It is 06:00, so we'll go ahead and get it started. So it is Tuesday, 08/26/2025, and I call this business meeting of the Elizabeth School District Board of Education to order at 6PM. Can I get a roll call, please? Director Callahan? Here. Director Fletcher? Here. Director Hunt? Here. Director Olson? Here. Director Powell? Here. Alright. Let's stand for the plan. Prayer. 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. Okay. I move that the board approve the amended business meeting agenda for 08/26/2025. Second. Any discussion? Okay. Can I get a roll call? Director Kellyanne. Aye. Director Fletcher. Aye. Director Hunt. Aye. Director Olson. Aye. Director Powell. Aye. Okay. I move that the board approve the board meeting minutes from 08/12/2025 as presented. Can I get a second? Second. Any discussion? Okay. Can I get a roll call? Director Callahan? Aye. Director Fletcher? Aye. Director Hunt? Aye.
Director Olson? Aye. Director Powell. Aye. Okay. First up we have our communications and we have Jonathan Glassburn from the Lowe's store in Parker. Is it Parker? Yes. Yeah. So we are we have been very fortunate. Jonathan is also a parent in the district, and we have an amazing culinary arts program. However, our appliances are as old as the building. And so, Jonathan's daughter last year had the class and went home and said, dad,
we gotta help. So while all of the appliances were working, needless to say, they were 25 years old in some cases. And so, Jonathan and his store, Parker, Lowe's, Parker store seventeen fifty five came to our rescue. And over the summer, Jonathan store provided five microwaves, two dishwashers, three ovens, and a refrigerator. Wow. So we have a recognition to present that hopefully the store can display with some pride. In recognition of your generous donation to the Elizabeth School District, your support helps enrich
the educational experiences of our students and strengthens our school community with sincere gratitude. We thank you for your commitment to the success and growth of our students. So, Jonathan, if you come on up. That's pretty cool. It is. That's very awesome. There we go. Jonathan, would you like to say anything? All that I'll say is, I'm parents of this grade. My daughter absolutely loves I'm so happy that that I could do this, and help
out. Like, that that's just tremendous. That that's what Lowe's is honestly all about is is helping out the community. So there's my little Lowe's plug. But but, personally, no greater reward than to be able to do something to We'll
just leave you guys to it. Okay. You have a nice evening. Appreciate it. Thank you. Okay. Do you wanna take the next one? Sure. Next one is for Amber Sorgan. She is unable to be here tonight. Amber is, principal at Singing Hills. Amber, unfortunately, has had an amazing job opportunity. And while we're, standing in the way of our employees, it's you know, she's leaving with my arms right up around her knee. But All of our arms. Amber has just been an amazing she's only been with us about seventeen months. But Amber has just really set a clear vision and and mission for that building,
and her staff loves her. And and really the success of Simontos has a lot to do with the work even, albeit short, of Amber, at Singing Hills. So we do have a presentation, which we will make to her in front of her staff on behalf of the board. But it's, also a certificate of of recognition and recognition of your outstanding leadership and unwavering dedication to the students, staff, and community of the Elizabeth School District. As principal of singing, Hills Elementary, your vision, compassion, and commitment to excellence have left
an enduring mark that will continue to inspire future leadership. Leadership. And so with gratitude and best wishes as you embark on the next chapter of your journey. So, Amber's, letter of resignation, just I wanna read it just so people understand, the opportunity she had. I'm writing to let you know that I've accepted a job offer in the business sector. This was not something I was seeking, but is financially but is a financial offer that I cannot turn down. The position will allow me to use all of the skills I have acquired over the last twenty five years, including building and district leadership as well as marketing and
sales in the ed tech sector. I will continue to support Singing Hills through the next three weeks and officially, complete my role on September 9. I will also offer consulting time through the September to support Patricia Kaiser and district leadership in the transition. I have worked very hard over the summer and into August to ensure the school year is off to a great start and have confidence that the staff at Singing Hills will not miss a beat during this transition. I've also enjoyed the time with the Elizabeth School District, and I will continue to support any way that I can. Singing Hills is an amazing community, and I will miss the staff, students, and parents
very much. So again, just hard hard to see her go. But, we are very confident, that we have a great team, that we'll continue to keep Singing Hills moving forward. This is a tough time of the year to find a a principal. And so we are looking at appointing an interim principal, and then looking at the spring to open that process. And so, I'll share a little more, as we as we move forward. But again, just appreciate your support of Amber as well.
Should I say that all over you? No. Let's not. Alright. Next up, we have board member reports. So who wants wants to kick it off? Well, this is Nicole Hunt, and I had a great time attending the class training this past weekend. I think we had that battery died. Oh, there. Okay. I was just saying I had a great time attending the class training this past weekend. I feel like there was a lot of material offered there for school board members across Colorado, on how to how to really manage districts well and with excellence.
And so I was very inspired to participate in that. Well done. Thank you, Dan, for your leadership in organizing and planning and having so many different unique speakers with different backgrounds who can offer advice and take a lot of questions. I'm looking forward to attending some back to school nights in the district, here in the next few weeks and also visiting classrooms. I'm very excited to see some of this training in action. Dan has offered to take us around and to be able to sit in on classes and see the teachers who got training this summer on, you know, what all
the tools that we have in the classroom in order to engage our students in in a direct way and how that can make a difference for the students. We're getting good feedback from the teachers and the administration that it seems to be working well in the classroom, and so I'm excited to get a chance to see it with my own two wives. So I'm looking forward to that as well. Thank you. Just kind of a quick thing on the back to school nights. We have gotten a list of those and the Singing Hills one was supposed to be on Thursday night and I understand it's been it's going to be rescheduled because of weather. Yes. So just September 2. So it'll be Tuesday, September 2. We'll be Singing Hills back to school night.
Good. Okay. So good. Good to know because I didn't know the date. So that's great. The other thing I wanted to bring up is that on September 11, the a group called We the People has asked if they could use our facilities, for their kind of once a month, meetings. I believe they're once a month. Yep. And, so we are going to do that and the the first one that will be at the middle school is going to be on September 11 from six to 08:30PM. September 11. Pardon me? September 11. September. What did I say? I think you said December.
Oh. Or December or something. No. We don't plan that. Well, we we do plan that for him but probably not that we would talk about tonight. Anyway, so, that's an exciting, thing and so we, would just like for people to be aware of that. And, they're going to have a speaker there that night that is going to be quite interesting. I can't remember the young lady's name, but she, she I think Turning Point USA, I think, is where she's from. And she she is kind of, involved in trying to get, local chapters in into the schools for civics and constitutional, knowledge.
So, that will be very exciting. And I think Dan, didn't you say on September 17? December 17 is the constitution then. We will, be hosting at the high school, a contest that We the People, is going to be running, I guess, so to speak, for students to present constitutional, presentations. And then there will be judges and so there will be some some prizes awarded to that for some other classes that they can go to. So those are kind of exciting things coming up.
We have talked about that this year that we are in is we are celebrating all year long that this is the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of our country. And so we need to, we need to celebrate that all year long. So I'm I'm excited about those about the Constitution Day event and, about the celebrations all year long. And, with me, I'm I'm still very encouraged and very excited to hear all the positive feedback from the teachers regarding, the training that they received and our new initiatives. And you were talking going into the schools and just seeing how engaged the students
are. It's quiet and paying attention and engaged which is huge. I also attended the class event and it was wonderful. So if, you know, I would say if there's any other board members out there, if you have the opportunity to attend one of these events or sign up, get some information, I would encourage it. There again are a lot of great resources, some really good speakers. So thank you for having us. Sure. You're up. Okay. So a couple things, we've covered Singing Hills.
