Good evening and welcome to our regularly scheduled schoolboard meeting for Monday, May 11th. At this time, please rise as you are able to join us in the pledge of allegiance. >> I pledge allegiance to the flag >> America and to the republic for which it
stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> All right. Good evening everyone. Good evening, school board members. As usual, our first item on the agenda tonight is the approval of the agenda. There are no
additions or deletions to the agenda. Um, is there a motion to approve the agenda as outlined? >> So, move second. >> Motion by Katherine, seconded by Robin. Did I get that right? >> Yeah. >> Okay. Thank you. All those in favor of approving the agenda say I. >> I. >> Those opposed. Motion carries on a 6
vote. The next item on our agenda is one of our favorites. It's the recognition portion of the agenda. And I'd like to welcome Egan High School principal Paulie Rkowski to the podium to talk about our high school students of the year program and introduce us to Egan students.
>> Good evening everyone. I'm Dr. Paulie Reichowski. I'm the proud principal of a wonderful high school, Egan High School, and I'm here just to briefly introduce the whole idea of students of the year as each of our schools will then bring their students forward. Chairperson
Johnson, Superintendent Falsone, our board members, and all in the audience, including so many family members of students being honored tonight. Congratulations on being here. Tonight, we will all be honoring our own high school seniors who have been chosen as
students of the year by departments within each high school. Faculty members in each department award this honor to our seniors for their leadership, their academic achievements, their resilience, and their persistence. Thank you for
providing this opportunity to bring them to the school board meeting and recognize them. At the end of each of our presentations, the students will cross over and shake hands with our esteemed board members and our superintendent, and then they will be moving to the lobby for a photo.
I'm saying that so parents, if you want to get a photo of the group, you can come out there too with us. Thank you. Egan High School's very proud to honor our seniors. Victoria Thomas, Alexander Ratitz, Kayn Strand Chrysler, Evelyn
Okmpo, Auggie Borer, Amelia Whitelaw, Wendy Basilio Islady, McKenna Becker, Heidi Lindall, Kyle Erenss, Max Mongia,
Mia Dherty, Anit, Muka, Muka, Padier, uh, Jude Miller, Ryan Groutman, Emma Stanley, and Spven Peterson. They'll now come across. Congratulations, Victoria.
Congratulations. Congratulations. >> Congratulations. Congratulations. Great job. Congratulations. Congratulations. Good job. Good job. Congratulations. Good job. Good job.
Congratulations. >> Congratulations. Good job. Congratulations. Good job. >> Good to see you. >> Excellent. >> Good evening. Our students of the year
from East View High School are Bashesta Amatier, Jesse Domowski, Micah D. Rocher, Nina, Katherine, Galendez, Kanda and Gutier, Heroay Kabidi,
Rayana Lions, Amy Wyn, Sai Ready, Ava Wood, Chloe Shabatada, Yasmin Clemente, and Lucas Young, Llaya Bimemer, Eric Olsen, Angus Laska and Carter Sepel.
You may shake everyone's hands. Go ahead. Shout out. Amazing job. Congratulations. Congratulations. >> Congratulations. Great job. Congratulations. Fantastic
job. Congratulations. Great job. You're welcome. Great job. Congratulations. >> Good to see you. Thank you. >> Good evening. I'm Pete Robach, principal at Rose Mount High School. Here to introduce our amazing students of the
year. Anna or Anna Ojala, Cash Telcott, Milana Rudolph, Harper Shapi, Grace Shank, Andrew Mesner, Juanita Gerky, Lily Nan, Kaia Label,
Mallet Asha Gray, Ian Johnson, Ava Gors, Moss Schmeltzley, Ivy Goodwin, Jakai Holly, Nick Jac, Mike Janick, Sammy or Sammy Ducklas,
Ariela Duza, and Joey Schilling. Congratulations. Go ahead. Congratulations. Great job. Great job. Congratulations. Good job.
>> Thanks so much. Me too. Absolutely. >> Good evening. Thank you so much for having us. My name is Lauren Hasting. I'm the principal at the School of Environmental Studies and I'm excited to introduce to you tonight our students of the year. We have Lily Everheart, Max
Johnson, Leslie McCulla, Nat Mson, Lara Presnell, Maline Rosario, Abigail Schled, Elena Serbanenko, Zack Van Lanningham, and Leif Waly.
Fantastic job. You're welcome. Congratulations. >> Congratulations. You're very welcome. >> Very impressive. >> Mhm. Good evening, Chairperson Johnson, school board members, and superintendent
Bolson. My name is Drew Mans, and I'm the proud principal of Apple Valley High School. Uh, joining me here tonight as our students of the year, we have Andreas Gada Espa, Amara Ame, Isaac I'll have you folks give a waiver step forward so they know who you are.
There you go. Uh, Juan Estabban, Barios, Arias, Kate Soladad Sanchez, Mason Hulgrren, Jacob Zarn, Miles Zimmerman, Ruby Wigrief,
Lewis, Gustoson, Aaron Diaz, Mora, Christian Gunel, Sophia Johnson, Haley Lem, Amry Armbulu, Isabella Nogeras, and Owen Schultz.
Congratulations. Nice work, Eagles. >> Congratulations. >> Congratulations. >> Congratulations. >> Congratulations. Congratulations. Congratulations. >> Very impressive group. All right.
Next, I'd like to welcome Will Finley to the podium, Rosemont High School assistant principal, to introduce our Rosemont 2026 Excel award recipients. Good evening, Chairperson Johnson, Superintendent Balsone, and school board members. My name is Will Finley, assistant principal, athletic director
at Rose Mount High School. Tonight we are proud to recognize an outstanding student athlete, leader, and role model from Rosemont High School and the 2026 Excel Excel Award winner, Jacob Sts, aka Statsy.
What is the Excel Award? It stands for excellence in community education and leadership which is an award given to high school juniors who are who are active in school activities, leaders in their school and are strong in giving back through community service. Of the
roughly 68,000 juniors in the state of Minnesota, Jacob is one of 34 to be recognized by the Minnesota State High School League as a 2026 award winner. This award fits Jacob to the tea. He is remar he is a remarkable part of Rosemont High School competing on
varsity teams since seventh grade in adapted soccer softball and floor hockey. He is a two-time state champion in both soccer and softball winning titles in 24 and 25 while while also earning all conference honors in both
sports. In the arts, Jacob has been an active member of the choir program for the last three years and proudly calls choir his favorite class. He's earned the prestigious Irish award for choir two consecutive years, the highest honor in the program, and voted on by his
fellow peers, reflecting the respect and admiration of his of his peers. Jacob is also heavily involved in Best Buddies and Special Olympics, where he has competed in softball, flag football, and basketball on both traditional and unified teams. Jacob loves the center
stage because the chance of him doing something rare and great at the same time are very likely. In addition, Jacob volunteers in the community by delivering toys to children during the holidays and helping pack food for local shelters. These experiences
um these experiences allow Jacob to model inclusion, friendship, kindness, and leadership for everyone around him. Jacob's impact reaches far beyond championships and awards. He is known as someone who brings people together. Jacob lives in the moment. As an adult, I've learned from Jacob that you don't
wait for it to happen, you make it happen. And when it does, you pump your arms in the air, your feet leave the ground, and you welcome everyone to the party that's taking place inside of you. Jacob lives by a quote, "Never give up," by Michael Jordan. He demonstrates that mindset every day. Jacob, thank you for
making Rose Mount High School and the city of Rosemount a better place. We are incredibly proud of you. Go Irish. >> Absolutely amazing. Congratulations. >> All right. Now, I'd like to welcome Dr. Pauly Ruskowski back to the podium to introduce Egan's Excel Award recipients.
