001national and global communities. And we are thankful to have uh LEA co-presidents Jill Shams and Jesse Martinez here as well as LPF executive director Nelandre Scott to hand out our awards. And we'll turn it over to you Jill. Thank you. I'm excited to be here again for uh this opportunity to lift up our educators and our staff um in our great district. Um this is this is good news. We like to spread good news about uh about our school district. Um we recognize that it it is teacher appreciation week this week. So what a great way to kickstart the week. Um and we also know that it's very busy time of year and so um there may be some staff that are here to accept their uh certificates and pins. Um but we will also
002have uh recognition for those who are not able to be here and we'll get them their certificate and pins at a later time. So, I will call their name and the school or the uh primary school that they work at and then they can come up and be recognized. Uh Laura Abilera from the district. Jennifer Appel, Logan Middle and Soda 2. Scott Beeski, Logan Middle, Soda 2. Saul Bashik, Logan High School. Jessica Bandelle, Polytenic. Sam Beina, Spence Elementary. Samantha Bingan, Central High School. Gary Bir, Northwoods Elementary. Joanna Carman, Central High School. Wendy Feckner, Summit Elementary. Trisha Gibbons, Logan High School. Michelle Hosque, State Road Elementary. John Kleinhans, Central High School. Mike Lawrence, Soda 1. Shelley Long, North Side Kulie Monasuri. Kristen Markworth, Hinchen Elementary. Jared Mickelson, Longfellow [Applause] Middle, Justin Pittz, Logan High School. Amarina
003Rathky, Longfellow Middle. [Applause] Casey Charelle, Southern Bluffs [Applause] Elementary. Ian Schultz, Central High School. Brian Sky, Southern Bluffs Elementary. Nancy Wedstein Weaver, Emerson Elementary, and Kelsey Williams, Spence Elementary. So, congratulations to all of our uh key staff award winners. U we're really proud to call these people our colleagues. Um and they along with everybody in the district really make this a great place to work and educate our community's children. So, thank you so much. We're going to choose a rainy 40°ree day next time. So, our next uh um recognition is, I will say, as a board member, our one of our favorite things to do each year, which is the um student artwork recognition. Um and so um this we have many of the students here. So, what we'll do is we will ask the
004board members to hold up your artwork and let your student come sit in your seat. Um, Scott, would you mind holding up gyms, please? Sure. And if the students would want to come up um by your artwork and we can recognize you um could we do it a smidge differently? Sure. Um last year we did have the students come up one by one. That would even meet them down there. So, if we're all okay with that, yes, we want the students to get to be recognized. That would be wonderful. Thank you. And we can have Miss Casey Charerelle uh uh introduce the program. Uh she is uh an amazing uh art teacher, our director of art, not director, but um uh coordinator of art across the school district uh and uh she can introduce the
005program. Awesome. Thank you so much. Thank you to the board administration and the school district of Lacrosse for having me here today. My name is Casey Charerelle and I stand before you to represent the K12 visual arts staff for the district. I have taught in the district for 13 years and I have been the art content coordinator for three years. Together with the other 15 art teachers you see in the audience, we work diligently to provide quality comprehensive art experiences for all students kindergarten through 7th grade and those that choose to take it 8th grade through 12th grade. During this teacher appreciation week brings me a chance to reflect on all the amazing work these educators have done over this year. Our secondary staff has been working diligently to strengthen our essential standards, proficiency scales,
006core vocabulary, and making a scope and sequence that unifies our north and south side schools in the district. They have intentionally reflected on what we do and how we do it to continually provide the best experiences and depths of learning for all students. We're also adding several new classes next year at our high schools, including ceramics one and two, print making, strengthening our uh AP art program, and refining our art one. Instead of being a full year, it's now going to be two semester classes for students that prefer 2D or 3D art. In our elementary schools, we are currently continuing to work on benchmarks of learning to give clarity to our students progress through their learning and growth to show their growth through their learning and their creativity. Within the work we do every day,
007art teachers weave social emotional learning and the creative process seamlessly together to instill confidence that each and every student can be an artist regardless of background, socioeconomic status, race, gender, sexual orientation, or ability. Oftentimes, you will find art teachers connecting with students that struggle to find a passion with reading, math, writing, and instead have a creative mind that's looking to be fostered and supported. My art colleagues work tirelessly to help each child find their purpose and passion and pride when they finally master a painting technique they've been practicing or finish the clay project they never thought would get finished. Our teachers are more than just teachers that get to play with glitter and clay all day. They are difference makers in the lives of so many students and are oftent time the reason some kids
008come to school. Over the last five years, we've seen an increase in traveling teachers, a dramatic decrease in our supply budgets, and more asked of us. But the teachers step up each and every day to provide the best opportunity for our students. We connect with other teachers on the team to support all parts of the student because we know all parts matter. We stay late to coordinate art shows and fill our hearts and our halls with art and creativity. This leads us to why we are here today to celebrate the students and the work that they have created this year. March is youth art month and all schools have an art show to display student work. Some shows are in their buildings during family nights, music concerts, and conferences. Some go into our community through
009the library, government buildings, and local art spaces. Each board member from the 2024 2025 school year and district administration personnel are asked to choose a work of art from a school to be put on display here in the boardroom. Today we celebrate the students who have been chosen this year and we invite them and their families to meet the person who chose their artwork. When I call the student, please come up onto the stage to stand with the person who chose your art. You will hold your artwork and the adult will share why they chose your artwork to be on display. You will then be given a certificate and we will hold your art for one year. I promise no more than that. Students, I know you're really nervous. It's only one year. Uh, and
010we will have it framed that you will see today and then we will get it back to your teacher to get it returned to you. Thank you all for being here to celebrate these amazing artists. And let's get started. First up is going to be Kendall Herald from Southern Bluffs, teacher Casey Shrell, and the selector is Miss Burgundell. [Applause] Thank you. Hi everybody. Um, I think the painting speaks for itself. It's beautiful. I loved Kendall's use of color, how she filled the whole page with artwork and design, and it reminded me of the Neverland boat from Peter Pan, and it just it was it just touched me when I saw it. So, I would love to hear from Kendall if you want to talk a little bit about what your inspiration was when you made
011it. Um, when I made it, I thought shading. So, like at night, and I and when I thought at night, I thought pirate ship. That's super cool. Thank you so much for sharing your painting with us for a whole year. And when you when you get it back, you'll have this really nice frame so you could put it up in your bedroom or something. [Applause] Next up is Elwood Fischer from Summit. teachers Johnny Ray Wilt and selectors Miss Sher. [Applause] So, I had the pleasure of going out to the library on French Island and I looked at all this wonderful art that was there and I actually got to also meet uh Elwood that night and we chatted and his picture is done in ink and I asked I usually have a conversation with the
