001Mhm. >> Okay. My apologies. Good evening everyone. We're ready to begin this evening's board meeting. Dr. Carlin is unavailable today. Instead, please welcome Deputy Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Savage. >> [applause] >> We request that all electronic devices be turned off and put in silent mode. Also, please refrain from using flash photography except during the special portion of the meeting. I am pleased to welcome you to the April 14th, 2026 school board meeting. The time is 6:01 p.m. This meeting is called to order. We would like to take this opportunity to remind the members of the public of the district's mission, which is to ensure that each student achieves his or her highest potential. The district personal potential. The district's vision to be a world-class school system. Approval of the agenda tonight includes the invocation, presentation of
002colors and pledge of allegiance, acknowledgements, recognitions, public comment, consent item action actions, which include three items under board office, two items under academic and cert student services, seven items under school choice and administration, eight items under business services, three items under human resources, one item under information systems, two items under legal services, three items under safety, security, and fleet operations, 23 items under facility operations, three items under public hearings, and four items under the good of the order business. Board members, is there a motion to adopt the agenda? Mr. Fisher? Motion to adopt the agenda. Is there a second? >> I'll second. Motion [clears throat] made by Mr. Fisher and seconded by Ms. Langford-Fleming. Please record your vote. Motion carries 7-0. As the custom of the board, Ms. Jordan will introduce her guest to lead
003us in the invocation, after which Ms. Giovanelli will lead us in the presentation of colors and the pledge of allegiance. Please stand for the invocation. Leading us in the invocation this evening is Pastor Jason Callahan of City First Church in Cape Coral, Florida. Welcome, Pastor Callahan. Thank you. Thank you all for having me tonight. And uh why don't we all join in prayer together as we just ask for God's wisdom, direction, discernment in tonight's meeting. Come on, would you pray with me? God, we thank you for this day and for this opportunity we have to gather here together. And God, we're grateful for the men and for the women who serve on this board, for their willingness to lead, to make decisions, and to carry responsibility on behalf of this community. You see every decision
004that will be made in this room, and you you care deeply about the students, families, educators represented here. You see every decision, and we know that there's going to be wisdom brought forward. So, this evening, we don't ask for just good ideas, we ask for the wisdom of God. We give clarity in every conversation, discernment in every decision, and we ask for courage to do what's right even when it isn't easy. Bring unity into this room. Let every discussion be marked by respect, patience, and a shared desire to move forward together. We pray for the students in this county that they would be protected, supported, and given every opportunity to grow and succeed. And tonight, we trust with you everything that happens here today. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen. Thank you. Introducing the cadet
005presenting the national colors for our pledge of allegiance tonight is Colonel retired Adam Lewis, senior armor army instructor from Bonita Springs High School. Colonel Lewis and served 25 years in the army in numerous assignments including combat deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan. Colonel Lewis retired as the commander of third brigade army ROTC in North Chicago, Illinois. This is Colonel Lewis' third year as JROTC instructor in the district. Thank you for your service. Thank you. Bless you. Thank you. Presenting the national colors tonight is Cadet Lieutenant Colonel Jaime Romero, a Bonita Springs High School senior and the commander of the Bull Shark Battalion. Cadet Romero was noted for his incredible ability to connect with, set the example for, and inspire more junior cadets. Clear signs of a true and natural leader. He has also distinguished himself through
006his leadership and high performance on the Raiders, drill, and air rifle marksmanship teams. A dedicated and service-minded student, he has served his school and community through food drives, color guard support, Bonita Buddies, volunteer work at Bonita Springs Veterans ceremonies, and hurricane recovery efforts. Upon graduation, Cadet Romero plans to attend the Universal Technical Institute in Orlando and pursue a certification in automotive mechanics. Please join me in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. You may be seated. The character word for April is integrity. The ultimate measure of a man is not when he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at
007times of challenge and controversy. That was from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The design displayed on the screen was created by Joseph Gabelson, a 12th grade student at Estero High School. Board members and deputy superintendent, it's time for recognitions. Good evening. For more [clears throat] than 35 years, the Florida Prepaid College Board has managed the largest and most successful prepaid college program of its kind. Over 1.2 million families have saved for college through Florida Prepaid College Plans, and more than 646,000 students have attended college using these plans. Since 2024, the School District of Lee County have proudly partnered with Florida Prepaid to offer the Florida Prepaid Superintendent Scholarship. Over the past 2 years, these scholarships have been awarded to outstanding students in our teaching academies who have committed to returning to serve as educators in
008our district after completing their college education. This evening, we are honored to recognize five exceptional students who have each been awarded an $8,000 scholarship from Florida Prepaid. These recipients were selected by a review panel based on their academic achievements, leadership, and dedication to pursuing a career in education within Lee County. When your name is called, please line up on the ramp on my left side of the boardroom. Robert Spicker, director of communications, marketing, and public relations will present your certificates. We kindly ask that all recipients remain in place until everyone's been recognized. Please join us in congratulating the following students. Caitlin Gobel, Riverdale High School. >> [applause] >> Jaylen Lust, RIVERDALE HIGH SCHOOL. >> [applause] >> DANIELLA OLMOS, FORT MYERS HIGH SCHOOL. >> [applause] >> REN PALMER, FORT MYERS HIGH SCHOOL. >> [applause] >> ZOELLIS
009VARGAS, Lehigh Senior High School. >> [applause] >> The school board and superintendent are proud to recognize and celebrate these students as recipients of the Florida prepaid um superintendent scholarship. Congratulations to you all. >> [applause] [applause] >> CONGRATULATIONS. THAT'S AWESOME. CONGRATULATIONS. >> [laughter] >> CONGRATULATIONS. EXCELLENT. CONGRATULATIONS. We'll see you again hopefully. >> The Sunshine State Scholars Recognition Program for high school students began in 1997 to recognize excellence in mathematics and science. It has since evolved into a program designed to recognize Florida's top high school science, technology, engineer, and math STEM students and recruit them to pursue their post-secondary education in Florida. Throughout September and October each year, every district selects their top STEM 11th grade students based on established criteria. In March, our Lee County Sunshine State Scholars, along with their parents, travel to Orlando for
010a two-day program. There they receive recognition for their achievements, talk with STEM industry leaders about careers and internships, and met with representatives from Florida's colleges and universities to learn about program of study and available scholarships. When your name is called, please line up at the ramp on my left side of the boardroom. Danielle Knapp, Coordinator of Teaching and Learning, will present your certificates. We kindly ask that all recipients remain in place until everyone has been recognized. Austin Sammy from Fort Myers High School. >> [applause] [applause] >> Alexis Davis, Fort Myers High School. >> [applause] >> Sarah King from Riverdale High School. >> [applause] >> And Sarah Huda, Fort Myers High School. >> [applause] >> The School Board and Superintendent are pleased to recognize Austin, Alexis, Sarah, and Sarah at this year's Lee County Sunshine State
011Scholars and alternate. We are proud of the accomplishments of these students and wish them the best in all their future endeavors. >> [applause] >> Good evening. The 71st annual State Science and Engineering Fair of Florida was held in Lakeland from March 31st through April 2nd. Among the many talented students from Southwest Florida who participated, several students from the School District of Lee County received high honors. When your name is called, please line up at the ramp on my left side of the board room. Daniel Knapp, coordinator of teaching and learning, will present your certificates. We kindly ask that all recipients remain in place until everyone has been recognized. Please help us recognize the following outstanding students. From Cape Coral High School, Mason Huffman, who received third place in his category for his project titled strengthening
012middle school mathematics through an AMC 8 workshop, a study of STUDENT LEARNING GAINS. >> [applause] >> FROM DUNBAR HIGH SCHOOL, NISHINI FERNANDO, who received third place in her category for her project titled investigating the apoptotic mechanisms activated in glioblastoma cells by pre-screened cytotoxic plants innovations for novel drug DRUG DISCOVERY. >> [applause] >> SHE'S SHE IS SHE'S IN THE OTHER ROOM. YES, she's From Cypress Cyp- Cypress Lake Middle School, Alyssa Liu, who received second place in her category and was named a Thermo Fisher nominee for project titled hydrogen using plasma to analyze seawater electrolysis. >> [applause] >> PROBABLY IN THE OTHER ONE, SO THE board members and superintendent are proud to recognize and congratulate Mason, Ashini, and Alyssa on their truly world-class STEM accomplishments. We also thank them for representing the school district of Lee County
013with excellence at this prestigious state academic competition. Thank you. >> Next item on our agenda is public comment. Mr. Doting, would you please address the item of public comment? Yes, sir. School Board policy provides the opportunity at this point in the meeting to address the board concerning any matter on this meeting's agenda or any other matter relevant to the operation of the school district. Please complete a public comment card and put it in the basket provided. If you need a public comment card, they are provided by our staff. The rules concerning public comments are posted in the back and we made from the podium in the front center aisle. Please be advised that the board will not respond during public comment to remarks made by speakers. The purpose of public comment is to provide feedback
014on district issues such as duties, responsibilities, decisions, and the general operation of the district. The School Board is viewpoint neutral during public comment. We ask that decorum be kept and respect be shown, which is what is expected when a government agency conducts official business. Therefore, abusive language, defined as swearing, use of profanity, or name-calling is prohibited. In addition, clapping, hissing, booing, or a display of temper during public comment is prohibited. Speakers who fail to follow proper decorum in the chambers will be ruled out of order by the board chair or the board attorney. Any speaker continuing with such remarks will be required to relinquish the microphone per board policy 0169.1 and may be removed from the chambers by the sergeant-at-arms. Per board policy 0169.1, the time per speaker is 3 minutes if there are 20
015speakers, 2 minutes if there are 30 speakers, and 1 minute if there are 31 speakers or more. The maximum time allotted for public comment is 1 hour, 60 speaker I'm sorry, 60 speakers. You will find a countdown on the big screens in the front of the room. Once your time has elapsed, the microphone will automatically shut off. Please state your name when you approach the microphone. I will call your names five speakers at a time. Please follow staff's direction when lining up. Mr. Chair, there are 21 speakers that wish to address the board this evening. That means it's 2 minutes per speaker. Thank you. Attorney Dodik, please proceed with public comment. >> Can we have Will Peterson, Vanessa Pagan, Felicia Wilson, Dalia Vargas, and Yeni Busic, please line up. And Mr. Peterson can come to
016the podium. Yep. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you this evening. My name is is a second grader at Buckingham Exceptional Student Center. For us, Buckingham Exceptional Student Center is a home away from home. For many of us, our children don't enjoy very many opportunities to be comfortable in their environment. Buckingham provides a second home for our students. Yet, just last week, at the end of the week, we found out that that home is going to be taken away next year. We're here this evening to respectfully ask that you reconsider that decision. Our children are special, but not because of their disabilities. They're special because they're created in the image of God. They have just as much worth, just as much dignity, just as much value as any
017other person on God's Earth. Yet, at the same time, our students are among the most vulnerable students in the county. And so we would ask for you to advocate with us. We need your help. Our children know what it's like to be overlooked and left out. Buckingham is the one place outside of our homes where that doesn't happen. But last week, as I said, we were informed that that home is about to be taken away. It's a home that the Buckingham amazing staff has built over the last 40 plus years. It's been said already tonight and Dr. Carlin has said in her memo in her memo to the community last November, "Quote, the mission of the School District of Lee County has always been simple, to ensure that each student achieves his or her full
018potential." We're here tonight to say emphatically that that mission will be significantly hindered for our children if they are taken away from their home away from home. Grace was born with life-threatening altering ability-altering medical conditions, just like many others that you'll hear tonight. We're here tonight to ask for your sincere help. Please don't make any decisions with without us about us rather without us. Thank you. >> [applause] >> No clapping, please. Please refrain from clapping so we can move along. Uh Vanessa Pagan. Good evening. My name's Vanessa and my daughter Carmen is a fifth grade student at Buckingham Special Student Center. Carmen has Rett syndrome, which is a rare and severe neurodevelopmental disorder caused by a spontaneous MECP2 gene mutation. Carmen has lost all purpose for this. Hand skills, Pete speech, has repetitive hand movement,
019silent seizures, and severe breathing issues along with severe mobility loss, feeding difficulties, significant sleep disturbance, and incontinence. Buckingham serves students whose health needs impact every part of their school day. Our students live Our students' lives are impacted by day by daily by week and immune system life-threatening medical diagnosis. Some require tracheotomy care, breathing treatments, and life-preserving medications to be administered at school. Some additional medical needs include seizure management and incontinence care. For this reason, this the dignity and well-being of these students require an appropriately equipped environment with sufficient storage space, minimal exposure to illness, and quick access to nursing and medical care. Also, nearly all of the students at Buckingham have structured feeding plans that involve restricted diets, blended nutrition, tube feedings that rely on in-room kitchens and refrigeration. Our is our current environment at
020Buckingham Exceptional Student Center already accommodates all of these necessary medical and environmental environment that both students and staff are familiar with. Removing our students and staff from this familiar environment leaves room for no un- for unnecessary changes and potentially exposes these students to undue stress and health complications. We res- respectfully ask the district to show clearly and specifically how these medical needs will be supported. Your time's up. >> Thank you. We ask that you do not move them out of here. Your time is up. Felicia Wilson. He said that. Yes. >> [snorts] >> Good evening. My name is Felicia and my daughter is Peyton. He's a fourth grader at Buckingham Exceptional Student Center. Her medical needs are respiratory due to lung disease. She requires breathing treatments daily and supplemental oxygen. She is G-tube dependent due
021to chronic aspiration, gastroparesis, and delayed emptying. She is paraplegic, fully dependent of a wheelchair, totally dependent for toileting requiring diaper changes. She has autism and global global developmental delay. She takes daily meds at home and school for muscle spasm, dystonia, absence seizures, gut motility, and GERD. And like every student at Buckingham, she requires close supervision and a safe, predictable environment. I have a son who was previously enrolled at Royal Palms Exceptional Student Center. When I told him that his sister's school would be relocated to the center school, he told me I should not send her there for safety reasons. Mrs. Superintendent and staff, you must understand that the students of Buckingham are especially vulnerable because of motility limitations, medical fragility, and communication barriers, and the need for highly structured spaces. Some students move through their
