[Music] Good evening and welcome to our district 196 regularly scheduled schoolboard meeting. At this time, please rise as you are able and join me in the pledge of allegiance. After the pledge of allegiance, please remain standing for a brief moment of silence. >> I pledge algiance 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. At this time, I'd like us to just share a brief moment of silence for district 196 employee Steve Engel, our community education registar, who passed away on September 29th. Thank you. All right. Good evening, school board. As usual, our first order of business is the approval of the agenda. There are no additions or deletions to the agenda tonight. Is there a motion to approve the agenda as outlined? >> So move. >> Motion by Robin, second by Saken. Right. Did I get that right? Perfect. >> All those in favor of approval of the agenda, say I. >> I. >> Those opposed? Motion carries on a 70 vote. That brings us to our recognition portion of our agenda tonight. And I would like to welcome Egan High School principal Paulie Rowski to the podium to talk about the National Merit Scholarship and College Board's National Recognition Programs awardees. >> Good evening, Chairperson Johnson, Superintendent Paulony, school board members, district and school leaders, and of course all of our special guests. I am Dr. Paulie Reichowski, Egan High School principal, and this year it's my turn to give the introduction. So, I'm here to honor the 35 District 196 seniors who are recognized as top scholars in the National Merit Scholarship Program and College Board recognition. Almost a year ago now, 1.3 million high school juniors throughout our nation voluntarily participated in a test, the preliminary scholastic aptitude qualifying test. We call it the PAT. Late last spring, 50,000 students with the highest selection index scores were identified. Then in September, the top 5% of those students were named commended scholars and the top 1% above them or 16,000 seniors were named semi- finalists. These honors are spread equitably across our states and territories. Semi-finalists will fulfill further steps this year to be named finalists in the spring of 2026. In addition, students from our schools who are first generation college board were also honored by the National Merit Organization. So, District 196 has 35 seniors being honored this year. Our semi- finalist and finalist students will be eligible for over $33 million in scholarships within this program. The scholarships are from the National Merit Program, corporate sponsors, and of course, colleges and universities who frankly vi pretty hard to get these students to enroll in their schools so they can brag about it. Students will be notified of scholarships in March of 2026. We of course are all very proud of these students accomplishments, academic achievements, and contributions to our schools and communities. Together with their families and friends, we honor them tonight. We also recognize all the teachers and schools who have been a part of their success all along the way. At this time, I would like to invite the Egan High School family and friends to stand and be recognized in our audience. Thank you for all your support and encouragement, both in person, loving care, financial, everything you've done for these students. Thank you. On behalf of the Egan High School faculty and staff, I wish to congratulate our 2026 scholars from Egan High School. Thomas Gainor, An Kaine, Elizabeth Kenny, Kiara Schumacher, Sanv Seth, Nolan Sue, and Kai Wong. Thank you everyone. Yep. Next up, I'll welcome Mr. Bruce Miller, principal of East View High School, so that he can recognize his students. Well done. Congratulations. >> Good evening. I'm here to recognize our East View uh recognes for National Merit Scholarship uh qualifying test. Would the East View parents and families that are here representing and supporting their students please rise? [Applause] Thank you for all the support that you provided our students. Uh for our ESU students we have Advika Chowdery, Tess Dalma, Micah D. Rocher, Nina Galendez, Braden Holm, Maya Jenkins, Jones Carter, Alex Kier, Suas Potula, Anna Rcala, Alden Row, Joseph Panikar, sorry, Joseph, and Theo co Joe and not here tonight. We have Anna Alaska and Sai Rahul Ready is at home taking an online economics test with the University of Minnesota Twin Cities as a PSO student. So we're proud of him. And I just want to point out Nenah and Tess are dressed especially nice tonight. They're hustling to a choir concert. So we appreciate that about them as well. They're all very busy students. So, our ECU students >> and I will introduce the principal of Rosemount High School, Mr. Pete Roach. >> Congratulations. >> Congratulations. >> Congratulations. >> Congratulations. Congratulations. >> Congratulations. >> Congratulations. >> Congratulations. >> Congratulations. >> Well done. >> Congratulations. >> Congratulations. >> Good evening, Chairperson Johnson, school board members, and Superintendent Balsone. My name is Pete Robach, principal of Rosemont High School, and it's my pleasure to introduce our National Merit Scholars. A quick apology, a majority of our scholars could not be in attendance today. Um, it might not be much of a surprise. We have a rather large marching band rehearsal going on right now. So, we do have some students there this evening, but we were fortunate to have three of our students be able to attend. Uh before I get to our students, would the Rosemont High School families please rise who are in attendance and offer our appreciation. So here with us this evening from Rose Mount High School, we have Kellen Edwards, we have Aaron Van Arnum, and we have Owen Moore. unable to be with us this evening. Will Begitch, Joey Schilling, Delilah Ober, and Benny Lynn. Congratulations. Congratulations. Thanks. Congratulations. Yeah, appreciate it. >> All right. Next, I'd like to welcome our director of secondary education, Eric Hansen, to the podium to introduce staff from Egan High School, which has been named the 2025 NFHS Performing Arts School of Excellence. >> Good. Good evening, Chapen Johnson, school board members, and superintendent Balsson. My name is Eric Hansen. to serve as a director of secondary education. It is my honor to introduce Dr. Paulie Reichowski, principal of Egan High School. Dr. Reichowski and her team have championed a vision where creativity, collaboration, and excellence go hand in hand. Under her leadership, Egan's performing arts programs have flourished, empowering students to to discover their voices, showcase their talents, and inspire others. Today, as Egan High School is recognized for the 2025 National Federation of High School's Performing Arts School of Excellence, we celebrate the school's dedication, leadership, and unwavering belief in the power of arts to shape and uplift students. At this time, I'd like to invite Dr. Reichowski to share more information on this distinguished award. Thank you. Good evening once again. As the principal, I get to speak about this award, which is pretty amazing. Several of our adviserss and directors were able to join me tonight for this presentation. I uh want to Can you grab the plaque over there? I'll send the uh performing arts plaque, the ceremonial plaque that they presented to us down through the board so that you can look at it. The plaque reads performing arts school of excellence Egan High School, Minnesota in recognition of National Performing Arts Week, a week dedicated to reminding the public of the first class programs that exist for our youth today. The presentation of this plaque is bestowed upon a school that exemplifies the characteristics of excellence, pride, community involvement, and dedication to performing arts. Signed, the National Federation of State High School Associations 2025 2026. So each October, the National Federation, which is a national organization that all of our high school league groups belong to, names only one high school in the nation as the NFHS Performing Arts School of Excellence. To be completely honest, I didn't know this award existed, and you don't get to apply for it unless they invite you to. So that's pretty interesting. This award is one of the marquee celebrations of the National High School Activities Month, which is October, and it's been awarded since 2016 to one high school each year. Egan High School is only the 10th high school to be honored. Egan was invited to apply for this recognition by the executive director, Eric Martins, and the Minnesota State High School League. He told me he invited a number of schools, as did other directors. I don't know who. Gathering the details of the many years of arts was certainly a task and we submitted the lengthy document for review. Once we were informed that Egan High School would be the national award winner for this year, the planning began for a surprise presentation at the October 3rd Egan High School homecoming pepfest. Since we did not inform our faculty, staff, or students, it truly was a surprise for all. Chris Pollson, the National Federation of High School's director of performing arts, came to Egan, spent the day with us, visited classes and programs, and presented the award with these words. Egan High School embodies everything that is that the award is meant to celebrate. The achievements of its music, theater, speech, debate, and