001[music] >> Good evening and welcome to the Akron School Board meeting for April 27th, 2026. I am Barbara Sykes, president of board. Treasurer, would you please call the roll? Ms. Hall? Present. Mr. Drouse? Present. Ms. Kelly? Here. Dr. Molnar? Present. Mr. Montgomery? >> Here. Ms. Sykes? Present. Six present, one absent. Would you please stand with us for the pledge of allegiance? I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. Uh, just want to acknowledge that member Harrison will not be uh with us this evening. He's out of town and and I will not unable to attend. So, uh is there a motion to approve the previous meeting minutes? So moved. So
002moved by member Hall, second by member Drouse. Any discussion? Hearing none. Would you please call the roll? Ms. Sykes? Yes. Ms. Hall? Yes. Mr. Drouse? Yes. Ms. Kelly? Yes. Dr. Molnar? Yes. Mr. Montgomery? Yes. Motion carries 6-0. Thank you. Is there a motion to approve the special board meeting members minutes from April 18th? So moved. So moved, Mr. Montgomery. Is there a second? >> Second. Second, member Drouse. Any discussion? Hearing none. Treasurer, would you please call the roll? Ms. Hall? Yes. Mr. Drouse? Yes. Ms. Kelly? Yes. Dr. Molnar? Yes. Mr. Montgomery? Yes. Ms. Sykes? Yes. Motion carries 6-0. Thank you. There appears to be an individual that has signed up to address the board. Member Kelly, would you please call that individual up? Thank you, President Sykes. Today we have addressing the board Reina Gonzalez-Holmes
003with the West Hill Neighborhood Organization. The topic to be addressed is sex offenders residing near schools in West Hill. Thank you. Come on. We're glad that glad that you're here. We would just ask that as you speak that we you would ask we would ask that you uh make sure that the matters are related to the business of the board. Uh we uh have 3 minutes. However, if you're not completed in 3 minutes, I will not interrupt you. We'll just ask that you uh uh know that it's time to start wrapping up your comments. And so, we'll just give you a signal one way or another to let you know you're getting close to your 3 minutes. Hello. How are you? >> Okay. Hello. Hi. Hi. Um did they start already the 3 minutes? >>
004No. No, you're fine. Just don't worry about it. >> Okay. Um so, yeah, I'm here representing my organization and I wrote down what I wanted to do to respect, you know, your time and whatnot. Um like they said, my name is Reina Gonzalez-Holmes with the West Hill Neighborhood Organization. Um just wanted to let you know I was contacted by one of our residents on Oakdale Avenue and Crosby Street about a Tier 3 sex offender moving to the property right behind the I Promise School in West Hill. Um unfortunately, receiving these notifications is not new in our neighborhood, but the proximity to the school alarmed many of us. Um after contacting the Sheriff's Department and speaking to a Detective Perkins, we found out that the I Promise School is not marked as a public school on
005the Ohio Attorney General's map, which is used as the official map to calculate um the distance between property lines. This is how they can decide if the offender follows the rule of not living within 1,000 ft from a school, playground, or daycare. Just so you know, the property line of the residents and the I Promise School is less than 250 ft based on the distance tool provided by the Summit County Ohio GIS map. We also contacted the owner of the property and they were distraught that someone was living at their property without their consent. A family with children live at the same property, which concerned them as well. The property owners worked swiftly and spoke to the individual's family member, notifying them that the man is not allowed to live at that house by any
006means. Somehow, and I am not sure where the breakdown with the registration process is, there are currently 27 individuals within less than a quarter of a mile in proximity to the schools in West Hill. Based on the law and how the measurement is to be as the crow flies, many of these individuals should not be this close to our children at these facilities. If school building administrators have been also receiving notifications about these offenders, that means that they are within the 1,000-ft restricted area from their offender's property. Their duty was and still is to call the Sheriff's Department as we did and alert them that the school is within 1,000-ft distance between parcels and it is not appropriate for the offender to live there. Last, I would like to ask for this board to you
