>> HI. I'M MELISSA SNIVELY, CHAIR OF THE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD.
>> I'M STEVE CONA, THE BOARD'S VICE-CHAIR.
>> WE WANT TO WELCOME YOU TO HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. WE SERVE MORE THAN 200,000 STUDENTS. THAT INCLUDES CHILDREN IN PRESCHOOL THROUGH OUR ADULTS IN OUR WORKFORCE PROGRAMS.
>> OUR DISTRICT IS ONE OF THE LARGEST IN AMERICA, AND OUR TEAM IS MADE UP OF MORE THAN 24,000 PEOPLE WORKING AT MORE THAN 245 SITES.
>> WE ARE DIVERSE AND DEDICATED. OUR BOARD MEETINGS ARE HELD IN OUR BOARD AUDITORIUM ON SELECT TUESDAYS AT 4 P.M. THE BEST WAY TO SERVE OUR STUDENTS AND OUR COMMUNITY IS TO INVOLVE YOU, THE PUBLIC, IN WHAT WE DO.
>> YOU ARE WELCOME TO E-MAIL OR MEET WITH ANY OF OUR BOARD MEMBERS AND FOLLOW OUR DISTRICT ON SOCIAL MEDIA. BOARD MEETINGS ARE COVERED LIVE BY HILLSBOROUGH SCHOOLS TV ON SPECTRUM CABLE CHANNEL 635 AND FRONTIER CABLE CHANNEL 32.
>> MEETINGS ARE ALSO STREAMED LIVE ON OUR WEBSITE AT HillsboroughSchools.org. CLOSED CAPTIONING IS PROVIDED ON ALL BROADCASTS AND PAST MEETINGS ARE AVAILABLE IN OUR ONLINE ARCHIVE.
>> AS YOUR ELECTED SCHOOL BOARD, WE'RE INTERESTED IN WHAT THE PUBLIC HAS TO SAY. WE'LL INCLUDE TIME FOR AUDIENCE COMMENTS BEFORE WE ADDRESS OUR BUSINESS ITEMS. OUR AGENDA AND ANY SUPPORTING MATERIALS CAN BE VIEWED ONLINE IN ADVANCE. THEY ARE POSTED SEVEN DAYS BEFORE EACH MEETING ON OUR WEBSITE AT HillsboroughSchools.org.
>> OUR VISION IS PREPARING STUDENTS FOR LIFE, AND THAT MEANS ALL STUDENTS, EVERY DAY. TODOS LOS ESTUDIANTES, TODOS LOS DIAS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR INTEREST IN EDUCATION. WITH YOUR HELP, WE'RE MAKING DECISIONS THAT SHAPE OUR COMMUNITY'S FUTURE. [ SOUNDING GAVEL ]
>>Melissa Snively: GOOD AFTERNOON. THE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD MEETING OF OCTOBER 6 IS NOW CALLED TO ORDER. MEMBER CONA, COULD YOU PLEASE LEAD US IN A MOMENT OF SILENCE FOLLOWED BY THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE?
>>Steve Cona: YES, THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. IF YOU ALL COULD PLEASE JOIN ME IN A BRIEF MOMENT OF SILENCE FOLLOWED BY THE PLEDGE. [MOMENT OF SILENCE] THANK YOU. PLEASE STAND FOR THE PLEDGE. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC, FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MEMBER CONA. COULD YOU ALSO PLEASE ACKNOWLEDGE OUR STUDENT ENTERTAINMENT FOR TODAY?
>>Steve Cona: I WOULD BE HAPPY TO. I WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE STUDENTS AND STAFF AT BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL FOR THEIR CULTURALLY RICH PERFORMANCE TO CELEBRATE HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH. BECAUSE OF SOCIAL DISTANCING, WE WEREN'T ABLE TO BRING THEM, INVITE THEM INTO THE ROOM WITH US TODAY, HOWEVER WE WOULD -- WE DID CAPTURE THEIR PERFORMANCE, AND WE'RE GOING TO PLAY A SHORT VIDEO TO SHOW EVERYONE.
>>Melissa Snively: SO WE'RE CUEING UP THE VIDEO -- ∫ ∫ [ APPLAUSE ]
>> IT'S THE GUTFELD WORSE, IF YOU WANT TO MAKE ANYTHING WORSE, ADD THE MEDIA. THE ONE THING WE KNOW FOR CERTAIN IS POLITICS IS SUPERSEDING MEDICINE HERE.
>> WHEN I'M WATCHING, I WATCHED THE PARADE YESTERDAY WITH HIM IN THE CAR. THAT WAS RIGHT OUT OF A DICTATOR'S PLAYBOOK.
>>Melissa Snively: CAN YOU TURN THAT OFF?
>> I WOULD NEVER WANT TO SAY THAT THE PRESIDENT IS EXPERIENCING STEROID-INDUCED PSYCHOSIS.
>>Melissa Snively: OH! THANK YOU SO MUCH. THAT'S OKAY, PABLO. THANK YOU FOR THE VIDEO. THANK YOU TO ALL OF THE STUDENTS AND STAFF AT BLAKE HIGH SCHOOL FOR JOINING US TODAY.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU. LET'S GIVE THEM ONE MORE ROUND OF APPLAUSE. [ APPLAUSE ] GREAT PERFORMANCES TODAY. BOARD MEMBERS, WE HAVE TWO WITHDRAWN ITEMS TODAY. ITEM 4.02 AND ITEM 6.10. I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO ADOPT THE AGENDA. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER STUART AND A SECOND BY MEMBER GRAY. IIS THERE ANY DISCUSSION ON THIS AGENDA? SEEING NONE, BOARD MEMBERS, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND IT IS UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU, BOARD MEMBERS. PLEASE LET THE RECORD REFLECT THAT ALL BOARD MEMBERS ARE PRESENT AT OUR MEETING TODAY. WE HAVE FIVE SETS OF MINUTES TO BE APPROVED TODAY. EVERYONE SHOULD HAVE RECEIVED THOSE PRIOR TO THE MEETING TODAY. WE HAVE FROM JULY 28, 2020, AUGUST 25th, 2020, AUGUST 25th, 2020 WORKSHOP, SEPTEMBER 8 SCHOOL BOARD MEETING, AND SEPTEMBER 22nd SCHOOL BOARD MEETING. SO I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THE MINUTES. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER CONA AND A SECOND BY MEMBER STUART. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION ON THESE MINUTES TODAY? SEEING NONE, BOARD MEMBERS, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND IT'S UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU, BOARD MEMBERS. VERY QUICKLY, I JUST WANT TO GO OVER THE FORMAT OF THE MEETING TODAY. AS YOU CAN SEE, WE ARE CONTINUING TO GET BACK TO OUR NORMAL BOARD MEETING FORMAT BASED ON THE GOVERNOR'S EXECUTIVE ORDER FOR PHASE THREE REOPENING OF FLORIDA. WE ARE NOW PERMITTING ADDITIONAL PEOPLE INTO THE BOARDROOM. GIVEN THE SIZE AND THE ORIENTATION OF THE BOARDROOM, WE CAN STILL DO THIS VERY SAFELY. CABINET MEMBERS ARE SPACED APART. THE CABINET AND OTHER CABINET MEMBERS ARE SEATED IN THE FRONT ROW OF SEATS. AGAIN, SPACED APART. MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC MAY SIT IN EVERY THIRD SEAT IN THE AUDITORIUM AND THE LECTERN WILL STILL BE CLEANED AFTER EACH SPEAKER. AND AS WE CONTINUE TO RECEIVE FURTHER DIRECTION FROM THE STATE, WE WILL ADJUST THE PROTOCOLS OF THE MEETING ACCORDINGLY. I'D LIKE TO THANK MR. FIGUEROA FOR BEING HERE TODAY TO HELP US MAINTAIN OUR SANITATION FOR THE LECTERN, AND WE WILL GO AHEAD -- I'LL PASS IT OVER TO MEMBER CONA WHO WILL READ THE BOARD GUIDELINES FOR TODAY.
>>Steve Cona: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. AS WE BEGIN THIS AFTERNOON'S MEETING, LET'S QUICKLY REVIEW THE FORMAT OF OUR SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS. PLEASE SILENCE ALL ELECTRONIC DEVICES. THERE ARE SPEAKERS IN THE ROOM BEHIND ME THAT ALLOW BOARD MEMBERS TO HEAR THE MEETING UPON STEPPING AWAY FROM THE DAIS. THIS MEETING CAN BE VIEWED WITH CLOSED CAPTIONING ON OUR LIVE WEBCAST, ON CABLE TV AND THE VIDEO MONITORS HERE IN THE AUDITORIUM. IT ALSO CAN BE VIEWED WITH CLOSED CAPTIONING IN OUR ONLINE VIDEO ARCHIVE.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MEMBER CONA. WE DO HAVE ONE ITEM SCHEDULED FOR A TIME CERTAIN TODAY, AND THAT IS AT 6 P.M. FOR OUR EMPLOYEE INPUT. NOW I'LL GO OVER OUR PUBLIC COMMENT FOR TODAY. SO THE BOARD WELCOMES COMMENTS FROM CITIZENS AND VALUES THEIR INPUT TO THE BOARD IN ORDER TO PROVIDE THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE RESPONSE TO PUBLIC COMMENT, THE SUPERINTENDENT'S STAFF WILL FOLLOW UP AND KEEP THE BOARD INFORMED ABOUT THE RESPONSES. OUR SCHOOL BOARD RESPECTS THE PUBLIC'S RIGHT TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD, AND WE APPRECIATE INDIVIDUALS TAKING TIME TO BE HERE. HOWEVER, IT IS REQUESTED THAT WHEN YOU ADDRESS BOARD MEMBERS THAT YOU DO NOT DIRECT PERSONALLY ANY COMMENTS AGAINST A BOARD MEMBER OR A STAFF MEMBER, BUT RATHER DIRECT IT AT THE ISSUES. ANY BEHAVIOR INTENDED TO INTERRUPT THE ORDERLY CONDUCT OF THE BOARD MEETING WILL NOT BE ALLOWED AS OUR CIVILITY POLICY IS IN PLACE. WHEN ADDRESSING THE BOARD, PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME AND SPEAK CLEARLY INTO THE MICROPHONE. AND EACH SPEAKER WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES. WE HAVE SEVEN SPEAKERS WHO HAVE SIGNED UP TODAY. AND I'LL GO AHEAD AND LIST THE FIRST THREE SPEAKERS SO THAT YOU CAN BE PREPARED. THE FIRST SPEAKER WILL BE BIANCA GHOULSBY. THE SECOND SPEAKER IS TINA WILLIAMS. THE THIRD SPEAKER IS ASHLEY BREWSTER. IF YOU CAN PLEASE MAKE YOUR WAY UP TO THE LECTERN. IF YOU HAVE NOT SPOKEN BEFORE, THE YELLOW LIGHT INDICATES THAT YOU HAVE 30 SECONDS REMAINING TO SPEAK. WELCOME. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
>> GOOD AFTERNOON, BOARD. SOME MAJOR CHANGES ARE COMING ON NOVEMBER 3rd. THE PEOPLE ARE FED UP WITH THE LIES AND COVER-UP. LET'S TALK ABOUT A FEW THINGS SINCE YOU DON'T RESPOND UNLESS I REQUEST A PUBLIC RECORDS, SPEAKING OF WHICH, I'M STILL WAITING ON THE RECEIPTS OF THE INFECTIOUS DISEASE EXPERT YOU CONSULTED WITH IN REGARD TO THE TOXIC HAND SANITIZER AND ALCOHOL WIPES. I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY THIS IS TAKING SO LONG. MR. SUPERINTENDENT, CAN YOU MAKE SURE I RECEIVE THE RECEIPTS UNDER A CHAPTER 119 OF THE FLORIDA STATUTE. 6.05 ON THE CONSENT AGENDA. ON THE COVER PAGE OF THE AGENDA, IT STATES THAT AMMUNITION NEEDED. WHO ARE THEY SHOOTING AT? THE CONSENT AGENDA WAS THE SAME PLACE THAT HELD A PIGGYBACK AGREEMENT WITH THE FLORIDA SHERIFF'S ASSOCIATION IN NOVEMBER 2019, YOU PURCHASED SEVEN FORD ESCAPES, 71 DODGE CHARGERS, ONE DODGE DURANGO, THREE NISSAN PATH FINDERS. THEY ARE POLICE PURSUIT MODELS AND THAT WASN'T A FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE DECISION WHEN THE CLASHY OFFICERS HAVE NO LEGAL AUTHORITY TO PURSUE OR ARREST ANYONE. THE ACLU OF FLORIDA TOLD YOU THAT YOU LEAD THE STATE IN THE SCHOOL-TO-PRISON PIPE LINE AND LOWEST PSYCHOLOGIST RATIO IN THE STATE. I FIND IT PROBLEMATIC THAT YOUR SECURITY DEPARTMENT IS CREATING THEIR OWN POLICE ACADEMY THAT WASN'T A MANDATE FROM TALLAHASSEE. NOW, ABOUT THIS MONEY. UM ... MANY OF YOU ON THIS BOARD HAVE BEEN SO DISINGENUOUS ABOUT THE MONEY, FIRST OF ALL, FITCH PUBLISHED A NEGATIVE RATING IN APRIL. THE LEADERSHIP OF THE BOARD KNEW ABOUT THIS. NOT JUST FROM THEIR COMMUNICATIONS WITH THEM, BUT I SENT THE CHAIR AND VICE-CHAIR THE LINK WHEN I RECEIVED THE GOOGLE ALERT. WE HAVE MONEY THAT HAS BEEN MISSING AND DURING THE LAST BOARD MEETING, WE HAD SUCH A PER FORMATIVE CONVERSATION PLAYING WITH SEMANTICS UNTIL THE ARTICLE FROM THE TAMPA BAY TIMES CAME OUT DAYS LATER. THANK YOU, MARLON SUCKLE. WHEN WILL YOU BE HONEST WITH THE STAKEHOLDERS. THE BLOCK IS HOT RIGHT NOW. WE CARE MORE ABOUT THE APPEARANCE THAN SUBSTANCE. TEACHERS AND SUPPORT STAFF GAS-LIT EVERY TIME YOU LIE. I'M GLAD WE HAVE MORE THAN 60 SECONDS TO TALK THIS TIME. SERIOUSLY, SOME OF YOU ALL DON'T NEED TO BE REELECTED AND SOME STAFF MEMBERS NEED TO BE FIRED BECAUSE OF THE CONTINUED CYCLE OVER AND OVER AGAIN. YOU KNOW, WE HAD 111 SCHOOLS DECREASE A LETTER GRADE. WE CAN'T JUST SAY THAT WE'RE SPENDING THE MONEY FOR STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT. THIS DISTRICT HAS FAILED OUR CHILDREN. IT'S FAILED THE COMMUNITY AND WE NEED ACCOUNTABILITY, TRANSPARENCY AND INTEGRITY. PEOPLE LIE, RECEIPTS DON'T. THIS IS WHY I REQUESTED THE RECEIPTS. SPEAKING OF RECEIPTS, I'M ALSO REQUESTING CONFIRMATION OF THE SALARIES OF THE SPOUSES THAT WAS ALSO BROUGHT INTO THIS DISTRICT. ONE SPOUSE IS RECEIVING A LITTLE OVER 56K A-YEAR, AND THE OTHER SPOUSE IS RECEIVING A LITTLE OVER 134K. UM-HUM. HAVE A GREAT DAY. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS TINA WILLIAMS, FOLLOWED BY ASHLEY BREWSTER AND THEN ALAN BREWSTER. THANK YOU. WELCOME, MS. WILLIAMS. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
>> GOOD AFTERNOON, BOARD. MY NAME IS TINA WILLIAMS. I'M A PARENT, ALSO A PARENT ADVOCATE. TODAY, I'D LIKE TO SPEAK ABOUT THE ESE DEPARTMENT OR THE SHAMBLE OR PRETENSE OF THE ESE DEPARTMENT. AS TO PIGGYBACK OFF OF WHAT MS. GHOULSBY SAID AND WHAT'S BEEN IN THE PAPER UNDERREPORTED IN THE PAPER. WE WERE DISCUSSING MONEY, BUT IT SEEMS LIKE THE ONLY THING THAT GETS CUT ARE SUPPORT STAFF, SCHOOL PERSONNEL. WHEN ARE STUDENTS GOING TO BE FIRST? ESE STUDENTS, COMING FROM OHIO TO WHEN MY CHILDREN ATTENDED A WHOLE FRENCH IMMERSION THAT WAS K-12, WHEN WE CAME TO FLORIDA, OUR KIDS WERE DENIED BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T MEET THE CRITERIA. SO I QUESTIONED AND ASKED, WELL, WHAT IS THE CRITERIA? TO THIS DAY, SIX YEARS LATER, THERE IS NO CRITERIA. WHEN IS HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY GOING TO PUT STUDENTS FIRST? STUDENTS IN TERMS OF ESE. THEY, TOO, HAVE RIGHTS THAT ARE BEING VIOLATED. COMPLAINTS HAVE BEEN FILED. NO ONE FOLLOWS UP. VALID COMPLAINTS HAVE BEEN FILED AND NO ONE FOLLOWS UP. AND STUDENT SERVICES ARE UNDERREPORTED, UNDERREPRESENTED, WHY ARE THE PEOPLE IN CHARGE STILL THERE? LET'S POND THEY'RE. THIS IS NOTHING NEW WITH HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. WE HAVE A LONG HISTORY OF PEOPLE BEING IN POSITIONS THAT THEY JUST CAN'T HANDLE. WHY ARE THEY ELECTED? [NO ENCODER] -- WHO NEED THE MOST HELP AND WHO GET THE LEAST AMOUNT OF SERVICES. DON'T THEY, TOO, DESERVE TO HAVE A TEACHER OF THE YEAR EVERY YEAR? DON'T THEY, TOO, DESERVE TO HAVE ADEQUATE STAFF THAT HAS BEEN ADEQUATELY TRAINED AND NOT BEING PREVENTED TO HAVE A GOOD QUALITY OF LIFE? EXCEPTIONAL DOESN'T MEAN DIFFERENT. IT JUST MEANS I'M EXCEPTIONAL. IT TAKES MORE. IT DOESN'T MEAN I'M DUMB. IT DOESN'T MEAN I DON'T KNOW. IT JUST MEANS THAT I HAVE A DIFFERENT WAY OF KNOWING. I NEED INFORMATION PRESENTED IN A DIFFERENT WAY. HOW MANY OF YOU -- YOU WOULDN'T TAKE A BLIND PERSON'S HANDICAP WALKER OR A BLIND PERSON'S DOG. WHY DO WE CONTINUALLY TAKE SUPPORT AWAY FROM ESE STUDENTS? WE'VE REQUESTED BOARD MEMBER MEETINGS. NO ONE IS AVAILABLE. IT'S ALWAYS MEETING AFTER MEETING AFTER MEETING, BUT NOTHING GETS SOLVED. IT'S TIME FOR A CHANGE. WE NEED TO BE INNOVATIVE. FLORIDA IS CONSTANTLY AT THE BOTTOM. WHO WANTS TO BE GREAT? AREN'T WE TIRED OF BEING AT THE BOTTOM CONSISTENTLY? WE TALK THE TALK, BUT WHEN ARE WE DEFINITELY GOING TO WALK THE WALK? PARENTS ARE CRYING OUT. LISTEN TO THE STUDENTS. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS ASHLEY BREWSTER FOLLOWED BY ALLEN BREWSTER AND LANCE LENEV. WELCOME, YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
>> HELLO. MY NAME IS ASHLEY BREWSTER. SENIOR AT MIDDLETON. I'M HERE TO SPEAK TO YOU GUYS ABOUT THE SEGREGATION BETWEEN MAGNET -- AT MY SCHOOL I TALKED TO MAGNET STUDENTS AND TRADITIONAL STUDENTS AND WE FEEL THERE IS A DISCONNECT BETWEEN THE TWO TYPES OF STUDENTS AT THE SCHOOL. I'VE HAD MAGNET STUDENTS TELL ME THEY FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE AROUND TRADITIONAL STUDENTS AS WELL AS TRADITIONAL STUDENTS TELL ME THEY FEEL LIKE THEY ARE NOT AS SMART AS MAGNET STUDENTS IN THAT THEY DON'T GET THE SAME ATTENTION THAT THEY DESERVE AS THEY SHOULD RECEIVE AS WELL AS IN THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS AS WELL. WE HAVE AP AND DUAL ENROLLMENT COURSES AT OUR SCHOOL, BUT MAINLY ONLY MAGNET STUDENTS TAKE THESE COURSES WHEN TRADITIONAL STUDENTS HAVE THE CAPABILITY TO TAKE THESE COURSES AS WELL. BUT I FEEL THAT THEY ARE PUT ON A LOWER LEVEL BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT TAKING MAGNET COURSES WHEN THEY SHOULD BE TREATED THE SAME AS EQUAL. AND WHEN I WENT TO YOUNG MIDDLE MAGNET MIDDLE SCHOOL, I DIDN'T FEEL LIKE THERE WAS AS MUCH SEGREGATION AS THERE IS WHEN I GOT TO HIGH SCHOOL, AS WELL AS IN CLUBS AS WELL AS ACADEMICS ALL AROUND THE SCHOOL. AND I FEEL LIKE THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD TALK ABOUT, AND WE NEED TO ADDRESS BECAUSE AT A TIME LIKE THIS, WE DON'T NEED SEGREGATION BETWEEN OUR SCHOOLS OR BETWEEN ANY OF THE PROGRAMS. THIS IS A TIME WHERE EVERYBODY NEEDS TO COME TOGETHER AND BE ONE, AND THE KIDS SHOULDN'T BE SCARED OF OTHER KIDS OR TO JOIN -- TO JOIN CLUBS OR TO EVEN TRY TO GET TO KNOW OTHER PEOPLE BESIDES THE PEOPLE THAT THEY KNOW IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD BECAUSE THEY AREN'T MAGNET OR THEY AREN'T TRADITIONAL, AND WE SHOULD ALL ABOUT GET ALONG WITH EACH OTHER AT THE SCHOOL. THAT'S ALL.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU. MR. SUPERINTENDENT, WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO ADDRESS SOME OF THE CONCERNS THAT OUR STUDENT PRESENTED TODAY?
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM, THROUGH THE CHAIR, I'LL HAVE MS. BASS.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU. OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE ALAN BREWSTER FOLLOWED BY LANCE LENEIVE. AND THEN JAMIE SARASINO. WELCOME. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES. AIB.
>> WELCOME, MY NAME IS ALLEN BREWSTER, FIRST OF ALL, I WANT TO START OFF SAYING THAT RACISM AND DISCRIMINATION IS LIVE AND WELL AT HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. MY SON IS A FIFTH GRADER AT CARROLLWOOD ELEMENTARY AND I WENT TO THE SCHOOL TO LET THEM KNOW THAT WE HAVE MOVED. BUT I EXPRESS THAT I WANTED MY SCHOOL TO STAY THERE BECAUSE THAT WAS HIS LAST YEAR. THE DATA PROCESSOR SAID THAT SHE WOULD REACH OUT TO THE PRINCIPAL AND LET HER KNOW, THE PRINCIPAL CALLED MY WIFE TWO DAYS LATER STATING THAT, OH, NO, YOUR SON WILL NOT BE ABLE TO STAY AT THE SCHOOL, REMINDED HER, MY WIFE HAS BEEN ON-SITE FOR FIVE YEARS. SHE'S A VOLUNTEER IN THE MEDIA CENTER. SO A COUPLE OF DAYS WENT BY, AND MY WIFE CALLED THE DISTRICT PERSON OF AREA THREE, AND THE DISTRICT PERSON SAID THAT SHE WAS TOLD NOT TO DO THAT, NOT TO TELL US THAT OUR SON COULDN'T CAN STAY THERE. SO I FIND IT VERY HARD TO BELIEVE THAT THIS DOESN'T EXIST IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. I DON'T EVEN UNDERSTAND WHY SHE'S A PRINCIPAL. IT'S SAD. IT'S VERY SAD. IT REALLY IS. ONCE AGAIN, I WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE EXPECTATION OF ESE DEPARTMENT IN AREA ONE. IT IS ABYSMAL. THE STAFF IN AREA ONE FOR THE ESE DEPARTMENT DOES NOT DO THEIR JOB. I HAVE A TENTH GRADER AT JEFFERSON. SHE'S BEEN WAITING ON SERVICES IN READING FOR TWO YEARS. SHE'S BEEN CRYING OUT SAYING THAT SHE WANTS TO BE ABLE TO READ ON GRADE LEVEL, BUT YET THEY CAN'T FIND A READING COACH. THEY CAN'T GIVE HER INTENSIVE READING. WHY IS THAT? WHY? NOBODY KNOWS. NOBODY CALLS. STILL TO THIS DAY, WE'RE STILL WAITING FOR THE READING COACH. TO THIS DAY, SHE'S NOT GETTING INTENSIVE READING. WHAT IS GOING ON WITH THE ESE DEPARTMENT? WHAT'S GOING ON? NOBODY IS ADDRESSING THE ISSUE. THE SUPERINTENDENT IS NOT ADDRESSING THE ISSUE. WHO'S ADDRESSING THE ISSUE? IT'S THE PARENTS. IT'S THE PARENTS BEING ADVOCATES. YOU KNOW WHAT THE PERSONNEL DO TO THE PARENTS, THEY CHARACTER ASSASSINATION. YOUR PARENTS ARE HOSTILE. YOU ARE NOT ADVOCATING FOR MY DAUGHTER. THE CLOCK IS TICKING ON HER EDUCATION. IT'S TICKING. EACH YEAR THAT GOES BY, SHE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO GRAB THAT BACK BECAUSE OF THE LACK OF SERVICES. SHE DESERVES COMPENSATORY SERVICES. SHE DESERVES THAT. SHE'S TRYING HER BEST, AND THE STAFF, THE DEPARTMENT, THE ESE PEOPLE, THEY ARE NOT MEETING HER NEEDS. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. MR. SUPERINTENDENT, I'M NOT SURE IF YOU'VE ALREADY BEEN IN CONTACT WITH THEM TO ADDRESS SOME OF THOSE CONCERNS.
