[6:53] Good afternoon, evening. I'd like to open up the
[6:57] Haverhill School Board first legislative meeting
[7:00] for the 26-27 school year. Welcome.
[7:04] Thank you for attending. As a reminder to our audience this evening,
[7:07] that this meeting is being live-streamed.
[7:09] As such, students, parents, guardians, employees, and members of the
[7:13] public should
[7:15] not have any expectation of privacy while attending a public event, as
[7:19] they may be captured and broadcast on a live screen, just as they could at any
[7:23] other public or community event or facility open to the public.
[7:30] Can we have a roll call, please?
[7:34] Mr. Eagle?
[7:35] Here.
[7:36] Ms. Leonard?
[7:37] Here.
[7:37] Dr. Linn?
[7:38] Here.
[7:39] Dr. Tantamont- Moran?
[7:41] Here.
[7:41] Mr. Ward?
[7:42] Here.
[7:43] Ms. King? Mr. Taylor?
[7:46] Here.
[7:47] Ms. Wolfe?
[7:48] Here.
[7:48] Mr. Wood? Here.
[7:50] Eight members of the school board are present tonight. Mission statement.
[7:54] The purpose of the Haverhill School District is to foster a learning environment
[7:58] for all students to be exceptionally well-prepared to succeed and
[8:01] lead full and meaningful lives. Vision statement.
[8:05] All Haverhill students
[8:09] are well-prepared to create their own future.
[8:12] I'd like to invite the precinct to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.
[8:15] I pledge
[8:18] allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the
[8:22] Republic for which it stands, one nation under
[8:26] God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for
[8:30] all.
[8:31] Thank you. We can now turn it over
[8:35] to Dr. Michaud for board presentations.
[8:37] Thank you, Dr. Linn. Typically, our presentations come from students at our
[8:41] schools or organizations that we partner with throughout the community.
[8:45] Two weeks ago, we welcomed over 20 new educators to the school district.
[8:49] Last week, we had a very enthusiastic convocation along with in-service
[8:53] days with our entire professional staff, and of course, as many of you as
[8:57] students, parents, and community members know, we started school this week.
[9:00] So we thought the best thing for us to do would be to show you a video featuring
[9:04] highlights from the opening week of school.
[9:06] And that will start back right now.
[10:29] It's just as good the second time.
[10:32] So obviously, not only do we have super enthusiastic students coming
[10:36] off our buses for the last several days, all our facilities were ready,
[10:40] our staff is ready to go, and I think it's going to be a great year of learning,
[10:44] leading, and succeeding throughout the entire school district.
[10:46] So we're very excited for what's to come for the remainder of the school year.
[10:52] The board committees is our next agenda item, and we have not met
[10:56] as a committee, as committee one, committee two, or the
[11:00] personnel or committee as a whole yet.
[11:03] We start our committee meetings in two weeks.
[11:07] But I do think just having a brief report from Mrs.
[11:11] Wolfe is...
[11:13] In fact, they have met, so we'll have a report from her.
[11:17] Thank you, Dr. Linn. I'll make this short
[11:18] because there's not a whole lot to report other than we
[11:23] passed all the necessary items to start the school year.
[11:27] We had a presentation, the
[11:32] ideas that we're going to bring to the IU and the students for this
[11:36] school year. We had a little bit of an introduction to BBA, and
[11:40] we learned that they are serving 3,400 students.
[11:44] And the big news is the Great Valley
[11:48] CBC is opening up in October.
[11:52] That is similar to what Anglin is. It's got programs for kids
[11:56] with multiple disabilities and some behavioral, emotional issues.
[12:01] And it will help with the kids who
[12:04] travel from the Great Valley to T.E.
[12:07] area, so they don't have to drive quite so far.
[12:09] Normally, they would go into Coatesville, which is, I'm not sure how long it is,
[12:13] but it's a very long drive. Probably could be an hour So now they will have
[12:17] an opportunity to attend school a little bit closer.
[12:19] And that also takes a lot of students off the waitlist, so more
[12:23] students can be served, and that's a really great thing.
[12:26] And just wanted to say that our next meeting will be at the
[12:30] Fruitville Downtown location on September 16th at 7:30.
[12:34] And that is the end of my report.
[12:38] Thank you. Mr. Winton, unless you have anything new to report?
[12:42] I do. Thank you, Dr. Lanham. We actually were scheduled to meet last night, but we
[12:46] did not due to some issues with Chris Boggo at the IU.
[12:49] However, I would like to give a report on what was the largest
[12:53] piece of the agenda, which is our last budget pass
[12:57] and school code, which occurred a little bit late this year, but
[13:01] not too bad.
[13:03] So as many people already know, it was a very good budget for public
[13:07] education in general, as well as Adams Grove in particular.
[13:10] We got our third installment of the adequacy funding,
[13:14] which was in response to a Commonwealth Court ruling that
[13:18] funding of public education is not fair and needs to be fixed.
[13:21] So we got just under $2 million additional.
[13:24] A million of that was already in our budget, as everyone at the table knows.
[13:27] The extra million is going to go towards filling a budget gap or budget deficit.
