Mhm. >> In front of you this evening from my left and your right are Director Kelsey Dawson, Director Erica Foster, Director Thomas Brooks, myself, uh Board Chair Tanya Prince, Director Keith Tate, and Director Sarah Mitchell. Also present in the board room is Superintendent Dr. Kim Hall, student school board representatives, and members of the Superintendent's cabinet. Those of you who can, please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. Director Foster, will you please lead the pledge. I pledge 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. Board members, are there any additions to the agenda? Is there a motion to accept the agenda as presented? So moved. Moved by Director Brooks. Is there a second? >> Second. Second by Director Tate. Is there any discussion? All in favor, say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes six to zero. Our next standing agenda item is recognitions. We don't have any recognitions this evening, but um certainly will as we continue through the winter sports season and um, and academic year. Our next agenda item is the student school board representatives reports. Our students were in attendance at the school board work session for our discussion on standards-based grading practices. So, I will turn it over to our student reps for their reports. All right, we ready? All right. Um, I would like to start off with it went longer than I expected, which is a good thing because you guys were taking in the feedback, asking questions. I feel like it didn't really flow, but it was it was nice to just hear that everything was being taken into account and our experiences were being heard. Everything about it was just really nice. And my favorite part was I forgot who brought it up, but we were talking about retakes. And I love that we get retakes because you get retakes in real life. You don't just mess up one time and then that's it. That's over. You're fired. You get multiple chances, or at least a second chance. So, that's what I really liked. Um, yeah, I really liked how So, we really emphasized like that every student deserves the opportunity to succeed regardless of their background or circumstances. Um, which is why like Naomi said, um, retakes are really important along with empathy from teachers and staff. And I appreciated how the board members were really like receptive to that and ask questions and wanted to understand our experiences. Um, and then this doesn't have anything to do with grading, but at the end of that session, um, I mentioned ICE's impact on students, especially right now in the current climate. Um, and I asked the board to communicate directly with students about steps they're taking to um, to support the students that need it and also just to address it. Um, and I haven't received much feedback yet, but I urge them to continue to think about it. Even with the ICE pullback, it doesn't it doesn't make us any less affected. So, yeah. Okay, So, our last workshop was a very amazing experience. We talked about how in the past grading was almost used to sort students, which made it feel like once you fall behind you can't really get back up. But now we see the shift towards grading because now it measures what we know rather than effort and how well we can follow a deadline. I would love to highlight how the board members showed up during the session. I saw how much they cared about specific experiences and not just looking at the district-wide data, but asking us how it affects us in our own schools. I saw how much interest they had in the problems we brought up like flexibility, the amount of busy work we have, and retakes. And they asked questions to understand where we're coming from and how to fix the issues as well. The highlight I and the fellow school board school board reps realized that no matter what a student should have multiple opportunities to to excel. The goal is to ensure that students really learn the material and do well on summatives. Retakes provide a safety net for students who have just more than school to worry about like jobs, taking care of family members, and just having life in general. This perfectly ties into why retakes are so important and we see no reason they shouldn't be there because at the end of the day we want our students to learn. And the board did a really good job giving us space to talk through everything and stuff that bothered us. They really listened and the environment gets more and more comfortable as I go through these board sessions. And I appreciated the feedback a lot and I thank you guys. Thank you so much. Um yeah, we um it was really um a a significant opportunity for us to directly hear um all of your feedback and your experiences and um the district leaders and the school board are taking that and incorporating it into the continued that work that we do. Any other comments for board members? From board members? Okay. Again, thank you so much and we look forward to the next um work session that we'll engage you in. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Thank you. Thank you. Next on the agenda is a presentation on concurrence with the American Indian Parents Advisory Committee shared by Ethan Neerdaals, Coordinator of Indian Education. Ethan? Uh how many Dakotas EP? Good evening relatives. Good evening members of the school board. Uh this evening I'm joined by our American Indian Parent Advisory Committee uh co-chairs uh Jeremy and Katie King, parents of Brooklyn Middle School students as well as Park Center Senior High to present our resolution of concurrence. Good [clears throat] evening members of the school board. On behalf of the American Indian Parent Advisory Advisory Committee, we are here tonight to present our annual resolution vote of concurrence for Osseo Area Schools. In accordance with Minnesota Statute 124D.78, districts serving 10 or more American Indian students are required to establish an American Indian Parent Advisory Committee to ensure that the academic, cultural, and social-emotional needs of American Indian students are being met through the American Indian Education Aid Program. Each [clears throat] year, the APAC carefully reviews students' achievement data, program implementation, and progress toward the goal outlined in the district's approved American Indian Education Plan before determining whether to issue a vote of concurrence or not concurrence. On January 20th, 2026, following a comprehensive review >> [clears throat] >> of district and program outcomes, the APAC voted to issue a resolution of concurrence for the 2025-2026 school year. This vote reflects meaningful progress in several important areas. We are especially encouraged by the hiring of a Dakota language teacher, which which represents a significant step forward in supporting indigenous language revitalization and fulfilling the intent of state statute regarding native language instruction. We also recognize the collaborative work between American Indian Education, Title 1, Talented and Gifted, and Early Childhood Family Education to strengthen professional development and better align services for American Indian students from early childhood through secondary levels. These cross-department partnerships demonstrate a growing commitment to embedding culturally responsive practices district-wide. At the same time, concurrence does not mean completion. The AIEPAC continues to identify crucial areas requ- requiring focused action and investment. Literacy outcomes for American Indian students demand stronger culturally responsive reading supports, early intervention strategies, and sustained progress monitored monitoring to ensure long-term [clears throat] academic success. Disproportionate discipline data remains an area of inequity that must be addressed through restorative approaches, culturally grounded student supports, and consistent accountability. We also emphasize the urgent need for additional staffing, particularly an American Indian school counselor or psychologist who can work directly with American Indian students receiving special education services and IEP support. The cultural knowledge, relational trust, and community connection required to effectively serve these students cannot be treated as supplemental. They are essential components of equitable practice. Additionally, the scope and impact of American Indian Education with Osseo Area Schools warrant formal structural recognition. The program serves more students than some of our district's middle schools, yet it continues to operate without staffing levels for departmental designation that reflects its size, statutory responsibility, and specialized nature. American Indian education is not simply a support program program. It is a legislatively mandated commitment with distinct cultural, academic, and community obligations. >> [clears throat] >> Formal recognition as its own department would align its structure with responsibility and ensure sustainability, transparency, and appropriate allocation of resources. It is also important to acknowledge the role of Minnesota's school trust land fund in supporting ISD 279. Each year the district receives so substantial general fund revenue derived from mineral and timber assets on lands originally