001Heat. Hey, Heat. Hello. Heat. Heat. Doo doo doo. We are going to start this meeting. It's 3:00. I call this meeting to order. And um we are going to begin with a closed session. And so Vice Chair Williams is going to read into closed. I move that the school board recess into close session in accordance with exceptions to open meetings law set forth of in code of Virginia 22 2.2-3711 parts A paragraphs 1 7 and 8 as amended to deliberate on the following matters. One, discussion, consideration or interviews of prospective candidates for employment, assignment, appointment, promotion, performance, demotion, salaries, disciplining or resignation of specific public officers, appointees or employees of any public body and evaluation of performance of departments or schools of public institutions of higher education where such evaluation will necessarily involve discussion of
002the performance of specific individuals. Any teacher shall be permitted to be present during a closed meeting in which there is a discussion or consideration of a disciplinary disciplinary matter that involves the teacher and some student and the student involved in the matter is present provided that the teacher makes a written request to be present to the presiding officer of the appropriate board. Nothing in this subdivision, however, shall be construed to authorize a closed meeting by a local governing body or an elected school board to discuss compensation matters that affect the membership of such body or board collectively. Seven, consultation with legal counsel and briefings by staff members or consultants pertaining to actual or probable litigation where such consultation or briefing and open meeting would adversely affect the negotiating or litigating posture of the public body.
003For the purpose of this subdivision, probable litigation means litigation that has been specifically threatened or in which the public body or its legal council has a reasonable basis to believe will be commenced by or against a known party. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to permit the closure of a meeting merely because an attorney representing the public body is in attendance or is consulted on the matter. Eight. Consultation with legal counsel employed or retained by a public body regarding specific legal matters requiring the provision of legal advice by such counsel. Nothing in this subdivision should be construed to permit the closure of a meeting merely because an attorney representing the public body is in attendance or is consulted on a matter. Namely to discuss A employee suspension hearing, B status of pending litigation or
004administrative cases, C consultation with legal counsel regarding probable litigation and pending litigation matters. Okay. Great. And that motion was made by Vice Chair Williams, seconded by Mr. Cummings. Um before I open the floor, madame clerk, um did I need you to get announce the role? I'd be more than happy to. For the record, uh present in the schoolboard chamber are Chair Brown, Vice Chair Williams, Mr. Bowensteel, Mr. Ken, Mr. Co Pepper, Mr. Cummings, Miss Dwire, Miss Felton, Dr. Green, Miss Melnik, and Miss Rogers. Okay. Thank you. Any discussion on the motion? Seeing none, I call for the vote to go into close session. Mr. Co Pepper, how do you vote to go into close? Thank you, Madam Chair. We have 11 eyes. The motion did pass to go into close session. Thank you. D. Number
005three. Heat. Heat. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hello. Heat. Heat. Hey, hey, hey. Doo doo doo doo. Hey, hey, hey. Happy N. Noo. Hey. Hey. N beh. Great. Vice Chair Williams, whereas the school board of the city of Virginia Beach has convened a closed meeting on this date pursuant to an affirmative recorded vote and in accordance with the provisions of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act. And whereas section 2.2-3712 of the Code of Virginia requires a certification by this school board that such closed meeting was conducted in conformity with Virginia law. Now therefore be resolved that the school board of the city of Virginia Beach hereby certifies that to the best of each member's knowledge only public business matters lawfully exempted from open meeting requirements by Virginia law were discussed in the closed meeting to which the
006certification applies and only such public business matters as were identified in the notion by which the closed meeting was convened were heard discussed or considered. Okay. Is there a motion for the certification of close session? Moved by Miss Dwire, seconded by Miss Rogers. Any discussion? Seeing none, I call for the votes to certify close session. So, Madam Chair, we have 11 eyes. The motion to pass for certification of close session. Thank you. Vice Chair WS has a motion to read. Miss Lenetti, do we read the name? It's generally been your practice not to do that and then it'll be in the resolution. We have to keep in the resolution. Okay. Thank you. Resolution regarding suspension without pay hearing. Resolve that on January 13, 2026, the school board held a hearing to determine whether to suspend
007a teacher after re receiving verification that this employee had a level three finding of physical neglect, inadequate supervision related to a November 2025 complaint regarding a student. and resolved that the school board received exhibits and testimony and heard arguments from both the employee and the school administration. and resolve that the school board suspends the employee until either the school administration determines that the employee may return to his or her current or similar position or into till the conclusion of any grievance procedures regarding the school administration's recommendation to discipline or dismiss the employee. You said suspends Miss Beans. Did you say with or without pay? That's the issue that the school board suspends the employee without pay until either the school administration determines that Miss Lars Oh, that the employee may return to his or her
008current or similar position or to the conclusion of any grievance procedures regarding the school administration's recommendation to display discipline or dismiss the employee and further resolved D that the clerk is directed to send a copy of this resolution to the employee and his or her legal counsel, the schoolboard attorney, the employee relations specialist, and the chief human resource officer who is directed to place a copy of this resolution and exhibits in the employees personnel file adopted by the school board of the city of Virginia Beach this 13th day of January, 202. 26. Okay. Was that a motion? Yes. Okay. Moved by Miss Williams. Is there a second? Seconded by Mr. Kalen. Any discussion, Miss Malik? So, I would ask that part. I didn't like the way that was written actually and that we strike the
009part that said something about testimony and witnesses. That did that didn't happen and that's not exactly what this was for. made it seem like we were determining something other than what we did. You can remove that section if you want to. You did hear from one witness, but you can remove that. But no testimony, not it wasn't about I wish it were just written that we were only to determine whether or not it was leave with or without pay. I just didn't like it made it seem like it was more of a of a hearing or a trial, if you will. Removing that language will not impact the decisions if that's what you wanted to a motion. There's there's a motion on the floor. Can you make that motion, Miss Monik? I I didn't motion.
