I bought one of those little mini for authors so I don't hear it. >> Yeah. >> Excellent. I have >> Welcome everyone and good evening on this the 9th day of February at the South Ben Community School Corporation Administration
building. Welcome guests. And the board has had a close session at 4:00. Uh I'm now calling the meeting to order. Mr. Hernandez, can you please call the role? >> Yes. Good afternoon. Mr. Marcus Ellison, >> present. >> Mr. Marcus, >> here. >> Dr. Janette McCulla,
>> present. >> Mr. Bill Nadiki, >> present. Miss Kate Lee >> here. >> Mr. Carlos Lea >> here. >> Dr. Stu Green >> here. >> We have a quorum and we can now move to the adoption of the agenda. It is recommended that the board of school
trustees adopt the agenda. >> Do we have a motion and a second to approve? >> Motion to approve. >> Thank you, Mr. Ellison. Second. >> Thank you, Mrs. Lee. The motion has been moved and seconded. Mr. Hernandez, will
you please call the role? >> Mr. Ellison, >> I. >> Mr. Costello, >> I. >> Dr. McCulla, >> I. >> Mr. Snedi, >> hi. >> Miss Lee, >> I. >> Mr. Lea, >> I. >> Dr. Green, >> hi.
>> Motion carries 70. Thank you, Miss Hernandez. Now it's time for recognitions and superintendent announcements. So it's over to you, Mr. Eid. >> Thank you, Dr. Green. Good evening, uh, board members, members of the public.
Um, we are going to start with the Black History Month proclamation that will be read by Miss Lee. >> Thank you. Whereas Black History Month was created
by Dr. Carter G. Woodson in 1926 and later federally recognized in 1976 by President Gerald Ford to highlight the contributions made by African-Americans to the development and history of our great nation and the world. Whereas during the month of February, our nation
pauses to reflect on the injustices and struggles fought and overcome by African-Americans throughout our country's history and to pay tribute to those who endured extreme violence. in some cases making the ultimate sacrifice in the name of equality. Whereas celebration of black history
raises awareness of the struggles African-Americans endured through the eras of slavery, segregation, and discrimination. It serves as a reminder of the strength and resilience exhibited in the face of oppression, and inequality. Whereas African-Americans have contributed significantly to the
science, art, literature, and the political landscapes, and continue to shape the very fabric of American culture. These achievements have profoundly impacted our society by encouraging innovation, creativity, and progress. Whereas the African-American community
has encouraged rejection of the myth of racial inferiority and affirms every citizen's rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness ascribed in the US Declaration of Independence. Whereas, in celebrating Black History Month, we acknowledge the true stories of the past as they actually happened.
Therefore, inspiring future generations to pursue their dreams on a path that has been paved with sacrifice. And whereas the Southbend Community School Corporation is proud to honor the history, contributions, and achievements of African-Americans in our community throughout our state and nation, both
past and present. Now, therefore, in recognition of African-American history, the Southbank Community School Corporation does hereby proclaim February 2026 as Black History Month and encourages all residents to celebrate the rich, diverse heritage and culture
and continue efforts to create a world that is just, peaceful, and prosperous for all. Attested to this day, February 9th, 2026, Mansour Eid and Dr. Steuart Green. >> Thank you, Miss Lee. Uh,
our second recognition of the evening is the Riley High School Science Olympia team for placing third place at the Notre Dame Invitational. And we have with us the whole Science Olympia team
with their coach and the principal. If you want to please, uh, Mr. Henderson and coach, please. Uh good evening, uh President Green, Vice President Anella, Superintendent E, Board of Trustees. Uh again, we just
want to say thank you all so much for allowing us to come out and just continue to recognize some of the amazing things that our scholars are doing. Um Riley High School Science Olympia team placed third at the Notre Day invitational. They went on to regionals where they placed seventh and then they are now headed on to state. Um
I want to give Coach Leonard an opportunity to speak and to um acknowledge and recognize our scholars as we can maybe take a picture with you all. All right. Would >> be awesome. >> Thank you. Good evening. I'm Ko Leonard, coach of
Riley Science Olympiad. Um, and I've got my co- coach here with me, too. So, Paul Penn, please stand up. Let's give him some recognition, too. It's definitely more than a twoperson job, but I'm very grateful to have Paul helping because he helps with all of the
build events, things that I'm not quite so good at, but I can handle lab and I can teach the kids how to study, but he helps them build all the projects. So totally valuable and really grateful to have him on on the coaching squad. Um for those of you that don't know what
Science Olympiad is, um it's kind of scored like a track meet. So there's over 20 events in STEM and the students pick usually about three to specialize in and they become the experts. It's very self-guided. So there's no way that I can be an expert in like 26 different
subjects, nor can Mr. Penn. and a lot falls on the kids' shoulders to learn a lot of things by themselves and I just kind of give them places where they can find materials and resources. Um, so really all the credit goes out to these kids and the families that that share
their kids with me. Um, many hours after school. Um, it's a very long season. So we start in September and we're going all the way out to the state competition which is in on March 28th um at Northridge High School. Um, so I'm
really proud to be their coach. Um, I've gotten to know them all pretty well. Uh, we have a lot of fun together, too. Um, so it's not all about just work. Um, there's a lot of camaraderie on the team and I really thank you for recognizing us tonight. Um, we kind of had we were a
little bit crestfallen after our regional competition. Um, there was a mishap in scoring and we were notified that instead of placing fourth, we actually placed seventh. But they did say that we are still advancing to state. So we're excited to prove our worth there. So thank you so much.
>> Thank you. >> Okay. Can we have everyone up here to take a picture with the board? I'll take it. >> Uh this is an announcement. The National School Counseling Week is February 2nd
or was February 2nd through the 6. Uh, school resource officer appreciation day is February 15th. Thank you for your service. Uh, Officer
Bueno. And the last thing, career and technical education awareness month is February. Now before I pass the baton to number five, I would like to pass it to Mr.
Argustinino who has a brief statement about something. See if we get fired up here. There we go. So, um, what I'd like to report, which the board members are aware of, but the public,
uh, may or may not be, is that last Thursday we did have, uh, finally an exit conference with the state board of accounts. Uh that was a meeting in a meeting that occurred in this building with our board members, members of the
uh finance office and myself and Mr. Lawson. And so naturally the question will be what happened at that meeting? What can you tell us? Unfortunately the state law which I've put up there and I've highlighted in orange uh this is in
Indiana code section 5-11-5-1. Um, and it tells you as part of the review of the examination, the state examiner will hold a gathering, which they did. Um, and you can see here, and I'll highlight here, all information
discussed and materials presented or delivered by any person during an exit conference are confidential and may not be discussed or shared publicly until the earliest of the occurrences set forth in section G. And section G of
this statute talks about when the report is made finally public by the state board of accounts or if the uh state attorney general office wants to take any action on it. So neither of those have happened yet. So, uh, we cannot,
the board or myself or the members of finance team, anyone that was at that meeting last Thursday cannot discuss the contents of the report or anything that we learned during that during that meeting. Um, it will be made public in
short order. Uh, but the state has up to 45 days to do that. U, we're told that it'll be probably less than that time period. Um I I'll just report generally as well that uh issues that were reported uh many of them have have
already been addressed and you've heard Mr. uh enough to me to tell you over time how things have been addressed in the finance office um and issues that need to be addressed are being addressed but that's all I can say and that's all any of the board members can say. So, but I wanted to at
least share that the exit conference occurred. That was for the audit period ending June 30, 2023. We're going to be going into 2024 and 2025 shortly and we'll update you as those um occur. Thank you.
