FCPS School Board Meeting 6-25-20

001the board held a closed meeting earlier today certified compliance immediately upon reconvening in public at the forum work session which preceded today's regular meeting please rise as student representative Kimberley blotting leads us in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance now for a moment of silence as I mentioned we had a close meeting and a forum prior to this so we will go on to item 3.0 for because we've already certified the closed ment meeting so three point zero for a recognition of lgbtq+ Pride Month resolution by mr. fresh mr. fresh Thank You chairman Corbett Sanders whereas the struggle for acceptance simple human dignity and equality under the law for LGBTQ people is evidenced by the dedicated advocates and allies who endeavor to create a more inclusive society and whereas June marks the 50th anniversary of the

002first Pride Parade which came one year after the Stonewall ruff uprising six nights of riots sparked when lgbtq+ people led by transgender women of color like Marsha P Johnson in Sylvia Rivera resisted police harassment and brutality during an early morning bar raid the historic moment served as a catalyst for the LGBTQ rights movement in the United States and around the world and whereas the decades since have been one of struggle and celebration for the lgbtq+ community despite increased support and acceptance lgbtq+ young people still face many challenges without accepting families they are 140 percent more likely to experience homelessness and nearly 5 times more likely to attempt suicide and where is a study from glisten this year found that 87 percent of LGBTQ plus middle and high school students often hear negative remarks about transgender

003people in school more than 70 percent of LGBTQ plus middle and high school students were verbally harassed in the past year because of their sexual orientation sixty percent of Latin X LGBTQ plus middle school and high school students experienced bullying based on their gender identity and nearly 60% of black LGBTQ plus middle and high school students the experience bullying based on their sexual orientation and whereas the Fairfax County School Board recognizes the urgency of its a charge to foster a responsive carrying an inclusive culture we're all feel valued supported and hopeful Fairfax County school board policy 1450 seeks to protect students educators and other staff from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity the Fairfax County school board appreciates the many contributions made by LGBTQ plus students educators staff and families to

004the vibrancy of the broader school community Fairfax County has a richly diverse lgbtq+ community that includes people from all walks of life who should be able to live without fear of prejudice discrimination or violence now therefore be it resolved that the Fairfax County school board on behalf of the students educators and families of Fairfax County Public Schools does hereby proclaim June 2020 as lgbtq+ Pride Month in Fairfax County Public Schools and in the spirit of one Fairfax that the Fairfax County school board urges all to respect and honor our diverse community and to build a culture of inclusivity and equity not only during lgbtq+ Pride Month but during the other 11 months of the year as well I so move and is there a second second in by miss Cohen mr. fresh would you like

005to speak to your resolution yes thank you for many years the school board has recognized lgbtq+ History Month in October but to my knowledge this is the first time we have recognized pritus in these difficult times with social distancing and schools closed Pride Month celebrations canceled across the country I think we could all use a little pride right now in a few minutes the school board will vote to confirm this recognition it will be a powerful symbol of support but symbols while certainly meaningful fail to adequately support thousands of LGBTQ plus students some out but many still in the closet struggling to make their way what would it look like to move beyond symbols and act on the promise of Fairfax and our non-discrimination policy that purports to protect lgbtq+ students and staff for starters

006Fairfax County Public Schools would finally create and enforce comprehensive regulations formalizing protections for transgender and gender expansive students we could create a culture where students know our school have their backs because teachers and staff would not sit idly by when homophobic slurs were used and students are dead named our LGBTQ plus teachers and staff would have equitable access to the same employee benefits is all other employees including those that enable family planning I could go on look I can understand complacency our schools are so much better than they were when I was a frightened closeted high school student in the lip 19 but being better is not enough students are still suffering I have met with virtually every GSA Club in the county at school after school I have heard heart reading stories from students

007who lack the support that they need not only at home but in our schools as well every day is an opportunity for this school board to do better in many ways Fairfax County Public Schools have led the state when it comes to supporting our LGBTQ plus students I hope the school board's past work will inspire us to act boldly in the future to do even more I hope we will demonstrate the urgency our lgbtq+ students so desperately deserve and I hope when we celebrate Pride Month next year we will still be seen as a leader on these issues because we have finally adopted regulations that protect transgender and gender expansive students in the months ahead the twelve of us have an opportunity to do the right thing and show pride in action for the sake

008of lgbtq+ students staff and families I hope we will seize it thank you Thank You mr. Frisch miss Cullen would you like to speak to your second I would thank you Harvey Milk once said that all young people regardless of sexual orientation or identity sorry I was pushing Harvey Milk and said that we had all young people regardless of sexual orientation or identity deserve a safe and supportive environment in which to reach their full potential here in FCPS our own school board has not always been able to speak with one voice about our gbt Qi a student's but today is not that day whether you are gay bi Han genderqueer non-binary gender non-conforming trans or any shape of the ring though we are glad that you are you you belong and exces yet we want

009you to feel supported as you navigate your playing your life and through our door we know it is often terrifying to be able to express who you really are and we want you to know that we believe your school should be a safe space for you we know that helping you feel safe starts with having the school board who values you so if any school board members have ever made you feel other door less than I'm so sorry I know how hurtful the word said during some past meetings have been to my own family but today is a new day and this month is an opportunity to remember how far you've come and to know that you deserve the same rights and privileges as everyone else and to be proud of who you are we

010are so happy that you are you and we are so grateful that you are part of our FCPS family happy Pride Month thank you Miss Cohen miss mcLaughlin his thank you both mr. Frisch for those eloquent words in the resolution as the extremely proud mother of an openly gay son I can't possibly convey how much this means to me personally to know that our board is honoring June Pride Month doing so in a way that truly talks about celebrating each and every individual in our community as mr. faroush noted for those of us who grew up long ago it was I'm an entirely different environment for love is love and to be who you want it to be and when my son came out to my husband at me as a junior in high school

011our only fear was what type of abuse and mistreatment he would receive our son was blessed that going to Woodson high school he was embraced for who he was and was actually named homecoming or prom king it's a year and I mentioned not only because what I want for every single child in fairfax county around our nation around the world it's to be loved and embraced for who they are and we are not always finding that our children have the experience that my son had in high school I do know my son experienced bigotry and mistreatment he was in middle school and it was hard I don't want every any child to experience that and so for this board today for June Pride Month to celebrate and say to our community how much every child

012matters how much we celebrate who each and every one of them are is a powerful step and as mr. Frisch noted the resolution is one thing if the actions we take to continue to create an accepting inclusive environment will be our test in the days ahead so I wish my camera we're working I am remotely in another state right now I wish you could see the smile on my face the joy that I feel and the gratitude I have form up this board and for what it's meant to be a fairfax county parent thank you thank you miss mcLaughlin miss Sizemore Heiser thank you very much and I it's hard to follow such heartfelt sentiments McLoughlin are I really appreciate sentiments as well that was Cohen and mr. refresh and I am so proud no

013pun intended to support this resolution I am so proud to be part of this board that is saying that we value and we see everybody for the beautiful wonderful human beings they are and that's all that should matter and I'm so proud to be able to support my colleagues in this endeavor I kind of get tears in my eyes about it and I don't have a family member or personal connection I just so strongly believe that every single person should feel welcomed included respected valued and seen as human because that's who we are it doesn't matter anything that's what matters first so I just wanted to say thank you to my colleagues for resolution thank you for the hot words I've heard before and I just want all of our lgbtq+ students and staff to

014know that I personally and I believe my colleagues also are committed to making sure that you are valued and respected at human beings that we love and we want in our schools and your diversity and who you are are so very welcomed and we are proud of you we value you and love is love happy Pride Month thank you thank you Miss Sizemore hi is there miss kiss Gemara I'm sorry it's taking me so long I just want to join in saying happy Pride Month to everyone I just from the bottom of my heart want all of our students to understand how incredibly proud we are of the diversity within our schools and how we want every child to feel valued and and experience the caring culture that we intend it it breaks my heart

015to hear stories of students whether it is because of their sexual orientation or their race or any other reason children should not be harmed in school children should be built in school and so I'm glad to be a part of this resolution and to support it because I want that message to be loud and clear and I want to make sure that we remove every barrier making every student successful so thank you so much thank you mr. OTT Koufax dr. Anderson nope that was Miss Kay's Kamara staring at college on that's okay Marinette Koufax yes okay I just wanted to say that I wholeheartedly support this resolution energy honoring our LGBTQ community we will always be here for you making certain that we have the policies and procedures in place to ensure that you we

016have a caring and inclusive culture we want you to feel safe supported and respected and we struggled with this a few years ago the it unfathomable to some of us who are on the board when we nearly wanted to add gender identity to our non-discrimination policy it was extremely hard to watch those who did not believe love is love and so I want to say to all of our students and faculty staff out there we want you to feel safe and supported we want you to know that we respect your your ability to love whomever you want and in and please understand that as we move forward in this process we will continue to listen to you to care for you and to make certain you have we have the policies in place that make

017you continue to make you feel welcome inside our community whether you're teaching or whether you're a student so happy Pride Month and thank you Carl breaking in forward dr. Anderson okay now it's my turn thank you called for bringing this forward I just have a very very few words to share but as a former teacher and principal my approach to students into school has been embedded in two main tenets which is one provide all students with a sense of safety with a safe environment and to educate them so that they all can fulfill their potential I went for all of us I'd want for all of our students what I want for my two children which is acceptance inclusion support being valued the feeling that they matter the feeling that they're able to contribute in

018a meaningful way and the feeling of not being invisible it is with this in my heart that I wholeheartedly support this resolution because that is a very basic thing that we can do for our students and when we say all we need all my feeling for the past couple of weeks has been a call to action and so I think mr. French for bringing this to our attention for us to take action to ensure that what we say we want for all of our students is exactly what it's happening for all of our students so I wish you all a happy Pride Month and again I'm in great support of this resolution thank you dr. Anderson miss Piekarski thank you I also wanted to wish our community a happy Pride just helping to create an

019accepting in in fairfax county for all our students and staff but also environment we appreciate and realize that it's not just acceptance but it's a valuing of our students and staff are that really makes us and I - you know and I like to see action and taking these sentiments and making them into policies and actionable I don't use an expectation so we are a place where never feel other teachers never feel other rather valued for what they bring to our school so thank you happy Pride Month thank you Miss Piekarski miss Tolan yeah as a family member that I love dearly and watched for many years with LGBTQ issues I am proud to stand today with my colleagues to see that everyone is welcome in FCPS and happy Pride Month thank you miss toll