visual arts programs are extraordinary. But what truly stands out is the way these programs nurture creativity, leadership, and confidence. Egan has built a model for the nation in showing how the performing arts can transform students lives and enrich entired communities. You know, it's great when you think you're wonderful, and we all do think we're wonderful, but it's really nice when a national organization tells you you're wonderful. Egan High School has 35 years of excellence in debate, speech, theater, visual arts, vocal music, and instrumental music. So many adults and students, their families, and our community have contributed to this prestigious honor for our school and of course for our school district. The district's AAA philosophy of arts, academics, and athletics is upheld and celebrated by this award. A number of our teachers, adviserss, and directors are doing what they do best tonight, working with our students back at school. I managed to get a couple of them to be able to join us. However, John Ratzoff, our technical director, theater manager and director of Encore, and Kathleen Wesgard, a longtime director of theater and speech coach, as well as being a state champion in speech herself and a member of a rather small but dedicated storytelling committee that she and I have been on for years and years. I appreciate them coming and want them to share in this. Of course, I congratulate all of our adviserss and directors and teachers all of the years that we've been that they've been part of Egan and worked on these programs. Thank you for inviting us for this recognition. We'll walk across and get congratulated and I'll invite my teachers to go first. Thank you. Congratulations. >> Hey, congratulations. >> Thanks again. >> Yes, it is. Thanks, Paulie. Thanks again. >> I'll do my recognition up there as well. >> Oh, superintendent. Sure. >> All right. Next, I'd like to welcome Superintendent Balsone from his microphone at the table to the podium to introduce members of the District 196 Finance Department, which has earned the prestigious meritorious budget award for the 11th consecutive year. >> That's actually absolutely right. Um, thank you, Chair Johnson. Um, thank you board members for having us. I'm at the podium tonight to recognize our budget and our finance team represented tonight by Danny Duchain standing next to me who's our coordinator of finance. We are pleased to announce officially that the Association of School Business Officials International ASPO ASBO has once again awarded District 196 the meritorious budget award for the fiscal year 2025 2026. This is our 11th consecutive year of recognition which is just amazing. This national recognition celebrates the district's commitment to clear, transparent, and highquality budget presentations, reinforcing our dedication to responsible financial stewardship. As Christopher Aneno Rubshaw, our director of finance, and Danny regularly say, the budget is more than numbers. It reflects our priorities and represents our commission, our commitment to our mission to educate, develop, and inspire students for lifelong success. To earn the meritorious budget award, budget documents undergo a rigorous peerreview process conducted by experienced school finance professionals and are carefully evaluated against ASBO's criteria checklist. The goal is to build trust and engage our community in responsible stewardship for public education. As a reminder, all budget documents for the current fiscal year and the nine previous years are available on our finance department's page on our website at district196.org. org. Danny, we'd like you to please share with your team our appreciation for their thorough, accurate, transparent, and easy to read budget book and your presentations. Thank you and congratulations. [Applause] >> Congratulations All right, and I'll turn the meeting back over to Superintendent Bosone for superintendent's recognition. >> Yeah, I'll stay up here and do that since I'm up here already. So, last week, the Minnesota State High School League announced their Hall of Fame class of 2026, naming Egan High School coach Kathy Gillan Melville, who was chosen for her transformative presence as a longtime head coach of the Egan High School girls volleyball team. She led the Wildcats to seven state championships and 16 crowns, six section crowns during her 30 years leading the program. We look forward to celebrating her honor during the Hall of Fame ceremonies this spring. Congratulations also to Rosemont High School Marching Band and the East View High School marching band for their performances at the state competition at the US Bank Stadium this past weekend. Rosemont took first place and East View took second place in the class A uh 4A class 4A competition marching band um at the US Bank. We look forward to celebrating them at a future meeting and we'll bring them to the board soon. Later in this meeting, the school board will be asked to approve a resolution designating this week, October 13 through 17th, as nutrition services employees appreciation week. In district 196, there are approximately 200 employees in nutrition services. They serve approximately 4.6 million healthy and nutritious meals at locations across our district. I was at an elementary school last week during lunch and I can assure you that the students love their food. They were waiting to get seconds and they were really excited to see that we got to visit and see what they got to eat. Um, I want to thank each of our nutrition services employees for all they do each day to keep our students wellfed and ready to learn. Also, later this evening, the board will be asked to approve a resolution designating October 20th to the 24th as Transportation Employees Appreciation Week in District 196. We currently employ 260 people and operate 239 vehicles, making it the largest school district-owned bus fleet in the state of Minnesota. In a typical year, our drivers and chaperones travel approximately 4.1 million miles, transporting more than 23,000 students twice every school day to and from more than 5,500 bus stops throughout the district. We want to thank our transportation employees who are the start and end of a great school day for our students. Also, today, October 13th, we are celebrating Indigenous People's Day in District 196 and across the state, honoring the resilience, achievements, and ongoing contributions of Native American nations. This state holiday is also an educational opportunity. Today, district 196 students along with all students in the state of Minnesota had dedicated instructional time to having meaningful conversations about sovereignty, cultural contributions, and contemporary issues facing native nations. Our elementary students used indigenous education for all materials from the lower sue Indian community as they read Pow-Wow Day by Cherokee author Tracy Sorrel. It is a story explaining the history and significance of pow-wows which are celebrated across the United States. At our secondary schools, social studies classes explored the history of treaties with the United States, tribal economies, and the contributions of indigenous peoples to American culture and society. And right now at this very minute, our district 196 American Indianed families are celebrating Indigenous People's Day um with our program staff at Whitetail Woods Regional Park, where students and families are learning how to play traditional lacrosse and enjoying time with one another. District 196 has a thriving indigenous community with over 585 native students across the district representing over 66 different sovereign nations. A majority of our students are Ojiway and Dakota. We are honored to learn about the cultures and celebrate their contributions and history in the state of Minnesota. Thank you. This concludes my report for this evening. Excellent. Thank you, Superintendent Bosone. Uh we don't have any items or anyone signed up for special communication requests tonight. So that brings us to our consent agenda. Board members, we have 17 items on the consent agenda tonight. Those items include the minutes of the September 29th, 2025 regular schoolboard meeting, gifts, grants, treasures reports for August 2025, summary of claims for August 2025, schedule investments for August 2025, revenues and expenditures report for August 2025, nutrition services employee appreciation week, October 13th through the 17th, 2025. Transportation employees appreciation week, October 20th through 24th, 2025. Appointments to the curriculum and instruction advisory council. Appointments to the special education advisory council. Appointments to the equity advis advisory council personnel Egan high school site improvements employment agreement probationary agreement for clinical experience at Walden University and agreement for student teaching experience at Western Governor's University. Are there any items on the consent agenda that board members would like to remove tonight? Seeing none, is there a motion to approve the consent? >> So move second. >> Motion by Jackie, seconded by Leah. All those in favor of approving the consent say I. >> I. >> Those opposed? Motion carries on a seven zero vote. That could have been Robin, but I gave it to Leah. I don't know. >> It's fine. >> Okay. >> Next, I'd like to welcome Danny Dashene back to the podium to go over our official October enrollment