[00:00:03] REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS, [I. CALL TO ORDER] ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. NOW FOR THE TEXAS FLAG. HONOR THE TEXAS FLAG. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THEE, TEXAS, ONE STATE UNDER GOD, ONE AND INDIVISIBLE. THANK YOU SO MUCH, STUDENTS, FOR BEING HERE THIS EVENING. GREAT JOB. THANK YOU AGAIN FOR LEADING US IN THOSE PLEDGES. COLLEAGUES, IT IS NOW TIME FOR RECOGNITIONS. DR. HELLER. YES, THANK YOU. UM, AS OUR BOARD— OUR BOARD OF TRUSTEES AND SUPERINTENDENT BRANHAM ARE COMING FORWARD, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU ALL FOR JOINING US THIS EVENING. THE RICHARDSON ISD BOARD OF TRUSTEES UNDERSTANDS THE IMPORTANCE OF RECOGNIZING THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF STUDENTS, STAFF, SCHOOLS, AND DEPARTMENTS. OUR TRUSTEES ALSO RECOGNIZE THE IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTIONS OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES, COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS, AND INDIVIDUALS MAKE TO OUR DISTRICT. AT EACH REGULAR MONTHLY BOARD MEETING, WE TAKE TIME TO CELEBRATE THESE ACHIEVEMENTS. WE ASK THAT ALL GUESTS AND VISITORS HELP CELEBRATE THESE RECOGNITIONS BY STAYING TO ENJOY THE ENTIRE RECOGNITION PROCESS THIS ALLOWS EVERYONE TO SHOW THEIR APPRECIATION FOR EACH RECIPIENT. THERE WILL BE A SHORT BREAK AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE RECOGNITIONS PORTIONS OF THE AGENDA. ANY GUESTS WISHING TO LEAVE THE AUDITORIUM CAN DO SO AT THAT TIME. AND WE HAVE SEVERAL, SEVERAL, UH, STUDENT GROUPS TO RECOGNIZE THIS EVENING SINCE THIS IS THE LAST REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING BEFORE THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL AND GRADUATION. IT IS SO AWESOME TO SEE A FULL HOUSE HERE THIS EVENING, SO LET'S GET STARTED. WE ARE GOING TO START THIS EVENING WITH A VERY, VERY SPECIAL PARTNER RECOGNITION, AND I WOULD LIKE TO INVITE UP OUR, UM, AWESOME PARTNERS FROM DALLAS COLLEGE. WE HAVE LIZETTE GUERRO AND VIJI LEE. IF YOU COULD PLEASE COME FORWARD. I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHY WE ARE RECOGNIZING OUR AWESOME PARTNERS AT DALLAS COLLEGE. SINCE NOVEMBER OF 2021, RICHARDSON ISD AND DALLAS COLLEGE HAVE PARTNERED TO HOST TEXAS'S FIRST PAID TEACHER RESIDENCY. THIS COLLABORATION HAS SINCE EXPANDED TO INCLUDE THE PARA2TEACH GROW YOUR OUR OWN PIPELINE. OUR JOINT EFFORTS HAVE EARNED THE DALLAS COLLEGE ACE APPRENTICESHIP CHAMPION OF EXCELLENCE AWARD IN BOTH 2022 AND 2023. THE TEACHER RESIDENCY PROGRAM, SPECIFICALLY SINCE THE 2022 LAUNCH, WE HAVE SUPPORTED, UM, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH DALLAS COLLEGE, 54 RESIDENTS THROUGH YEAR-LONG MENTORSHIPS. 33 HAVE BEEN HIRED AS FULL-TIME RISD TEACHERS. 12 ARE CURRENTLY COMPLETING THEIR RESIDENCY, AND I AM TO FULLY ANTICIPATE THAT THEY WILL HAVE A NEW, UH, HOME HERE, A PROFESSIONAL HOME IN RISD. COHORT 5 RECRUITMENT IS NOW UNDERWAY. OUR, OUR PARA TO TEACH PROGRAM— THIS PATHWAY HELPS PARAPROFESSIONALS EARN BACHELOR'S DEGREES AND CERTIFICATIONS. TO DATE, WE HAVE SUPPORTED 32 EMPLOYEES FROM 3 DIFFERENT COHORTS. 3 GRADUATES OF THIS PROGRAM ARE NOW RISD TEACHERS. WE HAVE 2 MORE GRADUATING THIS MONTH, AND THEN 5 EMPLOYEES ARE ENTERING THEIR FINAL YEAR SET FOR THEIR RESIDENCIES DURING THE 26-27 SCHOOL YEAR. COHORT 4, IF YOU'RE LISTENING, IS CURRENTLY IN PREPARATION. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING SUCH A DEDICATED PARTNER TO RISD AND SUPPORTING HIGH-QUALITY TEACHERS IN OUR CLASSROOM. THANK YOU. AND WE'RE GONNA GET A PICTURE AFTER EACH GROUP COMES UP TO BE RECOGNIZED. WE'RE GONNA GET ONE MORE WITH LISA. AWESOME. THANK YOU SO MUCH TO DALLAS COLLEGE. AT THIS TIME, I'M GOING TO— OUR NEXT, UM, RECOGNITION IS FOR OUR RISD AMBASSADORS, CLASS OF 2026. I'M GONNA ASK THEM TO RISE AND TO PLEASE COME FORWARD. AND LINE UP AGAINST THE WALL HERE TO MY LEFT. LET'S GO. WE ARE SO EXCITED. I GUESS OUR AMBASSADORS— AND I'M ALSO AT THIS TIME GOING TO INTRODUCE SONYA PARKER-GOOD, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND PROGRAM COORDINATOR FOR OUR RISD AMBASSADORS. THANK YOU, DR. HELLER. THE RISD AMBASSADORS PROGRAM PROVIDES PARTICIPANTS WITH A COMPREHENSIVE OVERVIEW AND UNDERSTANDING [00:05:03] OF THE DISTRICT. THIS PROFESSIONAL LEARNING SERIES IS DESIGNED TO CHANGE THE CONVERSATION ABOUT PUBLIC SCHOOLS FROM THE INSIDE OUT. ULTIMATELY, THE SCHOOL DISTRICT WANTS THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO GRADUATE AS AMBASSADORS TO FEEL EMPOWERED TO ACHIEVE AND TO ACTIVELY ADVOCATE FOR RISD STUDENTS AND STAFF. RISD AMBASSADORS GRADUATE FROM THE PROGRAM UNDERSTANDING THE IMPACT OF THEIR VOICE AND MAY BE CALLED UPON TO SUPPORT AND ACTIVELY PARTICIPATE IN STRATEGIC PLANNING, DISTRICT AND CAMPUS IMPROVEMENT TEAMS, FOCUS GROUPS, AND OTHER RISD COMMITTEES. ALL OF THEM. YES. TONIGHT, WE CELEBRATE THE GRADUATION OF OUR 3RD CLASS OF THIS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PROGRAM, AND WE ARE EXCITED TO INTRODUCE TO YOU OUR RISD AMBASSADORS CLASS OF 2026. WOO! NITA EVANS, LAUREN LYONS, SADULA HATMAL. HEATHER DIETRICH, ELLEN MCCOLLUM, SAVANNAH SMITH, ERIN MAGOO, KRISTEN GARY, ALICIA WOODALL. SHE DID, RIGHT? EXACTLY. JENNY WINKLEMAN. MEREDITH SUNDITCH. RYAN COYNE GARZA. MELISSA ROBERTS, JANELLE WEST, WARREN CALDWELL, JENNIFER BERTRAND, JENNIFER CLIFTON. ALICIA ALPING. WE'LL GET IT, LISA. LET'S GO AHEAD. YEAH, WE'LL— MELISSA FORTNEY. LAURA RULE, JENNY CASALINO, SCOTT RICKAMORE, BRUMELOW, KRISTEN BRUMELOW. ADRIAN MCGEE, KARA KATZ, ROBIN SMITH, SUSAN VARNER, AND SUSAN VARNER. PLEASE HELP US WELCOME THE 2026 CLASS OF AMBASSADORS. WELCOME. UM, UH, ER, AH, HMM, MHM, LIKE, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, GONNA, WANNA, [00:10:30] GOTTA LET'S GIVE IT UP ONE MORE TIME FOR OUR AMBASSADORS, CLASS OF 2026. THANK YOU SO MUCH. SEE, WE ARE NOT HOLDING YOU BACK, MR. CALDWELL. WE ARE NOT HOLDING YOU BACK. WE ARE SO GRATEFUL FOR THESE VOLUNTEERS WHO PARTICIPATED. AND IF YOU'D LIKE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR AMBASSADOR PROGRAM, THERE'S INFORMATION ON OUR WEBSITE. OKAY, WE ARE GOING TO CONTINUE AND WE HAVE A VERY SPECIAL CAMPUS RECOGNITION THIS EVENING. I'D LIKE TO INVITE UP LINDSAY LEDFORD, OUR ASSISTANT ATHLETIC DIRECTOR FOR GIRLS ATHLETICS AND OVERSEES, UM, ALSO LEADS OUR SHAC COMMITTEE AND PE AND HEALTH. AND I'M GONNA SHARE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THIS AWARD, UM, THAT WE ARE CELEBRATING FOR BOWIE, NORTHWOOD HILLS, AND PRESTONWOOD ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS THIS EVENING. THE RICHARDSON ISD SCHOOL HEALTH ADVISORY COUNCIL, ALSO KNOWN AS SHAC, IS VERY EXCITED TO INTRODUCE OUR WHOLE CHILD AWARD. THIS AWARD IS TO RECOGNIZE OUR CAMPUSES FOR THE INCREDIBLE THINGS HAPPENING THAT PROMOTE THE WELLNESS OF STUDENTS, STAFF, AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS. CAMPUSES THAT ARE IMPLEMENTING THE RISD WELLNESS PLAN POLICY AND ADDITIONALLY GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND ARE ELIGIBLE FOR FOR THE AWARD. THE SHAC COMMITTEE HAD A SUBCOMMITTEE WHICH DETERMINED, UM, THAT THE FOLLOWING CAMPUSES SHOULD BE RECOGNIZED FOR THEIR EFFORTS THIS YEAR. AT THIS TIME, I WOULD LIKE TO INVITE UP BOWIE ELEMENTARY. WE HAVE SOMEONE— YES, COME ON UP, BOWIE ELEMENTARY. NORTHWOOD HILLS ELEMENTARY. AND FINALLY, PRESTONWOOD ELEMENTARY, IF YOU COULD PLEASE COME FORWARD. WE HAVE A BANNER THAT YOU CAN PLACE ON YOUR CAMPUS, A FRAMED CERTIFICATE, AND WE WANT TO BE SURE AND GET A GROUP PICTURE. CONGRATULATIONS TO THESE 3 CAMPUSES. YEP. OKAY, AS WE ARE CELEBRATING OUR SHAT CAMPUSES, IF YOU ARE A STUDENT HERE TO BE RECOGNIZED AS A FINALIST FOR THE AVID DELL SCHOLARSHIP, IF YOU COULD PLEASE COME FORWARD AND LINE UP. WE'RE GOING TO GET YOU IN LEARNING— ORGANIZED BY LEARNING COMMUNITY BECAUSE YOU ARE GOING TO BE NEXT. OKAY, NOW LET'S GET YOU BACK OVER HERE CENTERED FOR A PHOTO. AGAIN, CONGRATULATIONS TO THESE AWESOME 3 ELEMENTARY CAMPUSES. AND NOW FOR SOME VERY, VERY SPECIAL STUDENT— STUDENT RECOGNITIONS. AND I'M EXCITED TO, UM, INTRODUCE TO YOU, UM, THE RICHARDSON ISD, UM, AVID DELL SCHOLARS FOR THE MICHAEL SUSAN DELL FOUNDATION. THESE ARE FINALISTS, AND I'M GONNA SHARE A LITTLE BIT, UM, ABOUT THIS WITH YOU. UM, THE AVID PROGRAM WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE OUR 68 RICHARDSON ISD SCHOLAR FINALISTS THAT WILL BE RECEIVING, UM, POTENTIALLY DELL SCHOLARSHIPS. THE MICHAEL AND SUSAN DELL FOUNDATION BEGAN THE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM IN 2004 TO PROVIDE STUDENTS WITH THE SUPPORT THEY NEED TO EARN A COLLEGE DEGREE. EACH YEAR, 500 NEW STUDENTS ARE SELECTED TO BECOME DELL SCHOLARS. DELL SCHOLARS DEMONSTRATE A UNIQUE SET OF CHARACTERISTICS IN THEIR QUEST FOR A COLLEGE EDUCATION: DRIVE, TENACITY, AND AMBITION. ACROSS THE DISTRICT AND FROM EACH OF OUR 4 LEARNING [00:15:01] COMMUNITIES, WE HAVE 68 CLASS OF 2026 AVID STUDENTS THAT WILL FIND OUT NEXT MONTH IF THEY ARE RECIPIENTS. BUT WE WANTED TO BE SURE AND RECOGNIZE THEM BEFORE THEY CROSS THE STAGE, UH, LATER THIS MONTH. WE ARE SO EXCITED THAT SOME OF THEM COULD BE HERE THIS EVENING. I ALSO WANT TO RECOGNIZE THERE ARE A LOT OF DEMANDS ON OUR SENIOR SCHEDULE THIS TIME OF YEAR, UM, BOTH IN THE CLASSROOM AND OUTSIDE OF THE CLASSROOM. BUT I PROMISE YOU, THEIR CAMPUSES AND, AND THE DISTRICT WILL CONTINUE TO CELEBRATE ALL 68 OF THEM. BUT I AM PROUD TO INTRODUCE THOSE THAT COULD BE HERE THIS EVENING. SO FROM THE RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL IS JESUS AURORA PEREZ. CONGRATULATIONS. KAREN ANUJA, ALSO FROM RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. DARLENE VASQUEZ, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. BELINDA RAIMUNDO, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. NOW FROM PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL, SYLVIA GARDUNO. BYRON LOPEZ DUENAS FROM PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. MADY JARAMILLO FROM PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. QUINEA FERGUSON, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. SUZETTE HERNANDEZ, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. ELIZABETH ARIAS, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. NAIF AMAN FROM BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL. CONGRATULATIONS. AND WE ARE GONNA GET A GREAT GROUP PICTURE OF THEM. AND AS WE'RE GETTING ORGANIZED FOR THAT PHOTO, IF I COULD INVITE UP OUR STUDENTS THAT ARE HERE, UM, TO BE RECOGNIZED FOR DECA. IF YOU COULD PLEASE COME FORWARD, YOU'RE GONNA BE NEXT. THESE PHOTOS WILL BE POSTED ON OUR WEBSITE AND IN OUR SOCIAL CHANNELS TOMORROW. CONGRATULATIONS! AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING ABOUT THE ANNOUNCEMENTS NEXT MONTH. CONGRATULATIONS. AND WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE OUR STUDENT RECOGNITIONS THIS EVENING. OUR NEXT GROUP OF RECOGNITIONS ARE FOR OUR STUDENT CLUBS REPRESENTING OUR CTE, CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION COURSES AND PATHWAYS, WHO HAVE COMPLETE— WHO HAVE COMPETED AT THE STATE AND SEVERAL THAT HAVE ALSO QUALIFIED FOR NATIONAL COMPETITION. THE FIRST, UM, GROUP THAT WE'RE GONNA RECOGNIZE IS DECA, WHICH STANDS FOR THE DISTRIBUTIVE EDUCATION CLUBS OF AMERICA. DECA PREPARES EMERGING LEADERS AND ENTREPRENEURS FOR CAREERS IN MARKETING, FINANCE, HOSPITALITY, AND MANAGEMENT IN HIGH SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES AROUND THE GLOBE. AND SO WE HAVE 2 STUDENTS, UH, THAT HAVE COMPETED AT STATE, AND AS I MENTIONED, SOME ARE EVEN GONNA GO ON TO, UH, NATIONALS. SO LET ME INTRODUCE TO YOU KIRA GEPHART FROM RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. ALSO FROM RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ISABELLA NORKOWSKI. AND WE'RE GONNA GET THEIR PICTURE WITH THE BOARD, AND WHILE WE'RE DOING THAT, I WOULD LIKE TO INVITE UP THE FAMILY CAREER AND COMMUNITY LEADERS OF AMERICA, FCCLA. IF YOU'RE HERE THIS EVENING TO BE RECOGNIZED FOR THAT CLUB, IF YOU COULD PLEASE COME FORWARD. AWESOME. CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR DECA STUDENTS. OUR NEXT ORGANIZATION IS THE FAMILY, CAREER AND COMMUNITY LEADERS OF AMERICA, IS A CAREER AND TECHNICAL STUDENT ORGANIZATION THAT FUNCTIONS AS AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE FAMILY AND CONSUMER SCIENCES EDUCATION CURRICULUM AND OPERATES WITHIN THIS— THAT— AND OPERATES WITHIN THE SCHOOL SYSTEM. TONIGHT, UM, WE'RE EXCITED TO HONOR 2 STUDENTS. STERLING [00:20:01] NEWCOMB FROM RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. ROXY OR— ORSCO— OROZCO FROM RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. CONGRATULATIONS. ALL RIGHT, IF YOU ARE A HOSA STUDENT, IF YOU COULD PLEASE COME FORWARD TO MY LEFT. YOU'RE GOOD— THAT YOU'RE THE NEXT STUDENT GROUP WE'RE GOING TO RECOGNIZE, OUR FUTURE HEALTH PROFESSIONALS. IF YOU'RE HERE FOR HOSA WE HAVE— UM, UH, ER, AH, HMM, MHM, LIKE, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, OUR HOST OF STUDENTS WERE NOT ABLE TO BE HERE THIS EVENING, BUT WE WILL BE SURE AND GET THEIR AWARD RECOGNITION TO THEM AT THE CAMPUS LEVEL. AND AS I MENTIONED, I KNOW OUR PRINCIPALS AND TEACHERS ARE CELEBRATING THESE STUDENTS AT THEIR LOCAL CAMPUSES AS WELL. THE NEXT GROUP IS FOR SKILLSUSA. UH, THE COMPETITIONS OF THE SKILLSUSA CHAMPIONSHIPS ARE CREATED AND JUDGED BY INDUSTRY TO ENSURE THAT STUDENTS ARE LEARNING THE REAL-WORLD SKILLS EMPLOYERS DEMAND FROM ENTRY-LEVEL PROFESSIONALS. THESE COMPETITIONS REPRESENT SOME OF THE MOST HIGHLY SKILLED, IN-DEMAND SKILLED TRADE AREAS IN THE NATION. AND SO I'M EXCITED TO INTRODUCE OUR SKILLSUSA STUDENTS. PIERCE HALSELL FROM PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. NICK WEEMS FROM PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. ADAM WITEK FROM PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. JAMES HALE, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. TREVOR BRANDT, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. JAMES HALL, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. MAGGIE MONROE, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. ELLIE COLE, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. DYLAN KAHN, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. RYAN SCHWAB, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. DAT NINH, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL. LORENA ARAUJO, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL. MADDOX GINSBURG, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. GREAT JOB, SKILLSUSA STUDENTS, AND WE'RE GOING TO MOMENTARILY GET YOU ORGANIZED FOR A GROUP PICTURE. AND AS WE'RE GETTING THE SKILLSUSA, IF YOU ARE HERE FOR TAFFY, IF YOU COULD PLEASE COME FORWARD TO MY LEFT. ALL RIGHT, WE'RE GONNA GRAB A COUPLE MORE PHOTOS. ALL RIGHT, CONGRATULATIONS, SKILLSUSA! THE NEXT STUDENT GROUP THAT WE'RE GONNA RECOGNIZE IS FOR TAFE, THE TEXAS ASSOCIATION OF FUTURE EDUCATORS. THIS IS A REALLY IMPORTANT ONE FOR US HERE IN RISD. 'CAUSE WE REALLY HOPE THAT YOU PURSUE A FUTURE CAREER AS A TEACHER AND COME BACK HERE IN RISD TO TEACH. SO THE TEXAS ASSOCIATION OF FUTURE EDUCATORS, OR TAFE, IS A CO-CURRICULAR STATEWIDE NONPROFIT STUDENT ORGANIZATION CREATED TO ALLOW YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN AN OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLORE THE TEACHING PROFESSION. IT WAS CREATED IN 1984 TO PROVIDE THE BEST AND BRIGHTEST HIGH SCHOOL AND MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS IN TEXAS WITH THE NECESSARY KNOWLEDGE TO MAKE INFORMED DECISIONS ABOUT PURSUING CAREERS IN EDUCATION. RISD HAS BEEN WELL REPRESENTED, AS YOU CAN TELL, AT STATE. AND BEST WISHES TO THOSE GOING ON TO NATIONALS. AND WHO KNOWS, WE MAY BE WELCOMING THEM FOR NEW TEACHER TRAINING IN AUGUST IN 4 OR 5 YEARS ONCE YOU MOVE ON AND GET YOUR DEGREE. SO CONGRATULATIONS, AND PLEASE JOIN ME IN WELCOMING COLE SANDERS FROM PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. [00:25:05] JOANNA JEONG, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. MADEA ASHRAF KHAN, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. LAINEY ALLEN, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. HALEY SOLIS, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL. ABIGAIL CASTILLO, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL. MACKENZIE ATKINS, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. LOLA MARTONE, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL. LYRIC DURHAM, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL. MELISSA AREZA VELASQUEZ, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. OLIVIA JACKSON, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. BELINDA RAMUNDO, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. YANIRA SALGUERO, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. ALEXIS ANDRADA, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. AWESOME JOB, STUDENTS. AND AS WE'RE GETTING THEM ORGANIZED FOR THEIR GROUP PICTURE, I WOULD LIKE TO INVITE UP OUR, UM, STUDENT ATHLETES IF YOU'RE HERE TO BE RECOGNIZED. FOR ANY OF OUR SPRING SPORTS AS A STUDENT ALL-STATE, PLEASE COME FORWARD AND LINE UP TO MY LEFT. THEY ARE HAPPY TEACHERS. WE LOVE YOU. THANK YOU. AS WE CAPTURE THESE MOMENTS, BECAUSE WE KNOW THEY'RE IMPORTANT, WE WANT TO CELEBRATE ALL THEIR SUCCESS. CONGRATULATIONS. ALL RIGHT, WE ARE READY FOR OUR FINAL RECOGNITION GROUP THIS EVENING. ANOTHER AWESOME GROUP OF STUDENT ATHLETES, AS YOU CAN TELL, AND WE WANTED TO GET THESE IN BEFORE THE GRADUATION AND, UM, END OF YEAR— END OF SCHOOL YEAR FESTIVITIES LATER THIS MONTH. WE ARE EXCITED TO RECOGNIZE OUR BASEBALL, GOLF, SOCCER, SOFTBALL, TENNIS, TRACK, AND RHS WRESTLING TEAMS AS 2025-2026 ACADEMIC ALL-STATE RECIPIENTS AND OUR UIL ALL-STATE PARTICIPANTS. OUR ALL-STATE COMPETITION ATHLETES ARE RECOGNIZED FOR TOP-TIER ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE IN THEIR SPORTS THE ACADEMIC ALL-STATE RECIPIENTS ARE SENIOR STUDENT ATHLETES WHO HAVE EXCELLED THROUGHOUT THEIR HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMIC CAREER IN THE CATEGORIES OF GPA, CLASS RANK, AND THEIR ACT/SAT SCORE. WE APPLAUD THEM FOR ALL OF THEIR COMMITMENT AND DEDICATION TO PERFORM AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL. WE HAVE— LISTEN TO THIS— 139 STUDENTS DISTRICT-WIDE WHO HAVE BEEN RECOGNIZED, AND WE ARE EXCITED TO CELEBRATE ALL OF THEM AND THOSE THAT, UM, WERE ABLE TO BE HERE THIS EVENING. SO WE ARE GOING TO INTRODUCE THEM TO YOU AT THIS TIME, AND WE'RE WE'RE GOING TO ALSO FIGURE OUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO GET THAT GROUP PICTURE BECAUSE I'M NOT QUITE SURE WHAT THAT'S GOING TO LOOK LIKE. ALL RIGHT, FIRST FROM RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, STATE QUALIFIER FOR WRESTLING, ESCARLET PEÑA. RAY PEREZ, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, STATE QUALIFIER WRESTLING. MACAULAY FOLD, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE AND STATE QUALIFIER FOR WRESTLING. BRIAN PHAM, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE WRESTLING. EVAN KAISER RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS; DEVIN SHREEVAT— DEVON SREEVAT RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS; AIDEN SCHMIDT RICHMOND HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS; IAN KOPECK RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS; STEPHEN HILL ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL; UM, HM-HMM... [PAUSE] UM, MM-HM? HMM-MM! STEVEN HILL ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL; ISABELLA NORKOWSKI, RICHARDSON HIGH [00:30:01] SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS. CINDY LU, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS. ELSA OBER, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, STATE QUALIFIER FOR TENNIS. LEAH MANNING, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, STATE QUALIFIER FOR TENNIS. CARSON JARVIS, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER. SLOAN JARVIS, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER. MIO HANAFUSA, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOFTBALL. AUBREY YARBROUGH, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOFTBALL. ASHLYN YARBROUGH, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOFTBALL. KIRA GIFFORD, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ALL-STATE ACADEMICS— ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOFTBALL. AUSTIN IBARRA, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOFTBALL. MIA ABS, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOFTBALL. AUBREY BARASA, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOFTBALL. SAMUEL MITCHELL, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE BASEBALL. ANDREW BELLINGER, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE BASEBALL. CALVIN ATTELL, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE BASEBALL. GABE OTERO, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER. JAMIAT OSHINUSHI, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS. CHRISTIE BOO, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS. CHLOE CHANEY, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS. ALEXA VERA, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER. ANNABELLE FINCH, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOFTBALL. KRISTEN KAUFMAN, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER; BROOKLYN STEWART, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER; CHLOE CHAPEL— CHAPEL— BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER; SARAH HEISER, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER; SOPHIE AVERLING, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER; ELLA PAYNE, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER. LOGAN KANABI, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER. JORDAN KONDOBA, LAKE HIGHLANDS HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TRACK. RHETT AUSTIN, LAKE HIGHLANDS HIGH SCHOOL, STATE QUALIFIER FOR TRACK. JOHN BOSCO EKWEMBE, JOHN BOSCO EKWEMBE, LAKE HIGHLANDS HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TRACK. TIN NGUYEN, BERKNER HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS. BEN BONNER, LAKE HIGHLANDS HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TRACK. CALLIE THORNTON, LAKE HIGHLANDS HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TRACK. KIERA STENGEL, LAKE HIGHLANDS HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TRACK. OLAMIDE BROWN, LAKE HIGHLANDS HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TRACK. DEREK RICE, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TENNIS. SULLIVAN RILEY, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, STATE QUALIFIER TRACK. ASUL SEVILLA, RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, ACADEMIC ALL-STATE SOCCER. I REALLY FEEL LIKE WE'RE GONNA NEED TO DO THIS BY CAMPUS. SO CAN WE TAKE AN EXTRA COUPLE MINUTES? UM, I WOULD LIKE TO INVITE, UM, PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. IF YOU'RE PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL, COME FORWARD AND WE'RE GONNA GRAB YOUR PICTURE. AND RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, YOU'RE ON DECK, SO PLEASE GET ORGANIZED. RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, YOU WILL BE NEXT. IF YOU'RE PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL— PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL, WE'RE GONNA TAKE YOUR PHOTO NEXT— OR NOW, SORRY. RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL, YOU WILL BE NEXT. FIRST LIFE TEST, OKAY. WE'RE GONNA ALLOW THOSE PARENTS TO GRAB THEIR PHOTOS. [00:35:01] AWESOME, CONGRATULATIONS, CONGRATULATIONS PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL. LET'S HAVE RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL EAGLES IF YOU'RE RICHARDSON HIGH SCHOOL. NEXT GROUP PHOTO. AFTER RICHARDSON, WE'RE GONNA DO BERKNER. BERKNER, YOU'RE ON DECK. SQUEEZE IN A LITTLE BIT. AND NOW FOR THE OFFICIAL DISTRICT 1. ALL RIGHT, CONGRATULATIONS EAGLES! BERKNER-RAMLEY, YOU'RE NEXT. CONGRATULATIONS, CONGRATULATIONS. WE'RE GONNA INVITE THE BERKNER-RAMLEY TO COME UP PLEASE. THAT'S GONNA LEAVE OUR WILDCATS AS OUR FINAL GROUP. ALL RIGHT, ONE MORE FOR THE, THE FISH— OFFICIAL DISTRICT PHOTO. ALL RIGHT, WAY TO GO RAMS! AND NOW LAKE HIGHLANDS WILDCATS, LET'S GO WILDCATS! UM, ALL RIGHT, MARCIN STILL NEEDS TO GRAB THE DISTRICT PHOTO. CONGRATULATIONS. BEFORE WE CONCLUDE OUR RECOGNITIONS THIS EVENING, WE KNOW— AND A LOT OF THEM ARE WALKING OUT— BUT THE PARENTS AND THE TEACHERS AND THE SPONSORS, WE KNOW YOU ARE HERE TO CELEBRATE AND SUPPORT THESE STUDENTS. CAN YOU PLEASE STAND SO WE CAN RECOGNIZE YOU AND THANK YOU? YES, THANK YOU. AND THIS CONCLUDES OUR RECOGNITIONS PORTION OF THE AGENDA. THANK YOU. [00:41:58] ALL RIGHT, WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE ON WITH OUR AGENDA. UM, THANK Y'ALL FOR STICKING AROUND FOR THE CELEBRATIONS. ALWAYS A GREAT PART, ESPECIALLY AT THE END OF THE YEAR. THE NEXT ITEM ON OUR AGENDA IS THE PUBLIC COMMENT SECTION. MS. RENTERIA, DO WE HAVE ANY PERSONS WHO HAVE SIGNED UP TO ADDRESS THE BOARD. MR. POTEET, WE DO NOT HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS FOR TONIGHT'S MEETING. THANK [III. CONSENT / CONFIRMATION AGENDA ITEMS] YOU VERY MUCH. WITH THAT, WE'RE GOING TO MOVE TO OUR NEXT AGENDA ITEM. OUR NEXT ITEM IS AN ACTION ITEM FOR THE CONSENT AGENDA. DOES ANYONE WISH TO PULL ANY CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS FOR SEPARATE CONSIDERATION? OKAY, SEEING NONE, IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA? SO MOVED. THANK YOU, MR. EAGER. