OKAY, WELL, WHY DON'T WE GET STARTED?
[00:00:01]
SO I'M GOING TO CALL TO ORDER THE APRIL 12TH MEETING OF THE SCHOOL BOARD BUDGET ADVISORY COMMITTEE.[1. Call to Order]
AGAIN, WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO SUSAN AND FOR THE SUPPORT OF THE MEETING AND FOR SINCE WE DO HAVE A GUEST HERE TODAY.I WOULD LOVE IT IF THE GROUP COULD JUST GO AROUND AND INTRODUCE THEMSELVES.
SO AGAIN, I'M NANCY DRAIN AND I'M THE CHAIR OF BACK THIS YEAR.
BILL, WHY DON'T YOU GO NEXT AND I'LL TALK PEOPLE? SURE. SO BILL PFISTER, JUST A MEMBER OF FIRST YEAR JOINING THE BACK AND HAVE THREE KIDS TO AND SO MACARTHUR FAMILY.
SO I'VE BEEN INVOLVED IN ALL OF THAT FUN STUFF.
BUT HOPEFULLY WE'LL HAVE A NEW SCHOOL SOON.
OH, HI, CATHY. GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN.
KELLY BOO'S ON THE SCHOOL BOARD AND LIAISON TO BACK FOR THE SCHOOL BOARD.
GOOD EVENING. ROBERT EASLEY, BUDGET DIRECTOR FOR ACP'S.
THANKS SO MUCH TO BOTH OF YOU FOR BEING HERE.
OH, SHE'S ON MUTE. SO THAT'S BRIDGET SHEA.
JESSICA, DO YOU WANT TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF? HI, I'M JENICA PATTERSON.
I'M HAVE A SON NAMED PATRICK HENRY.
HE'S IN SECOND GRADE AND I'M THE PTA PRESIDENT THERE.
BUT I'M ALSO PART OF THIS COMMITTEE.
I'VE BEEN HERE FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS NOW.
NICE TO MEET YOU. UM, SELENA, ARE YOU ABLE TO SAY HELLO? NO. KNOW YOU'RE MANAGING A SICK CHILD.
SO, YEAH, SHE'S KEPT HER BUSY WITH A MOVIE.
ALHAJI. THIS IS MY SECOND TERM.
I HAVE THREE CHILDREN AS WELL.
UM, ONE IN JAMES POLK AND THE OTHER ONE AT ALEXANDRIA.
KATHY, WOULD YOU LIKE TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF? OH, YES. I'M KATHY STENZEL AND I'M THE SCHOOL BOARD'S REP ON VFC, WHICH IS THE CITY'S BUDGET COMMITTEE.
AND I'VE BEEN IN THIS ROLE FOR A WHILE, PROBABLY FIVE YEARS, SIX YEARS, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
AND I HAVE FIVE KIDS AND THEY ALL WENT TO BARRETT AND THEY ALL ALMOST FINISHED THROUGH ONE.
GREAT. THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING US, KATHY.
NANCY, I JUST MY PHONE WAS THINKING THAT I'M DRIVING EVEN THOUGH I'M SITTING ON A PARK BENCH.
SO IT WOULD NOT LET ME TAKE MYSELF OFF OF MUTE.
OKAY. AS AN ASIDE THAT MY PHONE HAS BEEN DOING THAT LATELY AND I CANNOT FIGURE OUT WHY.
SO IF YOU SOLVE THAT PROBLEM, LET ME KNOW.
UM, SO I JUST WANTED TO NOTE, JUST FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE MINUTES THAT WE'RE MISSING TWO BACK MEMBERS SO RYAN REINA, WHO IS OUR VICE CHAIR, WAS UNABLE TO MAKE IT TONIGHT DUE TO A PERSONAL COMMITMENT.
AND LILLIAN VAGNONI, WHO IS A MEMBER OF BACK, A MEMBER OF THE COMMUNITY, UM, SHE MAY BE JOINING US LATER. I KNOW THAT SHE WASN'T FEELING WELL TONIGHT, SO HOPEFULLY SHE WILL BE WITH US LATER.
[3. Approval of Prior Meeting Minutes]
SO I BELIEVE THAT WE NEED TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM THE JANUARY AND FEBRUARY MEETINGS.SO I WOULD LIKE TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION AT THIS TIME TO APPROVE THOSE MINUTES.
AND IF ALL THOSE IN FAVOR COULD JUST RAISE THEIR ACTUAL OR VIRTUAL HAND, THAT WOULD BE TERRIFIC.
WONDERFUL. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH.
[4. Reports]
SO WITH THAT, WANTED TO MOVE TO THE REPORTS SECTION OF THE AGENDA.[00:05:02]
I DON'T HAVE ALL THAT MUCH TO REPORT ON MY END.JUST WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT RYAN AND I DID APPEAR AT THE MARCH 30TH BOARD MEETING.
THANKS TO ALL OF YOU FOR YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE CONTENT OF THAT PRESENTATION.
MY SENSE OF THINGS IS THAT IT'S NOT AN OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY ENGAGE WITH THE BOARD.
IT REALLY IS JUST A COMMENT PERIOD FOR US.
SO THERE WAS NOT ANY DISCUSSION OR Q&A, BUT WE DID SHARE SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT OUR SCOPE OF WORK AND GAVE THE BOARD A PREVIEW OF THE MEMO THAT WILL BE WORKING ON WITH THE FACT THAT WE'LL BE SPEAKING ABOUT LATER TONIGHT.
AND I THINK IN PARTICULAR, ESSER, JUST TO EMPHASIZE WITH YOU AND MAYBE TO PASS ALONG TO YOUR COLLEAGUES THAT, YOU KNOW, IN PREPARING FOR THE PRESENTATION, YOU KNOW, HAD THE CHANCE TO REVIEW OUR LAST MEMO AGAIN ON COMMUNICATIONS.
