things like right next to a library or something like that. Um so that's generally how that's handled. And as far as um you know when these equipment when this equipment makes noise it it's when the you know the equipment's only functioning when the sun's shining. So as the sun goes down at night time and like things like that that's generally when things are quieter equipment off. So, you know, I've in doing this for 15 years, I've never had anybody complain about, you know,

092the noise from the inverter or transformer interrupting or being any louder than any other ambient noise that might be going on in a, you know, either a residential or like a an urban area. >> Um, I I know this sounds like a silly question, but because I live up near Bristol Central, I've seen, you know, the parking lots in action, right? So, do buses fit under the carports? >> Yeah, of course. So, the the the minimum height requirement on these is 14 ft and that's on on the end. So, if you think about, you know, how these things are angled, they're kind of like a tea width on a slope. Minimum is 14. And they can be higher if they need to be. There's no reason that it has to just be 14. But um

093when we design these, it's you know uh dump trucks, buses, emergency vehicles, fire department, etc. want to make sure that there's easy in and out in all circumstances. And we again with the layouts we're my thought is try to avoid the most congested areas anyway just to knock that issue out, you know, and potentially in the future for any reason. >> Those are all the questions I had. Thank you. >> Sure. for the chair, if I may. Um, is there a reason we uh looked at Bristol Central and Bristol Eastern and not some of our other schools that may not have a leaky roof? >> Um, so, you know, the idea, at least from my perspective, was to try to identify the locations that offer, you know, the most financial benefit. Um, you know, I

094and that's really, you know, you could do any of these projects anywhere. It's just, you know, you want to try to hit a certain scale where the financials start to make sense. And high schools are generally good for parking canopies because you have four cars that are parked there like an elementary school or middle school where the only people that are driving are teachers and they generally are smaller schools. Um, and then age of roof dictates really, you know, where these things go. If they're either due for replacement in the next year or two or they're less than five years old, that matches up nicely with the useful life of the equipment and these are generally 20-year contracts that you sign with solar companies. So, we want those to be in alignment with each other

095so you don't have a situation 10 years in where you have to re-roof because your roof is um done, but the solar agreement still has 10 years left on. So, we'd like to try to make sure that we're working in alignment with the roof replacement schedules. >> Um, so looking at these the two like Bristol Central, so we have the building and you and you design you put where the panels will go on top and then the parking lot um area where the panels will be. And I see if I if I merge those two together, that whole land mass is covered in solar panels. Um, I think it would be the same for both high schools. So, it just seems like I don't I don't know. It seems like a lot for me, but

096I I hope we can do something that saves some money, but it's just I don't know. The carport and the buildings a lot, but thank you. Can I have a motion to allow the purchasing agent to issue a request for proposal for the development of a solar arrays carport system at Bristol Central and Bristol Eastern high schools? >> So moved. >> Second. Motion's been made and seconded. >> One last question. It's a non-binding RF process, right? You said there's a >> correct. >> Okay, perfect. Thank you. Yeah, the results are um 100% up to the board to take the >> through the chair. Really quick, one more thing. >> Yes. >> Um just in that motion, we specified just the solar arrays for the carport system only. And um based on the conversation that just

097was had, I don't know if you want to add um the rooftops as well. We had left the rooftops out of it simply because there is no guarantee on those rooftops at this time. We have the roof projects as you know that are ongoing. We're going to have the mechanicals the following year and we have the um new state IIAQ mandates. So we're kind of unsure of exactly what's going on there. So we left in that particular motion the rooftop was left out. So, I just want to be sure that you guys are if you want to pursue the rooftops at this time to just add that as well into the motion. >> Okay, I'm going to amend the motion. >> Yeah, just one thing. I did have a quick exchange with Peter Fusco about

098this very issue prior to this just to make sure everyone was on the same page. And I did um make sure he was aware that you know this is bid out in such a way where all the options are you know there you can take it on all cart basis or all in and um you know he understood that and we're okay with including the group. I don't want to speak for him but I I did have that exchange in case that helps clear that. >> Okay. So I'm going to amend the motion. Can I have a motion to allow the purchasing agent to issue a request for proposal for the development of a solar array carport system and rooftops at Bristol Central and Bristol Eastern High Schools? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Motion's

099been made and seconded. All in favor? >> I >> opposed. I'm going to go now. Okay, motion passes. >> Thank you everybody. Appreciate your time. >> Thank you. Next um item on the agenda, we're going to go backwards to um chair report. Over the past several weeks, I have been encouraged by the continued collaboration between the board of education, the mayor's office, the board of finance, city leadership, and district administration throughout the 2027 budget process. This has been a challenging budget season, but it has also highlighted the commitment of many people working together to support Bristol students, staff, and families while remaining mindful of the financial responsibilities facing our community. Through ongoing conversations and collaboration, the proposed funding level for education increased as district needs, rising special education costs, operational pressures, and the importance of

100maintaining student opportunities were further reviewed and discussed. I appreciate the willingness the city leaders and the board of finance have continued those conversations and revisit options throughout the process. There have also been productive discussions focused on long-term planning and sustainability, including operational efficiencies, energy saving opportunities, employee benefit structures, and additional ways the city and board of education can work together moving forward. These conversations represent an important step towards strengthening collaboration and identifying solutions that support both students and taxpayers over time. I especially want to recognize the administration, fiscal staff, city officials, and board members who have dedicated significant time and effort to reviewing information, exploring options, and working through complex issues with professionalism and a shared focus on doing what is best for Bristol. One of the most positive aspects of this process has been

101the continued communication and willingness to stay engaged even during difficult discussions. That collaboration has created forward movement and reflects a shared commitment to the success of our schools and our communities. As we move toward a final budget decisions, I remain optimistic about the progress that has been made and appreciative of the partnerships and problem solving that continue to move this work forward. Um, and I want to recognize that those efforts had resulted, and I'm sure people saw on the news, um, in saving middle school sports, um, and had many other positive implications. So, before the budget passes, um, we don't want to, you know, say too many things because it has to pass, but things are looking much better this week than they did last week. So, I'm grateful for that. And that concludes my

102report. The next item on the agenda is superintendent report. Superintendent White. >> Thank you, Chair Ponds. I want to quickly provide some updates and I know that we have um some guest speakers that are going to be part of my superintendent's update. Um the first is regarding um a grant um that the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence received from Seedlings and um earlier this year we the district had worked with Prudence Crannle on signing with signing on with the co Connecticut coalition to receive this grant and specifically um we wanted to use the funding to continue to support the professional development um and training uh that has been provided to our social workers, uh school counselors, school psychologists um around working with students on healthy relationships, self-esteem boundaries um and also looking at the signs

103of abuse and how to help and support those students. So um this grant will help us in that work. It will also help Prudence Crano continue to provide workshops for students as well. So, I wanted to share that good news with everyone. And I had noticed um that I did not have any school gear that I could wear uh specifically for Bristol Eastern High School and Bristol Central. Um, so I reached out to both administrative teams and um I was able to in particular visit Mrs. McCary's marketing 2 class at Bristol Eastern High School. Um, they put together a care pro um care package of Bristol Eastern gear. Uh they put that together as part of a project. So I was able to visit the class and thank them in person. and we had a

104very um thoughtful Q&A with the students and they mentioned that they read my weekly superintendent update and as part of a class project they had developed some press releases um on how to share the good news with the community about the good things happening in the school district. Um so I was happy to learn about that and also they gave me a tour of their school store. So I'm looking forward to going back and visiting and and purchasing some of the gear. Uh but that experience um really showed me uh the talents of our students and think about ways that we can engage them in the work the policy work of the board. I know we've had conversations in the past about how can we more um more engage the students and help them understand

105the work that the board does as well as the superintendency. So it just gave me some ideas about how to further do that and I don't want to leave Bristol Central out. um had an opportunity to visit Bristol Central yesterday. There was um a team that the state department put together to they're visiting as part of teacher appreciation. We they're visiting some of the district teachers of the year and they wanted to visit the classroom of Mrs. Sarah Lindstöm um who's a world language teacher. And then we did a tour of the school and I was able to see a video production class. They had a green screen and all the equipment and just gave me some ideas about how we could integrate that work. Oh, Leam McCabe is giving me Okay. All right. I'm

106getting to it. Give me a chance. Mrs. McCabe is in the next on my list. Um, but I wanted to recognize Bristol Central as well. Leah, you know, be I can't mention BE without BC and likewise. So, we got to make sure covering both high schools, but I want to thank uh Principal Mccay because she reached out to me about the fashion class um and the great work that they are doing. And so, as part of my visit to Babes, I said, "Well, I'd love to visit the class." And I originally intended to visit, but while Mrs. McCabe and I were in the conference room. They said they were going to come down and they did like a whole catwalk of their fashions that they are sewing and developing. Mr. Cabelis also joined the catwalk.

