[0:06] Okay, we'll call this meeting to order, and we'll start out with the Pledge of

[0:09] Allegiance.

[0:12] I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic

[0:17] for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice

[0:23] for all.

[0:28] Thank you for joining us tonight at the regular Board of Education meeting for

[0:32] September 21st, 2026. I'll start out with introducing those on the stage from

[0:38] my right, our SRO, Officer LeVot,

[0:43] Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning, Dr.

[0:46] Delgado, Assistant Superintendent for Strategic Initiatives, Mr.

[0:51] Moussa Hamka, Trustee Sean Cotton, Trustee Laura Hull.

[0:57] I'm the Board President, Clint Arent. Our Superintendent, Dr. Roy Bishop.

[1:02] Our CFO, Ms. Andrea Grusa. Trustee Colleen Worden,

[1:08] Trustee Tim Klepp, and Trustee Ginny Jeup.

[1:13] First item up for business is approval of the meeting agenda for September 21st,

[1:17] 2026. Do I have a motion?

[1:21] Motion to approve the agenda for September 21st, 2026.

[1:25] Supported.

[1:27] Okay, moved by Trustee Worden, supported by Trustee Klepp. Is there any discussion?

[1:33] Seeing none, all those in favor, please say aye.

[1:36] Aye.

[1:36] Any opposed? Passes seven to zero.

[1:40] Next, item number three, superintendent and stakeholder engagement reports.

[1:45] Turn it over to Dr. Bishop.

[1:46] Thank you so much. I appreciate it.

[1:48] And we have several things to be discussed today during our superintendent's

[1:51] report, but the first thing we have is we actually have the North student

[1:54] representative here tonight. We have Eliana Orlando, who is here.

[1:58] So we would love to have her come up.

[2:00] Once again, this goes right along our strategic plan, especially in the area of our

[2:03] culture domain, where we're trying to create supportive learning environments, and

[2:08] we cannot do that without hearing from our students.

[2:10] So we are very proud to be able to have Ms. Orlando here.

[2:13] We look forward to hearing everything she has to say.

[2:16] We also have Principal Shumnel, who is here to record and also be a support system

[2:21] for her. So go right ahead, Ms. Orlando.

[2:24] Good evening, and thank you for having me here tonight.

[2:27] My name is Eliana Orlando, and I will be your North student representative this

[2:31] school year. This is my 13th year in the Grosse Pointe Public School system.

[2:35] I started as a Monteith Tiger, then a Parcells Panther, and now a proud Norseman.

[2:41] Last year, our principal, Mr. Shumnel, introduced a new motto that has quickly

[2:45] become a part of who we are, proud, tough, together.

[2:52] And we are continuing this mantra throughout this year as well.

[2:55] Proud, tough, together embodies the Norseman spirit, not only in each of us as

[2:59] students and staff, but in all of us as one Norseman family.

[3:03] Each month, I will be sharing some events that are going on within the Norse family

[3:08] that makes us proud, tough, and together.

[3:11] First of all, the Norsemen have been showing a tremendous amount of pride at our

[3:15] sporting events this fall. Two highlights are both the girls varsity volley

[3:20] fall and the boys varsity soccer game against Grosse Pointe South.

[3:25] Led by the Norsemen Tide, a group of students who lead the student section at

[3:29] games, students showed up with pride and enthusiasm.

[3:33] In particular, the varsity soccer team is now 10 and 0, with their leading scorer

[3:38] being senior Matthew Eshman, who is playing on the team for the first time this

[3:42] year.

[3:44] In August, the girls varsity North swim and dive team won the Royal Oak Ravens

[3:49] Relay Swim Meet and brought home a trophy.

[3:52] Out of six other teams, the North girls won six out of 12 events and had very

[3:57] strong swims in the other six events.

[4:01] One tough thing that we had to face was our new school-wide lunch policy.

[4:05] For our open campus lunch, we can now only enter and exit through one door, and we

[4:10] are required to scan our student ID. Mr.

[4:13] Shumnel decided to implement this as an important safety measure for us students.

[4:18] On the first and second day of school, it was very tough as we were trying to

[4:23] figure out this new system together.

[4:25] People were late going to lunch, late coming back to class, and hungry crowds of

[4:29] teenagers were forming. Even though the adjustment was frustrating at first, we

[4:34] worked through it together. Norsemen are persistent and determined as we got

[4:39] through these tough couple days, and now our new lunch system is smooth, quick, and

[4:43] safe.

[4:45] Throughout the first couple weeks of school, Norsemen showed an immense amount of

[4:49] togetherness. Before the year even started, Link Crew leaders, a group of

[4:53] upperclassmen students

[4:57] dedicated to helping freshmen feel comfortable, placed lawn signs at freshmen's

[5:01] houses. On top of that, freshman orientation was filled with Link Crew leaders

[5:06] welcoming freshmen by giving tours and playing various games.

[5:11] Prior to school starting, all of the new freshmen already felt as if they were

[5:16] together with the upperclassmen as well as the school.

[5:19] On the first day of school, several students were seen helping with finding classes

[5:23] and opening lockers.

[5:25] That same spirit of togetherness is continuing as we look ahead to homecoming.

[5:30] The student association is working together to plan an unforgettable dance.

[5:34] The overall homecoming theme this school year is Worldwide Cities.

[5:38] The seniors are representing Las Vegas, juniors are Athens, sophomores are Cairo,

[5:44] and the freshmen are London. Thank you again for giving me the opportunity to speak

[5:48] tonight, and I look forward to sharing more about how our Norseman family is proud,

[5:53] tough, together next month.

[6:02] Questions, comments from the board? Trustee Klepp.

[6:05] Eliana, just a comment. Thank you.

[6:09] You did an excellent job, and I look forward to hearing updates throughout the rest

[6:12] of the year from you.

[6:13] Thank you.

[6:15] Trustee Hull.

[6:17] Eliana, beautiful job weaving together the motto of proud, tough, together.

[6:20] I love how you did that in your speech and,

[6:24] like tied it to all the things that students are doing. So great job.

[6:27] Thank you so much.

[6:29] Yes, Trustee Worden.

[6:29] Eliana, thank you so much for that beautiful presentation.

[6:32] I just have a question about the homecoming float. Is it going well?

[6:36] Yes, the seniors first day for float build was today, and I know the first day for

[6:41] the juniors was also today, and sophomores and freshmen started over the weekend.

[6:47] Thank you.

[6:50] Thank you.

[6:51] Great job.

[6:51] Hold on, come back. Sorry, I have a couple questions.

[6:55] I was trying to wait for all the trustees to get done, and now I have a couple

[6:57] questions. Eliana, did you come here by yourself this evening?

[7:01] I came here with Mr. Shumnel and my mom and my sister.

[7:04] Awesome. Good. Are they in the back somewhere?

[7:06] Yeah.

[7:06] Can you please raise your hand? Awesome.

[7:07] Let's give her a round of applause as well.

[7:12] Thank you.

[7:12] We are very proud to be able to have you here.

[7:14] We look forward for you to continue to be able to carry your voice, but also lift

[7:17] the voice of others at North High School.

[7:20] And of course, you can stay for the rest of the meeting if you would like to, but

[7:24] you're also more than welcome to be able to leave at this time.

[7:27] But we look forward to seeing you in several weeks.

[7:29] And feel free to continue to bring us that feedback, that way we can make sure that

[7:32] we're creating a school system that is fitting your needs.

[7:36] So thank you so much for your time this evening.

[7:37] Thank you so much. Have a nice night.

[7:39] Thank you. You as well.

[7:43] All right, next up, we're going to do a little bit of celebrating.

[7:45] We're actually going to celebrate two people, and I see one that is here, but maybe

[7:49] the other one is also here. We're going to celebrate this evening, Ms.

[7:53] Sarah Neely, who is our Michigan History Teacher of the Year.

[7:57] I don't know if she is here or not, but we want to make sure that she feels the

[8:01] love. So if she is not, we will celebrate her when she does have a chance to be

[8:04] able to come. But we also have an audience. I see him in the back.

[8:08] We have Coach Hodell. He is our MHSCA State

[8:14] Swimming and Diving Coach of the Year.

[8:17] And in the article which was published about him, it says, "The selection of Coach

[8:21] Hodell reflects the high standard in excellence maintained by Grosse Pointe South

[8:26] and the broader community," and his excellence as a coach is noted throughout the

[8:31] article. So we are very excited to be able to have him in audience.

[8:35] I'm going to have him come up and say a few words, of course.

[8:38] I don't know if he expected us to do this to him tonight, but we are, so feel free

[8:42] to come on up. But when we talk about our strategic plan as far as our personnel,

[8:46] especially when we talk about attracting the best and retaining the best, we

[8:50] definitely can say that Coach Hodell is one of the best, and we are happy to have

[8:53] him here. So Coach Hodell, if you wouldn't mind coming up and accepting your

[8:57] praise.

[9:03] And Coach, I hear you have several nicknames, but if you want to give us some of

[9:07] those nicknames you're called too, because people might not know your actual last

[9:10] name. Um, I didn't by what your swimmers and divers call you, but, um, we're

[9:16] excited to have you here. You might have to raise that mic up just a little bit.

[9:19] Yeah, a little bit.

[9:21] And we didn't make that mic stand for you, but we'll make it work tonight.

[9:26] No. I am John Waddell. Uh, everyone calls me Pho. So that's my nickname.

[9:30] Um, kind of goes throughout the state, uh, with it.

[9:34] Um, didn't really have much planned.

[9:37] I think, uh, the swim community in this area is a, uh, big, like,

[9:43] welcoming community. I mean, I think you even, uh, saw Norah Swimmer, and I was

[9:48] super excited to see her and how she's presenting, so that was really cool.

[9:53] You got Greg Wolfe there, one of the legends of swimming in the community.

[9:57] I mean, but I get to-- He assistant coaches me during the boys.

[10:01] Uh, I have great assistant coaches even during the girls.

[10:04] So, and Bill Thompson, I know he just retired, but, uh, he's unbelievable.

[10:09] So, it also just kind of stems from being part of this community for so long and

[10:14] loving what you do, so, um, I just live on a pool deck too.

[10:18] So it's a little bit of commitment and, uh, consistency, but, uh, we have a great

[10:23] community. I mean, that's what it does, and, uh, we try to produce excellence

[10:29] through swimming and, uh, we needed two points, so we're still coming, so-

[10:35] ... we keep plugging away. So it's an excellent thing to have. So thank you, guys.

[10:43] Any comments or questions from board members?

[10:48] Thank you, guys.

[10:49] Absolutely. Thank you.

[10:55] And while her photo's on the screen, Ms. Neely couldn't be here tonight.

[10:59] Um, I did want to send an echo of Dr. Bishop's statements, but also two of my

[11:04] children had Mrs. Neely for second grade at Mayer.

[11:08] And her love of teaching and love of the community just pours out of her

[11:14] classroom, so I thank her for that.

[11:15] And she's also spearheading the 90th anniversary celebration for Mayer next month,

[11:21] so if anybody has ties to the Mayer School, certainly look out for that, I believe

[11:27] the second week of October. We'll try to publish the date specifically.

[11:31] I don't want to misspeak, but she's right in the middle of all of that as well.

[11:34] So thank you to Mrs. Neely.

[11:39] Thank you. Next up, we have Monteith Elementary School. So we have Dr.

[11:44] Keegan, who is here. She's going to be talking about PBIS, um, how it is taking

[11:48] place in her school, what it looks like, what it feels like, what it sounds like.

[11:52] Um, and we are very excited to have her. Um, thank you so much.

[11:56] Oh, you might have to lower the mic this time. Yeah.

[11:59] Coach Pho did not lower the mic for you. He just raised it.

[12:04] He raises the bar for excellence.

[12:05] He did. He raises the bar.

[12:08] Thank you so much for having me. I am presenting for Monteith, but our

[12:14] PBIS station rotations involves our entire school, and it is

[12:20] something that we've done for the past six years.

[12:24] And it started with, we were talking about PBIS and how to

[12:30] teach the students expectations.

[12:32] And we started with in the classrooms, the classroom teachers, and then we

[12:38] moved towards it actually being in the common places.

[12:42] So if we're talking about the lunchroom, we're going to teach in the lunchroom.

[12:45] If it's in the hallways, we'll teach there.

[12:48] And so we really wanted students to have that kinesthetic movement as we

[12:54] were teaching the expectations. Um, so we talk about with the kids at the

[13:00] beginning of the year: Why do we do this every year?

[13:02] Why do we do a refresher in January?

[13:06] And the big thing is we want students to feel successful.

[13:10] We want them to understand the why, why we put these in place.

[13:15] And what I always tell the kids in the station that I lead is, "My number one job

[13:20] is to keep you safe." And I can't do that without my team of teachers,

[13:25] paraprofessionals, engineers, our support staff, because we truly are a

[13:30] team that is looking out for the best interests of the kids, not only academically,

[13:36] but also within their safety. And we changed this.

[13:41] We've moved it up every year, and this year we did it on the second day of school.

[13:46] And we talked about this as our school community.

[13:50] We wanted them to start on the right foot.

[13:52] We didn't want to assume kids knew where to go or what to do.

[13:57] We wanted to provide them with that information.

[14:01] And it's really helped giving them the clear and concise expectations right from

[14:06] the beginning. Um, and as we go through the

[14:11] expectations, you start seeing that teachers and parapros and everyone,

[14:17] instead of correcting kids, they're catching kids doing the right thing.

[14:22] Mm.

[14:22] And so if you look for the good, you find the good.

