I call this regular meeting to order at 6:30. Uh just so the public is aware, member Anderson is not here tonight and member Sha Rock is going to be running a little bit late, so we will see him in a little bit. Uh first item for tonight, please rise for the pledge of allegiance. To the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. [Music] Thank you and good evening, fellow schoolboard members, district staff, and community members. As a reminder, uh the mission of St. Francis Area Schools is to equip all students with the knowledge and skills to empower them to achieve their dreams and full potential while becoming responsible citizens in a dynamic world. We are currently involved in active litigation and as a result uh will not be providing comments on the statuses of our policies or any potentials next steps at this time. The only update I can share is that our attorneys have been in communication with the attorneys representing the plaintiffs and settlement communications have occurred and we have a mediation date set for June 9th here at the district office with all parties. We appreciate your understanding as we allow the legal process to take its course. Our first item for tonight is the agenda uh adoption agenda. Are there any questions prior to a motion being made for the adoption of the agenda? See no questions. Is there a call to motion for the May 27th um agenda? Thank you, Mr. Any discussion on that motion? No discussion. All in favor of the motion signify by saying I and raising your hand. I motion prevails. The next item uh is St. Award. Uh so tonight is a little bit different. We are honoring more than one individual. Um and we had a a slight uh event before uh with these individuals, but uh to remind everyone, the St. Award was established to publicly recognize St. Francis area school staff, students, and community members uh at a schoolboard meeting to highlight the positive and impactful work happening in the district. Uh again, tonight's or this month's Saint Award uh impact on the district is putting it lightly. Uh they have given so much to this district. They have brought joy. They've brought compassion. They brought kindness. Uh they brought structure to our district and what they've left is a lasting legacy. So, we are super appreciative of that. Um, we are presenting this to uh 18 specific individuals. I believe there's six of them here tonight. Um, employees that are returning. Mr. Anderson, you want to take over from here? Sure. If we could have the six individuals who were able to make it just join us at the front real quick. Be kind of a group. Thank you. Bring your Mr. Burr if you could uh join us as well. I'll just introduce each of the six here um and then I have their years of experience and then their location that also say first we'll start with Linda Polus. Uh Linda has 19 years of experience as an education uh assistant uh in the special education department at the high school. Marjorie Waker um uh is uh finished her 37th year of service in the school district. Uh she works in the nutrition services department as a cashier at Cedar Creek most recently. Uh we have Tracy Peterson who has worked for 34 years uh in the technology department and mostly entirely on the east side. So Cedar Creek, East Bethl and um the early childhood center. Just imagine the changes she's seen in technology over 34 years. It's amazing. Susie Olsen um sort of a someone who has done almost every role here. I think it was eight different roles uh that you mentioned and u let me see you have 34 years of service as a teacher and uh most recently has been based out of the the learning center with saints online special education quite a combination she's seen a lot uh as well uh we have Karen Lmberg 31 years of service as a teacher at East Bethl Elementary School so thank you uh and Chris Wartz, you beat everyone with 38 years of service as the maintenance supervisor. As we talked about earlier, that means everything in history, buildings, grounds, maintenance, on call, uh, supervisor, just everything. So, on behalf of the school board, we'd like to thank you for your years of service and dedication to our kids. [Applause] [Music] Great. Congratulations. Thank you. You're more than welcome to stay, but feel free to uh leave the meeting if you like. And before you leave, we have one more statement from the school board. So, on behalf of the school board, we extend our deepest thanks to each of our retirees. Your dedication, your guidance, and your care have shown our students uh that you've shown our students have left a lasting mark in this district. You haven't just shared your time and talents. You've shaped lives. You've built futures and you've strengthened our schools in ways that will be felt for years to come. We wish you joy, fulfillment, and well-earned rest in the next chapter of your journey. Thank you for everything. [Applause] All right, our next agenda item tonight is consideration of visitors. We have 10 uh individuals requesting to speak. We will allow two minutes per speaker. I ask each speaker that once your time is reached that you summarize your final comments uh and be respectful of everyone else's time. Our first speaker for tonight is Vanessa Height. Vanessa. All right. Good evening, school board. Thanks for the opportunity to speak here tonight. My name is Vanessa Height. I grew up in this community along with my four siblings. We all graduated from St. Francis High School, valued our education, and continue to have strong connections to family, friends, acquaintances, and business partners here. After graduation, I obtained a bachelor's degree in psychology and a master's degree in clinical social work. I have worked in the mental health field for almost two decades. As a mental health professional, I've had the honor of serving and partnering with thousands of people ages four years through 89 years. People from various walks of life. I have journeyed alongside people as they've navigated some of their most personal, complex, and difficult human experiences. Such experiences are also available to anyone who chooses to read books authored by people from various walks of life. I carry with me the wisdom of many tonight. I understand deeply how leaders, authority figures and systems can facilitate harm and oppression or alternatively facilitate support and wellness in our communities. Book bans like this perpetuate ignorance and further marginalize, oppress, and harm students and community members that are already struggling. This is not okay. You are