001good evening it is 5:30 it's March 11th welcome to the regular board of directors meeting please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance IED Al algi to the flag United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation God and justice for all thank you NAA has our land acknowledgement Evergreen Public Schools resides on the traditional lands of the shinin people and the college tribe they have lived on and cared for this land and its waterways since time immemorial we thank them for their stewardship and make this acknowledgement to open a space of recognition inclusion and respect for all indigenous students families and staff in our community thank you first item on our agenda is to adopt the agenda do I have a motion I move to adopt tonight's agenda second director
002banega moves to adopt the agenda seconded by director Wilson all in favor I thank you the next item on our agenda is matters reserved for board action we have our resolution affirming the rights of undocumented students and protocols for ins and IC C access in schools access to school resolution number 7021 my screen just disappeared read it from the screen a resolution of the board of directors of Evergreen Public Schools Vancouver Washington affirming the provision of safe welcoming and inclusive schools for all students without regard to race ethnicity religion sexual orientation gender identity expression income level disability national origin or immigration citizenship status whereas in the Evergreen Public School strategic plan the district has promised that we will support all students our classrooms will be a safe space where students will a belonging and are
003motivated to learn every day and whereas it is the policy of and strongly help belief of evering public schools that all schools must be safe and free from the targeting discrimination harassment or bullying of students based on race nation of origin religion immigration status or any other factor and whereas the board whereas the school board recognizes that our nation's and District's diversity is our greatest strength with approximately onethird of our over 22,000 students having multilingual skills and possessing immigrant and Refugee Heritage we celebrate 109 countries of birth and 116 languages and dialects spoken whereas title six of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is federal law prohibiting school districts from discriminating on the basis of race color or national origin and whereas the US Supreme Court ruled in lby Nichols 414 us 563 in 1974
004that to comply with the legal obligations under title six of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 school districts must take affirmative steps to ensure that students with limited English proficiency can meaningfully participate in their educational programs and services and whereas the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in plyer V do 457 us 202 in 1982 ensures all children are legally entitled to equal access to a free public education regardless of immigrant immigration status and whereas the school board recognizes its statutory Authority and responsibility to promote the effective efficient or safe management and operation of the school district pursuant to RCW 28a 320.50 and whereas RCW 28. 225.0 requires compulsory attendance for all students between the ages of 8 and 18 and the Washington State Constitution Article 9 Preamble states it is the
005Paramount duty of the state to make ample provision for the education of all children residing within its borders without distinction or preference of account of race color cast or sex and whereas the presence of immigration enforcement officials in schools would cause extreme disruption to the learning and teaching environment for students staff and families and whereas the board has been made aware that instances of harassment intimidation and bullying of students on the basis of national origin has increased now therefore it be now therefore be it resolved by the board of directors of Evergreen Public Schools that to the maximum extent permitted under law one we reaffirm our commitment to a safe welcoming and inclusive environment for every student without regard to their race religion national origin or immigration status consistent with board policies R4 student safety
006o10 safe supportive learning environment and the district strategic plan whether in school buildings or during off-campus school activities two we direct the superintendant to continue the ongoing staff training on their duties and responsibilities with with respect to student safety three pursuant to policy 3207 and his procedure any school staff who observes overhears or otherwise Witnesses harassment intimidation or bullying of a student or to whom such actions have been reported must take prompt and appropriate action to stop the harassment intimidation or bullying prevent its reoccurrence and report it to the building level administrator and or District Hib compliance officer four pursuant to policies 3120 3226 4020 and and 4300 and other policies we direct the superintendent all staff and all volunteers to uphold student and family confidentiality and a to refrain from inquiring about or recording
007any students immigration and family status B to refrain from unauthorized disclosure of immigration or family status C to actively monitor campuses for individuals entering or remaining on school property without authorization D to urge students and their families to become familiar with the district's Refugee and immigrant Family Resources web page pursuant to policy 5281 and accompanying procedure we direct the superintendent to apply disciplinary proceedings where policies have been violated six we encourage families to have up-to-date emergency contact information on file with the district in the event of a student's primary caregiver is detained due to immigration status and seven we call on IC and related federal agencies to reinstate the policy of not conducting enforcement actions in sensitive locations such as schools do I have a motion I move that the board adopts uh resolution 721
008as presented I'll second director Perkins move that we adopt resolution 7021 is presented seconded by director banra all in favor I I any opposed thank you thank you I wanted to thank um the board director Perkins the students and our staff were working really hard on this resolution I know that you guys before I was on the board you did this years ago and this is an updating of it but we worked with students um and they were at Mountain View High School they were very very helpful and giving us some perspective on what they needed to help feel safe in this situation so thank you to you all okay still having some technical difficulties sorry the next item on our agenda is public comments any Community member wishing to address the board may do
009so during the designated time on the agenda for public comments comments are to be directed to the board of directors as a whole and may not be addressed to any individual member of the board the administrative staff or the audience although the board will not engage in dialogue the board chair may ask a speaker a clarifying question or follow up at a later time on the issue raised during public comment General reminders each speaker has a maximum of 3 minutes this evening to ensure we hear from as many voices as possible uh following um after the first hour of comments we will take a 10-minute break there's no mechanism whereby a speaker can donate some or all other time to another speaker no individual may speak more than once per regular meeting even if there