[13:31] Also very important in that budget for our teacher
[13:34] pipeline, which we've talked about teacher shortages, is another $10
[13:38] million to go to teacher stipends for student teachers.
[13:42] There's a stipend, $10,000 I believe it is.
[13:44] I may have those a little quoted on that. I'm sorry.
[13:48] But for teachers who are student teaching.
[13:51] And the pot of money was definitely used up, so there's additional money for
[13:55] this coming school year for our student teachers.
[13:58] So that was very important. A few other important things that have
[14:02] gone on here. Slight increases in both basic education
[14:05] funding and special education funding.
[14:09] Some cyber charter reform. There's not
[14:13] any additional reforms, but it builds on some policy reforms in the last two
[14:16] budgets, most specifically regarding truancy.
[14:20] Any student who's been habitually truant may not enroll in a cyber
[14:24] charter school.
[14:25] They can appeal that decision to a court or to the Commonwealth Office they
[14:29] go to, and there's some additional guidance as to what the
[14:34] parents of the student need to be able to prove in order to go to a cyber
[14:38] charter if they've been truant. There's also some psychological wellness checks
[14:42] to make sure that students who are in any cyber charters are well.
[14:46] Those will be applying to school districts who have
[14:49] online students, because some school districts have
[14:53] their own virtual programs. So those are being expanded to
[14:57] apply to all public schools as well, the wellness
[15:00] checks. Let's see, scrolling down here.
[15:04] Additional mental health and safety security grants were slightly
[15:07] increased. The wealth index in school facilities increased, including
[15:11] $25 million additional for a solar for schools grant program.
[15:16] It will now cover up to 75% of the cost of that installation
[15:20] for the grant. Something several districts in Chester County will be looking to, to
[15:24] provide some energy costs. Could be a real saver for the
[15:28] district's energy budgets.
[15:30] A few other important items. Some changes on the
[15:34] policy on bullying. Must require that all incidents of alleged
[15:38] bullying and cyberbullying be investigated promptly with
[15:42] a procedure for investigation. If it's determined that an incident did
[15:46] occur, the school must immediately notify, as soon as practical, the parents
[15:50] or guardian of the students involved in the incident.
[15:54] So that is some important information there, as well as tightening things up
[15:58] on that. There's a standardized testing study going on,
[16:02] looking at online testing versus the traditional
[16:06] pen, paper, and pencil, as well as just more generally
[16:10] how a standardized test is administered, time, et cetera.
[16:13] This is just right now a study that's going on that's
[16:17] reported due next June. So we'll see if that leads to some standardized
[16:20] testing changes. Also, classroom monitors.
[16:24] These are emergency certificates that would allow individuals to oversee
[16:28] classrooms. There is a substitute teacher shortage just as there is a classroom
[16:32] teacher shortage. So this would allow monitors who are,
[16:36] again, emergency certified.
[16:38] They must have assignments that were originally developed by professional
[16:42] employees, and they're prohibited from serving more than 20 cumulative school
[16:46] days in a single assignment.
[16:49] I don't know if we'll have any thought about making use of those at this
[16:52] point.
[16:54] So, some other important things. The district and State Board of
[16:57] Education
[16:59] is being directed to devise academic standards related to
[17:02] social media literacy.
[17:05] So that could be something that's coming along.
[17:08] Just as importantly, what was not included.
[17:12] There were no additional increases to our educational improvement tax
[17:16] credit opportunity scholarship, which essentially is a backdoor voucher
[17:20] that sends money to scholarships for students who attend private schools.
[17:24] Also, there were no vouchers, which the people at the Senate have been pushing as a
[17:28] top priority. That was not talked about in the budget.
[17:31] And Governor Wolf has not-- Excuse me.
[17:34] Governor Shapiro
[17:36] has not joined the federal
[17:39] created voucher program either.
[17:41] Also very big item, misspoken last spring.
[17:46] I mentioned that both the House and Senate had passed a bell to bell
[17:49] cell phone ban ensured if something extraordinary happened and the governor didn't
[17:53] sign it, well, something extraordinary happened.
[17:56] And the bell to bell cell phone ban did not make it through the
[17:59] final
[18:01] finish line there. I understand that what happened was the House and the
[18:05] Senate the big thing they couldn't reconcile was whether this would apply to
[18:09] private schools as well as public schools.
[18:11] So count on that coming back again in the upcoming session.
[18:15] But for now, our policies on our cell phones is still local
[18:19] control.
[18:21] So
[18:27] So now on to student reports. Our most favorite
[18:31] report. We have somebody who's a new pupil,
[18:35] so Chase, would you like to do the introduction?
[18:38] This is Jason. He's going to be the new student board
[18:42] representative. He's a junior, and I'll let him introduce himself.
[18:47] Yes. I'd just like to briefly introduce myself.
[18:49] So I was chosen to be the newest student school board rep this past spring.
[18:54] I am involved in many activities. I'm involved in cross-country right
[18:58] now. I run year-round, so that's cross-country in the fall, and then track in the
[19:01] winter and spring. And I'm also involved in the Boy Scouts.
