001Mhm. >> Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I typically don't use that to get attention, but I guess it worked tonight. Um, we're going to go ahead and call this meeting to order. If you'd all please be so kind to stay with me and participate in the flag salute, I'd appreciate it. Ready, begin. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the the for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> All right, thank you very much, everyone. Uh we'll begin with roll call here. Uh Ms. White. Ms. Bibo. Mr. Ms. Hunter and Mr. Flaherty are not present and our superintendent, Mr. Shimik. Fantastic, thank you. Uh for public comments this evening, uh this item is placed on the agenda for the purpose
002of providing members of the public and bargaining unit representatives the opportunity to address the board on any items of business that does not appear on the formal agenda. We will have a 2-minute countdown. We do act under the Brown Act, which prevents us from responding to questions, but we can uh refer those to our superintendent and cabinet to follow through. Right, if items are on this evening's agenda, I'll identify that time the best time for public comment. With that being said, um this is one of our more enjoyable subject matters of the year where we get to celebrate our employees. So, I'll go ahead and turn this over to our superintendent this time. >> Yeah, you're right. We're ready to celebrate some folks here this evening. Dustin's going to pull up our our point. So,
003just before we start, you know, these these board meetings uh run I would say pretty much like clockwork and uh behind the scenes there's someone that helps make that happen and this is no this is an excellent example of this. Uh if if there's anything you see up here that you're like, "Oh, that's cool. Oh, how nice is that? Oh, I really like that." Um Christina, my administrative assistant, has put this entire uh evening together for you. So, I will say usually like there's something like, "Oh, I'll go get the Martinellis." Uh this year she was like, "I'm taking everything off your plate. You're It's been a This is a busy week. I'm so appreciative of that." I also want to acknowledge we do have two board members. We also have two people retiring that
004could make it tonight. So, you know, life does get in the way. We have one board member whose father is in the hospital and we have another board member who just has a family event tonight that that took priority for cuz it's a one one of those once-in-a-lifetime events for her daughter. As you know, this is all the celebratory parts of the year. So, they were very sad that they could not join in. The one that Michael that could not be here was just a last-minute thing. And so, we'll keep his family in our hearts as we celebrate you this evening. So, we've got a quick presentation here. We're going to be calling each of you up. This is the first time you've done this cuz you're never retired, I would imagine, before. So, we're
005going to we're going to call you up that your principal is going to say lavish some love on you and say some nice things about you. And then we're going to pause and you're going to have your plaque and then we'll take a quick picture of each of you. We're just going to celebrate the six of you that are retiring this year. So, I'll find there are eight that are retiring, but to six again that are here tonight. And then afterwards, we've got some sparkling cider, water, we've got some treats. We'll have an opportunity just to connect and talk and close out the evening. And I did want to say, we even had a member retiree that flew in from Mexico to be here this evening. So, Halacio, we're so glad to see you here.
006Yeah. He has a a beach house at Ixtapa Zihuatanejo. Did I'm not saying it right? Or And just happened to be in town and it worked out perfectly where he said, "Yeah, I'd love to come We just We're assuming that he was not going to fly in from Mexico." We're so super happy to see him here today. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. We'll go down there for a leadership retreat. So, just just kind of debriefing the folks that are in the room right now. There's eight of you representing five schools and one department. 118 years of combined service. So, when you just talk about like institutional knowledge that's just walking out the door right now, it's that's pretty disheartening for us. Um I know that Yeah, maybe not for you, but for us. Uh on the
007flip side of that, I think we've we've you know when you leave, we bring in hopefully that next generation that's just going to take your torch and run with it. And so, thank you for your years and that's just to rescue. 132 years of collective It's interesting how many of you when I was looking at your things that spent a little bit of time somewhere and then found home. Really. And so, um I think that's just super cool. So, congratulations to the class of 2026. I won't give you my number, but I'm chasing you. It'll be a while. So, we're going to start off uh with Natalie today and Vera is going to speak about Yeah, come on up there. And then Christina is going to be our photographer. >> Oh my I So, first
