[00:00:02]
HI, SUSAN. HI, SORRY FOR THE DELAY.
I JOINED TOO EARLY AND THEN IT KICKED ME OFF AND I WAS DOING SOME EMAILS.
I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO SET AN ALARM TO MAKE SURE I WASN'T LATE, SO I DIDN'T DO THAT.
NO PROBLEM. IS IT JUST YOU TWO AND ASHLEY? OR DO YOU KNOW WHO ELSE IS ON THE COMMITTEE SUBCOMMITTEE? SO ASHLEY IS COMING, SHE SAID SHE'LL BE A FEW MINUTES LATE.
AND LAUREN IS GOING TO BE HERE.
OKAY, THAT'S FINE. I JUST DIDN'T KNOW HOW MANY WOULD BE HERE.
SO I'M SHE JUST SAID I MAY BE ABLE TO TURN FROM ONE TO 1:30.
OKAY. SO I WAS HOPING SHE COULD BE HERE AT THE BEGINNING AND SORT OF GUIDE US.
[Discuss areas of focus of subcommittee]
I DON'T HAVE LIKE A CLEAR PARAMETERS OF WHAT WE'RE LEARNING, SANDRA.I DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE SOME SPECIFIC IDEAS, BUT REALLY THAT WE MIGHT NEED TO DO SOME BRAINSTORMING AND LOOK AT CATEGORIES.
I THINK I THINK YOU'RE RIGHT, CINDY.
BUT MY BIG THING HAS ALWAYS BEEN WITH TOPICS LIKE THIS IS WE NEED A DEFINITION.
MM HMM. AND I THINK LOOKING AT WHAT BECAUSE A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, I ACTUALLY ASKED THE SUPERINTENDENT WHAT THE DEFINITION WAS.
AND HE SAID ACPS DIDN'T HAVE ONE.
AND IN THE MEANTIME, I UNDERSTAND THAT THEY MAY SORT OF HAVE A DEFINITION, BUT AGAIN, A LOT OF TIMES DISABILITY IS NOT INCLUDED.
AND SO AGAIN, I SORT OF THINK ONE OF THE BIG THINGS BESIDES KNOWING WHAT THE COMMITTEE'S PARAMETERS ARE, ARE WE NEED A DEFINITION OF THIS THAT WE PUT FORTH TO THE TO CIAC AND THEN FROM SEA ACT TO THE SCHOOL BOARD.
THAT'S MY THOUGHTS. QUICK QUESTION ARE YOU REFERRING TO FOR EQUITY, FOR INCLUSION OR FOR BOTH OF THOSE, ALL OF THEM? I MEAN, THERE ARE POLICIES THAT ARE, YOU KNOW, EQUITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION.
YEAH. I AGREE WITH THAT COMPLETELY.
I THINK THOSE OF US IN THE DISABILITY COMMUNITY WANT WHEN WE HEAR EQUITY.
OF COURSE, WE UNDERSTAND THE FOCUS CURRENTLY, BUT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT IT REALLY EQUITY REALLY REFERS TO ALL STUDENTS, INCLUDING THOSE WITH DISABILITIES.
AND IT OFTEN SEEMS THAT'S RIGHT.
AND THERE ARE A LOT OF ARTICLES OUT THERE ABOUT HOW DISABILITY IS SORT OF LEFT OUT OF THESE DEFINITIONS, GIVEN A LOT OF THE CURRENT FOCUS.
AND SO I THINK THAT'S, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE CERTAIN, YOU KNOW, SOME UNIVERSITIES HAVE THEIR DEFINITION WHERE THEY INCLUDING, YOU KNOW, DISABILITY IN IT.
SO I THINK FOR US, I THINK TO ME, THAT'S SORT OF THE BIG THING WHY I WANTED TO BE ON THIS COMMITTEE TO MAKE SURE DISABILITY IS INCLUDED IN THESE IN THE DEFINITION AND THE DISCUSSION AS THE SCHOOL SYSTEM MOVES FORWARD.
SO WELL, I KNOW I EXPRESSED AN INTEREST ALSO IN THE TOPIC OF INCLUSION, AND I THOUGHT THAT LAUREN WAS CLEVER AND INCLUDING THESE TOGETHER.
EQUITY AND INCLUSION BEING THE THE TITLE OF THE SUBCOMMITTEE, THOUGH, IS A GOOD WAY TO START OUT. AND WHEN YOU SAY DEFINITIONS, ARE YOU REFERRING TO NOT JUST US PROVIDING A DEFINITION, BUT THE SCHOOL SYSTEM ADOPTING A FORMAL DEFINITION? MM HMM. OK.
AND YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT WOULD BE A GREAT THING TO REPEAT FOR ASHLEY.
OH, YOU WERE JUST I'M SO SORRY.
I WAS LATE AND I HAVE TO CHANGE MY NAME.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT CINDY AND I SORT OF STARTED THIS DISCUSSION, AND I SAID, ONE OF THE BIG THINGS FOR ME HAS BEEN, I THINK WE REALLY NEED AS A COMMITTEE TO COME UP WITH A DEFINITION OF EQUITY AND INCLUSION BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF IT'S VERY NEBULOUS AND MANY TIMES WHEN IT'S DISCUSSED, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES ARE LEFT OUT OF THE DEFINITION OR, YOU KNOW.
AND, YOU KNOW, GIVEN SOME CURRENT FOCUSES.
SO I HAD SORT OF PROPOSED THAT I THINK ONE STEP ONE OF THE INITIAL STEPS WOULD BE TO COME UP WITH A DEFINITION WE CAN PULL FROM DIFFERENT SOURCES ACADEMIC WHAT ACPS CURRENT DEFINITION IS COME UP WITH A DEFINITION THAT WE AGREE UPON AND THEORETICALLY, THEN PUT IT BEFORE ACT, SEE WHAT SAYS, GET THEIR EDITS AND THEN MOVE ON TO THE SCHOOL BOARD WITH IT.
SO THOSE WERE SORT OF MY THOUGHTS.
AM I? DID I MISS SOMETHING, CINDY? OR IN TERMS OF DEFINITION WE WERE TALKING ABOUT FOR ALL THREE EQUITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION, RIGHT? AND I'M CURIOUS, FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE, ASHLEY IS THE NEW SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER AND WITH ALL THE ONBOARDING THAT YOU'VE HAD AND SO ON.
