001Sorry for the delay. No problem. Oh, I have a little little modification. Do you need to add something? Oh. Okay. So, I'd like to call the uh Merrimack Valley School Board meeting to order for May the 4th be with you. Um so, roll call. Tracy Gove Here. Spencer Dickinson Here. Ryan Dunn Here. Laura Vincent Here. Stacy Jarvis Here. Lorna Carlow Here. Amanda York Here. Okay. The Pledge of Allegiance. Kenny, will you do that for us? 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. Um we need to add personnel update to the agenda. That will take a motion. Moved by Stacy, seconded by Laura, to add personnel update to the agenda.
002And that will be under new business. Any questions? discussion? If All those in favor say I. I. Any opposed? Abstaining? Okay, good. Uh so, the minutes um the April 6th for the April 6th school board um I need a motion for that. Lorna. Seconded by Spencer. Um any questions, any corrections, any Ryan. >> [laughter] >> Okay. Thank you. >> [laughter] >> Anybody have any questions about the meet the minutes? Okay, all those in favor of the minutes of April 6th say I. Any opposed? Any abstains? Excellent. Next is public comment. On agenda items, yes. Thank you. Yes. Okay. Looks like there is none. Uh finance report. Uh the finance report's in the packet, Sam. So, you There we go. So, you have that that in your packet as Tracy said um highlighted in in yellow.
003The contracted paraprofessionals, the 1210 function that's increased by about $23,000. There's been no change to the 1211 function since the last report. Um I did correct the 1300 function, so it didn't it does say uh tuition for for Voc um with the same idea that the state's not reimbursing And then last couple of months. We've had the 21 22 function be running in the negative, but we are working with a vendor. You'll notice now that's no longer in the negative that the vendor is doing the reimbursement and that should actually grow a little bit as well. The 21 62 function has been no change since the last report. 22 13 again, no change for reimbursement for staff. The 23 12 function for the district clerk. We've we've had an increase there than what we budgeted.
004It's just more time consuming to complete the minutes. Graduation expenses in the 24 90 function. Now that we've actually gotten some of the diplomas in and paid for those that has increased by almost 3700 dollars. The 26 60 function. I'm happy to report that the grant funds are in the grant management system. So as we complete the work and we get invoices, we'll get reimbursement for that grant. Those are all the lines that are more than 2500 dollars over. We are in better financial shape at this point this year than we have been in in the last couple of years. So as we move towards June and then the end of July and when we get the audit, our goal is still intact. Questions for me? Stacy. I just have a quick question. For the
005safe grant reimbursement, does that get reimbursed at 100%? It may not be 100% of what we're over, but yes, all of the work that we're doing is 100% reimbursement. >> Okay, great. Thanks. Any other questions for Sam? Okay, then. All those in favor of the finance report as presented, say aye. Aye. Any opposed? Abstain? Okie dokie. Good news. Good news. There was a lot in the And probably the best news that the schools had were they were on vacation last week, so. >> [laughter] >> Um, and Jeff Druan has a report from Boswell Elementary School. Good evening, everyone. Um, back in the beginning of the school year, we started a process um of something that we hadn't done prior to, which was to actually have candidates for the um kid governor this year. A few
006schools around the district did it. Uh, we were very very um kind of honored and privileged to have one of our own um and she's going to be here she's here tonight to talk to you, our uh the 2026 kid governor for New Hampshire, Ms. Liv Kreitzer. She's going to come up and she's going to provide you with um a presentation that she shared at our school and also at Andover. Goes through her platform um and she's done an exceptional job. Um, it's pretty pretty great to have the kid governor. I get to play rock, paper, scissors with her at lunch um and we have great conversations about her platform. So, without further ado, the kid governor. Is this going to be on YouTube, Glenn? It will be, yeah. This is definitely going viral. Um,
007thank you, Mr. Jewett. I'm Liv Creaser, New Hampshire's 2026 Kid Governor, and my platform is about helping New Hampshire's school-aged kids learning about the dangers of smoking, vaping, and drugs so they can make smart and healthy choices. Mhm, go ahead. Good morning, and welcome to Kids Care. This morning, we have a very special guest with us. I'd like you to meet Liv Creaser, a fifth grade student at Boscawen Elementary School, and she is soon to be the New Hampshire 2026 Kid Governor. Welcome, Liv. Can you tell me a little bit about this process and how you've become the elected Kid Governor? So, in the beginning, my teacher told us about the process and like what it would be like and if we wanted to, we chose a community issue that we thought was important to
008us. I chose educating New Hampshire school-aged kids on the dangers of smoking, vaping, and drugs. We planned out platforms, me and a couple other kids in my in my classes, and then we had a competition >> [snorts] >> where we all said a speech, and then the fifth graders got to vote, and whoever had the most votes won and was our school's nominee. So, when you found out, what was that like? I was very surprised. I think my sister was more surprised than I was. >> [laughter] >> Well, were you like super excited or nervous or what what were the feelings that >> It was a mix of everything, really. I was nervous for everything that was about to come up, but excited at the same time for having this great opportunity. How about you
