Welcome to this study session of the henry county board of education. In order to ensure
productive meeting, attendees at the meeting have agreed to the decorum expected of a meeting of the board of education. Disruption to conducting the business of the
board will result in the board moving to recess, a virtual format or suspension of the
meeting to a later date. We have a productive meeting ahead and I will turn it over to the
chair. Thank you so much, miss riddle, and good afternoon, everyone, and happy december. I
would like to call to order the special, regularly scheduled study session of the henry
county board of education on monday, december 8th at 4:02 p.m. And I will turn it over to
doctor pace for his welcome. Thank you, madam chair. Members of the board and our community,
welcome to the december meeting of the henry county board of education. Before we begin,
please join me in a moment of silence as I acknowledge the passing of a member of our
administrative team over the weekend. Thank you. We want to acknowledge that december 2nd
was national special education day. This day reminds us of the unique strengths and
capabilities of every student in our care. We are proud of the culture of inclusivity
across henry county schools and celebrate our students, teachers, and staff for their
commitment to supporting an environment where every student can thrive. The georgia
department of education recently released the 2024 2025 college and career ready
performance index, and I am proud to announce that across the district, elementary,
middle and high schools show significant improvements in the five components measured. Hchs
was also one of four districts highlighted by the georgia department of education to
illustrate statewide gains, particularly in the content mastery and readiness
components. We commend our students for their hard work and our teachers, school and
district leaders and staff for their commitment and our families for their dedication
to prioritizing exceptional student outcomes. And yet another outstanding example of
this board's effort to ensure bright futures begin in henry county schools. The georgia
department of education also recently recognized 20 high schools as 2024 2025. Literacy
and math leaders. Congratulations again to our hard working students, teachers,
staff, leaders, and families all across the district. We are henry proud and as we celebrate
outcomes of our board's visionary leadership, it gives me great pleasure to share that
this award winning team has added another achievement to his growing list of accolades.
I mentioned in a previous board meeting that the georgia school boards association recognized
our henry county board of education as an exemplary board for 2025, and gsba officially
presented the award to the board last week at the gsba annual conference. We
congratulate them again on this well-deserved honor. Exemplary board recognition is the
highest mark of distinction in gsba recognition program, presented to georgia school
boards that have met or exceeded rigorous criteria, including demonstrated
commitment to maintaining high governance standards and creating a thriving culture of
success for students and their communities. This is the board's fifth exemplary board
award since 2020. Let's give our board of education a round of applause. I commend our
board's leadership in in public education and henry county schools and across the great
state of georgia. Madam chair, that concludes my welcome. And I turn it back over to you.
thank you so much, doctor pace, for that. Welcome. And we will now move down to d our
informational items for the afternoon. We will begin this afternoon with item d1a and
I'll turn it back over to you. Thank you, madam chair. For information on item d, one a,
I'd like to invite our chief learning and performance officer, doctor chip johnson, for a fine arts update. Good afternoon, madam chair. Members of the board and superintendent
pace. Today I have the pleasure of sharing an update on our remarkable progress within fine
arts through the arts. We're not only opening doors, but creating spaces where every
student can thrive, discover their passions, and realize their fullest potential. As a
board, you have emphasized that advancing pre-k through 12th grade learning opportunities
for all students is a top priority. Your high expectations are reflected in
the core policies and priority outcomes, and aligned to your community inspired strategic
plan. Today, I will provide an update on the expansion of fine arts, showcasing how your
investments are delivering world class experiences for our students. The arts are truly
alive in our district, with vibrant choral programs available to students at every
level and orchestra expanding to new horizons interest. Action one initiative for you
call for an expansion of fine arts at every school and across the district. Currently, 100%
of our middle schools and 90% of our high schools offer orchestra, with plans of the
remaining high school to launch orchestra next school year. Each year, because of your
investments, more students have the chance to discover the joy of music, making evidence of
your dedication to expanding opportunities and access. We're thrilled to offer theater at
every high school and the academy for advanced studies. Additionally, we eagerly anticipate our fourth annual district art exhibition this spring, which will showcase
over 800 pieces of artwork. And, of course, our superintendents art gallery continues to
feature standout works from our talented young artists. In henry county schools. We open
the doors for students to explore the vibrant worlds of music, visual arts and more.
this provides them with opportunities to tap into their creativity, expand their
imaginations, and uncover new potential within themselves. We proudly serve almost 14,000
distinct secondary level students enrolled in fine arts courses. Many of these students
take more than one fine arts course, reflecting a growing enthusiasm for arts education
in our district. Last school year, about 12,000 students were enrolled, with a
significant portion also participating in multiple courses. This represents a 13%
increase in overall student enrollment in fine arts. This increase is largely due to
expansion of our course offerings at the high school level this past year. We are
especially proud to honor 175 outstanding graduates who earned the prestigious georgia
department of education fine arts diploma seal, highlighting their talent, dedication and
passion for the arts. Professional development strategically supports the
effective use of resources and materials acquired through the board's investment. Visual arts
professional development focuses on hands on studio sessions in areas such as
bookmaking, ceramics, pottery, wheel throwing techniques, and painting. Elementary music
teachers participated in professional learning focused on strengthening instruction
with practical tools and techniques. Teachers engaged in an active music making segment
to practice strategies for teaching rhythm, melody, and basic notation to k-5 students.