I was gonna announce that Singing Hills, back to school night from the list that the board was provided. That's okay. Still good. Understood. It is it is a the forecast for Thursday night is not looking good. And so, they have two trucks that come to their back to school night. And so the concern was that that's gonna be a little hard for families to actually enjoy that. So, food trucks were available to move to Tuesday, September 2, and the weather looks a little better off in the distance. So, fingers crossed that Tuesday will be a better evening and a chance for parents to come and meet student or meet teachers and, get to hear some of the
great things that are going on in that building. I will say, again, just visiting schools, the quietness. We had a preschool parent come to Running Creek for assessment of their preschooler, And it was so quiet that the parents said to, to Pauline, Alta Grande, you know, is there no school today? She said, no, there's school. Kids are in the classrooms. And it was that quiet, that students were that engaged in in the learning activities that were going on. Visiting, middle school classrooms, visiting, our high school and and Singing Hills.
I was in every Singing hills classroom today. But just to see kids engaged, it almost feels like they were never gone. I mean, this is second week of school and kids are actively engaged already. So we're, we're excited and again, looking forward to the results, from that. My first superintendent forum is September 17. And so that is here in this boardroom from six to 07:30. It's a Wednesday evening. So do want to invite, parents who are interested. It is again, it's not a dog and pony show, it's not me presenting, it's me listening.
So, we've had so many amazing initiatives start as a result of our superintendent forums. Our Dyslexia Initiative is probably our crowning jewel that we've talked about often. We had a parent come to really talk about her journey with her child and dyslexia and certainly something I'm passionate about as well. So we were able to link resources that she had and, and get them into our schools. And here we are today with, Take Flight Therapy and all three of our, middle and elementary schools. So it's exciting, to see that.
Auto building. We are, we are buttoning up the inside of the garage. We did get final approval on the alarm, which was our last thing that we had to get approval before we could, cover everything up. Drywall will be going up, very shortly. So we are looking forward to a grand opening, and that's something I'll keep the board up to date on. Sometime in September, we're hoping to hold a grand opening. All of the donors who have been so generous in this project to get them back out to see, the fruits of their labor. And so that's exciting to be there.
I know there are people in the community who have said, what's taking so long? We don't go through the county or the town. We have to go through the state. And we are one of 700 a 178 school districts in the state of Colorado who have to go through the state for any building permitting. And so we get into the queue during the summer as we were really getting busy. Needless to say, the queue was busy for everyone. And so we had periods of time where we couldn't do the next step until the state came out and signed off and said, okay, you're clear to go. And so I know people are frustrated. We are too. We would have liked it done two years ago.
But it is a governmental bureaucracy at its best. And so we have to deal with it. And, I have to thank Justin Henry, our CFO, who has really kind of taken it by the horns and agitated a little when he needed to, to get things moving. And so I do think that this is going to wrap up sooner than it would have had it not been for Justin's work. So, When did you say the grand opening might be? Sometime in September. Yeah. Yeah. We want to make sure drywall is up and bathroom fixtures are in.
And that's the process, that's the work that's happening right now. So as soon as we know that there's a clear date when that's going to be done, we want to get people in. We don't want them to see it half finished. We want to see Yeah. We'll have to see it as close to done as we can. We are in the midst of beginning of the year assessments. And so, you know, assessments are one piece of data. So it's really important for parents to understand that, their children are taking an I Ready assessment in math and language arts. That is one piece of data. That coupled with CMAS, coupled with how students are performing in the classroom, coupled with
other data, really gives us a picture of their reading. So, parents in the coming weeks will receive those scores home, will receive a letter if a student is functioning below grade level just to alert them. Our I Ready reports does give parents some coaching tips of here's some things you can do, here's some things that we need to be doing. And so please watch for those because that's really important that we all are kind of on top of where our students are and what we can do to to support them. And then finally, Frontier. We are continuing to work with our roofer.
Of course, the rain, while we needed it, has not been a blessing on that process. We do have, a local roofer that has been working to patch and seal, the the the protrusions that had existed. That's a three year, guarantee that this roofer is providing us. We are in the process right now of applying with History Colorado. We actually, received, an okay from them to proceed with a full application. So that's a huge amount of money that will contribute towards a full re roofing of the west portion of the building, which is where most of the protrusions are
currently happening. We are working with, our partners at Legacy and obviously ICA, to look at some other funding sources so that we can couple that with History Colorado. So that hopefully, before three years is up, we can actually completely replace, the roof portion that that has failed. So we're excited about that. Again, it's just it's hard. You can't you can't take a roof deck off when it's raining. So that's been, that's been a challenge for us. So, again, it's been a great start of the year.
Our teachers are just working their tails off. I, was at Singing Hills today and, and, and heard of, of some amazing things that some of our paraprofessionals have done with students who, whose behaviors have started. You know, honeymoon is over, we're in the second week of school and, and just some of their skill and redirecting students and getting them back on track and making sure there's no disruptions for other students, but making sure that they're getting what they need. It's just, it's exciting. So I'm excited to have board members join me when you can. But to get out and see some of the work that, that certainly is your
hard work paying off. So thank you for all that you. I hear our new principals are doing well. I'm sorry. I heard our new principals are doing well. Well. New principals are doing extremely well. Yes. So, anyways, I think that's it. Alright. A lot on our agenda, so. Yeah. Next up, we have public comment. Okay. First up, we have Chrissy Howell. Just gotta push that button, Donna. I think you know the drill. It looks like, it looks like it's on, but Yeah. So the num if the numbers are on. The numbers are on. Hi. I'm Kristine Owl. I've been approached by a couple of people, but I am here tonight to express
a serious concern about, the trend of outsourcing critical school services, especially when it comes to our drivers. Building maintenance staff and essential programs like art, music, and specials, possibly. Let's start with our drivers. The people who ensure our students to get to and from school safe safely every single day. There's growing discussion about outsourcing transportation, and I wanna be clear, this comes at a cost far greater than the bottom line. When we outsource bus driving, we lose accountability.
These are no longer local employees. They're people who may not know our neighborhoods, our kids, our communities' unique needs, lower wages, and minimum benefits drive higher turnover. And service quality suffers, but perhaps most troubling is the safety risk. There have been documented cases where outsource rotation companies have hired drivers with questionable or even dangerous records. Is that a risk we truly are willing to take? It's even more alarming when we hear suggestions to use ride share services for special
needs students. Ride share might seem flexible on paper, but it is not a substitute for specialized properly trained drivers in safe appropriate vehicles. Students with unique needs deserve consistency, security, and professionals trained to support them, not a rotating cast of drivers in private cars. In the long run, smaller specialized transportation providers offer better service and often more savings for districts committed to high standards. It does not stop with drivers.
Could building maintenance become outsourced? Replacing dedicated staff who take pride in our facilities with third party contractors who may never see the same building twice. These are the people who keep our schools clean, safe, and running. Their work matters. The people who serve our students from the classroom to the cafeteria to the curb are essential. They are the backbone of our district, outsourcing, and cutting these roles might balance a spreadsheet temporarily with the long term cost to our students, our staff, and our community
is far too high. Let's invest in people who invest in our kids every day. Thank you. May I address that? Yes. None of that is is even under consideration. So I'm not sure where that came from. Certainly happy to follow-up with you, Chrissy, but there is no conversation. No outsourcing, special needs. We've actually always used outsource for certain students based upon where they're going and their needs, so that's been a practice in this district for a long time. We have had some students transported by our drivers. We've had others who have been transported by things like a ride share service, and
those are specifically trained people to to work with students. So it's not like an Uber. It's, it's, it's individuals who have trained, so. We'll have to Yeah. Happy to follow-up and chat, but just, yeah. Well, please never hesitate to call. I can certainly provide you Okay. Happy to happy to always provide facts. Okay. And next up, we have Michelle Vasinski. Before I start I wanna say Amber Sword is an amazing principal. I got two kids at Simian Hills and they love her. And they literally, my daughter about started crying when she heard that Ms.
Sword wasn't gonna be there anymore. So, Miss Patricia should be an amazing replacement at least interim. Yeah. And, she'll jump right in with both of you. Right. And that down. I do wanna talk to you about some discussions you're gonna have tonight about policies. Specifically KEC section two, the board shall, will not permit any individual or group to exercise censorship. And it keeps talking about should an individual or group ask to have any books or other material withdrawn from school use. I'm super questioning the terms individual or group in that, specifically.