report. Good evening, Chair Johnson, Superintendent Bosone, members of the board, and our District 196 community. My name is Danny Duching, coordinator of finance for district 196. Tonight's presentation is a summary of the district's annual October 1st enrollment report for the 2526 school year. No action is required from the board this evening in regards to this report. Included in the board packet tonight is the official enrollment report and school enrollment data compared to last year. Before I get started, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank members of our student information systems department, supervisor Emily Wood and Specialist Nancy Massie and Linda Rereath, as well as the many colleagues, registars out in the school buildings and in the various departments who help process enrollment requests, answer questions from prospective and current families, and scrub the data for the various reporting requirements for our district as well as the Department of Education. Since we're talking about students tonight, tonight's enrollment report really connects with every single aspect of our district's strategic roadmap, which focuses on providing opportunities and outcomes for all of our students districtwide. Overall, the October 1st enrollment report provides a few a few key highlevel takeaways for our district. First, our district continues to experience strong, stable enrollment without any significant volatility enrollment district-wide or at the various levels. Secondly, this year's report continues to reiterate the notion that overall our enrollment projection methodology is working quite well. The actual enrollment for October 1st for the 2526 school year is within 0.3% of our projected enrollment districtwide. The enrollment reporting timeline is a cycle that, much like the various budget cycles the district experiences, builds upon itself year after year. The current cycle began last November as the district's enrollment projections committee developed the enrollment projections for the current 2526 school year. The projections were used during the preliminary budget and planning processes. The October 1st report is the first official report for the current school year and plays a critical role in the development of the final budget. allocations and the 26 27 enrollment projections work that has already begun. It's critical that the board and the community understand what the October 1 enrollment report is and perhaps more importantly what it is not. There are two primary types of enrollment reports. CCount reports and average daily membership or ADM reports. CCount reports are built as a snapshot of data at a specific moment during the year. In this case, October 1st. Each student enrolled on October 1st counts as 1.0 in our student count regardless of whether they enrolled on September 29th or they unenrolled on October 2nd. Every student counts as 1.0. ADM reports are more fluid reports that depict the percentage of the entire school year a student was enrolled in our district. The October 1st report presented this evening is a seat count report and is the first official report, as I mentioned, sent to MDE for the current year. The October 1st report is utilized in a few different ways. This benchmark allows the district to perform some comparison analysis against previous years and projections on a specific consistent date year after year. Final budget allocations for the schools are calculated based upon the October 1st enrollment counts. And then this also becomes one of those key variables as we work to get through the enrollment projections process for the 2627 school year. From a revenue perspective, and this goes back to the previous slide, comp understanding the difference between an ADM report and a seat count report, the October 1 enrollment data is used to help estimates the district's year-end ADMs and APUs, which are adjusted pupil units. These calculations are the primary drivers for the majority of the district's state aid entitlement calculations. There are, it is important to note there are a few state aid entitlement categories, compensatory revenue being one of the primary examples which use the October 1st calculated enrollment um for revenue that will come in the following school year. As you can imagine, analyzing enrollment data is a very complex endeavor influenced by both internal external factors. It is important to keep these con these constantly changing factors in mind when discussing enrollment. A few that come to mind are the district has recently completed boundary changes at the elementary level which were effective for the current school year with the opening of Emerald Trail Elementary. Open enrollment, declining birth rate and population growth trends and economic conditions such as the housing market can all make an impact on enrollment counts both at a district level and an individual school level. The district's October 1st enrollment count was 28,934 students for the 2526 school year. The largest portion of enrollment is at the secondary level at 54% overall with the high school level accounting for 31% of enrollment and the middle school is accounting for 23% of enrollment respectively. The next largest band, which also includes the most grade levels, is the elementary level at 39%. Centerbased special education and early childhood special education account for the remaining 7% of our total enrollment. The chart shown here on this slide offers a glimpse in the five-year actuals at each of the grade bands, including the change from last year to the current school year. I'd like to mention a few specific points. Overall, as I mentioned before, this graph supports the notion that the district's enrollment is stable. The district has not experienced significant volatility from one year to the next, depicted by the absence of sharp peaks and valleys over the last five years. At the high school level, the 2024 graduating class was one of the largest classes in recent years, both in District 196 as well as statewide. Additionally, general birth rates in the state of Minnesota continue to trend downward. Graduating a large senior class paired with an incoming kindergarten class smaller than last year results in overall reductions at both the high school and elementary school levels, not including center-based special education students. The district did experience gains in seventh and eighth grade in the seventh and eighth grade groups and which were paired with a large incoming sixth grade class this year which was a large fifth grade class last year which resulted in overall growth at the middle school level. This chart shows the same data points for our centerbased and early childhood special education programs. The district continues to see growth in these two areas with a higher growth rate within the centerbased special education programs, which require more physical classroom space to serve students than general education programs. The results are a net increase of enrollment in these programs over last year of 62 students. Districtwide, our overall net result is an is a reduction of 115 students or 0.4% compared to October 1st, 2024. This slide is a re is from a recent presentation from the Minnesota Demographer that shows the general trends in population from 0 to 17 year olds in the state of Minnesota. I mentioned a few slides ago about replacing a large senior class from 2024 with a smaller kindergarten class and its impact on enrollment. This population tree provides a high level depiction on why that is the case. And the data on this slide is from 2024. During 2024, there were many more 15, 16, 17 year olds statewide than there were children ages five and younger. Each year, as the older groups graduate and move out of the out of school age, smaller courts are are replacing those students in our schools and in our communities. One of the key headlines I mentioned at the top of the presentation was that our enrollment enrollment projection methodology is performing quite well overall. This graph compares our enrollment projections and actuals over the last five years. The district projected a small decrease in enrollment for the 2526 school year compared to last year's actuals. While the decrease ex while the decrease experience was slightly larger than the projections, our end results were within less than 0.3% of projections, which aligns with the general high performance of the projection methodologies over the past 5 years. Shifting gears to a couple of slides that provide some insight in the demographics of our students. District 186 continues to trend in the direction of more racial diversity as shown in this 5-year comparison slide. For the 2526 fall Mars report using the federal racial reporting standards, the district comprised of 54 22% white students, 15.43% black students, 12.79% Hispanic students, 0.38% American Indian students, 7.17% Asian students, 9.89% 89% students who identified with multi-races and 0.11% Pacific Islander. I'd like to note that the district's American Indian student population is closer to 2% when using the state's uh racial definitions. The percentage of diversity in min in district 186 trends slightly more diverse than the state of Minnesota overall for the school age population 0 to 17 years old. The number of students receiving special education services and EL services in the district