007know, investigate this and address the situation to ensure the safety of our children, not only in West Hill, but in all of Akron. I do have a list of the current individuals living within a quarter-mile distance that I would gladly share with anybody interested. All this information is public at the Ohio Attorney General's Offender Search website. Thanks. Thank you. And so, we will not respond, but we would ask the superintendent to forward it to the appropriate individual and someone will follow up with you. Okay. Thank you. >> Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Uh superintendent's report. Thank you, President Sykes. On Tuesday, April 21st, Akron Public Schools in partnership with the Akron Education Association and the City of Akron hosted a Summit County Public Education Forum at Firestone CLC. The purpose of this important gathering was
008to inform our community about legislative actions at the state level that could significantly impact public education and what those changes could mean for our students, families, and neighborhoods. We are deeply grateful to Pat Shipe and Mayor Malik for their leadership and collaboration in making this event possible. We also extend sincere thanks to our state representatives who were present, Summit County superintendents, board members, elected officials, staff, students, and families who attended and contributed to this meaningful conversation. Your presence demonstrated a shared commitment to protecting and strengthening public education. The panel, which included Superintendent Steve Wood of Tallmadge City Schools, Pat Shipe, President of our Akron Education Association, our school board president, Barbara Sykes, Mayor Malik, and myself provided insight into the challenges that lie ahead. From declining enrollment and proposed changes to the Fair School Funding
009Plan to the expansion of the EdChoice voucher program and potential ballot initiatives affecting property taxes, public education is facing serious financial pressures. Now, more than ever, your voice matters. We strongly encourage continued and increased participation in future forums and community conversations. Staying informed, engaged, and active is critical as we work together to advocate for our schools. Talk with your neighbors, stay connected on these issues, and make your voice heard both in your communities and at the polls. Supporting candidates and policies that prioritize strong public education is essential to ensuring a bright future for all of our students. We know that together, we can stand up for public education and make a lasting difference. Did you want to say anything, President Sykes? Okay. Also, Cuyahoga Falls uh school district has announced that it will close its
010open enrollment program beginning with the 2026-2027 school year. We understand this change may raise some questions and create some uncertainty for families who are impacted. Please know that we are here to support you during this transition and to welcome you back to Akron Public Schools. I invite all impacted Akron Public Schools families to join me and my team for an in-person meet and greet. This is specifically designed for parents who are currently in the Cuyahoga Falls School District, but have been made aware that they are no longer part of the open enrollment and they need a new school for the 2026-2027 school year. We will have a meet and greet tomorrow here at 10 North Main Street beginning at 5:30, where we will where we will answer questions and provide guidance for the upcoming school
011year. Our goal [snorts] is to make sure your return to Akron Public Schools is smooth and positive. For those who are unable to attend tomorrow's in-person event, we will also offer two virtual meet and greet sessions on Wednesday, April 29th. Please feel free to contact my office for additional details and we look forward to reconnecting with our families. And a final note, just want to make sure that all of our families and community is aware that we are in the process of our kindergarten enrollment for the 2026-2027 school year and this also holds true for anyone who is new and looking to transition into Akron Public Schools. If you are a kindergartner, the rule our legislation has changed the law that instead of turning five by September 30th, you must be five by August 27th,
012which is our first day of school for kindergarten. Want to give a special shout-out to our Communications Department for creating our yard signs that are going up throughout the community and we welcome all incoming kindergartners this fall. That concludes my report, President Sykes. Thank you, Madam Superintendent. Any questions? Any comments on anything that you heard from our superintendent? Member Hall. Thank you, Madam President. Quick question. Um in regards to um Cuyahoga Falls closing the open enrollment and students migrating back to Akron Public Schools, is there an opportunity for some of those students to get into our performing or specialty schools? Um or or has that been closed? We are in discussions about just that. We did have our audition period for our other specialty programs such as Akron Early College and STEM High School. We