That should say parents, and it should just be parents. This would also mean that KEC dash e should not have community members added to those who can object object to materials. It should just be parents, students, and staff. And also these policies rely wholly on the curriculum review committee, which is appointed by this board, and this opens the door to biased ideology fully entering the process. And I think there should be a discussion between the teachers, librarians, admins, and, the chief academic officer first, and that is left out of this equation.
And I don't I hope that wasn't intentional, because they should be the first people to discuss with that. They're trained professionals, and they're responsible for that material. These policies are completely removing parents and expert staff from the equation, and I ask you to keep parents' rights first. Respect the professionalism of the teachers and the admins that you've hired because of their experience and their capabilities. And in fact, the state law that is probably the inspiration for this discussion tonight is explicitly says only parents can question materials in the use.
And I did send you guys an email with a link to that just to make sure that we're all on the same page about what I'm talking about. And then to save a ton of time, district money, and confusion, the KEC dash R dash two, just delete the protocol one and two. We don't need to rely on on on outside sources to filter any content that we have, let the staff do their job, and keep the parents access to their own child's material. That just that's all we need to do. If you're trying to open the door for people outside our community to create real
issues for us, then this is how you do it, and that's not okay. These are public schools, and you're sworn to uphold the local public school education, not invite outside influences through these doors. And at a time when we're losing some super talented employees, maybe your focus could remain in district and support the kids. One year ago today, you guys tried to remove kids' books from my kids' book nook in the classroom, the classroom libraries that you wanted to take out. And now I feel like you're trying to undermine parents, and it is very disrespectful
to the teachers that I'm hearing from. So please don't do that. We hire well. The people that work in our district really wanna work here. They're intentional about wanting to work here. So please respect them and keep parents. Let them keep the choice. That's what we need to do. And I know that's a big staple of what this board says, but this is your opportunity to show that. So thank you. Alright. Next up, we have consent items. So I move that the board approve consent items eight dot one through eight dot six as presented. Sorry. Who was that? Can I get a roll call?
Director Callahan? Aye. Director Fletcher? Aye. Director Hunt? Aye. Director Olson? Aye. Director Powell? Aye. Okay. First action item is our interest free loan resolution, and this is something we do every year because the funding doesn't come in until springtime when taxes are paid. So, Yeah. So I move that the board approve the interest free loan resolution that authorizes the participation by the district in the Colorado State Treasurer's interest free loan program for the
district fiscal year 2526. Can I get a second? Second. Alright. So if I can say something and Justin will jump in. Again, more more than half of our money comes from local property taxes. And so those as everyone in the audience knows, we don't pay those until typically March is our first payment on taxes. And so half of our money comes in the last three months of the, of the year. And so the state has been gracious and, doing a number of things. First, they front loaded their, their state aid payments for districts like ours and at
the beginning, which has limited, many of you will recall last year that took us a little longer to have to tap the loan interest and that will be about the same time we were doing this year. But it is, it does allow us then to ultimately pay that back, before the June and, and, square that up. So there's no interest in, it isn't a program that many districts across the state participate in. So Justin has another item, three items down to talk a little about projections. But he may touch on some of that now too.
So, so kind of jumping into one, two and three. So the budget that I inherited the financials, the actuals, while I will not rely on their immediate accuracy because I know there's some things that weren't entered in the system that I just haven't had time to fix and correct and the the juice worth the squeeze kinda have heard of moving forward. We're ending the year on better ratios than anticipated. So we actually show a a slight uptick on the ratios, from where we anticipated,
before my tenure in here. What is driving the majority of this is, analyzing every expense. I've I've kinda been a broken record on expense management. And and I've rubbed a handful of people wrong because we have to change the way that we're doing things. The the amount of expenses that that we're not micro managing, we have to rethink that. So the financials that we've seen reflect the one about a $1.11200000.0
dollar fund balance at the end of the year for 10. But then that goes into this new sheet that I've talked since I've been here about forecasting where we're actually at. What's cash in bank? Keeping the lights on, where are we ending the months at and what's the true financial health of the district versus the financials that the state requires us to put out our percentage of budget used. Well, that doesn't tell us where we're gonna be at in November. It doesn't tell us where we're gonna be at in December, etcetera.
It says where we're at now and how much have we used, in a linear fashion. The forecast that I've built, this is the summary of the summary of the summary that I worked in. I can't mechanically print it to show you guys, but I can I can always send you files of the Excel? What this does is it goes through. This is a working document. What I mean working document. If I get an email that says this expenses or revenue is gonna be higher or lower, two hours before I leave or an hour before I leave work.
I plug this into the spreadsheet, and then we'll forecast its impacts throughout the end of the year, on fund balance ratios, everything alive. So this is a true working document. I have the updated one from the time we we put these in your package. It's changed three or four times because I've got better, newer information that I can run through. The end of the story is last year, we received our loan in December this year. I'm gonna be asking for it in October.
We are at the bottom of the barrel right now, and I do not have enough money to keep the lights on through November. So we have to borrow money from the state, at the at the latest early November. So, that's why that resolution for the interest free, loan was was so important is to get that hammered out now. The good news is it'll take me about two years to probably not need that interest free loan, but to build up the balance and cost savings, expense management, I
I do see the light at the end of the tunnel in about twenty four months. So, you'll be getting this forecast on a monthly basis in your package that will show the line items in extreme detail. I can drill down to this to stamps if we need to, but I roll it up just mainly for the the punishment of our eyes on the size of the smile that I work in. At the end of next year, if all goes as predicted, we'll have a great ratios and things will show on an upward tick. But, I wanna caution everybody, we are in the tidal wave at the end of
of the year. We are still not in a good area. But at the end of the year, it'll show that, hey, we've done great. But in the middle of it through the the winter season, we're gonna struggle. So Even with 10% fund balance, which is our target right now, which again, when this board took, took, authority of the district, we were at a, a 2% fund balance, plus 3% TABRA. 10% is still not going to help with the cash flow with the district that is funded so heavily through local property taxes. And so, so we may, we may wanna look at a, a larger fund balance
at some point if we wanna ultimately not have to rely on an interest free loan. Again, the interest free loan is not a bad thing. It's, thank God the state does that for districts like ours that are more locally funded than, than others. There are, there are districts that are 70% funded at the state level, and therefore they don't have. So when you look at the, the list of districts who borrow in the interest free loan program, it isn't a 178 because there are probably more districts who get funded at a greater ratio at the state level than they do with local property taxes. So so we're one of those districts that are always on that list, because of
the fact that so much of our money hits March, April, May, June. So I'm just an engineer, so pardon me if, but you all keep apologizing for interest free loan. I'm trying to what's the downside? There's no downside. It's just we we want to get to the part where we don't need to. And and again, I think building the fund balance and I think Justin's approach, since he's joined the district has really been to look at every expenditure to make sure that every expenditure is necessary. And that's that's hard, for some who are used to, you know, ordering what they
always have ordered. But we're, we're doing a little more scrutiny because we'd like to, we'd like to hit our 10% fund balance sooner and then the board, I think, has given us two more years. We were, I think, close to to eight, last year. So we went from two to or or or five to to eight, in the last two years, which I think is great progress. I think our goal is to get there faster. In in another by relying on that interest free loan and managing expenses to that, let's call it break even zero zero net every year is the deteriorating capital of
capital that we have. The schools that need a million dollar roof. The parking lots that, you know, are half million dollars each. HVAC equipment that is rusty. You know, a well at a elementary school that's now costing me $300,000. That just never quit. That never quit. So it's one of these where having that low fund balance and maintaining that that zero net gain, you know, my heart palpitates every time I get an email going,
what happened? I don't have enough cushion to to take another year of a well going down or a roof or a, I don't have that cushion of, oh, no. We're in trouble. So, we need that fund balance higher. One is to give us that safety, that that net of emergency, and then also to start reinvesting that money into teachers, into students, into specialists, into growth and technology. We have to start saving money.
We we can't be a zero net. Yeah. I'm not saying live outside these. I'm just Yeah. Yeah. Like, I'm just trying to figure out, like, what's the downside of There's no downside. We know we're gonna be paying it back with money that we're gonna receive in the future. I mean, as I cover a family of farmers, you can't plant if you don't live alone. Right. And and the goal is to grow out of that. But then also to once, to to have that cushion, and to have that safety net, to where we can go, okay, we can hire more specialists.
