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Video-1: youtube.com/watch?v=G9QTcNmbmTw

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Good afternoon. The Finance and Law Subcommittee shall come to order. I'll start off with roll call. Mr. Vierra. Present. Mrs. Shawcross. >> Present. >> Chairman DeMello, present. First item on the agenda, we have the student activity request from Taunton High School in the amount of $22,245.22.

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Superintendent Cabral, welcome. Thank you. Just as Just the usual request from the high school to replenish their student activity account. This is prom season, so you will be seeing additional requests coming before the committee and you will probably see the bottom three lines

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where this this the high school can request funding above the $25,000 limit that they're allowed to request because the prom bill will be over well over $25,000. And since we're on the topic of proms, there is a memo that I placed on your

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table that was drafted today. It was brought to my attention that the topic of prom payments was a was a topic discussed during the Committee on Finance and Salaries regarding a warrant item numbered 164 in

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the amount of $153,894.95 that was processed through the student activity account with Taunton High School. It was in reference to payments that were made for three proms, 2025 and 2026, the junior prom in 2026, also the senior prom, and the first prom I

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mentioned was a 2025 senior prom. So, just to be clear to the committee as well to the public for those of you those who may be watching or listening, the funding sources for all three proms were funds collected from the students through ticket sales or through

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donations or fundraisers conducted by the students to help fund the proms. At no point were monies from the appropriation or appropriated dollars used to fund any of the these activities. So, again, all proms including our middle school dances,

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middle school send-offs, always funded through fees collected from the students through ticket sales. And you have that You have a copy of this and I believe this memo was written by Ian Ian Fortes, the city auditor, and he will be sharing this with the Committee on Finance and Salaries. I

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wanted to make sure that the Finance and Law had it in the event that you're questioned in public. Thank you, Superintendent. Yeah, it's been a hot item on social media, I think, but anyway, I'm glad we could explain it to the public. Do committee members have any follow-up on >> no questions at this time. Thank you. >> Great. Thank you.

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Motion Wishes of the committee on the high school's Motion to approve >> activity account. Approve as stated. Thank you. Seconded. All in favor. I opposed, I's have it. Next up, we have an invitation to bid expiring food service contracts, see attached. Back to

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you, Superintendent. So, just requesting permission or authorization from the Finance and Law Committee to go out to bid for upcoming vendor contracts that expire on June 30th, 2026. So, these contracts will take effect July 1st, 2027. We have provided you with a timeline

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from Glen Motta, Tuesday, April 21st, if we are authorized this evening, we will post the bids on Combines. On Wednesday, May 20th, 2026, the sealed bids will be delivered to 215 Haverhill Street, which is our office, on May 20th, 2026 at 5:45 during the Finance and Law portion of

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the meeting, we will open the sealed bids. We will perform our due diligence and we anticipate awarding the contracts on June 3rd. Just seeking authorization to go out to bid. Wishes of the committee? Motion to allow the bid process to take place with the

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dates set forth on the memorandum. Seconded. On discussion. Superintendent, you mentioned this will the bid will be awarded for July of 2027, starting in July 2027. Apologies, fiscal 27, July 1st, 2030 for fiscal 27. I apologize.

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>> Just want to be clear. Okay, thank you. And with that information, all in favor. I opposed, I's have it. Thank you. Next up, we have the FY26 quarter two budget updates. You'll be speaking to will be speaking about the FY26

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appropriation quarter three report, the FY26 revolving account quarter three report, and the FY26 grants quarter three report. Superintendent, if you don't mind taking those. Of course, thank you. So, providing you with a snapshot on where we stand effective March 31st, which ends the third quarter

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for the fiscal year. And if you look on the second page of the report, we'll start there. We've expended 58% of our budget. So, we are still sitting on 40 42% of our appropriated dollars. You will notice

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that we do have some lines that are in a deficit, but we also have some lines that are in that are in a surplus that are well below the 58% spending threshold. What I would like to do when we come back after break, but possibly the first week in May or when the committee is available, I I would like

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to meet maybe change the process up and meet for a little longer than 15 minutes to discuss the spend-out plan cuz we as you can see, we've expended 58% of our our budget. Give you a better snapshot on where we sit as we close out the year and propose some some items that we

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would identify as part of our closeout for fiscal 26 that the committee that the committee would approve. So, I'm not going to ask permission to balance the lines at this point and I'm also not going to ask permission to prepay our quarter one out of district tuition. I think that would be a conversation

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better had in a in a more formal meeting and something that will probably take more than 15 minutes, to be honest. I I definitely concur with that suggestion, Superintendent. I mean, if you want to meet prior to May, we can make it happen. I mean, uh

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If you if you feel it's a necessity, I mean So, how about if we connect offline and share some dates cuz I am going to be I'm going to be out one day next week, but I'm not sure what what I'm going to be actually be out Monday, which is a holiday, and I'll be out Thursday of next week. So, if we if we have time to

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post and hold the meeting next week, then I'll share some dates with Dr. DeMello and the and the team. Sounds good. Okay. Wishes of the committee on the FY26 appropriation >> Motion to receive and place on file. Seconded. On discussion. Please, Mrs. I'm just one question. I know that we

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just was awarded the FY26 fair share supplement budget of $100,000. This doesn't reflect that yet. Yeah, okay. That will not count towards the appropriation. Okay. >> That would be more like a grant or an entitlement. >> Okay. Thank you.

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So, all in favor. I opposed, I's have it. Next up is the FY26 revolving account quarter three report. So, again, seven seven months into the nine nine months into the fiscal year with three months to go,

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we are sitting on a balance of almost $3.8 million. We've expended $1.1 million out of the revolving account. A lot of that can be attributed to closeout payments on the softball on the softball field. We've brought in today almost $1.6 million.