[00:05:01]
HOW WERE THOSE TERMS PRESENTED OR WHAT'S THE GIST OF HOW THE SCHOOL BOARD PERCEIVES THOSE TERMS CURRENTLY? AGAIN, I WOULD SAY THIS ISN'T NECESSARILY TALKED ABOUT SPECIFICALLY IN A SPECIAL EDUCATION CONTEXT, BUT I THINK MY INTERPRETATION OF THE WAY IT IS PRESENTED IS THAT EQUITY IS CONSIDERED GIVING OR TO THE EXTENT POSSIBLE, GIVING EVERY STUDENT WHAT THEY NEED TO BE SUCCESSFUL.I THINK FOR A I THINK WHAT WOULD BE HELPFUL IN TERMS OF DEFINING THIS IN THE SPECIAL EDUCATION CONTEXT WOULD BE GOING BEYOND THAT AND TRYING TO ALSO SAY WHAT MEASURES OR WHAT THIS MIGHT LOOK LIKE FROM A MEASUREMENT PERSPECTIVE, LIKE HOW DO WE KNOW? BECAUSE AS SANDRA WAS SAYING, THERE'S EQUITY IS THIS VERY NEBULOUS THING LIKE, I THINK WHAT GETS REALLY TRICKY IS LIKE, HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU'VE GOT IF, IF THINGS ARE EQUITABLE, HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU'VE GOTTEN THERE AND THE BETTER WE CAN DEFINE IT IN TERMS THAT ARE QUANTIFIABLE OR VISIBLE, THE EASIER IT IS TO ASSESS WHETHER THINGS ARE EQUITABLE? YEAH, I AGREE.
I AGREE NOT THAT THAT'S EASY, BUT IT WOULD BE HELPFUL.
I WOULD HAVE BEEN DONE ALREADY.
SO YEAH, I MEAN, IT ALMOST SEEMS LIKE WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO FOCUS ON SOME CATEGORIES KNOW, AS YOU SAY, IN ORDER TO MAKE IT QUANTIFIABLE.
I DON'T HAVE ANY SPECIFIC THOUGHTS ABOUT HOW THAT MIGHT LOOK.
DO YOU, SANDRA, YOU HAD AN OLDER CHILD GOES THROUGH THE WHOLE.
YEAH. YOU SEE IT ALL THE WAY THROUGH AND HOW IT PLAYS OUT.
IT'S JUST I WOULD HAVE TO SAY IN THE BROADEST SENSE IS I DON'T.
THINK ONE HAS BEEN MY EXPERIENCE.
SOME SCHOOLS ARE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT THAN OTHERS, BUT IN GENERAL, THE HUNDRED THOUSAND FOOT LEVEL, I DON'T THINK STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES ALWAYS GET WHAT THEY NEED.
BUT WHEN WE WERE IF I CAN JUST GO BACK FOR A SECOND TO DEFINITIONS, IS THERE HAVE BEEN SOME ATTEMPTS, I THINK AT THE UNIVERSITY LEVEL, LIKE SOUTHERN CAL ROSSIYA, A COUPLE OTHER SCHOOLS TO TRY AND PUT DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION SORT OF WITHIN A BROADER DEFINITION. THE OTHER THING IS THAT I HAVE ACCESS TO THE DISABILITY STUDIES AND THE HUMANITIES LIST.
AND THEN WHEN WE MIGHT IF THE COMMITTEE WAS AMENABLE BEFORE WE WENT TO SEE ACT WOULD BE TO SORT OF PUT A ROUGH DEFINITION OUT FOR COMMENT.
ON THE LIST TO SEE WHAT KIND OF FEEDBACK WE GET, AND I ALSO AGREE WITH ASHLEY THERE TO TRY AND MAKE IT AS MEASURABLE.
YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? YEAH, SO I AGREE WITH THAT.
SO THAT'S SORT OF WHERE I'M AT WITH.
AND AS I SAID, SOME SCHOOLS ARE BETTER THAN OTHERS.
BUT YOU KNOW, I DON'T THINK THIS THE WORK OF THIS COMMITTEE IS ABOUT GETTING GRANULAR PER SAY. AND I DO THINK WE HAVE AT LEAST SOME GUIDANCE AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL FOR THINKING ABOUT WHAT SPECIAL EDUCATION IS SUPPOSED TO LOOK LIKE IN TERMS OF THE LEAST RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENT AND FREE AND APPROPRIATE EDUCATION ACCESS TO THOSE THINGS THAT HAVE ALREADY BEEN DEFINED OUTSIDE OF OUR CONTEXT.
I THINK ANOTHER REALLY IMPORTANT PLACE THIS KIND OF GOES AROUND A DEFINITION, BUT I THINK ANOTHER IMPORTANT PLACE IS TO LOOK AT DISPROPORTIONALITY IN OUR DELIVERY, ESPECIALLY OR WHO HAVE STUDENTS WHO ARE RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES RELATED TO ENGLISH LEARNER STATUS, RACE, ETHNICITY, THOSE SORT OF THINGS IS AN IMPORTANT WAY TO CONSIDER EQUITY.
SO MAYBE IT'S THINKING ABOUT BUCKETS LIKE WHO THE STUDENTS ARE, WHAT THEIR PROGRAMING LOOKS LIKE, WHO THEIR EDUCATORS ARE AND WHAT THE BACKGROUNDS AND QUALIFICATIONS OF THOSE EDUCATORS ARE THE ENVIRONMENTS THAT THEY'RE LEARNING IN.
THIS IS WHERE MY HEAD IS RIGHT NOW BECAUSE OF WHERE THE SCHOOL BOARD IS, BUT ALSO WE COULD LOOK AT THE BUDGET IN TERMS OF RESOURCES THAT ARE ALLOCATED TO SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAMING. I MEAN, WE DO SPEND I CAN TELL YOU, WE DO SPEND A LOT OF MONEY ON OUR SPECIAL EDUCATION STUDENTS, BUT THAT COULD BE ANOTHER SORT OF POINT TO THINK ABOUT, RIGHT? BUT IT DOESN'T ALWAYS MAKE IT TO THE CLASSROOM.
HAVING SPENT YEARS OBSERVING THIS.
SO YEAH, I MEAN, THE BIGGEST COST COSTS OUR STAFFING AND TRANSPORTATION.
SO THAT, YEAH, WHEN YOU SAY THE ENVIRONMENT THEY'RE LEARNING IN, ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT
[00:10:01]
THEIR PLACEMENT? IS THAT WHAT YOU MEANT BY CLASSROOM VERSUS RESOURCE VERSUS SELF-CONTAINED? OH, IT'S NOT CALLED SELF-CONTAINED, BUT CITYWIDE.YEAH. AND I THINK LIKE THE QUALITY OF THAT ENVIRONMENT.
I MEAN, THIS WOULD MAYBE, MAYBE BEYOND THE SCOPE OF THIS COMMITTEE, BUT THERE ARE A LOT OF SKILLS TO MEASURE ENVIRONMENTAL OR CLASSROOM QUALITY FROM AN ENVIRONMENTAL CONTEXT.
