Uh, first up on our agenda are community members' questions and comments. We did not have anybody sign up again this week, so we will move on to the call to order call to order the meeting. And then pledge of allegiance. Wendy, would you mind leading us, please? Thank you. Um, next is the consideration of the agenda. And I actually have a request to move 9D above 9B. Um, so we will do uh, 9A and then what is currently listed as adopt resolution awarding sale of lease, if that's okay with everybody. Are there any other changes people would like? Okay, terrific. Next up is the consent agenda. The consent agenda contains routine matters that typically do not require board discussion. Individual board members may remove an item on the consent agenda for discussion or separate action. Consent agenda items are as follows. Approve the minutes from the regular board meeting held April 27th, 2026. Approve personnel recommendations. Accept donations totaling $41,655.70. Approve voucher and payment registers, including bill vouchers, EP registers, EFT vouchers, and Capital One transactions. Do I have a motion to approve? >> So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? Okay, hearing none. All those in favor, say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Okay, terrific. Next up are this is the superintendent's report on excellence. Dr. Fletcher. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. Um, we have a lot to report again. Um, this week in academics, um, actually last week we had a first ever fifth grade World's Fair. Um, 62 fifth graders last week brought their curiosity life for the first ever Orono Intermediate School School Worlds Fair Showcase. This was an optional capstone experience for our fifth-graders. They were invited to dive deeply into a passion project related to arts, music, language, sports, or culture. And they created display boards showing their research and many augmented their displays with LEGO creations, original art, origami, and much more. I wanted to thank our intermediate school specialist teachers who developed this year's theme, "Curiosity Unites Us", and mentored students through the process. I also saw many attending parents attending to celebrate their students' work, and we thank them for their engagement and coming to campus. Um next on Math Masters, uh 37 fifth-grade students attended the Math Masters competition last month. Orono had a great showing among the 122 mathematics mathematicians competing, and congratulations to the students who placed in the fast fact round. We had JJ Beeler ninth, Tommy Longbella at ninth also, Lennon Harden 15th, and Ethan Hanson also 15th. Placing in the individual work round were Xander Rajah fourth, Shri Daron 13th place, Griffin Shown 14th, and Landon Van Camp at 15th place. And then in the team round, congratulations to the Orono yellow team that placed second with Andrew Heggenson, Griffin Shown, Tommy Kraemer, Landon Van Camp, and Charlie Kurth. And the Orono purple team that placed seventh, Shri Daron Kondanchath, Tommy Longbella, Flynn Engler, Ben Shimke, and Kota Servais Kota Servais. So thank you to our Math Masters coaches, Angie Kolthoff and Gil McDonald Jonason. And to All-State Choir, I'm proud to congratulate sophomore Gabriella Daley for her selection to the Minnesota Soprano Alto All State Choir. She will rehearse and perform at the All State camp this summer and then again as part of the Music Minnesota Educators Convention at Orchestra Hall Hall in February of 2027. On to the speech team that took 12 competitors to the state tournament where the team placed fifth overall. Coach Barb Schaffner believes this is the highest state tournament ranking in school history. Three Orono High School students competed in the finals. We had Maya Haugen who earned second place in storytelling. Sophie Middleton was also second place in Extemporaneous Reading and Ruby Gearman was eighth place in drama. And earlier this month Simon Forbes traveled to Chicago to compete in the 23rd annual Tournament of Champions in Extemporaneous Speaking at Northwestern University. And Simon was one of 39 speakers from across the country who qualified during the regular season. Simon advanced to the finals in two categories, Extemporaneous Extemporaneous Speaking and Impromptu Speaking where he placed fourth and sixth respectively. Congratulations Simon on an outstanding year as a top speaker. On to um we talked a little bit about this last meeting um with her sister. I'm excited to announce that junior Cora Palm has been elected to the Vice President of Service and the National Association of Student Councils. No student from Minnesota has ever been elected to this national board. So congratulations to Cora on her outstanding leadership and achievement. Uh DECA International, as I mentioned in my last report, Orono sent 17 students to the DECA International Conference in Atlanta. The students competed in events and attended leadership workshops, networked with more than 20,000 future business professionals. Our Orono DECA cham- chapter received recognition for competing all five chapter campaigns and earning a gold chapter certification at a national level. Congratulations to junior Carly Rauch for working her way to a finalist position at the conference. She competed in the principles of hospitality and tourism event and placed in the top 20 out of 160 state champions from across the country. Thank you to Mr. Joe Huber uh for leading our DECA chapter once again this year. On to Imagination Fair, I'm excited to invite visitors to the annual second grade Imagination Fair. The Schuman Elementary capstone at the gym will be open on Wednesday, May 13th from 9:30 to 3:20. Um we certainly have or we currently have 185 students signed up to participate. The Imagination Fair is also an optional opportunity for Schuman second grade students to showcase an interest in science, art, writing, traveling. This is a beloved tra- tradition for Schuman and the sky's the limit as to what they want to share or create. Special thanks again to Katie Phillips and Jamie Jessica, our parent coordinators, who again are doing this event. Uh both have helped make this an amazing um event for many years and neither of them have second graders, so um shout-out to Jane Smith also, our challenge coordinator and her for her leadership and passion for this event. So, please stop by on Wednesday. In athletics, baseball is 11 and three on the season highlighted by two wins over teams ranked both number one in the state. In the last week, the Spartans are currently ranked number two as they head into the final stretch of the regular season. Boys golf has continued its hot start winning each of its last four events. At a recent meet at Braemar Golf Course, the Spartans put together an a historic performance firing a new school record of 284. They then matched the school record two days later at the very next event by shooting another 284, another historic performance, on day one of the Northern Invitational at Giants Ridge. Girls golf traveled to Brainerd this weekend to compete in a strong field at Cragun's Resort. Spartans came away with a fifth place finish highlighted by Nora Benson earning a top five individual finish. Orono now turns its attention next to next Monday's Metro West Conference Championship meet at Brainerd Golf Course. Boys lacrosse is 4-5 on the season closed out this week with back-to-back wins. The Spartans return to action tomorrow night as they host Chaska. Girls lacrosse is 8 and 1 on the season and have won eight straight games. The Spartans are ranked um third in the state as they continue an an impressive spring campaign. Softball sits at 7 and 8 on the season and wraps up the regular season this week with four games still to play. Section tournament action begins next week already as the Spartans look to make a post season run. Boys tennis capped