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I anticipate that we're probably looking at an additional two to $300,000 in additional revenue >> [snorts] >> because we still have school choice funds coming in and that comes in on a monthly basis over a 10-month period. So, we're averaging about 106,000 a month on school choice. Multiply 106,000

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by three months remaining in the fiscal year, that's around $317,000. So, that should put us at almost $4.1 million to close out the fiscal year. So, we're sitting on a healthy sitting on a healthy balance and it's there in the event we need it for any one-time

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one-time costs, which Dr. DeMello will report Mr. Vierra will report out our long-range planning about our one-time use of those funds to fund the project. So, any questions regarding revolving? I'm I'm very pleased with the balance and happy that we should be ending the year over $4 million

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and we haven't had to use revolving We haven't had to use revolving since the Student Opportunity Act to balance our budget. So, we are in sound fiscal shape. Great. Wishes of the committee? I have a question. Mrs. Shawcross. Just to be clear, this money does not have to

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be spent at the end of the year. This is revolving that's allowed to be carried over year after year. This is revenue that we are allowed to carry year over year based on any fees or any revenue that we collect. So, use of facility for athletic fields gets deposited in these accounts and then we use once it gets to a certain amount or fields need

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maintenance, we utilize these funds versus the our appropriation. Thank you. Great. Motion to receive and place on file. Seconded. All in favor. I opposed, I's have it. And the last item is the FY26 grants quarter three report.

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Back to you, Superintendent. So, sitting on this looking at grants, we still have a little over If you go to the second page, we still have a little over $507,000 to be expended from fiscal 25. Top page three. Sorry, third page. I

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apologize. And on fiscal 26, we are still carrying just under $7.4 million funding for fiscal 27 and we have 66,000 that we've received. So, altogether, we've been awarded over the three fiscal

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years just over $15.5 million. We've encumbered almost $1.1 million and and we've expended six and a half, leaving leaving us with a balance of almost $8 million. I do have some updates cuz I did meet with the grant director before the meeting. If you go

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to the first page, for fiscal year 25, the first line, the supporting newcomer homeless students, which is overseen or managed by Dr. Linda Watt. That grant is not that grant's end date has been modified. That

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grant end date will be September 30th. So, not June 30th at the end of this fiscal year, September 30th. And then also the teen mental health grant, that has also been amended and we are allowed to expend those funds by September 30th as well.

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And then the following grants on the bottom of page one must be expended by the end of this fiscal year. So, that's a grant being managed by Dr. Polansky for professional development school and scripts. That ends the end of this

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fiscal year. There's a balance of $651. There's a bog grant for high school climate and culture. That must be expended by the end of this year to the tune of 136. The tides grant, which is also managed by Mrs. Blanow, sitting on just under

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12,000 must be expended as well. And at the bottom of page one Principal Peters has a deeper learning implementation grant that she has a little under $10,000 that must be expended by the end of this fiscal year. On page two,

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another grant that Dr. Watt is managing rethinking discipline. That has $75,000 that must be expended by the end of this fiscal year. Two lines down the capital skills technology and equipment grant managed by Mr. Reposa Mr. Reposa and Dala Horton

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sitting on just under $8,000 that must be expended. Two one line below two lines below that Miss Mendoza has the English language learners grant. And that has part of that has been a portion that has been amended. 30,000 has to be expended by

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the end of this fiscal year and then 20,000 or the 19,000 will have to be expended by the end of the summer, August 31st. And then the genocide education grant that is managed by Peter Gillan has just under 8,500. That must be expended by the end of this fiscal year.

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And Dr. Watt has has another grant at the bottom of page two titled the SEL SEL behavioral mental health that has $62,000 that must be expended. Mr. Barada has a turnaround grant or tag grant that must be expended

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by the end of this fiscal year to the tune of $9,100. And then all the remaining grants on the third page except for the CPPI which is the last line item which is fiscal 27. All those grants on the third page must also be expended by the end of the

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fiscal year. Sorry, I know that those sometimes those questions come up. What can we carry over? What has to be expended? Excellent. Wish of the committee. Motion to receive and place on file. Seconded. Just [snorts] a quick discussion. So, on the English language

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English learner education support, I see it's pretty healthy amount still in uh in the balance. Uh any Did you have any chance to look at the AI for English language learner support? I haven't looked at it yet, but I'll take a look and see if that's an eligible item. Could be. >> Maybe maybe the professional development

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uh would be appropriate. I don't know if that allows, but Okay. Thank you so much. Uh all in favor. Aye. Opposed, I's have it. And the next item we have the P-card or procurement card so you attached. Superintendent. So, you have two months

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worth of charges on the P-card. Uh we've been we've been doing our best to really hold it to travel and limit limit the use of the P-card to travel to meals and not using it for for supplies that can be purchased through purchase orders or

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supplies that can be purchased um through our Amazon account. But every now and then you will see some charges just because some of these vendors do do not allow us to use um purchase orders. Okay. Wish of the committee. Motion to receive and place on file. Seconded.

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Uh all in favor. Aye. Opposed, I's have it. And the last item is bills payable in the amount of $1,635,715.45. And apologies to my committee members last time we were going over the warrant. I didn't allow enough time for us to review our questions. So, apologies in advance. So, please I'll

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open up to the committee. I have questions. Please, Mrs. Sheps. No, ladies first. Okay, thank you very much. I have three. The first one is on page six, Care Safe LLC for $17,500. That is OSHA training, 10 hours of OSHA

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trainings that was paid through the Perkins grant and that was for 500 seats. So, that covers our students in the construct in the vocational program. Thank you. And on page 13 I had two of them. One was Lakeshore Learning Materials for

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$9,458.28. It said direct services. Recreation services because it was So, I We haven't had a preschool update this year. So, part of the CPPI grant that we were awarded of $500,000 that Trisha Lockston oversees, we have partners in the community and

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one of those partners is the YMCA. Mhm. So, we have staff that go to the YMCA and work with the work with our students there and the CPPI grant purchases supplies for that program that is housed at the YMCA. So, that's why you see recreation and supplies. Okay. And on that page also New England Low Vision

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for $4,959. >> Those were supplies for special education students. Okay. And those went right into the classrooms. Okay. That's it. Thank you. Thank you, Dr. Blanow. Mr. Viera. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

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My question is on page seven. Cor- Corfienza, 18,000, the amount of 18,000. Confianza? Yeah, Corfienza. Thank you. >> Oh, no, Cozzini. Cozzini Brothers? >> Corfienza. Cor- Corfienza. >> Confianza. Confianza. So, sometimes my >> 18,413.

