[0:09] Welcome to the October 5th,
[0:10] 2026 Hudson School
Board meeting.
[0:12] Heather. Sure.
[0:16] I pledge allegiance to the flag
of the United States of America
[0:20] and to the Republic
for which it stands.
[0:22] One nation under God,
indivisible, with liberty and
[0:27] justice for all.
[0:33] You do not have any Hudson
residents here this evening in
[0:36] attendance to
provide public input.
[0:37] So I will move to
our good news update.
[0:40] Thank you.
[0:41] This weekend, the elder FFA.
[0:43] Chapter had an eventful trip
to the Deerfield Fair on.
[0:47] Several of our students
received first place honors in
[0:50] their separate competitions,
and the floral and forestry
[0:53] teams both finished second in
[0:54] the state in their competitions.
[0:57] Our schools around the district
celebrated National Custodian
[1:00] Appreciation Day on Friday,
with celebrations for their
[1:02] custodial staff, who would like
to thank our custodial teams
[1:05] for the great work that they do
[1:06] to keep our buildings
looking spotless.
[1:09] And lastly, students at Albion
High School took place in a
[1:12] trip to the Health Care Career
Expo at Parkland Medical Center
[1:15] in Derry.
[1:16] This past week.
[1:16] Students rotated through
stations and got a hands on
[1:19] look at all the different
departments of the hospital.
[1:21] Thank you.
[1:22] Thank you.
[1:23] Jane could not be here this
evening, but she did provide a
[1:25] short update, so I am going
to share that in her absence.
[1:28] She said that homecoming last
[1:30] week in the events
went very well.
[1:32] There was a great turnout and
lots of students attended and
[1:34] had a great time.
[1:35] The CTE ambassadors had their
first professional development
[1:38] opportunity at UNH Manchester
last week, and the ambassadors
[1:41] did a great job.
[1:42] They had some great speakers
that taught them about
[1:45] professionalism for all
the CTE ambassadors.
[1:47] She thinks that it was very
successful for session, and
[1:49] she's looking forward to, as
are all the CTE ambassadors,
[1:52] the further professional
development.
[1:54] And finally, similar to what
was just shared, she too said
[1:57] that FFA also competed
at the Deerfield Fair.
[1:59] There was a great turnout with
students representing Alvin
[2:01] very well, placing
in their categories.
[2:05] So this evening we have a
grant allocations overview, and
[2:10] Superintendent Wallace is going
to present that this evening.
[2:12] Thank you, Chairman Dillon.
[2:14] So again this is something we
started last year for the board
[2:17] and the public around federal
funds, grant funds that are
[2:20] received and in the slides.
[2:23] Miss graves could not
be here this evening.
[2:25] Um, so I'm going to do my
best to cover the topics.
[2:28] Um, so it outlines
what grants are.
[2:31] It defines the different grant
funds that we receive both
[2:35] federal, state and local
grant funds to, um, support
[2:39] educational programs.
[2:41] Uh, the key differentiation is
they are not meant to supplant,
[2:45] uh, the district's
financial responsibilities.
[2:48] Um, so unlike loans, grants do
not have to be repaid, but they
[2:52] must be used for the purposes
that they're allowed or
[2:55] entitled to under each
of the grant programs.
[2:58] Um, similarly, a grant works
as money and dollar money in,
[3:02] dollar money out.
[3:04] Um, so the district, uh,
pays and then there's the
[3:07] reimbursement mechanism from
the state or the federal
[3:10] government, depending on
the grant funding source.
[3:13] Um, as we go through the
[3:14] slides, it defines
the grant allocations.
[3:17] Uh, unlike a fiscal year,
grants run over multiple years.
[3:21] So for this past September, we
[3:25] actually closed
out the 2425 grant.
[3:28] We have the current 2526 grant.
[3:32] And just recently we had
the approved 2627 grant.
[3:37] So until September 30th, when
that 2425 grant closes, you can
[3:42] be as a school district
operating in two years of grant
[3:45] funds or up until that
other grant fund is closed.
[3:48] Three um, but now that the
2425 grant is closed out, we're
[3:52] working from two grant grant
years, but they don't run
[3:56] concurrently with
the fiscal year.
[3:57] And that's important to note.
[3:59] They're on a September
30th, two year deadline.
[4:02] So the life cycle of grant
allocations, it talks about a
[4:05] grant application.
[4:07] There are grant allocations
that are given to each of the
[4:09] schools under all of the
[4:11] different grant, uh,
grant mechanisms.
[4:14] There's approval for what is
an allowable expenditure and
[4:17] request from the district to
the Department of Education.
[4:20] And then there's an approval of
those expenditures with final
[4:24] approval from the New Hampshire
Department of Education.
[4:27] And then each month, there is
a monthly reconciliation and
[4:31] reimbursement request that
happens from the district to
[4:34] the New Hampshire
Department of Education.
[4:36] And then at the end of
[4:38] September 30th, there's
a grant closure.
[4:40] And during each part of the
month and at the end of the
[4:43] grant, there's an associated
final report mechanism, because
[4:47] we are a district that receives
in total of all of our grant
[4:51] funds over $1 million.
[4:53] There is also the requirement
of a single audit for our
[4:56] grants, because we receive
greater than $1 million in
[5:00] federal grant funds, and that's
conducted on an annual basis by
[5:04] the district from an
external auditing firm.
[5:09] On the next slide, there are
some grant allocations that are
[5:12] for the 2627 school year.
[5:15] You will also see these in the
[5:17] upcoming executive
summary report.
[5:20] And we'll also step through
these with the Budget Committee
[5:23] and the public and at budget
[5:25] hearing and
deliberative session.
[5:27] The board is very familiar with
[5:28] many of these grant allocations.
[5:30] Perkins funds.
[5:32] Those are used particularly
for CTE programs.
[5:35] And as you can see, $61,421.42
is what the district receives
[5:42] in Grant Perkins funds, and
[5:44] those can vary
from year to year.
[5:46] Ida, which Miss Borge is the,
[5:50] grant approval for that and
[5:52] oversees ID a
that's $914,675.99.
[5:58] There's also a subcategory for
Ida, which is our preschool
[6:01] grant that is used specifically
for preschool out of Ida grant
[6:05] funds, and that's $17,363.14.