professional development for secondary band, chorus and orchestra teachers reinforce
best practices, focusing on integrating key technology platforms. Teachers receive
training on make music to enhance instructional planning and the use of a vast digital
catalog. They also attended a sight reading factory workshop, gaining strategies to develop
student sight singing skills using customized exercises and audio assessment to equip our
students with industry standard skills. Our music and technology teachers are working
towards completing the avid pro certification. This credential focuses on professional music
production, editing, and mixing within the pro tools software. Theater teachers engaged in
professional learning focused on essential strategies for stage production. A critical
component of the training focused on the mastery of the newly installed lighting systems. Dance teachers were introduced to creative approaches for teaching dance
across k-12 settings. They explored new movement techniques and ways to
integrate rhythm, expression, and storytelling into their classrooms. These professional
development initiatives ensure every fine arts student benefits from skilled, inspired
teaching. The district has expanded guitar instruction to three middle schools and four
high schools. This year also marks an exciting milestone with the launch of the
district's first ever honor guitar festival, expanding opportunities for student performance and recognition. We have strengthened guitar programs through a variety of
partnerships with the university of georgia lead guitar program. Through our
partnership with the university of georgia, schools gain access to expert guidance that
strengthen technique, expand repertoire, and elevate overall program quality. This
collaboration not only enhances classroom instruction, but also creates meaningful
opportunities for students to grow as musicians and engage in a nationally recognized guitar
education program. Orchestra programs have expanded to every middle school in the district,
ensuring that all students now have access to a comprehensive and well-rounded orchestra
program. With nine high schools also offering orchestra, students can continue to
develop their skills through advanced performance opportunities. This district wide growth highlights the strong commitment to providing high quality fine arts
instruction for all students. Due to your unwavering commitment to the arts, you've
made significant investments to strengthen and elevate our fine arts programs across the district. As mentioned, through your strategic plan, you've expanded orchestra programs at
both middle and high school levels, ensuring more students can experience the joy of strings. You've also supported the replacement of marching band uniforms in all high
schools, with the final three schools receiving their new uniforms in time for the 2026
football season and marching band competitions. In addition, your investment in replacing
aging band equipment ensures that students have reliable, high quality instruments that
support strong music performance and instruction. To elevate our visual arts
offerings, you have invested in new equipment, creating a consistent and inspiring
environment for all students in alignment with your strategic plan for high school theater.
all high school theater classrooms now have functional black box spaces that support
small productions and creative expression. Additionally, your ongoing commitment ensures that
students at the academy for advanced studies have access to a state of the art music
technology lab, providing unparalleled opportunities for innovation and artistic growth.
each year, fine arts each year, fine arts brings our students talents to life through 14
honor events that celebrate creativity, collaboration, and excellence. These gatherings
not only challenge students to reach new heights, but also foster a vibrant sense of
community. This year, over 450 musicians dazzled at the marching band exhibition, while
230 actors took center stage during the spotlight one act festival and nearly 300 middle
school singers harmonized beautifully at the middle school honor chorus from honor
band to honor orchestra, our students continually showcase skill, passion and imagination,
adding to the excitement. This year marks the inaugural guitar festival, giving budding
guitarists a chance to shine and join the growing legacy of fine arts excellence. We are
proud of our strong partnerships with the gallery at hood street, uga lead guitar
and spivey hall, which help expand opportunities and experience for our fine arts
students. Each year, the gallery at hood street hosts our district's annual student
art exhibition, providing a professional gallery space for students to showcase their
creativity and hard work. Our collaboration with uga and lead guitar brings expert
instruction and mentorship to our guitar students, fostering musical growth and connection
with higher education. Additionally, spivey hall offers our middle school honor
course students. The extraordinary experience of rehearsing and performing in a world class concert hall and enriching their artistry and confidence. These partnerships
strengthen our district's commitment to the arts by giving students real world platforms to learn, collaborate and shine. Fine arts is where talent meets dedication and
creativity meets community. From the stage to the gallery, from rehearsals to world class
performance halls, our students continually inspire with their passion, skill and imagination.
together with our teachers, families and community partners, we celebrate their achievements
today and look forward with excitement to the artistic possibilities of tomorrow.
superintendent pace, this concludes my update and I yield the floor to you. Thank you,
doctor johnson. Madam chair, that concludes our fine arts update, and I give it over to
the board for any questions. What I'd like to say I want to thank our fine arts team and
their leadership for providing these exceptional opportunities and access for our students,
and bringing the board's vision to fruition. Thank you, doctor pace. And thank you, doctor
johnson, for that incredible update. Does any board member have any discussion, miss carter? I just want to say thank you so much, doctor johnson. All this is incredible.
and I'm just excited for all the opportunities we have for our students. So thank you so
much for your hard work. Thank you, miss carter. Doctor nutt. Good afternoon. Thank you for
this report. Where will the art exhibit be at this year? The gallery at hood street. Back at
hood street. Will there be items for purchase there, like there was a couple of years ago?
I will have to look into that possibility. I need to know when mister marion's not going
to go, because she bid on a lot of the artwork. And I'm not going to let you beat me. And I
didn't realize that she was just driving up the price. And that was a very painful lesson
that I learned. So just let me know when she's not going. So I won't spend as much. Thank you.
