001I'm ready. All right. So, we have uh this is the busiest time for us at MNPS and that of course is also a part of our schools. So, um I want to just state off the top. I know that we have upcoming our first annual book fest for young adults in middle grades. It's going to be hosted at Lawson High School on March 28th, which is the Saturday and it's from 10:00 to 5:00. Um I'm really excited about that. Uh MNPS are one of the few school systems that has a dedicated district wide librarian. Um and so I know that there's been a whole planning committee and I appreciate all of them putting this together. There's lots of author talks. There's a lot of stuff going on throughout the day. It's completely free, but they
002are asking for you to pre-register so that they can understand how many people are cut flowing through so that they can have enough people for each session. So, please go to our website and look at that. Additionally, inside my own district, we have Aladdin that's being put on by Norman Binkley. I'm going on Thursday, but there's also plenty of shows. Even have two on Friday. So, please check that out. Um they've worked really hard on that including all the educators. The materials look great for that. Granbery's annual spring picnic picnic is April 11th. Uh and at over 10:00, we have senior dues that are due on March 31st and that's important of course for prom on April 25th and of course graduation on May 16th. And um yeah, other than that, I'm sure there's a
003lot other things that that are day-to-day at the schools that I'm missing, but I hope everybody's feeling well as I know there's a lot of sickness going around and it's getting towards the end of the school year and so it's just overall busy times. Thanks so much. District 1 Board Member Taylor. You're not ready yet? Okay. Uh then we will go to Board Member uh Mayes. Board Member Mayes. District 6. Thank you. Just really quickly a reminder that um our student school board member applications are um online and available. Uh the application is open now and is uh will close at 5:00 p.m. on April 30th. And just a couple of important notes, applicants must sign in to the application using their MNPS email address. And the selected student's first board meeting will be in
004September. That date to be announced, but um I encourage you all to share with your rising juniors. Uh we our senior school board member will be graduating in May and we will be replacing her seat. Again, that application is open until April 30th at 5:00 p.m. So, I encourage you to please have your uh rising juniors that are interested in becoming a our next student school board member to sign up and get those applications in. All required documentation is due by the deadline. Thank you. Uh District 8 Board Member O'Hara Block. Um I just wanted to say thank you to the team um the family engagement team, the community engagement team that put on the uh family university this weekend that also had elements that were um actually led directly by parents. Um I know
005Board Member Taylor and I were and students, yeah. Um and former students. Board Member Taylor and I were both able to be there. Um and both as a board member seeing all of the different things that we have available for students and families was great, but actually as a parent, I got a ton out of it. Um and some really good conversation starters with my my own students. So, um shout out to Dr. Norris and her team uh and thank you for for putting that on and also being open to having parents actually run sessions as well. It was great. Thank you. Board Member Taylor, District 9. Um just another plug for Book Fest. It's happening at James Lawson. So, those of you in my district, I really hope to see you out there. Um
006I'm really excited about it and again, you do have to register. So, I've um shared that on social media so you can look that. It's also on MNPS's social media website uh pages for you to find out how to do that. And then also, we are PENCIL is helping us fulfill proctor roles. So, if you are willing and able to help us proctor, um I've shared stuff about that on my um socials about specifically in District 9, Bellevue Middle and West Meade are in need of proctors. So, um but but there is a if you it does not matter where you live, we can plug you into a school right by you. So, feel free to reach out either to me or directly to PENCIL about doing that. They're going to be having some informational
007session on April 2nd about that. So, thank you. Awesome. Now, District 1 Board Member Taylor. I mean Taylor. Taylor. >> time and you still no. >> Taylor, I'm sorry. Good evening everyone. Um I [clears throat] just have a couple quick announcements. Um this upcoming Saturday, uh the Metro Public Health Department along with many other partners are hosting their annual community baby shower. It's called Bellies and Babies. It will take place at Nissan Stadium from 11:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. I believe the doors open at 10:30 for a special education session uh for all uh community members to be involved. Um we also are working with the uh community safety plan. Uh there are meetings throughout the uh community uh taking place over the next 2 weeks. And so please, if you're interested in uh working
008on the community safety plan with the uh various departments, um go online uh and search uh it's um the [clears throat] Nashville Community Safety Plan Committee. And uh the next meeting is on this Thursday, the 26th at the Napier Community Center from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 or 7:30 p.m. Uh and so we hope to uh see families there uh and be engaged and involved in that process. And that's all I have. Thank you. All right, back to Board Member Mayes. Thank you, ma'am. Uh just one quick announcement. Uh the Southeast the annual Southeast Easter Egg Hunt and Festival will happen this Saturday um March 28th from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the uh Southeast Community Center Park in Antioch. There will be uh jump houses, food trucks, all types of entertainment. So, please bring
009your little ones out. Uh there will be individual egg hunts for children that are ranging age from kindergarten to third grade, I believe, or fourth grade. So, please bring your little ones out. There will be lots to do and lots of fun to be had. Thank you. And then from District 4, uh the McGavock cluster, we have a couple of Festival of Nations um as well as a Taste of McGavock um that uh that uh explores the richness of our community. Um so, one the Festival of Nations will be at Stanford Elementary this Friday from 5:00 to 6:30. Um and then the Taste of McGavock will be April 9th. That information will be on my social media. It's open to the public and everyone is um available to to join. Another thing that I want
010to highlight is there are some bills at the Tennessee legislature that is currently going through that will have impact to our um to to schools across the state of Tennessee. Please make sure you are connecting with organizations like the Equity Alliance as well as Turk um and see how you can get involved and help to advocate um with those organizations to support children across our our state. Thank you. That concludes announcements. I call this meeting to order. We have a quorum with eight members present. Uh we will have the Pledge of Allegiance and we have Mr. Eric Higgs, the CEO of the Boys and Girls Club. Would you come up and lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance? I pledge allegiance. Stand here? Yep. Yep. Okay. >> Over to the mic. Over to the mic.
