All right, here we are. It is [clears throat] December 18th. Welcome to the joint school committee and select board meeting um for Thursday, December 18th. I'd like to call the meeting to order. Um we will all stand for the pledge of
allegiance. I pledge algiance 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.
>> Do you need to call your meeting? >> Yeah. Order. [clears throat] >> We have the quorum from select board. I call the meeting to order. >> Great. And we would love to start off with public comment. Would anybody like to make public comment? No. Seeing no one, we're going to go right in.
Recognition, school committee members. >> No one's on Zoom. If we clarify, >> is there anyone on Zoom? >> Are we zooming? >> There was a Zoom option. >> There was a Zoom option. >> There is a Zoom option. >> There is nobody there. >> Jim, do you know if anybody's on the Zoom?
>> Mark, Logan, and Matthew. >> Are they here for public comment? >> No, I think they're >> No, they're members of members. Great recognition. Anyone?
Wonderful. We're going to move right into our budget discussion. I would like to state that on our school committee um agenda tonight is budget discussion and we are going to hold our comments to the budget. So, thank you everyone.
>> Go ahead. >> Awesome. Well, good evening everyone. It's nice to see you all. I'm excited to have this opportunity to present the superintendent's recommended budget for FY27 on behalf of the students, teachers, staff, and administration of the Hopington Public Schools. I feel we have developed a thoughtful and
strategic budget that is grounded in data. Uh it's informed by my entry plan and listening tour uh and is aligned with the town's financial expectations. I want to thank everyone who contributed to this work, our principles, our directors, our central office team, Miss Rothermick and Mr. Lebron. Of course,
our uh supportive school committee and our town partners. Uh, I believe this was a really collaborative effort and I'm proud of the care, thought, and vision. Uh, and while I know I'm new to this, uh, obviously my first budget presentation, I know that budgets are never an easy conversation, uh, carries
with it a lot of emotions. Uh, but I know that everyone in the room here cares deeply about our kids, uh, our staff, and our community. And I want you all to know that the same care guided every decision in this proposal. So, as you listen tonight, our hope is that you hear the development of a budget that protects what makes Huffington special. Uh, responds to what we're seeing in our
schools right now. and positions us well for what's coming next. So we will start with the timeline that we followed. Uh the budget development began as you know in late summer and early fall with the capital planning and town level coordination and messaging.
Uh in November and early December we move moved through projections, capital requests at CIC and most recently individual principles and department leaders presented to the school committee allowing for questions, discussion and refinement along the way. And tonight we'll be presenting the entire recommended budget uh followed by
public hearing on January 8th and school committee vote on January 22nd and ultimately a town meeting in May vote. And our point of sharing this timeline is to highlight that this has been and and will continue to be a transparent and deliberate process.
So a little bit about that process to date. Uh this budget wasn't built in isolation. As I mentioned, we've worked closely with our teams to examine priorities, staffing models, enrollment trends, and student needs. Uh, at several points of this process, we've asked ourselves, you know, what does the district truly need to stay high
performing district? Uh, while also focusing on the health and well-being of our students, uh, not just this year, but in future years, uh, and how we can do that responsibly when it comes from a a financial standpoint. So, in a moment, I'll go over the new requests and then Miss Rothermick will go over the numbers
and the percentages. Uh but what you're not going to see tonight is the dozens of requests that have already been cut from the budget. Uh we had to prioritize. We had to make some tough decisions. And so I think that's important for the community to hear. So a little um bit of context matters. I
wanted to zoom out before we kind of and look back before we push forward. Uh on the left you'll see the annual percentage increases from FY20 uh to FY26. Uh for the school's operating budget over the past seven years. You'll see our school budgets have averaged an annual increase of about 5.84%.
Some years higher, some years lower. Uh we also when thinking about this budget, I think it's important to highlight uh that our operating budget in the schools has not historically included the special education reserve nor the cost of certain financial software that's now required to be in our operating budget.
Uh both of which have have an impact on our bottom line. Uh, and so these additions add an increase of around 1.7% to our overall number before we even started to build our budget, which I think is also important to mention as we go through tonight's slides. >> Is this the first year of that?
>> I believe Yeah, as far as I noticed. Yeah, maybe >> absorbing the reserve. >> Yes, >> because I know we set it up, but Okay, >> thanks. Y >> So, just a quick uh look at the numbers as I think numbers always tell an important story. Uh, let's start with enrollment. our prek to 12 enrollment at
the end of the 202425 school year, so June of 25 was 4,237 students. The projected enrollment for June of this year, 2026, is 4,377. Uh we [snorts] currently have around 100
students districtwide under that number right now, which is usual uh at this time of year with expected moveins and transfers to come. And the projected enrollment for June of 27 is slated for 4532 students. Uh these numbers come directly
from Dr. Wagman's 2023 projections. Uh and I think while we know projections aren't always 100% spoton, these projections are generally within 60 to 100 students plus or minus the last few years. Uh so it's been a pretty good gauge and accurate gauge for us as we built our budget this year. Uh as for
staffing, we currently have 602 dedicated [clears throat] educators in the district, including 370 classroom teachers. A little bit about our student population. We are serving a growing and diverse population with 46 language spoken across the district and nearly a quarter of our students come from homes where English is not the first language.
Uh other numbers include that our middle school next year will have the three largest cohorts in the district altogether making for the largest middle school enrollment we've had. However, despite that recent growth, we maintain a strong 14 to1 student teacher ratio and spend significantly below the state
average when it comes to per pupil expenditures while still achieving exceptional outcomes. And speaking of some of those outcomes, uh we have a lot to celebrate. Uh just a few recognitions here that I wanted to highlight. Our middle school was ranked recently as one of the very best Massachusetts middle schools based on
the US News and World Report study. Uh nearly 95% of our graduates last year attended a two or four-year college. 99% of students taking AP exams last year scored a three or higher. Uh our teachers have been rated number one in the state by the niche ratings recently. The high school was recently named the
number two public high school in the state by US News and we'll report. And lastly, we had the highest grade 5 math MCCAST across the state recently. And so these outcomes, I don't think happen by chance. they reflect our sustained investment in the people, the programs and ultimately a culture where education
comes first. So, as we look at the budget, >> [clears throat] >> uh as we all know, there are several major cost drivers that shape it. First, it's always about student enrollment and meeting everyone's needs. Uh so, that's always a priority when building the budget. Second, there are special education costs and supports that are
required. Student needs are increasing as we know and compliance is obviously non-negotiable. Third is transportation uh which is necessary and essential service with rising costs beyond our control. And finally, our contractual obligations or what I like to call the people who make our schools run every
day. In stepping into this role in July, I've spent a great deal of time uh meeting with folks and listening and and what I've heard has also helped shape the 20 uh 2007 FY budget proposal. Uh since July, I've met with families, students,
town leaders, community members, uh staff. I visited every building, uh their faculty meetings. I spent full days in the buildings. I've gathered feedback of over 450 survey respondents from the community. Uh also, I had a wonderful visit at the senior center just yesterday to talk about our schools and our financial outlook. Uh and what
I've heard consistently is the pride that the community has in our schools, our students, and our educators. And it's clear uh that we put kids first and that education matters. However, alongside that pride, there are also some common themes that I continue to hear that we need to address moving forward. For example, we're seeing
increased behavioral complexities across grade levels. Uh discipline referrals are up 20 to 30% in in some of our schools across the district. Uh we have growing elementary literacy and Esau alignment needs in the district. Uh some class sizes in particular schools such as the middle school uh based on cohort
size are becoming a concern. Student mental health and well-being continues to be an area we must address and put our resources towards uh in facility expansion such as the addition at Hopkins as well as uh Charleswood coming on board and on the horizon obviously requires thoughtful staffing adjustments as well. Uh so in addition to the
standard budget drivers uh the FY27 budget responds directly to some of these findings as well. Uh and I'm calling these findings and requests our focused investments and we use the word focused investments uh very intentionally. Uh the guiding principle of this budget is to sustain
our success uh and making by making careful and targeted investments in the areas where need is clear and the impact on students will be the greatest. Uh so every item tonight uh that you'll see has been thoughtfully vetted and and directly ties to documented instructional and operational needs.
