here for two years. No, we're good. Thanks. 15 hear me? Yes. We're going to get ready to get started, but I need to give you a heads up. Um, you will see the three minutes if you are signed up to speak. U, you will get a 15 second warning. Um, and then with three minutes, uh, you will be asked if you're not stopped, they're going to turn the mic off because that's the only way we can keep it moving. Uh, to be fair to everyone because you can see the timer, we can't. And we're only looking at hand signals back that back in the back. to just not try to be rude, not try to be inconsiderate, but to make sure everyone gets the same treatment. Make sense to everyone? And then this mic will be here for you to speak. You should be addressing the board. We ask that people everyone has the same right whether you agree with them or not. Everyone has the same right to be heard for three minutes. Okay. Thank you. [Music] people can't do it. There you go. I'm sure there's a nurse in here somewhere. You got a nurse. How do we know? Okay. Okay. Okay. Thank you. Okay. So, I call to order the Centennial School District Committee of the whole school board meeting, Tuesday, May 27th, 2025. If we could stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. Oh, I'm sorry. We had an executive session before this to discuss personnel matters. If we could stand for the pledge of allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the stands nation. If you could stand for just one more minute um to remember the gentleman, the rent park ranger passed away at Tyler State Park. Just for a moment, please. Thank you. Mrs. Rou, could we have a roll call, please? Mrs. Branado, here. Mrs. Crossson, present. Mr. Ghart, here. Mr. Godson, present. Mr. Hart, present. Mrs. Lynch, present. Dr. Maguire, here. Mr. Martin, present. Mr. Saddowski, here. Nine members, present. Thank you. The only announcement I had was uh that the board met tonight in executive session to discuss labor relations. Um I'm to move on now to I have an announcement. I'm sorry, Mrs. Lynch. Thank you. Thank you for the courtesy. The reason I'd like to make this announcement at this portion of the meeting is before the agenda is approved. I would like to ask Dr. Duke to withdraw from Superintendent are from the news reports, TV channels. They are not my own statements. I do not want to have a lawsuit. I repeat, these are not my own statements. They're from the news. In the past couple of weeks, we've had the intelligence of the Courier, The Patch, The Herald, NBC New TV, CBS, ABC. We've even been on national news. I won't go through. I have a list of all the things that happened in Central Books, but all I want to say, I'm not going to read them. You all know them. Our community cannot be this disruptive. We are going through headlines. Even this morning, the intelligence are give me a break. This is too much. We are a good community. We are a good school district. We do not need all this diversion from a superintendent. So, Dr. Nukeba, even though you might be a wonderful man, I'm not I don't know that, but I'm sure that you must be. I ask you please for the good of Centennial, please withdraw from superintendent position. [Applause] Thank you, Mrs. Lynch. Um, the only other announcement I'd like to make is we are not Central Books. We are Centennial and we all know that. So, take it for whatever you take it for whatever you feel about Centennial. This is a place we all live. This is a place we all love. And we and we are all making our decisions accordingly. I'm not judging anyone, but I don't expect to be judged either. I don't expect any anybody up here to be judged, but you're all entitled to your feelings. So, if we could without further ado, could we move on to the good stuff? Um, Dr. Bettin, the floor is yours. No. Oh, jeez. Where is he? It's crowd surfing. There's always a clown. Dr. Bennon. Oh, you asked him to do it. I told him to jump up, not jump down. So, he did it in reverse. Yeah. Reena. One of the the the outstanding opportunities that you have as a superintendent of Centennial uh school district is opportunity to recognize and and view the wonderful uh talent that our students have. One of the taglines for our school district is academic, athletics, and the arts. And I think we represent uh many of those three things very well. Uh Mr. Martin may have different opinion a little bit on one of them, but but uh definitely in the arts and part of that is an opportunity to go and view and the district each year has an opportunity to purchase some of our students arts and we take that art and display it in central office. Um, if you come in our central office, you will see pictures of our students. You will see artwork from our students. And I will tell these two students, uh, they will be, uh, honored to know that you are probably in my tenure, two of the first that will actually have your artwork in the suite area for the superintendent area. This will be displayed. There is some student artwork inside my office, but you will be in an open suite area. So I'll ask uh the teacher and art teacher extraordinaire to share a little bit about the student work and then we'll do the presentation. Thank you Dr. Bettton. Uh my name is Reena Friedan. I'm one of the art teachers here in the Centennial School District. This is a longstanding tradition. Uh it's over 25 years I believe close to 25 years this tradition of the district creating a permanent gallery of student work. Um it was in an effort to give um sort of the to teach our young artists that their work matters and their work is purchased by the district and then as Dr. Ben said it's it's hung uh throughout the the district offices. So this year we have two wonderful seniors who have been chosen. Uh we have Lily Bolandorf and we have Alexis Castro Luna. [Applause] Ironically, each of these students created these paintings in um my studio. So, I feel very very lucky to have witnessed this. They've each worked as independent study students this year. Um they've sort of exhausted all of the coursework that we've had to offer and their skills far surpass mine. So, we we work together in an independent study capacity. Um, each artist is also um showcasing their work coming up. If I may make a little shameless plug for each of them, Alexis is part of our William Tenant um Mr. Tenant competition and some of his artwork is going to be shown there. May look a little different from the painting here. And then Lily is one of our gifted artists who's part of our uh Fox Chase Cancer Center partnership. um our beyond the canvas that is taking place at the center on June 4th. Um Lily's creating an original piece of artwork um that represents a story um from from Fox Chase. So that'll be online as well. Um but you can reach out to us and we can get you some more information. But each of these paintings are an oil. Each of these paintings are a testament to their dedication, their hard work. Um they're both very, very shy. They're dying right now. Um, that's why I'm doing all of the talking. Um, but each have plans to to use their creativity to problem solve in the future. And if this is any indication of what what the future holds, we're all pretty lucky to be in their company. So, super proud of you [Applause] both. So, if you've ever been to the art, how many you been to the art showcase? It's pretty magnificent. Wouldn't you agree? But it's a stressful time for me, believe it or not, when you're walking around and trying to decide which piece to select. And one two years I've had pottery also. Um, and then it got to be really challenging. I realized after the first year I couldn't even remember where I saw something and try to go back. So I started taking pictures to keep it on my phone and then after that I started sending it to staff. So, it's kind of been a participatory thing where staff either who are there with me will give me their opinion and or uh give me feedback when I send them a copy of the picture. So, I will tell you that through that process this year, which was inclusive of other administrators who I shared the pictures with, some were there on site, your two pieces were chosen. And on behalf of the district, uh Lily, I would like to give you a check that we're purchasing your art for for $250. And Alexis, the same for you. No. [Applause] Clearly said no. I would like to thank for this opportunity. Uh I would like to share like the story why I did this painting. This painting was inspire uh an inspiration because of my family that I have in my country El Salvador. These are like my little cousins. Uh sadly um their father passed away. So it was a hard time for them. So I I went to visited visited them and then we were we were having a joyful moment while I was there and so then I was I was like let's take a lot of photos together and then I was able to get many photos of them and I felt so happy seeing them even though there I knew they were going through stuff. So, in in a way, I wanted to showcase like the happiness and warmth that I still feel with them because even though I know they were going through stuff, they still treated me the same. They were like still happy and joyful. So, I wanted to showcase that in my painting. If you could both of you hold up the art piece and turn it around so the board members can see it. Sorry, this setup makes it a little bit challenging for the board members. If you could go down to the other end for those Thank you. [Applause] The last meeting in May is also the time that we have an opportunity to recognize uh staff, faculty and staff who get outstanding. Yes, thank you. I'm sorry. You can stay up here with me if you want. um who recognizes outstanding achievement award from the district. So, one of the things that is also joy of the superintendent's job is while we recognize them here at the board meeting, we started uh three years ago, Colleen maybe, uh surprising them and visiting them at their work location. And it's the funniest thing when you walk in superintendent, you have this entourage of people, their co-workers and others who nominate them, and they're wondering, why are these people standing in my classroom or why is this person at the bus bar? Uh, everyone couldn't make it tonight, but we have four of those people who are here with us. And after I call your name, could you please come up and receive your gift from us? The first person and is Jacqueline [Applause] Pelicone. You can stand here. Uh, just a little bit to share. I'm not going to read the whole thing. uh as outstanding achievement winner. Uh you can come up too. Uh she's been with the district for 17 years and has been a pillar at McDonald Elementary School in the community. Uh for the past five years, she's taught full day kindergarten. Um to know her they say is to love her as she brings a bright smile and an infectious enthusiasm that helps calm and comfort not only her students but also her colleagues. As an educator, she demonstrates a deep commitment to fostering an environment of unconditional support and personalized learning for each child. Her lessons are carefully crafted to be both engaging and developmentally appropriate, incorporating fun interactive activities that captivate her students interests. She also stays current with the uh latest and best practices in education and integrates innovative technologies into her already exceptional lessons. I'm doing some highlights here so I don't have to stand there too long. During the summer of 2020, she dedicated her personal time to designing a prototype for the virtual learning Google Slides, an invaluable tool that uh continues to enhance our her staff and her team's ability to visually engage students to this day. Her attention to detail is unwavering and her commitment is ensuring to all of her students success, particularly during the challenging times where where it's crucial in supporting their learning across all settings. She's deeply dedicated to the success of her school community. As both a teacher and an engaged parent at McDonald, she consistently demonstrates her commitment to the well-being and growth of our students. For the past five years, she has been a member of the invaluable member of the schoolwide positive behavior interventions and supports team. one of the most memorable contributions this year, and this was interesting to me when I learned this about her. She takes time to create a teacher cart. And I said, "Well, what's a teacher cart?" She takes the time and often her own time and money to shop for special treats for her colleagues to brighten their day. So they get excited and I can see when they describe it to me when she comes around and brings