>> Check in your Facebook. It's usually on air before we find out. >> Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Austinino. He's not paid by uh Mr. Zuckerberg, is he? >> Thank you, Mr. Eid, and thank you, Mr. Augustinino. We will now have a hearing
of visitors on action items 9.01 to 9.11. Mrs. Lee, has anyone signed up to speak? >> Yes, we have one. At regular meetings, the public is invited to address the board for three minutes regarding action agenda items. Visitors wishing to address the board on
action items 9.01 through 9.11 must sign the registration sheet prior to the meeting and state the action agenda item which they will address. Individuals may only speak once on the same topic. Speakers shall properly identify themselves after they approach the podium by stating their name and address
for the record. Personnel issues are not to be addressed in any way during open sessions of the school board. No person may address or question board members individually. The board president may interrupt, warn, or terminate a person's statement if the statement becomes personally directed, abusive, or
obscene. If you wish to give something to the board, please give the item or items to Miss Hernandez after the meeting. So, we have one person for 9.09, Tiana Batistell. Good evening. Tiana Batis Wuadell, 330 Kofax Avenue, Southbend, Indiana. In
reviewing the scope of work, which one of these modules to strengthen capacity and coherence have anti-racist workshops embedded? $120,000? What academic and behavioral data was used to determine this was the best
course of action for principles training? Is this approach very similar to past approaches? approaches like learning forward. A past vendor that had connections with central office administration coming in to train
principles to be equitable but never really actually train them on being anti-racist and never actually getting any proven results. The principles have the license to suspend and hopefully in all cases within your district are
responsible for school suspensions and recommendations for expulsion. The only focus for principal professional learning should be ensuring that they do not hold antilackness beliefs and training them on how to train their teachers not to hold antilackness
beliefs. Thank you. >> Thank you. We also invite comments on other items. Uh, Mr. Lee, can you share the following? At regular meetings, the public is invited to address the board for three minutes regarding items not posted on the
agenda. Give something. If you would like to give something to the board, please give the item or items to Miss Hernandez after the meeting. Individuals may only speak once during this section of the agenda. Speakers shall properly identify themselves after they approach the podium by stating their name and address for the record. Let me be clear
in saying that personnel issues are not to be addressed during open sessions of the school board. In addition, no person may address or question board members individually. The board president may interrupt, warn, or terminate a person's statement if the statement becomes personally directed, abusive, or obscene. Please come to the podium if
you wish to speak. >> Good evening, uh, Sue Castle 4022 Kennedy Drive. I began my education with a number two pencil and a piece of paper. When calculators appeared, they were banned from classrooms. Now they live on our phones. I remember when
early spreadsheets like Supercal in the 1980s were long before Excel. I was required to use a manual typewriter. Today, we speak directly onto the page. Every generation resists new tools until
those tools become essential. I personally beta tested an early artificial intelligence system in 1983. I later beta tested one of the large language models more than a decade ago at Notre Dame. AI is not new. It's been
evolving for 60 years. What is new is the speed. Experts now project that AI may reach singularity as early as 2029. So, how well are we preparing students for that reality?
China is already teaching AI concepts starting at age seven. In contrast, only about 18% of US schools offer any AI education at all. If we do not teach students AI now, uh
we're not preparing them for the modern economy. Students should be able to create websites, apps, produce videos, music, games, program robots, build AI agents, start businesses. These are not futuristic skills. These are today's
tools. I brought the MakerFair to Southbend in 2016 to promote STEM when people had never heard of it. In 2024, I participated in the McCloski challenge proposing AI based approaches to reduce
violence here in Southbend. That work was ignored. I read the road ahead nearly 30 years ago. More recently, I read the future is faster than you think. We have already
passed what's once felt futuristic. The truth is time to act was 10 years ago. Second best time is now. Our children need Southbend schools to catch up now, not next year. They
deserve leadership that looks forward and takes immediate action. Thank you so much. >> Thank you. >> Good evening. Mike McManis, 51940 Lilac Road. I wasn't going to say anything at all tonight, but Miss Kasm has um
um caused me to come forward with a cautionary tale. On the way over here tonight, literally driving from my house about 15 minutes to here, I heard a report that for the first time
that this has been studied, and it's been for well over a hundred years, uh, this current generation of not only Americans, but people worldwide is the
first to have an average IQ level lower than their parents. And for as long as it's been ste studied, IQ levels have been increasing generation by generation.
The report suggests that part of that reason may well be that students spend too much time on the little machines used in school. You guys have done a terrific job of
raising teachers salaries and making the classroom the focus of this school community. Please keep doing that. AI has certain benefits, but it also can at times be
very scary. So, just be aware of that and keep up the good work. Um, you have you have done a great job. One year ago, I think, you know, I would not have said that,
but I'm proud of the school board now, and I think many more people in our community need to hear that this school board is devoted to educating our children. And I thank you. >> Does anybody else wish to speak?
John Pachesnney 18420 Crown Hill Drive. Like many others, I listened to and viewed the recent po forum sponsored by the Southland Tribune. Dr. Green and Mr. Ellison, you represented the corporation well and spoke with an understanding of the current situation and not reliving
the past. But I have some other thoughts. It was said the business community has moved on after they offered to $20 million for a CTE center. So I reached into my bag of of tricks and pulled out the 31124 presentation on
the CTE center and nowhere in the funding sources does it show $20 million from the school business community. Some people comment on online that the certain community boards voted no financial support. Was there really
money out there? Mayor Mueller stated he was against the bill. Then why didn't he come out and say it prior to? He hid. He did not did not speak and I did not see him in the picture from the press conference at the county sitting and
maybe he was in the background. Members of the common council spoke out. Where were you? It seems this is more political than factual. And then you have Senator Rogers who stated the primary reason for the bill was to bring about discussion. I almost fell off my
chair. In the legislative session, you bring up a bill waste valuable time rather than focusing on pertinent issues to bring up discussion. Why did you not call the superintendent's office and schedule a meeting with him, his cabinet, and the board and bring along
your constituent business leaders and have a real fruitful discussion. This reason to me deserves a Pinocchio award. Equity and education. While I have no cre concrete ideas, I'm wondering if we
shouldn't put prek classes in every underperforming school. Yes, I know it costs money and we have to pay for it, but I think it's an idea worth looking into and maybe it will be discussed tonight or in the future. The superintendent and the board now are
going to be under a microscope and scrutinized going forward. They're going to be watched to not so much how you vote and what the vote is, but they're going to watch on how you work together. Respect each other and listen to each other.
>> You cannot afford public out displays of emotion. They are watching. Have the discussion like that in your executive session. At the same time, the board needs to work with the administration to enhance and to begin programs that will meet the needs of our academic success.
The path forward won't be easy. Change alone cannot happen. It's going to take the city and the business community to do this, and I'm hoping more will step forward. But just remember, it was the legislature that opened up school of choice, raised the limits on the vouchers, and all these have affected
the south end schools. Thank you. >> Thank you. Good evening. Tiana Batis Wadell, 330 Kofax Avenue, South Bin, Indiana. When will racial discrimination practices and school discipline end in South Bin schools? They must end now. Have you
forgotten about the data the district has already collected to make a clear determination that something must be done today? In 1980, federal consent decree order to dismantle oppressive practices that black children were experiencing in the district. No significant changes took place. 20 years
later in 2000, Thoughtbridge report was conducted in reports of racism as an epidemic in the district. No changes took place. 11 years later in 2011, second thought bridge report was conducted and confirms continued racial discriminatory practices taking place.
No significant changes took place. 10 years later in 2021, US Department of Justice wrote a letter to Southpin schools stating that racial discrimination persists in the district. A vision statement on racial equity and anti-racist policies in Southpin schools
was written by Stuart Green. I repeat, a vision, not action, but a thought. Leasia Consulting LLC made recommendations to the district to implement antibbias training across the entire district to reduce disparities based on the baseline data that was
collected from district administrators, principles, and schoolboard members. No significant changes took place. Three years later, 2024, code of conduct training was held and has not impacted the trajectory of racial discrimination in South schools. One year later, 2025,
evidence of continued complacency on racist issues in South Bin schools with the use of dog whistles by Tim Corbett upholding racist beliefs about the children. South Bin schools employees write racist rants about the children they serve on social media platforms. It
was reported to Superintendent Eid and no follow-up was provided on what happened. By chance at a local venue, I experienced a South School employee racist rant about the first day of school. Here we are again in 2026 with the talk of a committee to prove what has already been proven through all of
the previous reports. This institution exhibits racist behaviors and it must stop now. Three major challenges based on data thought bridge report. One, you guys are inable to educate all children well, specifically poor children and children
of color. Two, there continues to be a widening achievement gap between white and middle class students and poor students and African-American and Hispanic students. Third, a cultural proficiency gap between students and teachers and administrators and staff. And based on the baseline data collected
from Leasia Consulting LLC, youth staff leaders that minimize and deny cultural and ethnic differences among people. What are you going to do about this today, not nine months from now? Resources were allocated to train
over,400 employees on financial internal protocols. Resources were spent on sidewalks, 120k. What resources will be allocated to ensure your staff are trained to be anti-racist? Thank you.
>> Thank you. >> Does anybody else wish to speak? Seeing no one approach the podium, I would like to thank everyone for sharing their concerns and we'll move on to the consent agenda. >> First, however, >> oh, whoops. >> And we'll do the early literacy. We're
not skipping you guys. The her the early uh literacy update and I'll now invite uh Mr. Reid, the superintendent, and Mrs. Carla Lee, executive director of CNI. And it looks like her team
of many. I'll let you introduce everybody. Our guest audience today we would like to come before you and share um early literacy updates. In August of 25, we gave a a general update
of Ivory 3 data and where we stood and where we needed to go for the upcoming school year. Today is a little bit different. Today is different in that we are going to not only at a high level review IY 3, but also literacy when you
look at it through a K8 band. So what our data is currently telling us and what pivots are necessary to ensure that all of our students are receiving those equitable learning opportunities on a daily basis. So I'll begin by speaking of systems and
what systems learning is. When you look at a system, you look at the interrelated components that make up that organization. And when you speak of a learning system, you look at all the members of an organization that
continuously move toward a common goal. Which is why you see most of the CNI team here this evening and how we are coming together to build that system again to ensure that those early learning foundations are solid so that
we can build upon them from grades three through eight. This is our current are our current goals. So again at a high view we look to increase our IE3 by 10% in a few
weeks in fact and we look to increase the uh proficiency as well but then we look at specifically third grade students and in i3. So again, by the
state's goal in 2027, 95% of all the students in the state of Indiana are anticipated to be on grade level. And then as we look at the iLearn, which is as important as the I read third
grade students, we are looking to identify skilled readers. That means students who are at proficiency or above proficiency to increase by 10% points percentage points in South Bin schools.
