Transcript
SOURCE TRANSCRIPT
This transcript is downloaded from the source you provided but we haven't reviewed it for accuracy. Treat it as a starting point, not a verbatim record. You can also request an AI-transcription of the audio file with the button to the left.
[0:10]
Good evening, and
[0:11]
welcome to this evening's school committee meeting.
[0:14]
It is September 24th, 2026.
[0:18]
And as as our custom, we will begin by rising
[0:22]
for the Pledge of Allegiance.
[0:26]
Pledge allegiance
[0:27]
to the flag of the United States of America.
[0:30]
And to the Republic for which it stands.
[0:33]
One nation under God, indivisible,
[0:36]
with routine and justice for all.
[0:40]
Great.
[0:43]
Do we have any adjustments to the agenda?
[0:47]
Yes. One adjustment is the board went into an executive session.
[0:52]
You the transfers.
[0:53]
Oh, sorry. Attendance.
[0:54]
My bad. Okay.
[0:57]
I'm just going to do it by, eyesight since we're all here tonight, which is lovely.
[1:01]
Emily Bryson here, Tom McGinty here, Kelly Hall here.
[1:05]
Christina Patrick here.
[1:07]
Sarah Oliveira's I am here, Shana Crafton here.
[1:10]
And Fleming here. Elsie the here.
[1:13]
Elise Garcia. Darren.
[1:14]
All here. Graham. Anton here. Lovely.
[1:17]
My apologies.
[1:18]
Agenda adjustments. Yes. And we have one.
[1:21]
The board went into an executive session on September 10th, 2026,
[1:25]
school committee meeting.
[1:26]
We consulted with our counsel and learned that we an error cited one
[1:30]
456 E as the basis for the executive session.
[1:34]
We actually should have cited one M hours
[1:36]
4 or 5 six F for the discussion of confidential records,
[1:40]
and a suggestion motion would be to amend the minutes to correct the citation.
[1:44]
A basis for Executive Session for September 10th, 2026.
[1:47]
School Committee meeting that the motion shall see second.
[1:52]
Christina. All in favor?
[1:55]
All right.
[1:56]
Great.
[1:57]
Okay.
[1:59]
Now, do we have a motion to approve the minutes
[2:02]
of the September 10th, 2026 meeting?
[2:06]
Christina, seconded by Tom.
[2:08]
All in favor?
[2:10]
Excellent.
[2:11]
All right, now, we will move on to reports.
[2:16]
I will just start off with a brief report before we move.
[2:20]
Move along.
[2:21]
I just wanted to make sure that everyone was aware.
[2:24]
We I think, Shauna Crofton did mention this
[2:27]
in our last school committee meeting, but regarding, the turf,
[2:32]
track and playground projects that are, going to be on November thirds
[2:38]
ballot for approval of the bond measure to support those projects.
[2:41]
There are several opportunities for the public
[2:44]
to engage again, the public in Yarmouth, whether you have,
[2:49]
children in the schools, are not on several occasions.
[2:52]
And these were purposely set forth on,
[2:56]
morning and evening time.
[2:57]
So I just want to recap those for the public.
[3:00]
We have September 29th.
[3:02]
That's next Tuesday at 9 a.m.
[3:04]
at Merrill Library.
[3:05]
We also have the same day, the 29th at 6:30 p.m.,
[3:10]
at the Yarmouth High School Alumni Room,
[3:13]
October 14th, 9 a.m.
[3:16]
at the Log Cabin again.
[3:18]
October 14th at 6 p.m.
[3:20]
at the Yarmouth Elementary School cafeteria.
[3:24]
And then finally October 21st at 5 p.m.
[3:28]
at the Yarmouth High School Alumni Room.
[3:30]
So there are several opportunities to engage.
[3:32]
Bring your questions. Find out more.
[3:34]
We definitely want everyone to feel they have all the facts before
[3:38]
they go to the polls on November 3rd.
[3:41]
And of course, at any time we encourage folks to email the superintendent
[3:45]
or the school committee with questions about the turf, track and playground,
[3:50]
so that you feel you can again go to the polls informed.
[3:54]
That is all I have for this evening.
[3:56]
Thank you.
[3:56]
Okay, moving on to, the superintendent's report.
[4:00]
Thank you.
[4:01]
I just wanted to start off with a logistical piece, and that is
[4:05]
that I'm just going to request
[4:06]
that we make a minor adjustment to our school committee workshop calendar.
[4:09]
So currently we have the CIP plan and the workshop scheduled for October 22nd.
[4:15]
And I'm just hoping that we can move that to November 12th.
[4:18]
And the reason being is that our Director of Finance
[4:20]
is going to be out of town on that date,
[4:22]
and I think he's an integral part of that conversation.
[4:24]
So we'll just make that shift and I can update the website as well with the dates.
[4:29]
And I
[4:29]
wanted to just give a quick update on the sustainability initiative.
[4:33]
So this is I had brought this forward last time.
[4:35]
It was a grant that the town has actually worked with the school department on,
[4:39]
for a town sustainability.
[4:40]
And it's a climate resilience roadmap for the Yarmouth High School.
[4:44]
I am really excited to announce that we have received that grant
[4:47]
with a total of $40,000 for Community Resilience Partnership grant.
[4:52]
A thank you to Mary Smith, who is the individual
[4:54]
who helped her write it, and our coordinator here in town.
[4:57]
And a thank you to our administrators as well, Heather,
[5:01]
Manchester and Robert Cody, who are helping to oversee that as well.
[5:04]
So we're very, very excited because it's going to mean wonderful things for kids.
[5:09]
Our students are very involved in it.
[5:10]
And I did want to just highlight that.
[5:11]
That also is going to mean
[5:12]
that there will be some charging stations put in at the high school.
[5:16]
Lots of good news and exciting things to come on that,
[5:19]
I was
[5:20]
going to also just do a couple of highlights from our buildings.
[5:23]
I just wanted to highlight a couple of things for each of the schools
[5:26]
Yarmouth High School.
[5:27]
So homecoming week, as many know, is underway.
[5:30]
And we have the community has our homecoming dance.
[5:32]
You're going to hear more from students.
[5:33]
So I won't go into too much detail, but I just wanted to thank all of them
[5:37]
for, a really, truly phenomenal organization.
[5:40]
And you've worked really well with the administration
[5:42]
and you've done a great job.
[5:43]
And I would just give a shout out to our committee members
[5:46]
and our students to encourage everybody to attend
[5:48]
those events with a lot of sporting events and whatnot happening.
[5:51]
The, Harrison Middle School.
[5:53]
So our HMS students have completed two successful days of their main
[5:56]
three year testing.
[5:57]
And I just wanted to thank them because, again, they jumped right in.
[6:00]
And that's been success. And, we are moving things along.
[6:03]
So thank you to the middle school folks for their initiatives.
[6:06]
Dartmouth Elementary School,
[6:08]
wise, is bringing students and community partners together
[6:11]
that there is a school wide assembly that was held yesterday and that involved,
[6:15]
the Yarmouth
[6:15]
Police Department was not able to attend, but they had representatives there.
[6:18]
Yarmouth Bike Committee and along with the white House students,
[6:22]
came forward and joined for a conversation about bike safety.
[6:25]
Also came up to promote homecoming, and it was just a wonderful opportunity
[6:29]
to see all the students together. Thank you.
[6:31]
And with Road school,
[6:33]
celebrating a successful start to our 3 to 5 year old
[6:36]
special education population, so early childhood special education
[6:39]
has fully launched, and we have students that are receiving supports and services.
[6:43]
And the staff have really, really helped to work together to build that program.
[6:46]
And we are really excited to have that,
[6:49]
as a part of the Yarmouth School Department.
[6:50]
Oh, thank you, thank you. Fiona.
[6:54]
Now to the Finance committee or new chair this year for the Finance Committee.
[6:58]
Tom McGinty.
[6:59]
Yeah.
[6:59]
We have not met since our last meeting.
[7:02]
So, really nothing to report tonight. Okay.
[7:05]
The new chair of our policy committee, Chelsea dorm.
[7:08]
Hello. We met September 14th.
[7:11]
And I was selected to serve as chair, hence this update.
[7:14]
We reviewed updates to two policy procedures to reflect doctor
[7:17]
Heather Manchester
[7:19]
as the district's current affirmative action coordinator and title nine.
[7:22]
I'm sorry.
[7:24]
We also discussed
[7:25]
upcoming changes to our policy on automated external defibrillators,
[7:29]
otherwise known as Aids, resulting from recent state legislation.
[7:34]
Beginning with the 2027 2028 school year.
[7:37]
Districts will have additional requirements
[7:38]
related to add access at school sponsored athletic events
[7:42]
and practices, as well as emergency planning.
[7:45]
We also just learned that there's potential for this
[7:47]
to become an unfunded mandate.
[7:49]
And so we're waiting to hear more about this from SSA
[7:53]
to support safety and move towards compliance,
[7:55]
we will review our existing Aids athletic venues, training and emergency
[8:00]
action plans this year, with recommendations
[8:02]
expected to be presented to the policy committee later this year.
[8:05]
But I have the honor of, sharing some
[8:08]
thanks and recognition to the Yarmouth Fire Department.
[8:12]
Yarmouth Colts I understand Neil Daily, in particular, Karen McNeil
[8:16]
and our athletic department for their partnership in purchasing
[8:19]
and installing ads at several of our athletic fields.
[8:23]
This collaboration ensures that these important lifesaving
[8:26]
devices are readily available during athletic events, and we're grateful
[8:30]
to everyone involved for their commitment
[8:31]
to the safety of our students, athletes, and larger community.
[8:35]
This year, we'll also continue to review our ad procedures and devices
[8:39]
across the district.
[8:41]
Finally, we reviewed significant revisions to policy
[8:44]
Jlf reporting child abuse and neglect to align with our policy.
[8:48]
With recent legislative changes to Maine's mandatory reporting laws.
[8:51]
Among the changes, all school personnel
[8:54]
are now clearly identified as mandated reporters.