008of all, we have a big event at Pleasant Grove. So, I do have to leave right after this. Um I know, gosh. I already gave her one speech this weekend when we were having a little more fun than is allowed at a school. Um and it won't top Matt Hart's speech. So, Matt Hart has been her work husband for 20 plus years. >> 22 22 years, yeah. And he gave a 22-minute speech about >> 23 years. 23 years. It wasn't that long, was it? I'm sorry. >> Uh so, those of you who don't know, I'm Vera and I have had the pleasure of working alongside Natalie for the past 7 years. Um it's been the most fantastic 7 years working at the L. So, when I transitioned from Sacramento as an administrator, one of the
009things they are really big on is making sure that you find a critical friend wherever you work. So, each site you go to, find that critical friend. Someone that you can rely on to have open discussions with um to help you improve your own practice. Discussions to help you support students, better ways to support staff, and just have those collaborative conversations. So, throughout the seven years at Pleasant Grove, Natalie has definitely been my critical friend. So, she's been someone that I could really rely on to tell me like it is, but you always do it in such a loving and a caring way because you are so focused and dedicated to our school and the students and helping the school progress. Natalie is one of the founding teachers at Pleasant Grove. When we talk about
010someone who's given it their all to make a school successful, literally built it from the ground up, this is Natalie. She's seen buildings added, plants come and go, trees cut down, solar come up. She's seen kids come and go, staff come and go, and she's seen quite a few students come back to be parents. Yes. So, doing the tours and when a kid walks in or a parent walks in, they say, "You were my teacher!" And that's just so exciting to see that full circle. Um, gosh, you've seen rules taken out of the handbook, rules added back to the handbook. You've been in countless discussions of what should and should not be in the handbook. Um, and through it all, you just show up for everything, Natalie. Um, you show up to make the school
011a great place for our kids, for my kid, you were my son's teacher, and for all of us. So, Natalie has cared for our school, she's coached countless students, guided um, students through the difficult time of middle school, and it's a really hard time, you guys. And Natalie speaks, she's fluent in middle school. Um, but Natalie is so well-liked um, that in I actually broke up a fight once, and it was in Natalie's honor. So, it was at the end of the day, I rounded the corner, and there's a big girl fight happening, and a huge group of girls, and then in the middle are two girls and they're pushing each other and yelling and I was like, "Gosh, break it up." Part of me was thinking they're bigger than me, but and when I
012got them separated and started to investigate, it was because one student was talking bad about Miss Karakoff. And she said, "No one's allowed to talk bad about Miss Karakoff." Um gosh, I think that girl's graduating this year. So, looking back on that situation and Natalie's whole career, I really agree with her. No one can say a bad thing about Miss Karakoff. Um you have vigilantly watched over Pleasant Grove and helped create such a thriving school since 2003. Oh my gosh, it's been such an honor working alongside you, learning from you, and having you as a critical friend, but also a true friend. We've had Even today we had such a interesting conversation and working through a situation and then laughing through it as well and just learning from you. So, your guidance and wisdom throughout
013the years is just been invaluable to me. Can't even tell you how much. As you enter retirement, I hope you enjoy your time with Eric and your grandkids and your own children. In 6 months down the line, I hope you come to sub. So, don't be afraid to come back to the school that you built. >> Oh. Thank you. >> Okay. Top five party go. >> Oh gosh, my I have to know the alphabet. The pressure. Okay. I know. >> Say goodbye to us. >> You're going to be Okay. Can I just get angry? Thank you. >> I don't know if they got to I don't know if they chose their picture or not. Michelle sent me this one. I loved it. >> All right. Well, that's a hard one to follow. But, so Vara
014has been a TK teacher at Green Valley for quite a while now. However, she started her career in San Jose. So, she's taught for 14 years in San Jose before coming to Green Valley and has been at Green Valley since 2003. She started um in November took over a fifth grade classroom. The teacher had quit. What does that tell you about the classroom she was taking over? And they Yeah. Almost all larger than Vara um and we all thought she's never going to stay. We need to keep her. She's not going to stay. But, she did and she's been a Gator her whole uh rescue career. So, she did just that when you're at fifth grade then went into um kindergarten then did a one-two blend and at that point in time um I was
