[0:00] I have an interesting angle perfect [0:08] welcome everybody I got a call the meeting to order we do have a quorum tonight this is the Monday [0:16] February 11 2000 19th regular meeting of the Dynasty Lord John can you review the [0:23] agenda for especially after you approve minutes and hearings for members of our audience you will go into a consent [0:29] agenda to approve various things agreements some amendments to contracts [0:37] student travel our discussion tonight will be the proposal for the 1920 budget [0:42] we have policy review 613 and then for action Marco's gonna ask for you to [0:49] approve the capital requests and then under information you have enrollment and upcoming school board meetings all [0:56] right thank you very much the first agenda item is approval the minutes gonna get a motion to approve the January 28th 2019 special and closed [1:04] meeting the January 28th regular meeting in the February 7th work session are [1:10] there any changes to the minutes yeah all right all those in favor of a oh we have to do roll call sorry Sarah so [1:21] we're doing a roll call to approve the January 28th special and closed meeting minutes the June 28th regular meeting [1:27] minutes and the February 7th work session minutes yeah [1:36] I all right thank you all right next we [1:45] have hearings from members of the audience each month that we have our meetings we do have opportunity for [1:51] public input the typically our public input is limited to three minutes per [1:56] person we ask that if you have comments about individuals that they not be raised tonight that they should be [2:01] brought separately to the superintendent's attention I think we've got a number of speakers who are talking [2:08] on the same topic and so I'm not going to tell you not to speak but if someone has said something maybe you could just [2:15] note that you agree with them and there typically is not for discussion on the issues although it [2:21] looks like the topic for tonight on the is something that is before the board so [2:26] with that the first person is Daniel doula welcome [2:36] good evening student school board and administration my name is Daniel doulos I am here to ask you to lolly Dyna [2:43] students to participate in operation while a sea expedition in Borneo with the high school science department my [2:49] daughter was a participant in last year's operation while I see a trip to Fiji while no trip is risk-free I believe [2:54] that operation Wallacea and the Dyna High School took all the necessary precautions to ensure the health and safety of students going to Fiji which [3:01] really made the tip trip virtually worryfree the on-site operation Wallacea staff are vetted diet and health [3:07] requirements of students are accommodated and policies and procedures are in place for each specific site and [3:13] these are updated annually parents and students receive complete and organized pre trip information about vaccinations [3:18] possible illnesses and precautions schedules transportation meals activities learning sessions and what to [3:26] expect from the time they landed in Fiji until the time they left my daughter actually has a couple health issues [3:31] she's diagnosed with reactive Airways disease and has an allergy to peanuts and tree nuts operation while SES [3:36] positions required her to have an exercise spirometry test and approval by a local problem on ologist before they [3:42] wouldn't sign off on her scuba diving in addition lindsay smokey and the Dinah high school nursing staff took careful [3:48] measures to ensure her safety including providing her with a read medical bag for her EpiPen and a red ribbon to tie [3:53] on her backpack to identify the pocket that contained the medical bag full time medical trained staff were on site for [3:59] the entire trip duration hey a presentation about the trip was given to all students in their sophomore year [4:05] science classes students had the opportunity opportunity to apply for one of the spots with oversight from Lindsay [4:10] smoker students helped to organize group fundraisers and had 14 months to raise funds for the trip through various [4:16] fundraisers and through personal savings I'm grateful to you Diana High School for giving my daughter this unique [4:22] opportunity to engage in hands-on learning experience with renowned researchers and expand her world view beyond Minnesota the homestay opened her [4:30] eyes to culture and traditions of Fiji a philosophy of zero waste conservation [4:35] and appreciation for the environment in addition the survey data the students collected in the forest and at the [4:40] marine site were used by the researchers these experiences play a significant role in developing my student into a [4:46] globally responsible and response citizen I'd like to see these types of travel based learning experience [4:52] experiences properly and thoroughly vetted continued under the leadership of dedicated teachers lately Lisa maka I [4:58] believe that my daughter's experience in Fiji and other opportunities that the high school helped her to stand out as as a college applicant in her acceptance [5:06] package to a university where she applied early decision the admission officer wrote I sincerely enjoyed [5:11] reading your application and can't wait to see your passion for field research see where your passion for field [5:17] research takes you thank