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Yeah, I apologize. >> 40 cents, professional development outside provider. Yeah, sometimes my for some reason my warrant doesn't always align with your warrant on the page numbers. So, that's professional development for our multilingual educators and that's three months worth of professional development. Okay.

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Thank you, Superintendent. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Okay, great. So, we don't actually have a motion on the floor, but if my colleagues will allow, I'd like to split the warrant into two sections. First and foremost, I have an item I'm going to be voting no on that appears on page 27 which is voucher number 27119

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in the amount of $24,899.99. So, the first motion that should be moved would be a motion to pay the warrant in the amount of $1,610,815.46. That is eliminating the voucher number in the amount I just stated. So moved. Second. All in favor. Aye. Opposed, I's

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have it. And the next part of the motion in order should be a motion to pay $24,899.99. Wish of the committee. Motion to approve in the amount of $24,899.99. >> Seconded. Okay, all in favor. Aye. No.

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So, two yays and one no. Okay, that concludes the uh finance and law subcommittee. Motion to adjourn. Seconded. All in favor. Aye. Opposed, I's have it. We are adjourned. Thank you. >> Thank you. Where'd you get >> All right, you guys ready? Yes.

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Good evening everyone. Thank you for joining us. I call the meeting to order. If you could please join us in the pledge. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation

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under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Oh say can you see by the dawn's early light, [singing]

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what so proudly we hailed at the twilight's [singing] last gleaming, whose broad stripes and bright stars

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through the perilous [singing] fight, or the ramparts we watched were so gallantly [singing] streaming? And the rockets'

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red glare, the bombs bursting in air, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.

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Oh say does that star-spangled [singing] banner yet wave o'er the land of the free and the home of the

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brave? Mrs. Fagan? Lord, as we begin this session, let us acknowledge your goodness and mercy and ask your blessings on all our deliberations. We thank you for this opportunity to be of service to our community and to the

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young people entrusted to our care. And if you would please remain standing, we have one person we would like to recognize this evening. Judith A. Franco Lancaster, age 91, passed away on April 1st, 2026. She was the beloved wife of the late C.

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Edward Lancaster, with whom she shared 65 years. Born and raised in Taunton, she was the daughter of the late Jose P. and Margarita C. Gomes Franco. She was a graduate of Taunton High, Bridgewater State College, and Suffolk University.

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She taught in the Taunton Public School System for 39 years. She was a member of the MTA, the TTA, where she served as treasurer. She was a member of the Taunton West Little League, where she held many positions. She was also a member of the Hopewell School PTA and

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room mother at Saint Anthony's School. She is survived by her loving children, Suzanne M. Hemenway, Annette Y. Gaudette, and Ronald G. Lancaster, five grandchildren, Jessica, Paul, Amanda, Tiffany, and Angela, 11 great-grandchildren, and several nieces

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and nephews. She was predeceased by her daughters, Michelle and Stephanie, and her son, Patrick, and two great-grandchildren, Michael and Madison. Um her funeral was held on Thursday, April 9th at the Crapo Hathaway Funeral Home. She was buried in

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Mayflower Hill Cemetery. I remember her from Little League. She was always there. She and her husband, I think, ran everything up at the Taunton West Little League. And because I had six boys there, I I knew them for a long length of time. Very lovely people. I'm so sorry for her family, and I hope you

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keep her family in your thoughts and in your prayers. So, moment of silence, please. Thank you. Thank you, Mrs. Fagan. Uh I'm just [clears throat] club Palosky's absent. Dr. DeMello? Present. Chris Santos? Present. Christine Fagan, I'm

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present. Louis Laura? Present. >> Carrie Mallon? Present. Uh Steven Vieira, I think is He's here. He's here. We can note his presence when he comes in. Okay. And uh Chairwoman, Mrs. Shaw? Present. Um

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pursuant to the Massachusetts Open Meeting Law, this meeting is being recorded and live-streamed via YouTube. The recording will be made available to the public on YouTube via a link on the district website as soon as practical. I also ask if anyone else present is recording at this meeting, please notify

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the chair now. I'm informed that there is no one else um videotaping other than um Taunton Public Schools. Thank you. All right. Thank you, Mrs. Shaw. Approval of the minutes of April 1st, 2026. Motion to approve the minutes as

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dated April 1st, Second. 2026. Motion second, on discussion. Dr. DeMello? >> Yes, Mayor, on discussion. And I just found out that we had some communication issues last last meeting, so I do need to correct the record on a few items. Uh first and foremost, under number six, Finance and Law Subcommittee,

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uh the third paragraph down, Dr. DeMello reported that the subcommittee reviewed a Coaching for Change warrant in the amount of $6,771.16. That should have been recorded as $6,707.16. Um so, that's basically that piece. And the next item appears under the same uh

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subsection six, uh 1 2 3 4 5 6 uh seven eight paragraphs in, uh Dr. DeMello reported that the subcommittee first voted on a warrant in the amount of $966,132.25, which excluded voucher number 27020

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in the amount of Law Group invoices totaling $1,523.50. The record should show that that amount was $15,203.50. And the same item appears two paragraphs down. Dr. DeMello reported that the subcommittee then voted on the lines Law

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Group invoice for January and February totaling $1,523.50. The motion did not pass with a vote of one and in favor and two opposed. Once again, that should have read 1520350, and that concludes my amendments to the

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motion. And I again, I hope that's clear for the recording secretary. Thank you so much. All right. Thank you, Dr. DeMello. Any other comments? Motion to accept that amendment. Okay. All right. To the to the motion as stated. So, there's there's a motion to accept

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the minutes with the corrections by Dr. DeMello, and there's a second. All those in favor? Aye. Aye. Opposed? None opposed. So voted. All right. We do not have a student advisory committee report this evening. And uh

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Chairwoman Shaw, I believe we do have public input. Yes. Allison Rosa. All right. Uh thank you, Ms. Rosa. If you could just state your name and address when you begin, and um try to keep your comments to about 3 minutes. That would be great.