015still in the classroom and so we were pod mates. And so, it was at that point that I really um got to know Vara and her great sense of humor. Lunches were never dull. We had a lot of fun um in our pod and we could always count on Vara to give us the latest scoop. She always seemed to know um what the happenings were. So, Vara was our go-to. Fast forward then uh she became a TK teacher when TK was first starting. And so, she has just started so many children's lives on the right track. She, you know, is that first teacher and first so many of them cuz many of our kiddos don't go to preschool. She was truly their first teacher and she just has been invaluable to our families and she
016has many, many, many students' favorite teacher. They come back to see Ms. Palmero. They love Ms. Palmero. They love the fact that she is willing to do She brought amazing animals to our school for many years as an assembly, but she is willing to, you know, participate in it. She has Harry or Harriet, depending on the year, male or female tarantula in her room. The kids absolutely love raising the chicks every year in the incubator this year, a few ducks thanks to uh Jeremiah. We had some ducks this year. But, she's just that teacher. She gets the developmental needs of kiddos. She loves them for who they are and takes them to the next step. I know Larissa was partners with her in kindergarten for a few years and can vouch for that as well,
017but she is going to be greatly missed. I don't think she's going to come back in 6 months and substitute, but we've got a little time to We've got a little time to work on that. Yeah. Might require a little pay increase. Uh yeah. But, we have been so fortunate to have Barbara for the last 25 years at Green Valley. She will definitely be missed and we will be celebrating her as a staff tomorrow as well. So, thank you, Barbara. >> So, a quick Barbara just two things. Number one, I did catch that your lobbying for increased substitute pay as like yes. You just had to look at me and I knew what you were talking about. Uh the second part is I think we missed some years of service with you. Did I don't
018know that we captured Is that right? With us, but then but then it sounds like you were 14 years before. Okay, so so you're actually at you're at 39? So 38 years of total service? Wow. Okay. Thank you. I was I was checking my math there. Fantastic. Levi and Sam and Suzette, come on up. I don't think we have good records in HR about where people came from. We'll have to look at that. Where How many years total then? What What did we miss there? >> Six. >> Okay. Oh, that maybe that was it. All right. If we've made other mistakes on the total years, just tell us cuz those are fascinating to hear. >> All right. Well, this is Suzette Hubbard. She so graciously made sure to color coordinate with her picture. She's in
019it every day. No. Um What to say about Suzette? Uh There are a lot of people that you meet and that come through your life uh for various reasons at various times, but there are very few people that leave as profound an impact, I feel like, as Suzette Hubbard does on my life and on the lives of her students. I She's a passionate and dedicated teacher. She loves math. I mean, loves math. It's so fun to watch her teach and the kids get that infectious excitement that you give off when you are in the classroom. It's so fun to watch. She is serious about math, but she also has lots of fun with it. You can see her incorporating games, shooting a basketball during a concept review, organizing a carnival to practice probability or just
020having a popcorn party just because. Um and her students thrive in her classroom. Personally, she's been a support to me especially when I was the new kid on the block, the new kid at school. She gave me great advice and was encouraging and I'll always remember and appreciate your kindness for that. Thank you. Um some of your colleagues shared some thoughts that I want to share with you as well. One said, "I've been so lucky to work with Suzette. She's always been so supportive and I just love her personality. I will really in all caps miss her on our team." Another, "I'm so inspired by Suzette's love of teaching and support of her students and fellow teachers. She has not wavered in the quality of her teaching even with retirement on the horizon or with
021an especially trying group of students." Another, "Suzette goes above and beyond to help her students understand material. She is their biggest cheerleader and her positivity is inspiring to everyone." So, we are going to we are going to miss you tremendously and it will Marina is not going to be the same without you, that's for sure. We want to wish you well as your husband and you get out there and start traveling and do a little more, which will be fun, continuing to watch the University of Kansas basketball, right? And uh So, I want to thank you personally and from the district for your years of service and you know, as always, go Jayhawks and go Mustangs. >> That's right. Good job. >> Go Mustangs. >> I'll give you this if you'd like it. >> Yes.