>> Good evening again. We are happy to be here tonight with two of our juniors who were chosen for the Excel Award. This award, as Mr. Finley described, it is certainly a prestigious one for all high schools in Minnesota. Students apply for it, filling out quite a bit of
information, getting recommendations, and then a selection committee has to narrow it down to one one female, one male student to go on to the high school league competition. We're very proud of our two students this year. They're leaders in our school, both academically
of course, but also with community service, with activity involvement, and they're certainly regarded highly by their teachers and their peers. So, we're very proud of them and happy to celebrate with them tonight. Maya Roth and Gavin Yang are excel students for
the High School League award this year. Thank you. Amazing job. Congratulations. Congratulations. Congratulations. >> Thank you. Hey, next I'd like to welcome Rosemont High School Assistant Principal Calvin
Keysling to the podium to introduce Rosemont High School's Distributive Education Clubs of America or DECA state conference winner. >> Good evening, Chairperson Johnson, members of the board, and Superintendent Balsone. Yes, my name is Calvin Keyling, and I'm the assistant principal in
charge of activities at Rosemary High School. It's my pleasure to recognize our state DECA winners. We had two winners this year. Um, one who was not able to attend tonight. That's Nick Garnsworthy who placed second in the entrepreneurship series at the state competition. The other is Lassia Pandari, an 11th grade student at RHS
and one of our rising leaders in our DECA program. She's currently a DECA chapter officer. This year she is a leader of a young team and she placed third in the Minnesota State DECA conference in our integrated marketing campaign category with her Pura Lima campaign. Please join me in
congratulating Lassia. >> Congratulations. >> All right. Next, I'd like to welcome Don Erdal to the podium to introduce Apple Valley High School's DECA State Conference winners. Got to put the microphone down. >> Good evening. Uh my name is Don Erdol.
I'm the adviser at Apple Valley High School for DECA. Uh tonight I have the honor to present Lucette Lucet Laertie tonight. Uh Lucy qualified for the state tournament by finishing first in the district innovation plan and also qualified in personal financial literacy. She placed third at state in
personal financial literacy and qualified for the DECA ICDC's for the second consecutive year where she represented Apple Valley High School very admirably. Lucy also organizes most of our AVHS DECA events including back to school recruiting, eighth grade visit table, a DECA table for the 50th
anniversary of AVHS and our Cub Foods fundraiser. She has also been just voted to be our chapter president for next year. Congratulations and thank you for having us. All right. Next, I'd like to welcome Leah Lancowski, East View High School Business Professionals of America or BPA
Adviser, to the podium to introduce East View's BPA State Leadership Conference winners. Good evening, chair person Johnson, board members and superintendent Baloni. My name is Leah Linkowski and I'm the adviser for Business Professionals of America. Business Professionals America
gives students an opportunity to compete in skills that they learn in the business classroom. We had a very successful year this year. We had 12 students qualify for a national competition. And I have a few in attendance tonight. Those in attendance tonight are Kevin Burch who competed in small business management team, Megan
Burie also in small business management team, Haran J, human resource management, Amy Wyn, small business management team, Anbe Patula, Jav Java programming and SQL database fundamentals and Sophia Wei who is
digital media production. So thank you for the opportunity to recognize these amazing students. Congratulations. Congratulations. Well done. >> All right. Um, next I'd like to welcome Calvin Keesling back to the podium to
introduce Rosemont's BPA state leadership conference winners. Good evening again, Sher Johnson, board members and dire superintendent Balsson. It's my pleasure to present Kayla Freeman, who's a 10th grade student at RHS. This spring at the Minnesota State
BPA conference, she placed third and qualified for the BPA Nationals, which she just got back from yesterday. She had a strong showing and narrowly missed heading to finals and but we're really excited for the future of BPA at Rosemount, especially with Kayla as part of the team. Please join me in
congratulating Kayla Freeman. Right. Next, I'd like to welcome Paul Kovak and Abigail Osborne, BPA adviserss at Egan High School, to the podium to introduce Egan's BPA State Leadership Conference winners. >> Good evening, Chairperson Johnson, board
members, and Superintendent Palsone. My name is Paul Kovak and I along with my fellow business teacher Abby Osborne are the co-advisers for the Egan BPA chapter. Um I talked to Mr. Hansen and he said I had 30 minutes so I'll try to make it kind of brief. Oh, three
minutes. Um sorry. So for Egan, we had 24 students qualify at the state conference to compete at this year's national conference in Nashville. They just got home this morning at about 12:40. So some of them are very tired.
Um, and of the 24 that went, we actually had some places uh, top three placement finishers for nationals. Um, and I have some members here that I'd like to introduce. Um, just to name the teams, our parliamentary procedure team of Elli
Clauss, Snig Mahra, Ani Peravari, Maya Roth, Maesta, and Isabelle White placed third. And we also had a financial team of Rajinesesh Aravindon, Sheneas
Ayar and Gabe Rubin also placed third and Raj also placed second in graphic design. My students here tonight just want to recognize them and their families are Rajanesh Aravindan, Shere Avatali,
Shernivas Ayur Vidanch Carnitak, Ayan Patel and Maya Roth who you met earlier and this is our team for this year. Congratulations. >> Congratulations. >> Congratulations.
>> Congratulations. Thank you. >> Next, I'd like to welcome Ryan Rosine, speech coach at East View High School, to introduce East View's state speech winners. Well, good evening, Chairperson Johnson, board members, superintendent BSON. My name is Ryan Rosine, and I have the honor of serving as the head speech
coach at Eastview High School. You're once again, 196 is definitely the cream of the crop when it comes to speech and uh how we performed at this state tournament. And you will see that from myself as well as my other speech coaches from the other schools. Tonight, I want to recognize our state champions.
First of all, I want to recognize Rohan Serang. This year during the in the invitational season, Rohan competed in three different categories, advancing to a final round 17 times. He advanced to the state tournament in the category of extemporaneous speaking. In this
category, he chooses a current event. They have been pre-lugged and he chooses one that he that is given to him. And he has 30 minutes to prepare a speech and deliver it where he must site sources and evidence. As you might expect, it takes a lot of knowledge to understand
this category. His knowledge paid off as he was crowned state champion. A great way to end his senior year. He will also compete at the national tournament in June. Congratulations, Rohan. Next up is Tess Dalma. Like Rohan, Tess is a senior
with quite a speech team career. During her four years on the team, Tess made the most of her opportunity. She earned four trips to the state tournament, won three section championships, took home three state medals, advanced to the national speech and debate tournament
two times, and to cap off her senior year in her career, she won the state medal in humorous interpretation. Tessa's dedication and talent will definitely be missed on our team. I also want to mention Alina Ibrahim, who could not be here tonight. She was runner up
in the category of great speeches. She's only a sophomore, so thankfully we have her around for two more years. But please help me in congratulating our East View state champions. >> Great job. >> All right. Next, I'd like to welcome Kelvin Keling, again, no stranger to the
podium, to introduce Rosemont's state speech winners. Good evening. This is my last time for the record. So, good evening uh chair person Johnson and directors of the board as well as superintendent Balone.
It is my pleasure to recognize Anel Roshan, an 11th grader at RHS and one of our speech captains of a very young and upandcoming speech team with a consistent showing of top three finishes and placing second in the most competitive district and section at
state. Um, Anel placed third in the M Minnesota State Speech Tournament in extemporaneous reading. Please join me in congratulating Ana. >> Every time. Every time. >> All right. Awesome.
>> All right. Um, next I'd like to welcome Zel Longi and Scott Voss, speech coaches at Apple Valley High School, who will introduce Apple Valley's state speech winners. >> Well, good evening, chairperson Johnson, board
members, superintendent BSON. My name is Zidle Voss and I'm one of the head coaches at Apple Valley Speech and Debate. Um we are so grateful that we have the opportunity to come here and recognize some exceptional speakers along with our colleagues across the
district. Tonight um we are recognizing our top three state our state finalists who ranked in the top three in this high school league tournament last month. Apple Valley Speech and Debate has had an exceptional season this year. As the
section 6A champions, our team qualified 12 students in 13 events to the state tournament where a total of eight students placed in the top eight in the state. With me today are four of the five students on our team who placed in
the top three of each of their events. I am pleased to introduce you to the following students. Junior Raniah Bunch, coached by Scott Boss, placed third in great speeches with a speech about racial disparities in healthcare.