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Is your mic on? Thank you. Okay. Hi, I'm Allison Rosa, and I live at 267 Tremont Street. And uh first of all, I want to say good evening and thank you for the opportunity for allowing me to speak. Um I want to start by acknowledging the

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work that has gone into the packet tonight. Uh there's clear effort here on academics, facilities, staffing, and student opportunities. I appreciate the time and thought that goes into preparing all these materials and continued commitment to our students, and appreciate the accessibility to the

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packet this week. I'm here tonight wearing multiple hats, as a parent, as a professional working directly with students, and as a social work graduate student, and as someone deeply invested in this community. I'm speaking because I want us to look beyond what's written on paper and ask,

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are we addressing the whole child? Or we just addressing the parts that are easiest to measure? In the school improvement plan, there's a strong emphasis on test scores, curriculum alignment, and academic data. While all of that matters, your own data

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tells a deeper story. Chronic absenteeism remains high. Students with disabilities continue to be among our lowest performing groups. And we have open positions in social work and special educations. Those roles directly impact the students

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that are most vulnerable. Yet, when I look through the plan, I don't see a clear connection between these academic goals and the emotional, behavioral, and environmental barriers our students face every single day. If a student is struggling with anxiety,

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housing instability, family stress, or trauma, no amount of instructional alignment alone is going to close that gap. I also want to talk about the access and transparency. During the last meeting, the superintendent stated the post the posting that posting the agenda at City Hall

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meets legal requirements. While that may meet the law, does it meet the families where they are? If the stated goal is to connect with families, then why do your practices keep creating barriers? Why does access to public information

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feel like a game of hide and seek? And this isn't about one meeting. We've seen this repeated concerns around accessibility and posting practices, along with moments where discussions shift into executive session without clear alignment to what was publicly posted on agenda.

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That raises real concerns about transparency and how families are expected to follow and engage in the process. This year alone, the district lost 93 students, representing almost 1.2 million dollars in lost funding. That represents families that have been

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making a choice to leave this district. So, my question is, what happens next year? How many more students will leave? And how much more funding are we going to lose if you guys don't address the barriers that these families are facing, including myself? At the same time,

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we're listening to technology purchases like iPads for school committee members, and then doubling back in school committee members to defend those costs, while students, staff, and families are asking for stability, trip support, and transparency.

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That raises my question, where is your real focus? I'm not here to criticize. I'm not here to make anybody uncomfortable. And if I did, then you should look inside yourself. I'm here because I believe in this district and the people who serve it. I believe we can do better,

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but that requires aligning our stated goals with our actual practices. It means integrating social emotional supports into academic planning. It means sharing equity data transparently. It means addressing root causes of absenteeism and building authentic

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partnerships with families. My ask tonight is this, let's expand the lens. Let's remove the barriers instead of continuously creating them. Let's ensure our data tells the full story. And let's make decisions that reflect

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the lived realities of all of our students and families, especially those that are most vulnerable. Thank you for your time and your continued service to this community. Thank you, Ms. Rosa. Okay, we will move on to E, and that is the superintendent's report.

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So, I have the pleasure of having some help in my superintendent's report this evening. So, Mrs. Monahan, the director of special education, she's going to take the lead on presenting my superintendent's report this evening. So, thank you. Okay. So, this is not what we're here for. This was a a fake thing

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to get um Donna DeCorpo here today. >> [laughter] [applause] [applause] >> I know. And I just realized through sitting here that she has said she has to take everything back of what she said about me lately for this, which we'll talk about that later.

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Um so, thank you for um giving us the time and the space, superintendent and school committee, to celebrate this woman and her family, and some colleagues are here. So, um we'll I'll be as brief as I can. So, tonight we are here to honor you, Donna,

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and celebrate your 32 years as a dedicated service to our students in Taunton Public Schools as our orientation and mobility specialist. So, just a quick, what is an orientation mobility specialist? That's what I thought I was explaining tonight. Well, I'm going to explain it for you. Um

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for our students with visual impairments, Donna's job is to orient um our students with visual impairments to our school buildings, our playgrounds, and even the community around us. So, there are many times you could see her drive you could be driving around the

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city of Taunton, and she could be at Hearts Four Corners with a student with a visual impairment teaching them how to cross the street safely, to use what are ADA compliance um with the She could probably explain that piece better, but that's kind of her job, and she helps our families. I'm going to talk about

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that. Um and she In addition to being our O&M specialist here in Taunton, she has and continuing to be serving um for 20 years as the president of the ADA Commission for the City of Taunton Taunton, also. Um so, she is extending

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her impact well over the city of Taunton. She's a force to not to be reckoned with. Um throughout [clears throat] her career, Donna has worked tirelessly with students who have are visually impaired, helping them safely and confidently navigate our school buildings,

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classroom, playgrounds, and the broader community. Her work went far beyond instruction. She empowered students to develop independence and ensured they had full and equitable access to everything our schools had to offer. Donna partnered closely with our

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families, connecting them with essential resources and services both within our schools and throughout the community. She was a powerful advocate for accessibility, always working to make sure our buildings, programs, and spaces were inclusive and welcoming to all students.

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Donna was also an integral member of countless school and city-wide initiatives. She wrote grants to secure evac chairs, ensuring that every school had the equipment and plans necessary to safely evacuate individuals who might need assistance.

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She reviewed and helped develop safe evacuation plans for all students and staff, bringing preparedness and peace of mind across the district. She even coerced me once to go in the evacuation chair to help a student who was scared.

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Um and her face her look on her face, I'm sure she enjoyed that panic on my face. Um her impact has can be seen throughout Taunton in the many environmental modifications um she has supported in all our buildings. Um if you walk into

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any building and go up the stairs and notice the yellow strips, that's Donna. We've had them painted, we've had them taped, we've had other rubbery things put on in some rubbery things put on, yeah. Um Donna also served on new school

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building teams, including projects such as Friedman and MLK, where her expertise ensured accessibility Beyond buildings and plans, Donna has made dreams possible. She assisted a student in making his in making his Make-A-Wish dream come true, traveling

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to Canada to see Billy Ray Cyrus on the television show Doc. She also worked closely with Massachusetts Commission for the Blind and Lucy Kafka, who is here, to make a student's dream of attending Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama a reality.

