001I would like to declare this regular meeting of the Bolder Valley School District Board of Education open for Tuesday, April 26, 2026. Board members may attend and participate in Board meetings electronically in accordance with BMA, BBD policy and state law. Chris, can you take attendance? Chrisler present. Present. Rp present. Ting present. Thank you. Now I would like to encourage everyone to turn around or pay attention to the screens for the recognition of the earth. The Bolder Valley School District resides and operates on lands that are the ancestral homelands justly and legally taken from the territory of the Yut, An, Arapaho, Shayan, Apache, Nabajo, and 48 other historically tribally associated nations who have called these lands home since time immemorial. We acknowledge the atrocities committed here, including the painful history of genocide, forced assimilation, and efforts
002to alienate Indigenous people from their lands with the support of U.S. government policies. Bebes is aware that the many indigenous peoples in the past and present, and their nations and cultures, are worthy of taking care of the land with strength and resilience. The BEBESD recognizes the stories of the land in Colorado and the survival of the many nations that have carried their oral traditions to the present day. It is the responsibility of BBSD to educate our communities and our students so that we can celebrate and respect the wisdom and knowledge of indigenous peoples and actively unite to address injustices. By offering this recognition of the land, we affirm and honor the history, wisdom, oral traditions, and resilience of Indigenous peoples in recognizing the responsibility to care for and cherish this land together. I would like
003to remind everyone that the mission of the Boulder Valley School is to create challenging, meaningful, and engaging learning opportunities for all children to thrive and be prepared for a successful life engaged in society. Good evening everyone. Thank you for joining us in person and remotely; we are pleased to have your presence as observers and participants in our meetings. We have a motion for the agenda. Heard by Jason, second by Lenium. Can you take attendance? Butcher, yes. Chávez, yes. Medler, yes. It remains, yes. Rashp, yes. Oding, yes. The motion passes. Next, we have the report from Superintendent Dr. Anderson. Good night. Good evening, President Rushp, members of the council. Nice to see you all. Oh, next we are about to celebrate the class of 2026 and we will have graduates from all 12 of our high
004schools and they will be part of the graduation ceremonies. Members, I know you will be there so that those in our community can find the details on our website beb.org and graduations. Congratulations to the class of 2026. Council members, we began celebrating this past weekend by commemorating the achievements of Indigenous national students here at the educational center. It was a complete ceremony with traditional food and dances. I believe we had nine students graduating, which we celebrated, and congratulations to their families as well. Another sign of the times is the annual sale of plants. If you didn't have time to buy this one, you still have time. This Saturday, May 16th at our Apex campus here in Arapa Road. If you are looking for flowers, fruits, vegetables. Oh, we also have this soil available for you
005to buy for your plants. Last Friday was a major milestone. Boulder High School celebrated 150 years of serving our community. It was a powerful reminder of why Boulder High School is so amazing. Take a look at these photographs. It began as the preparatory school that was based on old Main Street. The most recent campus was built in the 1930s and here you can see students from past years. Scott Carpenter, from the Merger project of the class of 1943, was an astronaut. The senator's representative, this justice minister, Carol Jenner, was in the class of 1990. The founder of Chipotle also graduated from Boulder, and so did the columnist . And Peggy Cam from the class of 1942 stole the show. Before graduating from high school, she was a cheerleader. That's beautiful. Thanks to Congressman John Gus
006and Kathy Ghard and all the council members who came to help celebrate this milestone. Finally, on behalf of the council, we would like to remind our community to participate in the resilient schools survey , which is open until May 17th. If you haven't filled out this survey, please do so. It will only take 5 minutes to assess community priorities before considering a development plan. We will also have the results and the results of community participation from the schools will be reported on Tuesday, June 19th. Board members , any questions? Watching Peggy cheer. This was a defining moment. Seeing that there are no questions, we will continue to the public discussion. The Council respects the public's right to express their views on matters related to the operation of schools. The Council does not endorse the comments
007of the participants and reminds all speakers that they are responsible for ensuring that their comments are appropriate for the audience present. This includes students from kindergarten through 12th grade. Also, it should be noted that each council has the opportunity to listen to our constituents so that the council can interact with the speakers and react to them. Each speaker has 2 minutes to speak, but a yellow card appears when they have 30 seconds left and an orange card when they have 10 seconds left. If you run out of time, or wish to share additional information, you can email the board. We're going to start tonight with, and I apologize in advance, Duke Teleo. Press the button and you will see a light. lit. Hello everyone, my name is Duke To, I am a software and Boulder
008High School student. I have come before the council today to discuss compliance with land recognition in all BBZ school events. I believe it is the first step towards establishing better cultures in our BB schools and a better environment for students, and bringing current issues to everyone's attention. School events also provide an opportunity to raise awareness about indigenous communities that were historically oppressed and continue to experience that now. Schools like Legacy and Mountain Range High School include a land survey in all sporting events. I believe that schools in the BBC, such as Boulder High School, should be required to mention land recognition in order to support the indigenous people in our community. I've researched the history of land surveying in the district and found that we have a very impressive one that you've probably heard about,
009but it's not implemented within the schools and before reading about it on the website and watching the video, I had never heard of it before. And it makes me wonder why a sad little schoolboy has a land recognition that isn't even recognized in schools. I believe the solution to this problem is very simple, and by implementing land recognition in all school events, people will become more aware of indigenous culture and the land under which schools operate. Thank you. Our next speaker is Orang. I'm Oden Young and I'll be talking about open enrollment and priority enrollment. I am an eighth-grade student. Entering high school and transitioning is very difficult. It's difficult to make friends in a community where you can find a place to belong. When you have a relative who has already gone to school,
010it can be easier to create those connections for me, because my brother was in school and I was able to connect more with the teachers and students who already knew him. The team I was part of already knew him and liked me because I was his brother. So, when you have a relative there, you don't have to worry about finding friends, a community where you fit in, you already have your people. Hey, look at this happening with my sister. She has created connections with relatives of my friends that might not have been the same option if they didn't go to the same school, because they all come from different areas, but because they come together they have a community before starting at school. My sister has come to concerts, games, and PEC night, and she's
011walked to school, and she feels like she's part of this community and feels like it's her school, even though she hasn't actually started school yet. Because of these things, she's already part of it and has a sense of security going into a new place where other people might not necessarily have that. and also prepare you to be academically successful. That's why I believe that policies for people with relatives who are graduating should give priority to enrollment. Thank you. Our next speaker is August Hfield. Give me a second to put a little step up for you. Hello, my name is August Hershfeld. Please don't change the rules. I want to go to the same high school as my older sister. Thank you. Thank you, Algues. Our next speaker is Zeffer Anderson. Hello, my name is Anderson
012and I am a seventh grade student at Porvor High School. the preference of relatives of preference in I as my relatives were part of the lottery. My younger brother, my parents, and I were super excited when we realized that it wasn't just me who won the lottery, but my whole family did. It was created as a neighborhood school. I want my siblings to have the same opportunity as me. My brother, who is in fourth grade, would be directly and negatively affected. That's why a few years ago he heard about my classes, my subjects, my exams, and all the feelings I've shared with him are preparing him for when he arrives in Samem. After my second year at Sam, my grandmother donated money to Samet for the new wing of the school. And now my brother
013and I hope we can lay a brick with my family's name on it. I know that equity matters for babies, both within families and between families. It's important. Every family should have the same opportunity in the lottery. To rob my brother of the opportunity to earn the same opportunities that I have, I think it 's wrong. Hopefully, they will keep their ideas about fairness to themselves while preserving the policy. Thank you. The next speaker tonight is Alon Sosa. Hello, my name is Alon Susa, I am the father of a student who goes to elementary school. I have questions about how to increase enrollment, although I realize you won't be able to answer them. I believe the district has two enrollment programs right now. One focused on resilient schools and the other focused on the presentation.