Junior Amelia Ugass, coached by Usuzo Nagu, a Apple Valley alum, placed third in pros with her speech about the Charleston shooting that took place years ago. Senior Maab Muhammad Ali was coached by Pam Wyoff and myself. She
placed third in informative with her speech about the power of human touch and haptics. Maab will be attending the University of Virginia next fall. Both Amelia and Maab will be representing District 196 and more specifically Apple Valley High
School speech and debate at the National Speech and Debate tournament in June in Richmond, Virginia. And we are very proud of them. And finally, our state runner up was junior Hamdi Muhammad, who was coached by Usuzo Nagwu in the state um in the category of poetry. And her
poetry program featured information and poems about Islamophobia, specifically highlighting the hijab. We are so so proud of the hard work that these students have put in into representing our school and program well. Their success has helped Apple
Valley take home the second place in the state team sweeps trophy this year and also keep very tight hold on that state record for the most medals won in the history of speech and debate in Minnesota. Our total to date 418.
We are especially grateful for the ongoing support of the arts and activities director at Apple Valley High School, Bill Blattheim, and our principal Drew Monz. Again, on behalf of the students and the parents and the coaches at ABHS, we thank the board and district 196 for the support you have
shown as we continue to help our students strive for excellence in communication and education. Thank you. Congratulations. Congratulations. >> Myetics
was way off. Oh. All right. Last but not least, I'd like to welcome Cammy Sherat, speech coach at Egan High School, who will introduce Egan's state speech winners. All right. Good evening, uh, Chairperson Johnson, Superintendent Balsone, board
members, and everyone that is still here remaining in this room. My name is Cammy Sherid. I'm the co-head speech coach at Egan High School alongside Chris McDonald. Um, tonight we are here to honor Neiel Omat who is the
2026 MSHSL state champion in poetry interpretation. Um, I may be biased in saying that Neielle has a very very special place in my heart. Um, I've worked with her since she was a 10th grader. Um, she is a two-time section champion in poetry
interpretation. Um and then her second showing um at state first her first showing being when she was a junior and she finaled then um but then this year at the section tournament she got perfect scores in her prelim rounds and
in the final round of poetry um and then made it to finals and took the first first place um title that Egan has had in four years which is really exciting. um po um Neielle did a poetry program that highlighted the issues of code
switching um and how that is something that exists in many settings that she exists in. Um but I'm so very proud of her. Um the Egan High School team had uh 22 students go to the state tournament and we had nine and final
rounds. So we are so proud of that. And just as the other coaches were saying, 196 has an absolutely fantastic legacy of supporting speech in the arts. And we are so grateful for the support of the board as well as the support of the woman at the head of our ship, Dr.
Paulie Reichowski. So, thank you so much. And um so a big congratulations for Neiel Om. Congratulations. >> Thank you. Congratulations. What a great season. Congratulations.
>> Thank you so much. Next, I'll turn the meeting over to Superintendent Bosone for recognition of students and staff. >> Okay. Thank you, Chair Johnson. May is one of the busiest and most exciting times of the school year. Across the district, students are showcasing their
talents, educators are celebrating milestones, and schools are recognizing the many accomplishments that make our district so strong. Before I begin, I want to congratulate all of the students that we just recognized in front of the board this evening. From academic achievement to leadership to speech,
business competitions, and athletics, these students represent the very best of District 196. Their accomplishments reflect not only their hard work and dedication, but also the support of families, teachers, coaches, adviserss, and staff members who help them succeed. I also want to
thank our educators and school nurses who we celebrated last week during teacher and school nurse appreciation week. Our teachers help students acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to become successful contributing members of society. We also recognize our school nurses for promoting health and safety
and for taking care of our students. May is designated as Asian-American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. The 2026 theme is power and unity, strengthening communities together. This year's poster features bamboo as a symbol of strength,
endurance, and resilience. In District 196, we strive to provide students, families, and employees with experiences that honor the diverse cultures within our communities. This month, we celebrate the students, families, and employees of Asian-American, Native
Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander heritage. Congratulations to district 196 teachers from schools located in Egan who were nominated by their principles and recognized last week at the Egan's Rotary annual teacher recognition lunchon. Thank you to the Egan Rotary for honoring these outstanding educators
and their commitment to students. Lastly, I would like to invite School District General Counsel Adam Watenburgger to the podium to introduce the newest member of our district legal team. All right. Good evening, Chippers and Johnson, school board members and
superintendent Bullone. I wish I wasn't having to follow all the speech champions, but here I am. Um, I am excited, very excited to welcome our new deputy general counsel, Shannon Smith. Um, just a little background on this position. Um, this was a vacant position
after I was selected to fill the general counsel role following Jill Coyle's retirement. Um, this position fills an important role in our legal department. We only have two attorneys and this is one of them. Um, it provides critical support to the general counsel and direct support to our school
administrators and cabinet members to help solve problems that come up and also proactively consider the legal side of things while we all work to fulfill the district's mission and core values. This position also serves as our district's election official, which you're all familiar with. So, um, none
of that happening this year, but uh, she'll be involved in that uh, once we get to it. So I would now like to introduce Shannon um who has been working in this role for about a month now. She came on board midappril. Um Shannon received her undergraduate degree at University of Wisconsin
Madison. Um she has some experience working in schools as a teaching assistant. Um and then she got her law degree from UNC Chapel Hill. Um, she spent a couple of years clerking for the Minnesota Court of Appeals and then the last three and a half years working as
an attorney at the Kennedy and Graven Law Firm where she was practicing school law representing uh Minnesota school districts across the state. It gives her a lot of great experience to step into this role and and be really knowledgeable um about the things that we do. Um, she's an excellent attorney.
She's already been a huge help stepping in to provide support. Um, and I think she's going to be a great asset to the district moving forward. So, with that, it is my pleasure to introduce our new Deputy General Counsel, Shannon Smith. I'll let her say a couple words. >> Thank you, Adam. Well, it's great to be
here. Um, I will keep my comments short uh and just say that I am very excited to be joining the uh the legal team in the district. Um, as Adam mentioned, I've been in my role for about a month now. It's been an excellent experience
so far. I've just been uh so impressed by everyone I've worked with and by how uh warm and kind and and welcoming everyone has been. Um so yeah, I am uh very much looking forward to supporting the district and being a part of this
community. Thank you. Hey, welcome again. Congratulations. >> You done? >> Nope. >> Um, and that concludes my comments. Thank you. >> Excellent. All right, board members. Our next item on the agenda is our consent
agenda. We have 21 items on the consent agenda. Those items include minutes of the April 13th, 2026 regular schoolboard meeting, minutes of the April 28, 2026, special schoolboard meeting, gifts, grants, schedules of investments for March 2026, summary of claims for March 2026, revenue and expenditures reports
uh for March 2026. Treasures report for March 20 26. Personnel termination and non-renewal probationary teachers. Confirmation of unrequested leave of absence for teachers employment agreement. Probationary agreement for clinical experience with the University of Minnesota. Agreement for student teaching with Gustavis Adulus College. Agreement for student teaching with Lu
Luther College. Agreement for student teaching with Metro State University. Agreement with YMCA of the North for 2026 school summer school aged care programs. 2025 202526 spring budget adjustments. Non-public school counseling services agreements. Dakota County IRU for fiber to RMS purchase of
Sentinel 1 MDR. Are there any items on the consent agenda that board members would like to remove tonight? Seeing none, is there a motion to approve the consent agenda? >> So moved. Second. >> Motion by Robin, seconded by Leah. All those in favor of approving the consent agenda say I. I.
>> Those opposed. Motion carries on a 6 vote. That brings us to our reports portion of our agenda tonight. And I'd like to welcome Rachel Hughes, Steven Balcamp, and Stephanie Ooki to the podium to go over our the summary of the 2025 Minnesota student survey results.