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Donna has also shared many talents beyond mobility training, including her musical gifts, as she led a ukulele group at East Taunton Elementary School, bringing joy, creativity, and connection to her students. Donna's work has truly changed lives.

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Her commitment, compassion, and advocacy have left a lasting legacy in Taunton Public Schools, one that will continue to make to benefit students for years to come. As Donna enters retirement, she has received some excellent advice from her

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students. They strongly recommend that she not work at all instead and instead visit everything. Additional suggested suggestions included shopping at Target, playing Roblox, and maybe even exploring New Hampshire. So, I heard it's a good state

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to go live free or die. Um in addition to touring with the Just Two Trio Banjo Group, Donna, also known as Nona, will be spending her retirement with her beloved grandson, Connor, Parker, and Jason,

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where she will skillfully serve as referee and engage in extensive Playmobil play. She will also remain busy tending to the needs of Teddy, who happens to be her favorite daughter. And Teddy is in the bottom right corner just for any clarification of who that

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daughter is. My favorite one right now. >> [laughter] >> Donna, thank you. Thank you for your unwavering dedication, your leadership, and your heart. We are forever grateful for the difference you have made. >> [applause]

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>> So, you have your You're welcome very much. I know you won't. You can tell me later. Oh. Sorry. I just have to say so because I've been totally blindsided. I was here this evening to speak about orientation mobility in the preschools. So,

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I'm not talking to any of these people for a while because I'm a little embarrassed by all of this, but I do appreciate it all. And I just want to say I don't know how 32 years went by this quickly. And I just was lucky enough to have the best students going. I've worked with some great staff. Um and administration has

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always been supportive of anything that we've wanted to do. Um be it here in the community, out on field trips, or anything that we we we needed, especially for the evacuation years, which I used to stress over every single night. Um so, I do appreciate everything, although I don't want any of my family to come home tonight

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>> [laughter] >> cuz they've embarrassed me totally. >> [applause] >> Thank you for all you've done. Appreciate you. >> [applause] >> And that concludes my report. >> Well, that is the best superintendent's report I have seen. >> Yes.

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So, uh thank you, Superintendent Cabral. That was very nice. So, we will move right along to F, administrative business. Do we have any business with the staffing report? No, just normal procedure for just the committee to receive and place on file.

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Well, if we're going to do that, uh the the next one, well, one and two, well, you you're probably going to talk about the field trips, but um Good night, everybody. Good night. Bye, Lisa. Good night. Um the staff one and two we can do both

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of those things. to accept Both of them. Yeah, just just want to state that we are 99% staffed when it comes to classroom positions. And that's excellent. >> For an urban district, that's quite an accomplishment. I second that. Motion to accept and place on file. All those in

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Motion and second. All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? None opposed. So voted. And then we have the field trip requests. There's A and B. Yeah, Mr. Barada provided you with a memo that that explains the field trips. If there are any questions, we are here to answer them.

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Okay. And so, have those What step stage are those in as far as approval? These are in the final approval stage. >> Okay. So, do you need approval tonight? >> We need approval. >> Motion to approve. Second. So, the first one is ProStart Culinary Maryland competition. Yeah. Uh

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so, there is a motion and a second to approve that one. Dr. DeMello, on discussion? >> No. All right. So, I just saw the dates, uh April 24th to the 27th, correct? Is that the same one with this memo? I don't see dates on the memo.

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Oh. Over there. Okay. So, this is the same This is the same item? Yes. Okay. 24th to the 27th. Absolutely. So, both of them correct? Yes. Yes. All right. So, there's um a first and a second to approve. And all those in favor?

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>> Aye. Opposed? None opposed. So voted. And then the next one is SkillsUSA State Conference. Motion to accept. Second. Do we need a motion to approve, Superintendent? So, motion to approve.

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>> It's final approval of the of the field trip. Second. It's motion and a second to approve. All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? None opposed. So voted. Okay. [clears throat] Subcommittee reports, Rules Committee, Ms. Santos.

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Uh thank you, Madam Mayor. Um so, the Rules Subcommittee met Oh, jeez. What day was that? Uh April 7th, uh 2026. In attendance were um Mr. Laura, Mrs. Shabs, Dr. DeMello, Mr. Cabral, Mrs. Hoy, and Mr. Barada. The

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meeting uh was called to order at 5:00 for um this round of policy, we went through sections C and D. Um a lot of the things are honestly just kind of small changes here and there, so I just want to go over some of the the major conversations that went over. One

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was for the CBAA, which is the code of ethics of the Superintendent of Schools. Um that is on hold right now until we receive um information from MASC representative for interpretation of that. Um there was also the CBI, which was about the evaluation of the

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Superintendent. Um the CBI is different The MSCA CBI for the evaluation is different from the TBS one, so we're going to get wording from DESI as far as that goes. Um as far as the evaluation So, it's all on the same page. Uh CHCA was the approval of

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handbooks. That needs to be updated, I believe, um as well. And we did talk about maybe trying to just get one handbook for the entire um district uh because right now I think it was just the high school has um uh a handbook as well, if I remember correctly. Uh DBC DBJ was the

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preparation and adoption of the budget, so we made some changes to dates on initial budget requests and the tentative budget submission. Uh DGC was a procurement uh requirement. We need to update that with the MASC policy. Um and a few other updates, some that

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did not align with MASC policies with Mass. General Laws that we'll need to address as well. And just finally, we did somewhat address how we will bring all of these changes as far as the policies to the School Committee once we're all finished. I think we're probably going to do it in sections because taking it

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all at once probably be a little bit too much for everybody. And that conclude Oh, and the meeting was adjourned at 5:44. And that concludes my report. Motion to accept the report as presented. Second. Uh motion and second to accept the report. All those in favor?