[14:25] And one of my favorite quotes from Maya Angelou was, um, "Do the best you can until

[14:31] you know better." So we want them to know better at the beginning, and then when

[14:35] you do, you do it. Um, yep, go right ahead, Rebecca.

[14:40] So we have seven stations that we have set up, and each year we've adapted it a

[14:45] little bit. Um, but we have different support staff that lead the stations.

[14:49] The teachers stay with their classrooms, and they rotate through those seven

[14:55] stations. Um, one of our reading specialists is amazing at scheduling, so she's

[15:00] able to figure out exactly where people are going and when.

[15:04] Um, but these are the areas that when we look at data, um, from our

[15:10] parent portal, when we're looking at MiStar, these are areas where kids might not

[15:15] exactly know what the expectations are, so we want to make sure they're clear.

[15:20] So main office, this was the opportunity for our secretary and clerk to introduce

[15:26] themselves and kind of explain to the kids why you would be in the office.

[15:30] Like, if you got hurt, you would come in.

[15:33] If you forgot your lunch, if you d- and so they go through all of that, and they

[15:37] get to actually ask questions with the clerk and the secretary.

[15:42] And our clerk and secretary do an awesome job of welcoming everyone in.

[15:48] They're the first face that you see.

[15:50] And so it's important for the kids to be familiar with them as well.

[15:54] Lunchroom, we run a very smooth lunchroom.

[15:58] We have 250 kids in each lunch, but it's actually manageable, um,

[16:04] because we have those expectations.

[16:07] And then hallway and stairs, just talking to the kids about safety.

[16:10] Bathroom, got to give all those expectations, too.

[16:14] And then our safety drills, playground, and arrival and dismissal.

[16:20] So in two days, 19 classrooms, 444 students, and

[16:26] 66 staff members all heard the exact same expectations

[16:32] for those common areas, and we're all on the same page.

[16:35] So there isn't teachers giving different directions.

[16:38] There isn't staff members giving directions.

[16:40] The kids are hearing the same thing from all of the adults in the building.

[16:46] So, and it's really important for that because when they are doing the right thing,

[16:50] and you'll see later, they get their Monteith money for that.

[16:53] It's like a smile like, "Oh, someone noticed me.

[16:56] I'm doing the right thing." And so it's a good feeling to be able to give that to

[17:01] them.

[17:02] So this is our schedule, um, that Julie Mayo, who is one of

[17:08] our literacy coaches, she put together so that every class is able to go through

[17:13] each of the stations. And Rebecca, if you keep going, it just shows we did

[17:18] Wednesday morning, Wednesday afternoon, and then, um, Thursday morning.

[17:23] And we split up the kindergarten, so they do a little bit in one afternoon, a

[17:27] little bit in the morning, so it's not too long for them.

[17:31] Um, and it's just a nice way to start the year with everyone on the same page.

[17:36] So this is some pictures of the station rotations in action, and our

[17:42] students are very proud to be showing what they learned.

[17:47] Um, and it's just nice to have that opportunity to let them shine.

[17:52] I know I do

[17:54] the safety drills every year, and by the time they get to second, third, and

[17:59] fourth, I say, "This is just a review.

[18:01] I want you guys to teach me what to do." And, like, they can tell me how many fire

[18:06] drills we do, how many tornado, how many evacuation, how many lockdown drills.

[18:12] And it becomes not as

[18:15] ... scary or, something that's overwhelming for them, because as we talk about, you

[18:20] practice, so if there is ever an emergency, you know what to do.

[18:26] And it's just a way to get kids to feel they understand why we're doing it and why

[18:31] it's important.

[18:35] One of the best parts about this is it starts our learning community off in a very

[18:41] positive way. So after our PBIS station rotations are

[18:46] completed, staff are starting to hand out the Monteith money and looking for

[18:51] students doing the right thing. And I can't emphasize that enough.

[18:56] There's so many times people are correcting kids or correcting each other.

[19:01] When you start looking for the good, you find that.

[19:04] And it can be so powerful for kids to hear like, "Oh, I'm so proud. Nice job.

[19:09] Look at those walking feet." And you start to see them strutting a little bit more

[19:13] in the hallways because they're proud of what they're doing.

[19:17] And each year we recreate the Monteith money, and this year we have four fourth

[19:23] grade classes. So we picked a winner from each of those classes with their

[19:28] designs. So at our, yep, we're right ahead.

[19:33] So at our all-school assembly, which was the first Friday, we

[19:39] announced the four winners, and they each had very different designs in their

[19:43] Monteith money. Of course, Monteith the tiger is always included.

[19:48] But it's exciting for them when we're passing out the money and they're like, "Oh,

[19:53] that's the one I designed. That's the one I designed." One of them, Lily today, she

[19:56] was a cleaning cadet, and she's like, "Can I have one of my own that I made?" I was

[20:01] like, "Of course, Lily." But they're very proud, and all year long it's their

[20:05] design that is awarding kids, which is a great experience.

[20:10] And then, yep,

[20:12] we did, because I like to celebrate things and people work really hard in our

[20:18] schools, and so at the end of the week, instead of just going through, "These are

[20:24] the teachers that teach first grade.

[20:26] These are the teachers that teach second grade," we brought all the students down,

[20:32] to have an assembly, and that's how we went over our assembly expectations.

[20:36] I had all the staff go in the hallway, and they were a little worried that I'm

[20:42] like, "I got them all. We're good." And then we called out each of the staff

[20:47] members, and the pride and joy of the kids as their teachers,

[20:53] parapros, our nighttime custodian walked through.

[20:57] They were cheering, they were clapping, and it was just nice for the teachers and

[21:03] staff that put all this work in to get this ready to have that opportunity to be

[21:08] celebrated. Because we love to celebrate the kids, we also love to celebrate the

[21:13] people that are making sure that our kids are learning and safe every single day.

[21:20] So,

[21:22] today we got to put some of those expectations, to

[21:27] practice, and we did our all-school evacuation drill,

[21:33] and we got a wonderful compliment, from

[21:38] Dennis Root, who is the director of security at the University of Liggett, because

[21:42] we coordinate with them. That's where we go on our evacuation drill.

[21:46] And I asked him before I put it up here, but he said, "Every year I'm so impressed

[21:51] with the organization, respectfulness, and attention to detail during your

[21:55] evacuation drill. I have completely redone Liggett's drills to meet the

[22:00] standards you have set." And by you, he means the Grosse Pointe School System,

[22:05] because we all work very hard at each of our schools to make sure our students are

[22:09] safe. And just seeing 444 kids sitting in the gym

[22:15] quietly, he was like, "I cannot believe there's that many kids in this gym." But

[22:19] they understand how important it is to learn these skills, so if there was an

[22:23] emergency, they're calm and they know what to do.

[22:27] So very, very proud of my entire school for the work that they put into this at the

[22:32] beginning of the year, and just giving students such a fresh start and a great way

[22:38] to start the year. So a lot of pride in my staff and students at Monteith.

[22:44] So thank you.

[22:48] Yes.

[22:49] Mrs. Keelen, thank you so much for that presentation.

[22:52] I really want to thank you for providing the detail that you gave to us, because I

[22:56] feel like a lot of times the positive part of PBIS is not

[23:01] discussed. And I think that positive reinforcement, and I like what you said about

[23:06] look for the good and you'll find the good, because I think a lot of parents or

[23:10] even community members seem to think that it's just a disciplinary way to punish

[23:15] people for bad behavior. But I'm glad that you highlighted the positive aspects of

[23:19] it.

[23:20] And it's very positive. I know when I moved from being a teacher to

[23:26] an administrator, one of the things was I was like, "Oh, I don't always want to be

[23:31] the person that they're scared to come see.

[23:34] I want them to come to me for positive things, too." And some of the rewards that

[23:39] we do for students is like, they can come to me and we build LEGOs at lunch, or we

[23:44] make bracelets. Another teacher does movie and pizza.

[23:48] So there's all sorts of different positive things that we don't have to buy

[23:53] anything. It's they want that experience or that opportunity to talk with one of

[23:59] the adults and have that time. So it's how you look at things, and finding the good

[24:04] is important for our kids.

[24:07] Any questions, comments?

[24:11] Thank you so much. Appreciate it.

[24:12] All right. Thank you, guys.

[24:19] All right. Next up, we have our GP PAC representative, Dr. Worm.

[24:25] And whilst she's on the way up, too, I also want to make sure that I just piggyback

[24:28] on Dr. Keelen's report. When that goes along with goal two as far as our culture

[24:32] and climate, it really talks about how to be proactive. So I appreciate Dr.

[24:36] Keelen, her staff, her team doing this, and a lot of our elementary schools and

[24:40] middle schools are also proactively going over behavior expectations, so that way

[24:44] we can continue to focus on our rigorous academic components so that all students

[24:49] have all high expectations when it comes to behavior and academic presented to them

[24:53] within the first couple weeks of school. So congratulations to Dr.

[24:56] Keelen, her team, and all of our elementary schools and middle schools and high

[24:59] schools who are also proactively going over the PBIS expectations. Dr.

[25:03] Worm, take it away.

[25:05] Hi. Thank you so much for having us back.

[25:07] For people who haven't seen us before, I'm Dr. Jill Worm.

[25:10] I'm the president of the Grosse Pointe Parent Advisory Committee for Special

[25:13] Education, and with me tonight is Dima Hauser, our vice president.

[25:17] And for the board, I feel like we're saying a lot of the same things to you, so

[25:21] we're really here for the audience, and we're here for the people who are watching

[25:23] online. But we do want to sort of recap to tell people that we're a completely

[25:27] parent-led group that supports the families, which is roughly around 14% of the

[25:32] district of people who are receiving special education in the district.

[25:35] So what we're trying to really do is build a strong community where people can come

[25:38] to our meetings, they can lean on other parents, but then we're also bringing in

[25:41] learning resources. We're going to bring in our new student services team for our

[25:44] first meeting to really talk about how things are working now and how, and it's

[25:48] just a good way to just share in the experience.

[25:51] Because one thing that we've always said as we talked about this before is a lot of

[25:54] times when you are dealing with special education, it can feel very isolating.

[25:58] So it's really nice to know there's other people out there that are going

[26:00] throughout some of the things that you are.

[26:02] So this is our first full year, which is kind of exciting because we didn't really

[26:06] launch last year until March 2026. But since then, we've had three public meetings.

[26:12] And we did a little recap at the end of the year last year, but we had a lot of

[26:14] really, we had really good turnout the first meeting in particular.

[26:16] We had a lot of people. We built a lot of relationships with families.

[26:19] We're getting a lot of email. We're getting a lot of comments on Facebook right

[26:22] now, too, and people ask questions, and we're referring them out to people across

[26:25] the district. We have over 130 families following us online, which I think is

[26:30] actually more today because more people are joining us and nobody has unfollowed

[26:33] us, which is always very important, too.

[26:36] We did our first full election cycle last May, and then we did a lot of updating of

[26:40] our bylaws because we're very new and we kind of didn't know who we were going to

[26:43] be at the beginning versus who we were at the end.

[26:45] And we welcomed a couple building liaisons.

[26:47] We have someone from Monteith and we have someone from, where is she?

[26:51] I forget the other school.

[26:52] Richard.

[26:53] At Richard. Okay. And we're always looking for more building liaisons, too, and

[26:56] that's just somebody who can take some of the issues back from the school to the

[27:00] PAC so we can talk about those and maybe bring those topics up at meetings, too.

[27:03] The other important thing is we partnered with a lot of organizations.

[27:06] We met people and have started relationships with Full Circle, Kids On The Go,

[27:10] Michigan Alliance for Families, The Arc, and SPARK, and we're putting families

[27:14] directly in touch with some of these resources and advocates to help them navigate

[27:17] a lot of the special education process.

[27:21] I'm going to turn it over to you to talk about the rest because I feel like I'm

[27:23] running long.

[27:26] Let's see. What do we have coming up?

[27:28] Oh, and the point to all this is, the things that guide us in everything we do is

[27:34] every family who reaches out to us gets a response.

[27:36] Our meetings are designed to build community.

[27:39] In fact, this year we structured them so there's time at the beginning to mingle

[27:43] and chat before the formal presentation activity actually starts.

[27:47] We speak up clearly for what students with disabilities need, even when it's

[27:50] uncomfortable. The advocacy piece

[27:53] has been a big part of it.

[27:58] And learning. We ask families, staff, and each other, "What do you know?" So

[28:04] much of what we know about the different things that our children need, that

[28:10] information comes through just talking to other parents, and it's so important.

[28:14] That's a big part of what our group is.

[28:17] So what we have coming up, we have on October 14th is our kickoff meeting for the

[28:23] school year. Student services will be joining us and discussing the new structure

[28:27] and all the new things happening. We've really been enjoying working with them this

[28:32] year so far. It's been

[28:37] lovely. It's been a

[28:39] great way to

[28:43] actually-- They've been lovely to...

[28:48] Let me start over.

[28:50] It's been working really well, is what she's trying to say.

[28:51] Thank you. So much for speaking off the cuff.

[28:57] On November 11th, we've got a parent-only meeting, and then on December 9th, we've

[29:01] got a follow-up session there.

[29:04] We are coming up with the different topics as we go along, but we've got a few in

[29:09] mind. But October 14th, for anyone who wants to join us.

[29:15] You don't have to join the board to be part of the PAC, but we'd love more members

[29:19] if you're interested. Come to a meeting, bring a question, bring concern, bring

[29:22] nothing at all, and just listen. We want to build a community where families don't

[29:26] have to navigate this alone, where you can lean on someone who's been through it

[29:30] and offer that same support to the next family walking in.

[29:32] So if you know someone who could use that, bring them with you. Thank you.

