Forest Lake Area Schools Monday, June 9th order. Please join us while we recite the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Uh, member clerk, will you please take the roll call of attendance? Sure. Okay. Member Antonson is here. Member Corkran is absent. Member Hegland here. Member Castle here. Member Rebeline here. Member Tyson I'm here and I want it noted for the record I'm here on a different date and a different day of the week. Thank you. Okay. And member Christensen here. All right. We have a quorum. I would entertain a motion to approve the agenda. So moved. Second. Motion a second. Any discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. um brings us to scheduled and unscheduled visitors. We do have a couple we have four green cards. Uh I'll read my preamble. We'll get moving on. We feel that public comments a very important aspect of our community interaction and as a result have included that opportunity on our agenda this evening. In accordance with our green card procedure, we ask speakers to keep their comments relevant to the agenda item that they would like to speak on. Comments that deviate from the topic are inappropriate and subject to being called out of order by any board member. We also ask that speakers remain respectful and use language that's appropriate to a wide audience, which includes our early childhood students. Remember, addressing the board during a publicly held meeting is a privilege and not guaranteed under any statute or constitutional provision. I would like to remain remind members and commenters alike that this is an opportunity for the public to address the board and is not interactive. We request that everyone here tonight be respectful of commenters and refrain from making their own comments or applauding to keep things moving. Commenters are given three minutes to speak. The clerk will give notification to speakers as their time is expiring and the chair will strike the gabble once your time is expired. I've shuffled the deck of green cards and will call speakers by first name and last initial. In addition to the speaker, I will also specify who is on deck to speak. To keep things moving, please be ready when it is your turn. We will start with Joss M. And on deck is Melissa G. Good evening, school board members. I'm Jasine Mat. I've been a teacher for 26 years. Um, I keep coming back because I keep thinking about this. Um, I teach fourth grade, so these are 9 and 10 year olds. And I know the topic of clubs and participating in middle school seems far away, but I see these kids on the playground. I see them develop friendships. I see them get teased for who they like and who they don't like. C please keep your comments Germaine to the item on the agenda which is the approval of the non-curricular adviserss namely open minds and GSA. So with an open mind I would say that my students and these teachers who have helped served in this capacity they deserve to be paid for their services this school year. I hope that they remain um open to all students in the future. I see this as a very important part of their um education. Thank you. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Um Melissa G and on deck is Karen M. Hi, I'm Melissa Goodter and I am a special ed teacher at the middle school and I am also here to talk about um how much time the school board was taking on figuring out taking away groups whether or not we should be paying advisors for the groups. Again, please keep it germanine to the item on the agenda this evening. We're not talking about groups in large. We're talking about two specific advisers payment for adviserss. Yes. Yep. So, paying for the adviserss, not only for their time, but for their energy and all that that they do to help our students and specifically with the amount of money that is going towards our adviserss, it is a very minute amount. And my question is for the board, we have a shortage of teachers. We are not retaining teachers based on what we are hearing within the community of how they are supporting us. They should be paid for the time that they've been given. But we are not as a district marketing and retaining amazing staff and this should be something that we're spending time on, not worrying about are we going to give $1,000 to the open minds advisor. We are losing amazing staff here and that should be our concern. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Uh Karen M and on deck is Laura L. Trying to keep it your main to your agenda item today. Please, I will for sure be in agreement with all of the people that I know that you're taking on a role that is not yours to take on. letting the students have the club that they dearly need and that they've sat behind here telling you how many times they dearly need it. So to take away an advisor and tell these kids, okay, you can do it, but nobody's going to be there to lead you because I wouldn't pay a dime to let let anybody do that. It's crazy. It's a little bit of money. We all have different opinions on different clubs. So the adviser in that club would be there to help the students. That's what we're here to do, help the students. So, as a board, you're not here to fill your own agenda. You're not here to worry about a dollar here and a dollar there, while you're not even concerned. You've got the whole community concerned about so many things that are costing thousands of dollars. So, I would hope that tonight you would put your head down and say, you know what, we're here to represent the students. They came out in mass. You ordinarily I would be against them coming out of school to protest. They did it respectfully and they've been here before. And as I told my own son who was disagreeing on that ide that that issue, it isn't like they came out for the first time. They were begging you to listen to them. So I beg you tonight to not only listen to them about how