continues to grow and has grown significantly over the last 5 years with increases of 262 and 17 students since last year respectively in each of these programs. Overall, our district has strong stable enrollments. Our projection methodologies have been performing year-over-year with high accuracy and the district continues to increase in special education students and in racial diversity. As for what's next, the final budget cycle opened last week for district budget administrators and that budget cycle will continue through the month of October and the final budget will get brought to the board in December and January. Also, starting last week, the enrollment projections committee began our analysis and our work preparing the 2627 enrollment projections, which will be coming to the board either in November or December. At this time, I'd like to open this up for questions. And if I am unable to answer a specific question right now, knowing this could go questions could come uh from a variety of different directions, I'd be more than happy to take some notes and do some research and get back to you. >> Thank you very much. At this time, are there any questions or comments from the audience? Seeing none questions or comments from board members? Jackie, >> I don't have any part particular questions, but what I would like to do I I am just always floored at the results that you get because the enrollment projections drive all of our our programming, our funding, and our key to um the work here in the district. And when you're counting 29,000 students and projecting where we are, and you're off by 0.3%, that's not even a thing. That's that's not a thing. Um it so what you do and the methodology that you do just completely blow me away and thank you because that really helps us as we march forward be able to stay on stable footing be able to predict if we're coming up we need more or less in these groups. So to me what you do is is continues to be fabulous. So thank you so much. >> Well I'll give a lot of credit to our enrollment projections committee. It's comprised of administrators, principles that represent all of the various levels, elementary, middle school, and high school. >> Um, we have a system that we use, >> but it's part art, >> and there's part science. And it's we always try to wrestle with those two of what is the system, what is the methodology spitting out to us, >> and does that feel right or are there things that we know of that the methodology can't possibly take into account? And so um that group really does a great job of having those discussions and providing the different perspectives that gets us to >> well and we know from past reports where you get your you know you get information from the state, from the city, from the county and all of those things and it is just a marvelous job. So thank you so much. >> Thank you. >> Other questions or comments from the board? You >> go first. >> All right. Thank you. Uh I think this really very informative uh enrollment report and uh I appreciate every time taking us back to the differences between the seat count and the ATMs. I mean I know they matter a lot but one thing can you remind me one thing I forgot is that 196 online the number sort of declined 82 I know at least this is what I think about it right it's not a students that we somehow taken out of the system or moved whatever so that shop decline is pretty much students that are kind of going between in person to online am I correct in that or is there any other factors let Let me put a different one. Is there any other factors that's causing the decline in 196 online? >> I can try to answer this. This might be a better question for Michael to answer, but um so if you want to start, I can add some context. >> Yeah. So, I'll kind of go big picture and then try to dive into this. So, um our online 196 online specifically started during COVID. Uh and it was a result of our students being in a hybrid model and some were not ready or couldn't return. And so we had uh a pretty large uh online school at that time that went all the way elementary, middle, and high school. As students started returning full-time, however, less and less students um signed up for online with us, and we're down now to our last class of seniors. Um they're the last ones who have been in this since CO. We have not been able to um achieve enrollment at levels that would um provide us to be able to provide a school for them in that way. So, we've been partnering with other schools around the state for those few students who have opted in for that. Um, so this will be our last year >> of our official class. We do have some numbers online. We can provide those to you. Um, and we watch those as well. >> That explains it. Thank you. >> Yeah. Yeah. >> Anna, think you had a question. >> I did and I apologize if I you mentioned it and I didn't grasp it um or hear it. So, if you're repeating it, I apologize. What percentage of or the numbers are actually from open enrollment outside of our district boundaries? I'm sure it's on here and I didn't see it or hear it. >> It's actually not in the presentation. So, >> typically our district >> open enrollment is one of those that kind of sits in the in the middle of ADM reports and and CCount reports. >> Okay. >> Um, typically our district sees about 2,200 students give or take one way or the other. Okay. you know, a little bit of fluctuation that open enroll into our into our district every single year. >> Okay. Just curious. Thank you. >> Yep. >> Okay. >> Other questions or comments? >> I'll just ask and you might not know, but October 1st, you have your number. Are we still the third largest district in the state? >> I have I have to be honest. I have not done that uh that research yet. >> We'll find out. We'll find out. I know the number will get published shortly. So, thank you very much. Appreciate it. >> All right. Next, I'd like to welcome Kaia Bruce to the podium to give a us a school safety update. Good evening, Chairperson Johnson, members of the board, and Superintendent Balsone. I'm Kaia Bruce, director of community education and a member of our district emergency preparedness team. I'm proud to provide an overview of school safety within District 196 tonight. This isformational only. No action is required this evening. For security purposes, I will share an overview of our ongoing efforts, but non-specific operational details. School safety is the foundation that supports all four of our district's strategic priorities. A safe and secure environment promotes well-being by reducing stress, fostering trust, and ensuring students and staff feel cared for and protected. It strengthens achievement by allowing students to focus on learning without distraction or fear. Prioritizing safety advances equity as every student, regardless of their background or circumstance, deserves equal access to a safe place to learn and grow. And finally, thoughtful investment in safety reflects responsible use of resources through protecting both people and facilities while ensuring the continuity of education. The safety of our students, staff, and visitors remains our highest priority. Thanks to the strong support of our community in the 2015 and 2023 bond referendums, District 196 has been able to make significant progress in strengthening school safety across all 38 education buildings. These investments have funded critical improvements, which I'll highlight this evening. We are grateful for this community support, which allows us to continue investing in safety and security measures while also reinforcing our partnerships with public safety agencies. Together, these efforts reflect our proactive commitment to ensuring a safe, secure, and responsive environment for learning. There are four phases of emergency management. Prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery. Tonight, I will focus on our work in prevention, preparedness, and response. Within each phase, we have implemented initiatives designed not just to put systems in place, but to ensure staff are trained and supported to use these tools effectively. From preventative measures that reduce risk to preparedness planning that equips our teams and response systems that allow us to act quickly in an emergency, our goal is to create a safe, secure, and responsive environment for students, staff, and the community. In the upcoming slides, you will see de dates after each initiative. This indicates the year that in initiative was either approved by voters or implemented. When we talk about safety, prevention is our first line of defense. Our focus is on reducing the likelihood and severity of emergencies by putting strong systems in place and addressing risks before they escalate. Over the past several years, we have made substantial investments to enhance enhance physical security across our schools. As highlighted at the most recent schoolboard meeting, a major focus has been on door and access security, upgrading entrances, enhancing access controls, and ensuring every school is better protected. Thanks to the funding from the 2015 bond, we implemented secure vestibules at school entrances. These spaces serve as monitored entry points where visitors are first screened before being allowed for their access. Using our visitor management system, staff verify each individual and issue a printed name badge, providing