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM, THROUGH THE CHAIR, STAFF HAS BEEN WORKING WITH THIS FAMILY TO BE ABLE TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED. AS IT RELATES TO READING COACHES, READING COACHES DO NOT -- I MEAN, THEY EVENTUALLY WORK WITH STUDENTS AS WE TRANSITION TO BE ABLE TO -- AS JANUARY COMES ALONG. BUT THE FIRST HALF OF THE YEAR, THEY ARE THERE TO BUILD CAPACITY OF ALL OF OUR ADULTS. IF THERE'S A NEED IN THE SCHOOL WHERE A READING COACH OR A MATH COACH NEEDS TO WORK WITH CHILDREN IN A SMALL GROUP, THEY WOULD BE WILLING TO DO SO. OVERALL, WE TALK ABOUT READING PROFICIENCIES, READING TARGET, REMEDIATION, BUILDING SKILL PROFICIENCY, THAT'S DONE FLUENCY EVERY SINGLE DAY WITHIN THE SCHOOL WITH EVERY CERTIFIED TEACHER AND TRAINED TO DO THAT. IF THERE ARE ONGOING NEEDS FOR US TO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR A PARENT THAT NEEDS ADDITIONAL SERVICES, WE NEED TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT THE PARENT CONTINUES TO WORK WITH THE IEP TEAM TO BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY WHAT SOURCES OR DEFICIENCIES NEED TO BE ADDRESSED AND THEN A NEW ACTION PLANS NEEDS TO BE DEVISED IN ORDER TO MAKE CERTAIN SERVICES ARE PROVIDED. WE'RE LEGALLY OBLIGATED TO PROVIDE SERVICES AND CONTINUE TO DO SO, BUT I'LL CONTINUE TO DO THAT.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE LANCE LENIEVE. AND THEN JAMIE SARASINO AND THEN RAY BONTE. WELCOME. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
>> HELLO, AND THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO SPEAK TODAY. MY NAME IS LANCE LENIEVE. SENIOR AT FREEDOM HIGH SCHOOL AND PRESIDENT OF THE LATIN HONOR SOCIETY. THE LAST TIME I SPOKE IT WAS TO BRING ATTENTION TO THE UPCOMING CLASS CUTS IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. NOW, COMPLETING THAT MY CLASS IS NOT DISSOLVED. HERE ARE A FEW OF THE THINGS THE LATIN CLASS HAS DONE. HERE IS -- RELAY FOR LIFE. EVERY YEAR WE RAISE MONEY FOR THE CANCER CHARITY. THIS PAST YEAR, OUR SOPHOMORE YEAR, MY SOPHOMORE YEAR, WE ACTUALLY MANAGED TO GET AROUND SEVEN CLUBS TOGETHER. VERY, VERY DIVERSE, A TON OF DIFFERENT GROUPS ALL TOGETHER RAISING MONEY FOR THIS CHARITY. HERE'S ANOTHER PHOTO FROM IT. IT SHOWS THE T-SHIRT THAT I DESIGNED WITH MY CLUB. THIS YEAR IS A BUNCH OF BREAD STAPLED TO A TREE. DURING THIS FUND-RAISER, WE ACTUALLY WENT ONLINE AND WE OFFERED THIS SORT OF OPPORTUNITY WHERE WE WOULD STAPLE A PIECE OF BREAD IT A TREE FOR EVERY DOLLAR DONATED. AND 50,000 PEOPLE SAW THIS AND WE RAISED OVER A HUNDRED DOLLARS. THE BREAD YOU SEE ON LOAVES, THAT WAS DONATED TO A HOMELESS SHELTER. THIS IS A PHOTO OF OUR TEACHER. NAME IS MS. PERNALSIS. SHE IS WITH A SENIOR AT OUR END-OF-THE-YEAR PARTY. WE'RE CONGRATULATING THEM FOR GRADUATING AND GETTING TO GO ON. THIS IS A PHOTO OF ME WITH OUR FORMER CLUB PRESIDENT, I'M IN THE RED,. EVENTS LIKE THIS SHAPED ME. RELAY FOR LIFE TAUGHT ME THE RESPONSIBILITY OF LEADERSHIP AND THE VALUE OF COMMUNITY. THE BREAD F SHOWED ME THE POWER OF THE INTERNET AND HOW FAST A CAUSE CAN SPREAD. BEING AN OFFICER IN LATIN HONOR SOCIETY MADE ME EMBRACE RESPONSIBILITY. OUR TEACHER AND FORMER PRESIDENT HAVE ACTED AS CONTINUAL MENTORS AND ROLE MODELS SHOWING ME WHAT IT IS TO LEAD AND SERVE A COMMUNITY. S.T.E.M. AND HUMANITIES IN ADDITION TO THE OTHER ADVANTAGES OFFERED BY TAKING LATIN, THIS IS WHAT YOU WILL BE DESTROYING. I UNDERSTAND IT IS HARD RIGHT NOW, BUT THESE OPPORTUNITIES WILL BE LOST DUE TO INCOMPETENCY AND INABILITY TO PROTECT THE FUTURES OF OUR STUDENTS. THESE ARE ALL FROM FRESHMEN AND SOPHOMORE YEAR. MY JUNIOR YEAR I FELL ILL VERY EARLY ON. I WAS BEDRIDDEN FOR NEARLY HALF A YEAR. WHEN I CAME BACK, OUR TEACHER, MS. BERNALSIS ALLOWED ME TO JOIN THE CLASS AND TOOK TIME TO GET ME CAUGHT UP IN A MATTER OF WEEKS. UNIQUE EXPRESSION OF LOVE AND CARE TO EVERY STUDENT AS IF THEY WERE HER OWN AND I HAVE THE HIGHEST GRATITUDE FOR HER EFFORTS. I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE THIS AS CLEAR AS POSSIBLE. MY NAME IS LANCE ANTHONY LENIEVE, IT IS MY WISH TO LEARN ADVANCE LATIN CLASS WITH MY TEACHER OF THREE YEARS. DO NOT DISSOLVE OUR EFFORTS, HAMPER -- LATIN FREEDOM IS NOT JUST A CLASS AND THESE ARE NOT JUST PHOTOS. THEY ARE MY LIFE. THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO SPEAK TODAY.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. MS. BASS WILL BE ASSISTING HIM WITH SOME OF HIS CONCERNS. THANK YOU, MS. BAY. BOARD, WE HAVE TWO MORE SPEAKERS. THE NEXT SPEAKER IS JAMIE SARASINO FOLLOWED BY RAY BONTE. MS. SARASINO. WELCOME. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
>> MY NAME IS JAMIE SARASINO. I'M A PARENT OF TWO CHILDREN. I'M ALSO A NURSE PRACTITIONER IN THIS COMMUNITY. AFTER REVIEWING THE PLANS AND PROTOCOLS PRESENTED BY THE SUPERINTENDENT, I DECIDED MY DAUGHTER WAS GOING TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL. SO SHE WENT BACK TO SCHOOL, AND I READ ALL THE PROTOCOLS, THE SAFETY FOR THE EMPLOYEES, EVERYONE RETURNING TO THE CLASSROOM. ALTHOUGH SOME OF THE PROTOCOLS WEREN'T FOLLOWED. SO MY DAUGHTER WAS EXPOSED TO COVID-19. SHE WAS MISSED. A BUS SEATING CHART WAS FALSIFIED. IT TOOK FOUR DAYS TO REVIEW A BUS VIDEO. I SENT NUMEROUS E-MAILS. THE ONLY REPLY THAT I GOT IN A TIMELY FASHION WAS FROM MS. PEREZ. I APPRECIATE THAT. SO THROUGH THIS NIGHTMARE, I DISCOVERED THAT MY DAUGHTER HAD BEEN SITTING ON A BUS, LIKE SHE SAID, FOR FIVE DAYS NEXT TO STUDENT ONE AT APOLLO BEACH ELEMENTARY THAT WAS POSITIVE. SO WHEN I SENT THE PRINCIPAL E-MAILS, IT WAS, SHE SAID SHE COULDN'T DO ANYTHING AND I THEN GOT IN CONTACT WITH THE COVID REQUESTING ANSWERS. SENT NUMEROUS E-MAILS, THREE E-MAILS ASKING QUESTIONS, ASKING FOR THE VIDEO TO BE PULLED TO SEE IF POSSIBLY MAYBE THERE WERE OTHER CHILDREN EXPOSED AND ARE BACK IN SCHOOL, GOING TO SPREAD THIS PANDEMIC FURTHER. SO AFTER REVIEWING THE JOB DESCRIPTION FROM THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH IN THE COVID-19 TRAINING COURSE, I WANT THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS ANSWERED: WHAT CLASSES DID THE COVID TAKE FOR CONTACT TRACING? WAS THERE A CERTIFICATE OF COMPETENCY ISSUED FOR THOSE CLASSES? WERE THERE ANY SHADOWING HOURS WITH THE EXPERIENCED CONTACT TRACERS? WHAT IS A PROTOCOL FOR WHEN AND HOW THE COVID LEAD AT EACH SCHOOL IS REQUIRED TO CONTACT THE DISTRICT COVID COMMANDER? AFTER REQUESTING BUS VIDEOS FOR A PERIOD OF TIME, WHY DID IT TAKE FOUR DAYS TO BE PULLED? AND WHY WAS IT ONLY LOOKED AT MY DAUGHTER? MY DAUGHTER DIDN'T LIE. SHE SAT NEXT TO THE GIRL. SHE TOLD THE TRUTH. I DON'T NEED THE VIDEO TO TELL ME THAT. I WANTED THE VIDEO TO PROTECT OTHER CHILDREN. HOW IS IT DETERMINED WHEN TO BEGIN AN INVESTIGATION OF A POSSIBLE EXPOSURE? HOW LONG UNTIL A DETERMINATION IS MADE FOR WHO IS NOTIFIED AND WHEN THEY WERE EXPOSED? THE DISTRICT CONSIDERS EXPOSURE TO BE A CONTACT OF LESS THAN SIX FEET FOR 15 MINUTES. CONSIDERING WAIT TIMES ON THE BUS BEFORE BEGINNING THE TRIP HOME AND DRIVING CONDITIONS, HOW IS IT DETERMINED HOW LONG THE STUDENT WAS EXPOSED ON ANY GIVEN DAY? ESPECIALLY THESE ELEMENTARY KIDS. THEIR MASKS ARE DOWN. THEY ARE OFF. THEY ARE IN CLOSE SPACES. WITH THE NEW CDC GUIDELINES THAT CAME OUT YESTERDAY, THIS IS AN ISSUE.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU SO MUCH. I'M SORRY. WE'RE OUT OF TIME, BUT MR. SUPERINTENDENT --
>> YOU HAVE THE REST OF MY QUESTIONS.
>>Melissa Snively: WE DO HERE. YES, MA'AM.
>> I WOULD APPRECIATE THEM BEING ANSWERED. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: CAN WE HAVE ONE OF YOUR LEADERSHIP TEAM HELP ADDRESS SOME OF THE ISSUES THAT SHE HAS BROUGHT FORTH TODAY TO US?
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM. I'LL HAVE MS. BROWN SPEAK AND HAVE A CONVERSATION. I HAD A GOOD CONVERSATION WITH MOM THE OTHER DAY AND AGREE WITH A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT WE HAD THE CONVERSATION WITH. WE'LL TAKE CARE OF IT, MS. BROWN.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU SO MUCH, MS. SARASINO. MS. BROWN WILL ASSIST YOU WITH SOME OF THE OTHER CONCERNS THAT YOU BROUGHT FORWARD WITH YOU TODAY. THANK YOU. OUR LAST SPEAKER TODAY IS MR. RAY BONTE. WELCOME, MR. BONTE. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
>> GOOD AFTERNOON, MADAM CHAIR. HONORABLE SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS, I AM RAY BONTE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR THE HILLSBOROUGH ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS. SO AS YOU KNOW, WE ARE AN ADVOCACY ORGANIZATION MADE UP OF OUR WONDERFUL PRINCIPALS, ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS AND DISTRICT LEADERS. INCLUDING JUST ABOUT EVERYBODY IN THIS ROOM. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, OCTOBER -- OCTOBER EVERY YEAR IS NATIONAL PRINCIPAL MONTH. AND EVERY YEAR, WE CELEBRATE WITH OUR PRINCIPALS THEIR HARD WORK, THEIR DEDICATION TO OUR SCHOOLS, TO OUR STUDENTS, AND TO OUR COMMUNITIES. AND THIS YEAR, OCTOBER, AND NATIONAL PRINCIPAL MONTH, IS EVEN MORE POIGNANT BECAUSE OF OUR LEADERS LEADING SCHOOLS, LEADING STUDENTS, AND LEADING OUR COMMUNITIES THROUGH A PANDEMIC, THROUGH A BUDGET CRISIS, THROUGH E-LEARNING, THROUGH MANY DIFFERENT THINGS THAT IF YOU ASKED ANY OF THE LEADERS IF THEY TOOK THOSE COURSES ON PANDEMICS AND HOW TO RUN A SCHOOL IN COLLEGE, THEY PROBABLY DIDN'T GET THAT COURSE. SO WE WANT TO RECOGNIZE OUR LEADERS DURING THE MONTH OF OCTOBER. SO I KNOW OUR SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS AND OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM THAT IS HERE TODAY IS OUT AND ABOUT, BECAUSE I SEE YOU ON TWITTER ALL THE TIME, VISITING OUR SCHOOLS. PLEASE GIVE THOSE PRINCIPALS A PAT ON THE BACK. TRADITIONALLY, HASA WOULD BE PROVIDING LUNCHES AND CELEBRATION ACTIVITIES, FELLOWSHIP ACTIVITIES, BUT DURING A PANDEMIC, UNFORTUNATELY, WE CAN'T DO THAT. SO, IN ADDITION TO THAT, AS WE KNOW, WE HAVE AN ELECTION COMING UP. AND NOVEMBER 3rd CAN'T GET HERE QUICK ENOUGH, I'M SURE FOR MANY OF US. WE, TWO YEARS AGO, PROVIDED A CANDIDATE FORUM OUT AT ZOO TAMPA. WE HAD HUNDREDS OF ADMINISTRATORS THERE, AND WE HAD OUR SCHOOL BOARD CANDIDATES ATTEND THAT EVENT. AS A MATTER OF FACT, THERE ARE A COUPLE OF SITTING RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME TODAY THAT GOT UP AND WAS ABLE TO INTRODUCE THEMSELVES AND TALK ABOUT THEIR VISION TO ALL OF OUR LEADERS. IT WAS A GREAT NIGHT AT ZOO TAMPA. ORIGINALLY, WE HAD AN EVENT ALL PLANNED FOR NEXT TUESDAY NIGHT AT FLORIDA AQUARIUM. WELL, THERE IS THIS LITTLE THING GOING ON CALLED COVID. AND THE FLORIDA AQUARIUM CANCELED THAT EVENT. SO WE ARE HOSTING A ZOOM CANDIDATE FORUM NEXT TUESDAY NIGHT STARTING AT 6:00. AND I'VE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH ALL SIX -- I'M SORRY, ALL EIGHT CANDIDATES, AND IT SHOULD BE A GREAT EVENING. WE ARE SHARING THAT INFORMATION WITH OUR PRINCIPALS, ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS, AND IT'S GOING TO BE A GREAT NIGHT. PLEASE ZOOM IN AND LISTEN TO SOME OF YOURS COLLEAGUES ON -- SOME OF YOUR COLLEAGUES ON THE DAIS, AND THEIR CANDIDATES THAT ARE RUNNING FOR SCHOOL BOARD. THANK YOU, EVERYBODY. HAVE A GREAT DAY.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MR. BONTE. WE APPRECIATE ALL THAT HASA DOES FOR OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT. AND HAPPY PRINCIPALS MONTH. THEY ARE THE GLUE THAT BINDS THE DISTRICT TOGETHER. THAT CONCLUDES OUR PUBLIC COMMENT FOR THIS EVENING, BOARD MEMBERS. SO WE ARE GOING TO MOVE INTO RECOGNITIONS AND PROCLAMATIONS. OUR FIRST ADOPTION OF A PROCLAMATION FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO OBSERVE AND CELEBRATE GLOBAL DIVERSITY AWARENESS MONTH, OCTOBER 16 THROUGH THE 30th IS GOING TO BE PRESENTED BY MEMBER SHAMBURGER.
>>Tamara Shamburger: THANK YOU SO MUCH, MADAM CHAIR. GOOD AFTERNOON, EVERYONE. I'M PROUD TO HIGHLIGHT THE PROCLAMATION FOR GLOBAL DIVERSITY AWARENESS MONTH IN HONOR OF OUR 215,000 DIVERSE STUDENTS AND 25,000 DIVERSE STAFF. THE SCHOOL BOARD OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY ACCEPTS AND WELCOMES PEOPLE OF DIVERSE BACKGROUNDS AND BELIEVES A DIVERSE POPULATION LEADS TO A MORE VIBRANT COMMUNITY WHICH CONTRIBUTES TO OUR SCHOOLS AND CULTURE. OUR DISTRICT HAS ADOPTED POLICIES THAT PROMOTE A SAFE AND INCLUSIVE LEARNING AND WORK ENVIRONMENT FREE FROM ANY FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION, HARASSMENT OR BULLYING ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, RELIGION, SEX, AGE, ORIGIN, POLITICAL BELIEFS, GENDER IDENTITY, AND SOCIAL BACKGROUND. OUR DISTRICT IS -- HAS PARTNERED WITH AREA ORGANIZATIONS AND SMALL BUSINESSES, WOMEN-OWNED AND MINORITY VENDORS TO WORK COLLABORATIVELY TO ENHANCE INTERETHNIC RELATIONS, MULTICULTURAL DIALOGUE AND INCLUSIVE EDUCATIONAL, SOCIAL, BUSINESS, AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES THAT BENEFIT OUR STUDENTS.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MEMBER SHAMBURGER. WOULD YOU LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THIS PROCLAMATION?
>>Tamara Shamburger: YES.
>>Melissa Snively: OKAY. SO MOVED BY MEMBER SHAMBURGER. BOARD MEMBERS, I NEED A SECOND. IT LOOKS LIKE MS. GRAY HAS CHIMED IN FOR A SECOND TO THIS MOTION. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? YES, MS. GRAY.
>>Lynn Gray: THANKS, MADAM CHAIR. THANK YOU, MEMBER SHAMBURGER. VERY IMPORTANT PROCLAMATION. I JUST WANT TO MAKE A FEW REMARKS. OUR DIVERSE COMMUNITIES ARE AT RISK RIGHT NOW IN MANY CASES DUE TO THE COVID CRISIS. WE ARE REMINDED THAT THERE IS FOOD INSECURITY, DOMESTIC ABUSE, TRANSPORTATION CHALLENGES, AND THERE IS A HUGE DISCONNECT WITH THE LANGUAGE FROM ENGLISH TO SPANISH AND OTHER MATTERS. I DON'T WANT TO GO AHEAD AND PUT A SMILE ON MY FACE. I'M GLAD THAT WE HAVE THE PROCLAMATION, BUT WHAT I DO WANT TO SAY -- AND THIS WILL PUT A SMILE ON OUR FACES -- IS WHAT WE ARE DOING, SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS AND OUR WONDERFUL DIVERSITY LEADER AND STAFF, MONICA VERRA-TIRADO -- HOPEFULLY I GOT YOUR NAME RIGHT. DID I DO GOOD? OKAY. DING! WITH YOUR STAFF AND WITH YOUR BLESSING, SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS, I KNOW THAT THE ISSUES OF LANGUAGE ARE BEING DEALT WITH, THE COMMUNICATION OF LANGUAGE, HISPANIC TO ENGLISH IS VERY MUCH BEING DONE AS WE SPEAK. AND THOSE COMMUNICATIONS OF FOOD, WHERE IT IS AND SO FORTH AND SO ON ARE BEING TAKEN CARE OF. THE ISSUE OF ACADEMIC -- I WANT TO SAY INFERIOR, BUT NOW WE'RE GOING TO GO TO SUPERIOR. BECAUSE WHAT WE'RE DOING IS WE'RE ADDING MORE HISPANIC DUAL LANGUAGE CLASSES. THE CURRICULUM WILL HAVE MORE RIGOR AS WILL THE AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDIES ADDING AP. SO TO THE AUDIENCE THAT'S LISTENING, WE ARE PAYING ATTENTION TO OUR DIVERSITY. WE ARE HARNESSING GREAT EFFORTS TO MEET THE NEEDS OF OUR COMMUNITIES, AND I CAN'T GO WITHOUT SAYING THAT I KNOW FOR A FACT THINGS ARE BEING DONE, AND I WANT US TO BE ENCOURAGED. AGAIN, THANK YOU. THIS PROCLAMATION IS VERY, VERY WELL THOUGHT OUT. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION, BOARD MEMBERS? ALL RIGHT. SEEING NONE, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND IT IS UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU, BOARD MEMBERS, FOR APPROVING THE PROCLAMATION FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS CELEBRATING GLOBAL DIVERSITY AWARENESS MONTH. OUR NEXT PROCLAMATION IS FOR WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY, AND THIS WILL BE PRESENTED BY MEMBER PEREZ.
>>Karen Perez: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. I AM SO EXCITED TO HIGHLIGHT THE WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY PROCLAMATION. WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY IS OBSERVED ON OCTOBER 10th EACH YEAR WITH AN OVERALL OBJECTIVE OF RAISING AWARENESS ON MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES. AT A TIME WHEN OUR DAILY LIVES HAVE CHALLENGED DRAMATICALLY OVER THE LAST FEW MONTHS, IT IS EXPECTED THAT THE NEED FOR MENTAL HEALTH AND PSYCHOSOCIAL SUPPORT WILL SUBSTANTIALLY INCREASE IN THE COMING MONTHS AND YEARS. THAT IS WHY NOW, MORE THAN EVER, IT IS ESSENTIAL TO ERASE THE STIGMA AROUND MENTAL HEALTH, GENERATE MORE AWARENESS AND REMIND OUR FAMILIES OF THE SERVICES OFFERED TO PROVIDE SUPPORT TO OUR STUDENTS. OUR DISTRICT HAS SOME MENTAL HEALTH INITIATIVES TO SUPPORT THESE EFFORTS. SINCE MARCH, OUR DISTRICT HAS PROVIDED TELEHEALTH COUNSELING TO MORE THAN 2,400 STUDENTS. THE STUDENT SERVICES TEAMS HAVE ANSWERED 720 MENTAL HEALTH HOT LINE CALLS. AND THIS WEEK, SCHOOLS WILL RECEIVE A MENTAL HEALTH BANNER TO HANG ON THEIR CAMPUS. AND THE BANNER -- TA-DA! THE BANNER ENCOURAGES STUDENTS TO REACH OUT TO A MEMBER OF THEIR STUDENT SERVICES ■TEAM IF THEY NEED TO TALK ABOUT THEIR FEELINGS AND CONCERNS. THANK YOU. AND OUR DISTRICT IS SHARING TWO PSAs TO ADDRESS COMBATING STIGMA ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH. ONE PSA FOCUSES ON THE STUDENTS TALKING DIRECTLY TO THEIR PEERS ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF SHARING THEIR FEELINGS WITH SOMEONE THEY TRUST. AND THE OTHER PSA FOCUSES ON STUDENTS TALKING TO THE PARENTS ABOUT THE SIGNALS PARENTS SHOULD LOOK OUT FOR WHEN THEIR CHILD IS STRUGGLING. THESE PSAs WILL BE PROVIDED TO MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS TO SHARE WITH THEIR STUDENTS, STAFF AND FAMILIES. SO NOW I WOULD LIKE TO SHOW THE BRIEF PSA FEATURING STUDENTS SPEAKING DIRECTLY TO THE PARENTS ABOUT THE SIGNALS THAT THEY GIVE WHEN THEY NEED SUPPORT WITH THEIR MENTAL HEALTH.
>> WE ARE SENDING YOU SIGNALS EVERY DAY.
>> WE ARE SENDING YOU SIGNALS EVERY DAY.
>> WE'RE SENDING YOU SIGNALS EVERY DAY.
>> I'LL BE FEELING SAD BUT YOU'RE TOO BUSY TO NOTICE.
>> MY GRADES WILL DROP AND YOU'LL YELL AT ME FOR NOT TRYING.
>> I DON'T SEE MY FRIENDS ANYMORE AND YOU THINK IT'S GOOD I'M ALWAYS HOME. WE'RE SENDING YOU SIGNALS EVERY DAY.
>> I NEED YOU TO LOOK.
>> I NEED YOU TO LISTEN.
>> AND ASK ME IF I NEED HELP.
>>Karen Perez: THANK YOU. SO I NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO ADOPT THE PROCLAMATION FOR WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY, OCTOBER 10.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MEMBER PEREZ. IT LOOKS LIKE I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER STUART AND A SECOND BY MEMBER PEREZ. WE'LL REVERSE THAT. MEMBER PEREZ WILL MAKE THE MOTION AND MS. STUART WILL SECOND THAT MOTION. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION ON THAT PROCLAMATION? MEMBER GRAY.
>>Lynn Gray: I JUST WANT TO SAY VERY MUCH THANK YOU, MEMBER PEREZ, FOR YOUR COMMITMENT AND YOUR ENGAGEMENT IN AN ASPECT OF A STUDENT'S LIFE, WHICH IS CRITICAL RIGHT NOW. AND I JUST WANTED TO ALSO GIVE A SHOUT-OUT TO OUR SOCIAL WORKERS WHO RIGHT HERE AND NOW -- I ALWAYS SAY HERE AND NOW BECAUSE LITERALLY, PROBABLY TRUE, THEY ARE DRIVING TO HOMES, CHECKING ON THE CHILDREN, CHECKING ON THE FOOD NEEDS, CHECKING ON THEIR CLOTHES, IF THEY HAVE THE RIGHT ONES TO WEAR. AND THE MENTAL HEALTH. SO OUR SOCIAL WORKERS, I WISH WE CAN HAVE THE BUDGET TO AFFORD A LOT MORE, BUT I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT. AND I ALSO WANTED TO GIVE A SPECIAL SHOUT-OUT TO PRINCIPAL KELLY McILANY OF PALM RIVER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL WHO IS ENGAGING, TRANSFORMING TRAUMA-BASED TEACHING, HOPING THOSE CHILDREN OR SHOULD SAY THE TEACHERS, STRATEGIZE TO HELP THOSE CHILDREN WHO HAVE THOSE ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES, AND MAKING A CHILD -- ONE CHILD AT A TIME HAVE A BETTER EXPERIENCE AT THE SCHOOL. AND THIS IS SO CRITICAL. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THOSE TRANSFORMATIONAL PRINCIPLES, WHICH THERE ARE MANY, BUT THIS ONE I WANTED TO GIVE A SHOUT-OUT.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. MEMBER PEREZ.
>>Karen Perez: I WANT TO THANK THE WHOLE MENTAL HEALTH TEAM WITH HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOLS, BECAUSE THEY HAVE TOTALLY TRANSFORMED THE FACE OF MENTAL HEALTH HERE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOLS. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, MEMBERS -- BOARD MEMBERS. IT LOOKS LIKE THERE'S NO FURTHER DISCUSSION, SO PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND IT IS UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU, MEMBER PEREZ. WE'LL MOVE ON TO OUR LAST PROCLAMATION, WHICH IS FOR NATIONAL FIRE SAFETY WEEK, OCTOBER 4th THROUGH THE 10th. VICE-CHAIR CONA WILL BE PRESENTING THIS PROCLAMATION.
>>Steve Cona: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. IT'S AN HONOR TO PRESENT THIS PROCLAMATION TODAY. SO FIRE PREVENTION IS SO IMPORTANT BECAUSE FIRE KILLS APPROXIMATELY 500 CHILDREN EVERY YEAR. WORKING SMOKE ALARMS REDUCE THE CHANCE OF DYING IN A HOUSE FIRE BY 50% AND HOUSEHOLDS WITH A FIRE PLAN HAVE A MUCH GREATER CHANCE OF ESCAPING UNINJURED. TO ENCOURAGE FIRE SAFETY, SAFETY INSPECTORS FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS CREATED A PSA FOR ELEMENTARY, AND MIDDLE SCHOOLS TO ENCOURAGE THEM TO GO TO THEIR PARENTS OR GUARDIANS AND ASK THEM IF THEY HAVE A SAFE LOCATION TO MEET UP AFTER A FIRE. THE PSA ALSO ENCOURAGES STUDENTS TO ASK THEIR PARENTS ABOUT SMOKE DETECTORS AND WHERE THEY ARE TESTING THEM MONTHLY AND CHANGING THE BATTERIES. THIS PSA WAS DELIVERED TO ALL ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS -- SORRY, ALL ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOLS, BUT WE WILL ALSO POST IT ON OUR DISTRICT SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS. THE HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS FIRE INSPECTORS PERFORM MORE THAN 600 FIRE INSPECTIONS PER YEAR FOR ALL OF OUR SCHOOLS AND DISTRICT SITES. AND THE DISTRICT IS PROVIDING ALL OF ITS STUDENT NUTRITION SERVICE EMPLOYEES WITH FIRE EXTINGUISHER TRAINING. NOW I'D LIKE TO BRING UP OUR DIRECTOR OF SAFETY AND RISK MANAGEMENT, MR. CULPEPPER, FOR A BRIEF PRESENTATION.
>>Corries Culpepper: THANK YOU. MADAM CHAIR, BOARD MEMBERS, SUPERINTENDENT AND STAFF, I FIRST HAVE TO SAY THANK YOU FOR GIVING US THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME FORWARD WITH THIS PRACTICE MAKINGS. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME THAT I KNOW OF OR ANYONE ELSE IN OUR DEPARTMENT EXPLAIN TO US THAT WE CAME FORTH WITH A PROCLAMATION. SO I WANT TO SAY THANK YOU. I KNOW I'M SQUEEZED FOR TIME. I WOULDN'T BE DOING A SERVICE TO THE PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY DO THE WORK, FOR THE TEN INSPECTORS. INSPECTOR LOUIS PEREZ, INSPECTOR KLEIN, INSPECTOR GRAY, INSPECTOR McBRIDE, INSPECTOR HARVIN, INSPECTOR GADSEN, INSPECTOR FERNANDEZ, INSPECTOR SHEPHERD, INSPECTOR McCHORD AND REALLY THE CLUE BEHIND THIS WHOLE DEPARTMENT, THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARY MS. COLETTE GOODMAN-SMITH. SHE IS DEFINITELY THE GLUE. [ APPLAUSE ] WITH THAT BEING SAID, TODAY WE WANT TO MAKE FOUR NEW FIRE INSPECTORS HONORARY, ONLY FOR THIS WEEK. ONLY FOR THIS WEEK. STARTING OUT WITH MR. CHRISTOPHER FARKAS. DR. KEMP. DR. McAULEY. BOARD MEMBER CONA. NOW, BECAUSE WE'RE MAKING THEM HONORARY, REMEMBER, JUST FOR THIS WEEK, I DO NOT WANT TO PERSONALLY LEAD THEM. AS THE DISTRICT FIRE MARSHAL FOR THIS WEEK, SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS, YOU ARE THE HONORARY DISTRICT FIRE MARSHAL FOR THIS WEEK. ALL RIGHT? SO THOSE FOUR ARE YOUR GUYS FOR THIS WEEK.
