Good evening. I'm calling this meeting to order. The time is approximately 05:33PM in accordance with the Texas Open Meetings Act, Texas government code chapter five five one. This meeting is officially open with a quorum present. At this time, we will hear public comment addressing items on the agenda. Please allow me to remind you because of restrictions by the Texas Open Meetings Act, board members may not engage in a verbal exchange about a subject that has not been posted. We will listen and take notes, but the board is prohibited from responding to any
inquiries made during a board meeting on any topic not posted on the agenda. However, the board may reply with, one, a statement of factual information given in response to the inquiry, two, recitation of existing policy in response to the inquiry, or three, direct the person to visit with staff about the issue. No presentation may exceed three minutes unless the speaker has prior approval for additional time because of the use of a translator. Speakers who require the assistance of a translator are permitted double the allotted time of
speakers who do not require the assistance of a translator. Speakers, when your name is called, approach the podium by going to the back of the room, down the stairs, and coming up the side wall on your right. As soon as the speaker begins speaking, the time clock will begin. Our first and only speaker tonight is Laurie George. Welcome. Okay. It feels like the price is right coming on down. Okay. So my name is Laurie. I am speaking as a mom, an autistic or an autism researcher, the PhD kind,
not the Google kind, and a disability advocate. I have a son diagnosed with autism. When Fort Worth ISD assessed him at age four, he could know he had no conversational skills. He did not always respond to his name, and he often eloped. I chose private school for my child, because as his mother, my first job is to keep him safe from harm. That decision was not a rejection of public education. It was a recognition that autism is a disability. And at that time, safety was my primary concern and was the found and is
the foundation for learning. I'm intensely positive about autistic strengths and about autism affirming care, but I also live with the reality that autism is a real difference in communication, sensory processing, and social problem solving made more challenging under stress. Those differences create an inherent power imbalance in peer interactions. We don't need a diagnostic label on a t shirt for other kids to notice it. Children detect differences at a very young age. By middle school, they understand how power works.
Here's where the adults come in. Too often, the burden is shifted onto the disabled child. Learn to mask better. Self regulate faster. Use your words in a moment when language is the hardest. When I taught middle school, I personally witnessed a child with no mobility in his arms get punched in the face. No amount of restorative practices would allow that child to feel safe in class with his aggressor. He was at a fundamental disadvantage. Relying on social skills training for an autistic child in an attempt to prevent bullying
is akin to suggesting that my student with no use of his arms should start lifting weights. Middle school is where power gets practiced. If we refuse to acknowledge the disability based power gap, we teach the wrong lesson that autistic classmates must carry the weight for other children's choices. I won't teach my son that, and we shouldn't teach that to any child with a disability. My job as a parent is to keep my child safe from harm. Your job is to ensure school is a place where safety is nonnegotiable. Consequences are clear, and the victim is prioritized.
So my ask is simple. Call this what it is, bullying, and act accordingly. Keep the targeted child safe from harm, not the other party safe from consequences. Ensure he isn't placed in classes with students who hurt him, at least at this stage of development. That's how we model the kind of adulthood we hope adolescents will grow into. Thank you so much. Thank you, miss George. Thank you for sharing your thoughts this evening. At this time, we will move to agenda item three a, the level three grievance of parents c, comma, and t, comma, then continue with agenda item three b, level
three grievance of Laurie Gourde, which requires meeting in closed session as authorized under chapter five five one of the Texas government code, sections five five one zero seven one and zero seven four. The board does not need to address agenda item three c, the level three grievance of Andrea Tucker. Will the parties involved in the level three grievance of parents c comma and t comma please come forward at this time? The parties involved with the level three grievance of Lori Gourde, please remain seated until
called upon next. The time is 05:39PM, and we will move to closed session. When you're feeling down, When you hit the ground, don't you lose your We're gonna
take you higher. We're gonna lift you up. Oh, oh, oh. We're gonna take you higher. Oh, oh. We're gonna lift you When you hit We're gonna take you higher.
We're gonna lift you up. Oh, oh. We're gonna take you higher. Oh, oh. In accordance with the open meetings law, the board opened the meeting at 05:33PM with a quorum present. Recessed open session, convened executive session, adjourned executive session, and we have now reconvened open session at 08:36PM with a quorum present. We will now move to five a, board deliberation and render a decision if any on the level three grievance of parents c comma and t comma. Do I have a motion on the level three grievance of parents c comma and
t comma, trustee Lynch? I move to uphold the level two decision. Second. Anybody? Trustee Bridges with the second. Any discussion? Trustee Lynch? I just wanna encourage the parents to con continue to communicate with the administration regarding the needs of their son. I also expect the administration to continue monitoring this matter proactively. Thank you. Any other discussion? Please move to voting. And the motion passes six yay and one abstain. And it is trustee Ryan is abstaining. Moving to the next item, five b, board deliberation and render decision, if any, on
the level three grievance of Lori Corday. Do I have a motion on the level of the level three grievance? Trustee Dorr? I move to uphold the level two grievance decision. Do we have a second? I'll take the second. Any discussion? Please move to voting. And motion passes unanimously. The time is 08:37PM and this meeting is adjourned.