an added layer of safety before access is granted to the main areas of the building. Additional layers of protection include door alarms that alert staff if doors are left open, a phone systems at loading docks and service doors to verify deliveries and vendors, and key card access to keep doors locked while allowing secure staff entry. In 2023, we added automatic lock buttons, giving schools the ability to secure multiple doors at once in the event of an emergency. But prevention goes beyond facilities. Our confidential tip system allows students, staff, and community members to report safety concerns discreetly, creating direct communication with school leaders. We're also committed to supporting students social emotional needs through initiatives like BAR, PBIS, and mental health support, all shared at previous schoolboard meetings. New this year, we're working to add violence prevention curriculum and expanded efforts in cyber security to safeguard our digital environments. Together, these layers of prevention, both physical and social emotional, create safer and more supportive learning environments. Preparedness is about making sure we are ready to respond when emergencies happen. It means having clear plans, trained people, and the right resources in place. Our emergency operation procedures provide comprehensive guidance by outlining responsibilities, actions, resources, and communication strategies. The goal is to minimize impact, restore school operations, and return to learning as quickly as possible. We partner with the cities of Rosemount, Apple Valley, and Egan to have school resource officers in our secondary schools. These officers provide daily safety support while also fostering a positive climate through relationship building and open communication with students and staff. This year, we launched a safety and emergency response web page to give staff, families, and the community easy access to important information and resources. Preparedness also depends on strong teams. At the building level, our building emergency response teams made up of specific staff members implement each school's emergency action plan, including evacuations and first aid. They are the first to respond, protect, and coordinate on site. At the district level, our district emergency response team, which includes staff in various positions across the district, provides coordination, oversight, and support during larger scale incidents. And finally, the district emergency preparedness team brings together school and community representatives to develop, evaluate, and strengthen emergency procedures. This team determines new initiatives, procures resources, and provides ongoing training and support for both building and district emergency response teams. Altogether, these efforts ensure that when emergency happens, our district is not only ready to respond, but ready to respond effectively. One of our key preparedness tools is the I Love You guys Foundation Standard Response Protocol or SRP. This protocol establishes clear, consistent language for students, staff, and first responders during emergencies. Staff, students, and local officials are trained in the five specific responses and regularly practice them throughout the school year in order to respond quickly and confidently. Before SRP was implemented in 2023, individual schools often use different ter terminology and procedures. By adopting SRP districtwide, we now provide a consistent safe experience across all buildings, reinforcing our commitment to uniform safety practices. All staff are trained on SRP during onboarding and refreshed each fall. The standard response protocol aligns with statemandated safety drills which include five fire or evacuation drills, five lockdown drills, and one tornado or shelter drill. These developmentally appropriate drills are designed to help students and staff respond instinctively and effectively during a real emergency without creating unnecessary alarm or fear. families have the option to opt their student out of participation. In addition, these drills allow us to assess their impact on the overall safety, mental health, and well-being of both students and staff as required by state statute. It's also worth noting that the Minnesota Department of Education recently adopted this same protocol, further aligning our practices with state guidance and strengthening support for schools across the state. Another important preparedness tool we've implemented from the I Love You guys Foundation is the standard reunification method. This structured process ensures that students can be safely and efficiently reunited with their families following an emergency. For example, in the event of a gas leak or other emergency, students are moved to a designated reunification site away from the school. We recognize that the reunification process can feel unfamiliar and overwhelming for families. To help, we've created a short video available on our district safety and emergency response web page that walks families through the process. This resource gives families a clear understanding of what to expect, helping them feel prepared, confident, and calm should a reunification be necessary. Response focus focuses on how we act quickly and effectively during an emergency to protect students, staff, and our school community. We've strengthened our response capabilities through a series of strategic upgrades. Surveillance cameras systems are expanded in 2015 and again in 2023, enhancing our ability to monitor and respond to potential threats in real time. As shared earlier, automatic lockdown buttons were added in 2023. In the event of an intruder, these buttons serve as our first line of response. Working in tandem with the secure vestibules, they create multiple layers of protection by allowing schools to lock several zones at once, helping to prevent intruders from reaching classrooms. This year, we completed a district-wide audit to ensure every button functions properly and updated the lockdown message to align with our standard response protocol. To further strengthen emergency communication, we are implementing district standard two-way radios this year. While schools have used two-way radios in the past, this initiative ensures every school will now operate on the same radio model and shared district channels. This creates a unified and reliable communication system that enhances real-time coordination during both daily operations and critical incidents, whether within a single building or across the entire district. Emergency and medical go bags updated in 2024 ensure essential supplies are immediately available when they are needed most. Our upgraded mass notification system launched this fall allows us to quickly alert staff, students, and families via text, phone call, and email. We will also be equipping our schools this year with district standard essential emergency resource cases, including AEDs, stop the bleed kits, and the lock zone to respond to medical crises effectively. These tools and the dedicated trained personnel who use them ensure that when every second counts, we are ready to act. We cannot always predict or prevent every emergency, but we can control how prepared we are and how effectively we respond. Every initiative I've shared tonight is designed to ensure the safety and well-being of our students, staff, and community. Safety is not a one-time effort. It is a continuous commitment. By working together, staying vigilant, and practicing our plans, we turn readiness into action. And in the face of any crisis, our response is what makes the difference. All of these efforts for safety and security I shared with you this evening allow for safer and more secure buildings while remaining welcoming and functional. I want to thank our community once again for their ongoing support. Their investment ensures that our students, staff, and community are safe, prepared, and supported every day. And it enables us to fulfill our mission of educating, developing, and inspiring students for lifelong success. Thank you. >> Exc Thank you very much. At this time, are there any questions or comments from the audience? >> Seeing none, questions or comments from board members? Robin, >> thank you very much for that presentation. It's um not always a fun topic, but it's good to get all of that information. Um, one of the questions I had, you mentioned the confidential tip system. Um, I I guess I don't know how to ask this, but does it give us good information when it's used? >> Yes. So, there is a link on every secondary school website that has the confidential tip and members of the community, your students or staff can provide information and then the administration follows up with that. >> Okay. And then um Katherine, did you have a followup to that? Okay. >> Kind of. >> Then go ahead because mine changes subject. >> Okay. It's about the tip line. Are is there a complimentary curriculum um that's provided to students about how to use such a tip line and what types of risks to be aware of? And are parents involved in that as well about learning about risk factors? >> It's a good question. I'm not quite sure, but I can look into that and get back to you. >> Great. Is it through a a certain comp like organization the tip line? >> Mr. Hansen here. >> Okay. Sorry. Good question. Um, so yeah, our tip line is internal and a tip comes