[00:00:07] GOOD MORNING, EVERYBODY. [1. Opening Items] GOOD MORNING. GOOD MORNING. WELCOME TO CAROLINE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS BOARD WORK SESSION, WHICH IS ACTUALLY AT 8:30 A.M., NOT 8:30 P.M. SO WE'VE MOVED IT TO THE MORNING, WHICH IS A REALLY GOOD THING TO TRY OUT. WE'LL SEE HOW THAT GOES. SO WE'RE HERE ON THE 17TH INSTEAD OF IN THE EVENING DURING THE DAY. AND I THINK IT'S A GREAT THING. SO THIS IS OFFICIALLY CALLING THE MEETING TO ORDER. AND LET'S, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE ALL MEMBERS HERE. SO LET'S START WITH THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. 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. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. WE HAVE WHAT LOOKS LIKE A PRETTY BRIEF AGENDA TODAY, AND THAT'S GREAT. WE HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE AGENDA. I MOVE THAT WE APPROVE THE AGENDA FOR THE SEPTEMBER 17TH BOARD WORK SESSION. THANK YOU. WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE OUR AGENDA IN PLACE. AND THE FIRST ITEM IS AN INDIVIDUAL ACTION ITEM, WHICH IS SPEND DOWN THE MARYLAND LEADS. [2.01 Spend Down of Maryland LEADS Grant – FY25 Retention Bonus] GRANT. GOOD MORNING. PRESIDENT BARTON AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. I'M GOING TO BE PASSING THIS TO DR. WILLOUGHBY, WHO HAS HANDLED OUR LEAD SPEND DOWN AND WORKING WITH [INAUDIBLE], OUR CFO AS WELL, AND LOOKING AT SOME OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN THE MARYLAND'S LEAD GRANT, WHICH EXPIRES AT THE END OF THIS MONTH. SO WITH THAT, I'LL PASS TO DR. WILLOUGHBY. PRESIDENT BARTON, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. GOOD MORNING. IN MAY OF 2022, ALL SCHOOL DISTRICTS THROUGHOUT THE STATE OF MARYLAND HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO APPLY TO MSDE FOR MARYLAND LEADS GRANT AND WRITE TO A VARIETY OF BUCKETS OF FUNDING, AND CSPS DID PUT THAT APPLICATION IN AND WROTE TO FOUR OF THOSE BUCKETS. GROW YOUR OWN STAFF. STAFF, SUPPORT RETENTION, SCIENCE OF READING, AND REIMAGINING THE USE OF TIME. AND WE WERE AWARDED THAT GRANT TO FUND THOSE FOUR BUCKETS. AND IT WAS A GRANT THAT WAS JUST A LITTLE BIT NORTH OF $6.8 MILLION, TWO YEAR GRANT. SO THAT'S A VERY, VERY AGGRESSIVE GRANT. BUT THE FUNDING WAS THERE. WE'VE DONE A LOT OF GREAT STUFF WITH THE MARYLAND LEADS. GRANT AND GROW YOUR OWN. WE HAVE SUPPORTED, LIKE YOU SAW AT YOUR LAST MEETING, OUR INSTRUCTIONAL ASSISTANTS GETTING THEIR CDAS. WE'VE HELPED FOLKS GET THEIR ASSOCIATES, GET THEIR BACHELORS, GET THEIR TEACHING CERTIFICATION, AND EVEN IN SOME CASES, GET THEIR ADMINISTRATIVE LICENSURE OR ADVANCED LICENSURE THROUGH GROW YOUR OWN AND STAFF SUPPORT AND RETENTION. THAT IS WHERE WE HAVE HELPED OUR FOLKS WHO ARE PURSUING NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION. WE'RE PAYING FOR A NATIONAL BOARD FACILITATOR. WE DID PAY A RETENTION BONUS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MARYLAND LEADS GRANT, AND THAT'S ALSO WHERE FUNDING HAS COME FOR OUR YMCA MEMBERSHIP CAMPAIGN THAT WE HAVE PROVIDED TO OUR EMPLOYEES. SCIENCE OF READING. UNDER THE DIRECTION OF MISS ALICE FISHER, SHE HAS BEEN ABLE TO PROVIDE LETTERS TRAINING FOR TEACHERS, WHICH IS NOW ACTUALLY PART OF THEIR LICENSURE REQUIREMENT IF THEY HAVE A LICENSURE IN ELEMENTARY EARLY CHILDHOOD SPECIAL ED OR. AND THAT INCLUDED EVEN PERMANENT SUBSTITUTE TEACHERS TO COVER CLASSES WHILE THEY WENT THROUGH THAT TRAINING. AND THEN WITH REIMAGINE THE USE OF TIME. THIS HAS BEEN WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO COMPLETE A FULL STUDY OF OUR OUT OF SCHOOL TIME. NORTH CAROLINA'S NINTH GRADE ACADEMY IS REIMAGINING THE USE OF TIME AND PROVIDING SOME RESOURCES THERE AND JUST OTHER THINGS THAT WE OUR WAGE AND COMPENSATION STUDY HAVE COME THROUGH THIS. SO WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO A LOT OF THINGS WITH MARYLAND LEADS. BUT AS WE'RE LOOKING AT THE SPEND DOWN, THERE WAS A LOT OF MONEY PUT INTO GROW YOUR OWN. I THINK THERE WAS JUST A LOT OF WE'LL HAVE THIS MANY STAFF AND TUITION WILL BE THIS. AND TUITION ENDED UP BEING A LOT LOWER AND WE HAVE SOME MONEY LEFT. WE ALSO-- SORRY TO JUMP IN REAL QUICK. DR. WILLOUGHBY, WE ALSO HAD A PART WHERE THE BLUEPRINT WAS GOING TO BE REQUIRING ALL FOLKS IN EARLY CHILDHOOD TO HAVE THEIR CDA A LOT SOONER. THAT GOT DELAYED. SO WE'RE THANKFUL THAT SOME FOLKS TOOK ADVANTAGE OF IT. BUT WHEN WE WROTE THE LEEDS GRANT, ALL WOULD HAVE HAD TO HAVE IT BY THE TIME THIS ENDED. SO THAT CHANGED THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO NEEDED TO TAKE IT. SO THE SPEND WASN'T AS AGGRESSIVE IN THAT AREA AS WELL. [00:05:01] GREAT. SO JUST A LOT OF I THINK THERE WAS ABOUT TWO WEEKS TO WRITE THE GRANT APPLICATION, IF I'M CORRECT. THAT WAS ABOUT RIGHT FOR ABOUT A 6.8 MILLION. SO A LOT OF, I WON'T SAY GUESSING, BUT A LOT OF WHAT'S THIS GOING TO COST AND WHAT CAN WE DO. AND AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE STILL I DON'T WANT ANYBODY TO THINK WE DIDN'T DO GREAT THINGS WITH LEEDS. WE'VE DONE A TON OF GREAT THINGS, BUT THERE IS MONEY LEFT AND THE MONEY THAT'S LEFT IS IN GROW YOUR OWN, WHICH MEANS THAT IT IS EARMARKED LARGELY TO SUPPORT OUR STAFF. AND SO AS WE COME TO THE END OF THE GRANT TERM, WE HAVE BEEN IN TALKS WITH MSDE AND WE'VE PUT TOGETHER A GRANT AMENDMENT WITH MSDE TO ASK FOR THEM TO SHIFT THAT MONEY FROM THE GROW YOUR OWN STRATEGY TO THE STAFF SUPPORT AND RETENTION STRATEGY. AND THEY HAVE APPROVED THAT. AND THERE IS ENOUGH MONEY THERE THAT IF WE PAY OUR RETENTION BONUS, WITH THE QUALIFYING BEING THAT YOU WERE EMPLOYED 6/30/24 SO YOU WERE EMPLOYED AT THE END OF THE LAST SCHOOL YEAR AND YOU'RE STILL EMPLOYED NOW. IT'S ABOUT 890 EMPLOYEES THAT FIT THAT. THERE'S ENOUGH MONEY TO PAY A $1,500 RETENTION BONUS WHICH IS PART OF THE STRATEGY OF STAFF SUPPORT AND RETENTION. AND SINCE THAT MONEY WAS ALREADY EARMARKED FOR OUR STAFF, WE JUST THINK IT'S APPROPRIATE. INSTEAD OF GIVING IT BACK TO MSDE, LET'S GIVE IT TO OUR STAFF. WHEN MSDE APPROVED THAT GRANT AMENDMENT, AS WE KIND OF PITCHED IT TO THEM, ONCE WE GOT THAT APPROVAL, I DID REACH OUT TO MRS. MILES FROM CCEA AND CSPA BECAUSE IT IS COMPENSATION. SO THERE IS AN MOU THAT WE HAVE SIGNED PENDING YOUR APPROVAL TODAY, THAT THE UNION IS IN FULL SUPPORT OF THIS. AND THEN INFORMALLY, I'VE REACHED OUT TO ASAC LEADERSHIP SO THAT OUR ADMINISTRATORS ARE ALSO IN SUPPORT. SO WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAD MSDE SUPPORT. WE HAD COLLECTIVE BARGAINING SUPPORT. AND NOW WE'RE HERE ASKING FOR YOUR SUPPORT TO PAY THIS OUT. IT WOULD BE PAID SEPTEMBER 30TH IN THE REGULAR PAY, LIKE ALL OF OUR BONUSES ARE TAXED APPROPRIATELY BY IRS REGULATION. THAT IS SOMETHING THAT COMES UP. AND TOTAL FUNDING WOULD BE JUST A LITTLE NORTH OF $1.4 MILLION. WE HAVE THE MONEY TO DO IT. AND YES, THE GRANT HAS THE MONEY TO DO IT. YES. AND THIS PART OF THIS ALSO CONVERSATION KIND OF RAN AROUND ALSO. AND AS THE BOARD IS AWARE, DURING OUR NEGOTIATIONS LAST, LAST SCHOOL YEAR, WE WERE ABLE TO DO SOME REALLY GOOD THINGS WITH CATCHING TEACHERS UP. FOR LITTLE STEPS. BUT AT THE COST OF DOING THAT, WE WERE NOT ABLE TO PROVIDE A COLA TO ALL EMPLOYEES OTHER THAN THE AGREED UPON NEGOTIATED AGREEMENT 1% COLA FOR SUPPORT STAFF. THIS WOULD IT'S NOT A COLA, BUT THIS WOULD GO TO EVERYBODY, REGARDLESS OF STEP WHO WAS A PERMANENT EMPLOYEE FOR US LAST YEAR WHO'S STILL WITH US. SO WHILE NOT A COLA, THAT'S WHERE THE THINKING WAS COMING FROM. FOR HOW DO WE TRY TO HELP SUPPORT EVERYBODY? WITH THIS OPPORTUNITY AND I'M SURE WE THANK YOU FOR THAT. YEAH. THAT'S GREAT. I THINK IT'S A GREAT PLAN. OTHER COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS. I WAS HOPING YOU'D GIVE THEM MONEY BACK TO MSDE. THEY MUST HAVE OTHER THINGS TO DO WITH IT. I'M SURE THEY WANT TO BUY, YOU KNOW. EVER REFRESHMENTS AT A MEETING? THIS IS CONNECTED TO THEIR ARP FUNDING THAT THE STATE WAS PROVIDED. SO ANYTHING THAT GOES BACK TO THEM CREATES A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WORK FOR THEM TO THEN HAVE TO PROBABLY GIVE IT BACK TO THE FEDS WHEN THEY GIVE IT BACK TO THE FEDS, BECAUSE WE KNOW THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS LOTS OF USE FOR OUR MONEY. LET'S JUST KEEP EVERYTHING. NO, LET'S GIVE IT TO OUR EMPLOYEES. WE CAN USE IT SOMEWHERE ELSE. YEAH, AND IT 100% MEETS THE GRANT REQUIREMENTS. MSDE IS FULLY APPROVED. THIS USAGE OF THE WORD ALLOWS. I APPRECIATE THE THOUGHTFUL THINKING ABOUT BEING ABLE TO GET IT BACK TO STAFF. ABSOLUTELY. YEAH. AND IT'S RELATED TO GROW YOUR OWN BECAUSE IT DEMONSTRATES THE WILLINGNESS OF LEADERSHIP TO DO WHAT YOU CAN FOR THE EMPLOYEES SO THAT IF YOU CAN DO IT, YOU WILL DO IT. YEAH. IT CREATES THAT MINDSET. UNLIKE SOME PLACES WHERE LEADERSHIP IS READY TO TAKE FROM THE EMPLOYEES. AND SO WE CAN'T, YOU KNOW, THERE'S GOING TO BE TIMES WHEN YOU HAVE TO TAKE FROM EMPLOYEES. THAT'S NOT ONE OF THESE TIMES. SO IT'S A WONDERFUL THING. WE NEED A MOTION. WE NEED A MOTION. IT'S AN ACTION ITEM. I MOVE THAT WE ACCEPT THE PLAN TO SPEND DOWN THE LEEDS GRANT. WE HAVE A SECOND. I'LL SECOND. ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? ALL RIGHT. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. UNANIMOUS. WONDERFUL. THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH. THANK YOU FOR THAT GOOD WORK TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN. WE WILL MESSAGE THIS OUT TO STAFF NOT LONG AFTER THE WORK SESSION ENDS. [00:10:05] WE WILL GET IT. WE'LL GET IT OUT. PEOPLE ARE WATCHING. IT'S GOING RIGHT NOW. I'M SURE THE SCHOOL STAFF IS ALL WATCHING. IT'S PROBABLY WORRIED ABOUT IT, AS 5700 KIDS ARE EITHER HERE OR ARRIVING. I WAS GOING TO SAY MAYBE THAT'S A GOOD REASON TO DO IT DURING THE DAY, YOU KNOW? YOU KNOW, WE REALLY WANT PEOPLE TO WALK. THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH. OUTSTANDING. ALL RIGHT. AND IT LOOKS LIKE ROB IS UP AGAIN FOR A DISCUSSION ITEM. [3.01 Staffing Update] STAFFING UPDATE. ALL RIGHT. THIS ACTUALLY. OH, IT DOES. OH, YES. LOOK AT THAT. OKAY. SO GOOD MORNING AGAIN. PRESIDENT AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. EACH SEPTEMBER, WE GO THROUGH AN UPDATE OF OUR HIRING AND RECRUITING AND WHERE OUR STAFFING STANDS. AND SO I WANT TO WALK THROUGH THAT. AND THEN INCLUDED IN THAT JUST A VERY BRIEF UPDATE ON JUST WHERE WE ARE WITH SOME PILLAR TWO ITEMS FOR BLUEPRINT. THAT WILL BE MORE OF A DISCUSSION. SO THIS PRESENTATION IS VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT I'VE DONE IN PREVIOUS YEARS. BUT WE'LL, WE'LL BEGIN TO WALK THROUGH. SO FIRST OF ALL, THESE ARE OUR NEW HIRES BY SCHOOL. AND I ALWAYS PUT PREVIOUS YEAR VACANCIES ON THERE SO WE CAN KIND OF LOOK AND SEE WHERE THINGS ARE. PRESTON, I DON'T I CAN'T REMEMBER THE LAST TIME PRESTON HIRED A NEW TEACHER, SO THEY JUST, THEY GET THE AWARD FOR STAFF RETENTION. PRETTY UNUSUAL. YEAH. PRESTON IS ONE OF THOSE ONE OF OUR SCHOOLS ALSO THAT IF A VACANCY OCCURS, IT HAS A HIGH RATE OF INTERNAL TRANSFER REQUESTS. SO THAT PROCEDURE TYPICALLY FILLS ANY POSITION THAT'S THERE, BUT THAT WOULDN'T BE ONE WANT TO HAVE TO SELECT THAT ONE PERSON, JUST ONE SPOT. WE HAVE A PROCESS. WE HAVE A