001The October 14th, 2025 Horsesboro School District Board of Directors meeting is called to order at 5:32 p.m. We'll start with a roll call of board members present. K. Gradeski >> here. Maya Andrade if Christy Cocky is here and absent tonight are Alma Lozano, Marissa Franco and Pete Truatz. Going to have us rise for the flag salute. 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, liberty and justice for all. All right. I am not looking for approval of tonight's agenda because we do not have quorum at this meeting. And our plan for tonight is to uh at least get through the board reports. We have a couple important presentations that we want to make sure we do for the
002community. We also want to be here for public comment for the community and be consistent. We do have one person tonight here for that. And then we will close uh the meeting after the presentations and we will follow up with a second meeting that will be posted that will just be with board members to uh work through our action items that need at the forum. So um we'll start tonight with student record. It is homecoming. Maya has been working double time triple time as student and student leader and also we're talking about some possible changes to format in how we'll report. for tonight. We're just gonna turn it over to her and keep us updated on all that happens. >> Perfect. Um, good afternoon. Yes, looking forward to that change. Um, I'm all over the
003place today, so I do apologize. But here's what's going on student wise. Um, our school is filming and busy. Student staff, everybody in general is preparing for our homecoming week. The parade is on Friday at 400 p.m. around town followed by the game. Uh this is the varsity football versus at 7 pm. Um and we have our home football Saturday at 7. In terms of sports, we have soccer soccer for girls and boys. They've had a couple a couple games this week and week as well. And today girls soccer has a game at 7:50 p.m. on Liberty. Um our volleyball team has been going strong this year and the girls have a game today as well against Sherwood 5 to 6:45 and their water cheer and the ball has been across the Calvin as well.
004Um but a big shout out to our cross country who had a successful week at the champ invitational units. Our senior war finished in fifth place and then Iris Mer also moved up on our board with 11 classes during our school district while right behind by one quart of all time. We have the next meeting on Thursday at 35 at 4 and their fun run is also coming up. So running amounts to support our teams. Um other than that students are working extra hard grading this week since it's great week in all the assignments finishing projects but as well >> and why I'm going to put you on the spot for you personally. What's your favorite part of homecoming week? >> Um I really like our rallies. I like doing our rallies. Um we do
005a combination of athletic heritage for like homecoming. Um and this year I came up with a pretty cool game for my LA team. Uh, so I'm really excited to plan that. The parade is also looking forward to it. It seemed like any less points. >> Yeah, I think we're gonna I think the weather's gonna cooperate this year. >> I hope so. It's like back and forth. >> We'll see. >> All right. Thank you so much. Uh, Kate reports from the field for you. Well, uh, today I was at, uh, Cornelius Elementary School, um, putting shopping books and then reading for the pre-kinders and the kinders and then, um, we took a walk over to Cornelius library and they read stories for the prekinders and then we did the hokeie pokei, which I haven't done, but
006uh, so I'm always learning something new. All right. And then I think um I know director Truax who's not here tonight, but he and I were able to attend an historical um reenactment this this morning at Twity Plains. I know Dr. West is planning to talk a little bit more about that and I I know director Trux spent some time inside with the kids and so I expect we'll hear more about his perspective but it was a really uh great experience at least to be able to see what was going on there and the work that went on behind the scenes as we know that teachers put together when they bring community members together to plan something like that. It's pretty inspiring. Um, I do have a couple updates for OSBA. OSBA nominations for the
007legislative policy positions have closed. So, ballots are actually going to be sent out to all board members on the 15th. It is posted on the site for the public and you can see for our region who has applied. For our region, we have two applicants. Melissa Potter who is currently on the LPC and serves on the Beaverton school board. And we have a new applicant from Gaston TJ Johnson. So their applications are posted and you can read questions and answers. How that works for our board is that all board members can read and do their own research and then we together at the board meeting will decide um how we who we want to support of that position. The other Washington County position is up and Becky Timchuk is running unopposed for region 16. Um
008so look for that information. My position on OSBA board will also be up for appointment separate from those elections and that application process will be starting in November. I've actually talked with director Truax and asked him to consider that position as it's going to be really important that we remain active especially with our discussions about federal funding and local funding and his experience with um his connections across the state and those conversations I think could be really invaluable. Um, but again, that's an appointment position to fill the remainder of my term. And the OSBA convention is coming up in Portland next month. It's a time when boards get the latest updates on funding and policy. This year in particular, those conversations will be essential and they are ever evolving on changing daytoday. Our our board
009um is going to director Truax is going to attend that on behalf of our board. In the past, we've had one or two board members be able to go. This summer, we sent new board members, Director Truax and Director Franco, to the summer conference. They were uh new to the board, and that summer conference gives them some background and also some training. And so, watching our budget as well, which is very small for us to attend, we feel like we can um we can he'll report back and also we have ongoing conversations happening outside of that mention. It is in Portland. Um there Portland has been in the news quite a bit this week and I did want to highlight just take a couple minutes and talk about that. I think in Bors Grove I
010my love affair with Portland started when I was teaching middle school and would take our classes down to PAL's books for reading workshop and the kids would be able to go to Powell's and have some time to roam and pick a book that was of interest to them bring it back to the classroom. But it was the first time for a lot of kids actually even in Hillsboro going into the big city and it was and then we continued to take avid kids down to see Portland State and go to the art museum and walk on the waterfront and go hiking and all kinds of experiences that you can have in the city that I think are are really important. Um, but my son and I are in Portland four or five times a week
011and we were there this morning. We are right down on the waterfront to do walks. We go to the second floor of Powels to look out at all the people walking by. Um, we go to our new favorite ice cream shop called Kates, which actually not named after this cake, but just as delightful. And I like ice cream. >> I know. But I typically will make a point to go to the Ben & Jerry's in Pioneer Square because that particular ice cream shop in Portland is um they employ kids at kids who are in the foster care system as a way to move them into employment. And there's just so much going on down there that is so delightful in the fall. And I know that sometimes when I talk to people that don't spend
012time in Portland, they are they're sometimes a little bit reluctant to to maybe even travel there. And I I just remind people like usually when you hear people's impressions of Portland, they're two different things. People that are in Portland and people that have not experienced Portland. And it's just such an important part of our fabric in Oregon. That school system I I can't remember how many kids are in that entire school system, but just a reminder that all of these school systems around us are our neighbors and our kids and are all working together. So, I'm really happy to see the convention taking place in the city for that reason. Um, but also because it's a great place to highlight some fantastic things that are happening for kids and families. Um, okay. The only other
013a couple more highlights is I did want to share I was able to go to the McCain football game and take my dad and it was interesting because my dad went to a very small high school in Wisconsin and recognize some of the band songs and some of the cheers and we talked about how some of some of high school has really changed and in some ways it really hasn't and and how both of those things are were really fun for him to see. the band who also recently, I believe, won several awards at recent performances, is just really flourishing and and just does a great job there. Um, I mean, it's there's so much that you see at that football game, the dance teams, the parents who are participating, but the coolest thing was
