##VIDEO ID:NlQtI-KcDfA## e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e the time is 6:30 I'd like to call this regular Board of Education meeting to order at this time I would like to invite uh goodr to perform the roll call of those Board of Education members who are present certainly Madam president trusty Schindler trusty Fields trusty Townsen trusty Goodridge I am here president a here we have five Board of Education members who are present and two members who are not here next that takes us to the Pledge of Allegiance if we can invite everyone who is in attendance to join us in reciting of the fledge I pledge allegiance to phip flad of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation indivisible liberty and justice for all next that takes us to the acceptance of the agenda is there a motion at this time to accept the agenda as presented Madam president trusty Fields move that the Board of Education accept the agenda as presented thank you a motion has been made by trusty Fields is there a support for this motion trusty Schindler support thank you supported by trusty Shindler all those in favor I those oppose that motion carries next that takes us to achievements Awards and recognition and at this time I would like to turn it over to Dr Zachary Ross thank you madam president today our students are out of school and staff yet we still have um our wonderful wonderful principal Kelly mckl from Ericson Elementary who will come and talk about Ericson and their leader and me program um the words up on the screen we love learning encourage one another achieve goals together do what is right those first letters spell lead and that's part of our Ericson mission that we say every single day as a school what button do I press not the arrows oh I skipped one okay so we became a leader in me School in Fall 2017 we are in our eighth year as a leader in me school and it was really a collective effort to get it started and to keep it going and we focus on the seven habits of highly effective people and part of that process is building beautification so it's changed a bit over the years if you haven't been to Eric's Ericson here's a snapshot of um some of the beautiful murals teachers and staff have uh students and staff have created together and our second point of Pride last year the embracing our differences our contest winner was fourth grader Nova Lin Hammond she is now in fifth grade and this is something we're all very proud of her four she's super proud of it we highlighted it in our leadership Day last year we're involved in a lot at Ericson so we're super proud of all of our activities um and the leadership roles that students have we have a green team a Communications crew which is student Le morning announcements they write them they read them um and they start every day out with um a positive note we have family fun nights which are always well attended we do book Pals and Robotics and Girls on the Run and just all those things up there and that's really what helps our students become leaders is having all of those opportunities to be involved and grizzly Sunrise Club is up there we have like 37 students coming every single day and they start rolling in at 7: a.m. and it's really great experience and I want to give a shout out to Kevin Moore who leads that program and he pours his heart and soul into it um and so that's another point of Pride I hit the wrong button sorry um Miss Miller uh who also works at Perry She splits her time between um Ericson and Perry She coaches coaches our Grizzly Junior robotics explore team and last year they won the team model award and they're looking forward to this season called submerged and here are some photos of the team and the one on the bottom is them at their competition we also had kid Jay visit I don't know if anybody's heard of him but he is a local rapper and product of ycs I got to be his principal when he attended new teac high school when we had that here um um and he visited to spread his music and words of positivity focusing on the importance of school everything he does is clean and the kids it was like celebrity City they wanted autographs they wanted pictures it was really sweet to have one of my former students come back to give back to our students we also have a partnership with University of Michigan it's called second and 10 this year the University of Michigan's championship lacrosse team is who visits us once a month and reads with our second graders and they love that time with the athletes in reading and all of the second graders get to take a book home every time they come to read it's not GNA play my video I guess however we uh received a bike donation and we're able to raffle it off as a incentive for count day and um the student who won it is not a student who usually wins anything he's kind of lays low and he's pretty quiet at school so it's really exciting for Matthew to win the bike and that's a video of him riding it through the halls of Ericson and then um just last week we had a author virtual visit for our fifth graders um this year they're going to be doing novel studies um aligned with hmh and um in partnership with our community reads our fifth graders got to participate in an author study event with the author who's read or who wrote one of the novels they're going to be reading so that was really exciting for them to see him to hear him and it was a virtual visit so here's an example of what that looked like um but it was really exciting for the kids and I know that it's going to make it more exciting for them to engage in reading that novel because they will have seen the author and they will feel like they know him and that's our point of prime is there any questions you might have about Ericson or anything like that thank you Miss Meco U wait I don't know if the board has questions but I just wanted to thank you for just a wonderful presentation to share all the good things that are happening in Ericson or do you have questions or comments I don't have a question but I'm always U biased to Ericson I was a wild cat back in the day okay um so they still have shirts there's some little field well oh I'm not little so but um you all do an amazing job there and um I just I love the atmosphere when you walk into the building wonderful job thank you so much let's give them a hand uh next that takes us to our 2024 wa test coordinator of the Year Award winner and at this time I will turn it back over to to um Dr Zachary Ross actually for the next one two three make sure there's not another one four uh presentations Dr thank you Madame President next I'll ask as Liz sermon comes up I just want to read this about um what she was awarded for every year our students take our multilingual students take the waa test and she is instrumental and coordinating and ensuring that our students have what they need as as well as the staff and even making sure that our families understand what's happening and whatever language that they uh learn in so or speak in so I Salan Community School's outstanding educator Liz Surman has been selected as the recipient of the 2024 weda test coordinator of the Year award this prestigious award recognizes individuals who go above and beyond in their efforts to support multilingual Learners and ensure a smooth and effective test Administration Liz has demonstrated exceptional leadership organization and deep and a deep commitment to the success of students and teachers alike her efforts have made a significant impact not only within the district but also in contributing to the broader mission of ensuring Equitable access to Quality education for all Learners Liz has consistently shown a dedication to managing the weda testing process processes um with precision and Care her work has enhanced the ability of students to demonstrate their language proficiency and enabled teachers to receive the data they need to best support their students it is because of this tireless Dedication that Liz was selected from an impressive pool of candidates we are celebrating Liz for this welld deserved recognition her contributions are a reflection of the values and educational Excellence that the district promotes we are excited to see the continued positive impact that she will make in the years to come so we congratulate you Liz thank you so much SP a lot of years of doing it so but it's always a busy time but it's good can you share with them about um what the students take um do during the testing as well as um you've really worked to help grow um our population you go to the Jewish Family Services meetings and get updates so can you just share a little bit about what you've been doing because everyone doesn't know all the Fantastic things that we know yeah we have we are almost at 600 students now um I just looked the other day and it was 581 so and we've got probably another five registering this week at least so um we have been working a lot with Jewish Family Services to bring in the refugee families and get them settled and enrolled in school but there are also kids who are just coming every day from a variety of countries and they just show up and they register and a lot of times they uh hear from friends oh I need to put my child in school and they say yes go to FC because we know all the teachers there our team of English Le learner teachers multilingual language um multilingual leader oh God gosh I can't even say it tonight sorry but the multilingual team has been around for a really long time and they tend to stay in this District they love what they do and we have a lot of longevity with these families so it makes it um something that's kind of family oriented and we see now there some of the grandkids coming through so that's been pretty fun um and then the weeda test they take every spring in February and March they have to do a listening section Reading Writing and speaking and and we get those results then in June and they are used for placement in um language services for the following year yes trusty Fields uh we did it started out for the um with wa um Washington iow no Wisconsin Iowa Delaware and Alabama I believe so it was the four states that started it um and it's the she would ask me that um you know I can't I can't think of what exactly it stands for um at the moment but it's the