ONE THING THAT'S IMPORTANT TO ME, AND I DON'T KNOW QUITE HOW IT FITS IN.
MAYBE MORE OF AN EQUITY THING.
I KNOW THAT THERE'S NOT A I MEAN, MY CHILDREN ONLY I'VE ONLY EXPERIENCE EDUCATION AT AN ELEMENTARY LEVEL, STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES AND SORRY, MY PHONE IS RINGING AND TAKE THIS UP. AND YOU KNOW, THERE'S APPROPRIATELY LIKE AT THE ELEMENTARY LEVEL OF FOCUS ON JUST READING FOR 20 MINUTES AND NOT HAVING A HEAVY HOMEWORK.
AND THIS CAME UP ALSO IN THE LITERACY SUBCOMMITTEE LAST YEAR.
I THINK THAT SOMETIMES IT CAN BE REALLY INEQUITABLE TO HAVE SUCH A BROAD, SIMPLISTIC APPROACH OF HOMEWORK BECAUSE A LOT OF STUDENTS NEED A LOT OF SUPPORT AT HOME AND A FORMAT THAT PARENTS AREN'T EQUIPPED TO PROVIDE.
AND IF YOU KNOW, IF YOU GIVE PARENTS SOME SIMPLE TOOLS, THEY CAN MAKE IT POSSIBLE FOR THEIR CHILDREN TO, YOU KNOW, BE IN AN ENVIRONMENT AT HOME THAT SUPPORTS AND MIMIC NOT NECESSARILY MIMICS, BUT THAT ALLOWS THE CHILD TO HAVE SOME REINFORCEMENT OR PRACTICE.
AND THAT CAN BE ACTUALLY REALLY HARD EVEN FOR AN ON THE BALL PARENT.
NOW I'M SEEING AS A PARENT OF CHILDREN WITH PRETTY SIGNIFICANT DISABILITIES, SO THAT'S NOT MAYBE TRUE FOR TOO MANY.
BUT I KNOW THIS IS TRUE FOR STUDENTS WITH DYSLEXIA OR ADHD.
AND I DON'T QUITE KNOW HOW THIS FITS IN, BUT I MEAN, I THINK IT REALLY IS AN EQUITY ISSUE MORE THAN ANYTHING BECAUSE YOU KNOW, YOU'RE GOING TO BUY, NOT BY SAYING, YOU KNOW, STUDENTS CAN'T DO THIS AT HOME OR PARENTS AREN'T DON'T HAVE THE EXPERTIZE OR WHATEVER.
YOU'RE AUTOMATICALLY SETTING UP THIS DIVIDE THAT OCCURS BETWEEN PARENTS WHO ARE GOING TO SEEK OUT RESOURCES OR TUTORS OR WHATEVER IT MIGHT BE.
AND THEN OTHER STUDENTS WHO ARE LEFT WITH NOTHING BASICALLY AT HOME.
AND SO DO OTHERS HAVE A COMMENT ON THAT? MY ONLY COMMENT IS THAT I THINK BECAUSE THINGS ARE SO SORT OF NEBULOUS, THIS IS GOING TO BE HARDER TO TRY.
SO YEAH, WE'LL HAVE TO THINK, WELL, I WAS GOING TO COME ON WITH REGARD TO THE HOME ENVIRONMENT. I THINK IT'S AN IMPORTANT CONSIDERATION.
OBVIOUSLY, STUDENTS HOME LIVES AND THEIR FAMILY FACTORS HAVE A SIGNIFICANT INFLUENCE ON THEIR EDUCATION. I THINK IT MIGHT BE MORE PRODUCTIVE TO FOCUS ON THE MALLEABLE FACTORS THAT OCCUR WITHIN THE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT.
NOT THAT WE CAN'T DO PARENT EDUCATION AND PROVIDE RESOURCES IN THOSE THINGS, BUT I THINK AT LEAST AS A STARTING POINT, MAYBE CONSIDERING WHAT HAPPENS WITHIN THE CONFINES OF A SCHOOL DAY COULD BE, WE MIGHT FIND MORE TO IMPACT.
I THINK IT ALL COMES BACK TO HOW ARE WE GOING TO DEFINE THIS AND WHAT IS IT? AND I THINK ONCE WE GET THIS CORE DEFINITION, THEN THOSE I THINK CATEGORIES THAT CINDY TALKS ABOUT, THOSE EXTENSIONS, I THINK WILL SORT OF MAKE THEMSELVES KNOWN AS WE WORK THROUGH THE PROCESS.
WELL, I HAVE A REALLY PRAGMATIC QUESTION, WHICH IS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T HAVE A SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIR, AND I'M WONDERING IF CAN WE SELECT OUR OWN ROBERT'S RULES OF ORDER? I'M NOT SURE. YES. OK.
AND AND IF YOU WANT TO BE THAT PERSON BECAUSE I THINK YOU ARE REALLY WELL EQUIPPED TO TO LEAD THIS AND TO SORT OF DIRECT OUR INVESTIGATION.
AND OK, THAT SOUNDS THAT'S FINE WITH ME.
AS LONG AS YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, COMMITTEES WORK WELL WHEN EVERYBODY IS A PART OF IT, SO.
AND I'M HOPING THAT LAUREN WILL I MEAN, SHE'S GOT A WEALTH OF EXPERTIZE AS WELL, THAT SHE
[00:15:05]
DOES REALLY ENGAGE WITH THIS SUBCOMMITTEE.NO. BUT IT JUST THINKING BACK TO A COMMENT THAT YOU SAID, CINDY, ABOUT, YOU KNOW, ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. THERE IS THIS HUGE SHIFT ONCE YOUR CHILD MOVES FROM ELEMENTARY INTO MIDDLE SCHOOL AND HIGH SCHOOL, WITH THE BIGGEST THING BEING THAT INSTEAD OF HAVING ONE, YOU KNOW? MAINE TEACHER, MAYBE A FEW SPECIAL TEACHERS, YOU'RE NOW MOVING CLASSROOM TO CLASSROOM AND CLASSROOM, AND IT'S MUCH HARDER TO DELIVER THOSE SERVICES, YOU KNOW, OR EVEN, YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST, YOU KNOW, THERE'S THIS DIVIDE AND IT'S JUST IT'S VERY BIG WHEN YOU WHEN YOU MOVE INTO MIDDLE SCHOOL AND THEN HIGH SCHOOL.
SO AND WITH THE HIGH SCHOOL AS LARGE AS THE ALEXANDRIA CITY PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL BECOMES EVEN MORE DIFFICULT.
SO, YEAH, JUST EXTRA INFORMATION, I HAVEN'T SHARED THIS WITH THE COMMITTEE AT LARGE, BUT WE HAVE TWO SONS WITH DOWN SYNDROME.
