Stafford School Board 5 12 2026

001not think anyone participating electronically in this will join us for the business meeting. Can I get a motion to approve the agenda? >> Motion to approve. >> Okay. All in favor? >> All right. Moving into our Stafford proposals for BSBA. >> Yes, ma'am. Thank you. Um, good night everybody. Good evening. Good evening. So, we uh are charged here with looking at this is our first opportunity to look to see what the legislative positions for 2026. And here's where we have the opportunity to think about what we might want to propose as either an amendment or a new position for consideration by VSBA, the Virginia School Board Association. So this packet that we have in front of us there are it represents 139 total legislative positions and just for context last year 11 total u either

002amendments or revisions were submitted to BSBA and Stafford was responsible for six of them. So um yes we we submitted quite a few last years accepted three and um one of those was one of our amendments. So they have a good track record, but because we did so much diligence last year by looking through all of the positions. The one that we have to for at least to start discussion today is a new proposal. So it's not an amendment of an existing one. And this one is to address something that is a considerable operational constraint that we have as many as well as other divisions when it comes to processing foyer requests that pertain specifically to educational records. And so what we're proposing here for consideration is for the VSBA to support amending the Virginia

003code that specifies how we would execute those requests to add a provision to permit school divisions to provide those education records. um they're referred to as scholastic records um in FOYA Freedom of Information Act to within 45 days uh rather than the five days that is permitted under FOYA. We would suggest us considering proposing that for VSBA to allow us to have the time and the flexibility to ensure that we are able to meet those deadlines while of course attending to the many other needs that we have as as I mean I'm a little confused as to I'm just just some clarification for me. Um, so a parent wants their kid's transcript because their kid is applying for some program and they need a copy of it. Are we saying they have to wait 45

004days to get that? What kind of records are we talking about? >> So if there there's a little bit more explanation under the rationale section so that can help illuminate some of the answers I think to your question, Dr. Chase, but education record and specifically why we are recommending consideration for this. It does encompass Oh, there. Thank you, Miss Hall, for scrolling down for us. Um, it does encompass um, specifically email for special education parents. Um, it specifies that email would be contained as part of an education record. And when we are specifically considering processing these requests, there's an inordinate many times inordinate numbers of emails that are correspondent between parents and the school division as pertaining to the education record but also many other things. And so when the division is trying to process

005these, it doesn't decide to look in each individual email to say, does this pertain to the the needs of education record or is this about something else? Instead, we just process all of them. So, in doing so, it requires a large record and then it requires a lot of time to invest in processing that. So, for something like a transcript, it wouldn't be 45 days, but but would this allow you to take 45 days? >> So, so Dr. Chase, yeah, if the parent made that request directly to the school, the schools are used to processing those and they do it fairly quickly. What um this is specifically saying is that when we have to process it under FOYA because the parent has done a foyer request, FURPA already has something in place that says that

006parents have the right to review and inspect their children's records within 45 days. Our schools routinely copy it and give it to the parent. >> Right. So that that would be my only concern is is there the potential for you know like the school screws up and isn't getting the record to the parent and then the school has the safety net of 45 days but the kid has lost out on the ability to do one thing or another because their records didn't get transferred. So I I don't that that's my only in thinking about this. I just want to make sure that we aren't unintentionally doing that. But if a student is transferring, don't they visit the school that he's transferring to across the records? And then is that the same process or is it

007is it different? Is is it more um targeted on their transcript and their school activities? >> I think we're conflating >> uh transcripts with, you know, this teacher, the English teacher emailed the science teacher about a special ed student and their performance in that class. That's something that could be fur. But the transcript when you enroll in a new school they guide the counseling contact counseling from the old school transcripts to >> but sometimes you need a transcript for something that doesn't have to do with transferring. It's applying >> right. But if it's just transcripts I don't think that's that's not a furbo thing. Right. >> Parents but parents who typically just want a transcript because they need it for their child applying for for instance like a scholarship, >> right? >> Um they will

008ask the school that's a further request. now. Um, and the schools get that to them really quickly. Um, but FURPA has always been around and it said 45 uh days. The the major issue now is that we're getting a lot of these requests and they're chat GPT request and when they come through as a as a request, the default rule is we have to um apply it as a foyer request. that is as of officially last week when a new FOYA advisory council opinion came down specifically about that question. >> Right. I I don't have a I just all I'm saying is just I'm wondering if there is any way to clarify the language to make sure that we aren't including in this a request for a transcript and and to me that would fit

009under the definition of a scholastic record or an educational record. So, I just want to make sure that if I'm supporting this that it's clear that that is not going to be part I I I have no problem with what you all are talking about. I agree with you. I'm just saying sometimes the language might be such. So, just something for us to like could there be a change? Is it really not going to be confusing? All of that kind of thing. That's that's my only comment or concern. >> And I'll just share I mean, Dr. Chase, I think it's that's definitely valid. I mean, and you know, we don't want anybody to wait 45 days for a transcript. That's why we've gone to an electronic transcript, so we can just send it to them,

010right? We don't charge families for that at all. And so, but I get what you're saying. I mean, it's it does fall if >> and just because that's how we do it, that doesn't mean that's how every school division in the state of Virginia does it. And we're talking about this applying to the entire Commonwealth. So, just a good point. Just want to make sure. But at this point, >> that is a good point. Do we know what the other counties are doing for this or >> in terms of transcripts or in terms of uh how they're processing FOYA in terms of that for? >> So that just recently came from the state FOYA advisory council last week. >> This week last last week >> last week that they ruled that when parents asked for

011this for their child's record, we have to treat it as a foyer request instead of furpa specifically say >> unless so we instead of having the 45 days, we now have five days. And in some of these cases there are, as we put in here, there's thousands of emails we have to go through and we have to try to >> call them all together. I mean, you've got to get you get emails, you get text message. There could be a lot of different I mean, some of these are thousands and thousands of pages. And so we think about staff time to go to stop everything they're doing. Now we got to go and do this to try to pull it within five days. >> My question is um just because I've heard you say like

012unless they specify purple, like how are we supposed to expect parents to understand like the verbiage of Poya and purple? Like that's not something that your day-to-day everyone knows. So is this that mean majority things will just be taken as a foyer request because of that. >> Okay. >> Can we not send letters of clarification if we don't? >> Yeah, I think we can ser we can send back and say hey I just want to make sure like are you clarifying this as a foyer or a fur and try to help them understand that and you know if it's not timesensitive hopefully they would allow us to do it under fur. to have that in writing, but it's >> I think >> most are not. >> But I I think you know to Sarah's point

013or I'm sorry, Dr. Chase's point, >> if you told them you were doing it under Furpa and if a parent read and said 45 days, like they're not going to see up to they're just going to see 45. >> And to them, that's going to be like jaw drop. Never mind. Let's do it the other way, you know? So I I'm just >> I don't know. I that 45 and also we're really a nice division and I'm not saying that there's a not nice division but if if a division gets this and says oh we can be 45 days let's be buttholes you know and it's like we just don't want to open a door for someone else not to do a better thing >> and they've had 45 days up until last week until

014they was ruled to say now >> so for still is 45 days it's how we have to process it right again most parents if they just want something from their kids record like a transcript or something. They typically go to the school, >> right? Um, and they've been doing that for time and long. >> I'm just wondering, >> it's just that now with the advent of especially AI. >> Yeah, >> we get more of these chat GPT requests >> and >> the CH GTP requests I'm assuming are pretty broad. Mhm. >> So it would require >> has to try to ask to get some specificity so that we can narrow the request and that also >> requires a lot of communication back and forth with the requester make sure we're giving them what they want

015and then of course we have to redact any other students names that are mentioned. This is what Dr. Smith was saying about even just going through the emails once we've determined the ones that appropriately meet the scope. >> But we can charge for that time. Yes. >> For foil. can charge FOYA, >> but an educational record provided under FOIA still counts as an educational record that has to be provided at no charge. >> That's okay. Miss Rand, you asked why 45 days. I believe the federal government does the same thing, but they require you can do extensions too, but I think 45 days is their minimum. >> Yeah. >> Um that you can do as well. >> So, Foy allows you seven additional business days. and what this is going to be. If it requires

016past the 12 working days, we can petition and say that it's not a reasonable it's not a reasonable timeline to provide this. I've got one >> I've got one foyer request right now that is 7,800 records >> and that's after the back and forth. >> You still got to redact it in correct. Yeah. >> All right. Any other questions? So, we're not asking for a decision or anything. This is just the first pass kind of get a take on it. Happy to go back and >> and that was my I guess just how do we make sure that that really basic records are not >> going to be potentially taken 45 days. >> And so, the next step in this is that we'll come to a legislative committee so we can continue the discussion and

017then it will come back for a work session on May 26th. >> I do have a question. Um so in section 3.1 educational technology funding page um we had something last year where we were asking for more support funding wise for technology if in fact we're going to be required to do our testing and um sending results and things like that. If that's all um requirements of the state, we would like it. It's basically an unfunded mandate that we have to keep providing these and updating and what have you. Is there something that we can put together in relation to that? Because I feel like in their wording here they say or is or is this it? the current state provided technology refresh funding is insufficient to keep up with the growing number of digital

018devices in the schools and the end of life cycle uh of equipment replacement. So >> was that the amendment we got through last year? >> No, did not go through last year. >> We did submit related to 3.2 um educational technology equipment and grants program. We had some amended language but it was not accepted. >> Okay. Does that mean we can't try again? >> Yeah, I kind of feel like technology is >> the We have it. It's beautifully written, but it just about right. So, >> maybe we're only sending two or three. >> We don't try to be the overachievers. >> Okay, we could bring that to >> to legislative >> further discussion. Okay, thank you. >> All right. Thank you. Thank you. Any other questions before I move on? >> If there's other areas

019you want us to look into further, I know it's a thick document. I mean, we're happy to look into those. You think other ideas in terms we can push forward? >> Yeah, they can come to legislative just contact. >> Okay, we're on to the title one schools. >> All right, so um you know, we are here tonight to talk about title one recommendation. Um, you know, I know I understand I'll say in the past this has not come as a work session except for last year it did as we started redistricting and things started to move and >> we added the middle schools which we have. >> Okay. Yep. So trying to we really trying to get ahead of this so that we remember last year we tried to predict with redistricting what that was

020going to look like. Um and so uh we are the the deadline to apply and submit our application is in June. So, we wanted to get ahead of that, bring this to you in May in a work session, let you know what the what the figures are looking like for our schools and um the transition. If you recall, we were transitioning some schools off based on what we projected their um their enrollment and free reduced meals to look like. And so, we just want to provide an update to that today uh in anticipation of the June um the June item. >> All right. So, um, I know we have some new board members. First time kind of looking at some of the title one information, but I also know title one is something that I

021think we're all, you know, have some awareness of, and it's not technically new to anybody, but a little bit of background information. So, federal funding is provided to the state, then passed through to the school division, and then um based we will uh rank our schools based on economically disadvantaged students. Uh but our funding doesn't change based on how many schools we have. So it's the same amount of funding split up between the number of schools that we identify. I'll get into that in just a few moments. But um it's really focused on um you know academic achievement gaps for our economically disadvantaged and and targeting those schools to provide additional financial resources. So um how we identify our economically disadvantaged historically we've used our free and reduced lunch um application process. We also have

022students that qualify through direct certification from the state. So they receive state benefits um SNAP tanniff. We also have any McKenzie McKenna Vento or foster care students are automatically um fall into our free and reduced status. So um historically um we have set that threshold and identified those funds. The title one funding is then allocated between um across the schools. um we set that threshold of what it is and um as Dr. Smith and I believe Miss Randall mentioned, we did add middle school last year as well and had a lot of changes last year. So um pretty uh in-depth discussion last year. This is just a recap of what the funding did look like for when I say last year, this current year since we're still in it and this current school year had

023about $2.8 million in funding. You'll see the middle schools that were added there at the bottom. Ferry Farm and Conway because of the redistricting we were expecting them to transition off so that those schools did plan on that uh during this school year. >> Anthony Burns. >> Oh, sorry. Who did I Conway Anthony Burns and >> so um some of the considerations that we looked at going into this uh new uh school year. So, um, we had the two new elementary schools opening, um, and then that resulted in a countywide redistricting, and that was part of the reason we started looking at that last year. And we knew that was going to cause a drastic shift in our economically disadvantaged students. But additionally, um, going back a few years, we started adding our community eligibility

024provision schools, which means those schools do not receive any free and reduced lunch applications. The entire school gets free lunch. Uh and so what that resulted in is having a not really a true accurate count of free and reduced students, especially as they moved across schools. So you could have um students at a C school did not submit a free and reduced application. Uh and they never saw the need to submit one because they were at a full free and reduced uh school free not just reduced. Uh so we really had inconsistent and unreliable free and reduced projections for next year. So took a slightly different approach this year. Um so we wanted to the state allows us to a couple different methods that we can use to identify you don't have to use our

025free reduce applications. We can use directly our um directly certified student numbers that we receive from the state. And the reason that's beneficial is because we can um identify those students. We get a listing on we got it about April 9th 10th this year. We were able to recalculate our numbers. We had done initial projections in March, updated them in April with the final numbers that we're allowed to use going into next school year, and we're able to take those students, know which ones are directly certified, and we can project what school they're going to be at next year. So, we already know that. Uh, and so what we can't project is which kids haven't filled out a free and reduced application, but it is still an applesto apples comparison. We get a new directly

026certified percentage number, and I'll refer to that. instead of a free and reduced percentage number, we're using a directly certified percentage number for every school. Um, so you still do the same thing. We're going to rank them. What we're doing differently also this year is because we don't know what that kindergarten we don't know the up rising kindergarteners whether they're directly certified or not. So we took our current current um kindergarten through fourth graders. We projected our first through fifth grade directly certified. So we rolled them up into the school that they're going to be at next year and we projected what our directly certified percentage will be for first through fifth graders next year. So we kind of eliminated that kindergarten cohort next year. And by doing that we're able to um looking specifically

027at elementary. Um what the state still um allows is to take that 1.6 multiplier for those C schools and you apply that. Uh so you'll see where we have our cutoff now is at Fmouth Elementary School. So Monure, Kate Waller, Barrett, Falls Run, Rocky Run, Widewater, and Falmouth would be our identified elementary schools. Uh, and their directly certified percentage with that C multiplier ranges from 64% to 83%. And that is once again their first through fifth grade cohorts for next year. >> That's quite a cliff between Falmouth and Parkridge. >> Yes. And that's um mainly because of that CD school. So, we did evaluate all of our nonC schools this year with with Brian Williams. We did talk about that a little bit at FAB C when we were talking about this meal debt. And

028um we do not expect any changes other than Anthony Burns falling off of our C list. So what kind of communication over and over and over again loud and in many forms are we going to be giving? Oh, I sort of answered that but anyways um to these three schools that are transitioning in of course Anthony Burns. >> So these schools transitioning have already been planning on that adjustment this whole year for title. They knew that they were coming off a title or projected to come off based on last year's projections. uh the one that last year when we presented um at the work session we thought that crow's nest would qualify this year so they are so they're not on here they're actually a couple down even from that current >> cut off because

029we were using the other numbers to calculate so when we did the redistricting were we using the wrong free >> no there they're still free and reduced numbers and we're taking free and reduced percent you know applications and then projecting them based on attendance zone but we wanted to use some firmer numbers which that directly certified provides ex it's state certified um eligible for benefits and by that we know that we're still looking at an applesto apples comparison because not every student will complete those free and reduced >> well so I mean we were given we were given certain data when we were doing the redistricting are we going to end up with a situation where pros nest actually has quite a large percentage of free and reduced lunch kids and they aren't getting title

030funds I mean I just >> because this This number is so different from what we saw during the >> rec. And I'm I'm just wondering do cuts to SNAP and Medicaid have they federal cuts to those programs has that impacted this this calculation for direct certification? >> Um well I will say if it has impacted it has impacted all schools evenly, right? And so we're still looking at an apples to apples from school to school, >> right? And since you're doing I I guess I understand percentagewise but still because it's such a large school like what are the number of children that qualify at Crow's Nest versus the number of children you know what I mean like more numbers versus percent just because they are a very large school so >> maybe it's still a