[29:37] Any questions?

[29:39] Dr. Bishop.

[29:40] Yeah, and I just want to say thank you.

[29:42] I know we talked about this I think over a year ago now as far as

[29:48] our intent of having more community engagement and making sure that we're being

[29:51] proactive with our communication.

[29:53] But even when those hard topics or hard conversations come up, us having that

[29:57] partnership to be able to make sure that we are not only providing answers, but

[30:00] we're bringing the temperature down.

[30:02] So I appreciate you and your group, especially what you've been able to do in

[30:06] partnering with our student services team, and Mrs. Shulman.

[30:11] It goes right along our strategic plan as far as goal four, as far as community

[30:13] engagement. So we appreciate all the work that you do because we know it's not

[30:16] easy.

[30:17] Thank you for having us.

[30:18] Trustee Hall.

[30:19] I just want to thank you again for the work that you're doing.

[30:21] I think it's very important for our district and for the families that you're

[30:25] helping to service. Thank you, because it's a need that you're filling.

[30:31] So very important work.

[30:33] Thank you.

[30:34] Anybody else have questions, comments? Thank you guys very much.

[30:38] We'll see you again soon.

[30:39] Thank you.

[30:41] All right, next up, we're going to be hitting on goal five of our strategic plan,

[30:44] which talks about our operations. So I'm going to have Mr.

[30:47] Mattson come on up, as he's going to kick off our bond update.

[30:52] He also has several gentlemen with him that are from Plante Moran and also The

[30:57] Collaborative. So I'm going to have him introduce them as well as just talk a

[31:01] little bit more about our operation and bond initiatives. Take it away, Mr.

[31:05] Mattson.

[31:06] Thank you, Dr. Bishop. Tonight, I'm going to introduce a portion of the team that

[31:11] I've been working with to get us through the schematic design phase of the bond.

[31:16] Behind me, I have Gary Kent from Plante Moran, whom you're all familiar with, and

[31:22] also Trey Meyer from The Collaborative.

[31:25] Tonight, we're going to go over a very high-level overview of where we're at in the

[31:29] bond planning phase, with a more detailed

[31:34] discussion coming at Facilities Committee on Monday.

[31:37] So, without further ado, I'm going to turn it over to Gary to kick us off.

[31:44] Thank you, Ben. Gary Kent with Plante Moran Real Point.

[31:47] So we're going to be talking about a few different things tonight.

[31:49] We're going to hit capital program schedules.

[31:51] We'll go over typical capital program rhythm and timing.

[31:54] We'll just talk about when projects are being planned, when they're going to be

[31:57] designed, when they're going to be bid out, and then when they're going to occur.

[32:00] We'll talk about bond and sinking fund reporting rhythms when we'll be back in

[32:03] front of the Facilities Committee and then the board.

[32:05] And then we'll get into a design update for the six projects that are going to be

[32:09] occurring next summer. If you go to the next slide, it'll get us into the capital

[32:14] program schedule.

[32:16] So this schedule right here, if you look from the left to the right, you'll see on

[32:19] the far left the year that it occurs, and then to the right of that, the season,

[32:23] and then series by series. So in the winter, we're procuring and planning.

[32:27] So this past winter, we procured an architect and a construction manager to start

[32:31] off the design. We then kicked off design in the spring and in the summer.

[32:35] And then in the fall, we're going to be designing and bidding out, and then in the

[32:38] winter, awarding those projects.

[32:40] So in the spring, we'll be expediting materials if there's any with long lead

[32:44] times. And then the summer construction will occur.

[32:47] And then in the fall, we'll be doing punch lists and close out of the projects, and

[32:51] then reporting back to the board. If you look to the column to the right of that,

[32:54] you can see that a lot of the different activities occur at the same time.

[32:57] So while we're bidding and awarding, we'll be back in front of the board with other

[33:00] vendors that may need to be procured, and then working on the plan for the

[33:04] following summer's construction.

[33:06] The next slide, you'll see that that process repeats throughout all the years of

[33:10] the bond, all the way through 2031, when we'll do our final report to the board and

[33:13] close out the bond program.

[33:17] This slide is showing us when we'll be back in front of the Facilities Committee

[33:20] and then the Board of Education, whether it's award recommendations for the

[33:23] projects that are going to be occurring that summer, confirming scope for the

[33:27] following year so that allows our architect to start the design process.

[33:31] And in April and May, we'll be giving an update on the construction schedules.

[33:34] We'll work along with Mr. Matheson on all the activities that occur throughout the

[33:38] district, which will allow the administration to then take that schedule and issue

[33:41] it out to the schools that are affected for that summer.

[33:44] And then in the summer, we'll be doing construction, so we won't be in front of the

[33:46] board as much, but we welcome the opportunity for the board or the Facilities

[33:49] Committee to come out and tour the project sites and see the activities that are

[33:53] occurring out there. And then in October, November, we'll be presenting a

[33:59] design update and design development.

[34:01] So tonight we'll be going over schematic design. It's a little bit more high level.

[34:05] In October, we'll actually come back with a design development update, which is a

[34:08] little bit deeper look. You'll see finish selections, things of that nature, more

[34:12] towards the end product of what we'll actually be constructing out in the field.

[34:16] And then we'll provide a close out update for the summer activities that happened

[34:21] the previous summer. We'll return contingencies back to the district and give a

[34:25] close out on warranties and everything of that nature.

[34:28] And again, this process repeats throughout the years.

[34:31] The only thing that changes from the first year to the second year is that there is

[34:33] a dashboard update, which we give an update of the whole bond.

[34:37] What dollars have been committed, which ones have been spent, and then which ones

[34:40] are remaining. We'll actually start doing that twice a year in the spring and in

[34:44] the fall to give a better snapshot throughout the bond program.

[34:48] So if you go to the next two slides, you'll see that this process also repeats all

[34:51] the way through 2031, when we'll do our final dashboard update and close out on the

[34:55] summer projects.

[34:57] And I'll turn it over to Mr. Trey Meyer, which I'm sure is a little bit more

[35:00] exciting than reporting.

[35:03] Thank you all for having us today to give you a little bit of an update.

[35:07] Trey Meyer, I'm an architect and project manager with The Collaborative.

[35:10] It's been a great opportunity to work through the summer.

[35:13] A handful of the faces are familiar.

[35:15] I'm looking forward to developing the relationship further as we continue the work

[35:18] on the bond. So I'll be hitting on the six projects that are part of the 2027 Bond

[35:24] Series One that Gary just went over schedule-wise.

[35:27] We have the tennis courts, we have the South High School main principal office

[35:30] relocation, the South High School media center reimagining, the North High School

[35:35] auditorium renovation, Parcells Middle School STEM/STEAM commons, and then the

[35:41] Trombly building renovations as well.

[35:43] So we're going to start with the Elworthy tennis courts.

[35:47] I'm going to be presenting in the format of a presentation plan.

[35:50] So these are going to give us an idea of where we're working in the building and

[35:53] the scope, what we're touching, what we're not.

[35:56] As Gary mentioned, we'll follow the Facilities Committee process to develop and

[36:00] show the development of the 3D renderings and the finishes as the process moves

[36:05] forward. But again, this is intended to give you an update of the scope of the

[36:09] project and where we stand. So the Elworthy tennis courts, what's colored on the

[36:13] plan is what's being touched. It's really a one-for-one replacement of the tennis

[36:17] courts. So we're updating from a slab-on-grade system to a post-tension

[36:23] system, so it's going to have a higher level of finish Should give a lot of value

[36:28] as far as the return on the quality.

[36:30] These tennis courts will all be lit, so new lighting is intended, a new sports

[36:35] surface. And if we continue along, we're going to go to the South High School main

[36:40] office, principal office renovation. We're going to start with a bigger view.

[36:44] I've included key plans in the bottom right that start to show where in the

[36:48] building we're at. I know you're all familiar with your buildings, but for the

[36:50] community as well.

[36:53] If I start on the left, the existing vestibule was completed as part of the last

[36:58] bond project. So there is the secure vestibule.

[37:01] This main office, principal's office relocation, will be extension of that project

[37:05] that's been complete.

[37:07] As we turn the corner, the 45 degree, we start to get into the counselor suite.

[37:11] There will be a separation between counselors and the principal's office, but we

[37:16] blur the lines of what's being touched from a renovation standpoint.

[37:19] And as we go to the next slide, we'll zoom in a little closer on the principal's

[37:23] office,

[37:25] where you start to see connection to the secure vestibule.

[37:28] You have two assistant principals office, a financial officer office, two

[37:33] secretaries to serve the assistant principals and the principal, the larger

[37:37] principal's office, and then as you turn the corner, you have a small kitchenette

[37:40] for the suite, a private toilet room for the occupants of the suite, and then a

[37:45] conference room that would serve the principal's office.

[37:48] As you start to turn the 45, there's a door separating

[37:52] what's labeled the psych and social work office with the counselor suite.

[37:56] Again, the idea is this will be secure.

[37:58] So as we've talked through all these projects, safety and security is something

[38:01] that's been top of mind as we've gone through the planning effort.

[38:06] If we continue on to the South Media Center.

[38:08] So South Media is really an update and reimagining of what this space could be.

[38:15] We have met with the South High School principal, Ms.

[38:17] Pavano, and the librarian as well.

[38:21] For the media center itself, we're looking at a reimagining of space based off the

[38:25] needs we've been hearing they need.

[38:28] So an enclosed classroom, an open lab that would help serve and support Michigan

[38:33] Virtual, but then also a bookstore to house some of the book

[38:39] storage for the classrooms. That's enclosed. Right now, it's all in the open.

[38:44] And then the more exciting part will be as you wrap around to the right, the

[38:46] flexible seating, huddle rooms. There'll be new finishes, new marker boards,

[38:52] monitors, really a flexible seating to allow for project-based learning and

[38:56] collaboration, being somewhere exciting for these students to come work together

[39:01] and learn. As we round the octagon back towards the entrance on the left, the

[39:07] librarian was requesting a creative center, so a flexible space, again, trying to

[39:12] merge the needs of the library and the school, and trying to make a new exciting

[39:16] space for the students.

[39:18] If we continue on, we'll get to North High School.

[39:22] The new auditorium, which is really the intent and scope of this project, is finish

[39:26] upgrades. So primarily, the focus of our project has been to the stage in North,

[39:31] but we are looking at some renovation scope in the band and choir rooms as well.

[39:37] So we're talking about ceilings and lightings and finishes.

[39:40] So this will be a new refresh, updated space.

[39:44] Something we've been investigating this are on the first-floor plan on the left, in

[39:47] the top left of the plan. We're looking at introducing and addressing some

[39:52] accessibility concerns, and also addressing security items as well.

[39:57] So currently, the accessible toilet room is through the science building.

[40:01] By introducing the potential for having an accessible toilet room increases

[40:05] accessibility, your path that travels less.

[40:07] It also allows for opportunities to secure this portion of the building in an

[40:11] after-hours use. But again, this is mostly a finish upgrade project by

[40:16] addressing other things as we can.

[40:19] As we continue on, we'll get into the Parcells STEM/STEAM Commons.

[40:25] We've had a handful of community input meetings, which I think have been well

[40:29] attended and well received, that have helped us get to the plans that we're showing

[40:33] on screen now. So this is in the existing pool space.

[40:37] We're on the existing pool level. One of the aspects of our design that we're

[40:41] proposing is actually include an additional mezzanine level.

[40:45] So we're getting found square footage, and that just adds benefit to the school and

[40:49] the district by allowing us to include four new classrooms, so STEM-focused, and

[40:55] based off community input is including art, so STEAM.

[40:59] So science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics in this new space.

[41:05] So we have two STEM classrooms on the bottom floor with open seating collaboration

[41:10] and huddle rooms. So again, trying to make a new exciting space where students can

[41:14] come and learn, collaborate, and do project-based teamwork, project learning.

[41:20] And the idea is these individual STEM classrooms can be melded in with this

[41:25] flexible seating, again, creating flexibility in how the space could be used.

[41:30] When we go up to the floor above, which would be the primary entrance to the

[41:35] existing pool level, we have two more classrooms, one of them being an art

[41:39] classroom with a kiln and a small maker space.

[41:42] And again, the idea, we have an open to below, so we have a two-story space to try

[41:47] to create a new dynamic space that kids are going to be excited, and teachers and

[41:51] community members, to come and experience and learn in.

[41:56] And as we continue on, as we round out the six projects, we have the Trombly

[42:00] building, and we're going to start on the first floor.

[42:03] So we're looking at introducing eight pre-K classrooms on the ground floor of the

[42:08] Trombly building.

[42:10] We're introducing a new secure vestibule, which is on the bottom left of the plan,

[42:15] labeled entry. We have a blow-up of what that starts to look like.

[42:19] And the indoor play area, which is really the existing gym, is resulting from

[42:25] requirements from licensing for Early Childhood Center.

[42:28] The idea is all the spaces that are in a color on the plan are getting AC, so

[42:34] there's going to be upgrades to that manner for the ground floor.

[42:37] And as we go up to the second floor,

[42:40] we have two primary spaces that we're looking at.

[42:43] The existing library, we're looking at reimagining into a community room, so

[42:47] offering flexibility of how that existing space could be used, having air

[42:51] conditioning, having flexibility, having large and small community meetings up in

[42:55] that space. And then also on the left, the CTE training classroom.

[42:59] The idea is on the second floor, there's not going to be dedicated preschool

[43:03] classrooms, so trying to take advantage of some of that space in the form of

[43:07] benefits to the district, in this case, the CTE training.

[43:10] As we continue on, I have a blow-up back on the first floor, the secure vestibule.