010is time remaining please state your name and District affiliation of any the first person up is Angie bua good evening good evening board uh my name is Angie Bunda I have two students in the district last week I emailed uh all of you some questions about the super intendent finalists but only one responded to me so here are some of the Public's questions many find it a there were only two candidates instead of three and that the other candidate happened to live right here in Vancouver they are concerned a full Nationwide search may not have been done and it feels almost as though choosing someone in town may have just been the cheaper option rather than to pay for airfare and lodging for other candidates human capital used their superintendent search with Portland Public Schools
011as an example of what they could do for EPS including multiple opportunities for the entire Community to participate online and in person with this search after you chose human capital the public thought that the example given is what we were paying for and it has been disappointing to be shown one thing and then receive far less people are interested to learn exactly how their tax dollars were used my husband is from Hawaii and his family still lives there very large family many members have reached out to say that Dr Kishimoto was not a good superintendant for the state of Hawaii and was admin focused instead of student or Community focused I feel this should be shared with with you coming from people who directly experienced her leadership to build trust in a strong bond with
012a community hard things need to be discussed valued and dealt with together I understand the hesitance to revisit the past but after the amazing restorative justice Workshop it is clear that this distrust will continue to grow until the community sees attempts to address and restore the harm we need a superintendent who will look past actions that have been swept looked at past actions excuse me that have been swept under the rug and demand accountability we need someone who will see how the staff expression policy is silencing our staff these are the very people who have daily firsthand interaction with our students and who hold the most valuable opinions experiences and expertise these people need to be able to safely share what struggles our students are facing so real positive improvements can be made we need
013someone who will not only acknowledge the toxic culture being created by a few in the ASC but who will be brave enough to address it by making the necessary changes rather than let it continue to weaken our staff's morale and the Integrity of our district there are so many who want to make a difference but intimidation and retaliation of speaking up about the true condition of our systems is too great we don't need someone with all the answers but we do need someone who is willing to face and acknowledge the hard questions and actively try to work with the staff and Community rather than against it we need someone who does not need our tax dollars to fund a golden parachute for an easy out should the job get tough and who will be dedicated
014to put in the effort to make our district better we aren't giving up on our schools and we expect our superintendent to lead by example and do the same by choing choosing to ignore Community questions and simply focus on the present and look forward you as decision makers show that poor choices will not face any accountability and that transparency is not a priority we need a superintendent who is dedicated to Rise Above This and change the current mindset and methods in our district I hope that you will ask some of these hard questions yourselves and consider all these as you make your decision for our new leader thank you thank you next up is Heather Kellum good evening Schoolboard I'm here this evening to read a resolution on behalf of a clear majority of certificated
015staff at Columbia Valley resolution on supportive effective School leadership whereas Evergreen Public Schools affirms that each member of our community students staff families and Community Partners is welcomed included and empowered thereby forming the Bedrock of our Collective commitment to Student Success whereas EPS is committed to a student- centered approach which gives students an active voice in determining why what and how their learning experiences unfold thereby ensuring that decisions at all levels are informed by the insights of students their families and Community Partners whereas our vision for Student Success declares that empowerment is built through learning ensuring that both students and staff are enabled to achieve their personal and professional goals through continuous self and peer advancement in learning whereas the EPS Community is committed to fostering a safe inclusive and empowering environment where every member
016is valued and collaborative efforts are directed toward Student Success whereas the district's Vision emphasizes the empowerment of students and staff to achieve their goals through a culture that supports ambitious teaching student well-being and academic risk-taking whereas effective School leadership is pivotal in creating environments where Educators feel supported and valued leading to improv student outcomes whereas micromanagement results in systemic failures in a complex school system in which a sole decision maker unable or unwilling to distribute responsibility becomes overwhelmed and fails to follow through on routine tasks and communication whereas micromanagement undermines and discourages creativity and professional expertise and leads to low staff morale and staff turnover whereas the persistent use of retaliatory intimidating tactics by the principle creates a Culture of Fear eroding the culture of trust and collaboration which are essential for Effective teaching and
017learning whereas the counterproductive nature of such practices not only threatens educator morale and professional growth but also undermines the district's commitment to culturally respon culturally inclusive student centered education that values every stakeholder's contribution and whereas the district's commitment to employee engagement involves valuing staff opinions experiences and expertise in decision-making processes that impact them and their students now therefore be it resolved that by affirming these whereas statements we the underside certificated staff of Columbia Valley urge the board to direct the superintendent to purs pursue a mutually mutually agreed upon solution to the issues we have laid out and ensure that administrative practices reflect the values of our district ensuring that all educators are supported and empowered to provide the highest quality education to our students this resolution is rooted in our unwavering commitment to excellent in
018education and it is Advanced with the hope that our voices as highly experienced educators will catalyze meaningful change that benefits our entire School Community to be clear we remain committed as we always have been to Student Success Through empowerment inclusion and mutual accountability thank [Applause] you so we have Leslie lizie Herman thank you good evening members of The Evergreen school board we're honored and humbled and deeply saded to be up here today presenting we stand before you today not just as concerned Educators but as representatives of a staff that feels unheard unsupported and subjected to toxic work environment that is impacting our ability to serve our students effectively we want to bring to your attention a vote of no confidence in our building's leadership this is not a decision we came to lightly it reflects
