[0:10] I am going to declare this Hardin
[0:11] County Board of Education meeting open
[0:12] . Good night. I am going to declare
[0:14] this Hardin County Board of Education meeting open
[0:15] . If
[0:16] everyone stands, we will begin with
[0:18] the Pledge of Allegiance.
[0:22] I pledge allegiance to the flag of the
[0:24] United States of America and to the
[0:27] republic for which it stands, one nation
[0:30] under God, indivisible, with liberty and
[0:33] justice for all.
[0:37] Thank you. Mr. Bland, do you have our
[0:44] commitments to the board?
[0:45] Yes. To improve our effectiveness, the
[0:49] Hardin County Schools Board of Education is committed to putting
[0:51] children first,
[0:53] listening, being prepared, being
[0:55] professional, demonstrating
[0:56] financial stewardship,
[0:58] representing the entire district and supporting
[1:00] district goals, and
[1:02] backing board decisions.
[1:04] Thank you. It's good to see the room full. He
[1:07] tells me that summer is
[1:09] officially over. Back with many
[1:11] accolades, Mr. Wright.
[1:12] Yes, ma'am. We have several, which
[1:15] is great. So, if you approve those
[1:17] resolutions, Madam President,
[1:19] we will begin.
[1:20] I propose that we approve the resolution.
[1:22] Second.
[1:22] I have one motion and one second. Everyone
[1:24] who is in favor, say yes.
[1:26] Against? The motion is approved.
[1:27] Very well, thank you, Madam President.
[1:29] Okay, first of all, let's
[1:30] introduce the
[1:32] North Middle School Beta
[1:34] Club song festival group. Forward. It seems that tonight it
[1:37] 's just women. Come in, ladies.
[1:39] Yes of course. Give them a hand. They know that
[1:46] North Middle Beta, Madam President,
[1:48] has taken off a lot in the last two
[1:51] years, and this group has come in second
[1:53] in the country. That is the United States of
[1:56] America. Second in the country at the
[1:58] song festival at the
[1:59] Beta National Conference. Well,
[2:02] there was a group of these young women. I'll
[2:04] let them introduce themselves. They didn't know he was going
[2:06] to do that. Maybe not. I'm going to
[2:08] let you introduce yourselves and say your
[2:09] names, please, ladies.
[2:11] Hi, I'm Julia Chris. I
[2:13] 'm Emmy Bird.
[2:14] I'm Lauren McDonald. I am
[2:15] Aisha Dia.
[2:16] I am Elizabeth Langley. I
[2:17] 'm Jenna Langley. I
[2:18] 'm Gabby Bird.
[2:19] And their parents are here. Parents, if you
[2:21] are here, please stand
[2:22] up. We will recognize them. All of you
[2:24] played an important role in this.
[2:28] Thanks, guys. Congratulations. Second
[2:30] in the country. That's great. Congratulations
[2:33] . We're going to give them a hand. And is Jade
[2:38] Bruner here? Jade, come up. Let's go up
[2:41] again, Jade. This is Jade
[2:43] Bruner, as you just discovered
[2:45] . She finished second in the country
[2:47] in ceramics at the Beta conference.
[2:50] Congratulations, Jason. As you can see,
[2:58] Madam President, it was a very
[3:00] productive summer for our students at
[3:01] the Beta National Conference. And now
[3:03] we're going to introduce a group of
[3:04] students from Central Hardin who
[3:06] did very well there. Case Preston,
[3:08] Jude Tabor, Jackson Hayes and Elijah
[3:10] Jorgenson. Get up here, guys. These
[3:19] guys won the national championship.
[3:21] These are the national champions in Quiz
[3:23] Bowl in the Beta national conference.
[3:25] Congratulations.
[3:31] Moms and dads are here too. So,
[3:33] congratulations to everyone. Thank you,
[3:34] gentlemen. And also, Rhett Edlin,
[3:38] Reagan Caster, Charles Reinhold and Wyatt
[3:41] Moore. Are they here? Come here,
[3:43] boys. These gentlemen won a
[3:50] national championship in musicology at
[3:52] the Beta National Conference. And Rhett,
[3:55] Charles, and Wyatt also won a
[3:58] national championship. Two, two medals,
[4:03] Mr. Casey. They won a
[4:06] national championship in solo instrumentalists,
[4:08] duos and trios at the
[4:10] national beta conference. Congratulations, guys.
[4:17] Brilliant. And now we would like to introduce
[4:19] Laken Yates. Come on, Laken. And this is
[4:22] the dress, Mr. Wise, that you may have to
[4:24] model later. This is
[4:28] Laken Yates. She won a
[4:31] national championship, first place in the
[4:33] nation, in fashion design at the
[4:35] FCCLA national conference with this
[4:37] beautiful design that she worked hard on
[4:39] . His parents are here.
[4:41] Congratulations, ladies. Tonight,
[4:49] many national championships with
[4:50] student recognitions, Madam
[4:52] President. Now we would like to
[4:54] introduce our Difference
[4:55] Maker awards.
[4:56] Mr. Wright, two students
[4:59] from North High School came.
[5:00] Yes, come here. Come and ask them to
[5:02] come in.
[5:03] That's how it is. They have to introduce themselves to everyone
[5:05] present.