[8:57]
Reports must be made within 24 hours, and mandated
[9:00]
reporter training will now be required.
[9:02]
Every two years, we will have an opportunity to discuss Jlf
[9:06]
more this evening during our first reading of the updated policy recommendations.
[9:11]
And that's it. Thank you Chelsea.
[9:14]
And I understand the mission committee met this evening.
[9:17]
I'm looking at, Kelly.
[9:19]
I'm not sure who that who was chosen as chair, but the missus will let you
[9:24]
share that with us.
[9:25]
Yes. So the mission committee met tonight.
[9:27]
I was elected as chair. Okay.
[9:30]
And we just used this meeting,
[9:33]
to review our charge as mission committee for those new members.
[9:38]
We welcome new members and, students and parents.
[9:42]
We talked about what we've worked on in the past,
[9:44]
and we brainstormed some goals for our work this year.
[9:48]
Right. Thank you.
[9:50]
And other committees and liaisons.
[9:53]
I'm not sure if other folks have met yet.
[9:56]
Oh, Christina, just a quick one.
[9:58]
I'm our liaison to the Yarmouth Education Foundation.
[10:00]
We heard a lot of great kudos to them in our last meeting
[10:03]
with some of the grants they've been funding.
[10:05]
And they have been updating staff across the district about this year's
[10:09]
grant cycles that are open to staff, teachers and students.
[10:14]
And just a reminder that the first grant application cycle
[10:18]
deadline is coming up on October 16th for the fall grant cycle.
[10:23]
For those staff members or students that might be thinking
[10:25]
about submitting something.
[10:27]
Excellent. Thank you. Christina.
[10:29]
And now to our students, Senate, Elise and Grant.
[10:32]
All right. We've had a pretty busy, week.
[10:35]
First of all, Miss Crofton
[10:36]
came to our Senate meeting on Wednesday, so that was great.
[10:38]
It was great to have her there and to have her sort of seeing what we're doing.
[10:42]
We ran well, we started we introduced the freshmen
[10:45]
to how elections will work, what kind of student government there is.
[10:48]
And so their elections will be next week, speeches on Wednesday
[10:52]
and elections on Thursday.
[10:54]
So hopefully we'll get some good turnout from that.
[10:56]
And then in Senate we made our committees.
[10:58]
So for those who aren't familiar, we've got three committees
[11:00]
that each focus on a different thing.
[11:02]
We've got academic, which focuses on academics, school
[11:05]
culture, which focuses on school culture and extra
[11:09]
extracurriculars and technology, which I'm sure you'll never guess.
[11:12]
Focus is on extracurriculars and technology.
[11:15]
So we broke up into those groups and we just brainstormed
[11:18]
what we want to work on for the year, and we sent out a form to hear from students.
[11:21]
So hopefully we'll get a lot of input and a lot of big things to come.
[11:25]
Yes, and homecoming is underway.
[11:29]
That is on Saturday.
[11:31]
Goodness gracious.
[11:32]
I just had dinner.
[11:33]
Sorry.
[11:35]
Our the dances on, Saturday.
[11:38]
That's mostly spearheaded by the sophomore class council.
[11:42]
They're having a dance out in the courtyard,
[11:44]
and it's been a whole production, and it's been so excellent for school culture.
[11:48]
And, it's the first homecoming in so long, and it's
[11:53]
it's just everyone's fired up about it. So
[11:56]
sophomore class council hopefully becomes a thing.
[12:00]
Excellent. Thank you. Graham.
[12:02]
Adult liaison note, please, for the PTO.
[12:05]
Just putting,
[12:07]
APB out there for anyone who might enjoy
[12:11]
taking up the role of, what has been called
[12:14]
parent education coordinator, community education coordinator?
[12:18]
That is an open role.
[12:20]
And if you'd like to learn more about it,
[12:23]
Allison, call and be happy to chat with you.
[12:29]
Currently, there
[12:30]
is a partnership with the Falmouth PTO for an event in the fall,
[12:34]
so that will be on the PTO website, so there is some time to think about it.
[12:39]
If anyone out there is interested, please tell your friends.
[12:42]
Right.
[12:43]
Thank you. Okay.
[12:44]
Now is the,
[12:47]
sorry moment where we, offer,
[12:49]
time for the public to comment.
[12:52]
But I do not see any members of the public here.
[12:55]
I see lots of wonderful administrators.
[12:57]
So unless they want to get up
[12:59]
as members of the public, I'm going to assume we can skip to the next,
[13:03]
portion, and which is unfinished business.
[13:07]
I do not believe we have any unfinished business,
[13:10]
which we're skipping right along.
[13:12]
To our workshop topic for this evening,
[13:15]
which is emergency preparedness and school safety.
[13:19]
Thank you.
[13:20]
And I am going to share a presentation.
[13:22]
And then we also I want to thank our building
[13:24]
administrators for being here this evening.
[13:26]
If there is specific questions that you might have
[13:27]
for any of the buildings, we can follow up with that as well.
[13:30]
But I would like to thank them as well
[13:31]
because they contributed to putting this together.
[13:33]
So we're hopefully going to be able to answer a lot of things that,
[13:36]
that maybe you're wondering about.
[13:39]
So it just the
[13:39]
overall purpose of the just this, the workshop
[13:42]
in general, we really want to make sure that folks understand,
[13:46]
and have a shared understanding of what our approach is to emergency management
[13:49]
and being prepared for events that might occur in the district.
[13:52]
So what we want to also look at is show really clearly
[13:56]
how our facilities, technology staff
[13:57]
training, curricular connections and whatnot all play into the preparation.
[14:02]
If an event is to take place and it's going to happen.
[14:05]
And again, we also want to make sure that we look at and highlight
[14:08]
the ongoing cycle of practice for review.
[14:10]
Just always open to changes, adjustments, and feedback.
[14:14]
And we've kind of built that into
[14:16]
just the practices that we have in place right now.
[14:19]
And I just I do want to highlight
[14:22]
is empowering all students to create fulfilling lives in a changing world.
[14:25]
Our mission is what drives what we do in emergency preparedness.
[14:32]
So in general, some of the facilities and access points,
[14:35]
just making sure that everybody in the community has clarity on this one.
[14:39]
All of our buildings do have a single entry point.
[14:41]
So when we have folks arrive to campus, we always ask
[14:44]
and make sure that they go through one entry, where folks greet them
[14:48]
and they can beat them in, and they sign in to the front office.
[14:51]
And the vestibules and whatnot are also a place where we have
[14:54]
and can hold, visitors as well as if there's large parcels and whatnot.
[14:58]
So I just say that
[14:59]
because it's within intentionality that those spaces have been planned.
[15:03]
All of those areas are obviously monitored.
[15:04]
They are locked doors.
[15:06]
We have cameras in those areas and intercoms to allow for communication.
[15:10]
And in terms of communication and alerting,
[15:12]
I'll get into more detail on this one, but we have multiple ways in the schools
[15:16]
and district to be able to communicate both individually and then in mass
[15:20]
when we need to
[15:22]
training and practice.
[15:23]
We have some pretty thorough plans in place for training
[15:26]
and professional development, both for staff and for students.
[15:29]
And it's something that we continue to build on.
[15:32]
And I say that because every year I know that I've been here.
[15:34]
I'm in my sixth year. Every year we have made adjustments.
[15:37]
And so it's an annual review process,
[15:39]
and it involves a lot of people, which I'll get into as well.
[15:42]
And then the partnership piece.
[15:44]
So again, all of this really is done in coordination with all of our buildings,
[15:48]
as a district, but also with our emergency responders here in town.
[15:51]
And I just want to highlight and also thank them for their engagement
[15:55]
and just always really being willing to be at the table with us and giving
[15:59]
us, just research based evidence to be able to help inform decisions.
[16:06]
So I talked about
[16:07]
the safety infrastructure quite a bit already.
[16:10]
The one thing I just sort of wanted to highlight as well.
[16:12]
So in addition to sort of the entry areas and whatnot,
[16:15]
we also have school emergency plans that are specific to each building
[16:19]
and throughout the district.
[16:20]
Obviously, I'll go into more of that in each of our rooms.
[16:23]
We also have go buckets and what those are those
[16:26]
and unfortunately relate to if we have, an intruder or a situation
[16:30]
where and we have to lock into spaces, they have contents in them
[16:34]
to help and just help with needs in the room themselves.
[16:37]
And there's a detailed list of what we have that we include in those.
[16:41]
But it's for safety measures.
[16:45]
So I want to start off really by again highlighting
[16:47]
when we when we have communication throughout the building.
[16:49]
So we have the intercom systems that we can use.
[16:52]
We have phones obviously that we can call room to room.
[16:55]
We have an all call.
[16:57]
We have a situation where we have we can at any point call from a phone
[17:01]
and make an announcement.
[17:02]
So we have our staff have access to it, do,
[17:05]
instructions that allow them to be able to do that in case of an emergency.
[17:08]
Obviously that's not shared with students.
[17:11]
But it is an emergency procedure piece that we do training on
[17:13]
at the start of each year.
[17:15]
Our system is one that you've heard about before.
[17:18]
And we are very appreciative
[17:19]
of the fact that the school committee and town has supported this.
[17:23]
But what this does is it's a it's an all call system that allows us
[17:27]
to do a couple of different things.
[17:29]
So it's an actual card and I'm meant to hold it with me.
[17:33]
Okay.
[17:33]
It's it's a card where there is a button attached to it.
[17:36]
And within that, within that it can be programed
[17:39]
that if you were to click it three times,
[17:41]
what happens is that link to specific people within the building.
[17:44]
So it's a building response team.
[17:46]
People will do that. Staff will do that.
[17:48]
If by chance, for example, there is a medical issue that just needs
[17:51]
the nurse to be present, it could also be a be a situation in the classroom
[17:55]
where additional support is needed.
[17:57]
It could be administrators.
[17:59]
It could be health related.
[18:00]
It's a team of folks that are trained to be able to go quickly.
[18:04]
What allows us as well, when that notification comes in
[18:08]
on devices, it shows exactly where that call is coming from.