010I just asked that it be strike, but I didn't make a motion, a formal motion. Okay. So, if it's going to be stricken, there's a motion on the floor. So, we'll need a motion to strike that part if somebody's going to make that motion. Okay. And then I move that we strike the part that references um what appears to be um a legitimate hearing with witnesses and testimony. Okay. Is there a second? Second. Seconded by Vice Chair Williams. We're discussing the substitute. Any further discussion? Seeing none. Um Madame Clerk, are you ready for us? Okay. Okay. I call for the vote to approve this motion on the floor. Um the substitute with the part stricken. She already had a second. Vice Chair Wayne seconded it. So, Madam Chair, we have 11 eyes. That motion did
011pass. Thank you. Okay, we are now on to administrative, informal, and workshop. Um, we are on to the schoolboard administrative matters and reports. I do want to mention that we have the upcoming special school board budget meeting on January 20th. Um, Dr. Robertson, we we determined that that start time would be at 4 p.m., correct? Uh, ye yes, ma'am. I'm gonna have an intro that uh may impact a decision that we may make during clo during agenda planning tonight whether or not you want to hold hold that meeting on the 20th. Fair enough. Okay, that's that's fair enough. And we will make sure that that communication gets out to the board as as quickly as possible. Um do any other board members have anything to report? Dr. Green. Thank you, Madame Chair. Um, I want
012to make our students and viewing public um, aware of scholarship opportunities that are connected to a very special day. Today is January the 13th. And it's also the 113th founders day for Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated for which I am a member. Um, I belong to the Virginia Beach chapter. Um, Delta Sigma Theta sorority is known for its public service, scholarship, and the promotion of academic academic excellence excellence. We have over 1,000 chapters globally. And I invite all graduating seniors to visit scholarship central so that they may see the scholarship opportunities. Uh there are three from the Virginia Beach Alumni Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta. Last year we awarded scholarship opportunities to students from many of our high schools and the Chesapeake Virginia Beach chapter which is our neighboring chapter also offers scholarship opportunities for
013Virginia Beach students. So, in honor of our founders day and to help us celebrate, please check out our scholarship opportunities on scholarship central and happy founders day to all of our members of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated. Thank you. All right. Thank you. Do any other board members have anything to report at this time? Okay. Seeing none, we are going to start with our budget workshop number two. And Dr. Robertson, our superintendent, is going to begin our budget presentations this evening. So, thank you, Madam Chair, members of the board. Um, tonight we are going to embark on a new process that emerged out of discussions at the the July schoolboard retreat in which each of the departments similar to what the city does in presenting to the city council will present their current budget, their
014current uh responsibilities and then any proposed changes with rationale to the 2026 27 7 budget. Uh because this is a new foray for us. Uh tonight we have four departments ready. Uh the office of budget and finance or department of budget and finance, office of superintendent, department of communications and community engagement, and department of technology. Uh we then have scheduled for January 20th uh the department of school division services, the department of school leadership and the department of teaching and learning followed finally by on January 27th the department of human resources. Um, we have opportunities tonight to determine whether or not depending on how this goes and how long it takes because we haven't done it before to perhaps make adjustments which would then eliminate the need to have a January 20th meeting. So, we're
015looking forward to sharing information with you tonight. And um again, we'll start with uh Miss Pate with the Department of Budget and Finance. she likely will kick off every one of these workshops to give you updates on anything budget related that may have occurred between meetings. Um, and so with that, uh, we'll go ahead and get started. Okay. Good afternoon, Chairwoman Brown, Vice Chairwoman Weboard members, and Dr. Robertson. So, this presentation provides a highle overview of the state budget process, followed by an update on the governor's introduced budget as it stands today. As a reminder, this budget is still part of an evolving process and will likely be revised as it moves through the general assembly and the new governor's office. We will also walk you through key components of the key components of the
016department of budget and finance current year and fiscal year 2027 proposed budgets. The goal is to ensure a shared understanding of where we are in the budget cycle and what changes may occur ahead and to present the first departmental budget presentation. Our agenda covers the following topics. A review of the state budget's calendar and process. An overview of key upcoming dates. An explanation of the rebenchmarking process. A review of the local composite index or LCI. Key highlights of the governor's proposed budget. a review of revenue comparisons and an outline of the process for addressing schoolboard member questions followed by a transition to the budget and finance departmental presentation. The budget process in Virginia consists of several stages as illustrated on this slide. Virginia operates under a bianual budget process, meaning the state adopts a budget
017covering a two-year period which is then adjusted annually. The process begins each December when the governor introduces a proposed budget to the Virginia General Assembly. This typically occurs in oddnumbered years and outlines funding recommendations, policy initiatives, and the governor's priorities for the upcoming two fiscal years. Each year, mid bienium, amendments are also introduced to update the existing budget in response to changes in economic conditions, revenue forecast, or emerging priorities. These adjustments may require legislative action or in some cases executive orders depending on the circumstances. After the governor submits the proposed budget, the general assembly's finance committees along with other relevant committees conduct a detailed review. This includes analyzing funding allocations, evaluating the economic outlook, and gathering input from state agencies, local governments, advocacy groups, and the public through committee hearings. Based on this review and
018public input, both the House and Senate develop and approve their own versions of the budget, which may include changes to funding levels, resource allocations, and specific budget provisions. Any differences between the House and Senate versions are resolved through a conference committee. Members from both chambers negotiate a final agreement and present a conference report for approval by the full House and Senate. Once the general assembly approves the final budget, it is sent to the governor. The governor may sign the budget into law, veto specific line items, or propose amendments which the general assembly then votes to accept or reject. This side highlights key dates in the state budget process. Please note that all dates are tentative and subject to change. Again, the process begins with the release of the governor's proposed banual budget, which occurred on
019December 17th. The general assembly then convenes for the 2026 regular session, which will be a 60-day session on January 14th. Shortly thereafter, on January 17th, Abigail Spanberger will be inaugurated as the new governor of Virginia. Budget amendments from individual legislators are typically due within the first week of the session. By early February, the House Appropriations Committee and the Senate Finance Committee finalize and report their respective versions of the budget. As of today the they've we had late February but it's February 18th will be the crossover period what will occur during which the house and senate exchange of budget proposal pro proposals differences between the two versions are resolved through the conference committee culminating in the release of the final conference report. If agreement is reached during the regular session and the process stays on schedule
020the general assembly aims to adopt the state budget by adjournment sendai tenatively set for March 14th. If no agreement is reached and the governor proposes amendments, the general assembly may be reconvened and that is tenatively scheduled for April 22nd to take further action. Once the budget is enacted, implementation by the executive branch begins in May. And while May is often viewed as part of the budget cycle, it is an administrative rather than legislative. And under Virginia law, city council must approve its budget by May 15th. Virginia uses a bi-annual rebenchmarking process to update the cost of operating public K through2 schools. This process ensures that funding under the standards of quality or SOQ reflects current real world cost rather than outdated assumptions. The results of the rebenchmarking establish the baseline for the 2026 2028 bannual