important the club is, but to pay the advisor so that we can all be happy that our children are taking good care of of them and that parents will decide which club they should go to. Okay. Thank you, Karen. And last speaker tonight is Laura L. Good evening, school board members, Dr. Massie. My name is Laura Livermore, and I brought with me um this evening uh my co-adviser for the Open Minds Club, Michelle Zimmer. Hi, I'm Michelle Zimmer. I've worked in the district for 31 years as a school psychologist and I've been a co-advisor of Open Minds Club for several years and I have taught um in the Forest Lake schools for 27 years. I have two graduates of Forest Lake area high school and two students who currently attend Forest Lake schools. One moving from the middle school to the high school and the other will be a high school senior. Um like I said right now I also teach at Flams. I'm co-advisor of the open minds club in Michelle and we're both here today because we strongly support keeping open minds club going at flams. The purpose of the club as stated on the flams activity website is open minds club helps develop a safe and welcoming climate in our school so that all students have a place to learn, meet, share experiences and discuss matters that are important to them. Open minds club will create a community of openness and acceptance in which all students and their allies can meet to support each other. Open's minds open minds club also meets goal six of the district's strategic plan. Specifically, it creates a safe inclusive environment that fosters personal well-being. And when students feel safe and included, they're more they're more ready to learn and engage in school. Students need Open Minds Club because it's a place to feel safe where they know that their unique indiv individuality will be valued. Member Anton took the opportunity to visit Open Minds Club a couple of weeks ago and talk to our student members. She can attest that time and again the students testified how important the club is for them because it provides them a safe space to be themselves. As one student put it, "Open Minds Club is a place where I can let my weirdness show. Another student commented that they get teased because they have an IEP and they know that that won't happen in Open Minds Club. And one student said it's a place to meet other kids who may have trouble making friends. The club's purpose is broad enough to bring in students for many reasons, but it is a safe haven for all students where they've made new friends, they felt accepted, and they've supported one another. And students can only participate in Open Minds Club with parental permission. So every parent of an Open Minds Club student knows that their child is part of this safe, welcoming community. Moreover, there's never been a complaint from any of our members or their parents. And just this year, we had 22 students sign up for our club. Forest Lake School strategic plan statement of belief says, and I quote, "Each student can learn and excel in an environment developed to meet their individual needs. Each individual has value for their diverse talents, backgrounds, and cultures, and the best interest of each student guides all decisions. So, we're asking that you please show the students in Open Minds Club that they are valued members of our Flams community and keep the club in place." Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. All right, that brings us to our consent agenda. I want to entertain a motion or first, would anybody like to pull anything from the consent agenda? All right, in that case, I now entertain a motion. Move to approve. Second. Okay, we have a motion and a second. All those in favor signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. All right, motion carries. Brings us to action items. Forest Lake Area School staff retirement notice. Member Christensen. Yes. Um, we have three retirements this evening. Um, Paul Alexander, uh, a special education teacher at the Forest Lake Area High School following 33 years of service. David Bowwins, the head custodian at the Ed Center, following 25 years of service. And Pamela Swenson Accarti, school bus driver, following 11 years of service. So, a total of 69 years of service. I move to approve with gratitude. Second. All right, we have a motion to second. Is there any discussion? The uh Mr. Alexander, I wish him a wonderful retirement. And anytime we have a teacher with that type of longevity in our special ed department, they're just like gold. So, he will be missed as well as David Bodawins and Pam Swanssoni. We always miss our bus drivers, too. And janitors and our custodians. Happy retirement to them. Thank you, Member Tyson. Anybody else? All right, seeing none, all those in favor signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. Motion carries. Brings us to 6.2 approved 2024 to 2026 school age care agreement. Dr. Massie, our school age care staff provide before and after school care for for students who are in need of that service before and after school. This agreement is for this classified group and is within the parameters the board provided for us to work with. Specifically, there will be a $100 increase to Family Medical, converting the 4th of July to Independence Day as a holiday. And then the wage increases consistent with the other classified agreements with the uh first lane at a 2.5%, second lane 2.5% increase, third lane 1.5% increase, and the third or the fourth and fifth lanes a 4% increase. All of those increases in the first year of the contract with a 3% across the board increase in the second year. With those changes, administration would recommend your approval. May entertain a motion. Move to approve five or 6.2. Second. All right. We have a motion and a second. Is there any discussion? Just have one question for Dr. Massie. Does this the schoolage care replicates and mirrors the other contracts as well? Right. That's right. Yep. It does. Yes. all the the classified agreements. Okay. Thank you. All right. Any additional discussion? All right. Seeing none, member clerk, will you please take the roll call? I will. Member Rebeline. I. Member Hagglund. I. Member Antonson votes I. Member Corkran is absent. Member Christensen. I. Member Tyson. I. And member Castle. I. The eyes have it. All right. Motion carries. 