001Mhm. >> Mhm. >> It's 6:30 and I'd like to call this meeting to order. I'd like to unfortunately they all left, but I'd like to thank our performers again. Are any parents still here of these incredible performers? Yes, no? Can you stand up if you are so we can yay, thank you. Thank you for repping. Um thank you all. Normally this would be the point where I'd say please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance. Obviously we did that, but I will ask you to please rise and join me in a moment of silence um for to acknowledge the passing of PV High School former coach Bill Farrell. Thank you very much. May we have roll call, please? Mrs. Christensen. Here. Mr. Pantera. >> Here. Mrs. Greenberg. >> Here. Dr. Lim. Here. And Ms. Bonnie. Here.
002Thank you. Next on the agenda is approval of agenda, Dr. Cummings. Thank you, President Greenberg. Items approved by consent will not come up for discussion during the meeting, but will be approved when the agenda is adopted. This is the This is possible since board members members of the governing board receive the agenda along with backup materials at least 24 hours prior to the meeting and have had time to review and consider all items. Prior to the governing prior to the agenda being adopted, members of the governing board may ask that an item be removed from the consent agenda and brought to the floor for discussion at the appropriate place on the agenda. Any member of the audience who submitted a blue public comment card prior to the start of the meeting will be recognized to
003speak on that agenda item under items for approval. And President Greenberg, I'd like to offer the agenda as posted. Thank you, Dr. Cummings. We did receive We received no blue public comment cards, so no member of the public wishes to remove anything from the agenda from the consent agenda. Does any member of the governing board wish to move anything from the consent agenda? Seeing none, going once, going twice, no. Okay. Dr. May have a motion to approve the meeting agenda and recommended consent agenda items. So moved. All those in favor, please say I. I. Any opposed, say nay. Any abstentions? Motion passes unanimously. Thank you. Next on the agenda is governing board statements. Anybody want to go first? Ms. Wani? Sure. Um I don't want to steal like the thunder of all of us, but
004I will since I'm going first. Um we had a wonderful opportunity to go sit in on student voice. It was my first opportunity to sit in on student voice where we got to interact and engage and listen, most mostly listen, uh to our high school students. Um and I just want to say I I'm not surprised, but uh still very very very impressed with um the just maturity and the respect and that they give the whole process and how seriously they take it and um I was felt just really really grateful to be a part of that conversation um and look forward to the next few that we we have scheduled this year. Um and then also had an opportunity to meet some of the new United Parent Council reps um and I could not
005have been also just also more impressed with the passion and engagement and excitement um from parents um from various different schools, from new schools that haven't necessarily been as engaged in the past um and it was just really wonderful. Um it was just a reminder about how important community is. We talked a lot about community and it just kept coming up as a theme over and over again. And so, I'm I'm grateful to all of you. Thank you for being here tonight. Um and thank you for to my fellow governing board members for also showing up and being part of the community. It was nice for us all to be in those spaces together. Thank you, Ms. Wani. Mrs. Christensen. Thank you. I will just say ditto to everything Ms. Wani said. I I agree
006those two events are were phenomenal this week. Um I don't normally do this, but I do have a a prepared statement for today, and that I would like to read. Good evening, PV community. Before we begin the business of this meeting, I want to pause and speak from the heart. My heart is heavy, and I'm grieving deeply. In just the past 2 weeks, our nation has been shaken yet again by tragic violence. We have witnessed more school shootings, more lives cut short, more families devastated. We've seen communities torn apart, and children and educators placed in harm's way. And beyond our schools, we've seen violence claim lives elsewhere, including a tragic subway death that shocked many, and the passing of Arizona resident Charlie Kirk, a man who reminded us often that truth must be spoken boldly,
007and that faith must not be hidden. The loss is personal to me. My son and I had the privilege of meeting Charlie Kirk when my son was still in middle school. Charlie spoke life into him and encouraged him not only to stand up for what he believes in, but also to stand up for others. And my son has carried that with him ever since. For that, I'm deeply grateful. Tonight, I want to thank Charlie Kirk for the revival and spiritual awakening that is happening not only here in Arizona, but across the nation, and even across the world. In moments like these, it's easy to feel despair, but I'm reminded that scripture calls us to turn our eyes to God even in the darkest valleys. Psalm 34:18 says, "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and
008saves those who are crushed in spirit." That's simply not poetry, it's a promise spoken to every grieving parent, every hurting student, every community touched by loss. I also want to reflect on why I'm here and why I ran for this office. Since 2015, my when my son first entered PVSD, I've been praying for this district. Week after week, year after year, I joined with other moms and grandmothers lifting up our schools, our teachers, our administrators, and our children by name. I served as a room mom for several years supporting classrooms in any way I could. Over time, God placed on my heart a calling to step forward into a greater role of service. I don't believe that I'm sitting on this dais here tonight by accident. I was elected to this board because of faithful
009prayer, the prayers of churches, family, friends, prayer warriors who asked God to raise up leaders for for such a time as this, and I carry that responsibility with deep humility and gratitude. And I believe it's important to say this plainly, despite what some secular voices may argue, our republic was founded on Judeo-Christian values. Our Constitution and Bill of Rights were written by God-fearing Americans who understood that our freedoms come from God and not government. Our First Amendment secures freedom of religion, not freedom from religion. That distinction matters, especially in times when faith is pushed aside in the public square. Charlie Kirk often spoke with clarity about this, that truths of scripture are not meant to stay in church pews, but to shape how we live and lead in every area of life. Romans 12:21 tells
010us, "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." In the face of school shootings, community tragedies, and national grief, that's our call. Not to be paralyzed by fear, not to allow evil to define our future, but to respond with courage, compassion, and moral clarity. We can't bring back the lives that have been lost, but we can honor them. We can honor them by protecting our children. We can honor them by strengthening families. We can honor them by making our schools safe places where truth and learning can flourish. And above all, we can honor them by remembering that true hope does not come from government programs or policies, but from God alone. Philippians 4:7 gives us this encouragement. The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in
011Christ Jesus. That is the peace I pray over every student, every teacher, every family in this district tonight. As we carry forward the business of the board, may we never lose sight of the sacred responsibility entrusted to us, and may we remain anchored in the truth that God is still with us, he's still faithful, and he is still the source of our strength and hope. As a reminder, we are still one nation under God. Let us love one another as Christ loved us. Thank you, Mrs. Christensen. Uh Dr. Lim. Sure. Um I know we've all had a busy week as a governing board. Um I know we've all been at tons of activities this week. Um just my Tuesday alone, I had the privilege to step away from my job to attend student voice, and
012obviously um Ms. Wani has already highlighted that, but the after-school uh was just as busy. I headed to Whispering Pines Academy for our math night uh and got to take my 4-year-old who's finally back in school um to experience her first math night uh at her home school. And then I had the privilege um of heading over to Brewsters um to support my long-time best friend, best friend I met the first day of kindergarten at Larkspur Elementary School right in this district um for her youngest um dine-around at Brewsters for Fireside Elementary. Um and it was a great reminder as I went through the day from the time with the students at the high school through math night and uh the event that evening for the dine-around that our community is vast here. Our community
013here in PV spans a great number of miles, a large number of schools and a really diverse community. And it was really great getting to sit in different parts of that community just on the Tuesday alone, not even mentioning the UPC thing the next day. Um seeing parents there volunteering. Um and it was a great reminder that our schools are working so hard to make that community happen. Those math nights, those reading nights, those are because our administrators are stepping up and making those happen at our schools. Our dine-arounds are happening because our parent organizations and volunteers and booster groups are working hard to make those happen. So when the flyer comes home to attend that event, your kids excited to go even if they don't show it in fifth, sixth, and middle and high
014school. Those events are still great to go and attend. Um and those dine-arounds, when you see your friends post them for maybe not your school, but their kids school, don't be afraid to hop on and go attend. Tho- Those dollars that are getting donated from that event are coming back into PV schools. Even if it's not your school, it's giving back to the community and it makes a difference. I know when we send our dine-outs around to have people come from other communities, it makes a difference and helps us raise more funds for our school. So remember, communities are super important. All the hard work that everyone's putting in to make all the events happen at our public schools really are the the passion of our educators and our volunteers. So be sure to attend
