Nelson County Board of Education Meeting August 19th, 2025

001[Music] You are. [Music] You are. [Music] The rain. [Music] Can't feel. [Music] You found me. [Music] Dpping [Music] ring. [Music] You are found. [Music] Rain [Music] it rain. [Music] Do you feel [Music] me? [Music] You're fall. [Music] ring. [Music] It feel [Music] You fall. [Music] Rain [Music] it rain. [Music] Get ready. [Music] You feel me? [Music] You are free. [Music] You got a chocolate [Music] ring. [Music] You hold the ground. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] We call this meeting of the Nelson County Board of Education to order on July Oh, I'm on the wrong date. >> Sorry. >> Oops. August. >> On August on August 19th, 2025 at 5:30. Please join the board as we recite the pledge. >> I pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic

002for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. All right. So, tonight, let me get to my In the Nelson County Schools, we unite students and staff with people, place, and purpose to thrive and work in life. Tonight's meeting agenda and goals is to learn about the 2025 Foster Heights teacher apprentices and celebrate them, set a property tax rate for 2025, and evaluate the next steps for facility planning. We we did have one uh slight modification to the agenda. You look at the consent agenda. It said court contract addendum on the public notice. It added Flag Memorial Hospital gift and that was really Mr. Martin adding that to clarify that the court contract is a byproduct of a gift from Flag. Um so we do want to further our

003conversation around Flag, but tonight was not that night according to Mr. Martin. >> So, I did want to acknowledge that. Um, it's essentially Fla provides a $30,000 donation to us annually as a part of that core contract. And those two things went together and we just missed that. That was the only addition. >> All right. Thank you. All right. Moving on to Mr. Hill and the celebration of Foster Heights is proud to mentor three adults, apprentices, and Miss Newton apparently. Yes, I just wanted to briefly just introduce um the apprenticeship and the staffing framework. So, we're really excited because, you know, a couple years ago we were talking about just one adult apprentice. Now, we're talking about three here at Foster Heights alone, and we have several throughout the district. Um, but we're really excited

004because it's really a long-term way to think about staffing and retention and recruitment to our district. So, on the slide here, you'll see if you build it, they will come. And we've really experienced that with the apprenticeship. I think um our apprentices, all of them at Foster Heights really came to us after they had had some previous college experiences and just heard about the opportunity. Um so you're going to hear from the Foster Heights team as well as our adult apprentice thinking about how the apprenticeship serves as a path for compensation and growth for our apprentices. It serves for them to be able to do some um strategic team teaching through journeyman teachers in addition to they've had a lot of exposure and access to instructional content leads throughout our district and our region. So

005they're going to share a little bit more about that. So we've got principal Hill here if he wants to come on over and he'll tell you a little bit about Foster Heights and our apprentice. >> Thank you. So we're really fortunate to have the adult apprentices here at Foster Heights. It's a great opportunity not only for for them to grow in their skills and learn more about the teaching profession, but it's really a win-win because they get to work with our kids. Our kids get the benefit of their mentorship. Um, they're learning together. They're involved in everything that our teachers are with uh thinking about how to design lessons, how to differentiate instruction, um how to analyze data, how to help uh students who may need a little extra attention. All those things are uh

006things that these apprentices have committed to. Uh so we're very fortunate to have them. I'm going to introduce them and let them tell their story a little bit. So uh we have Miss Carly Gordon. Um she is with in first grade right now with Miss Fil and Miss Keer. Uh Mr. Michael Witson. He's in third grade with Miss Ice. And Miss Avery Brooks who is in fifth grade in dig deep with Miss Anderson and Miss Runner along with Miss Bella. So, uh, I'll turn it over to you guys. Thank you. >> Hello. My name is Carly Gordon and I'm in the first grade classroom this year with uh, Casey Keer and Rebecca Thrill. Um, the first thing that I'm going to talk about is um, our growth opportunities within the apprentichip program. So, right here

007I have all of our micro credentiing. um this microcredentiing this has allowed me and my journeyman teachers to uh view and see the skills that we gained over the summer. So, for example, um differentiation designer, um that is it really hits home for me because over the summer I was able to take a lesson plan that I created and differentiate that lesson plan um specifically for my own students and their IEP needs um which was an awesome learning experience for me um going into the classroom. Um this also allows us to earn money while earning our degree. Um so this means we are working full-time in the classroom while also being enrolled full-time in uh WKU uh teaching education program. Um this also means we are going well beyond our student teaching um hours while

008we are earning paid work experience for those hours. Um we have also participated in uh multiple professional development opportunities such as Orton Gillingham and KDE Vibrant Learning just for a few examples. Thank you. [Applause] >> All right. Hello. Uh like Mr. Hill said, my name is Micah Witson. I am in third grade with Tony Ice. Um super excited for this opportunity to be a part of the apprenticeship program. Uh so I'm talking about some of the summer leadership pathways that we uh do as apprentices. So we learn alongside the leadership institute all summer long uh like Carly was talking about with those micro credentiing. But I just wanted to kind of talk about how that benefited me because I before I started the apprentichip I was an interventionist at Foster Heights last year. Um I

009had some experience working with kids and like leading those small groups but uh and never did I ever feel like I was just kind of thrown into it. But you know, I learned that there was a lot of things that I still probably could have learned and used even working with those small groups. So I was fortunate to be a part of the summer leadership pathways because I was able to finally put some technical definitions and um you know make connections to things that I had already done and things that I would like to do. uh those high yield instructional strategies. I was able to learn about all those which you know if I was going traditional route would take a semester maybe a full year in college to learn those. I did it you

010know a few weeks over the summer and I feel a lot you know more prepared to be full-time in the classroom and while there is still a lot to learn um it really did set me up for success this year. And then being a part of the summer leadership pathways with all of the other teachers being able to like Mr. he'll say be right there and do you know designing lessons and making all of those plans being able to see that behind the scenes was really beneficial for me um going into the beginning of my teaching career and I feel like through this apprentichip I'm just you know leaps leaps and bounds of people going the traditional route so I would I'm really grateful for this opportunity >> thanks >> Hello my name is Avery

011Brooks I'm in the fifth grade dig deep with Kaylin runner and Ally Anderson and I also plan to be with Miss Bella in a traditional fifth grade classroom. This apprenticeship has allowed me to gain valuable knowledge from experienced journeymen, our very own Nelson County teachers, on how to best support my students both now and in the future. I've had the opportunity to learn from strong educators across grades 2 through 5. Every day brings a new lesson and a chance to grow as a teacher. I've been able to apply a variety of strategies, methods, and techniques to better support students, gaining experience that goes far beyond the classroom. More than just teaching, this journey has been about building meaningful bonds and relationships with students. Connections that impact not only their lives, but mine as well. [Applause]

012>> Okay, you guys mind standing back if we have a few questions for you? You can stand in front of the screen here. You don't have to hop on the podium. >> Bring this. >> If you want to grab that. Yeah. >> But you did great. By the way, >> I think that's what I was really impressed. You guys already speak like your educators. You already speak with confidence, which um I don't know, like you said, traditional route. How long does that take you to get there? Is that that first, you know, semester of student teaching? You guys are experiencing that right now. And I 100% what believe what is written on your shirt. The future is local. It's local with the students that come out of our buildings. It's local with the educators that

013are in our buildings to help guide you guys in the future. So I'm always impressed with this program. So and you guys seem to be picking the best of the best here. >> Your all's journey where you guys graduated Nelson County schools. Can you talk a little bit about that? Where you're an alumni from? You know, where you're from in our community? Uh, so I'm a 2024 graduate of Nelson County High School. Um, I've been in Nelson County schools all my life, so it is kind of trippy teaching at the same school that I went to. Um, the same principal, too. So, um, but my senior year, I got to work as um, a student worker here a little bit and I got to kind of really fall in love with this profession. And then,