[5:06] Wait. If the rest of the group can
[5:08] come, we...
[5:09] Yes, come again, ladies, so
[5:10] we can take a picture with all of you
[5:12] . Thank you, Mrs. Morgan. I didn't see them
[5:14] come in. I
[5:15] know. And now, the two young women, please
[5:17] introduce yourselves. State your
[5:20] names.
[5:21] I am Leona Johnson.
[5:23] I am Leona Mason.
[5:25] Brilliant. We have our new photo. Do
[5:27] they have a photo? We
[5:29] have it. We have our new photo.
[5:30] Brilliant. Congratulations, Skyler. Thank you
[5:33] . Very good. Well, now we would like to
[5:37] recognize the award winners
[5:39] who make a difference. Shyla
[5:42] Cortez was the first to be here
[5:44] this afternoon. Come, Shyla. She is a
[5:47] senior at
[5:48] Central Hardin High School. That's right
[5:49] , you can lend a hand. Shyla is
[5:53] our dedicated student. And this
[5:55] is the reason. She was a peer mentor in
[5:56] the low-incidence unit at
[5:58] Central Hardin High School,
[5:59] which means she works with
[6:00] students with special needs.
[6:02] He's been doing this for the last 2
[6:04] years and takes his role very seriously.
[6:06] It has a tremendous positive impact on
[6:08] our students. She is a true
[6:11] friend, helper, and role model for
[6:12] the students. She stood in line with her
[6:14] fellow mentors who were
[6:16] nervous about attending the
[6:18] homecoming dance, and they and she never
[6:19] left her side. She spent the afternoon
[6:22] dancing, taking photos, and
[6:23] including them in every minute of the
[6:25] night. She often attends
[6:27] extracurricular events and builds relationships
[6:29] with students in the
[6:30] low-incidence unit, and makes sure they
[6:31] are included and enjoy
[6:33] their time at the events. It is obvious that she is
[6:35] passionate about students with
[6:36] special needs and that she makes a
[6:38] positive difference every day in the
[6:39] work she does with them. Thank you
[6:41] for what you do, Sharon. And I know his
[6:47] family is here tonight.
[6:48] Raise your hand. Thank you all for
[6:50] raising a wonderful young woman. Very well
[6:54] , Ms. Megan Varella, come closer. Come on
[6:58] . We have to...I know she's
[7:00] excited to be here. Ms.
[7:05] Varella is the library media specialist
[7:06] at
[7:07] James T. Alton High School. She is a
[7:09] trusted leader, problem solver, and
[7:11] team player who
[7:12] consistently contributes ideas, supports
[7:14] school initiatives, and helps others
[7:16] succeed. Ms. Varella has an
[7:18] incredible ability to bring
[7:19] people together and move projects forward.
[7:21] Whether creating professional materials
[7:23] , helping staff members
[7:25] solve challenges, mentoring
[7:26] new teachers, or taking on
[7:27] additional responsibilities as a
[7:29] volunteer, she does it with a
[7:31] positive attitude and a commitment to the success
[7:32] of the school community. She does all this
[7:35] without seeking recognition for
[7:37] herself. She works quietly behind the
[7:38] scenes to help others succeed
[7:40] , improve school culture, and
[7:41] ensure that students and
[7:42] staff have what they need to
[7:44] thrive. They're incredible. Thank you, Reverend Miss
[7:45] . They also have a
[7:52] cheerleading section here.
[7:55] Next, we mentioned that
[7:56] our active collaborator was the
[7:57] president, and we would like to mention
[7:59] some more active collaborators, and
[8:00] this is one group. So come on over, if you're
[8:03] wearing a red shirt, come on over,
[8:04] or if you're affiliated with Central
[8:06] Kentucky Rods and Machines. Come
[8:08] here, boys.
[8:09] Oh, yes.
[8:12] We would like them to be here
[8:13] before we start talking about them.
[8:19] That's how it is.
[8:29] But there are many words we could
[8:31] say about this group, Madam
[8:32] President, the Central Kentucky Rides and
[8:33] Machines Group, and Mrs. Morgan might be able to
[8:35] add a few because she
[8:36] works very closely with this group.
[8:39] They take the names, work with
[8:41] our Family Resource Centers
[8:43] , take the names of between 200 and 300
[8:45] students, and work to bring them
[8:47] gifts during the holiday season
[8:50] and make sure they have
[8:52] bright and wonderful holidays. It's not just
[8:56] a day or a week, it's months and
[8:58] probably a year, probably a
[9:00] whole year's effort that these
[9:02] people give to our students
[9:04] , and they do it with a happy heart, and they
[9:06] are so wonderful to our
[9:08] students. So, we can't say
[9:11] that we appreciate them enough.
[9:13] Thank you for what you do. Thank you for what you
[9:15] do.
[9:15] Thank you.
[9:19] Yes sir. I'm
[9:21] going to praise the club. This club
[9:24] started in 1975 here in Elizabeth
[9:26] Town. And we have been
[9:29] celebrating this Christmas for children for 45 years
[9:31] . And I asked my boys to
[9:34] tell you the first and last things
[9:35] we did.
[9:36] Yes that's fine.