[6:10] And then there's a series of
title grant funds, um, that
[6:14] Miss Benson oversees as the,
as the grant approver of those
[6:18] grant funds.
[6:19] And those are title
one $426,120.82.
[6:25] We also have a title one
coordinator that helps write
[6:27] that grant, and then that goes
to Miss Benson, and then it
[6:30] goes to me for final approval.
[6:32] Um, and then to the Department
of Ed, there's title two.
[6:35] Um and those funds
are also $128,799.74.
[6:42] And then there is
title four, and that's
[6:46] $98.55. And then in the last
couple of years in working in
[6:51] our schools, we also
have some state grants.
[6:54] And those are robotics grants
[6:56] that are specific for
robotics activities.
[7:00] Um, and we received this year
$5,700 for a robotics grant for
[7:06] Hudson Memorial School, and
[7:07] then $5,700 for a
grant at Alvirne.
[7:12] Last year, we also received a
farm to school grant that Miss
[7:15] Atherton is our food
service director.
[7:17] Um wrote and we received
um, that's a state grant.
[7:20] And the board will recall
a couple years ago we also
[7:23] applied with Mr. Pratt's help.
[7:25] It's probably 2 or 3
years ago, a safe grant.
[7:28] And that's where we received
some grant funds to add
[7:31] additional surveillance cameras.
[7:32] So those are more of the
state grant funding sources.
[7:35] You can see the total amount
of grant funds that we receive.
[7:39] Um, and then these are some
[7:41] examples of allowable
expenditures.
[7:43] They can be used to support
salaries, you can fund a
[7:46] position through the grant.
[7:47] You can fund travel supplies,
professional development,
[7:50] professional services,
[7:51] equipment and direct
costs and software.
[7:54] These are not all
inclusive examples.
[7:56] These are just some examples
of allowable expenditures for
[8:00] grant funds.
[8:02] Uh, yes.
[8:03] Ask a clarifying.
[8:04] The terms of each grant vary.
[8:06] So what is an allowable expense
would vary based on the terms
[8:09] of each of the specific grants.
[8:11] Is that correct?
[8:11] That is correct.
[8:13] Yes, that is exactly correct.
[8:15] Okay. Um and then um
impact to the taxpayers.
[8:19] Um as mentioned, every dollar
in from the federal government
[8:22] or state government is spent, a
dollar is received and it is in
[8:26] a reimbursement model.
[8:27] Um, grants have no tax impact
to the local taxpayers.
[8:32] Where it will show up is in our
revenues of what we receive.
[8:36] Um, so that kind of
encapsulates that slide.
[8:40] And I didn't do a complete read
through because I didn't want
[8:44] to do that, but I will pause
there to see if there's any
[8:46] questions that the
board has with grants.
[8:49] Dan uh, Doctor Mullis, if you
wouldn't mind for the just for
[8:52] the public, um, can you kind of
give us a crash course on what
[8:55] each title is?
[8:57] So like what's covered under
title one, what's covered under
[8:59] title two, title four, just
like a CliffsNotes version?
[9:02] If. Yes.
[9:03] Um, so I'll start with title
two because that was one of my
[9:07] prior district that I wrote
that has to do with um, can be
[9:10] used for professional
development to support teachers
[9:12] to support staff.
[9:14] Title one.
[9:15] Um, and Miss Benson can speak
to this a little bit more than
[9:17] I can, um, is used to support,
um, you know, students that
[9:22] need additional support
in reading or mathematics.
[9:25] Um, and there's certain
criteria that it has to be used
[9:28] for title one services in a
school within the district
[9:31] needs to be designated as a
[9:33] title one school or
title one district.
[9:35] Miss Benson, please correct
me if there's anything that I
[9:38] missed or.
[9:39] That's correct.
[9:39] Okay. And then title for which
[9:42] I have a little
familiarity with.
[9:43] And please, again, correct me
[9:44] if I'm wrong, is
really to be used.
[9:48] I'm trying to think of a
good example of title for.
[9:50] So
[9:52] Safe and Healthy schools is one
category for title for digital
[9:55] learning, digital another.
[9:57] And also, um, an opportunities
for well-rounded education are
[10:02] three different
buckets for title four.
[10:04] Thank you, Miss Benson.
[10:05] Appreciate that.
[10:06] Okay. Thank you.
[10:07] You're welcome.
[10:09] Are there questions or
comments from the board?
[10:11] Heather.
[10:12] How are the funds allocated
within the district?
[10:15] I know we have preschool and
[10:16] then we have all
other grade levels.
[10:18] Yeah. So there's there's some
[10:20] formulas that are part
of the allocation.
[10:22] Um, and I'll have Miss
Borge speak to it.
[10:24] One of the formulas is again
with the population of students
[10:29] that um receive services
for special education.
[10:32] I believe it's part
of that formula.
[10:33] Yeah. Part of it is the
total number of students.
[10:35] Um they take a look at across
our entire state and what is
[10:38] allocated by the federal
[10:39] government and
distributed accordingly.
[10:41] Again, based on our
total population.
[10:42] And then we have parameters
[10:44] within which to
budget said money.
[10:46] Um, ours is used
predominantly for staff.
[10:50] So you're saying the Ida grant
[10:51] is predominantly used for staff.
[10:54] And how is that allocated.
[10:55] That's you said
within parameters.
[10:57] So you have to make sure that
[10:58] you're not supplementing
or supplanting.
[11:00] You can't just let this be the
[11:02] only source of revenue
for your staff.
[11:04] So you have to make sure that
you have other staff that are
[11:06] being accounted for.
[11:07] Moving forward, we're also
going to have to be looking at
[11:10] kind of balancing that out with
the new funding formula that
[11:13] will go live in a year.
[11:14] So that will be a little bit
different as we move forward.
[11:16] Um, it has to be strictly
for people who are providing
[11:19] services to students
with disabilities.
[11:21] There is an option within the
grant that you can tap into
[11:25] what they're framing as
preventative services.
[11:28] But there's quite a lot
that goes with that.
[11:30] And we honestly have enough
need of staff that there isn't
[11:34] leftover money to use.
[11:35] Okay.
[11:36] And then, Heather, just as
a follow up in the executive
[11:38] summary report that will come
forward to the board at the
[11:41] next meeting, budget workshop
meeting, there's towards the
[11:45] end of the executive summary,
it'll include, um, positions
[11:49] that are funded through grants.
