001What's Yeah, You say we're ready. Ready? >> We good? >> Yep. >> Good evening everyone. I'd like to welcome you to this evening's October's work session and we'll begin with a pledge of >> allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the stands one nationice for all. >> First on our agenda will be audience of citizens. Would anyone like to make public comment this evening? Okay, I'll read the disclaimer. Okay, this meeting is being videotaped for community cable channels and streamed live. Individuals attending this meeting and intending to speak to the board should be aware that they are being videotaped. In order to meet the requirements of Pennsylvania sunshine law, it is necessary to record the names of all citizens who speak to the board during the meeting. To assure compliance
002with this requirement, it is essential that those planning to address the board state their name and municipality. Members of the audience are asked to limit their questions and comments to three minutes. As a reminder, the audience of citizens portion of the meeting is designed for residents and taxpayers of the district to provide comment and feedback on matters which are or may come before the board. It is not designed for debate or discussion with the board. When appropriate, individual school directors may choose to respond to public comments that have been made once the audience of citizens period has concluded or request that a member of the administration follow up with the speakers after the meeting. And this is in reference to board policy 903. >> Good evening. >> Uh Jason Lansdale. um wanted wanted to, you
003know, being that we have an election coming right up, I just wanted to kind of give a give a sense of of what this board's been about for the last well, I'm going to just go from postco on because I think there is some debate in the co uh years, but since the co years, the debate amongst this board is pretty uh pretty ridiculous. There's been um just looking at the action meetings and the uh work sessions, there's been 20, this is as of uh April 25th, there's been 20 uh 2,135 votes. And of the 2,135 votes, 99.6 of them, correction, 99.06% of them have been unanimous. There there's no debate. This is not a deliberative uh school board. You guys vote in unison all the time. The most debate in a long while has
004been about whether or not to give the firemen uh a $750 tax rebate. So just in essence, you guys seem to be in agreement all the time. either you've figured out what you're going to vote on and you vote the same or you're you're all in lock step and this is sort of voting on an agenda as opposed to voting on what makes the most amount of sense, right? I mean, every one of you wanted the the to spend uh what the almost four $400 million on the high school and what again what have we received? Fusco said that we got a lot of stuff from this. We got a lot of we got a lot of buildings. We got uh we got middle uh kindergarten high uh kind kindergarten um preschool whatever we got
005for great that's all fantastic but what have we gotten in terms of output of the kids and for years I came over here and I was talking about the the uh the keystones exam keystone exams or sorry not the keystones the PSSA and I had a a discussion with Mr. fuss go about. That's not really a good measure because middle school kids are middle school kids and they aren't the best test takers. They aren't really serious. But in the Keystone exams, the numbers don't lie. The numbers have gone really far down in the last 10 years. Really far down. We used to be in 2015, the proficiency rate of all students was 90 point 92.5%. All students for algebra. It was 91% in biology and 90.7% in literature. And all of those have dropped significantly.
006Algebra is at 50%. Proficiency as a 2024. They don't have 25 numbers out. Biology is at at uh 65%. What are we doing here? Why why are we spending all of this money to get lower than what we had before? And I'll leave it there. Maybe you guys can discuss it and debate it. Thank you. >> Would anyone else like to make public comment this evening? >> Okay, seeing no one, Miss Dr. Bower, I will turn it over to you. Thank you. >> Absolutely. Thank you, President Mc Merry. Okay. First, I recommend the election of Miss Jessica Todd as secretary to the board of school directors, effective immediately, bonded as per school code with a stipen of $1,200 per year prrated for the remainder of the current term, which ends June 30th, 2029 to fill
007the vacancy created by the resignation from the position of Joanna Chavez. >> May I please have a motion for board secretary? >> Is there a second? >> Second. >> Okay. Mr. Mr. Fusco and Mr. McBain. Any comments or questions besides congratulations? Oh, >> we got to vote first. >> All right. All in favor say I. >> I. >> There are no opposed. >> Jessica, congratulations. >> Whether you like it or not. Okay. I heard that. Mr. Rash. All right. Is that Mr. >> Yeah. And for the record, Mr. Rash and Dr. G are both joining us virtually. Um the next item is I recommend the personnel items as per the attached. >> May I please have a motion? >> So moved. >> I heard Mrs. Stole and then Mr. Fusco for the second. Any comments