013are looking into do we have available seats? Okay. As well as Miller South. >> And we would like for them to take those available seats. Yes. >> Okay. Thank you. You're welcome. Okay. Any additional questions, comments for superintendent? Thank you, Madam Superintendent. We appreciate your report. The treasurer's report. Thank you, Madam President. Tonight, we're going to go over the finance report. I have passed out two reports, the original monthly finance report that we've been receiving for probably 10 years now. And then the one that's up on the screen here, the forecast comparison to actual cash flow. That monthly financial report, um provides us with monthly revenue and expense analysis as well as forecast trend analysis. This one-pager on the screen is our forecast comparison to actual cash flow. Uh it's prepared in the format that
014we prepare our forecast in. Uh the financial report provides a fiscal year-to-date comparison of actual cash flow against current 5-year forecast through March of '26. And structurally on the left-hand side, we list our revenues, expenditures, other financing sources and uses, and the cash balance uh line items at the bottom. The the columns each calculate different things for us. The first column is our actual data for the month of March. Second is what we estimate we is remaining for the final 3 months of the year. The third is the total of those first two columns. The green represents our forecast projection from February. The fifth is the difference between our projection and our current forecast. And sixth is calculating the percentage that we have uh gotten through so far this year. It's through March, we're 9
015months into the year, so 75% of our fiscal year has been completed. Uh >> [clears throat] >> for revenue, this uh through so far this year in column A, you can see that year-to-date so far we've received $286.8 million of revenue plus other financing sources and uses. That's on line 2.08, which is about 75.8%. So, that's pretty much dead on uh with the number of months in the year. And that is slightly over our forecast by 7 574,000. >> [snorts] >> On the expenditure side, also in column A, you can see that so far this year we've had $276.9 million in expenditures and other financing uses, which is 71.65% of the budget, which is slowly slightly behind. Um >> [clears throat] >> And through the end of March, we are trending 1.8 million less than
016forecast. So, there's good news there, too. Uh all the way down at the bottom, the cash position area, row 6.01 in the green column, it's showing us that after March, revenue and expenditure activity, we are predicting that we'll end the fiscal year with uh deficit spending of 8.1 million. This This reflects some um >> [clears throat] >> positive improvement for us of about 2.5 million compared to the forecast from February that we just passed. We've already made up $2.5 million. Um if the trends continue through the last 3 years of the year, and you might recall that at the beginning of this school year, we were projecting that we would be deficit spending of around 10.4 million. So, now we are you know, projecting [clears throat] 8.1 million. So, there is that difference, and so
017we're hoping that either continues or at least stays the way it is through the end of the school year. That concludes my report. Thank [snorts] you, Mr. Treasurer. Is there a motion to approve the resolution for March 2026 financial report? >> So moved. Moved by Mr. Montgomery. Is there a second? Second. >> Second. Seconded by member Kelly. Is there any discussion? Any discussions? Any questions for the treasurer? Hearing none and seeing none, the treasurer shall call the roll. Mr. Gerace? Yes. Mrs. Kelly? Yes. Dr. Molnar? Yes. Mr. Montgomery? Yes. Mrs. Sykes? Yes. Mr. Hall? Yes. Motion carries 6-0. Thank you. Before we go into our committee report, just to note that we know that our BoardDocs uh is down, and some of you may have been trying to go on and to look at the
018agenda and information, but uh it's not your fault this time. It's not you. It's us, and I understand that it's down all over the country. So, no school boards can receive any information today at all. Hopefully, it will be back up soon, and for sure uh before the next board meeting. But uh thank you for uh your patience, and we hope that uh you're able to still follow along with us to find out what we're doing. So, we'll make sure that we we uh uh say exactly what we're doing and what we're asking and what we're voting on, so it's easier for you to follow us since you won't have the uh agenda. Um So, we're going to go to uh committee reports. Uh Finance and Capital Management Committee um report. Thank you, Madam President.
