001Oh, that makes sense. Good evening and welcome to the May 7th uh Lichfield School Board meeting. I would like to call the meeting to order. It is 5:35 uh and start with the pledge of allegiance, please. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you very much. Um, have this cord be the one that's up there? We are having a few little technical difficulties. We're working on getting Mr. cutter uh remotely in and once we have him we will then um do a motion for remote participation uh Mr. Plansky will not be attending the meeting tonight. Um so are there any review and revision to the agenda? Nope. Anybody? Nope. Nope.
002Anything that board members or superintendent want to move off of consent agenda into old business? hearing none. I'm going to go ahead and move into a summary of non-public actions from April 16th, 2025. Miss Ames motion to approve the April 2nd, 2025 non-public meeting minutes. Mr. Shoemaker seconded the motion and the motion passed 3000. Miss Aim motion to approve the nominations as presented. Mr. Shoemaker seconded the motion and the motion passed 3000. Those nominations were Susan Doyle for LMS special education teacher, Malina Degregario Aubin, GMS school psychologist, and oh man, Dominique Guadaria. Am I I'm sorry if I butchered those names. Miss G. Yeah. LMS and CH school psychologist. Miss Ames motion to accept the resignation of Allison Dean, GMS speech language language pathologist. Mr. Mr. Shoemaker seconded the motion and the motion passed 3000.
003Miss Ames moved to adjourn the non-public session at 8:11. Mr. Shoemaker seconded the motion which passed 300. For tonight, we have two presentations and recognitions. Do you have a preference on order? Yes. I'd like to do the first one first because it's a recognition. Um, so I'm gonna call our food service director, Lauren Crowley, up real quick. Yes. Hello everybody. Actually, just before we get to Lauren, can you take the vote to allow Andrew Is he here? He's on my screen. We're working on getting the court. I'll make a motion to approve remote participation. Do I have a motion? I will second the motion. Um, Andrew, are you there? Can you hear us? We just need to make sure he's by himself. Why remote? And if he's by himself, he was talking to me before.
004I heard him before. Stand by. I see his thing going like daddy's talking. There he is. Now I see him. Wait, let me try this. All right. Can you talk now? What is going on? Is your volume on? Yeah, my volume's all the way up. But I heard him before. So why don't we stand by and then we will we'll table the motion. Yeah. And bring it back when he's able to answer the questions. Was kicking around. Thank you. Maybe it's my computer for some reason. Um Sarah, are you on the invite? Yeah. Can you try and open your Google Meet and see if it's any better? I mean, I heard Andrew before we were back there. Technology isn't our friend tonight. Read your lips. Yeah, we can read your lips. I take that back.
005I'm Wait, that's good. I'm not on the l the Google link. Oh, there. There we go. Look at that. There he is. Now that we have sound, do you hear me? Y thank you. Andrew, can you hear me? I sure can. All right, perfect. Can you let us know why you're remote and if anyone is with you? Yes. Thank you. There is no one with me. I'm traveling for business this week. My apologies to the board for not being there in person tonight. Thank you. So, we have a motion that is still on the table. We have a second for me on the table. All those in favor of allowing remote participation, we will need to do a roll call vote. Matt, hi Heidi. I Dan I. All right. So Andrew, you are rocking and
006rolling with us tonight remotely. Turning it back to the superintendent. All right. So want to do a presentation or recognition this evening. So we learned over school vacation week. So last week, and we can announce this officially. We actually learned a little bit earlier than that. I think we might be good, John. um uh that our own Miss Lauren Crowley was named by the School Nutrition Association the Northeast Regional Director of the Year. Um she's a There is a crown. You need a crown. No, I left him in my office. The crown in the sept in my office. Don't worry, she's got a crown. Absolutely. Amazing. Good. Good. And uh just to kind of summarize what the award does, the award recognizes the extraordinary contributions of school nutrition directors such as Lauren uh who manage
007effective school meal programs and providing healthy and appetizing meals to our students. So um this is a really exciting honor. I sent a uh the press release out earlier today to to the community um so people can read the full full press release of this honor. Lauren was one of six correct regional directors who was recognized um at a conference a few weeks ago. Right. Um we were I was one of six up for the national director of the year award. Um so there's there's seven regions that so the state director fed into the regionals and then of the seven regions one of each there's three levels. Uh one employee, one manager and one director gets the national title. Fortunately did not get the national title but that's okay. Not this year. Not this year.
008Not this year. Um there's always next year. Yes. I was enraged, but um it Northeast Regional was not even I actually kind of after the state thing, I kind of forgot about it. And then when I got the call, actually I got the call on April Fool's Day and I was going, "What if this is just an elaborate prank?" Like, "Oh no." Um um it was it it it's insane. Um but it's really great. It's a great honor and um I am the first person from New Hampshire to ever get a Northeast Regional in any of the capacities. So nice. Just made some history. It's fine. Um but genuinely I'm I I know I joke and I pretend that I have this like huge ego and blah blah blah, but I'm very proud of what
009this has been. It's a huge honor. So um really psyched. So so deserving. Thank you. Yeah, we're really proud of Lauren. We're proud of the whole team. Full of shout out, we're doing um school lunch hero this week, right? Yes. So, yeah, National School Lunch Hero Day was um it's the first Friday in May every single year. We were on school break. So, I mean, arguably we got the best one because we didn't have to do anything on school on hero day, which is great. But we are going to do a little um belated celebration on this Friday. So, um yeah, it it's exciting. So the girls, they really, that's their time to shine. So they really get, the elementary school goes nuts. I love it because they make them cards and all this other
010stuff. So each school does a little something for them. And I have little gifts for them, too. So if you see a school lunch person on Friday, thank them because they we all know how hard they work. Absolutely. Well, congratulations to you. Thank you for all you do for us. Truly amazing work. Um and you have a great team. So I do have a great team. Say thank you on Friday and every day. But and every day, but Friday especially. A little extra. Yes. Awesome. Awesome. Thank you. I expect pictures of you with your crown in your scepter. Oh yeah. Yeah. I don't know. It's on Facebook. Borrow it. You can borrow it. Yeah. The scepter is very It's beautiful. The sound is gorgeous. Like Elsa is from Frozen. Like is it a It has
011like a red thing on it cuz it looks like an apple. I was going to say there's not like a chicken patty on the top of it. No, find Well, I wasn't involved, but Renee was trying to find one with an apple and the crown matches it. There's a cape involved. It's Wow. Yeah. There's like a whole thing. So, not your average. Not your average food service director. She got me a t-shirt and like We are looking forward to your official portrait. Yes. Yes. Very much so. Thank you very much. I appreciate it. Thank you. Thank you. All right. And I will call up uh principal Jake Hess to the front and he has some friends with him. Yeah. You guys can grab a seat at the table. You're going to do all the talk.
012So, um so I have with me tonight uh three wonderful seniors who are uh super excited that we're 20ome days away from graduation. Um but next week is um senior project presentation night. Uh, so we brought three seniors tonight to talk a little bit about senior projects in general, kind of the process they went through um this year to get their projects done, kind of what led them to choosing their topic, and then a quick little preview about what you can expect to see from them next Thursday. So, I'm just going to turn over the table to them and let them, whatever order you guys want to go, talk a little bit about uh your projects. Start on this side. All right. Uh, my name is Logan Olair. So, for the senior project, I kind
013of started off with what I like to do in my free time and stuff. I love pretty much anything with engines in general. Um, so during that time, I was working at Irwin Rain and I was thinking, what's the best way to learn more about engines is do something myself with engines. So, I wanted to I purchased a jet ski. It was an older two-stroke jet ski and uh it was obviously wrecked. It was a restoration project that I did um blown motor and I used my mentor who's my boss obviously to help me with that and it just you know helped me learn so much about it because I don't know taking a class or anything doesn't really help as much as you know getting hands-on and that's kind of what I'm all about
014and uh it was really good. So for what next week for the presentation um you know I'm just going to explain everything get all the pictures get all that. I don't have it with me. It's up north, but um I have all the pictures. I was gonna say we need a kitty hat. Um yeah. No. Uh yeah. Sorry. So, a little bit about it. It was blown. Guy beached it a bunch. Um so, I got all those pictures. I board it out. Got a point 5 millimeter over on the first piston. Um all the rings are all set. Everything's all good. Runs great. Um yeah, pretty much that's the main of it. my mentor helped me tremendously because that's what he does full-time. So, yeah, that's pretty much what to expect. Awesome. So, I'm Nicholas
015Mackey. Um, I don't know what I really wanted to do after high school. Uh, I'm pretty academically smart. I don't want to flex that, but I usually just I've had A's all my life and I have no motivation for after high school. and my brother who graduated here in I believe 2016 uh saw my potential and wanted me to go shadow behind a mechanical engineer at a startup firm that my brother created. Uh it's called Adaptive Industries. They really focus on like creating medical equipment that's not really been done before. So they get tasked with problems that have just never been done. Um and I kind of like that. You know, having no direction where to go. uh you come up with your own ideas and stuff. Um while I was there, they uh are
016coming up with a a product that's never been creative or been created before focusing on distributing like medicine to third world countries that don't have access to. Um I don't know for copyright purposes. I don't want to say say much else. Um but it's going to be a real global changing thing if they can figure it out. But then they've been working on it forever. I was allowed to do some of it, some of like the scanning, finding the diameters and stuff. Um, and doing this senior project has really shown me that I think I like building and being a mechanical engineer and a little bit of 3D engineer doing the CAD work and stuff. And I think after this, I'm going to have a good future going to that. I'm now considering colleges. I
017know it's a bit late, but I'm going to do like the community route, try to save some money there. And this senior project stuff really gave me a good look out on my career and future. My name is Kaylin McKinnon. Um, for my senior project, I did a marine science fellowship over at the SEC Co Science Center in Ry. Um, I've known for a really long time now that I love marine science. Um, it's been like a huge passion of mine since fifth grade at this point. Um, and so I just did some research originally on where to get like job shadows in the area. I reached out to a couple places including the SEC co science center and the job shout itself didn't work out, but I also found the fellowship um which I
018ended up doing. It's it was a 10-week program um over not 10 sequential but um where every Saturday uh I would go over there usually 10 to 1 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and we would have like a class and then and then uh we would do something hands-on uh relating to what we learned. So, um, one of the days they had like a big biolitz event. So, we got to like count as many different species there on a state park in that state park as we could. I got to help with the sane netting. We grabbed a big net and like dragged up as many things from like the intertidal floor as we could and just kind of parsed them all out. And then um some other things we did, we learned about ocean
019chemistry and took samples from their aquariums and added different chemicals to see how that affected the pH. Um we did uh marine mammals. They have a marine mammal rescue team at the Sea Coast Science Center and they have um they respond to mammals along the New Hampshire coast in northern Massachusetts. and I got to um use one of those measuring the measuring sheets that they do to measure um deceased seals. Uh and then we also with that had an overarching project over the whole thing that we had to complete. Um I chose to do a research project on seal mortality in um the shores of New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts using data provided to me by the marine mammal rescue team. And it was really interesting because um using their ages, their sex, and their
020cause of deaths, I got to determine uh I got a conclusive answer on how those demographics relate to seal mortality and what the most common causes of death were. Were they awesome? Uh well, most common cause of death is predation, which is to be expected. Yeah. But um the most vulnerable age groups is let's call it um weanling. It's like they're old enough to not be relying on their mothers anymore, but they're kind of just being on their own. So they're still relatively small, still kind of learning the basics of fending for themselves and living. So that does make them more vulnerable to predators. But also um in terms of sex, when they're really young um both males and females have pretty much equal uh mortality rates, but then once they reach adulthoods, uh female
021mortality decreases while males increases. And that's because um males have a larger they're larger than females. So while they might be stronger or able to fend off predators more, they're also at sea for longer and more easily spotted. Um, and I also learned that uh while seals are what they call hauled out or like on land, uh, one of their top pri predators is coyotes. Um, which I didn't really think about because, you know, you usually think of them in the ocean. But it was a really great opportunity. Uh, I actually went back there a couple weeks ago to volunteer for a trail run benefiting the marine mammal rescue team. And it's just really nice to um learn so much more about what I'm passionate about and also make connections that will help me going
022forward. Especially because I'm going to UNH, which is only like 30 minutes away. It'll be really nice to have them as a connection. Are you going to be doing something with marine science? Yes, I'm majoring in marine estrine and freshwater biology. Very cool. Nice. Awesome. I think the the really cool thing about the senior project, obviously it focus on the compassion project, you know, some of the kids do and whether they know it or not, it really does embed those work study practices throughout the process, the perseverance, the critical thinking, that sort of thing. I think as we move forward, we're going to continue to kind of adapt and and really push the the senior project to be more intentional with that. Hopefully tie the digital portfolios to that as well. Um, but the kids
023learn so much from doing something that they're passionate about, they're interested in that. they can't find. They get that real world transfer of those skills that we talk about all the time. So, they're getting all of that stuff. They just don't always recognize that um that they're getting it. So, it's it's really great. Um I remember, you know, three years ago, the first day I spent at Lichfield was on senior project presentation day. Um and just the variety, you know, a girl became a pilot because she I was like, "Why'd you become a pilot?" She's like, "I watched Top Gun as a kid with my parents and loved it." So, so just the range of, you know, building engines, mechanical engineering, uh the um marine biology, just the range of things the kids are interested
024and partake in. Uh it's pretty cool to see. So, next Thursday, um from 6:00 to 8 at the high school, um you'll get to walk through in a presentation style. everyone's kind of lined up in the cafeteria, the halls, the library, and just hear from, you know, our Campbell graduate, almost Campbell graduates that are getting ready to to go off um talk about what they're passionate about, what they learned, and and really kind of representing um four years or 12 years of a great Lichfield education kind of culminating in that. So, it's a pretty cool event. These guys are fantastic. So, um I think they'll even answer some more questions from you guys too if questions. Yeah. So, the jet ski, is this going to be something that you're ripping around on this summer? Oh,
025yeah. Absolutely. Great. Cool. And with the mechanical engineering, so you like having experienced that, you feel like it's it was enough to like really make you actually want to you you didn't want to do something after high school and now you Yeah. Now it's pushed me to, you know, want to build something for myself that I could call the my idea basically. And is that something that you can uh you said it's your brother's company, just startup? Yeah. More so does like the finance financial situation. So is that something that you can continue to be involved with while you're studying? Go dayto day. Uh hopefully I can maybe get my foot in the door there. Um because they look like they have a bright future right now and if I can get in there early,
026good things coming my way. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I think one of the hardest things with college is like a lot of times you're learning book stuff, but you're not really applying it. And it sounds like all three of you have experienced things that you got to apply it with, and that's amazing. So, I I think it's cool. I mean, we talk about, you know, transferable skills, but I think one of the more one of the more impressive things to me is helping them actually parse out, am I interested in this? Do I want to do this? Because so many times people jump into something lawful and then they're like why? That's awesome. No, I think it's great and I have the benefit of knowing a couple of you and knowing you guys have different
027paths which I think is fantastic. You know what's going to happen, you know, going forward. You mentioned UNH, you mentioned community school. I think you're going into the trades. Is that right? So, I mean, I think there's some really great awesome diversity from you guys and it shows that great things come out of Campbell. So, congratulations. To, you know, Logan's our four time state championship and wrestling. Logan actually finished school in January. He's he's been done for the second semester. He took care of everything we needed to do. So, he's had the second semester to to work and do all that kind of stuff. So just to show the different paths that people could take and the opportunities that we do allow at Campbell for those individual pathways I think is pretty impressive about what
028we do. Yeah. Awesome. Any other questions? No. I honestly I think it's great if you're ever looking out for a job. Um look at BAE. We got mechanical engineering jobs all the way through from research and development into program status all the way through my background is physics. $100 for every person who refers to it's a lot more than that but but it's uh I mean like you I didn't know what to do right I I went into college with a generic physics degree I had no clue where I wanted to apply I came out of college and said hey lasers that's what I'm doing and going from there um so it's uh it's certainly a journey everyone has their own path and it it either way any way you get there is great Great.