[9:37] 45 years ago we held a
[9:41] car show and the people who came donated
[9:45] money. We made $248. The first one we did
[9:49] had eight cars at the
[9:50] car show. Last year
[9:53] we were at Central High School and
[9:55] we couldn't bring cars inside because of
[9:58] True. They tried.
[10:02] Last year, you can see who does this. We do
[10:06] n't have everyone here. Some
[10:07] of them went to another
[10:09] car show or something like that. They went to the
[10:10] hospital. There are 17 members. I think there are 17
[10:14] members in my chapter.
[10:17] Last year, when we closed the books on the
[10:19] last day of Thanksgiving,
[10:21] right after the weekend
[10:23] following Thanksgiving, we made
[10:25] 68,400.
[10:26] That's wonderful.
[10:33] Thank you, thank you Teresa. But this
[10:36] year we have a 50,000 square foot building
[10:39] and we expect to fill it with cars
[10:42] . My goal this year is $70,000
[10:45] to take care of these children.
[10:48] Thank you all very much.
[10:49] Thank you for what you do for our
[10:51] children. I appreciate it. Thank you all.
[10:55] And I thought you were all
[10:56] bus drivers.
[11:01] Hey, you have to see how
[11:02] these sports cars drive. We
[11:04] know.
[11:06] Thank you all for what you do for
[11:07] our students.
[11:08] Thank you.
[11:09] We were troublemakers.
[11:11] But we appreciate them. Thank you. Yes,
[11:14] ma'am. Thank you.
[11:19] It's an organization I work for.
[11:22] That's how it is.
[11:26] Breanne Cunningham here? Is
[11:28] the young lady here? Come on, Miss
[11:29] Cunningham. I thought I saw her, but I
[11:30] wasn't sure. This is Breanne
[11:32] Cunningham, Madam President. She is the
[11:33] new assistant principal at
[11:35] Ronnie E. Betts Elementary School and is our
[11:37] personal advocate this month. In her
[11:39] previous position, she served as
[11:41] coordinator of
[11:43] the school's multilevel support system, MTSS in
[11:45] teacher jargon. It has integrated these
[11:47] efforts in unprecedented ways and
[11:49] has given teachers the
[11:51] opportunity and confidence to handle
[11:53] these tasks. It has also revamped the
[11:55] behavior management system and
[11:56] removed obstacles to create
[11:57] better reporting systems that
[11:58] have ultimately led to
[12:00] improved student behavior
[12:01] . Her behind-the-scenes work has been
[12:03] instrumental during her valuable time
[12:05] at Ronnie Bell Elementary School.
[12:06] Thank you. I appreciate them. Congratulations
[12:12] on your new position, Mrs. Cunningham.
[12:14] Very well, Mrs. Anita Howard, come in. Mrs
[12:17] . Howard, I saw her here. This is Mrs.
[12:20] Anita Howard. She is our
[12:23] effective communicator this month, Madam
[12:24] President, and she is the
[12:26] South End transport coordinator at our
[12:28] bus garage. He manages a
[12:30] very large geographical area with a
[12:32] large number of
[12:33] bus drivers, and his work is hectic
[12:35] every day, as you can imagine,
[12:37] but he never stops listening and always
[12:39] tries to help. Her nominator, who
[12:41] is in the room, Ms. Case,
[12:42] principal of Central Hardin, points out
[12:44] how Ms. Howard manages
[12:45] transportation just for her 1,800
[12:47] students across five different campuses
[12:49] where Central Hardin students
[12:51] attend class every day and
[12:52] always accommodates the needs of
[12:54] the school. Ms. Kay points out how
[12:56] Ms. Howard has made it possible for
[12:58] all first-year students to
[13:00] participate in clubs at Central Hardin
[13:02] despite being at Ruin Academy. They don't
[13:05] miss a single morale meeting and
[13:06] attend all the assemblies. It
[13:08] ensures that students do not
[13:09] miss opportunities due to
[13:11] limitations and barriers. She has even
[13:13] driven routes herself. He always
[13:16] makes possible things that seem
[13:18] impossible. Most people don't realize
[13:20] the time and effort they dedicate to
[13:21] their work. Show patience and
[13:23] understanding every day. You're
[13:24] amazing. Thank you, Renee. I
[13:26] apreciate it. And Mrs. Jenny Hyatt, come and
[13:33] bring your assistant. I think
[13:35] she probably deserves
[13:36] this award too. Well, this is Jenny Hyatt
[13:38] . She is a dental assistant instructor
[13:40] at the Early College and Career Center.
[13:43] And she is our responsible citizen.
[13:45] She and her daughter were working
[13:47] late one day after school when
[13:48] a fellow staff member approached them
[13:50] who wasn't feeling well.
[13:51] After assessing the situation,
[13:53] she quickly called 911.
[13:55] Mrs. Hack's daughter was also present and
[13:57] helped by searching the building for another
[13:59] adult to assist her. After an
[14:01] unsuccessful search, he returned and
[14:03] provided the necessary assistance. Mrs.
[14:05] Hack and his daughter, Finley, worked
[14:06] hard to ensure that
[14:08] the needs of a
[14:09] fellow staff member were met. Thank you for
[14:11] being there, Ms. Hack. Thank you.