in leadership positions. You considered a book ban, were informed it was illegal, and proceeded anyways. This was a mistake counter to your mission, unlawful and harmful to this community in many ways. The community has been telling you this at these meetings. Please listen. You've acted from a place of ignorance and/or fear and are causing harm. You have the opportunity to grow now. Try to prepare to learn how to act from a place of wisdom and love which can create harmony. I expect you to correct your mistake not only by resending policy 606.5 and adhering to Minnesota State Statute 134.51 moving forward, but also by taking time to reflect on how you came to make this mistake and what efforts you will make to asssure similar mistakes are not made going forward from you in these leadership positions. Thank you. Thank you, Vanessa. Our next speaker is Melinda Torren Singleton. Good evening. I'm Melinda and I am currently pregnant with my first child. One thing all new parents think about is what are the schools that I potentially send my child to look like? I was homeschooled pre prechool through high school, but my spouse attended St. Francis and went on to get a degree in polyai. I want more than anything to trust our public schools with my child's education. I do trust the teachers and librarians that work tirelessly with dwindling resources and low pay to pass their expertise on to children. But my trust in the district and board has been decimated by the way you've ignored state law, engaged in censorship, and capitulated to right-wing political ideologies. I would like for the board to contemplate seriously how they plan to rebuild the trust that the community had that has been broken. Thank you. Thank you, Melinda. Our next speaker is Dev Behinger. They're having trouble hearing a little bit, so I'm just going to switch this back. Point of personal privilege to hear. Good evening, Superintendent Anderson, Chairperson Burr, and all the additional school members that are board members that are here. My name is Debbie Bearinger. I'm a parent of two graduates of ISD15 who received an excellent education during a time when there was no book ban. I'd like to express my concern regarding the current book ban policy. Book banning does not support intellectual freedom. Our students deserve access to a wide range of literature that reflects diverse and um perspectives. For example, one book that was banned here at ISD15 was The Kiterunner, a book my kids and our entire household read. The book is sent is set against the background of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the persecution by the Taliban. Many valuable lessons can be learned from this book, such as just a few, power of friendship, the power of forgiveness, and the impact of socopolitical chaos. My son is now a physician who trained with many other residents at his medical school who came from all over the globe. One classmate is a wonderfully kind woman from Afghanistan. She along with my son are choosing to give back to folks in the United States who are underserved. I respectfully ask that you resend the book ban, review and revise the district's book challenge policy to ensure fairness, transparency, and inclusion. Thank you for your time and service. [Applause] Thank you, Deb. Our next speaker is June Anderson. Thank you for letting me speak again. Um, at our last meeting, Richard made a rather condescending statement. Uh he said that while these books that they have banned don't belong in the school library, students could check them out from the public library if they wanted to read them. However, if these books are banned in the school library, when did they be banned in the classroom as well? And what about the new textbooks that the English department just bought? the ones with excerpts from Alien Wisel's book Night about the Holocaust and The Kiterunner. If that material can't be taught in the classroom, will you rip those pages out of the books or just destroy the books entirely and resurrect the 20-year-old textbooks? Who actually wants this illegal book ban? Look at how many community members have turned up in support of it. five individuals over the course of three meetings. Look at the substance of their arguments. Namely, I don't want anyone else's I don't want my child reading those quote dirty books. And by extension, I don't want anybody else's child reading them either. So much for parents, right? And best of all, if they read those dirty books, they can't be blood donors because their blood won't be pure. Pure blood. Let rem remind you, one of the bad books is about the Holocaust. Look at the numbers of students, teachers, and residents who have shown up meeting after meeting to oppose this illegal book. Look at their arguments. Look at the caliber of the students who have pleaded for you to give them their books back. They are a reflection of the school's excellent academics and they are in turn what gives this school its excellence. Here's something else to consider. If you are dumbing down the education of St. Francis students by removing essential books from the school library and by extension the classroom. Those students who aspire a quality education are going to look in other options like removing themselves from St. Francis High School and enrolling in the postsecary programs offered by the community college. Not only is this district going to lose students of excellence, if this illegal book ban continues, it will lose state funding as [Applause] well. Thank you, June. Next is Izzy Bombard. Hello everyone. I'm Izzy Bongart. I'm a 10th grader at St. Francis High School. I'm here to talk about the book policy again. I'm not going to take up too much of your time, but I just wanted to say how much books mean to me, especially the ones that make me think like many of the books on the bann list do. Some of my favorite books are getting banned all over the country. I love books that challenge what I think. I don't have to agree with the book for me to get something out of it. I want to be able to learn new things. And I think it's important for parents and educators to give teens the opportunity to make their own decisions on what they agree with or disagree with. If parents are saying that they don't want these books to influence their kids, I wonder why they think their teens will make decisions that they don't agree with. We can choose what to read and what we read makes us who we are. No one is forcing us to believe anything. We are choosing to learn about these things because we do believe in them. Having books that challenge what we think helps us adjust and explore what we believe or don't believe in. And I want to make it clear that there are so many books that can do this, not just the ones we are banning. But limiting the books on the shelves limits the ideas that we can explore and learn from. I'm sure all of you know how hard life is. And maybe you've even had a moment when you were younger when you realized that. Just picture how hard that is. The feeling that things aren't going to get better. Those books that show us all the complexities in the world, the good and the bad, we can slowly begin to understand life and find hope for the future. If a book is getting too overwhelming, you can always set it down and pick it up another time. You can't exactly do that with love. Books are a safe way to explore the world while still in our comfort zone. I just want you to think about that. Thank you. Thank you, Izzy. Next is Rachel Anderson. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today. I currently have two children at St. Francis High School. The youngest is in 9th grade and the oldest is graduating on Friday with plans to attend Mallister to study political science and international studies. Over the past four years, they have had some excellent teachers who have encouraged them to grow and expand their academic skills and understanding of the world. These teachers introduced them to books that they might not have picked on their own. Books that expose them to people in places very different from their experiences here in St. Francis. In fact, my oldest sense of seeing the world through these books is a large part of why she now wants to study international relations. Having teachers who are skilled at helping students understand the deeper meaning and themes of these texts and how to analyze them is a vital part of education. Reading the books at home on their own would not have allowed my kids to learn nearly as much from them. I am appalled and furious that the school board, people we elected to act in the best interest of our children, chose to abdicate the responsibility and hand over control of what books these highly skilled and trained teachers are allowed to use to people with no professional qualifications. Why are you allowing people who don't know our kids or care about them to limit their educational opportunities? How does this line up with the district's mission statement? Our mission is to equip all students with the knowledge and skills to empower them to achieve their dreams and full potential while becoming responsible citizens in a dynamic world. Your choice to allow these book bands has removed books which are widely accepted as having educational and literary value. Many of the books that are banned or have been challenged are commonly on the AP lit literature exams, vital tests for students planning to attend college. I've heard that the new language arts curriculum even includes passages from several of the books you have banned. Do you really think the publishers would have done that if these books were harmful? The school board's unwillingness to admit that they were wrong and repeal the book ban harms my kids and their classmates high school education and puts them at a disadvantage as they pursue higher education. Do the job we elected you to do. Equip our children with the knowledge and skills they need. Trust the professionals you hire, teachers and librarians to pick the right books because this community loves our children and wants them to succeed. I hope you do, too. Thank you. Thank you, Rachel. Next is Richard [Music] Clavette. Disagreements aren't just permissible within our community. They're valuable. They've reflect reflect the genuine complexity of the issues at stake and the intellectual diversity that makes us strong. I still believe we need to limit access to barographic material in the schools in Independent School District 15. Sex on the other hand is a ubiquitous fact. Each human being walking around the planet here is because male and female gamuts combined. How masculine or feminine feminine someone is, how they dress or behave or conceive of themselves, those things are endless have endless variations. But is indisputable that on average males are bigger, stronger than females, however they identify. I have a couple of examples from one's from the u an oaka county sheriff who blame school a officer requested a phone call to report an incident involving two students from a middle school. The detective learned the students had been exchanging nude photographs of themselves believed to have been taken at their respective residence and sending them through the Discord app to an unknown user. This user was reportedly compensating them with Roblox in-game currency gift card codes. The students identified as two 14y old males. There was a state legislator that was arrested in this spring for soliciting a 16 year old girl. There was a school administrator arrested on an iron ring also for soliciting a 16 year old girl. While I believe a lot of students can handle what is in these books, some of them can't. And those are examples of ones that can't. So that's why we should limit access to pornographic material in the school. Thank you. And of course I get no clapping. Thank you, Richard. Next is Alex Hendrick. That's for you. I'm Alex Hendendricks and I'm a junior at St. Francis High School. I have written this speech twice before. I have stood in front of you before asking, no, begging for the right to read. And the fact that I'm doing this again, the feel the fact that I feel like I have to do this again. I'm exhausted not just from the things students carry right now. I'm exhausted from feeling like we can't be trusted to think for ourselves. Like someone somewhere sitting in a meeting room knows me better than I do. And I want to be really honest with you right now. It's my mom's birthday today. I don't want to be standing here. I don't want to give this speech. I'm not here because I'm brave or confident. I'm here because I'm scared. I'm here because I'm tired. I'm here because I don't know how else to say please stop. And I'm here because these books are still banned and it's killing me. I wish you could feel like feel what it's like to walk through a school walk through a school day with a panic attack around the corner. To sit in a room pretending everything was viral, your whole chest is is tight and your thoughts won't shut up. That's my reality. I shouldn't have to argue that our pain is real. But where