off another incredible regular season by going undefeated in the Metro West Conference play to earn the conference championship. The Spartans now turn their attention to the post season where they earn the number two seed and will host both the quarterfinal and semifinal match on Wednesday and Thursday of this week. And track and field continues in a very impressive season highlighted by recent true team section championships for both the boys and the girls teams. Both squads will compete at the true team state meet this Saturday at Eden Prairie High School. This Wednesday the Spartans will also compete in the Metro West Championship right here at Orono. Um congrats the following student athletes athletes on recently setting new school records again. Um Gabe Hallen at the 1600 meet with a time of 4 minutes 14 seconds at the Hamline Elite meet. I know it's amazing. Josie Hallen at the in the 3200 meters with the time of 11 minutes 32 seconds at the U of M Invitational. And then Olivia Yuzildin in the 100 meter meter hurdles with the time of 14 96 seconds at the Hamline Elite meet. So congratulations to all of our up come or all of our spring athletes on their dedication, teamwork, and incredible results. And just a few upcoming events for everyone. The public is invited to join for several events this month. 7th and 8th grade band concerts are tomorrow evening, May 12th, beginning at 6:00 p.m. in the Fenn Holt Auditorium. High school pops concert is May 18th at Wayzata Community Church. Our 5th and 6th grade band concerts are Tuesday, May 19th in the Intermediate School Gymnasium. Community is also invited to attend prom grand march on Friday, May 22nd at 6:00 p.m. in the Orono High School gym. On May 28th, our 5th grade and middle school choirs will be performing at the Fenn Holt Auditorium. And since our next board meeting is June 8th, after school ends, I want to invite the community to our annual commencement program on Thursday, June 4th at 7:00 p.m. in Pesonen Stadium. It is always a beautiful evening of pure joy for our graduates and all of us, their families, and our staff. And that concludes my report for this evening. >> Thank you. Maybe take a sip cuz that was a lot. Congratulations to all of our students. They're doing amazing things. Um next up our board members' questions and comments and as usual, um we will have finance and facilities and a policy update first. Todd, do you mind? >> I do not. Uh this week we discussed our LTFM review and we will hear from Mr. Tanger tonight on this topic. Um this is an annual requirement by MDE. The purpose of the 10-year long-term facilities maintenance plan is not to focus on individual projects, uh but to ensure the district is managing its facilities responsibly and sustainably over time. So I I feel it's important to remind the district that LTFM is a restricted funding mechanism used only for maintaining, preserving, and extending the life of existing facilities. So even though we have over 200 million in facility assets, only a small capped levy is available annually to maintain our community owned facilities. This is less than 1% of our overall budget. Uh the work done and the position that the Orno district is in reflects strong stewardship and fiscal responsibility. Uh by steadily addressing high priority needs such as upcoming roof replacements and pacing projects over time, the district has avoided sharp cost spikes and maintained greater consistency for taxpayers year after year. Um So, in addition, uh this last uh this Was it this week or last week? Today cuz today is a Monday. Yep. In addition, our our LTFM planning included coordination with the intermediate district 287. Uh we're joint governance ensures that the shared services and regional facilities are planned collaboratively and responsibly on behalf of all participating districts. Uh projected costs remained relatively flat, so this is good. Uh we also discussed our tennis court improvements um through a competitive bid process using a lease levy, the district received multiple favorable proposals resulting in a lower interest rate. This is just another example of how thoughtful uh planning and smart financing decisions translate into real savings for our community. So, that concluded the finance uh and facilities and finance report. Um we will also hear uh policy tonight. We only reviewed one policy. This will be a new policy for the district uh related to AI and we'll hear more about that in a little bit. >> Thank you. >> That concludes my reports. >> Perfect. Tim, would you Do you have any thing that you want to report? >> Uh I safely traveled to and from Arkansas in an electric vehicle for a military commitment, so that's that's where I've been. >> Well, welcome back. We're glad you made it. Todd, did you have anything else? >> I did not. >> Wendy? Um sure, just two quick um reports. I attended after our last meeting on the um parent advisory council at the Discovery Center. And they are really doing incredible work over there. We got a curriculum update from Kayla. They have adopted a new it's play-based nature-based but it's a learning curriculum that aligns with um reading and math that's happening at Shuman and in our district and it's a really great alignment to set up our kids to be successful when they leave and go on to kindergarten. So that's fantastic. um And we heard about the end of year parties and work they're going to be doing over the summer. So it's really exciting. um So anybody in early childhood um keep your eyes out because they're going to be having service days and a lot of projects over the summer. And the last is one more week with in the legislation. And it's not good. Sorry. You know we follow this every day but it's always changing. It looks like school safety grants most likely will go forward just one time aid. What's holding it up right now is the debate about including private schools or not in that but there's so much bipartisan support on school safety that I think it probably will. Compensatory we will have cuts. Most likely it'll be right now the run is showing about 14,000 cuts this coming year. That's the latest run but they still haven't even finalized that. The percentage that we'd be getting is lower and lower and lower and lower. So we'll see. That's the latest. um Special ed cuts are in statute $250 million. It the it looks like the Blue Ribbon Commission probably will not have anything else to cut to make up for that. Looking more like Ed Services potentially maybe on the chopping block, which is about $240,000 for Orono schools. Um the additional $50 million that the governor proposed bipartisan rejection. So not 300,000 but 250,000 or 250 million in the state. They're we're working on getting runs for our school district to see what that will cost us. Um but we pay several million in cross subsidy already. So it's going to be a big hit for us. Unemployment insurance has run out um payment at the legislature. Um and so that costs us about 80,000 to Orono schools and MD just came out and said that money from the rail project that they got is out and there's nothing the legislature to cover that for this session. Um in January as we know Minnesota paid family medical leave kicked in and so that is also unfunded costing the district about $160,000. Also our employees are having to you know share that some of that cost as well but it's another cost. So it's really um it's tricky. The two one potential light would be the permanent school constitution permanent school fund constitutional amendment. I've mentioned it before. I'm not going to spend a lot of time talking about it now. I'll talk about it once it's passed because that would be an additional about 40% per pupil that we get now. But I was at the capital last week. It passed unanimously in the house. And I was at the capital last week and we were expecting a unanimous unanimous passage