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>> Aye. Opposed? None opposed. So voted. Next, we have Committee of the Whole FY27 Budget Workshop, Mrs. Shabs. Thank you, Madam Mayor. The Taunton School Committee met on Wednesday, April 8th, 2026 at 6:00 p.m. The purpose of this meeting was to review the FY preliminary

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budget. In attendance was Mr. Paloski, Secretary Ms. Fagan, Mr. Laura, Mr. Mrs. Mullen, Mr. Viera, Superintendent Cabral, and myself. Ms. Santos was absent. The first item on the agenda was a field trip request for SkillsUSA State Conference. The motion passed by a vote

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of 7 to 0 in favor of the trip. The second item on the agenda was the FY27 Budget Workshop. During this portion of the meeting, a comprehensive overview of the district's financial planning and priorities was presented and discussed. Key key key topics included the mission,

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vision, and strategic objectives, the FY budget comparison and review, the FY principal budget and priorities, the FY preliminary budget, and the stupid Student Opportunity Act, which provided the foundation for guiding budget decisions. A key takeaway is that the

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district currently has a proposed balanced budget for FY27 with no projected cuts. The Superintendent was also asked to explore two priority areas: one, transportation for all students, and two, expanded summer programs for high-need students. The

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meeting adjourned at 7:45 p.m. This concludes my report. Motion to accept the report. Second on that. Motion and second to accept the report. On discussion, Dr. DeMello? Thank you, Mayor. I'd like to record to show that I was also present, Mrs. Shabs.

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>> Okay. At the budget workshop. Sorry, my mistake. >> Thank you. All right. So, um motion and second to accept the report um with that correction. All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? None opposed. So voted. Long-range planning and public property

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subcommittee, Mr. Viera. Thank you, Madam Mayor. The Long-Range Planning and Public Property Subcommittee met on Tuesday, April 14th, 2026 at 2:09 p.m. The E. Pole Elementary School located at 215 Harris Street, Taunton, Mass.

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Committee consists of myself as chair, Dr. Gregory DeMello, Mr. Louis Laura. Also in attendance was Superintendent Cabral, Director of Facilities Mark Freitas. First item on the agenda was uh blizzard impact on the grounds. The subcommittee received an update from

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Mark Freitas regarding district-wide grounds recovery efforts following the recent blizzard. Work includes debris removal, pothole repair, curbing, fencing, and signage. Many schools have been completed debris removal with additional repairs ongoing

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or pending at several locations. Mr. Freitas noted that he and the grounds team will visit sites with two vendors to assess conditions and obtain quotes for curbs and pothole repair. Dr. DeMello inquired about adding lighting near the Gordon Owen entrance of Taunton High School.

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Motion was made by Dr. DeMello and seconded by Mr. Lard except the report and have the administration report back with quotes and associated costs for curbing and potholes. The vote was passed unanimously three nothing.

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Cost estimates are anticipated to be in late April, early May. Second item on the agenda was two Hamilton Street chalkboard removal request. The subcommittee reviewed the request to remove and dispose of existing classroom blackboards at two Hamilton Street at a

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cost of $56,459.32 to be funded through the Taunton Public Schools revolving account. Upon completion of removal, classrooms be painted in coordination with the relocation project. The Bristol County Sheriff's Office will complete

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painting at no cost to the district. It's wonderful news. Motion was made by Mr. Lara, seconded by Dr. DeMello to approve the use of the $56,459.32 from the revolving to complete the work through the change order process. The motion passed three nothing and we

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adjourned at 2:31 p.m. That concludes my report. Motion to receive and accept the recommendations of the subcommittee. Second. Motion and second. All those in favor? Opposed? None opposed, so voted. High School Subcommittee, Mr. Vieira also.

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Thank you, Madam Mayor. The High School Subcommittee met today, April 15th, 2026 at 4:50 p.m. Epaul School, 215 Harrison Street in Taunton, Mass. Committee consists of myself, Dr. DeMello, and Mrs. Fagan.

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The topic of discussion was the Martin Middle School Improvement Plan for 2025 through 2027. Superintendent Cabral was in attendance with uh Principal Jamie Pereira presenting.

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Principal Pereira and members of Principal Pereira's plan is clearly structured, data-driven, and aligned to district priorities with a focused emphasis on three key areas: literacy, mathematics, and student attendance. In literacy, the school is prioritizing

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strengthening students' comprehension of informational text across all content areas. The subcommittee noted the consistent use of data meeting, alignment to Massachusetts standard, and targeted interventions to address identity gaps. The goal is to increase

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ELA proficiency to 33 to 34% range and improve overall student performance as measured by MCAS and i-Ready. In mathematics, the focus is on building a deeper conceptual understanding of fractions. The plan includes regular use of formative

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assessment, structured protocols such as looking at the students' work and ongoing data analysis to inform instruction. Similar gains are targeted in math with an emphasis on both proficiency and foundational skill development. The subcommittee also spent

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time discussing students' attendance, which remains a priority. The school has outlined a comprehensive approach that includes early identification of at-risk students, targeted interventions, increased family engagement, and consistent progress monitoring. The goal

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is to reduce chronic absenteeism by approximately 10% and increase overall attendance to above 93%. Across all areas, the subcommittee recognized a strong emphasis on progress monitoring through i-Ready diagnostics, MCAS data, and ongoing formative

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assessments, as well as collaborative structure in place to support implementation. Additionally, the plan includes expanded opportunities for after-school enrichment supported by late buses to reinforce both literacy and math skills.