022environment non-traditional ways and rely on predictable, protective, and safety supervised areas in order to remain safe. This concern about safety is not intended to place one group of students above another, nor is it intended to criticize anyone. Our intention Our intention is to point out that different students have different needs and that appropriate placement matters. As parents, we would like to know our vulnerable students will be protected in this new environment where we will be collided with another school that also serves a vulnerable population but with a largely largely different needs. Safety planning must go beyond board reassurance and what will be done in the future to provide a safe environment for our children. As parents, we must know that the school we are entrusting with our students is already fully equipped to keep our
023students safe. Safety measures should address the actual daily realities of our students. Moves, transitions, regulates, and are supervised through the school day. We need to know how physically vulnerable students will be protected with consistency and care in this new environment. We are asking that Thank you. The next speaker is Dalia Vargas and would Cassandra Stafford, Cindy Diaz, Anthony Claw, Joshua Gomper, and Diana Garlic, please line up. Go ahead, ma'am. Good evening. My name is Dalia and my son Jason is a great student at Buckingham Exceptional Student Center. Jason has complex needs. He is nonverbal. He has seizures. He has mental impairment. He requires constant supervision and has behavioral challenges. He doesn't fit just into one category. He He fills multiple categories. That's why I chose Buckingham Exceptional Student Center because it is the only one
024that supports all of his needs in one setting. Jason also requires dignity in his care. He struggles with incontinence. He needs clothing changes and sometimes needs private time. Having access to a private bathroom in his classroom is essential, not optional. Our lives have been already good We've already gone through a major change. After my divorce, I had to move from Miami to Cape Coral for affordability and family support. That transition was very hard on him. He now sees a psychiatrist, is on my anxiety medication, and has engaged in self-harming behaviors during times of stress. >> [snorts] >> And Buckingham gave him stability again. For the first time, he was truly happy. And I know that other families at Buckingham share a similar story of regression and health decline associated with transitions. Even if you keep
025the same students and staff, changing the school, the location, the bus route can trigger serious regression and delay the progress of these students. So, I need to ask if their mental if their mental health declines, if they regress, or if they hurt themselves, who will be held accountable? This is not just a school change for children like my son. This is a life uh it's a life altering change. Please do not take away the one place that is working. Please let us as parents speak into the decision. We respectively ask again that you do nothing about us without us. Jenny Busic Good evening. My name is Jenny. I'm sorry that I will be looking at my phone, but that's where my speech is. Uh good evening. My name is Jenny Busic and I'm a parent
026of the district. My daughter is 3 and 1/2 and she goes to Golf Elementary. She's in a pre-K ESE class. I'm here because I'm deeply concerned and frankly frustrated by the proposed changes to the special education placement. My daughter is thriving. She's not just surviving in our district. She is learning, progressing, and proving every day that she's capable of what any typical kid is capable of. I've seen it with my own eyes. Not just in her, but in other adults that have Down syndrome. They work. They drive. They live independently. We've recently came back from Cleveland and we were opened to a whole slew of people with Down syndrome that are fully capable, more than some typical people that we encounter every day. So, when we talk about placing children based on labels and matrix
027scores, we're already getting it wrong. We should be listening to our teachers. We should be looking at real progress, real growth, and real potential. Because a child is already thriving in their environment, moving them is not a solution. It's a risk. And it should be the last thing that we are doing. This doesn't just impact students. It impacts teachers. Educators who have built trust and consistency with these children are now being displaced, separated from the very students they helped. Those relationships matter and they are not just easily replaced. And I understand that some of these decisions are driven by funding and lack of resources. But with all due respect, it's not a parent's job to absorb the impact. It is the district's responsibility to make it work without disrupting children who are already succeeding. I
028understand the district may say another placement is available, but that does not make it an equivalent placement. Removing inclusion, disrupting progress, and forcing change is not a solution. I hope this does not fall on deaf ears because the decision affects real children, real parents, real progress, and real inclusion. Thank you. Cassandra Stafford Hello, good [snorts] evening. My name is Cassandra. My son, Victor, is a 10th-grade student at Buckingham Exceptional Student Center. Victor was in a car accident when he was only 2 years old. Before that, he was a typical toddler running, playing, exploring the world just like any other child. That accident changed everything. Today, Victor no longer has the use of his legs. He gets around by crawling, but more than anything, he wants to feel just like every other child. At Buckingham, he
029has the opportunity. He can ride his bike on the track just like his brother and sister at home. He can move safely through enclosed hallways, getting from class to class independently, building confidence, and meeting his social needs. For him, that's what normal feels like. This school has not only supported his education, but his independence, his dignity, and his safety. Even They They helped potty train him, something that means so much more for his growth and self-esteem. Like with any other Buckingham student, Victor, placing Victor into a different environment, especially one with more severe behavioral changes, would not support his progress. It would set him back. It could trigger stress and take away the sense of normalcy he has worked so hard to achieve. Buckingham is not just a school for Victor, it's a safe place
030where he is thriving. Buckingham is is not easily interchangeable with other schools. The question is not simply whether another site has classrooms. The real question is whether it can truly reciprocate the environment of safety and care that our students rely on from arrival to dismissal. I'm asking that you please allow Victor and the other Buckingham students to stay in an environment where they're supported, where they're progressing, and where they feel like they belong. We're asking the superintendent and her staff to evaluate this proposal not only as a faculty issue, but as an environment of care issue. If the conditions that support student function, safety, and dignity dignity at Buckingham Exceptional Student Center cannot be preserved, then the placement at Royal Palm Exceptional Session Center is truly not It does not support the needs of our
031students. Thank you. Cindy Diaz. Just wait a second for her to clear out. Okay. Good evening. My name is Cindy Diaz. I am a mother, the SAC president of Buckingham Exceptional Student Center, and a founder of Little Voices of Buckingham. My son, Bruce, a fifth-grade student who lives with epilepsy, autism, and ulcerative colitis, and he depends on a structured, medically supported environment every day. I stand here not only for my child, but for families who are trusting us to speak on their behalf. In continuation to Cassandra's comments, I want to focus on what families are asking for. We are not here to create division. We are here asking for careful, responsible decision-making that puts student welfare first. Before any move happens, there must be a clear proof that safety, medical care, dignity, emotional stability, and
032daily support will be preserved or improved. For our children, these are not preferences. They are necessities. If financial or operational pressures are part of this decision, we understand as a SAC president, I value fiscal responsibility, but a decision cannot be considered effective if it compromises safety or stability for medically fragile students. We are respectfully stating asking the the superintendent and her staff to pause this process until questions are fully answered and all reasonable alternatives are considered. Our children deserve a decision rooted in protection, compassion, and care. As little voices of Buckingham, we will continue to advocate for all students. Nothing about us without us. Thank you. >> [clears throat] >> Anthony Cole. My name is Anthony Cole and I couldn't believe when I heard that you were going to close Buckingham and move in with
033Royal Palm. As a driver, I had to take Royal Palm. Had a girl hit me with a shoe. Before that, she assaulted an attendant three different times. The girl still rode the bus and this is what your administration staff said, "Well, there's nothing we can really do. They have issues." You know what the police officer there that you have there for safety said? "Oh, well, if you want if you want to remove from the bus, you have to take her outside the fence and call Fort Myers PD." You expect these parents to put these kids on a bus in a school with them? Have you lost your minds? Budget or no budget, stop building that school in Alva and keep this school so these kids are safe. I don't understand what the problem is. It's
034bad enough we have unsafe positions and drivers. And I will say that I no longer work for the city of Lee County or or the school district. Um I'm actually happy, but I can't believe you're doing this. I have still have children in this district, which I will be removing next year and putting them in charter school. That's why you're losing them because we don't have safety. We don't have safety in transportation. We don't have safety in the schools because if you're going to put these kids in that position, something seriously wrong. You closed LAMP to help pregnant mothers with their children. I'm 51 years old. I'm a product of LAMP. Thank God that it was there when the my mom had me. So, all these things that you're taking away from these children and
035our children in the school district, start firing some of these administrators and start putting out money towards it because there's always a position made for an administrator, you know, and they're making big money when these kids right here suffer and our other kids suffer. That shouldn't happen. Thank you. >> [applause] >> Point of order, Chair. Mr. Fisher, did you have a point of order? Yeah, I had a point of order, Chair, for clap. Yes, please. All right. Thank you. Um Jocelyn Gomper is the next speaker, and then I would ask Tim Tyler, Tara Jenner, Axel Arias, Giselle Gentile or Gentilly, sorry if I pronounced it wrong, and Carol Robinson to approach or or to line up, I'm sorry. Mr. Gomper? Is he still here? Joshua Gomper. No, okay. Diana Garlic will be next. What's that?
036No, cuz there's actually 22 speakers. So, there's now 21. Good evening. My name's Diana Gordic and for the past 2 years it's been my honor and my privilege to be teacher on assignment at Buckingham Exceptional Student Center. I believe in the cluster model. I worked at Veterans Park for 9 years and we had a school within a school. So, I understand how it works and what it's meant to be. I'm not here to complain. I'm not here to be angry. That's not who I am. I'm a dedicated teacher. I will go where the kids are. I will keep serving them. That is my heart, period. But, I do want to talk about Buckingham today. Buckingham is a promise that your student will be cared for today, that they'll be seen, heard, and loved. Buckingham is
037a hope that your student will experience the most that we can give them out of life, that they'll be in a setting that's adapted just for them, fully and completely. Buckingham offers our students a future, day by day and step by step for as long as they're with us and for some for as long as they have. That for me was very hard to move to Buckingham knowing that not all of our students make it. And when our parents are speaking to you tonight, they're speaking to you from tomorrows that are not promised for their students. As you've listened to our families, both those who went to Royal Palm today and those who have spoken tonight, please hear what they see as their options. Many are saying that their choice is between Buckingham or home
038school. You'll probably hear that in your report from Royal Palm this morning. Please consider what that means. Are students moving from a school where they have peers and socializations and therapy and prom and a track and all the wonderful things that we offer them to a new home. And if the parents don't feel comfortable, they will keep their children at home and that big world that we give them will shrink to four walls. It will shrink to their home and they will lose exactly half of their experience. My comment to you in my last few seconds, come out to Buckingham if you haven't. See what we do. Please help our parents to understand that maybe it's not yet time, but it will be. Thank you. Not my honest. Thank you. No clapping, please. Tim Tyler.
039Good evening. My name is Tim Tyler. And I come to you come before you tonight as an educator, a parent, and someone who has personally seen the impact of specialized education programs in our district. I truly hope the information is circulating about the Buckingham Exceptional Student Center is not entirely accurate. Because when I was in college when I was at FGCU, I had to observe as part of one of my classes, I had to go to the Buckingham Exceptional Center and observe those students. It was a carefully designed environment built with a purpose is what I learned. This center was created to serve some of our most vulnerable students with significant cognitive, physical, and special and social needs. These are children who rely highly on specialized supports every single day. We're talking about full-time nursing
040care, physical and occupational therapies, and vocational training opportunities that prepare them for life beyond school. These are not services that can simply be relocated or absorbed into a school setting that deals with social behavioral students without a significant impact. This center was built not was not built by accident. It was built intentionally to meet the needs that cannot be made met elsewhere. Because of that, any decision that impacts the program must be approached with high level of care, transparency, and communication. Families deserve to understand not just what is happening, but why is this happening, and how their children will be better supported as a result. And I want to be very clear at this point, if the school district does move forward with really relocating this program, that they do it not because of financial
041needs, but because these students are being better served at a Thank you. Thank you, sir. Thank you. Yeah. Tara Jenner. Good evening. Tara Jenner. Have you ever seen the movie Dave? Well, there's a scene there where they're cutting the federal budget line by line, and they discovered that there's funding for a campaign designed to make people feel good about a car they already purchased. That's taxpayer money being spent not to fix anything, but not to improve anything, but to simply create a good feeling. Now, let's bring this a little closer to home. Recently, the Lee County School District sent out a mass mailing about investing in your child's success. It sounds positive, but here's the issue. My children are 22 and 26 years old and I home schooled them both from kindergarten through graduation and
042they were properly registered and identified through the home school education department here in Lee County. There's absolutely no reason I should have received this mailer. So, how many others were sent this unnecessarily? And what did it cost in printing and postage? And why was that money directed not towards teachers and classrooms or as you've heard tonight, those that are in special needs environments? This is about accountability because if this way level of waste is happening in something as straightforward as a mass mailing list, what else is happening behind closed doors that we can't see? So, to the school board and the superintendent and the assistant superintendent, I'm asking for answers. What was the total cost of the mailing? What process was used to determine who received it and why did the process fail astronomically? And
043what was the actual goal of sending it out in the first place? I'm asking that you provide these answers publicly and transparently because responsible stewardship of taxpayers' dollars isn't optional. And I'd also like to ask the board members and I've spoken to each of you on many occasions, please for the love of all things holy, please pro rate the amount of time. If you've got 22 people, divide it into 60 minutes. Thank you. Finish their speech. >> [clears throat] >> Axel Arias Good evening. My name is Axel and my brother Yael is a student at Buckingham Exceptional Student Center. He has Hurler syndrome and has learning disability. I am a founder of Little Voices of Buckingham. I've seen firsthand the positive impact that the environment at Buckingham has had not just on my brother, but
044on my entire family and on many other families as well. I am speaking tonight to tie together the concerns that have been shared. In continuation of the previous comments that Cindy made that Ms. Cindy made, what has been presented tonight is not an argument against any student, any school, or any community. It is a call to protect all students by ensuring that each child is served in an environment that is truly appropriate for their needs. Taken together, these comments show a consistent message. Buckingham is functioning not simply as a location, but as a specialized environment of care. A home. Families have raised clear concerns involving medical access, supervision, privacy, emotional stability, and the daily realities that allow their children to function safely and with dignity. It's not about resisting prog- It's not about resisting progress.