014behind me was a recently graduated student who was there. He had played on the football team. He was there to support his friends and family members, but he was taking his CNA test the next morning and his family was really excited about that. To see our former graduates not only attending games and still supporting our district, but then moving on to that next part of their lives were great. And finally, my my last shout out is to the two PTO parents, Rachel and Ashley, at the Harvey Clark Bookf Fair, which I attended. Um that was a great opportunity to see families bringing their kids in. Again, he can remember probably going to school and having those scholastic book fairs, but being able to pick different books and having families talk about books together. But these
015two parents um they said, you know, it's been a struggle to have parents that can help with the PTO as time is very challenging for people now and but they had given this time to organize this night. They were taking care of teachers and families. They were very excited to be there. The energy was just inspirational. And so when we talk about people using their time in this community for good, I I just really appreciate the involvement of our community members um like that when you can when times. So not a whole bunch, but that's nothing new for me. So I am going to move on to one other thing before we move to superintendent report. And if we can put up a slide, we wanted to highlight tonight and celebrate something that's been happening
016well at all of our schools, but in particular at Fernhill Elementary School. We want to congratul congratulations on achieving the largest increase in literacy outcomes at Fernhill. And one of the things we asked them is we'd like to be able to show the community bring into the boardroom spotlight of different things that are happening in our districts. And we we tried that last year in different ways and we were inviting people in and trying to highlight the work that people are doing in this format. And it's just really difficult to do because while it's exciting for us to be able to know we can highlight it, teachers have had a long day and sometimes when they come into a board meeting and they just take a picture, you know, they were like, we appreciate it,
017but we were really trying to work on how can we make sure that we're honoring the work that's being done and also honoring the time and doing that in maybe a way that accomplishes both. So tonight we're going to try something a little bit different and we just asked that staff to get together and be able to come up with what they would like to share about the strategies they've used um how they did it. A student first mindset and fidelity to MClass. A couple of these acronyms I'm going to I'm going to pass it over to Dr. West in just a minute to give some detail. But maximizing instructional time, we talk about bell-to-bell. Making sure that every moment that your kids are in our classrooms that they are learning and that learning is
018intentional. Strong classroom management, peer observations focused on otrs, ongoing learning, and some of that training. Again, I'm going to ask um for a little bit in more expl explanation about that, but those are trainings that allow our teachers to have consistent knowledge and actually ways that they then apply consistently what they're doing in the classrooms, use of visuals and anchor charts and just really building a culture of collaboration with the instructional coaches and the specialists. And that's something that I think everybody's understanding when we work together as a team and we share across schools, not just Vern Hill. That's not the only elementary school that's seen success. This is a school that we're highlighting tonight because of the particular success they've seen and they had time to sort of put together u an example of
019what that looks like. For family takeaways, one of the things we hear from families in the conversations we have been having is what can we do to help with reading? And so one of the things we're going to try to start messaging more consistently is what is that thing? Reading together daily, having folks available at school and at home and asking your kids questions. Who? How did they feel? What would you do? Asking them questions about what they're reading. Um that alone is is will have an impact. Practicing sounds and syllables in everyday conversation. These two takeaways are things that Fern Hill highlighted last year when they did their family literacy night and that's coming up. I believe it's this week and there's also one at Cornelius. At that night, families came and they did
020receive specific strategies from teachers that they were able to practice with their kids. And those are things that are shared out from families that can't make it on those evenings. that is information that we can still allow our families to access and we can all kind of work together to improving our our scores. Um, I do want to highlight a couple a special thank you to all the Fernhill Elementary teachers and staff for their care and dedication and your kind of all-in approach on focusing on literacy. Uh, Canon Taber for really exceptional growth in math. teachers Heidi Smith and Teresa Waters for outstanding growth in reading and math and all the specialists that are really working to intentionally collaborate. Um it's all starting to make a difference that we're seeing not just in the scores
021but in the culture and the compliments to district uh specialists as well. They're going to I'm going to toss it to them to just add a little extra detail to that. That is one of our board focus goals was instruction and particularly around literacy. We're kind of just really making sure that we're leveling up in how we're sharing that information and also sharing with the community the specific work that we're doing around that so people have a better idea of what's happening in the classroom. And with that to Dr. West. >> Yes, thank you. Um, I'll address specifically some of the acronyms that you called out there and then ask our assistant superintendent home with me to speak specifically to the ongoing professional learning and what that has looked like. Um, first starting with fidelity.
022If you worked in education for a while, you might have heard people say there are two f-words. Maybe I shouldn't say that in a board, but one of those is the word fidelity. Uh the reason this matters in education is that there are decades of research now that make it really clear that the difference in student outcomes are greatest between teachers in the same school, not between schools. And one of the key reasons for that is that we don't have fidelity to instructional models and to curricula. Um there is a lot to teachers being able to exercise the art of teaching. There's also a real science teaching and that is the fidelity aspect. So ensuring that our teachers first attempt to science that we're using the curriculum that was created by curriculum developers assessments created
023by psychopatricians that's foundational to any kind of instructional improvement. Once we have that down then the art of teaching can come in and we can see some of the anchor charts there that are really well done. Uh, and that's an example of where teachers can exercise some of their creativity. Specific to McLass, MCLASS is an assessment tool that is connected with our elementary curriculum. Amplified McLass allows us to do several things. One, it acts as a dyslexia screener, which is not only required by law. It's really important that we do that with kids as early as kindergarten. Two, it acts as a benchmark and universal screener for us so that we're able to in a short amount of time assess where are kids starting and then what is their growth and we can break that
024down into very discreet student skills. We get a composite score as well, but we can also identify Suzanne needs some help understanding phones so we can get to that level with our students in terms of the assessment data that we get back. And now I'll ask if you don't mind to speak to the learning of our colleagues related to literacy. >> Sure. Um the ongoing learning letters glad CPS um letters is our ongoing work we're doing around um the science of reading so really around uh literacy as well as language. Um we've had over the last um two years 70 60 to 70 people trained in letters or are currently being trained in letters. So, we've had two cohorts in our own system, and this is a 2-year commitment, significant investment in time, um, resources
025as well as dedication from our from our teachers, um, around the science of reading. Um, we actually have two, uh, individuals in our system, one TOSA, and one teacher, um, who are, uh, letters trainers who have been certified to do that. And it's really a significant deep dive into the science of reading which is aligns with our amplified curriculum and all of our efforts over the last three plus years. Um so letters letters is uh is that um glad is is guided language acquisition design. Um it's best practice around having sheltered instruction instructional strategies. uh anchor charts, other things that really connect students to uh language acquisition as well as u concepts, designs, those types of things. And and CPS refers to our collaborative problem solving is how we're working with our students as we