around and surprises them with the spirits and a gift that she has on a teacher cart. She was selected this year to serve on both McDonald's think tank and the district's larger think tank climate and culture team which is something new that office of teaching and learning started this year. So we take those culture and climate surveys and we try to take them and turn them into actionable items. And this year the OTL decided how do we create a think tank model to identify what is the biggest thing that we can do to get the biggest return on investment. And so she was selected by our peers to be a part of that. A fifth grade teacher shares this about her. They describe her as patient, supportive, she radiates with joy, positivity, gentle and friendly. She is a shining example of excellence in education and community involvement. So ladies and gentlemen, please help me congratulate Jacqueline Pel. [Applause] I don't know. Who's that? Well, bring him up. Where is he? Come on down. Come on. Yes. Anybody? You got anybody else here? Yes. Tell them to come on down. You got the rest of your family. [Applause] And here's our family with the rest of the family. Thank you for letting us borrow your mommy. Thank you. Thank you. Our next outstanding achievement winner is Matthew Marky. So, as he's coming down, this nominee is more than just an educator. He is someone who goes above and beyond the norm for most teachers. He is a special one-of-a-kind teacher who truly cares about his students. Not only is he concerned about his students academics, but he teaches them social and emotional skills. As an emotional support and learning support teacher, he has spent over 20 years working tirelessly with students who come to his classroom with a wide variety of challenges. He is always looking for ways to move his students forward to gain independence as learners, often taking time of his own to work with them outside of the classroom and class time. Proof of this nominees impact and inspiration is evidenced by the fact that numerous former emotional support learning support students who struggled in school and out of school have sent emails and have returned to L College to let him know the positive influence that he's had on their life. Moreover, parents expressed their gratitude for to him for his commitment and dedication to their children. One of the most notable instances was when a retired teacher from another school district called the nominee and left a voicemail stating that a former student of the nominee had helped her in a store. The retired teacher was so impressed she made the effort to look up the nominee at our school to let him know that the positive impact he had had on his students years later. He is a member of L Collegeg's SAP team as well as a past coach of several sports teams here at the middle school. He headed up the outdoor classroom project and fundraisers to support this project, including several Mother's Day plant sales. How many of you guys have been to the plant sale? Yes. He has spent 21 years as a special education teacher, 13 of those as an emotional support teacher, followed by his current role of eight years as a learning support teacher. His commitment to Centennial District and his students exemplifies why he was selected this year as an outstanding achievement award winner. Ladies and gentlemen, Matthew Marky. Could Could Mr. Marky's family please come up? Thank you, M. You're welcome. Your dad Your dad also had a positive positive uh effect on my own son. So, thank you, Mr. Marky. Thank you. Your dad is cold tonight, guys. It was the first time for you to you taught my son the value of hard work. He wasn't your student, but he was your student on on the job. So, thank you. Our next recipient, the third of the four that were able to make it here tonight is Karen O'Brien. Now, Karen, you remember when I showed up, you look like a deer in headlights. Uh, this nominee has spent the last 16 years supporting students in the Centennial School District, but she started out as a district substitute. Shortly after, there was a smart administrator somewhere in the district who recognized her value and hired her as a personal care assistant at Stackpole Elementary where she remained until the school closed. In 2012, she moved to Davis where she remained serving as a personal care assistant before switching to a special education classroom assistant. Going above and beyond for her students is a norm for our nominee. She's been a core member of the March Madness organizational team at Davis for the past 10 years and I happen to be there in March and you guys had on those shirts. Um, she's involved as a coach for for the teams for the school's gritty girls running club for several years. She's considered a true professional and her colleagues emulate her and regularly lean on her for her opinions, advice, and general knowledge. And when I shared those comments, I can tell you everyone in the room was nodding and saying, "Yes, we do go to her a lot." They call her the outstanding team player. The comments expressed below that I'm going to share paint a far better picture of the candidate than a simple paragraph or information I read before. One person said, "In my two years as an administrator at Davis, she has been their version of a Swiss Army knife." And I did remind administrator that's not a good thing in a school now. And she she positively impacting kids in so many ways across the school from greeting students, excuse me, in the morning with music and a smile at the crosswork and all the students in the class nodded and said yes with enthusiasm to take in on nearly every possible support position in the building at the drop of a hat. So she's willing and able to fill in anywhere and everywhere. She's willing to do what is needed to help her colleagues and especially her students in every professional context. She is truly is an outstanding educator observing uh deserving of this magnificent and well-deserved recognition. Congratulations for our Karen O'Brien. We need a picture of her family. Thank you. And last but not least, bringing up the rear is Nick [Applause] DeAndrea. Nick is described as a passionate instructional leader. He fosters teacher growth, student engagement, and innovative learning opportunities. Over his 20-year career in Centennial as a classroom teacher, instructional coach, and athletics coach, he's been a mentor. He's shared his expertise, and he has a collaborative spirit. As an instructional coach, he seamlessly bridges the gap between classroom instruction and professional development, combining deep knowledge of evidence-based practices with an understanding of the daily challenges that teachers and educators face. His ability to anticipate a teacher's needs and offer practical impactful strategies has led to immeasurable improvements in student outcomes across our schools. And in the summer months, he actually offers camp invention where he sparks curiosity and innovation of young minds. As a classroom teacher, he was known for his innovative approach to instruction, creating dynamic inquirybased learning experiences that foster deep engagement and critical thinking. As a coach on high school boys soccer and track teams, he instills the values of teamwork, resilience, and perseverance. Ladies and gentlemen, Nick [Applause] Deandria, a couple children tonight. Make sure make sure make sure is that your daughter? Yeah. Make sure you tell your other your siblings how cool dad is because he's cool here. Thank you. You have all made a beautiful positive impact on children's lives. Thank you for that. Okay. Yep. Dr. Bettin, superintendent report. Board members and Madame President, I will defer my time to Mr. Greenwood. to give you all an uh update on the budget. Uh as Mr. Greenwood makes it to the podium. Uh he will give you an update because you have to uh do a pre preliminary adoption tonight. I do want to remind the board that we are facing challenges over the past uh multiple years. We have had in 22 202 23 school year we had total reductions of $1.8 million that we were able to save. In 2324 uh we had expense reductions totaling $1.2 million. And then in 2024 2025 uh we had total reductions of $1.7 million. Over the course of the past three years we have cut approximately $5 million and had to deal with a three-year reduction and loss of revenue of about $7.8 million. Mr. Greenwood. Thank you very much. Dr. Bettton. Um all of you have the presentation in front of you. If you don't get the opportunity to see the screen, um we'll jump right in. Uh May 31st marks the deadline to adopt a 2025 uh 2026 proposed final budget and that's what we will be seeking uh this evening under new business. um this resolution that we're seeking um seeking the board's approval of the proposed final 2025 bud uh general fund budget that includes revenues totaling 150,970,762 and expenses totaling $156,790,223 with a real estate millage rate of uh 173. 30723. Uh further, we'll be seeking authorization to display and advertise this budget in accordance with act one uh of the 2006 school code. It's important to understand that this uh may not be the final budget. Um but what it does do is it sets a ceiling on uh what level act one increase uh it can you can have uh that is also uh set in this and that number is 4%. This slide shows the current year forecast on the left the proposed 2526 budget and the remaining four years of our five-year plan. The proposed budget includes a 4% act one increase with a deficit of $5.8 million um which is being funded uh in this from our general fund reserve. You can see uh PTE's recommendation uh is for a fund balance of 8%, it shouldn't exceed 8%. Um by the end of uh next school year, June 30, 2026, uh our fund balance would be 4 and a.5%. Um and that would be roughly a half a month's worth of expenses. This slide s simply calls out some major assumptions included in the 202526 proposed final budget as well as those carried through the five-year plan. We assume the full act one increase uh for 2026 27 through 29. We're using the IFO, the independent fiscal offices uh estimate for that year and we're carrying 2030 because the IFO hasn't yet uh calculated that number. Um and you can see the rest of the uh assumptions uh that are contained therein. Mr. Greenwood, when you flip pages for the board, you might want to tell them what page you're on so they can keep up since they can't see. Got it. Got it. I'm now on page six. Thank you, Dr. Um, as we've shared uh throughout the spring and at our various budget work sessions, uh, we are we are working under a structurally deficient budget where our uh, expenses exceed our revenues. And to make that balance, we are drawing money from our debt service fund, which is in essence the district's savings account. key factors uh in this budget uh the special education costs. Uh if you had tuned in any of the prior work sessions that special education costs continue to rise at in the district. Uh state funding is flat. Um and um most of that when when state and federal funding are flat, it really puts the burden of the uh of the bill on our local taxpayers. Um this does include our current uh funding and labor agreements. It includes increases in operating costs required uh curriculum. Um alignment is included in this plan. Um and you can see those costs expenses uh that were postponed last year. Last year we deferred our technology refresh. We can't continue to defer it. So this year we've sort of had to double up on uh on the technology refresh takes to page eight. Um while all the departments uh we had reached out to all the uh departments and we were really pushing for cost reductions. Um and while all departments made cost reductions, not all departments were able to get underneath the prior year budget which was uh part of that goal particularly on the smaller ones. Uh three of those are the special ed group um that has an increase of three and a half% or $621,000. Uh the technology group uh which has an increase of 18% or $434,000 and again I think that's primarily due to the delayed refresh. That number is is close to what the refresh costs each year. Uh so we not only have this year uh but we have last year's to do as well. Um our teaching and learning increased um about $358,000 um as we work to stay aligned with the new curriculum as noted earlier. It's also important to note uh that the teaching and learning group did uh identify and made $265,000 in cuts uh to the original budget and uh which is about a 12% reduction in their expenses before the curriculum. So the board challenged the departments and challenged the administrative team to identify places