008or questions? >> Hearing none. All in favor say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Hearing none. The motion passes. Thank you. And with that vote, I am very pleased to share with the board and those in the audience that we have our newly appointed principal of AM Culp Elementary and his wife here this evening, Mr. Ken Boy and his wife Amy. Congratulations, Ken. Mr. Boy, at the conclusion of the meeting, please come forward, just shake everybody's hands and so forth. But congratulations, we're very happy. >> Thank you very much. >> Yeah. Okay. Uh, next, while board docs loads, I recommend approval of Suzanne McCarten for the position of school nutrition services assistant at Gwynor Elementary School at an hourly rate of $19.7, which is step four, grade 5, 32.5 hours per week and 180 days
009per year. Work schedule effective November 3rd, 2025 or earlier. >> Okay. May I please have a motion for the SNS assistant at Gwenor? >> So moved. >> Mrs. Ramage and Mr. McBain. Any comments or questions? >> I'll be abstaining since that is my sister. >> Okay. Thank you. All in favor say I. >> I. >> Any opposed. Any abstensions? >> Me. >> Okay. Motion passes. Thank you. >> Okay. Next. I recommend approval of the revisions of the 2024 20227 special education plan. Of note for the board, uh this plan was um publicly presented to the board. We had a parent meeting. We had a 30-day actually I think 28 days required. It was posted publicly for 30 days. We submitted all the paperwork and in that since then we have two new directors who have
010made some changes to the plan. So, we got approval from PTE to open it up and make some adjustments particularly to the professional development um aspect of the plan. Just some of the hours had to had to be changed. Um so, this is approval of those revisions and again it just has to do with hours. Um we just wanted to make sure what was on record was correct. So, >> okay. May I please have a motion for the revisions to this special education plan? >> So, moved. >> Second. >> Mr. Fusco, uh first and Mrs. Ram second. Any comments or questions? >> You mentioned ours. I'm just Did you also change the names of the staff members? As I went through it, I kept seeing. >> Yeah. So, the actual plan itself, like when it
011says collaborators, it it is a record of who the collaborators were on that plan when it was approved. Yeah. So, you will see some names of folks who are no longer here. Um, but the there were some mistakes in the professional development hours. So, >> Okay. Okay. Got it. >> Dr. Balden, anything to add? We okay there? Good. >> So again, I kind of just saying this in public, we cannot make any staffing um re revisions to the folks that are included in the re in the plan. Correct. >> Yeah. So for example, Dr. Balden came to us from a neighboring district and their approved special education plan has Dr. Balden listed as a director because she was the director when it was approved there. So, uh, same thing here in North Penn. >> Seems
012a little wonky, but okay. That's education for you. Um, all right. Any other comments or questions? Hearing none, all in favor say I. >> I. >> There are no opposed. Motion passes. Thank you. >> I recommend approval of student agreements as per those listed and copies are on file in the office of special education. May >> I please have a motion? So moved, >> Mrs. Stall. >> Second, Mrs. Rdnick. Any comments or questions on student agreements? All right. Hearing none, all in favor say I. >> I. >> There are no opposed. Motion passes. Thank you. >> All right, Mr. Slaughter, you might as well take yourself up to the podium because we're about to get to your side of the agenda. Uh, first I recommend approval of the MPHS asbestous hazardous materials monitoring bid as
013follows. Tetra Tech in the amount of $122,814. >> May I please have a motion? >> So moved. >> Mrs. Second >> and M Mr. second. >> Any comments or questions? >> Hearing none. All in favor say I. >> I. There are no opposed motion passes. >> Board docs is loading again. Hold on. Okay. Uh recommend to seek approval of the MPSD Penfield Middle School modular classroom three HVAC unit replacement bid as follows. Uh micromechanical in the amount of $164,000 as opposed to the number that was cited earlier this evening. >> Yeah. >> Thank you. May I please have a motion? >> Mr. Fusco and Mr. McBain, any comments or questions? >> Thank you for clarifying that, Dr. Bower. >> Yep. >> My pleasure. >> And and so Mr. Slaughter, regarding the scope of the work,
014um this is for the heat pump, which is also the AC in in the >> correct it. It performs both, right? Heating. >> Performs both the air conditioning and the heating. This is for three specific classrooms. Uh the larger number that was referenced is for the remaining 20 classrooms in the mods of Penfield. 20ish. >> Okay. And then regarding the run ones that are remaining, is there a plan to um replace them or right now they are still operating well. >> So this is an annual replacement program. So these are the three worst that we've had issues with. Uh one is completely down. The other two are experiencing major issues. Okay. So, we are going to work our way through the modular classrooms, three or four at a time, uh, and get them all replaced.