026build a culture um where they are feeling valued and and ready to learn every day. So three three um ongoing investments that we've made over the last few years. So, it's not like the new bullet or the silver bullet or those types of things, but we know our researchbased sound instructional strategies that we just need to continue to invest and go deeper. >> And I'll thank you for that. I'll add just one more piece and then turn it back to you. What is really important for a district like us is that you have all of that. As we have such a substantial number of students that are either learning in two languages simultaneously, they're emerging bilingual or they are in our schools that do not have a dual language program and they're in full English
027immersion but they speak another language at home. The addition of GLAD into the literacy development program ensures that we are following the science scientific recommended strategies for how to teach students to read and we are following evidence-based practices to make that instruction comprehensible for students for whom English is not their first language. So for us all of these components in conjunction are critical to a successful legacy system. Does that address the questions that you have related to this? You have a question. I I do have one question. Yeah, I have one question. Um so when we have new teachers coming into our district and that how are we helping them to acquire these skills they don't have them? >> Yeah. So that's where our TOSAs are just critical to our system because they either pull
028them aside, have one-on-one conversations. We're trying to c catch them up to speed on years of of professional learning, whether it's deep in the learning, so inviting them into that those cohorts as well. This year, we have a waiting list for the first time in our letters cohort because people have found so much value. Word's starting to spread that even though it's a two-year commitment, it's it's amazing learning. Um, and so that's one piece of it. Um and and the other piece is actually today we had a conversation with um with with a provider about how to make um how to start interacting with playlists and other um online or video trainings so that we can catch up our new teachers that haven't had quite the depth yet in order to get them some some
029real quick you know experiences in the science of leading. So, it's a combination of things. Um, and uh, but yeah, it's it's mostly the folks that work and inviting them to other professional learning. >> I was listening to NPR today and they were talking about and I hadn't really thought about it. Um, you know, we think about the accountability in the classroom and that, but they were talking about the programs that are sold to our school districts. How do we evaluate their account the accountability of what they say their program is going to offer? And I have never thought about that before. So I'm just tossing that out because you know I I thought well I don't know you know I really don't know. >> Excuse me. Are are you talking about common core for
030example? No, I'm talking about the different programs that we have like letters, grad and then is and you know other programs down the road that we >> I know that we have a team that evaluates and we have to be by our district in that but if a program says I'm going to do this this and this how do we know if they the program is providing what they said they would providing >> and before I have Dr. West to answer that. I'm just point of word that we have to have the conversation remain at the at the das for the meeting. Just a reminder. >> Yeah, thank you. I'm going to break that down into a few different answers. Um, starting with the Department of Education. Um, they the Department of Education solicits proposals
031for curricula. Whenever we go through at the state level a new curriculum review, the state has a cycle of every seven years refreshing curriculum based on content area. So prior to that refresh date, the state puts out a request for proposals. Publishers can submit their materials. The state goes through an evaluation process of comparing what the publisher submits to state standards. In addition to state standards, they evaluate, is this culturally relevant to our student population? Are the materials available in multiple languages? Are there supports for English learners and for students who are differently able? So, the state goes through a process of evaluating the curriculum before we even get our hands on it. Then it is turned over to the district. So the list of approved curriculum for the upcoming adoption cycle. Districts then go
032through their own adoption process because local context matters too. And we go through a similar process. We look at what the state has approved and then we identify different hopefully one or two different curricular options that will work for our district. In rare occasions, there's only one approved curriculum that we might be able to look at that has happened in the past and that is an indication that our state is doing a good job that they aren't just putting any kind of curriculum in front of us. One thing that is really encouraging that happened in the last legislative session actually is that the rules were changed so that the department of education um request proposal for proposals is no longer tied to publishers paying. That was creating a real problem at the state level because
033I think the big publishers could pay the fee to have their curriculum evaluated by the state. With that requirement removed, now smaller local publishers who maybe have curriculum that is just as high quality can also have their curricular resources evaluated alongside the big publishers. The benefit to that is that the curriculum will have more local contextual um development that you'll see within it because those bigger publishers, they're really only publishing for a few states. They they write for California, they write for New York, they write for Texas, the states that have the most children in it, and then they typically will make small revisions or supplemental additions for different states. So, opening that door, removing the paytoplay requirement may make accessible to us a broader range of curriculum that is as of high quality. So,
034that's one part of the answer. The other part of the answer is that when we engage with a publisher, we engage through a contract process. So if the publish if we through that contract agree with the publisher that we need 100 professional learning hours, that contract is our assurance and our fallback to make sure that the publisher provides those professional learning hours to our district. If we say that for every year the contract is in place, we want access to the most updated software that's available, then the publisher is held to that. So that that is a mechanism mechanism for us to make sure that our curriculum publishers follow through on the commitments that they've made for us. And then the last piece related to that is all of that happens at a district level.
035Going back to what assistant superintendent said, where the rubber meets the road in terms of asurances and accountability is really what takes place in the classroom. And so all of those things don't matter unless our teachers are using the curriculum, that they're supported through the use of the curriculum, that they have ongoing professional learning for the use of the curriculum, and they get specific and actionable feedback um throughout their instructional day as they use the curriculum. That's where the professional learning designed by the teaching and learning team, the support of our teachers on special assignment, and then the observation process that our principles go through. And that feedback process is critical to using practice in the classroom. That was a long that's I just reinforced the the the feedback loops. You know, just last week
036I I visited the high school and went into science classrooms and asked, "How's the new curriculum?" You know, with math math teachers, how's the new curriculum? Getting that being on the ground in classrooms, getting that feedback, listening to where they're being, what they're liking, what they're utilizing right away, what are the hang-ups, often tech, the technical technology. Um, and then we we bring that back and we take it to the publishers and say, "These are the these are the snafoos. This is what's slowing down. Can we tweak this?" And then, you know, typically they're they're very accommodating. Um, they they are here to serve us and and they're they're taking our our dollars and um public dollars and so they're striving to meet our needs in order to um, you know, hopefully we'll consider them
037again in the future. So, we've got really good relationships with them and we're able to offer that feedback and some there's sometimes there's some tools that were just that aren't quite what we had hoped they would be. But fortunately, because we've had a very rigorous process, I feel like in the last 3 years that we've landed on curriculum that folks have felt really good about. Um, and so I'm I'm thankful for our TOSAs, our teachers, everybody that have come to the table through those many evenings um in order to to select quality material that is research based. >> Yeah, it's helping. It's helping. >> Yeah. And I've been on the board for a while, so I I've seen a couple reading adoptions. you know, I think amplify it really is meaning the the movement of
038the children, but it's pretty comprehensive and takes time for our teachers to to learn it and um >> and I think we're beginning to see some really good results, but I I thought the question on NPI was interesting. It was really I forget what time it was that I was listening to, but it was very informative. >> Thank you. >> Yeah. >> Okay. I actually also had a question about the end class. I think last year was it the ELD team that came to request that we add the intervention or maybe it was two years ago to purchase the supplemental materials that allow for interventions. Am I remembering >> those? Yeah, that's different tools. So there's MClass and MClass Lectura which focuses on literacy and then elevation was for our ELD students. >> Yeah. So