[19:04] So that's how I spent most of my summer, was running in the mornings, and then I
[19:07] spent my afternoons working on my Eagle Scout project, which I just finished,
[19:11] before school started. I constructed a bridge over a small
[19:15] stream in the Big Elk Creek State Park, which was recently founded a couple years
[19:18] ago. And I'm an active member of the Abbey Road School.
[19:22] So I'm involved in many clubs, including the Math Club, the Future Business Leaders
[19:25] of America, and the Tenor Bass Choir.
[19:28] I'm also applying to NHS coming up soon, and I was a previous member of
[19:32] the Student Voice Committee, which is the committee that Chase and Erin founded
[19:36] with the help of Dr. Mushong to try and get the student voices heard
[19:40] in the local government. So
[19:43] I'm excited to start working with you all and become involved in the community.
[19:46] Well, welcome. We're happy to have you.
[19:48] Thank you.
[19:49] Let's start an official report.
[19:52] Yes. So I'll move into the reports.
[19:54] We had some very successful student orientations in late summer, from late
[19:58] July into mid-August, with many student volunteers at both the high school
[20:01] level and the middle school level, giving tours of the building, providing
[20:05] information about the new students' classes, expectations that the
[20:08] schools have, and helping those incoming students prepare for the first day of
[20:12] school coming up, and it sounds like they were well-prepared, as they had a great
[20:15] first week.
[20:17] So the first day of school was this Monday, August twenty-fourth.
[20:20] It was filled with lots of smiles. Kindergarteners celebrated their first day of
[20:24] school, while seniors, me, sounds like, celebrated their
[20:28] last first day. The high school parking lot was full of seniors taking photos with
[20:32] their throwback backpacks representative of their favorite childhood characters and
[20:35] elementary school memories. Fall sports are also kicking off with the first
[20:39] football game this Friday, August twenty-eighth.
[20:41] We're hoping to see a huge community turnout.
[20:44] It's going to be a big event, and we have four home games this season.
[20:48] Other sports such as boys and girls soccer, field hockey, girls tennis, girls
[20:52] volleyball, cross country, and golf will have games by the time you're coming
[20:56] up as well. Be sure to show up and
[20:58] support our student athletes.
[21:01] Yes, and we are also now in the season of back-to-school nights and meet the
[21:04] teacher nights. So we had some successful meet the teacher nights.
[21:08] PLE had their back to school night on August nineteenth and meet the teacher night
[21:12] August twentieth. These are great opportunities for parents to meet the teachers
[21:15] and find out what their students will be learning.
[21:17] It's a great school spirit event. And AGI had their
[21:21] meet the teacher night on August twentieth, and then back to school nights were
[21:24] yesterday for second and third grade, and then September first coming up for
[21:28] fourth and fifth grade.
[21:29] The middle school will have their back to school night coming quickly on September
[21:33] second, and the high school had their back to school night last Tuesday, August
[21:37] twenty-sixth. I heard it went well for my teachers.
[21:41] And then we also have coming up, we have the Homecoming weekend, which is on
[21:45] September twenty-sixth. We do have a board meeting before that weekend, but we just
[21:49] wanted to make sure everyone's marking their calendars.
[21:51] It's going to be a great experience.
[21:52] Hi.
[21:52] Yes. So the weekend will kick off with the Homecoming football game on Friday,
[21:56] which will be very exciting, and Saturday festivities are kicked off with the Red
[22:00] Devil 5K, the parade, and the Homecoming booths, which are always a
[22:04] great community draw. And then the Homecoming dance for high schoolers is that
[22:07] night on the twenty-sixth.
[22:09] Yeah. So we're so excited and back for a new school year.
[22:13] We want to give a special thanks to all the administrators, teachers, faculty, and
[22:16] of course, the school board for all the work they put in to make it possible for
[22:20] all of us to have a great school year. So thank you, guys.
[22:23] Thank you.
[22:23] That concludes our report.
[22:25] Thank you. That was very informative.
[22:28] Our next agenda item is public comment. Do we have any public comment?
[22:33] Public comment is welcome and will be conducted in accordance with Board Policy
[22:37] 930 and the guidelines listed on the Public Comment sign in form.
[22:42] The comment opportunity is for topics listed for action on tonight's
[22:45] agenda. Thirty minutes have been set aside, and individuals have three minutes
[22:49] for comment. All statements shall be directed to the presiding officer
[22:53] rather than to individuals. The presiding officer,
[22:57] superintendent, and/or district solicitor may
[22:59] respond at their
[23:03] discretion, and provided, contact information is encouraged
[23:08] for follow-up. So I'd like to ask,
[23:11] Cindy Martino, please. Thank you.
[23:15] Good
[23:16] evening.
[23:20] Hi.
[23:21] Hi.
[23:22] My name is Cindy Martino. I live in New Market Township, and
[23:26] I was looking at the agenda, and there
[23:30] was...
[23:31] It hasn't been discussed yet tonight, but it's five dot
[23:35] one four about just the engineering and assessment.
[23:39] And I was just curious to know,
[23:43] there has to be a reason behind getting
[23:47] this done, and I would like to know what that was and what
[23:50] your intentions are and what part of the property
[23:54] is being affected or whatnot.