012teacher that's there and say what have you been working on in class and while they had been working on a number of things this project happened to be one that Lwood was working on in his spare time and So at the end of art and throughout art he would work on this and it was also a collaborative drawing. So at times you told me that your friends would suggest things that you would put in there and you would add to it and that at times you would even sometimes make a mistake, right? And then you would figure out how to work it into your picture. And it was one of those uh pictures that just continually drew me in. So I walked around and around and it just kept drawing me in. It is so
013interesting. And I think our board members when it is in the board me boardroom will have lots of hours of pleasure looking at this and just seeing all the interesting things that you have uh tucked away in there. So would you like to say anything? Um not really. Not really. Okay, you don't have to. But wonderful piece of art in ink. Congratulations. shocked. Tanner Novak from Logan Middle. Teacher is Amy McDaniel and the selector is Miss [Applause] Everson. First of all, very nice to meet you, Tanner. I want to hear how you came up with this design. But I just loved the I called it soft, rich, fluffy green trees and it drew me in. I love nature and I loved your imagination as you were creating nature. I loved the vivid blue sky and
014the seven blackbirds made me wonder where are they going? So, I'd love to have this artwork on my my house hanging on my wall. Tanner, what can you tell us about your creation here? And one more thing I'd add now art teachers in the room maybe I'm wrong but I had to look twice because this is watercolor yet when I would glance at your picture I saw so much texture so I thought what a unique skill you have. Tanner, what would you tell us? I don't know. All right, good answer. Well, I loved it. Thank you, Tanner. All right. Next we have Madison from State Road. Teacher is Miss Jeffers and was chosen by Dr. Mimenez. [Applause] Okay, Madison, I got to tell you, I have never seen anything more lifelike in my life, and
015I usually don't pick 3D art to display. I've always picked 2D art, but this one really caught me. Maybe it's because I'm retiring. I'm going out into the wild now, not being a school board member, but it was just beautiful. You did such a great job. It's so lifelike. I actually felt like it was jumping out where it was found in the state office building. So, I don't know if you want to share anything about how you created it or what your thinking was behind it. Um, I took a lot of inspiration off the photos I had. And I kind of my original photo was a red fox, but I didn't I didn't like how kind of plain it was, so I decided to make it a cross fox. And yeah. Oh, you did an
016amazing job. So, congratulations and thank you for letting us show your artwork in the boardroom. Thank you. [Applause] So much. All right. Next, we have Lena Lee Vu from North Side. Teacher is Miss Stewart and Mr. Fenright chose right up here. All right. This is an amazing piece as well. If you look at the back of my computer there, you're going to see, what do you see there? It's a lot of sunsets. And this one here reminded me of sunset. And I just love sunsets because it just you can get lost in them with all the clouds. Is that what this is? And what can you tell me about it? Honestly, I just felt like it. Great answer. Well, I think you did an amazing job. And like I said, this thing here just gives
017you a sense like you're on vacation and watching water in the sun all together. Okay. [Applause] All right. Next we have Grace Bradley from Kulie Monasauri. Uh teacher is Miss Wilt and it's chosen by Miss Spring. [Applause] want to hold that up there. So, this was um this reminded me of the ocean, like an aerial view of the ocean and the waves coming to shore, but I don't even know if that's what you were thinking. Um, yes, it is an ocean. Oh, look at that. So, and there's texture to it and it's just beautiful. Thank you so [Applause] much. All right. Next, we have uh Ira is not able to be here, but we'll still have Mr. Newmeister talk about the artwork. Oh, I was gonna jump to him next. Sorry. I did not. I'm
018I'm on my order. I'm sorry. Welcome back. So, thank you. Hello. Uh, first off, I picked Ira Foreman's from Emerson Elementary. There was so many wonderful art projects that I honest I had the toughest time deciding. Um, but this one stood out for me. Um, one, there's a bit of sense of humor to it. And I think sense of humor is very important in our life. And I think the the detail is wonderful. So, I appreciated the opportunity like I always do at going to these and checking the artwork out. And I wish he was here, but I great job. He says, "Thank you." and I look forward to meeting him someday. So, thank you. All right. Next is student Tannon Lore. Uh teacher is Miss Cruzer from Logan High and it was chosen by
019Mr. Bignooki. [Applause] All right. Here's your microphone. This is my first time ever doing this. And if I'm not dressed like everybody else is, I left Helsinki at 3. I left Helsinki this morning at 3:00 a.m. just drove into Lacrosse. Uh this picture I mean number one it was very very difficult to pick out uh because there were so many very nice welldrawn pictures but this one just looks so the the title of it was happy days and you tell me these two girls that she drew here aren't happy young ladies I mean so I thought it was just fantastic so congratulations [Applause] All right. Next is Owen Hansen from Henchin. The teacher is Mr. Oldenberg and it was chosen by Doc by Mr. Ma. Doctor, you want to take the photo? All right. I've
020got a little bit of a secret for you. It took me so long to decide this one here. Um, it was this in another photo. Hope you went. There we are. All right. And you actually competed with my sister. So, don't tell me if you if you know anybody by the name of Mallerie, don't tell her that you got picked over her. She'll she'll put me into shape. But I really like this one in particular because of how much of a good color scheme you have right here. You have a nice warm colored fox like next to a nice warm sunset. Nice yellow, green, and blue. But I can certainly tell you were really into colors. That was the biggest eye eye dropper was for me. So, anything you'd like to share about your painting
021at all? No. No. All right. What's your favorite color? Orange. Orange. I thought it was sure going to be red, but yeah, you did a really good job and would like to present you this. Congratulations, Owen. You're just my person. All right. Next is Joplin from Spence. teacher is Miss Gunther and it's Mr. Sprag is going to be [Applause] presenting. Come on up here for everybody. Well, hi Joplain. It's great to meet you. Um I like everybody here had a really hard time choosing among all the great art. Um, there was one an installation piece at Spence uh that I think you and probably all of your classmates worked on that was pretty much the size of this stage that was a giant un enclosed undersea uh just I don't know a panorama. I don't
022know what you would call it. It was wonderful. But I had an awfully hard time until I uh was approached um by one of your classmates, a precocious young man named Jonah who walked me around and talked to me about some of his favorite pictures. and we both happen to have really liked your uh sunset um picture here. I'm a big fan of watercolors and a big fan of impressionist painting and this just it gave me the impression of driving home at the end of a long day or just a really beautiful um kind of calming scene and so I really appreciated that. Is there anything you want to share about it? Thank you. Okay. Well, thank you very much. I look forward to looking at it all year. Thank you. Congratulations. All right. Next,