039with all with those pieces and and the end class when a a skill is identified in kids, can you talk about what it looks like in a classroom, I was able to see a little example of like maybe a small group or um what that looks like when something's identified. Dr. West, you had mentioned like FOMO for you what would happen in the classroom. Sure. Um, so the assessments that we use, especially at the elementary level, do break down into the very discrete skills that students need to master as they progress in their reading development. And that starts with phones. But it also identifies struggles with phonics, fluency, and within fluency. It's both accuracy and rate that we evaluate because those are the two components of fluency. And then we evaluate all the way up
040to vocabulary and comprehension as well. So the assessment results are returned on multiple levels, school, class, but also at student level. And for specific students, the teachers usually in a team will go through a process of identifying which of our students are reading at the benchmark. So the expected level for whatever grade they're in, which of our students are not, and what are the needs of those students? What we typically find is that there are a number of students, sometimes two or three, sometimes six or seven, that have common needs. And so those students are grouped in what we refer to as intervention groups. And they still receive the whole group instruction that all students receive, which are which is at grade level. um and then they receive additional instruction on top of that that
041addresses their particular skill gap and that instructional um cycle is monitored as well. So students in interventions have um regular assessments more frequently than students who are not in an intervention. Typically about six weeks and that sixish week uh cycle allows time for the intervention to take effect to stick hopefully um and then we re-evaluate. So for me for example if I were receiving intervention support in learning phones if I am not making the progress that is expected then the intervention may int intensify. If I am making the progress that is expected. I may remain in the intervention a little bit longer until I reach the point that I should be at for my grade level or I could be exited and just return to full class instructional. So it's very database in terms of
042what intervention is used with which students and for how long. Um over the last couple of years I I wasn't here when this effort started and I know over the last couple of years you have increased the number of types of interventions that are available in our schools. And that's really important because not every intervention works with every skill gap. We need to match the right intervention to the right student need and that required some additional resources for us to be able to do well. Does that answer your question? >> Yeah. >> Would you like to add anything to that? >> Okay. Thank you. >> This is Well, I I need to thank Fern Hill because I think what what has happened is kind of like a secret work session's not in her greetings, which
043I love and we talked about this as a board. But it's it's important for the board to be able to have these conversations to get that next level of learning around what's happening in the classrooms, but I really think it's unusual for a community to be able to see some of that in-depth conversation that just happened here. And so, and thank you both for that explanation. I mean, we we didn't in fact there might have been more questions than our directors who aren't here tonight will have a chance to watch this conversation and then follow up with questions in their one-on-one. So, I do think it's important for the for the community to hear like the the level of professional development and interventions and teaching that is happening in classrooms, which when you're a student
044or you're a parent, you maybe don't always get a window into that complexity. And I think we're just doing a really good job of of building in all of those layers and such a depth of understanding by the team. It's um it's reassuring and really exciting about that. that we're starting to see some of those results where we need we know we need to see them. So, >> thank you for that. Um, all right. And thank you again to Fern Hill. I know their team met this morning because that's when they were scheduled to meet and they were able to get this together and get some pictures for us to display. We really appreciate the time and um I had some time on the phone with Roelio, the principal there, who also he was just
045making sure that you know what is it that we needed to see and wanted to show and then he was sharing some ideas. So, a real collaborative effort by everyone to get this um here tonight. So, thank you. So, I'm going to um toss it over to Dr. West for superintendent report. Great. Thank you. Um I have a few things to share this evening. I want to start by acknowledging that there has been an increase in ICE activity in Washington County in the last 24 hours. Um some of this activity is happening on or near school campuses. Um, I've said this several times in the boardroom and I want to re-emphasize this here. Oregon is a sanctuary state and as such we are legally prohibited from supporting immigration enforcement efforts. That's what it means to
046be a sanctuary state. So as public employees, we cannot facilitate or assist immigration enforcement efforts. In addition to that, FEPA, which is the Family Education Records Protection Act, that protects student records. So, an individual can't call the school and ask, "Where does Suzanne live?" That information would not be released if requested. And then in addition to that, we have many security and safety processes, practices, and suitors in our schools. One of those is that our doors are locked all day long. So during the instructional day, those doors are secure and only people with authorized access can enter. So our schools remain safe places. I know the increase in immigration enforcement has caused some fears to escalate in our community, but our schools remain safe places. So I wanted to start with that. Um, we were
047also asked to share what happens when a message is sent to the school board in writing or when public comment is submitted in writing. So, I want to spend just a minute there. Uh, starting with every message is read. So, whether it's public comment sent in writing or whether it is a comment sent through the messaging system, those messages are read. Before the message is sent off to the school board, it is evaluated by district staff. And the reason for that is sometimes those messages need to be addressed, for example, by a school principal. We want you to have the message, but if there's a situation between students, the schoolboard directors will not be resolving that situation. It will be the principles resolving that situation. So we scan those messages to assess who is the
048right person to work on whatever the problem is that it's identified in the message and then that is communicated to the school board. We don't receive a lot of written messages. Um since the last board meeting I believe we had one message that came through and it was an invitation from one of our high school colleagues Laura Lewis to the veterans assembly that's coming up. Um so yeah we don't we don't get a lot um but when we do that is how we process those written um public comments whether it was written emails. Any questions about that before I move on? Okay. All right. So I want to highlight two lessons. Um lesson number one I observed at NAMS. So speaking about new curriculum um we have a new curriculum science curriculum that is being
049used at our middle school this year. Uh, twig. Did I get that right? Twig. Um, so I entered into a single eighth grade class and the kids were busy with a tub full of water, something I'll call a paddle. I don't know what else to call it. A couple of flotation devices on top of the tub and they were making the water move. I was super curious. to live with. They were just playing with bathtub water. But when I went to talk to the kids said, "What are you doing here? What is this lesson?" And I was blown away. The kids started talking about hydrodnamics and the forces that impact water and what they were learn. The depth of water changes, the way the water flows in this situation or that situation. They were taking
050observational notes. they were way into this lesson that they were engaged with. And so I went from that classroom to every other eighth grade eighth grade classroom that was currently involved in that lesson. There were three of them doing it simultaneously. And I was thrilled to see how engaged students were and what they were learning through that process. It was incredible learning taking place at West Classroom. So, just an example of how new curriculum can be really transformative. Um, first year they're using it, so there's always some kinks to work out. I talked to our science teachers at the middle school and they said, "Yeah, you know, this is a little clunky, but there's a lot that they like about it and it certainly is supporting our student learning." So, I wanted to share that.