[23:56] Sure. I won't have a complete answer to all of your questions.
[24:01] Okay.
[24:01] But I do believe I'll be able to give just a general sense of it.
[24:05] So,
[24:07] we
[24:09] have over 100 acres of that property.
[24:12] Right now, we lease thirty-five acres of that property
[24:15] for farming. That's what we know about our asset.
[24:19] So we felt like we have over 100 acres of land.
[24:23] We owe it to our taxpayers to understand Really what we own
[24:27] and whether this asset could be doing more for the district and for
[24:31] the community. So the study will give us kind of a foundation.
[24:35] It'll give us information, and then with the information we gather, the board will
[24:39] be able to determine any possible next steps.
[24:42] Okay.
[24:43] So there's no specific purpose.
[24:46] Right. At this time, we haven't considered a purpose for it because we
[24:50] really don't know what the asset or that property can do
[24:54] for us. So the study will look at things like the condition of the land, potential
[24:58] uses, and any potential revenue possibilities.
[25:01] And once the board has that information, they'll be in a much better position
[25:04] to have a, really, I guess, a more responsible conversation
[25:08] about what any next steps would be.
[25:10] When you do find out, will this be publicly-
[25:14] Yes
[25:14] ... reported and given an opportunity
[25:18] for the community to
[25:21] be able to be a part of that?
[25:24] Participate and ask questions? Absolutely.
[25:26] Yeah. Do you have any intentions of selling the land if it's
[25:30] possible?
[25:31] Again, the board hasn't talked about anything yet.
[25:35] Okay. But the discussion with the board will be in a public meeting? Okay.
[25:39] Yes.
[25:40] So it will be public. Can I ask one more question?
[25:43] Sure.
[25:44] Could it ever be possible that it could be a data center to be
[25:48] put on this land?
[25:51] I wouldn't go that far. I wouldn't say that, but I wouldn't go out saying that
[25:55] assumption.
[25:56] Okay.
[25:56] Yeah. I understand the question.
[25:59] Okay. Thank you.
[26:03] Our next agenda item is
[26:07] the business office. And I believe Dr.
[26:09] Erhart will handle this as well.
[26:11] Thank you, Dr. Linn. At this time, I'll ask if anyone has
[26:15] any items for the business office agenda, including addendum item eight
[26:19] point zero one. And if anyone needs to pull that on your own
[26:22] separate.
[26:26] Okay. Hearing none, can I please have a motion to approve items five point zero
[26:29] two, bill list from May twenty-first, twenty
[26:31] twenty-six to June third, twenty twenty-six; five point zero
[26:35] three, bill list from June fourth, twenty twenty-six to June seventeenth, twenty
[26:39] twenty-six; five point zero four, bill list from June
[26:42] eighteenth, twenty twenty-six to June thirtieth, twenty twenty-six; five point zero
[26:46] five, bill list for July first, twenty twenty-six to
[26:50] July nineteenth, twenty twenty-six; five point zero six, treasury report through
[26:54] May twenty twenty-six; five point zero seven, budget transfer summary through May
[26:57] twenty twenty-six; five point zero eight, additions to twenty
[27:01] twenty-six twenty-seven approved fundraisers list; five point zero nine,
[27:05] Early Driven Technologies MSC contract amendment; five ten,
[27:09] Osbourn Capital Play Agreement; five eleven, Live Unlimited
[27:13] agreement; five twelve, Silver Line Container contract; five
[27:17] thirteen, CA Moving Company general agreement; five fourteen,
[27:21] TerraForm Visionary land assessment;
[27:24] fifteen, Fast Transportation contract amendment; five sixteen,
[27:28] memorandum of understanding with Luther Corporation; five
[27:31] seventeen, Nancy Ignatius; and addendum item eight point zero
[27:35] one, additions to the twenty twenty-six twenty-seven approved fundraisers
[27:39] list. So moved.
[27:40] Second.
[27:45] Okay. Let me just double check for seconds.
[27:46] Are there any questions or comments from the board regarding the
[27:50] business?
[27:51] Yes. Never passing up an opportunity to thank the wonderful Averill
[27:55] Education Foundation, recognizing there is a grant on
[27:59] this
[28:00] proposal, on this agenda item right now.
[28:03] As you're right, the board is aware, but since we have many members of the public,
[28:06] the Averill Education Foundation does raise money
[28:10] from anybody who is willing to step up and donate for the benefit of our
[28:14] students.
[28:16] And then they hold competitive grants where
[28:19] teachers or other people who work for the district can submit their grant
[28:23] proposal. That board is independent from the district, reviews those
[28:27] grant proposals, and gives all kinds of wonderful grants.
[28:30] This one particularly going for daily living skills materials, but
[28:34] we have technology grants that have been put into play, other curriculum material.
[28:38] It's just an amazing organization that supports our students.
[28:40] So I want to thank them for those.
[28:44] Great.
[28:45] AEF, excuse me, averillfoundation.org.
[28:48] Thank you. Any other comments or questions?