[14:17] Your program, as you know, Madam
[14:18] President, is flourishing. The
[14:20] dental assistance program is
[14:22] working very well in EC3. So we
[14:24] thank you. Thank you, Madam
[14:26] President.
[14:26] Mrs. New. Tonight we'll focus on
[14:29] academics.
[14:31] Yes. My name is Brandy New.
[14:33] I'm here tonight on behalf of the
[14:35] Department of Educational Services.
[14:40] To invite you to something that is a great
[14:42] milestone for us, something we
[14:43] have been working on for the
[14:44] past two years, along with the
[14:46] instruction we have talked about
[14:47] for the past few years. We will
[14:50] show you many things with
[14:51] project-based and
[14:52] problem-based learning and the vibrant
[14:54] learning experiences that you all
[14:56] helped us celebrate last
[14:57] April. The experiences that
[14:59] teachers are creating in our
[15:01] classrooms every day. We see what
[15:03] our teachers do because they support
[15:05] each of these things for which we just
[15:06] saw awards here. Beta and
[15:08] all these external events, but there are
[15:10] also the children who only
[15:12] come to us during the day.
[15:14] We believe that the instruction
[15:15] we provide during the day is
[15:17] dynamic, offering
[15:19] many opportunities and giving
[15:21] children the chance to learn things
[15:23] in ways that seem relevant to them,
[15:25] and they will also be able to apply them to their
[15:27] real lives. Portrait has gone hand in
[15:29] hand with that. We are in the third year
[15:31] of a four-year plan, with
[15:32] Portrait of a Learner. Last year,
[15:34] all of our fifth and
[15:35] eighth grade students had to do
[15:37] defenses. And attending them and having
[15:39] the opportunity to see them in many of
[15:41] our schools, represented a change
[15:43] from the old style in which we
[15:44] only asked them questions. They came
[15:47] to us prepared, gave
[15:49] excellent public talks to
[15:51] strangers and adults, and were able to
[15:53] talk to us about those things. They cited the
[15:57] experiences they had in their classroom.
[15:59] The ones that attract their attention the most
[16:00] are those they are
[16:01] learning about. If they are doing a
[16:04] project and they have to carry it out and it becomes
[16:06] a community service
[16:08] or something that serves
[16:10] their school community, they are now taking note
[16:11] of: "Hey, that makes me a
[16:13] responsible citizen because I have to
[16:15] do this." Or when I work in groups
[16:18] and learn the group roles and learn how to
[16:20] talk to each other and respect, you
[16:22] know, with empathy and to value the
[16:23] opinions of others, they are
[16:25] starting to make the connections that
[16:27] those everyday things they are
[16:28] doing in their classroom, those
[16:30] vibrant experiences they are having,
[16:32] are also helping them to be
[16:34] effective communicators and collaborators. So
[16:37] we're very excited. This year, once
[16:39] again, we are nominating teachers and
[16:41] the instructional services department
[16:42] is in our
[16:44] buildings all the time, you know,
[16:45] checking the classrooms and seeing what's going on
[16:47] . We are already nominating teachers
[16:50] this year. We got a good
[16:52] certificate. We decided that all the
[16:53] nominees deserved a certificate, not
[16:55] just the 15 winners at the end of the year
[16:57] . You've probably seen them on
[17:01] social media if you've been following us for the
[17:03] past two weeks, because we really
[17:05] started handing them out in the
[17:07] last two weeks, but this year is
[17:09] the first time that all or all 900, I do
[17:11] n't know the exact number today, 900
[17:13] senior students will be doing their
[17:15] defenses. We will do them on November 23rd and 24th
[17:19] . That's the Monday and Tuesday
[17:21] before Thanksgiving this year.
[17:25] I'm taking a deep breath because
[17:26] the logistics behind this are keeping us up at
[17:27] night, but it's okay. We'll
[17:29] try our best. Casey will
[17:30] email
[17:32] everyone after tonight to
[17:33] follow up and check their availability.
[17:35] We would love it if all of you, if
[17:37] you can come for an hour or half a day, could
[17:39] tell us which of the three
[17:41] high schools or EC3 you would like to
[17:42] sit in and watch the students' defenses
[17:44] . We can invite you to
[17:46] see some of our children.
[17:48] Seeing them is something very special. You know
[17:52] a child. They feel like they know you. I
[17:54] told Miss Morgan that
[17:56] yesterday a boy approached me and said,
[17:57] "Hey, do you know me?" He hugged me in
[17:59] North Middle and I said to him, "I know you
[18:01] ." I attended hundreds of defenses and he
[18:04] told me, "You did my defense in
[18:06] Woodland last year." So those
[18:09] eight minutes I spent with him
[18:11] impacted me so much that now he thinks I
[18:13] know him. Yes, you know what I mean
[18:15] ? I could recall her little story
[18:16] once we started chatting, but it
[18:18] 's very special. Furthermore, schools
[18:20] are working very hard to
[18:22] ensure that teachers can
[18:24] see them because there is nothing more
[18:25] rewarding than sitting with a
[18:27] teacher who sees a student talking
[18:29] about all the lessons they learned from
[18:31] the experience that teacher gave them. It
[18:34] simply lets you know, as a
[18:35] teacher, that's why I do this.
