First up is our pledge of allegiance. I aliance 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. So, we're going to um start off by approving the agenda. Could I get a motion and a second? So moved. All right. Moved by Yenner, seconded by Livingston. Um, any discussion. Okay. Um, all in favor say
I. I. And all oppose say nay. All right. The agenda is approved. Um, so exciting nights tonight. First off, we have our achievement awards. Um, first off is our winter activities and athletics recognition. So, um I believe we have
representatives from both North and Tartan and also Andy. Yeah, I'll let you do it. Sorry. Sure. Yes. Chair Yang, members of the board, Superintendent Tuchioso. Uh pleased to be here tonight and introducing uh Jed Hellwig and Jake
Kelchure from North High School and Tartan High School if they want to come forward. Uh athletic director and activities director and activities coordinator. They're going to introduce a number of students tonight uh that have had outstanding seasons in both activities and athletics. So, take it
away. Hello, welcome. My name is Jed Helig. I serve as the activities director at North High School and tonight we have star students at both North and Tartan High School. I'm going to start out with Do we have that slide presentation like
Oh, next slide. Let's see here. There she is. We have Sydney Johnson right here. And Sydney uh is a North High junior. She showcased her incredible talents and determination at the Minnesota State High School League gymnastics meet on Saturday, February
22nd held at the iconic Roy Wilkins Auditorium. She competed in the floor exercise and balance beam. Sydney represents North with excellence and poise. She delivered an outstanding performance in front of thousands of people, earning a sixth place finish on the floor and proudly bringing home a
state medal. Her grace, athleticism, uh, and competitive spirit were on full display, and she truly made our Polar Nation proud. Can't wait to see what Sydney will accomplish in her senior season. Just a congratulations to
Sydney. This is a big accomplishment to make it to the state tournament in two events in gymnastics. [Applause] Congratulations. Next, we have Gabby Martinez. She's at a softball game. We
had to postpone last night's softball games to move to tonight. So, she planned on being here, but um so we're proud to announce Gabby Martinez. She's a standout senior at North High. She's currently a softball player and a shortstop. Uh she's our two uh 2025 Athena Award recipient. Gabby is a
remarkable three sport student athlete excelling in volleyball, basketball, and softball throughout her high school career. Gabby's uh dedication, athleticism, and leadership have made lasting impact on Polar Nation. Whether she's making big plays on the field or leading by example in the classroom,
Gabby consistently demonstrates what it means to be a true student athlete. Gabby will continue her academic and athletic journey at Concordia University in St. Paul will will she'll compete as a member of the Golden Bear softball program. Uh we're proud of her and best
of luck as she continues to shine at the next level both academically and athletically and she'll always be part of the Polar Nation family. So congratulations to Gabby. And next we have FA Odami. Um he's a standout senior at North High. He exemplifies what it means to be a
well-rounded student athlete and leader within our North community. A dedicated three sport athlete, Fay has excelled in football, wrestling, and track and field. He consistently demonstrated work, resilience, hard work, resilience, sportsmanship on the field, the mat, the
track, the classroom, volunteering, etc., etc. Uh, in the classroom, FA has maintained an impressive 3.8 8 GPA GPA gradepoint average while taking on challenge of college in the school CIS courses preparing himself academically for life beyond high school at the
University of Minnesota. FA's journey is a testament uh to the strength and support of ISD 622, our school community. A proud product of the district, he began his educational path at Richardson, continued to John Glenn, and then obviously uh will graduate from North
High, spending the last 12 years growing and thriving in district 622. Fay represents the very best of Polar Nation. Talented, driven, and deeply rooted in the community and car with community and character. Can't wait to see him do incredible things at the University of
Minnesota. And those are the Northstar students. And we're going to move on with Tartan and Jake. Hi everybody. I'm Jake Helchshire. Uh I'm standing in for Trevor tonight. I'm the assistant AD over at Tartan. Um I'm first going to start off by talking
about BPA today. Um our BPA uh club committed or competed earlier last month for their qualifier to the national competition in Orlando, Florida. Um the list of those who qualified are the following. Ramla Sharif first in administrative support research project,
second in basic office system and procedures. Banyan Oang was first in basic office systems and procedures, third in intermediate word processing. Uh Mia Torado Guzman placed third in advanced office systems and procedures. Reian Hilstad uh placed in fourth in
legal office procedures and then Mackenzie Bank placed fourth in intermediate word processing. Um not on here is a list of other students who competed as well and got a long list of awards too. Um but I will not be speaking on that. I'll have somebody else do that. Uh big congrats is in
order for these tartan students along with their adviser who is here uh Vicki Kapan. Your determination, hard work, work as a group has not gone unnoticed. Congrats and best of luck in Florida to those that have made it. And I'm going to have Vicki Kapan come up here for about a minute and talk a bit more
detail about it. Good evening, Superintendent Tuchasorio, schoolboard members, members of the cabinet. I am Vicki Kapan, a business teacher at Tartan High School and the adviser of a great group of students called Business Professionals of America, also known as BPA. We are here tonight to tell you a little bit
about our group and our recent success at our state leadership conference. BPA is a leading state uh student organization for students interested in a variety of business and technology career fields and an additional focus on community service. With me today back
there are a few of my BPA students um who will be attending our national conference next week in Orlando, Florida. And we hosted a blood drive today all day so we're a little bit tired. Our BPA students did compete in their chosen business events. First at the region level where almost all of our
31 students qualified on to the state level. And then at state, as was said, we had five students make it to nationals in their events, including two first place state champions. And those same two students qualified for nationals in both of their events. And those students were Ramla Sharief and
Binyan Obe. In addition, we had seven other Tartan students that were finalists in their events. And if that isn't impressive enough, Rama helped run the three-day event because she is our current Minnesota BPA state president. Um, and then Tartan's Raheem
Shabbaz campaigned to be a Minnesota BPA state officer for next year and he was elected the vice president of development. Um, BPA was recognized in several other ways over the weekend as well. So next week I leave with 13 students to attend that national BPA conference in Orlando. And almost all of
those students also qualified for the National Ambassador Torch Award, which is BPA's highest honor for students involved in their community. And Tartan has the most students receiving that national award from any Minnesota chapter. Besides competitions, we look forward to
all the opportunities that we'll get to experience at nationals, including Ramla being the Minnesota flag bearer at opening session and Ramla, Raheem, and Alyssa Yang being voting delegates to help elect our national officers for next year. These 13 students funded
their entire trip to Florida with just a few fundraisers or their own personal savings. We hope you've enjoyed hearing a little bit about our program and we encourage you to watch for our national results in a couple weeks. Thank you for your time.
[Applause] So, our first person that we have, he's not able to be here tonight. Uh Cedric or otherwise known around at Tartan is CJ Banks. Um he was a Tartan boys basketball senior. CJ Banks capped off a wonderful career as a t as a Titan this
year guiding his team to a 27-1 record. During his senior season, CJ eclipsed 10,000 career high school points and total in 1,249 career points as a Tartan, which ranks 10th all time in the program. Along with this, CJ was named the St. Paul Pioneer Press Player of the
Year, Metro East Player of the Year, Minnesota Basketball Coaches Association All-Star Team nominee, and then earned his second all-conference award, too. We know there are still big things to come for CJ and the Tartan community is excited to see what the future holds for him. Congrats, CJ. Yay.