029So, congratulations guys and uh looking forward to the your last what is it 20 last uh 24 days something like that before gradu uh graduation. So, if I don't see you guys again, congratulations and best of luck in the future. Thank you. Thank you. Appreciate it for giving us some of your time tonight too. It's you guys busy so appreciate it. Thank you guys. That was wonderful. Great job. As they leave, I'll just give a quick shout out. Um, Noah Benoy and Michelle Lincoln are the senior project advisors. The two of them meet with every single senior as they present their project. They do the paperwork, they make sure everything's in line. So, their case load of 97 seniors right now as they organize all the stuff throughout the year. They're wonderful in it. So,
030Noah and Michelle, great job. So, thanks guys for coming tonight. Appreciate it. Thank you guys for having us. Thank you. Awesome. I love it when we have students come. Okay. Uh, community comment on agenda items. Is there anyone I'm not seeing anyone, but I'm offering it up. Is there anyone here from the community that would like to make a public comment? You skipped Danny's report. Oh, I did. I'm sorry. I Were you hoping that we weren't going to catch that? I was doing um Danny, I'm sorry. Tell me all about it. What do we got? All right. So, spring force are now in like full swing. Baseball had a game today at Newfound and they're currently 4-1. Softball also had a game today against Cob Brown Norwood and are currently 2 and four. Boys lacrosse
031had a game today, but it got moved to Friday and are currently 2 and three. Girls lacrosse had a game next Monday against Laconia and are two and two. In track and field, they have a meet on May 10th called the Frost Meet with Salem and Kim. Um, some of the past activities that we had, student council went to the Manchester Food Bank on the 19th and we also hosted the first Campbell Showdown assembly. It went very well. We got a bunch of um really good feedback from that. And then we just had spring break. Um, some of our current events is this Saturday we have prom and then also on the 15th is the senior project presentation day where all other grades have a half day and then the showing of Foot Loose is
032on May 16th, 17th and 18th. Um, and then some of our next things at the end of May is Springfest the last week and then we also have the spring pop concert on the 20th. Um, I'm pretty much in Camel right now. We're just in full assessment season with AP exams this week and then either next week or the week after that is the SAS science for the course. May 14th. And then at the middle school, they also have the NHSAS. And then as well in at Griffin, they have that. And they also have the I Ready diagnostic. Beautiful. Awesome. So efficient. Any questions for Danny? Nope. Great job. See, I didn't need to skip you. You got it. You got it. Now we will go into community comment on agenda items. Seeing no one
033here, we will close community comment. Um, and we will have another community comment uh option towards the end of the meeting either at 8 o'clock or at the end of the agenda, whichever happens first. Uh, moving into correspondence. I did do correspondence this week. On April 16th, Anna Marotti emailed the board circulating four payment manifests for bills that could not wait until our next meeting that was in three weeks. Um, tonight on April 17th, Anthony Llant, CHS student council member, uh, sent an email to the board updating us regarding their efforts to raise money for ham donations for the food pantry. On April 17th, Amy Anderson, a parent, emailed um, the board and the superintendent uh, with some feedback regarding um, LMS, and there was a response by the superintendent. On April 22nd, Jan Sullivan
034circulated the draft April 16th public and non-public minutes. On April 22nd, an Inamorati emailed the board circulating two payroll manifests for the 403b contributions and the LSSA dues. There were responses from Dan Dit and Inarati. And then Dan also responded again on April 22nd. Tina Harrison um who it's weird to say parent um emailed the board requesting guest appearances by the school board at the Foot Loose production May 16th through the 18th and there were responses from Heidi Ames Dan Dwit and Christina Harrison. On April 22nd, Dan Mitchell uh emailed the board circulating the GMS end of the year activities. On April 24th, Andrew Cutter emailed the board circulating the approved budget committee calendar. On April 25th, Margaret Kovaler, parent, um, emailed the board regarding concerns about the AP exam and how it impacts the
035weighted grade and then communication about exam signups, and there was a response from the superintendent. On April 25th, Dan Mitchell emailed the board and SAU staff welcoming everyone to come help duct tape him to a chair. On April 29th, Michaela Demeter um a community member um sent an email to the board and selectman requesting signatures uh for a letter of support regarding um fair school funding. On May 1st, an enamor circulated two accounts payable manifests, one with checks and one that's a on May 4th, Renee Burgess emailed the board circulating the draft May 7th agenda. On May 5th, the superintendent sent a text message to the board inviting the board to attend the second round of interviews for candidates for the CHS principal position. There were responses from Matt Shoemaker, Heidi Ames, Dan Dit, Peter
036Plansky, and Andrew Cutter. Basically, everyone. On May 5th, Andrew Cutter sent a text message to the board confirming attendance um for the Wednesday meeting to confirm quorum. Uh Mr. Cutter is on work travel and therefore attending remotely. Mr. Plansky is away and uh Heidi, Dan, and Matt all indicated they would be attending. On May 6th, an Inarati emailed the board circulating the 403b manifest. On May 7th, the superintendent um circulated a Google Meet link uh for tonight's meeting. On May 7th, Anne Inarati emailed the board circulating a small credit card manifest. And on May 7th, um, text messages were sent to the board or amongst the board regarding the shelter in place and its impact on schools and then eventually the lifting of the shelter in place. Um, and that is our correspondence for the
037last three weeks. Moving on to general business, we have the superintendence report. Yes. So, we're just going to start with enrollment. Um, really, uh, we do this once a month. It's usually the second meeting, but I do want to draw your attention to uh the kindergarten enrollment. I know it's small up there because we're kind of sharing screens, but the link is right there. So, um as of right now, you know, May 7th, we have 57 kindergarten students enrolled for uh next year. That is lower than it's been traditionally. I mean, our birth rates are consistent in the town of what they've been this whole window. They're between 68 and 70 for, you know, the reflective years that would be coming up here. um as it has been the previous years, but we're not seeing
038the kids enrolling in kindergarten right now. So, one, I just want to bring that to your attention because we might have to have a larger discussion about that um at a future meeting um in terms of of how we're going to deal with the staffing aspect of that. And two, as kind of a public kind of out there like through every avenue, if you have an incoming kindergartener and you have not registered them, please register them. You can just reach out directly to GMS. They will help you through the entire process. make sure you're taken care of. Um, and we've been putting this out in a couple different avenues. I don't think I've said it in this way here at a meeting like this, so I'll do it this way to hopefully catch some. Um,
039but please, please, if you know someone with a kindergartener, please or a rising kindergarten, please check with them and ask them, you know, like, hey, have you registered your kid? We need to make sure our numbers are accurate and we want to make sure kids um are registered. We have kindergarten orientation coming up in a couple weeks. It is next Friday. Next Friday. Um, so really if we can get kids registered before that orientation, it's a great way in that transition process as as kids start kindergarten and and uh if they're not already in our preschool or entering school for the first time here as part of the Lichfield School District. So as as accurate as those numbers can be and as accurate as those names can be, that's really going to help that transition
040into into school. Um, if we can get kids in for that freshman freshman kindergarten orientation um kindergarten orientation uh next week. So, if you know anyone with a rising kindergartener, uh we are a little concerned that we're we're just missing people because like I said, the birth rate numbers are pretty consistent in the town for the reflective years from previous years. Our prek number was pretty consistent where it's been in other years when you're just using that as a raw data point. So, it really feels like there are families out there who haven't registered um their upcoming kindergartener yet. So, just I wanted a point of reference. So, I went back to 23 24 enrollment and saw that as of May 23rd, we had 73 last year. Y and then the year before that on
041April 28th we had 73 and so we're at 57 that does seem it feels low and if you look at the corresponding birth rates I went back today that just double check to see like what it is and um because I find this stuff fascinating and like the recurring years here we're at 68 70 68 70 you know like so it's consistent with that should be translating now into the building here so um I mean are We I guess on the what's up page are we putting out an announcement of like I think we've put it on our social media. I would have to check if that has been put on the WhatsApp page um itself. I know that it's been up on the GMS social media specifically but what we do is I have
042certain like the PTO um and then certain models. So I know it's definitely gone out on the GMS PTO page. Y um we put it out on our general uh GMS Facebook and then I also believe that through our connections it made it on the literal mom's Yeah Facebook page we could do um a read blast because it's been a few weeks since we did the initial yeah I'm just because I I guess on our social media is one thing right but that's usually for people who's already integrated with our system right so reaching out to the common community social media so whether the Lichfield Moms. I mean, my wife doesn't have Facebook, so she would never get it. So, just the local what's up page or, you know, the town website or something like
043that. Y do that tomorrow. So, I just want to give that enrollment. We'll have the full enrollment update, you know, second meeting of the month. Thank you. Yep. Um, next principal update. I just want to give an update. As you kind of mentioned in the correspondence, ID, um, we had our second round of interviews yesterday. We had brought in uh four candidates um for for the position yesterday. Uh all four they're very different candidates, all excellent candidates. Um but would would uh represent just kind of a different background where they're coming from and uh we had a bunch of panels throughout the day. It's a long day for them. It's almost seven hours for them. I'm going through it all tours of the school meeting with everybody. Really good experience. Um we're looking to kind
044of finalize a pick in the next weekish amount of time here. We're in the process of doing uh kind of uh additional reference checks, gathering information from our different stakeholders um who were a part of the process yesterday. Um talking to people we know across the state um who have worked with these people in different capacities to make sure we can get the right um next leader for for Campbell um to really kind of continue the great work that's going on at the high school right now. I mean, you got to see three of our soon to be graduates here and just like the excellence that that that that's being produced right now. Um, as a as a principal who was at a school that did senior projects, um, just listening to these kids, I
045mean, those are awesome. Like, I can you can tell they went into such depth there, I'm really excited to go next week to kind of see everyone's kind of final projects and everything like that. Um, and so there's a lot of good work going at Campbell. You know, we are going to miss Jake, but the reality is we got to hire someone new. Um, and we have some really good candidates, and I think we can continue the good work, you know, at the high school. So, the intent the whole time has to bring a candidate to the board um for a nomination at the next board meeting, the second one in May. We're still on schedule to do that as we intend to be. Um and fortunately, knock on wood, right now there's no other
046high school principal jobs open. So, we're in good shape. We're not going to lose anyone suddenly hopefully through this process. So, there's just an update on on the principal search. Thank you. All right. Next is uh grant assurances. So, you have a link in um there and uh it's the overview of the grant asurances. This is a yearly thing. Um Andrew, you're going to have to sign it at some point um as as the board chair. What the granturances are, Dan, you're new here, is we get grants from the state um for various things, title grants, um so on and so forth. And essentially what the grant assurances say is that we will follow the rules that are required of the various grants that we get. If this grant, for example, is intended for special
047education, we're going to use those funds for special education, right? We're not gonna say we're going to do this for special education and then go buy, you know, a new wrestling mat or something like that, right? It has to be for the intent and purpose that you there's a lot Sarah or Dr. Taylor's our our primary grant writer here in the district does the vast majority of it. And it's a it's a Yeah, lucky you. And it's uh it can be a very lengthy process at times because you have to go back and forth and get approval from the state um with the various things and everything like that. So the grant insurance is all those rules. Um it also um makes sure that that um you know we we are aware that they're existing
048and the different grants that they are and everything like that. So if you go through the documents about 16 pages um that's in summary what it what it's all representing there. What I want to bring it to your attention is we have to sign this by June 1st. Um right now because of of what's kind of happening there's pending lawsuits regarding uh grants in general both here at the state level and in the federal um level right now. We've been fortunate that um nothing's really affected us at this point. Right. You know we there was some concern um earlier this year on whether or not some of the um executive orders from the president was going to affect the school funding and some of the school grants. It it was not. You know we we
049were good in that capacity. Um, so we've been kind of business as usual, but there is some litigation. We're not involved in any of this litigation, but there's litigation that is happening both at the federal and state level. So our advice from, you know, the schoolboard association and also from our own attorneys is to hold off on signing the grant assurances until as long as possible. So while this would traditionally be I just bring it, we sign it, and we move on, I want you to be aware of the grant asurances, and we're going to probably take this down till the last week in May in case anything emerges. we don't want to sign this document. Some sort of lawsuit changes the dynamics of the grants and we've committed ourselves to something else. I think
050we'll be fine. I really think we're going to be fine. Um that just be business as normal in terms of all our the grant funding and and we're not solely so dependent on it, but obviously we have positions and and expenses that are dependent on grants. Um so we want to make sure that that it happens. But I want you to be aware of the asurances. We'll have it back on the agenda next board meeting. Hopefully a couple more weeks have passed. we might have more clarity on whether it's the go ahead to to go ahead and sign everything, but otherwise we might wait until the very last week of May there to to go forward with it. So, just giving you that update and wondering if you had any questions. We're good. All right,