014like I said, that year, you know, I was going to go the traditional route, but then I, you know, messaged Mr. Hill was just like, I really don't think that's for me. Like, I would love the opportunity to, you know, work for you if there's a position available. We found one. I was able to work with kids all year, you know, take some online classes and then I learned about the apprentichip program. But, um, it's just, you know, Nelson County has been really great to me and I'm really appreciative of everything. >> Hello. I was also a 2024 graduate from Nelson County High School. Um, I've been in the Nelson County District my whole life. Um, but my senior year of high school, I was actually Foster Heights student worker. So, I've been here, this

015is my third year at Foster Heights, um, as an employee. Um, and that student teaching, student working, excuse me, opportunity was like the basis of me being here today. If I didn't have that opportunity, I probably wouldn't be here today. I That was me stepping into the school building for the first time as an employee. And um that was my opportunity to decide is teaching what I want to do. And it blew my mind. I was like this is where I belong. This is where I need to be. And then last year um I rolled out of once I graduated I rolled out of the student working position and into intervention with Micah. And even then I learned so much just from intervention. But I'm so excited to continue my education journey while also working

016in schools. Hi, I graduated from Thomas Nelson in 2022. My path looks a little different. Um, I originally came from St. Joseph. I worked as a kindergarten assistant in IIA. Um, I then went to college for two years. I went to Georgetown College and attended there until, you know, I was not really feeling that I was getting the experience that I wanted. I actually wasn't sure that I wanted to go into teaching. It wasn't until I had strong educators like David Mud, Courtney Newton and Amy Richie as well to push me forward. Um, I really do owe a lot to Courtney Newton and Amy Richie and Hope Dherty. They have pushed me to be the very best that I can be. Um, even when days it did not feel possible. So, the Nelson County School

017System, you know, giving me this opportunity to learn and grow has really made me feel confident, but just made me fall in love with teaching even more. Congratulations to you all and I'm so excited to have you as part of our district. Um, traditionally in the traditional route when when those were changed and modified to more al alternative programs, we'll call them and alternative routes to certification. A lot of people criticize that and say, well, this is a shortcut and people aren't getting as much background in training. And um I certainly know differently, but I would like to hear from you because I assume you're in classes with people who are traditional students or online who aren't doing apprenticeship. How does your experience and your training differ in terms of how you feel prepared and

018your skill set and knowledge level? >> I can definitely speak as you know I attended real person in college. I was studying education for two years in a traditional college setting. Um like I said, it just didn't feel like I was there. I was there, but I wasn't. I wasn't gaining the experience that I wanted. Um, and truth be told, I was scared. I was very, very intimidated when I was asked to be a part of this program. I felt that, well, I don't know. I don't really know much. What if they're expecting too much of me and I'm just overthinking? Um, with that being said, I feel that this program, watching it grow and watching it flourish has just showed what students can get into. You know, it's all about perspective at this point.

019You know, you can say, "Oh, it is a shortcut or maybe it is just a different way to look at it." Um, but I personally see it as a chance to grow and develop. >> All I can say is, "Wow, you seen the professionalism I see you all have and the way you all speaking. You seem like already tenure teachers almost and I just want to say great job on that. But what advice would you give to a uh high schooler that's wanting to become a teacher? What advice would you give? >> I would give them don't search for opportunities that are available for you. There are school districts like Nelson County who are striving for teachers and they want to provide opportunities like this apprentichip program to help teachers grow and help our educators

020to help our students. search for those opportunities that um will provide support and um depth for their education. >> Great. >> Oh, okay. I mean, just kind of piggybacking off of that, like I would definitely say, you know, teaching, you know, especially because we have this opportunity, but you know, really anything you need to find a way to try to do it. If you have an idea of something you want to do, you need to do it. You need to get into the classroom and see what it's like. You need to um you know, whatever profession you want to do, you got to try it out. You have to know what you're getting yourself into. And although you know, you go into college and you're like, you know, I want to be a teacher. I'm

021going to be an education major. I'm going to take these classes, you know, like I want to be a teacher and I know ex kind of what I'm getting myself into. The first time you step in a classroom, you're kind of taken back. And then you go, you've done this for four years and spent all this money and then you do student teaching and then the first time your mentor teacher says, "All right, teach this lesson on your own." You're probably a little scared and then you're just like, "I hate this. I don't want to do this ever again." You've just wasted four years. Whereas all of us have been in the classroom for three years, maybe more already, and you know, we're only sophomores and juniors and senior. You know, we're we've saved a

022lot of time, saved a lot of money. we know what we want to do because we've been able to experience it first. So, it really has just solidified our plans. And so, that's the advice I have is anything you want to do, you need to find a way to do it. You got to try it before you end up wasting a bunch of time and money. >> Great advice. Thank you. >> And I would be curious to ask Miss Newton a question, too. And when we look at the quality of teacher preparation programs, we often talk about how are our students doing on the practice exams in comparison like to national averages and also um what are our completion rates and how can you tell us do you happen to know like roughly how we

023compare to state or national averages? >> I mean we actually got three results from practice exams just this week for the content exams for folks in our programs and I will tell you they scored well above average. uh we tend to average that our our folks do score above the cut rate well above average above the national average and our completion rates fairly high as well. Um I think completion rates also are high because they are getting lots of layers of support which is unique to the apprenticeship. They have Miss Ruchcci that's going to support them. They have Miss Dhy in design labs. They have myself. They have Shelby. They have their journeyman teacher. And if you're going through a traditional route, you just you don't have that, you know. And so it's easier to

024say I'm feeling discouraged. maybe I don't want to complete. So, we have much higher completion rates, practice scores, GPA. We monitor GPA for our folks as well, make sure they're doing well. And there's courses for WKU as well. So, I think the support and monitoring allow that to be higher. >> Wonderful. Thank you. >> Carly Gordon was also, just as a matter of record, the first student to win a Pride Award in the Nelson County Schools uh as a student worker. So that was so she's kind of a big deal before she um but I I think the the the beautiful part of this is Mr. Hill and Miss Fogle over here are really the ones right now that are like they feel excited about the future of these great young people that are a

025part of their school that they hope will continue on this journey. So that's a big part of this. the principles, the politics of of of apprentice placement will be the future challenge that we're going to have to deal with because the principles are going to get very very choosy about this process. But >> competitive, >> very com It's very competitive. Yeah, Jeremy had to work all last year to get to this point. >> We used to hear some criticism of the alternate routes that people did not get to do student teaching. They just went straight into the classroom. And I've heard apprenticeship likened to to doing a 2year student teaching and you're also taking the coursework. So um I hope that that that is beneficial to you. >> Thank you. Thank you everyone for >>

026Congratulations. [Applause] >> All right. Um guest comment policy. Thank you for attending our Nelson County School Board meeting. Any persons wishing to address the board may do so by following these rules. Individuals representing themselves are limited to three minutes. Please step forward, state your name, address, and if present, a group, state the name of the group you are representing. I believe we only had u Mr. Justin Burton. Justin Burton. and I live in Cox's Creek. I'm speaking as an individual. Good evening. I'm here tonight to address the events of the past several years and to share my perspective on the direction I believe we must take moving forward. The reality is that the board has at times been influenced by fear and misdirection, factors that have consistently hindered sound decision-making. There have been instances where

027approved bids were later denied funding and where the guidance of financial experts was dismissed. In many of these cases, board members have positioned themselves as authorities in areas requiring specialized knowledge, often choosing not to engage meaningfully with adviserss or subject matter experts. Instead of striving to fully understand the complexities involved, decisions have too often been reduced to a simple equation of dollars and cents. While fiscal responsibility is undeniably important and has long been a cornerstone of decision-making in this county, it should not be the sole lens through which every issue is viewed. As a district, we speak frequently of our commitment to providing equitable and innovative opportunities for all students, regardless of background. We're investing in a professional development for educators and building programs designed to fill that promise. Our teachers, staff, and administrators are

028aligned in this mission and are working diligently every day to bring it to life. Unfortunately, the board of education has not consistently demonstrated the same level of commitment or urgency in supporting this shared vision. Delayed decisions limit our ability to plan effectively and impede progress, not just administratively, but for the lives of our students we serve. The time has come to move beyond financial hesitation and toward meaningful action. It is no longer acceptable to hide behind the price tags of incoming bids or delay critical investments in the name of caution. We must embrace the full scope of the district's vision, one centered on student growth, achievement, and opportunity. The moment to prioritize student success is not sometime in the future. It is now. You can continue to trail behind the momentum already in motion, or