009tell us a little bit about your platform? So, you had said that you want to educate kids about um certain dangers. Can you tell me a little bit about why you chose that and how you're going to go about that platform? I chose educating Hampshire school-aged kids on the dangers of smoking, vaping, and drugs because me personally, I don't like hearing about anyone that has been hurt or passed away from drugs, smoking, or vaping. It's just not right to me. And I want to help kids make better choices throughout their life so they can have a longer, healthier life. Why do you think it's so important to teach kids in particular about these dangers? Because if they don't know much about it, they could give into peer pressure. And it just wouldn't be good cuz
010well, there are a lot of reasons. It can affect you immediately, any of them really. Drugs, smoking, or vaping. Like, they can all do damage. Can you tell me about any other activities that you're involved in? Um so, I have a three-point plan, which is how I'm going to carry out my platform. There are three steps. My first one is to present to schools with police, doctors, and dentists so they can learn what happens. And my second one is start a course called DFS, Drug-Free Students, where fifth graders will go through a course where they'll learn about the dangers of drugs. And if they pass, they get a blue ribbon. And when I go to present to schools, my third step, I will hand out little booklets and activities for them to do. So, the
011statewide election included 3,600 fifth graders across over 100 classrooms, I'm hearing. So, this is a big thing that you've been elected to this position. So, that's really great. >> Thank you. Well, thank you so much for coming on. We really appreciate your time, and good luck this year as the kid governor of the state. Thank you for having me. Absolutely. And if you know a kid here in New Hampshire who's doing great things for their community, you can nominate them to be featured right here on this segment, Kids Care. So, this is a picture of me and my inauguration with my seven executive councilors and and Governor Kelly Ayotte in the background. Um yeah. So, this was the um candidate board for when we were all elected and for to be in the top seven
012or yeah, to be in the top seven. So, my three-point plan is to partner with police, doctors, and dentists to present at New Hampshire schools to create a course called DFS, Drug Free Students, where fifth graders will go through the course and learn about smoking, vaping, and drugs. and some drugs. And three, I would provide posters, activities, and lessons to raise awareness. My platform is very important to me. I want to help New Hampshire school-age kids learn about the dangers of smoking, vaping, and drugs. These issues affect a lot of kids and sometimes kids don't know what impact they can have on them. I believe when students are informed, they can make safer and smarter choices. So, this is a page about smoking. It has a poster of what smoking can cause, lung cancer, yellow
013teeth, brain stroke, heart diseases, stomach cancer, and eye diseases. Cigarette smoke can narrow the air passages and make breathing more difficult. That is from American Lung Association. Every year, more than 490,000 people die from tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke, making it the leading cause of preventable death in the country. Tragically, each day thousands of kids still pick up a tobacco product for the first time. So, here are a couple facts about um smoking. Cigarettes contain over 7,000 chemicals, many of which are toxic. People who smoked die 10 years earlier than a person who never did smoke. Smoking can cause disease in nearly every organ of your body. Nicotine can harm brain development in kids and teens. According to the Surgeon General, 5.6 million Americans under the age of 18 today will die early
014from smoking-related diseases. So, here are a couple um anti-smoking messages. Don't let smoke steal your steal your breath. Choose fresh air instead. Be a hero for your lungs. Say no to smoking and yes to fun. Breathe like the trees, clean, fresh, and full of life. Smoking pollutes your air. Cigarettes hurt your heart your lungs and your smile. You're too awesome for that. It cause It causes chronic inflammation or swelling in the lung, which can lead to chronic chronic bronchitis. That's from American Lung Association. Over time, cigarette smoke destroys lung tissue and may trigger changes that grow into cancer. So, here's a poster about vaping. It says "Vaping safe? Think again. Think that it's just uh water vapor? Here's what an e-cig vapor can carry into your lungs. Solvents, flavorings, preservatives, additives, formaldehyde, tiny nano particles
015of metals. If the e-cig contains liquid liquid nicotine, it is highly addictive and can be toxic. So, here are a couple facts about vaping. Social media influence makes kids want to try vaping. Nicotine is harmful to learning, mood, impulse control, and memory. Vaping causes irreversible lung damage. Vaping can cause lifelong nicotine addiction. And vaping can cause trouble breathing. So, vape companies make vape products that look like candy or cookies or other things that can kids enjoy. Like there's a picture of like candy and sweet stuff on the left side. Then on the right side, it's a picture of SpongeBob as an e-cigarette and then the cartoon of him. So, some chemicals that are in vapes are antifreeze, nail polish remover, paint, nicotine, and fireworks. So, propylene glycol, antifreeze is used to regulate the temperature of