>>Addison Davis: THANK YOU. I FEEL LIKE I PUT FIRES OUT EVERY DAY. [ LAUGHTER ] NOW I LEGITIMATELY GET A BADGE.
>> YES, SIR, YOUR OFFICIAL NOW.
>>Addison Davis: DO I HAVE TO GIVE IT BACK AFTER THE WEEK?
>>Corries Culpepper: NO, IT'S YOURS.
>>Addison Davis: THANK YOU.
>>Corries Culpepper: AGAIN, I JUST REALLY WANT TO SAY THANK YOU. THIS IS AN AMAZING TIME THAT WE LIVE IN. THESE LADIES AND GENTLEMEN IN THE SAFETY DEPARTMENT ANSWER MY CALL EVERY TIME, REGARDLESS OF WHAT IT'S PERTAINING TO, WHETHER LEAVING THE HOUSE, GOING TO A CALL, WHETHER IT'S FOLLOWING UP WITH A CALL THAT WE WENT TO THE DAY BEFORE, THEY ARE ALWAYS ANSWERING THE CALL. I REALLY TRULY BELIEVE THAT OUR STUDENTS, FACULTY AND STAFF ARE IN A SAFE ENVIRONMENT, AND WE CONTINUE EVERY DAY TO MAKE SURE THAT THIS IS AN ENVIRONMENT THAT ALL OUR STUDENTS, FACULTY AND STAFF CAN BE SAFE IN. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU. WE HAVE A FEW COMMENTS FROM BOARD MEMBERS. SO YOU MIGHT WANT TO STAY CLOSE, MR. CULPEPPER. MS. STUART.
>>Cindy Stuart: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. WELL, MR. CULPEPPER, UNTIL YOU DID THAT, I WAS GOING TO CONGRATULATE YOU ON THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE IN THIS DIVISION OVER THE LAST YEAR AND A HALF. BUT THEN YOU WENT AND PUT THESE FOUR GUYS IN SOME SORT OF CAPACITY IN YOUR DIVISION. SO MAYBE I SHOULD SAVE MY COMMENTS UNTIL SATURDAY MORNING. BUT IN ALL HONESTY, I KNOW THAT YOU'VE TAKEN OVER THIS DIVISION AT A TIME THAT THERE WAS REALLY SOME -- THERE WERE SOME ISSUES HAPPENING THERE. I WANT TO CONGRATULATE YOU BECAUSE I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT A LOT OF THINGS HAVE CHANGED. THERE'S A LOT MORE STRUCTURE AND A LOT MORE PLANNING THAT HAPPENS IN THAT DIVISION. AND I JUST WANT TO SAY CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU. AND WE'LL WAIT AND SEE WHAT SATURDAY -- LET'S HOPE NOTHING HAPPENS BETWEEN NOW AND SATURDAY AND THEY CAN TAKE THEIR SHIRTS OFF.
>>Melissa Snively: HORSEMAN OF THE APOCALYPSE. NOW INSPECTORS.
>>Cindy Stuart: WE'RE ALREADY KIND OF IN THE APOCALYPSE.
>>Corries Culpepper: THAT'S WHY I MAKE SURE THAT THE SUPERINTENDENT WAS HONORARY. HE'S IN CHARGE OF THAT GROUP.
>>Cindy Stuart: YOU HAVE TO SUPERVISE HIM THEN. ALL SERIOUSNESS, CONGRATULATIONS, REALLY.
>>Corries Culpepper: THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MS. STUART. MR. CONA.
>>Steve Cona: YEAH, I JUST WANT TO ECHO WHAT MEMBER STUART SAID. YOU'RE DOING A GREAT JOB, AND WE APPRECIATE IT. I KNOW GLOBAL PANDEMIC WASN'T ON YOUR LIST OF THINGS TO DO EITHER. BUT NOW YOU'VE TACKLED THAT, AND YOUR TEAM, THEY HAVE DONE A PHENOMENAL JOB. I WANT TO SAY I APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING AND YOUR TEAM IS DOING. KUDOS ON A JOB WELL DONE.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MR. CONA. MEMBER GRAY?
>>Lynn Gray: YES. MR. CULPEPPER, PROBABLY MORE THAN ANYTHING THAT I NOTICED WHEN WE HAVE LUNCH -- OH, ABOUT A YEAR AGO -- THE CAMARADERIE, THE SECURITY THAT YOU'RE GIVING YOUR FELLOW WORKERS. AND JUST THE VERY WONDERFUL WAY THAT YOU'RE SHOWING DIGNITY TO WHAT YOU'RE DOING EVERY DAY BECAUSE THOSE ROLE MODELS, EXCEPT FOR THESE PEOPLE -- JUST KIDDING -- YOUR ROLE MODELS REALLY IT SHOWS OUR CHILDREN HOW THEY SHOULD BE, AND I THINK THAT'S VERY SIGNIFICANT. THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU DO. I KNOW YOU'RE BUSY AS A BEE ALL THE TIME. WE THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. MEMBER SHAMBURGER?
>>Tamara Shamburger: YES, THANK YOU SO MUCH, MADAM CHAIR. MR. CULPEPPER, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE TODAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO MAKE ALL OF US SAFER. OUR STUDENTS AND ALL OF OUR STAFF MEMBERS, ALL OF YOUR INSPECTORS AS WELL. YOU KNOW, I KNOW THAT WHEN I'VE CALLED, WHEN I'VE SEEN ISSUES ON MY SCHOOL VISITS, THEY ARE TAKEN CARE OF IMMEDIATELY. BECAUSE OF THAT, WE KNOW THAT OUR STUDENTS AND STAFF MEMBERS ARE SAFE. THANK YOU FOR ALL OF THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE AND YOU CONTINUE TO DO TO ALL YOUR STAFF AND CERTAINLY THE GLUE THAT HOLDS YOU GUYS TOGETHER. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
>>Melissa Snively: I'LL CHIME IN AND SAY THAT I'M A LITTLE JEALOUS THAT I DIDN'T GET PICKED. I KNOW YOU'RE GOING TO GET AT LEAST ONE VOTE FOR THIS PROCLAMATION. THERE'S LIKE SIX OTHER PEOPLE THAT ARE VOTING. I JUST WANT TO POINT THAT OUT.
>>Tamara Shamburger: HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?
>>Melissa Snively: MAYBE ON A ROTATION OR, YOU KNOW, WE'LL WORK IT OUT LATER.
>>Corries Culpepper: YOUR SHIRT IS ON BACK ORDER.
>>Lynn Gray: SHOULD BE WOMEN'S DAY HERE SOON.
>>Melissa Snively: OKAY. BOARD MEMBERS, ACTUALLY, I STILL NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THE PROCLAMATION. SO I'VE GOT TO MOTION BY -- GOT A MOTION BY MEMBER CONA AND SECOND BY DR. HAHN. IS THERE ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION ABOUT THIS PROCLAMATION? SEEING NONE, THEN PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND IT IS UNANIMOUS. CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU, YOUR TEAM. THANK YOU, MR. CONA, FOR PRESENTING. WE APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU SO MUCH. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, BOARD MEMBERS. NEXT ON THE AGENDA IS THE APPROVAL OF THE CONSENT AGENDA. I JUST NEED A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER STUART AND A SECOND BY MEMBER PEREZ. THERE IS NO DISCUSSION ON THIS PARTICULAR ITEM, SO PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND IT IS UNANIMOUS. THE CONSENT AGENDA IS APPROVED. WE WILL MOVE ON TO THE SUPERINTENDENT COMMENTS, MR. SUPERINTENDENT?
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM. THANK YOU. THROUGH THE CHAIR ONCE AGAIN WANT TO THANK CC. HE HAS WORKED TIRELESSLY. I WANT TO ECHO EVERYTHING THE SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS HAVE SAID ABOUT HIS LEADERSHIP. I'M GETTING TEXT MESSAGES AT 1:00, 2:00 IN THE MORNING ABOUT WHAT HIM AND HIS TEAM ARE DOING TO CLEAN SCHOOLS. YOU KNOW, I'M SO GRATEFUL FOR THEIR HARD WORK AND DEDICATION. HE MUST BE LIKE ME, HE NEVER SLEEPS. BUT HE'S ALWAYS ON TOP OF EVERYTHING, WORKING HAND IN HAND WITH OUR COVID COMMANDER, MRS. BROWN'S SHOP AND THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH IN ORDER TO MAKE CERTAIN WE GET IT RIGHT. I'M THANKFUL AND GRATEFUL FOR HIM. SO THIS EVENING, YOU KNOW, I WANT TO TALK ABOUT A COUPLE OF THINGS RELATED TO OUR WORK IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. I WANT TO TALK ABOUT ATHLETICS REOPENING PLAN, TALK ABOUT NEW INITIATIVES, UPDATE ON CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS WHERE THERE ARE EXPENDITURES RELATED SO THE COMMUNITY CAN UNDERSTAND HOW THOSE DOLLARS ARE BEING SPENT. AND ALSO A LOOK AT OUR CURRENT STATUS OF OUR SALES TAX AND TALK ABOUT NEXT STEPS FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, WHAT TO EXPECT AS WE CONTINUE TO TRANSITION FORWARD. FIRST AND FOREMOST, AS YOU KNOW, ATHLETICALLY, WE LAUNCHED A PLAN AND WE HAD A VERY -- REALLY CONTROLLED ENVIRONMENT BY ONLY ALLOWING FOUR PARTICIPANTS -- YOU KNOW, FOUR SPECTATORS PER PARTICIPANT. AND WE'VE DONE A REALLY NICE JOB. WE ARE TRANSITIONING RIGHT NOW IN THE FALL SEASON. THIS IS WEEK FIVE. WE HAVE FOUR WEEKS TO GO TO FINALIZE THE FALL SEASON, PLUS WE'LL BE EXTENDING -- A NUMBER OF TEAMS EXTENDING DEEP INTO THE PLAYOFFS. BUT OVERALL AFTER, YOU KNOW, CONSIDERATION, LOOKING AT PHASE THREE, HAVING CONVERSATIONS AND LOOKING AT RECOMMENDATIONS AND HAVING INPUT FROM OUR LOCAL HEALTH PROVIDERS AND PARTNERSHIPS WITH TGH AND USF HEALTH AND THE WORK DONE THROUGH MR. AYRES ALONG WITH MR. ROBINSON, WE'RE ABLE TO LOOK AT REFINING AND REOPENING THE OVERALL STANCE TO -- FOR OUR SPECTATORS TO OUR EVENTS, NOT ONLY RELATED TO FOOTBALL GAMES, BUT VOLLEYBALL GAMES AS WELL. SO WHAT WE'LL BE DOING IS EXPANDING REALLY RELATIVELY GOING TO AROUND 50% CAPACITY IN OUR FACILITIES, PUTTING AROUND 400 INDIVIDUALS -- UP TO 400 INDIVIDUALS IN OUR VOLLEYBALL GAMES, 1500 TO OUR FOOTBALL GAMES, AND TO BE ABLE TO ALLOW OUR INDIVIDUALS TO COME PARTICIPATE. WE KNOW HOW IMPORTANT THESE EVENTS ARE, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, WE WILL CONTINUE TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT WE HAVE A STRONG EMPHASIS ON SOCIAL DISTANCING. EVERYONE WILL HAVE TO WEAR FACE COVERINGS ON OUR PROPERTIES AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO DISINFECT AND MAKE SURE WE HAVE PROPER HYGIENE ALONG THE WAY. WE'LL CONTINUE TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT, WHILE WE HAD PODS OF INDIVIDUALS SITTING IN PODS OF FOUR, WE WILL NOW BE EXPANDING THAT TO TEN AND MAKE CERTAIN WITH A FACE COVERINGS AND WE'LL HAVE SEPARATION RELATED TO SOCIAL DISTANCING OF THOSE PARTICULAR PODS. AND THEN WE WILL CONTINUE TO DISCOURAGE ANY MOVEMENT AROUND THE FACILITIES, HAVING NO CONGREGATIONS IN PARTICULAR AREAS, MAKING CERTAIN EVERYONE WHO'S THERE IS EITHER IN LINE FOR THE CONCESSION OR IN LINE FOR THE RESTROOM OR THEY ARE SITTING IN THE STADIUM BEING ABLE TO CONTINUE TO CHEER IN RESPECTFUL WAY FOR ALL THE PARTICIPANTS. ONE THING WE'VE HAD GREAT SUCCESS WITH IS WE'LL CONTINUE TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, PURCHASING OUR TICKETS IN ADVANCE ONLINE. ONCE ALL TICKETS ARE SOLD OUT FOR THAT PARTICULAR EVENT, TICKETS WILL NO LONGER BE AVAILABLE AND WILL BE PAPERLESS ENTRY, AND WE'LL HAVE CASHLESS CONCESSION STANDS AND PARKING, AND OUR STAFF IS DOING A REALLY NICE JOB. WE REALLY THANK OUR LOCAL PUBLIC HEALTH PARTNERS FOR HELPING US WITH THIS PLAN AS WE CONTINUE TO MR. AYRES AND MR. ROBINSON, AS WE CONTINUE TO EXPAND. AS YOU KNOW, WE HAVE MANY CONSTITUENTS AND STUDENTS READY TO BE A PART -- PARTICIPATE AND BE A PART OF THE SPECIAL EVENTS AND BE ABLE TO HAVE OWNERSHIP AND PRIDE WITHIN THEIR PARTICULAR SCHOOL. ALSO, WE TALKED ABOUT NEW INITIATIVES. A LOT OF NEW THINGS GOING ON IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. YOU KNOW, FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, WE LAUNCHED, YOU KNOW, A Facebook AND A TWITTER COUNT IN ESPANOL. AND WE HAVE OVER 80,000 STUDENTS IN OUR -- IN OUR COMMUNITY, IN OUR STUDENTS THAT WE SERVE THAT ARE IDENTIFIED AS HISPANIC. AND THAT MAKES UP THE MAJORITY OF OUR STUDENT BODY WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY. OVER 37% OF OUR STUDENTS ARE IDENTIFIED AS HISPANIC. SO WE'VE GOT TO DO A BETTER JOB OPENLY ABOUT HOW WE'RE COMMUNICATING WITH OUR PARENTS, HOW WE'RE COMMUNICATING WITH OUR STUDENTS. AND THIS NEW LAUNCH TRULY ALLOWS US TO MAKE THAT CONNECTIVITY TO BE ABLE TO ALLOW FAMILIES TO BE INFORMED OF WHAT WE'RE DOING, LOOK AT PROCESSES, LOOK AT TARGETS, BE INFORMED OF OUR PROJECTS SO THEY CAN ACTIVELY BE SUCCESSFUL WITHIN OUR ENVIRONMENT. ALSO, ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS WE HAVE IN OUR COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT, WE HAVE ONE INDIVIDUAL THAT'S DEDICATED TO THIS PLATFORM THAT IS THAT CONNECTIVITY BETWEEN THE COMMUNITY AND ALSO THE -- YOU KNOW, ALL OF OUR INITIATIVES IN OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT, THAT TRULY ALLOWS US TO CONTINUE TO HAVE A BETTER APPROACH. THIS IS ALL ABOUT CELEBRATING RICH DIVERSITY, AND THIS IS ANOTHER STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION TO SHOW A SENSE OF CARE TO THE ORGANIZATION. ALSO, WE'RE GOING TO LAUNCH -- I JUST LAUNCHED THIS TODAY. ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS, AS WE'RE LEADING THROUGH A PANDEMIC AND STARTING TO REALLY TRANSITION TO LOOK AT BEST PRACTICES INSIDE AND OUTSIDE OF THE CLASSROOMS, IT'S VERY IMPORTANT FOR ME AS A LEADER TO SURROUND MYSELF WITH EDUCATORS TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S WORKING, WHAT'S NOT, AND WHAT WE CAN DO DIFFERENTLY EVERY SINGLE DAY. SO TODAY, I LAUNCHED THE INAUGURAL SUPERINTENDENT'S TEACHER ADVISORY COUNCIL. THIS WILL BE ABLE TO TO -- FOR ME TO IDENTIFY INDIVIDUALS FROM PRE-K TO 12, YOU KNOW, WE'LL HAVE TWO INDIVIDUALS PER GRADE LEVEL THAT WILL BE INCLUSIVE OF RESOURCE TEACHERS, ELECTIVE TEACHERS, ALL TO COME TO BE ABLE TO APPLY FOR THIS ADVISORY COUNCIL. THERE WILL BE A SCREENING PROCESS AND AN INTERVIEW PROCESS FOR US TO SELECT INDIVIDUALS TO BE A PART OF THIS. THIS IS GOING TO BE, WE'LL START IN OCTOBER TO IDENTIFY, AFTER THAT IT WOULD BE A SEVEN-MONTH COMMITMENT THAT I'LL MEET ONCE A MONTH WITH THESE INDIVIDUALS TO BE ABLE TO REALLY TALK ABOUT HOW WE IMPROVE THE OVERALL ENVIRONMENT TO MAKE CERTAIN WE HAVE A SAFE, NURTURING, YOU KNOW, ENVIRONMENT. AND FOR ME TO BE ABLE TO BOUNCE OFF PARTICULAR IDEAS ABOUT HOW WE CONTINUE TO BE HEALTHY OVERALL CULTURALLY AND INSTRUCTIONALLY AND ACADEMICALLY WITH TEACHERS IN THE FOREFRONT OF THE DECISION MAKING AND BEING A REALLY TRULY SOUND BAR. I HOPE THAT WE HAVE LOTS AND LOTS OF INDIVIDUALS THAT APPLY BECAUSE I'M REALLY LOOKING FOR SOME INDIVIDUALS TO HELP ME BE A GAME-CHANGER IN THIS WORK EVERY SINGLE DAY IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. IN ADDITION, WE ALSO HAVE -- WE'LL BE LAUNCHING TOMORROW OUR CAREER TECHNICAL EDUCATION TECH TALK. ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS, YOU KNOW, I ALWAYS GO TO SPEAK AT EVENTS OR I'M IN THE COMMUNITY OR GROCERY STORE OR WHETHER I'M OUT FOR A RUN, I GET STOPPED TO REALLY ASK ME ABOUT VOCATIONAL PATHWAYS THAT WE HAVE. YOU KNOW, I'M GETTING ASKED, WHEN WILL WE GO BACK TO THE TRADITIONAL PATHWAYS? OUR COMMUNITY NEEDS TO KNOW THAT WE REALLY DO A NICE JOB IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY CREATING PATHWAYS FOR OUR STUDENTS. WE HAVE SOME AWESOME PROGRAMS, AWESOME TEACHERS LEADING THIS WORK, AND THIS TECH TALK IS GOING TO CELEBRATE WHAT'S HAPPENING IN ALL OF OUR SCHOOLS -- EXCUSE ME -- TO BE ABLE TO TALK ABOUT THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS THAT STUDENTS ARE OBTAINING, TO TALK ABOUT THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS THAT OUR TEACHERS ARE ATTAINING THROUGH CTE AND THEN ALSO BEING ABLE TO HIGHLIGHT THE PROGRAMS AND THE PATHWAYS THAT WE OFFER EVERY SINGLE DAY FOR OUR STUDENTS. THIS WILL BE PUBLISHED MONTHLY. I WILL SEND THIS OUT TOMORROW. ALSO, THIS IS ABOUT INCREASING AWARENESS. WE'VE GOT TO NOT ONLY BE ABLE TO EXPOSE OUR STUDENTS WHO ARE TRANSITIONING FROM MIDDLE SCHOOL TO HIGH SCHOOL ABOUT OUR PATHWAYS, BUT THIS HAS GOT TO BE A CONSTANT, YOU KNOW, CONTINUATION OF KINDERGARTEN TO 12th GRADE TO BE ABLE TO HIGHLIGHT SOME OF THE REALLY GREAT THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING WITHIN OUR SCHOOLS. AND WE HAVE GOT SOME REALLY SPECIAL TEACHERS DOING SOME REALLY COOL, NEAT THINGS WITH OUR CHILDREN EVERY SINGLE DAY. SO LOOK FOR THAT TOMORROW. WE'LL BE ABLE TO LAUNCH THAT AND HAVE THAT CONNECTIVITY. ALSO, YOU KNOW, EVERY BOARD AGENDA THERE ARE CONSENT ITEMS I'D LIKE TO REVIEW BECAUSE THERE ARE A NUMBER OF EXPENDITURES, AND I WANT TO BE ABLE TO CONNECT THOSE OVERALL ELEMENTS TO THE OVERALL COST AND FUNDING SOURCE. 6.01 WAS ALL ABOUT OUR ADOPTION PROCESS, WHICH WAS THERE FOR US TO HAVE PUBLIC NOTICE AND BEING ABLE TO HAVE INPUT. THIS IS ALL ABOUT LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW, INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS FOR HEALTH AND HUMAN SCIENCE, INDUSTRY, TECHNOLOGY, AND IB MATHEMATICS. THIS FUNDING IS $1.2 MILLION, AND THAT MONEY IS BEING USED THROUGH INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS, WHICH IS PROVIDED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION. THIS POT OF MONEY CAN ONLY BE USED FOR INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS. AND THESE PROTECT OVER 20 TITLES WITH HEALTH AND HUMAN SCIENCE FROM BARBERING, COSMETOLOGY, EARLY CHILDHOOD, YOU KNOW, DENTAL AID AND THEN ALSO LOOKING AT THE INDUSTRY TECHNOLOGY, ALL ABOUT DRAFTING, BUILDING, CONSTRUCTION, WELDING, LOOKING AT IB, WHICH IS ALL ABOUT THE UPPER LEVEL ANALYSIS AND APPROACHES ONE AND TWO AND OTHERS. I JUST WANT TO MAKE CERTAIN EVERYONE IN THE COMMUNITY UNDERSTANDS WHERE THIS MONEY IS BEING APPROVED BY THE BOARD AND WHERE THAT CATEGORICAL IS LINKED TO. 6.02, APPROVAL OF CURRICULUM AND CTA ASSESSMENTS. THESE ARE ALL THE PURCHASE OF CURRICULUMS THAT REALLY STRENGTHEN THE CTE PROGRAMS AND ALLOW OUR STUDENTS TO MEET INDUSTRY CERTIFICATION EXAMINATIONS. AND TO DATE, YOU KNOW, WE'VE SPENT OVER $33,000. THANK YOU TO MR. BROOKS. HE'S REALLY WORKING HARD TO PROTECT THIS MONEY AND ALSO LEVERAGE PERKINS GRANTS IN ORDER TO MAKE CERTAIN OUR CHILDREN HAVE AND OBTAIN ACCELERATION THROUGH INDUSTRY CERTIFICATIONS, WHICH ALLOW THEM TO SEPARATE THEMSELVES WHEN THEY TRANSITION TO AN INTERVIEW PROCESS OR THEY TRANSITION TO A PARTICULAR PATHWAY OR THE WORKFORCE OR COLLEGIAL PROGRAM THAT ALLOWS THEM TO BE ABLE TO COMPETE IN A DIFFERENT MANNER. THEN ALSO, WE HAVE APPROVAL OF CHANGE ORDER FOR BUILDING SIGNAGE. THIS IS A REALLY GOOD INITIATIVE THAT WE'VE REALLY DONE. WE HAVE A REALLY BEAUTIFUL RELATIONSHIP IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY WITH OUR FIRST RESPONDERS FROM LOCAL LAW AUTHORITIES AND FIRE RESCUE. AND ONE THING WE WANTED TO DO IS MAKE CERTAIN THAT WHEN WE HAVE THESE PARTNERSHIPS AND IF WE'RE EVER FORCED WITH UNDESIRED BEHAVIOR WHEN THEY COME ON OUR CAMPUSES, THEY ARE ABLE TO -- TO BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY, YOU KNOW, SIGNAGE OF WHAT PARTICULAR BUILDING TO BE ABLE TO GO TO SO THAT THEY CAN TAKE SWIFT ACTION TO BE ABLE TO ADDRESS ANY ISSUE THAT MAY COME ON BOARD. AND THIS IS AN EXPANSION. WE'VE ALREADY DONE OUR HIGH SCHOOLS. THIS IS GOING TO BE OUR MIDDLE SCHOOLS. AND CENTEGIX ALLOWS US TO HAVE A REALLY CENTRALIZED INDICATOR OF PARTICULAR BUILDINGS FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT AND FIRE RESCUE, FOR IMMEDIATE RESPONSE, AND THIS IS JUST GOING TO EXPEDITE THE WORK TO BE ABLE TO GET THE MIDDLE SCHOOLS LABELED AS WELL. AND THEN FINALLY, APPROVAL OF EMERGENCY ORDER PURCHASES. YOU KNOW, AS A BOARD DURING THIS PANDEMIC, GAVE THE SUPERINTENDENT, MYSELF, THE ABILITY TO HAVE PURCHASES. AND WE SPENT $10 MILLION AND THAT WAS ALL LINKED TO BUYING THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF CHROME BOOKS, TO BE ABLE TO BUY CHROME LICENSES, PPE, ALL RELATED TO MASKS. AND AT THE SAME TIME WE WERE ABLE TO BUY AND PURCHASE WATER BOTTLES AND WATER FOR OUR STUDENTS BECAUSE OUR WATER FOUNTAINS ARE NOT OPERATIONAL AT THIS PARTICULAR TIME. SO ALL OF THAT -- OF THAT I THINK AROUND $9.8 MILLION IS ALL GOING TO BE REFUNDABLE THROUGH THE CARES ACT, AND THE OTHER WE WILL ABSORB INTERNALLY. SO BEING ABLE TO LEVERAGE, YOU KNOW, -- YOU KNOW, FEDERAL FUNDING WITH THIS SAYS A LOT ABOUT US BEING CREATIVE IN THAT WORK EVERY DAY. AND THEN ALSO, SALES TAX. THE BOARD, YOU KNOW, HAS DONE A REALLY NICE JOB AND THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE TO BE ABLE TO MAKE SURE WE MONITOR EVERY DOLLAR SPENT RELATED TO -- LEVERAGING THE TAX REFERENDUM. TO DATE, WE WANTED TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT WE PROVIDE THE COMMUNITY WHERE WE ARE FINANCIALLY. AS YOU CAN SEE THE COMPARISON FROM 2019 TO 2020, WE ARE ONLY $3.9 MILLION AWAY FROM WHERE WE WERE LAST YEAR, AND AS WE'VE DRIVEN THROUGH THE PANDEMIC AND WE'VE SHUT DOWN THIS COMMUNITY, THIS IS REALLY POSITIVE NUMBERS TO BE ABLE TO LOOK AT. WE ARE -- WE ARE PROJECTED TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, AROUND $130 MILLION COME TO OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT. I DO BELIEVE, NOW THAT WE'VE OPENED UP THE PHASE THREE, YOU'LL START TO SEE GREATER MOVEMENT IN OUR COMMUNITY, WHICH BRINGS ADDITIONAL DOLLARS TO ALLOW US TO CONTINUE TO ADDRESS DEFERRED, YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS OF DEFERRED MAINTENANCE WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY TO ADDRESS AC, ROOFING, HVAC, YOU NAME IT, WE'RE BEING ABLE TO DO THIS. AND REALLY PROUD OF OUR COMMITTEE, AND MR. FARKAS LEADING THIS WORK AND BEING ABLE TO CONTINUE TO CREATE A PULSE OF WHERE WE ARE AND HOW WE'RE USING OUR FINANCES TO OUR COMMUNITY IN A FISCAL RESPONSIBLE MANNER EVERY SINGLE DAY. AND THEN NEXT STEPS. A LOT OF US COMING UP. NEXT STEPS AND MS. PEREZ WILL BE