019a deep and growing concern over the intimidation harassment and bullying behaviors that our Administration has demonstrated towards staff instead of fostering a culture of collaboration and respect our workplace has become one of fear and retaliation we are concerned with the non-existent discipline of our building documentation of such behaviors are stunted not encouraged not followed through on and it is not always communicated to parents in a way that supports students in attempt to address these oncoming ongoing concerns our staff has been involved in mediation however the mediator was hired by HR creating a clear conflict of interest the process rather than serving as a path towards resolution has instead reinforced the power imbalance that exists in our building Medi should be a tool for genuine problem solving not another mechanism for controlling or silencing staff concerns
020although mediation is an appropriate process for many this process doesn't address trust issues when our trust within our Administration has been erably broken additionally hr's handling of this situation is only added to the confusion and distrust last week an unprofessional email was sent to staff and by the next workday HR followed up with the completely contradictory message this kind of inconsistency only deepens our frustration and raises serious concerns about the district's ability or willingness to effectively address the crisis in our building throughout all of this we have felt a profound lack of support our voices have been dismissed our concerns ignored and our working conditions continue to deteriorate this is not just about staff morale this directly impacts the students and families we serve a dysfun functional and hostile work environment does not create the
021best conditions for Student Success we are asking for immediate and meaningful action from this board we need accountability we need oversight and most importantly we need leadership that values and respects its Educators we urge you to take this matter seriously and take steps to ensure that our workplace is when where Educators feel safe supported and empowered to do the job we were hired to do educate and support our students thank you Columbia Valley certificated staff thank [Applause] you next we have Katherine ferk it's okay thank you good evening evening my name is Katherine fdick I'm a parent of three EPS graduates and one senior I want to First acknowledge that one thing we all likely have in common is that we all know our district needs stability and positive leadership to thrive and that the
022lack of it has been crippling our community your community has grown skeptical and distrustful of leadership with due reason we all need hope and confidence that we can move forward towards a stability that uplifts and support supports all who are involved in our students educations I encourage you to consider carefully the attributes shared in feedback from the community employees and focus groups and how the finalists you chose align with those characteristics and values it is crucial for a superintendent to be able to relate to the classroom experience of teachers and empathize with their challenges while also recognizing the challenges of administration and balancing the two we need a superintendent who will work towards closing the Divide of an versus them tension that has been growing for years between parents and teachers with Administration we need
023a superintendent Who Will Champion for our teachers and students needs and give them the value respect and esteem they are due as well we know the teaching environment is our students learning environment this concept cannot and must not get lost in the shuffle your decision and choosing our next superintendent carries so much weight for the future of our district and our children's education your community is giving you the Opportunity by passing the levies to show them that you are truly listening to them and desire to honor that trust thank you thank you next we have Kaden mrai boari kayen okay um Alandra venos hello good evening before I begin I want to give a special shout out to board president Jackie Weatherspoon director Rob Perkins and Jamila Singleton without your tireless work behind the scenes
024our community would feel truly invisible your dedication does not go unnoticed I would also be absolutely remiss if I and give a special shout out to Kaden the young leader who stepped up and demanded excellence in spaces that often lack bip presence your courage and leadership are Paving the way for the for a brighter future history is be being written real time and in this political climate every stance is being documented rest assured there will continue to be a need for collaboration with community in the future the work you put into this resolution is just the beginning of what of what we expect from our school board not long ago schools were segregated and some Educators and school boards found themselves on the wrong side of History the next four years will be remembered not
025just for the decision made but for who had the courage to stand on the right side students and families in this community are watching they are paying attention to where you choose to stand and the Legacy you leave behind the lack of diversity on the school board is more than just a demographic imbalance it is a reflection of the systematic barriers that have long excluded minority voices from decisionmaking spaces when leadership does not reflect the diversity of community it serves the risk of implementing policies that Overlook or Mis or misunderstand the lived experience of students and families of color increases this Gap makes it even more critical to create intentional platforms that uplift and Center marginalized voices true Equity requires more than just representation it Demands a commitment to actively listening engaging and empowering those
026who have historically been sidelined if the board does not reflect the community then it must work twice as hard to ensure that those most impacted by its decisions have a meaningful seat at the table leadership is selfless and in those positions of power must and then and in and those in positions of power must recognize when their presence is limiting the process of those they serve if the board and superintendent looks to its right and left and sees a lack of representation that does not reflect the student body then perhaps it is time to take a meaningful action to close the gap marginalized voices cannot continue to be afterthought it must be centered true leadership is not about holding onto a seat it's about ensuring that the right voices are in the room a repres
027if representation is lacking then the most impactful decision decision may be to step aside and make space for those who can truly speak and to the lived experience of the students and families this board is meant to serve lastly I'd like to close the new federal Administration is not only targeting immigration and Refugee families and students in the Evergreen School District but also individuals across all racial gender and identity identity identity lines let this resolution be the first step in protecting all students bipox students those in the lgbtq plus Community students with disabilities and those from low incomes ensuring that no group is further marginalized progress is made through sustained action and the direction you choose to lead this community should reflect the diversity needs and voices the student body you serve it is our