031high number but it's a low percentage >> right I mean they have two and a half times the number of students that Falmouth has True. >> Yeah. >> Now, two things just to your question, Miss Randall. Um originally, so um Mr. Fulmer was right. When we when you made this decision this time last year, we did talk with those principles. I've actually followed up recently with um the principal at Ferry Farm and Conway. They feel like they have a good plan moving forward. They were parents at the Title One um parent meeting the other day where we had the Ferry Farm parent talked about how they've got plans to move forward and feel good about where they are with their plans come transitioning off of title one. So, they've made those. >> The other point

032that I would make um is, and I don't think Mr. Fulmer has said it yet, you do have to ser serve schools in order. And so, you do have to keep following them in order. Um there is a 40% cut off that if they don't meet 40%, we would have to get a waiver, >> right, >> to to serve. >> So, we would correct um in order to serve them in a schoolwide capacity. So, you have to have a minimum of that 40% threshold to be schoolwide designation, which >> I get that. I mean, yeah, because we even bumped the percentage to 50%, because we anticipated so many schools would qualify. Yeah. So, I'm sort of surprised to see the change. Are we do we do a recalculation next year after we do free are

033we going to do free and reduced lunch? >> Yeah. >> So, that we're measuring it more on income and not um direct certification. >> So, we will we will look at that because Crows Nest will not be a C school. So, they will start to receive free and reduced lunch applications and then we can look at that compared to Park Ridge and Ferry Farm. >> Um, and if their numbers jump, I would recommend then we put that into place for the following school year. So, it's hard to make that change, you know, in August, September when we get those numbers. You are allowed to amend your application to kind of make your you can make tweaks, but that's drastic when you'd add another school and you split the funding up. I'm just still kind of

034just stunned that the numbers were that wrong >> that we we were redistributing. >> Well, they're different numbers though, >> right? >> Correct. >> Okay. >> Yeah, because it's a different measure. >> But you said there's >> they weren't necessarily wrong, but we're looking at it from a different lens now. We have to go in order >> a different mechanism. But again, my point is we made redistricting decisions based on one set of data and now we're using another set of data >> for doing title >> to do title and it's just leaving me kind of a little whiplashed. So >> yeah, and I'm really concerned that the federal funding cuts have impacted these direct certification numbers. So it's it's it it's >> it will be interesting to see what those applications look like because

035we may have to re revisit this next year. If we if you did calculate it the way it was previously calculated, what would be the negatives of that? Would we because we don't have those numbers, would less schools qualify? >> So any of the students moving from let's say Anthony Burns to Crow's Nest, >> they're not going to have that free and reduced um application submission. So anybody that falls maybe above the state cutoff but would apply and be granted a free and reduced application or free and reduced lunch through the application process. We would not be catching them in our calculations. >> So anybody that is a nonC school, they've all submitted an application if they wanted to to apply for free reduced lunch. So those schools and those students are okay, but we

036have seven schools this year that have C status. So as we move so many students between schools decided to look at it differently this year. >> So if I'm going to repeat it back to make sure I understand it. So if we don't capture those kids because those families did not fill out those forms then inadvertently we could be giving title funds to a school that doesn't necessarily qualify because the amount of kids coming to that school now never filled out those forms. Right? like it would shift, >> right? Or the other way, their numbers are going to be lower at Crow's Nest when we do a free and reduce application comparison because the students moving from Anthony Burns to there have not filled out an application. So that would not we would not capture

037them in our free reduce counts. >> Okay. >> It's more likely that those numbers of free and reduced would increase >> when kids are actually doing their application at some of these schools, >> right? we we may get a better >> and that's why they do the multiplier and we went I know we went over this last year in this in these kind of same work sessions >> but to be clear the projections are going to you know they're not going to be 100% accurate they're going to adjust and that's why after they settle for this year we'll look at it again next year and we very well could have some adjustments in our title status for our schools >> yeah because we did we increased the cut off to 50% because we were worried

038that we had too many schools that actually qualified Right. So, it will be this is definitely something we'll have to bring back next year, but I think this is the only way you could have calculated it with the redistric >> and we have full communication happening since Anthony Burns was a CP school that they know that next year. >> Yeah. And I've been working actually talked to him again today, Mr. Williams about making sure we have a really firm plan on how we're going to communicate not just Anthony Burns but any because we could have students moving between schools that were C to non C or vice versa uh and how we can target a little bit more at our open houses or even prior to that with um you know maybe it's we just

039hand paper copies to everybody instead of relying on the communication um or pushing them to electronic >> um application process. So, we're going to have a bigger presence next year at open houses at at a minimum >> like big billboards as you walk in and stuff like that. >> Okay. >> Sound like you were gonna say something. >> Any other questions? >> So, jumping just to to middle school. Yeah. >> Middle school. Yeah. >> So, uh didn't see a change. We were projecting Drew and and him at the middle school level and we didn't have a redistricting there, but we did still use that same directly certified comparison. So we are consistent across the title application. Uh something that we do want to kind of keep in mind um it Drew is is kind of

040entering their third year of the C status and as we've looked at their numbers they've been dropping a little bit as far as their total directly certified and following that C. This coming year may be the last year that they are C. And we're also looking at a middle school redistricting in a couple of we've been doing it for next year but it's actually not taking effect until August of 2028. So when we see the shifts there, it's might be something else that we look at when Drew has a much larger population and their population shifts a little bit, it could adjust their percentage. Um, and if it doesn't drop the C status prior to two years from now, it could at the point that we do that. >> And that may get to Miss

041Randall's point about when you look at him versus Drew. He is 40% but they're a much larger middle school. I mean, they have a lot more students than Drew does. And Drew, just to I'm sure you already know, I've said it a couple times. So Drew has the direct or the C multiplier on it yet on it here and that's why it's higher. They were actually when we looked at just their directly certified percentage, they were at like 3839. Then we applied that multiplier and so that's why it's so much higher. But they've actually been dropping a little bit, but they're still C and we're allowed to keep them C because um the government allows us to take the highest of that their multiplier for the three years. So we still get the higher reimbursement

042for them, >> but that reimbursement is going to drop pretty significantly the year after. >> I mean, I think for next year, this is reasonable. I I don't know that we can use anything else to do the calculations with some of the kids moved. Um, but we will see this again next year. >> And just a slide on the projected funding um allocation for the current year versus um next year. Uh obviously you're going to see a big jump in falls run because they were not a title school and then you see the drop in the three schools that are falling off. They were in their transition years and and we're working towards that. So they were planning on that. >> So did you just take what what kind of formula did you use? Was

043it based on their >> There's a state formula. We don't identify this. we each drop them into the state calculation or state spreadsheet and it provides the funding. It is more based on the number of students and then if they're a C school they get the higher allocation as well which is why um him and Drew are not that far off in kind of total funding even though or Drew would have less students and it's because of that multiplier they get a greater percentage. >> And where can we get the class reduction information? Can we get that like in a bulletin? Yeah, I can share that in a bullet >> so we know which schools qualify for class reduction. >> Yes, ma'am. >> Kind of just to wrap this up, could we quickly get just

044like a really quick like pros and cons list of this? >> Uh, could really dumb down so I can put this in the notes. Pros and cons of comparing what? >> Just about us doing this new identification. >> Yep. I'm going to actually go back to so when you're looking at your notes I have two slides here kind of looking at why we made the adjustment. So >> okay >> um we really had unreliable it was inconsistent when we looked at our free reduced projections for next year because of so many students shifting between C schools and non CP schools because they don't complete the applications. So when we shifted to this directly certified method, we feel like this is the most reliable um consistent and allowable because we did um run this by the

045state to make sure they were in agreement with our method methodology. >> Okay. Um this does come to the board for approval on June 9th. We have to submit our schools to the state on June 17th. And just so the I just want to just so the board is aware, our schools that we project to be title title, they are work they start to work on their school improvement plans. They do we do have to submit those with those. So we do have schools that we've projected that we've already started to work on because they have to submit them to the state by this June these June dates so we can have that together and and working on that too. So we do have schools working on that based on the projected list thus far.

046And so >> so you don't want us waiting till July or August? Yeah. >> Well, we do have to submit it to the state by June 17th and then uh it's submitted >> the state of time. >> If we were projecting any changes, it would be, you know, we would just need to know that because we would need to turn that around for schools because they're they're up against a pretty good wire right now trying to submit that. >> Of course, the state hasn't given us a budget yet. So, >> yeah, there's that. >> Why is Rocky Run um the only school that will be getting less? >> But they're stupid population. their population changed. So they've lost >> a lot of their a lot of their >> So your percentage >> kids are going

047to fall >> your So >> the funding allocation method doesn't necessarily look at your percentage here even so they might have a higher percentage they might have less students that qualify. >> Okay. >> They have fewer students here. >> Okay. Because that because I was seeing their percentage is the same as Widewater but Widewaters went up and Rocky Runs went down. So, >> and so with you know after the with with this method and after redistricing they have more students that would qualify. >> They're actually I'm looking at the scenario from last year the lime rocky run is sending 633 to um >> oh now they're getting some from Conway but it's a >> yes >> they're still going to be they're going to be under enrolled relative to where they were. >> Yeah. I

048think they were over 100% first and now they're going to be at like 86% capacity. Okay. >> And that's the same with Fouthmouth. So you see Fmouth getting less money, but they are >> dropping significantly >> as well. >> And they're sending kids to false run also. So yes. >> Yeah. >> Okay. Any other questions on title one? >> Thank you. >> Okay. We got right away. >> Mr. Tower, chief facilities officer joining us for this one. All right. Good evening everybody. Um Um so this is really uh just an update on an item that was in the school board bulletin a couple weeks ago and will be in front of the board for consideration uh next month. Um, we do uh last fall sent us a letter requesting um well sent us a email

049requesting that the school board sign a letter of support uh for abandoning the state maintained right of way that currently is in the bus loop at Graford Village Elementary School. Um, in last October, the board of supervisors actually approved a resolution to abandon that piece right away and VOTE is requesting a letter from us to help support that process. So, this traces back to the early '7s and in 1970 um, VOTE accepted that bus loop at Grafton Village along with one at Bonure and a handful of other uh, school sites into the state system for maintenance. This was back when VOTE used to maintain the bus loops. They would actually plow them for us um during snow events. They don't do that anymore. Um so, um they're now looking to slowly divest themselves of these

050various areas. We actually ran into this um when we were out there doing the crow's nest um elementary school site because they're the bus loops at Brook Point and Stafford Middle were also similarly um conveyed as VOTE right away. So in a nutshell, um this letter of support would note that yes, we're we're okay with this uh right of way uh coming back ultimately to the school board would be our request, but in between uh VOTE and the school board, it would go to the board of supervisors and then the idea would be then that the board of supervisors would subsequently transfer that property to the school board. Um, Vidat actually requested a similar request recently for Monure. Um, but in discussions back and forth with um staff, uh, the county is going to seek

051to work through that piece separately because the county now owns that piece of property up there. >> So, we're we're working on that with them um and trying to stay out of that. Um but um in a nutshell, what you're seeing up here, this is actually the uh board of supervisors resolution um petitioning the uh petitioning VOTE to go ahead and abandon that right away. We do have a couple exhibits here. Um a little bit of background report that's attached there for you all to see. Uh but again, it's just that piece of right away right elementary school. >> So why are they petitioning when POT is asking us to do it? The process, the way that it works, the procrast either accepts um the right of way into the state system based on a

052request from a local board. In this case, the board of supervisors back in 1970 did that. Um and so the process to kind of unwind that is for the same board to request that hey go ahead and uh revert this right away back back to us at this point and B dot they do that in collaboration with one another. So B dot though is kind of at the center of the hub of the hub of the process and so they help to coordinate all that. >> Does that make sense? Like it seems to me the resolution should say VOTE has requested that we that they be allowed to abandon this and so we're saying okay to that rather than we're resolving to do this. It's fine. It's just a crazy thing to me and for

053somebody going back in time looking at the minutes from this is going to think that the school division decided to do this all on their own or that the board of supervisors decided to do it all on their own. Right. >> Any other questions regarding the >> No, it just seems like a lot of unnecessary steps for something that probably hasn't taken care of since 1972. >> It is. And I'm sure there'll be more to come at some point. We'll find another one. >> I don't know. It just seems to me like all this stuff that they've been doing as we've been trying to build schools like maybe they should be a little more accommodating since they aren't doing what they're supposed to be doing. >> Yeah. Because I mean they're not I That's fine.

054They don't want to take care of the bus loop, but it could maybe help with the road construction for access to the schools, but they don't do that either. >> You've been saving them a lot of money. >> Any questions? >> Yeah, I do have a question. So, are they only abandoning on this diagram right here? Are they only abandoning B to C or are they abandoning A to C and including B? Because what does the data correction mean? So it's any of the right of way outside of 6 route 607. >> So A B C. >> Okay. Gotcha. >> The green and the blue. >> Okay. >> Right. >> The rest is on school. >> This just hashtag somebody lost a job. So they have to >> because whenever you're dealing with the government,

055you've got to have six different pieces of paper and 17 people to vote on it. So all the force is going away. >> So it looks like everybody supports Oh, I don't know about that, but we can bring in I'm not sure I'm going to vote to let them not do what they said they would do in 1970. >> That's older than I am. >> Here's just for fun here. >> Here's how it looked in 1970. Here's what they would send over. >> Wow. >> Um very >> a lot less detailed than what we do now. Uh but nonetheless, that was it and that was how they worked it up. >> Wait, so go back to the other schools that are listed on there. >> Have they all been >> relieved of their duties? >>

056Not not all of them. I know. And actually another one that's not on here. I know we're still dealing with some issues out of Farm. >> Ironically, >> the problem. >> All right. Well, if there are no other questions, I will adjourn us for 15 minutes until the regular >> dislo Good evening. I'd like to call this meeting to order um with presentation of the national colors. >> to the flag of the United States of America and to theublic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Right. Forward. I would like to thank the Colonial Forge Army ROC, Ethan Hobar, Kylie Sevard, Caitlyn Reich Rataba, and commanded by Ruby Moore. Thank you very much. >> Miss Hall, could you please call a role? >> Yes, ma'am. Miss

057Blackwell. >> Dr. Chase, >> here. >> Miss Davis, >> here. Miss Figer Holtz >> here. >> Miss Healey >> I'm on remote if I get let in. >> Mr. Careshi >> here. >> Miss Randall >> here. >> Mr. Regan >> here >> and Dr. Warner >> here. >> Madam Chair, you have a quorum. >> Thank you. Motion to approve. >> Motion to approve uh Miss Healey uh participating electronically. >> Second. >> Please cast your ballot. Your vote. Miss Miss Healey, do you? >> Yes. >> Okay. Motion passes unanimously. >> Thank you. >> Motion to approve the agenda. Motion to approve the agenda. >> Second. >> Please cast your vote. >> Miss Healey. Yes. >> Passes unanimously. Thank you. Before we get to the consent agenda, I'd like to take a point of privilege and make

058a statement. The Stafford County School Board has as one of its main goals to provide a safe, supportive, and inclusive learning environment that ensures mental, physical, and emotional safety for all students and staff. When hateful or dehumanizing language or symbols are used to threaten or target others, it undermines the sense of security and safety belong and belonging that leaves members of our community feeling fearful and isolated. A recent incident at one of our high schools serves as a painful reminder that hate and intolerance have no place in our schools or community. Racism, anti-semitism, anti-LGBTQ attacks, and threats directed towards religious or ethnic groups are harmful to individuals and damaging to the sense of trust and connection we work to build in our schools every day. We recognize the lasting harm that racism, anti-semitism, islamophobia, and

059other forms of intolerance have caused many individuals and families, as well as the impact these experiences can have on mental health and well-being. Every student deserves to feel safe and accepted and valued in their schools so they can learn, grow, and build lasting relationships. We also know that social media can both inspire and amplify hateful rhetoric while extending the reach of harmful messages far beyond a single incident, increasing anxiety and contributing to the environments where students may feel less secure and less connected, impacting their sense of security and their ability to learn. The incident is under investigation and will be addressed appropriately. While privacy laws prevent discussion of specific students or disciplinary matters, we would like to emphasize that we take all threats seriously. This board remains committed to fostering learning environments that reflect our

060shared values of respect, dignity, safety, and belonging for all students and staff. Thank you. >> Motion to approve the consent agenda. >> Second. Please cast your vote, Miss Healey. Motion passes six to one. >> Yes. >> Oh, yes. >> It passes unanimously. >> Okay. Um, Dr. Smith. Any do we have any announcements? And >> yes, we have one this evening. I'd like to uh take the take a moment to recognize Miss Lisa Montgomery who will be joining the North Stafford High School administrative team as the director of athletics and activities. So, if Miss Montgomery will please come forward, >> Dr. Smith, >> thank you. Just one second. Miss Montgomery brings a wealth of leadership experience to the Wolverines. Her career in athletic administration began in 2007 as an assistant athletic director, followed by four years

061as the director of athletics and facilities coordination. She further expanded her expertise as the district assistant director for Minneapolis public schools and joins us most recently from her role as assistant athletic director at the Arsenal Technical High School where she's been for the past two years. Miss McGomery holds a bachelor of science and rehabilitation services from University of Maryland Eastern Shore and a master of science in athletic training with emphasis on sports management from the University of Tennessee Chattanooga. She also has completed a certification in radiography from High-Tech Institute in Orlando, Florida. Miss Montgomery was teacher of the year nominee in 2017 and was the Orange County Public Schools athletic director of the year in 2223 school year. Congratulations and welcome to team staff for Miss Montgomery. Thank you, Dr. Smith, board members, and Dr.