045It's about making sure that the progress doesn't come at the expense of the most vulnerable. It's about ensuring that decisions are not made only on paper, but in full view of the children who will live with the consequences. The superintendent and her staff's responsibility is not simply to move the students efficiently. It is to ensure that the placements are appropriate, protective, and truly workable. Respectfully, if those conditions have not been yet clearly demonstrated, then the responsible course is to slow the process, re-evaluate it carefully, and place student welfare first. These families are not are just asking to be heard, but to be included and to know that the needs of their children will not be decided at a distance from their lived reality. Nothing about us without us. We are Little Voices of Buckingham. Thank
046you. Thank you. Thank you. The next speaker is Giselle Gentile, and would India Palencia, Katie Peterson, Lucila Perez, Russell Smith, and Lauren McIntyre, please line up. Yes, my name is Giselle Gentile. And I was a substitute teacher for several years and an ESC teacher. When I was substitute teaching, I had the luxury of going to Buckingham School and I say that because that school is a fabulous school for those students. That school is built to accommodate those students. The The decision to merge the Buckingham School and Royal Palm must be postponed until all the accommodations are in place. The Buckingham School was designed for exceptional students with severe disabilities. Royal Palm must be redesigned to accommodate the Buckingham students. A lot must be changed or added at Royal Palm in order to have a safe
047environment. And to be in compliance with the IEPs of each students. The Buckingham School has the perfect environment accommodations for the students, individual needs, safety, and to be in a least restrictive environment. The students have everything they need for successful learning and development of physical growth. Has the district considered the IEP goals of each student and their needs? And will the IEP be followed as they're written? Will they be in compliance? You need to think about that. Can you keep these IEPs and these children in compliance or are you just going to do as you want? So, it needs to be thought of. Thank you. Point of order, chair. Yes. Thank you. Carol Robinson. I'm Carol Robinson. I served on a school board in Ohio for 8 years, was the past president. I've tutored math
048since I was in college, lots of years. I've tutored math in the elementary school at Heights Elementary and now at another elementary school. The last time I was here, I voiced my concern that there is little training in manipulatives. Those are the hands-on things that really help students learn math. I'm still not seeing anything. And now the students are really struggling on perimeters and area. If they had the training, they would understand that. Your um website says that your graduation rate is 89%. That's based on um the numbers of students in ninth grade to the seniors, but I would like to look at it the other way. You have 100,000 students in the school system. Right now, based on that number, there are 11,000 students who will not graduate. That is an issue. I would
049like to suggest that you look at what the state of Mississippi did. And what they did One of the things I would like to suggest is the way you have your math, it's a unit. I believe the whole school does the same unit. The kids take the test. I had a girl that got a 60. She got a star and a green and was all excited. I don't know about you, that's wonky. So, I know that it's difficult to have people feel unhappy if they got an F. What Mississippi did is they gave awards to achievement, improving their ability. And they also required the students to assume the responsibility of learning. I am not seeing very much of that in the schools. I also would like to suggest that you look at tutoring, which Mississippi
050did, throughout the state, in the morning, at lunchtime, after school, to help the kids who flunk the unit Thank you, ma'am. >> Thank you. India Palencia My name is India Palencia and I want to speak directly about the decisions that have been being made that are impacting our kids in our community. First is the Buckingham Exceptional Student Center. These are some of our most vulnerable students with very specific needs who require consistency, safety, and specialized care. Moving them onto a campus where students have entirely different needs raises serious concerns. And how does this protect their safety? And how does it maintain the level of support that they currently have? Because combining two high-needs populations does not strengthen services, it stretches them thinner. All for the sake of budgeting needs. In fact, there's a lot of
051that going on in Lee County. Every school's being asked to cut their budget. That means fewer teachers, fewer staff, and less support for students. We are also planning on cutting arts and athletics and asking families to pay for that. And in a district where half of our schools are Title 1, that creates real barriers for students who already have the least. But while school budgets are being cut, we are growing the central office. New administrative roles, new departments, ongoing spending issues that haven't been fixed, and salaries at the top that exceed even our governor. So I have to ask, why are we cutting from our classroom and our community first? Families are paying attention and we're losing students by the thousands. And they're leaving because they are losing confidence that this district is putting students
052first. And no mailer to voters with no school-age children will solve this problem. Tonight I urge you to pause, reassess, and refocus because our students, and especially our most vulnerable students, deserve better. And just for perspective, tonight you will be rubber stamping approving $1.6 million spending on promotional items and apparel. And you'll be approving a chief of schools, a communications leadership, and tech and analytic roles, all in the administrative department. I hope you think about that. Have a good night. No clap No clapping, please. Or we'll have to take a recess. All right. Katie Peterson, please. Good evening. My name is Katie Peterson. I am in the mother of Grace, a second grader at Buckingham Exceptional Student Center. I'm also the parent liaison for the school. I'm here to address concerns about my daughter's school
053being relocated onto the campus of Royal Palm Exceptional Center campus. As parents, we were advised if our students relocate to this campus, we do not need to update our students' IEP, since this is just a location change from one center school to another. However, I'm concerned about that. Without review, the goals and objectives included in the IEPs may be compromised when the students are placed in a setting that doesn't yet meet their safety and adaptive needs. My daughter is blind, and finding a space where she is comfortable to walk is challenging. One of her IEP goals includes mobility, and more specifically, walking. Practically, we are working on her walking from the front doors of the school at Buckingham down the carpeted enclosed temperature-controlled hallway into her classroom, and from her classroom to other classrooms within
054the school. Because my daughter is unable to regulate her body temperature and does not make cortisol, being outside in extreme heat for a prolonged amount of time can cause her to overheat, dehydrate, and potentially life-threatening complications. I visited Royal Palm campus today, and the hallways at the school are open to air and offer no temperature control. In order for my daughter to work towards her IEP goals, this would be a very restrictive environment, as attempting to walk her from the front doors of the school to her classroom, or even from one classroom to another, could not only delay her progress towards her mobility goal, but cause her to overheat, dehydrate, and result in serious health complications, including death. I am calling for the school district to review every Buckingham student's IEP with the IEP team
055to ensure that all of these federal documents include current objectives and goals that can be safely met if they transition to the environment of Royal Palm. I am concerned that this process will show that the Royal Palm campus, even if adapted in significant ways, will actually be a more restrictive environment for our students than moving them towards the least restrictive environment that the district strives to maintain for all students. Again, we ask that you do nothing about us without us. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Lucila Perez. Good evening. My name is Lucila. Um I'm not a parent, but I am a sister of a student from that goes to the Buckingham Exceptional Student Center. And I kind of wanted just to bring a different perspective. So, I've been a Lee County student my whole
056life. I've been in Best Buddies, and I've I've basically grown up with students of special needs, and I've seen firsthandly how, you know, certain students with behavioral issues have physically attacked other students and other, um like teachers, for example, >> [snorts] >> and they just really impose uh a danger not only to themselves, but to others. And my sister is nonverbal, and I know that a few many other students are nonverbal or have no way of speaking up, and I feel like it's completely unfair for them to be put in a different situation >> [snorts] >> where if they were attacked or harmed or injured, they have no way of speaking up. It kind of just goes by, and they're they're hurting either physically, emotionally, mentally, with no way of telling or reaching out. Um
057I also wanted to point out how we we all have our certain routines, right? We wake up. I go to school. You guys go to work. You guys get home. And once something is when something extraneous comes in, you you begin to get frustrated or think just become overwhelmed, right? So, I want you to put yourself in their shoes, right? This is a big change. Me, for example, I just transferred schools this year and I'm still adapting and the school year's almost over. So, for them to have this big change and have no way of reaching out or getting help or just talk about it, I just really want you guys to think about that. And because here they have a family. I've seen it. They They all know each other. They're all friends. The
058teachers, the the mentors, the administration, the students, it's one big family. And for you to break this family apart and put them in potential danger, I think that you guys need to revive your res- revive Thank you. Thank you. Russell Smith is the next speaker and would Miss Kirsten Weaver and Robert Podskishi, please line up. Hi everyone. I'm Russell Smith. Thank you for uh hearing us today. Sir, if you could just raise the microphone, it'll catch you better. Thank you. >> All right. First off, Buckingham is not just a school for us. It's It's a family. It's a place. It's a home for for all of us to be. Um I I've been volunteering there for 3 years now at and these kids have taught me things. Like I stuff that I I I wouldn't
059never even expected. My daughter uh Alyssa goes there and she doesn't have a voice. She can't come home and say uh "Daddy Russ, somebody hurt me today." Or or uh I I fell or a lot of these kids, most of these kids, can't can't do that. When we were at the school today uh for the open house, >> [clears throat] >> every time it was addressed of how are our kids going to be protected, the uh and and the best answer they could give us was, "We'll try. We'll do our best." That's that's unacceptable to me. A- and it just I'm sorry. I didn't prepare anything. I I'm just up here just just talking and and expressing myself because they can't. We are their voices. We are their advocate. We we're the only ones that
060that can say what is best for them and for anybody else to say what is best for our child is just wrong. Y- They're already where [clears throat] it is best for them. There There's no other place. Buckingham is home. It's family. It's safety. It's It's It's where we belong. Thank you. Thank you, sir. Thanks. Lauren McIntyre. Good evening. My name is Lauren McIntyre. I'm a Lee County taxpayer and have a 7-year-old at Treeline Elementary. I hope that you all and all district personnel understand that keeping our children safe is a top priority. As a former highly effective Florida public educator, I know it all too well. I was a special needs educator. Please do not shut down this school. That's not what I'm here to talk about tonight. But happy to use some of
061my time to add. The very child I have fought to protect this week, I would have sacrificed with myself to protect my students in an active emergency situation. Let that sink in for a second. Because that is equally your responsibility as a district. There was a situation with an impromptu and hastily made bus change that would endanger my 7-year-old and a 6-year-old little girl. I'm relieved that transportation made the right choice and reversed the change. But the community and the board must know the hoops required. First, the message came from a person at the school I've never heard of. She pushed responsibility off to transportation. Transportation then pushed responsibility back to the school. The woman from the school never returned our call. I pushed harder into transportation and for board guidance. In the 11th hour,
062we were able to correct the concern thanks to the superintendent's office and transportation. And it took all my time and energy. We were given three different excuses, but I would call them lies. The first one was child safety, which wasn't an issue. The second was that buses weren't allowed on private roads, which is also not an issue. And number three, that it was a mistake made from before. We need honesty, transparency, and open lines of communication with those entrusted with safeguarding our babies. We need better leadership from all facets of this district. We need you to lead with integrity. Thank you for doing the right thing by my child. I hope you can do that for all our children. We are here to collaborate in the future and will hold you accountable for promises made.
