Feb 25, 2026 February 25, 2026 - Business Meeting

[00:00:02]

OKAY. GOOD EVENING AND WELCOME TO THE BOARD OF EDUCATION MEETING OF FEBRUARY FEBRUARY 25TH,

[2.1 Call to Order]

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.

NATALIE, WOULD YOU PLEASE REITERATE OUR EXECUTIVE SESSION MOTIONS?

[2.3 Reiteration of Executive Session Motions]

[2.4 Opening Remarks]

I'D LIKE TO EXTEND A SINCERE THANK YOU TO THE DISTRICT'S FACILITIES TEAM FOR PREPARING OUR SCHOOLS FOR A SAFE OPENING THIS MORNING, AND TO EACH OF OUR VILLAGES DPW CREWS FOR CLEARING OUR STREETS AFTER THE BLIZZARD.

THANK YOU AS WELL TO THE ENTIRE PELHAM COMMUNITY FOR CARING FOR YOUR PROPERTIES AND ASSISTING NEIGHBORS DURING AND AFTER THE STORM.

A FEW NOTABLE BUSINESS ITEMS TONIGHT WE HAVE A STUDENT RECOGNITION.

THIS EVENING, WE CONGRATULATE PELHAM MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR EMMA EMILY WOLKE, WHO HAS BEEN NAMED A TOP 300 SCHOLAR IN THE PRESTIGIOUS REGENERON SCIENCE TALENT SEARCH. OUT OF APPROXIMATELY 2600 APPLICANTS NATIONWIDE.

THIS IS AN EXTRAORDINARY AND HIGHLY COMPETITIVE ACHIEVEMENT.

CONGRATULATIONS TO EMILY AND TO OUR ENTIRE SCIENCE RESEARCH PROGRAM.

I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO ATTEND THE SENIOR RESEARCH SYMPOSIUM A FEW WEEKS AGO, AND IT'S CLEAR THAT THIS PROGRAM IS PRODUCING YOUNG SCIENTISTS WHO SEEK OUT AND SECURE OPPORTUNITIES TO CONDUCT ORIGINAL RESEARCH ALONGSIDE ESTABLISHED SCIENTISTS.

THE PROGRAM'S DEDICATED FACULTY HAVE HELPED SHAPE THESE STUDENTS INTO AWARD WINNING RESEARCHERS WHILE STILL IN HIGH SCHOOL.

IT IS TRULY INCREDIBLE AND A PRIME EXAMPLE OF EXCELLENCE IN THE PELHAM PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

WE ARE ALSO JOINED BY ALEX WOLFE AND JESSICA SHELTON FROM NSPR, WHO WILL PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF THE RESULTS FROM THE DISTRICT'S SCOPE COMMUNICATIONS SURVEY. THIS IS THE SECOND ITERATION OF THE SURVEY, THE SECOND ITERATION OF THE SURVEY, AND I COMMEND ALEX AND THE DISTRICT FOR THEIR COMMITMENT TO CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT IN SCHOOL COMMUNICATIONS.

CONDUCTING THIS SURVEY REFLECTS LEADING PRACTICE IN PUBLIC EDUCATION, AS EVIDENCED BY ITS INSPIRES RECOGNITION AS BOTH A CASE STUDY AND AN AWARD WINNING EFFORT, AS WELL AS THE IMPROVEMENTS RECOGNIZED BY THE PELHAM COMMUNITY.

ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF EXCELLENCE IN PELHAM PUBLIC SCHOOLS, DOCTOR CHAMP WILL ALSO PRESENT AN OVERVIEW OF THE PROPOSED 2026 2027 BUDGET. THE BUDGET REFLECTS THE PELHAM COMMUNITY'S VALUES WHEN IT COMES TO EDUCATION.

DESPITE INCREASING FINANCIAL PRESSURES, INCLUDING RISING COSTS IN HEALTH CARE, SPECIAL EDUCATION AND TRANSPORTATION, THE DISTRICT HAS EMBRACED THE BOARD'S DIRECTION TO PRESERVE THE ROBUST PROGRAMING THAT FORMS THE FOUNDATION OF OUR EDUCATIONAL EXCELLENCE, WHILE CONTINUING TO MANAGE EXPENSES, INCLUDING STAFFING LEVELS AND DEVELOPING A TAX CAP COMPLIANT BUDGET.

MAKE NO MISTAKE, THIS IS ACCOMPLISHED ONLY THROUGH CAREFUL PLANNING.

DIFFICULT DECISIONS AND DOING AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE WITH LIMITED RESOURCES.

THE BUDGET MUST BE BOTH SUSTAINABLE AND FORWARD LOOKING, PARTICULARLY PARTICULARLY AS WE PREPARE TO BORROW FOR THE BOND PROJECTS APPROVED LAST MAY. PROJECTS THAT CANNOT COME SOON ENOUGH, AS WE'RE ALREADY EXPERIENCING INFRASTRUCTURE FAILURES, INCLUDING TWO BOILERS, ONE AT THE HIGH SCHOOL AND ONE AT PROSPECT HILL.

I THANK THE COMMUNITY IN ADVANCE FOR TAKING THE TIME TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IS AT STAKE DURING THE BUDGET PROCESS.

WHILE THE DISTRICT HAS KEPT THIS PROPOSED BUDGET WITHIN THE TAX CAP, IT HAS DONE SO BY CONTINUING CONTINUING TO DO MORE WITH LESS.

SOMETHING THAT CANNOT CONTINUE INDEFINITELY WITH IMPACTING WITHOUT IMPACTING PROGRAM.

MANY PEER DISTRICTS HAVE ALREADY EXCEEDED OR PLANNED TO EXCEED THE TAX CAP BEFORE THE WINTER BREAK.

WE ALSO HELD SEVERAL COMMITTEE MEETINGS, INCLUDING BOND STEERING.

OUR PROTOCOL IS TO HOLD THE COMMITTEE MEETING, PROVIDE A DEBRIEF AT THE FOLLOWING BOARD MEETING AND INCLUDE IT IN OUR BOARD WRAP UP.

SO HERE IS A BRIEF UPDATE AND I'LL ASK JIM TO ELABORATE MORE LATER.

[00:05:01]

RIGHT. OKAY. THE ARCHITECTS ANTICIPATE RECEIVING PERMITS AND BEGINNING THE BIDDING PROCESS IN MARCH, WITH CONSTRUCTION AND INTENDED TO BEGIN THIS SUMMER AT BOTH SCHOOLS OVER THE WINTER BREAK, SITE TESTING OCCURRED AT THE MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL CAMPUS AT SIWANOY.

GEOTECHNICAL TESTING ALSO TOOK PLACE OVER THE BREAK, WITH ADVANCE NOTICE PROVIDED TO THE COMMUNITY AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LOCAL REGULATIONS REGARDING DRILLING. THE COMMITTEE ALSO TOOK AN INFORMAL POLL ON WHETHER TO CONTINUE ASSESSING HYBRID CONSTRUCTION AT SIWANOY. HYBRID CONSTRUCTION WOULD INVOLVE SOME WORK OCCURRING ON SITE, SUCH AS THE IS THE FOUNDATION WITH CERTAIN COMPONENTS CONSTRUCTED OFF SITE AND THEN DELIVERED TO THE SCHOOL. THE QUALITY MATERIALS AND OVERALL CONSTRUCTION TIMELINE WOULD REMAIN THE SAME, BUT REDUCING ON SITE CONSTRUCTION TIME WOULD LESSEN LOCAL DISRUPTION.

TRITON HAS IDENTIFIED A VENDOR TO CONDUCT A FEASIBILITY STUDY ON THE HYBRID APPROACH, AND EARLY INDICATIONS SUGGEST IT IS FEASIBLE FOR THE SIWANOY PROJECT. WE ALSO HAVE SIX POLICIES UP FOR THIRD READING AND ONE POLICY UP FOR FIRST READING, ALL RELATED TO STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES. AS A REMINDER, THESE ARE NECESSARY UPDATES AND WILL NOT MATERIALLY CHANGE FAMILY'S EXPERIENCE WITH THE SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAM IN PELHAM. FINALLY, I WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS THE PROPOSED PICTURE HOUSE AND SURROUNDING AREA DEVELOPMENT WITH RESPECT TO SCHOOL DISTRICT INVOLVEMENT. THE VILLAGE OF PELHAM INVITED THE DISTRICT TO A WORKING SESSION LAST SPRING, WHICH TRUSTEE, BURKE AND VICE PRESIDENT ATTENDED.

AHEAD OF THE VILLAGE'S RFQ SUBMISSION, THE VILLAGE OFFERED THE DISTRICT THE OPPORTUNITY TO PARTICIPATE IN THE RFQ PROCESS TO EXPLORE WHETHER A POTENTIAL PROJECT COULD HELP ADDRESS CERTAIN FACILITY FACILITIES NEEDS.

ULTIMATELY, THE DISTRICT DID NOT PARTICIPATE IN THE RFQ, NOR DID WE REVIEW ANY DEVELOPER SUBMISSIONS.

THE BOARD HAD QUESTIONS ABOUT THE POTENTIAL PROJECT AND THE PROCESS BY WHICH PROPERTY WOULD BE OBTAINED.

QUESTIONS VERY SIMILAR TO THOSE THAT HAVE BEEN RAISED BY THE BROADER COMMUNITY AT THE TIME.

WE WERE ALSO FOCUSED SQUARELY ON ENSURING THE COMMUNITY HAD THE INFORMATION IT NEEDED TO VOTE ON THE BOND PROJECTS AND THE BUDGET.

WE REMAIN ALIGNED WITH THE DISTRICT'S PRIORITIES AT THAT TIME, AND THE VILLAGE'S REDEVELOPMENT PLAN WAS NOT AMONG THOSE PRIORITIES. WE WISH THE PICTUREHOUSE GREAT SUCCESS IN ITS PLANS, AND WE KNOW HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY AND THE ENTIRE PELHAM COMMUNITY.

WITH RESPECT TO DEVELOPMENT MORE BROADLY, TRUSTEE WILL SHREEVES RECENTLY SPOKE AT A VILLAGE OF PELHAM MEETING ON OUR BEHALF, SHARING SOME OF THE FINDINGS OF OUR DEMOGRAPHIC STUDY, WHICH SHOW ENROLLMENT INCREASES, PARTICULARLY PARTICULARLY AT COLONIAL SCHOOL AND THE HIGH SCHOOL. HE EMPHASIZED THE IMPORTANCE OF COORDINATION WITH THE SCHOOL DISTRICT ON ANY DEVELOPMENT, SO THAT WE CAN APPROPRIATELY PLAN FOR ENROLLMENT IMPACTS AND FACILITIES NEEDS.

AND THAT CONCLUDES MY REMARKS. SO WE CAN MOVE TO THE APPROVAL OF MINUTES.

[3. Approval of Minutes]

SO MOVED. SECOND. THIS IS THE APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM JANUARY 21ST AND FEBRUARY AND FEBRUARY 11TH.

ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS ON THOSE MINUTES? NOPE.

ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE. NONE OPPOSED. SO THOSE MOTIONS ARE APPROVED NOW.

GREAT. MOVE ON TO STUDENT RECOGNITION. THANK YOU. I'M GOING TO MOVE OVER TO THE PODIUM FOR THE STUDENT RECOGNITION. GREAT.

[4.1 Student Recognition]

AND JACKIE ALREADY GAVE US A GREAT INTRODUCTION TO THAT.

I'M GOING TO INVITE MR. LLEWELLYN TO JOIN ME UP AT THE PODIUM. I'M GOING TO DO THE PRESENTATION, BUT ALWAYS NICE TO HAVE A SCHOOL PRINCIPAL HERE WITH US.

SO TONIGHT, WE ARE HERE TO HONOR OUR NEWEST REGENERON SCIENCE TALENT SEARCH HONOREE SELECTED IN THE TOP

[00:10:06]

EMILY'S PROJECT IS TITLE IS CALLED TESTING A DOMAIN SPECIFIC IMPACT OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE COGNITIVE TEST BIAS IN SPANISH SPEAKERS IN THE UNITED STATES. AND I'M GOING TO ASK HER TO COME UP IN A MINUTE AND KIND OF GIVE US THE ELEVATOR SPEECH OF WHAT THAT IS AND MAYBE A CHANCE TO ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS.

BUT BEFORE I DO THAT JUST SO THAT EVERYONE KNOWS, THE REGENERON SCIENCE RESEARCH COMPETITION IS THE NATION'S OLDEST AND MOST PRESTIGIOUS MATH AND SCIENCE COMPETITION. AND AS I SAID, IT'S FOCUSES ON THE TOP 300 HIGH SCHOOL SCHOLARS SENIORS.

THE REGENERON SCIENCE TALENT SEARCH PROVIDES STUDENTS A NATIONAL STAGE ON WHICH TO PRESENT THEIR RESEARCH, AND CELEBRATES THE HARD WORK AND DISCOVERIES OF THESE YOUNG SCIENTISTS WHO ARE BRINGING A FRESH PERSPECTIVE TO SIGNIFICANT GLOBAL CHALLENGES.

SCHOLARS ARE CHOSEN BASED ON THEIR OUTSTANDING RESEARCH, LEADERSHIP SKILLS, COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT, COMMITMENT TO ACADEMICS, CREATIVITY IN ASKING SCIENTIFIC QUESTIONS, AND EXCEPTIONAL PROMISE AS STEM LEADERS.

IN ADDITION TO SCIENCE RESEARCH, I'M GOING TO SHARE SOME OF EMILY'S BACKGROUND.

SHE WAS ALSO A ROTARY SCHOLAR OF THE MONTH RECENTLY AS WELL BECAUSE OF HER IMPRESSIVE RESUME.

SO IN ADDITION TO SCIENCE RESEARCH, IT'S I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW, A LITTLE BIT BIGGER PICTURE ABOUT HER SO YOU CAN UNDERSTAND WHAT AN INCREDIBLY DEDICATED, TALENTED, AND HARD WORKING, BRIGHT YOUNG WOMAN EMILY IS.

EMILY SHOWS THAT I'M GOING TO LET HER DESCRIBE HER THING.

EMILY'S WORK, IN ADDITION TO HER SITE WORK IN SCIENCE RESEARCH, SHE'S EXTREMELY ACCOMPLISHED AND WELL-ROUNDED AS A STUDENT.

SHE'S PRESIDENT OF THE PELHAM TOGETHER YOUTH COUNCIL, FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT OF THE GRASSROOTS GROCERY CLUB FOR ANTI HUNGER AND FOOD RECOVERY, IS ALSO A PELHAM MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL PEER LEADER, A REPORTER FOR THE PELHAM EXAMINER, AND A MEMBER OF THE STUDENTS FOR REFUGEES CLUB, HABITAT FOR HUMANITY, THE ANIMAL WELFARE CLUB, THE CHEMISTRY CLUB, THE OCEAN CONSERVATION CLUB, THE WOMEN IN STEM CLUB AND THE WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT CLUB, AS WELL AS PARTICIPATING IN COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY'S BRAINSTORM NEUROSCIENCE TEEN PROGRAM. SHE ALSO IS A VARSITY PLAYER. ON TOP OF THAT, I DON'T KNOW HOW SHE HAS TIME TO DO THAT, BUT IT'S AMAZING TO ME. THIS SHOWS JUST THE WELL-ROUNDEDNESS, THE EMPATHY, THE CARE, THE SERVICE ORIENTED PERSON THAT EMILY IS.

AND I THINK WHEN YOU HEAR ABOUT HER RESEARCH, YOU CAN SEE ALL THAT INTERWOVEN IN WHAT PROBABLY MOTIVATED HER TO PURSUE THIS AREA OF STUDY. SO I'M GOING TO GIVE A LITTLE BIT OF MY DESCRIPTION.

AND, EMILY, I'M GONNA INVITE YOU TO COME UP AND JOIN US. WE GOT A CERTIFICATE FOR YOU, AND THEN I'M GOING TO ASK YOU TO GIVE US YOUR VERSION OF IT. SO YOU CAN COME ON UP.

IN LAYMAN'S TERMS. SEE IF I GET THIS RIGHT. EVIDENCE SHOWS THAT ENGLISH LANGUAGE BIAS EXISTS IN MANY COGNITIVE TESTS THAT ARE USED TO DIAGNOSE COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENTS, WHICH MAY HINDER THE ACCURATE DIAGNOSIS OF NON-ENGLISH SPEAKERS.

EMILY'S RESEARCH EMPLOYED A DOMAIN SPECIFIC INVESTIGATION USING EXPLORATORY FACTOR ANALYSIS TO INVESTIGATE THE PRESENCE OF THIS BIAS IN A POPULATION OF SPANISH AND ENGLISH SPEAKERS IN THE UNITED STATES, IN ORDER TO EXAMINE HOW LATENT STRUCTURES AND PERFORMANCE PATTERNS DIFFER BY LANGUAGE.

THESE FINDINGS INDICATED THE LIKELIHOOD OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE BIAS IN CERTAIN COGNITIVE TESTS, AND SUPPORT THE VALIDATION OF THESE TESTS, RATHER THAN DIRECT TRANSLATION FROM ENGLISH TO ACCURATELY DIAGNOSE.

COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT OF THE AGING POPULATION.

I'D HAVE TO READ THAT ABOUT THREE MORE TIMES TO FULLY GRASP IT.

BUT. SO I'M GOING TO LET EMILY COME UP AND TALK AND GIVE US HER ELEVATOR SPEECH.

AND EMILY, I'M GOING TO I JUST WANT TO SHARE THIS CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION AND EXCELLENCE ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION.

YOU'RE WELCOME. HI, EVERYONE. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME HERE TODAY AND FOR CONTINUING TO SUPPORT THE SCIENCE RESEARCH PROGRAM. SO MY RESEARCH WAS ESSENTIALLY ABOUT DEMENTIA, WHICH IS A VERY DEVASTATING NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASE THAT'S CHARACTERIZED BY A LOSS OF COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS.

I REALLY BECAME INTERESTED IN THIS FIELD OF STUDY AFTER MY OWN GRANDMOTHER WAS DIAGNOSED WITH DEMENTIA, BECAUSE SHE'S ONE OF THE MILLIONS OF PEOPLE SUFFERING FROM THIS DISEASE WORLDWIDE, AND PREVALENCE IS ONLY EXPECTED TO INCREASE IN UPCOMING DECADES.

SO MY STUDY LOOKED AT COGNITIVE TESTS, WHICH ARE A REALLY IMPORTANT WAY TO DETECT COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT IN PEOPLE, WHICH CAN GUIDE THEIR TREATMENT PLANS IN ORDER TO INTERVENE BEFORE DEMENTIA TAKES OVER.

SO I LOOKED AT A POPULATION OF ENGLISH AND SPANISH SPEAKERS IN THE UNITED STATES, AND I COMPARED HOW THEY WERE BEING ASSESSED, AND I FOUND SOME EVIDENCE OF A POTENTIAL ENGLISH LANGUAGE BIAS IN THESE TESTS, WHICH BASICALLY MEANS THAT THE TESTS ARE PERHAPS NOT DIAGNOSING SPANISH SPEAKERS AS WELL AS ENGLISH SPEAKERS, BECAUSE THESE TESTS MAY NOT BE STRUCTURALLY EQUIVALENT WHEN THEY ARE CREATED IN ENGLISH

[00:15:10]

SO AGAIN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR HAVING ME. IT'S A HUGE HONOR TO BE HERE.

PICTURE JUST REAL QUICK. DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? YES. YOU NEED TO GO TO A MICROPHONE. MRS COHEN.

YOUR RESEARCH SOUNDS, FIRST OF ALL, SUPER FASCINATING, VERY RELEVANT, VERY IMPORTANT.

CAN YOU GO TO A MICROPHONE? MICROPHONE? GO AHEAD.

I GUESS I'LL REPEAT THAT FOR THE MICROPHONE. YOUR YOUR RESEARCH IS SOUNDS SUPER FASCINATING AND EXTREMELY RELEVANT AND AND TIMELY FOR WHAT'S OCCURRING NOW. AND AS YOU SAID, DEMENTIA IS ONLY INCREASING.

AND WE'RE ONLY GOING TO SEE THAT. I'M CURIOUS TO KNOW WHAT YOUR IN YOUR FINDINGS AND YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS.

LIKE WHAT WHAT I GUESS IS THE ASSUMPTION LIKE IS THERE A CERTAIN AGE LEVEL UNDERSTANDING OF LIKE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ASSUMPTION THAT YOU FOUND IN YOUR RESEARCH, AND THEN DID YOU GO AS FAR AS AS COMING UP WITH MAYBE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FOR CHANGES TO THESE TESTS? YEAH, DEFINITELY. SO I THINK WHAT MY RESEARCH REALLY FOCUSED ON WAS THAT EARLY PREVENTION.

SO WHILE THERE ISN'T A SPECIFIC AGE THAT YOU CAN SUGGEST, BECAUSE DEMENTIA TENDS TO COME ON IN DIFFERENT AGES FOR DIFFERENT PEOPLE, IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT THESE PEOPLE ARE BEING TESTED AS SOON AS THEY CAN BEFORE THEY FEEL, EVEN BEFORE THEY FEEL LIKE THEY HAVE THE COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT COMING ON. IT'S MORE OF A PREVENTATIVE MEASURE. THE SOONER THE MORE LIKELY IT IS THAT THESE MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS WILL PICK UP IF THERE IS SOME SORT OF IMPAIRMENT.

AND AS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS MY STUDY REALLY SUPPORTS THE CAREFUL VALIDATION OF THESE TESTS, RATHER THAN JUST ACCEPTING A DIRECT TRANSLATION FROM ENGLISH INTO OTHER LANGUAGES, BECAUSE MORE OFTEN THAN NOT, THEY ARE NOT STRUCTURALLY EQUIVALENT. AND IT MEANS THAT WHEN THESE NON-ENGLISH SPEAKERS ARE BEING TESTED, THEY ARE NOT BEING AS ACCURATELY TESTED AS THE ENGLISH SPEAKERS BECAUSE THE TESTS WERE CREATED, DEVELOPED, ADMINISTERED IN ENGLISH BY ENGLISH SPEAKING SCIENTISTS TO ENGLISH SPEAKING POPULATIONS.

SO IT'S HARD TO JUST TRANSFER THAT OVER TO OTHER LANGUAGES WITHOUT THIS CAREFUL VALIDATION.

SO MY STUDY REALLY SUPPORTS AND PROMOTES THAT.

SO CAREFUL FOLLOW UP QUESTION. CAREFUL VALIDATION THEN MEANS MEANS WHAT EXACTLY.

LIKE DOES IT MEAN LIKE WHEN SCIENTISTS IN, IN WHATEVER NATIVE LANGUAGE NEEDS NEED TO VALIDATE THE QUESTIONS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION IS THE SAME IS EQUIVALENT? YES. YES. SO BASICALLY, INSTEAD OF JUST LIKE A WORD FOR WORD EQUIVALENT, THEY HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE PICKING UP ON CERTAIN NUANCES LIKE CULTURAL TERMS THAT MAY NOT BE FAMILIAR WORDS THAT MAY HAVE A DIFFERENT MEANING WHEN THEY'RE DIRECTLY TRANSLATED. AND YOU NEED TO FIND A SUITABLE ALTERNATIVE RATHER THAN JUST A DIRECT WORD FOR WORD TRANSLATION.

THAT'S SO INTERESTING. THANK YOU. OH, OH. GO AHEAD.

EMILY. WHO WHO WAS YOUR WHO WAS YOUR MENTOR FOR FOR THIS RESEARCH.

AND HOW DID YOU FIND THEM? SO MY RESEARCH WAS CONDUCTED AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IRVING MEDICAL CENTER THROUGH A PROGRAM CALLED THE BRAINSTORM PROGRAM. WHICH I BECAME A PART OF IN MY SOPHOMORE YEAR OF HIGH SCHOOL.

AND I APPLIED TO BE MENTORED, AND I WAS SELECTED AS ONE OF THE AS ONE OF THE PEOPLE WHO COULD HAVE THIS SORT OF MENTORSHIP WHICH I THEN CREATED THIS PROJECT AROUND AND SUBMITTED TO THE SCIENCE TALENT SEARCH.

SO MY MENTORS NAME WAS DOCTOR VICTORIA LEVITT.

SHE'S A NEUROPSYCHOLOGIST AT COLUMBIA. SHE WAS DEFINITELY INCREDIBLY HELPFUL AND INSPIRATIONAL THROUGHOUT THIS PROCESS.

AND JUST A REALLY GREAT MENTOR TO HAVE. AND I ACTUALLY WORKED WITH HER FOR TWO SUMMERS.

SO THIS WAS MY PROJECT FOR THE SECOND YEAR THAT I ENDED UP SUBMITTING TO THE SCIENCE TALENT SEARCH.

EXCELLENT. THANK YOU. I HAVE A TWO PART QUESTION.

WELL, YOU ANSWERED MY FIRST ONE AROUND. WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO DO THIS RESEARCH? AND SO JUST TO SHARE.

MY GRANDMOTHER WAS ALSO DIAGNOSED WITH DEMENTIA AND SO WAS MY MOTHER IN LAW.

SO IT'S JUST A REALLY MEANINGFUL AND RELEVANT RESEARCH PROJECT THAT YOU LOOKED INTO.

SO THANK YOU FOR DOING THIS ON BEHALF OF MANY OF THE FAMILIES THAT, YOU KNOW NAVIGATE THAT.

BUT MY I GUESS MY QUESTION IS TWO PART ONE. WHAT WAS IT LIKE FOR YOU BECAUSE YOU WENT INTO IT WITH ONE IDEA,

[00:20:03]

AND YOU KNOW, THERE'S A HISTORY OF, LIKE, MEDICAL BIASES FROM MALE TO FEMALE.

YOU KNOW, LIKE, REALLY KIND OF NOT THINKING ABOUT THINGS HOLISTICALLY.

AND SO WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO SAY I'M GOING TO DO ENGLISH SPEAKING, NON-ENGLISH SPEAKING.

AND SO HOW DID YOU KIND OF DETERMINE THAT METHODOLOGY AND THAT PROCESS? YEAH. SO FOR THE FIRST PART OF THAT QUESTION I REALLY CAME IN WITH AN INTEREST IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL MODIFIABLE SIDE OF THINGS. THERE'S THE GENETIC SIDE, WHICH ARE THE THINGS THAT ONE CAN'T CONTROL ABOUT THEMSELVES.

BUT THEN THERE'S A LOT OF MODIFIABLE WAYS THAT YOU CAN KIND OF REDUCE YOUR SUSCEPTIBILITY.

AND IT'S NOT NECESSARILY INEVITABLE THAT YOU'LL END UP WITH DEMENTIA JUST BECAUSE YOU HAVE A CERTAIN GENETIC PREDISPOSITION.

SO THAT WAS REALLY THE MINDSET I HAD WHEN I WENT INTO THE LAB.

AND THEN I GUESS THIS KIND OF ALSO ANSWERS YOUR SECOND PART OF THE QUESTION.

I ALSO FOUND MYSELF REALLY GETTING INSPIRED BY THE WORK GOING ON AROUND ME, ESPECIALLY WITH MY MENTOR.

SO MY MENTOR SPECIALIZES ACTUALLY IN MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS, AND SHE CREATED AN APP THAT WOULD TEST FOR MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS.

AND SHE HAD BEEN ADMINISTERING IT TO POPULATIONS AROUND THE WORLD, NOTICING THIS KIND OF DISCREPANCY WHEN SHE WOULD ADMINISTER IT TO CERTAIN POPULATIONS THAT SPOKE DIFFERENT LANGUAGES ALL OVER THE WORLD. AND THIS IS A DISCREPANCY THAT HAS BEEN NOTED WIDELY IN LITERATURE THAT THESE ENGLISH SPEAKERS ARE PRETENDING TO PERFORM BETTER ON THESE TESTS, EVEN WHEN YOU CONTROL FOR CERTAIN SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC FACTORS.

SO THROUGH DISCUSSION, WE FIGURED OUT A WAY TO APPLY THIS KIND OF IDEA, WHICH IS SOMETHING THAT I HAD TAKEN A REAL INTEREST IN TO THE DATA SET THAT I DID HAVE ACCESS TO, WHICH WAS A POPULATION OF ENGLISH AND SPANISH SPEAKING AMERICANS.

THANK YOU. IT'S REALLY AMAZING. SORRY. SORRY.

I GUESS I'D LOVE TO KNOW WHAT THE NEXT STEPS ARE FOR YOU FOR YOUR RESEARCH.

SO THIS IS DEFINITELY A TOPIC THAT I'M SUPER INTERESTED IN AND WOULD LOVE TO CONTINUE AS I LEAVE COLLEGE.

GO OFF TO UNIVERSITY. I'M DEFINITELY INTERESTED IN THESE IN THIS FIELD OF NEUROPSYCHOLOGY AND COGNITIVE SCIENCE.

IF I COULD HAVE NEXT STEPS FOR THIS RESEARCH I WOULD LOVE TO LOOK AT MORE LANGUAGES, LOOK AT MORE COUNTRIES WITH THE IDEA THAT THESE RESULTS ARE GENERALIZABLE TO MORE POPULATIONS THAN JUST SPANISH SPEAKERS IN THE US.

AND THIS TREND LIKELY EXISTS FOR A LOT OF OTHER POPULATIONS IN THE WORLD.

WELL, I'LL BE FOLLOWING YOU. THANK YOU. DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOU'RE HEADING OFF FOR COLLEGE? I DON'T KNOW YET. OKAY. KEEP US POSTED. I WILL.

