001and we'll get started. Uh Ben, if you'll lead us in a word of prayer and I'll have Randy lead us in the pledge following the prayer. Let's pray. Most gracious heavenly father, we thank you for such a beautiful day. Father, we thank you for the blessing of life. We're thankful for the opportunity to be here and to serve. And we just ask you to be with our school and our students. Father, continue to watch over each and all of them. Continue to be with our local government. Father, just give us the wisdom to seek you in all that we do. We thank you for your son. We thank you for your love and your mercy. Most of all, we thank you for the sacrifice on the cross and the saving grace of your blood. We
002pray all this most holy name. Amen. Amen. I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. At this time, I'll have Mr. Kzer call the role. Shane Connor here. Ben Couples here. Randy Cherry here. Becky Hutcherson here. Ars Frank here. Mim Scott here. All present. All right. There's a quorum present. So we'll officially call our meeting to order. We begin tonight with a recommendation to accept the board agenda. I make a motion to accept the board agenda. Second. All right. There any discussions or any need to adjust the agenda in any way? Okay. If not, all those in favor say I. Any opposed? All right. It is approved. So, we'll follow
003the agenda that's been set before you and that begins with a need to approve our consent agenda for tonight. Make a motion to approve the consent agenda. Second. All right. Motion's been made and seconded. There's no discussion on that. All those in favor say I. Any opposed? All right. It's approved. Uh delegations. U we have no delegation who have asked to present before the board tonight. So, that will take us right into a spotlight and celebration uh tonight. I know Mr. Killser has received a good celebration word from Westchester. So, if you'll share that with us. Well, a couple of weeks ago, I had asked all the principles since we were hosting the meeting here rather than on the school site, uh, does anybody have anything to share? And in conversation with Mr. Amy Woolly.
004She shared to me about an opportunity for her entire elementary school to attend a Rockabillies game next month because the students had participated in as that u uh advertisement shows the Rockabillies readers. There was a certain quota of books that they all had to participate and read. This was done outside of the school day. So it was home uh parents involved and again schoolwide event. You see the picture of the kids sitting there with their certifications and as I was sharing with uh Shane earlier today, you know, some of these kids probably have never gone to a ball game. So, just having the opportunity. I think it's Did I include the date? I think it's early in May after May the 9th. Right there it is. May 9th. I knew it was early on. So,
005uh congratulations to the work done. If you remember from the past uh fall, uh Westchester was recognized a reward school, also recognized as a letter A on their school letter grade. So, they're they're working toward success, academic success, and this is another addition to that. And as educators realize the focus on literacy which these readers building that you know that passion for reading outside of what the teachers make you read uh just adds to the opportunity. Uh I would say Kim would probably echo this. I know in my past years as a teacher when a child when they had free time that would grab a book and read it on their own without provocation that was usually a child that had their academic success really uh successful. So um well it says Westchester had the
006highest participation rate of all the schools involved. Yeah, that's awesome. Hats off to Miss Woolly and and all the folks out at Westchester. Um, we have no one for our actionable items for public comments listed. Do we, Ben? Just make sure. No. Okay. All right. Then we'll move right into our first item of business, which is a recommendation to the board to adopt the school district science textbook selection, which that's the rotation this year, and have Mr. Kzer speak to that a little bit. And if there's any questions, you can present those. Well, as you recall from last week with our work session, uh Miss Melanie Peele, who was overseeing the textbook adoption committee, of course, the uh the documentation there with that section reflects the group of teachers across the district who I left
007my folder in my office. the uh the the group of teachers across the district as far as their selection of textbooks, science textbooks using Sabbath as the decision. And again, as it was with our math, we talked about it during the work session. It is unique and favorable that all the grade spans being considered pick the same book company. So you have a consistency of the vocabulary, consistency of the theme of the instruction. So, I feel like that that will uh bode well for our success in the future. We've had preliminary success really well with science. Science has not had the same attention as the English language arts and the math. And uh Dr. Kim, I've got uh something I meant to bring that Melanie provided me today that shows the cross uh crosscurricular comparison
008between what we have purchased with their ELA, the CKLA, and the science uh material. So that when you're teaching the science material, you can also coincide that with the English language arts that are both at the elementary schools, the K3s, and also with wit and wisdom that the middle schools use. So again, making those connections because that's been the majority of the thrust of the instruction for science in the past with the the term or the excuse me, the time spent with the teaching of English language arts, they use the science basis as the non-fictional text to support that instruction. So we've had good success with it. This is should breed even better success because of that consistency of the same book company providing the language or the science material. It's my recommendation that that