AND IT REALLY DOES HAVE A LOT OF VERY SPECIFIC, I THINK, VERY WELL THOUGHT OUT RECOMMENDATIONS.
SO FROM OUR POINT OF VIEW, I THINK IT WOULD BE WONDERFUL FOR BOARD MEMBERS TO, YOU KNOW, WHEN THEY HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE A LOOK AT THOSE, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY TO HELP MESSAGE TO ACP'S LEADERSHIP.
AND I'M NOT LOOKING AT ROBERT, BECAUSE MOST OF THESE ARE REALLY COMMUNICATIONS TASKS THAT WE WOULD REALLY HOPE THAT THE SUPERINTENDENT AND THE COMMUNICATIONS TEAM WOULD TAKE A LOOK AT FOR FUTURE YEARS.
SO ANYTHING THAT YOU CAN DO TO AMPLIFY SOME OF THOSE THEMES I THINK WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED BY US AND I THINK WOULD BE REALLY VALUABLE FOR FOR THE BOARD, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY IN TERMS OF ITS PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT AND ALSO FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE STAFF AS WELL.
UM, WE'VE HAD A LITTLE BIT OF ADDITIONAL ACTIVITY WITH RESPECT TO THIS JOINT MEMO, BUT I THINK I'LL TABLE THAT UNTIL I SORT OF TURN THINGS OVER TO KATHY AND WE SHARE WITH YOU ABOUT SOMETHING WE'VE BEEN DOING THERE.
SO WITH THAT, WE'D LOVE TO TURN IT OVER TO KELLY FOR ANY REPORTS FROM YOU.
YEAH. NO, THANK YOU. I DON'T HAVE I DON'T HAVE MUCH.
SORRY. AND I APPRECIATE THE SWITCH TO VIRTUAL.
I'M KIND OF JUGGLING A FEW THINGS AND I'M ALSO TAKING ADVANTAGE NOW TO SIT OUTSIDE.
NANCY, I'M SORRY THAT YOU'RE STILL INSIDE THE CONFINES OF YOUR OFFICE RIGHT NOW.
UM, BUT JUST TO SAY THAT THE PRESENTATION WAS REALLY GOOD, UM, TWO WEEKS AGO, WHENEVER IT WAS RIGHT BEFORE THE BREAK, I THOUGHT IT WAS A REALLY, REALLY HELPFUL OVERVIEW. I HEAR YOU ON THE NOT HAVING ENGAGEMENT.
I KNOW A COUPLE OF US ON THE BOARD ARE TRYING TO KIND OF CHANGE THAT PROCESS TO ALLOW FOR SOME QUESTIONING ENGAGEMENT OR, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT IS THIS SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE WORTHWHILE THROWING INTO WORK SESSIONS ON A AT LEAST AN ANNUAL BASIS TO TALK THROUGH SOME OF THE DIFFERENT ISSUES THAT WERE BROUGHT UP? I HAVE EMPHASIZED A COUPLE OF TIMES TO READ THE MEMO AND THE RECOMMENDATIONS, AND I THINK THAT ONE NEXT STEP WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL.
ROBERT, YOU KNOW, NO, THIS IS NOT LIKE A RUSH TO DO THING.
BUT I THINK WHAT MAY BE HELPFUL AND I KNOW WE'VE SEEN THAT WITH A COUPLE OF THE OTHER PROJECTS, ESPECIALLY LIKE WITH SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS, IS TO SAY LIKE, OKAY, HERE'S HERE ARE THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT CAME OUT OF BACK.
HERE'S WHAT STAFF YOU KNOW, I KNOW THAT STAFF DOES RESPOND.
DOES SHE JUST ASSOCIATED WITH? YEAH. DID I PASS? YEAH. YOU FROZE UP A LITTLE.
SORRY. OKAY, I'M GOING TO GO OFF CAMERA.
I'M NOT SURE. WHERE DID I PAUSE? JUST WHEN YOU WERE. I THINK YOU WERE SUGGESTING THAT STAFF MIGHT COME BACK WITH SOME REFLECTION.
YEAH. SO I WAS JUST SAYING, LIKE, YOU KNOW, SIMILAR TO HOW STAFF CAME BACK.
BUT THE, YOU KNOW, JUST LOOKING AT LIKE, OKAY, THESE ARE SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS.
THESE ARE THIS IS WHAT'S DEFINITELY DOABLE.
THIS COULD BE A LONG TERM THING.
THIS SHOULD BE SOMETHING THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT BECAUSE I THINK THAT THAT CAN HELP ELEVATE SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE COMMITTEE BECAUSE I STILL, YOU KNOW, TAKE TO HEART WHAT YOU HAD SAID AT A PREVIOUS MEETING WHERE, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THESE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM BACK ARE GREAT, BUT THEY'RE ALSO REALLY CAPACITY.
THERE'S A LOT OF CAPACITY POINTS TO IT.
UM, SO ANYWAY, YEAH, I THOUGHT IT WAS A GREAT PRESENTATION.
AND THEN, I MEAN, THE LAST PIECE REALLY, AND YOU KNOW, CATHY, I'M GLAD YOU'RE HERE IS, YOU KNOW, NOW BUDGETS REALLY IN THE HANDS OF COUNCIL AND YOU KNOW, THEY'RE GOING THROUGH THEIR OWN PROCESS RIGHT NOW.
[00:10:02]
IT LOOKS LIKE, YOU KNOW, AT LEAST OUR OPERATING BUDGET IS FULLY FUNDED.AND THEN, YOU KNOW, WE'VE GOT SOME WORK TO DO, I THINK, ON THE CAPACITY AND CAPACITY SIDE, UM, ON THE CIP BUDGET TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN, YOU KNOW, BRIDGE SOME OF THOSE GAPS OR LOOK AT THE COUPLE, THE COUPLE DIFFERENT ITEMS THAT WEREN'T FUNDED AS PART OF THAT.
THANK YOU, BILLY. ROBERT, ANY UPDATES FROM YOU? ABSOLUTELY. DITTO WHAT KELLY MENTIONED ABOUT THE PRESENTATION.