019>> Thank you, Madam President. The Finance and Capital Management Committee met on April the 15th at 6:30 in this board room. Amongst the various Finance and Capital Management updates, we had an in-depth discussion about the pending $11 million budget reduction as well as a resolution to begin negotiations with a construction manager at risk on the North High School project. Uh those two items uh did not conclude with any action and will be discussed again at the special meeting of the Finance Capital Management Committee, which will take place this Wednesday, April the 29th at 4:30 in this board room. That's my report, Madam President. Thank you. Thank you. Uh the Instructional Policies and Student Achievement Committee. Member Molnar. Thank you, Madam President. The Instructional Policy and Student Achievement Committee um the agenda will be in BoardDocs
020as soon as BoardDocs is accessible, but it uh will be there for today because our next meeting is at 4:30 p.m. next Monday, May 4th here in the Reverend Dr. Curtis T. Walker Board Room. Thank you. Legal and Contracts. Thank you, Madam President. The the Legal and Contracts Committee met on April 15th at 4:30. We discussed 15 different contracts. No action was required on any of them yet. We also discussed the van driver renegotiation process, in which the administration has begun the process to renegotiate. We do have an addendum to van driver transportation agreement later in new business. The next Legal and Contracts Committee meeting will be May 20th at 4:30 here in the board room. Thank you, Madam President. Thank you. Policy Committee. Member Molnar. Member Kelly. Thank you, Madam President. >> Okay. Uh
021the Policy Committee is also scheduled to meet Monday, May 4th here in the Reverend Dr. Curtis T. Walker Board Room at 5:30 p.m. Schedule Our agenda is will be available in BoardDocs. Okay. All right. The Rules Committee. Member Kelly. Thank you, Madam President. The Rules Committee met on April 20th here in the um our board room, where we went over um a variety of different uh agenda items that we will cover at today's meeting. Um And that's your report? Yes, that concludes my report. >> [laughter] >> Thank you. All righty. Thank you. Thank you. Uh what we want to see When is the next Rules Committee meeting? Thank you, Madam President. The next Rules Committee is scheduled for May 4th at 6:30 p.m. schedule in this exact location. Thank you. All right. One other thing
022I will just note with Rules Committee that we did have an item that came to the Rules Committee from the Policy Committee, and that uh after discussion, it was determined that we needed additional discussion and clarification. So, that particular item uh was referred back to the uh um uh Policy Committee. That is the administration administrative leave policy. So, that was referred back to the Policy Committee. So, we're going to continue to to work on that committee uh until we uh the administration and the the policy board feel that they uh have a good understanding as to the intent and what both of those both of us both both sides are looking to do to make sure that we have the very best policy that we can have as it relates to administrative leave policy. So,
023uh the work continues. Student Success Celebration Committee. Member Hall. Thank you, Madam President. Um our next meeting will be on May 20th at 5:30 p.m. Thank you. Thank you. Um Member Hall. Uh so, uh now the uh consent agenda. Uh there has been a request to remove two items from the consent agenda. Okay. >> [laughter] >> That's good. Thank you. No, I appreciate the help. Thank you. I appreciate it. But so we're going to move to a consent agenda and there has been requested move two items from the consent agenda. One is 11.2 employment summer school coordinators and after discussion in the rules committee it became clear that the administration felt the need to pull that item and so and to perfect it. And so it will be coming back at a later date. The
024second item is 21.2 appropriation resolution and so we are sending that item to the finance committee to be heard at the special finance committee meeting on the uh 29th. Uh so that is what will happen with those two items that's being removed from the consent agenda. Uh hearing no other items to come off the consent agenda the question is is there motion to approve the consent agenda as recommended? So moved. There is a motion by member Montgomery. Is there a second? >> Second. A second by member Hall. Uh is there any What? All the uh we will have the treasurer to call a roll. Mr. Jaros. Yes. Ms. Kelly. Yes. Dr. Molnar. Yes. Mr. Montgomery. Yes. Mrs. Sykes. Yes. Ms. Hall. Yes. Motion carries 6-0. Thank you. Okay, there's no unfinished business. We will now