[11:50] And so it'll show how many are
funded through, say, Ida Grant,
[11:54] how many are funded
through title one.
[11:56] Um, and that's been something
I think that we've been doing
[11:59] since I've started, probably
even before I started.
[12:03] Um, just for the
public, for the board.
[12:05] It just shows what's funded
through those grants.
[12:08] And to miss Borge's point, what
we're seeing, and not just in
[12:10] Hudson is fluctuation with
grant funds right now.
[12:14] Um, some of them have
been stable, I think.
[12:17] Correct me if I'm wrong.
[12:18] Ida's been it's.
[12:19] Been fairly.
[12:19] Stable, been stable, but some
of them for school districts
[12:22] can vary.
[12:23] And when that happens, if, say
on a given year you receive
[12:26] less money than you thought,
then there may not be as many
[12:29] positions that you can fund
through a grant funding source.
[12:32] Okay.
[12:33] Thank you.
[12:33] You're welcome.
[12:35] Have your comments or questions
[12:36] from the board regarding grants.
[12:41] Thank you.
[12:43] I appreciate the overview and
certainly further information
[12:45] to come as part of that budget
process, I think has always
[12:48] been helpful for the board and
[12:49] for the Public and
Budget Committee.
[12:50] So I think that that will
be helpful moving forward.
[12:52] Yeah, it's I again, Maureen, I
think this is the second year
[12:56] we've done this presentation
kind of to lead into the budget
[12:58] process and just feedback from
the board and the public is
[13:02] it's been a nice kind of
precursor to the budget.
[13:04] Absolutely.
[13:05] Um, and it's always questions
come up in deliberative session
[13:09] and budget committee
about the grants.
[13:11] So I think just having this
overview has been helpful.
[13:13] Absolutely. Certainly.
[13:15] So now moving into new business
this evening we have a request
[13:19] from the Sustainability Club
regarding the Youth Climate
[13:23] Leadership Academy in December.
[13:27] Sure. I can speak to that.
[13:28] Um so Miss Murphy, who is the
teacher advisor um, is bringing
[13:32] forward from principle deals.
[13:35] A memo for the Youth
Climate Leaders Academy.
[13:38] We've had the students here, I
think, in the past after this
[13:40] conference has occurred.
[13:42] Um, it's been a great
opportunity for our students
[13:44] that are part of the
sustainability club.
[13:47] Um, and this year they're
expecting to have up to six
[13:51] students attend from each
[13:52] school and they've
included the cost.
[13:56] And similarly to the past,
it's, I think, been a nice
[13:58] follow up when we've brought
the students back afterwards.
[14:04] I'll make a motion to
approve the travel request.
[14:07] Second.
[14:08] Any discussion?
[14:11] All in favor?
[14:11] Aye.
[14:12] Any opposed?
[14:16] Moving on to policies.
[14:16] We have two coming forward
for first reading tonight.
[14:20] Yes. So um policy EHB data
data records retention.
[14:25] Um so the key highlights from
this policy are the revisions
[14:28] include a specific definition
for the meaning of the word
[14:33] what is considered a record
using language that is better
[14:36] defined as aligning to the
definition of a governmental
[14:39] record, and then also
adding a provision outlining
[14:44] the amphibious relationship
of certain student records to
[14:48] various legal requirements.
[14:50] So what is considered a
part of a student's record?
[14:54] And, and then also a provision
has been added related to
[14:58] records connected to federal
funds under policy DAF, which
[15:02] was recently reviewed
to the board.
[15:04] You'll see some call outs for
the records relating to federal
[15:07] funds, and then also some
updates for special education
[15:11] records that need
to be maintained.
[15:14] It also talks about on page
three of five, the disposal of
[15:18] sensitive information and how
there should be a disposal of
[15:22] records, which is also
highlighted, as well as
[15:26] banking, financial records
and electronic media records.
[15:30] And then along with that
[15:32] accompanying policy
is the procedure.
[15:35] I've started to go through the
process of reviewing this with
[15:38] directors last week, pending
final approval from the board.
[15:41] And this is the retention
schedule procedure, which
[15:44] really applies to
multiple departments.
[15:49] It applies.
[15:49] You'll see one section
applies to finance.
[15:52] One section applies to
enrollment data and enrollment
[15:55] reports that need to be
completed um, maintained.
[15:58] Um along with financial reports.
[16:01] Um it talks about budget
reports that need to be
[16:03] retained and kept on file.
[16:05] Um attendance records.
[16:07] Um, also retirement
applications, w-2s tax forms,
[16:11] all of that information has a
certain cycle of how many years
[16:15] you need to complete that and
maintain that information.
[16:18] And then along with that,
there's, um, along with student
[16:21] records, it does talk about
some other internal records
[16:24] that we need to keep.
[16:25] For instance, Mr. Pratt keeps,
are asbestos training records
[16:31] review that we do
with our staff.
[16:33] Um, any of those maintenance
types of records that we also
[16:36] need to maintain
and keep on file.
[16:38] So the procedure
accompanies the policy.
[16:40] Um it is very comprehensive
pending the board's approval
[16:43] tonight we'll also
be reviewing this.
[16:45] Um we started a review with
directors, but we'll be
[16:48] reviewing this with principals.
[16:49] We'll be reviewing this with
the saw staff, um, as well as
[16:53] administrative assistance.
[16:54] Because this procedure I think
is, is really the backup to
[16:57] make sure, make sure the
district follows the policy.
[17:01] Before we move on to those for
second reading, are there any
[17:03] comments or questions regarding
the policy and the procedure
[17:06] for first reading?
[17:11] Okay.
[17:12] So let's bring those back
to our next meeting then.
[17:15] Dan. Okay, second reading.
[17:17] And then we have a series
of policies that are coming
[17:20] forward for second
reading tonight.
[17:22] Yes. So for second reading
this evening, we have policy E
[17:25] public access to school
district records policy.
[17:28] E.H., which is the procedure
for public access to school
[17:32] district records.
[17:33] Um, and also right
to know requests.
[17:36] Um, this would be a
new procedural form.
[17:38] Uh, along with that we have
policy EHB, which is subpoenas
[17:42] involving district students,
[17:44] officials, employees
and or records.