015and for me, enjoy one of those dine-arounds where you don't actually have to cook. It is a great night when someone else is in charge of cooking and you're also the cool parent by bringing home either food or dessert from takeout. So, thank you so much. I appreciate my time up here. Thank you, Dr. Lane. Mr. Pantera. Thank you. Again, I'd like to uh thank the Mountain Trail Middle School people for doing that great job with the music. Seems like every time there's music from that school, um it's great. Last one was the um Beware of the Birds that that rock band we heard um at a different event that great great program they're putting on over there. Thank you again for that. Um I too went to that PV Voice. It was wonderful. Uh
016students from every different uh high school opening up and telling us what's what really do they like? What is the thing that keeps them enrolled? Keeps them going? The big thing was proximity. Okay, it's close to where I live. All right. The great amount of programs we have. The variety where you can find your own fit anywhere in the district. And another thing was again, the community. You know, it's they they feel that they can trust and talk to people. Um And and and get that their needs met. Whether it be uh the matter of what the what their sexual orientation is, what their religion is, Muslim, Jew, whatever. Uh they all feel at home here and they feel welcome. They don't feel discriminated against and that's that's a huge part right there. I look
017forward to the next thing cuz we're talking about enrollment. I don't know if you mentioned the topic. Um that's what that we're discussing how to get keep and get more students in our district. I also attended that new administration thing over at Don Chalada's put on by Paradise Valley Education Association. It's always great to, you know, talk to new administrators when they come here. As a matter of fact, some couldn't make it. I'm making a special note to make sure I get to your schools to to talk to you personally. All right, and come and see visit come and reach out and visit you. So, if you if you want to beat me to it, invite me to something special that you're doing or or or you know, give me a cool date that would
018be fun to for both of us to what be there with. We were also uh all of us went to the uh Arizona School Board Association Law Conference. That was a huge thing. Uh big big emphasis on safety, school safety. There's one gentleman talking from he's a former uh Secret Service person. Now he does uh consultation work. He said, "All these things you do with your budget before you buy anything for a safety, you got to do a big assessment. Assess first before you know you spend that money." And things like like um metal detectors or weapon detectors. Okay, you can put a lot of money to have those. Unless you have the training to go with them, okay, we found some kid got something on them. What what's the protocol? What do you do
019once you find something like that? What Do you have a protocol? Make sure you got that training level there. But he said the biggest bang for your buck, which doesn't surprise anybody here, was put 50% or more of the that safety budget into behavior, behavioral services. You know, the things that help the students, that help the families, that that help keep people from getting angry or upset enough to want to do things bad at a school. So, that was very interesting. That's just a tip of the iceberg of the information they gave us. There's a ton of it. Um I was one of the things I was going to say, but I think I forgot it. Oh, well. It'll come up next meeting then. Uh Um again, community, community. You know, reach out, let me
020know what's going on. I'll visit any of your events. I'd be glad to do that. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Pantera. Um yeah, everybody pretty much covered just about everything I was going to say. I do want to apologize. I think some of you probably noticed I walked in with a cane. I sort of uh health thing going with my foot. And so, I if I move a little slow today, that's why. And I apologize. I got here a little later than I intended. Um yeah, I I do want to jump in on student voice a little bit. Um and not just give a shout-out to the students who are incredible and um so willing to give us their opinions and very thoughtful opinions and tell us um you know what their peers are thinking
021and um really digging in um on this topic. I want to thank Dr. Corson for organizing. I want to thank all of our high school principals who were all there and everybody gets assigned to a table and the kids get mixed up over time. Um so that you're not you know just sitting with the the your students from your your own school and the conversation is incredibly lively. I happen to be at a table with um Dr. Osmundson and Mr. Ontiveros from North Canyon and you wouldn't know which were the North Canyon kids versus other kids. Jorge was right there with everybody and so I think just that interaction is amazing and I believe that we're going to get um information that's going to truly help us move forward in the conversation about enrollment. I
022also want to um second what Mr. Pantera said about the law conference ASBA puts on. Uh has you know put this law conference on for years and there is always something new to learn about the law, always something to update us. Um there were lots of updates in terms of um bills that were passed and things going into effect momentarily actually. Uh just a few days from now based on when they were signed. Um and the update on the capital funding lawsuit that has been going on for quite some time and will probably continue. Uh so it was you know also um a terrific experience to be able to uh talk to colleagues on other school boards from around the state and see what's going on in other districts and um always appreciate that opportunity.
023And with that um that concludes governing board statements and next on the agenda is awards and recognitions. Dr. Cummings. At this time before I hand it to Dr. Holmes, I would ask the governing board to join me in front. Good evening, President Greenberg, governing board members, Dr. Cummings, members of cabinet and attendees both in person and virtual. Tonight, we will have several recognitions to share with you. This evening, we'll be inviting our honorees to the front of the room for their recognition and photo. Please make your way up to the front of the room after your name is called. And if we have parents, I like to add uh you are welcome to come up with your cameras. You don't have to take those pictures from way back there. Tonight, please join me in congratulating
024the e-cybermission clean water crew. This exceptional group of students demonstrated remarkable dedication and scientific prowess in rigorous scientific competition, ultimately placing among the top five sixth grade teams nationwide and winning the coveted people's choice award. This outstanding achievement shows their diligent work in assessing local water safety. We are immensely proud of their success and their commitment to addressing critical community issues through innovative scientific problem-solving. Please help me welcome from Sonoran Sky Elementary School, Lily Gerstman. Juliana Hashbande Ava McHugh I Whites and their teacher Bailey Millstead. Yeah. Oh, wait a minute. I tried. Next, we'd like to acknowledge two of our staff members who have earned the prestigious six of six award. This national recognition is given to JAG programs that achieve all six key performance goals related to student success after high school. This award
025signifies that two of our high schools have successfully met their goals in crucial areas including high school graduation rates, employment, full-time employment, positive outcomes, and post-secondary education, thereby demonstrating a high level of student impact and program performance. Please give a round of applause for our JAG leaders from Paradise Valley High School, Holly Gorman. And from Shadow Mountain High School, Crystal Boor. >> You are definitely being shamed into this, Mr. Dennis. Our next recognition is the recipient of the Paradise Valley Education Association's Recognition of Professional Standards Award for teachers. The honoree will be introduced by Ms. Heather Schmidt, PVEA president. Good evening. Oh, there we go. Okay. Good evening, President Greenberg, Dr. Cummings, governing board and cabinet. My name is Heather Schmidt and I am proud to serve as the president of the Paradise Valley Education
026Association. This is my favorite thing I get to do as president of this organization and it is recognizing one of our members every month as a professional promoting uh other professional successes. These are nominations that I receive from members and employees of this district uh recognizing people that are doing amazing things. This one is extra special to me because this should have been done in May, but my own health kept me from doing it. So, tonight I am extra proud to recognize Nancy Walker, a district ELD instructional coach as the recipient of the September 2025 PVEA Props Award. I received five separate nominations and I sent her a four-page document with all of the kind words that her colleagues had to say about her. I had to parse it down to one page, so I
027will do my best to get through this quickly, but I think that Ms. Walker is a gem of PV and we should be very grateful to have her with us. Uh one Nancy is one of the kindest, most thoughtful, and truly dedicated teachers and coaches I have known. She was an ELD teacher with me at Vista Verde and we often invited new ELD teachers to see her in action. Her expertise in the classroom was and is highly regarded. Her lessons are rigorous, engaging, and well differentiated for our English learners from pre-emergent to intermediate levels. Throughout her career, Nancy has insistently exemplified the core values of teaching, creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and leadership. As a seasoned educator and coach, she has provided transformative educational experiences for EL students, always striving to ensure that every single student