We can invest in our teachers. We have that breath, which we won't have for twenty four, twenty four months, we can take a breath. Thirty six months, we can take a big breath. So Okay. So and I apologize if this was sent somewhere in in all of that. But so this is, I mean, I know that we did this last year. Mhmm. But prior to that, I I mean, we've done this no interest loan thing. Yeah. Every year for a long time. Right? Yeah. Correct. This is not nothing new. It is not new and also when talking to the state representatives about the needs
that our district has, we were, okay, that's nothing. And I went, excuse me. There you go. We have districts that have tens and tens of tens of millions of dollars in loans. Uh-huh. What we're asking for is is tens of millions of dollars in loans. Uh-huh. What we're asking for is is job change. Yeah. For for the state. So so. A lot better than others. So we are and and we're, you know, we can balance it out. We can we can take a lot of the hit, compared to other districts. So we're not as bad as other places, but in our scale and in our safety net, it's a concern. It is a huge concern.
We have to get back to where we can invest a million dollars a year in infrastructure. If we're ever going to catch up with the aging aging boilers and and and that's that's really where we need to be. And I think we did better this year than we have in a while, but we have to do better. I mean, again, right now, Justin's is it is it the well or is it the boiler that could go out and and and and having to be in that situation is not is not where we wanna be as a district. So I'm I'm confident. I appreciate Justin's leadership and and getting us on track.
And and, like I said, it it's growing pains for folks because the district has been very generous. Again, prior superintendent used to take off the top what they needed for the district and gave it all to schools, and schools spend spend every dime. And that's what they do. That's, obviously, you give them the money, they're gonna spend it. And I'm sure great things were done with that. But the reality is is it wasn't investing in the long term future of the of the district and and that's where we have to shift back to. So So are there any opportunities for, like, capital construction grants for infrastructure?
We we we actually were reach we were contacted by our best grant, contact in our region. Best grant right now because of because of our our district standing, we get very little money on a Best Grant match. So, to do a Best Grant, I, I, I believe last time I looked it was a seventy thirty split, 70 on our part, 30 on their part, which is not a whole lot of contribution if you don't have the 70%. There are waivers you can apply and it, it, because they're reaching out to us, I think we wanna continue to explore, you know, can, can we get some of
the best grant money building better at at educational schools today, I think is what that stands for. But anyways, so those are things we're gonna continue to explore. But we also, I mean, most districts like ours in this situation, we go for a bond to get infrastructure up to date. I think we all know right now that that's probably not something that would likely pass in in our district. And so we're having to do it the hard way, but I think it's the right way too. I think it's the right way for our taxpayers to to get these things funded. And also in the grant that let's say there's a list of 20 things that
that keep me awake at night. That best grant would cross off two of em. Yeah. We still have 18 ticking time bombs that we have to be concerned about and address. And by cost cutting and analyzing every expenses and living truly by a must have only, expense kind of philosophy. Not a, hey. We really want well, don't come with me with what we really want because because I'm gonna say no. But if we have to have it, we can do it. But boilers, roofs, parking lots, you know, we did some amazing things this summer, but
but those are are very small items on, you know, a million dollar roof or a half million dollar boiler. And I go, we gotta make some real hard decisions because I gotta get hot water in that building. How? And I I gotta figure out how. Mhmm. So that will be a very painful conversation if that ever comes. I guess my my take on this, this thing keeps Yeah. Is, you know, are so many maintenance things were deferred so for so many years
before this board, before this administration. So many things generally were deferred. And the delving in that you're doing now has been really good to find out what's truly going on and that hasn't been done for, you know, we made some as you came in, there were a lot of good changes made, a lot of more transparency, but that's happening even more. Thank you. And, so I I think we all just had to realize that this isn't something that all of a sudden, you know, grew with that. All of a sudden, you know, the boiler went bad or whatever. This has been over a long period of time and we get to be the
lucky ones who get to take care of it. So it's, you know, it's it's a long term deferral that has created these issues now. But, you know, by your by your really delving into expenses and and making the difference, thank you so much. I think that is going to truly, that is I just want people to realize that it's not something, oh gosh, all of a sudden the roof went out, or all of a sudden the well went out. It's, those things don't happen, you know, in five minutes. They happen over a lot of years.
And if, if it hasn't been paid attention to, then this is where we are. Correct. The first item is the well, and we've got a motion. Sorry, not the well, but again. We're gonna vote on the well again. No interest loan. Okay. And so There's two motion. So is there any more discussion? Alright. Gonna get a roll call. Director Kallian. Aye. Director Fletcher. Aye. Director Hunt. Aye. Director Olson. Aye. Director Powell. Aye. Okay. Next up, we have fourth quarter financials. We're not gonna have a motion. You're just gonna fill us in. Right.
As we just kinda touched on, you know, we're we're ending the the quarter unaudited, unadjusted. So there's year end audit adjustments and those kind of things. So this is appointment, preliminary before final year end audit, which will be completed in December. We're already engaged in that, with the auditors you're providing there and all the information. But a preliminary, as I said, $2.1592160000.00 cash in bank, on the quarters. The budget to actuals and variances are are all over the board.
And that's just honestly because of the accuracy of the budget that we had last year. Okay. So So that's one question I had when I was when I was looking at this. I look at the numbers from, you know, the actuals for actuals for '23, '24, and I'm like, wow. Quite a difference. And and, unfortunately, I I don't have an answer. Mhmm. Because there's it's not a I can't draw a line between one or two. I'm balancing all that and for me to reconcile all this will take me months. And and I don't know how much benefit it will actually have going.
All that numbers should've been here and this should've been here. We kinda delayed this and it's wrong. Moving forward, that won't ever happen. But but I cannot there's there's just too much for me to get into right now. So the variances are all over the board. So I'm looking at the bottom line and the ratios. So Okay. And we set out the year thinking we'd be somewhere in the $1,600,000 to $1,800,000 fund balance range and $3,200,000 1.59 is actually pretty exciting. So that gets us, like I said, I think that's year 8% on balance, which,
again, we were thinking seven was hopeless for the end of the year. Mhmm. Yeah. Yeah. We do. Last year. And again, I would say a lot of that had to do at the end of the year, tightening up the belt as Justin came in and really started analyzing expenses. So, you know, stopping some things that, again, were just common practice that we just had to change. I I appreciate your words. And I know it's not easy. Yeah. You're basically coming in and, you know, trying to organize things in a way that
you can understand and finding discrepancies. And so we appreciate it. Forward, you know, and and as, and as as the state said, the true validity, validity of a budget is its variance. Mhmm. How far am I off? Mhmm. And this budget here, while, for the 2526, will be off, up and down. Mhmm. But for the 2728, now we have a template. Now we have actuals. Now we can see. And that that should be dialed in to the tens of thousands a month.
You know, where if there's a material outlier of 4%, we should be able to dial down into exactly what that root cause is of why is this budget off two to 3%. Because we have a true template of what happened and when it happened and how and the variances. And, Grant, if you want me to put you to sleep, I can show you what drives this sheet. It is. It's nasty. We're good. But we, yeah, that is the correct answer. But we can go into the variance analysis on why it doesn't do that and
budget. You'll see, you know, things that are off between budget and actuals. Well, next year, that will be adjusted till till I'm aligned correctly. You know, we we didn't get it right but I'd rather have it off on a line item basis this year so you can correct it next year. Questions? It's a lot to digest. I'm sorry. I promise. But we can sit down and go and drill into things. But there's a tight leash on it now, but we did not have that before. Okay. Any more questions on the fourth quarter? Alright.
So we'll move on to the working budget forecast. Yeah. Well, you've already had a chance to kind of hear a little, Justin's given you the the format, that he will track, his his cost forecast that shows, you know, that ultimately, by November is when we're gonna need borrowing, to begin and then should be able to rectify that, certainly in May, major when the bulk of this property taxes come in. So, I don't know, Justin, if you have anything else that no.