THANK YOU SO MUCH AGAIN FOR HAVING ME. THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.

OKAY, FANTASTIC. OKAY WE CAN MOVE TO 4.2. SO THE SCOPE SURVEY RESULTS PRESENTATION.

[4.2 SCOPE Survey Results Presentation]

AS THE BOARD IS AWARE WE WE HAD AN UPDATE FROM ALEX ON THE COMMUNICATIONS WORK THAT'S BEEN GOING ON IN THE COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT.

HIS DEPARTMENT OF ONE FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS.

AND THAT WAS A PRECURSOR TO THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE SCOPE SURVEY.

AS JACKIE SAID, THIS IS OUR SECOND TIME HAVING ADMINISTERED IT.

SO IT GAVE US A GOOD PULSE CHECK GOOD BENCHMARK FROM WHERE WE WERE TWO, TWO AND A HALF YEARS AGO TO WHERE WE STAND TODAY AS A RESULT OF THE STRATEGIC EFFORTS THAT HAVE COME OUT OF THE COMMUNICATIONS AUDIT AND THE AREAS THAT WE SPECIFICALLY BEEN FOCUSING ON.

SO WE'VE GOTTEN THE RESULTS. AND WE'RE REALLY PLEASED TONIGHT HAVE JUST JESSICA SHELTON FROM INSPRA HERE, WHO'S I THINK SHE'LL INTRODUCE HERSELF. BUT SHE BASICALLY WAS, I THINK, OUR LEAD DATA ANALYST AND SPENT SOME TIME WITH ALEX AND I GOING THROUGH THOSE THE RESULTS AND REALLY DIGGING DEEP SO WE COULD UNDERSTAND CLEARLY WHAT'S IN THERE.

AND WE THINK YOU'RE GOING TO BE PRETTY PROUD OF WHAT WE HEAR TONIGHT. SO WITHOUT ANY ADO, I'M GOING TO TURN IT BACK OVER. TURN IT OVER TO ALEX AND TO JESSICA.

[00:25:06]

I THINK THE BOARD IS AWARE, BUT THIS IS A PROCESS THAT REALLY STARTED BACK IN 2023 WITH THE COMMUNICATIONS AUDIT OF WHICH THE SCOPE SURVEY WAS A PART OF. NOT THE ONLY PIECE, BUT IT WAS A PART OF, YOU KNOW, SORT OF TAKING A LOOK AT OUR COMMUNICATIONS PROGRAM AS A WHOLE ASSESSING HOW WE WERE, HOW WE WERE DOING. WHAT ARE SOME AREAS OF STRENGTH? WHAT ARE SOME AREAS THAT WE COULD LOOK TO SORT OF REFINE OUR PRACTICES AND MOVE THE NEEDLE A LITTLE BIT? AND AS PART OF THAT PROCESS WE DEVELOPED A STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS PLAN, WHICH WE HAVE BEEN TRYING EXTREMELY HARD TO FOLLOW AND IMPLEMENT THE EIGHT RECOMMENDATIONS THAT CAME OUT OF OUR AUDIT. AND AS PART OF THAT PROCESS, WE'RE HERE TONIGHT TO SORT OF REFLECT ON OUR READMINISTRATION OF THE SCOPE SURVEY, WHICH IS REALLY A CHECKPOINT OF HOW WE'RE DOING A REFRAMING OR REGROUNDING OF WHERE WHERE WE ARE IS THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING STILL REFLECTING WHAT OUR WHAT OUR OUR STAKEHOLDERS EXPECT OF US AND WANT OF US.

AND WHERE DO WE GO? HOW DO WE MOVE FORWARD, AND WHAT ARE THE AREAS THAT WE WANT TO FOCUS ON AS WE SORT OF MOVE INTO THE FUTURE? FOR THE BULK OF TONIGHT'S PRESENTATION, I'M GOING TO LET JESSICA SPEAK TO THE DATA.

AND THEN I'LL SORT OF ADD SOME SOME COLOR ALONG THE WAY TO SORT OF TALK ABOUT THE DIFFERENT AREAS THAT WE HAVE SORT OF TRIED TO IMPLEMENT STRATEGIES THAT I THINK YOU'LL SEE REFLECTED IN THAT DATA. SO JUST BY WAY OF INTRODUCTION JESSICA SHELTON SERVES AS THE INSPIRA, WHICH IS THE NATIONAL SCHOOL OF PUBLIC RELATIONS ASSOCIATION'S COMMUNICATIONS RESEARCH SPECIALIST.

SHE PLAYS A KEY ROLE IN LOOKING AT THE DATA ASSOCIATED WITH THE AUDITS.

PRIOR TO JOINING ON WITH INSPIRA. AS IN HER CURRENT ROLE SHE WAS AN AUDIT CONSULTANT AND SHE HAD PREVIOUS TO THAT, A 25 YEAR CAREER IN SCHOOL COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE CAPITAL REGION BOCES RIGHT HERE IN NEW YORK STATE.

SO SHE'S WITH OUR NATIONAL ORGANIZATION NOW, BUT HAS A TON OF FAMILIARITY WITH NEW YORK STATE.

AND I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO SEE HER PRESENT AT A COUPLE OF SEMINARS WAY BACK IN THE DAY.

AND JUST FEEL REALLY GOOD THAT WE HAVE SOMEONE WHO HAS SUCH A GOOD GRASP ON ALL OF THIS WORKING ALONGSIDE OF US.

SHE ALSO HOLDS AN ACCREDITATION IN PUBLIC RELATIONS AND IS A CERTIFIED PROJECT MANAGEMENT PROFESSIONAL.

SO WITH THAT, I WILL TURN IT OVER TO JESSICA TO TO JUMP IN.

THANK YOU. ALEX. CAN EVERYBODY HEAR ME? OKAY.

YES, YES WE CAN. SO GOOD EVENING EVERYBODY. THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME HERE TONIGHT.

AND IT REALLY IS A PLEASURE TO PRESENT THIS DATA.

I'M GOING TO SHARE MY SCREEN NOW. I HAVE A SLIDE DECK TO GO THROUGH.

SO HOPEFULLY NOW YOU ARE SEEING EVERYTHING. SO AS ALEX SAID THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THAT PELHAM HAS ADMINISTERED THE SCOPE SURVEY TO ITS COMMUNITY.

THE SCOPE SURVEY GATHERS STAKEHOLDER FEEDBACK ABOUT HOW THE DISTRICT COMMUNICATES, INCLUDING OPINIONS ABOUT STAKEHOLDERS, PREFERENCES FOR COMMUNICATION AND HOW WELL THEY'RE INFORMED AND HOW WELL THEY BELIEVE COMMUNICATION FROM THE DISTRICT IS WORKING.

MUCH OF THE SURVEY USES FIVE POINT RATING SCALES FOR THE QUESTIONS, ASKING RESPONDENTS TO INDICATE THEIR LEVEL OF AGREEMENT WITH SPECIFIC STATEMENTS FROM ONE EXTREME TO THE OTHER. FOR EXAMPLE, FROM STRONGLY AGREE TO STRONGLY DISAGREE BECAUSE THESE QUESTIONS ARE STANDARDIZED NATIONWIDE.

THE RESULTS ALLOW PELHAM TO COMPARE ITS COMMUNICATION PERFORMANCE TO NATIONAL AVERAGE SCORES ACROSS MULTIPLE AREAS, AND THAT WILL BE PART OF WHAT I GO OVER TONIGHT.

THE 2025 VERSION OF THE SURVEY WAS ADMINISTERED FROM NOVEMBER 3RD THROUGH DECEMBER 2ND, AND IT RECEIVED A TOTAL OF 739 RESPONSES FROM PARENTS, EMPLOYEES AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS. THE SLIDE HERE GIVES A BREAKDOWN OF EACH ONE OF THOSE POPULATIONS.

A SEPARATE, SIMILAR SURVEY WAS ADMINISTERED TO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS, AND THAT RECEIVED 624 RESPONSES, WHICH WAS A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE FROM 2023. THE SURVEY USES AN INDUSTRY STANDARD FORMULA TO CALCULATE TARGET PERCENTAGE RATES TO ENSURE RELIABLE RESULTS.

THAT'S WHAT THE MARGIN OF ERROR DATA YOU SEE HERE IS.

AND AS IT SHOWS, PELHAM EXCEEDED THE MARGIN OF ERROR TARGETS FOR PARENTS, EMPLOYEES AND STUDENTS AND CAME REALLY, REALLY CLOSE, I WOULD SAY. IT MET THE THE MARGIN OF ERROR TARGET ALSO FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS.

[00:30:07]

YEAH. AND ONE ONE PIECE THAT I JUST WANT TO ADD ON THE PARTICIPATION IS I WAS REALLY, REALLY HAPPY TO SEE THAT WE WERE ABLE TO MEET THOSE BENCHMARKS.

IT TOOK A LOT OF WORK. MANY OF THE FOLKS WHO ARE IN THIS ROOM TONIGHT WERE PART OF THAT WORK.

SO I REALLY APPRECIATE THE HELP IN GETTING THERE.

I ALSO WANT TO JUST POINT OUT QUICKLY THAT WITH OUR COMMUNITY NUMBER, THAT'S ACTUALLY A 50% INCREASE OVER THE LAST TIME THAT WE ADMINISTERED THE SURVEY, WHICH I THINK IS PRETTY NOTABLE BECAUSE IT CERTAINLY IS OUR MOST DIFFICULT DEMOGRAPHIC TO REACH THE FOLKS THAT REALLY ARE TUNING IN BY CHOICE.

AND SO THAT I THINK THAT WAS THAT WAS IMPORTANT THAT WE WERE ABLE TO MAKE THAT PROGRESS. AND IT'S HARD TO SAY EXACTLY WHAT LED TO THAT.

BUT I KNOW THAT ONE OF THE THINGS WE DID THIS TIME AROUND IS WE DID SEND A COMMUNITY WIDE POSTCARD OUT.

OUT TO EVERYBODY, WHICH I THINK REALLY HELPED MOVE THE NEEDLE A LITTLE BIT THERE.

SO I WAS REALLY PLEASED TO SEE THAT NUMBER INCREASE.

I THINK SHE IS FROZEN. OKAY. PERCENTAGE POINTS MORE.

JESSICA, YOU FROZE FOR A SECOND, SO IF YOU JUST DON'T MIND JUST RESTARTING ON THIS PERCEPTION SLIDE.

SURE. THE DISTRICT IMPROVED IN TERMS OF OVERALL PERCEPTION OF THE DISTRICT ACROSS ALL STAKEHOLDER GROUPS, ANYWHERE BETWEEN 13 AND 20 PERCENTAGE POINTS HIGHER.

NOW, RATE THE DISTRICT AS ABOVE AVERAGE OR EXCELLENT COMPARED TO 2023.

AND AT THE SAME TIME, WHAT WE SEE THOSE READING IT BELOW AVERAGE DECLINED.

SO THIS INDICATES THAT OVERALL SENTIMENT TOWARDS THE DISTRICT IS TRENDING POSITIVELY.

YEAH. AND I THINK I THINK WE SHOULD ALL BE VERY PROUD OF THIS DATA POINT.

I THINK IT'S REALLY VALIDATING TO SEE THOSE NUMBERS MOVE IN THAT DIRECTION THAT THEY HAVE.

AS PART OF THE AUDIT AND AS PART OF OUR STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS PLAN, THERE ARE SOME DATA DRIVEN GOALS THAT WE'RE IN, BENCHMARKS THAT WE'RE TRYING TO HIT ALONG THE WAY. SO AS WE GO THROUGH TONIGHT'S PRESENTATION, I'M GOING TO TRY AND POINT OUT WHEN WE COME TO THOSE GOALS AND WHERE WE'VE MET THEM. SO IN THIS PARTICULAR DATA SET, OUR GOAL WAS TO INCREASE OVERALL PERCEPTION OF THE DISTRICT BY FIVE PERCENTAGE POINTS OR HIGHER ACROSS ALL OF OUR AUDIENCES. SO I THINK YOU SEE THERE THAT WE'VE WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH THAT AND THEN SOME.

AND WHILE I WOULD LIKE TO STAND UP HERE AND TELL YOU THAT IT WAS ALL BECAUSE OF OUR COMMUNICATIONS WORK.

THAT REALLY WOULD NOT BE ACCURATE. I THINK THAT WHEN WE LOOK AT OVERALL PERCEPTION OF A SCHOOL DISTRICT, WE'RE LOOKING AT EVERYTHING THAT'S HAPPENING.

SO COMMUNICATION PLAYS A PART, BUT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE CLASSROOM PLAYS A PART.

WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THE ADMINISTRATIVE LEVEL PLAYS A PART.

EVERYTHING THAT EVERYONE'S ROLE IN THIS DISTRICT IS GOING TO PLAY A PART IN THAT NUMBER.

AND I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD ALL BE REALLY, REALLY PROUD OF. THE NEXT THING THIS QUESTION WAS IS SOMETHING NEW THAT WE'VE BROUGHT TO THE SCOPE SURVEY.

SO THIS WAS NOT ON YOUR 2023 SURVEY. THIS QUESTION SEEKS TO FIND A NET PROMOTER SCORE, OR NPS, FOR THE DISTRICT. NPS IS A FAIRLY WIDELY USED METRIC TO MEASURE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND LOYALTY TO A BRAND, PRODUCT, OR SERVICE. AND IT'S BASED ON A SINGLE QUESTION WE ASKED PARTICIPANTS ON A SCALE OF 0 TO 10, HOW LIKELY ARE YOU TO RECOMMEND THE DISTRICT? AND THE RESPONDENTS ARE GROUPED INTO THREE CATEGORIES BASED ON THE SCORE THEY GIVE EITHER PROMOTERS.

THOSE ARE YOUR LOYAL ENTHUSIASTS WHO ARE LIKELY TO RECOMMEND THE DISTRICT AND SPEAK ABOUT IT, CONTRIBUTE TO ITS GROWTH AND POPULARITY. PASSIVES TEND TO BE SATISFIED, BUT UNENTHUSIASTIC RESIDENTS AND THEN DETRACTORS ARE THE UNHAPPY RESIDENTS, OR EVEN NAYSAYERS WHO HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO DAMAGE A BRAND'S REPUTATION THROUGH NEGATIVE WORD OF MOUTH.

CALCULATING NPS IS REALLY JUST A PROCESS OF SUBTRACTING THE PERCENTAGE OF RESPONDENTS WHO ARE CATEGORIZED AS DETRACTORS FROM THE PERCENTAGE OF PROMOTERS, AND SO BECAUSE OF THAT, SCORE CAN RANGE FROM -100 ALL THE WAY TO POSITIVE 100.

AND THIS IS WHERE I ALWAYS REALLY LIKE TO PAUSE WHEN I AM SPEAKING TO EDUCATION AUDIENCES, BECAUSE I KNOW IN EDUCATION A SCORE, YOU KNOW, THAT'S SOMEWHERE AROUND ZERO IS DEFINITELY NEVER THOUGHT TO BE GOOD.

[00:35:08]

AND SO THAT IS SEEN AS GOOD. AND A SCORE OF 50 OR HIGHER IS WHAT'S CONSIDERED EXCELLENT.

SO AGAIN, VERY DIFFERENT FROM THE WAY WE TYPICALLY GRADE THINGS IN K-12 EDUCATION.

SO WITH THAT SAID, PELHAM OVERALL SCORE AMONG ALL STAKEHOLDERS IS A POSITIVE 38, WHICH MEANS 50% OF RESPONDENTS ARE PROMOTERS WHILE ONLY 12% ARE DETRACTORS.

SO A POSITIVE SCORE LIKE THIS INDICATES STRONG LOYALTY AND OVERALL SATISFACTION.

AND OVER TO THE SIDE ON THIS SLIDE, YOU SEE THE SCORES FOR EACH STAKEHOLDER AUDIENCE.

WITH PARENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS HOVERING RIGHT AROUND THAT OVERALL SCORE AND SENTIMENT AMONG EMPLOYEES BEING ESPECIALLY POSITIVE.

SO THIS IS REALLY IN MY OPINION, AND EVEN WHAT I SEE AMONG A LOT OF SCHOOLS THESE ARE REALLY STRONG SCORES.

I CAN THINK OF ONLY TWO DISTRICTS THAT HAVE EVER KIND OF HIT THAT 50 MARK.

SO EVEN THOUGH 38 WOULD NOT BE GOOD FOR ANY ONE OF YOUR HIGH SCHOOLERS, THIS IS REALLY A TREMENDOUS SCORE.

SO I THINK THIS IS TELLING THE DISTRICT AN AWFUL LOT ABOUT THE SENTIMENT THAT IS OUT THERE IN THE COMMUNITY.

AND THEN ONE OF THE OTHER QUESTIONS WE ASK IS FOR SURVEY PARTICIPANTS TO TELL US THE FIRST WORDS THAT COME TO MIND WHEN THEY THINK OF PELHAM SCHOOLS ACROSS BOTH YEARS, WORDS LIKE COMMUNITY, CARING, GOOD AND EXCELLENCE STAND OUT.

AND IN 2025, WE SAW INCLUSIVE SMALL BEING MORE PROMINENT, REFLECTING THE DISTRICT'S STRONG COMMUNITY CENTERED IDENTITY.

IN TERMS OF SATISFACTION WITH DISTRICT COMMUNICATION, WE ALSO SEE THAT THIS IMPROVED ACROSS ALL GROUPS FROM 2023, THE PERCENTAGE RATING, COMMUNICATION ABOVE AVERAGE OR EXCELLENT INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY AMONG PARENTS, EMPLOYEES AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS, AND AGAIN, DISSATISFACTION DECLINED, ESPECIALLY AMONG PARENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS.

YEAH. SO THIS IS ANOTHER AREA WHERE WE HAD A GOAL SET AROUND THIS.

AGAIN, IT WAS TO INCREASE THOSE NUMBERS BY 5% PERCENTAGE POINTS ACROSS ALL STAKEHOLDERS.

SO AGAIN, WE SEE SOME SUCCESS THERE AND THEN AND THEN SORT OF AS I THINK ABOUT THIS, YOU KNOW I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO REFLECT ON WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT WE DID ALONG THE WAY THAT MAY HAVE INFLUENCED THIS NUMBER, AND A COUPLE OF THEM THAT SORT OF COME TO MIND? I THINK ONE IS THE LAUNCHING OF PARENT SQUARE AND CONSOLIDATING OUR COMMUNICATIONS PLATFORMS INTO ONE UNIFIED SYSTEM.

I THINK THAT WAS THAT WAS HUGE IN THIS AREA. BUT THEN I THINK IT'S IT'S HOW DO WE USE PARENT SQUARE? HOW DO WE USE OUR COMMUNICATIONS TO ESTABLISH A REGULAR CADENCE SO FOLKS KNOW WHEN TO EXPECT THINGS, KNOW WHERE TO FIND THINGS, AND CAN GO BACK AND LOOK AT THOSE IF THEY NEED NEED A REFRESHER? HOW DO WE MAKE OUR COMMUNICATIONS MORE READABLE? WE'VE REALLY TRIED HARD TO STREAMLINE WHAT WE'RE PUTTING OUT THERE.

TO USE BULLET POINTS WHERE NECESSARY TO USE PICTURES AND INFOGRAPHICS WHERE NECESSARY AND TO MAKE SURE THAT THE MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION IS GETTING RIGHT IN THAT OPENING PARAGRAPH. WE KNOW THAT PEOPLE DON'T HAVE A LOT OF TIME BUT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT FOLKS ARE GETTING WHAT THEY NEED, AND THEN THEY CAN SORT OF CONTINUE ON AND GET MORE INFORMATION AS, AS THEY GO ALONG.

AND THEN I THINK THE OTHER IMPORTANT PIECE THAT I REALLY THINK WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT IS PRIORITIZING STAFF AS A COMMUNICATIONS AUDIENCE.

SO I THINK WE'VE MADE A REALLY CONCERTED EFFORT TO DO THAT.

RECOGNIZING THAT THEY'RE THERE ON THE FRONT LINES, IF THEY'RE NOT INFORMED WITH THE DECISIONS THAT ARE BEING MADE AND THE THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING ON THE GROUND, THEY HAVE NO ABILITY TO SERVE AS AMBASSADORS TO THE COMMUNITY THAT WE NEED THEM TO BE.

AND SO OUR JOB AS AN ADMINISTRATION IS TO EQUIP THEM WITH THE INFORMATION THAT THEY NEED TO BE SUCCESSFUL.

WE HAVE DOUBLED AND TRIPLED DOWN ON THAT, I WOULD SAY, OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS, BECAUSE WE KNEW THAT IT COULD PAY SOME REALLY SERIOUS DIVIDENDS. AND I'M VERY I'M VERY PLEASED TO SEE THAT THAT IS REFLECTED IN THE DATA.

THIS IS ANOTHER QUESTION THAT WAS NOT ON THE 2023 SURVEY, BUT WE'VE SINCE INTRODUCED AND IT ASKS RESPONDENTS TO INDICATE THE VALUE THEY HAVE FOR DIFFERENT INFORMATION SOURCES FROM THE DISTRICT.

BASICALLY, THEY RATE EACH ONE ON A SCALE FROM 1 TO 5, WITH FIVE BEING THE MOST VALUABLE.

AND ACROSS ALL AUDIENCES, EMAIL IS THE MOST VALUED COMMUNICATION CHANNEL, WITH MORE THAN 80% OF STAKEHOLDERS RATING IT EITHER 4 OR 5 STARS.

[00:40:05]

SOCIAL MEDIA AND WORD OF MOUTH PLAY A ROLE, BUT TO A LESSER EXTENT.

AN EMAIL REALLY KIND OF TAKES THE CAKE HERE. ONE THING IT'S IT'S NOT IN MY OVERVIEW NOW, BUT OBVIOUSLY THERE'S THERE'S A MUCH LARGER DATA DATA SET THAT I HAVE SHARED WITH ALEX. AND I JUST DO RECALL BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT MIGHT BE THIS AUDIENCE MIGHT BE INTERESTED.

BUT WHEN WE LOOK AT THE INDIVIDUAL AUDIENCES STAFF IN PARTICULAR FIND HIGHER VALUE IN THE BOARD OF EDUCATION WRAP UPS. SO I BELIEVE TO WHAT ALEX JUST SAID ON THE PREVIOUS SLIDE, THAT'S A GOOD SOURCE FOR STAFF.

AND THEY DO LOOK TO IT FOR BEING INFORMED OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION'S WORK.

YEAH. AND SO ONE OF THE OTHER PIECES OF THIS, YOU KNOW, THAT WE'VE TRIED TO THINK, THINK STRATEGICALLY ABOUT IS ALIGNING THE MESSAGING TOOL WITH THE AUDIENCE. RIGHT. SO IT'S NOT IN TONIGHT'S PRESENTATION, BUT IN SORT OF THE LARGER DATA SET THAT, YOU KNOW, I WILL SHARE WITH THE BOARD. IT TALKS ABOUT WHAT EACH AUDIENCE IS, COMMUNICATIONS PREFERENCES ARE DO PEOPLE WANT EMAIL? DO THEY WANT TEXT MESSAGE? DO THEY WANT TO BE ON SOCIAL MEDIA? AND I THINK LOOKING COMPREHENSIVELY AT THAT AND SITUATIONALLY AS WELL IT DIVES IN PRETTY DEEP, DEEPLY. SO WE'RE ABLE TO THEN THINK ABOUT THOSE THINGS AS WE'RE ROLLING OUT INFORMATION AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE USING THE APPROPRIATE CHANNELS.

SO I THINK THIS THIS IS REALLY GOOD INFORMATION FOR US TO KNOW ESPECIALLY AS WE SORT OF LOOK AT WHERE WE'RE PUTTING OUR EFFORTS IN.

AND I KNOW MISS DEANGELIS CAN TELL YOU THAT WE SPEND A LOT OF TIME ON THIS BOARD WRAP UPS.

SO IT IS GREAT TO HEAR THAT THEY ARE A VALUABLE TOOL FOR FOLKS.

SO THIS IS SUPER GOOD INFORMATION FOR US TO HAVE AS WE MOVE FORWARD AND SORT OF THINK ABOUT WHERE DO WE WANT TO PUT OUR EFFORTS.

THIS, THIS QUESTION IN 2025, ACTUALLY WAS JUST ANSWERED BY RESPONDENTS WHO INDICATED THAT SOCIAL MEDIA IS A SOURCE THAT THEY FREQUENTLY USE FOR INFORMATION ABOUT THE DISTRICT.

SO IT WAS A SUBSET OF THOSE WHO TOOK THE SURVEY AMONG THOSE INDIVIDUALS, COMMUNITY FACEBOOK PAGES, AND OF COURSE, THE THE DISTRICT'S FACEBOOK PAGE CAN ARE CONTINUE TO BE INFLUENTIAL, PARTICULARLY AMONG PARENTS AND THE DISTRICT'S INSTAGRAM PAGE. FOLLOW THAT USE OF X AND YOUTUBE.

WE SEE A BIT OF DECLINE FROM 2023. SO I'LL JUST SAY IT.

I WAS TOTALLY SHOCKED TO LEARN THAT PELHAM LIKES TO GO ON FACEBOOK.

WHAT I FOUND INTERESTING IN THIS DATA IN ALL SERIOUSNESS, WAS THAT WE SAW WE SEE A MODEST UPTICK IN FOLKS WHO ARE USING OUR DISTRICT FACEBOOK PAGE AS A SOURCE OF INFORMATION, AS WELL AS A MODEST DECLINE IN THE FOLKS WHO ARE SAYING THAT THEY ARE USING THE COMMUNITY FACEBOOK PAGES FOR INFORMATION. SO I FOUND THAT INTERESTING.

ALTHOUGH DIFFERENCES IN WHO THE QUESTION WAS ASKED BETWEEN THE TWO YEARS COULD BE RELEVANT HERE.

BUT I WILL ALSO NOTE THAT IF YOU GO BACK TO AUGUST OF 2024, WHICH IS THE LONGEST I CAN GO BACK IN SORT OF THE FACEBOOK'S ANALYTICS TOOL. SINCE THEN, WE'VE SEEN A 13% INCREASE IN OUR FACEBOOK FOLLOWERS WHICH IS, I THINK, RELATIVELY SIGNIFICANT NUMBER. SO MORE PEOPLE ARE GRAVITATING TOWARD THE PAGE AND THEN THEY'RE GETTING INFORMATION FROM THAT PAGE.

THE SURVEY ASKED RESPONDENTS A SERIES OF QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW INFORMED THEY ARE IN EIGHT DIFFERENT TOPICAL AREAS ABOUT THE DISTRICT, AND I'M GOING TO GO THROUGH THE RESULTS ON THE FOLLOWING SLIDES.

AS YOU SEE HERE, A MAJORITY OF EACH AUDIENCE FEEL AT LEAST MODERATELY INFORMED, IF NOT BETTER, ABOUT DISTRICT SUCCESSES. THERE ARE SMALL GAINS COMPARED TO 2023, ESPECIALLY AMONG PARENTS AND EMPLOYEES.

AND SIMILARLY, WE SEE THE SAME KIND OF MODEST IMPROVEMENTS IN HOW INFORMED STAKEHOLDERS FEEL ABOUT STUDENT ACHIEVEMENTS.

IN PARTICULAR, FEWER REPORT THAT THEY ARE SLIGHTLY OR NOT AT ALL INFORMED.

PARENTS AND EMPLOYEES ALSO SHOW SLIGHT IMPROVEMENT IN HOW INFORMED THEY FEEL ABOUT SCHOOL EVENTS.

COMMUNITY RESPONSES REMAIN STEADY, WITH A SMALL INCREASE IN THOSE FEELING UNDER INFORMED.

I DON'T CONSIDER THIS ENTIRELY SURPRISING GIVEN THAT IN IN MOST SCHOOL DISTRICTS, THERE ARE SIGNIFICANTLY MORE EVENTS THAT ARE TARGETED TOWARD

[00:45:06]

SCHOOL SAFETY SHOWS SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT, PARTICULARLY AMONG PARENTS AND STAFF.

MORE RESPONDENTS REPORT FEELING VERY OR EXTREMELY INFORMED COMPARED TO 2023, WITH DOUBLE DIGIT INCREASES ACROSS AUDIENCES.

AS IS COMMON IN MOST DISTRICTS SCOPE DATA PERCENTAGES, FEELING INFORMED, START TO DECLINE SOMEWHAT AS TOPICS BECOME MORE SUBSTANTIVE, SUCH AS LEADER DECISIONS. DATA SHOWS MODEST IMPROVEMENT AMONG PARENTS, SOME MIXED RESULTS AMONG STAFF, WHILE MORE FEEL VERY OR EXTREMELY INFORMED.

WE ALSO SEE A SLIGHT UPTICK IN THOSE FEELING UNDER INFORMED, AND WE ALSO SEE SLIGHTLY HIGHER UNDER-INFORMED RESPONSES AMONG COMMUNITY MEMBERS.

I DO WANT TO MENTION HERE THAT ONE LIMITATION, REALLY, OF ANY SURVEY IS THAT IT DOESN'T ALWAYS FULLY EXPLAIN THE WHY BEHIND THE DATA.

WHEN STAKEHOLDERS REPORT FEELING LESS INFORMED ABOUT TOPICS LIKE FINANCES OR LEADERSHIP DECISIONS, THE SURVEY ALONE CAN'T TELL US WHETHER THAT REFLECTS A COMMUNICATION GAP OR SIMPLY THAT THESE MIGHT BE TOPICS THAT PEOPLE PAY LESS ATTENTION TO UNLESS THERE'S A SPECIFIC REGION TO ENGAGE. SO YOU MIGHT SEE INTEREST INCREASE WHEN THERE'S A PROPOSED CHANGE, A VOTE COMING UP, BUDGET VOTE, OR SOME SORT OF MAJOR ISSUE.