PROCESS. SO, THERE'S A LOT ABOUT PROCESS. SO YOU CAN SEE SOME UP SOME DOWN. SO AND SOME OF THIS IS DRIVEN WE'RE GOING TO BE IN A, IN A PERIOD OF TIME FOR THE NEXT PROBABLY 3 TO 4 YEARS, WHERE WE'RE GOING TO SEE SOME RETIREMENTS. AND SO SOME OF THIS IS RETIREMENT DRIVEN AS WELL. THIS IS OUR OVERALL SNAPSHOT. AND I ALWAYS TRY TO PUT LAST YEAR'S DATA THERE ON THE RIGHT. SO YOU CAN KIND OF SEE WHERE WE WERE. SO WE DID HIRE 65 CERTIFIED STAFF MEMBERS. AND HOW WE GOT THERE. AND IT'S 71 TOTAL POSITIONS BECAUSE THERE WERE SIX INTERNAL TRANSFERS THAT WE MADE. SO 15 RETIREMENTS, 36 RESIGNATIONS, SIX INTERNALS, TWO NEW POSITIONS, FOUR PROMOTIONS, AND SEVEN THAT EITHER WEREN'T FILLED LAST YEAR OR WE HAD FILLED WITH A LONG TERM SUB. SO IF YOU LOOK OVER TO KIND OF WHERE WE WERE LAST YEAR, WE HAD HIRED 58, BUT WE REALLY NEEDED 73 AND WE HAD 11 VACANCIES. AT THE TIME THAT THIS REPORT WAS GIVEN TO YOU LAST YEAR, THAT IS NOT THE CASE. WE DID TALK THE LAST BOARD MEETING ABOUT BEING FULLY STAFFED. WE WERE FULLY STAFFED FOR A PERIOD OF TIME. WE DID HAVE A RESIGNATION, BUT THERE'S AN OFFER ON MY DESK, SO WE'RE GOOD. IT'LL BE FINE. AND SO THAT THAT DATA DOES INCLUDE THAT THAT PENDING OFFER. IS THAT A NEW TEACHER THAT'S RETURNING? IT WAS. YEAH. IT WAS. GOTCHA. YEAH. IT WAS. SO, YOU KNOW, IT. YES. WE HIRED A LOT OF PEOPLE. I LOOK LIKE WE HIRED A LOT OF PEOPLE. LIKE, I FEEL LIKE WE HIRE, YOU KNOW BUT, YOU KNOW, WE STARTED IT. WE STARTED IT. WE DIDN'T START AT ZERO. WE STARTED AT SEVEN, YOU KNOW. AND THEN YOU START ADDING TO IT. BUT TO BE ABLE TO COME TO YOU TODAY AND TELL YOU THAT, HEY, YOU KNOW, THOSE NOT FILLED OR FILLED WITH LONG TERM SUBS ARE ALL NOW FILLED WITH A TEACHER. THAT'S GREAT NEWS TO HAVE. AND YOU KNOW, NOT HAVING THE VACANCIES THAT WE HAD LAST YEAR AND AS YOU CAN SEE, FILLED WITH LONG TERM SUBS OR, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER THE THINGS MAY BE. HERE'S OUR NEW HIRE DEMOGRAPHICS. SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT 65 THEN YOU LOOK AT WHERE THE RACE AND ETHNICITY COME OUT, WE'RE ABOUT 10% IS OUR IS OUR DIVERSE STAFF. WE OBVIOUSLY WANT TO GET THAT HIGHER. I'LL BE TALKING ABOUT THAT A LITTLE BIT AS WE GO THROUGH THE PILLAR TWO UPDATE. JUST SOME DIFFERENT THINGS THAT WE'VE PUT IN PLACE AT THE END OF LAST YEAR. AND JUST REMEMBER, THESE ARE ACCEPTED OFFERS. WE MADE OFFERS THAT WEREN'T SOME FOLKS SAID, I CAN'T ACCEPT THE OFFER, AND WE'VE TRIED TO CAPTURE THE REASON WHY THEY COULDN'T ACCEPT THE OFFER. AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT IN JUST A MINUTE. BUT WE MADE A LOT OF OFFERS TO DIVERSE STAFF. [00:15:05] WE JUST COULDN'T BRING THEM ALL HERE. AND GENDER IS OVER ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE, AND WE USUALLY END UP ABOUT 75%, 25%. WE'RE A LITTLE, WE'RE A LITTLE MORE THAN 25% THIS YEAR WITH, WITH MALE TEACHERS. BUT THAT IS WHERE THAT PIE CHART IS TRADITIONALLY BEEN AS WELL. SO WHERE DO THEY COME FROM? SO I ALWAYS LIKE TO POINT OUT THAT 8% ARE KERNEL GRADS AND 12% ARE NORTH HIGH GRADS. THAT'S WHERE THEY CAME FROM. SO 1 IN 5 OF OUR 65 ARE HOMEGROWN. SO THAT'S THE DARK RED AND THE DARK BLUE. MARYLAND ACCOUNTED MARYLAND, MEANING THAT LAST YEAR THEY WERE DOING SOMETHING. YOU KNOW, THEY WERE LIVING IN MARYLAND. THEY WERE TEACHING IN MARYLAND. MARYLAND IS WHERE THEY WERE FROM, 14% FROM DELAWARE AND JUST 3% FROM PENNSYLVANIA. SO WE HAD A VERY AGGRESSIVE RECRUITING TEAM LAST YEAR INTERACTED WITH OVER 150 POTENTIAL GRADUATES. GOT A LOT OF APPLICATIONS, GOT A COUPLE TEACHERS HIRED. BUT REALLY, THE BULK CAME FROM RIGHT HERE IN MARYLAND. QUESTION. YES. PRESUMING THAT THE 63% MARYLAND. THAT DOESN'T INCLUDE CAROLINE COUNTY. IT DOESN'T. NO. SO, IT'S REALLY CAROLINE COUNTY. YEAH. 83% ARE FROM MARYLAND. I GUESS THAT'S OTHER MARYLAND. YEAH. THAT'S OKAY. YES. YEAH, THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT. YEAH. YEP. SO LAST YEAR THIS CHART WAS A LITTLE BIT MORE COLORFUL. WE HAD FLORIDA, WE HAD AN INTERNATIONAL. WE HAD DIFFERENT, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT THINGS THAT CAME UP AND THAT'S FANTASTIC. BUT YOU KNOW, WE WERE CLOSE TO HOME WITH WHERE OUR ACCEPTANCES WERE THIS YEAR. I THINK THERE'S A STORY TO BE TOLD WITH THAT. AND WE'LL SEE THAT IN ANOTHER SLIDE HERE. SO THEN HOW DID WE GET HERE OR HOW DID THEY GET HERE. SO THIS IS WHERE I THINK THERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF A STORY TO BE TOLD. THAT YELLOW PIE CHART THAT'S 9%. THOSE ARE PEOPLE THAT WERE DOING SOMETHING OTHER THAN TEACHING LAST YEAR. THEY'RE WORKING IN SOME SORT OF INDUSTRY LAST YEAR. OKAY. EVERYBODY ELSE ON THIS PIE CHART WAS EITHER TEACHING OR EMPLOYED BY A SCHOOL SYSTEM LAST YEAR, OR A STUDENT TAKING ON EDUCATION. OKAY. AND WHEN YOU SEE THAT 58% OF OUR NEW TEACHERS LAST YEAR WERE TEACHING WE HIRED A LOT OF VETERANS. WE HIRED A LOT OF PEOPLE COMING FROM OTHER PLACES. AND WHEN YOU PUT THAT NEXT TO THAT, 80 SOME PERCENT CAME FROM MARYLAND. WE HIRED A LOT FROM SURROUNDING COUNTIES THAT WERE LOOKING FOR A CHANGE FOR WHATEVER REASON. THE FOLKS FROM DELAWARE THAT YOU SAW ON THE OTHER SIDE. A LOT OF THOSE, NOT ALL, MANY OF THOSE RETIRED FROM DELAWARE AND COME OVER AND YOU KNOW, THEY TYPICALLY HAVE A GOOD TEN YEARS OR SO BECAUSE THEY WANT TO GET VESTED IN OUR SYSTEM. NOT ALL OF OUR DELAWARE FOLKS ARE RETIREES, BUT SOME WERE SOME WERE TEACHERS THAT THAT JUST MADE A CAREER CHANGE OR MADE A LOCATION CHANGE. I WILL POINT OUT THAT GROW YOUR OWN. WE DID HAVE A COUPLE GROW YOUR OWN. THESE ARE FOLKS THAT WERE EMPLOYED BY US LAST YEAR THAT ARE NOW IN A TEACHING ROLE, AND PREVIOUSLY IN A SUPPORT STAFF ROLE. RETURNING EMPLOYEE. WE HAD TWO FOLKS THAT HAD STEPPED OUT OF OUR TEACHING RANKS, EITHER TO GO SOMEWHERE ELSE OR IN A DIFFERENT POSITION THAT CAME BACK INTO OUR TEACHING RANKS. SO WE SAW THAT LAST YEAR AS WELL. PEOPLE THAT HAD LEFT AT SOME POINT AND WERE COMING BACK, AND THAT CONTINUED A LITTLE BIT THIS YEAR AND THEN RETIRE AND REHIRE. AND THIS HAS BEEN A PROGRAM THAT IS NEW FOR US. WE'VE NOT TYPICALLY USED THIS, BUT WITH THE TEACHING SHORTAGE MARYLAND IS ALLOWING THAT IF SOMEONE RETIRES, YOU CAN HIRE THEM BACK. AND WE HAVE A NUMBER OF FOLKS THAT HAVE DONE THAT, BOTH EITHER RETIRED FROM US AND THEY'RE HIRED BACK OR RETIRED FROM ANOTHER COUNTY, AND WE'VE HIRED THEM BACK. SO WE HAVE TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF THAT WHERE WE NEEDED TO. SO WHEN THAT HAPPENS, ARE THEY ALLOWED TO GO BACK TO THE SAME CLASSROOM, SAME SUBJECT. SO, THE RULES ARE FOR RETIREE HIRE IS THAT IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE AND IT REALLY HAS TO BE ALMOST LIKE A LAST DITCH EFFORT. SO AND THE RULES ARE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT DEPENDING ON WHETHER THEY'RE OUR RETIREE OR SOMEONE ELSE'S RETIREE. IF IT'S SOMEONE ELSE'S RETIREE, WE CAN HIRE THEM THROUGH THE NORMAL CHAIN OF HIRING. ALL RIGHT. ARE THERE ANY POSITIONS? YES. THEY JUST CAN'T START UNTIL THEY'VE HAD 45 DAYS OF SEPARATION. JULY 1ST TO AUGUST 15TH. YEAH. OKAY. IF IT'S OUR RETIREE, WE CAN'T EVEN HAVE THAT CONVERSATION UNTIL AUGUST 16TH. [00:20:01] RIGHT. SO THAT'S THE DIFFERENCE IN KIND OF HOW IT WORKED. AND SO, YOU KNOW, WE DID HAVE A SCIENCE A SCIENCE POSITION THAT WAS STILL OPEN. WE HIRED, I THINK SIX SCIENCE TEACHERS THIS YEAR. AND CHRIS SHULL, WHO MANY OF YOU KNOW, HAS BEEN AROUND FOR A LONG TIME, RETIRED THIS PAST YEAR. AND HE IS RIGHT BACK AT NORTH HIGH IN HIS OLD CLASSROOM WITH HIS OLD COURSE SCHEDULE, BECAUSE THAT'S THE POSITION THAT WAS STILL OPEN. AND IT JUST IT WORKED OUT. WE WEREN'T ALLOWED TO MAKE IT WORK OUT IN APRIL. WE WEREN'T ALLOWED TO SAY, OH, YOU'RE RETIRING. WE JUST WON'T POST YOUR POSITION. WE JUST WON'T HIRE FOR IT. BUT IT WORKED OUT ON THE END THAT THERE WAS A POSITION THAT WAS AVAILABLE. SO BUT THEN WE HAVE A COUPLE GENTLEMEN FROM QUEEN ANNE'S THAT RETIRE FROM QUEEN ANNE'S AND ARE NOW TEACHING HERE WITH US AS PART OF THEIR RETIREMENT, WHEN THE IRS PUT THOSE RULES IN PLACE, WHEN THEY FIRST DID IT, THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHETHER IT WAS GOING TO BE A 30 DAY, 45 DAY. SOME PEOPLE TOOK A 30 DAY. SOME PEOPLE HAD NO BREAK. SOME PEOPLE HAD 45. THEY WERE JUST KIND OF MAKING IT UP. FINALLY, THEY WROTE A LETTER THAT SAID, HERE'S WHAT OUR RULES ARE. BUT IT WASN'T CODIFIED, SO PEOPLE WERE CHALLENGING IT. THEN FINALLY IT GOT PUT INTO LAW. BUT THAT GOES BACK 20 YEARS, PROBABLY, MAYBE MORE. AND IN MARYLAND YOU HAVE WHEN YOU RETIRE, YOU HAVE AN EARNINGS LIMITATION ESPECIALLY IN THE COUNTY YOU RETIRE FROM. SO WHAT THE MARYLAND RETIREE HIRE DOES IS IT ALLOWS THE RETIREMENT. IT ALLOWS US TO REQUEST THE RETIREMENT AGENCY TO WAIVE THAT EARNINGS LIMITATION SO THOSE FOLKS WILL GOOD. THEY'LL GET THEIR FULL TEACHER SALARY. THEY'LL GET THEIR FULL PENSION PAYMENT. YEAH. AND NOT HAVE ANY SORT OF PENALTY BEYOND JUST THE NORMAL TAX COURSE. SO, THE FIRE REHIRE IS ONE OF THE QUICKEST GROWING AREAS IN THE STATE AS A, AS ONE OF THE SOLUTIONS TO THE TEACHER SHORTAGE. AND I THINK BECAUSE OF IT WE'LL SEE. WE WILL SEE LESS PEOPLE WORKING PAST 30. YEAH. THEY'LL HIT 30 RETIRE AND THEN GO BACK, LOOK FOR THE REHIRE OPPORTUNITY, WHICH I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND IT. IT MAKES SENSE IN THE MARKET RIGHT NOW IS ONE THAT WE'VE GOT A REALLY GOOD OPPORTUNITY OF PICKING UP THAT THAT REHIRE. YOU SEE IT IN LAW ENFORCEMENT FREQUENTLY. YEAH. SO, BUT MANY OF OUR, OUR QUOTE UNQUOTE NEW TEACHERS WALK INTO OUR CLASSROOM ON THE FIRST DAY WITH EXPERIENCE, CONSIDERABLE EXPERIENCE. WHICH IS WHICH IS NICE. I THINK WHEN WE DID THE DATA, ONLY ABOUT ONLY ABOUT 17 OR 18 OF OUR 65 ARE TRUE. LIKE THIS IS YOUR FIRST TIME IN A CLASSROOM. AND SO THAT'S A SHIFT. AND THAT'S, THAT'S MY GRAPHS FOR ANY QUESTIONS FOR THE DATA. SO, WE TRADITIONALLY DONE WITH STAFFING ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT PART. AND I'M GOING TO WALK THROUGH SOME OF JUST THE BLUEPRINT PILLAR. TWO THINGS I JUST SAID. ONE MORE. YEAH SURE. BACK TO THE DEMOGRAPHICS. I KNOW WE HIRED SIX THAT WEREN'T WHITE, BUT HOW MANY DID WE LOSE? YOU MIGHT NOT HAVE THAT NUMBER. I DON'T HAVE THAT COUNTED. I WAS JUST CURIOUS TO SEE, YOU KNOW, DO WE ONLY HIRED SIX BACK, OR DID WE LOSE 12 OR SOMETHING? SO A NET LOSS. I'M WALKING THROUGH MY HEAD. I'M WALKING THROUGH MY HEAD. I WAS JUST CURIOUS IF I MISSED THREE. YEAH, I THINK WE WERE THREE THROUGH. JUST WALKING THROUGH MY MIND. THAT'S WHERE I'M IN MY HEAD, TOO. WE'RE AHEAD, WE'RE AHEAD. BUT STILL WITH WORK TO DO. OH, YEAH. YEAH, 100%. YEAH. AND IT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE WE WEREN'T GOING BACKWARDS. NO CHALLENGE. AND THAT'S A CHALLENGE. YEAH. REALLY GOOD. AND ACTUALLY, I KNOW YOU'LL TALK ABOUT YOUR PILLAR TWO STUFF ON THAT, BUT YES, IT'S A YEAH. THE ONE THING THAT I JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT, ROB, IF YOU CAN, IF YOU CAN GO AHEAD TO WHERE WERE THEY LAST YEAR? YEAH. THE NEXT ONE. OH, SORRY. HOW DID THEY GET HERE? YEAH. THERE YOU GO. THE 58% IS INTRIGUING. AND I'M PROUD OF THE 3% RETURNING EMPLOYEES. I'M PROUD. I'M PROUD OF WHERE WE ARE IN GENERAL. BUT I'M FOR OUR SYSTEM OVERALL. I'M PROUD OF THE FACT THAT THIS HIRING SEASON IN