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. THANK YOU, MISS TIMMY. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD ON THE CONSENT AGENDA? OKAY. HEARING NONE, ALL IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. ALL RIGHT, THAT MOTION PASSES 7 TO 0. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. OUR [IV.A. Consider Gifts] NEXT ACTION ITEM IS TO CONSIDER AND ACCEPT GIFTS. MS. BRANHAM. THANK YOU, UH, PRESIDENT POTTEAT, AND THANK YOU, BOARD, FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO CELEBRATE ALL OF OUR PTAS, PARTNERS, AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS THAT, UM, MONTH OVER— MONTH AFTER MONTH GIVE TO OUR CAMPUSES AND GIVE TO OUR DISTRICT. FOR ONE SIMPLE REASON, AND THAT'S TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF OUR KIDS. AND WE JUST EXTEND OUR ABSOLUTE GRATITUDE. I'VE ASKED MR. PATE TO PRESENT THIS MONTH'S GIFTS, MORE THAN, UM, $5,000. THANK YOU, MS. BRAND. I'M HAPPY TO PRESENT GIFTS RECEIVED THIS MONTH. WE HAVE ONE GIFT OVER $5,000 SUBMITTED FOR BOARD APPROVAL. THE WHITE ROCK ELEMENTARY PTA DONATED $48,794.57 TO WHITE ROCK ELEMENTARY. AND WE HAVE 10 GIFTS LESS THAN $5,000 FROM A VARIETY OF SOURCES TO CAMPUSES ACROSS THE DISTRICT TOTALING $17,883.94, WHICH ARE SUBMITTED FOR THE BOARD'S INFORMATION. OUR TOTAL GIFTS THIS MONTH ARE $66,678.51. AGAIN, THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO, UH, JUST LOVES AND, AND POURS INTO OUR CAMPUSES. AND WITH THAT, I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT THE BOARD ACCEPT THE GIFTS OF $5,000 OR MORE AS PRESENTED. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU FOR THAT RECOMMENDATION. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THESE GIFTS? SO MOVED. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU, MISS RENTERIA. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. THANK YOU, MISS MCGOWAN. ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD? OKAY, UH, I WILL JUST SAY THAT I'M LOOKING DOWN HERE AT THE, UH, REPORT AND IT LOOKS LIKE DONATIONS THIS YEAR ECLIPSED $1 MILLION, I THINK, [00:45:03] IN TOTAL, WHICH I THINK THAT'S THE FIRST TIME WE'VE DONE THAT IN THE DISTRICT. SO I JUST WANTED TO RECOGNIZE THE COMMUNITY ACROSS THE DISTRICT ON WHAT THEY'VE DONE TO, TO HELP PARTNER WITH US IN SOME OF THESE EXPENSES AND SOME OF THE NEEDS THAT WE HAVE IN THE DISTRICT. THAT'S OUTSTANDING. AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT, UH, WE CAN'T LOSE SIGHT OF. SO WANTED TO BRING THAT TO LIGHT. ALL RIGHT, HEARING NO OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS, ALL IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU. THAT MOTION PASSES 7-0. OUR NEXT ACTION [IV.B. Consider Apollo Middle School Additions and Renovation Project – Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) Amendment No. 2] ITEM IS TO CONSIDER THE APOLLO MIDDLE SCHOOL ADDITIONS AND RENOVATION PROJECT GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE AMENDMENT NUMBER 2. MS. BRANHAM. THANK YOU, PRESIDENT BOTEEN. I'M GONNA INVITE LEE ESTES AND, UH, ANY OTHER MEMBERS OF OUR AMAZING FACILITIES TEAM WHO ARE GONNA, UH, PROVIDE TONIGHT'S INFORMATION. AGAIN, I JUST WANT TO CELEBRATE THE INCREDIBLE WORK OF THIS TEAM BEING READY AND LIFTING UP 6 PROJECTS THAT WE ALL HAVE GOOD NEWS RELATED TO THE BUDGET AS WELL AS TO OUR TIMELINES IS NOTHING SHORT OF MIRACULOUS. AND SO JUST A HUGE APPRECIATION TO THEM. AND THEN ALSO, UM, A, A SIGNIFICANT JUST WORD OF APPRECIATION TO OUR CAMPUSES WHO ALL ARE GOING TO BE EXPERIENCING SOME KIND OF DISRUPTION. FOR EACH ONE, IT MIGHT BE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. BUT JUST APPRECIATE THEIR WILLINGNESS TO GO THROUGH THIS SHORT-TERM DISRUPTION FOR WHAT WE KNOW IN 2 YEARS IS GONNA BE AN INCREDIBLE OUTCOME FOR OUR STUDENTS AND ALSO THE SAME THING FOR OUR PARENTS AND COMMUNITY. UM, BOARD, JUST FOR YOUR KNOWLEDGE TONIGHT, WE'RE GOING TO ACTUALLY PRESENT INFORMATION ON ALL OF THE 6 PROJECTS. SO WE'RE GOING TO DO THAT UP FRONT. AND SO I ASK THAT YOU HOLD QUESTIONS BECAUSE THEN WE'RE GOING TO TAKE EACH— UH, I'LL MAKE A RECOMMENDATION FOR EACH GMP AND YOU CAN ASK QUESTIONS PER PROJECT AT THAT POINT, BUT WE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE BETTER IF, UM, MS. ESSES COULD GO THROUGH ALL 6 PROJECTS, THEN WE'LL TAKE QUESTIONS INDIVIDUALLY WITH EACH MOTION, IF THAT'S OKAY. AND TO CLARIFY, WE'LL VOTE ON EACH ONE AT THE END INDIVIDUALLY? YES, SIR. THANK YOU. OKAY, GOOD AFTERNOON, BOARD OF TRUSTEES, SUPERINTENDENT BRANHAM. I'M VERY EXCITED TO BE ABLE TO PRESENT TO YOU OUR 6 MIDDLE SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS. I WANT TO GIVE A QUICK SHOUT OUT TO OUR PARTNERS THAT HAVE WORKED WITH US FOR THE LAST YEAR AND A HALF TO GET THESE DESIGNS UNDERWAY. I WANT TO UH, DO A SHOUT OUT TO GLENN PARTNERS, HKS, UM, AND ALSO STANTEC ARCHITECTS WHO ARE HERE IN THE CROWD NOW. I ALSO WANT TO GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO THE CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES THAT WILL BE BUILDING THESE, UH, MIDDLE SCHOOLS. I WANNA REACH OUT TO LEE LEWIS CONSTRUCTION, HILL AND WILKINSON CONSTRUCTION, CORE CONSTRUCTION, UM, AND I ALSO WANT TO REACH OUT TO OUR BOND PROJECT MANAGERS WHO ARE ALSO HERE, UM, JONATHAN GREGG, DUSTY NUGENT, JUAN SAINZ, AND ALSO, UM, OH, SORRY. OH, SCOTT PORTER. SCOTT PORTER. UM, SO STARTING WITH THE PLANNING, WE STARTED THIS PLANNING IN NOVEMBER OF 2024. WE'VE BEEN UNDER PLANNING FOR ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF NOW TO ESTABLISH THESE MIDDLE SCHOOLS. AND EACH ONE OF OUR ARCHITECT PARTNERS DID A GREAT JOB OF REALLY MAKING SURE EACH CAMPUS WAS VERY SPECIFIC ON THEIR SIDE. THEY ALL ARE RICHARDSON ISD SCHOOLS, BUT EACH CAMPUS HAS A VERY UNIQUE FEEL. UM, PROGRAMMATICALLY, THEY ARE ALL THE SAME WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE TWO MAGNETS. BUT THEY ALL ARE VERY SPECIAL. UM, AS I GO THROUGH THE PRESENTATION, I'LL GO THROUGH EXTERIOR RENDERINGS, I'LL GO THROUGH INTERIOR RENDERINGS, AND THEN I'LL DO A SNAPSHOT OF THE PHASING. AND I'LL EXPLAIN MORE ONCE I GET TO THE FIRST, UM, PROJECT ON THE PHASING. SO LOOKING AT APOLLO MIDDLE SCHOOL AS THE FIRST, THIS VIEW ON THE LEFT IS GONNA BE THE VIEW FROM APOLLO ROAD. UM, THE CENTRAL BREAK ROOM IS ABOVE AND THE CLASSROOMS ARE BELOW. THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS THE MAIN ENTRY AND EXTERIOR COMMUNITY SPACE. LOOKING AT THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS GONNA BE THE ATHLETICS ENTRANCE, AND THEN THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS GONNA BE THE, UH, PANTHER COURTYARD. YOU CAN SEE IN THE BACKGROUND THIS HAS A CONNECTION TO THE CAFETERIA SPACE THAT'S ALSO SECURED TO GIVE STUDENTS AN OPPORTUNITY TO EAT OUTSIDE. THE NEXT IMAGE IS GONNA BE SOME INTERIOR IMAGES OF THE APOLLO, UH, MIDDLE SCHOOL. WE'RE SHOWING SOME RENDERINGS OF THE ENTRANCE HERE ON THE LEFT, AND I ALSO WANNA NOTE, UM, WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF DESIGNING GRAPHICS AS WELL. THERE'S GONNA BE A SERIES OF, UM, BRANDING AND DESIGN MEETINGS TO REALLY MAKE SURE, UM, THAT ALL MIDDLE SCHOOLS HAVE A COHESIVE MESSAGE FOR RICHARDSON ISD. UM, THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS THE MEDIA CENTER WITH COLLABORATION ABOVE. AND THEN THE NEXT SET OF IMAGES ON THE LEFT IS GOING TO BE THE CAFETERIA, UM, WITH VIEW OF THAT SECURE EXTERIOR COURTYARD THAT I SHOWED Y'ALL. AND THEN THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS GOING TO BE THE GYMNASIUM. SO I WANNA WALK THROUGH THE MILESTONES AND PHASINGS. THIS GRAPHIC IS GONNA SHOW UP AS WE GIVE THE BOARD UPDATES THROUGH THE NEXT 2 YEARS. YOU CAN SEE THE TIMELINE [00:50:02] AT THE TOP WHERE I'VE HIGHLIGHTED SUMMER '26 AND FALL OF '26, AND THEN YOU CAN SEE KIND OF FADED OUT IN THE BACK THE TIMELINE FOR THE NEXT 2 YEARS. THIS IMAGE WILL BE CONSISTENT EVERY TIME WE GIVE THE BOARD AN UPDATE, BUT I WANTED TO GIVE SNAPSHOTS AS WE, UM, PRESENT THE PROJECT. SO, UM, FOR SUMMER OF 2026 AND FALL OF 2026, I WANTED TO SHOW YOU WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT, UM, COMING UP THIS FALL BECAUSE THESE PROJECTS ARE ALL BREAKING GROUND THIS JUNE. SO GMP, HOPEFULLY RECOMMENDATION TODAY, UM, WE'LL START LOOKING AT CONSTRUCTION FENCING, WHICH YOU'LL SEE IN THE BLUE OUTLINE. THE AREAS THAT ARE IN RED ARE GONNA BE THE AREAS THAT ARE ACTIVELY UNDER CONSTRUCTION THIS FALL. AREAS THAT ARE IN WHITE OR IN GREEN ARE GONNA BECOME OCCUPIED BY STUDENTS. STUDENTS THIS FALL. UM, SO AGAIN, SNAPSHOT OF WHAT FALL OF 2026 WILL LOOK LIKE. AS WE GIVE THE BOARD UPDATES, THIS GRAPHIC WILL UPDATE BASED ON HOW THE TIMELINE GOES IN THE NEXT 2 YEARS. NEXT PROJECT IS GONNA BE LIBERTY. UM, THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS THE MAIN ENTRANCE OFF OF WHISPERING HILLS, AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS AN AERIAL VIEW. SO TO ORIENT YOURSELF A LITTLE BIT, IT'S LAWLER ON THAT THE, THE TOP OF THE IMAGE, AND THEN ON THE BOTTOM RIGHT IS GONNA BE FUNCHBERRY. THE NEXT VIEW ON THE LEFT IS GONNA BE THE EAST ENTRY OF LIBERTY. UH, LIBERTY HAS A UNIQUE SITE BECAUSE OF THE GRADE, THE EXTREME SLOPE. SO THE, UH, TEAM DID A GOOD JOB OF REALLY INCORPORATING THAT GRADE TO MAKE SURE THERE'S ACCESSIBLE ENTRANCES ON THE FIRST FLOOR AND THE SECOND FLOOR OF THIS PROJECT. AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS GONNA BE THE SOUTH COURTYARD, UM, THAT HAS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR OUTDOOR DINING AS AS WELL FOR STUDENTS. A COUPLE IMAGES OF INTERIORS. SO FOR THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS GOING TO BE THE ENTRY, UM, OF THE CAFETERIA. UM, AGAIN, GRAPHICS ARE STILL IN THE WORKS, BUT WE WANTED TO HAVE A PLACEHOLDER REALLY GIVE A SENSE OF THE SPACE. AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS THE MEDIA CENTER WITH COLLABORATION ABOVE. AND THEN THE NEXT SET OF IMAGES— IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS GONNA BE A VIEW OF THE GYMNASIUM, UM, AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS ONE OF THE COLLABORATION SPACES, UM, IN THE ACADEMIC WINGS. AND AGAIN, VERY SIMILAR TO APOLLO, SNAPSHOT OF WHAT DOES FALL 2026 LOOK LIKE. SO AGAIN, THE BLUE FENCING AROUND THE OUTLINE, UM, OR THE BLUE LINE IS THE FENCING AROUND FOR CONSTRUCTION. THE CONTRACTOR WILL BE BUILDING THE NEW BUILDING WHILE THE EXISTING BUILDING REMAINS. THERE'LL BE TEMPORARY PARKING SPACES THAT'LL BE COMPLETED FOR SCHOOL, UM, EXISTING BUS LOOP WILL STILL REMAIN OPEN, AND THE NEW BUILDING WILL BE UNDER CONSTRUCTION. THE NEXT PROJECT IS PARK HILL. SO THIS IS THE MAIN ENTRY WITH THE VIEW OF THE ART PATIO ABOVE THE RECEPTION AREA. THE NEXT SET OF IMAGES IS THE SECURE COURTYARD OFF OF THE CAFETERIA. AGAIN, OPPORTUNITY FOR STUDENTS TO HAVE OUTDOOR DINING THAT'S SECURE. ON THE INSIDE FOR PARK HILL, UM, THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS THE CAFETERIA SPACE AND THE STAGE, UM, A DUAL-PURPOSE STAGE THAT CAN BE UTILIZED UTILIZED FOR THE CAFETERIA, AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS THE MEDIA CENTER WITH COUNSELING AND COLLABORATION ABOVE. ANOTHER IMAGE OF PARK HILL ON THE LEFT IS GONNA BE THEIR ACADEMIC POD. SO YOU CAN SEE, UM, COLLABORATION SPACE ON THE BOTTOM FLOOR, AND THEN SECOND FLOOR HAS CLASSROOMS. AND THEN THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS ANOTHER COLLABORATION POD WITH COLLABORATION SPACES. AND AGAIN, SNAPSHOT OF FALL OF '26 FOR PARK HILL. UM, CONSTRUCTION FENCING AROUND THE SITE, UM, THE BUS LOOP CONFIGURATION IS COMPLETE FOR SCHOOL. UM, WE'LL BE DEMOLISHING THE EXISTING SMALL GYM, WHICH YOU CAN SEE IN THAT SMALL RED BOX. UM, THE EXISTING PARK HILL WILL REMAIN OCCUPIED FOR THIS SCHOOL YEAR AS THE CONTRACTOR BUILDS THE NEW BUILDING THAT YOU CAN SEE OUTLINED IN RED AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE. OKAY, RICHARDSON NORTH. THIS IS AN EXTERIOR VIEW OF THE MAIN ENTRANCE OFF OF FLOYD ROAD ON THE LEFT AND ANOTHER VIEW, UM, FOR THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT. THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS THE RENOVATED EXISTING COURTYARD, SO REALLY REVITALIZING THAT COURTYARD TO MAKE IT USABLE, UM, TO MAKE IT, AH, USABLE FOR THE STUDENTS TO, UM, HAVE OUTDOOR EATING. AND THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS A SECURED COURTYARD OFF OF THE CAFETERIA, AGAIN PROVIDING AMPLE, UM, OUTDOOR EATING FOR STUDENTS. NEXT SET OF IMAGES IS THE ENTRANCE. SO THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS THE MAIN ENTRY OF RICHARDSON NORTH RIGHT WHEN YOU WALK IN, AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS A COLLABORATION AREA. AND THEN LAST SET OF IMAGES FOR NORTH, THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS GOING TO BE THE [00:55:01] DINING FACILITY THAT'S RIGHT OFF OF THE MAIN COURTYARD WITH THE STAGE IN THE BACK, AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS GOING TO BE THE MEDIA CENTER. AND A SNAPSHOT OF WHAT PHASING WILL LOOK LIKE THIS SUMMER AND FALL IS CONSTRUCTION FENCING, CONTRACTORS MOBILIZE, THE PARKING LOT ON THE NORTH IS CLOSED, AND THEN RENOVATION OF THE SOUTH CLASSROOMS IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION ON LEVEL 1 AND 2. AND THE AREA INDICATED IN WHITE AND THE AREAS INDICATED IN GREEN ARE GONNA BE OCCUPIED BY THE STUDENTS FOR THE FALL OF '26. AND THEN WESTWOOD, UM, THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS THE MAIN ENTRANCE OF WESTWOOD AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS THE SOUTHWEST CORNER AT LAKOSKA. NEXT SET OF IMAGES, THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS THE SOUTH ENTRANCE OFF OF LAKOSKA AND ON THE RIGHT IS AN AERIAL THAT YOU CAN SEE ARAPAHOE'S RUNNING AT THE TOP WHERE THE TRACK AND FIELD AND TENNIS COURTS ARE, MEANDERING WAY IS ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE IMAGE AND THEN AT THE BOTTOM IS LAKOSKA HOSA. LOOKING AT THE INTERIOR OF WESTWOOD, THIS IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS THE CAFETERIA SPACE. YOU'RE STANDING ON LEVEL 2, LOOK DINING, AND LOOKING DOWN INTO THE DINING AREA. WESTWOOD, AS THE MAGNET CAMPUS, WANTED TO REALLY PORTRAY THE MAGNET PROGRAMS AND PUT THEM ON DISPLAY. AND THEN THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS A COLLABORATION, UM, IMAGE FOR THE ACADEMIC WING. UM, NEXT SET OF IMAGES, THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS GOING TO BE THE MEDIA CENTER AT WHAT— AND THAT'S REALLY THE HEART OF THE CAMPUS AS WELL AS THE CAFETERIA. THEY WORK HAND IN HAND. AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS ONE OF THE MAGNET PROGRAMS, UM, CRIMINAL JUSTICE, REALLY SHOWCASING A MOCK, UH, COURTYARD— COURTROOM. AND THEN AGAIN, SNAPSHOT OF PHASING FOR FALL OF 2026. UM, CONSTRUCTION FENCING AND MOBILIZATION ON SITES OCCURRED. UM, A LOT OF THE EXISTING DRIVES REMAIN THE SAME. UM, THE, THE EXISTING WESTWOOD CAMPUS WILL BE OCCUPIED THE ENTIRE 2 YEARS WHILE THE CONTRACTOR IS BUILDING THE NEW BUILDING, WHICH YOU CAN SEE OUTLINED IN RED. AND THEN FOR RICHARDSON WEST, THE OTHER MAGNET CAMP MIDDLE SCHOOL, UM, THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS THE WEST FACADE, UM, ER, SORRY, THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS THE NORTH ELEVATION OFF OF HOLLY DRIVE, AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS THE MAIN ENTRANCE OF RICHARDSON WEST. NEXT SET OF IMAGES IS, UM, THE ELEVATION ON, OF THE WEST SIDE IS ON THE LEFT, AND THEN AGAIN ANOTHER AERIAL VIEW OF RICHARDSON WEST, UH, WITH DOGWOOD KIND OF RUNNING TOWARDS THE BOTTOM, UM, AND YOU CAN SEE THE MAC IN THE BACKGROUND AND TRACK AND FIELD. COUPLE OF INTERIOR VIEWS OF RICHARDSON WEST. THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS GONNA BE RIGHT WHEN YOU WALK INTO RICHARDSON WEST. THE CAFETERIA WITH THE STAGE IN THE BACKGROUND. AGAIN, UM, THE MAGNET OF THE THEATER IS REALLY PUT ON DISPLAY RIGHT IN THE HEART OF THE CAMPUS. AND THE IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS GONNA BE THE MEDIA CENTER. TWO OTHER MAGNET PROGRAMS TO HIGHLIGHT IS THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS ROBOTICS, AND THEN THE IMAGE ON— ER, THE IMAGE ON THE LEFT IS ROBOTICS, AND IMAGE ON THE RIGHT IS THE COMMUNICATIONS LAB. AND A QUICK SNAPSHOT OF WHAT FALL OF 2026 CONSTRUCTION FENCING AND MOBILIZATION. UM, A LOT OF THE EXISTING DRIVES ON THE FRONT AND THE EAST REMAIN THE SAME. THE RICHARDSON BASEBALL FIELD WILL BE DEMOLISHED DURING THE SUMMER, AND THE NEW BUILDING WILL BE UNDER CONSTRUCTION DURING THE 2 YEARS OF, OF THIS PROJECT. AND THEN KEY TAKEAWAYS. I WANNA LEAVE IT ON THE SLIDE BECAUSE THE MAGNITUDE OF WORK KIND OF HIGHLIGHTED ALL 6 AT ONCE IS REALLY INCREDIBLE AND VERY TRANSFORMATIVE FOR THIS DISTRICT. YOU KNOW, EACH OF THESE PROJECTS CONSIST OF COMPREHENSIVE ADDITION RENOVATIONS AND REPLACEMENTS. ALL CAMPUSES WILL REMAIN FULLY OPERATIONAL DURING ALL OF CONSTRUCTION. STUDENTS' AND STAFF SAFETY REMAIN A PRIORITY, AND THESE MIDDLE SCHOOL PROJECTS SUPPORT RICHARDSON'S MIDDLE SCHOOL TRANSFORMATION AND WILL BE COMPLETE FOR 6TH GRADERS AUGUST OF 2028. AND THEN AGAIN, BOND 2025 WEBSITE WILL BE UPDATED AS WE GO ALONG THE NEXT 2 YEARS OF CONSTRUCTION. UM, AND LEE, IF YOU COULD JUST ONCE MORE FOR COMMUNITY AND ANYONE THAT, YOU KNOW, JUST MAY BE NEW TO OUR AREA. IF YOU CAN JUST BRIEFLY TALK ABOUT WHY WE USE A GMP, WHAT ARE THE, THE GUARANTEES OF A GMP, ETC.? YES, SO THE GUARANTEES OF A GMP IS THE CONTRACTOR SAYING THIS IS WHAT THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF MONEY IT WILL TAKE TO BUILD THIS BUILDING. ANY SAVINGS WE GET AT THE END OF THE PROJECT COME RIGHT BACK TO THE DISTRICT. THE GOAL OF GMP IS A LOT OF DIFFERENT BENEFITS. ONE OF THE BIG BENEFITS IS ON THESE COMPLEX ADDITION RENOVATION PROJECTS, WE HAVE THE CONTRACTOR ON BOARD TO HELP US WITH PHASING. UM, THEY ARE AT REALLY AT TUNE WITH THEIR TRADE PARTNERS TO REALLY GET GOOD PRICING FOR US. AND SO THAT'S ONE OF THE BIG BENEFITS THAT WE DO, UM, SEE THEM AT RISK, [01:00:01] AND THAT'S ONE OF THE BENEFITS OF A GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE. UM, AND THEN IF YOU COULD JUST RIGHT NOW, UM, HOW ARE WE TRACKING WITH EACH OF THESE 6 PROJECTS IN OUR BUDGETS? I AM HAPPY TO REPORT THAT WE ARE ALL UNDER BUDGET, UM, FOR OUR 6 MIDDLE SCHOOL TRANSFORMATIONS. THE GMP FOR TODAY AS 4 OF THE MAJORITY COMPONENTS OF THE BUILDING. SO BUILDING SITE, EVERYTHING IS ALL UNDER BUDGET. UM, IN THE NEXT COUPLE MONTHS, WE HAVE A COUPLE OTHER GMPS THAT WILL BE COMING THAT, UM, HAVE THE REST OF THE BUILDINGS, BUT WE ARE LOOKING VERY GOOD. THANK YOU FOR THAT. JUST WANTED TO CONTINUE TO SHARE THAT WITH THE COMMUNITY. AND THEN AGAIN, I, I DO WANT TO ABSOLUTELY THANK OUR, UM, CONSTRUCTION AND OUR ARCHITECT PARTNERS AS WELL AS OUR PROJECT MANAGERS. UM, EVEN AS OF TODAY, WE HAD A QUESTION BY A GROUP OF AMAZING EDUCATORS AT ONE OF OUR MIDDLE MIDDLE SCHOOLS THAT SAID, HEY, WAIT A MINUTE, CAN YOU JUST WALK US THROUGH, UM, CLASSROOM SPACE? AND OUR ARCHITECTS AND LEE AND HER TEAM SAT DOWN WITH THAT GROUP OF EDUCATORS AND WALKED THEM THROUGH, YOU KNOW, SQUARE FOOTAGE AND, AND THE MATH OF THE SCHEDULE AND HOW SOMETHING WILL WORK. UM, AND I KNOW THAT OUR EDUCATORS LEFT FEELING LIKE HEARD, VALIDATED, AND TRULY HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT THE PLAN IS AND, AND REALLY FEEL SUPPORTIVE OF THAT PLAN. SO I JUST, I THANK ALL OF OUR GROUPS. SO WE'RE GONNA TAKE THIS ONE AT A TIME. WE'RE GONNA START WITH APOLLO. UM, AND SO I DO RECOMMEND THAT THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES APPROVE THE GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE AS PRESENTED FOR PHASE 2 TO INCLUDE THE FOUNDATION DEMOLITION, STRUCTURAL STEEL, SITE UTILITIES, AND THE EARLY PROCUREMENT OF ELEVATORS FOR THE APOLLO MIDDLE SCHOOL ADDITIONS AND RENOVATION PROJECT. OKAY, THANK YOU FOR THAT RECOMMENDATION. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE APOLLO MIDDLE SCHOOL GMP AMENDMENT NUMBER 2. SO MOVED. THANK YOU, MISS TIMMY. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. THANK YOU, MISS PACHECO. ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS ON THIS PARTICULAR MOTION FOR APOLLO? AND JUST TO REMIND THE COMMUNITY, UM, LAST, UH, AT OUR LAST MEETING, WE PROVIDED A VERY IN-DEPTH PRESENTATION TO THE BOARD AND THE COMMUNITY ARE SPECIFICALLY AROUND APOLLO AND NORTH. SO IF ANYONE WANTS TO GO BACK AND WATCH KIND OF EVEN MORE OF THOSE FURTHER DETAILS, SINCE THOSE ARE OUR TWO MOST COMPLEX RENOVATIONS, THOSE ARE AVAILABLE ON OUR WEBSITE AS WELL. MS. BRANHAM, IF I COULD, UM, I ALSO WANT TO REMIND THE BOARD THAT OUR COMPREHENSIVE, UH, COMMUNICATION PLAN, UH, WE JUST WRAPPED UP THE FIRST OF, UH, ALL THE STAFF MEETINGS TO ACQUAINT THEM WITH THE INNER WORKINGS OF, UH, EACH PROJECT, LIKE WHAT YOU RECEIVED TODAY. THE MAJORITY OF THE COMMUNITY AND PARENT MEETINGS ARE SCHEDULED FOR NEXT WEEK, UH, PRESENTING THE SAME TYPE OF INFORMATION. THEY HAVE, UH, THERE'S A FACE-TO-FACE COMPONENT THAT YOU CAN COME TO THE CAMPUS IF PEOPLE ARE BUSY. WE ALSO GIVE THEM THE ABILITY TO TUNE IN DIGITALLY OR VIRTUALLY TO THE MEETING, AND THEN AS LEIGH POINTED OUT, EVERYTHING IS POSTED TO THE BOND WEBSITE AFTERWARDS. INCLUDING THE VIDEOS, IS— ARE THEY RECORDED OR DO YOU KNOW, OR THE MEETING? NO, THE MEETINGS ARE NOT RECORDED, BUT THEY CAN JOIN, UH, VIRTUALLY AND ASK QUESTIONS ON THE CHAT. THE CHAT'S ON. EXCELLENT. OKAY. THANK YOU. OKAY. ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS ON THIS FIRST GMP? OKAY. HEARING NONE, ALL IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. AND THAT MOTION CARRIES 7 TO 0. OUR NEXT [IV.C. Consider Liberty Middle School Construction Project - Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) Amendment No. 1] ACTION ITEM IS TO CONSIDER THE LIBERTY— YOU'RE GONNA GIVE US A RECOMMENDATION FIRST, RIGHT? YES. OKAY. SO I'LL FINISH THAT OUT. LIBERTY MIDDLE SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROJECT GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE AMENDMENT NUMBER 1. MS. BRANDON. SORRY, HE'S GOT— BEAR WITH US. WE'VE GOT— SORRY, THERE'S A LOT GOING ON. UM, I DO RECOMMEND THAT THE, UH, BOARD APPROVE THE LIBERTY MIDDLE SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION GMP AMENDMENT NUMBER 1 AS DO I HAVE A MOTION FROM THE BOARD ON THIS RECOMMENDATION? SO MOVED. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU, MISS PACHECO. DO I HAVE A SECOND? SECOND. THANK YOU, MISS SENTERIA. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ON THIS RECOMMENDATION? FOR LIBERTY MIDDLE SCHOOL. DO YOU HAVE— NO? HEARING NONE, ALL IN FAVOR OF THIS MOTION, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. OKAY, AND THAT MOTION PASSES 7 TO 0. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. WE'RE [IV.D. Consider Parkhill Middle School Construction Project – Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) Amendment No. 1] GOING TO MOVE OVER TO PARK HILL. OUR NEXT ACTION ITEM IS TO CONSIDER THE PARK HILL MIDDLE SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROJECT GMP AMENDMENT NUMBER 1. MS. BRANDON. I DO RECOMMEND THAT THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES PLEASE, UM, APPROVE THE GMP AS PRESENTED FOR PARK HILL MIDDLE SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROJECT. OKAY, THERE'S A RECOMMENDATION. DO I HAVE A MOTION FROM THE BOARD? SO MOVED. THANK YOU, MR. EAGER. DO I HAVE A SECOND? SECOND. OKAY, THANK [01:05:02] YOU, MISS TIMMY. ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD ON PARK HILL GMP? OKAY, HEARING NONE, ALL IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. OKAY, AND THAT ONE, 7 TO 0, IS APPROVED. OUR NEXT ACTION ITEM [IV.E. Consider Richardson North Middle School Additions and Renovation Project – Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) Amendment No. 1] IS TO CONSIDER THE RICHARDSON NORTH MIDDLE SCHOOL ADDITIONS AND RENOVATION GMP AMENDMENT NUMBER 1. MS. BRANNON, I RECOMMEND THAT THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF RISD PLEASE APPROVE THE GMP FOR THE RICHARDSON NORTH SCHOOL ADDITIONS AND RENOVATION PROJECT AS PRESENTED. OKAY, HEARING THAT RECOMMENDATION, DOES THE BOARD HAVE A MOTION? SO MOVED. THANK YOU, MR. ECHEVERRIA. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU, MISS MCGOWAN. OKAY, ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FOR RICHARDSON NORTH RECOMMENDATION AND MOTION? OKAY, HEARING NONE, ALL IN FAVOR OF THIS MOTION? PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. OKAY, [IV.F. Consider Westwood Middle School Construction Project - Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) Amendment No. 1] 7 TO 0. OKAY, NEXT WE'RE GONNA MOVE TO WESTWOOD MIDDLE SCHOOL. OUR NEXT ACTION ITEM IS TO CONSIDER THE WESTWOOD MIDDLE SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROJECT GMP AMENDMENT NUMBER 1. MS. BRANHAM. I CONTINUE TO RECOMMEND THAT THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF RISD APPROVE THE GMP, UM, FOR THE WESTWOOD MIDDLE SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROJECT AS PRESENTED. ALL RIGHT, EXCELLENT. DO I HAVE A MOTION FROM THE BOARD? SO MOVED. OKAY, MR. EAGER, THANK YOU. DO I HAVE A SECOND? SECOND. THANK YOU, MS. PACHECO. ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS ON WESTWOOD? YES, MR. EAGER. UM, GOING BACK TO MY RICH HISTORY IN RICHARDSON, MY OLDER BROTHER OPENED, UH, WESTWOOD. SO I GET TO TELL HIM THAT HIS LITTLE BROTHER NOW HAS IMPROVED ON THE SCHOOL WITH A COLLECTIVE GROUP OF COMMUNITY, THAT THE SCHOOL THAT HE GOT TO OPEN NOW IS GOING TO BE IMPROVED FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF STUDENTS. EXCELLENT. WE ARE NOT RENAMING IT EAGER MIDDLE SCHOOL, THOUGH, SO JUST FOR THE RECORD. SO ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS ON THIS? OKAY. WITH THAT, ALL IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. ALL RIGHT, 7 TO 0. ONE MORE. OUR NEXT— GO AHEAD. I'M TEEING YOU UP. OUR NEXT ACTION ITEM IS [IV.G. Consider Richardson West Middle School Construction Project - Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) Amendment No. 1] TO CONSIDER THE RICHARDSON WEST MIDDLE SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROJECT GMP AMENDMENT NUMBER 1. I'M RUNNING OUT OF BREATH. AMENDMENT NUMBER 1, MS. BRANDON. LAST BUT DEFINITELY NOT LEAST, I DO ASK THAT THE BOARD APPROVE TO APPROVE THE GMP FOR WEST, UH, CONSTRUCTION PROJECT AS PRESENTED. ALL RIGHT, EXCELLENT. IS THERE A MOTION FROM THE BOARD? SO MOVED. THANK YOU, MISS TIMMY. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. THANK YOU, MISS MCGOWAN. ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS ON RICHARDS AND WEST? YES, MISS TIMMY. YEAH, I, I REALLY JUST COMMENT. I JUST WANTED TO SAY, AND, AND I'M SPEAKING ABOUT ALL OF THEM. I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW WHEN TO CHIME IN OR DO BUT, UM, NOT A SMALL UNDERTAKING. I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT YOU AND YOUR STAFF, YOU GUYS HAVE DONE SUCH A GREAT JOB IN PLANNING THESE PIECES. IT'S NOT EASY TO PLAN FOR CURRENT AND STUDENTS TO CAUSE THE LEAST DISRUPTION. UM, I CAN SAY HAVING GONE THROUGH, LIKE, THE RENOVATIONS AND HAVING STUDENTS AT PIERCE HIGH SCHOOL WHEN THAT WAS HAPPENING, WHILE, I MEAN, CERTAINLY, I MEAN, I'M CERTAINLY AN INCONVENIENCE ON ONE SIDE, BUT I CAN TELL YOU MY KIDS ENJOYED IT JUST THE SAME. UM, THEY HAD A GREAT TIME, BUT BUT, UM, ON THE BACKSIDE OF IT AND LOOKING AT HOW BEAUTIFUL IT IS, UM, IT, IT JUST GOES TO HOW THAT PLANNING HAS FOR GREAT OUTCOMES EVEN IN THOSE PAIN POINTS. SO I REALLY JUST WANTED TO COMMEND YOU GUYS AND THANK Y'ALL FOR, FOR DOING A REALLY GOOD JOB FOR OUR COMMUNITY. ALSO FOR, FOR PASSING THIS BOND. UM, I THINK IT'S JUST GONNA MAKE A HUGE, A HUGE DIFFERENCE. AND, UM, ANYWAY, I JUST WANNA SAY THANK YOU TO EVERYBODY FOR THAT. EXCELLENT COMMENT. YES, MISS MCGOWAN. UM, ALSO, THANK YOU AGAIN. I WANTED TO THANK YOU AS WELL, TO YOU AND YOUR STAFF, FOR THE WORK THAT YOU ALL HAVE DONE, UM, OVER THE YEARS FOR THESE PROJECTS. UM, I'M ALSO SUPER EXCITED ABOUT THE FACT THAT WE ARE ENDING A SCHOOL YEAR, UM, BRINGING THIS KIND OF REPORT TO THE COMMUNITY WITH BETTER THINGS AND GREATER THINGS FOR KIDS TO SEE AND BECOME A PART OF AS THE YEARS GO ON. SO THANK YOU FOR THIS, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING SEEING THE END OF THESE PROJECTS AND ALL THE AMAZING KIDS AND FAMILIES ENJOY THE CREATION OF WHAT RISD HAS DONE. SO THANK YOU. MS. HARRIS? YEAH, JUST REALLY, JUST DITTO WHAT MY COLLEAGUES HAVE ALREADY SAID. THIS IS JUST SO EXCITING. I MEAN, WHAT AN EXCITING TIME, JUST IN THE MIDST OF ALL THE THINGS THAT PUBLIC SCHOOLS HAVE ENDURED THESE LAST SEVERAL YEARS HERE. BUT TO— TO HAVE THIS GOING ON AND TO [01:10:02] KNOW THAT THE STUDENTS ARE GONNA WALK INTO THESE BRIGHT, VIBRANT BUILDINGS IS JUST ABSOLUTELY AWESOME WITH THINGS JUST UP TO DATE AND JUST FRESH AND NEW. I'M SUPER EXCITED. I MEAN, I KNOW THE RENOVATIONS THAT WE'VE ALREADY DONE ARE AMAZING. AND SO TO SEE THESE RIGHT HERE, AND I KNOW MS. RENDRIA AND MYSELF HAVE WALKED THE HALLS OF WEST, THOUGH, MANY A DAY, AND, UH, IT'S JUST GONNA BE SUPER EXCITING. EXCITING. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH TO YOUR TEAM. THANK YOU FOR A GREAT PRESENTATION. I'M EXCITED. YES, MS. SURIA. UM, THE ONLY THING I WANT TO ADD TO ALL OF WHAT MY COLLEAGUES HAVE ALREADY SAID TOO IS JUST THE WORD THAT COMES FROM ME, UH, WHEN SEEING ALL OF THIS AND IN THIS PRESENTATION WAS HOPE, RIGHT? I THINK IT BRINGS SO— THIS, YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST SO HOPEFUL AND SO MUCH HOPE TO WHAT MS. HARRIS WAS SAYING, UM, TO SEE THESE BUILDINGS AND TO KNOW THAT THAT, AGAIN, WITH SUCH A NEGATIVE NOTE WITH PUBLIC EDUCATION AND THE DISMANTLING OF THAT REALLY IS WHAT IT IS. THIS IS SUPER EXCITING. AND AGAIN, THE, THE TRUST THAT THE COMMUNITY HAS GIVEN OUR DISTRICT, UM, IN KNOWING THAT THIS IS THE OUTCOME THAT WE LOOK FOR AND THIS IS THE HOPE THAT WE HAVE. AND SO, AND THIS IS JUST PART OF IT. THIS IS JUST PART OF IT. SO ANYWAY, I JUST WANTED TO SHARE THAT FOR ME AND HEARING ALL OF THIS, THE WORD THAT CAME TO ME WAS HOPE, AND I'M VERY HOPEFUL THAT THIS WILL BE VERY, VERY BEAUTIFUL, AND I CAN'T WAIT TO, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, TOUR ALL OF THESE BUILDINGS AND SEE OUR STUDENTS HAVE THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT THEY'RE GONNA HAVE THROUGH THESE ENVIRONMENTS. SO THANK YOU TO EVERYONE. EXCELLENT COMMENTS. YES, MR. EAGER. UM, THE ONLY THING— I'M JUST GONNA DITTO ALL THAT, EXCEPT, YOU KNOW, UM, AGAIN, TO THE TEAMS THAT ARE TAKING ON 6 MAJOR PROJECTS AT ONE TIME, TIME. THAT IS A MASSIVE UNDERTAKING. SO, UM, I APPRECIATE, UH, THE EFFORTS THAT'S GONNA GO INTO PLACE. UM, ALSO TO OUR COMMUNITY FOR SUPPORTING THIS. THIS IS GOING TO BE TRANSFORMATIONAL FOR GENERATIONS OF KIDS. I MEAN, GENERATIONS OF KIDS AND THE OPPORTUNITIES THEY'RE GONNA HAVE AND THE, UM, THE HOPE THAT, HEY, REGARDLESS WHAT'S GOING ON HERE, OUR COMMUNITY IS, STUCK TOGETHER, SUPPORTED OUR SCHOOL SYSTEMS, AND WILL CONTINUE TO SUPPORT. AND, UM, AH, ER, AGAIN, I LOOK FORWARD TO THE DAY, UH, WALKING THROUGH THOSE CAMPUSES WITH OUR KIDS AND SEEING JUST THAT VIBRANT LOOK. THE, I MEAN, HECK, I'M EXCITED. I MIGHT WANNA GO BACK. IT'S AWESOME. SO CONGRATULATIONS. I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THESE. AND AGAIN, THANK YOU TO OUR COMMUNITY, UM, FOR SOME REPORTING THIS, UH, THIS LARGE UNDERTAKING. THANK YOU FOR THOSE COMMENTS. UM, AND THEN I WILL— LET'S GO AHEAD AND DO THIS BEFORE WE, UH, ROLL OFF HERE. THAT'S BEFORE I FORGET TO CALL FOR A VOTE. UM, OKAY, THANK YOU FOR THE COMMENTS. FOR ALL OF THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION SPECIFIC TO RICHARDSON WEST GMP, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. ALL RIGHT, 7 TO NOTHING. I DID WANNA ADD, AND I KNOW IT'S A LITTLE WONKY HOW WE'VE GOTTEN THROUGH THIS, BUT AS I SIT HERE AND LOOK AT THE SCALE OF THE PROJECTS, UM, YOU KNOW, I KNOW IT WAS SAID, YOUR STAFF AND OUR PARTNERS THAT WE'VE GOT ON THE ARCHITECT SIDE AND THE, THE CONTRACTOR SIDE AND NOW THE PROGRAM MANAGEMENT SIDE, THIS IS HUGE. AND I TAKE US BACK, I LOOK AT THE DOLLARS IN CONSTRUCTION, AND THIS IS ROUGHLY EQUAL TO WHAT COWBOYS STADIUM STADIUM WAS WHEN IT WAS BUILT, ALMOST THE SAME NUMBER OF DOLLARS. IT'LL BE UNDER CONSTRUCTION AT THE SAME TIME. BUT COWBOYS STADIUM WAS DONE IN ONE SPECIFIC SITE. WE'VE GOT 6 SITES. UM, SO IT'S A LARGE-SCALE UNDERTAKING, AND I'M JUST— KUDOS TO THE STAFF THAT WE'VE GOT. UM, IT'S GONNA BE A BUSY NEXT COUPLE OF YEARS FOR YOU. SO THANKS FOR THE WORK YOU DO. OKAY. UM, LET'S DO ONE MORE ITEM HERE, AND THEN WE'LL SLIDE INTO A QUICK BREAK [IV.H. Student Health Advisory Committee (SHAC) Presentation] FOR EVERYBODY. THANK YOU, LEE. OUR NEXT ITEM IS AN INFORMATION UPDATE REGARDING THE STUDENT HEALTH ADVISORY COMMITTEE. MS. BRANDON. THANK YOU, PRESIDENT BOTEET. I THINK WE HAVE TWO AMAZING SHAC CO-CHAIRS THAT ARE MAKING THEIR WAY FORWARD. THIS IS AN ANNUAL ITEM THAT WE BRING FORWARD, UM, REALLY WANTING TO CELEBRATE THE INCREDIBLE WORK OF THE SHAC. UM, OUR TWO CO-CHAIRS ARE GOING TO CO-PRESENT TONIGHT, AND REALLY THEY'RE GOING TO PROVIDE YOU WITH AN OVERVIEW. FIRST FIRST AND FOREMOST, WHAT IS SHAQ? UM, ALSO SHARING THE WORK THAT THEY HAVE DONE THIS YEAR, CELEBRATIONS AND OUTCOMES OF THE WORK THAT THEY'VE DONE. AND I HOPE THIS, UM, EARLIER THIS EVENING YOU HEARD ONE OF THE RECOGNITIONS THAT WERE GIVEN TO 3 OF OUR CAMPUSES WERE A RESULT OF THE WORK THAT SHAQ HAS DONE. THEY'RE GONNA ALSO SHARE SOME OF THE, UM, MAYBE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT WE STILL HAVE AND IDEAS THAT THEY HAVE TO CONTINUE TO IMPROVE THE WORK MOVING FORWARD. SO I'M GONNA TURN IT OVER TO BOTH OF YOU. THANK YOU. YOU, LIKE, Y'ALL, THEY HAVE, THEY HAVE CHAIRED THIS COMMITTEE SO INCREDIBLY [01:15:03] WELL, INCREASED PARTICIPATION. LIKE, IT'S AMAZING. AND I ALSO WANNA, UH, THANK TRUSTEE TIMMY WHO SERVES ON THIS COMMITTEE. IT'S JUST, THIS IS LIKE A HIGHLIGHT OF THE NIGHT. SO I'LL TURN IT OVER. WELL, THE 7 CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS WERE TOO, BUT SO IS THIS. OKAY, UM, BUT THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT OF SHAC. THANK YOU FOR ATTENDING. THANK YOU AGAIN JUST FOR ALL THAT YOU GUYS POUR INTO IT. WE COULDN'T DO IT WITHOUT Y'ALL, AND SO THANK YOU. UM, I AM LINDSAY LEDFORD. I'M ASSISTANT ATHLETIC DIRECTOR AND DIRECTOR OF PE AND HEALTH. I'M ALSO A PARENT OF TWO RISD STUDENTS AND CO-CHAIR OF SHAC. HELLO Y'ALL, I AM SARAH KAUSHIK. I HAVE TWO AT NORTH ABOUT TO GO TO PEARCE AND ONE AT PCE. SO IN ALL THAT WE DO WITH SHAC, WE KEEP THE NORTH STAR GOAL AT THE CENTER OF THAT AND HOW WE CAN BEST SUPPORT THAT. SO WE KNOW THAT OUR STUDENTS, IF THEY'RE NOT HAPPY, HEALTHY, AND SAFE, THEY CAN'T GO THROUGH AND GET THEIR ACADEMIC GROWTH GOALS. AND SO EVERYTHING THAT WE DO IS SUPPORT— IS TO SUPPORT THAT ENVIRONMENT FOR OUR STAFF, OUR STUDENTS, AND OUR COMMUNITY, AND, UM, JUST REALLY MAKE THAT THE CULTURE OF THIS DISTRICT. ALL RIGHT, SO WHAT IS SHAC? WE ARE THE SCHOOL HEALTH ADVISORY COUNCIL. EVERY DISTRICT IN TEXAS IS REQUIRED TO HAVE ONE OF US. AS YOU LEARNED, I'M THE PARENT CO-CHAIR. NEXT YEAR, ALICIA WOODALL, WHO IS BACK THERE, WILL BE TAKING OVER. UM, WE MEET A MINIMUM OF 4 TIMES A YEAR. UH, WE REPORT TO YOU ONCE A YEAR, AND WE ARE PRIMARILY MAJORITY MADE UP OF PARENTS. BUT IT WAS VERY EXCITING THIS YEAR, WE WELCOMED STUDENTS. WE'RE GOING TO TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT, BUT THEY WERE A WONDERFUL ADDITIONAL TO THE SHAC THIS YEAR. WE REALLY VALUED THEIR VOICE AND THEY WERE FANTASTIC. SO, OKAY, SO WHAT DO WE DO? WE ARE, AS LINDSEY TOLD YOU, OUR CHARGE IS TO THINK ABOUT HOW DO WE MAKE OUR STUDENTS, OUR STAFF, OUR COMMUNITY HEALTHIER. AND WE DO THAT BY KIND OF HAVING OUR FINGERPRINTS ON A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT THINGS THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT. UM, 21-DAY CHALLENGE IS SOMETHING THAT WE CONSIDER. I'M GOING TO TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT ABOUT SOME OUTCOMES FROM THE KIDS HEART CHALLENGE. LINDSAY'S GONNA TELL YOU ABOUT TAKE 9. WE HAVE INVOLVEMENT WITH THE LIVE WISE, LIVE HEALTHY. WE ARE— SUBCOMMITTEES AND OUR MEMBERS ARE INVOLVED IN GIVING FEEDBACK ON THAT. UH, CHILD NUTRITION SERVICES, WE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE THEM COME AND PRESENT AT OUR MOST RECENT MEETING WHERE THEY LET US TRY THE FOOD THAT OUR KIDS GET TO HAVE AND WE HEARD ABOUT THE GREAT THINGS THEY'RE DOING AND WE HELP SUPPORT THEM AS THEY TRY TO LIFT UP THEIR MENU ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND WE HELP PROMOTE THAT WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY. AND THEN FINALLY, WE THINK ABOUT HOW DO WE REALLY SUPPORT OUR STAFF, AND WE LOOK AT LISTENING, AND THAT'S STAFF HEALTH CLINIC. WE SUPPORT THE WORK THAT YOU GUYS DO THERE TOO AS WELL. OKAY, SO THIS IS A REPORT OF OUR GOALS FROM THIS PAST YEAR THAT WE PRESENTED TO YOU ALL AT THIS BOARD MEETING IN MAY. UM, SO WE DID IMPLEMENT THE PRINCIPAL END-OF-YEAR WELLNESS PLAN SURVEY AGAIN, AND THEN WE ALSO STARTED OUR RECOGNITION PROGRAMS, OUR WHOLE CHILD AWARD THAT WE AGAIN RECOGNIZED EARLIER THIS EVENING, AND SARAH WILL TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT LATER. UM, WE ALSO HELPED TO INCREASE MOVEMENT DURING INSTRUCTIONAL TIME USING INITIATIVES SUCH AS TAKE 9. SO THAT'S 9 MINUTES A DAY OF GETTING UP OUT OF THEIR SEAT, BRAIN BREAKS, THINGS LIKE THAT. WE HAD OUR ELEMENTARY PE TEACHERS GO THROUGH AND PRESENT ON THAT WITH— AT OUR, UH, BACK-TO-SCHOOL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT DAYS BACK IN AUGUST. WE DID THAT AT EVERY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. AND THEN I'LL ALSO BE PRESENTING AT GROW THIS YEAR. UM, AND HOPEFULLY WE CAN MAKE A MOVE INTO SECONDARY A LITTLE BIT ON SOME BRAIN BREAKS THERE. AND THEN WE UPDATED OUR SHAC BYLAWS, AND THIS WAS MAINLY TO INCLUDE OUR STUDENTS IN THAT AND THEN ALSO TO JUST KIND OF CLEAN UP A LITTLE BIT OF LANGUAGE ON TERM LIMITS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. WE RECRUITED STUDENTS TO JOIN SHAC THIS YEAR. WE HAD 4 AMAZING STUDENTS JOIN US, AND I THINK THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE PROBABLY THE MOST PROUD OF THIS YEAR. THEY JUST BROUGHT AN INCREDIBLE NEW PERSPECTIVE. UM, OUR MEMBERS REALLY, REALLY ENJOYED ENJOYED LISTENING TO THEM AND HEARING WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY. AND THEY BROUGHT ABOUT NEW IDEAS WE HAD NOT— NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT BEFORE. SO IT WAS REALLY NEAT TO HAVE THEM. AND THEN WE ALSO RESEARCHED FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES FOR THAT RECOGNITION PROGRAM, OUR WHOLE CHILD AWARD. AND THEN A CONTINUING GOAL FOR US, AND SOMETHING THAT WILL PROBABLY ALWAYS BE A CONTINUING GOAL FOR US BECAUSE IT IS EVER-CHANGING, IS EXPANDING MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS AND RESEARCHING SOME OF— SOME PROGRAMMING THAT WE CAN DO TO HELP OUT OUR STUDENTS, STAFF, AND COMMUNITY. ALL RIGHT, SO SOME OF THE THINGS THAT SHAC DOES— WE HAVE SUBCOMMITTEES AND WE HAVE MEMBERS WHO ARE VERY EXCITED AND WANNA JUMP IN. SO ONE OF THE WAYS WE DO THAT IS THROUGH RESEARCH. UM, LINDSAY'S GONNA TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT WHAT THE HEALTH CURRICULUM WAS FOR 6TH GRADE, BUT THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT WE DISCUSSED A LOT THIS YEAR. UM, THE 21-DAY CHALLENGE, WE LOOKED AT THE IMPACT OF THAT. I'M EXCITED TO REPORT FROM OUR KIDS HEART CHALLENGE, WE RAISED OVER $300,000 FOR FOR THE, UM, AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION WITH $26,000 OF THAT COMING BACK DIRECTLY TO— IN INCENTIVES AND AWARDS TO OUR RISD, UM, SCHOOLS AND PE PROGRAMS. UH, WE [01:20:01] WERE INVOLVED IN LOOKING AT THE DATA THAT CAME FROM THE STUDENT DRUG USAGE AND STUDENT VIOLENCE SUBCOMMITTEE. AND SOME OF OUR SHAC SUBCOMMITTEE MEMBERS ARE THINKING ABOUT WAYS TO IMPROVE THE PREVENTION, INTERVENTION, AND DISCIPLINARY RESPONSES. WE SPENT SOME TIME TALKING ABOUT THAT. AND REALLY BRAINSTORMING WHERE ARE SOME OPPORTUNITIES TO ENGAGE MORE. AND THEN ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS WE WANNA DO IS BE INNOVATIVE AND GET IDEAS. UM, WE LOOK AT WHAT OTHER DISTRICTS ARE DOING, WHERE ARE THERE OPPORTUNITIES TO CREATE, FOR INSTANCE, A NEW AWARD TO INCENTIVIZE OUR CAMPUSES TO ENGAGE WITH THAT WELLNESS PLAN. SO THAT IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE REALLY WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE DOING IS LOOKING OUTWARD TO WHAT OTHER DISTRICTS ARE DOING, BUT ALSO LOOKING INWARD TO SEE WHAT IDEAS WE CAN GENERATE AS A COMMITTEE. SO OUR SHAC RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THIS YEAR, ONE OF THEM REALLY REVOLVES AROUND 6TH GRADE HEALTH CURRICULUM. AS WE MOVE INTO THIS MIDDLE SCHOOL MODEL, WE REALLY HAD TO REEVALUATE HOW ARE WE MEETING THOSE HEALTH TEKS. THERE'S NOT A HEALTH COURSE IN 6TH GRADE, UM, AND THEY'RE NO LONGER ALL GOING TO PE 45 MINUTES TWICE A WEEK WITH THEIR ELEMENTARY TEACHERS. THEY'RE GOING 45 MINUTES A DAY NOW WITH THE SAME PE TEACHER ALL WEEK. SO WE WANTED TO UTILIZE THAT UM, KIND OF THAT EXTRA TIME THAT WE'RE GETTING IN THERE AND BRING HEALTH INTO PE. AND SO WE LOOKED AT A COUPLE DIFFERENT CURRICULUMS. CATCH IS THE ONE THAT WE LANDED ON. THIS IS COORDINATED APPROACH TO CHILD HEALTH. AND SO A PREVIEW WAS SENT OUT TO THE LAKE HIGHLANDS COMMUNITY FOR 4TH AND 5TH GRADERS, UM, BECAUSE THIS IS SOMETHING WE WANT TO LOOK AT FOR 6TH GRADE TO PILOT OVER THE NEXT 2 YEARS. THE REASON WE WANT TO PILOT IT FOR 2 YEARS AT THESE CAMPUSES IS BECAUSE 2 YEARS FROM NOW WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THESE BEAUTIFUL MIDDLE SCHOOLS AND WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO IMPLEMENT IT AT ALL OF OUR 6TH GRADE CAMPUSES. IN THE FUTURE AND MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE MEETING THESE HEALTH TEKS. SO CATCH IS FULLY, COMPLETELY ALIGNED WITH OUR TEKS. IT IS READY-MADE LESSONS. OUR