028responsibility to elevate and support every individual which is a community if we fail what is a community if we we fell to Value its diversity thank you thank you I see Cadence here sorry about that y'all and good evening tonight I thought that a students perspective would be something of high value in this room this resolution has not been a collaborative easy or fun in any way it's been heartbreaking to hear each student feel the need to give you personal examples of their own trauma just for yall to work with the community it's it has been tiring for everyone to stay organized write and edit their speeches make posters spend three different workshops in the same week to learn how to navigate policy and then prepare to face the board they all did this outside
029of the school without pay as well the board's apathy and lack of respect for all students is felt widely we have board members who don't see the value in IM rants non-english-speaking students or many others bring to our district we have board members who agree with the federal Administration that is committed to hate Division and racism we have a board we have board members who are more committed to passing levies than they are to students physical and emotional safety as I'm grateful for the work that we that we made sure that the unjust sacrifices were that were made to make this happen by our students and Community leaders is highlighted I would also like to thank some members in the community for making this happen Alandra AOS Vios thank you for being the most amazing
030advisor and Advocate and for also making sure that students voices are uplifted even when the district won't Paul Porter for making sure that all students are heard and seen and help making this happen the one and only Clarissa high tower for teaching our students how to navigate policy and being one of the most empowering people I know at War Tes for making sure that students are valued and that is understood that we are why you guys are sitting in your seats Dr Jamila Singleton for being an advocate for all the students even in the hardest times and making sure all students are care for Jackie Weatherspoon for being an amazing collaborative partner and caring individual Rob Perkins for speaking up about the importance of the challenges we are facing and making sure that our voices
031are heard and all the parents that supported the students during these increasingly hard times and finally the amazing students who overcame the fears of big crowds aggressive red screens flashing in their faces in a moment of fear standing up to the ones who have put us down and as I said my last speech I gave here you guys did not put yourselves in these seats the parents have neglected students did we will use the given power to make sure that we have a representative and proactive board that understands what it means to protect and serve students thank you thank you Paul Porter hello how you doing as I stand before you today to address a reality that cannot be ignored the school board does not reflect students and families it serves the decisions made in
032this room impact thousands of students students who came from diverse backgrounds who speak different languages who bring cultures histories and experiences that shape the fabric of this community let's be clear representation is not just about Optics it is about perspective perspective it is about lived experience it is about understanding the challenges that students of color immigrant students and other marginalized communities face not just reading them in reports but actually knowing what it feels like to navigate an education system that was never designed with them in mind when leadership does not reflect the people it serves blind spots blind spots become policies which is what would have took place with the resolution if it weren't for the students very public protest and voice on public record the policies have consequences we see it in the lack
033of culturally responsive curriculum we see it in discipline disparities that disproportionately harm black and brown students we see in the absence of bilingual support in the barriers undocumented students face and in the way funding is allocated and when members of this board align themselves with ideologies that have actively worked to strip away rights from immigrants people of color and lgbtq plus students when board members have publicly supported a president whose policies have harmed the very students in this District it raises a very serious question whose interests are truly being represented here and yes we still remember which current board member have publicly took their stance on the wrong side of History makes me truly wonder where they would have stood in the 50s when it came to segregation when people of color couldn't even learn
034in the same space only difference now is it's worse they are trying to force our community out through deportation but we also know that it's not just the visible decision makers shaping the inequities in this district there are those behind the scenes those in positions of power who have consistently manipulated their roles to maintain control rather rather than serve the students and staff that are entrusted to support the chief operations officer is a prime example for years we have watched as power has been abused as hiring we're not supposed to address my apologies or want to do it again and disciplinary decisions have been leveraged not for fairness but for control and we are fully aware that this district has reportedly turned a blind eye and through your actions we clearly know why ignoring Injustice
035does not make it disappear protecting those who misuse their Authority does not serve students it serves a system built on exclusion and silence but let me be clear we will not be silent the time for Passive leadership is over the time for excuses has passed students and Families are watching and history is documenting where you stand that means acknowledg acknowledging systemic barriers that exist actively working to dismantle them and it means holding every leader in the district whether elected appointed or like I just mentioned operating behind the scenes to a standard that serves the students not their personal agendas the district is at a Crossroads you can choose to maintain the status quo to continue leading from a place of Disconnect and privilege or you can choose to be on the right side of History
036to listen to to learn and to make decisions that truly serve all students because quite frankly they deserve better thank you thank you Clarissa hi Tower good evening uh first I'd like to take a moment to thank and appreciate uh the actions of the board members as it relates to pausing and listening to student voice before moving forward with the most recent proposed board resolution 7021 you not only paused but you listened and you then worked meaningfully to incorporate the students input this was a tough process for students but interacting with you in this way helped them grow this is a welcomed and this is a welcomed indication that our board is indeed willing and able to respond to community input in ways that help us feel seen and valued On a related note I