ABLE TO SPEAK ABOUT IT. I HAD A CHANCE TO MEET WITH MELANIE HALL, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE FAMILY HEALTH CARE FOUNDATION, AND TO REALLY TALK ABOUT HOW WE CONTINUE TO IMPROVE OUR FAMILIES ACCESS TO QUALITY HEALTH CARE. THIS IS ALL ABOUT COVERAGE FOR CHILDREN AND ADULTS. MS. PEREZ WILL SPEAK ABOUT IT A LITTLE BIT LATER IN HER RESPONSES, BUT THANK YOU FOR MAKING THAT CONNECTIVITY AND GETTING THE WORD OUT TO PRINCIPALS TO BE ABLE TO HAVE AND TO OUR EMPLOYEES. THERE ARE A NUMBER OF OPTIONS FOR US TO BE ABLE TO HELP YOU, IF THERE'S A NEED IN HEALTH CARE, AND MS. PEREZ WILL BE ABLE TO GET INTO THAT DEEPER. OVERALL, BIG-TICKET ITEMS. THIS IS FTE WEEK. WHILE WE'RE HELD HARMLESS FOR THE EMERGENCY ORDER, THIS IS TRULY A WEEK WHICH WE'RE REALLY TRYING TO CAPTURE OUR STUDENTS. WE'VE DONE A REALLY NICE JOB TO DATE OF WHERE WE ARE BEING ABLE TO REDUCE THAT NUMBER OF STUDENTS THAT WE HAVE NOT IDENTIFIED OR NOT WITHIN OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT. HATS OFF TO KIM BAYS AND HER TEAM, ALSO TRACYE BROWN AND HER TEAM AND SHEA McCRAY AND HER TEAM FOR LEVERAGING SCHOOL PERSONNEL ALONG WITH SOCIAL WORKERS. THEY ARE DOING A REALLY NICE JOB THIS WEEK. ALSO, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE ALSO DISCUSSIONS. WANT THE COMMUNITY TO KNOW AND THE BOARD TO KNOW THAT OUR TEAM IS DISCUSSING THE RETURN TO BRICK AND MORTAR FOR E-LEARNING. WE'RE GETTING INUNDATED WITH STUDENTS. YOU KNOW, WE KNOW WE'VE MADE THE COMMITMENT FOR THE FIRST SEMESTER, AND WE WILL HONOR THAT COMMITMENT. BUT WE'RE GETTING INUNDATED WITH PARENTS AND STUDENTS THAT WANT TO COME BACK TO OUR SCHOOLS. OUR PRINCIPALS ARE DOING A REALLY NICE JOB TO BE ABLE TO ACCEPT STUDENTS WHERE THEY HAVE AVAILABILITY FOR CLASS SIZE, AND WE KNOW OUR TEACHERS ARE HANGING IN THERE WITH US TO HELP THIS, AND WE KNOW THAT WE'LL CONTINUE TO HELP THEM ADDRESS THIS. AS SOON AS WE GET OUR CHILDREN BACK, IT WILL LEVEL CLASSROOMS TO A BETTER DEGREE. BUT WHERE WE HAVE AVAILABILITY, WE ARE BRINGING OUR CHILDREN BACK TO BE ABLE TO SERVICE THEM THROUGH E-LEARNING. BUT WE MAY BE -- WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A POTENTIAL PLAN TO MAYBE POTENTIALLY ASK OUR COMMUNITY WHERE ARE THEY? WHAT ARE THEIR THOUGHTS ABOUT REMOTE LEARNING POTENTIALLY COMING BACK? SO WE CAN BETTER PREPARE -- BETTER PREPARE OUR SCHOOLS. AND WE HAVE MULTIPLE CONVERSATIONS THAT NEED TO HAPPEN THROUGH HR, AND WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO SIT DOWN WITH STEPHANIE AND ROB AS WELL TO TALK ABOUT WHERE WE ARE AND BUILD THAT PLATFORM. AND THEN ALSO VISITORS ON CAMPUS. AS WE ARE IN PHASE THREE, WANT THE COMMUNITY TO KNOW WE'LL START LOOKING AT VISITORS ON CAMPUS. WE WILL MAKE -- IT WILL BE VERY MINDFUL. WE HAVE LIMITED VISITORS AS OF RIGHT NOW, AND BE ABLE TO IN THE NEXT 30 DAYS, STARTING IN NOVEMBER, POTENTIALLY -- OR MIDDLE OF NOVEMBER, WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE FOR OUR CONTINUED PARTNERS? WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE FOR VOLUNTEERS? WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE FOR INDIVIDUALS DRIVING TO WORK FOR PTSAs? TO BE ABLE TO COME ON CAMPUS AND DO IT IN A VERY INTENTIONAL MANNER. SO MORE INFORMATION WILL BE ROLLED OUT TO OUR SCHOOLS AND OUR COMMUNITY AS WELL. AND THEN ALSO DISTRICT AND SCHOOL-BASED FACILITY RENTAL. WE'RE LOOKING RIGHT NOW FOR FORECASTABILITY FOR OUR SCHOOLS TO BE ABLE TO CONTINUE TO START THE RENTALS BACK UP BY NOVEMBER THE 1st. AND WE'RE WORKING WITH OPERATIONS AND FACILITIES USAGE TO BE ABLE TO PUT THAT INFORMATION OUT. AND I THINK WE'VE DONE A REALLY NICE JOB PAUSING THIS, BUT THERE MAY BE SOME -- FOR THOSE WHO ARE RENTING OUR FACILITIES, THERE DEFINITELY MAY BE SOME DIFFERENT ELEMENTS THAT WE'LL HAVE TO HAVE A COLLECTIVE CONVERSATION ABOUT MOVING FORWARD DUE TO THE PANDEMIC AND MAKE CERTAIN THAT WE HAVE A CLEAN ENVIRONMENT FOR -- YOU KNOW, AFTER INDIVIDUALS ARE USING THESE FACILITIES. AND THEN ALSO, VISUAL PERFORMING ARTS AND CULINARY ARTS EVENTS. YOU KNOW, WE WANT TO MAKE CERTAIN, YOU KNOW, THAT WE ARE READY AND PRIMED FOR EVENTS TO TAKE PLACE. WE'RE GOING TO BUILD MORE GUIDANCE AROUND CONCERTS, AROUND -- AROUND VISUAL PERFORMING ART EVENTS. WE KNOW THAT'S A BIG THRIVING PART. SO WE WANT TO MAKE CERTAIN WE GET -- WE GET A CHANCE TO LET OUR STUDENTS DEMONSTRATE THEIR SKILLS AND ALLOW OUR COMMUNITY TO BE ABLE TO EMBRACE THAT THE SAME WAY WE'VE DONE ATHLETICS -- ATHLETIC EVENTS AND CULINARY. WE KNOW WE'VE GOT CULINARY CHAMPING AT THE BIT. THEY ARE MAKING FOOD EVERY SINGLE DAY. ONE OF THE THINGS WE OPENLY HALTED IS NOT BEING ABLE TO DISSEMINATE THE FOOD. WE WANT TO PROTECT OTHERS. WE'RE GETTING TO A CLOSER OPPORTUNITY TO BE ABLE TO HAVE -- YOU KNOW, ALLOW THEM TO START, YOU KNOW, WITH GUIDELINES HOW THAT, YOU KNOW, INDIVIDUALS WILL BE ABLE TO CONSUME THE FOOD THAT THEY ARE COOKING EVERY SINGLE DAY. WE'LL WORK WITH, YOU KNOW, WITH OTHER PARTNERS TO BE ABLE TO HAVE -- THAT ARE OUTSIDE PARTNERS TO MAKE INFORMED DECISION, ABOUT YOU THAT WILL BE FOR CULINARY. ALSO, THE MAGNET CHOICE WINDOW. NOW OPEN NOVEMBER 2 TO 11. SEN IT IS A PARTICULAR WILL BE UP AND RUNNING, I BELIEVE ON THE 8th. WE SEND THAT TO THE COMMUNITY JUST TO TALK ABOUT WHAT WE'RE REALLY OFFERING. WE'RE OFFERING SOME REALLY SPECIAL PATHWAYS FOR OUR STUDENTS AND PARENTS. PLEASE PAY ATTENTION TO THE WINDOW. IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT WHAT YOU DO FOR THE '21-'22 SCHOOL YEAR AND REALLY STAY CONNECTED BECAUSE OUR SCHOOLS HAVE A LOT TO OFFER AND WANT YOU TO BE APPRISEDED OF WHAT THE PATH MAYS -- APPRISED OF WHAT THE PATHWAYS MAY BE. THAT'S IT AT THIS PARTICULAR TIME.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MR. SUPERINTENDENT. WE HAVE BOARD QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS. WE'LL BEGIN WITH MEMBER GRAY.
>>Lynn Gray: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. FIRST, I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR PUTTING TOGETHER THE SUPERINTENDENT TEACHER ADVISORY COUNCIL. THAT IS COOL, BECAUSE YOU SAID THE WORD "FOREFRONT," BUT PUTTING OUR TEACHERS IN THE FOREFRONT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE IS TO ME JUST THE WAY TO LEARN OF THE NEEDS OF THE SCHOOLS AND OUR CHILDREN. SO I THANK YOU FOR THAT. AND IT IS WORLD TEACHER MONTH, SO THIS IS A VERY TIMELY ANNOUNCEMENT. I JUST HAD ONE QUESTION. HOW MANY STUDENTS, SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS, ARE WE MISSING AS OF -- WELL, TODAY. I KNOW WE HAD 7,300, AND NOW WE HAVE 5,000, BUT --
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM. SO EVERY DAY THAT GOES BY, I MEAN, THIS IS VERY DIFFERENT THAN HISTORICAL, YOU KNOW, HISTORICAL YEARS. EVERY DAY THAT GOES BY, WE GET MORE STUDENTS. WE USUALLY HISTORICALLY LOOK AT OUR 20-DAY COUNT, BUT NOW THAT WE'VE BEEN KIND OF GRANDFATHERED IN FOR THE OCTOBER, WE'RE ABLE TO LOOK AT THE NEW COUNTS EVERY SINGLE DAY. AND I THINK THROUGH THE HARD WORK OF OUR SOCIAL WORKERS AND KIM BAY AND SHEA McCRAY AND REGIONAL SUPERINTENDENTS AND SCHOOL-BASED PRINCIPALS, WE STARTED -- WE ARE BUDGETED PROPOSAL AT 223,000 STUDENTS. AND OF THAT RIGHT NOW, IF WE LOOK AT NUMBER OF STUDENTS THAT ARE IN OUR SYSTEM, AND THIS IS INCLUSIVE OF CHARTER, WE'RE OVER 219,000. SO WE'RE AROUND 3,000 STUDENTS RIGHT NOW THAT WE'VE KIND OF NARROWED THAT GAP DOWN TO. OF THOSE 3,000 STUDENTS, WE'RE WORKING COLLECTIVELY TO IDENTIFY THEIR PARTICULAR LOCATION. ONE THING WE DO KNOW IS THAT WE HAVE MORE STUDENTS IN HOMESCHOOL THIS YEAR THAN LAST YEAR. RIGHT NOW, IT'S OVER, YOU KNOW, 2800 STUDENTS MORE IN HOMESCHOOL. SO, YOU KNOW, WE'RE DOING A REALLY NICE JOB. SO, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GETTING REALLY CLOSE TO IDENTIFYING EVERY ONE OF OUR STUDENTS, WHERE THEY ARE. AND BEING ABLE TO TALK TO THEM ABOUT THEIR LOCATION, WHAT THEIR NEXT STEPS WILL BE. ARE THEY INTERESTED IN COMING BACK? SO WE'RE CLOSING THAT GAP EVERY SINGLE DAY.
>>Lynn Gray: YEAH. AND JUST IN CONCLUSION, YOUR WHOLE PRESENTATION WOULD SHOW ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF NORMALCY, AND THAT'S WHAT OUR CHILDREN NEED, TREMENDOUS, AND OUR FAMILIES. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MEMBER GRAY. I JUST HAD A QUICK QUESTION BECAUSE OF THE CAMPUSES THAT I'VE BEEN VISITING, IT SEEMS THAT THERE'S A THEME OF A LOT OF PARENTS WANTING TO BRING THEIR STUDENTS BACK TO BRICK AND MORTAR. MAYBE IT WASN'T WHAT THEY EXPECTED. MAYBE THE E-LEARNING EXPERIENCE, EVEN THOUGH WE COMMUNICATED IT VERY -- I THOUGHT WE COMMUNICATED IT VERY CLEARLY THAT IT WASN'T GOING TO BE THE SAME AS THE LAST NINE WEEKS OF THE PREVIOUS SCHOOL YEAR. I DON'T KNOW -- I CAN ONLY ASSUME THAT THERE ARE SOME CHALLENGES FOR VARIOUS REASONS. BUT DO YOU HAVE A NUMBER OR A PERCENTAGE OF THE CHANGE? LIKE THE PEOPLE WHO -- FROM THE DECLARATION OF INTENT CHOSE E-LEARNING? IF YOU DON'T HAVE IT, I DIDN'T PREPARE YOU FOR THIS. I APOLOGIZE.
>>Addison Davis: NO, IT'S OKAY.
>>Melissa Snively: I WAS JUST CURIOUS, LIKE FROM THE PEOPLE WHO CHOSE E-LEARNING AND NOW ARE WANTING TO COME BACK TO BRICK AND MORTAR, HOW MANY STUDENTS ARE WE TALKING OR WHAT PERCENTAGE CHANGE IS THAT FROM THE DECLARATION OF INTENT TO THIS PARTICULAR JUNCTURE?
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM. SO ORIGINALLY WHEN WE STARTED THIS, AND WE HAD AROUND 48% OF OUR STUDENTS THAT WERE GOING TO COME BACK TO BRICK AND MORTAR, 48 TO 49. NOW I BELIEVE WE'RE AT 55, 56 PERCENT OF OUR STUDENTS THAT ARE AT BRICK AND MORTAR. SO THERE'S BEEN A SIGNIFICANT CHANGE EVERY SINGLE DAY OF OUR STUDENTS COMING IN. AND I'LL BE ABLE TO GET A BETTER NUMBER FOR YOU BY TOMORROW MORNING SENT TO THE BOARD. WE SEE -- IF -- WE HAVE -- WE HAVE SCHOOLS OPENLY WITH WAITING LISTS. THEY ARE READY TO COME BACK. AND WE ALSO HAVE SOME STUDENTS THAT REALLY ENJOY THE E-LEARNING PROCESS, AND WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO RESPECT THEM. WE HAVE SOME TEACHERS DOING A REALLY GOOD JOB WITH THE E-LEARNING PROCESS. AND WE HAVE SOME TEACHERS READY TO COME BACK AS WELL. WE'LL BE ABLE TO USE THAT INFORMATION IF WE SEND THE INTENT OUT TO FIGURE OUT, YOU KNOW, HOW MANY OF THOSE INDIVIDUALS ASPIRE TO COME BACK.
>>Melissa Snively: BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE WHAT YOU'RE SAYING BASICALLY IS BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE HONORED THE DECISION TO HAVE THE ENTIRE SEMESTER AS ALL THREE OPTIONS FOR STUDENTS. SO WE'RE NOT GOING TO BE CHANGING THAT --
>>Addison Davis: NO, MA'AM.
>>Melissa Snively: AND SO YOU CAN EXPECT NOTHING SIGNIFICANTLY UNTIL POSSIBLY THE SECOND HALF OF THE SCHOOL YEAR AS FAR AS ANY -- ANY DIFFERENCE IN CHOICES. SO RIGHT NOW, E-LEARNING IS STILL A CHOICE. BRICK AND MORTAR IS STILL A CHOICE. VIRTUAL SCHOOL STILL A CHOICE FOR THE ENTIRE SEMESTER.
>>Addison Davis: THROUGH THE CHAIR, YES, MA'AM, THAT IS CORRECT. AS THE SECOND NINE WEEKS STARTS, WE'LL START BEING ABLE TO HAVE MORE PLANNING SESSIONS WITH THE BOARD AND INTERACTING WITH THE COMMUNITY ABOUT WHAT TO EXPECT FOR THE SECOND SEMESTER. BUT THE FIRST SEMESTER IS COMPLETELY -- YOU KNOW, WE'RE COMMITTED TO THE OPTIONS WE PROVIDED.
>>Melissa Snively: OKAY. I WANTED TO CLARIFY THAT.
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM.
>>Melissa Snively: BECAUSE THERE HAVE BEEN A LOT OF QUESTIONS ABOUT POTENTIALLY OPENING BACK UP THE SECOND SEMESTER. BUT THAT'S NOT THE CASE. IT'S GOING TO BE AT THE EARLIEST IT WOULD BE JANUARY.
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM. THAT SECOND SEMESTER.
>>Melissa Snively: FOR TOTAL BAROMETRIC. OKAY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. MR. CONA.
>>Steve Cona: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. MR. SUPERINTENDENT, THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS, YOUR PRESENTATION TODAY. THANK YOU FOR THE SOING CTE -- THANK YOU FOR SPOTLIGHTING CTE PROGRAMS. ONE OF THE THINGS I WANT TO BRING UP AND I THINK I BRIEFED YOU ON THIS, WHEN I WAS AT EGYPT LAKE, THERE IS A DAY CARE FACILITY WHICH IS ALMOST TOUCHING CAMPUS, AND PARENTS CHOSE E-LEARNING ONLY BECAUSE OUR HOST WAS LIMITED. AND THEY COULDN'T, YOU KNOW, HAVE THEIR KIDS THERE. HAVE WE LOOKED AT EXPANDING OUR HOST OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR FAMILIES?
>>Addison Davis: YES, SIR. THROUGH THE CHAIR, WE ABSOLUTELY HAVE. WE WANTED TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT -- ORIGINALLY THEY WERE DEFINED SEATS AND ROLES. BUT WE'RE DEFINITELY WORKING TO OPEN UP EVERY ONE OF THE SEATS. MS. BROWN, DO YOU WANT TO PROVIDE AN UPDATE TO THE BOARD?
>> WE ARE HIRING. WE HAVE TO MAINTAIN A RATIO. AS WE HIRE MORE EMPLOYEES FOR THE HOST PROGRAM, WE ARE FILLING ALL THOSE SEATS. SO WE ARE ON OUR WAY.
>>Melissa Snively: OKAY. THANK YOU, MR. CONA. MS. STUART. I'M SORRY. MS. SHAMBURGER. WAIT, MS. STUART.
>>Cindy Stuart: I'M SORRY. I TOOK MY NAME OFF.
>>Melissa Snively: MS. STUART AND THEN MS. SHAMBURGER.
>>Cindy Stuart: SORRY. THANK YOU. SUPERINTENDENT, IN THE ATHLETICS REOPENING PLAN, I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE, DO WE KNOW HOW MANY -- WHEN WE TALK ABOUT QUARANTINED STUDENTS OR COACHES, DO WE KNOW WHERE OUR NUMBERS ARE ON THAT? BECAUSE WHAT I'M HEARING IS THAT SOME STUDENTS ARE CHOOSING TO MOVE FROM BRICK AND MORTAR BACK TO E-LEARNING IN ORDER TO PROTECT THEMSELVES SO THEY CONTINUE TO PLAY THEIR SPORT, WHICH I DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM WITH, BUT NOT EVERYONE CAN DO THAT. FOR EXAMPLE, I KNOW THAT THAT THERE HAVE BEEN A NUMBER OF STUDENTS WHO WERE QUARANTINED FROM A SPORT AT A PARTICULAR HIGH SCHOOL, I DON'T WANT US TO GET TO A PLACE WHERE THAT SPORT CAN'T HAPPEN AND KIDS, I FEEL LIKE -- ALMOST HAVING TO FLIP-FLOP BACK AND FORTH IN ORDER TO PLAY THEIR SPORT. I'M WONDERING IF WE'RE WATCHING HOW MANY STUDENT ATHLETES ARE ACTUALLY -- AND THANK YOU FOR CLARIFYING THAT FACE COVERINGS WILL STILL BE REQUIRED AS WE REOPEN FACILITIES FOR ATHLETICS. I KNOW THAT WASN'T CLEAR AND THERE WAS SOME CONFUSION ABOUT THAT TODAY. I AM REALLY HAPPY TO SEE -- I'M PLEASANTLY SURPRISED MORE THAN ANYBODY TO SEE THE SALES TAX REFERENDUM PROCEEDS. I THINK WE WERE EXPECTING A MUCH LARGER DIP IN THE DOLLARS BASED ON THE FACT THAT HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY WAS SHUT DOWN ON MARCH 13th. AND TO BE ONLY DOWN NOT QUITE $4 MILLION OVER A TIME PERDURE YOU'RE TRACKING JANUARY FROM JULY THAT REALLY ISN'T TO DO TERRIBLY HORRIBLE CONSIDERING WHERE WE COULD HAVE BEEN. ON THE CARES ACT DOLLARS. WHAT WAS THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF CARES ACT MONEY THAT WE RECEIVED AS A DISTRICT?
>>Addison Davis: THROUGH THE CHAIR, I THINK IT'S $54 MILLION WE RECEIVED IN ONE POCKET. AND I BELIEVE THERE WAS ANOTHER ADDITIONAL MONEY RELATED TO GEERs THAT WE RECEIVED AROUND $5 MILLION, IN WHICH ONE MILLION WENT TO CHARTER AND PRIVATE SCHOOLS AS WELL. SO CLOSELY AROUND I THINK 60, MAYBE AROUND 60 PLUS, 63, $63 MILLION.
>>Cindy Stuart: IF I CAN MAKE A REQUEST, CAN WE GET AN AUDIT OF THOSE DOLLARS? SO EXACTLY HOW MUCH CAME IN AND EXACTLY WHERE IT WAS SPENT, HOW MUCH WENT OUT TO CHARTER OR PRIVATE FOR THE NEXT MEETING, JUST TO KEEP TRACK OF WHERE WE ARE AND WHAT IS LEFT UNSPENT, AND I DON'T KNOW THAT WE HAVE DOLLARS THAT HAVEN'T BEEN SPENT YET, BUT I'M CURIOUS. THERE'S A LOT OF CARES ACT MONEY FLOATING AROUND IN THIS COMMUNITY THAT -- AND I'M NOT TAGGING THIS BOARD AS NOT HAVING SPENT, BUT AS NOT SPENT. I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE SHOWING THAT WHERE OUR DOLLARS ARE GOING AND HOW WE'RE USING THE MONEY TO MITIGATE COVID EXPENSES. AND COVID-RELATED ISSUES THAT WE'RE HAVING.
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM.
>>Cindy Stuart: THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS. THANK YOU.
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM, THROUGH THE CHAIR, WE ARE DEFINITELY -- WE ARE ON TOP OF EVERY DOLLAR AND EVERY CENT EVERY SINGLE DAY WITH THAT ESPECIALLY. WE ARE WATCHING -- WE HAVE EVERY QUARANTINED SCHOOL DATA TO BE ABLE TO INFORM OUR DECISION TO BE ABLE TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT WHERE THERE IS PARTICULAR POTENTIAL ISSUES, WE ARE PARTNERING WITH NOT ONLY MRS. BROWN -- CLIMATE AND CULTURE SHOP, ALSO DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, TGH AND USF HEALTH. WE'RE DOING SITE VISITS. WE'RE GOING TO SCHOOLS AND ACTUALLY LOOKING AT WHETHER OR NOT SYSTEMS CAN BE IMPROVED. WHAT'S GOING ON WITH STUDENT INTERACTION, SOCIAL DISTANCING, FACE COVERINGS, SANITATION STATIONS. WE'RE DOING ALL THOSE. I THINK WE HAVE THREE THIS WEEK THAT WE WILL BE WALKING WITH TGH AND USF HEALTH IN ORDER FOR US TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE CAN IMPROVE THOSE EXPERIENCES.
>>Melissa Snively: ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, MS. STUART. MEMBER SHAMBURGER.
>>Tamara Shamburger: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. THANK YOU SO MUCH, MR. SUPERINTENDENT, FOR YOUR UPDATES THIS EVENING. FIRST, I'D LIKE TO TALK ABOUT YOUR TEACHER ADVISORY COUNCIL. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR IMPLEMENTING THAT. I DID SEND YOU AN E-MAIL WITH SOME ADDITIONAL IDEAS, IF YOU WILL JUST ALLOW ME TO JUST KIND OF INTERJECT ON THAT, BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT OUR TEACHERS' VOICES ARE VERY, VERY IMPORTANT. SO THANK YOU FOR GIVING THEM A SEAT AT THE TABLE TO HAVE THEIR VOICES HEARD AND SO THERE CAN BE A REALLY GOOD EXCHANGE OF IDEAS. SO I'M VERY, VERY HAPPY TO SEE THAT. AND WE CAN TALK ABOUT THOSE IDEAS LATER.
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM. AWESOME.
>>Tamara Shamburger: ALSO. I JUST REALLY WANTED TO TAKE A MOMENT TO TALK ABOUT THE CONSENT AGENDA. NOW, YOU DIDN'T TALK ABOUT THIS ITEM, BUT I THINK NOW IS A GOOD TIME TO REALLY MENTION IT. ITEM 6.03. NOW, I DIDN'T REQUEST THAT THAT ITEM BE PULLED BECAUSE I AGREE WITH THE AGENDA ITEM ITSELF, WHICH IS BASICALLY INCREASING THE SCOPE OF PROJECT OVERSIGHT FOR OUR PROJECT MANAGERS. THE REASON I JUST WANTED TO BRING THAT UP IS BECAUSE JUST IN THEORY, OR IN PRACTICE MOVING FORWARD, I THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT THIS BOARD IS PROACTIVE IN MITIGATING ANY POTENTIAL CONFLICTS MOVING FORWARD, SPECIFICALLY WITH OUR PROJECT MANAGERS ALSO BEING ALLOWED TO GO OUT AND BID FOR CONSTRUCTION MANAGER JOBS, BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THAT HAS HAPPENED. AND SO WE WANT TO GET IN FRONT OF THIS NOW AND AVOID THIS NOW. I'M NOT SURE WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE, WHETHER IT'S A POLICY THAT NEEDS TO BE IMPLEMENTED OR PROCEDURE OR SOMETHING, BUT LET'S JUST KIND OF REIN THAT IN BEFORE IT GETS OUT OF CONTROL. SO I WANTED TO BRING THAT TO YOUR ATTENTION AND WOULD CERTAINLY LIKE TO HAVE MORE CONVERSATION ABOUT THAT.
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM.
>>Tamara Shamburger: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR.
>>Melissa Snively: ALL RIGHT. THTHANK YOU, MEMBER SHAMBURGER. I JUST HAD A FOLLOW-UP. THANK YOU, MEMBER STUART, FOR BRINGING UP THE REFERENDUM BECAUSE I, TOO, WAS KIND OF SURPRISED THAT THE DIFFERENTIAL WASN'T MORE THAN IT WAS, APPEARS APRIL, MAY, AND JULY WERE A LITTLE MORE SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN TAX DOLLARS COMING IN, BUT I WAS INTERESTED TO SEE THAT JUNE WAS ACTUALLY HIGHER AMOUNT OF TAX REVENUE COMING IN THAN LAST JUNE OF 2019. I FOUND THAT VERY INTERESTING AND CURIOUS. I HAD A QUESTION, GOING BACK TO PART OF YOUR PRESENTATION WITH REGARD TO VISITORS ON CAMPUS, AND YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT MID NOVEMBER, BECAUSE THE POLICY RIGHT NOW OR THE PROTOCOL RIGHT NOW IS, YOU KNOW, VISITORS NOT BEING ALLOWED TO BE ON CAMPUS, LIKE VOLUNTEERS AND SO FORTH. BUT WE DO HAVE A LOT OF ORGANIZATIONS THAT COME AND DO PRESENTATIONS TO OUR STUDENTS. WOULD THOSE VISITORS -- WOULD THAT INCLUDE THAT, OR WILL YOU HAVE LIKE A TIERED APPROACH TO ALLOWING VISITORS BACK IN THE SCHOOLS? OR WILL YOU KIND OF OPEN THE FLOODGATES? WHAT WOULD THAT LOOK LIKE? BECAUSE WE HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE ASKING WHEN THEY'LL BE ABLE TO COME BACK IN AND DO PRESENTATIONS TO STUDENTS, TOO.