PLAN RIGHT NOW IS TO LOOK AT UTILIZING THESE ONCE A WEEK BECAUSE IT IS A 36-WEEK PROGRAM. AND AGAIN, IT'LL MEET EVERY SINGLE TEKS THAT WE HAVE. AND THEN WE WOULD ALSO LIKE TO PILOT IT AT MOSS HAVEN ELEMENTARY BECAUSE, UM, WE HAVE BEEN USING QUAVAR THE LAST COUPLE YEARS, AND SO WE'D LIKE TO TRY OUT A DIFFERENT CURRICULUM AND SEE HOW THAT GOES AND GET SOME DATA AND FEEDBACK FROM THAT. SO CHRISTINA FULLER IS ONE OF OUR LEAD TEAM PE TEACHERS OVER AT MOSS HAVEN, AND SHE VOLUNTEERED TO PILOT IT THERE AT MOSS HAVEN AND SEE HOW IT GOES THERE. AND THEN IN 2 YEARS, WE CAN KIND OF REEVALUATE, DO WE WANT TO FULLY GO CATCH K THROUGH 6TH GRADE, UM, OR DO WE JUST WANT TO KEEP IT TO 6TH GRADE? SO THAT AGAIN IS A 2-YEAR PILOT PROGRAM THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT. IT IS FULLY GRANT FUNDED AS WELL, SO WE'RE NOT GOING TO HAVE TO PAY ANYTHING FOR THIS, WHICH IS AMAZING. UM, THEY ARE ALSO GOING TO BE TRAINING OUR, OUR TEACHERS AT DISTRICT WIDE DAY. SO OUR TEACHERS WILL BE FULLY READY TO GO IN AUGUST AND WE CAN ROLL THIS OUT. WE'RE ALSO IMPLEMENTING IT INTO OUR SCOPE AND SEQUENCE FOR PE, SO VERY EASY TO IMPLEMENT, SHOULDN'T BE ANY EXTRA WORK ON OUR TEACHERS. IT'S GOING TO BE GREAT. AND THEN FOR OUR WELLNESS PLAN, WE WANTED A CONTINUATION OF OUR WELLNESS PLAN SURVEY, AND WE'RE KIND OF LOOKING AT SOME DIFFERENT WAYS WE CAN DO THAT TO MAKE SURE WE CAN GATHER THE BEST DATA POSSIBLE SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO SUPPORT OUR CAMPUSES THE BEST WAY WE CAN. AND THEN WE WOULD ALSO LIKE TO CONTINUE THAT FULL CHILD AWARD AND RAISE SOME AWARENESS IN THAT AWARD AND SEE HOW MANY PEOPLE WE CAN GET APPLYING FOR THAT NEXT YEAR AND GOING FOR IT. BECAUSE IF THEY'RE GOING FOR THAT AWARD, THAT MEANS THEY'RE IMPLEMENTING THESE HEALTHY PROGRAMS INTO THEIR SCHOOLS. THESE ARE SOME OF OUR SHAC CELEBRATIONS FROM THIS YEAR. THE 21-DAY SNACKING CHALLENGE— THIS WAS THE BEST YEAR THAT WE'VE HAD YET. UM, PARTICIPATION WENT WAY UP. WE WENT $4,000— WE HAVE $4,000 MORE IN INCENTIVES AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROVIDED TO OUR DISTRICT BECAUSE BECAUSE OF THE WORK THAT OUR TEACHERS PUT IN. SO, NEARLY $12,000 CAME BACK TO OUR DISTRICT AND OUR TEACHERS ARE ABLE TO GO GET PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR FREE. THEIR HOTELS ARE PAID FOR, THEIR CONFERENCE IS PAID FOR. IT'S INCREDIBLE. AND THEN, SCHOOL MENU ADVISORY COMMITTEE, THEY WENT AND PRESENTED TO DIFFERENT PTAS AND ANY PTA CAN COME AND REQUEST THEM TO COME. SO, I HAVE A PICTURE OF THAT ON THE BOTTOM. THEY CAME TO SHAC AS WELL AT OUR LAST MEETING AND WE GOT TO SAMPLE SOME OF THE FOOD AND GIVE SOME FEEDBACK, WHICH WAS REALLY NEAT. AND THEN OUR PE LEAD TEAM PRESENTED AT TAPRD. THAT IS OUR PE PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATION. THERE WAS, UH, IT WAS A VERY HIGHLY ATTENDED SESSION. THEY DID AN INCREDIBLE JOB. I'VE GOT 5 PEOPLE ON MY LEAD TEAM AND IT'S JUST REALLY NEAT TO SEE RISD REPRESENTED AT THAT CONFERENCE EACH YEAR. WE ALSO HAD THE TAPRD ELEMENTARY PE TEACHER OF THE YEAR. THIS IS FOR THE WHOLE STATE OF TEXAS. SO THAT WAS CHRISTINA FULLER AT MOSS HAVEN, WHO AGAIN IS ON OUR LEAD TEAM. AND THEN WE ALSO HAD THE LAKE HIGHLANDS LEARNING COMMUNITY ELEMENTARY TEACHER OF THE YEAR, CRAIG TIDSWORTH. HE'S INCREDIBLE. HE'S AT LAKE HIGHLANDS ELEMENTARY. WE'RE JUST SO PROUD OF HIM. AND THEN WE DID HAVE A MEMBERSHIP INCREASE. OUR COMMUNITY MEMBER AND PARENT NUMBERS WENT UP FROM 23 TO 48 THIS YEAR. SO MORE THAN DOUBLE, ALONG WITH OUR 4 STUDENT MEMBERS THAT WE HAD JOIN THIS YEAR. AND AGAIN, THEIR PERSPECTIVE WAS INCREDIBLE. I MEAN, WE JUST, WE CAN'T THANK THEM ENOUGH FOR BEING A PART OF OUR PROGRAM. [01:25:01] ALL RIGHT, SO THIS WAS ONE OF OUR MORE EXCITING THINGS THAT WE DID THIS YEAR IS, UM, GETTING TO RECOGNIZE THE GREAT WORK THAT'S HAPPENING ON OUR CAMPUSES. UH, THIS IS THE FIRST TIME WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO THIS, BUT WE HAD OUR 3 WINNERS WHO YOU GUYS ALREADY GOT TO SEE TODAY. BUT HERE IN THIS PICTURE IS HIGHLIGHTING SOME OF THE REASONS THAT THEY WON THESE AWARDS. SO YOU'VE GOT THE NORTHWOOD HILLS VOLLEYBALL CLUB THAT THEY JUST JUST STARTED. YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE PRESTONWOOD SNACKING CHALLENGE IN ACTION. AND THEN THE BOWIE MARATHON KIDS PROGRAM WAS SUCH A SUCCESS THAT THESE TWO— THIS STUDENT AND THE PE TEACHER RAN INTO EACH OTHER DOING A RACE OUTSIDE OF SCHOOL. SO THIS WAS COMPLETELY OUT IN THE COMMUNITY, RAN INTO EACH OTHER LITERALLY WHILE THEY WERE BOTH COMPETING, WHICH WE THOUGHT WAS JUST A REALLY COOL THING. OKAY, THIS IS THE OTHER REALLY GREAT THING. WE HAD A SHORT ANSWER PART OF OUR SUBMISSIONS, AND THIS IS ONE OF THE FAVORITE THINGS THAT WE PULLED FROM ALL OF THOSE SHORT ANSWER RESPONSES. I'M GONNA READ IT BECAUSE I THINK IT'S FABULOUS. WE ARE MOST PROUD OF THE CULTURE OF HEALTHY CHOICES AND LIVING WHILE SUPPORTING THE WHOLE CHILD IN BECOMING THE BEST VERSION OF THEMSELVES. THE LESSONS, PROGRAMS, AND ACTIVITIES AREN'T JUST TAUGHT IN THE SCHOOL BUT INTEGRATED INTO THE STUDENTS' HOME LIVES AND COMMUNITY. OUR SCHOOL TRULY VALUES EXERCISE, MOVEMENT, AND HEALTHY LIVING, WHICH IS AMAZING. AND SO THIS WAS ONE OF THE THINGS WE DIDN'T REALLY ANTICIPATE WHEN WE ASKED FOR SUBMISSIONS, BUT ONE OF THE REALLY GREAT THINGS WE GOT TO HEAR WAS CAMPUSES EXPRESSING IN THEIR OWN WORDS WHAT IT MEANS TO THEM TO PUT HEALTH AT THE FOREFRONT OF WHAT THEY'RE DOING. SO IT WAS REALLY GREAT TO BE ABLE TO RECOGNIZE THEIR HARD WORK. YES, AND THAT QUOTE TRULY ENCOMPASSES WHAT WE WANTED THIS AWARD TO BE. AND SO SO JUST REALLY NEAT GETTING TO HEAR THAT FROM THEM. THESE ARE OUR SHOT GOALS FOR THIS UPCOMING SCHOOL YEAR. SO AGAIN, THAT CONTINUING GOAL OF EXPANDING MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS AND LOOKING AT SOME PROGRAMMING FOR THAT. AGAIN, IMPLEMENTING AND PILOTING CATCH AT LAKE HIGHLANDS MIDDLE SCHOOL FOR 6TH GRADE, FOREST MEADOW MIDDLE SCHOOL FOR 6TH GRADE, AND THEN MOSS HAVEN ELEMENTARY FOR ALL GRADE LEVELS. AND THEN DECREASING RSD STUDENT DRUG USAGE AND VIOLENCE. WE ARE LOOKING AGAIN THROUGH THE SUBCOMMITTEE AT THAT, AND SO THAT'S GONNA BE AN ONGOING THING THROUGHOUT THE NEXT SCHOOL YEAR. THEY HAVE HAD 2 MEETINGS NOW, UM, SO REALLY STILL JUST GATHERING SOME DATA AND FIGURING OUT THE NEXT STEPS THERE. WE WOULD LIKE TO EXPLORE SOME WAYS TO CONTINUE, UM, INCREASING OUR DATA COLLECTION AS FAR AS IT GOES WITH, UM, OUR WELLNESS PLAN. AND SO JUST FIGURING OUT HOW WE CAN REACH ALL OF OUR SCHOOLS AND THE BEST METHOD TO DO THAT. AND THEN EXPANDING OUR WHOLE CHILD AWARD AS WELL. WE WOULD LOVE TO CONTINUE OUR SHAC STUDENT ENGAGEMENT. AGAIN, ONE OF THE MOST FAVORITE THINGS THAT WE DID THIS YEAR. UM, JUST SO YOU KNOW TOO, WITH OUR STUDENTS, THE WAY THAT WE SELECTED THEM, WE LOOKED AT SPECIFICALLY THE CTE HEALTH PATHWAY STUDENTS AND OUR ATHLETIC TRAINERS. AND SO THOSE ARE THE KIDS THAT ARE LOOKING TO MAKE HEALTH A PART OF THEIR CAREER ONE DAY. AND SO THIS IS A GREAT WAY FOR THEM TO GET STARTED IN THAT. AND THEN INCREASING HEALTHY PROGRAM INITIATIVES IN OUR SCHOOLS WHO MAY NOT HAVE AS ACTIVE OF A PTA OR AS MUCH STUDENT ENGAGEMENT. THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE ARE REALLY PASSIONATE ABOUT. WE WANT TO FIND BETTER WAYS WAYS TO SUPPORT THERE. AND THEN IMPLEMENTING OUTDOOR EDUCATION CURRICULUM IN ALL GRADE LEVELS. AND WHENEVER WE TALK ABOUT OUTDOOR EDUCATION, THIS IS THROUGH PE. SO WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, LIKE, FISHING, HIKING, ORIENTEERING, THINGS LIKE THAT. OUR PE TEACHERS ARE SUPER EXCITED ABOUT THIS OPPORTUNITY, AND WE'RE EXCITED TO SHARE A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT, UM, HOW THAT'S GONNA BE IMPLEMENTED. BUT WE'RE— IT'S GONNA BE VERY, VERY EXCITING FOR EVERYBODY. SO EXCITED TO MAKE THAT ANNOUNCEMENT HOPEFULLY PRETTY SOON. UM, AND THEN ALSO LOOKING AT WAYS WE COULD MAYBE PARTNER WITH THE NEW, UM, ENVIRONMENTAL CENTER ON THAT TOO ONCE WE GET THIS ROLLING. SO WE HAVE LOTS OF BIG GOALS FOR '26-'27. WE ARE DREAMING BIG IN SHAC STILL INTO THE NEXT YEAR. AND THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR LISTENING AND AGAIN BEING SO SUPPORTIVE OF SHAC. AND, UH, AGAIN, JUST INCREDIBLE APPRECIATION TO BOTH OF YOU. I KNOW IT TAKES A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF TIME TO DO WHAT YOU DO ON AN— ON A DAILY BASIS, NOT ALONE, MEET TOGETHER, PLAN MEETINGS, FACILITATE THE MEETINGS, AND JUST MAKE ALL OF THIS HAPPEN. SO JUST AN IMMENSE AMOUNT OF GRATITUDE TO BOTH OF YOU. I ALSO WANTED TO SHARE, LIKE, AN ANECDOTE OF— I HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE AT A SHAC MEETING, AND AS THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT THESE THINGS, DR. LEEPER CAN PROBABLY ATTEST, ALL OF A SUDDEN I CALLED HER AND OUR MATH DIRECTOR, AND I WAS LIKE, OKAY, HOW DO WE BUILD IN AT THE ELEMENTARY, UM, IN, FOR EXAMPLE, IN 3RD GRADE, WHEN WE KNOW THEY HAVE TO KNOW THEIR MULTIPLICATION TABLES, THAT IN THE MIDDLE OF THEIR MATH BLOCK WE GET THEM UP AND MOVING AND THEY GO OUT AND THEY DO DIFFERENT GAMES WITH, LIKE, WHILE THEY'RE PRACTICING THEIR FLUENCY OF MULTIPLICATION FACTS. LIKE, HOW DO WE BUILD THAT IN SO THAT IT'S A REMINDER TO OUR TEACHERS ALWAYS ABOUT HOW GREAT IT IS TO GET OUR KIDS UP AND MOVING? SO, LIKE, IT WAS EVEN JUST, LIKE, THIS INSPIRATION TO ME OF, LIKE, GOSH, HOW DO WE PROVIDE MORE TOOLS AND MORE, UH, JUST SUPPORT FOR OUR TEACHERS TO UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF WHEN WE GET OXYGEN TO THE BRAIN, UM, WHAT THAT CAN EVEN MEAN FOR STUDENTS BEING ABLE TO PROCESS INFORMATION AND MOVE IT FROM, YOU KNOW, A LOW LEVEL OF UNDERSTANDING TO MASTERY. SO YOU, YOU EVEN IMPACTED ME, [01:30:01] SO THANK YOU. UH, WITH THAT, UH, PRESIDENT POTY, WE'RE HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS, UM, OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD. ALL RIGHT, AND WE'RE GOING TO INTEGRATE IT INTO BOARD MEETINGS AS WELL, RIGHT? I MEAN, YOU JUST WAIT. EXCELLENT. NEW YEAR, NEW EXERCISE. ALL ALL RIGHT, BOARD MEMBERS, DO WE HAVE COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS ON THE PRESENTATION? WE'LL START MISS TIMMY AND THEN MISS PACHECO. YEAH. YES. GREAT PRESENTATION. UM, I, I WANNA, I DO HAVE ONE QUESTION AND THEN I HAVE SOME COMMENTS. YOU TALKED ABOUT THE NEW CURRICULUM THAT'S COMING IN 6TH GRADE. SHOULD ANY PARENTS WANT TO LOOK AT THAT, ARE THEY ABLE TO CONTACT YOU SO THAT THEY CAN VIEW IT? YES, ABSOLUTELY. THE PREVIEW THAT WE HAVE FROM CATCH, THEY CAN SEE LITERALLY EVERYTHING IN IT. SO IF ANYBODY NEEDS TO REACH OUT, ABSOLUTELY. EXCELLENT. UM, I, I JUST WANNA SAY I'VE BEEN, YOU KNOW, AS A TEACHER, PRINCIPAL IN THE DISTRICT, AND THEN ALSO BEING ON THE BOARD, I'VE BEEN ON A LOT OF COMMITTEES, A LOT OF COMMITTEES. UM, AND I WANNA SAY THAT I THINK ALL OF THEM ASPIRE TO HAVE LIKE PARENT FEEDBACK AND TO, TO REALLY BE LIKE A PARTNERSHIP. AND I CAN SAY WITHOUT DOUBT, THIS HAS BY FAR BEEN THE BEST ONE I'VE EVER BEEN A PART OF. IT GOES TO YOUR FACILITATION. IT GOES TO THE FACT OF THE PARTNERSHIP THAT YOU GUYS REALLY HAVE WITH PARENTS. UM, THEY COME IN, THEY, THEY MAKE THEIR OWN SUBCOMMITTEES, RIGHT, FROM PARENT SUGGESTIONS. UM, IT IS A DIVERSE GROUP OF THINKERS IN THERE. WE'RE TALKING LIKE, LIKE EVERY END OF THE SPECTRUM. THEY COME IN THERE AND HAVE GREAT CONVERSATIONS, UM, AND REALLY WORK TOGETHER TO FIND OUTCOMES FOR KIDS. UM, SO I JUST WANNA SAY THAT I CANNOT SAY ENOUGH ABOUT HOW GREAT THIS COMMITTEE'S BEEN, WHAT A GREAT JOB YOU'VE DONE FACILITATING, HOW YOU'VE WORKED WITH PARENTS. IT'S SUCH A GREAT GROUP OF PARENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS ON THERE. I JUST CANNOT SAY ENOUGH ABOUT THE, THE JOB YOU GUYS HAVE DONE. UM, I DO WANT TO, UM, JUST, JUST THE THOUGHT, LIKE, I THINK WE ARE HERE FOR THE STUDENTS' ACADEMICS AND WE REALLY WANT STUDENT OUTCOMES, BUT IT REALLY— THE WHOLE CHILD IS SO IMPORTANT. I THINK SOME OF THE THINGS THAT THEY HIGHLIGHT ARE FANTASTIC, AND TO YOUR POINT, WOULD BE GETTING OXYGEN TO THE BRAIN, RIGHT? LIKE, IT ALWAYS IS BETTER WHEN I'M AT WORK. WORK, RIGHT? SOME OF THOSE THINGS THAT THE SNACKING, UM, THEY DO A REALLY GREAT JOB OF PUTTING PROGRAMS TOGETHER, BUT IT IS ALSO HARD TO GET THE WORD OUT AND TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S AS IMPORTANT AS THE OTHER THINGS AS WELL. I HOPE THAT WE CAN FIND A WAY THERE. YOU KNOW, THEY'RE NOT— THE COMMITTEE ITSELF CAN ONLY BRING THESE RECOMMENDATIONS FORWARD. IT CAN SUGGEST IT, BUT THEY CAN'T MAKE IT AS IMPORTANT AS OTHER PEOPLE CAN IN THE DISTRICT. SO I'M JUST— I, I JUST WANT TO PUT A PLUG IN FOR THAT, THAT THE THINGS THEY'RE DOING HOME, JUST BEING IN PRINCIPAL NEWSLETTERS, JUST FINDING WAYS TO HIGHLIGHT THE GREAT WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING BECAUSE IT'S GOING TO BENEFIT ALL STUDENTS. UM, SO I HOPE THAT THAT CAN HAPPEN. UM, AND THEN ALSO TOO, I WANTED TO GIVE JUST A SHOUT OUT TO THE CHILD NUTRITION TEAM. FOR ANY SCHOOL ATTENDANTS, FIRST OFF, THEY KILLED IT IN THEIR PRESENTATION. LET ME JUST SAY, I'VE BEEN A— AGAIN, I WAS A PRINCIPAL FOR A LONG TIME. THIS IS NOT THE CHILD NUTRITION OF BACK IN MY DAY AS A STUDENT WITH OUR, LIKE, LIKE PIZZA SQUARES OR, LIKE, WHEN I WAS A PRINCIPAL. WHEN I TELL YOU THE THOUGHT THAT GOES INTO THAT, THE, UM, WAY THAT THEY GO ABOUT GETTING FEEDBACK FROM THAT, THE WAY THAT THEY WANT TO PARTNER, IT WOULD BE SUCH A COUP FOR ANY PTA TO BRING THE CHILD NUTRITION IN AND LET THEM SEE AND UNDERSTAND HOW THAT HAPPENS. I PROMISE YOU WILL LEARN SOMETHING AND IT WILL BE ONE OF THE MOST ENGAGING PRESENTATIONS YOU'VE HAD. I COULD NOT SAY ENOUGH ABOUT THAT. THAT. I JUST WANT TO SAY AGAIN TO YOU, I HOPE YOU WILL PASS ALONG TO EVERYBODY ON THE COMMITTEE WHAT A FANTASTIC JOB YOU'VE DONE. I THINK IT'S SO COMPELLING THAT IT— THAT WE, WE SHOULD HIGHLIGHT THIS WHOLE— THE WHOLE CHILD PIECE IN HERE. YOU GUYS HAVE DONE AN AMAZING JOB. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, MISS PACHECO. OKAY, GREAT. UM, I JUST LOVE EVERYTHING. I LIKE THE GOALS THAT YOU GUYS, UM, DID AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR. NOW YOU'VE MET THEM ALL, UM, AND CONTINUE TO WORK TOWARDS I'M SO EXCITED TO HEAR OF HOW MUCH BIGGER THE COMMITTEE IS AND, YOU KNOW, THE DIFFERENT SUBCOMMITTEES THAT CAME ABOUT. UM, JUST SO EXCITED. AND WITH THE 4 STUDENTS, I DO HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THAT. I KNOW YOU MENTIONED THAT YOU PICKED THE STUDENTS THAT ARE IN LIKE SPORTS MEDICINE OR HEALTH TRACK. UM, DO THEY APPLY OR IS THERE LIKE AN APPLICATION THAT'S OPEN NOW FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE THINKING ABOUT IT? ARE THEY SENIORS? WHAT GRADE LEVELS ARE THESE STUDENTS IN? IN? SO WE TARGETED JUNIOR— JUNIORS AND SENIORS, UM, AND WE DID HAVE AN APPLICATION, AND SO WE PUSHED THAT OUT THROUGH THE TEACHERS OF THOSE SPECIFIC PROGRAMS, AND THEN THEY, UM, HANDED IT OVER TO THEIR STUDENTS, AND THEN WE REVIEWED THE APPLICATIONS, AND WE PICKED ONE PERSON FROM EACH FEEDER PATTERN. SO RIGHT NOW WE HAVE IT TO WHERE THE JUNIORS WOULD CONTINUE AS A SENIOR IN THAT POSITION, SO WE WILL HAVE SOME CONTINUITY THERE. OBVIOUSLY THE SENIORS WILL GRADUATE AND WILL UM, WE'LL DO APPLICATIONS FOR THOSE LEARNING COMMUNITIES AND REPLACE THEM. THAT'S EXCITING. I, I LOVE THAT YOU INTEGRATED THEM, UM, AND THAT THEY'RE FEELING LIKE THEY'RE A PART OF IT AND, AH, HOPEFULLY ALSO MAKING CHANGE, RIGHT, FOR THE FUTURE GENERATIONS IN OUR SCHOOLS. SO THAT'S REALLY GREAT. THAT'S EXCITING. I LOVE THAT THEY GET TO EXPERIENCE SOMETHING THAT THEY'LL BE DOING IN THEIR FUTURE CAREERS. [01:35:02] UM, AND THEN THE AWARD, I WAS JUST SO HAPPY TO SEE 3 SCHOOLS BEING THAT IT'S LIKE YOUR FIRST YEAR OF IMPLEMENTING THIS WHOLE CHILD AND THIS IS SOMETHING THAT, AS A DISTRICT, OF COURSE, WE ALL FOCUS ON, RIGHT? WE WANNA TAKE CARE OF ALL OF THE CHILD. AND, UM, I WAS JUST REALLY— JUST LOVED IT. AND I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE MORE PARTICIPATION, A LOT MORE SCHOOLS, AND JUST, YOU KNOW, INTEGRATING EVERYTHING THAT YOU GUYS HAVE PLANNED OUT. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL OF THE HARD WORK. UM, IT'S BEEN EXCITING, AND CONGRATULATIONS. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, OTHER BOARD MEMBERS, COMMENTS? MR. I ALSO WANTED JUST TO DITTO WHAT A GREAT PRESENTATION IT WAS. UM, I KNOW AT THE TIME THAT I WAS ABLE TO SERVE ON THAT COMMITTEE, UH, LIKE WHAT MS. TIMMY JUST SAID, IT IS— YOU GUYS HAVE ALWAYS DONE A FANTASTIC JOB. UM, I'VE ALWAYS LOVED THE, UM, AGAIN, THE PARTICIPATION OF EVERYBODY, HOW EVERYBODY HAS A VOICE. UH, I ALWAYS LOVE SEEING THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS, HAVING OUR, OUR STAFF MEMBERS, UM, AND JUST ALWAYS GOING AWAY FROM ALL OF THOSE MEETINGS MEANS, UH, VERY WELL-INFORMED, RIGHT? SO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR CONTINUING THAT. UM, I DID HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE CURRICULUM ABOUT CATCH. I'M WONDERING, UM, I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH IT, SO I'M WONDERING IF YOU CAN JUST GIVE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT, WHAT EXACTLY DOES IT TARGET? WHAT, WHAT IS THE WHOLE POINT OF CATCH? IS, IS THAT AN ACRONYM? DOES IT STAND FOR SOMETHING? WHAT IS THE WHOLE THING? YES, SO CATCH STANDS FOR COORDINATED APPROACH TO SCHOOL HEALTH, OR TO, UH, COORDINATED HEALTH. AND SO, UM, IT COVERS ALL OF THE HEALTH TEKS. SO 6TH GRADE HAS A LOT OF HEALTH BUT THERE'S NO HEALTH COURSE FOR 6TH GRADE. AND SO IT'S TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHERE DOES THAT FALL INTO PLACE. AND SO BECAUSE ALL OF 6TH GRADE EITHER TAKES PRE-ATHLETICS OR PE, WE FIGURED THAT WOULD BE THE BEST PLACE TO IMPLEMENT THAT. UM, ALL OF THE LESSONS ARE READY-MADE, READY TO GO. SO, I MEAN, THEY'LL, THEY'LL GO OVER TOPICS SUCH AS PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, NUTRITION, UM, REFUSAL SKILLS, DECISION-MAKING SKILLS, THINGS LIKE THAT. SO ANYTHING THAT THEY WOULD COVER IN A NORMAL HEALTH CLASS FOR A 6TH GRADER, THAT'S WHAT THEY WOULD DO IN THAT COURSE. WE'RE ALSO LOOKING TO PARTNER WITH THE COUNSELING DEPARTMENT BECAUSE THEY DO COVER SOME OF THESE TEKS ALREADY. SO OBVIOUSLY WE DON'T WANT TO TAKE AWAY A TON OF TIME FROM OUR KIDS BEING PHYSICALLY ACTIVE, BUT THIS PIECE IS IMPORTANT AS WELL WHENEVER WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE WHOLE CHILD. SO ANYTHING THAT WOULD BE COVERED BY THE COUNSELING DEPARTMENT WOULD NOT ALSO BE COVERED BY PE. WE WOULD, UM, WORK TOGETHER AND COORDINATE THAT. PERFECT. THANK YOU FOR CLARIFYING THAT. THAT. AND I THINK THAT'S AWESOME. I THINK BECAUSE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE WHOLE CHILD AND HOW IMPORTANT THAT IS, RIGHT? I MEAN, WE, WE FOCUS A LOT AND WE HAVE GREAT, YOU KNOW, PE PROGRAMS AND ALL, BUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE MENTAL HEALTH, RIGHT, AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT EXPANDING THAT, I REALLY LOVE THAT. I LOVE THAT THAT GOAL IS THERE ABOUT EXPANDING OUR MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS, UM, FROM OUR ELEMENTARY ALL THE WAY UP TO OUR HIGH SCHOOL. SO, UM, I LOVE SEEING THAT. UM, ALSO, I THINK IT'S GREAT THAT ON HERE ONE OF THE GOALS IS TO REALLY INCREASE THIS SCHOOLS THAT DO NOT HAVE A ROBUST PTA. I THINK THAT'S SUPER, SUPER IMPORTANT, UM, BECAUSE THOSE SCHOOLS THAT DON'T HAVE A PTA OR AS, AS AN ACTIVE ONE, UH, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE AMAZING PARENTS AND I SEE THEM IN COMMITTEES LIKE THIS, BUT TO SEE THAT ON THOSE SCHOOLS THAT, THAT, THAT REALLY NEED THAT AS WELL TOO. SO THANK YOU FOR INCLUDING THAT AND JUST THANK YOU FOR THIS PRESENTATION AND FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU GUYS HAVE DONE. YOU GUYS HAVE DONE A WONDERFUL JOB. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MS. RANCHERIA. UM, OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? NOPE. OH, MISS HARRIS GOT IN RIGHT UNDER THE WIRE. YEAH, BECAUSE I REALLY DO LIKE THIS. I MEAN, I, I LOVE IT. I LOVE TALKING ABOUT THE WHOLE CHILD. I MEAN, IT JUST— IT, IT REMINDS ME OF MASLOW'S HIERARCHY, RIGHT? YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE NOT WELL HERE, YOU'RE NOT GONNA BE WELL HERE, YOU KNOW. AND SO IT IS SO, SO IMPORTANT, AND I DON'T THINK THAT A LOT OF OUR OUR FAMILIES REALLY TRULY UNDERSTAND THAT BECAUSE WE'RE TOO BUSY. WE'RE TOO BUSY TRYING TO DO OTHER STUFF. AND SO JUST TO HEAR, LIKE, MS. PINZRIA SAID, YOU KNOW, THOSE SCHOOLS THAT DON'T HAVE A PTA. I MEAN, I LOVE TO HEAR THAT BECAUSE, WELL, YOU KNOW, MY BACKGROUND IN PTA, SO I'M VERY FOND OF THAT. SO I APPRECIATE THAT. I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU. YES, MS. TIMMY. I'M SORRY, I DID WANNA HIGHLIGHT ONE MORE THING. I FORGOT, UM, UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS REALLY GREAT FOR THE COMMITTEE IS THAT THEY HAD WORKED SO HARD AND THEY HAVE IMPLEMENTED THESE PILOTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. AND YOU JUST HAVE— I MEAN, THEY'RE JUST ASKING PEOPLE TO VOLUNTEER, LIKE, WOULD YOU DO THIS, YOU KNOW? AND THEY'RE AGAIN NOT, UH, WITH NOT A LOT OF DECISION-MAKING POWER, RIGHT, TO DETERMINE THAT IT'S IMPORTANT. BUT YOU GUYS DID SUCH A GOOD JOB. AND THEN ALSO, DID YOU NOT HAVE A NEWS SEGMENT THAT HIGHLIGHTED THE DISTRICT AND THE GREAT WORK THAT WENT ON THAT WAS SPECIFICALLY FOR SHAC? AM I CORRECT? CAN YOU TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT? SO IT WAS FOR PE TEACHER AT MOSS HAVEN. SHE HAD— SHE, UM, OR REALLY WE BOUGHT IT FOR SEVERAL OF OUR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS. MOST OF THEM, THEY BOUGHT BRAIN BALLS. AND SO THEY HAVE— IT'S A, IT'S A BALL ABOUT THIS BIG, BOUNCES, ALL THAT, AND IT'S GOT LETTERS AND NUMBERS ON IT. AND SO IT'S BRINGING MATH AND READING INTO PE. IT'S REALLY, REALLY NEAT. SO THEY DID A WHOLE SEGMENT ON THAT. [01:40:03] THANK YOU, CARTER IN THE CLASSROOM. YES. AND OUR, UH, AND OUR PE TEACHERS HAVE LOVED THEM. IT'S BEEN, LIKE, SUCH A BIG HIT WITH THEM. THE KIDS LOVE IT, UM, THEY'RE DOING MATH AND READING IN PE AND ENJOYING IT. SO IT'S, IT'S BEEN REALLY, REALLY NEAT. I JUST THINK YOU GUYS HAVE GOTTEN SO MUCH TRACTION WITH A COMMITTEE AND PARENT— IT'S JUST PARTNERSHIPS AND THEN JUST FINDING WAYS TO HAVE IMPACT. AND SO AGAIN, I THINK IT'S— I, I THINK FIRST OFF, THIS IS A COMMITTEE THAT OTHER COMMITTEES CAN LOOK, CAN LOOK TO, TO FIND REALLY GREAT WAYS TO BE ENGAGING, UM, USING DIVERSE DIVERSE, YOU KNOW, THINKING PATTERNS, BUT ALSO TO HAVING GREAT THINGS COME OUT OF THAT THAT I HOPE WE CAN REPLICATE AND MAKE IMPORTANT IN ALL OF OUR SCHOOLS. ALL RIGHT, GREAT COMMENTS. ANY OTHERS FROM THE BOARD? OKAY, MASLOW'S HIERARCHY. WELL DONE. I HADN'T HEARD THAT IN A WHILE. THAT'S YOUR TAKEAWAY TONIGHT FROM US. SO, UM, I WILL SAY THAT, I MEAN, VERY IMPRESSED WITH THE GROWTH OF THE PARTICIPATION IN IT. UM, THERE'S A REASON THAT THINGS GROW EXPONENTIALLY LIKE THAT. AND ONE, IT'S USUALLY THERE'S A DEMAND FOR IT. AND TWO, IT'S THE LEADERS THAT PUT THE TIME AND EFFORT INTO ESCORTING THAT GROWTH AS IT GOES. SO BRAVO. UM, A LOT OF MOMENTUM. DON'T LOSE IT OVER THE SUMMER. LET'S KEEP THIS GOING INTO NEXT YEAR. AND I THINK YOU CAN JUST KEEP BUILDING ON IT. YOU'VE GOT A GOOD TEAM AND A LOT OF GOOD PARTICIPANTS. SO ALSO, UM, UH, USING THE STUDENTS. I MEAN, HOW MANY COMMITTEES DO WE HAVE AND HOW MANY DO WE— AND THE, THE VALUE WE GET OUT OF USING STUDENTS AND HAVING THEM BE A PARTICIPANT IN THAT AND GETTING THAT ON-THE-GROUND FEEDBACK FROM THE PEOPLE THAT ARE ACTUALLY PARTICIPATING. I MEAN, THAT'S KEY AND WE SHOULD BE DOING IT PROBABLY EVERYWHERE THAT WE'RE NOT, IF WE'RE NOT. SO, GREAT, GREAT COMMENT AND GREAT ACTIVITY. THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION, UH, BOTH OF THANK YOU. AND WE WILL TAKE A QUICK 10-MINUTE BREAK. SO WE'LL BE BACK HERE AT 8 O'CLOCK. UM, NOW— [IV.I. 2026- 2027 Compensation Consideration] WHAT DOES THAT HAVE TO SAY? OH, THAT'S RIGHT. THAT'S RIGHT. CHOICE. OUR NEXT ITEM IS AN INFORMATION ITEM TO RECEIVE A PRESENTATION REGARDING THE 2026-2027 COMPENSATION. MS. BRANDON. THANK YOU, PRESIDENT POTTEAT. UM, BOARD, THIS, AS YOU KNOW, REALLY HAS BEEN A MULTI-MONTH JOURNEY. WE STARTED THIS WORK IN JANUARY, UM, AND EACH MEETING WE'VE HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO BRING, UH, FORWARD ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AS WE HAVE RECEIVED IT, WHETHER IT'S WHERE WE BELIEVE WE'RE GONNA END THIS YEAR, THE DEMOGRAPHER'S PROJECTION, HOW DOES ALL OF THAT, UH, WEIGH INTO WHERE WE THINK OUR BUDGET WILL LOOK LIKE FOR NEXT YEAR. WE ARE NOW ON OUR 3RD MEETING WHERE WE HAVE TALKED ABOUT DIFFERENT COMPENSATION MODELS, AND EACH TIME WE HAVE USED YOUR FEEDBACK TO CONTINUE TO REFINE OPTIONS TO BRING FORWARD FOR THE BOARD'S CONSIDERATION. UM, AND SO TONIGHT, BASED UPON LAST MEETING'S, UH, FEEDBACK AS WELL AS THE MEETING BEFORE THAT, WE REALLY ARE KIND OF BRINGING FORWARD 2 MODELS FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION. UM, WE'RE ALSO BRINGING SOME UPDATED INFORMATION RELATED TO HEALTH INSURANCE. UH, INCREASES, AND THEY ARE PRETTY SUBSTANTIAL AGAIN. SO WE THOUGHT THAT THAT WAS IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO HAVE THAT ON YOUR, UM, RADAR AS WELL AS YOU'RE CONSIDERING A COMPENSATION INCREASE FOR '26-'27. UM, SO AT THIS POINT, I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO DR. GOODSON. HE'S GOING TO LEAD THE MAJORITY OF OUR CONVERSATION TONIGHT. THERE MAY BE OPPORTUNITIES AS WELL WHERE MR. PATE WILL CHIME IN, BUT DR. GOODSON, I'LL TURN IT OVER TO YOU. THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT BRANHAM. GOOD EVENING, BOARD. BOARD. UM, AS WITH EVERYTHING THAT WE DO, UM, EVEN OUR CONVERSATIONS REGARDING COMPENSATION REALLY HAVE TO ALIGN WITH OUR NORTH STAR GOAL. WE KNOW THAT IF WE TAKE CARE OF OUR EMPLOYEES, UM, THEY WILL HELP OUR STUDENTS REACH THEIR GOALS, AND SO TONIGHT'S CONVERSATION REALLY DOES FALL IN LINE WITH THAT. UM, AS MISS SUPERINTENDENT BRANHAM SHARED, WE WANT TO PASS ALONG A FEW MORE CONSIDERATIONS IN TERMS OF OPTIONS FOR COMPENSATION FOR NEXT YEAR. WE'VE MODELED OUT A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT UM, OPTIONS AND THEN INCLUDED A COMPARISON WITH SOME OF THE OTHER DISTRICTS WHO ARE AROUND US. AND THEN, AS MISS BRANHAM SAID, OUR, UH, FINAL COUPLE OF SLIDES ARE REGARDING THE INSURANCE RATES INCREASING. SO JUST TO KIND OF ANCHOR THIS CONVERSATION, JUST WANTED TO PRESENT THE GENERAL FUND MULTI-YEAR FORECAST, UH, ONE MORE TIME AND JUST GIVE YOU A FEW REMINDERS ABOUT IT. UH, THIS IS THE SAME MULTI-YEAR THAT WAS PRESENTED AT AT THE APRIL 23RD, UH, BOARD WORK SESSION. THERE HAVE BEEN NO CHANGES TO IT. UM, AND JUST TO GIVE YOU A FEW REMINDERS HERE, THE LARGE DECLINE IN REVENUE GOING FROM '25-'26 TO '26-'27 IS DUE TO SOME ONE-TIME REVENUE FROM TEA. IT WAS $6.8 MILLION, AND THAT WAS RELATED TO A PROPERTY VALUE PROTEST THAT OUR, UM, PROPERTY TAX ACCOUNTING FIRM, PURDUE BRAND AND DOES FOR US, UM, AS APPROPRIATE, THEY MONITOR THE, UH, WHETHER OR NOT IT CAN BE DONE AND WHETHER OR NOT IT WILL GENERATE, UH, REVENUE FOR US. [01:45:01] AND SO, UH, WE DID RECEIVE SOME OF THAT REVENUE IN '25-'26 THAT WE DO NOT EXPECT IN '26-'27. AND THEN OUR— JUST ANOTHER REMINDER, OUR REVENUE IS PRIMARILY DRIVEN BY STUDENT ENROLLMENT AND OF COURSE IS SUBJECT TO LEGISLATIVE ACTION AND IN ANY 5-YEAR FORECAST YES, THERE ARE TWO, UH, LEGISLATIVE SESSIONS. AND AS OUR ENROLLMENT DECREASES, OUR REVENUE DECLINES. AND AS PROPERTY VALUES INCREASE, UH, RECAPTURE INCREASES, BUT WE REALLY DO NOT BENEFIT FROM, FROM PROPERTY VALUE INCREASES ON THE GENERAL FUND SIDE. UM, YOU KNOW, THIS FORECAST INCLUDES THE $1 MILLION OF INCREASES AND THE $25.7 MILLION OF REDUCTIONS THAT WE PREVIOUSLY DISCUSSED FOR '26-'27. UH, THE FORECAST AS PRESENTED DOES NOT INCLUDE A RAISE AT THIS POINT. WE WILL BRING THIS BACK TO YOU, UH, NEXT WEEK, UH, ONCE THIS PRESENTATION'S OVER AND WE GET DIRECTION FROM THE BOARD. UM, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T HAVE VERY MUCH INFLUENCE OVER OUR REVENUE, BUT WE DO HAVE THE ABILITY TO CHANGE OUR EXPENDITURE PATTERNS. UM, SO, YOU KNOW, AS BAD AS THIS LOOKS, THIS DOES NOT HAVE TO BE OUR REALITY. UM, YOU KNOW, AND JUST ONE MORE THING TO ADD HERE, YOU KNOW, BEFORE INCLUDING THE COST OF A RAISE, OUR FUND BALANCE IS EXPECTED TO BE BELOW THE RECOMMENDED LEVEL OF 25% OF EXPENDITURES IN '27-'28. YOU CAN SEE THE FUND BALANCE TARGET AT THE BOTTOM, $105 MILLION IS 25% OF THE $421 MILLION IN TOTAL EXPENDITURES FOR '27-'28. WHEREAS OUR EXPECTED FUND BALANCE AT THIS POINT WITH NO OTHER CHANGES IS EXPECTED TO DROP TO $90 MILLION. AND IF WE ADOPTED A RAISE COSTING $10.8 MILLION FOR '26-'27, THAT WILL OF COURSE ADD THAT $10.8 MILLION TO ALL SUBSEQUENT YEARS, AND THAT DOES INCREASE THE FUND BALANCE TARGET BECAUSE IT DOES INCREASE THAT EXPENDITURE NUMBER. AND SO 25% OF $10.8 MILLION IS $2.7 MILLION. SO OUR FUND BALANCE TARGET WOULD GO UP BY THAT $2.7 MILLION EVERY YEAR. AND WITH THAT, I WILL TURN IT BACK OVER TO DR. GOODSON. AND IF I CAN JUST ADD AS WELL, UM, AS THE BOARD HAS TALKED ABOUT, IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT WE ALSO HAVE THE PERMANENT SCHOOL FUND THAT THE BOARD HAS HAD DISCUSSION AROUND POTENTIALLY USING THAT, UM, AS WE CONTINUE TO IDENTIFY THE EFFICIENCIES TO BRING THAT EXPENDITURE LINE DOWN AS WELL. SO IF THE BOARD DOES CONSIDER A RAISE, ONE OF THE OPTIONS, ER, ER, ONE OF THE CONSIDERATIONS THAT WE WOULD ABSOLUTELY BRING FORWARD IN OUR NEXT BOARD MEETING WOULD BE TO CONSIDER USING SOME OF THAT PERMANENT SCHOOL FUND, UM, AVAILABILITY TO HELP OFFSET WHILE WE CONTINUE TO BRING DOWN OUR EXPENDITURE LINE. AND THANK YOU, MS. BRANAMAN. JUST AS A REMINDER, THERE'S $27 MILLION IN THE LOCAL PERMANENT SCHOOL FUND. IT DOES NOT HAVE TO BE USED ALL AT ONCE. YOU COULD, UM, DIRECT US TO BRING IT IN A FOURTH EACH YEAR OR A THIRD EACH YEAR, UM, WHATEVER YOUR PLEASURE IS ON THAT. UM, AND YOU GIVE US, UM, DIRECTION. YOU SET THAT ASIDE, UM, AS A, YOU KNOW, SPECIAL REVENUE FUND. EVERY YEAR IN JUNE, IT IS ONE OF THE ACTION ITEMS I BRING FORWARD WHEN YOU RESTRICT FUND BALANCE, AND THAT IS IS ONE OF THE FUNDS YOU RESTRICT AND THEREFORE YOU CONTROL. OKAY, THANK YOU BOTH. SO I WANTED TO KIND OF PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT OF RECENT HISTORY IN TERMS OF THE, THE RAISES THAT HAVE BEEN APPROVED FOR TEACHERS, TEACHER TYPES, AND THEN ALL OTHER EMPLOYEES, JUST TO KIND OF REFRESH OUR MEMORY A LITTLE BIT. SO GOING BACK, UM, 5 YEARS, STARTING IN '21-'22, YOU CAN SEE WE ADOPTED, UH, BASICALLY AN APPROACH TO STRATIFY TEACHER RAISES, T-TYPE RAISES, INCREASES. AND AGAIN, T-TYPES ARE TEACHERS, LIBRARIANS, COUNSELORS, AND NURSES. AND SO FOR THOSE 3 YEARS, THE STRATIFIED RAISE BASICALLY DETERMINED THE PERCENT INCREASE THAT A TEACHER TYPE RECEIVED BASED ON THEIR YEARS OF COMPLETED SERVICE. IN '24-'25, YOU'LL RECALL, UM, YOU APPROVED THE BOLD MOVE TO COMPLETELY REFRAME AND RESTRUCTURE OUR TEACHER PAY SCALE, UH, BY INCREASING THE STEPS $500 IN BETWEEN EACH STEP STEP AND THEN INCREASING $1,000 IN BETWEEN AND THEN MOVING THE TEACHER TYPES TO THAT PARTICULAR STEP OR A 3% RAISE, WHICHEVER ONE WAS GREATER. AND THAT REALLY, AS YOU KNOW, REALLY KIND OF CHANGED THE GAME. LAST YEAR WAS UNIQUE BECAUSE OF THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION. WE WERE, WE WERE REQUIRED TO PROVIDE TEACHERS ONLY, CLASSROOM TEACHERS IN PEIMS CODE 087, WITH A SPECIFIC RAISE AS MANDATED BY STATE LAW WHERE TEACHERS WITH ONE 1 TO 4 YEARS RECEIVED A $2,500 INCREASE TO THEIR SALARY, AND TEACHERS WITH 5 YEARS OR MORE RECEIVED A [01:50:01] $5,000 INCREASE TO THEIR SALARY. WHAT THIS ALSO CAUSED US TO DO IS WE HAD TO BREAK APART THE T-TYPE GROUP. SO WE NEEDED TO HAVE THE CLASSROOM TEACHER GROUP, AND THEN WE TOOK THE LIBRARIANS, COUNSELORS, AND NURSES, THE OTHERS THAT WERE NON-087 T-TYPES, AND PUT THEM ON THEIR OWN INDIVIDUAL SCALE, WHICH YOU'LL SEE, UH, REFERENCED HERE NEXT. NEXT, UM, THIS WAS A NON-TEACHER PAY RAISE HISTORY, AND AGAIN, GOING BACK 5 YEARS, THE TYPICAL APPROACH WOULD HAVE BEEN TO JUST APPLY A PERCENTAGE INCREASE, UH, TO, TO ALL OF THE OTHER NON-TEACHERS. SO THAT WOULD HAVE INCLUDED PARAPROFESSIONALS, CAMPUS ADMINISTRATORS, AND OTHERS. AS YOU CAN SEE, STARTING IN '23-'24, YOU, YOU START TO INCORPORATE THE MARKET ADJUSTMENTS FOR IDENTIFIED GROUPS AND DIFFERENTIATING THE PAY RAISE BASED ON A PARTICULAR GROUP AS WELL. SO AT THAT TIME, FOR EXAMPLE, EXEMPT PROFESSIONAL STAFF RECEIVED A 3%. NON-EXEMPT PARAPROFESSIONALS, UH, AND CLASSIFIED STAFF RECEIVED A 4%. AND THEN WE TARGETED CUSTODIANS, ELECTRICIANS, HVAC, PLUMBERS WITH A SPECIFIC HIGHER PERCENT INCREASE TO ACCOMMODATE A MARKET ADJUSTMENT. AND THE SAME THING FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION AIDES. LAST YEAR WAS A SIMILAR— UM, 2 YEARS AGO, SORRY, WAS A SIMILAR APPROACH WITH A PERCENTAGE INCREASE, AND THEN WE TARGETED CUSTODIANS. LAST YEAR WAS, AH, A MUCH BROADER, UM, CATEGORY OF MARKET ADJUSTMENTS BECAUSE WE SAW THAT THERE WERE SEVERAL MORE POSITIONS THAT REALLY NEEDED TO BE TARGETED AND, AND CLOSE THE GAP BETWEEN WHERE WE WERE WITH THE SALARIES AND WHERE OTHER DISTRICTS WERE AS WELL. AND THEN YOU'LL SEE THAT'S WHERE WE WORKED IN THE NON-087T TYPES AND THEIR PARTICULAR PAY INCREASE OF, UM, 1 TO 10 YEARS RECEIVED A $2,500 INCREASE, AND THEN FOR 10 YEARS AND UP THEY RECEIVED A $3,000 $1,000 INCREASE. SO, GOING BACK TO WHAT WE KNOW, WE, WE KNOW THAT DISTRICTS ARE STILL, ARE STILL HAVING THE SAME CONVERSATION THAT WE'RE HAVING RIGHT NOW. WE HAD A HANDFUL THAT HAD KIND OF ALREADY PUBLICIZED WHAT THEY WERE GOING TO DO. MOST OF THOSE ARE THE SAME. WE ACTUALLY ADDED HIGHLAND PARK BECAUSE THEY RECENTLY COMMUNICATED WHAT THEIR PAY RAISE WAS GOING TO BE. SO, WE'VE LISTED THE DIFFERENT DISTRICTS AND THEN THE RAISES THAT THEY ARE PLANNING FOR '26-'27, AND THEN ON THE FAR RIGHT COLUMN, WE ARE SHOWING WHAT THEIR NEW TEACHER STARTING SALARY WILL BE FOR '26-'27. AND THEN JUST FOR AN ADDITIONAL COMPARISON, ON THAT FAR RIGHT SIDE WITH THE ARROWS, UM, THAT IS KIND OF SHOWING WHERE OUR NEW TEACHER STARTING SALARY WOULD BE IN COMPARISON TO THESE OTHER DISTRICTS. SO FOR EXAMPLE, IF WE DID NOT CHANGE THE NEW TEACHER STARTING SALARY AND LEFT IT AT $63,000, WE WOULD BE AT THE SAME LEVEL THAT GARLAND IS GOING TO START OUT WITH AT, IN, UH, '26-'27. IF YOU WENT WITH OPTION A, AND WE'LL REVIEW THESE IN A SECOND, BUT IF YOU WENT WITH OPTION A, THE NEW TEACHER STARTING SALARY WOULD BE $63,500, WHICH IS WHERE ROCKWALL WILL BE STARTING 26-27. AND THEN IF YOU WENT WITH OPTION B, THE NEW TEACHER STARTING SALARY WILL BE $64,000, WHICH IS WHERE PLANO IS GOING TO BE NEXT YEAR. SO JUST A BRIEF LITTLE COMPARISON. SO AS A REMINDER, WE, WE, UH, BASED ON THE FEEDBACK YOU GAVE US, WE HAVE THE TWO OPTIONS, OPTION A AND OPTION B. OPTION A, WE ARE BRINGING THE— BRINGING THE BAND BACK TOGETHER, SO TO SPEAK. WE HAVE ALL T-TYPES AGAIN, SO IT'S TEACHERS, LIBRARIANS, COUNSELORS, AND NURSES. AND FOR ANY EMPLOYEE WHO HAS A SATISFACTORY, UM, EVALUATION AND QUALIFIES FOR THE RAISE, THE, UH, INCREASE FOR TEACHER TYPES WITH 1 TO 10 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE WOULD BE $1,000, AND THEN FOR, UH, 11 YEARS AND UP WOULD BE $2,000. SO THEN WHAT WE'VE DONE IS WE'VE PROJECTED OUT OUT IN THE, UM, FOLLOWING BULLETS THERE, THIS IS WHAT A 5-YEAR TEACHER, 10-YEAR, 15, 20, AND 30-YEAR TEACHER WOULD BE MAKING IN '26-'27. SO IF I'VE COMPLETED 5 YEARS OF SERVICE, NEXT YEAR I'LL BE MAKING $66,000 AND THEN $71,000, $76,000, $81,000, AND $91,000 RESPECTIVELY. UH, IN THIS PARTICULAR SCENARIO, WE WOULD NEED TO HAVE THE 0-YEAR STARTING TEACHER SALARY FOR CERTIFIED TEACHERS AGAIN AT $63,500, AND THEN AGAIN, TO BE COMPLIANT WITH THE RECENT LEGISLATION, WE WOULD HAVE AN UNCERTIFIED TEACHER START OUT AT $63,000. PART OF BOTH OPTIONS THAT YOU'LL SEE TONIGHT THAT WE HAVE SHARED WITH YOU BEFORE THAT THE BOARD GAVE FEEDBACK ON, POSITIVE FEEDBACK ON, IS WE WOULD PROVIDE A 2% PAY INCREASE FOR ALL CENTRAL AND CAMPUS PROFESSIONALS, AND THEN WE WOULD ACTUALLY PROVIDE A 3% PAY INCREASE FOR PARAPROFESSIONAL AND, UH, PARAPROFESSIONAL AND AUXILIARY STAFF. UH, BECAUSE THOSE ARE TYPICALLY THE GROUPS THAT ARE STILL SOME OF THE LOWER SALARIED INDIVIDUALS IN THE DISTRICT. AND WE JUST BELIEVE THAT THAT IS, AH, ALMOST LIKE ANOTHER LITTLE MARKET INCREASE TO JUST HELP CLOSE THAT GAP AS WELL. SO WHAT I— WHAT WE DID, UM, TO KIND OF COMPARE EVEN A LITTLE BIT MORE IS WE— WE'VE ADDED KIND OF OPTION A DOWN THE LEFT-HAND SIDE IN TERMS OF THE YEARS OF SERVICE AND WHAT A NEW TEACHER WOULD BE MAKING AND WHAT A TEACHER WITH THESE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE WOULD BE MAKING NEXT YEAR. AND THEN WE WENT TO THESE DIFFERENT DISTRICTS TO SEE WHAT THEIR NEW TEACHER STARTING SALARIES WOULD BE AT THOSE SAME LEVELS. UH, WE'VE MADE THESE KIND OF COMPARISONS BEFORE AS WE'VE LOOKED [01:55:02] AROUND THE METROPLEX, BUT THIS IS LOOKING AT '26-'27 PROJECTED NUMBERS. AND SO, AS YOU CAN SEE, WITH A ZERO-YEAR TEACHER SALARY, WE WOULD BE— I THINK WE WOULD— WE CAN SAY WE WOULD STILL BE COMPETITIVE, BUT WE WOULD NOT BE AT THE TOP OF THE LIST FOR ANY ENTRY LEVEL. AS YOU GO TO 5 YEARS, WE WOULD BE THE LOWEST, BUT THEN WHAT I WANT YOU TO START TO NOTICE IS WITH 10 AND UP, WITH 10 YEARS, WE GO TO THE MIDDLE OF THE PACK AT $71,000 FOR A TEACHER WHO HAS 10 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE. AND THEN THE PATTERN CONTINUES TO HOLD WITH 15, 20, AND 25 YEARS, WE ARE GOING TO BE THE HIGHEST FOR ANY TEACHER WITH THOSE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE, EVEN FOR ANY OF THE OTHER DISTRICTS. NOW, IT IS VERY POSSIBLE THAT IN THESE DISTRICTS, A TEACHER, FOR EXAMPLE, WITH 15 YEARS EXPERIENCE WOULD MAKE MORE BECAUSE THIS IS THEIR NEW HIRE SCHEDULE. BUT I THINK IT JUST STILL GIVES US A GOOD BASELINE BECAUSE THEY, THEY MIGHT GET A DIFFERENT TYPE OF RAISE AND IT MIGHT PUT THEM IN A DIFFERENT PLACE. BUT THIS IS THE MOST RELIABLE WAY, AT LEAST AT THIS POINT, TO SEE THAT FOR 15, 20, AND 25 YEARS, WE WOULD STILL BE PAYING OUR EXPERIENCED TEACHERS MORE THAN OUR SURROUNDING DISTRICTS. SO THIS IS JUST WITH OPTION A. OPTION B, THE FRAMEWORK IS STILL THE SAME, UH, THE DOLLAR AMOUNT FOR THE T-TYPE IS JUST DIFFERENT. SO FOR 1 TO 10 YEARS, WE WERE LOOKING AT $1,500. FOR 11+ YEARS, IT'S $3,000. AND AGAIN, WE'VE PLOTTED OUT WHAT A 5-, 10-, 15-, 20-, AND 30-YEAR TEACHER WOULD BE EXPECTING TO MAKE FOR '26-'27. SO AGAIN, IF I'M COMPLETING 10 YEARS OF SERVICE, AND I GET A SATISFACTORY APPRAISAL, MY SALARY WILL BE $71,500 NEXT YEAR. SO THAT SAME PATTERN IS IN PLACE FOR THIS PARTICULAR SCENARIO. WE WOULD NEED TO HAVE OUR ZERO-YEAR STARTING TEACHER SALARY FOR CERTIFIED TEACHERS AT $64,000, AND WE WOULD RECOMMEND LEAVING, UM, THE ZERO-YEAR STARTING SALARY FOR UNCERTIFIED TEACHERS AT $63,500. AND THEN AGAIN, WITH THIS SCENARIO, FOR ALL OTHER EMPLOYEES EMPLOYEES, THOSE TWO, UM, THOSE TWO PROPOSALS ARE STILL THE SAME. SO AGAIN, COMPARING OPTION B TO THE OTHER DISTRICTS, IT'S A SIMILAR PATTERN. WE'RE NOT, UM, NOT ACTUALLY— WE'RE NOT QUITE AT THE BOTTOM ON THE ZERO YEAR. WE'RE ACTUALLY IN THE MIDDLE OF THESE GROUPS THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE— THESE DISTRICTS THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO COMPARE TO. FOR 5 YEARS, WE KIND OF GO DOWN TO THE, THE LOWEST OUT OF THIS PARTICULAR GROUP, UM, BUT THEN WHEN WE GET TO 10 YEARS, WE'RE BACK TO THE MIDDLE, AND THEN 15, 20, AND 25 WERE AT THE TOP AGAIN. AGAIN, KEEP IN MIND, WE WILL STILL KEEP LOOKING AROUND TO FIND OUT FROM OTHER DISTRICTS WHAT THEY'RE DOING, JUST SO WE CAN HAVE SOME— SOMEONE TO COMPARE TO. BUT FOR NOW, WE JUST FELT THIS WAS A GOOD WAY TO COMPARE IT WITH WHAT WE KNOW. SO HERE WE HAVE BOTH OPTIONS, UH, AND THE ASSOCIATED APPROXIMATE COSTS. AND THEN, AS A REMINDER, IN ADDITION TO OPTION A OR B, BOARD COULD CHOOSE TO DO A FLAT PERCENTAGE RAISE TO ALL EMPLOYEES. AND SO AGAIN WE'VE SHARED BEFORE 1% PAY INCREASE FOR ALL EMPLOYEES WOULD BE $3.6 MILLION APPROXIMATELY; 2%, UH, PERCENT RAISE WILL BE $7.2 MILLION AND THEN THE 3% WOULD BE $10.8 MILLION. SO NOW LET'S SWITCH GEARS TO INSURANCE WHICH IS EVERYBODY'S FAVORITE TOPIC I'M SURE. UM, AS A REMINDER WE ARE AMONG MANY DISTRICTS THAT USE— THAT, THAT ARE KIND OF SIGNED UP WITH THE STATE AS AN INSURANCE PROVIDER AND SO EVERY YEAR THE STATE PROVIDES WHAT THE RATES WILL BE TO THE DISTRICTS. WE DON'T CHOOSE THOSE RATES. WE DON'T, WE DON'T REALLY HAVE ANY SAY IN WHAT THE RATES WILL BE. SOMETIMES THE RATES COME IN A LITTLE EARLIER, LIKE NOW, BECAUSE I CAN'T REMEMBER REALLY THE LAST TIME WE GOT THESE RATES IN EARLY MAY. WE'VE GONE TO END OF MAY AND JUNE SOMETIMES BEFORE WE'VE GOTTEN THESE FIGURES FROM THE STATE. UH, UNFORTUNATELY, AS SUPERINTENDENT BRANHAM SHARED, THE PATTERN OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS IS THAT THE RATES CONTINUE TO INCREASE AND THAT IS STILL GOING TO HAPPEN NEXT YEAR. SO WHAT YOU CAN SEE, DEPENDING ON THE DIFFERENT PLAN, IF YOU LOOK ON THE FAR RIGHT UNDER THE AMOUNT COLUMN, THAT IS THE PROJECT— THAT IS THE INCREASE PER MONTH FOR THE EMPLOYEE BASED ON THE PLAN THAT THEY CHOOSE. SO AGAIN, THE, THE MOST POPULAR PLAN IS THE ACTIVECARE HD, AND SO YOU CAN SEE THAT IF IT'S EMPLOYEE ONLY, AN EMPLOYEE WILL BE PAYING $58 MORE PER MONTH FOR THAT PLAN, WHICH IS WHICH IS A 23% INCREASE. SO— AND JUST TO NOTE THAT WE HAPPEN TO LIVE IN, UM, THE REGION THAT SEES YEAR OVER YEAR THE HIGHEST INCREASE OF TRS PREMIUM INCREASES ACROSS THE STATE. UM, LAST YEAR IT WAS ABOVE 10%, UM, AND AGAIN THIS YEAR WE ARE SEEING AS, AS EVIDENCE ON THE SCREEN SEEING PREMIUM INCREASES AGAIN ABOVE 10%. SO WE— MR. PATE WAS ABLE TO KIND OF TAKE A LOOK AND SEE WHAT OUR SURROUNDING DISTRICTS WHO ALSO PARTICIPATE THROUGH TRS AS AN INSURANCE PROVIDER, WHAT THEIR, THEIR DISTRICT CONTRIBUTION IS, BECAUSE WE KNOW THE CONVERSATION IN THE PAST HAS ALSO BEEN, WELL, WHAT IF THE DISTRICT CONTRIBUTED MORE PER EMPLOYEE, [02:00:01] UM, TO SEE IF WE COULD JUST HELP BRING THOSE RATES DOWN IN TERMS OF THE IMPACT ON THE EMPLOYEES' PAYCHECK. AS YOU CAN SEE, WE'RE THIRD FROM THE BOTTOM WHEN WE COMPARE TO THESE OTHER DISTRICTS, UM, AND— BUT I ALSO WANT TO REMIND EVERYBODY THAT PART OF THE CONVERSATION OVER THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS IS, UM, TRYING OUR, TRYING OUR BEST TO PROVIDE BENEFITS THAT AFFECT ALL EMPLOYEES. AND SO JUST TO KEEP THAT FRAME IN MIND, THE, THE CONTEXT, YOU CAN SEE FOR SCHOOL— FOR THIS SCHOOL YEAR, WE HAVE 03,345 EMPLOYEES, WHICH WHICH WAS 58% OF ELIGIBLE EMPLOYEES WHO WERE ON OUR INSURANCE. LAST YEAR WE HAD 3,460, WHICH WAS ABOUT 61% OF ELIGIBLE EMPLOYEES. AND SO WE DID SOME ROUGH MATH. IF WE WERE TO INCREASE OUR CONTRIBUTION FROM $313 TO $330, THAT'S AN ADDITION TO THE BUDGET OF $17. UM, BUT I MEAN, THE CALCULATION WOULD BE $17 FROM $313 TO $330, BUT THE, AH, ESTIMATED IMPACT ON THE OPERATING BUDGET WILL BE $683,000. $750,000 ROUGHLY. UM, AN INCREASE TO $340, A $27 INCREASE WOULD BE APPROXIMATELY $925,000. AND JUST AS A REMINDER, UM, THE BOARD HAS ALWAYS, AT LEAST I SHOULDN'T SAY ALWAYS, IN THE LAST FEW YEARS, THIS BOARD'S APPROACH HAS BEEN WE RECOGNIZE THAT THIS IS AN INCREASE, BUT JUST AS A REMINDER, IF WE INCREASE OUR CONTRIBUTION, NUMBER ONE, IT DOES NOT CONTRIBUTE TOWARD TOWARDS TRS. UM, AND NUMBER 2, IF YOU, UM, INVEST THAT SIGNIFICANT DOLLAR AMOUNT IN INCREASING OUR CONTRIBUTION, IT, IT ONLY IMPACTS, FOR EXAMPLE, THE 58% OF EMPLOYEES THAT ARE ACTUALLY USING TRS. AGAIN, NOT SAYING THAT THAT'S NOT IMPORTANT AND WE RECOGNIZE THE INCREASES OF IT, BUT THAT IS WHY THE BOARD HAS CONTINUED TO, UM, REALLY TARGET MAKING STRATEGIC INVESTMENTS IN COMPENSATION BECAUSE THAT IT HELPS ALL STAFF AND IT HELPS, UM, WITH OUR STAFF'S TRS BENEFITS. SO JUST WANTED TO KEEP THAT AT THE FOREFRONT AS, AS YOU ALL ARE PROCESSING THIS INFORMATION. SO THOSE ARE ACTUALLY ALL THE SLIDES THAT WE HAVE FOR TONIGHT. SO, UM, WE'RE DEFINITELY OPEN TO ANY QUESTIONS OR ANY FEEDBACK. AND SO BOARD, REALLY TONIGHT, UM, IT, IT, AGAIN, IT IS MAY, UM, AND WE HAVE 11, UH, MORE MORNINGS LEFT OF THE 25-26 SCHOOL YEAR. '26 SCHOOL YEAR, AND WE WOULD, UM, WE WOULD LOVE IF, IF THE BOARD FEELS LIKE WE CAN HAVE SOME GENERAL CONSENSUS, UM, ON A PATH FOR COMPENSATION, BECAUSE WE WOULD LOVE TO COMMUNICATE THAT BEFORE THE STAFF LEFT, UM, FOR THE SUMMER BREAK. AND SO AT THIS TIME, WE FEEL LIKE WE HAVE PRESENTED YOU WITH WHERE WE'RE GOING TO END THE YEAR, WHERE WE'RE GOING TO FORECAST THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR. WE KNOW WE'RE GOING INTO A LEGISLATIVE SESSION. WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO MAKE SIGNIFICANT REDUCTIONS IN OUR EXPENDITURE LINES. WE ALSO KNOW THAT, UM, WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO, UH, BUILD ON THE MOMENTUM THAT THIS BOARD HAS MADE TO ADDRESS COMPENSATION, TO ADDRESS, UM, YOU KNOW, LOWERING OUR TURNOVER RATE. UM, AND SO I, I BELIEVE— I HOPE WE HAVE BROUGHT THE INFORMATION THAT THE BOARD NEEDS TO PROVIDE US THE FEEDBACK THAT WE NEED TO KNOW WHAT DIRECTION TO MOVE FORWARD AS, UM, WE WORK TO FINALIZE THE BUDGET THAT WE'RE GONNA BRING FORWARD FOR YOUR ADOPTION IN JUNE. SO WITH THAT, WE'RE HAPPY TO TAKE QUESTIONS AND FEEDBACK. OKAY. AND, AND I APPRECIATE A LOT OF THIS, I THINK, ADDRESSES SOME OF OUR, UM, QUESTIONS THAT WE HAD IN THE LAST MEETING. AND I KNOW BENCHMARKING WAS A BIG QUESTION THAT WE HAD. AND SO I APPRECIATE YOU BRINGING THAT. SO THAT SAID, BOARD, UH, QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, WE'LL GO AROUND. MS. MCGOWAN. BECAUSE MISS TIMMY LET ME GO FIRST. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, UM, SO THIS IS STUFF I REALLY ENJOY AND FEEL REALLY PASSIONATE ABOUT, UM, THE BENEFITS, OF COURSE, FOR THE TEACHERS. BUT FIRST QUESTION IS, SO IF YOU HAVE A 30-YEAR, LIKE, VETERAN TEACHER FROM ANOTHER DISTRICT, CAN THEY COME HERE AND THEY START— THE STARTING SALARY IS $91,000? YES, MA'AM. MHM. ONCE WE GET SERVICE RECORDS AND CAN VERIFY THAT THEY HAVE TH-THAT MANY YEARS OF SERVICE, THAT WOULD BE THEIR SALARY. SALARY AS A NEW RISD TEACHER WITH THAT MANY YEARS OF EXPERIENCE. AND SO AGAIN, A 30-YEAR TEACHER OR A 25-YEAR TEACHER GOING TO ANY OF THESE OTHER DISTRICTS, THIS IS WHAT THEY WOULD BE MAKING. FOR US, 25 YEARS WILL BE A $91,000 SALARY. TRUSTEE MCGOWAN, IF YOU REMEMBER IN, UH, FEBRUARY WHEN DR. GOODSON PROVIDED THE HR REPORT, IF YOU REMEMBER THAT YEARS OF SERVICE, UM, AGAIN, THANKS TO THIS BOARD IN THE LAST LAST 3 YEARS, OUR YEARS OF SERVICE, REMEMBER WE WERE VERY HEAVY IN THAT 0 THROUGH 5, AND IN THE LAST 3 YEARS WE ARE SEEING A SHIFT WITH REALLY BEING ABLE TO RETAIN OUR MORE VETERAN TEACHERS. NOW AGAIN, WE APPRECIATE ALL TEACHERS AND YOU NEED A BALANCE OF ALL OF THEM IN OUR CLASSROOMS ACROSS THE DISTRICT, UM, BUT I THINK TRUSTEE EAGER HAS BROUGHT UP MANY TIMES IT, IT, UM, IT IS AN INVESTMENT WHEN WE HAVE SOMEONE NEW, UM, AND A NEW TEACHER JOIN THE TEAM, AND IT REALLY TAKES THAT [02:05:01] 3 TO 5 YEARS BEFORE THEY ARE SEASONED AND THEY ARE, ARE FUNCTIONING AT THAT HIGHEST LEVEL. SO MOVING THAT, AGAIN, AS WE KNOW, WE, WE KNOW, UM, AND THE BOARD IS HOLDING US ACCOUNTABLE FOR SEEING THOSE OUTCOMES, UM, AS A RESULT OF BEING ABLE TO RETAIN OUR VETERAN TEACHERS. YEAH, I THINK THAT'S SUPER EXCITING. UM, THAT TO ME IS THE MOST EXCITING PART OF ALL OF THIS IS THE VETERAN TEACHER PAY IN SOME WAYS, BECAUSE IT'S A, IT'S A REALLY REALLY GREAT RECRUITING TOOL AS WELL. SO HOPEFULLY THAT HELPS ON THE RECRUITING SIDE. UM, SO AS WE GET CLOSER TO THIS, THIS, THE VOTE, UH, THE SALARY INCREASE, WHICHEVER PACKAGE WE DECIDE TO CHOOSE, I THINK HAVING REALLY CLEAR EXPECTATIONS AND MESSAGING IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO STAFF ABOUT OUR DISTRICT'S EXPECTATIONS, WHICH TO ME RESULTS MATTER. ACCOUNTABILITY IS CRUCIAL. AND THIS IS A HUGE INVESTMENT THAT WE'RE— I MEAN, LIKE, YOU AND YOUR TEAM HAVE CREATED WITH NEW SCHOOLS AND ALL THE THINGS, AND THEN THIS. UM, I THINK THE MESSAGING IS JUST REALLY CRITICAL AT THIS TIME THAT WE PUT THE BEST TEACHERS, WHICH THAT IS OUR CHARGE. WE ARE ALSO PASSIONATE ABOUT PUTTING THE BEST TEACHERS IN FRONT OF THESE KIDS EVERY SINGLE DAY. SO I JUST HOPE THAT'S JUST REALLY LOUD, UM, PEOPLE HEAR IT, THEY UNDERSTAND IT, THAT WE'RE REALLY JUST NOT GOING TO, UM, WE'RE GONNA HOLD THEM ACCOUNTABLE, RIGHT? AND, AND WE'RE GONNA, WE'RE GONNA BE WATCHING AND, AND EXCITED AND CHEERING THEM ON AT THE SAME TIME. BUT WE WANT TO INVEST. WE ARE EXCITED ABOUT INVESTING. I'M EXCITED ABOUT SALARY INCREASES, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE THE BEST PEOPLE IN FRONT OF THOSE KIDS EVERY SINGLE DAY. UM, THE OTHER QUESTION IS, I KNOW THAT THESE, SOME OF THE DISTRICTS, WELL, MESQUITE HAS LEFT TRS. US AND THEY'RE DOING THE SELF-FUNDING AND THEY'RE CONTRIBUTING $556 TO THEIR EMPLOYEES' INSURANCE PLANS. AND I GUESS THAT'S BECAUSE SELF-FUNDING IS CHEAPER. HAVE WE RESEARCHED— IT'S NOT CHEAPER. OH, IT'S NOT? NO. SO HOW ARE THEY ABLE TO— WELL, THAT'S WHY THEY HAD TO ANNOUNCE $27 MILLION IN BUDGET REDUCTIONS FOR THIS YEAR. UH, ER, NO, BEING SELF-FUNDED DOES— IS, IS NOT NECESSARILY INEXPENSIVE IN, UM, AND AS I, I, I WAS ACTUALLY AT A RECENT SUPERINTENDENT MEETING IN WHICH THERE WERE 4 DISTRICTS THAT WERE CURRENTLY SELF-FUNDED. AND YOU HAVE TO BE— ONCE YOU LEAVE TRS, YOU HAVE TO BE OUT 4 OR 5 YEARS BEFORE YOU CAN GET BACK. AND ALL OF THESE DISTRICTS, THEY WERE ACTUALLY OPTING BACK INTO TRS, AND THIS IS THEIR FIRST YEAR THEY COULD GET BACK IN TRS. BECAUSE JUST LIKE WE ARE SEEING IN OUR AREA, THE UH, COST FOR HEALTHCARE, EVEN IF YOU'RE SELF-FUNDED, IS INCREASING AT THAT SAME EXPONENTIAL RATE. YEAH. UM, AND AGAIN, OUR TEAM, WE DO NOT SEE THAT WE ARE INSURANCE EXPERTS, AND THE BUYING POWER OF BEING IN TRS, WE FEEL LIKE WE GET MORE BANG FOR THE BUCK, MORE PROVIDERS THAT ARE ACROSS THE STATE IF SOMEONE TRAVELS. MHM. BUT WE JUST FEEL LIKE THIS IS A MUCH MORE SUSTAINABLE AND, UH, MORE HOLISTIC COVERAGE THAN WHAT WE COULD DO IF WE WERE DOING IT INDEPENDENTLY. MR. PATE, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'D WANT TO CHIME IN WITH ANYTHING ELSE. EXCUSE ME. YES, I WOULD ABSOLUTELY AGREE WITH THAT. I HAVE, UH, WHEN I STARTED MY CAREER, I STARTED IN A DISTRICT THAT WAS SELF-FUNDED, AND THE LAST 3 YEARS THAT WE WERE SELF-FUNDED BEFORE WE WERE ABLE TO GET INTO TRS ACTIVECARE, WE WERE PUMPING IN WE WERE ADDING $10 MILLION A YEAR INTO OUR HEALTH SELF-INSURANCE FUND OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND TO PROP THAT UP. UM, IT ALSO JUST CREATES A WHOLE OTHER, UH, SERIES OF PROBLEMS, AS MS. BRANHAM MENTIONED. THE FIRST ISSUE IS, UH, GENERALLY YOUR PROVIDER NETWORK IS VERY SMALL, AND IT'S PRIMARILY RIGHT HERE IN NORTH TEXAS. AND SO, UM, WHEN I WAS SELF-INSURED, BEFORE WE HAD IN-NETWORK DOCTORS HERE IN THE METROPLEX, AUSTIN, AND COLLEGE STATION. UM, AND SO IF YOU HAD CHILDREN IN COLLEGE OR WERE TRAVELING ANYWHERE ELSE IN THE STATE, UH, IT WAS AN EMERGENCY ROOM VISIT TO, UM, GET MEDICAL CARE. UH, THE OTHER THING IS WE AS A DISTRICT ARE EXPECTED THEN TO BE EXPERTS IN HEALTHCARE, AND WE CONTROL ALL THE DECISIONS AND THEREFORE WE ARE RESPONSIBLE AND BLAMED FOR ALL OF THE DECISIONS RELATED TO THE HEALTH INSURANCE PLAN. THAT MAY HAVE BEEN A LITTLE MORE BLUNT THAN YOU WERE LOOKING FOR OF AN EXPLANATION, BUT— THAT'S GREAT. THAT'S A GREAT REASON TO NOT BE SELF-FUNDED. THANKS. OKAY, UH, MY LAST QUESTION IS THE, UM, PERMANENT SCHOOL FUND, RIGHT? YES, MA'AM. WHICH IS ALSO KNOWN AS RAINY DAY. IT, IT'S SIMILAR. I, I, [02:10:01] I WOULD SAY THAT'S KIND OF IN COMMON, YOU KNOW, WHAT YOU WOULD DO IN YOUR HOUSE. YOU, YOU KNOW, YOU PUT ASIDE A SAVINGS FOR THE ABSOLUTE, YOU KNOW, I'M NOT GONNA TAP INTO THIS UNTIL WE REALLY, REALLY NEED IT. MHM. UM, AND I THINK THAT, THAT ALL ALONG WHEN, WHEN, ER, PAST BOARDS CREATED THIS INVESTMENT, IT WAS, THERE MAY BE A DAY WHEN IT TRULY IS A RAINY DAY AND WE WANT TO GIVE THE FLEXIBILITY TO FUTURE BOARDS TO TAP INTO THIS SAVINGS ACCOUNT WHEN IT'S REALLY NEEDED. OKAY. I, I WANTED JUST TO GET SOME CLARIFICATION ON WHAT THOSE FUNDS WERE EARMARKED FOR. UM, THEY ARE— THEY, AH, THOSE FUNDS ARE LITERALLY, AH, SET ASIDE AND YOU APPROVE THE SET ASIDE OF THOSE EVERY YEAR. UM, THERE IS NO ONE ON OUR CABINET TEAM NOR I CAN ACTUALLY ACCESS THOSE FUNDS WITHOUT BOARD APPROVAL. SO IT WOULD NOT BE ANYTHING THAT WE WOULD EVER HAVE THE, THE ACCESS TO WITHOUT COMING TO THE BOARD AND SPECIFICALLY SAYING THIS IS HOW WE WOULD USE ANY PORTION OF THE, THOSE FUNDS. SO IF THE BOARD DID DECIDE TO USE ANY PART OF THE PERMANENT SCHOOL FUND IN ADOPTING THE, THE, A BUDGET FOR '26-'27, YOU WOULD ACTUALLY TAKE TWO DIFFERENT ACTIONS, ACTIONS TO BASICALLY RELEASE ANY OF THOSE FUNDS FROM THE PERMANENT SCHOOL FUND AND THEN ADOPTING THE ACTUAL BUDGET. IT. I THINK IT'S GREAT WE HAVE THESE FUNDS SET ASIDE, AND I WOULD HATE TO SEE OUR DISTRICT HAVE TO TOUCH THAT. SO THAT'S ALL. THANK YOU. OKAY, MISS TIMMY. YES, THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE YOU GUYS BENCHMARKING IT OUT. IT, IT'S REALLY HELPFUL TO BE ABLE TO LOOK AT IT TO REALLY UNDERSTAND KIND OF WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT, BECAUSE AGAIN, THESE ARE BIG DECISIONS, THEIR RAMIFICATIONS, AND BE SURE WE'RE BEING GOOD STEWARDS OF OUR FUNDS. BUT ALSO TOO THE IMPORTANCE OF HAVING, YOU KNOW, EXPERIENCED TEACHERS AND OTHER— AND HAVING THE BEST TEACHERS IN THE CLASSROOM CERTAINLY ARE, UM, IS CERTAINLY ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECES. CAN, CAN WE GO BACK AND LOOK AT THE, UM, SLIDE THAT HAD THE COMPARISON OF ALL THE DISTRICTS? YES. UH, CAN WE DO THE 91,000 ONE? WHOEVER HAS THAT ONE? YEAH, PERFECT. I DID JUST WANT TO SAY, FIRST OFF, KUDOS TO YOUR TEAM AND TO OUR BOARD FOR TAKING CARE OF COMPRESSION. I JUST— IF YOU LOOK AT THAT, THAT. I CANNOT IMAGINE GOING MY ENTIRE CAREER— AND IF YOU EVEN TAKE THE ONE THAT HAS THE LARGEST DISPARITY IN THEIR, UM, COMPRESSION, IT'S ROCKWELL, WITH LIKE $17,000. I CANNOT IMAGINE GOING AN ENTIRE CAREER AND ONLY HAVING THE ABILITY TO IMPROVE MY, UM, MY INCOME BY $17,000 25 YEARS AFTER I STARTED. THAT'S INSANE. UM, AND SO I SAY THAT TO SAY THAT I'M INCREDIBLY PROUD OF OUR BOARD FOR ADDRESSING COMPRESSION FOR OUR TEACHERS AND UNDERSTANDING THAT THAT IS LIFE-CHANGING FOR OUR TEACHERS HAVING THAT. AND, UM, ON THAT NOTE, MISS BRANHAM, I'M GOING TO ASK YOU, AND THEN IF YOU NEED TO ASK ANYBODY ELSE, FOR SURE, THE TEACHER RETENTION ALLOTMENT. CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT AND HOW THAT IMPACTS US AND THEN, LIKE, THE FUNDS THAT WE GET AROUND THAT? ABSOLUTELY. AND I MAY, UH, LOOK TO MR. PATE RELATED TO THE, THE FUNDS OF BRINGS IN. UM, BUT AS DR. GOODSON MENTIONED, UM, WHILE THE LAST LEGISLATIVE SESSION DID NOT DEMONSTRATE SIGNIFICANT INVESTMENT IN THINGS LIKE THE BASIC ALLOTMENT, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THE, UM, OUR, OUR AUSTIN LEGISLATORS DID INVEST IN IS RECOGNIZING TEACHERS SPECIFICALLY THAT HAVE STUDENTS ASSIGNED TO THEM OR DIRECTLY PROVIDING INSTRUCTION IN THE CLASSROOM. SO THESE ARE WHAT WE CALL OUR 087S. THEY ACTUALLY HAVE A ROSTER. UM, THEY DID PROVIDE SIGNIFICANT FUNDING, UM, IN TERMS OF COMPENSATION FOR OUR TEACHERS. UM, AND SO CURRENTLY WE RECEIVE APPROXIMATELY $10 MILLION. YEAH, JUST RIGHT UNDER $10 MILLION IN, UH, TEACHER RETENTION ALLOTMENT FUNDING. UM, SO WHEN YOU, WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE, THE BUDGET, AUSTIN IS PROVIDING THAT. NOW, THAT, THAT IS NOT— THEY'RE NOT PROVIDING AN INCREASE YEAR OVER YEAR FOR THAT, BUT THEY DID PROVIDE THAT FUNDING MOVING FORWARD. SO THAT $10 MILLION, KNOWING THAT THAT INCREASES THE SALARY EXPENDITURE LINE, THAT IS, WE, WE'RE RECEIVING THAT AS WE MOVE FORWARD. SO DO YOU, DO YOU GET THAT? BECAUSE I KNOW IT STARTS AT WHAT, YOU HAVE TO BE 3 YEARS, RIGHT, TO BE ELIGIBLE. AND THEN THERE'S A, AND BECAUSE WE'RE OVER 5,000 STUDENTS, RIGHT, WE GET THE LOWER AMOUNT, BUT I THINK IT'S, IS IT 2,000? I THINK IT'S LIKE 2,000, 2,500. GREAT, THANK YOU. OKAY, AND SO THE MORE EXPERIENCED TEACHERS THAT WE GET, DO WE GET AN INCREASE THEN? BECAUSE IT'S DONE BY HOW MANY YOU HAVE, CORRECT? CORRECT. SO, UM, IT'S BASED OFF OF DATA WE SUBMIT IN THIS FALL SNAPSHOT EVERY YEAR, UH, SO WHATEVER OUR MIX OF STAFF IS AT 3 AND 4 AND AND THEN 5+ YEARS, WE GET THE DOLLAR— WE GET THE $2,500 OR $5,000 FOR THAT, WHATEVER THE MIX IS EACH YEAR FOR THAT POPULATION. IS THAT A— OH, SORRY. NO, I WAS— SO FOR EXAMPLE, [02:15:02] IF LET'S SAY FOR SOME REASON WE WERE TO HIRE, YOU KNOW, WE WERE TO HIRE 10 NEW 30-YEAR TEACHERS AND WE HIRE 10 LESS, UH, YOU KNOW, 0 THROUGH 3-YEAR TEACHERS WERE GOING TO GET THAT $5,000 DIFFERENCE WHEN THESE TEACHERS, YOU KNOW, LEFT. OKAY, GREAT. SO, UM, AND THEN WE GET THAT EVERY YEAR, CORRECT? THAT'S WHEN IT COMES IN. IS THAT INCLUDED ON YOUR BUDGET SHEET IN THE, IN THE, UM, INFORMATION? YES, MA'AM, IT IS INCLUDED IN THE— AS A REVENUE SOURCE? IN THE, IN THE REVENUE LINE. YES, IT COMES INTO THE GENERAL FUND. UM, IN FACT, AND WE DO ACTUALLY GENERATE THAT FUNDING FOR OUR GRANT-FUNDED TEACHERS ALSO. OH, OKAY. UM, BUT WE HAVE TO SPLIT CODE THEM, UNFORTUNATELY, AND SO THAT PORTION, THE TEACHER RETENTION ALLOTMENT PORTION OF THEIR SALARY, HAS TO BE PAID OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND. BUT YES, EVERY TEACHER THAT'S AN 087 HAS A CLASS ROSTER, GENERATES IT REGARDLESS OF WHERE WE NORMALLY PAY THEIR SALARY. AS LONG AS THEY HAVE AT LEAST 3 EXPERIENCE. AS LONG AS THEY HAVE AT LEAST 3 YEARS OR 5 YEARS. AND SO IF WE GET, IF WE GET A 3-YEAR TEACHER IN, YOU KNOW, THEY START THE SCHOOL YEAR WITH US BUT THEY LEAVE AT CHRISTMAS AND THEY'RE REPLACED, UM, WITH A 5-YEAR TEACHER, WE'RE STILL ONLY GETTING 3-YEAR TEACHER MONEY BECAUSE THE SNAPSHOT— BECAUSE, YEAH, BECAUSE IT'S PAID JUST ON SNAPSHOT. BUT THE REVERSE ALSO HAPPENS IF WE HAVE A 5-YEAR T— IF WE A 15-YEAR TEACHER, THEY RETIRE AT WINTER BREAK, AND WE'LL REPLACE THEM WITH A FIRST-YEAR TEACHER WHO IS NOT GENERATING TEACHER RETENTION ALLOTMENT, WE STILL GET THE FULL $5,000 FOR THE TEACHER, UM, THAT WE HAD ON SNAPSHOT. SO IT, IT'S GONNA WASH OUT IN THE END. IT'S, YOU KNOW, NOT— IT'S NOT A CONCERNING ISSUE, IT JUST IS THE WAY THEY CHOSE TO FUND IT. ABSOLUTELY. OKAY, GREAT. I JUST THOUGHT THAT WAS AN IMPORTANT POINT TO JUST JUST, JUST LOOK AT AND SEE. UM, I ALSO WANTED TO TALK ABOUT, UM, THE INSURANCE PIECE ON THAT. UM, BECAUSE I THINK WE'VE DONE SOME OTHER BENEFITS THAT I JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT. WE STILL HAVE— WE HAVE ONE OF THE BENEFITS THAT WE HAVE THAT OFFSETS MAYBE OUR CONTRIBUTION TO HEALTHCARE IS THE FACT THAT WE HAVE THAT LOW-COST HEALTH CENTER. YES, MA'AM. WHERE TEACHERS AND THEIR ENTIRE FAMILY, RIGHT, CAN GO. AND PARAPROFESSIONALS, AUXILIARIES. CAN YOU JUST REMIND US EXACTLY HOW THAT— JUST A LITTLE A LITTLE, LIKE, THE SHORT VERSION OF HOW THAT WORKS SO WE CAN UNDERSTAND THE OFFSET OF THAT POTENTIALLY? BASICALLY, ALL STAFF, REGARDLESS IF THEY USE OUR INSURANCE OR NOT, AND THEIR FAMILIES CAN, UM, ACCESS OUR WELLNESS CLINIC, AND IT IS A $10 COPAY. AND THAT'S FOR WHOLE FAMILY? AUXILIARIES? IT— YES. OKAY. I, I WILL SAY I HAVE HEARD NOTHING BUT REALLY GOOD FEEDBACK. I'VE ACTUALLY HAD SOME TEACHERS REACH OUT AND TALK TO ME ABOUT THAT. SO, AND THAT'S GONNA STAY IN PLACE, CORRECT? YES, MA'AM. SO EVEN IF WE'RE NOT ABLE TO ADD TO THAT WE STILL ARE IMPACTING ALL TEACHERS, ALL STAFF, I SHOULD SAY, AND THEIR FAMILIES THROUGH HAVING A PARTNERSHIP THAT WAY. YES, MA'AM. OKAY, GREAT. UM, ARE YOU ASKING FOR, LIKE, WE'RE NOT VOTING, RIGHT? SO WE'RE JUST ASKING, YOU KNOW, LIKE OUR THOUGHTS. YOU WILL NOT TAKE— YOU WILL NOT, AS WE DO ON AN ANNUAL BASIS, YOU WILL NOT VOTE ON OUR BUDGET UNTIL JUNE, UH, OUR JUNE MEETING. HOWEVER, AGAIN, WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO COMMUNICATE. STAFF DOES LIKE TO KNOW, UM, WHAT POTENTIALLY THEIR RAISE WOULD BE LIKE, UM, AS THEY ARE SIGNING THEIR CONTRACT AND TURNING THAT IN. SO I'M JUST ASKING FOR SOME DIRECTIONAL GUIDANCE FROM THE BOARD. SO, AND, AND AGAIN, WHATEVER WE DO COMMUNICATE, I ALSO WANT TO BE CLEAR, UM, IT IS ALWAYS WRITTEN AS, AS, UH, ER, PENDING BOARD APPROVAL. SO IT IS VERY CLEAR TO THE COMMUNITY, VERY CLEAR TO OUR STAFF THAT THIS IS OUR PROPOSED RACE STRUCTURE FOR '26-'27, BUT IT WILL BE VERY CLEAR THAT THIS IS PENDING BOARD APPROVAL IN JUNE. SO IF SOMETHING WERE TO HAPPEN OR IF THE BOARD WAS TO DECIDE TO GO IN A DIFFERENT DIRECTION, YOU WOULD HAVE THE ABILITY TO MAKE THAT ADJUSTMENT WHEN YOU ADOPT THE BUDGET IN JUNE. BUT I AM ASKING FOR— I, I THINK THE OPERATIVE TERM'S CONSENSUS. YES. SO TRYING TO GET CONSENSUS AROUND— RIGHT. BUT WE ALL HAVE TO LIKE SOMEHOW EXPRESS OUR OPINION, I GUESS. IS THAT RIGHT? THAT'S RIGHT. OKAY. KNOWING THAT, THAT OPINION, WE HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO CHANGE IT BETWEEN NOW AND JUNE. FOR SURE. THAT'S RIGHT. UM, SO I, I'VE REALLY, I MEAN, I'VE, LISTEN, I ASKED Y'ALL TO DO THIS AND I TOLD YOU LIKE I NEEDED TIME TO THINK AND PROCESS THAT. I JUST WANNA SAY THAT WHILE I, AH, IT IS A VERY HARD STRUGGLE BETWEEN WE'RE, WE'RE HAVING TO MAKE SOME PRETTY SIGNIFICANT CUTS. WE KNOW WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO MAKE MORE CUTS. WE WANNA HAVE THE BEST TEACHERS IN THE CLASSROOM. WE WANNA BE ABLE TO RECRUIT THE BEST AND ALL OF THAT. AND WE ALSO WANT TO BE ABLE TO, UM, CONTINUE SOME, CONTINUE ALL THE THINGS THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO CONTINUE. AND, UM, I THINK IT'S JUST A, I THINK WE'VE BEEN PUT IN A REALLY TOUGH POSITION, AND I DON'T MEAN BY THE DISTRICT. SO, UM, I, I JUST— MY OPINION ON THIS IS, IS I THINK WE HAVE TO— TO ME, I WANNA STRADDLE THE FENCE BETWEEN BEING AGGRESSIVE IN GIVING A TEACHER A RAISE AND, AND OTHERS, BUT ALSO BY BEING FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE. [02:20:02] SO I THINK, I THINK I WOULD PROBABLY LEAN TOWARDS A AS THE MOST FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE OPTION, JUST IN MY OPINION. SO THAT'S, THAT'S MY— I, AGAIN, I CAN ALWAYS BE TALKED ABOUT. I JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU KIND OF MY MY PIECE ON THAT. IT SAVES US $2 MILLION. IT ALLOWS FOR A LITTLE FLEXIBILITY WITH THE TEACHER RETENTION ALLOTMENT. IT GIVES SOME OTHER— IT GIVES SOME OTHER FLEXIBILITIES THAT WE CAN SHIFT WHERE WE NEED TO. AND THEN IF FUNDING CHANGES ON THE LEGISLATIVE YEAR, OR IF THE METHOD OF, UM, FLOWING MONEY TO DISTRICTS CHANGES IN SOME WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM, WE MIGHT HAVE A LITTLE FLEXIBILITY TO MAKE THEN CHANGES AT THAT POINT. SO THAT'S MY JUST TWO CENTS. THAT'S GOOD. MS. PACHECO, AND I'LL COME BACK OVER HERE. ALL RIGHT. WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE EXPLANATION, THE BREAKDOWNS. UM, I HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS ON THE CONTRIBUTIONS THAT THE DISTRICT MAKES WHEN, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A SALARY PAID, RIGHT? UH, IS THERE LIKE A BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OPTION A AND B AS FAR AS CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE DISTRICT TO TRS? FOR SALARIES? YEAH. SO IF THE LARGER RAISE, THE DISTRICT SHARE WILL BE LARGER, SAME PERCENTAGE, BUT WE'RE AT THIS POINT, WE'RE SO FAR ABOVE THE STATUTORY MINIMUM, UM, EVERYTHING IN THE RAISE, UH, IS SUBJECT TO TRS. AND SO BOTH THE DISTRICT AND THE EMPLOYEE WILL BE PAYING, UH, THEIR SHARE OF TRS, JUST LIKE IF WE WERE A PRIVATE SECTOR BUSINESS AND PAYING INTO SOCIAL SECURITY. OKAY. IT'S JUST THE REPLACEMENT FOR SOCIAL SECURITY FOR US. OKAY, PERFECT. AND NOW WITH THE NEW CHANGES THOUGH, I THINK— WHAT IS IT THAT TEACHERS CAN ALSO ASK FOR SOCIAL SECURITY OR SOMETHING? OH, THE WINDFALL. WITH THAT, IS THAT GOING TO BE MOVING FORWARD? WHAT? NO. SO THEY ELIMINATED THE —WINDFALL PROVISION. AND SO FOR SOMEBODY LIKE ME THAT WORKED 10 YEARS IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR AND I HAVE MY 40 QUARTERS, AND IF I RETIRE AND CLAIM SOCIAL SECURITY, I NO LONGER HAVE THE, UM, OFFSET. I NO LONGER HAVE THE REDUCTION TO MY OWN SOCIAL SECURITY, AND I ALSO NO LONGER HAVE THE— I GET THE FULL BENEFIT OF SPOUSAL SOCIAL SECURITY BECAUSE MY WIFE'S ONLY PAID INTO SOCIAL SECURITY, SO I GET A LARGER AMOUNT THERE. BUT IT DOESN'T CHANGE ANYTHING ABOUT THE WAY WE, UM, CONDUCT OUR BUSINESS AND THE WAY WE PAY OUR EMPLOYEES. BUT IT DOES HELP OUR EMPLOYEES. WELL, SOME OF OUR EMPLOYEES, SOME OF OUR EMPLOYEES, LIKE THE BRANNUMS, BOTH OF US ARE TRS, AND IN NO WAY ARE WE? YEAH, YEAH. SO IF BOTH, IF BOTH, ER, IF BOTH SPOUSES PAID INTO TRS ONLY, YEAH, THAT'S IT. EXACTLY. OKAY, PERFECT. I JUST WANTED SOME CLARITY THERE FOR THE COMMUNITY TO UNDERSTAND, LIKE, IF THERE WAS AN EXPENSE FOR THE DISTRICT IN THAT CASE VERSUS, UM, A PERSON OR A TEACHER BEING ABLE TO MAYBE INVEST MORE OR NOT, RIGHT? BECAUSE THERE'S LIMITS TO EVERYTHING, I, I'M GUESSING, YOU KNOW. NOW, OUR EMPLOYEES HAVE THE OPTION TO, UM, TO— IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR, PEOPLE INVEST IN 401(K). IN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT, OUR EMPLOYEES HAVE THE OPTION TO INVEST IN A 403(B). UM, THERE'S DOLLAR LIMITS, AND I CAN'T QUOTE YOU THOSE RIGHT OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD, BUT THEY'RE SET EVERY YEAR. UM, BUT— AND OUR, OUR BENEFITS TEAM DOES A TREMENDOUS JOB GOING INTO THE SCHOOL YEAR, UM, OF OFFERING VIRTUAL SESSIONS. THEY WILL DO ONE-ON-ONES AND REALLY HELP WHETHER IT'S SHORT-TERM, LONG-TERM DISABILITY, IF IT'S ADDITIONAL INVESTMENT ACCOUNTS, MHM, REALLY WORKING WITH EACH OF OUR EMPLOYEES TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY UNDERSTAND ALL OF THE OPTIONS THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO THEM AND HELPING THEM MAKE THE RIGHT DECISION FOR EACH FAMILY. OKAY, PERFECT. SO, I'M, I'M ASKING ALL THESE QUESTIONS BECAUSE I DO BELIEVE THAT PROVIDING OUR EMPLOYEES AND OUR STAFF, ALL OUR RICHARDSON, UM, THOSE OPPORTUNITIES TO LEARN AND UNDERSTAND HOW THEY CAN UTILIZE THEIR MONEY AND HOW THEY CAN INVEST INVESTED IN OTHER WAYS IS A BENEFIT. ABSOLUTELY. RIGHT? UM, AND I THINK EDUCATING THEM AND UNDERSTANDING HOW THEY, YOU KNOW, MAYBE IT'S PRE-TAX, MAYBE IT'S AFTER-TAX, ALL THOSE OTHER OPTIONS, YOU KNOW, IT MATTERS, RIGHT? IT MATTERS. EVERY SINGLE DOLLAR MATTERS. UM, WE ALSO HAVE ALL OF THE FLEXIBLE SPENDING ACCOUNTS THAT YOU WOULD HAVE IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR, WHETHER IT'S AN HSA, AN FSA. SO AGAIN, JUST ON THE MEDICAL SIDE, THE CHILD CARE SIDE, UM, AND AGAIN, OUR BENEFITS TEAM DOES A GREAT JOB OF MAKING SURE, YOU KNOW, WHETHER YOU'RE A YOUNGER FAMILY, WHETHER YOU, YOU KNOW, ARE, ARE AGAIN HAVE THOSE MORE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE, THAT YOU'RE ADJUSTING THOSE BENEFITS BASED UPON THOSE NEEDS. OKAY, PERFECT. SO WITH ALL OF THAT IN MIND, UM, YOU KNOW, I'D LIKE FOR OUR COMMUNITY AND OF COURSE OUR, OUR RISD FAMILY TO, TO KNOW THAT THOSE INVESTMENTS ARE ALSO A FORM [02:25:01] OF PAYMENT, RIGHT? UM, IT'S NOT AN ACTUAL CASH DOLLAR, BUT IT IS AN INVESTMENT WE'RE MAKING ON OUR COMMUNITY, OUR RICHARDSON COMMUNITY, UM, TO SUPPORT THEM AND TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, TAKEN CARE OF HERE WHILE THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, IN OUR FAMILY. WHAT OTHER— IT, YOU KNOW, WITH, WITH THE EXPENSES THAT WE'RE DOING, FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN WE LOOK AT THE COST FOR HEALTHCARE AND WE'RE PUTTING $313 IN THERE, IT'S INCREASED 24% OR 23%, WHATEVER IT WAS. IT'S STILL SUPER HIGH. YEAH, JUST THIS YEAR, IT'S TERRIBLE. UM, AND IT'S NOT A OUR FAULT. YOU KNOW, I KNOW THE PROFITS FOR PHARMA AND HEALTHCARE INSURANCE HAS ALSO INCREASED PROBABLY BY 30% BECAUSE OF THAT. AND IT MAKES ME VERY ANGRY THAT THAT'S HAPPENING. BUT WHEN WE LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, IT'S— I KNOW IT'S HARD. IT'S LIKE $20 A MONTH AND IT SOUNDS SO LITTLE, BUT SOME FAMILIES JUST DON'T HAVE IT, RIGHT? DO WE HAVE, UH, IN ADDITION TO THE HEALTHCARE SUPPORTS THAT WE PROVIDE OUR FAMILIES, FAMILIES. HOW DO WE LOOK AS A DISTRICT, FOR EXAMPLE, COMPARED TO OTHER DISTRICTS PROVIDING ADDITIONAL BENEFITS THAT LOOK LUCRATIVE TO EMPLOYEES? UM, I, I THINK A COUPLE OF THE AREAS THAT THIS BOARD, I THINK, WAS ON THE FOREFRONT OF, AND I CAN TELL YOU THAT LOCAL DISTRICTS AROUND US ARE WORKING TO TRY TO MATCH, UM, FOR SURE THE WELLNESS CLINIC, UM, IN THAT $10 COPAY. UM, I, I'M ONLY AWARE OF A FEW DISTRICTS THAT ARE IN OUR METROPLEX AREA THAT PROVIDE THAT. UM, I ALSO WANNA, UH, IT WAS, YOU WERE MENTIONING EARLIER MENTAL HEALTH, UM, AND RECOGNIZING AGAIN, WE HAD A SIGNIFICANT EVENT THAT OCCURRED THIS WEEK IN THE DISTRICT ALONE IN WHICH WE WERE CONNECTING WITH STAFF MEMBERS THAT IT WAS A, IT WAS A, IT WAS A TRAUMATIC EXPERIENCE FOR THEM. AND KNOWING THAT WE COULD SAY YOU HAVE NOT ONLY THROUGH OUR BENEFITS DEPARTMENT IS THERE MENTAL HEALTH, BUT ALSO THROUGH OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH TEXAS AND COMMERCE. UM, THEY HAVE UP TO 8 IN-PERSON SESSIONS THAT IS FREE OF CHARGE, UM, FOR THAT COUNSELING SERVICE, UM, WHEN THEY NEED TO ACCESS THAT. AND THEN OUR CHILD LEARNING ACADEMIES, UM, AGAIN, MANY DISTRICTS HAVE HAD CHILD CARE ACADEMIES, UM, IT— BEFORE WE DID. HOWEVER, THEY WERE AT A, AH, MUCH HIGHER MONTHLY PREMIUM RATE THAN WHAT WE— AND WHAT REALLY THE BOARD BOARD CHARGED US WITH CREATING, UM, THAT COMPETITION. THEY ARE TRYING TO CATCH UP TO US IN THAT, BUT I WOULD SAY SPECIFICALLY THOSE 3 AREAS, I SEE A MARKED DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT YOU HAVE PROVIDED AS A BOARD IN RICHARDSON ISD THAN MAYBE SOME OF OUR BENCHMARK DISTRICTS. OKAY, PERFECT. SO I DO BELIEVE THOSE ARE EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITIES AND THINGS THAT WE PROVIDE OUR, OUR DISTRICT. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR CONSIDERING, YOU KNOW, CONTINUING TO LEAD THAT AND MAKING SURE THAT WE STILL HAVE IT. UM, I KNOW IT'S NOT EASY TO PUT IT IN THERE AND KEEP IT THERE, UM, BUT IT IS REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT. AND AGAIN, IT'S A, IT'S A DIFFERENT WAY OF PAY, AND I'M, YOU KNOW, I APPRECIATE THAT IT REALLY CAPTURES OUR ENTIRE DISTRICT, NOT JUST SOME PEOPLE. SO, OR, YOU KNOW, IT'S EVERYBODY, EVERYBODY CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT AS LONG AS THEY WORK IN OUR DISTRICT. SO, UM, WITH THAT, LET ME SEE, UM, DO YOU THINK— AND THIS IS JUST A QUESTION— WITH THE HIGHER RATES ON HEALTHCARE, DO YOU THINK WE MIGHT HAVE A LOSS IN PARTICIPATION ON ENROLLMENT? IT'S HARD TO JUDGE. IF YOU GO BACK TO THAT, DR. GOODSON, YOU CAN SEE FROM, UM, YOU KNOW, '24-'25 TO '25-'26, AND AGAIN LAST YEAR, WE DID SEE AN INCREASE OVER 10% AGAIN. UM, WE DID LOSE, YOU KNOW, WHAT, WHAT IS THAT, ROUGHLY 115,000 EMPLOYEES, BUT IT'S HARD TO KNOW. YOU KNOW, WE ALSO REDUCED THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES WE HAVE. I MEAN, THERE ARE A LOT OF FACTORS, SO IT'S HARD TO KNOW. I DON'T KNOW WITH THESE INCREASES, UM, WHAT THAT IMPACT— THIS MIGHT BE ANOTHER YEAR WHERE WE CAN FOLLOW THAT TREND TO KIND OF IDENTIFY IS THAT INCREASE, YOU KNOW, ENCOURAGING THEM TO LEAN ON MAYBE, YOU KNOW, THEIR, THEIR SPOUSES INSURANCE MORE THAN STAYING WITH OURS. BUT THAT IS SOMETHING WE CAN CONTINUE TO JUST— JUST— JUST— MHM. OKAY. I WAS JUST CURIOUS. I MEAN, SOMETIMES I, I JUST HATE IF PEOPLE GO WITHOUT. I MEAN, EVEN IF YOU GO WITH THE MOST BASIC, IT'S JUST SOMETHING IMPORTANT BECAUSE I DON'T WANT THEM TO GO BANKRUPT IF SOMETHING HAPPENS THAT IS CATASTROPHIC. SO JUST A THOUGHT. UM, SO THANK YOU FOR THE EXPLANATIONS, LOOKING AT THE MODELS AND THE COMPARISONS. AND JUST THE DIFFICULTIES THAT WE HAVE. UM, YEAH, I'M GONNA GO WITH, LIKE, WITH MISS TIMMY SAID, YOU KNOW, $2.5 MILLION. IT DOESN'T SOUND LIKE A LOT, BUT WE CAN DO A LOT WITH THAT. AND THERE'S A LOT OF PRIORITIES, AND AS MUCH AS I'D LOVE TO GIVE AND DO ALL THE THINGS, YOU KNOW, FOR OUR, YOU KNOW, EDUCATORS, FOR OUR STAFF AND EVERYBODY ELSE, UM, [02:30:02] IT'S A— WE'RE IN A TIGHT SPOT. AND SO I, I'M GONNA LEAN MORE TOWARDS OPTION A, UM, PERSONALLY, AND I STILL BELIEVE THAT WE ARE PROVIDING SO MANY OTHER THINGS TO OUR EMPLOYEES THAT KIND OF SUPPORT MORE OF THAT, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT A RAISE, BUT IT STILL SUPPORTS THEM DIFFERENTLY WHERE THEY DON'T HAVE TO SPEND OUT-OF-POCKET MONEY AND THINGS LIKE THAT BECAUSE WE HAVE SERVICES FOR THEM. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MISS PACHECO. ALL RIGHT, ON THIS SIDE, DO WE HAVE— ARE WE GOING STRAIGHT AROUND THE CIRCLE OR— OKAY, WHO, WHO'S UP? WHO WOULD LIKE TO COMMENT? ER, YOU WANNA GO AHEAD? UM, CAN WE GO BACK TO THE SLIDE WHERE IT SAYS OUR FUND BALANCE? OKAY. UM, HEY, WE ARE, WE ARE IN A TOUGH SITUATION, BUT WE NEED TO STAY COMPETITIVE WITH OUR SURROUNDING DISTRICTS. BUT HERE IS THE HARSH REALITY THAT WE'RE DEALING WITH, IS THAT IN '27-'28, IF WE DO NOT— WE CANNOT CONTINUE TO OPERATE IN DEFICIT SPENDING, UM, BECAUSE, UM, ONCE YOU TRIP THAT 25% OF EXPENDITURES, UM, AS I UNDERSTAND IT, IT BEGINS TO AFFECT BOND RATINGS. OKAY. IT AFFECTS, UM, POTENTIALLY, AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, UM, IT, IT GIVES A REASON FOR STATE TO TAKE OVER OUR DISTRICT. AND I DON'T MEAN TO, I, I REALLY, REALLY DON'T MEAN TO BE SHOCK VALUE IN THAT. BUT THAT IS THE REALITY THAT WE ARE FORCED INTO. AND I PROMISE YOU, IT IS NOT FROM ALL OF US TRYING TO BE EFFICIENT WITH EVERY SINGLE DOLLAR THAT WE HAVE FOR OUR TEACHERS AND THE BEST OUTCOME FOR OUR KIDS. IT IS ABSOLUTELY WHAT EVERYBODY I KNOW ON THIS— JUST EVERYBODY ON THIS TEAM IS FOCUSING ON. SO, SO, YOU KNOW, WITH THAT REALITY, YOU KNOW, KIND OF TIME'S UP. I MEAN, I DON'T, I DON'T WANNA BE THAT HARSH ABOUT IT. BUT THAT'S THE REALITY WE'VE BEEN FORCED INTO. AND SO I DO SUPPORT THE OPTION A, IN THAT ASPECT OF IT, BECAUSE WE DO NEED TO SAY, COMPETITIVE, BUT I AGREE WITH THE BENEFITS. THE— AND I'M GONNA, I'M GONNA, UM, BEAT MR., UM, POTY TO THIS— OUR CULTURE IS THAT THE INVESTMENTS— I'D SAY THIS IS THAT THE INVESTMENTS WE'VE MADE UP TO THIS POINT, THE— IT WAS STRATEGIC IN US IN THE FACT THAT IT DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE WHEN THINGS, ALL THINGS BEING CONSIDERED, OF WHERE YOU CAN CHOOSE TO TEACH AND WHERE YOU CAN HELP. SO THAT NOW THOSE INVESTMENTS ARE BEGINNING TO SEE BENEFIT FROM THAT. BUT, UM, AND THOSE WERE ALL STRATEGIC INVESTMENTS. AND SO, I, I, THE MOST OF MY COLLEAGUES, WE ARE PUT INTO A VERY TOUGH, YOU KNOW, TOUGH SITUATION. BUT GOING INTO NEXT YEAR, WE'RE REALLY GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE SOME TOUGH DECISIONS BECAUSE WE CANNOT, UM, THE LONG-TERM FINANCIAL STABILITY OF THE DISTRICT IS, UNFORTUNATELY, WE HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO ALL OUR KIDS, ALL OUR TEACHERS, AND ALL OUR COMMUNITY. AND WHILE IT IS NOT THAT WE WALK INTO THAT, UM, IS, IT'S EYES WIDE OPEN, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE JUST DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN, BUT THAT IS THE REALITY THAT WE'VE BEEN FORCED INTO. UM, IN THAT, UM, LET'S JUST SAY NOT, NOT— AND THEN THE OTHER THING I WANNA POINT OUT, AND I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THE COMMUNITY SEES, CAN YOU GO BACK TO THAT SLIDE TOO, MR. PRICE? IN THAT, BECAUSE A LOT OF PEOPLE SOMETIMES DON'T UNDERSTAND, I WANNA STRESS THIS, MY PROPERTY TAXES ARE GOING UP. MAYBE SOME PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE AND THEY'LL TALK TO THEIR NEIGHBORS OR THEY, THEY HAVEN'T REALLY GOT INTO UNDERSTANDING SCHOOL FINANCES. THEY THINK, LIKE, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THEM I'M GONNA, I MEAN, I'VE EDUCATED AS MANY, IS THAT, WELL, CLEARLY, THE SCHOOL, YOU KNOW, RISD IS FLUSH WITH CASH. I'M PAYING MORE THAN I KNOW. BUT WE ARE PUT INTO A SITUATION WHERE AS WE GET MORE, MORE GOES BACK IN RECAPTURE. WE ARE CAPPED OUT. AND AGAIN, I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT, THAT PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY UNDERSTAND THAT IS THE SECOND THING THAT WE'RE, WE'RE FORCED WITH IS THAT, UM, IN THE OTHER SITUATIONS, [02:35:01] AS EXPENSES GO UP, GENERALLY THE, UM, COMPENSATION OR REVENUE GOES UP WITH IT. SO WE ARE FIGHTING TWO BATTLES RIGHT NOW WHERE WE ARE— AMOUNT OF MONEY GOES TO THE STATE GOES UP, BUT WE'RE TRYING TO HELP OUR TEACHERS SIMPLY PAY FOR INSURANCE. SIMPLE THINGS LIKE AND WE ARE STUCK IN THAT SITUATION. AND SO, UM, I, I, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THIS BOARD, WE ARE ABSOLUTELY AN ADVOCATE FOR COMPENSATING OUR TEACHERS, MAKING SURE FIRST AND FOREMOST WE HAVE THE BEST TEACHERS IN THE CLASSROOM. BUT WE ARE STUCK IN HARSH FINANCIAL REALITY HERE. AND SO, UM, THIS IS ABSOLUTELY SUPPORT OPTION A. AND WE'RE JUST GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE SOME VERY DIFFICULT CONVERSATIONS NEXT YEAR BECAUSE THAT'S JUST UNFORTUNATELY THE SITUATION WE'RE IN. SO I DON'T MEAN TO BE THE BEARER OF BAD NEWS, BUT UNFORTUNATELY, UM, I GOT TO POINT THESE THINGS OUT SO THAT, UM, UM, ANYHOW, IT'S NOT A FUN CONVERSATION, BUT IT'S A REALITY THAT WE HAVE TO LIVE WITH. AND THANK YOU, TRUSTEE EAGER. AND AGAIN, I WANT TO REITERATE REITERATE OUR CABINET'S, UH, COMMITMENT. YOU KNOW, WE RECOGNIZE THAT ONCE WE HAVE APPROVAL FROM THE BOARD ON WHAT OUR '26-'27 BUDGET WILL LOOK LIKE, WE'RE GONNA GET SCHOOL STARTED. AND THEN ON, YOU KNOW, DAY 3 OF SCHOOL STARTING, WE ARE BEGINNING TO WORK ON, UM, YOU KNOW, THE, THE FOLLOWING YEAR'S BUDGET AND WHAT ARE THOSE NEXT STEP OF REDUCTIONS. I ALSO WANT TO JUST, UH, POINT OUT THAT WE ALSO KNOW THAT THERE WILL BE MULTIPLE LEVERS THAT WE MAY HAVE TO BRING FORWARD FOR THE BOARD TO CONSIDER, WHETHER THAT IS— AGAIN, I'M NOT RECOMMENDING RIGHT NOW THAT WE DO A VADR, UM, BUT THAT MAY HAVE TO BE A CONSIDERATION. UM, THAT IS AN ADDITIONAL REVENUE THAT, AS WE POINTED OUT IN OUR LAST MEETING, WE ARE ONE OF THE FEW DISTRICTS THAT STILL HAS SOME PENNIES LEFT IN, IN OUR AREA. UM, AND SO AS WE'RE TRYING TO RIGHT-SIZE UM, AND LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, EVERY OP— OPPORTUNITY TO DECREASE OUR EXPENDITURES. THAT IS POTENTIALLY ONE LEVER WE CAN PULL TO INCREASE OUR REVENUE. AGAIN, WANNA BE VERY MINDFUL BECAUSE TO YOUR POINT, OUR, OUR COMMUNITIES, WE, WE KNOW THAT, THAT, THAT, UH, PROPERTY TAX WEIGHT THAT THEY'RE CARRYING. UM, BUT THAT WHETHER THAT'S THIS YEAR, NEXT YEAR, OR THE FOLLOWING YEAR, THOSE ARE ALL THINGS THAT WE ARE CONSIDERING AS WE CONTINUE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE BUDGET. IT. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU, MR. EAGER. OVER ON THIS SIDE, MR. ANDRADE, WOULD YOU LIKE TO GO, OR DO— MISS HARRIS CAN GO FIRST, YOU LET ME KNOW. OKAY, SO I CERTAINLY AGREE WITH EVERYTHING THAT I'VE HEARD FROM MY COLLEAGUES HERE. I DID WANT TO ASK JUST ONE QUESTION. I KNOW OUR LAST CONVERSATION THERE WAS ANOTHER OPTION ON HERE, SO DID WE JUST REMOVE THAT BECAUSE OF THE CONVERSATION WE HAD, OR— YES, MA'AM. WE HAVE, BASED ON FEEDBACK THAT NIGHT, UM, OPTION A-1, WHICH WAS MAINLY ANCHORED IN A ONE-TIME RETENTION STIPEND THAT WOULD BE FUNDED OUT OF THE PERMANENT SCHOOL FUND, UM, LEAD, UH, ER, WHAT WE HEARD WAS THAT LEAVING OUR SALARIES STAGNANT FOR A YEAR, UM, MAY HAVE LONG-TERM IMPACTS, UM, AND THAT THAT MAY BE SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD WANNA HOLD ON TO, YOU KNOW, TO MR. EAGER'S POINT NEXT YEAR, I-I, IF WE DON'T GET RELIEF FROM THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION, UM, WE MAY HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL, YOU KNOW, THAT NOVEMBER IF WE WERE TO DO A VADR THAT FOLLOWING YEAR, UM, AND THEN CONTINUING TO WORK ON THE EXPENDITURE, THEN THAT MIGHT BE A LEVER THAT YOU ALL WOULD WANNA PULL, FOR EXAMPLE, IN PLANNING FOR, YOU KNOW, '27-'28. OKAY. OKAY. JUST CURIOUS ABOUT THAT. SO I DO HAVE A QUESTION IN REFERENCE TO, AH, HAVE THE DATA. SO, AND IT MAY BE TOO EARLY BECAUSE I KNOW THAT WE JUST, YOU KNOW, DID A MAGNIFICENT HUGE RAISE, YOU KNOW, JUST NOT TOO LONG AGO. IS THERE A DIRECT CORRELATION BETWEEN TEACHER PAY RAISES AND STUDENT OUTCOMES? LIKE, ARE WE— DID WE SEE A SHIFT GOING UP FOR OUR STUDENTS? WELL, SO WE ARE— YOU'RE, YOU'RE RIGHT, THIS YEAR WILL BE THE SECOND ASSESSMENT CYCLE, UM, SINCE YOU'VE PROVIDED THAT COMPENSATION, UM, THAT, THAT INVESTMENT IN COMPENSATION. SO THIS WILL BE ANOTHER TREND LINE TO SEE IF WE SEE THAT. UM, AND I THINK THERE, THERE ARE REALLY TWO SETS OF RESEARCH THAT IF YOU WERE TO GO AND RESEARCH— THERE IS RESEARCH THAT WE KNOW WITH, UM, TEACHERS HAVING AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE MORE SEASONED, PROVIDE MORE TRAINING. UM, BUT WHAT WILL ALSO HAPPEN IS IF— AND TO THIS IS TRUSTEE MCGOWAN'S POINT— IF THEY ARE NOT HELD ACCOUNTABLE, UM, IT DOESN'T MATTER THAT THEY'VE HAD 20 YEARS. BUT IF THEY ARE NOT PROVIDING THAT HIGH-QUALITY [02:40:01] INSTRUCTION AND THEY'RE NOT IMPROVING, IT DOESN'T MATTER THAT THEY'VE HAD 20 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE. UM, AND THEN OF COURSE WE KNOW THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, MORE RECENT RESEARCH AROUND, UM, STUDENT OUTCOMES AND INVESTING IN EDUCATORS THAT, YOU KNOW, MORE OF A, UM, KIND OF A STRATEGIC COMPENSATION MODEL WHERE EVERYONE GETS PAID ONE BASE, BASE SALARY, AND THEN YOU ONLY RECEIVE ADDITIONAL COMPENSATION BASED UPON YOUR PERFORMANCE. UM, I, I THINK ONE OF THE, THE OPPORTUNITIES— AND DR. GOODSON, UH, AND WE PROVIDED THIS IN FEBRUARY— I THINK ONE OF THE OUTCOMES THAT THE BOARD WAS LOOKING TO SEE AS WE MOVE TOWARDS STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT OUTCOMES WAS THE VOLUME AND BREADTH OF OUR EMPLOYEE POOLS WHEN WE POST A POSITION. SO ARE WE SEEING, YOU KNOW, ARE WE REDUCING UNCERTIFIED TEACHERS? UM, ARE WE HIRING, YOU KNOW, DO WE HAVE— BEFORE WHERE WE WOULD HAVE VACANCIES, NOW DO WE HAVE INSTEAD OF 10 APPLICANTS, MAYBE NOW WE HAVE 100? YOU KNOW, HOW ARE WE SEEING INCREASES IN THOSE? AND THEN KNOWING OVER THE NEXT 2 YEARS, 3 YEARS, IS THAT THEN GOING TO RESULT IN STUDENT OUTCOMES? UM, ONE OF THE OPPORTUNITIES, AND Y'ALL WILL HEAR ABOUT THIS AS WE MOVE INTO NEXT YEAR, BUT WE HAVE PARTNERED AND WE RECEIVED A SIGNIFICANT GRANT FROM THE TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY TO INVEST IN SPECIFIC COACHING AT EVERY LEVEL OF OUR ELEMENTARY POSITION CONTROLS. SO WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? THAT MEANS THAT THERE IS A COACH FOR OUR AREA SUPERINTENDENTS. THE AREA SUPERINTENDENT AND, UH, THEY ALSO HAVE A COACH FOR EACH PRINCIPAL. AND THEN THERE IS SPECIFIC COACHING THAT IS PROVIDED TO THE INSTRUCTIONAL COACHES TO MAKE SURE THAT— TO ALL OF YOUR POINTS IN THE LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS— THEN HOW ARE WE HOLDING INDIVIDUALS ACCOUNTABLE FOR OUTCOMES? AND IF WE ARE NOT SEEING THE OUTCOMES AND NOT SEEING THE GROWTH THAT WE HAVE PREDICTED BASED UPON WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN FOR ANY STUDENT DEMOGRAPHIC, THEN HOW ARE WE PARTNERING WITH HR TO HELP IDENTIFY A GROWTH PLAN FOR THAT INDIVIDUAL TEACHER AND EITHER HELP THEM REALIZE THIS IS THE EXPECTATION AND YOU NEED TO ELEVATE YOUR HIGH-QUALITY TIER 1 INSTRUCTION, OR THIS MAY NOT BE THE DISTRICT FOR YOU, OR THIS MAY NOT BE THE PROFESSION FOR YOU. UM, AND SO THAT, I THINK, FOR US, AND I THINK FOR PRINCIPALS THAT IS A MINDSET SHIFT THAT WE ARE HAVING TO MAKE AT A PRETTY EXPONENTIAL RATE, THAT WE CAN STILL LOVE AND SUPPORT OUR EDUCATORS. WE CAN HAVE A CULTURE THAT IS APPRECIATIVE AND SUPPORTIVE, BUT ALSO OUR STUDENTS ONLY HAVE ONE SHOT OF KINDERGARTEN OR 5TH GRADE OR THEIR FRESHMAN YEAR IN HIGH SCHOOL. UM, AND SO YOU, YOU, YOU DON'T HAVE— IT'S NOT— DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A ZERO-SUM. YOU DON'T HAVE TO GIVE UP CULTURE TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR TEACHERS KNOW THAT THEY'RE ACCOUNTABLE. RIGHT. I ALSO KNOW THAT WITH EXPERIENCE, THAT ABILITY TO BE COACHED, MHM, AND KNOW HOW TO MAKE WHAT MOVES WHEN, UM, THAT CAN BE A, A, A PRETTY ACCELERATED EXPERIENCE WHEN IT'S DONE REALLY WELL. MHM, BECAUSE THE OTHER THING THAT I THOUGHT ABOUT AS WELL, AND KIND OF BOUNCING AROUND TO, I, I THINK TRUSTEE MCGOWAN SAID, AND I THINK, UH, TRUSTEE PACHECO WAS TALKING ABOUT, WHEN I LISTEN TO THE SHAC PRESENTATION, YOU KNOW, AND I, I, I THINK ABOUT THE WHOLE CHILD, I THINK ABOUT THE WHOLE TEACHER AS WELL. AND I KNOW THAT WE ALREADY PROVIDE SOME AWESOME SERVICES TO OUR TEACHERS AND STAFF, YOU KNOW, LIKE THE MEDICAL CENTER, LIKE THE DAYCARE, THINGS OF THAT NATURE. BUT, YOU KNOW, ARE THERE OTHER THINGS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE MAY BE ABLE TO PROVIDE TO OUR TEACHERS AND STAFF THAT ARE A LITTLE BEYOND THAT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEIR EXPERIENCE, THEY HAVE THAT WORKPLACE CULTURE, UM, THAT MAKES THEM FEEL GOOD TO COME TO WORK? UM, BECAUSE I, THE, THE, THE RAISE IS JUST, I MEAN, I, I AGREE WITH EVERYTHING THAT I'VE HEARD HERE. IT'S GONNA BE TOUGH INTO, UM, TRUSTEE EGAR MR. BAKER'S POINT, I MEAN, WE'RE— I'M LOOKING AT '27-'28 AS WELL. AND, UH, WE'VE, WE'VE GOTTA MAKE SOME TOUGH DECISIONS, BUT I WANT OUR TEACHERS AND STAFF TO KNOW THAT WE ABSOLUTELY TRULY CARE ABOUT THEM. YOU KNOW, UM, AND I WANNA ALSO MAKE SURE THAT OUR KIDS ARE GETTING THE BEST EDUCATION THAT THEY DESERVE. YEAH. AND IT IS ALL OF WHAT ALL OF YOU ARE SAYING. IT'S WHAT WE, WHAT MAKES WHAT WE DO SO INCREDIBLY COMPLEX. MHM. MHM. UM, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, I, I, AND I KNOW WE MESSAGE THIS OFTEN, BUT, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T PRODUCE WIDGETS. I CAN'T GO BACK TO, YOU KNOW, A COMPUTER SCREEN SOMEWHERE AND, YOU KNOW, PLUG IN A COUPLE OF, YOU KNOW, EQUATION CHANGES AND ALL OF A [02:45:02] SUDDEN PRODUCE SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA BE MORE EFFICIENT AND IT'S JUST GONNA COST LESS, BUT YET STILL HAVE THE SAME QUALITY. UM, I THINK, YOU KNOW, SHRINKFLATION WHERE, YOU KNOW, NOW, YOU KNOW, YOUR DORITOS BAG WHERE IT USED TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, X AMOUNT OF, YOU KNOW, LIKE THEY, THEY HAVE THOSE WAYS OF DOING IT IN WHICH, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT GROWING HUMANS, UM, AND EVEN HEARING THAT WELLNESS THAT IT TAKES SO MUCH. MHM. I ALSO, I, I WANNA POINT OUT THAT THE OTHER THING THAT I WORRY ABOUT IN FIRST AND FOREMOST IS OUR TEACHERS. OUR TEACHERS, HEAR ME ON THAT, UM, THE, OUR, OUR CUSTODIANS THAT ARE, YOU KNOW, ON THE GROUND EVERY DAY DOING AND TAKING CARE OF OUR BUILDINGS IN THE MOST PHENOMENAL WAY. EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE 58 YEARS, YOU CAN WALK INTO MANY OF OUR BUILDINGS AND THEY DON'T LOOK 58.8 YEARS BECAUSE OF OUR FACILITIES TEAM AND OUR CUSTODIANS. BUT ALSO OUR CENTRAL OFFICE TEAMS WHO, AH, THE AMOUNT OF REDUCTIONS THAT WE HAVE DONE IN THE LAST 2 YEARS. AND I WANNA POINT OUT THAT THE ASK OF WHAT IS BEING REQUIRED IN LET— RECENT LEGISLATION HAS ONLY COMPOUNDED. YEAH. IT HAS NOT BECOME LESS. YEAH. UM, IN ORDER TO RECEIVE THE WEIGHTED FUNDING FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION THAT WAS PROMISED IN THE LAST LEGISLATIVE SESSION THAT WE'VE NOW BEEN TOLD WE MAY NOT REALIZE UNTIL THE END OF THE NEXT SCHOOL YEAR. THEY ARE TELLING US NOW THAT TO DETERMINE WHAT TIER OF SERVICE EACH STUDENT WILL NEED, IT'S GOING TO TAKE A 30-MINUTE REVIEW PROCESS FOR EVERY SINGLE STUDENT. IT WOULD MEAN THAT FOR THE NUMBER— THE 7,000 STUDENTS THAT WE SERVE, I WOULD NEED, YOU KNOW, ALMOST 3 PEOPLE DOING NOTHING BUT THAT. THAT ALL SCHOOL YEAR IN ORDER TO IDENTIFY THAT LEVEL OF, OF INTENSITY. SO WHAT WE ARE ASKING OUR CENTRAL TEAM, THE LIFT GRANT WITH OUR PRINCIPALS, IF YOU WANT OUTCOMES, WE'RE ASKING THEM TO INVEST AND TAKE THIS RISK OF HAVING THIS COACH COMING IN AND TELLING THEM HOW TO BE AN AWESOME— BE A BETTER PRACTITIONER, BE A BETTER LEADER AS WELL. EVERYONE IS HAVING TO DO DO SO MUCH MORE WITH LESS. UM, AND SO THE, THE ONLY— BECAUSE, BECAUSE I HEAR YOU, I SEE THESE NUMBERS, AND I, I FEEL THE WEIGHT, I FEEL THE URGENCY. I KNOW THAT ON THE THIRD DAY OF SCHOOL WE'RE GOING TO BE TALKING ABOUT WHAT WE'RE CUTTING FOR THE NEXT YEAR. BUT I ALSO KNOW THAT IF WE DON'T CONTINUE TO AT LEAST SAY, HEY, WE SEE YOU, AND WE KNOW THAT YOUR GAS PRICES, YOUR GROCERY BILLS, YOUR EVERYTHING IS GOING UP FOR YOU AS WELL, AND WE JUST WANT AT LEAST KEEP YOU WHOLE IN THAT WAY, WE'RE GONNA LOSE GREAT PEOPLE, AND THEN WE'RE GONNA BE VULNERABLE AS A DISTRICT ON EVERY SIDE OF THIS WORK THAT WE DO. RIGHT. IN REFERENCE TO THE, UH, THE GRANT-FUNDED POSITION THAT YOU WERE JUST SPEAKING OF, I KNOW YOU'RE GOING TO BRING IT FORWARD AND PRESENT TO US. IS THAT MORE OF A SUPPORT-TYPE POSITION WHERE THE STAFF WOULD APPRECIATE THAT POSITION. SO THE, THE, THE GRANTS, THE, THE GRANT OPTION, REALLY IT'S JUST COACHING. IT'S NOT A PERMANENT— WE'RE NOT HIRING ANYONE. UM, THESE ARE ACTUALLY— WE PARTNER, UM, WITH OUR REGIONAL SERVICE CENTERS, AND THE GRANT FUNDS ARE— THE MAJORITY OF THOSE GRANT FUNDS ARE REALLY TO JUST PROVIDE COACHING SERVICES THAT COME OUT. UM, AND, YOU KNOW, WE'RE STILL WORKING THROUGH WHAT THE DESIGN OF THAT WILL LOOK LIKE, BUT FOR EXAMPLE, IT MAY BE MONTHLY YEAH. AND SO, YES, THE AREA SUPERINTENDENT IS PROVIDING THAT COACHING TO THAT PRINCIPAL, BUT IT'S SO HELPFUL WHEN YOU HAVE SOMEONE WHO CAN COME IN THAT DOESN'T HAVE THAT NECESSARILY THAT RELATIONSHIP, THAT BIAS, AND SAY, OKAY, I, THIS IS WHAT I'M SEEING. ARE WE ALIGNED, AREA SUPERINTENDENT, WITH WHAT THIS EXPERT FROM REGION 10 IS GIVING US IN TERMS OF FEEDBACK? AND ARE WE ALIGNED SO THAT WE CAN ACCELERATE THAT THAT NEXT ACTION STEP TO HELP INCREASE THE SYSTEMS THAT ARE BEING IMPLEMENTED ON THE CAMPUS. UM, SO THESE ARE NOT POSITIONS THAT WE'RE HIRING FOR. RIGHT, YEAH, NO, THESE ARE TRULY JUST COACHES. I WAS JUST TRYING TO FIGURE OUT IF IT WAS A, LIKE, A SUPPORT STAFF TO HELP THEM GET THERE, IF THIS WAS LIKE A COACH TO COME IN AND, YOU KNOW, JUST— BUT I KNOW WE'RE HERE ABOUT IT. YEAH, IT IS TO GIVE REALLY— IT REALLY IS TO OBSERVE AND GIVE FEEDBACK BASED UPON THE ACTIONS —OF THE, THE, WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE SCHOOL. YES, MA'AM. GOT IT. ALL RIGHT, WELL, THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MISS HARRIS. MR. ANDRIA? UM, I THINK FOR MYSELF TOO, I MEAN, AGAIN, I AGREE [02:50:01] WITH EVERYTHING THAT MY COLLEAGUES HAVE ALREADY SAID, UM, AND HAVE KIND OF STATED. UM, I THINK MISS HARRIS MADE A