doctor night. I'm sure it was worth every penny, miss edwards. Well, with that being said,
I'll just be it for all of you. I'll get there. But thank you for that report. Fantastic. I
just want to say, I know the board really thinks the partners, the partnerships for
giving the students the real world experiences, because this is just phenomenal to see. The
fine arts program has grown over the last couple of years like it has. So thank you for
that report. Thank you, miss edwards. Mr. Mcdaniel, I just want to say that I had the
pleasure of going to. When they did the wiz. I want to say the the play and to see what so
many of our scholars do and to see how everyone that has something to do with fine arts
and drama and theater, how it all comes together. So to every person, teacher that touches
our students when it comes down to fine arts, band, drama, theater, thank you for your
dedication and taking the lights, the dreams, the hopes and aspirations of every single
student and putting it on stage for the world to see. We don't know the talent that we have
here yet, but I'm here to tell you when they turn the tassel. Watch out america, because we
got some great students right here that does a great job with some great teachers. So thank
you all for what you're doing, and I look forward to seeing more from our orchestra and our
core students. So thank you. Thank you, mr. Mcdaniel. I also just want to thank the entire
team. I know that it is just a labor of love for all of the fine arts educators and the
leaders here at the district. It is really amazing to see how far we've come over the last
several years and hearing back from our community several years ago and what they hoped
to see, it's all come to life. And it's I know that this is just the beginning, and I just
know the value that fine arts plays in kids lives beyond the classroom. And I'm really
grateful for the access that our students have. So thank you so much. We appreciate it. We
will now move in our agenda to informational item d2a doctor pace. Thank you, madam chair
for information. Item d2a state accountability report college and career ready performance
index update I'd like to invite our deputy superintendent, school improvement and
accountability, mrs. Mary mccreary, to the podium. Good afternoon, madam chair. Members
of the board and superintendent pace, today I am bringing an update on the college career
ready performance index, or crp. I as a board, you established a core belief that every student
can learn at or above grade level and will have equal opportunities to do so. This
belief is embedded in policy iab, which advances opportunities, access and
outcomes for all students, and policy ib, which which fosters a culture of performance across
the district, schools and classrooms. The college and career ready performance index
crp is georgia's annual tool for measuring how well its schools, districts and the
state itself are preparing students for the next educational level. It was
designed to provide a comprehensive roadmap to help educators, parents and community members promote and improve academic readiness for all students. The crp includes
the following components. Content mastery evaluates whether students meet
achievement levels in english, language arts, math, science, and social studies to prepare
for the next grade, college or career using georgia milestones and alternate assessment 2.0
scores. Progress tracks growth in english language arts and math, as well as english
learners. Progress toward proficiency compared to similar peers. Closing gaps assesses
improvements in academic achievement for all students and student groups based on
state defined targets and improvement flags, readiness measures participation in
activities that prepare students for the next level. College or career indicators
include grade level reading, attendance, and additional academic or career readiness
metrics varying by school level. Now let's take a look at our performance. Let's begin with
content mastery, which reflects student proficiency on the georgia milestones assessment and the alternate assessment 2.0. To orient you to this graph, the bars represent henry
county schools 24 and 25 performance with a lighter purple showing 24 and the
darker purple showing 25. The dot indicates the state's performance and the orange
square represents the resa. Henry county schools posted gains at every level elementary,
middle and high school. And at the elementary level especially, we significantly reduce the gap
between our performance and the state's performance. This is a strong signal that our
collective efforts are taking hold. It's momentum worth celebrating as we continue to
rise, let's take a moment to recognize the schools displayed on the screen for their
impressive growth and content mastery. A special shout out goes out to east lake, new hope,
and timber ridge elementary schools for surpassing the state's content mastery score.
we also celebrate union grove and ola middle and high schools for outperforming the state
score as well. In addition, the elementary schools displayed on the screen increased content
mastery from school year 24 to 25. Allow me to call out this elementary schools that posted
notable gains in content mastery with increases of five points or more austin road,
bethlehem, eastlake, hampton, locust grove, luella, new hope, oakland, pace creek, rock
springs, smith, barnes, timber ridge, unity grove, walnut creek, and wesley lakes. These
results reflect real momentum and the strong work happening in our elementary schools. The
middle and high schools demonstrating growth are displayed on the screen as well.
let me call out schools again with gains or five points or more, including austin road,
mcdonough and stockbridge middle schools, as well as stockbridge, ola and union
grove high schools. As you can see, the growth we're seeing in content mastery across schools
is worth acknowledging as we keep moving forward. The question. Holes and gaps
measures the percent of student groups meeting state set improvement targets, and it displays the progress made in improving student performance among each student group. It's
important to note that high performance one year will cause targets to be higher the
following year, and while not directly comparable due to the exclusion of math, due to the
new standards, we have significantly reduced the gap between our closing gap performance and the state's closing gaps. Performance from 24 to 25. Take a look at our
elementary and high school performance, which eclipsed the state closing gap score this
year, and our middle schools outpaced the resa. We are proud to be moving in the right
direction, but still recognize there is continued work to do to accelerate achievement. Now
let's acknowledge the elementary, middle and high schools that met or surpassed
the state closing gap score. Schools earning 100 on this component include cotton,
indian, locust grove, new hope, and rock spring elementary schools. Ola middle school and
dutchtown, mcdonough and ola high schools. Now let's shift our focus to progress where
there is real momentum. To celebrate, you'll see that we increased at every level for
this component as well. This measure captures the growth students demonstrate in english
language arts and mathematics along with the progress english english learners make towards
english language proficiency at the elementary and high school levels. Our performance output
outpaced both the state and the griffin resa, and at the middle school level, henry county
schools significantly narrowed the gap between our performance and the performance of the
state and the resa. Please join me in congratulating the 30 schools displayed at the top of
the screen for surpassing the state's progress score. Now, let's take a look at the
elementary schools that increase their progress scores year over year. Schools with
gains above five percentage points include austin road, bethlehem, dutchtown, east lake,
clifton, luella, mount carmel, new hope, oakland, ola, pace creek, pleasant grove, red oak,
rocky creek, smith, barnes, stockbridge, timber ridge, tulsa hall, unity grove, walnut
creek, wesley lakes, and woodland elementary school. Their growth represents strong
momentum and reflects the focused work happening in our elementary schools. And kudos
to the middle and high schools displayed on the screen for demonstrating year over year
growth on the progress component as well. Austin road, dutchtown, hampton, mcdonough,
stockbridge, and union grove middle schools each posted increases of five points or
more. You will also notice eagles landing, hampton, locust grove, luella and stockbridge
high schools achieved gains of five points or more as well. Now let's take a look at the
readiness. Component readiness includes the percentage of students reading at or above
grade level, student attendance, and college and career preparation beyond the core in
elementary school. Beyond the core measures the percentage of students earning a passing score in fine arts, world language, career readiness, or computer science, with physical
education and health added. At the middle school level. This component is the fruit of your
strategic plan investments coming to life. It reflects the intentional choices you made to
strengthen literacy, expand fine arts, and broaden opportunities, access and outcomes for all kids. As displayed on the screen. You will see we increased at every
level, any readiness component as well. In elementary, our performance gap between the
state and the resa is even smaller. In 2025, we nearly tied the state within one tenth
of a point and surpassed the resa at the middle school level, and we saw a 4.1. Increase at
the high school level. 98% of our schools improve their readiness scores year over year,
a powerful signal of our growing momentum and aligned efforts across the district.