062Turner. I'm excited to serve as the director of athletics and activities at North Stafford High School. I look forward to fostering an environment where students can compete with excellence while growing as leaders, teammates, and outstanding citizens. I am committed to supporting and leading our coaches and empowering them to grow as educators and mentors who will positively impact our student athletes. So, thank you, >> Madam Chair. That's all the administrative appointments for this evening. >> Thank you, Dr. Smith. Um, we'll move on to board reports. Let me start with Miss Fingerholes in the Finance and Budget Committee. Yep. We just met. Um we talked about the third quarter financial update and the year end projections which we're actually going to see here in just a little bit. There is also an offer to place um cell

063phone towers in the general area of Colonial Forge. Some of the positives would be to improve cell service and the bus tracking app service um throughout that area. There would be a very small yearly compensation. Um the board has previously declined it. So, at this point right now, we've asked for past data on why we declined it, also the proposed contracts, the plat um for the different locations they're interested in, and then we're going to look at it a little bit closer, and it'll come back to us probably in the fall. Um, as a whole board, uh, student meal debt is quite substantial for our district. So, staff has looked at any trends where anything spiked. Um, and we see spikes at the transitions between like elementary to middle school and then middle school to

064high school. So, we'll see what we do with that information. And then um we are going to be joining the July 1 cohort for switching from board docs to community. The board does not need to vote on this. Um staff preferred that we started with July because the company works on transitioning the data over for about the first three weeks and then um the company will do training for us and for staff um individually after after they transfer all that information over and then the billing will also align with our fiscal year. So, we opted to do that without adding some optional um things of closed captioning because that's done through our media company currently and our committee sites because we don't currently use those. So, we figured we'd save that money and we can

065add them later um if we are so interested. So, that's about it. >> Thank you. You're welcome. >> Um Dr. Chase, anything from governance or Head Start? Nothing to report. Thanks. >> Thank you, Miss Randall. anything from legislative or um ATI. I would like to thank you for conducting the meeting with we met with all of our legislative uh legislators for the our district in uh for a debrief and Miss Randall will be sharing. >> Thank you. Um for the um ATI, we had our last meeting of the year. Well, our next one will be in July. Um it was the first time that we got to recognize a student group that had earned second place and so in their first time trying to compete with schools that have been competing for years. So we

066were super excited to um share that information and have an opportunity to recognize some pretty cool kids. Um, and we voted on personnel, but we have, I think, a couple more positions yet to fill there. Um, and we are in the throws still of our strategic plan. Um, we come together with it at the end of July. So, that's where we are. And legislative, we did not have a meeting, but as Dr. Warner said, we did have a legislative debrief. And I would very much like to let everyone know that um this was the first time that we had all five members of our Senate and delegate come um come together to discuss some of our concerns that we had during session obviously budget um but also just some of the other things that are

067coming down the pike and how it directly affects Stafford. Um it was a very good conversation and um we liked each other at the end enough to take a picture together so it went well. Um but we will start again this fall with our um legislative summit where we bring again our priorities to our delegation um to represent us down in Richmond. So, we're very fortunate that our board is very involved and our senate and our delegates um all showed up and gave us their time and attention. We really appreciate that. >> Thank you. Moving on to our winter athletic achievements recognitions. >> Chair Warner, I just our our athletes, our student athletes are not here yet, so I might suggest that we skip over that one if you don't mind and okay >> see

068if they show up a little bit later. We can come back to that if that's >> presentation of mental health award awareness month. >> Good evening school board members and Dr. Smith. May is mental health awareness month which has been celebrated each May since 1949. In celebration of mental health awareness month, the board will recognize the counseling director Steven Carroll, please come forward. Psychologist Alli Marcus, counselor Kimberly Green Herbert, and social worker Rebecca Ganoway of Mountain View High School. Will you please join us at the podium? These professionals play a critical role in supporting students every day, helping them navigate academic pressures, personal challenges, and social emotional needs. Their work often happens quietly, but its impact is significant and lasting across the school community. It is important now more than ever to recognize that mental

069health is an essential component of overall health and well-being and that mental health conditions are common, treatable, and deserving of the same intention and care as physical health. Their efforts help ensure that students are seen, supported, and connected to the resources they need to thrive. Thank you. Oh, we're gonna take a picture really quickly. We're proud to recognize members of our Stafford County Public Schools team who have achieved one of the highest distinctions in their profession. National Board Certification is widely regarded as the gold standard in education and school health services, reflecting a strong commitment to excellence, continuous improvement, and student centered practice. Those who earn this distinction demonstrate advanced knowledge, refined skills, and a dedication to making meaningful impact. Tonight, we're honored to recognize the following individuals. As I call your name, please come

070forward. Elise Sakura, a teacher at Rodney Thompson Middle School, has earned the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards Certification. Abigail Raymond, a school nurse at AG Wright Middle School, has earned nationally certified school nurse. And Maria Sykes Defilipe, school nurse at Garrisonville Elementary School, has earned a nationally certified school nurse distinction. These individuals exemplify the very best of Stafford schools and their dedication and professionalism bring great pride to our division. On behalf of the school board and Stafford County Public Schools, we extend our sincere congratulations. Next we have our report from diversity, equity and inclusion committee. Can I use this? >> Okay. >> Well, first let me thank the board for this opportunity to speak to you on behalf of our um diversity, equity, and inclusion committee. I also want to recognize any committee members

071who might be here tonight. We have any here in the audience tonight. Thank you for coming. Appreciate that. All right. So, the board the committee has been um fully engaged since February uh addressing issues, concerns that we see uh based on data, based on methodology and things of that nature. Um but one thing that we do want to make sure that we understand and communicate to the board as well um is that we're fully aware of our our northstar here of things that we need to look at uh and as far as our pathways are going forward to um the guidance that's been given to us by u the board here. So under plan number two supporting the high expectations for academic performance and expand opportunities for every student is something that we keep in

072the back of our heads as we go through this journey together. and also the charge of the board as well focused on improving education performance and outcomes for all students and focus on continuous improvement of minority ma ma mathematics and literacy achievement as well. Uh since February, we have been looking at um several documents, several data points if you will to kind of see where we are as a committee on things that we want to bring up as far as concerns, reviews, provide feedback, recommendations for. So some of the things have been uh the data and student achievement by student groups also the data of application enrollment and secondary op offerings. We then took this these uh information. We took these documents and we went we went a little step further and we looked at

073uh students at a staff at a glance. We looked at the overall uh student attend student achievement data overall by students uh set offerings uh training information as well. Uh we also looked at received data application enrollment and secretary offense as well. from this data. Uh, as a group, we've we've talked about it for the last couple of months, and we do have five areas of concern or review that we're taking a a deeper dive in, uh, to ensure that we can provide you with the best feedback we can as possible. Uh, understanding the fact too that we've only been a committee for only three months. So recommendations are not here tonight for you, but we plan to have some for you in the future as we go forward and dive a little bit deeper

074into these categories. U so we'll start with achievement gaps. We looked at the data of SL testing from 2001 to 2024. Uh we noticed some things in there. Uh student staffer passes rate for all students was around 60 rose from 61 to 68% uh over these these these three years. but remain at the state average of but remain below I'm sorry of the state average of 71%. Uh we also noticed too when looking at these achievement gaps um amongst our English link English learners that significant trailing at a 39% rate uh was a rate between years 23 and 24. And when it comes to our student with disabilities are currently at a 41% passing rate for 23 24 school year. Uh and when it comes to reading the the distance had a 72 the the

075district had a 72% overall pass rate. However, the gap of students with disability students was 42% for the year school year 23 24. Um and then the division had a rate for English English learners at 33%. That's the same year which was uh which was which in line with the state uh passing rate when it came to our applications for specialy centers and secondary programs. Uh the way that we're looking at this specific uh point right here is that it seems to be a very positive program that we have here. Um amongst the business and IT uh centers, there's 133 students who enrolled in it. Amongst our medical professions, it's 189. Amongst our engineering and construction, it's 141 students. Amongst our leadership and public service is 161 students. So we're looking at from a point

076of okay, well, how can we better maybe uh provide outreach, communication about this wonderful programs that we have to hopefully get more students involved with this type of um specialized centers that we offer in the uh in our schools. Going down to our early early um literacy and language barriers as you know early is a key factor to long-term success. uh the current classification of EL which is English learning students um is at high risk underscores necessary for target uh invocations to figure out what's going on with that area. Uh we also noticed too based on the data that we've been reviewing as well uh that we have seen an increase 39% increase uh when it comes to the worldass instructional design and assessment. uh we went from to 3,56 uh between 2024 of this

077assessment in this test. Um our next point that we have for review for us that we're looking take a deeper dive in uh dive into is our high chronic expertise. Um we had 17% between the school year 23 24 to 25 uh of students were missing um 10% or more um of school. Um, breaking that down as far as groups, um, it was 23% of Hispanic students, 26% of students with disabilities, 23 of, um, economically discharged disadvantaged folks, excuse me, and 22% of English learners. U so we're definitely looking at this and trying to figure out what is the recommendations figure we know feedback we can provide to you guys uh how we can maybe um curve this um going going into the the future. And then our last bullet here where it talks about

078specific groups. Uh we're taking bullet point four as an example and diving a little bit deeper into it um and trying to understand the economic impacts of what this truly means when it comes to trends for specific groups. So for example, our Hispanic groups, students with disabilities, uh economic disadvantaged students, English learners all show high chronic expertise rates um which we know is a economic or academic uh impact. So we want to take that uh data that we see do a deeper dive into it and figure out is there any recommendations fe feedback we can provide to you uh in upcoming um upcoming months. So, long story short, the the board or the committee has been working hard for the last three months, uh, trying to find our northstar, trying to figure out what we

079want to identify, try to work on, and hopefully in the future to bring you some feedback and concerns or some feedback recommendations for you uh in the in the near future. So, on that note, I will take any questions that you may have. >> Thank you. Do um any questions? Um, definitely thanks for putting this together. I know it's not exactly a long time between when we gave you the instructions and then you're here to to report. So, it sounds like you guys are going to be sorting through a lot of stuff and um really appreciate that. So, thank you. >> Well, thank you. Thank you for your time. >> I just want to quickly say that I sit on the committee with the DA and um I am happy that we actually were able

080to pull this information together uh thanks to Dr. Bush. I don't see her here tonight. >> Yeah, she's not here. >> Okay. Um, so it was a little struggle for a second. So, I appreciate uh Mr. Scott um taking the initiative and um volunteering to be chair and to take this data. And I know that he's been working pretty hard with Dr. Bush so that we can bring or that they could bring something here to the board. But definitely, as he said, we're looking for a little bit more um information so that we could bring it and make it a little bit more uh usable, more beneficial to the board and to the community. So, thank you uh Mr. Scott. >> Thank you. >> I just want to say thank you. I think especially now

081it's clear that we need to make sure that we're providing adequate resources to all students so they can all achieve their potential. and I look forward to hearing your recommendations. >> Well, thank you for your time. Thank you to the wonderful committee members who uh come every month and meet and talk about these type of issues and concerns and have a great summer. >> Thank you, >> Mr. Fulmore. Our third quarter financial update. >> Yes, ma'am. Good evening board members. So always um uh first of all looking at third quarter but also projecting to the end of the year. So um kind of as we approach um kind of that fourth quarter, the year end is really what we're targeting to make sure we um always end the year in the in the green um

082and keep all of us and all of you out of trouble. Uh so when we look at our enrollment numbers uh specifically and we look at these um obviously we track them for staffing and some other needs but also it impacts our state funding pretty directly. Um and so since the beginning of the year we've actually had a drop in students of 163 students. Um, as you know, we were short of our original projections and our ADM from what was budgeted um to updated has also dropped and that has an um impact on our state budget of about $4.5 million decrease over what we had originally budgeted. Um 4.4 is is basic aid and about $119,000 decrease in the sales tax projection. When we look at all of our revenues um and take them into

083account, it's about a three and a half million dollar shortfall. So you see uh the roughly 4.5 4.6 in the state revenue shortfall. Um are projecting um a slight increase in our federal. So we know that we had a Medicaid increase at the end of last year of about um a little over $2 million. Not quite projecting that full $2 million this year. Uh looking right now based on some of the reports that we received from them is going to be just shy of a million dollar increase over budget. So still positive news. Um we have been um talking to talking to them and discussing because they're I'm kind of reanalyzing all of their Medicaid numbers. Uh and so originally I think at the mid year the number might have been slightly higher. It's been

084adjusted down a little bit. Um don't expect it to drop too much lower. Um so overall it's it's positive. It'll be more than the what we had budgeted. Some other miscellaneous local funds of about $300,000 which gets us to the $3.5 million. Um looking at our expenditures just high level right now um I always mention this you'll see that our compensation and benefits you know this was through our third quarter but we're only at 68% that is as normal as we always have an extra payroll for part of our um employee classes um based on contract length that actually runs uh past the end of the year so there's still more than one quarter left of payroll so we'll be short of the 75% and you'll see some variation in our our other categories, but

085some exceed some are right around our 70 to 75%. And just looking a little bit more high level at our expenditures and some of where we have some savings and some increases. So, we were about $225,000 increase in legal at our midyear update. Still sitting right there around $220,000 expected uh increase for the entire year. that has leveled off uh with the resolution of some of the cases we had early on with some of our land acquisition. Um uh fleet charges and utilities overall um close to over $500,000 there. Um and where we did expect uh savings of pushing a half a million dollars and at our midyear report, I'm no longer expecting savings on our fuel lines now. So with the increase in the fuel prices, uh those savings have evaporated. We have some

086other known department savings that we've been tracking of about $250,000, but I do want to note we um have we have spending deadlines and and cut offs at the end of the year. So uh we um over the years have tried to move that later and later to give our our schools and departments more time to spend. Uh but it's currently at April 30th. So we've now passed that and so now we are starting to analyze that. I don't have an update on that. What I do know and and expect that that savings that we'll see overall on the on the left side of $4 million, I expect that to um trickle up a little bit higher. Um we expect additional savings from our departments and schools. Um in any budget, we're not going to

087spend every dollar of our expenditures. You're always going to have some additional savings until the spending cut off. And then we what we um our next steps are is we reach out to the departments and we start pulling back some of their funds out of their departments and we put it into our contingency account and hold it there. Um now if they still have additional emergency purchases or needs that come up, they can request those funds back and we work with them to make those purchases. So not all spending is cut off. We are still projecting uh $3.3 million in savings on our comp and benefits. I'm going to jump into that a little bit further as we move ahead because it's going to it's also tied to our our health benefits. Looking at our