011Okay. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. And to be fair, no one knows who's going to be chosen for the illustrious privilege of saying the Pledge of Allegiance. So, welcome to the club. >> [laughter] >> All right. I will entertain a motion to adopt the agenda. Is there a motion? There's a motion. Is there a second? Second. All right, it's been moved and seconded. All in favor of adopting the agenda as printed, say I. I. Any opposed? All right, it passes unanimously. Uh we'll move on to awards and recognitions, Dr. Battle. Thank you so much, Chairwoman Player, and good evening, board members. Um we have a number of outstanding students,
012educators, and support staff to celebrate tonight, so I'm going to jump right in. Um first up is one of our top principals. She was our Nashville Public Schools Principal of the Year last year, and this year she has been honored for her outstanding leadership at the state level. Dr. Charlean, principal of Isaac Litton Middle School So, Dr. Ran, again, principal of Isaac Litton Middle School, has won the University of Tennessee William J. and Lucille H. Field Award for excellence in education leadership in Tennessee. This is a very well-deserved honor because Principal Ran leads not only with great skill and care, but also with a big heart. She loves her work, loves her students and her families and her team, and is a first-rate instructional leader. Under her leadership since 2015, Isaac Litton has earned Level
013Five status for outstanding student academic growth and has been named a reward school as well as the first school in Tennessee to win the Blue Ribbon School of Excellence Lighthouse Award. Principal Ran was recognized and honored at a luncheon in Knoxville last week. Again, congratulations to you, Principal Ran. We're super proud of you, your leadership, and all that is happening at Isaac Litton Middle School. Congratulations, and if you could pause for a quick picture. Let's give her a round of applause. >> [laughter] >> Congratulations. All right. Congratulations again to Principal Ran. Um again, keep up the great work. Next up is another winner of a statewide award for excellence, Lauren England, who teaches fourth grade at Fall Hamilton Elementary School. Come on up, Ms. England. Lauren was recently honored by the Tennessee Council for the
014Social for the Social Studies as the outstanding social studies teacher of the year at the elementary school level. Y'all, that's a round of applause. >> [laughter] >> Lauren is a national board certified teacher whose exceptional instruction engages students in meaningful learning that is grounded in civic responsibility and critical thinking. I can attest to it because I've been to her classroom several times. She is amazing with her young people. Her contributions extend beyond her classroom through her service as a civics content developer for the Tennessee Department of Education. Her leadership and dedication have also been recognized through numerous accolades during her career, including being named Middle Tennessee Teacher of the Year and receiving the National Public Education Foundation's Blue Ribbon Teacher Award. We are proud to celebrate Lauren for her outstanding contributions to our district, our
015state, and public education. Y'all, please give it up one more time for Ms. Lauren England. All right, congratulations again to Lauren England. Um tonight we're also pleased to recognize this year's recipients of our MNPS Service Awards for 30, 35, 40, 45, and 50 years of service to our district. We had a grand celebration for them at an event last month at our service reception, but also want to give them a chance to be acknowledged at at our board meeting. So, if you're a service awards recipient, could you please stand? I know we've been celebrating for a while. Are any of you here tonight? That's okay. Um because we want to acknowledge you on the screens. So, if everyone please watch the screens to see the names of each of these outstanding public servants who have
016dedicated their professional careers to serving our students, staff, and our families. I know, right? >> [laughter] [snorts] >> Mhm. And we're 40 years. Incredible. Congratulations and thank you to all of our service award um recipients. All right. Um next up are five outstanding high school students student athletes who excelled at the TSSAA State Wrestling Championships last month. Each of these students put in a series of great performances on the mat to win a medal in their weight class. So, our student athletes, when I call your name, please come on up to the area around the podium, and I want you to face this audience as I talk about your achievements, and then we'll get a group photo at the end. First up is Laqueria Kelly from Pearl-Cohn High School. Laqueria is the new state champion.