014I did n't look at any programs about increasing enrollment and still taking from other districts that are a little bigger than this one and not as distinguished as the Bolde district. Theoretically, I believe we should have all the best things in the world to increase our enrollment, but I also heard that we are not accepting students outside of the open enrollment window. I believe we are approaching that goal, given that in 2020-2022 we enrolled 541 students outside the enrollment window, 161 within the window, in 2023 we enrolled 486 students outside the enrollment window and 354 within the window, and in 2024 we enrolled 352 students outside the enrollment window and only 257 within the enrollment window. So, I'm wondering how we could work on increasing that and also how we can clarify the criteria for
015when students are accepted. There is public data on many aspects of registration, except for applications versus denials. So, I wanted to know if we can receive more information. Nor did I hear anything back from the super-experts. I would volunteer for a program to increase enrollment. Thank you. Thank you. Our next speaker tonight is Stacy Proctor. Stacy appears to be absent, not listed as virtual, but online. Okay, let's continue to L Standard. Hello, my name is Lner. I have been working with BBD transportation for 14 years. For the last 6 years I've been in the office recently. I have just been informed that my position is being removed. I understand and respect that the district has weighed and measured the decisions they must make. But I want to point out why my position is still needed
016for at least a little while longer. I work at the Lafetemos transport terminal for 24 routes and 34 special education routes. The special education routes are the ones to call our office in case they are sick, or need more time to get to the bus. The office handles all of this with excellent customer service and a smile. and additional calls behind the phone. Next year the number of children transitioning is going to increase from 63 to 83. I think this is going to result in more need in the office. Finally, I have personally appointed myself to be in charge of this part of the office. We support 12 electric trucks. I think the district is very proud of the electric fleet. With six efficient chargers. I have ordered the drivers of these electric trucks to
017charge their trucks at different times. I am asking for two more years to postpone my position for two more years so that I can provide for these changes, so that they are more manageable, so that this can be resolved. Thank you. Good evening, my name is Cralin and on behalf of the BBSD coalition, our coalition continues to grow. Families and educators in 21 schools continue to come to us not only because of past or current experiences. I want to be clear that what I mean is that families are pulling out of the schools in this district in real time. Others are desperate to leave, but don't know how to raise their children safely outside of this. They are trapped and are trying to find all the resources and what kind of options they have. We
018cannot share the details of these families for fear of retaliation. This fear is well-founded. They really know because that's what has happened with other people who have spoken out. This coalition finds that nothing wrong has been done. The families cannot find a solution. They have a choice between silence or leaving. We have heard this, that having independent oversight is not possible. Cherry Creek students have submitted an RP on operations and functioning practices, and this can be done and has been done in this state at this time. We are still asking and requesting the same things from this board that we have been asking since February. You are having independent supervision of the students. The families are still waiting for an answer. Children are being injured right now, please listen to us because this is not
019right. Answer. Thank you. Next up is Katie David. Hello good evening. And I'm here to ask for support regarding the draft academic calendar for 2026-27 and 2027-28. Oh, excuse me. 26 27 28 29. Ah, on behalf of us we are asking you to support the calendar, the draft calendar of the 27 28 29 and we are hoping that an enriched discussion can take place, especially with the stakeholders. We are particularly trying to determine which days will be paid, which days are for professional development, and we as teachers can ask what are the best places where we can have good participation and professional development. This is also a shared interest between BBSD and BB, and it's something we're discussing today, and we want to honor the request that was made earlier because that's the work that
020has been done all this time. Thank you for your support. Thank you. Uh, our next person is Peter Young. Let's continue with Barry Hersold. Young, Peter Young, yes, we'll come back to you after him. Good evening, President Rp and board members. My name is Herfield. First, I want to thank you for your public service. I don't know, I understand what he means when he says they have to take their time to come here. I am here to talk about my family. My daughter is going to start at Summit Middle School in the fall, and we received some really strong news that the policy for opening enrollments is going to change. As I just heard from my 8-year-old son, and my 5-year-old son is also here, we are a family that is proud of and believes
021in public education. We are here to strongly oppose the proposal to remove this for 30 years. The policy that has existed to keep families together. Middle school is quite strong, and that's why the age gap between my daughters is so large. Right now I'm here with my oldest daughter and we made a long- term plan regarding education and without consulting the board, you're really making a proposal that's putting us in a bit of a difficult position, and not just us, but other families as well. There are 50 families in the community, and that will penalize the children because they have other siblings and attend other schools. In terms of this, this type of separation of families cannot be forced in schools, in elementary school, in middle school, in high school. These separations cannot be made
022. So we hope you will change your mindset and continue thinking about building on the 30 years we've had here at Summit. Trust is quite fragile. and it can break very easily. So we want to continue believing in BBSD and continue thinking that you are doing what's best for us. Thanks, Peter. You're here now, you can continue. I'm sorry, don't worry. Good night. My name is Peter Jong and as we discussed earlier, the Summit enrollment policies and I want us to be guided by the principle of what is best for our children. When we talk about priority for siblings, the conversion usually goes towards the convenience of transportation. and the logistics of the families' schedules. But for us this is a secondary concern. The real value is the congruence and the feeling of belonging to
023a school that they have for the children. For my youngest daughter T, school isn't an option, it's home. She has grown up alongside frisbee games, has been in robotics competitions and band performances. She's in the hallways, she knows the professors and the culture. She sees herself as part of this place, and to tell a child who has been here for many years that he will have to go to a different school than his brother really ignores everything that means schools are created for what they are created for. We've been here for 6 years and we believe in this community. We see the value it creates and the roots of that value. We moved into a house nearby and have been spending our resources to keep it running smoothly. And this 30-year agreement is not just
024a change in policy, this is a breach of trust. And we've been talking about the board's experience in Summit, and how they've come to see the district as a partner, and being a partner isn't a one-way street. And I want them to prioritize our children and honor the connection they have had, honor the consistency that has been shown. Please keep our families together and keep the preference for brothers alive. Thank you. Thank you. Yes, we have been mindful of waiting for the applause to stop. Now we have Matthew Flin. Thank you, Matthew Fln. I have three children at BBSD, 10 at Manar, four at Sumit, and so we have been here for 11 years. Four more to continue speaking in summit terms and to talk about the different approaches we've had here, great comments. Something
025the board should consider is removing the sibling admission rule and having a privately funded project. This is truly a legally exposed one. What I mean by this is that many families, my family included, have donated money to this with the understanding that not only was it going to be the best thing to do, but that our younger children, our minors, would benefit from being able to be here. We believe in this promise and we came here because of that promise, but now it's changing, but a great job has been done because we thought it was something we were going to do and we're trusting in that. But these policy changes, months after the paint dried on the walls, if this continues, really this for me is an ethical breach and a violation of the promises
026that were made. Thank you. Thank you. Uh, our next speaker is Pamela Chendres. Hello, my name is PMA Gendras and I am another father of a Sami child. I also have three children in BBSD. One in elementary school, another in middle school, and another in high school and college. So , as they've said before, this really threw us off, it surprised us, it really shocked us in terms of our children's education. We have built relationships with staff, with teachers, with communities, in frisbee teams and others. And you have just met some of the parents of the fourth-grade students. So I thought we were all going to meet again at Summit. So I would like you to think again about this new rule. And I think the timing of it is a bit strange because one
027of our youngest is going to start in Flatons and they might close the school because there have been very few enrollments, so we're all a bit nervous because we don't know what's going to happen. So this is adding another point of stress to what's already happening. So thank you very much for your time. Uh, our next speaker is Megan Dons. Hi, Shot and I are in fourth grade and I do n't think it's fair that I and other kids won't be able to go to school because of the same siblings, because we won't be able to be there at the same time. I see my sister and her friends doing really fun things and taking fun classes, and other kids aren't going to be able to do that. I've always wanted to go to Summer,
028so please reconsider this new regulation. Daisy has been planning, excuse me, she was planning to go to Summit after we got off her older sister's waiting list and it would break our hearts not to be able to give her that opportunity. We are part of the Somet community, we have friends here, we have donated our money and time to the school and months have followed this. So giving preference to siblings is not fair, equitable, or reasonable. Why wait to start this social experiment and take the risk of alienating the families who live here? Please reconsider this. Thank you. The next person tonight is Mary and I'm going to mispronounce it. Hello, my comment is regarding the plan to remove the program from the Brothers' Policy and how you make it happen, either by taking things