I THINK THE PRESENTATION WAS EXCELLENT.
IT WAS AN EXCELLENT WAY OF PRESENTING THE HARD WORK YOU GUYS PUT FORWARD IN TERMS OF EVALUATING WHAT ACP OFFERS IN TERMS OF BUDGET INFORMATION, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, LOOKING OUTWARD AND LOOKING AT WHAT OTHERS ARE CAPABLE OF DOING.
AND THEN IN TERMS OF YOUR MEMO HIGHLIGHTING WHAT YOU FEEL THAT ACP SHOULD DO.
AND IT'S NOW UP TO US TO WORK COLLABORATIVELY WITH COMMUNICATIONS TO DETERMINE WHAT WE CAN DO.
UM, AND I AGAIN AGREE WITH, WITH KELLY THAT MAYBE OR NOT, MAYBE, BUT WE CAN PREPARE A RESPONSE TO HIGHLIGHT THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS AND SOMEWHAT PRIORITIZE LIKE HERE ARE THE THINGS THAT WE KNOW THAT CAN BE DONE NOW.
HERE ARE THINGS THAT WE ARE WORKING ON.
HERE ARE SOME THINGS THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO DO BUT LACK THE NECESSARY CAPACITY TO DO SO.
UM, I AGAIN, I APPRECIATE AND APPLAUD THE BACK FOR THE WORK THAT YOU GUYS ARE DOING TO KIND OF HELP GUIDE AND NOT JUST ADVISE THE SCHOOL BOARD, BUT THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING IS ALSO HELPING TO GUIDE.
MY OFFICE AND THE OFFICE STAFF BECAUSE I'M NOW USING THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS TO KIND OF STEER THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING SO THAT IT COULD BE MORE PRODUCTIVE OUTSIDE OF OUR OFFICE.
BUT WHAT YOU'RE SHOWING IS, NO, WE NEED TO PRODUCE THIS BUDGET BOOK.
BUT IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO PROVIDE THE INFORMATION AND THE CONTENT IN A DIGESTIBLE MANNER SO THAT WE EDUCATE OUR COMMUNITY.
IT'S HOW DO WE COMMUNICATE IT OUT TO THE PUBLIC.
LIKE WE'RE TUNNEL VISION, WE KNOW WHAT WE DO, BUT THEN NOW IT'S KIND OF BROADENING OUR PERSPECTIVE.
AND SO, UM, I'M REALLY ENCOURAGED BY THE WAY STAFF HAS TAKEN HOLD AND I KNOW THERE'S SOME GREAT IDEAS AND YOU AND YOU'LL SEE SOME THINGS COMING FORWARD. BUT JUST IN TERMS OF PREPARING AN ACTUAL RESPONSE SO THAT WE COULD BETTER INFORM YOU GUYS OF WHERE WE ARE AND WHAT WE CAN DO THAT'S ON THE HORIZON.
SO I LOOK FORWARD TO HAVING THAT PREPARED SOON.
WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THOSE REPORTS AND UPDATES.
I'D LIKE TO NOW TURN THE CONVERSATION TO OUR JOINT WORK WITH BFAC.
[6. Old Business: Joint Memo with BFAAC – Kathy Stenzel, BFAAC]
AND LET ME JUST SAY A COUPLE OF THINGS, BUT THEN I WOULD LOVE FOR KATHY JUST TO SHARE SORT OF HER PERSPECTIVE ON WHAT WE'VE DONE THUS FAR.AND I SUSPECT WE'LL HAVE SOME INDIVIDUAL ITEMS WE WOULD LOVE YOUR FEEDBACK ON.
BUT AGAIN, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE DO ANNUALLY WITH WITH BFAC AND THIS YEAR WE'VE TAKEN A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT APPROACH IN IN THAT WE HAVE HAD SEPARATE MEETINGS TO BE ABLE TO GATHER A VARIETY OF PERSPECTIVES ON HOW THE SCHOOL BOARD AND THE CITY COUNCIL AND THEN THE RESPECTIVE STAFFS ARE WORKING TOGETHER WITH RESPECT TO JOINT PLANNING, PARTICULARLY ON THE CAPITAL SIDE. AND ALSO I THINK WE'VE MADE SOME OBSERVATIONS AS WE HAVE VIEWED JOINT WORK SESSIONS AND EVEN INDIVIDUAL SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS OR CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS JUST TO GET A BETTER SENSE OF THE DYNAMICS BETWEEN THE TWO ELECTED BODIES AND THEN IN TURN HOW THEY'RE RESPONDING TO THE STAFF WORK THAT'S HAPPENED ON ON BOTH SIDES AND.
YOU KNOW, FROM MY PERSPECTIVE AND I KNOW THAT CATHY SHARES THIS VIEW, WE REALLY WANT THIS MEMO THAT WE PRODUCED TO BE SPECIFIC AND ACTIONABLE AND PRACTICAL. SO THIS ISN'T A MEMO TO SAY YOU SHOULD COLLABORATE MORE.
YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT.
[00:15:02]
AND AND I BELIEVE THAT WE HAVE A REALLY HAVE A SHARED COMMITMENT TO THAT.SO WE KNOW YOU MEET ALL THE TIME.
HERE'S HOW YOU CAN USE THOSE MEETINGS MORE PRODUCTIVELY, UM, AND, AND THE LIKE.
SO THESE INDIVIDUAL CONVERSATIONS THAT WE'VE HAD, I THINK HAVE BEEN REALLY HELPFUL TO TRY TO PULL OUT SOME OF THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS AND SOME OF THOSE THOUGHTS. AND SO THE WORK WILL BE TO SORT OF PUT THEM TOGETHER IN A WAY THAT WILL BE COMPELLING TO TO THE ELECTED BODIES.
BUT WE CERTAINLY HAVE SOME THEMES THAT HAVE EMERGED IN THE CONVERSATIONS THAT WE'VE HAD.