PARTICULAR DEMONSTRATED THAT. SEASONED, STRONG EDUCATORS ARE SELECTING TO COME TO CAROLINE COUNTY WHICH IS WONDERFUL FOR OUR KIDS. AND IT'S A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT SEAT THAN WE'VE BEEN IN. THERE'S A LOT OF FACTORS THAT GO INTO IT. THERE ARE PUSH FACTORS AND PULL FACTORS EVERYWHERE. I 100% GET IT, BUT I'M PROUD OF THE FACT OF THE OF THE WORK THAT WE HAVE DONE. OUR TEAM HAS DONE. OUR BOARD HAS DONE TO SUPPORT OUR STAFF OVER MY TIME. JUST FOR YEARS NOW, I GUESS. [00:25:01] BUT THE EFFORTS THAT WE'VE ALL PUT FORWARD TO SUPPORT OUR FOLKS HERE AND GET THERE, ARE WE THE HIGHEST PAID? NO, IT WON'T BE. IT SAYS THE REASON WHY THEY CHOSE US. YEAH. WHY DID THEY CHOOSE IT? YEAH. [INAUDIBLE]. AND IT WAS IT WAS GREAT TALKING WITH OUR STAFF WHO ARE NEW TO US BUT WHO ARE NOT NEW DURING ALL OF OUR NEW TEACHER ACTIVITIES AND JUST HAVING CONVERSATIONS. AND THEN TALKING TO THEM DURING THE FIRST WEEK WHEN OUR KIDS CAME BACK AND THEY'RE LITERALLY REMEMBER ONE COMING TO ME LITERALLY BY DAY THREE, I WAS OUTSIDE OF NORTH HIGH FOR RIVER ROAD WATCHING TRAFFIC, AND THEY WERE LIKE, IS THIS REALLY WHAT THE KIDS ARE LIKE? AND BEFORE I HAD A CHANCE TO SAY ANYTHING, ANOTHER VETERAN TEACHER WAS LIKE, OH YEAH, THEY'RE LIKE, WOW, THIS IS NORTH CAROLINA HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER TEACHING REGULAR CLASSES. AND LITERALLY LIKE, THIS IS JUST SUCH A WELCOME CHANGE FROM WHAT I WAS USED TO. AND THIS IS THE KIDS ARE GREAT. THE COMMUNITY'S BEEN GREAT. IT JUST FELT GOOD TO HEAR AND FOR IT TO BE RECOGNIZED AND THAT THAT WE ARE IN A DIFFERENT SEAT NOW. NONE OF US WILL REST ON OUR LAURELS. THERE'S ALWAYS WORK TO DO, BUT IT IS NICE TO PAUSE FOR A SECOND AND JUST REFLECT AND ACKNOWLEDGE THAT. SO THE PLACE THAT THEY CAME FROM, WE DIDN'T SEE ANY OF. SO WE HAD SOME OUT-OF-STATE RECRUITING TRIPS OTHER THAN PENNSYLVANIA AND DELAWARE. WE DIDN'T GET WE DIDN'T KNOW. AND THAT MIGHT BE BECAUSE THEY INTERVIEWED AND THEY WEREN'T THE SELECTED CANDIDATE. I MEAN, IF WE HAD SOMEONE WITH EXPERIENCE. BUT WHAT WE ARE DOING IN RECRUITING AND I DON'T WANT TO LET THE FOOT OFF THE GAS ON RECRUITING IS WHAT WE'RE DOING, IS WE ARE GETTING INTO HIGHER ED AND COLUMNIST MAKING A NAME FOR OURSELVES THAT WE'RE GOING TO COME, WE'RE GOING TO SHOW UP. WE'VE GOT A GREAT PLACE THAT YOU CAN COME WORK AND LIVE AND THAT THAT GETS YOU CREDIBILITY. AND SO SOME OF THE FOLKS PLACES WE WENT LAST YEAR YOU KNOW, WAS OUR FIRST TIME AND WE'LL REEVALUATE AND WE'LL LOOK AND SOME OF THE PLACES WE DID PUT OFFERS OUT. AND WHEN PUSH CAME TO SHOVE, YOU KNOW, OKAY, WELL, MAYBE I'VE GOT AN OFFER TO STAY CLOSER TO HOME. YOU KNOW, THERE'S ALWAYS THINGS WE'VE GOT TO WE'VE GOT TO LOOK AT THAT THEY HAVE TO LOOK AT AS WELL. BUT YEAH. SO IT WAS, IT WAS, IT WAS A SUCCESSFUL RECRUITING BUT A LOT OF VARIABLES. AND THEY MAY HAVE A SITUATION WHERE THEY PREFER STAYING CLOSE TO HOME AND TEACHING. TEACHER SHORTAGES EVERYWHERE. SO IF YOU HAVE PEOPLE FROM NORTH CAROLINA THAT WOULD BE INTERESTED HERE, BUT THEY GOT AN OFFER CLOSE TO HOME AND THEY DECIDED TO STAY HOME. YEAH. I MEAN, IT'S JUST I'M LOOKING AT ONE POSSIBILITY ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR. LIKE JUST ON THIS, THERE'S FOUR OFFERS WE MADE AS A DIRECT RESULT. FIVE, FIVE OFFERS ON THIS ONE SHEET. NOW THERE'S MORE SHEETS THAT GO TO FIVE OFFERS. RIGHT. FROM WHAT I'M LOOKING AT THAT WE MADE TO FOLKS THAT WE RECRUITED AND THEY GAVE IT CONSIDERATION AND THEN ENDED UP NOT ACCEPTING IT. THAT'S FINE. WE'RE ABLE TO STILL FILL THE POSITION, BUT IT'S WE'RE GETTING OUT THERE. WE'RE GETTING OUT THERE. SO, THEY'D ALL SAID YES. THERE'D BE A LITTLE LINE. YEP. YEP. THE STATE ONES. YEP. IT SAYS FIVE PEOPLE FROM CALIFORNIA. YEAH. WELL, WE DIDN'T QUITE WE DIDN'T QUITE GO THAT FAR. I DO BELIEVE OUR EFFORTS TO THE SOUTH AND NOT EXTREME WEST, BUT TO THE WEST AND SOUTH OF MARYLAND WILL PAY OFF. I BELIEVE I WILL. AND AS DR. WILLOUGHBY WAS MENTIONING, IT'S MAKING THOSE INROADS IN HIGHER ED, ESPECIALLY IN THOSE AREAS I THINK WILL PAY OFF WHEN WE WHEN WE RECRUIT A DISTANCE LIKE THAT. DO WE EVER CONSIDER VIDEO OR VIRTUAL INTERVIEWS. SO WE DO ON SITE INTERVIEWS. OKAY. SO WE WOULD GO THERE FOR THE INTERVIEW, AND WE DID THAT LAST YEAR. OKAY. WHERE THERE WERE OPPORTUNITIES THAT BECAUSE SOMETIMES WHAT THEY'LL DO IS THEY'LL SAY HERE'S YOUR JOB FAIR. AND THEN IN THE AFTERNOON WE'LL HAVE INTERVIEW TIMES, AND WE SIGNED UP FOR THAT. AND WE DID INTERVIEW FOLKS AND I GOT PHONE CALLS THAT SAID, WE JUST INTERVIEWED THIS PERSON AND I NEED YOU TO MAKE THEM AN OFFER. AND I MADE OFFERS FROM MY DESK. THAT WAS PART OF THE RECRUITER TRAINING, WAS BEING ABLE TO HAVE THE CAPACITY TO SAY, YOU'RE GOING TO DO THIS INTERVIEW EVEN IF IT'S NOT YOUR CONTENT AREA, AND THEN MAYBE COMMUNICATE BACK, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? OR SOMETIMES THEY WOULD DO THE INTERVIEW AND SAY, THIS CANDIDATE IS STRONG, BUT WE KNEW WE HAD A POOL SO WE WOULD COME BACK HOME AND DO THOSE INTERVIEWS, BUT STILL CONSIDER THIS PERSON. AND THEY WOULD, OF COURSE, HAVE ALL OF THEIR DATA AND EVERYTHING, OR EVEN BRING THEM IN FOR JUST AN INFORMAL CONVERSATION. [00:30:01] AND WE ACTUALLY WROTE A PROCESS FOR KIND OF A, I NEED YOU TO MEET THIS INTERVIEW TEAM, BUT I DON'T NEED YOU TO INTERVIEW BECAUSE YOU'VE ALREADY DONE THAT. I DIDN'T GET LIKE, WHAT'S THAT LOOK LIKE? THEN, JUST AS YOU'RE KIND OF TALKING TO MAYBE A SCHOOL BASED INTERVIEW. SO YEAH, WE THAT WAS OUR FIRST YEAR. I MEAN, A LOT OF THINGS TO LOOK AT, BUT AND WE HAVE PEOPLE THAT JOINED US THAT WE MADE AN OFFER ON THE SPOT AND, AND, AND THEY TOOK US UP ON IT. SO. YEAH. TO LOOK A LITTLE BIT MORE BROADLY AT, AT PILLAR TWO, JUST SOME THINGS THAT JUST KIND OF FOR UPDATE AND DISCUSSION. PILLAR TWO HAS FIVE AREAS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT, FOUR THAT REALLY APPLY TO LEASE. SO ONE IS THE MSP AREA WHERE THEY'RE DOING WORK. AND HIGH QUALITY AND DIVERSE TEACHER WORKFORCE. A LOT OF THIS DATA I WILL USE AGAIN IN JUST A FEW SHORT WEEKS TO PUT TOGETHER A DIVERSITY REPORT THAT WE HAVE TO SUBMIT TO MSP AND THE AIB. WE SUBMIT IT EVERY YEAR. TO ME, THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THAT REPORT IS THE NARRATIVE, BECAUSE THE NUMBERS ARE ALL OVER THE PLACE, BECAUSE WE'RE SMALL. SO IT'S A CHOICE POINT IF WE IF WE IF WE HAD THREE TEACHERS OF COLOR THAT LEFT AND WE HIRED SIX. THAT NUMBER MIGHT SHOW THAT WE HAD THIS DOUBLE DIGIT INCREASE. BUT WE KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? SO IT'S THE NARRATIVE AND IT'S AND IT'S WHAT'S GOING ON AND HOW WE'RE DOING THAT. AND WE DID LAST YEAR TAKE A LOOK AT OUR RECRUITING PRACTICES, WHERE WE'RE GOING, WHY WE'RE GOING. THEY'RE ONLY GOING TO EDUCATION FAIRS AND NOT JOB FAIRS AS A WHOLE. DOING THE ONSITE INTERVIEWING THAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT. SO THE NEXT STEP OF THAT IS REALLY SORT OF THIS RECRUITING CLASS. AND SO ONE OF THE REASONS SOMETIMES THAT WE WOULD MAKE AN OFFER TO SOMEONE, THEY WOULD SAY, WELL, I NEED TO COME UP, I NEED TO FIGURE OUT WHERE I'M GOING TO LIVE. HOUSING IS A THING. SO WE HAVE STARTED CONVERSATIONS WITH SOME OF OUR DEVELOPERS AND BUILDERS THAT HAVE COMMUNITIES IN THE AREA. THE FOLKS THAT HAVE I CAN'T THINK OF THE NAME OF THE DEVELOPER RIGHT OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD, BUT THEY HAVE HERITAGE SHORES, WHICH OF COURSE IS 55 UP. BUT THEN THERE'S ANOTHER ONE, THE VILLAS AND BRIDGEVILLE, AND THEY'RE ALSO LAKESIDE TRACK. THEY HAVE THOSE THREE. THEY WE HAVE NOW BEEN PART OF THEIR PREFERRED EMPLOYER PLAN, WHICH INCLUDES DISCOUNTED RENT BECAUSE THEY'RE COMING FROM THE BOARD OF ED. IF THEY JUST SHOW THEIR PAY STUB OR THEIR HIRING OFFER THEY CAN DO THAT. AND THEY'VE EVEN PUT SOME RULES IN PLACE FOR US THAT, YOU KNOW, IF TO ALLOW ROOMMATES, IF THAT WASN'T PART OF WHAT THEY TYPICALLY DO. AND WE'VE HAD SOME FOLKS TAKE US UP ON THAT. WE'VE BROUGHT BACK THE COMPILING OF LOCAL REAL ESTATE LISTINGS. WE ACTUALLY HAVE STARTED GETTING MORE AND MORE FOLKS THAT OWN HOMES CALLING US AGAIN, THAT, IT KIND OF SLOWED DOWN, BUT THEY'RE STARTING. HEY, I'VE GOT THIS HOUSE AND I'D REALLY LIKE TO RENT IT TO A TEACHER, BECAUSE I KIND OF KNOW THAT IF I RENT IT TO A TEACHER, I'M GOING TO HAVE A GOOD TENANT. AND SO WE'RE ABLE TO. SO A LOT OF TIMES I'LL BE ON THE PHONE WITH THEM MAKING THE JOB OFFER. AND HANNAH IS RIGHT OUTSIDE MY OFFICE, AND SHE'S SENDING THE HOUSING LISTING TO THEM. AND WE'LL TRY TO WE'LL TRY TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE CAN HELP WITH THAT. WHAT CONNECTIONS WE CAN MAKE WITH THAT, BECAUSE WE DID HAVE A COUPLE OFFERS THAT WERE DECLINED BECAUSE THEY MADE A COUPLE TRIPS HERE AND THEY JUST COULDN'T FIND HOUSING THAT WASN'T STILL AN HOUR DRIVE THAT THAT WAS AFFORDABLE. AND JUST A WEEK OR SO AGO, WE WERE CONTACTED BY THE FOLKS THAT ARE THAT HAVE BUILT THE NEW TOWNHOME DEVELOPMENT AND FEDERALSBURG SAME SORT OF THING. SO WE'RE GOING TO ENGAGE WITH THEM AND TRY TO DO THAT, JUST KIND OF HAVE THAT IN OUR BACK POCKET. THE OTHER THING IS THERE CAN BE, AS I'M SURE YOU GUYS ARE ALL YOU KNOW, THERE CAN BE SOME, SOME, SOME RURAL CULTURE SHOCK FOR LET'S COME TO CAROLINE COUNTY AND LOOK, WE'RE GOING TO TOOT OUR HORN ALL DAY LONG THAT WE'RE GREAT. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? AND THERE'S A LOT OF GREAT THINGS HAPPENING. BUT THEN YOU GET HERE AND YOU'RE LIKE, WHAT DO WE DO? YOU KNOW, SO IT'S AN HOUR DRIVE. IT'S AN HOUR DRIVE, YOU KNOW, AND LOOK WE PITCHED THAT WE HAVE WE SAY, LOOK, YOU'RE AN HOUR AND A HALF FROM BALTIMORE AND AN HOUR AND A HALF FROM DC, AND TWO HOURS FROM PHILLY AND AN HOUR TO THE BEACH. BUT YOU KNOW WHAT? ALL THOSE THINGS HAVE IN COMMON. YOU'RE STILL AN HOUR AWAY. AND SO THAT'S GREAT. YOU'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF EVERYTHING. SO, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO KIND OF COME UP WITH A WHAT'S LIFE LIKE HERE AND TRYING TO WHAT'S THE FLAVOR? WHAT DO YOU WANT? OKAY. YOU WANT TO LIVE IN AN AREA THAT HAS THIS, THIS AND THIS, BUT YOU WANT SOMETHING ELSE AND JUST SORT OF HOW WE DO THAT. [00:35:05] AND SO IT'S NOT JUST THE JOB. IT'S NOT JUST THE SCHOOL SYSTEM. IT'S LIFE. AND SO, THE NIGHT LIFE, SOME OF IT IS THE NIGHT LIFE HERE IS TURN OFF THE LIGHTS. SO WE HAVE STARTED WE STARTED SOME GROUPS ON SOCIAL MEDIA WHERE WE STARTED TO ENGAGE OUR FOLKS THAT WE HAD MADE OFFERS TO, AND THAT EVEN HAD ACCEPTED OFFERS SO THAT EVEN BEFORE THEY STARTED WORKING, THEY SORT OF HAD CONNECTIONS WITH OTHER FOLKS THAT WERE GOING TO BE HERE, SOME OF THEM, AS THEY MOVED HERE OVER THE SUMMER, AND IT'S SORT OF LIKE, OKAY, I'M HERE, BUT I DON'T START WORK. THEY WERE ALREADY GETTING TOGETHER AND BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. SO TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT'S ALL PART OF THE RECRUITING TOO, BECAUSE THE SCHOOL SYSTEM AND HAVING A QUALITY SCHOOL SYSTEM TO WORK IN IS FANTASTIC AND YOU NEED THAT. BUT THEN THERE'S THE REALITY OF MOVING HERE IF THIS ISN'T HOME AND WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? AND SO HOUSING IS A BIG PART OF THAT. THE SOCIAL AND CULTURAL STUFF AND THEN WELLNESS. THEN UNDER YOUR LEADERSHIP