ONE IS IN FOURTH GRADE AND NOW AT MACARTHUR, ANOTHER NEW SCHOOL THIS YEAR.
AND OUR SON PETER, WHO WAS IN FIFTH GRADE, FINISHED AT CHARLES SWAGIT LAST YEAR.
HE'S NOW GONE TO THE CATHOLIC SCHOOL, SETTING A SCHOOL THAT DOES INCLUSION THROUGH EIGHTH GRADE, AND HE'S DOING FIFTH GRADE AGAIN, SO WE'LL SEE IF THEY'RE ABLE TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT HIM THROUGH EIGHTH GRADE.
AND THEY DO FOLLOW A MODEL THAT'S VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT HAPPENS IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND ACPS. HOWEVER, IT'S A VERY SMALL ENVIRONMENT COMPARED TO OUR MIDDLE SCHOOL AND HIGH SCHOOL, BUT I'M STILL HOPEFUL IF HE GETS TO SAY HE'S A BEHAVIORAL CHALLENGE THAT I'M HOPING THAT IT CAN SHED SOME LIGHT TOO.
I MEAN, THEY JUST THEY THEY DO A LOT OF THINGS THAT THINGS THAT I'VE COME ACROSS IN TRAININGS FOR PARENTS WITH DOWN SYNDROME THAT I HAVE SHARED WITH THE TEACHERS.
THEY DO THESE THINGS TO MAKE IT POSSIBLE FOR THE CHILD TO BE INCLUDED LIKE THEY REALLY LOWER THE WRITING DEMANDS.
FOR EXAMPLE, BY GIVING THE CHILD STICKERS TO PUT ON A CHART AS OPPOSED TO ASKING THEM TO WRITE, YOU KNOW, JUST SIMPLE LITTLE TECHNIQUES.
AND THAT'S, YOU KNOW, I'M IN THE WEEDS AS I SAY THESE THINGS, BUT IT IS JUST ENCOURAGING TO SEE LIKE, OH, THIS DOES HAPPEN SOMEWHERE, YOU KNOW? AND THIS IS. AND MY SON HAD VERY GOOD TEACHERS AT CHARLES BARRETT AND REALLY GOOD SUPPORT. BUT SOMETIMES, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THESE SIMPLE THINGS I FELT LIKE COULD HAVE BEEN ADDED IN THAT WOULD HAVE HELPED THE PROCESS EVEN MORE.
YEAH, I THINK AND ALSO MAYBE WHEN WE THINK ABOUT DEFINITIONS IN TERMS OF BECAUSE SOME OF THESE DEFINITIONS HAVE TO, YOU KNOW, IT'S ABOUT ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES WHEN YOU WHEN I'VE LOOKED AT SOME OF THESE SORT OF DEFINITIONS.
AND SO I THINK WE NEED TO START THINKING ABOUT RESOURCES FOR ME.
I'VE ALWAYS THOUGHT ABOUT, YOU KNOW, READING AND MATH.
PROGRAMS AND WHY ARE THERE ARE THESE HUGE GAPS IN ACPS? SO AGAIN, SO WHEN WE START THINKING ABOUT DEFINITIONS TO START THINKING.
ABOUT EXACTLY WHAT RESOURCES ARE WE TALKING ABOUT? SO. THIS IS A LITTLE BIT OF A TANGENT, BUT I THINK YOU BROUGHT UP AN INTERESTING POINT, YOU SORT OF REFERENCE THE MAYBE OPPORTUNITY GAP OR PERFORMANCE GAP BETWEEN STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS, AND I THINK YOU'RE ALLUDING TO TYPICALLY DEVELOPING CHILDREN.
I DON'T KNOW IF ACPS DOES THIS LEVEL OF ANALYSIS, BUT IT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO SEE HOW OUR SPECIAL EDUCATION STUDENTS DO COMPARE TO SPECIAL EDUCATION STUDENTS IN OTHER DISTRICTS OR DIVISIONS.
JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE ALWAYS GOING TO GET IT'S JUST AN APPLES TO ORANGES COMPARISON WHEN YOU COMPARE STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS AND TYPICALLY DEVELOPING KIDS.
I MY PROFESSIONAL CONTEXT IS I WORK IN ENGLISH LEARNERS AND LIKE AGAIN, I FIGHT THIS BATTLE ALL THE TIME ABOUT COMPARING YIELDS TO ENGLISH PROFICIENT STUDENTS.
AND IT'S JUST NOT THE RIGHT COMPARISON POINT.
AND SO IF WE KNEW A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT HOW OUR STUDENTS DO COMPARED TO A MORE SIMILAR COMPARISON GROUP PEERS THAT LOOK LIKE THEM IN OTHER DISTRICTS, WE MIGHT HAVE A BETTER SENSE OF WHAT THEIR OUTCOMES ACTUALLY REFLECT, RATHER THAN CONSTANTLY COMPARING THEM TO TYPICALLY DEVELOPING CHILDREN.
WELL, A LOT OF THAT WORK'S BEEN DONE BY PFC.
AND SO I THINK YOU'LL GET A KINK IN THE DATA WOULD BE, OF COURSE, WITH COVID RIGHT? BUT RIGHT PRIOR TO THAT, THAT WORK HAD BEEN THAT WORK HAD BEEN DONE IN READING, IN MATH.
SO YEAH, I MEAN, THERE DEFINITELY IS A GAP.
AND YOU SO YOU FEEL LIKE THERE'S A GAP BETWEEN STUDENTS AND OTHER DISTRICTS.
[00:20:03]
YEAH. AND THAT'S BEEN DOCUMENTED OVER TIME.AND THEN, LIKE VARIOUS BECAUSE THAT TO THAT TO ME IS LIKE A FIRST STEP.
SO LIKE IF WE IDENTIFY THAT GAP THAT'S THERE, THEN WHAT COMES NEXT? DID WE LOOK AT CURRICULUM? THEY'RE USING QUALIFICATIONS OF THEIR TEACHERS, LIKE YOU MENTIONED, RESOURCE ALLOCATION, LIKE WHAT IS THE WHY BEHIND THAT DIFFERENCE? WAS ANY OF THAT SORT OF FURTHER ANALYSIS DONE? I THINK SOME OF THAT WOULD BE IN SOME OF THE OLD NOTES, SOME OF THE OLD IN THE LAST INDEPENDENT EVALUATION.
AND THEN THERE WAS ONE ANOTHER OUTSIDE EVALUATION DONE PRIOR, I THINK, IN 2011 OR 2010, WHERE THEY ACTUALLY HAD THE STATE ASSOCIATION OF SUPERINTENDENTS COME IN.
AND I GUESS THE BIG QUOTE FROM THAT WAS WHEN THEY CAME IN.