So our investments fall into four priority car categories. special education, uh, instructional costs tied to enrollment growth, instructional program enhancements, and core operations. And each request, like I said, you'll see next connects directly to one or more of these priority areas.
So, let's get into these new investments. In total, we are proposing $535,000, 763 in new requests with about 88,000 already approved by the school committee. You can see the breakdown in actual dollar amounts per investment aligning one of the four priority areas.
And again, it's all grounded in either enrollment data, compliance requirements, or documented student need. So, let's get into the pos the new ask the positions. The this first one is in our special education um category. It's a 1.0 intensive teacher at Hopkins School. Uh this position responds
directly to the students we have right now and those moving up from Elmwood School ensuring that we are meeting the needs and the responsibilities that are appropriate during our our process. Uh the intensive program at Hopkins is projected to serve about 14 to 15 students next year which is about a 35
to 40% increase. Uh so based on that increase coupled with the student need uh this additional staffing is necessary to provide the level of support required. Uh without this position, the program would be stretched beyond what is appropriate and educationally sound in our opinion. Uh the position also stabilizes our approach to our intensive
students uh ensuring alignment across our five schools by supporting two intensive teachers in each building. Right now, Hopkins is the only building that has one intensive uh teacher. Uh so ultimately, this will allow us to be able to deliver more targeted individualized instructions for our students in the intensive program.
Uh next is our pair of professional positions. Uh as you see up here, they have already been approved by school committee. Uh we are looking for two paraprofessional positions based on student enrollment uh as well as meeting the needs of students and honoring commitments outlined in their IEPs. Uh one of the
paraprofessional positions is at the middle school, the other is at Marathon School. Uh and as I think we know, paraprofessionals are like the unsung heroes of a district. They provide essential day-to-day supports that allow students with wide range of needs to to safely and effectively access learning in our school. So without that level of
support in place, uh we would face increased compliance issues and more importantly a greater likelihood that students would not be able to uh be able to have the most restrictive environment and far more cost potentially could happen without a district placement. So it's really important that these are they're in place and again they already are in place and they've been approved
this year. Next is in the category of instructional costs and enrollment growth. Um, as I said, the middle school next year will have the three largest cohorts all coming together making for an overall enrollment that we've never had at the middle school. Uh, without adding these
additional staff uh, positions, the class sizes in particular in the related arts field uh, will climb well into the 30s. Uh, and as we know, these are hands-on classes, skill-based classes, and at that size, the experience for student changes uh, significantly if we don't uh, bring those numbers down. Uh
this addition would mitigate these high numbers and be a creative approach to this um this bubble of enrollment that we're seeing at the middle school. Uh and I do want to add that I think we know that related arts aren't extras. Uh they're core part of our student engagement and student experience. Creativity, overall well-being are all
so important. Uh so this role ensures that the enrollment growth doesn't come at the expense of the quality of our our arts programs. The next ask is also been approved already by school committee uh and it supports our commitment to ensuring students have access to athletic opportunities when there is sufficient
interest. Uh we have been part of a co-op with neighboring communities for our gymnastics program the last few years. However, early this fall we were notified by the host school that they're no longer going to be the host school because of lack of student enrollment. Uh and so to avoid the co-op dissolving,
uh we stepped up to assume the host responsibilities for our students. we do have the most students in the program, so that made sense. Uh, taking the host role uh comes with it about $15,000 in expenses. Uh, but it does allow us to preserve the opportunity for our student athletes. So, they've been very happy with that.
Next priority is around instructional program enhancements. Uh, and this position really is twofold. Uh, it helps us, it's the, uh, 1.0 reading interventionist position. Uh, this this request, uh, already, excuse me, this one was not already approved by school committee. I hope it was, but it's not.
Um, it's twofold. It helps us address the impact of growing class sizes at the middle school. Um, and also addresses the wide ranges of abilities that we're seeing, particularly in reading, uh, which we all know affects learning across all content areas. Uh, this position could fill a real gap for students who need more tier one
intervention. Uh, this role would ideally serve approximately about 10 to 20 students per grade who don't have an IEP, but are clearly struggling based on STAR and MCCAST data, as well as teacher recommendations. And these are often the students that get overlooked. Uh I've heard a lot from families about this
profile of student during my listening tours. Uh so the support this position would provide a wide range whether it be targeted small groupoup instruction push-in support for classrooms uh working alongside teachers to strengthen planning and differentiation. Uh and as I said this would impact beyond the ELA
classes in across all disciplines. The next position is a 0.5 ESOL position at our marathon school. Historically, Esau support has not been provided consistently at the earliest grade levels. Uh, and as research shows us, language development is most effective
when it begins early, and we know that waiting to provide [clears throat] targeted language support continues. Uh, the gaps will widen if we don't provide that support. So, uh, resource also tells us that students are that are not receiving English language development instruction early on, there is a greater likelihood that those students will be
referred to special education services down the road. Um, [snorts] so this position allows us to intentionally support preK tok students uh during a critical window of language acquisition while strengthening collaboration between classroom teachers uh specialists and families.