SO WHILE THESE RESULTS POINT TO AREAS TO WATCH AND POSSIBLY STRENGTHEN, IT'S IMPORTANT TO INTERPRET THEM PRETTY THOUGHTFULLY AND NOT AUTOMATICALLY ASSUME THAT IT'S EVIDENCE THE COMMUNICATION IS INEFFECTIVE, BUT RATHER AS INSIGHT INTO WHERE INTEREST AND TIMING AND STRATEGY INTERSECT.

YEAH. SO I THINK THAT OH, SORRY, JESSICA, I THINK I JUMPED MORE PARENTS AND STAFF SHOW GAINS IN FEELING INFORMED ABOUT DISTRICT GOALS AND PLANS AND FEWER FEEL UNDER INFORMED AS WELL.

AND COMMUNITY RESPONSES REMAIN PRETTY STEADY.

PARENTS AND EMPLOYEES ALSO SHOW SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN TERMS OF HOW INFORMED THEY ARE ABOUT DISTRICT FACILITIES.

WHEREAS WE SEE A LITTLE BIT OF THE OPPOSITE, A SLIGHT INCREASE AMONG COMMUNITY MEMBERS IN THOSE FEELING UNDER INFORMED.

AND FINALLY, FINANCES REMAIN THE AREA WHERE STAKEHOLDERS FEEL LEAST INFORMED, WHICH IS TYPICAL NATIONWIDE.

HAVING SAID THAT, PARENTS AND STAFF DO SHOW IMPROVEMENTS COMPARED TO 2023 IN PELHAM.

SO I WOULD SAY, AND IT'S WHAT I SAY TO EVERY DISTRICT THAT DOES A SCOPE SURVEY.

DISTRICT FINANCES REMAINS AN AREA OF OPPORTUNITY.

AND SO AS I SORT OF LOOK AT ALL OF THAT DATA ABOUT HOW INFORMED STAKEHOLDERS FEEL, I THINK WE SEE SOME INTERESTING, INTERESTING, INTERESTING TRENDS, RIGHT. WE'VE SEEN THAT WE'VE MADE SOME GAINS IN SOME AREAS OF THE LEADERSHIP DECISIONS, GOALS AND PLANS FACILITIES ESPECIALLY, WHICH MAKES SOME SENSE GIVEN THE PAST YEAR OF THE BOND WORK.

SO WE DID A LOT OF ENGAGEMENT AROUND DISTRICT FACILITIES SOME MODEST GAINS IN FINANCES AND THEN SOME REALLY BIG GAINS, I THINK, IN THE AREA OF SCHOOL SAFETY, WHICH MAKES MAKES SENSE TO ME.

BECAUSE THAT'S BEEN A FOCUSED AREA OF THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS.

SO WE'VE DONE A LOT OF WORK TRYING TO ESTABLISH OURSELVES AS THE TRUSTED SOURCE OF INFORMATION IN OUR COMMUNITY AND TALKING A LOT ABOUT HOW CAN WE IMPROVE OUR CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS.

SO WE'VE ESTABLISHED A CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS PLAN.

I THINK ANYONE WHO IS WATCHING THE EVACUATION OF SIWANOY FROM THE HIGH SCHOOL A COUPLE WEEKS AGO WAS ABLE TO SEE THAT PLAN IN ACTION. WE PUBLISHED AN EMERGENCY GUIDE AT THE BEGINNING OF EVERY YEAR AS A WAY TO MAKE SURE THAT FOLKS FEEL INFORMED ON THE FRONT END ABOUT HOW EMERGENCIES ARE GOING TO BE HANDLED, WHAT THE DIFFERENT PROTOCOLS PROTOCOLS ARE, AND HOW THEY MIGHT EXPECT TO RECEIVE INFORMATION.

AND AGAIN, STREAMLINING PLATFORMS IS MAKES A DIFFERENCE HERE AS WELL.

I WILL USE THIS MORNING'S EXAMPLE OF THE TWO HOUR DELAY WHERE ROAD CONDITIONS GOT REALLY BAD REALLY, REALLY FAST. SO WE, YOU KNOW, MADE THE DECISION TO GO TO A TWO HOUR DELAY.

WE WERE ABLE TO GET THAT MESSAGE OUT VERY, VERY QUICKLY BECAUSE WE WEREN'T FUMBLING THROUGH A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT PLATFORMS. AND I THINK THAT JUST, YOU KNOW, WE'RE WORKING REALLY, REALLY HARD TO TO CREATE A CULTURE OF TRUST AND TRANSPARENCY.

SO I THINK THERE'S SOME REALLY GOOD INFORMATION IN THAT DATA. I ALSO THINK THAT IT DOES HIGHLIGHT SOME AREAS THAT WE CAN, YOU KNOW, LOOK TOWARD FOR THE FUTURE. SO I THINK THAT WE SHOULD CONTINUE OUR FOCUS ON FINANCE

[00:50:08]

SO WE'LL START SOME OF THAT WORK. I THINK THAT THE ONE THAT JUMPED OUT TO ME IS INFORMED ABOUT SCHOOL AND DISTRICT SUCCESSES. SO THAT WAS AN AREA WHERE WE WERE MAYBE A LITTLE BIT MORE STAGNANT THAN WE WOULD HAVE LIKED TO SEE.

AND SO I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING WHERE WE WANT TO THINK ABOUT, WELL, HOW CAN WE MOVE THE NEEDLE? AS I SORT OF LOOK AT THE DATA SET AS A WHOLE.

I THINK ONE OF ONE THING THAT FEELS FEELS GOOD IS I THINK THE AREAS THAT WE'VE FOCUSED ON STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS AND LOOKING AT THE BIGGER PICTURE, WE'RE SEEING SOME PRETTY GOOD GROWTH. I THINK AS WE LOOK AT THIS DATA SET NOW, THAT'S AN AREA WHERE WE CAN REALLY DRILL DOWN ON THESE INDIVIDUAL TOPICS AND SEE IF WE CAN, YOU KNOW, FOCUS ON MORE SPECIFIC AREAS. SPECIFICALLY, I WOULD SAY AS WE TALK ABOUT DISTRICT AND SCHOOL SUCCESSES, ONE PIECE THAT'S BEEN VERY HELPFUL TO ME THIS YEAR IS THE SUPPORT THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO HAVE FROM SOUTHERN WESTCHESTER BOCES WITH A PART TIME PR SPECIALIST.

SO THAT'S BEEN SUPER HELPFUL. AND IT'S JUST SOMEONE WHO'S ABLE TO FOCUS ON STORYTELLING AND REALLY CRANKING OUT STORIES ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON IN OUR BUILDINGS.

AND THAT GIVES ME SOMETHING TO WORRY ABOUT. SORT OF THE STRATEGIC PIECES OF THAT.

SO I APPRECIATE THE BOARD BEING FLEXIBLE WITH THAT THIS YEAR.

NOT GOING TO SPOIL THINGS FOR THE BUDGET PRESENTATION LATER.

I KNOW THAT THERE ARE SOME, SOME TIGHT FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR THAT, BUT IT'S, YOU KNOW, IT HAS BEEN HELPFUL. YES. THANK YOU. JESSICA.

OKAY. THE NEXT SERIES OF QUESTIONS ASKED FOR RESPONDENTS OPINIONS ABOUT AREAS OF QUALITY RELATED TO THE DISTRICT'S COMMUNICATIONS.

AS WE SEE HERE, A MAJORITY OF PARENTS AND EMPLOYEES AGREE THAT THEY KNOW WHERE TO DIRECT QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS.

COMMUNITY AGREEMENT IS A LITTLE LOWER, BUT STILL REPRESENTS NEARLY HALF OF RESPONDENTS.

WE SEE JUST A LITTLE BIT OF CHANGE FROM 2023, BUT OVERALL, THINGS ARE HOLDING STEADY ACROSS ALL AUDIENCES. MORE RESPONDENTS AGREE THAT COMMUNICATIONS ARE EASY TO UNDERSTAND AND FEWER DISAGREE COMPARED TO 2023, IN TERMS OF THE ACCURACY OF INFORMATION. PARENTS SHOW A NOTABLE INCREASE IN AGREEMENT.

EMPLOYEES AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS ALSO TREND SLIGHTLY UPWARD.

AND SIGNIFICANTLY MORE PARENTS AND STAFF NOW AGREE THAT COMMUNICATIONS ARE TIMELY.

COMMUNICATION PERCEPTIONS ARE LARGELY UNCHANGED IN THIS AREA.

AND NOW TO SOME KIND OF MORE SUBSTANTIVE, I THINK DATA HERE, WHILE BARELY HALF OF STAFF AND PARENTS AGREED THAT COMMUNICATIONS ARE OPEN AND TRANSPARENT IN 2023, THIS YEAR, AGREEMENT APPROACHES TWO THIRDS FOR BOTH AUDIENCES AND FAR FEWER DISAGREE WHILE AGREEMENT AMONG COMMUNITY MEMBERS DID NOT INCREASE.

WE DO SEE THAT DISAGREEMENT DROPPED. AND KIND OF A COROLLARY TO THIS DATA ABOUT THE TRUSTWORTHINESS OF COMMUNICATIONS SHOWS IMPROVEMENTS SIMILAR TO WHAT WE SEE WITH OPENNESS AND TRANSPARENCY.

AND THIS IS ANOTHER TYPICAL TREND THAT I SEE IN SCOPE DATA THAT MORE STAKEHOLDERS TEND TO AGREE THAT COMMUNICATIONS ARE TRUSTWORTHY THAN AGREE THAT THEY ARE OPEN AND TRANSPARENT. SO THAT IS THE CASE HERE WITH PELHAM, BUT IT'S NOT AN ANOMALY.

I TEND TO THINK THAT THAT IT'S A GOOD SIGN IN THAT YOUR STAKEHOLDERS TRUST WHAT THEY HEAR FROM YOU.

THERE JUST MIGHT BE SOME SENTIMENT OUT THERE THAT ARE THEY HEARING EVERYTHING OR ARE YOU HOLDING SOME THINGS BACK? AND AGAIN, THAT'S A TENDENCY I SEE IN DISTRICTS ACROSS THE NATION.

AMONG PARENTS AND STAFF, AT LEAST THREE QUARTERS AGREE THAT COMMUNICATIONS IS TRUSTWORTHY, WHILE NEARLY TWO THIRDS OF COMMUNITY MEMBERS DO AS WELL.

SO THESE ARE VERY STRONG RESULTS. YEAH. AND I THINK AGAIN, ONE OF OUR KIND OF OVERARCHING GOALS, I'LL SAY IT A SECOND TIME, IS TO BE CONSIDERED THE TRUSTED SOURCE OF INFORMATION FOR OUR COMMUNITY.

SO WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? IT MEANS WHAT WE'RE PUTTING OUT THERE IS ACCURATE. IT MEANS THAT WE'RE PUTTING OUT THERE IS TIMELY. AND IT MEANS THAT WE'RE, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO MAKE SURE FOLKS FEEL INFORMED AND CAN TURN TO US FOR RELIABLE INFORMATION.

SO THAT'S REALLY BEEN A FOCUS FOR US. I DO THINK WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE, YOU KNOW, THINKING ABOUT IF FOLKS DO HAVE QUESTIONS AND THEY DO HAVE CONCERNS HOW CAN WE DO A BETTER JOB OF MAKING SURE THAT THEY FEEL LIKE THEY KNOW WHERE TO GO WITH THOSE

[00:55:03]

AND I THINK A PIECE OF THIS TOO, IS, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES WE MIGHT NOT HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS IN REAL TIME.

I THINK SOMETIMES BEING TRANSPARENT IS TELLING PEOPLE THAT WE DON'T KNOW, BUT WE'RE FINDING OUT OR TELLING THEM WHY.

WHY WE CAN'T NECESSARILY SAY SOMETHING IN AN APPROPRIATE TIME RATHER THAN LEAVE IT OPEN AND VAGUE.

SO I THINK WE'VE TRIED REALLY HARD TO DO THAT. AND I THINK THAT WE'VE WE'VE DONE A GOOD JOB SO FAR.

SO WE'LL DEFINITELY BE LOOKING THERE AS WELL. SO WE ALSO ASKED THESE THESE WERE QUESTIONS NOT ASKED IN 2023.

WE'VE ADDED SOMETHING THAT ASKS CERTAIN AUDIENCES ABOUT HOW MUCH INFORMATION THEY RECEIVE.

AND MOST PARENTS IN PELHAM FEEL THAT THEY RECEIVE THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF INFORMATION FROM THE DISTRICT AND FROM THEIR CHILD'S SCHOOL.

HOWEVER, WE DO SEE THAT HALF WOULD LIKE MORE INFORMATION FROM THEIR CHILD'S TEACHER.

AND ONCE AGAIN, THIS IS A TREND I TEND TO SEE IN MOST DISTRICTS THAT PARENTS CAN SIMPLY CANNOT GET ENOUGH INFORMATION FROM TEACHERS. AND THEN WE SEE THE SAME THING WITH EMPLOYEES THAT MORE THAN THREE QUARTERS REPORT RECEIVING THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF INFORMATION FROM BOTH THE DISTRICT AND THEIR SUPERVISOR. SO I'LL BE HONEST, THIS IS THE QUESTION THAT KEEPS ME UP AT NIGHT.

YOU KNOW, IT IS SORT OF AN OPENLY DEBATED QUESTION AS TO DO WE PROVIDE TOO MUCH? DO WE PROVIDE TOO LITTLE? I THINK WHAT WE SEE HERE IS THAT WE'RE WE'RE KIND OF KIND OF HITTING THE MARK FOR MOST PEOPLE.

I DO WANT TO JUST SAY, AS WE LOOK AT THAT CLASSROOM TEACHER BAR, AS JESSICA POINTED OUT, THAT IS KIND OF NORMAL TO SEE.

I CERTAINLY FEEL THAT AS A PARENT MYSELF AND MY KIDS IN PRESCHOOL.

SO THAT'S, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHERE IT STARTS. BUT I DO WANT TO JUST SAY THAT OUR TEACHERS, I THINK, HAVE DONE A TREMENDOUS JOB OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS AS WE'VE IMPLEMENTED PARENT SQUARE.

THEY'RE ADAPTING TO A NEW SYSTEM. THEY'RE SENDING OUT AT THE ELEMENTARY LEVEL MONTHLY NEWSLETTERS.

SO I DON'T WANT ANYTHING TO GET LOST IN THAT DATA POINT.

OUR TEACHERS HAVE REALLY WORKED HARD AT THIS.

AND I THINK WE'RE SEEING GAINS EVERY SINGLE YEAR.

AND I JUST WANT TO GIVE THEM A SHOUT OUT BECAUSE THEY REALLY HAVE DONE SOME GOOD WORK.

KATHRYN I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THAT. BECAUSE THIS.

OH. YEAH. THANKS. JUST A QUICK QUESTION ABOUT THE PARENT FEELING LIKE THEY NEED MORE INFORMATION FROM THE CHILD'S TEACHER BECAUSE THIS WAS A LIKERT SCALE QUESTION, LIKE ONE THROUGH FIVE, NOT A QUALITATIVE QUESTION.

SO WE DON'T KNOW LIKE WHAT MORE JUST JUST MORE.

NOT ANYTHING ABOUT WHAT TYPE OF MORE. THAT'S CORRECT JESSICA.

RIGHT. YES. I WILL SAY THAT AGAIN, FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SURVEY YOU WOULD HAVE HAD ME ON GOOGLE MEET FOR HOURS IF I HAD GONE OVER ALL THE DATA. SO THERE IS MORE.

AND PARENTS WERE ASKED SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW WELL INFORMED THEY ARE IN AREAS RELATED TO THEIR CHILD AND THEIR CHILD'S LEARNING.

SO THERE IS SOME OF THAT DATA. BUT THIS ABSOLUTELY WAS JUST ABOUT VOLUME.

AND IF YOU'RE RECEIVING THE RIGHT AMOUNT AND I THINK YOU HIT ON SOMETHING BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, AS, AS ALEX SAID, THE SCOPE SURVEY IS PART OF THE AUDITS THAT WE DO FOR SCHOOL DISTRICTS.

AND I'VE YOU KNOW, IN, IN WORKING ON DIFFERENT AUDITS VERY OFTEN, I'VE COME ACROSS COMMENTS IN FOCUS GROUPS THAT KIND OF SAY, WELL, YEAH, I GET THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF INFORMATION, BUT I'M NOT SAYING IT'S THE RIGHT TYPE OF INFORMATION THAT I WANT.

SO THIS IS ONLY ONE PIECE OF THAT. BUT I WILL SAY THAT YOU KNOW, THE FACT THAT THE MAJORITY FEEL THAT THEY'RE GETTING THE RIGHT AMOUNT FROM, ESPECIALLY FROM SORT OF THE DISTRICT AND, AND, YOU KNOW, THOSE HIGHER LEVELS, WHEN I THINK ABOUT HOW MUCH OVERLOAD ALWAYS COMES THROUGH IN AUDITS YOU KNOW, THIS IS AN IMPORTANT PIECE THAT IN TERMS OF ROUTINE COMMUNICATIONS, THIS DATA TELLS ME THAT PEOPLE DO NOT FEEL THAT THEY'RE BEING OVERWHELMED.

SO TAKING THIS INTO ACCOUNT, ALONG WITH SOME OF THE OTHER DATA THAT ALEX DOES HAVE ABOUT THOSE SPECIFIC TOPICS, CAN BETTER GET AT WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING AT TO, WOULD YOU ARE YOU ALSO ABLE TO POTENTIALLY LOOK AT IT BY ELEMENTARY PARENTS VERSUS, YOU KNOW, MIDDLE SCHOOL, HIGH SCHOOL PARENTS IN TERMS OF THE OKAY THE INFORMATION.

[01:00:01]

PULLING OUT THAT DATA AND LOOKING AT IT THERE AS WELL.

AND SOME OF THAT I THINK WILL PROBABLY SEE WHAT WE WOULD EXPECT TO SEE.

AND THAT'S, THAT'S KIND OF THE NATURAL, I THINK, PROGRESSION OF THINGS AS WELL.

YEAH. YEAH. AND TO ALEX'S POINT THIS IS ANOTHER ONE.

IT THIS DOESN'T NECESSARILY REFLECT EFFORT ON YOUR TEACHER'S PART, BUT AGAIN, EXPECTATIONS OF FAMILIES AND, AND THERE MAY BE SOME FAMILIES THAT SIMPLY WILL ALWAYS WANT MORE INFORMATION.

AND I THINK AS YOU'RE GETTING AT BY SAYING LET'S LOOK AT DIFFERENT LEVELS VERY OFTEN, WHAT WE SEE IS SOME PARENTS PARTICULARLY SORT OF AS THEIR CHILDREN GET TO MIDDLE SCHOOL, STRUGGLING WITH THE CHANGES WHERE THERE'S MORE TEACHERS, BUT THOSE TEACHERS SPEND LESS TIME WITH THEIR CHILD COMPARED TO ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, AND THE WHOLE CADENCE OF COMMUNICATION FROM FAMILIES TO TEACHERS IS IS JUST DIFFERENT.

AND SO VERY OFTEN THAT'S WHAT SOME OF IN TERMS OF THIS DATA POINT IN PARTICULAR, CAN CAN POINT OUT TO PARENTS JUST ADAPTING TO THOSE TRANSITIONS AS KIDS SORT OF MOVE THROUGH THE LEVELS AT SCHOOL.

SO NOW I'M GOING TO SHARE A FEW SLIDES THAT TALK ABOUT THE BENCHMARK COMPARISONS FOR YOUR AUDIENCES.

AND IT WE CALL THIS THE SCOPE SCORECARDS. TO GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF CONTEXT BEFORE WE LOOK AT THE DATA, THE SCOPE SCORECARD DRAWS FROM A HANDFUL OF THE STANDARDIZED BENCHMARK QUESTIONS THAT WE USE WITH ALL DISTRICTS MORE THAN 140 AT THIS POINT. AND SO IT ENABLES US TO COMPARE HOW THE DISTRICT DOES WITH HOW OTHER DISTRICTS HAVE DONE THESE QUESTIONS.

ARE THOSE, AS YOU MENTIONED THERE ON THAT LIKERT SCALE PRESENTED ON THAT FIVE POINT SCALE.

SO THE DISTRICT SCORES FOR ANY ONE OF THE AREAS THAT WE'LL BE LOOKING AT IS THE AVERAGE OF ALL OF THE RESPONSES OR THE POINTS THAT CORRESPOND ON THAT LIKERT SCALE. AND SO I DO THIS IS A LITTLE DATA HEADY.

BUT I DO LIKE TO POINT OUT THAT WHEN COMPARING A DISTRICT'S SCORE WITH A NATIONAL AVERAGE SCORE, THE MEANINGFUL OF THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE SCORES DEPENDS A LOT ON THE CONTEXT OF THE QUESTION AND ITS RESPONSE OPTIONS.

SO AS AN EXAMPLE, LET'S SAY THERE'S A HALF POINT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE DISTRICT'S SCORE IN A CERTAIN AREA AND THE NATIONAL AVERAGE, FOR EXAMPLE, A 3.0 AND A 3.5. IF THOSE TWO SCORES BOTH FALL WITHIN THE SAME NUMERIC RANGE AS THIS EXAMPLE DOES, THEY'RE BOTH SOMEWHERE IN THE THREES. THEY GENERALLY REFLECT THE SAME OVERALL SENTIMENT ON THAT FIVE POINT SCALE.

A THREE TENDS TO MEAN MODERATELY INFORMED OR AVERAGE, FOR INSTANCE.

BUT IF A SCORE DROPS INTO A DIFFERENT RANGE, THE MEANING CAN CHANGE.

FOR INSTANCE, IF THREE IS MODERATELY INFORMED, 2.5 SHIFTS INTO SLIGHTLY INFORMED.

SO IT'S STILL THE SAME HALF POINT DIFFERENCE, BUT IN THIS CASE IT WOULD REFLECT A NOTICEABLY DIFFERENT PERCEPTION.

SO THAT'S JUST A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT WAYS TO LOOK AT THE DATA.

AND I WILL ALSO MENTION THE SCORECARDS I'M ABOUT TO SHOW ARE AGAIN ABBREVIATED FOR THIS PRESENTATION.

AND WE'VE REALLY FOCUSED IN ON THE COMPARISONS WITH DISTRICTS NATIONWIDE IN THE AREAS THAT WE'VE LOOKED AT SO FAR IN THE PRESENTATION.

SO AND AGAIN, JUST TO ORIENT YOU, IF YOU NOTICE THE THE FIRST COLUMN TO THE RIGHT IS THE 2023 SCORE FOR PELHAM, FOLLOWED BY THE 2025 SCORE, AND THEN ON THE FAR RIGHT IS THE NATIONAL AVERAGE.

JESSICA, I'M JUST GOING TO INTERRUPT YOU ONE SECOND JUST TO SAY THAT OUR ROOM SET UP, THIS IS VERY, VERY SMALL. SO JUST AS YOU CAN GO A LITTLE BIT SLOWER AS YOU TALK THROUGH THE DATA, THAT WOULD BE SUPER HELPFUL.

SURE. I'LL GIVE YOU KIND OF BROAD LOOK. AND THEN IF ANYBODY YOU KNOW, AGAIN, IF IT'S HARD TO READ I'M HAPPY TO SPEAK MORE SPECIFICALLY.

WHAT I WILL TELL YOU IS THIS PARENTS SCORECARD SHOWS THAT PELHAM IS ON PAR WITH OR ABOVE NATIONAL AVERAGES IN NEARLY ALL AREAS.

FOR STARTERS, SCORE DIFFERENCES THAT ARE ONLY 0.1 OR 0.2 POINTS MORE OR LESS IS REALLY A NEGLIGIBLE DIFFERENCE.

THAT DOESN'T INDICATE ANY SORT OF DEVIATION FROM NATIONAL AVERAGE SENTIMENTS AND ALL OF THE PLACES IN WHICH THE DISTRICT IS LOWER.

YOU'RE NOT LOWER BY MORE THAN 0.1 OR 0.2 POINTS.

SO AGAIN NEGLIGIBLE DIFFERENCE. I CONSIDER THAT ON PAR.

THE QUESTIONS THAT ARE SHADED IN GREEN ARE NOTABLY STRONG AREAS FOR PELHAM.

[01:05:03]

AND IN SEVERAL OF THESE AREAS, YOUR SCORE ALSO FALLS INTO THAT HIGHER RATING RANGE, WHERE AGAIN, IT MEANS STRONGER SENTIMENT. AND THESE AREAS IN PARTICULAR, IT'S THE GENERAL PERCEPTION OF THE DISTRICT.

THE NATIONAL AVERAGE SCORE IS 3.8. PELHAM SCORE IN 2023 WAS 3.9, AND IN 2025 IT'S 4.1.

JUST A SLIGHT TICK UP, BUT AGAIN, THE NATIONAL AVERAGE IS ON THE HIGH END OF AVERAGE, WHEREAS PELHAM IS SOLIDLY IN ABOVE AVERAGE NOW. SO LITTLE, LITTLE MORE NUANCE THERE.

THE OTHER AREAS WHERE THE DISTRICT IS PARTICULARLY STRONG RELATES TO LEADER DECISIONS AND HOW INFORMED PARENTS ARE ALSO WITH DISTRICT GOALS AND PLANS, FINANCES, SCHOOL SAFETY AND FACILITIES.

AND AGAIN, JUST TO SPEAK TO THE POINT ABOUT NO ONE'S VERY INFORMED ABOUT FACILITIES THE AVERAGE NATIONAL AVERAGE SCORE, ABOUT HOW INFORMED DISTRICTS OR STAKEHOLDERS PARENTS ARE FOR DISTRICT FINANCES IS 2.4.

IT'S ALREADY IN THAT SLIGHTLY INFORMED RANGE, BUT AGAIN, YOUR SCORE IS HALF A POINT HIGHER THAN THAT.

THE OTHER AREAS WHERE THE DISTRICT IS PARTICULARLY STRONG WITH PARENTS ARE THE TIMELINESS OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE TRUSTWORTHINESS OF COMMUNICATIONS.

MOVING ON TO THE EMPLOYEES SCORECARD. PELHAM EXCEEDS NATIONAL AVERAGES ACROSS THE BOARD, AND YOUR SCORE WAS AT LEAST HALF A POINT HIGHER. SO INDICATING AGAIN, A MUCH STRONGER POSITIVE SENTIMENT THAN NATIONALLY FOR THE OVERALL PERCEPTION OF THE DISTRICT AND STAFF FEELING INFORMED ABOUT SCHOOL SAFETY.

THESE WERE ALSO AREAS WHERE PELHAM SCORE WAS IN THAT HIGHER NUMBER RANGE, ALONG WITH HOW INFORMED EMPLOYEES ARE ABOUT FINANCES, KNOWING WHERE TO DIRECT QUESTIONS, AS WELL AS THE ACCURACY, TIMELINESS AND TRUSTWORTHINESS OF COMMUNICATIONS.

AND FINALLY, AMONG COMMUNITY MEMBERS AGAIN, PELHAM IS ON PAR OR ABOVE NATIONAL AVERAGES IN NEARLY EVERY AREA.

AND IN PARTICULAR, I DID WANT TO HIGHLIGHT PELHAM SCORES IN PARTICULAR IN 2025, RELATED TO THE OVERALL PERCEPTION OF THE DISTRICT AND SATISFACTION WITH COMMUNICATIONS. THOSE ARE REMARKABLY HIGHER THAN NATIONAL AVERAGES.

AMONG COMMUNITY MEMBERS, GENERAL PERCEPTION OF THE DISTRICT SOLIDLY FALLS IN THAT AVERAGE RANGE.

AND AGAIN, IN PELHAM YOU'RE MORE THAN HALF A POINT HIGHER AND INTO THAT ABOVE AVERAGE RANGE.

SO VERY, VERY STRONG MARKS HERE. AND THEN JUST QUICKLY I WANTED TO TOUCH UPON STUDENT DATA AND JUST LOOKING AT TWO OF THE QUESTIONS THAT STUDENTS ANSWER THAT ARE THE SAME AS WHAT THE OTHER AUDIENCES DO.

AND AS YOU WILL SEE, STUDENT PERCEPTIONS IMPROVE DRAMATICALLY FROM 2023, IN TERMS OF THE OVERALL REPUTATION OF THEIR SCHOOL IN THE COMMUNITY, WHICH ALIGNS WITH THE OVERALL PERCEPTION OF THE DISTRICT.

FOR THE OTHER AUDIENCES, READING THE THE, THE SCHOOL ABOVE AVERAGE INCREASED BY MORE THAN 25 PERCENTAGE POINTS, AND AT THE SAME TIME, NEGATIVE RATINGS DROPPED TO JUST 4%.

STUDENT SATISFACTION WITH SCHOOL COMMUNICATIONS ALSO IMPROVED SIGNIFICANTLY.

HALF OF YOUR STUDENTS NOW RATE COMMUNICATION ABOVE AVERAGE, AND DISSATISFACTION DROPPED TO 8%.

AND I SHOULD SPECIFY HERE THAT THIS WAS ADMINISTERED TO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS ONLY.

SO VERY, VERY STRONG IMPROVEMENTS OVER THE TWO YEARS AMONG YOUR HIGH SCHOOLERS.