028has the resources and support that they need to thrive. Her deep expertise in differentiated instruction, combined with her hands-on coaching for our K-12 teachers, has led to significant improvements in instructional practices and student outcomes. And when Nancy left the classroom to join our team in language acquisition, she grew into an exceptional coach quickly. Working and collaborating with Nancy is a pleasure. She brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the team. As a coach, she is deeply committed to enhancing teacher effectiveness in EL instruction. Nancy's expertise, cultivated through years of dedicated service to EL students within the Paradise Valley boundaries, now positively influences teachers and students. What truly sets Nancy apart is the exceptional care and kindness that she demonstrates towards her teachers that she supports. She is deeply invested in their success and fosters
029an environment where they feel supported and empowered. Teachers consistently share that they feel Nancy is a reliable resource, especially now when navigating challenging situations. Her non-judgmental approach creates a safe space for open communication and allows teachers to be honest about the difficulties that we all face in the classroom. Nancy, thank you for being a professional that we can all celebrate your success. That's my daughter. She's a Pinnacle graduate. And my son Benjamin is here. Mr. Dennis was his principal at Crest at PB. And his lovely girlfriend Zoe. My husband of 32 years Sandy. My dad is here, too. And of course my wonderful colleagues. Thank you Karen for the initial nomination and Jennifer and Julie for your support. Eric, what an amazing husband you are. You're still in the newlywed phase. Um How long do
030I have? No, I'm just kidding. Um Chelsea and Elsie. Oh, I just realized that rhymes. Thank you for being here to represent federal programs. I'm glad you're all here. And finally, the Paradise Valley Education Support Professional of the Month, Le Ellen Jordan, will make the presentation. Good evening, President Greenberg, Governing Board, Dr. Cummings, Cabinet, and guests. My name's Le Ellen Jordan, and tonight the Paradise Valley Support Employee Association is excited to present the September ESP of the month to Amy Meyer, administrative assistant at Horizon High School. According to Amy's coworkers, a few words that come to mind when thinking about her are amazing, organized, and truly one of a kind. Amy is the administrative assistant for two of our assistant principals, a role that is incredibly demanding, yet she manages it all with grace and
031ease. She keeps everything running smoothly, from managing complex schedules to helping in athletic and fine arts events. Her dedication to our school community goes above and beyond. What truly sets Amy apart is her remarkable ability to anticipate needs. It's like she knows what you need before you even do. She's an expert at tasks big and small, whether it's running ad hoc reports in Infinite Campus or editing complex Google Forms. She handles it all effortlessly. makes everyone's life easier and better. Amy has a huge heart and a genuine care for others. A coworker said that when she moved here from across the country, she truly felt like she found her person in Amy. Amy's always checking in on staff and students, making sure we're all taking care of ourselves, even reminding coworkers to drink water and
032schedule doctor's appointments. Her kindness and readiness to listen make a world of difference. Amy is a truly special individual who makes Horizon an amazing place to work. She's an incredible asset to our team and a shining example of what it means to be a valued member of our community. Please join me in congratulating Amy as our September ESP of the month. And and that ladies and gentlemen concludes our awards and recognitions for this evening. >> Thank you everybody. Next on the agenda, thanks thanks to those who stand. Next on the agenda is items for approval. First we have G1 consideration and approval of the 2025-2026 superintendent's goals and objectives for alternative performance pay plan and I will turn it over to Dr. Cummings. Thank you President Greenberg. First I want to just say thank you
033to everyone who participated in this process. We've been at this since July whether teachers, principals, ESPs, my fellow board members, my cabinet, principals. I want to say thank you for the contribution, for the thoughtfulness and helping us get at what I consider district goals rather than superintendent goals. There is just a couple I would like to highlight tonight. First I would like to specifically thank Dr. Reynolds, our previous interim superintendent, who laid the groundwork for setting strong and bold academic goals and we've borrowed at least two of the previous tonight. One is third grade reading. We want to make sure our third graders are reading on grade level. We're focused on fifth through eighth grade math and then a new one this evening, English learner reclassification, making sure that our students who are EL students
034reclassify so that they are out of the resource programs. The other thing that we want to put The other two things we would like to focus on is improving and enhancing enrollment experiences. You heard this evening the connection between student voice, superintendent's advisory council, and then our work in the community on enrollment experiences. And then finally, while there's no timeline attached, advancing the upcoming strategic plan process. We're in the middle of a strategic plan and we need to begin laying the groundwork for the next strategic plan, but also making sure that we have district-wide system alignment, supports principles to get at the data that moves our strategic plan forward, and then also making sure that we are actionable on the theories of action in the Cognia accreditation, which the district worked so hard to earn
035last year. And I am open for questions or comments. Thank you, Dr. Cummings. Um, does any member of the board have any questions or comments? Dr. Lim? Yeah, so um I know we had a study session and we already have talked about this, but uh in my in our study session, I had mentioned I hadn't ran into a parent yet that hadn't enrolled in PV because they couldn't ask access our mascot program. Well, that changed just that weekend after the study session. I did run into a parent that actually didn't come to PV because when they went to enroll, they couldn't get access to our mascot program before and after school, and they went to another district where they were able to get access to that. So, I think um my question here is a
036comment and a question is are we going to be thinking not just about our enrollment into our actual classrooms, but into the programs that surround our school because if those are not robust as well, we're going to keep losing students, and I just met a parent where we lost a student to a different district. >> That is an excellent question, and yes, thank you for bringing up that we did have we do do this at a study session. One of the things we want to make sure that we do is we want to conduct a enrollment audit. What are the processes and what are the steps in parents having the information and enrolling? Right now, it seems to be it's one person that helps direct parents. And so, we need to make sure that that
037system works, it aligns, that person has the support. But, we also make sure that our website directs people exactly where they want to go and they know the robustness of our programs. So, I think my question's a little more. So, I know some of our timelines don't align for kids to select. So, kids when they're getting into preschool don't know which preschool they're going to. They may have put in for Montessori and gifted. They're not sure where they're going to land because of numbers. And so, they don't select that mascot program. So, when they go back after the fact, they end up 70-something on the list and there's no way for them to get into that program cuz they didn't even know they were going to school. So, there are parents who are strategically putting
038in for multiple mascot programs, which is a $90 fee every single program you pick, to try and hope that they're going to get one of those spots where other parents are waiting to find out because they don't have the luxury of putting in multiple $90 fees to hold those spots. So, we're we're having parents that are having to balance and luckily these are parents that have kept their kids in the schools. Um but, there are others that are probably not doing that because they're not getting those spots and obviously have met a parent. So, are we going to be looking at all of our timelines and our logistics and how they parent experience isn't quite lining up with the kind of access to our programs because these are very on top of it parents that
039are failing to get spots. Yes, as we audit, we'll align timelines, user experience, and feeder programs as well into all of our programs. Thank you. Anybody else have any questions? All right. Mrs. Christensen? Yes. Uh first off, I I just wanted to thank you, Dr. Lim, for bringing those points up because I um it it's nice that we have such different um experiences here in PV. I I came to this district when my son was in third grade, so I didn't have to deal with any of that. So, thank you for bringing those points up because I had no idea that that was occurring. So, I appreciate your um your insight in that point. Um my first question, I have two questions. Um in the study session, I did ask about I was concerned about
040whether or not the goals are achievable cuz we all try to work on smart goals, specific, measurable, achieve- achievable, or I forget what the R stands for, reasonable or something like that, but um and the answer I I got back was, "Oh, yeah." And it was almost like it would be too easy. So, after I asked that question, then I kind of thought, "Well, what about stretch goals? Are we are we pushing the you know, are we setting the bar high a little bit to to have some stretch goals for you cuz we don't want you to have too easy of a job to Right. And no, I appreciate that. And I hope she doesn't mind. You gave a terrific answer to that in study session, Ms. Copeland. I'd like to hear your response if
041you don't mind. Sure. Ms. Christensen, um as as said in the study session, uh one of the most challenging things about setting goals is finding that um stretch point without stretching too far, but not being too easy. So, uh part of the process is looking at historic data, looking at uh typically 3 years of trend data to see how we've been progressing so far, and then using that as a measure to uh dive from, right? And to um so, if we have seen, for example, uh progressions of like 3% increases across the district, um that would be a stretch goal might be 4%. You know, pushing that three to the next level, but um, it is a little bit of a a judgment uh, between the stretch goal and and being too simple or too