[18:36] We teach content, obviously that's
[18:38] the goal, but all these things,
[18:40] the skills, the portrait of a
[18:41] student and the formation of these
[18:43] human beings, and you know, these
[18:44] strong human beings who have all these
[18:46] other characteristics, that's the
[18:48] reason why we get into this
[18:49] work and it's really exciting and
[18:51] valuable. So we'll send you some
[18:54] information, let you know your
[18:55] availability, and hope to see you
[18:57] all on November 23rd and 24th for
[19:00] part of what we hope will be a successful day or
[19:02] two of exam defenses
[19:04] for us this year. So say that
[19:07] . Thank you. Thank you.
[19:12] Very good. Next up is the
[19:15] recognition of visitors, and
[19:17] nobody has signed up. So that will
[19:20] bring us to the
[19:21] construction updates, and I think we have...
[19:22] We're here tonight to present
[19:24] . I
[19:27] 'm Justin. I didn't
[19:37] even see you hiding back there.
[19:54] Very good. For those who don't
[19:56] know, my name is Justin Vanzant. I am
[19:57] the project manager for the new
[19:59] West Hardin High School. Well,
[20:02] this is just an aerial view of what
[20:04] the building looks like
[20:06] today. You can move on to the next one. These
[20:10] are the different phases into which they are
[20:12] divided. We will review each phase and
[20:14] make a short progress report
[20:15] . We'll start with D, which you'll see in
[20:17] a couple of photos. Here's the
[20:20] gym. As I said in our
[20:22] previous meetings, it is
[20:25] 99% complete. All we have to
[20:28] do is sand and finish the
[20:30] gym floor. The finish is simply a
[20:34] polished look, all the colors, and
[20:35] then it will be 100% finished. The
[20:38] following photo is just an image of
[20:40] the stands that have been installed. You can
[20:43] move on to the next one. This is just a
[20:45] quick snapshot; there's nothing to see, just
[20:47] the engine room with all the
[20:49] geothermal equipment and everything that works
[20:51] there. This is a quick panoramic view
[20:54] of the band room. That's
[21:00] practically done.
[21:02] Next, we'll take a short
[21:04] tour of one of the corridors with
[21:06] the finished terrazzo flooring, and then
[21:08] we'll walk through the art room to
[21:10] offer a brief panoramic view.
[21:14] You can see that we have all the
[21:16] furniture finished, the flooring, and all
[21:18] the windows. Okay, you can move on to the
[21:26] next one. This is just a
[21:29] quick glimpse of the exterior of the restrooms that
[21:31] are finished in Zone D. I think we'll
[21:33] now go and look at Zone C, which
[21:35] contains the cafeteria, which
[21:37] will also be the auxiliary gym and kitchen.
[21:40] Here you can see
[21:42] the cafeteria floor being laid as
[21:44] we speak. We should finish up sometime
[21:46] next week. I would say that
[21:48] 80% has been completed. No, the
[21:50] three-dotted line doesn't look like that; it
[21:52] 's stepped. They will enter and
[21:54] finish it, where it is a
[21:55] really sharp line. Next,
[21:58] we'll take a quick tour of the
[22:00] kitchen. You will see all the
[22:02] different components. You'll see the
[22:04] refrigerator and freezer area here on the
[22:06] left. And then you'll see the entire
[22:08] kitchen extractor hood, the
[22:10] kitchen equipment, the
[22:12] service lines. We're almost 99.9%
[22:17] ready. Next, we'll move on to area B in
[22:21] the top right corner. This is the
[22:24] rear aisle that leads to the
[22:26] rear bus canopy. That
[22:28] floor is just a protection for the
[22:29] ground. All that terrazzo is now
[22:31] finished. You can see that the painting is already
[22:33] finished. All the windows and
[22:36] doors are ready. The following one
[22:39] I think is just one of the wings of the
[22:41] classrooms. You'll see that we have all the
[22:43] lockers installed. If you look to the
[22:45] right in that block, you'll see some
[22:47] white lines. That's just a minor tweak
[22:48] ; They will return to paint it until it is
[22:50] a single, uniform color. And
[22:53] then I have a couple of rooms under
[22:55] construction. Just to give you an
[22:57] idea of ​​what they look like right now. This
[22:59] is the resource room, and this is just
[23:01] one of the low-incidence rooms on
[23:03] the second floor that overlooks the
[23:04] back parking lot of
[23:06] Cecilia Valley Elementary School. And this is just
[23:09] a view from the rear
[23:11] bus canopy where the entrance
[23:14] used to be visible. And then we'll go down to Area A.
[23:17] That's where
[23:19] most of our construction is taking place right now
[23:21] . So I don't have much
[23:23] to show other than just a lot
[23:25] of equipment, materials, and people
[23:27] working. So this is just a
[23:29] quick look at the library as it
[23:30] appears. All those little
[23:32] square panels on the floor are just
[23:34] covering the holes where
[23:35] things will pass through. But other than that, it looks
[23:38] good. We should start
[23:40] doing drywall, doing all the
[23:42] suspended ceilings, all of that here in
[23:44] the next two weeks. This is the
[23:46] press box. So, to the
[23:48] left is where they will go up and
[23:49] organize all the
[23:51] concession stands that also have a view of the
[23:53] football field. The next photo
[23:56] will be of the press box where
[23:57] all the matches will be held and where everyone will be
[23:59] seated, and the following photo will be
[24:01] of the lower level of the press box,
[24:03] which will serve as a
[24:04] storage area. And this is an
[24:09] overview of the sports fields from
[24:12] the food stand. And I think
[24:15] the last one will be a quick aerial view
[24:17] of the project showing how
[24:19] the football field is completed with
[24:21] all the turf laid and what
[24:23] the school looks like today. And that's all I
[24:27] have. Any questions for
[24:29] me? It looks
[24:30] great. It looks great. It
[24:32] looks wonderful.