[28:51] Seeing none, we have a roll call,
[28:54] please. Mr. Ingle?
[28:55] Yes.
[28:56] Ms. Wolf?
[28:56] Yes.
[28:57] Mr. Wood?
[28:58] Yes.
[28:59] Mr. Ward?
[29:00] Yes.
[29:01] Mr. Taylor?
[29:02] Yes.
[29:02] Ms. Leonard?
[29:03] Yes.
[29:03] Ms. Hinn? Dr. Tregoning?
[29:04] Yes.
[29:04] Dr. Linn?
[29:07] Yes.
[29:08] Motion
[29:09] passes eight-zero.
[29:13] The next agenda item is consent agenda. I'm going to hand it over to Dr.
[29:17] Bashant.
[29:18] Hey, Dr. Linn. Are there any items to be removed from the consent agenda and those
[29:22] want separation? Seeing none, may
[29:26] I have a motion to approve the following items on the consent agenda?
[29:30] Six point zero two, resignations, retirements, and leaves of absence;
[29:34] six point zero three, appointments; six point zero four,
[29:38] 江 南 appointments; six point zero five, student
[29:41] teachers; six point zero six, volunteers;
[29:45] six point zero seven, CRES Service Agreement;
[29:48] six point zero eight, Creatively Focused Software Services Agreement;
[29:53] six point zero nine, LCH Health Screening Agreement;
[29:57] six point one zero, memorandum of understanding between the Averill School
[30:01] District and the Averill Education Support Professional Association.
[30:06] Item six point one one, Philadelphia Union Soccer License Agreement.
[30:10] Item six point one two, Vanguard Enrollment Agreement.
[30:14] Item six point one three, settlement agreement.
[30:17] Item six point one four, settlement agreement.
[30:20] Item six point one five, conference requests.
[30:23] Item six point one six, overnight trip requests Item
[30:27] 6.17, approval of school board minutes from June 4th of
[30:31] 2026, and item 6.18, approval of
[30:35] special school board minutes from June 30th of
[30:38] 2026.
[30:40] So moved. Second.
[30:45] Are there any questions or comments? I have a comment.
[30:49] Sure. I just want to
[30:53] make the public aware that LCH does provide free
[30:57] P I H O A health screenings
[31:00] for student athletes who are in need.
[31:04] I think that's very important for our public to know, so that we
[31:08] do have
[31:09] vehicles so that every student who wants to participate
[31:13] in an extracurricular activity can do so.
[31:17] And in order to do so, you have to have a physical.
[31:21] A lot of times that physical can be very costly, and we have this
[31:24] wonderful organization in our backyard that's offering free
[31:28] screenings for any student who is in need.
[31:32] Thank you, Dr. O'Connor. Any other comments?
[31:37] Seeing none, can we have a roll call, please?
[31:39] Mm-hmm.
[31:40] Mr. Ward?
[31:41] Yes.
[31:42] Dr. Acton-Maran? Yes. Ms. Wolf?
[31:45] Yes.
[31:46] Mr. Keller?
[31:47] Yes.
[31:47] Mr. Wood?
[31:48] Yeah.
[31:49] Mr. Engel?
[31:50] Yes.
[31:51] Ms. Landers? Yes. Dr. Laine?
[31:53] Yes.
[31:55] Motion passes eight,
[31:58] zero. Down to, there is no old
[32:02] business, but there is new business, and I'm going to
[32:06] hand it over to Mrs. Wolf to
[32:10] talk about the CTI school development
[32:13] position. Yes, I asked for this to be put on the agenda
[32:17] because I'm interested in giving this off to another board member.
[32:21] There's some things coming up at the IU that are going to take up a lot of time,
[32:25] and I would like to make sure that this is put into good hands.
[32:29] Also, at one of our previous meetings, there was a lot of interest in
[32:33] some of the board members in doing some outside of the board meeting,
[32:37] meetings and committees. So I thought I'd open this one up in case anybody was
[32:40] interested. And the description for what is
[32:44] expected, or the actual authority
[32:47] description is in the exact content.
[32:52] So I was just planning to talk a bit about who might be interested
[32:56] in
[32:57] taking on this school board committee a few times a year, and possibly
[33:01] appoint them tonight so they can attend the meeting in September.
[33:08] I would be interested in that.
[33:11] Does anybody have any questions about the position?
[33:14] I know it's an executive comment, but if there's any questions about
[33:18] it. Can I ask what the meetings are during the work
[33:22] day or in the evening? They are usually between
[33:25] 5:00 and 6:00 on the third Wednesday, three times a year.
[33:29] So that would be September, January, and in May.
[33:35] And they're usually at IU for the annual, depending on where the court is
[33:39] meeting.
[33:42] Anybody else other than interested?
[33:46] So Herman, you said
[33:50] you're interested?
[33:50] Yes.
[33:50] Okay. So I don't think we need to vote on this.
[33:52] I think it's more of a discussion and a comment and approval by acclamation.
[33:55] That's good.
[33:58] So, Mrs. Wolf, you'll let the
[34:00] CTI know that there's going to be a
[34:03] changeover? I will absolutely let them know.
[34:07] Thank you, everyone.