and it did not. Um an amendment was proposed. The amendment was accepted. And then the permanent school fund was voted yes, but now it has to go back to the house. Um this morning I was watching the hearing online and it um passed in the house to be put into conference committee. So, who knows where that will end. So, I was thinking Friday was the date, but um no. And then the last is um the legislative budget office is still collecting data um about the educator group health insurance. I was at the capital listening to the hearing last week um for that and it's definitely not a slam dunk. There are a lot of questions about it, but it's something for us to be watching. So, I was the bearer of only positive news. That concludes my report. >> Better to be informed even if it's not good, right? Thank you very much. Gavin, did you have anything you wanted to share? >> Um I think the two things is last um we can number of us were at the community breakfast uh with coalition. I thought that was fantastic. The seeing everything that the coalition's doing and and how much we can do as a community outside of the house and the the families um was just wonderful and Ali truly is amazing uh when she presents talks about it and is able to bring up examples of um teachers that have been here to Orrington and the impacts the long-lasting impacts that she recalls them having. So, that's amazing. So, um wonderful work there with the coalition and everything. Uh love that. And then um I attended uh three out of the four um middle school theater uh productions of Madagascar. Uh uh it is I of course I had a student in there that was um a New Yorker and a steak. Um, and so that was a lot of fun and they try I mean I think it I think I heard that they sold the most tickets for this that of all the productions they've done and the most uh sold out um shows. Um, and it was just fantastic watching these kids uh and at the end the last one um the eighth graders who of course they're done with the middle school and we're moving on got to have their own little song and some of those kids uh it was insane. Um, the flexibility of an eighth grader uh and I swear she broke her back as she twisted over and did this gymnastics thing but wow. Uh, but it was so much fun. So, um thank you to Community Ed and everyone putting that on and uh some Orno alums that were directing and a lot of patience for directing sixth and eighth grade students. So, it's fun. >> Thank you. Um, I have uh just one update which is I attended the special education parent partnership committee um and I I'm going to tell you all something and you're all maybe going to feel a little bit older because we had a presentation by Dr. Alger. Dr. Riley Alger. He did a great job. He talked about um sensory integration and he had a tool that he was showing us and it's not ready for public consumption yet um because he might be copyrighting it because it's so fantastic. But he has been working here for six months to finish up his his studies and this project this um was a culmination of what he'd been working on. So, um it was a really great It was a really great presentation and then of course Ali Charlie as well was also there. So, that was terrific, too. Um, a really positive um meeting. And that concludes my report. So, next up is old business uh First up is the policy review for the second reading. Dr. Flusher. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. We have six policy ready policies ready for action tonight for second reading with no corrections. These include policy 601 school district curriculum and instruction goals, policy 602 organization of school calendar and school day, policy 603 curriculum development, policy 604 instructional curriculum, and policy 605 alternative educational services, and policy 606 textbooks and instructional materials. And these are ready for action, Madam Chair. Do I have a motion to approve? >> So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? Okay, terrific. All those in favor, say I. >> I. >> Any opposed? Okay, perfect. Thank you. Uh next step is any other old business. Hearing none, we'll move on to new business. Which is our first one is uh Three Rivers Park District update, Commissioner Marge Beard. Dr. Flasher. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. I welcome Ms. Marge Beard to the board table for presentation on the Three Rivers Parks. Uh Ms. Beard is the commissioner for District 1 and was generous to offer her time to share with our school an update on our local park district and all that is offered in our own backyard. We're very grateful for their shared partnership in so many ways, and you'll hear about a number of those tonight. But of our number of our Orono sports teams utilize park trails, hills, and facilities for their home practices and their meets, and we're very fortunate and highly valued our Three Rivers Parks District. So, we're very grateful that you're here, Ms. Beard, and I turn it over to you. >> Thank you very much. I appreciate it. Um so, my name's Marge Beard, and I serve as the Three Rivers Park District Commissioner for District 1. So, District 1 includes 20 cities in western Hennepin County, including the six cities that your um school district includes. Uh the district goes from the east on New Hope uh to the west uh of Minnetrista to the north Rogers. So, quite a big uh territory. Um just a little about me. I um am a retired IT uh accountant person. So, I come from a business background and I entered public service uh on the Plymouth City Council. So, I would like to thank you for your service on the school board. I do although we get some uh I'll say public comment on the the park board, much less than we did in a in a council role. So, um I do know what it's like to get those uh tough questions from your neighbors that you see at the Cub food store. And uh I just want to thank you for that cuz it's really uh especially the schools, it's one of the most important kind of you know public backbones in uh in our state and around. So, thank you very much for that. Oh, turn that off over here. Okay. So, at Three Rivers uh so, my goal for this presentation is that you learn something about Three Rivers, something new. All right. So, our mission is to promote environmental stewardship through recreation and education in a natural resource-based system. So, the key phrase in that is natural resources. Everything we do is nature-based. For example, one of the things you won't see in our parks are ball fields. All right. Ball fields tend to be the responsibility of cities or municipalities and we're a little bit more like state parks than more than municipal parks. So, who is this Three Rivers Parks? Well, we were established in 1957 by the state legislature. So, we are indeed a stand-alone local unit of government. Uh we are run by a board of commissioners, seven commissioners. We have five elected commissioners. I serve in one of the elected roles and we have two appointed commissioners who are appointed by the Hennepin County Board. And our district includes suburban Hennepin County. So, it's It's what it sounds like. It's Hennepin County with the exception of Minneapolis. And we have a long-standing multi-decade partnership with Scott County. So, you might be down in Prior Lake and say, "Well, you know, that's outside uh Hennepin County. We see your signs down there." We've run the uh Scott County parks uh in a partnership uh for mul- multiple decades. So, it's a good use of uh government funds to spread the money administratively further. We have 27 parks and park reserves, 27,000 acres of land, which translates to about 42 square miles. So, there's a lot of land that we are responsible for. We have 175 miles of regional trail. And the regional trail is typically those trails that are outside our parks. Some are inside, but most of them are outside our parks, and they're easily