reserved by and for indigenous nations to support public education. As the district benefits from these revenues, we strongly encourage continued and expanded investment into American Indian education programming, including the growth of native language instruction as supported by Minnesota statute 124D.78. Direct reinvestment into American Indian student success reflects both the statutory responsibility and a commitment to equity. In closing, by issuing this resolution of concurrence, the APAC affirms that the district is making progress toward meeting its commitments under the American Indian Education Aid Plan. We appreciate the strides that have been made and the collaborative spirit demonstrated this year. We also call for sustained urgency in addressing literacy achievement, discipline disparities, staffing capacity, and recognition of the American Indian education being a standalone department, and we look forward to measurable progress updates in the year ahead. We remain committed committed to working in partnership to ensure that every American Indian student in Osseo area schools experiences academic excellence, cultural affirmation, and equitable opportunity. Thank you. Any questions? Thank you so much, board members. Any questions or comments? Um yeah, I just want to say thank you um to APEC um and um for staying so engaged and staying so committed um to ensuring our district um you know, meets um our needs of our Indian um students, American Indian students with excellence and intentionality. And and I want to thank Ethan um for your leadership. I've um as a liaison, I've um been able to spend some time in the Indian [clears throat] Department and um really had really good conversations about um just affirming the progress that has been made, especially with this concurrence, but also remaining committed to continuing to build um and you know, I think about things like we've talked about and I I've heard just around um the Dakota language or native language and the and potentially even like an immersion program and the vision for that and the Indian Ed Department um uh the vision for that. And um I know the last work session we had there was a lot of interest around really hearing that vision around Indian Ed. I mean, we we hear things here here and there um but I really I'm looking forward to a full work session to really spend time to really deeply look at what is the vision? What are the areas of growth? Um and you know, when we talk about um I know when we were at TEEN Act talking about the discipline data and the behavior and attendance and academics and just really being intentional about looking and being supportive around that and with special education, mental health. Um so yeah, I'm I'm grateful for the vote of concurrence and um we are very dedicated as a school district and a board. And so I look forward to really building on this momentum. So, thank you. Yeah. Thank you. Echo those comments certainly and we definitely recognize the continued opportunity to to do better all of the time. So, we really thank you for um your vote of concurrence um and we're committed to continuing down the path of that improvement. Thank you. Thank you so much. >> Our second presentation is Maple Grove Middle School and Osseo Middle School renovation shared by John Morseth, Executive Director of Finance and Operations. John. Okay. Thank you, Chair Prince, Superintendent Hile, board members and the community. Tonight we are recommending the approval of bid awards for Maple Grove Middle School and Osseo Middle School media center renovations. Uh as we've done in the past with other projects at the bid award stage, we wanted to show you what is um planned and will be um constructed this summer in each of these spaces. Just to get make you familiar here oops, to start. The um at the bottom right of each of these there's a little map that shows the the media center itself and kind of the view that you're looking at to get in there. Um so, here you see the new view of the new circulation and technology help desk area. Uh another different angle view of that same area. The next views are a view of the classroom areas along with book stacks and in the back you can see the maker space. Um here's a little bit better view of what the maker space looks like. Maple Grove Middle School has a very unique feature where they have two atriums on either side of um the corners of the second floor area with the media center in the middle. And with this renovation, we took the opportunity to tie those atrium areas into the media center spaces by connecting them with a area of similar feel. So, the atrium is now mirrored by another soft seating or living room feel area right across the hall leading into the media center. So, here you can kind of see through and out into that. >> [clears throat] >> Moving quickly to Osseo Middle School, we'll take a look there. This space is um noticeably smaller than the space at Maple Grove Middle School, which is just a function of the age of the building. Um here's a look at the technology help desk area and book stacks. Here you can see some of the living room soft seating area along with small group spaces straight ahead. Um there's also a maker space kind of in the back left corner there. We'll get a better look at that in a minute. Um here's a view from the circulation desk out into the spaces. Here you can see the work room and classroom areas, and finally again the maker space for this particular area. Both of these projects um start construction as soon as school ends this summer, and will be ready for the students to use this coming fall. So, you'll see this on your consent agenda. Thank you. Okay. Thank you, board members. Do you have any questions or comments? >> [clears throat] >> It's great. Thank you. Great update. It's fun to see all of the different buildings across the entire district as they come to life. Thank you. The next agenda item is audience opportunity to address the school board. Um and I don't have my normal card that we read, but we read them every uh time and just emphasize uh respect for all our speakers um uh consistent with our values. We only have one speaker tonight, um Deb Peterson. Thank you, Chairman Ford. Administration. My name is Deb Peterson. Since the start of 2026, I have been the administrator for a school observer group. We have community members who volunteer to take shifts at Osseo district schools, all 24 of them. I both mornings and afternoons to ensure our students are protected from ICE agents. The reason you aren't hearing about ICE in and around schools is not because they're respecting the boundaries of the schools. It's because groups like ours are not allowing them the opportunity to be there. At the onset of the surge, we were seeing 15 to 20 agents per shift. And a shift for us is defined as a school start time. So, 2:00 for the high schools, 2:40 for the middle schools, and so on. Now we're identifying around five a shift because their tactics have changed. They're no longer masked with heavy military gear. They're in plain clothes and they in effect to blend in with their surroundings. Yet, they're still here. Our observers have been trained well enough to detect the any the abnormalities that happen and we are still seeing them. We check them. We know that they are there. More and more observers though are being aggressively harassed, followed, pulled over, surrounded, and threatened by agents. I personally have had drones out my window looking in at me. At my home. While we don't operate on school property, I'm here to ask the school district to continue supporting measures against ICE on and around school property. We will soon be seeing vulnerable students who have been learning online return to school. And you had a request tonight from students. You're hearing now from the parents and community. The mission statement above you reads to inspire and prepare each and every scholar with the confidence, courage, and competence to achieve their dreams. And doing so needs to be safe and feel safe at school, on their way to school, on their way home from school, and at school. The problem has not disappeared. >> The threat is still here, and our schools deserve to be protected. Thank [clears throat] you. Thank you. Our next agenda item is the superintendent's report, Dr. Hyle. Thank you. Good evening, Chair Prince, Vice Chair Brooks, board members, staff, families, students, and our community partners. While the recent events of While the events of recent weeks remains in our hearts and stay on our heart, uh in going around the district, I want you to know that I'm continually inspired by the continuing learning spaces that are dedicated by our Austin area school staff and continue to create, whether in person or online. Our team is working in a human-centric fashion every single day, focusing on the safety and belonging of our babies, or as we say, each and every scholar. Individual needs are being met because of this approach, and we will continue to do that. As a leader, being grounded in our schools is the best part of our work. Recently I had the wonderful opportunity to attend events like very high energy winter pep fest at Osseo Senior High, to engaging