017So, the new state champion in the girls' 185-lb weight class, in a thrilling championship match, Laqueria defeated a wrestler who had entered the match with a record of 22 and one. TSSAA named it the best match of the tournament. And throughout the matches leading up to the championship, Laqueria pinned every opponent she faced. So, congratulations again to you, Laqueria. Job well done. Stay right there. >> [laughter] >> We're still celebrating you. >> [laughter] >> Next up is Emmanuel Claybrooks of McGavock High School. You got him? All right. Emmanuel is unable to be with us this evening, but he was the runner-up in the boys' Class AA 113-lb weight class after nearly defeating a nationally-ranked opponent in the championship match. So, let's give it up for Emmanuel. Next, we have Bailey Leatherwood of Stratford STEM Magnet
018School. Congratulations to you, Bailey. Um Bailey won the fourth-place medal in the girls' 100-lb weight class after defeating three higher-ranked opponents. Congratulations, Bailey. Let's also give it up for Teddy Beleky of Martin Luther King Jr. Academic Magnet High School. Congratulations to you, Teddy. Teddy won the fifth-place medal in the boys' Class A 106-lb weight class after pinning two opponents and winning two other matches in dominating fashion. Y'all, give it up for Teddy. And also, let's hear it for Ejiro Agaga of John Overton High School. Ejiro won the sixth-place medal in the girls' 165-lb weight class after not giving up a single point on her way to the semifinals. Please give it up for Ejiro. And y'all, I will do my best to send you all a hearty congratulations. Um thank you for being outstanding student
019athletes and wrestlers on behalf of your respective schools and Metro Public Schools. Congratulations to your coaches and your families. Um if if there are any coaches or family members here, we'd love to welcome you up to get a big group photo, and again, congratulations to you all. And principals and staff, if you're here as well, please come on up. All right. And congratulations again to our wrestling medalists. Um we we have a few more students to celebrate this evening before we wrap up. Um Ariana Smith, who is a senior at Nashville Big Picture High School, has been named the Boys and Girls Club State of Tennessee Youth of the Year. So y'all, this is the highest honor a Boys and Girls Club member can achieve, recognizing leadership, service, academic excellence, and commitment to a great
020future. Ariana, who is also the Middle Tennessee Youth of the Year, has won more than $20,000 in scholarships. And she plans to study nursing in college. She has been accepted to Fisk, Lipscomb, Middle Tennessee State University, and Tennessee State University. I'll also just note that Ariana, excuse me, is the third Nashville Big Picture student to win this statewide award. So congratulations to Principal Diaz and her team as well, and to her family. Um we're also very pleased to have um a great partner to Nashville Public Schools, Eric Hicks, the CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Middle Tennessee, to help us celebrate Ariana tonight. Um so thank you so much, um Eric, for your partnership for supporting our amazing students who are just leading the way um both locally and nationally. Um we'd like
021to welcome you and um family and staff who are here to celebrate her because we are super proud um of Ariana and the way she's leading. Congratulations to you. >> [snorts] [laughter] >> So a congratulations again to Ariana. I love it when I can be when I'm staying corrected. She's actually won over $40,000 in scholarships. So congratulations to you. So exciting. All right. Um last but certainly not least, we have two incredible elementary school students to recognize for their outstanding commitment to reading and to spreading their love of reading. Two of our third graders have been named 10 under 10 Little Literacy Leaders by the Governor's Early Literacy Foundation sponsored by PNC Bank. Just 10 students were selected for this honor from across the state based on their ability to overcome obstacles along their literacy
022journey. Let me tell you a little bit about each of them, and students, when I call your name, please come on up and face this very nice and warm audience as I talk about you. Um first up is Ezra Bacon from Waverly-Belmont Elementary. >> [laughter] >> Ezra is a third grader in Miss Elizabeth Morton's class at Waverly-Belmont. He is an incredible student who gives his very best every day. He exemplifies the four 10 qualities: tenaciously driven, eager to read, noticeably growing, and nonstop learning. He comes to school each day with a beautiful smile on his face and is ready to get to work. Despite the rigorous demands and academic load that accompany third grade, Ezra perseveres through all tasks being asked of him and consistently has a positive attitude, even when the work is challenging.