023we've got Gabby from Hamilton. The teacher is Miss Steckel and it's chosen by Dr. Garcia. You don't get to keep [Applause] it. Hand this to you. Thank you, Gabby. I love your artwork, Gabby. It's so beautiful. You did a great job. Um, I was drawn to many pieces, but I really love I love all the seasons, but winter especially. Um, in this piece, I feel like it's both still and there's movement in it, and there's reflection and light and depth, and I just think you're an incredible talent. Do you want to say anything about your piece? It was mostly like a class project, but I really liked the idea of it. Well, you executed it beautifully. [Applause] Okay. All right. Dr. Garcia gets to come back up. She had the pleasure of choosing two. Um
024Finley from Soda was chosen. Uh teacher is Miss [Applause] Steel. Hi Finley. You did a beautiful piece here. I love it. I was especially drawn to the cat here on this branch. Um, I'm a cat lover. I have four cats myself. Um, and I really also loved just the movement of the all the sort of branches or pieces of it and the metallic colors I thought were just gorgeous. I love the way they reflect the light. Do you want to say something about your piece? Um, it was mostly just a crap project that we did. Yeah. Well, I love it. I think you did a beautiful job. [Applause] All right. Next we have Anastasia from Longfellow. Teachers are Miss Rathky and Mr. Grab Horn and it was chosen by Miss Sucla. [Applause] Nice to meet
025you, Anastasia. Um, I also want to appreciate um, Michelle's comments about the work of the art teachers. Uh, my daughter, uh, was a student here at Lacrosse Schools, um, central, Miss Ashen Brother, and not only made a big difference in her life, but it made a big difference in the career that she chose. She's an architectural engineer and she said it was because how much she loved art and the way the art teachers nurture art in the students nurture their talent is really important. So I want to say thank you for that. Um again many beautiful pieces we got to look at but this one really caught my eye from Anastasia. Um it is a castle. If you want to hold up just a little bit straight. Perfect. It's a castle. Um but what I
026loved about it is the depth of it. You can see like in the front the grass gets to be a different color as you get closer to the castle. But the real reason I picked this one is about perspective. She could have just drawn a picture of a castle, but it's not just a castle. It's a castle through what I thought was a keyhole. Maybe she'll tell me differently in a moment. Um, but it really told me about perspective and ways you look at things from different points of view and that's really important in the work we do here at this board table. So, I really loved it for that. I love the colorful work that was in it and I just want to thank you for your work and if you do we want
027to make any comments about it. Okay, she doesn't want to sh say anything, but thank you for your beautiful artwork. I'll trade you here. Thank you so much. Congratulations. All right. Next, we have Kana from Central High. Teacher is Miss Ashen Brener and it was chosen by Dr. Angel. [Applause] You're wrecking it, man. Okay, it's not his fault. It was been happening the last day. So, don't worry. We have a plan for fixing all the pieces. We got it. Uh, want to uh shout out to Kelly Galvan who helped me pick this out. Um, but uh the colors are fantastic, the fish are realistic, and I love the mixed media. It makes you really think. Uh it um goes above and beyond as far as I'm concerned in drawing your eye, creating motion. Uh it's
028absolutely beautiful. Uh would you like to say anything about it? Your inspiration or the technique that you used? Um my inspiration is really random. I never have really anything until I start. So it's just like small and then it picks up. Well, it's a beautiful creation. Thank you so much. [Applause] Thank you. All right, last but not least, Rya from Northwoods. Teacher is Miss Walter Rinders and it was chosen by Mr. Alberts. Thank you for being so patient, Rya. Hi, Rya. Um, so when I walked into uh Northwoods, uh I saw this thing right away and it it just really jumped off uh the wall at me and I'm like, well, I can't choose it right away. So, I I uh spent about I don't know, a good 40 minutes and guess what I came
029back to? Um, growing up, my mom always had flowers. My wife loves flowers and this just uh it bring a smile to my face. So that is why I picked it. Do you do you want to say anything? Well, great job. Thank you very much for your time today and for the new board members we look forward to you choosing next year. Thank you for having us. [Applause] Congratulations to all the artists and their families. Um, you're welcome to stay for as much of the meeting as you would like. Um, you're also welcome to leave if you'd like to go and enjoy this beautiful evening. Then there were none. It was kind of like [Laughter] You can stick around. That's really good. Sure. I know. So we will go back. Okay. So, if it's okay
030with the rest of the board, we will return to where we left off at the reorganizational meeting. Welcome back, Mr. Bagneski. We want to continue with recognitions. Oh, yeah. Sorry. I'm sorry. I'm getting ahead of myself. I'm just so excited Jim's here in person. I thought he was going to be on the phone, so he just threw me off my game. So, yes, we will continue with recognitions. My apologies. Um so uh the the next recognition is uh an opportunity to recognize the from the office of the secretary of defense a patriotic employer award. Um I have put in uh I wish I could put in the whole school board for this award but they don't allow uh indiv uh companies as a whole or organizations and so I put in my boss over the
031last year uh the direct boss Dr. Juan Jimenez and um received this from the employer support of the garden reserve uh recognizing Juan Jimenez School District of Lacrosse as a patriotic employer for contributing to national security and protecting liberty and freedom by supporting employee participation in America's National Guard and Reserve Force. Uh the school board uh and Dr. Jimenez have all been very supportive of my uh membership in the National Guard. um flexibility, accommodation, uh allowed me to participate from wherever I need to in order to make things happen. And I greatly appreciate your support in this uh endeavor and in particular for Dr. Juan Jimenez for his support of me uh over the last year. And so I have an award to give him Congratulations, Dr. Manis. It's a cool award. You have one
032more? Yep. And then next uh before uh um Katie Bergd Doll and Juan Jimenez take off, we wanted to recognize our student representatives uh for whom that they served as well. Uh Cassidy Burell from Central High School, Oliver Olsen from Lacrosse Polytenic and Violet Nelson from Logan High School. We have uh some small momentos of our our thanks and then I give the opportunity for the school board and yourselves to say just a few words. Well, you go right ahead. Go right now. Go ahead. Um, a year or so ago when Deb Suka got back on the board, she asked where are the student representatives? And we talked it over and thought agreed that it would be a good idea to bring it back to the board. And I think it probably went on pause
033during the pandemic years. And it's just so great to have your perspective. I've appreciated each one of you for different reasons and for the same reason. It's great to have students who feel comfortable contributing to the conversation that helps guide the decisions that we make at the board. And every group that I'm part of, I always like to think, how are the people you serve guiding your decisions? And to have students, you're who we serve, at our board table and helping to influence the decisions we make is such a treat. And it's great to get to know all of you. And good luck in your future. And thank you for serving. [Applause] I think that you three serving on this board has been the absolute pleasure of my time in the six years. Um, we've
034had student representatives before. We've not had any as vocal and as inspiring and as thoughtful and as challenging, which is exactly what the role is. And my hope is that the next board members that come after you will follow in your footsteps. That they continue to be thoughtful. They continue to be challenging. They continue to remind us why we are here. And so I am so grateful to have had you on this board in my last year. And I wish you all the luck in everything that you do from here on out. So thank you so much for your time. [Applause] Well, I had a whole long speech, but Katie and Wson, I I really have I, as you've heard me saying too many times, I uh have been reelected in two uh 2023, but