021public education budget prior to the inclusion of any new policy decisions. Rebenchmarking occurs every two years in alignment with the state's final budget cycle. Its results are incorporated into the governor's proposed budget and ultimately into the general assembly's adopted budget. The process updates projected public education costs for the upcoming bienium using fiscal year 2024 salaries and support costs as reported by school divisions as the base. Salary figures are adjusted to reflect the two 3% increases provided during the 2024 2026 bienium while support costs are adjusted for inflation over the same period. Although SOQ accounts for more than 90% of state K through2 funding all education programs are updated during rebenchmarking the process also updates enrollment projections, prevailing salaries and other cost assumptions as part of the bianual review. This slide outlines the key data elements
022that are updated during the bianium versus those that are updated annually. I will give you a moment to review the slide. The distinction between these two categories is important. Bianual updates reset the funding base for the two-year budget, while annual updates chew up costs that change each year. In practical terms, the bianual updates establish the starting point for the bienial budget, while annual updates help keep funding aligned with actual conditions without reopening policy decisions. As you can see, more data elements are considered at the start of the bienium than during an off year. You have heard references to the local composite index or the LCI, which determines state and local shares of funding for K through2 education. The LCI is also updated every two years in conjunction with rebenchmarking. The index measures each locality's relative
023ability to raise revenue compared to all localities across the Commonwealth and reflects changes in local economic conditions. Localities with higher LCIS receive a smaller share of state funding while those with a lower LCI receive a greater state contribution resulting in higher local funding responsibility for localities with higher indices. As noted in Dr. Robertson's budget briefing, prior to the holidays, Virginia Beach City Public Schools LCI increased from.14138 for the 2024 2026 bienium to4172. This means the city of Virginia Beach is responsible for approximately 41.7% of the cost of the minimum education program established under the state SOQ. It is important to note that the city contributes funding above the state required minimum. I will now briefly review what we know to date about the governor's proposed uh bianual budget and his mid um bianual adjustment. Governor
024Yncan presented his amended fiscal year 2026 budget known as the caboose bill and it introduced his 2026 2028 bannual budget on December 17th before a joint session of the Senate Finance and Appropriations. the House Appropriations and the House Finance Committees. The proposed budget will be taken up by the 2026 session of the General Assembly, scheduled to convene tomorrow, January 14th. The governor's amendments to the current fiscal year 2026 budget are primarily technical adjustments to direct aid programs. One item of note is the proposal for a one-time bonus payment effective June 1st, 2026 for SOQ funded instructional and support positions. School divisions that certify a minimum average 2% bonus or equivalent action such as a salary increase for all instructional and support positions are eligible to receive this state funding. There are still some questions surrounding
025this proposal that we are seeking clarification on. Key public education related components of the governor's proposed 2026 2028 bianium budget include the recomputed composite indices, updated sales tax and lottery revenue estimates. Revised employer contribution rates for fringe benefit contributions paid to the Virginia retirement system. State funding for a 2% compensation supplement effective July 1st, 2026. and an additional 2% compensation supplement effected July 1st, 2027. An additional 299 million for school construction assistant program. An additional 137.6 million for the child care subsidy program. Governor Elect Spamberger will inherit Governor Yncan's proposed budget which was released as federal policy shifts threatened to put a strain on state finances. Recent federal legislation has reduced support for healthcare programs, raising questions about whether and to what extent Virginia may offset those reductions. The general assembly, which remains under Democratic
026control, will review and amend the budget before Governor Spamberger takes final action. The next two slides present two different revenue comparisons. The first slide shows projected fiscal year 2027 revenue as presented in the five-year forecast along with the net change from the approved revenue in our fiscal year 2026 approved amended budget. That change reflects an overall projected increase of $22.3 million. The slide also shows the fisc year 2027 revenue proposed under the governor's budget. The table at the bottom compares the balanced fiscal year 2026 budget with projected fiscal year 2027 revenues and expenditures from the 5-year forecast, which initially showed a preliminary deficit of $19.9 million. The governor's proposed fiscal year 2027 budget reduces that projected deficit to $12.8 million. It's important to note that this presentation reflects only the revenue impact of the governor's
027proposal to the 5-year forecast. Assuming 100% of projected expenditures are incurred and no additional budget balancing actions are taken, a deficit will still remain. This slide is presented in the format typically presented to the board and serves as the starting point for the budget balancing process. It shows revenues by source and it compares approved and amended fiscal year 2026 revenues with the proposed fiscal year 2027 revenues based on the governor's budget. These figures do not include debt service or payo amounts as they are required off-the-top expenditures. Based on the governor's proposed fiscal year 2027 budget, we are currently projecting an increase in revenues of $33.4 million over the current year's budget. These figures are preliminary and represent our starting point. And as a reminder, a new governor will be in office approximately two months before
028the general assembly adjourns. And the House and Senate will continue to have Democratic majorities that were elected back in November of 2023. As we move forward in the budget process, any questions from school board members should be directed to Dr. Robertson, Miss Woodhouse, and myself. These questions will be shared with the budget team and responses will be provided to the full school board as part of the next budget workshop presentation and I will pause to see if there are any questions before I move on to the second part of the presentation. Will those answers be in the packet? Okay, they will. They'll be some they'll be unless some we think they will be like what we did before where there there's actually a slide that gives the question and then the response and it'll be
029part of the packet. Okay, Miss Rogers just procedural. So, you want our questions to go to the superintendent, chief of staff, and chief financial officer, but I'm assuming we should not CC the rest of the board because of the meeting stuff, right? Okay. Just double checking. Thanks. Okay. So I'll now transition to the first departmental presentation for the department of budget and finance. As Dr. Robertson indicated, this represents a new step at the beginning of our budget process as intent intentionally designed to mirror the approach used by the city for departmental budget reviews. Because this is the first departmental presentation, I will begin with introductory slides that establish a common framework for future presentations. These slides outline the purpose of the departmental presentations and the guiding principles for financial stewardship. The purpose of these departmental
030budget presentations is to provide clarity around the division's overall budget. Through these presentations, we aim to give the board a clear understanding of each department's organizational structure and the responsibilities of the office within that structure. We will also present each department's operating budget summary, discuss future considerations, and identify any anticipated budget adjustments. Before discussing the guiding principles to financial stewardship, it's important to recognize that the proposed reductions you will be seeing in upcoming departmental presentations build upon reductions already made over the past three years. As shown on this slide, those reductions total approximately $16.7 million. Over the coming weeks, as all departmental presentations are completed, the cumulative impact will include a total of 31 FTE reductions through vacancies and attrition at approximately $2 million and non-personnel line item reductions totaling approximately 3.2 million for a