107So he started it off. So yeah, it was something. So just thinking about different ways we can engage students and just always really enjoy those opportunities to interact with the students. So thank you to those administrators who allow me time to do that. and want to give a quick update on school bus cameras. As you know, this board back in March um approved the bus patrol proposal. Bus patrol is a company um that would be the ones who would install the cameras on the buses. And last night, the city audience committee held a public hearing uh with school bus cameras on the agenda. There was no public comment during that public hearing, but during the audience ordinance committee meeting, I was able to present public comment in support of the proposal. Um, the committee was

108unanimously in favor of moving it to the city council and so the next city council meeting is on this upcoming Tuesday, May 12th. So, we anticipate that that will move forward in the vote. Mrs. McCabe, are you ready? >> So, I will be quick. >> So, uh, Mrs. McCabe, uh, expressed interest in presenting to the full board an update on the lottery system and some of the changes that have been implemented along with the assistance of Mr. Jeff Telky. So, I will turn it over to Mrs. McCabe. >> Thank you. Good evening again, everyone. Uh, thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight about the Bristol Arts and Innovation Magnet School Lottery process. I regularly receive questions from parents, commissioners, and community members about how the BAS lottery works, how students are selected, and how

109we ensure the process is equitable and representative of the district. I wanted to take some time this evening to walk you through the pro process so that we have a shared understanding of how the lottery operates particularly since um you all might receive questions from constituents throughout the year. Um so tonight I'll explain the policies that guide the process how students are selected how the weight list functions and share some data related to this year's incoming class. Uh the purpose of the lottery is to provide equitable access to bames for all Bristol students while ensuring that our school remains representative of the district as a whole. The process uh is centralized, transparent, and intentionally designed to eliminate bias or selective admissions practices. Um it is governed under policy 5117.1 um and was created to provide

110all Bristol students with that access. Uh there are these core policy guidelines that govern the lottery process. First is that enrollment procedures are managed centrally through the superintendent's office or the designate. Mr. Telki and I are the designates. Uh information about BAMS and the lottery is distributed regularly through multiple avenues including parent square, our website, virtual information sessions and inperson visits to schools. Importantly, uh, number three, BAS is not a selective admissions school. Students are not screened. This is by policy. Students are not screened through auditions, portfolios, test scores, interviews, discipline records, recommendation, or any other identifying criteria. Number four, the program is open to students receiving special education services, multilingual learners, and Bristol residents who may attend private school, charter school, or homeschool programs. Another important component of the policy is maintaining the integration

111of the district as a whole. That means throughout the process, we monitor demographic and geographic representation to ensure that BAS reflects the diversity of Bristol public schools. Uh just a quick update about the timeline. So, uh, it really begins in the fall, October and November. We visit every fifth grade classroom in the district to introduce students to the school and explain our arts concentration and programming. In November, we host a virtual parent information session for families interested in learning more about BAS. In December, we conduct our first lottery round for incoming sixth graders and officially open the weight list for students currently in grades 5 through 7. Also in December, we survey current sixth and seventh grade students regarding their intent to return so we can more accurately project uh project openings for the following

112school year. Then throughout the spring and summer, we continue remain uh filling seats in the uh grades 6 through 8. All right, this is the one that's tricky. Uh beginning last year, we began using historical acceptance data to determine how many students to pull in round one. One of our major goals in the lottery process is to reach full enrollment as early in the process as possible so that we can begin bringing our school community together. The earlier students know they are attending Bames, the earlier they can begin connecting to the school, selecting arts concentration, attending events, and becoming part of our community. An easy way to think about overpulling is if we have 88 total sixth grade seats available. We know from historical data that not every family offered a seat will ultimately accept

113enrollment at BAS. Some students choose other magnet schools or uh choose to remain at their home school. So if we pulled exactly 88 students, we would likely end up underenrolled uh and would need to continue doing multiple rounds of additional lottery uh throughout the spring and summer. We absolutely do not want to do that. Uh for the 2526 school year, based on historical acceptance rates, we pulled 115 students in round one to ultimately enroll 88 students. This year was a little bit different. Uh because of redistricting and the closure of the Green Hills and West Bristol Middle School programs, we anticipated that more families might choose Bames as an option. Because of that, we use a smaller overpull for this school year, upcoming school year. Uh this year, we pulled 92 students in round one

114for a target sixth grade enrollment of 88 students. Four of those 88 seats are specifically allocated for Bristol residents who are not currently enrolled in Bristol public schools. So, they're enrolled in the Catholic schools or other magnet schools in order to maintain equitable access for all Bristol residents. We do have a wait list. The weight list process is also guided carefully by policy and district representation goals. The weight list opens each December for students currently in grades 5 through 7 and families are notified through parent square and district communication channels. The first students pulled from the weight list are siblings of currently enrolled Bames Middle School students. This helps supports families with transportation and continuity. After sibling placements, additional polls are made strategically to fill demographic or geographic gaps that may remain after the initial

115lottery round. As we move later into the process, especially for grades seven and eight, placements may also be made to ba balance arts concentrations or replace students who choose to return to their home schools. So, for example, I have a seventh grader this year who is choosing to go to the new northeast next year as an eighth grader. So, we are pulling specifically from a student at Northeast who is on the wait list to attend an eighth grade for next year. I wanted to give you a little update about the numbers. Um, these are uh when we pulled back in December. These were our uh numbers for number of uh fifth grade students by school. The OOD at the bottom is students who are uh Bristol public schools students who are in either uh private

116or uh public magnet outplaces um out placements. Um and it represents the total knowing that we have 88 seats available for our sixth grade class. Those are the number of seats that that are available for each of the sending schools. You'll notice on the far right hand column uh that those are the number of sixth graders who have already accepted seats. Okay. So, um you'll notice for example, Green Hills does have more representation in this and that is primarily because we had some siblings that we also had to pull in. And then you'll also see this is our demographic uh for our current uh our current uh fifth graders going into sixth grade uh both for the district um as well as our uh incoming BAMES seth grade class. Again, our goal is to maintain

117representation that reflects the district as closely as possible. Now, when you have an 88 student uh population, um one or two students can pretty heavily um sway some of those percentages. Uh you can see similarities across areas such as free and reduced lunch eligibility, uh special education identification, multilingual learners, and race and ethnicity categories. There are naturally some variations year-to-year, but overall the incoming class remains reflective of the broader Bristol student population. This is an important component in the in maintaining the integrity of the magnet school model. Um I this is a little screenshot of the actual lottery platform created by uh our director of technology de Telky and the really cool thing about this is that it is connected directly to P school. So as power school numbers change the lottery system is automatically

118updated. The system is designed as a blind lottery. At the time of the lottery poll, there are no identifying student characteristics visible until the lottery is locked and we get it spits out our list of students. This is an important safeguard to ensure fairness and eliminate any possibility of bias during the selection process. Uh this is an example of the report generated through the lottery platform following round one. So, as you can see, we pulled 92 students. If you put on your reading glasses, you can see that in those very small numbers, they are percentage points of percentages um either way uh in there. So, the reporting allows us to analyze representation data data and enrollment trends while maintaining transparency in the process. It also helps us determine where additional weight list polls may be

