[0:01] Good afternoon. We are holding uh this
part of our uh meeting today and exe
[0:06] we'll be going into executive session
shortly at the Denn Road Educational
[0:10] Complex. Uh we will be returning at
approximately 6 pm for public comment
[0:15] and public agenda under section 3-305B
of the general provisions article mary
[0:22] Maryland annodated code. There are two
reasons the board will go into close
[0:25] session this evening to discuss the
appointment employment assignment
[0:28] promotion discipline demotion
compensation removal resignation or
[0:31] performance evaluation of employees
employees or officials over whom this
[0:35] public body has jurisdiction any other
personnel matter affects one or more
[0:38] specific individuals to consult with
council to obtain legal advice on a
[0:42] legal matter. Specifically, the topics
tonight will be 3-305B1
[0:46] topics which include professional leave
request, certificate of staffing
[0:50] recommendation and update 3-305B7
topic including office of the inspector
[0:55] general for education o
update. The reasons these topics be
[1:02] discussed in close session instead of
open sessions follows personnel topics
[1:06] pursuant to 3-305B1
disclosed above will be considered in
[1:10] close session rather than open session
because they include a discussion of
[1:14] specific employees which is confidential
employment pattern. The legal topic
[1:18] pursuant to 3-305B7 disclosed above will
be considered in uh close session rather
[1:23] than open session because the board will
be
[1:27] receiving legal advice from council
which is protected by attorney client
[1:31] privilege privilege. Uh hearing all of
that, are there any objections to going
[1:36] into board going into executive session?
Hearing none. Is there a motion as such?
[1:41] » I make a motion going into executive
session. Motion by Sadi, seconded by
[1:46] Rodney. Discussion. All those in favor
of going into executive session signifi
[1:52] I.
>> Oppose. Nate. And we are in executive
[1:54] session.
[1:59] Welcome to the uh September 8th, 2026
regularly scheduled board of education
[2:05] meeting here to Road Educational
Complex. Uh first order of business
[2:09] would be I'd like for you to stand for
the uh pledge of allegiance. Uh first we
[2:13] will have a moment of of silent
reflection led by our more board uh
[2:18] student board member Jackson
[2:28] to the flag of the United States of
America and to the republic for it
[2:33] stands one nation under God indivisibley
for all.
[2:41] Thank you, Ellen.
I'll take a motion to approve the public
[2:45] agenda. So, move by Don.
>> Seconded by Jane. Discussion. All those
[2:50] in favor of the uh public agenda as
presented 65 saying I.
[2:54] » I.
>> Opposed? Nay. And it is approved. Take a
[2:58] motion to approve the consent agenda.
>> So moved by Sadi, seconded by Don. All
[3:04] those in favor of the consent agenda as
presented. Six by saying I. I.
[3:08] » Oppose. Nay. and it is approved. Once
again, remind you the close session
[3:13] summaries, announcements, etc. And our
new uh hub that we have for information
[3:19] at the start of school is on our
website. We certainly encourage you if
[3:23] you have an interested in finding out
things that are happening for the school
[3:26] system to to go there immediately. The
uh first order of business is the uh
[3:31] policies and procedures uh EAEB
DB guidelines for school bus stops
[3:37] implementation and appeal procedures
policy and procedure. This is a
[3:42] revision. Mr. Bray will make that
presentation.
[3:58] Good evening.
Um,
[4:02] looking at the reservations for the
policy and procedures. Um, we looked at
[4:05] the old policy and really a policy and
procedures was really on one document.
[4:10] So, we took the document and split it
into two and actually formed actual
[4:13] policy and procedure. Um, the document
kept all the information in it. um with
[4:19] a couple corrections, it just
streamlined a little bit, made it a lot
[4:23] clearer and matched up the other
documents that matches the other
[4:26] policies and procedures that we have
moving forward. Um some of the points
[4:30] that we changed, um we took the director
of transportation out and changed the
[4:34] supervisor and also under the appeal
process, we um added an extra step in
[4:39] there. So they appeal the supervisor's
position, then they appeal it to the
[4:44] director of system operations before it
goes to the superintendent. Um, another
[4:48] big point that we changed was the forms
on the documentation where now a parent
[4:53] can go in or a bus driver can go in and
actually fill out the form online and
[4:58] actually comes directly to a
transportation email that gets checked
[5:01] frequently throughout the day and then
makes us respond back at least keeps a
[5:05] paper trail and documentation of
everything.
[5:10] questions, comments, concerns about u
guidelines for school bus stops and
[5:16] appeal processes. No,
>> I'm I'm just glad that uh we have the
[5:20] appeal process in there for the parents
if they don't like the initial decision
[5:25] as they sometimes know the roads better
than we do.
[5:31] » Anything else? Anybody? It is a first
read. Take it up again in October. Uh
[5:36] but thank you for all your work for
>> updating this and getting the appeal
[5:42] process in.