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Overall, the subcommittee found the plan to be thoughtful, focused, and aligned with both school and district goals. We look forward to monitoring progress over the course of the implementation. The meeting was adjourned at 5:20. That

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concludes my report. Motion to accept the report presented by Mr. Vieira. Second. Motion and second. All those in favor? I. Opposed? None opposed, so voted. And lastly, we have Finance and Law, Dr. DeMello. Thank you, Mayor. The Finance and Law Subcommittee met earlier

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this evening. Part of the committee members are Mr. Vieira, Mrs. Shaws, and myself as chair. The first item on the agenda was the student activity request that was from the Taunton High School in the amount of $22,245.22. The motion was to receive and place on

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file. That passed unanimously three nil. Part of the discussion that Superintendent Cabral offered was a memo that's on your on the table concerning some some discussion on the Committee on Finance and Salaries that was presented

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at the Taunton City Hall at the City Council meeting. And it was an FY26 warrant item 164 in the amount of $153,894.95, which was payment which was processed for Taunton High School student activity. So, the folks at home, I know there's been some chatter out in the

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community. I've received a few calls. I know many committee members also received calls. Those payments are funds that are received from students and different organizations that provide our families with donations. The payment encompasses three different

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proms: the 2025 senior prom, the 2026 junior prom, and the 2026 senior prom. So, basically, the city acts as a holding account as a custodial capacity. And then when the money's need to be moved and paid, they're paid through the warrant system. So, just for folks at

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home, the city and our tax dollars are not paying for proms. The students are actually paying for that and we receive many donations. The next item on the agenda was an invitation to bid for the expiring food service contract. Superintendent briefed us on the

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timeline of the bids being posted. And this would be to serve start serving July 1st of 2026, so for FY27. The motion was made and accepted to advertise for the bids for the

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uh groceries, paper, equipment service, and repairs. Passed unanimously three nil. The next item on the agenda was FY26 quarter two budget updates. We covered FY26 appropriation for quarter three report, FY26 revolving account quarter

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three report, and FY26 grants quarter three report. We are very healthy in our um our accounts. The budget balances have not been expensed. We're at a good percentage point right now. Of course, we will have

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a very soon workshop with the Finance and Law to move some items within lines to cover some overages. But once again, we are very healthy in our proceeds and what's remaining in our accounts. And the grants portion was reviewed of which ones are

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expiring in June 30th of 2026 and those that have been extended through September 30th of 2026. So, it's of course very important that we don't send any of this grant money back to the grantee. And of course, we'll do everything we can to make sure those grants are used

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up in a timely manner for the benefit of our students, our teachers, and our staff. So, those three reports were received and placed on file. Voted unanimously three nil. The next item was the procurement card. We went over the February and March charges. Superintendent pointed out that he's

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hoping that we use this more for travel. And that was the intent, but there are some some items that are on here that folks don't accept POs. So, unfortunately, we still have to use the P-card. Everything was aligned with what was presented to us. Once again, that

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was voted unanimously to approve the P-card payments for February in the amount of $8,509.56 and for the month of March in the amount of $26,025.26. And the last item on the agenda was bills payable in the amount of $1,635,715.45.

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I had asked my colleagues if we could split out the warrant. And the reason was is because I was voting no on one item. So, the warrant was split into two different portions. The first portion was to pay the warrant in the amount of $1,610,815.46. That was passed unanimously three nil to

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pay the warrant. And the second part of the warrant was to pay $24,899.99. And that was passed two to one. I voted no on that. And for folks at home, it was voucher number 27119. Once again, in the amount of $24,899.99.

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And that concludes my report. Okay. Thank you, Dr. DeMello. So, how should the motions be made for that? Um let's uh No. One motion because if the the 24,000 passed two to one, so the entire warrant went through.

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Oh, okay. All right. So, just one motion. One motion. Good. Motion to accept the report and adopt the recommendations of the Finance and Law Subcommittee. Second. Thank you. Motion and second. All those in favor? Opposed? None opposed, so voted. Okay.

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New business, Oakland Complex Concession Stand mural. And there's a letter in here from Superintendent Cabral. So, very excited as part of our efforts to bring art to our school campuses. Very excited to hear from Jay Patacas, who's the executive director for the

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Taunton Office of Economic and Community Development that the Oakland Educational Complex the concession stand will be receiving a mural. Uh the mural is part of the city of Taunton's uh our mayor's mural program. Uh so so with the Mayor O'Connell, I'm grateful for your support

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of the Taunton Public Schools and our grounds. So this will mean that we'll have murals at Martin School on the east side of the city, Taunton High School in the center of the city, and now on the Oakland side of the city we'll have a mural. Uh and the mayor and her team were gracious enough to allow Jennifer Peters, the principal Chamberlain Elementary School, and Dr. Sara Buckley,

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the Freeman Middle School principal, to have a say in the design that will go on that will go on the concession stand. So again, uh very excited that we continue to bring our as a comprehensive school system we we embrace and we celebrate the arts and there's no better way of demonstrating that by having murals on our schools. So thank you for your

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support, Mayor. >> All right. Oh, you're welcome and I know we talked about this last year, so it's nice that it's um happening uh this spring summer. Thank you, Madam Mayor. Do you know when a rendering will be available of the mural? Uh I could probably find one and

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forward it to super- Oh, you have it. Okay. Yeah. If you could share that with us, Superintendent, that would Yeah, I didn't have it in time for the report. Thank you so much. Dr. D'Amelio? Yeah. Thank you, Mayor. Is that something the school committee has to approve? Uh the

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It's a donation. If you want to accept a donation. Yeah, I mean when we get the rendering I think that would be appropriate. Well, the that If that's the wishes of the That's the wishes of >> No, no. I'm just I'm just saying uh do Is it school property, correct? So do we do we normally

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>> If it's the wishes of the community then we do it before the before a vote. So that would be in the form of a motion. Well, as a don- as a donation we're talking about that it's being the right the design. Okay. So can I clarify um

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are you wanting to ex- ex- approve the design or just see it or accept >> I'm sure it's going to be I'm sure it's going to be in good taste, Mayor, but I think I think we should at at least take a look at the rendering. Uh I think that that would be useful to us to see >> why don't we start with that then? Uh

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Superintendent can supply that to everyone and then if there's more conversation, you guys can Absolutely. Thank you. >> work? Yeah, and again we we had the principals work with the students to identify the rendering that they prefer. So we all set?

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Okay, very good. If I can Sure. Madam Mayor, just a comment and a question. So I was just looking at the flyer for the next uh coffee and conversation and I just I didn't know if you were aware about this. This is on the same day and time as the

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next uh not the next one uh curriculum instruction subcommittee meeting. So that's going to prevent some people from being there. So I just wanted to to make people aware of that. Um and I just have a question and I I I I don't know this, but um is the the joint the the joint meeting that happened on

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Monday is that not usually reported out those It wasn't listed on the agenda, but it'll be listed on the May agenda. Mrs. Fagan >> usually get reported out. >> It does. It was a was omitted accidentally. Okay. >> So Mrs. Fagan and I discussed it and she will report out at the meeting in May. Okay. Thank you.