The next position we are uh asking for is in our core operations. It's a 1.0 FTE assistant principal at the high school. Uh and I want to be thoughtful about naming this up front. I I do know that adding administrative positions often uh raises questions. Uh and this request is not adding layers or
expanding our administration just for the sake of doing that. It's about capacity for a large high school that we are now. Uh we are approaching 1300 students and only growing and knowing that the three classes from the middle school are on the horizon coming to the high school. Uh I mentioned discipline referrals are up about 30% at the high
school over the last two years is increasing social emotional behavior issues and our current administrative structure is just stretched too thin. Uh each AP now has about 650 students on their case load and for context the appropriate case load for schools our size are around 400 to uh 500. Uh in
addition to student facing responsibilities uh APs do a lot of eval teacher evaluations and our evaluation and supervision responsibilities are important that they are are meaningful they're followed through on they're consistent. Uh and right now each one of the administrators at the high school observes either 45 or 50 staff members
which is just really unmanageable. Uh so without sufficient leadership capacity something inevitably gives whether that's response time uh proactive work around climate and belonging uh thorough investigations or the quality of supervision and support for our staff. So this role would allow us to be able
to balance crisis response with instructional leadership ensuring students and staff receive the attention, support and consistency that they deserve. And the last position we'll be asking for this year is also under core operation and it's a 1.0 custodian position. And I know operational roles don't always get the
attention that they deserve. Uh but based on square footage and building usage, we are already understaffed when it comes to custodial supports across our district. Uh when you use the national standard five tier system of expectations, schools generally want to be in the the level three expectation.
Uh which equates to about 30,000 square foot of cleaning in an 8 hour shift. Uh currently at both Elwoods at Hopkins, we are um thinking about the addition and the new build. uh we're probably at the bottom of level four uh approaching level five which is closer to about
50,000 square feet needing to be cleaned in an 8 hour uh uh shift and that's just becoming uh unsustainable. Um so obviously you want to be closer to level one than level five. So this position begins to address the gap now but it also allows us to transition responsibly when Charleswood comes on board. And I
think because pride in how our buildings look in and feel matters and I think clean well-maintained schools set the tone for learning, staff morale and student well-being. So, with that said, uh I hope that paints the picture and tells a little bit about the district story. Uh now going to turn it over to Miss
Rothermick, who will review the numbers and percentages that I know that you're all looking forward to seeing. >> Thank you. Um so, starting with the FY26 budget, uh what you can see here is that we are adding in the special education
reserve of a million 94024. So, that is the full school committee budget. the 66,775631 plus the special education reserve um that is treated as the full school committee budget that is how it is
reported to the state as well. So to um compare apples to apples we're starting with that base operating budget of 67,869655 for FY26 looking at the salary increase of 3.6 6
million which is 5.4% and the expense increase of 297,000 which is a 0.4% increase. The total increase uh request for FY27 is 3.9 million which is 5.84.
looking at a net operating budget for FY27 of 71,836,488. [clears throat] What we also um talk about is the amount of revolving funds that we use to also
offset the budget. So from FY26 to FY27, we actually have a decrease in the amount of revolving funds that are able to reduce the operating budget. As you go down, you can see that the building
use we actually did increase by 200,000. However, we have decreased the international tuition and we have actually been able to increase the circuit breaker, but of course the out
of district tuition is also out of there just to give an idea of other funds that we use to offset the budget. So, breaking it down, looking at just salary, uh, contractual obligations
represent 3.133 uh,,000. The staff requests, as Mr. Bishop just outlined, is 535,000. So, the salary increase again is 3,669277. Breaking that out even further. So
contractual obligations of 3,133,000. The special education increase is 150,000 for the three FTEES. Instructional cost and enrollment growth cost is 88,000 for the one FTE.
instructional program enhancements of 115,000 for the 1.5 FTE and the support positions of 181,000 uh for of two FTEEs. So a total of 7.5
FTEES for that salary increase. Moving into the expenses, again, you need to take the FY26 general fund expense and add back in that special education reserve. Comparing the 26 expense of 14,684,
there's an increase of 297,000 to the 27 expense of 14,982,000. Breaking that down in contractual inflation and current services, the increase is 383,000 which represents uh in the categories
for transportation, technology, uh regular education and others. Student services is actually a decrease and that is transportation out of district tuition and software. instructional cost, enrollment growth and replacement
cycles is an increase of 130,000 and that is in the area of curriculum, building and grounds and vocational tuition. To take those down a little further in your contractual inflation and current services, transportation has an increase
of 198,000 and this represents the contract rate for the regular transportation as well as athletic transportation. In technology, the software um cost increase. Also, there has been uh
special education software that was transferred out of the [clears throat] special education uh budget and into the technology budget representing another increase. Um course offerings at the high school that re needed uh software
and just regular inflation. um regular education, increase in supplies due to inflation and textbooks, and then just some miscellaneous others. Moving into student services,
transportation increase 371,000. However, that's offset by a tuition's decrease of 560,000. And that is because of an increase in revenue offset that we are applying to that line item. So there's an increase
of 415,000 in circuit breaker and there's also a reallocation of the IDA grant of 223,000 that came from the salary line down to the expense line and the technology was also transferred to the tech budget.
[clears throat] So those are all the decreases um as well as some other small decreases. And I just want to remind um the community that this does not tr this does not translate into a reduction in
service. It's an increase in uh revenue offsets. Um but there is no reduction in services instructional costs and enrollment growth. uh curriculum increase of 70,000 which are textbooks and an uh ESOL curriculum building and
grounds equipment replacements of 52,000 and a vocational education which is the Norfolk agricultural enrollment. So when you take both the salary and the expenses and put those together, the contractual inflation and current
services represents an increase of 5.18%. Special education again is actually a decrease of 0.1. Instructional cost and enrollment growth a.32
instructional program enhancements of.17 administration support and facility enhancements of.2 27 for the total increase of 5.84. [clears throat] >> Thank you, Mr. Father Mick. And this is our last slide and and obviously we want
to reiterate before we we get into questions that uh we really tried uh really hard in our conversations with our principles and our directors uh to meet the town's financial expectations and the level service budget. Um like I said, the the positions up there aren't nice to have. They're must
[clears throat] haves in my opinion to be able to make sure that we continue to be an excellent school district. Uh and so um we also put together a budget book kind of more of a condensed version of this uh budget presentation that we plan to share with the community. Uh it's a nice visual, but it talks a little about
what we do as a school district and why some of these positions are needed. So uh with that said, we're we're we're happy to answer any questions anybody has about the FY27 recommended budget. Um, if I understand the circuit breaker correctly, that that reimbursement is not 100% guaranteed by the state.
>> It it's not guaranteed. It's all dependent on the funding levels. >> And does it ever historically has it ever not covered 100%. Uh so the reimbursement can range anywhere between
60% to 75% depending on that >> the budget that's passed. >> So that difference is that built in? I mean I guess what I'm getting at is if that underperforms where's the money come from? Is it accounted for somewhere?