congratulations to the schools displayed on the screen for outperforming the state
readiness score, including union grove middle school, which earned over 90 points on
this component year over year. Increases for elementary schools are also highly
highlighted on the screen, with a special shout out to fairview rock spring and unity grove for
increasing by over five points. Congratulations to the middle and high schools displayed on
the screen for their increased performance and readiness during the 2425 school year.
take a look at the stockbridge and excel academy middle, as well as dutchtown, eagle's
landing, and hampton high schools for increasing by over five points on the readiness
component. Now let's take a look at graduation rate. It is included in the high school
calculation and is displayed here for your review. Henry's four year graduation rate
outpaced the state performance for the 2425 school year. Our overall graduation rate and
four year graduation rate increase. While the five year rate decreased slightly. Kudos
to our incredible school leaders and teams on improving outcomes for kids. Let's
celebrate every henry county school that surpassed the state's graduation rate, an
incredible milestone that reflects focus, persistence, and belief in our students. A
special shout out goes out to dutchtown, hampton, high schoolr exceeding a 90% graduation rate.
and this is truly exceptional performance. And we also want to recognize the schools on the
screen that improved their graduation rate year over year. Check out locust grove high
school, who increased by 8.2 points this year. Kudos to all of our schools and leaders
there. Steady progress is moving our district forward. Henry county yes, I heard it.
henry county schools is building real momentum and our results show it. We're
improving in the areas that matter for our students and our community. Inspired plan is
taking hold in every school. We're focused and committed to getting better every day, and while we're proud of the progress, we know there is still more work ahead to reach
the level of excellence our students deserve. As we move forward, we're guided by a
simple truth progress is built on purpose, and purpose requires action. That's exactly
what our teams are demonstrating across the district, with our strong leaders and teachers, clear priorities, and a community with big hopes and dreams for
our schools, we will continue accelerating achievement and expanding access and
opportunity for every learner. Doctor pace, this concludes my report. I'll turn it over to
you. Thank you, mrs. Mccrary. Madam chair and board, that concludes our update on the
state accountability report. And, madam chair, if you don't mind, I would like to ask all
of our principals to please stand to be recognized principals. Can you please stand? Because so much happens, right? And I want to recognize you. And of course, this is a
organizational effort. I just want to recognize our principals for the great work
they do. Many times when things aren't right, they're called to the forefront. I want to make
sure they're recognized when things are right, and we tell them, thank you and everyone
who chooses to follow them teachers, our staff, our students, our parents. We thank
you because we believe in a leader leader model, but we have some of the best leaders
here and thank you for the work that you do. I'm sorry, madam chair. I turn it back over to
you. Thank you, doctor pace. You stole all of our thunder. We were going to have you stand
five different times. Mr. Mcdaniel, did you have comments? Well, that was my comment. But
ditto to what doctor pacer said to every building leader that's in here, to every assistant
principal, every graduation coach, every counselor who has to serve as mom and dad away
from home, every teacher that has to give a warm embrace to a young, young scholar who needs
an extra push, who's away from home and sees you as a model of success and looks to you for
vision and insight. We thank you not only just today, but every day for the work that you
do to every assistant superintendent that has to embed him or herself with
building leaders. We thank you for what you do to every district person far and near
wide looking on tv or here. We thank you for what you do to make sure that every single
scholar that calls henry county home has equal opportunity to not only excel, but surpass any
expectation that they may have in life, but that life places upon them. So we honor you for
what you've done. We thank you for what you do. We. I almost had a moment just then, but but
we truly are grateful for what you have done. And I cannot say enough words. And I say that
because I have four kids that goes and call henry county home. So I know what it is. And I
know, and I'm looking at their principal who's here and their former principal right now, and I thank them both for what they have done for my children. So I speak from my heart when I say
thank you, thank you, thank you. That's my comments. Thank you, mr. Mcdaniel. Miss carter. Yeah,
I did both of them. And I just want to say to to all administration, to our
principals, I have three kids that are in henry county schools also, and I can't look
at my principals. But just thank you all so much for all your hard work. It truly does
not go unnoticed. Y'all's hard work is truly appreciated. And to marion, thank you so much to
your team. Your enthusiasm has not gone unnoticed also and just truly appreciate your hard work. Thank you. Thank you, miss carter. Miss edwards, thank you very much. Beautiful
report. And I would just like to say the reports that are given today reflects the hard
work that all of you are doing. And we're so grateful we sit up here on this dais. You may
think that we're not grateful, but we are grateful because we know it's a lot of work. I
don't have any kids in the system. I'm a grown, grown and on their own. But I am still
grateful for everything that you all do. And I want to say to doctor pace, thank you for
your leadership and your staff because you all are doing a great job. Thank you. Thank you,
miss edwards. Doctor nutt. Thank you also for the report. I have a couple questions,
though. What has changed this year to bring up the scores? Because we didn't have this
many schools on the crp last year, and people would remind me of that day in and day out.
so what has the change been to bring up our scores? Has the state changed their evaluation
system? Do we have less title and transient folks? I would say no to that one. So how
what's made the difference, doctor? Well, I would say to that is this has definitely
been a a yeoman's effort on behalf of schools as well as districts providing support to
answer your questions directly. No, the state has not changed the evaluation as it relates to
the crp, but what I can tell you is what we have worked on is making sure that we have a
culture of reciprocal accountability. The accountability is not just about what's happening in schools. It is about what we're doing at the district in
support of schools. And so this is a two way feedback system. I was just in a walk through last
week. This today is monday, right? Yeah. Last week I was just in a walk through last
week. And so there were nuggets not just for the school but for us to improve upon as a
district. And so just deepening our focus on ensuring that our students are learning at grade
level and have the supports to be able to do that, as you have called for in your core beliefs.
so that really has been us strengthening that system that makes that a possibility. I
just want to make sure that we celebrate all schools, the 30 that we did tonight. But I want
to make sure the 20 plus be on the list, because I know there's something in all of our
schools we can celebrate. Well, I just don't want them to be left out. Totally understood.