051Spanish LMS. I wish I had a better update. That is the same uh kind of plan that we uh that we presented last time. that the link there. Um because unfortunately we have not found a Spanish teacher for the middle school. We continue to interview high school Spanish teachers who apply who then take a high school Spanish job after we have offered them our middle school job. So we're 0 for three in that capacity. Um where we've brought someone in, interviewed them, the interview went really well and then we offered them the job. They said, "Can I think about it?" And clearly got another offer from a high school. Well, I know factually they got other offers from high schools and they took the high school jobs. So, um, at this point, we are going
052to kind of move forward with with plan B. You know, if we do get some sort of, um, frankly miracle at this point and that we can find a qualified middle school Spanish teacher, we will do that. But otherwise, we're going to start looking at, um, these online and virtual ways. We're going to really start to put the pieces in place if Vlax is that option. Um, or if we're going to use a different uh, program such as edge, another kind of work at your own pace kind of Spanish program. And we're also going to be talking to to the high school teachers to to make sure if they can provide support what that's going to look like possibly before school, after school, wherever the capacity is along with the supervision that would be if
053a student was working on this online program during the school day. How we kind of do that um through that the additional unified art that we need to fill in middle school. We're going to move forward with the uh the bulk of that position being um uh uh strategies for success. Sorry. um the strategies for success class that we've run in the past that kind of works on those executive functioning skills, real life skills for students um at that kind of middle school level. Um we will continue to look for this Spanish teacher. Um but we have are we're not optimistic that we'll be able to fill it. So we are going to move forward with plan B and start working through families to get everything kind of set up in that way. So any
054questions from the board? It's not surprising. That's what it is. All right, last thing. This should be quick and I just need this to say this out loud so it gets in the minutes and then we can send this to the state and make us happy. So this is the the NOI. This is the to stay on the building aid list. I just wanted one last clarity for them uh because the way they worded something to me that we would be committed to the project but we're not. So, while we stay on the list with the new building project, and that's what's being sent in for the building aid, we are under no commitment to put that on the March ballot in March 26. But if we were to put a new building a new
055building project on the ballot in March 26, it would have to be that project and written in there would have to be some contingency if we were granted uh building aid. So, I just need to say that official statement. So it would have to be that project if we wanted building a right we could put another project on. Yes. And that's what we're clarifying with states. So we we're going to talk later right about GMS project that's going to be more renovation based in some capacity right um that is a different project than the new building right that does not follow the application um that we did for building aid for the last year one. So we'd have to reset ourselves in line for the building aid if we were going to do that project
056right there. Would we, not that there's any reason to, but would we be able to stay even if we put something that was not didn't comply with that application on and it failed, could we still stay on the list for the other thing for the new building? Yeah, I don't know. I can ask that question. If we would stay I'm just wondering like do do we automatically get bumped if we put a completely different project on? Yeah, I will get clarifying question. I think it's irrelevant, but I it's just a matter of I know there's a window of time where you have it's it's essentially 3 years, but it's like 32 months because of the timing of stuff where you have to get a if you're put a building forward, you got to get it
057approved, right, to get to that was like three years. So, right. So, there's that window of time. Um, but to if we requirement to get on I don't think there's a requirement to put it on the ballot. You just have to try within three years. But I never contemplated asking that other question. Yeah, I can get clarity on that. Uh I'm going to lean towards no to be to be honest because it'd be kind of dipping. Yeah, I think a lot of people would be trying to do something similar like how many different projects can we get on the list, you know? Oh no, no, I didn't mean to get another one on the list. I meant if we because you know at a certain point you can't get you know there's only a certain
058time that you can get on the list, right? So, if we if we came up with another project, we weren't didn't enter the list for the other project and we put that other project on the ballot and it failed, would we come back? Can we still be on the list? Yeah, I'll get clarity of that. And that might be true because you haven't put that other project onto the building yet. And again, like continued, the huge conquer project is ahead of us. So, no one's getting anything until due on May 1st. Yes, but we got it in and they sent it back to us and I accepted it and they said, "Can you just get something this literal conversation recorded in in the minutes for us at a board meeting?" Well, hopefully we hopefully my
059auditions didn't we have done it. No, it's fine. Um and I said, "Sure, I'll get that done." So, they had granted us they were like because we sent it in the beginning of April for this exact reason in case we needed to come back and do something different. So, yeah. So, that's it. So, I got on that I got my piece on the record here. So, we're good to go. All right. Any other questions for the superintendent? Andrew, do you have any questions? I don't want to ignore you. No questions so far. Thanks. All right. Good. All right. Moving on to business and operations. We Miss Darling, what do we have? Um, so I did want to say I I know we've been talking about projections and wanting to get those out there. Um, I've
060been working with Ann who, you know, obviously has a lot more experience in helping with this process. Um, and she's been working to really kind of narrow in on getting those incumbrances to be as accurate as possible. So, she said by the end of next week, we should be in really good shape to start that, you know, getting some more real projections. So, I am anticipating for the next meeting to have something for you. Um, with regard to that, um, I did want to update with regard to solar. Um, I've been in touch with, um, K from Dynamic Grid. Um, and at this point, we're in a holding pattern with Eversource. Um she did uh copy me on you know some emails that she's working with Eversource and um there's a discrepancy with something with
061regard to the meter number that we currently have not matching the um account numbers that they have on file. I have been a part of these emails and I'm not sure really exactly where the problem lies. It seems like there's something in the portal um that is not working properly. Um I have asked if she can you know request that somebody from Eversource actually come out to the site so we can expedite this because we're clearly way past the 10day window um that she submitted the original report um but we are still waiting on that. So um until we get the meter we're still um in a holding pattern unfortunately. Um, I did ask her um with regard to the battery the the storage um component uh where if we're still on schedule for this
062summer, she did say late summer. She was hoping that we would be that that that's still the plan. Um but I don't have anything more concrete than that. And I did ask if there was any preparatory work that we would need to do over the summer and she also indicated in writing um that there was nothing on our end that we would need to do that that would be her people taking care of that running the line underground to the pad location. So that's where we are with that. I know that's not what we were hoping to hear but question from my side. I was banking on your I was banking on your camera being on for this. I know it's very frustrating. Okay. I don't want to dis I don't want to disappoint. So,
063at least for this part. All right. So, uh I'd like to get request actual dates from K. I don't want to hear late summer. Late summer is when our kids are going back to school and to actually do construction by that time is is not ideal. So, we should be pushing for exact dates and not a time frame. Okay, fair enough. I will get that. Yeah. Right. And if there's a delivery of a storage container, you know, with battery, etc., obviously, the ideal time to do that is during the summer, not late summer. Again, kids are coming back into the building. Absolutely. All right. So, these general these general dates of, you know, spring, summer, next year, like it's got to stop, right? Firm dates, get it documented. Okay. Hold them accountable. Absolutely. Of course,
064even when they give us firm dates, we can't hit those either. It just seems like there's no dates. That's the challenge, right? But at least we have something in writing. Right. Right. Right. I agree. They could have built this battery backup thing like 50 times over at this point. Right. There should be no reason why this is delayed. It's been two years. So, yeah. Why is there a 10day window? Like, what's the is there any type of consequence for Eversource not meeting that? That that's what is confusing to me. I don't understand why we're not further in this process. I mean, if there's a 10-day window, there should be something that happens when that they're not in compliance. But yeah, I think what's challenging right now is um this might be an Eversource issue, but
065we just have no trust with dynamic grid. Yeah. Right. like so well and if it's I think the problem too is if it's an Eversource issue we should be able to lean on dynamic grid to solve the issue with Eversource right and that's been the problem as our consultant or whatever they do they have provided minimal if any value throughout this process so and I if it's a matter of I don't this is not my world I don't understand um but I'm a simple person if it's one meter says this number and this thing says a different number someone should come look at the meter I don't understand why that can we send a picture and text it to them I mean and she's done that and that I've seen that in the correspondence but
066again we need to she needs to be pushing on every source to come out and resolve that so they're solar they're solar we are and and there's nothing in our contract with dynamic grid that if they're late to date that to their deliverables that there's repercussions? Not really. I mean, it delays cuz as what K will say, they're eating the cost associated with it. So, like our electrical cost over at um LMS is a stagnant amount, right? Like it's $97,000 or whatever it is, right? Um every year until this thing like until the clock starts ticking and then, you know, we're pushing back that sixyear kind of time frame where they're paying for the cost of everything and we have to make that decision. So ultimately our kind of um money that we're paying is
067consistent. So if we this didn't exist for just hypothetical like arguments, we're paying 97,000 a year or whatever it is um for electrical there. If we just look at the other schools, if we didn't have this contract in place, we'd be paying like 115 probably 120. So that's what we're saving by this being delayed, right? like because we're not having the this is what it was explained to me like you know this is why there's not something more concrete in the contract that says if you don't follow this this is the payment that you kind of play. The only thing we kind of got out of it was that clock on the six years. We said we're not you can't start it until the next fiscal year. So we got that system is turned on
068and incomplete. But the whole project is complete, right? So if this we're in April right now, I mean when we talked about this, this was like January. I want to say late January, early February because it was before the voting. And if in my opinion how we have this in writing if this c crosses over the July 1, we then get another year before the was that an addendum to the contract or there was an email in writing that I have from that the lawyers said would hold up. So that's what I got. All right. So, because I not to put a damper on the whole mood about solar, but when we go to connect the battery storage to the whole system that like expect lots of regulatory stuff with Eversource because we're not just
069talking about a transformer. We're talking about something that has kilogles of energy storage connecting into the I mean when you go back and look at the original contract I think that's why this was always intended this aspect of it to happen in the summer right when the school is essentially at it minimal capacity right you don't have all the kids the staff in the building like sure we got our summer staff and some smaller but it's just very different so as that transition kind of phase happened the intent was it for it to be during the summer I mean where that was three two three years ago now at this point, you know. So, no, it's just a little bit different getting active energy from the pole in a transformer through an inverter with solar
070to massive amount of energy storage. Yeah. So, there's I would expect similar delays just hooking up the batteries. Awesome. Yeah. Um, and then I also, um, with regard to end of year, um, I've connected a document in here for you. Um, we've just started putting in some items that, um, we'd be looking to use some endofear funding for just to kind of have a starting point. And I'm um, working on getting some quotes for some of these things. So, I'll have everything attached in there um, just so everyone can kind of start taking a look at this and weighing in um, and we can prioritize some of these items. Just so we have a starting point. This is like our ideal list. We're not committing to any of this query yet. Just like as we
071Yeah. Like just started looking at it. The gator the golf cart like multiple times at this point. I know from last year because I remember sitting in the meeting a gator was bought for the grounds crew. So this would be a gator for like the athletic department. It's a different gator. Yeah. And it's like kind of specifically for like injuries on the field. Like I I can really remember I think it was the Friday night game, right? Like the poor kid on the other team like broke his leg. Did you carry him off the field? Yeah. Well, I held a backpack or something, but like people were literally just carrying the poor kid like to the the family's car and stuff like that. So, um, now that was an extreme circumstance, but you know, I
072just saw Gator. I'm like, I feel like we were through this a bunch of times. Yeah. Um, all right. Sounds good. And that's all I have. Any questions from the board for Julie? Hearing none, we will move into our curriculum instruction and assessment update. Dr. Taylor. All right. So, um, as Danny said, academically, we are full in um, assessment mode. It's craziness. So, um, we've talked about assessment in past meetings. So, um, I really wanted to highlight tonight, um, our mentor program. We, um, have, we have a solid mentor program here. Um, but I started meeting early on with our three mentor coordinators. We have one from each building. GMS is Sandy Ducet, LMS is Caroline Leight, and then CHS is Anna Heling. and we meet monthly. And from the onset, we've been talking about
073the need to make a more robust program to really support our new teachers to keep them to have longevity in our staff and make sure that they're feeling that they're getting what they need in order to make that happen. Um, so we've been making some tweaks to the program and throughout the year, coming up with ideas, brainstorming, talking with our new teachers through we had a new teacher midyear um kind of celebration like getting them together. Yay, you made it through halfway year. How are things going? Getting feedback from them. Um so we have kind of done almost an overhaul of the whole program that will start next year. Um outlining very specific things instead of having for example each month the mentors and mentor coordinators meet with the new teachers in their own buildings.