am I? Voice cracking because if I don't say it, who will? I read a novel once where the main character didn't know how to ask for help. She just tried to hold it all in. And I remember thinking, "That's me. That's exactly how I feel." That book saved me in a way nothing else did. That book was banned because someone somewhere decided it was too heavy for students. Because reading about someone surviving was labeled dangerous. But what's really dangerous is going through these things and being made to feel like you are the only one. Like no one understands like silence is the only option. This isn't abstract. This isn't just books. It's real blood and bone. It's a kid in the bathroom stall back pressed the cold towel crying until every deer is spent. It's a student who swallows rising nausea instead of asking for anything. It's a voice that drowns in silence because asking for help feels impossible. Banning a book about depression doesn't erase depression. Banning a book about self harm doesn't stop the harm. Removing accounts of suicide doesn't make suicidal thoughts disappear. It takes away the one chance someone has to read. I survived this. It failed. It brought some of that sliver of hope. And I want to ask why. Why are you so afraid of student seeing their pain reflected on them in a way that says you're not alone? So many of us walk through school surviving but not living. Do you think banning the stories make the pain makes pain go away? It doesn't. It just makes it harder to survive, hard to speak, hard to feel like you deserve to exist at all. I am tired of begging for access to books that make you feel alive when nothing else did. I'm tired of being told this that sensitive content is too much for me when I'm living it. I'm tired of trying to explain how terrifying it is to lose only thing that makes you feel understood. So, I'm asking you, no, I'm pleading with you. Don't take these books away from the next kid who's trying to hold it together. Don't take away the lifeline. Don't silence the story. That might be the reason they're still here tomorrow. Thank you. Thank you, Alex. Our next is Brian Longard. Uh, I'm speaking today about the book ban policy. Over the past few months, we've seen numerous people gather and speak up against this atrocious policy and the damage it would do in and to our community. In addition to multiple lawsuits filed, we've heard from parents, community members, teachers, librarians, authors, both mental and physical health experts, legal experts, historians, and students. Those who oppose book banning and the removal of books from the schools in our community are not an anomaly. They are the majority and they come with evidence, information, data, logic, history, resources, credentials, documentation, experience, and passion. Friends, they come with receipts. Those who have spoken in favor of the policy, though extremely few, have come with bigotry and homophobia. They have come with fallacies and disconnected ideas. They have come with definitions at odds with national, state, and local classifications. It is at best a misunderstanding that must be corrected. But when you hear hooves, think horse, not zebra. So the most likely culprit here is hate. So, while we wrestle with choosing knowledge or choosing hate, I'm going to propose once again that we put our confidence in our professional educators who come with evidence and information and research and logic and data. Let's get behind those who've done the work. Thank you. Thank you, Brian. Our last speaker is John [Music] Anderson. John, your time's up. I didn't even get my warning. Good evening, school board, administration, and community. Um Barb Anderson, my wife, asked me to share some comments with you this evening. And um I don't know if I can be as upbeat as she is. Um so either bear with me or if I fall very far short, just tell me to step it up. Um on Wednesday evening last week, there was a cultural festival put on by students. These students and their families educated us about countries, customs, and foods of their country. This is a great preparation for continuing to learn and communicate with others. Skills needed as they graduate. It was an excellent evening. Thanks to all students and staff for expanding understanding of the larger world, the larger community, and there were many beautiful dances. There was a choir concert on Thursday highlighting seniors. Besides the great talent shared, the sense of hope and care among the students was incredible. Their joy in singing was heartfelt. Thank you for all in the choir program for this positive, youthful, and hopefilled song. Thank you, Barb. Thank you, John. Thank you to all of you that spoke tonight. We truly do appreciate the engagement from our community. Uh next agenda item is consent agenda. Before I do that, um we have five items on tonight's consent agenda. Are there any questions or requests to remove any items prior to a motion being made? Miss West, I had a question and I sent it over to um Carsten about I think I can remember it um a fee that we pay technology fees through CESO that is an annual one time um monthly thing what type of fee that was how often we paid it. He said he was gonna get back to me on it on it, but it was 1,450 some odd dollars or something like that. Yeah. Yeah. So, I I appreciate the question in advance uh of the meeting. So the the bill I think it was 1345 so many sense uh is for a module that we added to our easy routing um transportation system that is specifically for uh maintenance tracking on our bus fleet. Uh and so uh that's the amount that we pay each year for that particular module. Uh that's in addition to the $7,500 that we spend per year on the easy routing system. Uh so together it's right around $9,000 that we spend per year. Uh that's cheaper than our previous uh routing system. uh it the the bills go through CISO uh because they have a special deal with the software and so we get a better price if we go through CISO and so that's why they're the checks are written to CESO uh but just to let you know that a year ago maybe two years ago uh Peggy from transportation uh and a few others and I were really looking at these routing software packages uh because we were not pleased with one that we had and we were about to choose one that's really common in the state. We were ready to go and then CISO mentioned this possible new solution. So we we pressed pause and uh we made sure that we had one more presentation and that's the one we ended up picking and because of that the ease of that