student board representatives, to a site visit at Oak View Elementary. In each of these experiences and so many others, I can tell you how brilliant that our babies are scholars are. It's literally what brings me to work every day. I believe their vibrance is constant reminder of what our purpose is and why we show up. Osseo schools will be the premier place for them to learn and to reach their dreams. They certainly deserve it and yes they do need a safe place to learn. Our strength extends into our community where they're connecting with recent with local legislators or celebrating SRO Missy Parker as Maple Grove Officer of the Year recognition, we're leaning to the greater Osseo area family and community to help ensure success for our scholars or our babies continues month after month, week after year, after year. We move forward as we always do, together. Thank you. With purpose, unity, and a shared commitment to well-being for our entire community. So I thank everyone here and everyone online for your continued partnership and that effort. Thank you. So regular part of the superintendent report is uh share points of pride in our district. By sharing our points of pride, it takes time for us to recognize and celebrate our scholars, staff, and community members. And I will have district cabinet members here this session sharing some of those examples from last month, please. In the area of achieving dreams, congratulations to the students from Maple Grove, Osseo, and Park Center whose hard work and creativity earned them recognition in the Minnesota Scholastic Art Awards. Each year high school students across Minnesota submit artwork for consideration. The artists submitted in 16 different categories, from ceramics to photography and fashion. Check out all of our winners on the district website. The Triple A Award is sponsored by the Minnesota State High School League and recognizes outstanding students who perform at a high level academically while also participating in athletics and the arts. Congratulations to Maple Grove Senior High School's Carolyn Leach and Ben Halberg, Osseo Senior High School's Miriam Akapo and Logan Bohof and Park Center Senior High School's Jameson Adams and Giselle Vo. In the area of contributing to community, on Friday, February 6th, District the District 279 Foundation's annual night out winter wonderland gala was held at Leopold's Mississippi Gardens Event Center. The magical evening included shimmering decor, a 360 photo booth, silent live auction, and a formal dinner and program. The event raised $80,000 that will go towards grant programs and enriching experiences for students in Osseo area schools. In the [clears throat] area of lifelong learning, each February, Osseo area schools recognizes Black History Month. Throughout the month, the schools and students across the district dedicate time to celebrate, honor, and learn about events and people that have impacted black culture and our country's history. At Basswood Elementary, students in all grades gathered on February 6th to celebrate. Their event was a huge hit among students and staff and featured a number of songs sung by third graders and students in the Black Joy Leadership Group speaking about a number of black figures, both historical and current. At Park Brook Elementary School, um Park Brook hosted an all school assembly on February 6th that focused heavily on the beginning of Black History Month. Principal Scott Taylor shared a quote from the former President Barack Obama about the importance of reading. Taylor then shared uh uh about additional prominent African-American leaders in the past and present. Students in the Black Student Union at Osseo Senior High School presented Osseo Speaks, a Black History Month uh Month Showcase on February 13th. The student-led performances included songs, poems, fashion shows, skits, and various dance performances. And at Fair Oaks Elementary School, students read a book about Black History Month before discussing themes that stood out to them. Finally, in Garden City Elementary School um hosted a soul food breakfast for students and families catered by Run Tell That BBQ on February 19th. Following the breakfast, the entire student body gathered for a community-building Harambee and read out loud. Loud. Harambee is Swahili is a Swahili term for uh meaning all pull together. Fifth graders at Elm Creek, Fernbrook, and Rice Lake Elementary Schools recently celebrated their graduation from the DARE program. DARE is a drug abuse prevention program intended to give elementary school children skills to resist peer pressure to use tobacco, drugs, and alcohol. The ceremonies, attended by parents, caregivers, and community members, included a welcome from the Maple Grove Police Department DARE officers, Smith and Sloss Slossen. A message from the principal about all they have accomplished, followed by a message from Acting Commander Matt Brost. Last month, Brooklyn Middle School Brooklyn Middle STEAM School welcomed over 40 community members into their building as guest speakers for their annual College and Career Day. The school's career fair is an all school event. Students learned about different career pathways from a variety of career professionals. The presenters' careers spanned a wide range including construction trades, police officers, librarians, and law and a law student, a nurse, a personal trainer, chefs, and different business roles such as graphic design, human resources, and marketing, among others. Students and staff at the Osseo Area Learning Center got into the competitive spirit when teacher Ms. Monahan organized a fantasy Olympics including a draft to pick teams. Competitions included cup stacking, marshmallow scooping, heart stacking, paper airplanes, and a three-legged race. In the area of mission-driven employees, two teachers from Osseo Area Schools are among the list of candidates for the 2026 Minnesota Teacher of the Year award. Huge congrats to Katherine Gribner from Maple Grove Senior High and Michael Herdan from Maple Grove Middle School. Additionally, Herdan has been named as one of the 30 semifinalists and will be judged in the next few weeks to be named a finalist. Thank you. And just one final note and reminder for this evening, there will be no school for students on March 6th. Thank you. Thank you. Our next agenda item is school board reports. Director Dawson, do you have a report or update? I do not. Director Foster, do you have a report or update? I do not. Director Brooks, do you have a report or update? No report. Director Tate? They'll look at capacity calculations and enrollment projections looking at even per building and taking a look from [snorts] 2027 through 2031. And we had a time for breakout sessions, breakout groups to ask more in-depth questions. And what I appreciate about this committee is we take a look at all these decisions keeping students at the center and I appreciate the variety of ages, you know, parents are on these committees and they have, you know, elementary, middle school, high school. So, just the diversity of the the committee is really helpful. Thank you. Uh and I have a brief report. So, I had we had our Brooklyn Bridge Alliance for Youth uh Joint Powers Board. Um we did approve a legislative platform um and that included uh continuing to support and increase student voice um on whether it's it's made up of the Joint Powers Board is made up of multiple entities. So, um for example, on Hennepin County Commission, um on our um Brooklyn Park, the City of Brooklyn Park and their committees um and on our school board as well. So, that was one of the key highlights there. Uh and then of mention, we had our legislative breakfast recently and it was really great. Um I think we had nearly every single legislator that represents some portion of our district, which is a big group. Um so, it was really nice to see that they prioritized that time with us and took time to really understand um what our uh priorities and concerns were and asked good questions and uh engaged with us. So, that was a really good event. All right, we will move on from there. The next agenda item is the consent agenda. Board members, our consent agenda items this evening include meeting minutes, financial reports, extended educational trips, personnel items, grants, a number of bid awards for renovations and contracts for building and district services, and an easement agreement with the City of Maple Grove. Are there any items that you would like to remove for separate consideration? Seeing none, is there a motion to approve the consent agenda as printed? So moved. Moved by Director Mitchell. Is there a second? Second. Seconded by Director Dawson. All in favor, say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes 6 to 0. Our first action item is a resolution relating to the authorization of the issuance and sale of general obligation school building and refunding bonds. Information will be shared by John Morstad and Jody Zesbaugh of Ehlers, Inc. John? Good evening. All right, so we sold some bonds today. Being not an expert in selling bonds, I'm going to turn this over to Jody Zesbaugh from Ehlers and she's going to walk you through our sale day report. Thank you, John. Good