037had the pleasure of attending the bipac leaders and allies meeting last week where Dr Maloney invited Dr Jam Singleton to share some of the amazing work the department of student equity and family engagement is doing to support students with tough issues as mentioned this evening including bullying and hate speech which are very important to them I wondered to myself why this work and many of the other things happening in this department are not being shared and highlighted during board meetings so I inquired Dr Maloney reminded me in the group that board meetings are for the board and the agenda is created by you all so in the spirit of you continuing to respond to community input in ways that help us feel seen and valued just as you did before I have an inquiry and
038a request my inquiry is the work of the Department of student equity and family engagement important to you all as a board I would hope that your answer answer is yes I can tell you that it is very important to me as a community member as I had a daughter who recently graduated from this district and I currently support students in the district so I'd like to request that you add the work of the Department of student equity and family engagement to your agenda in ways that demonstrate its importance to you and to the community I thank you kindly and I look forward to your continued efforts to see and value Community voice in meaningful ways I also look forward to seeing what is important to you thank you thank [Applause] you that concludes our
039um public comment next item on the agenda is to adopt our board consent agenda is there a motion I move adoption of the board's consent agenda as presented second director Perkins moves to adopt the board conscent agenda as presented seconded by director Wilson all in favor I thank you next item on the agenda is to adopt the superintendent consent agenda do I have a motion I move to adopt the superintendent consent agenda second director per um director bocanegra moves to adopt the superintendent consent agenda is seconded by director Perkins all in favor I thank you next item on the agenda is our superintendent report Dr Mone right thank you um I want to start off with a celebration uh this week is education support professionals week week um formerly called classified employees week and if
040you didn't know this a fun fact this has been around for about 50 years so um started in 1975 um by the public School Employees or psse is what we um call call that group um it includes bus drivers custodians Food Service workers maintenance par Educators our security secretaries just to name a few of the Myriad of positions that fall underneath the term of Education support professional and I wanted to make sure that we recognize their hard work their dedication to our students and uh say a heartfelt thank you it's their work is so important to what we do every single day um to create a welcoming environment that's supported by caring adults for our kids and so a huge thank you to all of them for the rest of my report um I'm going
041to reference certain operational expectation policies that align with the actions either myself or members of the Evergreen staff and administrators have taken um that directly support those policies so I'm going to start off with Equity leadership Gatherings this morning uh began with the elementary building leadership alog together in this room here and it was packed our secondary wind will occur on Thursday this week and the focus that me that we started off was um going through the professional development that was created by Dr Singleton and her team on how to respond to bias and hate and so these are modules that were prepared um through her um office and department and provided to all of her building leadership uh teams this morning and we'll do that again for the secondary and I wanted to make
042sure I said Thank you to her um under um instructional program that would be operational expectation 11 if you are wanting to make notes on that um at the same leadership gathering this morning we reviewed data from a guaranteed viable curriculum audit and um you'll get lots more details later we'll bring that forward for the board uh it talked about one of the data points was the literacy data alone included 680 plus classrooms that were walked into and uh 280 Plus hours observed in those classrooms so there were small chunks of time and you'll get lots more details later but I wanted to share that the overall growth data from last year to this year for literacy was 15% and the overall growth data for math was 7.8 8% from last year but again you
043will get lots more information and details about that as part of the instructional program policy piece um I have embedded in my daily work uh visiting schools and so I want to list off a couple of schools that I was able to visit um some of them for the second or third time and some of them for the first time so I'm home CH first time with students in it let me make that clear okay did lots of visiting over the summer too so um I was the first time I was able to visit with students present at Home Choice and so that was a great experience I spent a great hour over there with the principal and walking around and um seeing the teachers and students um I was over at hollingworth I've been
044there before um great time there Legacy image Maring and Shahala so in the last few days I've been out and about um U checking out the instructional programs we have in our schools and I know uh many board members sign up to join me on on those uh visits um for Community stakeholder relationships that's um oe3 if you're taking notes director Perkins Columbia River Economic Development Council um the board orientation took place this last Wednesday so I was there doing that and I did have a great ride along um out in the county areas of our district and a little bit beyond as well with car County Sheriff Deputy Kip branch and so I really appreciate um them being able to arrange that opportunity for me to uh see a lot more of the county
045and the perspective from law enforcement as well um going back to equity under um EO zero um I had the opportunity to provide um a refresher um with Dr J Jam Singleton I keep saying doctor because she's newly um has her doctorates and that's very important um for courageous conversations and as you are aware cian conversations is a a two-day required training for all new certificated staff coming into our our district and there's been some refreshers that have been provided through through the years um but this was a refresher course specifically um um I um uh required all of their superintendent leadership team and our teaching learning and Equity Department last Wednesday to spend um half a day doing a refresher with courageous conversations and um that um was very well received and it was
046a great refresher for myself because I'd actually participate in courageous conversations as part of the professional development that we provided administrators when I was a a chief academic officer in PIP okay uh continuing with the operational expectation on Equity um both president Jackie Weatherspoon and director Rob Perkins joined me at Fort Vancouver High School in support of a family meeting that was held for students and families who were concerned about immigration enforcement we're also joined by uh the police chief Tor price and our mayor an mcer Ogle I'm hoping I say that correctly okay uh we had our third bipot Community leaders as one of our public speakers mentioned today um that was last Wednesday and um we also were um had the I I invited the mayor to Come Share again around immigration enforcement