>> So the money that is being used for FY27 is money that has been received. So, we only budget >> what we have >> based on what has been received. >> Gotcha. Okay. Great. Um, and the delivery cost is 17371
and change. In my head, I thought it was closer to 16,000, which maybe it was a few years ago. Do we know that number and what the increase is on the per student delivery cost >> delivery? >> Oh, you're talking [laughter] about the
>> I'm thinking trucking. I don't >> buses deliver the people. >> Yeah. [laughter] >> Per pupil. Is that what you're Okay. >> Yeah. You know, looking at the Yeah. Go ahead. I don't know if you want to comment. >> No, go ahead. >> I was just going to say with looking at the data, I know that we were around the 16,000 last year and that was based on
reports from I think there was a year or two before. So, it just kind of naturally grows to the 17. I don't know. Maybe Sus can talk specifically about what that number looks like. Uh but the net the average also has increased as well across the state and other schools as well. So, we're still I think the average is around 20,000. Yeah, I saw
that. I I think one of the things that everyone >> should be most proud of is that cost per pupil is as low as it is comparatively to especially the other districts that we >> compare ourselves to and making sure
that we keep it >> as low as we can because it's obviously not hurting our students given how well they're doing um and how well the schools are doing. So I was just curious is that from a percentage standpoint
increase is it consistent where you know it was 16 and change last year and it's up either a thou again I don't know the exact number >> I I wouldn't say that we gained anything in you know when we've looked at all the contiguous communities and and everything else we didn't gain but we
didn't lose. So um we still seem to stay in that same slot. So as we're moving up, everyone's moving up. Everyone's moving. >> Yeah. And the biggest driver is our contractual, >> right? I get that. I mean, it right for everyone. >> Also includes health insurance though, right? For example, which I think those
of us who were getting health insurance out um from our employees or whatnot. Mine mine has certainly gone up. >> Got it. Mr. Chair, do you want to go by committees or >> go for >> I think we're all set. Or
[clears throat] do do we have other questions, comments? >> The the one thing I did want to highlight was I think back to when we all met back in was it October? It feels like a long time ago, but it wasn't that long. uh and the you know we always start with the zerobased budgeting and
we look at whatever is coming from you know the projections at the time and we kind of brace ourselves and think okay we're going to get a budget message and are we going to be able to do it and at the time it it was very collaborative conversation was my recollection and I think what the select board had really
actually looked to target for us to stay within was the 7.5 this is um the first year that I can remember where we've actually come in in a lower percentage than what was initially requested of us just because again that zerobased budget and you commanding we're doing our best
guess of what we're able to do back when we're starting the budget [clears throat] but we've arrived at a I think a solid budget we've seen it obviously build along the way and it feels like you have um worked with your team very carefully to make sure that the needs of our students are being met
while really being responsible to our taxpayers >> and it's only 44 outside of contractual obligations, right? That's the only increase if I remember the >> back. Yeah. >> Is that right? >> Y >> a little bit.
>> Yeah. I mean, there's some offsets in there. Yeah. >> Or close to that. >> Yeah. Right here. >> Okay. Yeah. >> So, there's the salary 5. >> And we recognize the very hard decisions that the building principles and the staff made. I know we have a number of staff that watch us every week and they
are having to do with things that they would have liked but are only putting forward the things they need. >> Yeah. On the silicut side I think can you a little bit starting with brand maybe? >> Sure. Um just off the top I think it was
an excellent presentation and obviously you guys run your business well. um you know we are the lowest one of the lowest per pupil districts in the state and we are the top one of the top performing districts in the state so if every business in the world ran like that
everybody would get rich right so uh well done there so I going to have some questions it's not that please don't judge the questions I'm just trying to understand a little bit so maybe some folks out there can understand too but you know we wouldn't be where we are as a community with our students with our
budgets and everything else if it weren't for our teachers and our custodians and our staff members and our administration and our school committee and our residents, right? I think we all work together to make this happen. So, thanks to everybody for that. I am confused about this special education
fund and I saw it a couple of different places coming into the number and going out of the number and it just didn't make sense to me. So, if we could go back to the beginning, maybe one of the early [clears throat] slides where we added I think you said it was 1.7%
that came out of that fund and into the regular budget, right? Like I'm trying to understand how we're still at five. Like I'm worried you don't have enough money, believe it or not. Me saying that. Um [laughter] >> the first >> if if we've been averaging 5.75 over the
last 10 years, >> I was on it >> roughly, right? And this year we're at 5.85. 85 and we had to put in that special education number at 1.7% or whatever it was that you mentioned. How does that add up? >> So you have to keep in mind that we have
always treated the special education reserve as part of the operating budget. So even though on the town side it is broken out to two lines when it was brought forward um
the the expenses were not cut if you will they were just moved to another line. So if you go back to the year where we actually um pulled that out our increase was 2%.