evening, Chair Prince, Dr. Hile, members of the school board, community members. We have great results to share from the bond sale today. So, Shelby from our team was here at your January board meeting, went through our pre-sale estimates. So, tonight we're just going to share the results of the bond sale from today. This bond sale did have two purposes. So, one purpose was related to the acquisition and betterment of school sites and facilities, and that authorization was approved by your voters back in November of 2023. In early in 2024, we sold 100 million of those bonds. Today, we are including 60 million in this issue, which will leave you with 63 million 225,000, and the plan at this point in time is to issue those bonds in 2027. The other component was a refunding component. So, similar to refinancing a home mortgage, except that you can't keep the money for your budget. You are required to pass that savings on to your taxpayers. So, we achieved great results from that component of the bond issue, too. Next, I'll point to the ratings that were assigned. You get two ratings. One is under the Minnesota State Credit Enhancement Program at a AA1. That is the rating that they assign to all school districts when when issue bonds. Your underlying rating is also at that nice high double A1 rating. So, the credit enhanced rating is triggered by the state's rating, which is a triple A. They're one notch below that for the credit enhanced. You're also just one notch below the highest rating that Moody's assigns. So, that is great. We had uh John Worstead and Kelly Banusap participating in that process, and they did an excellent job representing the district, answered lots of questions, provided a lot of great information. Really helpful as part of the process and helpful to maintaining that nice high bond rating. Uh we received 14 bids today. We like to see three, so seeing 14 was very exciting for everybody in our office today. Uh the low bidder was Huntington Securities out of Chicago, Illinois at a rate of right around 3.5%. The high bid was at a 3.65. So, we have a summary of the sale results here, and then I'll just point you to some of the notes, um kind of high points related to the sale. So, that true interest cost rate of a 3.42 is what it rounded to is below the 3.93 that was included in our estimate that Shelby shared with you in January. So, great to see those results. And then with the refunding portion, since the rates were lower for that also, um we were expecting to see savings about 400,000, and we're over $1 million. So, $1,072,000. So, super exciting to see those results. We do have a call date on this bond issue, so similar to the bonds that we're calling um from 2016, we will have the opportunity to call these bonds um February 1st of 2034 for the 35 maturities and later. And we always set that call date at the time that we're selling bonds, so the call so the um the the individuals who buy the bonds know what that call date will be. We'll be closing on this bond issue March 19th, so the money for the school building bond portion will come to the district. The money for the refunding portion will go into an escrow account. We locked into a nice high interest rate on that escrow account, which is fantastic. And then we do we issue the call notice at that point in time and give the bond holders notice that those bonds will be called. So the redemption date is then in April on the 23rd. You have a resolution before you tonight. And then I'll just talk a briefly about the attachment. So the first attachment is the bid tab, which is long because you received so many bids. So the bid from Huntington Securities, as I mentioned out of Chicago, at right around the 3.49%. And then JP Morgan was the next closest at just over 3.5% also out of New York. And then you receive received bids from throughout the country. So you'll see the list go going all the way down and then the final or high bidder was Jefferies out of New York at a 6 a 3.65. The remaining schedules are all the exact same schedules that were included in your pre-sale report on January 20th and I know Shelby walked through those with you. So I'll just point out a couple of high points. This is the sources and uses schedule where we show the deposit to the construction fund for your voter approved projects. And then for the refunding, we just make sure that the amount we're depositing in addition to the interest that will earn in the escrow matches the exact amount for calling your bonds then in April. We have a debt service schedule for both purposes combined. We have the debt service schedule for the school building portion, the existing schedule for your 2016 A bonds. The new schedule that you'll be paying from. The escrow we locked into that 3.7% rate, which is great for just a couple of months, so we're happy to see that. That helps then us to have more savings for the taxpayers also. And then we have the our favorite page, the debt service comparison showing that savings amount and the years that that savings will occur. Uh this is the uh detailed debt plan, which we always try to keep your debt service and capital tax rate nice and level unless the voters approve an increase. Um with the lower interest rates and the higher amount of savings that we achieved today, we're able to have that drop down just be a little bit more than it was, so that provides you with some capacity for future capital needs. So that is the way that we um the way that we uh handle then the the lower interest that you have as part of both the school building bonds and the refunding component, we paid off principal more quickly, kept that tax rate nice and level, and then uh have a a greater drop down later in the schedule. Finally, you received two um rating reports from Moody's. The first one is their press release, which is a little more high level. And then um after that, you'll see a detailed credit opinion. And I'll just point out a few things on there. So the credit opinion is more specific to your district, talking about uh the strengths, the challenges, the outlook, factors that could lead to an upgrade or a downgrade. They provide some key indicators, and then a little bit more detailed information about the rating that they assigned. And finally, um there is a scorecard that gets issued to each district, and you'll see that these are the different um areas that they rate in their methodology, the different weighting that they give to them, the score that they give to them, and then the overall uh scorecard indicator rating as well as the rating that was assigned at a AA1. So, that is everything that I have. Happy to answer any questions or any um when you get to the resolution, if there's any questions about that, I can certainly respond to those, too. We'll go ahead and make the motion, then we'll ask questions if we have any during the discussion. Thank you so much for that um presentation of the information. Is there a motion to approve the resolution relating to $99,145,000 in general obligation school building and refunding bonds, series 2026A, authorizing the issuance and sale thereof, providing for credit enhancement with respect thereto, and establishing compliance with reimbursement bond regulations under the Internal Revenue Code? So moved. Moved by Director Brooks. Is there a second? Second. Seconded by Director Foster. Right, any discussion? It's a good news, very good news to see um the favorability, um to see all of the information relating to our way the factors that go into our underlying bond rating, um and of course being able to bring dollars back to the taxpayers. So, um it continues to speak to our finance team and our partners to ensure that um we remain in a strong financial position so that um we can be advantaged when um we are uh taking on debt to um to uh continue to renovate and to maintain our facilities at the high standard that we expect. Um so thank you so much for the information. And with that, we'll if there's no other discussion, we'll move to the vote. All in favor say I. I. Opposed, nay. Motion passes 6 to 0. Great. Thank you very much. We appreciate the opportunity to be of service to you once again and so happy that the results turned out so well. Thank you. >> Thank you. Our next action item is the proposed approval of a one-year strategic investment for special education staffing. Information will be shared by Assistant Superintendent Dr. Brian Bass. Um we'll wait. What Hold on. Let me sign in and then come back. Sorry about that. Our next action item is the proposed approval of the fiscal year 2026 budget adjustments. Information will be shared by Kelly Banousa, Director of Business Services. Kelly. Good evening, Chair Prince, board members, and Superintendent Dr. Hile. The purpose of this evening's presentation is to provide information on the fiscal year 2026 mid-year budget revisions. At last year's June meeting, the board approved the adopted budget for all budgeted funds. The first column on the slide shows the adopted budget for the general fund. The second column highlighted in purple are the mid-year adjustments for revenue and expenditures. The net change is an increase to fund balance of almost $5.9 million. dollars. This is made up of an increase of 2.2 million or 0.68% for revenues and a decrease of $3.7 million or a negative 1.06% for expenditures. Overall, the net change is 0.88% of the combined revenue and expenditure budgets. We continue to project a deficit for fiscal year 26 of $16.8 million. The revenue budget changes are as follows. A $4 million increase special education revenue due to revised formula estimates. A 1. 