[18:12]
So it notifies not only that the need is there,
[18:15]
but also notifies where it is in the space.
[18:17]
All of our buildings.
[18:18]
One of the things that is
[18:19]
is wonderful about this system, regardless of where you are, it pinpoints.
[18:23]
So at say for example, I'm at the high school or actually I'll use a
[18:27]
one of our say, Kelly Rogers goes up to the high school.
[18:31]
Her badge then aligns with that building.
[18:34]
So you don't have to be in the space.
[18:36]
And it's not attached to one building.
[18:38]
It also stretches out on to places like the athletic fields and whatnot.
[18:42]
So this system has actually upgraded over the course of the summer.
[18:45]
And we're in the midst of that final portion of upgrade as well.
[18:49]
The second portion of this is an all call alert system.
[18:52]
So when I say all call, if you click that button,
[18:57]
for example, eight times what that does, that's an all call emergency,
[19:01]
where it notifies
[19:02]
not just people within the building and notifies our emergency department.
[19:05]
It's an automatic attachment to 911 police officers dispatched.
[19:10]
Our fire department is dispatched, and everybody is coming in full force.
[19:13]
And I say that because it really is a true all call scenario.
[19:17]
When in the buildings themselves, there are strobe lights that are going to
[19:20]
be flashing, the doors are locking, there's announcements that are going on.
[19:24]
And so that that is in place because it allows us to fast as quick access.
[19:29]
If we are in a situation where we need to use it.
[19:31]
I think with it, it brings an incredible sense of safety and security to staff.
[19:36]
We all know if a situation like this arises,
[19:38]
time is of the essence and getting somebody on site is critical.
[19:42]
So this really is an important asset that we have here in Yarmouth,
[19:45]
and we're thankful to have it and use it if we need it.
[19:50]
The in terms of and
[19:52]
if we were to have an intruder in the space,
[19:54]
one of the things that we have
[19:55]
really leaned into and move towards is we're an Alice and form district.
[19:59]
And what that means is this is a sort of a shift in protocol
[20:03]
that took place about maybe 10 to 15 years ago now.
[20:06]
But it's based on research about how and then and I hate to say it this way,
[20:10]
but how do you minimize, and really and it's awful,
[20:15]
but minimize situations of people being shot if there is a situation of that
[20:19]
that took place and what they found in research and data
[20:22]
is that the old traditional lock down system where you would hide,
[20:26]
unfortunately caused an increase in casualty.
[20:30]
Again, this is a
[20:31]
really, really difficult topic to have a conversation around,
[20:34]
but it's also a really important one because we have to prepare
[20:37]
and be responsive if anything of that was to take place.
[20:41]
So what the police department really worked with us on
[20:44]
is that shifting our practices to so that you're much
[20:47]
more active and involved and responsive to the actual scenario at hand,
[20:52]
reduce us and minimizes that casualty.
[20:55]
So alert, lockdown, inform, counter and evacuate
[20:59]
are the various pieces that fall or the acronyms for Alice itself.
[21:04]
But what that allows you to do is it's telling you
[21:05]
to really respond in the moment to the situation.
[21:09]
So alert is really looking
[21:10]
at being more aware of of an area and your situational awareness.
[21:14]
So when I'm in this space, being really conscious
[21:16]
and looking at I have two exit areas training yourself to be again
[21:20]
really aware of your surroundings and the people within it.
[21:23]
And then knowing where your accident points might be if you had that need.
[21:27]
Lockdown is moving to you again.
[21:29]
Secure the space that you're in.
[21:31]
But with this, you also do an additional piece
[21:34]
where you're going to be barricading a space.
[21:35]
So you're literally if I was to look at this door,
[21:38]
I could be looking at all the different things that I can go.
[21:40]
In addition to locking up, putting up against it in form,
[21:45]
there's a move away from just trying to keep everything in code
[21:48]
to being really clear in your language.
[21:50]
So you're any information that you have.
[21:53]
The direction that we have received and we have and follow and educate on,
[21:56]
is that really clear language as specific as you possibly can
[21:59]
and making sure that you share that as publicly and loudly as possible?
[22:04]
The counter component of this is only, really relevant to older students.
[22:08]
This is not something that comes in to discussion in play.
[22:11]
And in the early years, everything here that we do with students
[22:15]
in at the building levels is age developmentally appropriate.
[22:18]
And that is again, working with that alongside our police department.
[22:22]
But the counter piece is a last resort situation where
[22:24]
if somebody was to come into a space armed,
[22:27]
that the guidance is around picking up, for example,
[22:30]
anything that you might have within the vicinity, throwing and being loud,
[22:34]
making as much of movement as you possibly can.
[22:37]
The evacuate is the area that people lean into most.
[22:40]
And we are.
[22:41]
The instruction is always, if it's feasible and possible,
[22:43]
you would evacuate a space.
[22:45]
So if you're able to get out, you get out.
[22:48]
And what that means is even for example, if you're on the second floor
[22:50]
of a building,
[22:52]
it's making sure that people understand how they can evacuate a space.
[22:56]
And it's measuring safety and risk at the same time.
[22:59]
So we do a lot of that with our students and our staff as well.
[23:01]
And what that could look like.
[23:03]
So this is the model again, that we moved to a few years ago
[23:05]
and have been continuing to evolve, with our staff and with our students.
[23:10]
And I'll talk a little bit about what that looks like in practice.
[23:16]
How we build readiness.
[23:17]
So again, introducing
[23:18]
really important that we have shared language visuals and expectations.
[23:22]
I I'm just going to go back for a second because this visual here, for example,
[23:26]
the stop, look and listen in the elementary years,
[23:29]
this is really important for our students, right.
[23:31]
Understand what I'm going to do in a situation.
[23:33]
I'm going to get a hold.
[23:35]
I'm going to make sure that I'm aware.
[23:37]
I'm going to look at my my teacher.
[23:38]
And that's what we're training, really stop, look and listen to the adult
[23:41]
in the classroom with younger students,
[23:45]
practice again, really looking at the routines
[23:48]
and what we do in these situations.
[23:50]
There's been a lot of research as well.
[23:51]
And how do we help best prepare, folks.
[23:54]
And one of the things that people will say is that it's similar to fire drills.
[23:56]
You have to actually do it,
[23:58]
and you have to go through scenarios to be able to equate yourself.
[24:00]
If there was an emergency that could take place,
[24:03]
when you're in a
[24:04]
situation, you go into a state of fight or flight.
[24:07]
And I think the more preparation that you can do for that,
[24:10]
it decreases your risk of being in a situation
[24:13]
where you wouldn't be able to react, which is a really fundamental piece of why
[24:17]
we do these things and applying it, obviously the evacuation portion of it.
[24:20]
And then every time we do that, really looking and debriefing on
[24:24]
what we have could potentially do better or differently.
[24:30]
Just a question in terms of the communication piece
[24:32]
during an actual emergency situation,
[24:33]
if I was to take place again, we've talked about the plain language,
[24:37]
but that again, is communicating without any codes as directly as possible.
[24:41]
And again, the information that we share is actionable.
[24:44]
So being descriptive.
[24:45]
So for example, if I'm looking at the individual
[24:47]
being really clear about the color of their shirt,
[24:49]
the color of their shoes, the color of their hair, the gender
[24:52]
to those pieces as, as clear and as specific as you can be.
[24:56]
The channels of communication
[24:57]
that we've used, I obviously talked about the ones that we have in terms of scent.
[25:02]
Other things that we have to the technology and whatnot that we use.
[25:05]
Really, once you get to a certain point shifts over to the police department
[25:08]
as well, there's a point where they then take a lead on communication
[25:12]
in our buildings.
[25:12]
It's it again is where it starts with us is so the initial direction
[25:17]
and instruction when the situation is first initially happening.
[25:21]
Family communication.
[25:22]
One of the things that we stresses the importance of sharing information
[25:26]
that is accurate.
[25:27]
So making sure that the information that we get is communicated when we have it,
[25:31]
but also that it is accurate information being sent out to shared with families.
[25:38]
There's been a lot of and I know that, Mr.
[25:41]
Cody actually spoke to this in the opening.
[25:43]
We were talking about personal devices and cell phones.
[25:45]
But there's been a lot of question around and understandably so.
[25:48]
But concern from families in terms of, well, I if my child doesn't have a device
[25:54]
or cell phone with them in the moment of an emergency, how can I contact them?
[25:57]
I just thought it was important to highlight, again,
[25:59]
done in consultation with, law enforcement national organizations.
[26:03]
But the guidance really has shifted us to it's it's actually best
[26:06]
if people do not have their cell phones with them in these in these situations.
[26:11]
And I kind of broke it down a little bit by each of the different reasons and why.
[26:14]
So distraction from direct instructions.
[26:16]
So in these situations,
[26:19]
being in the moment and really hearing and seeing
[26:21]
what is happening is really critical to being able to be responsive quickly.
[26:25]
Spread of unverified rumors.
[26:27]
Again, going back to that language that is verified is accurate and is correct.
[26:31]
So we don't want information going out that isn't isn't actually factual
[26:36]
overloading of dispatch systems.
[26:38]
Again, that can depend on the area that you're in.
[26:40]
But if if hundreds of calls are going in
[26:42]
to 911, it is going to again, it can impact response times.
[26:46]
And then also it can cause if people have their phones
[26:48]
and they are aware of this and people flooding into the site,
[26:51]
which is when again, you don't want people coming in
[26:53]
because you want emergency vehicles coming in.
[26:55]
In the most,
[26:56]
the highest priority is making sure
[26:57]
that police department and fire department can get in.
[27:00]
And then officials, staff, communication, school administrators
[27:03]
and crisis teams are going to be really dedicated
[27:06]
to making sure that they are managing the communication, going out to families.
[27:13]
I also want to highlight the
[27:14]
fact that we do have, in the district is a crisis intervention team.
[27:18]
So this is a group that meets several times each year.
[27:21]
And the sole goal of this group
[27:22]
is to really talk through various scenarios and situations.