Riss will now share with you a little bit of our problem of practice. Hello. As a department, we took a deep dive to better understand the factors contributing to students not meeting proficiency on iAre and iLearn. We identified several factors contributing
to our current proficiency rates. The overarching areas of support are onboarding, professional development and coaching of teachers and administrators, the culture and climate of the school building, and the collaboration and alignment of all areas within the
curriculum and instruction department. My colleagues will go further in depth on each of these areas. But to start, Miss Lee will now go into greater detail about our currently current literacy data in our buildings. And so here is our currently our current
I read data. So this is where our stu our our buildings were assigned um at the end of summer in 2025 and that was again presented in the fall of 2025. But I would like to pay particular
attention to our current data when we speak again of grades three through eight and the dirt the data that we have to inform us of where our students are. As you know the state piloted last year checkpoint data and so certain schools
around the state as well as some schools within Southpin schools participated in that pilot. This year, all of our 38 students participated in the checkpoints. And the checkpoints is
a data check that helps us determine where our students are in a specific given time of the year. So, this is what we know right now moving through checkpoint data 1 and checkpoint data 2.
And that is that 60% of our students are continuing to build capacity. When we speak of mastering language and vocabulary and following checkpoint two, 60% or more of our students are yet building capacity when mastering reading and
understandingformational text and media. And in order to be proficient in both or all four of those standards, that means that the early literacy strategies must have been
mastered. That means that K12 foundational reading skills must be mastered. And the reason they must be mastered is because we want to free up space for students to stop learning to
decode and learn for comprehension. Because the visual that you see on the screen right now is actually a mathematical um formula. And that is decoding times mult I mean multiplied by language
comprehension equals a skilled reader. If either one of those are absent then you have one multiplied by zero and the sum of that we know is zero. So we have to spend strong time building those
foundations. So en ensuring that when our students are transitioning from early literacy K12 beginning in third grade that they can spend their time with language comprehension instead of decoding and foundational
skills. Dice now will speak more about the theory of action that we have developed to help get us there. >> Yes. In order to build this goal and ensure we're moving in the right direction, we need to develop a theory
of action. And the goal is the the research says that go from a turn to for us to go from a turnaround to a high performing school, we must shift our focus from being managing crisis to managing systems. And so the core idea
is for for us to be um show coherence. It says that in low performing districts, all the departments work in silo. They're working for student achievement but on their own goals. In high performing districts, they're all working together for a common goal um
where all the levers are pulling the same way and that is student achievement. So our overarching theory theory of action is if we build a unified equity centered system that guarantees access to rigorous curriculum
and high quality instruction for every student and support this with datadriven professional learning and wraparound supports. Then we will eliminate the variance in practice between classrooms and schools. cultivate a culture of
collective efficacy and significantly increase student achievement and college and career readiness. Now, how are we going to get there? We have several action steps and Mr. Tom Sims is going
to start with our first action step and that is teacher recruitment. Licensed certified teachers have become a rarity in most school districts uh making them the most valuable commodity that any educational program has. Uh if poor test scores and underachievement
are truly the result of access to effective teaching uh then we have to place a priority on how we are attracting our teachers here in South Bend. The development of a new teacher academy uh whose focus is entirely on recruitment, placement, and retention uh
is a non-negotiable particularly for public schools who will undoubtedly um lose in the competitive race when securing licensed teachers in the very near future. Uh we propose a dedicated office devoted entirely on locating and retaining highly qualified instructional
talent. Through this office, professional development would pivot to a focus on the needs of the first year teacher, behavior management, parent communication, social emotional health, topics that are important and relevant to our new teachers. Statistically, if
we're successful in retaining a teacher after their first year, the likelihood of them remaining with the district for year two and three significantly increases. We would also like to see this office monitor students who have had a non-licensed teacher for a year in any
core content class and assure that that child not be placed in an EP or non-certified classroom teacher uh for his upcoming academic year. Lastly, the recruitment and retention of highly qualified talent must be our priority if
the district is going to produce students that are globally competitive. Miss Batis will now share the importance of of our continued professional development program. >> And following teacher recruitment, sorry.
And following teacher recruitment, um the next critical step is to reinforce multi-layered support for especially our emergency permit teachers, apprentice teachers, and new and beginning teachers to ensure
they are fully equipped and effective before they start this school year. Uh these supports can be accomplished through a robust, rigorous, intensive summer professional development designed to ensure teachers in enter the school
year well-prepared and confident and instructionally effective. So what does research say about a child who has a year in a classroom with an ineffective teacher? Research studies have shown that students who experience even one
year with an ineffective teacher can show slower academic progress for up to three years compared to their peers. Therefore, teacher effectiveness is critical and the most powerful school-based factor shaping student
learning because great schools are built on the foundation of highly effective teachers and robust and rigorous professional development is needed and critical. And now, Regina will share information about the current supports,
excuse me, K through3 teachers are currently receiving. We have several K through3 supports that we put in place this year. One is making sure every school has a literacy block that is at least 120 minutes. Um we have new
curriculum that you guys voted on last spring and with that we have instructional guides that focus on the new adoption and we are constantly updating those based on teacher feedback. Um, two, we have IDOE adopted acadians testing and we can progress
monitor students that struggle every two weeks as well as we also have i3 practice tests. And not only do we have those to see if the students know the skills, but we also have those to focus on the format because sometimes half the
battle is taking the test and knowing what the test asks for. So, we're preparing our students for that. Every school also has win time which counts for what I need time. So based on data, students will get what they need during
that 40 to 45 minute block. We partnered with Notre Dame tutors uh for sound partners. I know Dr. Green, you were a tutor at one of our schools. Um currently we are in nine schools. Notre Dame um is in nine schools and we found that we needed a need. We had a need at
one other school. There wasn't enough tutors. So, our department is going to Monroe three days a week and tutoring students there. Um, Amplify, last spring, we asked for a Amplify uh embedded coach to make sure we are using
our curriculum with fidelity. And so, she is here at four schools and then open for PD at the rest of the schools. We also have 10 literacy cadre coaches at 10 schools and three district literacy coaches to help with coaching
cycles. And then we also have summer school which we are gearing up for for students that did not pass the iid. Okay. So now I'm going to shift it over to NADA to talk about our curriculum clinics. These clinics are conducted virtually. They are open to any
kindergarten through 8th grade teacher who instructs students in literacy or language arts. These clinics are held several days to a week prior to the start of a new unit to provide teachers the support they need before the next unit of instruction begins.
While academic and educational goals provide the foundation for student success, they do not exist in isolation. The climate and culture of a learning environment shapes how effectively those goals are realized. And I'd like to introduce Dr. Scott Bradley.
So, we know that climate and culture plays a big role in how our students learn in school. And everyone has probably heard the st the saying, "Students don't care how much you know until they know how much you care." And in order to create those relationships and build that trust, there are several
avenues that we need to take in order to make sure that our students know that we care about their learning just as much as we care about them. And some of that is built through our active listening. Just building up that trust or making sure that we are treating them equitable
equitably in school and just making sure that we are also fostering and building those strong positive relationships. Dr. Smith here is going to talk some more about how we can engage our families and community and also building relationships and building up our
culture and climate in our buildings. >> Thank you. According to relay, educational equity is means that each child receives what they need to develop their full academic and social
potential. Educational equity is the combination of rigor and set high expectations not for some but for all students. As a district, we have embraced this
framework and are incorporating it into our practice, beginning with standards aligned exemplars where teachers set a vision for student success by creating and analyzing ideal student responses or
what we refer to as exemplars. These are exemplars to standard aligned academic tasks. We are shifting the cognitive load from teachers to students through highlevel
questioning, extended reading, and requiring students to analyze, interpret, and justify their thinking with evidence. Instead of lowering expectations or watering down instruction to make um to
make uh content accessible, our teachers are being trained to support students through productive struggle with key concepts. Therefore, ensuring they meet grade level content expectations. Instead of looking at students and
looking at teachers, we are looking at data. Student data. This involves the continuous analysis of student work to identify gaps in understanding and provide real time feedback or targeted reteing to ensure
every student reaches mastery of the standard. We are not engaging in blaming or excuses. We are focused on that student data comparing it to the exemplar identifying the gap and providing a
perspect p prescript prescriptive retach. Finally, we are intentional about making sure that tasks reflect the complexity and the content of year end assessments to ensure that they are truly aligned to
state standards. What we present to our students are the conjoined twins of high expectation and rigor wrapped in equity. This is the key for student growth regardless of external challenges.