035I was on the board a number of years before that when we had students at the table, and I've just been um so I've seen lots of student representatives at the table, but I was so impressed with each each of you, but also collectively you challenge each other. And I can see when one person speaks up, the other ones are like, "Well, I guess I need to bring up more things." And you really have worked beautifully, not just representing your own school and representing yourself, um, but as as a cohort, um, representing students in our district. You've done a fantastic job. You aren't afraid to speak up when we need to hear about something that might not be a popular thing to say at this table. I've always appreciated that, respected that. I also enjoy
036your updates on what's going on in the schools. It keeps us connected. It's also these are public meetings. It helps the community know what's going on. So, your voice is so incredibly important and you've done such an excellent job this last year representing yourselves and your schools. So, thank you. [Applause] Anybody else? I guess I'll also join in here. Um, everything's been already said that I was going to say. The biggest thing I want to thank you all is kind of bringing that spice back from when I was in your shoes a year ago as a senior. Make sure I know exactly what's going up there going in the schools. That's very useful to all of us here. And like everyone else, want to thank you all so much. We'll see you all at graduation
037as well. But just I I hope you learn from this time and go on forth and serve in similar roles and be able to help serve your community in other ways as well. So for that, I especially want to give a large thank you to all of you three. Thank you. Um, first off, you should be very proud of yourselves because I know we all are and like everyone else, it's all been said. But I think more than anything, um, I think you I think our hands are we're in pretty good shape if if all of our kids are going to grow up to be like you. And I and I I look forward to see where your paths lie in about 10 years because I think it's going to be even five, but I'll
038go 10. Um I think it's going to be pretty exciting to see where you land and I wish you nothing but the best and I I truly do thank you for your your time and input for the board. I want to say good luck to all three of you uh after graduation. It's a really big time and such a big and important transition and I hope you have just all kinds of exciting things in front of you. Um like like everybody I have appreciated your your questions and your your contributions. Um and I just appreciate the fact that public speaking especially recorded live public speaking is like nobody's favorite thing. Um and you all do it and and the fact that you stepped up into this role u just really speaks volumes and we really
039we do appreciate your presence here on the board. [Applause] Well, thank you. Thank you. But don't leave because we have a whole lot of stuff going on here. Okay. So, do we need a motion to do Yes, let's do the public speaker at this point. Um, so I have to the whole thing here. Give me a moment. Um, I'm on the wrong agenda, too. Dog on it. So am [Laughter] I. Okay. Just a second here. Okay. Okay. So, it is a policy of the board. Thank you, Laura, because keep me on track here. It is a policy of the board to provide at its public meetings an opportunity for individuals to address the board. Comments about individual staff and personnel will not be allowed. Open meeting law prohibits the board from engaging in discussion or
040responding to matters not included on the agenda. All speakers are reminded that the same policy limits your time to speak to five minutes. The limit will be strictly enforced. May I ask the superintendent to keep track of the time and to notify the speaker when time is running out? I will. even got a sign ready. You're also asked to give your name and the school district where you reside at the beginning of your time for public record. Our first speaker tonight is Courtney High. Thank you for your patience. I honestly um I hope this doesn't count for my time, but um I had to watch a bunch of the board meetings for my own admin license that I was getting. So, I actually got to watch the last year's art recognition. So when I realized
041this is the art recognition, I was like, "Oh yeah." So honestly, I don't mind being here because that was a really lovely experience to sit in on. So okay, we'll start your time. Okay. So I know for you guys this is a pretty usual Monday, right? You've kind of engaged already in the formal rhythm rhythms of governance tonight. And today 5,000 students walked into school like they always do. They hung up their backpacks, sat down, opened their materials, and the teachers coalesed around them, organizing what is a chaotic school day and the normal usual motions. It all passed as a very quiet hum of a Monday, I'm sure, for everyone out doing their own work outside of the board. Routine and even relentless at times and its intensity. And we forget at times that it
042is remarkable what we do in the hum of our work. We often forget to slow down and truly notice that the work that we do and the people around us. And I'm here not just to speak about a layoff or a staff reduction that is in practice, but also as an opportunity to close this chapter of my life with integrity, to speak to the values that sit closest to my heart. Pausing and witnessing. Pausing to notice the people around us and the work that we do. and invite you just briefly tonight to step out of the formal routines that you all are in each day and into the heart of the work we do in education to serve as witness to what I've seen and to carry it with you as a board even as
043I leave the district. For context, my name is Courtney High, a school I reside in the school district of Lacrosse. We forgot to say that. And I am the student success coach at Longfellow Middle School or at least I will be. until June 5th. I know in the past the board meeting has brought up staff reductions and to be clear, I am the person that is being cut. I know it's a reality when we're staring at the budget and deciding how to make ends meet of the district that we have to make these decisions. And I wouldn't have made a different decision in the shoes of any of our district staff. Like even though I can't choose this ending, I can choose how I end. So rather than this just be another moment of routine
044and relentless procedures, I see an opportunity today to show up and speak, not to contest what's happening or to embolden you to feel any particular way, but rather to share with you what I've had the privilege to see up close, not as a statistic or a piece of the board doc's agenda, but as lived experience. To witness means to pause and slow down, to obser observe without an agenda, and to let yourself feel its impacts, to let that shape you. And I'd like to invite you to observe what a student success coach does in our district with your own eyes. The official job description is one that is broad and open-ended, but there are four words that stand out to me. Partnership, improvement, visioning, and transformation. At our core, we are a role across the
045district whose job it is to be boots on the ground to keep the district and its vision, including the portrait work I know you guys will soon be doing, moving forward. We are the ones rolling out new initiatives sidebyside with teachers. We are the ones um sorry, we are the ones that are often running the essential yet unrecognized leadership functions such as school-based programs or teams. We are the leadership pipeline. We become your administrators as chimeas that exist in the space between the support teams, teachers, and the administrators. We often are translating between those groups, making sure people's visions and needs are heard. We do the critical thinking of applying the vision our district sets and translating it from plan to practice, from language to lived reality. We are the boots on the ground, including