[17:47] And then policy k f, which is
the use of school facilities
[17:51] offer second read this evening.
[17:55] Any discussion or motion
regarding the policies for
[17:57] second reading.
[18:01] I'll make a motion to approve
[18:02] the policies from
second reading.
[18:04] Second.
[18:06] Discussion regarding the motion.
[18:09] All in favor of adopting policy
E h procedure e h, policy e, h
[18:14] b and policy k f as included
in the agenda packet, say aye.
[18:18] Aye. Any opposed?
[18:21] Okay.
[18:23] Recommended action
this evening manifests.
[18:26] I did check with finance.
[18:27] I don't believe they have been
sent out yet to the board, so
[18:31] those will be sent out
the next day or so.
[18:34] Thank you.
[18:35] Then we have two sets of
minutes for consideration.
[18:40] Um, the August 17th minutes
[18:42] back I had worked
with Debbie Leary.
[18:45] I hope that that was your
request was captured, Heather.
[18:48] But certainly if you have a
further request, let's talk
[18:50] about that.
[18:51] And then also certainly our
minutes, draft minutes from the
[18:54] September 21st meeting as well.
[19:04] Heather, can I just
confirm that that captured.
[19:06] Yes, yes.
[19:07] Sufficient.
[19:07] Thank you.
[19:08] Thank you.
[19:09] Um, so do we have
a motion regarding.
[19:14] Make a motion to approve
the draft minutes.
[19:17] Second.
[19:19] Any further discussion?
[19:21] All in favor?
[19:22] Aye. Any opposed?
[19:25] Reports to the
board this evening.
[19:27] Superintendent reports.
[19:28] Thank you.
[19:29] Chairman.
[19:30] So for curriculum instruction
and assessment updates.
[19:32] Miss Benson and I attended the
Agricultural and Sustainability
[19:36] CTE event at Alvirne
on September 22nd.
[19:39] Uh, students explored career
options such as forestry,
[19:42] natural resources, agriculture,
veterinary science, and a
[19:45] multitude of other
career pathways.
[19:48] Um, there are more photos from
the day that can be found on
[19:50] the district's Facebook page.
[19:52] Um, but it was a great day for
alvirne students to, to visit
[19:56] and see the different
career pathways.
[19:58] And also similarly to other
years, we also had HMS
[20:02] students, um, that came up and
had an opportunity to see the
[20:05] career pathways, as
Miss Benson mentioned.
[20:08] Um, and she also
was in attendance.
[20:10] The CTE ambassadors from the
Palmer Center at Alvirne took
[20:13] part in a professional
development conference on
[20:15] Wednesday at UNH in Manchester.
[20:18] Um, there were over 80 students
at this event from across the
[20:23] state, and they heard from
presenters specializing in
[20:27] leadership development,
[20:28] marketing and professional
communication.
[20:31] And as also mentioned in Jane's
report, that was was a great
[20:35] event for our CTE ambassadors.
[20:37] Staying with that theme, um, I
was on HGTV last week, um, for
[20:42] our monthly broadcast.
[20:44] Um, so last week we had our
district broadcast and on the
[20:48] broadcast, we had Rich Paiva
who attended and we highlighted
[20:52] both the agriculture
sustainability event and the
[20:55] CTE ambassadors leadership
professional development event
[20:58] last last week in Manchester.
[21:00] Uh, the discussion covered how
CTE ambassadors are involved at
[21:04] Alvirne High School, also
attending the elementary
[21:06] schools to teach Stem lessons,
which the board and the public
[21:09] have heard about in the past,
and attending the middle school
[21:12] to discuss CTE programs
and elective offerings when
[21:15] students progress to
Alvirne High school.
[21:18] Um, so that that's our, was our
[21:20] last last week's
monthly installment.
[21:22] And I'm really enjoying
the partnership.
[21:25] This is the second year we've
had with CTV to take different
[21:28] themes from across all of our
schools and, and provide a 4 to
[21:32] 5 minute broadcast to the
community of, of what's going
[21:34] on in our schools.
[21:36] Um, committee updates since
our last meeting, we've had a
[21:39] couple of committee meetings,
and some of the folks in this
[21:42] room have been at some
of those meetings.
[21:44] Uh, we had the Capital
Improvement Committee met and
[21:47] we reviewed long term
maintenance and capital
[21:49] improvement projects.
[21:51] Um, this also included town
[21:52] engineer Elvis
Dema who attended.
[21:55] And we discussed the extension
of a sidewalks at HMS to the
[21:59] beginning of the driveway.
[22:00] And the committee is working
with the town engineer on a
[22:03] plan to address the HMS
sidewalk for students, staff
[22:06] and families, um, as a,
as a long term project.
[22:09] And there were other projects
that we discussed, both short
[22:12] term maintenance projects
and long term projects.
[22:14] Also last last week we had the
communication committee met.
[22:18] Um, we now have new school
representation and parent
[22:22] member representation on the
[22:23] committee, which I'm
pleased to report.
[22:25] Um, have joined our committee.
[22:27] Um, Mr. Leblond is our
communication coordinator,
[22:29] facilitates the meeting.
[22:31] Um, he highlights some of the
communication improvements
[22:34] we've had in the last year.
[22:36] Um, as part of the updates, we
included our district update
[22:39] that's sent out every week.
[22:40] Some of the updates and
enhancements to our school
[22:43] newsletters, uh, the updates in
our alumni newsletter, which I
[22:46] also try to share out
with the board as well.
[22:48] And then, um, our school
district broadcasts with CTV,
[22:54] uh, hiring update.
[22:55] The school district has limited
teacher vacancies as of today.
[22:59] Um, working with Mr. Fretwell,
[23:00] we have only five
teacher vacancies.
[23:03] A small number of paraeducator
vacancies exist, and we do have
[23:07] some other staff positions
which include a few, um food
[23:11] service staff member
vacancies as well.
[23:14] But again, as mentioned, we're
in a really good place from a
[23:16] hiring perspective.
[23:17] I have a question, please.
[23:19] Um, how many paraeducator
vacancies exist?
[23:22] I know you specified the
number of food service staff.
[23:24] You.
[23:25] Exactly.
[23:25] Sure.
[23:27] Three.
[23:28] Okay. That's great.
[23:30] Is there any struggle with
filling in the vacancies?
[23:33] No. It's real.