023He works diligently daily with a one-on-one tutor from Learning Matters to grow in his literacy skills, puts his best effort into overcoming reading and writing obstacles, and has shown tremendous growth thus far in third grade, both in class and with district assessments. Ezra Ezra is amazing, eager to learn, curious about the world around him, and continues to push himself to achieve his best. It is a pleasure to see him succeeding and growing in his literacy journey. Congratulations, y'all. Let's get both of our um students um up. So Ezra, stay with us for just a moment. Um because next is Matthew Clayborne from Gateway Elementary. Matthew is a third grader in Miss Jazmine Wampler's Wampler, excuse me, class at Gateway. He is a learner and a leader in the classroom and around the school. During his
024second grade year, Matthew experienced housing instability, which impacted his ability to attend school consistently. Yet, even in the face of these challenges, he demonstrated remarkable independence and perseverance. Matthew continued to read, explore, and learn on his own, driven by a deep love of books and an unwavering commitment to his growth. He is unstoppable. He is independently driven as a learner. Since joining Gateway Elementary this year, Matthew has shown remarkable growth. As of January, he met his end-of-year grade level benchmark in reading. So it's March. School ends in May. I'm going to say this again. As of January, he met his end-of-year grade level benchmark in reading fluency and comprehension. This is noticeable growth. He is eager to read and often inspires other students to read. Books have allowed Matthew to go anywhere, beyond circumstances, beyond
025limits, and now because of his this scholarship, those possibilities are no longer just found in the pages of a book. They are real. Matthew can go anywhere and be anything he dreams of. Congratulations, Matthew. One more thing. Ezra and Matthew will serve as year-long Little Literacy Leader Ambassadors and will each receive a $2,000 post-secondary education scholarship. And third grade. Matthew and Ezra, we are so proud of you and grateful to you for being literacy leaders at such a young age. Congratulations to both of you and to Principal Jackson and Principal Shoemate and their teams and their families. Thank you for all of your incredible support and leadership as well. And we'd like to welcome everyone up um to take a picture, but y'all I think everyone in this room should stand to their feet and
026give them a round of applause. I just want to say good job. >> [laughter] >> All right. 1 2 All right. Congratulations again to Ezra, Matthew, and all of the outstanding students, educators, and support staff we've honored tonight. Um that will conclude our awards and recognitions and Chair Player I'll turn it back over to you. All right. Thank you and we love to see our little ones exceed expectations and as Mr. Matthew goes out with his balloons I hope parents treat y'all to a pizza party. >> [laughter] >> Or dinner or dino nuggets as I've learned. >> are first. Oh, dessert first, excuse me. That's when a child knows the one with no kids. Uh all right. We'll go on to director's report and I'll turn over back to Dr. Battle to give our new
027director's report and um have Stratford cluster come All right. Um thank you so much. We're going to continue our um journey map um presentations tonight as a part of the director's um report. Um tonight we are so excited because we have none other than the Stratford cluster with us this evening. So thank you all for your patience. I'm going to turn it over now to Chief um Renita Perry to come up and kick off our journey map presentation. Thank you, Dr. Battle. Good evening, board members. It is truly my honor to introduce the Stratford cluster, a vibrant learning community rooted in STEM excellence and deep connections in the East Nashville community. In Nashville public schools, our reimagined vision is about more than aligned feeder patterns. It is about creating purposeful learning journeys that reflect the
028strengths, opportunities, and aspirations of the communities we serve. The Stratford cluster brings that vision to life through a strong neighborhood connected STEM pathway that begins in elementary school and continues seamlessly through graduation. At the elementary level, our students are immersed in STEM learning or STEAM learning that is both hands-on and community connected. In middle school, the STEM foundation becomes more personalized and rigorous. And by the time they get to high school, learning is fully applied and future-focused. The Stratford cluster represents the power of STEM as a unifying strategy and community as a sustaining force. It is a place where students are known, families are welcomed, and learning is designed to build both academic excellence and neighborhood pride. Tonight, we are proud to celebrate a cluster that is truly building opportunity, innovation, and community together. Come
029on, Stratford cluster principals. Good evening, everyone. Oh, to the mic. I'm so sorry. I was going to use my teacher voice. Well, good evening, everyone. This Oh, let me try it again. Good evening, everyone. >> [clears throat] >> Yeah. Oh, man. Yes, we are ready. Okay. The Stratford cluster begins in a place where relationships and belonging are built from day one. Our students grow through engaging learning that challenges and inspires every student. And they leave prepared with the skills and confidence to thrive long after graduation. Think back to your own school experiences. What do you remember most about your relationships and learning? We asked a few Stratford students and this is what they had to say. I feed the cats. Oh. We might have to move on from that. It's not working. Hang on a