And my second person who is here with me tonight, um, Delm Maria Joseph, but we call her Dell around school. Uh, she began wrestling her junior year of high school. Uh, she joined in the 23-24 season, becoming the first girl wrestler at Tartan. This year in her senior
season, she took second place at sections, making her also the first girl state qualifier for Tartan wrestling. Um, she had the wonderful opportunity to wrestle at the X this year. Um, and I know that we were all behind her, very excited, too. Uh, she ended the year being ranked ninth in her weight class for the state of Minnesota. Dell is
currently looking to continue wrestling in college. I believe in Iowa. I believe in Iowa was right. We know your contributions to the Tart wrestling community will only grow the program more and more. Thank [Applause]
you. And like Jed too, uh, with our wonderful weather yesterday, we had to move a bunch of stuff around. So, um, our last person, she's currently in the middle of a lacrosse game right now. Um, and that is Greta Kha Klene. Tartan is proud to announce Greta Kolsha Klein as our 2025 Athena Award recipient. Uh,
Greta is a standout three sports student athlete, excelling in soccer, hockey, and then spent a few years playing track and switched over to lacrosse throughout her high school career. Greta's passion, athleticism, and overall leadership have and will continue to make a lasting impact in the Tartan community. From the
ice to the field, and from the ice and field to the classroom, Greta continually demonstrates what it means to be a true student athlete and leader amongst Tartan. Greta will continue her academic and athletic journey at St. Scholastica University, where where she will continue her hockey career and
major in nursing as a Scholastica Saint. We know that she will only continue to thrive at Scholastica as a student and an athlete. You will always be a part of our Tartan community. Best of luck as you continue on at the next level. We're all extremely proud of you.
[Applause] If we could have athletes and advisors and our activities directors come forward for a photo and a handshake, that would be wonderful. Including our VPA winners, that'd be wonderful if you want to come forward for a photo. We'll make sure parents out there in the audience um get a copy of this photo as
well because we know you're going to want to have this for your own scrapbooks or what have you. So, uh we'll come right up here and we're gonna have the school board come down and do a photo with you and all of your adviserss and coaches. Come on.
This is like our picture wall. So, just switch tight together and we'll all squeeze in around. You guys come on in. Okay. So, now I need you guys to switch a little bit more and actually shift
about that way. I can Yes, please. All right. do a couple of these because I get a monitor in my work. Thank you. All right.
[Applause] as our students transition out this evening. I know we're going to be having Excel awards coming up in a minute. So, make sure if you're getting an award for that, we're going to need a picture for you guys as well, too. So, don't disappear on us if you're getting an
award coming up yet. So, next up we have our um Excel Awards. Yeah, if you want to. Yeah. So tonight I'm excited to present the Excellence in Community Education Leadership Excel Awards, which are presented annually to individuals and groups for their outstanding contributions to the continuum of
lifelong learning in District 622. First up is the Community Partnership Excel Award nominated by Jordi Taylor Gui, the adult and senior programs coordinator. John Schlice is the recipient of the Community Partnership Excel Award. John is the coordinator for gifts for
seniors, which has been incredibly generous to our community, providing thoughtful gifts throughout the year, including during the holidays, spring, and Valentine's Day. Their support has extended beyond celebrations, offering essential items like co masks and emergency kits during critical times.
Their kindness brings joy and comfort to seniors in our programs, reminding them that they are valued and remembered, and we are deeply grateful for their continued generosity and commitment to making a difference. Should we call them up right away? Maybe
have them come forward when we call your name. Yeah. Um when when your name is read, if you could come forward, we'd love to just have you come stand up here and then just stay up here until the rest are called up and then we'll be all set for our photo. Thank you. Right here. Yes. Congratulations. And thank you. Just
hang right here for a few minutes. Gather the rest of everyone. Next we have the heart of the community excel award nominated by Kurt New the school age care supervisor. Antonet Tony Hudi is the recipient of the heart of the community excel award. Tony is receiving
the heart of the community excel award in recognition of her 34 years of unwavering dedication to ISD 622 and adventure connection. As an inclusion parah Tony has been a steady compassionate presence for students helping them navigate their most challenging moments with patients and
care. Her ability to remain calm under pressure and guide students through their emotions is truly remarkable. Beyond her direct work with students, Tony is a mentor to new staff, a reliable team player, and a shining example of commitment and kindness. Her lasting impact on multiple generations
of students and staff makes her more than deserving of this honor. Congratulations. [Applause] Our next Heart of the Community Excel award was nominated by Rebecca Walters and Amy Johnson. Uh the North High Show
Show Choir Director Rosie Dicki is another recipient of the Heart of Community Excel Award. Rosie is receiving this award for her unwavering dedication and selfless contributions to the Northern Lights Show Choir. She goes above and beyond to ensure every student feels supported, seen, and cared for.
Whether it's sewing costumes, organizing fundraisers, driving students home, or simply offering a listening ear, Rosy's kindness and leadership have fostered a true sense of family within the program, creating an environment where every student can thrive. Her impact is immeasurable, and the Northern Lights Show Choir would not be the same without
her. Congratulations and thank you. The Senior Friend Excel Award is nominated by Tim Douly, a Meals on Wheels specialist. Chris Feling is the recipient of the senior friend Excel Award. Chris has been a longtime volunteer for Meals on Wheels. Her love for delivering meals to
people and making sure that their week has been safe and plentiful is a big reason why the community continues to receive and recommend the Meals on Wheels program to their neighbors, friends, and loved ones. She has been a delight to the team, and her ability to connect with the community is a great example of why she deserves to be
recognized for her achievements. Congratulations, [Applause] And finally, we have the BJ Hawk Community Service Excel Award nominated by Sylvia Nebblet, the Community Education Advisory Council member.
Janine Lans is the recipient of the BJ Hawk Community Service Excel Award. We are proud to recognize Janine as this year's recipient of the BJ Hawk Community Service Award, presented annually to someone who exemplifies BJ's passion for education, volunteerism, and community service. For over 30 years,
Jeanie has been a quiet but powerful force in our community education office, mentoring staff, guiding advisory members, supporting leadership transitions, and offering her wisdom with kindness and professionalism. Known for her thoughtful insight and unwavering support, Jeanie truly
embodies the spirit of this award. Congratulations, Jeanie, and thank you for being our little bit of magic. Yay. I'm going to say just a quick word, please. you know, as we gather together for this photo, please come on up. We'll get you all situated for our photo opportunity.
I just want to point out for a moment, first of all, Jeannie did not know she was getting this because Jeanie usually helps organize these awards. And so, I'm so impressed with the team for keeping it under wraps until she got notified today. And congratulations, so deserved, Jeanie. Also, um I just want to remind
everybody, you know, the work of community education is so unique. Many most states do not have community education like we do in Minnesota. It's a real privilege to live in a state that actually values community education. And
we always say birth to very old age because it sounds better than birth to death, right? But like the people that participate, it's every it's all ages and the intergenerational connections that are made and the cross-cultural connections and all the different ways
we contact and and support members of our community. Um if anyone happens to be watching from home and you want to get involved and and you don't have school age children, community education is an amazing way to do that. Um there's so many opportunities and our amazing
community education department is very very innovative and creative in the offerings that we have and so ideas are always welcome and if there's an interest we can probably make it happen as long as it's legal. I promise you we've got one of the most innovative
teams I've ever seen in the metro area and beyond. So kudos to our community education um staff as well. So, we're excited to take this photo and Tamara, you need to come up and be in the photo as well. So, thank you. I love how you all dressed in different
colors. It looks very All right, everybody. I'm gonna take several Thank you so much for your service. Thank you so much for joining us. Have a good night. All right. So, I'm gonna u move on to So, we don't have any public comment tonight. I'm going to move on to our
consent agenda. Um the consent agenda consists of routine items that are acted on in a single consolidated motion without board discussion. Board members have the option of pulling items off the consent agenda if they wish to discuss them or consider them individually. Um
does anybody wish to pull anything out? Okay. Um, with that then could I get a um motion and a second to approve the consent agenda? Second. Okay. Uh, moved by Swore,
seconded by Natardi. Um, any discussion? Um, all in favor say I. I. And all oppose say nay. All right. Uh, consent agenda is approved. And next up we have our reports. Um, Gayen.