020and miss MA thank you I appreciate the comments made miss Cohen in particular to to acknowledge and own what has how this has been discussed in the past and then toxicity that's been brought to this and I'm proud to not you know support students and and my commitment has always been that students should feel safe should feel loved should I live up to their potential and in spaces that are cultivating who they are and whether that's our staff whether that is our young people who are looking to understand their identity and are struggling to fit in who made face mental health challenges as a result of how they're treated to just make a very clear statement the Fairfax County Public Schools is a place where we are committed to to making sure that no matter

021who you are no matter what identity you fit into that this is a place for you and then that this is a place where you can grow and thrive and then thinking about pluralism really this is an opportunity for us to come together in understanding that and upholding that and I take the first step and encourage others to begin educating ourselves really in a pluralistic community and a community that prides itself in the diversity that we have to learn about those around us and to learn about their struggles and their joys and what defines their their belonging and identity within our larger company I think that's where we really come to accept and understand it's not enough to just say you know we're here a place for everyone right but to really care enough to

022understand everyone's journey so thank you thank you Miss MA Miss Marron yes one still had my flag from last year's pride events that were held at Lee in in Reston when I was with us yes pride and definitely disappointed that I could not attend any events this year due to co-ed but I've kept my flag right here on my desk for that year and I am excited to do the work that is we can see it's happening now but we have so much more to do but the bottom line is all our children and all our staff and deserve to be included thank you miss Mayer and miss Bois Tang well I'm gonna be real I don't have many words to follow the beautiful worries that mr. Fisch gave but I just want to take

023the time to say happy Pride Month I do wish that we like given the circumstances of course prime month was unable to be celebrating the way they'd supposed to be in the way that it deserves to be I want to express like expressly say it's also the students because I have never experienced any type of like ridicule for my sexuality and for that I'm very blessed and I want to just kind of like put out there that they'll I pray that there's a day that all my friends regardless their sexuality will be able to express who they love freely and it's just amazing how far we've come and of course we have a long way to go so I just want to say happy Pride Month to everybody and yeah thank you miss wat a

024mr. fresh and miss Cohen thank you so much for bringing forth this resolution I think it is so important especially because we are doing so much virtually this year I did want to just actually put a date to this on June 28 that is the Stonewall uprising gate and I just want people to know that that is a historic date and that's why today's date of June 20 if we try to put these resolutions as close to the historic date as possible and so please remember June 28th and the importance and significance of that I also want to talk a little bit about how we talk about embracing each of our children and identifying them by name and need and that we have a caring culture we have an inclusive culture but it's one that

025we also need to ensure that we have a respectful culture and that's why your words in this resolution are so important mr. fresh because it's about that underlying respect that we need to teach every one of our students and our staff members that no matter who you are who you love or who you identify as that you are welcomed you are embraced as who you are and you are respected and that you your respect of your self-respect is so critical because it is critical for us to have a caring culture that embraces each and every child for who they are and so I am so pleased mr. fresh to be able to support this resolution and continue the work that the board is doing in this very important area with that I will call for

026the vote all those who support the resolution put forth by mr. fresh and seconded by Ms Cohen recognizing Pride Month for June please show your hands we have miss Cohen Miss Marron mr. fresh miss Keys Gamora miss buck our scheme is Darren at Koufax MS dr. Anderson missed hole and mid-size Marv Heiser miss o mais miss McLaughlin and campus Corbett Sanders that is unanimous the motion carries I now call on is Darren at Koufax for a resolution honoring student representative Kimberly brought a thank you madam chair I am honored to be Reza's honor you reading this resolution whereas Kimberly watch Hank a member of the junior class at Lee high school has served as the 49th student representative to the Fairfax County School Board for the 2019 20 school year and whereas Kimberly has participated

027in the work of the school board attended meetings and special functions and contributed helpful observations as well as the student perspective to discussions of issues before the board and whereas she has advocated for providing assistance to at-risk students focused on school workload and the impact of student health and well-being and advocated for punishment reform and whereas Kimberly has been a member of the technology Student Association International Club marching band jazz band in winter guard minority student achievement committee and the n-double-a-cp as well as being a member of the math music and national honor societies all while carrying a course load including I be Spanish I be English I be history of America I be chemistry AP Calculus BC I be theory of knowledge I be anthropology and econ and personal finance and whereas she has

028served as an advocate for all students in Fairfax County during her tenure as school board representative and has provided capable leadership focusing on the importance of education and keeping students needs foremost in all of our deliberations now for therefore be it resolved that the Fairfax County School Board acknowledges the service of Kimberly Boateng during the 2019-20 school year expresses its sincere appreciation for her contributions and extends its best wishes for a bright future with promise I still move and I will second that because I represent misrata she is my constituent so miss Darrin echo effects would you like to speak to your resolution I will and I can see Kimberly your face there now and I want to tell you what a pleasure it has been working with you this year I recall our first

029meeting at that Starbucks across the street from your high school and all the things we talked about we discussed that you want it to work on this year as our school board student rep and I've watched you not just grow but blossom in this world I know your family all of your teachers and all of those in the broader community watched you in this world are so so proud of you and we know that so much you've accomplished this year often the role of the student rep is held by a senior so unfortunately we have to say goodbye and we wish you well as you move on but you have accomplished so much as a junior and you are will still be with us as an FCPS senior next year so we look forward to

030continuing to hear you continuing to see all the great things we know you will continue to do and I don't have to say goodbye yet so I will we will do that next year as you graduate so just have a wonderful senior year thank you for all that you've done and as I said it's been a pleasure getting to know you and watching you grow in this role thank you mr. Arnett Koufax Kimberly what a pleasure I think it must have been your favorite meeting spot because I too met with you the first time at the Starbucks and then miss Keyes Kamara join does it was such a lovely meeting and I was so inspired by your wisdom your sense of humor and your passion since then I've gotten to know you so much better

031and I am so proud to be able to say that Mount Vernon is proud of you you are just an amazing young woman you're an excellent advocate you ask great questions and you are a fierce defender of what is right that fierce defense of doing what is right is not only in how you engage in the policy work that you have been engaged in but you're also a fierce defender of your sister and at for those of you who don't know Kimberly actually has a twin and she's a charming twin but that special bond between twins is something that nobody understands unless they too are twin and because of how different you and your sister are I think that's made you that much more passionate about making sure that everybody's point of view is represented

032and that you're constantly looking for innovative solutions as you identify challenges and problems in our school system in our community and it is just so exciting that you're gonna still be around and it's even more exciting that you're going to a diploma with the new name on it so Bravo we are just so pleased to have had you serving as a representative of the students on this board and we know that you will continue to stay engaged and come back and challenge us so thank you and now I have I know every single member of this board wants to speak and I am going to start with miss Keyes Gemara thank you well I want to start by thanking Kimberly for being with me last night in my student Town Hall she was my co-moderator

033I suspected in the beginning that I might get kicked out so I said if anything happens Kimberly take care of everything and sure enough it was it was a predictable occurrence and she kept us on track that it was an example of your leadership Kimberly that you were able to operate with such grace we had a heckler and we were not moved away from our issues at all and I think that that is a really a picture of who you are and who you have been on this board you have challenged us on equity issues in particular and insisted that we delve deeper to understand the impact of our actions or our inaction you have witnessed the best of times and some of our accomplishments such as changing the name finally but also the worst

034of times where people have come and said hateful things totally disregarding that we represent a school system of young people and that their hearts and minds and the tenderness and innocence needs to be respected and so I was very proud of you as in some of those moments you let us know excuse me I shouldn't be listening to that kind of foolishness and you're exactly right but as a school board we are here to do our very best to protect our students you sat stoic Lee we knew her those comments and but you never ever gave up and you provided us insight into into the harm of delayed action into the harm of misspoken words into the harm of perhaps not delving as the leak as we can so I want you to know that

035I will continue to be thinking about you and the challenges how you challenged me as I made comments about any type of inappropriate behavior toward a child really gets me ready to go to the mat and I'm so glad to have had the opportunity to get to know you you have made us better and for that I want to say thank you miss summation Campbell where do I even begin I am so proud of you I had such a pleasure working with you I guess what it's been like months now you've met my family I've met yours I think this is it's been a pleasure to see in action the voice of a young person with courage who is unapologetic about you know what's right about what you're seeing in the school what you're seeing

036in our system and what we know to be areas that you know need improvement I think in your legacy we've often joked about how we shouldn't just try to be you know accommodating or or conforming to certain norms of professionalism right but but going out of our way to really speak what's on our mind and in the in your legacy I hope to uphold that to speak truth to power as we often talk about it's been an absolute honor to see your commitment and your passion for making sure that we get important information to the community obviously it's it's been beyond enjoyable to have you co-host with me for I don't even know how many sessions now talking to the community and educating them about what's going on on the school board and making it

037simple for them as much as possible I know you've spoke up when it came aap the advance academics I know that you had a commitment when you ran in with the si si and you promise them about certain things with equity and you have made them proud with the name change with the disciplined conversations we've had it's just been an honor to see what students are capable of you have proven that and and have been a voice that really if I'm gonna be entirely Frank has been fearless in ways that maybe some of us are else before myself haven't even um so I did want to make this special for you our corn stream team one of our one of our student teams did come up with a number of quotes about you and how

038exceptional you are I will share those with you but just a tidbit I know for the sake of time you know hard-working advocate for students across FCPS from all backgrounds I love her energy enthusiasm her aura I hope we can get more memories Kimberly is not only an exceptional person how she fights for all students she's also a great friend knows exactly how to advocate for students stands up for people the student body provides a voice for the voiceless I can go on but really you know students look up to you you've done us proud and I can't wait to support you in the next in your journey ahead so I'm really proud of you Kim mr. Frisch thank you um so Kimberly and I sat next to each other for the first two months

039I was on the board before the closure and while I certainly enjoyed sitting next to you Kimberly I have enjoyed even more watching your leadership during the school closure as you stepped up as the conscience of this board and you know you recently said that he recently apologized for shaking the table when talking about your advocacy you know I hope you never stop shaking the table first of all because it has power and it has impact and you know if I could will anything into existence it would be an Ikea full of tables for you to shake because when you shake them people listen and people should do a lot more listening to you thank you for all he's done dr. Anderson on thank you I I was able to see Kimberly a little while

040ago but she disappeared from the screen and so I am disheartened that I'm not oh yes there she is I'd love to see that smile I want to say in my short time working with you Kimberly you've got nothing but be impressive impressive and eloquent impressive in your advocacy impressive in your fervor of Justice it has been just wonderful to see you as such a very young person a junior participate in the way that you have you fiercely committed to equity and that work is commendable you have been phenomenal unapologetic and exemplary and everything that you've done you give me hope for our young people because if you are the voice of our future then I feel that we are in very very good hands I'm really looking forward to seeing how you continue to