assessment the last you know it's for the assessment so yeah you have another question yes okay no she works in partnership with the Jewish uh Family Services and so they have been they have meetings every month in the county and they've been really supporting all of the uh refugees who come and then they help them with housing um how to transition to school many different yes all their transition services and they've been truly um directing people to our district because of the level of support that the families receive and so as she said our numbers have gone now are up close to 600 yes and their K in their prek 12 they they don't just come at prek or kindergarten they're coming as high schoolers and um and really having them adap adapt to the environment has been so help the team has really helped them um do that acclamation some of the teams you'll see they they're full of they even play with extracurriculars many of them join the soccer team and just are feeling like like they really have have that sense of belonging even if they just got to the country and that's a hard I mean it's hard to move from a different state but moving from a different country being a refugee um and that team makes sure that they feel valued that they feel like uh truly a part of theity and one thing that I noticed this um after this first quarter was a number the large number of English Learners who were part of the honors assembly and had fabulous grades like 3.5 and up so no they that's part of Ann Arbor's District yeah we have we have some of our high school kids at the traditional High School AC Tech and stem and then we have some at Ace as well so don't it's well they they partner with us to place the students sorry yes uh yeah that's exactly what that is yeah over on State Street yeah no problem yes trusty GL I just wanted to express how exciting it is to um see you and all of your hard work recognized with this award um I know that and we're going to hear more later tonight about how our English language learner multilingual learner population is growing and it is really a testament to the work that you and your team have been doing um and to the amazing Scholars that we have here that that they are thank you for sharing how well represented they are in the Honor Society and it's like they're working that much harder to do all of that in a second or third language um so anyway I I didn't have a question I just wanted to express how excited I am to see you and and by extension your team recognized with this award and express appreciation for all of the hard work that you do to make sure that these Scholars are getting the supports that they need and deserve so that they can Thrive here thank you very much other for comments questions thank you L Surman this is an outstanding and well-deserved award we are fortunate to have you here at ipsan Community Schools congratulations let's give her a round of applause I just wanted to share as she's stepping out off um there are other programs that Liz has really uh been involved in we have um you've heard Dr Lopez talk about the grow your own grants um she's really been a part essential to the part of um insur ing that if teachers want to get additional credentials um in the grow your own so that they can be certified to teach um students in our multilingual programs she's been working on that our newcomer centers making sure that the teachers are ready for that we did get um a person from I don't know where ladies from from Colombia sure because I know the board had you know just just to inform they he things at the table but sometimes when you're here we might as well get a little bit yes so lady Su yepes she is from Colombia bogat Columbia and she is one of our new kindergarten Spanish Immersion teachers we had so many children registering this year for Spanish Immersion that we need decided that we needed to split it into two classes and so she was part of the um International group that Jason presented Ag and yep and she is our first teacher who has come to us and thus she's been fabulous she jumped right in got going and she's just a really fun part of the team so yeah she's been great thank you for adding that because I I know it's just might as well get an quick update on that so we just appreciate that team and what has been happening next national stem and steam Day November 8th stem and steam Day falls on November 8th there's no way around it children are significantly better off with a strong science technology engineering arts and mathematical skills that's why stem and steam education programs are so important it's undebatable that these subjects push Society forward these programs help to find fun engaging ways to teach them um to students which is all worth commemorating so on November 8th we celebrate stem and steam day here at YC yes we know that um we have at Ford Early Learning Center is now part of the magnet Grant um that that's a steam school as well as homes Elementary and then we have the stem middle college so we're going all the way up through um lots of lots of fun things that you'll be seeing coming from director turquoise Neil soon about all that is in place next the education support professional day no mber 20th is annually observed on the Wednesday during American Education week National Education support Professionals Day honors the contributions of school support employees these support professionals provide invaluable services and are essential Partners in a child's education the day honors a long list of professionals who keep schools run running smoothly they include our secretaries classroom AIDS cafeteria workers maintenance workers bus drivers and others who support Educators School leadership and the students too these professionals do their part in making Public Schools exceptional exceptional for every child so they can be safe learn grow and Achieve and at ycs we have unbelievable capable and talented support staff and so we just say thank you and National parent involvement day is November 21st it's a day for America's parents grandparents and caring adults National parental involvement day was created in 1994 and is now the oldest family engagement event in education this special day was created as part of American Education week and it's on the third Thursday of nove in November we want to raise awareness about the importance of family involvement in education and the positive impact it can have on student achievement throughout the years we've seen firsthand the difference that engaged and involved parents can make in their children's education whether it's helping with homework attending parent teacher conferences or volunteering at school events every parent has a unique and valuable role to play in their child's education that's why we are celebrating National parent involvement day and continuing to Foster meaningful engagement with families throughout the year by participating in the special day schools can recognize and celebrate the contributions of parents and volunteers promote the importance of family and Community involvement in education and encourage collaboration and partnership and promote the value of public education to the broader Community we just again thank our parents for their engagement their involvement in our schools we definitely could not do this without you and then lastly substitute Educators Day November 22nd the United States observes a substitute Educators day which was instituted by the National Education Association the purpose of this day is to highlight the role and importance of The Substitute Teacher by providing information about advocating for and helping to increase appreciation and respect for this unique professional according to the Bureau of Labor and statistics there are over 500,000 substitute teachers in 2020 these Educators fill the shoes of the class's regular teacher for half a day up to several weeks substitutes apply to teach in a school district They will receive notice from the District of an opening some sometimes hours just hours before they're needed and other times substitutes fill in for a teacher when they are scheduled to be away a substitute often doesn't know which subject they may be teaching from one week to the next they are flexible and resilient Educators who provide a bridge between full-time Educators and their students the this observance aims to elevate the respect owed to the substitute Educators it is also a way to advocate for substitutes at all levels of Education the day also promotes being prepared for an absent at school and improving the respect um receptiveness of substitute teachers substitute teachers come from every facet of life with experience in math science language arts history business and more focusing on the continued progress of the classroom's education these teachers play a vital role in maintaining high levels of Education in every school system substitute Educators day is observed by um some on the third Friday of November during American Education week and we thank our substitutes we know that one of our trustees even started here as a substitute and we appreciate that um for having that lens as well as some of our staff and even administrators that's where they started off and so it it really gives for that broad experience and those connections that our our students make is invaluable so thank you to all of our substitute Educators thank you Dr Zachary Ross uh under achievements Awards and recognition uh we have a lot to celebrate today and really every day in Community Schools um and just in summary before we give a round of applause to every um Achievement Award and recognition this evening we had our Ericson point of Pride we had our weda test coordinator of the Year award National stem and steam day education support Professionals Day National parent involvement day and our substitute Educators day let's give all of these wonderful individuals in our district a round of applause next that takes us to item five on our agenda which is a request for a close session uh once the board um goes into close session we will leave out of this room we'll dismiss and we'll come back to this room um after a motion is taken and approved um and supported um is there a motion at this time for a request to go into close session under