047and the city's um perspective and stance regarding that and uh we had a great discussion and feedback that uh Dr Jamila Singleton shared regarding our professional development around anti-hate and bias and what we're doing to put supports in place for administrators or staff and our students uh to make sure that our schools are welcoming and safe environments for every every single child okay and the last part here is under Personnel Administration I am pleased to announce we've hired two principles and you've got the text and those emails um that came through we have Sheree Gomez Clark uh for Evergreen High School welcome her there as principal and Chris Griffith for Shahala Middle School uh they both come with obviously with fabulous uh recommendations and references and a focus on students and Student Success and so
048you'll be hearing more um later this after or this evening at our board Workshop around our affirmative action plan as well so we talking about Personnel Administration and I'd like to end with a thank you to Heritage student Henry he um is a student leader over at Heritage at the Heritage Asian Student Union club and I got to spent almost two hours with the club he reached out to me and um I was able to join his meeting um with the students we had great conversations that red from uh food service and Pizza in the lunchroom um all the way to executive orders and political um things that are happening and how they may be affecting our schools and our students and and and immigration enforcement was also part of the topics that we discussed
049so I really enjoy getting to know them all and it was a great time that I learned a lot so that concludes my superintendent report thank you thank you next item on our agenda is a teaching and learning and Equity update Dr Brian Fox good evening good evening thanks Diana good evening president Weatherspoon members of the board for the teaching learning and Equity update this evening I'd like to share some of the work being done to improve student achievement and eliminate the predictability of outcomes by demographic group as promised at your last meeting I'll be sharing about a comprehensive assessment system an equity-based multi-tiered support system and a leadership framework which you've heard about already in the past which includes a responsive system and instructional guide in Washington state students take state and federal tests
050regularly to assess their learning growth as well as the progress of the educational system as a whole at your last meeting I shared assessment data representing student performance on the smarter balance assessment and the Washington comprehensive assessment of science I talked about formative and Summit of Assessments and gave examples of each and then we looked at Summit of assessment data for ELA and math and science to see how Evergreen students were doing in comparison to the state average when a school district formally organizes all of the assessments taken by students it's called a comprehensive assessment system this seems fairly straightforward but it's actually quite complex there are even tools designed to help a school district take an inventory of all the assessments across the system and evaluate their purpose and continued use in Evergreen Public
051Schools we're beginning this work and plan to carefully evaluate all that we do with testing and so that we can ensure that when students are assessed the results are used to improve instruction and help students we want the test to measure what was taught eliminate redundancy and provide useful results Dr Heather Fowler is working with the team of people in tle to evaluate our current assessments districtwide and to develop this comprehensive assessment system for EPS assessment data however is only as good as is what is done with it at your last meeting I shared broad data about Evergreen students it was sumita of assessment data lumped all together and compared to State and National averages what's more useful to Educators is when we dig deeper into the data so we can make instructional shifts that
052best suit learner needs for example when we look at data for subgroups of students we can make more informed decisions and pin point the instructional changes needed for individuals or groups of students when a professional educator has the right assessment data presented in the right way it's similar to a medical professional knowing what therapy or what medication to prescribe to someone who goes to the doctor so instead of looking at smarter balanced assessment data for English language arts and comparing it to the state average we might be interested in pulling out just the data for third grade students we might see that most EPS third graders have very low test scores in a specific area like vocabulary or reading comprehension and then with this knowledge we might implement or prescribe a district-wide focus on vocabulary
053development or reading comprehension you can see that formative and summative assessments are important in our system test results tell us how students are doing and help us decide what kind kinds of supports might need to be put in place to ensure Student Success in tle we are working hard to organize a system of supports to help ensure all students succeed database decision making is one component of a multi-tiered system of supports or mtss mtss is a framework that integrates academic and behavioral support into one system this graphic from OSI shows that mtss consists of five components I just finished talking about the comprehensive assessment system we are developing and this icon demonstrates how one kind of data test data can inform decision-making next I'd like to talk about a Continuum of supports we are organizing
054in Evergreen to ensure all students can be successful you may have seen me draw this little pyramid before it represents the Continuum of supports we provide and this icon shows it as three tiers each of these tiers represents the support provided to ensure Student Success they aren't places they represent different teaching strategies designed to help students learn keep in mind that supports are not always academic Focus the support could be related to behavior the mtss model moves away from treating academics and behaviors as separate areas instead offering a tiered approach to all interventions that's because often academic performance and student Behavior are directly related so let's begin at the bottom we'll begin with excellent first instruction for all students this is represented at the bottom of the pyramid and we call this tier one instruction
055at this level we ensure that every student honoring their background Identity or learning needs has access to rigorous engaging and culturally responsive teaching this is where Bobby height and several teams of Educators in teaching learning and Equity are doing all that work on the development of an instructional leadership plan an instructional guide remember her presentation a few months ago to you she talked with you about a guaranteed and viable curriculum High leverage practices and the workshop instructional model that Evergreen teachers use this is all tier one the kind of instruction that engages all students with the course materials and the learning taking place we say our classrooms will be safe spaces where students feel a sense of belonging and are motivated to learn every day it's in our strategic plan and we call that phrase