[24:33] Perfect. Thanks, guys. Thank you.
[24:42] Very good. Good night. My name is
[24:44] Caleb Carpenter. I am the
[24:46] project director for Trojan Way Elementary School
[24:48] . We won't talk about where it's
[24:50] located. It seems that this is being
[24:51] debated lately. Well, it started in
[24:54] March. We expect to finish it by
[24:56] early June 2028. That's still
[24:58] the plan. It's an
[25:00] updated background image, but we'll keep
[25:02] reviewing it, Shelly. Well, the
[25:05] current progress of the site. The
[25:08] site leveling is 100%
[25:10] behind schedule. We just have some
[25:13] general clearances, clean-ups, things like that. That's what you
[25:15] 're seeing in the
[25:16] bottom left corner. It's across
[25:18] the street from the school.
[25:21] A small table is being built. It will be
[25:23] covered with grass and covered by the
[25:25] end of autumn. Down to the right,
[25:28] they are seeing the rest of the other side of
[25:31] Trojan Way. So, all the
[25:34] water management, all of that is in place.
[25:36] You can see if you look to the right where
[25:39] the water will cross the street and then
[25:41] cross over to Joe B. Prather there.
[25:44] All of that has been done again. The
[25:46] retaining walls return to the
[25:47] top. Obviously, the
[25:50] construction platform is in place. They were
[25:51] looking from one end to the other. All
[25:54] the foundations have been completed, at
[25:56] least on the outside. We are
[25:59] working on the inner foundations
[26:00] from the other side of the image towards
[26:02] us. Well, we expect to finish them
[26:05] in the next month and a half, depending
[26:06] on the storm shelter and the
[26:08] masonry work that's going on
[26:10] there, which is a lot of the
[26:11] taller walls you can see right in the
[26:13] middle of the picture. Michelle, we can
[26:15] move on and start inspecting the
[26:17] building here. The building is
[26:19] divided into three different areas, A, B and C, from left to right
[26:25] in this photo. We will move to area A, one
[26:27] of the wings of the classrooms. These are the
[26:31] areas that, upon entering, I think I
[26:34] should have said C. C. has
[26:37] changed me. Unit C has classrooms,
[26:39] also has its own kitchen and
[26:42] then leads to the cafeteria
[26:44] there. The kitchen area would be in
[26:46] the image below, in the
[26:48] lower right corner, down here next to the
[26:50] high wall. That wall is the one that leads to
[26:53] the cafeteria, which is that
[26:54] open space on the right, which is also
[26:56] an auxiliary gym in this school.
[26:59] Everything else to the left are classrooms
[27:01] . And this photo was taken today. Well,
[27:05] we're heading there and then
[27:07] we'll put some hollow boards here
[27:09] , probably in 3 weeks, in that
[27:12] area as we go. So,
[27:14] Shelly, come this way. Area B, which I
[27:17] hope is Area B, is. The
[27:19] storm shelter is coming
[27:23] . We have all the
[27:25] door frames there, as you can see, on the
[27:27] left side of the photo below, the
[27:29] right side of the one above. Those are
[27:32] hollow boards that enclose a
[27:35] mezzanine area that was installed yesterday. They
[27:38] welded them together. They are starting to
[27:39] prepare all the meetings. We'll pour
[27:41] the slab and then this
[27:43] storm shelter will go completely
[27:45] vertical over the next month or month and a
[27:48] half here, and we'll close off this area and
[27:50] really start making progress on
[27:52] this building. You can move on to the
[27:54] next one. Area A, which is Area A.
[27:59] Wonderful. As you can see, there is still
[28:02] foundation work to be done. A
[28:05] lot of excavation has been done. In the photo
[28:07] above on the right that you see, they are
[28:08] ready. They plan to dump them tomorrow. So there's
[28:11] not much left to do regarding
[28:14] the interior foundations in area A
[28:16] for this first floor area here, and
[28:19] then we're preparing the
[28:21] initial block placement for pouring the slab, just
[28:23] like we did in area C. And then,
[28:26] again, it will go vertically from that point
[28:28] . Next slide for me,
[28:30] Shelley. And most importantly, behind
[28:34] the school is a large field of
[28:36] geothermal wells. 150 wells were
[28:39] drilled. We finished drilling on
[28:41] Tuesday of this week. If you see that large
[28:43] ditch running across the back, that
[28:45] was our water management for that
[28:47] process. If you haven't been there, that's a
[28:49] lot of water. From 50 to 60 gallons per
[28:52] minute in some cases. It needs to be
[28:54] contained and managed, especially
[28:55] with the stream that runs behind the
[28:57] property right here. You can't
[28:59] mix all that mud with water. It would be
[29:03] a disaster. Well, all that was just
[29:06] a provision to manage the water,
[29:07] pump it across the road, and
[29:09] make sure it's clean before it
[29:10] goes back into the community. And well,
[29:13] all that will disappear during the
[29:15] next month or month and a half before
[29:17] the winter season arrives. Okay
[29:20] , next. And then, this is just
[29:23] a fun little
[29:24] drone flyover. You can speed it up as much as
[29:28] you want, Shelly.