POINT HERE ABOUT JUST OF, OF ACCOUNTABILITY. I THINK, UH, SEVERAL DID. AND I THINK THAT'S, FOR ME, WAS, WELL, ALSO SUPER IMPORTANT. SO THANK YOU FOR CLARIFYING THAT, BECAUSE I THINK ABSOLUTELY AGREE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE, WE NEED TO PAY OUR TEACHERS, RETAIN OUR TEACHERS, UM, BUT, BUT, BUT WHAT IS THE OUTCOME? I MEAN, IT HAS TO EQUAL THAT. IT HAS TO BALANCE THAT, RIGHT? UM, I KNOW FOR ME ALSO, I THINK THAT IT'S HAVING THESE HARD CONVERSATIONS, AS, UM, MR. EAGER POINTED OUT TOO. IT, IT'S REALLY HARD. AND I THINK WHEN I SAW ALL OF THIS AND STUDIED THIS, IT'S, YOU KNOW, IT WAS, IT WAS, UM, IT WAS DEPRESSING, RIGHT? I MEAN, IT'S JUST REALLY, REALLY HARD HARD TO SEE BECAUSE WE, WE, I THINK AS RISD, I MEAN, RISD AS A DISTRICT, I REALLY BELIEVE THAT WE HAVE DONE A GREAT JOB OF ALWAYS TRYING TO LET OUR EDUCATORS, TO LET OUR EMPLOYEES KNOW THAT WE CARE ABOUT THEM. YOU KNOW, AND, AND IF WE COULD PAY THEM, I MEAN, UM, YEAH, A MILLION DOLLARS, WHATEVER, I MEAN, BUT WE CAN'T EXACTLY. UM, BUT I THINK THAT WE'VE DONE A REALLY GOOD JOB OF ALWAYS LETTING OUR EMPLOYEES KNOW THAT WE DO CARE ABOUT YOU AND, AND, AND CREATING THAT CULTURE AS MR. POTEET AND MR. EAGER HAVE ALSO STATED, BECAUSE I KNOW FOR MYSELF THAT I HAVE HEARD OF TEACHERS THAT, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE YOU DO GO OUT, RIGHT? I MEAN, YOU GO OUT AND YOU SAY, HEY, YOU KNOW, SO-AND-SO ISD IS PAYING A WHOLE LOT MORE, RIGHT? OR THIS OTHER— I, I WANNA TRY THERE, BUT I HAVE SEEN WHERE THEY GO, THEY TRY IT AND THEY COME BACK, MHM, RIGHT? BECAUSE I MEAN, THE MONEY IS ABSOLUTELY A PRIORITY. IT'S IMPORTANT. WE ALL NEED A GOOD PAYING JOB, BUT WHEN YOU ALSO SEE THE CULTURE, RIGHT? UM, BUT IT IS HARD BECAUSE I ALSO SEE LIKE PARAPROFESSIONALS THAT ARE WORKING ONLY TO PAY FOR INSURANCE. HMM. I MEAN, AND WHEN YOU HAVE A FAMILY AND, AND, AND THE WORK THAT THEY DO AND COMING HERE AND THE PASSION THAT THEY HAVE, BUT FOR ANYBODY TO HAVE A JOB WHERE YOU'RE ONLY PAYING FOR INSURANCE OR YOU'RE ONLY PAYING FOR SOMETHING, AND THAT'S FOR A FAMILY THAT'S A COMBINED FAMILY. BUT WHAT IF YOU'RE A SINGLE MOM? MOM. AND SO IT, IT'S JUST ALL OF THESE THINGS THAT IT'S JUST SUPER, SUPER HARD. BUT AGAIN, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT MY COLLEAGUES AND I, WE, WE, WE ALSO, YOU KNOW, WHILE WE CARE ABOUT THAT, YOU KNOW, ALSO OUR CHARGE IS TO BE GOOD STEWARDS OF WHAT WE'VE BEEN ELECTED TO DO. AND SO, UM, IT'S— YEAH, I JUST, AGAIN, I AGREE WITH EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING'S ALREADY BEEN SAID, BUT BUT FOR ME IT WOULD BE, UM, TO GO WITH OPTION A AS WELL. THANK YOU, MS. RENTERIA. MS. MCGOWAN. I MEAN, WE'RE HAVING A DISCUSSION HERE, RIGHT? UM, I JUST, I JUST HAD ONE MORE. I DON'T EVEN THINK IT'S REALLY A QUESTION, BUT JUST MORE THOUGHTS JUST TO THINK ON, UM, SPECIAL EDUCATION, WHICH IS GOING TO BE ANOTHER HUGE HURDLE AND CHALLENGE THAT IS COMING OUR WAY, GONNA REQUIRE MORE FUNDING. PROBABLY, UM, AND I WAS JUST THINKING, LIKE, WHEN— AS I LISTENED TO EVERYONE TALK ABOUT THE INCREASE OF SALARY, I THOUGHT WE'VE GOT TO BECOME MORE CREATIVE OVERALL WITH, WITH THE SERVICES AND RESOURCES THAT WE PROVIDE TO TEACHERS, BECAUSE MONEY'S NOT GOING TO KEEP THEM HERE, RIGHT? THEY CAN GO SOMEWHERE ELSE, AND, AND WE'RE ALL CHASING THAT. ALL OF THE DISTRICTS, WE'RE CHASING IT, RIGHT? UH, LET'S PAY— HOW CAN— HOW MUCH MORE CAN WE PAY? BUT AT SOME POINT, THAT'S NOT GOING TO BE THE FACTOR THAT KEEPS THEM AT THEIR— AT THIS DISTRICT. AND SO I'M REALLY INTERESTED AND CURIOUS IN HEARING, AND I KNOW YOU DO THE SURVEYS EVERY YEAR ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT TEACHERS WANT, WHAT THEY EXPECT FROM US, UM, WHAT'S GONNA— WHAT MAKES THEM HAPPY IN THEIR JOB AND WHAT MAKES THEM CHOOSE RISD. AND I THINK THAT'S JUST SOMETHING WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO REALLY STAY ON TOP OF AND HEARING, HEARING FROM THEM MAINLY AND GETTING MORE CREATIVE ABOUT THE THINGS THAT WE OFFER AS A DISTRICT AND WHAT'S GONNA MAKE US, LIKE YOU SAY, LIKE THE ONE FOR TO STAY HERE. UM, SO YEAH, LIKE, IT'S NOT GONNA BE MONEY AT THE END OF THE DAY. IT'S GONNA TAKE MORE THAN THAT. SO, SO I DO ALWAYS WANT TO POINT OUT COMPENSATION IS ALWAYS USUALLY AT THE TOP OF THE LIST OF JUST CONSIDERATIONS, BUT 100% RETENTION IS NOT JUST ANCHORED IN, UH, ER, AH, IN COMPENSATION AND DOLLARS. IT IS ALL OF THOSE OTHER SUPPORTS. PORTS. UM, SO, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, THIS BOARD HAS DONE TREMENDOUS THINGS. YOU KNOW, AGAIN, WE WERE AHEAD OF THE CELL PHONE, AND WHERE DID THE CELL PHONE BAN COME FROM? IT CAME FROM, WE NEED HELP, THIS IS A DISTRACTION, AND IT IS EXHAUSTING BEING IN A FIGHT WITH OUR KIDS TELLING THEM TO PUT THE PHONES AWAY. UM, AND SO WE, YOU KNOW, AS WE HAVE SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED OUR CENTRAL OFFICE STAFF, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE HAVING CONVERSATIONS AROUND IS IF YOU, UH, ANYTIME WE DO A TEACHER SURVEY, ONE OF THE QUESTIONS THAT ALWAYS IS AN INDICATOR, AND DR. GIBBONS CAN PROBABLY PREDICT WHAT I'M GOING TO SAY, IT'S, YOU KNOW, WHEN STUDENTS ARE DISRUPTIVE IN THE CLASSROOM, UM, AM I, AM I SUPPORTED? AND SO AGAIN, WORKING WITH OUR SYSTEM SO THAT WHEN WE HAVE, ESPECIALLY [02:55:01] WITHIN, WITH A LITTLE, UM, IN WHICH WE'RE TRYING TO IDENTIFY POTENTIALLY IS THERE A LEARNING DIFFERENCE, YOU KNOW, IS THIS AN ACCLIMATION INTO A SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT WHEN WE HAVE LESS CENTRAL SUPPORTS TO PROVIDE, HOW THEN ARE WE MAKING SURE THAT THAT TEACHER DOES STILL FEEL SUPPORTED EVEN THOUGH MAYBE, YOU KNOW, THIS YEAR WE HAD BEHAVIOR SPECIALISTS THAT I COULD DEPLOY? WELL, NEXT YEAR WE'RE GONNA HAVE LESS. AND SO HOW DO WE STILL MAKE SURE THAT THAT TEACHER DOES NOT LOSE, UM, ANY OF THE SUPPORT THAT SHE HAD LAST YEAR TO THIS YEAR BECAUSE WE'VE HAD TO MAKE THESE REDUCTIONS? SO, ABSOLUTELY, IT'S— IT IS SITTING AND LISTENING TO TEACHERS AND HEARING. AND Y'ALL, IT'S— AND IT'S SO IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT IT'S ALSO DIFFERENT FOR TEACHERS. WHAT OUR PRE-K TEAMS NEED AND WHAT THEY'RE LOOKING FOR TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY FEEL SUPPORTED IS DIFFERENT THAN WHEN I'M A HIGH SCHOOL COACH, UM, AND WHAT A HIGH SCHOOL COACH NEEDS AND WHAT THEY EXPECT, BECAUSE IT MAY BE ABOUT SCHEDULING. IT MAY BE ABOUT MAKING SURE THAT THEY HAVE, YOU KNOW, TIME AND BREAK BETWEEN WHEN THEY'RE OUT THERE PRACTICING IN THE MORNING AT 6:00 AM TO WHEN THEY TRANSITION INTO THE CLASSROOM. YOU KNOW, IT'S DIFFERENT WHEN YOU ARE A, YOU KNOW, 7TH GRADE MIDDLE SCHOOL TEACHER. UM, YOU KNOW, TH— THERE ARE NUANCES, AND SO WE HAVE TO PARTNER WITH OUR PRINCIPALS AND OUR ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE LISTEN, WE— MOST IMPORTANTLY, WE RESPOND. UM, AND SO I, I, I 100% AGREE THAT, YOU KNOW, COMPENSATION HAS TO BE A CONSIDERATION, BUT THAT CLIMATE OF SUPPORT, RESOURCES, GETTING OUR TEACHERS WHAT THEY NEED, YOU KNOW, MAKING SURE THAT IF THEY, YOU KNOW, HAVE THE SUPPLIES, THAT THEY HAVE THE MATERIALS THAT THEY NEED, THAT, YOU KNOW, MAKING COPIES IS EASY AND THAT THEY FEEL LIKE THEY CAN MAKE THE COPIES THAT THEY NEED FOR THEIR CLASSROOM AND THEY DON'T HAVE TO GO TO, YOU KNOW, 3 BUILDINGS AWAY IN ORDER TO GET THAT. LIKE, ALL OF THAT HAS TO BE A PART OF WHAT OUR TEAM IS RESPONSIBLE FOR DOING SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO HAVE A TURNOVER RATE THAT IS LOWER THAN THE STATE'S, YOU KNOW, AND, AND MATCHES OUR 11% AND MAYBE EVEN A LITTLE BIT BETTER, YOU KNOW, THIS NEXT SCHOOL YEAR. AND SOMETIMES THAT'S CALLED CULTURE, SOMETIMES IT'S CALLED LEADERSHIP, AND SOMETIMES THOSE DON'T COST DOLLARS. SO, MS. TIMMY? YEAH, I DO JUST HAVE A COUPLE OF THINGS. I, UM, JUST RESPONDING A LITTLE BIT TO WHAT WE SAID, UM, I DO WANT TO DISAGREE A LITTLE BIT AND SAY THAT I DO THINK MONEY IS WHAT IS GONNA KEEP OUR TEACHERS IN THE CLASSROOM, BUT IT IS ALSO THOSE OTHER THINGS. UM, IT, I, I THINK THAT IN THE PAST THERE WAS A TIME WHERE THERE WAS, YOU KNOW, IT WASN'T MONEY BECAUSE HONESTLY IT JUST WASN'T AN OPTION AND NOBODY WAS PAYING. BUT I THINK IT IS DIFFERENT NOW. AND SO I THINK WE ARE, WE HAVE TO RESPOND TO LIKE MARKET VALUE IN THAT WAY. AND ALSO IT'S A RESPECT PIECE AS WELL, RIGHT? AND SO I, I DO THINK THAT, THAT, THAT IS JUST IMPORTANT FOR US TO KEEP IN MIND. BUT I ALSO AGREE THAT LIKE WE ARE GONNA HAVE TO FIND OTHER WAYS. I DO WANT TO COMMEND YOUR STAFF. I THINK SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU'VE DONE, HAVING THAT SURVEY AND LISTENING, LIKE YOU TALKED ABOUT CELL PHONES, THEY SAID IT WAS THEIR NUMBER ONE CONCERN. YOU ADDRESSED IT. THERE ARE TEACHERS WHO WOULD WANT TO COME HERE. NOW EVERYBODY'S DOING IT, BUT BEFORE, BECAUSE WE DIDN'T— BECAUSE WE TOOK THAT OUT, RIGHT? LIKE, IT WAS UNIQUE. AND I THINK YOU ARE FINDING SOME OF THOSE CREATIVE WAYS. I WOULD ALSO SAY TOO THAT, UM, I AGREE WITH ACCOUNTABILITY. I KNOW A COUPLE OF Y'ALL SAID THAT, BUT I— AND I KNOW IT'S ALSO A DIFFERENT PRESENTATION, SO I'M NOT GOING TO GET REALLY DEEP IN THAT, BUT I DO WANT ANYBODY, AND SPECIFICALLY STAFF WHO MIGHT TAKE ANYTHING AWAY FROM THIS, THAT I DON'T THINK ANYBODY ON THIS BOARD, AND Y'ALL CAN CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, UM, WOULD WANT ACCOUNTABILITY WITHOUT SUPPORT. I FEEL LIKE THAT WOULD BE IRRESPONSIBLE. WE HAVE TO GIVE TEACHERS AN OPPORTUNITY TO GET BETTER THAT WANT TO THROUGH THE SUPPORT THAT WE GIVE THEM, WHICH I THINK IS WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO GO THROUGH WITH THAT PRESENTATION. UM, AND I THINK ALSO TOO, IT TAKES A LITTLE TIME, RIGHT, ON HUMAN BEHAVIOR TO GET BETTER. SO WE HAVE TO GIVE THEM THE OPPORTUNITY, OR IT WOULD BE IRRESPONSIBLE. AND OUR CULTURE WOULD LOOK WAY DIFFERENT. IT WOULD BE VERY DIFFERENT. THAT BEING SAID, PROVIDING THAT SUPPORT, PROVIDING THAT OPPORTUNITY, THEN IS WHERE THAT ACCOUNTABILITY COMES IN. AND I DO THINK WHEN YOU'RE TALKING HUMAN BEHAVIOR, THERE ARE STEPS, AND I THINK YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN TAKING STEPS IN THAT DIRECTION, AND THAT WE WOULD SEE THAT. BUT, UM, I THINK ALL OF THOSE THINGS GO INTO— BUT I DO THINK IT STARTS HERE WITH COMPENSATION, AND THEN YOU STRATEGICALLY WORK TO BE CREATIVE TO ADDRESS THE ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, MISS TIMMY. OKAY, UH, I WILL— I'VE GOT A FEW COMMENTS. MOST OF IT'S BEEN COVERED. UM, I DO WANT TO, UM, I THINK WE KIND OF TOUCHED ON IT, BUT THE DIFFERENCES IN OPTION A AND B. YES, IT'S $2.5 MILLION A YEAR, BUT THAT'S YEAR 1 AND THAT COMPOUNDS. POUNDS AS WE GO FORWARD. SO IT BECOMES MORE AND MORE OF AN ISSUE. SO YEAH, IT'S NOT A HUGE NUMBER, UM, MAKING THAT DECISION BETWEEN THOSE TWO OPTIONS, BUT IT BECOMES A BIGGER DIFFERENCE EACH YEAR THAT WE PROGRESS FORWARD TO— ON THAT $2.5 MILLION. UM, I DO LOOK AT THESE MODELINGS, [03:00:03] AND I REALLY APPRECIATE THIS WITH THE MODELING AND THE BENCHMARKING ACROSS. UM, THAT GIVES US REALLY GOOD VISIBILITY INTO I THINK SOME OF THE— IT, IT, IT— IF WE DID NOTHING, I THINK IT SHOWS THE, UM, THE, THE ACCOMPLISHMENT OF THE STRATEGIC INTENT THAT WE HAD WITH GETTING OUT OF THE COMPRESSION, UH, CYCLE AND ALSO REWARDING OUR VETERAN TEACHERS TO A GREATER EXTENT THAN OUR NEWER TEACHERS. SO I THINK THAT BOTH OF THESE MODELS SHOW THAT, AND REALLY IT STARTS STARTS REALLY REFLECTING ON BOTH MODELS AROUND YEAR 10. WE START PULLING AWAY FROM ALL OF OUR PEER DISTRICTS, AND THEN OBVIOUSLY AT 25 YEARS, WE'RE LIGHT YEARS AHEAD OF OUR OTHER DISTRICTS. SO CONSIDERING BOTH OF THESE MEET THAT INTENT THAT WE PURPOSEFULLY, UM, ARE STRIVING TOWARDS, AND THAT $2.5 MILLION BECOMES A LOT MORE OVER SUCCESSIVE YEARS, I'M LEANING TOWARDS OPTION A AS WELL. BECAUSE I THINK— I FORGET WHO MENTIONED IT, BUT STRADDLING— THIS IS A BALANCE, RIGHT? AND WE'RE BEING PULLED TWO DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS, UM, AND THIS, THIS PROVIDES SOME OF THAT BALANCE IN TRYING TO STILL MAINTAIN OUR AGGRESSIVENESS IN COMPENSATION, TO MS. TIMMY'S POINT ON WHAT THAT, WHAT THAT MEANS. BUT IT ALSO— WE CAN'T FORGET THE, THE FIDUCIARY RESPONSIBILITIES THAT WE MAINTAIN. SO I THINK THIS GIVES US A LITTLE BIT OF EACH REACH. AND THEN NEXT YEAR, THAT BALANCE WILL BE A DIFFERENT EQUATION. WE'LL HAVE TO LOOK AT IT DIFFERENTLY NEXT YEAR. SO, SO I THINK THAT JUST KIND OF— THAT JUMPED OUT TO ME. I LIKE, UM, LET ME SEE IF THERE WAS ANYTHING ELSE. THE RECAPTURE THING DRIVES ME ABSOLUTELY CRAZY. I DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW THAT WORKS IN THAT EQUATION, AND THE STATE DOES THAT TO US. MAKES ZERO SENSE. BUT ANYWAY, ON THE PERMANENT SCHOOL FUND AS UM, I DO THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, I, I DO COMMEND FORMER BOARDS FOR TAKING THAT OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE US WITH THAT FLEXIBILITY IF NECESSARY. AND I THINK IT— WE'RE AT IF NECESSARY. UM, YOU KNOW, NOWHERE NEAR DO WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT EXHAUSTING THAT, BUT I THINK THAT THIS IS A GOOD OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO TAP IN, NOT TO SOLVE A PROBLEM, BUT GIVE US A LITTLE BIT OF BREATHING ROOM AS WE TAKE CARE OF OF SOME OTHER LEVERS AND BUTTONS THAT WE'RE PUSHING. SO I'M IN FAVOR OF LOOKING AT SOME EXPENSES COMING OUT OF THERE, SOME, SOME FUNDS COMING OUT OF THERE. UM, I THINK THAT'S WHAT YOU NEEDED. DOES ANYBODY ELSE HAVE ANYTHING ELSE TO ADD AT THIS POINT? OKAY. ALL RIGHT. [IV.J. Intruder Audit Report] I APPRECIATE, UH, MR. PATE, DR. GOODSON, APPRECIATE THE INPUT IN THAT. THANK YOU, SUPERINTENDENT BRANHAM. APPRECIATE THAT. WE'RE GONNA GO TO OUR NEXT ITEM. IT'S AN INFORMATION ITEM ONLY TO RECEIVE THE INTRUDER AUDIT REPORT. MISS BRANHAM. THANK YOU, UM, TRUSTEE BOTEET. I'M ACTUALLY GONNA TURN THIS OVER TO MR. HASSO, UM, TO SHARE, UM, KIND OF— WE HAD TWO, UH, SMALL INCIDENCES THAT WE NEED TO SHARE RELATED TO OUR, UH, INTRUDER DOOR AUDITS. YES, MA'AM. THANK YOU, MISS BRANHAM. UH, BOARD, GOOD EVENING. UH, WE ARE REQUIRED UH, WHENEVER OUR SCHOOLS— WELL, FIRST OF ALL, OUR SCHOOLS, UH, UNDERGO, UH, INTRUDER AUDITS ROUTINELY. THIS IS PART OF THE REGULATIONS OF THE STATE OF TEXAS THAT ARE CARRIED FORTH BY THE TEXAS SCHOOL SAFETY CENTER. DURING APRIL, WE HAD 2 CAMPUSES THAT UNDERWENT THE AUDITS AND HAD A FINDING, AND SO WHEN THAT OCCURS, WE HAVE TO NOTIFY THE BOARD, AND THEN DURING CLOSED SESSION, WE'LL BRING YOU GREATER DETAILS ON WHAT THOSE FINDINGS WERE. SO, UH, DURING APRIL, FOREST MEADOW MIDDLE SCHOOL AND FOREST RIDGE ELEMENTARY EACH HAD AN, UH, AT LEAST ONE FINDING DURING THEIR INTRUDER DETECTION AUDIT. AND SO WE'RE NOTIFYING THE BOARD, AND AGAIN, DURING CLOSED SESSION, WE'LL BRING YOU MORE INFORMATION SPECIFIC TO THOSE FINDINGS. [IV.K. Review and Discuss Local Board Policies] ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU, MR. HAASE, FOR THAT. WE'LL GET A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAIL, LIKE YOU SAID, HERE IN CLOSED SESSION. ANY QUESTIONS AT THIS STAGE? NO? OKAY. ALL RIGHT. NOW IT'S TIME FOR MS. MCGOWAN. OUR FINAL ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS AN INFORMATION ITEM REVIEW TO DISCUSS LOCAL BOARD POLICIES, AND THEY ARE LISTED THERE IN THE AGENDA FOR YOU. MS. BRANHAM. AND WE'RE ALL LOOKING AT YOU. ALL RIGHT. I KNOW, I FEEL A LITTLE PRESSURE TO GO FAST. UM, THE, THE NEXT SERIES OF POLICIES THAT WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT REALLY ARE ABOUT LEGISLATIVE UPDATES AND JUST BRINGING OUR POLICIES UP TO DATE BASED ON THE LAST LEGISLATIVE SESSION. UM, AND YOU'LL HEAR ME REPEAT A PARTICULAR BILL SEVERAL TIMES AS WE'RE GOING THROUGH THIS. THE FIRST ONE IS— THE RECOMMENDATION IS TO DELETE POLICY AEA, [03:05:04] WHICH IS EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY, UM, EDUCATIONAL EQUITY POLICY, AND IT IS BECAUSE, UM, SENATE BILL 12 SPECIFICALLY PROHIBITS ANY KIND OF SPECIFIC LANGUAGE ON DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION REQUIREMENTS. AND SO THE DELETION OF THAT POLICY IS TO BRING THE POLICIES IN COMPLIANCE WITH THAT PARTICULAR LAW. YEAH, I'M JUST GONNA KEEP GOING UNLESS SOMEONE STOPS ME AND ASKS A QUESTION. POLICY CJ, CONTRACTED SERVICES, AGAIN SENATE BILL 12, SAME THING EXCEPT NOW WE'RE TALKING ABOUT CONTRACTORS, UM, THE BILL SPECIFICALLY SAYS THAT CONTRACTORS MAY NOT ENGAGE IN OR ASSIGN INSTRUCTIONAL ACTIVITIES THAT ARE PROHIBITED BY LAW OR THAT INCLUDE DEI DUTIES, AND VIOLATION OF THAT WILL RESULT IN TERMINATION OF THE CONTRACT. AND AGAIN, THAT IS BASED ON THAT PARTICULAR LEGISLATION, AND OUR POLICY IS JUST BEING UPDATED TO INCLUDE THE REQUIRED LANGUAGE. BOARD POLICY CQB IS BEING PROPOSED TO BE REVISED TO COMPLY WITH THE NEW REQUIREMENTS OF HOUSE BILL 150. AND THIS REVISION SIMPLY REMOVES CYBERSECURITY TRAINING REQUIREMENTS FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION RESOURCES, OR DIR, TO THE TEXAS CYBER COMMAND. AND WE INCLUDE INFORMATION ABOUT NOTIFICATION FOR CYBERSECURITY INCIDENTS IN ADDITION TO THE NOTIFICATION SECTION ON SECURITY BREACHES. SO, IN THAT PARTICULAR PARAGRAPH, WE'RE JUST ADDING, UM, CYBERSECURITY INCIDENTS TO THE EXISTING LANGUAGE. ALL RIGHT. THE NEXT IS TO ADD A NEW POLICY CQD, TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE. AND THIS IS TO ADDRESS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, AND THIS IS BASED ON REQUIREMENTS OF HOUSE BILL 150 AND HOUSE BILL 1500. AND WE ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE A POLICY TO ADDRESS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TRAINING REQUIREMENTS, AS WELL AS THE USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE BY DISTRICT EMPLOYEES AND STUDENTS. AND YOU WILL SEE IN THE POLICY, UM, THE LANGUAGE RELATED TO TRAINING AND IT BEING USED IN THE DISTRICT. AND WHAT YOU ALL AS BOARD MEMBERS NEED TO KNOW, AS WELL AS ANY OF OUR MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC, IS THAT THE SPECIFIC USE WILL BE FURTHER FLESHED OUT OUT IN ADMINISTRATIVE REGULATIONS. ALL RIGHT. DBD— SOUNDS LIKE AN R&B SONG. UM, EMPLOYMENT REQUIREMENTS AND RESTRICTIONS, CONFLICT OF INTEREST. THIS IS ADDING NECESSARY LANGUAGE TO UPDATE BASED ON THE REQUIREMENTS OF HOUSE BILL 3372. WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR BILL BEFORE. IT'S KIND OF COMMONLY REFERRED TO AS THE MOONLIGHTING BILL, AND THE POLICY IS JUST BEING UPDATED TO ADD A SECTION ON PERSONAL SERVICES PERFORMED BY AN ADMINISTRATOR TO INCLUDE LANGUAGE RELATED TO THE PROHIBITION RELATED TO ADMINISTRATORS PERFORMING SPECIFIC WORK WORK AND CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH THERE IS AN EXCEPTION. AND IF YOU'LL RECALL, THIS BOARD DID MAKE AN EXCEPTION IN THE FALL FOR ADMINISTRATORS WHO WERE PERFORMING, LIKE, UIL REFEREEING DUTIES. DEC LOCAL, WE ARE BACK, AH, THIS TIME TO HOUSE BILL 2, AND THIS IS JUST ADDING LANGUAGE PAGE, UM, TO DEFINE WHAT'S CONSIDERED A DAILY RATE OF PAY. AND ALSO UNDER THE FMLA SECTION, CLARIFYING UNDER CONCURRENT USE OF PAID LEAVE DURING FMLA LEAVE THAT CLASSROOM TEACHERS ACTUALLY HAVE THE OPTION TO ELECT TO NOT USE PAID LEAVE CONCURRENTLY WITH THEIR FMLA LEAVE RELATED TO PREGNANCY, BIRTH, OR ADOPTION OF A CHILD. THAT'S A SPECIFIC CARVE-OUT THAT WAS GIVEN, UM, TO TEACHERS UNDER [03:10:01] HOUSE BILL, UH, 2 LAST SESSION. DFBB, TERM CONTRACTS NON-RENEWAL. WE ARE BACK TO SENATE BILL 12. AND PART OF THAT BILL ALSO MAKES IT A REASON FOR, UM, TERMINATING A TERM CONTRACT IS ENGAGING OR ASSIGNING DEI DUTIES AS WELL AS INSTRUCTIONAL ACTIVITIES BECAUSE THOSE ARE PROHIBITED BY LAW. AND SO THOSE ARE ADDED TO THE LIST OF REASONS A TERM CONTRACT EMPLOYEE COULD BE NON-RENEWED, AND THERE'S ALSO A LITTLE CLARIFICATION RELATED TO DISABILITY AND THE ABILITY TO PERFORM ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS, JUST TO TRY TO PROVIDE A LITTLE MORE CLARITY. AND THE LAST ONE, DH COMMUNITY RELATIONS, NON-SCHOOL USE OF SCHOOL FACILITIES. THIS IS IN REFERENCE TO UPDATES REQUIRED BY SENATE BILL 12, SENATE BILL 706, AND SENATE BILL 571. UM, THE POLICY CURRENTLY INDICATES THAT THERE'S AN EXCEPTION TO WEAPONS BEING PROHIBITED IF THE EMPLOYEE HOLDS A TEXAS HANDGUN LICENSE IN THE LANGUAGE IS BEING UPDATED TO REFLECT THAT IN SENATE BILL 706, THERE'S RECIPROCITY WITH HANDGUN LICENSE FROM ANOTHER STATE. SO TEXAS SPECIFICALLY IS BEING DELETED AND ADDING IN LANGUAGE THAT SAYS IN ACCORDANCE WITH STATE LAW. THE SECTION ON PROHIBITED CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION OR ACTIVITIES AGAIN IS TO ADDRESS THE PROHIBITED DEI DUE ACTIVITIES AND SOCIAL TRANSITIONING, UM, THAT WERE A PART OF SENATE BILL 12 AND AT RELATIONSHIPS WITH STUDENTS. THE RECOMMENDED REVISIONS ADDRESS THE REQUIREMENTS UNDER SENATE BILL 571 REGARDING NOTIFICATION TO A PARENT WHO, UM, IS SUSPECTED TO HAVE BEEN PART OF A, A MISCONDUCT BY AN EMPLOYEE. AND THERE'S A SPECIFIC NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENT. AND SO IT'S JUST TO PROVIDE THOSE LEGISLATIVE UPDATES, AND THAT IS ALL. IF I CAN JUST ALSO THANK OUR BOARD MEMBERS WHO, UM, HELP PROVIDE INPUT AND HELP US AS WE GO THROUGH THESE REVISION PROCESSES. JUST WANT TO SEND APPRECIATION TO THEM AS WELL. AND AGAIN, OF COURSE, TO OUR AMAZING GENERAL COUNSEL WHO, UM, THIS IS THIS IS VOLUMINOUS, ESPECIALLY FROM THE LAST LEGISLATIVE SESSION, AND JUST APPRECIATE YOUR, UM, STEADFAST APPROACH TO DOING THIS IN A WAY THAT WE CAN CONSUME THIS AND MAKE MEANING OF IT, UM, AS WE ARE ALSO HAVING TO ADOPT AND, AND MOVE THESE FORWARD. SO THANK YOU. YES, THANK YOU FOR THAT, MS. MCGOWAN. I THINK I HEARD THAT THE EDUCATION BILLS FROM THE LAST SESSION WERE— I FORGET, IT WAS DOUBLE OR SOMETHING FROM WHAT TYPICAL ARE SEEING. SO, THE IMPACTS FLOW ALL THE WAY THROUGH HERE NOW, UM, 17 MONTHS LATER OR WHATEVER IT IS. SO, THANKS FOR CONTINUING THAT WORK. I WOULD LIKE [V. CLOSED MEETING] TO THANK THE PUBLIC, COLLEAGUES, AND STAFF FOR JOINING US TONIGHT. IT IS NOW 9:34 PM, AND THE BOARD WILL NOW CONVENE TO A CLOSED SESSION IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE TEXAS OPEN MEETINGS ACT, TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 551, 0.071, CONSULTATION WITH ATTORNEY, SECTION 551.074, PERSONNEL MATTERS AND DUTIES OF PUBLIC OFFICER, AND SECTION 551.076, SECURITY DEVICES OR SECURITY AUDITS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, AND THANK YOU ALL [VI. RECONVENE] IN THE AUDIENCE FOR, UH, STICKING WITH IT THROUGH THE EVENING. ALL RIGHT, THE BOARD IS RETURNING TO OPEN SESSION AT 10:55 PM, HAVING TAKEN NO ACTION WHILE IN CLOSED SESSION. THE MEETING— THIS MEETING IS ADJOURNED AT 10:55 PM ON MAY 7TH, 2026.H * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.