042easy to achieve. Does Does that help? Yeah, a little bit. I I just um, I was just surprised by the the answer that it was like cuz I was concerned initially that well, is he are these achievable? Is he going to be able to and then it the way it was sounded like, oh yeah, no, easy peasy. So, I'm I'm hearing that that there's it's kind of somewhere in the middle that there are some stretch goals in addition to um, having these lower benchmarks. Is that Definitely. And the way they're worded is um, it makes these goals achievable for every school um, because they get to start where they're starting. Um, we're not So, they're achieving off of their their starting point. And we also are uh, focusing on indicators that are very um, important
043to state accountability and their state letter grade. So, always reducing minimally proficient, always increasing passing. Um, so that those you'll see those are targets in the goals. Okay. Um, one of the things that I would like to see from our district and I'm not saying that we need to change it, but may perhaps in the in the future um, when I worked for the state in the in education, I I think we would get complaints a lot about the the school letter grades and a lot of it is focused on improvement where parents are under the impression when you have an A rated school that you have 90% um, high proficiency or at proficiency. And so, I would just personally like to ensure that we're not only do looking at improvement, but hitting some really
044strong targets cuz again, we we we want to be more competitive. We want to be the best district around so that kids come to us and don't go to the charters and don't go to the private schools. And so um I know it's probably not something for this year, but just in the future I personally would like like to see us do that. And um the second question that I had was um it seemed like some of these goals as you mentioned were inherited a couple of them from Dr. Reynolds and then cabinet. Um I just was wondering um how invested are you and what how much input did you have in in a lot of these goals? Oh, that's that's an excellent question. I would say that the goals grew out of a lot
045of dialogue. And part of transitioning a superintendent is listening and learning. And from the outset, whether it's Dr. Corson or Dr. Lindsey's data chats with her it was listening to what the data said. I would I will say that the one that I didn't know and it was simply because we were listening, working with Ms. Copen and her team, were the English learner reclassification objectives. And that was a pretty deep dive that took a lot of folks, took listening to principals, talking to teachers, ESPs, cabinet members, but parents. This has been so iterative that I think that we have a really good first plan to work academically, but yet work on the pain points, work on enrollment issues, and then work on making sure that we're setting systems in place and principals have the support
046as we think about strategic planning. Thank you both for for those responses. And I I I do appreciate that in our district we do seek out input from so many stakeholders including parent voices, community voices, educators, and cabinet. So, and governing board. So, Thank you, Ms. Christensen. Does anybody else have any questions or comments? I know we talked quite a bit about that. Ah, Dr. Lim. I will I'll hand it back to you. All right. So, I do have one more. Um so, looking at goal three, I know, you know, in the goal ones, we have very targeted approaches for our elementary school, but in goal three, we have this goal of, you know, improving graduation rates. Could I just get kind of a sense where you're at thinking about how we're going to start
047to think about improving those graduation rates given that the high schools are very diverse beasts in all of our high schools. Sure. And while I personally don't have much to do with graduation rates, watching Dr. Corson and his team, the district has hired a lead counselor. They have already had meetings with principals asking what supports do you need. Principals have gone back and aligned with their counselors. And so, it's having the conversation. It's about may cohort management, aligning data with the state, and ensuring that our buildings have all the support that they need to make that goal possible in two years because it takes it lags two years. So. Great. And in that process, are we looking at So, some of our high schools have higher higher loss rates than others. Are we looking at
048that enrollment loss that's also happening in our high schools and trying to work on that retainment because that has an impact on those students. >> Of course. So, specifically retainment and then when they leave, how it's coded, how we manage it, and how we track them to their next location. Okay. Perfect. Thank you for that clarity. Anybody else have anything else for the good of the order? Yes, Mrs. Christensen. I'm playing volleyball here. Um I've I forgot I didn't write this one down, but I've I forgot to to mention I I do have a question about our district-wide initiatives that tie into your goals and objectives. The um And I've mentioned this in year one when I was on the board in year two, and now I'm on year three. The our our we have
049four district-wide initiatives, multi-tiered systems of support called MTSS, positive behavioral support systems, PBIS, professional learning communities, PLC, and then number four is science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics. And to me it it that should be first and and it seems like there's a lot and I and I get it. You have to deal with behaviors, people kids, students have to be present, get their head right to learn, but um is is are there plans maybe this is a question to for cabinet to readdress district initiatives and and what is the timeline to go back and and look at these? I I do understand that these have been in place at least since I've been on the board, it's my understanding, but um it to me I and maybe it's cuz I come from the business
050world and not education, but we science, technology, engineering, arts, and math should be number one and should be listed first because we're in the business of educating our students and not um some of the behavioral stuff that goes along with that. So, I don't know who that question is directed >> I'll ask first, Dr. Lindsey or Dr. Corson, would you like to take a stab at that? Sure. Um President Greenberg, Mrs. Christensen, um so as we've shared before, each of our schools have a school success plan and in each of those plans um we have aligned our those four initiatives that you just mentioned. And so, um with respect to STEAM, there's a science goal reflected in in everybody's plan. Um and of course, the outcome is based on how the students perform on their
051state assessment, but then in the various action steps, that that's where we're able to integrate different um STEAM activities and lessons and working directly with our STEAM specialist um who integrates with our our science programming. Some of our schools have um STEAM electives and some of them have them more integrated, so it really just depends on the individual campus and meeting them where they are. Um and then from a PBIS perspective, they again, they set a goal related to PBIS and where they are with their implementation. And then um depending on where they are with their implementation, we have various levels of support um you know, in terms of training and PD and then um you know, just ongoing uh job-embedded support at campus level. And the MTSS is kind of wrapped all in the
052academic goals um with respect to math and ELA. Is there anything you would want to add, Dr. Carson? Yes, I'm well aware of what these are. I've been on the governing board for this is my third year and my point was we're in the business of education and I would like to see a deeper focus for our district-wide success plans to focus on the STEAM type things and education and learning and um um I do appreciate that we're we are focusing on the the PLCs because I know that that teachers that uh that reach out to me always say, "We don't have enough time to for planning." But I'm I'm just seeing when you list MTSS and PBIS first, to me that means that's more important than anything else below that and and maybe it's
053just the way my brain works and I'm very um data focused and um I do come from a technology background, so that was my point, not trying to understand what these are. I do it I'm clear on what each of these are. I just would my question specifically is when what is the timeline for us to readdress district-wide initiatives. I Actually, I could probably jump in on that because that was part of the strategic the last strategic plan that we approved when Dr. Bales was superintendent. And so, it would seem, you know, until we reach the planning process and go into that approval process again, um that's part of the strategic plan. Now, it you know, if you're saying go to the website and you're seeing MT, you know, steam last and it's a matter
054of perhaps just re- realigning or, you know, just putting steam first and that might help visually what you're saying. Then that, you know, that certainly could be something. I I think I was always under the impression we were looking at those as four equal um initiatives for the district and not you know, and and obviously they would be fulfilled at different time periods based on what they were and then obviously different schools have different focuses because if we have a STEM school already, I'm guessing where they are with with steam curriculum is going to be a little different than others. So, but is that more what you're saying, more that Well, a little bit, but if if they're all weighted equally, then 25% of our initiatives are focused on technology, science, education, engineering and we
055we should to me, 75% should be focused on education and and learning rather than having half be behavioral focused. Ms. Wani. Oh, Mr. Panter. Yes, I disagree with that 100%. Uh you you don't There is right. If you don't have the behaviors right, any of the other learnings is not going to happen. That's the first thing they did where they talked about school safety. Put your money into safety with the students um on how they behave, how they feel about school. You you have all these programs, math, science, technology. I remember teaching gifted, all right? And I had a hard time having girls in my math program. It was all about behavior. They could do math just as well as anybody else, but they wouldn't put in for it. They wouldn't try. They said, "Well,