025go to new business. Uh there is a number of items on the agenda. There is a new item that has been added to the agenda that all members should have a copy addendum to the van transportation agreement. This addendum to the van transportation agreement between Akron Public Schools and Buckeye Logistics uh is made and entered into on April 27th, 2026. Is there a motion to uh accept this addendum to the van transportation agreement? >> So moved. Is there a second? We have a motion by member Jaros. Is there a second? Second. Second by member Kelly. Discussion. Member Jaros. Yes, this is similar to what we did at our special meeting on March 30th where the current the original contract said no less than 90 days prior to the agreement's expiration date if we were not
026to exercise our right to extend the contract. They went from 90 days to 60 days and now we're amending it again to go from 60 days to 30 days just to allow more time during the renegotiation process. Thank you. Are there any questions? Any comments? Member Hall. Thank you, Madam President. Could you just clarify that just a little bit more? So we went from 90 days to 60 days. Now we're going to 30 days. So are we giving them 30 more uh not them. Are we giving um time 30 more days of time for a discussion to extend it out even further or are we saying 30 days from when the initial contract expired? Member Jaros. Yeah, so the the way the contract is written is originally that we'd have 90 days until the deadline
027to choose to renew with the vendor. Since 90 days has passed the contract would have been invalid and so it would have expired. So what we did 90 days or excuse me not 90 days ago but on on March 30th was instead of making it expire on March 31st we decided to say okay, it would expire on April 30th. And since April 30th is going to pass once again we are extending it one more month or 30 more days to give more time for the renegotiation. I believe the ultimate goal is to have a new contract with both vendors with a renegotiation one that will help us be more financially efficient on the van driver issue but I think this is a good faith gesture because it's not about the vendor, it's about the contract
028coming with the best agreement for the vendor, the district and the students. I hope that answered the question. Member Hall. No no, that's fine. I was just looking at the um number 12 with the terms August 1st, 2025 through June 30th. And if we're extending it 30 more days from April 27th that would be May 27th. But down here where it says the addendum the agreement period is from August 1st, 2025 through June 30th, 2026. So we have two dates or what am I It's it's on here. No. Uh let me just ask if the attorney would would explain that. Thank you, Madam President. Mhm. Thank you, Madam President. Members of the board, member Hall, uh the way the language as member Jaros was talking about it's 90 days from the expiration date which is
029uh June 30th. So we had to take it down to 60 days to ex- it works in reverse. So we had to take it down to 60 days which bought the board additional time until the end of April. Now cuz we're still negotiating and renegotiating we have to take it down to 30 days from the expiration date which gives the board until the end of May to continue to have discussions. Okay. I guess I'm just looking at this and it has two different dates from what you know, the 30 days as of the 27th and then it has June 30th. So I want to be clear on what I'm you know Absolutely. >> saying yes to. So I guess why is there Why does it say June 30th, 2026 on here? You have the paper?
030I didn't bring up my laptop. Just repeat the Yeah, the original contract. Yes, it's no less than 30 days prior to the agreement's expiration date. That's that's the trigger. Okay. >> So the expiration date is June 30th. So 30 days from June 30th going backwards is the end of May. Okay. We're going backwards. Okay. >> Yes, it works in Thank you. You got to leave with that. >> [laughter] >> Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. So hearing no more any no more additional questions, comments. So the question is whether or not the addendum to the van transportation agreement should be approved. The treasurer should call the roll. Ms. Hall. Yes. Uh Mr. Jaros. Yes. Ms. Kelly. Yes. Dr. Molnar. Yes. Mr. Montgomery. Yes. President Sykes. Yes. Motion carries 6 Well, motion carries 6-0. Okay, continuing
031[clears throat] under new business we have North High School band North High School bond anticipation notes. Is there a motion to approve? So moved. Uh um motion by member Jaros. Is there a second? Second by member Montgomery. [cough] >> [clears throat] >> Any discussions? Any comments? Hearing none the treasurer should call the roll. Ms. Kelly. Yes. Dr. Molnar. Yes. Mr. Montgomery. Yes. Mrs. Sykes. Yes. Ms. Hall. Yes. Mr. Jaros. Yes. Motion carries 6-0. Thank you. Under item 25.2 resolution Ohio Facilities Construction uh is there a motion to approve the resolution of Ohio Facilities Construction Commission closeout? >> So moved. Motion by member Montgomery. Is there a second? Second. A second by member Jaros. Uh any discussion? Any questions? Hearing none the treasurer should call the roll. Dr. Molnar. Yes. Mr. Montgomery. Yes. Mrs. Sykes. Yes.