NO, THE ONLY THING I'D ADD IS I ABSOLUTELY AGREE WITH EVERYTHING NANCY SAID.
SO WE'VE DONE, WHAT, 4 OR 5 JOINT MEMOS.
AND IN THE TIME I'VE BEEN ON BEFORE WE STARTED MEETING TOGETHER.
AND I THINK THAT I THINK THE COUNCIL AND SCHOOL BOARD PAY ATTENTION TO OUR JOINT WORK.
AND I JUST LOVE THE WAY WE ARE REALLY KIND OF ON THE SAME PAGE AS LIKE COMMUNITY ADVISORS.
I THINK OUR FIRST MEETING THERE WAS A LOT OF, OH, THAT'S THE, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE THEY? AND THAT'S FACT. DON'T LIKE US OR WE DON'T LIKE THEM.
I FOUND I FELT A LOT OF QUESTIONING, BUT WE ABSOLUTELY DON'T HAVE THAT ANYMORE.
AND I THINK THAT, UM, I REALLY LOVE WORKING WITH YOU ALL, AND I'M MOSTLY HERE TO LISTEN TO YOU.
UM, WE STARTED THIS OUT REALLY AS A FOLLOW ON TO THE LAST MEMO.
ONE IS THAT WE REALLY FELT THAT WE WANTED COUNCIL AND SCHOOL BOARD TO HAVE A JOINT VISION.
UM, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY FOR THE BUDGET BECAUSE THAT'S OUR PURVIEW.
BUT, YOU KNOW, THE BUDGET HAS TO FEED FROM A VISION.
SO AND I THINK WE'RE REALLY WANTING TO ASK FOR THAT PRETTY DIRECTLY RIGHT NOW TO ASK BOTH ELECTED BODIES TOGETHER TO TAKE A STEP BACK FROM PROCESS AND FROM NUMBERS AND REALLY TALK ABOUT A COLLECTIVE VISION.
UM, SECOND BIG ITEM THAT CAME OUT OF THE LAST MEETING WAS CONCERN FOR STAFF AND STAFF BEING EMPOWERED TO CONTINUE TO MOVE FORWARD ON THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE JOINT TASK FORCE.
YOU KNOW, AND WORKING ACROSS DEPARTMENTS AND WORKING WITH, YOU KNOW, SCHOOLS AND CITY STAFF AND NOT FEELING THAT THEY CAN'T SPEAK UP, UM, YOU KNOW, VOICE THEIR EXPERTISE AND VOICE THEIR OPINIONS.
AND THE ITEM, I GUESS I WOULD CALL A HALF BECAUSE IT WAS ONLY JUST EMERGING WAS COLLECTIVE BARGAINING, THAT WE AGREED THAT THAT WAS GOING TO HAVE A SIGNIFICANT BUDGET IMPACT. AND WE REALLY THOUGHT THAT THERE NEEDED TO BE TRANSPARENCY AND REALLY KIND OF CONSISTENCY IN WORKING TOGETHER ON THIS, RECOGNIZING WHAT A HUGE PORTION STAFF COSTS ARE REALLY TO BOTH THE FULL CITY BUDGET, BUT CERTAINLY TO THE SCHOOL BUDGET.
WE'VE TALKED TO STAFF, WE'VE TALKED TO CITY STAFF.
NANCY CAME TO A MEETING AND NOW I'M AT YOUR MEETING.
UM, MOSTLY BECAUSE IT JUST WAS PROBLEMATIC TO TRY TO SCHEDULE A BIG MEETING ALTOGETHER.
SO NANCY AND I AND RYAN, WHEN YOU CAN, HAD LITERALLY JUST BEEN BOUNCING AROUND, GETTING FEEDBACK.
OK IT'S BEEN AN INTERESTING SEASON.
I DO THINK THAT WE'VE HAD SOME, YOU KNOW, KIND OF EMOTIONAL EXCHANGES AND THAT'S TOO BAD.
SO WE WANT TO TRY TO GET AHEAD OF SOME OF THOSE THINGS FOR THE FUTURE.
UM, AND THEN I'M GOING TO DO TWO THINGS.
GREAT. AND JUST BEFORE KELLY, TURNING TO YOU AND THEN MAYBE BILL HAD A COMMENT, TOO.
AND I DON'T THINK I HAVE THE ABILITY TO MOVE HER OVER.
THANKS, BILL, FOR ALERTING ME THAT SHE WAS THERE.
UM, KELLY, DID YOU WANT TO SAY SOMETHING? NO, NO, NO. JUST ADD ME TO THE QUEUE.
[00:20:02]
WELL, REALLY, I WAS JUST RAISING MY HAND SO THAT WE COULD BRING LILLIAN OVER SO THAT SHE COULD BE PART OF THE FUN.ONE, THAT I WAS GOING TO ASK EARLIER, KELLY, ABOUT PRIORITIES.
BUT YOU MENTIONED THAT OPERATING FULLY FUNDED, BUT CAPITAL MAY NOT BE FULLY ACCOUNTED FOR JUST YET.
SO I WAS CURIOUS IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT WE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT FROM A BROADER PERSPECTIVE.
I THINK THAT THINGS ARE WORKING A LOT BETTER THAN THEY USED TO BE.
THAT WAS JUST KIND OF A STUMBLE THAT WE HAD RECENTLY.
I THINK WE'RE HEADING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
WE CAN OBVIOUSLY BE BETTER, BUT BUT APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK.
AND YOU I MEAN, YOU CAN EVEN TELL FROM SOME OF THE FALL MEETINGS WHERE WE WERE TALKING ABOUT THE LONG TERM PLANNING ON THE CIP AND THE WORK THAT HAS BEEN JOINTLY DONE BETWEEN THE CITY AND THE SCHOOLS, ON LOOKING AT THE BUILDINGS AND REALLY BEING ABLE TO TO LOOK WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE NEXT AND THEN ALSO ADJUST.