041hold us accountable as a board moving forward since you are going to be in our schools in the next year and again I go back to my team a call to action we are saying a lot of things that we want to do you will be that student who is experiencing those things and how quickly we're getting to those things and I know you will hold us accountable because your you are fearless I agree with what miss Nash said one of the things that I wanted to do and my goodbyes to you it's the prisoner you went something that I'm not able to do in this forum but hopefully I get a chance to give it to you I want to offer you a poem by Maya Angelou phenomenal woman because I believe that is

042you and it is a wonderful poem that has always spoken to me since I was a high school student and I'm just I've seen that in you since the very very very first day I do want to take liberty even though I know time is of the essence not to read the entirety of the poem but it's a one piece that I think really fits well here and that part is as follows now you understand just why my head's not bowed I don't shout or jump about or have to talk really loud when you see me passing it ought to make you proud those things speak so who you are you walk softly but you have carry a very very big stick and I am so proud of that stick your voice your fervor your

043passion that you have brought to this board you've pushed me to also be bolder in my stance because you are you are in that place and so I've appreciated that so a phenomenal woman that is you congratulations miss Piekarski thank you I know Maya Angelou but I wanted to write down my thoughts I know I don't forget anything that I wanted to say to you Kimberly first I want to thank you for your service you have an incredibly passionate voice you use it loudly without apology always fearlessly to make FCPS our community and really our world a better place and my hope for you going forward I can't even believe you're a junior but it's my hope that you never ever lose that voice and the in that passion that you bring and the way

044you light up a room whenever you walk into it because of who you are I cannot wait to see how high you will soar in your senior year and well beyond that I hope your family is proud of you I think you you have understood that this board is extremely proud of you Kimberly so thank you and good luck next year and keep in touch so we know all the great things you're doing miss Cohen well Kimberly I am so sorry that we only got to spend a short time with you I like Carl had the distinct privilege of getting to be a seat away from you and I felt really lucky with my placement on the board I'd like to believe at your at your age that I carried myself with the grace poise

045and strength that you do but I'm pretty darn sure that I didn't you are a fierce lion and you remind us constantly that our job is to push ourselves to support it and protect our students I'm so grateful for your service here and I know without a doubt that you're gonna stick around and continue to be a force to be reckoned with and reminding us that we have an obligation to all of our students so we expect to see your face this is not a goodbye and I really look forward to getting to thank you in person miss McLaughlin is Thank You Kimberly I'm sorry my videos not working because I would love to not only see your beautiful smile but for you to see the smile on my face as I share with you

046how much I've enjoyed working with you this past year I absolutely want to echo all the beautiful things that my colleagues have said about your service on the board but I want to focus particularly on your unique leadership because having a strong voice is not enough it is being the type of leader that unites people it brings people together it creates that genuine connection and saying let's have these crucial conversations let's see have these hard difficult conversations but let's do it in a space that says I I want to welcome the dialogue and have people feel not only heard but that you then bring them along in that shared belief and also a shared mission to make our schools better for each and every child and so I now beginning my ninth year on the

047board and wanted you to know that I have a big smile on my face for the pride and the joy that we've all been able to share with your service this year and as a fellow twin I do want you to know that I consider one of the greatest gifts to come into the world with my best friend and I hope you and your twin sister continue to be that rock and source of support for each other for the remainder of your lives be well Kimberly and please know that we look forward to continuing to hear and enjoy and celebrate your successes with the next EPS MS Tolin yes Kimberly it's been just a joy to work with you are so conscientious thoughtful and unbelievably eloquent for someone you know that's it only a junior

048in high school I shouldn't say only but a junior in high school I'm just that you are an incredible example for all of our FCS students your communication skills are really amazing and your are a critical thinker and really approach you know problems with a you know let's figure out a way to solve it for everyone I'm kind of attitude and that is incredible your resiliency under pressure has been very impressive to me as we've been dealing with huge issues on this school board you know Cove it 19 lakh lives matter you know you've just stepped up and dealt with all of it with grace and in many cases that people have mentioned earlier you know you've done this in you know town halls with hundreds of people you've done it in our school board

049meetings and you've taken you know face to face criticisms and you know statements against what we're doing with incredible grace and I've really really admired to that I mean certainly instilling me I hope you know hope for the future knowing that we've got you know young leaders like you you know coming behind us to you know keep things moving forward I really really appreciate it and I wish you only the best and I'm so excited we still get to work with you for the next year now after all of this seriousness um that we've heard there's something I have to say from someone who is asked about my earrings my shoes is different fashion item I just want to say I am really going to miss your fashion inspiration and creativity you know not seeing

050that on a more regular basis you're amazing thank you so much mr. Sizemore Heiser thank you very much and I want to echo everything my colleague said Kimberly I want to say one thing that one of my biggest regrets with this year and with kovat is not having the chance to really get to know you better so I recognized that as my own failure and I wish I had the time in the space to do that but from what I have seen and when I've heard from your statements from your advocacy I am so incredibly impressed by you and I'm not impressed by people very often so please understand that I am so impressed by you you are fierce you're unapologetic you are strong you stand by your convictions you just bored but you do

051it the way that makes us all stop and think and that is an incredible talent when we and our board means been faced with what I would consider very inappropriate statements your way of calling them out is not just calling them out but so rash not so thoughtful so in depth at how you get to your points and so well-spoken that it doesn't just point out their inappropriate behavior but it makes me really think about my own thoughts and behavior and my own statements in a very positive way if your your way of speaking Kimberly you make the rest of the world think and and that's an incredible talent especially for someone of your age and incredible power and I hope you will always continue to use your words your intelligence your fierce and strength

052to make people think and one of the things I have said for a long time is I think your generation is is the next greatest generation and you are the epitome and the proof of that so I for cannot wait to see what you do I hope I actually can get to know you a little better next year I'm so glad you're still here cuz I would love to be able to do that and I am so honored to have been on this board with you so with that I wish you the best of luck I hope you keep in touch and thank you for the gift of you this year miss Marron yeah hi last thing I all of the accolades of my colleagues and thank you for being so eloquent on you have

053yourself and your peers you know I don't know how easy it is for many students to be able to get up in public and express themselves and you know your your model your feeling how it's done and that's a really special thing because not everyone has the guts or the skills to do it so um I hope that you all continue to be a resource to your successor mr. Nathan autoboot oh and I hope you have a great year their newly named school and feel so much pride when you walk through the doors there and know what you helped to achieve and you have a really bright future so I say you think about the skills and the things that you want to you know obtain and emulate to help you get to where you

054want to be right of course it's always on the journey so have fun and thank you so much I look forward to being in touch and with that I'm going to call a vote all those in favor of the resolution honoring Kimberly Boateng please show your hands miss Cohen miss mcLaughlin ms Mara and dr. Anderson mezzo mezz mr. Frisch miss Donna Koufax Miss Carr scheme is Toland miss Sizemore Heiser and Miss Korbut Sanders miss Keyes Gemara we've lost miss Keyes gamar so that motion is unanimous with miss Keyes Gemara away from the table the motion is adopted now miss cotton would you like to say a few words yes with accepting compliments so this was a lie um I have more than I'll probably say like later and my student rep matters but like this

055was truly amazing amazing experience it was a complete honor to serve in the board and also along here I want to show you guys a pretty little plaque I got I'm not sure if you guys could see you well but it's beautiful it's gorgeous I got it in the mail like two days ago and they'll be going like front and center so that whoever comes in my house can just see it and it's just been wonderful and I'm a crier so I'm trying not to cry so just want to say thank you for all your kind words are you encouragement all the affirmations it means the world to me it is our pleasure and if you need a video submission for recommendations for college next fall I think you have about a 25 minute one

056here that you can just have them send off and say see how wonderful I am because you have a lot of cheerleaders for all the great stuff that you've done the next order of business is citizen participation tonight 14 citizens have signed up to address the board and we also have one video testimony speakers are requested to limit their remarks to no more than three minutes the school board will not hear statements involving issues that have been scheduled for public hearings such as capital improvement program budget and boundaries complaints regarding individual students or school based employees should be directed to the appropriate school principal or other school official speakers should refrain from using personally identifiable information in connection with an individual student speakers are expected to deliver their comments with the decorum and respect appropriate

057to the conduct of the public's business thank you for your cooperation and thanks to those who have come to speak to us today our first speaker is Dee Dee I see it I see add hi before I start I just wanted to say hearing all you guys talk was really inspirational and I actually became really personal so Kimberly I think on behalf of all FCPS students thank you for everything you've done and you're a really great friend um but so hi my name is Dee Dee elsie odd and I am a rising senior at Thomas Jefferson our FCPS Deputy Superintendent has already heard from me I shared an article I wrote for my school newspaper regarding TJ's lack of diversity and that is why I am here today to some diversity as a means of

058avoiding criticism to others diversity is stealing from more qualified races but to me diversity means that I belong diversity is needed to have a healthy and mature community diversity is a mixture of races and cultures and religions and genders and mental abilities and more diversity is embracing our differences and learning from each other less than 2% of TJ is black we need a diversity at TJ but if you don't believe me let me tell you what chaos ensues when diversity isn't present black people are less talented black people are less academically motivated black people are less qualified than other races to be atiek these are direct quotes from students here at TJ the quotes are racist yes but how do these students know any better when they couldn't learn from other minority students in an

059advanced academic setting lack of diversity Foster's prejudice how are minorities impacted by lack of diversity my brother is an example he was not knitted into the AAP program in elementary school now his attitude as a teenager towards advanced classes is I can't handle it I'm not smart enough lack of diversity shattered self-esteem of minority students I want to embrace being black I want to embrace being a girl and being a Muslim and everything else that makes me me but I can't do that right now because embracing these differences TJ means embracing that I'm an outcast I've been an outcast since third grade when I was one of two black students in my AAP plus now I am one of six black students in my graduating class of 407 TJ is less than 2% black minorities

060are severely represented the AAP as a result lack of the confidence to take on more rigorous education I do not fit in that TJ but I am not alone many of us feel like we don't belong there is a reason why TJ is less than 2% black and not just the admissions process it's because the AAT system has failed us if he fails minorities it fails low-income students it fails Vince with disabilities aap fails non privileged students from 8 years old in honor of the black lives matter movement in honor of Pride Month in honor of national days Awareness Month in honor of all those boys and girls with dreams that might never come true because they never had a fighting chance I beg you make ATP for students with privilege a meaningful achievable first