YEAH. AND I JUST WANT TO ADD TO THAT, I JUST WANT TO GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO MR. LLEWELLYN AND DOCTOR TITAN, WHO I THINK HAVE DONE REALLY, REALLY GOOD WORK, SORT OF EMBRACING THE SPIRIT OF THE AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS AND TRYING TO BRING THAT TO THE STUDENT LEVEL. AND I ALSO WOULD LIKE TO THANK OUR TEACHERS AT THE HIGH SCHOOL WHO GAVE UP SOME CLASS TIME FOR OUR STUDENTS TO TAKE THIS SURVEY. AS YOU SAW, I THINK, ON SLIDE NUMBER TWO, WE HAD A HUMONGOUS JUMP IN PARTICIPATION FOR THE SURVEY, WHICH I THINK IS GREAT, ESPECIALLY AS YOU LOOK AT THE RESULTS.

SO WE'RE SEEING IMPROVEMENT IN THE RESULTS ON A MUCH LARGER SAMPLE SIZE, WHICH I THINK IS NOTABLE.

AND SO I THANK YOU. AND I WANT TO THANK THE STUDENTS TOO FOR TAKING THIS SURVEY, FILLING IT OUT TAKING IT SERIOUSLY BECAUSE THE DATA

[01:10:08]

SO I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT BECAUSE I THINK IT'S REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE WERE ABLE TO OFFER THAT AND THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE USING THAT DATA EFFECTIVELY. SO THAT CONCLUDES THE OVERALL OF YOUR 2025 SURVEY RESULTS.

JUST TO WRAP IT UP, THE DATA HERE IS A VERY STRONG INDICATION THAT PELHAM'S COMMUNICATION EFFORTS ARE PRODUCING MEASURABLE GAINS IN PERCEPTION, SATISFACTION AND TRUST. THE IMPROVEMENTS ARE CONSISTENT ACROSS AUDIENCES AND IN MANY AREAS.

YOU KNOW, AS, AS WE JUST SAW EXCEED NATIONAL BENCHMARKS.

SO THE DATA REALLY AFFIRMS WHAT'S WORKING AND HOPEFULLY CLARIFIES WHERE CONTINUED ATTENTION CAN YIELD SIMILAR HUGE IMPACT AS YOU MOVE FORWARD. SO I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY AND I CERTAINLY WELCOME ANY QUESTIONS.

THANK YOU. JESSICA. AND I, JUST BEFORE WE MOVE TO QUESTIONS, I JUST WANTED TO AGAIN, THANK THE BOARD FOR GIVING US THIS OPPORTUNITY TO GO DOWN THIS PATH. MANY DISTRICTS DON'T HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY, I THINK, TO LOOK AT THEIR COMMUNICATIONS PROGRAM IN THIS WAY.

AND SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, THIS BOARD AND PREVIOUS BOARDS HAVE REALLY PUT A HIGH VALUE ON DEVELOPING A COMMUNICATIONS PROGRAM.

SO JUST THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO GO TO DO THIS WORK.

AND I HOPE THAT YOU SEE SORT OF THE PROGRESS THAT WE'RE MAKING.

AND THEN AS FAR AS MY NEXT STEPS, YOU KNOW, WE WILL BE TAKING A COMPREHENSIVE LOOK AT THE FULL DATA SET AND SORT OF DETERMINING WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS TO MOVE FORWARD. WHERE DO WE WANT TO PUT OUR FOCUS, AND WHAT ARE SOME GOOD STRATEGIES TO CONTINUE OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF YEARS.

SO WITH THAT THANK YOU. AND WE'LL ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE.

HI ALEX. THANK YOU SO MUCH. SO I WANT TO CONGRATULATE YOU AND JESSICA.

THIS HAS BEEN AN AMAZING SHIFT IN OUR COMMUNICATION STRATEGY.

AND I REALLY DO THINK WE SHOULD THANK YOU BECAUSE YOU'RE A DEPARTMENT OF ONE AND YOU'VE DONE ALL THIS.

SO THANK YOU FOR DOING THIS. NEVER AN EASY TASK TO IMPROVE COMMUNICATIONS.

SO WE'VE IMPROVED OUR NET PROMOTER SCORE. WE'VE IMPROVED OUR PARTICIPATION RATE.

WE'VE HAD A NOTABLE SHIFT FROM OR WE'RE CONTINUING ON OUR SHIFT FROM COMMUNITY FACEBOOK GROUPS TO THE DISTRICT FACEBOOK GROUP, WHICH IS ALWAYS GREAT. AND I KNOW YOU JUST MENTIONED THE NEXT STEPS TO TAKE IN TERMS OF RETURN OF INVESTMENTS.

WHAT WOULD THAT BE? IF I COULD ASK JESSICA, WOULD THAT BE TRYING TO INCREASE OUR NET PROMOTER SCORE OR TRYING TO INCREASE SOME OF THESE OTHER BUCKETS, WHETHER IT'S COMMUNITY OR STUDENT OR WHAT WOULD YOU SUGGEST IN TERMS OF BENCHMARKS OF WHERE WE SHOULD PUT OUR, I GUESS, YOU KNOW, OUR MONEY ON SO WE COULD GET MORE RETURN ON INVESTMENTS WHEN IT COMES TO COMMUNICATIONS? WHAT I WOULD SAY IS THAT TO ME, THE NET PROMOTER SCORE IS A REFLECTION OF HOW WELL YOU'RE DOING AND MEETING YOUR STAKEHOLDER NEEDS IN OTHER AREAS. SO I DON'T THINK I THINK IT, I THINK IN TERMS OF RETURN ON INVESTMENT, FOCUSING ON THE NET PROMOTER SCORE IS ALMOST PROBABLY NOT THE MOST SUBSTANTIVE WAY TO SEE ANY GROWTH IN THAT.

SO I THINK, AGAIN, THAT IS THE SORT OF SUM TOTAL OF SENTIMENT WHEN THINGS ARE WORKING IN EVERY OTHER AREA.

I I'LL BE HONEST WITH YOU, I THINK THAT QUESTION REALLY IS ONE FOR DOCTOR CHAMP AND ALEX, BECAUSE WHAT I WILL SAY IS THAT JUST EVEN LOOKING AT YOUR 2023 DATA, I TO ME AND AGAIN, SEEING WHAT I TYPICALLY SEE, IT WAS ALREADY SOLID AND STRONG.

AND SO IN MANY AREAS AND SEEING THIS LEVEL OF GROWTH, YOU KNOW, I THINK SIMILAR TO WHAT IT'S LIKE FOR EDUCATORS, THE BETTER YOU DO, THE HARDER IT IS TO CONTINUE TO SEE BIG JUMPS IN IMPROVEMENT, BECAUSE THOSE, THOSE LAST LITTLE FEW THAT YOU AREN'T REACHING OR WHATEVER.

THAT'S ALWAYS A TOUGHER NUT TO CRACK. I THINK REALLY HERE, WHAT THE DATA SHOWS IS SUCH A SOLID FOUNDATION AND SUCH AN ALIGNMENT, IT SEEMS, BETWEEN THE PRIORITIES THAT ALEX HAS IN YOUR COMMUNICATIONS FUNCTION SO CLOSELY TIED WITH THE REST OF THE WORK OF THE DISTRICT. AND I THINK TO ME, THAT'S WHAT ENABLED YOU TO SEE SO MUCH GROWTH HERE IN THE DATA IN TWO YEARS.

SO WHAT I WOULD THROW BACK TO ALL OF YOU IS, IN MY OPINION, KEEP YOUR COMMUNICATIONS AND YOUR MOST SUBSTANTIVE EFFORTS THERE

[01:15:10]

SO AGAIN, I KNOW FACILITIES HAS BEEN AN IMPORTANT AREA WITH THE RECENT BOND VOTE.

AND YOU SEE THAT THAT PAID OFF. SO I HONESTLY THINK THAT WHEN YOUR COMMUNICATION REALLY SORT OF MATCHES WHERE THE PRIORITIES OF THE DISTRICT IS, WHERE THOSE DECISIONS ARE HAPPENING, WHERE THE INVESTMENTS ARE BEING MADE.

IF YOUR COMMUNICATIONS ARE MATCHED WITH THAT AND KEEPING PEOPLE INFORMED ABOUT THOSE HIGH PRIORITY AREAS, I THINK RIGHT OFF THE BAT, THAT'S THE BEST ALIGNMENT THAT YOU CAN HOPE FOR.

TO ALEX'S POINT, I THINK THERE'S AREAS WHERE THERE'S MORE ROOM FOR GROWTH, IN PART BECAUSE THOSE NUMBERS ARE LOWER.

SO I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT HE MENTIONED ABOUT STORYTELLING, ABOUT THE SUCCESSES OF THE DISTRICT, I THINK THAT'S A GREAT COMPLIMENT. AND THERE'S PROBABLY MORE ROOM THERE.

BUT HONESTLY, I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS TO KEEP IT ALIGNED WITH THE REST OF THE WORK OF THE DISTRICT, BECAUSE ONE OF THE THINGS THAT CAN REALLY START TO TO ERODE CREDIBILITY IS, IS WHEN EVERYONE'S DOING THINGS OVER HERE, BUT TELLING YOUR COMMUNITY, PAY ATTENTION OVER HERE.

WE'RE GOING TO TELL YOU SOMETHING FUN, RIGHT? WHEN REALLY THE IMPORTANT STUFF IS OVER HERE.

SO THE BEST ADVICE I CAN GIVE WITHOUT KNOWING EVERYTHING GOING ON IN YOUR DISTRICT, IS TO KEEP THAT ALIGNMENT STRONG.

YEAH, I THINK I THINK THE FOCUS ON FACILITIES MAKES A LOT OF SENSE.

BUT ALSO, ALEX, LIKE YOU WERE SAYING THE A FOCUS ON SCHOOL DISTRICTS SUCCESS AND DEMONSTRATING THE VALUE OF THE SCHOOLS AND, AND ALSO IMPROVING IMPROVING THE COMMUNITY'S UNDERSTANDING OF THE FINANCIALS AND THE BUDGET.

I THINK THOSE TWO ARE, ARE, ARE TIED TOGETHER.

AND THERE'S ROOM. RIGHT. AND WE SAW THAT THERE'S THERE IS ROOM THERE TO CONTINUE IMPROVING UPON THAT.

YEAH. AND THAT'S SORT OF I ALLUDED TO IT A LITTLE BIT EARLIER, I THINK WHEN I KIND OF REFLECT ON THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS.

RIGHT. WE TOOK A COUPLE OF BIG SWINGS TO DO SOME REAL STRATEGIC SHIFTS IN OUR PROGRAM AS A WHOLE.

AND THINKING ABOUT THAT ON THE MACRO LEVEL AND WHAT IS OUR MINDSET AROUND COMMUNICATION AND WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT WE'RE GOING TO PRIORITIZE KIND OF FROM THE HIGH UP VIEW.

AND I THINK WHAT WE SEE, THE DATA REFLECTS THAT.

SOME OF THAT IS IS PAYING OFF. YES. WHAT? AND NOW I THINK BECAUSE WE HAVE THAT FOUNDATION THAT JESSICA JUST SPOKE ABOUT, NOW WE CAN START TO DRILL DOWN INTO SOME OF THOSE, THOSE YOU KNOW, LOW.

YEAH, EXACTLY. LIKE TOPICAL ISSUES. AND THINK ABOUT HOW, LIKE, HOW DO WE RESTRUCTURE OUR BUDGET COMMUNICATIONS PLAN OR HOW DO WE ADD MORE COLOR TO THAT? HOW DO WE DO MORE STORYTELLING? HOW DO WE FOCUS ON DIFFERENT AREAS THAT YOU SEE THERE? AND SORT OF DRILL DOWN ON THOSE? NOW THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO SORT OF SHIFT OUR THINKING A LITTLE BIT ON THE BIG THINGS.

YEP. COOL. OKAY. GREAT.

I'M GOING TO SAY WELL DONE. THANK YOU ALL. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.

THANK YOU SO MUCH, JESSICA. AND THANK YOU, ALEX.

I REALLY APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU FOR ALEX FOR ALL THE HARD WORK. AND I LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING IT WITH YOU.

THE NICE THING IN THE BOARD PROBABLY REMEMBERS THIS OUT OF THE AUDIT. WE ALSO FOLLOWED UP BY CONTRACTING, WORKING WITH FOR A STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS PLAN.

AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING THROUGH THESE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS, WHICH WE CAN SEE DIRECT CONNECTIONS TO THROUGH THESE RESULTS TODAY.

SO WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE ON THAT PATH. WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT THOSE OTHER AREAS THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO MOVE FORWARD AND TWEAK. AND I WOULD SAY ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS TOWARDS JESSICA'S SUGGESTION ABOUT KEEPING ALEX CONNECTED WITH ALL THE DIFFERENT WORKINGS OF THE DISTRICT, AND I'VE SAID IT BEFORE, THIS YEAR, ALEX HAS ACTUALLY BEEN SITTING IN ON OUR CABINET MEETINGS.

IT'S BECOME, YOU KNOW, AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE CABINET SO HE CAN BE THINKING ABOUT THE COMMUNICATION LENS THROUGH EVERYTHING FROM FACILITIES TO HR TO CURRICULUM TO SPECIAL EDUCATION AND PS AND BE THINKING ABOUT THAT, THOSE PIECES AND BRING THAT.

AND I THINK THAT HAS ALIGNED US ALREADY BETTER THIS YEAR.

SO THESE ARE THE RESULTS FROM THE FALL I ANTICIPATE.

I MEAN, WE'RE NOT PLANNING TO DO THE SURVEY AGAIN THIS YEAR, BUT I WOULD ANTICIPATE WE CONTINUE TO MOVE IN THAT THAT MORE ALIGNED DIRECTION AS A RESULT OF THAT. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU JESSICA.

HAVE A GREAT NIGHT. GOOD NIGHT. THANK YOU. BEFORE WE MOVE TO THE BUDGET OVERVIEW, WE'LL HAVE THE OUR STUDENT BOARD MEMBERS GIVE THEIR UPDATE KIND

[4.4 Ex Officio Student Report]

IS THAT IS THAT GOOD? YEAH. SO OLYMPICS IS COMING UP NEXT WEEK, WHICH IS ONE OF THE MOST RENOWNED AND EXCITING HIGH SCHOOL TRADITIONS.

[01:20:06]

THIS YEAR, THE FRESHMEN ARE THE FRONTLINE FRESHMEN, WHICH IS, LIKE ANYTHING MEDICAL, FIRST AID, MILITARY, PLEASE. LIKE A LOT. REALLY? ANYTHING? SOPHOMORES ARE SOPHOMORES, WHICH IS KIND OF LIKE A CITY THEME.

MY GRADE. THE JUNIORS ARE THE JUNIOR CLASS CARNIVAL, WHICH IS THE FIRST TIME IN MANY YEARS THAT IT IS AN ALLITERATION.

SO THERE'S BEEN A LITTLE BIT OF BACKLASH AGAINST THAT, BUT IT'S OVERALL IT'S BEEN FINE.

THE TEACHERS ARE REALLY HAPPY THAT WE'RE CHANGING IT UP. AND THE SENIORS ARE SENIOR SPARTANS.

IT IS A HYPED UP EVENT ALL YEAR AND TRULY BRINGS THE SCHOOL CLOSER TOGETHER, WHILE ALSO BRINGING OUT A STRONG COMPETITIVE SPIRIT AS EACH GRADE TRIES TO WIN IT ALL THROUGHOUT THE WEEK. EACH GRADE ALSO HAS DESIGNATED DRESS UP DAYS THAT TIES INTO THEIR THEMES AND EARNS ADDITIONAL POINTS.

OVER THE PAST MONTH AND A HALF, EACH GRADE HAS ALSO RAISED OVER $1,000 EACH FOR FEEDING WESTCHESTER, WHICH GOES TOWARDS THEIR OVERALL POINTS ALSO.

BUT IT'S JUST A GOOD ADD ON GIVING BACK TO THE COMMUNITY.

TOMORROW NIGHT, THE HIGH SCHOOL MUSIC DEPARTMENT, INCLUDING THE CHORUS, BAND AND ORCHESTRA, IS HOSTING A MUSIC DEPARTMENT FUNDRAISING CONCERT. IT IS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW FOR TO SHOW SUPPORT FOR THE STUDENTS AND THE TEACHERS AND TO CELEBRATE ALL THE HARD WORK THEY PUT IN.

NEXT, IN SCIENCE RESEARCH, STUDENTS HAVE BEEN PREPARING THEIR POSTER BOARDS FOR WHATSAPP, WHICH IS A MAJOR SCIENCE FAIR COMPETITION SIMILAR TO THE STS THING THAT EMILY HAD WON.

IT IS A BIG ACCOMPLISHMENT AND SOMETHING OUR STUDENTS WORK TOWARD FOR A LONG TIME.

IT'S IF THEY WIN THIS COMPETITION, THEY GO TO ISEP, WHICH IS AN EVEN BIGGER THING.

IT'S A IT'S A VERY BIG COMPETITION. SO WE'LL SEE HOW THAT GOES.

THAT'S ON MARCH 14TH AND THEN THIS THE WEEK PRIOR TO BREAK, THE SOCIAL STUDIES AND ENGLISH DEPARTMENTS HOSTED HUMANITIES NIGHT.

MANY STUDENTS PRESENTED ON A RANGE OF TOPICS.

FOR EXAMPLE, NINTH GRADER SHARED ORIGINAL POEMS IN 11TH GRADE APUSH STUDENTS PRESENTED ON DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN DURING THE CIVIL WAR.

FINALLY, THE INTERIM IS COMING UP, MEANING PELHAM STUDENTS ARE HALFWAY THROUGH THE THIRD QUARTER. IT SHOWS HOW QUICKLY THE SCHOOL YEAR IS MOVING, BUT IT ALSO SERVES AS A PUSH FOR STUDENTS TO FINISH THIS QUARTER STRONG. THANK YOU.

THANKS, EMERSON. SO IN ADDITION TO EMERSON'S STATEMENT ABOUT OLYMPICS, TWO WEEKS AGO, A GOOGLE FORM WAS DISTRIBUTED TO STUDENTS TO ALLOW THEM TO SELECT THEIR PREFERRED OLYMPIC EVENTS, MARKING THE FIRST STEP IN ORGANIZING THIS HIGHLY ANTICIPATED EVENT. THE PLANNING PHASE WE'RE IN NOW ESTABLISHES A FRAMEWORK FOR OLYMPICS AND SUPPORTS THE CONTINUED SUCCESS OF THE EVENT.

IN ADDITION TO THAT, THE SENIOR CLASS TALENT SHOW TOOK PLACE TWO WEEKS AGO ON FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY NIGHT AND BROUGHT TOGETHER STUDENTS, FAMILIES AND STAFF FOR TWO ENJOYABLE EVENINGS OF ENTERTAINMENT.

PERFORMANCES RANGED IN STYLE AND CREATIVITY, HIGHLIGHTING BOTH STUDENT TALENT AND A SHARED SENSE OF HUMOR THAT RESONATED WITH THE AUDIENCE. BEYOND THE PERFORMANCES, THE EVENT FOSTERED A STRONG SENSE OF CLASS COMMUNITY BY ENCOURAGING PARTICIPATION, SUPPORT, AND SCHOOL SPIRIT. PROCEEDS FROM THE TALENT SHOW CONTRIBUTE TO SENIOR CLASS ACTIVITIES, INCLUDING PROM AND OTHER END OF YEAR EVENTS WHICH ARE RAPIDLY APPROACHING.

EXCELLENT. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU GUYS.

WE APPRECIATE YOU STICKING IT STICKING WITH US TONIGHT.

AND I THINK NEXT WEEK, BEING THAT IT'S OLYMPICS, YOU GET THE NIGHT OFF FROM YOUR BOARD DUTIES.

SO. YES. GOOD LUCK. HAVE FUN. WE CAN'T ROOT FOR ONE CLASS OVER ANOTHER, BUT WE LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING ABOUT IT AT YOUR NEXT, NEXT REPORTS.

OKAY. ALL RIGHT. WELL. THANK YOU. BEFORE I GO INTO THE BUDGET PRESENTATION I DID WANT TO JUST DO A QUICK COUPLE, QUICK SUPERINTENDENT'S NOTES, REPORT KIND OF THINGS, EVEN THOUGH WE DIDN'T FORMALLY HAVE THAT UP THERE.

A COUPLE OBVIOUSLY SOME BIG THINGS ON THE AGENDA AND ON, ON MINDS TODAY.

SO OBVIOUSLY A LOT OF SNOW CALLS THIS LAST WEEK.

SO FIRST OFF, KUDOS TO OUR INCREDIBLE FACILITIES AND GROUND STAFF.

WE I DON'T THINK ANY OF US HAVE EVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE WHAT HAPPENED ON MONDAY. SO WE I THINK WE HAD FOUR FOUR STAFF MEMBERS WHO ARE 4 TO 5 STAFF MEMBERS HERE, INCLUDING JOHN CONDON. THANKFULLY, HE LIVES IN TOWN.

1 OR 2 OTHERS OF OUR STAFF LIVE IN TOWN. COUPLE LIVE IN NEW ROCHELLE.

THEY WERE THE ONLY ONES WHO COULD GET HERE BETWEEN THE ROAD AND THE ROAD CONDITIONS.

A LOT OF OUR FOLKS LIVE UP NORTH, SO THEY HAD, YOU KNOW, TWO FEET OF SNOW IN SOME CASES.

SO THE INCREDIBLE WORK THAT THEY DID, THEY TRIED THEIR BEST ON ON SUNDAY OR ON MONDAY.

BUT REALLY WE NEEDED THAT EXTRA DAY OF TUESDAY LIKE EVERYONE ELSE.

SO WE APPRECIATE EVERYONE'S PATIENCE AND FLEXIBILITY AROUND THAT.

WE WEREN'T ALONE. WHOLE COUNTY, ALL THE ISLAND, THE WHOLE AREA WAS IN THE SAME BOAT.

SO THEN WE I TOLD THEM, FINE, WE'LL DO TUESDAY.

YOU GET TUESDAY, BUT THAT SCHOOL BETTER BE READY TO OPEN.

THEY SAID, YES, MA'AM, WE'RE GOING TO DO IT. WE WANT TO DO IT. AND THEY DID IT. BUT THEN MOTHER NATURE PLAYED ONE LAST LITTLE TRICK ON US THIS MORNING.

[01:25:02]

SO THAT WAS THE REASON FOR THE LAST MINUTE SHIFT.

WE ARE SOMEWHAT FORTUNATE IN THAT WE DON'T HAVE BUSSES.

MY COLLEAGUES IN THE GROUP, WHICH IS BRONXVILLE, EASTCHESTER, PELHAM, TUCKAHOE.

WE GENERALLY COORDINATE BECAUSE GEOGRAPHICALLY WE'RE CLOSE, VERY SIMILAR DISTRICTS.

SOME OF THEM HAVE BUSSES, SOME OF THEM DON'T.

AND UNFORTUNATELY, ONCE WE MADE THE DECISION AT 615, THEIR BUSSES WENT ON THE ROAD.

SO THEY COULDN'T THEY COULDN'T STOP, YOU KNOW, THEY COULDN'T PAUSE LIKE WE COULD.

SO APPRECIATE IT. IT WAS MUCH NEEDED. AND WE HAD EVERY YOU KNOW, WE WERE ABLE TO STAFF THE SCHOOLS.

AS FAR AS WE KNOW, EVERYONE GOT HERE SAFELY. AND WE HAD A PRODUCTIVE DAY OF SCHOOL.

SO I APPRECIATE EVERYONE'S PATIENCE AND FLEXIBILITY THERE.

AND JUST KNOW THOSE THINGS THAT GO INTO THE SNOW. CAUSE THE TIMING MATTERS, THE AMOUNT MATTERS.

THE TYPE OF PRECIPITATION MATTERS, AND THEN THE ABILITY TO STAFF THE SCHOOLS MATTER.

WE CAN IT CAN BE PERFECTLY READY HERE. BUT IF WE CAN'T GET STAFF HERE, MUCH LIKE DURING THE PANDEMIC WHEN WE HAD TO SHUT DOWN AND WE HAD COVID ISOLATE ALL THOSE THINGS, STAFFING IS JUST AS IMPORTANT TO THE ACTUAL EDUCATION OF A SCHOOL DAY AS THE STUDENTS BEING HERE, SO WE APPRECIATE EVERYONE'S UNDERSTANDING ON THAT.

THANKS TO EVERYONE. WE HAD MANY PEOPLE ON THE ON THE ROAD FOR HOURS THIS THIS MORNING TO GET HERE.

SO ALSO THANKS TO THEM FOR PERSISTING, FOR BEING THE PROFESSIONALS THAT THEY ARE AND GETTING UP EARLY, GETTING OUT ON THE ROADS AND BRAVING IT TO GET HERE OUT OF THEIR DEDICATION TO BE HERE.

COUPLE OF CALENDAR UPDATES ON TONIGHT'S AGENDA.

UNFORTUNATELY, RELATED TO THE SNOW. THIS IS THE BAD NEWS, BUT THIS IS WHY WE PLAN FOR FIVE SNOW DAYS.

ON TONIGHT'S AGENDA, WE ARE MAKING EDITS TO THE CURRENT SCHOOL CALENDAR AS A RESULT OF THE THREE SNOW DAYS THAT WE'VE HAD TO TAKE.

SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS, INSTEAD OF A FIVE DAY VACATION, A HOLIDAY AROUND MEMORIAL DAY, WE HAVE TO REDUCE THAT DOWN TO THREE, JUST DOWN TO THE ACTUAL MEMORIAL DAY ITSELF OFF.

SO I BELIEVE THAT'S MAY 22ND, 23RD ARE NOW CONVERTING BACK TO NORMAL INSTRUCTIONAL DAYS FOR ALL STUDENTS AND STAFF.

SO PLEASE PLAN ACCORDINGLY AS WE ALWAYS ENCOURAGE PEOPLE NOT TO MAKE PLANS ON THOSE DAYS BECAUSE THIS COULD HAPPEN IN ANY GIVEN DAY.

ADDITIONALLY, BECAUSE OF YESTERDAY NEEDING THAT ONE MORE DAY, JUNE 24TH I BELIEVE IT IS.

ORIGINALLY THAT WAS ANOTHER A GIVE BACK DAY FOR THE ELEMENTARIES THAT HAS TO COME BACK INTO A AN ELEMENTARY STUDENT ATTENDANCE DAY.

SO ELEMENTARY BEING K THROUGH SIX MIDDLE SCHOOL IS GOING TO HAVE TO WELCOME THEIR SIXTH GRADERS BACK IN THAT ONE HALF DAY SO FAR.

SO FINGERS CROSSED THAT'S IT. AND HOPEFULLY, HOPEFULLY WE'LL BE OKAY.

IF NEEDED. WE DO STILL HAVE TWO MORE SNOW DAYS, SO WE DON'T NEED TO PANIC YET.

WE DON'T NEED FORGIVENESS FROM THE GOVERNOR YET, OR FROM STATE ED ON THE 180 DAY REQUIREMENT BECAUSE UNLIKE SOME LARGE LOCAL DISTRICTS WHO SHALL REMAIN UNNAMED. WE DO PLAN FOR FIVE SCHOOL DAYS.

WE'RE THANKFUL THAT WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO DO THAT.

SO ALSO, I DID GET WE'VE GOT THE SURVEY. I'VE GOT 83 RESPONSES ON THE SURVEY FOR NEXT YEAR'S CALENDAR.

SO I WAS REVIEWING THOSE IN LIGHT OF THE SNOW DAYS.

WE DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO GET THAT ALL ASSEMBLED AND BRING THAT BACK TO YOU TONIGHT. SO THAT'S COMING.

BUT SOME REALLY GREAT FEEDBACK. ONE ERROR. SO APOLOGIZE FOR THIS ONE.

I HAD MISTAKENLY PLACED PASSOVER ON THE 21ST.

THAT'S THE FIRST NIGHT OF PASSOVER. ACTUALLY, THE 22ND IS THE CORRECT DAY IF WE'RE GOING TO HAVE ONE DAY.

SO WE'LL DEFINITELY BE LOOKING TO MAKE THAT SHIFT.

A LOT OF THERE WAS MIXED A LOT OF FEEDBACK ON THE LENGTH OF THE HOLIDAY BREAK.

SOME PEOPLE WERE ADVOCATING STRONGLY FOR GOING BACK TO THE TWO WEEKS.

SOME WERE SAYING, THANK YOU FOR THE FOR NOT HAVING TWO WEEKS BECAUSE WE BOTH WORK AND WE NEED TO SEND WE CAN'T HAVE OUR KIDS HOME FOR THE TWO WEEKS.

SO LIKE WITH ANYTHING THERE'S GOING TO BE COMPETING INTERESTS AROUND THAT. ALSO SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT COULD WE PUSH SPRING BREAK TO ALIGN MORE WITH PASSOVER INSTEAD OF EASTER SO THAT IT'S A LITTLE BIT LATER, MORE SEPARATED FROM FEBRUARY BREAK SOMETHING WE'LL TAKE A LOOK AT? THE ONLY WAY TO GET US BACK TO HAVE A TWO WEEK BREAK WOULD BE BRING STUDENTS BACK BEFORE LABOR DAY OR REDUCE FEBRUARY BREAK.

THOSE ARE KIND OF THE TWO VARIABLES. SO I DON'T KNOW TO WHAT DEGREE THAT'S VIABLE.