029away or giving them back. Our school is wonderful and we are quite mixed, who are happy to receive what we are and then we have families who have created a motivation to be here and have long-term success. These are families like mine, who have children in suites. We see how wonderful it is. Please do not assume that these families are not thinking about this and ensuring that the children who will attend in the future will be able to do so. I, for example, have invested 30 hours of volunteer work here. This, the type of families in Summit, seems to be working well. All students benefit, families benefit. But I told my daughter that I was got , that is, they told me I was the best, that I did volunteer work, and when students do
030well, students do very well, BBCD does very well, so we are all successful with the changes that Sum is making. You are damaging this balance. You are forming a group of families, you are alienating them, and I have heard nothing different than aligning with the open enrollment that has been held here. Thank you. Uh, our presenters are now virtual. We have Joab L. Hello, good evening. Can you hear me? My name is [name omitted] and I am the father of a sixth-grade student and a third-grade student. And while I have lived in Bolter for 15 years, at this time our children were in private schools in Bolter. But when our daughter came to Somel through the lottery, we did something we hadn't thought about doing, which is to support BBSD. And we took our children
031out of private school to enter BBSD schools. If we weren't at Summit, our family wouldn't be at BBSD. The district gained two students through the enrollment program, and our third-grade student has really been doing very well. She went to school, to the theater performance, and her sister wasn't even there. We cook together after we were going to be part of a culinary thing and his little sister is in the frisbee group and our son has already made more friends there at school and he has been doing this because that's what we told him and that's what you have told him, that he was going to be able to be part of the school in a period of 30 years and now with the change he is going to lose sibling priority and we really hope
032that he can get in. We are praying that he can do it. But what if he doesn't come in? So, we're going to have to take them all out of the district and send them to private school. My son really wants to be able to be in this program because they are 3 years apart in age, but because he is in third grade, he won't be able to enter the school. This is not good policy, this is not based on fairness, this is not putting children first, and this really punishes families. Our family is committed to BBCD, but if you change the promise that is made, then everything will change. So I ask you, I beg you to keep the preference sibling program alive. Thank you. Uh, our next person is Boyaten. Who is there
033in person? Not virtual. Yes, I decided to come. Hello everyone, my name is Esaten and I have a sixth grade student at Summit. And the reason I'm here is to ask you to please not remove the graduates' program, preferably the siblings' program, because of policy changes, because this connects families together and our community, especially at Summit. And it is the Somet board of directors that has to be responsible, especially regarding the preference for open enrollment policies. And we understand that SOM is part of BBSD, but SOM is also unique because it is a charter school that is run by the parents and the board of directors. So we ask that you please not change these features of Summit. And secondly, I think, as the parents have mentioned, that we want to keep the community very
034close at Summit. But by removing the Summit Brothers preference program, this action will damage the trust we have in the agreements with BBCD and that the Brothers will be able to serve. So changing this policy of giving preference to siblings in students is going to be terrible for students who have an age difference of more than 3 years. So yes, they are changing this program about the brothers. Thank you. And the last person is Mercedes Gitter, who is virtual? Good evening, my name is Mercedes Gitter. I am a very proud mother of one of the students and I am here to share new concerns regarding the change in the sibling preference program and how a school takes on an option in a 3- year enrollment. The loss of this preference will present some problems regarding
035the continuity of students. It was going to have a significant negative impact, especially on low-income families and other families with disabilities or different issues like these. It takes our families quite a bit of time to be able to get involved with the staff, families, and community. So removing this continuity is really going to hurt members of our community, especially those who have been relying on this program. So we want to extend the relationships between parents, students, and staff. Parents are spending more time here at the schools. They are actually more comfortable and creating quite deep relationships and being able to change these relationships between parents and schools and staff. We know many of the staff here, and especially these families who have taken the time to be a part of this. The district focuses on
036creating and providing an environment that is equitable and inclusive for children with unique learning needs; this will create changes and barriers that will be very difficult to change or improve. So we ask that you please not change this program at the Charter school. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences. We will continue with the council's communication. Members, who wants to start? Dian. It's a busy month. I want to share with you that I was able to attend some excellent events. I attended the sixth graduating class's degree celebration and I was very happy I chose that. I saw the indigenous dancers, we ate traditional indigenous food, it was an excellent event, but I have to celebrate something that I didn't see when I was a teacher. One of these indigenous students was a national merit
037student with a grade point average above 4.0, and all students received a necklace they can wear at graduation if they have a grade point average of 3.0 or above. That didn't happen 10 years ago. And I was extremely impressed with the students and families I met tonight. It was a beautiful event. They must sign up next year. The second thing I was able to do was attend an artificial intelligence meeting, and I think a lot of people are very busy, but we had an excellent talk about the legal changes that are happening with the AI landscape and the work that teachers do. And it was very inspiring to see that the conversation had risen beyond what we had started about how we occupy that space. That's where it started, but now we're talking about policy,
038regulations, and the effects of using AI in schools. It was a great meeting and I'm looking forward to meeting with the same group again next year. Yes, they asked me to advocate for this committee to become an advisory council, a technology advisory council committee. It is a message that I am passing on to you. Thank you. Thank you, Tian. Anyone else? Ana, thank you. I also had the privilege of attending several events. One was Bolder High School's 150th anniversary. I went with my cousin who graduated in 1999. We were able to see the pastry halls and she told me about the traditions. They throw all their homework off the balconies in the center of the school, which I would love to see sometime. It was an excellent event. I loved seeing the whole history of
039the building. It was a really fantastic way to have that connection to the history of this building. I also attended a parent meeting with several parents who are in our schools, our bilingual schools, and their main point of communication with me was to assure them that we are prioritizing bilingual education in the district, even though we have a decrease in enrollment, but also to be aware of the intention to add this information from Spanish-speaking parents to the surveys. So I did say that I was going to compete with you and the superintendent and the administration, who really want to ensure that with the time we have, we are pushing as much as possible for this participation of Spanish-speaking parents. And finally, what did I get? I had an amazing meeting this week. I was very
040impressed by R and the directors around the response to immigration. Earlier this year, we had met with parents and the Friendship Center, a non-profit organization. And they indicated several things they think we should prioritize as a district. I've heard from the organization and the parents about how good they feel. They feel they are working in partnership with the district. Many of the things they indicated were easy to implement. But they feel that I had listened to them about the resources we have for teachers and parents. They are very excited to see and continue to see. And after the meeting, before the meeting ended, after seeing the different stages of the district and the intention you have to respond in terms of policy, departments, that doesn't happen every day in different government entities. So, it made
041me very happy and proud to be at that meeting, and leaving that meeting I was talking with the co-director of the friendship center, and it was a sudden or complete change in the relationship they have with the district, and they are anticipating that partnership with the district so that it grows and lasts for several years. I was pleased to hear about everything the district is doing for our children, for the parents, for people in the community in general, and I felt very proud of everyone present and the intention you are putting into action, that you are listening, taking action to ensure that all students, particularly those who are immigrants, feel safe and welcome. Jorge, thank you Ana for mentioning those important topics and I want to echo what you said. I know the district is
042working very hard as a starting point there was also an email about the survey. And the preferences are now open for the 17th. Hopefully, they will respond to that survey. There is a separate survey, so you will receive an email from the district. We need to ensure that people can reinforce this point for everyone, and I appreciate that the district is doing the extra work to reach all parts of the community. I also want to talk about excellent schools. I was with this high school running team for 2 hours today until there's an event, and tomorrow there are the finals for the kids at Santaurus High School. And I think Centaurus High School is going to have state championships in Ultimate Frisbee. Alex, first I want to express my gratitude to the staff and leadership
043in the district for the past month that I have been out of state. We have a great team that keeps me informed. I wanted to talk in general about some of what will happen when we are working on school changes in the coming years. I have always been a champion of public schools. We are trying to do everything we can to get families to enroll in our schools and we are trying to retain the families we can, and I am proud of the efforts to make choosing public schools as easy as possible. Of the 26,000 families, half are choosing their school; registration is open. So, there are also families who try to choose and cannot attend. So, as we're guiding the system, we have to make it work for all students, and there are a