[5:47] We're going to we're going to skip one
here. Let's go down to C which is IKF
[5:53] Maryland Garrett County graduation
requirements. Uh it's a policy and
[5:57] procedure. It's a revision and some new
information information by Mr. Edwards.
[6:16] How's that? All right. Never met a
microphone I didn't like.
[6:22] [laughter]
[6:24] Uh what you guys see in the policies and
procedures, much like uh what you just
[6:29] saw with transportation, this was all
under one document. We split them uh
[6:33] into policy and procedure. That's why
everything in the procedure is in red
[6:38] just because it's it's new, but it's all
the old information from the previous
[6:42] policy. What we did and the reason for
the revision uh for IKF is we needed to
[6:49] update the policy to reflect our actual
practice which is uh basically
[6:55] um we needed to update in the chart
which you'll see now in the procedure uh
[7:02] what our credit counts are uh as you
know the state of Maryland mandated one
[7:07] full credit of health instead of a half
a credit so that has been updated and we
[7:11] clearly identified the need for
financial literacy credit. Uh that law's
[7:18] always been there. There's a couple
different ways you can check the box for
[7:21] financial literacy. The way we've done
it in Garrett County for the last
[7:24] several years is to actually make them
take a course. Uh we have a whole series
[7:28] of courses that they can take to meet
that credit. So we uh just clearly
[7:33] identified that. And the only other
change in that is with the upcoming
[7:37] switch in some of the CTE courses. There
are no longer any three credit CTE
[7:42] completer courses. They're all four
credits. So we just reflected that in
[7:45] the count as well. Nothing of substance
changes. Uh we just updated it to meet
[7:51] the law and what we have been doing.
[7:56] » Okay. Um it did go before the policies
procedures committee. Uh it is a first
[8:02] read. Are there any questions
concerns about graduation?
[8:09] Okay,
>> thank you again.
[8:11] » You want to do it?
>> Okay. The IPA acceptable and responsible
[8:17] use of artificial intelligence. Uh
superintendent is going to make that uh
[8:21] presentation.
>> All right. Good evening. Uh this is a
[8:25] brand new policy and procedure and is a
result of a house bill that passed in
[8:31] the last uh legislative session and it
basically is requiring school systems to
[8:37] have a policy and procedure. We were
already moving in this direction. Um but
[8:42] the
with the legislation change uh it pushed
[8:47] the state of Maryland to give us a whole
lot of guidance around this particular
[8:52] topic. And so we use that guidance uh to
establish what you now have in front of
[8:58] you as the policy which really is
authorizing
[9:03] us to use AI technologies for
educational operational purposes but
[9:07] within certain guidelines that protect
personally identifiable information and
[9:12] confidential data. Certainly, we want to
comply with federal and state law,
[9:16] maintain appropriate human oversight,
which is very important, and uh we want
[9:20] to support academic integrity and
responsible student learning uh and
[9:24] align with our district technology and
cyber security standards. Uh part of
[9:29] this
um bill requires us to have a AI
[9:36] implementation coordinator and so this
policy also um supports that and that
[9:43] that that uh designation will be made by
uh by the superintendent. Um the
[9:51] procedure is much more lengthy and is
aligned with state guidance. they did
[9:57] give us a model policy to look at. Uh
and we did use that to support what we
[10:02] already had in place. Um what I will say
is that this this is a framework that
[10:08] will be the starting point of how we
proceed. The implementation is going to
[10:14] be a much longer process and um will
involve professional learning and we're
[10:22] going to be taking slow steps here. Um
but we we need to have a framework to
[10:27] protect our employees and our students
around the use of artificial
[10:31] intelligence and so this is a starting
point for that.
[10:35] » Okay. First read again uh discussion any
questions comments about policy or
[10:42] procedures anyone?
[10:50] Well, staff will um be trained on
acceptable uses of AI and they have
[10:59] authority in their classroom to
establish
[11:03] uh the learning that is occurring in
their classroom. So, uh if they choose
[11:08] to use an acceptable AI method in their
learning, they can. Uh and certainly if
[11:16] they choose not to they can also do
that. Um so we'll have to communicate
[11:20] that as we do uh through our ANS um
meetings with our administrators and of
[11:27] course building level administrators
will work with their teachers at the
[11:29] building level. Uh but I envision a good
bit of professional learning to have to
[11:33] take place around this and again
teachers will be involved in that and
[11:37] we're going to need to take some baby
steps as we embark on this adventure.
[11:51] Not at this time.
[11:56] We will probably evaluate that before we
go in that direction. um based on the
[12:03] initial inquiries that I've made uh
those are not very accurate uh and don't
[12:08] always reflect
um
[12:13] a student's use. There's false
positives, false negatives. Um and in
[12:17] collaboration with the colleges, I'm not
even sure they're really um using those
[12:24] strongly anymore. uh a lot of times
they're talking to their staff about how
[12:29] they structure the assignment and to
structure the assignment in a way to
[12:37] I don't know if you can fully eliminate
it but mitigate the use of AI.
[12:45] » Other questions anyone?
>> Okay, thank you.
[12:51] » Thank you.