030second. I got it. Does anyone have any dances or any They come later. The Stratford cluster will come out later. That's the scariest cluster. Is that mic over there? Oh, we can we do code where we we code where we we make something and then we can code it to do a specific thing. I love seeing my friends. All right, perfect. All right, it's a pleasure to have school board members Zach Young and Robert Taylor leading the Stratford cluster. The East Nashville community is grateful for your leadership and support. Thank you. And at this time I would like for you all to meet the principals of the Stratford cluster. I am principal Kelly Acres, Rose Bank Steam Magnet School. Principal Janelle Brooks, Warner Arts Magnet Elementary School. Principal Colin Hunt, Lockeland Design Center. Principal Robbie
031Yates, Dan Mills Elementary. Principal Winnie Russell, Inglewood Elementary School. Kimberly Osborne, Stratford Magnet Middle School. Sharan Principal Isaac Litton [clears throat] STEM Magnet Middle School. Principal Michael Presser, STEM Magnet High School. All right. Everybody, please close your eyes for a moment. We are going to imagine that we are with a family, that we are with our own family, and we are envisioning our journey. So, please everybody close your eyes, and let's take a stroll across the Shelby Street pedestrian bridge into vibrant East Nashville and the Stratford cluster schools. Here you begin your journey in our STEM-focused elementary schools, where you will build curiosity, problem-solving skills, and academic confidence, which will support you through each stage of the Spartan Orange Pathway. You can open your eyes now. These experiences lay the groundwork for rigorous thinking and
032persevering skills essential for success in advanced placement courses and dual enrollment opportunities. As you progress, you will be challenged to apply your learning at higher levels, preparing yourself to excel in AP classes that demand critical thinking, collaboration, and real-world application. This intentional pathway ensures you are not only ready for advanced academics, but empowered to thrive in them, graduating prepared for college, career, and life. From the East Nashville Tomato Festival to the Stratford Cluster Festival to the Inglewood Neighborhood Association, and of course, the Friday night lights at Stratford High School, our schools are deeply connected to the community that we serve. Since 2010, we have built a powerful STEM and STEAM pathway supported by over $10 million in Magnet School Assistance Program funding in just the past 5 years. Our cluster includes multiple state-recognized reward schools,
033multiple Level 5 TVA schools, a Blue Ribbon Lighthouse School of Excellence, and two MNPS Principals of the Year. Through coordinated STEM experiences from elementary through high school, students develop curiosity, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills that prepare them for advanced placement and dual enrollment opportunities. Enrollment has grown nearly 13% over the past 5 years, including a 26% increase in our elementary schools, clear evidence of family confidence. The Stratford cluster connects early exploration to real-world learning, graduating innovative, confident, and future-ready students prepared for college, career, and life. Our elementary schools offer a rich variety of STEM opportunities for students, from maintaining urban gardens on school grounds to participating in learning experiences outside of the classroom. Stratford students are active learners, taking part in dance and music performances, creating masterpieces in art, conducting experiments in STEM classes, and
034engaging in other authentic activities that bring science, technology, engineering, the arts, and math to life. These experiences come together in student showcases, musical performances, writing celebrations, STEM nights, and art shows, where students demonstrate their learning as presenters and collaborators with their peers and with our community. On the screen you hopefully will see some snapshots of Stratford students fully immersed in meaningful learning experiences. I will tell you about those photos. Uh In the first photo, you will have seen uh sixth graders from Inglewood Elementary participating in a STEM expedition at nearby Shelby Bottoms. In the second photo, you will see a third-grade Warner student portraying Mansa Musa in a Black History Month celebration. And finally, in the final photo, you would have seen Lockeland fifth graders There we There we go. Lockeland fifth graders participating in
035a program called Scientists in the Classroom, a partnership with Vanderbilt University. Together, we're laying strong foundation for future learning pathways and long-term success. The personalized middle school experience is grounded in three core tenants: exploration through STEM, advanced academics, and developing and sustaining student interest. At the middle school cluster in the Stratford cluster, we provide a highly personalized learning experience. Students are challenged to think creatively and solve problems in unconventional ways. Students learn alongside scientists, engineers, mathematicians, and researchers. Highlight of this work is a Day of Discovery, a weekly partnership with Vanderbilt University. As you will look, the first student on my on the left is a student who's working on sustainable housing. If you look in the middle, the student is working on some LEGOs, so we're doing some engineering. And the last picture, the