046myself, of the district's vision and work. So this is not just a typical layoff. It's a loss. A loss of relationships of leadership and stability. A loss of someone who knows the history, the patterns, and the people. Not just an operational expectations data point, but from years of walking the halls being where the work happens. It's a loss of trust because you cut the roles that hold vision and reality together. And you weaken the bridge between dis the district's aspirations and its outcomes. And it's a loss of momentum because these are not just support roles. These are the roles that move the district forward quietly, steadily, and often invisibly. 30 seconds remaining. So others may come to offer grand conclusions about staff reductions or to try to suggest how you should feel or what you
047should do. And I'm not asking that from you. Not decisions, not defenses, not justifications. Just that you stay here in this moment. Just that you notice what it brings up for you and you let this moment bring you back in contact with the reasons why you said yes to this work. Because witnessing, real witnessing does something to us. It shifts how we listen, how we lead, and if we let it, it can shift how we choose to build the next steps. Thank you so much for letting me close this chapter of my time here with my passion for the community and my deepest held values and to share that with you tonight. I really appreciate the chance to have this time to do that. So, and thank you for sharing your time and passions with
048our students. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. [Applause] Okay. So, I think we would table our current meeting and then reconvene our reorg meeting. So, I'll make a motion to table the the regular meeting and to reconvene the reorganizational meeting. I'll second. We have a motion and a second. Motion by Dr. Sprag, seconded by Mr. Ma. Any discussion? All those in favor of the motion signify by saying I. I. Those opposed This has just been a wild night already. This is so weird. Oh lord, I must be very busy writing all these in tonight. Okay, so we are back in the reorganization meeting and we are going to pick up at um 1.09. Um hopefully I don't have to have this too much longer. And the election of president, we've had two votes that are
049tied. So uh we've already voted to vote by secret ballot. So we will vote again. Do you want to give context for Mr. Begneski? Mr. Begneski, we uh held the meeting. Um the election of office uh president was tie. We had two rounds of voting and so we are holding off because now we have an uneven number of voters. So we will have a broken tie unless somebody can vote half. I don't know how that would the nominees, Miss Suka. Oh yeah, that's kind of important. Thank you. That's what I was getting. It has been a well night. uh that um Dr. Sprag was nominated and I was nominated as well. Those are the the two nominations that are on the table. Okay. Now, am I supposed to say anything else? Good. I appreciate all
050the prompting. Truly, I did because I needed it. We'll get there together. Thank you. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Mr. Magneski for uh coming here after being awake at 3:00 a.m. in Helsinki. Holy moly. That's dedication. What I miss is typically I have a hard time hearing. My hearing aids are not working at all. Oh no. I bet it's gonna be 54. Anybody want to bet? Just watch. How about four five? So, we do have a 54, five for Missa and four for Dr. Spray. Thank you. Congratulations. Thank you. Uh we will now move on to the election of uh board vice president Um, I would like to nominate Mr. Beeski. Did you hear that? Do you accept? Are there any other nominations? Uh, I'd like to nominate Meredith Garcia. Do you accept? I do.
051Thank you. Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Thank you for the ballots in advance. Thank you. should have worn sneakers too. These are very comfortable. I have five for Mr. Mcneski and four for Dr. Garcia. Congratulations. [Applause] Thank you. Okay, then we move on to the election of the school district clerk. Are there any nominations for school district clerk? I would nominate Meredith Garcia. Do you accept? We already signed that form. DC. Sure. We have a nomination for Miss Garcia for clerk. Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Madame President, I would like to make a motion to close nominations and cast a unanimous vote for Meredith Garcia as school district. Second. Uh, we have a motion to close nominations and cast a unanimous vote for Meredith Garcia
052as school district clerk. All those in favor say I. I. Those opposed. Congratulations. Laura, am I correct that if there's only one candidate, we don't need the secret? Even though we decided to vote by saying if there's that's only if there's more than one nomination. Yes. Yes. The secret vote was only if there's more than one. Um that moves us to this election of the school district treasur. Are there any are there any nominations for school district treasur? I will nominate myself to continue in the role if there's no other. Well, we'd like to nominate you. Yeah. Dang it. You took it right from us. Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Then I would seek to uh get a motion to close nominations and cast unanimous
053ballot for Dr. Spreg as school district treasurer. So move. Thank you. You have a second. Hurt my feelings. I was just trying to decide the brain fart there. Okay. We have a motion uh and a second to nominate uh close nominations and cast unanimous vote for Dr. Sprag as school district treasur. All those in favor say I. I. Those opposed. Congratulations. [Applause] Okay. Now for our biggest secret of the night. Who's going to be the school district secretary? Can I nominate Laura Stigerwald? The nomination uh for Laura Stigerwald. Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? What the heck? I'll make a motion to close nominations and cast a unanimous vote for Laura Stigerwald as school board secretary. Second. Okay, we have a motion and a second to
054close nominations and cast the unanimous vote for Laura Stigerwald as school board secretary. All those in favor say I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. We've already approved the uh reaffirmed the board's purpose, philosophy, and governance commitment. So we will now move on to appointment of Wisconsin uh Association School Board delegate and alternate. Are there any nominations for the um the delegate? I would like to nominate Adam Ma as the delegate for the WASBY school board. I'll accept. Okay. Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Make a motion to close nominations. Is it it? I've lost the language. Sorry. I'll make a motion to close nominations and cast a unanimous vote for Adam Mena as the 2025 2026 Wasby delegate. And I'll second. All those in favor of
055the motion signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. Are there any nominations for WASBY alternate? Somebody I will self-nominate for alternatives. Thank you. Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Then I would look for a vote to for a motion to close nomination to cast unanimous vote for Dr. Sprag as a 2526 WASBY alternate. So moved. Okay. Second. Second by Mr. Bagneski. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. Thank you. Congratulations, you guys. Okay, now we're on to CISA representative. Are there any nominations for the CISA 4 board of control representatives who will attend the annual convention on Wednesday, June 4th, 2025 um uh at 6 PM? Are there any nominations? Would you like to continue? I would continue to serve on CISA. Can I nominate
056Jim Beeski then? Thank you. Are there any other nominations for CISA? Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? I'll make a motion to close nominations and cast unanimous vote for Jim Bagneski as the 2025 2026 CISA number four board of control representative. I'll second. Okay, we have a motion and a second to close nominations and cast unanimous ballot for Mr. Bagneski is the 202526 CISA number four board of control representative. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. Um, are there any nominations for the TIFF representative? I'll nominate Patty Spring. Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? I'll make a motion to close nominations and cast a unanimous vote for Patty Spring as the 2025 2026 TIF representative. I'll second. Okay.