119needed to maintain those demographic and geographic balances. slide. Uh, one thing that's important to note is that the BA that BAS has an extremely high retention rate. Currently, our retention rate is approximately 96%. So, very few students leave BAEs once enrolled, which means additional lottery rounds for grades seven and eight are not necessary. We pull directly from the weight list. At this point, there is only one available seventh grade seat and two available eighth grade seats uh for next year. Uh, and I also know that some of those openings may very well filled by older siblings of incoming sixth grade students. So, I thank you for your time this evening um, and the opportunity to explain the Beames lottery process and I'd be happy to answer any questions though I know that we all have

120a marathon ahead of us. >> Just one quick question. Um could you send the presentation to the commissioners because it gives a lot of explanation there? Sure. And this way when we get calls or how does this work, we can easily go here and refer to this. It's very easy to find the information. So that'd be very helpful. I think >> I would be happy to. Um you can also um I did uh film uh my parent uhformational night and so that is on the BAMES uh website under Bames lottery too. So if you have constituents you can also direct them there. >> Perfect. Thank you for the chair. >> I just want to I want to thank you because we do get a lot of questions, you know, particularly when um a child is

121really interested in going, you know, and so usually the question is why don't they ask who's interested and then pull from that um first. Um so I appreciate this and um it's very informative. So thank you. >> Thank you. Thank you, Mrs. Made. So, next, this is just a quick update reminder of the uh budget timeline. Today was the last day of session. Um, yes, applause. Um, the board of finance did add a meeting to their schedule. So, that will be Tuesday, May 12th, and uh May 18th is the vote on the joint board of finance and the city council. Please. >> So, next I'm very excited to um ask Mr. Jeff Telki to come up to the podium. You had a lot of conversations over the last year about a financial dashboard and Mr.

122Telki um has done some excellent preliminary work that we wanted to share with the board. So, Mr. Telki, please take it away. >> Absolutely. Thank you so much, Miss White. Um so uh Commissioner J Antonio thank you for um you know reminding me that we should bring this up bring updates to the board uh about this project because we have been working on this project. Um around this time last year actually uh I was brought into a meeting I believe on the city side and um they were presented with a potential dashboard idea to help address any um financial issues that may arise in the school district's budget. Uh help recognize any patterns or trends or anything like that. Be able to catch things before they become problematic. Um that company um while resource was

123uh great on on paper uh the cost unfortunately was not. I believe it was uh several hundred,000 uh that they were quoted to build this this platform uh a dashboard. Um so while in the meeting um they had turned to me and asked if there's anything that we can do on our end to be able to utilize dashboard using our existing financial data. Uh having experience in the past with similar but not financial related um dashboard building, um I had of course said yes, I' I'd love to help out any way I can. Uh being new to the district here, uh it was a chance for me to really show everybody that um you know, I really mean what I say and I want to be able to provide for the community here as a

124whole. Um, so we set out over the course of several months to build out uh and collect all the information, gain access to all the the financial data that we would need in order to start building uh an actual dashboard tool. Uh when you look at the munus information, you're all very familiar with it. Uh the numbers can uh make you go crosseyed from time to time just because there are so many of them uh split out across all the different pages. Uh what this dashboard does um is actually brings together all those numbers into a more graphical representation and summarizes things uh for the users. Uh this is an an overall overview uh page. This is an example. Uh this page is entirely customizable. Every single report on here can be customized and adjusted.

125we can add mod add charts and remove charts, add explanations, remove explanations, and really drill down all the way down into individual um areas of focus. So, this right here is just an example of the overall district overview. Um the top is what we call key performance indicators. It shows our our budget numbers, how much we've expended year-to- date, um what our remaining encumbrances are, for instance, and what our our current remaining balance available is as of the point of the upload. Uh this data is as of April 30th. So it is accurate as of uh the end of April. Um the next uh item on there to the right is the budget case. This is something I'm continuing to work on and refining for us. What this does is it actually gives us basically

126a color-coded uh button indicator if you will to show us uh if we are actually on track with um our budget spending uh at that point in time in the year. So say we are in November and we have a certain amount of money to expend. Uh it takes the fraction of time remaining in the year and according to that fraction of the budget and it sees if we're in line or or how far off of that that target that we are. So, it helps us keep track of where we are. Our goal is to be in the the yellow and green, but we know in the beginning of the year, a lot of uh purchase orders are opened, a lot of incumbrances are made. So, it tends to sway a little bit. I'm working

127on trying to refine that a little more. So, keep that in mind as we continue utilizing features like this. Um, we have other features such as uh expenses by fiscal period. We can see month-to-month uh how the spending is is trending along with there's a little line in You can see that actually is the cumulative uh spend that goes along with it. And the uh chart in the bottom right there is actually uh what I'm calling a spending velocity. It actually takes into account our historical spending habits as a district. So in there we have fiscal year 24 and fiscal year 25 and everything up until April of fiscal year 26. So um there's a little dotted line in there if you can see that. That is actually the average of our previous fiscal year

128spends. And what it does, uh, you can't really see it on this on this picture, but right after the green line ends, there's a dotted green line that actually predicts a trajectory of based on our historical spending of where our future spend will be. Now, we always have to take that with a grain of salt because, uh, you never know what could happen in the course of a school year. Um, but it is a is it a good honest faith uh, effort estimate based on what previous years histories can really show us. Um, we'll go slide. it just this next slide is more of a a breakdown to show you that we have the ability to drill down into certain areas that we might want to focus on. Um so again you have the uh

129key performance indicators up there but at the very top I know it's hard to see uh but the second item is um our what we call our character codes. And this one for instance is focused on a a topic for us that we've been discussing uh over the p over the past few months especially say it's our special education uh character code. So this is a focus on just the special education budget as a whole and really shows how the spending uh is going there. We'll be able to utilize this. I know it's a little late in this year, but we'll be able to utilize this early next year to really see and track and get a better idea of where things are going early on so we can know and prepare accordingly uh rather

130than playing catch-up towards the end of the year. Um so again, you have that spending velocity on the on the on the right there and you can see the the green bar and this time you can see the little green dotted line. It really shows uh the anticipated um trend. With all of this, it is fully interactive. So you can put your mouse over any one of these bars, any part on the lines and it will tell you what the actual numbers are. Um that's a beautiful part about this. Um so that in a nutshell is kind of what I have. This just so you know is our administrative end. Um this is meant for our internal in-house working because have a lot of granularity uh more so than the things that we might want

131to have out in the public on a regular day-to-day basis. Um we are actually working on a very similar to this version of uh public portal. Um working with uh Miss White and our central office cabinet uh over the course of this summer and into early next year. Um all all time permitting of course based on all the things we have going on this summer um to actually more more thoughtfully develop out um that public portal so that it doesn't require a login or anything like that. the the community can can just go to a website, go in and interact. Um they'll be able to see explanations for why things are the way they are. We'll be able to add um text information. We'll be able to explain certain charts and and why they are

132like that. Uh some additional graphics if we would like to really help tell the story of Bristol Public Schools and our spending habits. Um again, all this is in the name of transparency. Um, we want to make sure that we're being fully transparent and open with our community. And um, yeah, I wanted to just say that if you have any thoughts or ideas, this is a this is an open forum uh to be able to give me any suggestions at all. I'm I love taking feedback on thoughts or ideas that you may have around the financial aspect. Um, this tool is incredibly flexible for us. It will allow us to create any chart because we have developed it from the ground up. Uh this isn't just a product that we purchase from anywhere. Um this

133is costing us basically nothing to to run. We have the ability to um customize this in any way we see fit. We can add any sorts of charts, any sorts of data representations, you name it. So we're really looking for the support of our community, of our central office staff, of our of our board, um to make this the the tool that we as a whole uh really deserve it to be. Um, and if anybody has any questions, I'd be happy to take any questions. >> Uh, thank you very much for just being so responsive with this demo. Um, could see the power within it. Appreciate the work that's been done in this. I think this is a long time coming and I think it will go a long way in being able to communicate

134both within the board, with our city partners and and with the public. Um, I like the dissection of being able to select out special character views with special education demonstrated for us here. And I'm assuming this will be flexible enough to let us look at things like total transportation while we're going into a new, you know, bus contract. We can look at transportation trends and also cafeteria budget. Um, you know, potential hotspot areas where we want to watch things over the next year or two. So, that would be the only other thing. And I already see a drop down there. So those things might already be in there. You might have already anticipated that. But in case you hadn't, that was just my feedback. So thank you very much. This was very helpful and I