015>> Okay. Thank you. So, >> they are they are original to the mods. >> Oh, lordy. Okay. Can >> All righty. Um, any other comments or questions, >> Mr. Slaughter? Do you think you have time tomorrow maybe to um send Mr. Laneir an email to explain the discrepancy in his number and what it actually is? >> Tomorrow is a bad day for me, but I can certainly do it. Okay. Monday next week. That'd be great because he already left so you know we we could talk to him but he he walked out after his comments. So >> yeah I can certainly explain the numbers to him later on Monday. >> We had a conversation we had a conversation in the back and then I talked to Mr. Laneir about that and I explained to him
016the difference between the the 750 the 174 the 164. >> Great. Thank you. >> Yeah. The only thing I will add about this is that in addition to this type of work and then also paving and such, you have now implemented a plan where that type of work is included on the capital project plan going forward. So it's not in a reactive state that it's being planned out so it's proactive. Is that correct? >> Correct. For instance, uh we just recently went through all the emergency generators in the district. We identified four that were problematic and aged. uh they've been added to the uh capital plan for replacement in the appropriate year that we felt that they should be replaced. >> And and these items, regardless of what component or system it is, these will
017also be analyzed again when we do the updated feasibility study to concur with what you've >> our intention is to share all the information that we have in our hands with uh the company that we choose to award the facility study to. >> Okay. so that they have a kind of a a starting game plan to move forward, but then they need to do their due diligence on everything else. Uh that is not part of the plan as well. >> Okay. All right. Thank you. That sounds really comprehensive. Thank you. Any other comments or questions? All right. Hearing none. All in favor say I. >> I. >> Okay. Thanks. There's no opposed. Motion passes. Uh so the the next three items I will mention just in advance that we talked about them at length at
018the FNO meeting uh this month well last month. Uh but the first one is I recommend approval of bidpack 1 uh pen builders incorporated for multiple change orders totaling in the amount of $212,9604. This will be applied to the allowances for the contract, leaving a remaining balance of $439,389.36. This change order does not increase the contract amount to this vendor, nor does it increase the overall construction budget. This will result in a $0 change order to the GC contract. >> Okay. Thank you. May I please have a motion? >> So moved. >> Mrs. Stole. Is there a second? >> Second. >> Mr. McBain. Second. Any comments or questions? I I would just like to comment again that um Mr. Lier was commenting about how there's no debate. The debate is usually at the committees which
019he attends. So I'm not sure why he thinks there's no debate, but um as Dr. Bowerer mentioned, we discussed these um at length. So, you know, if he wants to go back and look at the video, he can see that there was some debate about them. Thank you. >> Okay. Thank Thank you. Any other comments or questions? >> All right. Hearing none, all in favor say I. >> I. I >> there are no opposed. Motion passes. Thank you. >> Next, I recommend approval of BP1 uh PC Vision Mechanical Incorporated PCO number one for a deduct change order in the amount of $134,855.94 for the substitution of glued joint fittings in lie of threaded fittings for the acid waste pipe. >> May I please have a motion? >> So moved. >> Mrs. stole. Is there a
020second? >> Mr. Fusco, any comments or questions? >> Just to be abundantly clear, a deduct change order is money back to the school district. >> That's correct. And this will be a change order to their contract. So, it will be reduced by the amount shown in the change order. And if I and again I know we discussed this at FNO but just for transparency the threaded pipe which was included in the specification for phase two that has now also been revised to just be not just be but to be the glued pipe. Mr. >> Yeah. So given the timelines that we found when we did bid pack one uh we incorporated that into bid pack two. So the base bid for bid pack 2 will include glued fitting acid waste piping. >> Okay. And just
021just for transparency the um the performance of glued pipe will be the same to measure it with what we would have expected in terms of performance and life. >> That is correct. Same performance. >> I actually Mr. Slaughter you weren't there. I had a follow-up conversation with Mr. Lynch about this and he told me that over 90% of the projects they actually use this pipe anyway, not the threaded. >> That is correct. The other thing to add to this is that even threaded pipe has uh a kind of sealant that's applied to it. It's called plumbers's putty. So plumbers's putty and glue act in the same way. So uh they're similar in in makeup and material. >> Okay. Thank you. Any other comments or questions? Hearing none. All in favor say I. I >> I
022>> there are no opposed. Motion passes. Thank you. >> I recommend approval of the proposal from Gordian Group and SJ Thomas for the design and installation of the pre-fabricated building that will be the new transportation building. The proposal is in the amount of 9,428,523. >> Please have a motion. >> Mr. Fusco, >> I'm sorry. Me second. >> Oh, Mrs. Stole second. Any comments or questions? Okay, hearing none. All in favor say I. >> I. >> There are no opposed. Motion passes. Thank you. >> And I don't want to go too far back on that, but for folks who have been paying attention for years, the original budget for the transportation building was acquisition of land and renovations of whatever structure was there in the amount of $18 million. Uh, so the fact that this is
0239 million, while it sounds like a big number, it's actually a good number compared to what our budget was way back when. So, um, we decide to keep transportation on site in the long run. Okay, next. >> Thank you, Dr. Bowers. >> Yeah, you're welcome. I recommend approval of MPHS varsity baseball infield turf replacement bid as follows. Gorcon, Inc. in the amount of $55,680. And this is exactly what it says. It's the infield sod replacement. Uh it was replaced a few years ago actually by um the extra innings booster club. It didn't hold well. It's hasn't held up well. So we are looking to replace it this fall in preparation for the spring season. >> Okay. Thank you. May I please have a motion? >> So moved. >> Mrs. Stall second from second. >> Mrs.