you for your time attention thank you next is dick Houseman welcome thank you [5:32] thank you ladies and gentlemen of the board he said it very eloquently but I [5:37] watched my daughter on this trip and I've chaperoned a trip to Europe for the [5:42] orchestra and it was a wonderful experience but what I saw them go through took it to another level going [5:50] to Fiji living with the native Fijians in a in a home on built above where [5:58] there's just an open room and they're sitting they lived in their culture and as they mentioned when my daughter [6:05] applied for schools this was a major part of her essays to the different [6:11] schools and they were involved in discovering a new species of butterfly how many trips can you have that where [6:19] you are involved in discovering a new species of a butterfly it was you know [6:27] Mandy also she became certified as a scuba diver and she has asthma and so as [6:33] he mentioned the safety protocols that they went through were tremendous what this group did to make sure that the [6:39] kids were safe and everything was it made us feel very comfortable I just I [6:46] look at a trip like this we live in a diner we live in a fantastic school [6:51] community and it's an experience like this that takes it to an even greater level [6:57] and I just couldn't recommend enough that the kids have an experience like this because again it's different [7:03] they're living in the made altum Utley she decided to pursue her studies based [7:09] on this because she saw the Fijians culture being changed by climate change [7:16] and such and their cultures being changed it it made a significant impact [7:21] on her life that's what school should do and something like this gives them that [7:27] opportunity I hope you give them that opportunity for others as they come down because it's a fantastic program and our [7:34] we felt very safe for our kids thank you [7:39] next is Mandy Osmond welcome hi I'm Andy [7:50] Osmond I'm a senior at the Dinah high school and I have the honor of going on the trip to Fiji um I just remember in [7:57] fifth grade um the staff signified like the theme of my graduation was all the places you'll go by dr. Seuss and [8:04] Madonna has always pursued giving back to the community and engaging in diverse [8:09] communities whether in the service project in ninth grade the passion project in tenth grade or my future mate term in the senior year which I'll be a [8:17] participating Costa Rica to engage in the community um learn Spanish and engage in the homestay [8:22] in the small village oh so it hurts my heart to feel that this opportunity [8:29] might be stripped away and chance of future generations will not get this chance to take the advantage of the amazing opportunities of becoming [8:36] educated and immersed in a globalizing world and as you as an elected school [8:42] board members you hold the responsibility of following through on these on these obligations and the model [8:48] of Edina of giving back and engaging communities but 15 in ninth grade 10th grade and future [8:54] my dad was previous up here previously up here and he said when he said before [8:59] was inspired me and my major to go into environmental studies and I'm so grateful to go on this trip and be [9:06] connected with all my teachers like I have been blessed with like eternity to gauge and like add more deep [9:13] connections with my teachers and I'm so blessed with that and not only did I feel safe from the journey like because [9:19] my dad was saying I had asthma I have allergies I have medical concerns and I had to go through a very detailed [9:26] process in order to go on this trip I cannot feel more safe and I know not only did I feel safe I felt at home so I [9:33] thank you for that thank you thank you next is Elena Eli welcome hi I'm also a [9:50] senior who went on the trip to Fiji and I just wanted to say a few quick things that when people ask me where I go to [9:57] school and I say Dinah I'm very proud of that I think there were champions of appreciating diversity by embracing all [10:03] people and also for a district teaching us the skills necessary to thrive in a rapidly changing global society and also [10:09] for pushing us to be lifelong learners learners this is what u.s. school members vowed to uphold upon being [10:15] elected these trips to operational elincia or that what operation will NCL organizes embodies all the things that [10:22] the Edina school district teachers are students to embrace these trips allow students to experience a different [10:27] culture firsthand which is the best way to learn to understand and to appreciate diversity applying our scientific [10:33] knowledge in the field and learning how our academic interests translate into work into a work field as an invaluable [10:38] experience that is irreplaceable furthermore allowing students to pursue their passions past the boundaries of a [10:45] classroom past the boundaries of a district to state and even a country is essential in teaching us how we and our [10:51] potential fit in a globalizing world the Edina school district has always taken pride in their forward thinking and [10:57] pushing down boundaries giving these trips as an opportunity to students as a way for a diner to continue to uphold [11:04] this image I and many others believe that is your duty to offer these opportunities this decision is about [11:10] allowing