088fueling uh fuel comparison and uh this is a similar chart that we saw well with FAB C a couple months ago when we started looking our our gas and diesel prices but we did update it through April 16th. We saw a small uptick um during April up to 300 or $326 a gallon. Uh, and for those that are listening that did not hear the prior presentation, we actually get a a discount. It's usually about a dollar less than what you would see at the gas pumps, but overall it has a 70% increase since January. For diesel, we still saw an 80% increase even though it has dropped a little bit uh in the month of April. So, it is down to $429 a gallon. So overall when we look at the operating fund for um

089we know we have a shortfall of revenue overall of three and a half million expected savings of four million. So we're sitting at a surplus of half a million dollars. This is very close. I will you know reiterate what I said a few minutes ago is we do expect that the savings to come up. Uh I think the number is a little bit low right now. We just I want to be conservative and show you what we know we have at at savings right now and assuming our revenue doesn't change drastically from the state. Sales tax projections seem to be in line at this point. We don't see great fluctuations there. Uh so we're going to continue to closely monitor this. Um and I'll report back to you. Uh we do come back in in

090June to approve a a year-end funding list. I don't expect that to be a significant list. Uh but we still want to provide it to you in case there are additional funds. Um also point out that the 0.5 does not include we're supposed to carry over a million dollars into next year's budget. So I really need to be at at least about a million dollars of a carryover to fund um kind of next year's budget or or we end up in a little bit of a hole there. Uh want to look at some of our other funds uh very quickly. Nutrition just looking at the year-end projection projecting a loss of a million. um that was expected and planned because we're purchasing equipment with funds from uh that accumulated in prior years. So, it was

091a planned um that expenditures would exceed our revenues. Um also something that we're monitoring on the nutrition side is um with working with Mr. Williams and maybe limiting some of those capital purchases just because of the days of schools that we missed this year. uh they would see a loss in revenue uh in any of those days that we're not in service um and don't have students in school. They're obviously not taking a lunch or a breakfast and then we do not get our federal reimbursement from that, but we are still paying labor for those days. Uh on the fleet side, once again, it's a similar story. We did a fleet bay expansion there for what we used to have as some storage space. Uh we did an expansion there that was approved by the

092board and that was about a $300,000 investment and that um fleet bay is up and running for the last several months. Starting on the right, workers comp, you'll see that that is a deficit of 1.1 million projected for the this year. We did transfer out funds from that to cover our health benefits fund deficit. So that is tracking with the $1.2 million that we transferred out. health benefits. Um, a little bit of a positive and I have a couple more slides on that as well. Uh, even with the transfers that we made in there, so we transferred about $7 million from our health benefits workers comp funds into our health benefits fund. Um, and those funds are are those that transfer is included in the $51.4 million revenue there. So, currently projecting a surplus of

093$2.4 million. And when we came up with the $7 million transfer, we knew it was close, but maybe a little bit of buffer in case those expenditures um continued to rise. Uh but as we've continued to track them this year, we've been um kind of pleasantly surprised that maybe we're seeing a little bit of a positive trend. This is just a recap of where we pulled those funds from. We also, it also includes a $2.5 million from the OPIP trust transfer. Uh so this is kind of just putting that into a uh graph form where our FY26 projection is on the far right. So the red uh is demonstrating the fund transfers that we have in with the black line is our total projected expenditures. So you'll see that we're actually exceeding our our revenues

094are going to exceed our expenditures projected right now. And some of that is so this chart is showing um every weekly dispersement that we've had for health insurance medical claims uh since July of 2023. So it it varies overall. You'll see the trend line that it's trending up and that's what caused um us to invest additional money last year, this year and projecting for next year's budget. But I want to highlight the last um really like four months of that. Um if you'll if you notice we're kind of below the trend line for the last four months. We've seen that um dip below typically the the last kind of year we've been averaging over a million dollars on our in our weekly. So say that again weekly we've been spending a million dollars on our

095health insurance claims. Uh and that's really you know looking more like in the $850 to $900,000 range um on average over the the last several months. So um and we looked at that and started to compare it to what did that look like for the same time period last year and we didn't see a drastic drop. In fact, some of the spikes that you see here are in that same time period. And so, we're hoping that this trend continues for the rest of this year and maybe some into next year. Uh that we'll we'll keep that positive trend and maybe not see the increases that we um have seen the last, you know, year and a half to two years in our in our health benefit expenditures. Any questions overall on health insurance otherwise? Dr.

096Chase. So, um, one question was, uh, K12 enrollment. Um, and on slide number two, you show the change is 163. Um, but if I look at what we were actually projecting, it looks like it's more like 833. Is that correct? >> For total enrollment. Yeah. >> For total enrollment. And so that that makes more sense to me in terms of how you get to a $4.5 million shortfall. Um it seems 163 might not be quite enough, but 833 would seem like like an entire school. >> Yeah. So if you which is why I showed the ADM numbers, too. So our ADM number, the updated number of 30,900 just shy of 31,000 is what our state funding is actually calculated off of. than that 30,979 comes directly from the most recent calc tool from the state.

097So that gives us our best um projection for our >> ADM just for for people looking at that 163 we actually had a substantially more of a reduction in the number of students than what we expected. So, >> yes, ma'am. Exactly right. Yeah, I was trying to highlight that even with falling short at September 30th enrollment, we've continued to to decline, not quite at the same rate. You know, usually we've ticked up. It's not unusual to see some drops later in the year as we have some mid-year graduates and and some other shifts, but something that we're still monitoring closely. >> And then I just wanted to note that um typically we're hoping that that you will have one to three% of the budget left over at the end of the year. That's what sort

098of the industry standard is. Uh four million is less than 1%. So just to just to kind of >> Yes. >> remind everybody of that. And then um I did not realize so nutrition is allowed to carry over h have a fund balance from one year to the next. Is that something? Because I I had thought everything zeroed out every year but is that so >> separate because of the federal funding. >> Yeah. So it's a separate fund and it it does roll. they maintain their funds. However, we um have to report those numbers to the state and they put us we basically have to submit a plan for spending it down because they don't want us to withhold our federal dollars. Um it's really meant to go back into the nutrition program. And so

099we are allowed to use it on all of our equipment and needs in the kitchen. And so we propose a plan to the state of of updating some of that equipment. Uh and and we've been doing that over the last two years. we really have kind of had a larger surplus in our nutrition fund since um the since COVID. Um and so each year we've been spending it down a little by little. We didn't want to spend it all, you know, several million dollars all in one year. So trying to spread that out. Uh and then just over the kind of the last three or four months have slowed some of the capital expenditures down until we see how we're doing at the end of the year based on the week plus that we missed

100of school. And and as always, thank you for doing your best to make sure that we end in the in the black rather than the red. >> Absolutely. >> Any other questions? Miss Randall, Miss Healey? >> Um, mine was also about the nutrition, but you answered it. So, thank you. >> Thank you. >> Hearing no additional questions, we will move on to citizen comments. Oh, student rep reports. I'm sorry. I took notes on your p your slot. Taa and Kesh and Sappi. We really need to invest in a bigger podium. I'm not going to lie. >> Oh, right here. >> Oh my god. Okay. >> Did that just for you. >> Really? Oh my god. Thank you guys. All right. Good afternoon, Madam Chair, fellow schoolboard members, Dr. Smith, and members of the community. This

101month, your student representatives had the opportunity to participate in so many wonderful opportunities. To start off, we had the opportunity to attend the April 16th joint work session with the board of supervisors. For anyone unable to attend, this meeting provided vital insight and discussion from the board of supervisors on the FY27 budget request. We were able to give the board of supervisor advisors insight into some of the real world experiences that we had and show truly how important quality teachers are to students. Directly after that, we recorded a mini skit with a member of our studentled media team to promote the VSBA scholarship essay. This was such a fun experience and gave us the opportunity to be creative and yet still be able to connect with students in a relatable and engaging way. This was

102posted on our student rep Instagram account which you can follow at students of Stafford. I would also like to express how appreciative we were to attend the legislative debrief on April 30th. This meeting brought together delegates, legislators, and many other dedicated individuals who worked to represent the districts of the districts and the state of Virginia as a whole. It was an incredible opportunity to hear the different perspectives, engage in conversations, and better understand the work being done to support students and the communities across the Commonwealth. It was truly a pleasure to provide our input, and ensure that student voices were included in those discussions. One of my favorite moments from the entire meeting were the talks that we had after the fact. While these conversations were a little less formal, they made them feel that

103much more real. Also, the picture at the end was pretty cool. As I begin to close off my report, the last thing I would like to say is just how grateful I am for the amazing board that I stand in front of. As student representatives, we are thrown smack dab in the middle of one of the more brain intensive parts of the year, budget season. While there were definitely many statistics, heavy discussions, and late nights involved, your patience, support, and willingness to include students voices throughout the process made the experience incredibly enjoyable and something that I will look back and say, "Oh, that's that. Sorry. Oh, now I understand why adults love coffee so much." Well, that's enough for me. I would like to now pass the mic off to thank you Sophie. As we

104begin wrapping up the school year, I want to recognize the incredible hard work the students across Stafford County have put in throughout the school year. This time of year can feel especially overwhelming with AP testing, SOS, final exams, projects, athletics, performances, preparing for graduation and the transition into the new school year. Despite all of those pressures, students continue to show resilience, determination, and the ability to push through the final week strong. I also want to recognize our teachers, staff, and school administrators for the continued support they provide students during one of the busiest seasons of the year. Whether it's staying after school for tutoring, hosting so blast, or just creating additional learning opportunities for students, those efforts truly do make a difference. Many students genuinely appreciate the encouragement, patience, and care they receive from adults

105supporting them every day. Additionally, we continue to make progress with our student representative Instagram and outreach efforts. Our goal is to create a space that helps students stay informed, connected, and engaged with opportunities both inside and outside of school. We want students to have access to important information regarding leadership opportunities, scholarships, student involvement, community events, resources, and updates happening across the county. As we continue to build our Instagram platform, our focus remains the same on making some this something that students can genuinely use, trust, and rely on. I also want to briefly highlight how grateful we were to attend our first gold star gala. It was an incredible opportunity to be surrounded by so many dedicated individuals who helped make Stafford County Public Schools successful. Having the opportunity to MC and experience the event allowed

106us to see firsthand the amount of collaboration, commitment, and behindthe-scenes work that goes into supporting students every single day. More importantly, it reinforced the importance of having students, educators, staff, and community leaders all working together towards the same goals. While there are so many positive things happening, I want to acknowledge the fear, concern, and uncertainty many students felt during the threats and hateful graffiti connected to May 20th. As someone who walks those halls every day, I understand why the situation affected so many people, especially students who felt personally targeted by the language and symbols that were used. No student should ever feel unsafe, unwelcome, or anxious about coming to school. While I appreciate the quick response from min from administration, Stafy officials, and law enforcement, I also know that rebuilding a sense of comfort and

107trust takes time. I want students to know that your voices, concerns, and emotions surrounding this situation were heard and taken seriously. As we move into summer and begin preparing for a new school year, we also want students to remember that your student representatives are still available as a resource. Students can continue reaching out to us through email with concerns, ideas, questions, or anything they believe we should be aware of. Even outside the school year, we want to continue hearing student voices so we can keep advocating for solutions, improvements, and opportunities that benefit students across Stafford County. Feel free to reach out to us at schoolboard studentrepc.net. And as I close out tonight's report and begin closing out another successful school year, we encourage students to finish strong, continue supporting one another, and take pride in

108everything they have accomplished this year. While there is always more work to be done, we are continuing to move in the right direction together. Thank you to our students, teachers, staff, families, administrators, and community members for the role each of you play in making Stafford County Public Schools a place where students feel supported, connected, represented, and able to thrive. Thank you. Thank you Tao and Sopi. Moving on to citizen comments. Three minutes are allocated to each speaker or group. Speakers shall identify themselves by name and organization affiliation if the spokesperson person represents an organization. Speakers shall also announce the purpose or topic of their comment. Citizen comment which is profane, abusive, or which threatens imminent physical harm shall be ruled out of order by the chairperson. Individuals who would like to address the schoolboard meeting

109during this the meetings are asked to sign up in advance. Miss Hall, >> Madam Chair, there are 14 individuals who are signed up. The first will be Ken Wilson, Robert Jet, and Steven Rossi. Good evening. My name is Ken Wilson. I am the automotive instructor at North Stafford High School. And I would like to address the board this evening with a concern that I have, that our staff has, that our community has, and that a lot of our business partners have in Stafford County. And that is the closing of the auto body and collision course at Northstepford High School. Thank you again for letting me speak on this topic tonight. I've been teaching now for the past 15 years. Prior to my current position, I was a diesel technician, an automotive business owner, and first

110and first and foremost, I was a CTE completer in the auto tech program in 1989 at Stafford High School. The auto body program at North Stafford has suffered many years in my opinion from lack of promotion, misunderstanding, and poor support from our administration who do not understand its value, its offerings, and its capabilities. I have rallied at the school level with other teachers to encourage our guidance department and our administration to help promote the class and have even provided strategies and a continuation proposal which I will leave for your review if you don't mind. This course is still in jeopardy and the reason being it stated is a lack of students. We own this space. It's in our building. It's been used. We own the equipment. We don't have to purchase any new equipment. We

111simply need a change. We need a chance to regroup and rebrand. The auto body course is recognized by the Virginia Department of Education for offering a high demand industry credential, which is now a graduation requirement for all students. In my auto techch class for the 2024 2025 school year, we successfully passed 139 of these tests. 139 of these tests which helped 24 of my students graduate and become even more desirable to local employers. I know a student I know a CTE completer who has gone on to be an ER doctor in Fairfax County. I know a student CTE completer again who wanted to be an MRI tech in Col Pepper County. I know a student CTE completer who went on to be a heavy equipment technician. And I know a student, a CTE completer, who

112moved from Spennsylvania to Stafford County to live with his dad because he believed so much in the horiculture program at North Stafford High School and its teacher that it was worth his while to do this. He has gone on to build his own greenhouse on his own land and he's looking to pursue higher education at NOVA for greenhouse management. I know these students because they're my kids. These are my children. Thank you, Stafford County Public Schools, for offering my children this opportunity. You gave them a class. You gave them a path. You gave them a future. And they took advantage of this. In closing, I would like to respectfully request at this time that before any more CT programs face termination, >> I'm afraid your time is up. >> Thank you. Good evening. I am

113Robert Jet, lifelong resident of Stafford County and 1985 graduate of Stafford High School. I'm here to encourage the continuation of collision repair technology at North Stafford High School. This auto body repair program opened with the school in 1981 as part of its career and technical education department. I was a sophomore at Stafford in 1982 when I enrolled in my first CTE class, drafting one. That ranks in the all-time best decisions of my life because it resulted in a career path that included a return to my alma mater to teach drafting from 1989 to 2025. My experience as a student and teacher molded me into a devoted advocate for all career and technical education programs. CT classes teach students marketable skills and show them how to apply academic knowledge they have learned through the years such

114as geometry, chemistry, and writing. For example, eighth grade math students are taught the Pythagorean theorem of right triangles. But how many can name a practical use for it? CTE students in construction, engineering, or automotive related classes can answer that. They use it routinely to check the squareness of a wall, a frame, or a suspension component. Applying knowledge to learn a skill is integral to all CTE classes, as is developing leadership ability and professional conduct in the work workplace. If these classes are eliminated, the school system loses a vital asset and link to the community. While North Stafford's collision repair technology program is included in in the program of studies, the instructor's position has been vacant since December, but is still not posted on the county school's employment web page. Why delay posting it? Considering the

115average salary for an auto body repair technician in Virginia is almost $72,000 and that Maryland, Northern Virginia, and DC are the country's highest paying localities for auto body repair techs, it may be challenging to find applicants willing to accept an annual pay cut of 5 to$15,000 to begin a teaching career. Is low enrollment why the position is not posted? That's a common reason for program closures, which is neither fair nor valid in this case, because a new instructor deserves time to recruit students, plan lessons, develop activities, which in turn will stimulate student interest in enrollment. The program of study states that goal one for Stafford schools is ensure meaningful post-secary outcomes for every student prepared for life after graduation. Prove your commitment to that statement by continuing to offer North Stafford's collision repair classes, thereby

116giving our future students the opportunity to learn a lifelong skill with the attributes of professionalism and promise of community leadership. Thank you. >> Good evening, members of the board. My name is Steve Rossy. I am the horiculture teacher at the world's greatest high school in North Stafford. I say that with a lot of pride because I'm a 1985 graduate of that high school. My family moved to Stafford County 43 years ago. So this is my home. I am a CTE teacher. To me, that is nothing more than the highest calling I could have ever answered in my life. I came from industry to accept this position. It's the hardest job I've ever had. Uh I love what I do. I support CTE teachers because I think it's really important for what we do for the

117kids. We're teaching these kids a lot of stuff. We're teaching them skills that they're not learning in the English history science classes. Those are amazing and awesome classes. I don't want to discount them. But what we teach, we teach life skills. We just like Mr. Jet said, Pythagoreans theorem. A squ B whatever C^ squ I don't know what that is. I know what three I know what uh the 345 is. Three foot, four foot, five foot. It's a right square. We use it when we build a patio. It's the same thing. We just we take what math teaches and we apply it. We show kids how to use it. I'm supportive of all the programs we have in our building. I hate to see any of them leave. But I want to jump on Mr.