Section 81c om collective bargaining strategy m trusty Schindler so move thank you a motion has been made by trusty Schindler is there support for this motion trusty towns and support thank you supported by trusty Townsen all those in favor I those opposed that motion carries the Board of Education will convene in close session at 6:55 p.m. e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e the time is 7:36 the board of education is back in Open Session that takes us to action item seven on our agenda under human resources which is the approval of the ycea collective bargaining agreement is there a motion at this time Madam president towns I'm sorry madam uh move that the Board of Education approved the collective bargaining agreement between the district and the Ian Community Education Association mea Nea effective upon ratification through June 30th 2026 thank you a motion has been made by truste Townsen is there support for this motion support trust goodr thank you supported by trusty Goodrich all those in favor those opposed motion [Laughter] carries next that takes us to the 2024 through 2026 school calendars is there a motion at this time Madame President this is Trusty gainley I move the Board of Education approve the district local school or the district school calendars for the 24 24 to 2026 school years thank you a motion has been made by trusty gainsley is there support for this motion support trusty Townsen thank you supported by trusty Townsen all those in favor those oppose that motion carries next that takes us to item number eight which is uh presentations and at this time we have our 2024 2025 budget update at this time I will turn it over to Dr Zachary Ross thank you madam president and as Solomon Zay gets the presentations up and ready on the here on the um projector thank you uh we are happy that our director of business and finance has been really working to make sure that we have management between um looking at the grants that have been removed this year as this is the year that Esser is has ended and our seek Grant so he's really been working behind the scenes to ensure that we can continue to manage um with those changes and there is the budget review and Amendment conversation that is going to take place so thank you Daman Butler as promised in June this is our first look at the uh budget and all the changes that we've had over uh the few months this slide here is very important to me because this is an ongoing process uh the information that we have now does change we have uh different grants and uh movement at and legislation that impacts our uh our budget so well we're going to spend time quite a bit of time looking at the over 4,000 uh accounts that we have in the district to impact all of our different areas today we're going to talk about the uh general fund including uh our federal grants and want to talk a little bit about the the grants that have ended as a uh September 30th 2024 federal grants on at the end of their uh fiscal year what we know right now is uh things are pretty much staying the same per people cost is the same we don't anticipate an increase categoricals and all all of all those fundings are going to stay relatively stable we continue to draw down our grants Title One title two three use those in the uh throughout the district to fund different programming our magnet Grant is uh is having a big impact on what we do moving forward as seek and Esser have ended and we have to uh readdress how we use those [Music] funds back in June you adopted a a budget of 86 million 86.6 million that included uh s funding that we had and these on on the right hand side are the expected expenditures as we move forward grants are ending adjustments have been made we've had a reduction because of seek and uh Esser ending it's a combine a combination of about 167 million with those two grants Esser was uh we used Esser in various areas across the district we moved the middle school with Esser we uh we did a lot of Technology improvements through Esser we had some we had a little bit we of of curriculum improvements and adjustments so it was a wide range of fund uh funding covered for Esser SE covered a lot of professional development and academic supports so as we see in our expenditures we have a decrease in our basic Pro programs and instruction just because those those funds have gone away and we had to adjust those uh adjust those amounts the magnet Grant is used throughout those areas to to support our K basically K12 magnet programs the Elementary Magnet Schools the Middle School IB program the middle school going into the IB program at the high school so that $5 million funding per year is spread out through those expenditures the total expenditures matches the total revenue just based off of keeping it want wan to have a framework there will be some adjustments there as uh needs and funding change so we're ongoing State there there are State uh grants that are involve federal grants that are involve micro grants come in there there are different uh different things that are coming throughout the year legislation is a big piece of that so that'll that'll change how we do things so these numbers will adjust again but this is our uh Baseline of where we want to be for spending so as we move forward we just continue to draw down our grants and use the funding that we have we're going to continue to make uh budget adjustments I that I I can tell you the next time we well I'll present this is uh around April time frame so we can uh make have a another budget adjustment before we start planning for 25 26 school year that is the information what questions might you have um one of the questions I had was I saw that there was so the backet grant we have those funds correct yes and so I saw that there was a reduction well there was an in increase from Debt Service um it was from 5.6 million now that is 7.7 million so can you just explain that adjustment so the debt increase is as we move through and our bonds be start to get paid off and the adjustment from our debt uh our debt relief goes in we have to make an adjustment for taxes and uh how we process those funds because it they they they look they come in as a increase then we still have to pay out and keep the bond the bond Bond payments on scheduled that may change as well when we get to our next budget amendment and so I know there'll be a later conversation about grizzly camp but with the current budget that we have will we still be able to yes so we we've moved uh Grizzly Camp I'm sorry to cut you we've moved uh Grizzly Camp to uh tit one as a as a funding source and and with the grizzly with Grizzly learning Camp that's hopefully will be placed in the academic initiatives that we have been waiting for the funds for um from Treasury and that is in three years you guys approved three years in that piece as well as we applied for a different Grant so we're waiting I know Dr karella is looking like and don't forget that part but that'll be in that presentation as well so sealing your thunder I'm sorry go ahead truste Rich I'm sorry I hope I'm not cutting truste town in off um I I was so so those additional funds would allow us to keep offering Grizzly learning camp at Scales to to all of our students then it wouldn't be restricted by just title one yeah he's going he he doesn't want me to kill his take his Thunder I want you to ask that again to look at his presentation please other Bo question I just have one quick one um I think you may have mentioned this but um if you didn't could you just let us know if we are this we know this is a one of our quarterly updates but are we on Pace to spend down all of our grant funds yes yes we are so that that's the uh that's a a big point of how we're moving forward and keeping our uh Revenue coming in to make sure we're we we're doing proper draw Downs proper And Timely draw Downs so at the end of the year we don't we don't have any carryover perfect thank you and I'm sorry no I was just gonna say go ahead trusty Townson um and then as far as the training with the new tech software I mean with the software that we have everybody has been trained and that's going appropriately yes training is ongoing but it's it's a we transition when when we transition from let say it like that sounds kind of morbid we have a when our new payroll clerk came in we had we were doing things manually a lot so we changed and went uh automated so those processes are uh showing us what was broken we fix some things and as we fix that just like you drop your call and pick it up they find something else that's broke we continue to improve our our processes and the training is is is a big part of our success thank you any other B questions or comments thank you Mr Butler all right even um I'm going to turn this back over to Dr Zachary Ross for the next two presentations thank you and just for that final piece of the budget update next month you'll hear from the Auditors of what all happened through the audit and um and the close out of the last year so this is just for the amendment next will have talent management with regarding class sizes Staffing and enrollment as she's coming up I still a little Thunder just by saying when she talks about the numbers because the numbers are really exciting um we have to remember there's a big difference between what so the budget presentation is based off of the count numbers that we're getting from Tammy our pupil accounting of 3875 these numbers are numbers of students in our faces that have come and many of them have come after account dat so you remember the 91% so we'll get only a percent of that of these new students but next school year is when we should start seeing hopefully they stay with us throughout the year because again as you heard Miss serman say that she's got like five more and she's had five more the numbers of from that especially the multilingual students those refugees have really been coming in but again after count day um many of them came in so you're going to see that in reflected in her presentation and we will not get the funding fully for them this year but we'll see that next year thank you very much superintendent Zachary rosson good evening again board so this is the annual student enrollment Staffing present presentation that comes