AND CONTINUING WITH LEEDS JUST THINGS LIKE THE YMCA MEMBERSHIP THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO PROVIDE AND SAY, HEY, YOU DON'T HAVE TO FIND A GYM. HERE YOU ARE. YOU KNOW, EVEN TALKING WITH OUR NEW TEACHERS AND OF THE DAY ABOUT, HEY, WE HAVE WELLNESS IN ALL OF OUR BUILDINGS. IF YOU DON'T HAVE A PRIMARY CARE SIGN UP, [INAUDIBLE] BE, YOU KNOW, GREAT. AND SO A LOT OF OUR FOLKS TOOK US UP THERE, TOOK US UP ON THAT. AND SO IT'S KIND OF A NO BRAINER TO SAY, YEAH, BUT TRY JUST TO MARKET THAT, YOU KNOW, A LITTLE BIT THAT, YOU KNOW, YES, IT'S NEW, BUT WE HAVE DIFFERENT THINGS THAT WE CAN HELP YOU TO PROVIDE FOR YOU. WELL, ONE OF THE THINGS FOR NEW TEACHERS, NEW EMPLOYEES. SO IF THEY COME FROM A UNIVERSITY SETTING, ESPECIALLY A BIGGER UNIVERSITY, THERE'S A LOT TO DO RIGHT THERE ON THE CAMPUS OR CLOSE BY IF THEY'RE COMING FROM A METROPOLITAN AREA, YOU KNOW, THEY'VE ALREADY BEEN IN THE WORKFORCE SOMEWHERE. WELL, IF YOU'RE IN BALTIMORE AND YOU WANT TO GO ANYWHERE TO GO DO SOMETHING OR ANY CITY, IT'S A HALF AN HOUR BECAUSE OF TRAFFIC AND SO FORTH. SO IF YOU'RE HERE AND YOU WANT TO GO TO EASTON OR EVEN ANNAPOLIS, OKAY, SO IT'S GOING TO TAKE HALF AN HOUR TO ONE, AN HOUR TO ANOTHER, AN HOUR TO HERE OR THERE, NOT THAT MUCH FURTHER THAN IF YOU'RE IN THE METRO AREA, BUT SOMEBODY WHO'S USED TO THAT UNIVERSITY SETTING, WELL, THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE THAT SHOCK WHEREVER THEY GO, BECAUSE THERE'S NOT GOING TO BE ALL THESE DIFFERENT THINGS TO DO ON CAMPUS. BUT IT IS WHEN THEY LOOK AROUND HERE THAT, YOU KNOW, WHAT DO THEY SAY? IT'S NOT WHAT THEY'RE USED TO. AND SOME OF OUR FOLKS, I MEAN, THESE ARE ESTABLISHED FAMILIES THAT ARE COMING TO THE MOVIE. OH, YEAH. SO, YOU KNOW, IF I'M LOOKING AT A 22 YEAR OLD RIGHT OUT OF COLLEGE, I'M KIND OF LOOKING THE WHOLE PENINSULA FOR WHERE DO YOU WANT TO LIVE? IF I'M LOOKING AT SOMEONE WITH A FAMILY THAT SAYS UP FRONT, LIKE, I WANT TO BRING MY KIDS TO YOUR SCHOOL DISTRICT, I'M NOT LOOKING IN DELAWARE ANYMORE. RIGHT? WELL, THAT SHUTS OFF AN ENTIRE MARKET BECAUSE OF THE OUT-OF-STATE TUITION FEES. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? SO, IF THERE'S TWO PARENTS, YOU HOPE THEY'RE BOTH TEACHERS. EXACTLY. OR WHAT CAN I HELP YOU WITH? ONE TEACHER, ONE SUPPORT STAFF. YEAH. YOU KNOW. OKAY. WELL, WHAT INDUSTRY ARE YOU IN? CAN I CONNECT YOU WITH AN INDUSTRY TO HELP THE SPOUSE SO THAT, YOU KNOW. SO, WE'RE TRYING TO DO A LOT OF THAT KIND OF RECRUITING. PLUS, IT'S NOT JUST IT'S NOT JUST THE SCHOOL SYSTEM, ALTHOUGH THAT'S GREAT. AND WE'RE IN A GREAT SPOT, BUT NOW IT'S WHAT'S LIFE LIKE ONCE YOU GET HERE. AND SO WE ALSO OFFER LIKE A LOT OF PEOPLE NOT EVEN OPEN YET. YEAH I'M SURE PEOPLE ARE I'M SURE PEOPLE ARE. WE'RE NOT THE FIRST, YOU KNOW. BUT I JUST THINK THAT'S A GOOD THING THAT WE'RE OFFERING. YEAH. YEAH. YEAH. MAYBE THAT'S SOMETHING TO PUSH ON SOME OTHER PEOPLE. WHY? THEY COME HERE? YEAH. YEAH. OUR COUNTY IS STILL KIND OF RURAL ENOUGH THAT THE PERSONAL CONNECTIONS CAN REALLY HAPPEN WHERE SOME OF OUR OTHER NEIGHBORS, NEIGHBORING COUNTIES OR OTHERS ON THE SHORE WHO HAVE A LOT MORE POPULATION MAY BE A LITTLE MORE TRANSIENT. THE CONNECTIONS ARE HERE, WHEREVER YOU LOOK. THERE'S THE CONNECTIONS TO KNOW WHERE TO GET THE INFORMATION AND HOW TO CONNECT. AND I THINK THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT MAKES IT STRONG FOR WHY THEY'VE BEEN SUCCESSFUL WITH IT AS WELL, IS YOU GOT PEOPLE WHO THEY KNOW WHO TO ASK. YEP. AND WE'VE ALWAYS AND THE PHONES ARE OPEN FOR THEM TO CALL FOR OUTSIDE PEOPLE TO CALL TO SAY, HEY, WE'D LOVE SOME HELP WITH IT JUST KIND OF HAS ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT WORKS IN CAROLINE. ANOTHER PART OF PILLAR TWO IS TEACHER PREP AND LICENSURE. SO AS YOU GUYS KNOW APRIL 1ST, APRIL FOOL'S DAY, NEW LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS CAME OUT FROM THE STATE. I SAID, THERE ARE NO KIDDING. THERE ARE NO COINCIDENCES. RIGHT. SO, WE ARE WORKING ON UNPACKING. MSDE IS SORT OF WHAT THEY'RE DOING IS THEY'RE HOLDING A MEETING ON THIS PART OF THE REGULATION, AND THEN NEXT WEEK THEY'LL HOLD A MEETING ON THIS PART OF THE REGULATION. [00:40:01] AND SO OUR OFFICE DOES KIND OF FEEL NOW LIKE WE ARE ABLE TO GO OUT AND HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH STAFF AND SAY, THIS IS WHAT THIS MEANS. THEY'VE ALSO PUT SOME INTERPRETATION IN THERE THAT MAYBE IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT THAN JUST THE COLD READ OF THE REGULATION, BUT THAT'S OKAY, BECAUSE EVERY INTERPRETATION THEY PUT IN THERE HAS BEEN BENEFICIAL TO US. SO. OKAY. AND SO WE WILL BE VISITING DEBBIE AND I WILL BE VISITING WITH FACULTY MEETINGS COMING UP IN THIS FALL. TO TALK ABOUT THAT. ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS THAT IS PART OF THIS AND WE'LL BE PUTTING TOGETHER A PLAN FOR APPROVAL IS THE END DISTRICT TRAINING PROGRAM. AND THIS IS A PROGRAM THAT CAN LEAD TO LICENSURE THAT WE CONTROL AS THE DISTRICT. SO THE TEACHER CANDIDATE WILL NEED TO SHOW THAT THEY KNOW CONTENT, AND THEY CAN DO THAT IN ONE OF THREE WAYS. THEY CAN EITHER HAVE A CONTENT RELATED BACHELOR'S DEGREE. THEY CAN HAVE ANY BACHELOR'S DEGREE WITH ENOUGH CONTENT RELATED CREDITS WITHIN IT, OR THEY CAN PASS THE PRAXIS EXAM AND THAT OR PASS THE PRAXIS EXAM IS HUGE BECAUSE IT USED TO BE YOU NEEDED BOTH AND SOMETIMES THAT WAS A HURDLE. AND SO WE WANT TO MAXIMIZE THAT BECAUSE YOU STILL NEED TO DEMONSTRATE, YOU KNOW, CONTENT. BUT NOW YOU HAVE OPTIONS FOR HOW YOU DO THAT. WE WOULD THEN PARTNER WITH AN INSTITUTE OF HIGHER ED TO PROVIDE SOME OF THE TEACHING AND LEARNING CLASSES THAT WOULD BE NEEDED. AND THEN OUR INDUCTION AND MENTORSHIP WOULD COUNT THROUGH MSDE ONCE IT'S APPROVED TO GET THEM TOWARDS TEACHER LICENSURE. IT'S NOT GOING TO BE THE PATH FOR EVERYBODY, BUT IT IS GOING TO BE A PATH THAT OFFERS FLEXIBILITY. AND WE GET TO APPLY. WE GET TO DESIGN OUR PROGRAM AND APPLY FOR APPROVAL THIS YEAR AND THEN IMPLEMENT THAT STARTING NEXT YEAR. SO THAT'S PART OF WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON IN THAT SENSE. AND THEN ALSO WITH THE NEW LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS WHEN IT COMES TO RENEWAL WE'RE NOW ABLE TO GIVE CREDIT FOR RENEWAL TO JOB EMBEDDED PD. AND SO THAT'S, THAT'S GOING TO BE BIG AS WELL. AND THEN JUST WE'VE DONE SOME REORGANIZATION BETWEEN DR. DOWNS AND I ABOUT PDS SCHOOLS AND STUDENT TEACHER PLACEMENTS AND STUFF LIKE THAT. SO THOSE ARE THINGS THAT I'M WORKING WITH A LITTLE BIT MORE NOW. AND MANY OF OUR STAFF THAT WE HIRED EARLY WERE OUR STUDENT TEACHERS. THEY WERE DOING A NICE JOB. SO WE WENT IN AND WE AND SO THAT'S WHAT WE WANT TO DO. I WANT TO KNOW WHERE THEY ARE. I'M GOING TO DO THEIR LIVE AND BLUEPRINT IS GOING TO ALSO ASK US TO REALLY START LOOKING AT WHO WE SELECT TO BE THEIR COOPERATING TEACHER AND THEIR MENTOR TEACHER. SO I NEED TO BE PART OF THAT PROCESS AS WELL. BECAUSE THAT WILL EVENTUALLY TRANSITION ONTO THE CAREER LADDER FOR OUR FOLKS THAT HAVE NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION. SPEAKING OF THE CAREER LADDER, THAT IS 2.4. WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE OUR CAREER LADDER APPROVED. WE HAVE FIVE CURRENT NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFIED TEACHERS. WE HAVE 7 OR 8 THAT DID ALL FOUR COMPONENTS AND COME END OF NOVEMBER WILL BE WAITING TO SEE, YOU KNOW, HOW MANY WERE FULLY APPROVED AND IF YOU IF YOU MISS IT ON A COMPONENT, YOU CAN ALWAYS RETAKE THAT COMPONENT. SO WE'LL HAVE SOME BETTER FEEDBACK THERE. AND WE HAVE ABOUT 25 IN PROGRESS CURRENTLY. AND THEN RECRUITING IS OUT NOW FOR NEW FOLKS TO SIGN UP. WHAT WE'RE SEEING, THOUGH, IS THAT WE HAD A LOT OF FOLKS SIGN UP IN THE FIRST TWO YEARS. THIS THIRD YEAR, I THINK SO FAR, I MEAN, IT'S STILL EARLY, IT'S NOT DONE YET, BUT THE NUMBERS ARE DOWN A LITTLE BIT, AND THAT'S KIND OF WHAT WE EXPECTED. THERE'S GOING TO BE SORT OF A CRITICAL MASS OF FOLKS THAT WANT TO DO THIS, AND THEN IT'LL SLOW DOWN AND OVER TIME THE WORK FROM THERE. AND THEN SOME THINGS THAT WE'RE STILL WORKING ON BECAUSE IT'S NOT OUT YET, BUT JUST TO KIND OF PUT IT OUT THERE IS PD THAT'S ALIGNED WITH CAREER LADDER, THE 6040 SPLIT OF TEACHER TIME, WHICH WE'RE WAITING ON MSDE GUIDANCE. AND CONTINUING TO LOOK AT ADMINISTRATORS ON THE CAREER LADDER AND WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. WE STILL HAVE A LOT OF GUIDANCE WITH THAT YET, BUT THE LAW DOES SAY THAT BY 2029, ALL PRINCIPALS HAVE NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION OR A WAIVER. WE'D LIKE THEM TO NOT WAIT TILL 2028 TO TELL US WHAT THE WAIVER IS. RIGHT. BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE STARTING TO PLAN THEIR PLANNING CAREERS. AND I WILL GIVE A, GIVE A GIVE A SHOUT. SOMETIMES I'M ONE TO KIND OF PUMMEL MSDE AT TIMES. DR. WRIGHT HAS WORKED HARD WITH HER TEAM TO HEAR SCHOOL SYSTEMS AROUND 60/40 WITH THE TEACHER TIME SPLIT PIECE THAT'S IN THE CAREER LADDER. WE ARE ANTICIPATING POSSIBLY RECEIVING MSDE GUIDANCE. THE AIB GAVE US GUIDANCE LAST YEAR. SCHOOL SYSTEMS DID NOT APPRECIATE THE GUIDANCE. IT'S PROBABLY THE BEST WAY TO DESCRIBE IT. LEGISLATIVE CHANGES TOOK PLACE LAST LEGISLATIVE SESSION, WHICH GAVE THE AUTHORITY TO MAKE THE DETERMINATION ON 60/40 TO THE STATE BOARD AND MSDE. [00:45:05] SO MSDE IS GOING THROUGH THAT NOW. WE EXPECT TO HEAR THEIR GUIDANCE IN OCTOBER OR FOR THE STATE BOARD TO DISCUSS IT IN OCTOBER, WHERE THEIR GUIDANCE WILL LIKELY FALL. AND AGAIN, DR. WRIGHT'S TEAM HAS BEEN VERY ENGAGED WITH SCHOOL SYSTEMS ON THE FRONT END AS WELL AS ON THE ADMINISTRATOR CAREER LADDER AND TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THE IMPLICATIONS ON SCHOOL SYSTEMS OF NOT JUST THOSE, BUT OF A LOT OF PARTS OF BLUEPRINT. SO THERE WILL BE MORE TO COME, OBVIOUSLY, IN LOTS OF DISCUSSIONS AROUND THAT. BUT I WILL GLADLY SAY WE FEEL LIKE WE HAVE A REAL PARTNER IN THE STATE DEPARTMENT WORKING THROUGH SOME OF THESE CHALLENGES. WE'RE NOT SAYING THROW THE BABY OUT WITH THE BATHWATER BY ANY MEANS, BUT WE'RE TRYING TO HAVE THOSE PRACTICAL CONVERSATIONS ABOUT WHAT DO THESE THINGS REALLY LOOK LIKE IF THEY WERE TO HAPPEN. AND HOW DO WE ALL GET THERE IN A WAY THAT DOESN'T BREAK THE SYSTEM? INFORMATION IS FLOWING. YES, THAT IS. AND THAT IS SOMETHING THAT MAYBE THIS TIME LAST YEAR WE COULD BE SAYING, YEAH, BUT INFORMATION IS FLOWING. AND SO THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF CHANGE AND THINGS LIKE THAT, BUT INFORMATION IS FLOWING. DR. WILLOUGHBY, COULD YOU REPEAT? I'M SORRY. GO AHEAD. COULD YOU REPEAT THAT? WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT THE ADMINISTRATIVE, THE ADMINISTRATORS. BY 2029. SO IN IN THE BLUEPRINT LAW, IT SAYS THAT TO BE A PRINCIPAL BY 2029, YOU NEED NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION OR A WAIVER. AND THAT'S WHY IT CAN TAKE UP TO FIVE YEARS TO GET YOUR MVC. I MEAN, YOU HAVE FIVE YEARS. SO, THAT WOULD MEAN EXISTING PRINCIPALS. THAT'S WHAT WE'RE WAITING. THAT'S WHAT WE'RE WAITING TO. SO BE PREPARED FOR RETIREMENT. NO, BECAUSE I THINK THE WAIVER WILL COME OUT. YEAH. JUST LIKE THEY DID WITH OUR CDA FOLKS, YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY. AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN WE WERE ABLE TO GET [INAUDIBLE] SOMEBODY WAS AT THAT LEVEL. THE AMOUNT OF YEARS OF SERVICE THEY HAVE. GOSH, IT WOULD BE NICE IF THEY DIDN'T WAIT UNTIL, LIKE I SAID, 2028. RIGHT, RIGHT. THE WAIVER IS DAY BEFORE, RIGHT? SO WHICH IS KIND OF WHAT THEY DID WITH THE CDAS. BUT AS WE MOVE FORWARD, LIKE DR. SIMON WAS SAYING I THINK THAT'LL BE BETTER. THEY'LL HAVE MORE LEAD TIME TO PLAN. AND SO YEAH. OKAY. THANK YOU. AND THAT WAIVER IS WRITTEN BY MSDE. THE LAW DOES SAY MSDE WILL WRITE THE WAIVER. SO IT'S NOT SOMETHING WE'RE WAITING ON THE AARP FOR. JUST A QUICK QUESTION. FOR TEACHERS WHO ARE WORKING TOWARDS NATIONAL CERTIFICATION IN ORDER TO COMPLETE THE FOUR COMPONENTS, ABOUT HOW LONG IS THAT TIMELINE? I KNOW IT MAY BE DIFFERENT FOR EVERYONE. SO YOU HAVE TO KNOW WHAT THE RULE IS, IS THAT YOU HAVE FIVE YEARS TO COMPLETE, AND YOU MUST ATTEMPT ALL FOUR WITHIN THE FIRST THREE. SO THE LAST TWO YEARS, FOUR AND FIVE, ARE REALLY FOR RETAKES. OKAY. IT IS POSSIBLE TO DO IT ALL IN ONE YEAR. SO, IT'S HOW MUCH DO YOU WANT TO DO. COMPONENT ONE IS A TEST THAT YOU GO AND YOU TAKE AT A TESTING CENTER ON CONTENT. COMPONENTS TWO, THREE AND FOUR ARE PORTFOLIO BASED. AND THAT IS FOR EXAMPLE, I THINK IN COMPONENTS TWO AND THREE YOU'RE VIDEOING YOURSELF. SO IT'LL TELL YOU WHAT KIND OF LESSON YOU NEED TO DELIVER ITSELF. SO YOU'LL GO VIDEO YOURSELF. IT'S LIKE A 15 MINUTE VIDEO. AND THEN YOU HAVE SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 13 TO 15 PAGES OF WRITTEN COMMENTARY ON DIFFERENT PROMPTS BASED OFF OF THAT VIDEO AND THE PLANNING OF THAT VIDEO LESSON REPRESENTS. AND THEN IN COMPONENT FOUR, YOU'RE REALLY LOOKING AT SORT OF HOW YOU TAKE DATA AND TURN IT INTO ACTION. IT'S ALMOST LIKE A TEACHER LEADERSHIP COMPONENT. AND SO YOU'RE LOOKING AT SOME SORT OF PROBLEM THAT YOU'VE SEEN AND YOU'VE BEEN ABLE TO HELP SOLVE, OR WHATEVER THE CASE COMPONENT FOR IN THE OLD SYSTEM USED TO BE YOUR CONTRIBUTION TO THE PROFESSION. SO YOU GO GET ALL THESE LETTERS FROM PEOPLE THAT SAID THAT YOU HAD DONE THINGS, AND THAT THEY'VE KIND OF TAKEN IT NOW TO LIKE ALMOST LIKE AN ACTION RESEARCH COMPONENT TO THAT. SO IT IS, IT IS. AND WE HAVE FOLKS THAT HAVE THEY DO ALL 4 IN 1 YEAR. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, YOU SIT AND YOU WAIT AND GET YOUR RESULTS. BUT YOU CAN DO THAT TWO AND 2 OR 3 AND ONE OR WHATEVER THE CASE MAY BE. SO, A LOT OF IT. YEAH. AND YOU CAN START KIND OF WHENEVER IN THE YEAR EVERYTHING'S DUE IN MAY, WHATEVER YOU'VE DONE IS DUE IN MAY. AND THEN YOU KIND OF START THE NEXT. THANK YOU. AND THEN FINALLY THE LAST PART OF PILLAR TWO IS THE EDUCATOR COMPENSATION. SO WE KNOW WE'RE AT $60,000 BY JULY 1ST, 2026. OUR CURRENT STARTING SALARY IS 55. FIVE. SO I THINK THAT LEAVES US IN A GOOD SPOT OVER THE NEXT TWO NEGOTIATION CYCLES. WE HAVE TO. WE HAVE TO MAKE UP AT LEAST $4,500 IS WHERE WE ARE. [00:50:04] SO THAT IS DOABLE. AND SO NO CONCERNS THERE FOR EDUCATORS. THAT'S GOOD. SO ANY QUESTIONS? JUST BLUEPRINTS OF WHERE WE ARE. WE ARE IN A GOOD SPOT. WE ARE IN A GOOD SPOT. AND WE'LL CONTINUE WORKING THROUGH. AND THIS YEAR WE KNOW WITH NEGOTIATIONS WILL BE NEGOTIATING HOW OUR EXISTING TEACHERS GET ON THE CAREER LADDER IF THEY WISH TO KIND OF PORT OVER WHAT THAT WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. AND WE MAY HAVE SOME INITIAL PLACEMENTS ON THE CAREER LADDER THAT ARE A LITTLE DOES THIS PERSON BELONG THERE? WILL THEY NEED TO BE THERE TO MAKE THE PAY MATCH. SO SOME OF THOSE INITIAL PLACEMENTS MIGHT BE A LITTLE WONKY, BUT THAT'S PART OF THE PROCESS AS WE TRANSFER FROM A PAY SCALE TO NOW. AND THEN OF COURSE, DEPENDING ON WHERE YOU ARE IN YOUR CAREER, IF YOU WANT TO STAY ON THE OLD SCALE, YOU'VE GOT THAT ABILITY TO DO THAT TOO. SO WE'LL THAT'S WHAT WE'LL BE TALKING ABOUT AS WELL AS THE CLIENT STUFF. SO OUR BLUEPRINT TAKES A BLACK EYE IN SOME CASES DESERVEDLY SO, ESPECIALLY TO THE DOLLAR PART. BUT THERE'S A LOT OF WORKLOAD. ALMOST EVERYTHING YOU TALK TO US ABOUT ARE GOOD THINGS TO DO. YEAH, THEY'RE THE KIND OF THINGS YOU WOULD WANT TO DO ANYWAY. SOME YOU WERE DOING ANYWAY. BUT SO SOMETIMES IT GETS THE BLACK EYE AND SOMETIMES IT'S JUST NOT FULL DISCLOSURE ABOUT THE GOOD PARTS. I DON'T KNOW THAT THE IDEA IS BAD. SOMETIMES IT'S THE DEVIL IN THE DETAILS OR A LOT OF WORK, OR THE LACK OF REGULATION OR THE WAITING, THE REGULATION, YOU KNOW, OR WHATEVER THE CASE MAY BE, LACK OF FEEDBACK OR INFORMATION, YOU KNOW, GUIDANCE. BUT IT IS IT IS GOOD STUFF THAT IS IN THIS PILLAR IS POSITIVE FOR OUR STAFF. OKAY. OKAY. EVERYBODY GOOD? ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. EXCELLENT. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE IT. SO WE CAN NOW MOVE TO THE CODE OF CONDUCT. [3.02 Code of Conduct] YES. SO BEHAVIOR. YEAH. WITH US THIS MORNING IS MR. KIRK. HOWIE. MR. HOWIE GETS THE GETS THE PLEASURE OF BRINGING THIS TO THE BOARD. HE IS THE ONE CARRYING THE FOOTBALL OVER THE GOAL LINE, PER SE. THIS IS THE WORK THAT WAS DONE STARTING LAST YEAR THROUGH OUR STRONGER CONNECTIONS GRANT. AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE REALIZED IN DIGGING IN THROUGH THAT INITIAL WORK, THROUGH STRONGER CONNECTIONS, WAS THE NEED FOR PROVIDING INFORMATION TO PARENTS, STAFF, COMMUNITY ADMINISTRATORS IN A COHESIVE MANNER AND IN A CONSISTENT MANNER THAT CLEARLY OUTLINES ROLES AND EXPECTATIONS AS IT RELATES TO CODE OF CONDUCT. SO MR. HOWIE WILL BE SHARING KIND OF THAT, THAT SUMMATION OF THE WORK THAT THAT GROUP PULLED TOGETHER. THERE WAS NO CHANGE. THERE WAS NO NECESSARY CHANGE TO WORK POLICY AROUND CODE OF CONDUCT IN PARTICULAR, JUST FOR THOSE WHO ARE MORE RECENT ON THE BOARD, OUR CODE OF CONDUCT MATCHES THE STATE DISCIPLINE GUIDELINES THAT THEY PUT OUT IN 2014, ROUGHLY ISH WHICH THE LEGAL AT THE TIME AND STILL WOULD SAY, WHEN THE STATE GIVES YOU VERY CLEAR GUIDELINES, IT'S BEST TO STAY WITHIN THOSE GUIDELINES AND NOT CREATE YOUR OWN, BECAUSE THE STATE BOARD IS THE ONE WHO HEARS ALL APPEALS AND THEY WILL GO WHERE YOU FOLLOWING OUR GUIDELINES. SO WE'RE NOT RECOMMENDING ANY POLICY CHANGES. BUT THERE WAS A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WORK THAT WENT INTO THIS WITH LOTS OF STAKEHOLDERS TO BRING ABOUT CONSISTENCY AND BETTER UNDERSTANDING AND SUPPORT AT ALL LEVELS. SO WITH THAT, I'LL PASS TO MR. HOWIE TO KIND OF WALK YOU GUYS THROUGH THAT THAT EFFORT. ALL RIGHT. SO THANK YOU, DR. SIMMONS, PRESIDENT BARTON, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, EVERYBODY WHO'S LISTENING. YEAH, I KIND OF EQUATE THIS TO THE SOMEBODY ELSE DID THE 99 YARDS, AND THEY PUT ME IN TO GO OVER THE GOAL LINE HERE AT THIS POINT. SO, IT'S THIS IS REALLY RECOGNIZING THE WORK THAT THE TEAM AND CAROLINE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS DID LEADING UP TO THIS. BASICALLY, A BRIEF OVERVIEW STARTED IN 23, 24. ENGAGING IN THE PROCESS, THEY DEVELOPED THE DISCIPLINE REVIEW TEAM TO PRESENT THIS. AND THE UPDATES ELICITED FEEDBACK FROM ALL STAKEHOLDERS. THROUGH JUNE AND JULY, MORE UPDATES WERE MADE. WE THEN REVIEWED WITH THE ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISORS RELEASED TO THE PUBLIC. IMPLEMENTATION IS ONGOING AND THAT THE CLOSE OF THIS YEAR WE WILL REVISIT THE SURVEY AND GET FEEDBACK AGAIN. SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I LIKE IN THE APPROACH THAT WE TAKE HERE IS IT'S THAT CONTINUAL LOOP OF REQUESTING ADDITIONAL FEEDBACK. AND AS DR. SIMMONS SAID EARLIER, NOT RESTING ON YOUR LAURELS AND CONTINUING TO FIND WAYS TO TRY TO IMPROVE. SO THAT'LL BE AN ONGOING PROCESS WITH THIS. AND JUST FOR A LITTLE KIND OF BACKGROUND BEFORE I GET INTO THIS, THIS CODE OF CONDUCT IS WHAT OUR PARENTS ARE GOING TO RELY ON TO UNDERSTAND SOME OF THE DECISIONS THAT ARE MADE AND ALSO THE GUIDANCE FOR ADMINISTRATORS TO MAKE THOSE DECISIONS WHEN THINGS OCCUR IN SCHOOL. SO THAT DISCIPLINE REVIEW TEAM, AND I'M NOT GOING TO GO INTO READING EVERY SINGLE NAME, BUT AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE WERE QUITE A FEW MEMBERS OF VARIOUS LEVELS WHO WERE PART OF THAT [00:55:07] TEAM TO START THAT REVIEW PROCESS. HEADED BY DR. DOWNS. AND AGAIN, YOU CAN SEE THERE'S A VERY LARGE GROUP OF PEOPLE REPRESENTING BOTH SOCIAL EMOTIONAL BEHAVIORAL ASPECTS, SCHOOL SAFETY CURRICULUM, ET CETERA. SO REALLY TO TIE THIS ALL INTO HOW DO WE CREATE THAT CLIMATE FOR A BETTER INSTRUCTIONAL EXPERIENCE FOR ALL OF OUR STUDENTS? SO THAT PROCESS STARTED IN OCTOBER. THEY DID THEIR RESEARCH, IDENTIFIED BEST PRACTICES. THEN IN MARCH DRAFTED A CODE OF CONDUCT, ELICITED ALL THE FEEDBACK, MADE THOSE UPDATES IN JUNE, AND THEN I GOT TO COME IN IN JULY. SO AND AGAIN, THIS WAS THE EXAMPLE OF THE SURVEY WAS SENT OUT AS IT SHOULD BE COMPLETED. THEY MET THE FOLLOWING DAY FROM WHEN IT WAS COMPLETED TO GO OVER THOSE. SO THERE WILL BE A SIMILAR SURVEY THAT WILL GO OUT AT THE END OF THIS YEAR TO GET ADDITIONAL FEEDBACK TO SEE HOW WE DID. AND JUST TO SHOW YOU WHAT WE'VE ALSO CREATED WITH THE HELP OF MISS BERRY AND AGAIN, ALL THE OTHER PEOPLE INVOLVED WAS THE CODE OF CONDUCT PARENT GUARDIAN GUIDE. ESSENTIALLY, WHAT WE DID IS WE MADE SURE ALL OF THE PERTINENT INFORMATION WAS LISTED EXACTLY HOW IT IS IN THE FULL BLOWN CODE OF CONDUCT. BUT THEN WE HYPERLINKED A LOT OF THINGS. SO THE THINGS THAT THEY WANT, IF YOU WANT THAT DEEPER DETAIL, IT'S THERE. BUT WE TRY TO MAKE IT AN EASIER READ FOR OUR PARENTS AND STAKEHOLDERS. SO THEY WEREN'T LOOKING AT 70, 80, 90 PAGES OF STUFF. AGAIN, YOU SEE THE TABLE OF CONTENTS WHERE IT'S VERY THOROUGH. AND UNLESS EVERYTHING. I'M NOT GOING TO ASK ANYBODY TO READ THAT OR READ THAT TO YOU, BUT IT'S THERE JUST FOR REFERENCE. BASICALLY THOSE UPDATES TO THE MATRIX WERE BASICALLY IN KEEPING WITH ANY UPDATES THAT WERE MADE BY THE STATE. I'M NOT GOING TO GO THROUGH EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE, BUT I WANT TO JUST KIND OF HIGHLIGHT WHEN YOU SEE THOSE LEVELS. THAT'S THE RANGE OF RESPONSES YOU CAN DO. AND A LOT OF THAT WILL DETERMINE THE INTENSITY, SEVERITY AND FREQUENCY OF SOMETHING THAT'S OCCURRING. BUT IT GIVES IT GIVES US THAT PROFESSIONAL JUDGMENT TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE STUDENT. BUT THERE'S ALWAYS GOING TO BE A FOCUS ON RESTORATIVE PRACTICES. AND WHEN WE SPEAK WITH ADMINISTRATORS AS WELL AS FAMILIES, STUDENTS, ET CETERA, THE BOTTOM LINE IS WE DON'T HAVE BAD PEOPLE, BUT SOMETIMES PEOPLE MAKE BAD DECISIONS AND THEN WE HAVE TO WORK WITH THEM BECAUSE THEY'RE COMING BACK THEIR HOURS. THEY LIVE HERE, THEY'RE GOING TO BE HERE. HOW DO WE HELP THEM MAKE SURE IF IT'S A MISTAKE, THAT IT'S NOT REPEATED, OR IF IT'S JUST SOMETHING WE NEED TO IMPROVE UPON, HOW DO WE SUPPORT THEM TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY CAN DO THAT? SO THAT'S ALWAYS GOING TO BE AT THE CORE OF WHAT WE DO. THAT DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOU DON'T GET HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THOSE CHOICES THAT YOU MAKE. IT JUST MEANS THAT WE WANT TO REPAIR THAT SO THAT EVERYBODY COMES OUT BETTER IN THE AFTERMATH. SO AGAIN, THIS IS JUST AGAIN SHOWING SOME MORE OF THIS. AND AGAIN, I'M NOT GOING TO HIGHLIGHT SOME OF THEM. BUT YOU WILL SEE THERE ARE SOME THAT HAVE A MORE