your students to be limitless in a limitless world and I hope that you consider this when making your decision [11:16] thank you very much sir with anyone else sign up alright [11:24] that completes hearing from members of the audience next we have the consent agenda are there items to remove from [11:30] the consent agenda yes I'd like to [11:38] remove the biology to Borneo and the students to Korea for discussion with [11:46] the board please okay those will be removed from consent that leaves the robotics as part of consent is there [11:53] anything else to remove from consent agenda I get a motion to approve the consent agenda all those in favor Sara [12:04] we're back to you roll call for approval to the consent agenda [12:20] all right yes all right so that takes us [12:33] then to the biology to Borneo can I get a motion to approve the biology to [12:39] Borneo trip it's so moved and elements [12:47] there I think you had questions about Borneo or Eleanor yeah the UM the [12:56] concern that I have about Borneo is not that it's a great trip and I have talked [13:03] with a number of people I understand that it is a rewarding trip and I would [13:09] like to see the school district continue offering trips like this but I just [13:15] spent a lot of time talking about making budget adjustments and I have to make [13:23] sure that our resources are being put where they are most needed and and after [13:34] that discussion I would like to just have the board consider making sure that [13:39] this trip can happen but that the costs of this trip are being supported by [13:49] those students that are going on the trip and so it would just be fully funded by the students going on the trip [13:56] and so that would be my concern and I'd like to just hear what the other board [14:03] members feel about that right now so are you saying no district no district [14:10] expense and what would that mean well it [14:17] would just mean that it would be said I like it I would like them to continue to be able to go on these trips I know the [14:24] board is also going to go through a longer policy discussion on [14:32] travel abroad this one actually has more to do with our trip to Korea than it [14:37] does to Borneo but it applies to both of them and I'm just I know that our [14:47] residents are looking at how we are spending their money right now and that [14:54] if if there are going to be district monies going toward an elective trip [15:00] that only is experienced by a few we have to make sure that that that we're [15:09] paying attention to how our district is spending their resources so are you [15:17] talking about I mean for example the students pay a certain fee that covers a fair amount of the cost but we have an [15:23] administrator who spends time organizing or assisting in the organization of [15:29] these trips are you asking that the there be an allocation of some of the administrative cost to the trip right [15:36] and that I don't know how much that is I have no idea what that is it could be not very much or it could be [15:44] substantial I'm the Korea trip I know that it may end up being a little bit [15:50] more substantial so I and procedurally I [15:56] don't think that that would be a board decision to discuss how we would find [16:02] out how we would cost out administrative fees I would leave that to the [16:09] administration but the and I think Borneo is actually a trip that since Wallacea is so well organized I don't [16:18] believe that there would be very much administrative costs involved in addition to the trip that is being [16:26] presented to us so I don't think that it really affects Borneo very much it may affect Korea a little bit more I [16:33] [Music] think part of the one of the reasons that we hold this and that we've [16:41] continued to have this discussion around field trips is that we've been just we've been [16:47] talking about this policy for quite a while and trying to get a better gauge on as to what trips are happening within [16:54] the district talking with our attorneys about safety and liability to the school district and then overall equity of how [17:03] these trips are offered and who can access them in reviewing for our [17:08] strategy our strategic planning session on Saturday I was going through some old [17:13] materials having been on the board for a while of work that we've done in the district so our last strategic plan and [17:20] all the documents that came with that and one of the sessions that we had back [17:25] in like it was 14 or 15 specifically talking about equity or equity work was [17:31] around the field trip policy and a lot of that had to do with equity and access and so the discussion that this board [17:38] has not concluded even back going back that far is the fact that some of these trips become extremely expensive and [17:45] then you know there's a limited amount of kids who can participate so there's equity of access and equity of [17:51] socioeconomic status and their ability to be a part of these opportunities and so whether right or wrong these are [17:59] issues that the board has not fully finished grappling with and come to a [18:04] conclusion so in our last teaching and learning committee meeting on Tuesday when both of these trips came forward [18:11] North Korea and the Borneo trip again we said you know if we haven't finished our [18:17] work how are we moving forward again with these