061step would be increasing diversity programs education thank you thank you so much Victoria Johnson first of all happy lgbtq+ month for everybody Pride Month I come to you with celebrations on my heart but on my mind it's a challenge that I want to present and just hearing everyone speak you guys are already taking steps in that direction so I'm talking about more of a global approach where we see it and we feel it and working in the system but but also more importantly being a parent it's not there so we know that we have a lot of work to do I don't I want to us I want us to use the language of not just our community but it's or deceive me not that is just their community but it's our community we're all

062a part of this so I would love the day where I walk into a building and I see that it is a comfort place for all students one example of that if the flag a simple flag whether it's flying in the you know beside our American flag or somewhere in our building but it's not missing the counselors it's in every place student goes and that also is not seen but it's felt yeah so I feel like as a person in the community especially as a person of color in the community I feel like it's a double minority so not only do I have to deal with being a black girl in America I also have to deal with being a black lgbtq+ member in America which is it's just a double minority not only do

063I have to fear about how I'm looked at but you know teachers and other peers it's about my face also my sexuality something I another thing I can't you know and I just feel like you know what I've heard from other friends are what I've also experienced is just that you always feel kind of like an outcast you never really feel you know like the person everything's a fifth and formality of what these students think is you know more right so it just feels hard and I I really don't know I like I'm all about celebrating and I know how far we've come but I also feel like we have a lot more to do and I just it's just so many things that I know can be done to make us feel so much

064more comfortable in our school but I do want to add if you notice it's Pride Month it's been June and we're out of school now I know with the virtual learning it's been very different but if we look at it every year it's in June so that's just even more reason why we need to celebrate throughout the school year whether it's for our black students it's not just black history we've heard this it's all of our history so I just think those steps thank you thank you Miss Johnson Ezra Nnamani yeah hi hear me we can hear you miss Novotny thank you so my name is Austin Imani I'm a former Wall Street Journal reporter who taught journalism at Georgetown University my son is a rising senior at Thomas Jefferson High School for science and

065technology and we've been in Fairfax County Public Schools since kindergarten the number one priority for families is returning our students to school safely FCPS and the school board have given parents to unacceptable options for our children's education for days of distance learning or two days of in-school tree learning for school system with a three billion dollar budget these options are a failure we are in a crisis but instead of coming together to prioritize education our school board is obsessed with partisan political activism and virtue signaling hijacking our return to school with a divisive agenda that pits people against each other the school board our administrators and activist you will hear from tonight are diverting precious time resources and money to renaming schools removing mascots and indoctrinating our K through 12 students with a polarizing agenda

066driven curriculum fomented by a multi-million dollar industry of consultants doling out cookie cutter turnkey programs to activist bull boards like Fairfax County call it what it is whoa incorporated they are selling their products under buzzwords like critical race theory anti racism pedagogy cultural marxism implicit bias training and microaggression mediation these are not terms that I invented this is a language of divisive activists trying to indoctrinate our students and when we don't even know how our kids are going to get back to school and as you Ellis traited tonight the FCPS School Board has become an echo chamber for the big business of all incorporated TJ is a crucible for this activism a small but aggressive group of alumni activists are hijacking our school with these virtue signal and knee-jerk solutions to increasing the number of

067Hispanic and other underrepresented groups of TJ they their demands include replacing the colonial mascot that Thomas Jefferson named and our race blind admissions process with race-based lotteries and quotas their ideas have even included occupying TJ the alumni now called the idea a quote joke but to us our children safety is no laughing matter we all agree on increasing diversity and addressing racial issues I'm a Muslim immigrant from India who learned English as a Second Language in eight three breakfasts in school provided to children living in poverty I'm part of socio-economic minority as a single mother we disagree on solutions we must build a pipeline to success at each and all schools instead rtj principles and our mostly immigrant families of color that are telling us we have to check our privilege another divisive rhetorical product

068sold by wolf incorporated @ej mother who marched for Human Rights in Tiananmen Square told me she feels like an outcast I'm having traumatic flashbacks to the Cultural Revolution in China she said we must protect our students and families from the divisive snake Kimberly Adams Kimberly Here I am afternoon my name is Kim Adams and I am speaking on behalf of our union Fairfax Education Association thank you all for recognizing Pride Month in our school the a stands with the lgbtq+ community and supporting all people and their right to choose whom they love and to be respected for that choice thank you miss Tang for your service we appreciated the time we had to learn from and with you you inspire us with your leadership and we look forward to closely working and following your future

069endeavors perhaps someday return to this board the FAA will continue to work with you and your fellow classmates as we move through these difficult times please know that all FCPS employees are dedicated to our students and families as we leave the current school year we know FCPS has struggled with addressing employee concerns some of them for years the FAA has always been here to help collaboration is critical especially during this time of pandemic we thank you as a school board and the leadership team for responding to your employees this is an amazing opportunity to become a school district that truly listens to its employees and makes progress because of its partnerships thank you all for your time and your talents we continue to work together towards a better school year ahead thank you Susan danowitz

070my members of the school board my name is Kristen Wong and I graduated from TJ in 2007 season danowitz kindly seated her time to me thanks for listening as you discuss committee appointments I wanted to touch on the importance of diversity specifically I'm here today asking you to address TJ's lack of diversity when I said TJ my cats had four black students and to hear that the number of black students at TJ remains pretty much the same thirteen years later it is heartbreaking I don't want any more kids to go through what I had to I had fond memories of my time at TJ I received a great education and I met lifelong friends but 13 years later the blatant racism that I had to deal with is fresh in my memory I'll never forget

071walking down the hallway hearing to my kids through the N word back and forth between each other only looking a little bit sheepish when they noticed that I was there I'll never forget the countless times I heard oh well he'll get it 2x cool you're black and I'll never forget the many many insensitive classroom comments my classmates refusing to see any benefit in affirmative action or defending denying this after he called a group of college athletes nappy-headed hos apparently his right to free speech was more important than my right to live the world that didn't denigrate my body and my blackness the truth is I don't think my classmates were out to get me all right that they didn't like me because I was black it's just that most TJ students are completely ignorant when

072it say she's the phrase you can go an entire four years at TJ and never directly speak to a black person these students are supposed to be our future leaders and they don't know how to relate to people outside their bubbles and the diversity problem isn't just an issue of the student population diversity in my teaching faculty is just as important I remember in 2005 I going on extra extra curricular school trip to Atlanta and the first place we visited was still mouthing the site of America's largest money which the Confederacy and the birthplace of the modern Klux Klan this was 2005 I was completely blindsided and it put a huge damper on should've been a fun bonus trip although we did not visit any sites related to civil rights movement despite being in the

073hometown of Martin Luther King jr. again I don't think the teacher planned this trip in a malicious way and I think she just didn't think about the implications of the safe that we were visiting and I'm sure they've just been you know a little bit more diversity on the faculty maybe think twice about having students specifically on rally site and that's the thing about diversity like at the end of the day it really just comes down to having diverse voices in the room you know no amount of by streaming or anti racism education can make up for having black places president to fix educational teaching students and improve upon experiences those students like me you really need to increase diversity of the school and you need to do so immediately Thank You Ruth Metzl I

074want to first thank Ruth Mansell for sharing her time with me my name is Christine Quinn that a slaughter and I'm a Latina class of 2017 a grad I was in sixth grade when I first heard about TJ after being invited to join quest a minority enrichment program with a goal of preparing students for the TJ entrance exam the bus program introduced me to a world that I had previously been kept out of I suddenly had new goals and I knew TJ would be a stepping stone towards accomplishing my dreams as a participant in the program I quickly learned that I was not being adequately prepared in mine on a AP class math in particular I looked forward to taking the middle school math placement test so that I could finally be placed into a

075math class that would be at my level to my surprise I was told that I was not allowed to take the math placement test and I was placed into a standard seventh grade math class while I was desperately trying to catch up so that I could have a chance at getting into TJ for help the topic I was learning about in quest and she angrily told me to look it up myself in her college textbook because she didn't know how to do it I attended Stone in Liberty middle schools the data has shown that students who attend not a ap middle schools are quite unlikely to make first TJ cut and have almost no chance of being a I had all the cards stacked against me and yet somehow I made it me a brown

076first generation born non AAP student made it i was the exception a rare case and that is the problem year after year the number of black and latin x students admitted to TJ remains so low that we do not even make up 5% of the student body combined I had to work unnecessarily hard to get into TJ in order to make up for opportunities that were taken away from me as a student at TJ is met with comments such as you only got in because you're Hispanic it is isolating to not see yourself reflected in the faces of your peers and teachers and it is traumatizing to have to defend your Worth on a daily basis due to the implicit bias and racism that breeds in a community severely lacking in diversity when I express

077concerns about the number of black and Latin X students admitted and retained at TJ I received claims from people in opposition to reform that those who work the hardest and are the brightest are the ones who get in yourself is it that black and Latin X students don't work hard enough or aren't smart enough or is it that the system was designed to make us fail I know the answer is the latter and it is your responsibility as this mental the current TJ admissions process and the AAP screening process in order to create a new system that will allow all students regardless of race ethnicity gender or socioeconomic status to reach their full potential give us the chance to thrive thank you ma'am could you please provide to the clerk your name and as well

078as the previous speakers name and speaking notes because we have two different we have the wrong names registered but we so appreciate you coming and speaking to us tonight sebastian Ibarra hand sorry so hello considering the emissions data for the class of 2024 I wanted to share my experience as a Latino student at Thomas Jefferson High School to technology during my junior year I decided to run for an elected position I walked up to this data in front of TJ's packed auditorium and began my speech by saying my name said I stand about uh in Spanish the audience burst out laughing as a mexican-american student at TJ an experience like this was not unusual in the slightest I was instantly taken back to the day I was admitted to TJ when a friend told me

079that I only gotten in because I'm Mexican my freshman and sophomore years were characterized by putting up with an uncomfortable amount of race-related consumer hearing casual use of racial slurs everywhere and a complete lack of education from the school about the history of racism in our country junior and senior years also included a return to what I had first faced from a TJ peer in the eighth grade persistent vilification claiming that I did not deserve my accomplishments because of my ethnicity that I would have to work less hard than others for the same reason or that my accomplishments meant blessed because they must have been gifted to the election speech incident felt like a culmination of all of these experiences so it became the focal point of my personal statement when I applied to college

080as I began my second semester at Yale in January I decided to view my partial admissions file and reflect on my journey through TJ when I reached the review of my personal statement the admissions officer who evaluated me wrote that it was quote sad but unsurprising that students would behave this way unquote the fact that the admissions office at one of our country's top academic institutions is not surprised in my experiences that TJ is a scathing indictment of what it has become TJ has not been a welcoming environment for the new black Latin ex and Wellington students that managed to attend for so long and it has become a widely and accessible public resource to these groups in Fairfax County I demand the following actions from the FCPS school board one to fundamentally reform the