1.9 million dollar decrease in general education. 2.7 million of that um decrease is for fewer students, 293 fewer weighted students from the adopted budget and then this amount is partially offset by the TRA pension increase adjustment. We have a $670,000 increase in interest revenue. A $451,000 decrease in student support personnel aid due to legislative changes and a $400,000 decrease in D seg transportation. This slide shows the remaining revenue changes such as $256,000 increase in summer unemployment revenue, $133,000 decrease in school library aid due to legislative changes and then a $102,000 increase in endowment. All of these amounts total that $2.2 million net positive revenue adjustment. Next, the expenditure budget is decreasing $3.7 million from the adopted budget. Throughout the expenditures, you'll see where we are seeing one-time savings or costs that will need to be added back to the fiscal year 27 adopted budget. We analyze the expenditures in four categories: salaries, benefits, purchased services, and supplies, and other. So, starting with salaries, we see a $4.5 million decrease for the compensatory hold harmless estimate that was not deployed, a $1.6 million decrease for the 16.1 FTE teachers not deployed due to actual enrollment being below our projections. We see a $1 million increase for substitutes due to estimated the impact of the Minnesota paid leave, a $776,000 increase in contract settlements and estimates, and stipends for our coaches, and a $623,000 decrease due to open positions for our ESPs, which are one-time savings. There's a $556,000 increase for REDAC teacher training carryover from fiscal year 25 funding, which is a one-time cost. A $286,000 decrease for attrition and allocation, which is the benefit portion, a $178,000 decrease for open special education teachers and ESPs positions, which is offset by an increase in consulting services, which is one-time savings. And then an $85,000 increase to build a better future support, which is offset by a decrease in consulting services, and that's a one year only. This is a combined decrease for salaries of $4.7 million from the adopted. Next, when we look at benefit expenditures, we see a $625,000 increase in TRA because of the rate increase from 9.5% at the adopted to 9.81%. A $510,000 net increase in an estimated employer-paid health insurance premiums, and a decrease in HSA contributions, a $352,000 increase in FICA, a $286,000 increase for attrition and allocation which is offset by that decrease in salaries and then a 179,000 increase in retirement savings plan contributions. This is a combined increase in benefits of 1.9 million from the adopted. Purchase services had an overall increase in expenditures of 360,000. In utilities for a net increase of 229,000 increase for activity transportation costs due to the increase in the transportation contract for fiscal year 26. 190,000 93,000 increase in tuition for intermediate District 27 and other public schools. 178,000 increase in consulting services which are offset by that decrease in salaries which is a one-time cost and then the reduction of 85,000 for consulting services for the build a better future supports and salaries which is one year only. This is a combined increase in purchase services of 872,000. So finally supplies capital and other expenditures had an overall decrease in expenditures of 1.8 million. There's a 1.7 million dollar decrease in judgments and a 120,000 decrease which is actually an increase in our federal indirect chargeback rate from 1.5% to 4.1%. So overall our net expenditure adjustment is a decrease of 3.7 million dollars less in the 26 adopt less than the 26 adopted budget. And then we have 66,920 dollars of net one-time savings that will need to be added back to our fiscal year 27 adopted budget. Next we'll review the impact of the mid-year adjustments on the five-year financial projection for the general fund. This is a high-level visual organizer over financial forecast. There are three sections to this projection. The top section shows the revenues, expenditures, differences, fund balances, and fund balance percentage for a 7-year window that begins with actual for fiscal year 24 and fiscal year 25, which were shown in pink, and then the revised budget for fiscal year 26 in blue, and then projections for fiscal years 27 through fiscal year 2030 in green. You typically see operational adjustments under this chart. Um fiscal year 2030 is showing our fund balance to be projected at 6.7% and therefore um we'll see a large reduction that'll be needed once we add fiscal year 2031 um to this projection. Our revenues are fluctuating between 2% increases on the general or basic formula allowance. Those estimates are provided from the Minnesota Department of Ed and are included for fiscal years 27 through fiscal year 2030. So, recently MDE downgraded the fiscal year 27 increase from 3% to 2.69%. And then our expenditures are projected to increase 3%, which is consistent with prior tactics. So, if we exceed that 3% for costs, we'll be outside of those parameters and would be deficit spending at a greater rate than what's on the projection. The next section shows the budget projections for revenues in blue and expenditures in red. The lines show the general trend for each of those items, and then as you can see, the expenditures are projected to outpace the revenues beginning in the current year by 16.8 million. The final section looks at the fund balance projection for the same time. The green bar represents our actual and projected fund balance for each year. The orange bar shows the minimum required fund balance of 5% as set in board policy. Again, the lines show the trend for the fund balance in relation to that minimum. As you can see, our fund balance as a percent of expenditures is projected to continue to decline in fiscal year '26. We'll continue to monitor the financial projection to maintain the board required minimum fund balance of 5% in the future. And again, we caution the board that that funding cliff that we talk about in education is projected for fiscal year 2031, and we'll likely need to address that shortfall earlier so that we can have that softer landing of the 5% minimum fund balance. So, moving on to the food and nutrition services fund, we had a net positive change to fund balance of $1 million. Revenues are increasing due to increased participation in the free school meals program for lunch and breakfast and a la carte sales. And expenditures are decreasing for food and supply costs. The community service fund revenue and expenditure budgets are also decreasing for a net decrease to fund balance of 588,000. Revenues decreased due to less participation than was anticipated in the Kids Stop programs and facility rentals. The capital expenditure fund revenue budget will remain unchanged, and the expenditure budget will be increased by $129,000 for a net negative change to fund balance of 129,000. Expenditures are increasing primarily due to intermediate District 287 tuition for long-term facilities maintenance and special assessments, which are partially being offset by decreased salaries and benefits. The debt service fund revenue budget will be increasing for a positive change of 132,000. Revenues increased due to interest revenue, and fund balance for June 30th, '26 is projected to be 6.7 million, or 19.8% of expenditures. This last slide shows a summary of the net mid-year budget revisions in those five funds that we budget for, which are a combination of positive and negative adjustments for this revision. Thank you. All right. Thank you. Is there a motion to approve the fiscal 2026 budget adjustments as presented? So moved. Moved by Director Tate. Is there a second? Second. Second by Director Mitchell. All right. Is there any discussion? Questions? Um I would encourage people cuz we're getting the presents we're getting the cliff notes the end of the results here. Um go back and listen to the work session where Kelly and John talked about this. It's um we go into really big detail about this and it's the process is interesting and I think there's more to what you're seeing than just this end result. Um it's a really well thought process so I would encourage everybody see the first step. Um and you know, I think it just brings assurance to the process that's gone into this. So I appreciate all the hard work you guys do. Thank you. Yeah, I would just um continue to echo we appreciate all of the the work that is done not just in kind of the numbers but um in the leadership of the district to ensure that we're continuing to make um good choices and we see the trade-offs coming in on things that are a little higher than we expect and the things that um come in um improved. Um and I like the transparency that we don't just simply um ought to start using it. Um that [clears throat] we really balance that and um and are wise in those choices. Um so any other comments before we vote? Yeah, I mean I not a not a lot to add. I think um obviously it is alarming when you see that we're spending more than we're bringing in and uh particularly when you see our fund balance projected to decrease. Um but also um the fact that we're leveraging that fund balance to continue to invest in our students and staff um you know, says a lot about our district and the work that we've done over the years to even have that safety net to do so. So, um thank you to staff for continuing to be conscious of spending and revenue streams and um yeah, thank you. Good presentation as always. Thank you. Okay, then uh all in favor say I. I. All opposed, nay. Motion passes 6 to 0. All right, continuing in the finance uh vein. Our next action item is the proposed approval of the fiscal year 2027 long-range financial planning and capital expenditure budget. Information will be shared by John Morsette, executive director of finance and operations. John. Thank you, Chair Prince. >> [clears throat] >> Superintendent Hyland and board members, why do just one budget when you can do two? The purpose of this evening's presentation is to provide information about the fiscal 27 recommended operating budget um adjustments and fiscal 27 proposed capital expenditure budget. Our recommendation this evening is that the school board approve both budgets as presented. The recommendations being shared this evening are part of the annual budget planning process. Budget decisions are made using the long-range financial planning framework or LRFP. This framework includes a financial forecasting model that uh Director Benusa just went over with you that projects out the next several years and provides a basis for our budget planning while focusing on financial stability. The budget decisions are evaluated using a collaborative process and approach that engages a multitude of district stakeholders. Budget planning includes aligning our resources with the mission and strategic plan an assessment of the impact on productivity and essential services, and compliance with legal requirements. The school board engages engages in several work sessions throughout the budget development process. And at the February 10th work session, the board heard about and considered budget adjustment recommendations. So, we'll take the first step on the budget adjustments for fiscal year 27. Keeping with the direction provided by the school board, the fiscal 27 general fund budget adjustment recommendations include maintaining a zero-based budget. The LRFP budget summary document in your board packet gives you details on all the program efficiency, abandonment, and redirection, or PAIRS items, including the category for the change, the dollar amount, and the summary of each of the changes. All PAIRS presented today come from the Division of Leadership, Teaching, and Learning, or DLTL. And I'll just do a quick summary. Starting with the in the general fund, shifting about $89,000 from non-instructional adding 8.4 FTE teacher contingency for enrollment growth beyond enrollment projections. Add 4.0 FTE custodial staff and 1.0 FTE grounds custodial staff due to increase in square footage with the additions at Maple Grove Senior High, Osseo Senior High, and the addition of 36 acres of property to maintain at Aspen Ridge Elementary. Reduction of 3.2 FTE psychologist and reduce school-linked mental health services to add English learner summer program transportation budget. Reduce 0.768 FTE Osseo administrative professional. Reduce 0.5 FTE educational support specialist and reduce 0.415 FTE staff development assessment specialist teacher. Add budget capacity to support the remainder of the new Minnesota paid leave changes that were enacted in legislation. Add 0.3 FTE teacher for gifted and talented program at Aspen Ridge Elementary. Add 0.4 FTE counselor, 0.5 FTE social worker, one FTE behavior intervention teacher, 0.8 FTE media specialist, one FTE nurse, 4.17 FTE educational support professional, one elementary principal, one FTE resource manager, one FTE elementary school administrative assistant, one FTE building engineer, two FTE custodial day positions and three FTE custodial night positions for Aspen Ridge Elementary's remaining operational capacity startup costs. This is a reminder on the board had approved a $326,000 in change that are in the current year budget for staff that began ahead of next year's budget. In the board packet, you'll find a detailed breakdown of costs by each category, revenue and expenditures for all recommended adjustments. And I will now turn it back to Chair Prince for a motion to approve the fiscal 27 budget adjustment recommendations. Okay. Is there a motion to approve the fiscal year 2027 long-range financial planning and capital expenditure budget as presented? So moved. Moved by Director Brooks. Is there a second? Second. Second by Director Tate. Okay, any discussion? Um so the just as a kind of a note on the process, so the fiscal committee is involved in reviewing the pair process which um includes members of the community and staff. So if you have interest in participating um in these type of discussions and review, so every single one of these items that was just reviewed um to us had input and um kind of had a scale of risk um or benefit to the district or what's the what's the right word, John? That like red, yellow, green, the Um, it it's really just, uh, kind of a support measure. Yeah. Is it supported? Does it need a little bit more information? Are there some concerns? Are really the red, yellow, green. Yep. And then we look at it in it terms of its alignment with our strategic priorities, as well. Um, so it's a very rigorous process, and we really appreciate the folks that also participate on that fiscal committee. Other discussion? Okay. So, all in favor, say I. I. Opposed, nay. Motion passes 6 to 0. Thank you. Thanks. So, next on the agenda is the fiscal 2017 capital expenditure budget. Again, the school board discussed this budget, um, at the February 10th work session. This slide shows proposed budget for our operating capital by each division and department. Operating capital is a zero-based budget, so we start over every year. Um, and each item included in the funding proposal is accompanied by a capital request that moved through the LRFP process. The items included in the operating capital budget must align with statutory guidance for designation as a capital item. Any staff salary or benefits included in these capital budgets must be directly related to the acquisition, operation, and maintenance of telecommunication systems, computers, or related equipment. So, we'll start with the division of community engagement, uh, just over $81,000 for the replacement of two staff computers, replacement of 150 student computers for the, uh, adult basic ed program, purchase a new camera lens, replace poster printers, envelope stuffers, and floor mats in motor rooms at Arborview Elementary, uh, early childhood. Moving to DLTL at just over 3.3 million, replace sports uniforms and equipment and music attire following, uh, an established replacement schedule, purchase instructional materials and curriculum resources, maintain concurrent enrollment offerings, purchase media center materials, maintain contingency for the career and technical education program, and purchase new equipment for the CTE program, maintain capital allocations and replace capital equipment, pay leases for venues hosting high school commencement ceremonies, purchase additional furniture and equipment for the future startup of Aspen Ridge Elementary, and replace health services equipment. We'll move into the Division of Human and Administrative Resource Team, or HEART. Uh just under $6.5 million. The vast majority falls in the category of maintaining our lease commitments for instructional spaces, athletic facilities, flexible classrooms, equipment, camera systems, and so on listed here. Contingencies for equipment, special assessments, insurance deductibles, and security and emergency management, purchase a storage storage shed for the um excuse me, Osseo Education Center site, replace grounds maintenance equipment, custodial equipment, and cafeteria tables, and replace nine automated external external defibrillators. In the the general operating capital budget, the last piece is in the Division of Information Technology, ITT2. Um in this part, we actually utilize the e-rate revenue received to offset the capital expenses that are in the general fund, which include maintaining our network infrastructure, fiber, switches, and firewalls. So, theirs comes out to a zero net total. Total operating capital is $9,876,600. The other part of the capital budget is the capital projects technology levy. That includes capital expenditures um in from both the divisions and from heart and I2T2. We'll start with heart, which is uh exclusively within security and emergency management. Uh just over $2.1 million for maintaining for maintaining camera systems, radios, visitor management systems, door intrusion, and tip line systems, the replacement of card access systems, maintain a contingency