to reduce. Uh we've done that in numerous occasions. Uh these are the ones that have stuck. Um and these are primarily tied to just expenses to operating expenses uh not to not to labor. Uh there is a higher degree of uncertainty this uh this time around this year as opposed to any in the past history uh with regards to costs um and and particularly how those costs are going to be pushed through uh whether it's coming out of Washington to states uh how that happens um and the impact of things like tariffs that are being discussed uh in and out of uh in and out of the circles of uh of government. Slide nine shows the uh reductions a little reduction history uh over the last three years. Uh these are sort of the numbers that Dr. Bettton had pointed out in his uh in his quick update there. Um slide 10 um looks at um where we would have been if if you maintained an act one increase every year. The act one increase just as a reminder is the state's um assumption and the state's approved limit um for expenses to that uh the approved limit that districts could raise their expenses. um that is uh that is the 4%. Now that is based on wages not just locally and within the state but across the country. So that is how that number is determined. If we had continued and if we acted if we used the act one increase in each of those years uh we'd have about another $2.6 million in in revenue. Um and the cumulative amount of that would be $8 million. Slide 11 looks at revenue both from local sources, state sources, and federal sources. Um, and and the big challenge now is uh the federal U money. So, I'll start at the bottom. Uh, we've returned to preandemic levels. So, we will we will be at about a million and a half dollars. That's tied to title funding and medical access funding. All the esser money has been pushed through at least through the system here at uh Centennial. We did a good job of maximizing that use uh and really fostering that as we've said for the past three years uh really to our students goals right in ways that we can improve our curriculum, improve our delivery. Um the state funding is relatively flat. state funding. Uh we are continuing to wait for that uh for Harrisburg to come up with their budget. Uh while it would be wonderful to have that in advance, the school district budget is due June 30th. Um so it is unlikely that we'll hear from the state at that time. Um but what we are hearing is that the majority of the state budget, uh Governor Shapiro's budget was going to the neediest of our schools. um which uh which unfortunately Centennial didn't acqu uh didn't qualify for. Uh but our total growth in basic ed and special ed funding is just over $200,000. That is a a small amount uh when you look at a total of over $20,000, right? That's it's like a percent uh increase uh in additional funding. That takes us then to the local sources and that's where our our primary funding is. Uh most of those numbers are positive. Uh we do show a decrease on investment income uh as we anticipate uh federal interest rates to come down and um and so we're expecting a lower return. So we've we're budgeting for next year $2,225,000. Slide 12 just shows sort of where Centennial sits with regard to millage rates charged in our uh county. Uh and we are literally dead center. There are uh there are six ahead of us, there's six below us. Um and those groups seem to have common interests, right? the the ones that have lower millage rates uh are tended appear to be more the affluent areas and those areas that have had more and more and more recent uh development. So they're appraised values are are higher the bottom half uh below that is higher than Centennial, Ben Salem, Namy, Quakertown, Benbury, Bristol, Morrisville, Burrow tend to be the older communities uh that are more locked in. So their assessments aren't changing uh to the same extent. The proposed final budget um shows uh these expenses. This chart shows expenses by object code, salaries, benefits, purchases, uh property, supplies, uh and then debt service payments. And in a piraphph the same expenses shown by function code which are segments of of uh of our organization instruction support services um capital improvements and debt service and then similarly that same group of numbers by the object code. Um, when we look at the object code, this final slide, slide 15, um, to, uh, uh, to Mr. Ginhard's questions in the past, he's always wanted to know what's in the pie. Um, and this chart tries to break down each of those services. So, salaries and benefits making up um 70% of the total district expenses, followed by purchase services, which includes a plethora of items such as the IU special education services, special education placements, charter school tuitions, MBIT tuitions, uh technology services, utilities, all are captured under that 19%. Supplies represent 3% uh which includes books uh software uh fuel for the buses. Um property uh is 1% which are just technology purchases, software purchases. Um other objects and other financing our interest on our bonds and our bond principal payment. Those numbers come out to 7%. So, with that, we will be seeking the the board's approval of that proposed uh final budget and our ability to post that uh on our website. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Greenwood. Um we're going to move on to public comments. Um when I call your name, you can come up here to the podium to the right of me. Um in the front there, you have three minutes. when you have 15. Is there a timer on the on the screen? Will there be a Okay. So, we can't see. So, the gentleman in the back is going to raise his hand and you'll get a 15 second warning. At 3 minutes, the microphone will shut off. Um, if you could go to the podium, state your name, uh, your Excuse me. I'm sorry. Go ahead, Mr. Artline. Do we have um more than 10 comment cards? We do, but there's not there's 20. Can we extend the comment period to hear all of the comment cards? Sure. There's only 20. So, we're good. Second. Second. That wasn't that wasn't going to I was that was going to happen. So, Okay. If you could state your name, your address. You don't have to put the numbers, but it came to my attention that we had some people speak at our last meeting that although they have a warmster address, they are not in our school district. They're really um in central Bucks. So, if you could just say your name, your your street, and what township you live in, that would be helpful. Thank you. Um Tina Kairens All right. Uh, my name is Tina Karens um from Warminister, Pennsylvania. Dr. Lucabal is not the person for the job as Centennial School District Superintendent. Those of you on the school board who are in favor of his hiring have said that he answered questions well during the interview process. Well, we had our community Q&A last Thursday. So, let's see how Dr. Luca Ballal's answers on Thursday line up with his words and actions in his past role as superintendent of Central Bucks. When asked about the chaos that was his two-year tenure at Central Bucks, which included anti-LGBTQ policies and book bans, Dr. Lucal said, quote, "The policies that were passed in Central Bucks by the board are not policies that I advocate. I do not advocate on a policy on the removal of things and books." End quote. Yet, Dr. Lucabal is referenced in a July 28th, 2022 article in the Philadelphia Inquirer as a proponent of the library materials policy, the book ban, for what he called, quote, gratuitous, salacious, over-the-top, unnecessary, sexualized content in library books, end quote. He also penned an eight paragraph message to the Central Buck School District community in defense of their library materials policy 109.2, 2, which you can still read online, which the inquirer noted was opposed by many parents, library advocates, and social rights groups. During the Q&A, Dr. Lucabal promised to meet with LGBTQ students and community members at Centennial. He said, quote, "I want to understand how we can start to remove some of the obstacles and build bridges and work together to make you feel welcome." Yet, as reported by CBS News on May 24th, 2022, in regards to the community outcry over Central Buck's pride flag ban, Dr. Dr. Lucabal was quoted as saying, quote, "While we can agree to disagree on this one, the reason for the decision is that flags, once thought to be a statement of support, are now a flash point for controversy and divisiveness in our school buildings." End quote. He can try to blame all of Central Buck's ills during his tenure on their schoolboard, but his words, his actions, they speak louder. Dr. Lugabal agreed with the schoolboard policy to ban pride flags, calling them controversial and divisive. Dr. Dr. Lugabal supported the library materials policy book ban and defended it. Do not vote for someone who lies about his past and then takes no responsibility for it. We do not want someone like this here at Centennial. Nicole Lynch I'm sorry. Nicole Lynch. Here I am. Thank you. Nicole Lynch, Southampton. Uh, first I'd like to thank those I need you to say which street. Sure. I live on County Line Road. I have a Can you stop my time while I answer that question, please? I'm going to come in right at three minutes. Um, first I want to thank those board members who have spoken out against Dr. Luca's appointment and have listened to and engaged with the community. So, thank you. This search has happened behind closed doors. The board began drafting a contract before the public was informed and without presenting any other finalists. There was no chance for parent or teacher groups to have input, which has historically happened for other searches. Why? Two weeks ago, you heard over two hours of comments opposing Dr. Lucab's appointment and criticizing this lack of transparency. And what did you do? Two days later, you held another closed door meeting with only three parents hand selected by the board president. This is not a representative sample of stakeholders. Despite being asked, the board has not shared what happened at that meeting or how the participants were selected. Some of your own fellow board members have said they were not involved in this process. You will say you held a public forum. Dr. Lucaba had pre-screened questions that he saw ahead of time. His answers were vague and bland and provided no opportunity for follow-up from the audience. This is not transparency. This is lip service and disregard for community engagement. But let's talk about the forum. Dr. Dr. Lucab wasted no time throwing his previous board under the bus. Is that how you want to be treated when the time comes? He took no responsibility for his actions, but claimed he was forced to enforce the policies he didn't agree with. But his actions tell us a different story. He wholeheartedly supported those divisive policies. He never spoke against them, but left as soon as things didn't go his way, taking $700,000 with him. We just heard about our budget. Mr. Dr. Ginhart, you wrote to me that you were confident Dr. Lucaba would be good for the district if we give him a chance. He had his chance. We saw what happened. Why should we believe his words when his previous actions contradict what he said so clearly? Dr. Lucab says he wants to keep politics out of education, a refrain I keep hearing from people who support book bans, limited curriculum, and ignoring the needs of marginalized students. Wanting students to see themselves reflected in books, to learn accurate history, and to be safe in school isn't political. That's education. If we're keeping politics out, that means no censorship of books, no targeting marginalized students. Bookbans and exclusionary policies are political. Let's not pretend they're not. Dr. Lucabas said it himself. This district is poised to do great things, and I agree. But we won't get there if we allow these issues to divide and distract us. You say you're listening, prove it. If you are, you will know you cannot move forward with this appointment. A yes vote tonight tells us all that you have chosen to ignore our voices and further your own agenda. Our students deserve better. Thank you. 15 seconds. Thank you. [Applause] I think this says Noel Miller. Thank you. If you could state your name, the street you live on, the township. My name is Neil Miller. I live on Siri Road. Oh, I'm sorry. When you get to the microphone. Thank you. My name is Neil Miller. I live on Suriri Road and in Warinster. Last week, two weeks ago, I listened to a lot of Dr. Lucab supporters and most of them said the same thing. We don't have all the facts. It sounds like a lot of us have done some research since then, myself included. It is an indisputable fact that he racked up over a million dollars in legal fees defending controversial policies. We also know that he walked out with an enormous golden parachute after a new school board was elected. Now, the good question is why did he choose to leave? Perhaps the original school board was easier to work with and the new one would not work well with him. We don't know. But neither does Dr. Lucabau because he left before the new school board even convened. He never tried. So he just walked out and left. Now the question is, is he going to do this again? And anyone who knows anything about psychology knows the old adage. The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. Promises, whatever, it doesn't matter. The best predictor is what have they done already? Now that brings me to the next issue. The contract. The contract that was provided to Dr. Lucabau is boilerplate. It is standard writ. It has virtually nothing to address any concerns that we might have. Now, you might say, "Did you research?" Yeah, I've got the contract right here. I'll be glad to give it to anybody who wants it. But I read this contract. It guarantees his salary. It guarantees a raise every three years. And I'm going to say it's independent of performance, which is not entirely true. It says that the it is based on satisfactory performance, but there's no metrics. There's no job description. There is no goal, no measure that must be hit in order for him to qualify. The measure of whether or not he did a good job is whether the board decides whether he did a good job. That's it. I started a new job not long ago. There are metrics that I have to hit in order to prove that I'm doing what I said I would do when I started. Now, C Central paid a steep price. 