>> All right. Good evening, Chairperson Johnson, members of the board, and superintendent Bosone. My name is Rachel Hughes, the director of instruction and achievement. I'm pleased to be here this evening with two members of my team, Steven Bellamp, coordinator of research,
assessment, and analytics, and Stephanie Oaki, student support coordinator. Tonight, we'll be sharing a summary of the 2025 Minnesota student survey. This presentation will cover our district's data, state trends, and specific
insights into student well-being and student experiences in District 196. This presentation aligns with our core value of student centered and strategic priority of well-being. At this time, I'm going to pass it to Steven Bellamp
for an overview for of the survey administration in district 196. >> Thank you, Director Hughes. Good evening, board. Uh the Minnesota Student Survey is a partnership with the Minnesota departments of education, health, human services, and public
safety. It provides schools, communities, and state agencies with data to guide resource allocation, evaluate programs, and develop targeted support for student health, safety, and academic success. The survey covers topics such as school experiences,
activities, family and relationships, health and safety, behavior, and for our older students, sexual health and substance use. The survey is conducted every three years. Student participation in the survey is optional and responses
are both confidential and anonymous. In the most recent uh administration of the survey from January 2025, district 196 students in grades 58, 9, and 11 participated. We maintained a transparent process allowing families
and students to opt out. In total, 34 families took the opportunity to review the survey questions prior to administration. Perfect. Thank you. So, according to the Minnesota Department of Health press release, this was back in December 2025,
we're seeing overall improvement in student health, well-being, and general school experience. Students reported stronger connections to their schools, better physical and mental health, less bullying, improved healthy behaviors, and increased feelings of safety
compared to the 2022 survey. Measures related to anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts showed positive trends as well, including the lowest rate in over a decade of students considering suicide. Of note, this year's survey
also included new questions that provided insight into technology use and broader risk factors facing our students. And we're going to highlight a few of those this evening. Despite many gains, 37% of students statewide
reported one or more adverse childhood experiences or ACEs. And technology use continues to affect sleep and responsibilities, highlighting areas where support can be strengthened. Take a look at the um chart you see on
the screen. Our rates of student participation in the Minnesota student survey here in district 196 remain significantly higher than state averages. The state participation rate has dropped to 45% and district 196 continues to see strong
engagement. Notice we have over twice that participation rate particularly with our eighth grade um cohort of over 90%. What does this mean? This level of high engagement ensures that our data is highly representative of the students we
serve. So I'm going to first highlight a few specific survey questions to really demonstrate the positive trends we've seen. Um it also really suggests that we have returned to a lot of prepandemic levels um for many topics.
So the first uh graph you see here, one of the most encouraging findings from this year's survey is the increase in students who who report feeling good about their future. So this first graph shows the percentage of students who responded with almost always or often to
the prompt of I feel good about my future. Twothirds of high school students responded positively. We know that when students believe in their future, they're more likely to stay engaged in school, which is consistent with findings on the next two slides that I'm about to share. For the next
prompt, about 90% of students responded with all of the time or most of the time to the question of how often do you care about doing well in school? This is also a rebound um from to prepandemic levels. Students expressing care in their
learning is a direct result of the authentic relationships our staff have with students. Even when students may struggle academically or behaviorally, this data shows that most students really care deeply about their performance and future success. And then
the next one, we see that about 75% of middle school and high school age students agree with this statement. I think things I learn at school are useful. This is a testament to the effort our teachers make to create meaningful learning experiences that are
both highly engaging and connected to student interests. On the next graph, about 70% of middle school and high school age students said they feel valued and appreciated by others. This result reflects positively
on the culture we are building in our schools, one where relationships matter and students know they belong. It also highlights the impact of staff efforts to connect with students and create welcoming learning environments. And then the last prompt before I pass it
off um really digs in a little bit more into the concepts or the topics of value and appreciation. It asks students to respond to the prompt of adults at my school listen to students. So while the results of this prompt have remained
rather steady over the past decade, we saw a large increase in the percentage of juniors or grade 11 students who agree with that prompt. So on the graph you see there, note that green line, the increase in the percentage of grade 11 students who agree with this prompt. The
2025 juniors had a more stable and connected high school experience compared to their 2022 cohort that had uh let's just say significant disruptions due to the pandemic. A stable connected experience contributes
to stronger perceptions of adult support and listening. Junior year is one of the most important years in the students academic journey. So seeing students report that adults are listening is both meaningful and impactful. So, at this point, I'm going to pass it to my
colleague, Dr. Oaki, who's our student support coordinator. All right. All right. Thank you, Stephen. Okay. All right. Um, a major focus of the 2025 survey was technology use. We're seeing a significant number of
students reporting that they feel they spend too much time on social media, which is indicated with the yellow bars on this graph. Students also acknowledge the time they spend on social media is interfering with their homework and their household responsibilities, which
is indicated by the blue bars on this graph. This technology risk is a growing area of for student support at both home and at school. On our next slide, we're seeing how students are learning how to balance the
integration of technologies influence into their daily lives. This graph highlights the challenge students face with regulating screen time in the evenings. Roughly 50% of our students say they use technology on at least one school night per week between midnight
and 500 a.m. And 25% of our students say they use technology on at least three school nights per week between those same hours. We bring this awareness to our community's attention because the impacts of disrupted sleep have detrimental effects on the healthy
development of children and youth. Our shared partnership to collectively help our children and youth navigate the digital frontier is essential and we will work to provide families with support to help their students regulate technology use
whether online or in person. Bullying increases the likelihood of depression, anxiety, and substance abuse for victims, bystanders, and bullies alike. Additionally, victims of bullying often face academic decline and low
self-esteem. Bystanders experience helplessness and fear. And bullies frequently engage in violent or risky behaviors. This slide tracks student reports of bullying, which shows a decline from elementary to high school. We did not
present the longitudinal results for this statement because the prompt from the survey had shifted significantly from previous years and we just didn't feel comfortable comparing those results. However, understanding the results from this year helps us refine our prevention and intervention
strategies to ensure every student feels safe at school. Safety and well-being are always at the forefront of our district priorities and as such we provide evidence-based social emotional learning and bullying prevention via our SecondStep
curriculum. We can infer that our prevention and intervention efforts are having a positive impact. We see here this graph shows that 90% or more of our students report feeling safe in school.
And related to feeling safe, we also see that three out of four students would feel comfortable taking school safety concerns to the school resource officer or SRO. While our students report high rates of
feeling safe at school, they also report having adverse childhood experiences outside of school. ACEs describe traumatic experiences in a person's life occurring before age 18. The ACES score is a measure of cumulative exposure to
adverse childhood conditions including mental illness in the household, domestic abuse, parental incarceration, verbal abuse, physical neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and drugs and alcohol in the household. While the
percentage of students reporting multiple ACEs has decreased from 2019 since the reporting began, the correlation between compounded ACEs and increased risk for poor mental health outcomes in adulthood does remain.
Knowing that ACEs and mental illness are common, we take the opportunity of prevention and intervention seriously, knowing we can help our students now and in their life beyond school. Here, our graph is illustrating that 20 to 35% of
students have reported receiving mental health treatment. We're fortunate that children and youth increasingly access mental health services through school-based programs, primary care pediatrician offices, and via teleaalth, which aims to reduce
barriers like stigma and transportation. In district 196, school-based mental health access includes a continuum of services provided by counselors, nurses, psychologists, social workers, school link behavioral health partners, and as
allowed by teleaalth guidance. Our multidisciplinary team provides a network of care that includes academic advising, social, emotional, behavioral interventions, daily medical attention, and family resource advocacy. In an effort to ensure that the needs of the
whole child are met, families interested and in need of these services can access our website. While the profound impact of mental illness and ACEs raises significant concerns for student well-being, schools do have a unique opportunity to actively
foster both individual and community resilience by cultivating positive childhood experiences or PCES in district 196. This this begins with creating safe, inclusive, and nurturing physical and social environments which
are further strengthened by responsive caregiving and peer friendships that build security, empathy, and trust. In addition to the powerful impact of positive staffto student and peer-to-peer relationships, the district 196A philosophy acknowledges and
embraces the importance of the academics, arts, and athletics. And our strength and connection and community propels our students forward with infinite possibilities to learn, to grow, and to thrive. We very much appreciate this opportunity
to present the results summary this evening. Information from the trienal Minnesota student survey helps provide student voice to our building level leadership teams and site councils, our student support staff and our administrative and district level teams.
The feedback from our students provides us with an opportunity to reflect on the needs and the assets of our students and helps to inform and guide our work. There are many aspects of student life covered in the 2025 Minnesota student
survey. Tonight, we chose items of particular interest. However, there is much more information and you can access the full report via the Minnesota Department of Education. Thank you so much for your time. We appreciate it and we're happy to answer any questions.