016a car engine. Acetone is a solvent that breaks down and dissolves other materials. Ethylbenzene is used as solvent found in asphalt, synthetic rubbers, synthetic rubber, fuels, paints, tobaccos, and insecticides. Rubidium, it's the purple color in fireworks. Formaldehyde, it fertilize is preservatives, and embalming fluid, building materials, particle board, and foam insulation. And here's couple posters on drugs. Choose health, not drugs. Let's be drug-free. Uh here's some facts about drugs. Using drugs can affect learning, judgment, decision-making, stress, behavior, and memory. In the wrong combination or in the wrong dose, drugs can be deadly. Heroin is highly addictive and can be deadly. Cocaine causes serious addiction and deadly issues. Drugs can make it hard to think clearly. Say no to drugs. So, I took a video with a police officer, um Corporal Elizabeth Murray, at the Boscawen Police
017Department. Here's the video. Hi everyone. I'm Liv Crusader, New Hampshire's 2026 Kid Governor. And my platform is helping students learn about the dangers of smoking, vaping, and drugs so we can all make strong and healthy choices. Today, I'm talking with a police officer who works to help keep our community safe. Thank you for joining me. Can you introduce yourself and tell us about your job? Again, thank you for having me. My name is Corporal Murray. I've been a police officer for 11 years. I've been in Boscawen for 3 years. I've been an SRO, a detective, patrol, and now I'm in this capacity. Why is it important for young people to stay away from vaping, smoking, and drugs? It's important for a lot of reasons. I mean, vaping harms brain development when you're a young kid.
018That lack there of addiction that you could avoid by not vaping. Um I mean, it causes lung damage, it causes breathing problems. What should students do if they see someone bringing vapes, cigarettes, or drugs to school? If a student sees that happening, they need to go to report it to either a teacher, school resource officer, or a principal. If they can't find someone and they don't feel comfortable at school, they need to tell an adult at home so that adult can report it to the school cuz you need to remember one thing. Vaping is a gateway behavior to other substances. And everything on TV targets young kids because it really focuses on that marketing. Makes it easier for you to start using cuz like, what's one of your favorite flavors? Sour apple. Okay. Guess what?
019You can probably get a sour apple vape. Yeah, yeah. So, you start using that sour apple vape and then you're addicted. So, if you see someone bringing something illegal to school, do the right thing, tell an adult. My program is about helping kids become leaders. What does being a good leader look like when it comes to making healthy choices? When you're going to be a good leader to make healthy choices, you need to lead by example. So, if you want to be a leader at school, you don't ever want to be seen vaping or doing other illegal things like smoking cigarettes, drinking. You want to be that kid that's involved in sports and that kid that's always striving to do better in life. Because if you're going to sit there and go backwards and be
020addicted and do vapes, you're not going to be a leader. You're going to be a follower. Follower. Follower. Follower. Follower. Follower. If a kid starts vaping or smoking now, what are the chances they will do it later in life? Absolutely, without a doubt, 100%. You start vaping now, you're going to fall into that addiction and you're going to want to chase the next addiction and the next one. It's going to lead to other things. Vape is a gateway to get into the other ones out there. Just stay away. If you could give one piece of advice to every student watching this video, what would it be? If I could think of one piece of advice, it would be actually listen to this video. Don't sit there and daydream like we all do when we're in
021class learning cuz we don't want to be there. We think it's boring. We want to be outside. But soak this up because this is important information. This is information that's going to impact your future. Envision yourself being successful in life. A successful career, a successful family, being a part of a community. Don't ever envision yourself as someone in the future on drugs. You never want to be like this guy right here. Okay? Robert Teeler began smoking marijuana and then it went into cocaine, went to crack and marijuana, eight to 12 rocks a day. And then, 14 months later, he's charged. He's in jail. So, my best advice to you is to actually listen to this video. Listen to this message. This girl's got it going on. She's a leader. Thank you so much for talking
022to me today and helping students learn how to stay safe and make good choices. Remember everyone, be healthy, make strong choices, and be your reason. And always remember my motto, live healthy with Liv. Thanks for watching. I also interviewed a dentist, Dr. Um, Chris Serverbinder, and he works at Generations Dental Care. Hi everyone. I'm Liv Greif Sear, New Hampshire's 2026 Kid Governor. And my platform is about educating kids about the dangers of smoking, vaping, and drugs so we can all make smart and healthy choices. We know that one part of the body that is very much impacted by these bad choices are our mouths. I thought that the best way to get more information on this and to get checked out myself was to visit the experts at Generations Dental Care right here in Concord,
023New Hampshire. Hi Liv. I'm Heather, I'm one of the hygienists here at Generations Dental Care. Hygienists actually don't just clean teeth. They actually look at your overall health. Let's take a look. Liv, have you been vaping? Did you know that vaping can cause bad breath, sensitive teeth, loss of taste, and worse, really bad cavities? We better get Dr. Stetzik in here to take a look. Hello Liv. I'm Dr. Stetzic. Did you know that dentist don't just fix teeth, but we also check for mouth diseases? Liv, have you been smoking? Did you know that smoking causes gum disease, tooth loss, and oral cancer? We better have Dr. Binder come in as well. Hi Liv. I'm Dr. Binder. Did you know that dentist don't just replace missing teeth? We often work with your family doctors to keep