WHERE WE NEED TO ADJUST I THINK IS JUST REALLY TREMENDOUS, TREMENDOUS WORK IN COLLABORATION.
YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF LIKE WHERE I ACTUALLY DON'T KNOW WHERE WE ARE ON THE ROBERT YOU MAY KNOW ON SOME OF THE CIP GAP PIECES, I THINK I THINK THAT WAS A LITTLE BIT OF A COMMUNICATION, YOU KNOW AREA MISHAP OF NOT.
LIKE, HERE ARE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE REALLY NEEDED TO KIND OF CHANGE.
AND LIKE THAT WAS KIND OF A MOMENT WHERE WE WE KNOW WE NEEDED TO DO THIS.
THEY WEREN'T PART OF YOU, RIGHT? THEY WEREN'T PART OF THE TEN YEAR PLAN.
SO I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT'S ALL STUFF THAT WE CAN WORK THROUGH.
SO I WILL I WILL POINT TO ROBERT ON THAT ONE IN A SECOND.
UM, MY QUESTION ACTUALLY, LET ME PUT ROBERT ON THAT ONE.
SO WE FINISH THAT AND THEN I WILL ASK MY ORIGINAL QUESTION.
YEAH, I DO THINK THE, THE CALENDAR PLAYED A BIG PART IN WHEN THINGS WERE PRESENTED IN TERMS OF THE CIP AND JUST THE DATES OF WHEN WE PRESENTED A PRELIMINARY CIP VERSUS ONE THAT WAS PRESENTED LATER IN THE CYCLE, CREATED THE SENSE OF, HEY, WE DIDN'T SEE THIS IN YOUR EARLIER PRESENTATION.
SO JUST THE TIMING OF THE BUDGET CALENDAR FOR CIP PLAYED A PART.
AND THEN MORE IMPORTANTLY FOR THOSE PARTICULAR PROJECTS OR THINGS THAT QUOTE UNQUOTE WEREN'T FUNDED.
I THINK THERE ARE EFFORTS TO SEE AND FIND WAYS WITHIN THE CURRENT ALLOCATION TO POTENTIALLY REPRIORITIZE FUNDING OR DO OTHER THINGS TO ACTUALLY FIT AND PRIORITIZE THOSE THINGS THAT MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE BEEN FUNDED IN THE IN THE CIP.
SO IT'S NOT A OH, WELL, WE DIDN'T GET THE 2 MILLION FOR A CHANCE FOR CHANGE SORT OF THINGS LIKE MAYBE IF THERE'S WAYS IN WHICH WE COULD SAVE OR IN SOME OTHER WAYS REPRIORITIZE FUNDING, WE STILL MAY BE ABLE TO DO THE THINGS THAT THAT BECOME THE HIGHER PRIORITY WITHIN THE CURRENT ALLOCATION OF FUNDING.
THAT'S A GREAT THAT'S A GREAT UPDATE AS GOOD GOOD NEWS FROM FROM MY PERSPECTIVE.
I MEAN, I KNOW IT'S NOT A DONE DEAL BY ANY MEANS, BUT, YOU KNOW, LIKE CHANCE FOR CHANGE IS A REALLY GOOD EXAMPLE OF SOMETHING THAT REALLY JUST CAME ON OUR RADAR IN THIS PAST FALL AND JUST REALLY A NEED FOR AN FOR A GOOD SPACE FOR ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION IS, YOU KNOW, WE'RE SEEING, YOU KNOW, STUDENTS WHO ARE NEEDING BETTER LOCATION, BETTER SPACE, LOCATION, ACCESSIBILITY AND ALSO RETHINKING WHAT WE DO WITH AN ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION.
AND THAT JUST, YOU KNOW, FRANKLY, WE DIDN'T NEED IT TWO YEARS AGO.
AND THEN, YOU KNOW, IT'S COME UP.
AND, YOU KNOW, COULD WE HAVE DONE A BETTER JOB COMMUNICATING THAT UP FRONT TO COUNCIL? ABSOLUTELY. UM, YOU KNOW, BUT THAT THAT'S WHERE WE ARE AND, YOU KNOW, AT LEAST APPRECIATE THE FACT THAT WE'RE, WE'RE WILLING TO SAY LIKE WE NEED TO PIVOT ON, ON A COUPLE OF THINGS.
YEAH. AND I THINK AND I'M SORRY FOR JUST INTERJECTING REAL QUICK.
[00:25:04]
AND SO EVEN THE WHEN THEY DO A TEN YEAR PLAN AND YOU PRESENT IT EVERY YEAR, THERE IS SOMETHING THAT COMES OFF AND SOMETHING ELSE THAT COMES ON OR SOMETHING GETS SHIFTED EVERY SINGLE YEAR. SO IT'S NOT NECESSARILY A BIG SURPRISE WHEN THINGS COME TO THE NEXT YEAR THAT THAT MAY NOT HAVE BEEN ON THE LAST TEN YEAR. SO THOSE THINGS HAPPEN ON A CONSISTENT BASIS.SO IT'S NOT A YOU PRESENT THE TEN YEAR AND THINGS STAY THAT WAY.
THAT'S WHY WE PRESENTED EVERY YEAR BECAUSE SOMETHING CHANGES EVERY YEAR.
RIGHT. IF I COULD JUST QUICKLY SAY THE TWO OBSERVATIONS I HAVE ABOUT THIS CHANCE FOR CHANGE, BECAUSE I ACTUALLY THINK IT'S A VERY GOOD DEMONSTRATION OF SOME OF THE THEMES THAT WE'VE BEEN HEARING JUST GENERALLY ABOUT COMMUNICATIONS.
I THINK, ONE, IT'S ABOUT SETTING EXPECTATIONS.
SO THAT MAY BE A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT SET OF EXPECTATIONS THAN STAFF HAVE OR THE SCHOOL BOARD HAS.