031combined total of 5.2 million. To guide our financial stewardship efforts, we have established a set of guiding principles aligned with compass to 2030, the division strategic plan. These principles prioritize preserving student centered programs and support, safeguarding legal compliance and safety requirements, maintaining essential school services, and pursuing restructuring or realignment where efficiencies have been identified. Compass to 2030 emphasizes high expectations, strong relationships, and ensuring every student receives the support they need. Each budget decision is evaluated against these priorities to ensure alignment with our long-term academic, operational, and financial goals. Responsible financial stewardship is essential to sustaining the highquality programs our community expects, and these principles form the foundation of our ongoing planning efforts. And we'll now move into the specific presentation for the department of budget and finance for fiscal year 202526. Department's approved amended operating
032budget totals 12,220,499. For presentation purposes, the department is organized as follows. The budget development office, which also includes the business services office and a small portion of the risk management office. Together, these areas account for 44 FTEES, including the chief financial officer, two directors, two coordinators, budget analyst, system specialist, financial assistants, accountants, accounts payable and payroll staff, a grants manager, a school rentals assistant, and clerical staff. Please note that there is also a riskmanagement internal service fund which accounts for the majority of the risk management office and is not considered part of the operating budget. This fund operates similar to an insurance company receiving insurance proceeds and paying premiums for all coverage. positions include the risk manager, crash investigator, occupational safety specialist, and an insurance claim claims analyst not included in the 44 FTEEs just
033mentioned. The procurement office is also located in the department of budget and finance. This office has 11 FTEES and consisting of a director, coordinator, contract specialist, procurement specialist, a procurement card analyst, and clerical support. The last office within the budget of the department of budget and finance is the consolidated benefits office. This office includes 20.5 FTEES including a director, coordinator, benefits specialist, benefits assistants, and clerical staff. In addition to the operating budget, this office, this office also has two internal service funds that are not considered part of the operating budget. One for the school division and one for the city. These internal service funds account for the health insurance program and the administration thereof for school division and city employees. It includes employer and employee premiums and medical and prescription drug claims. You have seen
034a number of briefings on the school's health insurance health insurance internal services funds and it also have also seen the consolidated activity of these funds monthly during the presentation of the interim financial statements. FTEEs housed within the city and school health insurance internal service funds are not included in the 20.5 FTE count. And this table on this slide reflects those internal service uh positions. Um this slide provides a high level overview of the core responsibilities of each office under budget and finance. The responsibilities shown reflect the functions of the budget development office, business services office, and the operating side of risk management. I will give you a moment to review. At a high level, the budget development office and business services office work closely together to develop the division's annual budget, oversee the financial management
035and reporting, administer payroll for approximately 10,000 employees, and process thousands of accounts payable transactions. The budget development office also manages the impact aid program which contributes approximately 13 to$15 million annually to the operating budget as well as the operating functions of risk management including coordination of school facility rentals. Financial management for most federal and state grants is also handled by these offices. The annual comprehensive financial report prepared by the business service office has received both the government finance officers association certificate of achievement for excellence in financial reporting and the association of school business officials certificate of excellence in financial reporting for 28 consecutive years. The division has also received unqualified or clean audit opinions throughout that period. for consolidated benefits. I will not review each item individually as the board has received extensive briefings on
036this office. I will give you a moment to review. This office's responsibilities include benefits eligibility and enrollment, regulatory and legislative compliance, plan administration, employee education and communication, vendor management, and customer service. This office performs highly technical and complex work to ensure compliance with federal and state requirements while supporting informed employee decision-making. The procurement office is responsible for acquiring goods and services in compliance with the Virginia Public Procurement Act. This last column provides a high-level list of their responsibilities. I will also give you a moment to review. Its role is to ensure purchases are made efficiently, legally, ethically, and at the best overall value while supporting operational and strategic goals. This includes managing the RFP process throughout the division, determining soul source procurements, overseeing the procurement card program, and reviewing contracts above established thresholds. So this
037slide summarizes the proposed fiscal year 2026 27 operating budget for the department of budget and finance. As I previously mentioned, the approved amended operating budget for this current fiscal year is 12,220,499 with 75.5 FTEES which are previously outlined. The proposed fiscal year 202627 operating budget is 11,978,023, a reduction of $242 $242,476 including a reduction of two FTEES. This reflects a 1.98% decrease. Non-personnel reductions include approximately 15,000 in various areas within the budget development and business services office, 34,000 in various areas within the consolidated benefits office, and 3,000 in various areas within the procurement office. Organizational change within a budget and finance department is typically minimal as the structure is designed to support consistent fiscal oversight, compliance and continuity in financial operations. Because the budget and finance department is built around stable process-driven functions such as
038financial management, compliance and reporting. As a result, it generally experiences little organizational change from year to year. The department has no new outside the base budget request that would impact the operating budget of the department for fiscal year 202627. We are finalizing implementation of an automated school facility rental software purchased in the prior fiscal year which is expected to create efficiencies and potentially generate additional local revenue. We are also entering the discovery phase for our new human capital management system which is included in the capital improvement program. As the board sees the remaining departmental presentations, please note that school divisions may be required to incur additional cost related to new or amended federal and state legislation, regulations, or administrative directives. These may include but are not limited to staffing, training, reporting, technology, or operational expenses.
039As a team, we remain focused on identifying operational efficiencies and continue to evaluate emergency emerging technologies including AI to streamline workflows, reduce manual effort, and enhance overall performance. This afternoon, members of the budget and finance team are present, and we've been happy to answer any questions you may have. Okay, Miss Rogers, just a quick question. Um, Miss Pete, on that last slide, evaluate automation tools to streamline processes, but you're not discussing new ones, just the one that we had already. That is correct. We are not discussing new ones. We're trying to use what currently exists. Okay. Just double checking. Okay. And I'm sure there's going to be more questions, but since nobody has requested anything right now, I'm going to go ahead and start talking. And this is um this is nice. We're starting earlier
040a little bit here and discussing and this is a result of our retreat and so um we have time to really dive in and so that's great. Um but Miss Pate um related to slide number I think it was 17 and you mentioned many positions that were included under the various offices and um I was just wondering if there was a way that you guys could email us that since I didn't have the chance to write them all down. I tried. You can. I mean, do you want a list of every position that's in those offices? I think that would be useful as we're getting these presentations. I'm I'm sure that there's other colleagues that probably also have that question. Um, and because consolidated benefits is under this office, um, or yeah, office. I always