024you healthy as well. Let's take a look. Liv, have you been doing drugs? Did you know that drugs can cause tooth grinding, swollen gums, gum disease, and eventually loss of your teeth? Looks like we're going to have to make you one of these. Liv, have you been vaping? Bad breath, sensitive teeth, loss of taste, and worse, really bad cavities? Tooth loss and oral cancer? We better have Dr. Binder come in as well. We're going to have to make you one of these. What a horrible dream. Thank goodness I don't smoke, vape, or do drugs, and neither should you. Thank you so much. Remember everyone, be healthy, be your reason, and make strong choices. And always remember my motto, live healthy with Liv. >> All right, so this um poster, whatever you want to call it,
025uh says smoking, vaping, and doing drugs hurts your smile and overall health. What to remember: Vaping dries out your mouth, which makes cavities easier to form. The chemicals can irritate your I don't know what that says. gums, causing swelling and and soreness. It can make it harder to breathe during sports and other activities you love. Your smile is a part of your whole body health. Keeping it strong starts with smart choices. Choose healthy habits, protect your smile and your future. I also um interviewed uh Brittany Prioso. She's a medical professional at the emergency room in Concord Hospital. So, here's the video. Hi everyone. I'm Liv Kitson, New Hampshire's 2026 Kid Governor. And my platform is helping kids learn about the dangers of smoking, vaping, and drugs. So, we can all make smart smart and strong
026choices. Today, I'm talking with a real emergency room nurse who sees what happens when people make unhealthy choices. Thank you for being here. Can you introduce yourself and tell us what you do? I'm Brittany Prioso. I am a nurse in Concord Hospital's emergency department and observation services. Kids in elementary and middle school are still growing. Why are nicotine and drugs especially harmful to a kid's brain? Nicotine is an addicting substance, meaning that the brain, once it gets a little taste of nicotine, it will crave more nicotine. And that will make it harder to stop once someone has started. And as a kid, your brain is still developing, and nicotine and drugs change how the brain cells talk to each other, and it makes concentrating more difficult. Some kids think that vaping is just harmless water
027vapor. Is that true? No. Vapes contain aerosols. They can sometimes contain metals and nicotine. They can also contain chemicals. Think of it this way. Water is flavorless unless you add something to it. The same is true for vapes. They would be flavorless if they were just water vapor. What should a student do if they are worried about a friend who might be us- using drugs or vaping? I would encourage them to tell someone, whether that be a parent, a teacher, a school counselor, a nurse. Anybody would be able to help that student. If you could give one piece of advice to every student watching this, what would it be? The decisions that you make now affect your life and health forever. Making good decisions becomes a habit. Every positive decision that you make strengthens your
028ability to make good decisions moving forward. Lead by example and work hard. Thank you so much for talking with me today and helping students learn how to stay healthy. Remember everyone, make strong choices, be healthy, and be your reason. And always remember my motto, live healthy with Liv. Thanks for watching. So, um this is about schools and how drugs are not allowed on school zones. So, the picture says "Drug-free school zone. Drugs, alcohol, e-cigarettes, and tobacco products are prohibited." "Vapes are tobacco products. No one shall bring tobacco products on New Hampshire public school grounds." "This includes disposable vapes, e-liquids, vape devices, and empty cart- and empty cartridges." Together, we can make our schools healthier, safer, and drug-free. We owe it to our younger siblings, our friends, and our families. Let's all make smart choices. So,
029I made um well, my sister made the cover. We made a packet um like I said in my three-point plan, it's that booklet that I made. So, I'll show that in a minute. And then so, after after we fin- after I finish this, I um gave these to all of the students that I presented to, and I will give one to you, too. So, for the packet I made, my sister designed the cover. So, it just has a picture of me, and yeah. So, this page is about um it's facts about vaping and how it can cause damage. So, on the next page, it will ask a couple questions, or uh yeah. It'll ask a couple questions, and you have to answer them by using the facts from the previous page. And then there's a
030little math on this page, just asking if a vape costs this much money, how much will how much money will it cost if um this person bought one one every week. And then we made a word search just having a couple words that were like involved with what I'm doing like Saint Anselm College, kid governor, healthy family. And then this is a you have to unscramble the words. It has words of like what lungs, how lungs can be damaged by smoking, vaping, or drugs. So you have to unscramble the words below. And this just shows how um you can your uh your ears, nose, and throat can be damaged by smoking, vaping, and drugs and it just shows where it can be affected. This is also the same for the teeth. It shows how teeth
031can be affected. >> [applause] >> Um Any questions? Yes? So did you find when you presented to students that they maybe you felt like you had a better connection with them being their age rather than an adult telling kids don't do this and don't do that? Sorry, what was the last part? Well, just like because if you you talked to other students, right, about this. So it seems to me like when I was a kid when you had an adult telling you you're kind of like, oh yeah, but if you have somebody your own age, they might be more apt to listen to you. Yeah, I felt like they listened to a good amount. And paid attention. Yeah. Like how many schools do you think you're going to visit with this message? So far I've