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM, THROUGH THE CHAIR. ANYONE THAT IS A PARTNER WITH US, ESPECIALLY IF THEY DID BEFORE, AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAMMING, WE WANT THEM TO BE ABLE TO CONNECT AND DO WHATEVER PRESENTATIONS THEY WANT TO DO RELATED TO -- IN MID NOVEMBER. WE'LL LOOK AT BEING ABLE TO -- RIGHT NOW, WE ARE ALLOWING VISITORS, BUT THEY ARE BEING VERY CRITICAL -- MISSION CRITICAL RELATED TO HOW ARE THEY MOVING CHILDREN, WHAT ARE THEY DOING IN CONNECTIVITY. SO WE WANT TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT THOSE PRESENTATIONS IF THEY WANT TO COME IN NOW, THEY ARE MORE THAN WELCOME TO DO SO BECAUSE THEY ARE PARTNERING WITH OUR CHILDREN BEFORE AND AFTER SCHOOL. WE'LL HAVE A TIERED APPROACH TO BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY. AND I WANT TO WORK WITH PRINCIPALS THIS WEEK DURING OUR PRINCIPALS MEETING TO GET THEIR IDEAS, TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S, YOU KNOW, MISSION CRITICAL TO BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY A PHASED-IN APPROACH FOR INDIVIDUALS COMING IN. BUT THEY WILL BE INCLUSIVE OF THAT PROCESS.
>>Melissa Snively: OKAY. THAT WAS MY ONLY OTHER QUESTION AS AN AFTERTHOUGHT TO THAT. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. IT LOOKS LIKE THERE ARE NO OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FROM BOARD MEMBERS AT THIS TIME. SO WE'LL GO AHEAD AND MOVE INTO OUR REGULAR AGENDA. ITEMS. THE FOLLOWING ITEMS WILL NOW BE HEARD ON THE REGULAR AGENDA. ITEMS C 6.09, C 6.11, AND C 11.01. SO C 6.09 IS THE PURCHASE OF LEVEL LITERACY INTERVENTION MATERIALS. AND MR. DAVIS WILL
>>Addison Davis: THIS APPROVAL OF LEVEL LITERACY INTERVENTION IS ALL ABOUT PROVIDING DEVELOPMENT FOR STUDENTS IN AN APPROPRIATE TIERED MANNER RELATED TO READING. ONE THING WE WANT TO DO IS WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE CHILDREN THAT ARE ONE OR MORE, YOU KNOW, ONE OR TWO YEARS BEHIND EDUCATIONALLY INTO LITERACY AND TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE STUDENTS WITH AN ADDITIONAL PARTICULAR TREATMENT LLI ALLOWS US TO DO SO, AND THIS IS GOING TO BE USED AND LEVERAGED THROUGH OUR GEER GRANT IN BEING ABLE TO ACHIEVE THE ACHIEVEMENT GRAP IN OUR TRANSFORMATIONAL SCHOOLS. SO THIS WILL BE USED ON SATURDAYS, AND WE ARE TARGETING STUDENTS EVERY SATURDAY IN TRANSFORMATION NETWORK TO BE ABLE TO HELP THEM CONTINUE TO COMPETE FROM A LITERACY PERSPECTIVE. THIS TREATMENT IS NOT FOR EVERY CHILD. BUT THIS IS GOING TO ALLOW US TO IDENTIFY THREE KIDS PER GRADE LEVEL TO BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY AND LOOK AT FRAMEWORKS FOR PROVIDING EFFECTIVE SMALL GROUP INSTRUCTION, IN ASSESSMENTS TO OUR CHILDREN, TO BE AUTOMOBILE TO LOOK AT HOW THE LEVEL BOOKS, PHONICS, AND TO BE AUTOMOBILE TO ALLOY US TO HAVE BETTER WRITING DEVELOPMENT WITH THIS INITIATIVE. IT'S ALL ABOUT INFLUENCEN SY AS WELL, AND HAVING RUNNING RECORDS TO BE ABLE TO HELP OUR CHILDREN.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MR. SUPERINTENDENT. BOARD MEMBERS, I NEED A MOTION AND SECOND TO APPROVE 6.09. I HAVE A MOTION BY MEMBER GRAY AND SECOND BY MEMBER CONA. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION?
>>Lynn Gray: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. MY QUESTION WOULD BE, HOW DOES THIS PARTICULAR -- I KNOW THE GEER GRANT, IT'S GREAT, DOES THIS FIT IN WITH OUR LITERACY AUDIT?
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM. THROUGH THE CHAIR. THE LITERACY AUDIT JUST TALKS ABOUT HAVING SUPPLEMENTAL RESOURCES TO BE AUTOMOBILE TO CONTINUE TO DIFFERENTIATE IN REALLY ALIGN TO ADDRESS FROM AND GETTING OUR CHILDREN TO HAVE A FOUNDATION WHERE THEY CAN START TO COMPETE AND ATTACK CONTENT, TO BE ABLE TO ABSORB AND UNDERSTAND. THIS IS JUST ANOTHER RESOURCE FOR TEACHERS TO BE ABLE TO LEVERAGE AND USE, AND THEN THIS IS THE ANOTHER TIERED APPROACH, AN INSTRUCTIONAL APPROACH TO USE ON SATURDAYS THAT WILL REINFORCE CONCEPT THAT TEACHERS ARE WORKING WITH IN THE CORE AND AT THE SAME TIME USING -- BEING AUTOMOBILE TO HELP STUDENTS TO CONTINUE TO TIER 2 AS WELL. MR. CONNOR, ANYTHING ELSE?
>>Lynn Gray: SOUND GOOD. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU MEMBER GRAY. ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? SEEING NONE, BOARD MEMBERS, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND IT IS UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU, BOARD MEMBERS. OUR NEXT ITEM IS 6.11 TO APPROVE A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING ISSUANCE OF THE 2020 TAX ANTICIPATION NOTE AND AUTHORIZE THE SUPERINTENDENT AND BOARD CHAIR TO APPROVE ALL NECESSARY DOCUMENTS. MR. SUPERINTENDENT, CAN YOU HIGHLIGHT THIS ITEM, PLEASE?
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM. THIS IS A RESOLUTION TO BE ABLE TO ADDRESS THE SHORT-TERM FINANCIAL POTENTIAL SHORTFALLS THAT THERE MAY BE ANY EXPERIENCES OVERALL IN THE ORGANIZATION. I AM GOING TO TRANSITION THIS TO MS. SAUNDERS IN THIS REPORT AS WELL.
>>Gretchen Saunders: THANK YOU, SIR. THANK YOU BOARD MEMBERS. WE JUST WANTED TO BRING THIS TO YOU AND DO A LITTLE PRESENTATION. WE HAVE JERRY FORD, PRESIDENT OF FORD AND ASSOCIATES, JOHN FORD AND RETESH PATEL TO ANSWER ANY OF YOUR QUESTIONS. THIS IS REALLY JUST A FOLLOW-UP TO OUR ONE-ON-ONE MEETINGS WE HAD LAST WEEK. AND YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER THE TAX ANTICIPATION NOTE, IT'S AN INSURANCE POLICY, IT'S A BRIDGE, IT'S ANOTHER WAY TO MAKE SURE WE ARE COMFORTABLE WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF HAVING A FUNDING SHORTFALL FROM THE TAX COLLECTOR'S OFFICE. A LOT OF OUR SISTER DISTRICTS DO THIS ALL THE TIME. ANYWHERE FROM 40 MILLION TO 175 MILLION CAN. FROM LEE COUNTY ALL THE WAY TO DADE. WITH THAT BEING SAID, I THINK THE TEAM TEAM IS READY TO GO.
>>Melissa Snively: WELCOME MR. FORD AND MR. FORD.
>> GOOD AFTERNOON, MADAM CHAIR, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, MR. SUPERINTENDENT. I THINK IT WOULD BE MORE FUN TO BE A FIRE MARSHAL. I REALLY DO. THANK YOU. AS MS. SAUNDERS SAID, WE ARE HERE TODAY TO DISCUSS THE TAX ANTICIPATION NOTE. I WANT TO POINT OUT A COUPLE OF THINGS FOR YOU (, ONE, THIS IS AN ITEM THAT WE BELIEVE IS A CASH FLOW ITEM AND JOHN IS GOING TO TALK ABOUT THIS IN DETAIL. YOUR CASH FLOW HAS PEEKS AND BALANCES AND MANY DISTRICTS THAT ARE LARGELY DEPENDENT UPON STATE REVENUES HAVE BIGGER PEAKS, BIGGER VALLEYS, AND THOSE DISTRICTS THAT ARE FUNDED THROUGH LOCAL PROPERTY TAX SO THOSE LOWS ALWAYS HIT AT A CERTAIN TIME OF YEAR THAT JOHN WILL DISCUSS, AND THERE ARE TIMES WHEN THOSE BALANCES, YOUR CASH BALANCES CAN GET LOW ENOUGH THAT IF SOMETHING WERE DISRUPTED IN THE COLLECTION PROCESS OR THE TRANSFER OF MONEY FROM THE TAX COLLECTOR TO YOU OR IF A HURRICANE HIT, SOMETHING ODOR INSPECTED HIT, COULD YOU IN A SITUATION WHERE POTENTIALLY YOU WOULD RUN SHORT ON CASH, THE LAST THING YOU WANT TO DO AS YOU A BOARD MEMBER IS BE LATE ON A PAYCHECK TO YOUR TEACHING CORE. SO WE VIEW THIS AS WHAT IS A VERY LOW-COST INSURANCE POLICY. TO MAKE SURE THAT YOUR CASH FLOWS ARE BEING PAID, THAT THEY ARE SMOOTH. IT IS VERY, VERY SHORT TERM. IT WILL BE PAID BACK WITHIN JUST TWO TO THREE MONTHS. AND THE COST IS VERY LOW ON THIS. AND THAT'S WHAT THIS IS ABOUT. IT'S NECESSITATED BY THE FACT THAT THIS TIME OF THE YEAR, AND YOUR CASH BALANCES ARE LOWER THAN THEY HAVE BEEN IN THE PAST. WE HAVE THOUGHT FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS YOU WOULD NEED TO GO TO THIS MODE. WE THINK IT'S A PROVEN METHOD FOR YOU. SO ONCE JOHN FINISHES WITH HIS PART OF THE PRESENTATION I WILL BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MR. FORD.
>> JOHN FORD: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. MR. SUPERINTENDENT, BOARD MEMBERS, THANK YOU FOR HAVING US THIS EVENING. AS JERRY MENTIONED, WE ARE GOING TO RUN THROUGH A FEW SLIDES HERE. THE FLORIDA SCHOOL DISTRICTS ARE LARGELY FUNDED ON THE OPERATIONAL SIDE OF THE HOUSE THROUGH A PROGRAM CALLED FLORIDA EDUCATION FINANCE PROGRAM, NEFP. THIS PROGRAM HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE THE 1970s. WHAT IT EFFECTIVELY DOES IS FOR EVERY SINGLE SCHOOL DISTRICT IN THE STATE, ALL 67 OF THEM, IT TELLS THEM HOW MUCH OF THEIR GENERAL FUND REVENUES ARE GOING TO COME FROM LOCAL PROPERTY TAXES AND HOW MUCH IS GOING TO COME FROM STATE REVENUES WHICH ARE DERIVED FROM SALES TAXES WHICH WE ALL PAY. THERE'S AN IMPORTANT DISTINCTION IN THE RAMIFICATIONS OF HOW YOUR REVENUES ARE SPLIT BETWEEN THESE TWO SOURCES. STATE REVENUES GENERATED FROM SALES TAXES COME IN ON A FAIRLY LEVEL MONTHLY BASIS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. SO SEPTEMBER, YOU ARE GOING TO RECEIVE WHAT IS NOT ALL THAT DIFFERENT THAN WHAT YOU RECEIVE IN APRIL. THE PROPERTY TAXES COME IN IN LARGE PART BETWEEN THANKSGIVING AND CHRISTMAS. WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT FOUR OR FIVE MONTHS INTO YOUR FISCAL YEAR YOU ARE GOING TO RECEIVE A MASSIVE AMOUNT OF YOUR FUNDING ON THE OPERATION SIDE OF THE HOUSE. THAT MEANS FROM THE BEGINNING OF YOUR FISCAL YEAR ON JULY 1st UNTIL YOU GET TO ABOUT THANKSGIVING, YOUR EXPENSES WHICH ARE ALSO PRETTY LEVEL ARE PROBABLY GOING TO OUTSTRIP YOUR REVENUES, WHICH MEANS THAT YOUR CASH RESERVES ARE GOING TO FALL DURING THAT TIME PERIOD. IF YOU ARE A DISTRICT WHICH IS HIGHLY RELIANT ON LOCAL PROPERTY TAXES THAT PROBABLY MEANS YOU ARE A WEALTHIER DISTRICT. THAT'S HOW THE FORMULA TENDS TO WORK. YOUR CHANCES THEREFORE OF RUNNING INTO A CASH FLOW PROBLEM ARE A LITTLE BIT IRONICALLY GREATER THAN THAT OF POORER DISTRICTS THAT DERIVE MORE OF THEIR FUNDING FROM STATE SALES TAXES SO YOU DON'T USUALLY SEE THE POOREST DISTRICTS IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA ISSUE TAX ANTICIPATION NOTES. ON THE OTHER HAND, YOU WILL FROM TIME TO TIME SEE SOME OF THE WEALTHIER DISTRICTS ISSUE. I BELIEVE THAT STAFF HAS ALREADY SHARED WITH YOU CASH FLOW PROJECTIONS FOR THIS YEAR AS WELL AS CASH FLOW HISTORY FOR FISCAL YEARS 19 AND 20, AND WHEN THE STAFF PREPARES CASH FLOW PROJECTIONS, THAT IS A PAINSTAKING PROCESS, IT'S DIFFICULT. THEY ARE TRYING TO PREDICT ON EXACTLY WHICH DAY MONEYS WILL GO OUT AND COME IN. SOME OF THOSE THINGS ARE WITHIN THEIR CONTROL. MANY OF THOSE THINGS ARE NOT. SO AT THIS TIME, GENERAL FUND CASH POSITIONS, DIFFERENCE OF FUND BALANCE, THAT'S AN ACCOUNTING TERM, THE CASH POSITION IS PROJECTED BY STAFF TO REACH APPROXIMATELY $10 MILLION IN MID NOVEMBER JUST PRIOR TO RECEIPT OF YOUR PROPERTY TAXES. FOR THE RECORD, IN TERMS OF LIQUIDITY, CASH ON HAND, THAT MEASURE, $10 MILLION IS EQUIVALENT TO ABOUT TWO DAYS OF YOUR GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES FOR THE FISCAL YEAR 20. HOW DO WE BRIDGE THIS GAP? FLORIDA STATUTE 10-11-13 ISSUES A LOUSE FOR ANTICIPATION OF TAX NOTES PANS, TYPICALLY ISSUED BETWEEN THE MONTHS OF AUGUST AND OCTOBER. THEY ARE ALMOST ALWAYS REPAID DURING THE FISCAL YEAR IN WHICH THEY ARE ISSUED AND IT IS A SHORT AT THE TERM BORROWING THAT YOU CAN USE TO BRIDGE THIS LIQUIDITY GAP IN -- THAT MANY SCHOOL DISTRICTS FACE. YOU CANNOT USE TAX ANTICIPATION NOTES TO KICK EXPENSES FROM ONE FISCAL YEAR TO THE NEXT. PRIOR TO ISSUING A PAN, YOU MUST REPAY ANY PAN THAT IS OUTSTANDING SO YOU CAN'T LEAPFROG IN TWO YEARS. LAST YEAR AT LEAST TEN FLORIDA SCHOOL DISTRICTS ISSUED PANS THOSE INCLUDED BROWARD, CHART, DADE, FLAGLER, INDIAN RIVER, LEE, MANATEE, PALM BEACH, S.LUCY AND SUMTER COUNTIES. THIS YEAR SEVERAL OF THOSE HAVE ALREADY ISSUED PANS AND THEY RANGED IN SIZE FROM 1.6 MILLION, THE COUNTY IN HAMILTON, TO 475 MILLION WHICH IS MIAMI-DADE SCHOOLS AND SOLD JUST A WEEK OR TWO AGO PANS ARE USUALLY ISSUED ONE OF TWO DIFFERENT WAYS. FIRST OF ALL, A COMPETITIVE PUBLIC OFFERING, A PUBLIC SECURITIES ISSUE WHERE WE PREPARE A PROSPECTIVE A STATEMENT. IT IS MARKETED WITH A NOTICE OF SALE AND BROKERED DEALERS. THE BIG FIRMS, MORGAN STANLEY, SACHS, THEY CAN COME IN AND BID ON SECURITIES AT AUCTION AND ARE TYPICALLY AWARDED TOTE LOWEST COST CONFORMING BID. THE OTHER METHOD IS OF COURSE TO GONE THROUGH A COMMERCIAL BANK FOR A LOAN OR LINE OF CREDIT. THAT IS MUCH MORE COMMON FOR SCHOOL DISTRICTS ISSUING SMALL TANS IN THE RANGE OF CHANGES DEPENDING UPON THE COST INVOLVED. THEY CALL IT $15 MILLION OR LESS. THAT'S VERY TYPICAL. OCCASIONALLY YOU WILL GET ONE THAT IS LARGER THAN THAT. BUT THAT'S A ROUGH ESTIMATE OF SIZE BREAK-EVEN. TANS CAN BE SIZED UNDER FEDERAL TAX LAW ACCORDING TO A TWO PRONG TEST. ONE IS YOU ARE ALLOWED TO BORROW THE AMOUNT OF YOUR MAXIMUM PROJECTED DEFICIT. HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY IS NOT PROJECTING A DEFICIT. YOU ARE PROJECTING CASH FLOW WILL GET DOWN TO ABOUT $10 MILLION BUT WILL NOT GO NEGATIVE. OFTEN YOU SEE NEGATIVE NUMBERS. THE SECOND PRONG IS A WORKING CAPITAL RESERVE WHICH MEANS YOU ARE ALLOWED TO BORROW 5% OF LAST YEAR'S TO THE GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES. THAT WAS ACCORDING TO THE UNAUDITED FINANCIAL REPORT ABOUT A BILLION 824 MILLION, AND YOU TAKE THOSE TWO PRONGS OF THE TEST IT GIVES US ABOUT $82 MILLION MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE TANS. UNDER THE RESOLUTION BEFORE YOU TONIGHT SAYS NOT TO EXCEED 80 MILLION. IF WE WENT TO MARKET TODAY, I THINK THE NUMBER WE DISCUSSED IS ABOUT $75 MILLION. THE REASON FOR THAT IS BECAUSE IF WE DON'T ACTUALLY HIT OUR DEFICIT, WE DON'T WANT TO BORROW MORE THAN WE ARE ALLOWED TO, AND THERE IS A CHANCE IN THESE CASH FLOWS IF THE CHECK CLEARS ONE DAY EARLIER, THINGS CAN CHANGE. IT'S A BIG SCHOOL DISTRICT. WE ARE TALKING ABOUT A SWING OF 5, 10, $20 MILLION. SO KEEP IT SAFE. WE HAVE RECOMMENDED PUBLIC OFFERING. CURRENT ESTIMATES ARE THAT WE WOULD, WITH YOUR APPROVAL TONIGHT, CLOSE -- PRICE THE TRANSACTION ON OCTOBER 20th. WE WOULD CLOSE THE TRANSACTION ON OCTOBER 29th. AND THE MATURITY DAYLIGHT WHEN ALL THE PRINCIPLE AND INTEREST WOULD BE DUE IN A NUMBER SUM, JANUARY 31st OR THEREABOUTS. WE ESTIMATED A NET INTEREST COST OF 2.5% AND COST ISSUANCE FOR THIS TRANSACTION ROUGHLY $70,000. ALL FUTURE COSTS AND EXPENSES TOGETHER AND YOU GET A TOTAL COST OF .64%, PART OF THE APR. TOTAL COST ABOUT .64%. WITH THAT, EITHER I OR JERRY OR MR. PATEL WILL ANSWER A FEW QUESTIONS.
>>Melissa Snively: FIRST WE ARE GOING TO ASK THE BOARD FOR A MOTION AND SECOND TO APPROVE THIS ITEM AND THEN WE WILL HAVE FURTHER DISCUSSION ON IT. BOARD MEMBERS, I NEED A MOTION AND SECOND TO APPROVE THIS ITEM. I ONLY PUT MY NAME IN THERE BECAUSE I DO HAVE DISCUSSION QUESTIONS. MS. GRAY, IS THAT A MOTION? OKAY. MS. PEREZ, IS THAT A MOTION TO APPROVE? CAN I GET A SECOND TO APPROVE THE RECOMMENDATION? MR. CONA IS GOING TO SECOND. OKAY. NOW WE ARE OPEN FOR DISCUSSION. AND QUESTIONS. SO THANK YOU, GENTLEMEN, FOR BEING HERE THIS EVENING, AND THANK YOU FOR THE INDIVIDUAL MEETINGS THAT YOU HAD WITH EACH BOARD MEMBER TO GO THROUGH 24 IN DETAIL. I JUST WANTED TO KIND OF REITERATE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU HAVE CLARIFIED SOME OF THE THINGS. YOU MENTIONED THERE ARE SEVERAL OTHER SCHOOL DISTRICTS THAT DO THIS ACROSS THE STATE, AT LEAST TEN, I THINK, THAT DID IT LAST YEAR. BUT I THINK WE OUGHT TO HAVE A DISCUSSION ABOUT THIS BEING A STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE FOR SOME SCHOOL DISTRICTS ACROSS THE STATE. WOULD YOU SAY THAT IS AN ACCURATE STATEMENT?
>> IT IS. SCHOOL DISTRICTS BY AND LARGE. IT'S NOT TRUE EVERY YEAR BUT IN MOST YEARS YOU WILL SEE MIAMI-DADE, BROWARD SCHOOLS, PALM BEACH SCHOOLS, PINELLAS SCHOOLS, ISSUE OWN AN ANNUAL BASIS, ST. LUCIE SCHOOLS. OTHER ARE MORE HIT AND MISS. LEE SCHOOLS WAS IN THE MARKETS TODAY WITH $40 MILLION. THEY HAD 12 BIDS. THEIR COSTS WERE 0.17% WAS THE WINNING BID. OUT OF THAT DOZEN. SO IT'S VERY COMMON.
>>Melissa Snively: AND THE FACT THAT THERE COULD BE A POTENTIAL DEFERRAL OF PROPERTY TAXES DUE OR PENALTIES DUE, DOES THAT HAVE ANY IMPACT ON THE FACT THAT WE ARE HAVING TO TAKE THIS OUT, OR IF THAT HAPPENS REGARDLESS, WOULD WE STILL NEED TO TAKE THIS PARTICULAR BRIDGE LOAN OUT?
>> JERRY FORD: THIS IS INDEPENDENT OF THAT. WE ARE VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THAT. DEPENDING UPON HOW SUCH A DEFERRAL WERE STATED. IF, FOR EXAMPLE, THEY WAIVE ANY INTEREST AND PENALTIES ON EVERYTHING THAT'S OUT THERE, AND BANKS DECIDED NOT TO TAKE THE MONEY THAT THEY ARE ALREADY HOLDING IN ESCROW, WHICH IS MONEY THAT IN ESSENCE IS YOURS, AND NOT PAY THAT UNTIL THAT FINAL DATE, THAT WOULD HAVE A CHILLING EFFECT. AND IF I WERE A SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER, I WOULD BE JUMPING OUT OF MY SKIN OVER THAT POSSIBILITY. THAT WOULD BE TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE. SO WE DON'T KNOW HOW THAT MIGHT COME DOWN YET, BUT IT IS NOT DIRECTLY BEARING AT THIS POINT IN TIME ON THAT ISSUE. JOHN, WOULD YOU AGREE WITH THAT?
>>Melissa Snively: I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE WERE TWO DISTINCTLY SEPARATE ISSUES, BUT THEN ALSO RAISE AWARENESS THAT THAT SHOULD BE SOMETHING THAT MAKES US JUMP OUT OF OUR SKIN AS BOARD MEMBERS, AND BECAUSE THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR THAT TO HAPPEN, I WOULD SAY IT'S A LONG SHOT, BUT IT COULD HAPPEN. AND THAT COULD HAVE A UNIQUE IMPACT AND THAT'S MAYBE SOMETHING THAT WE COULD TALK ABOUT SEPARATELY AS A BOARD. BUT THAT DOES OBVIOUSLY CONCERN US. IF SOMETHING LIKE THAT SHOULD HAPPEN, DOES THE REPAYMENT TERM, COULD IT BE EXTENDED IF NEEDED, OR IS IT DEFINITELY A HARD REPAYMENT DATE?
>> IT IS A HARD REPAYMENT DATE. YOU CAN CHOOSE TO MODIFY THE DOCUMENT ON THE DAIS TONIGHT AND LET IT GO OUT TO OFFER BUT IT IS A HARD REPAYMENT DATE. BUT REMEMBER YOU GET A SMALL TAX PAYMENT THAT COMES IN IN NOVEMBER. A LOT OF IT COMES IN DECEMBER. AND THEN ANOTHER BIG CHUNK IN JANUARY WITH LESS COMING IN AFTER THAT. SO UNLESS SOMEBODY POLITICALLY DOES SOMETHING STUPID, NOT IN THIS BOARD ROOM BUT OUTSIDE WITH THAT DEFERRAL, YOU SHOULD BE IN FINE SHAPE FOR THIS. YOU CAN'T CONTROL WHAT PEOPLE MIGHT DO IN AN ELECTION YEAR, BUT IT WOULD BE PRETTY SHOCKING IF THEY DID SOMETHING TO DISRUPT IT.
>>Melissa Snively: SO THIS IS A GOOD INSURANCE POLICY REGARDLESS OF THAT, AND THIS IS A RESPONSIBLE DECISION THAT WE NEED TO MAKE THIS EVENING TO ENSURE THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO OVERCOME ANY SHORTFALLS THAT MIGHT DEFER FOR OUR EMPLOYEES.
>> THIS IS A TOOL THAT YOU HAVE TO GIVE YOUR EMPLOYEES A SAFETY NET.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. SO WE HAVE A FEW OTHER BOARD COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS. WE WILL GO NEXT TO MS. GRAY.
>>Lynn Gray: THANK YOU, GENTLEMEN, FOR THAT EXPLANATION. I TOOK ABOUT FOUR PAGES OF NOTES THE OTHER DAY WHEN YOU EXPLAINED IT. AND I HAVE A REALLY GOOD SENSE THAT THIS WILL PROTECT THE TEACHERS' SALARIES, AND THAT'S SO CRITICAL. AND OUR VENDORS. SO HAVING THAT BEING SAID, THERE WAS A FEW QUESTIONS I HAVE. IF THE STATE LIKE YOU JUST SAID, PROBABLY WON'T HAPPEN, BUT IF THEY DO LOWER OUR BASE STUDENT ALLOCATION MONEYS, WILL THEY HOLD US HARMLESS FOR THIS, OR WHAT MIGHT HAPPEN IF THEY DO?
>> MS. GRAY, I AM GOING TO BE A LITTLE FLIPPANT. WE KNOW EACH OTHER WELL ENOUGH FOR THAT I THINK BUT YOU HEARD ME SAY BEFORE PEOPLE WHO USE CRYSTAL BALLS END UP EATING GLASS. THERE'S JUST NO WAY TO KNOW WHAT THE STATE IS GOING TO DO. FACT OF THE MATTER IS THEY MAY OR MAY NOT HOLD YOU HARMLESS. IF THEY DID HOLD YOU HARMLESS, A DECLINE IN STATE REVENUES COULD STILL FORCE THEM TO READJUST WHAT THEY WERE GOING TO GIVE YOU, WHAT THEY WOULD CALL A PRORATION, AND WE JUST DON'T KNOW WHEN OR IF THOSE THINGS OCCUR. THERE ARE NO GUARANTEES YOU ARE GOING TO GET THE AMOUNT YOU THINK YOU WILL GET.