029you can choose to meet us where we are, committed, focused, and ready to deliver on the promises we've made to our students. Let us move forward, not just with balance sheets in hand, but with the will to lead and the courage to put students first. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Burton. Moving on to the consent agenda. the board had access to all this information except the one thing about the and we'll hear about that later. Um on the flag um >> it is a $30,000 donation. >> Yes, $30,000 donation. So any questions regarding the consent agenda? >> Um I noticed on here that we are doing the intent to join GRE. Are we also retaining the membership in CKEC? >> Yes, we had that one previously. This correct um intent came as a partly

030as a byproduct of the rank change programs that were it gives us a discount uh discounted rate for all those teachers from the past. U so that's part of why we're in both of those because we have the rank change programs going as well. So, >> and for those who may not know, those are our educational co-ops that provide training and professional development to teachers and it's districts typically join at least one. And so, that will provide even more enhanced opportunities. Am I correct? >> Yeah. And it Yeah. And it also allows us $500 off per teacher that's a part of those trainings. We get some additional free trainings as well. >> Any additional questions? All right. If not, uh, we'll need a motion to approve the consent agenda as presented. >> I'll make the

031motion. >> Thank you. Do I have a second? >> I'll second. >> Thank you. All in favor? >> Any opposed? >> Motion passes. >> All right. Moving on with Mr. Martin for the tax rate discussion. >> Just some context. This will be the earliest during my time uh the board that we've been able to make a a recommendation with the tax rate. We got the information back a little earlier this year. Um, and usually we're pushing the middle of September. So, tonight's uh timing also does allow and in this conversation the sheriff's department uh additional weeks to prepare for the process which has been a conversation of the past. >> Yeah. And this will be something we continue into September. We'll be bringing back the working budget. It's also supports in that process as we

032kind of create the framework for that discussion. So really the gist of the tax rate, current tax rate is uh 67.3 cents per $100 of assessed property. Our recommendation is to reduce that rate to 67.0. The graph below really just shows uh what our anticipated revenue might look like. Uh again, this is not all the revenue we've talked about. There's lots of revenue sources that come in. This is I would consider the bulk of of what we of what we get. uh and these values really anticipated if we are able to move forward with this recommendation of 67 cents. It kind of shows how that would play out. So for instance, your local tax revenue would go from uh 26.4 million to 27.1. The seek uh is not necessarily tied to your uh this tax

033rate discussion um but instead really tied to enrollment and attendance measures. That number there for FY26 I don't believe is entirely accurate. Um this is an estimation from KD and they've yet to update those values. So that's an estimate and uh really they used their an anticipated property assessment uh for that number and theirs estimate was a little bit higher than when it actually came in but really I anticipate that number adjusting a bit and then your nickel contribution would go from 7.4 to 8. the the gist of it's really showing that uh even at a rate of 67 cents when you think about your general fund and keep in mind that's really the bulk of what you use to pay people and operate on it doesn't necessarily mean a huge increase on your general

034fund that you have a lot more money that that you're able to uh function with and pay people and and operate on. So just trying to show a breakdown of the different revenue pots and what they might look like for this rate. So when we look at this red and green, green means what the anticipated increase would be in the current um >> yes plus. I can't read it now. I'm sorry. >> Yeah, plus and minus. There you go. >> Okay. >> Yes. >> I forgot to send you that. >> Okay. Thank you. That that's helpful. So we can see that if we go with this 67% rate, we would have an increase in local tax revenue even though we decrease the rate and that's because property value assessments have increased. >> Correct. >> Okay.

035Will we still be able and and we're so and overall we may have a negative general fund impact with all of the between tax revenue and seek combined. Are we will we still be able to provide the level of services to our students and training for our staff and those programs? >> That's something we're working on every day. Yes, we will. >> I mean, just to speak broadly at that, uh, we we've continued to lose state revenue in large part because of the 30 cent local effort. So, Alex, you didn't talk you didn't go into the math of the 30 cent local effort, but essentially if we go up a billion dollars in property values, which is essent which is basically what's happened over the last couple years, uh you take 0.003 times a billion

036and that's how much money we lose locally. Uh which is a lot. In fact, this year we went up about 600,600 million 550 600 million. You take 0.003 times that number and that's part of the seek difference here that's projected. So, in the past, we've really gone in and beaten that 0003 cent local effort into the math of this. We're choosing not to because it is it never stops. We just keep losing state revenue if property values increase. It's a part of the formula that exists. So, I share that to say because of that, it's been very hard for the Nelson County schools to get too far ahead. So even though we may be providing a 25% on average raise over the last five to six years, we've done that while also losing 25 to

03730% local funding during that same window of time. And we've been able to do that because we have been able to generate additional local revenue while the tax rate has gone down, which is just a unique time in Nelson County. But those are some big pieces. The the long-term answer is no. We can't continue to give raises and we can't continue to lose state funding from uh property value increases without long-term evaluating uh other property rates. And I think that's something that Alex and Jessica are looking very closely at uh and this year and next year partly we were just as a as a matter of context Tracy can speak to this. you know, we were looking at um consolidation when we originally started the raises. That is going to allow us to be operationally

038more efficient if that occurs. Um and those are things we know long term. You either got two options. You you either increase revenue or you reduce spending and or both. And in our case, we want to pay people highly competitive a wage as good as anybody in the in the state of Kentucky. Right now, we're in the top 10%, but in the region, we're in the middle 50. And we also want to be able to provide great facilities and resources that people want to be a part of, like this room right here, Foster Heights, the work they're doing. And that takes a just this constant tension back and forth between state and local revenue. And I think uh the truth of the matter is we know and Jessica and Alex will be talking about this

039in the budget in September that last year we were real close uh to balancing the budget. For the first time we started to go down a little bit and we predicted that. This year it'll be the same. So even with additional revenue, to be clear, we will end the year this year a little bit lower than we started and we that's what we anticipate based on uh our current salary projections. Alex, anything you'd add to that? Because I I want to speak frankly about this issue. >> Makes sense. Yes. >> Well, I think what we've talked about over the last few years is the general fund isn't what we're looking at when we're looking at the nickel tax. that's not going to change. We have to figure out how we can we save in the

040the general fund. How can we make that work? How can we stretch those dollars further? Um operational cost is one of those. Um which is why the local planning committee discussion has been so important is looking at those operational costs is going to benefit us in the long run. But yes, this is not sustainable if we stay where we are. So, just a reminder of our uh fiscal year 26 investments that we've made. Uh in April, uh you guys did agree to salary increases for certified and classified employees. Uh certified teachers looking at $1,000 uh raise, not counting the step they would receive if they returned, obviously. And then classified employee would get 50 cents an hour. This is about how much each of those investments cost in terms of additional money in terms of

041payroll that we've allocated to that investment. And then also lots of opportunity for teachers to continue working uh through leadership pathways uh the microcredentiing discussion and then also as a reminder teachers have $500 to spend on their classroom for the different needs that they may have in that space. That's about how much those investments cost. And then uh lots of investments with teacher curriculum and resources that they have available, not counting like I Ready assessments. Um those things add up to about 300,000 uh annually for this fiscal year 26. And these investments are on top of what look like very similar investments year after year over the last three years. Just as a context, Mr. Rogers, Mr. Martin, I'd like to commend you on working with Mr. Bradley and our staff toward um streamlining our

042operations in order to we are seeing that we've had increased expenditures on programs but yet we're able to um maintain that and making adjustments and savings to cover that without adding additional burden to our taxpayers. >> Yes, that's something really Tracy spoke about the general fund. That's something we look at really all the time, multiple times a day. So those are just a few of the investment reminders that we've had. Uh this is also a good reminder for us as we think about uh we see it every day among our own spending and and our own home, but uh different inflationary costs have increased drastically over the last 3 to four years. This is just an example uh because I think we've seen the largest increase in terms of insurance and how much we're paying