022>> See you here. >> Thank you. >> Now, Jenna's not here this evening, right? Uh Levi, I'm sorry. Uh Jenna's not able to make it tonight. >> Right. >> Thank you. Oh. >> I can say a couple things. So, we have Jenna We have Jenna Holcomb, and we also have um Linda Stern, who are retiring. They are two of our RSP aides. They are both just amazingly dedicated to student success, um selfless service. If you have ever watched an aide in the classroom, they are doing so much work with our kids. And Jenna and and Linda have just been a fantastic and amazing um couple of uh aides that we've supported, or that we that have been there to support our students. We're so thankful for them. And just for the record, we will miss
023them, and surely appreciate their service. Um they came to us kind of in the latter part of their careers, um because they wanted to work uh at a great uh place, and wanted to make sure that they were able to give um their their talents and their experience to the kids who needed it the most. And so, we're so thankful that they came to us. So, thank you both of them. >> And there's Linda. All right. Molly and Julie. Julie, did we get your total years right? 29. I You know what? I'm I'm going to next year I'm going to leave it blank, and I'm going to let each person come up and tell me the right number, cuz clearly our records are >> Good evening, everyone. I'm Molly. I'm the principal of Jackson and
024this is Julie Carew, third grade teacher. Um and I'm just honored to get up to stand here stand up here and celebrate you tonight. So, Julie and I have only known each other a short period of time as I've been at Jackson 1 year. Um but I have to say I feel like I've known Julie forever and walking in her classroom she makes you feel that way. And um she's a very very dedicated member of her third grade team. They're they're an incredibly tight and close team and um so I know that her team has shared how much that she will be missed. Um it is a piece of the glue that is leaving and so that's going to be a big change. Um so she is very much leaving some lasting footprints. What I've
025appreciated about Julie is that she is often the voice of reason. When we get into I wouldn't say heated um staff meetings but where we really have some good conversation about things, she really will raise her hand very respectfully and we just are able to have um you know, to have her she participates in a way that really makes me feel heard and and she hears other people's opinions and she really makes that sound it uh brings it all together for us. So, I really appreciate that about Julie. Um so I'm excited for you and for this next adventure. I do have to share um just a fun little tidbit that I was not I was very surprised when Julie um came to me and said, "Molly, I need to talk to you." Um we
026Most people when they're ready to retire they're telling you like this is the last year of the you know, it you know, it's happening. Um so it was very much a surprise. It was right before the deadline and she said, "I need to talk to you." and I said, "I wonder what this is about." and she shared that her husband was retiring and that they had made a promise to retire together at the same year and I think that is so incredibly cool as educators to be able to do or just as a partner. Um so I'm excited for both of you. So, congratulations. Thank you for your contribution to Jackson and it's been a pleasure working with you. Thank you. >> And Mr. Kruth, just you're you're a teacher as well in Rockland, right?
027Yeah, well, congratulations. Yeah, thank you for your service. All right, Katrina and Larissa. Katrina, what are your total years of service? Okay. It's 21, I as far as you know. >> Okay. Good evening, everyone. I'm Larissa Stewart. I'm the principal of Lakeview, and oh goodness, I'm trying to not make Katrina cry. I tried at our staff meeting to give the funny speech, and I still made her cry. But I'm so happy to be able to honor Katrina Valencia tonight as she celebrates her retirement. Katrina has dedicated 19 years to the Rescue Union School District, serving students and families at three different elementary schools. She was at Rescue Elementary for 5 years. She was at Green Valley Elementary for 2 years, and she's been at Lakeview for 12 years. Um, and I was I've been honored
028to work with her at Green Valley and at Lakeview, too. Anyone who has had the good fortune of working with Katrina understands just how lucky they have been to be by her side. Katrina is truly one of the kindest people that you will ever meet. Her smile lights up every room, and it's nearly impossible to have a bad day when she's around. She radiates love, warmth, and positive and positivity, and every single student who walks through her classroom doors knows that they're deeply loved and cared for. Her little chickadee doodads, as she lovingly calls her first graders, absolutely thrive in her classroom. She creates a place where students feel safe, celebrated, and excited to learn. Sorry. And of course, many of them leave first grade proudly knowing how to count to 10 in Finnish. As