And for the interest free loan by law, it has to be paid off by the end of the school year. So, you know, there is no, carryover. Like, it it is by law. It has to be paid over. So, I'll be requesting $3,000,000 that'll give us enough cushion to take a breath. It is interest free. So, you know, it's it's there for a reason. But with this forecast, the more information I have and the more, you know, time that goes by, we can dial it in pretty good.
So, you can say, how much are we gonna have at the February and we'll probably be a pretty good guess. So, So but that's really all I got, guys. Okay. Well, thank you. Yes. That's all I have to say here. Thank you. Dan, what's the first back meeting? First back meeting is a third, I just sent it out, today, with all of
the committees and the dates. It's the September. I haven't I haven't done invites yet. Or have you got a list in the email that's got the dates? So no worries. I'll get invites on your calendar for sure. Anybody else from you guys? No. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Yes. Thank you. Thank you. Thanks. Get you a cake later. Just one other quick thing. Would you what did the parking lot situation at the middle school get resolved? The whole they started it The bigger? Yeah.
Yeah. He walked away from a good check for four holes, which was foolish. That's that's all taken care of now? A 100% put to bed. His lawyer called me, and I kinda laid out the groundwork of what happened and why and where, and he didn't like my answer. So then he we had our legal counsel call him, and they really did not like Okay. And the parking lot is passable. It's passable.
Yeah. It's not where we want it to be. It is the best we can do under a half million dollars. Okay. You ready for nine four? Yeah. Okay. Alright. Next up, we have our second reading of new exhibit j I c d e dash e dash two, the bullying investigation form. Let me cut first. I'm sure you wanna make a plan. So this this form, we have made the adjustments, to, if you remember the the, template, form that we began with did have a intervention section, and this form is
really designed for to hold me accountable in documenting that bullying, incidents of bullying that are reported are are are investigated thoroughly, that we track them, that we make sure we understand who's involved, what's involved, why it occurred. And so we have, removed that intervention section because that's beyond the investigation. And after the investigation, then we deal with what are we gonna do about it. And this is truly the investigation form. So, I believe at this point, it is probably ready unless anyone found anything, that
you felt still needed to be changed. I do believe it's ready for second and final unless you saw something that concerns you. So I'm just excited. This feels like closure because this is, like, one of the very first policies I worked on when I came on board. And now we get the the co the coorment. I'm so happy. I'm telling you, it's the little things. Right? I'll show you. I'll show you. Okay. With that, I move that the board approve the second and final reading of the new exhibit j I c d e dash e dash two, bullying investigation. Form. Second.
Any further discussion on this one? Alright. Mary's gonna celebrate later. Gonna get a roll call. And you said second and final? Second and final. Okay. Yeah. Sorry. My hearing is not great back. Director Callahan? Aye. Director Fletcher? Aye. Director Hunt? Aye. Director Olson? Aye. Director Powell? Aye. Okay. So next up, we have the second reading of revised policy j l d a c, the screening and testing of students. So this policy, really mixed more than just screening and testing of students.
And so there's been this entrance into and treatment of mental disorders. Well, we as a school district don't treat mental disorders. We're not therapists. We don't have therapists. We support families and finding the appropriate, therapeutic intervention that they need. So we have tried to really, streamline this policy into screening and testing of students. When parents need to know, parents need to get permission. Almost everything its parents need to get permission. There were several loopholes that I know we discussed that we have removed, just to
make it very clear. And we have also there was a statement in here that said, teachers may share and we say teachers will share, because we wanna make sure that if if there are concerns with the child's behavior, that it's not a may or encouraged, but it's you're directed to share. And so I really feel like this policy is is streamlined. It it clearly outlines the parental rights. We'll want to look at our parental right policy. That's one of the things we recognized at our class conference this weekend is that
while our our parents' rights, parents' rights and responsibility Policy KBB is great. We need to go back and update it when policies like this are updated. So that'll be something we'll be working on it for our next meeting. But, happy to address anything else maybe that we missed, and point out, we tried to clarify medical professional as being a registered nurse, not a health technician who who's not trained in in medical, things and really indicate that any any counseling, any, work
like that would be done with the parent's permission. Okay. Just out of curiosity, is that so I mean, it's one thing to have this policy. It's another thing to for that to be taught to our teachers, administrators. We have, we have outlined policies or outlined, practices for our counselors that indicate contacting parents is always the first step. The only exception is if a child is reporting abuse, then by law that becomes
something that we don't investigate, the authorities investigate. So that's the only exception in our practice document that the parent, that a counselor may gather information from a student who is reporting a potential abuse situation where maybe a parent might be involved. We don't have a right to disclose that, to the parent. That's something that the authorities would, would investigate, determine. So that's the only exception in our, in our practice Okay. So I move that the board approve the second and final reading of revised policy
j l d a c, screening and testing of students. Second. Any further discussion? Second. Any further discussion? Okay. I I like it. I think this policy reaffirms our commitment to parents and that we respect their role and we know ours. So Yeah. Know the role. Alright. Can I get a roll call? Director Callahan? Aye. Director Fletcher? Aye. Director Hunt? Aye. Director Olsen? Aye. Director Powell? Aye. Okay. So next up, we have our second reading of revised policy IJ, instructional resources and materials. So you're going to see some themes in our policy and our Chief Academic Officer,
Claire, is here for any discussions that you might have, questions for her as well. We've worked to really ensure that our instructional materials and resources, which does include our library, are very consistent throughout all of the policies that we're about to review, both IJ, KEC and the subsequent supporting documents for KEC. Instructional materials and resources are in the classroom. They're used by teachers and instruction and they happen to be in the library where, where that really supports our curriculum.
Our, our policy is always indicated, as does almost every, every school district's policy from the model policy we're offered to districts, says that libraries are part of their curriculum. They support the curriculum. And so we wanted to be very clear in all of these policies defining what instructional materials and resources are, and they do include things that are in the library. And so with policy IJ in particular, you know, the the same definition will appear in the top of every one of the next four policies that we're gonna look
at, because it's so critical that we're very clear, that instructional materials and resources, is am I saying that right? No. Resources and materials. Okay. So even even in the okay. Even in the agenda, I've so Jamie has gone through to make sure that all of them are IRM. Instructional resources and materials. And I think she caught a couple spots, in in the body of a couple of these where she realized that they were different. So, consistency is really what we're working on.
We have three, standard tests for materials. Are they, is there educational value? Are they age appropriate? And are they aligned with the board approved curriculum? Those are the three standards that we are upholding on all curriculum, including library books. That those are the three basis by which decisions are made, in not only purchase of materials, but also in the review of materials if they are challenged. So the IJ policy, also charges your chief academic officer with the role of consulting
with administration, teachers, and students. So despite the comment that was made in public comment, those folks are an important part of the consultation, with our chief academic officer, and ultimately bringing recommendations to you. And then obviously the board always and always has held the final recommendation or final decision on instructional materials and resources. So, we believe very strongly that the policies you're about to see in IJ, which is the one we're looking at, really does outline clearly, that all materials used by
students are for the purpose of instruction, when the resource and materials, and, that we have outlined very clear processes and procedures that comply with all statutes that are in existence. Okay. So if there's anything we missed. Well, it'll come up in discussion. Okay. So I move that the board approve the second and final reading of revised policy IJ, instruction materials and resources. Second. Alright. Discussion. I like it. I like it. And I I think with the folks that think that we're just up here in
Annenbergs or whatever, like, that's just not the case. I mean, if parents that are on the these curriculum committees, I mean, this is not just Teachers. We have Us by the community members. Yeah. We know. Exactly. So Yeah. Well and we don't just have community members from anywhere in the state of Colorado. Exactly. We have community members from our Voters. From our area. So it's the community values, the people who And one thing you have to take into consideration too, the community members are taxpayers.
And so they It's their money paying for this stuff. Well, it's the parents. The parents are invested with their students. Parents also pay taxes. Community members that don't have kids in the school, they also pay taxes. Mhmm. And there are repercussions if our schools are failing, if our schools are doing bad, that affects property values. Yep. You know, there's there's so many repercussions. So I think it's important to have well rounded input, and and transparency. So and I think our committees really help with that. Absolutely. You're so right. Alright. Any further discussion on this one?
