November 12, 2025 Special Board of Education Meeting

001Good evening. I call this meeting to order. Roll call, please. Ms. Williams Here. Ms. Miller Here. Ms. Chesney Here. Ms. Kearns Here. Ms. Laney Here. Mr. Moore Here. Mr. Richmond Here. And just a reminder to all of the board members, please remember to turn your mics on when you're speaking. Thank you. I'll stand for the Pledge of Allegiance, please. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. I'm waiting on the list. Thank you. Okay, audience participation. Carrie Habegger? Yes, that's me. Hello. My name is Carrie Habegger, and I'm the parent of two children in the district. My son Rudy is a junior at Central High School, and my daughter Audrey is an

002eighth grader at Bodeen Middle School. [clears throat] I am here tonight to ask the district to pause on any school closures or restructuring until a clear, academically grounded plan is established. Pausing does not mean I am opposed to change. In fact, I believe in it. I support the modernization of our schools. I welcome a long-term plan that leads to state-of-the-art high schools, expanded opportunities, and a stronger St. Joseph for the next generation. However, change without transparency, community input, and a clear explanation of benefits is not progress, it's disruption. And this is what our community has been dealing with since July. Unfortunately, the district's current process has created more confusion than clarity. The ever-changing boundary lines have been a big issue. Despite living 1 mile from Central, my kids would be shifted to either Lafayette High

003School or Benton High School. Not to mention the countless other kids who actually live across the street from Central and shifted to another school. There has been no meaningful explanation as to how either of these shifts improves academic outcomes, student access, or operational efficiency. If students are reassigned, there must be guaranteed access to the same caliber of academics, electives, CTE pathways, arts, and enrichment. A zoning line or zip code should never determine the quality of a child's education. I think hiring a demographer to provide up-to-date data and enrollment projections is a good idea. Any future boundary changes should be directly tied to the construction and voter approval of new high schools. These changes should not take effect before those facilities exist. If the long-term vision is truly modernization and growth, then redistricting should accompany new

004infrastructure, not precede it. Just as importantly, the district must demonstrate financial leadership before placing any further burden on students and families. A thorough audit of administrative overhead, redundant positions, and central inefficiencies is warranted. If difficult decisions must be made, they should begin with the adults in leadership, and not with the students and teachers in our classrooms. I know that there was an audit recently done by Linda Quinley with MSBA, and I know that the community is anxious to know the results of that audit. I also think someone needs to be held accountable for the millions of dollars in mistakes on the budget. Finally, I ask the future plan include and be have compassionate guardrails, grandfathering juniors and seniors so they graduate at their current school, and prioritizing proximity so that students living within a mile

005or two of a campus are not reassigned across town. Families buy their homes and build their lives around their school communities, and that stability should matter. St. Joseph has tremendous potential. This district can lead, but only with transparency, clarity, and a commitment to elevating opportunity for every student. Our children deserve a plan rooted in vision, not disruption. I ask you to pause, reassess, and work in partnership with families to build a future worthy of our kids. Thank you. >> [applause] >> Ms. Cook It's called height challenge. I'm here tonight because I believe we deserve explanations. An explanation for how administration thinks they can't close anything but Bodeen and Webster in plan E due to need for special ed classroom space, but they can close multiple schools in the two high school models. With closing all

006of the schools in either of the two high school plans, how do you account for all of the classroom space for special ed? Why is this issue come up only regarding plan E? If you can't do it with only closing one middle school, then you sure can't do it closing multiple schools at every level. Sure, having a large middle school may allow you to keep the cohort plan at the middle school level, but it's not going to work at the other levels when you need the space because you have increased student population in all of those buildings. My concern is this. The board votes for the two high school model, then this administration comes back with, "Oops, we made a mistake and can't close all of these schools because we need all of this space

007for special ed." Then the only thing that happens is we drop to two high schools, and nothing else changes. I do not believe administration did their due diligence with plan E, and it is becoming very obvious they haven't done it with the two high school model, either. This is just a way to backdoor their way into two high schools. This community deserves to know, "How did you even get to this point regarding the financial hole that you have found yourselves in?" I worked at Mosaic for over 40 years, and every 4 to 5 years, they had to downsize administration. Has anyone even considered freezing salaries? Maybe admin takes a pay cut, or some there lose their jobs before we start taking front-line teachers and other staff away. We need to look at ways to cut

008in the behind the scenes areas that admin seems to prefer to keep out of discussion. If you don't stick to your word and make plan E work, I fear, no, I am certain you will lose at the ballot box when your operating levy comes up. And you will be in even more trouble then. There is a reason this town has required a sunset because we don't trust you to keep your word. It's a shame that you have proven us right. >> [applause] >> Valerie Brandt My name is Valerie Brandt and I'm a lifelong resident of St. Joseph, a substitute at Central High School, and I have two kids at Central, a junior and a sophomore. And a fifth grader at Coleman. They are the third generation in my family to attend and hopefully will be

009able to graduate from Central. I know that there are hard decisions to make moving forward with the future of our schools, but the decisions you make now will not only affect the immediate future of my children and all high schoolers across the district, but will also greatly impact the younger students that are growing up here. I would first like to say that the way this entire situation has been handled is extremely disappointing. The anxiety, fear, sadness, disappointment that you all have caused our kids and their parents is unacceptable. This has been going on for many months, even prior to the bond vote in April. Leading up to that vote, St. Joseph residents were told that if the bond failed, Benton would close and the town would be divided. This sent people into panic. Either vote

010for a new school that didn't have a great plan or divide our town. You all were very clear about that. I voted in favor of the new school. Then the bond failed and you went back on what you said you would happen. Your words lost value. A few weeks ago I sat with well over 100 people at Central and watched and listened to you all vote unanimously on plan E. I did not agree that plan E was the best final plan, but at least it would buy some time to slow down a bit, take a breath, and move forward on making logical decisions that would be appealing to all of the community. Then at the next work session, you all decided to trash plan E and go back to going back to needing to close

011a high school. Once again, your words lost value. With every plan you have proposed, Central students will be separated, displaced, devastated. Their school is still open. You are just be Some are just forced to be in different places. My daughter, who is in all honors classes and college classes, including honors orchestra with a 4.5 GPA, is terrified that she will have to leave her school that will continue to hold half of her friends and be forced to a new building her senior year. My son, who is a varsity football player and a three-sport athlete, is heartbroken wondering if his teams will be back next year or if they will be playing on opposite sides of the field. Your decision affects every single child in this district. Please don't try to sugarcoat this reality with numbers,

012charts, and then calling it transparent. No one trusts you right now. That That is a huge problem. We are now back to seeing our children and my students, all of our parents and myself, anxious, full of fear, sadness, and disappointment. You have lost our trust and your word has little value, even though you're supposed to be the leaders in our community. Please move cautiously. Our teenage students deserve the experience of deserve to experience the best years of high school, their last phase of being a kid, yet the most important years in shaping what direction they will go in becoming adults. My request to you, please create a policy that allows these students to be grandfathered in and stay at the high school that they are currently in. I understand that closing two high schools is

013what needs to be done and I support that eventually. But please, allow them to follow guidelines through MSHSAA. Okay? Thank you. >> [applause] >> John Berry Hello, I'm John Berry. I have two kids that go to your guys' school, one at Central, one at Benton. My wife graduated from Benton and she wanted my daughter to feel see how Benton was and she enjoys going to Benton. With you guys changing the boundary lines, she would be forced to go to Central and she does not want to do that. Why we voted down on a lot of your guys' requests is because as much most of the people have already said is we lost trust in you. We have no way of showing or you guys have no way of showing us that you guys are going

014to be frugal with our funds. Why are we paying for things outside? Why we having people hiring people to hire our superintendents or any of our other positions? Why can't we do that stuff within house? I know there's a lot of fat that you guys can still cut. Even though some teachers have said, "Hey, we've cut. We've cut. We've cut." There are far more things that you guys can cut. There are some facilities that you guys still have, some credit cards that people still possess. Start cutting them. Reduce your numbers. Why [clears throat] is it that there's still a member on the school board that lives in a different state? I thought there was a policy that maintains you guys' residency within the district. And another thing that should be considered, and I know it's

015a hot topic on most families, is why not go to a four-day school week? Make it a three-day true three-day off. Make it to where on Saturday, Sunday, or even if you choose Monday, everything is shut off. If a teacher needs to be there, hey, you're in there with no electricity, no HVAC, no nothing. If you're going to be there, you're in there in the candlelight or flashlight. But I know that that is at least of your guys' worries, but the accreditation, if you go into the two high school plan, your numbers are going to drop, too. Cuz my daughter actually said today if she is forced to go to Central, she wants me to pull her. And I guarantee you this is not going to be just me, but there's going to be other

016students in this district that's going to say, "Yep, nope, I'm not doing that. Pull me." And they'll do homeschooling. Thank you. >> [applause] >> Courtney Crawford Good evening. My name is Courtney Crawford and I'm here again as both a community member and an educator who values accountability, transparency, and data-driven decision-making. The recent change in direction regarding our three high schools has created concern across the community. Many residents perceive that this shift is being driven by political influence rather than by educational or operational evidence. This perception undermines confidence in the district's decision-making process and highlights the need for greater transparency moving forward. It is important to remember that the board previously determined plans two and seven were not viable options. Revisiting those concepts under new labels without new data appears inconsistent with the district's prior conclusions.

017Before proceeding with any new proposal, including plan E, the district should complete a comprehensive impact analysis. This is a modest cost compared to the potential disruption that could result result from an uninformed decision. The analysis should evaluate financial implications, transportation efficiency, student distribution, staffing needs, and facility usage. Only Only by comparing these data points side by side can the board make a defensible and equitable decision. There have also been ongoing concerns about fiscal accountability and the management of district funds. Transparent reporting and independent review of financial practices should go a long way towards restoring public trust. And that trust is already strained. We've seen mistakes made, missing funds, mishandled budgets, and explanations that have fallen short of real accountability. When millions of dollars cannot be clearly traced, that's not just a clerical oversight. It's a

018signal that oversight itself has failed. It is worth reiterating that the administration serves under the direction of this board and the board itself is accountable to the community that that elected it. That responsibility includes ensuring that all decisions are made in the open, supported by verifiable data, and free from outside political influence. For these reasons, I respectfully urge the board to pause any further action until the impact analysis is complete and shared publicly. Making decisions based on comprehensive data protects both the district's credibility and the stability of our students and staff. In closing, I would ask one practical question. Why do most the most significant operational changes consistently fall on students and teachers? Thank you for your time and for your continued service for this community. >> [applause] >> Mr. Gearing So, good evening. Um

019many of you know that I did serve on the board as Earlier this year, I stepped away to focus on my family and my health, but I do still care deeply about uh our schools, our staff, our kids, our teachers, everybody. So, I know the decision tonight's not easy and looking back, you know, we were all disappointed that the bond didn't pass and I know a lot of people were disappointed about that. Um something we felt like would be progress um we're not getting instead um we're talking about some tough decisions that we have to make and my point here tonight is I'm not here to to say yes to two, uh yes to three, yes to pausing. Um I just want to focus on what the administration recommended and if if if that is

020what you guys decide to go with um I just think that that needs to be the focus if that makes sense. So, the current plan it includes much more than that. Not only does it include going to two high schools, but it includes moving a lot of middle schools. It includes doing a lot of the closing of elementary, possible closures of middle schools. There's just a lot of moving parts in the in the the plan two and seven if that's what we move forward I would just ask that if that is what the board votes for and if that is what you do, whether it be two or seven um or you pause and if anytime if you do go to a two high school, I think that needs to be the focus and I

021think um that that would almost be like phase one and that needs to be the clear goal. Um getting to the two high schools and doing it right. You need to I would focus all the energy and communication and planning on that. Um let the community see that come together and understand what it means for our students, teachers and families and you know, once we got that transition in place and stable then we could start talking about middle [clears throat] schools or elementary schools or what we needed to do with those. Um change is always hard, especially when it touches long-standing traditions and memories, but it doesn't have to be chaotic. When change happens in stages with a clear focus and steady communication, people have time to adjust and see the why behind the decisions

022that we make. You guys have a tough job. I appreciate the time, effort and thought you're putting into this. My hope is simply that the district would take this one step at a step at a time and build some confidence in the community um and set us all a foundation for whatever comes next. As a former board member, I know the weight of these choices, but as a parent, I also know the heart behind them. The desire to do what's best for our kids and our future. I truly believe we can get there if we focus, take it one step at a time and bring the community along with us with us along the way. Thanks. >> [applause] >> Brandy Judah >> [clears throat] [clears throat] >> Hello again. Round two here. Um I would

023like to ask that you focused um on strength and not dismantling. Um the district is on the rise and congrats for all of that. That's a really big deal. Um and on those APR numbers, let's just not set it back right now. Um I would ask you to pause on any major boundary decisions until we get an updated demographic data by a qualified demographer. Decisions about closing schools should not be made on data from 2019 2018 and 2019. I'd also ask that you get a complete and financial audit um and have a detailed phased implementation im- implementation um laid out with phase timelines of student transitions, staffing, transportation, grandfathering of kids who are already at high schools and their siblings as well. As you know, people buy homes due to school districts. Please do not

024pull the rug out from people who have bought homes in certain districts and pay property taxes for those homes. Saint Joseph has been struggling with the school district for so long, so please do not make it worse. People have left in droves and I I believe that they will leave in larger droves if they are redistricted at the high school level without a new facility. Um another thing I would like you to understand is that the reason there's really no there's not a reason that the schools have to be exactly the same size. Many I've been doing a lot of talking to people and research about this and many kids at Benton and Lafayette choose those schools because they're smaller. They don't want to be in a school that's as big as Central or equal

025to Central um and the same for Central. A lot of kids choose that because it's larger. Um wanting to go to larger colleges away in different states. Um so please consider that. Open enrollment is unique to Saint Joseph, but as a native, we are not normal and so it works for us and I would ask you to consider that uh remaining in place regardless of what happens. In closing, I would respectfully ask that you delay any vote on school closures, get a demographer, require um detailed data, phased implementation to be finalized and shared with the community before voting on a final plan so that we can all get behind it. Please reject um any pressure to rush this process. Instead, let's prioritize be accurate, be transparent, focus on academic quality and equity for all students