044lot of children and families. And while we're working on consolidating schools and changing programs, I want to assure you that we have a commitment to serving all children so that the option to participate in open enrollment doesn't have to be voluntary or require payment. It doesn't matter what class or race they are. And I am proud of the policies we have to fulfill that, and while we are working on it, the future is going to be difficult for many families, but I believe that our commitment to all families is that they are treated equitably while exercising their opportunity to take advantage of open enrollment at all 56 schools. And many of those schools are not neighborhood schools. They do not have these school limits. I am grateful that my colleagues were able to attend so
045many events. I have three children and I couldn't attend any more. It was May, it's a crazy month and we still have 7 school days left. I'm not ready, but I was able to attend the celebration. It was Boulder High's anniversary, and I loved seeing the graduates from the 40s, 50s, someone who attended this in the 1000th year, in the 70s. It's the oldest high school in Colorado, and there's so much history, and we're so grateful that we have that high school as Boulder High. I feel fortunate to be attending the event and I'm looking forward to the graduations. Thanks, Jason. council members. Since the last time we met, I went to the closing negotiations meetings for the BBEA union. I also attended the anniversary celebration of Bolder High School, and I also had a
046meeting with the city of Bolder and the University of Colorado, and they are also conducting their negotiations . I wanted to pause and say thank you to the staff and students, those in the high school who are in the middle of their International Baccalaureate Advanced Placement exams and who are doing all the athletics and events. It's a very difficult season and I want to acknowledge the staff for everything they do, for all the events, and it's a difficult and exciting time for everyone at the high school. We'll continue with the news stories tonight. We have three. We have compiled the legislative information and we are going to have a speech about this topic. Good night. Good night. It's nice to see them. Thank you for inviting us. I'm sorry the rest of the team aren't
047here. The legislators continue working. Tomorrow is the last day of the legislative session and we still have many projects to complete. There are several bills that are still on the agenda. So, thank you for having me. I wanted to apologize to them. Tonight we thought we would give you a recap of the session, the budget status, and the school finance law . There are many moving parts involved in all of that. Sorry, I clearly lack technical skills. Taking a step back. This 119th day we had breakfast with the delegation and we had that meeting with all the delegates who are members of the school councils. We had a sometimes tense but honest conversation about the state of the state budget, administrative burdens, and the impact on school districts. Although legislation is well- intentioned, it always
048takes time. We had an in-depth conversation about taxes, the state of the ability to use these taxes, and being able to have that conversation in advance set the tone and I am very grateful because it made our job easier. So, our members of the eastern delegation were able to ask the question, how is this going to affect us? How will this stress our teacher administrators into making well-informed decisions that we didn't have to make in the past? There were 712 bills that were considered. There are no more bills that will be presented in this session because it takes 3 days to pass a bill. Our team reviews every bill. Chairwoman Raj Paul, Superintendent Andersen, discusses the impact of those bills in taking a position. The topics we noted were transportation, tax adjustments, certainly measures to
049generate revenue, that's what we noted in the special session, ideas to do whatever it takes to put our budget in a better place because it is certainly impacting education from kindergarten to 12th grade and artificial intelligence. They already talked about that. There was a major artificial intelligence bill that was the culmination of a year and a half of work and liability or legal responsibility. There was an agreement to be at the last minute in this bill and with this artificial intelligence there is also information about data centers. Looking at the bills that are of interest to the district, there are two bills that we support that were projects this 26 1078, off-campus courses that was sponsored by two legislators or representatives of Bolder County. This bill will allow districts to work in partnership with high
050schools. Four-year institutions can send funds to the district, work with teachers in the district about courses. And these institutions have clearly heard that there is a desire to work in partnership, but the geographical barrier was a problem. So, this law is waiting for the governor's signature. And the other bill we're working on is Superintendent Anderson. He was very passionate about limiting the elimination of the regulation that doubled the requirements for before- and after-school care. So, the districts have to comply with regulations during the day, and before or after the bell there is another set of games with which they have regulations that they have to comply with, and there are investment needs. So we delved deeper into this bill to eliminate duplicative and contradictory requirements. There are many people who really care about this issue,
051and school districts wanted to focus on teacher training and playground inspections . There were many districts where playgrounds could be occupied during the day, but not after the day . There was a lot of work we had to do in this space, but there was an opportunity to have a conversation and raise the challenges for teachers who care for children before and after school. These are the two bills we could address this year. We can talk a little more about that later in how it relates to the budget. Bill 78. This is a bill that was introduced as a project by both parties measuring the two assessments that are occurring and are being done beyond the federal laws as they were introduced. The bill states that districts do not have to do anything above federal
052law in negotiations with any number of districts. A task force was created to evaluate all the assessments being done in the districts. And again, there are many ideas about assessments for creating a workforce or a working group. It costs a lot of money, and I'm talking more about the budget right now , but there were other bills to pass this session. This bill was passed on until after this session ends. That means he's dead, but it's clear we anticipate continuing to talk about this. The bill we opposed, the one that was eliminated in committee, was this one about the election of the resident district director. This would have changed the elections in general so that people can only vote in the district where they live. PBD took the position of opposing the bill, just like
053every other district in the state. This was postponed without limitations. Those are the 700 bills we reviewed this session, and BBD played a very important part in relation to the state budget. Entering the session and with the governor's budget, the state was looking at a $1.5 billion budget gap , which is astronomical. We knew that many of the budget pressures came from the growth of Medicadit. This has created a structural gap in the budget. These are things that won't go up and down from one year to the next, but rather they will accumulate on top of each other, and the cost of the impact in relation to the bill for the redetermination of benefits will have on the state. So, a significant gap in the budget in the governor's request of November 1st wanted to
054protect security and we'll talk more about that in a bit, but 1.5 billion dollars is a phenomenal amount. Not a single department was able to get out of this budget without cuts. Regarding the Department of Education in particular, the committee focused on the elimination of grants in which the district participates and which are operated by the district, specifically school coast prevention grants. the reading record. These are relatively small cuts in terms of a 1.5 million reduction , but added up and considering the people they impact, they led us to make very difficult decisions regarding the school finance act . This was a very interesting year because in the last few years we had a financial school act, Superintendent Anderson had to be at the Capitol almost every day involved in different negotiations. I think it
055was because there was no money, because the state wanted to do everything it could to protect the eighth-grade kindergarten funds. One year, this minimal Bill 23 will be an investment of 150 billion in schools from kindergarten to grade 12. This has been important to create an average. When creating an average, it is important to protect in recent years the unexpected consequences of the school finance act, which is the last week. Uh, and adding the housing expenses factor, it eliminated about four or five rounds that were incorrect. Those would have cost the district different variations, from 140 districts to 45 districts that would have experienced a reduction if we had implemented these housing factors. We strongly pushed against and resisted these cuts. Then there was an agreement recently to pause that housing cost factor so that
056districts would not experience a change in what they anticipated this year. And the discussions will continue about why is affecting this housing cost. this constant up and down. Anderson's advice and super-am were amazing at our breakfast with the delegates. A cut is a cut is a cut. This proposal would have been a significant cut to the BBC of more than 2.7 billion. We were able to eliminate that cut with the joint committee, and we challenged the legality of this bill and are very proud that it was eliminated for the future. Believe it or not , the session ends tomorrow, but June 18th is a very important day for us. It's the June revenue forecast, where we start this process again, and all eyes are on this forecast for the risk of a recession, how federal
057legislation impacts it, and in relation to the impacts of ballot measures. It's a very important forecast. in terms of preparing for the future. And as you know, we will always send you these updates so you know what to expect in this prognostication. It was a very long presentation, but I don't know if you have any questions for me or what I can pass on to our team. I just want to say thank you to Heter and our team. They are very good collaborators during the session and Dr. Anderson is a very strong advocate. This cannot always be present. So I want to congratulate you for the great effort you make as inspector members of the Council. Questions, comments. Very well, Dr. Anderson. I just want to thank Heather, Tonia, and the team for doing a