Alright. So can I get a roll call? Director Callahan. Aye. Director Fletcher. Aye. Director Hunt. Aye. Director Olson. Aye. Director Powell. Aye. Okay. Next up, we have our second reading of revised policy KEC, public concerns, complaints about instructional resources and materials. So this particular policy outlines when a concern exists, and how those concerns will be handled. This board has put into place a curriculum review committee as has several boards. We heard actually, at our class conference, other districts who have had a curriculum review
committee for some time and, so, certainly our board is in alignment with with many districts in the state. This particular one does again take into account that it's all instructional resources and materials, not just library books. And so it could be a website used in the classroom. It could be a could be a a handout, that's that's commonly used in in a subject area that's being instructed. It could be could be a supplemental, book that's used to enhance the curriculum that's adopted by the board. Whatever it may be, an instructional, resource and material is what's at stake here in
this particular policy. So it does outline how, those would surface. Again, it does reiterate those three standards by which we will always, evaluate materials, age appropriateness, educational value, and aligned with the curriculum. So those are the three standards. This particular policy also, appropriately outlines that a book will not be excluded because of the writer's race, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, nationality, political or religious views, and
that again the value of the whole book will always be judged. We talked about there are books that that might have things that we'd rather not have children access, but they also have a historical value. And so we have to always weigh that as, you know, as as a depiction of what really happened in our society, something we wanna take away from our children, if it's, if it's, if it's that historical value versus, just obscene, obscenity that might be in a book. So this particular, this particular policy does outline the process by which parents or other
individuals, because again, it's not only library resources, that are being considered in this policy, it's all. However, Nicole will jump in in a moment. She actually, brought up some things today and and we worked with our attorney and we have a few minor suggestions that are in the front pocket of your folder. So, I don't know if, Nicole, you wanna take it from there. I will. Yes. Thank you. Yes. I brought up something that came up during public comment, wanting to make sure we are in compliance with state law, specifically, a bill that was passed this past legislative
session, and it you'll see it highlighted in green here at CRS 22 dash one dash one four eight four c, and so under state law, only a parent can make a formal request for consideration of a library book. However, there are other pathways that concerned community members, staff, even students themselves can go ahead and submit, concerns about books that are in the library. So, to make sure we are in compliance, I suggested that we do add language
that says following state law, the only individuals who can officially make a request for consideration are parents. However, the community can, can participate in a parallel path that is not prohibited under state law. Our community has mentioned students and staff, but that's not what the law says. The law says parents only. Parents with children where that material exists in their library. So, just to correct our our public speaker earlier, if we only follow the laws,
teacher can't bring something to the attention of the district, a student can't bring something to the attention of the district, which is deeply concerning. So that's why I think thank you, Nicole, for catching that. I think it's critical to recognize they do need to alert us if there's concern. It won't be through the formal, review process that's outlined in the policy, but it doesn't mean that we as a district should ignore it. Mhmm. Which I think is just a good reminder again that, of course, we're very parents' rights focused, but we also want to give a voice to others in our community, whether they're taxpayers, whether they're staff who care about the kids and the stuff, the
exposure that they're getting to material, or the students themselves who are mature enough to see. This isn't something that I want my siblings exposed to or I myself want to be exposed to. We wanna have a pathway for them to be able to come and share that with us, and so they can do that through this process. They can do it by showing up to our meetings or by emailing, anyone in the district to be able to share those concerns. So I I have a a quick question regarding to so the person who requests who objects to the book or or other material will be asked to complete a request for reconsideration form, which is the one that we've got that we'll be dealing
with later. According to CRS 22 blah blah blah. Only a parent of the student enrolled in the library resource may request a reconsideration. Other members of the community For that for that material. For that material. For library materials. So And I do yes. I updated this on one of the other forms we're gonna look at but I do think we should probably clarify all library resources because, you know, through our through our reconsideration process, because we list that, of course, as instructional resources and materials, which includes things in the classroom and things in the library.
So where we're being specific here is that according to state law only the parents can request it formally, so let's go ahead and say that with regard to library resources, but anyone else in the community can go ahead and submit those concerns to us through the same process, These this request for consideration, but we're calling it for instructional material that's not a library book. Okay. So so a parent is the only one who can do it for officially and formally for a library resource.
But what we're saying is other community members can do Can bring this. And kind of just let let Kim know, you know, I saw this. Right. I heard about this. Is this Drew? Or something on a Right. You know, on either a library item, a library item particularly, I guess. But and and that will be taken to continue. That would be taken to consideration. Would be handled. In a different process. Yeah. Probably, CRC would still be involved because that's your direction. But yeah. It it would not follow the letter a b c d like it's outlined here because that's a formal request for reconsideration.
If it's a library book and it's not apparent, that would be handled through a different process. Okay. But the input would still be received? It's the input would definitely be received and we wanna be clear that we're open to that. So Oh, yeah. Yeah. And there's nothing in state law that prohibits, staff or, students or community members from using a request for consideration on any material that's outside of the school library. Library. So that is still open to folks to use that process. Do you think we should clarify that as as separated from the library resources that
I think I mean, it does say here additionally, other instructional resources or materials may be suggested for reconsideration by students, staff, or community members. Okay. Yeah. It's on the back of that. I guess I want to Okay. Good. To Okay. Well, the I I like I like what you added and just, like you said, clarify a little bit, made formally, request.
Did you say something about adding Request to consideration of library resources. Yeah. Just carry those two don't verify. I think that's great. Yeah. The four other members of the community. Yes. Yeah. I think that's good. I think it's a it's a very clear policy. Obviously, the track changes makes it very difficult. We'll we'll clean that up and get you a clean copy. But, like I said, I think I think it's done well. Our attorneys, are very pleased, feel like it it addresses all of the issues in the law and ensures that we're in full compliance, and it and it respects this
board's desire to make sure that things in the classroom, things that are used for instructional purposes, that there is an avenue where teachers can alert you to concerns, students can alert you to concerns, and members of our community can take and our boundaries, 2,600 students. So we have a lot of non parent taxpayers who contribute to run this district and they certainly have a voice in what happens. And I'll add that there might be parents out there who would not know but
for community members who or teachers or students themselves who bring these things to light. So I think it actually supports parents' rights. And ultimately, I think this is about transparency and accountability. Absolutely. This is why we make this available, and we are willing to review if there are concerns and take those into account for future decision making. Yeah. Yeah. So it's not too vague. Are we going to how are we going to let people know? What is their means? Or how much is I think that's what we could put out.
After these are formally adopted, we could put out guidance to the community on based upon some recent policy changes we want to clarify, pathways by which I do want to say for the record, and for those who are watching, our library review began because of parents expressing concerns about materials in the library. It wasn't outside community members. It was parents of children in our District who expressed concerns about library books that led this Board to charge the Curriculum Review Committee to do a thorough review of our 50,000 books.
So, I that that seems to be lost somewhere in the in the facts out there. It was not the community. It was not a special interest group. It was parents in our community who brought books to this board and said, look at what you have in your library that led you to say, let's do a thorough review of the library. Mhmm. Yes. And I the the comment earlier about the language of and, the board will not permit any individual or group to exercise censorship. And then should an individual or group wanna have it done, this is kind of
the process. Yeah. So that individual or group thing is I mean, it is the protection against any one person coming and saying, you gotta get rid of x y z book. I mean, this process protects protects us, protects our students, protects our school from special interest groups coming in and saying, no. This you can't have this. It there's a process and that's There has to be a named complainant. It can't be a group of people who shut up. It has be a named complainant who's gonna sign their name, fill out the form, give the details of concern.
And I think that's what protects from just a group lobbying you to say, we don't think this material should be in your library. Right. Somebody needs to come forward and complete the form so that the curriculum review committee has adequate understanding of the concern. Exactly. Exactly. That was going for us. Yeah. So, you know, we can have a group lobbying to take stuff out, but then we can also have group lobbying to put stuff in. No. That's true. Yeah. Exactly. This isn't just one-sided. Right? Thank you. Yeah. Yeah. That's a good point. I believe it's supposed Democratic Republic process.