[27:26]
If something is to arise, a situation or scenario that really,
[27:30]
again, it doesn't just have to be an intruder,
[27:32]
it could be something that is significantly impacting our school,
[27:35]
or our district.
[27:36]
This group does get together, and they are the folks that help
[27:39]
to navigate how we handle this.
[27:40]
In each of the buildings.
[27:42]
The group is made up of district
[27:44]
building administrators, social workers, and school counselors.
[27:48]
We have teacher representatives.
[27:49]
The police chief and the fire chief are there.
[27:51]
And this allows us, again, to make sure that we are really using,
[27:55]
I would say, just as many minds around the table
[27:57]
as we can and making sure that we have the right people in place in the buildings.
[28:01]
And again, key responsibilities here.
[28:03]
It's obviously to be responsive, but it's also really to be proactive
[28:06]
in the planning and be ready if anything is to happen or take place.
[28:12]
And I put the teaching and learning side of it,
[28:14]
because this is really a critical component of being prepared.
[28:18]
So the staff professional development,
[28:21]
in terms of how we support and and work with our staff throughout the district.
[28:25]
So new staff in terms of that, when they first arrive, every new staff
[28:29]
member does receive training with just sort of the fundamentals
[28:31]
and basics about being an Alice in form district.
[28:35]
What to do in a situation of emergency, who to contact, how to respond.
[28:39]
And that sort of built into our orientation and are welcome
[28:43]
as every year as our returning staff come back, our building administrators
[28:47]
also do sessions in those opening faculty days, with our staff.
[28:51]
And again, those are refreshers.
[28:53]
And they are also opportunities for people to ask any other questions.
[28:56]
Practice and learn more.
[28:58]
The other option that we also offer for staff is not a requirement, but it is one
[29:02]
that we also just try to make available each year that we have several sessions
[29:06]
in partnership with the police department where we have advanced training.
[29:10]
Those are really scenario, and I would say active based example.
[29:15]
So for example, people can be in a room
[29:17]
and they would practice barricading a space together.
[29:19]
They learned how to really respond in the moment.
[29:22]
They learned how to evacuate from the window.
[29:24]
They learned how to respond
[29:26]
and support students in a situation depending on the ages of the kids.
[29:30]
So the feedback that we've had from all of these has been very, very positive.
[29:34]
I think that one of the things we've learned this year
[29:36]
is that there are some folks that would like some additional training,
[29:38]
so we're looking into ways that we can help to support that as well,
[29:41]
in addition to building that into the program.
[29:44]
And then the PD time that we have, I did want to highlight just a special thing.
[29:48]
So any Bernard and Amanda Marie are two of our staff at Rowe School,
[29:52]
and they actually went to the Alice, training this summer.
[29:56]
And they're the two
[29:57]
who actually led the training for our staff and our new staff this year.
[30:00]
Coming in, one of the things we've really committed to is making sure
[30:04]
that we can do this training internally with support of the police department.
[30:08]
But we found that having people who have the expertise and,
[30:12]
and the confidence really also are sometimes the best people to be training.
[30:16]
They really know the buildings. They know the space.
[30:18]
And I think people also value hearing from them because they also understand
[30:21]
the kids that are in the buildings themselves.
[30:24]
So a really big thank you to them
[30:25]
because they use some of their own time to do a lot of that work as well.
[30:30]
The age appropriate, student preparation.
[30:33]
And this is where I again, I give thanks to our building administrators
[30:35]
and the teams of folks that they work with in their buildings
[30:38]
because I think what they've done is be very intentional about how,
[30:41]
how they design the learning opportunities and experiences for their students
[30:45]
and the younger years at Rowe and the elementary school.
[30:49]
Again, I went back to that visual, but it really is a stop,
[30:52]
look and listen, really learning to follow the the directions of the adult.
[30:57]
And they actually do these,
[30:59]
you know, I'll talk about the scenarios at the at the older years, but
[31:02]
they don't do quote unquote scenarios at the elementary school,
[31:05]
but they do in the sense of I was in a teacher's room who actually did
[31:09]
one of these learning opportunities for students earlier in the year.
[31:12]
And the teacher was very, very thoughtful about where it is.
[31:14]
You know, we're going to take a moment in the day.
[31:16]
This is what we're going to do.
[31:17]
But the students up said, we're going to move quickly over to this area.
[31:20]
We're going to move quickly over to here. I want your eyes here.
[31:22]
One of the things I would highlight and why this is so important is
[31:25]
when I was in the room, those students don't know who I am.
[31:28]
Sometimes that can be a distraction, right?
[31:31]
The students were locked into their teacher.
[31:33]
They were following the instruction of their teacher.
[31:35]
They were doing exactly what the teacher said.
[31:37]
So I just I give credit to our teachers because they're being thoughtful
[31:41]
and varied.
[31:42]
And again, they're very effective in what they're doing in that environment.
[31:45]
At Harrison Middle School and the high school,
[31:48]
it does move more to explicit instruction and scenario
[31:52]
situations that are talked through during advisor advisory.
[31:56]
There are tabletop that happen and they will be moving as well
[31:59]
towards some actual evacuation drills that they will do later in the year.
[32:03]
So again, it builds up over the course of the year is not all thrown at once.
[32:06]
It really is scaffolded.
[32:08]
And that's done with intentionality.
[32:14]
The support.
[32:14]
I really want to highlight this piece as well,
[32:16]
because we're talking a lot about the the emergency.
[32:19]
We're talking about what happens with if something awful
[32:22]
and egregious happens in a space which I hope never does.
[32:26]
What I also want to highlight is there's an incredible amount of work
[32:29]
that goes in to really just, again,
[32:32]
helping the students to learn in terms of the social emotional
[32:35]
learning side of this piece that actually plays into this as well.
[32:39]
The character strong curriculum that is used at the pre-K five level really is
[32:44]
in terms of the instruction about, again, I would say, how to be great humans.
[32:48]
Right?
[32:48]
And I say this in the sense of
[32:49]
is a really well thought out program is not just executive function.
[32:53]
It's a huge portion of it, but it also then the again, you hear
[32:56]
deep dive into ten foundational traits, including empathy, respect, cooperation
[33:01]
and persevering.
[33:01]
So those are really critical components when you're in
[33:03]
any type of an emergency situation, having an awareness of those as well.
[33:07]
The Responsive Classroom again is a how
[33:10]
so the environment and the practices of what's happening on a daily basis.
[33:14]
And again, I think these are done in, in a very thoughtful and mindful way
[33:18]
by our teachers built into the lessons themselves, in addition to having school
[33:22]
counselors support in some of those areas as well.
[33:26]
And again, at the middle and the high school,
[33:29]
they have dedicated advisory teams
[33:30]
that have curriculum to be able to support these aspects as well.
[33:34]
Again, they're small.
[33:35]
The groups in the middle school,
[33:36]
intentionally small to be able to allow for those close connections.
[33:39]
And I would say development of a relationship with that adult,
[33:43]
who they can also lean into
[33:44]
at the high school, they're going to have that same advisor
[33:47]
for the four years that they're there.
[33:48]
And hopefully, again, establishing close connections and having a really safe
[33:51]
space to be able to have really important and hard conversations.
[33:54]
And there are some designated lessons that the,
[33:58]
again, teachers are offering and providing during those times as well.
[34:03]
I think that's a real strength of our school department.
[34:05]
So I just highlight that because I think those are really important pieces.
[34:08]
And our teachers should be proud of the work that they, they've done and do.
[34:11]
So the again, partnerships and continuous improvement.
[34:14]
So we continue to work very, very closely with the police department.
[34:18]
I think we they're they're helpful in terms of also what they share with us
[34:22]
in terms of the best practice that they're learning and the training that they do.
[34:26]
They're very mindful of how
[34:28]
that may need to be adapted in educational situations and settings.
[34:32]
They are actively coming to some of our drills and sometimes.
[34:35]
So sometimes they might be present when we have drills in the building.
[34:38]
They work very closely with our building administrators.
[34:41]
And again, they do the additional trainings,
[34:44]
and volunteer their time to help with that as well.
[34:46]
And just looking down to make sure I didn't
[34:49]
I don't want to repeat a lot of stuff that I've already said,
[34:52]
but I think the one thing I really want to highlight here is that, and I sort of
[34:55]
started out with that, is this is a situation
[34:57]
that can really increase anxiety and stress and trauma
[35:01]
in so many situations for students, as well as for staff.
[35:05]
Every time that we are doing this, our goal is not to be focused on the trauma.
[35:10]
It's to really help to prepare for possible situations.
[35:14]
Not and we do that in a way that hopefully is mindful and thoughtful.
[35:18]
Also, letting folks know whether it's staff or students, that
[35:21]
whenever we have these conversations, we have social workers available.
[35:25]
We have school counselors available if somebody needs additional support
[35:28]
or just need some time or needs to step out, they are always welcome to do so.
[35:33]
And I think that's really important that we always allow that space.
[35:38]
Questions I know it's a lot of information to throw. So.
[35:42]
Okay. Well thank you so much Shauna.
[35:44]
That's a it's a a huge topic and I appreciate all the different,
[35:49]
you know, components of it that you shared.
[35:52]
So yeah just open up for questions comments.
[35:55]
And our administrators are here as well.
[36:00]
Emily.
[36:01]
And for Kelly, I'm curious how if you had a fire drill
[36:05]
pretty early on in the school year and I was thinking about you
[36:09]
and the pre-K students,
[36:12]
I was curious how it went.
[36:19]
Sorry.
[36:21]
And sorry about my voice.
[36:23]
They did phenomenally well.
[36:26]
They right from the first moments of walking into the school,
[36:30]
like Shauna said, we're teaching them the importance of following
[36:34]
your teachers directions, and that's really what we lean to with all of this.
[36:37]
It's important to follow teachers directions.
[36:39]
So when we had an unexpected fire drill, early on,
[36:44]
they handled it beautifully.
[36:46]
They just listened to their teacher and they, they followed the routine,
[36:53]
and and handled it really well.