[23:34] Well, always.
[23:35] But it's really been
a matter of, like,
[23:37] people who just came on board
and maybe it wasn't a fit.
[23:39] And so it's been a little
bit rotating these last few.
[23:42] Um, but we've really had a
decent amount of success in
[23:45] getting the positions filled.
[23:47] Thank you.
[23:48] And just as comparison, the
last couple of years we've had
[23:51] at this point anywhere from 10
[23:53] to 15 vacancies
for Paraeducators.
[23:55] So we're in a really good place.
[23:57] Um, with, with hiring
across the district.
[24:00] Yeah. Um, my last couple of
updates, um, that I like to
[24:05] highlight are under the
other updates section.
[24:07] On September 23rd, assistant
principal Assistant
[24:10] Superintendent Benson and I
attended the Alvin Hall of Fame
[24:13] inaugural induction ceremony.
[24:15] Principal Beals had the idea
of of an Alvin Hall of Fame.
[24:20] And this has come to fruition.
[24:22] And through his efforts of
really bringing this forward,
[24:25] um, this inaugural Hall of Fame
class of inductees included
[24:28] community supporters, the Hills
family members, Doctor Alfred
[24:32] Hills and Virginia Hills,
Merrifield, Kronsberg, Jessie
[24:37] Norwell Hills and Arthur
Stedman Hills, as well as the
[24:40] Alvin School trustees.
[24:42] There's also the category of
distinguished staff for the
[24:46] Alvin alumni, excuse me, Alvin
Hall of Fame, and that included
[24:49] distinguished staff Barbara
Hamilton, Margaret Peggy Lavoie
[24:53] and Joan Munford.
[24:55] And then the Alvin Hall of
Fame class also included
[24:58] distinguished alumni David
Alarcon, class of 1979.
[25:03] Paul Bellavia, class of 1967.
[25:06] Ryan Phaneuf, class of 2007.
[25:09] Tasha Cannon, Saint
Mark, class of 2002.
[25:12] Catherine Tyne, class of 2013.
[25:16] And hearing the speeches and
stories that evening that were
[25:19] shared were impactful.
[25:21] And each member has last left a
lasting legacy for our Alvirne
[25:25] high school.
[25:25] And I know Mr. Meyer was there.
[25:27] Um, it was it was just a great
evening to be part of and look
[25:31] forward to future future years
[25:33] of, of having this
induction ceremony.
[25:35] Um, and then looking ahead, I
always like to do a little bit
[25:38] of forecasting ahead for the
public and the school board.
[25:41] Um, we have curriculum nights
that are scheduled for this
[25:43] week and next week.
[25:45] Um, we have curriculum nights
this week at Hills Garrison
[25:47] Elementary School.
[25:48] Um, it's called a celebration
of learning on October 8th at
[25:52] Nottingham West Elementary
School and ELC, we have
[25:55] curriculum nights um as well.
[25:58] Um, on October 8th is
Nottingham, Nottingham West and
[26:03] then the ELC is October 15th.
[26:06] Um so those are great
opportunities for our our
[26:11] community and parents to really
see what's going on in our
[26:14] school, visit classrooms, meet
[26:15] with teachers, staff,
and administrators.
[26:18] And then lastly, on the
Nottingham West Elementary
[26:22] page, on the Facebook page on
October 19th, Mrs. Goss's class
[26:27] and fourth grade students have
planted and grown fresh herbs
[26:32] that will be used
for a special lunch.
[26:34] This is part of the
Farm to School grant.
[26:36] And this will be part of the
[26:38] Farm to school day special menu.
[26:40] Um, we are going to have the
Commissioner of Agriculture
[26:42] there um as well.
[26:44] We've invited Mr. Jasper to
[26:45] attend and that's
on October 19th.
[26:48] Um so I always like to do a
little bit of a look ahead for
[26:51] the, the community
and the board.
[26:53] Thank you very much.
[26:55] Assistant superintendent
report this evening.
[26:57] Thank you.
[26:58] So later this week, I mentioned
before that we have an ongoing
[27:03] PLC coalition team of teacher
leaders who are learning about
[27:08] how to lead data dives
at their schools.
[27:11] The next installment of
training focuses really around
[27:15] using a data tool.
[27:17] Our consultant has built three.
[27:19] One that's very intro intro
level for looking at data and
[27:23] then ones that
are more advanced.
[27:25] So he will be training our
coalition teachers on those
[27:28] three tools, and they will
be bringing the tools back to
[27:31] their teams as they look at
assessment data, whether it's
[27:34] from common tests that the
teachers are given or other
[27:38] screening data.
[27:39] And so that is, um, that is our
next step in, in that time and
[27:44] that training.
[27:45] Um, also, uh, last Friday, our
reading intervention team, we,
[27:51] they participated in an online
training with youth, which is
[27:54] the University of Florida
Literacy Institute on a
[27:57] systematic, um, foundational
reading resource that we have
[28:01] in district.
[28:02] It was kind of a next
level step of learning.
[28:06] There's been a lot of positive
feedback from elementary
[28:08] teachers with having this
[28:09] resource to use
during intervention.
[28:11] Our next step would be to have
[28:15] the teachers who took part in
the training bring that that
[28:18] training to the classroom,
teachers and extension.
[28:20] So that small group learning,
and then they teach another
[28:23] group of teachers on Thursday.
[28:27] Joyce Wise, Marie Kirk and I,
we went to a PD session with
[28:30] Curriculum Associates.
[28:33] We attended many
hands on sessions.
[28:35] Um, ones that I found really
interesting were about
[28:38] scaffolding and support for
early writing skills and
[28:41] effective routines for
teaching vocabulary.
[28:44] Our plan to is to take the, um,
very interesting lessons that
[28:50] we learned at the PD.
[28:51] We're going to bring them
to the Ela committee and the
[28:53] Social Studies Committee, and
to our department heads and
[28:56] show them what we learned so
that they can share that with
[28:59] their teachers.
[29:00] Um, and then tomorrow we
have a team of Hudson reading
[29:04] specialists, department heads
and coordinators who are going
[29:06] to be going to the third annual
New Hampshire Literacy Summit
[29:10] in Concord, New Hampshire.
[29:11] And this conference is
[29:13] basically on the
science of reading.
[29:15] It's not connected
to any program.