AND AGAIN, YOU GET DIFFERENT OPINIONS. YOU ASK FIVE PEOPLE YOU'RE GOING TO GET FIVE DIFFERENT OPINIONS. BUT WE ARE LOOKING AT THOSE PIECES OF FEEDBACK AND WE'LL COME BACK WITH ANY POTENTIAL ADJUSTMENTS TO YOU AS SOON AS WE'RE READY WITH THAT.

ONE QUICK ACCOLADE TO ADD TO WHAT THE STUDENTS SHARED.

WE JUST FOUND OUT TODAY, THE 2025, LAST YEAR'S PELICAN YEARBOOK WAS SELECTED FOR VARSITY YEARBOOKS PORTFOLIO, VOLUME 31. THIS HONOR IS RESERVED FOR THE VERY BEST YEARBOOKS IN THE COUNTRY.

CREATING DURING CREATED. AND IT WAS THE ONE THAT WAS CREATED IN THE 2425 SCHOOL YEAR.

IT IT HONORS THESE BOOKS FOR SCHOLASTIC JOURNALISM, INNOVATIVE DESIGN, COMPELLING STORYTELLING,

[01:30:06]

AND WE DID NOTIFY FOLKS BEFORE THE BREAK. MISS SABEY IS BEGRUDGINGLY PUTTING HER RETIREMENT RESIGNATION BEFORE THE BOARD TONIGHT.

SHE HAS BEEN AN INCREDIBLE LEADER TO THE PELHAM COMMUNITY AND THE PELHAM DISTRICT.

BEING AT BOTH THE HIGH SCHOOL FOR MANY YEARS AS AN ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL AND NOW LEADING OUR MIDDLE SCHOOL THROUGH SOME OF THE MOST DYNAMIC AND INTERESTING TIMES IN EDUCATION AND DOING IT JUST WITH TREMENDOUS LEADERSHIP AND SKILL.

SO WE'RE VERY SAD TO BE ACCEPTING THAT TONIGHT.

WE WILL BE WE'RE WE'RE IN PROCESS OF LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW, HOW WE MIGHT BEST FILL THAT POSITION IN THE FUTURE.

SO INFORMATION WILL BE COMING. JUST ASK FOLKS TO GIVE US A LITTLE BIT OF TIME ON THAT, AS THERE IS SOME PLANNING AROUND THAT, THAT WE'RE TAKING SOME TIME TO DO BECAUSE WE WANT TO DO THIS RIGHT.

SO WE JUST WISH MISS SABIA ALL THE BEST. WE'RE HAPPY THAT SHE'S GIVEN US THE MANY YEARS THAT SHE HAS, AND KNOW THAT THESE NEXT FEW YEARS ARE WELL EARNED AND WELL DESERVED FOR HER TO SPEND WITH HER FAMILY, FRIENDS, HER HEALTH, AND WE JUST WISH THE BEST FOR HER GOING FORWARD.

AND WITH THAT, I'M GOING TO TRANSITION BACK UP THERE TO TO DO TO GO THROUGH OUR BUDGET OVERVIEW FOR THE NIGHT.

[4.3 Superintendent's 2026-2027 Budget Overview]

BUT OBVIOUSLY IT'S A VERY IMPORTANT PRESENTATION TONIGHT AS WE LAUNCH THE START OF THE BUDGET SEASON.

SO A LOT OF WORK HAS GONE INTO THIS. AS IT ALWAYS DOES.

SO THANKS TO JIM RICKY, JACKIE VIGIL, OUR INCREDIBLE DISTRICT TREASURER, THE ENTIRE BUSINESS OFFICE, EVERYONE OF WHICH HAS A HAND IN THIS, OUR ADMINISTRATIVE TEAM, WHO'S BEEN VERY THOUGHTFUL ABOUT AND STRATEGIC ABOUT THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS AND THE BUDGETS THAT THEY WERE SUBMITTED. AND THE ENTIRE CABINET AS WELL.

WE'VE SPENT A LOT OF TIME REALLY TALKING, TRYING TO BE THOUGHTFUL AND STRATEGIC ABOUT THE BUDGET, UNDERSTANDING A LOT OF THE CHALLENGES THAT ARE AROUND IT.

BUT WANTING TO DELIVER TO THE BOARD SOMETHING THAT WAS WITHIN THE GUIDANCE AND PARAMETERS THAT YOU PROVIDED TO US.

THAT GUIDANCE BACK IN OCTOBER WAS TO PROPOSE A TAX CAP COMPLIANT BUDGET, AND THAT WE HAVE DELIVERED UPON FOR YOU TONIGHT, MAINTAINED TO THE GREATEST DEGREE POSSIBLE, THE RICH PROGRAM OFFERINGS CONTINUE TO SUPPORT OUR SPECIAL EDUCATION STUDENTS AND PROGRAMS. AND AS WE THINK ABOUT STAFFING, ASSESS IT CAREFULLY THINKING WITH FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY IN MIND AND AGAIN, TRYING TO BE STRATEGIC IN ANY CHANGES THERE TO MAINTAIN THOSE RICH PROGRAMS TO THE GREATEST DEGREE POSSIBLE.

WE CONTINUE TO KEEP OUR FOCUS AND PRIORITIES ANCHORED AROUND THE STRATEGIC PLAN AS WE CONTINUE OUR WORK IN PERSONAL GROWTH AND ACHIEVEMENT, BELONGING AND WELLNESS, AND CERTAINLY FACILITIES AND SUSTAINABLE LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS. SO OUR WORK IS DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO EACH ONE OF THESE AREAS.

AND AS THE BOARD KNOWS, OUR BIG ROCKS THIS YEAR HAVE BEEN A MAJOR FOCUS AROUND MTS, WHICH OVERLAPS BETWEEN PERSONAL GROWTH AND ACHIEVEMENT, AND WELLNESS AND BELONGING. AS WE LOOK TO PROVIDE INDIVIDUALIZED SUPPORTS FOR ALL STUDENTS TO REACH THEIR PERSONAL GOALS AND THEIR PERSONAL DEFINITION OF EXCELLENCE, PROVIDE THE SUPPORTS AND ENRICHMENT THAT THEY NEED TO DO THAT THROUGH DIFFERENTIATION, THROUGH DIFFERENT OPPORTUNITIES AND THROUGH CONTINUING TO STRENGTHEN OUR SCHOOL CULTURE.

ALSO, WE'VE BEEN FOCUSING ON AI, WHICH IS ANOTHER WAY OF CONTINUING TO THAT TAPS INTO THE PERSONAL GROWTH AND ACHIEVEMENT REALM AS IT'S AN INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT AREA FOR EQUIPPING OUR STUDENTS IN FOR THE FUTURE.

SO WORKING TO EQUIP OUR STAFF SO THAT THEY CAN LEAD THAT WORK.

AND WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT A MARCH SUPERINTENDENT'S CONFERENCE DAY THAT IS GOING TO BE LARGELY FOCUSED ON CONTINUING TO DEEPEN OUR WORK AROUND AI, BOTH FOR PROFESSIONAL USE AND FOR STUDENTS.

WE'VE ALSO BEEN CONTINUING WITH THE IMPLEMENTATION OF OUR FACILITIES PLAN.

OBVIOUSLY NOW AS WE'VE MOVED BEYOND OUR MAY VOTE, SO A LARGE AMOUNT OF WORK HAS GONE IN THERE AND THAT'S ACTUALLY HELPING US.

[01:35:05]

SO WE ALWAYS DO, AS PART OF OUR STRATEGIC WANT TO KEEP OUR VALUES IN MIND AS WE MOVE FORWARD.

THEY'RE VERY MUCH ALIGNED TO THOSE STRATEGIC PRIORITIES, BUT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE OUR DECISIONS ARE CONTINUING TO THINK ABOUT HOW DO WE STRENGTHEN COMMUNITY AND BELONGING, WELLNESS AND BALANCE AND LEARNING AND GROWTH.

SO AGAIN, CONTINUING TO ANCHOR IN THOSE AS WE MAKE OUR DECISIONS, AS WE SHARPEN THE PENCIL, WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO FURTHER ALIGN AND FOCUS ON THESE AREAS SO THAT WE KNOW THAT WE'RE OPTIMIZING EVERYTHING THAT WE HAVE WITHIN THIS BUDGET.

WE ARE MAINTAINING THESE THINGS. THESE ARE THINGS THAT WE THINK WHEN WE THOUGHT, WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT MAKE PELHAM SPECIAL? WHAT IS THE STORY OF PELHAM? IT IS LARGELY THESE THINGS. WE WOULD NOT BE WHO WE ARE WITHOUT THE INCREDIBLY TALENTED FACULTY AND STAFF THAT WE HAVE SUPPORTING THE WHOLE CHILD.

AND YOU HEAR THAT EVERY TIME OUR STAFF COME TO OUR MEETINGS, EVERY TIME A FACULTY TALK, IF YOU'RE IN THE STRATEGIC PLANNING, IF YOU'RE IN ANY OF OUR SESSIONS WITH OUR FACULTY TRI-STATES YOU HEAR THE REALLY THE THE DEPTH OF UNDERSTANDING AND COMMITMENT THAT OUR FACULTY HAVE TO TO CERTAINLY TO HIGH ACHIEVEMENT, TO EXCELLENCE, BUT IT'S EXCELLENCE IN ALL AREAS OF LIFE AND HELPING EACH INDIVIDUAL CHILD MEET THEIR THEIR PERSONAL DEFINITION OF EXCELLENCE.

SO THAT IS, I THINK, FIRST AND FOREMOST, ONE OF OUR, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT MAKES PELHAM MOST SPECIAL PERSONALIZED LEARNING IS, AS MENTIONED, WHETHER IT'S DIFFERENTIATION, WHETHER IT'S WHETHER IT'S EXPANSION OF BOCES OPPORTUNITIES, WHETHER IT'S SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS, WHATEVER PERSONALIZED LEARNING STUDENTS NEED, WE DO AN OUTSTANDING JOB OF OFFERING THOSE OPPORTUNITIES, PROGRAMS AND SUPPORTS SO THAT ALL CHILDREN CAN THRIVE.

AS WE'VE TALKED ABOUT, WE'LL BE TALKING MORE ABOUT IN THE COMING BUDGET, HIGH QUALITY SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS. WE'VE INVESTED DEEPLY THERE, AND OUR STUDENTS ARE BENEFITING FROM THAT.

SO CONTINUING ON THAT PATH THAT'S MADE US SPECIAL, THAT'S PART OF WE'RE SEEING TRENDS OF PART OF WHY PEOPLE ARE COMING TO PELHAM, BECAUSE THEY KNOW THAT WE DO THAT WELL AND WE DO IT RIGHT, AND KIDS ARE GETTING WHAT THEY NEED.

SO WE'RE WE'RE PROUD OF THAT FOR PELHAM. AND THEN WE CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THE ROBUST OFFERINGS.

AND THESE ARE THINGS THAT NOT EVERY DISTRICT HAS, WHETHER IT'S FLEX IB AT THE MIDDLE SCHOOL SCHOOL OF OUR SIZE, MAINTAINING FOUR DIFFERENT LANGUAGES IS A CHALLENGE.

AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO AS A BOARD KNOWS, OVER 20 AP AND COLLEGE DUAL CREDIT COURSES.

SO WE'VE BUILT THOSE OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS.

THESE ARE THE THINGS THAT ARE GIVING OUR STUDENTS BROADER OPPORTUNITIES FOR THEM TO TAP INTO AND REALLY THRIVE.

AND YOU CAN SEE SOME OF THE OTHER AREAS THAT WE TALK A LOT ABOUT CONTINUE AND GO TO OUR DASHBOARD IF YOU WANT TO SEE THOSE NUMBERS TO REALLY BACK UP THESE STATEMENTS HERE.

BUT THE INCREDIBLE ENROLLMENT THAT WE'VE GOT IN ATHLETICS AND CLUBS IN FINE ARTS AND THE LEVEL OF PERFORMANCE IN THOSE IS OUTSTANDING.

WE HAD A SECTIONAL GAME DOWNSTAIRS TONIGHT. I THINK IT WAS GIRLS BASKETBALL.

AND I HEARD WE'RE GOING TO COUNTY CENTER. YES, THAT'S ONE OF THE BIG STEPS.

SO GO GIRLS. YAY! VERY EXCITING. AS WE TALKED IN OUR MID-YEAR REPORT AND THIS GOES BACK TO EVEN DOCTOR COMERFORD'S REPORT, OUR STUDENT, OUR STUDENT ASSESSMENT OUTCOMES.

STUDENTS BY THE NUMBERS ARE DOING GREAT THROUGH THE K33 THROUGH FIVE YEARS.

THERE ARE 80% PROFICIENT. WE'RE PROVIDING THE SUPPORTS THAT THEY NEED AS THEY MOVE INTO MIDDLE SCHOOL.

HIGH SCHOOL. THEY'RE NOW WE'RE GETTING 85 TO 90 TO 99% OF STUDENTS UP TO THOSE PROFICIENCY AND MASTERY LEVELS ON STANDARDIZED ASSESSMENTS, 100% GRADUATION RATE THROUGH US NEWS AND WORLD REPORT, PELHAM MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL IS IN THE TOP 5% OF NEW YORK STATE HIGH SCHOOLS IN THE TOP 3% NATIONALLY. THAT IS NOT THAT DOESN'T JUST HAPPEN.

THAT'S ALL THE WORK THAT OUR INCREDIBLE FACULTY AND OUR INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERS DO AND THE SUPPORT OF OUR COMMUNITY.

WE'VE ACHIEVED THIS YEAR THE AP PLATINUM DESIGNATION.

WE'RE CONSIDERED AMONG THE TOP QUARTILE IN ON PERFORMANCE ON AP NATIONALLY.

SO WE'RE WE'RE WE'RE ON THE MAP AS LEADERS IN EDUCATION.

AND OUR STUDENTS ARE REALLY THRIVING AS A RESULT.

AND WE'VE TALKED ABOUT TO OUR WORK ON CIVIC SEAL OF READINESS.

WE HEARD TONIGHT FROM EMILY, OUR MOST RECENT STS SCIENCE RESEARCH AWARD WINNER.

SO WE'RE CONTINUING TO SEE SUCCESS IN ALL OF THESE AREAS.

WE INVEST IN SUPPORT THESE PROGRAMS. WE THOUGHT IT'S IMPORTANT TO PUT THAT ON HERE.

ONE OF THE THINGS AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT BUDGET, WE OFTEN TEND TO FORGET WE ARE CURRENTLY.

AND WE TALK ABOUT BEING ONE OF THE LOWEST SPENDING, HIGHEST PERFORMING. IT'S TRUE.

WE'RE THE THIRD LOWEST PER PUPIL SPENDING DISTRICT IN SOUTHERN WESTCHESTER BOCES GROUP.

WHEN WE LOOKED AT SOME OF THE I THINK IT WAS THROUGH SCHOOL METER WAS THE DATABASE THIRD LOWEST SPENDING IN THE BOCES REGION SOUTHERN WESTCHESTER.

YET WE'RE ONE OF THE HIGHEST PERFORMING. SO I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING TO BE INCREDIBLY PROUD OF.

AND THAT IS AGAIN, PART OF WHO PELHAM HAS BEEN.

[01:40:01]

YEAH. SO I THINK IT'S IT'S NOT A SMALL POOL, YOU KNOW, IT'S A PRETTY BIG POOL AND VERY DIVERSE DISTRICTS AS WELL.

SO SO WE DO A LOT WITH A LITTLE BIT. SO AS WE START TO LOOK TURN INTO THE BUDGET, THESE ARE THE TYPICAL CATEGORIES.

AND WE'RE GOING TO GO MORE DEEPLY INTO THESE OVER THE OVER THE UPCOMING MEETINGS AS WE GET INTO THE LINE BY LINE.

BUT THE GENERAL CATEGORIES THAT YOU'RE GOING TO SEE THROUGHOUT THE PRESENTATION WILL BE, IN GENERAL SUPPORT INSTRUCTION TRANSPORTATION, COMMUNITY SERVICES. SOME OF THEM ARE LARGE INSTRUCTION OBVIOUSLY IS GOING TO BE ONE OF YOUR LARGEST.

THAT PAIRED WITH EMPLOYEE BENEFITS, YOU'RE GOING TO BE AROUND 75% SOMEWHERE, YOU KNOW, GIVE OR TAKE OF THAT.

DEBT SERVICE IS CONTINUING TO BE YOU KNOW, NOT MAJOR BUT STILL, YOU KNOW, A LITTLE BIT A SLICE OF THE PIE.

WE'LL TALK MORE ABOUT THAT OVER THE UPCOMING MEETINGS AND THEN INTERFUND TRANSFERS AS WE MOVE FUNDS THROUGHOUT THE DIFFERENT CATEGORIES.

WE'RE NOT GOING INTO THE DETAIL OF THESE LINES TONIGHT, BUT WE WILL IN THE UPCOMING THE MORE DETAILED BUDGET PRESENTATION TO COME, WHAT WE WANTED TO REALLY FOCUS ON, YOU KNOW, AS WE LOOK AT SORRY, I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE I'M NOT MISSING ANYTHING.

AS WE LOOK AT THIS BUDGET IN PARTICULAR THERE, WE, YOU KNOW, WE SEE AS WE'RE APPROACHING THIS, WE SEE SEVERAL AREAS OF BUDGET THAT HAVE BEEN REALLY GROWING.

THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF GROWTH IN THOSE AREAS. WE'VE SEEN SIMILAR AREAS THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS. BUT IN APPROACHING THIS BUDGET SPECIFICALLY, WE'RE SEEING SIGNIFICANT GROWTH IN THE AREA OF EMPLOYEE SALARIES, HEALTH CARE AND BENEFITS, SPECIAL EDUCATION AND TRANSPORTATION.

SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE CONSTRUCT OF THIS BUDGET, WHEN YOU GET TO THE DETAIL LEVEL, YOU'RE GOING TO SEE THOSE ARE SOME BIG AREAS OF GROWTH, AND THOSE ARE AREAS THAT ARE LARGELY OUTSIDE OF OUR CONTROL.

WE DO NEGOTIATE THE CONTRACTS, SO WE HAVE SOME BIT OF CONTROL.

AND AS WE LOOKED IN THE PRIOR MEETING, THERE'S A KIND OF A FLATTER SLOPE TO THE GROWTH THERE.

WE DO GET TEACHERS RETIRING AND GET SOME BREAKAGE ON SALARY AS LOWER SALARY FOLKS COME IN.

THAT HELPS TO KEEP THAT LOW. BUT WE ALSO WORK HAVE WORKED OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS TO MAKE THOSE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS REASONABLE, FAIR TO THE EMPLOYEE, BUT ALSO FAIR TO THE DISTRICT.

BUT THINGS LIKE THE HEALTH CARE BENEFITS, SPECIAL EDUCATION, TRANSPORTATION, THOSE THINGS ARE LARGELY OUTSIDE OF OUR CONTROL.

SO WHAT YOU SEE HERE IS AN ESTIMATE OF ABOUT HOW MUCH THESE HAVE ADDED IN EACH CATEGORIES IN THE BUDGET THAT WE'RE NOW PREPARING.

SO WHEN YOU ADD THESE UP, THE EMPLOYEE ALL THE CATEGORIES, THEIR HEALTH BENEFITS, SALARY, SPECIAL EDUCATION, TRANSPORTATION, PLUS A LITTLE BIT OF DEBT.

NET DEBT SERVICE. SO THAT MEANING WE HAD A DECREASE IN STATE AID.

STATE BUILDING AID. BUT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE AN INCREASE IN THIS BUDGET AS A RESULT OF BANDS INTEREST FROM BANDS THAT WILL BE COMING ON IN LIGHT OF THE NEW BUILDING PROJECTS.

NET INCREASE RESULTING FROM THAT IS ABOUT 455,000.

YOU PUT ALL THIS TOGETHER. THIS IS ABOUT $2.4 MILLION IN INCREASED COSTS JUST HEADING INTO THIS BUDGET YEAR.

LARGELY THESE ARE PATROL IF YOU ROLL THE BUDGET OVER FROM WHERE WE STAND TODAY.

SO THAT IS A LOT OF THE PRESSURE THAT WE'RE FACING AND WE FACE SIMILAR PRESSURE LAST YEAR WE MADE REDUCTIONS LAST YEAR TO STAY WITHIN THE CAP.

SIMILAR PRESSURES THIS YEAR. AND WE'RE YOU'RE GOING TO SEE SOME REDUCTIONS TO STAY WITHIN THE CAP AGAIN.

BUT THAT STARTS TO POINT TO SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT ALL DISTRICTS ARE FACING AROUND MANAGING WITHIN THE TAX CAP.

COSTS ARE OUTPACING REVENUES. WHEN WE TURN TO THE REVENUE CATEGORIES.

THESE ARE THE GENERAL CATEGORIES YOU'RE GOING TO SEE THEMES OF OVER THROUGHOUT OUR BUDGET DISCUSSIONS IN THE NEXT SEVERAL MEETINGS. PROPERTY TAXES ALWAYS OUR BIGGEST AREA OF REVENUE INCOME THAT'S JUST SHORT OF 78% OF OUR BUDGET COMES FROM PROPERTY TAXES.

ABOUT 14% IS COMING FROM STATE AND FEDERAL AID.

WE WERE FORTUNATE TO GET FULLY FUNDED ON THE TAX ON THE FOUNDATION AID FORMULA.

WE WERE PROBABLY ONE OF ONLY A THIRD OF THE DISTRICTS IN THE STATE THAT GOT THEIR FULL FUNDING.

WE JIM AND I BOTH MONITORING OUR PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS.

WE'RE HEARING THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE THE GOVERNOR'S NOT LIKELY TO HAVE AN ON TIME APRIL BUDGET, WHICH MEANS THAT WE HAVE TO USE THE NUMBERS THAT WE HAVE FOR BUDGETING PURPOSES, FOR SETTING OUR BUDGET.

OFTEN WHEN THE BUDGET DOES COME THROUGH, THERE'S USUALLY AN INCREASE FUNDING IN FOUNDATION AID.

SOME YEARS IT'S BEEN $9,000, OTHERS YEARS IT'S BEEN $300,000.

SO THERE'S NO TELLING. WE WOULD NOT EXPECT MUCH THIS YEAR.

BUT AGAIN, ULTIMATELY, IF WE DON'T HAVE THAT FINAL BUDGET, WE HAVE TO WORK WITH WHAT WE'VE BEEN GIVEN SO FAR, WHICH IS WHAT THIS BUDGET IS BASED ON. MISCELLANEOUS RECEIPTS IN APPROPRIATED FUND BALANCE, JUST A COUPLE OTHER AREAS. KATHRYN. SO EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE SAYING AND BECAUSE I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO CLARIFY THIS, WE OPERATE IN TAX ENVIRONMENT. WE OPERATE. GOOD THING I WASN'T CLOSE TO THE MICROPHONE.

WE OPERATE IN A TAX CAP ENVIRONMENT WHICH DOES NOT KEEP PACE WITH INFLATION.

FOUNDATION AID, ALTHOUGH YOU ARE SAYING HAS BEEN FULLY FUNDED THIS YEAR, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO CLARIFY THAT THAT DOESN'T NECESSARILY

[01:45:05]

SO IT'S NOT MAKING US WHOLE. SO WE THAT'S THE LIMITATION OF OPERATING IN A TAX CAP ENVIRONMENT, IS THAT OUR REVENUES OR THE COST WILL ALWAYS OUTPACE THE REVENUES, BECAUSE THE FOUNDATION AID DOES NOT MAKE UP THE DIFFERENCE IN WHAT IT COSTS THE DISTRICTS TO ACTUALLY OPERATE. EXACTLY. YES. IT'S A THEORETICAL FOUNDATION AID FULLY FUNDED, WHICH IS AMAZING, BUT. RIGHT. BUT IT'S STILL NOT. IT WASN'T. WE WERE MAKING BIGGER CUTS.

EXACTLY. YEAH. AND I THINK WE TOUCHED ON THAT IN AN UPCOMING SLIDE AGAIN TOO.

YEAH. HERE IT IS, THE VERY ONE. SO AS WE TALKED ABOUT THE GRAPHIC AND WE'VE SEEN THIS GRAPHIC BEFORE, THE STRAIGHT LINE IS 2%. THE ZIGZAG UP AND DOWN IS THE CPI.

SO AS WE KNOW THE TAX CAP IS SET EITHER IT'S NOT A 2% TAX CAP, IT'S 2% OR THE CPI, CPI WHICHEVER IS LOWER.

SO IN THE EARLY YEARS THE THE FIRST FIVE YEARS THERE IT TENDED TO BE BELOW THE 2%.

SO WE HAD LOWER LOWER CAP. BUT AT THE SAME TIME COSTS WERE LOWER.

SO THEY KIND OF ALIGNED BETTER. SINCE THE PANDEMIC THINGS HAVE SHOT UP.

CPI HAS BEEN WAY ABOVE IT. COSTS HAVE BEEN NOW OUTPACING REVENUE BECAUSE WE'RE ONLY CAPPED AT THAT 2%, EVEN THOUGH THE INCREASES IN SOME YEARS WERE AS HIGH AS SIX AND 8%.

SO WE'RE LIMITED AT THE 2% GOING INTO THIS YEAR'S BUDGET BECAUSE CPI IS HIGHER.

THE BUDGET THAT WE'RE PRESENTING TO THE BOARD TONIGHT, ONCE WE'VE AS CONSTRUCTED, WILL BE A MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE TAX CAP OF 3.72%.

AND THAT'S TAX CAP COMPLIANT, MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE.

AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE GOING TO BE PROPOSING TO YOU TONIGHT. THE JUST AS A REMINDER, IF WE'RE NOT EXCEEDING THE CAP THIS YEAR, IF WE WERE AT ANY POINT AT 60%, SUPERMAJORITY VOTE WOULD BE NEEDED TO PASS A BUDGET THAT IS ABOVE THE TAX CAP, DIFFERENT THAN OUR VILLAGES AND TOWN, THEIR BOARDS CAN SIMPLY VOTE TO PASS IT.

WE HAVE TO HAVE A PUBLIC VOTE OF 60% OR MORE OTHER REVENUES JUST TO BE AWARE OF AS WE'RE JUST TALKING STATE AID INCREASE.

THIS IS THE OVERALL, JIM. CORRECT. IS THIS FOUNDATION AID? THIS IS FOUNDATION AID. WE GET LARGE, WE GET SIGNIFICANTLY MORE OVERALL IN STATE AID.

BUT THE FOUNDATION AID SPECIFIC INCREASE WAS $385,000.

YES. MOST OTHER DISTRICTS, ABOUT TWO THIRDS OF THE STATE ONLY GOT A 1% INCREASE.

WE GOT JUST OVER 3.8% INCREASE. SO THE NET IS 383.

BUT AGAIN, WHEN YOU'RE SEEING COSTS INCREASE AT OVER $2 MILLION, GETTING A FOUNDATION INCREASE OF 385, WHICH IS WONDERFUL, AND I'LL TAKE IT. BUT TO CATHERINE'S POINT, IT DOESN'T BEGIN TO CLOSE THE DIFFERENCE.

QUESTION ON THAT EITHER FOR YOU OR FOR JIM. WHY? WHAT'S THE DRIVER BEHIND PELHAM GETTING A GREATER INCREASE IN STATE AID VERSUS OTHER DISTRICTS? WHAT'S WHAT'S INTERESTING ABOUT US? ALL I KNOW IS THE OTHER DISTRICTS ARE NOW CONSIDERED ON SAFE, HARMLESS MEANING IF MY UNDERSTANDING SIMPLE OR SIMPLE VERSION THE FOUNDATION EIGHT ACCORDING TO THE FOUNDATION AID, THEY SHOULD ACTUALLY BE GETTING LESS. BUT INSTEAD OF REDUCING THEM OR KEEPING THEM FLAT, THE STATE DECIDED TO AT LEAST GIVE EVERYBODY 1% AS A GROWTH.

SO FOR DISTRICTS LIKE US, I DON'T KNOW WHY WE'RE NOT ON SAFE AND HARMLESS AND OTHERS ARE, BUT FOR US, WE. WHEN YOU CALCULATE THE FOUNDATION AID FORMULA.

WITH OUR DATA, WE'RE STILL GETTING THE THE INCREASES ACCORDING TO THE FORMULA.

JIM, IT HAS A NICE FORMULA ABOUT IT. YESTERDAY I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO SIT IN A TWO HOUR WEBINAR, WHICH WHERE THIS WAS PART OF IT. I'LL BE HAPPY TO SHARE THAT AND GIVE YOU SPARE YOU THE TWO HOURS AND GIVE YOU THE ONCE WE GO THROUGH IT.

WHAT THE WHAT THOSE EXACT DRIVERS WERE. BUT IT'S A LONG FORMULA THAT TAKES INTO ACCOUNT YOUR STUDENT POPULATION, PROPERTY VALUES AND DIFFERENT THINGS SUCH AS THAT.

AND IT COULD CHANGE LIKE NEXT YEAR, STUDENT WEALTH OR IT.

WE GOT IT THIS YEAR, BUT WE MIGHT NOT. IT COULD CHANGE YEAR TO YEAR BASED ON WHAT KIND OF DATA WE HAVE.

RIGHT? YEAH. AND THIS IS ONE OF THE REASONS THAT WE'VE BEEN ADVOCATING FOR FULL FUNDING OF THE FOUNDATION AID FORMULA BECAUSE IT'S NEVER ENOUGH FOR ANYONE.

SO WE WANT THE FULL, AT LEAST THE FULL AMOUNT.