[36:54]
I mean, it is loud and so, you know, along the way,
[36:58]
you're kind of like, it's okay to cover your ears.
[37:01]
Because that's the part that kind of gets them.
[37:03]
But but they did great.
[37:04]
And, and then they were able to process with their teacher afterwards.
[37:07]
It's just a way that we practice staying safe at school.
[37:10]
So it went really well.
[37:11]
Thank you.
[37:11]
Yeah.
[37:13]
And, thank you so much.
[37:16]
And thank you to everyone for being here tonight.
[37:19]
I guess I'm just gonna start with saying I've always been so impressed with,
[37:23]
our schools,
[37:26]
kind of, for lack of better term, but just, like,
[37:28]
safety procedures and how,
[37:33]
I just think that the scaffolding from row up to
[37:36]
the high school is done is done so intentionally and so well.
[37:40]
And I know there's been changes over the years, like, for example, with the,
[37:44]
buttons that are not in
[37:46]
every school, and not nearly and every school.
[37:50]
And I've talked to family members
[37:52]
who work in other school districts and they're like, you have they have what?
[37:56]
And, are very envious, of that
[38:02]
kind of reassurance that that that gets I guess I have two questions are not
[38:07]
they're only related and that they're both under
[38:09]
the umbrella of safety, but they're pretty separate.
[38:11]
One is,
[38:13]
a question that I sometimes get, which is probably mostly directed
[38:16]
at the high school, in the middle school, which is that after hours,
[38:21]
the, you know, those doors are open, which makes a lot of sense
[38:26]
because there's kids coming and going and there's activities and there's,
[38:30]
and, and I'm certainly not advocating I don't I don't want them locked.
[38:35]
Right. Like, I'm not advocating for that.
[38:36]
But I guess my question is, what what is the thought process behind that?
[38:40]
Is it just that it's the end of the school day?
[38:43]
We need to have it open.
[38:46]
I guess I don't know.
[38:47]
What is the thought process behind that.
[38:50]
If there is one?
[38:54]
I know, I think it's a great question.
[38:55]
I, I don't know if I can answer
[38:57]
with the thought processes, except that they're public buildings
[38:59]
and that there's so many people coming in and out for various activities.
[39:03]
I think it's a good one for us to think about and take away from our conversation.
[39:06]
Yeah, but that's my best answer in the moment.
[39:08]
Yeah.
[39:09]
And I know that it's not always and I don't know
[39:11]
I know it's not always the case. Right.
[39:12]
Like sometimes there might be a play practice late at night and you're
[39:17]
and the it is locked.
[39:18]
So the kids are like texting each other to get in.
[39:22]
Sometimes it's open and it's.
[39:23]
Yeah, I just kind of.
[39:25]
I just wonder what the rhythm of that looks like and the reasoning behind it.
[39:30]
And a public building is perfectly great reason.
[39:33]
Right.
[39:34]
So but just kind of that was my one question.
[39:37]
Is it a single point of entry, like after hours?
[39:40]
Is it is it only one door that's open or something like I would say yes,
[39:45]
but I
[39:45]
but I will, I'll actually look into it and get more specifics around it
[39:48]
and we can bring it back because I think it's a good question.
[39:50]
And again, I'm not advocating for lock.
[39:52]
No, because I would also be, but I'm just I guess I'm
[39:55]
wondering exactly just what the thought process behind it.
[39:58]
And then you had mentioned that, there's some staff that want more training
[40:02]
and I guess, my follow up question to that is do they want more training?
[40:06]
Because there's like other levels of training that they can go to
[40:09]
or they're looking for,
[40:12]
kind of more reassurance
[40:13]
with their own personal abilities in the training.
[40:17]
I actually think it's more reassurance.
[40:19]
And I look to our, our administrators.
[40:22]
But the way that I would frame this is that I think it's
[40:23]
one of the things that can be challenging
[40:25]
with emergency preparedness is that there are no definite answers.
[40:29]
Yeah.
[40:29]
And I think that it's hard when there isn't a definite answer of,
[40:33]
for example, when it used to be an old lockdown model, you pulled your blind,
[40:37]
you moved to the side, you hid, you knew exactly what to do.
[40:40]
In the moment you follow the instruction, right?
[40:43]
So it's a difficult thing to do, but it's an easier thing to follow in this point.
[40:47]
At this point, having to make these decisions
[40:49]
in the moment can raise a lot of concern, a lot of question, and just a real desire
[40:53]
to to better understand and know what to do and practice it.
[40:57]
So I think that's in a sense where that comes from.
[41:00]
And I think what we continue to hear, for example, for folks
[41:03]
who take part in that quote unquote advanced training
[41:05]
where they're doing the scenario based piece,
[41:07]
and do more of it, those folks will come back often
[41:10]
and those tend to be people who have more questions,
[41:12]
and they come back and they feel much more confident.
[41:15]
One of the things I always take away from this,
[41:17]
we do a lot of exit tickets, and just as I check in with staff after we
[41:20]
do the trainings and whatnot,
[41:22]
I always find it really interesting you at our new Dartmouth Day,
[41:25]
when we do this with staff and without a doubt, every single year.
[41:30]
I would say that 95% of our new staff have actually focused
[41:34]
on the how they appreciate it and feel more empowered having done this training
[41:38]
and the opening days of school.
[41:39]
So it's something that I think
[41:40]
once people have training, they feel more confident with it.
[41:44]
I don't know if you can ever get to a point where you're fully confident,
[41:46]
but that's why I think, and where that comes from, I.
[41:49]
All right.
[41:50]
Thank you.
[41:51]
Yeah, I really appreciate that. No, sorry.
[41:53]
Yeah. Least I've got another question.
[41:55]
I've got a comment which is I experienced the like old lockdown model.
[41:59]
I don't know when we changed it, but I remember hiding in the rooms
[42:03]
and everyone getting really like
[42:04]
scared and nervous, obviously, because we're little kids
[42:06]
were being told to like hide in the dark,
[42:08]
but just what I wanted to say was I think this new model, the Ellis model,
[42:13]
the proactive model, has led to such a clear shift in how people think about it.
[42:17]
Like I think we started this when I was in high school
[42:20]
and like people are a lot more serious about it.
[42:22]
Like, I remember in the lockdowns, there was like half
[42:24]
the class was really scared and half the class was like, oh, this is great.
[42:26]
I just get a break from from class where like, they would take a nap.
[42:30]
But with this new model, like,
[42:32]
people are a lot more serious and they're a lot more engaged
[42:34]
in, like, cognizant of what is happening and
[42:38]
the roles they would play in this situation.
[42:40]
So I just wanted to say that I have really appreciated that.
[42:46]
I was, I, I second Anne's curiosity
[42:50]
and also lack of like desire to just lock everything down.
[42:54]
But I am curious that different buildings, especially the high school,
[42:57]
I mean, I would never make it to a playmakers play.
[43:00]
You know, if they lock the doors
[43:03]
coming in at the end.
[43:05]
But yeah, I mean, there's convenience and and I'm just curious of what
[43:08]
the model is for different buildings and even, you know,
[43:12]
row or there's like basketball practice for rec programs.
[43:15]
Sometimes it's open in the evenings
[43:17]
and just how that's manage or how you think through.
[43:20]
I mean, I'm sure it's all not feasible at all
[43:23]
to have things locked in someone's staffed,
[43:26]
you know, they're badgering you in for every activity
[43:29]
that goes on in these schools. But I sort of echo that question,
[43:33]
without a clear opinion of what should be done and why.
[43:36]
Just curious curiosity.
[43:38]
I did have a question.
[43:40]
And this kind of touches at each school and I, I think, you know,
[43:44]
thank you for explaining that.
[43:45]
Of course, there's age appropriate training
[43:47]
and either scenarios or a lack thereof, depending on the age level.
[43:51]
But where do you where does the school system
[43:55]
or where do administrators look for the types of training
[43:59]
and the degree to which there are specific
[44:02]
shared and scenarios played out?
[44:05]
Are there clear curricula in this, like Alice framework that says
[44:11]
this is what you should do at first grade, sixth grade, ninth grade? Yes.
[44:15]
And there are for each of the levels.
[44:18]
And so I would actually say yes, there is a clear curriculum in terms
[44:21]
of what they do at each of their various buildings, for each of the various drills.
[44:25]
And I'll just point to the picture here on the, the screen right now.
[44:28]
So here's an example at Yarmouth Elementary School
[44:31]
when they were she was just starting to do this training with one of the classes.
[44:34]
It's a scripted,
[44:36]
training that they are able to lean into
[44:37]
so that they're not sort of on their own with it.
[44:40]
And again, I would say that it's it looks obviously very different.
[44:43]
So, for example, a tabletop discussion at the high school,
[44:45]
in the more advanced setting, I'd say older setting.
[44:48]
They would
[44:49]
they would go into it if somebody was going
[44:51]
to come into this building in this space.
[44:53]
And they're at location and this is a situation, what would you do
[44:56]
in the moment?
[44:57]
And they talk that through and they figure out what to do.
[45:00]
So it's the tabletop is really preparation for moving to an actual evacuation.
[45:05]
So it's one of the things I would also say is it's it's shared
[45:08]
amongst all administrators.
[45:09]
So you see what the build looks like between each of those levels.
[45:12]
Yeah, yeah.
[45:15]
Chelsea, this is somewhat related.
[45:18]
Maybe it comes up in the tabletop discussions, but,
[45:21]
is there a way in which,
[45:25]
students are sort of advised,
[45:28]
or do they learn about identifying
[45:33]
behaviors or, or.
[45:37]
Yeah, potential incidents, like is there like warning signs.
[45:40]
Yeah.
[45:40]
Or warning signs discussed and or
[45:45]
is protocol communicated about,
[45:47]
you know, if you have a feeling like see something, say something
[45:52]
is is that a discussion or learning that comes up?
[45:56]
I don't know that it is, explicitly
[45:59]
I think we have talked about it sort of
[46:03]
not in like indirectly talked about in health classes and, and stuff like that.