software uh we could eliminate one of our routing specialist positions you know which was a full-time position in the transportation department. So, you know, pressing pause, looking at the extra software that CISO suggested actually saved us, you know, tens of thousands of dollars per year. Uh, so, but to answer your question, Annette, it was the uh the one module uh that's an add-on to uh the easy system. Thank you. Any other questions? All right. Is there a call to motion to approve the consent agenda? So, thank you, Mr. Shonro. Is there a second? Second. Thank you, Mr. W. Any discussion on the motion to approve consent agenda? Seeing hearing none, this will be a roll call vote. So, uh, first, if you are in favor of the motion, signify by saying I. If you oppose, signify by saying name. Miss Hansen. Hi. Mr. Workin. Hi. Mr. Humphrey. Hi. Mr. Sh. Miss West. Hi. and I am I as well. Motion prevails. Thank you. All right. As we move into uh agenda item six, information items and report. Again, a reminder to all board members uh any questions till the end of the report. Uh no student council update for tonight. Uh the next item is uh 6.2 first reading of policies 299, 422, and 523. Uh we will um see these at our next regular meeting for final. Uh if there's any changes or anything that we discussed tonight that will be talked about. Mr. Nelson is here to represent the policy committee if there's any specific questions. Any questions or comments on the first reading of those policies. All right, seeing none, our next uh item is administrative reports. And Addison, the floor is yours. Well, we have a lot of great news to share about students and staff. Uh, first of all, the uh 2025 theater educator award uh was given to Glenn Mhouse Olsen and u she will receive the award on June 9th when her students perform at the state theater. Uh so it's quite an accomplishment accomplishment for Mole. Um welld deserving. We have a tremendous theater program. I'm really proud of it and I love the plays and musicals. Uh so congratulations to to to Glenn Moren. Uh related to that uh the spotlight awards uh is the the yearly event at the state theater uh that features you know different theater programs throughout the state. Uh we were chosen as a community engagement award winner for spotlight for community outreach uh for the production of Susicle which was unbelievably good and fun. uh this year. Uh the play was also selected for production honors to perform on Monday, June 9th at 7:30m at the state uh theater. Unfortunately, we have a board meeting that night. Um otherwise, I think several of us would try to attend. Uh some other awards are included in the attachment um with the award packet. Uh, and I I don't know if I'm saying this name correctly, but Brock Beerbot um is one of the final six candidates for the technical track award. Uh, two of those six will produce the showcase in the area of lighting design in New York later this summer. So, fingers crossed for Brock. Uh, the next item uh totally different vein but just as important. uh the school district uh received a certificate of excellence in financial reporting. I'm not sure if the district has ever received that in the past. Uh but it's it's actually a really big deal. I think there are about 35 to 40 districts in the state that received this honor in a particular year. Uh there was an extensive um application process that was led by DD uh as well as a financial uh team. uh and so we should be proud of that because it really emphasize emphasizes the importance of transparency in reporting. Uh also attached the board agenda I included the award certificate, review memo, press release and reviewer comment about that. So thank you Dee for uh your leadership in obtaining that award. Emily Zansz um is a middle school science teacher who took her innovative work to the global stage last month uh presenting at the Ireland International Conference uh on education. Her presentation centered around universal design for learning uh and the mission to Mars enrichment program she created for saints time. So it was at no cost to the school district. you know, her uh trip to Ireland for the presentation. Uh but it's an incredible honor and uh uh she's already invited me to come and watch it in action last next year. So I'll I'll try to extend that invitation out to board members as well. Mr. Anderson. Yeah, that's Miss Sven's sixth grade science teacher uh at the middle school and she showcased her uh project. However, all of the materials were from our students. So, our students events, uh, what they did, their work was all presented at this global um conference. It was a pretty awesome thing. Thank you. Oh, I'm also excited to announce that Carlo Winter uh was recently selected to become the St. Francis Elementary School principal and uh she's going to be fantastic. She's the current principal at Chisum Elementary School. uh where she's worked as the principal for three years. Previously, she worked as a director of teaching and learning in Winona um including some time during COVID. So, she's seen um quite a um quite an array of different experiences. Uh there were about 20 applicants uh for the position, some very good applicants. uh three administrators reviewed uh the applications uh uh and a team consisting mostly of St. Francis elementary school employees conducted first round interviews and then district cabinet members and I conducted a second round. Uh she comes really highly recommended from the references that I called. Uh some were listed on her resume and application, some were not. So, I'm very confident in what she'll bring to the district. So, anyway, I just thought I'd let you highlight her work. When she gets started here, then we'll make sure that she comes to a board meeting so she can introduce herself and answer some questions. Saints online is going through a management change, but one thing I want to emphasize is that uh the program is going to stay the same. We're going to offer the same or very similar curriculum. The same teachers will be teaching it. We're just changing who manages different aspects of it. And we're really doing that because we want to make things more efficient and effective for our students, families, and staff members. So, uh, in the past, Ben Craig of the Saints Academy, uh, oversaw Saints on online as a separate school site. And so, when high school students, for example, would uh, you know, let's say they're work, they were studying at St. Francis High School, but then they decided to go to Saints online for part