026rather than making a decision simply for the sake of saying a decision needs to be made. So, thank you all again for your service and good luck. >> [applause] >> Okay, Mr. Baron Uh hello. Thank you for the opportunity to speak. I'd like to start with a question. Please educate me. If you close a school, will that building be boarded up? If not, won't there still be the same maintenance no matter what kids are there? Or will it be sold off and no longer the responsibility of the Saint Joe School District? Saint Joe School District and board is once again the center of controversy. Some things never change. Please explain how your votes change when the Chamber of Commerce has an opinion. I've heard very little about what's best for the kids. You screwed up

027the budget, new turf fields, etc. How will dividing kids, tearing them away from their school families help? The kids have built relationships with teachers and coaches and now they'll be forced out by a group of elected adults adults that they no longer trust or have faith in. None of you. Voted you in, you said the will of the people the will of people is there and you ignored it. Each and every one of you. I pray you will consider the most important subject in this fiasco, the kids. How will dividing and forcing more kids into classrooms be beneficial to them? It won't. Please rethink this whole idea. Go figure out how to make it work without the massive disruptions you will cause. Thank you for your time. >> [applause] >> Um it looks like Maggie

028Seaman Good evening. My name is Maggie Seaman. I'm here as a taxpayer. I want to remind all of you that a lot of us citizens pay a lot of taxes to run this school district and from what I've seen the last couple of months or years, you guys all need retraining. Keep in mind the taxpayers control all that money you're playing with and losing. I've also been in touch with the state auditor and I'm asking and I'm not the only one asking to have a state audit on the school district. Thank you very much. >> [applause] >> Annie Rosemary Good evening, board members, administrators and community members. My name is Annie Rosemary and I'm a product of the Saint Joseph School District. This is year 28 that I've been teaching and coaching all here in

029Saint Joe. Before we talk about numbers, buildings or plans, I want to ask you one simple question. What is the true cost of closing a high school? Not just in dollars, but in community trust, in student opportunity and in the very heart of the city. Right now, morale across our district is low. This entire process has been exhausting for students, staff and parents. Many of you are worried about what their next school year is going to look like. Plan E has a solid idea that improves our district, but it's never been given a real chance. Why not wait for the audit results? Why not consolidate unused buildings or trim excess costs before disrupting hundreds of families and staff? And let's be honest, closing a high school won't bring major savings. The dollars saved are minimal

030compared to what we lose. Smaller class sizes, strong relationships and better outcomes for students. Those are things that truly matter. Plan two, the Central Lafayette model, doesn't have the space or infrastructure to absorb more students. Plan seven, the Benton Heights Central combination, is more realistic. It's a long-term option, and even district leadership has acknowledged that. In closing, I ask you to choose a path that preserves our schools, protects student opportunities, and rebuilds community trust. Because trust is the foundation of voter support. We can look at building new high schools after our finances, climate, and culture are stable. A new building won't fix deeper community issues, but keeping our schools open keeps our community strong, united, hopeful, and moving forward together. Thank you, guys, for your time. >> [applause] [applause] >> Beth Hernandez. Hi, guys. My

031name is Beth Hernandez, and I just want to thank you for letting us speak again. I know you've heard so many of us the last couple weeks. I'm not here to yell at you. I just want to share some perspective from inside our schools and our community. When the board voted plan voted for a plan E, our kids and families finally felt like they could breathe. It wasn't perfect, but it gave them something to hope for. So, when that was pulled back and they were told it wasn't financially possible, it felt cruel. And both you and I know that was cruel to begin with. Giving people hope and then taking it away has left everyone anxious and defeated. Now we're back to the same question. Is it me? Is it Lafayette? We don't know. And

032living in that uncertainty has been devastating. Our kids are anxious, distracted, and worried about losing their home. We can't We can accept those hard decisions, that's fine, but we can't keep living living in limbo. Please make choices that provide stability and clarity because our kids deserve at least that much. Some of you know me, and for those of you who don't, I'm a product of this district. I graduate graduated from Central High School. I went to Missouri Western. And I chose to stay and work in the same community that raised me. I started my career at Edison. I moved to Lindbergh and now I'm at Benton. Saint Joe isn't just where I work, it's my home. That's why this decision hits so profoundly for so many of us. Our community's culture runs very deep, generations

033deep. Families have built lives here, often in the same neighborhoods where their parents and grandparents lived. Businesses, churches, and schools have shaped not just our town, but our identity. The three high schools have always been more than just buildings. They're community anchors. The rivalry between them has been a source of pride, connection, and belonging for decades. When one of those schools closes, you're not just closing a building, you're cutting into that shared history. I understand financial pressures are real, and I'm not against change, but you can't dismantle something this meaningful without a plan to rebuild what comes next. The story will end one of two ways. Either SJSD took a big risk and failed, or SJSD took a big risk, it was tough, but we're okay. The difference will depend on how you lead our

034community through this monumental moment. I also want to speak about safety. When schools merge, we all know emotions are very high, and I experienced that firsthand at at Lindbergh when Lindbergh and Humboldt merged. There was literal literal turf wars. Kids felt like they didn't have a home, and they were fighting for an identity that they once had. And those were elementary kids. We're talking about big kids now. And some of And their belonging is even stronger. So, staff will do We'll do everything we can, but it won't be enough without a proactive plan. So, please don't wait for issues to arise, talk about that plan now. I don't envy the position that you're in. I know this is hard, but I ask you to remember the people behind the numbers, the students, the families, and

035the staff. This uncertainty is that we live with every day, it's it's tough. Whatever happens, we'll be there every day, ready to support our kids and our families because that's what we do. I'll end with the same choice that I mentioned before. SJSD took a big risk and failed, or SJSD took a big risk, it was tough, but we're okay. Please choose the ending that keeps our communities standing together. >> [applause] [applause] >> Okay, Mr. Schott. Hello, I don't even think I have 3 minutes of worth of stuff, but Saint Joseph School Department is going through a process of rebranding. Um it's an educational term, but it's a term when you look at the existing outcomes of a school department, and it is felt that there could be a more successful programming if we looked

036at the structure of the school. I was born in Saint Joe. Uh I went to Central, so you talk about rebranding, and they took my high school, closed it. But it is Bowtie, so I understand that. I'm 78 years old. I remember a school system that could support all students, no matter their post-high school plans. They could have gone to college, joined the military. Most importantly, existence in existed in Saint Joe, good jobs that only required a high school diploma. Think of the stockyards, Wesco, Quaker Oats, Noma Lights, the brewery, and many other businesses. That ability to good jobs that could support a family no longer exists. The need for more than a high school diploma is now very necessary, started a long time ago. And that's not college. People talk about We're all Saint

037Joe wants everyone to go to college, and the chamber was That's not true. 70% of our population is free and reduced. That one of the criteria for free and reduced is the amount of income. Sometimes you don't You can't afford to send your child to a high school. But what we look at What I look at as an educator of 35 years is K-12 is evaluated by me by how many of them have a written post-secondary plan. And I can tell you, the people behind me whose kids are going to college, they have a written post-secondary plan. They know exactly about financial aid, they know what's available. But if you don't understand the educational systems, and if you're working two jobs just to feel just to feed your child, I feel Saint Joseph School Department

038should address all students that they have equal access to everything, to guidance, to counseling, to social workers, educational opportunities, AP courses. I put a comment in here that if I happen to move into Saint Joe last month, and I'm assigned to any school other than Central, and I've already given the board what doesn't exist at Benton and Lafayette that it exists in Central, and it's not just the AP classes. If someone wants to wants to be involved in other things, I just ask the community look at everything that's offered at Central. And if your child has an interest in an area, and there's 1,400 kids >> [music] >> to go there, their chances are much better. Thank you. >> [applause] >> Mr. Ingram. For some reason, the past 8 years, we have been under a

039barrage of threats of closing certain schools. Why? We are some Why are some people so hell-bent on disrupting teachers and students' lives just so a small group of people get their way when plan E uh has a majority of the support? Personally, I find the whole situation insulting. But the biggest insult is to our kids, because it's been flat out shown that some people in this town do not want to have their kids go to that school. Sad. Now that the situation has reared its ugly head again, here are some questions. Have you figured out bussing and its cost? When are we going to have an audit to find out where the money is going and what is missing? When will you give us the taxpayers clarity on finances? Why are admin costs going up

040when enrollment's going down? When will you apply the same scrutiny to plans two and seven like you did to plan E? Why [clears throat] are 75% of the admins that are making these plans have their kids go outside the Saint Joe schools? Why will you not allow kids to grandfather into your plans so they can graduate from their school the past 3 years? Along with that, why will you not allow siblings to follow their older siblings? When will you do an impact study on what these plans, and all three plans, will do? You and past school board members have been told for years that we want to keep our schools. It's understood that yes, a school will be closed. It will be too old, too far beyond to repair because of cost, but you do

041not shut down an anchor school to save money. You have also been told that if plan two or seven goes through, you will never get another bond issue passed again. It's not a threat, it's a promise. I did a Google study tonight cuz I was just kind of curious, and I typed in studies of closing a school and its impact. And you know Google, it'll give you extended words on, you know, to prioritize it. You know, give you more detail. That's what I typed in. Beyond that, it gave me options for and its impact on students, student behavior, on teachers, on society, and even on the environment. Now, I did that through a Google search and this is what I found. And it's not very well taken on closing a school. This is part of

042the study that was done on how it affects everybody. I've been a member of the airline industry for 45 years now. Times are tough. We did not ground airplanes. You have to let people go and it stinks. I know. I've been there. I'm not saying to go through and dismiss people at the end of this school year. But I I know that it can be done with attrition over the next few years. Because the days of having an open checkbook of taxpayer money are gone. And the St. Joseph School District needs to get their finances fixed first before they repurpose or close a school. Thank you. >> [applause] >> Aaron Westlake. Imagine it's 2030. Five years in the either plan two or plan seven. History repeats itself as test scores and attendance drop more than

043expected. The same pattern we saw when closing Humboldt. Across the district, teachers and administrators now spend more time handling discipline and less time teaching. As academic performance fails, so do attend so do attendant attendance and enrollment, leaving our funding below promised levels and putting us back in today's crisis. Reserve ratios remain low and we face yet another financial shortfall. Some may call the scenario too pessimistic, but many students, parents, and teachers, and citizens opposing plans two and plan seven see this as a real risk, not a fantasy. The seven of you are the people who have to weigh the risks, but it's the community that will have to bear the consequences. I know I may not change your mind if you've settled on a proposal, but I want to be clear on the risks that

044I have to weigh as the parent of a second grader at Bessie Ellison and two younger children who will soon attend. My wife and I chose to live in Bessie Ellison's boundaries because it is stable, effective, and nurturing environment that it has cultivated over decades. I do not believe a new Truman Elementary School or an Oak Grove that would have to manage an explosion in population will offer the same quality. My wife and I will have to weigh the risks against the alternatives of private education, homeschooling, or moving. And if we are weighing those options, so are hundreds of other parents. The administration's projections ignore how much community skepticism could lower attendance and raise attrition. They also overlook the very real risk that test scores will fall sharply with so much disruption. Letting the administration

045both design the plans and predict the impact is like letting a student write and grade their own exam and expecting that to be an honest evaluation OF THEIR LEARNING. >> [applause] >> IF YOU WANT PARENTS TO TRUST YOUR DECISION, I ask you to give plan two, plan seven, and Jeff Leek's revised plan E to an independent evaluator. Have them produce a range of likely financial and academic outcomes. Share those results with the public and in April, let the candidates for the board run on the plan that they believe is best suited to our district and then let the community make the informed choice. Then, you will have a clear mandate of what the voters expect from you. THANK YOU. >> [applause] [applause] >> TRAVIS SMITH. ALL RIGHT, TRAVIS SMITH AGAIN. Uh lifelong resident, St. Joe,

046all schools. First of all, I don't know how we're back at this. Again, I was at the same meeting a few weeks ago where you guys all selected plan E and to move forward with that. You you both everybody agreed that two and seven didn't effectively meet the needs either. But yet we pick plan E apart and then we go back to two plans that we've already decided weren't good enough. I don't I I don't understand why all three plans aren't being evaluated together to find the goods and bads that are offered in each to then come out with the best conclusion. And I also was under the understanding at the meeting where it was voted in that you guys are going to work with Jeff Leek. And make he he he came to the

047podium that night and he even said, "This plan isn't perfect. It's allowed it needs might need some touch up here and there." He was never given the chance to make that right according to what the public understands. So, again, it sounds like to me then if we're not in agreeance of any of these three plans, then maybe something else new needs to be come up with. Second of all, I don't even think you guys should have ever been able to be in the place to make a decision like this without the independent impact study to the community. It should it should be mandatory. This is something pretty detrimental. And that's not fair to you either to make a decision off of that. Instead, where you guys are forced to make decisions based off of number

048prices and numbers that are given to you from an administration who is 20 plus million dollars in the hole. So, we're going we're going to we're going to take numbers from people that can't even get a budget figured out. How does that make sense? It doesn't. The third thing that's really agitating me very much. I constantly keep hearing no businesses want to come to this town because of the schools. I'd like to know what businesses told somebody here that they're not going to come here because of a school. Few years ago, I ran for mayor of St. Joseph, Missouri. And I sit in with a lot of key political figures of this community. And economics is one thing that was clearly discussed. And I will go on the record to clearly state you guys are

049in the clear. Schools were never talked about. The problems of this community are much larger than the schools of why businesses aren't coming here. But one thing I can tell you is is our St. Joseph City Council in making incorrect decisions with money to develop our city is one thing that those businesses look at. So, an incorrect decision that you guys could make also could impact the businesses wanting to come here because of the decision you made about the schools. And I would also like to know why we aren't going to just stop the proceeding of this whole school thing until we can figure out why we keep going into the negative. What are we going to do? Close down schools and then go back in the negative? And and have closed down more? I

050appreciate your time. Thank you. >> [applause] >> Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. On Monday night, I heard the board can't make a decision. I heard that stated twice by the superintendent. I believe there is a reason why um the board couldn't make a decision. And it's that you already know that plans two and seven are wrong and that they won't work. Plan E was intended to be a model. The board was expecting to hear modifications to plan E. But that didn't happen. I believe the administration just didn't want plan E to work. So, to make a wise decision, you must have current data up front. You can't back into an effective plan. Why were the special ed requirements and projections revealed only last Monday? What other surprises are there? My suggestion to the board is