135appreciate you adding it in to the agenda this tonight. >> Absolutely. Thank you. >> Thank you so much everyone. >> And the last part of my update is we wanted to share information about the new CNA program. And I invite uh Mrs. Sans come to pod. You left it on for me, Jeff. Um, so just a quick overview of our new CNA program that will be starting next school year. Um, I did a full presentation to student achievement committee, but just to give the board an idea of again a kind of a way for us to use some of our funds that we have flexibly for students to provide opportunities for them. So, um, the federal grant, the Perkins grant was, um, redesigned a little bit and we're now able to use it for our

136CNA program and pay for tuition for students. This was formally a summer program um, and then when ESRE funds went away, the program went away. So, I'm able to bring it back. Um, and this will actually double the number of students that we're able to service. So, we'll be able to have 40 students go through the program. It's during the school day. Um, they'll be able to take the Connecticut CNA lensure exam. It's all paid for. Their uniforms are paid for. Their textbooks are paid for. Um, and it's a great opportunity for students to leave high school with a license that they can use immediately. It's a high wage, high demand um, license. So, um it's a great opportunity for our students and um a great way to have found some sustainable funding and I

137don't foresee any reason that this program wouldn't be able to continue in the future. So, if there's any questions, we tried to keep it quick. >> I would just say really cool. That's really great and um and really nice that Bristol can offer that to um our students and um yeah that's really yes I was definitely glad to find a way to bring it back. It was in demand. I got a lot of phone calls, emails, is it coming back this summer? Um and so it took a a year to do some research but I was able to find a solution >> through the chair. We listened to her presentation at the student achievement um meeting and it it's really a a win-win situation in regards to not costing us anything. Thank you for the

138budget reprieve there. And um just having something for people to get ready to go into the workforce immediately. Thank you. >> Thank you so much. >> Thank you, Laura. That concludes my report. Thank you. >> Next item on the agenda is the consent agenda. Can I have a motion to approve the consent agenda which will include items 81A through 81G? >> Second. >> Motion's been made and seconded. All in fa any discussion? All in favor? I >> I opposed. Motion passes unanimously. >> You're the chair. >> Yes. >> Um I would like to provide an opportunity for Mrs. Julia Darcy. Congratulations. Your appointment, Mr. Principal West, >> you come to the podium if you'd like to say a few words. >> Thank you for being so patient, too. I see you there with your kids.

139>> Thank you for being patient with my three little chairs. this evening. Um, good evening members of the board of education, Superintendent White, Deputy Superintendent Hawk, colleagues, families, and community members. I'm deeply, deeply grateful for the trust that you have placed in me by appointing me as assistant principal of West Bristol. This position has been on the forefront of my mind since I began my 092 administration program and standing here today is a very full circle moment for me. Um, West Bristol holds a special place in my heart. My dad, Michael Adet, opened the school and shortly after appointed Dr. Levasser as his assistant principal. So to now have the opportunity to work and learn alongside Dr. Basser and serve this incredible community is humble and meaningful in ways that words can hardly capture. Um,

140education has always been an act of service for me. From my early years teaching in the Bronx to nearly two decades serving students and families in Bristol. My mission has remained the same, to make every school day a place where students feel safe, loved, seen, heard, and valued. I believe deeply that when students know they are cared for, they rise to high expectations academically and personally. I've worn many hats in this community from being a teacher and I've had some of your students. Uh some of the students who were here earlier were mine and it was great to give them a hug and congratulate them. Um I've been a soccer coach, a PTO vice president, a Girl Scout troop leader and more. But I'm most proud to have the opportunity to serve families and students

141as assistant principal. I recognize there are big shoes to fill and I do not take that lightly. I promise to work diligently every single day to honor the legacy of the school, support our staff, partner with families, and ensure that West Bristol continues to be the best of Bristol. Thank you for this opportunity. I'm excited, appreciative, and ready to serve. Thank you. >> Next item on the agenda is public comment. >> Do we have any public comment? >> I do. So earlier this evening, I did provide you a copy of an email that was sent. That email was sent um after the deadline of the April meeting. Um and first I would like to invite Mayor and Zapo Zasu up for public comment. Good evening. Um, I just wanted to echo the chairwoman's comments from

142earlier and I won't be long, but this has been a difficult year with budget uncertainty and some of the foundational issues that we're facing and some of the cleanup issues that we're dealing with as well. But I do want to just say that, you know, I left uh our first inaugural citizens academy that was happening up at the water filtration plant to come here and it renewed my sense of knowing that we have really good people in this community who care about government, who care about education, who care about public services and want to know more about their community. And they were asking a lot of good questions. But it also reminded me based on the demographic that was there that we are a costburdened community and you see that yourselves in your free and

143reduced lunch numbers as well as the need within the schools. So balancing the budget needs against the needs of the education was extremely difficult for just about everybody. And I just want to reiterate that if we had had money we would have happily given it. But we don't. The reserves have been pulled down. we don't have as much surplus funds that we can use to seed future years. So, the city too had their back against the wall with a lot of budget decisions that we had to make. So, tonight I just wanted to highlight that I'm happy where we are right now. I'm happy that Governor Lamont saw through that the ECS funding that has to come through to help support what we pay for education needed an increase. uh we did receive an additional

1445.5 million and so that will go um directly to help stabilize and reduce the cost that we've incurred over that which means that the vast majority of residents will see a lower tax rate than what had been originally proposed. But more importantly, I think it's important to note as the chairwoman did that this process has yielded a lot of great conversations. So I talked to Superintendent White probably way more than she wants to talk to me. Um, we have a great relationship. Although I almost did throw her out of my car yesterday. That was a moment. Um, I gotta hear about that. Heard of anyone throwing Iris out of uh, >> God. Um, we share a lot of priorities. We share a lot of resources. And I think sometimes people forget that we as the

145city and the board of education are not two separate entities, but we share resources with separate missions. Uh we share a lot of uh as you saw tonight real estate committees involved with schools. We share facilities issues. Uh we rely upon Peter Fusco a lot and likewise we have sent people over onto the board of ed side when there's been issues. Um obviously technology you saw the dashboard. We've had great meetings about that and we rely on Mr. Tulki to come over and help us with IT stuff and he knows that he can call our IT department whenever he needs to as well. Um, we've integrated services with the parks and recck department with board of ed to uh eliminate some of your costs and maintain fields to have better access for everybody in the

146community that might need them. Obviously, finance and bonding. I was just looking at our last five years of bonding dominated by school projects and needs. Uh, the energy commission you saw tonight very concerned and um hoping to save you money in the future as well. And it's those types of creative conversations that I think are going to make the path forward in future years a lot easier than this one has been and what pastures has been. But without acrimony and without that type of constant tension, I think it's important to know that for many years we've shared resources including the school resource officers, dental hygienists, nurses that are paid off out the city side uh inclusively. Um, but we've also worked for, you know, so many other shared assets like the Rockwell Theater. Um, we

147use full fields, you use city fields for events, and we have community events all over. And then you use Muzzy and you use the indoor pool. So, I just think it's important to reflect as we come to the end of what has been a difficult budget process that when government is honest and purposeful and is willing to have hard conversations and make hard decisions that it does come out with a product that benefits the community as a whole. So, I look forward to more conversations as we march toward May 18th. Um, I do want to just let all of you know that we are not having a special board of finance meeting on Tuesday because things have kind of settled out and any conversations that we need or any adjustments that we need can happen

148on May 18th. Thank you. >> Thank you. Do we have any other public comment? >> I have Grace Regali. Hi, Grace. >> Hi. Hi. My name is Greece. I've lived I live at 41 Leon Road. I've been playing recreational sports since I was four years old. Sports have has helped me to have good friends spend time outside, not on my not on my phone, and have given me determination to learn new things and work as a team. Playing playing in school made me try new new sports like soccer and basketball. Even though I didn't make the the basketball team, the coach found a way to include me. So, I kept I kept the book. This isn't just about me. This is about all kids that might not be able to afford playing for the town