043uh for insurance coverage for these different things. So basically if you lump in really property fleet insurance which covers obviously mostly our buses uh general liability workers comp and other insurance you can see since 2023 how much that's increased. Uh the anticipated uh expenditure this this next year will be 1.1 million. Uh obviously these other fixed costs I didn't pl plot those on a graph but um other fixed costs have also increased over the last three to four years. Well, as you said, we are seeing that in our own personal life. Like we can talk about utilities. We know those are going up. So, we know the school burden is going to be higher. >> And I'm glad to know that we as a district are mindful that the people in our community are also

044seeing these rise and increase. And so, they're having less flexible dollars in their own budgets. And so being mindful of keeping those taxes at as low as we can and still maintain operations is ve very important for our community. >> Yes, >> it it is messy. No one wants to pay taxes. I mean who wants nobody nobody wants to pay it, you know. So I mean with that we live in a community and part of that demand is that our schools are funded locally through a state law. So you and I'm not here to blame anybody. It just is what it is. We're fortunate to be have the property values we have in Nelson County. We're fortunate to be able to grow over the last five to six years in revenue because it's allowed us

045to give 25% raises over that period of time. It's allowed us to to pay for rank changes for teachers. It's allowed us to take really where this year we have the best teacher retention we've had in a decade. And it's all things that are part of the revenue that the board has invested. I share that because you can also see these young men and women that are teacher apprentices. They're not free, >> you know, with the future is local and it is unfortunately it's also local taxes that are currently in the law paying for it. So 2006 it was 75% state funding. Well about 70% state funded, 30% local. Now it's flipped. So now it's 70 to 75 local, 25 to 30 state. uh and that is a shift that's just occurred because our property

046values have tripled during that time period. So >> could you again reiterate if an individual sees an increase in their tax bill um what would be the cause of that because we have actually lowered our rate. So if a person has an increase, where does that come from? >> Really, it would come from their assessment, right? So if their assessment increase and obviously the value of their home is now deemed that it's worth more than it once was assessed at, you take that higher assessment times the rate, that's really what's increased the their contribution from the tax rate standpoint. If your assessment did not increase and you should be paying less on your tax bill, >> and that's set by an external entity outside of the school district and the scope of this board, >>

047right? I would also >> Yeah, I'm struggling really hard with this, guys. I've talked to many people and they're struggling paying our taxes and I know I I love giving teachers raises and I know it's goes directly back to our kids learning. Um, but could we lower it even more than 67? That's what we just did. We 67.3 to 67. Then we lower it to 66 or something. >> What would that mean? So, we'll just give you some context. One penny, so let's say you lowered it to 66. It's worth about $440,000. >> So, $440,000 is is a penny. Um, I share that just as some context to say if we go back up to the top. If you go you could you could do a you could lower it uh by a half a

048penny, a penny, etc. I think what we're what we're also making you aware of is that number of 712,000 in the grain. The bottom number 445,000 goes from a net net impact of negative 440,000 to - 800,000. We share that as some context. So yes, you can you can lower it. Um and it's a $440,000 difference around there for each one of those pennies. I'm sorry, miss. Hold on one second. >> There's a math error on there that's important. I'm sorry. >> Okay. Thank you. >> If it's $1,340 on a $200,000 home, when you're talking about a $440,000 impact on our school system, you're talking about a $20 impact on an individual, which $20 counts. I understand that. But when you put that into perspective that if a household would be $20 difference and we're

049talking $440,000 difference, that's a lot of teachers. That's a lot of supplies. That's a lot of electricity. >> As a finance officer, I have to say that too. So another thing to to to remember too is if even in just one year when it seems insignificant if we would decide like okay we're not going to take the full amount of revenue or whatever you know we're we're limited by law how much we can raise it the next year and so when when we take just a portion of you know if we decide then the next year you know we can only go up so much it really has like an exponential effect over time >> correct >> while it seems insignificant in one year if you really think about okay when we don't take the

050rate this year, you know, it impacts how much we can raise it the next year and the next year. And so, you know, the time value of that money, we never really get it back. >> It's very compact. >> It is. So, it's it's a tough It's tough. It really is. I I think another thing that is important to note is that by law, the PVA is required to reassess every four years, which has nothing to do with us. Um, and I think for years they they probably didn't because it's a big job and, you know, they didn't. And so here recently that's those assessments have been um happening probably in a more timely manner and it stinks. I mean yeah it does about 25% of the county will get reassessed in any given year.

051So we have no control over that. >> I'm struggling with it. >> It's tough. It is tough. Dave struggling. I get it. >> I talked to homeowners that are struggling and I know it's it's a hard decision. >> It is. It is. It is. It's our seniors that we think about when um they're on limited >> income. I mean, trust me, these are not easy decisions that any school board, not just Nelson County, >> but any school board is making. Um and you know, we like I said earlier, you know, the future is local for us, but for the state, the burden is local. And that's why it's only 30% that the state is giving us when our property values continue to to grow. They believe that burden needs to lay locally, too. And I've

052got my mother talking my head right now saying that $20 means a lot to me because that's my prescription, >> you know, and that's that's where I'm at. >> That's where I'm just struggling. >> And we're obviously providing more services and these are good things. I think we all agree that we want our our teachers compensated because the quality of the education we could deliver depends on the quality of the educators and so we want them to stick around. Um, so I know that y'all have made some efforts to to cut costs when you can in order to make up for that. Can you tell us a little bit like kind of where where some savings is to make up for the shortfall because I know you're doing it. I know you are. >> Well,

053really uh I break down our spending really in payroll and then operations. And so those are ongoing conversations we're having really every year just thinking about like already I'm thinking about anticipated enrollment for next year and possible staffing impacts and how we can utilize our people most efficiently as possible to get the most out of them. Uh so that we are smart with our payroll contribution. Um but it's really about making sure that people have clear roles. Um we have the right people doing the right things and they understand those things. Uh and we have just enough that they're able to function well. At the same time, we're not, you know, we don't have a teacher and 10 kids in the space, right? So, it's being efficient with payroll and then also at the same

054time looking at operations and making sure really each department understands their budget. Uh they know what that number is, they know what their spending patterns have been. Uh they're seeing their anticipated spending coming up. So, I think awareness around that allows them to invest intelligently and making sure that um they're buying things that are really smart investments. Uh and that's an ongoing conversation that Jessica and I are having uh with each department and uh each building. >> So if you go back to the the rate slide >> um under the nickels um line the we show an increase from 7.4 to 8. So how do we have a negative there? >> Because that money is out of our control. We generate it but we can't do anything. We we can't use it for um local

055general fund impact. So that's >> is it a loss though? >> it's a loss to the general fund because we're generating it but it doesn't actually attribute contribute >> because it'll be withheld okay off the top to the state. Okay. Anytime our property values increase more than 4% it compounds on itself as well because we can only generate 4% revenue but we have to give more than 4% to the nickel fund and the building fund. So it's uh that's just part of the law which benefits our facility fund but it doesn't but it works against our our general fund. That's been happening year after year. Um, I would ask that somewhere on this that net general fund impact that column needs to show that because when you do the mathematics on that it it's confusing

056when you look at this to understand that that's lost to the you know that column applies to change to the general fund the whole column as it shows it's just for the individual row >> right >> could you net general fund is really that kind of what we're trying to portray here. Yeah. Is how it might impact the net general fund our moving forward and really it always has been the case the facility money that we're setting aside for facilities that's really protected for facility spending and we're going to bring that topic up again here in just a little bit. Uh which means we're not using that money to pay people. We're not using that money to operate on. Right? And so because that contribution is increased, when you think about the net of your

057general fund and how you pay people and how you operate, that's a loss. >> On the top of that column, can you put impact to general fund because this becomes part of our minutes in our record. >> Yeah, just edit that column. >> Yeah, just the the heading. >> Thank you. I think too, just this is another part of the law that we're we're going to we're going to contribute that money to the FSPK nickel fund whether or not you raise uh revenue or not. So, the money is going there whether you want to or not, which again works against the general fund. >> So, the law doesn't care what you do with the rate. They're going to take the money. >> That's right. Right. And that's really the purpose of this slide. I've referenced