024Ramage. Any comments or questions? >> I just like clarification, Mr. Slaughter. So, um, the softball fields do not need replacement of their sod. That was looked at, correct? >> Yes. The softball infield is made up of infield mix, which is a blend of clay and sand. Uh, does not contain any grass. Uh, based on the drought that we had last year and the uh inability to water based on uh the state requirements of uh water conservation, the side took a hit last year. So that is why we are replacing it this year. >> All right. Thank you for that. Any other comments or questions? All right. Hearing none, all in favor say I. >> I. >> There are no opposed. Motion passes. Thank you. >> I recommend approval of the contracts as per those listed
025and copies are on file in the business office. >> May I please have a motion for contracts. >> So moved. >> Mr. Fusco. >> Mrs. Stole second. Any comments or questions? >> Just one. I'm just curious. Um, and hopefully this isn't embarrassing and I should know this, but um, what is Heather Masters um, doing for the district? >> Um, is this >> contractor special education? >> Yeah. Is that um, >> it's a contract renewal? >> So, she psychologist. >> Yeah. School psych um, evaluations. It's a subcontractor just to try to catch us up to speed because we are behind on evaluations. So is that a position that we should be looking to internally? We just still struggling for that. Okay. >> Go ahead. Not not then not unusual. In fact, not unusual at all. >>
026We did just offer position uh a position to a site candidate and she has accepted. So we're working on her paperwork. So once she's on board, >> hopefully it'll be alleviated. >> Okay. Cool. Thank you. >> Okay. Thank you. Any other comments or questions? Okay. Hearing none. All in favor say I. >> I. >> There are no opposed. Motion passes. Thank you. >> And lastly, this item was just presented in the meeting prior to this. I recommend approval of the request from McGomery Township to wave the taxes build on 712025 for the parcel that is listed. Um, for those who weren't here for the finance meeting, this is going to be open space owned by the township and they're just requesting they have approval effective January 1st. are requesting that we treat it as such
027for the rest of the year. >> Okay. Thank you. Any other any other comments or questions >> hearing? You need a motion. >> Need a motion. >> Oh, I'm sorry. Um may please have a motion. >> So moved. >> Second. >> So Mr. Fusco and Mrs. Ramich. Sorry about that. Any other comments or questions? Hearing none. All in favor say I. >> I. >> There are no opposed. Motion passes. Thank you. >> And that concludes my report. >> Thank you, Dr. Bower. Does anyone have any other business this evening they'd like to bring to our meeting? >> Uh Mr. McBain asked me to just give an update as I know it um on the federal and the state budget. Um so as of today we are 106 days without a state budget and we are
02814 days without a federal budget. Um I recently came back from a business manager conference last week um where the president of Pasbbo or the executive director of PasBo gave us a legislative update. Um the news is not good. Um they are still very much stalled in Harrisburg. Um at this point I she gave the dates. The gist of it is they probably will not all be back in in the best case scenario, they would not all be back into session to vote until sometime late November, possibly not until after Thanksgiving. Um, our cash position in the district is still strong. Um, the state has allowed us to pay only the employer side of Pasers. So, our next pasers payment is not due until December 22nd or 12th. It's either the 12th or the 22nd,
029but it's not due till December. Um cash receipts are good for for um property tax. Um I am starting to pay more attention than I was. I didn't think that we would get to 160 days. I'll be honest. I thought they would figure it out by the time about school started. Um but it's starting to get a little um it's starting to get a little long. Um so I am paying attention. I I do think, you know, between our fund balance and and our um and our cash position, I think we're fine. I'm not concerned. We, you know, we we'll always make payroll and all that kind of good thing. Um you know, the what I'm concerned about is how fast they will be able to catch up the payments. Um so if they pass
030a budget on, you know, November 15th, money is not going to start to flow until sometime in December anyway. Um, so it's really, you know, not just when they pass it, but how fast that they can turn the spot back on and get things flowing. That's the state. Um, the federal government, I really, everybody doesn't really know. Um, we aren't really sure what the impacts are going to be, if the idea cuts are as bad as they are, if that's just all posturing. Um, they have hel they're holding payments right now, but that was money that was previously appropriated. So theoretically, they shouldn't be allowed to hold those payments. Um, and some of that funding should be flowing. Um, there's also lawsuits filed right now with federal unions that they aren't allowed to furlow or