Final? And I would say with the amendments Okay. Yeah. With that too. By, board member. Yeah. Okay. So I move that the board approve the second and final reading of revised policy KEC, public concerns, complaints about instructional resources and materials with the amendments made by director. Second. Director Callahan. Aye. Director Fletcher. Aye. Director Hunt. Aye. Director Joelson. Aye. Director Powell. Aye. Okay. So next up, we have our second reading of exhibit KEC dash A, how are
our service complaints about instructional resources under the area. So we did, we did have, meeting with our, our legal counsels, and there were some adjustments to number six that I want to draw your attention to. Because an individual doesn't have to read the entire book, to express a concern. If they've read a first chapter and they, and they're struggling with what they're seeing, we're not forcing them to read the rest of it if there's already legitimate concerns. So, the way it was worded almost sounded like we were, we were speaking down
to someone who didn't read the whole thing and that's not our intent. And so we wanted to clarify. So she recommended, some, some modifications. You know, did you read enough to ultimately have sufficient, formed opinion and then what parts or pages, concerned you. So really allowing them to just talk about the part that that concerned them. And I think we have another change also that could be recognized. Yes. Yeah. Just following with the past form to be considered by state law, make it clear
that Vermeer parent can challenge, reconsideration of library resources. And so I do I did have a recommendation at the end of that highlighted sentence there. They request, a reconsideration of library resources to make sure that that's on On number
six, I think there's I think it needs just one word addressed it in that if not, describe which parts you reviewed. And it and then it says, and what that review was sufficient. I think it's maybe how that review was sufficient to develop. And Dan, I wanted to point out just for consistency purposes because I do agree with, legal counsel that I like adding more meaningful parts. But I wanted to flip to the front and and if you'll see right underneath our green highlighted area, it says that the following questions are to be answered after the complainant has read, viewed, or listened to the material in its entirety.
So I think maybe we take out the in its entirety because we're saying here that it's sufficient. To the material. Yeah. Yes. Good point. Yeah. So we'll strike that. We'll add a library resource to our site here after the Reconsideration. Mhmm. So just the two changes? Three. Three. Three. Okay. A bunch of people. All the proposers. Director's content column. There we go. Second. Alright. And they're willful. Director Callahan. Aye. Director Fletcher. Aye. Director Hunt. Aye. Director Olson.
Aye. And Director Powell. Aye. So again, just trying to capture all of these specifics. We did go through words that made, and this was recommendation of counsel that we always And number five, we kind of have gotten rid of of of education, so
we can just strike. The board. Yeah. Just say the board. Number five. You want that taken off? Just for consistency. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I think you got rid of some of them. So I think I left it after our conversation with Laura. I think the way she said it, I left it. But that doesn't mean it has to be. But I think that's where I left that one. Oh, there's actually one in four e two. Yeah. CRC is making a specific recommendation to and and I think just like CRC, she's added CRC throughout. I think here she really wanted to Okay.
Okay. Well, that's fine. So just leave that in on both of those places. Okay. And if I could just clarify on four d, it says that they'll prepare a report. And then four e, it says that they'll forward their recommendation. Is that the report and the recommendation or are we using the words interchangeably? Great point. Report to me would be the recommendations, so maybe we just need to be consistent. Just for sure. A report that outlines the recommendation. Okay. Sure. Yeah. That sounds good. And This is a really small thing, but the CRC that's used at the very
beginning, I don't know if you want to go ahead and say the curriculum review committee before we start calling it by its acronym so it's clear. Yes. I believe it is. So write that and then put CRC in Yeah. Right. I agree even if it's one in minority, they can still prepare a report. Writing their their recommendation to you and the reasons why.
That's great. Second. Alright. Can you get a roll call? Director Callahan? Aye. Director Fletcher? Aye. Director Hunt? Aye. Director Olson? Aye. Director Powell? Aye. So this this is capturing the library protocols that you put into place a little over a year ago, and making sure that it's office So there are three protocols,
selection process, since the content catalogs that we put into place, and then ensuring that parents have access to the library catalog and student history. So those are the three parts of, of the library protocol. I made a note on protocol one, and this is probably what was referred to earlier by that side view. So I'm kinda expecting to. And then it lists resources, which, you know, some of these might not even exist anymore. So my thoughts were maybe change the verbiage to, using resources such as for, you
know, including, I noted that as well. Yeah. But you want it to be an evergreen policy or at least as evergreen as it can be. Yeah. I definitely agree with that. And then if we, potentially, you know, any other new ones have come to light, we could list them in there too so that people with the the CRC and you and, you know, anybody reviewing these materials could have a list in front of
them whether that's I do like your resources such as. But I think, at this point, if we know of any others because we do know the one doesn't exist anymore in this list. So, We just don't wanna have to keep on No. We don't want that. But, I mean, if we say such as, we don't have to, but we might as well make it as current as we can right now. Is there any reason we can't just point them to the chief academic officer and say, is a list approved by her? I mean, but I mean the chief academic officer can just be the holder of all resources that are used to It might be good to have it in public
No. It doesn't because it's kind of guiding for you too. Mhmm. Yeah. And I did have a question on that same protocol in the same paragraph. It starts with library and or district staff as well as members of the CRC. Just wanted to clarify, do we know, like, who in the district staff or is that something that we want to clarify or is that just assigned as people are? We may want to align this with the KDCR, So I wonder if to make
this, to align this with, with KDCR, if this is Is it just the CRC? And I will point out that you, in your policy last year did say you'll also evaluate any parent or guardian identified books of concern. So you actually, and this policy actually did. So I think the state stole from you that you're the one person parents. So, that, that so my thought would be that we actually readjust, protocol one to kinda capture the fact that we're long term, we're actually talking about marital materials.
I need to think about it. Yeah. And that's why I don't think we wanna know this. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Well, and the reason why I brought it up too is as we've been reviewing all of these other KEC documents, we really haven't been talking about library or district staff. Mostly we've been talking about the CRC. So I would just understand what is the process by which these other folks are coming in or being selective to participate in this. I have a question actually for Kim regarding that if that's okay. So I know that you have gotten requests from our library staff saying, I'd like
to order this. Is this okay? And you have the you have kind of the first level, of course, you know. Yes. And really, in most cases, you're going to have the final say on yes, they can or no, they can't Yes. Based on these protocols. But do you have, so when you get I'm sorry. I've lost I have to say that. Exactly how I wanna say this, but, the process when you get that request, you you are getting requests from the library staff.
Yes. I am. And so, we definitely and from the teachers as well that they want something for their classroom library or something. Yes. And we have said really, basically, we've said no more no more stuff going into the classroom library. That's extra. Unless it is one of the greatest on the greatest book list. Great books. Okay. Good. So, so I guess our process is, you know, the people who are dealing with it, who are kind of looking at, you know, I'd like to buy this for the library, but they know there's a process to go to you first. Yes.
And so, maybe we just need to to clarify that, that, the the request goes to you first and if and and then you make the decision based on these protocols basically. And then, you know, when it comes down to, and and you do you do. I know you use these resources. I know you've used some of them. I looked at Yeah. Because you were the ones who alerted us to the one that's gone. Yes. Yes. I was like, what? And and you use a sense of the topic.
Yes. Exactly. Yes. So, I guess that was really badly worded and I'm trying to work this through in my head and then say it out loud too and it's not working out very well. But I think we need to recognize that you're part in that process and that you do get the request to to still buy whatever. Mhmm. And but you make the the call based on this protocol. For new purchases. For new purchases. Yes. And what I hear what I hear there being the difference here is that we're talking about when we're requesting versus when we're evaluating.