041call it department, but it's office. Um, we have a difficult conversation with consolidated benefits and health insurance and um that health fund balance. And I know that you might not be able to answer it today, but I would like to know um what our plan is in this budget season for that health fund balance. Um, so that would be something that I'd be interested in in kind of hearing about how do we we plan to get that fund healthy again in a sustainable way. Um, so anyhow, are there any other Chair Brown? Yeah. So February 10th, we'll be addressing that very question. Thank you. Are there any other board members? Okay, Miss Woodhouse the mic back on. Thank you and good afternoon school board members and happy new year. I am Cheryl Woodhouse, chief of
042staff. Thank you for the opportunity to present the proposed FY2627 operating budget for the Office of the Superintendent, the Office of Planning, Innovation, and Accountability, and the Office for Opportunity, and Achievement. This presentation reflects our continued commitment to responsible financial stewardship while ensuring that our work remains tightly aligned to our division strategic framework compass to 2030 for preparing every student to be future ready. The budget before you is intentionally focused on preserving the functions and supports that are closest to the students, protecting compliance and safety requirements, and maintaining essential services to schools while also identifying opportunities for realignment and efficiency. Our guiding principles for financial stewardship are grounded directly in compass to 2030, particularly the goal of advancing organizational excellence through the effective and efficient use of division resources. As we develop this budget, we
043applied three core questions. How does this investment support student learning, well-being, and future readiness? How does it protect the systems and structures schools rely on to operate safely and effectively? And where can we responsibly restructure or realign to ensure sustainability? These principles emphasize aligned budgeting practices, transparency, and ensuring resources are allocated in ways that best meet our students and staff needs. Our focus remains on preserving direct student impact while stewarding public funds responsibly. The structure of the office which includes the office of the superintendent, the office of planning, innovation and accountability commonly referred to as PIA and the office for opportunity and achievement. As indicated on the slide, the current budget for the three offices in compa encompasses 23 encompasses 23 FTEES with a combined budget of approximately $4.7 million. Together, these three offices serve
044as the connective tissue between strategic vision and day-to-day implementation and operations. Each office has a distinct role, but all are unified by a shared responsibility to ensure district-wide coherence, compliance, and strategic alignment. The core responsibilities of the three offices directly connect again to our strategic plan covering every goal. The office of the superintendent provides the overall leadership and direction for the school division, ensuring that our daily work remains aligned to compass to 2030. This includes setting clear priorities, reinforcing our mission and core values and maintaining a consistent focus on student centered decisionmaking across all departments and schools. The superintendent's office ensures that schoolboard policies are implemented and that division operations function effectively, legally, and responsibly. This oversight includes monitoring organizational performance and using data to assess progress toward strategic goals, supporting continuous improvement and accountability
045across the system. Clear, transparent, and timely communication is essential to building trust and shared understanding. The superintendants office leads strategic communication efforts and engages families, staff, community partners, and external stakeholders to ensure alignment around division priorities and to strengthen partnerships that support student success. Last but not least, the office of the superintendent supports schools by translating divisionwide priorities into actionable guidance and coordinated support. This ensures schools are not only informed of expectations, but are equipped with the clarity, resources, and alignment needed to implement the compass to 2030 priorities effectively at the school level. Ultimately, the office of the superintendent serves as the central point of accountability, ensuring alignment between policy, performance, and practice across the division. The office of planning, innovation, and accountability provides leadership and support for the design, implementation, and monitoring of the
046division strategic framework. Oversees state and federal accountability, accreditation, and required reporting. Supports schools through assessment, administration, training, and data use. Conducts program evaluation and applied research to inform decision making and continuous improvement and designs, administers, and analyzes divisionwide and programspecific surveys. This work connects strategy, evidence, and practice so leaders and schools have clear direction and meaningful information to guide improvement. The Office of Opportunity and Achievement has continued to introduce innovative programs and expand the impact of existing ones. Mainstay initiatives such as Beach Girls Rock and the African-American Males Summit have seen an increase in participation over the past three years. The Tide Coalition has been recognized as an exemplar at the state and national levels. Efforts to improve the sense of belonging for students, staff, and families have yielded measurable gains in student enrollment and
047success in advance in dual enrollment classes as well as increases in belonging perception data. The establishment of the care collaborative has already resulted in improvements to the division's student belonging survey. Additionally, events such as season for nonviolence, poster, and poetry contests have strengthened community partnerships in a short amount of time. In the school year 2024, over 1,500 students were directly involved in activities and events hosted by the Office of Opportunity and Achievement. This does not include hundreds more who are involved in activities the office also supports. The department's operating budget is largely committed to staffing assessment administration and targeted resources that directly support schools. These investments reflect the strategic plan's emphasis on building strong systems that enable schools to focus on teaching and learning. The chart on the screen is a comparison of the current
048budget to the proposed budget. Currently, the approved budget, as previously mentioned, is slightly over 4.7 million with 23 FTEES. The proposed budget for next year is still slightly above 4.5 million with the same number of FTEES, 23. This is a cost savings of a little over 167,000 or reduction of 3.55%. As we look ahead to future considerations and anticipated adjustments, we recognize that our work is greatly impacted by both federal, state, and local mandates. We continue to focus on our guiding principles for financial stewardship where decisions are grounded directly within our strategic plan. We will continue to monitor workload demands to ensure service quality remains high, particularly as mandates evolve. We are exploring opportunities for automation and process improvements, directly align with strategy 5.2 of the strategic plan to absorb tasks where possible, and redirect
049staff capacity towards higher impact work. Sustainability remains a guiding focus and any adjustments will continue to be evaluated through the lens of student impact, compliance, and long-term organizational health. In closing, this proposed budget for the office of the superintendent, planning, innovation, and accountability and the office of opportunity and achievement reflects a disciplined strategic approach that aligns resources with our strategic priorities. In if additional revenue or new requirements emerge, we will remain flexible and responsible and responsive ensuring that our financial decisions continue to support the division's mission of preparing every student to be future ready. I along with the team Dr. Banicki and Mr. Harris are prepared to address any questions you may have. Miss Rogers. So I have a quick question and this would be for all the departments. So I guess it would be
050kind of towards Dr. Robertson. These are total budgets for each department. Correct. That's correct. So could we by chance get a breakdown for what we're seeing as far as um salaries for staff versus whatever else the budget includes. like split that apart just so we get an idea of, you know, cuz we're getting how much we're paying, how many full-time employees we have, but we don't have a price for that. So, I'm just curious as to an average, but but but doesn't that does the budget include other things or is it Yeah, it includes other things. Yeah, that's includes personnel and re and resourc whatever else you need. Right. So, that's why I was asking if we could just get the salary part to go with the number of employees. Certainly. All right. Great. Thanks.