types of trips when we still [18:22] haven't come to conclusion which I don't think what's our our staff in a fair position or students because we continue [18:28] to dangle it out there and not have a conclusive discussion so I know the board has asked for this work to be done [18:35] there's also a lot on our plates right now I understand that but this is something we need to to discuss and [18:42] finalize and I don't want it to be done in a vacuum which is kind of the way we're doing it right now obviously these [18:49] trips are deep and rich with incredible experiences it's finding that balance [18:55] between offering that experience but also making sure that we're thinking about all of our kids in the district [19:01] and the opportunities that are available to them as well and that's what as a board I feel is essential to my [19:08] responsibility the the diversity the real-world experience all of that is [19:13] important but we need to find our priorities and make sure that those opportunities are what is most important [19:20] and can be helpful to all kids in the district and so when this trip is at a cost of just under five thousand dollars [19:27] that isn't realistic for many families and although fundraising does appear to [19:32] be a part of it I think it's pretty tough probably to raise you know close to the full amount of money and even if [19:40] we're looking at opportunities to scholarship some students you know we also need to think about our our [19:47] organizations in the community that try to help with those things and how deep we want to tap those resources for these [19:53] types of things so I believe there's a bigger discussion to be had here I [19:58] understand the sense of urgency that was expressed to us in teaching and learning that there were personnel coming in to [20:07] discuss this trip with students towards the end of the month and that's why we felt it didn't need to be on the agenda [20:14] but I I am cautious about approving this [20:19] in the situation that I feel were in same with North Korea [20:25] nobody would not be sending kids there the same with South Korea again it was [20:32] another situation where we felt the train hadn't gone down the track a bit when we have students arriving here in [20:38] April we need host families for them so again we said let's put this on the agenda and probably try to move it [20:45] forward but I believe it is a responsibility of this board and with [20:51] the help of the administration and the community to come to some kind of a consensus and conclusion on this work [20:57] and that we think about where our resources should be and what opportunities we want our kids to have [21:03] and how that impacts our community as a whole so the concerns are a little [21:09] contradictory though because one of them is too increase the fees and one of them is to decrease the fees equity and [21:16] affordability so trying to get the fees down now accessing these trips with a financial component well they're trying [21:23] to get the fees more affordable but trying to bring the fees to a lower [21:29] number so more families can access this type of a trip versus trying to bring [21:36] the fees to include more district costs than they do for example we employ [21:42] people and if during part of their workday they touch this trip we would [21:48] try to document that and account for that and keep track of how many hours was it was it seven was it 14 and we'll [21:56] divide that by your out you know salary in your 2080 hours you work a year it sounds frankly like more staff time [22:02] to keep up with this to keep track of what might be what might be hundreds [22:08] maybe that's maybe more probably not significantly more for any given trip it just sounds like we're putting in a big [22:14] bureaucratic loop on something in a way we don't do with other things we don't look at music programs or athletic [22:22] programs and say did anybody in the district spend time on this because if so you gotta tell you that like we're like we're consultants or lawyers doing [22:27] the hourly billing her program and wrapping that up in student fees wherever we can find is I'm hesitant [22:32] with this idea I understand the the situation we're in but I think I'm [22:38] looking for for some judgment from John and the district staff to say and what [22:43] what resources do I need where am I putting my staff's talent and we heard from him tonight with with the reduction [22:48] talk and from a board generated position of let's let's make people tally their [22:55] hours per program it seems like it's it's an idea that that comes from a good place but it has consequences that [23:01] perhaps we haven't considered and it same thing with the equity I I think well we were getting somewhere [23:07] and another conversation where we said well let's focus perhaps on on maximizing EB over a number of years [23:14] fundraising towards a trip but maybe a particular trip for example and this was an example that came up before the 8th [23:19] grade DC trip trying to make sure that there's at least one trip that we we put our foot down and say we're [23:26] gonna do everything we can to get as many as we can with the goal beam everybody which is different from from [23:32] same we forbid another trip we've talked about some ideas about cycling trips in terms of portability maybe more local [23:38] regional national international