from talent management and the HR department and this is a relationship between how many students we have how many staff we have where our gaps are and what our what some of our wins are so here's some of our wins I'm just going to go through them slowly as as uh Daman said we now have an electronic not electronic it does say electronic but electronic onboarding system so we used to up till this year we just started this year and on board everybody with paper so now we have fingerprinting and all your higher paperwork is electronic a link is sent to you it's completed it's a it's a much cleaner system you get all of your I9 information within three days and you can validate it and then you have actual data in the electronic system that says we did it we successfully I put that in there in in anticipation and so I'm glad what oh my I'm having the weirdest night look at this so anyway I'll figure out how to get this clicker off my wrist but we successfully negotiated two contracts and it has been a very collaborative effort with both unions really really some of them longer than others but really a really nice collaborative effort um we have higher completion of safe schools safe schools are mandatory modules that nobody wants to do they kicking and screaming but they have to be done there are the safety issues like um Title 9 and how to use proper ladders and our communication protocol so that people actually know what our processes are so you don't just come in and you're thrown into the water and we hired 59 new teachers this year during boot camp I'm so excited we had and the $1,000 signing bonus was valid until September 30th so anybody who came in in boot camp received that $1,000 signing bonus but with the seat dollars it went away I think they were probably really happy in that first paycheck and then we have the magnet school Grant which is kind of a replacement for seek and the others and the El enrollment or the MLL enrollment is up by 128 students so that is a Real Testament to the whole elll team and and we have K3 Spanish Immersion where last year we were we started out with K and then we went K1 K2 and now we're at K3 and they're fully staffed and we continue that really lucrative partnership with Mr working very closely with them we have five new teachers this year for a total of 19 um and we've retained all but three this is the HR dashboard that you're used to seeing in the board update and this just gives us a screenshot in time of how many staff we currently have what categories they're in and HR Works closely with technology so we put the data in and then technology makes it look nice like this so this is this is how many staff we have by category now it's not advancing sound I don't well that's okay okay so this is where our vacancies are and at the beginning of the year we had less vacancies we had a little attrition due to recall by Ann Arbor and then some individuals left to other positions so right now we have an early Head Start and Associate at batty and I won't just read these all to you but we're in the process of making offers to many of these positions now where our biggest gaps are are special ed those are our hardest positions to fill and they continue to be that if you look at homes we we no longer have the fifth grade but we do have the PE wise only has a second grade teacher Erikson we're making an offer to a music teacher and then we have as as you see in eser Brook some some special education positions we also need a few we need a few social workers and I have an offer in the workings for that Spanish position at the middle school as well YC 2s is fully staffed unfortunately we lost two of the the MRK teachers at Ace they were part of that three they decided to to go another course that's their second career in MRK and so sometimes it's not the best fit that they think it's going to be we did we did employ strategies to keep them in here but it keeps freezing so here is the point in time of who is enrolled I work closely with Clark rifer our data coach and Tammy Phelps our pupil accounting to get these numbers so batty is down 11 but there's a a really good explanation for batty we decided to take on the Early Head Start program so for every slot for Early Head Start you have to give up two regular Head Start slots so it looks like we're down 11 but we're actually even in batty it's just down 11 from last year because of that that Exchange change um we worked with WD they were doing a new Grant and they wanted to be more competitive to get that Early Head Start in to their Grant so that they would get awarded that five-year Grant and we agreed to Pilot one of the classrooms for as you can see is up significantly YC 2s is down um with YC 2s we see a lot of the students transitioning back into inperson people are getting more and more confident as we get farther and farther away from covid-19 the outbreak homes you can see it looks like there's a significant reduction which they did leave homes but the vast majority of those students went to Ericson and esterbrook so they didn't leave the district they just left that particular building wise all the way down to the Middle School are up significantly um YC HS is down some but it all balances out in the end so aces up as well as the other so the other is like wave and um students why high and wima and what is it student for the death students for hearing impaired and that number comes directly from our pupil accounting so last year when I was doing this presentation we had 3762 enrolled and this is as of October 23rd now we have 4259 which is 49 97 students up which is is huge because a lot of districts are down so going back to Les's Liz and her team's hard work you'll see where it's paying off in the buildings where they're significantly up in um multilanguage Learners by building um Y c2s is even and homes went down some and that's just a pie chart for you this is how our student population breaks out as it relates to multilanguage Learners and then this is just substantiates that and then as we went through the contract we the only change that you will see in these negotiated CBA numbers is third grade and that went down from 32 to 30 all others remained the same and just yes every time show that slide I just um I always feel the to clarify that most of our classes are not even this is so true this is so true we try to keep those classes in the 24ish range so that it's you know more oneon-one instruction thank you I appreciate that and then here's the sum of the things that we do for recruitment our seat concluded as we said but we still have our leap we still use our wide um website excuse me we are still actively engaged in the Emu Pro uh teacher to par program in fact we had um a graduate this year who was still at batty and then another graduate who is at Perry so they graduated they came back they do not have to come back that's one thing that we we didn't write this grants but they do not have to come back they just have to stay in Washington County so the fact that they came back is an is a testament to our staff and our Administration we're doing proud Michigan Educators Talent together we have one they gave us one Talent together individual that is at WISE right now and they're doing like a a pilot type of thing and then we're going to see where it goes from here Talent together pays a portion of their salary and we pay the other portion of their salary when we post we post on Masa and all their Affiliates so msbo it just goes out to everybody when we put it when we put it out there on Masa um recruitment successes there you'll see a picture of John Kim who won that prestigious award in the state um Grizzly learning Camp is intrical in recruitment because people from outside of the district come and teach and then they want to stay we use Facebook we use indeed we use U ofm we use Teach for America I mean just all of these Avenues to get Staffing not only in the teachers but also social workers support staff bus drivers we're out there everywhere that we can be and we do our own career Affairs internally and some other things that we use to attract staff is the mentoring program so the mentoring program is very Diversified now it's not just a wholesale mentoring program it's divided into four cohorts it's early L elementary middle and high and then within those coh cohorts you have year ones two and three so they're not getting the same thing every year so one uh first years I mean third years are not getting the same thing as first years we Diversified it we have facilitators above uh each cohort that help keep it going with the principles to see where the needs are to make sure their mentors and mentees have a good match and then we have the 99d which is new which is really exciting then magnet um Dr Lopez has been working tirelessly with Liz and all of the other team to do the grow your own rag funding uh collaboration with WD provides additional funding for the uh like Ace and homes and the high school as well as 21h that is a collaboration with mde and that provides bonuses and stiens to Ace homes and the high school so they get funding they get a certain prum to attend meetings and then they get certain bonuses based on how many meetings they attend to improve instruction in those buildings Dr cascarella with the rising leaders we have Dr Abraham who is comes in and works with the principal coaches we have learning Focus Partners so central office is affiliated with each one of the principles to support evaluation and then also like day-to-day things they may need help with again Dr Lopez going back to him um curriculum support phenomenal we have instructional and culture and climate coaches in every building then our benefits are top level it's Blue Cross Blue Shield Delta Dental as as I spoke with you guys very high level insurance is at an affordable price right now we have uh if you choose a separate annuity other than or we work with strictly the standard that's the name of the company and then of course there's the office of retirement and they have two choices now you can get a standard pension or you can get like a portable 401k like um piece that you can take with you wherever you go and then just kind of repeating a little bit of the the stiens and from the Partnerships that I talked about