032presented to two. I'm going to go to I think around two more, but we're going to record me talking about this and we're going to send out to send it out to any New Hampshire schools who participated in the Kid Governor platform program. That's great. Awesome. It's really awesome. Does anyone want a certificate of completion? Okay. You'll sign it for me? Sure. I think I already did. Yeah, it has been signed. Thank you for having me. Thank you, Liv. That was awesome. Really, really awesome. Okay. So let's see you top that. Okay. >> [laughter] >> I'm going to steal this. Silas, you can go ahead. Okay, sorry. Yep. Um So, we have a lot of dates just to start off. So, if you are interested in any of this, you should probably start writing down
033dates now because we've got a lot. Um Starting off, the elementary schoolers have their district-wide band concert on May 12th here at the high school at 6:00 p.m. Uh I do recommend going. Those guys are really good. I've heard them play before and, you know, encouraging them to stick with the music program is always a better thing. So, if you can uh you should go to that concert again May 12th at 6:00 p.m. 11 of the sixth graders at the Merrimack Valley Middle School participated in the Middle School Sustainability and Action Summit, which was hosted by the New Hampshire Environmental Educators at the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center. Throughout the day, students participated in many activities that taught them about sustainability and environmental responsibility, which they then brought back to the school to tell their
034friends about. The eighth graders will be working on their community projects tirelessly this month as community project night is right around the corner. Come see the eighth grade projects Thursday, May 28th at 6:00 p.m. as the eighth graders seem very excited to present them. Also, a thanks to Mr. Rathbone at here at the high school for letting some of the students use his workshop classroom for their projects. The eighth graders had a visit from Holocaust survivor Katie Preston, who shared about her experiences and during the fear of the Holocaust as a hidden child. Despite the hard hardships though, Katie considers herself a survivor and not a victim, which many of the students she presented to found inspiring. Penacook is proud to announce that Sarah Perrotta will be joining them as assistant principal starting July 1st.
035She recently spent a day at the school getting to know students and staff throughout the school, which gave her multiple opportunities to build relationships and connections with everyone. All righty, my turn. We have plenty of dates here. The Merrimack Valley High School Spring Concert will be Tuesday, May 19th at 6:00 right here in the auditorium. High schoolers in the music department will also be taking a trip down to Boston this Saturday. The Middle school spring concert will be Thursday, May 21st at 6:00. The next 2 weeks will be the AP exams for high school students. I know a few people that are working hard on studying here within the last few days. Uh Thursday, May 16th is the Honor Society inductions, which will be at 5:30. And then following that, um at 6:30 is underclassmen
036awards. Uh we have prom coming up on Saturday, May 16th. So, juniors and seniors are looking forward to that. Thursday, May 28th at 6:00 p.m. at uh Concord High School auditorium is the CRTC graduation. Spring sports senior nights. I see Are you covering that, Mr. Edwards? Oh, okay. He's not planning on speaking. I saw him. I'll go over the spring sports senior nights. Track will be Thursday, May 14th at 3:30. Baseball will be Friday, May 15th at 3:45. Boys lacrosse, Monday, May 18th at 5:45. Softball, Friday, May 22nd at 3:45. And girls lacrosse, Friday, May 29th at 5:45. All those dates are also in the athletic newsletter that Mr. Edwards sends out. The Ledyard Center Elementary School art show is on May 20th from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. The school invites everyone to go. All
037students that participated will have one to three pieces of art art hung up around the school for the viewers to see. Uh and just a moment of appreciation for all of our teachers throughout the district as we celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week. Um we all all the students here appreciate all that the teachers do here at MV. Um I know But just went crazy with dates and times. So, um most of those you can find in the packet on the um newsletters that people send out. You can also find them on the MVHS MVSD website. And now we have some jokes. >> [laughter] >> All righty. Which teachers have the greenest thumbs? Kindergarten teachers. >> [laughter] >> What do you call an English teacher who's addicted to social media? An Instgrammer. Thank you for suffering through
038this. >> [laughter] >> Thank you very much. Anybody have any questions for Nick or Silas? Okay. So, next committee reports. Policy committee met on uh 4/20. Um Jessica will not report cuz she's not here. So, Catherine will. There are several policies in the packet that were there for a first read. Uh yes, and there are also some that are in there for a second read as well. Um so, we did meet on the 20th and we um discussed uh several new policies that are in here and then we looked at uh forward to to the upcoming meeting as well. So, uh policies that are in your packet for a second read include BEDG, which was related to minutes. Um and that was one we had updated uh cuz it had not been updated for a