118Full Fuller was talking about money. I'm going to jump on a little bit of money, too. Just I want to bring you guys up to speed on what I'm doing. Over the last couple weekends, we made over $4,000 in sales in our plant sale. All that money goes directly back into my program where I'm able to offer opportunities to my students. Took them to the state fair. I took them to Maymont. And I took them to a commercial greenhouse in Orange to see a commercial greenhouse in operation to understand some of the things that are happening in industry. Sorry, I got to look at my notes too. Uh but CTE, we connect real learning to real life. We increases our student engagement and confidence. I have three young ladies that join me tonight. Those girls

119represented my program. They talked to people who came to our plant sale. They went to the airport event the other day and they represented my program. They were able to build confidence talking to people and developing relationships. That's that confidence building that God's going to carry with them in life as they move on to other things. Apologize. Uh just on a side note also I've received a $10,000 grant from friends of Rapahhanic for planting trees in our parking lot which I've accomplished already. I've received two $3,000 grants from Trans Urban for planting uh doing landscape plantings at our school. We've been doing one in our main parking lot. The other one we did a perennial park uh perennial garden. Um I'm working with the friends of Rapper right now on a very large grant on

120an idea I had for some learning spaces. It's in its initial stages, but I'm working on that, talking to them. They're interested in funding it. I'm interested in designing it and building it with my kids. Uh, I'm also talking to the German food pantry and the Raphanic Educational Farm doing collaborations. I appreciate your time. CT is really important. Please keep it in our schools. Keep it keep us funded and keep us going. Thank you. The next three speakers will be Lena Kaya and Flavia Pino Born together followed by Phil Rice and then David Star. Good evening members of the Stafford County School Board. My name is Lena Kaya and I am a senior at North Stafford High School. And today I will be addressing a career and technical education class and my experience during it.

121Today I wanted to share my personal experience in a career and technical education class that has truly shaped my high school experience. Horiculture. When people look at classes with smaller enrollment numbers, it can be easy to focus on only on the statistics. But for students like me, these classes are so much more than numbers on a spreadsheet. They are places where students discover confidence, creativity, and a sense of belonging. Horiculture gave me the opportunity to learn in a hands-on environment where I could create, problem solve, and express myself in ways traditional classrooms often do not offer. Instead of simply memorizing information, we were able to actively engage with what we are learning. and that made school feel meaningful and exciting. But the impact of this class goes far beyond academics. Horiculture became a place where

122students felt comfortable being themselves. It created friendships, support systems, and a strong sense of community. In a school where students can sometimes feel disconnected, this classroom became a space where we felt seen and valued. Classes like this remind us that success looks different for every student. Not everyone learns best sitting behind a desk all day. And CTE programs give students with different strengths and passions the opportunity to thrive. For many of us, horiculture was not just another elective. It became one of the reasons we looked forward to coming to school each day. Losing programs like this would mean losing opportunities that help students grow academically, socially, and personally. While this class helped us creatively and socially, its impact goes even deeper than that. My friend here, Flavia, is going to talk more about how this

123program has shaped our personal growth and overall high school experience. Good evening everyone. My name is Fia Pñena and I'm part of the CTE student comedy for the county. For me, it became really meaningful after transfer transferring to North Stafford High School from Brook Point. Starting a new school felt a little overwhelming at first. But this class quickly became a place of comfort, creativity, and belonging. It helped me grow in a new ways that I really haven't experienced before. And it also made my high school experience like damn times better. Especially having Mr. Rossy. He's the best. Um, this class helped a lot of students discover strength and passions that they even they didn't even know they had. It reminds us that students are more than just grades and test scores. Teachers also play major

124roles in creating the environment, offering support and encouragement. But our teacher, he really spends his time to teach us and not only about school, but anything that's outside of like the world, like good things. Uh well, my time is done, but thank you for hearing us out and please just time like take time to consider keeping the CTE classes. Thank you. Hi, my name is Phil Rice and I'm here representing the Washington Metropolitan Auto Body Association. And so we've created a letter that we've written to the board. I've just given them a copy for each of you to have and review to talk about the impact that the CTE classes have on our industry. But I want to bring it to more of a of a personal uh experience. I'm a lifetime in the collision

125repair industry. I've spent over 40 years. I retired in October of 24. Um but I have worked throughout my career. I'm a Stafford High School graduate, class of 1982. Um I'm not um just graduated early. The importance of CTE in our trades today is absolutely amazing. The opportunity that we have to work with both the young men and the young women to mentor to them, to help them in the business environment, to help them with career opportunities is absolutely phenomenal. To remove the program for Northst High School, it will be a detriment to the industry. I don't know how many of you have had car repairs done in the recent years, but being able to have them done in a timely manner and done correctly for the safety of the occupants is something that we

126all strive for. So the importance of what the program does, the importance of what the teacher brings to the students. I've worked with North Stafford High School in the past. I've worked with spots of Votech. I worked with Northern Neck Career Technical Center. Worked with High School and the other program, Mr. Russ Bowling. with the NF certifications, the IICAR certifications, the industry wants to support you and we're here for you. So, we do sponsor a number of different schools in the area. So, my ask today is that you do consider the continuation of the collision repair program at North Stafford High School. Thank you. I've already >> Good evening. My My name is David Star and I'm here as Daniel's father to advocate for the appropriate level one and social skills support at Stafford Middle

127School. My main concern is least restrictive environment. Daniel is a level one student who can participate successfully in the general education setting when he has the right support. His IEP supports are meant to keep him regulated, reset, and return to the class so that he can continue to access his education with his peers. Using a level two autistic classroom is as the reset location for level one students creates a serious LR concern. A level two classroom is designated for students with different needs and may be more restrictive than what Daniel requires. If Daniel feels embarrassed, overstimulated, misplaced, or stigmatized by being sent there, he may avoid using the vital reset support all together. When that happens, the support fails and his access to education is detrimented. A reset space should help a student return to

128the general education classroom. It should not feel like a disciplinary placement, a more restrictive placement, or a setting that discourages the student from seeking help. For Daniel, the appropriate support is a level one social skills classroom in reset environment that matches his IEP in and his needs and allow him to rejoin instruction as quickly as possible. This also matters for the level two students. Their classroom should not become the default reset room for students from another program who may enter during anxiety, panic, or emotional disregulation. These students also deserve a stable, predictable learning environment. Finally, staffing levels cannot be used as the reason to reduce, merge, or relocate support in a way that places a student in a more restrictive environment or limits access to education. Staffing decisions must be built around IEP needs, not

129the other way around. Staffing cuts cannot override IEPs section 504 or ADA protections. We are asking Stafford Middle School and Stafford County Public Schools to maintain a separate and appropriate level one support setting. Avoid using the level two classroom as a reset location for level one students and ensure staffing levels are sufficient to protect least restrictive environment and access to education. I continue for one one moment only. My daughter attempted suicide in 2021 in this very school. This autism program was put in place because of her. Okay. Miss Coleman got the position in to establish this. My son is in that position. He's going to be a rising eighth grader. I do not want to do CPR on my son as I did my daughter. Thank you, Madam Chair. The next three speakers will be

130Matt Ingram, Shamgar Connors, and Andrew Weed. Hello, good evening. My name is Matt Ingram. I am the Skills USA president-elect. I will be assuming a role as president in uh July at our Bay Thai Associating Meeting. Uh I want to here to talk to you tonight about the auto body program uh at North Stafford High School. I am also the lead collision repair instructor for the state through the Virginia Association of Trade Industrial Educators. I believe in advocacy for career and technical education. I've had the opportunity in my 20-year career to advocate at the state capital, to talk to delegates, to talk to senators. I had the opportunity to go to the national capital in Washington DC and advocate for career and technical education because I know and the importance of career and technical education.

131I am a career and technical education teacher, but first and foremost, I was a career and technical education student. Um, the collision repair program is vital for this industry. This is a multibillion billion dollar a year industry. We need technicians. Technicians are needed. Look at Indeed. Look at any place that posts jobs. You see this every day. We need skilled technicians in our industry. We are a shortfall in our industry as of right now. Shortfall of almost 100,000 techs nationwide that we need the skilled labor force. Without a skilled labor force, that directly affects local economy. If you don't have a skilled labor force, who's going to do the job? It's very important that I believe in advocacy. I'm also a part of VAO Virginia Association of Counties. I sit on the education steering committee

132and I sit on the workforce development staring committee because I truly believe and I know and I see this every day in my classroom firsthand the success stories of CTE education. So advocacy last uh December I had a chance I was invited to go to Washington DC to sit with Shelley Travis while she testified. She is the Skills USA executive director and testified at a Senate hearing on the importance of career and technical education. This is important that we keep this program going. Now, we were talking about you were talking about the budget earlier. These programs can be budgeted and can be built with little to no cost to the county other than the instructor's salary. There is a collision repair education foundation. They support collision repair programs. nationwide business and industry partners, our local

133um advisory committees will support this industry. There is a Crash Champions right down the road from Northstaff High School. The CEO of Crash Champions was on Fox and Friends a couple months ago talking about this industry, talking how we need technicians. Well, where do we get the technicians from? Places like North Stafford High School. Thank you. All right. Ola attoos. That that means hello everybody. So Shamgar Connor is Hartwood District, but today I identify as someone a proud translegal transhispanic advocate for Stafford school board policies or now first off my massive thanks to Stafford for respecting whatever identity I slap on today. Per policy 2420-P, my gender, my ethnicity, my legal status, they all have to be affirmed. Or you're a literal evil, racist, homophobic bigot. No debate. My truth is your command. Now my

134backstory is tragic. My bigoted doctor assigned me white at birth, but I identify as transhispanic. Aba Larasa Olay. Then my bigoted government assigned me citizen, but I identify as translegal. Transhispanic and translegal rights are human rights. Now, let's get to the important policy here. After the Fairfax story was just in the news, we all need to celebrate Stafford's identical rules. So, this is what happened in Fairfax. 19-year-old 11th grader Israel Flores Ortiz was convicted on nine of 12 counts of groping minor young girls as young as 13. When he asked, he said he did it for fun. The judge gave him 360 days in jail. The lawyer only asked for nine. Meanwhile, that white couple that had said the nword at the black kid's birthday party got 20 years. Two-tiered justice never looks so fair.

135But here in Stafford, it's the same deals thanks to here's the Virginia code. Virginia code 22.1-5-d ESL students who show up after age 12 can stay in high school until they're basically 23. Now, we've already got over 3,800 ESL students and so many that we hired 36 new ESL teachers last year, which was in the budget. Now, the exact number, if you ask how many are legal, Stratford shenan says, "We don't know." Perfect. We need way more. Borders are evil and racist. Just like our school board bravely says, many people did say, "Happy Indigenous Persons Day instead of Columbus Day because we're all in stolen land." Uh, except the brand new arrivals last week. They're just as American as anyone else, obviously. Now, parents, be thrilled. Your 13 and 14year-olds get to experience daily cultural

136enrichment sitting next to 20-year-old men, grown men every day. Now, that's not creepy. That's diversity. And diversity just isn't our strength. It's our strategy. Plus, since we can't validate these students birthdays, they can lie about their age. That's why there's allegedly a female Muslim student at Colonial Forge right now who might be pushing 40. Peak conclusion. Also, parent, remember parents that your students with disabilities and IPS cannot attend school after they turn 21. But these non-English-speaking newcomers, they get priority over to your children. Sorry about it. Now, why the push for this simple funding? Stafford gets about $16,000 per enrolled student from state federal taxes. More bodies equals more cash. I know we're worried about the budget for next year. So my modest proposal is that we import 1 billion illegals in Stafford next year.

137That way we can open even our own Somalian learing daycarees whatever it takes. And we know there's no limit to how many illegal immigrants come to the country. Okay. Gracias Stafford. Keep up the amazing work. Viva Leverad Madam Chair as Mr. is coming forward. I'll call the next three. Zachary Short, Mark Brooklowski, and the Davis family. Good evening, Dr. Smith and members of the school board. My name is Andrew Weed, the director of orchestras and guitar ensembles at North Stafford High School. I'm here tonight as the head of our performing arts department to speak about the incredible legacy of North Stafford's choir program and why it's crucial to preserve it as a full-time position. Our choir teacher, Mr. Short, is finishing his first year with Stafford County. Despite him being brand new here, he has

138done incredible work to take an already superior program to the next level. They earned the highest possible ratings at this year's state assessment, produced all Virginia level vocalists, and have traveled to various schools and universities to perform and recruit. We have teachers at North who were a part of this choir program as students. Everyone I know who has heard this choir has said incredible things about them and they see the hard work that has been put in. It is clear that Mr. Short is going above and beyond just preserving this program. He's giving students opportunities for better futures through networking and making the choir the heart and soul of our school. Unfortunately, the future of our choir program is in danger. As it currently stands, Mr. Short is in jeopardy of having to take on

139both the choir and theater classes due to enrollment numbers. Ordinarily, choir classes are organized by vocal range, ability, and level of experience. This means that there are always going to be some classes that are under 15 students, especially if we're losing 500 students and not being replenished by any other school. If the number of classes are reduced, this will negatively affect the students quality of learning because Mr. Short will have to teach up to three levels of choir students in one section. This would be like putting a 9th grade algebra 1 student in an AP calculus course. It wouldn't be fair to the student or the teacher. Choir and theater are also two entirely different disciplines. Both programs have busy calendars with performances and extracurricular opportunities. As a teacher myself that runs two programs, I

140can say that making one teacher run choir and theater is logistically impossible. Both will suffer as a result of this. With so many pathway programs about to open next year, I'm willing to bet there will be several courses offered that are less than 15 students. The continued expansion of doubleblocked pathway classes has also severely reduced scheduling flexibility for students who want to participate in arts electives. Is it fair to let other teachers at other schools have these exceptions but not Mr. Short? Or worse yet, are we about to cut classes across the board and affect the livelihood of countless teachers? I ask that you please provide an exception to allow classes with less than 15 students. It is simply not fair that the choir classes are growing, but the program is being reduced for reasons

141out of our control. Education cannot be a game of numbers. It should always be about the quality of instruction. We are lucky to have a teacher as qualified as Mr. Short growing a legendary choir program that stands on the shoulders of Mrs. Long, Mrs. Tranlebach, Mrs. Bruno, and beyond. It would be a shame to see our county continue to hemorrhage the best, hardest working teachers I've personally met. Thank you for your time this evening. Good evening, members of the board, Dr. Smith and staff. My name is Zach Short and I serve as the director of coral activities at North Stafford High School. This is my first year in Stafford County. I came here from Spennsylvania with tremendous excitement, optimism, and pride for the opportunity to lead and grow a high school program here in Stafford.