058it a few times. Uh there's been some rhetoric that if you spend a lot on your facilities, you invest in your facilities, that that's going to cause an increase in taxes. That's not true. Uh really, again, just as Jessica indicated, this would be your nickel tax. uh it adds up to more than we have triple nickel and it adds up to more than 15 cents because it's an equivalent contribution but this would be what we would contribute to our facilities uh to allocate towards the future of that and even if you that's a pretty drastic change on your tax rate but even if you set it at 50 cents again that money is protected that's going to be set aside for use of facilities. So therefore, a decrease in your tax rate really is only

059going to impact your general fund and how you pay and pay people and and spend on operations. So really the moving forward, lots of great discussion. The recommendation would be to reduce the rate from 67.3 to 67.0. >> It's also got the motor vehicle rate which is also stable. Hasn't changed. >> Correct. It's on the original >> It's on the the slide >> board slide. >> Yeah. >> So, any further discussion? >> With that, we would need a recommended motion to reduce the tax rate to 67.0 cents for real property and tangible property and maintain the tax rate of 54.8 cents for motor vehicles for fiscal year 2026. Do I have a motion? I >> have a motion. >> All right. Do I have a second? >> I'll second. >> Thank you. All in favor?

060>> I. >> Any opposed? >> No. >> All right. Motion passes four to one. All right. Moving on from there. Um, Mr. Martin. >> Yep. So, we're going to have a discussion around really next steps with facilities, upcoming construction facility projects. Uh we'll also have a funding conversation, a bonding capacity, uh and then we'll talk about some action we're going to take on each one of those. So really, this is just a great reminder. Uh we're always starting with this when we think about uh our facilities, and this is a conversation we obviously had with the LPC. Um but as we think about future facility planning, we're wanting to continue to be efficient and effective as possible. And honestly, the conversations that Jessica and I are having from a financial standpoint, this is what we're

061also trying to accomplish when we think about meeting with our different departments and how can we be as efficient with our use of uh facilities, transportation, uh how are we using our resources and revenue intelligently. Uh making sure we're not duplicating uh services. What's that cost of delivery look like? And how we organize our schools and how we position them allows us to be efficient here or not as efficient. That's really the idea. How can we organize our schools to be as efficient as possible so that we can be highly effective with uh student benefits, family and student belonging, uh career staffing and career compensation, extracurriculars, etc. Um but this continues to be really at the heart of the future of facility planning. Um here's also a few big ideas as we think about um

062kind of why do we do facility planning? Um Tracy spoken a lot about this really the the investment inside the building. It's not necessarily brick and mortar, but how those schools are organized allows us to think about what programs can we really build and how can folks collaborate together to create the best opportunity for kids. We're thinking about we invest in facilities, what do those conditions look like and how can we get them modernized and so that um they're really used well by the school and the school team. Also, obviously, financial efficiency. Again, I spoke about that how you organize them allows that general fund to be used really intelligently or you may be stretching it too thin because you're trying to cover too many bases. Uh, and then also thinking about just the demographics

063of the county and how that's changed over time and how enrollment has shifted. So, these are important reminders as we think about long-term facility planning. So really the next step before we get into some board action, we're going to bring up our RSA advisors and they're really going to speak about uh bonding capacity, looking at the finances of what that nickel tax is looking like. So if we get you guys to come on up, Lincoln and Dwight, it's been a few months you guys spoke, so just introducing yourselves again that'll be great. Oh, again I'm sorry about my shoes. They're awful loud in there. But uh I'm Dwight Salsbury with RSA Lincoln. >> This is Lincoln. And uh thanks for having us all out tonight. We thought it'd be good to kind of give a

064little bit of a refresher on bonding capacity. I know for some of you it's going to be a little bit of a repeat. For some of you, it might be some new information. Some of this you brought up in the previous discussion about the tax rate. And when we go over the funding for building projects, what we're referring to is your restricted funds. And it's your building fund and your capital outlay fund. And just like it sounds, they are restricted for capital purposes. You cannot use them for instructional purposes. You can't use them, this is all under statute, for salaries. You can't use them to pay utility costs. You have to use them for building projects or paying debt service on bonds for building projects. And that's why they're referred to as your capital funds.

065the first page on here in Kentucky and really in in quite honestly I believe most states uh most districts around the the country schools are funded by property taxes and for you all the biggest chunk of your building fund contribution comes from your three nickels and again as as was discussed in the previous discussion your nickels are really taken off the top they are not reflected in your total aggregate tax rate so whatever you set that top tax rate at you are always contributing the same amount to the building fund via those three nickels. And for you all as a district, you see in that first column, that is the largest chunk of your building fund contribution. It's those three nickels. And for this year, it's projected at $8,42,318. That is, you know, the chunk

066of your local money that's going into the building fund. There is a contribution that comes from the state which is referred to as the equalization piece. It's called FSPK funding, facility support program Kentucky funding. And that is based on your assessment per child. And you'll see that's why in the last couple of years, you had a couple years where you didn't get any, you didn't qualify for any FSPK funding, and then it's gradually continued to really fall off in the past few years. And that's because your assessments are growing at a much larger and faster pace than your other funding sources. So you're becoming a district that from a building standpoint is really reliant on your local property taxes. Some of the districts we deal with in more rural areas, those columns are going to

067be the opposite. The vast majority of funding for them is going to come through that equalization funding versus what they're contributing locally. But you're an example of a district that, you know, because of your assessments and your assessment per child and your assessment growth, majority of your funding for building purposes comes from your local revenues. We've shown on here just kind of as a reference that historical growth in both the assessment funding and your total uh facility funding including that equalization piece. The reason we do that is it's useful to look kind of at a past history to determine where you're going to continue in the future. We want to know if you have a history of funding at a certain level, what do we think is going to happen in the future? Because when

068we fund these projects, really what we're trying to give you is an example of where we think your bonding capacity is going to be a year from now or a period of time from now. Because it takes you some time to do the design work to get all that together. You need to have an idea of, hey, how much a year from now are we going to be able to borrow so you can start your process and planning process of how much are we going to have available for the project? So that's kind of why we look backwards is to give us sort of a starting point for the look future. And if you go to the next page, we've kind of shown three different columns. These are projections of where we think your bonding

069capacity would be in the fall of 26, fall of 28, and ultimately the fall of 30. And we really use the reason there's a range is we're making different assumptions on what your future growth is going to be in those assessments and your future growth in your capacity to be able to produce the revenue to pay the debt. So we used a little bit smaller number to get to the 76 million5. That's based on a projection of about 6% growth. If you go back to the previous page, your combined assessment growth from 20067 until now has been on average about 6.28%. And you'll notice recently it's much higher than that. So I think a 6% projection is a conservative number. The 83 million on the uh on the right side of that is a little

070bit higher projection. That's more close to about 10% which again based on your recent history is a pretty conservative number. The important thing to remember with these numbers is that like I said all we're trying to do is give you a target what your capacity is going to be at next fall, next summer because we're going to try to give you an idea of what you will have available at that time to spend. Those numbers are not assuming you're going to have to have four 6% increase every year for the 20 years the bonds are outstanding. All we're saying is your revenue is going to grow by 6% we think until next summer. We're going to use that revenue number to figure out how much you can borrow. So this is a really conservative way

071of looking at it. We're just trying to give you an idea of what you can borrow at this time next year. And really what this chart is showing you is that concept at the bottom. Each of those uh different bars represents a previous bond issue. The line at the top is a rec is a reference to your total revenue that you have to pay for uh debt service on bonds and capital projects. That's your building fund and your capital outlay fund. That blank area in the middle is ultimately the space and the revenues that we're going to use to fund your future projects. That's where this the uh 76 million to 83 million is going to come from. We're going to stack on new columns under that red line to be able to fund those