058great job of always keeping us trained during the sessions and putting us in the right position to advocate. I was very happy to see that SOT died quickly. The ways in which we engage with the delegation are very appropriate and timely, and we are able to deliver messages in that meeting that really resonated and helped prioritize compliance and work on childcare. We're looking forward to seeing how all of this turns out, and we're going to be able to make a lot of kids happy here in the Boulder Valley when they can earn concurrent enrollment with CU Boulder. Well, it's a pleasure to support you. Thank you. Next item on the agenda is preschool programming. Dr. Anderson, would you like to give the presentations or introductions? Sorry. Yes, I would love to. I'm sorry, I'm checking
059to see if we had approved the staff report, but we hadn't. Assistant Superintendent Nativ Miller and early education academic directors Ema ZC and Teresa Clemens will be giving an update on the preschool program. And Dr. Miller, I'll give you the time. Good evening, President Rashp. As Dr. Andr just mentioned , tonight we'll be providing you with an update for the 2025-26 preschool year. As a reminder, this preschool department is run by Principal Emma Herz for the team, and with that, I'll give the floor to the two of them. They will be introducing you tonight. I'm a little stressed about this check-up. Tonight we're going to give a brief overview of preschool models and share projected and current updates, and share an update on analysis that was done in collaboration with Dr. [Name] and her team,
060and updates on the UPK preschool program. I'm going to give Tra Clems the time to give the presentation today. Good afternoon. Let's begin with a visual overview of our current programming. This is the second year they've been offering the midday models. Each preschool school or classroom is taught by a preschool teacher. We have 3 hours of school in the morning and 3 hours in the afternoon in order to meet the universal preschool requirement . We don't have this late start on Wednesdays and in some schools we have the opportunity to offer enrichment classes. Here you can see a model for creating a full day from bell to bell for families. In this model, the student attends preschool for 3 hours in the morning and participates in an enrichment class for the following 4 hours. At
061Alicia Sánchez we have a full-day model that is 6 hours a day, 5 days a week and they spend the 6 hours with a preschool teacher. They do not change classes at midday like the preschool enrichment model. Looking at enrollment this year, preschool enrollment in the last 2 years of Universal Preschool has remained constant. As you can see, in October 2024 we had 770 students and it increased to 832 students in October. The numbers at the end of the year are similar. October enrollments increase by 770 or 832. We receive funding for students who enroll and remain enrolled. The numbers at the end of the year end up very similar. Last year we had 908 students and now we have 917. This slide also shows the growth of the preschool enrichment program. In 2023 we
062only had 103 students and this year we are ending with 319, which is very similar to last year, which I believe was 318 students, very consistent with enrichment and enrollment. We are continually reflecting on the enrollment and looking to see where and how we can make adjustments. One area we want to review is maximizing enrollment for full days for the 2026-27 school year. We will continue to offer a preschool and enrichment model that we have been implementing at both Mapleton and Pioneer. We are going to add this model to Elorado Prekindertavo. There's a visual on the left side here. And in those three places we are going to combine a preschool class with an enrichment class. It's to say, sit in those seats, those seats are for students, and all those seats will continue to
063be for preschool half-days, allowing schools that are attending to continue to choose between a full day or half-day. Another change we're making for the next school year is to reserve a certain number of places for full-day programs at C ys. Here, 26 of the 36 open spaces will be reserved for students who are involved in the participation program. The other nine new sites will be a mix of half-day and full-day enrichment programs, and each family can choose what works best for their family. Looking ahead to 2026-27, we are seeing very strong enrollment for this coming year. We are on track to exceed this year's enrollment numbers right now . Our enrollment for 202627. There are 619 students and 306 of those students are already in the process of enrolling in the enrichment program. Community liaisons
064are continuously enrolling students and will continue to do so throughout the summer. We're going to look at that number of 619 increasing in the summer months. There is still a demand for full-day seating, and venues with extended seating fill up faster compared to venues that only provide half-day seating. And now I'm going to give Dr. Ra time to share an analysis on the preschool impact. And we know that one of the questions we wanted to share is what we want in preschool experiences and we think it should have an impact, but it does have an impact. How far? And the cost of preschool. In the presentation that was made in 2025, we said that we were going to join with Dr. Jessicav, who is our executive director, and from the data we found certain types
065of conclusions to which we drew. We saw that the different types of data and the conclusion is that it is not possible to have any conclusion at this time due to the changes in the parameters that were had over time. Specifically, we had a program that we had to adjust in the last 4 years and when we realized the impact that preschool had, it was like the experiences that were being had in preschool were not consistent. We had to make an adjustment to the new legislation to have more consistent programming offers. And it's also important to know that COVID continues to impact the data sets we have. We are thinking that in 5 to 10 years the impact that COVID had continues to be a very important variable in that data and from which we
066can draw some conclusions by saying that. We will continue working to maximize the availability of chairs in preschool, and continue improving and refining the preschool experience. After we have more data review, we will conduct an analysis after having more years of consistency and we will complete an analysis to determine the impact on our preschool. This is based on a previous presentation, but we wanted to include it today because we want to make a transition from what is currently in place, in the model we currently have. It is important to remember that preschool is under the Department of Early Childhood Education and Kados is under the Department of Education. As we can see, the inscription is different. In preschool it is managed for the Bridg platform in K12 it is of the enjoyable schools. Time spent
067at school is based on a week, and in K12 it is based on a year. Funding in pre-kindergarten is per student per month, and in K12 it is per student per year. Teresa will give you an overview of the refinement that will be made during the following years. So, for the last part of this presentation, we want to share some updates we have, and we're entering our third year of Universal Preschool. As of July 1, 2026, all companies offering preschool must meet the following categories or standards. These standards will be required for all preschool providers to deliver the highest quality programming, and these will be the requirements we have. So it's very important that you know what will be required of you. The first thing is regarding instructional practices. So everyone will have to have
068an approved curriculum and an evaluation system based on Colorado's academic standards. We already have it and have had it for many years. In addition, they will have on-site observations every 3 years by an independent observer from outside who will see the interactions in the classroom. And this is something we have established as part of our quality improvement plan, and there are also some regulations regarding the requirements that require programs to provide assessments regarding socio-emotional and physical health issues. The next category is the involvement of families and communities. This will allow families to complete certain surveys and preschool staff to participate in developing the objectives for the children, and we will have best practices. The last part is about the requirements for professional development. So we haven't had one of the best professional development programs ,
069so there's a certain type of training that will be required, such as trauma training. Uh, it will have to be established how many hours have to be provided and how many are part of these requirements. And then another change that I want to share with you. This is a proposal and a draft, but it seems important to share it because this is something we are discussing at the state level, and it concerns the program's evaluation criteria and the qualities being sought, and this will be a process for all programs. Currently, SEDOC is proposing that the monitoring program be aligned with the requirements of the Colorado Department of Education. For example, if we look at the district's requirements when it has a specific goal, then it has improvement plans and seeks effectiveness and expectations, and we
070want to ensure that the teaching strategies are put in place, and we have quality standards and processes to ensure that there is training for the evaluators, so that they have the knowledge and experience to evaluate the practices that are being done, and also a strong transition in the plan from preschool to elementary school. And then, finally, even though you already heard that tonight, and that is that they gave you an update on bill HB26 1282 and the legislation, so it is a duplicate monitoring of all these child care centers and because they don't want this to be a burden on the schools for the district programs so that they have to do the supervision not only of the child care centers and the regular schools. And this will include programs for school-aged children in after-school
071programs, but this is a gain we have because there is something being put in place and that is a really good place to start. So we'll take any questions you may have. Yes, thank you so much for that preschool update. Any questions or comments, Alex? Yes, I have several questions, but we had some updates regarding the proportion of students with disabilities. Could you give us some data regarding the number of enrollments by students with disabilities? And if you have an environment that is restricted, I don't have the exact numbers, but I could tell you if we could get them for you. We typically start with 30% of the students in our classroom having an Individualized Education Program (IEP), and we are currently a little lower than that, and perhaps we could say it's 40% because
072throughout the school year we have around 400 students who have an IEP, and because we evaluate the students, the students who have the IEP start the program once the IEP program is put into effect. Yes, I want to talk a little bit about how we can put it on one slide in a cohesive way, but we didn't, and I wanted to say that we've had a trend where many of our non-PEI seats, our slots, are filling up faster than our PEI seats. So that creates a balance in the classroom. I would really love to enter the data. I know that we were at 42% two years ago and at 37% last year. So I'd like to have those numbers and the impact this is creating, because our real concern is being able to have the