15 seconds. It was noted earlier that this is not Central Bucks. This is Centennial. And where that is true, the difference is Centennial is going into this with its eyes wide open. Thank [Applause] you, Daniel Crofts. Daniel Crofts. Thank you. I'm Daniel Croft. Um, I live on Butternut Drive in Southampton. Mrs. Broncado, Dr. Bettton, members of the board, as you work to fill the post of superintendent, please keep in mind the campaign slogan used by one of your members. Keep politics out of our schools. What a good idea, I would say, especially to keep big money politics out of our schools. Abe Blueba originally was appointed superintendent by members of a central Bucks board who owed their election to a wealthy partisan Paul Martino who poured campaign money the better part of a million dollars into central bucks. Schoolboard elections traditionally have taken place outside the arena of party politics with very little money spent. Martino totally upended this sound practice in 2021. He kept spending in 2023. By then, however, voters in Central Bucks were fed up and removed his friends from the board. Les fates the facts. There is no way you can appoint Lucab except as an act of naked partisanship. You would stir up all the divisiveness that afflicted central Bucks. Anyone who attended the meeting here two weeks ago can see what's coming. There's a better way. reconsider your decision and reopen the search. One of you here has far more experience in elective office than all the rest of the board put together. Charlie Martin says that you had other promising candidates who applied. He also told a reporter that Dr. Bettton would have loved to stay in this school district. Pay attention to Charlie Martin. If you really want to keep politics out of our schools, consider a bipartisan agreement among yourselves that anyone you appoint must have support from at least two Republicans and at least two Democrats. The sheep pictured on the suitcase over there will remind you how Central Bucks taxpayers were fleeced out of millions. A chunk that went right into Lucab's pocket. the the suitcase itself will remind you that your old man already needs something just to tote his cash around. He'll soon have more cash to tote if the school board that hired him here gets voted out and gives him a fat going away present. Just as happened in Central Bucks last week's election returns conveyed a clear message. 15 seconds. Centennials, voters, and taxpayers told you they don't want to be fleeced and they don't want to provide a stage for the second installment of the Central Bucks [Applause] Circus. Pat Martin's boil, please. Pat Merins Boille, Centennial Station, Warinster. I have a lot of concerns about the hiring of Dr. Lucabal. He hasn't worked as a superintendent since he left Central Bucks. He is taking a major pay cut to come to Centennial. Is that because no one else would employ him, especially at his salary? Is that because other districts didn't want to bother with the drama and the lawsuits? This week he blamed Central Buck School Board for the policies and the implementation of them. Did he ever counsel the board before they made those policies? We've seen Dr. Ben say, "Excuse me," a hundred times over the past five years to counsel the board as to something that could they could be doing that would open them up to lawsuits or discriminatory charges and stuff like that. Dr. Dr. Bettton has always counseledled the board and I wonder if doc Dr. Lucabal had done it at at Central Bucks. He spoke about bringing home all the IEP students who have been outsourced. These students have been outsourced because their needs were greater than the district could provide. This district has never made these decisions lightly. Bringing these students inhouse could lead to litigation. It's already starting. These are my tax dollars that are going to be spent on this. Please [Applause] reconsider Nicole Abby. I hope I said that right. I'm sorry. A Nicole Aby. Sorry about that. Hello, my name is Nicole Aie and I live on Butternut Drive in Southampton. Thank you all for listening to my comments tonight. I appreciate the time. Our schools are the heart of our community as are the teachers and the students. They are among the most valuable resources that we have. They deserve a superintendent who will engage them in open dialogue, support their professional growth, and listen to their concerns. From what we know, Dr. Lucab's approach may alienate the very people that we rely on to create a nurturing and productive and educational environment. It is critical that we question the long-term vision that Dr. Lucab holds for our schools. Are his priorities in line with the needs of our students, especially in terms of mental health, technology, and academic rigor? I have serious reservations about his ability to lead Centennial School District into a future where every student has the opportunity to thrive regardless of their background. While Dr. Luca might have qualifications on paper. We must think past the surface and ask ourselves and the members of this board, does he truly understand the culture of our schools? Is he the leader who will foster a change that we need to help our students and educators succeed for the sake of our community and the future of our children? I believe that that answer is no. I would like to know what kind of questions he was asked and if there qu if he was truly the most qualified what kind of questions were he asked that he was not that this was not given how are you you know how are we able to judge what kind of questions he was asked and why weren't we offered the opportunity to ask our own set of questions one of the questions I submitted last week that he answered was my was one of the ones that I recognized and my question was cut down it wasn't my I understand you necessarily couldn't ask word for word but when I one of the most important parts that I asked in that question was show your work when I was in school we were told you have it's not enough for you I think I lost my mic so no it's not enough for you to give an answer you have to show your work and I asked him and challenged him even now show your work it's not enough to say oh yes I'm planning to meet with parents I'm going to meet with educators, show your work. Tell me how you're going to do that. Tell me how you are going to foster the kind of educational experiences and and that I would want to see for my child. Show me, not just tell me, show me. I would like to see that kind of information before we make any decisions. Thank you very much for your time. I appreciate it. Samantha Gambles. Hello, my name is Samantha Gambles. I live in um on Parander Road in Warminster. I know that you said the BCIU came up with a formula, came up with the questions. I understand that there has to be a process. I've been on many interviews. I understand you want to ask the same questions to everybody. I get all that. But when you have a candidate who's sparking such controversy, it's imperative that you ask the right questions of each candidate. And for you not to be able to ask your own questions to someone who's going to have such a pivotal role in our school district is a mistake. And you have the ability tonight to write that wrong. And to vote no for Dr. Luca. Okay. This is our kids' lives at stake. This is my daughter's lives. These are these people's children, their neighbors, their family, their friends. If you haven't already decided to say no, my question to you is why? What do you possibly see in this individual? Nothing that he says has been shown in his actions. I worked for Central Bucks. I shared that with you before. I don't work for them anymore. I had to resign from the district due to physical symptoms of working for this man. So, I don't say this lightly and I don't come to schoolboard meetings very often, but I find the need to come to this one because it doesn't seem like you're getting the point. I I don't know what else to say besides that. Um, I'll add in the part about where he mentioned that he wants to bring in-house students who are being educated outside the district. I think that's wonderful. I think students should be educated in the least restrictive environment with their IEP team's discussion, consideration, and approval. Not somebody just saying, "Let's save a dollar, okay, or a few dollars." Cuz it is it it is expensive to educate kids outside the district. It's also expensive to pay for charter schools, which is honestly where I'm thinking about sending my kid if he becomes our superintendent. and I'm a public school educator. So I don't understand where your line of thought is coming from on someone who is creating such a divisive community atmosphere and it's not necessary and I would love to come back to a schoolboard meeting for something positive, something that you're doing right, something that I can be proud to say I live in Centennial. Our children deserve better than him. We are worth more. He is not truthful. He will tell you whatever you want to hear so that he can get this job and then he'll do what he did to the board in Central Bucks and throw you right under the bus with them. Catherine Dangler. I hope I said that right. Oh, thank you. That was nice of you. Thank you. That was very kind of you. Thank you. Excuse me. My name is Katherine Dangler. I'm a parent and a taxpayer here in Centennial School District. I live on New Town Road in Warmaner um Township. I'm here to talk about Dr. A Dr. Abraham Lucab. I hear people speaking about show your work. Um I can tell you I've seen Abee's work. I've lived it as an educator on the other side of that where I was asked to speak and then told not to speak. I felt the consequences of speaking up and talking about what is important to students in my building to what is good for students. I'm here to speak to warn the district about the choice for superintendent. Your candidate for superintendent stated just last week that politics have no place in education and I wholeheartedly agree. But he will tell you whatever he thinks is going to get him the job. I could care less about his political affiliations. What I do care about is the morals and ethics that he brought and that he brings where he is um serving in leadership. And it is a servitude. Dr. Bettin, I'm sure can speak to that. Just last week, Dr. Abraham Lucaba took no accountability for his leader leadership in Central Buck School District. He blamed the Central Buck School District board of directors for the outcomes of his leadership. He did not bother to address the climate of frustration and fear he created with teachers. He is not and he has continued to blame others for the climate he created. I would characterize the potential contract between the district and the candidate for superintendent as vague at best. It leaves Dr. Dr. Lucaba with little accountability for his leadership decisions but a lot of flexibility