In addition to academic equity, we are committed to supporting our teachers through developing their emotional intelligence, intercultural awareness and social emotional learning. Likewise, we are committed to our families to build trust
and strong collaborative partnerships based on psychological safety. We are also seeking to empower parents with knowledge, tools, skills, and confidence necessary to support their child's education. A key focus is
helping families to understand their child's developmental stages and incorporation of states uh stage setting which is a term used to reflect specific actions parents can take to promote their child's success. Here to discuss school culture and
climate is my colleague and director of student services Stephanie Stewart Bridges. >> Good evening everyone. We all know the idea related to school climate is very important and one indicator of that is a student's opportunity to feel like they
belong. Um belonging is when children feel individually welcomed, respected by others and feel like they contribute to a community that they both give and receive from and it is the direct correlation of school climate.
We are able to um collectively coordinate school climate by making sure that we respond to the needs of students and demonstrate those building behavior expectations that we'd like to see our students perform and being able to create a community standard of practices
that address those needs in a meaningful way. In order for us to switch that cognitive load to the students, students need to feel safe to be able to do so. And so it is important for students to feel safe, feel engaged, and have an environment, a positive environment to
flourish. Having those things create that opportunity for belonging, which is one of the ways that we're able to continue to coordinate coordinate mastery goal orientation. That is that intrinsic goal for students to want to learn that's not performance-based. And
students who focus on mastery goal orientation, they tend to be academic achievers. The student services department is focused on making sure that we maintain safe engaging environments through our family and community engagement, our
social and emotional supports, and our community standards. Dr. Finley is going to talk more about our timeline. So, our lit literacy strategies will be implemented consistently throughout the academic year um to en ensure the sustained support for student learning
and instructional improvement. Prior to the start of each school year, the district will prioritize onboarding new hires, introducing and aligning curricular initiatives, and providing the intensive professional development to establish a strong foundation for
effective literacy instruction. As the year pro progresses, these initiatives will continue through the fall semester with ongoing coaching, collaboration, and refinement of instructional practices in preparation for spring assessments. Literacy strategies will be
reinforced and adjusted as needed to meet individual student needs um and ensure alignment between classroom instruction and assessment expectations while also maintaining a focus on long-term literacy growth. Mr. Austin
Phillips will discuss funding sources. >> So this is where you can see all the levers working together. Where is the funding pointing to? You can see in the title grants that support um student
services that support academics that support health and wellness. You have literacy grants that support our academics. We have our general funds that support also in professional development and teacher services. We
have other grants that all points to where our funding should be pointed to and that's student achievement to ensure that that we're all working together for that one goal. And now Mrs. Lee is going to sum us up.
So again we will end at the beginning. Our approach to literacy both early lit literacy and beyond early literacy is a systems approach of which we're developing.
Not by title, not by position, not by longevity, not by practice, but we all as educators have something to deliver as these systems are being developed. And so
to the teachers, the 80 plus teachers who have already begun this journey with us by participating in a 30hour independent asynchronous learning of early literacy. We thank you because it is a lot.
>> There are many times that I wanted to give up but they encouraged me to keep going. So to those 80 plus teachers, we thank you. To the administrators that are taking risks and challenging their thoughts of how we can make early
literacy part of who we are, of our identity, we thank you as well and especially to the leadership for allowing us and approving such risks and helping us to develop and pivot of knowing where our students are, where we
want them to be and what things are necessarily necessary to get them there. So we thank you as well. And to end this all in this short story, two families were wanted to build a home.
And one family chose an area that was beautiful, scenic, on the water. And the other family chose to build a home on more rockier terrain. And the family who built their home by
the water home was built in a great period of time. Family was happy. They're out playing while the other family is still building their home. And one day a storm came. And the family who built their home by
the water, as you can draw an inference, lost their home. But the family who built their home on a strong foundation were safe. And so again, as we look at literacy,
if we cannot and don't build strongly that foundation in K3, then our students will continue to stay in that cycle of building that foundation. And we know to build a skilled leader, they have they must have that strong
foundation in order to attain anything that they would like to achieve in their lifetime. So, we thank you and we would like to open the floor for questions and comments. >> I don't have a question per se, but I want to say this. While you were
talking, I was trying to make notes because the the um um the statistics say that um research say that um and I think you we started this process in 2025 and you're just building
on um um the foundation from the 2025 where um research says that you must uh establish mandatory job embedded professional centered on datadriven instruction. You're starting that. So we I heard that in your presentation.
>> Yes. >> Also building clear consistent systems from using I read and I learn data to guide instruction and interventions. You're doing that. I see that in your in your in your presentation here and strengthening school climate and that's important too when we strengthen our
school climate. That's very important. I heard that in your in your uh presentation and it also um I have here uh targeted coaching for teachers and administrators combined with strategic recruitment and retention efforts and that's what you said in your in your
presentation and will improve instructional quality while intensive uh tiered student support ensure struggling learners receive timely uh interventions and you said that in your in your presentation. So all of those things uh
are uh researchbased and you're doing that and so we all know that what happened in the past we're trying to fix. We started that process in 2025 and you're just continuing that process
further ongoing. And so I really appreciate that because we have to uh as long as we we're using robust programs, we're working with our student, we're data driven, I think we'll get there. It's not going to happen overnight because it didn't happen overnight. So,
as long as we're working towards that end where we making sure that students are learning, they're getting what they need to learn, we are also working with the culture of the students, making sure students in a safe environment, teachers are safe environment. I think we'll get
there and I appreciate it. Thank you. Thank you. >> Thank you, Dr. McCulla. others. >> I notice uh >> this your whole literacy department or what? >> I'm sorry. >> Is this your whole literacy department
that you got >> pretty much >> speaking today? >> Pretty what? >> Now I thought uh Batiste and Mr. Sims they were they were not in your They're separate, aren't they? >> No, they're in curriculum and instruction. They're in your letters read. >> Mhm. >> They're in curriculum and instruction.
They are school directors. One is an an elementary director. One is secondary >> secondary, >> but they report to instruction and curriculum >> like the two I just mentioned and yourself and Mrs. Phillips.
Uh, number one, >> Julia couldn't be with us. Do we have enough people to do everything you want to do in that in that classroom for each individual kid to accomplish all this?
>> Right now, we will we're using what we have. I don't think any of us will turn down more. Um, one thing that we did this year was add um instructional assistance also to the first grade. So now we have instructional assistants in
our schools that are um that need us the most um to add to those teachers um to help support teachers and students learning. And so um Miss uh Austin Phillips is always looking at ways to help us continue to expand that. The unfortunate um issue with Title One is
that is very prescriptive and what you can and cannot do. And so we're just maximizing the opportunity where we have it. One of one of my goals coming back on this board is to uh because I I know most of you
uh but you guys been here 100 years. I wanted to get young and old mix them together >> to come up with a solution on these papers. And yeah, >> that's what we need to do is work
together because uh because we third grade hasn't been on level for forever. >> And I guess another question is they always focus on literacy because that's
part of everything basically. But are these same kids having the same problems in the math and other subjects? >> Yes, numeracy is just as urgent. But um research says that literacy drives numeracy. >> So this is supposed to work, you're
saying, right? >> We we're >> How come you didn't bring it out 30 years ago? >> We're we're applying the most recent research methods to address literacy. So and to your point, Mr. Snideki, regarding um the experienced band of of people who
help who will help support this, this is not district focused. This is we have building level leaders, teacher leaders, uh classroom teachers who will make up all of these efforts as well. So we currently have teachers who are leading professional development as well. >> And I'm not picking on the older ones. I
I think it's a combination. >> I'm one of them older ones, but >> uh yes, >> I just uh we >> we get ideas from kids. >> Absolutely. I mean, uh, and we need to
focus somehow individually. Every kid, I think Mark's said that several times, each kid, no matter your color or each kid is different, >> and you got to focus on each child differently.