>>Lynn Gray: THANK YOU FOR THAT. AND HOW MANY TIMES -- AND FUND BALANCE IS NOT REAL HEALTHY -- HOW MANY WOULD YOU ANTICIPATE TO REPEAT THIS? SOME DISTRICTS REPEAT IT OVER AND OVER.
>> JERRY FORD: YOU MENTIONED FUND BALANCE. PART OF THE REASON FOR THIS IS THAT YOUR FUND BALANCE HAS BEEN IN DECLINE, AND IT'S BEEN IN DECLINE FOR MANY YEARS. THIS IS NOT A NEW PROBLEM. IT DIDN'T HAPPEN OVERNIGHT. AND I'M SURE THAT SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS AND DR. KEMP WERE SOMEWHAT IN SHOCK WHEN THEY GOT HERE, FOUND OUT THAT THEY INHERITED THIS SITUATION, BUT IF YOU APPROVE THE PLAN THAT THEY HAVE DEVELOPED, AND WORK THROUGH THIS, AND GET YOURSELF RIGHT, IT'S GOING TO TAKE A FEW YEARS. SO YOU MIGHT BE DOING THIS INFORM A FEW YEARS. THAT WOULD CERTAINLY, WE THINK, BE A PRUDENT MOVE RATHER THAN HAVING TO WORRY EVERY MINUTE RIGHT UP UNTIL THAT TAX COLLECTION CAME IN TO KNOW IF IT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN OR NOT. THAT NOBODY NEEDS THAT KIND OF STRESS. THE COST OF THIS IS JUST TOO SMALL. SO WE WOULD THINK THAT YOU ARE PROBABLY GOING TO BE WILLING TO DO THIS, OR YOU ARE IMPLEMENTING THE PLAN THAT THEY LAID OUT FOR YOU.
>>Lynn Gray: AND MY OTHER QUESTION IS -- AND THIS MIGHT HAVE TO GO TO SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS. SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS, THIS INVESTMENT WILL GIVE US MORE -- I DON'T KNOW, WILL THIS INVESTMENT, BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT YOU ALL SHARED IN TERMS OF A VOCABULARY, SO WILL THIS GIVE YOU MORE FREEDOM TO RETAIN UNITS? WILL THAT AFFECT OR INFECT IN ANY WAY THE UNITS BEING LOST? 124 THROUGH THE CHAIR, THIS DOESN'T HAVE ANY IMPACT ON THAT. YOU KNOW, LET'S ADDRESS THIS. THIS IS TO REALLY PROTECT ALL OF OUR EMPLOYEES IN THE ORGANIZATION NOW. THIS IS TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT EVERY TWO WEEKS WE ARE MAKING CERTAIN WE ARE HOLDING UP OUR END OF THE BARGAIN AND SHOWING VALUE FOR HARD WORK EVERY SINGLE DAY AND MAKE SURE WE DON'T GET DOWN THAT T THAT $10 MILLION RESERVE BALANCE TO ONLY HAVE TWO DAYS TO COMPENSATE. AS RELATES TO LOOKING AT UNITS, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A REALLY THOUGHTFUL PLAN THAT'S GOING TO BE -- I'LL ENGAGE BOARD MEMBERS AT THE END OF THIS WEEK, THAT'S GOING TO WORK TO PROTECT AS MANY, MANY EDUCATORS AS WE CAN TO PROTECT OUR SCHOOLS, AND I'LL SHARE THAT INFORMATION.
>>Lynn Gray: AND ONE OTHER QUESTION. AND THIS WILL GO TO THE SUPERINTENDENT. WILL THIS INVESTMENT ALSO AFFECT OUR FUTURE CAPITAL EXPENSES SUCH AS NEW SCHOOL BUILDINGS OR FIVE-YEAR PLAN?
>>Addison Davis: YES, THROUGH THE CHAIR, IT WILL NOT. WHAT THIS DOES, IT ACTS AS A BRIDGE TO GET US THROUGH THE COMING MONTHS, AND ONCE WE GET -- IF WE ARE ABLE AND NEEDING TO USE IT, WE WILL BUILD AND HAVE A PLAN THAT WILL GET US TO A POINT WHERE WE ARE NO BETTER SPOT FINANCIALLY. WE WILL USE THE REPORT THAT WILL BE COMING OUT VERY SOON TO BUILD A STRATEGIC PLAN FINANCIALLY, TO BE ABLE TO BUILD A PATHWAY OF GETTING US BACK TO A PLACE WHERE WE FEEL COMFORTABLE EVERY DAY.
>>Lynn Gray: THANK YOU. AND I WANT TO SAY YOU HAVE GIVEN ME, AS A BOARD MEMBER, A COMFORT LEVEL. AND I APPRECIATE WHAT YOU ARE DOING. AND I HAVE TRUST WITH YOUR FIRM, AND YOUR COUNSEL. SO HAVING SAID THAT, I'M HAPPY TO -- I THINK THIS IS A GREAT WAY TO SECURE THOSE EMERGENCY FUNDINGS SHOULD WE EVER GET TO THAT SITUATION. AND I THINK WE ARE JUST ABOUT THERE. GRETCHEN IS SHAKING HER HEAD YES. SO WE HAVE TO DO THIS. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU MEMBER GRAY. MEMBER CONA.
>>Steve Cona: THANK YOU BOTH FOR BEING HERE AND YOUR PRESENTATION AND THE PRESENTATION YOU PROVIDED US ON THE CALL. I APPRECIATE THAT. THIS IS NOT FOR US A GOOD PLACE TO BE. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME WE HAVE TAKEN OUT A TAN. IS THAT CORRECT?
>> THAT'S CORRECT.
>>Steve Cona: WE HAVE SEEN THE FUND BALANCE OVER A NUMBER OF YEARS, AND YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR A LONG TIME AND YOU GUYS HAVE SEEN THE DECLINE IN THAT FUND BALANCE AND BEE REALIZE THAT THE DECLINE IN THAT FUND BALANCE IS BECAUSE THIS MONEY HASN'T VANISHED, THIS MONEY -- OF THESE FUNDS HAVE BEEN GONE TO SALARIES AND BENEFITS OF OUR EMPLOYEES. SO THIS IS NOT MONEY THAT HAS GONE MISSING. THIS IS MONEY THAT WE HAVE ALLOCATED TO, YOU KNOW, TO HIRE AND TO RETAIN OUR TEACHERS. WHAT'S DISTURBING IN MY PERSPECTIVE IS THAT IN 2015, BASICALLY, $197 MILLION HAS BEEN TRANSFERRED FROM CAPITAL INTO FILLING BUDGET HOLES FOR THE SCHOOL DISTRICT. I PERSONALLY THINK THAT'S AN UNACCEPTABLE PRACTICE. THIS ISN'T A PRACTICE THAT WAS STARTED WITH THIS BOARD. THIS IS A PRACTICE THAT STARTED BACK IN 2015. IT'S NOT A SUSTAINABLE PRACTICE. IT'S NOT SOMEPLACE WE WANT TO BE. THIS IS NOT AN INVESTMENT. THIS IS US COVERING ONE PAYROLL, OR HALF A MONTH'S PAYROLL -- IT'S A TWO'-WEEK PAYROLL THAT WE ARE TAKING OUTTA HERE TO COVER. THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT IS -- THIS IS NOT A SUSTAINABLE PRACTICE. I UNDERSTAND, IT GIVES US THE OPPORTUNITY. NOW, IT IS ALSO MY UNDERSTANDING THAT WE CAN ONLY DO THIS ONCE PER BUDGET YEAR. IS THAT CORRECT?
>> YOU HAVE TO PAY BACK WHAT YOU FUND BEFORE YOU CAN DO IT AGAIN.
>>Steve Cona: BEFORE YOU CAN DO IT AGAIN. SO THIS IS NOT A GOOD POSITION FOR US TO BE IN, TO HAVE $10 MILLION IN THE BANK IN NOVEMBER, NOT A GOOD PLACE TO BE. IT'S THE FIRST TIME THAT THIS HAS HAPPENED IN OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT. I AM NOT HAPPY ABOUT THIS. IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE TO DO TO PROTECT OUR SALARIES, BUT IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT SHOULD BE DONE IN EVERY YEAR IN MY OPINION. WE HAVE TO MAKE SOME DIFFICULT DECISIONS TO GET OUR BUDGET IN LINE WHERE WE ARE NOT HAVING TO TAKE OUT A TAN LOAN EVERY NOVEMBER BECAUSE WE CAN'T MEET PAYROLL. THAT IS JUST NOT A GOOD PLACE TO BE, NOT A GOOD PLACE TO BE FOR A SCHOOL DISTRICT, NOT HEALTHY FOR OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT, IT'S NOT HEALTHY FOR OUR STUDENTS TO HAVE A DISTRICT THAT IS IN THIS TYPE OF FINANCIAL CRISIS. SO I THINK WE HAVE TO DO IT. WE HAVE TO PAY IT BACK. THE FACT THAT WE HAVE TO SPEND MONEY TO MAKE PAYROLL, IT JUST DOESN'T SIT WELL WITH ME. BUT YOU APPRECIATE YOUR GUIDANCE IN THIS. AND CAN YOU TELL ME THE EFFECT THAT THIS WILL HAVE ON OUR BOND RATING?
>> FORD OF THE. WELL, WE WILL NOT SEE THOSE IMPACTS UNTIL WE HAVE A CALL -- THEY WILL RATE THIS. IT'S A SEPARATE RATING FOR TAX ANTICIPATION, WHAT'S CALLED A SHORT-TERM RATING AND IT IS A MOOD Y'S. MOST HAVE TANS HAVE A GRADE 1. WE ARE HOPEFUL THAT THAT'S WHAT YOU WILL HAVE HERE. AT THE SAME TIME, THERE IS NOT A PERSON SITTING ON THIS DAIS THAT HAS NOT HEARD ME SAY MANY TIMES THAT WE ARE CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR LEVEL OF FUND BALANCES. WE HAVE SEEN TWO DOWN GRADES OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS, ONE BY MOODYRS, A DOUBLE DOWNGRADE BY FITCH EARLIER THIS YEAR, AND WE BELIEVE WITH THE ADDITIONAL DROP IN YOUR FUND BALANCES, WE ARE GOING TO SEE FURTHER DOWN GRADES, THE IMPACT ON THE TAN RATINGS, WE DO NOT KNOW. WE DO NOT THINK SO. BUT YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE REPERCUSSIONS FROM YOUR FINANCIAL SITUATION. IT'S NOT BECAUSE YOU ARE BORROWING THE TAN.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MR. CONA.
>> JOHN SAYS WHILE THEY ARE LOOKING AT THIS TAX ANTICIPATION, THOUGH, IT IS HIGHLY LIKELY THEY WILL LOOK AT YOUR LONG-TERM RATINGS AS WELL. I WOULD IF I WERE IN THEIR SEAT.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU. MEMBER STUART.
>>Cindy Stuart: THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION, MEMBER CONA. AND I WOULD AGREE WITH YOU THAT THEY ARE GOING TO LOOK AT A DISTRICT THAT STARTS THE YEAR $25 MILLION LESS IN FUND BALANCE. FUND BALANCE HAS BEEN A CONVERSATION AT THIS DAIS FOR THE LAST EIGHT YEARS ABOUT THE CONTINUAL USE OF FUND BALANCE, AND THE LACK OF INCREASE IN THE FUND BALANCE. AND I BELIEVE LAST YEAR WE HAD THIS CONVERSATION. THERE WAS VERY LITTLE MONEY THAT WAS SET ASIDE FOR FUND BALANCE. AND IT'S A LITTLE DISTURBING. I AM DISAPPOINTED THAT THE GRAPHICS THAT YOU HAD FOR OUR INDIVIDUAL PRESENTATIONS AREN'T AVAILABLE TONIGHT, BECAUSE THEY WERE REALLY HEALTHY PICTURE OF THE LAST FEW YEARS -- AND I DON'T MEAN HEALTHY FUND BALANCE, I JUST MEAN THEY WERE A GREAT ILLUSTRATION OF THE UPS AND DOWNS OF HOW OUR FUND BALANCE FLUCTUATES OVER THE COURSE OF THE YEAR. I DON'T KNOW, SUPERINTENDENT, IF YOU CAN GATE AND SHARE THAT MAYBE PUBLICLY. I DID HAVE THE SAME QUESTION ABOUT THE EFFECTS ON OUR RATINGS. BUT ALSO I HAVE SOME CONCERNS OF MR. PRESIDENT, AND THIS IS JUST FOR FORWARD THINKING. YOU KNOW, WE HAVE BEEN THROUGH THIS PROCESS SINCE YOU TOOK OVER IN MARCH AND REALLY INTO THE SUMMER WHEN WE STARTED CLOSING OUT THE YEAR, AND WHAT OUR FUND BALANCE WAS GOING TO LOOK LIKE, AND THEN THAT WAS A LITTLE BIT JARRING FOR THE ENTIRE BOARD TO HEAR AND FOR THE COMMUNITY TO HEAR, WHERE IS THIS MONEY GOING AND WHAT HAPPENED? I'M STILL HAVE LOTS OF QUESTIONS AROUND WHAT HAPPENED, BUT -- AND HOW WE GOT THERE, BUT I THINK FOR THE COMMUNITY, AND UNDERSTAND, WE HAVE THE LARGEST EMPLOYER IN THIS COMMUNITY. WE HAVE GOT TO TALK ABOUT THE STABILITY OF HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS, ABOUT IT'S -- WHETHER IT'S FINANCIALLY, WHETHER IT'S MORALE, WHETHER IT'S HOW WE ARE EDUCATING STUDENTS. WE ARE A HUGE, HUGE INDICATOR OF HOW THIS COMMUNITY IS DOING. SO MY CONCERN IS IT'S LIKE WE HIT ONE BUMP AND THEN THINGS QUIET DOWN, WE HIT ANOTHER BUMP AND THINGS QUIET DOWN, AND NOW HERE WE ARE IN LATE OCTOBER WITH ANOTHER BUMP IN THE ROAD. THIS SO EASILY COULD HAVE BEEN DISCUSSED ALL AT ONCE. LIKE THE FUND BALANCE IS DOWN. WE KNOW WHERE WE ARE. WE KNOW WE HAVE MISSING STUDENTS. WE KNOW THAT. WE HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT MISSING STUDENTS FOR A WHILE. AND THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS TO HOME SCHOOL AND VIRTUAL. WE COULD HAVE, I THINK, MITIGATED SOME OF THE ALARM IN THIS COMMUNITY BY WHEN YOU BRING THE LINE OF CREDIT, BRING THE TAN NOTE. I MEAN, THESE ARE SAFETY PRECAUTIONS THAT WE PUT IN PLACE THAT ARE HEALTHY FOR THIS DISTRICT. OTHER DISTRICTS DO THIS. EVERYONE HAS A SAVINGS ACCOUNT THAT YOU HOPE -- HOOK TO YOUR CHECKING ACCOUNT SO IF YOU BOUNCE CHECKS THERE'S NOT CHECKS BOUNCING ALL OVER TOWN. THAT'S WHAT THIS IS. I HAVE -- I AM NOT AS CONCERNED AS OTHERS ABOUT THE FACT THAT PROPERTY TAXES WON'T BE COLLECTED BECAUSE A LOT OF PEOPLE'S TAXES ARE CONNECTED TO THEIR MORTGAGES, AND IF YOU ARE NOT PAYING OWE ARE MORTGAGE AND YOU ARE GOING TO LOSE YOUR HOUSE, AND PAYING YOUR TAX AS WELL, SO I AM NOT AS CONCERNED ABOUT THE COLLECTION OF THAT BUT I AM VERY CONCERNED THAT I FEEL WE KEEP RAISING THE RED FLAG AND AT SOME POINT PEOPLE ARE NOT GOING TO BE LISTENING TO WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE. AND SO AGAIN, THIS BOARD WENT OUT FOR REFERENDUM. WE WENT OUT AND ASKED TAXPAYERS FOR MORE MONEY. AND SO THE QUESTIONS JUST KEEP COMING ABOUT HOW WE CAN IN A LONG-RANGE PLAN MANAGE WHAT IT IS THAT WE ARE DOING, INSTEAD OF HAVING THESE CONSTANT RED FLAGS BEING RAISED AROUND WHAT IS HAPPENING WITH OUR FUND BALANCE. WE NEED TO BE TALKING ABOUT OTHER THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING IN THIS COMMUNITY, AND NOT CONSTANTLY TALKING ABOUT -- AND I AM NOT OPPOSED TO HAVING THE TRANSPARENT CONVERSATION ABOUT WHAT IS HAPPENING, BUT I JUST FEEL LIKE EVERY TIME WE GET TO THE DAIS IT'S ANOTHER THING IN FRONT OF US ABOUT A FUND BALANCE ISSUE. AND SO, MR. SUPERINTENDENT, WHAT I WOULD CHALLENGE IS THAT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT BECOMES PRACTICE, THAT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT GETS PUT IN PLACE JUST LIKE THE LINE OF CREDIT, SO IF THERE'S AN EMERGENCY, WE ARE NOT HAVING TO RAISE RED FLAGS IN THE COMMUNITY ABOUT WHAT IT IS THAT WE DO TO MAKE SURE THAT WE MAKE PAYROLL. SO THAT WOULD BE MY ONLY CONCERN. ABOUT THE POLICY CHANGE, MR. PORTER, IF WE CAN CHECK INTO THAT, I KNOW THAT WE ARE ALREADY LOOKING AT THE POLICY AROUND FUND BALANCE, AND THE WAY THAT THOSE THINGS ARE BEING HANDLED. BUT I'M ALSO VERY CONCERNED THAT OUR FUND BALANCE DIPS SO LOW THAT THAT IS ALSO GOING TO AFFECT OUR RATINGS BY THE TIME WE COME BACK TO NEW YORK AND WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. WE ARE BELOW OUR OWN POLICY LEVELS OF 5%. SO THOSE ARE REALLY MY COMMENTS. I APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION. I REALLY WAS HOPING YOU HAD ESPECIALLY THE GRAPHIC JOHN SHOWED ABOUT THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS AND WHAT THAT LOOKED LIKE SO WE COULD SHOW THE GENERAL PUBLIC THAT WE TYPICALLY DIP IN FUND BALANCE IN NOVEMBER. BUT MY CONCERN LIKE I SAID IS THAT THE LONG-RANGE PLANNING OF HOW, THE FORECASTING OF WHAT THIS LOOKS LIKE, WE HAVE KNOWN SINCE JULY THAT WE HAD A $25 MILLION SETBACK IN OUR FUND BALANCE. AND SO HOW WE PLAN FROM JULY TO NOW WITHOUT CONTINUING TO ALARM THE COMMUNITY AND THE BOARD -- I MEAN, IT BRINGS GREAT QUESTIONS FOR US TO HAVE TO ANSWER TO THE COMMUNITY AND TO THE PUBLIC, AND IT'S VERY DIFFICULT FOR THE COMMUNITY TO UNDERSTAND WHAT EXACTLY IS HAPPENING WITH OUR BUDGET, BECAUSE IT IS A HUGE BUDGET, AND PEOPLE WILL SAY, WELL, THE SUPERINTENDENT WAS HIRED AT A HIGHER RATE, WE ARE SPENDING MONEY ON PROJECTS NOT KNOWING THAT THAT MONEY HAS TO BE SPENT THAT WAY, AND OUR OTHER DOLLARS HAVE TO BE SPENT IN A DIFFERENT WAY. SO THOSE WOULD BE MY RECOMMENDATIONS AND MY CONCERN ABOUT HOW WE CONTINUE TO APPROACH THE ISSUE, BECAUSE THIS IS GOING TO BE A ONE-TIME -- A ONE-YEAR ISSUE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
>>Melissa Snively: I THINK SUPERINTENDENT HAS SOME COMMENT ON THAT, MR. DAVIS.
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM. I DON'T DISAGREE. BUT NEXT YEAR YOU WON'T HAVE THE PART WHERE I AM TRYING TO PEEL AN ONION AND IDENTIFY WHAT I REVEAL. AND LET ME SAY, WE START OFF IN MAY, WITH A PROJECTED FUND BALANCE WHICH WAS $50 MILLION, TRANSMISSION, WAS ABLE TO GET IT FROM 50 MILLION TO A 32 MILLION DEFICIT SO IT'S 32. THEN WE STARTED LOOKING AT OVERALL HOW DID THE RESERVE BALANCE -- YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER, IN JUNE 30th YOU DON'T GET THE ACTUAL FUND BALANCE UNTIL SEPTEMBER. THIS IS OCTOBER. SO YOU HAVE TO START TO LOOK AT ALL THE FINANCIAL ANGLES OF WHAT CREATES THAT FUND BALANCE, AND THEN LOOK AT HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE OF HOW THAT FUND BALANCE WAS GENERATED OR INITIATED OR SAVED. YOU START LOOKING AT A PARTICULAR POINT OF CAPITAL MONEY AND BEING ABLE TO SAY, WAS THERE A POTENTIAL FAULT RELATED TO FUND BALANCE AND HOW THAT MONEY WAS USED AND NOT BE ABLE TO PUT THE SCHOOLS $197 MILLION? SO THAT CREATES A $32 MILLION DECREASE ON EXPENDITURES. NOW WE ARE FACED WITH A $40 MILLION DEFICIT BECAUSE WE ARE OUT OF CAPITAL OUTLAY. THEN WE TRANSITION. SO AS WE SEE THESE ISSUES, WE HAVE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING AND NEXT YEAR IT WON'T BE CHALKED UP BECAUSE I OWN THE BUDGET AND IF ANYTHING HAPPENS YOU CAN HOLD ME ACCOUNTABLE, AND THE TEAM ACCOUNTABLE, BUT EVERY DAY WE ARE SEEING STUFF HOW ONE IS BEING USED AND NOW THE STATES REDEFINE HOW SPARKS USE AND THE WAY IT WAS USED LAST YEAR, SO NOW WE HAVE TO LOOK AT SIA DOLLARS AND NOW YOU ARE TAKING SAI DOLLARS AWAY FROM SCHOOLS. SO WE HAVE ISSUES IN A NUMBER OF POCKETS OF AREAS THAT WE ARE TRYING TO SOLVE AND CREATE STABILITY IN THAT BROTHER SEES. IS IT DIFFICULT? IS IT UNCOMFORTABLE? ABSOLUTELY. BUT THIS PROCESS HAS TO HAPPEN IN ORDER FOR US TO GET US BACK ON TRACK, AND WE ARE COMMITTED TO DOING SO.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MEMBER STUART. THANK YOU, MR. SUPERINTENDENT. WE HAVE ANOTHER COMMENT FROM MS. GRAY.
>>Lynn Gray: SO I WAS LISTENING OF COURSE TO THE OTHER BOARD MEMBERS' COMMENTS. AND WHAT I WANTED TO SHARE ARE JUST THREE THINGS. NUMBER ONE, FIRST OFF, WE HAVE HAD A CATASTROPHIC BUDGET SHORTAGE IN THE LATE 1980s, AND I REMEMBER THAT, AND I SHARED THAT WITH THE SUPERINTENDENT AND ACTUALLY THE BOARD. BUT WHAT'S DIFFERENT THIS TIME IS WE HAVE COVID ON TOP OF IT. THOSE EXPENSES, THE COMPUTERS, AND THE FOOD, WHICH WAS GREAT, BUT ALL THESE EXTRA COSTS, PPE, ON TOP OF IT. SO MEMBER CONA, I AM ALSO VERY, VERY ALARMED THAT WE ARE DOING THIS, BECAUSE WE HAVE NEVER. HOWEVER, THE RATIONALE IS THE REALITY IS WHAT IT IS. SO MAKING SURE THIS IS BEING DONE I THINK IS VERY CRITICAL. SECONDLY, THE EDUCATION, I MEAN, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT TO THE PUBLIC A TAN NOTE. I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT THAT IS, WHAT IT MEANS, AND ALL THE IMPLICATIONS. SO WHAT YOU TWO HAVE DONE IS IN PUBLIC SHARED IN EDUCATIONAL FINANCIAL MATTER WITH ALL OF THE AUDIENCES THAT MAY BE WATCHING. AND THAT IS VERY IMPORTANT. IT'S VERY IMPORTANT. BECAUSE THEY NEED TO BE AWARE AS TO WHY WE ARE DOING UNIT CUTS, WHY. YOU KNOW, WHAT IS GOING ON THAT WE HAVE TO TAKE SUCH SEVERE ACTION? AND UNLESS PEOPLE, OUR PARENTS AND OUR STAFF AND ALL OF OUR VENDORS, YOU KNOW, THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY, AND THE LOCAL POLITICAL COMMUNITY, THEY HAVE TO UNDERSTAND WHY WE ARE DOING WHAT WE NEED TO DO. SO I -- I APPLAUD -- I KNOW THAT'S A VERY STRONG WORD -- BUT I AM VERY MUCH ADVOCATING THAT THIS IS PART OF THE PROCESS OF EDUCATING THE PUBLIC, AND WE NEED TO CONTINUE. SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS, WE NEED TO CONTINUE AT ALL MATTERS TO DO EXACTLY WHAT WE ARE DOING. AND THAT'S WHAT I WANTED TO SAY. SO THAT WAS THREE THINGS. BUT AGAIN AND AGAIN, COMMUNICATION CAN'T JUST BE JUST BOARD MEMBERS. IT HAS TO ALSO BE TO THE TAXPAYERS. AND YOU CAN'T JUST GIVE THE EDUCATIONAL PIECE, AND I APPRECIATE THAT. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, GENTLEMEN. WE APPRECIATE YOUR TIME THIS EVENING. AND I APPRECIATE YOUR EXPLANATIONS AND ANSWERING THE QUESTIONS THAT OUR BOARD MEMBERS HAVE POSED. WE'LL GET THAT GRAPHIC INFORMATION OUT ON THE WEBSITE, MR. DAVIS. I THINK WE WILL BE ABLE TO GET THAT OUT TO THE PUBLIC SO THEY CAN SEE WHAT YOU PRESENTED, BOARD MEMBERS, IN OUR ONE TO ONE MEETINGS. AND IF THERE ARE NO FURTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM BOARD MEMBERS, WE WILL GO AHEAD AND VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR, PLEASE. THANK YOU, BOARD MEMBERS. AND IT IS UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU AGAIN. BOARD MEMBERS, AT THIS TIME WE ARE GOING TO MOVE INTO THE EMPLOYEE INPUT PORTION OF OUR MEETING. IT IS A TIME CERTAIN AT 6:00. WE ARE JUST A FEW MINUTES BEHIND. MR. CONA IS GOING TO READ OUR EMPLOYEE INPUT GUIDELINES THIS EVENING BEFORE WE BEGIN. MR. CONA?