[29:16] It's what's what is
the science of reading?
[29:18] We both know there will be
[29:19] national and New
Hampshire presenters.
[29:21] It's a fantastic conference.
[29:24] Um, some of the activities
will be ways to promote student
[29:27] engagement in the reading
classroom and also ways to
[29:30] support small group
differentiated instruction
[29:32] using data to inform the
decisions for the students in
[29:34] front of them.
[29:36] Um, and our plan is to have the
attendees, um, we're going to,
[29:42] they're going to divide and
go to different sessions.
[29:43] And on March 9th, when we have
more teacher presentations on
[29:48] the PD day, they will be
sharing out, um, information at
[29:52] that time with the
entire district.
[29:56] Thank you.
[29:56] Thank you.
[29:57] Questions? Yes.
[29:59] Um, what I didn't hear.
[30:00] What was the name of the
curriculum that they learned?
[30:05] Oh. You fly.
[30:06] Okay. Yes, I didn't
I didn't hear.
[30:08] Yeah. And then my second
question was, you mentioned
[30:11] when they went to the
conference for Curriculum
[30:13] Associates, was this for.
[30:15] This was for I ready or is for
something different already.
[30:18] But it really was
bigger than I ready.
[30:20] It was about what does the
research say about early
[30:22] writing skills and really
having us understand
[30:25] Scarborough's rope for reading?
[30:26] And then how does that apply
to writing and what do young
[30:29] learners, what do they have to
know and learn in order to be
[30:31] successful writing?
[30:33] And what we learned is that
they have to hold a lot in
[30:35] their minds.
[30:35] And how can as teachers, how
[30:37] can we support them
with handwriting?
[30:39] How can we support them with
building background knowledge
[30:41] before we ask them
to start writing?
[30:43] So it was by curriculum
associates, but it really was
[30:46] about the science of
reading and writing.
[30:47] Okay. Thank you.
[30:50] Thank you.
[30:51] Director of Special
Services Report.
[30:53] So September is generally a
month where we're, um, making
[30:56] sure all our data is complete.
[30:58] There's a number of reports
that are run on October 1st.
[31:00] So you have to make sure that
all of your data is in for the
[31:02] month of September.
[31:03] So that is a heavy lift that we
[31:05] work on through the
end of September.
[31:06] Um, we also make sure that we
have spent down that last, that
[31:09] third grant, um, doctor talked
about three active grants,
[31:12] particularly until
the end of September.
[31:14] You have to work very hard and
diligently to make sure every
[31:17] last penny is
budgeted and expended.
[31:19] So we did that as well.
[31:20] Um, we also obviously took
a month to welcome our new
[31:24] students transition kids
from grade to grade.
[31:26] Welcome students who have moved
to us from other locations, as
[31:29] well as welcoming our staff
and making sure that they feel
[31:31] confident and secure in being
able to do the jobs that we
[31:33] have tasked them with.
[31:35] Um, that said, the bulk of what
I have to talk to you about is
[31:37] our strategic plan updates.
[31:38] And so since there's no Miss
[31:40] Graves, I will
run right into it.
[31:42] All right.
[31:43] Um, so I'm going to speak
[31:44] tonight about the
second focus area.
[31:47] Um, and kind of broke that into
each of the three four target
[31:51] areas within.
[31:53] Um, so for our first year,
um, we have been working on
[31:57] expanding student well-being
and school based engagement
[32:00] through a variety of ways.
[32:01] Um, our schools are
establishing consistent and
[32:03] positive touch points ranging
from daily morning meetings,
[32:07] classroom jobs at Hills
Garrison School, and creative
[32:10] engagement like
first grade lunch.
[32:11] Read Alouds at the
Early Learning Center.
[32:14] Um, we also have our
new assistant principal.
[32:17] Mr. rice creates a very upbeat,
[32:20] positive culture
in the mornings.
[32:21] On Fridays, he has some crazy
new costume every day that he
[32:24] greets the students in, um,
on his Fridays every week.
[32:27] So that's kind of cool.
[32:28] Um, we're working on building
spirit and peer support at
[32:32] Hudson Memorial School.
[32:34] Um, through events like Red
Ribbon Week, including the jump
[32:37] rope contest.
[32:38] Um, there's a sixth grade
social at Hills Garrison.
[32:40] They have book buddies where
fifth graders pair up with
[32:43] second graders, and they
work on reading together and
[32:45] integrate connections
at the high school.
[32:48] Um, we hosted a successful
freshman transition night and
[32:51] started very early in the
school year with a student club
[32:54] fair so that high school
students can really find that
[32:58] that community
that is their own.
[33:00] Early in the year and don't
[33:01] have to spend too
long searching.
[33:04] Um, we are also working on
involving and engaging families
[33:07] as recognized in
the strategic plan.
[33:10] Um, we've been welcoming and
[33:12] inclusive family
events scheduled.
[33:14] Schools are successfully
drawing families in through
[33:16] events like open houses,
bingo nights, and book fairs,
[33:19] including a dedicated sensory
friendly hour at the ELC.
[33:22] I think it was a half an hour
actually, at the beginning of
[33:25] one of their events.
[33:27] Um, we have district and
community integration.
[33:30] Students and families are
represented in have represented
[33:33] the district in broader
community efforts, such as the
[33:36] participation in the Bensons
100th anniversary events.
[33:40] We are expanding
forward planning.
[33:42] Hudson Memorial School is
actively preparing strong
[33:44] family facing events for the
school year, including its
[33:47] first ever hosted robotics
competition and expanded steam
[33:51] art and literacy nights
[33:53] in the area of strengthening
[33:55] and sustaining
student leadership.
[33:57] Our elementary and
middle schools.
[33:59] Their students are taking
ownership through morning
[34:01] announcements at his garrison.
[34:02] Peer initiatives like
Nottingham West, Paws Pals and
[34:05] active student run groups like
the HMS Colt Leadership Program
[34:08] and a dance and events
committee, which is sponsored
[34:11] and supervised by adults.
[34:12] Um expanded clubs middle
schoolers have gained new
[34:15] avenues for creative and
practical expression through
[34:17] clubs like woodworking,
writing, recycling and the
[34:19] brand new craft club.
[34:22] And the high school, Albion
High School launched Feed Our
[34:24] Kids and initiated Honor
Society applications and saw
[34:27] senior capstone projects
directly addressing student
[34:29] well-being well-being.