[34:09] Yes.
[34:09] And as Mr. Engel's the only candidate, quote unquote, I think the
[34:13] minutes could show that that's an action by the board by consensus,
[34:17] unless there's objection.
[34:20] Seeing no objections, I think we're
[34:24] good. Thank you, Mr. Engel, for
[34:26] volunteering. Superintendent's
[34:30] report, Dr. Deshong.
[34:32] Great. I have a police report, tonight's back to school edition.
[34:38] My microphone must be mouths at this point. Are we good now?
[34:42] So obviously, as everyone has talked about this evening, on August 24th, we
[34:46] are excited to welcome back students for the first day of school.
[34:49] Following three days of in-service the previous week, the school district staff
[34:52] rolled out the red carpet, welcoming the class of
[34:55] 2039 to the first, first day of school, and Chase, along with
[34:59] all her friends in the class of 2027 on their last
[35:04] first day of school in Abbey Grove.
[35:06] As I mentioned, we welcome the class of 2039 at Penn Lawn Elementary School.
[35:10] We're excited to share that our current kindergarten enrollment exists at
[35:14] 288 students. They brought, as you saw in the video, wonderful
[35:17] energy and enthusiasm with them to school.
[35:20] They were excited to learn about their classmates, eating in the cafeteria, and of
[35:24] course, playing on the playground.
[35:26] One Hive, One Vibe is the theme for Meadow Grove Intermediate School
[35:30] this year. On the first day of school, staff of this building welcomed
[35:34] almost 1,300 students with new enrollments happening each
[35:38] day. This week, the focus has been on getting the students acclimated
[35:42] to new routines, meeting their teachers, and connecting with peers and
[35:46] staff. It is a building priority to create a safe and inclusive learning
[35:49] environment while fostering a sense of belonging for all students.
[35:53] Everyone agrees that together is better at Meadow Grove Intermediate School, and
[35:57] the year is off to a spectacular start.
[36:00] Abbey Grove Middle School welcomed 395 sixth graders to the building,
[36:04] with over 300 of them having attended the transition camp,
[36:08] which contributed to the smooth start of the school year.
[36:11] Middle school student athletics have started, and the school is very excited to
[36:15] launch some new clubs and expand extracurricular offerings for
[36:19] all students.
[36:20] The high school welcomed 1,647 students for the new school
[36:24] year. Over the summer, administrators held two orientation sessions
[36:28] designed to ensure a smooth transition.
[36:31] Those were for incoming ninth graders or any students new to the school
[36:34] district These sessions help students become familiar with the building, meet
[36:38] staff, and connect with their peers.
[36:42] We're also proud to share that Haverhill High School was ranked 57 out of
[36:45] 771 high schools in Pennsylvania and in the top
[36:49] 10% nationally by US News and World Report, featuring
[36:53] a 97% graduation rate.
[36:57] Not yet done, over the summer, our district administrators participated in
[37:01] several opportunities focused on reflection, professional growth,
[37:05] collaboration, and preparation for the upcoming school year.
[37:09] The end-of-year administrative retreat held in June provided an opportunity
[37:13] for us to reflect on the current year, celebrate progress, and
[37:17] identify opportunities for continued growth.
[37:19] The retreat also included opportunities for administrators to volunteer with
[37:23] several of our community partners, strengthening the
[37:26] connections beyond our schools.
[37:29] The cabinet held a professional development workshop, which created space for the
[37:33] senior leadership team to build leadership capacity, strengthen collaboration,
[37:37] and align on priorities across the district.
[37:39] And we recently held a beginning-of-the-year retreat, providing an opportunity to
[37:43] establish priorities, strengthen leadership alignment, and prepare
[37:47] for a successful start to the new school year.
[37:49] The retreat also included the reveal of this year's leadership theme, which
[37:53] is learn, lead, and succeed.
[37:57] So together, these opportunities help ensure our leadership team begins the school
[38:01] year aligned, prepared, and focused on creating a future-ready
[38:05] Haverhill.
[38:06] I also have some additional recognitions this evening.
[38:11] The Pennsylvania School Board Association's Honor Roll of School Board Service
[38:15] Program recognizes school directors who have reached significant service
[38:18] milestones, beginning at five years of service and continuing at five-year
[38:22] intervals throughout their board tenure.
[38:25] For over 40 years, the program has celebrated the dedication, leadership,
[38:29] and commitment of school directors across Pennsylvania.
[38:32] So this evening, I'm proud to be able to recognize two of our board members who
[38:35] have achieved such milestones. First is Ruchira Singh,
[38:39] noting her five years of service to the Haverhill community. While Ms.
[38:42] Singh was unable to be here this evening, please join me in thanking her with a
[38:46] round of applause.
[38:52] And second, I have a certificate of appreciation for Mr.
[38:55] Bill Wood, recognizing his 10 years of service to the Haverhill community.
[39:00] Congratulations, Mr. Wood.
[39:21] Tonight, I'm also pleased to recognize Amy Antonio as she
[39:24] retires with more than 17 years of
[39:28] dedicated service to the Haverhill School District.