142I genuinely believe in the future of this division, its students, and its performing arts programs. However, I would be dishonest if I was not if I was not deeply frustrated and concerned right now. After only one year of building relationships, recruiting students, rebuilding momentum, and investing countless hours into growing no Norse Coral program, we are now facing the possibility that classes with fewer than 15 students may not be allowed to run next year without direct approval from central office. The ensembles currently in jeopardy are not failing programs. They are advanced chamber level ensembles that based on historical data have not exceeded 15 students in nearly 10 to 12 years. They're not designed to ensembles of this caliber rely on balance, independence, precision, and musical rigor that are simply not practical in large numbers. These groups

143happen to be the very ensembles that were invited to perform as the feature ensemble at Virginia State University's fall concert only months after my arrival at North Stafford and participated in a world premiere performance at the University of Mary Washington under the direction of Dr. Chris Ryder, a valued partner of Stafford County Public Schools. These are not struggling classes. They are successful students doing exceptional work. What makes this even more difficult is that North Stafford is the only high school in our county projected to lose students during redistricting and not receive any from our neighbors. Despite that reality and graduating a very large senior class, my coral program is still projected to grow by 11.2% after only one year. Program growth and building trust amongst a new director and his students takes time. Sometimes that

144growth requires supporting a class or two that may only have 9, 12, or 13 students while the program continues to stabilize and expand. Instead of celebrating this growth, many of us are now sitting in limbo wondering whether premier ensembles that have represented North Stafford for decades will be allowed to exist next year. Over the last several weeks, this uncertainty has created significant stress and anxiety for staff. And the suggestion that directors may be expected to merge programs, absorb impossible scheduling situations situations, or simultaneously run multiple ensembles at once is simply not sustainable for teachers or students. I will continue to do whatever is necessary for my students and my program because I believe deeply in the work and the opportunities these programs provide young people every day. But I strongly believe that the 15 student

145minimum must be seriously taken into consideration on a case-by- case basis for the coming school year. We have not suddenly gained thousands of new students across Stafford County overnight. Case in point with the presentation. Right now, we largely have the same student population being divided among six high schools instead of five. Until the community population catches up with building expansion, rigid enrollment minimums risk destabilizing successful programs and limiting opportunities for students. Tonight, I simply ask that successful programs, dedicated teachers, and students who work tirelessly to represent their schools in this county be given the support and stability they deserve. Thank you for your time. My name is Mark Blosski. I am a Stafford County resident. I am Jewish and I'm here to address what happened at Stafford High School on May 5th. On Sunday, the

146Jewish community lost Abraham Foxman, who survived the Holocaust as a child and then spent 50 years insisting that institutions name anti-semitism by name when it happened. I am here tonight to ask this board to do exactly that. not as an item on a list, not as something social media did to us, specifically by this district, by this board. On May 5th, swastikas were drawn on the walls of a bathroom at Stafford High School. The words Hitler and Kill the Jews were written. Verses from Vermacht uh marching song were written in German. A dated school violence threat was written and the line, "Don't go unless you're a Jew or non-white." That is anti-semitism. Jewish students at Stafford High School walked past that bathroom. When Jewish kids walked past those walls, the question they were left with

147was not whether anyone would clean it up. It was whether anyone would say it out loud. A swastika is not a generic threat. It is a specific threat with a specific history. And the Jewish kids in that hallway know which one of them it is for. When on when an institution refuses to name anti-semitism by its name, it tells those kids that what was done to them is interchangeable with everything else. It is not. It is part of a specific story. And that story has its own ending if it goes unchallenged. This week, a school district in Mayard, Massachusetts faced an anti-semitic graffiti incident at one of its schools. Maynard's public communications used the words anti-semitic and anti-semitism to describe what happened. Maynard is in the middle of an active investigation and named what happened.

148Anyway, if communication protocols prevented Stafford from naming anti-semitism, the protocols need to change. I am asking this board for three things. First, that Stafford students learn what anti-semitism is and where it comes from. Second, that the adults in this building, including the people sitting at this table, get the same education. And third, that this district adopt a clear standard for how it names anti-semitism when anti-semitism happens, so that Jewish students and families do not have to wonder whether the institution responsible for them is willing to say what was done to them. The same standard applied to every form of hate this community will face is how this district protects every student in it. My grandfather survived the Holocaust and his family did not. And the only pictures I ever saw of them were the ones

149a surviving sister carried out of Europe in a plastic bag. There is a ti teaching Pier K a vote. We are not obligated to complete the work, but we are not free to abandon it. Mayor named it. Stafford still hasn't. I am here tonight asking this board to be the one that finally does, especially during Jewish American Heritage Month. Thank you. Alfonso Davis is Is he here? you prefer to have time. >> That's academic. I didn't understand the sign up process, >> but we'll defer to whatever. >> No, it's fine. >> I appreciate it. Uh, Alfonso Davis. I'm a retired Marine. I'm a federal civil servant working in national security. Um, first I want you, sir, to know and the gentleman who just spoke to know that we stand with both of them for the

150challenges they're facing uh combating autism, anti-semitism, and racism. I am here as a father to also speak on what occurred last week at Stafford High School. Um, we became aware of it the same day. Uh, the information traveled naturally through the children. That's how we were informed until we saw the email from the principal. Um, madame chair and board, we appreciate your remarks at the opening of this. It was strong. It was clear. Uh, there was no confusion about whether you stood against this. We would have hoped to have felt the same strength of response from the school administration. We did not. Um sadly this is not the first instance we've seen of this sort of racist uh bigoted uh or even bullying type of behavior. We engaged with the school last year for the

151same issue. We spoke to the school district Dr. Robertson on the same issue. I would say that Dr. Robertson uh appeared uh and responded like a partner with us. uh I don't think we got the same sort of or had left with the same confidence in the school. Uh we specifically spoke to the school about the culture being set at the school. Uh there was plenty of advertising on the walls of what the policy is. But if the culture does not reflect the policies, reinforce the policies and the policies have no force. That is our concern. Uh I heard people talk here about psychology awards. There was sharing of DEI statistics. We spoke of student enrollment and the budgetary impacts of that. Uh we heard people talk about academic outlooks, post-secary outcomes. Students advocating for

152CTE course offering spoke of their participation in the program and how that shaped their personal growth and overall academic experience. How the classes made them feel seen and valued. Our students are more than just grades and test scores. How the school and the program offer them a place of comfort and belonging with a lack of strength when you see racism in your response and anti-semitism produces the opposite of that. It has my son questioning his worth. His identity is challenged. Uh so that's the impact of weak unclear unforceful responses when you see racist and anti-semitist or symetic and bullying type behavior at the school. Uh so my request is too that you educate the teachers uh and you provide some sort of program to teach them how to ensure the culture at the school reflects

153the values you aspouse. Uh my wife Dr. Davis will be speaking next. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> This is a long walk. Thank you so much for letting me speak. My name is Dr. Davis. I am a reporter with the Freelance Star. I'm also a professor at University of Mary Washington. Um I teach students how to speak publicly. It is a terrifying thing to do. Um today though, I am here as a mother. My son has had repeated issues. Um, since we enrolled him, since we moved here to Fredericksburg, Virginia, to Virginia in general in 2024, we enrolled him in Stafford. Uh, almost immediately he was met with racism, homophobia, um, bullying. We talked to Miss Manning, his assistant principal. Um, we had several meetings with her and, um, with the principal. Um, we

154never once felt that there was any real concern given to the impact on our son. He is in AP classes. He is in honors classes. He scored exceptionally well on the PSAT. He's already getting offers from colleges. He is a good kid. He's a nice boy. He's kind to everyone. His teachers love him. And still, nothing was done for him. They didn't even think to open an investigation until Dr. Smith's office got involved and said, "Hey, you were supposed to open an investigation." Um, they finally did that and found nothing. Well, of course not because what kid is going to say, "Yeah, I did call him a monkey." They're not going to say that. But they did do it. What kid is going to say, "Yeah, I did call him the n-word." They're not going

155to do that. Um, we literally asked them, if a student calls our son the n-word, what are the ramifications for that? And we were told, well, it depends on the context of how they say it because, you know, the kids sometimes talk like that. Okay, we're obvious we're obviously having a conversation about racist attitudes and behaviors, so we're not talking about buddies. We're it's clear what we're referring to. And that was met with, well, it would it would depend that tells me everything I need to know about that school. Um, my son is autistic. He does not make friends easily. Um, he has found a path at that school. um through all of this muddy water, he still found a path. After this most recent thing with the anti-semitism and the threat to kill non-white

156students and Jewish students on May 20th, I wrote to Mr. Tryion and said that we need to remove our son from the school immediately. Um how can he finish up the next two or three weeks remotely? Um she basically just rambled in different directions, basically seeming to not understand my question, saying there was no option to go virtual on the 20th. That was not my question. Um, I finally said, "No, we don't want him to come back. We we can complete the last two weeks." I talked to his teachers. They said, "They're fine sending him his work." To which she responded, "He can withdraw. I can send you so that he can withdraw." And I have the email of that. I reached out to all of you and thankfully I got some resolve. And I

157reached out to the superintendent's office and they were able to find a very reasonable solution for an honor student to just finish the last couple of weeks of school. Um, I say there is a problem at that school and my request is that it is looked into because it has a culture of racism and homophobia and anti-semitism. Thank you. Okay, let's see. Hia. Um, I'm Alfonso Davis. The last two people who just spoke were my loving parents. Um, I'm a sophomore at Stafford High School. We moved here two years ago from Illinois, hoping to find a a more tolerant environment for people who are different, specifically me as a black and queer person. Um, and what we have found, I I'm not sure reflects that. And I believe it did come to a head on

158May 5th this this year um in which what has already been described happened. Uh and I do believe that the response from the school was inadequate to say the least. I there was in fact a no mention of the anti-semitism that was clearly displayed by the graffiti. Um, not only this, it was merely described as racially insensitive, which I I fear may be not not a small part of the larger picture. Um, I also do believe that not enough information was given to students of Stafford High School and our parents to to make informed decisions based on the the events that occurred that day. Um, I unfortunately had to find it out from my peers. And when when information of this caliber is only able to be afforded through 15 and 16 and 14 year

159olds like myself, misinformation and disinformation a have a a very wide hole from which to creep in. Um, and so I do implore this school board to suggest to Stafford High's administration um to provide a more detailed response, to provide a response that truly understands the gravity um that it should be afforded in circumstances like this. in circumstances where people are threatening violence to to refer to a school shooting threat as threatening remarks is is not enough. That's that's what I believe. Thank you, >> Madam Chair. The final two speakers will be Matthew Lent and Victoria Ingram. Good evening, members of the war. My name is Matthew Lance. I'm speaking on behalf of the Stafford Education Association and this um proposed grading policies that my members, my secondary members have asked me to to come

160and and talk about. Uh there are several um concerns that have been raised by by our educators in in in the Stafford Education Association. First and foremost is the academic integrity and the accountability of learning and uh learning consequences. Um with allowing retakes, this allows incentivized cheating. uh uh according to our to our our members here, it undermines the meaning of consequences and weakens academic integrity uh separating behavior from academics is is something that we see as dangerous as well. Teachers strongly disagree with decoupling soft skills from grades. They argue that subjects like mathematics process is mastery and habits of precision are inseparable from academic success. Failure is a force uh powerful force of learning. Learning requires productive struggle and meaningful consequences. Removing failure points reduces growth and accountability. Negation of deadlines uh capping the

161penalties at 20% is seen as removing the incentive for students to meet deadlines likely likely leading to a massive pileup of of work at the end of of of a semester. And finally, we teach more than curriculum. Uh the second point is uh subject specific and instructional concerns. Learning is sequential in many disciplines. Students cannot fully master later skills retroactively uh by completing earlier ones. Uh non-retakable uh assessments. uh certain summitives such as science labs, oral presentations, cooking labs and Socratic seminars are inherently difficult for and impossible to be taken as retakes. Uh the the fear of of grade inflation versus mastery creates a false perception of mastery if we inflate the grades. Oversimplification of learning is taking place. Uh third point, student outcomes and real real world readiness. Uh students don't learn to perform

162under pressure. They realize they can they can just retake it sometime. Uh let's see. There is an an impact on teacher workload and professional burnout. Um teachers feel that they don't have professional autonomy within their PLC's to um to do this. uh one-sizefits-all grading policy limits teachers ability to ensure grades reflect true mastery uh rather than compliance and timing. Uh and finally, uh this is the high volume of students with IEPs requiring specialized settings creates a massive need for additional proctors and that's just unfeasible. Thank you. Victoria Ingram, Skills USA, and I'm here to talk about the importance of career and technical education. Good evening. I'm Victoria Ingram, a Skills USA national officer. I have had the opportunity to meet students from across the country who are proving every day that success is built through

163skill, determination, and purpose. That is why career and technical education or CTE is so important. CTE does more than prepare students for a job. It prepares them for life. In today's world, industries are changing rapidly and employers are looking for individuals who can lead teams, solve problems, communicate effectively, and adapt to new technology, especially in our AIdriven world. Career and technical education gives students those opportunities through real world hands-on experiences that connect the classroom to the workforce. But when vital CTE classes are removed, communities feel the impact immediately. Businesses rely on skilled workers who have been trained in programs like healthcare, welding, construction, automotive technology, culinary arts, and collision repair. Without those programs, companies struggle to find qualified employees. Local industries begin to suffer and communities lose opportunities for growth and innovation. The needs of

164an area cannot be met if students are not given the chance to learn the skills that areas depend on. CTE allows students to discover their passions early and develop confidence in their abilities. It shows students that there are many pathways to success and every pathway deserves respect. Organizations like Skills USA help take that learning even further by developing leaders who are career ready, technically skilled and community-minded. We are not just training future workers. We are bu building future leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators. Career and technical education is essential because it empowers students to turn potential into purpose. When you invest in CTE, we invest in our future, our workforce, our communities, and our nation. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Hall. Um, now we'll move into our action items. We have the adoption of student fees for

165the 2627 school year. >> Motion to approve the student fees for the 2627 school year. >> Any comments or questions? >> I do. >> Um, so I was look the uniform rental per uh purchase for chorus, orchestra, and band. It says on the last sentence, however, the range in cost for renting and cleaning is standard across all high schools. What is that range? >> Good evening, Madam Chair, Madame Vice Chair, Dr. Smith, board members. The range for the rental and cleaning fee is listed there, the $30 to $65. Um and so that range just depends on um what has what is being cleaned um what company is being used to complete um that service and uh that range of fee was verified um by our coordinator for fine and performing arts. >> Okay. And then

166my other question was cheerleading and dance team. >> Yes. >> Their fees have gone up enormously. >> Dramatically. Yes. and why? >> So, I think as a former cheer coach, when you're purchasing uniforms, there's going to be a variety of costs. For example, for lettering, for colors, um if you're adding um embroidery that is uh bedazzled or or glittered, um the the type of uniform, all of those things can contribute to the cost of the uniform. Um and speaking with u Mr. Margim, our coordinator for um health and PE and athletics. He works with our athletic directors to make sure that there there's fundraising that goes on as well to help to to can speak to help supplement the cost um and to create some consistency there. But in some cases, the difference in cost

167is just going to vary based on the school and what type of uniform they decide to purchase and what's on the uniform. Because when my son was doing cheer at Stafford High School, um we did of course participate in the fundraisers and sometimes we had to like especially during comp season, we had to pay for the extra parts. Correct. >> But that was something we just already did. >> Sure. >> So >> that's not going to go away. And so I'm I'm just curious as to like like I said, I know that they did the fundraisers. I know that we had to buy additional pieces and or have it come out of fundraising money if because we were given quotes of what we had to do. >> Sure. >> Um so that's why I I'm