[34:31] One in particular was noted
to me as student is starting a
[34:34] capstone project that is
focusing on a peer mentoring
[34:37] and academic support program.
[34:38] So it will be peer to peer
as opposed to an adult.
[34:41] Um, so that's kind
of a neat idea.
[34:44] Lastly, in the area of
promoting arts, music and
[34:46] creative talents, fine arts are
being recognized and integrated
[34:50] across all levels from.
[34:51] At the Early Learning Center.
[34:53] First grade commissioned
artwork that has been presented
[34:55] to Doctor Mullis for frame to
[34:57] be framed and posted
in his office.
[35:01] We have performance programs.
[35:05] Marching band performed for 140
[35:07] guests, the Hall
of Fame induction.
[35:08] So that was really exciting.
[35:10] Um, we also have unique
creative activities like the
[35:13] Elks Candy bot 2000, which is a
candy bot who will collect, um,
[35:20] excuse me, Halloween candy, um,
for distribution to the troops.
[35:25] Um, so it's just a little bit
interesting and creative twist
[35:27] on how we might accomplish that.
[35:30] Any questions?
[35:32] Couple a couple of
thoughts and questions.
[35:34] So I, I appreciate the update.
[35:36] I think that that's
really exciting.
[35:38] Some of the things that I'm
hearing about happening across
[35:40] the district.
[35:40] And so I appreciate sharing
from the elk level all the way
[35:43] up to Alfred High School.
[35:45] I think one thing that I'm
trying to understand is how.
[35:50] How is the district and how do
we as a board measure success?
[35:53] So when I hear, um, you know,
this event was successful or we
[35:59] hosted a successful freshman
transition night, or we added
[36:02] one new club, I guess, where I
would like to, to push a bit is
[36:08] identifying what that success
looks like in each of these
[36:11] areas at the onset.
[36:13] So that then you and we know
if we were truly successful in
[36:17] meeting, that is the goal.
[36:19] For example, create two new
clubs or is it 20 new clubs and
[36:24] is it is a successful
[36:25] transition night one
family attending?
[36:27] Is it ten?
[36:28] Is it 75% of the freshman class?
[36:30] I don't know, but these are
just some of the things that
[36:33] that I'm sort of thinking about.
[36:34] It's it's fantastic
what's happening.
[36:36] And there's some really
exciting opportunities for our
[36:39] students around the district.
[36:40] But I think trying at the
onset to identify what What the
[36:47] benchmarks are for each of
these as we move through the
[36:50] strategic plan.
[36:50] And this is also year one.
[36:52] So we're still you are going
to be identifying those.
[36:54] But I think as we continue to
build on that in years two,
[36:58] three, four and five, I think
starting that preliminary work
[37:02] of identifying benchmarks now
[37:04] would be helpful moving forward.
[37:06] Okay.
[37:07] That's just one thing
I'm thinking about.
[37:09] Yeah.
[37:10] When would benchmarks
otherwise be provided?
[37:13] The strategic plan was adopted
in February, I believe.
[37:16] So when would benchmarks
typically be provided in a
[37:19] strategic plan.
[37:20] Well I think it depends
on the focus area.
[37:22] So in some of the more
academic, specific, rigorous
[37:26] and aligned pre-K curriculum,
those benchmarks have been
[37:30] provided and are embedded
within there in the various
[37:32] work streams and things like
that at the district level and
[37:35] provided to the board
when we're making goals.
[37:37] So it depends on the focus area.
[37:39] I think for this one, where the
benchmarks aren't so linear, I
[37:44] think that trying to move to
that place would be helpful for
[37:48] all of us, I think.
[37:49] But some of them have been
provided, Heather, just depends
[37:52] on the focus area.
[37:53] And I think that this was
an area that is a little bit
[37:55] harder to establish a benchmark
[37:56] because it's about
student well-being.
[37:58] And so how do you measure that?
[37:59] So I agree.
[38:00] Exactly. Yeah.
[38:01] School community.
[38:02] Yeah. Student well-being.
[38:03] And so that, you know and
Heather, you had asked it a
[38:06] couple meetings ago too.
[38:07] I think out of the four focus
areas, Maureen, to your point,
[38:11] this is one where we've got to
find what how are we going to
[38:15] measure that success?
[38:16] What are the what's
the evidence?
[38:17] How do we quantify it?
[38:19] Yeah. Because anecdotally,
there's great things happening
[38:22] and we all know that
we hear about it.
[38:24] You shared many
of those tonight.
[38:25] We our students are telling us
about them in the community.
[38:28] But I think being able to
quantify that would be helpful
[38:33] at the board level, at the sea
[38:35] level, for a variety of reasons.
[38:37] And I do think that this is
[38:38] likely the the hardest
one to quantify.
[38:41] Yeah. Um, but I think that I'd
like to see us try to move in
[38:45] that direction.
[38:46] Okay.
[38:48] Other comments or questions?
[38:50] Feedback regarding the
strategic plan update.
[38:55] I will just otherwise say I
appreciate that this has just
[38:57] become a regular once a month
update in the agenda packet
[39:01] that the public can expect
that the board can expect.
[39:04] This is something we talked
about when we were all when we
[39:06] in the room were creating
the strategic plan.
[39:08] So I appreciate it that the
updates are coming from various
[39:11] people throughout
the administration.
[39:13] Um, and then focusing on each
[39:15] of the various focus
areas each time.
[39:16] So I do appreciate the way that
[39:18] this is being presented
to the public.
[39:20] So I think that was a great
suggestion out of the board
[39:23] workshop that we had
back in the spring time.
[39:25] And then similarly, um, I know
[39:27] as we're entering budget season.
[39:29] Um, Steve, I'm thinking of your
[39:30] comment and others on the board.
[39:32] You'll see a lot of linear
lines and connection with the
[39:35] budget and the strategic plan,
not only in the executive
[39:38] summary, but in other
parts of the budget report.
[39:41] So we're really trying to do a
good job of making how this is
[39:44] not disconnected from what
we're doing as part of our day
[39:47] to day practice and
part of the budget.
[39:49] So that has been great feedback
that we received going back to
[39:52] the board workshops
that we've had.
[39:53] Great.
[39:54] Thank you.