063Thank you. Thank you. Kirsten Weaver. Hello, my name is Kirsten Weaver. I have over a decade of experience in schools and teaching Um and I'm here to represent my son Samuel. Sammy has a rare genetic mutation. There are only 500 worldwide. My concerns are for the future of the ESC Department in Lee County. This year we're signing him up for kindergarten after spending 3 years in the ESC pre-K program at Allen Park Elementary. We were signed up for Tice Elementary School and then recently told he's now going to Orangewood. For reference, my family lives in Alva. So now my son is being bust 5 years old, non-verbal, on a bus for Lord knows how long to get to Orangewood. Um while Orangewood is a great setting for my son and we're pleased I've spoken with
064the principal, he's amazing. Um we're concerned about the lack of permanence and inconsistency that has been um surrounding the ESC Department. I don't want my son bounced around to a different school every year. You've heard from other parents, consistency is key with these children. My son has had the same therapist, the same teacher for 3 years. Allen Park doesn't have a life skills room, so he now has to go to a different school. That's fine. He can't handle the change every single year. Over the summer my son goes through regressions and every year his teachers brought him back. So now we're being bounced again. Um the pre-K ESC is another concern of mine. This This program is the only place that my son can go in Lee County. He can't go to a daycare, he
065can't go to an ABA center, he does not have autism. So this is the only place that my son could go. If you take away resources, you are ruining the education of other children to come and that is not okay. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Robert Podskishy, I hope I pronounced that correctly. Hi there everyone. My name is Robert Podgorski. I want to thank you for your time. You guys do a magnificent job and I know you have a lot to weigh in and a lot of pressure to make change and I just want to thank you again. I want to speak on behalf of my partner Jennifer. She's a substitute teacher at Buckingham Exceptional. I'm a restaurant owner downtown and I sit on the board of the RDA downtown. We do a
066lot of events stuff and I know how hard it is to organize and also to hear out today. But to see culture is one thing that I've learned throughout my time being on that board and being a business owner of a restaurant. And something that I think Buckingham Exceptional's done that's really hard to put a value on is the culture they've built, right? They are making life-changing moments every day. Um as we grow, we're going to need more places like this, right? Our population is growing and these problem these exceptional needs with students is only on the rise, right? And so to invest in that future as to take it away, I think would be really beneficial. In years to come, you're going to revisit this and have way more flak than you would to
067make this change. And to deal with that negative, you know, action in 2026, to hear positive news, I think would be something that would help the community. And as you talk about community, places like this are a cornerstone of community. If you walk and spend 1 week in that place, 1 day, even a few hours, you will see that that place is doing absolute Lord's work. It is a temple. It is a place that is sacred. It is a place that should be kept. It is a place that should be kept as safe and as close to the heart of the public as possible. To take it away would be a detriment to our community. Not only to the jobs that it possesses, but the lives that it's past helped, the past that it's currently
068helping, and the lives that it will continue to help. Lehigh is on the grow, the Alva community, you know, will be growing, and to have a place right there center that specializes, that has all the bells and whistles, the right location for all the drawers. There's all these little places where you don't realize your forks grow and all these little things that they've created over time that's very important. And if you need budget money, look into outside sponsors, maybe Lehigh Health, and etc., etc. But, the stories you hear today are only going to be more and more common, and I want to thank you so much for your time. Thank you. Thank you, sir. Mr. Chair, that is the end of public comment tonight. Thank you. All right. We'll now move on to the consent
069agenda. Mr. Chair, I don't know if you want to give people a chance to leave if they choose to. Yes. I'm sorry. Uh if you would like to leave after public comment, a lot of people do, you're more than welcome, and of course you're very welcome to stay. Give them moment. >> [crying] >> Thank you, Mr. Dodig, for reminding me of that. Again, next is approval action items under the agenda consent. The documentation documentation for action items listed under consent is made available to board members seven business days prior to the board meeting. We are expected to review all the material and we have the opportunity to speak with the superintendent with any questions we may have regarding the recommendations. Board members, are there any agenda items you wish to pull for discussion? Mr. Fisher?
070No items, chair. Mrs. Giovanelli? I have two. Q1, approval to award ITN number N267521AN, rental of spot coolers and dehumidifiers. Q3, approval of expenditure for contract number C257494DB, storage sheds, containers, and shelters, etc. Thank you. Thank you. Mr. Ribble? I have none. Ms. Jordan? I have none. Ms. Fleming? I have none. Mrs. Shawbiano? I have none. And I have none. Is there a motion to approve the agenda's consent action items minus Q1 and Q3? Mr. Fisher. Motion to approve, Chair. Okay, second. >> I'll second. Second, Mrs. Mrs. Mrs. Chaviano. Moved by Mr. Fisher, second Mrs. Chaviano. Please record your vote. Oh, I'm off here. >> [snorts] >> Mr. Jordan vote. Yeah. Has every- has everybody voted? Okay. Motion carries 7-0. Thank you. Dr. Savage, would you please introduce any administrators in attendance with a new
071assignment approved under the consent agenda? Uh yeah, it would be my pleasure, uh Chairman. >> [clears throat] >> I'd uh first like to recognize uh Joshua Gomper, the director of athletic activities for Mariner High School. There he is. >> THERE HE IS. >> [applause] >> I'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE CHAD CALDWELL, THE NEW director for program AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT. >> [applause] >> I'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE DR. COLLEEN TIMM, OUR CHIEF OF SCHOOLS. >> [applause] >> I'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE UH CHRISTINA HOOLAHAN, the Deputy Chief for Communications AND GOVERNMENT RELATIONS. >> [applause] >> I'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE KEVIN CALFEE, OUR Information Systems Manager. >> [applause] >> And also uh Patrick Misewicz, uh who is our new uh high school Assistant Principal at Bonita SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL. >> [applause] >> UH THOSE ARE ALL THE ADMINISTRATORS HERE IN
072ATTENDANCE TODAY, uh Chairman. Thank you. We have two polls to address. Dr. Savage, would you read Q1, your recommendation? Uh yes, Chairman. Uh the approval is to award ITN number N267521AN for rental of spot coolers and dehumidifiers uh to Country Cooling and Heating Incorporated in Fort Myers, Florida, and Legair Enterprises uh in also doing business as Captain's Complete Restoration Repairs and Remodeling in Cape Coral, Florida, as indicated on the attached tabulation sheet. This ITN is effective for 3 years beginning May 5th, 2026 through May 4th, 2029 with renewal options for three additional 1-year periods upon the written agreement of the vendor district for up to $120,000 for the first year of the base contract period of May 5th, 2026 through May 4th, 2027. Approval authorizes the Superintendent to execute all related documents. Thank you. Is
073there a motion to approve Dr. Savage's recommendation for item Q1? Mrs. Chaviano? I'll motion to approve Q1. Is there a second? I'll second. Okay. The item was moved by Mrs. Chaviano and seconded by Mr. Ribble. Is there a discussion? No. I pulled um this item because um there was another vendor when I looked at the tabulation, there was one vendor that was actually um their their fees and and their rental fees were much uh lower than the two that were awarded that um and this is a rental These are just rental spot coolers and dehumidifiers. They're not necessarily um something we do I actually asked for information regarding how many we own. We actually own um 36. 30 of them are um we actually use and six are not um I guess they are probably
074I'm going to um get get rid of them or sell them or whatever. I don't know that they're even valuable at this point. But my concern is regarding we're supposed to be good stewards of our of the money and uh be in physical um stewardship. And I can't agree to um this without adding the I think you have a third vendor. The vendor back from 2020, we had five vendors versus the two. I would recommend and would be more comfortable if we would add the third vendor since they're more reasonable and um and I don't see why we would not Why would we limit it limit ourselves to two when we had five in the prior contract? So um that is my concern is that we um we look at our funds and then uh
075I think that if we're using that, I mean if we use that much cuz last year it didn't seem that we used that many uh rented that many. So I just I am concerned over just you know, we're spending we we expect every we expect the the schools to cut costs, but we need to be looking at how we can cut costs, too. And so, I would recommend um not adding this at least this vendor so that we can have uh a better opportunity [snorts] to save money. Thank you. Is there any other discussion? Mr. Jordan. I I have to agree with uh Mr. Giovanelli. It did not make sense when I saw that uh as well because it it's a rental unit, and it's the same product. Why would we want to um spend
076more money? So, I I I have to agree with her on that one. Thank you, Mr. Giovanelli, for pulling it. Any other? And >> Mr. Giovanelli. And in the information and just so I would like everyone to know that the district provided me with lots of it cuz I had a lot of questions, and they they provided me with lots of um with my with answers to my question. And one of the questions that I had asked was um was there a cost analysis done versus rental versus purchasing and owning, and that was not done. And I think to be good stewards, that is something that I believe that the district should be doing because that's just an example of being transparent and accountable and being accountable and knowing that part of your job or
077as our job and my job is to make sure that we are being good stewards, and um I won't support this this this evening if we don't add the third vendor that's much much more efficient uh cost, you know, cost efficient. So, that it would be I think that we I think we need to do better and by having cost analysis on many things that we're doing. And I know that we've increased contracts [clears throat] because we didn't we needed more money. I why can't we decrease contracts when we don't use the money. Thank you. Thank you. Dr. Savage. Just because obviously anytime board members ask questions, we always want you all to kind of have the same information, same understanding. And sometimes you all when you have, you know, one person raise a question
078that might create other questions for other board members. On this particular occasion, obviously because of the timing of when this was raised, we just want to be clear. You know, this is a competitive solicitation. So, when people have a competitive solicitation to procurement, there's there's scoring committee. They're not just looking at price, they're looking at overall value. They score them, that becomes a public thing that you can access, you can see, and folks can see exactly how they were scored. And so, in the particular case that we're talking about, there were five folks who made it to that through to that piece of submission. Of the five, eventually they landed on two. The two scoring for the two that were chosen were the highest scores. I'm I'm looking at the tabulation sheet right now. You
079know, just when these different folks individually score them, they then put that forward to you all, and then those are the recommendations that come forward to the board. Um I don't really have anything beyond that other than to say that it's a This is just to to to speak to the idea of the cost, the own versus renting, and so forth. This is really not designed as a significant use type of contract. It's more designed as a is a contract that you need when you need it. You They have as a member Giovanelli said, when you have about 30 humidifiers, that can come in very handy, say if you have a water main break, and all of a sudden have to, you know, put and remediate, you know, try to make sure that there's humidity
080control for particular building. You could deploy all those things. If you had more significant pieces, you might have to contract with these services as you need them. The overall dollar threshold for the particular bid demonstrates that it's not a significant cost item. It's not a significant anticipated cost, but when you need a rental unit, you want to make sure you have a vehicle already in place so that you could contract with those services and be able to go to those pieces. So, it's not designed to be something of significant spend, it's designed to be something that is really a when you need it piece. They do utilize the humidifiers that they have. Um all this information will be provided to you because obviously when one member requests, we want you all to have it. Um
081we stand by the recommendation when the procurement committees go through that that that they we honor that process, that competitive solicitation, and that would still be our recommendation is to proceed exactly as it was brought forward to you um working through the procurement process. Uh other than that, um I stand ready for any questions you may have. Okay. I would like to say something here. I think I believe there are some bids that should not be judged the way this was judged. This is a strict rental. This should have been a strict sealed bid and, you know, of a qualified bidder and that would and most government agencies do that. I know when we're building a school, there's a big presentation. I can understand that and you have a committee choose and do those things.