051start at the top and make critical cuts to the administrative and operations budgets. Then and only then will you know what needs to be done with the buildings and the staffing. The administration created this financial crisis. Please, please don't make the students, teachers, and the taxpayers pay for those mistakes. I'm asking the board Time. respectfully that you step back and pause. Go through all the steps that are necessary at your pace. We need a wise decision, not a knee-jerk, because it will be the board who will be blamed for a bad plan. Thank you very much. >> [applause] >> Michelle Zeig? Hi, my name is Michelle Zeig. This is round four for me. Um I'm the parent of three boys, a future educator. My hope and prayers are that you take the pause with all

052these abrupt changes that the administration is proposing. We need to have a demographic study. We need a complete financial audit. There's many things that have been not I don't know, submitted to the federal government or whatever for funds. There's been curriculum programs purchased that weren't, you know, thought it was going to be a payment plan. It's not. Our kids are the ones that are suffering. It's not their fault that the administration didn't do something right. The board needs to hold these people accountable. We chose you board members. Please, think about the kids. I really want the best for all these kids in our community. I mean, I have a son that's going to be a senior next year. I don't know where he's going to go. If you close down our schools, I mean, people

053chose the school that they want went to for a reason. Some people want to go to a big school. They want to go to Central. You know, some people want to go to Lafayette and there's plenty of kids here. I mean, all these kids poured out their hearts for weeks and it's like on deaf ears. It really doesn't matter. If you really care about the kids, I mean My kids are brought up in a a two-parent home with a lot of love. They have support, but there's lots of kids that don't. I care about other kids. I don't just care about my own. If you really think about the kids, there's a lot of poor kids in this town. They can't go to a private school. And a lot of you can. You send your

054kids to private school and kudos. I went to a private school. I am Catholic. But there's people that are in this room that did not they were not Catholic and they sent their kids to private school. I mean, I'm just saying, look at everybody. There's so many children that have nobody speaking for them. Well, I want to speak for them. I I mean We got to think about our kids. Everybody deserves the right to a good education. And if you're just you're just hauling them all around town. We don't even know what it's going to cost to bus these kids. I mean, really, what is it? Have we got a figure? I haven't heard anything. It's going to cost a lot. And if I if I'm if I'm correct, you can only ride a school

055bus for an hour. Do we have that many school bus drivers in this town? I don't think so. I just want everybody to look. And it's it's bigger than us. It's all these kids. I mean, this town. And if we vote to close down all these schools, I'm sorry, but it's the beginning of the end for this town. Nobody has any faith in the administration, the board. I mean, it's just going to be heartbreaking. >> [applause] [applause] >> There she is. Hello. I'm Megan McAndrews and I'm a proud product of St. Joseph School District. I attended Neely, Horseman, Spring Garden and Benton. I earned my 238 card when Horseman was closed and I was moved to Spring Garden. Before that, I was a Lafayette person through and through. However, my Southside community became family, which

056I'm sure the communities in the Northeast and West feel the same way. I taught for 30 years with 23 of those in the St. Joseph School District before we semi-retiring, cuz now I'm on year 38 >> [laughter] >> in the St. Joseph School District. Um I taught at Pick-It for a few years before coming home to Hyde. Hyde is my family's second home and that's what I'm going to talk to you about. Hyde sits on a hill overlooking Benton High School. Kids play on the playground and look through the fence at the high school where they hope to graduate from in the future. Our students climb fences and cheer when teams from Benton have gone to state. They are excited when they get a high five from one of those high schoolers. They walk down

057to Benton to watch a dress rehearsal for a play or musical. Students from Benton who do not drive or do not have a car come up the hill to Hyde for their A+ hours or for tutoring or for tutoring our kids. They come home or they come and earn volunteer hours after school by helping teachers and volunteering at our school carnival. To the east of our building is Spring Garden Middle School. Recently, Mrs. Barb Spencer from Spring Garden and our second grade team worked together on a project where the second graders designed monsters and students from the garden made ceramic replicas of those monsters for these kids. They also wrote stories about those monsters and what they did while they were at the garden. These kids and their teachers walked to Hyde to present and

058read those stories to their new little buddies. The smiles on these kids' faces were priceless. I ask you, what other elementary school in this district can have such a beautiful scenario as that? Teachers who are there do not leave unless they retire, move to another district or take administration administrative positions. We have a 100% teacher retention rate. And since I started there in 2000, there have only been three principals. In fact, since 1988 when I did my student teaching there, there's only been five principals. And that is including our current one right now. Only one did not retire from the building. This is what makes this place home for so many kids, teachers, staff and administrators. Our AP score was up to 72.8% from 69.3. Um this past month of school, we are at 90%

059attendance, which is number two out of all the elementary schools. Over the past couple of days, I've talked to people from across town. Some are for the two high schools and some are for three. I can tell you what I've said from the beginning, which is debatable. Um for me, I'm for two brand new high schools. Okay? I also wanted to thank you guys, thank the board and administration. I'm personally sorry that you have to make these decisions because I really think we should be replacing [clears throat] schools by building new ones every 15 years or so. >> [applause] >> Jeff Leake? Good evening. Um since everybody's counting their years, I think a couple have me beat, but this is year 27 and only probably Mrs. Baker could tell how many times I've spoken before

060the board. Uh I've spoken here for the last 20 years. I spoke 15 years ago about teacher retention before it was a problem. And I was told by two superintendents, "If they don't like it, they can go somewhere else." And that's what they did. A lot of our problems didn't just happen overnight. On Monday night, I knew my plan wasn't perfect. And one of the things I was going to tell the board was "Any decision you make, there's a cause and effect." And any of those things that are needed by the district, if you want to put this here, you have to do this. There's going to be that. No plan is going to fix all of the problems overnight. And if it does, it's going to create new problems. I urge, along with many

061people here, I think that the courage is going to be to pause till we get an audit, a performance audit like I called for at the first time that I spoke. What jobs do we have now we didn't have 6 years ago? We have not even looked at what, you know, like another person said, we've grown in our in our different jobs and and how many how many people administration, teach teachers, whatever, but our enrollment has went down. Has our has our cost went down with our enrollment as far as staffing? And I don't think so. Um we've never given it a chance for the three to pass a vote. And we voted against two over and over again. Vision Forward and the PAC did not recommend two schools. They recommended upgrading schools. All right.

062Um just going through, we've played chicken with the community about vote for this or else, vote for this levy or else and we the district has lost every time and the community lose everybody loses in the game of chicken. Um the 20% threshold that we think we got to get to right away, that can that can wait a little bit. And we talk about kicking the can down the road, I'd rather kick it down the road than kick it off the the cliff. And that's what we're doing here. In a few years, my plan did call for open enrollment if necessary to deal with a lot of the problems here. My plan did call for making sure we get we got rid of the sunset and passed the levy. My plan did lead to a

063new bond and a new school. And I don't think the other ones had that in there. I'm looking forward. Mr. Moore talked about decisions for today, decisions for tomorrow, and 5 years, 10 years. Now, we've we've got to give the people what they want. Ultimately, like our previous superintendent said, we have to do what the community wants. THANK YOU. >> [applause] [applause] >> I WANT TO BE EACH AND JUST PASS THEM AROUND. JUST NUMBERS. I want to play off what Jeff Leak said, the game of chicken. I have always wanted to get behind our district. I really have. But I have battled you for 7 years. I'm tired of it. I don't want to. I I want to go on vacation. I want to live my life. I don't want to look at your finances

064and study and study. I don't want to do it. But I'm here. You want to talk about numbers? If you close Benton, you could gain 5 million. If you close Lafayette, you could gain 3 million. But if you do that, this community will not forget you closed our schools. We haven't forgot the golden years. We This is worse than the golden years. You In 2029, the sunset goes away. You stand to lose 7 million and a half. So, you could possibly win this battle tonight, but you will lose the war in 2029 cuz we will not vote to give you that $7 million not when you closed our schools. Then I want to go to status quo. Let's talk about status quo. The district loves to use words like status quo. They claim we can't

065continue with the same status quo. And on that point, I agree with you. You've made this community miserable for 7 years now. So, let's really talk about what status quo means. The status quo of an uninvolved community is over. The people are awake, engaged, and speaking up in record-breaking numbers. You can look on We the People and I just give you the information. We are the voters. We're the taxpayers. And we elected you, the school board, to represent us. Not to serve as spokesman for the district or cheerleaders for its administration. These are highly paid professionals making six figures. And yes, they should be working hard. Hard work alone doesn't earn praise. Results do. And in the eyes of the community, the results have been dismal. The The facilities plan plans are terrible, and deep

066down, you all know that. The district has mismanaged money, taxpayers' money, for years. And now they're trying to force the same failed status quo two schools plan down our throats again, even though the voters have repeatedly rejected the at the polls. Enough is enough. The real status quo that needs that needs Sorry. The real status quo that needs the end >> [applause] >> Okay, Michelle. Um The last name begins with a B. Baber. There you go. Good evening. My name's Michelle Baber. I'm 68. I'm a grandmother raising a grandchild. Along with that comes a lot of heartache, uh therapists, uh my knowledge on ADHD has expanded with every Amazon book known to man. Our distrust for this administration, not just you, started years ago when Bo Mussar uncovered everything that was going on. Now, we're

067in a financial pickle again. And I worked at Quaker Oats, on was on labor management committees. I worked at Johnson Controls, was their financial secretary for the union. Also on labor management committees. Negotiated several contracts, more than I probably wanted to. How it is that we're in this financial pickle now, you give across the board raises, but you didn't figure in everything, did you? You didn't figure in PERS. You didn't figure in medical. You didn't Projects weren't counted in. How is How is that possible? How is that possible? Was this the first raise this administration ever gave anybody? I doubt it. All those figure in. Every time you give a raise, you figure in those things. It's like you have no checks or balances. You know, is nobody watching? Does nobody care? I have probably

068been involved with every school my grandson has went to. I love the teachers in this community. I love how the administration at each one of those schools have worked with me to try to see that this child succeeds. I work at Bessie Ellison now, and I think dare say you could probably ask how much I care about kids. And my grandsons never went to that school. We will not trust anything. The way you flip and you flop. You go from one thing to another. How can you? How can you? How can you not figure in when you're giving people raises everything that goes into that? How can you turn a blind eye to what's going on? We care about our kids. I care about this community. I may be 68, but I still got a

069little bit of spunk left in me. And I guarantee you, long after my grandson's gone and graduated, I will still care about this community and about the teachers and how much they put into this school for themselves and the parents and the students. I I ask you to look at Jeff Leak's program again. >> [applause] >> Evan Hoover. Hello. My name is Evan Hoover, and I'm a senior from Benton High School. And my brother is a third grader at Hyde Elementary School. My family has been struck with the reality that this has been struck with the reality that the board has forced upon us. Ever since I've been in kindergarten in this district, I was taught the importance of equality and opportunity and the beauty that education brings our lives. Us students at Benton understand

070there is very little equality between the schools. There's far more oppor- opportunity for our brothers and sisters at Central, whether academic, social, or financial, just because of where they live. Where is the equality? There is none, which is a consequence of the board's love for bureaucracy. Another little detail I believe the board has neglected to consider is that the students who go to your schools care more about the quality and future of the schools than you seem to. Young people do not trust you. We will not trust you in 5 months. We will not trust you in 5 years or 5 decades, when our generation's progeny are students in the school district you are creating now. I'm a personal advocate for an egalitarian solution, namely two new high schools planned out and supervised by demographers,

071social workers, auditors, and members of the community. Students at Benton High School are going to one day fill the the the the seats that you are in now. We will become doctors, lawyers. We may some of one of us may even become the president of the United States and and we deserve the world that just as just as students at Central and Lafayette do. We are community that has potential and we don't need to be led by cynics. We are fully capable of great things. So, please, dear God, make the right choice. Thank you so much. >> [applause] >> Chris Habegger Good evening. My name is Chris Habegger. My wife Carrie and I have two students in the in the district. Our son Rudy is a junior at high school and at Central High School

072and our daughter Audrey is in the eighth grade at Bode. We chose to raise our family here in St. Joseph because we saw the potential of the city and the promise of our public schools. Equity It's a buzzword lately. But equity isn't a slogan and it isn't achieved by shifting kids around on a map. I can tell you what equity isn't. It isn't reducing opportunities, it's elevating them. It means ensuring every student, regardless of zip code, has access to advanced placement and dual credit courses, comprehensive career and technical education pathways, robust arts and extracurriculars, and competitive athletic opportunities. Reassigning our kids without guaranteed access to the same level of rigor, opportunity, and support doesn't level the playing field, it widens the gap. This process needs guardrails. You've heard that from everybody that spoke. Families need

073predictability and compassion. Let's provide grandfathering for our kids that have already begun their high school journey. And let's prioritize proximity. We shouldn't be moving families who live within a mile or two of a school all across town. Trust is fragile right now. You have a chance to show that you're listening and that you're leading with purpose. You're making decisions based on what's best for the students, not just the spreadsheets. I'm asking for a pause. You've heard that from so many of us today. Our kids only get one high school experience. Let's make sure the decisions we make tonight won't cost them the opportunities they deserve. Thank you. >> [applause] >> Dwayne Tice Am I close? I'm Dwayne Tice. Um My our daughter graduated from Central in 2012. Um I'm trained long time ago to be

074a teacher. But um I wasn't exactly capable of controlling kids, I guess. Anyway, um I came from a town of of Avoca, Iowa. It's a small town. Um I have a hard time understanding exactly why you want to cut anything. Uh if it's short lack of numbers, I don't understand. Um I think your smaller high school has about 800 and some. My home my home school district today after it used to have just two towns, now it's got five, and it's only got 641 people in the whole district. And I don't see that that's a problem at all. Lack of of enrollment should have nothing I don't I don't think St. Joe's in that kind of a situation at all. Um and I even at that, I don't know if that would be so bad.