and just as I call out in the report, 98% of our schools improved in the area of
readiness. And so you're exactly right. There are things to celebrate in every single
one of our schools. So thank you for calling that out. Thank you so much, doctor nutt. I
just want to thank you. And when this news first came out and y'all had like a mini, it
was a it felt like a pep rally. We're going to call it a pep rally. It was just so hard not
to be emotional. I am beyond proud of the work that happens each and every day and every
single one of our schools, and I know that the work that you all report on that's happening
in our classrooms every day is, is how this is working and how we have seen such consistent
growth. And I'm just incredibly proud of everyone in the organization. The principal,
some of the principles that day were able to share some of the practices that they have
implemented in their building and that, you know, they have seen such great results from.
so I love that we have a culture in this county where we learn from one another, and the
principals can support one another and call on each other to see what's working in their
buildings. I think that that is just remarkable. And I know the other districts long for such a
community. So I'm really grateful for this group of leaders and so many more for
what you have established here. So I know that this is just the beginning for henry county, and
we cannot wait to see what's to come. But this is this is old news at this point. And I know
that there is remarkable work happening right now in our schools, so we can't wait to
keep on celebrating each and every one of you. And thank you so much for what you do for our
children. We will now move in our informational items to d3a and I'll turn it back over to
you. Thank you, madam chair, for informational item d3a asked chief operating officer,
mr. Barry miles, to present the november 2025 construction and east blocks report. Thank you,
madam chair. Members of the board and superintendent pace. We'll begin with odle middle
school edition. There's only just a just a couple punch list items that remain for the
building while the new road construction continues for the stem high school, the second
story deck. The work has begun on the second story deck. Although I've shared previously
that the steel for all three stories is in place, site work continues underground
electrical and plumbing rough in and also the school of sustainability wing exterior
brick continues. Complete is the front office and auditorium slab and also the school of
biotech footings. Dutchtown middle school addition. Electrical and plumbing rough
continue while the above ceiling, ductwork, classroom ceiling, grid and light fixture
installation being nearly complete and restroom and custodial closet quarry tile all those all those three are complete as well. The roof recover project for group a and
for group b is complete. Just a couple punch list items remain there. The ola high school
addition project, the footings foundation block are complete. The underground electrical and
plumbing rough continues in preparation for the slab begins moving to wolf creek elementary
school. Clearing and site work continues, as with previous months and on the surveillance
system upgrade. Middle and high construction activities continue on that, while the
head end equipment has been installed in 7 or 12 schools. Individual camera installation
continues across all three of those. Doctor pace, this concludes my presentation.
thank you, mr. Miles. Madam chair, that concludes our november 2025 construction of
east plus report. And we made available to our board for any questions. Thank you, doctor
pace. And thank you, mr. Miles for that report. Does any board member have any discussion? Mister mcdaniel thank you, madam chair. And thank you, mister miles. And again, a lot
of questions about dutchtown middle, the dutchtown cluster. And I know that the road is not
our concern, but some parents have asked. And I just want to let you say it, that once the
addition is done to dutchtown middle school, that is pretty much finito, that we cannot add
any more to it because of the state regulations and things of that nature. Am I correct in
that? But that that wing that we're adding on to dutchtown, that particular wing? That's
correct. Yes, sir. Okay. So once we do that, then we cannot add any more. I'll another wing.
that's what I mean to say. I'll need to check the state guidelines because I'll there
are certain areas that are built out in schools in all of our schools. And you'll hear in
just a moment we've built in room for growth in the media center, the cafeteria, the
kitchen. Those are big enough to accommodate additions, but I'll refrain from stating that
we don't have room for another addition without doing a little bit of research, honestly. Okay.
and so as of right now, the addition that we are making will be ready for being
occupied by the beginning of august of next year. That's correct. Yes, sir. That is
substantial. Completion is may of next year, 2026. Okay. Thank you. Thank you, mr. Mcdaniel.
any other comments? Nope. We thank you so much. And we will now move to informational item
d3b doctor pace thank you, madam chair for information. Item d3bi like to ask mr. Miles
to remain at the podium for our esplost seven project presentation. Thank you, madam
chair. Members of the board and superintendent pace, this afternoon I share with you the
proposed esplost seven project list. Familiar to all is our compass that keeps our true
north anchored in student achievement. When considering e-splost, we are hard pressed
to single out any one of our core beliefs, policies, strategic actions or priority
outcomes as every one of them guide the decision making for east bloss planning esplost or
the educational special purpose local option sales tax was an answer to a problem many school
systems in the state faced with how to keep up with growth, facility needs, busses and
equipment technology needs and providing current and relevant resources for the classroom
esplost funds excuse me are not permitted to be used for salaries or benefits which
largely consume school district's annual operating budgets. East bloss collections
cover a five year period, and districts wishing to continue the collections must put a
ballot referendum before the voters to allow them to support a continuation. Henry county
voters have overwhelmingly supported the continuation of six esplost since the first was
approved. I'll highlight again for our community that this would be a continuation of an
existing initiative, and that esplost funds are used to support students with updated
facilities and other vital resources to support exceptional opportunities and
access that lead to success in a global society. These collections are a single penny
on every dollar spent. Millions of motorists travel to and through henry county annually
for events, shopping, fuel. Food. Lodging. Simply put, anyone who eats, sleeps or
shops in henry county contribute to our students moving to the timeline, you'll
remember that we surveyed our community in the spring, as well as our local elected
officials in the fall. We were seeking their feedback. We understand that henry county schools is part of a larger ecosystem that is henry county. So we threw a large net, hoping
to garner as much feedback as possible. The community survey went live in march and ran
through april. Communication was via our website, social media and infinite campus. This
survey was sent to all henry county school families and the chamber of commerce, but was
also available to the community at large. Additionally, we are grateful for our county and
municipal partners that took time to sit down with us to discuss splost seven. Their
insight and input was a valuable resource as we navigated this planning season.