>> Excellent. Thank you so much. At this time, are there any questions or comments from the audience? Seeing none, questions or comments from board members? >> Robin, >> I have a question and I'm going to maybe stumble through it a little bit. So on
some of the slides where we have the colorful lines um showing the different um dates for the different grades, my question is are we is that fifth graders for each of those years or are we
tracking PE like students in fifth grade and then the same students in eighth grade and so on and so forth. Does that make sense? >> Yeah. Um I think it makes sense. Let's see if my answer makes sense. It's cohorted. So the fifth grade is the
fifth grade of each year. So it's not that same group of students. >> Not one way you can compare a cohort longitudinally. Notice it's given in fifth grade 8th grade and then let me do the math. 11th grade. So if you look at
let's see 2019 fifth grade y >> that's 2022 8th grade which is >> and that's 2025 11th grade. Yes. And so I I wanted to make sure I was understanding that correctly because then my next question was while we're looking at them as cohorts, are we also
looking at the students who have taken it in fifth grade, in 8th grade, and 11th grade and looking at their results and how they're doing over time? >> I would say we look at it both ways. Yep. So tracking a cohort as well as looking at fifth grade, fifth graders over time for both.
>> Thank you. And then one other question I had and I know correlation does not equal causation. So, with that groundwork, um, we have a to me a surprising number of students who are up between midnight and 5:00 am on social media. Um, and I'm wondering, can we
correlate that to any of the other data that we do on any of the testing that we do? I don't know if it's even possible. Um, but I thought I'd ask. >> I would say I'm with you on the correlation does not equal causation. And this was the first time that this
question was asked in the survey as well. Um, so there's work that happens on the back end between the departments of health, human services, and education as they select the items. So, it's one we're going to continue to watch, but can't make any cross inferences from. >> I didn't think so, but I thought, you
know, I'll ask. So, thank you, >> Leah. >> Um, a few things. So, thank you. I think this is really always interesting and it's just so important to hear from our youth about what they're experiencing. Um, I completely agree. super alarming
on the on the technology between midnight and 5:00 a.m. I my question on that is if what are the ways that we as a district can share that um with parents and and share best practices or you know like
the tools to address that for our students. And I do have a couple other questions. >> I I think part of this is just even the awareness on this, right? Like I think that that's like a starting point that it's included in the survey and that we
included it in the report. Um because seeing that I think offers families that opportunity for the reflection um to see if peers are saying this and what is my child saying to me or what do I know about our technology habits at home. So that's part one. Um but here in the
district we do have digital citizenship um when that's at the elementary and at our um secondary sites where we do talk about things like helping kids um learn about like that self-management and um like the social skills that go along
with utilizing technology in their lives. So um really most of this um awareness to begin with right because it is a brand new question but then we do have opportunities for that digital citizenship growth um in our schools.
And then just really quick is bullying defined in the survey? I mean I know we talk about it and maybe define it but did do we know what they had in their minds when they answered that question? I have a copy of this survey so I can follow up with you. I believe it is not
but I will make sure to follow up with the board. >> Excellent. Other questions or comments from board? >> Anna, >> so I just took a stab at going through the survey itself and I'm only on like page eight. Fascinating stuff. I mean
fascinating. So I'm just I wondered if as you were going through it if you're like if so I started to I was really interested in some of the disparities just between um however we're defining gender male and
female. Um you know how often do you go to class unprepared? It seems like uh there is a huge dispar not huge but at least um you know five points
men or boys seem to be going to class more unprepared than girls do. Um I'm curious about why why is that? Um also um how often do you care about doing well in school? Uh there's between a 14
and 18% disparity between girls caring more than boys. I want to know why. Why is that consistent? Why is that between fifth grade all the way to 11th grade? I want to know why. Why is that? Um why are girls consistently
missing school more than boys? I mean, I have some ideas, but what do we need to do about that? What what are the barriers? What's what's going on? Um, I mean, I have some ideas, of course. Um, but what's happening there? That's that's mis time in school. Um, what do
we need to do about that? Um, you know, it's there seems to be more um missing parts of school consistently more for girls than for boys. And so that's problematic.
Um, and that's especially I'm seeing that uh as we get into 9th and 11th grade and that I'm just touching the surface. Um, and so I'd love to hear I'd love to hear more. I'd love to see more and I'm
curious as I dig deeper into there. The other piece that I found again just on what did I say page seven or eight? This one really struck me and as I thought about what our goals are and as we center our students. Um, this one had me disturbed only because my daughter
recently went through school um recently graduated from from college. You know, has an adult in your school helped you think about education options for after high school? 23% of males in the 11th grade said no. 18%
of girls said no. I don't know if that's that's not that's not okay, especially when the majority of students are getting a C and above. We're missing some students here. I
mean, 4% are getting D's or below. That's a significant amount of students that aren't getting a contact for the adults. So, what are we're missing some students? We're missing a significant portion of students. I mean, I don't know correlation is that necessarily cause it, but something's going on
there. And I just remember counselors had no time for my daughter junior year. They were all focused on seniors and getting into college. Well, getting them graduated or, you know, into college. So, I just thought that was a huge miss.
Um, and then has an adult in your school helped you find career focused field experiences? 48% said no for males. 44% said no for females in their 11th grade.
You know, I just keep thinking if we're keeping students at the center, should we have a goal behind that? Just thinking about that. Um I don't know. And then do what is our goal? Another one, you know, do we have a
goal? I love that we have these numbers. Do we have a goal, which is great that we're better than all districts or most districts across the state for responses. Do we have a goal internally that we like to meet? Um it's great that
we're surpassing students others. Do we have a do we have our own goal? >> Those all great points, Chair Williams. Um and question, >> you don't have to answer any of them. >> Nope. And I I understand that. Um, I do want to say that buildings now will be able to have this data by building.
>> So, that gives them an opportunity as we're looking at school improvement plans to dive into that data to see the school experience and bring that to light in those plans so they can really tailor it to and be intentional to their sites. I also think that would be maybe a topic for a special board session sometime.
>> Yeah, that's interesting. Yeah, >> Katherine, >> um, I'll just echo the interest in this and, um, I love the MSS. It's my favorite. And I'll say if you want to go to the uh Department of Health, they have a place where you can go and look
by school district to ACES and how ACES are correlated with other results of the MSS. It's fascinating. And I think they sent us all a copy of a flyer with results from the MSS, a report about
196. So I think we have access to that. It's a fabulous tool. >> Um, so with ACES, and this is a focus of mine, um, professionally, do we do anything? It's similar to that last question. You know, the more ACEs
children and adults have, um, the greater at risk they are for just like everything. Um, suicidal ideiation, overdose, substance use, um, being impacted by violence, you know, all those things. And teachers tend to know
a lot about their students. And I'm thinking about the different bar, you know, the bar program that exists now where they really get to know students. Do we have any sort of system or anything in place to identify
students that uh you know confidentially and obviously not calling it out to anyone else but to track students who may we may know they have greater ACEs and therefore they are facing uh a more uphill battle um with some outcomes. do
we do any way to flag them or make sure that they then have access to those protective factors that have also been proven to really protect against all those outcomes that can come from having more aces. So is there do we do we look
at that with our students and and make sure that certain students are introduced to greater protective factors or perhaps encouraged to participate in protective factor activities. Um my brain's like oh going a lot of
different directions here. I think the first thing would just be like um obviously like aces as you know there's so many things that are happening from their like outside of the school environment right because it's about their childhood experience. Um so with that in in the school setting we're very
focused on like what the functioning is at school. So, if there's things that are coming up where we're seeing an impact where a student's behavior or needs is like interfering with their ability to access and engage with education, that would be a pathway forward where our our student like
support teams would be connected to be figuring out what is going on. It wouldn't necessarily be drilling down to like what's your A score and this, but it would be like we need to begin some investigation to understand what's happening because we're seeing some impact on functioning and we want to
understand what could be driving that and picking resources, interventions and supports that are matched to that need. >> Other questions or comments from board >> I just wanted to uh quickly thank you and follow up couple points that's been
raised. you're not alone that my head is kind of going different directions because the interest and uh uh the information provided is really important to all of us all of us you could tell it I mean is a it lets us uh gives us like
a window to the barriers that our students you know face and we hearing exactly what the issues are I mean it's good to see some of the data improved from 2022 and now and
I'm kind of going around what um Anna mentioned about barriers too. So I just wanted to in a high level to understand I mean this is opportunity to kind of understand barriers also what the data or how the data I mean the responses
that's been provided I mean we're talking to the data people this for the interest of it and you don't have to give us all the details but wanted to uh always struggle to uh let me put it we have the good data and we get the
responses what can we do what what you know uh what's what's the impact or what's the summation of what how we could use this right and we talked about in the strategic uh meeting that we had workshop but with the disparities I mean
how does the data highlight any disparities or any measurable differences that some of our district programs has been making I mean I know uh it touches again very broad important places I mean it's not only academic
emotional social all of this on a high level. What are common disparities that the data highlighted or on how measurable some of our programs are being impactful?