in, they can actually um also upload photos or any other sometimes it's through a social media piece if they've taken a screenshot and they can put it in there to give more information. Um so yes, it is uh pretty comprehensive in that um each school is set up with people who get notified immediately when that gets um pushed into their building's tip line. In terms of educating people, um when we go around and we work with students in the beginning of the year, we talk about our rights and responsibilities. Um we're moving into doing some uh violence prevention training with our 6 through 12 students. That all comes a part of here's where you can come and uh report something that doesn't seem right and families can do so as well. >> Okay, great. Thank you. And then I had one other question. Um, are our school resource officers in uniform while they're in the building? In the picture that showed them in uniform, but I've also seen them um in more casual clothes. So, I guess I wasn't sure what the protocol was around that. >> It's mixed. Each city can handle that um um themselves, but it is typically uniform. Sometimes is a little less formal of uniform, but certainly they're in uniform. um some of them um could at times get deployed out to the city and so they need to be ready for that as well. >> Okay, thank you. >> Other questions or comments? >> Thank you very much for the update. >> Thank you. >> Next, I'd like to welcome Janet Fman and her team to go over our assist of technology supporting equity and access for students with disabilities. Good evening, Chair Johnson, members of the school board, and Superintendent Balsson. We are excited to share how assistive technology has transformed the student experience in district 196. Our approach is rooted in collaboration and deep commitment to students at the center. Staff and families work together to identify the right tools and strategies to support each learner's unique strengths and needs. I'm joined this evening by several members of our team who help make this vision a reality each day. Together, we'll share where we've been, where we're going, what's going well, and where we're headed next into our assisted technology journey. I'm joined by Sarah Ai Phillips, special education coordinator. Jennifer Kinsseth, communication and accessibility lead and speech language pathologist. Kelly Golas, communication and accessibility lead and speech language pathologist. Britney Minnik, special education lead, and Terry Shernbeck Shernbeck, work-based learning coordinator at Dakota Ridge. And it really does take I'm joined by all of these staff members because it does take a village to support the complex needs of our students. Tonight, we will highlight how assistive technology allows us to deliver on our vision for students. You will see how it supports developing the whole student and honors diverse needs and how it supports each of our strategic priorities, well-being, achievement, equity, and resources. This is information only and no action is required this evening. October is Augmentative and Alternative Communication Awareness Month. And earlier this year during workshop week, we had the privilege of hearing from Jordan Zimmerman, a non-speaking individual with autism who presented to all licensed special education staff using her AAC device. Her story was inspiring, humbling, and deeply motivating. She shared how educators take the time to understand how educators taking the time to understand and support her communications needs transformed her life. Now I will turn it over to Sarah to continue. Thank you. When we say assist of technology, we mean any device, software, or equipment that helps students access learning and demonstrate knowledge. This can be as simple as a pencil grip or as advanced as a speech generating device or screen reader. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act requires that every individualized education program, commonly called an IEP, consider assisted technology in the plan. Assisted technology covers a wide range. On one end, we have low tech strategies like gestures, sign language, pencil grips, picture boards, or even visual schedules. The next level is midte, which includes tools that have some electronics but are very simple like audiobooks, calculators, or single message buttons. Finally, at the high-tech end are advanced tools like speech generating devices, screen readers, or specialized software. The spectrum shows us that assisted technology isn't just about devices. It's about finding the right tool for each student's needs. Assisted technology is about unlocking potential. It provides access, giving students the tools they need to engage with the same learning and experiences as their peers. It empowers independence, helping students participate actively and confidently at school, home, and in their community. And it offers comprehensive support, building skills in communication, literacy, mobility, and everyday tasks. With the right tools, every student can connect, contribute, and thrive. Now, I will turn it over to Terry. Thank you, Sarah. The impact that assisted technology has on students is powerful. These tools unlock voices that otherwise might not be heard. With the right tools, students who once couldn't join classroom discussions now share their ideas. Those who struggled with reading grade level material can access it through text to speech. Students with learning disabilities can complete work without relying on adult support. Assistive technology can be transformative for students both personally and socially. It supports students in ad advocating for themselves and their wants and needs after years of other people doing it. It builds confidence and it builds independence. It helps students interact with their peers in a meaningful way and fosters friendships. Early exposure to assistive tools builds lifelong skills that are applicable later in life and across all settings like the workplace community. And because we're a onetoone district, students have devices that allow them to access academic and social situations that they may not have had before. Having students with assisted technology in the classroom normalizes communicating in a different way and honors student voice. So, we want to share some examples. Um, I've got some video examples um of what assisted technology looks like in classrooms and its impact on students. This video um the first one highlights one of our students who attends Glacier Hills Elementary School. Um and her parents are in it as well who are very connected to our community. Her father is currently a special education teacher in our district and her mother is an active member of our special education advisory council. They share their experiences around supports and services in our district. Um, you'll notice that the student is using a voice output device that is controlled by eye gaze. So, there's a camera positioned facing her and tracking where her eyes are looking so she can make choices on which words she wants to use to communicate. >> Hi, my name is Finley. My birthday is June. I learned Fat Chunk won the fat bear competition. >> She started using a Toby Davox eye gaze device when she was three. It took some time, but then once she she took off on it, there's a lot more complexity that she's able to express with that. >> It's really helped her kind of pinpoint that specific communication to where um she can talk like you and I. um you know and it's more or less a different language that she's uh been able to learn which is pretty amazing you know as a girl that hears English and you know has to translate it to a technology piece. >> She's now able to go to a restaurant and order what she wants. She has her Chipotle order and her McDonald's order all programmed in there so she can actually go to the counter and tell them what she wants, which gives her a lot of independence that she didn't have before. >> I always express how important literacy is because if she can learn how to type on that keyboard, she can say anything she wants. She can communicate anything with us. Um, which will just open her world. Her brother um just started playing the cello, which is completely new, no exposure, anything like that before. He's like playing it on the couch and she sees him and she um goes on her talker and she says, "Violin, violin, violin." Well, she nobody showed her how to navigate that ever. She she independently figured that out and then didn't have a cello. So, she put violin. So, we were actually able to like program cello right away. So, then now she has that piece. But, it was just cool to see like the progress and the growth with it, too. It just shows how smart she is to me. Some of the fun things I did this summer. I fed deer at Fondo Rosa again. I got a new bike. >> We went out for ice cream. >> I went on boat rides. I played baseball. >> You know, behavior is type of communication. Once we unlock that, um, you know, we can connect with people and, um, it's been amazing. Um, and she's helped me not only become a better parent, but a better teacher in the same way. >> I think it takes like always having someone believing in them, pushing them to their potential, believing, presuming competence. That's like huge to me. >> Not just the belief, but like showing that you're going to put in the effort to learn their language. Um, the next video