082But reality, rentals, I don't care if it's a rental water fountain, rental cooler, whatever, we need to have a workshop and look at some of these and see what the threshold is so we this in my opinion doesn't happen again. This was done fairly. They knew they had to do a presentation. So reluctantly, I'm going to support this tonight, but I am not happy with the process and I believe we need to look at it in the future and change that so it doesn't happen again. Now, Saviano, Um going over the the bid sheets, right? So we're saying our top two and and Mr. Chairman, I understand what you're saying. The what you're referencing is in fourth position, basically 25-point difference. So if you're saying to give that person the opportunity, you're basically undercutting the
083third person who did score higher. So, I also agree with Mr. Persons in terms of procurement. I think that's come up a few times. I'd I'd like to have more of a discussion on procurement and that process and that scoring cuz we don't have the scoring. We just have the tabulation as far as what was done. Um not all the other pieces of where that scoring came into place. Um and to the point of of the funds, I do understand the motion and the purpose of saving the money, right? Regardless if it's a rental, you have the third option. That third option is cheaper than the number of the fourth scored of our five, right? So, I will support the motion as it stands to move forward and approve, but I also do have questions
084on procurement and and that process in itself because to that point, we are fiscal fiscally responsible for everything that we do and there is a you know, a cost difference of about $45 or so based on the top rental piece, right? Depending on how many units, etc., that all adds up. Um >> [clears throat] >> so, I see your point, but then to that point, you would undercut the third person and if in in scoring, that that wouldn't be fair. Cuz then that third person next up should get the option, not the fourth. Um so, yes, I'm approving with reservation. I would love to see the the procurement process and have a further discussion on that. All right. Yeah. Yes. Yeah, I I want to weigh in on one point no one brought up and
085and this is a important one. In this type of product here where you're talking about these dehumidifiers and which is what I'm very familiar with as I live in a community that has [clears throat] a bunch of high-rises at nine high-rises at all 21 floors. And sooner or later, one of those buildings is going to flood out. We have fire systems that fail, sprinklers go off. Somebody hangs their jacket up there that has a rental and they use the fire sprinklers to to hang their suit up and they rip the thing out of the So, there's all kind of nonsense with flooding. And we've been through a bunch of folks in our in our development that we contract with. But we contract with on dependability because when you got the building flooded and you got
08673 families living in that building, you need to have that building dried out like quickly. So, it's not only about price, it's also about dependability. And we're not we weren't I I didn't sit on the procurement. I don't know the I I can understand that the the question on cost, but this is a this is a product we also have to take a look at the dependability of the business owner. Are they there? Do they come out right away when you call them or do you have to wait 3 days and on and on and on? So, I do want to weigh in on that factor. Yeah. Mr. Givanelli. So, thank you. Actually, thank you regarding the procurement process because that is exactly what I think that we should be looking at and because I
087questioned that. I actually read the scoring and um the scoring did it didn't really they really didn't quite jive completely. And like I said, and I would agree with you Mr. Rubble regarding how important it is because we could have a hurricane and we could need we only have two vendors that we could rent from. When the prior contract had we had five. So, that does question me on the first two if we if they're busy or they're they don't they've used all if we've had a hurricane and they've used all their their rentals have none. We don't have a third or fourth or a fifth vendor to go to. And there's five vendors here that were more than willing to work with the district. So, that I question how we go from five vendors
088now down to two and we eliminated one that was the most reasonable. Should have been I just the scoring was questionable. That's why the procurement procurement process is very important for us to re-look at and and think. And um I will leave it at that and we can if anybody else wants to chime in, that's fine. I'm willing to call a vote, too. Let's go ahead, Mr. Jordan. >> No, I I was just going to ask the same question. Is why do we why could they not have three versus the two? I mean, who determined that we're going to have two? Yeah, that's a good question. The committee has the ability to determine at what extent they want to, you know, how inclusive they want to be based on the difference in the quality. I
089mean, remember that when you have a whole approach like this, just based on scoring pricing, obviously one component of it. The whole approach, the way they represent their account-related experiences, their ability to deliver the services based on what they project, they present. Essentially, each of these folks have an opportunity to share, "This is This is our services. Here's our plan. Here's our project. Here's our pricing. Here's our approach." All of that um is considered, and then after they've had a chance to evaluate all those pieces, they then make that determination of where they're going to land in terms of that ability. And again, just to to put a another to remind that the total value that we have for that is 120,000, I believe, on that. So, again, the total expenses, if you look at
090this item, you know, you're not talking a substantial spend in these particular categories. So, again, how often you're actually utilizing services, you may go through a year and and use it not at all, or you may use it very sparingly. So, like in the case of like a hurricane or some major event, you're going to have a totally different day with emergency services, all these other pieces. This again, for what it is, we also have the 30 dehumidifiers we already own that we typically do utilize. So, I'm just trying to put that line of that that's part of what the committee evaluates is the quality of the services and so forth. So, I while I understand we're focused on a particular vendor for some reason related to pricing, they aren't just looking at that. They're
091looking at all five of the vendors that did qualify. They look at their entire package of services, what they are, and then they make the decision to put forward this is that they consider all of that. They really what they're looking for for as the customer on behalf of you all, right, is value for what it is that they're trying to do. So, that some in some cases that ends up being the lowest cost, in another case it isn't. It could be a number of factors. Obviously, I was not on the scoring committee. Um so, you know, this is just what we have to go on. Um basically, the actual scoring sheet. And again, that's every single one of our competitive solicitations above the $50,000 threshold. So, just again, we'll be happy to provide more
092insight into all of those different procurement things. It's not an uncommon question for folks to wonder about. You know, we we I often when I was in a superintendent role would often get asked by folks who'd qualified and maybe didn't make the cut. You know, we I've I've had that probably a hundred times or more. Um get questioned by folks who either didn't secure a bid, a competitive solicitation after the fact. Obviously, you know, they can't engage with you all during the cone of silence. There's strict rules related to those competitive solicitations and whatnot. Um so, do appreciate the conversation. Certainly, you want to gain more visibility for all of you, but again, I'll stand by that when the when when folks put forward the people to evaluate this, they're people with know-how related to
093these services. They're the people who are kind of curating what that is, and then they go we I stand by kind of the scoring that they did. I'm happy to again get you additional information if the board doesn't feel comfortable voting on this item. Last one, Ms. Giovanelli, and then I'll Well, I think it's important to to note that the the prior contract was $475,000. And and and and this one is 120. So, I do want to be clear on that because there is a substantial difference. Um however, I know that if we did have a hurricane, God forbid, um that that $120,000 will definitely they'll be coming to this board for more money. And this is about indoor air quality. And we've had previous issues with indoor air quality. And and I and not
094it's not this ven- these vendors that So, please, I want to be real clear on that. Um it was not these vendors, but we did have in- indoor air quality issues where there were invoices, and they were never at the school. So, yes, this is very very personable personal to me because I've lived this when it was an issue. And again, I won't support it tonight because it's just on principle and it's about saving money and I and then the and the procure pro procurement process was is questionable for me. Thank you. >> Okay. All right, I don't want to go any further down this because this but I think there is a consensus of the board that we need to have look at this in the near future, please. All right, uh Roll call.
095Everybody okay for a roll call? All right, uh Mr. Fisher. Aye. Ms. Civanelli. >> No. Mr. Ribble. Aye. Ms. Jordan. Nay. Aye. Aye. Aye. And I and I am an aye, so it's passes 5-2. Dr. Savage, would you read Q3 recommendation? Yes, Chairman. Uh the recommendation is the approval of expenditure for contract number C257494DB for storage sheds, containers, shelters, etc. awarded to Amazon Sheds and Gazebos Incorporated Fort Myers, Florida, Suncrest Sheds Incorporated in LaBelle, Florida, and Superior Sheds Incorporated in Orange City, Florida with a local office in Fort Myers, Florida for up to $350,000 for the second year of the base contract period of June 4th, 2026 through June 3rd, 2027 pursuant to the same terms and conditions as previously previously approved by the board. The approval would authorize the superintendent to execute all related
096documents. Is there a motion to approve Dr. Savage's recommendation for item Q3? I'll move to approve. Okay, motion by Ms. Langford Fleming, seconded by Ms. Jordan. Is there any discussion? Yes, thank you. I pulled this item as well. This is pretty just kind of principal for me regarding the this expenditure from last year just so people know and are aware it was only $21,250 for sheds that they moved and they move on and off properties. One was at Fort Myers Beach is what I was informed so I guess that's what cost $21,000. But they're asking for a $350,000 contract. So again, this is where I think we're supposed to be good stewards of the tax dollars and we've had to increase contracts because they we went over and above what we originally approved in the
097middle of a you know a three or four or five year contract. We've increased our contracts. Again, I would suggest when we're not spending all $350,000 to put that money back into where it needs to be in a budget into classroom and I would love to see expenditures reduced and contracts reduced from when cuz we're not clearly going to spend $350,000 when we only spent $21,250 last year. So that I just want to bring that to the board's you know awareness. We are supposed to be good stewards of the money and we are supposed to walk that walk instead of just talking at and that's what I'm trying to say today is that we as a as a district need to look at every place and to save a penny. If we expect the schools
098to do it by God, we need to be doing it. Thank you. Dr. Savage. Yeah, just I want to clarify that for for us essentially when we're asking the board approval for some of these amounts, that doesn't mean we are planning to spend or even budgeting to spend. What this gives you is essentially a maximum that we could even spend without board approval. It's essentially a vehicle for us to be able to then have services that when we need them, we have the ability to do them. That's just for us in in order to conduct the day-to-day business of the board, we would not want to have to schedule an emergency board meeting to try to set up services that we have not previously set up under a 1-to-3-year bid opportunity, especially when we have
099certain pieces like the specific one that we pulled. It's true, it's only $20,000, but when you have kind of variable spending histories and different needs, having a funding vehicle with a particular bid allowance based on, you know, how much money we may foreseeably spend, it's it's from a bid day-to-day business standpoint, it's very helpful for us. This can happen in some cases where it's across the entire district. It's not necessarily one area that could be spending, so you potentially have services that may be facility operations. You know, in our case like maintenance, they weren't using it all. It's under facility operations, but it was not actually something that they even really utilize the services, but they could if they needed to. Um, so we have warehouse operations. We have the need to store different items.
100Again, this comes to one of those elements where just because we put a particular spending threshold on the board agenda item does not mean that that is money that is locked in that we are planning to spend for that purpose. Um, it's strictly a procurement vehicle for us to be able to utilize these services. That really applies to a lot of different areas. When we have specific planned expenditures for like in maintenance for specific schools, we will even sometimes designate what those things are. We'll put in day-to-day funds of what we anticipate budgeting and utilizing for that year to try to be transparent on our board action items beyond just the idea of having services that we may need across the entirety of the district, whether that's a school needing a storage receptacle, whether that's
101a department that needs a storage receptacle. This allows us within our suite of services the ability to then procure those things and to control costs through that opportunity to do so. So, I just want to be clear about that cuz it isn't it isn't necessarily an agreement that we intend or expect to spend $350,000 any more than the last one where whether it's unforeseen, whether it's as needed, it just allows us that agility as a business to be able to go through those procedures, identify who those businesses are locally, work with those businesses, and be able to get those services in a quick uh business way. We still have to find the budgeted funds that have been allocated to departments. It isn't something that I just want to clarify because I think that's often a
102misconception is that when the board's approving that that they're simultaneously approving a budget item that we anticipate and fully expect to spend this in a particular account. This may be over the entirety of the district um that we have kind of portioned these things out. So, I'm just want to clear that up cuz that's also another common misconception that I just wanted to Hopefully, that helps uh clarify a little bit on this particular item as well. Thank you. Any other discussion? Yes, Mr. Jordan. Dr. Savage, thank you for saying that, but when I'm looking at this and it's saying that it's uh budget cuz that was my concern, budgeted from school department funds. >> Mhm. >> [clears throat] >> Who is that? >> Yeah, it could be any school >> our schools? This is the
103I So, schools in theory could utilize these services. All different Anyone could be used. They'd have to have the funds budgeted that would be permissible for them to use for this particular type of purp- purchase. So, if they needed it, they'd have to have the budget funds. This isn't uh That's why they're putting that generic heading there because it really would be an as-needed type of thing. If a particular school, like say example, the Fort Myers Beach example, they needed a storage facility. They had the funds to do it. This particular case, the one on the on the spreadsheet I'm looking at says Island Coast. So, my understanding without digging into the weeds on this particular item that that's an Island Coast need. So, Island Coast would have the ability to secure these services. They
104wouldn't have to go and figure out their own way to to have this. It's already here as something within our district procurement vehicle to be able to utilize this. And that that's So, it really is depends on who needs those services for whatever they need it for. If it were maintenance, if it were anyone, they just would have to have the the monies that they could utilize for for those services. Thank you. Ms. Civanelli, you want to wrap it up? Yeah. So, I am going to support this. However, I just I'm bringing up the point of it being it's of the usage and a $350,000 contract. Again, I believe it and it has four vendors, four different vendors to I mean, to get a storage unit. Um, I just think that's a such a broad
105um, range for vendors like then who determines who's going to use Suncoast Suncrest Sheds or in LaBelle or Superior Sheds in Orange City, Florida. You know, it's just I mean, I just feel like when we approve something like this, it's just kind of, you know, I feel willy-nilly. Uh, I don't feel like it's really thinking this through and like, you know, is this the best thing that's for the district and the best expense now and the school's going to have to spend the money to if it when they need that. I I just I just think it's very um, generic and I I I apologize, but I just I don't feel like it's but believe it's poor planning and that's just my opinion and let's call the vote. Thank you. Yeah. I know these sheds,
106they often don't have a ton of them laying around in the size you need. So, if you needed more than just one or one a certain size, they may have to call around to see. You know, I mean, I can understand why that you might need that. Okay, no other discussion, we'll do a roll call. Mr. Fisher. Aye. Ms. Giovanelli. Yes. Mr. Ribble. Aye. Ms. Jordan. Aye. Mrs. Fleming. Aye. Ms. Shaw-Ryan. Aye. And I'm an aye. Motion carries 7 0. Dr. Savage, would you please present your recommendation for this evening's public hearing items? Uh yes, chairman. Uh first of the an approval to conduct a public hearing that to receive comment on the proposed 2026-2027 instructional materials plan uh for ELA, personal finance literacy, and intensive reading. Also, an uh for the second, an approval
107to adopt new and revised board policies in compliance with changes in related rules, regulations, and statutes to adopt best practices and promote transparency and accountability. The effective date of the adoption would uh be April 15th, 2026. Uh third, uh to the approval to adopt the 2026-2027 code of conduct for adult students in compliance with changes in related rules, regulations, and statutes to adopt best practices and to promote transparency and accountability. The effective date of that adoption shall be April 15th, 2026. The approval would authorize the superintendent to execute all related documents. Um item four would be to the approval to adopt the 2026-2027 code of conduct for students in pre-K through 12th grade in compliance with changes in related rules, regulations, and statutes to adopt best practices and to promote transparency and accountability. The effective
108date of this adoption shall be April 15th, 2026. Approval would authorize the superintendent to execute all related documents. Uh I have a question before we proceed. On number one. Yes. Is that's something we would do at a public hearing to get approval to conduct a public hearing? It's just to receive public comment. There's no vote on that item. Okay. Yeah. Got you. So, just no vote on it. Thank you. >> All right. We'll now recess the regular school board meeting and open the public hearing. The time is maybe? 7:41. 7:41. Thank you. We got to turn my phone off. Oh. >> All right. Um As indicated, the public hearing this evening is to consider Dr. Savage's recommendation as pre- previously stated. At this time, the public will be invited to speak on these four items.