>>Steve Cona: THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. WE WILL NOW TAKE EMPLOYEE INPUT, EVEN THOUGH WE HEAR FROM THE PUBLIC AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MEETING, IT IS SOMETIMES DIFFICULT FOR OUR EMPLOYEES OF OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT TO ATTEND MEETINGS AT 4 P.M. THERE ARE MANY WAYS FOR EMPLOYEES TO VOICE THEIR OPINIONS TO THE BOARD. IT INCLUDES UNION REPRESENTATION, E-MAILS ONE ON ONE CONVERSATION AND PUBLIC COMMENT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MEETING. THE BOARD WANTS TO HEAR FROM YOU. THIS SECTION OF OUR AGENDA, WE HAVE CREATED ANOTHER AVENUE FOR EMPLOYEES TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD. WE ARE SETTING ASIDE 30 MINUTES FOR EMPLOYEES OF THIS SCHOOL DISTRICT TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD ABOUT ANY ISSUE THAT IS ON YOUR MIND. THIS IS NOT INTENDED TO BE A DISCUSSION ABOUT A SPECIFIC AGENDA ITEM OR TONIGHT'S AGENDA BUT RATHER AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO SPEAK TO THE BOARD ABOUT ANY ISSUES RELATED TO YOUR JOB AND THE SCHOOL DISTRICT. EACH SPEAKER WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES. AND HERE ARE THE FIRST THREE SPEAKERS.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU MEMBER CONA. OUR FIRST THREE SPEAKERS WILL BE ROSHELLE GUARDO, EMILY LEE, AND ROB CRIETE. IF MS. GUARDO COULD APPROACH THE LECTERN. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
>> I COME HERE THIS EVENING WITH CONCERNS AS A CLASSROOM TEACHER THAT AFFECT THE STUDENTS IN OUR DISTRICT, THE ACHIEVE3000 PROGRAM THAT MR. DAVIS' BROTHER HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN. THIS PROGRAM IS YET ANOTHER COMPUTER PROGRAM THIS DISTRICT HAS PERFECT THAT FORCES KIDS TO LOG INTO THE COMPUTER WITH NO ACTUAL INSTRUCTION, TAKING AWAY FACE TO FACE TIME WITH THE TEACHER TO ONLY GIVE US ALEXIA LEVEL WITHOUT A PASSAGE OF THE IT SHOULD BE MANNED TAKER STUDENTS READ WITH THEIR TEACHERS NOT OPTIONAL WHERE THEY CAN LOOK FOR PERTINENT READING BEHAVIORS THAT A COMPUTER COULD NEVER DO. SIX. YOU WANT TEACHERS DOING THE SAME THING EVERY DAY AT THE SAME TIME. THIS IS NOT DEVELOPMENTALLY APPROPRIATE BECAUSE NO TWO CLASSES ARE THE SAME. IT TAKES THE ARTICLE AWAY FROM TEACHING. WE WERE JUST SITTING HERE A MONTH AGO DISCUSSING HOW SCHOOLS NEED TO BE OPEN BECAUSE THERE WAS NOTHING MORE VALUABLE THAN TEACHERS IN FRONT OF STUDENTS YET NOW WE ARE BEING TOLD TO FOLLOW A SCRIPT FOR A PROGRAM THAT WAS DESIGNED TO BE FOR SMALL GROUP INSTRUCTION, NOT WHOLE GROUP INSTRUCTION. OUR ESE UNITS ARE GETTING CUT DUE TO LOW ENROLLMENT BUT YOU HAVE ASKED THEM TO LOOK OUR STUDENTS AND ASK THEM WHETHER OR NOT THEY HAVE REGRESSED MORE THAN THEIR TYPICAL PEERS, AND IF THEY HAVE HAD A GREATER REGRESSION. HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO PROVIDE THESE SERVICES WHEN YOU HAVE INCREASED THE CASELOAD TO 17 TO 20 A TEACHER? WE CAN BARELY MEET THE CURRENT IEP SERVICES MUCH LESS AN ADDITIONAL LAYER. WE WITH ARE NOT ABLE TO TEST STUDENTS DUPE TO COVID TO MAKE UP FOR THE NUMBERS LOST WHEN FIFTH GRADE LEFT. YOU ARE SPENDING MONEY TO REDECORATE A BUILDING THAT YOU DESCRIBE AS SICKLY THAT WAS JUST REDECORATED NOT MORE THAN FOUR YEARS AGO. MEANWHILE, THERE ARE STUDENTS SITTING IN CLASSROOMS WITH NO AIR CONDITIONING, CRACKED AND BROKEN CHAIRS, LEAKING ROOFS, BROKEN WINDOWS AND NO READING TABLES. SOME TEACH DON'T HAVE THE NECESSARY FURNITURE OR EQUIPMENT TO CREATE AN INNOVATIVE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT NOT TO MENTION THE TECHNOLOGY. SO THE BASIC ESSENTIALS OF A STANDARD CLASSROOM ARE MADE IMPOSSIBLE UNLESS TEACHERS PURCHASE THEIR OWN EQUIPMENT. I LOVE HOW THE DISTRICT BOASTS TRANSPARENCY BUT IN THE SAME BREATH TELLS PRINCIPALS NOT TO DISCUSS THEIR POTENTIAL CUTS WITH THEIR FACULTY WHICH IN TURN LEAVES EVERYONE IN LIMBO. IT IS REALLY SHAMEFUL THAT TEACHERS IN THE 7th LARGEST DISTRICT IN THE NATION ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO RUN IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION WHEN SEEKING EMPLOYMENT. IF YOU AS A BOARD WANT TO DO WHAT'S BEST FOR YOUR STUDENTS I SUGGEST YOU START PUTTING YOUR TEACHERS FIRST. MR. DAVIS CLEARED HOUSE OF PEOPLE WHO WERE ESTABLISHED ALREADY IN THE COUNTY THAT HAD A WEALTH OF KNOWLEDGE THAT HE DISREGARDED AND PUSHED ASIDE. MR. DAVIS MADE A STATEMENT THAT HE OBTAINED HIS REPLACEMENT FOR THEIR WORTH. SO I ASK YOU, MR. DAVIS, WHAT ARE YOUR TEACHERS WORTH?
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU SO MUCH. MR. DAVIS, I THINK YOU WOULD PROBABLY LIKE TO HAVE A ONE TO ONE MEETING WITH THAT TEACHER TO CLEAR UP SOME OF THE CONCERNS THAT SHE HAS.
>>Addison Davis: I WOULD LOVE TO.
>>Melissa Snively: ALL RIGHT. NEXT WE HAVE EMILY LEE FOLLOWED BY ROB CRIETE AND HEIDI GLICK. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
>> THANK YOU. LET'S TALK ABOUT DATA. REAL TANGIBLE POWERFUL DATA IS GENERATED BY LISTENING TO STUDENT CONVERSATION ABOUT TOPICS THEY ARE LEARNING, BY WATCHING AND LISTENING TO A CHILD'S DECOAT CODE A WORD AND VOCABULARY OR COMPREHENSIVE SKILLS THEY EMPLOY. IT IS FOUND BY OBSERVING HOW A STUDENT APPROACHES AND SOLVES A MATH PROBLEM AND WHAT STRATEGIES THEY UTILIZE. IT IS GAINED BY ASKING GOOD QUALITY QUESTIONS ABOUT LITERATURE. RIGHT NOW OUR STUDENTS ARE NOT BEING EXPOSED TO THOSE THINGS AT THE RATE THEY SHOULD BE DUE TO THREE WEEKS OF TESTING AND MORE NEXT WEEK. THE CURRENT DISTRICT MANDATED TESTING THAT HAS BEEN TAKING PLACE IS NOT FOR THE TEACHERS USE. WE DON'T EACH HAVE ACCESS TO STUDENTS' INDIVIDUAL INFORMATION. ONLY STANDARDS WHOLE BASE CLASS. SO FAR THE BASELINE TESTING SEEMS TO BE AN ATTEMPT TO JUSTIFY THE PURCHASE OF A PROGRAM THAT YOU ARE MANDATING. FURTHERMORE, THE DATA IS THROWN OUT THE WINDOW BECAUSE THE DISTRICT APPROVED FRAME WORKS AND MATERIALS MANDATE THAT ALL LEARNERS BEGIN ON LESSON ONE OF THESE PROGRAMS, AND FLIP THROUGH IN ORDER NO MATTER WHAT THE STUDENT ACTUALLY NEED. THIS ISN'T BEST PRACTICE AND TEACHERS CANNOT DIFFERENTIATE TO MEET STUDENT NEEDS THIS WAY. THIS IS NOT NEW. WHAT IS NEW, WE HAVE BEEN DOING SMALL GROUPS. WHAT'S NEW HERE IS STRIPPING AWAY OUR AUTONOMY AND THE MICROMANAGEMENT FROM THE TOP AND PLANNING WITH WHAT, HOW AND WHEN THE STUDENTS GET THEIR NEEDS BACK BY THEIR TEACHERS. ON THE TOP I CAN OF TESTING, ESE TEACHERS ARE GETTING PULLED TO BRICK AND MORTAR, eLearning, MAKEUP TESTING OR CLASSROOMS DUE TO NO SUBSTITUTES. THIS IS NOT THEIR FAULT AND IT'S NOT OUR SCHOOL SITE ADMIN'S FAULT. THIS IS A LEGAL ISSUE FOR STUDENTS WHO GET THEIR SERVICES AND FOR TEACHERS TO MAINTAIN SMALL GROUPS WITH FIDELITY. BUT I FIND ESPECIALLY DISDAINFUL IS YOU KEEP PASSING THE PRESSURE DOWN TO THE INDIVIDUAL SCHOOL SITES AND PRINCIPALS TO FIGURE IT OUT WHEN IT WAS THE BOARD AND YOURSELVES THAT GOT US TO THIS POINT FINANCIALLY. YOU CONTINUE DO LIE TO THE PUBLIC AND NEWS OUTLETS THAT CLASSROOMS ARE PACKED, OUR SCHOOLS ARE SHORT STAFFED, AND PEOPLE ARE DOING DOUBLE AND TRIPLE DUTY WITH SIMULTANEOUS TEACHING IN HUGE CLASS SIZES. WE ARE -- HOLDING ON TIGHT HOLDING UP OUR END. THE CUTS YOU ASSURED PEOPLE WOULDN'T HAPPEN HAVE HAPPENED. NEXT WEEK AFTER THIS MEETING, HE DON'T FIND IT COINCIDENTAL THAT YOU ARE WAITING UNTIL THEN TO ANNOUNCE THE CUTS. ALSO, IT WOULD BE GREAT IF YOU GUYS WOULD CHECK OUT OUR CONTRACT. I KNOW IT'S BEEN A BUSY YEAR BUT A LOT IS GETTING OVERLOOKED. AND LIKE SHE SAID, START WITH CUTTING REAL -- DECORATING NEW CARS? THAT'S WHAT WE NEED? THAT'S WHAT YOU BOUGHT FIRST. THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON SINCE 2015, RIGHT? THAT WAS FIVE YEARS AGO. HOW LONG HAVE YOU GUYS BEEN UP THERE?
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU. MR. SUPERINTENDENT, I AM NOT SURE IF YOU WANT TO SPEAK WITH HER DIRECTLY OR THERE ARE SEVERAL DIFFERENT CONCERNS THAT MAYBE MS. WHELAN OR MR. CONNOR CAN CLARIFY FOR HER. THANK YOU. OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS ROB CRIETE FOLLOWED BY HEIDI GLICK AND THEN RYAN HAZINSKY.
>> WE CELEBRATED WORLD TEACHERS DAY THIS PAST WEEK, AND WANTS TO THANK ALL THE HARDWORKING TEACHERS AND SUPPORT PROFESSION AS THAT ARE PERSEVERING AS WELL AS ALL THE ADMINISTRATORS IN THE DISTRICT AND EVERYBODY THAT'S DOING THE JOB THAT IS BEING DONE, REALLY THROUGHOUT SOME REALLY DIFFICULT CONDITIONS. NOW, SPEAKING OF THOSE DIFFICULT CONDITIONS, YOU LEARNING IS TOUGH ON STUDENTS, PARENTS AND TEACHERS, BUT IT'S NECESSARY TO MEET THEIR NEEDS. SIMULTANEOUS TEACHING IS, THOUGH, MOSTLY UNNECESSARY AND CURRENTLY USED IN CLASSES FROM PRE-K ALL THE WAY THROUGH SENIOR YEAR HIGH SCHOOL, PRE-K, 4-YEAR-OLDS, SIMULTANEOUS TEACHING. HOW DIFFICULT CAN THAT POSSIBLY BE? SIMULTANEOUS TEACHING IS IMPOSSIBLELY DIFFICULT FOR EVERYONE AND FOR YOUNG LEARNERS ESPECIALLY AND SHOULD ONLY BE IMPLEMENTED IN THOSE FEW HIGH-LEVEL CLASSES. AND STARTING WITH THE NEXT NINE WEEKS WE ARE ASKING THAT WE MAKE SURE THAT OUR STUDENTS HAVE THE FOCUS OF OUR TEACHERS IN eLearning OR THE FACE TO FACE LEARNING AND DO AWAY WITH ALL SIMULTANEOUS TEACHING WHERE IT'S UNNEEDED AND COUNTERPRODUCTIVE FOR OUR STUDENTS. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MR. CRIETE. MR. SUPERINTENDENT, YOU DIDN'T MENTION ANYTHING BECAUSE I KNOW YOU ARE IN CONSTANT COMMUNICATION WITH THE HILLSBOROUGH CTA. I KNOW THAT YOU SPEAK WITH MR. CRIETE REGULARLY.
>>Addison Davis: YES, MA'AM, THROUGH THE CHAIR.
>>Melissa Snively: NEXT WE HAVE HEIDI GLICK AND THEN RYAN HAZINSKY.
>> I WOULD LIKE TO PUBLICLY THANK DR. WHELAN FOR SUBBING FOR MY STUDENTS WHEN I WAS OUT FOR YOM CUP PURCHASE SO THERE WAS SOME SAVINGS FOR THE DISTRICT. ALL THE KIDS DECIDED YOU WERE REALLY COOL. AND I ALSO WOULD ONCE AGAIN SAY HOW PROUD I AM TO BE WORKING AT ALONZO. I DON'T KNOW WHO UP HERE GAVE PERMISSION FOR A PEP RALLY TO PURCHASE AT ALONZO BUT AFTER LONG DISCUSSIONS IT WAS CANCELED AND IT WILL NOW BE VIRTUAL, WHICH I THINK IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO. SPEAKING OF THE BUDGET AND THE LAST FEW QUESTIONS THAT HAVE BEEN ASKED, I SENT SOME QUESTIONS TO GRETCHEN, AND I HAVE NOT GOTTEN MY ANSWERS YET. SO I WOULD LIKE THESE ANSWERED. I WOULD LIKE THEM IN WRITING. AND I WOULD LIKE THEM MADE PUBLIC. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT THE FORMER SUPERINTENDENT SALARY WAS AND WHAT THE CURRENT SUPERINTENDENT'S SALARY S.DID WE PAY FOR MOVING EXPENSES FOR ANY OF THE NEW EMPLOYEES TO OUR DISTRICT? IF YES, HOW MUCH MONEY WAS SPENT IN TOTAL ON THESE MOVES? WERE ANY OFFICES RENOVATIONS DONE FOR OUR NEW OR CURRENT EMPLOYEES AND, YES, WHAT WAS THE COST TO THE DISTRICT? I WOULD LIKE A LIST OF THE NAMES OF THE POSITIONS THAT WERE ELIMINATED, HOW MUCH THE TOTAL COMBINED SALARIES WERE. I WOULD LIKE A LIST OF ALL OF THE NEW POSITIONS THAT WERE CREATED THAT OUR NEW SUPERINTENDENT HAS TAKEN OVER AND WHAT ARE THE SALARIES OF THESE POSITIONS? WILL THERE BE A DEDUCTION IN THE COST FOR THE DISTRICT THIS YEAR AS PSAT, A WAS HE HAVE FEW STUDENTS AND MANY eLearnERS THAT ARE NOT PARTICIPATING? I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE WERE OUT ON MONDAY THE 28th FOR RELIGIOUS REASONS AND HOW MANY OTHER PEOPLE FROM DISTRICT LEVEL WENT UNCOVERED, AND WHAT WAS THE COST IN SUBS? I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO KNOW WHAT WE PAID FOR THE S.A.T. AND THE A.C.T. FOR ALL OF OUR STUDENTS TO TAKE THEM EVERY YEAR IN THE DISTRICT FANNED THERE IS SOME TYPE OF KICK BAHRKE. I KNOW IT'S NOT REALLY CALLED A KICK BAHRKE BUT IF WE SOMEHOW REPAID MONEY FROM THE COLLEGE BOARD I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT THAT IS. I THINK ALL OF THIS NEEDS TO BE MADE PUBLIC. AND I AGREE WITH YOU, MR. CONA, WE ARE NOT IN A GOOD PLACE BUT STOP BLAMING THE TEACHERS. I AM NOT SAYING YOU ARE BLAMING THEM BUT THAT'S WHAT'S COMING OFF ALMOST AT EVERY MEETING. YOU ARE CUTTING US. IT'S OUR FAULT, YOU ARE GIVING US -- MS. STUART, YOU TALKED ABOUT ANOTHER THING, ANOTHER THING, I FEEL EXACTLY THE SAME WAY. YOU TEACH T-PAY, I TEACH FOUR PREPSS AND I DO IT ALL SIMULTANEOUSLY, ONLINE, WITH THE INTERNET GOING OUT, IN THE MIDDLE OF A CONVERSATION, WITH THE INTERNET OUT AND I CAN'T EVEN GET MY KIDS IN. THERE ARE A LOT OF PROBLEMS IN THIS DISTRICT, BUT IT'S NOT THE TEACHERS' FAULT, INCLUDING THE MONEY THAT WE ARE BEING PAID. THERE'S A LOT OF MONEY THAT'S BEING SPENT, AND YOU ARE RIGHT, SOME OF IT HAS TO BE SPENT IN CERTAIN PLACES BUT SOME OF IT DOES NOT NEED TO BE SPENT AT ALL, AND THE PUBLIC, THE HONOR OF TRANSPARENCY, WE ALL NEED TO KNOW, BECAUSE I'M A TEACHER, I'M A MOM, AND I PAY TAXES, AND I VOTE. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. OUR FINAL SPEAKER IS RYAN HAZINSKY. WELCOME. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
>> THANK YOU AND GOOD EVENING, EVERYONE. I'M AN EDUCATOR SO I'M HERE TO EDUCATE, AND TO COINCIDE WITH WHAT MEMBER GRAY WAS SAYING AND WHAT OTHER PEOPLE WERE SAYING WHEN I WALKED IN HERE, THERE'S A LOT OF HANDWRITTEN WRINGING, OUR FUND BALANCE, AND SOME OTHER ISSUES, AND YET I NEVER HEAR ANYONE, ANYBODY ON THIS DAIS, OTHERWISE HAMMERING HOME TO THE PUBLIC THAT THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE IS PRIMARILY RESPONSIBLE FOR OUR FUNDING. WE ARE 43rd IN THE UNITED STATES, 43rd IN PUBLIC EDUCATION INVESTMENTS. THAT'S HOW LITTLE THEY CARE ABOUT OUR KIDS. THAT'S HOW LITTLE THEY CARE ABOUT EDUCATORS. WE ARE 47th IN AVERAGE TEACHER PAY DESPITE ALL THE PROPAGANDA FROM THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TALKING ABOUT MOVING FROM 26th TO 5th FOR THE NEW TEACHERS. WE ARE 48th IN PER CAPITA TAX COLLECTION. WE DEPEND ON TOURISM. WE DEPEND ON CONSTRUCTION IN THE BOOM-BUST CYCLE THAT THIS ECONOMY PRODUCES. WHEN FLORIDA FALLS, WE FALL FLAT ON OUR FACE AND IT HURTS REALLY BAD. IT WILL GET WORSE IF YOU THINK IT'S GOING GET BETTER AFTER THE ELECTION. CUTS WILL COME, AND I'M SAYING THIS SO EVERYONE IS CLEARLY AWARE THAT THINGS WILL GET WORSE. MAKE NO MISTAKE ABOUT IT. THEY WILL NOT FUNDUS. IT'S A TERRIBLE TRAVESTY. NOW, THIS IS THE TIME TO SHARE SACRIFICE. I WAS FORCED INTO TAKING A LEAVE OF ABSENCE, NOT TOO HAPPY ABOUT IT, A LOT OF TIMES REFLECT, A LOT OF TIME TO GET FRUSTRATED ABOUT THE SITUATION, ESPECIALLY KNOWING HOW MY STUDENTS, THE PROPOSAL THAT I SHARED WITH MANY FOLKS DOWN HERE, IS BASICALLY PLAYING OUT. BUT HIGH LEVEL KIDS, JUST GOING TO JA. YOU KNOW HOW FRUSTRATING THAT IS IN N WHEN I COULD HAVE BEEN WORKING AT HOME AND DOING THIS FOR THE KIDS. AND NOW THEY HAVE CUT ME OUT OF THE SYSTEM. APPARENTLY THIS IS AN HR POLICY. YOU DO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO DISTRICT PLATFORMS. THAT'S FUNNY BECAUSE I NEEDED IDEAS, ZOOM, EVERYTHING, BUT CANVAS. SO IF YOU CAN HELP ME GET BACK INTO CANVAS AND MANAGEMENT THAT'S WONDERFUL. SO I CAN AT LEAST GIVE MY KIDS A ROUGH DRAFT AND GIVE THEM FEED BARACK. IT'S MADDENING THAT PEOPLE ARE MAKING THESE KIND OF DECISIONS THAT ARE ABOUT PETTINESS AND NOT PRAGMATISM. I'M ASKING YOU TO STAND UP AND SAY SOMETHING. REPEAT THESE NUMBERS EVERY TIME YOU GET A CHANCE YOU ARE ON THE DAIS. PUT THIS AT THE FEET OF THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE WHERE IT BELONGS. AND THE LAST THING I WILL SAY IN THE LAST FEW SECOND, PRESIDENT CORRAL AT USF DID SOMETHING VERY BOLD THIS WEEK AND I AM KEN URGE HIGH LEVEL LEADERS IN THIS DISTRICT TO TAKE A 15% PAY CUT. IT'S ABOUT $4 MILLION FOR ALL THE PEOPLE WHO ARE BROUGHT IN. THAT WORKS OUT TO ABOUT $600,000. NONE OF THOSE PEOPLE ARE GOING TO GO HUNGRY. IT CAN BE TEMPORARY AND BE SYMBOLIC AND BE A GREAT WAY TO SHOW LEADERSHIP AND SHARED SACRIFICE. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MR. HAZINSKY. THAT CONCLUDES OUR EMPLOYEE INPUT SEGMENT OF OUR AGENDA TODAY. THE LAST ITEM ON THE REGULAR AGENDA, BOARD MEMBERS, IS ITEM 11.01 TO APPROVE THE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING WITH THE UNITED NEGRO COLLEGE FUND FOR EMPLOYEE -- EMPLOYEE GIVING CAMPAIGN.
>>Addison Davis: THIS MOU THAT WE HAVE PARTNERSHIP WITH THE UNITED NEGRO COLLEGE FUND FOR EMPLOYEE GIVING, THIS IS A 15 YEAR COLLABORATION THAT HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY AND THE UNCF, THIS IS ALL ABOUT BEING ABLE TO HAVE A CAMPAIGN TO BE ABLE TO SEND TO OUR EMPLOYEES IN OUR COMMUNITY FROM JANUARY THE 11th THROUGH THE 22ND. AND THIS WILL BE ABLE TO ALLOW OUR STUDENTS TO BE ABLE TO APPLY FOR MERIT BASED SCHOLARSHIPS TO HILLSBOROUGH TECHNICAL COLLEGE AND GENERATE FUNDING TO HELP THEM SEEK POST-SECONDARY OPPORTUNITIES. AND THIS IS ALL ABOUT KEEPING OUR MONEYS IN A LOCAL PERSPECTIVE AND KEEP OUR STUDENTS INTO OUR COMMUNITY, AND AS YOU KNOW, THE UNITED NEGRO COLLEGE FUND IS THE LARGEST PRIVATE SCHOLARSHIP PROVIDER TO MINORITY GROUPS OF MEMBERS. SO THIS IS A GREAT PARTNERSHIP. WE DO A REALLY NICE JOB IN BEING ABLE TO SIGNIFY IT BY SENDING THIS OUT THIS MOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU VERY MUCH, SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS. BOARD MEMBERS, I NEED A MOTION AND SECOND TO APPROVE 11.01. MEMBER BY MEMBER SHAMBURGER. SECOND BY MEMBER CONA. IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION ON THIS ITEM? SEEING NONE, PLEASE VOTE WHEN YOUR LIGHTS APPEAR. AND IT IS UNANIMOUS WITH MEMBER GRAY ABSENT FROM THE DAIS. THANK YOU, BOARD MEMBERS. THAT CONCLUDES OUR REGULAR AGENDA. SO WE WILL MOVE INTO BOARD COMMENTS AT THIS TIME, IF YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS, PLEASE GO AHEAD AND PRESS YOUR BUTTON TO CHIME IN. WE ARE GOING TO START WITH DR. HAHN.
>>Stacy Hahn: THANK YOU. WELL, OCTOBER IS NATIONAL BOOK MONTH. SO I AM CELEBRATING THIS MONTH BY PARTNERING WITH PAULLET BOOKS, THE FLYER AND OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT TO DO A VIRTUAL BOOK DRIVE. IT WILL RUN FROM TODAY UNTIL THE LAST MONTH OF OCTOBER. AND HERE IS OUR FLYER. YOU WILL BE ABLE TO FIND THIS ON THE DISTRICT WEBSITE, ON SOCIAL MEDIA. IT HAS A LINK AS WELL AS A QR CODE THAT WILL BRING YOU DIRECTLY TO A WEBSITE THAT HAS MANY, MANY BOOKS FOR FOLKS TO CHOOSE FROM. EVERY BOOK THAT'S DONATED WILL BE GIFTED BACK TO CHILDREN IN OUR COMMUNITY, THROUGH EARLY CHILDHOOD LITERACY FAIRS, THE FIRST ONE TAKING PLACE NOVEMBER 7th, AS WELL AS THE STORY TIME ONLINE BOOK TOUR. THIS IS JUST A GREAT WAY TO ENGAGE OUR COMMUNITY IN READING, AND I HOPE THAT FOLKS IN OUR COMMUNITY WILL JOIN ME IN DONATING A BOOK THIS MONTH SO THAT WE CAN GIVE THE GIFT OF A BOOK TO FUTURE BOOK WORMS IN OUR COMMUNITY. SO AGAIN, I WANT TO THANK PAULETTE FOR PARTNERING WITH US AROUND THAT. THEY REALLY DID A NICE JOB CUSTOMIZING A WEB PAGE FOR US. AND WE ARE OPENING HOPING THAT WE GET A LOT OF ENGAGEMENT AROUND THIS, BECAUSE WE DO PROVIDE SMALL HOME LIBRARIES TO EVERY CHILD WHO ATTENDS OUR LITERACY FAIRS AND YOUR DONATION WILL HELP ENSURE THAT CHILDREN FROM PRE-K TO GRADE 2 OR GRADE 3 WILL RECEIVE BOOKS AND HOME LIBRARIES. THAT'S ONE THING, SO THANK YOU. I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE TEACH THE WORLD TEACHER DAY. ALMOST EVERYONE HAS A FAVORITE TEACHER WHO HAS ENCOURAGED THEM, AND SOMEONE WHO WENT ABOVE AND BEYOND, BECAUSE THEY SAW YOUR POTENTIAL, SO IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO TAKE SOME TIME AND CELEBRATE OUR TEACHERS. THANK YOU TO ALL OUR TEACHERS. A THANK YOU THANK YOU TO MRS. SHROAD eMY KINDERGARTEN TEACHER. SHE SET THE STAGE FOR MY LOVE OF LEARNING SO HAPPY WORLD TEACHER DAY TO OUR TEACHERS, AND EVERY TEACHER BEYOND HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY ALSO WHO TIRELESSLY WORKS TO ENSURE THAT STUDENTS HAVE THE VERY BEST EXPERIENCE IN OUR SCHOOLS. SO THANK YOU.
>>Steve Cona: THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MEMBER HAHN. I GUESS I WILL GO NEXT. FIRST OF ALL, YES, I WANT TO THANK ALL OF OUR AMAZING TEACHERS AND PRINCIPALS AS WE ALWAYS CELEBRATE YOU, BUT THIS MONTH IS SPECIAL, AND WE TALK ABOUT OUR PRINCIPALS AND THE HARD WORK THAT THEY DO. ONE OF THE THINGS, MR. SUPERINTENDENT, ON THE AGENDA THAT'S BEEN REMOVED FOR THE LAST FEW AGENDA ITEMS WAS 4.02. I KNOW WE HAVE REMOVED IT. IF I COULD, I WAS GOING TO ASK FOR IT, AFTER YOUR SUPERINTENDENT COMMENTS, BUT I KNOW WE ARE TAKING UP THE SESSION ON THURSDAY. BUT I WOULD LIKE TO GET AN UPDATE ON WHERE WE STAND ON THAT BECAUSE I NOTICE AS A BOARD, WE ARE VERY INTERESTED IN RAISING THE STARTING SALARY OF OUR TEACHERS, AND WE HAVE RECEIVED A COUPLE OF E-MAILS FROM TEACHERS WHO ARE ASKING WHEN IS THAT GOING TO OCCUR? SO IF WE COULD GET AN UPDATE ON THAT, THAT WOULD BE GREAT.