[43:15] As I mentioned a little bit on the past project, security is always top of mind as

[43:18] we're working through the projects.

[43:20] The existing building does not have a secure vestibule, so we're looking at taking

[43:24] over that bottom left classroom along Beaconsfield, introducing secure vestibule,

[43:30] locating the principal and an attendance office in the space with the idea of a

[43:34] parent could drop off without having access to the rest of the building.

[43:37] A parent could come and meet with staff members within the space without having

[43:41] access to the rest of the building.

[43:44] And this is in line with how Barnes is currently operating.

[43:46] So we're looking to build consistency across the Grosse Pointe schools.

[43:51] And then we go to the last slide, we have a quick image of the site plan.

[43:54] So with being an early childhood learning center, the intent is for playground

[44:00] enhancements in the top right of the image, but also looking at drop-off and how

[44:05] that could start to function. One of the reasons the secure vestibule is located

[44:10] where it is, we thought it offered flexibility for a drop-off along Beaconsfield

[44:14] while also using the existing parking lot to give you flexibility on how the school

[44:19] can start to function from an operations standpoint.

[44:24] And again, that was high level. I tried to fit in as much as I could, but we've

[44:29] been excited to work through the process this summer, and again, we look forward to

[44:33] continue sharing updates.

[44:37] Questions or comments from trustees first? Yes, Trustee Klick.

[44:42] For the first one, it may be best to you, Dr. Bishop.

[44:45] I was just curious on Elworthy. Has there been any involvement from the city at

[44:50] this point, or is it purely just work that we're doing?

[44:55] What's being talked about right now is what we decided to do throughout the bond

[44:58] work. We have had several conversations with the city, based upon things that have

[45:02] come to us as far as community interests, and we're still working through those.

[45:06] But as of right now, we're moving forward.

[45:08] We're talking about our bond, but there is some discussion going on with the city.

[45:11] Yes.

[45:12] Okay.

[45:12] Yes.

[45:13] Okay.

[45:15] That was one of three. So two is,

[45:19] for South Media, you referenced engaging with principal and librarian.

[45:23] Is there any public input or any student input as to what the design of the-

[45:30] We have not had any specific student or public input beyond

[45:37] having representation with the principal and the librarian.

[45:40] But that's been the extent of our meetings so far.

[45:42] Okay. And

[45:44] is that it? Are you intending it, or is it at this point you're just working with

[45:48] that input?

[45:49] Yeah. I would say generally, we're open to feedback on what's appropriate for this

[45:55] district. I will say Principal Pavan has been very open and very

[46:00] available and a good representation-

[46:02] Sure

[46:02] ... of her staff and community, but we're open-

[46:05] Okay

[46:06] ... to what's appropriate.

[46:07] Okay. And the last one, just on the performing arts center at North,

[46:14] you probably already said it, but is the seating in the auditorium is being

[46:18] addressed?

[46:19] Yeah, I did not specifically say that, so I'm glad you asked.

[46:21] Okay.

[46:21] The intent is to replace the seating.

[46:23] Okay.

[46:24] The intent is to add additional aisle ways.

[46:27] So we did meet with the theater director, and some of the feedback we had was the

[46:31] aisle ways, they're approaching 40 seats long, so it's hard to get through.

[46:35] Right. Exactly.

[46:37] So we're introducing additional aisle ways, increased accessibility, so the number

[46:41] of accessible seats will be increased as well, and then the seats themselves will

[46:44] be new.

[46:45] Okay. Thanks.

[46:46] Sure.

[46:47] Yes, Trustee Worden.

[46:48] I just have one question. For the secure vestibule at Trombly, can you use the same

[46:53] one for the CTE classroom as the preschool classrooms on the first floor?

[46:58] Yeah. So right now the way they're set up is that is the intent, and again, that's

[47:02] matching how Barnes is currently operating.

[47:05] So that's how it's designed up to this point, and again, we're in schematic design,

[47:11] so open to input if needed.

[47:14] Thank you.

[47:16] Any questions, comments? I want to say that I was able to take

[47:22] part in the community and the committee that we put together for the Parcells steam

[47:28] design process. I wanted to commend the collaborative for facilitating that

[47:32] conversation. Community conversations and feedback sessions are

[47:38] a heavy lift in our community and very necessary, and I think you guys did it very

[47:41] well in terms of integrating feedback from one meeting to the next, in the series

[47:47] of four meetings that we had on that.

[47:49] And, I like, obviously, the plan that came out of that, the 2D plan that you guys

[47:55] showed. But really, the community will have to see the three-dimensional

[48:01] rendering to really appreciate the mezzanine level and the view that you get of the

[48:06] multi-level availability on top of the function.

[48:09] So again, kudos to you guys on that process and on the output.

[48:14] And, thank you to Mr. Madison, Mr. Kent, as well as the collaborative, again, for

[48:19] being available to answer questions quickly and present to the board and to be

[48:24] transparent and available throughout the committee meeting process.

[48:28] And I know we're about to start really ramping up, and we'll see you guys next week

[48:32] at the facilities committee.

[48:34] President Anderson.

[48:35] Yes, absolutely. Go ahead.

[48:36] Especially on that second floor of the Trombly building, we saw that CTE portion.

[48:39] One thing that we are exploring is just for our Grosse Pointe students, is for a

[48:45] CTE pathway for education and training career cluster that will provide future

[48:50] educator programming through MBE.

[48:53] So that is one thing that we're really excited about.

[48:55] So when you see that one CTE classroom that's up there, we're looking for that to

[48:58] be just our Grosse Pointe students and have the opportunity to potentially become a

[49:02] teacher because we feel like, number one, we need more teachers, and we want to

[49:06] make sure our students have an opportunity to go into education far beyond their

[49:10] time here in Grosse Pointe Public School system.

[49:14] Okay.

[49:16] Great. Thank you guys very much. Appreciate it.

[49:27] All right. Next up, we have our CFO, Andrea Gruszka, and she's going to touch on a

[49:33] couple of different buckets within our strategic plan.

[49:36] I believe talk a little bit about personnel as it relates to contracts and also on

[49:41] the operations side as far as some of our bond and some of our capital project

[49:46] funds. I want to kick it over to CFO Gruszka.

[49:49] Thank you.

[49:52] So first, I'd like to start with a quick update on our annual audit.

[49:57] We are still in the midst of audit testing, so final year-end numbers are not yet

[50:01] available. Plante Moran's tentative goal is to present at the second board meeting

[50:06] in October, and they expect to confirm that timing over the next couple of weeks.

[50:10] As a reminder, the audit is much more than a review of our financial statements.

[50:14] It includes testing of internal controls, transactions, federal programs, our debt,

[50:18] capital projects, and various compliance requirements.

[50:25] So with that, since so much of that work happens behind the scenes, I also wanted

[50:29] to take a moment to recognize our finance team.

[50:34] So I will start with Claire Kidder, our executive assistant.

[50:38] She supports food service operations, bids, purchasing, and led much of the work to

[50:43] transition facility rentals to FMX this summer.

[50:48] Paul, our food service director, works closely with Taher on both the financial

[50:53] contracted through Taher, working both on the financial and operational side of

[50:57] food service. He worked really hard over the summer to get ready for the start of

[51:01] school, and we also welcomed Chef Ryan to the team this summer.

[51:06] Beth, our accounting supervisor, oversees much of our day-to-day accounting

[51:10] activity, leads our annual audit work, and has played a significant role in

[51:14] strengthening our payroll processes over the past year.

[51:18] Adam moved into payroll, as the payroll coordinator this past January and has done

[51:24] a tremendous amount of work learning that position while he and Beth have continued

[51:28] to share grant accounting responsibilities.

[51:31] That leads me to our grant accountant position.

[51:35] We did take some time to evaluate Adam's former position, and we now plan to post

[51:41] it as a senior accountant, so that position can provide both grant accounting and

[51:46] some broader accounting support across our department.

[51:50] And then we have Brad handles accounts receivable, revenue recording, credit card

[51:54] reconciliations, and supports our monthly bank reconciliation process.

[51:58] And Liz, last but not least, handles accounts payable, including all invoices,

[52:04] payments, ACH processing, and supports our schools and departments.

[52:09] So what I'm most proud of is the professionalism of this team and how willing they

[52:13] are to support one another. There's been a great deal of change, not only this

[52:18] year, but for the last several years, and they continue to learn, adapt, and look

[52:22] for ways to improve our processes.

[52:25] So as we move into the new year, our focus is to monitor, measure, and make it

[52:30] better. That really hits in my department because we have been working to

[52:34] strengthen our processes and improve how we serve the district.

[52:37] So, we will continue that work in the new year.

[52:43] So turning over to our financial report.

[52:46] The August financial report, this is our first report of the new fiscal year.

[52:50] And we are only two months into the year, so expenditures primarily reflect summer

[52:56] activity. You'll see summer maintenance and construction spending in the general

[53:00] fund and our capital project funds, as well as camp fund and some summer

[53:04] programming being spent out of community services fund.

[53:09] Beginning in September, expenditures will more fully reflect a normal school year

[53:14] operations as the new contract year begins for our 10-month staff.

[53:19] And on the revenue side, not a whole lot yet.

[53:22] Our first state aid payment will arrive at the end of October.

[53:25] Property tax collections start rolling in in January, and grants will start

[53:30] trickling in late fall as they get approved and awarded.

[53:35] So,

[53:37] the projections in our budget are still based on the original '26, '27 budget that

[53:43] was adopted in June. So we will begin updating those budgets once the fiscal year

[53:48] is closed, as soon as the audit is complete.

[53:52] So because of that,

[53:55] I just wanted to include this slide again that shows the cost of the settled TAs

[54:01] for the '26, '27. The agreement showed here at approximately 255,000 in cost

[54:07] above what was included in our original budget, and we also added a column to show

[54:12] the cumulative impact over the four years.

[54:17] This does not yet include additional cost of the teacher contract, and that will

[54:20] also be incorporated into our next budget amendment once finalized.

[54:28] Since we are at the beginning of the fiscal year, I just wanted to provide a quick

[54:32] recap of all of our other funds.

[54:36] This slide summarizes all of our special revenue funds, which are used to account

[54:39] for revenues that are designated for a specific purpose.

[54:43] So we have the Special Ed Fund, which accounts for all of our Act 18 funded

[54:47] programs. We have our Community Services Fund, which accounts for the community

[54:52] swim, kids club, preschool, safety town, and camp fund.

[54:57] Our food service fund accounts for all the food service operations,

[55:02] and the student activities fund accounts for all the custodial accounts held on

[55:06] behalf of all of our student groups at the schools.

[55:11] Then we have our debt fund. This accounts for the repayment of the district's

[55:17] bonded debt. For '26, '27, we are levying 3.14

[55:23] mills to make the principal and interest payments due on our outstanding bonds.

[55:28] Those debt payments are made twice each year, November 1st and May 1st, and this

[55:33] slide summarizes all the outstanding debt.

[55:39] And finally, our capital project funds.

[55:43] So we have our 2019 sinking fund and 2021 building and site funds.

[55:49] We are anticipating those will both be spent by the end of the '26, '27

[55:54] fiscal year, and that will leave us with the 2024 sinking fund and the 2025

[56:00] building and site funds, which will be updated as PMR, Plante Moran,

[56:06] updates their projections as we move through the projects.

[56:11] And again, all of the projected columns on the financial report are the original

[56:17] budget that was adopted in June. So we will start making those adjustments once we

[56:21] can finally close '25, '26, which I really want to do.

[56:29] And that's all I have.

[56:31] Thank you.

[56:31] Questions?

[56:34] Any questions, comments from trustees?

[56:40] Trustee Klepp, you took a breath in like you're ready. Yes.

[56:43] No.

[56:44] She addressed a lot of things that

[56:48] I had.

[56:51] When we go to... Okay, so I'm just going to say it.

[56:53] Mm-hmm.

[56:54] You just said it, but I'm just-

[56:55] That's okay

[56:55] ... going to say it again. When we get to later in the meeting, when we go through

[56:59] the operating fund,

[57:02] the general fund rather, the projections in there for expenditures

[57:08] do still do not reflect these settled contracts that you just covered two pages

[57:12] ago?

[57:12] Correct.

[57:13] So it's still-

[57:14] Definitely

[57:15] ... as if we were back in June in terms of your projected projections for

[57:17] expenditures.

[57:18] Yes. That projected column does match our original budget.

[57:22] And the same would be for any revenue, like any-

[57:24] Mm-hmm. Yeah. The entire projection column, both revenue and expenditures, is the

[57:28] original budget.

[57:29] I think everything else you addressed in terms of debt.

[57:33] Yes.

[57:34] And we're going to exhaust sinking fund from 2019.

[57:37] We're going to exhaust the previous debt.

[57:40] That's all going to be used up over the course of next year, and we'll just be on

[57:43] to-

[57:43] Correct

[57:43] ... new sinking, new debt for that.

[57:45] Correct.

[57:48] Any other questions, comments? I just want to say that I appreciate, number one,

[57:53] highlighting your team. Those are names that I have not been able to see before.

[57:58] Certainly, some folks that I've met just being at Morningside, but just by

[58:03] happenstance, so I'm glad to see some new names, and I look forward to trying to

[58:07] meet them in person and say thank you myself.

[58:09] I know-

[58:10] Yeah. Thank you

[58:10] ... your commentary is very well-placed there.

[58:13] They've been very resilient and stayed steady and professional through a

[58:19] lot of turnover around them, and above them, and next to them.

[58:23] So, certainly appreciate their consistency and perseverance.