we didn't mention all those tiers but that sort of a cycle I think this is [23:43] something that went to policy committee and we started the conversation we had a chance for the district to go back and [23:50] consult among themselves and get back to committee so it's kind of where it is we never said that the trips and the [23:56] planning and everything should stop while this was in committee and so I'm not at all surprised to see it keep [24:02] coming I think there was sort of an implication that this was a little I don't know like unexpected that these [24:08] trips continue to to get some planning done and some some foresight I think we'd expect that sort of thing I just [24:15] want to put all that context out there that there's validity to the concern but there's complications there are some [24:20] other ideas on the table and it's in a process albeit maybe a little slower than we would have thought in November [24:26] or so but that's where it is so what I think for me what Amir's comments [24:31] highlight for me is our need to have a broader conversation which because I [24:37] think York well I know I know you've been saying that but your comments are valid and good I think your comments are [24:44] valid and good but we have not had a chance as a board to have a broader conversation about those and my concern [24:51] is that I do not want really great [24:58] opportunities for our students to get caught in the middle by the fact that we [25:03] have not had a chance to have a conversation and it's not students or [25:10] teachers fault that are trying to do these opportunities that we have not had a fact to or that we haven't had time to [25:17] vet this fully and I understand the I [25:22] just if that's the part that frustrates me and I know it frustrates you that we have an out of time to have these [25:28] conversations but I would hate to see kids not be able to have an opportunity [25:33] because we have a board because of a time issue that just to me is not the right thing [25:40] to do so I have a quick question which [25:46] is the both the Korea and the Borneo trip recommend approval the Korea trip [25:53] says that this has been approved by the high school administration the Borneo trip doesn't say that and I don't know [25:59] if he just ran out of typing so as the Borneo trip and approved by high school administration yes and I apologize that [26:09] that was noted that was not noted on the resolution okay thank you you're very welcome [26:15] I have another question more logistics if these trips are proved the 20s the up [26:23] to 20 students on both trips um if you have more than 20 students interested [26:29] how will the choices how will you choose which students can participate thank you [26:35] for your question I can't speak specifically to the process with the Borneo selection of [26:40] students but I can speak to how we have selected students in the past when [26:47] there's a limit to the number of students who can participate and that practice will that protocol will be used [26:53] again for the Korea experience so we open the opportunity for all students [26:58] who are eligible in this case it would be current 9th grade students in to the [27:03] Korea experience there is an application process it's a four question application [27:10] the students would complete prior to completing the application they are given all of the questions and the [27:16] rubric that we would use to score it the applicants then the applications are red [27:22] blind by a team of people individually and scored and then the students are [27:29] ranked based on their application we then do some additional vetting prior to [27:35] announcing the students to ensure that if there are any concerns about the [27:41] students participation with administration that we have an opportunity to talk about those with the [27:47] student and their family so we have not excluded any student because of any issues that have popped [27:53] up we're also ensuring that we can meet the medical or special education needs of students in that process as well and [28:00] again we have not excluded any students in their process because of those concerns thank you you're welcome [28:07] a couple thoughts I have first off it's very hard to stand in the way of such an [28:14] excellent educational opportunity for the kids it's it's life-changing it [28:20] helps many of them determine what they want to major in what they want their careers to be in they get a much better [28:28] sense of the world and where the United States fits into the context of the world so that's fantastic we do have [28:35] some considerations the Star Tribune had a what was it a cover story article in one of the sections yesterday about some [28:43] college kids dying on some of these foreign trips and others encountering [28:51] serious health issues so Susan you have come to policy before and talk to us [28:56] about this and you're doing a lot to make sure that that doesn't happen you've won my confidence in terms of of that we do have to be very mindful of [29:03] the safety considerations you know for the benefit of the public and those [29:09] watching we just spent an hour talking about the budget cuts and they're pretty strong and we're having to cut down [29:16] pretty close in some things and it sounds like Ellen what you're talking [29:22] about is having this trip your concern is to have it self