[12:54] Uh under continuing business uh social
emotional instructional materials
[12:59] wayfinder uh program be presented by Mr.
Lewis, director of student services.
[13:04] This is an action item. So after his
presentation, I'll ask for a
[13:08] recommendation from superintendent.
[13:23] Good evening everyone. It's nice to see
everybody again and uh thank you for
[13:27] this opportunity. Uh we did put
wayfinder out for two weeks for the
[13:32] public to begin to review. One in
Grantsville and the other uh at Ruth
[13:37] Enllo in Oakland. We had one response
and it was positive. If uh anyone would
[13:42] like to read it, it's a interesting uh
comment. Um but uh with that then as we
[13:48] to look at that. We've been talking to
our counselors, our 14 counselors, our
[13:53] community school specialists now who are
number six, our social workers, five
[13:58] social workers, and then also uh some of
our uh health teachers to be able to
[14:04] roll this out uh in an informed and
using a professional development model
[14:10] where they then can then trace some of
the others on their staff, which I think
[14:14] is really important rather than somebody
else from uh coming in to be able for
[14:18] others to share. So, for example, if I
were a social studies teacher, and
[14:22] that's what I was, I would be able to
use and chunk little pieces of wayfinder
[14:26] about decision- making, for example, uh
to be able to include that in some of
[14:31] the history lessons that I taught
because history's replete with sometimes
[14:36] good decisions, sometimes bad decisions.
So it's an opportunity then not only to
[14:40] to reinforce a classroom in the
classroom but also to pick up where
[14:45] Panorama is leading off. Panorama's
behavioral health survey that we rolled
[14:50] out last year for three administrations
provided some great information for us.
[14:55] And then with Wayfinder you'd be able to
then use some targeted approaches not
[14:59] only just to individuals but then to
small groups to be able to support them
[15:04] and what they're looking uh to grow in.
So when we start looking at this and
[15:10] start looking at social emotional
learning many people are like well how
[15:14] does that affect schools? How does that
uh affect me in my classroom? How does
[15:18] that affect my students? Well we know
that we have a lot of new research and I
[15:22] say new maybe the last three to five
years where it's coming out that
[15:29] social emotional learning actually
increases our math and literacy scores
[15:33] by 11 to 13%. That's done by Castle,
which is our nationally accredited uh
[15:39] go-to for social emotional learning. It
also increases then graduation rates by
[15:44] 6%. So, as we begin to look at that and
start start making sense of that and how
[15:50] we look at students and they begin to
better self-regulate, better ex exhibit
[15:55] agency in their life in the schools,
getting along with one another. I think
[16:00] it fits in really well even with our own
home instruction conversations that
[16:04] we've been having uh moving with that
and to be able to provide that social
[16:08] emotional learning to be able to grow in
the classroom and perform in the
[16:14] classroom as well. So, so we're really
excited about the opportunity in front
[16:19] of us.
>> Superintendent, your recommendation.
[16:26] So, my recommendation is to approve
Wayfinder, the recommended social,
[16:30] emotional, learning, instructional
materials for K through 12th grades. As
[16:34] mentioned earlier, the $159,491
cost for the full three-year adoption is
[16:40] 100% funded by the opioid abatement
grant approved through the Garrett
[16:45] County Health Department and Garrett
County Commissioners.
[16:48] » Okay. Okay. The superintendent uh
request that the board approve the
[16:51] social emotional learning instructional
materials provided by way finder. Uh is
[16:57] there a motion as such?
>> So move
[17:00] » by
>> Jane second by Satie. Okay. We now have
[17:04] discussion questions.
>> Yes sure.
[17:07] » It's very promising to see that the
parents like the resources that they can
[17:12] use at home that align to so I don't
know if you want to talk about that or
[17:16] » Sure.
[17:24] Thank you. So, uh, but yes, so it's a
way in which an opportunity for for
[17:30] parents then to be able to do that and
what we've been beginning to really move
[17:34] toward providing more training
opportunities for our parents as well.
[17:38] So, thank you for bringing that out
because that's one of the pieces that we
[17:42] like to be able to do for Title One
family engagement nights, be able to
[17:46] have a showcase piece about how they can
use this at home to be able to support
[17:51] their kids in self-regulation. Um,
feeling like there's conflict in the
[17:56] with their uh son or daughter in the
classroom, maybe providing some tools in
[18:00] their toolbox to be able to then support
them in the class. So, so yeah, it is a
[18:05] great opportunity uh and one in which
and they can manage themselves uh as
[18:10] parents. They can pick and choose uh
about what they would like to do, how
[18:15] they would like to perform, you know, go
forward with that in their home.
[18:21] » I would utilize that as a parent myself
and now grandparent
[18:25] waiting on the fourth. So,
uh I would use that uh for example and
[18:31] what we want to share with our parents
is that we want to give them an idea
[18:34] about how to use that. So, we want to
have these ide [clears throat] topics,
[18:38] these scenarios so that when their son
or daughter come home and talk about uh
[18:43] for example being so uh disregulated, so
angry for example about maybe not being
[18:48] picked for a particular team at school.