032Ms. Hall. Yes. Mr. Jaros. Yes. Ms. Kelly. Yes. Motion carries 6-0. Thank you, treasurer. Item number 20 number 23.3 Ohio Facilities Construction Commission closeout. Is there a motion to approve the resolution? So moved. So moved member Hall. Is there a second? Second. Second member Jaros. Any discussions? Any comments? Hearing none the treasurer should call the roll. Mr. Montgomery. Yes. Mrs. Sykes. Yes. Ms. Hall. Yes. Mr. Jaros. Yes. Ms. Kelly. Yes. Dr. Molnar. Yes. Motion carries 6-0. Thank you. Finally item 25.4 resolution Ohio Facilities Construction Commission uh close closeout. Is there a motion to approve the resolution? So moved. So moved by member Montgomery. Is there a second? Second. Second by member Kelly. Any discussions? At this time I think I will have uh uh the treasurer or the business affairs to just come up and
033just explain what we just did, please, if you don't mind just so that those folks that's listening can have some appreciation for what we're closing out. Good evening, uh President Sykes, Vice President Molnar, other members of the board and Superintendent Atley. At this time we are actually closing out the final segments four, five and six for the actual construction of the CLCs. And by officially approving these resolutions this will officially close our interaction with the state of Ohio during this process and it will also allow the final uh paperwork to be signed with the maintenance agreements that are already in place and the release of the final funds that are owed back to the district as there have been some in being held at this point. Uh if I remember the final amount, it's close
034to 1.9 million that will be returned to the district. Yes, thank you. Thank you. So, I particularly wanted the community to hear that. 1.9 million, we like to hear that we're receiving funds back. Are there any questions, any comments? Hearing none, then the question is whether or not resolution 25.4 of the Ohio Facilities Commission shall be closed out. Mrs. Sykes >> shall call the roll. Yes. Ms. Hall Yes. Mr. Gerros Yes. Ms. Kelly Yes. Dr. Molnar Yes. Mr. Montgomery Yes. Motion carries 6-0. Thank you. Now, we would continue on to new business if there's anything that any member would like to bring to the committee, any announcements, any reports, now would be the time to do that. Member Hall Thank you, Madam President. Um I would just like to, you know, say thank you to
035Superintendent Oatley for >> [music] >> and her team for getting parents um I think we have what, 37 parents going to the NAPSYS uh parent summit this Thursday, April 30th. >> Um seems like we have it all together. We have breakfast um and snacks uh donated by Buckeye Logistics and we also have buttons with name tags um being made by our students at East CLC. So, thank you to um Assistant Principal uh Larissa Brown um and the students at East CLC for making the name tags and that should be delivered, I think, maybe Wednesday if not tomorrow. Yes. All right, thank Wednesday. Yes, definitely by Wednesday. Thank you so much for everyone. Okay, are there any additional comments? No, I would just Member Gerros Yes, I just wanted to acknowledge one of our colleagues who
036received an award this past Saturday as well as uh members like Larissa Brown, Dr. Nolan from Firestone, uh Carmela Kelly. Uh it was the Ohio Black Women's Leadership Caucus Luncheon. So, we just want to acknowledge the great work being done by APS board members and staff members. Dr. Nolan was the keynote speaker and gave a wonderful inspiring speech. Just wanted to share that. Yes, she did. She did. And congratulations, Member Kelly. Yeah. Yeah. [clears throat] Yeah. Any additional comments? If not, I want to note that um you know, under the Ohio Coalition for Equity and at for equity of funding schools, which is also known as Vouchers Hurt Ohio, and that uh just to remind you that uh Akron Public School is a member of that coalition, that we did file a lawsuit against the
037state of Ohio, that the that the judge uh did find that uh the uh funds were uh did not follow the Constitution and that it was unconstitutional the way that public funds are being allocated to our public school system, which goes along with the announcement that the superintendent made earlier about the meeting that we had uh last week. Uh just want to announce that the Franklin County Court of Appeals have submitted a notice of oral argument uh because it was found that it was unconstitutional. It was sent to the Appeals Court and so now the oral arguments will take place on May 12th, uh in Columbus and uh we will wait to hear what the results are from the Court of Appeals as it relates to whether or not the Court of Appeals feel that
038what happened in the original uh 10th District Court in finding that the finding for public education is indeed unconstitutional. So, again, the appeal hearing notice of oral arguments will take place on May 12th, 2026 at 9:30 a.m. Is there any other comments? Hearing none, so uh Member Molnar, is there a reason to enter to executive session? Yes, uh Madam President, I make a motion to recess into executive session pursuant to Ohio Revised Code 121.22G1 to consider the appointment, employment, dismissal, discipline, promotion, demotion, or compensation of a public employee or official and 121.22G3 conferences with an attorney for the public body concerning disputes involving the public body that are the subject of pending or imminent court action. Is there a motion to go into executive session? We just heard there is. Uh is there a second?