[58:30] I want to extend my thanks to you also, CFO Grusa.

[58:33] I think having this conversation spreads out what is a lot of work over the whole

[58:39] fiscal year. And spreading it out into more bite-sized pieces like this is

[58:45] certainly helpful for us as a board, in my estimation.

[58:48] So, I know that that is more work spread out over the time for you, but I think it

[58:53] helps us process and digest it a little bit over time.

[58:57] And I also believe it will help us find smaller problems in the future and make

[59:02] corrections quicker where we need to, instead of waiting until they are large

[59:07] variances later that we're trying to figure out what happened.

[59:10] So I appreciate you being proactive there as well. Thank you very much.

[59:16] Klepp.

[59:17] Yes, Trustee Klepp, go ahead.

[59:19] Could you go back to the debt page? Yeah, that one.

[59:28] Okay. So I just wanted to clarify for myself.

[59:31] So 2019,

[59:34] the $3.7 million, that's the remaining outstanding principal on the-

[59:38] For the 2019, the outstanding principal is $57 million.

[59:43] We will make this year's payment. The principal and interest payments due this year

[59:47] is $6.4 million.

[59:49] Yeah. Okay.

[59:55] Any other questions, comments? Okay, thank you again.

[59:59] Anything else on the superintendent's report?

[1:00:02] No, that's it. Thank you.

[1:00:03] Great. All right. That takes us to item number four, public comments on agenda

[1:00:08] action items for tonight, September 21st.

[1:00:11] Before I invite the speakers up, I will say comments are limited to three minutes

[1:00:16] per speaker. Please state your first and last name, community of residence, and any

[1:00:20] organization that you represent when you begin.

[1:00:23] Comments must be orderly and respectful, and comments about a specific employee,

[1:00:27] staff member, or student are not appropriate in this forum.

[1:00:30] Personal attacks will also be ruled out of order by the chair.

[1:00:34] The board and administration are not expected to respond to statements and/or

[1:00:38] questions during the public comment period.

[1:00:41] And there are two public comment periods.

[1:00:43] These guidelines are for both agenda action items and non-agenda action items.

[1:00:49] Tonight, our first speaker is Terry Collins, item 5.2, followed by Kevin

[1:00:55] Nugent, item 5.1, and Richard Schroeder, item 5.2.

[1:01:10] Good evening. Terrence Collins, Grosse Pointe Park.

[1:01:13] I wanted to talk about the human resources report.

[1:01:21] My first comment is that your human resources report for last month, which was on

[1:01:26] your agenda but didn't have the link, so I don't know how the public could see it

[1:01:31] because the link wasn't there to see what was on the human resources report.

[1:01:34] And there were some pretty big-name hirings last month. It'd be nice to have them.

[1:01:39] This month, there are 17 or 18 parapro

[1:01:44] resignations. Now, I don't know if that's normal or not normal.

[1:01:47] I think it's probably fairly normal for the beginning of a year, but what I don't

[1:01:52] understand from a public standpoint is the existential crisis that supposedly

[1:01:57] happened in 2023 and 2024 when you lost the same or less

[1:02:02] parapros and teachers. You lost another

[1:02:06] high school assistant principal in this report.

[1:02:09] Again, people make decisions based on what's best for their career, but I'm just

[1:02:14] shocked that we don't have people up here whinging about how we've lost so many

[1:02:19] people, and how do we survive as a district, and what's going on.

[1:02:22] I mean, 16 or 18 people in the parapro is a lot of people, and I know that they're

[1:02:28] in various different departments of parapros.

[1:02:32] And it looks like you've replaced at least half of them on your report, but should

[1:02:36] we be concerned?

[1:02:39] It seems like a lot of people. Hopefully, you've got a plan to replace them.

[1:02:43] And again, I'm just flabbergasted that whatever the existential crisis

[1:02:49] that didn't exist three or four years ago doesn't seem to be an issue this year.

[1:02:53] Thank you.

[1:02:57] Next speaker is Kevin Nugent, followed by Richard

[1:03:00] Schroeder.

[1:03:07] Kevin Nugent, Pointers for Academic Excellence.

[1:03:10] The proposed September 14th Board of Education minutes state that Trustee Worden

[1:03:15] shared the emails and timeline of her involvement regarding the security camera

[1:03:21] MOU. It would be more accurate to say that Trustee Worden shared her own account of

[1:03:26] emails she had around a timeline of events surrounding her involvement with the

[1:03:31] City of Grosse Pointe Woods and the security camera MOU.

[1:03:34] Her account described multiple communications by email and phone regarding working

[1:03:39] directly on the MOU, something she had previously denied and even went so far to

[1:03:43] question why a trustee would even be involved with negotiating.

[1:03:48] Worden also referenced an earlier email with former superintendent Dr. Tuttle.

[1:03:52] According to Worden, Tuttle had emailed her saying that she did not want to speak

[1:03:56] with police and that perhaps Worden should.

[1:03:59] Trustee Jeup asked to see it, saying, "I'd love to see a copy of that." After,

[1:04:03] Worden responded publicly, "I'm certainly happy to give you one." Trustee Worden

[1:04:08] can absolutely reference an email. She can also say that she has the email.

[1:04:13] She can even say she's happy to provide the email.

[1:04:16] But producing the email is really the most important part of sharing the email.

[1:04:22] The proposed minutes say Trustee Worden shared the emails. She did not.

[1:04:26] The minutes also omit another significant part of the public discussion, Worden's

[1:04:30] statement that President DeArdoer gave her permission to communicate with Chief

[1:04:34] Csanky regarding his concerns with the MOU.

[1:04:38] These are facts that were disclosed publicly at the board table.

[1:04:41] They should be accurately reflected in the public record.

[1:04:44] The September 14th minutes should state that Trustee Worden presented her account

[1:04:48] and timeline of her involvement, stated that President DeArdoer authorized her to

[1:04:52] speak with Chief Csanky, referenced an earlier email from Dr.

[1:04:56] Tuttle, and agreed to provide that email after Trustee Jupe requested it.

[1:05:01] That result would better represent the events of the discussion at last board

[1:05:04] meeting and should be reflected accurately in the minutes. Thank you.

[1:05:12] Next speaker is Richard Schroeder.

[1:05:26] Richard Schroeder, Grosse Pointe Park.

[1:05:29] I watched the

[1:05:32] meeting last week where

[1:05:36] I got so confused about what was being honestly portrayed and what wasn't honestly

[1:05:41] being portrayed. And as far as going over the minutes again, I still don't know

[1:05:45] what-- We had people saying, "No, I didn't do stuff," and then there were people

[1:05:50] saying, "Well, but then I did do stuff." And I don't know why there was

[1:05:56] the lies that went on.

[1:06:00] This should've been something you'd be proud of,

[1:06:03] getting this done. But instead, it was all sorts of lying.

[1:06:08] And I remember, I just went to this little Catholic school in Detroit.

[1:06:13] We were taught by a bunch of nuns, and I don't think any of them were certified

[1:06:16] teachers. But I remember

[1:06:18] one of the nuns quoting Mark Twain, and he said, "When in doubt,

[1:06:25] try telling the truth." If I could recommend to you guys,

[1:06:30] maybe you could listen to Mark Twain instead of what occurred last week.

[1:06:35] Thank you.

[1:06:38] Okay, that brings us to Section Five, Agenda Action Items for September 21st, 2026.

[1:06:44] Item 5.1 is approval of the regular meeting minutes for September 14th, 2026.

[1:06:48] Do I have a motion?

[1:06:51] I'll move to approve the meeting minutes.

[1:06:53] Support.

[1:06:54] It's moved by Trustee Klepp, supported by Trustee Warden. Any discussion?

[1:06:59] I-

[1:07:00] Yes, Trustee Jupe?

[1:07:01] Yes, I'd like to discuss the inaccuracies on

[1:07:06] number three, superintendent stakeholder engagement report, clarifications on

[1:07:12] language in the agreement were provided, and the question from the BOE.

[1:07:16] Trustee Worden shared the emails and the timeline of her involvement at the

[1:07:20] beginning of the discussion in January of 2026 with the City of Grosse Pointe

[1:07:23] Woods.

[1:07:26] Trustee Worden said she was going to provide the email, and she did

[1:07:32] not. She actually emailed me last night at 10:06 PM.

[1:07:36] So, just if you can take one, pass it down, so everyone has the same information in

[1:07:42] front of them.

[1:07:53] I'd like to make a point of order, President DeArdoer.

[1:07:56] The question before the board right now is whether or not we're approving the

[1:08:01] minutes.

[1:08:02] And this is the evidence-

[1:08:03] Excuse me, I have the floor right now.

[1:08:05] Didn't I? I thought I did.

[1:08:05] So why is passing out an email that I sent to her last night at 10:30 have anything

[1:08:10] to do with the accuracy of the minutes?

[1:08:16] I don't understand exactly what the body of the email has to do with the correction

[1:08:22] to the minutes. So, Trustee Jupe, I'm asking what amendment you would like to make

[1:08:26] to that section of the minutes to make it accurate.

[1:08:30] Yes, and here's the evidence for the correction of the minutes, and I never gave up

[1:08:34] the floor. I was just passing it down and being polite, making sure-

[1:08:37] Well, I need a-- Excuse me, I need a point-

[1:08:38] You're interrupting me. I was making sure that everybody had the same information

[1:08:41] in front of them.

[1:08:42] There-

[1:08:42] And then the email says, "As for the email, I'm not comfortable forwarding district

[1:08:45] communications outside the normal process."

[1:08:47] But President DeArdoer, there's a point of order on the floor right now.

[1:08:50] I'm challenging-

[1:08:51] Constant

[1:08:52] ... whether or not this trustee is allowed to include this as part of a

[1:08:56] clarification in saying whether or... She can't just keep continuing to talk.

[1:09:00] There's a point of order here.

[1:09:03] I've barely said anything yet. I have a lot to say.

[1:09:05] So, ramrodding through what she wants to get in is not appropriate in a point of

[1:09:10] order.

[1:09:10] I mean, President DeArdoer, you did ask Trustee Jupe why she should include

[1:09:16] this, so I think she was trying to answer that to resolve this point of order

[1:09:21] before she was interrupted by Trustee Worden.

[1:09:23] I understand. So, the points of order that you made, Trustee Worden, is about the

[1:09:28] relevance of the email to the correction of the minutes.

[1:09:32] I agree that that's what's on the table right now is approving the minutes.

[1:09:36] So, Trustee Jupe, if you have a clarification in the minutes.

[1:09:39] Correct, and here's the evidence to correct the minutes.

[1:09:43] In this email-

[1:09:45] Trustee President DeArdoer-

[1:09:46] ... that was last night-

[1:09:47] Excuse me. That's not what a point of order-

[1:09:49] I'm getting interrupted over and over.

[1:09:50] Trustee Worden, you have-

[1:09:50] I don't even get to say what-- You have no idea what I'm about to say out of my

[1:09:53] mouth.

[1:09:54] Well-

[1:09:54] And you're already interrupting it. It's just constant with you.

[1:09:57] You never allow anyone to speak from this board table, and that's the biggest

[1:10:02] problem on this board.

[1:10:04] Well, my problem with-

[1:10:06] You were the one that said that the board-

[1:10:07] Excuse me.

[1:10:07] No, I'm still-

[1:10:08] There's a-

[1:10:09] I was the one-

[1:10:10] I would like you to give a ruling on the point of order.

[1:10:12] I asked a question about the pertinence of the email about the point of order,

[1:10:18] and we haven't gotten to the end of that question.

[1:10:22] Right.

[1:10:22] So-

[1:10:23] During the meetings, you're in-

[1:10:24] However-

[1:10:25] Reading the email is not clarifying it.

[1:10:27] I understand. Thank you. Trustee Jupe, just reading verbatim from the email

[1:10:33] is not... You can answer the question about why it's germane to the change in the

[1:10:39] minutes without reading it aloud.

[1:10:44] It's a public document.

[1:10:46] This is a public meeting.

[1:10:48] But please answer the question that's on the table.

[1:10:50] I could certainly-- Yes, and here's the evidence to correct the minutes.

[1:10:55] A trustee said that she was going to turn over the email that she so

[1:11:02] said was true. And here we are, and it is absolutely,

[1:11:08] she never turned over the email. It says it in the meeting minutes that she was

[1:11:11] going to do that. She did not do that. So, she sent me an email.

[1:11:16] All week long, we were supposed to have that email, and there was communication

[1:11:20] back and forth-

[1:11:21] Okay

[1:11:21] ... with Dr. Bishop, and then here we are.

[1:11:23] So-

[1:11:23] And she did not

[1:11:26] turn it in, so I want to correct the minutes that said that she did.

[1:11:29] Trustee Jupe, I'm asking you to provide the language that should go into the

[1:11:33] minutes to make it correct. It says, "Trustee Worden shared the emails." Those five

[1:11:38] words should change to what five words?

[1:11:41] "Trustee Worden-"

[1:11:42] Okay.

[1:11:42] "... discussed the emails and timeline?" Does that make it more accurate?

[1:11:48] I don't think it does. I don't know if I could change this right here. Let's see.

[1:11:54] Anyone have any suggestions to change it?

[1:11:56] I don't think that's an accurate suggestion either.

[1:11:59] She-

[1:12:00] Just write the sentence entirely.

[1:12:02] Well, then that doesn't make it accurate of what actually happened, right?

[1:12:06] Because Trustee Worden did say she would hand over this email to the public, and

[1:12:11] then in turn, she did not, for who knows what reason.

[1:12:15] Trustee DeArdoer, I'm going to raise my point of order again.

[1:12:16] But she did not go visit on the 15th.