AT THAT TIME, ACPS WAS DOING THINGS THE SAME THAT THEY HAD BEEN DOING WHEN THEY HAD BEEN THERE 20 YEARS AGO.
SO, SO SORT OF ACPS WAS ALREADY STARTING BEHIND THE BALL.
I. PART OF WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT CAN BE SEEN IF YOU GO TO YOUTUBE AND GOOGLE ALEXANDRIA ALEXANDRIA SPECIAL EDUCATION PARENTS CHALLENGE SCHOOL BOARD, YOU WILL SEE A VIDEO WHICH WAS MADE IN WHICH THE GAP WAS COLORED IN BETWEEN THEIR FAIRFAX AND SOME OTHER JURISDICTIONS. AND THAT GAP HAS CONTINUED.
AND WHEN I WAS CO-CHAIR WITH JEFF ZACK, WE WENT TO THE BOARD IN 2015, SHOWING THAT THE GAP HAD CONTINUED DESPITE DIFFERENT.
APPROACHES AND ASK FOR AN INDEPENDENT EVALUATION, AND THEN THAT WAS EVENTUALLY DONE.
THERE WAS, I THINK, YEAH, THEY AGREED TO IT AND THEN I FORGET WHAT YEAR IT WAS DONE IN.
AND YEAH, SO ARLINGTON ALSO RAN TWO EVALUATIONS TWENTY SEVENTEEN AND TWENTY NINETEEN.
YOU KNOW, AND THEN, OF COURSE, YOU HAD THE PANDEMIC HIT, AND THAT'S SORT OF THERE IS A LITTLE BIT OF KINK INTO HOW YOU'RE GOING TO END UP INTERPRETING ANYONE INTERPRETS THE DATA. SO SORT OF ALMOST LIKE PRE-COVID, YOU KNOW, AND I'M NOT SURE HOW THE THING THAT WOULD CONCERN ME AND AGAIN, GETTING BACK TO THE EQUITY DISCUSSION WOULD BE.
NOT THAT ANY OF THE TEACHERS HAVE HAD A BUNCH OF TIME IS WHAT KIND OF DATA IN TERMS OF LEARNING AND THE SPECIAL NEEDS KIDS WHO ARE DOING ONLINE, WHAT KIND OF DATA IS BEING KEPT FOR THAT? YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE AMES WEB, THEY HAVE MAPPED THEY'VE GOT ALL THESE DATA PROBES THAT THEY'VE BEEN USING.
RIGHT, SO MY QUESTION IS, HOW ARE THEY MEASURING LEARNING? IN THE STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES, YOU KNOW, ARE THEY STILL USING AMES WEB OR ARE THEY STILL USING? WHAT ARE THEY? WHAT ARE THEY DOING SO I MEAN SINCE? TO GET A HANDLE ON WHAT'S BEEN HAPPENING DURING THIS COVID ONLINE PERIOD IN TERMS OF.
YOU KNOW, EQUITY, NOT THAT I THINK NECESSARILY THAT WOULD.
BUT I THINK THAT'S DATA THAT, YOU KNOW.
YOU KNOW, THAT NEEDS TO BE LOOKED AT.
WHAT WOULD BE THE MOST APPROPRIATE OR MOST IMPACTFUL DATA TO GATHER DURING THIS PERIOD, BECAUSE SOME PEOPLE WILL TELL YOU IT WAS A HORRIBLE EXPERIENCE.
SOME PEOPLE WILL SAY IT WORKED REALLY WELL FOR MY FOR MY KID.
YEAH. THE QUESTION IS WHAT HAPPENED TO THE READING, THE MATH, YOU KNOW, AND BEYOND THAT, IS THERE SOMETHING ELSE THAT WE NEED TO MEASURE? SOCIAL, EMOTIONAL? I KNOW THERE WAS A HUGE DEMAND, APPARENTLY ON COUNSELING SERVICES.
YOU KNOW, SO YOU KNOW, SO I THINK THAT'S UNFORTUNATELY THE SOCIAL EMOTION.
I THINK A LOT OF THAT IS GOING TO BE SUBTLE INITIALLY AND COME OUT OVER TIME.
MM-HMM. YEAH, THAT'S A IT'S A HARD THING TO I MEAN, I SEE THAT WITH MY KIDS.
YEAH. BUT NOW MY SON HAD A VERY, YOU KNOW, EVEN THOUGH HE DID OK.
I MEAN, HE HAD A VERY HARD TIME.
I MEAN, JUST HE GOT TO A CERTAIN POINT, SORRY TO GO PERSONAL.
HE JUST, YOU KNOW, LIKE, YOU KNOW, LIKE THE FIRST SIX MONTHS.
BUT THEN SORT OF LIKE LAST YEAR, YOU KNOW, HE'S LIKE, HAD ENOUGH.
HE WANTS TO BE BACK IN THE CLASSROOM WITH HIS BUDDIES.
THIS COMPUTER STUFF WAS ENOUGH.
YOU KNOW, YEAH, THAT'S KIDS REACHED THAT POINT.
AND THEN ALSO WHAT I SEE IS THEN REEMERGING WAS ALSO PRETTY DARN DIFFICULT AFTER ALL THAT TIME, PARTICULARLY WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT STUDENTS ON THE SPECTRUM.
[00:25:01]
YEAH, YEAH.I THINK FOR A LOT, EVEN IF YOU WEREN'T, LET'S PUT IT THIS WAY, EVEN IF YOU I THINK IT WAS HARD FOR ALL THE KIDS, YOU KNOW, JUST DEPENDING UPON PERSONALITY AND EVERYTHING AND ALL THAT. BUT I DO THINK, YEAH, FOR WHAT KIND OF DATA IN TERMS OF KEEPING TRACK OF THE LEARNING. AND MAYBE THEY HAD, YOU KNOW, HOW ARE WE GOING TO MEASURE DURING THIS PERIOD AND. IS I KNOW AMES LABS IS ONE OF THE BIG DATA SYSTEMS, BUT CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT AMES WAS IS I'M SORRY.
A WEBBS IS SOMETHING THEY'VE HAD IN PLACE AMES W.E.B.
DATA PROVES THAT, YOU KNOW, THE TEACHER FOR I FORGET WHETHER IT'S ONE OR THREE MINUTES, WE'LL TEST A STUDENT ON READING OR MATH AND THEN WRITE DOWN THE SCORES IN ORDER TO TRACK PROGRESS OVER TIME.
AND THEN SOMETIMES THEY DON'T ALWAYS DO AMES LAB.
THEY MAY HAVE ANOTHER SYSTEM FOR DOING THOSE DATA PROBES, SO THEY'RE KIND OF QUICK CHECKS JUST TO PROGRESS MONITORING SYSTEM.
I NEED TWO INDICATORS TO LOOK AT TO MEASURE LEARNING DURING THIS PERIOD AND MAYBE OUTSIDE THE TRADITIONAL REALM.