>>Addison Davis: YES, SIR, THROUGH THE CHAIR. AGAIN, THIS IS ALL ABOUT THE NEW TEACHER ALLOCATION FUND, AND REGARDED TO HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, WE GOT A POCKET OF MONEY. AND IN THAT POCKET OF MONEY 80 PERCENT GOES TO INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE UNDER THE THRESHOLD OF $47,000, AND THAT'S EQUIVALENT OF OVER 4300 PLUS TEACHERS IN OUR ORGANIZATION WILL BENEFIT FROM THAT GOING FROM WHERE THEY CURRENTLY ARE FINANCIALLY UP TO AS HIGH AS WE CAN GO, WHICH I BELIEVE WILL BE AROUND 46-NINE AND THEN TEACHERS ABOVE THAT ARE ABLE TO GET 20% OF THAT FUNDING OUT TO THEM. THIS IS SOMETHING WHERE THE 80% IS IDENTIFIED TO THOSE INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE UNDER THE THRESHOLD. THE 20% HAS TO BE NEGOTIATED. WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF JUST TRYING TO FINALIZE THIS AND N NEGOTIATIONS SO, IF THERE'S SOMETHING I SAID WRONG, MR. McCALLL.
>> THE 20% OF THAT ALLOCATION IS SET ASIDE FOR ALL NONROSTERED K-12 INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF, MEANING INTO OUR PRE-K AND LOOKING TO DR. WHELAN FOR VERIFICATION INTO OUR OTHER INSTRUCTIONAL UNITS THAT ARE ON THAT TEACHER -- IN THAT TEACHER GROUP, BUT THEY DON'T HAVE SCHOOL COUNSELORS, ET CETERA. SO THE STATE IS SAYING YOU CAN USE THAT 20% TO DISTRIBUTE IN SOME FORM OR FASHION, AND THAT'S THE PART THAT WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE INVOLVED ACTA ON SO THAT THEY CAN OFFER SOME IDEAS AND SUGGESTIONS ON HOW THAT MIGHT BE DONE.
>>Steve Cona: SO JUST A QUESTION. I READ THE LAW A LITTLE BIT. I DON'T HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS. SO WHY CAN'T WE JUST APPROVE THE 80%?
>>CALLER: I'M LOOKING TO MS. SAUNDERS AND DR. WHELAN. THEY DO ALLOW US -- ALLOW US TO SUBMIT THE 80% PORTION OF OUR PLAN FOR APPROVAL. AT THIS TIME, WE WENT INTO NEGOTIATIONS THAT WE WOULD WANT TO DO ALL OF IT TOGETHER. AND KNOWING THAT WE ARE GOING THROUGH THIS PROCESS OF LOOKING AT BUDGETS, AND AT THE DISTRICT LEVEL, LOOKING AT OUR CURRENT ALLOCATIONS FOR TEACHERS ACROSS THE DISTRICT AND OTHER EMPLOYEE GROUPS, ET CETERA. WE AGREED THAT WE WOULD BE ABLE TO COME BACK AND TALK ABOUT WHAT WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO CONTRIBUTE ABOVE AND BEYOND THE NEW TEACHER ALLOCATION FOR THOSE GROUPS THIS YEAR.
>>Steve Cona: I JUST WANT TO CAUTION US ABOUT DELAYING WHAT THE LAW HAS ASKED TO US DO, WHICH WAS TO GET BACK THAT BASELINE SALARY UP, WHICH IS WHAT WE WERE ASKED TASKED WITH, WHICH IS WHAT THAT MONEY WAS ALLOCATED FOR. I DON'T KNOW WHY IT'S TAKING SO LONG, BUT I GUESS WE'LL HEAR MORE IN EXECUTIVE SESSION. SO I APPRECIATE YOU GIVING US AN UPDATE. SO IT'S NOT US THAT'S HOLDING US BACK, RIGHT? IT'S NOT SEVEN MEMBERS ON THE SCHOOL BOARD.
>>Addison Davis: THROUGH THE CHAIR, NO, SIR.
>>Steve Cona: THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MEMBER CONA. MEMBER PEREZ.
>>Karen Perez: THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. I WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK TO THE DISTRICT AND THE TEACHERS AND PARENTS REGARDING FAMILY HEALTH CARE FOUNDATION. I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO SIT DOWN. I SIT ON THIS BOARD, AND HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE MELANIE HAUL, TO OUR NEW SUPERINTENDENT. AND I AM GOING TO SPEAK TO OUR FAMILY HEALTH CARE FOUNDATION, AND THE FAMILY ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE ESPECIALLY NOW DURING THE MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS THAT WE ARE HAVING NOW. THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 11,000 UNINSURED CHILDREN IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY. MOST ARE ELIGIBLE FOR FREE OR LOW-COST COVERAGE THROUGH FLORIDA KID CARE. PABLO, CAN YOU -- WERE YOU ABLE TO GET THE -- CAN YOU -- PERFECT. SO THE AREA COUNTY CENTER CORD COVERED ARE HILLSBOROUGH, POLK, PASCO COUNTIES HERE IN FLORIDA. THE FLORIDA KID CARE PROVIDES MEDICAL, DENTAL, VISION AND HEARING AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR CHILDREN UP TO AGE 19. KIDS WITH REGULAR ACCESS TO MEDICAL CARE ARE LESS DISTRACTED BY UNMET HEALTH NEEDS AND HAVE BETTER SCHOOL ATTENDANCE AND ARE BETTER ABLE TO CONCENTRATE AT SCHOOL. HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL PARTNERS WITH THE FAMILY HEALTH CARE FOUNDATION, AND LOCAL NONPROFIT TO PROVIDE OUTREACH, AVOCATION ASSISTANCE AND EDUCATION ABOUT FLORIDA KID CARE, ARE COMPLETELY FREE OF CHARGE. THEY ARE AVAILABLE BY PHONE OR VIRTUAL, FOR APPOINTMENTS FOR FAMILIES, AND CAN PROVIDE PRESENTATIONS AT VIRTUAL PTA MEETINGS OR OTHER FAMILY FORUMS. THE FAMILY HEALTH CARE FOUNDATION CAN ALSO ASSIST PARENTS AND OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS WITH COVERAGE PROGRAMS FOR ADULTS AS WELL. SO IF YOU ARE A FAMILY WITH CHILDREN, AND ADULTS IN THE FAMILY TO NOT HAVE HEALTH INSURANCE, YOU CAN ALSO APPLY FOR HEALTH CARE. SO THE FAMILY HEALTH CARE FOUNDATION CAN BE REACHED AT 813-995-7005 OR THROUGH THEIR WEBSITE AT FAMILY HEALTH CARE SDN.ORG. SO ESPECIALLY NOW WITH A LOT OF FAMILIES SEEKING THE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES, THIS WOULD BE A WONDERFUL WAY OF GETTING YOUR HEALTH CARE ALONG WITH ACCESS TO SERVICES. THANK YOU.
>>Tamara Shamburger: FIRST I WOULD LIKE TO SAY, BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH. SO I JUST WANT TO OFFER CURRENTLY PRAYERS AND THOUGHTS AND CONDOLENCES FOR THOSE BATTLING A STRESSFUL DISEASE AND CERTAINLY THOSE WHO MAY HAVE LOST THEIR LIVES DUE TO TO THIS DISEASE, SO WE SUPPORT EVERYONE AND HOPE THAT ONE DAY IT BECOMES A NON-ISSUE. TONIGHT, I JUST REALLY WANTED TO QUICKLY JUST TALK ABOUT A REALLY EXCITING PROGRAM. OFTENTIMES WE GET QUESTIONS ESPECIALLY ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL ABOUT WHAT ARE WE DOING TO HELP GET OUR STUDENTS WHO HAVE BEEN OUT OF SCHOOL AND OUT OF THE LOOP SO LONG, WHAT DO WE DO TO GET THEM CAUGHT UP? WE ARE DOING A LOT BUT THERE'S ONE PROGRAM IN PARTICULAR THAT I AM EXCITED ABOUT AND THAT'S OUR SATURDAY ACADEMY UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF SUPERINTENDENT DAVIS AND OUR CHIEF OF TRANSPORTATION NETWORK SHANE McCLAY. EIGHTS 12-SATURDAY PROGRAM THAT RUNS THROUGH NOVEMBER 21st. STUDENTS WITH SIGNIFICANT ACADEMIC NEEDS INCLUDING THOSE THAT WERE DISCONNECTED OR HARD TO REACH DURING DISTANCE LEARNING. SO BEFORE WE GO FURTHER I THINK WE HAVE A SHORT VIDEO THAT WILL SHOWS A LITTLE MORE ABOUT THE PROGRAM.
>> HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WERE INSIDE THE CLASSROOM FOR A LITTLE BIT OF EXTRA WORK. NOW, THIS IS ALL PART OF THE DISTRICT'S PROGRAM, HELPING STUDENTS WITH ACADEMIC NEEDS ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO LOST LEARNING TIME DURING THE PANDEMIC. AS EIGHT ON YOUR SIDE MEETING AN GAMMON TELLS US, NEARLY 1500 STUDENTS PARTICIPATED TODAY.
>> SHE TELLS ME HER STUDENTS ARE EXCITED ABOUT THIS PROGRAM, AND THEY LOOK FORWARD TO IT ALL WEEK.
>> WE HAVE KIDS LITERALLY IN THE CAR LINE ON FRIDAY AFTERNOON BEGGING THEIR PARENTS TO LET THEM COME ON SATURDAYS.
>> EMILY IS THE PRINCIPAL AT DESOTO ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, ONE OF THE 25 SCHOOLS PARTICIPATING IN SATURDAY ACADEMY, A PROGRAM OFFERED FOR KINDERGARTEN THROUGH FIFTH GRADERS.
>> THE TEACHERS ARE FOCUSING ON THOSE STANDARDS THAT WE KNOW OUR KIDS ARE GOING TO NEED THAT DEVELOPMENT AND TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY HAVE MASTERED EVERYBODY BY THE END OF THE SCHOOL YEAR.
>> DUE TO COVID-19 THE PROGRAM WAS PUSHED BACK UNTIL THE FALL ONCE SCHOOL WAS BACK IN SESSION.
>> SO THIS IS A CHANCE TO REALLY CATCH SOME OF OUR KIDS UP, GET SOME OF THAT LEARNING TIME BACK TO THEM, AND THROUGH THIS PROGRAM, SHE HOPES OAR STUDENTS COME AWAY WITH MORE CONFIDENCE AS LEARNERS. AND GIVES THEM SOME TIME TO REALLY CONSOLIDATE THEIR LEARNING FROM THE WEEK AND ALSO GET RID FOR THEIR WEEK AHEAD, AND SO AS THAT CONFIDENCE IS BUILT BECAUSE THEY HAVE MASTERY OF THE SKILLS SKILLS THAT THEY ARE WORKING ON.
>> THIS PROGRAM WILL BE HELD EVERY SATURDAY FROM NOW UNTIL NOVEMBER AND THE DISTRICT IS GOING TO BE PROVIDING TRANSPORTATION, BREAKFAST AND LUNCH FOR ALL THE STUDENTS WHO ARE IN ATTENDANCE. NOW PARENTS, IF YOU ARE WANTING TO REGISTER YOUR CHILD, WE HAVE A LIST OF ALL THE SCHOOLS THAT PARTICIPATING ON OUR WFLA WEBSITE. REPORTING IN THE TAMPA NEWSROOM, GAMMON EIGHT ON YOUR SIDE.
>> WELL, MEGAN BEGAN ON SAID IT ALL OUR ENROLLMENT IS UP 105 STUDENTS. NOW EACH SITE CAN HOLD UP TO 100 STUDENTS. DO THE MATH, THAT'S 500 STUDENTS, WHICH MEANS THAT WE STILL HAVE SPACE AVAILABLE. WE SHOULD BE BUSTING OUT OF THE SEAMS. HOW COOL IS IT TO INTO TO SCHOOL ON A SATURDAY? SO GIVE PARENTS A BREAK, TOO. AND AS MEGAN GANNON MENTIONED, TRANSPORTATION IS PROVIDED TO THE 25 SITES AND WE ALSO FEED THE KIDS REALLY GOOD WITH BREAKFAST AND LUNCH. SO THAT'S A BENEFIT OFT ONE DAY OF LEARNING ON A SATURDAY FOR OUR FAMILIES. SO SPEAKING OF THE BUDGET, IF YOU WANT TO KNOW HOW THIS SATURDAY PROGRAM OR SATURDAY ACADEMY IS PAID, FUNDING FOR THE SATURDAY ACADEMY WAS MADE AVAILABLE THROUGH THE FEDERAL CARES ACT, AND MEMBER STUART TALKED ABOUT EARLIER, AND THE GOVERNOR'S EMERGENCY EDUCATION RELIEF OR THE CARE FUND, SO IT IS ALL COVERED COMPLETELY, NOT COMING OUT OF THE FUND BALANCE, NOT AFFECTING TEACHER SALARIES AND THINGS LIKE THAT. WE ARE DOING A LOT OF WORK TO GET OUR KIDS CAUGHT BACK UP TO WHERE THEY NEED TO BE. SO I AM REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THIS SATURDAY ACADEMY. MR. SUPERINTENDENT, DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER COMMENTS ON THE SATURDAY ACADEMY?
>>Addison Davis: THROUGH THE CHAIR I THINK YOU DID AN AWESOME JOB AND PLUGGING THE RECRUIT FOR KIDS.
>>Tamara Shamburger: AND YOU MAY BE AWARE THAT DURING OUR LAST THURSDAY AGENDA REVIEW, I DID ASK MR. SUPERINTENDENT ABOUT WELLS FARGO. JUST A QUICK UPDATE. JUST TO KIND THE CATCH THE PUBLIC UP. YOU MAY KNOW THERE WAS A FAUX PAS MADE BY THE PRESIDENT OF WELLS FARGO AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL REGARDING A LACK OF ABILITY TO FIND TALENTED BLACK PEOPLE TO WORK FOR THE ORGANIZATION. SO THAT CERTAINLY CREATED A WE HAVE ACROSS THE DISTRICT AND AS A BLACK WOMAN I CERTAINLY FOUND ISSUE WITH THAT, PARTICULARLY AS A BOARD MEMBER HERE FOR HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT, BECAUSE WE DO A LOT OF BUSINESS WITH WELLS FARGO, AND WE GIVE THEM A LOT OF BUSINESS. SO I ASKED MR. SUPERINTENDENT TO PLEASE REACH OUT TO OUR LOCAL FOLKS AND ADDRESS THAT ISSUE. THAT HE CAN CONSIDER THE POSSIBILITY OF MOVING OUR BUSINESS, BECAUSE LOCK LACK OF RACIAL DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION IS WHAT WE BELIEVE HERE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM, AND WE SHOULD NOT PARTNER WITH ANY ONE ORGANIZATION WHO DOESN'T ALIGN WITH THOSE BELIEFS. THANK YOU, MR. SUPERINTENDENT. YOU REACHED OUT TO THEM IMMEDIATELY. THEY DID RESPOND. THEY DID PROVIDE SOME INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT THEY ARE DOING ON A NATIONAL LEVEL AND THE LOCAL LEVEL REGARDING MORE RACIAL EQUITY AND INCLUSION IN THEIR PROGRAM. I WILL JUST SAY, I THINK THAT INFORMATION WILL BE SHARED WITH BOARD MEMBERS. I REALLY WON'T DIGNIFY IT HERE. WHILE IT WAS GOOD INFORMATION, IT MIGHT BE PAYING A LITTLE BIT OF LIP SERVICE. I WOULD LIKE A LITTLE MORE OF WHAT THEY CAN DO, TO STRENGTHEN THEIR RACIAL EQUITY POLICIES AND INCLUSION AND DIVERSITY IN THEIR ORGANIZATION, IF WE ARE GOING TO REMAIN WITH THEM, AND ASK THE SUPERINTENDENT TO REVISIT A CONVERSATION WITH THE PRESIDENT, AND LET'S HAVE A MORE IN-DEPTH CONVERSATION ABOUT WHAT THEY ARE GOING TO DO TO REALLY ALIGN THEMSELVES WITH US. I'M SURE THERE'S A LOT OF ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE GOING TO DO SO. WE WOULD CERTAINLY LIKE TO KEEP OUR BUSINESS THERE, BUT IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE WORK WITH FOLKS WHO HAVE THOSE SAME CORE BELIEFS AS WE DO HERE IN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM. THANK YOU, MR. SUPERINTENDENT, FOR PROMPTLY AND VERY QUICKLY GETTING ON THAT. I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR SUPPORT AROUND THAT. SO WITH THAT, MADAM CHAIR, THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU. MEMBER STUART?
>>Cindy Stuart: THANK YOU FOR HIGHLIGHTING THIS SATURDAY ACADEMY, BECAUSE I KNOW WHILE WE HAVE 25 SCHOOLS THAT ARE DOING THIS EACH YEAR, WE HAVE SCHOOLS THAT HAVE DONE SATURDAY ACADEMY, AND THOSE SCHOOLS ARE SO GRATEFUL RIGHT NOW, THE TEACHERS ARE ACTUALLY GETTING PAID TO BE THERE. BUT THERE ARE SCHOOLS THAT HAVE DONE SATURDAY ACADEMY IN THE PAST TO HELP THEIR STUDENTS ALONG, ESPECIALLY AS WE GET CLOSE TO TESTING TIME. SO IT'S NICE TO SEE THEM HAVE THE RESOURCES THAT THEY NEED AND PAY FOR THAT DAY TO BE ABLE TO BE THERE AND HELP OUR STUDENTS. THANK YOU, MR. CONA FOR BRINGING UP 402. I KNOW WE HAVE HAD A NUMBER OF QUESTIONS TWICE ON THE AGENDA NOW AND THERE HAVE BEEN QUESTIONS RAISE BOARD OF DIRECTOR THAT. HOPEFULLY WE CAN COME TO CONCLUSION ON THAT QUICKLY. I WANT TO PERSONALLY CONGRATULATE -- WE DON'T DO THIS AS OFTEN ANYMORE BUT WHEN WE HAVE PRINCIPAL APPOINTMENTS, SABRINA RUIZ WAS NAMED PRINCIPAL OF ENGLEWOOD ELEMENTARY TONIGHT AND SHE'S AT SULPHUR SPRINGS RIGHT NOW BUT I JUST WANTED TO REACH OUT AND SAY CONGRATULATIONS TO HER. MR. SUPERINTENDENT, YOU WERE PROVIDED TONIGHT WITH SOME QUESTIONS AROUND COVID FROM A PARENT, AND I WOULD ASK THAT THOSE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS BE ADDED TO OUR Q AND A PIECE AROUND COVID SO THOSE ARE SOME REALLY GOOD QUESTIONS THAT I THINK MAY BE ANSWERED THERE BUT I THINK THERE'S SOME REALLY GOOD INFORMATION THAT CAN BE SHARED DISTRICTWIDE. THE STUDENT WHO CAME FROM FREEDOM HIGH SCHOOL, I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND AS A STUDENT WHO TOOK LATIN IN HIGH SCHOOL, MY CONCERN AROUND THE CUTS WE ARE MAKING A ROUND LANGUAGE, AS I UNDERSTAND THE NEED TO HAVE FULL CLASSES AND I UNDERSTAND THE NEED TO MAKE THOSE ADJUSTMENTS. I AM CONCERNED WHEN PRINCIPALS ARE MAKING CUTS, AND DR -- IS GOING TO HAVE TO MONITOR THIS IN MY OPINION. WE HAVE 50 STUDENTS GOING INTO THEIR SECOND YEAR OF A LANGUAGE. IT ISN'T FAIR FOR THEM TO NOW HAVE TO START ANOTHER LANGUAGE OR BE DENIED THAT SECOND YEAR, AND I AM CONCERNED ABOUT HOW WE ARE NAVIGATING THAT. SO I WOULD JUST ASK FOR US TO BE MINDFUL. I BELIEVE THAT THE STUDENTS AT FREEDOM HAVE BEEN OFFERED A VIRTUAL OPTION, AS WELL AS THE TEACHER WAS OFFERED THE VIRTUAL OPTION, AND I APPRECIATE THAT, BUT I WANT TO CAUTION US, THOSE ARE CLASSES THAT STUDENTS NEED. A LOT OF THEM NEED TWO YEARS OF A LANGUAGE TO GET INTO COLLEGE. THAT'S A REQUIREMENT OF THE STATE. AND I DON'T THINK IT'S APPROPRIATE OR FAIR THAT A STUDENT HAS TO TAKE OR START ANOTHER LANGUAGE BECAUSE ONLY TWO LANGUAGES ARE OFFERED ON THEIR CAMPUS. THERE ARE SOME SCHOOLS WHERE STUDENTS HAVE ACTUALLY -- INTO A SCHOOL BECAUSE OF A LANGUAGE THAT WAS OFFERED THERE. SO TO ME THAT'S MORE OF A CORE CLASS THAN AN ELECTIVE CLASS AND I THINK WE NEED TO BE MINDFUL AS WE START TO MAKE THOSE ADJUSTMENTS. I THINK THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS. AGAIN, I WANT TO MAKE A POINT OF THE GLOBAL DIVERSITY AWARENESS PROCLAMATION THAT WAS BROUGHT FORWARD TONIGHT. WHILE I AGREE WITH THAT PROCLAMATION, I LOOK FORWARD TO A PROCLAMATION AT THE END OF THE MONTH THAT HIGHLIGHTS HISTORY MONTH. I KNOW THAT IS SOMETHING THAT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO OUR STUDENTS AND OUR STAFF THAT WE HIGHLIGHT THAT OPPORTUNITY. AND THAT SET OF INDIVIDUAL. SO I LOOK FORWARD TO WHAT'S HAPPENING. WE ARE A DISTRICT OF GREAT DIVERSITY AND WE SHOULD BE INCLUSIVE OF ALL STUDENTS. SO I APPRECIATE MS. MONICA VERATROTTO. THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS. THANK YOU.
>>Melissa Snively: THANK YOU, MEMBER STUART. I JUST HAD A COUPLE OF COMMENTS. ONE, WE OBVIOUSLY RECOGNIZE AND APPRECIATE ALL OF THE FACULTY AND THE EMPLOYEES IN OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT AND THE CONTRIBUTIONS THAT THEY MAKE. THIS MONTH IS ESPECIALLY ABOUT PRINCIPALS, IT'S NATIONAL PRINCIPALS MONTH, AND I JUST WANT TO THANK ALL OF OUR PRINCIPALS. I KNOW THERE ARE MEETINGS THAT ARE GOING ON THIS WEEK AND NEXT WEEK. AND OUR PRINCIPALS ARE TROUPERS. THEY ARE THE LEADERS OF OUR SCHOOL SITES. THEY SET THE TONE. THEY SET THE PACE. THEY ARE THE ROLE MODELS FOR TEACHERS. SO IT'S REALLY, ESPECIALLY IN DIFFICULT TIMES, IT'S EASY TO BE A LEADER WHEN THINGS ARE GOING GREAT. RIGHT? BUT TRUE LEADERSHIP, WE START TO SEE WHEN THINGS GET VERY DIFFICULT. AND I AM SEEING SOME AMAZING LEADERSHIP FROM OUR PRINCIPALS ACROSS OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT. THEY ARE MAKING A HUGE IMPACT, POSITIVE IMPACT ON TEACHERS, AND EMPLOYEES AT THEIR SCHOOL. AND I JUST WANTED TO TAKE A MINUTE TO SAY THANK YOU TO THE PRINCIPALS WHO ARE MAKING THAT DIFFERENCE, EVEN THOUGH THESE MIGHT BE CHALLENGING TIMES, YES, THERE ARE CHANGES HAPPENING WITHIN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT, THERE IS A PANDEMIC THAT IS HAPPENING, THERE ARE A LOT OF CHANGES THAT ARE GOING ACROSS NOT JUST OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT BUT ACROSS THE STATE AND ACROSS OUR COUNTRY. THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS IMPACTING OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT, AND IT WOULD BE REALLY EASY TO TAKE A NEGATIVE STAND AND JUST CALL IT A DAY, BUT OUR PRINCIPALS HAVE REMAINED POSITIVE. AND WE JUST APPRECIATE THOSE WHO ARE BEING VERY GOOD ROLE MODELS FOR THEIR EMPLOYEES. SO THANK YOU. AND I WOULD EVEN ASK THAT JUST AS WE RECOGNIZE MAY AS NATIONAL TEACHER APPRECIATION MONTH THAT WE AT OUR NEXT SCHOOL BOARD MEETING IN OCTOBER, WE PROCLAIM OCTOBER NATIONAL PRINCIPALS MONTH TO APPRECIATE OUR PRINCIPALS EVEN MORE FOR WHAT THEY DO. SO PERHAPS WE CAN HAVE THAT PROCLAMATION PREPARED FOR THE NEXT MEETING IN OCTOBER SO WE CAN GET THAT IN BEFORE THE MONTH IS OVER. I THINK THAT REALLY IS IT. THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU ARE DOING, AGAIN. THESE ARE VERY CHALLENGING TIMES, AND I KNOW THAT WE CAN'T MAKE EVERY PERSON HAPPY ACROSS THE SCHOOL DISTRICT, AND I UNDERSTAND THE GRAVITY OF WHAT YOU ARE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH, AND I KNOW THAT IT'S CHALLENGING. MS. STUART MADE SOME VERY RELEVANT COMMENTS EARLIER ABOUT HOW YOU ARE DISCOVERING THINGS ON A REGULAR BASIS, AND IT IS VERY CHALLENGING TO MANAGE THAT INFORMATION, AND TO MANAGE HOW IT GETS MESSAGED TO ALL OF OUR STAKEHOLDERS IN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT. I ASK THE SAME CHALLENGE FOR YOU TO CONTINUE TO FIND WAYS TO POSITIVELY MESSAGE WHAT WE ARE TRYING TO DO THAT. SHOULD BE THE OVERARCHING EMPHASIS, IS WHAT THE SITUATION AND THE MISSION AND THE DESTINATIONS WHERE YOU ARE TRYING TO TAKE THIS SCHOOL DISTRICT. IT'S HARD SOMETIMES FOR PEOPLE TO SEE THAT FAR AHEAD. IT LOOKS LIKE AN ONCOMING TRAIN, THE LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL AT TIMES, BUT I ENCOURAGE YOU TO KEEP ASKING PEOPLE TO TAKE THEM ALONG WITH YOU ARM IN ARM, NOT PUSHING OR PULLING, BUT TOGETHER, WE CAN ALL MOVE INTO THAT DIRECTION WHERE THIS DISTRICT NEEDS TO GO TO BE FINANCIALLY HEALTHY AGAIN, AND EVERYONE IS HAPPY. WHEN WE ARE FINANCIALLY HEALTHY, EVERYONE IS HAPPY, BECAUSE WE ALL GET WHAT WE WANT GENERALLY. TEACHERS CAN HAVE A BETTER SALARY, OUR SCHOOLS LOOK NICER BECAUSE WE HAVE THE MONEY TO IMPROVE THEM. SO GENERALLY SPEAKING, IF WE CAN GET TO THAT FINANCIAL DESTINATION THAT YOU ARE TRYING TO TAKE THE DISTRICT IN, I THINK PEOPLE WILL BE MUCH HAPPIER WHEN WE GET THERE. BUT IT IS A JOURNEY AND IT IS A BIG UPHILL CLIMB TO GET THERE AND IT'S CHALLENGING AND WE UNDERSTAND THAT. SO I AM HOPING THAT WE CAN ALL HANG IN THERE TOGETHER AND GET TO THAT DESTINATION. THANK YOU FOR BEING A STRONG VOICE. IT IS A VERY -- BIG FEET TO FIT IN OVER THERE, AND I CERTAINLY DON'T ENVY THE DECISIONS THAT YOU HAVE TO MAKE SOMETIMES FOR THIS SCHOOL DISTRICT TO GET TO THAT DESTINATION. WITH THAT, ARE THERE ANY OTHER BOARD COMMENTS? MR. SUPERINTENDENT?
>>Addison Davis: I'M SORRY, I JUST GOT INFORMED TO UPDATE THE PUBLIC, THERE WILL BE ROSAC WILL BE OUT OF POWER SATURDAY 10 P.M. TO MIDNIGHT FOR TECO. THEY ARE INTERACTING WITH THE COMMUNITY IN THIS BUILD SEWING I WANT TO LET YOU KNOW THIS SYSTEM WILL BE DOWN AT THAT TIME FOR ROSAC AND JUST GET THAT INFORMATION OUT TO THE COMMUNITY.
>>Melissa Snively: SEEING NO FURTHER COMMENTS WE WILL ADJOURN THIS MEETING. THANK YOU.