SO I THINK BEING CLEAR ABOUT EXPECTATIONS AND SHARING VIEWS ABOUT EXPECTATIONS IS SOMETHING THAT'S IMPORTANT THAT I ASSUME, YOU KNOW, WE'LL TALK ABOUT IN THE MEMO. I THINK THE SECOND THING.
YOU WANT TO. THIS IS A LITTLE BIT HARD TO PUT OUR FINGER ON, BUT I THINK SOMETHING THAT WE'VE OBSERVED IS A NEED FOR MORE TRANSPARENT, OPEN COMMUNICATION IN REAL TIME.
SO IF THE SCHOOL SCHOOLS ARE THINKING ABOUT SOMETHING THEY MIGHT NEED, DOES IT NEED TO GO THROUGH A FULL VETTING PROCESS, INCLUDING THE BOARD, BEFORE THAT IDEA IS INTRODUCED TO THE CITY STAFF? UM, AND I THINK THAT THERE, YOU KNOW, THERE HAS BEEN SOME PUSH PULL WITH THAT NEED FOR SORT OF VETTING AND APPROVAL BEFORE SHARING WITH THE COUNTERPART AND THAT CAN STIFLE JUST REAL TIME COMMUNICATION LIKE, HEY, THIS ISSUE HAS COME UP.
WE'RE TRYING TO THINK ABOUT HOW WE DEAL WITH IT.
WE MIGHT INCLUDE IT IN THE CIP, BUT WE HAVE TO THINK ABOUT HOW IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S SOME RELUCTANCE TO ENGAGE IN SOME OF THAT OPEN, TRANSPARENT COMMUNICATION AT THE STAFF LEVEL AND THAT AGAIN, I'M NOT PROBABLY NOT DOING THE BEST JOB OF ARTICULATING IT, BUT I THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'VE HEARD A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT TIMES AND IS WORTHY OF SOME EXPLORATION IN THE MEMO, BECAUSE WITHOUT THAT, IT CREATES THESE SITUATIONS WHERE THINGS ARE SURPRISES WHEN THEY SHOULDN'T BE. YEAH, I THINK THE OTHER THING I'LL ADD AND YOU KNOW, PART OF WHAT BROUGHT THIS IN THE FIRST PLACE IS, YOU KNOW, WE'RE IN A TIGHT SPOT AS FAR AS OUR CAPITAL SPENDING GOES.
YOU KNOW, I THINK EVERYBODY RECOGNIZES AND IT'S NOT JUST SCHOOLS.
I MEAN, IT'S THE WHOLE YOU KNOW, IT'S THE WHOLE CITY.
AND THIS IS WHY WE NEED TO PAY FOR THIS AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO PAY FOR THIS.
SO, YOU KNOW, THE IDEA THAT ONE ITEM THAT CAME IN AS A SURPRISE CAN CREATE THIS MUCH ANGST, I THINK IS IS REALLY BECAUSE THERE'S JUST A LOT OF ANGST RIGHT NOW.
AND IT'S A LOT THERE'S JUST A WHOLE LOT.
AND WHAT IS IT GOING TO MEAN TO PAY FOR THIS? AND AND YEAH, SO I THINK YOU'RE KIND OF CAUGHT UP IN THAT TOO.
HELL YOU THINK? ANOTHER QUESTION OR COMMENT YOU WANT TO SHARE? LOOKS LIKE KELLY MAY BE FROZEN.
SHE IS FROZEN. SHE LOOKS REALLY NICE, THOUGH.
UM. YEAH. THERE'S SO MUCH I'M GOING TO GO OFF CAMERA IN CASE I LOSE THE THING CONNECTION.
BUT YEAH, THERE'S JUST SO MUCH THING.
UM, AND JUST DEALING WITH SOME OF THE SAFETY AND SECURITY ISSUES THAT WE'VE HAD CONVERSATIONS ABOUT IN EXECUTIVE SESSION WITHOUT GOING IN ANY MORE DETAIL OF LIKE, SO THERE'S SOME THINGS THAT WE KNEW ABOUT THAT.
IT'S ALMOST LIKE THERE'S SOME THINGS THAT YOU CAN'T NECESSARILY TALK ABOUT IN PUBLIC.
AND IT DIDN'T REALLY HELP THE COMMUNICATION PIECE EITHER.
I WILL SWITCH TO MY TOPIC WHEN I'M READY, BUT I SEE BRIDGET'S HAND UP, NANCY, IF THAT'S OKAY.
I'M GUESSING IT'S ON THIS TOPIC.
[00:30:05]
MAYOR AND THE INTERIM SUPERINTENDENT AND CHAIR, FOR ME, IT JUST BOILED DOWN TO AN ISSUE OF COMMUNICATION BECAUSE MAYOR WILSON WAS SAYING THAT THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME HE HAD HEARD ABOUT THAT BUDGETARY NEED FOR THE CHANCE FOR CHANGE.AND, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY, LIKE WITH THE PANDEMIC AND LIKE THE GROWING ENROLLMENT THAT WE HAVE IN OUR SCHOOLS AND JUST SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT COME WITH HAVING JUST SO MANY CHILDREN IN A SCHOOL WHERE THERE ISN'T THE ABILITY TO LIKE REMOVE KIDS TO A DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENT OR MAYBE KIDS THAT NEED TO BE IN A MORE THERAPEUTIC SETTING OR HAVE OTHER INTERVENTIONS THAT ARE NOT IN A TRADITIONAL HIGH SCHOOL OR MIDDLE SCHOOL.
BUT TO ME, LIKE IT SHOULDN'T THERE SHOULDN'T BE LIKE ANY SURPRISES AND THEN LIKE, TO BE HONEST, THE WAY THAT CHAIR ALDERTON RESPONDED TO MAYOR WILSON, I WAS REALLY LIKE, TAKEN BACK BY LIKE, HOW SHE RESPONDED.
I, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY I WOULD SUPPORT ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION AS A TAX PAYER.