I DON'T KNOW. I MEAN, I WAS JUST TRYING TO FIND MY DOCUMENTS THAT TERRY WARNER SENT AFTER THE NOVEMBER MEETING THAT HAD THE RUBRIC AND MEASURE THEY WERE USING TO ASSESS WHICH STUDENTS NEEDED ADDITIONAL COVID RECOVERY SERVICES.
WELL, I MEAN, I THINK JANET EISENSTADT ASKED THE QUESTION HOW MANY WERE ELIGIBLE, AND I THINK SHE ONLY SAT AROUND THREE HUNDRED OUT OF 800.
SO, YEAH, BUT I WAS JUST CURIOUS WHAT THE DATA SOURCES WERE THAT THEY USE TO MAKE THOSE DECISIONS. WELL, THE VIDEO HE PUT OUT IN A PRETTY EXTENSIVE POLICY.
AND I THINK THAT WAS MARCH AND MAY FOR THAT, AND THEN THEY HAD ADDITIONAL GUIDANCE AT THE END OF AUGUST. MS. ISSUED ON THAT BASED ON SOME.
ADDITIONAL LEGISLATIVE SESSIONS.
I'D HAVE TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT THAT, BUT I HAVEN'T LOOKED AT THAT IN A WHILE.
BECAUSE MY QUESTION IS, ARE THOSE ARE THOSE MEASURABLE? YEAH, I'M CURIOUS TO ASK TOMORROW I HAVE AN IEP MEETING, AND I KNOW MY SON DIDN'T QUALIFY FOR. NEW RECOVERY SERVICES, WHICH IS LIKE A POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE LIKE BECAUSE HE WELL, IT ACTUALLY THE FORMAT SUITED HIM, OK, BECAUSE I WAS AROUND TO SUPPORT IT, YOU KNOW, IT MAKES A DIFFERENCE. BUT AGAIN, THAT'S SOMETHING I THINK THAT SHOULD.
SORRY. QUICK ASIDE, BUT HOW COVID RECOVERY SERVICES WERE DETERMINED SHOULD HAVE BEEN SOMETHING THAT THE SYSTEM SHOULD HAVE PUT OUT TO PARENTS.
SO THEY KNEW WHAT WAS EXPECTED AND IT WAS NOT.
I LAST YEAR REPEATEDLY I KNEW THAT THEY WERE COMING FROM SOMEONE I KNOW AT THE BDO BACK IN FEBRUARY. I ASKED REPEATEDLY IN MARCH AND OTHER POINTS ALONG MY IEP WAY AND.
HE'S NOT GIVEN THE INFORMATION.
IT WAS NOT UNTIL MAY, BUT I FINALLY GOT THE INFORMATION, SO.
AND REGARDING HOW THE COVID RECOVERY SERVICES ARE GOING TO BE DETERMINED.
AND AS FAR AS I KNOW, NO ONE ELSE EVER GOT.
OR WAS NOT THE DEFINITION OR WHAT WAS HAPPENING WAS NOT PUT OUT TO THE PARENTS AS TO WHAT THE REQUIREMENTS WERE.
IN OTHER WORDS, ONE OF THE REQUIREMENTS I REMEMBER WAS THAT YOU HAD TO BE BACK IN SCHOOL IN THE FALL IN ORDER FOR THEM TO MEASURE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN, YOU KNOW, THE PRIOR YEAR IN THE FALL.
MY SON WENT INTO PROJECT SEARCH.
SO EVEN THOUGH THAT WAS TECHNICALLY PART OF THE SCHOOL SYSTEM, THAT WOULD NOT QUALIFY FOR COVID RECOVERY SERVICES BECAUSE HE WASN'T TECHNICALLY IN A HIGH SCHOOL.
BUT THAT I ONLY LEARNED NOT FROM ACPS, I HAD TO LEARN THAT FROM ANOTHER SOURCE.
[00:30:07]
SO I DON'T THINK MANY PARENTS KNOW HOW AND WHY IT'S BEING DETERMINED THEIR KIDS ARE GETTING COVID RECOVERY SERVICES THAT NEED TO BE PUT PUT OUT THERE BECAUSE THE VIDEO HE PUBLISHES THIS THEIR SUPERINTENDENTS MEMOS.SORRY, ASHLEY, I'M GOING A LITTLE ON HERE A LITTLE BIT, BUT PLEASE GO SORRY.
SO YEAH, I THINK THAT NEEDS TO BE MORE FORTHCOMING.
AND WHAT KERRY PUTS OUT THERE NEED THEY NEED TO MAKE IT PUBLIC AS TO HOW AND WHY, WHAT THESE DETERMINATIONS OR.
SO IT WAS KIND OF I MEAN, IT'S SURPRISING TO ME THAT CIAC WASN'T EVEN REALLY CONSULTED ON THOSE DOCUMENTS EITHER.
YEAH, I TALKED TO A PARENT WHOSE CHILD SHE ASKED ABOUT COVID RECOVERY SERVICES AND HER CHILD IS RECEIVING THEM, BUT SHE HAD THE IMPRESSION THAT HAD SHE NOT ASKED, THE CHILD WOULDN'T HAVE RECEIVED THE SERVICES.
I AM A LITTLE PERPLEXED ABOUT THAT.
YEAH, BECAUSE I ASKED THREE TIMES AND I EVEN HAVE A DOCUMENTED AN EMAIL AND THEY SAID THEY DIDN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT IT.
IN FACT, EVEN GOT A PHONE CALL FROM SOMEONE AT THE HIGH SCHOOL SAYING, YOU KNOW, WE HE WAS A SPECIAL ED ADMINISTRATOR.
SAYING THAT THEY KNEW NOTHING ABOUT THIS, AND I SAID, WELL, HERE'S THE POLICY THAT THE FIRST ONE OUT SINCE MARCH, AND SO I DON'T KNOW, YOU KNOW, BUT YOU KNOW, IF IT WASN'T CLEAR TO THE ADMINISTRATORS.
RIGHT, RIGHT. IT CERTAINLY THE PARENTS WEREN'T GOING TO KNOW.
SUBCOMMITTEE THAT'S FOCUSED ON THAT A LITTLE, BUT I THINK THIS IS ALSO AN ASIDE, BUT BACK TO COMMUNICATIONS, WHICH WE LOOKED AT LAST YEAR, TERRY HAD I HAD THE IMPRESSION WAS GOING TO CONTINUE DOING A NEWSLETTER TO PARENTS OF STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES EVERY QUARTER.
AND MAYBE MAYBE THERE WAS ONE EARLY THAT DIDN'T HAVE ALL THIS.