081admission system in such a manner that actively creates a racially and socioeconomically diverse student body the only way to create a more inclusive space for underrepresented groups an intellectual area is to represent them beyond the margins and the emissions process is the most trebek Avenue for action in this regard admissions is not just a symptom it is unequivocally the main part of the problem itself - to create an actively anti-racist core Eagleman TJ and across MCPS to educate students on the experiences of marginalized groups in the United States I am encouraged by the school boards discussion about this and I'm excited to see this incorporated here backs classrooms and three reforming the AP program in Fairfax County to improve representation or black black necks and low-income students Abe he is absolutely one of the largest

082barriers to entry at TJ this should not be a priority only because of TV this is a problem that needs to be addressed on its own and it should not be an alternative but rather a complement to reforming the admissions process I believe that every student in FCPS deserves a fair chance to realize whether or not their life's passion lies in stem I know the school board does too so please these proposals that I have lined out thank you thank you hiya mohanty Ortiz no my name is Jordan Carson and I'm actually sitting in for chai Ortiz so first let me say thank you try of course exceeding the time and for the board and everybody else who's listening please bear with me a lot of good information has been shared about the LGBT community

083so someone what I'm about to say may be a bit repetitive so again I already said my name is Jordan constant I'm the executive director of safe space Noah it's a pleasure being with you to here today for during Pride Month for those who didn't know Pride Month is a promotion of the self affirming dignity equality increased visibility of lesbian gay bisexual and transgender people has a social group pride as opposed to shame and social stigma is a predominant outlook that blockbusters most LGBT rights movements it was initiated after the Stonewall riots were started by two trans women of color Marsha P Johnson Sylvia Rivera as a statement we've made tremendous strides most recently the paths of a giant carrots X which extends existing state non-discrimination protections and public employment housing and credit of Virginians

084from the basis of sexual orientation gender identity and several other characteristics this is great news as I'm a gay man I'm glad to hear it however there's work to be done based on a 2015 youth risk behavior survey from the CDC at Center for Disease Control of survey LGBT students 10% were threatened or injured with a weapon on school property 34% were bullied on school property in twenty eight percent electronically those issues still exist how do I know because of the work I deal with P flag and say space Nova we work with young LGBTQ youth who can change Li feel boldly in torment not just by their peers but by other adult soon to include teachers and administrators as well safe space know where our goal is to provide a safe accepting and supportive

085environment to combat social stigmas bullying and other challenges faced by LGBTQ youth we do this by hosting social activities free of charge to the youth would you also have a new group called y'alls which stands for youth advocacy and leadership learning through social support the purpose of the group is to provide supervisor inclusive and in farming space for hel GBT youth to come and get their support one another and feel supported as they live authentically group is you driven but facilitated to help young people develop leadership and advocacy skills for educational programming target at here is adults and ensures a last bleed just last year actually we actually lost our scholarship program which we actually started giving scholarships to some of our youth youth who are getting to say space novigrad you lating and going

086off to college our target age group is 14 to 18 years old across all of Northern Virginia to include the city of Alexandria Austin County Fairfax County and Prince William County not the why am I here I'm here to say that safe space police here we've been here for the past four years we exist and we want to partner with the high schools and with these full-bore [Music] thank you please provide your information in your remarks to the clerk and we'll make sure the whole board has your information okay Davina Johnson good afternoon Davina concentrate sucks exceeded her time to me my name is Siobhan Smith I'm a math teacher and really at West Potomac high school I'm also a co-president FCPS pride and a board member therican county anti-racist mines pride line represents and

087celebrates the challenges of teaching community to be acknowledged affirms and validated in our collective communes and briefed on be able to speak on the day that graphics County Public Schools acknowledge the work in the efforts of Kim Lee Fontaine on behalf of FCPS pride and Fan Fair X anti-racist minds and Region three think you can believe for your service both as an educator and the member of FCPS pride and a fan I would like to recognize validate and find those efforts today because for pride because I can in society at large members can't and society at large and everything to let go of my own intersectionality and sometimes their struggles their bodies creates barriers the intersectionality of our LGBTQ students staff in the areas of gender sexuality and race is important to acknowledge in a

088farm not only in June LGBTQ Pride Month but ongoing simply being smart intelligent the grades and following the rules does not come back the challenges of other end racism sexism engendering the support my LGBTQ students families colleagues and I tasked myself my school community and our school system moving forward to affect the caring welcoming and safe environment for LGBTQ students families colleagues and Ally's Allah is my moving forward to action my analogy is supporting please upload our student voices please lift our staff voices please uplift our community voices thank you for all for the opportunity to speak today during prymaat happy Pride Month and spacing there that's County thank you Miss Smith can you please provide your information to the clerk appreciate that Suparna Duta good evening can you hear me we can hear you

089okay I'm trying to shoot my video it's not hitting me but that's okay I thought I was too busy to school to speak at a school board meeting but recently there's been a rash of emails sent from superintendents contraband the high school principals and members of this board somewhere about options to zoom the next school year while others righteously told me to check my privilege and prepare for curriculum exchanges today I did not hear a single remark from the school board about raising academic excellence and it is a school board write an email of Tuesday listed options for next year including four days of online instruction or a minimum of two days of in-school instruction and independent study for the rest last quarter there were ongoing technical problems with the school platforms and often teachers

090and students would have to leave the classroom and reconnect with already short instruction time it didn't help when a teacher couldn't get into class until 5 to 10 minutes after the start time FCPS failed the students in spring and it looks like they resigned to do the same that's fall when so many schools across the world have opened up why is a CPS lagging behind I come from a very humble family in a part of the developing world I came here to study and search for better opportunities I was alone with no family I had to motivate myself to find those opportunities there were hardships and disappointments and I worked long hours and pinched every penny to get where I am I never asked for a handout and no one gave me an opportunity without

091getting my best effort I was privileged just to have parents who released me that way from their modest flat in a hectic congested city on the other side of the world they are shocked by the things you now say about us in your emails and the transformation a new promise is coming emails from teachers principal and Bonnie tacticals complain about admissions outcomes and an equity gap when did schools shift focus from hard work and merit to race or anything other than academics this is not the America I immigrated to or want to see for my kids in my child's admission here only 19 percent are white this tjs admission policy biased against whites the principal's logic says though but I don't believe it the public schools seem bent on pitting one group of people against

092another and making sure and feel the brunt of it your brand of social justice sounds to me like a rigid ideology using conjecture instead of data it isn't false Bible it is unscientific and against the habits needed for any useful discipline it will fail to deliver most Americans don't pursue stem because they think it's too hard according to research they should be an effort to attract more kids at the elementary level eliminating competitive admissions though dismisses the high desire and academic standards needed for success in stem a curriculum redesign or hey Toriko good afternoon school board great to address you again although my affiliation says TJ AG I am a concern individual TJ visions UB alumni and reference County parents I'm raising my voice had a concern for the kids who are and have yet

093to be at TJ for the record I am not paid to speak here I'm not a part of a race war in fact it's not a rate and war of any kind it's about interrupting the academic arms race I do not have a large public forum but I do care about TJ finding the missing talent that exists in Harris County those Diamandis abidos my wife and I are both naturalized citizens I'm from Bolivia she's from South Korea but I was a low-income dreamer before the term was coined education we booked the loudest as immigrants to be able to improve our Lots in the US and I'm grateful for the visions T Jane UVA for that we're fortunate to be a blowy and not be welcome I missed our privilege we still pay structural issues for

094example with our kids we paid after-school care and even when we wanted them to participate in local activities put on by the local PTA those are hard to attend not just because we are paying sixteen hundred and fifty dollars per month already but then also the cost for each of those potential activities and the school that my children went to is Sangster that accepts over 54% of its population through the IEP program that is how my kids got there but the school did not reserve or make spots for the after-school care program there even though they know full well how many kids are coming there in that time my kids were not able to attend after-school activities in either school because they had to be in the bus to get to chamber and and make

095by the time they arrived there all activities were done and he couldn't attend the ones and sangster I brought this up in three times with the principal in a public setting at the family orientation upon admission the principal did not apologize did not empathize and the bureaucratic layers allow the school to behave in this manner I reached out to the provider in this case you're scanning chairman nothing changed and yet each of the three times I spoke up many parents thanked me for speaking up the academic enrichment profile for my kids now is greatly reduced after the school involvement was limited is it because they're not working hard is it because we didn't encourage them is it because they're not interested no this is the definition of disparate treatment even if we want to provide

096equal access for our kids we couldn't because we both had to work now even if my children ultimately get into college and they don't go to TJ we do recognize your privilege and we understand that we're in a much better position but I want to speak for the people who can the people who don't have that option and there are many of those people in our community with 28% of our current County population as low-income socioeconomic class students that is a big call to action the fact that TJ for the past 27 years has only admitted less than 5% of low economic students and that's why I'm here I'm here to try to allow for more people to be able to become a part or have the access or have the options with - thank

097you Thank You mr. Torre eco curable a key you oh I'm class of Jefferson 2017 on this on truth of the immigrants and I'm new to the genie when I was five years old I came across without much beauty second grade manager k-8 people since elementary in 2008 along some of my peers who have been in TJ and SAT of courses since elementary my entire chest read consisted of having either a teaching I was an officer the president blacks to me an essay see represented now the issue that I see with Jefferson following first many people claim that TJ has a meritocratic admissions process helped argue the opposite the current admissions process applies to those who can afford to J test for additionally a large percentage of Jefferson students come from a small chunk of

098eligible middle schools they have access to cause like TSA or sisal yet or they can attend stem summer courses and they are able to leverage this experience in their admissions packet their current process implicitly benefits the wealthy and exclusive tour as the able to personalize food is one percentage other some of my personal experiences at Jefferson countless charms my peers that I only wanted to TJ do to be what despite the process means of the rich part and my horror unit is part of the Black Student Union I tried to educate advocate for lot of poisons many of my mom blog peers we refer to blog students as not really being black and make Snyder or maybe I should call its poison whiteness the same as nothing more than their Vantage College missions and is

099the more when trying to address real issues this is not even to mention can rent it use of the n-word and other racial slurs during that's on them to School efforts funded the be estimates are educate the student population were never taken seriously the environment itself which is coming back from a lack of diversity and admissions has caused onion additional stress upon black students my freshman pozzolana 206 black students in return for their sophomore year students were not the only ones for racially insensitive you're my first thing anymore I asked the teachers simple question and learning there to stay in the classroom she on I mean what a stupid question someone wants to kicking the TTH SP the simulating that I didn't belong I was also is true than who long fairly used launched from