AND ALSO ADVOCATING TO MAINTAIN THE SAFE, HARMLESS PROVISION, BECAUSE AT SOME POINT IN TIME WE WILL WIND UP IN THAT POSITION AND WE DON'T WANT TO BE LOSING FUNDING. WE NEED THE STABILITY AND PREDICTABILITY OF FUNDING SO THAT WE CAN CREATE BALANCED BUDGETS AND NOT, AND BE ABLE TO SUPPLEMENT IT AND NOT HAVE OUR TAXPAYERS HAVING TO SUPPLEMENT THAT DIFFERENCE.

SO ADDITIONALLY, ON THE REVENUE SIDE, THERE ARE SOME EXPECTED REDUCTIONS IN INTEREST EARNINGS, WHICH WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT WITH THE FINANCE COMMITTEE. AND IN CONSTRUCTING THIS BUDGET, WE AGAIN USE DEBT SERVICE FUND SIMILAR TO PRIOR YEARS, BUT WE DID USE SLIGHTLY LESS OUR HOPE AS WE NOW HEAD INTO THE NEXT IMPLEMENTATION OF BOND PROJECTS, WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO SAVE SOME OF THAT DEBT SERVICE TO HELP MITIGATE THOSE COSTS.

COMING ON. SO WE HAVE MET WITH CMA. THEY'VE GIVEN US A KIND OF A, I THINK, A TEN YEAR PROJECTION OF HOW WE MIGHT USE THAT.

[01:50:02]

AND I SHOULD SAY THAT WHEN WE ROLL OVER OUR BUDGET.

WE DON'T. WE START WITH WHAT WE'RE ACTUALLY DOING.

YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A BUDGET. WE PLAN OUR BUDGET, WE STAY ON BUDGET.

BUT THE REALITY OF WHEN WE CONSTRUCT A BUDGET IN FEBRUARY, THE BOARD ADOPTS A BUDGET IN APRIL, THE COMMUNITY PASSES IT IN MAY, AND THEN WE ACTUALLY IMPLEMENT IT.

IT THERE'S GOING TO BE VARIABILITY BECAUSE SECTIONS CHANGE, ENROLLMENT CHANGES, STAFFING CHANGES, SPECIAL EDUCATION CHANGES, ALL KINDS OF THINGS CHANGE.

SO WHAT WE PLAN, WE TRY TO STICK TO, BUT WE KNOW THAT THERE HAS TO BE ADJUSTMENTS ALONG THE WAY.

SO WHEN WE GO THROUGH THE BUDGETING PROCESS WE START BY ROLLING OVER WHAT WE'RE ACTUALLY DOING. SO OUR ACTUAL PROGRAM, IF WE USED THE IF WE ADDED ELEMENTARY SECTIONS BECAUSE WE HAD HIGHER THAN EXPECTED ENROLLMENT, WE GO AHEAD AND KEEP THAT AND ROLL IT OVER. IF WE EXPANDED TRYING TO THINK OF OTHER GOOD EXAMPLES, IF WE RAN SOME EXTRA CLASSES AT THE HIGH SCHOOL THAT WE HADN'T PLANNED FOR EXTRA CLASSES OR EXTRA SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES, WE ROLL THOSE OVER AS OUR STARTING POINT AND THEN WE ADD IN ALL THOSE INCREASED COSTS ANTICIPATED.

WE PUT TOGETHER ALL THE WHAT'S OUR TAX CAP GOING TO BE? HOW MUCH TAX REVENUE CAN THAT RAISE. WHAT'S OUR ANTICIPATED STATE AID.

WHAT ARE WE EXPECTING ON CONTRIBUTIONS FOR RETIREMENT SYSTEM FOR BENEFITS.

PUT ALL THAT TOGETHER. WHAT'S THE GAP. WHAT'S THE DELTA BETWEEN THE TWO.

AND THAT'S WHERE WE GOT THIS. NOW WE AGAIN SEE A $2 MILLION GAP WAS OUR STARTING POINT.

CURRENT SERVICE BUDGET ROLLED OVER. GET ALL THE PROJECTED REVENUES AND EXPENDITURES.

AND NOW WE HAVE TO GET OUT THE PENCIL AND START SHARPENING IT AND FIGURING OUT HOW DO WE CLOSE THIS GAP.

SO WE BEGAN THIS BUDGET DEVELOPMENT BY TRYING TO IDENTIFY, KNOWING THAT WE NEEDED TO IDENTIFY ABOUT $2 MILLION DIFFERENCE AND REDUCTIONS.

SO AGAIN, THIS IS FLUID. ALL THAT INFORMATION ON BOTH REVENUE SIDE AND EXPENDITURE SIDE DOES COME IN OVER TIME.

SO YOU'RE YOU START IN ONE PLACE BUT YOU'RE CONSTANTLY ADJUSTING, WHICH IS WHY WE SAY IT'S A IT'S KIND OF A LIVING DOCUMENT AND IT'S A FLUID PROCESS.

SO EVEN FROM TODAY, AS WE START THE BUDGET PROCESS TO WHERE WE'RE GOING TO BE IN APRIL, THERE ARE GOING TO BE ADJUSTMENTS.

SO WE'RE GOING TO KEEP YOU UP TO DATE ON WHAT THOSE ADJUSTMENTS ARE. YOU'LL SEE SOME INS AND OUTS SHEETS BEFORE WE ULTIMATELY SET THE BUDGET IN APRIL.

AS WE APPROACH THIS WORK, FINDING $2 MILLION IS NOT EASY.

ONE WOULD THINK IN A LARGE BUDGET LIKE OURS, IT WOULD BE. BUT WHEN IT GETS DOWN TO DISCRETIONARY SPENDING, YOU'RE DEALING WITH VERY LIMITED AMOUNT OF THAT BUDGET. SO KNOWING THIS AND KNOWING THAT WE MADE SOME SIGNIFICANT REDUCTIONS LAST YEAR, WE HAD THAT LARGE CLASS OF RETIREES. REMEMBER WE HAD 13 RETIREMENTS.

I THINK OVERALL WE WE REDUCED I THINK WE I THINK IT WAS ABOUT EIGHT OVERALL NET THAT WE DIDN'T REDUCE THAT WE DIDN'T REPLACE, WHICH WAS SIGNIFICANT AND INCREDIBLY HELPFUL TO WHERE WE ARE TODAY, BECAUSE THAT REDUCTION IN FORCE ACTUALLY HELPED TO REDUCE WHAT THAT GAP WOULD HAVE BEEN.

THAT'S WHAT WE GOT TO THE END OF THIS PROCESS AND THOUGHT, OH MY GOD, I'M SO GLAD WE MADE THOSE DECISIONS LAST YEAR BECAUSE WE WOULD HAVE BEEN FACING AN EVEN MORE DIFFICULT TIME THIS YEAR. SO EVEN WITH THAT, THAT WAS A GOOD MOVE LAST YEAR.

WE'RE NOW AT A POSITION STILL HAVING TO MAKE SOME SOME REDUCTIONS AS WELL TO STAY WITHIN THE TAX CAP.

AND AGAIN, ALL DISTRICTS ARE FACING THIS. WE'VE ALREADY WHAT DID WE COUNT RECENTLY? WE HAD AT LEAST A HALF A DOZEN TO CLOSE, APPROACHING 10 TO 12 DISTRICTS THAT HAVE ALREADY PIERCED THE CAP IN THE PAST, PROBABLY HALF A DOZEN THAT WE ALREADY KNOW OF THAT ARE PIERCING THIS YEAR.

WE EXPECT IN THE NEXT MONTH TO HEAR OF MORE THAT ARE GOING TO BE PIERCING THE CAP.

IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S INEVITABLE FOR ALL OF US.

WE'RE TRYING TO STAVE THAT OFF AS LONG AS POSSIBLE, BUT THE REALITY IS WE'RE GETTING REALLY VERY, VERY TIGHT TO THE BONE AS FAR AS WHERE WE ARE WITH BUDGET.

SO AS WE HAD TO MAKE THESE DIFFICULT DECISIONS, WE HAD TO HAVE SOME GUIDING PRINCIPLES.

WE'VE GOT OUR STRATEGIC PLAN, WE'VE GOT OUR VALUES.

WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO AS WE WEED THROUGH THESE AS WE WEED THROUGH THESE OPTIONS.

SO STAYING WITHIN THE CAP, ENSURING PROGRESS TOWARDS THOSE PLANS.

WE LITERALLY STARTED BY LISTING WHAT ARE OUR NEEDS AND WHAT ARE OUR WANTS? BECAUSE WE HAVE A LOT OF THE NEEDS WE HAVE TO DO.

WE DON'T HAVE A CHOICE. WE HAVE TO HAVE THE SAME BASIC COURSE OF STUDY FOR ALL STUDENTS IN THE DISTRICT TO MEET STATE STANDARDS, TO MEET GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS, WE HAVE IEP AND 504 REQUIREMENTS.

WE HAVE WE HAVE SOME BASICS THAT WE DON'T HAVE ANY CHOICES AROUND.

AND THEN THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS BECAUSE OF WHO WE ARE AND BECAUSE OF BEING A HIGH ACHIEVING DISTRICT AND BECAUSE OF IT BEING A COMMUNITY THAT VALUES EDUCATION AND WANTS MORE THAN JUST THE BASICS FOR OUR KIDS. WE HAVE A LOT OF INCREDIBLE PROGRAMS AND SUPPORTS, OPPORTUNITIES, ENRICHMENT THAT WE'VE BUILT FOR OUR OUR STUDENTS.

THOSE TECHNICALLY ARE ON THE WANT SIDE. SO WE HAD TO REALLY PUT EVERYTHING ON THE TABLE AND THEN THINK ABOUT HOW DO WE APPROACH THIS IN A WAY THAT HONORS THE GUIDANCE OF THE BOARD, HONORS OUR STRATEGIC PLAN, HONORS OUR VALUES, AND MINIMIZES THE NEGATIVE IMPACTS?

[01:55:05]

AGAIN, IF THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO REDUCE STAFFING THROUGH ATTRITION.

THAT'S WHAT WE TRIED TO DO TO THE GREATEST DEGREE POSSIBLE, NOT FULLY POSSIBLE, BUT WHERE OPPORTUNITIES ARISE.

THAT'S WHERE WE DID BECAUSE OUR PEOPLE ARE OUR GREATEST VALUE.

SO WE DON'T WANT TO HAVE TO REDUCE ACTUAL PEOPLE.

WE TRY TO USE OPENINGS AS OPPORTUNITIES TO REDUCE COSTS AND OF COURSE, MINIMIZE IMPACT ON STUDENTS.

STAY AS FAR AWAY FROM STUDENTS AS WE CAN. SO WHEN IT CAME TO CLOSING THE BUDGET, THESE ARE THE KIND OF THE BUCKETS, THE CATEGORIES THAT WE HAD TO LOOK CRITICALLY AT AND WHERE THE DECISIONS ULTIMATELY LANDED.

AND AS WE GO THROUGH THE BUDGET PROCESS AGAIN, LINE BY LINE, WE WILL BE GOING MORE DEEPLY INTO THESE.

BUT STAFFING REDUCTIONS, SOME PROGRAM TWEAKING, REFINING, STREAMLINING.

SO THINGS LIKE RETIREMENTS, THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT.

NOT FILLING RETIREMENTS. WE SOME OF THE RETIREMENTS ONE WILL BE FILLED, TWO WILL NOT.

LOOKING AT BREAKAGE IS ANOTHER TERM YOU'LL HEAR US USE WHERE WE DID HAVE PEOPLE RETIRE THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, AND WE DO NEED TO REPLACE THOSE POSITIONS. OFTEN WE CAN REPLACE THEM AT A LOWER SALARY.

SO THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE RETIREE SALARY AND THE NEW SALARY IS THE BREAKAGE.

SO THERE'S OFTEN SAVINGS WHENEVER EVEN IF WE DO REPLACE WE STILL GET SOME SAVINGS.

SO LOOKING AT THAT LOOKING AT WAYS THAT WE CAN STREAMLINE AND WE USE MAYBE FEWER OVERAGES, USE LESS HOURLY WORK. SO THERE'S AREAS THAT WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT OVER THE COMING MEETINGS TO REDUCE STAFFING AND PROGRAMS WHILE STILL MAINTAINING THE CORE OF THOSE PROGRAMS AND REDUCING THE IMPACT ON STUDENTS THAT WOULD BE IMPACTED BY ANY POTENTIAL REDUCTIONS.

THAT WASN'T OUR FIRST PLACE TO LOOK. OUR FIRST PLACE REALLY WAS LOW HANGING FRUIT. WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT ARE COMPLETE THAT ARE FARTHEST AWAY FROM THE CLASSROOM? AND THEN WHAT ARE AREAS THAT WE CAN FIND MORE EFFICIENCIES.

SO I'M GOING A LITTLE BIT OUT OF ORDER HERE. BUT TO OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCIES, HOW DO WE TIGHTEN UP OUR USE? HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT WE'VE GOT STRONG CONTROLS AROUND OPERATIONAL THINGS THAT ARE NOT PART OF THE CLASSROOM, BUT THAT WE CAN MAKE SURE WE'RE USING MORE IN A MORE STREAMLINED WAY? CONSULTING DECREASES. WE'VE GOT CONSULTATION SERVICES ALL AROUND THE DISTRICT, WHETHER IT'S IN FACILITIES.

WE'VE GOT DIFFERENT CONSULTANTS THAT DO WORK ON FACILITIES THAT WE CAN LIVE WITH WITHOUT FOR A YEAR OR TWO BECAUSE WE JUST WENT THROUGH A BUILDING CONDITION SURVEY AND FEASIBILITY WORK. WE KNOW THE CONDITIONS OF OUR ROOFING AND OUR MASONRY, SO WE CAN LIVE WITHOUT THAT CONSULTING FOR A LITTLE WHILE.

EVEN THOUGH COMMUNICATIONS IS A PRIORITY, WE'VE DOWNSIZED ON SOME OF THE CONSULTING SERVICES THERE, SOME OF THE CONSULTING SERVICES THAT I USE FOR MY OWN WORK YOU KNOW, IN THE DIFFERENT AREAS AROUND THE CABINET THERE'S BEEN REDUCTIONS IN SOME OF THOSE OUTSIDE CONSULTING CONTRACTS AGAIN, SO WE CAN KEEP THE RESOURCES IN DISTRICT.

AND IN MANY TIMES WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO EITHER POSTPONE THE WORK AS IN THE FACILITIES CASE, OR CHANGE OUR APPROACH TO THE WORK TO MAKE SURE THAT EVEN THOUGH THE CONSULTANT WORK IS NOT HAPPENING, WE'RE USING MORE INTERNAL RESOURCES TO ACCOMPLISH THE SAME GOALS.

REFINEMENT IN SOFTWARE PURCHASES AND LICENSES.

THIS IS A BIG AREA AND I'LL GIVE KUDOS TO HIM.

MR.. SEBALOS IS HERE TONIGHT. HE AND DOCTOR COMERFORD AND DOCTOR SHORT DID A REAL DEEP DIVE INTO OUR SOFTWARE USES DURING THE PANDEMIC.

WE HAD A TON OF SOFTWARE INSTRUCTIONAL SOFTWARES BECAUSE YOU NEEDED TO.

THAT WAS OUR BREAD AND BUTTER TO GET US THROUGH THOSE YEARS. BUT TOOK THE TIME TO THOUGHTFULLY AND STRATEGICALLY LOOK AT THAT AND COME UP WITH SOME PRETTY MAJOR REDUCTIONS.

THAT COST SAVINGS WAS STILL PRESERVING THE TOOLS THAT TEACHERS AND STUDENTS NEED TO DO THEIR WORK.

AND THEN, OF COURSE, THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS, WE CONTINUE TO GET UPDATED REVENUE NUMBERS AS WELL. SO THAT HAS HELPED US WHERE WE THOUGHT MAYBE THE REVENUE WAS GOING TO BE LOWER. YOU'RE GOING TO SEE AS WE GO THROUGH THE DETAIL, WE ACTUALLY GOT MORE IN AND I'LL GIVE YOU ONE EXAMPLE IS HOMELESS AID.

THAT'S SOMETHING WE NEVER INCLUDED IN THE BUDGET. NOW WE'RE GOING TO INCLUDE INCLUDING THAT AID THAT WE GET BACK, BECAUSE WE DO NOW CONSISTENTLY HAVE A SMALL GROUP OF HOMELESS STUDENTS. MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE CAPTURING BACK ALL OF THE TAXES FROM THE BORDER PROPERTIES, THE NEW YORK CITY BORDER PROPERTIES, THOSE KINDS OF THINGS.

SO WE BUILT THOSE IN TO TRY TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE MAXIMIZING ALL THE REVENUES AND CAPTURING EVERYTHING.

CLEARLY. SO THAT'S THOSE ARE THE BUCKETS THAT WE USE TO GET TO THAT $2 MILLION SO THAT WE CAN PRESENT YOU WITH A BALANCED BUDGET.

SO THE BUDGET THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE PROPOSING TO THE BOARD IS A TOTAL APPROPRIATIONS 99 MILLION.

WE DIDN'T GO OVER TO WE DIDN'T GO TO ANOTHER DIGIT, $99,092,000 BUDGET.

THE BUDGET TO BUDGET INCREASE IS $2.8 MILLION.

AND YOU CAN FOLLOW THAT TRAIL RIGHT BACK TO THOSE INCREASING COSTS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT EARLIER IN THE PRESENTATION.

IT'S A YEAR TO YEAR BUDGET INCREASE OF 0.9 1%.

[02:00:01]

AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE PRESENTING TO YOU TONIGHT. THE COMPONENTS OF THAT, JUST SO YOU KNOW 2.28% IS THE OPERATING BASIS.

SO WE'D LIKE TO SHOW THAT BECAUSE I REALLY WANT YOU TO SEE THE CONSISTENCY HERE. WE REALLY ARE WORKING HARD TO KEEP THE OPERATING COSTS DOWN TO THE GREATEST DEGREE POSSIBLE, BUT TO MAINTAIN PROGRAM AND MAINTAIN STAFFING TO THE GREATEST DEGREE POSSIBLE, BUT KEEP IT IN THAT REASONABLE CAPPED AMOUNT IN THIS BUDGET, THE CAPITAL EXPENDITURES, WHICH ARE EXCLUSIONS TO THE CAP, REPRESENT ABOUT 1.44% OF THAT INCREASE AS WELL.

IF YOU PUT THE TWO TOGETHER, AND THAT'S WHERE YOU GET THE WHOLE ALLOWABLE CAP, I THINK THAT'S IT.

AND THEN WE'VE GOT OUR LINEUP OF BUDGET MEETINGS FOR US HERE.

AND THE VARIOUS MILESTONE POINTS THAT WE HAVE TO MEET AND OF COURSE, SOME PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT BOARD COFFEES ETC.

AND ULTIMATELY, MAY 19TH IS OUR TARGET DATE THAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR.

SO I'M GOING TO STOP THERE AND SEE IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS.

I DON'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS. NO QUESTIONS ON THE BUDGET.

CAN WE GO BACK TO JUST THE DATE CALENDAR? OKAY.

YEP. YEAH. SO WE'RE GOING TO WE'RE GOING TO BE HERE ALMOST EVERY WEEK FOR THE NEXT YEAR.

SO YEAH, WE ARE HERE NEXT WEEK, THE WEEK AFTER AND THE WEEK AFTER THAT AND THE WEEK AFTER.

SO ALL THROUGH MARCH WE'RE HERE WITH SOMETHING. ACTUALLY, THE 11TH IS A BOARD COFFEY.

IT'S NOT A BOARD MEETING. AND WE DO HAVE A BOARD COFFEY TOMORROW MORNING AT PROSPECT HILL AT 815.

I FORGOT TO MENTION THAT EARLIER. SO IF ANYONE WANTS TO COME, WHETHER YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT SNOW, CALENDAR, BUDGET, WHATEVER'S ON YOUR MIND, FOLKS CAN COME.

WE'LL BE THERE. IT'S A DROP IN. PEOPLE DON'T HAVE TO BE THERE RIGHT AT 815.

WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE THAT ACCESSIBLE TO SCHOOLS. THE COFFEY AND THE AND THE SNACKS MIGHT BE A LITTLE LATE BECAUSE FOOD SERVICE DOESN'T GET HERE TILL 830, BUT WE'LL BE THERE IN THE COFFEY WILL ARRIVE.

THANK YOU. YOU'RE WELCOME. I WILL BE GOING AROUND TO ALL THE PTA'S AS USUAL, ALL THE COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS, SO LOOK FORWARD TO ENGAGING WITH THE PUBLIC THAT WAY AS WELL.

IT'S LESS OF A QUESTION AND MAYBE MORE OF A COMMENT, I GUESS.

I KNOW WE'RE AT THE VERY BEGINNING STAGES OF THIS, SO THANK YOU FOR, YOU KNOW, THE EARLY VISIBILITY THINKING ABOUT THE COMMUNICATIONS AND THE FEEDBACK OF FOLKS INFORMED AND JUST, YOU KNOW, LIKE REALLY LEANING INTO THINGS.

I JUST MORE OF A PLANTING OF THE SEED OF ARE THERE THINGS THAT WILL WANT TO DO DIFFERENTLY TO ENSURE THERE'S, I DON'T KNOW, OTHER WAYS OR DIFFERENT LEVELS.

SO FOLKS IN THE COMMUNITY FEEL AS INFORMED AS POSSIBLE.

I MEAN, LOOK AT THAT NICE LONG LIST. I KNOW, YOU KNOW, LIKE WE REALLY LEAN IN.

SO IT'S JUST IT'S LESS OF A QUESTION TO BE ANSWERED NOW, BUT JUST SOMETHING.

IT SEEMS LIKE WE'RE REALLY GEARED UP TO JUST CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVE AND THINK ABOUT WHAT COMMUNITY MEMBERS NEED TO BE INFORMED, YOU KNOW, AS THEY VOTE. BUT I KNOW WE ALREADY ARE DOING, YOU KNOW, SO MUCH TO GIVE THOSE OPPORTUNITIES, AS YOU CAN SEE. YEAH. AND WE'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT THAT ALL ALONG.

AND IF I FORGET SOMETHING, ALEX, FEEL FREE TO JUMP IN ON THIS. PART OF, YOU KNOW, DOING THE MID YEAR.

WE'RE TRYING TO WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO BUILD A CONSISTENCY TO THE MESSAGE SO THAT THERE'S THROUGH LINES THAT PEOPLE CAN SEE WHETHER THEY TUNE IN.

YOU KNOW A MONTH AGO THIS MONTH, NEXT MONTH TRYING TO BUILD SOME CONSISTENCY TO THAT MESSAGE AND THE STORY OF THE DISTRICT TRYING TO BUILD SOME MORE UNDERSTANDING HERE.

WE'RE GOING TO I KNOW WE HAVE PLANS TO DO A BUDGET, NOT A FOCUS, NOT A BUDGET FOCUS YET, BUT A WINTER FOCUS MAILING TO ALL HOMES IN THE COMMUNITY. THAT SEEMS TO BE ONE OF OUR MOST EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES AS WELL AS A BUDGET FOCUS.

SO THOSE ARE BOTH GOING TO BE TWO THINGS. WE NORMALLY DO THOSE, BUT WE'RE MAKING SURE THAT THOSE, AGAIN, ARE VERY ALIGNED AND FOCUSED ON THAT CONSISTENCY OF STORY. AND WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT JUST LOOKING BACK TO THE STRATEGIC PLAN TO SEE WHAT ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS AND LOOKING BACK TO TO THE BOARD GOALS ON THAT WE HAD TALKED ABOUT FOR TRYING TO STRENGTHEN THE UNDERSTANDING.

I THOUGHT IT WAS INTERESTING IN WORKING WITH JESSICA WHEN SHE TOLD US WHEN SHE SAW THE RESULTS ABOUT AWARENESS OF FINANCE, FACILITIES AND EVEN LIKE LEADERSHIP DECISION MAKING, THOSE WE LOOKED WERE LIKE, OOF! AND SHE SAID, NO. THOSE ARE TYPICALLY AREAS THAT MOST PEOPLE, UNLESS THEY'RE REALLY TUNED IN, LIKE BOARD MEMBERS OR SOME OF YOUR MOST ACTIVE PTA FOLKS, PEOPLE JUST THEY, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE NOT TUNED IN TO A LOT OF THAT.

SO I THINK THAT'S THE HARD PART IS HOW DO HOW DO WE CATCH THOSE FOLKS? THAT'S WHAT YEAH, THAT'S EXACTLY IT. YEAH.

PLEASE. I'M SURE YOU CAN DO A BETTER JOB THAN I JUST DID ANSWERING THAT.

CERTAINLY NOT A BETTER JOB, BUT JUST A COUPLE OTHER PIECES.

[02:05:01]

WE DID A TIMELINE OF WHAT THE BUDGET PROCESS LOOKS LIKE, AND THAT WAS INTENTIONAL TO START ORIENTING PEOPLE AROUND WHAT THE PROCESS LOOKS LIKE.

SO WE DIDN'T HAVE FIGURES AND DATA AND CHARTS AND STUFF AT THAT POINT.

BUT WE DID KNOW THE PROCESS WAS COMING. SO STARTING TO ORIENT AROUND THAT.

AND THEN WE ARE CONTINUALLY THINKING ABOUT WHAT ARE SOME DIFFERENT WAYS WHERE WE CAN COMMUNICATE THE BUDGET INFORMATION.

AND WE KNOW THAT THAT'S BEEN A PRIORITY. THAT'S REFLECTED IN THE BOARD GOALS FOR THE YEAR.

SO WE HAVE STARTED THINKING ABOUT THAT A COUPLE I DON'T EVEN REMEMBER THE DATE AT THIS POINT.

SHORTLY BEFORE BREAK WE HAD A REGIONAL MEETING OF ALL THE HUDSON VALLEY SCHOOL PR PEOPLE GET TOGETHER A COUPLE OF TIMES A YEAR, AND IT'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO SORT OF TALK THROUGH.

WHAT? HEY, WHAT ARE YOU GUYS DOING? WHAT'S YOUR BUDGET LOOK LIKE? WHAT ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT? AND THOSE ARE ALWAYS REALLY, REALLY GOOD BECAUSE I HAVE, LIKE, 3 OR 4 IDEAS OF WHAT OTHER DISTRICTS ARE DOING. AND SIMILARLY, LIKE I BROUGHT UP TO THEM, HEY, YOU KNOW, WE GO TO OUR COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS AND WE PRESENT THE BUDGET.

YOU DO LIKE. YES WE DO. SO, YOU KNOW, WE'RE ALWAYS SHARING THAT INFORMATION.

SO WE DEFINITELY ARE THINKING ABOUT THAT AND TRYING TO BE RESPONSIVE TO THAT AS WELL.

YEAH. AND THE BUDGET IS ALSO SOMETHING THAT ENDS UP GOING, YOU KNOW, BEING DISCUSSED ON THE ON THE COMMUNITY PAGES ON FACEBOOK.

SO JUST FOR US TO SORT OF HAVE A PLAN AROUND, YOU KNOW, MAKING SURE THE MOST ACCURATE INFORMATION IS PROVIDED IF NECESSARY. YEAH, AND FOR SURE. AND I DO HAVE TO APOLOGIZE.

THIS IS WHAT YOU GET ON A SNOW DAY WHEN I'VE BEEN UP SINCE 430.

SO I APOLOGIZE IF MY ELOQUENCE IS NOT THERE. MY EXHAUSTION IS SHOWING TONIGHT.

KIND OF TO THAT POINT, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE THINK ABOUT WHEN WE REFLECT ON EVEN LIKE OUR TRADITIONAL BUDGET PRESENTATIONS, IT'S WE'VE GOT A VERY SOPHISTICATED COMMUNITY, A LOT OF FINANCE FOLKS.

SO WE TEND TO GET VERY IN THE WEEDS. NOT EVERYONE'S GOT THE TIME ENERGY FOR THAT.

THEY THEY REALLY MAYBE NEED MORE OF THAT HIGH LEVEL.

GIVE ME THE, YOU KNOW, THE TALKING POINTS, THE KEY THE KEY.

YOU KNOW, THE KEY TALKING POINTS IN IT. SO AS WE REVISE THAT AND, YOU KNOW, PREPARE FOR THE NEXT PRESENTATIONS THAT ARE TO COME, WE'RE GOING TO BE THINKING ABOUT THAT. AND MY MY THOUGHT IN THAT IS IF WE CAN IF WE CAN KEEP THOSE HIGH LEVEL KEY MESSAGES IN THE FOREFRONT, THAT'S GOING TO HELP WITH EXACTLY THAT. HOW DO WE GET THE MOST CRITICAL POINTS THAT PEOPLE NEED TO SIMPLY UNDERSTAND OUT THERE IN A WAY THAT THEY CAN BE DIGESTED, WHETHER IT'S SOCIAL MEDIA, THROUGH EMAIL, YOU KNOW, PASSING ON PARENT SQUARE NOTICES, THINGS LIKE THAT.

SO WE'RE GOING TO TRY TO KEEP THAT LENS STILL.

KEEP THE MEAT THERE, THAT WE KNOW THAT THERE'S FOLKS IN THE COMMUNITY THAT WANT AND NEED, BUT ALSO TRY TO MAKE IT DIGESTIBLE FOR PEOPLE IN A MODERN WORLD.

YEAH. AND THE AND THE, THE LAST THING I'LL SAY IS.