039Second. Seconded by Member Kelly. Is there any discussion? Hearing and seeing none, the treasurer shall call the roll. Mr. Gerros Yes. Ms. Kelly Yes. Dr. Molnar Yes. Mr. Montgomery Yes. Mrs. Sykes Yes. Ms. Hall Yes. 6-0. As we [clears throat] convene into executive session, this should not take longer than an hour, hopefully less than that. If it does, then we will come out to let you know. Uh we will now convene into executive session. >> Mhm. >> All right, we are back into into regular board meeting from the executive session. And there is action to be taken. Is there a motion to approve the resolution approving disciplinary suspension? So moved. Uh the motion has been moved by member Gerosa. Is there a second? >> Second. Is there any discussion? I will read uh the uh
040resolution, part of the resolution, into the record. Uh the full resolution, since it's not since you don't have BoardDocs, will be made available to the media, and when we can, we will put it out on BoardDocs. So, resolution approving disciplinary [clears throat] suspensions pursuant to board policy 4362, anti-harassment. Whereas, the Akron City School District Board of Education has adopted policy 4362, anti-harassment, which governs the investigation, determination, and resolution of complaints alleging harassment, including sexual harassment. And whereas, complaint alleging sexual harassment under the board policy 4362 were filed against Tom Varney on August 11th and August 14th, 2025. And whereas, on February 23rd, 2026, the Board of Education adopted a resolution concluding its appellate review under board policy 4362, determining that the substantiated conduct met the definition of sexual harassment under the policy, and remanding the
041matter to the superintendent for further administrative review and action consistent with the board determination. And whereas, following the board remand, the superintendent reopened the matter for additional administrative review considering the board resolution, the investigation matters, and the following up report from the April 7th, 2026 2026 pre-disciplinary meeting, and issued written recommendation dated April 23rd, 2026. And whereas, the board determined under policy 4362 are final and not subject to further appeal. And whereas, the superintendent has recommended, subject to board approval, the disciplinary action be imposed against Mr. Varney in the form of a five-day unpaid suspension for violations of board policy 4362. There Now, therefore, be it resolved by the Board of Education of the Akron City School District that approval disciplinary suspension, the board hereby approve the imposition of a five-day workday unpaid suspension upon
042Tom Varney as disciplinary action for violation of board policy 4362 4362, anti-harassment. This resolution constitutes the final board action regarding the approved disciplinary suspension. The board prior determination under board policy 4362 remains final and are not subject to further appeal. If any provision of this resolution is found to be invalid or unenforceable, such determination shall not affect the remaining provision. Adopted this 27th day of April, 2026 at a duly convened public meeting of the Akron City School District Board of Education. The treasurer shall call the roll. Mr. Gerosa? Yes. Ms. Kelly? Yes. Dr. Molnar? Yes. Mr. Montgomery? >> Yes. Mr. Sykes? Yes. Ms. Hall? Yes. Motion carries 6-0. Thank you. The next meeting will be on Monday, May 11th, 2026. Is there a motion to adjourn? So moved. The motion made by by member Gerosa.
043Is there a second? >> Second. Seconded by member Montgomery. The treasurer will call the roll. Ms. Kelly? Yes. Dr. Molnar? Yes. Mr. Montgomery? Yes. Ms. Sykes? Yes. Ms. Hall? Yes. Mr. Gerosa? >> Yes. The motion has passed, and we are now adjourned at 6:38 p.m. >> [music]