149leagues. Some kids don't have a lot of friends. Joining a school team makes them feel welcome, helps them make friends. If we didn't have school and middle school sports, some kids would get wouldn't get exercise. They would spend all their time on their phone and and could feel left out because parents can't afford it. I know this year sports are safe, but I still wanted to speak because this should never be considered because it harms the kids. Kids directly won't kids won't notice that the school is short or teacher, janitor, or the bus. is crowded is crowded because there isn't enough money, but there they will notice there they that they don't get to play a sport that they love. >> Thank you so much. I never thought about it that way, but I do

150agree. We should never think about it again. >> The chair, I just want to say that I'm grateful that we made the decision to keep middle school sports because as I told Mr. Reynolds, you'd have a Tedesco in here who found out from me there may be no middle school sports and he was a little upset. So, he was going to go right to Mr. Reynolds and try to fix this. I'm not sure how, but thank God for sparing me that speech in front of everybody. So, I appreciate it. And all three of my older grandsons have done middle school sports and they're all different and they all benefited tremendously. And it truly would be an egregious thing if we really had to cancel. >> I agree. >> So, thank you. >> And the final

151public comment is from Kristen Bevans. >> Hi, good evening. Thank you. My name is Kristen Bevven, 41 Leon Road, and I wanted to come to speak tonight. It's important to me my child knows they don't ever have to stand alone. Congratulations. We saved sports for the next school year. I'm personally offended and ashamed that this was even a topic. I understand balancing a budget is difficult. However, to threaten to take away something that truly affects our children is ridiculous. Then to come back to look like a hero we saved the day sports can stay one more year. We worked so hard to make it happen. We saw how upset parents were. And to keep us from showing up, we changed our minds. My mind doesn't change. I showed up today regardless. I even showed up

152when we took away middle school band. These are things that directly affect our children. Even having this as an option to me is horrifying. We talk about children first. Let me just share a little bit about what middle school sports did for one of my children. I get emotional. I talk with my kids. Sorry, guys. Uh my middle school daughter, she's a senior this year. She struggled. She was vaping and smoking pot starting in middle school. The one thing I never took away was sports. Sports is where I saw the girl she could be. She spent her life grounded. No phone from 8th grade to 10th grade. No sleepovers, no nothing. On on her middle school team, I saw the leader that she was capable of being. She's been playing softball since she was 8

153years old. I watched her teach these kids on her middle school team how to swing a bat, how to catch a ball, because half the kids had never played before, taking them under her wing, girls she would have never spoken to. She developed this bond with them. Not all kids can afford to play. They're not good enough to make a team outside of school. And this is where they learn a team is no matter what, we stand together. Making them better makes you better. These kids get to spend more time outside of school at school at school, not on their phones, staying out of trouble. This is the one thing on your budget that directly affects our children. So again, thanks for saving. But I hope no matter what budget issues you find, the cuts

154somewhere else. Kids physical and mental well-being shouldn't be affected by the budget decisions that we make. And also like just for my own personal I didn't put this in my mind because I don't think about it at the time. I've coached softball since my daughter my middle daughter was eight years old. This is nine years. And I watch these kids and some of these kids are nonathletic, not an athletic bone in their body, but they've got the will and the drive to want to learn and to want to get better. And I watch them grow to love a sport, to have that determination. And they don't get that anywhere else. They don't get it anywhere else. So to take that away, for it to even be a consideration is just shameful because it's really just

155all about the kids. Thank you. >> Thank you. Any other public comment? >> No further public comment. >> Okay. So the next item on the agenda is deliberated items district leadership team reports. First we have Dr. Amy Martino. Good evening. First we'll start with the enrollment uh information. As of April 1st, 2026, 1,821 of our 7,939 enrolled students are identified as requiring special education. This reflects 22.94% of the total BPS student population. As of April 1st, 126 students with disabilities attend out of district private special education programs. There were 91 students requiring special education at other public out of district schools that include management schools. During the month of March 2026, 36% or seven of the 34 newly stu registered students were identified as requiring special education at the time of enrollment. None of our

156newly registered students required these services in an out of district placement. And during the month of March, there were 49 211 and eight 911. There any questions about the enrollment numbers before I move to the budgets? So, I do have to give a shout out to Mr. Telki. This is the last time that you will see uh Amy Martino's version of this. I can tell you that he was excitedly calling me down to his office yesterday to show me what could be done. And I had to say, "Listen, I can tell you all about law and I can tell you all about procedures. Technology is not my thing." And he taught me in 10 minutes, gave me a login and he showed me how to do it. Um, and we were able to create May's

157report um, in about two minutes. Um, so I thank him very much for his work. But for April, um, as of April 1st, 2026, all of the budget lines are trending as we would expect with the exception of the public place tuition and the professional service lines. Those are trending higher this month than we would expect. As I mentioned last month, the state place tuition within our public place tuition is three times higher than what was budgeted for. It's quite a large increase this this figure. Um, we do still anticipate receiving one additional uh reimbursement coming in. However, we do still intend to be over budget at this time. Are there any questions about our major budget lines in special education? Thank you. Next, we have redistricting update. Deputy Superintendent Hawk. >> Thank you so

158much. Good evening, everyone. I'd like to take a few minutes to provide an update on our district, our district's redistricting efforts as we prepare for the implementation of the 2026 27 school year. As a reminder, this work is centered around two primary goals. first to create a more balanced and efficient use of our facilities and second to align our middle school boundaries with our high school boundaries. This will allow students to remain with their peers as they transition from middle school to high school. We've made significant progress over the past several months. Families now have access to an interactive boundary map on the district website, allowing them to clearly identify where their child is going to be assigned to school. We have also begun direct communication with families to ensure that they understand these changes

159mean for their children. In addition, we've engaged students directly through the deputy superintendent student redistricting cabinet. This group has provided valuable insight, including maintaining friendships, their concerns, building a sense of belonging in their new schools, and creating a welcoming transition into their schools. Their feedback is helping shape the transition activities and school culture planning. From an operational standpoint, we are actively planning for a smooth transition this summer. Professional movers will be supporting the relocation process in July and the schools have already begun preparing materials and organizing classrooms. We are also working closely with transportation to ensure efficient routing and consistency for families. I'd like to take a moment to especially thank Colin Urace and Tara Landon for all of their help. Looking ahead, we're planning a district-wide open houses in August so that students and

160families can visit their new schools, meet staff, and become familiar with the buildings prior to the first day of school. We believe this will be a crucial step in ensuring a positive and confident start of the year. We'll continue to communicate regularly with staff and families as additional details such as teacher assignments and schedules become finalized. This work represents a significant transition for our district, but also presents an important opportunity to strengthen our school community and to better support our students in the long term. Thank you so much. >> Thank you. Next we have Joe Gerowski talking about the April 1 enrollment count for the 2526 school year. >> Good evening. Um so I'm going to go through the um April 1st um enrollment count for you all. As I had mentioned earlier in the

161fall um the enrollment reports are as follows. You receive the general October 1 numbers. received the January numbers and then we have um the April numbers. The report that I'm going to go through tonight is going to look and compare the October numbers to the numbers we have right now so that the board can see a broader trend across the school year. What I appreciate about this report is that even though I am focusing on um April and we do skip some months in between the reports, you can follow the individual monthby-month reports for your knowledge to see those detailed trends. So, I'm going to start with our uh prek at Edgewood. So, since um the start of the school year, Edgewood prek is up 29 students. As I go through the various sections, I

162will generally comment if we are seeing um growth, if there's stability or decline within the various sections. So, looking at our prek, we are seeing growth since the start of the school year. Hubble Elementary is down eight students um from the October 1st enrollment. Overall, stable since January. Green Hills is up three students stable. Ivy Drive is down 15 students since October, but stable since January. Mountain View is down seven students in o since October, but stable since January. Southside is down four students since October. However, stable. Stafford is down two students, stable. West Bristol is up six students since October. Um, I do want to note that West Bristol did peak in January. There was a little bubble that we had experienced. Um, the enrollment has come back down a little bit into an