>> Uh, there's a little bit difference between each kid, you know. >> Absolutely. You're absolutely right. and and so uh how to do that I haven't figured out yet, you know, and uh but uh
maybe Mr. Sims will figure it out. >> Okay, >> thank you. >> I have a question. >> So, I keep seeing the theme of professional development. Can you explain to people who are watching who have no idea what PD means, like what
what's an example? Sure. So, professional development. So, the theory says that um tools don't change s um students learning outcomes. It's the it's the implic it's the implementation and the knowledge of the adults. So,
what it does is helping us to I'll take CKLA our literacy um adoption for example. It is a very robust adoption. it is very dense and in order to really apply it so that students are um
receiving the knowledge that they need um it's us coming together and practicing our craft practicing our craft as educators and so what is it that I need to do and shift in my understanding in my practice so that I'm
ensuring that those goals are met so it's creating the conditions where again I spoke earlier about flatlining position. It's about coming together as just a group of educators and looking at and
examining what tools, what pedagogy, what strategies um do we have and that we know about and which is best to unpack and support that student in their learning. So, it was just coming together and having those continued
conversations, planning, implementing and evaluating for both the adult learner and the student learner. One more thing I'd like to ask. Do we have in the classrooms because you got the poor kid I mean the
harder learning and then you got the middle and then you got >> do we have any of these I hate to use the word smarter because that's but the more more knowledgeable kids helping to other
>> we have heterogeneous. Yeah. So we have heterogeneous >> that happening in the classroom. >> So we have students at all abil ability levels in um our classrooms. They're not um leveled or stacked by ability. They all come together and learn. But we
differentiate their learning according to what they need after tier one instruction has occurred. So after me as a classroom teacher will present a new topic, if I understand which of my students have mastered it, which ones
are in the middle and which ones are um struggling with that particular content, then what I would do as an instructor is move accordingly and ensure and and provide that instruction to help meet your needs so that you could master that content. But no, we do not have um
except for our exceptional learners, which Dr. Quale could speak to if you um if needed. When we look at our highest exceptional learner population, >> well, when we look at our exceptional learners, and to your point, Mr. Snideki, we do look at them as
individuals. They all have an individual educational plan, but even in that grouping, we still have students that have different levels of learning. And with those students, you can also see and I've had this in my own building as a principal where I've had different levels of learning students work with
those students who may already have learned it or have the knowledge work with some that are a little lower level. So we do we do have that even in our um exceptional learning department. >> I guess one followup I have >> and this was really quite good is is
comprehensive maybe more so than any any presentation I've heard in quite some time and I think the trajectory of our literacy achievement has been growing uh for quite some time perhaps the
greatest increase has been between 24 and 25 when we saw 70% of our kids I think it matters that we're approaching instruction in so many different ways including the kind of intensive tutoring, you
know, we've referenced and even the model, but I continue to hear the challenge that we have a vision of equity. We don't have an action plan for equity. And
in your overarching theory of action, of course, the uh operative word is if we build a unified equity centered system that guarantees access to rigorous curriculum and high quality instruction for every student and
support this with data driven professional learning and wraparound supports, uh then I think we'll begin to see there is a then clause in your presentation. uh we'll begin to eliminate some of the variance uh but there'll still be
variance uh unfortunately and our kids are complicated the context of the classroom is complicated um you know underlying this is so how are we as a district conceiving of not just curriculum I think it has to be
throughout whether it's finance uh and otherwise h how do we how are we conceiving of equity how is that going going to play out as more than than a vision. >> You know what I'm asking? >> I do. So again, how does equity drive
every all department and everything that we do? >> Yeah. >> And I I the starting point would be coming together and looking at the data. What is our data telling us? So if we have the inequities within our system, then
well, let me back up. accepting the data and then allowing the data to drive the resolutions. >> Those are that's the starting point. And I think that we have some historical data that we can now lean into um or could have always leaned into that will
help us determine academically, social, emotionally, athletically, and other lees um of where we need to start to begin to address these gaps, if you will. Yeah, I think you know that's the the
ongoing challenge. Uh we can have a vision. How will that get played out? One of the things that you said that seemed pretty unique is that uh your recognition that teacher quality makes a difference and if our kids are not
getting that quality instruction in the first grade, it's going to be really hard to catch up in the third grade. and your staff is all. So I what I heard however was that if we have kids who are
placed uh in a classroom where perhaps instruction wasn't as effective trying to think of how to say this. U then maybe we make sure one way or the other that that child is
placed with one of our best teachers. I mean, we've often heard, you know, that we should make sure our best teachers are in the schools that have the most need. That's one possibility, >> but I think this is a fairly unique uh perspective. So, thank you for that.
>> And uh it'll be interesting to see how that gets played out, but we owe it to our students in terms of equity, you know, to ensure that they're getting what they need. Um, the last thing I I wanted to mention, and you've me asked
this before, I'd be curious, you know, we're getting kids in kindergarten younger than ever before. Uh, I've heard kindergarten teachers, you know, how young can they be, you know, four years and 10 four years old and 10 months or something like
>> that. And the question really uh is whether and I've heard this idea floating uh if we could have preschools in some of our schools uh especially for our teachers uh I think it would make a difference. I I I don't know if we're
collecting data to actually look at K4 uh to see the kids who had preschool achieve higher uh if they had sound partners before, if they had the the new curriculum as first
graders because this new curriculum is a is coming in when kids are in third grade, right? and the the uh person behind I guess Nicole McNeel had had said it's really going to make a difference when the kids are getting it
early on >> and then they progress and they're familiar with it. Well, that stands to reason and we're trying to develop a curriculum, you know, u inevitably departing from what we've done before. But I I do wonder if pre we keep saying
as a board that prek would really be important. And the question ultimately lies with what is the government, state, and fed willing to fund. And here I'm looking at Dur Saw and Phillips because
I worry a great deal about the Fed and at a time when we uh are talking about equity, you know, we have cuts in the very programs that were designed 60 years ago to ensure equity. >> Yes.
>> Can we rely on Title One or are we going to continue to see cuts? >> You're going to continue to see some cuts. And what recourse do we have? Do we go to the state where we're also seeing
that uh state bill one >> or now it's law? >> Yeah. So one of the things we are when we're talking about professional development and we want to make sure that everyone is highly effective that our curriculum is for everyone so if we do lose those funding we're able to
continue on. We're not just totally defend dependent upon that. So with the with the curriculum that we have with professional that we development with this team um with working with teachers with working with our principles to make sure everyone is highly qualified then
we know that we can keep going if we work as we continue to lose funding. We want to build those foundations so that we can continue and we're not totally dependent on those dollars. Well, congratulations to you all. You're doing a fabulous job. And I'm gonna let
Dr. McCulla have one. >> I have one more thing to say. I just want to build on uh Dr. Green's uh comment about equity. You're in a you're you're in a good place. You're you have the information right there at your fingertips. You have the start of a plan
and it actually to to build a plan, you have to name the student group. you've already identified most of those student groups. So that's already a part of the plan and then use data to identify the gaps. You're already there. So if you wanted to put a plan together, you have all the tools in front of you right
there to build your plan. And um I wanted to also say that um um um and you you also mentioned in your pro in your uh presentation uh center student and community voice and and that's including students and
families that's already there in your plan. So to build your plan on equity, you have to start right there. Just just start it. And I want to also comment on Dr. Green's um comment about um early charter education students in our
schools. In order for us to avoid certain things that the state is trying to do as far as passing bills, we have to have robust programs in our schools. We have to show that we're utilizing the space in our schools. And so to do that, we need to put programs in our schools,
early charter education programs. um parents might be parents there might be some parents out there looking for those types of programs like I said robust um uh curriculum robust programs in there alternative programs in our schools. So we have to find ways to use utilize the
empty spaces in our schools to ward off these bills that are being passed at the state level. So, if we can concentrate on not only I know it's a lot of work, we can concentrate on not only getting our students academically
smart where they need to be, we also need to find ways to utilize the space in our schools. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Yeah. Thank you. Appreciate it. >> Thank you. Thank you for that. It is recommended that the board of school trustees
approve the consent agenda which includes approval of January 26 minutes under item 8.01, accepting any attached financial reports and statements under item 8.02, approving any attached consolidated registers of claims and distributions of payroll for payment
under item 8.03. Approving personnel decisions listed on any attached reports under item 8.04, adopting any attached resolutions under item 8.05, which are required to be adopted annually, accepting any gifts to the corporation, and approving any fundraisers described
in any attached reports under item 8.06, and approving or ratifying any contracts for $50,000 or less listed under the item 8.07, of which I think there are. I think that's everything. Yes.
>> Thank you. Do we have a motion and a second to approve the consent agenda? >> Motion to approve the consent agenda. >> Thank you, Mr. Ellison. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mrs. Lee.
Um, if there are no objections, Miss Hernandez, can you please call the role? >> Mr. Ellison, >> I. >> Mr. Costello, >> I. >> Dr. Mr. McCulla. >> Hi, >> Mr. Snediki. >> Hi, >> Miss Lee. >> I >> Mr. Lea. Dr. Green.
>> Hi. >> Motion carries unanimously. 70. Uh, >> on to 9 9.01. It is recommended that the board of school trustees approve the job description for an employee relations
manager. Do we have a motion and a second to approve? >> Motion to approve. >> Thank you, Mr. Ellison. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mrs. Lee.