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Okay. All right. Next we will go to unfinished business and there is a two Hamilton Street year-to-date financial update. I just provided uh committee with some backup uh regarding where we stand year-to-date

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with the Hamilton Street and then I also provided uh some previous documentation that was shared with the committee. Uh and I hope this suffice and meets the needs of the committee. Also give you an update on where we stand with the current the kitchen project. So fifth $555,000

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was allocated to the kitchen project. Uh year-to-date $66,000 has been expended uh leaving a balance of $489,000 still to be expended in the kitchen. And I did didn't get into the packet, but you can have a copy of this.

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Uh I broke down the utility charges so you didn't have to go through. I should have done this before the meeting, so I apologize that you're getting it now. But at least I think it's an easier snapshot for you to see what we spent on the different utilities year-to-date. Thank you, Superintendent Cabral.

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Dr. D'Amelio? Mayor, if I may, on the on the rent uh deposits that's listed here, we have many months in 2025 at $15,975 and then it seems that some months in 2025 drop to $14,975

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and then there's other months that drop down to $14,475 uh and then it goes back up to $15,975 then back down to $15,475. What what is the established rent agreement with BCC? I don't I don't have

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the rent with me. I should have brought it, but I believe it is staggered over over the lifetime of the lease agreement that I believe it does decrease, but I'll do some digging on this and give you and provide the committee with a copy of the of the monthly payments depending the

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monthly payments agreed for each fiscal year. Okay. And for the July 1st lease that we approved as a subcommittee and then the full committee vote, could you let us know what that rent's going to be for 2020 fiscal year 27, I should say. >> it was a I think what we agreed to was

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to continue the FY26 lease payments, but I'll get that to the committee because we said we would keep the same terms that are in existence fiscal 26. Cuz those those again have a variance of anywhere from a thousand to fifteen hundred dollars a month. >> And I'll have the bookkeepers check the

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dates to make sure that those dates align with the right payments there. Thank you. Thank you, Mayor. You're welcome. All right. So there's nothing further with that then we have the action item update. I'm not sure if we have any business to take care of on that. Uh no no business, but hopefully if you attend

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the softball kickoff that the fifth grader will be on hand that we can take that item off the uh action item. Okay. Thank you. All right. So if there's nothing further then we will go to J executive session and is there someone who wants to make um three separate motions in three

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separate votes for executive session? I'll do it. Okay. Thank you. Okay. Thank you, Madam Mayor. Uh executive session uh motion to go into executive session to discuss strategy with respects to collective bargaining with the Taunton Educational Secretary

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and Assistants Association and the chair affirms that holding these negotiations in open session would have a detrimental effect on the committee's bargaining position in related contract matters pursuant to exemption three, General Laws Chapter 38, Subsection 21A three.

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So moved on a roll call vote and will we be coming back into open session? Second. Motion and second on a roll call. Mrs. Fagan. Dr. D'Amelio. Yes. Ms. Santos. Yes. Mrs. Fagan votes yes. Mr. Laura.

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>> Yes. Mrs. Mullen. >> Yes. Mr. Vieira. >> Yes. Madam Chair. Yes. Motion passes. Mayor, just for clarity, we are coming back into open session after the executive session for this item? Yes. Okay. Thank you. So I I'm not clear.

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You're coming back just after the first one? Are you going to do them all? >> so yeah. What? I think we'll do them all and then you can Yeah, we're going each one, yeah. Oh, okay. All right. I wasn't Okay. Okay. Got you. Thank you. Mr. Vieira. Thank you, Madam Mayor. Uh motion to go into executive session to discuss

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strategies with respects to collective bargaining with the Massachusetts Nurses Association and the chair affirms that holding these negotiations in open session would have a detrimental effect on the committee's bargaining position in related contract matters pursuant to exemption three, General

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Laws Chapter 38, Subsection 21A three. So moved on a roll call vote and coming back into open session. Dr. D'Amelio. >> Yes. Ms. Santos. >> Yes. Mrs. Fagan votes yes. Mr. Laura. Yes. Mrs. Mullen. Yes. Mr. Vieira. >> Yes. Madam Chair. Yes. Motion passes.

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One more to go. Thank you, Madam Mayor. Motion to go into executive session to discuss strategies with respects to contract negotiation with non-union personnel pursuant to exemption two, General Laws Chapter 38, Subsection 21A two and to reconvene in open session. On

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a roll call vote. So moved on a roll call vote and coming back into open session. Motion and second on a roll call, please. Dr. D'Amelio. Yes. Ms. Santos. Yes. >> Mrs. Fagan votes yes. Mr. Laura. Yes. Mrs. Mullen. Yes. Mr. Vieira.

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>> Yes. Madam Chair. Yes. Motion passes. We'll be in executive session. >> Mhm. >> Mhm. >> Mhm. >> Mhm. >> Mhm. >> Okay, we are back from executive session and I will pass it on to Mrs. Shaws for

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a report out. Thank you, Madam Mayor. So, in executive session number one, we were in session to discuss strategies with respect to collective bargaining with the Titicut Education Secretary and Assistants Association and a motion was

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made and unanimously approved to ratify their contract and accept their contract for the next 3 years. In executive session number two, to go into discuss strategies with respect to collective bargaining with the

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Massachusetts Nurses Association, the the a motion was taken to approve their contract and it was unanimously approved for the next 3 years. Number three, a motion to go into executive session to discuss strategies

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with respect to contract negotiations with non-union personnel. There was a discussion and a motion to give the non-union members a 3% raise for the next 3 years.

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That motion was passed four in favor and two opposed. And that's my report. All right, thank you. So, I don't believe there's any further action required. So, there is no press here. So, if I could get a motion >> Motion to adjourn. Second. Motion and

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second to adjourn. All those in favor? Opposed? None opposed. So voted. And then what, Superintendent?