075Um Um town not too far from where I grew up um won the semi-finals in the in the state football today and I don't see that I mean it doesn't matter how small you get. Um my school my class had 54 people in it. I think at least two people of them, maybe even three of them, are became doctors. Uh one person became a um um nurse practitioner. Uh I don't see that anything has stood in their way at all from lack of the number of people. I think it's the quality of education that makes the difference and I don't I think you guys should be worrying about your performance scores a lot more than about what school you're going to have keep open or what you're going to do. But I I tend to

076think I keep wondering why if you got problems with too many empty rooms, just I don't know, there should be you got some good janitors here, you should be able to just cut off the heat to them. Or downsize what you can do. I don't see any reason that you need to cut shop chop anything. And um especially my daughter went to Bessie Ellison. Uh she was um at that time, I think when we when her she graduated, five of the top 10 kids in the whole class were from Bessie Ellison. So, why would you want to kill the class the school a school that's doing a good job? I don't I don't see why you want to even consider cutting that. I don't see any reason that you need to change that much, but

077you do need to inc- improve the performance of the students and what how much they're learning. And I don't know if we really want to be dealing with people I don't want a doctor who doesn't know where the where my heart is. >> [applause] >> Jennifer Letterman Thank you for your time tonight. I did not expect to speak tonight, but at about 3:35 this afternoon >> [snorts] >> I was going through emails in my staff email and came across this message sent 16 days ago. Dear SJSD staff, the Board of Education voted tonight to move forward with Plan E. Additional discussion is planned for a November 10th work session with a final approval expected at the November 24th Board of Education meeting. A special bond meeting, excuse me, board meeting may also be scheduled for

078November 17th to review further details. Thank you for your continued patience and commitment to our students and community during this process. Sincerely, Dr. Ashley McGinnis. I want to say that I have a very high respect and regard for each of you sitting there and many of you out here. I have sat on numerous committees. I sat as a representative of the governing board at Community Action Partnership years ago and was nominated to sit on the executive financial committee there. I was elected to be the lead board member of the Head Start Policy Council 10 years ago. And I worked with Whitney Landing. That's where I first met her. We don't see eye to eye on everything, friends, politically, but I can tell you one thing, when you give that girl information, she will go to

079work and she will do good things. Cap was done when she came into her position as interim executive director. It was done and I mean in a way worse way than this district is. She was given numbers, she was given info, she was given the power, and she went to work, turned that place upside down, saved it, not only saved it, but made it thrive and expand. Give her the info, give her the numbers, don't put limitations on this board, allow them to work together in unison in a positive manner, put together the best Plan E that you possibly can. You expressed a need and want for top-tier educators and keeping them and that it this type of action is exactly what has been pushing and will continue to push them away. >> [snorts] >>

080Step across the river and find a lot of your top-tier teachers who have moved within the last few years just because of actions like this. You voted unanimously for Plan E, unanimously. Looked us in the faces and said you'd go to work and see what needed to be tweaked and make it happen. You're now eroding trust and quite frankly signaling a lack of integrity. You are now messing with people's minds. Adults and children alike. I don't know how you can sit with that. Go to work really, really hard on what you said you would do. Thank you FOR YOUR TIME. >> [cheering] [applause] >> OKAY, NANCY KELLY HI BOARD. MY name is Nancy Kelly. Um, the first thing I think we need to realize is that the priority of anything you decide should be for

081the students and the students only. Buildings can come, buildings can go, but plan E is what the city of St. Joe wants and so that makes it your priority. We need to work with Jeff and find out what is the best plans for plan E and in his study, he doesn't just want to keep the old schools, he wants to build a new one. He has plans on down the road. I hope you all have looked at all that and and took it to heart because the city of St. Joe wants the three high schools and we don't want to close any schools at all. You need to do a demographic study. You need to have an audit and that audit, you might be surprised. You might come up with something you didn't know you

082had and that's a plus. We need to all look at all the extra buildings St. Joe has that are underused. They're all over town and half the town don't even know they're St. Joe School District buildings. But if you [clears throat] look around and you're old like me, there's a lot of them out there that could be sold and money be put back into the pockets of the city. So, please consider that we are for plan E with further studies and take a pause. Everybody needs to sit back and listen with your heart and not just what you're hearing with your ears. >> [applause] [applause] >> Corey Sponseller. Hello, my name is Corey Sponseller. Um, unlike a lot of people here, I do not have generational roots in St. Joe. But when it came time

083to buy a house when my husband and I moved here, we did um, we did a lot of research and decided that we wanted our six kids to go to Central. Specifically, Eugene Field, Bode and Central. Uh, our number five kid is going to be graduating this spring from Central and our number six is finally a Patriot. She's been waiting a long time to be a Patriot like her sister and her brothers. Now she's being told she might not be a Patriot next year and she might not be an Indian ever. So, in our household, that is that is big news. Um, and for someone who has never did not go to high school here, um, Central has really been a godsend for our kids. They had there's just been numerous opportunities for our kids.

084They've all excelled. Um, they've all been to college, they all took AP classes and now our last one is being told she might not have the same opportunities as her as her brother and sisters. Um, two of my girls were state champions. She's not going to have that opportunity if she's if she has to go to a different high school. So, we're just asking that you please pause, take a real look at the boundaries, um, open enrollment possibilities, things like that. When we bought our house, we were very specific on where we wanted our kids to go to school and that's where they go. And now, especially with our last one coming up through the ranks and she might not get to go have and have those same opportunities, it's it's very disheartening. So, just

085please pause and take a look at those options. Thank you. >> [applause] >> And that ends audience participation. Is anybody needing a quick Yes. break, anything like that? Okay, let's Five minutes good? Okay, let's have a five minute break and then we'll come back. >> I'll give it a couple of minutes as we're making our way back to our seats. I know y'all hear me. Come on now. Come on. Thank you. Okay, approval of the agenda. Is there a motion? I have a motion. Is there a second? I'll second. Motion is second. Would you call the vote, please? Yes. Ms. Williams? Yes. Ms. Miller? Yes. Mr. Chesney? Yes. Ms. Kearns? Yes. Ms. Landing? Yes. Mr. Moore? Yes. >> Mr. Richmond? Yes. And the motion passes all approved. Items on discussion? Who's going to take that

086first? Is that you? Is that me? That's you. That's me? Okay. Okay, so members of the board. There was a request a couple of nights ago to call a meeting to discuss and let's discuss. Who wants to go first? Now, y'all better not do this. I I have my mouth full of candy corn. Okay, good. Mr. Richmond? You know, I I want to begin and I'm not going to make a general comment. I'm going to make a comment to the folks that are here. I do appreciate your passion and your time. Just like you thank us for our time. I do appreciate your interest, passion, and and desire to have the best thing for your individual students and the schools and and and their peers. I understand that and I relate to that. I want

087you to know that I respect you being here and when I ask you know, sometimes it's uncomfortable the things that are said. Many times to me deservingly. I'm okay with that. But I I want to know I want you to know that um most every time I what I hear is your passion for your children and passion for the schools. And you know, sometimes that gets verbalized in a different way, but before we begin any discussion, I just want to tell you thank you for being interested and and really trying to work with us the whole the whole system accountable and end up with something that's we can be proud of as a community. So, thank you. I know I didn't say anything, but I broke the ice. Keep on knocking on the ice, Mr.

088Richmond. Go ahead. All right. Go ahead. You can start. Well, I I would just whisper to Mike I'm disappointed in myself. [clears throat] You know, I came on the board to um to help students, teachers, and I still I feel like I'm resolute in in my determination to do that. I'm certainly proud of our most recent APR results. I just can't help but mention that. But I also to help provide cohesion in the within the board and then um to be a catalyst to provide community support um for our school system. And I feel like um that has been my intention that in the in a couple of key places I've I've failed in that and maybe I've failed by not pausing like you guys have said. I acted too quickly um and for that

089I apologize. And if that's created a mistrust, um my apologies for that. I take this um I take this very serious and um as if you've attended these meetings, you would know the outcome you have done that. I I was the first one to really say I think we need to take a hard look at the Benton Central lot and um asked the administration to help us do that and and felt like geographically that was the strongest um model that potentially we had. I um um I wasn't you know, I've been interested in the the geographics. I'm also interested in that individually. Some of you spoken about how you chose a house. I spoke of that at the um meeting earlier this month and um I recognize that's very important. I uh and so consequently,

090I think not only about the high schools, which I I know that's center cut of what we're doing, but I think about the middle schools and I think about the grade schools and in every place I've said this, our family chose where we lived based on the grade schools that they were going to go to. Not just St. Joe, but we lived a short time, 5 years in Virginia as well. And so um so that led me to say I wasn't sure about the feeder system um and some of the plans and um I didn't know that they'd been flushed out um and and so um I I had also supported plan E. Everybody with me on that? I'm I'm standing up to that. I'm I'm I'm not avoiding that. I'm I am I somewhat

091wish I hadn't because then I'm part of creating mistrust, but as the results came in on plan E and Jeff Jeff knows that I've been interested in his input and the district's been interested in its input. That's the true story of that. But the fact is is that as it came in, measured on the same things. I'm not saying that there aren't other ways that we're going to save money, but measured on the same scale. Applied um the plan E just did not produce the financial results that were need to be in. It It fell significantly short of that and it's not the only consideration, but it's one that we have to we have to consider. And so I'm I'm part of the group that says we need to we need to step back and

092I believe we have. We don't need to step out, but we need to step back and take a look again at what's going to be the thing that puts us in the best position to be successful going forward. And so um I apologize for particularly to the students for um giving the indication that plan E was it and we were going to make it work when when financially that just did not that wasn't able to come about. And and I'm not saying there wouldn't be tweaks, we wouldn't have done better with it financially, but I think that's true with every plan that we have. Our intention is to do the plan and to do better. So, tonight um I'm looking forward to hearing and working with our team, which is not always the easiest thing

093to do in a public setting and and identify do we have do we have a plan that um can can can meet the needs of our community and move us forward. We've been talking this for a lot of years. I respect the fact that the data I'm an engineer. Am I going too long? You can ring that bell and then I'll stop. I'll gladly stop. But I'm uh I'm a data guy. I like data, but I'll tell you what um I said to somebody today, we have we have a lot of data. We have data from 2019, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24. We we have backwards data. No doubt, we can't see perfectly into the future, but it's not like it's not like the demographics have radically changed. We we get a picture of that

094every school year when enrollment happens and our schools fill up. So, I don't feel like we're desperately in need of more data and I don't also feel like that at any given time in the future it's going to be any easier to make this decision than what it is right now. I feel like the same passion is going to happen and I you know, I appreciate the young man that got up and spoke and everybody, but um you know, it's not going to be different if we wait 3 years and then we do this and have to make some of those decisions. And that's what's happened before and so I come tonight and and I know you and and I have I'm willing to have you challenge me in the fact that I come tonight

095with the idea of still saying by the 24th of November I hope we can make a decision that causes our district to have a direction and from that direction to move forward. And so um again, I'm going to give others a chance to say something, but I want you to know I'm thinking tonight that we're going to we're going to we're we're going to have talk about a solution and on the 24th we're going to vote and approve it. Okay, I'll quit for a while. I appreciate your thoughts, Mr. Tom. Thank you. Okay, next Mr. Mike. Uh yeah, please. Um You know, Tommy, I agree with what you said and um you know, the piece of data that that that we don't lift up enough, but demographers in the past and ones today I am

096certain would continue to share with us that our district enrollment is shrinking. And you know, that's resulted in uh in staffing issues and and money inefficiencies. And I'm not I do want to take issue. We we hear a lot that there's missing money or stolen money. Um it's not true. Um there's there's Did we miss some deadlines for funding? Yes. Um and we're going to pay the price for that, right? All of us are as taxpayers. And so we we've we've got to get this not just for Let me say one thing cuz some of you might not know that. That federal money now is in house. Yeah. Both 23 and 24 and 24 and 25 funds from the federal government have been received and are part you know, are are part of our thing.

097And so that section of the concern Now, you know, there can still be well, why in the world did we wait? But that section of it is resolved. Those money those monies are in. And we have a process in place not to stumble in our timing again. >> Yeah. Sorry. [clears throat] No, it's good, Tom. Thank you. Um yeah, so I agree with Tom that uh I want to make a decision and um you know, people need to know you know, I hear a lot that that that while nobody wants change, at least they need to know what's coming so they can plan. And we've we have failed you on that account. There's no question. Um but I will say this, I think I think I'm interested in um I've always been uh uh open

098about my support of plan two. And um you know, the Lafayette Central model for reasons I'm on record for. And um I am absolutely open though that you know, maybe we're biting off more than we can chew. Maybe there's something we can do at the uh a grade school level. Maybe that maybe the middle school model can be evened out a little bit, you know, so that you know, while we're not saving every single dollar we possibly could, it sets us on a course and minimizes the disruption for families. Um but we we've got to make a decision and it's got to include uh our concerns addressing our concerns with staffing and finances. So, I'm glad to be here to work on it tonight. Thank you. Thank you, Mike. Okay, who's next? Rhonda? I think

099I need some more time to process what I want to say. So, if you wouldn't mind coming back to me I appreciate that. Okay, Whitney. Um I'm really incredibly disappointed with how the last several months have gone. I am incredibly disappointed um that we have gotten to this point and we have failed in such a way to bring the community along that many of their suggestions um are not understood to be impossible to achieve. Um there are so many things that speakers here and and people on social media have shared that um you should do this, you know, you should get you should do one large high school. Well, we've gone through we've gone through that. We know that we don't have the tax base to support that. Um we've talked about, you know, people

100have mentioned like you should you should build two new high schools. I agree with that, but we all know that that will take time, that there's a process for building our um our bond bonding capacity and and we know how long that would take. Um I get I'm I'm frustrated because you know, I I I believe what you believe, Tom, and I believe what you believe, Mike, that um there's not missing money and there's not stolen money. I believe that, but that's because I'm on this board and I have access to the staff and I have access to information. Um and that's why I felt like an audit was so incredibly important and that's why I've I've essentially um thrown myself around like a toddler throwing a tantrum to get it. Um because I felt

101like if we had done that audit in a timely manner we could have um moved forward um at least in a a more cohesive um trustful way. Um I'm not going to go into much about the process of um we voted on plan E and then we rescinded it. Um I'm I'm I'm so disappointed in that. Um it's embarrassing. It is um I'm just not I'm not going to go into a lot of that. Um But I do also believe and I shared this on Monday night the options are make a change or throw the district further into um financial crises that we may not be able to recover from. Um I am angry that um no board prior to ours um or well, that's two years ago Herman has taken the steps necessary to

102prevent us from getting to the 11th hour. Um that is not necessarily our fault. Um while we do take some blame in it, um there's this this topic has been talked about for 20 years if not longer. Uh 20 years of boards have known that this that changes needed to be made. What changes obviously are not always clear. Um and so it's unfortunate that we are the board um stuck holding the bag um so to say. It's it's unfortunate, Dr. McGinnis, that you took over, you know, I I think back to uh when we were going through the interview process and the search process for a superintendent and what a happy and exciting time that was. Um and I'm I'm sure that you felt that when you were stepping into this role it was an