to increase his salary and cost the district in litigation. Taxpayers will have the burden of the cost for any increase to salary or litigation in which Dr. Lucaba leads the district. Additionally, there is does not seem to be any specific details regarding what separation from the contract would cost the district. I would prefer to know that he would not resign with hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars. I urge you to take all of this into consideration when choosing um a leader and moral and model for our children, for our school district, and for our community. This is beyond politics. This is an opportunity to vote no and put our children ahead of the politics Dr. Lucabas stated did not belong in education. We are a diverse and beautiful district where all of our students deserve to be valued, respected, and led without politics. So do just that, please. Melissa Huber. Thank you. Hi, I'm Melissa Huber toll drive in Southampton. I'm here tonight to address a recent incident involving my son and a staff member at Davis Elementary. I was told he was running up the stairs after recess when a staff member outstretched their arms and grasped both handrails to slow down students. He went under this person's arm to proceed up the staircase and in response he was grabbed by his forearm. I was initially only told my son was grabbed, but it wasn't until I spoke with him directly that I learned he was actually pulled up the stairs by his forearm. Despite my son reporting the full details to school staff, this information was not shared with me. The failure to inform me minimized the seriousness of the incident and reflected a lack of transparency. This use of force was neither reasonable nor necessary. My son posed no danger to himself or other children. Staff cannot use physical force out of frustration or as punishment. After the incident, my son was not sent to the nurse, raising serious concerns about how the school handled his well-being, failing to have him assessed for injury and to document the incident is unacceptable. When I asked about the camera footage, I was first told the view was unclear and then later that the camera was not operational. It wasn't recording. This is not an isolated incident. Earlier this year, my son had an encounter with the same staff member involving verbal misconduct. At that time, I was told it would be addressed, but the behavior has escalated from verbal to physical. While administration has acknowledged the physical contact between the staff member and my son was inconsistent with district policy, they remain working directly with children at Davis. Although my son no longer has contact with this person, the broader concern of student safety remains. Children should feel safe and respected at school, free from staff physical force, fear, and humiliation. When they speak up, they must be heard and protected. I encourage parents to speak with their children. There may be other incidents that haven't been reported. What happened to my son highlights the need for staff training on student redirection without physical force, transparent parent communication, referral to the nurse after any physical contact, and staff accountability when policies are violated. Preventing harm must be a priority. These steps are vital to restoring trust and ensuring a safe, supportive environment for all students. Thank you. Thank you. [Applause] I'm I'm going to butcher your name. I'm sorry. Donna S I A Zas. I apologize. Most people say see us. I had not planned to speak, but I'm so moved. My name Donna Saias. I live in Warminster on St. David's Avenue and hence Centennial. I am a former foster mother with many foster children including special needs and have one currently still in Bucks IU over at uh uh Samuel Evers. I wish to speak on Dr. uh book our nomination for superintendent and wonder he has instigated a large number of controversial policies at central bucks which I followed because my church is in uh central bucks and tax the parsonage taxed And then uh when it became clear that uh these policies would not stay in place um just before the termination of uh the school board there. There was a golden parachute put into his contract, $700,000, which he accepted. And now then he's disavowed what he said, what what he implemented. And I'm uh wondering if uh he is hired what is to prevent a replay of the drama that occurred over in Central Bucks, a replay here in Centennial. Thank you. Thank you. Mike Ponder. Let's fix this first. All right. Mike Binder Warister. Good. I have three children in Centennial. A second grader at Willaddale, fifth grader headed to Law College, and a freshman at Tennant. During tonight's public comment, you will hear some hate towards potential pick and possible some towards this potential pick and possibly some love, but I'm here just because I want some common sense. I'm not a Republican or Democrat really, just a parent who wants Centennial to be a great district. I attended the forum last week with Dr. Lucal and seemed to be unable to grasp the the idiocy of what's going on. During this forum, he looked at us in the eye and complained that school board that he previously employed by had different thoughts on policy than he did. and he unfortunately became the face of their policy. Please help me understand. It is a pretty simple question really. If if he was so revolted by the central Bucks school board policy, then why would he quit as soon as the new school school board majority was going to take over? Wouldn't he be relieved to know that he could be the face of a different policy? In what world does that make sense? That was only one of my questions about last week's forum of rehearsed answers from Dr. Lucal. But even having this one scenario as a question is enough for me to question his potential hiring. This is not a Democrat or Republican, LGBTQ, pride or not. It is not even about book burning. This is a straight idea of let's just not take a neighbor neighboring district's very expensive retread for a superintendent. The process to the process to find another candidate is worth the time it would take. Why why have this potential circus around our great district? Even if you believe that he is a good administrator, this candidate already made national news in a not so great way. Do we really want that here? Mrs. Brinkado as president seemed to have as president. I'm sorry. Start again. Mrs. Mrs. Mrs. Brinkado as president as president she seems to have the public voice of the board. So I'll directly to I will ask directly to Mr. Hartline instead. Do you really want this for our district? Just the possibility of a cost associated with this potential hire is just not worth it. Dr. Lucal already threw one board in front of the bus to potentially help his career. Mr. Hartline, do not let him do the same thing to you. There must be a different candidate out there that can take the position position without the baggage. As a late addition, this is my own handwriting here because it just happened. As a late addition to my prepared statement, Miss Princado, do you not think Central Bucks also loved their town when they went through this a few years ago? They they they must have they voted him out and the board. Thank [Applause] you. I'm going to do my best here. Chris Blowitzky. Was that close? Even a little. Thank you. Okay. Uh my name is uh Chris Pitzky. I'm on Kings Clear Drive in Upper Southampton Township. I have sent three students through the district. One who is still attending and two graduates. I'm an alum and so is my wife. So, you might say, I know the turf here rather well after living here for close to 30 years. And I've never seen my neighbors in Centennials particularly liberal or conservative, at least if they don't self-identify it. I served for 20 years as a volunteer firefighter starting at Hartsville Fire Company in Warster and more recently across the border at Willow Grove out of the substation. Ran mutual aid in in both townships over and over again for many, many years. So, I know the people in this area and I did listen to Dr. Lucab's presentation on YouTube last Thursday and I really listened to it. Um, he is admittedly a very wellspoken candidate and I can concede that part of the controversy around him did have something to do with a school board where who had priorities that were more conservative than the community that they actually served. But again, as has been mentioned before, he was the face of that controversy. And that's my core concern. I mean, as a matter of fact, has been said, too. Keep politics out of schools. I got this at the polls just last uh Tuesday. I completely agree, but I can't help but feel that this hire is going to do exactly the opposite. It's going to fracture us along political lines. It's hard for me to believe our board members are ignorant of what happened in Central Pucks and it would be malpractice for you not to consider the entire picture here. Do we as a community really want to invite the amount of scrutiny Central Bucks faced? Scrutiny that reached the national audience on ourselves. If hired, more focus will be inevitable. Every liberal and conservative media outlet with their own agendas will be watching this district for anything either would consider a misstep. Special interest groups from both sides of the spectrum will salivate over the legal fees they might collect from a hless centennial taxpayer. I'm fine with moderate tax increases when it benefits the kids, but I'm not fine with tax increases or service cuts to pay for self-inflicted legal costs and predatory attorneys looking to make a quick buck. And if you vote nay, I mean the risk is eliminated. I want to move forward to a future where the schoolboard meetings are more like how this one started with artwork and teacher awards and even budget meetings and whatever else. I implore everybody who is still on the fence, please vote no. I wish you all success whichever which way this vote goes because there are going to be kids depending on it. Thank you very much. Jonathan Rosenberg. I know I said that one right. Jonathan Rosenberg. No. Okay. Thank you. I can't see with the glasses on. Um Oh gosh. Ed Chadra. I I'm sorry if I didn't say it correctly. Ed Chadro, Pelum Avenue, Warmister. So, I was at the um the forum last week and it just detailed the selection process very well, the duties of the superintendent, the question and answer session, dispelling a lot of the myths that circulated about his leave. I thought they did a good job at that. But if you listen to the media, you would think that Dr. A made the policy when it was a school board. Best thing you can do is resist the mockingb bird media who sensationalizes everything for the headlines. I would hope this board would make decisions based on fact and not fear of what the media will post. Maybe you should ask them ask the media whom they want instead. Thank you. Thank you. [Applause] Bart to court. Thank you. Good evening. Uh, dear Centennial School Board members. As you're about to decide who will be at the helm of the Centennial School District in the coming years, I want to reiterate my concern about the appointment of Dr. Lucab. I came away from last week's meet and greet session with a more nuanced opinion about Dr. Luca as a person. I appreciated how he responded to the questions he was asked. He was eloquent and well spoken and my wife and I had a chance to speak with him after the meeting and that interaction was equally pres uh pleasant. It is not appropriate for me to speak on Dr. Luka's behalf, but he indicated last week during both the Q&A and in our private conversation afterward that some of the most controversial measures that were taken at Central Bucks were driven by the Central Bucks school board and not necessarily by him. Whatever the drivers of those controversies, Dr. Lucab will always be associated with them. I believe it will be very difficult for Dr. for Lukaba to succeed in Centennial because of the skepticism and opposition he already faces from teachers, staff, parents, and the broader community. I'm deeply concerned that a number of board members selected Dr. Luke precisely because of the controversial measures that were implemented at Centralbox. The remarkable lack of transparency of the entire hiring process has convinced me that this is the move the the motive for his selection. The last thing we want to see at Centennial is that the culture wars that have proven so divisive all over this country are now being allowed to penetrate our schools. Thank you. [Applause] Kirsten Vindel. Hello, I'm Dr. Kirsten Fendell. I live in Upper Southampton on Winding Road. And I want