Because here it says the library and the store staff as well as the CRC will evaluate, not necessarily the request Right. Side of it. So maybe if we make this a little bit more clear. Yeah. I feel like there's some Analysis of current current current materials versus buying new stuff. I think that's a good idea to separate it and study that stuff. The maybe that's where I was getting myself all goober'd up because Kim And it
makes sense to even identify a chief academic officer as being the place to send that request and maybe not even CRC need to be involved in that at that point. I did have a clarifying question up in the first, paragraph. If we go to the last sentence, it says, to that end, the curriculum review committee has developed the following guiding protocols. Are we actually talking about is this a board document? Like, did the board The curriculum review committee developed this recommended that the board and board adopted it. Okay. So this this was designed by the curriculum review committee that was charged with, you need to review the 50,000 that process prior to looking at the books.
Okay. So I wonder then if we might wanna add in because it makes it sound like the review curriculum committee has, or I guess is the authoritative body for this document. So I wonder too if if you wanna keep it in there, if that's important to say that it was developed by the CRC, maybe then we just say and adopted by this board. That way, it's still clear that they're they're not necessarily the authoritative committee when it comes to whether Right.
Well, and to the point that we actually might be changing this a bit, it might be worth it to say, you know, initially drafted by, but revised by the board because at the end of the day, this isn't gonna look exactly like it did when it was initially, developed. Might even be able to put a date that it was developed and then That I was thinking about that at the top. Yeah. Because I didn't see any history, so I was like Yeah. It's Okay.
It's not. But not But does it still have in here? Right. Okay. Right. So we need to probably capture that. I saw the I saw the bolt. Right. I want everything reviewed and preapproved. But on the second, Mhmm.
Yeah. That's probably Yeah. I have previous versions of that protocol if you wanna look at those and and craft. I just wanna make sure everything follows a process and there's no no gaps. We've This, just a comment about this.
This whole thing that we're doing right now with this. I mean, this these library protocols were kind of an emergency response to the realization that people were parents were saying, I'm not quite sure about some of these books. And we realized there had to be a process. So that was kind of where our brain was at at the time. And now because of, you know, the broader scope of both what the CRC did in actual the reviewing and choosing curriculum as well as concern about the library materials,
It just shows that this is a fluid process and we are we are improving it and amending it as we go and, we're not stuck in something archaic that isn't working now. But this was where we were at to start and now, you know, it has moved forward. So, I just I you know, the whole the whole review process itself was a start from scratch, what do we do kind of a thing, and And we came up with, I think, a very good and transparent process when we reviewed those books, and our sensitive content list and the whole the whole nine yards with all of
that. And this is just more of the same. So I just wanna say that this is this is what we do. We are just trying to, you know, we start we gotta start somewhere Mhmm. And then you improve it as you go. I guess it's my Some of these documents haven't been reviewed since February. Yeah. I know. So Yeah. That's an entire generation. Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And if I could add, if I could add because as I was looking into CRS twenty two one one forty eight four a, it talked about the fact that, a lot of the provisions of how they are asking that parents, be the only
individuals to pull books from libraries or to ask for reconsideration. It actually does have a provision that says says that, that these sections do not apply to routine collection maintenance, in accordance with the public school library's established collection development and maintenance policy. So so to the degree we can, as part of this, you know, be clear about what that policy is, the maintenance policy. Right? Over time, we're just gonna continue to maintain as we bring new books in. We don't have unlimited sales for all the books. For the possible Or maybe a maintenance. Yes.
So I think it would be a great idea to add it into the section to this policy. Yeah. I think we knew bringing this would at least generate the conversations that we need to Mhmm. Yeah. This is good. I like it. Continuous improvement. Well, this was first reading. Right? Yeah. We did approve first reading. Yeah. Director Callahan. Aye. Director Fletcher. Aye. Director Hunt. Aye. Director Olson. Aye. Director Powell. Aye. That does specifically reference federal agencies and so this policy does need to be amended. We actually have something in this policy that relates to local agencies.
So we're recommending that's not a and that have the modifications be completed here.
Well, I I definitely agree adding in federal and I think local agencies is very important because two of our two of our, security are directly employed by, the police department. So thank you. Yeah. So, yes, I I think that's very important. Okay. Second. Now can I just say this was required to be adopted by September 1? Oh, you know what? Let me amend my motion and I move that the board is for the first and final meeting revised policy KLG relations with federal state and local Second.
Director Kelly Anne? Aye. Director Fletcher? Aye. Director Hunt? Aye. Director Olson? Aye. Director Powell? Aye. Sorry. We thought we had a lot of policies before. Exactly. There's a new standard. Yikes. Okay. So with that, relations with local county and state agencies.
Yeah. I second. Okay. We're all Director Callahan? Aye. Director Fletcher? Aye. Director Hunt? Aye. Director Olson? Aye. Director Bell? Aye. We have a lot of state and local agency that needs last time. Well and this one sort of was just weird that it was under that one anyway because it's really just kind of Alright don't call that zoning commission weird. But I and I can say, Dan, that I had written it in the detailed agenda, but it's because of the consent part.
So what I didn't put up? Sorry. It protects personal identifying information of parents, relatives, guardians, and students, which I think was already in there. But I think that's what what it has to do with the whole yeah. If that's helpful. I don't know. I was too busy reading. I don't know. It's just turnover. I don't think you must. Well, with that, I move the board approve the first and final reading of revised policy JRA JRC student records for use of information on students. Second. I just I think it's interesting and I just wonder I think it's odd, but
the comment here in on page two in the second paragraph, the comment has what CASB's wording is. And it seems to be kind of opposite of our language. Because we're saying staff members who share, personally identifiable information based on their own personal knowledge, will be responsible for violation of confidentiality or may will be personally liable and may face discipline. And then the CASB apparently says nothing in this policy will prevent that from happening.
So those are totally opposite. I like ours better. I like ours better too. Yeah. Because if if if you as a More protective. Special education there have personal knowledge of the students' disability or or or medical issues occurring as a result of that. Yeah. Yeah. I know. Now I agree completely. I just wondered why and, I mean, ours is more protective of the student this way. So I like ours much better. But I just wondered if anybody knew any background to that because that's Well, it was done in April 2023. You guys did it. So at some point, this board chose that. Yeah. Or part of this board. Yeah.
Yeah. Protective to see color by their own personal bias on them and stuff. So you don't want that going into an official record. No. I like ours much more protective. I like ours better. I just I just thought that was odd and wondered what we know that. Remember. Okay. Any further discussion? I have a question about the disclosure to military recruiting officers. I think it's on well, it starts on '6, but it's mostly on thirty seventh. I I get maybe those, you know, males that have to register for selective service
or whatever, but why white female students? If they requested everybody's study. But Director Callahan?
Aye. Director Fletcher? Aye. Director Hunt? Aye. Director Olson. Aye. Director Powell. Aye. I think a lot of it's gonna come down to Timing. Who's available. Yeah. Who's available. I mean, I'm willing to switch if an evening meeting works better for somebody. I can try and work it Well, I have I may be late, but I
will be at the CAC meeting on Tuesday. I probably will be late because I had another appointment, but I think it should be wrapped up soon. Yeah. I was just thinking for purposes of our newer board members, maybe it would be good to describe what these committees are and who they are made up from a little bit. And so I did that in the beginning of the year. So look at that, but TAC is our teacher advisory council. There's two We were Kim and I talked earlier probably 04:00 because it does include
some teachers and and staff otherwise. So we don't want them to have to run back and forth. Yeah. And the student members. Because a lot of them are working and community members are working. Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. Right. Yeah. That's good. Yeah. CAC is? No. Oh, TAC. And that's, they're all very important. They are all very important. But I just wanna point out that it was from TAC that we received the request for the cell phone policy. And so that's the kind of, you know, one of the kinds of things that comes through that, and just concerns of the teachers. And Adam Peyton runs that, and he does an excellent job with that.
And and, and he really tries to get representation from everybody, so it's good. We would like to get some And what's the ideal engagement for board involvement on
these committees? One or two? Board member attend. Just one? The same one or That's attached. We actually split between John and Heather, because obviously both had commitments on the side, so they tried to coordinate that one because they're always there. So there's always that option to do that if there's you can't make a commitment to all that you're willing to do that. Cool. Which one provided dinner? I'm allergic to healthy options. Use the h word. Alright. Does Dac meet in here too? I adjourn this meeting at 08:01PM. There you go. Cool.