It's very common.
[18:54] So, so to be able to then give them some
tools about how to manage that and have
[18:58] that conversation with them. They have
short three to five minute little video
[19:03] clippets. uh they're very age
appropriate that they could then show uh
[19:07] to their uh child if they'd like and to
be able to carry on that conversation,
[19:11] but it's just a start. And I really like
it uh that aspect of it because it
[19:16] provides a parent a start who might not
know how to start that conversation.
[19:22] » Oh, log in. Yeah, parent. Yeah.
>> Yes.
[19:27] » Long way around to that,
sorry. But yes, uh parents would have
[19:31] that opportunity to be able to log in
and then uh also then monitor, you know,
[19:36] see where the program is, see how the
program works. Everybody had that uh and
[19:41] there were a lot of people, it might not
have been a lot of comments, but I sent
[19:44] the uh demo uh around to many people in
our school system to take a look at to
[19:50] show, you know, for them to take a look
see what it is all over student
[19:53] services. So that uh you know, I don't
want any surprises. I want that that
[20:00] would uh be a detract from the great
things that could be as we move forward
[20:06] with social emotional learning and u so
as we begin to see that and work toward
[20:12] that I think it's our common goal to
create a better situation for our
[20:17] students and for our students in to grow
and become more self-regulated uh better
[20:23] problem solvers critical thinkers and uh
being able to do that and how to manage
[20:28] stress in their life because far too
often now we're seeing kids beginning to
[20:33] when they first bump into stress and
there there's all kinds of stress and
[20:37] conflict whether it's conflict but I'm
just going to say stress. So when they
[20:41] bump into stress far too many of our
students just want to quit or back out
[20:46] and uh we want to be able to have
opportunities so they have uh be able to
[20:50] learn how to manage that better and
that's a lifelong pursuit. These studies
[20:55] follow these students into young
adulthood and find that they're better
[21:00] employees, find that their life u
satisfaction survey is better. So as we
[21:05] begin to see that and it's not looking
at any one particular thing that they're
[21:10] trying to drive home, they just want us
all to become thinkers uh about our own
[21:15] uh health.
>> And I think that's helpful.
[21:19] » Savings.
>> Yes. I took this I really took a long
[21:23] hard look at all of this curriculum and
I was pretty impressed. I like the
[21:28] online version, but I also like the
little workbook for them too. Now, is
[21:32] that something that they can take home
and show their parents as well?
[21:35] » That's why we chose Dr. Miller and I
talked about this and that's why we
[21:38] chose to have workbooks. We wanted
something to go back and forth.
[21:43] I'm a paper person myself and I'm sure
that parents will will like that as well
[21:48] and especially if it's grandparents
raising their kids, they might be more
[21:52] apt to look in that workbook then than
get online. But I really liked it. I
[21:57] like the conflict resolution. Um I think
it's going to help with you're going to
[22:02] have some students and the same way with
adults. Some people know how to handle
[22:08] conflict and others shy away from that.
And it shows them gives them the tools
[22:13] and shows them how they they can resolve
things. So I like the curriculum.
[22:19] » Uh yeah, but is there anybody actually
teaching this course?
[22:24] » Yes.
>> Okay.
[22:25] » Yes. No, this isn't just an online
platform.
[22:28] » It's an online platform. So that
somebody has to log in and they want to
[22:33] look at it.
>> Correct.
[22:34] » So
>> and uh except for K through five. K
[22:37] through five. We have workbooks that go
along with the online platform. So
[22:42] teachers though are administering those
lessons.
[22:46] » Okay. So they do they do administer the
lessons.
[22:48] » Uhhuh. Yeah. Yeah. So it's going to be
Yeah. It's not uh here's here's
[22:52] something on your own. Now parents can
choose to do something.
[22:55] » Yeah. Okay. That's where I was confused.
>> Yeah. No, that's okay. I'm sorry I
[22:59] didn't explain that.
>> Is there an estimation as the amount of
[23:02] time? How many times a week? How much
time during class period?
[23:06] I mean, what's the the time that goes
away from what normally would be done to
[23:11] be doing this?
>> That's that's a good question. And uh
[23:14] there are always balances between this
and and so when we were looking at this,
[23:20] one of our first primary piece was one,
we wanted a solid researchbacked
[23:26] social emotional learning uh curriculum.
And so we the second thing was user
[23:31] friendly because we know that oftentimes
we pay for for programs that then are
[23:36] not so user friendly and demand time.
And so then all of a sudden you're
[23:40] spending more time trying to plan to be
able to move that. All of us and there
[23:44] were seven of us on the committee began
then doing um looking at that chunking
[23:50] things. So you could design a lesson
from five minutes to 60 uh depending on
[23:54] your need in the classroom.
>> So that's entirely up to the teacher.