[39:56] Do we have any committee
reports this evening?
[39:59] Dan.
[40:00] Thank you, Chairman Dion.
[40:01] Last Monday I attended the h.
[40:04] C TV Committee meeting.
[40:07] Some areas to that were
discussed were the upcoming
[40:10] budget season.
[40:11] They gave us an update on
financials, as well as updates
[40:14] on some equipment that is being
phased out due to end of life
[40:20] and of usefulness.
[40:21] Um
[40:23] areas.
[40:25] Um let's see.
[40:26] Uh, one thing that was brought
up and maybe something that the
[40:30] board can think about.
[40:31] And certainly Doctor Mueller,
you can maybe pass on to Mr.
[40:35] Beales is um the
idea of having a.
[40:38] A student representative
at the CTV
[40:44] meetings was was brought up and.
[40:46] And to me, that seems like a
very good idea considering the
[40:50] fact that a lot of the, you
know, CTV does quite a bit of
[40:55] business with the with the high
school, especially with with
[40:57] the sports and stuff.
[40:58] So and their events
at the high school.
[41:01] So that might be something that
we can, you know, possibly look
[41:03] at, but it was a fantastic
meeting and certainly a lot to
[41:07] think about for the
upcoming budget season.
[41:09] Thank you.
[41:10] Thank you.
[41:11] I think that that's a really I
[41:13] appreciate you
sharing that feedback.
[41:14] That is a really interesting
request, and it could certainly
[41:16] be helpful given the amount
of work that HGTV does as it
[41:20] relates to broadcasting about
our students and things.
[41:22] So I appreciate that.
[41:23] Dan, any other committee
reports tonight?
[41:27] Um, yeah, we had a recent, um,
[41:29] our and trustees
committee meeting.
[41:31] Um, most of the discussion was
around the summer was pretty
[41:35] busy, um, Mostly for open
[41:37] houses for the chapel,
which is complete.
[41:39] Um, and then I'll just make
a note that, um, like Doctor
[41:43] Mullis mentioned, the trustees
being honored at the Hall of
[41:45] Fame ceremony.
[41:46] Um, and if we remember from
our end of year requests, um,
[41:50] funding for the Hall of Fame
[41:52] ceremony did come
from the trustees.
[41:54] Um, so I do just want to raise
that and, um, reiterate our
[41:57] appreciation for that.
[41:58] That was a great event.
[41:59] Um, and definitely wouldn't
[42:02] have happened
without the trustees.
[42:05] Any other committee
reports tonight?
[42:09] We have our Board of
Selectmen liaison comments.
[42:11] Yes. I wanted to thank the
Hudson Memorial School for
[42:16] donating their Benson Park
Centennial Art project for us
[42:19] to display at our, uh, latest
Board of Selectmen meeting.
[42:23] They did a really great job.
[42:25] They looked great.
[42:26] We all picked a straw.
[42:27] And that's how that's how we
chose which animal was going to
[42:29] be at our place.
[42:31] Um, so I wanted to thank them
for letting us borrow those and
[42:35] display them during our meeting.
[42:36] I also wanted to remind
everybody that October 16th is
[42:40] our project blackout game
at Alvirne High School.
[42:43] Um, blacking out
childhood cancer.
[42:47] Uh, 7 p.m.
[42:47] at Alvirne.
[42:48] We raised over
$15,000 last year.
[42:51] We're well on our way to
surpass that this year, so I
[42:54] hope everybody comes out and
enjoys the raffles, enjoys the
[42:57] game, and just
supports a great cause.
[43:01] Board member comments.
[43:02] Damn, I have nothing
this evening.
[43:05] Um, it appears and I don't have
official confirmation that the
[43:09] CPSC has been brought back.
[43:12] The Special Education
Parent Advisory Council.
[43:15] So what I wanted to bring up,
just a reminder to the public
[43:19] to anyone can join.
[43:20] This is parent driven, but it's
also caregivers or, or staff
[43:25] members or community members.
[43:26] But is this something the board
should discuss having a school
[43:30] board member at
[43:32] or adopting it as an
official committee.
[43:35] So I think we could
certainly consider it.
[43:37] We could put it on as an agenda
[43:39] item for discussion
at a future meeting.
[43:41] Um,
[43:43] I think that yeah,
we could consider it.
[43:45] Perhaps some fact finding
and get further information.
[43:48] I'm just hesitating in because
there's other community
[43:53] committees that we as a school
board do not have a member on.
[43:56] So I'm just hesitating there.
[43:58] But let's do some additional
kind of fact finding, get some
[44:02] information and we can add it
as an agenda item and have a
[44:04] public discussion.
[44:05] Heather. Absolutely.
[44:06] I can actually offer a
little bit of information.
[44:08] This was spearheaded very much
by a parent, um, wanting to
[44:12] resurrect what had been before,
but also really model after
[44:15] something that she had
observed in another state.
[44:17] She was very, very excited.
[44:18] Um, she is very much, um,
working on a parent led group.
[44:24] Um, so I don't know about
the interest of the group.
[44:29] She and I have been talking and
we're going to be talking again
[44:31] in the near future.
[44:32] Um, I don't know about the
interest of the group to be a
[44:35] committee of the board.
[44:36] I don't I don't know
where she's at with that.
[44:38] So I think those are
conversations to be had.
[44:40] Yeah.
[44:40] Thank you.
[44:41] I and I appreciate that.
[44:42] Further information.
[44:43] We had received one email about
it, I believe, as board members
[44:46] a couple of weeks back.
[44:46] So limited information.
[44:48] So let's just get some further
information and then we can
[44:51] certainly talk about
it again in the future.
[44:52] Heather. Yeah, that's
a great request.
[44:55] Anything else tonight?
[44:57] Heather.
[44:58] Nope. That's, that's.
[45:00] None for me tonight.
[45:01] Steve. Uh, none for me.
[45:02] I also have no
comments this evening.
[45:05] So we have the RSA
for non public.
[45:07] Signing RSA 91 a colon three
[45:09] Roman numeral two
letters B and C.
[45:12] Make a motion to
enter non public.
[45:13] Second.
[45:14] Roll call.
[45:14] Dan.
[45:15] I.
[45:16] I.
[45:16] Ethan. Hi, Steve.
[45:17] Hi.
[45:18] Hi. We're now in non public.