Yeah, it's only me today. I'm pretty sure CC has a softball game, but uh so senior year is coming down to an end. Uh been a fun four years, but um with that, we have a lot of events happening within the next month. Uh May 3rd, which is our
prom this Saturday. It's at Mall of America. Pretty excited about that. Um Mama Mia, the smash hit musical begins showings on May 9th with the last show being on Sunday, May 11th. And tickets are now on sale right now. Uh graduation June 4th at Aldrich Arena and the senior
all night party uh follows that that night and it tell the burrow where students who will who attend will get full access to everything the burrow offers unlimited games, food, laser tag, whatever you can think of. Honestly love that place. Um moving on to athletics. Uh today is Tuesday, right? So baseball
home against Two Rivers. I think they played already. Not sure what the score was. Uh softball home against Monamidi. Uh, men's volleyball match against DSL at DSL. Uh, girls varsity golf mid-conference, men's varsity golf mid-conference, men's tennis match
versus Hill Murray, and girls varsity bmitten match versus Minneapolis Roosevelt. That's all I got. Any questions for for Kayen? Are you going to do any ax throwing at the uh burrow, Kaden? I don't think we're allowed to do that. That's the one thing
I wish. It's an awesome place. I hope you have a great time and congrats on a good senior year. Kayen, remind us um where you're going next year. Cordia St. Paul. Okay. Yeah. I was wondering if the shirt was Yeah. Okay. All right. Well, thank you so much. Do
we have one more meeting with you? Okay. All right. All right. Um and then the superintendence report. I'm actually going to turn it over to our um elementary secondary or elementary assistant superintendent Trisha to do our introductions for the
next presenter. Good evening, Chair Yang, Superintendent Tuchio, and directors of the board. It's my pleasure to welcome and introduce the members of our Office of Early Learning Leadership team here this evening. They're going to take some time here with you to share many of the great accomplishments and
work that have been taking place throughout the school year across all of our early learning programs. So, please join me in welcoming Lisa Grunwald, Heather Sunberg, Amber Zimmer, and Tracy Tessier. Hello. Thank you so much for having us. Good evening, Chair Yang, Superintendent Tuchio Sorio, and directors of the
board. We are excited to be here. I am Lisa Gruwald, as she mentioned, principal of the Office of Early Learning. And um in our time with you tonight, we're going to review the components of the Office of Early Learning very briefly. Um and similarly to the elementary group, we're going to
share how the office of early learning contributes to the goals of the strategic plan and then we'll end by highlighting early childhood screening and of course have time for questions from you. So we're going to just quickly review um each of our components of our
program and I'm just going to ask my colleagues to introduce themselves and then provide a highle description of their program that they lead. So Tracy, you'll go first. Hi everyone. Thank you for having us tonight. I'm Tracy Tessier. I'm the coordinator for early childhood family education. Um ECF
serves parents and children ages birth to five years before kindergarten. Uh ECF has a large variety of classes. We have free infant classes, age specific classes, multi-age classes, a class for our LGBTQ plus community, and we also
collaborate with adult basic education and offer a three-day class for our English language learners. We also do summer classes all of June and um we served over 200 families this year. Hi, I'm Amber Zimmer. Um I oversee
early childhood special education. Um so this is a program that supports children with um unique learning needs um from birth all the way up until they go to kindergarten. As a part of that programming, we kind of have two separate programs. So, there's a program for children ages birth up until their
third birthday. That's a year- round program um where we actually go out into people's homes and daycarees and we provide coaching opportunities for caregivers because we really believe that a child's best teacher, their first teacher is their parents. Um and so we're a coaching program. Um once
children turn three, if they're still demonstrating a little a little need, they need a little boost to get ready for kindergarten, we bring students into our preschool classrooms um here in 622 or we go into um our community daycarees as well. So we're kind of a a community partner program to support students with
a little extra need. And then um um I'm Lisa again. I am overseeing the preschool and pre-K programs directly. So, our preschool program is typically what you might think of when you think of the early learning. That's usually what people would think of. The first experience
students have in schools many times is preschool, but as you can see, we have other fabulous programs as well. And our preschool program is for our three-year-olds, two days a week or three days a week. And um they're all at Beaver Lake this year. We are feebased
and um they are just half days a week or half days every day either morning or afternoon. And then our prek program is for our fours. And we purposely make that distinction because um our prek programs are mostly in our elementary schools. We also have some at Beaver
Lake and then next year we'll have some at Gladstone. Currently, our prek program is free, but because MDE guidelines are changing, next year it will be fee based um like our three-year-old program. And uh that program is half days as well, but it is five days a week, Monday through Friday.
So, um we really like to call it prek because it's not preschool because it's in the schools. So, it's really their first grade at school. So, it's really preschool. So, those half days, um they get a lot done. So, we have uh one more valued colleague um to introduce tonight
who joined our team this year and she's already made a a giant contribution. Her name is Heather. So, I'm going to let you introduce yourself. Hi. Uh thank you for having us here tonight. My name is Heather Sunberg and I am the early learning coordinator. Um I oversee the educational assistants and
uh PAR educators in our early learning program. Um there's about 60 of them. So, um I support their work in our classrooms every day. She has a huge job and we could not do what we do without her. She works for both early childhood special ed and
prek. So, um we are very happy to have her on board and it's her birthday tonight. So, she's spending her birthday with you tonight. So, she's team player. Um and then the last program I'll touch on tonight is early childhood
screening. So, we thought you might be interested in seeing the number of students that we serve across all of our programs. Now that you've heard about them, so birth to kindergarten, to date, we're serving over a thousand students this year. Um, and the numbers ever climbing, as Amber said, because she's
always getting students referred for early childhood special ed. That's a lot of amazing little learners, and we are so excited to serve them. That's that's what we love to do and their families. So, we're going to move right into what are things we do when we're serving them. Um, and we're going to share how
we're aligning with the goals of the strategic plan. So, in early learning, really the heart of everything we do is fostering a sense of belonging and building strong community connections. It's really integral to everything we do. So, we're going to start with safety
and security and kind of make our way around. So, not quite starting same place maybe everybody else did. Um, but we know that neurobiologically students can't learn if they don't feel safe, known, and cared for uh within their schools. I absolutely love this quote
because it's everything. And this is why we're so intentional about building school families in our classrooms. Our school families are are really the the point of it is to build a nurturing inclusive classroom environment where every child feels valued and supported by all teachers and connected to their
peers. So their first experience in their classroom is both meaningful but more importantly really empowering. So our school families are created through rituals, routines and structures. We really focus on cooperation and problem solving. And Heather's going to share
some of the tools we use a little bit later for that. Um but this is really part of our safety and security. You got to feel seen at school and you have to feel safe at school in order to succeed. So this practice of school families is part of conscious discipline which is
something we use across all early learning programs and it was developed by Dr. Becky Bailey. It's not a curriculum really it's a mindset and it's really kind of shifting how we handle behaviors and social emotional learning in the classroom. So at its core, it really focuses on creating
those connected and compassionate environments where both children and adults can develop emotional intelligence, self-regulation, and empathy. It's about creating that culture of safety and connectedness because everybody's taking responsibility for their own actions,
and that leads to positive changes in the behavior and the community. So it's really an approach that's called Oops. Well, good. Adult first. I forgot a slide. Sorry. I told you all about it so you don't have to read it. Um, so adult
first is really where um adults are having the opportunity to demonstrate that calmness, self-regulation, and empathy through their communication. So, they're really setting that example for students. And you can see here there are some teachers there having some fun at
the children's museum because teachers have to have fun, too. We had a professional development there in the fall. Um, and that was part of a grant that we have that was funded by Prairie Care and we titled it Playful Hearts, Happy Minds. So, I'm going to turn it over to Heather. She's going to tell you
a little bit more about that grant and go through some more of the strategic plan. So, uh, first just to kind of give you a little bit background on social emotional learning if that's a newer phrase for you. Um this is an essential essential element of our work in early
learning. Uh it helps children recognize and understand their emotions and supports their mental health and helps them practice skills that they need to successfully interact with others. Once children are aware of their feelings, they can begin to develop empathy for others and navigate social problem
solving, which are crucial skills for fostering positive relationships. Um, so as Lisa referred to, um, that last year a team of early learning staff applied for a grant through Prairie Care, which is a local organization um, focused on improving mental health um, for people
of all ages. The program was awarded a $29,000 grant. And with those funds, we kicked off the current school year with a day of learning for all of our early learning staff at the Children's Museum. multiple presenters um offered staff resources and strategies to help teachers care for themselves so that
they can then provide the best care possible for our students. Um we also used grant funds to host an outreach event for all early learning families this past February. That was a fantastic evening also held at the Children's Museum uh where families enjoyed time together and gathered resources uh to
support their work at home with their students. Finally, we were also able to make a significant investment in classroom resources to support social emotional learning for our our young students. This includes a uh solution toolkit for every classroom, which I'm going to share a little bit more about
in a moment, books and tools for children to use within the classroom calming spaces to promote self-regulation, as well as materials for uh what we call baby doll circle time. Uh this is a special part of conscious discipline which provides children the experience of being a
nurturer and interacting with their dolls in the same way that caring adults um would interact with them. So as they take care of their dolls and kind of nurture and love their dolls during this little ritual time. Uh they build um some they strengthen um their attachment
and connection with their own caregivers and it provides multiple benefits including increasing self-regulation and promoting trust. go on to next. I mentioned a solution toolkit on the previous slide and this these are
some of the examples um of the the pieces of that compon of that toolkit. Um this tool comes from the national center for pyramid model innovations which supports teachers and families with resources to improve social emotional learning outcomes for children. These resources pair very
nicely with our conscious discipline model providing visuals of 14 strategies children are explicitly taught and can use during social problem solving situations. Uh one of the most popular solutions that children gravitate towards is getting a timer. So, we also
included sand timers um for turn taking things like that um in our kits. And then teachers were also given a readaloud story to help introduce the strategies to their students as well as stickers that they can take home um they can wear proudly home to say, "Ask me how I solved a problem at school today."