because the special education went into another line. >> Okay. So, the expense side was over where where the revenue side was. So, it was kind of separate and washed out, >> right? >> So, you put it in I saw you had the two different expense pieces to this, too. Does that make sense to to you guys that
like am I am I missing something here? >> Can I respond to that? >> Yeah. >> So, the way I see it is that that special ed the 2026 special education reserve was uh paid for by free cash. So now you have it on this item, you know, you add it and you created a new base
operating budget of 67.8 million. So now you you calculated an increase based on the 67.8 million being the base, but I see it. How are we going to fund that going forward? We're not going to it's not we're not going to use that million for
special with free cash. It's going to be within the levy. So >> is it really 54 or or is it more like a little It's more like 6.1 or something. Yeah. >> So the the the million94
line becomes zero when you look at the 27 sources and uses if you will, >> right? >> So you're not you're not funding it again. >> Absolut. That's right. But it was funded with free cash. when you're calculating
[clears throat] a 5. >> 84% increase, that's based on last year already using free cash to get it up to that 67. So, it sounds like the it the math doesn't quite look right. But, I'm just looking at this for the first time and that's what caught my eye. So,
that's why when Brian kind of said it's confusing, um I look at it that it's the base is really 6.775 now that it's zero and now your new budget is 71. It's it's absorbed in the new budget. So, it's really a little bit more. That's how I see it. Am I wrong? >> Yeah. And and my issue is not
[clears throat] the money and the spend. I think the spend is absolutely worthwhile and we should make it happen. I'm a little worried about the 60K or whatever. We're cutting it down a little bit. >> Uh for that piece of the puzzle, my issue, my concern is it's really a tax levy question more than anything else. That's right. Right. So, it's not what
are you guys doing with the money? I'm all for you guys, whatever. But that's what I there's going to be a little confusion there I think with the taxpayer and the setting of the rate and so forth. So we should just be cognizant of that I think and just be ready and talk about a little bit as we go forward. Uh second question if I could
please I have four so bear with me. Second question I kept hearing already approved by the school committee. Okay. But what does that mean? I like you approved something for next year already or how does how does that work or is that just >> because it had to start this year? >> Yeah we have to >> approve for this year. >> Yeah. We found ways to
>> So you've you you approved the action or the the item or the expense in this budget >> happening right now. >> So you're having to do something this year, but then you got to budget for it for next year. >> Correct. Yeah. An example of what we've looked at that we've had to approve [clears throat] and it happens every year when there are increased services
needed for either a move in a student move in that needs services uh that might need an necessitate additional pair of professionals or something that wasn't known in when we passed the budget back you know last year and so we we had done a couple >> that makes sense it just wasn't clear about the
>> legal required services >> term and then and I I guess I go back to the special education there was a couple of times when you added in like there's a million there, right? Okay. So, that's in the operating budget and then there was another place where you added it again
in the expense slide as a million dollar add in there as well right here. So, um does that make sense? >> That's just where it is in their budget as opposed to salaries. >> It all goes in there. >> It's all expenses. >> All in the expenses at all. Okay. Got
it. Thank you. Thank you. Um, and how about additional fees this year for parents for extracurricular activities? If you mentioned it, I didn't hear it. >> There's been no changes in fees. >> No changes in fees. >> No changes in fees. >> Last year, we raised the preschool
tuition. >> Okay. So, bus fees, athletic fees, all that is year-over-year >> same. Pardon? >> I think we're on the right path here, folks. And and I really applaud everyone for their hard work. Uh we want our teachers to be taken care of. We want our administrators taken
care of and we want our residents and their kids taken care of. So thank you. >> Thank you. We have Mr. Ker on line has a question. Is that okay? We go to him next. >> I suppose I am Mr. Kner, but it still just doesn't feel right to me to hear it. But thank you so much. I appreciate
it. >> I have >> Can we turn the volume up? I'm sorry. I just want to make sure we can hear you. >> How's that? >> Better. >> Better. Go ahead. >> All right, I'll use my big boy voice. Hi everybody. Thank you so much. I appreciate it and I apologize for being
virtual. I'm solo parenting today, which I'm sure is near and dear to many on this call or monitoring it and it's so much harder than it looks. Two quick questions for me. Kyla, I believe I can see you in the front row there. I'm hoping we might be able to get you a mic
quickly and have you walk us through the special reserve discussion. I just want to make sure that it's clear to everybody listening that this is a little bit of a town accounting thing where we're moving a line item from one place to the other. The nuance here is
that we we were able to pay for it with free cash which is like available capital money whereas now it's budgeted into the school. So to you the taxpayer, this is not a change in how much we are providing for this service, but it does
represent a nuance and a change in terms of how we budget for it, how it looks to the schools and our ability to get flexible about where the funding comes from. Kyla, does that sound accurate and like a reasonable description? >> Yes, that's correct, Matt.
>> All right. I just wanted to make sure that we outline that. I don't, this was not to insinuate that anybody said anything inaccurate, but it's a pretty technical and dry topic. I want to make sure it was clear to everybody involved. No questions from me and I appreciate the schools picking this up. As everyone
noted throughout the presentation, these needs continue to increase in the community and I'm really proud of the fact that we run towards supporting them and not away from them. My only other question here, when we were looking at salary increases, I really appreciated that you blew out that the majority
about 85 86% by my envelope math here were contractual expenses. Makes sense to me and thank you for highlighting that because that's one of those things that isn't always clear. These are not you electing to give these raises. In many cases, they're mandated. Can you help me understand what the elective
raises were? How those are determined and how that interfaces with the raises that are required already by contract. I I want to better understand where this elective spend is coming from. >> So the the first line the contractual
obligations of 3.1 million are not elective. Um so >> right >> and then the additional positions that have been requested through special education um the instructional costs in
instructional program and support those are additional positions that Mr. Bishop outlined. >> Thank you. Okay. I miss Thank you. My confusion as I expected. I saw that as we were giving raises to contracted
employees above and beyond contractual mandate. I did not understand and make the connection that that was essentially you teasing out the cost of the new FTEES otherwise outlined in the deck. That makes [clears throat] sense to me. The numbers work and I would echo what
Brian said. While we're having a nuance conversation here about how much money we spend, how big the dollar value is, what we're getting back in return, I mean, talk about value on investment. So, thank you for all that you do. I don't have any other questions and I appreciate the opportunity to participate.
>> Thank you very much. >> Okay. Yeah. Um, let's see. So, I guess first I wanted to say, um, I really think it's an excellent PowerPoint presentation and one of my complaints with Dr. Kavanagh is that they were so hard to read and poor color contrast. This is really excellently designed, easy to read, >> but we still love Carol.
>> We love Carol. Yeah. >> Yeah. >> No, she was good very good with enrollment growth and presenting that and well, but it's excellent PowerPoint and it's nice that we changed it up. >> Um, now uh the other most things I think have been asked. Oh, so the the uh
increase in the ELLL for prek to K is that there's a new state requirement that we have to test for preks for EL now too or No, >> no. >> No, it's not a requirement. We just >> But you're offering it. Yep. >> Okay. Mhm. >> And then um let's see. And international tuition I was surprised went down and I
was curious are fewer people applying to come internationally or we don't have space to have any more international students. >> So there's been a change since um the government change and less students are coming. >> Less students are coming.
>> Correct. Okay. >> And then last year's budget increase was about 5.7% and this year it's 5.8. And is that pretty much entirely the special education reserve being moved from the one budget to the other? Is that >> I think when um Kyla presented
without folding it in, it's about a 7% increase to the budget, but we also have other increases in revenue that has >> offsets. Okay. >> You know, increase the offsets. So, it's um a number of different things. >> Okay. And then I think as you said in
the beginning slide that 5.8 8% is the average over the last several years anyway. So it's not not really out outside the average that we've been experiencing [clears throat] with our growth. I think that's all I had for now. >> Um yeah, thank you Mr. Bishop and um Mr.
Radik for the wonderful presentation. I really love the compilation of information, lot of good data and the budget book is a great addition as well. I think you're raising the bar. So that's great. And um I know there's a lot of work, hard work between the town,
Kyla and Mr. Rodik and everyone who went on to prepare this. I appreciate that. And this is probably one of the I would say easier budget I have seen in many years. So kudos to everyone involved. Um, but I also want to make sure that we
can be consistent and uh responsive to the growth and to the quality and everything that we wanna we are proud of and we want to make sure we get to continue and I'm sure you all have put your thoughts into that. Um, so I think I'm very happy with the budget as it is.