to start by acknowledging that you all have a really hard job. It's a hard job in normal times. The selection of a superintendent is is a particularly hard hard part of this job. And it is true that when you are elected to the school board, you are given the trust of the community, the trust to make decisions on behalf of all of us. There are two ways that I think community trust in this board has has been undermined and that's the process the lack of transparency of the process of of putting forth this candidate and then the selection of a candidate with with so much baggage so much baggage that is well advertised and well known. Last Thursday's forum Dr. Dr. Lucabot tried to address his own baggage and and I appreciate his efforts there. But even that that forum was was highly managed with with all the details chosen by the board and the delivery of the questions um given to him in advance. So that process did not really convey the the depth of the concerns in the community. I think some of that depth has come through tonight and it came through two weeks ago in in these schoolboard meetings. But what that forum did not what Abe Lucab could not address in that forum were the concerns about why the school board chose him as a candidate. why you chose him without giving the other top candidates any room for for for their their pasts and their records to be known. So there there I mean I know reasons have been stated for for why only one was was promoted in this way but because of his past the there's the the the most logical conclusion is that the policies that were um that were enacted in central Bucks were part of the attraction and that's really concerning because I don't think you can enact those policies without everything else that followed in central box. And we don't want that here in Centennial. As you said, Miss Broncado, this is a different district. We are a different town. Correct. But we don't want that controversy. We don't want all the the legal implications, the financial implications and and the the um implications for our children. Correct. So whatever lies ahead for this district is in the hands o of you in the hands of this school board and I wish the best for whoever is selected. I hope it's an easy road ahead. It's hard to imagine how it could be easy with a blue chisy Gartenmeer. I hope that's correct. Excuse me. Well, you know, no, the handwriting is a little too, you know. It was impressive. You could read it. Um, got my notes here. Um, my name is Kissy Gartmier. I live on Woodier Drive in Warster. So I was at the community forum which I was disappointed that the live event failed to engage true community discourse um which is I thought the point of a community forum. Uh during that event Dr. Luca blamed the politics or um in central Bucks as well as the school board for the negative events that transpired. When asked how this will be different here, he claimed Centennial was not political and so he didn't foresee any future problems. Full stop. Whether or not Centennial School Board currently practices the extreme politics which initiated all those bad central bucks policies, it is and has been designed as a political system. To run for school board, you have to declare your political affiliation. We already heard how that played out in central box. It is the primary job of a superintendent to successfully navigate and minimize politics in education and Luca failed. His role was to take the schoolboard policies and operationalize them and do it well and advise against any bad policies based on his experience and knowledge as an expert. His job is to push back and advocate for the best for his students. He chose a different path. Personal character and leadership are displayed when things are tough, not when things are easy. Last week, Lucab claimed it was a trying time. But he highlighted no ways in which he attempted to fight for all students during those times and he used the school board as a scapegoat to avoid responsibility. As someone else said, he failed to show his work. It sounds like voting for him will only act as a catalyst to push Centennial District into a more politically charged environment. There is a unfortunately we you guys are voting today. If against the community's wishes you vote for Dr. Lucaba, there are several of the board members that are coming up for reelection in November. That will change the dynamic. People will get angry. Whoever their political party is, it doesn't matter if they are Republican, it doesn't matter if they are Democrat, whoever they are, and if the community is mad enough, they will vote against them. That dynamic on the board will change. You will have pushed our district into a politically charged environment, whether you want it to or not. [Applause] Jennifer Connor. Hi, I'm Jennifer Kano. Harding Road, Southampton. I spoke at the last board meeting about how I've been privileged to volunteer with both of my children's schools and that I felt that we at Centennial have a lot to be proud about. I also shared that despite that, I felt ashamed that the school board had prioritized a candidate that was so divisive and has done so in a way that was not transparent. Tonight, I'd like to add that the introduction of this candidate that happened last week felt like a sham. Not only were the questions provided to the candidate in advance, the community was unable to ask clarifying questions. And yet, this decision will primarily affect our community, our students, and taxpayers the most. I believe that it is not the community that has introduced divisiveness to this process. It is the result of the board's choice to push an unwanted, unwelcome, and unacceptable candidate upon us. I'd like to point out that every word on my sign is a fact. It is a fact that when school districts are sued, taxpayers ultimately pick up the bill. It is a fact that when school districts aren't well-rated, property values go down because families don't want to move to that district. It is a fact that this candidate had more than 20 state and federal court cases during his past tenure as superintendent. At the last meeting, I heard a member of the board say that they never want to hurt the children of our district. I'm glad to hear that and it's something I think that everyone in this room can agree on. However, it's tough to believe that student welfare is a top priority when so many residents have expressed their absolute opposition to this candidate and yet we continue to move forward with the vote. The right thing to do was to remove this person as a candidate weeks ago. The next right thing to do is to remove him as a candidate tonight. [Applause] Thank you for your time and thank you especially Mrs. Lynch for your request that this candidate step down for the good of the district. [Applause] Sylvia Kesalov. Sylvia. I I could be saying your wrong your name wrong. Dr. Ben, you clue how to pronounce this name? Nope. Sylvia. K S I L Y O V. Okay. Tom Quinn. Good evening. Um Tom Quinn Gibsonav Wormster. Uh I have two kids in the district. Uh fishing up at Willowdale and Log. I taught at or I worked at tenant for seven years. My mom worked at the IU. Uh I teach uh at Drexel now. Um Miss Bran Kado, you said something earlier tonight that's telling which is like that we're not Central Bucks, right? Um we look at that in a porative sense. Um I have friends in Central Bucks. I know teachers of Central Bucks. I have students who were former Central Bucks students. They're wonderful. Uh they care about each other. Uh but now we look at we're not that. And that's how people are going to look at us. You say you don't want to be judged. you will be judged. Okay. Right. Right. You make a choice, you're judged for it. And I hope you can stand by it. And if you believe in it, I would think that the events would not be so scripted. Right? I would think you'd be able to answer off the cuff, listen to the community, have a dialogue. If you believe in it, there should be a dialogue that's comfortable. Um, if there's division, you'll be judged for it. If there's lawsuits, you'll be judged for it. And I don't understand the mental gymnastic uh gymnastics of, you know, you have to take him at his word. It's not him, it was the board. And now we're saying we need to change Dr. Bettin, not the board. Right? I think we need to make some other changes here. Um, I believe in this place it has potential, but I think a lot of us are not feeling like there is trust in the room and that there's because of that because we can't see what what value this is bringing to us that another candidate could not also bring. I I think we're feeling there's ulterior motives. it just doesn't seem to make a lot of sense otherwise. So, we hope you'll listen. Uh we hope you'll consider it. I don't have a lot of faith in it. Um but thanks for hearing me out. I have to say there's a lot of keyboard cowboys texting me. Please stop. Um and I I'm going to speak for every single person up here. Whether you like us or don't like us, but every single school board member, this is hard work. These people, everybody is entitled to make their own decision. Um, we're done with public comments. I'm sorry. We're already finished. I'm sorry. Um, this isn't easy for any of us, but a board makes the policies, not the superintendent. Well, you I I understand, but now I have the floor for a second. I'm not being fresh. I would appreciate you not being fresh. Mrs. Broncado. Yes, Mrs. Lynch. The board sets a policy, but the board and the superintendent have an administrative policy which is has members of the public and also has the exeicio member is the superintendent. The superintendent sits in on the policy meetings. The superintendent can give great input into a policy. So just saying it's not me, it's them. Don't work that way. Well, Mrs. Lynch, they have input. We are not a [Applause] board. Not one person up here, including you, is a board member that would allow harm to come to a child. Oh my god, I can't believe you said that. When you get a second. Okay. So, can we move on? Mr. Godson, you got Mrs. Work on it. So, I just wanted to say I do appreciate everyone being here personally. You voted me into this seat. I represent you. Please know I hear you loud and clear. [Applause] With that, we can move on to the approval of the agenda. Be it resolved that the Centennial School District Board of School Directors 2.1 approves the May 27th, 2025 committee of the whole agenda as per attached. Are there any corrections that need to be made that are allowed by PA law? Second. Second by Mrs. Crossen. All in favor? I. I. Any abstensions? Hearing none. Approved by 9 nothing. Moving on to new business. Excuse me. We have eight items and I think we should take the first three uh separately. Correct. Correct. So be it be it resolved that the Centennial School District board of school directors. Did you ask if anybody wanted to pull anything else? No, we'll do that later, but we're doing one at a time for now. So, short short 3.1 approves Dr. Abraham Lucab as superintendent of the Centennial School District subject to terms and conditions set forth in the superintendent's contract. And I just want to say that we have a couple of adjustments to his contract and that is conference um conference uh cap at two per year at a total cost of $7,000 and professional organization membership is also capped at $7,000. Second second by Mr. Ginard. Any discussion? Yeah, I would just like to point out we have individual votes. We sure will. We sure will. Um, I would just like to point out that um, it sure it only takes five votes, but I want you to know that he was not just at people say he was at the top of the um, what's the word I'm looking? He was at the top of the applicant list and we didn't see each other's scores. He was also at the top of Mrs. Lynch's list. Just one Okay. Um, we will be moving on to the vote. We will have a roll call. I'm sorry. I have the right to answer. Sure. Answer, Mr. Brinkado. Absolutely. There were three people in this poll. Two of the three were unemployed superintendent. One of the individuals was a lovely gentleman who went very high. Now, at the time of this poll, that was a point system. We were not allowed to ask any questions. We were not allowed to look at any references. We weren't allowed to do anything. So, by trying to throw me under the bus, Mrs. Lynch, that is not true. You made a mistake. You were allowed to look at the references. Um, Mrs. uh, Roo, can we have a a roll call? Mr. Hartline? Yes. Mr. Godson? Yes. Mr. Martin. As a proud Republican since 1964, I'm going to vote no on this issue. Mrs. Crossen, no. [Applause] Mr. Saddowski, no. Mrs. Francado. Yes. Dr. Maguire. Yes. Mr. Gindhart. Yes. Mrs. Lynch. You asked me to listen. I've listened. I've listened to the lawsuit. Million dollars. I've listened to the PR firm. 144,000. I've listened to the teacher. 