056it's you know, it's a guy thing." It was about what's up in here. They didn't go for it. It changing people's perceptions about what they can and cannot do is very important. Now we got the best out of these girls that finally understood, "Okay, I it's okay for me to do math. It didn't mean I'm not a girl or I'm I'm just as good as guys." You change that perception that yes, you can do it and you're accepted there. We got more more girls in my math program that way. You got to get into their heads and make them feel comfortable, safe, and know that they are they're acknowledged. And that's that goes first in my mind. That should be 75%. But it's not going to be, but I hope it does. Thank you. Is
057Wani? Um I've always sort of thought of these initiatives as like this, right? Like they're not I don't look at them as competing with each other. Um I kind of think of them as part of the infrastructure and support that provides a platform for success for our students. I would be curious to know um are what our principals feel um are the most important initiatives to have on their campuses, what's working, and what's not working. Um from from the conversations that I have with admin and principals and teachers, um these all of these things they they go together. And when I think about uh PBIS and my kids, I think about like there's like relationships. That's like teachers and staff being really intentional about expressing to students that they're not just a data point, they
058care about them, building relationships, building trust, building trust and culture on a campus. To me, that is part of PBIS. Um and so when we talk about feeling safe, when we talk about going on to a campus and you know, every and the principals know their everybody's names and they shake everybody's hands or they fist bump like, you know, Principal Clancy or, you know, and they're visible and they're out there. That's part of PBIS. And please, if I'm speaking wrong about these things, I hope someone would correct me, but I think I think that that's part of being really intentional cuz these things don't just happen. A culture and a climate, they don't they don't just happen on accident or on its own. You have to really be intentional about it and I think that
059that's why these are really incredibly important initiatives because every student deserves to feel safe and welcome and like their community cares about them. And so, I have actively personally sought out those campuses that are making PBIS like a critical component of what they do because then my kid wants to go to school. My kid wants to learn and it's not a competing initiative, they're complementary as in my assessment. Mrs. Christensen? Yeah. Thank you, Mrs. Wanion, I do appreciate that, but what what I would like to see is something that as we Going back to that, being specific and measurable, since the implementation of MTSS, PBIS, PLCs, what has it done to student achievement? Do we have metrics? Because I don't know, maybe that maybe that would help me if I saw When did we implement
060these three and how has student achievement increased? And and so if we have that kind of raw data that says we this is all helping to improve student achievement, maybe that would that would help. Um and so to me it's it's wonderful that we have these things, but it's hard to measure um niceness and feeling good, but we can absolutely measure what our science scores are engineering math. And yes, we need all of that. We need but um to me, if you're going to implement something and they'll be your district-wide initiatives, we need to be measuring that data that goes along with how is that improving student achievement. So I guess that's my main point um to to see because our ultimate goal is to increase enrollment and we're going to focus that with on
061student voice and everything. And if this stuff isn't increasing um scores, which is a part of enrollment, why people choose different schools in different districts, um it's it's it's all for naught. If I can if May I? If I can just add, I think when you look at goal three and you think about SWOT analysis, you think about listening and looking at district initiatives and seeing what's working and what's not, I think that shows up in goal three. Yeah, that was kind of what I was going to say was, you know, bringing the focus back to that we're looking at these specific um agenda item in terms of goals and objectives for this coming year. I think this is all good information to see where that supports what we're talking about. So I think we
062both said the same thing. Um does anybody else have any other questions or comments? Seeing none, Dr. Liv, may I please have a motion to consider and approve the con- 2025-2026 superintendent goals and objectives for alternative performance pay plan as presented. So moved. All those in favor, please say I. I. I. I. Any abstention? Oh, excuse me. All those opposed, please say nay. Any abstentions? Motion passes unanimously. Thank you, Dr. Cummings. Thank you all for your insights. Next on the agenda is consideration and approval of GMP number one for contract 25-017, and I will turn it over to Mrs. Fregan. Thank you, President Greenberg, Dr. Cummings, Governing Board. Uh we do have a presentation tonight to go with the GMP one. Uh this is done by Sarvanan, if you remember him. He presented to us
063back in, I believe it was May. And uh we have some additional information and some prettier pictures, though not the final pretty pictures. Uh if you have driven by Indian Bend recently, or in the last couple of months, you'll see that there's some fencing up and some signage on the fencing with bond dollars at work. It doesn't look like bond dollars are at work yet. And I'm the most impatient person that I know. Uh but there is stuff happening. We're pulling out pieces from inside of the building that we can use in the future building. We are working on the architectural plans, obviously. Uh city permitting pieces, GMP one, um all of those various uh things that need to really happen first. Uh the more exciting stuff will be happening later this fall. So, um
064I'm told I can operate a bulldozer. Is that still a yes? No, probably >> Yes. Why did your head go that way? It goes this way. I'm working on it. Uh but in the meantime, we >> a camera. Heather's in. Heather's in. Um okay, so that's probably not going to happen. Um but uh in all seriousness, we do have a great presentation tonight from the architects uh that I'm excited for everyone else to hear. And then uh we'll talk about next steps at the end of that, too. Thank you. Well, good evening. Thank you again for the opportunity, President Greenberg, members of the governing board, Dr. Cummings. Um great opportunity and excited to be back and provide more detail on this amazing design that is uh developing. Um just a quick refresher. That's a a
065simple schedule on the screen there. Those little circles represent milestones. And we have been working with a steering committee and the district leadership to continue to evolve the design for the new Indian Bend. And we're at a stage where the building is taking shape. Uh and as our contracting partners are beginning to uh prepare for major demolition and earthwork, uh we're we're giving it more shape and definition and the design is emerging uh with a level that you can begin to comment and um appreciate what what the community has asked us to do. Um as I mentioned, this has been a community-led effort. Your steering committee has been uh very instrumental in giving voice and giving their voice and giving it shape. And as of this week, uh we've continued to engage with them um
066uh during their steam night and continuing to provide information about the evolving design to continue to make sure that the the design information is is presented uh to your stakeholders. Uh we gather input and our project managers and and designers are continuing to do that. Uh we have another one of those steering committee meetings planned very soon to to bring everybody back after the break uh summer break um and we have a lot more information to share that you will see in a minute. And um so with that further ado, I'm just going to just walk you through the overarching uh process, which started with developing three of those memorable goals uh that are giving helping give give shape to the new design, and those are the three goals that we see on the screen,
067which is uh to create an environment that provides the ability to collaborate without friction, uh bringing opportunities to connect with nature, and and invest in student wellness. Uh some of these ideas already existed in the prior Indian Bend design. Now, we're amplifying that and giving it better shape and sustainability towards the long term. And also tried to develop spaces that provide the opportunity for students uh to build uh and ideas that they can explore learn through exploration. So, uh what you see on the screen is the way the old school uh is, and on the north side is uh Thunderbird, and on the south side, you see the the baseball field, and the white big blocks are the existing Indian school buildings. And the first phase of the project would obviously be to remove those
068existing buildings, and that's what our contracting partners are beginning to do. They're removing some of the infrastructure that needs to be safely removed before the major demolition can happen. And once that is complete, um the thought process is where do we place the new facility? And as part of the goal setting for the project, uh several values were established. One is you have such a prominent arterial with Thunderbird, making sure that the new facility has presence and gives you the opportunity to market to your community that the new Indian Bend means business, and that's a that's a significant part of this. So, uh on the north side, we're improving the parent pick up and drop off experience creating a safe, long, sustainable pick up and drop off sequence that would would include entrance on on
069the adjacent street to be able to drop students off in the front of the school. And what that allows us to do is place you see those newer white blocks that you see there, those are the new proposed buildings. Uh it's a two-story classroom building with a administrative section and a media center. And south of it would be a larger multi-purpose space that actually is right-sized for a school of this magnitude. Um and obviously filling out the rest of that site design would be athletic fields and play structures. So here's a little bit of a closer view. It's a it's a look in into the insides of the building. Uh all of the boxes colored in blue are the classroom spaces and they're tagged with what grade levels. Obviously kinder, pre-K, uh and other grade