103exciting time to be taking over um and we the the comparison of the climate culture both internally and as a community the change is drastic and stark. >> [clears throat] >> So, I am admittedly uh very critical of the staff. Uh I am critical of the staff whether I personally like you or not. Um I believe that it's important to be critical as a board member um or things get missed um as we have seen. Um but I appreciate the time that you've put in. Um again, I wish that this could have this process what got us here um could have looked differently, but I also realize that um the benefit of time is not one that we have had um necessarily. Um The plan that we approved, the long-range plan um I felt like

104it was a good one. Um I was going back and thinking about when we first started that. We actually started that um other than 20 years ago. Um I felt like we really started digging into that in um August or September of 2022. I wasn't on the school board at that time, um but I like many of you got really angry and went to my school district and sat down and um demanded data and all of those things. And so, in 2022, we started looking at that. We started looking at reports. We started looking at data. We were looking at ages of schools. I don't know that there's one thing that that the the staff, including this one, did not provide to us. And we asked for it several times and many times. We had

105a facilities committee. And out of that process, January of 20 Any of you that were here can can tell me if I'm wrong. January of 2024, January, February, we came out with a plan. It was the first version of the long-range plan. I think we went through eight or nine variations of that plan, and we finally approved it. That would have been Tell me if I'm wrong. Everyone but Jennifer and Tom, right? You were here or no? You were. So, in in August or September of 2024, we approved that plan. Um We put forth a bond issue, and and many times we we hesitantly talked about as if to not jinx it, "What do we do if it doesn't pass? What do we do if it doesn't pass?" And we talked about, "This is what

106we have to do." At that time, it was because of our dire staffing issues, which has not changed, which By the way, that was the whole point of the four-day week. That was the Hail Mary to prevent us from getting here. Yet, here we are. It's fine, though. Not bitter. Um So, I I I'm I'm sad that we have we have not done a good job or good enough job of bringing the community along to understand everything that we have gone through. Um I am I am I'm I'm regretful of that in so many different ways. And I wish that we had the time, and hopefully we can find a phased approach. I don't know to any plan that we make. I I am I am hopeful for that. But what I do know is

107that if you don't have the money, you cannot carry out your mission. It It's an unfortunate reality of business and life. If you do not have the money, you cannot carry out the mission. And so, the two responsibilities of a of a of any governing governing board are fiduciary and legal. If we do not make sure that we have the finances in order, we cannot educate our kids. We can't We cannot do anything. I am for progress. I feel like one thing of this process that we can say is that we left no stone unturned. And I understand that that was rapid-fire, you know. But I think that also goes to is a testament to we are trying our very best. And And Dr. McGuinness, you and I do not see eye to eye often,

108but I think we see eye to eye on that. Um and we need to move forward. We need to We need to move forward. There is I am confident, Mike, that there is no new information that There's There is no There's nothing that we're going to magically come upon that says, "Oh, here here is the answer." It's It's not going to be new. If anything, the only thing that has changed since any of this data has come out is that things have gotten worse. Um so, I am for change. I'm only one vote. Um And again, I'm for change to make sure that we have the finances to continue operating. Um and I'd like to see us do that um in the best way possible for students first and the best way possible for staff,

109and I do not give any credence or care about the input of the Chamber of Commerce. That's it. Thank you, Whitney. Are you ready, Jennifer? Yeah. So again, I'm going to see what Tom said. I thank you guys for coming out here. It It takes a lot of courage, and we do listen. And I do agree. I think we are all trying to do the best we can right now. And I think this administration as well, you guys have put so much effort into this. Um it doesn't go unnoticed. But also, I am going to say that, you know, coming in here, I've been very transparent with my concerns on each plan. I have asked questions. Um There is problems with all of these plans, E2 and 7, that still I have questions about that

110concerns me. And, you know, if we could come together today on something and make it work, that's fine, but I really think if we can't come together and make this work, and again, we can agree to disagree. I really do think that we do We do need a new demographic study. The last one was 2018. We do need a new one. We need a professional and expertise to come in to help give us >> any new messages from the time >> Oops, sorry. We need someone to come in >> is cut off. >> [laughter] >> Uh we do need, I think, uh a fresh real assessment of the buildings' capacity. We need an unbi- unbiased analysis analysis done. Um We need clear boundary feeders, again, from an expert. That's my opinion. Again, you guys don't

111have to agree with me, and that's okay. But I think to move forward, for us to agree, I I feel awful right now, and I am so sorry that we're not celebrating our APRs. I am so sorry. I feel awful. Um and that's what we should be doing. That's what we should be doing. Um and that's one thing I want to point out. Everybody talks about how much we're going downhill today. We do have something to celebrate. We do. And thank you. Thank you. Um So again, I do think if we can't come together today, and we can't agree, I think we deserve to pause this. I don't think that's spineless. I don't think that's not responsible. I think it is responsible. I think we owe it to everybody to make a decision. I agree.

112I agree with you. But if it's I hate the word, "We need to rip off the band-aid." Because if we rip off the band-aid to an infection, that's not going to help anything. Just my opinion. Again, Yeah. Again, I'm just saying [applause] >> [applause] >> I And like I said, you know, I I'm not I am not going to sit here and say, "We need to have two schools. We need to have three schools. We need to have a future" is what we need to have. And I don't think it should be all of us making that decision. Okay, Kim. I'm ready. Okay, Rhonda. I'm ready. All right. Let me turn my microphone on. Um I also want to thank everybody who comes to speak, and as people are speaking, I'm writing down little tidbits

113of everything that everybody says, so that I can kind of keep track of what people are saying. And so then, um I go back and I look at what everybody has said, and I find that that at lots of people are saying lots of different things. And um I think my heart really is doing what the community wants us to do. My heart ultimately, though, is about children. I've dedicated a lot of years to children. So, with that being said, it's very difficult to take in We've heard community input four times. And um I've looked at it. I've weighed it. It is It is very very difficult to figure out what to do with community input because there's so many variety of opinions about things. And I wish we can say, "Oh, well, we're all

114in agreement, and this is the community, and so here we're going." It's just not that simple. Um I think part of the reason why as a community and as a board and as administration we're struggling with this is because it is a gigantic, impactful decision that is going to be something that we have to live with for a very long time. And so, that's part of the reason why I think we're struggling. Um I've looked at all the plans over and over and over. I've lost lots and lots and lots of sleep. Um I ultimately want to do what is best. I wish there was just something that would say, "Woohoo! Pop up off here. This This is the one." Because the problem is we don't know what the future is. But what I do

115know about the future is we have to give our children the best opportunities. We have to give them the best academic opportunities. We have to give them the best teachers. And when people are passionate and they've been coming and talking about their schools, here's what I know about our schools. Every person in every building in this community could come and say what the what the people who've been coming to say about every school because every school is doing great things for children or APR scores wouldn't be rising like they are. It has to be a team effort and I really feel like the administration is the best team ever and they're the ones that are going to be able to continue getting children to be great learners because that's the goal and it isn't going

116to matter what buildings our children go to in this community because the ultimate curriculum is the same in every building in our community. All teachers have to teach to the same Missouri standards. They all have to do the same thing and we are all as teachers in this district capable of giving our children community and relationship building and a great place to go and learn no matter where your children go to school in this district. I truly believe that. I see it on a regular basis. And that's what I want for our district. So then when I start looking at all these plans, then my heart plays into it because I still know so many people who are in these buildings who this is going to impact and I think that's one of the reasons

117why we're struggling with making the decision because we know humans are going to be impacted by this decision. But with that being said, we also have an ultimate responsibility to do what's best for our children. So when I was a teacher in the classroom, I only knew what was going on in my classroom. When I retired from teaching, I saw wow, there are lots of things that go on in in schools that I can't see on a day-to-day basis because I'm only focused on my class. So being a board member has given me a totally different perspective of a school system. Because our school system is not about one high school or two high schools or four middle schools. Our school system is about the entire district. And so I've had to take a step

118back and think my gosh, I got to look at what's best for the whole entire district which is another reason why I think that makes this decision for me very very difficult. Um so I think um I don't know what I think, but I think that um I really do want us to move forward and progress creates pain. It creates discomfort. But here's what I know in my personal life. When I've been through pain and discomfort and I work through that pain and discomfort, on the other side, I'm a better person. And I feel like when our if our district can work together as a team and go through some pain and discomfort, on the other side of that pain and discomfort, I truly in my genuine heart believe there is always good. And so

119I think we just kind of have to figure out which pain and discomfort we want to go through and get to the other side where things are better um and that's that's what I have to say about that and so um I kind of have an idea of what I want to do because I think it's more long-term. Um Um but I want to continue to hear what other board members have to say and I agree with you that we need to make a decision. Um Um And if and I also agree with you, Jennifer, that we if we can't come to one, we're obviously saying we're not capable of making a decision and so I think we have to continue discussing this and then kind of come to a conclusion from there. Thank you,

120Rhonda. Thank you. Ooh. This is really difficult because we do have to move forward. But I also agree that we aren't in unity. Our admin has worked so hard extra hours all along the way just doing our bidding. We want this. No, we want this now. No, we want this. Um tirelessly for the things that we've asked. And they they don't always match. There are some things that are good, some things that don't quite sit well in those plans, but that's the same as plan E. Any plan that is chosen has to be tweaked, has to be modified. But are we the ones to do it? We don't get along well. We are um a board that does a lot of infighting. And it'd be nice to just come together on something that we can

121agree on. I appreciate very much this admin because they are new and like Dr. Hedgecorth, you were in there what, a couple weeks and you discovered this discrepancy. I very much appreciate that. And you take the hits for it. Right now because you sit on this administrative team, you take the hits for that missing money. And you had no idea before you walked into there. So I appreciate your integrity to not throw somebody else under the bus for making that mistake. So I agree. I I appreciate that very much. But that's how I see all of you. None of you has complained about the previous administration that brought us to this point. That's integrity. So thank you very much. And I admire all the hard work that you have done just for this moment. I

122hear the hearts of these people sitting out here. The pause, please pause because your heart is for the school where your children go or where you've had history. Of course it is. None of us sitting up here wants to destroy those passions for the schools that you attend or that your children are attending. None of us wants to do that. It's going to happen. But we see what is happening within the building today. I I worked at a school in the cafeteria and there were two classes combined because they could not find a sub for I believe it was what was a fourth grade class. So they had two classes as one. And that you know, if we can't fill it, that's the rough spot. So I know that's part of the reason for downsizing

123or right-sizing is a better term for right-sizing and getting the appropriate numbers in the buildings. And I know they're just not numbers. I know they're somebody's children. They're children that I see when I go to work in the schools. And and it's a great feeling to be around them. I agree, Rhonda. This is one big decision. And uh are we fit for it? Are we Jennifer? You you said that too. This is a hard decision to make because it's going to affect the rest of the time. And one of our speakers even mentioned that if we make the wrong decision, we're known for that wrong decision and It's absolutely right. we get cut. But none of us wants to be that kind of board who makes a poor decision. But everything that you're thinking about

124up here, I know you're thinking what is best for our children. We have to move into the future. We must for their sakes because we want all of them to succeed. We want all to have the same access to gifted classes, to uh to Hillyards if they don't want college to AP courses, to science. All of that. We want every child to have that opportunity. Nobody wants to cut those back. I get that. I don't want to have to make that decision. The long-range plan says the mission is preparing students for success in a complex and changing world. That's what we face. It's changing and it's complex. The vision is creating the climate of achievement in partnership with an engaged community. That's an engaged community that sits beyond that podium. I very much appreciate that

125everyone who came and spoke tonight took the time out and came up. You had written statements. That's admirable. So thank you for for taking that time, for standing that young man who spoke from Benton, wow. He's going to be a great speaker. It takes a lot of courage to do that even for adults, even for seven people up here, it takes courage. But it's hard. >> [clears throat] >> So for me if we need to take a pause just to get our act together, that has to be done. If we cannot >> [applause] >> if we cannot if we can't do this because we are so concerned about that decision being right and the way it affects affects our community. It has nothing to do with the chamber. It has nothing to do with we

126the three schools pack or people challenging us from the podium. It's because it's a stinking hard decision. Period. And the more we hear, the more we have to process and I'm a slow processor. I'm pretty old. But I've always been a processor where I have to have as much data as I can get my hands on. And when you come, you put a face to that data. So it gives me more that I have to process. When I look at our administrators and what they have done for us again, I stand in amazement. Because not only are you working on these plans willy-nilly at our request, you have your day job oversight of the schools. Making sure we have substitutes in classes where like today we didn't have one. That's frustrating for me and and

127I'm just volunteering in there. So I do agree we have to move in one direction or not. And at this moment, I can't tell you what that is for me. But I know there has to be movement. You've done so much work that we have to give you direction. So thank you. It won't be tonight for me because my brain is crazy with data. And I need to sort it. But but there might have to be a pause if we get there. But let's let me process more and let's see what happens at the end of the month. Thank you, Ms. Kim. I believe that we were all elected in order to make the choices and decisions and I know that I never imagined it to be easy decisions or choices. I never imagined that

128I'm coming on the board and making all new best friends. You know that we're going to kick it together and hang out. I work every day with individuals and they're a little difficult and that's okay. I think Sorry, my watch is hearing me talk, too. I think it's okay if our board [clears throat] is not all extra close and loving. Cuz in all honesty, if you look at every area in life, it's going to be some people you know that you got to work with in order to progress. I know that when everyone's looking at things and you're like, "Oh, the board's all over the place and everything like that." Okay, well the reason that we're all over the place is all of our discussions are always in open meeting. I'm not like other groups

129and I'm not I'm not going to break any laws or like anything like that and do things in other rooms. No, all of all of of the collaboration in the on the board, it's always an open meeting and so I mean, of course of course at times it looks a little bit crazy. And the thing about it is it's been mentioned many, many times, you know our issues, it took a long amount of time to get here. And when I was initially elected, I had lots of plans and everything's like that, you know, but you're not able to do anything alone. I understand I'm the president of the board right now and ever since Monday everyone's like, "Yo, you need to make your board do this. You need to make" All these are grown adults.