financed itself completely [29:29] in terms of the administrative load and Aamir's talking about the difficulty of [29:35] actually getting that we are in flight and it's a little bit hard perhaps to do this right now but to Erica's point [29:43] Sara's we probably have to quit kicking the can down the road and maybe set up a [29:49] meeting where we talk for an hour about this express expressly because you know [29:58] the equity issue it's hard to completely explain why [30:05] we're funding staff time for this when we're cutting so much you don't I don't want to stand in the way of the trip you [30:11] know so Ellen I think you make a good point and I think I'd be interested to [30:18] hear what effort would be involved in doing some cost accounting I'm out I can't imagine it being too tough just [30:25] rough estimates and and the other the other point is that there are additional [30:30] it's not just in-house administration for all these trips for Korea maybe I [30:37] don't know Susan do you want to explain there's other costs involved right I [30:44] just don't want these costs that come out to the public after the board [30:50] approves this trip so if I may ask I'm [30:55] not exactly sure what you're asking for additional costs to the student no she's [31:01] talking about costs that are not covered by the participants in the program so what costs with the district occur that [31:08] are not currently planned to be funded by the students so the costs that I would anticipate and that budget would [31:15] be mr. Beaton's budget the principal of the high school budget would be for when [31:21] our guests students are here there are 20 students and three or four teachers [31:26] it would be some we have probably two during the day field trips one of them [31:32] is to the Mia so there's no admission [31:38] fee so it would be transportation on that day and there would be a welcome celebration and we are looking for a [31:47] vendor or a community partner to help support that and that celebrated that [31:52] welcome celebration there would be lunch during the school day for ten school [31:58] days and those are the costs that we anticipate at this time no I'm talking [32:04] about the trip abroad in the October [32:10] that's what this is about isn't it so the cost there would be incurred again [32:15] there's a student fee we anticipated $2,500 that is the price we've been [32:21] given by the trouble vendor we are working with and so we have an anticipated cost of $2,500 per student [32:28] there would be no additional cost to the district for the chaperone who would be travel to chaperones who would be [32:34] traveling with their students okay so I understood that principal Beaton was [32:41] going to be flying to Korea before this trip - that the the trip I just wanted [32:46] to make sure that I understood that correctly is that going to be absorbed that costs going to be absorbed by the [32:53] district so that is happening in March per policy when we have students in a [32:59] homestay situation we need to have the venue or venues vetted so mr. Beaton [33:05] will be traveling from Bangkok to Seoul to do that immediately following Spring [33:10] Break so he will be making that transition he will do that and those costs will be included in the in the [33:18] fees that we are charging okay I wanted [33:25] that to be clear and on the record that was one of my concerns about this one the when the district is in the process [33:32] of massive budget alignment it's important that these types of fees and [33:40] this type of activity is is transparent so that's one of the main reasons that I [33:45] pulled this I want to just say I'm I have spoken with Lindsay and I think [33:57] that this is the Borneo trip sounds like an incredible opportunity I think that [34:03] the that I have no reservation with that it is just as we move forward we the [34:16] board really does need to sort out student safety which is my my biggest [34:21] concern in all of this a student safety I'm not concerned about this trip the Borneo trip but we really do have to [34:31] make sure that we are doing all we can for to make sure that our students are safe and [34:37] to a much lesser degree that the but still quite important that this schools [34:44] liabilities are managed very responsibly so this is why I wanted to have this [34:50] consist discussion and so now that I understand that in Korea the district is [34:57] going to absorb those costs I have no problems in approving students are sorry [35:03] the students are going to observe those costs I have no problems of proving these two trips at this moment so I just [35:13] want to make a couple comments one of course given what our current policy is and that these are in compliance of the [35:19] policy and and this is what the district direction has been to date I would I am [35:25] in favor of these particular trips having said that going forward I think [35:30] that when we have a trip like Borneo which has two aspects as I see it there's sort of the life changing aspect [35:36] that people talk about and then just the basic educational component to it it I would like the board to say if you were [35:43] going to schedule an international trip that has certain educational components that we request or require that there be [35:50] a similar educational trip available for people at a much lower cost so that [35:57] we're not excluding