>> I'll say at a very high level and and I I believe um Anna you are looking at the board exhibit that the long attachment we included the full results. Um I think she just after a few pages she nailed it. I I noticed a lot of um disparities
between gender that's primarily how that report is presented. >> Um we also have the raw data file where we can then start to disagregate by race and ethnicity as well. And I think special board meeting sounds like uh I mean we could go on and on. So um that
that one I think really um sticks out to me right now. So >> thank you. Other questions or comments? Katherine, >> I just want to um uh emphasize, underline, highlight Anna's suggestion to look at how we can possibly make some
goals with this because I think everything is so connected to academics and I think uh you know by maybe picking out a few places where we have possibly some dis significant disparities or some you know some
challenges to really dig into how we can use our our time in school to um try to address that and and incorporate that into the goals to really show because I think 196 does a great job of all of these other athletics, arts, all that.
And that's really where some of these protective factors come in and we get that other angle with with kids and students. And so I think it would be really great to look to see if we want to incorporate a goal or two that's based on the MSS. It's very consistent
and we have such amazing response rates that um you know it would be a really great way to use this tool um that we make these kids do anyway and so we you know we should really look to show them that we're using their information in a positive way. So I just encourage that.
>> Anna, go ahead. >> Thank you. Yeah, all I was going to say is I love this data. Um all the data does and and I appreciate you putting into a summary. It's just letting us look at it to see if there's anything
that piqus our interest. That's all it's doing. And then I want to dig deeper and like what's going on here? Um so I love that and I love the suggestion that you had to about possibly maybe this is a board thing cuz like what do we want to look into and why is this happening? Um
the other thing I want to say which I'm and and maybe Katherine you can explain this to me later. I'm I'm disappointed that there aren't other kinds of trauma in there. Um, racial and ethnic trauma should be in there. It's a real thing. It's been
going on and it's not in there. Um, as a survivor of school, as an adult, I can tell you it exists and I'm unpacking it today as an adult. My daughter will be unpacking it. Uh, microaggressions exist. It's not intentional. They happen. Um, but they do end up coming
out as kids get older. they happen and it's not a marker that I can see that's showing up and that's really unfortunate. Um it's happening in our schools. Um oftent times students aren't realizing it that that's happening to
them until they move on and then it's hitting them. Um I've witnessed it in our um EAC that's come up a couple times with students and they thought they just kind of brushed it off because that's what happens sometimes with microaggressions. it's okay. Um, but
when they look back in the sum total of it, there's kind of this breaking point. Um, it should be in there. I don't know how I don't know if we do our own assessments around it, but kids are experiencing different kinds of microaggressions and race isn't just one of them, but they're experiencing it a
lot. Um, I mean, it's kind of bullying, but it's not consistent. It just kind of pops up. So, anytime you have a marginalized identity, um anytime you are not typical, um it could be size, it could be, you know, how you show up, um
uh how you present more feminine or more masculine based on your gender. There's all, you know, you're if you're beautiful enough, quote, if you're a typical beauty or not. I mean, they're showing up in different ways and that over time can build up and that's not showing up in here. And I would think
that would be a factor in your mental health. We call it bullying, but bullying is a very specific thing over time. These are little things that pop up. Um, and if they're untreated, you know, they they build up over time. And I'm it's disappointing that that's
kind of not in there. There's not a place to really show that, but it's a real thing. Anyway, >> other questions or comments? I think I'm trying to absorb all the comments I had on this topic and I think
my one what really comes to mind is especially like when we get survey results like this they are really impactful but at the end of the day I think what the board is more looking for is not what the results were but how are
we using those results to influence our strategic plan and I think like in the future that's the connection I'd like to team made at the board table a little bit how these results are influencing what are we doing about them as well. Um and I think that would solve a lot of that would bring up a lot of uh bring a
lot of the questions I think we have to close because some of these results I think are alarming and of course where does all our mind go? Well, what are we doing about that? But right so I think it um that might be what we'd like to look at if we do a special board meeting in the future. I'd like to see more of less of just what the numbers are and
more about how are we using that to impact our resources and influence our resources. Good. >> Good job. >> Thank you. All right. Thank you very much. All right. Next, I will turn it over, speaking of strategic framework, to superintendent Balone to talk about that
framework. >> Kristen, I'll have you do something. >> All right. This is actually a perfect transition. So, good evening, Chairperson Johnson, board members. um didn't plan it to come right after this in the way of a conversation, but it actually does flow pretty well into thinking about what we do as a district
and how we make decisions about what we do and that is based on data. So, I'm excited uh to share an update on our district 196 strategic plan and our priorities adopted in 2023. Our strategic plan guides our focus and resources through strategic priorities
set for our district. I also want to emphasize that our strategic plan is a living and evolving plan. Just last month, as mentioned earlier today, we had a visioning meeting with a core planning team to discuss how we move this plan forward into the future. And even tonight's input can impact that.
So, let's take a deeper look. Our strategic road map gives us clarity and direction. In a district as large and diverse as ours, a road map is essential. It provides focus, transparency, and accountability. It connects our day-to-day work to our
long-term purpose. So, we're moving forward together in the same direction toward the fulfillment of our mission and goals. Together, our mission, vision, and values and priorities make our roadmap both aspirational and practical, ensuring we stay rooted in
who we are while continuously growing to meet the needs of our students and community. District 196 is a large organization with multiple communities built inside of it. Each year, we serve over 29,000 students and their families, provide 4.6
million meals, employ over 4,400 staff members, travel approximately 2.9 million miles to get students safely to and from school, and maintain approximately 4 million square ft of learning space. That scale shows why
planning matters. With thousands of people and millions of moving parts working toward one shared purpose, a clear road map keeps us aligned. It ensures that whether you're in the classroom, whether we're driving a bus, serving lunch, or leading a department, we're all contributing to the same goals
and the same vision of success for every student. Our AAA philosophy, which we celebrated earlier tonight, academics, arts, and athletics, is part of our strategic vision. It reminds us that education is about developing the whole child. their
intellect, creativity, and character. Our strategic roadmap keeps this philosophy front and center. As we plan, budget, and innovate, we continue to create learning experiences that challenge, inspire, and connect students. Not just prepare them for the next grade level, but for lifelong
success. Our roadmap isn't a one-year checklist. It's a three-year cycle of continuous improvement. It begins with learning work where we explore new ideas, research, best practices, and pilot strategies. Then comes implementation
work where we put those ideas into action building systems and structures that support our priorities across our system. And finally, we move into standard work when those practices become part of our culture and our daily routine.