070levels in the first level. And in between in the middle is the front office, which has prominent um presence on Thunderbird. Uh and is a commons area right adjacent to it that it's a two-story space that will allow community use uh even during school while being able to secure the classroom spaces on either end. And across from the main uh lobby area that connects to the south is a courtyard that is a uh where the multi-purpose room is being located and it's a large enough space where you can actually uh play basketball, little little middle school basketball. Uh that's how big the court is going to be and it's going to be able to be divided and uh we should be able to do food service and athletics at the same time. And uh the
071multi-purpose room also has a a stage built in for performances and the stage can offer indoor performances but also has an amphitheater facing the north which is a nice orientation for good shade to exist for outdoor performances when it gets nicer for those two days in Arizona in a calendar year. Uh, joking. Um, and adjacent to the stage are band rooms and music rooms and we're also locating on the south side of the multi-purpose space a secure lobby with adjacent restaurants. So, for field use, the rest of the campus can be secured and those restaurants can be opened up for community use. So, the second level of the two-story classroom building once again has several classroom spaces and a large media center. The media center, uh, because of the way the campus is located can
072have some amazing beautiful views to the north. Uh, and here are some, um, illustrations conceptual illustrations of what the campus might look like. Different views. Here's a view looking at it from the north. Um, having a the ability to go two stories allows for some amazing view opportunities from various spaces which I know there's been quite a bit of discussion about investing in student wellness and having the ability to have good natural light in all spaces and views. So, the building design is beginning to, um, uh, appreciate and provide those types of opportunities. Uh, so here is another view. This is looking straight on um, from Thunderbird onto the new school. Uh, part of the design is retaining a lot of the existing solar panels. The design is making sure that those solar panels are
073used, um, as assets as shade structures in various areas. Uh, but in spite of that having a two-story building that has a lot of presence on Thunderbird and the new design is beginning to achieve that. With that, I can take some questions. Thank you. Does that Mr. Panter? I like what I'm seeing here. This is pretty pretty exciting. I like the idea of the whole natural lighting and all that. Um, I saw a lot of the window spaces there. Um, having said that, how um, how the How's the safety involved? Intruder alert, like how dangerous are those open windows to people from outside the building who might wish harm on our schools? So, the design is taking into consideration um, best practices when it comes to school safety. Um, so some of those best practices
074involve uh, clarity in terms of having a defensible space. So, the building is set back quite a bit. And if you look at the current design, the current school, the way it is, there's a lot of fencing out front. Uh, some of that is in reaction to what has happened since the original Indian Bend was built in 1972 where the play uh, play structures for example are outside. So, all of the play structures for example are placed inside the courtyard behind the buildings. The building itself is used as a defensive mechanism. And the soft spots, if you will, are the front lobby space and all of the glass that the visibility is important so the front office staff can see who's approaching the building. So, all of the glass in those soft spots will be
075hardened with resistant film and that's standard practice. And all of the classroom buildings will have a vestibule design meaning a uh, a door at the ends which uh, have glass in them to allow for natural light. But then a vestibule type solid door that would be on hold opens only about 8 ft away from it. That in case of a lockdown can close the entire section off. So, all sorts of um, safety design is built into the design as it's evolving. Yes, and thank you for answering that and and um, considering these safety issues. I don't ask you for many details cuz I don't want anyone to know all these details. But but thank you. Appreciate it. Is there anybody else? Dr. Love? All right. So, um I know you've been talking to the community
076um and everything um but I know this uh school doesn't currently have a pre-K program and and we've got one to highlight it potentially going in here. Us pre-K kiddos, cuz if everyone hasn't figured out I have a pre-K kiddo. Um we get out earlier than the other schools um and if you know anything about Whispering Winds Academy, um it is hard to get in and out of as a pre-K parent. It's just not strategically set up because the way we everyone enters for certain grades and where the cars and buses pass, it you know, once once you're in there you're sometimes not leaving till everyone else leaves. So, when we're redoing and rejiggering the parking lot, are we accounting for that there are parents that are going to be leaving as other parents are
077arriving? So, that that driveway that I see going around the whole building, which looks amazing and we would love to have but don't have, um has the space for those younger parents to be able to leave while that whole pickup is happening cuz we often get out we get out 15 minutes before. Sometimes our kiddos are ready at before that, but we're stuck waiting sometimes 20 30 minutes to back out and get all the way out. It has been worked out so it's more efficient now, but it's still not the best system. And so, I'm hoping that our pre-K kiddos here when they eventually come don't have that challenge. Yeah, parking and and drop-off is the first experience most parents get on any school. So, that's uh was a significant discussion with the steering committee.
078Uh and I I believe that we have developed a solution and we are working with a traffic engineer to validate these designs. Uh the city would just require that just in in the sense that we're creating a major out of replacement campus. So, we believe that there's plenty of additional parking that is also provided. And the main point I'm making is many of those bottlenecks that traditionally contribute to holding parents, preschool parents such as yourselves, hostage in a pickup and drop-off line, we've resolved. And there's plenty of parking adjacent to where the preschool is. So, someone can park and there's a secondary lane that'll allow someone to exit from Thunderbird. So, some of those concerns have been addressed in the new design. Great. And so, my other question is we've got these two I'm not
079sure if they're exits or entrances along Thunderbird. So, if we think about Larksburg, they have their own bottleneck. There's only one way in and one way It's got It's got one way in and technically you could go in and out one of the sides, but there's only really the one side in and one side out. Um so, are these going to be like very directional and they can only go in or go out? And if so, are we going to make sure to think about that flow cuz again, there are other reasons people get trapped, not just the backing out, but like the exits and entrances are very only one way in and only one way out, which for safety reasons I could see why, but for exits and kid pickup, that could be challenging.
080Right. So, that's the whole traffic engineering component of it. They've looked at this and they've validated the design as it stands. There is an exit on Thunderbird that can be utilized. I mean, obviously, there's two. One is a fire exit entrance that we're maintaining. So, there's multiple points of exiting should it be required, but the key thing there is the length of the queuing and how much additional parking is is being provided and also resolving any bottlenecks that can slow traffic down that can cause a lot of issues. So, I think the major pinch points, no pun intended, have been resolved through that. And and the engineer engineering validations uh suggest that it it is improved. Great. And then I just want to make a comment looking at the renderings. I I just want to
081say I appreciate the keeping of the baseball fields. I I know that was something that was donated to that campus. So, to see that still in the design and moving forward, I imagine it needs some refurbishment and but seeing that maintained in this plan and seeing the sustainment of that investment that was already made by a nonprofit in uh the state to have that maintained and still part of the campus is very much appreciated um in the design process. Is there any Ms. Wani? Thank you so much. Um just a question around um like can you speak about any like design strategies or priorities that are being taken into consideration to maximize um indoor ventilation in this new building? Um the building design it's wellness is one of the important goals. Uh so, we focused
082um as much as possible on providing ad- obviously adequate ventilation um through modern codes. Um so, there's nothing specific beyond what we would typically expect to do in a modern building. Uh when you think when you say ventilation, are you are you thinking of anything specific? >> Yeah, I'm talking about just sort of right like if you think about like even strategically where you're placing certain windows where during those 2 days of the year where maybe you can open them for some cross ventilation um and just kind of thinking about you know a lot of times our school buildings are built for safety and and for these kinds of reasons and unfortunately, what that sometimes means is that we don't have great indoor air quality in our schools and in our buildings and that affects
083like cognitive thinking, right? And it it impacts I think attendance rates, right? All of these things cuz kiddos get sick, staff gets sick. So, I guess I you know, there's been a lot of research in like the last couple of years on this. So, I'm just sort of wondering yeah, like just to to what extent we maybe can sort of be looking at at least in a new a new brand new building where there might be some opportunity here. Yeah, the the windows are all fixed windows. They're not operable windows and that's I would argue is a best practice in in this situation. Safety could be somewhat compromised if they're operable windows. That said, the ventilation rates that are code driven does count for number of fresh air exchanges in a in a given hour.