BUT THEN CHAIR ALDERTON THEN MADE A COMMENT ABOUT HOW, YOU KNOW, PREVENTING THESE WERE PREVENTING STUDENTS FROM HAVING AN EDUCATION AND MAKING A COMMENT ABOUT LIKE ALLUDING TO SLAVERY.
AND I JUST FELT LIKE, YOU KNOW, LIKE WE SHOULDN'T BE COMMUNICATING IN THAT TYPE OF MANNER, LIKE AS A SCHOOL DIVISION AND A, YOU KNOW, A COMMUNITY.
LIKE OBVIOUSLY PEOPLE FEEL VERY STRONGLY, BUT THAT THOSE TYPES OF THOSE TYPES OF PHRASES AND VERBIAGE HAS A LOT OF WEIGHT THAT IT CARRIES WITH IT. SO, YOU KNOW, FOR ME, LIKE I DO THINK THAT THE TRANSPARENCY AND COMMUNICATION JUST SEEMED TO BE TWO MAJOR AREAS.
AND THEN I THINK, YOU KNOW, WE ALSO INCLUDED THIS IN THE BUDGET IS JUST THERE HASN'T REALLY BEEN, YOU KNOW, THE THE WAY THAT OUR SCHOOL IS FUNDED AND STRUCTURED IS JUST SO DIFFERENT FROM OTHER JURISDICTIONS.
AND WE'RE NOT REALLY LOOKING AT A LOT OF ALTERNATIVE FUNDING SOURCES SUCH AS FEDERAL GRANT FUNDS OR PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS THAT COULD PROVIDE ADDITIONAL SOURCES OF REVENUE OR, YOU KNOW, FOUNDATIONS THAT PROVIDE FUNDING FOR ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION.
YOU KNOW, THERE'S LOTS OF FEDERAL GRANTS THAT ARE AVAILABLE FOR THAT.
AND SO I THINK THAT THOSE WOULD BE WORTH FOR THE SCHOOL DIVISION TO BE EXPLORING, BUT ALSO FOR THE CITY TO LOOK AT IF WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO BUILD MORE INFRASTRUCTURE AND HAVE MORE, YOU KNOW, HOUSING THAT WE'RE BUILDING, THAT WE ALSO NEED TO, YOU KNOW, JUST ANTICIPATE THAT THERE WILL BE MORE STUDENTS ENROLLING IN OUR SCHOOLS.
YEAH. YOU KNOW, AND THE IDEA OF THE FEDERAL GRANTS IS INTERESTING BECAUSE WE'VE ACTUALLY WE'RE GOING TO USE THAT AS AN EXAMPLE OF HOW CITY AND SCHOOL CAN SHARE SERVICES. THE CITY JUST HIRED A LOBBYING FIRM, YOU KNOW, THAT WORKS WITH THEIR IN-HOUSE STAFF.
BUT THEIR WHOLE FOCUS IS, YOU KNOW, WORKING WITH THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
AND A BIG PART OF THAT IS GRANT MONEY.
THERE'S NO REASON THAT WE HAVE TO SEPARATE SCHOOLS OUT FROM THAT.
KELLY, WAS THERE A SECOND THING THAT YOU WERE GOING TO ADD? YES. AND I JUST SWITCHED TO MY PHONE.
TOTALLY DIFFERENT TOPIC, CATHY.
UH, THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING PIECE THAT YOU OPEN UP AND I DON'T KNOW IF THESE WERE TO RELATED TO POINTS OR RELATED, BUT AS YOU WERE SAYING, UM, AS YOU WERE SAYING, TALKING ABOUT THERE'S BEEN SOME EMOTIONAL CONVERSATIONS OR I DON'T KNOW IF THERE ARE HEATED CONVERSATIONS OR SOMETHING, WAS IT RELATED TO THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING PIECE? NO, BECAUSE THE OTHER THING THAT THE OTHER THING THAT I'VE HEARD WAS THAT THERE'S KIND OF A REQUEST, AT LEAST TO THE SIDE, THAT WE SHOULD SLOW DOWN MOVING FORWARD ON COLLECTIVE BARGAINING.
SO THAT'S ONE THING THAT I PERSONALLY WOULD NOT DON'T WANT TO SEE.
I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THAT MOVING FORWARD A LITTLE BIT MORE FAST.
THAT IS THAT THE CITY PROBABLY WOULD APPRECIATE TRANSPARENCY ON THAT BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WHEN SOMETHING COMES FORWARD, UM, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE GOING TO WE'RE GOING TO FIND A WAY TO PAY AND THAT BUT THAT'S NOT JUST ON SCHOOLS THAT BUDDY SO AGAIN YOU KNOW LOOKING FOR SOME BROADER PARAMETERS ON YOU KNOW ON A COLLECTIVE BARGAINING PROCESS WOULD BE REALLY IMPORTANT BUT I HAVEN'T HEARD ANYTHING
[00:35:10]
ABOUT WANTING SCHOOLS TO SLOW DOWN, BUT I WOULD BE HAPPY TO EXPLORE THAT BECAUSE WHERE ARE YOU ON THAT? BECAUSE LAST I HEARD THAT YOU HADN'T THAT THE SCHOOL BOARD HAD NOT SET THOSE PARAMETERS TO AUTHORIZE THE UNITS TO FORM THROUGHOUT THE SYSTEM OR OR OR AM I BEHIND THE POWER CURVE? NO, YOU'RE YOU'RE CORRECT.AND THERE REALLY HASN'T BEEN A LOT OF MOVEMENT SINCE THEN.
AND I THINK SOME OF IT IS, YOU KNOW, KIND OF IN LIKE A PERFECT STORM OF, YOU KNOW, SUPERINTENDENT WHO LEFT AND INTERIM SUPERINTENDENT AND THEN, YOU KNOW, MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE THE RIGHT CAPACITY AND REPRESENTATION ON THE SCHOOL BOARD TO SUPPORT SOMETHING THAT A LOT OF US HAVE NEVER GONE THROUGH.