[39:30] Since joining the district in January of 2009, she has served in a
[39:34] variety of important roles.
[39:37] In addition to roles supporting the building, she also served as the district tax
[39:41] collector before returning back to the good guys' side, supporting
[39:45] educational functions of the district with her work in the Department of
[39:48] Teaching and Learning and with her support of our assistant
[39:52] superintendents.
[39:55] Throughout those years, she's been a steady, dependable, and valued member of our
[39:59] team. I frequently refer to Haverhill as a team of teams,
[40:03] and Amy is the ultimate team player.
[40:05] She's always willing to roll up her sleeves, lend a hand, are
[40:09] willing to serve in a variety of roles reflects not only her
[40:13] versatility, but also her commitment to the students, staff, and
[40:17] families of Haverhill. While we are certainly going to miss having her here, I
[40:20] understand that she's not retiring to a life of leisure.
[40:23] In fact, she's leaving us to be busier in her new role as a grandmother to her
[40:27] two grandsons. So she's going to be playing full-time zone
[40:31] defense at this point in time. She's beyond man-to-man now.
[40:33] She's on the zone defense. Joining her this evening is her husband, Joe, and we're
[40:37] sure he's looking forward to having a little more of her time as well.
[40:40] So on behalf of the board of school directors, our staff, and the entire Haverhill
[40:44] community, thank you, Amy, for your 17-plus years of service and dedication.
[40:48] We wish you a wonderful retirement filled with family, grandchildren, and
[40:52] many happy moments. Congratulations.
[41:14] So
[41:18] for
[41:25] my
[41:26] last announcement, we're also joined this evening by Mrs.
[41:29] Katherine Novacheck, the new administrative assistant for teaching and learning and
[41:33] the assistant superintendents. Katherine, I think only half the board can see you.
[41:36] I'll have to have you stand. Sorry about that. All right.
[41:43] Katherine previously served in an administrative
[41:47] support role in this building at Haverhill Intermediate School.
[41:50] We're thrilled that she wanted to stay part of our team and join us in the district
[41:53] office. So congratulations to Katherine.
[41:57] As frequently as we saw Amy Antonio, you will now see Katherine
[42:00] just as frequently. So congratulations. And that concludes my report.
[42:04] Thank you. We will move to item 12,
[42:08] approval of the agenda. Our next agenda item is
[42:12] executive session announcement.
[42:14] We will have an executive session following this evening tonight
[42:17] in regards to personnel.
[42:21] Closing upcoming meetings and events.
[42:26] September 8th will be our first joint committee one and two meetings.
[42:30] It will be here in GL Audion. It's at 5:00.
[42:33] On September 15th will be the
[42:46] School Board legislative committee here at AGWS
[42:50] Building at six o'clock.
[42:52] Is there any additional information that needs to be shared?
[42:58] Seeing none. Public comment. Do we have any
[43:00] public comment? Public comment is welcome
[43:04] and will be conducted in accordance with board policy 903 and the
[43:07] guidelines listed on the public comment sign-in form.
[43:10] The comment opportunity is for any school or district-related
[43:14] topics. Thirty minutes have been set aside and then individuals have three minutes
[43:18] per comment. All statements shall be directed to the presiding
[43:22] officer rather than to individuals.
[43:24] The presiding officer, superintendent, and/or district solicitor may
[43:28] respond at their discretion and providing contact information
[43:32] is encouraged for any follow-up.
[43:35] Mr. Scott Duncan.
[43:41] Well, good evening all. Thank you again for the opportunity to be here.
[43:44] I'm a lifelong resident of this district and went all through my
[43:48] schooling in this district, class of graduated 2001.
[43:52] So now I'm continuing on this journey because I'm so thankful to be in this
[43:56] district. As Dr. Swan went over, you guys have such
[44:00] high marks that all my children are going now.
[44:02] I have a middle schooler,
[44:04] went to this school, AGI, and then also apparently a class of
[44:07] 2039 attendee at kindergarten who just started here.
[44:10] So we're very thankful to be in this district and appreciate all the service you
[44:14] all do for us here. So I'm here on behalf of the Benefit of School Ministries
[44:18] Chester County. It's a local organization that is literally just
[44:22] starting. We just got set up as a 501 [c] [3] ,
[44:26] and it's really helped to
[44:30] promote released-time Bible education, which has been around since
[44:33] 1914. And I hope you all were given this little
[44:37] sheet that I have here, but I'll just try to hit some highlights of it
[44:41] because I can't cover the whole thing in these few minutes.
[44:43] But yeah, back in 1914, a superintendent was requested by certain
[44:47] parents to offer Bible education during school hours,
[44:51] that they would take the students out of school and teach them the Bible.
[44:54] So
[44:56] the organization that just got started is affiliated with a larger organization
[44:59] called School Ministries. They're a national organization.
[45:02] They help local ministries like this one get started.
[45:05] So what they do is based off a Supreme Court case
[45:09] back in 1952, Zorach v. Clauson, where they can legally take
[45:14] students off of school grounds during school hours.
[45:18] So the three things are listed here, the instruction has to be
[45:22] off school grounds, the student's attendance is voluntary, with
[45:26] written parental guardian permission.