039significant amount of time and the recommendation had substantially changed. Also in here for a second read is EHLB related to subpoenas. Um it was recommended by the New Hampshire School Board Association. Uh we did We previously did not have it, although we did uh follow the practices that are outlined in it. Um and finally for a second read, is JF Enrollment, which was again recommended by the New Hampshire School Board Association and provides guidance for, um, determining capacity. So, those are all in there for a second read. And those that are here for a first read include JCA, uh, Best Interest and Manifest Hardship. We actually had just revised that, I think, 2 years ago, but, um, in accordance with, uh, the recommendations, actually requirements, uh, the entire, um, Best Interest Reassignment Determination by Superintendent
040Section was, uh, completely updated. So, it's that that is the section that was revised. It's completely new. Um, and then JLCJA, Emergency Plan for Sports-Related Injuries, is in here for a first read. That is also required by legislation. Um, again, that legislation went into effect, uh, for the start of this year, and all of those practices that are required are already in effect in the school, um, and thank you to Kenny Edwards for leading that effort to make that that happen, as well as, um, Britney Tibo, who is our, uh, athletic trainer, and and all of the members of our athletic teams that that make that possible. So. Are there any questions about those policies? So, I need a motion, and I think that we could do it as a slate. Um, BEDG, the second
041read, um, policies. I need a motion to, uh, accept those as written. BEDG, which deals with minutes, EHLB, dealing with subpoenas, and JF, which deals with enrollment. Lorna? I see you nodding your head. Lorna will, and, um, Huh? Oh, and Amanda. Sorry. Sorry. I thought somebody was saying something to me. Sorry about that. Amanda So, Amanda seconded. Um Any questions? All those in favor of those three policies, say I. I. And the two policies, two, right? Two policies that got the first read, um please let Jess or Catherine know if you have any thoughts over the next month so that they can put them in there. We have another meeting. So, we do have a meeting that we had tentatively scheduled. Unfortunately, between the time that that was scheduled and um since then, I have
042a conflict on that night. So, I had shared out in an email a potential alternative date, recognizing that uh two of our members are not here. Um but looking to have the next meeting at 5:30 before our next board meeting, which is June 1st. Wow. Is um that Is June 1st senior awards night? >> Right. Oh. Okay. It is I I I just was wondering. I mean, it is our it is our meeting night, so it is what it is. Um get here early if you want to park. >> [laughter] >> Um so any Well, so Jess isn't here. I put an email out to the committee. So, if we can just work that way, maybe that will be best cuz Melissa It does work for Melissa, but Jess isn't here. And so, I don't
043know if that works for her. I don't know if that works for the other members that are are present. I can make it work. I was going to say, I know that's a little bit of an early start for you, Ryan. >> Yeah, but that's fine. Okay. Okay. All right, then. Uh Next on the agenda, new business, the general assurances. Um that is every It's a annual thing that we do. Um, it's how we get our federal funding. We, um, Do you want to talk about Sure, the general assurances are required for federal funding and really by, um, we've always done it because we've, you know, everything we've accepted federal funds uh, and a few years ago, um, they passed legislation that just wanted it in the minutes that the board is giving the thumbs
044up to general assurances and then, um, we'll have the board chair sign on on behalf of the board and it just becomes part of, uh, one of the requirements for federal funding. Any questions about general assurances? So, I do need a motion that, uh, So moved. Okay. Laura, Stacey, um, all those in favor say I. I. Any opposed? Abstaining? Okay, perfect. And I will sign that later. Personnel update. So, Mike. That's okay. I think it was Mike. Who's Mike? >> [laughter] >> Personnel update. Actually, the staff nominations were put under non-public because that's the way we typically do it. But now that Catherine has authorization to hire, we don't have to do it non-public, but we put them there anyway so that two people that were hired, um, and that you don't need to nominate,
045they were hired. Uh, Cat- uh, Caitlin Sackman, who's going to be the new library media specialist here at the high school, and Sarah Carson, an English teacher here at the high school. So, they're in the packet under non-public, but moving forward until the fall, they'll be under, um, personnel update in the public part of the packet. Thank you. Um and an additional um appointment. Uh so, Mr. Paul Harris, as I had communicated this to the board, has been appointed as interim principal at uh the high school. So, Paul is currently the superintendent in the Newfound School District. He has been um in that role for the past 2 years. Prior to that, he was the principal of Newfound High School. He also has assistant principal uh experience, teaching experience, um and support staff experience. So,
046he is He brings a a great deal of experience uh and has worked in a community um that has many similar characteristics to Merrimack Valley, and we're we're looking forward to welcoming him here. So, this was This is something he accepted as a temporary See Yep, so he it's well, it's an interim appointment for next year. Um I do think that there's the possibility that he may be interested in continuing on in that role if if that's the the desire of our community. So, we're very excited. Yes, Stacy. Um two questions. Sure. >> Does he join us in June or July? So, July 1st is his technical start date, but he actually is already communicating with the high school staff. He's setting up dates to come and visit before the end of the school year.