[1:12:17] Trustee DeArdoer.

[1:12:18] Yes.

[1:12:18] There's a point of order on the floor.

[1:12:20] According to Robert's Rules of Order, there's to be a ruling on that.

[1:12:24] And her continuing to put forth these things that

[1:12:30] she thinks are important to the clarification of the meeting minutes are not being

[1:12:35] done.

[1:12:36] There's obviously a big secret here.

[1:12:38] So, Trustee Jupe, I'm asking you to tell me how you want the minutes

[1:12:44] amended so that we can reflect that accurately, and then we can continue with the

[1:12:49] vote to approve the minutes.

[1:12:51] Okay. Then it should say, let's see.

[1:12:58] "Attorney Cava provided an overview of the security camera MOU up for approval.

[1:13:04] Clarifications on language in the agreement were provided and the questions from

[1:13:08] the BOE. Trustee Worden shared the emails and timeline of her involvement at the

[1:13:13] beginning of the discussion with the City of Grosse Pointe Woods."

[1:13:16] Correct.

[1:13:17] That needs to be changed to

[1:13:21] I don't know. Do you have any suggestions to make this accurate, or should we table

[1:13:26] this and work on it in another meeting?

[1:13:29] My suggestion was to change the word "shared the emails" to the word "discussed the

[1:13:33] emails."

[1:13:34] I have a motion to table-

[1:13:35] That's inaccurate because she said-

[1:13:37] Motion to change the word from "share" to "discuss."

[1:13:42] Support.

[1:13:43] Bring downtown the truth!

[1:13:45] There's a motion on the table-

[1:13:46] That's an easy thing that could happen

[1:13:47] ... to adjust the minutes from saying that Trustee Warden shared the emails to

[1:13:53] Trustee Warden discussed the emails. It's been supported.

[1:13:56] So now we are discussing this amendment, this change.

[1:14:00] Is there discussion about this change?

[1:14:03] Well, I just remember her giving an update of the timeline.

[1:14:08] Discussing the emails, I don't remember any emails being read at the board.

[1:14:13] Okay.

[1:14:16] Thank you, Trustee Cotton. I recall discussion of the emails.

[1:14:22] I don't recall it being read aloud either, but that's not what we said.

[1:14:26] We said that-

[1:14:28] I have a comment.

[1:14:29] One second, please. The motion on the table for adjustment is to change the word

[1:14:34] "shared" to "discussed," and the emails were discussed.

[1:14:38] So I agree with you that no email was read aloud, but that

[1:14:44] Trustee Warden did discuss the emails and timeline.

[1:14:47] So I still think that it is accurate in my opinion. Trustee Warden?

[1:14:52] Yes. Thank you.

[1:14:56] I support this motion, and I am honestly aghast that we're spending even

[1:15:01] five minutes talking about this. These complete gotcha moments to try to make board

[1:15:07] members look bad is just appalling.

[1:15:12] There was a security camera resolution to fix something that had not been done in

[1:15:17] the last nine months. Thank you, Dr. Bishop, for taking care of that.

[1:15:20] We passed the resolution 7-0. Excuse me.

[1:15:23] Point of order, Point of order, President Derenger.

[1:15:26] Yes.

[1:15:26] I don't understand why you're allowing her to go on, on this rambling diatribe.

[1:15:31] President Derenger, I don't appreciate the personal attacks.

[1:15:33] I think that we have a vote in front of us. I don't see how that has to do.

[1:15:37] She's just rambling about what she talked about at the last meeting, and I think we

[1:15:41] should go forward with the vote.

[1:15:43] I'm discussing why I support the language.

[1:15:46] Okay. Trustee Warden, please be as brief as necessary-

[1:15:49] Thank you

[1:15:49] ... and justify why it is more accurate to reflect "discuss the emails" as opposed

[1:15:54] to "share the emails."

[1:15:55] I understand that, but the constant attacks are something that...

[1:16:00] The real thing that we need to focus on is what's best for the students, and this

[1:16:03] entire discussion is not what's best.

[1:16:05] Point of order.

[1:16:05] This is not good for our students.

[1:16:06] Point of order. She's going back to this.

[1:16:09] I think that she's trying to relitigate this and call other trustees out.

[1:16:13] There's no relitigation. It passed 7-0.

[1:16:15] And I think that we should vote on the minutes.

[1:16:19] Well, I think that's what we were trying to do when-

[1:16:21] I think it's outrageous that she continues to try and say that people are having

[1:16:24] gotcha moments.

[1:16:27] It was a gotcha moment. The trust-

[1:16:29] Trustee Warden, please recognize your-

[1:16:31] I understand that, but the reason why I support this is because this is just an

[1:16:37] attempt to make me look bad when the resolution passed 7-0.

[1:16:42] So I absolutely support this so we can move on and talk about the things that are

[1:16:46] important to our district, like our students.

[1:16:49] Okay. Yes, if we can just talk about whatever.

[1:16:52] If this was such a gotcha moment, then why was there discussion throughout the

[1:16:57] entire week, I will clearly

[1:17:00] share this-

[1:17:01] Trustee Jeup

[1:17:01] ... about releasing this email, and then, I'm just following what you allowed

[1:17:08] Trustee Warden to do.

[1:17:10] Trustee Jeup.

[1:17:10] And then there was a clear

[1:17:15] 10:30 last, or 10:06 last night, that all of a sudden it's not going to be

[1:17:20] released. It was an email she referred to over and over.

[1:17:24] So it's very important that we are accurate at this board table, that we're

[1:17:28] truthful, and that we're transparent.

[1:17:31] And all of those things lead up to

[1:17:34] an email at 10:06 PM, so I have every right to be talking about these things at the

[1:17:39] board table. That's the point of being here.

[1:17:42] Thank you.

[1:17:43] So.

[1:17:43] Are there any other discussions about the amendment changing the word "shared" to

[1:17:48] "discussed" in the minutes?

[1:17:52] Seeing none. All those in favor, please say aye.

[1:17:54] Aye.

[1:17:55] Any opposed?

[1:17:57] Opposed.

[1:17:58] That passes five to one. So now the minutes as

[1:18:04] amended are back on the table.

[1:18:08] Is there any other discussion about approving the minutes as amended?

[1:18:14] Seeing none. All those in favor, please say aye. Aye.

[1:18:17] Aye.

[1:18:18] Any opposed?

[1:18:19] Opposed.

[1:18:20] That passes five to one.

[1:18:23] Item number 5.2 is approval of the human resources report. Do I have a motion?

[1:18:29] I'll move to approve the human resources report.

[1:18:32] Support.

[1:18:33] Moved by Trustee Klepp and supported by Trustee Warden. Any discussion?

[1:18:39] Me too.

[1:18:39] Yes, Trustee Hall.

[1:18:41] I would just like to make note of some noteworthy retirements that I saw when I

[1:18:46] went through the list. Ms. Christine Cool, North's school psychologist, is

[1:18:51] retiring, and I think that she will leave some very big shoes to fill.

[1:18:55] Her contributions to our community, to our district, to our students, and

[1:19:00] families will be greatly missed, and thank you very much for your service.

[1:19:04] And also, Mr. Heenan, elementary art teacher, who my own daughters were students in

[1:19:10] his classroom and made a huge impact on them.

[1:19:12] They still talk about him to this day.

[1:19:14] So thank you so much for your service as well, and you will be greatly missed.

[1:19:20] Thank you. Yes, Trustee Warden.

[1:19:23] I would also like to recognize Katie Parent, who's been a fixture at South High

[1:19:28] School for a long time. I think it's going to be a real loss that she's leaving the

[1:19:33] district. I've heard that she's found an amazing dream, and I think she's told

[1:19:38] people that it's the dream of a dream job.

[1:19:42] But nevertheless, I know that the community, the entire district, and South will

[1:19:46] miss her tremendously, so I want to thank her for her service.

[1:19:50] Any other comments? Yes, Trustee Klepp.

[1:19:53] Just maybe to Dr. Bishop. When I was reading this, I was struck by the number of

[1:19:57] additions and hires. Did I misunderstand it?

[1:20:01] I was reading the paras as all being additions to staff. Is that correct?

[1:20:07] I believe so, but I'm going to turn to Mrs. Pilgrim, if you're in the back, or Mrs.

[1:20:11] Shelson, if you have any comments to add to Trustee Klepp's question

[1:20:25] as it relates to the paraprofessionals and ones that we've hired.

[1:20:52] That's a long walk.

[1:20:54] Sorry about that. We decided to come together to answer the questions because we

[1:20:58] did all the hiring together. Can you repeat specifically what you're looking for?

[1:21:02] Well, I was looking at the meeting earlier that I counted up 26 total adds, of

[1:21:08] which 18 were paras. Did I get that right?

[1:21:11] I guess was my question off of this report.

[1:21:14] We did do a significant amount of hiring.

[1:21:16] I think that board report, this HR report is from-

[1:21:19] Yeah.

[1:21:21] ... over a month of hiring. So Ricky can give more information, but we have, and

[1:21:25] her team has done a significant amount of paraprofessional hiring.

[1:21:30] Okay. It was more just clarification, but that's fine.

[1:21:33] I just don't have the HR report in front of me, but we did do a lot of-

[1:21:36] That's fine.

[1:21:37] Yeah.

[1:21:38] Okay. And then I also just wanted to congratulate Ms. Parent on her, and Mr.

[1:21:44] Heenan on his retirement.

[1:21:46] Thank you.

[1:21:48] First, so we misheard that there was mention that 18 paras had

[1:21:53] left, and in reality, the report that we have is that we're adding 18 paras in this

[1:21:58] report. So that, I think is the clarification point, correct?

[1:22:01] Yeah.

[1:22:01] Yes. So this is 18 new paras, and there is one para that is leaving.

[1:22:06] So that is plus 18 and minus one on this particular report.

[1:22:10] My question was related if we know whether the influx of paras

[1:22:16] here was related to the job fair that was held specifically for paras, if you

[1:22:20] wanted to speak to that for a second.

[1:22:23] Ms. Stovall?

[1:22:24] Yep. The majority of the paras that we brought on were through our joint efforts

[1:22:30] for the paraprofessional job fair back earlier in August.

[1:22:33] Okay. All right, great. So I think that is a celebration.

[1:22:37] It's good to see the results of that effort from the team over the summer.

[1:22:42] Certainly, adding 18 paras is hugely valuable to the experience of our kids in the

[1:22:47] classroom. So thank you guys both for that and-

[1:22:50] I was going to say, I think it's worth noting that we have a pipeline of

[1:22:52] individuals who came in who weren't necessarily qualified the day they came in

[1:22:57] based off of state requirements and our collective bargaining agreement.

[1:23:00] We have five people that we're assisting get scheduled for the ETS exam or complete

[1:23:05] additional courses. So we have a strong pipeline in the event we need additional

[1:23:10] support for students.

[1:23:12] Great. All right. I appreciate the clarification and again, celebrating the work of

[1:23:17] the team over the summer and seeing the results come right here at the beginning of

[1:23:22] the school year is great. So thank you, guys.

[1:23:25] Are there any other comments or questions about the human resources report before

[1:23:29] voting? Yes, Trustee Jeup.

[1:23:31] I just have a comment.

[1:23:33] Well, Katie Parent is leaving, but there are also eight other employees that are

[1:23:39] leaving us with over 10 years' experience, and if you're out there listening, I

[1:23:43] know some of these names, whether it's Christine Kool or Andrea Ward,

[1:23:51] your service was well.

[1:23:54] We loved having you, and we're sad to see you all go. So thank you.

[1:23:58] Thank you. Any additional comments or questions?

[1:24:02] All those in favor of approving the HR report, please say aye.

[1:24:05] Aye.

[1:24:06] Any opposed? That passes six to zero.

[1:24:10] It takes us to item number six, agenda action items for October 5th, 2026.

[1:24:17] Item 6.1 will be approval of the regular meeting minutes for tonight, September

[1:24:21] 21st. Item 6.2 is approval of 21F virtual learning

[1:24:27] days, and I would ask Dr. Bishop to add some context here, please.

[1:24:31] Absolutely. I'm going to try to add some, and then Dr.

[1:24:32] Delgado, if I miss anything, feel free to chime in.

[1:24:35] But we will have a resolution that's actually on the table right now for a first

[1:24:39] read, and we're looking to have it voted on at the next meeting.

[1:24:41] It relates to the 21F of virtual instructional days for 12th grade students.

[1:24:46] As our community knows, we need to have 180 instructional days, and that is 1,089

[1:24:52] minutes that we have, as far as our hours that we need for our instruction.

[1:24:57] And so the reason why this is on the board table and it hasn't been here before is

[1:25:00] because we were actually going through an audit process, and we have a new auditor

[1:25:04] and of course, they're asking us new things when it comes to the process.

[1:25:08] So they're asking us to make sure we get these days approved, in the event that we

[1:25:13] need them. We will need them for both of our high schools because we have PSAT

[1:25:17] testing. Our seniors are not present, so we're asking for two days for Grosse

[1:25:21] Pointe North, which is October 6 and April 6, and then we have for Grosse Pointe

[1:25:26] South, October 13 and April 14. A little bit of background and history.

[1:25:32] Circa 2025, at that point in time in legislation, there was a 15-day provision that

[1:25:38] you could take as far as if there was emergency closings or if there's mandatory

[1:25:42] testing, and that kind of went away. So minimal effect.

[1:25:45] And then now this school year, for '26, '27, legislation has restored a much more

[1:25:51] limited version of 21F, in which there are six days in which you can utilize,

[1:25:56] especially when it comes for testing.