029I talked with some of her former students, their words perfectly captured the impact Katrina has had on her children throughout the years. They said things like, "She makes me smile. I loved when she read books to us. I loved that when we were sad, she was there for us. She's kind, nice, and so friendly. And even when you get in trouble, she was kind. I mean, she talks to us and we do get in trouble, but she was really nice about it." Those simple comments say everything about who Katrina is as a teacher and as a person. She has made children feel safe, loved, valued, and understood every single day. Some of you may not know that Katrina was also a PE teacher. That's what she we got to have her as our PE teacher
030at Green Valley. And what a fun PE teacher she was. Whether in the classroom or out on the playground, she has always brought joy, laughter, and energy to everything she does. While it's incredibly hard for us at Lake View to say goodbye, we're so excited for Katrina and Randy as they begin their next adventure in Finland. Finland is truly lucky to be getting Katrina, just as we have been lucky to have had her here with us for the past 19 years. Katrina, Lake View will miss you tremendously, but we wish you nothing but happiness, adventure, and joy in this next chapter in this next chapter. We love you so very much. Congratulations, Katrina. >> All right. Halacio and Jeremiah. >> Hi everyone. My name's Jeremiah Patterson. I'm the facility director for Rescue Union School District
031and this is Halacio who decided to leave us in January there after serving us for 7 years here. I kind of wrote down some quick notes I want to go through and read. As a grounds utility tech, your work on display is on display for everyone to see even if they don't realize how much effort goes into it. When the grounds look immaculately, that's when the pathways are safe and everything is maintained perfectly, it's because of you. If you ever worked alongside Halacio, you know he isn't a man to waste time or complain about blistering heat or the freezing cold or how heavy the workload is. While others might stop to talk about how tough the task looks, Halacio is already halfway done fixing it. His motto has always been simple, just get the work
032done. He took immense pride in his craft. He didn't just maintain the grounds, he cared for them like they're his own. Every project he touched had a stamp of excellent on it. Halacio, your work ethic has been a master class for the rest of us. You show us that the act your actions speak much louder than words. You're going We are going to miss your grit, your focus, your quiet pride that you brought to the property every single day. I want to thank you for everything and you've earned every bit of this retirement. Now go get your feet in the sand and enjoy a cold one for me. Yeah. Getting a close-up right now. >> I'm just going to uh piggyback on Halacio here because all of us have served in a teaching capacity. Uh
033none of us in the room have served in Halacio's role. So, I think we all have a general understanding of what everyone does throughout the day. But Halacio, I'll tell you you were one of the first I think you may have been the first person I met when I was named the superintendent. I was got in my car and drove and you were working and I had chances to pull over and talk with you. I could just tell I'd made a good decision um by or hopefully the board felt the same way about taking leaving where I was and coming here because you just really embody the sense of like you knew how impactful your work was for these other folks that are doing their work and for our kids. And I'll tell you also
034uh I'm married to a teacher in the district and when Halacio was moved to Lake Forest like within I it was like 2 hours it felt like, but within a few days my wife just every night was just raving about how wonderful the campus looked, how how much pride she felt in it, and so just know that your work is even though people don't stop you all the time and say something to you, it's super impactful. And I know that our teaching staff uh certainly appreciates the work you put in. So, I just wanted to double down on that for what for what it's worth. So, thank you. And the PE staff, she's yes, it says. So, we're going to we're going to break for some some nice refreshments and get a chance to connect.
035I do want to tell you a lot of wonderful stories shared here tonight and then tomorrow it's all going to be a you know, you're sitting up there, you're listening to them talk about you and you're like, "Oh gosh, I can't remember everything they said." This is on YouTube. So, I'm I am I am going to and there's probably a lot of people here tonight that weren't able to be here um to to see what was said about you. So, I'm going to send you each tomorrow morning I'll send you the link to the video. You can send it out to your family and friends and um whomever you want. Uh Katrina, maybe we they can even watch it in Finland. Uh so, I think that's a that's a neat aspect of this cuz I
036know this is pretty much feels maybe like a little bit of a blur this evening for you. So, thank you for all that you do. I know I speak on behalf of the entire school board that we're just so blessed to have had your time with us. 118 years is pretty remarkable. Uh so, with that, we're going to adjourn and we're going to pop some fake champagne. All right? >> a celebration at 6:06. >> Thank you.