031I'm sorry, terminate, not furlow, but terminate the folks that they're they're trying to riff right now. um you know so it's very confusing at best um scary at worst but I think we're getting um I think we are fortunate in this district to be in the position that we are um there are definitely you know districts that are struggling there are municipalities that are in a lot of trouble um but I think we're okay right now considering our basic ed funding is is not that large of a percentage of our budget like 75% of our budget is is property tax. Um, and so far people have been making their property tax payments. What also happens is if things start to turn and people aren't getting paid, then we start to see it. Taxes were due
032for the most part in discount at the end of August. Um, so a lot of people paid before this got really bad. So, um, that's kind of all the news that I have. It's not happy news. Yeah, I I sit in meetings where superintendents are talking about floating bonds just to pay their employees and pay bills and pay for the most marginalized students. Um we are fortunate so far that we have not had to deal with that here. Um at the meeting they did many of the business administrators were talking about trans um which is tax revenue anticipation notes for districts um and RANs for the IUs and the tech schools which are revenue anticipation notes because again all of their money comes from almost all of their money comes from the state. Um so
033you know our our IU partners and our tech school partners um and our community college partners they're in much different situations than we are. And I think that we have spoken at great length off and on at times right about unfunded mandates. And so for those districts that are having to go in that direction, the servicing fees, the legal fees cannot be recouped. They cannot be build back to that to the funer. So those are going to be costs that will be passed along to to others. So I I just want to say that I I I appreciate the position that we are in in North Penn. I appreciate that just going back to the finance committee meeting that you are keeping an eye on things. Um I do have one question in some funding
034within the thinking about the state some federal funding that comes passed through to the state onto local some um state agencies are not permitted to even pass it along because it has to be incorporated and enacted in the budget before it can. So it could be a free and clear pass through and it is stuck because of this. Is is department of ed funding similar to that? >> Yes, there there are some pieces that are passed through from the federal government that they have to incorporate into the state budget in order to pass through to us. Um I I don't I can't quantify for this district how much is passed through for us. Um I I could try to find out. I'm I'm truly not sure how I would figure. Some of it's direct like
035our title funding is direct, right? That that I can quantify that easily. Um but I can't quantify like if the state gets some kind of federal block grant that they are allowed to pass on to us. I' I'd have to dig a little bit for that. >> I did do ask some some um colleagues in other states and that is not that is not common in every state. >> Okay. So I'm wondering if Tim I'm reaching you know kind of thinking about you on legislative committee but you know can there be a workaround for that piece so that federal pass through dollars can be passed along to IU's districts including North Penn anyway we could talk about that sidebar but no anyway just put that out there a number of bills in Harrisburg uh right
036now as far as I understand that are trying to alleviate some of these difficult times on school districts uh moving uh into a situation where school districts are allowed to have more virtual learning so they don't have to pay the bills to keep the lights on. Um that's one option. Um interest on loans that school districts are having to take to make up this difference. Uh trying to get some way that that interest money would get back to school districts as opposed to the money lenders themselves. Um so there are sort of creative options uh being spearheaded here and there, sometimes by PSBA, sometimes by other entities, but we'll certainly be on the lookout. And Mrs. Hower, thank you so much for giving that update. We hear so many kind of horror stories from across
037the state. Um, Head Start, teachers being laid off, districts millions and millions and millions of dollars in the hole. I just wanted to make sure that North Penn knows exactly where we are because for as much as the news is on, the misinformation does come around to sometimes. And we combed some of that tonight and I wanted to make sure that we took care of the the state funding as well. So, thank you. >> Yep. Absolutely. >> Thank you, Miss Hower. Thanks for really really great informative um meetings this evening with a lot of progress. So I will entertain a motion to adjourn. >> Thank you. Thank you.