[46:07]
But I would say it's not something that comes up in the table
[46:10]
like in the table talk
[46:11]
discussions are mostly talking about like if the intruders
[46:14]
in this area of the school, how would we react? What would we do?
[46:16]
Where would we go as opposed to how do you recognize someone?
[46:20]
So to answer your question, I don't think it's really talked about very much now,
[46:24]
but it is generally baked into like there are mental health
[46:28]
resources, posters and on every staff landing,
[46:31]
that kind of thing is baked into some of the mental health discussion.
[46:34]
Not so much that Alice protocol.
[46:36]
And I don't know if that would be like, I don't know if that even is
[46:40]
needs to be in there, but yes, it's, it's it's in other places.
[46:45]
And I was just going to echo just kind of watching what happens at the high school.
[46:49]
I think the kids are well, it may not be specific to this protocol
[46:53]
and specific warning signs.
[46:55]
Do you
[46:57]
this kind of specific danger?
[47:00]
I my impression is, you know, to echo gram is that,
[47:04]
it is really baked into them that the adults in the building are available.
[47:10]
If you're worried about a friend for any reason,
[47:14]
and I, you know, and being worried that they're making dangerous decisions
[47:18]
would fall under that umbrella, and I do I think baked in is such a good,
[47:25]
term because that's how I,
[47:27]
how I see it just from my eyes, at the high school.
[47:31]
And I think, again, I'm seeing
[47:35]
lots of kids there that,
[47:38]
they feel comfortable knowing that they can go to
[47:41]
it doesn't have to be social worker, but it can be a social worker.
[47:44]
And they're made very available for sure.
[47:46]
I think almost everyone in the school has like some teacher who they're like,
[47:50]
if something comes up like, this is the person I'll go to,
[47:52]
if not multiple teachers, but everyone I know has like
[47:55]
at least one person that they're like, that's my guide.
[47:58]
Like, that's my person right there.
[48:00]
So often an advisor.
[48:01]
So I mean, that's fantastic that it just just came up organically
[48:06]
because that is one of the goals. Right.
[48:09]
But everyone has at least one strong connection.
[48:14]
I just wanted to say,
[48:16]
thank you to the, to,
[48:19]
women from road school who went and did the, the training.
[48:22]
I think that's fantastic.
[48:24]
And I had a couple questions kind of surrounding that.
[48:26]
Is that, is that like an annual training that we could expand?
[48:31]
The number of people can go or are we limited?
[48:33]
Is there?
[48:34]
That's actually our hope.
[48:35]
So that's in our plan.
[48:36]
So right now, so there's several of us,
[48:40]
also who have it, a few other the administrators have it.
[48:43]
And then our hope is to actually move to the model where we have a couple
[48:46]
of staff members at each of the buildings that could then take the lead.
[48:49]
Yeah.
[48:50]
I think it's great to have people who can do exactly what you said kind of
[48:54]
be the leaders, because if you have too many leaders in any kind of situation,
[48:59]
even a, you know, an emergency situation, it sometimes can be confusing.
[49:03]
But if you have a few strong people who are kind of aware of all of it,
[49:08]
I think that's fantastic. I think you,
[49:11]
Kelly, I will just say kind of echoing what,
[49:16]
at least that I this model seems so much more empowering
[49:20]
as opposed to, like, crouching and just, like,
[49:23]
waiting to see what happens to us.
[49:26]
And as usual, main is like a little behind.
[49:28]
Like ten years ago in Texas, we were doing this,
[49:31]
and I remember being horrified by Alice.
[49:32]
I was like, you want my child to do what?
[49:34]
You know, like, I thought it was crazy.
[49:37]
But I think now as unfortunately it's become more
[49:40]
accepted and normalized and we understand,
[49:43]
we can't bury our heads in the sand.
[49:45]
I really do appreciate that we're taking a more proactive, empowering response.
[49:50]
And I appreciate all of you, again, as, like someone who has worked in schools,
[49:54]
that is like our little,
[49:55]
you know, weird to go through the drill the first couple times
[49:58]
and to have to think about what you're going to do in those scenarios.
[50:02]
So I appreciate all of you,
[50:05]
for taking that burden
[50:07]
on and empowering our kids.
[50:11]
Is there, is there any data
[50:13]
or sort of like theories of change around
[50:17]
having this type of more empowering system
[50:19]
actually being a deterrent for
[50:23]
those types of events where they, you know, happened?
[50:28]
I have inside a community.
[50:29]
I have not heard of that specific piece, but I have just heard of the,
[50:34]
I would say the result being much more,
[50:38]
positive.
[50:38]
If people are using these practices,
[50:41]
positive can be used.
[50:43]
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[50:45]
I mean you're right put empowering all students
[50:49]
right? Yeah,
[50:52]
yeah.
[50:52]
They're questions.
[50:54]
Well thank you again I know there's a lot of work that went into this
[50:57]
and work from the administrators and other staff at the schools.
[51:01]
Yeah.
[51:02]
This is an important topic that people wish you didn't have to cover,
[51:05]
but it's critical that we do so.
[51:07]
So thank you for
[51:10]
yeah, launching into this, in depth for us.
[51:15]
Yeah.
[51:15]
So I wish we could have another workshop topic, but here we are.
[51:19]
And I'm so I'm so thankful that Yarmouth is so prepared and so thoughtful.
[51:22]
And the work that's done at all of the schools by all of you
[51:25]
administrators and all the staff, so appreciate it so much.
[51:30]
One last question.
[51:30]
How have you heard, feedback like in the hiring process?
[51:35]
Like, is this something that people think about when they're,
[51:40]
when they're joining new communities or,
[51:44]
just curious if it's if it's like a known positive.
[51:48]
I don't think it's heard.
[51:49]
We haven't heard about it in the hiring,
[51:50]
but we've heard about it in the orientation.
[51:53]
That's already just the welcome and how we how we help.
[51:56]
Yeah. Onboard folks.
[51:58]
Yeah. Okay.
[52:00]
All right.
[52:01]
Well again, thank you to our administrators for being here.
[52:05]
We are going to move into new business, which is,
[52:09]
the approval of cost center transfers.
[52:16]
Thank you so much.
[52:17]
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
[52:19]
Yeah.
[52:20]
Okay.
[52:24]
For this
[52:24]
particular agenda item, we are looking for a vote
[52:27]
authorizing transfers between cost centers without increasing the budget.
[52:31]
So I just want to highlight that piece of it.
[52:32]
And where this is coming from, is under pursuant to sections
[52:36]
two, 307 and 1485, four of title 28 of the main revised statues.
[52:41]
And in order to meet emergencies
[52:43]
and unanticipated expenses in the current fiscal year,
[52:46]
and to satisfy recommendations of the auditor for the current fiscal year.
[52:49]
I, superintendent schools is authorized to transfer available funds
[52:54]
between the current fiscal year operating budget cost centers, provided
[52:57]
that no transfer shall cause the total transfers from a cost center
[53:00]
to exceed a 5% of the appropriation for that cost center,
[53:04]
and further provided that the total budgeted expenditures
[53:07]
for the current fiscal year shall not be increased by such transfers.
[53:10]
This action again, it does not increase the budget.
[53:13]
Without this, the department is limited by the amount of each individual
[53:16]
approved expenditure warrant, so the lack of this motion is was noted.
[53:20]
Actually, in a fiscal year 23 audit,
[53:22]
the school department did not vote to make a budgetary transfer of up to 5%
[53:26]
as allowed by section 1485, and as a result did have cost
[53:30]
centers with actual expenditures in excess of budgeted amounts.
[53:33]
However, in total, the school department
[53:36]
did not exceed its authority to spend funds.
[53:39]
Therefore, which is why we are bringing this forward for request for a vote.
[53:42]
Okay.
[53:44]
And we have a motion.
[53:46]
I suggest a motion would be to approve the authorization of transfers
[53:49]
between cost centers without increasing the budget as presented.
[53:52]
And I'll, make a motion.
[53:54]
I'd like to keep the auditors happy and have no, no notes every year.
[53:59]
Second. Christina.
[54:03]
Any discussion?
[54:07]
They did not offer discussion for any previous votes.
[54:10]
So thank you for not calling me out.
[54:12]
Any discussion?
[54:14]
All right.
[54:15]
Seeing none.
[54:16]
All in favor?
[54:19]
Closed.
[54:20]
Thank you.
[54:22]
Okay, so.
[54:23]
And now we are moving on to an item,
[54:27]
regarding policy, which I'm going to hand over to Chelsea,
[54:30]
the chair of our policy committee review a proposed
[54:34]
changing to existing policy.
[54:38]
I mentioned it at the top.
[54:42]
If there are any questions,
[54:44]
we could talk about it.
[54:47]
Do you want to just recap?
[54:49]
Yeah. Hi.
[54:51]
Essentially, we were just,
[54:53]
a aligning with recent legislation,
[54:57]
with Maine's mandatory reporting laws.
[55:01]
And some of those changes are that school
[55:04]
personnel are now clearly identified as mandated reporters.
[55:07]
There's the 24 hour window.
[55:10]
And, the training will now be every two years.
[55:16]
Christina,
[55:18]
I have three questions, but I won't do them all at once.
[55:20]
I know, and this has something.
[55:22]
Well, I have one. I have one question.
[55:25]
And that is, I guess, to Chelsea or to,
[55:29]
anyone on the policy committee. So,
[55:32]
is the change
[55:34]
in terms of employees that weren't were not all employees
[55:40]
mandated reporters before and now they are or is that that data change?
[55:44]
So there was further clarification on who personnel entails.
[55:48]
So there was some question around that, which is why I one of the pieces
[55:51]
that the legislation, they felt like this would be more clear on it.
[55:55]
And then the other piece is in reference to it
[55:58]
used to be a four year every four years, personnel would do the training.
[56:02]
Now they're required to be every two years. Okay. All right. Thank you. Yeah.
[56:06]
So you just answered one of my questions.
[56:08]
I wanted to make sure
[56:09]
that I really understood the changes to the training, which you just said.