[1:25:58] So this is not an attempt for us to go to virtual learning more than we have to,

[1:26:03] but we do want to honor the fact that our seniors will not be here on those days.

[1:26:07] So for us to properly account for those days through our people accounting process,

[1:26:12] we need for us to approve the 21F days that we have.

[1:26:17] And during that time when they were off, that we're looking for some two-way

[1:26:20] communication from our teachers and those students so those days count.

[1:26:24] So I know Dr. Delgado was working with our counselors at both of our high schools

[1:26:28] to determine what that vehicle or that mode of communication is to be able to

[1:26:33] communicate with our students virtually on those days that I mentioned earlier. Dr.

[1:26:37] Delgado, did I miss anything or anything you want to add to that?

[1:26:47] Okay. Is there any questions or comments for the administration? Trustee Cotton.

[1:26:51] I just didn't follow, so I'm going to ask, how did we handle these days last year?

[1:26:57] I got very creative with the MDE. Let's just say that.

[1:27:01] That also doesn't help.

[1:27:03] I will be more clear. So as you know, on our PSAT testing days, one of our high

[1:27:09] schools is in attendance for testing and the other is not testing.

[1:27:13] We share devices amongst our high schools, and we have two different PSAT and SAT

[1:27:18] testing days in the fall and two different days in the spring. So when Dr.

[1:27:21] Bishop was mentioning a new auditor, in the past years, prior to even 2025, we had

[1:27:26] reported that as a senior attendance day because the reality is half of our seniors

[1:27:31] are in attendance and half of them are not.

[1:27:33] Our previous auditor, who we worked with through WRESA, allowed that to pass

[1:27:38] through as an attendance day for our students.

[1:27:40] The auditor that we began working with last year did not.

[1:27:43] And so this 21F is in place so that when students are in attendance, two-way

[1:27:48] communication would be as simple as logging into Schoology and completing a very

[1:27:51] quick assignment. A lot of like districts do something like having them log into

[1:27:54] Naviance and do a quick survey about career exploration activities or college

[1:27:59] exploration activities. Our counselors already have a couple ideas should we need

[1:28:03] this. So the other piece is you have to approve them prior to the days happening.

[1:28:07] PSAT occurs on October 6th. And so we didn't want to go through the audit, have

[1:28:12] them come back and say, "No, the way that you do it isn't appropriate for 180 days

[1:28:17] for seniors, and we need these virtual learning days to happen." So we just wanted

[1:28:20] the approval to be there preemptively.

[1:28:23] Okay. So just

[1:28:25] for practical purposes last year-

[1:28:28] Last year, you may have noticed that at the end of the year, I apologize.

[1:28:32] No, no.

[1:28:32] Trustee Cotton.

[1:28:33] No, I'm just-

[1:28:34] That's how you do this.

[1:28:35] No, no. So for practical purposes last year, if North was testing, the seniors had

[1:28:40] a day off, essentially.

[1:28:42] Correct.

[1:28:42] Effectively. This year, we are going to have them do something virtually.

[1:28:49] There's not going to be seven hours worth of classes-

[1:28:52] Oh, no

[1:28:52] ... but they'll do something virtual, and we're intending that that will count as a

[1:28:56] day in class for those seniors.

[1:28:58] Correct.

[1:28:59] Okay. That's good enough. Thanks.

[1:29:02] Thank you. Any other questions or comments from the board?

[1:29:09] Okay.

[1:29:11] Next is section seven, future meetings.

[1:29:13] Item 7.1 is the Facilities Committee meeting a week from today, September 28th,

[1:29:19] 5:30 PM at the North Library, followed immediately by item 7.2, the Policy

[1:29:24] Committee meeting also at the North Library at 6:30 PM.

[1:29:28] 7.3 is our next regular board meeting on Monday, October 5th, here at Brownell

[1:29:34] starting at 7:00 PM. Item 7.4 is the second board

[1:29:40] regular meeting in October, and that's October 19th here at Brownell MPR.

[1:29:46] And one more superintendent listening session, item 7.5, 8:30 AM coffee

[1:29:52] with Dr. Bishop on September 29th next week at Pierce.

[1:29:59] That brings us to

[1:30:01] section eight, public comments on non-action items.

[1:30:06] Our first speaker is Pam Albrecht, followed by Anna

[1:30:12] Campbell and Kevin Nugent.

[1:30:20] Good evening. My name is Pam Albrecht. I'm a resident of Grosse Pointe Farms.

[1:30:24] I'm a mom of four Grosse Pointe Public School system graduates.

[1:30:29] I'm a second-grade teacher at Monteith.

[1:30:32] I'm the magnet program coordinator for the district, and I've been a teacher for

[1:30:36] over three decades. I am also the vice president of negotiations for the GPEA.

[1:30:44] I am here again, and as you see, many of my colleagues are not

[1:30:49] here.

[1:30:51] Please do not mistake that for disinterest.

[1:30:55] My colleagues are all very, very interested.

[1:30:59] They're interested as to why their paychecks are stagnant, and for many employees,

[1:31:05] including myself, even less than last year because we didn't earn a step and our

[1:31:11] increased healthcare costs have cost us, and they're wondering when that will

[1:31:15] change. They are not less passionate. They are very passionate.

[1:31:21] That passion likely has them at home grading papers, or for most of us elementary

[1:31:26] teachers, likely looking over the next math lesson that we need to teach since we

[1:31:31] got the new math curriculum a week before school started and we have to learn it

[1:31:35] the night before teaching it

[1:31:38] That's what I was sitting here doing while you were meeting, and I know one of my

[1:31:41] colleagues over there sat and entered her reading data for her kids.

[1:31:47] They're not less concerned. They are very concerned.

[1:31:51] Concerned about their future in this district.

[1:31:54] They're concerned about when they will have a fair and equitable contract that

[1:31:59] honors and respects all teachers, new as well as veterans.

[1:32:04] So I will ask you the same: when is it going to happen?

[1:32:09] Colleen Worden, when are you going to support the teachers?

[1:32:12] I'm waiting for your actions to mirror the verbal support you always give at the

[1:32:16] table. It's time to provide the teachers with a proposal that reflects their

[1:32:22] interest, their passion, and their concern.

[1:32:26] A fair and equitable contract for all teachers.

[1:32:30] Grosse Pointe teachers deserve better. Thank you.

[1:32:36] Next is Anna Campbell, followed by Kevin Nugent and Terry Collins.

[1:32:51] Good evening, Superintendent, Dr. Bishop and members of the board.

[1:32:55] My name is Anna Campbell, and I'm a preventionist at CARE of Southeastern Michigan.

[1:32:59] Thank you for getting Anna. Very rarely people do.

[1:33:02] I wanted to highlight the resilience building kindergarten through 12 prevention

[1:33:06] education programs that CARE of Southeastern Michigan offers at no cost to your

[1:33:10] guys' schools. One program is LifeSkills.

[1:33:14] It's a research-validated prevention program proven to reduce the risks of

[1:33:17] substance use, violence, and other risky behaviors by addressing the social and

[1:33:21] psychological factors that can influence students' choices.

[1:33:26] We facilitate the program in third through 12th grade classrooms, helping students

[1:33:29] build confidence, resist peer pressure, manage stress and anxiety, and develop

[1:33:33] healthy decision-making and coping skills.

[1:33:36] We have adolescent anger management, which helps elementary to high school students

[1:33:39] build nonviolent conflict resolution skills, practice forgiveness,

[1:33:44] and take responsibility for their choices and behavior.

[1:33:47] This program can be facilitated within a group or classroom setting.

[1:33:51] Lastly, we do have vape use prevention education and marijuana use prevention

[1:33:54] education, which provides students with a judgment-free environment to understand

[1:33:58] the risks associated with these substances, how problems can develop, and how they

[1:34:02] can be prevented. Students learn practical coping strategies and explore healthier

[1:34:07] lifestyle choices. These programs can be offered as an alternate to suspension or a

[1:34:13] citation as well.

[1:34:15] Our programs do not take up much time.

[1:34:17] It will just be multiple sessions of up to 30 minutes.

[1:34:20] This can be during a gym class, a study hall, free period, elective class, however

[1:34:25] the schools organize their time.

[1:34:29] We can also do resource lunch tables.

[1:34:32] So, during lunch, we can provide a table, and they can be themed to different

[1:34:37] problems that can occur. So in February, you could have a table with us about

[1:34:42] healthy relationships and what that looks like.

[1:34:49] In review, my colleague finished one of these programs at one of your schools this

[1:34:52] past summer. But there are no scheduled programs for the rest of this year.

[1:34:58] So that's one of the reasons why I'm here.

[1:34:59] I did provide

[1:35:02] some letters describing elementary programs as well as middle and high school

[1:35:05] programs to one of your workers, and she said that she would distribute that to

[1:35:10] them after the meeting. If you're interested in these programs for your district,

[1:35:14] please contact us at CARE Southeastern Michigan or me, Anna Campbell.

[1:35:18] We're committed to being a strong prevention partner for your district and

[1:35:21] supporting the health and success of your students.

[1:35:23] Thank you so much for your time.

[1:35:26] Thank you.

[1:35:28] Next is Kevin Nugent, followed by Terry Collins and Karen Cole.

[1:35:44] Kevin Nugent, Pointers for Academic Excellence.

[1:35:46] First and foremost, I've been a teacher for 28 years.

[1:35:50] Around every election, we are inundated with political rhetoric around supporting

[1:35:53] our teachers. It all sounds so validating.

[1:35:57] But in reality, talking about supporting teachers is much easier than delivering

[1:36:01] for teachers. I've heard several trustees say that you hope the district and the

[1:36:05] teachers can reach an agreement. Statements like that obscure the process that

[1:36:09] governs negotiations. You are the board of education.

[1:36:13] The people negotiating for our district operate within parameters established by

[1:36:17] you. You're not spectators waiting for two other parties to work something out.

[1:36:22] If you want an agreement, you have the authority to change the parameters under

[1:36:25] which the district negotiates. You have had opportunities to resolve this contract,

[1:36:30] but the decisions you made with the other bargaining units affected the position

[1:36:34] you are negotiating from today. You established a pattern when you announced

[1:36:38] four-year agreements with three other bargaining units.

[1:36:40] Did none of you consider what that would mean when it came time to settle with our

[1:36:43] teachers? Had those been two-year agreements, you could have established a

[1:36:47] reasonable two-year structure across our bargaining units, but the talks continue.

[1:36:52] And the longer these negotiations or clarifying conversations, as you might call

[1:36:56] them, continue, the greater the risk that we deepen the divide with our teachers.

[1:37:01] As impactful, why would teachers settle for less while they are watching months of

[1:37:06] legal bills come through our check registers, payment after payment for attorneys?

[1:37:11] In just three registers we reviewed, Collins and Bolha received payments of

[1:37:14] approximately 50,000, 40,000, and 50,000.

[1:37:18] Another register includes a nearly $100,000 payment to Clark Hill covering board

[1:37:23] matters, labor, board policies, and other legal work.

[1:37:27] We understand that a school district needs attorneys, but when our check registers

[1:37:30] contain amount of legal payments while our largest employee group remains without

[1:37:34] an agreement, what is this board prioritizing?

[1:37:38] You were coming off a two-year agreement, one that included the removal of the

[1:37:41] formula, and you were sitting on a rebuilt fund equity.

[1:37:44] You entered these negotiations with the ability to put together an agreement that

[1:37:48] addressed the needs of both our teachers and our district, yet we still do not have

[1:37:52] one. There comes a point when you have to own the decisions that belong to you.

[1:37:56] You are the board. You establish the parameters. Trustees Worden, St.

[1:38:00] John, Klepp, and Hall, your four votes constitute a majority of the board.

[1:38:05] You have used that majority to move other matters at this table.

[1:38:08] Why have you not used that same majority to get this done?

[1:38:12] So please don't tell us that you hope an agreement can be reached.

[1:38:15] Tell us what you are prepared to do to reach one. Thank you.

[1:38:20] Next speaker is Terry Collins, followed by Karen Cole.

[1:38:32] Hello again.

[1:38:34] Yeah, Mr. Nugent says it very clear, but you have to go back and figure out where

[1:38:38] your problem started, and your problem started

[1:38:41] when you were preparing your budget for this year.

[1:38:44] And despite multiple people telling you that your plan was bad and even Mr.

[1:38:48] Klepp questioning it at the very last minute, you decided to create a budget that

[1:38:52] had zero in it for teacher contracts and all your other four bargaining unit

[1:38:58] contracts. You allocated $0 for those.

[1:39:02] And I hope you were paying attention tonight.

[1:39:04] I hope you're going to actually put a link in to what CFO Agrusa put up on the

[1:39:09] screen. If not, we can screen capture it. It's not a problem.

[1:39:13] But you acknowledge what I've told you from two or three days after that meeting

[1:39:17] when you first published that last slide is that a couple hundred thousand dollars

[1:39:22] of those first four bargaining unit contracts in the first year have now ballooned

[1:39:26] to $4 million when you show the cumulative effect.

[1:39:29] And what you need to understand is the cumulative effect of those four contracts

[1:39:33] only represents 10 or maybe 20% of your total outlay of union dollars that you're

[1:39:39] paying in contracts. So the other 80%, you haven't bargained yet.

[1:39:43] So let's just say you're bargaining those other four similarly to the last one,

[1:39:48] similar to how you bargained the first four. So if that's 20%, right?

[1:39:54] So there's 80% left. That 80% is four times four million.

[1:39:59] That's 16 million. 16 million plus formula is $20 million.