[23:59] entirely up to the teacher
>> they want to devote
[24:01] » exactly
>> and how many times a week how many times
[24:03] whatever
>> exactly
[24:04] » yes sir
>> Tom from what I saw with that the
[24:08] teachers could implement it say they had
a problem in the classroom
[24:12] » um they could go to that and do that
lesson with the students to try and help
[24:18] resolve the problem that was in the
classroom it
[24:21] » will you will you uh words am I looking
for will you be able to follow how many
[24:26] times teachers access lessons
Or in other words, this teacher may use
[24:31] lessons every other day. This teacher
may use lessons the last day of the
[24:36] year.
>> Yes, sir.
[24:37] » Is there a way to
>> on my administrative dashboard and I
[24:40] think when Mr. Rubin has it and uh
anyone we want to add to it? Uh like for
[24:45] example, I'm going to add all the
principles so that they can then watch
[24:51] and monitor it in their school building
and see
[24:53] » see where it be an interesting statistic
at the end of the school year as to how
[24:57] it's used. where it's used particular
particular programs
[25:01] » versus not in other programs.
>> Exactly. I think it's a good point.
[25:05] » Other questions anyone?
>> Okay, we have a motion on the floor.
[25:10] It's been seconded that the board adopt
uh the use of social emotional learning
[25:16] instructional materials which is better
known as wayfinder uh for the next three
[25:21] years with a grant paying the entire
cost of purchasing the program. All
[25:26] those in favor signify by saying I.
>> I.
[25:28] » Those opposed? Nay.
>> And it is a three to one vote.
[25:34] » Thank you.
>> Thank you.
[25:36] » Thank you.
>> Okay. Under new business, we've got the
[25:41] 2027 capital improvement plans draft. Uh
Mr. Wit's going to make that uh
[25:46] presentation to us.
[25:57] Good evening.
Um on the CIP, um you'll see all new
[26:03] items are shown in red or changes from
last year.
[26:07] Um just a few notes I want to make. Uh
the Friendsville Chiller project was
[26:12] moved to this year due to the
availability of funds from MEA.
[26:18] Um the amount of the Friendsville
playground, we we reduced that by 50,000
[26:25] from what we had in for last year. And
that was basically to hit the sweet spot
[26:30] of the grant. Um you know, they they try
to be right around that $200,000 mark in
[26:37] order to um move forward.
Um,
[26:43] for FY28,
the uh SHS visitor bleachers were added.
[26:50] Um,
>> could I take you back one second?
[26:52] » Yes.
>> So I don't forget back to FY27. C can
[26:56] you update us where we are with the
Northern High Fieldhouse?
[27:00] » So, uh, as of right now, um, the the
group that's pulling their share of the
[27:07] funds together are still in fundraising
mode right now. So there's no
[27:11] anticipation of doing anything till
spring perhaps.
[27:14] » I that's the way it's looking at this
point.
[27:18] Um one one other thing on um FY27 to
mention um the Broadford amounts um I
[27:27] revised those amounts to reflect the
actual state's amounts. Um what was in
[27:31] here previously was um based upon the
construction estimate, but these numbers
[27:38] are based on the actual bid received. Um
so there were some minor changes in
[27:42] those amounts. Um we're we're still well
within budget and those items. Um
[27:51] back to the Southern High visitor
bleachers. Um,
[27:55] you know, this price is for a 300 seat
bleacher set for visitor bleachers.
[28:01] Um,
we are approaching the IA to assist with
[28:06] funding of the Northern High Culinary
Arts Lab due to the contractor estimates
[28:12] coming in higher than what we had
originally anticipated.
[28:17] And um
[28:21] you'll also see that some of the
estimated cost of projects have been
[28:25] updated this year and those were updated
based on the IA calculators
[28:31] um when we're applying for funding.
[28:41] » Any other questions? Anyone so far?
[28:52] The plan is right now to utilize an old
electronics classroom space
[28:59] at Northern High.
[29:04] » They are not going to the college to my
knowledge. They're using the existing
[29:07] space which has been upgraded. And then
Mr. Edwards is working on a plan for use
[29:13] of commercial kitchen. um potentially at
Northern High or at Hickory to keep them
[29:19] on the same campus. I can follow up with
the board though on that to verify where
[29:23] we're at.
[29:28] Any questions thus far?
Okay.
[29:34] Any questions for FY29 by anyone or all
the way down?
[29:42] Anything
[29:49] else?
>> No, that's everything I have.
[29:50] » Is that all you got? Okay. Okay.
Nothing. Everybody's okay. All right.
[29:55] Thank you. Uh let's go on then to the
comprehensive maintenance plan. Also a
[29:59] draft uh presented once again by Mr.
Web.
[30:05] Again, with this document, all changes
are shown in red text for this year. Um
[30:10] just just a few things I'd like to point
out. Um on page three, it it talks about
[30:16] custodial staffing. Um in previous
years, we we had the head custodians and
[30:23] the um regular custodians all lumped
together. We felt that better to
[30:28] separate that out. Um so those those are
why you'll see different numbers there
[30:33] if if you reference last year's report
to this year's report.