074But the new teachers when we all came together expressed how awesome it was to meet again cuz they hadn't seen each other since the very first start of the year when we do the new teacher orientation. They were like, "Hey, how are you doing?" You know, so um that led us to you know what we should do themed PD for them together during each month. bring everybody together instead of isolated in their silos because they all have similar needs. They wanted information, more information on assessment, more information on classroom management, more information on behavior, all of those kinds of things. So, we were like, we can do thematic month meetings with them so that they can um get those needs met. And then we did an hour schedule breakdown that's really to meet with their
075mentors that's really focused and many hours in the start of the year and then kind of dwindles down towards the end of the year because the teachers were expressing when we first started we were like oh my gosh how do we navigate power school set up my grade book do this do like those kinds of things are really heavy in the middle in the beginning of the year and up to prepping for parent teacher conferences in November and then it kind of slows down a little bit. So, I just wanted to um let you guys know we're really focused on getting this robust program off the ground so that we are providing our new teachers what they need and then give the three mentor coordinators a shout out for all their work that they've been
076doing with me on doing this because it's been a lot. If you come into my office, I have things splashed of of my whiteboard. It's craziness. Um, so yeah, it's been a real push to make this a really effective program for them. So, we're excited to see it. Now, we're ready to finish the handbook and put a nice bell on it. Like, yes, we're ready to go. So, we have uh this is changing gears a little bit, but we have um standardized testing at the SAS coming up, right? Yes. Um the middle school actually started already science. Yeah. um how long does it take to get like the results from those? So the um last year it was in usually they're you can see them right away um through the dashboard and when I first
077came here the teachers didn't have access to the dashboard. They have access to the dashboard now because like of course they need they all know they have access. Okay. Um we've walked through some of it. I'm going to be doing refreshers too for them because it's been a bit since we've been onto the dashboard, but um they can see it. Last year they held ELA results because the writing was being handscored because it was a brand new assessment. This year it is being scored through the computer with some hand checks to do some checks and balances. They do that every year anyway. So, I haven't seen anything that they're holding ELA results. Um, so we should see them as as they're done. How So, is it is it like No, no, no. I'm not I
078wasn't expecting that. Teacher will. Uh, so is it like AI like that's reading that then if it's Yeah, they do. So, actually, I got to participate in a rangef finding um when they were doing the new writing assessments. So I participated in a group that we looked at. So I did the eighth grade group and we looked at several different student samples. We looked at the rubric. We were calibrating as a group. It had already been done by another group and the scores were interesting. So they do that kind of calibration with several different groups to find this range finding and then they input that data into the AI system that then looks for those things and is it foolproof? No. Um so that's why they have human scorers that will they'll randomly pull a
079few and see how the score did compared to what they would give it. Gotcha. So my actual question from all of that was um have you already set aside time for review with because I know we talked earlier in the year about like teachers needing some time to like actually process some of the information. Um is that I mean have you either scheduled that or is it something that's on the radar to do? So, we won't have time this year um because my last meeting with GMS is tomorrow and we won't have and then the so the way the meeting schedule flows I won't have scores until June. Gotcha. Because the window doesn't close until June 1st and then the um make then it's makeup week till June 6th. So there's not and then we're
080done. the next week. So to try to schedule a data meeting with teachers the last week of school. Good luck. Yeah. Is it something that we can Is it something that we can kind of bring to the beginning of next year though? Oh yes. That will be one of my first things that we do is look at that data um from the spring. You have to that's really the only time that you can because it comes out so late. Mhm. Um, so is there anything uh like with respect to like you know they they've been teaching all year, right? And they've they've kind of seen they have they've had some testing benchmarks already. Um I'm not teacher so I'm asking this question. Is there anything that uh would be like fresh on their minds at
081this point if they were to be reviewing that data now that would be beneficial that we should be at least asking them to sort of like kind of write down or something so that way after they've gone through the summer they have a whole new crop of kids coming in it'll be fresh in their minds. I don't know if that's even beneficial but I'm just kind of curious from a it is it's beneficial to look at. So, I look at the SAS as almost a summitative assessment for your whole year because um especially when you're really truly teaching with standards. If you're really truly teaching with standards, this is like I said, I think I said it in previous board meeting, it's like a oneto-one check to see how your students are doing comparatively to
082the standards and um the state. So which we we won't get that data for till next December. I don't even know. Um so there is benefit in them pulling up the dashboard looking at their class how they did and kind of reflecting on their students growth throughout the year. It's going to be easier next year when we actually have the modulars and interims embedded throughout the year. So that then there is something to compare to. right now there's really not unless they practiced um you know and they threw in a modular here or there an interim um there's not really a way to do that comparison for growth but if you're not using the modular and interims it's really good to have conversation as a curriculum grade level how's our curriculum working good what's not
083good um and then looking at it through the eyes of student growth in where did our students leave us and talking about transitions into the next year. So third grade going into fourth grade, where did they leave third grade in relation to the standards and proficiency levels and having kind of that teachertoteer transition conversation? Here's where they are according to these standards. But are we ever going to be able to do that if they're coming out so late? Um, you can do it in the fall like once they have their classes like that's part of what I can do when I go in and say, "Okay, here's the third grade, fourth grade teachers." So, this will be a fall. It'll be a fall thing that you have. Okay. Yes. That's all I wanted to know.
084Mr. Mitchell, I saw your hand. I don't know if you still wanted to jump in. I was just going to say that we also asked the teachers to collect anecdotal evidence during the testing session just so certain results we kind of had an anchor back to. So for instance, you know, why were math why do we have to perform a math and you go back to the anecdotal evidence of like oh man they faced a lot of fraction questions when you know like just to kind of bring us back and anchor us to the actual testing session to hopefully answer some of the unexplainable things that may appear when we finally get to analyze it. And because as you're saying that By the time we get to it in September, it's not about individual student
085performance, but it's really about curricular effectiveness and the overall program and what's working, what's not. So, it's it's more of a universal. So, we need to have it anchored back to like what was it like that day. Yeah. And it's also too we have to take with a grain. This is the first time third graders are doing this kind of test. That's why again the modulars and the intrums are so important so that it's not testing day and they're like, "What the heck is this?" you know, how do I navigate this? Where do I put the mouse? What am I doing? I don't have a clue, you know. Um, so it just becomes something that's comfortable to them. They're like, "Oh, yeah. I've seen this before." Um, and looking at the different kinds of question
086types. And it was really fun when the state added the narrative to the writing. So, it's completely random. The student could get an informational text, an opinion, or a narrative. Now, and the narrative could be a personal narrative. Tell me about a time that you were a leader. Or it could be um here's the first part of a story. Now, finish it. So, think different. Yeah. It depends on what kind of writer you are. Patterns of like the Easter Bever, right? And if you get the informational, you get the lucky task of reading three texts to then synthesize that information and write about it while my neighbor gets to write a story, you know, and then I might be a really creative writer and I am not good at non-fiction or another person is not
087a good creative writer and needs like is a great non-fiction writer. I'm like, thanks. That's so fun to do that to us. And we've been giving a lot of I mean I'm a quiet person. I don't say anything. Just kidding. Um I've given a lot of feedback to the state um on this in terms of the writing test becomes a reading test because if they can't read the reading material, then it's not a true assessment of their writing ability. Um, so every time I look at our writing scores, I always take that into consideration because it's not a fair assessment. They have been taking these things under advisement because I'm not the only one that tells them this about possibly looking at incorporating a video. I don't know, but I'll we'll see what happens. Awesome.
088Thank you. Now, any other questions? No. All right. Sliding into our approval of public minutes. I'll entertain a motion to approve our April 16th public minutes. So moved. Is there a second? Second. All right. Any revisions, questions, comments? Hearing none. All in favor, please. We have roll call. Matt, I. Uh Dan, I. Andrew, I'll abstain. Okay. And I'm an I. So that passes 301. moving into new business GMS project. Um I see we have a needs assessment presentation from Mr. Mitchell. Yeah, I'll jump in a little bit at the end, but um Dan's going to go over this is uh the same little tweaks, but essentially the same presentation we did at the facilities improvement committee, right? Um and at the end just some additional notes and stuff like that. I changed the font on
089you ever so slightly, so don't be freaked out. Oh, you did? I feel like he's done this presentation so many times he probably doesn't even need the font. Yeah, there was two different fonts and it was driving me nuts. So, I had to like I go through all of my documents at work doing that. No, everything's going to be this font. I don't care which one. Just pick one. That's Google's fault cuz I mean this is just a whoever is it was driving me nuts. There you go. We all have our things. All right. So, um this is B again basically what I presented a few weeks back uh ago to FIC which basically just lays out um in general the educational considerations um when we're thinking about the needs of GMS. And so I
090started with a little bit of a history lesson and I do admit that some of these dates may be a little bit off because some of them are based on when bonds are passed and some of them were based on it's basically construction. Um but you also notice that um almost all of it was done well before I was born. So, um, generally the what makes up Griffin Memorial School is, um, you have the original 30s building, which is no longer in use, but still part of the building. And then from there, um, you had three rooms in 1958, another two rooms in around 1962, another four rooms, library, gym, main office area in 1973. Uh, during this time there was actually two different buildings. There was an in two different buildings. And then in
0911978 they added six rooms cafeteria gym that connected the two buildings. And then 1983 they added uh the three buildings uh the three rooms onto the front. That kind of completes the main building that is that is GMS. Um then on around 2010 they added the two pack portable and then in 2018 with the in with bringing in um full day they brought in the fourpack portable. So that now we have the full concept of the building that is Griffin Memorial School. So, um, there are some key dates in history that I brought up, um, that all happened between 1953 and today. So, in 1975, the Individual Disabilities Education Act was passed. Um, the American with Disabilities Act was passed in 1973. Then the government did nothing with it. But in 1977, they were like,
092we really should do something about this. And then in 1990, they were like, we really should extend this. And that's when 504 um the application of the of 504 um went across all workplaces and school settings. Um and then in 2023, the New Hampshire legislature uh passed uh the screening intervention for dyslexia and related disorders requirement. The reason why I bring those three things and obviously there were many others, but these three pieces of legislation are really what has driven um small group and individual instruction. So it expanded the thought of the classroom out from that class with 20 to 30 kids with one teacher and that's how instruction education happened and really moving more into uh personalized learning and personalized needs. And with personalized learning and personalized needs means a rethinking of the educational
093space. So all of that happened after the design and building with the exception of the three classrooms that are right at the front of the building. So GMS was designed before all of these things. that went into place. So, um, now to just basically break down the educational impacts and the condition of GMS, I've broken it down into a few categories. So, um, the f the first one I'll talk about is the lack of a core. Um when I talk about a core if you look at most modernly designed schools and in fact whenever you talk about uh Campbell we always talk about the what the core was designed for and it's always that 600 number that the core was designed for 600 and the core is that space in which everything else kind of
094grows from and when you design a core you design that core so that those services that any student can or may need to access are somewhat centralized. We do not have that GMS and so that lack of core um creates long distances to receive those support services. Um and then also many of those services are integrated or connected and without having them in a core space, we're again creating um unnecessary space and distance. So usually that core, not only do you have everything close, but then it's usually equidistant. Everything else in the building is equidistant to that core. So we're talking main office, we're talking related services. We're talking nurse. Oftentimes, we're even talking about gym cafeteria, specials. Those are all kind of equidistant. Currently what we have is a long walk for a first
095grader who by the way is usually expelling some sort of fluids to get to the nurse's office or in case of a response of emergency the nurse getting to that first grade. If a student is receiving related service specifically OT and PT that is by the main office that is a long walk and that's lack of u that's loss of instructional or impact time um due just to kind of transportation um and then also it just creates unnecessary spacing. So often times you take you talk about related services that especially at the younger time um students who receive OT may not necessarily also receive say speech but it's beneficial that many times if a student is receiving OT um that they can receive speech at the same time because those services can build on each
096other. Right now those spaces are so far apart that it just doesn't make sense. one person is usually operating out of their general space in order to do that. Speech tends to move a little easier than OT just because of of equipment wise, but again, if you have that core space and that core service, then all those things can happen a bit more naturally. Um, second thing is inadequate spaces. Um, I just focused on a few. Obviously, I know many people could have opinions and I'm not even brushing the surface of inadequate spaces, but I think the two that I wanted to highlight the most um are our main office. Our main office is not centrally located, but interiorly located. Uh if any of you have had the joy of being in my office and
097you've also had the joy of going on a cruise in an interior cabin room, the feel is the same. You don't know what's going on outside once that door is closed. that is great for privacy. It is not ideal for supervision um and security purposes. Also, even our main office itself does not have a direct line of sight to the outside aside. It's kind of crazy like the more I've thought about this, a parent reached out to me, not just differently, but about an issue and then just got my mind kind of thinking because they asking question about dismissing their child from elementary school and stuff and so I've just been noticing it when I've been over there like there's significant space between the vestibu for the parent for any person coming into the building
098and the front office. A lot of bad things can happen in that space right there. And you know, you look at the high school as an example. You get into that vestibu, there's a window right there, right? Like you have to kind of talk to someone. Same thing has happened at my kids's elementary school. Like I'm in a vestibu talking to someone. I put my ID up right to that window there to show that I'm the parent picking up my kid. And we don't have that. Now, I think we're fortunate that it's a good community and it's a close community and people know each other and all that type of stuff, but like the more I see that, the more I'm like, that is that's rough. Yeah. Like that's rough. So, I I I'll give
099you a perfect anecdote today. Um, as everyone knows, we had about an hour there where the school was technically in what call a shelter in place. It was a soft shelter in place. Um, we knew that the events of town were happening distance, but the police also put us in shelter in place. So, the place where I put myself, the best position I found myself to to kind of keep security of the school was um in a random chair in the hallway by the main door. I wasn't in my office. So, I was away from my computer. I was away from from telephone. I I just basically had my cell phone away like I had to I'm calling his office phone. Yeah. No one's picking up because of that, right? But the best line of
100sight that I could create to basically know what was going on in the outside world, also keep eyes on the portable and any motion that was happening outside was in the random the lobby, the hallway. I mean, that was the assessment that I made that this is probably after I did a surveillance of making sure all exterior doors were secure, which by the way is a long walk to sure that all exterior doors are secure was to kind of position myself there. It's good for line of sight. It was good for observation. It was not good for kind of function. So that's kind of what that that lack of core um also inadequate spaces. Um we've just kind of made do with what we've had again built prior to all of those all of that
101legislation. So now what you you have is is converted spaces and we're going to get to a little bit more specifically but now we have what we call the J Suite which is the student service suite. That is three student service people in a carved out space that is the equivalent of onethird of a classroom. And so how they provide the services is they've created kind of an anti- room space that they all share their computer and then there's kind of two small rooms. These are our kids that are in the most need obvious often in their most vulnerable state and we don't really have what I consider adequate private or confidential space um for them for them to service. If you've been in the other two schools and can think of the counseling suite
102in both their respective schools now we're talking bigger bodies. So that's part of the the larger space but there's a lot of privacy space in those capacities because of the nature of the work that's got being done that frankly just doesn't exist. They do a great job with the space they have, but it's I mean high school is really big. That's a little different battle because of the college planning and and stuff going in. But just think of a middle school and they have two counselors sharing a wonderful space that's that's properly like done in a common space and the more private spaces where here at the elementary school, our most vulnerable students, if we're being honest, are in a much much more challenging space. And then you take your vulnerable educational learners. You have
103four case managers sharing one space that is the equivalent of twothirds of a classroom. You have three speech language pathologist that is sharing the other third of that classroom. Um this isn't an ideal learning space. Um and it's not ideal for so often times what happens is you're either in a space that's not ideal for learning or they take those services and they do them elsewhere and that's often times in the hallway. And I just want to to be honest with you, that is not the level of privacy that those students deserve is to receive a student to receive services with a case manager in the hallway that is basically open for anyone to see. Yeah. And just to put like a number on this because I was trying to think of a good number
104to try and explain this, the four case managers in one room that if you think about a smaller room too, it's not even a normal classroom size. We have a uh that these case managers are servicing about 25 stu as 25 excuse me 75 students that these these case managers are are doing. So our special need size there in that room is 75 students getting service out. Think about if you had a classroom with 75 kids in it. Now granted this is special. They're not all in there at the same time. They're coming and going. They're coming and going. Coming and going. But no way would we find it adequate if we had 25 kids in a classroom let alone 75. Right? Like, so we got to kind of think of that special ed capacity.