[1:40:03] You have to come up with $20 million in the next four years in your budget, which

[1:40:07] is exactly what I sent you a few days after the meeting where the first slide was

[1:40:12] showed. This isn't rocket science. I'm not some super genius with numbers.

[1:40:16] I can just add, and I can plan and understand that you're going to have to pay

[1:40:20] these dollars out. So now when you have your budget update finally after the budget

[1:40:25] audit comes out, the audited budget comes out at the end of October, your number

[1:40:30] for the end of the year is probably not going to change that much, but your

[1:40:32] projection for your GAA number one is going to change significantly should you have

[1:40:37] that fifth contract in place. If not, you're going to go on kicking the can down

[1:40:41] the road not knowing what the hell you're doing.

[1:40:44] But you're going to have to come up with $3 million this year, or next June you're

[1:40:48] going to show a $3 million budget deficit from what you planned. That's clear.

[1:40:52] That's just based on the fact that you put up on the screen tonight.

[1:40:55] How are you going to do that?

[1:40:58] The teachers need to understand that the reason you're in the situation that you're

[1:41:02] in now is because you finally realized, after the first four contracts were done,

[1:41:06] is, "Oh my God, we've got a fourth contract.

[1:41:08] There's no way we can afford this." Of course you can't afford it, because you

[1:41:12] didn't cut anything this year. And as much as cuts hurt, they prepare you for the

[1:41:16] next year, then year after that, and the year after that.

[1:41:19] But

[1:41:20] you just continue to make mistakes.

[1:41:22] And we don't have to have gotcha moments, Trustee Warden.

[1:41:26] We just have to show what you said one week compared to what you show the next

[1:41:30] week. That's gotcha enough. Thank you.

[1:41:39] Section nine is the monthly financials and check register healthcare report.

[1:41:43] Is there any discussion? Oh, I'm sorry, Ms. Cole. I apologize.

[1:41:47] No problem.

[1:41:48] Go ahead.

[1:41:51] Good evening.

[1:41:54] I am a former student of the Grosse Pointe Public Schools.

[1:41:58] Over 40 years ago, my parents moved to the area so that my sister and I could be a

[1:42:03] part of the Grosse Pointe Public Schools.

[1:42:05] Our three older brothers, we lived in Detroit at the time, and our three older

[1:42:09] brothers went to private school. That was my parents' hope, to send us to private

[1:42:14] school, but they wanted us to have a safe environment to grow up in.

[1:42:20] They moved to the area and said, "Well, what better thing than to send their

[1:42:24] children to Grosse Pointe Public Schools?"

[1:42:28] And I am grateful to them for doing that.

[1:42:34] So I was a student here. My sister moved to the area when she got married.

[1:42:39] Her three kids were very successful going to Ferry, Parcells, North,

[1:42:45] not only successful in their academics, but in playing sports.

[1:42:52] They were successful because of all the teachers behind them from the time they

[1:42:56] started at Ferry to the time they left at North.

[1:43:00] And that will ride on their backs for the rest of their lives.

[1:43:03] They will be successful. But I'm here tonight because I'm a teacher in the

[1:43:08] district. I've been teaching here for 29 years.

[1:43:13] I've been teaching for 31 years, all in kindergarten except for one.

[1:43:19] I have a master's in early childhood, and I need to speak up for Mason.

[1:43:24] I've been at Mason the whole time,

[1:43:27] and we need a contract. We don't need a contract just at Mason.

[1:43:31] We need a contract for all our teachers who work so hard in this district.

[1:43:37] We say students first, but every year our class sizes are going up.

[1:43:42] Our class sizes are going up at Mason, but our classroom is small.

[1:43:48] I used to be the kindergarten teacher that had a large classroom before

[1:43:52] construction put a wall up in my classroom, and now we have, I don't know the size

[1:43:57] of it, we'll say 12 by 12. But we have a very small classroom when you keep

[1:44:03] adding more and more students.

[1:44:07] We're not looking for a realistic number of 12.

[1:44:11] We're looking for a realistic number, 18 to 20.

[1:44:15] We say equality, equity, it's not the same.

[1:44:19] Mason's different than some of the other buildings in the area.

[1:44:23] We need different parameters. We've been told this, but it doesn't happen.

[1:44:29] We're a Title I building. We want what's best for our students.

[1:44:34] I know all the teachers across the district want what's best for their students.

[1:44:46] I want you to retain our colleagues.

[1:44:48] You say that it's important to--

[1:44:53] Thank you.

[1:44:57] Thank you, Ms. Cole. Again, I personally apologize for moving your form over before

[1:45:01] I called your name. Sorry about that.

[1:45:06] Okay, section nine now is the monthly financials, the check register, and the

[1:45:10] healthcare report. Is there any discussion?

[1:45:17] Just one more. We already talked about it, but just to reiterate, the projections

[1:45:21] in here don't include-- They really are just from the budget, essentially.

[1:45:26] So none of the settled contracts or anything are reflected here.

[1:45:31] Yeah, so that's worth noting on both.

[1:45:37] Okay. Any other discussion? Trustee Cotton?

[1:45:41] Yes, I move to go add

[1:45:45] a section n after the check register to go back into closed session and discuss

[1:45:49] bargaining.

[1:45:58] Support.

[1:45:58] Okay, there's a motion on the table. Trustee Cotton, can you repeat that, please?

[1:46:04] To add a section right after this check register right now where we could vote on

[1:46:09] going back into closed session to discuss bargaining.

[1:46:20] Give me one second.

[1:46:24] To amend the agenda at this point would, again, require us to suspend the rules,

[1:46:32] and I'm not sure that we've met the requirement for posting the notice

[1:46:37] necessary to hold a closed session.

[1:46:41] So unless-

[1:46:42] We're in a meeting right now.

[1:46:46] Yes, I'm aware.

[1:46:50] I'm not sure. Let me check and see what the rules are before

[1:46:56] even putting the question forward for discussion.

[1:47:01] Let me find out if it is even possible, Trustee

[1:48:57] Cotton.

[1:49:07] Give me a

[1:49:07] second.

[1:49:18] Okay, so the posting notice is for the meeting, the regular meeting, as you said,

[1:49:23] Trustee Cotton. That's correct. So this is within a regularly posted

[1:49:28] regular meeting, so it's already been properly noticed.

[1:49:31] Then the motion on the table is to go into closed session

[1:49:38] under exemption 8.1c of the Open Meetings Act, and it's been supported

[1:49:45] It's a roll call vote to go into closed session, and because this

[1:49:50] particular request is related to collective bargaining with the GPEA, I have

[1:49:56] recused myself from these discussions, so I will not be voting.

[1:50:01] Just before that happens, I want everybody to understand. Trustee Cotton?

[1:50:07] Yes.

[1:50:08] Do we get to have discussion?

[1:50:10] I

[1:50:12] apologize. Yes. So go ahead. Trustee Cotton, do you want to start since

[1:50:18] you made the motion?

[1:50:22] Yes, I think we owe it to our district to go back into closed session for

[1:50:26] collective bargaining.

[1:50:29] Okay. Trustee Worden. Yeah.

[1:50:31] I just have a question or a point of clarification.

[1:50:33] Are we allowed to do this pursuant to the Open Meetings Act?

[1:50:36] Although we did meet earlier, we ended the session, our attorney left.

[1:50:41] Are we allowed to do this pursuant to the Open Meetings Act?

[1:50:45] Yes. The previous meeting was a special meeting.

[1:50:52] We entered and exited closed session twice in our earlier meeting, but the special

[1:50:56] meeting was properly noticed. This being a properly noticed regular meeting,

[1:51:02] it is also allowed under the exemption to Open Meetings Act.

[1:51:08] I asked Dr. Bishop to call Attorney Cava to make sure, and he confirmed that, yes,

[1:51:14] this is possible.

[1:51:16] So is it like an extension of our earlier meeting?

[1:51:19] It is not. It's the board asking or deciding right now whether they

[1:51:24] should go into closed session as part of this meeting, as part of the regular

[1:51:28] meeting, using the same exemption as we used before in our special meeting.

[1:51:33] No, my question was about the notice requirement.

[1:51:36] Correct. This meeting, the regular meeting, has been properly noticed, so it is

[1:51:40] allowed to have that same exemption to enter into closed session.

[1:51:43] Okay.

[1:51:45] Thank you.

[1:51:45] The notice requirement is still 18 hours, but this meeting that we are in has been

[1:51:51] properly noticed.

[1:51:54] Okay. Any other discussion? Yes, Trustee Hall.

[1:51:58] I'm not opposed to talking about negotiations at any point.

[1:52:01] I just don't understand the urgency at this point.

[1:52:04] Has there been any new information that we weren't able to discuss in the previous

[1:52:08] meeting, or has something come to light that we didn't know at that time?

[1:52:13] We did have the financial update.

[1:52:20] So is that urgent to be discussed this evening, or could we do that at another

[1:52:25] time?

[1:52:26] I think it's pretty urgent. We're sitting here today without a contract.

[1:52:30] The next meeting is when?

[1:52:33] October 5th.

[1:52:40] I see an urgency. I don't know if I can convince you of one.

[1:52:45] I would agree that doing everything we can to settle a contract is important.

[1:52:52] Okay. Any other discussion?

[1:52:56] Okay. A roll call vote is in order. Trustee Cotton?

[1:53:00] Yes.

[1:53:01] Trustee Hall?

[1:53:02] Yes.

[1:53:03] Trustee Worden?

[1:53:04] Yes.

[1:53:05] Trustee Klepp?

[1:53:06] Yes.

[1:53:06] Trustee Jeup?

[1:53:07] Yes.

[1:53:08] That passes five to zero.

[1:53:11] We're now in closed session.

[1:54:10] We moved back into open session at the end of the closed session discussion.

[1:54:16] Is there any action to be taken coming out of the closed session?

[1:54:21] No.

[1:54:21] No. Okay. So moving to

[1:54:24] section 10, board member and superintendent comments.

[1:54:28] I will start to my right tonight. Dr. Delgado?

[1:54:31] No comment.

[1:54:33] Mr. Honka?

[1:54:35] I want to wish my wife a very happy birthday.

[1:54:39] She saved me a slice of cake.

[1:54:42] Trustee Cotton?

[1:54:44] No further comment.

[1:54:46] Trustee Hall?

[1:54:47] No further comment.

[1:54:48] Trustee Jeup?

[1:54:49] No further comment.

[1:54:51] Trustee Klepp?

[1:54:53] I would like to wish Mr. Honka's wife a happy birthday, but that's

[1:54:58] it.

[1:55:00] Trustee Worden?

[1:55:01] I just want to say that I want to focus on what Principal Kelemen

[1:55:07] said, "Look for the good, so you find the good." There's so much to be happy and

[1:55:11] proud about in our district, and I wish that we would stick to the things that are

[1:55:15] important to the district and what's best for the students,

[1:55:20] instead of some of the gotcha things that went on tonight.

[1:55:23] I do appreciate that we went back into closed session to try to work this out, and

[1:55:28] I want to thank the teachers for coming to the meeting tonight. Good night.

[1:55:33] Thank you. CFO Groza?

[1:55:36] No comment.

[1:55:37] Dr. Bishop?

[1:55:38] I also want to wish Shadia happy birthday. Happy birthday to her.

[1:55:42] I also want to thank CFO Groza, said it very well earlier about her business team.

[1:55:49] I do want to give them a shout-out as well.

[1:55:51] They've done some really heavy lifting, and I appreciate all the leadership that

[1:55:56] Andrea's given to her team. So we appreciate them, we appreciate you, and just to

[1:56:01] be clear, the position that she said that she has to hire for is not a new

[1:56:06] position. It's one that she has continued to go vacant in her department, so that

[1:56:12] makes her team even extra special. Have a wonderful night.

[1:56:16] Thank you. I'd like to give a shout-out to our audio and visual team

[1:56:22] still here and back online, especially Mr.

[1:56:26] Geresy, who I enjoyed talking with Mrs.

[1:56:29] Fannon back there while you guys were in closed session. Appreciate that.

[1:56:34] I would encourage everybody who is watching this at a later date to

[1:56:40] take your kids, your community members, your neighbors, and get out and see the

[1:56:46] different athletic events or concerts or any performances that you can see in the

[1:56:51] fall. The enthusiasm coming out of our schools and the buildings is really

[1:56:56] what makes our communities and our neighborhoods so wonderful to live in.

[1:57:01] So if you get a chance to take in the homecoming parade with some family

[1:57:07] members or neighbors or cousins that don't live around here but want to come hang

[1:57:12] out at your house for the day, please take the opportunity to do that.

[1:57:16] This is when our schools and our staff and our kids really shine the

[1:57:22] most. Fall is my favorite time of the year, and these type of events are really the

[1:57:27] reason why. So hope to see everybody out there.

[1:57:31] I will move that we close the meeting.

[1:57:34] President Ahmed Ismail.

[1:57:34] Yes.

[1:57:34] Could you also announce the League of Women Voters forum tomorrow night?

[1:57:38] I forgot to do that. Please.

[1:57:40] Yes. The League of Women Voters

[1:57:44] candidate forum for the upcoming November election will be here at Brownell in the

[1:57:49] multipurpose room. Is that a 7:00 start?

[1:57:52] Yes, 7:00 start, and also will be available streaming and later

[1:57:58] online. I think the League of Women Voters typically post that on their YouTube

[1:58:03] page.

[1:58:06] Okay.

[1:58:08] Nothing else, I move that we adjourn the meeting.

[1:58:11] Support.

[1:58:13] All those in favor, please say aye.

[1:58:15] Aye.

[1:58:15] Any opposed? Have a good night.

GPPSS BOE Meeting - Sept 21, 2026

Transcript