recognizable because they're 10-ft wide, paved with a yellow dash line. If you see the yellow dash line, you can be pretty sure that's a Three Rivers trail. One without might be a city or municipal-type trail. And we have another over 380 miles of trails within our parks. And some of those might be paved. Um many of them are dirt. Uh we were chatting before the meeting. I'm a hiker. I like to hike on the dirt trails cuz the pavement's a little hard on your uh your hiking boots. And most impressively, we get over 16 million visits a year. And again, that's suburban Hennepin County, right? And 16 million visits is less than twice our uh is more than twice our state's population. So, we are well-visited park district. Natural resources makes everything go, right? That's right in our mission statement. So, all the the photo to the left, we do a lot of water quality work. Uh one of the things we do is we hire over 100 aquatic invasive species inspectors per year that um inspect watercraft, you know, boats and jet skis in and out of the water. They They a lot of education for um folks, boat owners, or watercraft owners to make sure that they know how to keep their watercraft clean to try to reduce the spread of invasive species across water bodies. Uh we manage a lot of animals. We actually have wildlife biologists on staff. One of the things that makes us different than city or municipal parks and rec departments. And just a interesting thing on So, the slide you're looking at in the bottom right is the um uh it's a photo from Crow-Hassan Park Reserve, and that's up in Rogers. That is our most uh natural park. We have the largest restored prairie in the metro area there. So, sometimes people think, "Oh, I've got to go all the way out to like Pipestone, see some of the state parks there." But, you can just go a few miles north of here to Rogers and go to Crow-Hassan and check it out. Different things are blooming throughout the season, so it's always something new. This is the year of the river. So, you might recall 2 years ago we had uh focus on the year of It was the year of bugs. So, we had a lot of education on insects and bugs and things like that. And 2 years before that, our first year of we had the year of birds. So, we did a lot of bird education, bird tagging, bird you know, throughout our park district. And I've left on your uh your place up there uh card looks like this, and it's got um our programs that are spread throughout throughout the park district, and that's so people can learn a lot about rivers. And the reason we picked the year of the rivers 2026 marks the 100th anniversary of a US Fish and Wildlife survey of the Mississippi River from uh Minneapolis to Red Wing. And their job was to count the number of fish. Okay? Guess how many fish 100 years ago were on the Mississippi River. Three. They found three. Not species, they found three fish. So, that's how polluted the Mississippi River was 100 years ago. And if you think about it, that was the heyday of a lot of factories on the river where we had they had less uh being careful about what they, you know, return to the river and all that. So, it marks a remarkable um a comeback of the Mississippi River. So, it's one of the reasons why we're highlighting the rivers this year. But, enough talk about natural resources, right? Let's face it. People come to the parks for the recreation, right? So, this year we're we really we concluded a successful winter um success because we had we had some natural snow. I know a lot of people here who tell me they'd like to go to Baker for the snow. Well, you may recall last year we actually had no snow. We have two locations that manufacture snow, so Highland Park Reserve and Elm Creek Park Reserve. And that's where we do a lot of our Nordic or cross-country skiing. And if it wasn't for those um manufactured snow locations, high school teams throughout Hennepin County really would have had no place to go. There would have been no races. And we all know we need to keep teenagers engaged in uh positive activity. So, we were glad that we could um have those um uh ski racers be able to to complete their races. But, we're gearing up for summer now as we transition. So, the golf courses are all open. Um that's a big success. I like to golf. But, biking's open. Really, that summer is here. Water's a little cold, but we will be starting um Memorial Day weekend with um uh watercraft rentals, so canoes, stand-up paddleboards, things like that. And um also we're opening the uh campground. I don't know if people know, but Baker Park Reserve has a 200-spot campground. Um we've have been uh we'll be wrapping up this year. We started last year an electric upgrade for those who um are in the know about electric. We upgraded from 30 amp to 50 amp and apparently that's a big big deal if you have a vehicle. And we also electrified an additional loop. So now we're about 50/50 of non-electric and electric. We found even people who are tent campers, um a tent camper, um like to have electric for charging different things and maybe even bringing a fan if it's if it's hot. At Three Rivers we've really been focused a lot on welcoming people, right? So we have a lot of different programs. Um one of the ones is our try it program. So uh in the winter we had for multiple years we've had ice fishing try it cuz we found people really want to know what people are doing out there and they're a little afraid to go on the ice. They want to make sure the ice is They don't know if it's, you know, rude if you just go over and say, "What do you you know, what are you doing? You know, really how's that?" That has been widely successful. We partner with the DNR on that. The DNR brings a lot of the fishing poles and their big augers and all. They teach people how to ice fish with the goal of hopefully, you know, they'll take it up as a sport. Another try it program we do is camping 101. We found that people really want to learn to camp. And if you've been a camper, if you think about, well, how did I learn to camp or how did my family learn? Well, you may have learned from your family or you may have learned from scouts, but you probably didn't pick up a book and just read about camping, all right? It's the kind of activity that it works best if somebody takes you under their wing and shows you what to do. So we have a lending library. We loan people, families, all the equipment. We have certain campsites we've held back, you know, for this program. We uh meet the family on Friday night, show them how to work everything, how to get the camp stove cooking and all that. And then we leave them alone. We're there if you need us at the office, but you know, you're kind of on your on your own. And then we come by Sunday afternoon to to teach you how to break down camp cuz that takes a lot longer, you know, to put put away everything. And then we also teach you how to make reservations. That's one of the big barriers. People like kind of don't know how to get a campsite. So, those are two of our programs. Another one I just want to highlight and I have uh handouts I'll leave with you is our recreation pass plus. So, it is a pass for um families, people in our our district who are low income, who are on any government assistance, right? We don't we do not qualify people for government assistance, but if you're on government assistance, you qualify for our pass. And that will give you um access to ski passes, it'll give you access to discounts on things. Um so, I I brought that cuz I thought maybe some of your um uh uh social work team might might be interested at least knowing about it and and letting people sign up for it. It's a great program. But, the most exciting thing that has happened in Three Rivers in over 10 years has been the Mississippi Gateway Regional Park. Uh it's on the Mississippi River, again our theme of rivers, and it is um next to the Rapids