051Um, the second instructional observation is the one that Cher Cocky started with. Uh today I visited Swally Plains and I was able to observe a reenactment straight out of the pages of the Vietnam War novel. Um we had students who spent time learning about the Vietnam War, but not just the war and the conditions around the war. They spent time learning what were the perspectives of a typical college student, what were the perspectives of clergy, what were the perspectives of a parent, of a soldier, what are the perspectives of a business manager? um they they really dug into how do perspectives inform public response to a given situation and and then they reenacted what happens when all of those perspectives meet each other. And this particular reenactment was um in the form of a protest
052similar to what you would see in either a movie or a documentary or even a book. It was very carefully orchestrated, very thoroughly researched um and very tasteful and carefully done. And I appreciate the effort. We had two teachers at Toality Plains High School involved in this, Miss Coleman and Mr. Bernard, and of course the support of Principal Brown. And they spent a lot of time preparing students for this. But I think one of the most I'm going to talk about two things that I was really impressed with. One thing I was impressed with is that when I talked to students after the reenactment, we had we had an opportunity to spend time with some snacks and mingle a little bit in one of the classrooms. The students were able to clearly articulate this is
053the role I was playing. This is the perspective that I adopted. I understand this perspective and based on what I know, I either agree with it or actually I don't agree with it. Here's why. And to hear students be able to very clearly articulate what I know you want to say, well, I I see a I see someone in the window. Okay. to hear students articulate um so clearly they're understanding that complex situation and much more people may have different perspectives about it and there are ways to talk about the perspectives that are actually constructive. So I was super impressed with that. The other thing that I was really impressed with is that veterans were invited to this event and the veterans that were there, some of them chose to participate, some just observed, but
054the veterans who were there were able to lend their personal experience to this event and able to speak directly to students about the lasting impact of being involved in the war. and as important students were able to honor and thank our veterans for their service and they did so with great respect. They did a really nice job with that. So to everyone and to all the plans who had a role in setting that up did a fantastic job. It was really incredible to see our young people engage and that's it for me. Okay. Well, we have suddenly appeared on the ethos. Director Truax is on my right. And so I think for the record, we're going to acknowledge that he's arrived at 6:16 p.m. Okay, that's important. Um, directors, welcome as he actually just we
055just went through reports, but as Dr. about this talking about the quality complaints experience. I know you were there as well, so I want to give you an opportunity to um share if you'd like. >> Yeah. >> Um I just wanted to say echo what Dr. West said that I thought the tail end that I was very impressed with the students and their energy. Um, I was also impressed with some of the questions they asked me. Um, as most of my tour in Vietnam was 99% border and 1% sheer terror, but um that I was happy to share with the with the students and their and the teachers that were there. They did a very good job of setting the kids up for uh the exercise. the the book they read, The Things They Carried,
056is an excellent um tome regarding the Vietnam War, regarding war in general and all of those things that we have to do uh to prepare for that and to take part in that kind of horror that that war is. It's not a pleasant thing. It's not a pleasant thing for anybody. not to those who are participating or for those who are uh the ones at home waiting for that individual to to come back. So, it's it was a good it was a good experience on my part. Uh, and it's an ongoing catharsis. Um, those kinds of experiences and that one that one gave me more of an opportunity to unload some of the stuff that you carry from like like he says from the things you carry. you know again good good opportunity and a
057good chance to to reach across generations. Thank you. >> Thank you. Is that um Tim O'Brien's book Tim O'Brien? That is an excellent read. >> Excellent. >> Um so thank you again to Quality Plains and I think we are going to move forward. We're able to do some action items because we have quorum. We do not have FGA. Okay. We do not have FGA report tonight. Um before we do unscheduled public appearance, we're going to go back and I'm going to ask for approval of tonight's agenda. >> Okay. I move that we approve the agenda as presented. >> Second. >> All in favor say I. I. All right. Okay. So, now we're going to move to unscheduled public appearance. The board appreciates community members sharing information during public comments. Public comments can be made in
058person or through Zoom by submitting the designated form on the web page. Public comments will be limited to three minutes as is the protocol for board meetings. Board members will not comment but respond to questions directly. Public criticism or complaints about school district personnel are not allowed. do have one very patient person that's been waiting for public comment tonight and that is Mary Whitmore. Miss Whitmore, I'd have you come up to the table there and I'm going to ask you to state your name and your address and your topic tonight. >> Okay. >> And we'll make sure that mic is working. I think it is. >> I should know how to do this. Hello. Hello. I know there's a switch. Hello. Hello. Hello. Hello. Can you hear it? I can. You're Hello. >> Okay. Um,
059wow. My name is Mary Whitmore and I've been affiliated one way or another with this district for 35 years. I was an aid a few years before I got my teaching certificate and I retired in 2009 and I miss the kids so much and I'm always thinking about what I would like to do for the kids in this district. Plus, I'm bilingual so that helps me relate to that community in a special way. Maria, um, this has been a really good year for me and I'd like to hand these out to you. Or do I give them to you or just a little, um, note about my uh, exhibit at Pacific University. I was uh, lucky enough to be acknowledged and um, appreciated for 50 years of work on the Equal Rights Amendment. And so
060my all my memorabilia is archived at Pacific University at Tran Library. And I hope that that can be used in March for Women's History Month somehow for high school high schoolers probably would be the most appropriate age. But I just get so much my heart is filled so much when I apply my vast experience. I'm 78 now. And to making life better for the kids. Um, I have a little thing to offer the superintendent and I love I've I've given these to all the superintendent to the last four superintendent and I really like it because of course it's timely and you can get a lot of vocabulary out of this with longitude, latitude, continent, western hemisphere, eastern hemisphere, It's very northern, southern, etc. And it's just it's just fun. So, I wanted to get that.