130I'm not able to make anybody get along, let alone make a decision. Only we were all elected in order to do our jobs. And our jobs, as I said, are making a decision. Now it's easy to say a pause. What Okay, but the thing about it is I've been looking at other boards. If you look at at the members of our board, I've been on the board longer than anybody. And in the past every year it's a pause. It's a pause. It's a pause. And the reason being is cuz it's hard. And it's and it's really s- scary to make a decision. And the thing about it is if we make a pause, what's going to be different? Um it could be a couple new members of the board, maybe it won't. And we could

131receive a lot more information. Is it really going to make a difference? Like and I've been listening to lots of people. I get lots of emails. I'm not able to answer all of them. I I do apologize to nobody. It is a lot. I read them all. And a lot I was looking at the requests. And in all honesty, I believe our board was given lots of information in order to make a decision. And it is my goal in order to make a decision tonight. I'm not saying a vote. I'm saying to make a direction up. A direction of a path of where we want to go. Cuz the problem is is a pause means we're doing nothing. And a year from now, a majority of us are still going to be here. And the

132questions will be the same. It's not going to be any easier to not make a decision. Would you please stop speaking out? I was respectful while you're talking. I'm just asking you to be respectful while we're talking, please. Thank you. Now as I was saying a majority of us will still be here next year. And the questions will be the same. Is it going to be any easier next year? No, as a matter of fact, it's going to be harder because our choices will be more limited next year. And so are there any questions about the plans any members of the board have right now? Can I Can I get clarification? So kind of similar to how we talked about attrition and its meaning and when you're saying a demography study, like a demographic study,

133like what information are you hoping to glean from that? And that's one of the questions I wanted to address, too. When we talked about this, cuz this wasn't the first time this has came up, when we talked about the third party coming in can you re-explain everything? Yeah, so I can give you some pieces of that. In 2018-2019 is when we had our last study and Preston Smith did that. And if you recall those attend those projections of enrollment that we had and so we had the high range, we had the mid range, we had the low range. They predicted that out for 10 years. But they would come in and look at how our population is shifting, where places are growing in our community, where they are not and would even assist with community

134forum groups, gathering consensus from that group. We had a consultation meeting with them with one company. Of course, if we went that route, we would have an RFP and go through that process. And but one company that we just inquired about to see what kind of services they offered. And that was a piece of it. They could do groups with staff, with administrators. They would present to the board. They would build that consensus and then provide the recommendation to the board. But with that, so with that demographic study, so it it seems to me that that it's if we're talking about population projections, if those are since similar to a census, that's why we do one every 10 years. We know what's happening and we know the trends of what's happening. Um and so I

135would I would believe that any new demographic study um is going to show us that enrollment is declining. And and it's not just here. Um it's declining. I believe, tell me if I'm correct, I think MSBA shared this data that every school district north of 36 Highway is um declining. Um and that's that's on trend for a lot of different places. So I guess my issue with a demographic study is we can say from 2018 and 2019 what areas of town have changed and there's not a boom in population. You know, we can look at where have there been new housing developments put in. Spoiler alert, there's not very many of them. We can tell if there's been new um housing multi-family housing and those types of things. Most of those have been for seniors.

136So, I guess that's my issue with a demographic study is that we from 2018 to now, just like when we did with the DLR study, we had DLR come back in and say, "Okay, walk back through our facilities again and tell me what's changed." We we know what has changed. We know what we have done. It's not that it was so long ago that we can't track that. I mean, we did an update with the facilities on there. I think it was the DLR that did an update and said, "Okay, since the last time we did this, here are the major structural changes, systems changes." We've gotten that. So, I don't know I don't know what new we would do. I don't know what new information we would glean other than to see population is

137going down. Staffing is becoming more and more difficult. And our money is going down as well. I think we all also know that the projection of money Correct me if I'm wrong. The correct the projection of money for public schools is is not projected to increase. That's projected to go down as well. So, if everything is getting worse, [clears throat] to me there is I just do not see that there is sufficient time to continue down that path. And I don't know that we would find out again new information that says, "Oh, we should we should be increasing I mean, I just don't know. And correct me if I'm If you If you all feel differently, staff, tell me but You know, the thing I would say is in 2019 when they completed that study,

138the estimates for our enrollment were lower than their low range. So, it may give us updated data as far as where we're headed in the next 10 years. And they may also be able to assist with boundaries without any biases as far as neighborhoods or those types of things. We've been talking about this for many years. So, I I can't say that that would give you the information to make the best decision, but it is a piece of it that you could consider. And I And so, I'll go back to Do Do Does Do you all feel like that is what something that needs to happen? So, I'll say what I said on Monday night. I I think if we can't get to a decision, then I would pause and I would give our staff

139Thanksgiving and Christmas and then I would come back and consult consider a consultation. >> And I I get this. I've had so many people reach out and say the data you're getting is skewed or it's being used or we've heard that they can or they can't. And And I understand the reasoning for a lot of that. What I'm What I'm basing my decision on is the sense of urgency. And I guess what I need to know is is the sense of urgency real or not? Because to me if there's if there is this sense of urgency and Kim, you you explained it very well. We're combining classrooms. The fact that that the APR scores are where they are is nothing short of a miracle and incredibly hard work that we have made harder because we

140haven't we haven't put those things in place for the staff to be able to have that. So, I need to know is there a sense of urgency that we need to move quickly? Go ahead and push it. Or not. If we have the time, I'm okay with taking the time. If we don't, then I'm okay to move forward because I feel like we need to. Well, here's I know you turned me down, but here's my thinking. It removes the responsibility from you. It makes it neutral. Now, that's just that's just a small part of it. Can I put you on the spot? Because I know you love surprises. Would your administrative team be willing to speak to these? I mean, is that something we can ask or is it Am I totally out of line?

141And And that's okay if you say no, we don't want to do that. We gave the recommendation 2 weeks ago. Now, that said, we had a lot of dialogue about that decision. Not everybody was on board with that recommendation. We see the need for a two high school model because that was in Vision Forward. That was in the plan our long-range plan that was approved by the board. Financially, academically, there's a lot of different reasons to that. We don't mind taking the responsibility, but again, if if we can't get to a decision by the November board meeting, then I would say that we pause. And I believe our team would support that as well. Thank you. Dr. Hedgecorth? Yeah. I would need to answer your question. The road recovery looks at about $4 million that

142we need to reduce from our budget over the next 2 years. We'd have to be willing to do 3 million one year, 5 million the other year. And so, we need to reduce that and have some sort of ability to do so. If we pause and don't do that, we're still going to need to make those cuts. It's just those cuts are going to hurt worse because you don't have the consolidation to reduce support staff. For example, if you consolidate a building, then you have staffing that you have to have to run that building. You have nutrition services, you have custodial staff, you have front office staff, you have administrators that run that building. And so, if you close a building, I'm not giving a specific building name, just a building, then as you have

143attrition and you have people leave those positions, you can consolidate and right-size your staff. And so, having a consolidation plan gives you the ability to reduce those positions naturally. If you don't have a building closure, then you still need to reduce those expenses to get on track back to 20% reserve ratio. We're not going to do that overnight. It's going to take a little bit of time, but we're going to need to make cuts without the closure of square footage. And so, those are going to be felt a lot deeper. And if people are going to feel it in their buildings a lot more than if we have building space consolidation. And I think by starting that process, you don't have to do the cuts without If I could ask that real quick. And I

144ask a favor. Before, you know, we started having these conversations, we gave everybody a chance to talk. I saw every board member listen attentively, take notes, and listen to what they had to say. So, when we're having a conversation, I'm trying to get information. If we're having people blurt out and interrupt, it is very hard to concentrate and very hard for us to conduct the meeting. So, I just please ask that you respect the process and let us have those dialogues so we can work some things out. So, thank you. What was the question again? Sorry. No, just It does just make it harder if there's not a path that we're following to do this. If we pause, then we have to cause attrition. And I say that in quotes. Right. And And I understand

145that there are a lot of different dynamics here. From purely financial standpoint, I know, you know, others have information on academics and staff, but purely financial, having closure of a square footage really helps you reduce the that's kind of support staff that you have to hire anytime you open a building. Yes, there's going to be, you know, savings in utilities. Yes, there's going to be savings because there's less square footage for insurance and deferred maintenance and all those things. But 75% of our costs, approximately, is staffing with salaries and benefits. And so, having that to naturally reduce that is a trigger, I'll call to help do that. If we don't have that and and that's the decision, then we'll just have to do it a different way than that consolidation process. And I And my

146my concern No, but Sure. Can you explain about a different way? Well, cuz my issue is is we're kind of going around in a circle. Sure. Can we I mean, it's getting late. If there's no closures on the buildings, and we're needing, you know, to cut expenses, is it people you're talking about? People are 75% of our expenses. And so, that would be something that would be worked out with as a group, not just me in isolation. So, I don't want to answer that question in isolation. But 75% of our expenses are salaries and benefits. So, that would probably need to be part of the conversation. We are always going to look at, you know, supplies, purchase services, evaluate our contracts, look at all those opportunities like we did in October when we cut 2.7

147million from the budget for that budget amendment. But everything will be on the table. And when I say everything, I mean everything. And we will let our leadership team lean in to what those are and then we would, you know, go from there make those recommendations to the board. And I and and that is the crux of my concern is that before when we were talking about the long range plan, the focus was so much on staffing and and and the situation that we are forcing our staff to operate in and still expecting high results. Um and so that is that's concerning and that's where we were last year. That's only gotten worse. Um and if we're talking about okay, you can pause, but that's another year of that struggle. That's another year of staff

148saying, you know what? I've had enough of this game. I'm going to go somewhere else. So and I don't I am not confident that we can spend another year doing this. I agree that I don't I think next year you're going to be whether it's me and Tommy here or not, you're you're going to have you're still going to have angry and upset people. I think we've all shared like this is not anything any of us want to do. If I didn't have to do it, I wouldn't do it. But I I worry about the position that we'll be in next year and going through that for another year and if if if the pause for more information is at the expense that we have to riff reduction in force and that obviously some of

149that has to come from staff. How do you how do you cut when you're already short? You know, so that is my concern. I don't know that things are going to get I I things will not get better. I think we can all agree with that. If we pause, we will not be in in a better position. We might have more information, but we won't be in a better position. You're right. What did you say? I said you're right. Okay. You're right. >> Got you. Got on that one. You just you just want to We said over and over that we have to trim a million dollars over two years and as difficult that as that is that's what we have to do to become financially healthy as a district. And so if we do

150not do that as building closures, we will have to look at staffing. That is just a reality. It's not a threat. It's it's something that we would have to do. Classroom sizes would probably get larger. We would have leaner admin. Um all positions across the board. That's the decision and the process that we are in right now. I look at this as do do we want to value people or do we want to value buildings and structures? That's how I see it. I think that's how a lot of our team sees it and we value people over the buildings and structures to get us there. Yeah, I think as we move forward in the last couple weeks I've sat through some meetings and information. I know it's a tough time to talk about giving raises,

151but we have to look in the near future because we are starting to fall behind. Already we gave a 2750 raise two years ago and we are already behind again and we have to cut 8 million over the next two years. If we wait longer than that to give raises, we are going to fall further behind and not be competitive. Which then goes into not having highly qualified teachers because they're going to choose to go somewhere else. So I'm not asking for a raise right now, but that's something that we need to look forward to. That's a really good point. Because we have to remain competitive. Well, and and but you know, the other thing I think at one point when we we've talked about this and this is has been some time ago. I

152mean how many it's in the past 10 years we've lost a thousand students. Is that about Did I I didn't I don't think I did. >> want you to quote me on that. I can get you that number. >> It's but it's a lot. It's hundreds of students. Um and so we're we we have the same model and we're paying the same amount to run the same number of buildings and and and you know, instruct less students. So I again, I just I don't know what I I don't have anything else to say. Are you envisioning a time frame? The I know it's kind of slow going right now, but do you see any kind of wow, it's immediate here. Like for a decision that that we're being asked to make. And >> I know

153that's off the table. Mr. Miller, I you know, add into this. I think talking about November the reason we talk about November being the day for pause is because we have to create a staffing plan and we have talked to our employees and said we are going to meet individually with each of you and get your feedback. We're not just going to give you, you know, some Google form. Now there might still be a Google form, but there will be a follow up and documentation with it to get to all those employees, talk through where they might want to go and I'm talking way too much about HR right now, so I'll turn it over to Mark. Um and I'm just I'm repeating the things that we talked about in those meetings, but that process

154and then I'll talk about my stuff. Um you know, working with Casey and making sure that we have the facilities ready for whatever plan is chosen and having that transition the summer which is a short time, um you know, is part of that. Getting bids for anything that might need to be done. That's why we're mentioning November and then I'll be quiet when Mark's talking. Yeah, well that's No, but that's good. That's why Yeah, it's it's going to be extremely difficult to make all these decisions. Um if we do something then I mean really if we wait till the 24th that's the week of Thanksgiving. We're not going to come back until December um and then we're going to have to have some of those conversations. Now we're moving into January before we can do

155anything that's real with coaches and teachers and support staff and all of those scenarios. Um it's it's really November or or we have to pause. Well, and and I think I think what I've had to come to terms with again because I think of how long this conversation has been going on, decades that this conversation has been going on. Um it's it's ugly now. It's um it's not fun and it's it's not maybe the way that we would want to do it exactly, but it's going to be worse next year. It will be It will we will be in worse condition. >> Okay, my question is this. Okay, so what other information is needed in order to be able to make a decision? I don't personally need any more. Same. So >> But I'm not

156prepared to tell you tonight. So I'm not asking about the decision. I'm asking are you needing more information, you know, to make a decision? Are you need I don't have any questions. No. So Let let me let me make a proposal in the form of a question. We We We have so little time together. Right? This is our time to work as a board. And so let me ask the board this. Could the board get behind a modification of plan two where we look we have admin look at four keeping four middle schools knowing that that would close one less building than we originally planned because we would have to keep another elementary open. But in my mind that helps with that inequity at the middle school level and it helps with so much change

157at all levels of the district. I'd love to give some I really feel for the folks that are have kids in school right now. You know, as a board we have to make decisions for 5, 10, 20 years from now, but I feel for the for the families with kids in school right now. And so I I might ask administration to give another look at some kind of consideration. You know, we use the term grandfathering and I know it's hard, right? Um But is there some way we can accommodate? I know there's board policy now where families can apply for hardship and if there's space, we accommodate. You know, maybe that's as simple as it is. But but but I would love for admin to to modify that plan, make it you know, maybe we