047So. And what does that look like if he is interested in joining permanently? What does the process look like for that for him joining? Is there Does it get opened back up? You know, that's something that we That's sort of a bridge we're going to cross in the future. Okay. Um I think that it will be important that we have uh an opportunity for the staff to provide some some feedback and have some voice in that that process. Um but more more details on that to come. All right. Thank you. Any other questions? Okay, next is manifest and journal entries, and um I signed electronically, and I'm assuming Jeff did I mean Melissa did also. So I need a motion to accept the manifest and journal entries. Lorna Ryan Um All those Oh, sorry. Any
048questions? I didn't ask that. Any questions from the manifest and journal entries? Okay, all those in favor say I. I. I. Any opposed? Abstaining? Okay, good. Um So let me just say one thing for even though it's not on there for the school board chair report. I um I don't know if you remember or not but when the when the kid governor when Liv was inaugurated it we had a snow day and so her class couldn't go because they couldn't take the bus down cuz the buses were bringing kids to school. So um the her class went down last week Jeff? Or the week before? I don't know. And I I met them there and they got a special tour and it was wonderful. They had a great time. They really did. So that's all
049that I have to say. Assistant super report. Sure. Um so in recognition of mental health awareness month MVHS students participated in the getting to Y group recently participated in a regional event. It was called cabin thoughts. Actually Tracy you were you attended that. Do you want to you want to share a little It was amazing. Amazing. So they had um three schools Concord High School, Merrimack Valley High School and Bow High School and the first part was a play that was written by two Concord High School students that was I cried just so you know. And it it it it talked it talked about they it was in a cabin. It was like they were um at summer camp, and it was the things that they thought about like when they were maybe in bed.
050Um and then they talked about the things that uh that affect them, you know, there were eating disorders, there was uh um abuse, there was um you know, kids who were homeless. Uh it was just it was well written, the kids did a great job performing it. And then um Merrimack Valley students talked about the data, the data from the Getting to Why um uh not the Getting to Why, sorry. The Youth Risk Behavior Survey that all the students take, and they took the regional data and talked about some of the things that are working in mental health for students, and some of the things that aren't working. And Oliver Dickinson was uh part of that, and he didn't allow his father to go. But, I was there, just so you know. >> [laughter] >>
051And then Bow High School did um some activities afterwards, so that um the people in the audience could do some of the activities that they do with their mental health groups. And um all of the schools have mental health groups, so that they're working on activities that they can do in each school. Um it was phenomenal. If they do it again next year, I would say go. Thank you. Mhm. Um so, the week prior to vacation, uh senior projects were presented to the community, and I know that a lot of you were able to attend that. This is the uh culminating project um for our students. And tomorrow night at the SAU board meeting, you're going to have an opportunity to see two of those presented to you as well. Um so, state testing has
052begun. The window opened the week prior to vacation and runs through uh the end of this month. We do have a district goal that 80% of students that take the the SAS test will make their expected growth, and that's similar to what we did with um the NWEA assessment. Um many thanks to Becky Kennedy for her support in organizing Alice training, which was held here at the high school over April vacation. So, Alice training um is a proactive options-based active shooter response protocol um designed to increase uh survival chances during violent incidents. So, Alice stands for alert, lockdown, inform, counter, and evacuate. Eight administrators took part in this training. We already have two on staff that are trained, and then our new high school principal is also trained. So, all SAU 46 schools will be
053implementing Alice over the course of next school year. And so, Becky was able to um seek grants that helped support the that training um to make it possible for us. So, thank you to her for that. Uh Karen Bailey and the tech department uh coordinated with local first responders and tested all of our emergency alarms in our buildings over April vacation. So, we appreciate their efforts to do that. Um Parent Square is a unified secure communication platform for schools. It's used in a lot of communities in our area, too. Uh and we're going to move to to this tool next year to engage with our families. Um and it's designed to facilitate efficient and effective home-to-school communication. So, you're going to be hearing more about that um in the coming months. Uh Karen Bailey and
054our tech team is leading this effort uh with the support of Jen Moore in coordinating the upcoming community rollout. Uh this summer SAU 46 is offering over 25 different professional learning opportunities for our teachers here in our schools. Uh these are being led by local and national leaders in curriculum, behavioral health and wellness, and instructional strategies. And again, we've been able to leverage grant funding to pay attendees for this work, and we're uh hoping to have some strong participation in that. Um and then finally, Nick mentioned to me before uh the start of this meeting that this is his last meeting. So, I met Nick uh as a first GRADER IN LOUDON. UH AND AND EVEN THEN I KNEW HE WAS GOING PLACES. SO, uh thank you Nick for for your uh role on the