061And um it really saddens me to hear that our out of our 500,000 students in Oregon, only onethird of them are reading at grade level. That it just it just hurts. Um, but I'm looking forward to meeting with you at some time in the near future. Um, and how close am I to my three minutes? Oh, okay. I will be contacting you. And I also want to encourage people to um connect with indivisible forest grove. We demonstrate at the big flag. I'm done. >> Thank you, Mary. >> Thank you. >> All right. I believe that is our only unscheduled public appearance for tonight. I do want to echo Dr. Westward's earlier. Um we really want to thank people who are taking the time to come and do public comment and I think this week as
062well we I received um a couple a couple emails and both from teachers. One was in appreciation for something. The second was a question about policy and I was able to refer that teacher to the right person. And um we just continue to be really available, make ourselves available to to talk with people before and after the meetings. I'm happy to meet with people individually for coffee at any time. I welcome those emails and so please continue to reach out if you have questions or or conversations that you'd like to have and I really appreciate this team being open to that as well. So all right, we are going to do the consent agenda. The consent agenda is made up of routine non-controversial items to be voted on under one motion. Are there any items
063within the consent agenda a board member or the superintendent wishes to discuss separately? Seeing none, all for a motion to approve. >> So moved. >> Second. >> All in favor say I. >> I. >> All right. And we are going to move on to our 6:30 presentation with our assistant superintendent of teaching and learning director Carol. >> Great. Thank you. Um this evening we wanted to bring to the board um the division 22 standards. Typically in the last couple of years since I've been here um our superintendents have included this in in board in their presentation to the board. we decided to slow down a little bit knowing that we have some new board members to um go a little deeper on what division 22 is um and how we work to comply with these
064standards at the local level and then ultimately um for the department of education. So what is the division 22 standards? They're a set of of rules that districts are to follow across the state. They are the floor. they are the minimum expectation that any district is supposed is is to meet uh legally um in various requirements. Okay. And so we we analyze that through our through our internal pro processes. We evaluate if we're meeting those specific standards. So what that looks like for us is um we spread them out amongst our cabinet members based on areas that we oversee. We upload evidence to say we have met or not met these specific standards. Um and we do that over the course of October. Then ultimately we bring it to the board and share with the
065board which we will tonight areas where we are meeting or not meeting. And then from there we work with the state to become to to meet in all areas. So if we go to the next slide, it's broken out into five general areas. There's there's 57 of these rules. Um, but they're broken out into high quality learning experiences, which is in blue. So, things like the instructional materials that we talked about earlier, our adoption processes, diploma requirements, red, engaging partners and communities. So, do we have compliant procedures around complaints or or other um ways in which we engage our community? Committed and supporting staff. there in the bottom, our evaluation tools up todate and and aligned with state standards. Uh safe and inclusive schools, do we have things like substance abuse prevention, um other safety
066mechanisms in place? And then lastly, align and focus educational systems, things like required instructional minutes, which we're going to talk with you a little bit more as we approve uh take action later on. Um there's a minimum number of minutes that we need to meet at the elementary, middle, high school as again that floor, that baseline level. And so um we bring these updates to you every fall once we've evaluated um where we're at as a district. >> And one piece there in terms of the evaluation, we are evaluating for previous year for current year. So this is reflecting back on day 24 to 25 school year. So if a district is out of compliance for one of those uh specific of the 57 rules, um we will submit a corrective action plan to OD.
067For example, last year, if you recall for some of you board members, we were um did not meet or out of compliance for our PE minutes at the elementary level. So over the course of last year, we submitted a plan. state gave us feedback and said, "Here are some revisions that you need to make." We implemented that, resubmitted, they approved, and we implemented that plan. Um, and so that's the process that you go through um in order to become to make sure that you're working towards compliance. Um those are the steps there in order to become compliant. And so for the 2425 school year, so last school year, there are two areas in which we have rated ourselves as not compliant. The first is that physical education requirements, the PE requirement specifically at the elementary.
068Although we submitted a plan, they approved the plan and we implemented the plan. Um we still feel like there's significant areas of improvement needed there. And so four of our seven elementaryaries were still out of compliance because of because of our inability to use some of our instructional time in meeting the PE minutes. So for example, in order to count PE minutes into SEAL time, for example, social emotional learning time, there has to be half of that time needs to be in physical activity. We just didn't we weren't able to meet that. That was part of the plan. It was proved in the plan, but we just it wasn't the right solution. It wasn't what we felt um really met the the letter of the law, the expectations. And so we said, we're still out
069of compliance in that area. Uh fortunately, um we are we are in compliance today. Um we did make the necessary changes in partnership with our uh union partners. Um, we developed some PE recesses, additional time where teachers are supervising recess and we're able to count that time. And so we feel really good about that. And so as of today for this school year, we're compliant. But last year being that this is 2425, we're out of compliance. Another area that we were out of compliant for 2425 that we wanted to share with the board is our emergency plans and safety programs. that is or the the the fire drills, emergency drills, earthquake safety threats. Um that is still an area we are excited to have uh Josh Jeff here, our safety coordinator in the district. Um
070and he has already made huge strides in this area that we're adequately documenting all of our drills that were on top of that. If you recall last year we had some change in staffing that that impacted that a little bit and I'll let um um Dr. Wes elaborate a little bit more on this one, but but we are all well on our way to being compliant in this area, but last year we didn't we didn't feel like we could honestly say that we were compliant the way we we expect ourselves to be. >> Yeah, I'll be a little more direct than that. In terms of number two, we did not do all of our required drills last year. Um so we we needed to fix that. It is fixed now. It is being monitored regularly.
071Um, this is something that slipped through the cracks. Our assistant superintendent, Loy, is correct that the transition between a couple different staff members was one of the reasons why. Um, but we also just had system slip at some of our schools. So, that has been corrected and we don't anticipate any problems in the future. But missing one is not compliant. um we missed more than that but we could not mark ourselves with integrity as being compliant in this area. I also want to go back to number one briefly. Um PE is really important but this is an example of where the state legislature leans in and starts to tell schools this is how you're going to do it. And it makes it really tricky for us to balance demands like this against the very real
072resource issues within our schools. In in this case, our association FGA was great about working with us to find the collaborative solution. And thank you to assistant superintendent Lee for leading those conversations. Another example is when the state legislature says,"Well, now you're going to be required to teach, for example, a career credit at the high school." And you cannot combine that with any other classes, including, for example, all of the career CTE pathways that you currently have in your school. All of these efforts are really well intended. There's there's good heart behind the conversations that lead to legislation that requires things like this, but the actual implementation in school districts is much more complex than the conversation that takes place at the legislative level and sometimes really tricky to me. And if I could be
073followed with that a little more direct too, of the four schools that were out of compliance last year in PE, three of them were dual language schools where we're saying we value that Spanish language literacy time in addition to the English literacy time and or music. We're saying we believe in music. We don't want to scale back. And so something has to give. In our case, it was instead of three PE classes a week, it's two. Right? So, we're we're in this place where we're having to make tough decisions because we value the spa Spanish language literacy and we value music. Those types of things really come into conflict in what we value for well-rounded student education at the elementary level. >> Yes, sir. >> Yeah. Thank you. Um, I'm just wondering hearing all of
074this and assistant superintendent's explanation and your explanation, Dr. whereas the phrase unfunded mandates has a tendency to jump into my brain and sort of camp there and I'm a little bit discouraged at uh not the efforts of the school board or the school district or the teachers or students but I think our our partners in Salem need to hear more about if they're going to make these kinds of legislative and I don't want to call them demands uh prerequisites or requisites for uh graduation or for advancement. >> Nice. That was tricky. Sorry. I sorry, >> but I was I'm I'm concerned about how are we going to do that in an arena of shrinking public resources? Uh how do we do that? Uh if if public education is as important as we say it is
075uh let's have the rubber meet the road. I would ask that we be in contact with OSBA and with KOSA and with the MTA in in sending strong suggestions to our representatives in Salem that we have to take that kind of direction because you're right, public with physical education at the elementary level there's a whole lot of energy running around with those children and they need to get rid of it somewhere and they aren't going to get rid of it reading. They aren't going to get rid of it computing. They have to have some physical activity and structured physical activity so they are able to leave that recess period if you want to call it that or physical education period and be coming back into the classroom the other classroom ready to learn. >> Agreed.