051Okay. So, this um 3 and 12% roughly reduction. Yes, ma'am. What exactly is prompting that? Is there a cut or and and if so, can you share what that is? Absolutely. Um because the cuts primarily um come from the office of planning, innovation, accountability um and their line item cuts as they evaluate programs um to see if we can be more efficient, effective. Uh some is negotiating um contract changes um I won't necessarily say discounts because most contracts are increasing uh this year. So, the opportunity to scrub the the budget and take a look at where we could make necessary cuts or where we've seen patterns of not spending to the allocated amount in previous years. Okay. Um and then my other question is related to the perception surveys uh with the office of opportunity
052and achievement. What um what software or program are we using for that or going to be using in this budget? Either way, Lisa does the surveys. Okay. Well, had to confer with Mrs. Wood House because we're going um we're going to use a new survey tool under the new budget system, but we haven't terminated the contract with the existing vendor. I thought we voted to terminate that already. No Qualres. Oh, okay. All right. I got you. I just wanted to make sure. All right. Never mind. Don't tell me a secret. It's okay. No. Right. It's not a secret. Typically, we don't divulge the name until we at least notify the company. And so, um, so it would be me. Sorry. So, it's okay. You just heard it. So, yeah, we're going to use a different
053survey tool. They know that we were looking at other survey tools because their cost structure was going to cost us out. They were significantly increasing their cost structure over time and we knew we were not going to be able to commit to that. Okay. All right. So, that's not a surprise to them. Correct. All right. Do you have anything to add to that or is is everything she said accurate? Okay. He's not going to help me. I'm glad we can have a sense of humor during budget season. Absolutely. Okay. I don't see any other questions at this time, but I'm sure there will be some that trickle in in your um emails here. So, thank you. as as we get processing this information. It looks like we have Miss Livus. Good afternoon and happy new
054year. I'm Nicole Livus, chief communications and community engagement officer for VBCPS. Thanks for the opportunity to share this important budget information with you. I'm here to highlight the work of our department following the guiding principles for financial stewardship. Our work shows that strong school divisions are built on strong relationships which are nurtured by a strong communications and community engagement team. Communication isn't just a support function in education. It's a strategy for engagement, trust, and progress. School communication amplifies impact, connects people to purpose, and turns a vision into a shared responsibility. The Department of Communications and Community Engagement has a total of 21.4 FTEES and includes two different offices, communications and family and community engagement. The two teams work to fulfill the department's mission while taking on the responsibility for essential duties, projects, publications, crisis communications,
055websites, social media outreach, and media relations both internally in the school division and externally in the community. The Department of Communications also has oversight of the Family and Community Engagement Office, which organizes division partnerships and volunteers and supports the Virginia Beach Education Foundation. Our total budget for fiscal year 2627 is 3,650,648. When the city of Virginia Beach and VBCPS mutually ended their video production agreement, VBCPS hired a multimedia producer to maintain consistent in-house video storytelling and engagement. He produces informative and engaging video segments that highlight the work of VBCPS, including but not limited to the superintendent segments and various department highlight videos, including recruitment features for human resources, as well as coverage of division events such as the summer leadership conference, the back- toschool caref, first day of school, the superintendent's holiday video, teacher of
056the year celebration, and graduation. Also new this year, DCCE implemented and trained staff divisionwide on the onflow, formerly known as Let's Talk customer service chatbot to streamline feedback and get cases in the right hands in a timely manner. for crisis communications. We not only produce messages for individual schools and divisionwide, but we have established a working relationship with the Virginia Beach Police Department and local and regional school and business communications professionals to stay on top of critical information and communication training and trends. Our priorities for the coming year are to streamline our tasks so we can be more efficient and continue to work within our budget as we keep producing highquality engaging content that informs our students, staff, and stakeholders. This slide shows the core responsibilities of our comm's department and the face office. On
057the communication side, we manage the division's primary platforms, social media sites, the onflow let's talk chatbot and parent square alert. Now comms also produces divisionwide video and multimedia content including the superintendent's monthly deathside chat and his good to know series for external stakeholders and Nicole's adventures segments which highlight various VBCPS people and programs and those division videos I already mentioned to you. Comm's also supports school websites and the division's website. We have a graphic designer who produces content for various departments, including publications like the kindergarten handbook and the superintendent's estimate of needs booklet and video content support. We train and manage school media liaison and inc ensure accurate, timely information reaches families, staff, and the community, especially during critical moments. On the family and community engagement side, we focus on building strong connections between schools,
058families, and community partners. This includes volunteer coordination through signup genius outreach initiatives, the language ambassador program, which provides translation and language access, professional development workshops, community events, including the back- to-school carefare, the book club, and the winter coat drive. The FACE partnerships provide wraparound supports for students and families. We also support the Virginia Beach Education Foundation's fundraising and recognition efforts that directly benefit classrooms and staff. Those events include the Pearls of Wisdom Oyster Roast, the Sheriff's Turkey Bowl, and the Teacher of the Year dinner. This work together with both teams supports all Compass to 2030 goals by strengthening trust, engagement, transparency, and access across the division. Our approved amended fiscal year 2526 budget is 3,650,648 648 with 21.4 FTEES. Our proposed fiscal year 2627 budget shows a reduction of one FTE at a cost of
059$ 109,272 or a difference of 2.99%. This key change represents one vacant FTE due to retirement. For future considerations and anticipated adjustments, we have expanded the training and implementation of the Onflow, formerly known as Let's Talk AI customer service chatbot. the parent square messaging platform and we are planning to expand the use of our final site website platform to streamline processes, reduce manual task and improve efficiencies. There may never be one online platform that can perform all the needed functions, but giving families and staff guidance about a manageable number of tools will improve communication. DCCE is introducing a platform awareness campaign that will create a simple centralized resource for how to communicate within VBCPS. We are working to keep up with the changing demands of communication in which our stakeholders expect to receive information quickly.
060That includes an increase in requests for videos and messaging. We always monitor and evaluate our contracts to ensure the best return on investment. And that's a highle look at how the budget supports student learning and division goals with the department of communications and community engagement. We believe our work proves that strong schools are built on strong relationships and communication is what makes those relationships work. At this time, I'm happy to answer any questions along with the director of family and community engagement, Dr. Odman Alexander. And thank you for your time and continued support, Mr. Ken. Thank you for your report. Uh you're making me aware of something that I didn't realize and I would appreciate any clarification you can offer and that is I've always envisioned that the Virginia Beach Education Foundation was a standalone
061separate entity on its own doing wonderful things for the educational system. But I didn't realize and this is giving me that impression that it was an internal component within our school system and as 9.8 FTEES and apparently a budget that's associated with that. So help me understand if I'm misunderstanding uh the impression that I'm left with. Dr. Alexander, would you like to? So, we have uh staff members uh that um work with education foundation. So, we oversee the some of the operational functions of foundation. However, the foundation does operate on its own. So, we have a coordinator that kind of strategically ties in our alignments, the composite 2030 or our other strategic alignments to make sure that everything kind of flows naturally together. It sounds like it's a partnership of sorts. That is correct. They
062are a major partner within the school division. Okay. And will we be getting a breakdown as it relates to the dollars that are associated m similar to Miss Rogers question as it relates to the staff that's involved in what's being allocated in that regard so that we can just understand that. Absolutely. Yep. Thank you. We we pay for one position uh to support the education foundation. That's the coordinator. Um, and her work crosses over into our work, not education foundation work per se, but we do pay for that position. Okay. Thank you, Mr. Co Pepper. I just wanted to clarify one thing. You said uh you're reducing by one FTE and that was due to retirement. Yes, sir. Are you removing that position or are you looking to refill it? We're removing it. Okay. Thank
063you. Okay. And you know I I appreciate and I just I want to you know give kudos to everybody. I appreciate that there's a reduction in percentage in in many of these and I know that that's something that we have to do. So I appreciate that effort here on the front end. Um and I'm sure there's going to be more conversations but um I do appreciate that and I appreciate everything. Um, I do have some questions about the Let's Talk um platform and I don't know that you're gonna have the answers right now. I'll try my best. Okay. Um, how much are we spending on the Let's Talk platform. I would have to get that number for you. Okay. I don't want to misspeak. And if you also could um some data on exactly how
064many, uh, folks are using it. Um because I I don't know that um I'm not sure that we have community members that are as aware as maybe they could be not not for any faults trying it's new but um I just would be curious on that you know ROI. We did just get some numbers and again I don't want to misspeak but the usage has gone up as we have trained more people on the platform and uh I can tell you some of the top topics are transportation the bus routes. Okay. And McKini Vento. Okay. Okay. Those are some important topics. So all right. Thank you. I appreciate that. Thank you. I don't see any more questions at this time. So, it looks like we now have uh the Department of Technology. Good afternoon, everyone.