009the board approve that. Okay. So the recommendation is we approve the textbook selection. Again that's also going through an adoption committee. Uh so is there a recommend or that's the recommendation. Is there a motion to approve? I'll make a motion to approve it. Okay. Second. Any discussion or questions about the textbooks? If none, all those in favor say I. I. Any opposed? All right, that is approved. We also have a recommendation to the board. This is a resolution for our school system to um receive a Tennessee state bonus from for the existing educators uh which was gone through the 2025 special legislative session. You want to speak to that a little more? Okay. Uh and if I could for the sake of those who are present and also for the uh the those who are
010watching viewing remotely the the state you know back during the extraordinary session that was before the general session started this cycle it was Governor Lee's intent to get the um uh the Tennessee education scholarship the Tennessee Education Freedom Scholarship to pass which we have called the voucher bill. Um, part of the uh vouch voucher bill language includes that for uh those recognized at each public school district as existing educators, they would be recognized for this one time 2425 year uh to receive a onetime bonus of $2,000. And with that bonus, again, as a onetime bonus, it's uh it's reflective of who is actually identified in that role for this year, but it's not going to be paid out until after this fiscal year ends. Part of the requirement gets into the board of education passing
011a resolution recognizing that and submitting that to the state through e- plan before June 1. So, that's what we're doing on this board meeting. And if I could, I'd like to read the resolution uh so that everybody could be aware of it. And we will post this as needed uh for the public discretion. But uh just to start, whereas the Chester County Board of Education is charged with governing the school system so that all students receive the best educational opportunities in order to graduate prepared to enter post a post post-secary institution or the workforce. And whereas the Chester County Board of Education passed a resolution back in December of 17 of 2024 opposing the use of public funds to support private institutions. And whereas the Tennessee General Assembly passed the Education Freedom Act of 2025
012during the first extraordinary session of the 114th General Assembly. And whereas this act includes a provision providing a one-time bonus of no less than $2,000 to public school existing educators in the state as defined by TCA49-3-104. And whereas section 4 of that education freedom act 2025 requires that a local school board of education for an LEA seeking to participate in section four of the proposed act must affirm its intention to participate uh via a resolution in order to receive state funds to issue these bonuses. Whereas the onetime bonuses of no less than $2,000 to full-time educators defined as existing educators means an individual who is evaluated pursuant of 49-1-302 part D part two and who provides direct instructions to students or at student sites doesn't include all educators in the Chester County School District and
013because of that are not entitled to receive the onetime bonus. Therefore, be it resolved that the Ches County Board of Education affirms its intention to participate in section four of the Tennessee, excuse me, of the Education Freedom Act of 2025 relative to bonuses for our teachers. So, that's the uh resolution you heard. Is there a discussion or a recommendation to approve the resolution that was read? Make a motion to approve resolution in a room. Second. Okay. Any discussion on that or questions about that? Free money always cost you. We have about 196. They provided us a list mid uh well last week uh a list of 196 educators in our district that satisfy the the definition of existing educators. That leaves off uh our administrators. It leaves off our instructional supervisors that have a teacher
014license also in this office. So that's the two uh working groups that are left off. The motion's been made and seconded. Any other discussion? All those in favor of that approval say I opposed. All right. It is approved and resolution will be forwarded and uploaded I guess to ean. Yes, sir. Um, next each uh year we do have a uh review of the outofcount tuition rates for the 2024 2025 uh school year. Uh see if that will move forward into next year if there needs to be any adjustment made. You see that recommendation in front of you? You want to talk about that some? Well, and I've included a link to that uh 6.204 and it does give the the guidance of that. Um now with our um like I said our current rates which
015are not included in this but we do have a reference to the fact that each year we evaluate those cost. Two years ago we did increase the cost of two or more students in one family household to $1,000 per year. Um uh prior to that it was 600 for one and 900 for two or more. the board chose to go to 1,000 based on the recommendation at that time. But based on my recommendation to you folks, I think that the the the cost of tuition for the year should remain the same. 600 for the one student uh 1,000 for two or more students in the same household. What what age uh average is it? Elementary level or or is it pretty well even across the board? It goes across the board. My only concern with
016if we allow too many to come in at the elementary level, we're already getting pretty crowded at if they want to come to Eastchester, the zoning at Jack's Creek, you know, shifting the elementary level kids around can become pretty hectic. But I mean, I mean, if it's not a problem, then Well, what we do is there's a lot of people want to go to school in Chester County. There are. Now what we do though is we um we initiate of course Miss Carol is involved with it quite a bit for those families who have already been approved in years past. They have to get approval every year because we don't know their intent from one year to the next. Plus, if you recall from previous years, we reflect on the behavior, the academics, and the