168just I'm just concerned that it's it went up so much for them. >> Correct. >> When we are paying more, >> right? And this is just the the warm-up which >> yeah the player pack >> which they do keep, >> right? um for themselves. And so that's why the fee is is listed here. Um I'm more than happy to go back and and speak with Mr. Margam for more information. There may be instances where the warm-ups do end up costing less. Um but again, as a former cheer coach, you do want buyin from your athletes in terms of what they will be getting, what they are purchasing. Uh and sometimes they do want things that are more ornate. >> Okay. >> All right. Thank you. >> You're welcome, >> Dr. Chase. So, um I I

169noticed I just want to make sure people are aware that students with uh economic difficulties that we um provide uh >> yes provide cover their fees uh depending on what's involved. Yes, >> correct. And uh we are um bound to comply with that responsibility based on state code which is given there um on our fee document. And so that guidance will be coming explicitly out of our finance department in terms of um how schools should address um providing support and assistance to students who are um faced with economic hardship. Any other questions? Miss Healey, any questions? Please cast your vote. Miss Healey, are you there? Motion passes 61 >> 6. So, moving on to the um second reading and final approval of the recommendations for the adoption of the middle school mathematics textbook. >> So,

170thank you, Dr. Warner. I'd like to invite Mr. Jim Slain. He's our secondary coordinator for mathematics. >> Let's get him. >> Oh, I'm sorry. >> And a second. A motion to approve. >> Second. >> We have a motion in a second. Please go ahead. >> Sorry about that. So, would like to invite Mr. Jim Slain, our coordinator of secondary mathematics up. He has helped to lead this process uh with our textbook adoption and so has a very short presentation just an overview of the work that was done and the folks that were involved. Um and then happy to answer any questions. mouse not working >> as Mr. Slang gets set up. One of the reasons we wanted to share this with you this evening is just we has been a little bit of time since

171we've adopted textbooks and so just wanted to share the the process again and the folks that were involved. We're going to see if we can't get the slides up. >> We're good. >> There you go. >> Thank you. Uh good evening Dr. Smith, Dr. Her, Dr. Chase, and members of the school board. Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you this evening. Um, I appreciate your time, attention, and continued commitment to supporting highquality learning resources for our students and our staff. I look forward to sharing with you this update and answer any questions that you might have that we had throughout the process. Um, just a little brief update or clarifying of where we are. Our current resource is Sengage Learning's Big Ideas Math. We have that in grades six through eight. The last

172middle school adoption was done in 2018-19 with implementation in 2019 through 2026. currently this school year. Since then, the VGOE has adopted new standards in mathematics in 2023, but which went in into implementation last year in 2024 25, which causes a need for better aligned resources. Um throughout our process, our committee was comprised of 32 members. Um we had representation from all eight middle schools. We had 22 math teachers which included special education English learner specialists, administr uh administrators and 10 p 10 parent volunteers from all of our our schools as well. Um we had through our RFP process we had 11 vendors submit a proposal for us to review. All those materials were made available at each of the eight middle schools which provided an opportunity for all of our stakeholders to see the

173resources on their own time. They were also available at the um central wahenic regional library how branch and here as well. Um throughout the process we had strong stakeholder engagement. There was lots of um work sessions. We had our committee met multiple times throughout the fall through the through the winter. Um we had an opportunity for the committee to to convene to approve a rubric that everyone was going to use to evaluate all of our resources that came in. Um we had multiple work sessions for committee members um and any outside stakeholders to come together to ask questions, work together um dive into the materials for alignment in those pieces. Throughout the process um we had 200 rubric evaluations that were submitted that comprised of individual teachers, PLC teams within their own school, administrators and

174parents also submitted rubric rubric feedback as well. Um and through the process it was um recommended by the committee to adopt Mathspace as our middle school resource. Um moving forward, one of the features that Mathspace has in comparison to all the other vendors that were on the VDOE list, there is a 100% alignment to the VDOE standards for grade six, grade seven, and grade eight. They were the only vendor that's on the VDOE's list that met that criteria for all three grade levels. Other ones might have met it for one, but not the other two. So when we had our data meeting with the committee after we had all the rubrics data compiled proposed that to the team during that rubric meeting the the data meeting we had a vote 84% of the committee decided

175to recommend massspace as the as the resource and I'm going to get into some of the re some of the reasons why massspace was a was a recommended resource. One of the main reasons I think our our committee really appreciated was the digital resources that allow teachers to customize their lessons tailored to the students that are in front of them. Specifically, Massace really has a robust online repository of materials that include lesson plans, lesson slides, guided notes, and graphic organizers. And those resources are Google products, so teachers are able to make a copy of them and modify them to fit the needs of their classroom. There's also online teacher editions. And as I mentioned, that customizable student content allows for differentiation. Teachers will have access to above grade level and below grade grade level resources,

176so they're able to enrich and differentiate and scaffold for those materials that that they might need support with in their classroom. There's also a comprehensive list of online tools for so prep and student support and it provides specific tools with assist teachers with addressing rigor whether it be our uh p our current pathways to you know move students through they are able to u use the materials there change them and match the needs of the students in the classroom. So, with those features um in consideration, that was why we decided to recommend Math Space as the uh approved resource for middle school math. If you have any questions, I'm happy to answer throughout our process. >> Miss Miss Randall. >> Um yeah, when we were talking earlier and I asked you, was this going to

177be uh sufficient enough for um the direction that we've talked about maybe going to middle school? One of the things I you were talking about um that if they were doing like a pre-alggebra there would be a sixth seventh uh kind of like conjoined thing but on here it says uh pre-alggebra 6 pre-alggebra 7 and foundations of algebra 1. So is I I'm just confused now. >> Maybe I can provide some context and Mr. Slain can can answer. So um the question was around if we have like our pre-alggebra intensified six and how that has standards for sixth, seventh and eighth grade uh math included in that. And so uh the under what I shared was that the the pre-alggebra 6 has the sixth grade standards. I think it's the pre the sixth grade textbook

178has the sixth grade standards, the seventh grade standards or the seventh grade textbook and the eighth grade standards and the eighth grade textbook. And so within the intensified pre-alggebra 6, they cover standards in sixth, seventh, and eighth grade. and they would be using parts of all of those texts. And so I don't know if you can elaborate on that because I think it's now called pre-alggebra 6 instead of just grade six. >> Correct. Yeah. So pre-alggebra 6 um that their their so that's tied to it is a sixth grade so test. So our recommendation was to provide a class set of sixth grade resources to those to those classrooms. Same thing with um our pri because they test the eighth grade standards and our foundations courses that test the eighth grade standards. So the the

179model was to provide a class set for the so that that classroom is assessed, but we would also have some some grade seven resources available within the schools for teachers to use to support those seventh grade standards in pre-alggebra 6 and pre-algebra 7. >> I think the point of >> Okay, so it's just so I guess the confusing thing is the name. So I was thinking I was looking at straight sixth grade, but you're saying it's not straight sixth grade, it's pre-alggebra 6, right? >> Yeah, I do think it's in the naming. I think what we call pre-alggebra 6 uh is really sixth, seventh, and eighth grade standards. The textbook here that's called pre-alggebra 6 is really just sixth grade standards. >> Yeah. Our our the the course that covers grade six, seven, and eight

180is our pre-alggebra intensified. That's the name of that course. Our pre-alggebra 6 is our on grade level sixth grade course. >> Okay. And um you mentioned that we adopted in uh 2017 2018. Thank you. Yes. Um, did when did we adopt for the elementary and the high school? Same time. >> High school was adopted at the same time. I cannot speak to elementary. Same time. >> Same time. >> Okay. And so we're just doing specifically the middle school only in this whole adoption thing. >> Correct. >> Yes. And next year in our plan would be next year to look at elementary and high school. And next year that was was included in next year's budget. >> Okay. And I would also like to say thank you for not purchasing the consumables because I have never

181seen any one of those workbooks ever filled for all the years my kids had them. So, thank you. Any other questions? >> All right. Please cast your vote. >> Miss Healey, are you there? I'm I've been here, Dr. Warner. >> Okay. Well, we we just couldn't hear you. Do you do you support the textbooks? Okay. >> Yes. Yes, I do. Thank you. >> The motion passes unanimously. >> Moving on to our superintendent report. >> All right, let's get this. We'll wait and get this pulled up for a second. So, good evening to our board members and our staffer community. Thank you for the opportunity to share some of the work of the school division over the past month. I do appreciate the comments of uh our school board chair, Dr. Warner, to start the meeting,

182but I also thought it was important as superintendent to address uh the incident that occurred recently in one of our schools in involving anti-semitic graffiti written in a student bathroom. Hate hate bait speech and symbols have no place in Stafford schools. Anti-semitism in any form is unacceptable and contrary to the values of respect, dignity, and belonging that we expect in our schools. We recognize that incidents like this can create fear and pain for students, staff, families, and community members, particularly those in our Jewish community. While this this act was a behavior of an individual, we also understand the broader impact that these messages can have across an entire school community. Our responsibility is not only to respond to the incident itself, but also to continue fostering learning environments where every person feels safe, welcomed, and

183respected. Our school administration responded immediately by investigating the matter and is addressing it within our student code of conduct. At the time of initial communication, we were aware of the the language and symbols used. However, we chose to avoid amplifying the specific content uh while investigation was in the very early stages. It's very helpful to hear the feedback this evening and the feedback from our community because it's important that we make sure that in situations like this, we must balance transparency with our responsibility to protect student privacy, support a safe school environment, and avoid contributing to harm or escalation. We also recognize that moments like this are opportunities to reinforce the importance of respect, responsibility, and the impact words and actions can have on others. I do want to reassure the community that we continue

184to work with the sheriff's office to investigate all leads and assure you that consequences will be administered as appropriate. We remain committed to maintaining schools where every student and staff member feels safe, valued, and respected. We must continue our work to support respectful, tolerant, supportive, and understanding values in our community. We'll continue to engage with students, staff, families, and our community partners as we strengthen efforts to maintain safe and respectful learning environments for all. Thank you to those who reported the incident promptly and the many students, staff, and families and community members who continue to support safe and respectful schools. This evening, I'm proud to announce that Mountain View High School's very own Andrew Satienna has been selected to serve on the Hope Squad National Council for the 2627 school year. After completing a highly

185competitive three round selection process with students from across the country, Andrew was chosen to serve on a one-year term. He is the only student from selected from Virginia and only one of two students representing the East Coast. For those who may be unfamiliar, Hope Squad is a nationally recognized peer-to-peer suicide prevention and mental wellness program that empowers students to support one another, promote connection, and help identify peers who may be struggling. Hope Squad members are nominated by their classmates because they are trusted, approachable, and compassionate leaders within their school communities. The program focuses on building a culture where students know they are seen, supported, and never alone. Andrew brings strong leadership, thoughtful ideas, and a genuine commitment to supporting others. He truly embodies the Hope Squad mission. As a member of the National Council, he

186will serve as a student spokesperson at the highest level, helping to ensure student voice and lived experiences are reflected in Hope Squad's work nationwide. Please join me in congratulating Andrew on this incredible accomplishment. We're so proud to have him representing Mountain View High School and Stafford schools on a national level. Last week, Stafford Schools hosted our annual Gold Star Gala, and this recognizes outstanding educators and staff members from across our division whose work strengthens student achievement and supports our school communities every day. The evening provide an opportunity to celebrate the many individuals who help make Stafford schools a place where students can learn, grow, and succeed. From teachers and school leaders to bus drivers, counselors, nutrition services employees, student support staff, and school resource officers, the honores represented the excellence and dedication found throughout our

187division. I want to thank April Federal Credit Union for their partnership. They sponsored a $500 award for each of our divisionwide recipients. The Gold Star Gala serves as an important reminder that success of Stafford schools is made possible by the dedicated people who put students first each and every day. We're grateful for all they do on behalf of our students, families, and our community. This year, we hosted Love Stafford Schools Week, which was held on April 13th through 17th, and it provided a meaningful opportunity to recognize the people and partnerships that make our schools exceptional. Throughout the week, schools and departments highlighted daily themes centered on our staff, our families, our military connected students and community students as well and the broader community partners, all under our shared theme of hashtag loves Stafford schools. The

188week was filled with moments of appreciation and recognition across the division from classroom shoutouts and student celebrations to messages of gratitude for staff and families. A special highlight was the purple up day on the Wednesday which we honored our military connected students and families. I also want to recognize the Stafford Education Foundation providing preackaged snack stations at every school as a gesture of appreciation for staff. This partnership continues to reflect the strength of our community support. In addition, this week we were able to announce the schools with the highest engagement during the week by level and they were Colonial Forge High School, Ferry Farm Elementary, and the highest uh engagement across the school division, Shirley Middle School. Thank you to all of our schools and departments who participated and helped showcase the pride, care, and

189commitment that define Stafford schools. Last week, you may have heard that the Stafford Education Foundation announced a significant $560,000 investment made possible through a partnership uh with between the foundation, Amazon, Stafford County Public Schools, and the Frederickburg Regional Food Bank. The initiative included 360,000 to launch a three-year sustainable innovative teaching grants program. And these grants will fund more than 200 classroom projects over the next three years, giving educators opportunity to design hands-on innovative learning experiences that support STEM learning, career readiness, and deeper student engagement. An additional 200,000 will expand access to food resources through a new automated community food kiosk at school sites across the division. This builds on an existing successful model and these kiosks provide 247 access to food in a dignified and accessible way and strengthen broader efforts to address food insecurity

190including weekend meal programs. As already mentioned a few times this evening, we recently convened our legislative debrief debrief and I'm pleased to share that all five of our legislators representing Stafford County attended in person. Their presence allowed for a direct and meaningful discussion on our proposed and achieved legislation legislation in the 2026 general assembly sessions and how those actions and bills help to impact Stafford schools in our community. The conversation also acknowledged the work that we have still ahead as we continue to address shared priorities and our emerging needs together. We're thankful that the time our legislators gave to be present in person for this discussion, to engage in candid dialogue, and to stay closely connected to the priorities and realities of our school division. And finally, as we begin to close out the school

191year, we're excited to celebrate the accomplishments of the class of 2026 during upcoming graduation ceremonies. Graduation season is always a meaningful time for our schools, families, staff, and community as we recognize the hard work, perseverance, and achievement of our students. The Phoenix Center for Innovative Learning graduation ceremony will take place on May 27th at 6:30 p.m. Followed by Colonial Forge High School on Thursday, May 28th at 6:30 p.m. Brook Point High School and Mountain View High School hold ceremonies on Friday morning, May 29th at 8:30 a.m. And finally, North Stafford High School and Stafford High School will conclude our graduation celebrations on Saturday, May 30th at 8:30 a.m. We look forward to celebrating each member of the class of 2026 as they all have accomplished during their time in Stafford schools. We invite you to

192celebrate your senior with us through the hashtag Stafford sendoff26. With the staff with the school board's adoption of the FY27 budget, Stafford Schools is moving forward with a financial plan that reflects both the needs of our growing division and our continued commitment to students, staff, and family. This budget represents a critical and essential investment in our schools and community. It supports the opening of three new schools while continuing to strengthen the program services and staffing that directly impact our students each day. A major focus of this budget is supporting and retaining high-quality staff. The budget includes an average 4.75% salary increase to our employees to help ensure our compensation remains competitive. These investments recognize the dedication of our staff and the important role they play in the success of our students each day. The bud

193budget also provides significant supports for stool schools and students with a primary focus on safety and security and high quality instruction. At the elementary level, classroom supports such as interventionists were targeted reducing also level one special education case loads and implemented differentiating staffing to better support student reading plans. At the middle school level, the budget included support for the deans of students, while at the high school level, funding was dedicated for upgraded graded uh security camera weapons, security camera systems, and weapons detection systems. At the same time, the budget process required difficult decisions. Several important items were delayed, including additional middle school security officers, textbook adoptions, and bus replacements. While these needs remain important, this budget reflects a balanced approach that prioritizes direct support for students, staff, school operations, and safety while remaining mindful on

194fiscal responsibility. As additional information becomes available from the state in the coming months, we'll revisit those delayed items and continue evaluating opportunities to address them in the near future. Thank you. And this concludes my remarks for the evening. >> Thank you, Dr. Smith. Moving on to um board member comments. I would like to ask Miss Healey to go ahead and speak first so we can give you the rest of the night off. >> Um I'm going to pass uh Dr. Warner. Thank you. >> Can you hear me? >> Yes. >> Oh, good. Miss Randall. >> Thank you, Dr. Warner. Um I also would like to say uh thank you for your remarks at the beginning. Um we definitely want our students um in the schools not to feel uncomfortable coming to school, unsafe coming to

195school um no matter their religion or color or um culture. So I just really appreciate your words in the very beginning and thank you also uh Dr. Smith. Um, I wanted to start out by saying I hope all the moms out there had a really nice Mother's Day. Um, and that your kids remembered them. But, um, I hope that, uh, you had at least a couple of spoils in your day. Um, I would also like to recognize that we had a lot of national appreciations um in the last couple weeks with nurses, admin assistants, teachers. Um, and I would like to congratulate all of the schools and communities that really extended themselves to make these um valued educators in our systems feel uh special and rewarded. Um, I would also uh like to say um

196thank you. This last week was National Safety Week um which is big in the CTE industries. Um and so I'd like to congratulate all of our OSHA um folks both from the um the departments that do all of the maintenance. They have to have their OSHA folks there. And then also all of our CTE educators, they have to be OSHA certified to make sure that our students are safe doing the different projects in their classrooms and outside the classrooms, which I'm very excited about because tomorrow I get to go see um the Boots House, which is over by Ferry Farm, um to see the progress. I've seen it. I saw it last year, still pretty raw construction, but this uh tomorrow I get to see um just how far they've come. And that's really a

197student project um that has I think we're on number 27 I think and Dr. Chase's daughter designed one of our foods houses too. So and I drove by that and saw that one too. But um I also was able to attend um the career GPS at the airport giving kids highlights uh as they try to figure out their pathways in through our high schools. Um, I attended stream night at Ferry Farm. It had to be rescheduled because of weather and so they were kind of concerned that they wouldn't have a good turnout. They had almost 500 people um show up to their little school and it was really fun to walk through and see all the families engaging with activities with their kids and then just um tribe boards for the fifth graders passion projects.