for technology-related security equipment, and maintain a 1.0 FTE tech support specialist. And finally, the I2T2 portion of the tech levy maintain enterprise technology licensing, support, software, and licenses, internet filtering, Wi-Fi access, technology repair parts, maintain our existing technology equipment leases, maintain digital displays, cybersecurity services, phone systems, software, switches and wireless access points, mobile device management, all of our software subscriptions and licenses, uh the school notification system, unified print solution, uh and maintain a contingency for device repair, and maintain positions for district-wide technology and information systems. The capital projects levy total is $14,362,122. In a moment, [snorts] I will turn it back over to Chair Prince for action on the capital budget, but after tonight, our business services team will work with all of the budget managers to complete the FY27 budget process based on the adjustments in capital approved today. We'll continue to monitor monitor current legislative session for any changes that will affect the district, and we'll return to present the fiscal '27 adopted budget for comment at the work session on June 9th, and then a for approval at the uh regular business meeting on June 23rd. So, with that, I will turn it back to Chair Prince with a recommendation of approval of the capital expenditure budget totaling $24,238,122. Okay. Is there a motion to approve the fiscal year 2027 capital expenditure budget as presented? So moved. Moved by Director Tate. Is there a second? Second. Seconded by Director Brooks. Is there any discussion? So, again, I appreciate the transparency as we walk through it and um you know, we can see the evidence of all of the effort to ensure we're investing in safety and a significant portion of that is the the technology that runs all of those safety elements comprehensively. So, um as we think about uh that tax levy, we appreciate that support from the voters and the ability to ensure that we have all of this safety and security in place at our buildings. Okay. With that, uh all in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes 6 to 0. Thank you, John. Okay. Now, our next agenda item is the proposed approval of a one-year strategic investment for special education staffing. Information will be shared by Assistant Superintendent Dr. Brian Bass. All right. Thank you, uh Chair Prince, uh Superintendent Dr. Hile, members of the board and community members. Uh with me this evening is uh our uh award-winning >> [laughter] >> lead for our uh uh Business and Operations, John Morstad, and uh Sarah Lanset, who is um the designee for our Director of Student Services, Sunny Berksin, who was unable to be with us this evening. She had a pre-planned uh vacation. So, she isn't able to join us this evening. So, tonight we are asking the board, as communicated in the packet that was submitted on Friday, we're asking for the board to approve a strategic investment totaling $2.7 million for the fiscal year 2027 to address the continued increase in special education enrollment and maintaining our current caseloads. So, in your packets, and it's displayed here, is the document that provides the full background and documentation related to this strategic investment. The original was modified to reflect a one-year strategic investment, so that there was a slight change. This allows us to invest in 18 licensed special education staff and 18 educational support professionals. So, how do we get here? Although special education enrollment has experienced sustained and measurable growth, as you see in the chart on the on the screen behind me, uh >> [clears throat] >> This has been made possible through the fiscal stewardship and the intentional deployment of accumulated carryover funds to absorb rising service demands without disrupting operational stability. As we just heard about long-range financial planning, the district maintains a well-established, award-winning long-range financial planning process that's conducted each fall. Our director of student services, who works closely with this process, recognizes that under typical circumstances, a request of this nature would be brought forward during the LRFP process. However, finalized and reliable special education enrollment data was not available until after LRFP concluded. Given our commitment to pursuing a strategic investment only when warranted, it was essential to base this request on the most accurate and current enrollment data. So, as a result of this timing misalignment, this request is being presented outside of the LRFP cycle. So, how do we mitigate the increased growth in student enrollment for specialized services? There's two things that that were focused on. The first one is we have untapped revenue potential in the area of third-party billing. Third-party billing is a mandatory program where public school districts seek seek partial reimbursement from public insurance. That's Medicaid and medical assistance for health-related services provided to students with IEPs. Although our third-party billing revenue has been increasing, there is still a gap between our current reimbursement and our reimbursement potential. The district third-party billing team is presently improving upon processes with the support of a grant, outside consultant, and partnership with the financial team at Intermediate District 287. So, we are confident that our billing revenue will grow exponentially over the next 5 years, which will help us support the increased enrollment that we're seeing year over year. Another critical step forward towards sustaining the financial health of the student services department is partnering with the business services [clears throat] department to develop a long-term financial model that is both proactive and responsive to our student enrollment trends. A comparable framework already exists for our general education staffing. Our goal is to establish an updated enrollment responsive model for special education in advance of next fall's LRFP process. So, just wanted to provide some high-level pieces to that document. John, I'm not sure if you want to say anything else about um >> [clears throat] >> any of the other financial pieces. Um no, what I would just I think move and see if there's questions. >> Yeah. Okay. Oh, so okay, no more information. Okay. Like, all right. So, everybody read their packet. Yeah, I was trying not to read the entire document. Yeah. >> [laughter] >> All right. Um so, okay. Well, is there There's to approve the one year strategic investment for special education staffing. So moved. Moved by Director Brooks. Is there a second? Second. Second by Director Foster. All right, any discussion or questions? Yes. Um so I mostly just want to understand the process after today. Um so you mentioned that this will be a part of the LRFP process. Um will there be additional discussion around special education in this particular request outside of the larger LRFP conversation? Like will there be a work session about this? Just want to I just feel like we haven't had a ton of time to talk about this and ask questions. Um and so I'm hoping that that's part of this process after today. So yes, yes, and yes to to all of those. Um I think we recognized um that in this process what um what got exposed is our need to um meet in the middle um to understand how we um adapt the LRFP process with what we're seeing as this year-over-year trend in special ed enrollment. And so we have we have talked about that um and how we want to work together to build a model that allows us to recognize that, see that coming, and be able to to have this fit within the LRFP process. So that is something we want to look at. We also want to offer um that if if the board would like to have a larger conversation at a work session, I I mean I guess I should I should ask Dr. Hurt. >> will be having it at our March work session. Okay. Um and then the second question I had, you mentioned reimbursement potential. Are we confident that within this year we'll start to see some improvement um with reimbursements, or is that something that we're looking at beyond this one year? Our our hope um for for FY26 is that we meet where we were at in FY26, which is approximately $900,000. Our goal is to invest in more staffing to support growing that closer to 2 and 1/2 million so in FY27. So we really see the big jump happening in next school year in terms of billing. The billing potential. And with that increase then we're able to do more than just sustain the current staffing or able to add additional staff. That that allows us to have the contingency that we've depleted. Right? So what we've been using to support the increased enrollment over the past 5 years those funds. This allows us to build that back up and to allocate it accordingly. Um I you know, I I'll just say first that you know, I do support this investment. I just but for me when I really ground um when I when I receive the information and I was really kind of just grounding myself in the conversation because over the years we've heard a lot from our teachers and our EAPs and our families and our students about special education and where things