and and just many of the other items that we have and then we have the grizzly awards at you guys know Raymond Alvarado Works tirelessly to make that a really fun fun event and staff really enjoy that they really I mean last year we we completely broke down Jal Lynch couldn't even speak and everybody else was just really happy to be selected because it's it's a really heartfelt recognition from the people that you actually work with and live with every day and statistics for retention so this is this is another side of that HR dashboard that you guys see that you don't often get in the Border report um but it also um retains this data for retention so I put in you know a point of time from last July to now and right now our retention rate is at 81.6 one% districtwide for All Staffing support Administration teachers everybody what questions might you have any more questions trusty toal um yes so one of the things I I did notice in the report and it maybe you can elaborate on it um historically overtime years I don't know how long ago but we used to get a lot of teachers from emu can you speak on how that relationship is going or I don't I don't need long drawn out but just is has there been talks of how we can possibly engage their students that get hired here and then I know WCC also has an education program um and how those students could possibly utilize some of the programs like grow your own or you know some of the other programs that we have to get teachers certified quicker okay so with with emu we're working mainly with that teacher to perah as well as attending their virtual I mean excuse me their um recruitment fairs and so we also yep we also worked with their you know presenting and honoring our staff so that we can pull in and the trct and then who was the other one from their student teachers when we had the bonuses they are because we are where most of them do their student teachers so the methods classes are held here at estherbrook and then the student teachers will get part of that sign on bonus is where you saw that so if they signed on with us early they got a Bonus and so we've been we really partnered closely with emu thank you so very much and then WCC we keep in contact with them in Recruitment and we attend all of their fairs to try to pull in those staff and work with them and and we just started a new program in which our students will be uh become teachers so it's a grant that we got from Michigan Department of Education through the Wasa Intermediate School District and our district as well as Lincoln will work with them on WR we've been writing the curriculum and the program we actually have a meeting this week I think it's called High School Pathways thank you other four questions trusty Phils and then trusty good um I was going through and I can't remember I this I was asking trusty good earlier today and you're talking about the different teachers and I don't remember the program or even if we Sor remember we were going to work is it Jason the gentleman that with the teachers and the I what was the name of that program it's i a okay International I I'm trying to remember what the me have we started that process yes that's the teacher that's at Ford in the Spanish Immersion program that U Miss serman mentioned e and I wrote that down so we only have one so how is that you're looking at like what does that look like so it it was more of a journey than we expected trying to work with those visas and we had more candidates but they fell off at the I a GN and so we're going to just continue to work closely with Jason and his team we now that we have lady here it's really hard to say that because it sounds disrespectful but that's a real name um did um now that we have l e i though l l e i d y and and so now that she's here she kind of she's kind of being the Pioneer like okay it's okay to come to ycs it's okay for us as ycs to support those visas and the process it was it was a long process in fact it took I don't even know how many pieces of paperwork and proof that we are a viable district superintendent had to do multiples I had to do multiples we worked really hard to get everybody here in fact lady herself was delayed until September 29th due to you know whatever the governments are doing and as far as getting the Visas and getting everybody in order but it's going well they helped find housing Transportation she brought her family so she's not going to be out there isolated alone and then if you know Miss Surman Celeste green and MaryAnn joerger they're going to make sure that she's felt feels welcome in the community and that is definitely I still want to put out there the last option like so maybe for some of the special things we can't find but we as uh Miss Mardi said a lot of those positions were filled at the beginning of the year so we wouldn't have gone for them we did did go uh reach out for that position that she's fing because it is a specialized she's in that Spanish Immersion is very difficult to get people who know both of those and can speak fluently um so that was one of those specialized positions as an example any other questions trusty feels I'm good y That's okay trusty G Rich so I guess I have a couple of kind of adjacent questions um I'm really excited about this this growth in our amazing um community of multilanguage Learners uh and I know that you know to to support them we need to have El certified teachers so um can you speak at all to recruitment efforts to to make sure that we have the teachers in place to support students in the buildings where they where um where those populations are growing yes that that's huge collaboration with that team that I just mentioned as well as iag those two factors and you look like you have something to add the grow your own that's for so we're paying the tuition cuz I want to I know we're saying it but people might not get that we paid that with that Grant we're able to pay the tuition so when our teacher choose to go to and get that endorsement they are they don't have to pay tuition for that we're paying for that we work with Dr Lopez who's worked with Wayne State University State and Concordia I don't know if Concordia does the El pce but to do the so that we know as we're anticipating the growth we have people who both know the students um know our district and now are equipped to teach in that area Okay so we're assisting them in getting that um endorsement Endor endorsement thank you um and I had just one more building specific question um I and it's really cool to see this growth I noticed that particularly at at Ace it was proportionally a a really big jump in the multi language learner population um and I just realized we don't have Ace broken down um in person versus virtual so I realized you don't have these data in front of you but I was curious if we have a sense What proportion of that growth in the multilanguage learner population at Ace is in the inperson program and What proportion is in the virtual program and again I don't expect you have an answer to that right this minute I don't but it looks like Dr Lopez I was going to get you the data and they are but the way that we decided to do the a students that com in that create space t so they get the eel part in person but the rest of their instruction is online and that's the also what I'm really excited because we've got somebody from Ace Miss Tillerson here they have been working with any of the ABA students beginning last year to bring them in person they don't they want them to know that they can come so they have a whole onboarding piece of how do you come back in person how do you can you transition at this time and so even if they are choosing Ava they're trying to figure out how to connect them to the building and so that has been a big culture shift and they're really trying to get them to be in person oh she like want to stand [Music] she and many of them it's because of they especially we talked about when people are coming from different countries and they have to meet our graduation requirement it'll keep them on track because they maybe have not come with that transcript of where they would be so they would be in school way longer than our age permits so they're coming in they're Lear learning a new culture a new country and a new language but then that Ace graduation I think you have 18 credits 18 oh okay my brain is working all right 18 credits versus the traditional High School uh uh credits that they would need so if they're coming in and we're um translating their transcripts that is the better acceleration for them and so now it's a nice cohort they'll be on track they can still graduate they can have their services um but we know that they if they're coming from a different culture especially if they're a refugee and they went to school to sixth grade or something we' have to figure out how to accommodate yeah are we able to support them then with the technology and and I can imagine that being another barrier and just like having the internet connectivity to do an online program I'm really glad to hear there is this inperson opportunity and that that is growing so I'm proud to about to say go ahead you can no JN still doing that for any student yep go ahead yep for all students across the district the Technology support where if you can't afford the technology then her program through what's the our program The District's program yes uh through Eastern Michigan University game above they assist us as well as through Comcast we are able to pay for the families we pay for their internet yes okay cool and that's being communicated in a means that their families can understand yeah that's why Liz's team is essential because they make sure with the that they understand what kind of services they can get anything that I mean they have even I've seen the the couches we get like like list not maryan jger even since they need a coach like they have been above and beyond when these families come to the country get making sure they have exactly what they need that's that's great and I know she's gone already but I can't believe can be in so many places at once well her whole team Maran is amazing celest green the entire they've even added now um previous Secretary from esbrook Jill Bishop Jill is now on the team so we've added