072projects. And you'll notice that red line is straight. When we sell the bonds, we're making an assumption that you have x amount of revenue. That's the revenue you have at that time. and we're going to assume you're going to have that revenue for the entire life of the bond issue. We're not saying you've got to have revenue increases to be able to afford it. What we're trying to do in the 76 million and the $83 million number is to give you an idea of what your projected budget's going to be next summer, what you're going to have available if we make some reasonable assumptions on what's going to happen in your assessment growth and your revenue growth. So, as I say, that's it in a nutshell. unless you have questions. >> So, just reiterating the

073numbers that you're giving us are conservative estimates to where we will be um in the fall of 2026. >> Yeah. >> So, the 70 I'm sorry, the 76 million is based on you called it conservative which is roughly 6%. And when I looked at the next chart, the chart before that, that's been our average growth. Is it across a 20-year period? >> Correct. back. >> Okay. So, um yeah, I think that when >> when I look at projects and bonding capacity, um that's a number that's safer to go with because um for some reason if we go into a low year, we potentially we don't hit those higher range. We we don't know, but we historically can see that these lower range numbers would be more accurate. >> Yes. And it I think that's allowing

074you to establish kind of a a framework for discussion about you know our job is not to tell you how to spend the 76 to 83 million. Our job is just to tell you we think reasonably you have somewhere in that range available to you to decide how you want to spend it. And you know again at the time we get you get ready to sell the bonds you know then we use your current revenues and we'll say okay you have this much available and honestly we'll do the same thing at that point. We sell those bonds and we look to the future. Okay if we project some revenue what will you have in in a year from now in your bonding capacity? And that's that's kind of what we're constantly doing uh with Mr.

075Bradley and his team is kind of giving you projections on what we think you're going to have available and constantly tweaking it. And it's really something we do, you know, all over with all our clients, big, small, and in between, >> which is basically what we're doing, too. When we look at projects, we're looking, we're not piling everything into one year anyway. They're projected out over, you know, the course of five to eight years. So, those numbers are going to consistently change. >> Yes. Um, so us looking at the conservative numbers I think really gives the board flexibility moving forward in what those projects look like. When bonds are sold, those are configured in such a way to um essentially you're looking at what would be the equivalent of construction periods, right? Where you're not

076you haven't borrowed as much. So your payment may be lower during that construction phase because you've not borrowed all the money. Is that correct? >> Well, no. It's more that if if you need a mortgage to buy a house, you're going to go into the bank and you're going to say, "Hey, I need x amount to buy this house." And they're going to say, "Okay, your payment is blank. It's that much per month for the 20 years, 30 years, however long the mortgage is." What you can do with a bond issue is structure the payments around your existing debt as it rolls off. You can see we've kind of done this in the past. You know, payments kind of got a little bit bigger out here where you didn't have any debt. We would like

077to do the same with your next level. Level this chart off each time we do it. And the other thing to point out is notice here. So I can layer a lot of fill up here and that's going to keep the payments at their level. 31 million currentbas. >> I have a a question. And so like when we're looking at the bonding capacity, that would be the range. And I understand that like the conservative number versus a little more aggressive, but what would be like the normal um the normal utilization level? Like you know, if your capacity, let's say, is 76 to 83. But really realistically, you want to build in some level of like, you know, the risk is a factor. So, what percentage of that is kind of safe or normal for districts

078throughout the state? >> Well, that's that's a very very common question and unfortunately it's not a consistent answer. Uh we have districts we deal with that if if their maximum capacity today is, you know, $50 million, they're spending $50 million and they're they're going to, you know, in a couple years get revenue growth. They're going to my example where you go years off and try to layer it on. So, we have districts, they go right up to the max. We have others that are more conservative. They want to leave a few million, you know, five million, something like that for emergencies. Boiler blows, you've got a roof you need to repair. There is revenue, too, that's not reflected in this. This is really just your local revenue. You're going to continue to get the offers

079of assistance from SFCC every two years. You'll get another one actually this coming January. you know, that is funding that is not even reflected in this. Uh, you know, you're going to have that and I think to the allowances, you know, if your revenue grows a little higher than what we're saying, that's kind of where you're building that cushion in. So, it's really a question of, you know, what do you feel comfortable with, you know, kind of not necessarily a percentage, but based on your historical, you know, facility needs, you know, what do you think you need to keep in there? But again, we have districts that they go right up to the max every time. And so the if you go up to the max, let's say you go up to the max and

080the worst happens, I don't know, even if the money comes in as you expect, but perhaps like construction costs are just, you know, more, which is probably the more realistic thing that would happen. Um, so then do you dip into the general fund? I mean, you know, at that point, if if if you had maxed out your your bonding potential, all s had an emergency and you needed to do a $4 million bond issue. Yeah. I mean, the There's a couple options. One is your capital outlay fund is part of your restricted funds and we only take 80% of that number. So you've got a 20% of that number is built in as a cushion. Then you know you can use all of that or a portion of that to you know allow you to

081pay room again on the the principle that you're laying on later. You know this where you're covering the interest. uh you can contribute general fund you know just to kind of get you through to the next point where your assessments climb back you have the revenue increase to be able to pay for it the most I would think you'd have to do that is probably a year or so because the other thing to keep in mind is that when you sell bonds you'll have an interest payment six months and then the first principal interest payment is the big payment of the year six months after that. So if you were to sell these bonds in summer of 26 or fall of 26 you're going to have a payment until f you'd have the interest payment

082in the spring of 27. Yeah, spring of 27. Your first full payment would actually be 28. So, you've actually got some time to recover the revenue growth to cover the debt. >> Okay. Was this 76.5 million calculated before we learned the property value assessment or is it after? >> Yeah, that's that's projecting forward. >> Okay. with as of today >> consideration of that new amount of >> I think too to Miss Deon's question every district let's say Jefferson County hypothetically because they have 100,000 kids their comfort level is going to look a little different than Laroo County who's you know right next door to us. Um, but I would say right now districts pretty much any district that has meaningful revenue um is working to evaluate how to make that work for them. Um, and

083Bargetown City Schools, Caitlyn wrote an article last week uh about Bargetown City Schools and one of the lines you had in there was they have maxed out their bonding capacity. It's also they also received the $23 million in state funding uh because of that. And I share that not to say I think Barstown has done a nice job. They they invested in the elementary school. They took them pretty close. They opened up some new money at the CTE center. They got the $10 million along with us. And then they took then they got two, three years later, five years later, they got 23 million to throw at their high school. And 23 million is $43 million, whatever. So I share that to say they didn't know what they were going to put in the high

084school when they made the elementary school investment or the CTE investment. They didn't know what they would have. They ended up with looks like based on the newspaper article, I'm not saying this is fact, but what Caitlin wrote, 23 million local and 23 million state that they used to create a new high school remodel. So >> since we're not Bargetown, I want to talk a little bit. Sorry. >> No, you're fine. I >> Well, I think what's important here is when we look at these numbers that we look at the conservative side of it and we're looking at 765 >> as a board. We also have flexibility when we get bids back and we get BG1s back that we're looking at those numbers and we can say hey listen it's a little higher than our

085low end of the budget. This part of the project we're going to make a phase two and we can delay that part of the project so that it can be a phase two until that revenue also increases. So I think you know when we talk about cost I think that's something that we're all thinking about in what's it going to look like when bids come back. can we take portions of that and say, you know what, let's we're gonna go ahead and start on there because I think of Thomas Nelson, you know, they postponed building the auditorium. So, they delayed that until the money was there. >> The originally the Thomas Nelson project had three phases. Phase two was the cafeteria and the and the uh junior senior wing, but then they did have enough

086funding, they went ahead with that, but they waited three or four years on the auditorium. Uh I'm not sure how the phasing happened here at Foster Heights when uh you weren't here probably in 2011 2012 but oftentimes that happens too where you do work within the the reality that you're facing at that time and you it's really hard to predict it. We've been fortunate in Nelson County where every time they come over the last four or five years you've always been wrong. >> You're always lower conservative in reality. >> That won't continue forever. I mean this somebody sells houses. I mean I've >> start homes have gone from 125 to >> 215 and that's been within the last three four years. So I mean it's just >> as the PVA catches up >> it's still