109The time allowed for the public comment is 3 minutes. Is there anyone in the audience that would like to address the board regarding the approval of conduct a public hearing to conduct a public hearing to receive comment on proposed 2026-2027 instructional materials plan, ELA, personal finance literacy, and intensive reading. So, anyone would like to speak? I'm seeing none. We'll move on to number two. Is there anyone in the audience that would like to address the board regarding approval to adopt new and revised board policies and applies to the changes and related rules, regulations, and statutes. Adopt best practices, promote transparency, accountability. The effective date of this adoption would be April 15th. They will address policies by chapter. Chapter 000, chapter 1000. Ho- hold on. Um Mr. Chair. Yeah. >> So, go chapter by chapter and
110ask if there are any speakers about that chapter. >> Okay. Are there any Oh, I'm sorry. Are there any speakers for chapter for the bylaws 0000? Okay. Are there any speakers for chapter 1000, administration? Seeing none. Are any speakers for chapter 2000s, which is program? Chapter 3000, instructional staff. Chapter 4000. support staff, chapter 5,000, students, chapter 6,000, finances, chapter 7,000, property, chapter 8,000, operations, chapter 9,000, community relations. Seeing none, we'll move to the next one. Is there anyone in the audience who would like to address the board regarding approval to adopt the 2026-2027 code of conduct for adult students? Seeing none, is there anyone in the audience who would like to address the board regarding approval to adopt the 2026-2027 code of conduct for students, pre-K 12 through 12? Come on up. Good evening again,
111board. Tim Tyler. I just wanted to give my support, especially with the changes that were made and presented to DAC, especially when it comes to um Success Academy. I think you guys strengthening the um things that happen to students who've been to Success Academy more than three times within their their school career at Lee County was exceptional. So, thank you very much for for those changes. Those changes were extremely well taken, and then all the other changes you guys have made to strengthen the code of conduct to try to help the teachers, administrators, deans, everybody else in the school district. Thank you, guys. Thank you. I will now close the public hearing and reconvene the regular school board meeting of April 14th, 2026. And the time is 7:45 p.m. Dr. Savage, please restate your recommendation
112of this evening's public hearing items one at a time. Yes, Chairman. Uh so, the now the particular recommendation is to the approval to adopt new and revised board policies that are in compliance with changes and related rules, regulations, and statutes to adopt best practices and promote transparency and accountability. The effective date of the adoption shall be April 15th, 2026. You have heard the Deputy Superintendent's recommendation the board approve to adopt new and revised board policies in compliance with changes and related rules, regulation, and statutes to best to adopt best practices and promote transparency and accountability. The effective date of this adoption shall be April 15th, 2026. Board members, is there a motion to approve? Mr. Fisher. Motion to approve, adopt new and revised board policies per Dr. Savage's recommendation. And I'll second that. Thank you.
113>> Okay. Givanelli seconds. Moved by Mr. Fisher, seconded by Ms. Givanelli. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, please record your vote. >> [snorts] >> Uh would Roll call. Can we do that? I don't. I'll just do it uh my mind by that. Okay, go ahead and record your vote. There you go, sir. Okay, thank you. The motion passes 7-0. I apologize, people. My computer keeps timing out and going blank on me. Like my brain, but anyway. Dr. Savage, would you uh read your next recommendation? Yes, Chairman. Uh this is the approval to adopt the 2026-2027 Code of Conduct for adult students in compliance with changes in related rules, regulations, and statutes to adopt best practices to promote transparency and accountability. The effective date of this adoption shall be April 15th, 2026, and the approval would
114authorize the superintendent to execute all related documents. Thank you. You have heard the Deputy Superintendent's recommendation. The board approved to adopt the 2026 Code of Conduct for adult students in compliance with changes in related rules, regulations, and statutes to adopt best practices and promote transparency and accountability. Effective date of this adoption shall be April 15th, 2026. Approval authorizes superintendent to execute all related documents. Board members, is there a motion to approve? Ms. Langford-Fleming? I'll move to approve. Is there a second? >> I'll second. Ms. Schiavone. Moved by Ms. Langford-Fleming, seconded by Ms. Schiavone. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, please record your vote. Motion carries 7-0. Would you read your next recommendation? Uh yes, Chairman. Uh this is the approval to adopt the 2026-2027 Code of Conduct for students in pre-K through 12th grade uh
115in compliance with changes in related rules, regulations, and statutes, to adopt best practices, and to promote transparency and accountability. The effective date of this adoption shall be April 15th, 2026. With this approval authorizing the superintendent to execute all related documents. You've heard the deputy superintendent's recommendation the board approve to adopt the 2026-2027 code of conduct for students pre-K through 12th grade in compliance with changes in related rules, regulations, and statutes. To adopt best practices and to promote transparency and accountability. The effective date of this adoption shall be April 15th, 2026. Approval authorizes the superintendent to execute all related documents. Board members, is there a motion to approve? Mr. Ribble? I motion to approve. Is there a second? I'll second. Ms. Chaviano. It was moved by Mr. Ribble and seconded by Ms. Chaviano. Is there any
116discussion? Seeing none, please record your vote. Motion carries 7-0. Thank you. Now we move on to the good of the order and other business. Starting with board members' comments. Uh Mr. Fisher. Thank you, chairpersons. Uh couple things real quick. Uh congratulations to Challenger Middle um uh middle school boys and girls soccer team on their county championship. Had a chance to view that. That was really cool. I was able to get out to Fort Myers High School and view uh one of our weightlifting competitions meet. If you haven't seen one of those before, it was actually really neat. It was my first time seeing one. So, uh was able to attend Catch the Vision in Cape Coral uh put on by the Chamber of Commerce and the city of Cape Coral. And they always explore, you
117know, the the cool things happening in to Cape Coral. It was awesome to see the technical college expansion recognized and there was very positive feedback on that. So, kudos to our Cape Coral Technical College folks. Um had the opportunity to attend the Cape Coral Youth Council at a mental health town hall in chambers about a week ago. Consisted of the youth council students and some panels including our own amazing director Lori Brooks. Really fantastic, really some great work being done. Also, as I said, we have a a ways to go on some of that as well and it was really great to hear some of the students and their feedback as well as their community partners doing. Also want to recognize one of the youth council members there Claire Johnson for really pursuing the mental
118health survey that is now going out within our high schools at the moment. So, officially wanted to congratulate since it's on the dotted line attorney Dodik officially being our board attorney and his contract going through tonight and just wanted to wish everyone students, teachers, and staff a strong finish to this school year. Thank you. Very good. Mr. Giovanelli. Thank you. Through the chair to the superintendent, I a couple questions. Can you verify that WYP is not closed formerly known known as LAMP? I think that was key to something someone said this evening that was not accurate. If you could clarify that for the community and and can you also give me what the how many students are at Royal Palm and how many students are at Buckingham exceptional center the the number of students that
119are at both of those schools? Do you have that information? I apologize. >> Yeah, so first question just absolutely WYP up not closed. Um obviously at the if there's any confusion, it's just because we had a third party of different folks uh delivering services for us. Essentially, we're contracting with another entity to to provide those services more effectively. Um and so that's something that we're actually, you know, that that's just not closed at all. Um still on that site. And the name was changed. Well, the I mean, you this and so that's probably part of the issue as well. It's just the the name changes that have occurred over there. So, that may be part of that confusion. The second piece, uh second question on the students at the school, believe right now at um
120Buckingham Center, it's 77 students that attend. Um I think they're over just over 60% capacity. Royal Palm, I don't know the exact number of students. I'm I can absolutely get that to you. Um but uh I believe it's in the 50% uh range of capacity. So, with the consolidation of those camps on one uh really exceptional student center, um it it will then put it at a higher, I think closer to the 80% uh capacity, which as you know now with um different, you know, we want to have our schools at a proper level of optimal uh utilization. Um that's part of that's part of the strategy, but also for us it's really to create a world-class exceptional uh sir uh center. That's really what we want the absolute very best um comparative to any
121of the top exceptional centers that we find around our state where they have that type of unique programming all under one house with even partners trying to bring really high-quality local partners into that environment as well to really optimize and even enhance um just as an example, um the Royal Palm versus Buckingham. Buckingham doesn't have like their own functioning kitchen and so forth. Um whereas at Royal Palm, they do. The ability to have enclosed areas where they'll have unique optimal adaptive playground opportunities. Lots of unique things that we'll be able to do with that site adjustment, but I don't want to minimize, you know, these types of things that for the families, for the staff, for the children, for all the people who engage in these really unique programs throughout our entire community, it is
122so important to them that these people they they live here. It's a part of their life. It's a part of even their identity. It's part of the cultures, I think one of our speakers highlighted, that is never minimized. And then something else that came up that I think repeatedly was just around safety. Dr. Carlin, her number one priority before learning, before anything, is safety. And so I know that they had an open house today where they addressed, I think, almost all of the same speakers that were there, minus a few exceptions, had a chance to go through some of those pieces. Um, you know, that was obviously there was a comment made that, you know, just they'll do the best they can. You know, that's that's not that's not our plan. That's never the plan
123to just say we'll do the best we can, but they have fundamental strategies related to all the different facility itself. There's too much to go into to give you all the details of that, but certainly this would put us more to higher level of optimization. And our goal is to actually increase the quality of services provided to all of our students um through this, you know, kind of unique opportunity. And some of the most most of the most qualified people in our entire district related to exceptional student education helped who who worked and seen some of these top centers in some of these other areas helped kind of build the plan for what was being proposed. So, again, it goes back to that idea of I don't in any way want any family, staff member,
124anyone to ever feel as if their voice is not heard. We recognize any type of change can come off as very difficult, very hard. It could it's very it can be very difficult, but no change that we would recommend for our students would ever be made with an intention of in any way harming students, diminishing the quality of the services provided. It's really trying to optimize them to the best of our ability. So, thank you for the question related to the utilization of that facility. So, the one there at Miss Matthews, it's 77 at Buckingham, 117 at Royal Palm. Correct. Which equals 194 students. Thank you. Mr. Doda. Thank you. Can I so through the through the the chair, superintendent, um or deputy superintendent, yeah. You you're half you have wear several hats. Um Can
125you explain schools of hope to the community, please? Yeah. Uh great question. One of the uh state law changes that occurred uh related to schools of hope is that wherever there are schools with underutilized capacity, uh charters uh charter providers can apply to co-locate at individual facilities wherever there is substantial room for them to do so. What this allows the charter operators to do is potentially control cost um by not having to pay for additional fees that they would typically otherwise have to pay in facilities. And all of the public schools in at the building set up in our state uh that have that excess capacity that are underutilized in such a way have that potential vulnerability of of co-potential co-location. Uh for us, it's not just that. I mean, that's obviously something that's significant,
126but it's really about optimizing the programs. We're we're doing As you go through the budget process, one of the things you're able to do we're seeing with the ESC clusters. When you have consolidated staff, you realize an economy of scale that allows you to provide enhanced support services. Allows you to take specialized ESC positions that are there to support lots of differences. We heard an example in the cluster of behavior specialists. You now make that type of position fundable because you have enough students to generate that additional resource. So, there's so many reasons why having consolidated specialized programs uh is a is a great way to run uh a really effective school. Um but, it doesn't change the disruptive nature of when you when you operate many small programs, whether it's isolated classrooms scattered throughout
127the entire district, whether it's small enrollment schools that have, you know, very small enrollments of students. Those programs become really important to our community. We we've heard it even non-EC, like Fort Myers Beach and so forth. These become so important to their communities that we just It's not surprising to me at all when we have families and staff come to speak on behalf of the school that is their home. We as district leaders have the very difficult assignment of trying to optimize every penny that we have in our district and optimize every service that we offer in our district to best capitalize and create the best value for everyone. None of those things are easy to do. Um so, I appreciate the questions. I appreciate the certainly the sentiment that came today. Um and I
128appreciate our staff engaging with folks directly by going to them, having the open house, having our principals walk the buildings, having our third-party partners that we're working with that are looking to potentially expand into our site to be able to provide services we've never offered in our schools because of that type of consolidation that would be an incredible value-add enhancement for our students. Lots of those things, none of which are easy, but we appreciate all of that work. Thank you very much. I think that's really important for the community here, you know, that this has been a well-thought process. Did you One critical other piece that just have to mention. There was a comment made about the buses and and knowing that these are two extraordinarily different types of programs. The bussing was not meant
129to bus students from the two different programs together on one bus. That was not set up that way. That was not the plan from a transportation standpoint, and so the bussing would still echo the programs and the supports those students qualify for, some of which get door-to-door type of service even in some cases. So, I just want to make sure cuz Cuz was again a comment that was made that maybe was taken out of context or maybe just misunderstood that now all the students will be together on the bus and and for these very different programs. Um so, just wanted to to clarify that misconception as well. So, thank you for that cuz um I think it's really important to clarify and and I and I really want to personally apologize to the families that
130came and spoke tonight and thank them for coming and advocating for their children because first of all, that is what God put them on this earth is to advocate for their children. And I think they are they are invaluable and to us they are part of our community and we need the parents to always speak up for their children. I would ask any parent to advocate for their child because that's why God gave them and they're their parents. So, and for me I I know how scary it was it is to them and maybe there was a miscommunication and I'll take personally personal responsibility if things don't go the way they want them to, you can call me and let me know and I will go with you to the classroom. I will go with
131you to advocate to the superintendent's office to Dr. Shaker because I'm going to hold other people accountable. My phone number is 239-470-7487. You can call me anytime of the day or night. I'm usually up late anyways and I will take your call and I will help advocate for you. Um it's really important to ensure that our students have the have access to the highest quality resources and special specialized facilities. We have made the decision to transition our students to Royal Palm starting and I'm not sure when. What is that was the other question I wanted to ask because I didn't that wasn't clear exactly when that's going to happen. This August. Okay, thank you. Um we know that our families a a school is more than just a building. It is a place of routine
132safety and deep connection. We understand that change, especially when it affects your child's daily environment, can bring up feelings of concern and uncertainty. Please know that this decision was made with one goal in mind, providing your children with an environment that is better supports their unique learning and developmental needs. Our staff is working countless hours to ensure this transition is seamless as possible. And we are committed, I am personally committed, into maintaining the same level of care, familiar faces, individual individualized support for your children as they deserve. Um so I just want to leave that this evening and I want to congratulate those that got promoted and graduation is just around the corner, but I just want people to know that I feel that this board and this district and administration is committed to doing
133what's right for children. I know it may not appear to be that way because we can't always have those conversations, but I am willing to do that. I gave you my number and I'll do it one more time. 239-470-7487. Call me and we will talk. Thank you. Thank you, Melissa. Mr. Rible. It's a question, you Okay, I'm not rushing you because as you you better get a Coke and a and a hoagie cuz I'm going to be a little while, my friend. >> [laughter] >> Okay, I want to talk about a >> though. a bunch of things that we do right. We We do an awful lot of things right around here. I don't know if we talk about that enough. Uh not that tonight wasn't important to hear about our needs here with this