are and frustrations and um so it's a there's a clear need um it's just that tonight you know, when I when I think about like the process and I think about um uh staffing ratios and reimbursements the what I where my heart is all the time is with our students and we're talking about almost 14% of our students in some spectrum of special ed some of the array of special ed and you know, to me it's like real these are real families and students and staff and that really do reflect the full different the of our district disproportionately I will add. So, I'm know that we have some data that will start to look at. But, it's really why like the core of our work really matters. And so, while I do support this investment, you know, my expectation is that um this is an ongoing conversation and it's a commit- and commitment. And it isn't just about staffing to me. Um obviously, I support our staff, but it's about our outcomes for our young people and our students and in their growth and in their independence and in their goals. And um and so, we have this opportunity before us here um to hire staff, which is great, um licensed staff. And I just really want us to spend time reflecting on who and how and the thought that goes into hiring because when we look at our students who are disproportionately impacted or part of special ed, I just want to ensure that we have cultural competency and, you know, strong family partnership really remains at its core. Um And that our students continue to be centered, which I know they are. And so, um I just really look at this as, you know, I have questions around is this enough? You know, what more should we be doing? Um and I'm looking forward to having like that deeper dive into this um really complex area that even our state can't figure out around um how we fund special ed and how we really serve our students. What are what are exit strategies um for exit rates for our students. Like, who who's showing up? Are there you know, areas within the array of special education that we need to really be focused on with the spike in special education. Um so, I like again, I support our investment. I'm always wondering what else more we can do. And then, you know, um so, I do look forward to our upcoming work sessions just to ensure that our kids are thriving and they have they're in an environment where they can fully thrive. They have quality support and education. Um and um yeah, and it's really meeting our mission of our district. Other board members? Um I appreciated the quality of this document. I thought it was really well thought out. Um lots of really good information in here. I would have liked a little bit more time to process it and ask questions, but I understand schedules sometimes and sometimes it's good to move quickly and be responsive. Um I my one question I do have is when do we typically find out enrollment data for special ed? You were referencing that that was the hold-up. When do we typically find it out? Do you know? Sure. So, yeah, part of that delay was around waiting for that December 1st child count. Uh and MDE published that child for or the child count around January 28th. Uh and so that was part of that delay in being able to have accurate numbers to provide to all of you. >> typical? The the December 1st, yeah. >> Okay. Thank you. That's very helpful. And then staffing increase to address billing as we do kind of leverage up in that third-party billing, which I think is really important to use all the streams we have um funding streams we have accessible to us. Um would that staffing increase be additional finance folks or how would we where would we see that increase and what would you expect it to look like? So so today the staff that manages third-party billing lives within student services. Um I what I'd say is this is akin to a a grant writer. It's it's a position that will fund itself because so much of third-party billing is tracking down the correct documentation to be able to submit a claim. And if you you're on a time limit, so if that student leaves your district, you lose the right to make that claim. Um if that teacher or ESP leave the district for some reason, you lose the right to to make that claim. So, so being able to have someone very dedicated to just that job of tracking all that down will close that gap between our actual and our proposed substantially. So, I think we can do it within its own funding. Um, and and I know they're working with um other experts and consultants to to see what they can do to improve our retention and and getting that number up. Thank you. I one of the big things is we've heard so much community input on this topic and from our our teachers. And so, I think this is obviously a huge need. And so, I appreciate that this is a very responsive action we have here. Um, my one last question, and maybe it's something we could hear about at the work session, is I noticed in our financials that we went over, I don't remember which one it was, that there was um we weren't able to hire all of the sped support staff. Um, and I'm curious what the plan is around hiring and how we're going to fill those positions. I know they're typically really challenging to fill. Um, so I'd like to hear more about that. I'm curious about that. Um, cuz if we fund it, I'd love to have it staffed. Right. If we could bring that to the March uh work session, that'd be wonderful. Okay. Thank you so much for bringing this. Yeah, um so, we do appreciate kind of um I know part of the timing of it too was to be able to recruit and fill these difficult positions. So, um we do appreciate when when there's a need that you bring it and we're timely about it and taking action on it. And um and that will dive deeper and um we do, board members, have um kind of our library that has the past presentation. So, maybe we can make sure we take a look at that and then um provide some specific direction um to Dr. Hall and Dr. Bass on what we might want to see as the outcomes or specific things in the work session as well, so we can all be on the same page there, too. Okay, any other comments or discussion? Okay, um then all in favor say I. I. Opposed, nay. Motion passes 6 to 0. Thank you. Thank you. Our next action item is second reading of policies. Information will be shared by Amy Moore, general counsel. Amy. Thank you. Um the policies uh that we read through last time as first reading have been posted for the past month. Uh there have been no uh comments or questions or any requests for changes since that time. Um the one thing I do want to point out is related to the wellness policy. Uh I uh checked with staff who confirmed that there is not a misunderstanding that this doesn't apply to like if you're in athletics, um you know, uh sport, uh you know, coaches will still do their laps. Um that's not considered what falls under that particular provision. So, clarified that with staff. Okay. Thank you for doing that, Amy. So, they're ready for you to vote on. Board members, I will go ahead and um make the motion. Is there a motion to approve the second reading of the following policies? Policy 104, school district mission statement, uh proposed for appeal, policy 515, protection and privacy of education records and data with proposed revisions, policy 516, student medications, which has no revisions, policy 516, student medications with proposed revisions, policy 518, DNR/DNI orders with proposed revisions, policy 533, wellness with no revisions, policy 533, wellness with proposed revisions, policy 546 academic shared time with no revisions, policy 546 academic shared time with proposed revisions. Uh sorry, procedure 546 uh academic time share with proposed revisions. Policy 549 age of entrance with proposed revisions, procedure 549 age of entrance with proposed revisions. So, is there a motion? So moved. >> Moved by Director Mitchell. Second. Seconded by Director Brooks. Any discussion? All in favor, say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes 6 to 0. Our final action item is gifts to the district. Is there a motion to approve gifts to the district totaling $60,413.78? So moved. Moved by Director Foster. Is there a second? Second. Seconded by Director Mitchell. Any discussion? So again, we appreciate all of these um donations of dollar and in-kind and we itemize those in the packet. Um and we're really appreciative to have to to everyone who contributes. And of note, um often um our staff members are folks who are contributing as well as our PTOs um and others in the community. Uh all in favor, say aye. Aye. Opposed, nay. Motion passes 6 to 0. At this time, the board will take a brief recess and then reconvene in the forum room for a closed session. The session will be will be closed pursuant to Minnesota statute 13D.03 [clears throat] for labor negotiations with teachers. Is there a motion to recess the regular meeting for 10 minutes and reconvene in the forum room for a closed session? So moved. Moved by Director Brooks. Is Is second? >> Second. Seconded by Director Dawson. Any discussion? All in favor, say I. I. All opposed, nay. Motion passes 6 to 0. The meeting is recessed at 7:25 p.m. The school board meeting will adjourn at the conclusion of the closed session. Thank you.