Dam. So, you may have known this park, it's in Brooklyn Park. You may have known it as the Rapids Dam Regional Park. And a number years ago, we said, "Well, you know, it's on the Mississippi, we should probably think about a name change, right? To really recognize it's on one of the great rivers of the world." And we embarked on that process and worked through a number of partnerships to uh uh uh have the ribbon cutting this fall. So, in some of the pictures you're looking at, so the first one on the left, that's the Gateway Center. So, as you approach the um the park, that is a visitor center as well as an education center. Uh so, we do a lot of school groups there. Uh we have a bus drop-off place. Um we our focus is to get kids out into the river and teach them about aquatic things and river things and, you know a lot of a lot of nature stuff. The picture on the top right, that's the mini Mississippi. So it's kind of a water feature that's out in front of the Mississippi Gateway Center. When we put this together I said, you know, that Mississippi's kind of a big river. You know, it's a little bit big for some of the tiny tots. So the mini Mississippi is really a a play area water feature so those kids we can start to get them interested in water. And on the bottom right picture you're looking at, that is called our treetops trail and it's what it sounds like. It's an elevated trail through the treetops and it's off the Gateway Center. It's handicap accessible. It goes out quite ways and you look over a vista of um wetlands. The people who are birders love it because they're a little closer to where the birds are and can sort of you know capture that. We plow it in the winter so it's open it's open all year. But a little closer to home, we have a number of uh Three Rivers facilities right here in the local area. So the Dakota Rail Trail, the picture to the left, the campground I already talked about at Baker in the top center. We have numerous swimming beaches and on the top right, that is the Gale Woods Farm Barn not to be confused with the red barn on Baker Golf Course if you've ever been out there. That's also an iconic red barn we have but that's Gale Woods. Gale Woods Farm is actually a real life working farm. We raise animals, crops and it's meant to be teaching and teach people where their food comes from. So lots of programs out there. This whole summer there's Saturday on the farm. You do have to sign up so we can kind of control the the groups through there but it's an awesome place to take uh really any age. Kids, even adults. And in the bottom right that is the boat house at Lake Minnetonka Regional Park. Uh um I'm sorry, that's Noerenberg Gardens. Excuse me, I'm looking at the lake in the background. It's Noerenberg Gardens. And uh that is a restored um uh formal garden. It's a great wedding location, but it's also a great place to just take a walk around cuz different things are popping throughout throughout the season. And even closer local, so we uh have welcomed Orono students for many years out of Baker that your golf teams play at Baker Golf and the um Nordic teams practice at um Baker with natural snow and Elm Creek with manufactured snow. And uh the our Highland Hills ski area, that's our downhill ski, that's another place where the Orono students um the the ski teams come out practice. And then looking forward, we're all about partnerships. You heard me mention the word partnership multiple times. We're always looking for those types of thing. We don't really do anything on our own anymore. And as I prepared for uh coming here, I took a look at your website and I was happy to see that your school district also is very focused on building partnerships with outside groups and I was happy to be here to share a little bit about Three Rivers. We work with you with your teams and we would be happy to work with you on other um park and park activities. So, and that really concludes my remarks and I just want to say thank you very much for listening and I hope I hope you learned something about Three Rivers. >> Thank you very much. I definitely did. Um does anybody have any questions or comments? >> Uh thank you and other than to say when there is no snow at Baker, it's problematic because then all the cross country ski lessons have to go to Elm Creek and it gets quite crowded. So, we we experienced that. So, glad there was snow last year. It was very nice being at Baker. >> I am so thankful you're here. Um just to reme- I mean, my kids grew up going to camp, you know, Gale Woods Farms, French Regional, they did camps there. We always did the um the uh the Baker Park at Halloween. The trick-or-treating, Baker Boo, camping. I mean, it's so fantastic. Um all of the things and you take for granted that it's just there and not seeing >> Right. >> there are actually people who make all of those things happen behind the scenes. Um so, I am very eager to learn more on my own about um just opportunities for older children, you know? Um I mean, my kids aren't doing camps anymore, high school. Um but a reminder for me that we need to get out as a family, you know, intentionally to these spaces. Um you just kind of get lost in your and you go to the same places kind of every time, but they're um but yeah, thank you very, very much. >> Snowboarding is the popular activity for middle school, so that's really the sweet spot for who >> Mhm. >> who likes to do that, so Uh well, thank you very much and I will leave these handouts here. Does >> Oh, yes. >> Yes, I forgot about that, but that way >> adopting the resolution awarding sale of lease. Dr. Flasher. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. I invite Mr. Nick Tanter, our Orno Director of Business, and Ms. Shelby McCoy from Ehlers Financial, our partners, and all things municipal financing. Um, they're here for actually Mr. Tanter's here for multiple presentations regarding maintenance needs, and I know Ms. McCoy is here as we have been, as you know, for a number of years working on our facilities and fields, and this is about our tennis court project, and replacing our what are the middle school tennis courts adjacent to the middle school, the current middle school. So, that's been a long time in coming, and we have good news tonight. We had five proposals come in, and um, incredibly favorably. So, I've given them a little bit of a hint on this. So, I turn it over to Mr. Tanter, and I just also want to thank always, um, we're very, very fortunate to be able to work with Ms. McCoy. Um, and Ehlers, and they have been wonderful partners for decades with Orno schools, and can't wait to hear your news. >> All right. Well, um thank you for the lead-in and uh it's very nice to be here tonight to present the results of um the bids for the lease. And, you know, part of the overall appreciation of this is just how it's being graded into the overall outlook of everything that else that you have going on in the district. And, like you'd mentioned, there's not a whole lot of funds available for school district facilities. And so, making sure that what those funds are are used for the purposes to get the essentially the most bang for the buck with with the taxpayer dollars that you have. So, um the difference a little bit in the sale tonight or the award of the sale is that you have five proposals in front of you. Um you are not bound to award on the lowest bid because there are a couple of different parameters that go into the overall um look at the lease. And those um are laid out in the um in the proposal form attached. We do in this instance recommend going with the lowest bidder um because they also had the most favorable terms. So, we're looking at things like prepayment, um upfront bank fees, any of those other factors that may um may lead you into sort of a different proposal. Um thinking back maybe to the transportation building and that lease, we