163average. Um, but overall stable. Elementary enrollment in some is down 14 students since October 1st. Middle school enrollment, Bames is down three students to 258. Chippens is down 8 to 616 students. Green Hills is up, and this is in the um middle school component, four students to 291. Northeast is up three students to 343. West Bristol, the middle school component is up five students, 263. So overall, middle school enrollment is stable. There's an increase of one student. High school enrollment, Bristol Central High School is down 20 students from October 1st. Uh total enrollment, current total enrollment is 1,145 students. Bristol Eastern High School is down 21 students from October 1st uh for a total of 1,027 students. BPA is up five students to a total of 47. So overall, the high school enrollment is down

16436 students um since October 1st. Overall, if you're looking at the district, we're down 10 students from October 1st. Out of our roughly 7,500 students, 10% is a very small percentage. Um, I would say we're very stable right now. >> 10 students or 10%? >> 10 students. Sorry, I said 10%. 10 students. >> Um, I don't know if you would know this. I'm just curious when you say 36 students across both high schools since October. Historically, do we is that a typical dropout rate or is that expulsion? I mean, how do how are those numbers kind of do we know anything? >> Yeah. So, I can't speak to expulsions. I can get that data for you. Um, what I can say is that typically what we have seen year-over-year is that in the fall we

165have a higher number. It does taper off. you'll see our during the summer enrollment would tick back up and and we do see that that trend that that's pretty typical. I'm not seeing any major swings that are concerning to me throughout the the school year. And and if you look at, you know, 36 students between two high schools that are that large, you don't really notice that within class sections, >> right? You don't notice in class sections. I was just wondering if there were any trends if it was like seniors or I don't I don't know >> nothing notable but >> no it could be people moving out of district >> that >> more than dropout >> we do so I at my office and I could even share this with with you all um

166we have a a sheet um that the registar keeps track of it's students that are moving in and withdraws and what what this information here doesn't capture is the volume of people that are moving moving in and out during the school year. It's actually much more than you would probably realize. It's probably almost a couple of hundred that come in and out of our community um throughout the school year. So, >> so this is more because of mobility than dropout rates. >> I would say mobility. >> Okay. >> For various reasons, >> right? >> Thank you. Any other questions? >> Thank you. All right, thank you. >> Um, next we have curriculum revision. The first is Lashwood English one-3 curriculum revision. >> Good evening, commissioners. Um so I'm excited to present to you today the

167revisions to our curriculum for Englishes English one two and three. So that's freshman, sophomore and junior English at the high schools. Uh the revisions the courses were last revised in 2013. Um and these revisions were presented to the student achievement committee in April. uh we highlighted the revision process was actually began um alongside middle school ELA in 2019 when a committee of high school and middle school teachers met to identify goals for revisions to our ELA curriculum at large and you can see some of those on the screen now. So we're we're really thinking about how to build powerful knowledge throughout and between grades. That's a vertical and a horizontal alignment. We talked about that quite a bit as student achievement committee. Uh we're looking to balance the diversity of perspectives, experiences, and voices in

168the text that students read. We're looking to ensure students study increasingly challenging grade level texts, balance shared expectations of teacher autonomy and students needs, and provide more concrete opportunities for teacher collaboration. So at SAP, we reviewed um these goals. We re reviewed vertical and horizontal alignment between grades, changes to essential questions, enduring understandings, and learning targets. Each course follows a similar structure, including three shared units focused on a single anchor text, all of which are united by a common theme across the grade level. The fourth unit is a capstone unit where students apply what they've learned over the course of the year to new content, new historical contexts, or new texts. So, English one, this is freshman English. Um, in English one, students explore human agency by studying characters navigating powerful external forces, including societal

169constraints, family obligations, and oppressive political regimes. Students build their literary knowledge by reading a diverse range of texts, including contemporary fiction, classic drama, and historical fiction, which provide rich opportunities to analyze authorial choices, native structures, and subjective perspectives. You can see the four units there um in order including the capsule unit at the end that I just mentioned and how um each of these steps address the theme of uh individual agency. Um I also student committee spoke about how really the entire English department over uh the last many years has been working on these revisions. So the teachers that are named here at the bottom of each course are those that really just worked on finalizing the documents this year. But really it's been the whole department working for many years to make these visions

170possible. So thanks to K Callahan and in whipscom chest lung with Benis and Paul Dowski two. This is sophomore English students pivot from the study of individual agency to a critical examination of power in society. Focusing on the external forces and systematic structures that shape the boundaries of human choice by reading a diverse range of speculative and natural texts, students analyze how authors use characters as vehicles for social commentary. And again, thanks to Monica Hayes, Adam Platt, Jen Plord, Sarah Benham, Susie Kakuka, and Joano for all their work on that book form. And then finally, English three. This is junior English. In English 3, students complete a year-long examination of American ideals. By reading foundational works of American literature, students evaluate how rugged individualism, materialism, and self-determination both empower and constrain the American character. Students

171investigate varied contexts ranging from transcendentalist wilderness to the 20s and the Harlem Renaissance as they trace characters uh in pursuit of their ideals in the American dream. And a huge shout out of Matt Bisnol, Jenny Brady, Rebecca Matawi, and Shelley Sarah for their work on this curriculum. So, I know it's late. I'm happy to answer any questions that anyone may have about this process or the curriculum. Otherwise, I would be happy to accept a motion to um approve the revisions to English one, two, and three. >> Make a motion to approve um English one, two, and three curriculum as presented. Second >> motion made and second. Any discussion? >> I just wanted to say that during the student achievement committee meeting, we were given a lot more information and the work that all the curriculum

172reviewers have done over many years was definitely shown and the amazing books, the thought provoking questions, the connections to real life. It was impressive. So I just wanted to say that. Thank you. >> The chair. >> Yes. So, um I was doing a quick search on um all these books. I have kids in all different grades in our district, right? And it seems like we have a theme and they're always presented with traumatic books. Nothing that they read is for um joy. And we have this mental health crisis going on um with our youth. And so looking at the ninth grade, it's uh in the time of butterflies, it's assassination, domestic violence, torture, um curious incident with a dog, a dog's murdered with a pitchfork, suicide. Um I just I would hope that we could

173start including books that are less violent and traumatic um to our students to kind of maybe even forment more of a love of reading. This is my um feedback on it, but my child will be reading I guess all of these books next. >> Any other discussion with the chair? >> Yes. Um and I acknowledge what uh Commissioner Van Gorder is saying and um I think you know it's probably a difficult decision to decide which books to do. Um but having read many of these um they are they are thoughtprovoking and deep and we do want to develop a love of literature and um these aren't necessarily books that will turn people off to reading and I think elementary school we do do a lot of reading for pleasure that brings joy and and maybe

174it's maybe it's a lack of that kind of literature that's available that's deep enough to create a curriculum from. So, you know, I acknowledge that as a parent sometimes it's tough when you're when you're seeing all these things that are in um that they're reading about and it's already a tough world. But I think that hopefully people find that their um their students can be critical thinkers that shape them for um society. And um many of these books don't they don't all dwell on a particular topic. um it may be a a an important part of what the what the storyline is or the you know the context but um I'm just hopeful that people will see a little bit of a broader um the broader aspect of it but I appreciate your concern. >>

175My 11-year-old just read a book um last year where he had to um envision molestation didn't go into detail. So, and you know, even in elementary school, there was some very sad topics. So, I just hope that we can maybe in the future. >> Well, every book that my son read where a dog died was emotional. You know, I'm just thinking no. And you know, there are things that obviously deep >> immigration, people being family members thrown from a boat. >> Well, I mean, in the time of the butterflies is, you know, the trio regime in the Dominican Republic, it is history. And I do think it is important to understand especially with fascist regimes like you need to understand what happened in the past to kind of help prevent things like that in the

176future. So I do think it's valuable for our students to um examine that and have these thoughtprovoking assignments um just to kind of help create a better path for the future. for the chair. Question. Um I know for some middle school text there have been options to for parents to opt their child out or have alternative assignments. Has that been considered? I know the topics can be quite heavy. Um I don't know if that has been considered at the high school level. So I think we would roughly follow the same process is we want to we want families to know what their children are reading which is part of putting in a curriculum and making sure that that's a publicly available document that we're transparent about. Then when those issues do arise, it kind of