100most more time than SPS there was only at Jefferson where I felt isolated to my family's honor the status and other schools in Jefferson not lost for the peer about this and almost ridiculed as with her soul Jefferson caters to the wealthiest families and have become a place where wealthy parents to fast-track their children to a successful in high pain center I believe TJ and SCPs have been so reluctant to alter their admissions process because of the successes of the school in national rankings as it stands she will start driving me to get Joseph Kim high as my audio working yes it is hi my name is Joseph Kim and I'm a 2018 graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School for science tech and technology and I'm currently a student at the University of Illinois at

101urbana-champaign for the past three weeks the topic of racial diversity at TJ has been at the forefront of the minds of hundreds of alumni parents and students unfortunately the inequities in the TJ system have not been relegated to the past three weeks and this has been a problem ever since TJ was founded 1985 its entire 35-year history TJ h SST has never had more than nine point four percent of its student population be comprised of black and hispanic students in the last twenty years that number has hovered at about half of that maximum but at this point we're all well aware of what the problem is yeah cry makes that very clear what we need now are real solutions a fellow alumnus Justin Bowie and I have been working hard by bold and effective solutions

102to address the problem of diversity at Thomas Jefferson after pouring over dozens of studies court cases and news articles Dustin and I have written a full 26 page report of the history of racial injustice TJ admissions with data and evidence that proposals for change we'd be more than happy to present our findings any and all members of the school board but I'll do my best to present some of the key ideas now the research and examples of other selective high school systems across the country show that admitting students from a top percentage of each middle school will be the most effective admissions process for promoting diversity at TJ more specifically offering admission to the top 15 percent of applicants from each middle school will open the door for students from more diverse and underrepresented communities

103the problem however isn't entirely isolated to the direct admissions process steps need to be taken to promote inclusivity at all levels including aap outreach during the last school year alone black students were 32% underrepresented in level four aap Hispanic students were 61% underrepresented as a major gatekeeper to the mission success this is unacceptable and needs to change and after hearing all the testimonials even from today from black and Hispanic students and alumni concerning the inhospitable environment at TJ it's clear that steps need to be taken to help support by Park students within TJ as well active learning techniques alongside mental health and stress management intervention programs have been shown to decrease the course failure rate of underrepresented groups and stem by nearly half and increased feelings of belonging and emotional satisfaction anti-racism and impostor syndrome

104awareness workshops need to be implemented immediately as well it's not enough to help black students just get past the admissions process we need to create inclusive atmosphere for all students the solutions aren't simple and they aren't easy but facing racism on a day to day basis and having to jump systemic hurdles isn't easy either the answers are multifaceted and they can't be summed up in three minutes but the solutions are there we just need to be willing to work on them and put a real change into action thank you for your time thank you mr. Kim and please send your research to the board mr. Becerra George I can hear you George good afternoon school board members and superintendent Britton there are several items that are like to talk about first of the superintendent's Technology

105Advisory Council did the board agree that out of the eight green arrows were on the steering committee that no member is underrepresented minority person we have sixteen white and two vision adults the other person is a child or a student there are those some underrepresented minorities in the ball is at by three members to me this this is like saying you are fine a kitty stable but not at the main table may understand that this council was struck wickley under the tremendous failure of the relative distance learning but I hope that next time a group of this caliber is stood up that there will be some lens of equity and equality second thing I'd like to talk about is the boat you will have the school board during your first meeting in July on who

106the next chairman is I think the times dictate a person who is under represented minority and has the experience to do this the last time a person who met these criteria was this Isis Castro in 2003 from the Mount Vernon district we're before mr. supervisor stork let me choose your own your own internal power playing an alliance formation decision none others also remember the new voted on chairman will by the board through the process of renewing the superintendent's contract in other four years or start the process of finding a new one this decision has to be made more than likely I think no later than October Plus at the same time I are about three or four new leadership team members if not more by the time this summer ends third well the Board announced

107I put on the agenda during one of the July means that the superintendent's evaluation for the past year has been completed and a general summary of it has been provided to the public under the Code of Virginia just like the notification the Board of Supervisors do Emily with the county executive evaluation finally thank you check Thank You chairman Corbett Sanders and super Chan and Berman for allowing their mr. OC to have a representative on the petal choosing the next chief of academics and equity office let me say I see voter last night in that person will be me thank you very much and hope everyone stays safe Thank You mr. Becerra we now have a video testimony by Robert riffey good afternoon and senior staff my name is Robert Levine jr. I'm co-president of FCPS

108pride and employees in guardians group and son with LGBTQ people in Traverse County public school we're planning on doing three things this week that symbolically will move us forward in the concept of equity you are beginning the public hearings to change the name of the high schools and you have begun the process of changing the name of Mosby rewards elementary school nowhere in the school system should Confederates be honored these are good steps that you are taking you also will honor our student representative Kimberly was Hank I have listened to most of her statements to this board and she's a real hero to me I especially appreciated her focus on bias and at questions she has been an ass and what is for students this year and I suspect she will remains up during her

109senior you will recognize LGBTQ Pride Month Pride Month is in June in remembrance of the events of the sternal Inn in New York City in 1969 it is worth reminding people who criticized the street protests against white supremacy that the first fight was a riot led by a transgender woman of color even though that woman Marcia Lee Johnson led the way for the whole community eternal life still remains extraordinary difficult for LGBTQ students in our schools with the extra burdens been placed on transgender students and african-american immigrant and disabled LGBTQ students and and other people in our schools the legal wall around LGBTQ people in our schools is changing this year Virginia passed a law mandating that school systems develop and implement policies for trans students the Supreme Court of the United States said last

110week that trans people cannot be discriminated against in employment decisions and the last brief in Gavin Grimm's case will be filed tomorrow I fully expect the appeals court to rule within a few weeks that students cannot be discriminated against just because they are transcended the world is changing and it's good to see SDP has changed with it I will make a special appeal then when we developed the policy for transgender students that would create a student-centered policy and not allow adults to have veto power of their students and I didn't thank you for listening the next part of our agenda is student representative matters I now call on Miss Bois Tang hai so I'm back again and [Music] read matters this is crazy who would have thought that it'd be here you see in beginning

111my time I didn't think that I'd be giving it on my bed in my bedroom but here we are and there's so much that I could say and this is a very bittersweet moment for me but don't worry I won't cry I did that earlier this week has been absolutely the same for me for those who aren't aware haven't been like keeping up or whatever during this term of whether the name change my school name same process I think technically I could say twice I've been a part of the election and onboarding of a new board so I'm in fourth unfortunate to have experienced a little bit of two boards and I've been a part of this pandemic with everybody so I think it's safe to say it's been a wild ride um I just

112also want to take the time to kind of share look a little like story not really a story but we're gonna call it the story just for you know words sake and the reason why is because this I've been known as born I've been talking for you know lord knows how long and I just feel that a lot of people don't really know like me as a person like what my own circumstances they know my views and they know where I go to school but I don't really know a little bit of my background so I just want to say that during the school year I've kind of spent this position kind of like airbending my way out of through obstacles for those who don't know I'm a rising senior and I'm also someone who

113does not drive and my parents are both worth jobs you know to make support my family so it was up to me to get myself around to get everything done to my best of the ability so what that meant was many many buses and a lot of walking and a lot of communication with my teachers my parents my family and all that so the people like part were like why didn't she just share that and the reason why is because as a lower income student I often feel as if there are these are stories that often don't see the light reach the line there are many students who may look at me and be like oh yeah I wish I could do is she's doing but I just don't have the vices but I don't

114have a car I don't have this I don't have that and I'm here to say that while it's it's definitely been harder for me since I don't have certain resources I don't have transportation like that's as comfortable it's definitely possible it's for me I actually got lucky for when I missed the bus or when plans fell through I always was able to rely on uber but many students who don't are able to do that but still push through so I also want to highlight that much of my position this year husband me just figuring things out it feels a little beautiful like I like to tell people hey it's okay if you don't know what's going on because frankly I don't either and I feel as if that's how about honesty is what brings people

115together and brings like my genuine e to this whole process while I don't think I'll be going into politics for a couple of reasons I hope that whatever I have been trying to exude I'm very big on being true to myself and raw and human that's it I hope that soon that this will become more commonplace in our places of office I've vowed to stay true to how I dress to the bright hair colors people have seen throughout the year my purple and blue I know blues and favorite for a lot of people and especially my vernacular how I speak like if I have a certain accent if I have certain words that I want to say like oh but it's - it's not professional I don't like professionalism everyone I've said that multiple times

116I don't like it because I feel as if it's too stringent and it kind of takes away from the humanity that we so truly need in these positions so with that I kind of want to say thanks to everyone who's been support of me pushing me out of my comfort zone so I can do this to the best of my ability and also while I'm here I wasn't I wasn't able to speak to them it on Tuesday is that Tuesday because I actually want to get groceries during the vote but I'm absolutely thrilled about the name change it's been a long time coming I want to take the opportunity to shout out a specific person because I've been getting a flood of like congratulations good jobs but I also want to make sure I don't

117want it be wrong for me to take all the credit I want to shout out my fellow lis high school student well former lethally high school soon um Luna al azhar she's class of 2020 graduate and she's been the one who really spearheaded the whole thing so I want to make sure she gets the props that she deserves she's been a powerhouse with that and she's the one has consistently been like pushing me to speak on it so I want to make sure that she knows so Thank You Luna for continuously pushing to me to be loud about it even when I didn't want to she always was fearless about it this was a hard position I'm not gonna lie but I wouldn't trade this experience for anything I am excited for we're going I

118hope to see a lot more positive change and I know this board is gonna be able to do it and in terms of like Esau programs to better integrate immigrant populations into the student body and Tyrus these curriculums like we talked about before continued emphasis on equity and reallocation discipline mental health increased Avenue for meaningful student engagement and I can go on forever and ever and y'all know that cuz I talk a lot y'all seen the most of it um but like I said in like many of the school members have said I'm still here for one more year and I got a little sister who's here for five more years so watch out you guys have not seen the last of me and for Nathan I look forward to the amazing work that you're