[29:32] Okay, great.
[29:33] The four rooms on the right.
[29:35] Repeat that.
[29:37] The four rooms on the right,
[29:38] that was the part we added. We're almost
[29:40] finished with it, right?
[29:42] Yes sir. Yes.
[29:43] Mhm.
[29:44] Okay. Yes. Okay, I understand. Alright
[29:48] . But yes, all of that is a
[29:51] low ceiling area here in the
[29:52] bottom right corner of what I was
[29:54] talking about, and then that will
[29:56] transition to a high ceiling section
[29:57] right where you see the
[29:59] door frame in the middle of the slab and where they are getting
[30:01] ready to move in. And all of that
[30:04] is again classroom space that
[30:07] extends to the kitchen area, which
[30:10] already has a slab poured right there.
[30:13] And then the refrigerator freezers
[30:15] will be in that back right corner
[30:16] that's a little hidden.
[30:18] So, the original design didn't
[30:19] include those four additional classrooms,
[30:21] but the cheapest time to
[30:22] add those classrooms is now.
[30:24] Correct.
[30:26] First it was drawn to add.
[30:29] Yes.
[30:31] They took advantage of the day to put it up. Yes.
[30:34] Taking into account the cost of
[30:35] construction materials.
[30:36] Clear. And then this is the
[30:38] gym's storm shelter area
[30:40] that we're focusing on right now
[30:41] . It's the most complicated one, and that's why
[30:46] we attack it first, we remove it from the
[30:48] path.
[30:50] And that's the new legislative requirement
[30:52] from, you know, 3 or 4 years ago.
[30:54] Yes. Yes. Correct. And it was hot today,
[31:02] so forgive those guys for
[31:04] standing still and watching it pass over
[31:05] them. We got off to a good start. Thank you all.
[31:10] Very good. That leads us to consider the
[31:13] consent agenda.
[31:17] Student Services, we have the approval
[31:18] of the school district calendar committee
[31:20] . Approval for the
[31:24] Central Hardin High School senior class to travel to
[31:25] Atlanta from May 6-8 via
[31:27] a commercial airline. Approval
[31:29] for John Hardin's senior class to
[31:31] travel to Atlanta, Georgia. It's
[31:32] becoming a popular destination.
[31:34] From May 6 to 8 via a
[31:36] commercial airline. And approval
[31:39] for John Hardin's FCCLA High School to
[31:41] travel to Orlando, Florida,
[31:44] from October 17-21. And approval
[31:47] of the December 12 graduation date
[31:48] for the summer,
[31:50] fall, and winter graduates of
[31:52] Hardin County High School,
[31:53] College View, and E-school. In
[31:56] financial services, we receive
[31:58] monthly financial reports. We approved the
[32:01] accounts payable reports, and
[32:02] we received the school's financial reports
[32:04] . We are approving the
[32:07] work budget for fiscal year
[32:09] 2027. That was thoroughly reviewed at our
[32:12] lunch meeting. Approval of the
[32:17] fiscal year 27 indirect cost rates, approval of some
[32:19] change orders for Central Hardin,
[32:21] approval of change orders for
[32:23] Trojan Way, and approval of
[32:26] school-wide fundraising. We have our
[32:29] certified and classified personnel actions and
[32:30] approval from all 27
[32:32] optional benefit providers. We received the
[32:36] SBDM minutes, package information,
[32:39] and all our board minutes.
[32:42] We were busy last month. And that's
[32:45] all on the consent agenda.
[32:47] Motion to approve the
[32:49] consent agenda.
[32:49] Second.
[32:50] I have one motion and one second.
[32:52] Any further discussion?
[32:54] I would like to say that Jess has been
[32:55] here for the past 20 years. He
[32:58] guided us well with our
[33:00] budget and I appreciate what he has done
[33:02] . Sometimes it hasn't been an easy task
[33:05] because I think the
[33:07] peanut butter and jam sometimes
[33:09] thin out and we have to spread it
[33:10] a lot. Yes, he has done a good job.
[33:14] I appreciate what you've done.
[33:17] Of course. I know it's been a
[33:19] lot of hard work, so...Very good.
[33:22] If there is no further discussion, I have one
[33:24] motion and one second, so all
[33:25] those in favor, please
[33:27] state "I".
[33:29] Against? The motion is approved. That
[33:32] brings us to the action items,
[33:34] name selection, mascot, and
[33:35] school colors for the new
[33:37] elementary school being built in
[33:38] Radcliff to replace
[33:40] North Park Elementary. That's what we just saw
[33:42] at the meeting.
[33:45] I propose that the board approve the
[33:47] elementary school name Trojan Way, that it use the
[33:49] colors blue and white, and the Trojans
[33:51] as its mascot.