The connection between home and school is important as children learn to transfer skills between environments. Um I also mentioned our family outreach event earlier at the Children's Museum. This was a great time for families to relax, connect, and gather some more resources to support
their work. We offered families a set of materials um to develop a visual schedule like the one shown here. This tool helps provide a sense of calm and predictability to a child's day as they can really see what's coming next. Uh the pictures can also be used as a first
then board which further breaks down routines into concrete tasks. Finally, we offered families an at home version of our solution toolkit. So, there's a paired version of the solution cards for more at home situations. Um, families who have used these tools at home report
great success as children are familiar with the strategies after they've been introduced to them at school. And after this explicit teaching of social emotional learning, children can start to apply the skills they've been taught during a special time of the week called buddy play. During this
time, students are partnered to practice greeting each other, which allows them to practice using each other's names and tuning into someone else's emotional state. Then engaging in an activity as a pair, which provides an opportunity to practice sharing, turn taking,
cooperative play, and then finally, they work together to clean up and say goodbye to their partner when buddy time is complete. Practicing social emotional learning in a structured manner helps gradually release these skills to children and they begin using them with more independence as the year progresses. Um so I just wanted to share
a little bit about how early learning is supporting um equity inclusion within the district. Um so you can see you know we've t taken several steps this year. Um we have had some increased outreach for our early childhood advisory council. So, we have new members, we have more members. Um, so it's really
great to be able to hear the voices of the parents um when we make decisions for our programming. Um Tracy um had mentioned the LGBTQ plus um parent child class that's offered through ECF, which is another great way for our families to connect with one another. Um Lisa will
be talking in a little bit about our curriculum adoption. Um, but as we explored a new curriculum for preschool and preK, we really took a close look at at equity and representation within the materials to make sure that it aligned with our district vision and values. Um,
we have um family nights for our um multilingual families um that are supported by early childhood special education. So that's bringing in students in our birth to three um in our birth to three group so that they have a place to come together to talk since that um that program is mostly direct in
homes and we've seen some really great success in um relationship building with that. While we were at the children's museum we had we had a variety of books that were available for families to explore. Um, and we invited families not only to
take a look at them with their children, um, but we also invited parents to record themselves reading the books so that we could share those, um, with our classroom students. Um, so you can just kind of see some of the books that were
chosen for that event. Thank you. It's a little hard to toggle around. Sorry. Okay. Um and then our professional development this year, we really focused on differentiation of instruction. So making sure that um our
teachers are meeting the needs and abilities of all students within their classroom. So we really dug into how learning can look different for different children based on their unique backgrounds um and their unique needs. And then we um did offer small group um
equity work where staff were able to kind of join together um for some self-paced um some self-paced exploratory work just into equity. Um and one of the groups really dug into strengthbased approach to autism and they're really excited to
kind of share that with the group. So that's just something that we've kind of um dove into this year. Um the other piece that I wanted to touch on was um attendance. So that's something that we're kind of talking about as a full district. Um in early learning, we really believe that this is
a place where we get to set the stage. This is the first school experience for our families. And so we we we really chose to focus on family outreach, letting families know how important it is for their children to be in school, how much we love to see them there. Um and so you can see we've done a lot of
family outreach. Um we've had events where um parents and caregivers came into our school like for the family info night, take your um grown up to school day welcome meetings. Um and we also had events where we joined our families out in the community um as a way to build
and strengthen that relationship. Um we're also using Seesaw just for consistency. We think that's important for our families. So we can set up set you up with great communication with the schools um right away in the beginning that will continue for the rest of your school years. Um something again that we really
wanted to focus on was letting children know that we value them being at school um and we miss them when they're gone. So one of the rituals that we have um every day in all of our classrooms, we greet students. We greet students by name. They have a chance to greet each
other by name where they look at each other. They might say hi or wave or give a fist bump or a hug um just to let them know that they are welcome. And then when a student is missing, we also acknowledge that they're not there that day. And we do um a ritual called we
wish you well. So the whole class sings um they sing we wish you sorry they sing we wish you well for the people that are there. And then at the end of we wish you well, we talk about the students who are not here today and how we wish them well at home. Um, and then when students come back the next day, we also welcome
them back. So we have a little video of a we wish you well routine within the classroom. Smells quite tricky. No, no. Who was gone yesterday? She's gone today. Ay
and me. Eugenius was gone. We got to wish or we got to give them their bumblebee. Carlo, go back to your spot. And me, right? I'm gone. You were here yesterday. We're going to do Eugenius's bumblebee kiss. Eugenius, you were gone. You were missed. Would you like a
bumblebee kiss? No. No. A, you were gone. You were missed. Would you like a bumblebee kiss? London, you're up. London, you got to ask her nose or toes. Welcome back, Amy. Thanks, London. All right, you guys turn so we can see the
board. And you guys already told me we have one friend gone today. Let's wish her well. Ready? We wish you well. We wish you well. [Music]
We wish you well. Good job. Isn't that sweet? So, I mean, you can really see within that classroom how they've built this just amazing community within um the peer group. We they do they really do
miss each other when they're gone and they're really excited to welcome them back. Um and so um we've really used that as a way to um support having um good attendance within early learning. Um and it's been really great to see.