057All those in favor of the motion. Oh, we have a motion, a second uh to close nominations and cast Patty Spring uh cast unanimous vote for Patty Spring as a 2526 TIF representative. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. Now we need uh deputy clerk. Are there any nominations for the board's deputy clerk? Didn't know we have I'll nominate Laura Style. Thank you. Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Is this the last time I have to say this? I hope. Okay, I'm tapping out on screen. Want want me a script? I'll make a motion to close nominations and cast a unanimous vote for Laura Stigerwald as the board's deputy clerk. I'll second. We have a motion and a second to close nominations and cast unanimous
058vote for Laura Stigerwald as the board's deputy clerk. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. Uh we are looking Oh, our next one is uh nominations. We're seeking nominations for board representative for the Lacrosse Public Education Foundation. I'd like to nominate Meredith Garcia. Are there any other nominations? I'd like to nominate Tim Alberts. Um Meredith, thanks. I'm excited. Respectful. No, I I would have loved to, too. Yeah. Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Are there any other nominations? Madame President, I will make a motion to close nominations and cast a unanimous vote for Meredith Garcia as the board's representative for Lacrosse Public Education Foundation. I'll second. Okay, we have a motion and a second to close nominations and cast unanimous vote for Meredith Garcia as
059the board's representative to the Lacrosse Public Education Foundation. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. Okay, this next one I have to open up my computer so just give me a second here. Um, we are to looking at the meeting schedule for this next year. Oh goodness, it's our last item and that is attached. Correct. Okay. So, typically we meet on the 1 and 3. Um the first um Monday at September is always Labor Day. So we will meet on the 2nd and the third or is it the second and the fourth? Second and the fourth. 2nd and the 4th in September. So please mark your calendar accordingly. Also in October there is an additional meeting for the official budget approval and levy certification. Um January the third um
060Monday in January is uh Martin Luther King Day. um we don't meet on that. So we will meet the fourth Monday in January and then um in April of course we have uh the fourth Monday is a reorganization meeting. So just want to highlight those changes from the regular 1st and third. Um can I just ask to clarify um so this schedule doesn't include the remaining meeting in May and the two June meetings. Is that simply because those are in the previous fiscal year? Correct. Okay. Good catch. Thank you. That's all right. Hearing by the treasur, I'd like to make a motion approve the 202526 board of education meeting schedule as presented. Seconded. Okay. We have a motion by Mr. Ma, seconded by Dr. Sprag to approve the 2526 board of education meeting schedule if
061presented. Any questions? All those in favor of the motion signify by saying I. I. Those opposed? Motion carries. We will then uh hearing no objection, the reorganization portion of this meeting is adjourned and we will reconvene. You need a motion for that? I don't think we do, do we? Okay, we're just done with that. Okay. Uh we will reconvene into our regular meeting for May 5th. And we did we miss anything? I think we did the agenda approval, the public speakers, the recognition. So, we should be at So, we are at the superintendent's consent agenda. Uh, the consent agenda is a mechanism used I hope those of you who are new are following because I'm barely hanging on. So, if I need to clarify anything, please speak up. The consent agenda is a mechanism used
062by the board to deal with routine business that must come before the body. Are there any items that the members want to remove from the consent agenda? I'll make a motion to approve the items on the superintendent's consent agenda as presented. Second. Okay, we have a motion and a second um to approve the items on the superintendent's consent agenda. Um any questions? All those in favor of the motion signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. Move on to the board consent agenda. The consent agenda is a mechanism using by the board to with rout uh to deal with routine business that must come before the body. Are there any items members want to remove from the board consent agenda? I'll make a motion to approve the items on the board consent agenda as
063presented. Second. I'm going to give it to Dr. Garcia with a motion. We have a motion and a second to approve the items on the board consent agenda. All those in favor of the motion signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. Uh we then move into linkage summaries and attached is a linkage with the Lacrosse Education Association LEA linkage. I was not at that linkage. Are there any comments from those who were in attendance? Can I just say because that was the one that was rescheduled and originally I was the only one who was able to attend before the the storm or whatever it was hit. That's the snowstorm. I I'm really glad that so many of my colleagues were able to be there. So, thank you for that. Anybody want to comment?
064Yeah, I guess I Thank you. somebody jump in. Um I guess I my question is is there was some talk of um curriculum and certain curriculum you know giving them curriculum to follow and and then some curriculums that they kind of have to go on their own in terms of teaching styles is that generally so math and science I think they said there was a a good curriculum to follow. um social studies and English were not just kind of an overall view of that. Yeah, typically we have a curriculum rejuvenation cycles. It's often on a seven-year cycle. The cost of physical materials is often pretty substantial. Can run to half a million dollars depending on the series of books that you're interested in purchasing with. Um and I I don't have a lot of the
065specifics. This is a little bit a little bit more broad. I can certainly dive into the weeds and and learn more to to get back to you on. But with the English language arts curriculum, it is often book based and so there's a hundreds if not thousands of books available for students to read um as a part of those curricula uh and guiding texts and other opportunities for teachers to use that as the the content uh for their work. uh social studies historically has had uh textbooks and so if those are aging or no longer in place, it is likely due to collective decisions made. Um it is rare that we would make a social studies decision, you know, at the district office that would be done in collaboration with teachers about how they want
066to proceed. Perhaps what happened seven years ago is no longer adequate for how we're doing things today. Uh and so maybe there's an opportunity to reimagine what that looks like as we move forward. There's also a lot more online and open source opportunities that we've been able to take advantage over time uh as well. Uh there's things like uh AP curriculum which specify which textbooks we use and the specific curriculum that is used. It's very standardized and and very much uh routine. Uh might look a little bit different in world history or or US history. And as we have change over in teachers and preferred methods and practices, it can be um dramatically different, you know, depending uh on on individual. Our goal over time as we've gone over the last couple of years is
067to establish essential standards for each course. So we know what we're teaching uh regardless of the teacher and you know if you're in this classroom or this classroom, this teacher or this teacher, you get the same thing. Uh we don't want it to be chance what you learn uh in US history in 10th grade. today. Uh but the the methods might look different uh depending on on the staff there. So is that sevenyear cycle this is just more of my own education I guess is is that more of an industry practice is that based on fiscal concern is that based on just the content changing or is it I'm just thinking now that so many things change faster like is that review cycle something that is changing and again this is just more my own
068curiosity than anything. two primary drivers. One is implementation science. Usually takes uh two to three years to get something in place and useful and then you want a period of time to use it uh successfully. You don't want to constantly be changing. Uh so implementation science drives the seven-year cycle to a certain extent. And then budgets are of course an issue uh with the hideous expense of physical textbooks. We've had to spread that out over time. Uh and with constrained budgets, um as the state legislature has un underfunded education, we've sometimes had to stretch from 7 to 9 to 11, uh depending on the content area. Um yeah, updated refresh materials are engaging to students. It doesn't mean the content is necessarily changed. to kill a mockingb bird is still useful today uh in terms