036students are working on some engineering through some new technology that most of us are not capable of working with at this time. So, our students are exploring through STEM, where student And if you look at those pictures, you can see they're engaging in real-world field work and experimentations alongside of professionals. Not only that, we also provide advanced academics, gifted and talented programs that we have in our schools that nurture the individual talents of the students who enter our doors. We have advanced academics, honors coursework, including high school credit. So, we are developing students not only academically, but deeply engaging and exploring their interests, discovering their strength I mean, their strengths to prepare what is next, the applied experience. At Stratford STEM, STEM isn't just a theme, it's a pipeline, from hands-on engineering in elementary to
037robotics and coding in middle school. Students build critical thinking skills that feed directly into advanced academics program. By high school, the foundation is our applied experience, where learning translates into real college credit. First, advanced aca- advanced placement is front and center. Our students are taking AP courses that mirror expectations and show that they can compete anywhere. Second, we have dual enrollment and dual credit. Uh with partnerships like Nashville State, Tennessee Tech, Spelman, and Howard University, give students college credits before they graduate. And the crown jewel is NEON, which is the National Education Equity Lab. Our students receive official credit from schools like Brown, Stanford, and Morehouse University. Together, AP, dual enrollment, dual credit, and NEON create the Stratford Applied Experience, a rigorous, equity-driven pathway where students just don't prepare for college, they're already in it.
038And now we will hear from some of our one of our parents and students from the Stratford cluster. We'll invite the student up first. Good evening. Okay. Uh my name is Cedric. I am an eighth grader from Isaac Litton STEM Magnet Middle School, and one of the things we do in the Stratford cluster is just we have many different pathways or high school readiness and even college readiness programs, whether it's our AVID or Advancement Via Individual Determination, or our like said it before, our Day of Discovery classes. We have many ways for students to get involved in extracurricular ideals. Me myself, I'm not in Day of Discovery, but I am in Gifted and Talented Program, where we are provided a tailored experience that is more outside of the box and real-world thinking. And also, in
039our high school credit classes, like our environmental science class and our integrated math class, we just are able to one, leave with two high school credits, and also be a year ahead of what's already put out in front of us. So, that's middle school for you. Let me start by saying to you all, my name is Fernell Valdez. And I'm a proud dad of an 8-year-old daughter that goes to Inglewood Elementary. So, I'm just here to share a little bit of our story and our experience in our school. And our story is not different any different than many other families that come from a different country. 4 years ago, we moved here from Mexico without knowing anybody in Nashville, Tennessee. So, we kind of like just got in here hoping for the best, you know,
040and like just you know, you throw yourself out there and with the hope that your family will have a better future, but also like a nice present, right? And so, I remember the first day when I got to go to our school and have our daughter enrolled, you know, you have to fill out these paperwork when you got to put your your emergency numbers and not having one is certainly unsettling. Little we knew that, you know, our first day of school, I walk into our then pre-K classroom and met uh Mr. Miller and Ms. Weeks. And oh man, it was like family. You know, I'm sorry. See, that's what Inglewood Elementary is for us. It's our home. Thank you. Integration is uh is a word we don't take for granted. It's not easy. It's a
041path and it takes patience. it takes a village. And to know that you're not alone, to know that you're part of something greater than yourself. And to know that your kid, your your child is going to be protected, celebrated, sheltered, it's it's a dream of every parent. And and to know that it's not it wasn't just that one year. You know, I thought when we were talking with my wife, is this just like where's the trick on this, you know, this can't be a truth, you know, but it's been almost 4 years since then and every teacher and every month from our then principal, Ms. Crofton, now Dr. Russell, it's just a every day a dream come true. Our daughter is a happy, healthy, wonderful child because of these people that do care, that does
042every day you see them. Not only our teachers and our staff members in our school, but every parent that we have had the opportunity to grow up with, to learn also as a family from Black History Month, you know, celebrations and things I ignored but for complete, you know, and that are now part of our history and part of our lives. We absolutely believe that together we grow and this things to our community and things to our beautiful, wonderful Inglewood Elementary. So, that's all I had to say. Thank you. Yes. All right. And uh Stratford Cluster, you come for the community, you stay for the education and succeed for a lifetime. Y'all stay right there. I just want to say thank you so much um to our principals. Um where is Dr. Kovac? She's here.