IT DID HAVE SOME INFORMATION, LIKE A FRAMEWORK FOR HOW COVID RECOVERY SERVICES WOULD HAPPEN. BUT I DO THINK THAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT FOR THAT TO CONTINUE.
YES. AND THAT INFORMATION WOULD BE PROBABLY HELPFUL TO THE SCHOOL BOARD, TOO, JUST LIKE A, YOU KNOW, A QUARTERLY UPDATE THAT GOES TO ALL THE FAMILIES OF STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES, BUT ALSO WOULD KEEP ABREAST OF CURRENT TOPICS.
YEAH, WELL, IT ALSO WOULD HAVE BEEN A GOOD FORUM FOR THEM TO SPELL OUT.
HOW THE DISTRICT WAS GOING TO BE MEASURING FOR COVID RECOVERY SERVICES, THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE PERFECT PLACE TO PUT SOMETHING LIKE THAT OUT THERE.
SO YOU KNOW WHAT IT WAS GOING TO TAKE BECAUSE I WAS SORT OF, TO BE PERFECTLY HONEST, SHOCKED WHEN JANET ASKED THE QUESTION AND ONLY ABOUT A THIRD, IT APPEARED OR LESS.
WE'RE GOING TO QUALIFY FOR COVID RECOVERY SERVICES, GIVEN WHAT FROM WHAT I'VE HEARD FROM FROM PARENTS, YOU KNOW, AND I'M LIKE YOU, CINDY.
I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH THAT BETWEEN MY HUSBAND AND MYSELF, WE COULD HELP SUPPLEMENT WHAT MY SON WAS DOING BECAUSE I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH WHERE I COULD WORK FROM HOME AND ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF AND SAME THING WITH MY HUSBAND.
BUT NOT EVERYBODY IS THAT LUCKY OR HAS THE ABILITY TO DO THAT.
BUT I WAS LOOKING SORRY, I WAS TURNING AWAY BECAUSE I WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO SEE IF I STILL HAD THE. IT WAS EASILY ACCESSIBLE THE COVID RECOVERY POLICIES, BUT THEY'RE NOT.
I THINK I FILED THEM AWAY SOMEWHERE.
TRYING TO REMEMBER WHERE? YEAH, LET ME SEE.
SO LET ME SAY SOMETHING HERE, AND.
HEARING. YOU KNOW, OK, MY PHONE DOESN'T ALWAYS BRING UP MY SEARCH.
YEAH, I HAVE THAT OCCASIONALLY SO.
SO IN TERMS OF MOVING FORWARD SINCE I'M KNOW THE CHAIR OF THE SUBCOMMITTEE.
[Set potential goals and timeline]
SO IN TERMS OF MOVING FORWARD, SHOULD WE DETERMINE HOW OFTEN WE WOULD, YOU KNOW, WE WANT TO MEET AND THEN, OKAY, DO WE WANT TO MEET? AT THE BEGINNING.MY THOUGHT WAS THIS WAS THAT PERHAPS I WOULD GATHER A FEW SOURCES, MAYBE LOOK AT SOME
[00:35:06]
UNIVERSITY DEFINITIONS.YOU KNOW, ASHLEY, IF YOU COULD GET SOME FEDERAL DEFINITIONS OR SOME STATE DEFINITIONS, AND THEN WE COULD JUST ALL SORT OF.
READ THEM, AND THEN I COULD COME UP WITH A STARTING TEMPLATE FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM.
AND THEN WE COULD SPEND, YOU KNOW, A WHOLE.
SESSION SORT OF HASHING OUT THE TEMPLATE, SO LET ME SEE IF I GOT A CALENDAR HERE.
WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE TO MEET SOMETIME? YOU KNOW, THE WEEK OF 7TH TO THE 11TH OF FEBRUARY.
MM HMM. GIVE EVERYBODY TIME TO SORT STUFF OUT AND THEN COME UP AND I'LL COME UP WITH A TEMPLATE. AND YOU SEE WHAT THEY RE, MEANING TUESDAY IS TUESDAY A GOOD DAY FOR YOU? ASHLEY. SO I'M PROBABLY NOT GOING TO CONTINUE TO COME TO THESE MEETINGS, I JUST WANTED TO COME SINCE I HAD MISSED, I WASN'T ABLE TO MAKE A FIRST ONE.
ALL RIGHT. SO ALL RIGHT, THEN WHAT ABOUT YOU, CINDY? WHAT WORKS? I THINK SO.
I'M SORRY. I HAVE TO GO LOOK AT MY PAPER CALENDAR IN THE OTHER ROOM BECAUSE I KEEP.
THAT'S OK. AND SO, YEAH, BUT DO YOU STILL WANT TO BE ON THE EMAIL TRAIL, ESPECIALLY? SURE, IF YOU WANT ME TO BE AND I CAN, I'M HAPPY TO SHARE SOME FEDERAL DEFINITIONS OR DEFINITIONS. IF I FIND ANYTHING, THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL.
SO. YOU KNOW, TO SAY WILL WORK FOR ME, IF NOT NOT TOO EARLY IN THE MORNING, LIKE MIDDAY BEFORE, LIKE, SAY, LIKE FEBRUARY THE 8TH.
YOU WANT TO SAY WHAT TIME AGAIN? I'M SORRY. OH, JUST NOT.
I OFTEN HAVE A MEETING OF THE 8:30 TO 9:30 SLOT, SO I'M JUST BEYOND THAT AS ALL YOU WANT TO DO THE SAME THING. 12:30 LUNCH TIME IS GOOD.
OK, AND SUSAN, DO I NEED TO PUT IN A FORMAL REQUEST THEN FOR THE.
SORRY, I WAS MUTED IN TWO PLACES, NOT JUST ONE.
SO FEBRUARY IS KIND OF A QUESTION, THOUGH, ABOUT WHETHER WE CAN MEET VIRTUALLY BECAUSE THE THE CITY'S EMERGENCY.
WHATEVER THAT ALLOWS US TO MEET VIRTUALLY RIGHT NOW EXPIRES ON THE 31ST, SO THAT MIGHT BE AN ISSUE, BUT.
I HAVE A QUESTION INTO SOMEONE AT THE CITY TO SEE IF THEY ARE GOING TO EXTEND IT OR NOT.
ALTHOUGH I DON'T KNOW HOW THEY HAVE THE WHAT GRANTS THEM THE AUTHORITY TO DO THAT AND IF IT'S GRANTED BY THE GOVERNOR, THEN THAT MIGHT GO AWAY ALMOST IMMEDIATELY, LIKE EVERYTHING ELSE. SO.
SO TO FIND OUT THE ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION.
SO AND I DID FIND, I THINK, A LINK TO THOSE POLICIES.
I'M GOING TO SEND THEM TO YOU ALL.