177starts with the teacher to understand what the concerns are and see how those can be addressed. Then from there when when and if there's alternative assignments that are moving all those out. And I also want to note how when there are heavy topics that are being um that are part of the text that your office sends out notice to parents kind of giving information or or sometimes the teachers will do that um advising parents of some of the heavy topics so that parents can have conversations with their kids or be aware. Is that done at the high school level as well? So, at the middle school level, we send out a trimester newsletter that includes uh updates on what's happening in the curriculum currently and what's coming up in the future. Those trimester newsletters are

178pretty hard to do at the high school because it's such a wide range of courses, electives that students are taking. So, it's hard to say any given ninth or 10th grader is taking any time. So, we can't the same way. At the middle school, we do also send home parent um the teachers send home letters to families when there's books coming up from curriculum that be sensitive. Um and we can absolutely continue that back there at the high school level as well. Um this differences obviously age maturity between those two um student populations um and what where they're going to be next and what they're getting ready for. But um absolutely want to be in communication standards about what's going on in class. >> I love that idea. As a parent, I think I would

179appreciate it. I have ones going into freshman year, so I feel like I would appreciate that and um helps with that parent engagement as well. Thank you so much. Um any other discussion? Okay. All in favor? >> I I >> opposed. No. >> Motion passes. Next item on the agenda, we have Sarah Hail, 9inth grade health curriculum revision. >> Good evening everybody. Here we go. Um, I appreciate all the comments about reading glasses tonight because as they were speaking in the beginning of the meeting, I checked my head and mine are not on my head either. So, I'm thankful for the large screen. So, if I'm facing this way, you know why. Um, >> you're 1.5. I have them. >> Oh, I might. I'm okay for now, but I might >> 2.5. I got You

180got 2.5. There it goes. >> Amazing. We should have taken a timeout before. >> Anyway, our ninth grade health curriculum revision, the last time it was revised was 2020. Um, the main focus of this revision was to vertically align nth grade health with uh middle school wellness. They made the transition to skills-based health last year. Um, and now we're looking to making that transition to ninth grade health to make it um, the scaffolding and the vertically alignment go smoother for the students as they move up. Um, the course is designed to equip students with essential knowledge and practical skills to make informed decisions about their health and well-being. Throughout the program, students will engage in interactive lessons and hands-on activities that promote physical, mental, emotional, and social health. The seven skills-based health units are designed

181to equip students with practical skills that support their ability to make informed and responsible decisions related to their health. These units go beyond just teaching health content and focus on building critical thinking and actionoriented abilities that students can apply in various life situations. Seven skills are commonly found in compare comprehensive health education programs and are often included in frameworks like the Connecticut Health and Balance to Living Curricula. Got it this time at student achievement. It was a lot of words, but we got it this time. Uh the seven skills that we concentrate on are analyzing influences, accessing valid resources, interpersonal communication, decision-m, goal setting, self-management, and advocacy. Just a quick shout out and a special shout out to the entire health department, high school department um both at Bristol Central and Bristol Eastern for their

182work in creating this uh revision. I'm happy to take any questions. Make a motion. I make a motion to approve the 9th grade health curriculum revision as presented. Second. Motion's been made and seconded. Any discussion? All in favor? >> I opposed. Motion passes. Thank you. >> Next, we have Sarah Hail again with PE elective credit for summer new course. >> Hey, so this program was this elective was piloted last summer. Um the healthy living lab was the name of our course is an emerging engaging hybrid summer course designed to promote physical wellness and personal health for their sleep. Students will participate in structured in-person physical activities twice a week complemented by two online sessions. This course emphasizes the connection between physical activity and over overall well-being encouraging students to explore fitness track personal progress and

183build lifelong happy healthy habits. online components may include guided workouts, wellness journaling, and interactive learning activities. Um, one thing to un uh to kind of reiterate on this, this is an elective course. It's not made to replace the one credit of uh physical education that's posed towards our graduation requirement. So this is an elective credit that students can choose to take towards you know if they need credits to graduate but it does not replace the one credit of graduation or physical education requirements. They emphasize goal setting and personal improvement and it creates a hybrid model that includes both in school and at home portions of the sports. Our units if you you may notice are a little non-traditional the names of them. the best way to organize our course we decided was to kind of

184highlight the places that we may be in. So our units are in the gym, in the weight room, in the cardio room, on the track, and at home. We um each day we're not sure what area that we have um ability to use. So all the units were kind of created in those spaces that we will have, not knowing each day what we will have available to us. So that's why the units are not content specific. They're more physical. They're more space oriented. Just a side note on that, I'd like to uh thank Randall Swinford for his hard work um and dedication to creating this course. >> The chair, I have one question and one comment and I'll keep it quick. Um how it was piloted last summer. Was it ever offered before? >> Yes.

185So previous it previously and years before it was offered as credit recovery for PE but once that uh graduation requirement got reduced from two credits to one credit um it became an elective offering. >> What was the enrollment in the pilot last summer? >> 18 students. >> Okay. So I'm going to just summarize my feedback because I spent a lot of time talking to Carly about my questions. Um and she answered me thoroughly. So I really appreciate that. Um, I have no issue with the curriculum itself. So, I will be supporting the curriculum. Um, because that's what we're going to do is you wrote a curriculum. We agree with it. I'll probably support it. My comments though is that um we don't offer typically summer electives. We offer credit recovery and CTE. So, this would

186be introducing and promising something relatively new. It does have a cost related to it. It's a small cost, but when we're in the middle of budgets, not only finalizing them for this year, but also trying to figure out what the impacts are going to be next year, because we won't have an extra 5.5 million next year. Um, I think everything counts. And so, what I would say is that I support the curriculum, but I my feedback would be that it um not be offered this year or next year until we can get the budget for it. It's just my comments about it. I think we're setting it up where we're introducing an elective in a summer. We don't There's a ton of other electives we don't offer and it's not credit recovery. >> We're not

187voting. >> It's not required. So, it's just my feedback. Um >> Okay. But I think we're just voting on the curriculum. We're not voting on whether it's being offered. >> We don't vote on offering anyways. That's determined by the the Office of Teaching and Learning. >> Okay. But she's not deciding if it's being >> right. So I'm providing my feedback about what I feel about introducing something that we might not be able to support. So it's my feedback after asking all the questions and the cost related to it and that there is an equity me lot of other elective programming that we offer in the summer. So, I don't know why we >> Well, no, we can have a conversation where we can we can put something on an agenda to talk about what's offered

188in the summer if you'd want, but I just don't want it to be misdirected at people who are writing curriculum. That's all I'm saying. So, I mean, >> that wasn't my agenda. >> Okay. Um, and the 5 million when you say it's not coming again, it's ECS money. So, once they increase it, it stays. Just want to make that clear. Like, it's not a one-time shot. we've received that much for Bristol and we're supposed to receive more on a a schedule over the next couple of years. I don't know if next year we'll get more than what we got this year, but it doesn't go backwards. So, I just want to make that clear. But if we have no other comments, uh, all in favor? I I >> opposed. Motion passes. Thank you, Sarah. >>

189Thank you. Next we have Laura Lanza, chemistry ACA ACC curriculum revision. All right. Um so this curriculum was last revised in 2019. The goals of this curriculum um revision were to really highlight the differences between the academic and the accelerated level of the course. Um, previously we would have two curriculum documents, one for each course. Um, and it could be sometimes difficult for teachers to differentiate when they had students in front of them in academic or accelerated to know what was in the other course and what they could offer them. So the team decided to make one curriculum document and to really outline the differences between the two levels so that at times um you could take the learning from academic and bring it to accelerated or vice versa depending on the needs of the

190students in front of you. Um they also redefined some of the essential questions to make them more pertinent to the real world. Um the team was really collaborative amongst both high schools and so they wanted to make sure they had determined which labs would be core assured learning experiences. So there's hands-on labs, there's fat labs which are online simulations as well as gizmos. They also organized a shared drive um to share some resources amongst themselves so that they're not all starting from scratch and that anybody either new coming in um or even just somebody that's in Bristol but switching over to a chemistry um teaching load would know kind of where to start. Um we looked at universal design for learning techniques as well as our learning targets for multilingual students. Um and you have