073ranges we need and how we can be more effective for children. Another basic question is, how many children do we want in that program? And what is the proportion or capacity that we are serving? How many unused slots do we have per year? We have a capacity—I'd have to look at the exact numbers—but it's a little over 1000. So, at the end of the year, we'll have 19 places available, which means we have open slots. And I'd like to say that the more students who come and qualify for the program, the more slots we have to make available for them. And a few weeks ago we saw that we have some families who had the PI last week, so they do n't have the quota yet, so we have to be ready. And we are
074available to serve you, and we will have the space and capacity to serve you. Jason, yes, thank you very much for this update, and I wanted to ask regarding Alex's question, yes, there is demand in some places, but there are 100 slots and we are talking about demand. There are other specific sites or those in the district. If we think about it strategically, enrollment is decreasing, and if we want to attract more families, especially at the preschool level. Yes, it's very interesting because there are always some surprises there. So, for example, well, I could say that Emerald is perhaps a school that wasn't so full, and starting this year, well, next year, then I think they're full with the slots that don't have the PI, and it's a place that has a very good midday
075program, not all day. We are following the trend we have in the district, some schools in Bolder that are not completely filled with all the places that refer to non-PEI. So the numbers are no more than 50%, but we still see that there are students with intellectual disabilities that we need to serve. Um, one addition we can make is that one of the teams has been able to map out what the other providers are by city and region; it's like, what else is available for families. This can create some confusing trends because we have an area of the district that doesn't have a population, but due to other options we see an influx in what is being discussed, and as we see what Teresa says, it changes every year, it is based on what is
076happening in the neighboring districts, so we have to be quite flexible and understand what the ecosystem is in which we are working for the kindergarten. and preschool and being able to have enough time to see how we can be competitive for all families. So it's not a direct answer or a direct question. Yes, I know you mentioned data analysis, and I would add that my son, who is a student at Creksite, can speak to the impressive quality of the teachers and the programming. We can explore the offerings and the quality of the courses. So this is a hidden gem in our community, the programming is of very high quality and the teachers are of high quality, so it's not the program that's implemented, but the education, and this is something that I can say is
077quite effective and quite strong. So thank you very much. It's not the data, it's not the specific data we wanted to show, but really this is what I could say and it's a fabulous job they 're doing. Thank you so much. Alex, yes, a few more questions. How big is the aura of the number of students in the classroom? The maximum number of students is 18 per session. So when I say 26 out of 36, I mean 18 in the morning and 18 in the afternoon. And I would be interested in seeing the data regarding classroom size by student and by district, by school, in order to understand how different places are functioning. And perhaps this is a question for Rob. Or for Dr. When we're doing the roundtables, we always ask the school principals
078about preschool programs and they generally don't have any, they never feel in charge of those programs and this seems to me to be quite problematic in general terms when we're trying to get people into school coming from preschool. So why does this happen? Is there anything we can do about it? Yes, it seems this is a new agenda, uh, that we can put here in the agenda. What's the point of that? And well, I'm going to let Teresa and Ema answer this, but really, the registration is something that's a bit like, we don't know how it's working, so we have to go through Bridge Care and the early childhood team would have to do this. I would say, Alex, that if there is an opportunity to better connect what is happening at an early age,
079what school principals are doing, and with respect to the universal planning that is being done. What Teresa was saying is that being able to make this a requirement, because you don't want this to be something disconnected, you want it to be something from 3 to 4 years of age up to a certification from the district or Grad Plus. So the registration part is somewhat difficult because the school directors don't handle registration because this calculation that has been done through Teresa based on her experience is that if you fill too many places and you have students with PI who arrive and you don't have a place, then you're going to add another section and move students from one program to another program. Well, the logistics of this are pretty crazy, so I think there's a good
080opportunity to make a better connection and the work we're doing at an early age, and that school principals really understand and how the curriculum can be connected, is an opportunity for growth, but enrollment, the enrollment part is traditionally the most difficult part of this. Teresa, could you add anything to this? Yes, I would say so. The registration part we actually have, uh, preschool at 24, so they're not everywhere. So there are students in school who may not go to preschool or higher. The principals are the evaluators of the preschool staff, and the staff is part of that school. And what complicates this is childcare licensing, and why it should be, but we rely heavily on our department so that we can have all these rules and regulations in place. So some of those comments are
081coming in, so it's such a big thing with CEDEC and childcare licenses, so it's something we don't necessarily have a great understanding of, especially the details. Jorge, then we'll go back to Alex. Yes, Alex, uh, yes, that was the question I had, but you mentioned doing the transfer and the registrations of what they have generously done and how that program and that process was working on the part of the parents and some changes are being made and we are thinking about the transition of the kindergarten and we have some data regarding the kindergarten. Yes, Bridge Care is the system we have from the State for enrollment and it is also done through a lottery. Yes, there have been improvements and the State has listened to the districts to implement some things, for example, several rounds
082had to be done and the districts didn't know, but for example, until now they were going to have preschool. this hour. So apart from making some requests from the different schools and districts, we have decided that between now and February families will be able to find out, not in February, but in March. We initially said that direct enrollment would take place in April, so there are some changes we want to make as part of the school district. We want to have complete control over the registration process for all of us. And I think I forgot your other question. What was the other question? It is the transition from preschool to kindergarten. Definitely something we're considering. I do n't know if I have the numbers, but we work closely with preschool schools, this kindergarten staff, we
083talk about transitions and how to support that. It's a year-long process. It should begin for 4-year-olds in the fall and specific numbers. If someone goes to preschool at a certain school and stays for kindergarten, I don't have those numbers, but I can look them up. We've had these speeches about what it's like for preschool and whether or not it's allowed to stay. Right now, the way we do it with open enrollment means that at the very least, your neighborhood school has to go through the open enrollment process to stay at that school. In the fall we shared a slide that we haven't shared again because we don't have an update. We are noticing an increase in students from outside the district. This, that's not how it worked before the universal preschool program. So we're analyzing
084to see if there's an impact and if we retain those students. Teresa's point is difficult to trace because two-thirds of the schools have preschool and one-third do not. It usually does stay. So, when does she stay in preschool? If that wasn't for kindergarten, if that wasn't the neighborhood school. It's hard to know. One thing that would interest me in that study is knowing where the children go, where they go. We know where they'll end up if they remain in the system. I'm also interested. It's a two-part question. I would love to integrate this into our intellectual exercise, but I have a lot of anxiety because schools aren't doing adequate things for young children . So, we're going to have a game that's appropriate in terms of development for a 4-year-old child. I'm anticipating that the
085universal program is part of all that and having a discourse about surveillance and supervision, but that's going to lead to practices that are not age-appropriate for children because of how the system is designed. Or the other states, this, other states that have that program, that supervision causes a negative change and we want to educate school leaders so they know that children in preschool do n't have to sit and talk about school supplies. I'm curious, I'd like to know in the future. I know we received four stars and the competitors don't have two, so we are responsible for the quality. I would love to know what the quality is like, what measures we use, and how that integrates with the state quality system. And if we choose to do something that the State doesn't recommend in
086order to receive a five- star rating, then how do we keep this a program appropriate for children's age? And how do we protect that when we assess quality? Good questions, thank you very much. It's something I was going to say later, but let's start with the principles of professional virtual learning. So, the principal has a background in high school, so if I want to support him, I need support. So we are focusing on learning for teachers who need it. And according to Dr. Miller, a small group, we have studied the excellent practices of preschool programs to have a well- intentioned practice with the standards. Instead of having its description, we are going to do such a thing by force. But what is game-based learning like up to the third grade? For example, we've learned about
087that by thinking about the resources we have and how we align that in a well- defined way, and we're aligned with our strategic plan. When we support schools, we are facilitating the environment. It's very exciting and we'll have more in the future. One more thing to add regarding training, the support we are giving to directors, is to understand that not everyone has the rigor or is adequate for development. We can have both things and rigor is not a bad word in a high-quality environment, but in that environment we need to have at least one hour of intentional play in a 3-hour program. It's not simply a matter of throwing the materials away and hoping things happen. What standards are we addressing this week? What do we put in the game centers to support that? Think