065Happy New Year. For those of you who have New Year's resolutions, I hope you're still going strong. I appreciate the opportunity this afternoon to share the share an overview of the department of technology and our proposed operating budget for the upcoming fiscal year. Today I will briefly highlight the work of our uh that our department does across the division and the scale of the technology environment we support. Um, I'll also talk a little bit about how our current and proposed budgets ensure that technology remains reliable, secure, and effective for students and staff. I want to start with a simple idea that really captures our mission. For the majority of the Department of Technology team, our best day is when no one thinks about technology at all. Just like your car, when everything is working smoothly,
066technology creates opportunities for you wherever you may need to go. While it's a fundamental foundation for success, its utility and convenience is often taken for granted. When systems just work, when instruction continues uninterrupted, staff stay productive, and classrooms function smoothly, that's success for us. Our work is most effective when it fades into the background. The work of the Department of Technology is guided by three focus areas that align closely with the division's strategic priorities. The first is operational excellence, which is truly our foundation. This includes delivering reliable core services every day, network connectivity, critical applications like our student information system, cyber security tools, and technical support. We ensure students and staff have the technology and applications they need to be successful in the classroom and in their roles. All the while, we measure our performance
067through metrics like service levels and problem resolution times. We not only measure what occurred, but what didn't occur as a result of our people, systems, and processes. Classrooms not disrupted, systems not unavailable, and security incidents that didn't materialize. Second, making the department of technology a great place to work. Technology services are delivered by people, not hardware and software. We focus on professional growth, mentorship, engagement so that we can retain skilled staff and maintain continuity in an increas increasingly competitive technology workforce. I firmly believe that a great organizational culture is the backbone of any successful team and encourages an engaged and productive workforce. And finally, innovation. For us, innovation is about using our expertise to make VBCPS work more productively, more efficiently, and more sustainably. We have highly skilled engineers and analysts who understand both the
068technology and the business of education. We partner with departments across the division to identify inefficiencies and apply technology in thoughtful ways, often behind the scenes to simplify processes, reduce manual effort, and improve productivity. This includes the responsible use of automation, analytics, emerging tools such as artificial intelligence, always implemented in controlled, secure, and scalable ways. Most importantly, innovation in DOT is designed to strengthen operational reliability. When done well, these improvements reduce workload, control costs over time, and allow staff across the division to focus more of their time and energy on students and instruction. This slide provides important context for the work and responsibilities I just described. It illustrates the technology environment that the Department of Technology supports in order to serve students, families, and staff every single day. When a student logs in to complete an
069assignment, when a parent checks grades or communicates with a school, or when a teacher starts a lesson, technology is already at work quietly and reliably in the background. Behind those everyday interactions is one of the largest and most complex technology environments in Hampton Roads. VBCPS has invested in more than 160 miles of high-speed fiber throughout this city that connects every school and facility across the division. That network supports far more than Wi-Fi. It enables classroom instruction, phones, printers and copers, door security systems, cameras, and emergency communications. Systems that students, families, and staff depend on without ever seeing them. What truly makes this environment complex is not just its size, but how differently it must behave for different users. Our staff require broad access to systems and data to do their jobs effectively. While students must
070have a tightly controlled, age appropriate access that prioritizes safety, privacy, and instructional focus. Creating an environment that's flexible enough to empower staff, secure enough to protect students, and simple enough to use every day requires careful design, constant monitoring, and thoughtful controls behind the scenes. At the same time, this environment work must work every day in every building and often beyond the traditional school day. Families access systems in the evenings. Students work from home and staff rely on technology well outside of normal business hours. Department of technology teams support this environment around the clock because learning, work, and communication don't stop when the school day ends. All of this works seamlessly. techn when all of this works seamlessly, technology disappears into the background, allowing students to focus on learning, families to stay connected, and staff to
071focus on supporting our schools, which is exactly how it should be. Supporting an environment of this size and complexity requires sustained and thoughtful investment. For the current fiscal year, the department's approved amended operating budget is approximately $20.4 million. For FY2627, the proposed operating budget is approximately 20.1 million, which represents a reduction of about $293,000 or 1.44% due to the elimination of three positions through attrition. This change reflects staffing adjustments while maintaining our ability to deliver those core services. Unlike many departments, the vast majority of our budget is committed to essential systems and services before the school year even begins. These include the synergy information system, the wise HR and payroll system, subscriptions for Google and Microsoft applications, cyber security tools and internet filtering, phones and infrastructure that supports daily classroom instruction and administrative operations. As
072a result, only about 35% of the Department of Technologies budget is dedicated to personnel. These systems are not optional. They are foundational to teaching, learning, communications, payroll, attendance, grading, compliance, state and federal reporting, and cyber security for our environment. One of the most significant challenges we continue to manage is the rising cost of technology due to inflation, tariffs, and macroeconomic events. Over the past several years, software vendors have shifted almost entirely to subscription-based pricing models with consistent annual increases. These increases are largely outside the division's control. For the upcoming year alone, our Microsoft licensing costs are projected to increase by approximately 10%. Our Google licensing costs by more than 25%. Together, these alone will require an additional $300,000. These increases are occurring even as we reduce staff and look for efficiencies internally. Our approach has
073been to manage usage carefully, negotiate costs where possible, and absorb these increases while minimizing impacts to instruction and services. This requires constant monitoring, disciplined financial stewardship. We continue to have conversations with vendors in our departments of budget and finance and procurement to mitigate these issues. Cyber security threats continue to increase in frequency and sophistication, particularly in K12 environments nationwide. VBCPS has made significant investments in both technology tools and skilled staff to protect our systems, data and users. Our focus is on layered technology, proactive monitoring and incident preparedness. This work is ongoing and essential to protecting instructional continuity and sensitive student and employee information. Looking ahead, our priorities remain clear. First, we will continue to protect systems reliability and security as non-negotiables. Second, we will continue to modernize responsibly, extend system life cycles where appropriate, and