017attendance of every child, and I make recommendations to the board whether or not we keep students coming or ask them to go back to their school of record. Um but if we have new students coming for the first time, we keep those um uh keep those re uh applications, but we don't approve anybody until we get confirmation, especially with kindergarten, how our kindergarten enrollment goes, plus those who move into Chester County. So, we keep those at uh and and let them know that we are not going to approve them until after our local students in Chester County have assigned which school they're assigned to. And then we've had some lately, I say in the last few years, who have who have appealed to enroll after the July one deadline or the July deadline before we
018start school. And of those students who have been given permission to enroll, I share with them that, you know, some of our elementary schools are closed without accounting. And in some cases, I look between from where their primary residence is and see which one of our other elementary schools are the closer. So I say, you know, for example, Eastchester is closed, but you have Jack's Creek or Westchester. I can tell them based on, you know, Map Quest or whatever, which one's a closer school to go to. Yeah. But, you know, transportation's left up to the family if they choose to do that. And we've had some to choose to, you know, we've had some to go to Jack Creek and some to go to West because of that option. Well, the recommendation is to maintain
019the current tuition rates for the upcoming school year, 600 for one student, 1,000 for two or more. Uh, is there a motion to approve that recommendation? I'll make a motion to approve. Keep the rates the same. Okay. Made in second. Any other questions? All those in favor of approving that recommendation say I. I. Any opposed? All right. So, that rate is set for the upcoming school year. U this is time of the meeting. I'll turn over Mr. Ker if there's any updates he'd like to share with the board or questions from the board. I'll start. Well, I'll I'll speak to the one near the end, the educator perception survey results. Um, each year the state provides partnership with Vanderbilt to do an educator perception survey that goes statewide trying to encourage educators across the state
020to offer feedback to their district leaders, school leaders about their the questions being posed. Those questions do fluctuate. in years past when we were dealing coming out of COVID about some of the transition some of those roles about virtual school versus other opportunities to get an education and we have attempted to incentivize in years past by granting if the school reaches a 90% threshold or higher then we would have if you remember a lottery kind of thing a drawing for like 10 or 20 I think it's 20 uh chamber buck packages uh this past year decided to just choose to honor everybody because rather than just honoring 20, everybody gets a blessing with a Bessos meal, right? So, um if the school reached that threshold of 90 plus, then their their school gets an additional
021Bessos catered meal in addition to what they get in May with the teacher appreciation month. So that must have been the the ringer because our percentages were higher this time than they ever before. We had two schools that reached 100%. That was the Chester County Middle School and Westchester. And it's hard to get 100%. It is hard. You're right. It's very hard. Well, and because it's not something that in five minutes or less you're going to be done with it. It really takes about 20 minutes to complete it with with fidelity. Um, our school district was not that it's a competition, but our school district was ranked number two in the state uh at the last at my last viewing of it, which was when the the initial uh stop date was occurring. The the
022one that beat us was the school for the deaf in Jackson. So, it's a school that probably has maybe 20 to 50 teachers at best. So, I was very pleased with our performance. Um, there is always from the state some uh initiative to say if you reach a certain threshold, you'll be put in a drawing and you'll possibly receive some type of funding from the state to say thank you for the effort to put toward education. We've never received that funding, but we've been within the top 10% I would say consistently since we've been using this data. What I like to use the data with is when we have our summitative meetings with principles in the summertime to reflect on this data. I know some principles in the past would use this data to help
023craft their plans for future uh staff development for their own teachers when they have their inservice days. But it's a good valuable tool. We also in addition to this we survey our students too. after state testing we have a much smaller uh evaluation or at least a survey of their perspective because I found especially at the high school value in hearing from the students also because sometimes uh when administrators go in to observe to see how the performance is going it may be more dramatic yes than what the students are exposed to on a day in dayout basis. So sometimes the the verbiage or at least the reflection of a student has has a lot of value. So I hope the question my teacher pushes you was taken out. Well, we have really in and
024we use that example. That was one of the questions the state provided and of course our response with our kids. My teacher would never push me, you know. So we we try to in the the uh faculty advisory committees each year is tasked to to revisit the survey that's going to be used. They're the ones that that really uh u structure that and and set the stage for the distribution of that. And again that's another on top of this another set of data points that we like to reflect on. So very pleased with the the performance here. Any other updates? Anybody got any question about any of the updates? All right. Um, well, there's nothing any questions to be asked. Just a reminder, this is a busy month coming up. So, you have at the
025end of your agenda the uh end of year events for the high school, the awards day on May 14th, which we are all invited to. Balaria May 18th at Dryden Auditorium and the high school commencement May 19th at Dryden Auditorium. And our board meeting will be that week as well on that Tuesday, May 20th. The meeting site will be at J Creek at 5:00 pm. Well, that's the end of the agenda. So, we will consider this meeting ajourned.