Yeah. Um and then um again to support our academic achievement um we um as mentioned by Heather, we did a staff professional development day um at the Children's Museum at the beginning of the school year. Um and we have been focused on the science of reading much
like the other kind of levels um within the district. early childhood um has completed something called letters training um which really focuses on the phonological awareness and the science of reading. Um so we've completed that training this year. We're excited to kind of roll out those tools into next
year. Um and we are currently using um a program called Hagerty um which supports that as well. Um and then within our program our program goals Thank you. Our program goals have make that
bigger. It's okay. Um included um increasing um language skills. Um is it big enough? Thank you. Oh, thanks. Okay. Um so our first area was focusing on the language domain. Um we use a tool called the
teaching strategies gold to kind of measure um student success. It's an authentic um tool that we use um based on classroom observations. Um and so as you can see our students have been making progress um throughout the year. This is um the children's ability to
understand and use language effectively which includes understanding directions, vocabulary, things of that nature. And then our other goal um was a math goal and um in early learning that is understanding spatial
relationships. So that's understanding words like next to and behind and between and beside, which we might not think about as math words, but in early learning, that's the foundation. So again, you can really see how we are um we're demonstrating growth over the
course of the year, which we're really excited about. And I just wanted to share just an example just kind of within our classroom of how we're seeing children do this. So really intentionally, we've been talking about specific words. beside seems to be a really tricky one for three and four year olds. Um, and so teachers are
really intentional about talking about like, oh, sit beside your friend or your marker goes beside your mat. Um, and um, an observation um, the other day. I think Lisa observed this. A student was really excited about um about a
particular book that they were reading and he said, "Look, it's beside it's beside the monster." And everyone was so excited and the teacher was so excited. So, that's how we know that our students are making progress towards the goals, that they're able to actually use those words um to build that strong foundation
for math skills. Yeah. And you might not think a goal of 65% is very high, like that's low shooting, but last year it was so low and we had worked on it last year, so we kind of upped it from where we were and we shot to 73. So, that's pretty
good. You're good. Yep. All right. Okay, I'm going to take it over for the um curriculum adoption. We're just switch directions just a little bit. So, um Amber touched on the fact that we were going through the process this year and being really intentional about it. It's actually been a two-year long
process and we've involved everybody at every level. parents um were invited to come and and review the books and uh staff had the total opportunity to review all the materials and um the process was really led by our subject
area committee and it included um teachers from both general education and special education and administrators from both programs as well. And a special shout out to Ivonne Borgarding, um one of the JPE preK teachers because she was the leader of the um subject
area committee. She's the chair and she did a lot of the heavy lifting. Um all of our teachers, early childhood, special ed, preschool, and prek had the opportunity to preview the materials and they also could sign up to um teach a specific curriculum for
entire months. So, they had the opportunity to kind of pilot three different curriculums throughout the year, which is a pretty big ask, but um but they did it and it was great because then we rated them and looking for things like is this really engaging? Are the kids excited about it? Does it meet
the needs of our learners? And can we take these materials and adapt them for anybody? for um our early childhood special ed students and our general education students. Of course, we wanted it to be researchbased. Uh really focusing on that science of reading, which was a kind of a hard thing to find
for early learning because early learning is sort of catching up with the with everybody else in that aspect. And of course, we had to follow MDE guidelines. So, the teachers selected Scholastics PreK on my way and we're going to begin implementing that in the fall. So the curriculum supports their
development across all domains um literacy, language, math and um social emotional. And so we do know that once we implement this curriculum, this all of our students will be uh ready to graduate from high
school. Maybe not high school, but elementary. So anyway, this is how we're fitting into this last goal. It was a little stretch for us, but not really because if you know when we do this and we have our students participating in this curriculum that's going to be solid
across all these areas and we're going to be having students come up with learning these skills like how to how to self-regulate, showing that impulse control and really managing um their emotions and really being able to feel confident and competent at school,
they're going to succeed, right? And so really they will be on their way to graduating from high school. I kind of made a joke about it, but there is a lot of research that shows that students who participate in prek are more likely to graduate from high school. This is a
study from um Boston. It was a study of 4,000 students over a span of like eight years and following students for 20 years. And this is the gains that they showed. So you are 6% more likely to graduate from high school if you participated in preK than if you didn't.
So it is a really great investment that we have and it um it's exciting that we have this opportunity for our students. So there you go. That's the last goal of the strategic plan. Um, every time I have an audience and when I see you, I do like to have this public service
announcement to just let you know if you know anybody with a child who is between the ages of three and five, please encourage them to have their child screened early. The earlier the better. Three is great because when they go in for screening, they're going to get a really good look at their development,
their health, and um, including their language skills, their eyes, their ears, everything. And so it really helps identify those health or developmental needs that students might have and we can get them the support like from Amber's program before they get to kindergarten. So this year you can see
um to date we've screened over 600 students. We'll be well on our way to um over 8 800 probably soon. Um but you can see how many students have already been referred for special support. I mean 20%
for speech, almost 17% for developmental needs, and 13% for social emotional needs. So without those students coming in, we wouldn't know what their needs were potentially even when they got to kindergarten. So screening is great. Tell everybody, you know, to get their child screened. So thank you for
listening to that public service announcement. Pass it on. Um that's it for us. Did you guys have any questions? Yes, I just wanted to say thank you for everything that you do. My son is one of those who has gotten screened and loves ECF and um the like the paras are just
fantastic for him. Um and it's just amazing to see those young kids at the beginning of the year having a little bit of separation anxiety when it's parent time and by the end the parents were all joking that they're like, "Get out of here. I'm going to go play now." Um, and so I do think it really does set them up for success and I'm really
grateful for the program that we have here. Um, my public service announcement is uh you're you've got in the infants class for example, you're you're seeing kids and they're developing really fast and if especially if you're a new parent, you don't know if they're on track or behind or that kid can do this
and what about mine? Don't compare, but it's hard not to compare. There's just an amazing program, the Help Me Grow Minnesota program. will get it referred back to the school district and you'll get ECSE services. If you qualify, they'll come right to your house. They'll go, like you said, to the child
care centers and it's just amazing making it as easy as possible for the parents to get the help they need for their kids and and learn these things. So, um I'm excited about everything that you're doing and again really appreciate it. Awesome.
Yeah. Okay. Oh, um thanks. I I want to echo to my thanks for the work you do. It's really important. Um I think um this early learning program is the one where we get the biggest bang for our buck because the studies show this does
have results and um so it's it's very very important what you all do and I know it uh you have to have a heart for this work and so I and and patience. So, I admire I admire what you're doing. Um, my gig as a retired
grandma is um uh uh is one of the things I do is I um uh care for my um five-year-old who's in the pre-K program at Weaver. So, so he um and and I'm just so impressed with the progress that he's
made in this year. The other day, uh sitting in the backseat of my car in his little car seat, he said, "Uh, Lulu calls me Lulu. Lulu, did you know some people are invincible? And I'm like, wow. You know, there's a good word. Um, yeah. I mean, they surprise you all the
time, don't they? And, um, uh, no, he's, uh, the progress that he's made is just is just amazing. And they're just little sponges, and this is our opportunity to, uh, turn them into wonderful, productive citizens. Yeah. So, thank you very much.
So true. 90% of their brain is developed by age four. Yeah. So that is pretty remarkable. Right. Right. Yes. Yeah. I also want to thank you for all the work that you do to uh set a great
foundation for our children like her. Uh I I was I was enrolled in ECF way my kids are older so it was a long time ago but through ECF I was able to find out that uh one of my child was
developmentally delayed. I was able, we were able to screen him by two and by three, he was already receiving the ECSC uh program through the school district and uh he went on to graduate college. So, you know, it does work. But my
question to you is um you talked about the uh the preschool is free and the No, the preschool is feebased and the prek is free now but will be next year for uh as fee based. What are we doing uh to uh
help some of our low-income students access those programs? And do we uh partner with programs like Head Start, for instance, to uh to uh maybe expand our services? So, when um students are in Head Start,
they're at the best place they could be because they provide wraparound services as well. They provide dental, medical, and things like that that we can't provide. So, we love when they're working with them. We do have anou with um CAPRW. So we do collaborate. We we
share screening. Um we do um potentially offer trainings and we help get them get hooked up with our transition to kindergarten activities. Um as far as the students who might need support. So we do have what's called VPK. It's voluntary pre kindergarten. And so the
state does a lot every program a certain number of slots for VPK students who qualify and there's quite a list of things that they can qualify for. Um English uh is not the first language at home. The social solar student is like
kind of labeled EL. Um we have low income. So there's a fe a sliding scale that we use. um if a parent is incarcerated, if there's mental health issues in the family, there's a long list of things. It's all on our website.
Um so, uh what they do is when they apply, they have to just answer all these questions and then we'll say, "Okay, you qualify for VBK or you, um are fee based." And so, that's how we handle it. We have 388 slots for VPK. So, we do have a lot of students, so not
everybody would be um having to pay. Yeah. Thank you. Um, oh, I just have a few, um, a few questions, but I also want to echo. So, uh, we moved into our house about 20 years ago. My kid was just about 20. It was like a great
introduction to the district, um, was doing ECF. So, the work that you do is, um, just phenomenal for for young families. So, um, so my question is, um, on the SIT data, um, is are the assessments, are they formal, are they informal? I mean, what are they based
on? Are they um Yeah, like how do you formulate what you're assessing? So, the the data that we take, we have what's called an observational assessment called teaching strategies gold. It's the same one that Head Start uses. And so, it's really um for preK on demand
tests are usually not very um valid and reliable because students can any day be doing something different. You can check and say, "Oh, do we does this child know their colors today?" and just you're sitting down to do it, they don't have any interest in doing that at that moment or they're busy with something
else. So through play, you'll see, oh, he's playing with a blue car. You talk to him, you have conversations. And so that's how we get most of our data is informally like that because it's more valid. There are some things that we do like what's called on the spot. So it will be more like we'll do small group
and then we'll have um a rhyming activity or something for part of our small group and teachers will take data that way and then they enter it in the database. And so that's how we do it. Um because that's what's most effective for early learning. Great. And then one other question. So because the early
childhood screening is required, is it set up to be culturally responsive? Well, it is uh we follow a a document that's uh part of like the Minneapolis school. So it's like similar to their program, their u protocol that they use.