[30:38] Um,
[30:42] under the facility assessment section on
page 11, you will notice that the site
[30:47] evaluation results seem lower than
expected. Um, this is not much different
[30:52] than previous years. Um, just something
I wanted to point out. Um,
[30:58] the
the state doesn't like our our work
[31:03] order management system. Um, that's an
automatic deduct of 10 to 15 points
[31:08] depending on the facility. Um,
but the cost of a a software such as
[31:16] work dude or something like that, it's
it's very pricey. Um, it would be a
[31:22] large percentage of my yearly
maintenance budget. Um,
[31:27] so in comparison, when MAB comes to do
our inspections, um, they can't sing our
[31:33] praises loud enough, um, for how our how
our facilities are maintained compared
[31:39] to other areas of the state.
[31:44] » When you're looking at these scores,
Broford obviously hasn't been evaluated
[31:47] yet, right?
>> No, it it hasn't been evaluated. I'd
[31:50] expect it to come in superior. I would
think that it'll probably be very good
[31:55] because of our work order management
system.
[31:59] » Superior.
[32:03] » If it wasn't for our work order system,
it would be superior. Um it's because of
[32:09] that deduction, it bounces it out of
that range.
[32:12] » Okay. So,
[32:18] » um, and and related to the assessment of
our facilities, I just wanted to take a
[32:23] an opportunity to thank like all of our
maintenance staff and custodians because
[32:27] they do a tremendous job for us.
[32:34] That's that's my presentation on that.
>> Yeah. Uh, again, it's for Shere for us.
[32:38] Um, if you have any questions, certainly
it' be advantageous if you you got
[32:44] specific questions uh for Bobby. You
might want to email those specific
[32:48] questions before the October board
meeting so that you be ready to address
[32:52] them or address them via email. I doubt
that there are many specific questions
[32:56] that anyone has, but in case that sort
of speed up, it's a rather lengthy
[33:00] document. It could take a long time
going through if we uh didn't do that.
[33:05] So, but again, thank you for uh
updating. Thank you for putting a red
[33:10] new things so that we're not trying to
cross reference everything. It's very
[33:15] helpful.
Uh, okay, that's it for you.
[33:19] » All right. Thank you.
>> We now have a budget transfer action
[33:22] item. Scott Pelty will make that request
to us.
[33:42] Hi. Um I am here tonight to present um
the fiscal 26 budget transfer. In total,
[33:49] the transfer is $812,500.
[33:54] It is for activity an overage and
activity 111 administration for $3,500.
[34:02] Activity 350 special education $495,000.
Activity 501 transportation
[34:11] 122,000 activity 600 operations
130,000. Activity 901 fixed charges
[34:20] 62,000. Um it is recommended that
because of those overages there will be
[34:26] a decrease in activity 229 regular
programs for 485,500
[34:32] activity 232 academic intervention for
200,000 and in maintenance for 127,000.
[34:42] Um the overages for 111 were due to an
increase in the single audit services.
[34:49] We don't always know until the audit
season how many single audits we're
[34:53] going to have and last year we ended up
having two instead of one. Um for
[34:57] special education there was an increase
in non-public
[35:01] um our cost significantly increased and
also in speech therapy consulting
[35:07] services um due to being down in one SL
or multiple SLPs.
[35:14] For transportation, there was an
increase in fuel cost, which increased
[35:18] bus contractors and field trips. And
under 600 operations, there was an
[35:23] increase in electricity cost. And then
for the fixed charges, there was an
[35:28] overage in the retirement cost.
[35:35] » Okay. Superintendent, you have a
recommendation so we can ask questions.
[35:39] » I recommend the budget transfer to be um
considered by the board as presented.
[35:46] » Okay. Superintendent's asking the board
to consider a budget transfer request of
[35:50] $812,500.
Is there a motion?
[35:54] » So moved by Don.
>> Second.
[35:57] » Seconded by Rodney.
>> And we can now have discussion. Just a
[36:02] couple of discussion things for me.
Okay. Um when when we say the bus
[36:07] contractor fuel cost, electricity costs,
are those based on present day expense?
[36:12] present day costs or is there an
inflation rate you put into that to move
[36:16] that much money?
>> Yeah, so this is for fiscal 26. So there
[36:22] we ended the year with an excess in
electricity cost. So we ended we
[36:28] budgeted a certain amount but as
everyone knows the utility rates
[36:33] themselves are increasing and we didn't
project that at a high enough rate.
[36:38] » So what do you think about this year's
budget? Well, we're hoping that with the
[36:42] closure of the old Broadford that our
electricity cost will hopefully um we
[36:47] have one less facility. So, we're hoping
that we will not have to do a transfer
[36:52] in the area of operations again.
>> What about transportation? You think
[36:56] we've budgeted enough for that?
>> Um hopefully, yes. I mean, we're hoping
[37:02] all everyone's hoping that fuel costs
come down at some point this year. I
[37:05] mean, if they do not come down, it's a
potential that I may have to bring
[37:09] another transfer for fiscal 27.