[33:53] I will support the motion.
[33:55] Really?
[33:58] Very well, Mr. Weiss. Any further
[34:01] discussion? I couldn't think of
[34:03] anything better.
[34:04] I think we chose that name
[34:06] primarily because we were looking to have a
[34:08] new beginning, and we believe that by
[34:09] starting with a new name we will have
[34:11] a new mission and a new era for
[34:13] that school. So I hope
[34:15] people understand.
[34:17] And it's definitely going to be a good thing, I
[34:20] mean, it's a really
[34:23] new school, a new concept, and I think we
[34:26] stumbled across Trojan Way as a sort
[34:28] of placeholder and we started
[34:31] liking it. It seems to encompass many
[34:37] different meanings and things like that,
[34:39] so I'd just
[34:40] like to say that the decision to
[34:42] choose that name wasn't
[34:44] particularly easy. In fact, this
[34:48] has been one of the most
[34:50] discussed, debated and commented-on decisions
[34:53] we have made since I joined the
[34:55] board, and I have been here for 6 years now. Because
[34:59] a school is only named once. That's why we need to
[35:02] try to make a good
[35:03] decision. We had some good
[35:06] suggestions, but there was one of those
[35:08] rare moments when we had two
[35:10] or three board members as one, and
[35:12] two or three more as another different one.
[35:15] But in the end, Trojan Way
[35:17] became something we
[35:20] all
[35:23] got used to and started to like, and
[35:25] we started calling it that
[35:27] ourselves. So I think that's why
[35:29] we feel comfortable moving forward
[35:31] with it. It's a
[35:32] new beginning. It's a new school. And I
[35:35] think it's a very fitting name
[35:38] for that particular school.
[35:44] And the Trojans have their four things they
[35:47] say: be prepared, be
[35:49] productive, be polite, and be
[35:52] punctual.
[35:52] Thank you. And that would be the
[35:56] Trojan way. And it makes a lot of sense for
[35:59] elementary school. Of course.
[36:02] So.
[36:04] Very well, if there is no further discussion,
[36:06] I have a motion. I don't know if anyone
[36:08] seconded her.
[36:08] Yes, we have one...
[36:09] Oh, sorry. Good. So I have a
[36:11] motion and someone seconded it. All
[36:12] those who are in favor, please
[36:14] indicate so by saying "yes".
[36:16] Against? The motion is approved. Very well
[36:20] , and I don't think we have any
[36:22] new business.
[36:22] No.
[36:23] And that brings us to the superintendent's report
[36:24] .
[36:25] Yes, mine will be very brief. I am
[36:28] pleased to say that at the meeting with
[36:30] our kindergarten teachers
[36:32] this year, Mr. Wise
[36:34] shared that he appreciated me
[36:35] sharing about what parents
[36:37] should do to prepare their children
[36:39] for school. And I will share that
[36:43] several kindergarten teachers
[36:45] have shared that when they are doing
[36:48] a mandatory Brigance test,
[36:51] several students talk about reading
[36:53] with their parents. Open a book, not a
[36:56] phone, but open a book and how
[36:58] much they enjoyed reading with their
[37:00] parents and knowing which way to
[37:02] put the book so that the words
[37:04] were at the bottom and which
[37:06] way to turn the pages. And I think
[37:08] parents are hearing that
[37:11] their young students don't need
[37:13] technology, and I hope our
[37:15] grades reflect all that
[37:17] work from our parents, but if
[37:19] you are one of them, please continue
[37:21] reading to your children. If it isn't,
[37:24] start. And again, we're
[37:27] finding many studies that say
[37:29] children under five do
[37:32] n't need
[37:34] screen time, unless it's a
[37:36] video call with a grandparent or other
[37:38] important adult in their lives. So, for
[37:41] those of you who do,
[37:42] thank you. We are realizing
[37:43] that. Our teachers are
[37:45] noticing it. And if we maintain that trend,
[37:47] we'll be in a much better position.
[37:49] So, thank you.
[37:50] Amen.
[37:52] Perfect. Very good. And we don't need
[37:56] an executive session.
[37:57] No. It
[37:58] takes us to our
[38:00] meeting schedule. September 18, 5:00,
[38:02] Crescendo for academics at The House
[38:05] on Helm. It's a fundraiser
[38:08] for the orchestra, right?
[38:09] Yes.
[38:10] And on September 24 at 11:00 a.m.
[38:14] Eastern Time, there will be a luncheon for
[38:17] distinguished HCS alumni at EC3. From October 5th to 9th, it
[38:21] 's already autumn vacation.
[38:25] Yes. On
[38:26] October 12, classes end for
[38:28] Professional Learning Day.
[38:30] Our next
[38:32] board meeting will be on October 15th. Our
[38:35] lunch meeting will be at West Hardin Middle
[38:37] and our afternoon meeting will be
[38:39] here.
[38:41] Brilliant.
[38:43] Motion to adjourn the session.
[38:46] Second.
[38:48] I have one motion and one second. Everyone in
[38:49] favor, please show it by
[38:51] saying yes.
[38:52] Against? The motion is approved.
[38:54] Thank you all for coming tonight.
[38:56] Good evening, Mr. Gibbs.