>> There I believe uh Mr. Costello needs u an explanation. >> Yeah. Could you explain that? >> Yes, sure. be happy to do so, sir. >> Uh, this is a position that was always there. It used to be occupied by Mr.
Rogman for a long time. Then we had somebody else who recently retired. So, we took that position and we changed the title from director to manager. And because we did that, we are seeking
board approval for that. But the job description has always been there. You have the executive director of human resources and then two people who report to her.
One is responsible for all the certified positions, one is responsible for all the non-certified positions and this is for the non-certified positions. those position or people in place that
right now. >> Uh right now it's vacant. >> It's vacant. >> Yeah. That's why we're seeking >> to change the title so we can post it. >> You're going to post that job? >> Yes, sir. >> That was going to be my question. It will be posted so people can bid on it or apply for it. >> Yes.
>> An interview for it. >> Yes. >> Okay. Just want to make sure. >> And it's it's just it's the it is we're not adding a position. >> We are not. This is an already existing position. >> The in the job description
uh when they are evaluating they're evaluating only the uh non-certified people in human resource. >> Yes sir. >> Okay. >> Uh not just in human resources but all across the district any non-certified
position. CL is that I add some clarity for everyone. Very very good. >> Mr. Ellison, >> I >> Mr. Costello >> I >> Dr. McCulla >> I
>> Mr. Smeari >> I >> Miss Lee >> I >> Mr. Lebo >> I >> Dr. Green >> I motion carries 70 it is re that's okay >> 9.02 2. It is recommended that the board
of school trustees approve the payment invoice for the corporation's Apple lease. This is the annual payment for the M3 MacBooks used by all teachers. >> Do we have a motion and a second to approve? >> Motion to approve.
>> Thank you, Mr. Ellison. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mrs. Lee. Welcome. Thanks for being here. >> Do you want to give us some background, please? I'm sure this was, excuse me,
this was a lease um originally signed a little over a year ago >> and this is just this the second payment of four payments >> that we have to make to Apple. Um, and this is for a total of uh 2200
MacBooks >> and from what I gather this is also on the uh the action item is because we need to pay this now >> right that's correct >> otherwise we >> to avoid the late payment the late payment >> yes
okay m >> Mr. Mr. Ellison. >> Hi, >> Mr. Castillo. >> I >> Dr. McCulla. >> I >> Mr. Snakei. >> I >> Miss Lee. >> I >> Mr. Lea. >> I >> Dr. Green.
>> I 70. Motion carries. 9.03. >> Okay. I'm >> making sure I matched. It is recommended that the board of school trustees approve the facilities management services blanket POS from the 2026
general budget. >> You're here to answer any of our questions. Oh, we >> do. We have a motion in a second. >> Motion to approve, >> Mr. Ellison. Thank you. >> Second. >> Second.
>> Thank you, Mr. Castillo. Got to get everybody involved here now. Sure. We are asking the board for the pre-approved funds which will allow facilities to fix any critical systems that fail without any type of delay. For
example, it' be plumbing or electric or generators or vehicles. These are with our existing reoccurring vendors that you see at the bottom of the list. And they will service for service or preventative maintenance or any type of supplies or needs that we have with
those vendors. Any other clarification? >> Who's monitoring the blanket state? >> We do. And then the CFO. >> Okay. We're going to put on the CFO. >> Absolutely. >> Okay. Absolutely. Good. Good to hear.
>> Is the amount like just a certain percentage of the total budget or how do you calculate how much you set as a reserve for? So we can't we kind of take a guesstimate if you will of what we actually will need and forecast a certain amount in the event of a true
emergency we would petition for additional money. So it's based on an educated guest and past history. >> Okay. >> That's helpful. Thank you Mr. Hernandez. >> Mr. Ellison I >> Mr. Costello I
>> Dr. Dr. McCulla I >> Mr. Sicki, >> Miss Lee, >> I >> Mr. Lea, >> I >> Dr. Green, >> I motion carries unanimously 70. >> On to 9.04. It is recommended that the
board of school trustees approve a special purchase in the amount of $667,431 for security camera replacements at multiple district facilities from Peopledriven Technology. Do we have a motion and a second to approve?
>> Motion to approve. >> Thank you, Mr. Ellison. >> Second. Thank you, Mr. Castello. >> I got question. >> Uh, the chief is here to answer any questions you might have. Bill,
>> have we looked into I know city got a program. It just opened it up and I don't know if you guys were asked or not. We used to work with them, but they they were trying to they get got into a new
program within the last year and they were trying to get a school corporation and these other businesses to to uh come along with them. Have you anybody discussed that with the city at all? >> So, excuse me. Sorry. So, that's a
different program. Uh the city wants to tie into our camera system. Um, so that program is totally separate than what this is, what I'm asking for tonight. What I'm asking for tonight is I'm in year one of our three-year capital
project uh program of getting our just over a dozen buildings upgraded to our Moroi cloud-based camera system. Uh so what this is asking for um is the six buildings uh that you have be upgraded
to those camera systems and then once they're upgraded to that that's what the city can tie into. >> You're replacing a bunch of cameras. >> Yes. >> At six different building chests. >> When are they supposed to be here? >> Um >> soon.
>> When the buttons come in. >> The buttons are already here, sir. >> Yeah. Working buttons. I want working cameras also. >> You have both. >> Mr. Ellison. >> Hi. >> Mr. Castello. >> I >> Dr. McCulla.
>> Hi. >> Mr. Snedi. >> Hi. >> Miss Lee. >> I. >> Mr. Lea. >> Yes. >> Dr. Green. >> I. Motion carries unanimously. 70 >> 9.05. It is recommended that the board of school trustees retroactively approve
a request to ratify the emergency purchase for heat exchange replacement at Brown Intermediate School by DA.LC in the amount of $95,815. >> Do we have a motion and a second to approve? >> Brown of motion to approve.
>> Thank you, Mr. Ellison. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mrs. Lee. Uh, we have questions about this particular action item. >> Sure. We are requesting board approval
for the emergency replacement of three failed boiler heat exchangers at this building, Brown Administration building. Currently, only one boiler is working during the month of January. So, we have some absolute need for the new boilers.
I think it should have said Brown administration building. It says Brown Intermediate School. There's no Brown Intermediate School. It should have said administration >> so as not to confuse the public. >> Yeah, that's a good point. Thank you
very much. You only got one furnace in the building. >> We have a total of four. Three of them are no longer working because the heat exchanger is broken. So, we got we got four, but three aren't
working. >> Correct. >> And we replacing the one that's working. >> That one was replaced. So, that's the good one that's working. >> So, some folks here are a little chilly during the really extreme cold.
>> Is the ones that are not working, are they fixable? >> Yes, they are working on those. They're replacing that heat exchanger in those boilers. Are are people doing that or >> da Dodd? It's a vendor. >> Okay.
>> Thank you. >> Thank you. Let's call the question. Mr. Hernandez. >> Mr. Ellison. >> I. >> Mr. Costello. >> I. >> Dr. McCulla. >> I. >> Mr. Snedi. >> I. >> Miss. Lee. >> I. >> Mr. Lea. >> I.
>> Dr. Green. >> I. Motion carries unanimously. >> 9.06. It is recommended that the board of school trustees approve the ratification of an emergency purchase for a fire alarm system upgrade in the amount of $453,354
at Harrison Primary School from Johnson Controls Fire Protection LP. >> Can you address any questions we might have? >> Uh yes. So Harrison is one of the uh one of our buildings with the old fire panel system.
>> Uh so this upgrade here, we're replacing the whole system because uh in the process of working with the fire marshall uh throughout all our buildings uh we have some full stations that could be out of compliance uh meaning that uh the height is wrong. So, we're looking
at a total rewire, reprogramming uh the whole basically that you want to say kitten kaboodleoodle for Harrison schools to get uh that fire system back into compliance. >> This was one of our
newest schools. >> So, yes, at the time codes have changed uh since that school was built. Um, so we're out of some parts of the school's out of code, um, fire code right now. So
in order to get that back into code, it was best to instead of try to retrofit stuff and make things work and then you're back maybe a few years later redoing it is to go ahead and redo the whole system.
>> Is it fair to say then this will be the first in many? This will be the first of many, but not so much a total upgrade. Okay. Um, >> some of the others will just need a fire panel upgrade. >> Right. >> Thank you, >> Mr. Hernandez.
>> Yeah. Can I get a motion in a second? >> Motion to approve. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Ellison. >> I, >> Mr. Casillo. >> I, >> Dr. McCulla. >> Hi, >> Mr. Snicki. I
>> Miss Lee >> I >> Mr. Lea >> I >> Dr. Green >> I motion carries unanimously. >> 9.07 It is recommended that the board of school trustees approve the peopledriven RFP -ate wireless.