more people to the team um and people who know our families already other board questions um when you say you're paying for tuition it also includes the testing fees and all of that yes for the grow your own just yes other board questions or comments thank you Miss Mard and next we're just excited I know it's this time of year that is a little bit uh further out but we know that we wanted to make sure we came with Grizz Z Camp last board meeting we had lots of presentations so we wanted to make sure before it gets out of our site uh the feedback and the information that happened through an important extension of our ongoing learning opportunities Grizzly learning camp and so Dr cerella will be sharing about grizzly learning Camp thank you Dr Zachary Ross good evening board happy to be with you this evening to talk about grizzly learning Camp so uh just briefly we're going to uh talk a little bit about some thank you some planning uh participation Fe back in plans for next year um certainly want to thank all of the staff and um folks that made Grizzly learning Camp happen including our executive cabinet and of course the school board with their support I love this picture of this young man especially as he's feeding the tortoise down here to me this is what Grizzly learning Camp really exemplifies um handson learning with students actively engaged and really joyful about their learning as well uh just a few of our partners um that come in various ways shapes and forms so for example 826 Michigan they provide writing professional development to our teachers some of our teachers visited the Detroit Zoo with their students the Lesley Science Center uh Henry Ford Museum and certainly our foster grandparents program has been a part of brizzle learning Camp as well Logistics uh this last year we uh trim down Grizzly learning Camp from 7 weeks to 6 weeks you might recall during Co years uh because we got State money we're required to do eight weeks of grizzly learning camp and that was really taxing on our teachers they got very little break in between uh the traditional school year ending and then a new one starting uh so uh the last two years it's been seven year uh seven weeks and uh the teachers and staff said how about six weeks because it's really really hard and because they put so much into Grizzly learning camps so uh we took their uh voice and and consideration into that and this year Grizzle learning Camp was 6 weeks we're still Monday through Thursday half days um you can see the sites that were up there we're anticipating but uh you know this is still very early in the process for next year we're anticipating using East Middle School again just because we we don't want that school to be abandoned and we want students at some point to keep continuously using it so that it doesn't fall under new code without students using in a couple of years so um you know we'll have to work that out with certainly with facilities and transportation and um technology excuse me one thing I do want to point out um you'll notice that the middle school grade level was a little bit different um principal uh Charles Davis said I really want the fifth graders so that uh the students that come to Grizzly learning Camp are meeting our staff getting acclimated to what we do in middle school and begin forming those relationships in the summer so the fifth graders um enrolled and went to the Middle School by all accounts it was wildly popular everything was great was seamless in that in that transition we did do hour and a half staggered times which really helped with Transportation buses were much more on time uh this last summer uh with Grizzle learning camp and why I didn't think of that four years ago I don't know but I did last year and we we got it worked out staff didn't quite like staying until 1:30 uh which I stand it's the summer you want to get out and enjoy the weather U but I think they appreciated the tradeoff of buses being on time and families really appreciated the buses being on time and not having to wait speaking of Transportation uh wildly successful you might recall at the very beginning we uh put out there that high school students would probably have to have bus tokens again but through our initiatives that you see up on the uh screen up there we were able to provide transportation for high school and a students that wanted it some of the students still wanted to use the bus tokens and bus transportation we honored that request as well um but I was really happy that we were able to provide our own transportation for those students that needed it and the families that might not feel comfortable taking the city transportation in the bottom there you can see Mother Goose at Perry Elementary with some of the kindergarten students telling stories so planning last year we began in uh December of 2023 I expect that to continue again now um certainly the executive cabinet um had a lot of input on the the planning for Grizzly learning Camp what adjustments we would need to make all staff are always invited uh to give feedback and to plan on uh the next coming year and we also use the feedback from the summer of 2023 and our planning for this past summer of 2024 I also love this picture with uh the young lady at the fish farm catching a fish you can see the fish right here she's both excited and nervous all at the same time and the second students yes the students absolutely yeah they um the students were adamant that um the a students should be at the high school with with the high school students because originally we we were going to have them at their own school that's kind of what the staff was advocating for and uh the students uh it was right here in this room it was just like it was yesterday they're right here saying and it was M it was interesting it was the high school students were mainly advocating strongly for the a students to be at high school which I found very heartwarming and very encouraging it was great um this past year we worked closely with the University of Michigan and the Mr program um you as a board you know you Pro um approved two um budgets for those Mr candidates to pay off their um fees and I I think it's a great investment you saw from um Miss mardy's presentation that there's a high retention with those staff members and I and I firmly believe it's because we're making an investment with them and showing them how much we value and care about them and and um having them also sign a form that they pledged to stay through the 28 29 school year I'm very honest with them I'm upfront I say now there's nothing that we can do we can't come after you legally to get that money back because it's part of your salary but it is an honor System and you're signing this document pledging that you will stay so it's more than just a handshake or a commitment they they actually have to sign that document so um we will find ways to make sure that we continue that um agreement with with the the Mr program Transportation I think was a big success again this year um making sure that we were able to provide transportation for the high school students and again Project based learning just continues to grow especially during uh Grizzle learning Camp um the two through fourth grades really rocked it out this year you see a couple pictures here where these students use Jango blocks to build some structure and you can see their um project was here and then their product was here about their structures that they had to build that were strong so a little bit about uh funding and expenses the sources of funding there on the left S3 Title One seek and leap minimally um I feel like I have to have like a funeral or homegoo ceremony for SE because it's ended and I'm just so depressed about it it's it's such a great Grant um we're very hopeful that in the spring there'll be another round of applications and if so we'll certainly apply um salaries uh was roughly 800 ,000 field trips was another 200,000 and when I say field trips I'm also including like the Emu and vent um that program where some of those instructors come here sometimes and then we we go out to Eastern Michigan as well uh supplies could add be anything from paper all the way up through pencils and art projects we give each of the teachers about $100 if they want to do a project based learning and they need to go buy something at a store for their individual Project based learning if they're they can do that they just turn in the receipt to do so so all total up this year we spent about $1.1 million um as superintendent uh talked about earlier uh we got have a couple of funding sources uh coming up for the summer including applying for the extended time school year Grant to the tune of about a million dollars um that was um submitted about four weeks ago Dr Lopez and we should find out uh pretty soon that we will get that Grant and then um we also included three years of funding in the um debt relief um money that's coming from the state of Michigan so um things are looking good for for budgeting and budg participation um you know we had six weeks um that's 24 days a total of 96 hours that's not very much really when you think about it 96 hours but man did the kids have a lot of fun and learn a lot um if you haven't seen it yet there's a picture over here oops sorry there's a picture right here of some of the students that help paint the estherbrook library and if you haven't seen the esterbrook library it's amazing the transformation it's it's just a cool place for kids and what was really fun about it is the kids got to how paint that Library so they have a huge investment in it um just a little bit of comparison from the summer of 23 to the summer of 24 enrollment was up um a little bit about 100 students which is good news uh mainly you see that enrollment um occurring in that second through fifth grade through Middle School level I know U principal Davis um recruited heavily at the Middle School uh to get kids to come to Grizzly learning Camp which is a great thing uh so some of the things that we're going to continue for next year I'm not going to read all of those to you um I do want to stress though that U love our relationship with all of the different partners that we have we couldn't Cod alone couldn't do it alone and and neither could the