of the day or for the whole day, we'd have to do a whole enrollment change. Uh, and that would often happen at the end of each trimester. Uh and so Vanessa and others, you know, had a lot of extra work making that happen. Uh it was really complicated for counselors because suddenly they'd be assigned a different counselor and a different principal overseeing, you know, different things. Uh it's a very complicated process. Uh beginning on July 1st, building principles will oversee management. Again, it's going to have the same curriculum and teachers. So, uh, there will not be a significant, uh, impact on kids. It's definitely going to make it easier, uh, for them to to sign up and to change classes. Uh, want to shout out, uh, to Erica Campbell, a counselor at the high school, uh, who worked with Saints Academy and Saints Online for several years. Um, she's now a high school counselor and she's leading the transition. So, I'm very confident that there'll be a few bugs here and there as we start the the process, but I think kids, their families, and staff members are going to be really pleased with the changes. Uh, also I highlighted some information about graduation rates increases. Um, and uh, Dax Larson wrote a a great article about it and u, uh, we do surpass the state average. Uh, you can see some basic data. The high school recorded a 96.5% graduation rate uh which is over 2% more uh from 2023 uh in the best percentage in the last 5 years. We still have room to grow uh but we're very pleased with uh that information. Let me see if I have anything else on my report. I love reporting such great news. Oh, the scholarship awards night. I wish I could have been there, but I was at my own son's scholarship award night in Watertown. Uh, but you can see some great data there. First, we hold it every year. It's May 14th this year. Uh, nearly 85 seniors were were awarded scholarships. It totaled $120,000. So, that's a good night for those kids. Uh, more than 45 organizations contributed to the total amount of scholarships. So, we want to thank them for their generous uh donations. And um you can see a list of of people who were honored for fine arts, for athletics, uh AAA advisor of the year, and coach of the year. Uh so once again, we're really proud of their contributions to our school district. Uh one thing I I want to highlight, Dax Larson does such a great job as our communication supervisor. He has a news release section on our website where I got a lot of this information. So please take a look at it. I included how to get there. Um, and so just glance at it once in a while and encourage others to do it because there are a lot of amazing things that are happening here and we want people to learn uh more about that. Uh, graduation ceremonies, as a reminder, Saints Academy May 29th at 6 p.m. Uh, there's a open house that starts at 5:30 and then St. Francis High School uh graduation's May 30th uh at 700 p.m. That's this Friday. So if you are unsure about what to do on those dates, if you could please please reach out to the uh building leaders. And then finally, I've updated the discipline data for the month of April. So that information is in there as well. Any questions for Mr. Anderson? Mr. Sh. So the graduation rates for the 10% roughly that don't graduate do you know I want to say the excuse or what the rationale is or what they just leave they not have the gra uh yes yes uh sometimes uh they may leave the district for another district and we're not able to track them down and so we have to report them in that way. Uh I believe this data does not include fiveyear and sixyear graduates. if you happen to know, Vanessa. So, sometimes they just haven't graduated yet, but we're going to keep working with them. Uh, you know, as long as they're willing to work with us on on graduating. Okay. Any other questions or comments for Mr. Anderson? Thank you. All right. Our next uh agenda item is action items. We've got three tonight. Uh the first one is the approval of the FY 2025 budget revisions. Uh we approved the budget revisions in January and DB told us that hey there will be a second one most likely coming in the spring and uh she did not lie to us. It is here. Uh there are two areas that have proposed changes uh in in the general fund and the construction fund and Dei is going to walk us through those. De Thank you. Um, so included in your packet is the really tiny document and I apologize for the audience, it's difficult to see, but what I want to just point out to you is really kind of the major changes. So that blue column that you see there. Um, so first of all, there's $169,000 in redact literacy aid that we're recognizing. And then the second line, 152,000 uh readact teacher compensation for training. That is funding received from the state of Minnesota. You'll notice over in the blue column under the expense that it's um similar amounts for going forward for that those same programs. So um with a little bit of savings or money that'll be held aside in the redact literacy aid column. So there'll be about $52,000 remaining. Then if you go down um to um just to the almost to the bottom two numbers, there's 1.113 million as a negative on the bottom there. You see that for coupon and then there's a positive up above. That's because there's a reclassification on how we have to record that revenue. It is no longer considered an assigned. It is now a restricted which means you have to spend that and the state is requiring that requirement of revenue comes in that that code and be spent in that code. So the city of Minnesota reclassified that over on the right hand side on the uh the expenditure side you'll see an um increase in long-term facility m um maintenance. That's just recognizing what we expect to have um occur in in that fund. a little additional expense um to um give that to 602,000. Then underneath that medical assistance, we will see a reduction in the amount of the expenses by $350,000. We made some changes with um how we're spending those funds to make assure that we have enough funds going forward. And then again, like I explained on the Q comp related to the revenue, the same is true for the expenditures. So, um reducing it out of the assigned and into the um uh restricted account. So, that's the general fund. And then onto the construction fund which is down below. Thanks, Vanessa. Um then I just want to point out that uh the reduction of $35,000 in the bond fund as far as revenue uh had to do with little little um less interest earnings than we had anticipated. And then