This year we have been studying initiatives in all four strategic priorities as part of our learning work and that includes well-being, achievement, equity, and resources. And so for example, in the area of well-being, we are piloting a social emotional screener at 12 of our 20
elementary schools for possible implementation across our entire system next year. As you can see in resources, we have transportation study there. In the case of transportation, that's one example of where learning work um started this year, but was quickly implemented um due
to some needs that we had um that occurred um after the um winter break. Each of these areas reflects the road map and action connecting data, people, and purpose to improve outcomes. We look forward to sharing more specific recommendations in future meetings about plans for these areas. And some of what
we just talked about in the Minnesota student survey could easily be implemented uh into many of these areas, especially into well-being. When we go to implementation, um that's the second stage. And once initiatives have been planned for systematic systemwide adoption, they move into
implementation. Our first strategic priority is achievement. This work centers on strengthening and aligning curriculum and instructional practices across all classrooms to improve both student outcomes and staff efficacy. Using Minnesota's multi-tered systems of support framework, which you might know
as MNM MTSS, we're focusing on collaborative teams that connect teachers and leaders in studying achievement data. This includes teacher voice on school instructional leadership teams and data literacy, ensuring that educators can interpret data effectively
to impact instruction. As Bruce Miller shared at our last meeting, when science teachers correlated literacy data with achievement in science, it was clear that stronger literacy um skills support higher levels of learning in those science classes. And this can be applied to all departments and grade levels when
they start using data to inform instruction. Today, our assessment data is being used more systematically to inform those decisions. All of this strengthens classrooms consistency, classroom consistency, improve student outcomes, and support teachers with the
tools they need to succeed. Reading and literacy are so fundamental to learning that they are a primary focus for all of our teachers and classrooms. We have a short video with Rosemont Elementary Principal Tom Edstrom and his staff talking about how
their data drove a change in our literacy curriculum. Our data didn't reflect the growth and the learning that we were wanting for our students in kindergarten through fifth grade in the area of literacy. So we shifted more to a structured approach. District has changed curriculums. So that level of
assurance that children are learning based on data and based on the products that students are showing the teachers the growth that they're showing that's evident that learning is happening. >> All right. Our second strategic priority is well-being. And we just looked at a
lot of data around well-being. Learning happens best when students feel safe, connected, and supported. And our focus this year is on expanding social emotional learning through positive behavior interventions and supports known as PBIS. Building assets and
reducing risks, a program known as BAR, and non-exclusionary discipline practices, keeping students in academic um classrooms um um throughout the day. Just last week, I had the honor of serving on an expert panel at the National Bar Conference. As we have
reported in prior meetings, this is an assetbased model that helps identify and nurture students strengths. It is being implemented at all four of our comprehensive high schools for 9th graders this year. Also at the conference was assistant principal at Egan High School, Peter Zach, and
teachers from his team. They reported on how bar has transformed their conversations and meetings around student success. Our equity work allows students and families to access opportunities and support. This year's initiatives include cultural
family advocate model improving outreach and communication with families through check and connect which is an evidence-based program to improve student and family engagement. Also multilingual communication increasing language access so every family feels
welcome and informed. Also, our American Indian Education program is piloting the Dreamcatchers Initiative that provides culturally responsive support for our Native American students and families. And finally, web content accessibility, ensuring that all of our digital
materials meet accessibility standards so every member of our community can access information. This month, our American Indian Education team had our second of two annual consultations with the Tribal Nations Education Committee, known as Tene. During the meeting, the team shared its three-year student
success plan, which aligns with our strategic roadmap and outlines priorities such as native language revitalization and expanded cultural learning opportunities. The f the focused actions for implementation under this priority area are intentional in bringing students the
support they need to succeed. In district 196, equity is not a standalone effort. It is integrated into every system and decision that we make. Our final priority is resources. This is about ensuring that our people,
technology, and facilities are equipped to support learning. This includes strengthening recruitment and retention to attract and keep top talent. Expanding our use of parent square for clear and inclusive communication with families. Implementing the 2025 tech
levy renewal and increase to expand access to devices, secure networks, digital learning tools, and provide digital learning tools for staff and students. Standardizing emergency response and reunification procedures for greater safety and coordination. And
managing ongoing bond projects to maintain facilities that reflect the excellence in our programs. resources are the backbone of our work. You and many are all familiar with our 2023 bond projects and especially if you drive around the district, you'll see them uh
in motion as as we're working on them every day. The management of these construction projects across all sites in our district over a five-year period is a significant focus and we look forward to a full board report at our next regular meeting on our progress.
As you saw today, our strategic roadmap is operationalized into a three-year plan through learning work, implementation work, and standard work in each of our four strategic priorities. It's a continuous process informed by data with a focus on the future. It's our commitment to living
our mission every day, educating, developing, and inspiring our students for lifelong success. At this time, I'll pause and take any comments or questions you may have. >> Thank you very much. At this time, are there any questions or comments from the audience?
Seeing none, questions or comments from board members. >> Sakoden, >> I just wanted to uh make a quick comment just to say thank you uh Michael for the presentation. I mean the strategic road map and whenever we talk about strategic
framework this is really uh a very good uh just to in a leadership that gives us direction and something that we could as a board I mean myself we really appreciate uh all the input and then that you
operationalize this and you bring it's strategic you know priorities or strategic documents usually they kind of borrowing that collector duster somewhere. But you know, thank you for making this like a living document that we get it every presentation that you
guys show up, the reports that we get reminding us and then making that association. Not only that, also incorporate it with real data, measurable data that we could at least look and just say what we have accomplished or what we, you know, the
impact or the difference has been or what areas we could deepen or allocate more resource. things like that. So, I just wanted to say thank you for bringing this to life and then uh uh looking forward as you guys implement all your reports that you know always
you know tying back to the strategic framework. So, thank you. >> Thank you. That's really helpful feedback. Appreciate that. >> Other questions or comments from the board. Um, I'll just say, you know, kind of echoing on Sakin's comments too, you
know, if I had to rewind time many, many years ago and somebody asked me what our priorities are, I'd say, there's a lot of them. Let me think. Right. Um, but as we know, when everything's a priority, nothing's actually a priority. And I think what you've really done here is
taken what is important for this districts from a strategic level and determined what is going to be prioritized in that. There's a lot of other things out there that we know are important that we want to learn about that we want to study but that just is
not our priority right now. Um and I really really appreciate this level of detail. And what I love about it is when you when you look at these slides, whatever 10 slides they were really like the core, there's maybe four slides that were really core. Looks like this isn't a lot. And that's a good thing because
this you're saying right now, this is our current focus. And these are all big things underneath that, right? But this is our current focus that we want to learn to study. Um, and that has that's something that as a board member, I didn't always know what our focus was. So now I really really appreciate these regular updates we get that tells both
the board and the public what are what is our focus and where do we want to head next. So thank you for putting this together and for the updates. >> Absolutely. Thank you. >> Absolutely. All right. That brings us to our old business portion of the agenda. So I
would like to welcome Adden Watenburgger to the podium to go over the second reading of policy 508. All right. Good evening again, Chairperson Johnson, school board members, and Superintendent Balsone. Um, I'm here with this agenda item to
introduce a second reading of some minor changes to policy 508. We discussed these at the last board meeting. Um these changes that we're proposing are essentially just um some clarifying language to help ensure that our nutrition services language is compliant
with all of the federal and state requirements. Um some emphasis on USDA smart snacks and nutrition compliance. We added several references to those to clarify that all of the food we sell and advertise in our schools is going to meet those standards. included a
three-year evaluation cycle that's required and updated all of the statutory references. Um, happy to take any other questions, but otherwise I recommend approval of these changes. >> Excellent. Thank you very much. This is an action item for the board tonight. So, before I go into questions, is there
a motion to approve policy 508 uh wellness as presented? >> So, moved. >> Second. >> Motion by Robin, seconded by Sakoden. At this time, are there any questions or comments from the audience? Seeing none questions or comments from board members.