teachers so it's fabulous that we do have all of those Partners at the high school 119 credits were recovered uh during Grizzly learning Camp from all the students that that were there um one of my failures uh with grizzel learning Camp is the data um with students and are we making a difference academically I wish I could provide a report at least correlation saying that these students went and and this is where their scores are now yet um I'm trying like heck um but I'm just not there yet one of the things that I tried this year was to work with technology which technology was great in getting kids into power school and creating a bubble so we could actually track them but the problem became when teachers tried to log into power school and we had different teachers going into different classes and logins and it we just didn't weren't able to do a good job of that so um next year's plan is kids early as they register that way that they're tagged and we can follow them better that way that way I can can can come to you with at least correlational data saying that this student was there and this is how they're doing um this is how they did at the end of last year with the NWA and this is how they're doing this year um so again that's a a growing pain on my part that I would like to work on um growth for acare continue to work with Transportation attendance seemed to be a big issue as well what I couldn't figure out is um some families registered and never ever attended and so anecdotally I asked a lot of people I sent out a survey and I only got 19 responses from the from all the families that registered and you saw how many did register over 1,400 and only got 19 responses but the the answers were just all over the place maybe because it was a half day maybe because people didn't know soon enough even though registration was open in I think early March um so I'm going to continue on working on attendance the teachers I can't say every single one of them but um I know many of them and we ask them over and over to do it again if a family doesn't come call and invite them in it's not a punishment if we're not trying to scold anyone but you know you know you signed up for gri learning Camp come on we're having lots of fun and if you can't come or what are the barriers is it Transportation what can we do to help make sure you come so attendance was something that we want to continue to work on for next year and the budget you know I feel pretty good about where we are with the budget and we that we do have the money to continue to offer the camp the way that we have in the past um a little bit of the feedback I am not going to read any of this to you it's there for you to read at your own but I did want to include it uh because we did survey the staff overwhelming positive feedback uh both the length of the day the the time things that we've done well and again things that we could do next year uh communication you can see scored really high the the ones are excellent the sixes are really you know that's at the low end so to me that was a good sign that we're in a pretty good job of communication always can get better with that and then these are the responses from the families again we sent this out to every one of our families I was wrong was 20 23 responses not 18 um but again even of the the 23 responses was overwhelming positive about grizly learning Camp love the pictures uh the these uh young people are studying seeds cucumber seeds in middle school and um I actually tried to get the students attention and he was so engrossed and looking at his seeds that I interrupted his learning and he kind of gave a stink guy like what are you doing I'm trying to learn um really really just highly engaged students doing lots of great things what question might you have any questions Rusty toson always start um do you have a cap number for the attendance like is there a cap of how many students can be registered for a Grizzly Camp that's always really hard uh at preschool we do uh just because we have so many classrooms that are um licensed for preschool so at Perry and um I think I think it's about 130 preschool students that we able to accommodate the rest of the classes it just you know can we get enough teachers so that's always the balance how many students register and how many teachers so it's always negotiating sometimes there'll be an email hey I need a few more kindergarten teachers or a few more second grades but other than that not a real not a real cap and do we have a process um for instance if there's like if we have a waiting list or some scraggler you know that come in and just missed the deadline by a day or so yeah I I have to get better at that um we did have it last year where there was a cut off and we sent a note to families um the way this system works is as soon as you register you get an automated email back saying you're registered and then once preschool did actually get to that cap so we had to create a waiting list um we do need to follow up better with that waiting list though but all the family said that they were coming so we have to go back and my last question is for the students that are not ycs students on the survey is there any questions that would ask what is what is the possible reason that you may not want to attend ycs in in an effort to recruit okay there is no question like that but we certainly can add that's a good idea thank you h no they don't I know yeah that's how we turned over so many more students we started them in the principales met with the families and started the registration process it was a great opportunity and if they live within the catchman area on a current bus route we we would even allow them to to um use our transportation now if they live out of District they have to get they have to get here on their own yeah it's good to capture especially the students that are in Ipsy that are going to other school districts y go on I can wait I can wait sorry I so I realized you already have more than enough things on your plate um but I noticed in the feedback that families do identify the half day as one of the challenges um are there are there any partners that you've been able to explore that you might explore working with to um to help achieve full day coverage U for Working Families thank you yes you know we've tried a couple of different things and and it hasn't worked out really well we approached the YMCA and they were not interested uh we approached a private daycare company at least to try to do preschool and kindergarten some of the older kids might be a you know still be able to go home um but again that was a a tough sell we did two years ago contract with a company and I'll just be be honest with you it was it was not good um what they promised and what they delivered were two very different things and not in a good way I'm still exploring it though because I I do agree with you I think that that's really hard on families that that do have to work uh to find alternate care for the other half of the day so um maybe we can do some things within staff um I can talk to Bright Futures again to see if they' be willing to go in the afternoon at least for the younger kids um so we're exploring so anybody has any ideas I'm open to them I don't really have a question I just wanted to um for me my grandson said he had fun I don't know if you at the last M he was a high school student so the recovery part for him he said the process of him learning was easier I don't know if it was you know different teachers but for whatever reason he didn't really grasp it doing the record but he did extremely well um in high school and he liked it and he still like it so I just wanted to say you know so it worked for him so I just great to to say that other board comments or questions thank you so much Dr Pascarella looking forward to this year thank you next that takes us to our first public comment portion for this evening and I will read the public comment protocol uh pursuant to Board of Education policy 01 67.3 the board recognizes the value of public comment on educational issues and the importance of allowing members of the public to express their views please limit statements to three minutes in duration Miss Tillerson good evening on behalf ofan Community Education Association I want to thank the board for accepting and passing our contract this evening I appreciate you for that and I also want to thank um ycs Administration negotiation team for negotiating with us you know when people don't understand that when you negotiate you don't get everything you want but we still we I think we have a good contract it took a long time and people was worried but guess what our unit or our district is the only unit in washingon that has that has negotiated all the prohibit subject back into the contract we are the first so we probably will be our model our contract would probably be looked at by other District to follow to see what we got and to either um have the same language or to build on it so for me um I think that's a great colish so I thank you I thank each and every one of you and thank you and also oh one more thing I wasn't gonna say this but I am gonna say it Thanksgiving I thanks Ace Thanksgiving lunching put it on your calendar it is Tuesday November the 26 from 11 to 2 at eight so make sure you mark it on your calendar and please come thank thank you Miss telleron next that takes us to item 10 which is our consent agenda um I noticed one correction on the consent agenda that I will share with Miss Haynes but is there a motion at this time Madam president Schindler I move that the Board of Education approve the October 7th 2024 regular board meeting minutes October 21st 2024 special board meeting minutes and Personnel matters as per the presented list dated 10:30 24 new hires and resignations thank you a motion has been made by trusty Schindler is there support for this motion support trusty gainsley thank you supported by trusty gainsley all those in favor I those oppose that motion carries next that takes us to our action item under business and finance which is the acceptance of the current Services Incorporated proposal for delin field is there a motion at this time trusty Townson move that the Board of Education approved the ycms delin field bid award