We do use interpreters when um we have students and the families can be right in there with them. We allow the families to be right in there. So that is an area that we do need to grow in I believe and that is something that we're working on. So yeah, that's a great question. As a followup to that, I saw
that you have 22 languages for the screen. Yeah. Yeah. That they've screened so far in the 634 that we screened this year. There was 22 languages. Yeah. Wow. Yeah. So, they're all coming from all over, which is
great. We love it. Our um bilingual leaison do a really good job of helping supporting to get families in when it's time for them to be screened. So, it's really great. Yeah. All right. I think that's it. Thank you.
All right. So, um, next up we're doing policies. Yeah. Yep. Um, well, I have finance on here. Do we Is there a policy? Oh, I'm sorry. Yes. Okay. Is that okay? Um, that up. I'm doing that. Okay. Getting ahead of myself here. Um,
so we have finance first. Thank you. Uh, yep. Acknowledgement. Oh, sorry. You're right. Acknowledgement of contributions. So, that's going to show Uh Minnesota statute 123B.02 permits school boards to receive for the benefit of the district bequest
donations or gifts for any proper purpose and apply the same to the purpose designated in that behalf. The board may act as a trustee of any trust created for the benefit of the district and for the benefit of pupils thereof. Therefore, the director of finance
recommends the following resolution. be a resolved by the school board of independent school district 622 that the school board accept with appreciation the following contributions and permit their use as designated by the donors. So the first donor is Chuck Nelson with
$6,000 for funding for Barbara Nelson scholarship. Peacemaker Minnesota $500 for providing books presentations to grade one. Michelle Savajjo $300 for math masters
registration. The North St. Paul Mapwood Oakdale Rotary Club, $1,000 for earhood screening department at Beaver Lake. Midway USA Foundation, $2,495 for Tartan Trap Team. Greater
Horizons, $600 for company match for math masters registrations. C Vang Shining Brightly Media LLC two copies of children's book Charlie Chalie goes to see the doctor written in Mung in English for
Richardson Elementary students. Oakdale Chamber of Commerce, $1,000 for BPA and DECA programs for national leadership competitions. The Drem Foundation Care of St. Paul and Min and Minnesota Foundation
$1,486.71 for Tartan High School scholarship support. Michael Hartman Memorial Fund Care of St. Paul and Minnesota Foundation, $1,971.15 for Tartan High School Scholarship Fund. The Cop Family
Foundation, $1,500 for Tartan High School Scholarship Support. Michael Hart Memorial Fund, Care of St. Paul in Minnesota Foundation $28.85 for Tartan High School scholarship support. Diane Siko, hygiene
supplies for to stock essential basics for ISD 622 families. Randy Edmonson, $20 for Gladstone Meals on Wheels. Marggo and Robert Olsen, $100 to support planned field trip to visit black
colleges and universities. Kimberly and Chris Carol, $100 used for North track programs. Cassandra and J and John Hoffman, $50 for BSU club. Cups and Cheers, $300 for North Boys volleyball
team. Brett Dipman, $200 for North Golf Team. C. Chaveing, $500 for North Boys golf team. North St. Pal Mapwood Oakdale Rotary Club, $500 to support the student
for the support of student club activities. L Schultz, $2,000 for NHS Black Colleges and Universities fundraiser for North High School. Henry um Jimene Jimenez, $200 for North High
School, black colleges and universities fundraiser. And then Daniel Renan, $250 for North High School Black Colleges and University fundraiser. And Ultimate Lock, $150 for North High School Black Colleges and Universities
fundraiser. So that brings the total fiscal year 2024 2025 monetary contributions to $83,562.71. And with great appreciation, I move I make the motion to approve. Could I get a second? Second. All right. Um, all in
favor say I. I. And all oppose say nay. All right. Thank you so much. Um, next up we have um, Director Anderson with the uh, capital budgets. All right. Well, good evening, Chair Yang, directors of the board, Superintendent Tucci Osorio, and Cabinet. Uh tonight
we'll be discussing our FY26 uh capital budgets. Capital revenue is generated from both state aid and our property tax levy which was approved back in December of
2024. As you can see for FY26, our operating capital revenue is projected to remain fairly steady at just uh under $2.5 million. Capital revenue is part of the general fund. However, revenue is
restricted and is only allowable for certain items like equipment, furniture, technology, some personnel costs, and building leases and rentals. Any unused funds at year end from capital are then placed into a restricted fund balance
that can only be used for capital type expenses. We have several leases around the district and here you can see the breakdown of these costs. Some of our leases include items for activities as well as buildings like NextStep.
Portions of our overall construction and facilities plan also fall into this category as well. Additions at Castle and Richard Snell Elementary School were projects before our voter approved bond back in 2019.
The revenue for our operating leases also comes through our property tax levy, but it is separate from the actual operating capital revenue that we also receive from our property tax revenue levy. So there are two separate buckets, one for leases, one for operating
capital. Beginning next year, we are going to be implementing a new process for school capital requests. Rather than allocating funds based on enrollment, all capital requests will be centralized and reviewed by our assistant superintendent
and our cabinet members. The exception is our high school activities. They will uh continue to receive capital allocations based on their uh their projected enrollment. This process change has been under discussion for several several years and
we believe now is the appropriate time to move forward for several reasons. The majority of our major construction projects are concluding reducing the need for school level capital purchases. Many recent requests have involved
technology uh which is better addressed through centralized planning and some big uh big ticket instructional items require specialized certifications or review and a centralized process allows for proper oversight by district
administrators. Uh and this uh it's very difficult to see but you have a handout. Um this is a breakdown by capital funds for uh 2526. At the very bottom you see the allocation of operating capital and at the
um at the very bottom you see the lease levy um allocations for our operating leases. And with that I'd be happy to answer any questions regarding our capital budgets for next year. And as a reminder, uh this is just part of our
overall budget approval process. Uh in June, you will be asked to approve our overall FY 2526 um budgets for the entire school district in June. Oh, thank thanks Josh. Um I just want to say it makes a lot of sense to have that
centralized um process. um going and and uh and understand um um we're already seeing uh some projected savings from from uh you know as we uh uh project those purchases and uh so
that so thanks for that initiative. Yeah, thank you. Great. So we have the resolution next I think for the capital budget. Is that correct? Okay, great. Go ahead. You want me to go ahead? Yeah. Okay. Um, so each year the school board approves the capital expenditure budget
for the upcoming budget year. Um, be it resolved that the school board of independent school district number 622 approve and adopt 25 26 capital expenditure budget as presented. Could I get a motion and a second?
Move. Move. Seconded by Anderson. Um any discussion? All right. All in favor say I. I. And all oppose say nay. All right. The resolution passes. Thank you so much. Thank you. Um we also have
oh the the next one the ISA 62 and 916 um LTFM resolution. Thank you. Uh as a as a member district of 916 we are responsible for our portion of the cooperative's long-term facilities maintenance expenses. Each member district's allocation is determined
using a blended formula based on net tax capacity and adjusted pupil units. Our district's share under this formula is $66,10056 and a resolution approving this allocation is included for your consideration this evening.