134with this change that we're going to make. I certainly have their ear. But I I want to reach out for the director of athletics, Dave La Rosa, who just ran a great Hall of Fame banquet last week over at the DoubleTree. We had eight. Uh some of them were our present coaches. Uh some of our former athletes, but I thought he did did great job in the selection. That was another night of tear jerkers listening to some of these people and how much they're appreciated for their leadership and training as a coach. And I know Jado always makes comments about our coaches and I think she's right on the money with what she what she shares. On another very [clears throat] positive note, I want to reach out to Dr. Nathan Shaker tonight. As you
135know, I've been working with him since I've been elected on reading. As you know, our proficiency rate is only 46%. I really believe when the numbers come out here this summer that that that number's going to improve greatly. Although I don't overcommit and put him on the spot here, but uh he contacted me last week about attending a workshop that he was putting on from the University of Florida and the program was funded by their foundation. It's called the University of Florida Literacy Institute and they paid for the training. When I got here at uh 10 minutes of 8:00, I'm not a big fan of 8:00 meetings, but I was overwhelmed when I walked in the room, the training room, we had 170 uh reading specialists attend the workshop and they were all engaged and
136I was planning on staying for like 20 minutes uh while I was being there for 3 hours and I learned quite a bit. But the nice thing about it as I shared with Dr. Shaker was uh they were had the same approach that FSU, GCU has with the science of reading. So, where all these universities are teaching the same concept, which is so important because part of their mission statement is not only reader development, but teacher development. Can we get teachers to teach reading with a formal, consistent process? So, I thought that was that I thought that was huge. Uh I'm not done yet, by the way. >> [laughter] >> Okay, then last Thursday had a a great morning and thank God I wasn't driving. Uh Mr. Ed Matthews was was our chauffeur and I
137went along with Mrs. Trotter out to the Island School in Boca Grande. I don't know how many folks were out there. I know some of the board members were out there. As you know, we have a situation going with Fort Myers Beach. And there's talk of a charter school. I want to tell you, the folks on Fort Myers Beach need to carpool out here and take a look at this Island School. They have 68 students. Only five of the students actually live on the island. The other 63 students are uh are from families that work on the island, and they sustain the school. The budget is a million dollars a year, and they have a foundation, the Island School Foundation, that raises over $500,000 of that budget locally there a year with those families. Really
138impressive. It's something to see. It's a state-of-the-art school. As I mentioned earlier this morning, they still have a they have an SRO there that's uh really dynamic. The teachers are engaged. The principal was very engaging, as was the vice principal. Uh they have a a part of their building is is under construction, and they share a property that's owned by the community center that's owned by the the county. And we're hoping we can get a playground on that property uh and that the county's going to go for it. So, I know Armor will carry the freight with that with with one of his uh relatives, I'm sure, Armor. [laughter] Okay. No, I'm still not done. Okay. The next, as you know, I'm on the Insurance Task Force. We had a better meeting last month. As
139you know, the last board meeting I talked about being $20 million over budget. We shaved a a whole hundred thousand dollars off of that. Almost almost another uh billion dollars. Just a little over $19 million. So, we did get uh some of the numbers down. Uh we are changing uh the folks that manage our benefit program. We're putting that out for bid. So, hopefully we'll come up with some better news and some better tactics as we get a new partner online with that. So, so much for the ITF. And then last but not least, I don't know how many of you folks have uh are football fans and you know Lou Holtz passed away here a few months ago, but uh in my corporate days we used Lou Holtz a lot for our leadership training.
140And he had a video he put together, you can get on you can Google it's called Do Right. It's a great video. If you want to get a group of of students together and teach them proper business ethics and conduct throughout the school, he has three key principles. And I bring this up tonight because we promoted a lot of people here the last few months. And I think if you take a look at his principle, number one is integrity. He says, "Can I People ask when they promote somebody, can I trust you? Do you have integrity?" So, that's number one. Obviously, everybody we promoted or has integrity, they wouldn't be still be here. Number two is, "Are you committed to excellence?" And I think all the folks that we take a look at are committed
141to excellence or they wouldn't have been promoted, right? They They have the ability to do the job. But last but the most importantly is, "Do you care about me?" And that's people skills. So, as you get into that next level, let's make sure we don't get the egos out of control. Make sure our people know that you care about them, you have good people skills, and that's what really this this whole program's all about. So, I close unless you have any questions. >> No, I yield you my time. >> Oh, thank you. Okay. Thank you very much. Ms. Jordan. I'll take over for you. I'll just >> [gasps] >> I'm going to continue on some good things first. Um Uh someone had said to me that we forgot to give a shout out to uh
142the Cape Elementary School and North Fort Myers High School who are going to worlds um going to the worlds for Odyssey of the Mind. And I'm always following people around trying to make sure that they understand that public school is the best Lee County schools are the best and every time I hear them speaking on it, I always try to say, "Do you have a world's champ?" Which we have a lot of those. Uh tonight we were uh had the opportunity to walk out here and see the uh high school advanced programs showcase. Those kids are just like mind-blowing what they what they are doing and what their future looks like already for them. So, I was very impressed by them. But now I'm going to go to something else. Um I really appreciate the
143parents that came tonight for Buckingham. I I am deeply concerned about that and I just want to make it perfectly clear because I know it hasn't been stated that the board has no control over what takes place with that school. The combination of the school because a lot of people believe that that comes to the vote to comes to the board for a vote, which it does not because that is is What is it? A transactional um case uh actually Savage is that what you're calling it or I'd say it falls under the operational function of the superintendent. So, what you're trying to clarify is simply that that wasn't a board action item vote type of piece, more of an operational consideration for the administration. Is that You just want to make sure that distinction
144is publicly understood? Correct, because it's a colo- it's a co-location versus a closing down or moving >> Correct, it's not closing so >> Okay, I just wanted to make sure that that's understood. And And I do understand that the both of those schools are high-needs schools. I was out there yesterday. I did after I spoke with you all, I went out there and I did look at the facility again. I've been there multiple times, but I still wanted to go back out there to remind myself what exactly it did look like and I've been to Buckingham so many times. I've been to their proms. I've just been a part of it. Um Victor who was here, I remember him when he was a lot younger than he was today when he came up here. And
145uh it it's just the fact that you know, what is the We don't even know what the modify um the proposed modification to the building is going to cost us. There has to be some that's going to for that building. Um cuz they all need bathrooms, their play yard that they have over there versus what they have at um this school right now, it's completely different. The um the gardens that they built with the uh cement for those children to be able to to roll there, to touch the dirt, to to be out in the yard and to just be a part of something. Um I don't know where that's going to go because there is a hill behind the uh the school. Um so when at Royal Palm, it does it's not level. There's
146like a little hill that goes down. So I'm not sure how that works and that's on the side that those um that the children are supposed to be at for um Buckingham. And then on the other side, we're now moving kids of kindergarten through 20 years old will be on that one side. That to me is is I I When I think about a kindergarten child and a 20-year-old being in the same even though they have different classrooms, they're still in the same, they're passing through everything the same. They have one cafeteria, one single entrance, so just all of that they're are they're going to intermix. It's going to happen. I don't know how we could separate it. Yes, they have beautiful paint, the walls are painted, the grass is green. But I I just
147think that you know, and and I know that you said you had all these um great minds that uh helped build this proposed change. I don't know who the all those people were. Uh and I'm sure it's none of my business, but I still feel that like you're saying they were the little voice. We're the We're their voices as well. So [snorts] I just want to say how I am concerned with this. And that is all I uh And I love the [snorts] fact that don't make a decision about us without us because that's exactly what we did. And I I think that we have to we heard it at back and we continue to hear it that the public and the community and the teachers and everybody wants to be included in the conversation
148and not just single conversations. So, thank you. Ms. Fleming. Thank you. Um a question through the chair to the superintendent whenever um if I may ask some follow-up about um allocations that were just presented to I know our administrators um last Thursday. Um we talked about Fort Myers Beach and it reminded me to um follow up with the allocations that they would receive since we don't know their future right and you know, it's I don't want to get too into the weeds here, but if I could just get some information on I don't need the number, but [snorts] how we are are they getting their own pot? Are they going to be combining with the Heights allocation because they have their own staff just how that all works. >> Yeah, I actually do happen to
149have that answer only because it's the only school that was you know, so so part of you know, what the schools got in their allocation was a minimum cost per site basically to be have their own individual sites. Everyone has a principal. Everyone has a particular basic staffing pattern that they that they get and all schools no matter how small, they wanted to have that. Because of Fort Myers Beach being co-located with Heights and because that being foreseeably for the time being and potentially for this upcoming school year something that that may still be the the very fact just based on the current status of that building um knowing full well that we we are actually bringing something in May to you all to to uh try to proceed more formally with uh the town
150of Fort Myers Beach. They did not receive their minimum allocation because they were sharing facility, the same site. They didn't get the same type of allocation as another school because they don't have a separate principal, they don't have a separate principal secretary, they don't have some of those particular units. So, they did get a substantial less amount Their amount of money that's actually generated by their per students is what creates that piece. Now, that's not to say we couldn't supplement enhance that, but it will tell that accurate story of this is the funds that are being generated and if they were to be say a charter school or so forth, this is the type of funding that they would have. So, that's where I love you know, member Ruble sharing the example of these very
151successful schools that are on islands. They really become community schools and they have lots of other ways that they can pull in those resources to to provide that really small environment that fits the character of those communities. So, great question and very timely. Okay, thank you. Um Yes, I Mr. Ruble stole my um thing. I was going to talk about the the awesome Hall of Fame as well. Um and that's just a small amount of coaches that we have in our district that have made a huge impact and and I'll even go on further to say it's not even just on the athletic fields and and our courts. It's also in our arts. I mean, we've got students who will remember their their music teacher for years and years like a coach has made an
152impact on us. So, we have some very very talented instructors in our district and you like you said, Ms. Jordan, we offer the best and that's what we want to try to remind the public. I um couldn't close the night out though without talking about our ESE students. Um I having taught ESE for a couple of years myself and um those students are remarkable. I don't want that to fall on deaf ears. Um I'm so appreciative of a tribe of people that came out here today to talk about what is important to them. Um and I'm also glad that we were able to give some response as which is something I say a lot of times. Our families don't It's very important that when we send out our communication and our messaging, people just want
153to know the why behind the what. They don't just want a reason. They don't want to four bullet points and that's it. This is what we're doing. They want to know why this is happening and um I know I know we're going to continue to push that out um and I know that they they they are taxpayers. They deserve to know what's going on um in their with their own child. Each one of those children, I think I Mr. Peterson said it best when he said that they're all God's children and um and he's and he is absolutely correct. Um those children deserve They don't deserve it. It's their right. It's their right to have a safe environment. Um and it's the family's right to go to work and not have to worry about what's
154going on with their child. So um I know that we all heard you and I know that staff heard you and moving forward, I would just like to make sure that when those students make that transition that those accommodations are already in place. That it is a seamless transition and that um as hard as that may be, um you know, I I I hope we are part of the process um and I hope that you engage the community kind of like we do at the Alva school. We've had some town halls and maybe that's what we do is we have some town we have a couple town hall conferences with that group of people just to hear their concerns and the things that I don't have a special needs child. So, I don't know what
155they're dealing with day in and day out. They They gave examples about where to put a fork and where to put a piece of paper and and and they get used to their routine and I know that's incredibly important. So, I think we just have to do a really good job through this particular process all of them. But, this deals This is straight dealing with kids. We've really got to We really got to listen to the families and what they need. So, um I applaud those people for coming out and man, that little I think her name was Lucilla. Mhm. She's She's just something. I was so impressed with her. Um and I She's going to be a big leader one day in this community. I can tell and and probably even beyond. So, um
156you know, I I will close out with I just really appreciate how much RSROs and our officers show up every single day and night. They're not just here in this building. They are spread all out over throughout this district and they are the I just I always have such a great encounter whenever I roll with them. So, um I appreciate them and um yes, we're going to push through core four and it's going to be amazing. So, I'm excited to see the data um in May. That's all. Ms. Shawviano. Yes, thank you. Um if I may to the chair, um I know we hit on procurement. So, is it possible to workshop that, dive into that further, break that down? I would greatly [snorts] appreciate it. Um I'm the last one. I feel like we're
157going to beat a dead horse a couple times and that's okay. Um so, Ms. Jordan, so thank you for kind of reiterating the role of the board, right? Like where things fall and the responsibilities and since we had our last workshop, when we had the ESC cluster, and I'm going to hit on it again cuz I talked about it earlier at the workshop. And I'm excited for Chrissy and in that role in communications. That's my hat, is communications, and I will fall on that sword every day. Um we need to do a better job communicating. And I will give the example again because not everyone watches the workshop. We had our board meeting and our workshop on a Tuesday. The Breeze released an article on Thursday. I was having conversations Friday morning. And I was
158quoted. So, that's wonderful. Um they beat us to our own information. How? So, I will be leaning in and I have leaned in on this very hard um in regards to that spend and the mailers and who they're going to and why and and the targeting and what's the goal and what does success look like when we're doing these things. Um it can't just be we're getting our message out. We have to hit the right audience with the right message. Not just give a message. Um so so with that, specifically with these big things that are happening, there's there's always something happening. This isn't This is This is, you know, Tuesday and and and one day of the week. There's always something happening here, but we just need to be more proactive in the communication
159and how we're sharing that with our families. How are sharing that with our staff and our teachers? Because for our teachers to find out something through the media before they find it out through their employer is probably the biggest slap in the face. So, I understand and I and I apologize for that. That's outside of what we do here, right? That's the district operations versus board. My mom got the letter. And I already went to public school. So, um I get it, right? I have the same questions. Um so, I hear you. I have conversations all the time. We hear you and we're asking those same conversations here. And to our families who came out cuz we couldn't have we can't go, you know, tit-for-tat for every conversation cuz these board meetings would go till
160midnight if that was the case. Um but we do hear you and we are asking those same questions when we have our one-on-ones and and we're reviewing these plans and we're asking the whys and then more comes out and we ask you more whys. Um the open house that happened today at Royal Palm wasn't aware of that. Um It's just the communication and things that come to the board. We need to know because we are the face when something comes out. We get the emails, we get the calls, and we get the text messages. We need to know because we have to answer for that. We are the ones answering for 99% of things that fall under operations that are not in our control. So, we do hear you. We are happy to hear you.