SIGNIFICANT REQUIRED RESPONSE. AND THIS IS ALL TAKEN DIRECTLY FROM THE STATE. AND WHERE THE XS ARE? IS THAT? DO YOU WORRY? I GUESS MORE OR LESS IS THAT WHEN YOU SEE THE X OR THE CHECK ON EITHER OF THESE SCREENS? BASICALLY THAT MEANS IT COULD FALL INTO ONE OF THESE LEVELS. SO CERTAIN THINGS DON'T LIKE IF I'M SKIPPING A CLASS THAT'S NOT GOING TO REQUIRE NOTIFICATION OF LAW ENFORCEMENT. HOWEVER SOME OF THESE OTHER INCIDENTS MAY OR REQUIRE IT. AND LIKE IF I'M SKIPPING CLASS, I CAN'T BE SUSPENDED OUT OF SCHOOL FOR SKIPPING CLASS. YOU CAN'T SUSPEND FOR AN ATTENDANCE RELATED ISSUES, WHICH MAKES SENSE. BUT BACK IN THE DAY, YOU PROBABLY WOULD HAVE. YES. LIKE 20 YEARS AGO. YOU PROBABLY DID. PROBABLY WOULD. I PROBABLY DID WHEN WE WERE IN SCHOOL. WE WOULD PROBABLY HAVE. THAT'D BE LIKE HAVING A FIGHT OR, YOU KNOW, I WAS LIKE, FORCED TO TAKE BOXING CLASS. IT SHOULDN'T EVEN GO TO THE FIRST LIKE 4 OR 5. CORRECT. SOME OF THOSE ARE AUTOMATIC. YEAH. SO WHEN YOU SEE SOME OF THESE, IT'S AN AUTOMATIC. THAT 503 IS AN AUTOMATIC NOTIFICATION OF LAW ENFORCEMENT. AND IT'S VERY TIMELY RIGHT NOW WITH SOME OF THE CONCERNS THAT WE'VE HAD. AND AGAIN OUR RESPONSE AS ALWAYS MAKING SURE WE MAINTAIN SAFETY. BUT THEN ALSO HOW DO WE ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF THE STUDENT WHERE THIS BEHAVIOR OCCURRED SO WE CAN ADDRESS THOSE NEEDS. AND AGAIN WE PUT THIS OUT. WE ALSO ASKED OUR ADMINISTRATORS AND EVERYONE INVOLVED IF THERE IS SOMETHING WE'RE MISSING LET US KNOW. SO THIS THIS WENT THROUGH A TREMENDOUS NUMBER OF REVIEWS FOR FEEDBACK TO MAKE SURE WE CAPTURED AS MUCH OF EVERYONE'S POINT OF VIEW AS WE COULD. AND AGAIN, IN KEEPING WITH WHAT OUR VISION AND GOALS ARE, AS WELL AS THE STATE REQUIREMENTS. AGAIN, WE DID SOME ADDITIONAL UPDATES. WE DID A LOT OF SOCIAL MEDIA PUSH OUT AND EMAIL PUSH OUT THROUGH THRILL SHARE. SO PARENTS HAD THESE LINKS. THESE ARE LIVE IN THE PRESENTATION AS WELL. IF YOU WANTED TO TAKE A CHANCE TO LOOK AT THOSE. WE WILL ALSO SEND OUT SPECIFIC COMMUNICATIONS ON HIGHLIGHTED ISSUES, I.E. OUR YONDR IMPLEMENTATION AT OUR MIDDLE SCHOOLS. WE'RE WORKING ON SOME UPDATES TO DRESS CODE HAVING MORE CONSISTENCY IN HOW WE ADDRESS VAPES, TOBACCO CESSATION, ETC. [01:00:07] AND PARTNERING WITH OUR HEALTH DEPARTMENT AND OTHER ENTITIES TO WORK ON THE ROOT CAUSES FOR SOME OF THESE THINGS. I BRING UP DRESS CODE AND SOME OF THESE BECAUSE THOSE WILL HAVE ANCILLARY OR ADJACENT POLICY REVIEWS THAT HAVE TO HAPPEN AND OCCUR. THAT MAY CHANGE SOME POLICIES AND PROCEDURES, EVEN THOUGH THE OVERWHELMING OR OVERALL ONE FOR STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT DID NOT REQUIRE CHANGES. SO YOU'LL SEE SOME OF THESE THINGS COMING UP THROUGHOUT THE YEAR AS WE GET THE FEEDBACK AND WE REVIEW THESE. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I TRULY APPRECIATE IS THE APPROACH HERE HAS ALWAYS BEEN GET THE INFORMATION, REVIEW IT, DISCUSS IT, MAKE A GOOD DECISION BASED ON EVERYTHING YOU HAVE AND NOT RUSHING TO JUST SIMPLY HAVE SOMETHING DONE TO SAY YOU HAD IT DONE. IT REALLY MAKES A DIFFERENCE WHEN THOSE STAKEHOLDERS HAVE A BETTER LEVEL OF UNDERSTANDING AND INVOLVEMENT. IT CREATES MORE OF A SENSE OF COMMUNITY WHEN YOU MAKE THESE DECISIONS, BECAUSE THE HONEST TO GOD ISSUES ARE WHEN THESE THINGS OCCUR, IT'S PROBABLY BECAUSE SOMETHING THAT YOU DIDN'T WANT TO HAPPEN HAS HAPPENED. AND THAT RELATIONSHIP THAT YOU'VE BUILT OF MAKING SURE PEOPLE HAD INPUT REALLY BECOMES IMPORTANT WHEN THOSE THINGS OCCUR. AGAIN, THAT TRAINING WENT ON THROUGH THE SUMMER AND AS I STATED EARLIER, WE HAVE PLAN FEEDBACK AT THE END OF THE SCHOOL YEAR AS WELL. OUR APPROACH HAS BEEN FOLLOWING BEST PRACTICES. WHEN YOU IMPLEMENT A NEW OR ADVISE YOUR STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT. I HIGHLIGHTED ONE OF THE THINGS. WE DID A LOT OF THESE WITH OUR ANS GROUPS OVER THE SUMMER TO PRACTICE AND GO THROUGH DIFFERENT SCENARIOS AND ROLEPLAY HOW WE WOULD HANDLE THINGS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. THE SURVEYS WILL PROVIDE US SOME OF THE Q&A SESSIONS, AS WELL AS SOME OPEN TOWN HALL DISCUSSIONS MAKING SURE WE'RE COMMUNICATING EFFECTIVELY AND THEN ANALYZING THAT DATA, REPORTING OUT ON HOW IT'S GOING, AND THEN CONTINUALLY UPDATING OUR STAFF WITH WHAT WE NEED TO AS FAR AS TRAINING TO MAKE THEM MORE PROFICIENT IN HOW WE HANDLE THESE SITUATIONS. SO WE'RE FOLLOWING THOSE BEST PRACTICES IN ORDER TO MAKE SURE THAT THIS IS A LIVING DOCUMENT THAT IS PART OF HOW WE DO BUSINESS. SOME OF WHAT WE DID, AGAIN, WHEN WE WENT OVER SCENARIOS WAS REALLY TO FOCUS ON THE FACT THAT WE HAD TO COMMUNICATE TO KEEP THINGS TRANSPARENT AND MAKE IT CONTINUAL. THAT WILL BUILD TRUST WITH EVERYONE INVOLVED. IF YOU THINK OF YOUR OWN CHILDREN, WHEN THEY KNOW WHAT YOUR EXPECTATIONS ARE, THEY'RE LESS SURPRISED WHEN THEY'RE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THINGS. WHY? BECAUSE AT LEAST I KNEW. IF I KNOW AND I STILL DO IT, THEN I HAVE TO ACCEPT WHAT COMES WITH THAT. BEING VERY CLEAR, USING NORMAL REGULAR LANGUAGE, NOT GETTING INTO THE EDUCATIONAL JARGON ALL THE TIME IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR OUR PARENTS AND OTHER COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO UNDERSTAND WHY AND WHAT WE'RE DOING. BEING CONSISTENT IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE REALLY TARGETING THIS YEAR. NOTHING MAKES PEOPLE FEEL MORE MARGINALIZED THAN IF IT'S ONE WAY FOR HER, AND IT'S A DIFFERENT WAY FOR ME WHEN IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S THE SAME THING. SO WE'RE WORKING VERY DILIGENTLY WITH ALL OF OUR SCHOOLS TO HAVE CONSISTENT APPROACHES AND THEN SHOWING SOME EMPATHY AND COMPASSION FOR EVERYONE INVOLVED. AS I SAID, THESE ARE OUR FOLKS. THEY'RE OURS. AND NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENED, WE NEED TO REBUILD THAT TRUST AND WORK WITH THEM TO CONTINUE TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE THE BEST CAROLINE COUNTY PUBLIC STUDENT THEY CAN BE. ON THE CONSISTENCY FRONT, JUST TO SUPPORT AS WELL. AND MR. HOWIE HIT IT ON THE HEAD WERE WE NOT ONLY WANT THE CONSISTENCY WITHIN THE BUILDING, BUT WE WANT WE WANT TO ACHIEVE CONSISTENCY BETWEEN BUILDINGS. THE CODE OF CONDUCT, BY THE WAY, THE STATE DRAFTED. IT GIVES A WIDE RANGE ON MANY THINGS, BUT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE WORKED WITH OUR SCHOOL BASED ADMINISTRATORS WHO APPLY THE CODE OF CONDUCT, THAT THERE IS CONSISTENCY AMONGST THEM, THAT IF X HAPPENS IN A BUILDING, IT'S THERE'S ALWAYS NUANCE, BUT IT'S LIKELY TO REALLY NARROW IN TO THIS RANGE, LIKELY NOT THIS WIDE OF A PIECE, BECAUSE THE FURTHER THE GAP IS IN CONSISTENCY, THE HARDER IT IS FOR PEOPLE TO KNOW WHAT'S LIKELY TO HAPPEN. WHEN I VIOLATE X, I'LL GO BACK TO MR. HOWIE'S EXAMPLE. IF OUR KIDS KNOW, PERSONALLY SPEAKING IF OUR KIDS KNOW WHAT THE EXPECTATION IS AND THEY KNOW LIKELY WHAT THE CONSEQUENCE IS, YES, KIDS WILL WAY OUT. IS THE JUICE WORTH THE SQUEEZE? YEP. BUT IF THE OPTION BETWEEN MOM AND DAD NOT THE CASE IN THE SIMMONS HOUSEHOLD. WE HOPE NOT. RIGHT. BUT WE ALL HAVE IT. BUT IF ONE PARENT RESPONDS ONE WAY AND THE OTHER IS COMPLETELY DIFFERENT, YOUR KID MAY GO, OH, IT MIGHT BE WORTH THE GAMBLE BECAUSE IF DAD CATCHES ME, IT MIGHT BE THIS CONSEQUENCE. BUT IF MOM CATCHES ME, IT'S UP HERE. IT MIGHT BE WORTH IT. SO WE'RE TRYING TO GET THAT CONSISTENCY ACROSS BUILDINGS AS WELL. BETWEEN OUR MIDDLE SCHOOLS, BETWEEN OUR HIGH SCHOOLS AND BETWEEN ALL FIVE ELEMENTARIES MAY NOT BE THE SAME. BETWEEN AN ELEMENTARY AND A HIGH PROBABLY SHOULDN'T BE BECAUSE OF THE AGE WHEN MOST THINGS. AND THERE'S ALWAYS WE WANT IT THAT WAY FOR HIGH SCHOOLS. WE WANT IT THAT WAY FOR MIDDLE SCHOOLS, WE WANT IT THAT WAY FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS. AND THERE'S ALWAYS GOING TO BE SOME NUANCES. [01:05:01] AND IT'S ALWAYS REALLY CRITICAL FOR PARENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO UNDERSTAND THAT. HOW MANY TIMES I'VE REPEATED A BEHAVIOR. IF I HAVE ANY KIND OF KNOWN CONCERN OR ISSUE WHERE I RECEIVE SUPPORT FOR THINGS OTHER SITUATIONS THAT MAY BE APPARENT AT THE TIME WILL FACTOR INTO SOME OF THE DECISIONS. SO IF I'M DOING SOMETHING FOR THE FIRST TIME VERSUS SOMEBODY WHO'S DONE IT 15 OTHER TIMES, CONSEQUENCES LIKELY WILL BE DIFFERENT. AND THAT'S NOT BECAUSE THE INCIDENT WAS DIFFERENT. THAT'S BECAUSE THE FREQUENCY OR THE DURATION OF WHAT I'VE DONE IS DIFFERENT. AND IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO MAKE SURE WE UNDERSTAND THOSE THINGS. AND AGAIN, WE'VE PROVIDED OUR ADMINISTRATORS WITH A FLOWCHART. THIS IS GOING TO HURT YOUR EYES IF YOU TRY TO READ THIS FROM HERE. BUT ESSENTIALLY WHAT IT DOES IS BREAK DOWN IS WHAT SHOULD WE TRY TO MANAGE AS AN ADULT PROFESSIONAL IN THE CLASSROOM OR HALLWAY VERSUS WHAT WE NEED TO SEND TO AN ADMINISTRATOR? AGAIN, THE MORE WE CAN HANDLE WHERE OUR KIDS ARE, THE MORE POWER OUR TEACHERS HAVE IN THE CLASSROOM, AND THE BETTER WE'RE GOING TO FUNCTION. BECAUSE ONCE WE'VE REMOVED THEM FROM THE CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT, THERE'S LOST INSTRUCTIONAL TIME, THERE'S LOST RELATIONSHIP. THERE'RE TOO MANY OTHER UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES THAT WILL FEED INTO WHAT THE DECISION IS MADE. ON THE OTHER HAND, THERE ARE CERTAIN THINGS THAT, FOR SAFETY AND SECURITY REASONS, ARE IMMEDIATELY HAVE TO BE DEALT WITH AND CANNOT BE TOLERATED IN THE CLASSROOM SETTING. SO, WE'VE TRIED TO JUST GIVE SOME GUIDANCE TO AGAIN, FURTHER THAT THAT LEVEL OF CONSISTENCY AND UNDERSTANDING AMONGST EVERYONE INVOLVED. ANY QUESTIONS? I HAVE TWO. ONE FOR YOU, DR. HOWIE AND ONE FOR DR. SIMMONS. I KNOW THIS IS ON OUR WEBSITE FOR SURE. HOW IS IT DISTRIBUTED OTHERWISE? BECAUSE WE HAVE SO MANY PARENTS THAT, YOU KNOW, INTERNET ISN'T. SO WE HAVE WE HAVE PUT IT ON THE WEBSITE. IT CAN BE REQUESTED IN PRINT FORM IF THEY DON'T HAVE INTERNET ACCESS. WE'VE ALSO SHARED IT VIA THRILL SHARE TO OUR SOCIAL MEDIA SITES, SO THEY CAN LINK ON IT ON THE PHONE AND SEE IT. BUT IF THEY HAVE NO INTERNET ACCESS, ALL THEY HAVE TO DO IS ASK THE SCHOOL AND THEY'LL BE HAPPY TO PROVIDE THEM A PRINTED COPY. OKAY. SO THEY KNOW THEY CAN ASK THE SCHOOL BEFORE INCIDENT HAPPENS. YES. AND I ENCOURAGE FAMILIES TO BE FAMILIAR WITH IT. IF YOU AGAIN, IF YOU DIDN'T HAVE A SPEED LIMIT SIGN POSTED, YOU'D BE UPSET IF YOU GOT PULLED OVER FOR SPEEDING. YOU MIGHT BE UPSET ANYWAY, BUT AT LEAST IF YOU SAW THAT IT SAID 55 AND YOU'RE GOING 70, YOU KNOW WHY? AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR EVERYONE TO UNDERSTAND THAT. SO IF THEY IF THEY'RE HAVING TROUBLE FINDING THAT CONTACT THEIR SCHOOL, THEY'LL MAKE SURE THAT THEY CAN GET AHOLD OF IT. IT ALSO IS WITHIN THE APP. I WAS JUST GOING TO SAY SO AS A PARENT, THAT IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE PLACES TO LOOK. AND I, I IT TOOK ME A HALF A SECOND TO GO TO DOCUMENTS AND TO CLICK ON CODE OF CONDUCT AND TO FIND BOTH LINKS. AND AGAIN IT'S ON THE WEBSITE. WE ENCOURAGE ALL THE SCHOOLS TO CONTINUALLY PUT IT OUT IN THEIR NEWSLETTERS AND MAILINGS. WE ARE FINDING THE APP IS GETTING A LOT OF UTILIZATION. AND NOT JUST THIS, BUT IN A LOT OF THINGS. SO YEAH. AND TO MICHELLE'S POINT, I THINK, YOU KNOW, SOME