63. Approve 2024 to 2026 behavior intervention specialist agreement. Dr. Massie, our be behavior intervention specialists are also part of the classified agreement. And consistent with the other classified agreements, you'll see in this agreement a $100 increase on family medical and an identical wage increase across those five lanes, 2.5% in each of the first two lanes, 1.5 in the third, a 4% increase in both the fourth and fifth lane. Mhm. All of those increases in the first year with a 3% across the board increase in the second year. With those updates and changes, administration recommend your approval. Thank you, Dr. Massie. Is there a motion to approve? Move to approve 63. Second. All right. We have a motion and a second. Is there any discussion? Member Castle. Uh perhaps it's just an oversight on uh a word, but the area in yellow does not agree with article section article one section one. So one the in yellow does not say pair of professionals. It just says professionals. Yeah, this agreement was modeled off of the pair of professionals. So that's the language piece we'll certainly update. Thank you. Member Tyson, I just have a quick question for the superintendent. How many are in this contract if you know like just roughly? I want to say there are seven or eight in this group. I'm looking for Director Wilson who might be in her office watching. Still about the same number. Yes. As it's been in the past. And I just want to comment that I'm so pleased to see that we're kind of climbing that ladder with our classified contracts, getting those wages up there as best that we can. So, thank you. All right. Any additional discussion? I would just like to say I'm pleased with all of our categories that we have. Everyone is important. Custodians, bus drivers, everyone. Um, but these BIS folks are really important um because they are fairly new to the district I feel like and they um can give students that might just need a break just to move their bodies a little bit and um can just be really helpful to the teachers and I've seen them really build some good connections with the students and students look forward to their break. So, um, it's a really important group as all of our groups are, but I just wanted to give a little shout out to the BIS folks. We have BIS's in each of our elementary schools, a couple across special education for a total of director Wilson of number of BIS's B 10. That's great. I'm just so happy to see that. All right. Any additional discussion? All right. Seeing none, member clerk, will you please take the roll call? Okay. Member Corkran is absent. Member Tyson I. Member Hagglund. I. Member Castle. I. Member Christensen. I. Member Revoline. I. And member Antonson votes I. The eyes have it. All right. That brings us to 6.4. Approved payments for non-curricular adviserss. Dr. Massie. Adviserss are paid for their positions overseeing non-curricular activities. The advisors on uh coming before you tonight are for services provided during the 2425 school year that just concluded. Specifically, advisor for the high school GSA and the co co-advisors for the middle school open minds club and administration would recommend your approval. All right, ready to entertain a motion? Move to approve 64. Second. All right, we have a motion and a second. Is there any discussion? Member Hegland. Just a question for Superintendent Massie. FCA was not active this year. Is that correct? That is correct. Thank you. All right. Any additional discussion on this one? I just want to add that I'm glad we're taking care of this tonight. I wouldn't want to be have a discrimination issue come up for our district. I think this needs to move forward. We're kind of withholding pay on them. I think it causes other employees to wonder if this could happen to them in the future. So, I'm hoping we can move forward and um take care of this tonight and my board will all vote with me. Any additional discussion on this one? All right. See, none, I'll add my two piece here or my my small piece here on this one. I' I've been struggling with this one here myself because I know this is something that's important. I know these adviserss have gone into the school year with the expectation that would be that they would be compensated for this. Um although if I look at my tenure on the board, I've made motions to strike payments for these groups specifically due to the uh the nature of the topic. I don't think it's a wise use of taxpayer money. Uh so I'm conflicted on this one because uh I feel like this should have been handled earlier in the school year. Um that was not the case. So unfortunately it waited until the end leaving these advisers in a position where um they're kind of wondering what's going to happen. So, um I I just wanted to note the uh the the kind of the tough position I'm in because I I do hope it passes, but uh I don't know if I can personally support it. Member Christensen. Yes. I would just like to say um a few things. I mean whether you agree or whether you disagree on what on what you think the clubs stand for, um we need to pay people for work that is performed. And these folks went into um the year assuming that they would be paid for work that was um they were asked to per be perfor excuse me work that they were asked to perform by their employer and they were directed by bu by building officials to do this work. So if you want to change the parameters going forward which we already