All right. So, the resolution I think you can just read number one and you'll be okay. Okay. All right. Um, so be resolved by the school board of um ISD 622 or school district number
622. Um, the school board of Northeast Metro 916 Intermediate School District has approved a long-term facility maintenance program budget for its facilities for the 2627 school year. pay
2026 levy in the amount of 597,600 of which school district number 622's proportionate share is 66,1156 for pay as you go projects. The various components of this program budget are attached hereto and are
incorporated herein by reference. Said budget is hereby approved. Could I get a motion and a second? So moved. Moved by Livingston, second by Natardi. Any discussion? Josh, I just I am a representative on
the 916 board. Thank you. And um I know that uh they're not allowed to levy and we are. So when we do our own budget, then we include their
um L I can't see today. LTFM. Absolutely. Yeah, that's exactly correct. We we do levy portions. All all the member districts are responsible for funding portions of of 916. Um all districts levy through our property tax
levy our allocation that then gets um um divvied out to 916. So you are exactly correct. I was just going to say this is a pretty modest amount compared to um some of the past projects that they they had going on right when they were redoing the Kora
Center and those two schools and all that. So, um fortunately that that they've got that done and so we're moving forward. Yeah, I will take it when we can get it. Right. Right. Right. All right. Um, all in favor say I. I.
And all oppose say nay. All right, that resolution passes. Thank you. Uh, next up we have human resources. [Music] Sorry. Hello and good evening, Chair Yang, members of the board, Superintendent Tio. Um, tonight I am
asking that you approve two resolutions. The first resolution is for the termination of probationary teachers. The individuals named in the following resolutions are teachers who have a probationary status in the district and are proposed for non-renewal of their
contract and termination of their employment at the close of the current 2425 school year. This list includes individuals who are not properly licensed or either are on a one-year only contract. and those individuals
have been they signed their contract to close out their um employment anyway at the end of the school year. So this list is inclusive of all those different statuses and that's a tier one tier 2 license that are also expiring at the end of this year. All right. Um I'll go ahead and
read the resolution. Um so be it resolved by the school board of independent school district number 622 that pursuant to Minnesota statute 122A.40 subdivision 5 that the teaching contracts of the of the following probationary teachers are hereby
terminated at the close of the 2425 and non-renewed for the 2526 school year effective June 6, 2025. And you can find the list um in our agenda. So could I get a motion and a second? Right. Moved by Yen. Second.
Seconded by Natardi. Um, is there any discussion? Um, Amy, for full clarification sake, um, do those individuals then when they're laid up, do they receive, uh, uh, unemployment?
It depends on what their um, termination is for. Typically, if they're being non-renewed, which means that they're properly licensed, but they have probationary status, they can apply for unemployment. That decision of unemployment eligibility lies with the
Department of um economic development. So, we don't make that determination. All right. Um all in favor say I. I. All say nay. All right. That resolution passes. Thank you. Thank you. The second resolution is for the termination of
added teacher assignments. So each year the added work assignments and extracurricular assignments from the teacher contract are discontinued effective at the end of the 2425 school year. The purpose of such action is so that these assignments are not construed to be part of the continuing contract of
a teacher and to provide additional protection from the adverse effect of extracurricular assignments in the next school year when funding for these services remain uncertain. Thank you. So um I'm going to read the resolution. Be it resolved by the school board of independent school
district number 622 that the additional work assignments and extracurricular extracurricular assignment portion of all teacher contracts be terminated effective June 6, 2025. Could I get a motion and a second?
Moved by Swar. Second by Livingston. Um any discussion? Okay. Um, all in favor say I. And all oppose say nay. All right. That resolution passes. Thank you. Thank you. Um, and then next up we have
operations. So I'm I'm pitching for Sarah tonight. Okay. Um, and so, uh, per our policy, any change order that is above $175,000 comes to you all for approval at a board meeting. And so this what this this is what this resolution is
for. Uh so per the district's request, Northern Glass and Glazing has provided change order number nine in the amount of $228,400 to provide additional storefront systems throughout the building so that additional security zones could be added and this is at
Tartan High School. Pricing was provided in accordance with the contract documents. W Architects and Engineers, the district's architect, and Adulus Adulus Adulson and Peterson, excuse me, construction, the district's in the district's construction manager have reviewed the pricing and have deemed it
fair. The district has budgeted $4.8 million for Tartan High School construction contingency funds, and this amount falls within this budgeted amount. Therefore, it is recommended that the board approves this resolution. Okay. Um, be it resolved by the school
board of independent school district number 622 that change order 9 in the amount of 228,000 wait 228,400 from the Northern Glass and Glazing for the Tartan High School additions and renovations project be
approved and the contractor's construction contract be updated to reflect this change order. Could I get a motion and a second? Okay. Moved by Anderson. Second. Second by Livingston. Um any discussion? All right. Um all in favor
say I. I. And all oppose say nay. All right. And that one passes. Um and then now we have um from superintendent to the proposed policy revisions. All right. Thank you very much, Chair Yang, directors of the board. Um I'm here to
share with you a few um policy proposed policy revisions. And just a reminder, every time um we consider a new policy revision in the school district, we do three separate readings of those. And so at three public meetings, oftentimes the
first one is at a study session and then at a business meeting and then a third business meeting, a third meeting, business meeting where we um this provides ourselves the opportunity to share with the community uh readings of the proposed changes and consideration in between the period of time while
we're looking at these policies to see if there's anything that might have been missed or considered. Tonight's reading is actually our third reading of these proposed changes. Um, and so after I finish going through this list, um, I will be recommending that you, uh, adopt
these changes via a resolution this evening. And as a reminder, typically policy changes, like I said, they used to come to us about once a year. Um, Minnesota School Boards Association would send us model policy language um,
that helps to keep us our policies in line with statutory changes, things that happen at the legislature. um and and in any changes to statute or legal references that we need to include. And whenever that happens, we then go through them internally to kind of
review to see if there's anything else we want to add at a district level. And then we bring those to the board for that first reading and we have discussion at that a study session and then bring it back to you for the second and the third reading. So without further ado, I will go through the list. I'm not going to read because there's
many many pages to these. Um I'm going to go through and just read the list. The full comprehensive list and with all the details are in our board packet as well. But um the first category are policies that have some content changes
to them. And I'm going to read through those and just give you a brief overview of what those items are. So policy number 413, harassment and violence. It up updates the definition of disability to reflect the amended Minnesota law,
Minnesota statutes 363A.03 512 school sponsored student publications and activities. This removes language that was potentially MSBA's model policy removes language that was at odds with the Minnesota statute
121A.80 student journalism and student expression. And by adopting this proposed deletion in the policy, they can our boards can present uh reduce potential confusion when implementing the student journalism and law that was just enacted in
2024. Policy 519, interviews of students by outside agencies. Again, this is following an MSBA model policy updating statutory interview information in article 3A. And this change is found in Minnesota statute section 260.
E.22 policy 614, school district testing planning procedure. Again, um, following Minnesota MSBA's model policy, this recommends the deletion of article six, this protection is not part of the testing procedure itself. And of course,
uh, school boards may continue to exercise their discretion in determining whether to take the recommended action. Policy number 701, establishment adoption of school district budget. This is again after a MSB model policy. It just adds explicit authority for boards
to use reserve funds um when determining uh using their discretion in determining whether to use reserve funds when taking budget actions. Policy 721, uniform grant guidance policy regarding federal res revenue sources. Again, this is updating
uniform grant guidance equipment definition and small purchase procedure dollar amount. Note that despite the federal government's increase in the dollar cap for small purchases, Minnesota law still limits this cap to 175,000. It adds a cyber security
requirement um which establishes internal controls that the school district must implement and it also reflects current statutory language. Um, we also have a few additional Do you
want to do these separately or all as one? Yeah, we have a few additional ones that are very, very minor updates. Um, that are honestly just formatting. There's no changes to the content of it other than just cleaning up a little bit
of references and formatting. Five, policy 516, student med medications. This simply corrects formatting. Policy 606, textbook and instructional materials. It corrects a statutory reference in article 3B. Policy
606.5, library materials. It just corrects a statutory reference in article 3A and corrects the article numbering. Policy 615 testing accommodation and modifications. It updates um chapter reference in article
4 and policy 621 literacy and the read act. It updates a statutory reference. The of note the Minnesota legislature in 2024 renumbered the readac statutes to be
120B118 and 120B119. And this um adjustment here corrects that reference to be in line with the new statutory language from 2024. So with that, I will recommend well, if there
are any questions, I'll answer those and I'll otherwise I'll recommend um the board um adopt these proposed changes via your resolution. I have a question uh for uh you gave us a synopsis of the timeline of uh what it
takes to uh change policies. So it sounds like we're now implementing the 2024 legislature results. Would you say it takes it takes at least six months, eight months to make changes and
actually adopt them? Very great question. Thank you for asking that. You know, it's a little different every year. It used to be that the legislature would wrap up in May and we'd get a whole packet sent to us from MSBA in June and we'd kind of process those
through the summer. What we've found in recent years, there's been so many legislative changes that um we've been kind of fed these model policy changes in in batches based on the most urgent ones based on legislative and legal
changes. um and then they kind of work their way through them. And it used to be that we until recently we wouldn't get them all year round. But here we are in April and the legislative session is going to wrap up in just another month here and I'm sure we're going to have more coming after that. And so I mean we
can make changes anytime to our own policies. Um but largely uh many of our policy changes are originated by the fact that MSBA had some statutory language changes and so then they bring those forward and then we use that as a good opportunity just to review the
content anyway. So that's a great question because um sometimes they come pretty quickly after the legislative session. I think it kind of comes down to how bogged down they get and how many legislative changes come of the session. So, I'm sure we'll have plenty more um
after next month's session ends, if it ends on time next month. Thank you. And I have a follow-up question on that. So, what's the relationship between what MSBA address for us and what's coming from the federal and the legislature?