Um, and I'm hoping that we get to continue on uh this budget trend uh in the coming years as well. Now just for clarity and others as always I do have few questions so I'll go over those quickly but many of those actually have
been answered through the other um great questions here. So one is that um the out of district was zero this year. Is that normal or should we expect it to go up again next year because that has been almost in the close to the million
range. So that can add up again. >> Uh it was not zero. It actually had increased offsets that made it look so the uh out of district tuition had a
decrease however that is because of an increase in revenue offset of 415,000 from circuit breaker and a reallocation of that idea grant. So the out of district tuition itself did not decrease
[clears throat] but using additional offsets has that line item as a decrease. >> Got it. So we do expect that next year we may not be so lucky and it may go up again. >> That's correct. >> Including the offset. Okay. >> Yes. [clears throat]
>> Yeah. So we got to keep an eye on that in the coming years. Um another one is uh you mentioned about the support for childhood and I think you have added one for the facility support and obviously I think the question I have is have we ever I I know we have but got a chance
to kind of share that to some extent we have I don't know if it's full and comprehensive what is the exact operational impact when Charles becomes operational and how are we incorporating it ramping it up before it actually
happens. Do you have uh can you shed some light on that? >> Yeah, that's a great question. So, um we have a a group of administrators, principles that are getting together on a regular basis to talk a little bit about that uh what it's going to look like. Obviously, there's going to be some grades moving to different buildings. Um there might be some
additional staffing that we need to talk about how that might work. Um so, uh we brought we might be going to visit some schools that have a very similar model, some communities around us, just to see kind of what that instructional um model looks like. So, there's a lot of conversations happening. Um, I think when we get into the new year, once we
get past the budget, uh, process here, I think we're going to really kind of roll up our sleeves and talk a little bit about what that model is going to look like. Um, we have the remainder of this year and then all of next year to have those conversations, but we would love to be able to have more of a kind of clear plan at the end of this year about what that's going to look like. >> Thank you. That would be great. And, uh,
we still have time. [clears throat] So after you are done with that, it might be a good idea to look at a blended kind of uh upgrade approach than having one big one suddenly coming in on year three or in 28. Advice on that or suggest on that?
>> Well, and last year we added the assistant principal at Homewood and that was part of our graduated increase, the janitor this year, >> the assistant principal next year. Yeah, and I think exactly the custodian and even the potential um related arts position at the middle school with that bubble of staffing if we if we move a
grade out of there u maybe that person goes down to to Hopkins and is able to teach down there. So, we're trying to be thoughtful about having a vision about what that might look like. Not coming next year saying we need all these new staff members, but try to gradually bring some on to be able to to meet the needs of the students. >> Right. Makes sense. I appreciate that.
Um another question is related to the special ed. I'm glad you um certainly all the priorities make sense and you have it as a priority but overall you also showed a decrease of.1%. Um is that consistent with the growth
projection that you are seeing and it could be just a numbers accounting thing for this year but just making sure again uh we don't see too much variability again next year because we went down this year a little bit not down but growthwise
>> and again the reason we went down it is not a reduction in services it's an increase in revenue offsets. >> Okay. Yep. And in terms of revenue offset, do you feel it would be consistent or there would be variability like next year it would be very
different or somewhat different? >> So the change in the circuit breaker of 415,000 2120,000 of that was a one-time uh adjustment to the transportation piece of circuit
breaker >> that was put in place. So, while the IDEIDA um I mean circuit breaker may increase a little, we may see that as being flat when you take out that one-time adjustment for the
transportation that added into that 415,000. So, there is always a variable in the circuit breaker. Um but this is uh the 415 does um have a one time
>> increase. That's right. But thank you. That helps clarify that. Again, I I I think I'm done with all my questions, [clears throat] but overall, it looks pretty healthy and well thought out. And I think if we take out the or um take out the contractual obligations, some of
the accounting changes, it's very small uh increase compared to the growth that you have projected from current 4,100 to about 4,300, then again 4,500 the following year. So um we'll just have to monitor it closely. Again um it's okay
to and I'm not promoting [laughter] of course increased uh budget but it's okay to go little higher but consistent year over year than having one year you know uh little too conservative and then
subsequent years bumping it up. I'm sure you are keeping that into consideration. That would be my um suggestion to as we are revising these and also kudos to all of you to make it on time. We are ahead of the budget timeline. So I'm feeling
very comfortable and very good with this. So thank you all. >> Could I ask one more quick question and maybe Ela and Kyla can answer. So we have this proposed budget here and we have all the other work that we're doing across the community. What's our current gap right now today? uh where we stand
>> with this number included. It is a deficit of $322,000. >> $322k. >> Wow. >> I think we can adjourn. [laughter] >> Okay. Thank you. >> All right. Appropriations. [laughter]
Mike, are you gonna start? >> You want to let June start? >> I second. >> We got to let appropriations. Sorry. Um, well, I'll be quick because I had the opportunity to attend your meetings, but I'm very glad you just asked that
question because I don't think we've ever been this close >> ever at this point in the process and we've been around a long time. >> Y [laughter] >> too long. Not that long. >> Some might say. Yeah. Um, okay. [laughter] So, um, I I have a very small
question about the um financial software that you have to that you had to take into your budget. What was the amount of that? >> About 54,000. >> Okay. And that's that's a one time. >> You're not going to >> No, it will be ongoing. >> It'll be consistent, but it's not going
to increase more next year or there's not >> it will increase only by inflation. And if we implement more pieces of the financial software. >> Okay. Um and then just kind of my question that I ask
intermittently. um just the current status of your comfort level of federal funds like the IEDA funding. How secure do you feel like those numbers are and overall what is the dollar impact to the
budget if none of them came through? >> So the the latest news um and of course this is all looking at a crystal ball, right? Um, but the latest is that Title One and IDA seem to be somewhat secure,
probably not a growth item. >> Mhm. >> Title 2, three, and four are definitely at risk. >> Okay. >> And it is something that u Mr. Lead would probably look at maybe changing the model of what we're using those
grants for. So, >> and I can jump in really quick too, Susan. So the 0.5 ESOL ask um is also one of those things where we're looking a little bit in the future that if the title 3 grant does go away, oftentimes that's where we get our ESOL tutors from. >> Okay. >> Um that that will be able to meet the
needs of our students. So uh we're trying to make sure that we we plan appropriately for that. >> Okay, great. That's all I had. Thank you. >> You want to go? >> So basically the questions I had have all been asked by the select boards. So I'm pretty good. My final question was
going to be how this all fits into the budget and Kyla just answered that. So, um I'm pretty good for now until I actually see everything put together and then we'll see where we go from there. But I thought it was a great job putting the presentation together and it was pretty clear. So, thank you. >> Thank you.