Seems pretty straightforward. Uh we have a motion to approve by Robin, seconded by Sakoden. All those in favor of approval say I. >> I. >> Those opposed. Motion carries on a 6-0 vote. Thank you very much. That brings us to our new business portion of the agenda. And Adam, you can stay right
there at the pol at the podium to go over policy 503, student rights and responsibilities. >> All right. Good evening again. Um, so I have now before you a proposed uh change to policy 503, our student rights and responsibilities uh policy. We're going
to talk about the rights and responsibilities handbook in the next agenda item. Um, the policy change we're bringing forth specifically relates to smart glasses. And we might use the term smart glasses to refer to any of the new fangled devices that you can wear on
your eyes that have various levels of technology embedded in them. Um often can record uh video, take pictures, but also can assess surroundings, gather information, transmit information to the person wearing them. Um we have been
receiving a lot of feedback from school administrators at all levels um over the past several months that they are concerned about these devices and specifically just the inability to tell if a student is using them in an inappropriate way. Um a lot of concerns
about potential privacy violations when students are wearing these. um you know what can they take pictures of at any given moment in the classroom in private spaces, restrooms, locker rooms, things like that. Also, academic integrity concerns. If we can use these, you're wearing them, you're taking a test, can
they analyze the test and just uh give information there? Um, so various things and these are things you can do with other devices as well, um, that students may have access to, but the the sort of sneakiness of it all with them being part of the glasses is something that really makes it difficult to, um,
enforce those expectations if students are using these. Um, so some context for where this fits into our policy. Um, the cell phone policy that we adopted last year under 503. Um, we know that we have sort of a off and away all day for K
through 8 and then off and away in the classroom for the high school level. Policy then says that students can have other electronic devices on them. Um, but they're expected to comply with all of the other um behavioral expectations that we have. So, we can take action
with other devices if they're causing a nuisance or using it inappropriately. Um what we're proposing to add is an exception to that that says smart glasses are going to be fully prohibited to use or wear um during the school day. Um and we've included some language that
kind of describes what we mean by smart glasses um but to protect privacy rights and uphold academic integrity. That will be a blanket um nonwearing um rule in in our policy. Um, and that's something that again we got feedback
from lots of different administrators at all levels. Um, and was something that they wanted to move forward with. Um, and we'll note that there are some bills circling around the legislature that would also potentially address this topic, potentially would go farther and apply to other devices. um we will
monitor those and if something does pass um in the next couple of weeks here I can certainly make any adjustments before um the June board meeting if we need to go farther than this or something in a statute conflicts with what we're doing here um we'll make sure that what we're doing is is consistent
with the law of course um but for right now assuming nothing changes this is a proposal that the administration is recommending uh to to move forward with um this is a first reading uh but I'm happy to take any questions. >> Excellent. >> Thank you very much. At this time, are there any questions or comments from the
audience? >> Seeing none questions or comments from board members. >> Excellent. Thank you very much. But don't go yet because you can now go over the 202627 overview of student rights and responsibilities. >> But wait, there's more.
All right. Um, so I'm here now to uh present the 2026 27 uh draft of our overview of student rights and responsibilities. This is more commonly referred to as our student handbook is a shorter way of saying that. Um, this is a kind of a long document, but it
provides um a notice um to of various policies and expectations specifically that apply to students. And while it is long, it's much more user friendly than just our policies themselves, which are even longer and and more difficult to um find where you're going. And so this is
kind of a handbook that compiles a lot of the those that are most relevant to students in one place that can be accessed by students and staff and families. Um it also there's several notices that were required by law to put out every year. Um and so this gives us an avenue to to do that to include all
of their legally required notices. Um, a big portion of the handbook is a kind of a continuum of responses chart for behaviors where we kind of provide a list that students and administrators can reference on what behaviors are prohibited and what the typical uh
consequences will be for those behaviors. So, it's a valuable resource for that. Um, and this is something that a couple years ago we shifted from um sending out paper copies to doing electronic distribution. So we will make
sure that a link gets sent out to all families and then it is always available on our website. Um our communications team has actually been improving that page in in recent months to make it uh more ADA compliant, more accessible so it's very userfriendly now uh searchable
um and can be accessed uh quite easily. We will also make uh several paper copies available for each building so that um if families do have a need or even just a request for a paper version um we'll have um some of those available and I know a lot of administrators like
to have them on their desks as well to to flip through. So we do make some paper copies available but primarily distribute it electronically. Um this is a document that we update every year. Um there are a few different things that we look for. First of all, if there's any
legal changes um or policy updates that we've um enacted throughout the year, um that's something that I focus on making sure um is up to date in there. And then beyond that, um we take a wide range of feedback. Um I specifically reach out to
principles um from all the buildings who themselves can, you know, gather and solicit feedback from other staff and families and students about potential changes and updates that they would like to see um in the handbook. and then I bring those through cabinet for further discussion, potentially back to
principles meetings if there's um other items to discuss through the policy review committee and then um to the school board. Um this year I will say there are not a ton of of big updates or changes that we were making. Um one of the most significant ones would be
incorporating that smart glasses ban um into the language. if that's something that ends up getting approved next month, we will um include that in the handbook and incorporate it into the um continuum of responses rubric. Uh otherwise, just some updated language
here and there. We updated the description of our language access plan. That's something that was updated and that the board approved um several months ago. So, we have an updated description of that. Um an updated language regarding the use of AI and and how that applies to students. some
various additional detail added to the uh data practices section and and handling the student data and then just other technical updates throughout the document. There are a few things that we will also update once it's finalized. We'll make sure the page numbers all line up with all of our edits um and
update the forms that are in the back. Some of those are still waiting on getting um but those are the the main changes that uh we are putting forth this year. Um and again, we will be I'll be back with this uh next month. Happy to take any questions. >> Excellent. Thank you very much. At this
time, are there any questions or comments from the audience? >> Seeing none, questions or comments from board members? Robin? >> Um, thank you for compiling the big rights and responsibilities book. I, um, it's a very big document. Um, I'm thinking of you highlighted that we are
focusing on letting people know about our language access plan and because we want to make sure families can access this. When it's sent out electronically, will it now be sent out through parent square and will people be able to translate it into their own home language?
>> Yes to both. I believe Janet's nodding. Uh parent square is yeah the method that we would distribute this for sure and it should be able to be uh translated um through there on the well the website. Yes. So the link will take you to the website. The website is then translatable um in any language
essentially. Um so it will be available there. Um, we'll still probably prepare a full PDF version in Spanish and Somali. We kind of predet those professionally. I guess I shouldn't commit to that, but that's generally what we've done is we have the three versions that if you want to download
the full PDF, we have those in the English, Spanish, and Somali, but then the web uh the web page is also translatable into any other language. So, >> perfect. Thank you. >> Other questions or comments from board? >> Seeing none, we will see you back next
month. >> All right. Thank you very much. >> Thanks. >> All right, that brings us to school board and superintendent updates. I'll turn the meeting over to Superintendent Bosone for district updates. >> Okay, thank you, Chair Johnson. Uh, last Saturday, May 2nd, many of us on our team attended the South of the River
Powow supported in part by our American Indian Education Program hosted at Burnsville High School. It was a highly successful event. We estimated over 300 people in attendance and events like this require the support of many staff members and volunteers. I want to thank everyone in 196 and across the south
metro who helped make the day a success. This week, all of our high schools are completing the last of the advanced placement or AP exams. Approximately 2,400 students in grades 9 through 12 are taking more than 5,550
AP exams this year. AP courses expose students to college level rigor and provide opportunities to earn college credit based on exam performance. We want to wish all of our students the very best as they complete their exams this week. Tonight is the last regular schoolboard meeting before the last day
of school on June 4th and the start of the class of 2026 graduation ceremonies. On behalf of the administration, I want to congratulate our more than 2,100 seniors who will graduate from District 196 this year. We recognize them for their hard work and perseverance in
achieving this milestone. We wish them all the best in the next chapter of their lives. This week's This week also marks the beginning of our graduation celebrations. We'll kick off those celebrations with the Native American cultural honing ceremony this Saturday,
May 16th, at 1 p.m. at Central Park in Rosemount. Commencement ceremonies for our four comprehensive high schools will be held on Friday and Saturday, May 29th and 30th at the University of St. Thomas. Graduation for several other district schools and programs will also
take place later this month and in early June. A complete list of graduation ceremonies is available on the district website. Finally, if you have not already done so, I encourage families to complete their plan my ride form by Thursday, June 4th. The form is for the 2627
school year and lets us know whether your student will need transportation services. The form is available in parent square for current students and on the district website for families that are new to district 196. And finally, as we enter the last weeks of the school year, I want to thank our
students, families, and staff for their continued partnership and support. We look forward to celebrating the many accomplishments of the class of 2026 and all of our students in the weeks ahead. That concludes my report. Thank you. >> Thank you, Superintendent Bone. At this time, are there any board members with
updates they'd like to share? Seeing none, that brings us to the end of our time together. Um, is there a motion to adjurnn? >> Still moved. >> Second. >> Motion by Saken, seconded by Leah. All those in favor of adjournment, say I.
>> I. I. >> Those opposed. Our next regular school board meeting will be Monday, June 8th. I look forward to seeing everyone then. We stand adjourned.