158don't get every dollar we could have with the original plan two, but at least we get um a ways down the road. Helps with staffing. Addresses the middle school size inequity. And give a close one less elementary school and give a ton of consideration, whatever we can do for those families that are you know, having to transition through this while their kids are in school. Well, okay, so let's unpack that. Yes. Cuz there's lots of questions in there. Yes. Initial question was is there board support for plan two? To look at that. Well, cuz my thing is this. I don't want to go to the meeting on the 24th and everyone's still like I don't know what they're doing. I don't know if it's going to be this plan. I want us to be able

159to choose a plan or a direction now and I need only one. And we make it official on the 24th and we leave it there. Well, here's the concerns I have between between two and seven. Um whether you do be or not be, whatever. My concern is long-term. So, and I guess with with that being said, I feel like if we looked at plan seven, long-term there's more things that can happen down the road than there can if we look at plan two. Just because of the things we've talked about like parking at Lafayette and um the cafeteria and some of those kinds of things. So, that's the concern I have between the two plans, those two plans in particular. So, I just wanted to share that so you know that that's kind of what

160I've been thinking about. Um because I would never want anyone else to have to ever go through this for like 40 years or 50 years or 100. >> [laughter] >> Yeah, so let me ask it uh another way then. Is there Is there board support for plan seven? I'm try- I'm trying before we make a motion and direct the admin for the umpteenth time Yeah. to do some work on our request. I'm trying to feel the board out for what what are we going to get behind? Because that's where I That's what I That's That's what I'm about. Well, let me say my concentration during this time um and I I've alluded to it before, but my concentration has been not only on the two schools, but also on on the feeder system and and

161how the how those things are going to fit together and how we're going to you know, all the concerns some of the concerns we hear tonight and then and then others where the the core of the system in many cases is the local is the local elementary school. And and that takes nothing away from the other things, but that's a that that's where our buildings are placed in communities near near their constituents to be able to support them. And so, I've given feedback this week on what things I feel like we could tweak that would help um help me be able to say I feel like we could do this and and um make tough decisions, but do this in a way that is there's more tolerable most tolerable to our to our community. And

162so, I've had that chance to give some feedback. And um and um I don't know that if anything's being presented tonight or not, um but I don't want us I guess I don't want us to leave tonight. We kind of said that to make a decision on the 24th, there's a couple hurdles to go through. One hurdle is we've got to identify what a plan is. And another hurdle is we need to have another public comment because we're going to be talking about specifically what buildings are going to close. And and um and so, I don't think tonight we can put off a strong indication of this is the direction we're going to go and and the fact is is that we then schedule another meeting before the 24th that would give public comment towards

163that plan per policy. That's what I thought I understood the other night when we met. >> So, if we if we do that tonight and we don't decide we don't straw vote something that says really brass tacks, what are we thinking and can we do it, then you know, our next meeting becomes that and then we need another meeting before the 24th if we're going to make a >> [cough] >> decision. So, I'm I'm thinking tonight we've got some work to do to accomplish. It's going to be hard to break through the ice and say, "Okay, what are we going to do?" But I think I think it's incumbent upon us to to try to make that progress tonight. Well, okay. So, my question is is there a plan that has a majority vote? Or

164like a direction? Cuz the problem is is we've come together again, you know, to get another meeting and we're listening and we're doing the It's like Groundhog Day over and over and over again. Yeah, you know, and I think I think that's one of the things that you described or others described. It's It's difficult because we don't talk as a group in between these meetings. Um you know, there's some side conversations that try to happen to to sort out. There's some input that comes in, but you know, we come to this meeting and now's our chance to pull it together. And so, I don't know. I sit here tonight and I don't know if there's a majority that would agree with what a plan is. I I The only way I know is we take

165a straw vote and see if we would Okay, so is anybody able I know you mentioned plan two. Is there anybody else that's leaning towards plan two? Are we able to start that? I would like to look at I would like to move forward with plan two with four middle schools. Um I think that that's the the closest that we've come to I I think My my goal has been to disrupt the fewest students and staff and that plan does that. And that's not to say that I don't understand that if you're if you're a student that gets to stay in your building that you're not disrupted, right? Like I know that that's changing your I I I absolutely understand that. Um but it it moves fewer students. It moves fewer staff. Um and it

166shows us the financial savings that we have sought. What it What are you don't smile at me. Um don't smile at me. Um so, I think also, you know, my issue before with the with the three middle schools was um kind of what happened with Edison and Carden Park and I think four middle schools takes care of that. I think it clean it creates clean feeder patterns from two middle schools to two high schools. Um and that's what I'm what you're willing to move forward with. And and and I I'm I'm I'm some I'm in agreement with that basically and it There There's a couple other factors. One is I'm aware of the I'm aware of the trust issue and I'm hesitant to say because I've said and changed. I've said and changed. We all

167know that. I I'm struggling with myself with that. But the fact is is that before I was on, the board said to the community, "We're going to pass this new school and if it doesn't pass, we're going to close Benton." And that's been that's been echoed back to us a variety of times even though I felt something in the south end was the best. That's one point. Another one is is that creating a high Benton hybrid, if we could do that with Benton only, I I've I've taken another run at that. Um but capacity-wise, that just doesn't work. And and um and so then we're we've got we've got we talk about equity. Um we've got completely different systems. People don't like now that some schools have sixth, seventh, and eighth. Some will have seventh

168and eighth. And so, if we're going to try to provide some consistency, um then what I do is I take a look at well, how could we provide that consistency the best we could um with plan two by by making sure that we didn't totally disrupt the elementary schools um um cultures and and togetherness. And that so, you know, if we can um if we can move to the four middle schools, I could be supportive of that. And if we could move elementary schools so that we weren't breaking them apart, but where they moved as in their current condition, they moved um together out of that school to the same um middle school, that would be a thing that said, "Boy, we're we're on a track." Because we're lowering the disruption um through the whole

169system. So, I could be I could support plan two if we could put that kind of a structure together. But there's no future in that, correct? There will have to be backed to this one. There are four middle schools in the Benton and Central plan. We have We show four middle schools in that. Am I Do I have the wrong plan? >> Well, with Lafayette was the middle school and it was big. I'm way I'll get there. But if we can arrange that with plan two, is it not possible to do that with the other? My concern is that future move. It's It It kind of echoes yours, Rhonda, that that all of that may work well together, but then they're going to be back to this eventually and it's a closed door in a

170few years. Now, that's how I see it. And um and if we're rearranging again, um you know, both plans can be rearranged to do what we're asking you to do. Yes. But it's more of that work that you have been doing. So, we're back to rearranging. Um I just see future in the Benton Central. How so, Kim? Uh because that's in the plans. With with Lafayette, you can't Um how do you expand that? How do you How can you accommodate the influx of students in that building? And uh not expect some kind of growth in building or having to I I don't want to go in and ask homeowners you know, eminent domain. I don't want to go and say, "Hey, we could use that property for the school if you just get it for

171us." >> I would just remind you where our enrollment projections are sitting. I I know. I understand that. So But we are solidly on track to not have to worry about growth. Well, I get that, too, but eventually our goal is that we do grow. That we do have opportunity in buildings. That when that influx comes, that we're prepared, and then it opens the door for that new building somewhere out in the future because we can. So, I I get that, Mike. I get that right now we're low. And if it keeps up, we're going low. But to That's the name. to project Yeah, I don't I don't want to think that because what we're trying to do is make it work that we stop that losing of people and we expand. I agree with

172you. So, that's my desire, and that's why I liked Benton and Central because uh for that reason. It can move us into the future. Can we still build a new building in the future using plan two? Yes. And you can do that. And and I'll just say I I think it's going to be uncomfortable in any one of these options. It's It's going to be uncomfortable because the enrollment is going to be higher in both of those high schools, whichever two you choose. Uh it will be different. It will be filled with change, which is just tough to get through, but Well, and I think one of one of the things that I I would and I'm sure you all you all have thought about this or talked about this, but maybe if there's uh

173I don't know that we've had this conversation at the board level, and I know this was uh one of Mike's dreams when he campaigned and came on the board is um are there is there opportunity for um some of our secondary students to to be at Hillyard in a different way that we've looked at. Um is there an opportunity for some of our advanced classes to partner with Missouri Western so that you you don't have as much of that um capacity issue at the secondary level? And I I think there is, and I I see I'm shaking my head yes. Yes, absolutely misleading. >> So, so that So, then that is my thing is that if we if we can move forward for the financial sustainability of the entire district, for the relief of the

174staff, and not have to make those those really terrible decisions, which it's Yeah. Um that I would I would be comfortable with you all teasing that out and showing us what that looks like. But we have to we have to move. Well, okay. So, it's looking like three people are okay with moving forward with two. You know, I really didn't feel prepared for that after because I had usually liked to come and hear what they say and then take time to process it. So, may I ask one thing? You're you're wanting plan two with a four middle school model, and you're saying plan seven. Is that something that you want us to bring back or you want just one? No, I don't want you to bring back anything yet. I think we're still I'll be

175quiet. I know you're fine. I wasn't trying to be rude or anything like that, you know. Okay, but there's three people looking at two. One person looking at seven B. Are you guys open, you know, to letting people know what you're thinking right now or not? Uh I can talk. So, again, I I think I expressed what I feel, but um if we're going through with going through this and making the decision, I agree with Ronda, and I agree with Kim. I think seven would move us to the future better. But however, I have same concern as everybody that's the one big middle school, the two small middle schools, the feeder part Tom said. I mean, there's still issues that would need to be worked out with it. Well, and I think, too, as I'm

176as I'm thinking this through, um let's let's do a scenario. Let's say we agree and we pick plan two. I think within that plan, what I want the public to understand is that um I'm processing this as I say it. That there may be tweaks to it. But in general, because I'm just going to be honest. Ashley and I talked about the early childhood center. Okay? Cuz that's been That's my deal. I feel like that should be my deal. But it's also very expensive to open an early childhood center for a variety of reasons. You have furniture, you have more teachers because the the teacher-student ratio has to be smaller for a variety of reasons. So, in my mind, I'm thinking with no matter which plan we do, that we're going to need to take

177that into consideration as we move forward with that plan, which then in turn Let's Let's say on plan seven, it would tweak purging, not closing, if we're not next year going to add an early childhood center. So, I just want the public to understand there may be some of those needed tweaks because of finances. >> still want early learning center, though, right? >> Oh, yeah, absolutely. Yeah, we do. Can you Ronda, do you understand? Um you know, there's some things that have just come into the fold. There's a recall pre-K grant that can't be guaranteed to be around forever. And you can say plan eight cuz it's already changed. Right. We have an 8% limit of what we can take for pre-K ADA, and we're not at that yet, but if that grant went away,

178those kids would need to shift there if they qualify for free and reduced lunch. And so, I my personal opinion is would like to see us financially cover before we open another ELC. Now, the plan can have a certain building slotted for the future when we hit that target. I've got that next year. And have that as our long-range plan. To do it right away at 10.02% reserve ratio, I would say would be a little hasty. Yeah. That's just my opinion, though. And and I feel like when you have a pot of money, whether it's your personal money or school district money, it's only so big. And you can only do so many things. So, I I am okay with us having some compromises in whichever plan we pick in order to also keep that

179financial thing ahead of us as well. Are you okay with mentioning a plan you know that you're leaning towards? It's no pressure at all. I'm just asking everybody, so. I mean, I asked everybody, and everybody answered, you know, but you don't have to. I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I If some wonderful thing happens and we build a new high school north, wherever, we had talked about then we would close that that Central then would become the hub of all the administrative everythings, and that would allow us to close down some computers, dot dot

180dot, which I understand that's not gigantic savings. That's why we're not really having much conversation about doing it now. But long term, then that would help the children who are currently at Central Central ish. I don't know what boundaries would look like cuz I don't know the future. That make a smooth transition to a new school rather than if we if we go with plan two and we get a new high school, let's say in the north, then we're going to have to reconfigure boundaries again because it's going to look different to move children to the new building. It's the only thing that I'm thinking, and that's my only discrepancy between the two. So, that's what I've been pondering and thinking about Dr. for a while. Between those two plans. Um are there any future

181closures like within next five to seven years that we might be considering in there? Yeah, that that puts you kind of way out there. I know we have this immediate From a facilities standpoint, uh a facilities Facilities standpoint, um you know, I would I'm always going to refer back to the DLR ranking. They did a thorough job of going through our buildings and looking at the buildings that um have the most deferred maintenance and different things like that. So, you know, that's just one factor in my opinion when you look at it at at a building that could be possibly closing, it's just one factor. Um there's a lot of other factors, how how the proximity of where, you know, the natural shift in population is, um you know, geography of, you know, schools that

182are near it. There's a lot of things that go in there. Um but I I I think one thing you do always have to look at is the deferred maintenance on the building and where it ranks as far as the age, you know, the the systems that are in that building, what's it going to take for deferred maintenance, and all those factors. Thank you. So, I guess I have another question. So, if we're looking at plan two, I'm assuming that if we work out something for it to be four middle schools, that Spring Garden would stay a middle school. That's That's a question that I don't know if we have the answer to that. No, it would It would turn. So, the long-range plan It's so similar to that in that you would transition Well,

183I don't These are your plans. That's plan one. We did Mhm. Plan one was Lafayette Central for middle school that you already looked at. Plan four would have been Benton Central for Thanks, Jake. Yeah. Okay. You're awake over there. Yeah. I'm squirming so much. And I can send all of those to you if you would like. All of those plans. >> So, plan So, if So, if I did So, if we're saying that Jake points out that it's most similar to the plan one. So, it is plan one. So, there's been a lot of plans, Jake. >> I know. Stop judging me. Okay, so Lafayette The Lafayette Central plan one is Lafayette and Central. Four middle schools would be Bode, Robidoux, Truman, and Benton. Spring Garden would go back into an elementary school. And then

184you have ELCs. And that plan was Lake, Mark Twain, and Pershing. But if we're saying that we're holding off on that, then we would pull off on that. The potential for schools listed for plan one are Pickett, Hyde, and Webster. Yeah. If you should lose two in in Spring Garden Yeah. And we would still recommend Webster as a feasible approach to you, so we do have the space to be And with with Webster, you know, I I know that the we've talked We opened it and now we're talking about not opening it. So, what What would happen to what's happening there? Because I know that when we open that, and I think that was before I even came on the board, but when I was still paying attention, so much of that concern was that