highlighted. Here are the results of our community survey. Through this survey, several
themes emerged. Safety and security is always front of mind. Network security finishes
out on top of technology concerns. Operationally, existing building system
refresh and upgrades, along with school bus replacement leads that line. You see
classroom instructional materials and stem being very important to our community as well. And lastly, we were surprised to hear their voice around new schools versus
renovation of existing. Our community voice prefers a focus on existing facilities rather
than new buildings. Continuing with the timeline, you'll note that we are in the beginning of
the fifth stage of east plus seven planning boe development and approval of proposed
projects. You'll recall the board development work that captured your voice, which is
reflective of our community's voice in the development of this latest project list. Henry
county schools is one of the largest districts in the state. It's no secret that henry
county has seen record breaking growth. One of the driving forces of that growth is the
quality of the education experience for students and families. Just as with previous
esplost initiatives, we have used the same community focused approach with the development
of this latest project list. Starting in the classroom, you see classroom resources that
are standards aligned. Core content resources could include ela, math, science, and social
studies, to name a few. Beyond the core resources could include health, pe, and world
languages for growth and replacement. These resources could include cte, school
furniture, fine arts, and athletics. It's important to note that these resources will
be balanced between print and digital platforms. Another bedrock item for our district
is our device program and technology infrastructure. These devices and equipment are
in need of a refresh. In addition to devices, our plan includes the resources and
equipment needed for digital privacy and protection measures. We believe that these system
replacements and upgrades are critical for student success and necessary to stay relevant
and protected. Moving to operational recommendations, I'd like to highlight that in
esplost five, we saw a heavy focus on school renovations, and in e-splost six we addressed growth. Well, it's been 12 years since we began those esplost five renovations,
hence the recommendation to circle back and focus on these efforts. I'd like to recall
that the community survey performed in the spring tells us that they prefer renovations
to existing facilities over new school construction. Keeping our buildings current and modern has been made possible by continued community confidence in the importance of
these items. Circling back to growth last winter, we solicited the services of an
external third party consulting firm to perform a ten year growth study. The goal was to
identify and inform us around historic, current and future forecasting related to local
development, student populations, and trends. I want to assure you that as a
district, we have capacity for future growth. During the next 5 to 10 years, our systemwide
growth is predicted to see a small increase in the short term, followed by robust growth
long term, driven primarily in the elementary grades. You heard me say a moment ago that
we have capacity in the district for future growth, but when we look at current and
projected enrollment at these two schools, we believe in addition is in order. It's
important to note here that these facilities were designed to accommodate an addition state. Design guidelines set fte at a facility based on the sizes of areas such as the
media center, cafeteria, and kitchen. Those spaces were sized to allow classroom
additions without being required to modify these spaces. As you can see, yellow
indicates approaching space limitations, with red indicating when space limitations are realized or this item will be out for public review and comment for
30 days. I will be back before you in january with the business item for east block
seven. If approved, we will go before the community with a referendum in may. I'll
emphasize again, if approved, this would simply renew an existing one penny sales tax
that is currently in place. Doctor pace, this is all that I've got prepared and remain
available for discussion. Thank you, mr. Miles. Madam chair, that concludes our esplost seven project presentation update and we remain available to our board for any questions.
thank you so much, doctor pace, and thank you for that. Mr. Miles, does any board member
have any discussion on this item? Doctor nutt yes, this is my night to ask all the
questions. Mr. Miles, could you please tell me what schools were looking at in this new
east blocks for additions, specifically for additions in east plus seven, we're
recommending tussahaw elementary and dutchtown elementary. That concerns me,
because I know of at least one elementary school that's just booming. What do we have any
plans to extend our. Additions further out than those two? We can certainly have discussions
as we look at the growth and the development in the community and what school
capacity is, we'll absolutely look at future needs, understand that our community
would much rather us keep our buildings updated, which if you go and look at neighboring
counties, I think henry county has done a marvelous job of that. But at what point do we
have to bite the bullet and build new schools? Because of the overcrowding, we don't have
the luxury of closing schools. I don't I don't know of any of our schools in henry county. We
could close, but I do see the overcrowding, and I don't foresee that slowing down
anytime soon. The concern. Yes, ma'am. Thank you. Doctor. Night. Miss carter, I just want to say
thank you so much, mr. Berry, for your update. You're always very thorough with your updates,
and I really appreciate it. And I'm excited to be a part of the next east plus. So thank you so
much. Try that again. Thank you so much, miss carter. And thank you again, mr. Miles. We
appreciate the report. We'll now move to informational item d three. See doctor pace. Thank
you, madam chair for information. Item d three see the november 2025 financial
reports. I'd like to invite our chief financial officer, miss shanika clay. Good afternoon,
madam chair. Members of the board and superintendent pace. Today I bring a report of the
financial activity for the period ending november 30th, 2025, which represents the
fifth month of activity of fiscal year 2026. I'll start the report with a look across
all funds and looking at the last column, you can see that we've collected 33.5% of our
planned revenues to date across all funds, which is shown in the yellow highlight
expenditures to date across all funds are approaching 46%, which is shown in the green
highlight. And obligations for the period totaled $8 million, with 82% of these pending
expenditures relating to capital projects that are underway. Moving along to
review the general fund activity. With the fifth month close, we are 42% through the
year on a linear basis. Looking at the yellow highlight, we have collected 31.9% of planned
receipts to date, which is down from a prior comparative period. But based on notice we received
from the tax commissioner, we anticipate receipt of the annual influx will be received
before december's end. Turning our eye to the bottom half of the page and looking at the
green highlight, you can see we've incurred expenses representing 42% of the budget, which is coming in line with the pace of the fiscal year on a linear basis. Next, we will
review the general fund balance sheet, the total value of of the general fund's assets at
the close of november totaled $98.5 million. The next slide provides a view of cash on hand
across all funds. The total of cash and equivalent investments totaled $271 million for this
reporting period. Next, we review the education six report. Looking at the second column
from the right. There were expenditures of $4.4 million in november, with the key cost
drivers relating to ongoing work with our construction efforts for wolf creek elementary, the stem high school, the dutchtown middle addition, and the middle middle
addition. Finally, we will review the capital accumulation financial report. During the
month of november, there were expenditures of $60,000 from the safety and security capital
accumulation fund. Doctor pace, that concludes our prepared, and I yield the floor to you.