>> Um just a couple quick ones. Again, thanks for the clarity and brevity of the presentation. Will this actual presentation be available on the website now? >> Uh yes, we're going to put on tomorrow. >> Perfect. Okay. Um, so a couple questions. You talking about the bubble that's coming through the uh Hopkins
School now. What do the numbers look like after that? Is there a significant drop off? Does it kind of middle out or is it significant enough to to be aware of? >> Yeah, so I wouldn't say it's a significant drop off. I'll just give you some some numbers here. Um, so the class
sizes uh that will be at the middle school range from about 350 to about mid 360s. Um, and right now in the fourth grade I see 328. Below that is 335. So it's it's less, not significantly less,
but those three classes just coming together. Cuz right now the eighth grade class I think is 316. So the big seventh and sixth grade classes don't feel the school still feels like it's manageable. When you add the big fifth grade coming in, that's when you have those three large classes. So >> thank you. And to follow up on Brian's
question about just understanding better, you know, when the school committee approved something and there was a dollar amount attached to it, where does that money come from? Where did you find that extra money to go do those services which were needed because of enrollment and or whatever it may
have been? So some of the um pieces where we're able to hire so for instance the two pair of professionals um we're bringing them on midyear and within pair of professionals there is somewhat of a churn uh so pair professionals leave the
district um a lot of times because they're becoming teachers then there is typically a gap between when they leave and we're able to rehire. So we have attrition gains that we can apply towards um these new positions that are
required. We also can pull from the idea grant. So that's specifically for those two pair professionals. The stipens for the athletics will come from the athletic revolving for this year and then next year would be part of the operating.
>> Thank you. And finally um I always asked this question. I know you showed it quickly, the the the revolving funds. How are the balances of the revolving funds once you've done this budget? Are they consistent where they usually are? >> So, I project these out through 2029.
So, I have a plan as to when they need to come down. So, this is following that plan, if you will, to stay so that we don't have a year where we're all of a sudden dropping 3 400,000 out. So, it's a very measured decrease from certain
funds um that needed to be adjusted. >> I really appreciate your knowledge of the numbers cuz um you make it easy to understand questions that people have. So, thank you very much for that. So, I think we're good on the appropriations. >> Thank you. [clears throat] Capital improvement.
You have any questions? You can come on up. >> Can you hear me? >> No. Come on up. [laughter] >> We can hear you. >> They can't hear you at home. Hi, Dan Arsell here. Um, really appreciate the opportunity to be part of this and uh hear the budget. Um, it was
really great hearing the uh the capital expenses a couple months ago and uh it's it's good to see where where the budget is coming into play here. Um my quick question was just kind of following up on what you were asking and what you're asking about the uh the changes in the
in the budget and on a yearly basis. What kind of deltas do we typically see? Is it is it usually an increase based off of the base operating budget that's approved by town or or does it sometimes go down in terms of the the cost of the operating operation?
>> So the costs don't typically go down. um 80% of the budget is salaries which are tied to contractual obligations. Um so they have uh cola attached to that. Uh in addition they would for teachers they
can move lanes. So it's a it's a step in a lane and a cola. Um so that is the biggest driver to our um expenses if you will the the just the salary obligations. What we have also done over the past
couple years is we've been adding buses to account for the enrollment increases and those are large pieces of the increase. This is the first year that we actually are not adding a bus um probably in the last five years. So
that's a nice way of holding our uh expenses stable. Um I'm not sure if I answered your question. During the year itself, do we do we find that there is an typically an increased need to add to the operation
budget based off of >> so we might have missed uh >> Right. So within special education we do find ourselves probably adding two to four um specialized positions during the year based on changing needs or students
moving in. Um, we did have a discussion about putting a placeholder for two positions for next year um just so that we didn't have this situation during the year. But trying to stay within the
confines of this um budget. We did not put in those placeholders, but it is something that we'll continue to talk about is probably a good idea in the future because we are almost always coming back asking for additional
positions. Yeah, I think that that's good especially for the town to understand and to know that there's there's always typically going to be a couple extra teachers or uh paras that are part of it and it's just it's all part of that supporting uh student support and >> it's critical to keep them moving
forward in their own education pathway >> legally required and that's why you see that we approve things in the middle of the year that are spending. >> Thank you. That was all my questions. Um I just want to say that you know we moved to this town uh because we are,
you know, the schools, you know, like everyone here, right? And uh we were in the process of adopting a child and we fostered him for a few few months. Unfortunately, he had to leave our home, but during that period, we got to be in the Elmud school and the teachers were absolutely fantastic.
Uh it it just reminded us of the specialty of this community. So again, I really want want to thank you all. It was great. >> Thank you. >> Thank you. Okay, great. If there are no other questions, we can conclude the budget portion of our meeting. There's going to
be a construction update if you'd like to stay and listen to the construction. [laughter] >> If not, our meeting second >> Matt roll call vote. Sorry, Matt is online. >> Excuse me.
>> [laughter] >> Matt, what's your vote on adjourning the meeting? >> Matt's gone. >> Okay, we all leave it adjourned anyway. [laughter] >> He adjourned himself. >> Take a cookie on your way out. >> Thank everybody.
>> Appreciate it. >> There you go. That was perfect. >> There's too many for her to take home. >> Yeah. >> Keep eating. the construction. [laughter] >> Jim, can you take off the slides so we can put up the construction update?
>> Let's everyone >> Apple TV did set a target. >> We did go 12 minutes. >> Oh, you're welcome. >> Very close. >> Very close. [snorts] >> Very close. >> Thank you. Your coffee smells really
good, by the way. [laughter] Steel goes on. >> Yes. >> It It looks like a lot is going on. The steel goes up. >> It's going to be fun. >> It is. Yeah. You want to try that? >> I be afraid.
>> No, you won't. It's easy. >> All right. [laughter] Construction update. >> All right. >> There's an into a ditch into trees. >> Yes. >> What? You're going to drive the construction vehicle? >> No. Dr.
>> Do we all have to do that? [laughter] >> She She'll drive it into a ditch or into the club. It's great that they >> Oh, come on. We can't have We might need lessons from the robotics club, right? Is there a drone club? >> There's a drone club. There's a drone club. >> Outrageous. I haven't been asked to lead that.