people and I would also want us to consider being more aggressive on making the expensive trips [36:04] available to a broader group of students and I don't mean numbers I mean for those who cannot afford a forty five [36:10] hundred dollar price tag and those are just things that I want people to start to think about which or even mentioned [36:17] but for our work session when we do get into I think it's policy 538 and I do [36:24] anticipate that the board will get further into that policy sometime in the next six weeks so any other comments [36:31] yeah I think I think the key is that we need to have the discussion and that of [36:37] course you know the trips are wonderful whether we're talking [36:42] music science all the different things that are happening it's us getting our [36:47] heads wrapped around it and making a consistent decision across the board for all kids and all trips and we just need [36:54] to do the work alright we'll go to a roll call and this is to approve the trip to Borneo that was the motion hi hi [37:15] hi motion approved I get a motion to [37:20] approve the trip to Korea we're going to call it South Korea any further [37:29] discussion I think we've kind of covered this in conjunction with Borneo if not we'll do a roll call on the [37:35] motion to approve the triptych South Korea i motion carried thank for [37:50] everybody next we are going on to discussion item first discussion item is [37:55] the budget alignment plan and we actually just had a one hour work session on this and I also believe that [38:03] we will have a public hearing on this but maybe Margo you can fill us in with some broad strokes and give us the [38:10] timing of the public hearing wherever you want [38:22] good evening chairman Friedman superintendent Shultz in school board yes we did discuss the draft or the [38:31] initial discussion of the 1920 budget alignment plan in the board work session and its culmination of months months of [38:41] work I'm happy to report with the brainstorming and everything that [38:46] occurred we have some creative I would say creative ideas of where people [38:54] really dug in hard to think of ways to reduce that are not a direct impact to [39:01] students and minimizing that because that's what we always strive for it is is a difficult challenge but people rose [39:09] to the challenge and while maintaining that by June 30th 2020 we will be at a [39:16] 6% fund balance and in this district people balance the student needs along [39:23] with the fiscal position very very well this plan takes is the remaining [39:30] reductions needed after the reductions in December that were approved at the secondary level and so in total the [39:39] combined of all of it is about 2.2 million but the remaining amount is just under 1.4 million this is the first [39:50] report of sorts or discussion and then we'll have a listening session on March [39:55] 4th and then request approval from you as a board at the March 11th meeting we [40:03] also will have finance and Facilities Committee I believe February 25th I [40:10] believe somewhere in the end of February and so they will review it as well and [40:16] along with the public listening session so just to quickly summarize I won't go [40:22] line by line through the reductions we do have one area where we're because of [40:29] increased technology levy due to our overall district property wealth we are [40:36] able to transfer some dollars for staff that there the work that they do [40:42] specifically qualifies under the technology coding and statute we're able [40:47] to transfer make budget transfer of general fund dollars into the technology [40:53] levy Student Support Services one of the the key areas there is that we're [40:59] bringing a program in house from 287 and which will provide more in-house service [41:08] to those students and also created district savings the remainder we have a [41:14] combination of an in another area and teaching and learning using the title to [41:21] grant in a different way in charging some math and reading toeses they're a [41:27] portion of their time not all of it and so just a variety the Elementary's are [41:34] doing something with substitutes and also their extra pay stipends so a [41:42] variety of reductions and there's also one revenue generation as we are updated [41:50] the enrollment projections for as of actually last week second semester has [41:58] brought in a few more students and so I've projected some of those to be ongoing into nineteen twenty so we were [42:05] able to realize some revenue there so the list of reductions the details are in your board packet we talked about him [42:12] at the work session we had lead team members there to provide and principals to provide more background for you and [42:22] so would just answer any questions you have at this time and if you have any [42:28] questions about the process and what comes next go ahead yeah a [42:37] quick question do you anticipate any of these cuts affecting our average teacher [42:42] to student class ratios that we've seen across secondary and primary so the [42:49] secondary as they proposed some of their [42:55] ratios so it will not affect the board guidelines in terms of what that that is [43:03] they'll we have not come back and made a recommendation for you to increase those [43:08] the high school in particulars well under those right their average may increase but not