that we're going to show you is a student named Preston from Egan High School. He has been blind since birth and has been receiving services in our district since his family moved here when he was a toddler. Um, Preston is in speech and debate um, choir. He's planning on attending the EHS Ireland trip over spring break um, and plays the piano outside of school. In this video, he talks about how assistive technology has supported him through his educational journey. You will see him use his laptop, which he uses voice over with for accessing his classes. Preston can access schooly, email, and websites using the built-in screen reader. Toward the end of the video, you'll see him using a multi-line braille display, um, which is a device he received because he was selected from applicants nationwide to participate in a pilot program at Egan High School. So, this is Preston. >> Meta created those with Rayban in 2023, and they were originally created for content creators who wanted some uh, POV shots or like first person point of view kind of filming. Uh, and then there was a group of people who were on the AI team there that were like, "Hey, these have potential with cameras and AI and cloud and speakers and all the fancy stuff to help those who are blind and visually impaired." And they were just able to push those out through a software update. And now there's look and tell, look and read, look and identify, blah blah blah. In elementary school, I had a vision iPad. Using that iPad and in some cases like I got approval to use my laptop and that's more widespread now. So more students are using them. But using that really gives us access to accessible tools like Google Docs and Schooly and that technology is really the primary way and the quickest way that we can get access to our material. Um, and so the ease of use of that iPad that 196 offers us is super great, especially for those of us who rely on it for our academics and also to communicate. I mean, people email their friends and do Zoom meetings and that kind of stuff on their iPads. So, it also empowers in that aspect. There are a couple vision related apps and one of those that is especially helpful that was seeing AI and Seeing AI was really great for doing a multitude of things. You can do color on there too but you can also in elementary school I would read signs or like read the board in class and that's just for the blind. I mean there are apps on the iPad for maybe low vision that can magnify or for people who are unable to speak. Um, there's live speech built in, that's an Apple thing, or you can download apps. So, I really think that having that technology breaks down a lot of those initial barriers that people may face like that kind of evolution or revolution that we have available. Um, to add those kinds of things as they come about to existing products that people can buy or already have obtained um is super cool. I really appreciate the products that have accessibility built in that don't make you stand out. And I'll turn it over to Britney. The examples in and out of our classrooms are limitless. Our student iPads offer many accessibility features and communication apps. Our devices use software that reads text aloud or lets them dictate their writing. We use visual aids such as visual schedules and picture cues to assist students in knowing what comes next in their routine or to help them communicate with peers on the playground. We also implement something called a switch which allows students with limited motor control to utilize classroom tools such as a blender at transition plus during a life skills lesson to turn pages on a digital book and to navigate apps on their iPad. I would like to share a personal story that highlights the power of visuals in supporting students. In a high school classroom, our team noticed that a student who was non-speaking was suddenly struggling to regulate his emotions. To understand what was happening, I turned to structured visuals to help him communicate. First, I presented a visual asking him what was bothering him. He indicated that something he uses was bothering him. I then showed him a visual of his commonly used items and asked if one of those was causing the issue. He pointed to his headphones. When I asked if they weren't working properly, he nodded. After testing them, I confirmed that the headphones were working fine. I returned to the first visual and asked if anything else was bothering him. This time, he indicated my body. I then used a body parts visual to help him show where it hurt. He immediately pointed to his head and ears. Finally, I presented a visual with a body chart and a pain scale. I explained that green meant no pain, yellow meant a little pain, and red meant a lot of pain. I asked about the areas he had indicated as hurting as well as other body parts to ensure he understood the pain scale. He pointed to red for his head and ears and green for his hands and feet. Because of what he communicated using these visuals, the nurse was able to examine his ears and discovered an infection. She worked with his family to ensure he received the care he needed. This experience is a powerful example of presuming competence and honoring the way our students communicate. With the right tools and supports, every student can share their needs and be heard. And now I'll turn it over to Kelly. Thank you, Britney. Assisted technology provides a range of supports to help students access learning, including tools for reading, writing, movement, hearing, and vision. One key area we'd like to highlight is called augmentative and alternative communication, which is also known as AAC. These communication supports help students express themselves by enhancing or replacing natural speech, ensuring every student has a way to communicate effectively. The student in this video explains it well. What else does it help you with? What does it help? >> Talk to me about how it helps you talk. >> Yeah, it helps you with talking, doesn't it? >> Yeah. Here's another example of a student using augmentative and alternative communication with the eye gaze technology. This student began in district 196 spending most of her day in a special ed setting through the use of the eye gaze which is a camerabased system that tracks where she looks to select her stu or symbols to communicate. She has made remarkable progress. She now spends a majority of her day in the general education classroom. In this video, which was taken by a staff member, so the quality is not as good, she shares about herself as she is star of the week. You'll see her sitting in her wheelchair in the left corner and the speech pathologist is setting up her device. >> January 28th, 2025 January 28, 2025. My name is Dana. I want to share three super cool facts about me. This is my talker. It helps me speed. I have a pink power wheelchair to help me get around. And I help my mom. I am a star because I am kind. These are some fascinating things about me. I am 8 years old. My birthday is on October 26th. I live in Abu Valley with my mom, dad, and my siblings. When I grow up, I want to be a pilot. These are a few of my favorite things. Color brown, animal giraffe, food candy bar, and book dog man. I love learning at school. Lastly, I show others that I care for them with my beautiful smile. >> Oh boy, do you ever have a beautiful smile. Look at that smile. Oh, you sure do. I did not know you like Do Man books. Really? >> It is our library day today. Are you going to check on Dogman? >> Maybe. >> It's difficult to see. She is responding with gestures and head nods in that video. And the teacher is engaging her after sharing what she's not been able to share with her class before. So, augmentative and alternative communication is very important because communication is a fundamental human right. Every student deserves a reliable way to share their thoughts, needs, and ideas. For some, this means providing additional tools or strategies to ensure their voice will be heard. By offering these supports, we help students participate in learning, build relationships, and be a part of their school communities. In district 196, we have approximately 476 students from birth to age 22 that are using iPads as speech generating devices. That is nearly a 2,000% increase since 2014. This growth highlights both the importance of the communication support and the significant progress that our district has made in expanding access for students and to the availability of the assisted technology available. This ensures that every student has a voice. Now I'll pass it over to Jennifer. With this growth comes the need for more training, device support, and resources so students and staff can use communication technology effectively across all learning environments. Our district is already investing in this work with strong collaboration between staff and families. When selecting assist of technology, staff takes into account each students needs, the environment, and the tasks they will perform to determine the most appropriate features of the tool to meet each student's individual needs. This includes ongoing professional development for teachers, speech language pathologists, and paraprofessionals. Guidance for families on device selection, plus training and resources to support use at home. cross-disciplinary teams working together to solve challenges and meet student