[56:14]
So thank you.
[56:15]
My other note, this came up in our policy committee
[56:19]
conversation about the legislation and these proposed edits.
[56:23]
I just wanted to sort of resurface the question.
[56:27]
It's in line 37,
[56:31]
on page eight of our packet, where it talks about any school volunteer
[56:35]
who has reason to suspect that a child has been or is likely to be
[56:39]
abused or neglected, is also expected to make a report to the superintendent
[56:43]
or building administrator and or directly to the HHS.
[56:47]
So we talked about this a little, just to be clear,
[56:50]
and it sounds like we do the the law requires us to add that.
[56:55]
And for our understanding
[56:58]
what that actually will mean for volunteers in our buildings. Yes.
[57:02]
And so I actually reached out to MSA just to get some clarity on this one.
[57:06]
But in terms of whether they fell
[57:07]
under the training modules in every two year piece of it.
[57:10]
So our volunteers, are are typically with another member of staff as well.
[57:15]
So the, the volunteers would not be required
[57:18]
to do the training, similar to what our staff are required to do.
[57:23]
We would want to be sure that they are informed of these practices
[57:26]
in terms of
[57:27]
when they are brought on as a volunteer,
[57:29]
and they would be required to make a report.
[57:31]
So this is again, it gets a little bit murky because a personnel,
[57:37]
is somebody who's going to be employed and receiving payment from the building
[57:40]
from the district itself.
[57:42]
And volunteers are there of their own accord.
[57:45]
But it is that is still their requirement that they are going to have
[57:48]
to be a reporter. And within the 24 hour window,
[57:52]
can I follow up and have them to,
[57:55]
this gets into the implementation.
[57:56]
So we may not know yet, but I'm curious what that actually looks like.
[58:00]
If someone
[58:01]
raises their hand at the start of the school year,
[58:03]
they want to volunteer for any opportunity.
[58:05]
Is there some sort of information they receive, or is it any time
[58:08]
I volunteer for a specific thing in a building, someone's
[58:12]
going to tell me this and it's fine if we don't know yet. But what?
[58:15]
I think we have to be really thoughtful about how we go about doing it.
[58:18]
And what I would envision is that we have pretty clear procedures
[58:21]
for when somebody wants to be a volunteer and what they have to go through.
[58:24]
So I think we have to be thoughtful about is how do we integrate
[58:27]
this as a learning lesson for folks. And
[58:30]
so they really have a clear understanding of what their expectations are.
[58:34]
And that we also make sure that the people that they are volunteering
[58:37]
with also realize that that's a responsibility.
[58:40]
So we do have to work the procedures out.
[58:42]
Thank you.
[58:43]
I would second Christina's question, and I know that was brought up
[58:47]
in the policy committee meeting, and I appreciate the discussion around it.
[58:50]
And I also like Christina said, to understand that
[58:53]
we're not
[58:54]
we may not get fully into the weeds of the procedure or implementation, but,
[58:58]
you know, often these policies are tied to a protocol or procedure. So,
[59:04]
thank you.
[59:05]
Yeah.
[59:05]
Just one last question, and it sounds like it's
[59:08]
kind of a moot question because it's the law.
[59:12]
But just again, for my own clarification.
[59:14]
So if you're a school volunteer, you don't need to go through the training.
[59:19]
And yet you are there requiring them to report directly
[59:23]
either to school or they could be reporting directly to DHS.
[59:27]
So they could be a volunteer, have no training, and report directly
[59:30]
to DHS that they think that there's abuse happening with no training.
[59:35]
So one of the things so when I'm saying the no training piece,
[59:38]
they're not required to do the state mandated training.
[59:41]
So the training for this is a very specific training that goes through the,
[59:45]
main state platform.
[59:47]
It comes through with a certificate that you get from from having completed that.
[59:51]
That doesn't mean they won't do any training
[59:52]
because they'll do what we do internally.
[59:54]
So our what we're going to have to work with volunteers on is understanding what
[59:58]
what this actually means.
[59:59]
And an example of this would be, is that our procedures are really clear
[1:00:02]
that when you have a report that the building administrator is
[1:00:06]
the person that goes to you after that or first,
[1:00:08]
and then that also needs to the superintendent.
[1:00:10]
So we have to be clear within that.
[1:00:12]
Yeah, it just seems and again, like this isn't on this is on the Maine Legislature.
[1:00:16]
It just seems really murky for,
[1:00:19]
parent volunteers and not
[1:00:21]
just parent volunteers, but for the school system, in general.
[1:00:25]
And parents of kids, I know it just again, not the schools.
[1:00:31]
It becomes their problem because now you have to be as clear as possible. But,
[1:00:37]
just great example.
[1:00:40]
Good work.
[1:00:41]
So this might not be within the purview of the school.
[1:00:44]
And again, why is law this is like a really hard one
[1:00:47]
for me because of the nature of the work that I've done, which is an equity.
[1:00:50]
And these are so inherently biased against different cultural norms.
[1:00:54]
And I think some of the most vulnerable families are targeted with this,
[1:00:59]
whether it be socioeconomically or racially, ethnically, whatever.
[1:01:05]
So I wonder if there's any component of anti
[1:01:08]
bias training and there's or implicit bias because I do think that,
[1:01:13]
certain families are more affected by this
[1:01:16]
because of perceptions and judgments of how they parent their children.
[1:01:20]
Yeah. Yes.
[1:01:21]
And, and having recently actually just completed the training,
[1:01:24]
there is actually some modules in there that speak to those pieces.
[1:01:27]
And I think one of the things with it is that I think that's an ongoing
[1:01:31]
learning for folks, that we have to be very thoughtful
[1:01:33]
and intentional around, again, one of the pieces here is,
[1:01:36]
as well as in terms of reports that are made,
[1:01:39]
and we are
[1:01:40]
training staff with this in addition to what they do online.
[1:01:43]
But how how do we go about making those reports and what's written down factual?
[1:01:47]
And what does that mean to be factual?
[1:01:49]
And so I think that's part of it as well, in addition to what we get
[1:01:52]
through the state training, because I would agree.
[1:01:54]
Yeah, I unfortunately have had a friend who was reported,
[1:01:59]
and just seeing what it did to her family was pretty devastating.
[1:02:02]
And how like, I think being a parent is so hard anyways,
[1:02:05]
and then to be under a microscope is just so awful, honestly.
[1:02:10]
Yeah. Yes.
[1:02:11]
Yeah, yeah.
[1:02:12]
There are clearly some subjective calls in here, you know,
[1:02:16]
especially those and I think lines 36 through 42,
[1:02:24]
you know, I think this aspect.
[1:02:25]
Yeah. Right.
[1:02:26]
So if you're.
[1:02:27]
Yeah, it's almost an evaluation of
[1:02:30]
is the child being cared for in a way that you perceive.
[1:02:33]
And that was the case. Right. And then. Right.
[1:02:35]
Yeah.
[1:02:35]
Also some judgment on how much ability the family has to provide this care.
[1:02:42]
So there are there is subjectivity in it.
[1:02:44]
And I really hear you and
[1:02:48]
I mean, I think of course the thrust of it is to,
[1:02:52]
you know, in the best interests of kids that perhaps
[1:02:55]
leaning into overreporting to as a catch all.
[1:02:58]
And I can see that the down sides of that as well.
[1:03:03]
Yeah.
[1:03:03]
And this is part of the discussion we had in the policy committee.
[1:03:06]
Exactly that.
[1:03:09]
And it raises the question
[1:03:12]
in reading
[1:03:13]
this, is there is there room for us to sort of,
[1:03:16]
direct volunteers to the superintendent?
[1:03:21]
I mean, you acknowledging both
[1:03:24]
both pathways, but,
[1:03:28]
yeah.
[1:03:31]
Within the policy.
[1:03:32]
I think that would be for you to discuss.
[1:03:34]
I think that on the procedural side,
[1:03:36]
that is going to be a procedural piece of it.
[1:03:38]
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
[1:03:40]
And also,
[1:03:42]
yeah.
[1:03:43]
And I may be overstepping here, but
[1:03:46]
like, it does seem important to include information for parent volunteers
[1:03:51]
that if you have any kind of question in mind,
[1:03:55]
best practices not to ask those questions to the student.
[1:03:59]
Right. It's to take it to,
[1:04:02]
to you. Right.
[1:04:03]
Yeah. And their building administrator. Yes. Yeah.
[1:04:05]
And I think that's again, I, I do think that will be an important
[1:04:09]
piece of what we need to work through and put together.
[1:04:12]
I think we are we're in the very fortunate situation
[1:04:15]
where we have so many volunteers that come into our buildings.
[1:04:19]
Right.
[1:04:20]
And therefore they also need to be really supported in what they're doing.
[1:04:24]
Right? Yes. Yeah. Graham.
[1:04:27]
Yes. I also recently completed the training for summer camp.
[1:04:31]
And, obviously it's probably slightly different for educators, but what I did,
[1:04:37]
what I did notice was
[1:04:40]
we had a long section on,
[1:04:43]
poverty is not inherently abuse.
[1:04:46]
And that is a pitfall that a lot of misinformed
[1:04:50]
reporters will,
[1:04:53]
fall to.
[1:04:54]
So I think that when it comes down
[1:04:56]
to like a parent volunteer, that is not like explicitly
[1:05:00]
receiving state training or whatever, I think there just has to be some
[1:05:05]
someone very well informed on the topic that can talk about that kind of thing.
[1:05:10]
Obviously, education is like half of it, and the other half really falls
[1:05:14]
upon a person's own actions when doing something like reporting
[1:05:17]
and preconceived notions and all that.
[1:05:18]
So I do think that,
[1:05:23]
like a parent volunteer, someone that is not required
[1:05:25]
to do a Maine state certification needs to have
[1:05:30]
at least some set of guidelines to listen to and have a resource like
[1:05:35]
you are in a you are going to be working in a building full of people
[1:05:39]
who have completed this training.
[1:05:40]
If you have this question and it's in good faith, you're protected under this.