FAMILIES STRUGGLE WITH INTERNET ACCESS. VERY FEW FAMILIES STRUGGLE WITH CELLPHONE ACCESS. SO I THINK ANYTHING THAT YOU'RE ABLE TO, LIKE, READ IN A GOOD WAY THROUGH THROUGH A PHONE IS HAS BEEN SUCCESSFUL FOR THE FAMILIES IN OUR COMMUNITY. IF THE PARENT DOESN'T BOTHER WITH CPS, BUT THEY'RE ALWAYS ON COLONEL THAT THAT THAT LINK IS THERE. YEAH. THERE YOU GO. YEAH, COLONEL. OR EVERY SCHOOL IS GONE. RIGHT. RIGHT. OKAY. OKAY. THANK YOU. YOU'RE VERY WELCOME. THAT'S GREAT. THAT'S GREAT. YES, MA'AM. DR. SIMMONS REFERRING TO DRESS CODE, WE HAD THE LADY WHO CAME LAST YEAR WHO WAS VERY CONCERNED ABOUT OUR DRESS CODE POLICY. WAS SHE INCLUDED IN THE. SHE'S IN. SHE IS ON MR. FEEDBACK MEETING WITH HER THIS WEEK. WE'RE GOING OVER SOME OF THE PROPOSALS, AND THEN IT WILL COME TO THE SCHOOL BASED COMMITTEES AS WELL AS THE STREET LEVEL COMMITTEES. I ALWAYS GET ALL THE ACRONYMS MIXED UP. I'M STILL LEARNING THEM ALL. AND THEN EVENTUALLY, ONCE ALL THAT FEEDBACK IS GIVEN, THEN IT WILL COME TO YOU ALL TO REVIEW. YEAH. SO AFTER THE BOARD MAKES A RECOMMENDATIONS AT THE OCTOBER MEETING AND CAC GETS ESTABLISHED, THIS WILL BE ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS THEY REVIEW BEFORE IT COMES TO YOU. THE GOAL IS HOPEFULLY BY THE NOVEMBER BOARD MEETING, THE DRAFT REVISIONS WILL COME TO THE BOARD FOR APPROVAL. YES. AND AGAIN, I GO BACK TO MY STATEMENT EARLIER. I REALLY DO APPRECIATE THE VERY THOUGHTFUL AND, YOU KNOW, STEP BY STEP APPROACH THAT WE TAKE BECAUSE IT'S GOING TO IMPACT EVERYBODY. SO IT MAKES SENSE TO TAKE YOUR TIME, TRY TO GET IT RIGHT. YOU'RE NEVER GOING TO MAKE EVERY ONE 100% HAPPY, BUT YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYBODY FEELS THAT THEIR VOICE WAS HEARD. SO THAT'S GOOD BECAUSE SHE WAS VERY SINCERE ABOUT I MEAN, WE ALL GOT NOTEBOOKS OF INFORMATION, AND SO WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE SHE WAS INCLUDED. YEAH. YEAH. THANK YOU. I'D LOVE TO SEE THE NOTEBOOK. ANYBODY HAVE A NOTEBOOK TO SHARE? I'D BE HAPPY TO LET YOU BORROW MY COPY. YEP. YEAH. MR. HOWIE RECEIVED MY COPY TO HELP WITH REVISING. MEAN MUCH TO ME A COUPLE OF MONTHS. THAT WAS A QUICK ALSO. YEAH. I DON'T NEED TO KEEP IT FOREVER. I JUST BORROW FROM MR. [01:10:01] MARTIN. I'M NOT GOING TO DRAG THESE COUPLE MONTHS OUT. NO, I KNOW RIGHT WHERE IT IS. THAT WAS QUICK. A COUPLE OF TIMES SINCE THEN, I JUST HAD A COUPLE QUESTIONS TO AND UNDER THE. PLEASE NOTE FOR UNDER THE FLOWCHART IT SAYS ADMIN SLASH SECURITY. SHOULD WE CHANGE THAT WORD SECURITY OR IS THAT A STATE? THIS WAS TAKEN FROM A STATE MODEL. SO THAT THAT IS USED. THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT WE SEND OUT SAYING, HEY EVERYONE, THIS IS THIS IS TO HELP OUR STAFF. OKAY. YEAH. I WASN'T SURE IF WE NEEDED TO CHANGE THAT WORD TO SRO OR HOW THAT SHOULD. WE DON'T HAVE SRO IN THE GUIDE THE CODE OF CONDUCT GUIDE BOOK. IT SPECIFIES THE ROLES OF THE SRO. THAT'S WHAT WHICH HELPS KEEP THE SRO OUT OF THE DISCIPLINE PROCESS. YEAH. BECAUSE WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE AND OURS HAVE BEEN GREAT. YES. BUT WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE IT WAS A POINT OF HAVING RICO ON THE COMMITTEE AS WELL, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CONTINUE TO NOT BLUR THOSE LINES. YES, YES. I FIGURED IT WAS SOMETHING FROM THE STATE. YEAH. JUST. YEAH. BUT NO. GREAT, GREAT. WE DO HAVE. YES, YES. YEAH. SO AND THEN THE OTHER QUESTION, THE IT'S ACTUALLY I GUESS A COUPLE QUESTIONS, BUT THE LUNCH DETENTION DOES THAT IF IT, IF THEY GO TO THE TEACHER, DOES THAT AFFECT THEIR CONTRACT IN ANY WAY FOR THE DUTY FREE. MOST OF OUR SCHOOLS THAT USE LUNCH DETENTION, THE TEACHER CAN ASSIGN IT AND THEY SEND THEM TO THE TAP ROOM, OR THEY HAVE A DESIGNATED TABLE IN THE CAFETERIA OR A DESIGNATED SPACE, SO THE TEACHER STILL GETS THEIR 30 MINUTES DUTY FREE. NOW WE WILL HAVE SOME TEACHERS WHO WILL SAY, YOUR LUNCH DETENTION IS WITH ME. GO GET YOUR FOOD, SIT IN MY ROOM AND THEY'LL SIT THERE AND EAT. BUT IT'S NOT A REQUIREMENT, SO. OKAY, YEAH I JUST. BUT NO. GREAT, GREAT. I JUST WANT TO. WE'RE NOT REQUIRING THEM TO. YES, YES. AND THE OTHER THING THE OUR DETENTION AND THE THREE OUR SECOND AND THIRD DEFENSE IS THAT AFTER SCHOOL, IN SCHOOL AFTER. IF IT'S A DETENTION, IT'S AFTER SCHOOL. YES. WHO'S DOING AFTER SCHOOL? WE HAVE SOME SCHOOLS THAT WILL ELECT TO AND THEY CAN FUND IT. NOW THAT WE ARE MOVING MORE INTO THE COMMUNITY SCHOOLS REALM WE'LL START TO SEE WE'RE NOT THERE YET, BUT AT LEAST AT OUR HIGH SCHOOLS, WE DO HAVE THE LATE BUSSES FOR CREDIT RECOVERY. YEP. YOU WILL SEE MORE AFTER SCHOOL BUSSING HAPPENING. THAT'S WHY. SO KIDS WOULD HAVE THE ABILITY TO GET HOME. BUT IF IT IS ONE OF THOSE AND THEY HAVE A LUNCH DETENTION, THERE'S NO TRANSPORTATION. PARENTS DON'T HAVE IT. THAT'S PROBABLY NOT THE BEST TRIGGER TO PULL FOR THAT KID BECAUSE THEY'RE GOING TO BE STUCK. YEAH. PLAY WITH YEAH. THAT'S GIVES THEM THE LEEWAY TO BE ABLE TO. AND I THINK IT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I USED TO SHARE WITH TEACHERS AGAIN BACK WHAT FEELS LIKE THE STONE AGE. NOW WHEN A REFERRAL COMES TO THE OFFICE, THE ADMINISTRATOR ONLY HAS SO MANY CARDS THEY CAN PULL. YEAH, THEY REALLY DO TO VARYING, VARYING SEVERITY, BUT I ONLY HAVE X NUMBER OF CARDS I CAN PULL OUT OF MY POCKET. THE TEACHER HAS A LOT MORE FLEXIBILITY AND FREEDOM, AND AT THE END OF THE DAY, THE KID WILL BE BACK IN THEIR CLASS UNLESS IT'S SOMETHING MASSIVELY SEVERE. SO IF THE TEACHER CAN WORK THROUGH USING THEIR CONSEQUENCES AND SUPPORT, USUALLY IT CAN BE RESOLVED AT THAT LEVEL. AND AGAIN, THEY HAVE A LOT MORE FLEXIBILITY. HOPEFULLY THEY GAIN RESPECT FOR EACH OTHER AND KIND OF WORK ON THAT PARTNERSHIP. THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE HOPING IS THAT RELATIONSHIP BUILDS. AND I HAVE TO SAY THESE ARE SUGGESTIONS AND EXAMPLES. IT'S NOT EXHAUSTIVE, RIGHT. IT'S NOT EVERYTHING UNDER THE SUN. SO YEAH. I LIKE TO KEEP THAT IN MIND TO HELP GUIDE. NOT NOT YEAH. NO WE HAVE SOME WILL SOME PEOPLE. YES. YEAH. YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHAT I WAS KIND OF CURIOUS ABOUT. YEAH. SWEET. THANK YOU. YOU'RE VERY WELCOME. THANK YOU. NOW WE WILL CONTINUE TO GET FEEDBACK. THANK YOU, MR. HOWIE. WE'LL CONTINUE THE FEEDBACK. THIS HAS BEEN PART OF OUR STRONGER CONNECTIONS GRANT WORK. DR. DALE AND SOME OF YOU HAVE MET THE MRS. DR. DALE, HER HUSBAND, DR. DALE, ALSO PART OF THE STRONGER CONNECTIONS GRANT. THAT'S K-12 EDUCATION SOLUTIONS. AS A FORMER STUDENT SERVICES DIRECTOR THAT ACTUALLY I WORKED WITH WHEN HE WAS IN WORCESTER COUNTY AND THEN IN HOWARD COUNTY, AND HE'S HELPED GUIDE A LOT OF THIS WORK AS WELL WITH THE COMMITTEE AND MEETING WITH THEM RIGHT AFTER THIS. YEP. TO CONTINUE OUR WORK. BUT WE WILL CONTINUE TO GET FEEDBACK AND WORK THROUGH IT AND MONITOR THE CONSISTENCY PIECE AMONGST OUR SCHOOLS. A COUPLE COMMENTS ABOUT IT, BUT REALLY NOT QUESTIONS? I DON'T THINK SO. AND FROM THE BOARD'S PERSPECTIVE, A LOT OF THE CONSISTENCY AND THE BEST PRACTICES PART RESONATE WITH ME, BECAUSE WHEN SOMEBODY APPEALS AND THEY GET IN THIS ROOM AND WE'RE HEARING AN APPEAL, WE'RE LISTENING TO AN APPEAL HEARING AND GOING THROUGH THAT PROCESS, CONSISTENCY AT THAT SCHOOL MATTER, CONSISTENCY BETWEEN SCHOOLS, BECAUSE THEY CAN PUT OUT THERE AS A MITIGATING FACTOR OR A DEFENSE THAT, YOU KNOW, WHY AM I BEING TREATED DIFFERENT THAN SOMEONE ELSE? YOU'RE GOING TO WE'RE GOING TO HEAR THAT. AND SO THAT THAT'S WHAT'S SO IMPORTANT HERE. AND VERY PLEASED TO HEAR THAT THE BEST PRACTICES, IF SOMEBODY CHALLENGES A PRACTICE AND IT'S RELATED TO WHAT'S DONE AS A STANDARD IN THE STATE OR NATIONALLY, ONCE [01:15:08] AGAIN GIVES THE BOARD AN EASIER OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE A THOUGHTFUL DECISION. SO WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE A LOT OF POINTS YOU RAISED, WHEN THAT'S NOT IN PLACE, THIS BOARD IS GOING TO FIND ITSELF TRYING TO DECIDE SOMETHING BASED JUST ON COMMON SENSE. AND THERE'S ALWAYS GOING TO BE THAT YOU REFERENCE THAT THERE'S GOING TO BE THINGS YOU JUST CAN'T ANTICIPATE, PERHAPS. AND THAT MIGHT BE WHAT COMES UP. BUT MORE OFTEN THAN NOT SO FAR WHAT WE'VE SEEN IS SOMEBODY WHO DIDN'T BEHAVE WELL, ADMITS IT, AND THEY JUST WANT TO GET A BREAK. AND THAT'S OKAY. THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT. SO HAVING THIS AND UPDATING IT AND YOU RELEASED IT THIS SUMMER, IS THERE PUBLIC COMMENT MUCH YET? PROBABLY NOT, BECAUSE THEY HAVEN'T GOTTEN IN TROUBLE YET. NO, BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T HAD A LOT OF MASSIVE CHANGES THAT HAVE OCCURRED. RIGHT. WE'LL GET CONTINUAL COMMENTS WITH SOME OF THE UPDATES WE'RE MAKING WHEN WE FINALIZE AND PUSH THE DRESS CODE OUT. I'M SURE THERE WILL BE FEEDBACK FOR THAT. YOU KNOW, AND THOSE ARE THE AREAS WHERE YOU TEND TO SEE THE THE MORE FREQUENT ISSUES OR THE MORE CONCERNING OR COLLECTIVELY INTERESTED PARTIES WILL WANT TO HAVE FEEDBACK AND COMMENT, WHICH IS WHY, AGAIN, THE APPROACH THAT WE'RE TAKING, WHERE YOU ELICIT THAT IN ADVANCE AND THROUGHOUT IS IMPORTANT. AT THE END OF THE YEAR WHEN WE PUT THAT SURVEY BACK OUT, THERE WILL BE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS THAT RELATE TO ANYTHING THAT WE'VE CHANGED, BE IT DRESS CODE, THE YONDER IMPLEMENTATION, ETC. SO WE HEAR WHAT WAS THE OVERALL CONSENSUS FROM OUR COMMUNITY? DID WE HIT THE MARK? DID WE MISS SOMETHING? ARE THERE IMPROVEMENTS THAT WE NEED TO MAKE? ARE THERE CHANGES WE NEED TO MAKE? HOPEFULLY MOST OF THOSE WILL BE PROCESS OR REGULATORY, NOT IN A POLICY TYPE FORMAT. SO IT IS JUST US REFINING OUR PRACTICES AND CONTINUING TO GET BETTER. YEAH, THAT'S REALLY GOOD. AND THERE'S SO MANY GOOD ELEMENTS THERE. ONE OTHER OH. SO AND I THINK YOU WERE SAYING THIS, I JUST WANT TO KIND OF KIND OF UNDERSCORE THAT FOR THE PARENTS TO HAVE AN UNDERSTANDABLE FORMAT, A READER FRIENDLY. IT'S NOT BECAUSE THEY CAN'T UNDERSTAND. IT'S NOT BECAUSE THERE'S ANYTHING WRONG WITH THEM. THEY'RE NOT GOING TO KNOW THE ACRONYMS, THE JARGON, LEGALESE. PERHAPS THEY MIGHT OR MIGHT NOT UNDERSTAND IT, BUT YOU WANT IT TO BE READER FRIENDLY. YOU WANT THEM NOT TO HAVE TO SPEND A LOT OF TIME DECIPHERING THE MEANING OF A PHRASE, OR THAT SORT OF THING IN A PRECISE BUT EASY TO UNDERSTAND BECAUSE THEY DON'T LIVE IT ON A DAILY BASIS. THEIR CHILD MAY HAVE DONE SOMETHING. THERE'S BEEN DISCIPLINE. THEY DON'T UNDERSTAND ENTIRELY WHAT IT WAS ABOUT. SO THAT'S SUPER IMPORTANT. AGAIN, IT WILL AFFECT THIS BOARD. WHEN YOU LOOK AT AN APPEAL HEARING, HOW CLEAR WAS THE CONDUCT? UNDERSTANDABLE FOR PARENTS. AGAIN, NOT BECAUSE THEY'RE STUPID. IT'S BECAUSE THEY DON'T DEAL WITH IT ON A DAILY BASIS. AND IT'S A LOT OF A LOT TO HAVE TO UNDERSTAND. SO THAT PART MEANS A LOT. SO AGAIN, THOSE THINGS FOR ME WHEN I'M LOOKING TO JUST FROM PERSPECTIVE, ALL THE OTHER THINGS ARE, YOU KNOW, THE DOTS ARE BEING CONNECTED, IF YOU WILL. THE PIECES ARE CONNECTED VERY WELL TO THE BOARD. WHEN WE GET TO THAT APPEAL HEARING LEVEL, WE WANT THIS TO BE SOMETHING WE CAN RULE ON AND BE, YOU KNOW, BE THOUGHTFUL ON IT AND NOT FIND OURSELVES GUESSING. AND SO FAR WE'VE BEEN WE'VE BEEN REALLY GOOD. IT'S ALL BEEN REALLY GOOD THAT WAY. LIKE YOU SAID, THERE'S NOT A LOT OF MAJOR