wanted some terms that would allow some flexibility in to um uh in refinancing that when uh the current tenant was out. So, none of those factors are really overriding here tonight. Um and so, the low bidder would have been from or is from Citizens Bank of Roseau, actually. Um and they came in at a 3.89. So, the overall um principal and interest there on a the $777,000 in principal is um about 928,000. And that compares with that high bid um at from Security Bank & Trust which included which you know one just up maybe 50,000 to a a total principal and interest of 980,000. There was one bank fee that was incorporated into the proposal and that was from Midcountry Bank. So so not only did they incorporate a a bank fee on the front end but also had a higher interest cost than than the other than Citizens Bank of Roseau. So overall we're looking to deposit the just under 750,000 to the construction fund to finish the tennis court projects and this is a just a 10-year lease term again prepayable at any time after after close. So I'm happy to answer any questions or give the floor to Mr. Tater. >> That was great news. I just wanted to put some perspective on some excuse me. Back to when you're planning for this Shelby and Beth Downs which thank you so much for all your guidance and and expertise in this area. I'm still learning a lot about these financings and whatnot. It was a great transition and and a great process through the way through the way through. But when we do some of these early on estimates we're estimating obviously a percentage or whatever it may be a cost or whatever and with this they were seeing some bank dealings coming around 6 and 1/4 percent. So that's what we went into estimating this. So with this favorable term which speaks to not only the finances but also the Orondo school and how attractive it is and how well run it is that we end up getting a far reduced amount which save will save on our lease levy about $130,000 overall 10-year period. >> It's a great a great outcome. Um, does anybody have any questions or comments? >> I'll just make one comment that as a reminder to the board that lease levy can only be used for new instructional spaces. It can't be used for other kinds of facility upgrades. >> Okay. Um, the recommendation is that the that our board adopt the resolution awarding the sale of lease purchase to Citizens Bank of Rose How do you say it? Roseau. Thank you. I apologize apologize, Roseau. Um, do I have a motion to approve? >> So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Um, any other discussion? Okay, hearing none. All those in favor, say I. >> I. >> I. Any opposed? Okay, wonderful. Thank you. >> a roll call vote? >> Oh, it is. I thank you. I'm so sorry. I missed that. I appreciate that. Tim. >> I. >> Todd. >> I. >> Wendy. >> I. >> Kevin. >> I. >> So, and I'm also an I. Thank you very much. Missed that. Um, thank you. Uh, and then the next item is the long-term facilities maintenance plan approval for Orono School District 278. >> Thank you, Shelby. Um, just again before the board for action tonight is our LTFM or long-term facilities maintenance budget setting for the funds for the 26 and 27 school year for both Orono schools and intermediate 10 excuse me, intermediate um, District 287. These actions are an annual responsibility that we do. Um, in school budgeting, LTFM is an area of constant study and prioritization and I know we've talked about it here a lot. As the board is familiar, we have over $250 million worth of facilities that we maintain in our community and receive only a fraction of the needed dollars to do so. We know that the roofs are likely a next large long-term project and with our facilities and finance team studying all the needs very carefully. But I turn it over to Mr. Tainter for presentation. >> Thank you, Dr. Fletcher. Madam Board Chair, Board Chairs, and esteemed board members of Orono, thank you for having me tonight to once again as always on an annual basis to look over our our long-term facility maintenance program. It's very It's a It's a very robust program and and some of the requirements I'll be going through here and and also giving you all just a share of what's what's happening in and around and behind the curtain. So here overall program overview It's a I like the word mandated stewardship because it really I mean it truly is and and it should be, right? Like like Mr. Madsen had said earlier about just making sure that we're not having to race for repairs and that we're actually thoroughly planning for, focused on the future of of these properties. It's really important that we focus on that. And as always, I always put this pitch on there. Our mission and vision definitely go in key sides and also our values, which is one of our core values is stewardship. So if you haven't yet had an opportunity, please visit the website and and and read through that material cuz this all plays a part into making sure that we drive towards our mission and vision. This is very important as as Dr. Fletcher had mentioned, over 200 million dollars of assets. You really want to make sure you're taking care of those those things. So the three objectives really kind of looking overall, we have facility preservation. Again, probably goes without saying, but also safety and health. You know, addressing fire safety, indoor air quality, which we had worked on quite extensively and thank you to the to the uh the community as well and in helping with those projects. We had the Discovery Center intermediate school in the link as well as the middle school were all were all overhauled on their IAQ. So, that was great projects to get done. But then not only that but also ADA accessibility and and those kinds of things where we where we take a look at. And then obviously educational success. We want to have create an environment that kids will thrive in and that's certainly part of this whole whole LTFM plan and and we're sharing that. We're not only meeting the requirements of the building itself and obviously keeping it up today but then also is it functional enough and is it is it is it is it create a good environment for our students? Um overall on the program structure, so there are there are portions that are state aid and also levy levy authority within the LTFM program. Um so but basically what we what what Orono receives is 380 per pupil unit. That number has not changed for at least seven years seven eight years now currently with no inflation when obviously we've seen inflation, we've seen the cost go up and we've experienced it ourselves through these bid processes, right? Um we know that that that that what we're getting now currently isn't meeting the needs of the district and the facilities that need to be repaired and updated. Um so so if you have any windy plugs for us for the legislation, thank you. There is the one. Um but yeah but with that said, you know, it's a pretty simple start. We get 380 per pupil unit. There are additional projects if we spend over $100,000 that will that that you could go out and levy board approval for. And then there's also a hole that you could you could go out to the voters and and and get voting um authority to pass LTFM plans. Um currently right now roofs roof replacement, which was just added in the 2025 legislation legislative session, and then um IEQ projects um among a few other smaller ones um of of that nature are uh would would only require board approval for those types of things. Um annual requirements though um so the this again another heavily regulated program by Minnesota Department of Education. They have a staff of people that actually will work on LTFM um plans only for districts throughout the year. Um and I would say that, you know, throughout the summer, so right now currently we we our application for our 10-year plan would will is will be due the end of July. Um so we're well on well on