088carefully as a teacher, why do we put these things in the environment? What are the goals for students so that they can learn in a student-led way? Because he's right, if we force a certain type of instruction, it's not supportive. Regarding the Colorador Shines appraisal, the second slide I showed you to align with the continuous improvement plan , there is an alternative path. As a district, I am very proud. We are the first to review the work in order to have an alternative path. One is fun. We'll keep one. Let's review the work. We are the leader in the state. We were the first to do it 6 years ago. We just renewed it, and the alternative path as it is at the moment is basically to seriously hand over hundreds of sheets of paper
089documenting all the things we do, and many of those things are required under the education department. They are changing the Colorado Shines assessment, and this alternative path will likely not be optional as it is at the moment. If we continue, these are the recommendations they are demanding, which align with the state Department of Education, and our certification goes up to 202. Five is the highest assessment. The highest level one can receive on an alternative path is a level four. If we were to be level five, the administrative burden, the cost really isn't worth going from four to five and we have to do it by school. Right now we submit all the paperwork only once for all 24 sites, and if we were to do it individually we would have to do it 24 times
090and pay for different things. Dian, is there a program that helps educators or staff access a preschool program at their school? I do n't understand the question. If I am a teacher and I have a child in preschool, can my child attend preschool in the same building? Yes. And we have several staff members who come to the preschool with them. It depends if they have three or four. If they have three, they go through our open registration lottery system. But the 4-year-olds have to go to Bridgec and hopefully they can enroll in school. I did n't know if there was a special route for those who work in the building. For 4-year-olds, everything is reviewed by the state. If we could control it, we could have our designation, but for the 4- year ones it's
091by state. It's a state. Has anyone considered the possibility of training? for new preschool teachers from high school students to prepare new educators, because it is sometimes difficult to find preschool teachers. There are definitely staffing concerns about having enough staff in preschool. We have early education classes in dual enrollment. We also work with the assistants, encouraging them to continue their education. If staff members come to us and want to get their license, I, a team member, meet with them individually. Here are the steps, resources, teach Colorado, scholarships that are available, and all that. We believe in supporting our staff and encouraging them to take the next step, if that's what they want. Alex. Sorry, I had a really good question and I forgot. I am interested in learning more about this and will listen as
092the study continues. But one thing I wanted to put in the minutes, if anyone is listening, I looked at the ratings and almost all the private providers have one or two stars and we have four and we could probably get to five if we want to do this job, but we do have excellent programs and we have many excellent people. who is doing work. This question is probably for Bill. We have spent 1.3 million more than what the state gives us. Can anyone tell me how much extra money we spent this year and how much we're going to spend next year? It's like a wait. Absolutely. It's important to know. Let's get it ready for the news and notes. While I have the microphone, I will say that the idea is mandatory for schools to
093pass, that suppliers have to go through a quality process. One of the difficulties I've had with Prescotlar Universal is probably worse than having nothing because as a parent you think you're doing the right thing by sending your child to preschool to prepare them for kindergarten, but if it's not a suitable program, the child may fall behind. I believe it should be mandatory, and I believe we should have a five through regular accreditation. It's something to advocate for because the system itself doesn't make sense at this point. My comment was related to what Dr. Anderson said. First, thank you for the speech, and I want to be optimistic. If SID wants to align itself with standards, it may cease to exist. This year more than in other years there were many preschool bills. I do n't
094remember seeing so many last year; there were several this year, but the best ones faded away and were gone. or they disappeared with their guide. We need to propose something for next year, because it really is an important part of the education system and every year we hear about the challenges, the challenges created by the state. We have excellent services and care before and after school. preschool. I do n't have much information and it 's always difficult for me to know how this interacts, how that works, and I wanted to give up on the bills. But if you think it's appropriate to do something with our delegation in the future , I'd like to know your opinion. Any other thoughts on universal preschool before we go any further? Thank you. Action items 7.1 Personnel matters
0957.2 Approval of the minutes. 7.3 Approval of the insurance package. 7.4 Approval of the purchase of Riverside Technologies. 7.5 Approval of consumer hosting contract 7.6 Resolution 26-14 to authorize necessary contracts. This 7.7 strategic alliances grant title 6. Is there anything we want to get out? This, we have a motion to approve the line seconded by Alex. Anything else? We have these retirements. If we are announcing Robin Fernández's retirement, we want to thank her; we will miss her too. Congratulations to Tiffany Miller. We want to work more closely with you in your role. Thank you so much. A few more council members. I can comment on the Title VI grant if we want to pursue or seek other funding that we can obtain from that department, which has been incredibly successful over the past 6 years.
096But I did want to say that we have parents within the community who are cooking for those dinners. And we really don't have enough money to run that program with the 2.5 FTE, and hopefully we'll look for other sources of income for that program. Seeing as there's no further discussion, Chris, can you call the roll on the motion? Booker. Yes, Chaz. Yes. Medler, yes. La Noera, yes. Rushp, yes. Teming, yes. Yes, her. And the motion passes. Council members, we have one item remaining on the public portion of the agenda. I want to see if we have time for this 11-page slide or a break. We're going to take a break. We'll be back in 5 to 7 minutes. Welcome back everyone. Now let's give time to the study points. Tonight we only have one, which
097is the academic calendar, and Roben Fernández will be presenting it tonight . Good evening, Mr. President. Dr. Roberson, I came before you to share the draft for the 2026-27 and 2027-28-29 academic calendar. Tonight I am before you to describe the process that has taken place since January and I will be explaining the adjustments that have been made to these final drafts as a result of the process. When we were together in January, the council provided ample feedback on the original draft that was presented to them at that time. Based on that comment, adjustments were made to the draft. They were made and you can see them on this slide. As we know, every change has these side effects, and those comments are on the left side of that slide. This includes starting the school year
098later in August, finishing it later in May, avoiding ending school on a Monday, avoiding extending winter break into a Wednesday, minimizing the number of Mondays off, and maximizing staff attendance for professional development days. What we were unable to address is removing Memorial Day, decreasing the number of part-time weeks, and reducing the number of days off in November. So what we did was create new drafts and present them to representative groups for feedback. As described in the January presentation, we have progressed through this timeline which brings us to tonight. I'm going to review the comments we've received from certain groups, which you can see here at the top of the slide. This slide shows the common themes we received after the January meeting that were presented to the representative groups. The first point represents a request
099to decrease the number of weeks with 3 days. As a result, we have increased the number of full weeks and, in fact, we have connected professional development days, and the consequence of the feedback we received is that families shared the negative effects on learning. naming students with IPS who need more consistent support during the week and decreasing student attendance and dysregulation during 3-day weeks. Additionally, families said that adjusting this daycare for children into a shorter week can be more difficult. The second point is that having Mondays off is a more negative effect compared to Fridays. That was reported for all by elementary, middle, and high school educators. And having Fridays free is better for all interested parties. And third, there was universal support from staff and surprisingly from families who often greeted us with applause
100regarding the exchange dates and conferences in April. They also asked us to change them from a free Friday and Monday for the reasons mentioned above, but also to address the more likely absences on Mondays and Fridays compared to Mondays, which can negatively affect student learning. There was also a request to change the lectures to late April so they would be outside of the week of [unclear] to allow high school students to prepare for the AP exams that begin in May. The working group, which is composed of baby leadership including human resources representatives and parents, considered all the feedback we received from the group and used a process that took into account the consequences of the changes. In addition, the group also addressed other propositions that we are always trying to resolve. This includes maximizing the
101attendance of professionals on professional development days and minimizing the number of substitutes on Fridays. And with that, I'm going to share the adjustments that the working group made . I'm going to start with this calendar; this is the draft after the January meeting for the year 2027-28. What you're going to see in the following slides are animated versions of the draft that are proposed for study today. There were three adjustments that were suggested to draft 202728. First, change the professional development day 18 to the cu. The reason is to increase attendance on professional development days because these days immediately after holidays and Fridays are the most attended. Changing the professional day in this way eliminates the 3-day week, which I just mentioned, and a three-day vacation. This change would begin the semester on January 5th.