finally this spring um on the expense side reducing the amount of the expenditures. Um part part of that is due to the fact that we had a lower audited fund balance. So we needed to our initial budget was a little greater anticipating that some of that would be carried over but we got some of those projects done the prior year. So all in all the construction fund u will be at zero. That's where we wanted it and anticipated we should be for the end of the end of the fiscal year. That's all I have on the rebudget revisions. Any questions or comments for any on she just presented before we have a motion. Miss West, are we still maintaining the minimum unassigned general fund balance of 12% of the operating expenses? Yes. Y that's all I have. Perfect. All right. Is there a call to motion to approve the 2025 budget revisions as proposed? Thank you, Mr. Sh. There a second. Thank you, Mr. Jordan. Any discussion on that motion? See none. All in favor, signify by saying I and raising your hand. I motion prevails. Thank you. All right, T, you're up again for the next agenda item 7.2. This is the updated 2026 uh budget assumptions. Uh the initial assumptions were presented to us back in January. Uh and there are four areas that have been revised with these budget assumptions. This has to be approved before June 30th. Uh so we can set that budget even though legislation might not get back to us by then. But DD go ahead. Thank you. So as Mr. Burr uh indicated the enrollment figure is not one that changed. We had not made any changes in that. On the second category in the revenue um you'll see that the um $7,481 the per pupil funding allowance um the increase of to $191. It's a 2.74%. Previously it was $175 increase in 2.4. So the state came through as you'll recall they added in this inflation factor and then they calculate that they estimate it to begin with and then they do the final and this 2.74 is is the final number. There isn't anything else in that revenue category that has any changes on the expense side. The only change then is again on the other expenses I increased the inflationary consideration up from 2.4 4 to 2.74 to follow what we receive in revenue. So again, same same type of assumption we had before, but just updating it for the state of Minnesota. Then where the largest changes are down at the bottom, some of these you have already approved. So these are um um positions or changes that we're making. So, first um $2,548 increase um for a middle school track to have more coaches available to make sure that the student to coach ratio uh lines up with what our expectation is. And then the second one is a little interesting in that um at crossroads we are going to reduce two teachers and replace with three behavioral interventionist and that is a cost savings of 6,500. Next um two items the board has already taken action on those in February of 25 reducing three elementary intervention teachers and one elementary classroom teacher. And then, excuse me, the next line is Indian education. We will see about a $10,000 um funding for um district-wide Indian education courses. Next, then some supervision at um St. Francis High School for 5,500. This will supervise students um from that 3 to 6:00 p.m. and any any other activities that might be at that time. and then an attendance clerk um increasing those hours at East Bethl Elementary School by three hours. And you can see the amount there. And then the activity fees that are listed there, uh middle school activity fee um increasing from $15 to $150 and 9th grade activity fee from 225 to 250. And then the theater fee which is the technology portion of theater um increasing from 35 to 75. Um and as noted in particular on the athletics those are those fees are in line with our our conference um competing um school districts as well. So um with that um ask the board to approve those and those will be incorporated in the budget for fiscal year 2526. Are there any questions for the before a motion is made? Seeing none, is there call a motion to approve the 2026 budget assumptions as proposed? Thank you. Is there a second? Thank you, Mans. Discussion on that motion. Seeing none, all in favor of the motion signify by saying I and raising your hand. I I motion prevails. Thank you. Thank you. [Music] All right. Our last action item for tonight is 7.3 approval of the 2025 2026 Minnesota State High School League membership renewal. This is a resolution we'll need to make. We'll need a motion to approve that membership and then we will do a roll call on that one as well. M if you have any questions, Mr. Anderson uh is here to answer any questions. Questions? Um when is this due? July 31st. I know it's sometime this summer. I don't recall the exact date, but that's typically uh when we give issue to the state high school lead. Okay. So, we don't necessarily have to vote on this and make a decision tonight. U to answer your question, you're correct. Uh but I really don't think there's a reason to wait either. Um certainly participation in the state high school week is critically important. Um otherwise we won't have varsity athletics here. we won't have fine arts competitive um opportunities for our kids. So yeah, to answer your question, we don't have to do it tonight, but you know, participating in the state high school league is critically important. So my concern is if if I could just finish up where I'm going is that um Minnesota State High School League is in conflict with state between it's kind of between state and federal um what they've decided to do and they're currently in a lawsuit and I'm wondering if we could just postpone this for one month. Not that we're not going to sign up or or join rejoin, but um I'm wondering if it wouldn't be in our best interest maybe just to hold off a month and see where the lawsuits go and um where we settled between the state and the federal um and have a better view of of you know what Minnesota High School Minnesota State High School League is, you know, what their path forward is going to be. That's my only concern. So, I hear your concern. Um, we are currently in a legal situation. You know how slow that goes. I don't think any resolution will come within a month between federal and state lawsuits. Um, so there, you know, there's not going to be a clear answer ahead within a month. Um I I believe that you know as a school board we would decide if we want to be part of the state high school league or not um after that is resolved but we're we're talking years before those and do we know how much it is? Uh we do