056one of our pillars that's tier one instruction in the classroom and it could look like this with students sitting at attention in rows see they all have their hands up or it could look like this where students are working in pairs all around the room while the teacher directs their work engaging first instruction has many different forms and can look different from classroom to classroom and a different times of the day I only have two photos here but examples of tier one instruction are vast the next tier tier two is when more intensive and individualized positive behavioral and academic interventions are provided for those students who need additional support this might involve more opportunity for students to practice and receive specific and frequ feedback it may involve more communication with families and it's the hard
057work our professional Educators engage in every day once again Bobby height is leading some excellent word work with tle members in developing what we call a responsive system which may include more explicit instruction in a small group maybe social emotional learning instruction maybe flexible learning environments where every student can Thrive that flexible learning environment is important to understand here in tier 2 instruction the support can be fluid depending on the needs of each student tier 2 instruction could look like this where the teacher visits a group of students at the back of the room for some redirection or additional instruction it could be one-on-one like the picture on the right where a teacher uses visual prompts that have been taught previously but when a student needs a reminder or a refresher here are other examples
058of tier 2 teaching these students may be typically very strong in other academic areas but need support in just one area this is why the assessment piece I talked about earlier is so important teachers use formative assessment results to understand that a student could use some additional support and then meets the child where they are to provide that support this additional tier 2 support could be provided every day for the duration of a whole unit or it could be provided just once to get a learner back on track test results will tell the teacher and the student when support is needed and when there is success and lastly tier three three is the smallest part of the pyramid because it represents fewer students who may receive intensive interventions that are individualized to meet their needs
059often this is the kind of instruction or support for students needing more than a traditional classroom can offer even with the support of a responsive system tier three support can be provided in the classroom or in another space in either case we want everyone to feel safe welcomed and valued for who they are anywhere in the school and in EPS we will create safe spaces that allow all students to learn with the Continuum of supports we want to ensure that students receive the appropriate level of support for both academic and behavioral needs with a strong emphasis on prevention and early intervention and by doing so we can help create a more Equitable inclusive and responsive learning environment for all students in Evergreen our focus is on equity and inclusion and eliminating the predictability of outcomes
060by demographic groups therefore we are calling mtss an equity-based multi-tiered system of supports why equity-based mtss in Evergreen Public Schools we prioritize equity in all aspects of our teaching teaching learning and work where everyone's voice matters and everyone has access to opportunities to realize their dreams our commitment to student outcome and success is rooted in the ideals of equity and inclusion We Believe each student can learn so our efforts to improve student achievement must focus on equal access to excellent first instruction with an organized system of courts to ensure Student Success to help us build and sustain a systemwide equity-based mtss in Evergreen we will partner with the Swift education center from the University of Kansas they will support District leadership to align the work and operationalize our current work and formalize our equity-based mtss
061and thus improve Equitable outcomes for all students Swift is a proven leader in helping school districts develop equity-based multi-tiered systems of support they've worked in some of our schools in Evergreen and their expertise has proven quite valuable our partnership with the Swift education center begins in April and will continue through the summer you can see that the state's mtss framework includes five components and tonight I just shared about two databased decisionmaking and the Continuum of supports as I mentioned there's a lot of work going into the development of the Continuum of supports we provide in Evergreen and as mentioned by Dr Maloney earlier today all this room was filled with Elementary administrators and instructional coaches where they were reviewing drafts of the responsive system and the instructional guide and other documents being developed as we
062work towards this mtss these documents represent much of the work already taking place in our schools and will help form ize our own equity-based system of supports the feedback from schools is so important to the creation of a system we all understand and value and I'm really actually very excited about the work that's being done in the teams in fact at your next meeting in fact Dr Maloney or you were one one step ahead of me at your next meeting on March 25th I've asked Bobby height to review data from nearly 700 classroom visits conducted over the last several months it will show the degree to which our guaranteed and viable curriculum is being implemented across the district this presentation along with a performance from a mariachi band from Mountain View High School will make
063up the tle update and uh that's something for us all to look forward to what questions or comments do you have I have no questions thank you for a very clear presentation forward to the data and the other reports that you uh have talked about in the great in the presentation and thank you Dr Fox for meeting with me last week I was informative appreciate it all right thank you all right [Applause] then next item on the agenda is board comments anyone want to start okay I'll go I'll start um this morning um director wener and I did breakfast with the board at Legacy High School where we met with about I don't know 10 to 12 students um two things stood out to me the most one was that they felt very connected to
064their teachers and to the staff and they felt very grateful for them that the choice to go to that school sort of changed pretty much every life in that room um and how grateful they were for that also that they they want when it comes to sort of student interactions bullying um those kind of things they were asking for more one-on-one conversations where they were put in the room where they could talk to each other and talk talk those kind of things out and I thought that was really impactful because it was really wise of them to want to sit and talk with each other as opposed to this person gets punished and then this person gets punished they had a lot to say um specifically about just how that process worked for them at
065other schools and how they've experienced those sort of community Circle type things and how helpful it's been for them so I thought that was really interesting um Dr Maloney mentioned that um director Perkins and I joined her at Fort Vancouver for a community uh meeting that echoed the one that we did here a couple weeks ago um that was very interesting and each time I go to one of those I learn more um just about sort of just what these families are facing um the legal landscape and how it's changing because I think at one meeting the attorney said something and then it changed by the time that they came to the next meeting about what the expectations would be for those families um so I'm grateful that we were able to participate again and