105I mean, these are are kids that need the most support. They should be in a space that that is their space that they're not sharing with 74 of their peers, right? Maybe sharing with some of their peers, but not that many. And for those adults who are working with all these kids in the most like needy programs, that is just that that's just not not okay. And I know people know that, but just like that's a number to it that I think people have to kind of think about. we wouldn't accept 75 kids in a classroom, right? Why are we doing that with special ed? So, and so that puts you into so you you either settle for that or to rectify that you move to other spaces which I don't think anyone would consider
106ideal learning spaces which are hallways, al coes, cafeteria during a lot of lunch times. um stage the stage. Yeah. So, I I have a question about this because, you know, thinking about it, sometimes when we're talking about these things, people are if they're if they're not really grasping the educational impact of it, they're they're thinking about it from a financial perspective. And so, uh, you know, correct me if I'm wrong, but when we're talking about special services, we're providing those special services with the hope of helping these students get to the place where they're not needing, you know, hopefully that's the goal is to get them off of special services. The goal should always in special education is eventually to get you off of your, right? And so, we know by looking at our budgets
107that special services are a huge line item, right? So if we're more effectively able to deliver those things, we stand a better chance at getting kids to where they need to be sooner, therefore saving Yeah. And I I'll give a very personal example myself, right? Like I was identified as a young student, right? Like I I was identified for speech and language, right? And I was in a really big elementary school. I would have private speech, right? Not shared in any other spaces, nothing like that. And eventually I was able to be discharged from special education which would lessen the amount of money that like was attached to me as a student, right? Which saved the district money because I got adequate services when I was a young kid. And like just a note, disabilities
108don't go away. If like you pay attention, you can hear my disability at times or my word choice. I stay away from certain sounds and stuff like that. So but that is like how the system should work. like we should always be working to like discharge a child from special education. And if you want to just think from a dollars and cents, if we are discharging students at a higher rate from education, we are saving the district money. So there there is there is a direct cost benefit potentially of I mean it's not just something that we should be doing. We should be doing this because the kids deserve it. Go back since 1973. We're legally obligated to. Well, we're legally obligated to, but like someone might argue that, oh, well, we're, you know, well,
109we're giving it to them. So, you know, whether it's effective, you know, whether we're doing in the most effective means, like I mean, I personally believe that we should be doing in the most effective means regardless. But if you want to look at it truly from just a cost perspective, like there there is potential for cost savings if we can deliver these things effect more effectively. Okay, I can't Where did I leave off? Sorry, move. I think I kind of covered that in kind of. So, um I want to talk about the classrooms a little bit because when you when you talk about our classrooms, um just based on blueprints and square footage, um most of them meet the mark for general square footage. Um however, again, designed for um times past as opposed to
110times present and future. The it's really more about the setup and the layout. um they were not set up with flow in mind. They were not set up with 21st century skills in mind. They were set up as they were set up for a classroom that was with you call it the sage on the stage, the teacher in the front and the rows of students. In addition to that, just general architectural design. Um and again, these are things I'm not saying this is just things we need to address. Um the lighting is terrible and lighting is not ideal for learning. um the flow of the classroom, whereas you can create small group space and other areas and opportunities to learn. Those don't exist. And then just operationally, most of these rooms, even though they have
111the square footage, they also don't factor in um any type of storage, whether student or classroom storage. And so that's eating away the so we've had to supplement with usually the large armwire style wheeled closets um stacked bins um large cubbies and then also a lot of it is moved out into the hallway in form of lockers which okay it takes out of the classroom but remember whereas are also optional educational spaces in the hallways so we're we're we're doubling up there. Um, so a lot of that stuff is also eating out. In addition to that, a number of the new the rooms also lose a lot of square footage to rather large HVAC contraptions. Um, and it becomes useless space because you you can't sit on a on a radiator. You can't even stack
112things on a radar. It just becomes a big chunk out of the floor plan um that is just um not used. So, oh, in addition to there are just a few rooms that have temporary walls. And if you've ever been in a first second grade classroom, temporary walls. I mean, it's a nice thought, but it ain't doing much, you know. Um, so, um, and then there's a a term that I learned throughout this whole process called, uh, functional obsolescence. What just means is that it's not doing what it was built for. Um, there are some key there. Our nurse's office is not a nurse's office. It is a functionally obsolete um boys locker room. Um the storage in there is a shower. If you want to come visit, I'll show you exactly where the drain
113has been cement capped. Um it has a inadequate bathroom. It has inaccade private space because of course it was designed to be a locker room, a middle school boys locker room. So, we have nothing that is designed to be a nurses space. One of our special services, special um education spaces was designed as a middle school um science lab. It makes a great actually large space and we've used it in my 5 years. It's been a resource center housing tutors. It has been a preschool classroom. Um and it is now a a specialized program. We've made good use of it. It's designed as a science lab. One of our preschool classrooms now um was designed as a science lab. It the network room is actually housed there and it's connected to the library. It was
114built intentionally as a computer lab. Now that we no longer have computer lab because we've evolved into the set program where it's more into the classroom because that's where the devices are. We now have this space that we can use it as a classroom. But I'll also tell you if you go back to the the general flow and layout of the building, it makes no sense. It it's an island of a room. Um because it's just kind of right there at the middle at the intersection there. It's kind of no neighbors. So, we needed another room for preschool. It doesn't make sense cuz it's far away from the other preschool classroom that's out in the Tupac portable, but we had a space and we could use it. Um I do want to go back actually
115a little or maybe I'm already getting to it. Oh, no. I'm coming to it next. Um, let me see. So, yeah, the main office originally designed as an overflow kind of extra educational space. Um, OT was a multi-purpose room or I may have that backwards, sorry. Um, and then we've just kind of cut and carved. So, we have a lot of spaces that um are serving a purpose, but it wasn't their intended purpose. So that means we're making good use of space. But anything that I just named that is using those spaces means that we don't have a designed space for that. So we don't have a space that is designed to serve the purpose of a nurse elementary nurse's office. We're using the locker room. We don't have an intentionally designed main office. We've
116used an overflow classroom. We don't have an intentionally designed OT PT space. We've used an overflow classroom. We don't have an intentionally designed speech and language pathology room. We use a third of a room quarter cutout, you know. So, because we're we have this functional obsolescence, it also means that we have places that don't have an intended purpose. If we had if we had an intended main office, you don't move that main office. If you have an intended nurse's office, then you don't need to use another space from the nurs's office. We have spaces that we no longer function as what they were designed for, so we had to use them for something different. Going on to just the general design and layout of the school, I jokingly refer to it as the sprawling ranch.
117I mean, that's that's what it is. It's it's a sprawling ranch that you just keep going. um it kind of creates two different issues uh response and maximization. So response obviously just think about where the nurses and the main offices and your the J Suite the the student service suite that is your cluster your core of response personnel. If a classroom is calling for a response, 80% of that response is coming from the nurse, myself, Mora, one of the Jay's or perhaps one of our specialized service providers. So 90% of that is at that main office. It is a long walk if we're get being if we're getting called down to the third near the 30s building. Um, again going back to the lack of core services, if you have if you have a properly
118designed core, then everything is equidistant. So it doesn't matter what classroom is calling. If I'm in my office, it should be close to the same amount of time no matter what room it's in. Right now, we have that long sprawling ranch. So our response times are limited based on that geography. That's also nurses both ways. And I'll remind you, it's an elementary school. I'll just say it. That's a long walk for a kid holding a barrel to get all the way to Miss Alex's room. Um, so it's not just about response and getting to them. It's also for them accessing the services. A child in crisis, no matter how big or small, it's a long walk to get to the J Suite. Um and again I'll go back to just today part of our protocols
119when we go into shelter place as soft or as not is is that we we put the school into a shelter in place. Today was a soft I called it a soft shelter in place. I know that word doesn't exist but that was kind of it was just like let's get everyone in and just stay away from the outside. But part of that protocol is also just ensuring that all the exterior doors are in fact secure. So, it's it's a long walk to, you know, go and just kind of tug on all nine of our exterior doors. It's a long walk to kind of get back. Ideally, core service, equal walk, and you can maximize that. So, the response time is obviously limited by this the long um the sprawling range. And as you talked
120to me today about because when we were looking at this and at some point kindergarten had to transition to specials in the building you know and you know we're talking on the phone like well this is what Dan's like this is what I'm going to do because there's going to be a time frame with those kids are outside coming into the building right and again today the issue was far far away from schools we were on the super side of precaution of going into these shelter and places but as an example our most vulnerable youngest kids are not in the building right like so we're taking those kids if this was a more severe safety situation, right? They have no access to the like if we truly had the shelter in place in our respective
121buildings, right? There's no nurs's office for them. There's no main office for those kids. They are literally in a building upon themselves, our youngest kids, right? Now, you can say, "Oh, we'll put fourth grade in there." You want to put fourth grade by themselves either. Like, you don't want to do that with any of your elementary school. Well, we have bath those are the ones that have bathrooms. They have bathrooms, but what happens if the kids isn't that Isn't that a requirement though for the kindergarten? What do don't they have to have bathrooms in the Well, preschool does. Yes. And then they do. But let's say one of those kid, let's say they're just having class, right? And they bumped their head and now they're bleeding, right? But we're in a shelter in place. If
122we're in a more severe situation, we're stuck, right? Like we can't get to get that kid to safety. Now, we would figure it out in a in a real real situation, but like that's not great. Well, I was just asking that because it's not even really an option to move fourth grade in there, right? because the the bathroom situation is what dictate is one of the things that dictates what grades are in there, right? Yeah. Um I mean, yes. Um preschool needs a dedicated bathroom. They don't necessarily need a classroom in a bathroom in the classroom. So, it's not it's not an easy onetoone swap. Is that a hand raised by Andrew? I don't know what that was. No, he um he had to get off. Jump off. Oh, okay. All right. Um see that
123was response. Um, and then just when you get to maximization, I kind of already uh referred to it too, which is that because of that long flow, there is a lot of lost learning time due to travel. Um, and not just for special, it's a long walk for a student who receives speech language OTP or special education. It's also a long walk uh for first grade to get to art or PE. Um not so much as music. I mean music is probably academically I would say that music and library are probably the most centrally located but it it is that long walk is that loss of of of maximizing learning opportunity because of just travel from again the long sprawling ranch. Um, I always started this by GMS is a living artifact and a testament
124to the growth of the town. You know, as the town grew, so did GMS. You know, oh, we got 30 more families here. Let's add three more rooms. Oh, we got 50 more families in Lichfield. Let's add five more. And it's just this it it was it it's a it's a testament to Yankee ingenuity um and frugality. Um, but because of that, it was built in response to the needs with very little intentionality to the design. And so because of that, that's where we're at. Um, now again, as I said, even FIC, can all of these be addressed? Maybe, maybe not. Are all of them insurmountable? No. Um, can we live with some and not all? Absolutely. This is just really just kind of a fact-based presentation on what life is like at GMS on
125a daily basis. So, and I know Brian added a few more slides just about a little bit more on this. So, this is kind of extended out of FIC. So, one of the things that we did and Dan match up at any point um is create this kind of uh needs matrix. I won't go through every single line here, but we took the needs of the building, the physical needs of the building, things that need to be improved on. Everything on this list in lines 2 through 89, there's a nice long scroll here. Um, are the things identified within the most recently the on-site insight report of repairs that have to be done within the next 20 years to the building for it to be to be functionable. Um, and so that's what all these
126kind of lines in white are. And then we expanded upon that even some more on some things that for example using the counseling suite the J suite that Dan kind of mentioned there's nothing necessarily physically wrong with that space the walls are standing right like the doors lock and work and stuff like that but so it's not going to show up in the on-site insight report something that needs a repair but it is an inadequate space so this kind of um looks yellowish on the bigger screen there but it's orange on on the computer are kind of the additional things that if we look at a project that we would want to prioritize in some level um as part of this like making that core kind of kind of situation some things are less of
127a priority right like we were an FIC and we talked about prioritizing this list I've just put the raw list here for for this purpose right now um is the gymnasium for example the gym doesn't necessarily need a redesign right it's probably one of the lowest things on the set of orange in a perfect world though like I think the gym could use a redesign, you know, like if if we had all the money in the world and we could do anything we wanted, I think that would be one of the things that we could look at doing. But as we prioritize, I would 100% say the support suite expansion would be above the gym redesign, stuff like that. So, we took this this list, FIC did a good job with this list, we outranked
128it, and we come up with kind of uh kind of our top things. And so, this is going to be when we we're going to get into the RFPs here uh next. That's the type of of things that we're going to be giving uh out as part of the RFC process here. The priorities from the committee. We're going to use that list to guide us as we have the conversations with the people doing the design work because what we anticipate through this bigger project. We're going to put this RFP out um and they're going to come back with us with a set of designs and it's going to have a price tag attached to us. And to be frank, I would assume that price tag is going to be too too big, right? And then
129we're going to go back. We're going to look at our prioritized list here. the things in white have to be done. Those are the things we're looking to to to get done, the repair stuff. And then look at our prioritize orange list of going through them one by one and hitting those type of things, right? Um if they, you know, saw gym, I'm again using kind of the most drastic example, gym redesign in there, that probably the first thing that we would kind of kick out like unless it was something that allowed a bunch of those other kind of needs to be met. Um, in terms of just kind of looking at enrollment, because this is kind of a piece to this, uh, kind of runs contrast to talking about K kindergarten earlier, but, uh,
130our current enrollment literally of today is 424 students in preK through 4. If you look three years down the road, and we talked about this way back in budget season, these are the same numbers we used back then, but the projected SY 2728 enrollment, so three school years down the road, would be 468 students preK through 4. There's two significant things really. One significant thing that is driving this is an expected COVID baby bump. If you look at the birth rate in Lichfield um for 21 like the 202122 window, particularly not next school year, but projecting out the following two school years, we'll see we should mathematically see an increase in kindergarten enrollment because just more babies were born in town in those years. And that's um kind of universal um everywhere because co or
131else 2728 is only two years away. We're talking elementary, not high school science right now. Biolog baby bump to arrive. Now, there are new developments in town and just for transparency, we have seen minimal impact on our on our enrollment from these new developments at this point. Um, so when we we are tracking as kids come in and out of the district, lining up with those neighborhoods that have been built and addresses that have been built, we have seen a little increase, but nothing that would drastically affect class size. But that baby bump, we could like we could be seeing, you know, a kindergarten class a couple years down the road that's in the 90s compared to the kindergarten group that we have right now, which is at 73 74 kids right now. Well, I
132mean, we're projecting for 27 28, right? But as Dan mentioned before, every iteration of this building has been just, oh no, we didn't plan for this. Let's add something on, right? And so you have to start thinking smarter like on things like we need to. We don't know. I everyone there's big debate over population and whether it's going to increase or decrease. I can't imagine that over the long haul that we're going to be served by the school that population is not going to increase. but to to sort of like put all our eggs in the basket of well hopefully it's not going to increase and we're gonna we're going to plan for no increase in in population and you know we're going to plan for no change in needs of students and stuff like
133that. We're making the same mistake as we've made in whatever those years were that you put up there that for some reason I still can't remember after all this participation. 1958, 1962, 1973, 1978, 1983. So, I mean the I guess with the needs matrix um I will send out a new one because I have one where it has prioritization by a lot of members on the FIC and the school staff like beyond just mine. Yeah, I knew that. I didn't we didn't prep them that we're going to show that. So, I stayed I didn't want to put anyone's priorities on the spot without them knowing. So, yeah. Well, it's it was collected and it's a part of the stuff. I don't remember if I have it on the drive or if it's on my computer.