055board and for all the contributions that you have made to this district in the the many activities that you have participated in in your 13 years in the Merrimack Valley School District. So, thank you for that. Missy. You should come to come to Loudon and do Old Home Day. Of course I'm going to Old Home Day. >> [laughter] >> I got to do the advertisements. Yes. All right. So, I second uh those feelings about Nick, even though I didn't know him as a first grader. We've got to work very closely over the last 4 years and uh really enjoyed having you as part of the board. So, so thank you very much for everything you've done, I think, in elevating the the position of um student rep to the school board, and you know, and
056having Silas come on, uh you know, working to you know, with that national group to to get a New Hampshire chapter, and even though that didn't necessarily take off, I think having those conversations was a was a great thing um to get things going. So, thank you. Um I wanted to uh update the board on open enrollment, because as you um as you recall, um we launched uh the application window on on the website and um the May 1st was the deadline and we'd let anyone know by the end of May about their status based on capacity and those sorts of things. We had one applicant for the you know, to come. However, they were from a community that like us had a 0% out clause. So, we had to let them know that they
057were not eligible for open enrollment to come here. So, we still have things up. We'll probably take the site down the page down off of the website now because applications are closed because the window was May 1st and then you know, sometime in the second half of next year, we'll make sure that goes back up there to open it back up for the community is that that may want to go through with open enrollment provided there's no legislation statewide that may change that. That's it. Okie dokie. Um So, public comment. Thank you. Uh Heather Wonchell Bosquon, I just want to say a few things about last month's meeting. I'm going to try and take deep breaths up here. Do what Jessica told me to do. Um Many of few of us, I know myself being
058one of them, emailed each and every one of you thanking you for um keeping us in house. Um a lot of us are not in this for the money. We're in this because we want to be here. I get offers all the time. Conquered, Bow, any anywhere, any one of us can take our license and go anywhere. And we would get more pay. We're here because we want to be here. We want to work for the district. I live paycheck to paycheck. I work three jobs because of that, so that I can make keep my family afloat. Okay? Um I went to back down to floor the 6 years ago and I walked in the transportation office and the first thing the director said to me is you filled out an application, right? Be one
059heck of a commute. >> [snorts] >> Um so the reason why myself I'm here is a couple months ago I got this letter from one of my middle school students. So, I'm going to try not to cry to read it. I've had her since she was in kindergarten. Dear Miss Heather, thank you so much for driving me to and from school every morning and every afternoon. That's all I really wanted to say. Thank you for being my bus driver. That's what puts me in this seat every single day. Okay, come on Jessica. Work. Um and so my other couple other things, I wanted to extend that proverbial olive branch to each and every one of you sitting around this table. Come knock on our door. We'll let you in the building. We don't bite. Okay?
060But, find out there are plenty of other drivers over there that have stories just like that. That that's why they're in their seats every day. That's why they were here last month fighting to stay that way. Okay? Again, it you know it it's just that's what's keeping us here. Nobody wants to hear the B-word. It's not the bad B-word. Everybody wants to get to the summer. But, when the budget committee starts to meet, again, come knock on our door. We keep track of everything. Anything you want to know, we can tell you. Okay? So, that the numbers in the 2700 function of next year's budget are accurate. They're They're accurate. Okay? We'll tell you anything. We'll We'll show you everything. They've got it all. Spreadsheets, everything. Come learn. So, that they're correct. Thank you, Helen.
061Is it a time limit? 3 minutes. We usually give 3 minutes. Okay. Can you I like >> One more sentence? >> Yes. Yes. >> Yes. Perfect. Thanks, Helen. >> Yes. Just think about the careers that you guys have had and how many years you've been in them. I've done this for uh 2 years shy of half my life. Okay? Do the math. You can figure out how old I am. And last month, we were being asked to have somebody that has 1 year worth of experience. There are drivers over there with 10, 15, 20-plus years. And after 1 year, they were going to make the same amount of money we were? You know, I I'll stuff a bus anywhere. They probably would hesitate to drive to to drive in snow, let alone anything else. So,
062we have to drive in. So, just think about your careers and how much knowledge you had, and if somebody said, "Oh, somebody else is going to make the same amount of money that you make that only has 1 year worth of experience." Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Anybody else? Public comment? Okay, then. We do have to go into non-public session under RSA 91-A {colon} 3 2 B and C. So, we will come back. We will return to public session, um, and take action. So, I need a motion and a roll call. So moved. >> So moved. Okay, Spencer and uh Stacy. Okay. And so, roll call. Okay. So, Spencer and then Stacy. Okay, Tracy Brickley? Yes. Spencer Dickinson? Yes. Ryan Gunn? Yes. Laura Vincent? Yes. Stacy Jarvis? Yes. Lorena Carlisle? Yes. Amanda York? Yes.