>> Do we have a motion and a second? >> Motion to approve. >> Thank you Mr. Ellison. >> Second. >> Thank you Mrs. Lee. I should know that. Uh, thank you. You want to address what this is about?
>> What is RFP? >> Yeah, this is an RFP to replace the access points in every classroom um at every school building and don't have no price tag to it. the
the price that's um in the attachment um that's listed is um 1.7 million, but because it's -ate funded um we would only be responsible for 15%
of that price. >> It's funded through what? Uh >> it's funded through something called -ate. So moved. Anybody moved already? >> Yes, sir. >> We did. >> Yeah. >> We second it. >> We second it. >> Second it. Did we vote? >> You want to vote? You want to vote?
>> We can vote. Mr. Hernandez, we're going to vote. >> Mr. Ellison, >> I >> Mr. Costello. >> I, >> Dr. McCulla. >> I, >> Mr. Sikki. >> I, >> Miss Lee. >> I, >> Mr. Lea. >> I, >> Dr. Green. I motion carries unanimously.
70 >> 9.08. It is recommended that the board of school trustees approve $80,000 to to support special education and title one departments and preparation of proposals for competitive grants from I'm not
>> Maisy or Misy. >> Mazi >> Mazi Education. Uh we have a motion and a second. >> Motion to approve. >> Thank you, Mr. Ellison. A second. >> Second.
>> Thank you, Mr. Castello. Alison Phillips, will you address this? >> Yes. So, um, Mazi, when I came on board, he already had a contract here. Um, I've worked with Nathan Williamson. He used to be um grant director from the state.
He also has been um an auditor. um he has formed his company to to support with different grants. So with title he has helped us to unravel a lot of things that was
entwined I guess very difficultly to unravel and so we're just extending his contract on the title one side but also he's support special ed extensively. >> So when I came on board in special ed we
had already had a contract with Dr. Williamson and he was working with oure which which is our maintenance of um sorry our maintenance of compliance. And so what we found this year on our form nine is that we were we were going to
have to owe the state around $700,000. And what Dr. Williamson was able to do was go in and look at our our budget, look at what we spent, look at what we've paid for and rework our form 9 so that we would not have to pay that amount. He's also saved us just recently
$2 million with our APC budget in that when the um nonpubs are asking what we're doing with the APC dollars. he got online with us, the non-pubs and the state to give um information on how that money is to be spent through the
district for the non-pubs. So, he's been very instrumental in making sure that we stay on course not only with the budget, but with our IDEIDA compliance, with our compliance, also with our APC compliance. And so, we we think he would be a valuable asset to uh continue
working with. And so we're ending a grant and we have some extra funds that we can put up put our funds together to support um Nathan working with us for one year. He's already been here. We're just extending his contract.
>> Thank you for that cl Thank you for the clarification. Um can we call the question? We vote. Miss >> Mr. Ellison >> I. >> Mr. Castello >> I. >> Dr. McCulla >> I. >> Mr. Snicki >> I. Miss Lee
>> I, >> Mr. Lever, >> I, >> Dr. Green, >> I. Motion carries unanimously. 70. >> On to 9.09. It is recommended that the board of school trustees approve $120,000 for coaching from EES
Innovations to strengthen principal leadership capacity and coherence. >> So, this is a two-year. >> Do we have a motion and a second? >> Motion to approve. >> Thank you, Miss Mr. Ellison. Second.
>> Thank you, Mr. Costello. Now, what is this about? >> Thank you. >> That's awesome. >> So, this is a two-year grant. We're ending um fun year 23 and fun year 24 that we have to expend by the end of
June. And so this um EES equitable education services will work with all 24 principles to improve their school improvement plan. The Indiana Department of Education says that we all school we
have to have a school improvement plan. We want our school improvement plan to all be focused on that one goal and that's student achievement. Um, some of our plans are written very well. Some of our plans are just put down what we need
to put down and sent to the state. This person will work with each building for the next two years. So, it's 60,000 for this year, 60,000 for next year. He will work with every principal in the next two years to ensure that our school
improvement plans are of high quality. So Darice was speaking to what the state every so often requires a comprehensive need needs assessment. And so when we talk about um learning of our students and what they are mastering, what they
are not through the lens of equity, this will give us a clear picture of the population of students that make up a particular building, what successes they are having and what areas of growth are needed to help support their learning. And so um there's been quite some time
since our schools have had a comprehensive need assessment and we this will help us drive those efforts. And he is also one vendor that's been approved by the Indiana Department of Education to provide that technical support.
>> Thank you. Thank you for that. And it's all schools. >> All schools. >> All levels >> for two years. Two years support >> K12. And now um another question is this different I guess than uh professional development that principles get through
relay GSSE or other or the national principal academy or other type of things. >> Yes, it sort of um Mr. Ellison it sort of brings all those things together. So when you look at a school improvement plan, it asks about student achievement, academic achievement. It asks about um
parental involvement, community relations, um professional learning, adoption of materials. And so, but under this guidance, it will help us get a deeper analysis of what is exactly going on not only in our buildings, but it
will help inform us districtwide as well. >> So it's not repetitive, it's supplemental. So it's totally different. >> And you said this is something we have to do every few years. >> Every year. Well, the needs assessment is every few years, but the school
improvement plan has to be turned into the state every year. >> So we have to do them or something like this every year anyway. >> Correct. >> Okay. >> Does this process also document the community partners that are working within the buildings? >> Yes. >> Yes. I think that would be a great roll
up to see like which ones are in more than one building and what the partners are looking like. >> And it also helps you that if you don't have a community partner to know to go get one >> to make to to to find one and find
support for one from one. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. Because um I'm sorry. >> Please Dr. Mc >> please. Thanks. Yeah. I I've looked at I've read a lot of the school employment plans when I was employed there and uh
yeah they need they have to have a clear purpose and a vision in it and some of them I just didn't have that in there. So yeah I I can see that happening. It's a data snapshot of what's actually happening in your school is what it is. >> And yeah, that that's that's a good thing that we have somebody that's going
to actually be working with uh >> with our schools to put those things together because the state does require that and we want whenever going down to the state to have a look good actually doing what we're supposed to be doing at it. >> Yes. And he's working with several
districts. >> Yeah. not just ours to ensure >> and I would think it would build on your framework. >> Yes, >> most certainly. >> I think that kind of consistency so that if there are action steps in your plan,
those similar action steps should be in the principal's plan. >> Yep. The same one. >> Same ones. >> Great. Thank you. Thanks for the clarity. Let's call >> Mr. Ellison. >> Hi, >> Mr. Castello. >> Hi, >> Dr. McCulla. I >> Mr. Snediki
>> I >> Miss Lee >> I Mr. Leva >> I >> Dr. Green >> I motion carries 70. >> Moving on to 9.10. It is recommended that the board of school trustees approve the Chick-fil-A advertising
sponsor agreement. >> Do we have a motion and a second? >> Motion to approve. >> Thank you, Mr. >> Second. Thank you Castello. Welcome, Mr. Lee. >> We get >> Good evening. >> You can ask questions if you want.
>> We get uh free Chick-fil-A at our games. >> You keep coming to the games, you get free Chick-fil-A. Yeah, this is a really uh this is a unique opportunity for both Chick-fil-A and Southbend Schools athletics. Um this agreement partners our three Southbend
high school athletic programs with the business operator Chick-fil-A. uh where Chick-fil-A will actually invest $60,000 total over the next 10 years. Um in return, our high school athletic programs will display and highlight u Chick-fil-A during varsity and junior
varsity contest at our athletic facilities. That's a pretty standard agreement that's been going on for years, these types of agreements. But what's unique about this one is uh this is going to be a studentguided effort. were at the direction of our um
school-based volunteers, adult volunteers, uh Dr. Green. Um they'll work with the students in partnership with the operator to produce the advertising and promotional content displayed in our gyms in our high school gyms. So, this is an there's an element
of um student learning and practical career experience uh uh with this agreement. >> Thank you. Let's vote. >> Mr. Ellison, >> I >> Mr. Costello >> I.
>> Dr. McCulla. >> I >> Mr. Snedi. >> I >> Miss Lee. >> I >> Mr. Lea. >> I. >> Dr. Green. >> I. Motion carries 70. >> Thank you, Mr. Lee. >> On to 9.11. It is recommended that the
school of board of school trustees approve the parking lot use agreement. >> Do we have a do we have a a motion and a second to approve? >> Motion to approve, Mr. Castello, both of you. Thank you.
>> You want to address? >> Sure. >> Thank you, Dr. Green. We have an opportunity to through anou to utilize our parking lots at both Hamilton and Jackson for a music festival at St. Joseph County
Fairgrounds on Saturday, August 15th. They would like to rent those out. Matt Lawson has created and drafted aou for your review and approval. >> Okay, that was in the attachment. Any questions?