our way to getting towards that uh that goal. Uh and then after that they review it and they will call and talk about certain things that we maybe have, the budgets amounts, those kinds of things, and there's a there is somebody there that's that's reviewing and ticking and tying and dotting every I and crossing every T when it comes to these plans that are that are uh submitted to MDE. Um and then obviously that'll be um planning for the levy for FY28. So this current year plan um and the uh and that we're working on will then will then be instituted or potentially levied in uh uh for 2027 tax period, so next fiscal next calendar year, but then we won't see the funds until July 1st of 2027, which then will go throughout 2020 half of 2028. Um as far as the scope is concerned, um I can say this as simply enough, turn over your facilities, shake them, whatever doesn't fall it can be covered on an LTFM. And you have the other details here on this slide for for purposes of what that means and entails. And essentially, it also doesn't mean just maintaining a desk or a chair or a wall. Um it would have to be something for more significant that would need to be updated so that to it to again hopefully increase the useful life of that of that asset over time. Um with our great partners at Wold Architects, we um have done a really comprehensive facility assessment. That was back in 2022. Now, um we take that plan um and adjust it on an annual basis. We meet with them multiple times a year uh and and they're very great at um helping us assess. They bring in They'll bring in uh experts to assess certain things if they don't have that on staff. So, really when it comes down to having uh an advisor of this nature and a consultant to help us with this is is very is very great value to us and and and the stakeholders of the district cuz then we can really kind of hone in on what we can do. Then obviously, we have to see what we can afford to do. And that's what we That's when Ehlers was here earlier. They really help us on the finance side of really understanding, okay, here's your structure of bonds. Here's how much you have left or here's some ways of doing it. Like um Ms. McQueen had mentioned earlier the just the braiding of financing and and just getting as creative as possible the experience that we to meet the needs that we have, but also making sure we're stable with our levy authority for the community. Um it's very important. It's always a delicate balance. Um and obviously, there's always more needs than and wants than than there are than there's funds available. Um but they they both of these partners do a great job of just in in in making sure things are stable, things are going the the right path and and uh Um our 1 to 5-year priorities like uh Miss Dr. Fletcher had mentioned earlier, parking lots. Um we have we roof replacements we're looking at potentially. Um but really and and you all um are aware of this. I'll just as a reminder to the community, um we're focusing on our parking lot improvements over the next year as well as um tennis courts, which uh Dr. Fletcher mentioned. Again, that's with through lease lobby, but then LTFM, our parking lots, and then also um uh tuck pointing. So, a lot of uh just enhancing to the to the buildings themselves to make them more efficient. And I always like to put this up here. So, this is for FY 27. So, this is this is this this calendar year 2026 is taxes will cover $1.8 million. So, that's shy of $2 million. And again, you know, just want to make it very apparent that we have over $200 million of assets. And I know that's just buildings alone. We have We can use LTFM plans for field for certain fields and site improvements and those kinds of things when necessary and when allowable. Um but to only have 1% of funding coverage um or less than 1% of coverage towards towards these facilities um pales into comparison of what we really need um at a certain time. So, um always trying to balance the budget um on the LTFM plan as well. And that's part of the 10-year plan is you have expenditures, you have you know, kind of what you have based on your future enrollments and whatnot. And it's just always a delicate balance between the two. So, the submission timeline, uh looking at, you know, April is kind of that project list. So, we're reviewing it up to April, I should say. Again, we meet multiple times throughout the year with Wold and and talk about the needs. And obviously, needs can shift and change uh over a period of time. So, we're always like trying to get to April of that nature and then then starting in May, we'll look to for board approval like we are tonight, followed by the plan finalization in June, and then MD submission and deadline by July 31st to stay on track and and and get that approved. So, the next steps, uh again, finalizing updated 10-year plan. We are part of the process the next several weeks. We'll continue stakeholder engagement for facility alignment. That's a thing that we always, you know, continuously do throughout the throughout the year. Um and then finally, just tonight is, you know, next step is the actual step is the approval of the resolution um that the Board of Education approve the district's 10-year LTFM plan for '28 through '37. Um and then the next agenda item, I'll just speak a couple things before we approve that as well, but um for this one, that's that's that's what you need to do. Any questions? >> No questions, but I just a comment, uh I guess for the community and for the rest of the board that aren't on the facilities and finance. These items are long in our sights way ahead of time, right? I mean, we've this 10-year plan is a rolling 10-year. It uh we've been talking about these projects since I came on to facilities 4 years ago, and I'm sure you guys were talking about them before that. Right? So, none of this is new or surprising. It's It's very uh intentional what we're working on and how far out our line of sight is on our finances and the big spikes that we're trying to mitigate. So, you guys you guys are doing a wonderful job. Thank you. >> To build on that, I remember seeing right after we were elected coming to the board meeting and seeing that Walt's presentation of the 10-year plan. And um and hearing about all of these things then. Um and we're still hearing about it, which is great. >> And you always will. >> Yes. >> Yeah. Um and to note for the community that the top the largest 25 districts in the state have do not have a ceiling on LTFM. Trying to figure that out. I know, yeah. >> Uh maybe next maybe next year. >> Next year the funding year I think will be a big push. >> Uh all I was saying that that maybe next year for the LTFM cap removal for other districts. >> As always, thank you so much for your great work. We really appreciate it. Um so the recommendation is that we approve the district's 10-year LTFM plan for fiscal year 2028 fiscal year 2037. Do I have a motion to approve? >> So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Any further discussion? Okay. Let's do a roll call. >> I. >> I. >> I. >> I. >> I. >> Wonderful. Thank you all. Thank you, Nick. On to the next. >> All right. Um and then yes, the next agenda item um as we are uh so Intermediate School District 287 serves we're a member district of the Intermediate ISD 287. I'll just say that. Um uh and we they they serve quite a few of our kiddos um throughout the year and it's been a great partnership and we'll continue to have that partnership um as far as us as we you know, as long as it they would have us. Um but with that said, they do also have facilities um and they do have some authority um to uh to have us levy on their behalf for long-term facility maintenance um of their facilities as well. Um the fraction of of of the amount um compared to ours is very very very small. Um they serve some pretty large districts and then there is