[1:05:44]
Given that, I suppose,
[1:05:48]
I mean,
[1:05:49]
again, just it sounds like any procedure wise I understand it.
[1:05:53]
Any volunteer would be reporting into someone in the school
[1:05:57]
who has undergone the full training, right?
[1:06:00]
Not directly to, you know, do you suggest?
[1:06:05]
Yeah. One I think that answers.
[1:06:06]
I mean, for me, that answers the question that the procedure is having to drive
[1:06:09]
this to somebody in the school that's had training.
[1:06:12]
I mean, I
[1:06:12]
my my question that I started this with is really for the Maine Legislature.
[1:06:18]
Not for sure not for school committee, but,
[1:06:22]
but I do I think that having
[1:06:24]
that procedure in place, kind of
[1:06:27]
takes care of it, at least
[1:06:30]
for our.
[1:06:32]
Yeah. Tom, in my mind, yeah.
[1:06:34]
I just had kind of a two pronged question associated with it. So
[1:06:38]
I've read through a lot of
[1:06:39]
it, and I have a lot of knowledge about mandatory reporting.
[1:06:43]
And and my question which just to throw out there
[1:06:47]
for every everybody's education is
[1:06:51]
what is the consequence of not reporting in 24 hours.
[1:06:54]
Right.
[1:06:55]
It spells out throughout this that you must report
[1:06:59]
within 24 hours who suffers the consequences.
[1:07:02]
Obviously. Step back.
[1:07:05]
Obviously the child is the most important thing, but
[1:07:08]
in a situation of mandatory reporting where the report is late,
[1:07:13]
what where are the consequences fall on that?
[1:07:16]
The superintendent, the superintendent.
[1:07:19]
Yeah, yeah. Congratulations.
[1:07:21]
So so so I, I guess my point and that is another reason
[1:07:25]
to make it very clear to volunteers who don't seem to be well
[1:07:30]
defined within here, you know, a parent who chaperons a school trip,
[1:07:36]
that happens all the time or somebody who comes in.
[1:07:39]
I think it's a very, very broad.
[1:07:42]
So I think it's it's something we should take a lot of care
[1:07:45]
and, and assess real closely before we finalize anything.
[1:07:50]
Right.
[1:07:51]
A lot of risk for very vague,
[1:07:55]
language.
[1:07:56]
I mean,
[1:07:58]
this is a sort of a procedural thing, but given that there's the change
[1:08:02]
from four years down to two years,
[1:08:06]
is there catching up to like,
[1:08:08]
well, we need to tap everyone
[1:08:11]
who's at the three year point and say, no, okay,
[1:08:15]
so we actually have had all staff this year take part in the training.
[1:08:18]
So all of our staff will be trained by October 9th.
[1:08:21]
Yeah.
[1:08:23]
But this this this is very in the weeds.
[1:08:26]
But I noticed on page nine, line
[1:08:30]
26, it references the actual form
[1:08:34]
f e. Does that
[1:08:35]
form also changed to reflect or the procedures.
[1:08:39]
Yeah. Yes.
[1:08:40]
And so the procedures have actually already changed
[1:08:42]
because you'll approve the policy.
[1:08:43]
But the procedural piece, we have updated to be in alignment
[1:08:47]
just because it could happen that we actually have a report now.
[1:08:50]
So that actually is, updated and accessible.
[1:08:54]
Thank you. Thank you.
[1:08:57]
Any other questions?
[1:09:00]
Okay.
[1:09:01]
Do we have,
[1:09:04]
well, we don't have specific changes suggested in other questions,
[1:09:08]
but do we have a motion to approve this for a first reading?
[1:09:11]
There will be a second reading.
[1:09:17]
Seconded by Emily.
[1:09:19]
All in, any discussion?
[1:09:23]
No, it a lot of discussion.
[1:09:25]
Okay, so for clarity, we'll be taking this back
[1:09:28]
to policy for the revisions.
[1:09:31]
Yeah, I have, I have taken notes on what was shared.
[1:09:35]
Yeah, yeah.
[1:09:36]
And then it'll come up for a second reading
[1:09:38]
and then still changes are possible.
[1:09:40]
So this is just a first reading okay.
[1:09:43]
All right.
[1:09:43]
All in favor.
[1:09:47]
Okay.
[1:09:47]
Great.
[1:09:50]
Next we are going to go to review of MSBA resolutions.
[1:09:54]
The MSBA Constitution and bylaws
[1:09:59]
okay.
[1:10:00]
And for this one, so the main School Boards Association
[1:10:04]
will hold its annual delegate assembly virtually on Saturday, October 24th.
[1:10:09]
And again, that begins at 930.
[1:10:10]
And just to remind you that Chelsea is the one who's
[1:10:12]
going to be attending on your behalf.
[1:10:14]
So thank you. Chelsea.
[1:10:16]
For 2026, the MSBA has provided proposed new
[1:10:19]
and revised resolutions for consideration, including for new resolutions
[1:10:23]
as well as substantive and non substantive revisions to existing resolutions.
[1:10:27]
Proposed changes to the MSBA constitution and bylaws will also require action
[1:10:32]
by the delegate Assembly.
[1:10:33]
You have selected.
[1:10:35]
Chelsea, and the School Committee is asked to review the proposed resolution
[1:10:41]
and constitution and bylaws changes that are included in your packet
[1:10:44]
in advance of the delegate
[1:10:45]
Assembly and provide any feedback or direction to Chelsea School
[1:10:49]
Committee members who wish to, propose additional changes to the resolutions.
[1:10:53]
Must submit those to the MSBA by October 2nd, 2026.
[1:10:57]
And we want to provide an opportunity here for a discussion as well.
[1:11:00]
If anybody wanted to.
[1:11:06]
I just want to thank Chelsea again for representing us.
[1:11:08]
Much appreciated.
[1:11:10]
And I was just happy to see the first proposed
[1:11:14]
new resolution around student board members because in my perspective
[1:11:18]
and opinion, having two student board members here is a fantastic value.
[1:11:23]
So it's exciting to see that being considered more broadly.
[1:11:28]
Agreed.
[1:11:31]
Any other comments or questions?
[1:11:33]
And there is still time to provide
[1:11:36]
Chelsea with your thoughts ahead of the assembly.
[1:11:40]
And and what is the process if we're there to be someone
[1:11:45]
who had a suggested change or additions?
[1:11:50]
John and Happy and Emily, I know you've
[1:11:53]
my recollection, having represented us in the past,
[1:11:58]
is that during the meeting, if there is a resolution being discussed
[1:12:02]
and you know from us that we would like to propose a change
[1:12:06]
or we disagree with it, you would have the chance in that moment
[1:12:09]
to represent that opinion on behalf of the school committee.
[1:12:13]
And then eventually it actually goes to a vote.
[1:12:16]
Does that answer your question or not?
[1:12:19]
My question is actually, like I said before, that,
[1:12:22]
given that we have until October 2nd,
[1:12:25]
what what is the procedure to answer?
[1:12:29]
Yeah.
[1:12:29]
So the procedure would be that we would discuss as a school committee.
[1:12:33]
And if there was changes different than the proposed resolutions,
[1:12:37]
we would have a discussion.
[1:12:38]
It would be like any other motion.
[1:12:40]
We would have a discussion and
[1:12:44]
motion and vote.
[1:12:46]
And if the majority
[1:12:48]
of the school committee thinks that, you know,
[1:12:52]
they want to propose a change, then you would go forward with that change.
[1:12:56]
But if if we're okay with the proposed resolutions, as they are,
[1:13:01]
then you move forward.
[1:13:02]
But it would be like any other policy or something like that.
[1:13:05]
It would be a discussion and vote on that school committee.
[1:13:12]
My only comment when I read these was
[1:13:15]
how grateful I am for the Yarmouth schools,
[1:13:18]
and that we're it always just feels like we're ahead of the curve
[1:13:22]
and thoughtful and doing great things for our students.
[1:13:25]
So I appreciate everything that the schools do
[1:13:29]
and having students on the board already so awesome.
[1:13:33]
They had so much value.
[1:13:35]
And then the civics education
[1:13:38]
like priority doing it, which is great.
[1:13:41]
So thank you and everybody.
[1:13:46]
Okay. Now
[1:13:51]
so we have a
[1:13:53]
motion we're going on to adopt.
[1:13:56]
Yeah.
[1:13:56]
Sorry I'm approving of the emergency management plan.
[1:13:58]
Thank you.
[1:13:59]
With your broken finger, she can still broken finger.
[1:14:04]
So this one is the, request for approval
[1:14:07]
of our emergency management plan, which we bring forward to each year.
[1:14:10]
And our comprehensive plan again, just requires that you do approve it.
[1:14:14]
Annually.
[1:14:15]
I did want to just note that what is obviously included within
[1:14:19]
the packet is not the full, emergency management plan
[1:14:22]
that does live within the school department itself.
[1:14:25]
So if you ever wanted to come in,
[1:14:26]
wanted more detail information on that, you more than welcome to,
[1:14:30]
just feel free to let us know and we can make that available to you.
[1:14:32]
But we don't make that a public document.
[1:14:35]
So we
[1:14:36]
are requesting, again, the scope falls under policy, BCA,
[1:14:40]
for you to approve the 2026 2027
[1:14:42]
Comprehensive Emergency Plan as presented.
[1:14:46]
Kelly.
[1:14:48]
Sorry.
[1:14:48]
No, no, I mean, I'll I'll make the motion.
[1:14:50]
Okay, man.
[1:14:52]
Let's get to point.
[1:14:52]
Chelsea, any discussion?
[1:14:55]
That's what I thought I was like, oh, wait. Wrong time.
[1:14:57]
Oh it's okay.
[1:14:58]
Sorry I messed it up every time.
[1:14:59]
Any discussion? Okay.
[1:15:02]
All in favor?
[1:15:05]
All right.
[1:15:06]
Great.
[1:15:07]
And with that, I believe the meeting is adjourned at our early clock eight.
[1:15:12]
I'll call it 18.
[1:15:15]
Thank you. Thank you.