043He is our MNPS Reimagined Cluster um executive director. To our students, to our parent, thank you for reminding us all why we do this. We do this for you and to serve our communities. And tonight, the Stratford Cluster, I was have a whole bunch to say, but I'm just going to leave it at this. This is why we do this. We do this so that we learn and we grow together. We are building innovators, creators, and thinkers, and doers in this cluster. Um and I am so proud and so honored to be here with you tonight. Dr. Battle, I'm going to turn it back over to you. All right, let's give it up one more time for this amazing cluster of leaders. I'm not going to give a long story. I'm just going to say
044um Chief Perry said you're with me when this cluster came together and started dreaming about um who they were going to be um in Nashville Public Schools. I appreciate you all um so much. I'm so excited um about the path that you're forging on behalf of your students and families and how you support um your educators every single day. Kudos. Um with that, Chair Player, I will turn it over to you. I'm going to allow the principals to sit and if there's a question, um they'll come back up. Okay. Thank y'all. Yes, thank you. And to the parent, uh mi casa su casa. >> [laughter] >> So, I'm glad I'm glad you're home cuz that's what we that's also what we want for all of our children. Um to Well, let's go ahead and have
045uh okay, questions. Okay, uh Chair uh Member Maze. I know I keep calling you that, I know. It's a fluid switch, but a good fluid switch. Uh Stratford, well done. And to the parents, see, let me tell you something. Every time we have a presentation, every cluster pulls out an ace in the hole. Your ace in the hole tonight was this young man and that parent because that is exactly why we sit at this table. And I thank you for sharing your story. And as uh Chair Player said, you are home. You uh you had us all up here teary-eyed, so thank you for that. Uh but I appreciate what you all do in your cluster. Well done. Kudos to you all. Questions or comments? Uh Vice Chair Member Balkany. I just want to echo
046what uh Board Member Maze just said. Um I love the fact um and it's a testament to our leadership and the work that we're doing across our district that families are choosing MNPS as as the first choice for their families. And I just want to thank you um as a parent and young man for the uh for for your words um and your encouragement and um I just want to create I I'm just so happy that we are creating schools that that families are proud to brag about every day. And so, you are a testament to the work that we do and that we strive for every day. So, thank you to the teachers and staff and the principals and all of you for pouring into our school communities to make them places that our
047parents are proud to send their kids. Thank you. Any questions before I give it to Mr. Taylor and Mr. Young? >> [laughter] >> Excellent job. I only have one school, I think, in the uh in the Stratford Cluster. I know. Got one. Um but I do have a lot of families that attend the other schools uh in the Stratford Cluster. And um just like my father over here uh stated, they have a wonderful experience. And um as a school board representative, oftentimes we do hear the complaints. Um however, I can say with confidence that um I overwhelmingly hear positive things about um what families are experiencing in the Stratford Cluster. And so, I just want to commend you all on the work that you're doing. Continue to do that work. Um and if there's anything
048that we can do to support you, let us know. You know I'll show up. And uh So, I appreciate you all. Thank you all. And well, one one last point. I see uh Board Member uh Young got a jersey on. I'm trying I'm trying to figure out how that happened. Okay. I asked nicely. I asked nicely. All right, I appreciate you though. Thank you all. Thank you, Chair. Um I like Chief Perry had written down several things. Um but I think the best way I can can sum up uh what I wanted to say is that So, I take off my school board hat. In my day job as I'm a real estate agent, I sell houses. And so, many times when I talk to friends and they want to move to certain areas and
049they always schools are important. And I don't think it's a coincidence that in the last um month, month and a half, I've had two different folks call me and wanted to make sure they were moving over to the east side to Stratford. Um because they had their own friends or family that were in the various schools in the Stratford Cluster that um are having such a great experience and it's not just about what they're hearing about achievement. Um when they hear about Someone start to cut some onions, I think. Um when they hear about how so many of the schools in the Stratford Cluster come together when there are particular external forces threatening our families and students, um Thank you, Chair. People are very proud [snorts] to be in uh on one on the cool
050side of the river. >> [laughter] >> But where where where um when there was the potential that it wasn't particularly maybe safe for certain families and students to get home one day, and this is not just a a singular occurrence, families and staff stepped up to make sure that children got safely where they needed to be. And um um I think we understand what I'm saying there without me having to completely uh spell it out. And um that goes to my point that it's not just about outstanding achievement. But [snorts] there is outstanding achievement going on in the Stratford cluster. I'm not taking away from that at all. But the culture that our schools create um not just inside those doors, but in the community that they are located in is so impactful to the
051work that we as a city do. And so um I had all these other great things I wanted to brag about in the Stratford cluster, but I just I don't know that anything uh is more important than that. And so making sure our students are welcome and safe. Um and that we are fostering a a culture of community that wants to come and and protect ourselves. And I'm so so so proud. And so um to principals that is absolutely because of the great leadership that y'all are y'all have got going on on the east side. And because of the staff and your families. And um I mean the proof is literally in the pudding tonight. So um I'll end by share on a lighter note. I was recently and I shared this with some of