00,000 400,000 damages, legal fees. I've listened to the six months into a contract and got a $10,000 consulting fee. I have listened to the 700,000 buyout. I want you to know I've listened. I love this community and I vote no. Motion passes 54. [Applause] Shame on you. [Applause] Moving on. Moving on to item two. Three 3.2 approves the act 93 administrators compensation plan effective July 1st 2025 through June 30th 2029 as per her attached. I make a motion to pull that second to pull that or Mrs. Carson is asking to move to Is it the table or is it Yeah, it's a motion to table pending our professionals to look at it seconded by Mr. Martin. You vote on the motion to table preliminarily. So we move moving on to a roll call for tableabling um item 3.2. Mr. Godson, no. Mr. Martin, yes. Mr. Ghart, no. Mrs. Lynch, yes. Mr. Saddowski, yes. Mrs. Crossson, yes. Dr. Maguire, no. Mr. Hartline, yes. Mrs. Branado, no. Motion to table passes 54. So, item 3.2 has been tabled. So, I just wanted to share that um I want our professionals that our district pays for. I want HR and our finance director, I want Dr. Wilson and Mr. Greenwood to have a look at the contract. That's what they're paid for. We need them to look at it. He's already explained it twice, but okay. Moving on to 3.3. approves the proposed final 2526 general fund budget that includes revenues totaling 150,970,762 and expenses totaling 156,790,223 with real estate mileage rate of 173.0723. further authorizes the display and the advertising of the budget in accordance with act one of the 20 2006 school code. Final adoption will occur in June 2025. Second. Second by Mr. Hardline. Any discussion? If I might, uh, Mr. Godson, um, I would like to ask a question of Mr. Greenwood, if I might, who made this presentation earlier. Um, I see that we have taken the easy way out and taken all the money from the uh fund balance which went from $12 million uh down to uh 7 million or 4%. Are you aware of any professional financial organization that recommends a fund balance of 4%? Is this the first budget that you've ever provided for the school district that has a fund balance that low? It is. Would this affect if it's a rating agency? We're going to be looking at some kind of bond activity later as a fund as a savings, which is a good thing. But in my experience, which Mr. cross reference earlier. The u the bond agencies tend to rate you uh lower and reduce your bond rating when your fund balance drops below a certain level. Is that an accurate statement? That is correct. If you had to predict, will our fund balance decline if we adopt this budget as it's currently existing? Can you repeat that? I'm sorry, Mr. Martin. Um, it's just that I we we have had very little board activity to try to attack expenses which has been done in the past other than a couple things that were discussed were all voted down. So, I was just wondering um in its current form it's just a budget that in honesty I cannot vote for. But thank you for all your hard work. I do appreciate it very much. Any further comments? Seeing none, I think we should do this as a roll call as well. And basically, Mr. Greenwood, I'm sorry. Can I just speak to you one more second? I'm sorry. So, basically, all this is we're just passing saying that we're not going to raise it more than the act one index. Correct. Correct. That's all this means. That's all that it means. Okay. Thank you. And and for another fact, we do not even have the option of changing it to a higher rate. Changing what to a higher rate? The We're locked in at no higher than 4%. We were before, we are tonight to step in the process that we need to do. Sure. Thank you. While you're there, Mr. Yeah. Wait, wait, stay there for a sec. So, are we looking at a possible surplus this year? Uh, we are looking at a surplus this year. You're correct. And that is in excess of what we took out of the fund balance last year. Uh, they're about the same as we discussed. Yes. So, the budget is shared or the forecast as shared had the $2.5 million in as the uh the uh debt service fund transfer. So does the 12 million so the 58 could be reduced by 2 and a half $2.7 million with that? So the but when you look at the taking the money out of the fund balance I forget what page it's on where we're saying it's $12 million going down to I forget the number. I'm sorry off the top of my head. But there's a possibility that 2 million will be going back into the funding. Correct. Yes. So that the 4.5% that we were talking about may actually be 7%. It could be could be six. It could be seven. Six, seven depending upon how much surplus we have and paying back to that fund. Exactly. Okay. So Mr. Mr. Greenwood, is it safe to say that our budget's a hot mess right now? We're in a difficult position, Mrs. Crossing. Thank you. All right. Thank you, Mrs. Rush. Can we have a roll call? Mr. Martin? No. Mr. Hartline? Yes. Mr. Saddowski? No. Mrs. Crossen? No. Mrs. Brancado? Mr. Greenwood? Again, all this means is that we won't raise it more than 4%. It could be lower. Correct. Okay. If you vote no, we're going to have to have a meeting in two days because this needs to be completed by the 31st uh of this month or we're going to we're going to risk uh sanctions from PTE. Okay. This is a step in the in the budget process. Okay. I'm sorry, Mrs. R. Did you ask me? Yes. Yes, Mr. Ghart. Yes, Mrs. Lynch. If you think I'm voting for a $6 million deficit and we're going to take $2.9 million out of our surplus again. No. Mr. Godson, yes. Dr. Magcguire, yes. Motion passes 54. We'll see you later. Thank you. Can't wait. And PS, I have to go to the lady's room. It's not nice to say it, but since I told the president she didn't want to say it, I want you to know where I wasn't going to announce to the old room that you were going to the ladies room. We have four more items on our new business. Can we move those four items together? Yes. See no objection. 3.4 Four approves the personnel agenda including resignations, authorization to employ, leaves of absence, end of assignment and change of status as per attached. 3.5 approves the memorandum of agreement with VA educational services adult basic education provider for the continuation of adult basic education and family li literacy classes no cost to the district. 3.6 6 approves the revisions to the 2025 2026 school year academic calendar to correct color coding of nonrine school dates. All dates all dates remain the same. 3.7 approves retroactively one William Tennant High School student and two she chaperoons to travel and participate in the National Catholic Forensic League 2025 tournament from May 23rd 2025 through May 26 2025 in Chicago Illinois district cost not to exceed $3,65927 7 cents. And lastly, approves the request for two qualifying William Tennant High School students and two chaperoons to travel and participate in the high school national speech and debate tournament competition in this mo Iowa from Jul from June 14th, 2025 through June 21st, 2025. district cost not to exceed $11,33845. Second. Second by Mr. Hartline. Any discussion? All in favor? Any ab uh any negatives? Any abstensions? Pass is 8 nothing. Mrs. Lynch is not present. Moving on to committee reports and I happen to have the education committee. We met last on May 14th uh and had a robust uh discussion that lasted more than an hour. Uh one of the things that's coming up is our comprehensive plan and we have a first steering meeting on June 10th. Uh the other big part of that we had discussions regarding was the planetarium refresh options. Uh Betty Huff is a former board director and was instrumental in uh providing services, you know, to the school district several years ago. And the planetarium was named after her and we are now looking to resurrect um the planetarium. Um and then there were three other items, you know, where everyone belongs that Dr. Wilson brought forward and discussions about the Box County Music Educators Association annual festival that is coming up next March. Uh this will be um Centennial hosting it. It's being done on a rotation basis uh in the county. And the last one was uh the parent square which is a system for communication. Um and most of these items are already on the agenda coming up very shortly. And our next meeting for the education committee is June 11th, 2025. Thank you Mr. Hartline. All right. So finance met on May 15th. Um there are bring up my notes here. Um there's the normal information items for the Pennsylvania liquid assets funds. Um consumer price index and Bureau of Labor Statistics are the ones that we normally have. We did have uh individual come in that helped us with our last bond refinancing. We are looking at refinancing three sets of bonds um coming up in the near future and then a fourth set later on next year or after the first of the year. Uh estimated savings would be approximately $46,000. You do have um information in the finance um packet regarding this. Um, and then the accumulative savings should be north of $600,000 or close to $600,000. Keeping in mind that this is all subject to market changes, um, fluctuations. It's till we get ready to go out to actual bid. As we get closer to it, we'll have a better idea. Uh, also these the the next set, we're going to be coming forward for one resolution to do all four refinances. so that we can capitalize and basically get it moving. Uh we're looking at restructuring approximately $22 million in debt that are all to callable um right now at 5% on the average rate. So hopefully we'll be able to score something a little bit lower. They're talking about the net principal savings being um two and a half percent possibly higher, but until we actually get to the dates and we start to know how the market is doing, we're really not going to know. Last time around, we kind of hit a nice little sweet spot. Our um our bonds were very desirable. So, we were able to get a few ticks lower. Hopefully, the similar situation will take place this time. Um, additionally, we are bringing forward four items, five items for approval tonight. The items are some basic boilerplate stuff with us participating in um the bid process. These are renewals awarding the music instrument bid. This too is not a bid for us to purchase instruments, but it is a bid helping to set the price for our students and our families as to what they are paying for instruments. Uh and then there's also the Middlebox Institute of Technologies uh general program that um has come forward as well for approval. And that's all I have. Thank you, Mr. All right. So, it stays with me. Uh education and student services committee. Uh we had two items for information. I don't know if that uh Mr. Gable wants to speak to either of them. No, the two items you know as discussed I mentioned before is the CSD 2026 20 to 20 2029 comprehensive plan timeline. As I mentioned we will have the first meeting on June 10th and the second piece is the 2025 Huff Planetarium refresh. We have uh six items for approval. Wait a second. We have the operations committee also. Oh, sorry. So, if Mr. uh Gard could take that since I was not there. Sorry. That's okay. I get paid the same way that I talk now. Yes, you do. Um, we met on the 16th. Paid more. What's that? You get paid more. I get paid more to talk. Uh, we met on the 16th. We had a very informative uh presentation regarding the planetarium refresh uh followup to the education and student services committee presentation. Uh it was a great presentation. I love the idea of the planetarium. Uh great thing for us to have. We also uh talked about uh paving that's going to be done at the um the high school and log some park lots that are sorely in need of it. And uh um my compliments to uh operations um who got great bids and I think we did pretty good with with the uh the bids from James Morrisy. The uh some uh routine stuff yearly, the upper Southampton uh use of um the C uh facilities for the camp and the touch truck. And I also would like to um shout out to uh our operations uh department for getting us a great deal on uh cell phone coverage. We're having the same same coverage, not losing any uh operable capability, but saving a significant amount of money every month. And those things will all be on the agenda coming up shortly. Next meeting will be June 13th. Thank you. Mr. Got I guess we go back to these items for approval on uh the education committee. Can we move all six of them together? I would like to put 5.2E. 5.2E. We'll hold that. Be resolved that the Centennial School District Board of School Directors 5.2A 2A approves the district's district's hosting of the 20 26 Bucks County Music Educators Association's BCMEA annual music festival March 12th through the 14th 2026 district cost not to exceed $6,733.65.2B 2B approves the adoption and purchase of open sed as the K8 science curriculum including the purchase of materials, licenses and notebooks district cost not to exceed $247,263.13. 