161I'm not going to start giving out my phone number, but like we are available. Like we answer emails day and night. I get sent my text messages and I answer them all and it's never a pain and I will never not listen cuz I will advocate for my child the same exact way. So, I understand. Um and I want to hit on the one other piece too that was mentioned and I appreciate that, Ms. Giovanelli, for in regards to Schools of Hope. So, I hope there was an understanding and and and hearing when Mr. Savage or Dr. Savage, my apologies, um shared the counts and the capacity. Schools of Hope gives charter schools the ability to come into low-performing traditional public schools. So, if a school is not at capacity, it's considered low-performing by the
162state, and that gives that them the opportunity to come into that school and run a a charter school out of that school. We don't have a say. They're allowed to open a charter in our public school, thus removing funds from our public schools for that charter school to then run theirs, right? So, to Ms. Langford-Fleming's point of the why behind the what, there is so much that goes into these decisions. They're not just spaghetti thrown on a wall. There is so much that happens behind the scenes on why these decisions are made. Budget, of course, is one of them, and no one wants to hear that. But, we're not getting the dollars that we used to get. COVID happened. They were giving out money like it was nobody's business. That time is past. That money's
163not coming. And we have to be mindful, as Ms. Giovanelli said, of where we're spending our money. And when we look at these schools, every single child is important. Every single one, regardless of what school they are in. That is us being good stewards of our schools and our students. And we just need to do a better job of communicating what that plan is and how that's going to impact these students when it comes to moving them into these buildings and what that's going to look like. Again, we don't have that information. Um [snorts] but, that's information that we're asking for to be shared consistently as this progress moves forward. So, thank you to our parents for coming out um and for the communication and everything. It doesn't fall on deaf ears. We do hear
164you. Um and yes, thank you to our SROs and everyone else. You guys are awesome. I appreciate you. Um but, thank you to our teachers and and and our parents for everything that you do day in and day out. Um, you know, I have my two kids at home. I dread homework like any other person. It's not fun. Um, so thank you. >> [laughter] >> To our teachers for everything that you do in the classroom cuz we were in the classroom and I remember what that's like. We're at the the finish line. We're close to graduation. Um, so hang in, hang tight. Get your sleep, all the things. Um, just thank you. So thank you to our district. Thank you to our staff that is working so much behind the scenes, juggling so many things
165that I don't think everyone fully understands of what happens behind the scenes. But it all does get taken into account. So thank you guys for everything that you do. Thank you guys for showing up. That is my time and I think I probably beat Mr. Rubendall to the punch, so thank you. >> [laughter] >> Thank you. I've got a couple things I'd like to say about Buckingham also. Number one, I say budget is not the primary reason we're doing this. And I would support believe it or not spending extra money the first year to make this go smoothly. Spending extra money to get the facilities like the garden, go ahead and put the cement walkways in so they can do that. Uh, cuz it's a one-time thing. I would also like to see the first
166year, if possible, all the teachers go that are willing to go to the new school cuz I think that's very important for at least a year as they get in that new school to be with their old teacher. And then see how things work out and the parents get to know all the teachers and everything. I I think it's just it's just going to be tough transition, but I think we need to look at as not a cost-saving move the first year. Uh, startup cost I guess is how I would put it. Uh, there is going to be a town hall Thursday evening at uh, Lehigh Middle School. I'm going to be there, most of the heads will be there. Someone from the superintendent's office will be there. And uh we'll have a nice town
167hall from like 5:30 to 6:30. So, come and learn some things, ask some questions. I will look forward to seeing people. Mhm. Last Friday I went to a uh called Anna's Friends. It was a foster care. It was a very nice uh fundraiser for Well, no, it was not a fundraiser for them. They did actually did not do a fundraiser. They actually just got their out there and they got a community conversation. We used to sort of like gaggle thing where everybody puts it in or whatever. I I don't really like that. Uh had great speaker, you know, one speaker said how she'd been uh to 14 different foster homes or first uh 5 years. You know, and she was so excited one year when she got a yearbook cuz it was the only year
168that she started school and finished in the same school. Only one time in all 12 years. And now she has a uh degree and and is counseling and everything else. So, it was a really good story, but we have a lot of great foster programs uh in Lee County and that's one of them. It's called Anna's Friends. So, if you ever want to Google it or look it up. So, lot lot happening right now in in the district. So, I I'm excited. We're going to We're going to get it right. Um One other thing, we are not thousands of students down. Okay, I keep hearing that all the time. When we started this year, uh last year we finished at like 102,000 something and we started this year at 101,000 and something, the public schools.
169Mhm. It was like, I believe it's like 800 students down. We were down. Don't get me wrong there. Uh some zones were down more than others. And some like the east zone was actually up a little bit at that time. So it it varies from from side to side there. What happened was we've been gaining a thousand students every year. So the schools planned on that. They planned on teachers for that thousand kids. So not only did they have extra teachers for the thousand kids and they were 800 short. So it's like an 80 $1,800 swing is how I I would look at it. So this year we're trying to really have them plan for what they actually have and be a little more. But that's the first time we've lost students in probably over
170a decade. It may be even longer. So it's so we've just been growing so much. So they had to do a lot of adjustment. The state they come in they do their first you know, we call it cheeks in the seats. You know, they do their first count of the students. And you know, that's that's where you're at. And there's a lot of reasons why we were down. Uh one was obviously all the uh ice things. People leaving the area, going back. Uh that had a definitely I'm sure. We don't know how many cuz we don't ask legal status whatever, but there were a lot of Hispanic kids that were no longer there. So that that was a definitely a factor. You know, and then you also like you say you have money going to
171charter schools. There's some new charter schools opening. We had some new uh even private schools opening. Money goes now to private schools from the state. So the all those are factors that we're having to deal with. Because of that problem I see and and I'm the one that brought up. I I blame myself for the mailings. I brought it up 2 years ago to the superintendent and I said, "Look, I'm a businessman. All over the state, they are losing students. You know, and I have no problem. If we have a crummy school system, I'd probably resign. But we don't. We have an excellent school system. But if you go around and you ask people in the county, not just people with kids, you just ask anybody on the street, "Where can you get a better
172education, a private school or a public school?" I I guarantee the majority are going to say, "Oh, I'd send my kid to a private school." And that is just not correct. We have so many more advanced programs. We have dual enrollment for free. We have uh all the different career and technical schools cuz not, you know, only about a third of the kids go on to the college, so these other two thirds need something. We have the largest ROTC JROTC program in the nation. All those kids, they don't all go in the the services, but they learn leadership and discipline. So, we offer so much. I I'm so proud of the system. And I'm going to steal the uh attorney's >> [laughter] >> He said at the workshop, "But the four astronauts that went around
173the moon, they all went to the public schools." Think about that. So, you can get a great education. Uh we have our top students are getting scholarships galore to the top universities in the nation. You know, I I put I I don't care which high school you pick, you know, you take our top 10 and put it against any private school in the area's top 10, and we're right there with them, if not better. So, I'm very proud of that. Uh another thing that was said that bothered me a little bit was uh uh how they put it? Actually, I won't bring that up now. I'll just pass it on. Oh, okay, Ms. Chaviano, for go on. I'm still in time back. My apologies, you reminded me. I have a conversations that count and it's
174before our next board meeting, so I wanted to mention it. >> Oh, please. I have mine on me fourth, which is a Monday and it's going to be at Riverdale at 5:30. So, anyone in that community that again, that's the opportunity um to come out and speak um with me and kind of have those conversations that are face-to-face, so I'm plugging myself. Thank you. Yeah, no, that's good. All right. Uh Attorney Doting. Yeah, real quick. Um And don't do the don't do the astronauts. >> No, I won't. He knows my name, by the way. I just wanted to congratulate the administrators that got new positions tonight or promoted. And I wanted to uh thank our own Joe Flacco, our backup quarterback. We have the best one in the league, so thanks, Dr. Selman. I'm so
175glad you picked Joe Flacco. He's We know he's a Brown. I loved watching him play, too. That's great. No, um really appreciate No, I just did two business items close with the board members. One was um that uh you know, we I heard loud and clear the concerns just about procurement in general, and so, you know, absolutely um we're we're going to figure out maybe multiple even engagements just cuz we really want you to have the information and maybe even some of the specific issues that often arise in that area, so that it's not just an introduction to the what and the why of procurement, but really even when it gets messy, how does it get difficult? What are some of the issues that unintended? What are pros and cons uh that come through those
176different pieces? Cuz I think you as board members, you're going to hear from all sides of it. Um certainly, I get to hear a lot of it when as superintendent when I served, I heard from people on all sides of it. Um so, we'll put that together. Business services already volunteered to do something. Second piece just I heard a lot of additional kind of concern just related to the Buckingham co-location Royal Palm and so forth. So, you know, I know there's been a lot to it. You know, just a few little things such as kindergartners on site. There there already are kindergartners on site. Royal Palm already has that. Um, they have extensive thinking related to the gardens, the the playgrounds, all those things, safety protocols. There there there like I said, there's a lot
177that goes into it. So, anytime you have a concern, we will we want to have people kind of work with you so that, while it's true you're not operationally responsible for that piece of it, we want you to have that comfort. Just as we want the families and so forth. That takes time, but certainly the people who've been involved in the design and the work on this, that is their commitment and we want to keep that visible to you. So, we don't ever expect you just to trust it'll all work out smoothly. We want you to. But again, as you've mentioned many times, accountability, it is your job as a governing board to hold us accountable when things are not right. And so, I do appreciate the candor. We heard a lot of sentiment come
178through today about communication and so forth. Um, these are challenges that we face, but I also really want to give a nod to, um, you know, our chairman who who kind of highlighted some of the great successes. For those who were not aware before this meeting started, we went out and visited some of our top students and what they're doing and and really not just talking about science, not just learning, but actually designing their own science that they science experiments that they are doing incredible things. I and I's chemistry that's happening. Actually addressing cancer cells, legitimately cancer cells through novel, you know, solutions related to plants they've identified with incredible history related to those pieces, identifying things that are actually killing cancer cells in the brain, a particular type. I mean, these are real things
179that our students are doing. And again, as you mentioned, the type of offerings that we have, we don't sell ourselves and kind of tell our story always just how profound it is. But you as board members, because of the fact you get to recognize these students at these meetings, a lot of folks don't really know. Um so, I appreciate that kind of commercial. It was a rah-rah that even I needed, Mr. Persons, to hear just how excited you were. Um cuz, you know, we're so busy in the business side of it, we just forget sometimes these incredible opportunities for our kids. So, thank you uh for board it's always a pleasure to be up here with you on behalf of Dr. Cronin. I know she sends her regards uh professionally as well to you all
180as well. Uh thank you very much. >> [clears throat] >> All right, our next scheduled meeting is Tuesday, May 12th, 2026. At this point, having no other business come before this body and seeing no objection, this meeting is adjourned. The time is 8:40. Unless, of course, Bill wants to stay a little longer.