084So, it is pretty well established science in terms of bringing in fresh air. So, some of the challenges you described which are pretty common should not be a part of this project and it's the best practices being used here should ensure there's good natural ventilation and air exchanges in a given year. Thank you. Yeah, and I would just I would appreciate just kind of to the extent that we can have that be sort of just top of mind. I think there's just such an opportunity, right? When we're in the process of building a brand new building to be thinking about things that we just we didn't we didn't really know as much about, right? Just even 10 years ago. And and to the point you're making, codes do change quite often and the ventilation and
085air exchange requirements have increased dramatically since the time the original school was built and I know there are some smell issues or smells some smelling issues in the in the past and you should not have any of that with this. So, I can assure you that. >> good men to no smells. That's good. And rats, no rats. And no rats. >> Yes. Woohoo! Does anybody else have any Mrs. Christensen, do you have any? Yes, thank you for the update and the presentation. I think most of my questions will be directed toward cabinet. I I appreciate the how beautiful this looks and and all but um I know that we mentioned that the original building was built in 1972 and my reason for voting for new build was I was concerned about health issues like the
086rats that you were mentioning and and other other there was numerous concerns that were mentioned and that's why I was for this and and in hindsight I I'm starting to regret that that vote not that it would have changed anything but do I mean I've been looking at our enrollment numbers and with declining enrollment and um you know I don't need to remind people that we've closed three schools recently and and schools are closing left and right um in 2018 we had nearly 32,000 students and now we have just over 24,500 students and I looked at the data for Indian Bend I'm concerned about the if you build it will they will come mentality because just Indian Bend alone we've in from this fiscal year to last fiscal year we've we've lost um 83 students
087and so that school is under 500 enrollment and I've just I'm I'm just concerned and um you know having that 23% drop in 8 years the demographics reports that we've been getting it it's not looking good and so I I guess I'll get to my question so for maybe for Ms. Bergin what is the contingency plan for cuz we've done a lot of repurposing we have extra capacity in other buildings um we've mentioned this this is this is over 3.4 million dollars of bond money taxpayer money and if if we don't get the students to come back what what is the plan for this beautiful building that we are under that's underway at the moment. Uh thank you, Mrs. Christiansen and uh President Greenberg. Um so, in this instance, we will be in a situation
088and and we've said this since we closed schools last time that we have a forecasted demographic report of continued decline over the next 10 years. Um largely due to at this point uh a birth rate that's about 35% lower than it was before the recession back in 2007-2008. So, with that, while Indian Bend is one school, we look at the enrollment overall in the district, and we look at where schools are placed in the district. Indian Bend would not likely be a locate That's one of the reasons in discussing which of the sites needed to be uh rebuilt, in addition to it being the oldest, um and all of the problems that come with that and the systems that are within it. It's not in a location that we would likely pick that school to
089close, particularly because it's our only elementary school that's on a main road. And so, that's an important flagship, I think, for the school district to continue to have. But, we will very soon have to start having the discussion again about closing schools. I know nobody wants to do it. But, we we knew at the time that it would be coming again in the next 3 to 5 years. And uh it's a a discussion that's hard on everybody's minds and hard on everybody's hearts. Um but, when it comes around and Indian Bend is rebuilt at that point in time, you know, we we had to consider schools in which to close, and Larkspur and Hidden Hills were ones that were discussed for that section of of the district. And we, you know, very clearly felt like,
090why would we close a school Larkspur, which was built rebuilt in 2011, I think. We didn't feel like it was the right thing to do to close a school that had been rebuilt. So, I don't envision us uh ever considering closing Indian Bend in the near future in addition to all of the reasons that we shared. If we put up a new building, that's not a building we're going to close, but we will have to close other schools. Sorry, long answer to all of that, but it is a comprehensive thought process. >> that and just and just your candor with that because I would rather start having those discussions sooner rather than later and I appreciate I appreciate this and and and I I do thank you for the beautiful design and it I would
091like to go to this school, but I'm way too old. So, it does look lovely, but I I'm just concerned about, you know, enrollment, Yes. finances, Yeah. all of the above. >> Absolutely. Thank you. Thank you both. Yes. Thank you. I have one design question. Um, obviously we have different footprints in around the district and, you know, with this we're looking at a separate building for multi-purpose room, etc. From some of these views, it looks like there's, you know, specific walkways. Are they going to be covered at all for the Yeah, okay. I just want to make sure that for the 363 days where we have sun, that we are providing some sort of shade. Right. That just illustrates the the the fact that we're not entirely there in terms of the design and absolutely
092you're right. The multi-purpose space is designed to have a stage on the on the north side. Let me go back to that. Let's see. Um, and the intention is to provide shade, so the space itself is usable, but also a covered canopy that connects the buildings. Excellent. Mr. Pantera. Both in guard in regard to enrollment, this came up at PV Voice in regards to anecdotal stories of parents who've chosen to take their kid to whatever school, charter school, whatever, just because it was new. They didn't even know anything about the program. And oh my gosh, it's brand new. I'm Our kids going to a brand new school. It's everything's new and and it's a very big drawing point. Especially in this neighborhood, it's going to be a big drawing point. Um I I can't put
093numbers to it, but I I think this one's this kind of school that we're talking about. You see You drive by that, oh, I want my kid going there. It's brand new. Got the latest and the greatest. But that is that is um there is something to that. You know, we we do hear that anecdotally. Um in fact, I did attend a a dedication this week and the superintendent got up and said exactly that is that that once the school opened, they had um seen an increase in enrollment um that captured this This was another rebuild um that captured the students that were in that school plus another 80 kids. Again, obviously that's a data point of one, but but that's something that anecdotally comes up almost every single time. Dr. Lynn. Um so, going
094back to the tentative project schedule, so I see us completing construction in winter break 2026. So, construction projects can sometimes go over. Is that to give us a little extra time to get into the 2027 school year? Correct. The The goal is to finish You want to speak to that? Yeah, I don't want to speak to you. So, Governing Board President Greenberg, members of the board, Dr. Cummings, my name is Patrick Shepherd. I'm the project director of Chase Building Team. Uh so, that's a great question. So, when we talk about scheduling for the project, uh Mrs. Bergin mentioned several things that we're doing right now to be proactive uh to eliminate or minimize the potential for any of those runovers on on schedules. Uh so, the work that's being done now is going to contribute
095to the overall success of the project. So, the overall salvage of the building, uh the asbestos abatement and testing that needs to be done prior to demolition, beginning that demolition early, which is why we bring GMP 1 to you tonight for approval, allows us to get kind of running and under construction so that we can have those tasks done. That is what is scheduled to happen here before the end of the year, which then allows us to roll into construction while we allow the design to complete, and we allow permits to be received, so we can begin those activities here after the first of the year. And we have been diligent in building our schedules and also completing these schools that we've done over the last 17 years and never missing a date. So, that
096December date is also very beneficial to the school district because it allows teachers, faculty, and everybody else to then move into that space, move IT in, and start flushing everything out, and be ready to accept students for that January opening because what we want to have happen is that move happens over those extended breaks. It's much more difficult to try and do that while you're kind of in stride with the school year. So, there is strategy and thought that's put behind completing those at that time. So, I think my question then goes to Ms. Bergin, and maybe Heather is sitting in the audience. Do we have buy-in from our teachers to move over their winter break cuz that is what little bit of time they get away from school. So, do we have a buy-in
097from that community to actually transition back onto campus in January cuz that seems like a big ask of our our our teaching population and our staff to do that transition. So, Yeah, so no no matter when the move happens, it's going to be over some sort of break. >> Yes, but summer is a much longer break than a winter break. >> don't want to leave the building vacant for 6 months, though. We don't want to leave a brand new building vacant for 6 months, so we were trying to be very mindful of that from the community's perspective. Um before we started, or maybe it was the first stakeholder meeting, uh the principal of the school, Marcy Kristner, discussed with her staff, and we gave them the option because it was possible for us to be