a uh allocation method that they've been doing for quite some time now that not only allocates based on based on the kids how many kids we have that are that that that do get served by them but then also based on the needs and and the the services that we're actually getting as well. So it's a good balance in the in in it all. I believe it's just around around $40,000 is what we'll be levying this year which is very uh flat as compared to last year like Mr. Mattson had mentioned earlier in his report. So overall great things. If you have any questions about any of the details, you can certainly I've got I've got some summaries that of that nature but but with that said they have some good things coming to maintain their facilities as well and I don't see any issue of of of the board authorizing this as well and passing this approving it. >> Any questions? Okay. >> I do have a question. Do they use the same um groups that we use or similar LRs will like >> Yeah yes thank you so much thanks for asking. I don't know who exactly they are with but yes I do know they have advisors that also help them with those assess field facility assessments and as well as financing on the financing side. Yeah. >> Thank you. Okay, the recommendation is that we approve the district's proportionate share of the LTFM plan for IS 287. The district's share is $47,401.24 for fiscal 2028. Do I have a motion to approve? >> So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> Any further discussion? Okay. Roll call. >> I. >> I. >> I. >> I. >> I. >> Wonderful. Thank you. Thank you, Nick. Next up is E policy review first reading. Dr. Flusher. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. I welcome Dr. Aaron Rowland, executive director of learning and accountability. Oh, no, I'm sorry. That's the next item, but Oh, no, it is. That's the right one. Yep, yep. Sorry, I was thinking of calendar. Um from brief remarks regarding the one policy in the 600 series, which is personnel on on curriculum, sorry, on 625, artificial intelligence. This is a critical topic and one that we've been studying very carefully, as you're aware. This policy really is centered on how we protect students, how we prepare students, and support excellent teaching responsibly. As the board and community are aware, we have started with four non-negotiables that you will hear about again from Dr. Rowland. These ensure that humans are always the center of decision-making and critical thinking. That student staff privacy and data protection are always paramount, so safety and security first. That we have clear boundaries, and that we are teaching responsible use, meaning that we are not lowering academic standards or replacing critical thinking, but teaching students digital discernment. Um and last, that developmental approprious appropriateness is paramount. What is right for high school students is not the same as uh for our students at Truman Elementary. And for instance, we don't provide calculators to our younger students and would have the same mindset um regarding um this type of technology. So, I turn it over to Dr. Rowland for additional comments, and again, thank our policy committee for their deep thinking and work this year. Thank you. >> Thank you, Dr. Flusher, Madam Chair, and members of the board. Uh as Dr. Flusher alluded to, uh this draft policy has language that mirrors our four primary drivers of AI implementation. So, the the abbreviated version that you You reflected in the policy, human agency and oversight, data privacy and protection, responsible use standards for students and staff, and learning that is grounded in the developmental needs of all students. So, the language of this policy is also consistent with our technology acceptable use policy, uh which we reviewed um along with this. The board policy committee believed it was important to mirror that language in this policy to ensure clarity for staff, students, and parents. The language in this policy is also broad enough to provide administrative flexibility as AI tools and implement implementation changes. Um and additionally, due to the rapid nature of this changing technology, um the board policy committee also recognizes that there may be a need for more frequent review um and potential revisions to this policy. So, we'll certainly see this um along with that acceptable use policy and technology as well. Um this draft policy has also been reviewed and it was uh developed in in support by Mr. Shawn Beaverson, our director of technology. We're very fortunate to have Mr. Beaverson's leadership and expertise in the Orono schools. Um if the community isn't aware, he's a leader in statewide efforts um as well as our local efforts to develop AI best practices in schools um through learning, leadership development, collaboration, and high standards. So, in alignment with Dr. Fletcher and the board's work uh in the organizational goals and our development as an organization, we're strongly positioned to continue implementing AI safeguards, as well as taking advantage of the opportunities that lie ahead for our students. Uh the implementation of artificial intelligence as a tool for efficiency and learning is integral to our work. Uh it's also imperative that we prepare our students for their future, while ensuring that we attend to their academic, cognitive, and personal development. And we continue to be committed to those hallmarks of an Orono education in the ways we always have. This draft policy provides an important next piece of the work. Um and this policy is before you tonight um for first reading and will be advanced for a second reading and recommendation for approval at at the next meeting in June. As always, the Board Policy Committee welcomes any feedback from board members and thank you for the work already. It's been a It's been a journey throughout the year to continue to do this work. >> Thank you so much. All right. Now, onto the 2027-2028 academic calendar first reading, Dr. Flusher. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. In your packets is a proposed 2027-2028 school calendar for first reading. The proposed calendar is in similar format to previous years with 2-week winter break. Um the calendar will also start after Labor Day, um which is our usual format. Um while we could have started earlier given the legislative reprieve for 1 more year, our meet and confer team um and administrative team studied it and really found multiple barriers for a clean calendar that would work well for families um and staff. It would just simply be more disjointed. Um so, we opted for a traditional timing of starting the day after Labor Day, um and that was voted on as well by the Orono Education Association um over the last week. So, um it is here in your packets for first reading and we will consider um a sec at the second reading for action in June. Happy to answer any questions. >> Does anybody have any questions or comments at this time? Okay, terrific. Thank you very much. >> I still think um you know, even though we're starting after Labor Day, which I know is technically the second week, it's unlike next year, we're still ending the first week in June, whereas >> if next year we had started after Labor Day, we'd be going into the second week of June. >> Yes. >> So, this is still >> Yep. That's what we thought. >> Yeah. >> And as we did a We did a deep dive in our neighbors, and many Most of our neighbors this year are starting before Labor Day, but not necessarily so in 2 years' time. So, it's same thing. >> Thank you. >> Thank >> Um any other new business? Okay. I'd like to just um mention the informational items. We have the May enrollment um in your packet. And the next regular meeting will be held on Monday, June 8th, uh 2026 at 7:00 p.m. here in the district office assembly room. Um do I have a motion to adjourn? >> So moved. >> Do I have a second? >> Second.