134Um, so there is that. The the one thing I did want to highlight lines 2 through 89 is like only the first four or five years from on-site insight report. It's not the ent total 20-year plan. Um, so I think if anything when we go forward we highlight to whoever we talk to about, hey, this is just what they said the first five years coming up. Um, the Yeah, I mean, and Matt's exactly right is we got to stop doing a, you know, we we have to stop doing something out of dramatic need and start doing intentional intentional updates, right? Um, and it may not like this first bump may not look like, hey, we're not going to get a whole lot, but it sets the stage for intentional redesign and revamping of the system
135in the school. And just to kind of sum, Dan touched on a lot of this, but put some numbers um here. I left out things such as the nurses and counseling, but classrooms is kind of what like I'm trying to look at here. and like the like the numbers of classrooms we have 25 classrooms which is okay for the number of kids we have but it's okay for that current number of 424 right like if and this is these are projections these are projections right like but if we added another 40 kids and you're spreading that out over over five grades that's like eight kids per grade and really you're not going to put eight in prek you know you're going to put three or four in prek and possibly like 10 kids up there
136like spread out uneven or you're going to have that bubble here where you're going to have a kindergarten with 90 plus kids where you could be looking at six classrooms that you need for that now cohort as they kind of come through at least those early grades and stuff like that. So we're at capacity now with these numbers when it turns in classroom. Um, now we'll be okay next year. Like we we believe we're going to be okay next year. But as this COVID bubble kind of comes along and if that becomes a plateau and not a spike, like we're going to be in serious trouble when it comes to classrooms. And you know, Unified Arts, they have learning spaces. And I think it's wonderful that that only set really is the on a cart.
137So you say, you know, they don't have a set, no pun intended, but no set classroom for set. Um, and but that actually makes sense because due to the nature of the unified art and so we're fortunate that we're not having to put music and and art on wheels, you know, and utilize that class because you don't want to do that, you know, but ideally set would have a space to where it could really thrive into something if it had a a maker space type environment. And I also I should mention too and I it it's I can't say it as a priority but we are really bumping up against federal um employment law when our mail room has a table and that's where we put our employment um our mandatory employment flyers up and
138we call that our staff room like there is by employment law there's supposed to be you know a dedicated staff space. So the has the owner has a table and a poster on the wall and that's our you know I mean using set as the example we're going to hire potentially hire a teacher later on for set please today. Um and you know through the interview process she talked about how um she wants to utilize um age appropriate but like robotics for kids as part of this this work right and we think about the Lego League program we have at the elementary school and then continuing at the at the middle school and then eventually the the first program at the high school. If elementary had a dedicated space for that, like that that frankly
139that's where all this is going anyways is that kind of robotic realm of stuff like that, we could really make those programs do awesome stuff. Like that's that's where education is headed. And like we don't have that maker space type of room down at the elementary and we do at the other buildings and look at the benefits of it, you know, like our robotics team which has that space at the high school is winning awards now, you know, like so like if we can do that like our kids will rise to it and it will increase the the what we're doing educationally for everybody. We do great things. I mean, our test cords could be better, but they're still in a good place. We do all these things not because of the space, but in
140spite of the space. Yeah. So, I just have one question on this slide, Brian. Oh, sorry. Um, on that slide, it's the title's classroom and learning spaces needed, and it looks like you're showing what you currently have. Yeah. Is there is that what you need or is that I probably shouldn't have called this. Yeah, I probably should have just said current and not needed. That was a maybe a bad slide labeling on my behalf there. But I wanted to kind of make that comparison to where our enrollment is right now and then what we're kind of projecting and that we're kind of like there again you're dependent on what eventually kind of walks in. But you're tight in the classroom right now. Like if if next year we're not obviously by our case science, but
141if this bubble was coming in next year where there's still a big group like that third grade group is big, right? Like if you get two bubble groups in at the building at the same time, you're really up a creek there, right? Like you don't have We can we can handle three classes being at five, right? No. So we have a fourth go at five. Someone's going on a car somewhere. Yeah. I completely understand. I just wanted to make sure that I was reading this right. Right. Compared to the title and everything that that's all. But yes, I we've had this conversation of where essentially it's at capacity today. Yeah. If you want to get rid of the portables, that's a if if I mean, if you want to get rid of the portables, the
142the building itself is at minimum nine classroom spaces short. Right. Yep. And that doesn't even address any of the other, you know, functional obsolescence, intentional design. Um, and you know, I'm going to ask this because I can hear Ron yelling it from his house. Does that include the 30s building? No. No, that that's not utilizing the 30s building. You're welcome, Rob. No, again, I'm I'm saying we don't use utilize the 30s building if we want to get rid. Now, I'm not saying that we can't somehow redesign to utilize the 30s building. Currently, we cannot use it. So, the usable space is at minimum at minimum not ideally at minimum nine learning spaces. And help me walk through because people are like there's six out there and now there's nine, right? Yeah. Like cuz we're we
143would be doing this purposely, right? Like if we're taking the step and we're not committing to getting rid of the portables, but just using this as like the example. If you're making that commitment to get rid of the portables and to put everybody underneath the same roof. Yes. You're going to take the six classes that are out there that do that. If you're doing that work, you're going to help with I would imagine special ed. Correct. So six so six are the are the classrooms outside. Uh seventh is dividing just adding one special ed room so you can divide that in two. Um that is seven. Eight is giving set an a dedicated space and nine is technically um either one one of two things. One you can utilize a speech OT combined center or
144we can design a smaller classroom but right now again we don't have any staff room because that's a design space. So that's that's your ninth room. So even with that, you're kind of you're generously you're conservatively at nine. You're really at 10 or 11. So just kind of roll that into number two here. You know, um we've talked about FIC, you know, put the recommendation forward to to kind of continue to pursue a project here to address the needs of GMS. Uh I'm going to say renovation to just kind of cover a really big umbrella right now because this is not a new build and it's not just systematically repair things one by one. So renovation can mean a lot of different things. We talked about FIC different that you know additions reconfiguring schools all
145those type of things. For simplicity sake of right now our discussion I'm just saying renovation covering a big umbrella and that's going to take us to our RFP. So, Julie's been working on this. Um, she's been pulling different sample RFPs from different recent projects kind of here around the state. Um, our attorneys are also pulling some RFPs for us. We explained to us the our project that we're looking to do. So, they're helping us with some language and some examples that would be kind of along those those lines. Um, I was hoping to get those today, but I didn't have them, but I should have them by the end of the week. Um, and I apologize for that. And then just at the very very bottom is the current draft that that Julie's kind of
146working on for an RFP. Rough draft. Very rough draft. Um, and it's kind of pulling the languages here of some of these different hybrid kind of projects to kind of put an RF an RFP together. I'm going to also kind of roll into number three here, which is which is the timeline. Because we talked about last meeting trying to to at least get wrap our heads around like a timeline. This is in draft form. Don't commit to any of these dates. But our idea here, putting these three things together, is at the next board meeting, use some of these example RFPs here, use the the advice of our attorneys, um the work that we're doing, is to present you all an RFP that we would then hopefully after the next meeting put out um to
147bid for people to bid on and stuff like that, agencies and stuff like that. Um so, while you're looking at those sample RFPs, I'm going to kind of at the same time talk about this timeline. It's actually done in reverse. So the very first line on the timeline is voting date next year, right? Like that's if we're going to take this to vote um you know next March, well that's the last date. So working backwards from there, how can we get there? So this timeline kind of highlights um just very very brief bullets um thinking both budget and this project estimates at this point like using our actual dates of like what this could look like to get this to vote next year. So obviously you would need your entire budget, but specifically there's Warren
148article with a proposal for our deliberative session next year. These are the two potential deliberate session dates. We haven't picked one yet, but um let's say for argument sake, it's the first. Can I just real quick ask you, so with the voting day warrant article with proposal, are we talking about a a proposal for like an actual school? I mean, that's what we were thinking when we put this timeline together, right? And what and because I think what we discussed last time is like is this possible, right? And like this what we're trying to represent in this timeline is well these are the dates we need to start hitting, right? Like if we're going to to pull this off by next March, right? This is great. And we'll see if we start hitting them, right?