have. We're not going to doesn't look like we're going to be able to pay these advisors going forward. I believe that that is one thing and you're able, you know, obviously to do that, but I think to ask people to do the work and then not pay them, I I just I I don't understand how we're going to do that. So, you're going to have a doctor or someone perform some sort of procedure and then you're going to change your mind because you didn't like the doctor, what he stood for, and you're not going to pay them. That's not how the world works. I also feel like um we could be in um we could have some issues if we do not pay the staff for work that they were asked to do. I feel like uh we could have um we could have a grievance filed against us by um by these um staff who are asked to do work and then we're refusing to pay them. And I believe that if a grievance is filed against us, I mean, I'm not an expert, but I think that we would probably lose and then it would cost us even more money, then what are we talking about here? I should have asked. I mean, $2,000 at most. I mean, what I don't know exactly what we're talking about here, but I know some advisors are paid between I think it's $400 and a,000, but a,000 is a little bit higher if you have a club that meets a little bit more. So anyway, I just think um I think that uh for a group here that really likes to follow the rules and the statutes and all these different laws and things which we should be following, but I just think um to go back on that now would be really um a sad state of affairs. Member Tyson. Well, and I just want to add to member Christensen that given it's the open mind club and GSA advisors, we and we know the importance of them. We've had green card people come up and talk about how we need to do what's best for kids and we know it's important for them. But setting that aside, when you look at that it's open minds and GSA's GSA club, that's definitely a grievance or a discrimination right there just waiting to be filed. And I think that's wrong. I don't think we want that as a school district. I don't think we want to project that. And I think that member Christensen makes a good point. Um, especially you, Chair Rabel, you're all about the statutes and the laws and being fair and I think you are too, Member Antinson. So, I just think that we know in our heart what is best for these adviserss, that they should be paid, that they deserve to be paid. These are for hours worked, money owed. black and white right there. It's simple. So, I encourage my board members to vote yes with me. Member Anton. Yeah. I mean, I couldn't imagine not paying somebody for work that they've faithfully executed the entire year. I mean, that's where I stand on this. Just just so people and I've always felt that way. So, I would just like to add um one more thing. It is my understanding thus far we have paid for every club advisor that needs to be paid and the only ones right now that we are talking about not paying is the open minds club and the GSA. So I just think that is opening ourselves up right there. Not only is it not the right thing to do, but we are opening ourselves up to a discrimination claim and likely a fi a grievance filed. So I agree 100% with member Antonson. Like I said before, you might not like what the club stands for, you know, that could be your own personal opinion, whatever. But I mean, agree or disagree. We need to pay people for work that is performed. All right. I will just add I did a little bit of research myself. I believe the total amount for these two clubs is $3600. Is that correct, Dr. Massie? Okay. So, we're talking about $3,600. I think if we look at it uh nationally, even statewide, there's been uh some contentions on uh whether or not utilizing taxpayer money, especially on transgender issues, is really the right approach. But that said, we did go into the year, these advisers were given the expectation that they would be compensated. Um the what are there six of us here tonight. It's not our fault that the previous board did not do this work and provide that approval when that expectation was given and the staffing was made. Um so with that said, member Christensen, you have spoken on the top twice. So unless we wave that rule, as have you member Tyson, how nice. Um convenient for you. Well, in that case, excuse me. Could we hear from the um board members that haven't spoken if they would like to speak? Yes. I'm ready for a vote. All right. In that case, member clerk, please take the roll call. Okay. Member Christensen. I. Member Corkran is absent. Member Tyson I. Member Antsen votes I. Member Castle I. Member Haggland abstain. And member Rebeline abstain. The motion carries. Yes, it does. All right. We have no other business on the agenda this evening. Is there a motion to adjurnn? Could I ask a point of inquiry before we adjourn? Yes. I'm sorry. I What does it mean the two of you abstain? Why didn't you I I don't I mean like legitimately. Why to abstain from the vote? It means we do not vote either yes or no and that we acquies with whatever the majority is. So you can sit up here and talk and say what you think the group is, but you don't have you don't have the guts to say no. So you're going to abstain. Is that what's you're standing in front of all these people right here and you just pretty much said I mean I didn't hear from member Hegel but m Mr. Reine Chair Reveline you said you the all these thoughts that you had about it and you were really struggling with it. Then I would suggest that you just stand by what you feel and you vote no. You don't abstain. You just vote no. Okay. It's no longer a point of inquiry. Do we have a motion to abjurn? Move to adjurnn. Second. Okay, we have a motion and a second. Any discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor signify by saying I. I. Those opposed. All right, we are journed.