THANK YOU. I DON'T KNOW IF THEY'RE THE CORRECT ONES, BUT I FOUND IT ON A WEBSITE, SO HOPEFULLY THAT'S CORRECT.
THE WEBSITE? WELL, I TRIED THE VIDEO FIRST AND IT DIDN'T COME UP BECAUSE THEY HAVE SO MUCH ON THERE ABOUT COVID. SO I ACTUALLY DID A GLOBAL SEARCH AND I GOT IT OFF SOMEONE ELSE'S WEBSITE.
WE HAVE ONE HERE, A COVID RECOVERY. YEAH, THERE'S SEVERAL OF THESE POLICIES.
OK. NO, I TRIED THE MIKE, BUT SUSAN.
YES. UNTIL YOU FIND OUT THE ANSWER, IS IT POSSIBLE JUST TO PENCIL IN THE EIGHT? OH YEAH, I'LL PENCIL IT IN AND THEN IF YOU CAN FIGURE IT OUT ONCE WE GET AN ANSWER.
YEAH, THAT WOULD BE FUNNY IF WE ENDED THIS CAPABILITY TO MEET VIRTUALLY RIGHT?
[00:40:04]
WHEN THINGS ARE, YEAH, MOST INFECTIONS ARE SPIKING.I GOT AN EMAIL TODAY FROM THE ARC OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA BECAUSE I GUESS THEY WERE ALLOWING CERTAIN HIGH RISK GROUPS TO ORDER THE COVID TESTS EARLY.
AND ALEXANDRIA HAD BEEN A HIGH RISK GROUP, SO I WENT AND CLICKED ON THE LINK.
AND YOU HAVE TO DO IT BY ZIP CODE TYPED IN MY ZIP CODE.
APPARENTLY, THEY NO LONGER CONSIDER THE ZIP CODE HIGH RISK ANYMORE.
SO WHICH WAS A SURPRISE CONSIDERING THE CITY DATA SAYS DIFFERENTLY.
SO IT'LL BE INTERESTING TO SEE TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS WITH THAT.
ALL RIGHT. SO BEFORE WE BEFORE WE WRAP UP TODAY, CAN I ALSO JUST CIRCLE BACK ON THIS ISSUE ABOUT THE ACCESS TO LANGUAGE CLASSES FOR STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS FOR THE SCHOOL DIPLOMA? I JUST WANTED TO LIKE I THINK RIGHT NOW I'M JUST TRYING TO LIKE, KEEP THIS ISSUE ON YOUR RADAR.
I THINK IT IS KIND OF A BIG EQUITY ISSUE AND ALSO ONE THAT SHOULDN'T BE THAT HARD TO FIX.
SO I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S OF INTEREST TO YOU ALL OR IF YOU WOULD WANT TO TAKE THIS UP, BUT I THINK IT IS A REALLY COMPELLING THING TO TO WORK ON.
YEAH. WELL, I WAS SURPRISED WHEN YOU BROUGHT THAT UP BECAUSE I JUST ASSUMED THAT IT WOULD BE COUNTED. I MEAN, IT IS IN MOST UNIVERSITY SETTINGS.
OH, IT'S NOT THAT IT'S NOT COUNTED.
IT'S JUST THAT THERE ISN'T AN ASL CLASS OFFERED.
YEAH. SO IT IS IT IS COUNTED AND THERE IS SORT OF A STATE FRAMEWORK THAT SAYS IT CAN BE USED TO REPLACE A FOREIGN LANGUAGE CLASS FOR THE ADVANCED STUDIES DIPLOMA IS JUST TO, TO MY KNOWLEDGE. AND WHAT I WAS TOLD IS THAT THERE ISN'T AN IN-PERSON CLASS OFFERED AT HHS AND THERE ISN'T A CLASS AT THE SATELLITE CAMPUS EITHER.
YEAH, BECAUSE I THINK I THINK THEY OFFER THOSE CLASSES THROUGH THE CITY OF ALEXANDRIA.
SO LIKE, I'D HAVE TO CHECK, BUT IT MAY HAVE BEEN A WHILE SINCE THEY HAVE.
THAT'S SOUNDS LIKE SOMETHING THAT COULD BE RELATIVELY EASY TO FIX.
I MEAN, ASSUMING THERE'S THE DESIRE TO DO SO.
SO, YEAH, NO, NO, THAT'S GOOD.
YOU'RE JUST TRYING TO THINK IF THERE'S ANYTHING ELSE, WE GOT THE DATA, THE NEXT MEETING, WE'RE GOING TO CIRCULATE SOME STUFF.
AND ACTUALLY, IT'S OK TO KEEP YOU ON THE EMAIL TRAIL.
PLEASE. YEAH, I'D LOVE TO HEAR WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT.
OK. AND ALSO FEEL FREE, PARTICULARLY ONCE WE GET THE TEMPLATE UP AND CIRCULATE DEFINITION, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CHIME IN WHEN YOUR THOUGHTS.
YEAH. ARE YOU? I KNOW CIAC IS MEETING TOMORROW AND SO THEN YOUR NEXT MEETING WOULD BE IN MARCH, RIGHT? DO YOU WANT TO HAVE SOMETHING FOR THE FULL COMMITTEE TO LOOK AT IN MARCH IN TERMS OF A TIMELINE? YEAH, I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE SOMETHING BY MARCH.
I DON'T THINK IT'S GOING TO BE EASY AND WE MAY MEET A FEW MORE TIMES AFTER FEBRUARY EIGHT TO GET SOMETHING READY FOR THE MARCH MEETING.
YEAH. SO AND IT'LL PROBABLY GO THROUGH A FEW ITERATIONS RIGHT NOW AND THEN EVENTUALLY HAVE IT LAND UP AT THE SCHOOL BOARD WITH RECOMMENDATION TO MOVE FORWARD.
DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE, CINDY, THAT? NO, NO, I'VE MADE NOTES OVER TIME, BUT I DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO LOOK THROUGH MY THINGS.
SO HOW IS TWENTY TWENTY TWO ALREADY BEEN SUCH A LONG YEAR? I KNOW. IT'S UNBELIEVABLE, ISN'T IT? I KNOW. I KNOW.
WELL, I GUESS IT'S UNFORTUNATE LAUREN CAN JOIN US, BUT I WILL, RIGHT? OH YEAH. I WILL ALSO WRITE SOMETHING UP A COUPLE OF SENTENCES TO BE INCLUDED IN THE CIAC NOTES, YOU KNOW, TWO OR THREE SENTENCES ABOUT WHAT WE DID FOR THE NOTES.
WELL, GOOD. HAVE A GOOD AFTERNOON, EVERYONE.
GOOD TO HAVE A GOOD AFTERNOON.
THANK YOU, SUSAN. YOU'RE WELCOME.
BYE BYE. BYE BYE.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.