069of a teaching tool but it may not resonate with today's youth as much as it did historically closer to the time that it was written. Thank you. Yeah. Can I add to that meeting there was actually kind of a lot of tension around curriculum and pacing guides because at the elementary level the pacing guides are feeling too strict. The curriculum is feeling too strict and I understand we're piloting it. We're trying to get a faithful implementation. Is that right, Dr. Engel? Um, you know, the act standards to cover in a in a given year are the the expectation of our it's aligned to our tests. It's aligned to, you know, pre-ervice or pre-ol success, you know, and if we start shaving off a week here every year, all of a sudden our seniors are months
070behind in terms of their ability to be successful. It's a delicate balance to be responsive to the kids in front of you while also maintaining high expectations which we know is critical in terms of student success. Yeah, I think across the board at the high school level they were like we are good with care with building our own curriculum and middle school had fairly set curriculum for science and math. they were looking for a little more guidance in English um but could maybe in social studies but could maybe be found by curriculum communities or planning uh PLC's professional learning communities or something there's an overall sense of like teachers need more support to put the curriculum in place and to have the authority to be responsive to the children in their room in front of
071them whether that was with updated materials or different pacing options I think they also brought up school to school could be different. So as you enter high school, you know, you could have been taught in a whole different way or different uh items and stuff that you're actually taught with. So that was one thing. I know that beginning of year you all talk about, you know, the curriculum and how it's going to be set, but each teacher kind of does things different, which is powerful for the teacher, but sometimes they I think they felt that their wish there to have a little more uh maybe a set standard or something that way. And I think uh Mr. Newmeister and Dr. Garcia in both of your comments, you highlight the challenge of curriculum. Uh Mr. Newmeister,
072you highlighted consistency and Dr. Garcia, you highlighted individualism. And that is the challenge of a large district in trying to do curriculum. Uh if it works for me, I want everyone else to do what I do. If it doesn't work for me, I want independents to do what I want to do. And so that is the tension inherent in this endeavor. And so you will hear complaints on both sides of the issue and a a frazzled district administration trying to thread the needle uh and create enough consistency that students are successful wherever they come from and enough independence that teachers have agency in their classroom to respond to the needs of their students. Can I ask a question about a different item here? Um would it be possible to get either from the members who
073were there or maybe Dr. Frankle, if you know a little bit more context around that last item under additional concerns about why the district doesn't use the at risk data provided through wise. The data is unreliable. Can can you give me some context what that data is? Yeah. So it captures attendance data uh passage rates um historical graduation rates. It uses uh demographics to um predict outcomes. Uh and so a combination of the limited amounts of data the state has makes uh broad um predictions about the success of a student. Uh if somebody's not attending 50% of the time, yes, they're probably at risk. Absolutely. Um but if a student has low socioeconomic status but is right at the you know 80% mark it would probably put them in the at risk category even though
074the experience on the ground might look vastly different based on our individual knowledge of that student. It's not bad as a a general highlighter of something, but our building principles and our uh building leadership teams have far more nuanced, granular data that allow them to identify who's at risk in terms of being on track or uh being ready to graduate. I guarantee that I could ask my building principles and they give you their top five, top 10 kids that they're focused on and worried about. um a a early indicator system like this, it's called dues at the DPI level, could be helpful for like kids that are kind of sleepers or under the radar for some of those things. I would argue our teachers are our best network for understanding who those kids are. And
075I know that our principles have methods in place to identify if kids have connections with kids, if they're worried about anyone, and strong systems to support them in being on track. And so while um I uh appreciate um kind of the at risk data that they're trying to use at the DPI level, we haven't found it better than the systems that we already have in place. If we were for the first time wondering, hey, are any of our kids kids at risk? You know, maybe then we would think about starting there. But this is a long-standing practice in the school district of Lacrosse. And so I have no doubt that what we're doing already uh is far superior to the kind of generic indicators they're throwing up. Thank you. Yeah, absolutely. Other comments on the
076linkage summaries. I was happy to see positive thoughts in the notes because I read since I wasn't there as I looked through it. I mean, some of the the kind of the overarching themes I think are things that we heard in linkages before with in the past, but um I was also very happy to see things that they're proud of, right? Um and that gave me hope that there's good things going on and it's always there's always good things going on at the teacher level, but it's good things it's broadening. So, the union works hard to make it so that proud of section always gives me so much as a board member what's really going on. So that's always wonderful. Um unless there's any other comments, I would look for a motion to approve the
077linkage summaries presented. So moved. Second. Motion by Dr. Sprag, seconded by Mr. Newmeister. Uh to approve the linkage summary is presented. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. We'll move on to communication from the student representatives. Um so I don't know who wants to go first. I'll let you all pick. Sure. Uh, so I assume I just come first, I guess. Um, so yeah, I mean the year is starting to wrap up for us. We had AP testing starting today. I believe there was bio, European history, and microeconomics. Um, that all went all went down today. Um, other than that, we still got a couple weeks left of like track and other spring sports. Um, though we are kind of like starting to get into like conference season for
078those kinds of that kind of stuff. Uh music-wise, uh we had a great zone ensemble. Seven events won special awards uh for the performance. Um we got the lacrosse confluence continue to continuing to perform in the summer. They actually got a performance at Leo Leonas this Friday. Uh and then there's there was actually a choir concert tonight and there's a band concert next Monday. So always great to see that as well. Um, as far as like events in the school, there's a lot of like um, senior spirit week type stuff going on because this is senior's last full week of school. So, we actually do have like dress up days this week. So, today was pajama day. Um, kind of interesting to my first AP exam in pajamas. But yeah, um, we also have a
079guess a senior baby photo contest and kiss a senior goodbye where you can buy like Hershey's kisses and then have them delivered to seniors on Friday. Um, and because like uh this is my last like meeting where I'm serving as a central student rep, I just like to like uh say a few words on that. Um, so originally I like assumed or I like I ran for this position because um community involvement is very important to me uh specifically like involvement with this type of like body um kind of seeing how things actually work um like legislatively behind the scenes. Uh, so it was really nice to kind of have that opportunity here for just this school year. Um, and I think it's going to benefit me a lot as I move into my future.
080And for those of you who don't know, I'm going to W Madison where I'll study international studies. So, thank you all for your kind words. [Applause] Well, it's been a while since I've last been here. I wish somebody had told me how busy senior year would be. Uh, but in my time gone, a lot has happened. Uh, middle school and high schools both had their dances. Middle school was the dance, high school was prom. Um, and with the theme enchanted forest in mind, students worked with our theater department to pull props out of deep storage and create new props uh to help decorate the school. So, there was a complete overhaul that took days of setup and days longer of take down. Um, but overall, everybody enjoyed it very much. It was a huge success.