119gonna do in this upcoming year and always I'm always a text away so thank you everyone for an unforgettable year Thank You Kimberly we did not take any actions right or close meeting so I'm going to go to item six our consent agenda they're adopted rules of parliamentary procedure Robert's Rules provides her consent agenda listing several items for approval board by a single motion many items have gone through board review and documentation has been provided to all board members and the public in advance items may be removed from the consent agenda at the request of any board member prior to the meeting item 6.01 appoint individuals to serve on committees as detailed in the agenda item item 6.0 to appoint individuals to serve for a one-year term ending June 30th 2021 on the adults and

120community education advanced academic programs Career and Technical Education Human Resources minority student achievement oversight school health and students with disabilities advisory committees as listed in the agenda item item 6.03 confirm the contract for Eleazar Martinez executive director and chief investment officer for the e RFC is there any objection to approving the consent agenda miss Barron your hand is up Miss Marron no that's an error sorry that's okay hearing and seeing no objection the consent agenda is approved item seven new business the following are new business agenda items there will not be a vote tonight on these items but action is scheduled at a future meeting 7.01 authorized the division superintendent chief operating officer or the assistant superintendent for facilities and transportation services any of whom who may act without the others in consultation with legal

121counsel for the school system to negotiate execute and administer on behalf of the school board a lease agreement for the office of facilities management Northwest maintenance support center located at 397 earned in part by Herndon Virginia two zero one seven zero including all related documentation within available funds item eight superintendent matters next on the agenda is superintendent matters and I call on dr. Bray brand Thank You chairman Corbett Sanders it's really a pleasure to be able to talk to you all this evening I want to start by first saying Kimberly congratulations on an amazing year as the student representative you have been an amazing voice you really have had an opportunity tonight to hear from all of your colleagues the kind of impact you've had on the school system and I'm very excited that you're

122gonna be with us another year and your voice will continue to be heard and that is part of our journey is to make sure that all of our students voices are being heard and respected and included so I congratulate you and I look forward to watching your senior year at a new high school with a new name and I want to thank the board for all the continued work they're doing to honor our our folks our staff members and as we work on return to school we're gonna continue to communicate out and share with you the information that you need to make the choices that you need as we do return to school so that's all I have for this evening and I look forward to seeing all of you again real soon thank you

123now for board committee reports and I call on mrs. Darren act Koufax for an update on the forum held earlier today yes miss Corbett Sanders we did help hold a forum earlier today and discussed one agenda item brought forth to us by miss Cullen the topic was what steps with timelines and actionable items can be taken to immediately both short term and long term eliminate racism and implicit bias and FCPS the objectives what the objective of the conversation was with the year-end review of the budget upcoming I would like the board to see what immediate both short term and long term actions can we take to improve f/c with regard to racism and implicit bias miss Cohen listed several topics for discussion including school name changes hiring practices including both recruitment and diversity deserts professional

124development including building wide on racism and cultural competency the srn are items including dress code discipline disparities appeals hearing culturally competent discipline procedures consistent offerings and loot use of racial slurs under aap and TJ young scholars compacted math local level for admissions to centers and admission to TD TJ school specific interventions and training around anti racism through town halls microaggression remediation tackling overt racism anti-racist curriculum SROs and and their role in the school's general disparities by race and building specific disparities and truancy there was a robust conversation followed by unanimous support from this board this was referred to a work session and I assume there will be several work sessions on these many topics so thank you miss Cohen Thank You mr. Arnett Koufax I now call this next section is warrior matters and I

125call on dr. Anderson first of all I want to say thank you to everyone for listening and Kimberly good luck and it was really great serving with you for the time that we were able to work together very briefly I just want to be sure that I acknowledge that we know that the return to our school plan that were that was discussed earlier this week and that our parents receive communication about is causing no less than a lot of consternation for our teachers our parents and just anyone else and I'm right along there with you you know as a parent I'm trying to determine what is going to be best for my two kids one of them who's transitioning to another level these are hard decisions and we do understand there's a lot of questions

126we see all the questions because I think everyone's email has been flooded with the questions that our community has and there are good and valid questions my my commitment is to ensure that we have those questions answered so that we can be informed in our decision-making those questions are being forwarded to the leadership team who are working tirelessly to make sure that we we provide that information that our community deserves and we want to be able to move we're together in again folks I hope that there's some recognition that and I know there is there's a deep recognition that this is a very difficult situation we have we have a portion about community who wants all virtual we have portions about community who want all return back five days a week and we have to

127find a way to be responsive to to all of that so just please keep the questions coming and I don't think I need to encourage you to do that but keep them coming and we will address them because we have to thank you thank you dr. Anderson MS Cohen I I never thought mayor marrying up into a seed Cohen with-with-with changed my life so exponentially I I just want to echo what dr. Anderson said I will add on to that that the majority of about the 250 communications I've gotten since Monday afternoon are mostly from teachers who are really seeking further clarity of expectations who are very concerned about child care we're concerned about workload we're concerned about how decisions will be made building wide but also in coordination with the health departments in particular

128in concerns of areas that we see with really high concentrations of kovat we hear you and we are going to continue to work with staff to get answers they hear you we expect an FAQ will come out on Friday that will help answer some questions I know that more will be coming out to our staff to help them understand the process and procedures for how decisions will be made and hopefully relieve some of the heartburn so that decisions can be made this week about whether you're going to return or have to take a break and I certainly hope you're going to return we don't want to lose any of you so we appreciate you we know that this is such a difficult time as Ricky said dr. Anderson said we we feel it in our

129own home with two kids here and we're all going to get through this together there there's no perfect solution and we're gonna keep trying to do the best we possibly can and make the next straight decision for our teachers and our students and our staff and their families I wanted to say tonight I'm super excited to help some lovely members of true 13:46 earn their citizenship in the community badge they've been watching our school board meeting I hope we've done them proud and I look forward to getting to be a part of that and I hope everybody has a wonderful restful weekend and we all come back to this with a renewed sense of getting it right for for all of us take care thank you mr. and mr. net Koufax thank you echoing the

130words of my colleagues this is we are in difficult times and we are in difficult times because we are not only talking we're not we we know that lives are at stake with any any decision that we make and we're not taking this lightly we want to secure in ensure your safety and your security and we are also hearing from parents who want to come back because they feel that that's what would would but would be best for their children so we are as a as a collective body of 12 working with our staff listening to each and every one of you and we must be responsive to our multiple constituencies and this is difficult and I know I'm hearing from a lot of you it is difficult you understand that so thank you keep

131your questions coming we will keep answering them we are looking we are gathering them we are we are presenting them to staff and they are working on answers for us so we hear you we are listening and we care about you and I know this is difficult I no longer have children both of my kids have graduated from FCPS but I am facing a similar situation with my daughter and what will I do go going back to college and she goes to school in New York City so it is a very difficult choice we as families are making on in sending our kids off to college or different cities or should we send them back to FCPS so we will work we will continue to listen and work with you and make the best decisions

132that we possibly can that are safe and secure for all of our teachers and our families and I miss Cohen reminded me I spoke yesterday to troop 995 based out of st. Bernadette's and they have kids from Wayne and Hayfield and st. Bernadette's and they talked to me they are working on their Eagle Scout projects and they spoke to me extensively about the renaming of Lehi school and so I enjoyed my afternoon time with them so thank you all for reaching out to me and we I was so impressed with all of your questions so good luck and as my colleague said let's let's just continue to work on this issue together because we we all want to make what's best for each and every one of you happen Thank You mums Darren echo effects

133mr. Frisch Thank You chairman Corbett Sanders so many communications from teachers and families so many questions that is why we have all been pressing for specificity and detailed plans for the implementation and that these issues will be taken into consideration with all potential Intan contingencies and there will be continued to be questions I think it's only natural my partner evan has been an educator in FCPS for 15 years and we have questions too I think that's natural during these difficult times as FCPS is taking unprecedented steps this fall we're all on this together and we're going have to continue to press for the answers that we need to make decisions for our families as we continue to move forward I hope Providence district families will continue contacting me by email by phone on social media

134I've received about 300 emails in the last week and during the closure I've scheduled a little over a hundred hours for town halls and phone calls and zoom video conferences with parents students and staff so if you'd like to have one of these one-on-one meetings it's so difficult to be with people you know we're because of social distancing we're not seeing each other but if you'd like to have a zoom video conferencing or a phone call with me and talk about your concerns or your comments you can find links for that on my official social media channels Carl fresh FCPS on Twitter and Facebook and we can set something up I'd love to hear from you thank you thank you mr. fresh miss Keith Kamara coming Thank You Madame chair I want to start off

135by thanking my panelists from a student town hall last night Kimberly Boateng was there with me I mentioned already she did a fabulous job but we had grabbers representatives from Hayfield high school teaching langley Oakton chantilly and justice and they were they represented FCPS in such an excellent fashion that I just I was so very proud and so I just want to say Thank You Kimberly Kelly Alena Laila Liam Elena and Lilly so thank you so much we will work to continue the discussions our kids are very concerned about kids I'm sorry our students and young adults are very concerned about what's going on in the world from everything from what the pandemic has done to our schools how that has produced in equities in access to education - very frank conversations about experiences and

136whether we stood up to racism or not and I just was so very proud and I pray that we can continue those discussions I also was able to lead with the principle in the Madison pyramid right after our distance learning discussion and I was bombarded with questions about specificity for our distance learning and how that is impacting them so I look forward to working with my colleagues because I know we are all pushing together to make sure that our staff know they have the tools understand the board is concerned about that as well and I know that from talking to my colleagues so I just I'm just grateful for this opportunity we'll be planning another Town Hall and I look forward to having these additional meetings to make sure that the community feels comfortable as

137we go forward into the next school year thank you yes can you hear me I would like to hear without the ability to change that I do believe dude lay the start of the school year so that FCPS is got all of the proper plans and executions in place I do believe that FCPS needs to do a far better job along with our port of communicating on the data actually an internationally ability to safely reopen our schools for in-person learning and this is not something F CKS is doing in a vacuum it's happening all across the country our colleges are doing the same I'm a college a parent college student and [Music] basicness FCPS can and must join all other public education settings in doing this well and doing it effectively and I want to

138reassure all of the people who've reached out to me and who are listening that I believe this board is exceptionally dedicated to us getting there but I I do worry about intentionality of how words well we will be extremely sensitive to the help of conditions of our employees our families their loved ones we also need to be mindful that as the entire society in fairfax county is reopening through phases in a safe manner as governed by the cdc and our governor of Virginia and our Fairfax County Board supervisors the school system is not exempt from that we are a vital service and I look forward to partnering with our Board of Supervisors and our state leaders in ensuring a safe reopening schools but ineffective reopening schools and finally I wanted to say to all parents