not how much what is how much the um the fee is uh yeah I believe it's going to be the the same as last year. They said for two years that's right yeah I think it's a two set for two years. Uh I know at the uh about this time a year ago we passed the resolution saying that uh we would agree to it as long as it did not increase by more than $10,000 or something like that. Certainly that's a possibility too. But yeah, I mean the cost is I believe it was a two-year rate that was adopted and it was no cost last year or the very minimum. Yeah, very zero. Oh, yeah. Thank you, Vanessa. Vanessa always comes through. So, uh, membership is $100 per school. Activity registration fee is $100 per activity, not per student, but per activity. Um, and then the student fee is uh $2.25 per student based on state high school league enrollment. Okay. Any other questions or comments? All right. Is there a call motion for approval of the resolution for membership in the Minnesota State High School League? So, thank you, Mr. Shra. Is there a second? Second. Thank you, Mr. Working. Any discussion on that motion? All right. This will be a roll call vote. Uh again, if you're in favor, say I. If you're not, say nay. We'll start with Mr. Humphrey. Hi. Mr. Shark. Hi. Miss Hansen. Hi. Mr. Working. Hi. Miss West. N. And I am I motion prevails. All right. And that concludes action items. Our next uh topic is our agenda item is upcoming meetings and preliminary topics. Are there any questions or comments about what is in the board book for upcoming meetings and topics? If I could just uh mention one thing about the list. Um, I know I'll be uh meeting with DD uh with DD in the near future just to review all the financial related topics uh to make sure they're consistent with the current flow of decision- making. So, this change with the finances might change a little bit, you know, when I bring it, you know, the next month. Uh, and the reason there was kind of a big shakeup as far as the timing is that last year we had work sessions. So we would often discuss things at one meeting and then at the regular meeting we approve them. Well, now we have just regular meetings. We don't have set aside work sessions independent from the regular meetings or on you know instead of the regular meetings. And so that's why some of the terminology on the sheet has been a little off. So but we'll and that's my responsibility. It's not DED's but I'll work with DD to make sure we're on the same page. Any other questions or comments? Okay, I have one comment. Uh, our our next scheduled meeting is June 9th at 6:30, but we will be adding a special meeting uh to that night at 6:00 p.m. uh 6 pm special meeting on June 9th. And that information will be coming out from Vanessa. Uh and the purpose of that is a close session for attorney client privilege. That should not conflict with any other meetings. There's I know we've got school board orientation, but that will be done before that time frame. Mr. Should be enough time to have that meeting, get everybody in here and start the next. What we talked about too is that, you know, if it went to 6:32 or something that we could publicize it as starting at 6:30 or perhaps Yeah, the standard that Vanessa puts in there is it'll start at 6:30 or 10 minutes after the previous meeting and for the further meeting. Okay. Um, next item is school board member reports. Mr. Working, you want to start us off tonight? Uh, I got actually nothing to share. Thank you. Mr. Humphrey, nothing. Thanks, Mr. Sher. just looking forward to the graduation Thursday and Friday. It's just so fun to be a part of that and see the reaction on their faces as you handle. It's just an honor to be a part of it, you know. So, um, sorry for my being late. I was at the section track meet where my daughter was competing tonight. She didn't make it to state, but it was pretty close. But there were three other athletes at the time I had left that did qualify for state. So there will be representation at the state meet and there is a section meet on Thursday as well for different events we will be represent that's it okay um I have something news for the based on I've got some news for the board has uh formally resigned from the school board effective June 6th Miss Anson and her family have uh some life changes that have come up and they will allow be moving outside of our district. So, Miss An want to thank you for your service here on the board. We appreciate your time and your openness with us as well as um you know, keeping me informed of what was happening. Um I know it's not an easy decision for her. she did not intend uh to run for school board and not be able to finish out the term, but we wish you nothing but the best of luck in your future endeavors. Uh with that being said, there will be some uh things that the board will have to do moving forward, but we'll have that information at our next regular meeting as to the next steps for the board going forward. Miss West, I just wanted to mention that tomorrow night from 6:00 to 8 at St. Francis High School. There is a summer gathering and graduation celebration for the Apac group of graduate graduates. Um they're going to have fried bread fry bread tacos and cupcakes at 6:00 p. p.m. followed by their graduation celebration at about 7. Um graduates are recommended to invite family, friends, and teachers that would like to celebrate their accomplishment. So that'll be going on as well as then the following two evenings of graduation ceremony. So lot going on this week. Thank you. Uh so I I had no uh committee meetings in between. So nothing to report there. Um just a reminder to all schoolboard members if you are attending graduation please respond back to Mr. Austin and Mr. Craig, if you would let me know as well, just so if they ask me who's all coming, I understand who's there. Um, they both sent emails on timing of when you want to arrive. Uh, and we'll just walk through it quick so everyone knows what they're doing at that time. That's all I have. Mr. Anderson, do you have anything else? I do not. Okay. Uh, except I will say Andrea, I think you would have been a fantastic board member. I like the the way you kind of approach things and you talk about research and planning and some of that detailed work. So I'm sad to see you leave. Our last agenda item is ajournment. Is there a any question before questions? Is there a motion to working that? Is there a second? Mr. Shar, thank you. Any discussion on that motion? All right. All in favor signify by saying I I motion prevails meeting 757