081Um, we also had an open house for incoming families. Uh, it was primarily geared towards middle schoolers, uh, incoming middle schoolers. Uh, but, uh, parents had the opportunity to experience presentations from a variety of topics both on media literacy in polytechnic and college readiness. Um, our final showcases are approaching very quickly. I don't know when the rest of the schools is, but senior showcase will be March 14th, I believe, at 5 pm at the Black River Beach House where seniors will be giving their final capstone presentations. Um, and that means the seniors have also been finishing up their community events. I myself just finished one at the FSPA's St. Joe's Ridge Gardens. Uh, that was really fun. And if you want to come and visit, you can hear all about it in my presentation. Um,
082and yeah, I guess I would also just like to say thank you. Um, I'm the first student of my school to serve on this board, and I am very thankful for that opportunity. Um, lacrosse polytech faces kind of a lot of misinformation and stigma based off of what we do. And it has been really an honor to be able to share with you what we're actually doing in that itty bitty building. Um, and hopefully I've made a good impact and hopefully uh whatever students succeed me. I don't know whatever students come later, hopefully they're just as passionate. And I look forward to seeing what you do with the district. And I guess also to share, I will be going to St. John's University in Minnesota to study theology and environmental studies. [Applause] All right. So,
083at Logan, like many other high schools, we had our prom this weekend and I think that went quite well. I haven't heard any drama or crazy stories, which is good. Um, so we had that and then today and like in the upcoming like week or so, there's and in the past there's been some like sales going on. So, today there was a club selling elote, which is like a Mexican street corn and I tried it and it was really quite good. Uh the global club will be selling ice cream later this week. And we had a food truck called Midw Midwest NY come to sell snow cones outside of school and then 20% of the proceeds went back to Logan. So that was quite nice. I waited in like it was that day when it
084was like sprinkling. So I waited out there for a while to get a snow cone. But it was it was good. Um today we had our last Interact Club meeting of the year and we selected our new officers for next year. So, I will be excited to see what they do with the club and how that progresses once I'm gone. Um, and then ecology club will also be planning a trash cleanup later, which is always nice cuz who likes trash? But we had uh earlier our academic recognition ceremony. So, it was good just to see all the students recognized for their hard work. And then later this month, there will be the athletic banquet in senior awards, which is also good because I know a lot of especially seniors like my friends who have put
085a lot of time and effort into their sports. So, it'll be great to see that. And then, yeah, AP testing is full swing. So, that's going to be a fun week, but then that'll be over and we'll all be peaceful. And, uh, we're also wrapping up with music. So, our final band concert was on Sunday, which was May 4th, and so it was Star Wars themed, which was unique. We hadn't done that before. And then choir and orchestra will also have their final concerts. And yeah, the band will also be playing at the Memorial Day parade. And then we get to do the Memorial Day service in the cemetery, which is always a nice thing to do for the community. So yeah, thank you. And yeah, before like earlier this year, I didn't know that
086there were even like student representatives for the school board. So, I was kind of surprised to like get the thing like you've been nominated. And I was like, wow, this is cool. So, I didn't I didn't think I would actually get it, but it was I've liked the perspective like I I didn't really previously know how things work like this and like that it was like such a process and all that. So, it was good to just be able to like see what goes on and to bring to you guys any like information about the schools that you might need and stuff like that. So, yeah, thank you all for the opportunity. And where what are you doing next year? I'm going to University of Minnesota Twin Cities to study in mortuary sciences. Thank you.
087[Applause] You have set the bar very high for your successors and thank you so much. Um so for the board president report first of all thank you for the vote this evening. Um I am open to any input throughout the year. Um I am here to serve this board and quite frankly it's an honor to serve this quality group of people. This is going to be an exciting year for all of us. Um this Wednesday is the new school community engagement session here um at 6 pm or actually here right next behind us. Right. Yes sir. Um I'm going to hurt my arm doing that. um at the Hogan Gymnasium at 6 p.m. to learn a little bit about uh the new building that'll be on this site. Um and then a week from tomorrow
088is a linkage with the district-wide parents. Um also attached is um in the administrative content there is the uh schedule of upcoming events for us as a board. So make sure you always look at that. There was something going around um regarding attendance at graduations which is also right up there with the art recognition coolest parts of being on school board. Um that's all I have. Dr. Engel. Um this week is teacher appreciation week and we're thankful that we were able to do the uh key staff awards here. Uh this Friday we also have our golden apple awards and so if you have an interest in attending that uh please uh let Laura know and get you signed up. Uh it will be an awesome time to celebrate the amazing things our teachers do every
089day. Um May 7th is National School Nurses Day. Uh I'd like to recognize our nurses for the incredible work they do as well as our health assistants who are really the front lines of the day-to-day things that go on. Um working as a school nurse is working in public health and that means you get to see everything. Um colds, flu, pink eye, lice, impetigo. Uh, and you're also emergent surfaces, ER, they get to see broken arms and fractures and lacerations. They're doing it all. Uh, if you want excitement, be a school nurse. Uh, and so I'm super thankful for all that they do in keeping our kids safe and providing frontline health care for our students every single day. And then on May 9th is school communicators day. Uh, shout out to Nick Maru, our
090communications coordinator. He does an amazing job. uh if you ever get a chance to check out our Facebook page, the content there is incredible. Uh and he has won numerous awards at the state and national level and thankful to have him continue that work. Uh and that's all I have. Thank you. Uh next item is board debriefing. Um for those of you who are new or um joining us again, um the next meeting will start out with a schedule and we'll just have each board member um uh do the the board debriefing. This is a really important element in coherent governance. It helps us really check ourselves on did we do our job and the questions that we ask or what did we do well, what did not go well at the meeting and what
091do we need to improve. Um I think we had uh good discussion. I think um I what I thought went well is people prompting the um facilitator here of where she's supposed to be. So I do genuinely appreciate that. Um I think we had a good discussion. We always want to have um we want to hear more. Um, but it was just a really good night because there were so many recognitions and it's kind of a we do a lot of good work at this table and so for us to be able to sit back and celebrate once in a while is really a great opportunity and I enjoyed that. Any other comments from anybody around the board? I'd like to I'd like to thank everyone that was nominated for um the posts that were
092open and uh no matter what we would had great representation and and I I thank everyone for one sticking their neck out and and being nominated and have to go through that misery sometimes going having to vote and stuff. So, I I appreciate it and and I thank everyone for their willingness to um to really put yourself out and and run for them board members and for those seats I should say. I echo that. Thank you. Okay, then um hang on my computer's slow. Hearing no objection, then this meeting is adjourned. Uh we'll take a fivem minute break and we will go into a workshop. Stay. Stay here. Yeah. [Music]