139in particular concerned I do want you know that I believe our children need instruction every single day I believe that our teachers do not need to be wearing multiple hats and having a workload that is overwhelming to them and I do believe that this school board needs to engage in additional work sessions with the superintendent to help improve upon the plans that have been laid out so far but I very much understand why so many employees and families are feeling very anxious right now and it's our job to address that anxiety successfully and I want to reassure the public that we are spending 24/7 as a board trying to support the best efforts possible of scps thank you so much thank you miss McLaughlin MS Merritt thank you so I am receiving many kids attorney

140mails from parents and from teachers those teachers that live in Hunter middle or teachers that teach at Hunter mill and I hear you I know that there is much more information needed to make decisions and plans it was important for the school board to provide consensus for the overall plan so the superintendent set in motion all of the communication and operational work that needs to be done by the time school opens but however I too AM eager learned of the details and the information to staff I am asking our superintendent and human resources department about addressing your many questions and for parents I'm in your boat trying to manage the days and these decisions about my own children who are in elementary school I know for some of you it's a very clear decision of

141whether or not to send your child to school or keep them home or as a staff return to school or stay home but I know whether or not that's where you're at I realize that everyone wants for information before making decision so as soon as I receive answers to questions I will share them all the ways that I do already my Facebook page that's yes Amil on twitter on my news you choose email and in responding to your emails so um communicate with high school coaching staff to hear from parents of athletes about what they're seeking and if you believe information will be coming from the in your high school we age yourself they're the ones that are gonna you know having information that's decide how we inherit facts do things and similarly I'm hearing

142questions about you know what about performing arts but it's the poorest band the orchestra and that's also something I'm very eager to understand about burns you know athlete in there arts I also am concerned about our role in taking on all of this as FC yes and I do believe in our County Health Department has a much bigger role to play here particularly when it comes to screening our students and staff we're talking about getting screening you know this County it's gonna be a joint effort so I'm very eager to do that work with our board of supervisors and health department and you know just if I can ask you know please know that there will be some unknowns that remain no matter how much information you can provide and you can prepare ourselves to

143not have all the insert it's gonna be that much better for us all so when I look at everything else we did this week still wonder too that I'm pretty tired but wow what amazing things to be tire doing we went forward with renaming Lehigh school and through that process after listening to all of the heartache and pain that advocates are putting forth there really makes me want to improve and expedite how we rename our schools you shouldn't have to dredge up all of that we know that these names are egregious so I am hoping with that in the future I was at a Juneteenth celebration and rally last week here in Vienna at the vienna First Baptist Church of Vienna and it was an amazing ceremony with lots of local folks and maidens there

144of water came so I'm just you know weeks ago already and I've had a very full week here I feel like we've heard a lot from us this week and lots of people are washing and that's great so thank you for being engaged thank you Miss Mara and miss MH thank you firstly thank you to my colleagues for their comment to share a number of the concerns that weren't mentioned but in in in lighter news I am excited to celebrate our seniors next week I know we're gonna be watching you guys and all the wonderful videos that were made so I look forward to several days of that I share like I said some of the concerns my colleagues I want to just frame you know for the sake of transparency we are looking at

145an opportunity where our staff are really working hard to try to provide options for everyone and I know there's an intention to really be responsive to the needs that were shared through the survey you know we are constrained in some ways by some of the requirements coming from the state and of course we have to rely on the Health Department for a lot of the information that's coming to make sure that we are making factual evidence based decisions that are also localized because we know we have hot spots across this county where families I mean we've heard the stories of kids whose parents have passed away as a result of this and it's very real and in many of our school communities mindful of course at the same time that a lot of the data

146isn't there and so we have to really have a rigorous risk analysis analysis and making sure we understand what's coming forward you know there have been too many questions about what we're gonna wear whether teachers you know are gonna have options how are we gonna cover the classes that are very niche and specialized and on and on I mean I have lists of questions I want the community to know that in talking to some of our principals and talking to some of our school leadership they are working very hard to make sure that this is going to be successful I know that we have exceptional leaders so we're gonna lead on but I will continue to ask my questions but I know my colleagues will as well to make sure that the implementation piece here

147goes as smoothly as possible I respect to of course the the the opinions of my colleagues and the division but open to answering any questions folks have you know how to find me today at 7:00 we are gonna be live from Facebook talking about equity with a number of our SPS staff so the owner who's from the director of our family engagement equity office as well as mando Perry who's our Ombudsman so you can find a little bit more about how you can voice your concerns or understand how family commitments that look like moving your head and you know you're able to find an solution and all of that I'm not responding to email all the time but I do read them and I'm happy to do text and message with you when I'm able

148to get to that so I hope tonight you can ask your questions live and I'll answer them thank you miss mas miss Piekarski thank you like everybody else I too have been inundated with emails and I understand the frustration I understand the you know the uncertainties and like Miss Marron said I understand having to make this decision with with very few details as a parent myself many of us on this board are indeed parents I I would just like to say that while we are dealing with something unlike anything any of us have ever dealt the end goal is still the same ensure that we're providing high quality instruction for our children despite the obstacles and while it's difficult to write to many of you that we don't have answers right now we are here

149and we'll continue to ensure that we are sending those questions having the work sessions and ensuring that those answers come and come earlier than later so that you can make this decision as to what is best for your kids next year so thank you keep them coming I will do my best to to reply with whatever information it is I know right now Thank You mr. Carr ski miss Sizemore Heiser thank you I appreciate that and I similar to many my colleagues share the same sentiments many of my colleagues have shared I too have been getting inundated with emails and messages on social media and I very much appreciate the desire and the real need to know all of the details I as a parent myself I want to know all the details so I

150know what to do with my own son and what I feel is best for him and and the reality is that the co vid is the type of disease and what's happening right now is that all the details may never be known or they may change and and we as a society you have to figure out how to live with that uncertainty and that's really hard and I understand that I think said that please do know that I am reading all of your emails and compiling all of your questions and sending them to leadership to hope that they as they build their plans out they'll take those into account I do know that leadership is working hard to try to figure out all the logistics and details they will not necessarily be available immediately and

151I want them trust me but the reality is that what's going on here is that we have to balance safety education and the thing on community asks for the most which is choice and those three things are hard to balance and it's safety from koba it's safety from child abuse from depression it's education that's best for our students that's flexible that includes access and support and it's choice for those who need to be home and choice for those who want their kids in school and everything in between in an era that might change so I'm saying here completely understand your questions we were looking for answers and trying to get them to you but I have asked the community to know that we a lot of us are parents a lot of us have partners

152who they're teachers a lot of us who had school and we know that this is really really hard what's going on here you know reimagining education in a way that we haven't had to do before and that's hard and is a big logistical challenge so the answers are coming the details are coming please keep your questions coming so our staff know what our parents and staff are concerned about I promise you I'm reading all the emails we're getting to as quickly as we can I am holding a town hall with dr. Anderson Monday night for 7:00 to 8:00 so hop on and whatever answers behind we'll give it to you and whatever concerns you I will take them back I just wanted to end with something here I would say that look what's going on

153right now is we are trying to make lemonade out of some of the worst lemons I have ever seen in my life right and I anticipate that whatever lemonade we end up making will be sour to some probably not sweet to anyone but hopefully palatable to enough people and that's the reality of coke so thank you for your patience thank you for reaching out they keep them coming and thank you for caring so much about our schools and our kids and our teachers and please know that we care just as much and are working incredibly hard to do the best we can by everybody so thank you all mr. Tolin thank you I'm definitely looking forward to to our continuing to work on a return to school efforts to bring our students a robust and

154an excellent and excellent educational experiences upcoming school year because that's what we expect from a Fairfax County Public Schools yes the questions are pouring in since we announced you know our idea for a plan for saw earlier this week please keep all those questions coming many of my colleagues have already expressed eloquently you know how difficult this situation is you know for people making decisions for our families for our teachers and I've been hearing from and many many staff members and parents as well please keep the questions coming sends them we have an email return to school at FCPS I even you what I might recommend has sent them there but please you know particularly in Janesville its CC me so I also see what your concerns are and can direct specific ones to staff

155members that are dealing with those particular issues and so I'm you know have a clear understanding also of what everyone is dealing with I'm reading all of these emails and you know there are so many questions but we're doing our best to get through those answers our first as with much the earlier first group of frequently asked questions when we put on the website I believe tomorrow and we'll be continuing to do that to try to get you answers and continue discussions as some of my colleagues have already mentioned I would definitely encourage additional open discussions around some of these questions and working out some of these issues and just to help everyone make their you know important decisions of what they need to do for their families I'm a couple of other items our

156joint environmental task force will virtually next week on July 1st and we're aiming for early fall for reports around some of our goals and things that we would like to move forward it we would like to Gary pardon early fall to even both the board of supervisors and school board Miss Meredith the last thing she's been working with a great organization rust and on they also have a Herndon on arm and I'm very happy to be working that organization looking at community support are her than phenom Lise around coven and education in general I was interviewed by a voicemail Richard 128 their spells are very busy working on their citizen stuff Thank You badges you know we had a fantastic conversation around and big questions across FCPS I was very impressed tonight we talked about

157on our advisory committees in our consent agenda and I wanted to throw out a thank you to all those drains so people that are engaged with our committees and unless people know that we do need some additional drains fell representation on a Resources Committee minority student achievement Oversight Committee and the Career and Technical Education Committee so if you know of people that have background in those areas and may be interested please have them contact me thank you very much and have a nice weekend and a again congratulations class of 2020 I'm looking forward to the video that's next week thank you Miss Olin so before I join the meeting I do want to speak briefly to the return to school plan and it really is a return to school framework which the plan is the

158more detailed plan is forthcoming we have had that assurance from the superintendent that in July we will have the full fully detailed plan however there is one area that I want to address briefly and that is the area of how we will best meet the needs of our students with disabilities and just assure that community that the superintendent is committed to providing more details on how we are going to address your concerns and in a manner which will give you time to make the very difficult decisions that all of our families and staff are having to make before July 10th and please understand that we need to hear from you we need to hear your best thinking about critical issues that we are fleshing out and we also need to assure you that we are

159listening and we're listening which is why there is a full virtual option for all of our families and as well we are looking for more details to hear about what is gonna happen on those off days when our children are going to be learning asynchronously versus the days that they will be in school we also are expecting more details on how our students may be able to participate in school-based activities if they go for a full virtual option and we also understand that our teachers and staff need more clarity as they make these difficult decisions these are difficult decisions none of them are easy and please realize that we are here with you and listening to you in trying to address the concerns of our staff our families our students to ensure that you have

160a safe and in and inclusive warm welcoming education environment for next year and with that I am going to adjourn this meeting have a great evening everybody bye another one good night