>> One other question. Um, you're taking
[37:14] from 232 academic intervention.
>> Yes.
[37:17] » $200,000.
>> Yes.
[37:19] » Explain how that works because that that
doesn't set good initially with academic
[37:24] intervention. Pretty important,
>> right? Um, that's where we ended the
[37:29] year. There was an overage in academic
intervention. Um typically it would
[37:33] depend on um how how much intervention
is needed within a given year. So maybe
[37:42] there were less supplies or less you
know salary stipens spent um in that
[37:47] line.
>> I mean I can look into it further like
[37:51] me.
>> Wasn't used.
[37:54] » I know but my question be would be why
wasn't it used? That would be my next
[37:59] question. I mean, it isn't like we're,
you know, scoring 90% on all our
[38:03] everything we do. I'm not I'm not a I
mean, I'm asking a hypothetical
[38:07] question. Yeah. It would seem to me that
if we had that money available, there
[38:10] would be there would be needs in the
schools for that money.
[38:14] » Yeah. I mean, I can I can look into it
further. Um, that's where we ended the
[38:19] year, so I'm not sure. Maybe
>> school given an a lotment. Each school
[38:22] given a lot. That be interesting to see
how the school spent their a lotments.
[38:26] » I would be interested in seeing that.
Okay.
[38:29] Yeah, I can pull that for you.
>> Other questions?
[38:35] » No one. Okay. Uh there is a uh motion
and a second on the floor that we uh
[38:41] budget approve the budget transfer for
$812,500
[38:45] as presented to us tonight. Those in
favor signify by saying I. I.
[38:49] » Oppos? Nay. And it is approved. Thank
you.
[38:51] » Thank you.
>> Okay. Uh public comment. We have none.
[38:56] I'm sure I don't see anybody.
So, it's here to talk. So, let's do the
[39:00] student member report. Ellie.
[39:05] » All right. So, starting out with GCASC
or the student council report. Uh, we
[39:10] successfully hosted the first GCAC
pickle ball tournament on August 22nd.
[39:15] I'm not sure of the exact total that we
raised as of right now, but I will
[39:19] update you guys next month hopefully on
that. but it was a successful turnout
[39:23] and we had a good bit of people show up.
Um, we also have planned our next
[39:28] executive board meeting for September
15th. This is when we're going to talk
[39:32] about our first general assembly with
all of the student councils on both ends
[39:36] of the county and we're also going to
talk about our fall hickory retreat and
[39:40] we're going to get those plans um set in
place. As far as the SMAB initiatives
[39:47] and agendas go, um I'm still working
with the state student member of the
[39:51] board to plan her school visits. We had
a phone call just a couple weeks ago,
[39:55] and she's going to keep me updated on
some of the free times that she has, but
[39:59] hopefully she's planning on doing a
school visit sometime in the fall
[40:04] semester. And then I've also been
accepted into the state student member
[40:10] of the board advisory council. So, I
will get to represent Garrett County to
[40:15] the state board of education. So, um
I'll just get to advise the state smob
[40:20] on things that go on in our county so we
can kind of have bit of a bit of a
[40:23] further reach for the entire state. And
then as far as uh miscellaneous student
[40:28] things go, students began their first
day of school on August 31st. Um, fall
[40:34] sports have also kicked off for both
high schools with a home football game
[40:39] for Northern last Friday as well as an
away football game for Southern on last
[40:44] Friday as well. And also this upcoming
Friday, Northern High School students
[40:49] will have the opportunity to participate
in a 5K walk or run on September 11th in
[40:56] remembrance of 911. And we'll also be
hosting a memorial ceremony in the
[41:01] morning as well before the 5K.
[41:10] » Yeah.
>> Just a question. How how's things going
[41:14] with the cell phone implementation?
>> Good question. [laughter]
[41:19] » A student feedback on that would be
helpful.
[41:23] » Um I thought it's been going pretty good
so far. We definitely had a couple at
[41:27] least at the Northern End High School,
we had a couple of different meetings or
[41:32] I guess assemblies at the beginning of
the year just to clarify with everyone
[41:35] and a lot of the teachers or actually
all of my teachers at least I can say
[41:39] for my classes have enforced it and also
have like the different posters hanging
[41:45] around with the no electronic policy on
it as well as on the first couple days
[41:50] of school they made sure to remind
students of that so it doesn't have to
[41:53] be as much as a conversation later so
students already know um what's
[41:57] happening and I have not heard of any
incidents so far in my school at least
[42:02] but um so I think everything's going
pretty well so far students are
[42:06] definitely following it for the most
part and teachers are definitely
[42:09] enforcing it and making sure that
students know the policy so um students
[42:13] can't be like oh I didn't know that was
a thing you know we definitely have um
[42:18] the awareness of that policy so students
are able to be present and um pay
[42:24] attention in classes without the
distractions of the phone and teachers
[42:27] are definitely enforcing it this year.
>> Okay, great. Thanks for that update.