066to continue getting that information out um I want to encourage everybody who can to come to our meet and greet tomorrow to meet the candidates um it's been a long road to get to this point and we appreciate all of your input and your feedback um and I also want to thank the teachers for coming out and speaking to us tonight and for sharing your resolution and your letter with us and to the other members of the community who spoke um thank you very much I'll just add one thing on the um Legacy visit this morning it was great um it's so it's fun to see when students because you know we've been doing some workshops around the store of justice and so it's great to see that the students recognize that as a as
067a way to help men fences with each other and not really to separate them but really to get them in a room together and talk through it and so um it was a great morning thank you Jackie for going with me um also I got to take along with Dr Maloney to the visit at image and that was a lot of fun the students and staff were great there and um a lot of the kids asked for my help that day so hopefully I didn't hurt anything but it was a lot of fun it was um it was great to do a couple of school visits this week yeah I want to thank all the people that spoke tonight I appreciate all those comments and I believe this board has a diversity of thought and
068I believe each board member brings strength and weaknesses just like everyone in this room has strengths and weaknesses I know for me um my daughter being on the autism spectrum my youngest uh just kind of I've been able to share throughout my year plus on the board some thoughts about that um so yeah there's always room for improvement but also um Columbia Valley uh sorry the mediation uh didn't seem to go quite as well as it could have and I'd be willing to be part of another mediation team if that was in the works but I could offer that so um and lastly concerning the uh human capital um I've been a bit of an outspoken critic uh I had hoped for more uh maybe more of a town hall type of uh thanks um
069atmosphere for tomorrow but um I sent him an email a week uh two weeks ago and have not heard back so um just hoping for more in that area but we may not get it so but thank you I want to thank those who came to speak about the uh um the resolution and the process uh that we uh had with the students um and just talk a little bit about what I think this is about um a lot of these policies that we site have been in place almost unmodified I think uh for many years especially since 2017 uh when worry about um police action in schools for civil violations like immigration um was also on the rise and we knew uh the whole board that we needed to address that worry um the
070student input was extremely valuable and it enabled us to with their help to craft something that contains their voice um I don't want to say that this is something that is accomplished uh because they also raised issues in those meetings that I am Keen uh to see some reforms about with them uh notably just the way that we directed in uh the resolution that every staff member should be watching for those microaggressions those moments of uh harassment and bullying uh and interrupting that and as we get into that uh you called it um hate and something protocol anti-bias and hate the the anti-bias and hate protocols uh I'm I'd be very supportive of everyone from uh a point2 uh FTE employee to a full-time teacher and administrator uh being able to have some clear access
071to that protocol and to understand what to do our teachers and our uh par Educators uh and all the people who work at the schools uh are the ones who know our kids best uh and they're best situated to uh apply all of that knowledge um I was at the community meeting uh at Fort Vancouver high school and something that mayor Macar ogal uh said really struck me she got a question about um there there are uh some claims in the at the federal level now that unless uh certain things take place locally that Federal funding could be withdrawn uh and she was asked what will you do uh if you're faced with a loss of federal funding for something or in order to uh implement or reverse a policy that it's clear the community
072wants uh and she said we will not back away from our values uh and we will prioritize our residents over funding uh and I want us uh and that seems to me to be a really good uh model she modeled uh some really good leaderships that we uh as we make our plans for the budget next year um should not let go of our definitions uh that we developed with community and with the staff of diversity equity and inclusion uh we know what that means here for us and we know that it's broader than uh the caricature uh that certain factions are spreading right um in the National scene so I'm hoping that we'll continue to use our definitions as uh we have them in our strategic plan and not back down from them um
073and then uh I guess on a on a less serious but also serious note is uh the visit to Marian Elementary School uh that I had with uh superintendent Maloney uh where we got to see a dual immersion kindergarten class every time I spend 10 minutes in a dual immersion kindergarten class I come out with more Spanish vocabulary and a better understanding of how that language is sung and uh there was some singing in that class the the same I guess the same uh attention techniques that you'd apply in English apply just the same for kindergarteners in Spanish and uh it was one wonderful to see that kind of Mastery on display uh and the way the kids responded to that teacher I've forgotten her name do you remember I do remember uh I'm sorry
074too uh I do remember uh that we also saw a fourth grade class uh and because I was a student at Maran in the old building uh what I saw in Mr deo's fourth grade class he was teaching some uh science uh had me thinking back to my experience in the fourth grade and the way we learned science and and other subjects and I was just really impressed why the way that the teaching Arts have evolved since uh dare I say um and the way that he engaged with his students when they deviated from his instructions and uh he he roped that deviation back into the to the lesson he wanted them to go after animals uh in their research and one student went after plants instead and still found uh evidence uh that uh
075supported his lesson and so he included that and just the way he handled the crowd and uh and those students and and our visit uh was pretty exemplary and I wanted to honor him for that tonight um beyond that I just want folks to know that uh our Equity work is ongoing and that I appreciate uh the feedback and hope to collaborate with these students and with many others uh as we go forward we want to have a safe school we want the bullying to stop and we want your help that's all I have can I add one more thing Jackie I just wanted to reminder for next Thursday evening the 20th is the region 6 meeting at Ridgefield School District they're hosting at this time so I think a couple of us are signed
076up to attend it's uh leading with purpose is the agenda topic okay the time is 6:40 p.m. and the board is going to go into a recess assign documents followed by a workshop about um our affirmative action plan a legislative update and board protocols and calendaring this meeting is adjourned [Music]