AND KATHRYN, YOU HAD MENTIONED THIS EARLIER JUST THE CONNECTION OF THE BOND, THE THE BOND WORK AND THE THE BUDGET FOR THE BOND TO THE OVERALL BUDGET THAT WILL NEED TO BE MADE EXPLICITLY CLEAR, LIKE, YOU KNOW, WHERE THE DEBT SERVICE IS HEADED AND.

YEAH, EXACTLY. AND THAT'S WHEN WE GET INTO THE, INTO THE CONSTRUCT OF THE TAX CAP AND, AND THE EXPENDITURES.

THAT'S WHERE YOU'RE GOING TO SEE IT. OKAY. IT'S JIM'S TIME TO SHINE.

THAT'S RIGHT. YES. YOUR YEAR. THAT'S RIGHT. MAY 19TH I FORGET.

THAT'S VAL'S SUPER BOWL IS THE MAY 19TH. JIM'S SUPER BOWL IS EVERYTHING UP TO THAT TIME.

YOUR TIME. ALL RIGHT. WELL THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

THANK YOU, DOCTOR JIM. THANK YOU. JIM AND ALEX ON THAT PRESENTATION.

OKAY. NEXT WE HAVE BOARD OF EDUCATION COMMITTEE REPORTS.

[4.5 Board of Education Committee Reports]

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO NEED THE CONTEXT AROUND THAT, ARE THOSE LETTERS THAT YOU SEE AT THIS TIME OF YEAR THAT IS ISSUE FOCUSED AND SEND IT TO YOUR REPRESENTATIVES, SEND IT TO YOUR CONGRESSIONAL PERSON AND LET THEM KNOW THAT THIS IS AN ISSUE YOU CARE ABOUT.

SO PELHAM HAS WRITTEN A LETTER AND HAS PUT IT ON.

OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS SHOULD HAVE SEEN THAT RIGHT BEFORE WE WENT ON BREAK.

AND OUR LETTER IS FOCUSED ON FOUNDATION AID. AS WE JUST SAW FROM THE BUDGET, FOUNDATION AID IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT.

AND SO WE REALLY ENCOURAGE EVERYONE IN THE COMMUNITY WHO HAS THE TIME TO PLEASE COPY AND PASTE THAT LETTER INTO YOUR EMAIL

[02:10:07]

THERE'S A FEW BUCKETS OF AID, AS JIM WILL EXPLAIN TO ALL OF US FURTHER ON, BUT FOUNDATION AID IS THE BIGGEST FUNDING THAT WE GET.

AND OUR LETTER REALLY, YOU KNOW, SUPPORTS MAKING SURE THAT THAT FORMULA IS IS UPDATED.

SO THAT IS JUST THE UPDATE FROM OUR COMMITTEE.

AND THEY CAN FIND THAT LETTER IN THEIR EMAIL IN THEIR EMAIL.

AND ALEX I THINK WILL SEND IT AROUND AGAIN BECAUSE WE HAVE A FEW WEEKS TO YOU KNOW, I MEAN, THESE LETTERS CAN BE SENT ALL YEAR. I MEAN, WE'RE GOING TO BE TALKING ABOUT UPDATING THE FOUNDATION AID FORMULA FOR THE NEXT FEW YEARS.

YEAH. AND FOR THOSE COMMUNITY MEMBERS THAT ARE WATCHING THEIR FACEBOOK DURING THE SNOWSTORM, I ALSO PUT IT OUT SO EVERYBODY COULD JUST TAKE THAT FIVE MINUTE WHILE THEY WERE HOME.

THANK YOU. AND SEND THAT LETTER AROUND, BECAUSE IT IS, AS CATHERINE SAID, IT IS IMPORTANT TO GET OUR VOICE HEARD AND THIS IS AN EASY WAY FOR US TO GET THAT DONE. YEAH. AND YOU DO GET I KNOW FROM AMY PAULIN, YOU DO GET A RESPONSE.

YES YOU DO. THAT WAS ACTUALLY REALLY APPRECIATED.

SO WE HAD A FEW BITES ON FACEBOOK. SOME PEOPLE WERE, YOU KNOW, WILLING WILLING TO SEND OUT A LETTER WHILE THEY WERE STUCK AT HOME.

GOOD. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR THAT. WE HAD FINANCE AUDIT, SO WE'LL I DON'T I MEAN, I'M, I MEAN, I THINK WE'VE COVERED THE FINANCIAL PIECE OF IT.

YEAH. I THOUGHT WE COVERED AUDIT LAST TWO WEEKS AGO.

DID WE? I THINK SO. OKAY. JIM. SEEING? YES. YEAH.

OKAY. YEAH. YEAH. WE TALKED ABOUT. I MEAN, DID WE REPORT ON IT AT THE LAST WEDNESDAY OR THURSDAY? RIGHT. I DON'T THINK WE TALKED ABOUT IT AFTER OUR LAST MEETING.

YEAH. I MEAN, I CAN REPORT ON IT. YEAH. YEAH.

OKAY, JIM, I'LL UPDATE IT ON MY LIST. OKAY. OKAY.

I THINK THAT WAS. YEAH. AND WE TALKED ABOUT BOND STEERING AND JIM WILL TALK ABOUT THAT MORE.

YES. OKAY. NEXT WE CAN MOVE TO ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENTS UPDATE ON PERSONAL GROWTH AND ACHIEVEMENT.

[4.6 Assistant Superintendent's Update on Personal Growth and Achievement]

THE LATE HOUR. I WILL BE BRIEF OR I'LL TALK FAST.

I JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT HAVE HAPPENED THAT DEMONSTRATE OUR COMMITMENT TO AUTHENTIC LEARNING FOR BOTH FACULTY AND STUDENTS.

I THOUGHT I SPOKE ABOUT THE TRI STATE VISIT. I FEEL LIKE I'VE SPOKE ABOUT IT, SPOKEN ABOUT IT A LOT, BUT I DID WANT TO JUST MENTION THAT WE DID HAVE OUR VISIT AT THE END OF JANUARY.

22 EDUCATORS FROM ACROSS NEW YORK, NEW JERSEY AND CONNECTICUT CAME AND DID A DEEP DIVE INTO OUR MULTI-TIERED SYSTEM OF SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS, WHICH IS A LARGE PART OF OUR STRATEGIC PLAN. OVER THE THREE DAYS, THE TEAMS ENGAGED WITH ADMINISTRATORS, FACULTY, STAFF, PARENTS, STUDENTS, TRUSTEES. THANK YOU TO SIT AND DARRA FOR MEETING WITH THE TEAM.

AND TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HOW MTS LIVES AND BREATHES ACROSS OUR SCHOOL.

IT WAS A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE FOR ALL OF US. THE TEAM WAS IMPRESSED WITH WITH PELHAM, BUT ALSO ENGAGED WITH US AND COLLABORATIVE DISCUSSIONS AND ARTIFACT ANALYSIS, AND THEY WERE ABLE TO HIGHLIGHT STRENGTHS OF OUR SYSTEM AND ALSO INTENTIONAL WORK UNDERWAY TO HELP REFINE OTHER PARTS OF OUR SYSTEM.

ONE OTHER THING I WANT TO MENTION IS THAT OUR VERY OWN DOCTOR, TRICIA FITZGERALD, WAS INVITED TO PRESENT AT THE LOWER HUDSON REGIONAL BOCES CURRICULUM AND LEADERSHIP COUNCIL THIS MONTH. THIS HONOR REFLECTS BOTH HER LEADERSHIP AND THE INNOVATIVE WORK HAPPENING RIGHT HERE IN PELHAM.

THE FOCUS OF THE REGIONAL WORK SESSION WAS ON YOU KNOW, HELPING LEADERS IN OUR REGION AND BEYOND TRANSITION FROM THE OLD ANNUAL PROFESSIONAL PERFORMANCE REVIEW, A TEACHER EVALUATION SYSTEM, TO THE NEW STEPS NOT AN ACRONYM, MORE OF AN ACROSTIC STANDING FOR STANDARDS, TEACHING EVIDENCE, PERFORMANCE, AND STUDENT LEARNING.

FOR TEACHER EVALUATIONS WHAT WE LEARN AND SEE AND KNOW IS THAT PELHAM IS AHEAD OF THE REGION.

BEGINNING THIS WORK. WE'RE STARTING EARLY. AND BY PROACTIVELY ENGAGING IN THIS TRANSITION PROCESS, WE'RE ENSURING THAT OUR NEXT EVALUATION SYSTEM IS BUILT COLLABORATIVELY AND DESIGNED TO BE TRANSPARENT, SUPPORTIVE, AND ACTIONABLE. AND STARTING EARLY ALLOWS US TO THOUGHTFULLY ALIGN OUR PRACTICES WITH STATE GUIDANCE WHILE CENTERING OUR PROFESSIONAL GROWTH AND MEANINGFUL FEEDBACK FOR LEADERS ACROSS THE DISTRICT. AND THEN FINALLY, EMERSON DID MENTION, AND I'LL JUST HIGHLIGHT IT AGAIN, THAT OUR ON ON FEBRUARY 12TH, WE HAD OUR HUMANITIES SHOWCASE IN THE HIGH SCHOOL LIBRARY.

[02:15:02]

IT HIGHLIGHTED THE TALENT OF OUR STUDENTS, THE DEDICATION OF OUR TEACHERS, AND OUR COMMITMENTS TO RIGOROUS, ENGAGING LEARNING EXPERIENCES. JUST A QUICK THANKS TO DOCTOR SHORT AND THE REST OF THE ENGLISH AND SOCIAL STUDIES DEPARTMENTS, FOR THIS IS OUR SECOND YEAR OF DOING THAT, AND IT ENABLES OUR HUMANITIES RESEARCH STUDENTS TO REALLY SHOWCASE THEIR WORK AND TALENTS.

SO I BROUGHT MY KIDS TO NOT. I MISSED IT THIS YEAR, BUT I WENT THE LAST YEAR AND THEY LOVED IT AND ASKED THE KIDS SO MANY QUESTIONS AND WERE REALLY ENGAGED. AND THE OUR STUDENTS KNEW SO MUCH ABOUT, I MEAN, OF COURSE, THEIR RESEARCH TOPIC, BUT I MEAN, MY KIDS WERE ASKING SOME HARD QUESTIONS AND THEY WERE ABLE TO FULLY ANSWER AND ENGAGE MY LIKE AT THE NINE AND SIX YEAR OLD WITH THEIR FASCINATING SUBJECTS. YEAH, IT'S A REALLY COOL EVENT, AND IT'S NICE THAT IT'S OPEN TO THE WHOLE COMMUNITY AND NOT JUST PARENTS.

ABSOLUTELY. YEAH. YEAH. AND I JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THE TRI STATES THAT SORT OF ASSESSMENT.

AND WORKING WITH THE TEAM ON MTSS, I WAS ABLE TO LEARN A LOT ABOUT THIS WORK AND THAT WE REALLY PURSUE THIS IN THE PURSUIT OF GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT. AND SO IT WAS REALLY A GREAT EXPERIENCE AND REALLY WONDERFUL TO BE ABLE TO LOOK A LITTLE BIT UNDER THE HOOD, YOU KNOW, LIKE AROUND THE QUESTIONS YOU ALL WERE ASKING AND REALLY HOW YOU'RE, YOU KNOW, WHAT YOU WANT TO FIND OUT TO, TO PROVIDE THE BEST ENVIRONMENT AND THE BEST LEARNING ENVIRONMENT THAT WE CAN.

SO THANK YOU. GREAT JOB. THANK YOU. OKAY. THANK YOU.

NEXT WE HAVE ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENTS UPDATE ON BELONGING AND WELLNESS.

[4.7 Assistant Superintendent's Update on Belonging and Wellness]

SO IT'S A BUSY TIME OF YEAR FOR US BETWEEN CPS, CSC AND 504.

WHEN ALL IS SAID AND DONE, WE'LL BE SCHEDULING CLOSE TO 700 MEETINGS.

SO PARENTS WILL BE STARTING TO GET THEIR INVITES.

WE USUALLY GIVE ABOUT A FOUR WEEK LEAD TIME SO THAT EVERYONE CAN PLAN ACCORDINGLY.

WE DO OUR ACCOMMODATE, BUT THERE'S A LOT OF LOGISTICS THAT GO INTO PLANNING AND MAKING SURE WE HAVE STAFFING AVAILABLE.

SO BUSY, BUSY TIME. ALSO, IN TERMS OF EMTS AS YOU ALL KNOW THIS YEAR STARTED OUR WORK AROUND THE CELL PORTION OF BUILDING OUT OUR EMTS PLAN. OUR COMMITTEES ARE MEETING MONTHLY.

WE'VE IDENTIFIED A PILOT TIER ONE PROGRAM THAT WE ARE LOOKING INTO, AND THE NEXT HALF OF THE SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR, THE FOCUS OF THE COMMITTEE WILL BE REALLY BUILDING ON THE TIERS OF SUPPORT AND THE PLAN AND THE DATA THAT WE WILL BE LOOKING AT TO TIER STUDENTS.

JUST ALSO QUICKLY TO ON FEBRUARY 5TH, WE HAD OUR SECOND ANNUAL PRESENTATION FOR HIGH SCHOOL PARENTS AND STUDENTS.

THAT WAS SPECIFICALLY ABOUT NAVIGATING DISABILITIES IN HIGHER EDUCATION.

SO IF YOU HAVE A CSC, AN IEP OR A 504, WHAT IS THE TRANSITION TO COLLEGE LOOK LIKE FOR YOU AND HOW DO YOU ACCESS SERVICES.

SO WE WERE ABLE TO HAVE BACK WITH US THE DISABILITIES OFFICE DIRECTOR FOR MANHATTANVILLE UNIVERSITY.

AND ALSO THIS YEAR WE ADDED IN FORDHAM UNIVERSITY.

SO THAT WAS A GREAT EVENT FOR PARENTS AND STUDENTS ALIKE TO FIND OUT WHAT THAT'S LIKE.

AND THAT'S IT FOR ME. THANK YOU. NEXT WE HAVE EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS UPDATE ON HUMAN RESOURCES

[4.8 Executive Director's Update on Human Resources and Leadership]

SO THE THE SNOW PUT A LITTLE MONKEY WRENCH IN OUR TIMELINE, BUT WE ARE WE'RE BACK UP AND RUNNING.

SO WE'VE RESCHEDULED THE COMMITTEE INTERVIEWS FOR TOMORROW NIGHT. THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO BE LAST NIGHT. WE HAD 57 CANDIDATES OVERALL APPLY.

WE SCREENED ABOUT 20 OF THEM, USING THE SIWANOY LEADERSHIP PROFILE AS A DETERMINATION OF WHO WE WOULD SCREEN OR NOT.

SO WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THE SIX CANDIDATES WE'RE BRINGING FORWARD TO THE COMMITTEE INTERVIEWS. WE WILL THEN TAKE THE FEEDBACK FROM THE COMMITTEES TOMORROW NIGHT, AND BRING BACK 3 TO 4 OF THOSE FINALISTS NEXT TUESDAY TO RUN PROFESSIONAL LEARNING SESSIONS FOR TEACHERS.

WE WILL THEN BRING THE BRING THE FINALISTS BACK TO READ A STORY TO CHILDREN, AND THEN CABINET INTERVIEWS AND BOARD INTERVIEWS.

SO WE ARE LOOKING TO WRAP THIS UP IN MARCH PENDING SNOW, BUT I'M THINKING WE MIGHT HAVE HIT OUR LIMIT.

I'VE HIT MY LIMIT ANYWAY SO MORE TO COME ON THAT.

BUT WE ARE. WE'VE GOT THE BALL ROLLING, AND I'M REALLY THANKFUL THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS FOR THEIR FLEXIBILITY THIS WEEK.

[02:20:05]

AND THE SECOND THING I JUST WANT TO BRING EVERYONE'S ATTENTION TO IS WE HAVE STUDENT TEACHERS, STUDENT OBSERVERS AND INTERNS WITH US AGAIN FOR THE SPRING FOR THEIR SPRING SEMESTER.

WHEN I RAN AND COMPARED THE NUMBERS. WE HAVE 28 AGAIN THIS YEAR IN THE SPRING.

WE HAD 28 THIS FALL. SO OUR NUMBERS ARE STILL HOLDING STEADY.

THEY ARE K-12. THEY'RE ACROSS ALL DISCIPLINES AND THEY'RE REALLY FROM A VARIETY OF COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES.

SO WHEN I FIRST STARTED, IT WAS SPECIFICALLY REALLY JUST IONA UNIVERSITY THAT THE BULK OF OUR STUDENTS WERE COMING FROM.

AND NOW THEY'RE COMING FROM ALL OVER. WE ARE STILL GETTING CALLS AND EMAILS FROM COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES WHO ARE LOOKING TO FILL PLACEMENTS.

IF WE CAN DO THAT, WE DEFINITELY WILL TAKE THEM ON. IF WE CAN'T, I DO RECOMMEND THAT THEY EMAIL ME AGAIN LATER IN THE SPRING TO SET THINGS UP FOR THE FALL.

SO THAT PROGRAM IS STILL UP AND RUNNING AND LIVE AND WELL, BUT IT REALLY COULD NOT RUN WITHOUT THE HELP OF OUR TEACHERS AND OUR ADMINISTRATORS AND OUR SERVICE PROVIDERS WHO ARE OPENING THEIR DOORS AND WELCOMING OUR STUDENTS IN SO THAT THEY CAN LEARN AND GROW AND GROW OUR PROFESSION AS WELL.

SO I'M REALLY THANKFUL TO EVERYONE INVOLVED. AND THAT'S IT FOR ME TODAY.

THANK YOU. THAT'S EXCELLENT. WE HAVE SO MANY STUDENTS ROTATING THROUGH.

YEP. OKAY. NEXT WE HAVE ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENTS UPDATE ON FACILITIES AND SUSTAINABLE LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS.

[4.9 Assistant Superintendent's Update on Facilities and Sustainable Learning Environments]

IF WE DO HAVE SOME ITEMS THAT MAY MAY TAKE A LITTLE BIT LONGER.

FIRST I WANT TO AGAIN JUST TOUCH ON WHAT OTHERS HAVE TOUCHED ON.

AND THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK OUR FACILITIES TEAM FOR THEIR GREAT WORK THE LAST FEW WEEKS.

CERTAINLY YESTERDAY IN THE LAST AND TODAY AND THE DAY BEFORE WERE DIFFICULT.

BUT LET'S NOT FORGET THE FEW DAYS LEADING LEADING INTO THE VACATION, TOO.

WE HAD INCREDIBLE COLD SNAP. AND AFTER A FEW WEEKS, IT REALLY TAKES ITS TOLL ON OUR EQUIPMENT.

AS YOU KNOW, WE SAW WE HAD SOME DIFFICULTY AT PROSPECT.

WE WERE ABLE TO KEEP THE BUILDING UP AND RUNNING. OVER THE BREAK, WE WERE ABLE TO GET THAT THAT UNIT BACK IN SERVICE.

SO. WHICH IS REALLY GREAT. SO WE'VE GOT TWO FUNCTIONING BOILERS AT PROSPECT HILL.

SO WE'RE, WE'RE HAPPY TO REPORT THAT. AND AGAIN, WE'RE GOING TO NEED IT FOR AT LEAST ONE MORE HEATING SEASON.

DESPITE THAT WORK. SO GREAT, GREAT WORK ON THEIR PART.

SO AGAIN, THE FACILITIES FOLKS AND THE DIRECTOR OF FACILITIES, JOHN CONDON, I THINK REALLY DID A TERRIFIC JOB.

AND IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT GOING BACK TO TO THE BREAK JUST BEFORE THE BREAK, WE WE HAD A POWER PROBLEM AT SIWANOY. AND I THINK THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT REALLY WAS KIND OF A CULMINATION OF A LOT OF WORK AND EFFORT THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT ON SAFETY, PREPAREDNESS AND PLANNING BUILDING CAPACITY THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT WITH OUR SAFETY TEAM AND WITH WITH OUR SAFETY CONSULTANT AND EVERYBODY IN THE BUILDINGS.

AND AGAIN, WITH THAT, I WANT TO TAKE THE OPPORTUNITY TO THANK ALL THE BUILDING STAFF, OUR SAFETY STAFF. AND THEN WHEN THE STUDENTS MOVED OVER TO TO THE HIGH SCHOOL, JUST A GREAT WORK WITH OUR VILLAGE PARTNERS. VILLAGE POLICE IMMEDIATELY WORKED TO PROVIDE A CLEAR PATHWAY FOR OUR STUDENTS.

VILLAGE OF PELHAM PUBLIC SAFETY. THEY STOPPED TRAFFIC ON COLONIAL, AND IT WAS GREAT.

THE KIDS, THE KIDS, IT WAS IT WAS A PARADE FOR THEM.

AND THEY CERTAINLY THEY WALKED INTO THE BUILDING LIKE HEROES.

THEY GOT THE FIRST DAY OF HIGH SCHOOL WITHOUT EVEN KNOWING. BUT AGAIN, IT WAS IT WAS DONE VERY WELL.

THE REUNIFICATION PROCESS, I THOUGHT, WORKED VERY WELL.

IT WAS SOMETHING THAT OUR BUILDING EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAMS WERE AWARE OF AND HAD PRACTICED WITH SOME OF THE EQUIPMENT AND THE PROCEDURES, SO THAT WAS HELPFUL. THE PEOPLE AT THE HIGH SCHOOL AND MIDDLE SCHOOL JUMPED INTO EFFORT, INTO ACTION REALLY WELL AND HELPED THAT EFFORT MOVE ALONG QUICKLY.

AND THE PARENTS WERE TERRIFIC, AND ALEX AND THE COMMUNICATIONS WORKED REALLY WELL.

AND I DON'T WANT TO GIVE OURSELVES TOO MUCH CREDIT BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, YOU JUST YOU JUST WANT TO TAKE IT TO ENOUGH, ENOUGH, FAR ENOUGH THAT YOU'RE RECOGNIZING PEOPLE DID A GREAT JOB. WE DID OUR DEBRIEF.

AND AGAIN, IT'S PART OF JUST WORKING ON OUR PROCESSES AND BUILDING THAT CAPACITY.

AND WE THOUGHT THINGS WENT WELL. THAT DOESN'T MEAN WE DIDN'T THINK OF HOW WE COULD DO OTHER THINGS DIFFERENTLY OR BETTER.

SO ALL IN ALL, THOUGH, THE FOLKS DID A GREAT JOB, AND AND THE KIDS.

THE KIDS WERE FANTASTIC TOO. SO WE'RE VERY, VERY FORTUNATE.

ALL RIGHT. SO THAT'S BE WE HAD A COUPLE OF A COUPLE OF COMMITTEE MEETINGS PRIOR TO THE BREAK AS WELL.

OUR FINANCE COMMITTEE MET. WE TALKED ABOUT THE DISTRICT'S LONG RANGE PLAN.

THE INITIAL BUDGET RECEIVED SOME OF THE FEEDBACK FROM FEEDBACK FROM THE COMMITTEE ON ON THE BUDGET, ON THE EFFORTS THAT WE TOOK TO DEVELOP THE BUDGET.

MUCH OF WHAT WAS SPOKEN ABOUT WAS DISCUSSED TODAY BY BY DOCTOR CHAMP TALKED ABOUT OUR END OF YEAR FORECAST AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO UPDATE THAT AS THE YEAR GOES ON AND THROUGHOUT THE BUDGET PROCESS, WE'LL CONTINUE TO MEET WITH THE FINANCE COMMITTEE, TAKE THAT FEEDBACK, AND AGAIN, WORK OUR WAY THROUGH THROUGH THE BUDGET PROCESS.

AND AGAIN, THIS IS A BUDGET PROCESS. OUR AUDIT COMMITTEE MET, TALKED ABOUT OUR UNIFORM GUIDANCE FOR OUR FED FUNDS AUDIT, WHICH WAS DELAYED THIS YEAR DUE TO SOME FEDERAL RELEASING OF SOME INFORMATION.

[02:25:04]

MET WITH OUR INTERNAL AUDITOR. WE'RE GOING TO BE TALKING ABOUT SOME OF OUR INTERNAL AUDIT PROJECTS FOR THIS YEAR, WHICH WILL DEAL WITH OUR CAFETERIA FUND AND OUR OUR CASH COLLECTION EFFORTS, MAINLY RELATED TO TRIPS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.

SO OUR PROCESSES AND MAKE SURE WE'RE COMFORTABLE WITH THOSE PROCESSES.

AND THEN WE WE HAD A BOND STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING.

IT WAS LARGELY JUST INFORMATIVE. NOT NOT A LOT OF NEW INFORMATION.

I THINK IT WAS HELPFUL, THOUGH. IT WAS KIND OF A STRAW POLL ON HOW PEOPLE FELT ABOUT HYBRID CONSTRUCTION.

WE'VE TALKED ABOUT IT MODULAR, BUT IT'S REALLY NOT COMPLETELY MODULAR. IT IS. IT IS MORE OF A HYBRID TYPE OF EFFORT BECAUSE THERE WILL STILL BE CONSTRUCTION EFFORT ON SITE.

THERE'S GOING TO BE A FOUNDATION. EVEN IF WE GO TO HYBRID, THE SUPERSTRUCTURE WILL COME IN.

BUT THEN THAT STRUCTURE IS GOING TO HAVE TO BE ENCAPSULATED ON SITE WITH BRICK FACING.

SO IT'S GOING TO LOOK LIKE IT WAS BUILT ON SITE, GOING TO NEED A ROOF AND ALL THAT TYPE OF FINISHING WORK.

AND SOME PORTIONS OF THOSE AREAS WILL ALSO HAVE TO BE STICK BUILT.

ALL IN ALL, THOUGH, IT DOES STILL LOOK PROMISING.

THE COMMITTEE RESPONDED FAVORABLY TO IT. WE WANT TO CONTINUE LOOKING IN THAT EFFORT, AND WE'VE ENGAGED A VENDOR TO KIND OF LOOK AT THE ROUTES TO TAKE AND TO KIND OF REALLY GIVE US AN UNDERSTANDING, A WRITTEN UNDERSTANDING THAT THIS IS A THIS IS AN ENTIRELY FEASIBLE PROJECT WHERE WE CAN GET THIS EQUIPMENT AND THESE UNITS IN, IN PLACE IF WE WERE TO DECIDE TO DO THAT. SO IT'S PRETTY EXCITING WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THAT.

LET'S SEE, I TALKED ABOUT FACILITIES. I TALKED ABOUT SAFETY.

WE HAVE OUR BUDGET AGAIN, BEGINNING OF A LONG, A LONG PROCESS.

WE'VE GOT ABOUT FIVE MEETINGS BEFORE AT LEAST FIVE MEETINGS, PUBLIC MEETINGS BEFORE THE BOARD APPROVES THE FINAL BUDGET TO PUT BEFORE THE COMMUNITY ON APRIL 21ST. AS AS WE GO THROUGH THIS, INFORMATION IS GOING TO CHANGE.

WE ALWAYS KNOW THAT IT CHANGES EVERY YEAR. AS WE DO THAT, WE KEEP THE BOARD INFORMED, WE KEEP THE COMMUNITY INFORMED.

AND I THINK COMMUNICATION WISE, I THINK IT WAS INTERESTING WITH DOCTOR CHAMP SAID.

AND WHAT ALEX SAID TO BECAUSE WE WE CAN WE GO REALLY WE CAN REALLY GO DOWN TO THE GRANULAR LEVEL WITH OUR LINE BY LINE BUDGET REVIEW.

IT'S PART OF THE CULTURE IN THE COMMUNITY AS LONG AS I'VE BEEN HERE. SO WE'RE WE'RE STILL PLANNING ON DOING ALL OF THOSE THINGS.

AND THEN AT THE SAME TIME, IT'S THE REGULAR ROAD SHOW, GOING OUT AND TALKING TO PEOPLE, EXPLAINING THE BUDGET.

AND WHEN THERE ARE QUESTIONS, BEING ABLE TO ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS.

SO WE'RE WE'RE LOOKING TO DO THAT. AS I SAY, IT'S IT'S DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN.

LIKE THE LATE, GREAT YOGI BERRA SAID. AND I THINK I SAID THAT LAST YEAR TOO.

SO IT'S DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN. WITH THAT BIG THANK YOU TO THE BUSINESS OFFICE.

IT'S A HUGE TEAM EFFORT. JACKIE VIGIL, OUR TREASURER KATHY BLANK, OUR DEPARTMENT SECRETARY.

EVERYBODY IN THAT EFFORT WE'RE VERY FORTUNATE FOLKS KNOW WHAT TO DO.

THEY JUST THEY JUST GO AHEAD AND DO IT. SO WE'RE WE'RE WE'RE VERY FORTUNATE.

ON TONIGHT'S AGENDA, WE'VE JUST GOT A LOT OF BUSINESS ITEMS. OBVIOUSLY, WITH OUR TREASURER'S REPORT, WE HAVE OUR LONG RANGE PLAN WHICH WE TALKED ABOUT THE THE FINANCE COMMITTEE JUST GOT A FAIRLY ROUTINE TRANSFER RELATED TO SOME SECURITY AND LEGAL EXPENSES. WE'VE GOT THE UNIFORM GUIDANCE THAT WE TALKED ABOUT.

THERE IS A AN EFFORT OR NOT AN EFFORT, AN AGREEMENT FOR AN ENGAGEMENT WITH KJAER ARCHITECTS.

YOU SAY WHAT? DON'T DON'T WE ALREADY HAVE THEM AS ARCHITECTS? YES WE DO. FOR OUR BOND PROJECT. THIS IS SEPARATE AND DISTINCT.