198So that was really kind of a fun thing to see. I got to go to the Gates Discovery and see projects um that our gifted and talented students had done. I saw everything from are dinosaurs really extinct? Maybe not. And then I saw hopefully so um I also saw things from uh you know famous people and places and it was just really fun to see some of the creative prepared speeches from some of them said could you stand here while I read my cards to you? Absolutely. So it was really fun. Also I walked in had this great explanation of a project shared with me and I was standing there looking at the project. I looked down to see her name. I said, "Who's your father?" She told me and I said, "Yeah, um, I

199taught him 10th grade biology." So, she did an excellent job. I taught him well. I'm going to take all that. Um, I also got to tour the CGS uh sites at all three high schools um to see how uh the students and their spaces and their educators all work together to help the um cohorts work their way through. Um, in fact, as I was leaving North Stafford, one of the teachers was a former North Stafford graduate who graduated with my sister. Um, so that was kind of a fun thing to run through. I went to uh North Stafford with Representative uh Vinman with Dr. Warner and it was really nice as we got to go sit in the government classes and he got to explain um some of his thoughts and experiences. But then I

200got to go to my favorite room at Northstafford, uh, horiculture. Mr. Rossi was here this evening. He's also graduated from Northstaffford the year before me. Um, we know similar people. We just didn't know each other. And, um, I did get to attend. Uh, but Mr. Vinman was very impressed with those students. Um, he has a child that attends a Prince William High School, very nice Prince William High School. And so when he got to see our oldest high school and some of the um the automotive and the horiculture, he was really impressed with the kinds of those kids that were in there and the things that they were doing. Just kind of blew his mind a little bit. Um I got to um go to the horiculture sale myself, but because I couldn't attend on

201the two weekends they had it, he let me come in. Um, I brought the class donuts. It happened to be a student's birthday. I told them, "Yes, I brought them for you." Um, so it was very nice to go there and see what these students have worked on and including building a picnic table with um, uh, access for a wheelchair to roll up to the wheelchair uh, to the picnic table outside. I thought that was really clever. Um, let's see. Um, this Saturday I will be participating in the mental health 5K at Pratt Park hosted by Stafford Education Foundation. We invite you all to come out and support the Education Foundation and mental health. Um, as many of you know, my dad committed suicide a few years ago. So, this is something near and dear

202to my heart. And, um, I hope you guys can make it out. All right. Thank you. >> Thank you, Miss Randall. Mr. Reagan. >> Thanks. I teach students with disabilities. I teach English language learners. A big part of why I ran for school board is because of my dedication to students who feel marginalized or dismissed. Um the the incident that happened at Stafford really made me sad more than anything. Um but I want to thank all the people that spoke about that tonight. Um, and I just want you to know that that I hear you. And the students that didn't speak tonight, that didn't come tonight, but who are scared, I hear you, too. Um, I want to assure all of you that you matter and that you're heard. And personally, I strongly condemn any

203anti-Semitic, racial, or lifestyle discrimination. and I think it has no place in our schools. Um, to all of the people that spoke on CTE, it's true, not everyone's going to college. So, our CTE programs are a tremendous benefit to our students and the passion that the speakers who talked on that tonight brought prove that. So, um, I want to thank all of you for sharing your passion and your thoughts. The last thing I'll say is there's a lot going on in the world and we live in an era of polarization even here in Stafford County. But there's also wonderful people here. There's people who care. So I believe in our county. I believe in the good here and I believe we can all come together and try to understand that people may have different backgrounds,

204different beliefs, different religions. Um but I think we can come together and uh I think we need to. Thanks. >> Thank you, Mr. Megan. Miss Blackwell, >> hello everyone. Um, I do also want to speak about the incident on the 20th, but what I just want to say is, um, that I think what was very important that happened is somebody spoke up. So, one thing that we learned during 911 was if you see something, say something. Without putting yourself in harm's way, if you see something, say something. that goes to all students and to adults as well. Um, there were a lot of events that I attended this month and it it always seems like it's been a long time since we've been here, but the one thing or the one event I wanted to

205uh to highlight was the museum night at uh Rising Star. And you know, I always have to bring my art and show it. If you want to buy it, talk to me at the end of the night. Um, and I actually met a Miss Blackwell there and I believe an Amanda Black who's actually two Amanda that I I met. Um, as Dr. Smith know that I'm always on board with anything that has to do with mental health. I made sure I wore my mental health shirt today. Um, I will be at the race on um, Saturday. If Arthur allows me, I will run. If not, I will walk. And if you don't know who Arthur is, I would just use the government name Arthritis. Um um one thing I wanted to do um was to

206just look and see what individuals that we that are well known are associated with um mental health. So I just did a quick um look up of some people. I looked up Washington I'm sorry Huffington Post. So I'm going to take this for his word. Abraham Lincoln had anxiety and depression. Um, Brandon Marshall of the New York Giants had borderline personality disorder. Charlemagne God has anxiety and panic attacks. Justin Bieber has depression. Janet Jackson had depression. Lady Gaga, depression. Leonardo DiCaprio, OCD. Mariah Carey, bipolar disorder. Selena Gomez, panic attacks, depression, anxiety. I made a point of making sure I just touched on a little bit of everybody. So, I have a diverse group there. And the last thing I want to do, I want to read something uh regarding uh mental health to you. Um

207I think it's appropriate and I think you might enjoy it. Um um it's called Saturdays and it's not s a tur r, it's s a d e r Saturdays. And it says remember when Saturdays eclipse Sundays, painted miseries into Mondays and the cycle went on and on and on. When tears greeted the break of dawn, tossing and turning on pillows stuffed with tissues. Mentally arrested by issues that linger from day to day. When closed curtains were reminiscent of inner play, and elation crossed the threshold of a room now so depressing and cold. Those days when the ceilings unload, the walls started to bend and bow and floor sank to the depths of despair. When the heart wonders aimlessly in midair and shallow breathing had limitations, the cracks in the windows produce hallucinations. The bed restrained

208as the body was strained and hope was not even a part of the vocabulary. But life now quite the contrary. Fewer days are bluer days. All days are newer days to once again experience the joy people and other things sought to destroy. Finally free from unnecessary strife. Just living life like it's golden. No reason to hold in the toxic waste that once cleared the smiles from the face. Waking up to the sun with a hug and a kiss. Dancing in the rain. Bathing in the mist. Shoulders ere head head held high. Um fewer needs to break down and cry except for deserved happiness. Just blessed to have made it through one more of those Saturdays living and loving the life really matter days. Thanks. Thank you so much, Miss Fols. Thanks. Um, I also have

209one of the horicultural plants sitting on my kitchen table right now. So, it has not died yet, which is pretty amazing because I kill everything that I bring into that house. So, >> yeah, thanks. Um, it really is phenomenal all the things that go on in our schools and that our staff do in any given month. Um, you're right. It feels like it's been forever, but since we've been here and all the things that we've done, it's it's amazing. And I'm only able to attend a very small fraction of those events. So, I'm not going to list them all out um for this meeting. But, I did want to say that I actually got to sit at the desk and see the playground and touch the learning spaces for FallsRun Elementary. Um, it's so close

210to occupancy permit for for that in Hartwood High. Um, I noticed you had the art room on your slides up there. Um, and it's really inspiring to see how excited Miss Bingham is to be able to open that school and how much thought has been put into all the little details. Um, so I think she is still looking for a librarian. I do believe there is a spot there. So if you are looking to work at a school with a principal who's super excited and lots of natural light, um, there may be a space there for you. So give it a shot. Um, and as it's been said earlier too, um, not quite as exciting, obviously, horrific symbols and words were written in a bathroom in Stafford High School, um, they are causing genuine pain

211and fear for our Jewish students, their families, staff, and for everyone in our community who knows what those symbols mean, I'm not going to repeat them. Um, they were very clearly anti-Semitic and also targeted our black and brown students. The writings even named prior school shootings and threatened to do the same. Um, we cannot be desensitized to the gravity of the pain that those world words and threats cause our children and our neighbors. And I even caught myself slightly being desensitized, which is not good. Um, as a community, we need to continue to educate our children on what anti-Semitic language is, what it does, and the history behind it. We need to continue to denounce when hateful and threatening actions and speech target any of our communities. Every single child in our schools is intrinsically

212worthy as they are. They deserve to feel safe. They deserve for adults around them to say when something is not okay and that we don't accept it. I'm grateful for the staff um and for law enforcement handling the response and for the families that have shared with me how this has impacted them. While hateful behavior like this has had an undercurrent in our community's history and we need to own that, I don't accept it being a part of our future. Um not from our kids and not from adults, including in this room. your child may not speak to you about how they're feeling about what happened. So, please remind them that they can reach out to the school counselors. Um, and that we do have free teleaalth counseling services for Stafford County students. Um, it's

213Hazel Health. You can Google it and Stafford County and it will pop right up onto how to how to access that. So, um, I know it's not easy to speak at that podium. Um, especially when you're sharing very vulnerable experiences. So, thank you for doing it. And if y'all have seen me comment before, you know, I get a little emotional sometimes. I'm trying to control it. Um, it's important for us to hear that. It's important for our process and for our understanding. So, thank you. And I will also be there on Saturday walking. Um, I will not be running. It is not Arthur's fault. It is it is Cheesecake's fault. Um, but I will be there on Saturday. So, I'd love if y'all would join us as well. Thank you. >> Thank you. And maybe

214we can get Mr. Rossy to give you a student to help you help give guidance in keeping the plant alive. >> Um Dr. Chase. >> Yeah. Hi. Um so uh I'm I'm now been on this board for a while. Um as have uh Miss Randall and Dr. Warner and Miss Healey. Um and we were all on the board when the George Floyd incident happened. And one of the things that happened at that time was we went to various listening sessions and heard from members of the community. And I remember specifically being um surprised uh or thinking how important was when students talked to me about the parking lot of Stafford High School and having to walk through that parking lot and see Confederate flags. And at that time um we were asked to to pass

215a resolution and Dr. Young who was on the board at that time was not interested in an empty resolution. She was interested in actual policy and at that time we changed policy to say that hate imagery was not to be worn was to not be on cars. And um Dr. Kizner at that time said not just Confederate flags but also swastikas are symbols of hate and um Miss Boatright helped to develop those policies. Um what I am hearing tonight and and what we're seeing is it's not one and done. We don't just get to fix a policy and everything is okay. Um, we apparently have backslid and we need to um take some time to reflect on that. All of us, every principal in Stafford County Public Schools, not just the principal of Stafford High

216School. Um all of us need to reflect on what's happened and and what it means and and what can we do other than um just words to actually um respond to this in a way that we don't have this continue to happen. So um I just sort of wanted to share that. Um, I went to the Commonwealth Governor's School Senior Symposium and one of the things that I saw there was a presentation on domestication of animals and breeding. And the funny thing about this presentation was that the student had had a mentor and this mentor was a classmate of one of my children and he was hysterical. every year he did any independent project was done on lemurs. He was fascinated by lemurs. And to learn that this young man had gone on to get

217his doctorate in anthropological biology and was doing projects on conservation in Madagascar um just showed to me how much our educators in Stafford County support and nurture our students. whether it's about lemurs or whether it's about auto body um whether it's about horiculture um I I think it is an amazing thing that our students get that kind of kind of support um and so that's all I have for tonight thank you >> thank you Dr. Chase. Um, I do want to say that hateful language and rhetoric, whether it's anti-semitism or racism or anti-LGBTQ language that makes students feel like they don't belong in the that they are illegal or unwelcome or unwanted has a tremendous effect on the school climate and culture. But it affects those students ability to learn. It creates an environment where

218students don't want to attend school. And I think we heard that tonight and I do appreciate the families coming forward and talking about their experience. And I think the we live in a society where there are leaders who insult women and insult people from other nations and have no and and show no respect for anybody outside their own circle. And that kind of behavior trickles down and it affects our our our students and our communities. And we need to do better. um to during this last few weeks I had the opportunity to go to um Widewater Elementary School for their family night and it was a their multicultural night. There are about I think there are about 18 different languages spoke at Widewater spoken at Widewater. But there was such a smorgus board of food

219from all around the world and kids in traditional costumes with their families and it was just such a beautiful site to see and it just reminds me how beautiful our community is, how diverse it is and how each of those students deserves to be loved and protected from all the outside hate. Um, I had the opportunity to go as falls run. Um, Miss Bingham was very excited because she was unloading boxes and building desks, not personally, but she was very involved in the process. And it's just amazing to see those schools take shape and come because we know that soon they're going to be welcoming students through those doors. Um, see if I can read my handwriting. I do want to thank our representatives. I too went to um North Stafford High School and Congressman

220Binman was excellent at working with students and giving them an opportunity to talk to him and ask questions but also learn about the job. I think a lot of people don't understand it exactly what it is. Elected officials do most of the time and I think they assume that there's a power there that isn't really there. Most of the time it's trying to find commonality and figure out how to find solutions so that you can move things forward. And I'm sure that Mr. Vinman is struggling and some of those endeavors in his current job. Um, so I do appreciate them attending our debrief. It was nice that all five were there. Um, and I also appreciate the comments on the CTE. I am an advocate for CTE because we live in a shifting climate of

221jobs and what the job market and the labor force is going to look like. And I think it's really important that we invest in those things. Um the problem is we have to get students to to to to be involved and to want to take those courses. I'm not quite sure what the magic bullet for that is, but many of these courses do lead to good paying jobs. And I doubt that AI would fix my car after my accident. I just pretty sure that that's not happening. Um, I would also like to take one minute to say that John Allen, who was a an employee of Hampton Oaks Elementary School for 11 years, passed away in the last couple weeks, and I would like to thank him for his service. And um, I think that's

222all I'm going to talk about tonight because it's 9:30 and we all turn into pumpkins. Um there are there's a meeting May 26. There's a work session and a special called meeting and then on June 9th we have a work session followed by our regular business meeting. Thank you. Meeting is adjourned. >> Good night.