087going to come in >> heavy >> and you have a good perspective on that. So I think that's um >> also on the insurance side when he says insurance is going up. >> It's nice to have that advantage. >> We're all feeling it. Yes. Well, it's reassuring to know that, you know, to hear that aspect, too, in terms of looking at that conservative number. >> I feel like that's very conservative. >> How often have you seen districts default or have you ever seen it? >> There have been districts that you elaborate on those troubles. Those those are generally smaller districts. Those are really fragile, >> right? Already. Yeah. >> The ones I saw were under a thousand students. Very, very small. >> Yeah. >> Now, would you all say the 2008 numbers, the 2008 to

0882013, that's probably from the fallout of the the housing crash. >> And then in 2015, we had a huge boom in property here in Nelson County. And then again in 2020. And I feel like we're still increasing that 10% every year. Like >> to let you all know about county exact same discussion finance offic. So we sat down with them and we did this exact same thing and looked at your growth and actually similar qualify for local funds that are going into okay million billion bonds today but we can do 100 this year next year after that and kind of map it out for 10 years and accomplish their goal. what they need to do to stay on top of their needs because that number after 10 years is much higher now using this exact

089kind of information out where they're going to be in the future. >> In essence is equalization which I know is provided by the state that becomes a means to ensure that you have the funds to make your >> equalization is in statute so that every district has % assessment per child in their building. So your nickel produces under the budget. It's basically a factor multiply the factor times your average >> currently. Correct. for some reasons that about 10% just less than 10% of districts uh are trending really close to zero if not zero um which is they're just high growth between here and northern Kentucky all those high property value and I just want to clarify Miss Bowl Mulling when I was speaking about Bargetown I was applauding Bargetown in that it worked worked out

090for them. It worked out. They couldn't see the future, but it worked out. And you know, I've talked to Dr. Clark and very celebratory of the the work they're doing. I just wanted to be clear. I'm not I mean, and and also a shout out to Caitlyn right now. >> I just want to make sure we stay focused on what we're doing here. And I do also applaud largetown for what they're doing. They're doing great things, too. So, um Nelson County students are lucky. >> So, we may talk to you guys again in the future. is a in the next month or so. Um, and I think Alex is going to translate a little bit of that conversation to where we are with BG1s and what really he's learned from KD over the last three

091weeks on the phone and uh email through email. >> Dwight Lincoln, thank you guys so much. I feel like we've picked your brain a lot over the last couple years, so we appreciate it. So the next conversation is really thinking about action we need to take and kind of looking ahead uh in terms of some compliance items with KDE. Uh so in July really you guys continue to evaluate the the Thomas Nelson project, the Nelson County project, the New Haven. So I'm going to talk each kind of about those and essentially conclusion in July um we did vote to move forward with the bidding of of Thomas Nelson Middle School and that's currently taking place. Uh we also wanted to revise our BG1s for New Haven and for Nelson County High. Uh we are going

092to do that, but in consultation with KD, it turns out that that is actually a two-part process. Um and I'm going to dive into that here. So, and I'm going to speak about Foster Heights FMD modifications. We haven't talked about that one yet. I actually have a specific slide for it in just a second. So, we're going to save that one because that's a new project. But basically the ones in the blue uh were projects that really were discussed uh under our old originally they they were discussed on our old DFP from 2021. Uh and currently no construction has taken place on any of these projects. Um really in consultation with KDE they advised us because we now have a new DFP 2025 and those projects technically have not occurred yet to basically end those

093and kind of start new ones with a fresh BG. And again that's a two-part series. So, what we're going to do today uh in just a little bit for each of these, we're going to revise the BG1s for these three projects so that really it gives us space to close them out on what had occurred in the past. And then on Nelson County High and New Haven projects we're really want to move forward on, we would have a new BG ready uh at the September board meeting ready for your approval. So, that's one conversation just kind of the current projects and where they stand. Uh Thomas Nelson Middle School is out for bid and we anticipate having those back September 11th having a bid opening. We'll kind of know where we stand in terms of

094construction costs. Um if those are in a great place in September 23rd, you guys would review those and then accept or decline and then possibly sell bonds. Again, just trying to provide some transparency on uh what we're doing today and what we hope to do in September. There's also some language here about BG5, BG4s and BG5s. That's part of the KDE closure pro process on a project. >> So BG is a building ground form. It's basically a form you fill out and it's called BG1. And then there's another one. It's called the BG5 and it closes it out. So just to be clear, it's building grounds is the acronym. >> So for today in just a little bit, we would have a motion to approve those revised PGs. At the same time, we have some

095completed projects. uh our athletic complex updates at both of our high schools. We also had a security project where we actually invested in this space in Boston to turn um these classroom spaces into keyless entries. And then we also had a n county high MSD FMD modifications. These are projects that are already completed. We need to process them and bring them to closure in the fact system which is what houses all of this BG documentation. So the action today again will be to revise these and then I'll be speaking in future months about BG4 and BG5 to bring them to closure. So in a nutshell, this is kind of the compliance that we have to work with on KD and I've contacted him multiple times around um action we need to take. Um also at

096the same time we're going to have Mr. Kodell is going to come up uh and speak on really also have two other projects that are currently going on. We have our upcentering bus garage he's going to speak about. And then also there were some questions really last month around possible budget for New Haven. His team was able to evaluate that space and really think about really the questions that I heard from you guys is what does that space need and what might a possible financial contribution look like to make sure those needs are met and kids have what they need and the building's functional. So Mr. Codell is going to speak about that and then we'll come back to some of this complaints. Thank you sir. Um so to Mr. Martin's point uh with respect

097to where um transparency on where things are currently uh the upcenter and bus garage projects are moving forward. Um some areas of the project are ahead of schedule, some areas are behind schedule. Uh overall, we feel like uh we can still hit uh anticipated uh completion dates on both projects. We're looking at March on the uh bus garage and May on the up center. um had a little bit of some again ahead in some part parts and behind in some parts. The school staff, the up center has let us in areas early on the up center helping uh things move along there and um bus garage. We've had some groundwater issues and site issues we've worked through, but uh you're going to see a big change uh in that project between now and next board

098meeting. The steel structure is on site. Um, and we've uh finally, you all just took action on some groundwater remediation uh that had to be done uh for the pits. Uh the service pits in the bus garage were taking on a lot of water. So, had to get that water out of there. Now that we've done that, uh should be uh finishing up slab uh pouring uh should occur next week. and then that build or maybe right after Labor Day, either right before or right after Labor Day and um you'll see some structure going up. So that that's going to make a big show. But anyway, that's >> You said you said May on the Up Center. >> Yes, sir. >> How how solid you feel on that one? >> Cuz it was April. I

099just wanted to know originally it was April. >> Feel good. >> You feel good about me. >> Okay. >> So, um as Mr. Martin said we are out on the streets to bid for Thomas Nelson. Anticipated bid date 911. Um so we're hoping for some good results there. Um, with regard to New Haven, uh, we did take a deeper dive into what was actually needed, uh, and what was actually wish list. Uh, took a deeper deeper dive into what conditions existed with that building. Uh, overall, the building is in good shape. Uh, it just needs a refresher. Um, most of the roof is in good shape, but some of the roof needs some attention. Most of the HVAC system is in good shape, but there are some units that need to be replaced. Um, but

100not an entire mechanical and electrical system. So, um, we're able to realize some savings there. Um, basically, uh, there's, uh, there's a little bit of a groundwater issue that needs to be addressed. Uh, uh, other than that, structurally, the building is in good shape. Uh, finishes are needed, bathrooms need updated, classrooms and corridors need to be updated. Um we feel comfortable uh that uh considering the use of the building um that and the current shape of the building is 5 to6 million uh should make for a very nice functional renovation uh to uh get that school uh uh in in good shape and ready to last for several years moving forward. And I'd be glad to answer any questions that you all may have. >> So last month, um I think his name is Mr.