149So, um I'll go backwards and then back up top. You got to get it to deliberative so everyone uh can see it and kind of go from there. That first meeting in January would be kind of when we have the final budget and and uh warrant proposals, including this proposal at a board meeting going over with everybody what it is. And that's kind of like a last date that's similar to what we did this year at one point in January one last it was later this past year, but we're hoping year two we can do this stuff sooner and have that kind of final meeting with everything uh the first week in the first meeting in January. I would anticipate at that point we're having some sort of bond hearing in that Decemberish range, you
150know, right? I don't know the specific date that probably dependent on attorneys and and everything that would kind of come along with that. But if you kind of go back um even further here, we'd be looking at probably a school board meeting uh then schoolboard meeting, second one in November to deal with all the nonGMS warrant articles and kind of finalize them. I feel like again we worked through everything this fall. I knew we were we were later and I I'm going to chalk that up to us all being new. We already have ideas what we're going next year. We're going to do the same pattern of stuff that we did this past year when we talk about putting stuff in reserve funds and um maybe some of the um position stuff that didn't pass
151this year so on and so forth. We know we're going to have an LEA well knock on wood. We'll have an LEA agreement as a war article so on and so forth. Um and then we know we have to get the proposed budget in uh by Wednesday, October 29th. um my daughter's ninth birthday, so I'll be extra motivated to get it done by that day. Um but again, we're going backwards here. I think we need to have a proposal of work to the board for you to approve by no later than October 1st. You know, that gets us an idea of a number, right, that we would be putting on the ballot as we're also working on our budget for next year because I don't think we can do these two things independently, right? Like
152I just the reality if we're going to put multi-million dollar building proposal as a warrant article, we need to not also put a high budget out there at the same time, right? Like these two things have to be in general. We might have to sacrifice a little in the short term from a budgetary standpoint when we're working with people in developing a budget because we have this larger item that that we're doing. So we need to be doing these two things kind of concurrently. So, we can have a proposal for you by that October 1st. And again, none of these are kind of concrete yet, but we're just trying to think about um what what makes sense from a timeline. There'd be another meeting in October that maybe it's not by the 1. It could
153be the 15th is when it is, but that's what we got to start shooting for is these type of dates. Um so, we would kind of put that probably initial proposed project in your hands at probably the second meeting in September. We've got the year kicked off. you'd have that first meeting September really we're a week into the school year just continuing to get things kicked off but now it's to get to to the to the work that is at hand here going back we really need to get an RFP out leave that open for probably about a month of time so we can put some stuff in front of the board start doing the work you know that that meeting we have July 9th um like as in the summer there schoolboard meeting right
154before like it's the summer but it's really kicking off summer and it allows us the summer to work with the person we select company group at this point discovery work to go back and forth to finalize a proposal like we need to do that in that August July August um early September window so when the school year really hits we're now like have a real idea whether this is going to happen six months down the road in March and start introducing people to the ideas at that point hopefully have like a rough number you know and we're not doing this when I say we I mean the SA we're not doing this in isolation of people, right? Like FIC is going to meet over the summer, the board will meet over the summer, right? I
155haven't highlighted every single school board meeting here that um but those would be kind of important markers if we're our goal is to get this done in March. It's a big push, but it's possible, right? So, yeah, I mean I I think the biggest thing to highlight, right, is it's going to be constant collaboration, communication with whoever we work with, right? Right. to get that to get a two-month schedule done for design, right? Essentially is what we're asking. We're asking for them to help us with all the pre-discovery to um I'll say finalize and finite what those other items are for the educational needs and what that means, right? Redesign J. Great. What about that design? Right? So that's where we would need their help and and and I you guys have a lot of
156good ideas but right that RFP is going to come down from the architect side of what specifically needs to change to make that happen. Um it that needs to happen in like two months. I've also that with that architect one thing that's missing from the on-site insight that they haven't done the on-site insight said that that needs to be fixed that needs to that's passed life. No one has come in and said that's worth fixing or you know like so we need we need a usability assessment as as part of this work. I mean we know we know with certainty that there's certain things that they wouldn't replace in kind. Right. Right. Exactly. The one question I have though until we get someone who actually has the right letters after their name to tell us
157that you know. Right. It's not going to be the right letters the right tools in their truck. Yeah. It helps if they have the right letter. Uh the one thing I'm I'm curious about is when we talk about uh proposed budget deadline, are we talking proposed budget as in guaranteed maximum price at that point? Because I will say that this on the October 29th is our budget like our normal for next year when we have to get it to budget committee and share it and whatnot. But so we would need a guaranteed maximum price. I think we need to have that before we finalize the budget. Right. So like I would hope you know when I say proposal approved by the school board on October 1st there that's that number that that's a I mean
158that's fast it's a very fast and you know Heidi you were asking this question like is this possible? I don't know like we're going to put this out for bid and we'll see and we might get laughed at and say there's no way because I mean this is just not my area at all. So, it's going to come down to is that whoever we work with has to have availability immediately and they have to provide a dedicated team and then it's going to be a full-time job for them like right out of the gate. And then it's also going to be on our side too, right? Whether it's, you know, Brian, you and your team and Dan, right? It's going to become at the end of the school year a like you guys will probably
159have a second job to do it to to get it. So that that is where my concern comes in. I do think like in that realm, you know, selfishly. Summer is the slower time for us from like an educational standpoint. So if we do need to have a lot of meetings in the months of July and August between, you know, all of us here, you know, Dan's part of that, we're a part of that, whoever else needs to be part of it. So take your place in Ireland. One of the things that um you know the last goound there was a lot of time spent on trying to figure out what the community wanted and like I mean we've done that sort of ad nauseium now. So I think that we can bypass we can
160bypass that. I mean there was there was talk in the FIC about doing a design build situation where I mean when we were talking new construction but um you know there there's potential for very abbreviated uh so there there can be right but I think there's just going to be some stuff that needs to be figured out before they even get on contract. Right. Right. There needs to be a and that to me is going to be the path. Right. There's still a big discussion around rena of some sort or work with what we've got and redistribute. And I think that path when we go into this just needs to be figured out. And whether also the understanding of whoever we hire utilizes what we've already done. We said we didn't want to have someone
161come in and do another piece of study. Yep. pages of that like right the the only thing and this is where like and I'm speaking on the FIC behalf of what keeps coming out the biggest thing that's holding up selecting a singular path is mapping the utilization of the three buildings um I I and this is again I have pushed back pretty hard on the we have to let the education experts tell us what that is. We are the FIC is not in the position to audit that, right? Because I'll take it from a manufacturing engineering standpoint, not from it. What is it used for? Right? There's completely different needs. Um, so I I think we need to be able I I'll say from the FIC, they would be looking for that to be able
162to say if we redistribute the grades throughout the district. What does that look like? Right? Kyle Barker mentioned anything over 75% is utilization of a classroom is you're at max. I as awful as this sounds, that is the number I use for test equipment utilization. If we have a manufacturing line that goes through a piece of test equipment, if that piece of equipment is overutilized than 75%, I'm already putting a budget together to buy another one just because of downtime, planned maintenance, replacement of cables, cleaning, etc., right? So, I I get that concept, but again, apples oranges. Um, but I think if we can answer that through whatever pre-work we do, I think we as a school board have a standing with um, not only the FIC but the budget committee because that that's one
163of the biggest things that Carrie is looking for is what does that utilization look like today with our current enrollment. I know Kyle Barker did something four years ago, but what does that look like today? And Brian, I know that you want to work with the new principal to understand what that looks like with the schedule and I completely agree, right? I don't and I'm not going to oblige by get it next week. It it's just not possible. I mean, we Well, there's a couple things there like when you know, you reached out about someone had reached out about you know what is going to be the room usage next year at the high school, right? And I said that's kind of irrelevant for this discussion because we're not putting any additional grades in the
164high school next year. So, we're going to use the building how we see fit next year, right? Like, if we want to turn this room into a special ed classroom, we are like, if we want to redo this, we are because So, we're doing pieces to build a schedule because we have to build a schedule right now. So, we're not going to screw around with that because the reality is we're opening school next year at the high school at 9 through 12, right? Like, we can't mess around. I've produced, you know, for FIC like what a 7 through 12 would look like on paper without actually like executing like a schedule and a build for that type of stuff, right? And I'm happy to bring that to the board and and do that presentation. So,
165I sent those links out in the agenda, which I just canceled the meeting for tomorrow night. And that's fine because again, this is all we're not putting seventh and eighth grade in the high school next year, right? Like so um it's all like theoretical at this point when in terms of and I'm going to use these two it's important I just want to say like in FIC we've been important to not define this to like just the singular option or just the singular second option but I'm going to explain this as an eitheror and I don't mean to be that's what the final answer is but for simplicity's sake here right you're going to look at a prek through four GMS right and a five through LMS and a 9 through 12 CHS. That's what
166we have right now. You're either going to maintain that or you're not, right? And if you're not going to maintain it and you're going to start reconfiguring grades, what you're going to look at potentially, just for argument sake, is a prek through two, a three through six, and a seven through 12. Three. Those are the three buildings, right? You're going to maintain four grades in the middle of the schools, right? The idea is that you have capacity at the high at CH at Campbell for two more grades, seventh and eighth grade, right? Leaving K through pre-K through two um where where Griffin is right now. And the idea behind that is that like you're going to renovate solely on the footprint at GMS there, right? And then you're going to do renovations at CHS to
167accommodate the seventh and eighth grade coming up. And the question, the million-dollar question I think everyone wants to know is the comparison is if you just do GMS and leave it as a preK through four, you have this X cost for that, right? Whatever the work is associated with it. And if you reconfigure the three schools with the result being 7 through 12 here, knowing you have to renovate, it is unavoidable, people. You have to renovate Campbell if you're going to do this. The SAU hallway and the hallway above it have to be rened. There's not enough classrooms for this right now. There's physical space, but not classrooms, right? You're going to have to reno 7 through 12 and then still ren preK through two. And what's the c what's the y cost of that,
168right? And then you got to think, let's say this is for argument sake 20 million and this is 15 million. I have no idea what the numbers are, but argument sake 20 million, 15 million. Is that $5 million difference worth disrupting now multiple schools, multiple grades, right? Is that the long-term solution? Is that $5 million difference worth the long-term solution? It may or may not. And not just that, you also have to remember you are boxing yourself in up here at 7 through 12, right? You cannot get bigger. Like that will be at capacity that building. Well, and the other piece too is you you said, you know, we're going to disrupt a bunch of education, but it also is changing the education model. Changing the education model, right? And so if we do that
169there there are there's a lot more to it than just now I will say there are plenty of schools and I'm going to look at the upper end first, right? There's 6 through 12 schools and there are 7 through 12 schools, right? Like I've visited a few of them recently. I've been to Sandborn, I've been to Hopkin, you know, Nadox next on the list. Like I've been to different schools that are doing these type of configurations that say very positive things about it, but each of them have said it's very different like that you're going from middle school to junior high from simplicity state and the cuto off has got to be third coming up because what I help me with the saying K through two prek through school two you're learning to read but
170once you hit third grade you read to learn. So you need that different that needs to be where the cut is like if you're going to do that cut. In Hopkinson they kept third grade with the younger kids they say it's a nightmare right like they say like this if we could do it over we would have stuck third up with with the fourth fifth and sixth graders right so so ju just my purview if we went with that second option it's two years of planning before we do anything in terms of of construction and it requires a lot of teacher professional development. Yep. How do you instructionally change what's happening? And and there's costs associated with that. And then the way that I look at construction, right, starting two years, you start with CHS
171because you can't do anything to do that until you get the room at LMS, which in order to get the room at LMS, you're starting at CHS. You're probably at a fiveyear timeline before you touch GMS. And while it's little in the big scheme of things, you need a home for the SAU. Yeah. Right. So the like other districts do in this circumstance is they take the oldest school building, which in this district would be the 30 building, and renovate that into an SAU. So now we're touching another building on top. So So another 1.1 million, right, at a minimum. Now, I don't know, maybe the difference between these two things and costs maybe instead I use 20 and 15, right? You got to talk to people. Maybe the real cost is 25 over here
172in 10. So now we're talking a $15 million difference and maybe that is worth it, right? Like I don't I don't know, right? And maybe there's advantages to doing a different educational construction or configuration. That's the things that we're working on. looking at we're talking about. I don't want to say one is better or worse or anything like that, but I want people to be I like I want people to understand it's not as simple as just take these 180 kids and put them over here and it solves that. And I I just want to add on to what Dr. saying about that professional development aspect, you know, and for what it's worth, it also changes the way teachers go about their day-to-day business, some of them that have been doing it for 25 years
173because it it will potentially change that idea of having your own classroom. It's it's going to add traveling teachers on carts. It's going to change the way that they've been teachers, some of them in that building for 25 years. So, it's the professional development. It's the education, it's a lot. It's also cultural change, right? And so, and so working with all of those staff for the last three years. Oh, yeah. Take it for what it's worth. As the outgoing guy, that's my biggest concern is of course it can be done, but that changes the way people do their jobs to one. Well, and I think in the what we need to connect there is why that's important, right? Because there's going to be someone that's watching that's like, well, they'll just adapt to it. But
174here's the reality. They don't have to because there's plenty of teaching jobs. And so when we when we bring everything back to cost, we can talk about the cost of not giving adequate uh support to the kids and then having to pay for spe more intensive services for longer. We could talk about the cost of getting sued because you didn't deliver enough services by law. We can also talk about the cost of having to outsource teaching services or support services because you can't retain staff and that is something that we have to consider and that that does tie into cost. It's just not a direct tie into cost, right? That yes, my my ultimate concern, right, is there's kind of three avenues to this, right? You have the cost of the physical whatever we do
175physically to the buildings. You have the timeline of what it takes to implement that and the educational experiences. Um, and that's for everybody. So that's for staff, right? That's also for the kids and that's also for the disruption in the training. And then you just have plain old timeline, right? Is if I mean my rough guess is we're on a fiveyear timeline if we go with that latter option, right? is to touch GMS to touch GMS. And and why is that important? Because people may say, well, you're just going to renovate GMS as it is for that for that purpose. But that's not the answer, right? The answer is if we do these things, we still need to make modifications, you know, fairly sizable modifications to GMS to actually achieve even a fraction of what
176we want to achieve there, right? So, what does that mean if it's done in five years? Well, in that 5 years, we may have to do repairs that don't actually tie into what we would ultimately do there. So, we may be paying for repairs, right? Some cost that we're just going to rip out again when when we go when we do go to touch the building. So, I I brought that up just as at the FIC, my feeling is that's the last hangup to get everyone collated to a common direction. Yeah. And to be clear, like I think the question of like what is the cost difference between those two general ideas is an important one for us to answer, right? Like I would like if I was just a random person, like I'm an
177educator, like I'm going to be biased towards education, right? Like but if I was a random taxpayer, I would want to make sure that the district, the board looked at every single option, right? And this is an option we do really need to look at like the reconfiguration because if it is a radical difference in price, right? Like we owe it to everyone then to really examine that option whether it's the right fit for the town and the district, right? If that's a 1520 million difference in price tag, there's a lot of actual other educational things you can do with that money that might be better spent, right? So I like I agree that's super important. I also agree that that is without that it's going to be hard to get a supermajority vote on
178anything for for a bond. I do think that that does blow this timeline up though potentially, right? And I think that's why we just got to take it one step at a time, right? So let's say we put this we are regardless of anything we're going to put this out to bid, you know, in the next month time frame, right? And you know we have these parameters to look at this and let's say we get back and we start meeting with people over the summer here right and like their initial stuff back to us is like look these these two things are going to cost the same right or in fact the renovating the high school actually might cost you more like that is definitely a possibility right and if that's the case and we
179can say confidently back to an FIC to the public to everyone look like we gain nothing financially by completely reinventing our educational like structures here. Let's now focus on this option over here, right? And we just don't know the answer to that question. Um and that's why we need to start taking I guess my question is who has to answer that utilization cost question that it would be an acceptable answer that it would be given weight because I feel like if you came in and said this is what I think or or depend maybe I don't want to name names but other architects we've had in the past that comes in that might not be as trusted as right so who from your opin opinions of being on FIC, who needs to be the one