>> What musical festival or who's going to be there? >> That's a good question. >> I'm not I'm not sure either. >> So, they're actually written in the parking lot in the parking areas for August 14th and the 15th. Um, and as part of that agreement, they're going to pay South Bend schools $10,000, which is
due 72 hours before. Um, so on the 11th of August. >> Um, and then they're responsible for fully restoring all areas to preuse condition. Uh there's a $5 million insurance policy required and all the other standard risk management terms that um that the board normally requires
are included in there. >> It's a country concert. They haven't announced the acts yet, >> but I haven't read about that. >> Excuse me, chair. >> When is it? >> Yes. >> I just want a quick question. So this none of this these dates will interfere with anything that South Ben's kids has
has going on like any of the games or any of that. Okay. So make sure Thank you. So >> this is in August 15th. >> Yep. >> The 14th and the 15th. Yep. >> So is this before school starts basically or is it just since it's
Friday and Saturday we're not in those schools aren't in session that Friday? >> Saturday. >> It is a Saturday. >> We are not >> okay. >> We don't start until the following week. >> Very good. construction.
>> No, >> Mr. Ellison. >> I >> Mr. Cassello >> I >> Dr. McCulla >> I >> Mr. Snedi >> I >> Miss Lee >> I >> Mr. Lea >> I >> Dr. Agree.
>> I motion carries 70. We uh do not have anything from close session. Uh we can we are now going to I'm sorry. We'll now come to the point when board members have the opportunity to speak.
Board members uh do not uh I should mention that board comments do not include any decisions in case you're waiting for someone to say something that we didn't cover in the action items. Huh? Where are they?
Would someone like to speak? Mr. Casillo, please. As people are aware, we are putting uh together a committee uh to gather data and information
on our schools uh in regards to allegations of racism that's going on. Um, thinking of the uh honoring
uh Black History Month in February, I can't think of a more appropriate time to start this committee. But I was talking to the school board members be before we began tonight in
executive session uh with Mr. Eid and discussing the fact that I think we should start immediately
to think what what we can do uh in regards to looking at and trying to uh figure out these complaints that keep
coming in and the and they might or they could be very credible. So in discussing it with Mr. Eid, he has some
um a source who I think would be very competent in trying to get the the staff together of
all the schools and the employees to discuss diversity in our schools and to discuss, you know, the application of maybe
this racial overtone that we have. Uh over the weekend, a person from my political party who is the leader put on his social
network a picture of a former president and his wife in an apes outfit. We got a long ways to go.
Things like that should not be tolerated or accepted. And so as far as I'm concerned um there at any time
uh we should all be dealing with the fact that people are different, people feel different, but they're all human beings who who deserve an opportunity or an education in our school system and
the opportunity to succeed. So I appreciate Mr. Eid and moving forward with this even before the committee uh starts and that committee is going to be very very
very important. We also had a few minutes this evening hearing from our attorney, Mr. Augustinino, who've been working very diligently with the state board of accounts.
On Thursday, February the 5th, the school board superintendent and the financial officers of the school corporation met with the state board of accounts. They gave us a 71page
document. We didn't get out until I think 1:30 or 2:00 in the afternoon. They had a six-member board that talked to us about the report.
Generally, these bo these state board of accounts people, if you have one or two in the smaller SC uh school corporations, that's a normal. Maybe the larger ones might have three or four, but to have the six,
you can give, you can start to understand the enormousy of this report because in every page it says confidentiality. In other words, none of us can speak any word about the
content of that report in 45 days. You all will see it. But tonight, I still want to thank the financial officers and the central office people
who did a great job of working with the state board of accounts. I want to thank the investigators that we hire who have been working night and day
trying to to get to run down leads and try to assist and help the state board of accounts and the legal people. I want to thank teachers who volunteered
sensitive information come forward putting their own jobs on the line sometimes to make sure we know what is happening. And that also includes uh a lot of people downtown in the central
office who were very very important in this investigation. I myself feel that anything in the past and in all all these state board of
accounts there always some issue that you need to improve on. So it's just not this report but all of them. But I can tell you with this dedication of this board,
this central office, we have taken care of the future or the present and also the future of South Bend uh by cleaning up some things that needed to be cleaned up.
And uh I can't think of a better group of people who have gone through this ordeal um than the people you see in front of
front of me now. Um because it's a it's a it's been a great strain on us. Um but we have made it through and we're all together.
and we just want to make things right. So, thank you very much and good evening. >> Thank you, Mr. Castello. Okay. >> Everybody give me a look. Um,
you know, if anybody It's confidentiality. I I have a lot to say, but I I won't because I promised him I wouldn't. But uh by the way, I talk in my sleep. So if anybody wants to snooze
off over here, you guys could hear me talk. Maybe that don't count right. Uh and okay, for a serious issue now, we all voted on when we were just getting together for
the safety of our kids on paras in our buses. I think it was working out and I would like to get a report on how many incidents we had before and after the Paris.
>> I know we had a few incences this year and every time a pair there was not a pair on the bus >> which is against our policy. I'm asking just the other day the incident that
happened. I won't say what it was but uh and the reaction was there was no parah on there. They called in sick or whatever. We don't have replacements.
We don't have any substitute pairs and we do not outsource the substitutes for pairs >> and that this last incident was done with a contract bus company that we got contracted out
>> uh first student driver >> isn't that contracted out. >> Yes. And we're >> Do they supply the Paris? >> They don't. We supply >> We supply the Paris on their buses. Well, they are driving our buses. They
We no long our contract with them is to simply supply us with drivers. We started with eight. We're down to four, soon down to zero. >> So, are we going to try to get that? So, we have a para like our policy says in
every bus. I think if you look back in the figures, >> you're going to see that makes a big big difference >> just by having a person present. >> It does. >> Okay. >> I I will get you the uh data from before
and after. >> If anybody wants to stay around, I'll take a little snooze after meeting. You guys can hear me talk. Would anybody else like to say something? >> Go ahead, Mr. Ellison. >> Yeah, I don't have much. I could just
say, you know, uh, having being new to the board, this was my first state board of accounts exit meeting, so I had no idea what to expect in terms of how it should have been, how it compares to the ones from before or ones that may come forward or that type of thing. I I do
think it's just important that, you know, eventually we'll all come out. I think we've addressed what we need to address or we're now addressing what would need to be addressed, but I think we're in a good position. We're headed the right way as a corporation and we need to make sure that we stay on that path and we continue to do those things
in that regardless of what is in there when it comes out. You have confidence that we've addressed it. We'll continue to address it, but we don't want any of that to blunt our momentum or stop us from doing what we need to do to continue to grow, improve things for students outcomes, and move forward as a
corporation in a positive fashion. That's what's most important, and that will continue to be what's most important after this report comes out, the next one, and so on and so forth. So, I I just want to, you know, again, tell people we're committed to making
sure that we move forward in a positive fashion, uh, regardless of what information um, will come out or may come out and that that's what's the most important thing. You address what you need to address, you fix what you need to fix, but you always keep an eye
towards the future and moving uh, that way in a positive aspect. And I think this entire board is committed to making sure that we do that. And I agree. >> Agree. >> Thank you, Mr. Alison. Anybody else? >> Yeah, I go. So, yeah, I think we're
going in the right direction and that's large part thanks to the board and our superintendent, Mr. Eid, you know, um when I got elected, I had ideas. Um my teacher raises about saving money, but I could never get a sit down with our
former superintendent. Um never got a one-on-one, never got to talk. But when we hired Eid, Eid has an open door policy where we can just talk to him, give him a call and um I think that approachability is really important and I think having Eid around, he's able to
talk and he I think that's how we get along and things are going great. So really appreciate he has done for me. Um you know, you got a young guy walking in, but I think level of respect is mutual. There's no I'm the boss, he's the boss. is just respect and I think
that's how I really appreciate that and going forward appreciate our talks and then um um four what's it four years ago I walked in Pete Austinino's office and I said there's I see a lot of challenges going on south in schools and he said
well if you want to do something about it run for something and I appreciate the talks we had and full circle now we're getting those challenges I talked to Pete about four years ago go. We're solving them. And I appreciate all the help he's Pet Pete has done. And again,
he has an open door policy. Call him and it's really that I think that approachability is really important. People might not recognize it, but I think that's really important having someone that comfortability uh working with someone and really appreciate everything Eden Augustino has
done. So really look forward to keep going. >> Thank you. Well, with that, um, I'll motion to adjourn the meeting. Thank the the board members for their comments and for
everybody who showed up. Uh, the next board meeting will be on February 23rd at 5:30 here at Brown. And, uh, I just asked everyone to rema everyone on the board to remain to sign the forms. Uh so we have a motion just a
thumbs up or voice acclamation to adjourn. We're good. >> Yep. >> Okay. >> Hi. >> Thank you. >> Hi Mike.