above [43:16] the board policy low okay Thank You Margot the public will be [43:21] interested to know whether this has any impact on 5th grade music could you speak to that there is not a [43:29] recommendation for fifth grade music in this list okay thanks [43:39] the public would also like to know whether it will impact gifted and talented in the elementary schools [43:47] there's not gifted and talented it listed in recommended the details are [43:53] there it's the shifting from the tier to tier 1 tier 2 programs it's it's in the [44:00] background packet I'm not sure what you're referring to I I don't know what [44:10] you're asking so there is no recommendation to reduce [44:17] the FTE allocations towards gifted and talented correct correct [44:25] any other questions so we'll look at [44:31] this again next month and then we have the listing session March 4th great thank you very much Margaux and next we [44:37] have policy review policy 613 very good [44:43] yeah this is a relatively small change we're talking about graduation credits [44:48] we still have the same expectation but we used to specify in policy that these were credits earned during grades 9 [44:55] through 12 and in some cases 10 through 12 but because there's a proposal working its way through teaching and [45:00] learning that has to do with getting recognition for advanced math achievements that happened in middle [45:06] school but say for example in geometry or for another course giving that on a transcript the grade you got the class [45:13] you had it in on your transcript having those credits count towards the credits you need to graduate so we removed [45:19] language that referred to grades that these things were earned in and simply [45:24] have a clause that says you need these credits on your high school transcript and the process to move from the say the [45:31] middle school course to get it recognized and your high school transcript will be specified and they'll be a form and a procedure that the [45:37] administrational oversee so all we're [45:42] really clarifying is we're not limiting graduation credits to be specified as [45:48] 912 because there will be a procedure to allow parents and students to apply for something they [45:53] may have earned in eighth grade that really counts as a high school exactly it's an opt-in it's an option [45:59] thank you all right I think we did that [46:06] before actually or we as a practice even though it may not have been in the policy all the better now yeah all right [46:17] thank you next we're moving to action items can I get a motion to approve the 2019-20 [46:23] capital project requests second and [46:29] Margo we went through these last month are there any changes to these there are no changes from last meeting so if you [46:37] have any questions I'll answer him other than that I would ask for your approval any questions again we did see this last [46:45] month all right we get a roll call to approve the 2019-20 capital project requests hi yes [46:55] aye aye motion carried all right we're [47:05] moving information next so are there any committee updates there are none on [47:15] Finance because we haven't had a finance meeting since the last board meeting that's it's February 25th I checked my [47:21] calendar we did talk in teaching and learning a little bit about middle [47:28] school and just talked about hopefully having some time as we go forward with [47:34] our strategic plan to talk about some of the alignment issues between the two schools in terms of courses offered the [47:42] way they're offered and potentially looking just at the general overall schedule in the two middle schools and [47:48] how they have differences and and looking at best practices and I know Middle School's kind of been I had to [47:55] take a little bit of a back burner at times just due to all the large changes in the district whether at 9:12 or in [48:00] other areas so it was just a great discussion with our middle school leadership to hopefully initiate that going on the [48:08] road once we have that strategic plan finalized anything else I don't have a [48:17] committee update and I know that district sent this out on Facebook I wanted to publicly recognize our school [48:22] bus drivers who have gotten our kids hold to and from school safely in this [48:29] bizarre winter weather we've been having so thank you school bus drivers and all [48:34] our teachers and staff and everyone who has really gotten our kids educated [48:41] these past few weeks because I really don't want my kids home any more days of school so thank you all all right Ellen [48:50] did you have something actually I was gonna announce and I can't remember if I announced it already but the association [48:58] of metropolitan school districts is having a day at the Capitol on February 21st [49:04] um it's 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. at the state office building room 400s and I [49:12] encourage anyone who is interested in advocating for our public schools to [49:19] show up and we'll be having meetings with our legislators or other decision [49:25] makers that have to do with public schools funding and policy and so you [49:34] can look for more information at WWE a más de org day at the Capitol thank you [49:42] great anything else we've completed our agenda is there any objection to a [49:48] journey hearing none we are adjourned thank you everybody