Can you talk a little bit about that? Absolutely. How it works? Great question. Uh so, our policies are determined at the local level. So, every individual school board across the state adopts and oversees their own policies.
Um, however, anytime the legislature passes new statute language, we always have to follow state law. That's that's a that's a given. Um and so when uh when the Minnesota Schoolboards Association, they do keep a master set of model
policies just for all school districts in the state so that we can have some things to look at so that we can have some uniformity in the way the way we organize ourselves. In fact, we share a common numbering system for example. So if you look up, you know, policy 413 in our district, you can find that same
information under the same number in other school districts. And so um so our Minnesota school boards association brings forth model policies only based on Minnesota laws and the work um under the direction of the Minnesota
Department of Education. So to the extent that um federal laws and state laws exist, we must follow them anyway, which I should say if a statutory change happens at the legislature in May of next month and we don't get a model
policy from the state um until a few months later, we still have to follow that law by whatever date that new law is effective. So does that help? Thank you. All right. So, um, be it resolved that the school board of independent school
district number 62 hereby revises the policies as presented. Could I get a motion and a second? All right. Moved by moved by Livingston by the target. Um, any discussion?
Um, could I get uh I'm sorry. Uh, all in favor say I. I. I and all oppose say nay. All right. Um those revisions pass. Thank you. Um and then next up we just have to set board meetings for the 2526
school year. Um let's see. In keeping with um practice, we'll continue to do them once a month. Um work study sessions are also scheduled throughout the year and the retreat is scheduled annually. Um one
second. Is there a resolution? Oh, look. Oh, yeah. Sorry, my computer died, so I have to borrow Michelle's. Okay. So, be it resolved by the school board um of independent
school school district 622 that pursuant to policy 205, school board business meeting dates will be as follows. Should I read them? No. Okay. Um and that the schoolboard uh study sessions will also be as follows. And these are all listed um in board
book. And then the schoolboard retreat uh will be in February. And that um the regular meeting place will be um for the schoolboard business meeting should be here in the boardroom in the district education center at 6
p.m. with the exception of June 23rd, 2026 um which will be held at 4:30 or unless otherwise specified. Um, school board work study sessions will be at 6:00 pm and then the um, school board retreat will be in the
district education center from 9 to 2. Um, could I get a motion and a second? So moved. All right. Moved by Anderson. Seconded by Swarore. Um, any discussion. All right. All in favor say I. I. And
all oppose say nay. All right. Um so those pass and then um we have to set the location and agenda for the May 6, 2025 work study session. Um so I recommend that the May
6 uh work study session begin at 6 p.m. um in conference room 202 of um district 622 education center and then contain the following agenda items. Uh Morris Leatherman survey data superintendent check-in and then the board check-in.
Um, could I get a motion and a second? All right. Second. Moved by Swened by Anderson. Um, any discussion? All right. All in favor say I. I. And all oppose say nay. All right. Um, so
that's all set. Um, and then we have board communications. Nancy. Um well, with the legislature um still um really under the gun to get their bills together, we're
anxiously awaiting that result. Um we've done a good job of identifying cuts in our own budget, but of course we'll have to make additional cuts if uh if for example the big one is the comped aid.
So, at AMSD the the other couple weeks ago, um superintendents were basically uh ringing their hands over this potential of comped not, you know, not uh coming through uh the hold
harmless clause. So, we'll see what happens there. Yeah. Otherwise, um on a happier note, um the you know, I often say this, but The majority of our students in 622 who go on to college uh go to Century
College and um so I was just there last weekend and they poured million literally millions of dollars into their uh revised theater. So, um they have new seating, they have new lights, they have new audio, new ever. And uh and they
spent two years under construction and they had their inaugural production last weekend of Jesus Christ Superstar, which was awesome. They they um you know, students in the theater program of
course are in it, but also community members are are um you know, audition and are our cast. So, it's it's a great production and um and I uh would recommend it. And I I know our our student board member was talking about Tartan has a play coming up in the
ninth, Mam Mia, which um um I've seen about a zillion times, but you know, uh I might see it again. I'm an ABBA fan. So, anyway, uh so thanks. That's it. Um, well, I uh I was excited and
impressed uh when um my household received our uh MMA Mia um invitation or flyer in the mail. Um and uh uh uh today my daughter, she came home from school and um she told me that that she was
really excited because she got to talk to Christine and Andy um at high school today. Um and uh that was like a big highlight for we we happened to be in her classroom today and so she was very very happy to say hello. It was great to see her there. Oh, good. Yeah. Very fun.
The only thing I want to say is I know graduation's coming up and I always love the ceremonies and thank you to all the teachers and staff for a really strong school year. Um, and thank you to the students for,
you know, persevering out to the end of the school year and for their families for the support they provide. Um, and I look forward to the graduations. I also look forward to the graduations and I want to congratulate all the students I got that received awards uh
this evening and uh also all the I I wish everybody well as we wrap up the academic year the the the proms the planning graduation parties and all night party which I which I
volunteered for a few years ago. go and I'll never do it again. And and the volunteers that actually put it on and everybody. So, this is a very exciting time of the year. And uh yeah, I'm glad that that's
happening. Uh before I came here today, I got to see Sky View versus Two Rivers Middle School tennis over at Sky View. Um and that was just amazing. Uh so again a shout out to those who um do the
extracurriculars, the activities and the sports and the care that they provide the kids and the guidance and the patients. Um so thanks to them, thanks again to the paris and the teachers and everyone who supports the schools. Um I last week I got to see um
so the middle school volleyball program is a very strong program. Um, and so last week I got to see um they John Glenn and and Sky take turns hosting. Um, it's very cute. Um, so I got to see the eighth graders play against each
other last week. Um, it's very fun. Lots of parents come out and support. Um, but it's also a really strong program. So, um, really enjoyed it. Um, so if you get a chance, I think they play Wednesdays. So, um, but that also leads me to just again thank you to our district for
providing the activity buses for for our students, uh, who stay after. My my son usually stays after and he does complain about where he gets dropped off, but you know, it's not that far. Um, but, uh, even though we had to cancel them yesterday due to the pending severe
weather that never never materialized. Um, but yeah, no, I I think that's such a a bonus that our district does. So, um it's it's amazing. So, um and I also want to echo I just want to thank um the Excel Awards today
um and then also the presentation on um our early childhood. Um it just really shows um our district how we go from, you know, very early childhood and then we also reach out to our communities and, you know, strong communities, strong schools and so um
very proud to be part of this district. So, all right. Um, we just have to set our future board meeting dates or announce them. Um, May 6, 2025 is our work study session, 6 pm. Um, and then May 20th is our next, um, board meeting,
6 pm here, um, in the boardroom. Could I get a motion, a second to adjurnn? Second. All right. Moved by Sweden by Anderson. Um, is there any discussion? All right. All in favor say I. I. And
all oppose say nay. All right, meeting. Thank you so much for attending tonight.