5.2C 2C approves the three-year agreement with Parent Square for communication to district families district cost not to exceed $72,186 for a three-year period. 5.2D 2D approves their implementation of the where everyone belongs program at Klinger and Log College Middle Schools effective August 2025 no cost to the district and 5.2F since we skipped uh 5.2A 2 approves the renewal of SE software licenses and databases including Accelerate College Board, Great Minds, Instructure, Mind Education, Notables, and Power School District cost not to exceed $281,85527. Second. Second by uh Mr. Saddowski. Any discussion? real quick. My daughter was part of CMEA this year and uh it's it's a great program that our some of our district musicians get to be part of. They audition for it. It's outside of what they usually do in class. So, just another opportunity to thank our district's music teachers for the work they do and encouraging our kids and cultivating a love of music and keeping that going all through their school careers. Thank you for that. I'm glad this is going to be hosted here. Thank you. Um all in favor? I I Any opposed? Yes. I would like to be recorded as voting no on 5.2B, 5.2C, and 5.2F. Thank you. Okay. Any abstensions? So, it's passing 8 one ex uh 81 on 2 B, 2 C, and 2 F and nine nothing on nine 2 A and 9.2D. Moving on to 5.2E. Approves the invoice for Kosum, Inc. to operate the Huff Planetarium at William Tennet High School, including new upgrade computer system and software along with a stipen of person personnel to run the Huff planetarium district cost not to exceed $93,750. second second by Mr. Saddowski again and Mr. Ginhard had a comment maybe. Yeah. Um I just want to um put out for consideration. First I want to start by saying I love the idea of getting the planetar up and running. It's it's a fantastic thing. Um it's a great thing to have for the district. Um it's a great thing to have in our corner and it is very valuable to have. However, um at a time when our budget is in the condition that it's in and we're looking at a $5.8 million deficit, um the planetarium hasn't been used for the past couple of years and the cost of $93,000 to get it up and running. That seems like an awful lot of money when we're having a hard time just meeting the basics along with $7,000 a year or so to run it. So during the presentations um the idea of getting grants was presented. Um apparently there's a there's a NASA grant or some other grants we could look into. Another great idea was brought forward um by partnering with businesses and the community to get donations from businesses in the community to if not cover but at least offset the cost. So, um, with those things in mind, um, I just like us to consider not not doing this, but just putting it off for a little bit, uh, until we can investigate the grant funding and other funding sources. So, are you asking us to table it? Uh, it's on there. I don't think it should be up for a vote, but I just wanted to put this out there that I think it should be considered that we should wait until we can see if we can get some of those grains. We have Mr. Gable approaching the podium. Yep. Barely see you over there, Mr. Ghart. Um, so as we explained with the education committee, uh, this would be a multi-year process that we would have to go through to get the about $1.5 million you know, paper weight attached to the high school up and running again that we've been talking about that Mr. Rutz has been championing for a few years now, has done a lot of research into schools in the area, a few schools in the area that have um planetariums. Our hope and all we're asking for is approval of year one, mostly out of the capital fund to at least get it up and running for our students internally. We have uh new steel standards rolling out uh with a much more 3D approach and hands-on science approach. This would be a great educational compliment for our kids. Uh we would as the timeline uh the board updates that have been doing on the weekly as well as what's been attached lays out, we would evaluate uh Mr. Mr. Greenwood and I were talking we would take a hard look in the spring uh to see if we're getting any traction on the planetarium in terms of grants, potential donations, working with already talked with CF about getting together for some fundraisers. Was going to reach out to the alumni association next um and try to get some some community events going maybe the fuge uh in order to help fund the next phase of the planetarium. So, uh, it's a big ticket, uh, but it's a huge asset that's being grossly underutilized in the district and has been since about 201920. Uh, the long-term goal obviously would be to upgrade the projector as well in a few years and then start to do outreach and run uh, paid field trips from other districts to be able to generate revenue. Uh, we've already put it out at the I at the uh, Bucks IU for programs and services and districts are definitely interested. So, we have a potential money maker down the road as well. Mr. Gabriel, are So, is the total cost 93,750 or is that just the first year? That's year one. That's year one. That's for our students getting the software. We can't use anything right now because the software is so out of date. It's a security risk. The 93,000 and change, we get the computer system changed out and upgraded so we could use it with our kids K to 12. um as well as a small stipen for someone to be able to run it. And that's all it would be for the first year and for the next couple years if we decided to stop there. The next step if we can get the funding and the grants and would be to then upgrade for a couple hundred,000 more the actual projectors uh because then we could open it up to other districts as well as the community for use. But that's down the road. This 93,000 would get us this upcoming year and a few more until the projector runs out. Do we know what the total cost for all of the upgrades would be? It's all in the backup. It's in the packet. It's all in the packet. In the backup. Yeah. The projector in a year, two years would be $400,000. Three and change. 385. 299 for the projector. Excuse me. 30. But it does has potential down the road to pay for itself and renew itself. Yes. Possibly if we can get other districts to come. So the first year would just be for our students. Well, and every year after, right? The 93,000. Mrs. Marcato would get us year one with our students and year two and potentially year three with the current projector. It's old. Uh it would the 93 could sustain us for a few years without going any further, but it would it would limit us to just internal, which is not a bad thing. Um it's just if we want to think beyond into the money making you know into revenue generation community use you know on the weekends week nights movies programs partnership with the IU to bring in other schools then we'd have to look at an upgrade down the road but again this would give us the year to at least get it up and running with our own students and then um give us time to look into as m shared with Michigan Hart and the and the group the ed services about some of the NASA grants and fundraising opportunities that we could put together over the next Congratulation. Yeah. Thank you. I appreciate it. You're welcome. Anybody else? No. He answered my question. All right. Um, all in favor? I. Any opposed? No. No. Any abstensions? Passes. 72. Mr. Hardline. All right. Um, like I said earlier, we had four items that were presented for information. They are pretty much the standard items that we have every month. Does anybody wish to have any of the five items that are up for approval tonight pulled? 6.2B 6.2B. Anything else? All right. Seeing none, be it resolved school district board of school directors 6.2A 2A approves the issuance of PNC procurement card to the V uh to the manager of food and nutrition for purchases made in connection with the district's catering operations. No additional cost to the district. 6.2C authorizes the expenditure of the Middle Bucks Institute of Technology general programs for the period of July 1st 2025 to June 30th 2026 as set forth by the submitted budget budget proposal 6.2 2D authorizes participation in and acceptance in the current and sub subsequent bids and awards of the following joint purchases programs for the fiscal year ending June 30th, 2026. Association of Educational Purchasing Agents, AEA, BCIU Cooperative Purchasing Group, by Board Cooperative Purchasing, Co-Stars, ENI Cooperative Services, Heer Hersam School District Food Service Equipment Service Bids, Keystone Purchasing Network, KPN, Municipal National Cooperative Purchasing Alliance, NCPA, Omni Partners, Sourcewell, PA, DGS State Contract, Pepum Southeastern PEPAM Southeastern Pennsylvania National Ga Natural Gas Consortium Southeastern PA Buying Group SEA the Interlocal Purchasing System TIPS Upper Dublin School District Grocery Bid and thei US General Service Administration Cooperative Purchasing Program 6.2E 2E awards the music instrument rental RFP 2025-14 to the music and arts. There is no cost to the district as the rental and purchases are paid for by interested families. Second seconded by Mr. Godson. All those in favor I opposed abstension. Motion passes 90 6.2B 2B. Be it resolved that the Centennial School District Board of School Directors 6.2B approves the management and council to complete the subsequent as provided to the board regarding the district assessment challenge of tax parcel 49-00009-043. Estimated additional tax collection is $238,370. Second. I'm sorry. Seconded by Mr. Goodixen. All right, Miss Granada. Could somebody just clarify this situation simply without breaking any rules? The district challenged the assessment value back in 2020. Uh this is the Tesla lot that is currently before it was a vacant uh it is what? It's the Tesla building on York Road. The Tesla service station now. Right. Before then, um, it was going to be a grocery store. Before then, it was abandoned and Christmas lot. Uh, so we did not press the case until until it became more attractive to us. This is $238,000 that we don't have today that we'll be getting uh shortly. Thank you. I appreciate that. Yep. Thank you. Any further questions? Seeing none, all those in favor? I I opposed. Abstension. Motion passes. 900 Z. Items presented for information operations. None. Items presented for approval tonight. Is there anybody that would like anything pulled? Okay. Be it resolved that the Centennial School District Board of School Directors 7.2A 2A approves the quote from T-Mobile government for cell phone upgrades for 65 phones at no cost and service for the phones. District costs not to exceed $1,911 per month, which is a savings of $1,300 per month. 7.2B 2B awards the base bid log college $273,357 and alternate one William Tenant High School $100,550 to James D. Morrisy Incorporated for paving repairs at Log College Middle School and William Tennant High School. District costs not to exceed $380,97. 7.2C 2C approves the 35% reduction of fees for Upper Southampton Parks and Recreation to use the pool at William Tenn and High School on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays for their summer camp program from June 23rd to August 8th, 2025. Total cost after reduction of fees is $3,78. 7.2D 2D approves retroactively Upper Southampton Township's request for the use of a school bus and driver for their annual touch a truck event on Saturday, May 17th, district cost for driver and fuel not to exceed $185. Second, I do have a a question on one. Sure. On 7.2B, is this the last of the paving projects at Log College or do we have one more after this? Nope. This is the last of them. Okay. Thank you. It can I ask a question, Mr. Wartman? I'm sorry. I know you've already answered this. This does not include the library, correct? Because that is not our property. Okay. Okay. Thank you. Um, all those in favor? I I. Any opposed? No. Motion passes. 81 board comments. I see none. Meeting is adjourned. The next board motion motion to adjurnn. Make a motion to adjurnn. Excuse me. So moved. Thank you. Um the next meeting of the committee of the whole will be held Tuesday, June 24th, 2025. Thank you.