to current servfaces Incorporated in the contract amount of $12,800 thank you a motion has been made by trusty Townson is there a support for this motion trusty feel that support thank you supported by trusty Fields all those in favor I I those oppose that motion carries next that takes us to um our second public comment portion for this evening um Miss Haynes did any cards come in thank you so much Miss Haynes next that takes us to our Board of Education subcommittee reports are there any reports at this time from the board um yes trusty Fields um the communications team we met on October 14th I believe that was yes so um they were able to go over a couple things that they're doing as far as um Lambert um we discussed they wanted to have um AMU concentrate wanted teacher they wanted an article about the um a new training building and maybe talk about talk to someone in the community that to get some Fe back on how you know how they feel about it what their thoughts are behind it so I think they're still looking I'm not sure if we decided on anyone yet do you know it was me it was you it me it was trusty THS so we didn't recommend her we she you know have they interviewed you already the interview did take place and the radio interiew well the written interview took place a couple of weeks ago before we left for Vegas and the radio interview took place today okay and that will be coming out on WMU on Wednesday okay great great see see we had the right person in place for that and then um talking about the highlights and it looks like Julie had gave us an opportunity there we're um they're interviewing like 13 spotlights and then you're also going to be partnering with someone they have already interviewed most of the board I think Jillian had one mered of and I think we still have a couple more to do and just gave us some options as far as partners with that which Julie is going to work on for us as well and then we had the together Tuesdays they've been is that all that all all roll in together that's all because they said 13 spotlights and then together Tuesday so I guess it's all one thing so we we talked about that and um was there interview didn't Dr Z R did you have an interview recently or video that you just did did we did I I don't know I saw it but I had it in my notes yeah I've been doing quite a few interviews yes with um with several of the newspapers as well as I was in District administration the national uh magazine okay okay so that's all I have so I'm was so glad we finally got a chance to meet and get some feedback from Lambert about what what they were doing in the community and as far as our communication it looks like they are what's going on right now that's all I have from the communication subcommittee thank you trusty Phils any other subcommittee reports um yes the financial and operations subcommittee also met on October 14th um we received updates from facilities in regards to all of the um updates for the Middle School deblin field um everything escapes my mind of course today um but basically we're on track for um all of the list of of repairs and maintenance items that they um talked about um that they had on their plans to do so um in budget wise um we're still on track with those items so thank you to facilities and uh Mr Butler and his team right thank you trusty Townsen other subcommittee reports all right Sienna that takes us to board superintendent comments board members what comments do you have um go ahead let me turn my mic on that uh we couple of us came back after presenting in Vegas last week and then we also presented at MSB so we had a great time we got a lot of support from different uh participants and members who attended those both conferences so I think we represented ycs well and you know we keep getting bites so you know we're just moving on to bigger and greater things so that's really nice um another thing on here let me look at my notes I took some notes that may be it but just want to highlight that you know we both at both events um in Lon and Vegas and I think it turned out really well I think we represent it well as as always thank you trusty Phils other for comments um I just want to ditto uh trustee fields in regards to um the board's experience in Vegas it was very rewarding um we got to meet some celebrities of course I won the Living Single uh cast and CW um and so I'm just excited about that um it was it was always a good time to represent the district um ycs is very highly um represent respected I would say um on National level so I just look forward to us continue to um doing great things and moving forward also um please be on the lookout for an email in regards to WB dates um those dates have been solidified for the upcoming years so I'll get that out to you all um tomorrow morning by tomorrow morning thank you trusty Townson other board comments um I'll just quickly didto what the board memb said about the mesb and Conference the cube conference that we attended um lots of great feedback um also want to mention that um there might be an opportunity for some of our board members to attend the upcoming Navy conference which is being held in Atlanta in mid November so stay tuned um and just want to um congratulate the district um and the union um on reaching a a new collective bargaining agreement which is a two-year contract that is retro to July 2024 and goes all the way until 2026 um just want to say we know this was a collaborative effort lots of long hours put in on both sides um and I know you all were working tenaciously to make sure you reached an agreement um that benefits the district and the members um and also our calendar is also approved for those two years so I just wanted to say I know you're here miss Tillerson and Administration is here we we made it so I just want to say congratulations again job well done on both sides um and the last thing that I will say is if you haven't already go vote Yes Dr Zachary Ross thank you Madame President um I just want to Echo again thank you to um the ycea leadership team as well as the negotiating committee uh for working with us it came down to at the end really working specifically with uh the officers and so they just the whole team put in a lot of work and especially under the leadership of the President and Vice President so I just want to say thank you thank you very much um so now we have both the YCA and the YCA contracts completed and that is wonderful for our district wonderful for recruit recruiting as um we see increases in the salaries as well as especially our starting salary and so we want to really get in news about that out because we see we have few postings so we'll make sure that people know about that as well as some other nice benefits for our um deserving staff members so congratulations um also you heard about the calendar the calendar will be updated on the website there are not many changes from what's been up there to draft I think it was one day that had a correction of what the day was but it still was the same day um on the calendar so people don't need to anticipate some major calendar change um it is the calendar and it it the calendar rides with the contract so it's a two-year calendar to go with the two-year contract um this is the month of Thanksgiving so I just want to again thank everyone thank the I don't hear students staff parents Community supporters for just continuing to support ycs and thank this board for your service uh the work you guys do behind the scenes this tireless hours and now you're even with the presentations you have to go and study those and to present at cube in the masb conference um and so you not only show up here and at the school events and throughout the community you're so taking time to have that additional learning opportunity so I just thank you for that and for you leading the way and we know that there tomorrow there's the vote and there's going to be additional people coming on and you already have an onboarding process and I can saw other people at the masb and Cube conference say well what are you guys what are you doing I'm like well they got a plan they have a plan and so when they seek you out they should just a reminder to the board that um SJ apple is working with the strategic planning they've been going through um and meeting with our uh kinds of people throughout our district and so on November 11th and 12th you guys are going to be interviewed as well um also the operations and finance and operations subcommittee is going to be asked to meet before the next uh board meeting uh to prepare for the audit that's just the process we always um try to do ahead of time time so that you will be asked for some dates as well as U making sure coming up soon is that uh nabzi the National Alliance of black school educators conference in um Atlanta November 20th to the 23rd and I know Julie sent out something but if you are hoping to go those rooms fill up fast so she wanted me to make sure to send those reminders tonight um to please let her know if you would like to go um again just thank you for just everything that you've done to ensure that we've got a a school district that is has that high expectations and high levels of support you see the student count is growing every year and this year to to see the 4,000 Mark um and knowing that when I came it was a 3,100 um on that form that we did so from 3100 to over to 4200 is extremely um that it just tells about people have more confidence and in what we're offering the quality and so again I just thank our Educators and support staff because you're the ones that are closest to the students we appreciate you and our families for um for having trust in us um and I did say I didn't have any more comments thank you so much Dr Zachary Ross but I do just want to take a second to thank um Dr Dr Zachary Ross and Dr Lopez for all of their support in helping to make Cube and masb happen for us to work in collaboration with us it's been a joy um and also miss Haynes who who works tirelessly to get us all together and prepared to to go um it it does not go unnotice um all the things that go into that so I just wanted to take the time to thank you and and to thank this board for for showing up and and being supportive and and doing the work so thank you everyone it is 8:50