191the course description there. um looking at atomic structure and quantitative relationships between atoms and molecules and then it goes into some of that real world phenomena. So they actually study the radium girls um which is a local group from um the 1910s of women workers who worked in a watch factory um and they were instructed to um lick their paint brushes to get them nice and pointy before painting their watch dials. And this has been in the curriculum, but it was just a little bit more sol solidified that everybody was going to be talking about this with their students. Um, and because of the radioactive dye in the paint, they all um came down with fatal radiation poisoning. And so that's one of the chemical reactions that the students study. Um, but then they also

192study things like airbags and how chemical reactions can be used for good with saving lives in airbags. Um, and environmental phenomena as well. Um, so I would like to thank the team at both high schools for their work on this. Eric Coffman's actually sitting in the audience, so thank you, Eric. Um, we also have Ethan Brown, Cat Ward, Liz Porter, Katie Mercier, Olivia Stanley, and Orlando Valley. We'll take any questions or a motion. I'll make a motion to approve the chemistry ACA HC curriculum revision. >> I'll second the motion. Motion's been made and seconded. Any discussion? Hearing none. All in favor? I >> I motion passes. >> Thank you. >> Through the chair. >> Yes. >> If I may, I'd like to make a motion to move the six policies and policy revision to the

193next board of education meeting as we're approaching 10 o'clock this evening in this meeting and some of us have been in a meeting since 6. Well, okay. We have to go into discussion. I just have to ask if any of these are legally man. Yeah. Are they legally mandated? >> Yes. >> Can I ask what the do what the deadline was for them? >> Um Okay. One was 2025. Um, I believe it was school uh policy 12.1 to 12.3 were all mandated as of July 2025. >> Is there any of these policies on this list that anyone has concerns with? Because I think we can run through them. They've already been through subcommittee. We've given copies out to everyone. So unless there's one that somebody really has an issue with, I think we can run

194through them quickly and pass them. So we're in compliance. >> Um I understand that motivation. It is 10 and um I don't think we should breeze through policy. I just >> Well, we're not breezing through them. We went through them in subcommittee and >> Right. Yeah. >> So unless there's someone uncomfortable is what I'm asking. >> So I have a motion on the floor. In the interest of time, it was seconded and we're having discussion. I appreciate that. Um I if we were out of compliance for the last year, I didn't understand why a month and it's out of compliance with library material. I just don't see why we have to do this tonight. Their staff still here at 10 o'clock at night. They have class tomorrow. Well, this isn't a mandatory meeting. I mean,

195people don't have to stay. >> Okay, there's a motion and seconded. Can we vote? Any other discussion? >> Is it any Are these policies anything that we could consider um if they're super timesensitive in a special meeting? I just want to put all our options on the floor before we vote. I am cutting my leison on report very short. >> Well, we also have two trips to discuss and those I'm sure are timesensitive because they have to get them and go. So >> yeah. So that's why I just isolated policy. We need to get to the other two items in new business and exploring 10. >> I'm pretty confident that we have gone through these policies pretty thoroughly in policy committee and I think that we should move forward. If something becomes a lengthy conversation,

196we can table it and we'll have to schedule a special meeting because they are timesensitive. But as of right now, my point is to move forward. Okay. Uh we'll do a roll call vote. Who would like to table the policy revisions to another board meeting? Barbara table. I vote yes. Table. Don't table. Okay. Maria, vote. >> Uh, I I say don't table. You say what? I say don't table. I'm a no. Yes. Yes. Yes. >> I'm a no. I just want to get done. I don't know what that is. It's tabled. It's tabled. Okay, it's tabled. Next item. I am so sorry for those that have stayed to present on this. That is hard that they moved this whole time. Sorry about that. I apologize for that. I know. Okay, we already did new business.

197131 132. So now we're on uh 133 Bristol Eastern 2027 trip to Spain. Let's go, Lushik. We're still going to be in a good mood. Come on. >> So I think we have we have two trips. I think we can keep the keep both of these pretty quick. We are lucky enough in Bristol to have teachers and even assistant principles um who are willing to not only stay until 10 o'clock at a board of ed meeting but do all the work to fundraising plan for trips uh to provide students the opportunity to go abroad. The first of which being a trip to Spain um being organized by Justin McDermott at Bristol Eastern. I will let him say any other words that he wants to say about the value of that trip. We've talked many times

198about the value of travel abroad. You heard about it from my Gina Galla students today. So, um, they're asking for permission to begin the process of planning that trip fundraising and doing more logistics. Justin, I don't know if there's anything else you want to say, but >> hi everybody. Um, I've just seen great value in seeing kids being able to travel to Spanish speaking countries. Specifically, um, I took took a trip with students to Costa Rica in 2023. had a lot of students that were very close to earning the SEL by literacy and that was a push that got them the confidence to be able to be a little better at Spanish. Um took students to Costa Rica in 2023, took students to Mexico in 2025. Um and then I was able to go as

199a chaperon for the French trips to Quebec in 2024 and 2025. And there's there's not really any way you can replace the experience of what Gina's students were saying earlier about Italy of being in another place using another language, experience another culture than actually going there and trying it out. So, um, that's that's why I see the importance of it and want to keep these trips going. >> I always ask the same question every time you all present this. When can we go? When is their board member exchange program or whatever >> or board member chaperone? >> Yeah, >> I want to see what the boards in Italy do. >> We could look into that. Okay. So, we are always excited for these opportunities and we know the value and we see the kids come

200and speak. So, um I know it's late. So, anybody want to make a motion? >> I'll make a motion um to approve the Bristol Eastern 2027 trip to Spain. >> Second. Motion's been made and seconded. All in favor? >> I I opposed. Motion passes. Good for you. Okay. Next one we have Bristol Central Exchange, Bano, Italy. >> And the next is exactly that, the exchange, which is a really unique opportunity that you heard about earlier today from our students. Uh this is a chance to both host students here and then go see them um and file Italy. That would be hosting in the fall of 2027 and travel to Italy in the spring of 2028. Again, this is just permission to begin the process of planning, logistics, the fundraising, and all of that. I'll turn

201it over to Genie. Say a lot more. I will not say a lot more. Um um just want to highlight the fact that we are requesting permission to both travel and post because it is a full exchange program. Um before co we had done some research and Bristol is one of the only districts in the state of Connecticut that offers both an exchange and a study abroad program. So, um, just want to highlight and thank you guys for continuing to support, um, and hopefully remind you that this is keeping Bristol in on the on the map in a really positive way. Um, happy to answer any questions. Um, my my proposal has been sent to all of you, but um, I think the kids words kind of speak volumes and we are really, really lucky

202to travel. It's an even exceptional community and it is a privilege in all the ways. So, >> and I could speak firsthand. I had an exchange student at my house this year and then my daughter went to Italy and it was a fabulous safe educational um eyeopening large world experience that I don't think anyone could get unless you do something like that. So I'm a 100% of supporter of this. Anybody >> make a motion to approve Bristol Central 2028 exchange and final item? >> Second. Motion's made and seconded. All in favor? I >> I motion passes. Thank you. >> Okay. I think since we didn't let teachers talk, we probably should during the meeting or what are we thinking? Are we going to do liazison reports? I don't think we should. No, that's not right.

203Okay, the mayor's happy. I think she was going to come over here and murder us all if we did this. >> I wanted to do the leazison report just to look at. Okay, so before um I journ I will say that I think we learned that maybe we should do student staff recognition next year at a separate meeting. Good idea. And then the other idea is the mayor suggested maybe starting our meetings at six o'clock so they don't go so late. But I know that will take a revision and um a new vote on the times because it's all official and has to be put in. So maybe Sydney can help us figure that out. But since I've been on the board for I don't 5 6 years now. We've always started at 7:00. So

204I just think I never you know when people say we always did it that way. It's bad excuse. So let's just change it. >> Um but meeting a journal through the trip. It's okay. They can talk. >> Good night.