076And again, like I said, unfunded mandate is I think one of the ugliest phrases we have and not only in public education, but the public financing in this in this state indeed in this country. Thank you for allowing me to ramble. I think we covered this one. >> We did. >> Okay. If there's no further questions, we'll pitch it back to you at the end of meeting. Oh, maybe we're not there yet. Are we there yet? >> That's thinking. >> That's wishful thinking. But unfortunately, more fortunately, we have a few more things to do. So, thank you for the presentation. Thank you for the comments, directors and tracks. I completely agree. I did my question was is it KOSA? Who where are the conversations coming back? I know those are conversations we have we do
077have at the board level, but is there a general conversation with KOSA and or and does it go to OD and OD pushes on the legislature on this? Are they not listening or hearing some of the points that director Truax just made? I mean, BOSA is a good advocate as is OSBA. Uh they engage in a lot of advocacy at the state level. The Department of Education um has recently made it very clear that when it comes to any legislation, they are neutral. They do not weigh in one way or the other. Um so we really have to rely on KOSA and OSDA and other advocacy groups to help get our message out there. And then of course we can leers directly with elected representatives as well. I'm just gonna I I might have to
078be on the record to say that that is a conversation about OD I just think cannot remain neutral but that's a that's that's conversation that I would have as a board member with whoever are the appropriate people. I think neutral does not indicate a vision and that's one of the bigger conversations we've asked state is what is the vision and if o not herald that bring that vision forward then who will who are the people so yeah it feels like we're definitely circling around the same themes and struggling to get the advocacy points across that you mentioned direct you >> well my comment is this is that as we're watching the dismantle of uh federal dollars and education and also then it trickles back to Oregon and programs are being cut. you know, who was
079going to push to say, "Let's review these 100 plus unfunded mandates." And um and and the thing that bothers me the most is that we we the legislators fund these mandates, but then there's no review if they are effective or are they outdated. And and to me, I mean, we could get more um time in the classroom for other things and staff being utilized in a better way, but somebody has to step up and say, "We need to evaluate these unfunded mandates and are they doing what we wanted them to do? Are they outdated? And let's let's deal with it." And and I know that Dr. us and I I know you have also spoke time and time again, but they just who do we set the fire under to to really address this? >>
080That is the question, >> right? That's why director Trux will be attending the OSPA conference going to be our hero in a few weeks and make those conversations ongoing conversations continue as we have been. We also do have our senator and reps coming in November to walk through schools in Morsburg and Hillsboro. And some of those conversations locally are the 12th of the All right. Um action items. Division 22 instructional hour waiverss. We are going to ask for two motions for this action item. >> Yes. So um this is for this year. So the report that we just gave was for 2425. Um we the um Oregon Department of Education allows with board approval for districts to submit waiverss in order to um one we're we're requesting a waiver in order to um allow us
081to use 30 hours of recess for kinder, 60 hours of recess for grades 1 through three, 30 hours for staff professional development, and 30 hours of parent teacher conference. These are hours that the that the Oregon Department of Education allows us to include as our um to help meet our minutes requirements. And so, but we only able to do that if the board approves our ability to do so. So, we bring this to you every year. Um and it is included in our minute calculations in order to meet division 22 and allows us to also have a little bit of a buffer for um inclement weather, those kind of things. And so that's the first um request that we have for you tonight. The second is um the Oregon Department of Education also allows us
082to um exempt to Plains High School because it's an alternative school to meeting the same meeting requirements as Forest Grow High School with Board of Approval. So we're also bringing that to you tonight because it's an alternative school. um it allows a little more flexibility um for those students and for that staff to meet various various needs. And so those are the two areas that we're seeking your approval for 25 and 26 so that we can be in compliance for division 20 sorry division 22. I'm gonna ask first for questions for uh assistant superintendent and then our executive assistant has reminded us um gently that we need to read the motions as in full on paper but questions questions about either one of those motions. >> I'm okay. >> Okay. >> I'm a little concerned
083over instructional time including parent teacher conferences. Um, I want to ensure that teachers know that this is an important part of education, an important part of teaching the student, the entire student, and we can we can reach them fairly effectively. I'm a little concerned about parents that might look at that and say, "Oh, this is just a way of getting some seat hours almost." Um, making the connection of drawing, how do we make the connection? I'll put this in formal question. How do we make the connection of a parent having a worthwhile conference with the teacher over the education of their child, his or her child? As part of the education for that particular child, you get my drift. That link is important to me because I don't want parent teacher conferences to turn into
084drive sessions or handholding sessions or those kinds of things. I want them to be part and parcel of the instructional process if we're going to adopt this motion. Any of that make any sense? >> No, absolutely. I I um I hear where you're coming from and I wholeheartedly agree. Um I think we see much more participation at the younger ages and as we get older it tends to you know um lighten up um or they don't feel the same degree of connection with the teachers or those types of things. And it's a constant challenge I know for principles to um make sure that those are meaningful. But I absolutely hear where you're coming from on that, especially considering we're saying it's part of our our meeting minutes requirements. >> It is something that we can
085always do better at. And I know from being in schools on Catherine's days, teachers are sitting down with parents and going over some of the assessment data that we just talked about and helping parents understand this is where your student is at or this is where they began at the beginning of the school year and here's where they're at now. Talking to parents about how they can support at home. Those conversations are happening. Not with every parent, unfortunately. Not at every conference. Since every parent should um as assistant superintendent Lomaly said, as someone who has worked at the high school level, it is really hard to get parents to high school conferences. Um but we continue to try to improve in that area because it is important. Um I wholeheartedly believe that the first and
086most important teacher for every child is their parent and the education of that student is the partnership. So, it is something that I know in my conversations with principles and teachers that they pay attention to and they're continuing to improve. But we have we have work to do there. And I appreciate what one of it's not the answer, but it has um I've been told really helped deepen the conversations for the parents who who have come is uh some of our new assessment tools with lesson um as as Superintendent West brought up. They they provide us these amazing data sheets one pagers and to help us build that partnership with parents. Um, they break down where they're at with their ball benchmark assessments. They give ways that parents can help fill any skills gaps that
087may exist. And it gives teachers a little bit more of a script to follow um, and helping them to build that partnership with parents. We're only two years in to using those tools. Um, and but it's still the power of that conversation one-on-one. Um, that that is the most powerful piece. >> So, excuse me. So I will move to approve the recommendation of 30 hours recess to kinder, 60 hours of recess for grades 1 to three, 30 hours of staff professional development, and 30 hours of parent teacher conferences be included as instructional time for the 202526 school year. >> I'll second it. Any discussion? We'll do all in favor say I. I >> opposed. Motion passes. We're on to option two. Um I will make the motion to approve the exemption of Tal Flain's high