IF YOU REMEMBER, A FEW MEETINGS AGO, WE WE WERE AWARDED A GRANT FROM THE STATE FOR FOR CAMERAS.

IN ORDER TO DO THAT, WE'RE WE'RE INSTALLING THESE IN OUR BUILDINGS.

YOU NEED A BUILDING PERMIT FROM THE STATE. YOU HAVE TO HAVE ARCHITECTURAL PLANS. YOU HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE PROCESS. SO AS PART OF THAT ENTIRE APPLICATION PROCESS THIS COST WILL BE COVERED BY THE GRANT. IT WILL BE COVERED BY THE GRANT.

IT'S A REIMBURSEMENT GRANT, BUT THIS IS ALL PART OF THE BUDGET THAT WE PROVIDED TO THE STATE.

AND THEN THESE ARE FEES THAT WILL BE REIMBURSED LATER ON.

THE GOOD THING IS, IS THEY KNOW OUR BUILDINGS SO THEY KNOW HOW TO THEY KNOW HOW TO WORK WITH THE STATE.

SO WE'RE EXPECTING THESE THINGS TO BE A LITTLE BIT MORE SEAMLESS THAN IF WE WERE TO ENGAGE A NEW, A NEW A NEW ARCHITECT FOR THIS WORK. JIM, SORRY, IS IT JUST FOR ALL OF OUR DISTRICT BUILDINGS OR JUST FOR THE SECONDARY CAMPUS DISTRICT WIDE? OKAY. ALL BUILDINGS. SO IT'S IT'S QUITE A COMPREHENSIVE.

IT WAS A VERY GENEROUS GRANT QUITE HONESTLY. AND IT'S REALLY GOING TO DO A GREAT JOB OF LIGHTING UP THE DISTRICT WITH CAMERA AND ACCESS CONTROLS.

SO REALLY, REALLY GREAT GRANT FROM SENATOR BIAGGI.

TONIGHT WE HAVE TWO SEPARATE RESOLUTIONS. 1ST MAY LOOK FAMILIAR.

IT'S JUST AN AMENDMENT TO DEAL WITH A BATTING CAGE THAT WE'RE DOING AT GLOVER.

AT GLOVER COMPLEX. ON THE ORIGINAL DOCUMENT, IT SAID GLOVER FIELD.

IT'S REALLY NOT NECESSARILY A GLOVER FIELD. IT'S AT THE GLOVER COMPLEX. AT FRIENDSHIP FIELD.

THE STATE REALLY HASN'T RAISED AN ISSUE, BUT WE JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE IT'S IT'S VERY CLEAR SO THAT THAT'S THE AMENDMENT ON THAT PARTICULAR SECRET OR ORDINANCE OR RESOLUTION.

[02:30:03]

SO WE'RE WORKING WITH THEIR ARCHITECT ON THE SUBMISSION OF THOSE PLANS AS WELL TO TO THE STATE.

AND THE ARCHITECT WORKING ON THAT PROJECT HAS COMMUNICATED WITH OUR ARCHITECT AT KGI.

AND THERE'S A LOT OF SHARING OF INFORMATION, SHARING OF EFFORT.

SO WE WANT TO MAKE EVERYBODY AWARE OF WHO'S WORKING AT WHICH AREAS.

SO THERE'S NOT NOT A LOT OF DOUBLE WORK OR PEOPLE WORKING OVER AREA THAT'S ALREADY BEEN WORKED ON.

SO IT'S REALLY BEEN GREAT. EVERYBODY'S DOING A GREAT JOB.

WE'VE GOT A AN AGREEMENT FOR OUR PURCHASING AGREEMENT RELATED TO OUR PURCHASING OF TECHNOLOGY.

THIS REALLY IS SOMETHING THAT WE DO EVERY YEAR, AND THIS IS JUST IN PREPARATION OF TO HAVE IN PLACE WHEN WE HAVE A SUCCESSFUL BUDGET AND THIS PAPERWORK DOESN'T GO IN UNTIL THERE IS SUCCESS, WE KNOW THERE IS A SUCCESSFUL BUDGET.

WORK WITH THE DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY OF THAT.

AND THEN THE LAST TWO ITEMS, TWO VERY GENEROUS DONATIONS.

ONE FOR THE AMY GEISINGER SCHOLARSHIP FUND, A FORMER STUDENT OF PELHAM, GRADUATE OF PELHAM MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL AND THEN A PTA, DONATIONS RELATED TO LUNCHTIME ENRICHMENT WE NORMALLY HAVE.

WE HAVE A BLANKET. WE HAVE A BLANKET RESOLUTION.

IT DID NOT INCLUDE LUNCH RESOLUTION, LUNCH ENRICHMENT.

SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE STAYING COMPLIANT AND HAVE THE PROPER AUTHORITY TO RECEIVE THOSE MONIES.

OKAY. I THINK THAT'S WHAT I'VE GOT. THAT'S EVERYTHING.

YEAH. OH, ONE LAST THING, I APOLOGIZE. WE WERE TALKING ABOUT THE BUDGET, THE STATE AID.

AND THE FIGURE THAT WE HAVE UP THERE IS THE NET COST OF $385,000.

OUR FOUNDATION WAS ACTUALLY UP ABOUT $562,000.

AND THEN SOME OF OUR TRANSPORTATION AID WENT DOWN AND SOME OF AND SOME OF OUR BUILDINGS WENT DOWN, WHICH WE KNEW ABOUT. BUT BUT AGAIN WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT THAT WAS CORRECTED.

AND THAT'S ALL THAT DETAILS ALL IN OUR BUDGET BOOK.

BUDGET BOOKS ARE GOING TO BE DISTRIBUTED TO BOARD MEMBERS. WE CAN LEAVE THEM WITH YOU TONIGHT OR OR SEND THEM TO YOUR HOUSE, AND WE'LL HAVE IT UP ONLINE AT THE DISTRICT AND AND AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING AT THE BUSINESS OFFICE AND AT THE DISTRICT OFFICE AS WELL.

OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR EVERYONE'S UPDATES. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO TAKE 6.1

[6.1 Motion to Approve and Adopt the School Calendar for the 2025-2026 School Year (Revised)]

[6.2 Motion to Approve Pelham Memorial High School Travel Study Trip to Spain February 10, 2027 to February 18, 2027]

[6.3 Motion to Approve Tuition Reimbursement for Continuing Education in the 2025-2026 School Year]

[6.4 Motion to Accept Treasurer's Report for the Period Ended December 31, 2025 Including Long-range Financial Plan]

[6.5 Motion to Approve 2025-2026 Budget Transfers]

[6.6 Motion to Accept Uniform Guidance Schedules and Independent Auditors’ Reports]

[6.7 Motion to Enter Into a Contract Wth KG+D Architects, PC for Architectural Services: District-Wide Camera and Access Control Upgrades]

[6.8 Motion to Approve A Project to Add An Outdoor Classroom at Prospect Hill Elementary School is a SEQRA Type II]

[6.9 Motion to Amend June 25, 2025 Board Resolution to Approve a Project to Construct a Batting Cage at Glover Field is a SEQRA Type II Action]

[6.10 Motion to Acknowledge Intent to Enter into an IPA with LHRIC]

OKAY. ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS ON ON THIS? THE THE FIRST ITEM DOCTOR CHAMP SPOKE ABOUT, IT'S THE APPROVAL OF THE REVISED CALENDAR DUE TO THE SNOW DAYS.

CURRENT YEAR. YEAH. THE CURRENT YEAR. CALENDAR DUE TO DUE TO THE SNOW DAYS.

THE SECOND ONE IS A TRIP TO SPAIN. YES. IN THE IN 2027? YES. VERY EXCITED ABOUT THAT. AND THE THE TEACHER WANTED ME JUST TO RAISE THE, THE POINT TO THE BOARD OF THE ON THE ITINERARY.

THERE'S CURRENTLY SCHEDULED TO GO TO I WANT TO SAY.

JUST CONCERNED ABOUT THE THE DATES. NO, NOT DATES, LOCATIONS.

I'M SORRY. I WANT TO SAY MONACO, BUT I'M NOT SURE THAT'S MALAGA.

MALAGA, MALAGA, MOROCCO EITHER. CROSSING OVER SOMEPLACE, BEGINNING WITH AN M.

IT DEFINITELY BEGINS WITH AN M. I'M PRETTY SURE IT WAS MALAGA BECAUSE I WAS LOOKING AT MALAGA.

IT COULD BE THEY'RE GOING TO SOMEONE WONDERFUL IN SPAIN? YES. AND THERE WAS A JUST A CONCERN ABOUT ONE LOCATION THAT I THINK CROSSED OVER INTO.

I'M SORRY. IT'S ASLEEP. I'LL I LOOKED IT UP. THE CONCERN WAS ABOUT ONE OF THE LOCATIONS JUST BECAUSE IT POTENTIALLY COULD BE YOU KNOW, STUDENT SAFETY.

I SEE TRAVELING SAFETY. BUT WHEN WE LOOKED UP THE SAFETY LEVELS IT WAS AT THE SAME LEVEL OF SPAIN AS ALL OF SPAIN, AS PARIS, AS MOST OF EUROPE. AS FAR AS LOOKING AT THE SECURITY LEVEL FROM THE STATE DEPARTMENT.

FROM THE STATE DEPARTMENT. YEAH. SO OFTEN IF SOMETHING IS AT A HIGHER LEVEL OF ALERT, WE WOULD RECONSIDER WHETHER TO SEND TRIPS.

OKAY. SO THIS IS A REGION WITHIN SPAIN. YES. GOTCHA.

OKAY. WAS IT BROUGHT UP BY A FAMILY OR SOMEBODY? NO. IT WAS ONE OF THE JUST ONE OF THE MRS. CALVELLI.

OH, SO YOU'RE ONE OF THE TEACHERS WHERE THEY'RE GOING? MADRID.

TOLEDO, CORDOBA, SEVILLE, GRANADA, COSTA DEL SOL IS.

IT'S PROBABLY COSTA DEL SOL. LOTS OF DRUNK BRITISH TOURISTS. YEAH, BUT IT'S FEBRUARY, SO THERE SHOULDN'T BE AS MANY.

[02:35:05]

YEAH, BUT SHE JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THE BOARD WAS COMFORTABLE WITH THAT. THIS WAS MY SCHOOL TRIP.

I DID THIS EXACT TRIP. SOUNDS LIKE AN AMAZING TRIP.

YEAH. SO GREAT. AND I. SHE'LL BE HAPPY TO TO KNOW IF SHE WAS WILLING TO MAKE AN ADJUSTMENT, IF ANYONE WAS UNCOMFORTABLE WITH THAT. BUT I WOULD JUST FOLLOW THE STATE GUIDE OR THE STATE DEPARTMENT GUIDELINES.

YEAH, THEY HAVE A GREAT TIME. THANK YOU. YEAH.

SOUNDS EXCELLENT. OKAY. AND JIM MENTIONED EVERYTHING ELSE ON THIS ON THIS LIST.

SO DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? NO. JUST HAPPY SOME OF THESE THINGS ARE MOVING ALONG.

LIKE THE CAMERAS. I KNOW WE'VE BEEN WAITING A LONG TIME FOR THEM, BUT YEAH, THINGS MOVE SLOW, SO WE UNDERSTAND. YEAH. AND GLAD FOR THE PROSPECT HILL OUTDOOR CLASSROOM, WHICH IF THEY'RE DOING IT IN CONJUNCTION WITH SOME OF THE WORK THAT'S GOING TO START THERE THIS SUMMER, SHOULD BE GREATLY DONE TO HAVE. YEP.

YEAH. OKAY. ALL IN FAVOR. AYE. NONE OPPOSED. SO ALL OF THAT.

ALL THOSE MOTIONS ARE APPROVED. 6.11. DO I HAVE A.

[6.11 Motion to Accept a Donation]

I'LL READ IT. RESOLVE THAT UPON THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, THE BOARD OF EDUCATION OF THE PELHAM UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT DOES HEREBY ACCEPT THE MONETARY DONATION OF $20,000 TO THE AMY GEISINGER SCHOLARSHIP FUND, AND THAT GRATITUDE BE BESTOWED UPON ITS DONOR, FREDERICK W GEISINGER CHARITABLE FOUNDATION. SO THANK YOU TO THE TO THE FOUNDATION FOR THE SCHOLARSHIP MONEY.

OKAY. ALL IN FAVOR? AND OPPOSED. SO THANK YOU.

THANKS AGAIN FOR THAT DONATION. AND THEN DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE A DONATION?

[6.12 Motion to Approve Donation of Funds from the Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs) for the six District Schools for the 2025-2026 School Year]

SO MOVED. SECOND. AND IT'S FROM THE PTAS TO COVER.

I FORGOT WHAT YOU SAID, JIM. THE FROM. IT WAS FROM THE LUNCHTIME ENRICHMENT.

THIS IS THE LUNCH FOR A LUNCHTIME ENRICHMENT. OKAY. OKAY.

THANK YOU. TO THE PTAS FOR THEIR SUPPORT OF LUNCHTIME ENRICHMENT.

ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. THAT'S APPROVED. SO THANKS AGAIN.

THEN LET'S SEE. DO I HAVE A MOTION? OH, OKAY.

SO THESE ARE NOW WE MOVE TO POLICY. WE'VE GOT ONE FIRST READING AND THE REST ARE ALL UP ON THE LAST READING.

[7.1 Policy 7611 - Children with Disabilities (First Reading)]

AND IT'S KIND OF SIMPLE TONIGHT. WE HAD BEEN WORKING, AS THE BOARD KNOWS, THROUGH UPDATING OUR SPECIAL EDUCATION POLICIES.

SO THE WE JUST WANTED TO ADD A NEW ONE TO THE LIST FOR FIRST READING, AND THAT'S CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES.

AND THIS ONE, THE GOAL OF THIS WAS PREDOMINANTLY TO UPDATE THIS IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE NEW REGULATIONS.

STUDENTS ARE ENTITLED TO AN EDUCATION UP UNTIL THEIR 22ND BIRTHDAY.

SO IT'S TO MAKE THE THE APPROPRIATE ADJUSTMENTS THERE.

I THINK THAT WAS PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD. WE WORKED WITH SUZANNE, OUR LEGAL COUNSEL, ON THAT, AND SHE UPDATED THAT AS APPROPRIATE. COMMITTEE WAS GOOD WITH IT. WHAT ARE ALL THE THERE WAS A LOT THAT LOOKS.

SO. THESE RED LINES MAKE IT REALLY HARD TO SORT OF LIKE READ THROUGH.

BUT THERE LOOKS. SO THIS WAS A POLICY THAT HADN'T BEEN UPDATED SINCE, WHAT, 2012? YES. SO I KNOW THAT SOMETHING BIG THAT THAT CHANGED WAS NOW VAPE IS REQUIRED UP TO THE 22ND BIRTHDAY.

THE STATE'S NOT GIVING SCHOOL DISTRICTS MONEY FOR THAT. BUT THAT'S NOT IN THIS POLICY. IT'S NOT RELEVANT FOR THE POLICY.

BUT THEN THERE'S ALL THESE OTHER CHANGES IN THERE ABOUT HOW SERVICES ARE PROVIDED.

I THINK THESE ARE PREDOMINANTLY IN TRACY. I THINK A LOT OF THINGS, IF I'M REMOVED, IT LOOKS LIKE A LOT OF A LOT OF IT WAS JUST, I THINK MOVED AROUND BECAUSE THEY WERE TALKING A LOT ABOUT UDL WHICH ISN'T NECESSARILY THE THING YOU TALK MORE ABOUT SPECIALLY DESIGNED INSTRUCTION THAN UDL, BUT CAN YOU DEFINE THAT FOR PEOPLE WHO DON'T KNOW WHAT UDL IS? UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING. THANK YOU.

VERSUS SPECIALLY DESIGNED INSTRUCTION WHICH IS MORE THE UPDATED WAY WE THINK ABOUT HOW WE APPROACH CURRICULUM.

AND THEN I DON'T HAVE IT OPEN IN FRONT OF ME.

HERE. THANKS A LOT. THERE WAS SOME CLEANUP LANGUAGE THROUGH THE DISTRICT OF LOCATION.

DISTRICT OF RESIDENCE, THOSE THOSE KINDS OF THINGS.

[02:40:01]

RIGHT. SO REALLY BEFORE THAT THOUGH, THERE, THERE'S.

YEAH. SO WE GOT STRUCK THE UDL WHICH IS OLD LANGUAGE.

RIGHT. AND THEN AND THIS AGAIN IS LANGUAGE THAT TALKED ABOUT UDL.

SO THAT'S WHY THAT WAS STRUCK IN NUMBER ONE. AND THEN IT'S JUST MORE UPDATED IN LINE WITH WHAT EVERYONE TELLS US THAT WE HAVE TO PUT IN. I MEAN, YOU COULD ALWAYS PUT MORE IF YOU WANT TO, BUT WE USE EVERY ONE SORT OF AS THE BENCHMARK, RIGHT FOR LIKE WHAT IS NECESSARY AND WHAT MUST BE.

AND THEN THE WHOLE SECOND HALF OF IT IS ABOUT STUDENTS PARENTALLY PLACED IN NONPUBLIC SCHOOLS THAT ARE WITHIN THE BOUNDS OF PELHAM, WHICH WE DON'T HAVE. RIGHT. RIGHT. SO I THINK WE UPDATED IT KIND OF AS A IF WE EVER DID HAVE IT.

RIGHT. BUT WE WERE ABLE TO KEEP IT PRETTY SIMPLE.

RIGHT. THIS AGAIN IS ANOTHER UDL ONE. SO IT WAS KIND OF LIKE OUTDATED LANGUAGE.

OKAY. YEAH. OKAY. SO AGAIN THAT'S UP FOR FIRST READING.

SO WE'LL CARRY THAT ONE OVER. THE OTHERS ARE UP FOR THIRD READING.

WE HAVE NOT RECEIVED ANY ADDITIONAL FEEDBACK.

OKAY. I DON'T THINK WE MADE ANY CHANGES ON THESE AT COMMITTEE EITHER.

I LOOKED AT THOSE AGAIN BEFORE I CLOSED MY COMPUTER.

THOSE ARE REALLY JUST TO AGAIN BE IN LINE WITH ONE LANGUAGE.

A LOT OF OUR POLICY IS INCLUSIVE IN ERIE. ONE THEY THEY JUST FORMATTED IT IN A LITTLE BIT OF A DIFFERENT WAY AND IT READS BETTER.

AND IT'S BASICALLY REITERATING OF REGULATION.

RIGHT. AND ANOTHER ONE AGAIN TO LIKE 7.4 7617 WE HAD TO UPDATE THE AGE 22 AND THAT ONE AGAIN. SO IT'S IT'S SUBSTANTIVELY THE SAME JUST UPDATED WITH ERA ONE LANGUAGE.

YEAH. YEAH. SO WE WOULD RECOMMEND THE COMMITTEE WOULD RECOMMEND THESE FOR ADOPTION OKAY OKAY.

YEAH. FOR THE THIRD READING. YEAH. YEAH. ALL RIGHT.

ESPECIALLY SINCE WE HAVEN'T GOTTEN ANY OTHER COMMENTS. YEAH.

OKAY. SO DO I HAVE A MOTION TO TAKE 7.2 THROUGH

[7.2 Policy 7222 - Diploma or Credential Options for Students with Disabilities (Third Reading)]

[7.3 Policy 7615 - Least Restrictive Environment (Third Reading)]

[7.4 Policy 7617 - Declassification of Students with Disabilities (Third Reading)]

[7.5 Policy 7650 - Identification and Register of Children with Disabilities (Child Find) (Third Reading)]

[7.6 Policy 7660 - Parent Involvement for Children with Disabilities (Third Reading)]

[7.7 Policy 7680 - Independent Educational Evaluations (Third Reading)]

THANK YOU. 7.10. 7.1 WAS JUST THE FIRST READING.

SO MOVING FORWARD. YEAH. WE DON'T DO ANYTHING WITH THAT ONE.

OKAY. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO TAKE 8.1. THROUGH 9.1.

[8. Superintendent's Personnel Recommendations]

[9. Pupil Personnel Services]

OKAY. I HAVE JUST A QUICK HIGHLIGHTS HERE. OF COURSE, MISS SABIA.

I WISH MRS. SABIA THE BEST. I KNOW YOU CAN'T.

YOU CAN'T ALWAYS VOTE THAT ONE DOWN. BUT YES, MISS SABIA.

SEVERAL FMLA LEAVES APPOINTMENTS OF SUBSTITUTE TEACHERS.

FOR COVERAGE ON THE INSTRUCTIONAL SIDE. AGAIN, THE STUDENT TEACHERS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT EARLIER LEAVE REPLACEMENTS IN TURNS.

AND THEN ON THE NON INSTRUCTIONAL WE'RE HAPPY TO HAVE DIANE NASTA COMING BACK TO THE DISTRICT AS A CLERICAL.

SHE'S A LONG TIME AGO WAY PANDEMIC PRE-PANDEMIC.

SHE USED TO ACTUALLY WORK IN THE HR OFFICE FOR A LITTLE WHILE.

SO SHE'S COMING BACK TO REPLACE KAREN MANN AS THE ATTENDANCE SECRETARY AT THE HIGH SCHOOL.

SO DIANE'S LOVELY, WELCOMING, VERY WARM. SHE'S GOING TO DO A GREAT JOB.

YEAH. YEP. WE KNOW WHO TO SEND OUR NOTICES TO.

THAT'S RIGHT. OKAY. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. OKAY. THOSE ARE ALL APPROVED. DO WE HAVE NEW BUSINESS? WE DO, BUT I'M GONNA.

[10.1 New Business]

SO IT WAS FOR ME THE FIRST TIME THERE AS A MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION.

SO IT WAS REALLY I JUST WANTED TO GIVE A QUICK UPDATE AND KATHRYN JUMP IN IF I MISSED ANYTHING.

BUT WE MET, WE WENT TO FOUR OFFICES. AND THEN WE DROPPED BY INFORMATION AT FOUR OTHERS HAD A REALLY INCREDIBLE OPPORTUNITY TO ALSO MEET OTHER

[02:45:02]

REALLY WERE ABLE TO HEAR ABOUT, YOU KNOW, JUST ALSO KIND OF WHAT THEY'RE FOCUSED ON AND, YOU KNOW, FROM A NATIONAL LEVEL, YOU KNOW, EDUCATION. SO IT WAS REALLY GREAT OPPORTUNITY.

WE WE DID SPEAK ABOUT UPK UNIVERSAL PRE-K. WE SPOKE ABOUT FOUNDATION AID.

WE SPOKE ABOUT CHARTER SCHOOLS, BOCES AND SPECIAL EDUCATION FUNDING, SO WE WERE ABLE TO REALLY TALK THROUGH SOME OF THOSE TOPICS.

I THINK FOR ME, IT WAS KNOWING THAT WE HAVE A PRESENCE AND A VOICE.

I THINK, YOU KNOW, NATALIE, YOU TALKED ABOUT A VOICE.

AND SO KATHRYN IS REALLY UP IN ALBANY DOING LOTS OF OTHER THINGS.

SO HAVING THE BENEFIT OF A BOARD MEMBER THAT HAS RELATIONSHIPS THAT IS ABLE TO REALLY KIND OF BE ABLE TO CONNECT THE DOTS IN DIFFERENT AREAS, WAS REALLY GREAT TO WATCH AND TO SEE.

AND I'M REALLY PROUD THAT WE WERE ABLE TO BE IN ALBANY KIND OF TALKING ABOUT WHAT MATTERS MOST TO US AND LISTENING TO AROUND, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE ISSUES FOR THE STATE, YOU KNOW, THAT WE SHOULD BE AWARE OF AND THAT THEY'RE GRAPPLING WITH AS WELL? SO I DON'T KNOW JUMP IN IF I MISSED ANYTHING.

OH, THAT WAS GREAT. THANK YOU. I'M SO GLAD YOU GOT THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME WITH WITH ME THIS YEAR.

I HOPE YOU HAD FUN. LOTS OF FUN. MY FAVORITE SUPER FUN TIME CAR RIDE.

MAYBE NEXT YEAR WE CAN BLAST. I CAN FIT SEVEN PEOPLE IN MY CAR SO I COULD TAKE ALL OF YOU.

MAYBE NEXT YEAR. THEN IT WOULD BE A QUORUM. THAT'S RIGHT. YOU'D HAVE A QUORUM. OH, YEAH. TRUE. WE COULDN'T DO IT. WE COULDN'T DO THAT.

BUT I THINK THE ONE. THE IMPORTANT THING ABOUT GOING UP THERE IS NOT ONLY ARE WE ABLE TO MEET IN PERSON, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THE BENEFIT OF SEEING ALL OF OUR LOCAL REPRESENTATIVES LIKE ELECTEDS SO FREQUENTLY HERE IN PELHAM.

BUT IT DOES MAKE IT IT'S IT'S A LITTLE DIFFERENT WHEN YOU CAN MEET WHEN YOU MEET THEM SORT OF ON THEIR HOME TURF, EITHER IN THEIR REGIONAL OFFICES OR IN OR IN ALBANY.

WE DIDN'T SEE OUR ELECTEDS THIS YEAR BECAUSE DOCTOR CHAMP AND I MET WITH THEM THE NEXT DAY, ACTUALLY OVER ZOOM. SO THE BENEFIT OF GOING UP THERE IN PERSON IS, IS ACTUALLY SEEING ELECTEDS FROM AROUND THE STATE AND BEING ABLE TO GET IN FRONT OF THEM AND TALK TO THEM AND JOIN OTHER GROUPS AND TALK WITH OTHER PEOPLE.

AND WE WERE WE ACTUALLY THERE WAS A LARGE CONTINGENT OF PEOPLE WHO WERE NOT ABLE TO MAKE IT THIS YEAR DUE TO ILLNESS AND HAVING TROUBLE TRAVELING, SPECIFICALLY OUR COLLEAGUES FROM SOUTHERN WESTCHESTER BOCES.

SO THE THING THAT WAS IMPORTANT FOR US TO DO IS CARRY THEIR MESSAGES WITH US.

SO WE GOT TO MEET WITH A FEW REPRESENTATIVES FROM DIFFERENT DISTRICTS AND REALLY SPEAK TO MESSAGES THAT SUPPORT EDUCATION OVERALL, AND SPECIFICALLY THE BOCES AND THE SPECIAL ACT SCHOOL DISTRICTS, BECAUSE THEY'RE SO SMALL AND OUR SPECIAL ACT COLLEAGUES WEREN'T ABLE TO MAKE IT, NONE OF THEM WERE ABLE TO MAKE IT. SO BEING ABLE TO SPEAK ABOUT THE ISSUES THAT REALLY MATTER TO THEM WAS AN IMPORTANT OPPORTUNITY. AND THAT HELPS SUPPORT ALSO, I MEAN, SPECIAL ACT SCHOOL DISTRICTS, THEY TAKE THE KIDS, THEY TAKE THE HARDEST KIDS FROM ALL OVER THE STATE ON A MOMENT'S NOTICE. SO THEIR WORK BENEFITS PELHAM THEIR WORK BENEFITS EDUCATION.

OVERALL BOCES WE COULDN'T DO HALF OF THE THINGS THAT WE COULD DO WITHOUT IN PELHAM, WITHOUT BOCES.

SO THE, THE, THE FACT THAT WE WERE ABLE TO SPEAK FOR THEM WHEN THEY WEREN'T ABLE TO.

IT WAS IMPORTANT OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO HAVE AS WELL.

TEAMWORK. THANK YOU FOR REPRESENTING. YEAH. THANK YOU FOR GOING.

THANK YOU BOTH FOR YOU. BECAUSE I KNOW IT WAS A LONG DAY.

IT WAS LONG. AND YOU GUYS CAME BACK THE DAY GETTING BACK FROM LA OVER THE LAST COUPLE DAYS.

THANK YOU. YEAH. THANK YOU. I JUST HAVE ONE THING.

CHECK YOUR CHECK YOUR EMAIL I SENT OVER FROM THERESA MOHAN, WHO IS OUR NEW TOWN SUPERVISOR.

SHE IS THE TOWN IS PUTTING TOGETHER A SUSTAINABILITY ADVISORY BOARD, AND THEY'RE ASKING FOR A REPRESENTATIVE FROM EACH OF THE BOARDS, LIKE ONE OF THE VILLAGE, YOU KNOW, EACH OF THE VILLAGE BOARDS AND THE BOARD OF EDUCATION.

IT'S NOT LIKE A THERE'S NO DECISION MAKING. IT'S NOT A DECISION MAKING BOARD.

IT'S MORE INFORMATIONAL AND LIKE, SHARING BEST PRACTICES THAT THAT TYPE OF THING.

SID HAD ALREADY EMAILED BACK AND SAID THAT HE'D BE HAPPY TO DO IT.

BUT IF ANYBODY ELSE IS INTERESTED, PLEASE, YOU KNOW, LET ME KNOW SO I CAN LET THERESA KNOW.

YEAH. IF MY IF TIMING WILL. I MEAN, I'LL TAKE YOU SAID IT'S QUARTERLY.

IT'S A QUARTERLY MEETING. YEAH. SO I CAN CHECK WITH SID AROUND SCHEDULING, BUT.

YEAH, I'D BE INTERESTED IN THAT. OKAY. ALL RIGHT.

THANKS. I'M THE YES PERSON THESE DAYS. NICE. BUDGET SEASON.

YEAH, EXACTLY. BUSY. WE'LL SEE HOW LONG THAT LASTS.

[02:50:04]

SO MOVED. SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. THANKS, EVERYONE.

THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU ALL.

* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.