thank you, mrs. Clay. Madam chair, that concludes our november 2025 financial reports
and remain available to our board for any questions. Thank you so much, doctor pace. And
thank you, mrs. Clay, for that report. Does any board member have any discussion seeing none.
we appreciate it. We will now move to our last informational item which is d3d doctor pace
thank you, madam chair, for informational item d3d the fy 27 budget calendar update. I
would like to ask our chief financial officer, mrs. Clay, remain at the podium. Good
afternoon, madam chair. Members of the board and superintendent pace, as we near the close of
the calendar year, it is time to set our sights in planning for fiscal year 2027. Before we
discuss the fy 27 budget calendar, it is important to provide a quick review of fund
accounting and remind the community of the funds that the board takes action on annually,
in accordance with state law school systems. Financials are governed by governmental
accounting standards. These standards organize accounting on a fund basis, which allows
the unique tracking of revenues which are considered the sources of income, and unique
tracking of expenditures, which are considered the uses of income for specific purposes.
annually, we present the superintendent's recommended budget across four aggregate
funds in accordance with board policy dc. The first of the four funds is the general fund,
which is the account used for our daily operations like salaries, instructional supplies, maintenance costs, etc. Next is the special revenue fund. This fund
accounts for grants given to hearing county schools for designated and supplemental purposes, as well as the financials associated with our nutrition and the before and
after school enrichment programs, which are enterprise activities. Next is the capital
projects fund, which allows for separate tracking of revenues and expenditures related to
capital improvements authorized by the board. And finally, there's the debt service fund,
which captures revenue and expenses associated with long term debt incurred to finance
capital projects. There are a myriad of external and internal inputs that must be considered
in developing the budget for each of these funds, the timing of when key information is
available drives the timeline of the budget calendar that is presented. Let's walk through a
visual that outlines the sequence of events that support budget development. Since the
specifics of the budget development process for each of the funds varies, I will focus
on the general fund as it is the home of our daily operations. As we walk through
this outline of the variety of inputs and the timing of those inputs inputs that we must
consider, the general fund receives state, local, and federal sources of funding,
with state and local funding generally providing 99.5% of the revenues allocated for
general fund purposes. Accordingly, external activities such as the governor's budget recommendation, the state's budget process, and the henry
county tax processes have a significant impact on our system's budget planning. The
2026 legislative legislative cycle is set to convene on january 12th, and within five
days of this convening, the governor will issue his budget recommendations to the legislature. After reviewing the governor's recommendations, the house and the senate work
through appropriations bills until both bodies align on a common recommendation of
appropriations. We will carefully monitor the news coming from the governor's
office and the gold dome during january through april to identify and analyze the
legislative activity and its impact on school systems and our budget development. To
forecast local revenues, we partner with the tax assessor's office to understand the changes that are occurring in the local tax digest. This information begins to emerge in
march and is continually refined until the assessors appeal. Process ends as the
general assembly and local tax officials complete their work that informs the revenue forecast and provides intel on potential new costs associated with legislation. The
superintendent directs a series of internal tasks to develop allocation recommendations that
support student learning at the highest levels. Throughout the budget development process,
board members share budgetary priorities that also inform the superintendent's budget
recommendations. Other key inputs into the budget development process include
enrollment projections, strategic investment priorities, and school and division
assessments. As the external information becomes available, it is incorporated into the
forecasting process to support tentative budget adoption and final budget adoption
activities before the close of the fiscal year. As this visual demonstrates, there are a lot
of processes and inputs that must be considered during this budget development process. So,
with an understanding of these key inputs and timing, I will now present the fy 27 budget
development calendar. This document will be available in the board meeting documents. As
I shared earlier, the state legislative state legislative session will run january to
april. I will provide reports in the months to follow that elevate this board's budgetary
priorities, and gives insights on how information coming out of the general assembly impacts
our budget forecasts. On april 20th, the tentative budget for fy 27 will be presented, and we
will hold the first of two required budget hearings. Following this hearing, the
tentative budget will be presented to the board for adoption. The final proposed budget will be presented on may 11th. A second budget hearing will be held and the board will
have the opportunity to adopt the final proposed budget later that evening. Board. You've
provided our organization with a clear compass that guides the prioritization of resources,
your commitment to a unified governance model, and allocating funding to support
strategic initiatives is what allows us to achieve student outcomes. Doctor, that
concludes our prepared and I yield the floor to you. Thank you, mrs. Clay. Madam chair,
that concludes our fy 27 budget calendar update and remain available to our board for any
questions. Thank you so much, doctor pace. And thank you, mrs. Clay, for that report. Does any board member have any discussion on this item? Seeing none. We appreciate it. Again,
we will now move in our agenda to our business items. I will remind everyone that these
items are eligible for the consent agenda this evening, but any board member is welcome
to remove one if they so wish. We will begin with item e one. Doctor pace. Thank you, madam
chair, for our first business. Item e one 2026 sick leave bank committee. I'd like to invite
chief human resources officer, doctor carl noton. Good afternoon, madam chair. Members
of the board and superintendent pace, this afternoon I'm presenting to you business item
e one, the 2026 sick leave bank committee. The sick leave bank committee is a fringe benefit
offered to any full time employee who is entitled to sick leave. The sick leave bank
provides its members with sick leave after their own accrued leave has been exhausted. Leave
from the bank can only be used for illnesses that are catastrophic in nature. Each year, seven full time employees from various job families are selected to serve as members of
the sick leave bank committee. These individuals are selected in accordance with board policy g a r h a employee, sick leave bank and the associated regulation. Once approved, the
committee will begin effective january 1st of 2026. Doctor pace I believe this item is
eligible for the consent agenda. This concludes well prepared and I'll turn it back over to you. Thank you, doctor knowlton. Madam chair, that concludes our business. Item e one 2026 sick
leave bank committee and remain available to our board for any questions. Thank you so much,
doctor pace. And thank you, doctor knowlton, for that report. Does any board member have any discussion on this item? No. This is eligible for the consent agenda this evening.