185we had really high-need kids that needed really intensive services that needed those intensive services, and we didn't want to be disrupting the regular ed environment. So, what what would that look like then? It would I I haven't studied plan one enough to know, but we would look at the space to protect the learning for them to ensure that they have the right resources to be successful. What we heard through staff feedback was they do value alternative education, and they feel like sometimes in our buildings those students can't receive the supports, and so we streamline the supports there to Webster where they had extra counseling, social workers, a para in each class, small classes. Um we would just look at the space to ensure um that those students and those teachers feel supported in providing those

186services to those kids. >> So, would you So, that's it That's to say you would still provide alternative education somewhere, just not at its own building. >> Right. Okay. It's so valued, and I would, you know, follow whatever Dr. McGinnis It is so valued by our staff. And our alternative educators, when we visited Webster, were very um vocal and shared, too, that they value um those relationships they established with those kids in making them feel successful. Dr. McGinnis, I I finally found where we have all the maps. All seven and blah blah blah. And there is one that just shows that Ellison is included in that. I only bring that up because we've had a number of Ellison families concerned about their school closures. Are you looking at plan one? Uh I'm looking at plan

187three. That's a Benton, Hyde, Central four middle schools. Yeah, cuz this could get messy again. And the the closures would have been Field and Webster slow mo. [snorts] So, I'm just saying that because, you know, again, if we're talking about reopening or keeping open four middle schools. That's one also for the other plan. Well, okay. So, um everybody's mentioned a recommendation. I've not mentioned a recommendation. It looks as if it's an even split. And in all honesty, I I liked plan E for different reasons. It was not the votes. I need to move on, and that's okay. And after that, it will be plan two with modifications for me. So, So, with So, with two, we have the staffing information we have, the financial information, and we have the student We have the student staff

188impact information and the financial information. So, with that plan, adding back in a middle school, which I believe also maybe brings back an elementary, we I guess I I think my So, we would see an impact to students and staff lower, but we may see a financial impact not be as much. Right? So, I'd I'd be interested in seeing that. Yeah, so we would have to work out those boundaries since we don't have that map in that model right now. That's something that we can draw up. But Thanks, Jake. Sorry. Just watch it later. Jake, just watch it later. My my plan was in eight different places. I'll get I'll work that out with you. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Um but I'm hearing Pershing ELC at a later date. Webster at a later date. Just

189want to make sure I'm clear. Webster Like, for me, if you can still still provide that for those students, and you can still provide that alternative education, and you have a location to do that, then I'm not tied to that building. Um so, I I don't know if if that needs to be at a later date or not. And other than alternative education, Dr. Anderson spoke about all the special education programs there, and some of those require double door access, a very secured isolated location for safety reasons. And so, that was part of the reason why we wanted to wait to move that programming just to make sure it was going to be the best placement for those kids with the adequate space that they need. Yeah. Not saying that's not out of the picture,

190but it it seems like that would probably happen after the dust settled with all the other moves. So, Dr. McGinnis, Yes, ma'am. both of those plans can work. That's why you brought them to us. Yes. I think any of these that we've proposed, as long as we are within the capacity of the buildings, will will work. Um again, I don't believe any of them are going to be super comfortable with the change, but I believe it can we can make that work. Okay, so now what? So, do we have So, the goal is to leave here with one plan that we modify and perfect. We have four people that are willing to move forward with two. Do we need a motion? No, we're not taking a motion. She says it's a consensus. Got that answer.

191You can always make a motion anytime, but Probably. But from here, what we will do is go back. Jake will start with the map. I'll do the feeder system, much like the other scenarios, and the staffing piece, the finance piece, the impact. We would have to have another public hearing per board policy SC. And we can do that before the board meeting, or or at a different date, or whatever you think. In that format, I'm happy to work with you on what that looks like. So, then here's So, that's my question, then, is if if we're going to move So, we're going to move We're going to leave here. Dr. McGinnis and her staff are going to look at plan two with four middle schools. Um Do we need to have So, when she brings

192that back, is that coming back at a meeting between now and the 24th? I already have the 17th blocked off on my calendar. >> Yeah, so did I. >> We had the conversation before. Because I would think that Again, I just think that if if we do it on the 17th, and we say, "Okay, four middle schools doesn't get us where we need to in plan two." Who is willing to go back to three potentially? I I mean, I've heard from middle school staff repeatedly that the teaming is the most important part of that, and that if you can retain and um, the most important part. So, do we come back on the 17th, get that plan where we want it, and then have the hearing in the meeting? Yes. I thought Kim was going

193to be out of town, and I know Dr. Hedgepeth is going to be at a conference. Sorry, I I forgot that part. Sorry. Well, let me say let me say this. I I'm not comfortable with, um, sorry. Do you want to go ahead? I was saying I don't want to have I didn't zoom in at the meeting for that 17th meeting if you model something. I I just have to have input on the, um, on the on the feeder system. I'm not comfortable with a third party, um, and each as much as I like Jake, um, doing that and drawing those lines because part of my, um, support of this plan is that the schools, as they're laid out now, um, they they equal that school, you do the minimum amount you have to do

194to, um, to change to change that and to break that up. And we don't just arbitrarily draw lines. Um, we do that and take a look at what's our feeder pattern, what's our locations, and we do it that and so uh there'd have to be a modification on the, um, on the elementary schools for me to be supportive. So, what am I hearing you say? You're for two? I am for two. I I am You know, I would and I wouldn't have her count on what I said because I'm it's so terrible. But, um, I think that two I don't think we can lose sight of two had significantly, um, greater savings than the other plans. And there's some complications with seven that are not very palatable to me. That is reopening Lake, moving the

195early childhood. I mean, it it's it's more it's moves more pieces, and I'm trying to help us move less pieces. And so And so, um, I still struggle with that, but if we can hold the elementaries, um, um, more constant and and the middle schools, um, a manageable size, then then we then our disruption primarily becomes focused on what's the best we can do for the high schools. And we still have work to do on that, by the way. I'd say that to all of us and to the to the uh folks that are still here. Um, there's details on are we going to have open enrollment? Are we going to How are we going to have grandfathered just like what Mike said, you know, there's still details to be worked out on the transition

196plan. But, but I think, um, an important element of this to me is that we do the least we need to do to disrupt the normal patterns of the elementary schools. But, but I also agree with what you said a while ago with me too that we when we change the closures and the the uh change in the middle schools, we still have to look at how does that impact it financially >> We we do, but I was going to say the only thing that would uh you know, throw me off track here would be if Dr. Hedgepeth came to us and said, you know, because we're trying to minimize the impact, make some kind of transition, we know we're going to have a lower than maximum financial benefit. And I'm okay with that, um,

197except if Dr. Hedgepeth were to say to me, "Yeah, this is going to get us in trouble with DESE." If we don't save enough to keep us out If we don't If we don't save enough to keep our own internal control of our district financially, then I then I then I would say we've got a bad deal. But, um, yeah, I would I would lean on you for that. Yeah, we'll do that analysis and have that for you. I have a question. So, I had a couple of opening my stuff up on the computer. So, if we're going to four middle schools, did you guys did we already talk about [snorts] what we were doing with the elementary? Like, what's going to feed or is that what we're coming back with? I I mean, I

198think we need to do a similar process that we did between yesterday between Monday and today where we say, "Listen, I can get behind this plan, and here's my priority of things that can happen. You know, here's my absolute sticking point, and here are some things I'm willing to compromise on." So, that when and and again, I think it's going to be Latanya, I appreciate you for calling all of us and, you know, being able to meet with Dr. McGinnis today to to talk about that. I think that has to happen. That has to continue to happen throughout this. So, that they're not just trying to hit a moving target as they have been. >> [clears throat] >> Well, and Mike, I'm just going to say I like how you put it in bullet points.

199I work really well with bullet points. So, I think that's that's good too what you sent out, um, with that I think that's helpful, too. Sure. Okay, so are we all okay with everything and we're going to meet up on Monday 5:30? I know that you won't be able to be able to make it. The teacher in me just wants to call on you. I see your hand over there. Yeah, I just have a question. So, just so we get this correct with the feeder patterns. Here I go here. So, if I'll accept I have to unmute it cuz I So, for plan two, if you want to not disrupt elementary schools. Right? So, our current configuration of our elementary schools and our current boundaries with what I showed you with plan A, moving sixth

200grade back in fills us up at the elementary school level. So, if we do that, then we don't have Spring Garden to repurpose as an elementary. So, our and we're keeping four middle schools, our building closures spin. Right? Can you What I would recommend is that you get with Dr. McGinnis and you guys flush this out. Well, but we want to make sure we're going in the right direction for what you want. I sent it in today. I'll send it in again. Okay. And I I don't think that what I'm proposing on that is is is going to be disruptive or mental. >> Well, and that's what I'm saying. It might not be disruptive, but I just want to make sure you're aware of the possibility of what buildings would >> and I and I

201understand that there may be, um, some tweaks that need to happen, particularly as we look ahead. But, I think that, um, there's some that could be easily be made, and, um, and would take a would take another level of frustration out of the community. Oh, yeah. I know. I know. And I'm fine with that. I just wanted you to you know, And I'm not I I feel like I've never had the opportunity to have input on that. I want input before we make that decision. So, Paul, are you are you talking concerns of elementary like that's Ellison and Eugene Field? Yeah. I'm talking about the whole elementary, um, flow and and, um, you know, I'm trying to still figure out, you know, what size does Benton become as a middle school, uh who who's feeding

202Benton to that? I mean, the whole the whole thing is, um, is really important to me. That whole thing's important to me. I, um, I tried to put together a last-second plan that said, "Just Benton and Central." Because and and the idea is just keep all the elementaries the same. Um, you know, maybe go to two high schools, two middle schools. But, it's too late. I mean, we need to we need to move forward, but we need to move forward with feeling like we've had input, and I don't feel like I've had input on the elementary school, um, flow. I agree. I think my only problem with the elementary schools I'm going to go back to my first concern, and I think Whitney said this before, too, is that when we just put new updates

203into a school or when they rank higher on the facilities, um, than other ones, that's my only concern on the elementary level is closing those schools that we've updated. Well, and certainly I I mirror some of those, um, both for those and for the schools' achievements. Um, I I I've heard the community on that, and, you know, one of the illogical things, um, coming out is is that, um, those those test scores aren't going to matter cuz they're transferable. Well, there there's cultures that we've established that have proven to be successful in buildings, and we don't need to, um, experiment with disrupting all those any more than we need to. We need to strengthen those, say some things are the same, and we can put resources and not not put at risk what we think

204it'll be as good if we move the students. Um, I think that there's cultures that we've seen here in the past has been demonstrated from teachers and parents that there's ownership in the elementary schools, and if we can keep those whole, I think this plan becomes slightly more palatable to the overall community. And and I'm super interested in that. And as a parent of young children, I I don't have those right now. I I have a lot of young grandchildren. I do like to show pictures. But, as parents, um, I think that a primary a primary, um, issue is what's going on with their elementary kid. They're more vulnerable. They're it's even more crucial. And then, of course, as it gets near the end, it's you don't want disruption in in the path that they're

205in. But, but that elementary school is so critically important to me that that we try to try to do so. So, that's a long answer. I'm sorry to go so long. No, you're fine. I'm listening anxiously. Well, well, okay. So, it's a meeting Monday 5:30. And there is a direction. And Ashley and I will get together about the plan about the details. I will contact every member, you know, like like I know that you're interested in the feeder patterns. We can discuss that. Okay. Add that in the plan in order, you know, to get a projection for the meeting Monday. If there's any other extra concerns, any other input, contact over to me. I will meet with Ashley. We'll choose a time before then to get everything ironed out in order, you know, to bring

206to the board on Monday. To get Excuse me. Okay. Are there any other I have one more thing to say. I have one more thing to say. >> Is it a long thing? >> No, it's short. Okay. Well, it may not be a short one, but um Remember when you said something about One of the things the one of the Yeah, but I know turn off my mic. One of the things that they community valued, even though we had a misfire, is is that there was some unity on the board and and um and we probably didn't quite get there with unity on the board and the administration. But, what I'm asking us to do, particularly those that say, I wasn't warmed up to that idea coming into tonight, is to say, what are the

207what are the things that would help you feel like you could say, I support that plan. I'm for that plan. And so, because my goal still is is that while not everyone in the community is going to like every single part, that we as a board and administration, board and administration, don't just nod our heads, don't just cave in or have a four to three vote, but as much as possible, we have a unanimous consensus that says, this is what [clears throat] we're going to do and we're going to do it to the best of our ability and we're going to we're we think it can work and we're going to make it work. And so, what if you have objections, my encouragement is don't hold back on the objections. Um get them out there

208and see if they can be overcome so that we can make the plan and make it one that we can all say I do. And to contact me Yeah. early enough in order to be able to get with Microphone off. um Ashley and her team to answer any concerns or questions. I agree with Tom Vick. Did you have something to say on the elementary? I feel like you're getting ready to say something. Oh, you want to do a follow-up? Just simply this, um um you know, we got to be careful, I think, Tom, that just looking strictly at performance because by that rationale, we would just simply reach into our data and say, these two elementary schools are lowest performing, therefore, that we're going to close them. And I don't think that's best for that

209those community, either. So, I think I think I I I appreciate it we do have to look at you know, performance is what we're all about, but we also know that we serve a varied um student population. And and to say, you know, to to to to to take it to the to the level where you would say, well, we just got to go uh find our lowest performing schools and close them, um doesn't feel right to me. I just want to get that out there. >> Not at all. That's it. Yeah, I agree with that, too, by the way. Yes. Like like on example, all these APR, yeah. Man, I'm telling you, Edison, amazing. Rocked it out, right in. Calvin and Lindbergh, Definitely. >> yeah. Amazing growth. >> Yes, uh-huh. Amazing growth. >> And

210Lindbergh is a big school. They've made great gains. That's exciting. Okay, so, is there a motion for adjournment? I'll motion. Thank you. I have a motion. I have a second. >> I'll second it. Motion is second. Yes. Ms. Williams? >> Yes. Ms. Miller? Yes. Ms. Chesney? Yes. Ms. Burns? Yes. Ms. Landing? Yes. Mr. Moore? Yes. Mr. Richmond? Yes. This meeting's adjourned.