101Davis had given a $16 million number. What was the difference? difference there is in to Dwight and Lincoln's point is uh you know um looking at first of all we took a deeper dive into the building. Second of all, uh wish list versus affordability list and looking at the big picture on what was needed districtwide um and what was needed for the uh student capacity uh of that school. Um so um that's mainly it. >> Thank you, Mr. Cardell. Does this address the pipe under the building? >> It does. That's the groundwater >> groundwater issue. Yes, sir. >> Which the remediation? So, you've got there's four rooms uh that that pipe affects. Uh so it' be repair work of those four rooms, couple bathrooms, couple of uh classrooms and rerouting the pipe around the building

102to keep that from happening moving down the road. >> Does it also address the connecting uh connecting the gymnasium to the other to the rest of the school? >> So uh scaleback version of that. Yes, ma'am. scale by just meaning just the roof, not the brick in, >> not the entire connector that reshaped the cafeteria and enclosed it. That was about a $ 1.4 million >> uh hallway. >> So, the thought would be canopy >> covered canopy. Any other questions for Jim about timelines or anything? I u that that up center I mean we just need to be really clear and I say this publicly. We need to be really clear on that timeline because as you know that impacts all the 550 kids that are entering in there from all across the region each

103day. And right now they're everywhere. Literally we got them everywhere. uh and it's working out, but uh we want to make sure we're ready for the summer to move in. >> We feel good about that and we'll continue to push to make that happen. >> Awesome. >> Are you aware of the um the BG1 amounts we discussed last month? >> Yes, ma'am. Do you feel like we are within we have the scope um we have enough in those BG1s sufficient to cover? Tough question. Um, so I think the um the the revised BG1 that will be put in front of you for New Haven we feel like will be adequate. Uh the um have we put help me out on Nelson County? >> Yes, >> we put Steven's new numbers. >> We put a phase

104one number at 40 million on there. Phase one. >> Yes. So that one should be good as well. Now your numbers and I'm straight with you. Uh Thomas Nelson, I don't believe we updated those numbers, >> right? The last bid was 24 >> two years. >> 24.5, right? uh we uh you know that one we could see a little bit of an uptick 911. >> So to be clear on that one, the bid was $24.5 million in in November of 2022 and the last board meeting you guys asked Stephen Ward what the projection would be increase. He said at least 10%. >> Yeah, you're going to see an uptick there. So, we had talked about Nelson County having two like phase one and phase two. Is that going to be the still we're asking that

105in these BG1s? I >> think that's still the plan. >> Okay. >> Yeah, we were >> we were put 40 on both of those. >> Really? We were going to revisit that in the next couple months. Okay. >> And part of that is um just being able to begin to design them in concert phase one and phase two. Meaning, you know, as you look as you look at that campus, you know, it's a it's obviously got lots of >> uh lots of spaces potentially that we can uh modernize and the two phases have to work together. So, the architects have to understand what they're working with. Okay. And they look at those phases. >> All right. Any further discussion for Mr. Codell? >> Thank you so much. >> Thank you. So, the action that we

106would take today uh really on these blue and green projects would be to approve the revised BG1s as presented. And I think that motion's listed back on your board slide. And then in just a second after you guys do that, we'll talk about foster rights. >> So, we can do that all in one. We don't have to individually do those. Yeah. So, okay. Y. >> So, if there's no further discussion, um we will need a motion to approve the revised BG1s as presented. I'll make the motion. >> All right. Thank you. Do I have a second? >> I'll second. >> Thank you. All in favor? >> I. >> Any opposed? Motion passes. >> Right. I think if you It's on the next slide. Back onto your board slide. I believe there need to go. All

107right. So, uh, here at Foster Heights, we do have a FMD MSD unit. Uh, Mr. Hill is going to be here to help me out if I need be. But uh currently we have two classroom spaces that are accommodating those students and they're not very functional in that it's difficult for teachers to collaborate together in the space. It's difficult for the students to move throughout the space based upon their needs. Uh so really we want to um work in those two spaces to make them more functional uh make them collaborate so that students can move more freely such as things like a wheelchair ramp steps uh flexible learning areas. Uh and really the team has been heavily involved in that discussion and really communicating what do we need to make this space uh into something

108great, something that works well. Stephen and Studio Kramer have been involved in helping us really design and listening to the team in terms of uh what do we need? And so really the ask would be to generate a new BG1 to really have the funds uh allocate the funds to move forward in that project. We really anticipate probably a $100,000 uh commitment to getting this work done. >> And Jeremy, can you just detail a little bit more about this? Uh it's it's part accessibility, part academic learning function. >> Correct. Yeah. So So within that, we still have an obligation to do uh provide academic learning for our students while also addressing some of those more independent living skills. and we really need the space to be able to conducive to do both. Right now the

109the rooms which they're being sered by just the inefficiency and transition from one space to the other. Um, also in in the design uh process for this, we have numerous students who have occupational therapy needs and the way to structure the way that we're planning on structuring this with the ramp and the steps would allow them to be practicing those needs in that space as opposed to having them uh walk throughout our school. So that will be much more to their individual needs and provide them an opportunity to much more. >> Thank you for bringing that back. Sorry. Thank you for bringing that back to the needs of the students and how that would benefit them and teachers have been involved in this creation. >> That was the question I was going to ask. Make

110sure that those are >> I was in the room last week and it was a conversation we were having with a teacher. The teacher was very uh excited >> and these would be address long range needs that are common from year to year. >> Yes, ma'am. So I think that it would be an investment. >> I don't think we need a lot of convincing in this. This is an easy decision. >> All right. So, any further discussion? All right. So, we will need a motion to approve the BG1 as presented. >> I'll make a motion. >> Thank you, David. Second. >> A second. >> Thank you. All in favor? >> I. >> Any opposed? >> Because I was going to take you out if you did. >> All right. Motion passes. All right. Moving on

111from there. Um, we did transition the date for September, the September meeting to reschedule to the 23rd. Um, hopefully that works for everyone. Um, any questions on that board calendar? >> We need to make a motion to do that. >> Yes, we do. We need a motion. >> I'll make a motion. >> All right. Thank you. I need a second. I'll second. Thank you. All in favor? >> Any opposed? All right. Finally, we will do board celebrations, which I guess is part of that Um, I think that our schools have done a wonderful job launching the new year and I have appreciated the communications we've already been seeing through the the parent square. I think it's going to be um it's nice to see things streamlined. Um, I appreciate the extra effort that it may

112have put been on the part of our um school leaders and our classroom leaders, but as um someone who has grandchildren in the district, I've enjoyed seeing that. And as a board member, I appreciate those feed updates that we get into our email to to make it simpler to keep up with what's going on. >> Absolutely. I think, you know, we have a lot to celebrate with the first five days of school. Um just having the kids back in the building and um it just feels alive when they're back in the space. Um teachers have been working hard and staff in the buildings have been working hard to welcome the the students and seeing the kids come in down at Boston that morning and the hugs to each other and then the hugs to the

113staff and the the caf the cafe leaders were so excited to see the kids. It's just like everyone was excited that they were in the building and um it was a it was a great morning to be there. There were a couple tears shed I think by parents mostly but the te kids were having a great time. Um it also we are celebrating the start of um the students with their football programs and volleyball. Um I encourage us as um community leaders and as parents and supporters of our school get out and enjoy these teams. Take take a time to get out and really support the students. Um, and it's a great way just to connect with other families and connect with the staff and just be part of our community because, you know, we're

114we're representing what we put back in it. So, I can only encourage everyone to do that. >> Um, a shout out to Miss Woods and her role as the new principal of Bloomfield Elementary. Um, she has some big shoes to fill and I think she was bringing a lot of enthusiasm to her community and doing a lot of good work. >> Absolutely. And celebrate again the Foster Heights apprentices. I know you're going to probably have a hard time keeping those guys. All right. Anyone else? All right. With that, we can adjourn the meeting. I need a motion. >> I'll make a motion. >> All right. Thank you. Do I have a second? >> Second. >> All right. All in favor? I Any opposed? All right, motion passes.