088school and alternative program for meeting the traditional high school hours requirements for grades 9 through 12 as defined in OS 336.615. >> And I will send discussion. Um well, I kind of wonder high school and it's a high school that from what I've heard is aiming to you know continue having students um push for like education even if if it isn't alternative voice um since they wouldn't be part of that division to um like the instructional hours what what are the requirements there like how are they meeting those standards for them? I love that question. You want to take it? >> Sure, we can both tackle it. Um, no, it's a great question because we don't want to lower the expectations, right? Um, still want to make sure that, um, students are attending, that they
089have a rich experience, that they're meeting the proficiency standards are the same, right? The proficiency standards that still need to be met, um, are consistent with any high school state standards to get there in different ways. we have that creative ability within the um alternative alternative program project based learning that was discussed earlier. Um but it does adjust some of the seat time requirements. >> Yeah. Would you add anything else? Yeah, the other thing I'll add to that here is that um 12 plants high school provides a really good education for students for whom a traditional high school doesn't work. And sometimes that means that we have to be a little more flexible with student needs so that they can for example take care of their little brother in the morning and get them to
090school on time which means they're late to school based on the high school bell schedule. But we can accommodate that. So toality planes high school works hard on an individual basis with kids to yes have a standardized schedule but also to meet the uniques needs of each student and they run multiple programs. So they have for example a discovery program when students first arrive at the high school which is very concentrated and not at all a traditional high school experience. It's about learning how to be a student and recommitting to the education process. They have an online school that functions very differently than a traditional high school. So with all of those very different components in one high school program, that flexibility is really important to to meet the needs of the programs and the
091needs of the students. Could you add a little bit about what seat time means? When when you say seat time, when we say seat time in education, what are we talking about? >> Yeah. >> Seat time um at the high school level means is the amount of minutes that you're required to attend in order to receive credit for specific class, credit bearing classes. You um you have to be be able to be there to earn that credit. Yeah, it's it's uh I don't want to use the word. It is um the traditional system for how students earn credits at school. If you have heard the expression carne units, seat time is synonymous with carne units. It's really how our school system was originally established. Um, and it made a lot of sense at the time
092that it was established that you would equate time learning to a level of expected proficiency. What we have learned since then is that students learn at lots of different rates. In fact, one of the students I was talking to at Dual Plains High School today is going to graduate early because he was able to accelerate through some of his coursework faster than what traditional Carnegie units would have allowed for. Um, so we are still tied to at a state level those Carnegie units take time. Um, we use that expression. Unfortunately, we haven't moved to a system that allows us to assess what students truly know and can do and the rate at which they are learning those skills. We're they're not there yet as a state. We're still tied to this other accountability system. >>
093Now you know why you said school. >> That's an important question. Thank you for that. We are going to call for an all call vote. All in favor say I. >> I. >> Opposed. All right. And motion passes and we are on to out of state request the force high school of DECA and I'm going to pass that to Superintendent Dr. Rest. >> Thank you. Yes, our uh DECA program is one of the classes and clubs at the high school and they take an annual trip to the national conference which is held every year in Orlando, Florida. At this particular conference for this year, the focus is marketing. So students who attend um will be immersed in um just like any conference you can select your sections and you can learn from experts in the
094area of marketing. Um so this comes before the board um because it is outofstate travel for your approval questions. have a comment when I was in my previous life. I was a newspaper reporter for the New Times and one of the individuals in the high school, I believe, his name was Ray Hos was deep into deck. He was the DECA god at Forestro High School and the publisher of the News Times was very into very supportive program. So by extension I got to know a lot about about DECA and uh the opportunity for the kids in 1969 that was a non-traditional program and there were kids that were learning there that would not I won't say could not they chose perhaps to learn in different ways than the traditional classroom. didn't quite work for them.
095And grant we've come a long way since then, but DECO was one of those alternative programs that allowed kids to learn outside the classroom. And it was it was impressive to see the number of students that were empowered by it, number of students that grew from it. and uh the traditional classroom may not have worked for them. And I just uh I just want to indicate that if we make a motion and if we vote on it, I will vote in favor because this is a good thing. It's a good program for good people. So having speaking of which I will move to approve high school DECA pro DECA group's request to attend the sports and entertainment marketing conference in Orlando, Florida from January 27th to February 1st, 2026. >> I'll second. Any discussion? All
096in favor say I. >> I. opposed. All right. And we're on to superintendent evaluation and timeline with Dr. West. Yes. Thank you. At the last board meeting, we placed um into the board packet documents related to my evaluation for this school year and a post timeline for that evaluation. Um last time it was a first read. It's coming before you again for some action hopefully tonight or to answer any of your questions. questions. Well, I I think it's very ambitious and I um I have seen Dr. West in and the schools and um I really really appreciate your focus on instruction. I think that and the alignment of instructions throughout our district which I think is going to really show this year but I especially think next year the growth and reading happen. So thank
097you. >> You need a motion. >> I'd like a motion. Okay. I >> I'll make a motion to approve the 2025 2026 superintendent evaluation and timeline as presented. And I will second >> and for discussion I will just say for anyone who may be watching the meeting this is a process that has really been something new that we have pretty much broken down the evaluation process together last year with the district team. I've talked about this in these meetings before but we rebuilt what we what we all want a process to look like the timeline the expectations and most importantly the transparency for the community. So, if you are watching and people are asking questions about how does this whole thing work and how do people hire superintendents, this is a great opportunity to go
098into that packet and read the timeline of how we do go through this process together, but also uh the things that we're going to be looking at as a board and with our superintendent and with you, the community who may be watching. Maybe there's someone watching. If there's someone watching right now and you email me at my board, I will deliver a coffee to you in the city of Mors Grove address tomorrow. I'm just just testing because we do think there might be people. >> Remember remember the Forest Grove School District goes beyond the borders. >> Henry and I drive all over. Henry and I Cornelius. >> I'll do it. I'll do it. Cornelius is forgrow. So this is a really important This is a really important item for that reason. So I I'll refer
099people back to this packet to be able to look that I'm very proud of how transparent we are with that and how we're open to looking at different ways of doing things together and a lot of that um work was done by Dr. Wes bringing us ideas that she had and also our staff looking around at what different districts are doing for evaluation process and in many ways we are actually leading this work and we are getting requests from other districts looking at how we're doing things because the way that it's being done in districts across the state has not proved maybe to be as successful as boards wanted to be. So work in progress. We're always looking for ways to improve and adjust and you'll hear us talk about what's going well, but we're
100doing that all together. So, with that discussion piece, I will ask for um an all call. All in favor say I. >> I >> opposed. All right. And I think that motion passes and it is going to be adjourning at 701. We are I think we are meeting. Okay. Wait. 701 and 20 seconds adjourned. Thank you everybody. Thank you for understand.