CHANGES. AND THAT TEAM DID A LOT OF WORK. BUT IT'S GOOD TO GO THROUGH THAT PROCESS AND I CAN'T. I HAVE TO CONTINUE TO HIGHLIGHT THAT WORK THAT WAS DONE BEFORE MY ARRIVAL WAS EXTENSIVE. I THOUGHT YOU DID ALL THOROUGH. NO, NO. AND MISS BERRY DID AN EXCELLENT JOB OF MAKING SURE THE COMMUNICATION PLAN WAS CONSISTENT ACROSS THE SCHOOLS. AND IT'S BEEN CONTINUAL SO THAT THAT CONTINUAL SHARING OF INFORMATION IS WHAT I THINK IS THE MOST CRITICAL PART. WELL DONE. THANK YOU. YEAH. OKAY. HOW MUCH TIME WILL THERE BE FOR THE PUBLIC TO LOOK AT THE REVISIONS TO THE DRESS CODE BEFORE WE ACTUALLY END UP. SO IT'S THE CAC WILL GET IT. THE SAME TIME THE CAC DOES IS TYPICALLY WHEN WE PUT IT OUT FOR PUBLIC COMMENT, WHICH DEPENDING ON USUALLY CAC MEETINGS LIKE MID OCTOBER. SO THERE WILL BE A COUPLE WEEKS LIKELY. AND DEPENDING ON WHAT WE GET FEEDBACK ON THE BOARD HAS THE ABILITY TO DISCUSS IT AT NOVEMBER. AND THEN IF YOU NEED ADDITIONAL TIME TO DISCUSS BEFORE MOVING FORWARD, YOU COULD. YEAH, I JUST WANTED TO DELAY A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME IF YOU NEEDED TO. I JUST THINK WITH THIS JUST BECAUSE OF THE FACT THAT THERE'S, IT'S ONE OF THE, ONE OF THE ISSUES THAT PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, MAKE SURE IT'S GOING TO BE A LARGE CHANGE. YEAH. JUST WHAT WAS THE LAST TIME IT WAS 90S? YEAH, YEAH, WE SPENT A LOT OF TIME LOOKING AT WHAT OTHER BOARDS HAVE ALREADY APPROVED IN THE STATE OF MARYLAND. [01:20:06] TAKEN A LOT NOT TO LET THE FALL, AS WE'RE STILL KIND OF FINALIZING. AND WE WANT TO GET MORE FEEDBACK. WE'VE TAKEN OUT WE'VE MADE IT MORE GENDER NEUTRAL. WE'VE TRIED TO MAKE IT AS NEUTRAL BOTH CULTURALLY AND GENDER AS AS WE THINK WE CAN. WE'VE TRIED TO STREAMLINE IT AND WE'VE TRIED TO THINK ABOUT WHAT IS TRULY ENFORCEABLE. LIKE WHAT? DON'T PUT SOMETHING IN THAT WE'RE NOT GOING TO ENFORCE AND WHAT REALLY MATTERS. SPEND ALL DAY ENFORCING. AND. YEAH, AND WHAT MATTERS IN THE ENVIRONMENT AND CURRENT POLICY THAT WAS APPROVED IN THE 90S IS REALLY THE POLICY. AND THE REG WERE ENTWINED. AND THERE'S A LOT OF MINUTIA IN IT. SO WE ARE WE'RE BEING VERY COGNIZANT OF WHAT SHOULD GO TO THE BOARD AS A POLICY THAT SETS THE GENERAL FRAMEWORK WITH DRAFT REGULATIONS THAT MEET IT AND NOT HAVE. I THINK THE CURRENT ONE IS PROBABLY 13 PAGES. THAT DISCUSSES EVERY LEVEL OF DETAIL YOU CAN IMAGINE. THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 16 DIFFERENT CATEGORIES THAT ARE CITED ON THE CURRENT POLICY. THE OVERWHELMING MAJORITY THAT REALLY OUGHT TO BE IN A REGULATION, NOT IN A POLICY. SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE IT'S IN LINE WITH THE MISSION AND VISION OF OUR SCHOOL DISTRICT AND THE EXPECTATIONS IN OUR COMMUNITY. AS FAR AS THE POLICY GOES, THE REGULATION WILL ALLOW US TO APPLY ALL THAT FEEDBACK WE GET FROM THE DIFFERENT STAKEHOLDERS TO MAKE SURE THAT WHAT WE PUT OUT IS FAIR, CONSISTENT, EASILY UNDERSTOOD AND ABLE TO BE IMPLEMENTED. THAT'S IMPORTANT. IT CAN BE IMPLEMENTED BECAUSE POLICY IS KIND OF LIKE SET IN STONE. AND THE REGULATION YOU CAN. YEP. CORRECT. YEAH. YEAH. SO YOU SAID THAT BACK IN THE STONE AGE. IS THAT HOW YOU REFERRED TO IT? FOR ME, I THINK BEING AT THE BUILDING LEVEL, IT FEELS LIKE IT. MAYBE EVEN BEFORE THE STONE AGE. SOMEONE THE OTHER DAY REFERRED NOT ONLY TO THE PUBLIC MEETING. I'LL KEEP THAT FOR ALL OF US WHO'VE WRITTEN BY FRED. THANK YOU. I DEFINITELY THINK I'M A LOT OLDER AT DIFFERENT TIMES. YES. CULTURE CHANGES. YEAH. SOCIETY CHANGES EXPECTATIONS. AND THAT IS THE PIECE OF THE DRESS CODE IS SOCIETY DOES CHANGE. SO I KNOW WHEN I LOOKED AT THE BOOK THE WOMAN GAVE US, I'M LOOKING AT OUR POLICY. THERE'RE SOME THINGS IN THERE, YOU KNOW, JUST NOT UP TO DATE, THAT'S ALL. IT'S NOT GETTING SOFTER. IT'S JUST NOT UP TO DATE WITH WHAT IS JUST ONE OF THOSE POLICIES THAT KIND OF JUST. NO, FRANKLY, NOBODY WANTED TO OPEN IT BECAUSE IT'S SUCH AN, IT'S A TEXT. YEAH. AND THERE'S A LOT OF FEELINGS. IT'S KIND OF LIKE THE SCHOOL CALENDAR. GOSH, I MEAN, I MEAN, IT REALLY IT REALLY PROBABLY WILL BE. YOU WILL NEVER FIND THE PERFECT DRESS CODE THAT MAKES EVERYBODY HAPPY. YOU'LL NEVER FIND THE PERFECT CALENDAR THAT DOES. SO YOU HAVE TO KIND OF. DID YOU HEAR FROM EVERYBODY AND FIND THE BEST MEDIUM THAT MEETS OUR MISSION AND VISION AND KEEPS THE FOCUS WHERE IT SHOULD BE? I THINK THAT PART OF MY QUESTION IS NOT REALLY A QUESTION, BUT I THINK THAT'S THE MAIN THING, IS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE PUBLIC THROUGH THE SCHOOLS, HOWEVER WE CAN DO IT TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S KNOWN THAT IT'S BEING WORKED ON AND IT'S KNOWN WHAT THE CHANGES ARE AND THAT THERE'S PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR PEOPLE TO WHILE THIS IS GOING ON, TO BE ABLE TO YOU KNOW, TO EXPRESS WHAT THEY, WHAT THEIR FEELINGS ARE EVEN AT THE END, MAKE SURE THROUGH PUBLIC COMMENT OR WHATEVER OTHER MEETINGS, JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S NOT A QUESTION THAT WHAT'S BEING DONE, YOU KNOW, THAT WE'RE WORKING, THAT IT'S BEING WORKED ON. AND I ALSO THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT YOU HAD A COMMUNITY MEMBER BRING THIS TO YOUR ATTENTION LAST YEAR, A VERY THOROUGH AND WELL-MEANING WAY. I'M COMMUNICATING WITH THAT COMMUNITY MEMBER TO MAKE THEM PART OF THE PROCESS. AGAIN, WE'RE NOT RUSHING THINGS, BUT WE ARE HEARING WHAT THE COMMUNITY HAS CONCERNS ABOUT AND FOLLOWING UP ON THOSE CONCERNS. AND BUT WE'RE DOING IT IN A PROGRAMMATIC WAY TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE CONSENSUS AND COME UP WITH THE MOST LIVABLE AND, YOU KNOW, A HAPPY COMPROMISE THAT EVERYONE CAN IMPLEMENT AND LIVE WITH. IT'S FAIR TO ALL PARTIES SO THAT'S THE GOAL. AND I THINK WE'RE DOING A VERY GOOD JOB OF THAT AS A OVERALL APPROACH TO THE WAY WE DO BUSINESS. AND THIS IS NO DIFFERENT THAN THAT. YOU CAN'T WAIT 25 YEARS TO LOOK AT IT AGAIN. NO. AND AGAIN, I THINK DR. WILLOUGHBY. WELL AS WE AND THAT'S BEEN, AND I APPRECIATE THE BOARD'S SUPPORT IN THIS. IT'S WHY WE'RE GETTING BACK INTO A REGULAR ROUTINE OF POLICY REVIEWS, WHICH SOMETIMES MIGHT BE A LITTLE BORING AND SOME OF THEM WERE DEALING WITH, BUT IT'S ONE OF THE BIGGEST LEVERS OF A BOARD. GOT TO DO IT. SO WE'VE GOT TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR POLICIES ARE REVIEWED EVERY AT LEAST EVERY FOUR, FOUR YEARS ON A CYCLE. AND WE'RE STAYING ABREAST AND CURRENT AND NOT SHYING FROM POLICIES THAT JUST AREN'T GOING TO BE FUN. [01:25:01] SO, YOU KNOW, SEE THEY AGREE. I THINK THERE'S A DISCIPLINARY ACTION GOING ON. THAT'S RIGHT. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. WELL DONE. YES. MR. HOWIE HAS ANOTHER MEETING. SO SORRY. YEP. NO. YOU'RE FINE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. YES. MR. BARRY IS GOING TO WORK ON A RELEASE THAT'S GOING TO FINISH AND RELEASE. THAT WILL GO OUT AFTER OUR DECISION. THE NEWS IS ALREADY OUT THERE. YEAH, IT IS IN THE NEWSPAPER. WE'LL DO THE OFFICIAL. ALL RIGHT, SO UPCOMING MEETINGS AND EVENTS, TWO THAT I'LL MENTION WE HAVE OUR NEXT REGULAR BOARD MEETING OCTOBER 1ST. [4. Upcoming Meetings/Events] OF COURSE, WE HAVE THE SPREADSHEET THAT RACHEL CREATES AND UPDATES FOR US. ALSO, THE MAIN CONFERENCE COMING UP SHORTLY AFTER THE OCTOBER 1ST MEETING THE FOLLOWING WEEK, I BELIEVE. I WANT TO THANK OUR BOARD FOR COMMITTING TO THE CONFERENCE. AND OUR ONE MEMBER WHO WILL BE COMING ONTO THE BOARD FOR THE ATTENDING THE CONFERENCE. THE AGENDA SEEING A DRAFT OF IT EVEN AS EARLY AS OR AS LATE AS FRIDAY OF LAST WEEK. LOOKS TO BE A VERY GOOD AGENDA, VERY ENGAGING, MEANINGFUL AGENDA. A LOT OF WORK AROUND THINGS THAT BOARDS WILL BE FACING AS IT RELATES TO BLUEPRINT AND OTHER COMPONENTS. IT'S GOING TO BE VERY WELL ATTENDED BY MSDE INDIVIDUALS, AIB FOLKS. BUT THEY'VE DONE A GREAT JOB OF REALLY PUTTING TOGETHER WHAT LOOKS TO BE A REALLY GOOD CONFERENCE AND LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT OPPORTUNITY AND BEING THERE IN CAROLINE, HAVING SUCH A STRONG SHOWING. NOT A COMMENTARY ABOUT THE PRIOR. NO, NOT AT ALL. OF MAY. YEAH. BUT I'LL SAY I'LL ECHO A LITTLE BIT HERE. LAST YEAR WAS THE FIRST YEAR AS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF MAIB, AND I SAW A DIFFERENCE IN THAT CONFERENCE. JUST A NEW APPROACH, AND I HAVE A FEELING WHAT YOU'RE SAYING IS GOING TO BE THE CASE THIS YEAR. AGAIN, NOT CRITICIZING THE PRIOR PERSON. EVERYBODY HAS A DIFFERENT WAY OF DOING THINGS, BUT THE AGENDA LOOKED MORE INTERESTING LAST YEAR, AND I THINK THIS YEAR IT'S JUST ANOTHER STEP IN THAT DIRECTION. YEAH, SAM'S MADE SOME, OUR ASSOCIATION HAS MADE SOME DECISIONS TO MOVE SOME OF OUR MEETINGS THAT HAVE TRADITIONALLY ALWAYS HAPPENED IN THE MIDST OF TO BEING IN THE LATE AFTERNOON OR ANOTHER TIME, SO WE CAN ATTEND SOME OF THE SESSIONS AS WELL. IT'S THEY REALLY HAVE DONE A GREAT JOB PUTTING TOGETHER A MEANINGFUL AGENDA. I'VE NOTICED AS THE CONFERENCE WENT ON CLOSER TO THE END, EVEN FROM HALFWAY POINT ON, IT BECAME A GHOST TOWN AND IT WAS ALMOST LIKE DR. HRABOWSKI RETIRED FROM THE UMBC, A TREMENDOUS SPEAKER. HE SPOKE AT THE AT THE BANQUET, WHICH WAS THE LAST EVENING. I THINK THEY HAD SOMETHING THE NEXT DAY AND THE ROOM WAS HALF FULL. AND HE'S WORTH HEARING. YES. BUT PEOPLE HAVE OTHER THINGS TO DO. AND THE AGENDA WASN'T LOOKING REALLY STRONG UP TO THAT POINT. SO I THINK ANOTHER THING WAS IT THE LAST DAY WAS ALWAYS THE TRAFFIC DAY. YEAH. OH, YEAH. YES. OH, YES. YOU'RE RIGHT. BECAUSE IT WAS ALWAYS LATER IN THE WEEK WILL BE BETTER. YEAH. YEAH. IT WAS MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY. MUCH BETTER. GOOD MOVE. THAT'S ONE OF THOSE LITTLE THINGS. YEAH. YEAH. SO. OKAY. I THINK WE ARE. WE CAN ADJOURN. BEFORE YOU ADJOURN, IF THAT'S OKAY, MR. MARTIN? YEAH. I WANT TO PUBLICLY MAKE SURE THAT I SAY THANK YOU TO THE BOARD FOR THE RECOMMENDATION. THANKS, MARK. AND THE BOARD ACCEPTING THE RECOMMENDATION FOR THE WORK SESSION IN THE MORNING. YEAH. WE CAN DEBRIEF WHETHER IT HOW IT'S GOING AS THE TIME MOVES ON. BUT I WILL TELL YOU THAT FOR MY STAFF AND THE THINKING ABOUT JUST ENERGY LEVEL BEING PREPARED, IT REALLY WAS, WAS A WELCOME CHANGE THAT FOLKS ARE VERY EXCITED ABOUT, AND NOT SAYING THEY WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN AS ENGAGED AT 6:00 AT NIGHT, BUT I JUST FELT IT WAS JUST A REALLY GREAT MOVE. SO THANK YOU FOR MAKING THAT RECOMMENDATION AND THANK YOU ALL FOR ACCEPTING THAT RECOMMENDATION AS SOMETHING TO TRY. AND THE MEETINGS RECORDED SO PEOPLE CAN WATCH IT LATER. IF THEY'RE WORKING DURING THE DAY AND CAN'T LOOK AT IT, THEY CAN WATCH IT LATER. AND ONE OF OUR MEETINGS IS IN THE EVENING. SO GREAT IDEA, GREAT SUGGESTION. I'M GLAD IT'S WORKED OUT AND I THINK IT'S GOING WELL. I THINK IN NOVEMBER I ASKED THAT WE NOT DO IT BECAUSE I WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO BE HERE, BE MY LAST FULL MEETING. I KIND OF WANT TO BE AT IT, BUT OTHER THAN THAT, I THINK IT'S A REALLY GOOD THING TO KEEP DOING IN MY OPINION. SO OCTOBER, WE'LL DO IT AGAIN. YEP, I LIKE IT. OKAY, WE HAVE A MOTION TO ADJOURN. I CAN MAKE A MOTION TO ADJOURN AND A SECOND. I'LL SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. WE ARE ADJOURNED. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.