[45:28] And thirdly, no state or federal resources taxpayer funds are
[45:31] used. So it's privately funded by churches, community organizations, and
[45:35] individuals. So I included the state laws from Pennsylvania that are
[45:39] on here as well.
[45:41] Also,
[45:42] I was seeing in the school board policy
[45:47] on the pupil section under temporary absences, there's already one set up for
[45:50] Averill school district. I'm not sure how long it's been in existence, but it's
[45:53] already part of the policies here.
[45:55] So we're just trying to take advantage of that policy under temporary
[45:59] releases under religious education.
[46:01] Apparently, you can take up to 36 hours per year for this, and we're
[46:05] scheduled to do it once a labor week on Mondays for an hour each,
[46:09] which would take to-- Because Monday is between Labor Day and Memorial Day, which
[46:12] is probably 28 hours, so we should be in that timeframe.
[46:17] But
[46:18] it's been documented multiple benefits.
[46:20] Some of the benefits are better academic performance by students that attend a
[46:24] session like this.
[46:26] They usually try harder for their grades because they
[46:29] are taught accountability is on them, and they typically have fewer
[46:32] behavioral problems. They also have more self-confidence
[46:36] and, again, just more value of
[46:39] themselves. And there's resources here listed on the sheet as well,
[46:43] where their studies come from. And also, typically, retention
[46:47] is given to the students that have higher graduation
[46:50] rates and more success for college.
[46:54] So again, this is a community organization coming together with multiple
[46:57] churches, to help promote this organization for
[47:01] allowance. Also, again, it's obviously given by
[47:05] parents and guardian permission, as already stated.
[47:09] The organization has its own liability.
[47:11] So
[47:13] it has a general liability, along with directors and officers, insurance
[47:17] coverage, along with workers' compensation and student accidental coverage.
[47:20] So everything's covered. I also have already spoke with Mr.
[47:23] D'Emilio at the middle school, as we want to start a pilot program with seventh
[47:27] grade students. So obviously, my daughter's in seventh grade, so that's where the
[47:30] seventh grade idea came from. But we have permission from the Averill
[47:34] Nazareth Church across the road from the middle school,
[47:37] to take students there by bus, which we will pay for the busing
[47:42] to bus the students from there to the school.
[47:45] It'll be during non-core hours during elective course, which for seventh graders is
[47:48] in the early afternoon, probably 1:15 to 2:15.
[47:51] We'll be busing the students there, back by 2:15 and teaching
[47:55] the curriculum. I have a copy of the curriculum here that's written by a teacher,
[47:59] approved by multiple teachers, used throughout the country.
[48:03] And again, I'm here for any questions or any ideas either publicly or
[48:07] later. If anybody's interested, I'd love to share more.
[48:09] I'm already over time, so I guess I didn't pull that a little more.
[48:11] I'm trying to cram it in here. But anyways, but yeah, that's the basics of it.
[48:15] We're not officially advertised yet because we just got set up as a 501 [c]
[48:19] [3] . We're about to get our insurance in place.
[48:21] Once the insurance is in place, we're planning on starting to promote it,
[48:26] and see who's interested and get the parents to sign off.
[48:28] That will all be given to the attendance office and middle school to make sure
[48:31] we're all on board. And yeah. Again, we're here for just one of the
[48:35] purposes of the board is to learn from the beginning and that the students will
[48:38] have successful, meaningful lives.
[48:40] So God has shaped my life, and we want to share that blessing with as many
[48:44] students that are interested or parents
[48:57] If there are questions or comments that come up, I'm sure we will be contacted.
[49:01] Sure, yeah. Would love to.
[49:03] We welcome that.
[49:04] Yes. Then fine. Because currently right now, this is all of my personal stuff on
[49:07] the end. The specifics that I will have
[49:09] set up under the organization itself, but that should be within the next month or
[49:14] so. But thank you very much.
[49:15] Thank you.
[49:15] Thank you all.
[49:16] Thank you for coming.
[49:17] Mm-hmm.
[49:17] And I will just note it for the board.
[49:19] It was briefly noted, but
[49:22] what Arrowood does under its policy is not
[49:26] really a personal or individual
[49:29] choice by this district. It's part of Pennsylvania school code
[49:33] under Section 1546, and that
[49:36] provides for individually or collectively,
[49:40] parents request that instructional time.
[49:43] It's up to 36 hours a year.
[49:46] The district has to get those requests in.
[49:49] The student is responsible for any work
[49:52] missed, and as mentioned, the transportation
[49:56] is not a district responsibility.
[49:59] It's not a district program, but it is clearly part
[50:03] of state law. And your Policy 204, which has been in
[50:06] place for a number of years, is modeled after the State
[50:10] School Boards Association policy, which basically puts
[50:14] some procedural meat on the bone for that statute.
[50:21] Thank you. And that brings us to our last agenda item, which is
[50:25] adjournment. And I'd like to thank everybody for coming tonight and welcome you to
[50:29] the school year. I hope to see you again. Thank you.
[50:33] Good night.
[50:41] Thank you very much.