>> I know it soon. I'll >> get you the stipen. [laughter] >> What are they doing over at that high school? >> Waiting for you. >> I get it. Um, so this is the construction update. I only have this as a PDF, so I'm not
sure how well you can see this on the screen. I'll >> we we have it too. >> Okay. Um, so just talking through this is for Hopkins. Um, again, substantial completion for the school uh to be ready for the students is the end of August in
2026. Um we will be moving into the new addition over Christmas break. So that is a big milestone. Um they will have an inspection next week to get their temp certificate of occupancy for the new
part of the building and then move in partially to the um rooms that are needed and the construction will begin on the existing building. >> Sorry. So, how many how much of the new the addition
is going to be used in the new year? >> It will be fully open. >> Fully open. Correct. Um the gym, the lunch will be served in the multi-purpose room. Um the nurse will move down. The admin um music band
>> and then that space that's cleared out and moving over will then >> be under construction. Got it. Got it. Yeah. All right. >> I think the students and staff are touring the >> right the the new section on Monday and Tuesday or is that what >> uh they are not able to tour until they
get their right. That's right. >> Yeah. So >> [clears throat] >> um again this is a view that we have all seen in terms of the building. Um the construction activities. Uh the first picture is the binder. That's where the kitchen trailer. That's where they'll be
cooking the lunches uh outside of the building and then bringing the food into the multi-purpose room for lunches. Uh the next picture is the um binder and some of the area which will be the new playground. Um and fun fact, some of
those boulders have been repurposed over from the Charleswood site. They were brought over to Hopkins to be used here. Uh here you can see the playground surfacing for the playground. Uh the scaffolding. This is just really the
connection between the old and the new building. That is the new gym and the striping um layout for the uh the courts. Uh view of the multi-purpose room and the acoustical panels that are
in there. the toilet room and the painting and the uh resilient flooring down one of the new hallways in the connection on the first floor. So again, looking at the schedule update, uh flooring is being installed
in the classrooms and the corridors. Wood flooring is complete in the gym and the striping is ongoing. The finished painting and finished plumbing fixtures, uh security film at the carton walls are in progress. As far as the site work,
the asphalt binder installed at the access road in the temp kitchen area, playground equipment installed, playground surfacing, the concrete walkways, stairs, and ramps installed at the playground. next month which will be November and December the temp kitchen
trailer which is onsite um completing the finishes owner installation for AV and it and we'll be doing a punch list in area A which is the new addition relocating the offices and classrooms
into area A and B to facilitate the new existing building renovations. Looking at the change orders that were approved this munch this month. Uh total of 10,233. Um these were miscellaneous item items.
Um window trim adding uh the windows to some of the doors. They're called lights. Uh just small amount of movement. Terms of the budget update, the architect's expenditure to date is 77%.
The OPM's expenditure to date is 60% and construction buildings less retainage is at 64%. >> Moving on to Charleswood. >> Sorry, can I interrupt my memory? Is the
street on the back side where the buses drop everyone off is all of that once construction's done is all of that being >> the loop road will all be repaved >> right >> correct >> it's like >> it's like Bayroo a now
>> yes we were discussing that when we first came today it's really bad >> it's a speed controlling pot >> but there's still some >> we still have to wait on conservation commission approval approvals and all of that. >> But the plan is to get loop road. It's great. >> Yeah. It will be done next summer.
>> Okay. >> Yes. Traffic calming in the meantime. >> Mhm. >> Yeah. What's that? >> Traffic coming. >> Yeah. >> You can't go fast. >> Yeah. >> You blow out some tires. >> Can't walk on it. >> In terms of uh Charleswood, um looking at safety, there have been no safety uh
incidents reported. for schedule. Substantial completion for 10 October of 27 still on schedule. Final completion ready for students in January of 2028.
The project is on budget and no issues. Um testing and inspection at subgrade observations are all moving along. No quality issues. um furniture, fixture and equipment,
technology and security. We have not gotten into those part yet. So, it says no issues, but we're not even to that part of the project. Um in terms of issue issues, also no issues.
Looking at the construction site overview, this is a little difficult, but it gives you an outline of the building. um both of these pictures and these are the more fun pictures to look at. Uh looking at the foundation areas, the
foundation wall reinforcing um installation going on. The roadway base uh that was put in place coming off of Hayden Row on both sides. Utility installation continues.
And here you can see more uh back filling around that foundation and the concrete wall placement um with the crane shooting in the concrete. More areas of the back filling around the foundation and the electrical
conduits and duct banks. The first picture is the mockup and that is what is used to test all the different elements of the building itself. the the [clears throat] exterior, the windows, the trim, the seals. Uh, and the other is again
looking at some of the footings gives you an idea of the size from this um viewpoint. Terms of schedule progress this month, um, they're looking to start drilling
the geothermal wells. Uh, that has not happened yet. um the mechanical electrical plumbing commissioning um kickoff meeting, the steel erection pre-construction meeting, groundbreaking which happened on November 4th,
foundation formwork reinforcement and concrete placement, underground sewer and water utility installation, roadway subbase preparation, erosion control, and the mockup and waterproof installation. The next month look ahead again is the
roadway asphalt binder mobilize hopefully and start the geothermal wells. Uh complete installation of the modular retaining wall foundation concrete waterproofing back filling start of the structural steel and resume
the excess soil export and the mockup windows curtain wall and masonry installation. In terms of change order, uh change order requests that have been approved um this month totals to 20,000. One of
the big ones was uh tree clearing that was necessary for some of the pole locations. That is half of what needed to be done in that change order request. Looking at the budget update, at this
point, the architect is uh spent 69.8% 8% of their in their billings. The OPM is at 31% and construction billing less retainage is at 7.7%. Uh and the roadway improvements um that
will happen next summer. Um, so there's been a small mobilization billing. Uh, so that is only at 2.1%. This is a picture of the groundbreaking that is a recap of what happened on November 4th.
Um, the work schedule for our contractor, they are looking at a six day a week and plan to continue that. Um, this has been something that has been signed off now with the M MSBA and
Vertex um or MSBA requires the OPM to be on site and Vert.Ex has been covering the six day a week. This has moved the cash flow to be a little heavier um upfront and that has been communicated to the
town. That's it. There any questions? Is is the OPM [clears throat] paid by a percentage or hourly? >> Hourly. >> Hour. Right. And [clears throat] they can do the geothermal drilling in the winter. Do they have to? >> No, it can be done in the winter.
>> Right. >> And at this time um it it talked about geothermal happening now and also the next month look ahead. But it is not a critical path um item right now. So even just a little, you know, a month or two
delay is not going to get in the way. >> Great. >> Exciting. Thank you. >> Um for my report, all I have is um that we are remember we are doing a training
on the 5th of January at the high school at 7 p.m. on how to evaluate a superintendent. and Leia reports. >> Um, I don't have anything from the green committee. Uh, CPAC had their snowman Saturday event on Saturday and it was
lovely and we had a bunch of high school volunteers helping at the craft tables. Um, which was fantastic and I think I know at least my kids were excited to do their crafts with high schoolers instead of me. Um, so that was really great. It
was really well attended too. exciting >> ESBC. Most of >> what we just went over was covered. So, >> nothing addition as always. >> Yeah. >> No big deal. >> All right. I move to adjourn the meeting.
>> Second. >> All in favor? I >> I. >> Great. We're adjourned.