052y'all. I was recently tickled because I got invited to uh say a few words at the National Honor Society induction at Stratford High School. And I told those students that uh I only wish my mother were still alive to know that I had finally been invited to the National Honor Society. However, it was not to be inducted. It was just to congratulate others on being much smarter than I am. So >> [laughter] >> uh I appreciate all y'all. Good job. And uh before I dismiss um last week um to show the good work that the Stratford cluster is doing, I had the honor along with Vice Chairwoman Kenny um TVA Tennessee Valley Authority and NES gave $5,000 to the Stratford High School uh for their science projects um which were all very complicated and I
053can't quite remember cuz they were very complicated but very cool. Um what the the science and the level of science experiments that the high school students were doing. Um that even our community partners and our community leaders show with the good work that they're even literally vesting in our children to do scientific work um and making sure that they know it. So congratulations uh to Dr. Pratt for what you're doing in your school and that that the community's literally investing into it. So I know it's a school night, so you can um you're dismissed. So you can go uh get prepared for us at school day. And thank you to the parent. We love you and thank you for coming. You make make govern names. This is why we govern and this is why we
054govern so you and your child and your family can have the experience that you deserve. And to the young man, um we hope to see you in high school and hopefully the middle school experience will keep on being strong for you. >> [laughter] >> Thanks you all. Thank you so much. You want to hear my profound statement? Yes, I do. >> [laughter] >> Yes. We love pulling on heartstrings. Um that's what makes the work makes the work uh special. Uh we have no one for public participation, so we want to board report. We will have directors evaluation followed by budget finance committee. Uh so earlier this afternoon we had um our semi-annual um evaluation. So we take um all of the information that we are given from Dr. Battle in quarterly reports um quarter one
055and quarter two. And we board members offer specific feedback each quarter. And then um twice a year we do um a uh a semi-annual. So halfway through the year and then a final evaluation. So earlier today we went through the board feedback to [clears throat] um Dr. Battle and had some uh good discussion about a couple of the things that were um of particular interest to board members. The PowerPoint and um video from that will be available on our website should folks like to see it. We will have um another review for quarter three and quarter four of this school year um probably sometime uh in early summer and then the final summative evaluation occurs um in the early fall. And so um that can be viewed online. Thank you all very much for your
056participation and excellent feedback and um it's always good to have the opportunity to ask those questions and get some of the answers that uh that you're all looking for. So thank you. Thank you member O'Hara Block for the um directors evaluation committee report. Now we'll move on to Vice Chairwoman Kenny for the budget and finance report. Thank you so much. Um following the uh directors evaluation, we had our uh budget and finance committee meeting uh where we introduced the proposed budget for the FY27, which is the next school year. Um for um the proposed budget for the upcoming school year. Um we will be hosting a committee meeting a community-wide uh budget meeting tomorrow, Wednesday, March the 25th from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. at the MNPS Wellness Center. This is opened up to um the
057entire community to come in, learn about that proposed budget, ask questions, um and provide feedback um as necessary. Um we will follow up with another uh budget and finance committee meeting where we will consider board considerations during that time and that will be on April the 14th. Um and following that will on April 29th will be the state of Metro um that we have on the calendar. Um so there will be more conversations um taking place. If you did not make the budget meet the budget and finance meeting, you are welcome to view that online um at MNPS's YouTube or um Metro Nashville government. Um they are both available there. For any documentation, again you can go to our website at Metro Google Metro budgets and you should you'll be able to pull up any
058of the documents that we covered today as well as this um budget and finance meeting as well. Um again, if you have any questions, reach out to your local school board member um or myself and we will be happy to uh support you. Thank you. Have a great day. Yes, again I will uplift we do have that community meeting tomorrow um from 5:00 to 6:00. Again, that's March 25th from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. at the MNPS Wellness Center, which is right across the parking lot uh from the board office. All right, we will now move on to uh governance issues. Um do I have a motion or entertain a motion for the consent agenda? Is there a motion? Motion to approve. There's been a motion to approve by member Mays. Is there a second? Second.
059There's been a second by member Taylor. Um all in favor? Say I. I. All opposed? All right, passes unanimously. Uh we accept agenda. Uh I would like to make an announcement that there will be no July 14th meeting school board meeting. We usually do not have the meeting on the first meeting in July. So July 14th there will not be a school board meeting. So staff and parents can plan appro- plan appropriately. Uh being no further business, this meeting is adjourned. This has