102There was an adjustment to change the professional development date from February 22nd to September 7th. This makes a lot of sense for many parties interested in the implementation of so much curriculum material. And again, this supports the intention of high levels of staff attendance based on data that is much higher at the beginning of the year compared to later at the end of the semester and finally changing the dates of the April conferences from Thursday to Friday to Friday and Monday. This fulfills the request to change during this conference and the negative effects on learning. And it also helps us with the longer weekends, which results in fewer problems for finding substitute staff. Now, continuing to the 2028-29 calendar, certain adjustments were also made that were provided to us by the representative groups, which are
103similar to the changes seen in the 2027-28 calendar. First, Professional Development Day was changed from January 16 to the 9th; again, Professional Development Day was increased by changing February 20 to Friday the 16th, again in response to missed opportunities after a Friday off and to address the need for increased substitute coverage on Fridays; and finally, the two April conference dates were moved after they were completed. Simas, move one from a Friday to the following Monday for the same reasons I just mentioned for the 2027-28 calendar. And finally, in these last two slides you can see the latest drafts that are being submitted to the council, which will be presented to you for a vote at the beginning of June, and with that I'm happy to answer any questions you may have. Thank you for this
104presentation, Robin. Board members, any questions or comments? The line. Thank you for all your work on this and for explaining why 3-day weeks don't work for regulation, etc. I'm curious, and maybe I 'm reading this wrong. It says the draft addresses avoiding extending winter break until Wednesday, but I see people returning from vacation on Wednesdays. You're absolutely right. The adjustments that were made to the original draft that were presented to the council in January, based on the comments we received at the January meeting. Yes, the change was made so as not to return from vacation on a Wednesday. However, after those drafts, with Ah, you see what it's saying, it makes a change before, after the council gave that comment, but that comment was considered and responded to by the representative groups, and that's why
105it was changed, which addresses part of the council's request, which was to try to use previous data to maximize staff attendance at the professional development days, listening to the families who want to decrease the number of weeks with three days that we originally had at Bodar Road, just one week after the winter break, and changing this, the professional development workshops are the same number of weeks because you have 3 days, you only change the day once. And my question is, while that's fine, is it a three-day week here or there, which I understand, I do n't know if you can help me understand, because when I see this, one of the important points for me is, that's well known, that I care a lot about teachers attending professional development and maybe what would help me
106is being able to understand the difference. We refer to them here for our families as no-contact days for students. But perhaps what I need to understand is the difference between a workday and a professional development day, and how we are maximizing this given the changes we are proposing. Yes, that's a very good question. A professional development day where professionals participate in learning that is focused on further developing and improving their contract negotiation, and that stipulates that there are, I believe, four and a half days where teachers participate, which is solely for their own planning and grading. What we have done is maximized and organized, whether it be online professional development days with staff assistance. Those dates, the days where we traditionally have the highest attendance, are the days we have identified as professional development days,
107and the data we have had, which we have identified in previous years, we change to teachers' working days so that there is less time lost for those professionals if the staff decides not to attend those workshops. I don't know if I can understand, instead of just putting green here, which of these are professional development days and which are work days. These are the decisions, and some of them are district decisions. Some of the buildings have completed their professional development schedules and we are very pleased about that. I'm trying to understand if this fulfills all the requirements we 're addressing, which is that teachers attend and participate in professional development. And well, we want to see what happens when the buildings take it over. I want to understand which ones are destined to do this and
108which ones are meant for something different. Those that have to do with both, with the district and the construction directives of these programs. And that's because there are the cco days in August, and some of those are for the district and the others are related to planning and professional development. The first one we have is the first professional development day , September 7, which is the day after Labor Day on the calendar, or September 5. Those are traditionally the professional development days with the highest attendance, followed by the September days. Therefore, what you see in these final draft calendars is that they are the ones that follow the work day, which are the work and professional development days that follow and are the ones that were given to staff in August during those days. Additionally,
109the second green day in January is a designated district day for professional development. December 8 is a working day for staff, so they have time to complete the grades for what remained from the first semester and finish the first semester reports. That green day that follows the winter break is after the teachers' workday. The second is the day directed by the district as a learning day. The second green day is because it's on the calendar at a long time. Some have one green day and others two green days, and if there are no moments when families and staff after the winter break. That's why the second day is a district-run learning day. In the second district by the negotiated agreement, which is the second opportunity in the annual school calendar and this is aligned with
110our negotiation agreement. November 12. Yes, November 12 is going to be a workday, and that only exists on the 2627 calendar. It's because we've talked in the past about having Thanksgiving Day and Memorial Day, and we thought we were going to have a school holiday on November 12. We know it's going to have a big impact on learning because we have a reduction in substitute teachers. So if it's a Thursday, it's a workday followed by Friday the 12th. But if you look at the final draft of 2728, we have it on Friday the 10th, and if Memorial Day falls on a weekend, then it's observed on the preceding Friday, which in this case is the 10th. Therefore, there's no need in 202 for an additional workday to accompany a Memorial Day holiday. But based on
111that, then we have February 16th, uh, the 2829th, which is a floating workday, and we see this is because we don't want to include it in November, or because we want to try to have a 4-day week, so we don't do it two years in a row. What is the reason for that? First, we have a substantial discussion in the working group regarding this and we talk about how we can support the teachers and students knowing that, according to the agreement that has been negotiated, the teachers have a certain specific number of working days and they have to fall somewhere. In November, having not had a 3-day week, we did not create an additional 3-day week because we know, based on feedback from parents and teachers, that they might want to split the weeks into
1123- day weeks, and we always know that this is a good working day for teachers. So, I would say the opposite is more true, that the reason in the previous year that it was linked to Memorial Day is because it falls on a weekday and that makes sense. Knowing this and the flow of the teachers, then it makes sense for them to have a work day in the second semester in the middle of winter. And lastly, could you clarify how we can track whether teachers are attending their professional development days and what the consequences are if they don't? In recent years, we have tried to closely monitor attendance, starting at the building level. School principals monitor attendance, and staff have the ability, through our negotiated agreement, to take their annual leave on those days or
113on school days. If they wish to have a professional development day, the school principal monitors whether a staff member has requested one. We have had many conversations with staff about why, how we are organizing this, how we create the materials, and how this development impacts students and our leaders. We have tried to make this professional development attractive to them, so that the staff will make the best decisions for themselves and the students will know that this will be the best thing they could possibly enroll in. And we're trying to do this to support the staff members who are trying to do it and to let them know why we're doing it and we have some numbers on how we're doing and whether it's improving. And we can achieve those numbers, but of course, yes, I
114don't have the exact numbers in my head, but I know that we have improved attendance as a result. Does anyone have an additional question about the schedule? Comments. Jason, it 's not so much a question, but more about thinking about how difficult this is and the different perspectives and the impact. I would like to say something. I've spoken frequently about why we start when we start and the consequences of that, so I appreciate that we're addressing this here. Starting the school year late and finishing it late, I appreciate that too, but it seems we're starting on a Tuesday instead of a Wednesday, which I think in my experience is what's generally done, and families are going to appreciate that having to get half a week of childcare, at least it's going to be one day
115instead of two. Families appreciate that, and I know from my conversations with teachers how difficult it is not to have a break, and I know that this has been a priority in all the focus groups, so we are super happy to see this. So after C plus uh after the students, so it's quite a long range with respect to the students and they're going to appreciate being able to have that break and it's needed. So if I wanted to comment on that, thank you for your work and especially to the different people who helped improve this. This is a very good result. Thank you. You are welcome. This is very important to me in two ways. Well, all my friends who are still teachers have had time to contemplate and discuss the lack of substitutes,
116and so we can tell you that there are no substitutes. It's truly brilliant. Uh, private schools use our calendar, so it looks beautiful. Anything else, members of the Board of Directors? Yes, thank you very much. Having those comments really helps a lot. It's not really a significant complaint, but if we consider that we have the autumn break and it only has one day, it does n't really feel like much of a break, so why don't we change its name? Because it says a break, that's all I'm saying, the words there shouldn't just be one day because, well, this makes people feel like they didn't have the right information. And if we can get back to our normal rhythm for the academic calendar, if what we've had in the calendars and if we can have a
117rhythm and consistency each year, uh, this calendar is really a little more appreciated by our staff and there's no further discussion. So, in that schedule we're going to continue, council members, and then some items that you want to talk about or prioritize for our session. Well, I don't know how to articulate this concisely, but our preschool programming and what the preschool infrastructure will be like up to K12. Yes, I would like to add that we should discuss whether we can have a technical advisory committee. Well, since there are no more hands raised, let's continue to our last part of the agenda, which is the executive session. Alex. So I'm going to ask that we begin our session, which is to discuss personal matters for the evaluation of superintendents 4.3 B to have an evaluation and
118those about Horizon Summit P and VP. There is a second motion. Cris, you can call Chavz, yes. Mler, yes. Willen Oleda, yes. Rashford, yes. Yes. Her. Yes. The motion passes. Members for the members of the public. This concludes our meeting. public. Good night,