[42:33] » You brought the 911 thing that you're
doing. Mr. Green's working on I think
[42:37] getting to the board a list of all the
things that are happening throughout the
[42:41] county on 911 terms of our school system
in case any of you want to go visit a
[42:45] school or two to kind of watch
kind of reflections that we do. Very
[42:51] important day. Thank you, Ellie.
Uh, board member updates. Um, I'll I'll
[42:59] I'll save one for last, but anybody else
have one? Anybody have an update?
[43:05] » I know it's hard to believe, but uh, Mr.
Global and I will start on the MAB
[43:09] legislative committee 2027 legislative
priorities. So, good for us, right?
[43:16] » Yeah, we we already started a
preliminary meeting the other day,
[43:19] » huh?
>> We started a preliminary meeting the
[43:21] other day. Yeah,
>> me and u
[43:26] Jennifer and
uh the people at May that are in charge
[43:30] of that.
>> Yeah,
[43:33] good to see what happens.
>> Yeah, it be interesting. It's going to
[43:37] be an interesting year legislatively, I
think, because of budget.
[43:40] » Yeah.
>> And certainly thank both of you for
[43:43] doing that. That's a very major
undertaking with a lot of time. People
[43:47] don't realize much time you put into
>> It's good to have our voice.
[43:50] » It is. It's great to have our voice
there.
[43:52] » We have a lot of meetings every year.
>> Yeah, I know you do. You guys attend a
[43:55] lot of meetings.
>> I think our first big meeting is going
[43:59] to be at the conference on Sunday.
That's I think 4 o'clock.
[44:07] » Okay. Uh Sadie,
[44:12] there it is. Okay. Um, I will be
resigning on September 29th due to
[44:19] Maryland State Retirement 45day
separation requirements. This is not
[44:24] going to impact my name being on the
ballot in November.
[44:31] » Well,
we realize it's something that you have
[44:35] to do by by law. Uh, we certainly hate
it that you won't be with us for three
[44:39] months, but hopefully good things will
happen after that. hopefully
[44:42] » and u we'll uh we'll move on and try to
take care of business as best we can.
[44:48] » Thank you, Satie.
>> Okay, superintendent, you have some
[44:51] updates.
>> All right, we'll start with a few
[44:54] reminders. September 23rd is a staff
development day with students dismissed
[44:58] three hours early. On September 28th,
there will be a special board meeting at
[45:03] 4 PM for the auditors and Miss
Glattfelty to present the fiscal 26
[45:08] financial statements. The meeting will
be held at Dennet Road Educational
[45:12] Complex in this community room. On
October 1st, believe it or not, the
[45:18] progress reports for the first grading
period will be released uh which is
[45:21] right around the corner. And Friday,
October 9th is a holiday for uh Gary
[45:27] County Public Schools and schools and
offices will be closed for autumn glory.
[45:32] Um I'll take an opportunity just to
recognize the countywide back by
[45:36] community event was a tremendous success
serving approximately 400 individuals.
[45:42] Would like to thank uh Mr. Lewis and the
community school specialists for
[45:46] spearheading that. Uh families connected
with 31 community uh vendors and had
[45:51] access to school supplies, haircuts, a
hot dinner, fresh fruits and vegetables
[45:55] to take home, and a variety of
activities for children including a
[45:59] learning beyond the classroom bus. It
was a wonderful evening that showcased
[46:03] the strength of our community
partnerships and our shared commitment
[46:05] to supporting students and our families.
And I will end with that the beginning
[46:11] of the school year has been fantastic.
Our schools are off to a strong start
[46:16] and it has been exciting to see the
energy, enthusiasm and commitment across
[46:20] the district as I have visited every
school in the last two weeks. uh from
[46:24] welcoming students back to establishing
strong routines and creating engaging
[46:28] learning environments, our staff is
doing an outstanding job.
[46:33] Certainly, it does not go go unnoticed
that getting the launch of the school
[46:38] year started is a huge feat and I
appreciate the preparation and
[46:43] intentionality that went into making the
first week of school successful. Most
[46:47] importantly, it has been wonderful to
see our students back in our schools
[46:51] learning, connecting.
>> You just missed it.
[46:54] » I missed a really good picture.
>> You missed the Would you hold that
[46:57] there, please? [laughter]
[47:01] » I knew you were looking out of the
corner of your eye. [laughter]
[47:06] » They are definitely settling into this
great into the school year um and doing
[47:10] a remarkable job. And my son keeps
telling me that he's having stupendous
[47:13] days. So, [laughter] it's it's
wonderful.
[47:18] Thank you very much and certainly thank
all of you and all of you for getting
[47:23] all us off to a great start. I know it's
always uh somewhat of a stressful time.
[47:28] I I kind of vaguely remember that but I
I think it did happen. Uh but uh thank
[47:33] you. We appreciate it. I'll take a
motion to adjourn.
[47:36] » So move it on.
>> Second by Satie. All those in favor of
[47:38] adjourning public session signify by
saying I. I opposed. Nay. And we are
[47:43] ajourned.