180to come in and answer. I can tell you part of where the where the breakdown was, which I which I was going to actually bring up because I think that this goes into the RFP. We need to have pause you for one second, Danny. You're good to go. If you wanted, I just kind of looked at the clock there and I'm like, keep you can go on. Yep. Um, have a good night. Good night. What what I was going to say is uh you know the thing that was brought back to us was that the RFP is so critically important because that drives what's being delivered, right? And so I think that part of the problem was um what Kyle Barker has kind of given us feedback on was I was given these parameters. So
181like everything that I looked at was through the lens of those parameters, right? And so, for example, you know, Kyle's when he looked at the high school, it was, well, you have to have a completely separate entrance. You have to have completely se an extra gym, an extra cafeteria. You don't need that stuff. You don't necessarily need that stuff. But through the lens that he was given to look at it in, that was what was required. So, I think we I think what this all comes down to is is this RFP that we put together has to be spot-on for what we're actually looking for and it has to meet what we think the community is looking for. So, like for example, we're not going to say, "Hey, we want solar panels." Because we all
182know that that's a ridiculous headache that we've dealt with, right? So, so the the and I think Matt is right, right? It comes down to the communication, right? Is and that's why I'm saying like this isn't a here's your RFP, I expect a price in two months because I've seen those projects go really really wrong in my business. Um, so that but I think it starts that the way I put this to the FIC and I know Brian has said it too at the FIC is that decision on the utilization is a part of the RFP, right? That for me comes to we put it out there to say we also want you to look at this. You as the experts with the educational staff come back to us and say here's our professional opinion
183because you hired to give me you a professional opinion. And we have stated to the FIC that we also have to take that at their word. We have to take it at that value of we hired an expert to tell us the best solution. Okay. Um and there's going to have like I I'm sorry everyone, you're going to have to trust us the district a little bit. The other piece too that we have to remember that we're not up against right now is we have a different administration and so No, I know. And and again, I'm I'm hopeful for that. And I've been pleasantly surprised watching the FIC meetings um how well those have gone, how we just went through the budget process and that, you know, was a better process. Well, we may not
184maybe not have gotten the result we wanted on everything. Um I I feel like it's an improved process. I I guess I just am nervous that we'll get to the point where we have an answer and it's like, "Yeah, but you didn't think of this and so it should have asked this." Well, and that's why that's why we do have to address this consolidation thing, right? Like we as an FIC we've really I mean look we I think we definitive no one was questioning whether we should ship out our high school kids to another district right like that was something that people the last round were saying well you didn't really actually look at that right but the FIC which is a bunch of community members all unanimously I think maybe all I think people
185took it off the table right like and that was the part of the process right like you like the FIC is supposed to be people from the community as part of this committee right? Representing different viewpoints which I think is certainly true of that group of people right there are people with kids young kids older kids that have grown up no kids like everything right and our are our like we can't have 20 you can't imagine every single educational option there is under the sun we do have to think of some we got to prioritize so we talked about you know you sent a survey out right and included sending the kids to a different high school right there wasn't a ton whatever you didn't get enough results you did whatever people had different thoughts
186about that. You can't dispute that not many people were that enthusiastic about it of the people that responded, right? Like so and if you want a price tag on how much tuition is going to cost you to send kids to a school, we can come up with that. Like in that and that's I was just using that as an example though. I mean I don't think is that like you're looking at one school. So I think I think where we're at though is right like we've done we've done the new school thing, right? We've we've put that out there. Now we know that if we were to throw that out there again, we could probably do it for a lot less. But at the very least, we know we've gotten the feedback on that. Now,
187we're going to get the feedback on a renovation in some form and we're going to look at the redistribution option. So, really the only other thing that we've taken I think confidently taken off the table is doing repairs only. And you know, while there are still a few people who are saying, well, no, that's that's the option, right? Like because they're they're looking at it solely based on cost. We I think the majority of the FIC felt like the survey was definitive enough that everyone there there's the line share of people care about education to some extent. Some of them you know a good portion of them also care about cost reasonably so. um you know so I think we're at a place where we we can get 66 or whatever it is percent of
188the community behind something with the information that we have because we'll have and that's been the point of the committee right like I we're not the committee not the individuals the committee is trying to come up with the best solution right like there may be there are certainly people on that on that committee who think like a repairs only option is there are certainly people on that committee who think It still needs to be a new build, right? Like, but the committee has to compromise on what is an option that we think can get in front of the voters that can be supported, right? And that may be sacrificing. Well, I really think that a new build is the option like, you know, random person, but like I know something has to get done so
189I can live and compromise with a renovation. I think that the committee is a good cross-section of what our larger community Sure. looks like. And I think that you just made a great point, right? there are people on that committee who have strong opposing opinions of that but have come together on okay well if we're going to meet in the middle so hopefully what we're putting out is the meat in the middle for the community at large and I think we continue to come down to it right like you think of brand new build just repair right like we kind of took those away it is natural to start coming and again I'm using renovation as a giant giant umbrella here umbrella right of like what does that renovation now look like right like renovation
190edition just a renovation reconfiguration. Now we're coming down and smaller. So I guess all I wanted to make sure of is whatever that RSP is, we answer that second option, right? We have three buildings, K through 4, 5 through 8, 7 9 through 12, right? And then the K through 2, 3 through 6, 7 through 12. If we can bring that to the FIC, I think that will uh gain us favors in terms with accurate information. But like you said, right, a difference of $5 million, call it 20%. you know, I'll take a 20% cost adder if it means that we're set for the next 40 years versus part of my fear is we do the redistribution and I just took available capacity at the high school and gave it to the elementary, we get
191the COVID bump and all of a sudden now the high school like we got to go add to the high school, right? So, we created a seven-year solution, not the 40-year solution. So, so to bring it so yeah circling us back. So to bring it back I think that um looking at this time so I guess first and foremost this timeline is if we were to achieve this this is what it would look like. We are not by no means saying that we are going to just jam a solution to try to hit this. So that's point I think part number one that we have to just be clear. This is kind of like backwards in a way like okay this is the goal. I think the other piece about this looking at this you
192know fine with all the other dates but I think that if May 21st is our next meeting I don't think that we're going to be able to approve an RFP. think that we as a board need to have actual like like work session time to to dedicate to talking through because I think that is the most critical thing that we're going to do moving forward is and we do need FIC buy in right and you know we did have to this is the reality and this is where this is going to be really hard like we're up against now May and June of the school year right like we're we're postponed because we weren't going to have quorum we had a postponed FIC meeting tomorrow night so we're not going to have that one right
193we weren't going to have a quorum for the one over April vacation So, we didn't end up having that one. I think that's when the previous one was. So, you know, we're g like I emailed you like, "Hey, I can't make the Fside meeting on June 12th when graduation is going on, right? We're going to have to invited to as well, right?" So, so like that's going to be a date. So, I I say that because we might have to schedule a, you know, a different board meeting in an offboard meeting week to like talk about this, right? To get this going or like do some of those things. And I think it's important to get that FIC buy in with like this RFP. I agree. I I I think and again I'm not volunteering
194you guys, but I mean I think I'm not on the FIC so I don't No, I know. But I'm looking at you because you have history with the project and I'm looking at you. You know I you know I would love to see if you guys can wrap your arms around a draft for the board. I don't have the knowledge. I don't have the FI. So I mean my input is my point is just I think we we you know it needs to be presented. I think like the initial draft like yes that's fine but like I do think it needs to be an actual discussion amongst the full board saying okay we're reading through this right now. This is why we've put these things in here right do we all agree that these are
195the priorities because that was the problem last time was the priorities apparently were not a good reflection of the whole board or the community at large. Right. So yes, I will also say that um and we've always prefaced this that we will present what we are thinking as an RFP to the FIC and they can give us their comments but in no way is it going to like we're not going to rip out the draft RFP. Yeah. And go from there. So and as I've said at FIC, we're going to work with our attorneys, right? Come full circle with that, right? like we have these sample the a lot of the sample RFPs you see here are the most recent building projects in in the state right like that from the firms we're going to
196be putting this out to this is the work they they they've responded to right and when we talk to the attorneys and being like help us with this RFP and like I think maybe a little bit of the delay of them getting back to us is we're asking for a really unique thing here right like it's kind of like right I won't say a two for one here but kind of a two for one is what we're asking for here Yeah. So, um, so there's not like a set template for that. So, we got to be like to get Yeah. get back to the point, it's like very purposeful in the language in the RFP to to ensure we get what we want with it. So, well, and we have to also remember that there's
197not a huge pool of people that are going to be responding to this, right? So, we also have to try to make it something that they're going to be like, I guess I'll And you had mentioned that earlier, right? Like that. Yeah. We had put out the RFP for the the sopet repair and we didn't get anything back for that and that we're probably gonna have to actively yeah solicit people to to bid for this, right? Not just put it out there and hands off. So well and yeah, send it to each place with like a fruit basket or something. So So is this something that you guys can I guess can put it and get So the goal is if we need another work session, we should get that on the calendar. Yeah. I
198mean, we could try for the um you know, we go up the meeting the 21st, we could try for the week after that if if we're thinking not. I don't know. I am I mean I will say unless I am on emergency work travel like I have been um I should be it doesn't have to be a Wednesday per se, right? Like Right. So that I I guess my question is are we at the mercy of this room? Oh, always. Yeah, we could be meeting in the parking lot. I'm wondering if it's two. It doesn't have to be the full board necessarily. It's the most educated that take a stab at a draft and then at the board meeting on the 21st is when we dissect it and really put it in final form. That's
199what I was thinking. Yeah. And we do have a draft like I didn't have it here. I I it didn't we had the FIC that's on No, we have samples and then we have the the formal formal RFP. the the crux of the language that the FIC was trying to get to. Like in their recommendation, they had kind of like languagey attached to it. It's not RFP language, but it's the theme of the language that they kind of want, which which is what we worked hard on to say you guys like we're not drafting the RFP in the FIC. We are drafting a recommendation in the school board to go pursue and write an RFP. I mean, could we do I could we do like have them send it out to us via email and
200solicit comments back to the email and then be able to as long as it's public. Well, we could Yeah, we could. It's It would be part of the public minutes. I mean, I The other thing you could do is you have two committee members that are part of the FIC or two board members that are part of the FIC, right? Right. Um Dan and Peter, like we can just So, it's not a quorum. we can just work with Dan and Peter and like go back and forth like and follow the committee that we have like we do in policy, right? Like we're workshopping policy. It's the the board members on policy committee, right? And then that way there's a greater likelihood on May 21st that we're able to approve it without and with people on
201FIC there's a greater chance that you guys have an understanding of what FIC is looking for. If we're looking for not necessarily approval, but we're looking for input, right, that representation is there. So, so we can definitely do that. And what I'll do is I at the next FIC meeting, which is the 20th, so the day before the school board meeting is that I will basically I will act as secretary and make comments live on the draft RFP that Google doc that that's fine. I I'll figure it out for that one. Um otherwise, I will keep sending you word documents. Um, but beyond that, it's going to be one of those things of an in between time, right? If you know, I know you sent out the link to the current RFP. As long as
202like we can start making comments on it ourselves. Yeah. So, that was livened up sometime this afternoon, that link. Yep. Yep. My agenda that I printed out at 2:30 doesn't have it as a live link. Yep. So, there's even getting it. So, it I think there is a press. I I think there is a path and I think there's a path with the FIC. I'll just change around the schedule a little bit and basically dedicate the entire next meeting to the draft RFP versus looking at the governance, the proposed governance um and go from there. So I I think we can get there. So does that mean we could skip FIC governing articles next? Well, I was going to do a very brief update anyways. That that's the one that we that was part of
203this last time. We've gotten some feedback from the FIC. I haven't updated this specific document yet. Google doc there's a word so there's nothing for us to look at so there's nothing more to look that one so I was going to say in general all of the comments have been generic in nature it's the length of the terms and when I know I actually missed something and I think it was Denise or Ron one of them pointed it out and I was like oh that's just my mistake I put the wrong thing in for a timeline so there there's just also other comments in there that you know we we'll have to work through with the FIC and then it comes to the school board and the school board will you know either accept or
204reject them. All right. So going back to the agenda GMS project we have you know marching orders going forward. we have a plan in terms of what's going to happen and then the board itself will see a full outline either before or at least link to the agenda that we get over the weekend so we have time to I mean I think ideally if it was before we could reply with comments to try to get a higher likelihood of of being able to just approve again I'm cognizant of the time of year and I'm cognizant you know there are other things happening so I you know if we at the very least have it by that draft agenda we can make our comments and and have a good productive conversation and get it in final
205form um for the 21st. Sounds good. Okay, policy updates. Is there anything else on GMS project? All right, policy updates, we have none. I did talk to Renee about setting up a schedule for us. We've, you know, had been busy. Um but we'll get there. Old business, we just talked about FIC operations and discussion. So, you gave us that update. I have one other thing. There's a second there. It just goes on to the next page. Yep. I want to formally ask the board, is it okay if we hire have you want a motion on it? Yes. I will make a motion to approve a formal uh minute taker for the FIC. Second, third. Any other discussion? It will it be J? It'll be Jan. It'll be Jan. Yes, she's willing to do it, too.
206We Jan Jan's great. Okay. Do we have a call? associated with it or it's just gonna be I do I do I do yeah I have it back in my office we did talk about it is very very reasonable sorry I don't remember I can bring it next time but nope I just didn't know if you needed a dollar amount or you just want just approval just approval and then we will take care of it there's a motion second and a third similar to the cost it would be for a board meeting so got it okay all those in favor please say I oh no roll call you'll get it by now he's gone oh so now we are all those in favor you don't have to continue with Correct. Why don't you just continue
207with a roll call just in case? Who's going to challenge it? You are. You're gonna challenge it. Okay. Matt I. Dan. I I am an I. Three. Looking at the rules to see if that's like legit. If you could change your meeting. Okay. Um, schoolboard comments. Uh, I think uh if I'm not mistaken, thank you to my wife. Uh, it is teacher appreciation week and nurse appreciation week. We're getting there. Close. It is GMS teacher appreciation weeks. Isn't that a national thing though? Yeah, it's national. We're doing this. But it always puts it right after April vacation. So does do it different. I did the same thing. I got corrected yesterday. So I mean listen, I'm just observing national holidays. So So we appreciate We have school nurses and today's National School Nurse Day. Yes.
208Oh, is it National School Nurse Day? Like it's it's all nurse day, I think. Yeah. Yeah. Awesome. Anyways, yes, we have best of the best. Any other school? We do. And also, I know schoolboard comments, but also we have wonderful staffs, but also thank you to the PTOs who are doing uh wonderful work um supporting our teachers as well and celebrating them this week. Our staff. Any other school board comments? Nope. Hearing none. Manifest. I believe it's all set. I signed signatures. No other questions. I'm going to read through the manifest summary. uh manifest 749 payroll JY stipen for seventh block first semester was $395,294.78. Uh the pay749 EFT which was voluntary 403b deductions was $9,1710. 25-23 GL vendors accounts payable to first student uh was 100 there's two numbers here. So there's the first
209student says $117,12425 and then the amount total is $322,5421. Uh there was another accounts payable 25-23 GLF for $7,325. Uh there was our credit card manifest which is manifest number 25 BMO-11 for $21,269.91. Uh there was our accounts payable manifest. Um it was a small manifest that if it was um we waited um we could get a late fee for that. Um that is manifest 25-24 GL vendors for $12,5143. And then there was another accounts payable um manifest for Amazon to keep our credit line open. Manifest number 25-24 GLF for $6882. The grand total of all of those manifests added up is $767,790.50. And again, this was from our April 16th meeting. Boom. Moving on and opening it up for our last community input. Is there anyone from the community that would like to provide
210us input? Seeing none, we will close community input for the night and um I will entertain a motion to move into non-public session. A motion. I will second it. Um this will be for it needs to be a roll call vote. uh the dismissal, promotion or compensation of any public employee or the disciplining of such employee or the investigation of any charges against him unless the employee affected one has a right to a meeting and two requests the meeting be open in which case the request shall be granted. B the hiring of any person as a public employee. C matters that if discussed in public would adversely affect the reputation of any person other than a member of the body or agency itself unless such persons request an open meeting and then there are additional
211ones. For tonight's purposes, I believe we're going in under all three um A, B, and C for non-public. Um yeah, surprises. And with that, we have a motion and a second. Roll call vote. Matt, I Dan I. And I am an I. Um thank you very much for watching this meeting. For everyone who watches it, our next meeting will be May 21st. Um,