074consolidate platforms when possible. Third, we will use our department's tools and expertise to automate VBCPS processes, increasing efficiency and productivity while decreasing costs. And finally, we will remain focused on service and stewardship, delivering dependable technology with high levels of support while being thoughtful and transparent with public funds. Our goal is not simply to maintain technology, but ensure it continues to quietly enable learning and operations across the division. In closing, the Department of Technologies mission is simple. By delivering dependable core services, investing in our people, driving innovation, we ensure the Department of Technology is a partner in making Virginia Beach City Public Schools stronger, more efficient, and future ready. Our responsibility is to ensure technology is never the story, but always part of the solution. When classrooms function smoothly, staff can focus on students and systems
075are secure and reliable. Technology disappears into the background. Thank you for your time and continued support. I know technology can feel complex, but I'm happy to answer any questions that you may have. Mr. Helen, right up my alley, doctor. I may be speaking to the wrong department with my question at hand, but I'll frame it and since it budget itself, my question is this. As time goes on, the consideration other Mr. Ken, your microphone shut off. There you go. I don't know what's going on for this microphone. I think somebody said that was Ronald Reagan. Never mind. Anyhow, uh the question that I'm raising is from a budgetary point of view and a cost reduction point of view, would it be feasible, appropriate, even likely to be a consideration that we examine the process of
076removing Chromebooks from the educational process and getting back to the hard copies of books and things of that nature. again because more and more articles are starting to surface in the educational arena questioning the benefit or the effectiveness of Chromebooks as a teaching mechanism versus others. And I didn't know whether or not this would be an appropriate consideration from a budgetary perspective for technology or is that department of teaching and learning or should I just turn my microphone back off again? No, I think I can take that one, Mr. Ken. So the there there are a lot of variables in that question. So the marketplace has adjusted from um the creation of textbooks uh hard copy textbooks like many of us um had when we went to school and it moved to uh technology devices
077which allow for uh information to be updated more regularly because you can do it online. You don't have to do another hard copy print. Um the literature out there right now is uh asking education to take a closer look at the amount of screen time uh students are getting and I think the issue is much like we have tried to explain here there's screen time for learning which is absolutely appropriate and then there's screen time for pleasure and if you look at the screen time for learning it's somewhere between one and four hours a day and if that's the only screen time a child gets and it's it's used in an appropriate manner for learning, then that's not a problem. But if that screen time of 1 to four hours a day turns into six
078to 10 hours a day because of what they're getting outside in the pleasure atmosphere, well then the screen time is a real challenge. Um the there are vendors out there right now and as you'll hear on our our textbook adoptions um that will really play a key role into what's available. And right now what's available is more of the electronic means than the hard copy means. And so it is a cost though. It's absolute cost every year. we have to factor in replacement programs. Thank you. I appreciate that. And I guess my closing response would be this is just an area I would like us as a board to continue to explore and at least evaluate. And I know that's in your arena, but not necessarily your decision-making process. But thank you for your time.
079Absolutely. Thank you, Mr. Co Pepper. Easy one for you because I'm pretty sure you said it. I just didn't catch it. You uh I think you said your percentage of of budget that is personnel. Uh approximately 35%. 35% is personnel. That's right. Okay. All right. Lower than I thought. Yeah. Thank you, Miss Rogers. Thanks. Thank you, Mr. Dan. Um I know that this is not my area of expertise, but having been on the educational end of it, I do think that um it's a balance between whether or not the costs are increasing and the cost of introducing something new and retraining everyone and that's also something that is always a balancing act. Um I don't know like 25% increases in Google seems so high and I don't know if there's something because we use Chromebooks
080then we are locked into Google. Yes, we are. Yeah. So again, it's it's you know, what do we do? Um to Mr. Kalen's point, I do truly truly support um less technology in our early childhood environments. I think that's where we should focus if we are going to because those are the students who are learning to read. They need real books. learning to uh interact with each other and technology doesn't support that at that age. I think as you get older it is necessary. It is required because that's the world we're living in. But at an early age we're, you know, pre-K, kindergarten, that's where we can maybe adjust. That's just my opinion, but I wanted to share that. Mr. Cummings. Well, you kind of answered a little bit of my question because I was
081I noticed I was curious about the Google increases and whether or not we were thinking about becoming a team Microsoft or team Google institution since there is probably some duality of services within that. Um, but I imagine the disruption to our exper student experience would be pretty significant one way or the other. But my question I think is more so to you Dr. Robertson. We've heard from four offices on um automation and the the hopeful goals for that and I think like from my perspective I would love to hear and not for now but just as a question for future use just what is our pathway forward with automate automation where we're seeing opportunities how we're leveraging technology and then you know what is some of our our cost savings with that that comes along
082because it seems that this is you know I know professionally it's a growing emerging trend that every single company is talking about. But one is exciting to see four people all you know joining together saying how do we better more efficiently you know operate operationalize as a institution um and take away manual labor to free up our people to do work and not administrate work. So that excites me. So I'd love to hear, you know, down the road just what is our our pathway forward with automation optimization. Can do that. Okay. Um and I would be curious what the total of those um costs are. I do have one other comment, but um I'll give the floor to Miss Dwire first. I just wanted to know what was reduced. Was it staff? It was staff.
083Okay. Yes, that's what I thought. Thanks. Okay. So, I don't think it's really a question for you, but since we are in this budget conversation and we do have those Chromebooks, I I would also echo uh the sentiments um that are youngest learners at least. And you know, there's a where there's a will, there's a way, right? Um some divisions use computer cards in second and third grade um for those SOS and those youngest learners. And I'll go back to a while back when I was raising my first child. Um, the American Academy of Pediatrics used to recommend no more than 30 minutes per day of screen time period into story. As the influx of technology came into the school systems, um, at that time those recommendations changed. And so I I don't know if
084those recommendations changed because screen time became less dangerous for our young children or if schools were doing it so they made those modifications. And I don't I don't really need anybody to rebut those at those times. But I I also would like to see what the cost would be and what it would look like um for our youngest learners, maybe K through two and um kindergarten, first grade not not having Chromebook and iPad access unless it's in their IEP or 504 and um maybe second grade doing a computer card. So, I would be very interested in that as we continue those budget conversations um and you know, as a board seeing if that's the direction um that the board may want to go. So, anyway, that wasn't a question for you. So, um I don't
085see any other discussion and I believe that is the end of our budget presentations. Um Miss Lenetti, I don't do we have another close session? Okay. I don't think we really have time at this point. Anyway, if we did so, it is 5:24 p.m. We will recess and reconvene at 6 p.m. for formal meeting.