needs and flexible approaches recognizing that each student device and communication journey is unique. Our vision for assist of technology is simple but important. Every student has a voice. We are working to make communication technology part of the culture in every classroom. not as an add-on, but as an essential tool for learning, connection, and participation. And by the time students exit our system at age 22, we want to ensure they will have functional communication skills and a device to support them. This vision requires an intentional foundation, and we're closing gaps created when students didn't have early access. It also means empowering the adults around our students. We are committed to ensuring staff are trained and confident in using assist of technology and families are supported to use this technology at home. I'm going to turn it back over to Janet. Thank you. I'll close out briefly. So, as you've seen tonight, assisted technology is so much more about than devices and tools. It's about access, equity, and opportunity. This works takes collaboration, creativity, and commitment from so many people. The result is powerful classrooms where every student has a voice, every student belongs, and every student can thrive. I want to thank our incredible staff and families for their dedication, partnerships, and unwavering belief in what's possible for our students. At this time, I'd be happy to open it up for questions. Thank you. >> Thank you very much, and great presentation. At this time, are there any questions or comments from the audience? Seeing none, questions or comments from board members. Robin, >> um I just wanted to say thank you for the presentation. Um uh as a school board member, you get to go on school visits and so I've had the opportunity to see a lot of these devices in use at um our schools and it they really are remarkable um how the students are supported and how they're able to communicate through them. Um I was just um really amazed to see them in use. Um, and I also just wanted to say that I love that you presume competence from these students. Um, it's just very, I think, validating for them. So, thank you. >> Thank you, >> Leah. >> Yeah, just one quick question. Um, okay. Um, I was just wondering, you talked a little bit about working in collaboration with parents and choosing devices. Um, can you say more about is does the district um provide or take care of the cost of those? Is it sometimes a mix because I imagine sometimes these are things that a student would want to use in all aspects of their life. So, can you just share a little bit more about the decision- making and the cost element? >> Yeah, you're exactly right. It is a mix. It's collaboration. So, it really depends. Um, I think since more apps are available, it's become more accessible because they are easier to access. So, that's been really helpful. Um, but it is a collaboration. We do have what we call the set process that we take parents and families through to kind of trial different tools of technology on a b trial basis. If it works, we stick with it. If it doesn't, we might trial something else. So, it really depends on the situation and the individual needs of the students. Good question. So, it's a combination of both as far as paying for the device. >> Other questions or comments from board members. >> You know, in my time on the board though, that is the first time I had seen such welldone videos about the assist of technology and special education. um they were just phenomenal and it's so great to be able to um see them so well produced and how the how this is being used in the actual classroom. I think about all the time I spend last year I was in Washington DC talking with our federal legislators about fully funding IDA and I would have loved to have that video so I could show them and believe me I will send it to them later on. Um just a great way to communicate how we use this. So thank you so much. Well, thank you and thanks to our fabulous communications department and really our staff. Our dedication for our staff really embracing this work and learning um alongside families at times has just been phenomenal. So, thanks. I appreciate that. >> Thank you. Excellent. All right. >> All right. We don't have any old business or new business and want to watch more of the videos. I get it. Um, but we do have another action item tonight. So, I'd like to welcome our um, director of human resources, Joel Miltier, to the podium to go over our collective bargaining agreement with RAVE Clerical Association of Independent School District 196. Great. Thank you, Chair Johnson, members of the school board, and Superintendent Bolson. It is my pleasure to be presenting to you this evening the tenative agreement on terms and conditions for a two-year agreement effective July 1st 2025 through June 30th 2027 for the Rosemont Apple Valley Egan clerical association the employees of this group work deser work tirelessly to support our schools classrooms and department educating developing and inspiring our students for lifelong success. The members of this group approved the new contract on Thursday, October 9th, 2025. The financial terms of this agreement include a 3.25% 25% increase on wages in year 1 and year two. An increase of 9.5% in year 1 and 7% in year two to district contribution to health insurance. A 1% to longevity pay or increase to longevity pay in year 1 and two. And an increase of $85 in year one and two for full-time employees for the 403b district contribution and an increase of $60 in year one and year two for part-time employees. There were other minor changes in the contract language and we thank our clerical employees for their contribution, dedication to our district, students and families. Tonight we ask the school board to approve the clerical bargaining agreement for the 2527 term. >> Excellent. Thank you very much. This is an action item tonight. So before we go into questions, is there a motion to approve the collective bargaining agreement for 202527 as presented? >> So second. >> Uh motion by Katherine, seconded by Anna. At this time, are there any questions or comments from the audience? Seeing none, questions or comments from board members? We have a motion to approve by made by Katherine, seconded by Anna. All those in favor, please say I. >> I. >> Those opposed. Motion carries on a 70 vote. Thank you very much. >> Thank you. >> Excellent. Um, that brings us to our school board and superintendent updates. I will turn it over to Superintendent uh BSON for his closing updates. >> Okay. Thank you, Chair Johnson. Last week, our students had an amazing opportunity as the Minnesota Vikings hosted unifi unified flag football at TCO Stadium. The event showcased unity, sportsmanship, and community, aiming to foster a culture of inclusion and acceptance by breaking down barriers and creating meaningful friendships. Teams from Apple Valley, East View, and Egan participated. And we want to thank the Minnesota Vikings, Special Olympics, and TCO Performance Center for their inspiring and fun-filled day that they provided for us. Next, I want to wish our boys and girls soccer teams good luck in the section finals tomorrow evening at Rosemont High School Stadium. The boys will play at 5:00 pm and the girls will take the field at 7 p.m. Both finals feature Egan versus Romont for the opportunity to advance to state. Supporting our AAA philosophy, I want to thank our community members who have attended our fall performing arts events. We've had several already. And coming up next is Apple Valley High School's fall musical, which is in rehearsals right now with a free senior citizen preview on Thursday, November 6th at 3:30 p.m. The show opens on November 7th. For tickets, please go to the Apple Valley High School website. Next, October is a time of year when many businesses and organizations conduct their annual giving campaigns. I would like to let people know about the District 196 Foundation. Each year, funding from the District 196 Foundation provides direct support to hundreds of our students right here in our district. Funding from the foundation provides students with weekend food bags, books to read during the summer, and musical instruments for students who would otherwise not be able to participate in band. If you would like to learn more about the District 196 Foundation or make a donation to support their efforts, please go to their website at www.dist196foundation.org. Thank you. And finally, this is our last regular meeting before election day on November 4th. I want to encourage everyone to learn about our tech levy renewal election on the ballot and to make time for to vote. We also have a schoolboard election with four seats uh up for running and five candidates available who are running in the community, including four incumbents. You can learn more about the elections at district196.org/vote. >> Thank you. >> Thank you, Superintendent Balsone. Are there any items that schoolboard members would like to share? >> Seeing none, that brings us to the end of our agenda. Is there a motion to adjurnn? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Motion by Robin, seconded by Leah. All those in favor of adjournment, say I. >> I. >> Those opposed. Our next regular our next regularly scheduled school board meeting is Monday, November 10th. At this time, we stand adjourned.