does anyone object? This will be placed on the consent agenda. Thank you again, doctor
knowlton. And we will now move to business item e two. Doctor pace. Thank you, madam chair,
for business item e two expansion of contracted services. I'd like to ask
doctor knowlton, chief human resources officer, to remain at the podium once again. Good
afternoon, madam chair. Members of the board and superintendent pace, this afternoon I'm presenting business item e two, expansion of contracted services. The superintendent
recommends the board provide authorization of henry county schools to expand the
contractual scope of service provided by educational staff and solution s the objective is.
this expanded partnership is to mitigate current classified vacancies. Doctor pace I
believe this item is also eligible for the consent agenda. This concludes our prepared and I'll turn it back over to you. Thank you, doctor knowlton. Madam chair, that concludes
business item e two expansion of contracted services. And we remain available for any questions from our board. Thank you, doctor pace. And thank you again. Doctor knowlton. Does
any board member have any discussion on this item seeing none. It is also eligible for
the consent agenda. Does anyone object? This will also be placed on the consent agenda.
we will now move to business item e three. Doctor pace. Thank you, madam chair, for
business item e three furniture and equipment growth and replacement. I'd like to invite
our chief operating officer, mr. Barry miles, for this item. Thank you, madam chair. Members
of the board and superintendent pace, this afternoon I present to you a furniture growth and
replacement project. This school furniture growth and replacement initiative is in relation to strategic action five initiative statement three tactic three create a basic
equipment list for every classroom, school, common space and office space and to create
a design review, solicitation and replacement schedule. These projects are funded through a
the capital reserves accumulation fund, approved at the june 14th, 2021 board
meeting. Through the same fund, furniture growth and replacement will be
accomplished at the schools, indicated. The principals from each school were consulted concerning existing furniture and replacement with this information, on site inventory
assessments were completed. Furniture was evaluated based on factors such as safety,
functionality, equal access, and opportunity. Ernie moore is enterprises, inc. Provided
final quotes on november 18th in the amount indicated. Policy compliance will be in the form
of state contract. Production is estimated to be 8 to 10 weeks. The goal is to receive
the furniture for these five schools during the month of june, being ready for the 2526
school year. I'm sorry 2627 school year. Apologies, doctor pace, this concludes my
presentation. Thank you, mr. Miles. Madam chair, that concludes our update on
furniture and equipment growth and replacement and remain available to our board for any
questions. Thank you, doctor payson. Thank you, mr. Miles. Does any board member have any discussion on this item? Seeing none, it is also eligible for the consent agenda. Does anyone
object? This will be on the consent agenda this evening. And we will now move to
business. Item e for doctor pace. Thank you, madam chair, for business. Item e for
furnishings for dutchtown middle school edition. I'd like to ask mr. Miles, our chief
operating officer, to remain at the podium for this item. Good afternoon, madam chair. Members
of the board and superintendent pace, on january 11th of 2021, at the regular board meeting,
business session and east sixth resolution was approved with voter approval on march 16th,
2021 of east bloss six planning for construction projects included within the resolution
started on november 11th of 24 at the regular board meeting business session. The bid
tabulation for construction of the dutchtown middle school addition project was approved.
east bloss six funds will be used for furniture purchase of this project. Estimated life
cycle for the furniture is 15 years for the for the classroom furniture. Ernie morris inc.
provided final quote on november 18th in the amount indicated. Dj compliance will be in the form of state contract. Production is estimated at 8 to 10 weeks. The
goal is to receive the furniture for the project during spring summer of 2026 to complete the installation. Doctor pace, this concludes my presentation. Thank you, mr.
mouse. Madam chair, that concludes our business item furnishings for dutchtown middle school edition and remain available to our board for any questions. Thank you,
doctor pace. Thank you again. Mr. Miles. Does any board member have any discussion?
anyone object to this? Being placed on the consent agenda will also be on the consent
agenda this evening. We will now move to business item e5, doctor pace. Thank you, madam
chair, for business item e5 email security platform upgrade. I'd like to ask mr. Miles, our
chief operating officer, to remain at the podium for this item. Good afternoon again,
madam chair. Members of the board and superintendent pace, as our core beliefs always
guide the work that we do, keeping our learning environment safe and secure continues to be a focus of our work. Over 6000 hours, 6000 employees and 42,000 students
depend on secure digital communication. Daily. We faced increased threats from phishing,
malware and data leaks. To combat these threats, we come to you today with a
recommendation to purchase this email security platform and collaboration solution. In the
amount indicated. Dga compliance is in the form of the state of georgia software contract and esplost six funds will be used. Doctor pace, this is all that I prepared for this
presentation will remain available for questions. Thank you, mr. Miles. Madam chair,
that concludes our business item e5 email security platform upgrade and will remain available to our board for any questions. Thank you so much, doctor pace. And thank you, mr.
miles. Does any board member have any discussion on this item seeing none, does anyone
object to it being placed on consent? No. It will also be on the consent agenda this evening.
and our last business item is business item e six. Doctor pace. Thank you, madam chair,
for business item six resolution authorizing land conveyance of bethlehem elementary. Right of way to georgia department of transportation. I'd like to ask
mr. Miles to remain at the podium for this business. Item update. Good afternoon, madam
chair. Members of the board and superintendent pace, this afternoon I bring you the right of way land conveyance purchase request from the georgia department of transportation.
they are requesting to purchase 0.407 acres of henry county board of education property for
the amount indicated. Located at bethlehem elementary in support of an interstate 75
improvement project, this project should not impact daily operations at the school.
doctor pace, this concludes my presentation. Thank you. Thank you, mr. Miles. Madam chair,
that concludes our business. Item six resolution authorizing land conveyance of bethlehem
elementary right of way to the gdot. And we remain available to our board for any questions.
thank you, doctor pace. And thank you again. Mr. Miles. Does any board member have any
discussion on this item? This is also eligible for consent. Does anyone object? No. It will
be on tonight's consent agenda. Thank you. You may take a bow. We appreciate you. We are now
to f executive session. Can I have a motion, please, to go into executive session for land
and personnel for motion that we go into executive session for the purpose of land and
personnel. Thank you. Miss edwards. Is there a second? Second? Thank you, mr. Mcdaniel.
all in favor, please