098able to get it done by the fall break of that year. We have like a full week of a fall break that year, and we did ask them, "Would you prefer fall break or winter break?" And the feedback that we received on that was winter break. We will continue to work with the staff. We will provide them with additional compensation to be able to make that move happen. It will be supported by Chase and Grace Design. They all know and will be pitching in just to make that load a little bit lighter and a little bit easier for all of them. And if it's our break that we're giving up, too, we're happy to do that as well. And he may be upset with me later for saying this, but it will probably be done
099before winter break. Are you upset with me? I'm upset with you. Not significantly before winter break, but that does give people the time to start moving into rooms potentially even before winter break. Maybe not an occupancy situation, obviously. But for the ability to to move their decor, what whatever it is that they want to move over there. Some teachers have more things in their rooms than other teachers. I have learned over the years. But it'll be an all hands on deck. Okay. The one thing Mrs. Bergin did mention there, too, is again our commitment to PBUSD is that move, again, we do manage that. You know, so the heavy lifting, heavy furniture, things of that type of nature, you know, that's being moved into those spaces. What we expect the the faculty and the teachers
100to do is essentially come in with those personal belongings, set their room up, make it look great, be ready for students on the first day of school. You know, we don't ask or expect, you know, the teachers to have the responsibility to do that part of the move. So, that is something that we do take responsibility for. Does anybody else have any other questions or comments? Cuz most of this was amazing pictures of what this is going to look like, but that's not quite what we're voting on. So, is there anybody else? Seeing none. Going once, going twice. Okay. Dr. Lim, may I please have a motion to consider well, to approve contract 25-0, excuse me, 25-017, guaranteed maximum price number one for construction manager at risk services for Indian Bend Elementary School and awarding
101this to Chase Building Team as presented. So moved. All those in favor, please say I. I. >> I. Any opposed, say nay. Any abstentions? I abstain from this vote. The motion passes uh 4-0 with one abstention. Thank you very much, gentlemen. Appreciate the time and the information. And the pictures. Um next on the agenda is acceptance of gifts and donations. Um we had quite a large number. I'd like to review a few. Um at Boulder Creek Elementary, the PTO provided nearly $5,600 uh for learning technology subscription for fiscal year 26. At Desert Cove Elementary, Tiffany Ruiz provided $1,200 worth of disinfectant wipes for classroom disinfection. Uh at Desert Shadows Elementary School, uh the PTA there provided $6,000 for musical instruments for their Suzuki Strings program, as well as another $1,500 for chairs. And SBI Henry
102Heard provided just over $7,000 for more chairs for excuse me, chairs for library, as well as a pneumatic student/teacher desk. Um over at Foothills and Related Services, Linnae Lane and Emery Singer provided $1,500, a non-cash donation for a Zing Pediatric Stander for special needs preschool. At Greenway Middle School, the Grayhawk Classic Resonance Foundation provided just over $19,260 to support various departments and programs. At Horizon High School, Bel Guard Commercial provided a non-cash donation worth $18,492 for concrete pavers for the baseball field. Um, the Arizona Interscholastic Association gave $1,060.61 to North Canyon High School and also to Pinnacle High School, um, separate checks for a a grant for flag football. Uh, Pinnacle High School, Paul and Maryann McLemons gave a non-cash donation $2,000, uh, a Yamaha keyboard for choir and piano programs. And at Pinnacle Peak
103Prep, uh, Rebecca Cloud uh, gave just under $1,470 for the site discretionary fund. I also want to point out that there, I think everybody or most folks are aware of the DonorsChoose program. There were eight different donations via the DonorsChoose program um, that provided in total over $2,600 to different classrooms and that primarily went to classroom supplies. So, I want to thank everybody for their donations. If you're here tonight, thank you in person. If you know anyone other folks we mentioned, please thank them for us. And Dr. Limb, may I have a motion to approve gifts and donations? So moved. Uh, any board member wish to comment or have any Seeing none, all those in favor, please say I. I. I. All those opposed say nay. Any abstentions? Motion passes unanimously. Uh next on the
104agenda is call to the public, so I ask that you turn your attention to the video monitors. Call to the public is about to convene. This portion of today's meeting allows the public the opportunity to address the governing board. Although state law does not require that the governing board hold a call to the public, the Paradise Valley Unified School District and its board have chosen to do so because we believe it's important to hear about concerns and issues from our community. While call to the public is not designed to be a discussion, the board is here to listen. Due to Arizona Open Meeting Law, the governing board cannot respond to, discuss, or take any action on items brought up during this time. However, staff members may be to get back to you and address individual
105concerns. As a reminder, the point of this and every board meeting is to accomplish the business at hand and to be able to do so in an open and collaborative way. All in attendance are expected to observe meeting rules as well as rules of politeness and decorum so that we may serve as an example to our students that issues can be discussed in a respectful and civil manner. Thank you very much. Tonight we have uh one person who has submitted a comment card prior to the meeting and the speaker will have 3 minutes for remarks. As a reminder, we ask that you please direct your comments to the board. I know this is going to sound redundant, but please state your first and last name when you come to the podium and our speaker tonight
106is Leslie Quitt. Go ahead. She needs sound? Go ahead. Is it on? Okay. Good evening, Governing Board President, members, and cabinet. My name is Leslie Quinn, and I'm here tonight as a concerned parent whose child has been the victim of ongoing bullying at Sam Piper Elementary. I stand before you not just as one parent, but as a voice for all families who trust this district to provide a safe learning environment for our children. My child has endured repeated events and incidents of bullying. We have diligently followed the district's established process for reporting. The claims were validated as bullying. No fault rests with our son. Let me share some of what has occurred. My son was threatened with harm and death by knives and guns brought to school or school events. He was told by the
107aggressor, "I know where you live. You better lock your doors." However, more disturbingly, the principal, Mr. Varner, has implemented actions following our reporting that appear retaliatory against my son, the victim. We interpret these actions as consequences designed to punish him for speaking up about his mistreatment and ignore his concerns about future bullying and harm. For example, Mr. Varner has implemented a no contact plan without our agreement or signature. This plan included reducing my son's recess freedoms by splitting when our son could play a specific sport. The principal will approach my son in front of his friends and require him to leave games underway, publicly humiliating him. The bully's father has also been approved to chaperone on the on an overnight field trip, but the principal refused our family's request for our son to also have
108a guardian on this trip. How uncomfortable for to propose our son be under the authority of the bully's father. It's unacceptable and sets our son up to be victimized again. When the very system designed to protect our children instead punishes them for seeking help, we have a fundamental breakdown in leadership and accountability. My husband and I attempted to resolve this at the school level since school began in August and recently escalated it to the district in early September. Unfortunately, our efforts towards resolution have failed, which brings me here tonight. When emails go unanswered and phone calls are not returned, the lack of action speaks volume. Our son is not a priority what is happening is acceptable. I disagree. The same bully who made these threats to my son has driven out at least three students
109just since the end of last year because the behaviors were not addressed. One left the second week of school this year. These families reported the behavior, however, insufficient resolution drove them away. These families abandoned years of work in Spanish immersion. I do not want to do the same. My son is a student council president and has been at Sandpiper since pre-K. This is his eighth year. Tonight, I'm calling on this board to take immediate action. First, engage with our family to resolve our specific situation. Our son should not have consequences for reporting as comp- compelled by the district handbook or put in a position to feel unsafe on a field trip. Second, re-evaluate the approach to bullying investigations and outcomes, including investigating the current handling of bullying cases at Sandpiper. Am I done? Thank you.
110While the governing board can't speak, if you would not leave until Dr. Lindsay can speak with you. Thank you. We have no items for discussion this evening, so I just like to remind everyone that our next governing board meeting will be Thursday, October 9th. Uh, Dr. Lee, may I have a motion to adjourn? So moved. All those in favor, please say I. I. I. Any opposed say nay. Motion passes unanimously. We are adjourned.