RIGHT. YOU KNOW, SO I THINK THAT THAT'S THAT'S A BIT OF IT.
SO AT LEAST, YOU KNOW, IN OUR NEW OUR NEW OPERATING BUDGET, WE'RE GOING TO BE ADDING STAFF, AN IN-HOUSE, UM, ATTORNEY TO HELP GUIDE THIS PROCESS.
I SAW THAT. AND WOULD THERE BE ANY CONCERN WITH THAT, THAT YOUR STAFF WORKING WITH CITY STAFF AND, YOU KNOW, SHARING BEST PRACTICES AND TALKING? NO, NOT NOT AT ALL.
AND ROBERT, YOU PROBABLY REMEMBER THOSE CONVERSATIONS THAT OF, YOU KNOW, THAT CITY HAD ALREADY BEEN WORKING ON, ESPECIALLY IN LIKE CONTRACTS AND STUFF AND LIKE WHO WE, YOU KNOW, WHO WE WORK WITH AND MAKING SURE THAT THEY HAVE GOOD LABOR PRACTICES AND THAT THERE'S SOME, YOU KNOW, PIECES IN PLACE.
AND THE CITY HAD ALREADY BEEN TAKING A LEAD ON THAT.
SO BECAUSE THAT'S SOMETHING THAT BACK AND BACK FELT REALLY STRONGLY ABOUT, YOU KNOW, IN OUR LAST CONVERSATION, IT WAS TOO BIG NOT TO DO, YOU KNOW, TOGETHER AND FASHION. YEAH, NANCY, YOU'RE UP WITH THAT.
I'VE I HAVE HEARD IS SORT OF RELATES TO WHAT CATHY SAID ABOUT WHAT THE ROLE THE CITY WILL PLAY IN THE SCHOOLS, COLLECTIVE BARGAINING EFFORTS, YOU KNOW, KNOWING YOU KNOW, SO, FOR EXAMPLE, LIKE DOES DOES THE CITY HAVE TO SORT OF SIGN OFF ON WHATEVER YOU EVENTUALLY, UM, THE TERMS THAT YOU COME TO AND EVEN IF THERE ISN'T AN OFFICIAL ROLE FOR THE CITY, YOU KNOW, THAT WILL OBVIOUSLY IMPACT THE OPERATING BUDGET THAT WILL ULTIMATELY GO TO THE CITY.
SO THAT'S THE PIECE THAT I'VE HEARD.
SO NOTHING ABOUT TIMING, BUT MORE JUST ABOUT THE DESIRE, I THINK, FOR THE CITY TO BE IN THE LOOP AND INVOLVED AS MUCH AS IS APPROPRIATE, EVEN IF IT'S JUST AN OBSERVATION ROLE, JUST TO KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING SO THAT THE CITY CAN FLAG ANY ISSUES THAT MIGHT NEED TO BE ADDRESSED, IF THAT MAKES SENSE.
I DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER TO THAT.
BUT OBVIOUSLY THERE'S BUDGET IMPLICATIONS FOR THE LONG TERM.
SO LIKE THAT, YOU KNOW? YEAH. BUT THAT'S A THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION TO TABLE AND BRING BACK.
AND I WILL. WE'LL TALK ABOUT THIS NEXT WEEK TOO.
I'LL BRING THAT BACK. OTHER ARE OTHER OBSERVATIONS THAT FOLKS HAVE HAD.
THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS SHARED SERVICES PIECE? YOU KNOW, BILL, YOU TALKED ABOUT THE CO-LOCATION, WHICH I THINK SORT OF POISONS THE WELL, I THINK A LITTLE BIT ON THIS IDEA OF SHARED SERVICES AND SOME OF THE FEEDBACK THAT WE GOT FROM THE SCHOOLS TEAM THAT WE MET WITH EARLIER THIS WEEK WAS TO ONE, TO NOT FORGET THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF SHARED SERVICES THAT EXIST NOW AND TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT.
SO THE MAYOR MENTIONED TRANSPORTATION OFFICE SPACE AS TWO EXAMPLES OF WHERE THE CITY AND SCHOOLS COULD COLLABORATE MORE WITH RESPECT TO SHARED SERVICES.
[00:40:04]
BUT JUST WONDERING IF ANYBODY HAS THOUGHTS ABOUT ANYTHING REALLY.BUT BUT THAT ONE IN PARTICULAR IS SOMETHING THAT I KNOW WE WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS.
AND I CAN GIVE YOU THE PERFECT EXAMPLE.
I'M SURPRISED THAT ABOUT HOW MANY PEOPLE I'VE TALKED WITH.
THAT DIDN'T KNOW THERE'S A POOL GOING INTO THE MINNIE HOWARD CAMPUS, WHICH.
BUT THEN I ALSO TALKED WITH SOMEONE THIS PAST WEEKEND, SOMEONE WHO ACTUALLY LIVES RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER ON MARLBORO WHO SAID, YEAH, WONDER, YOU KNOW, DO YOU THINK THAT THEY'RE GOING TO ALLOW PUBLIC ACCESS INTO THIS, YOU KNOW, OUTSIDE OF SCHOOL HOURS SAID ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, THE CITY IS MANAGING AND OPERATING THE POOL.
SO THEREFORE, YES, THEY DEFINITELY WILL.
BUT THE FACT THAT AN IMMEDIATE NEIGHBOR HAD NO AWARENESS INTO THAT IS AN EXAMPLE WHERE WE COULD DO A BETTER JOB OF COMMUNICATING TO THE ENTIRE CITY AND EVERYONE WHO WHO CARES THAT, HEY, THESE THINGS, THERE ARE LOTS OF SHARED SERVICES AND HERE ARE EXAMPLES OF AND PRACTICAL USES OF.
THAT DISCUSSION WENT ON AND ON.
YEAH, I THINK, UM, BUILD THAT.
THAT'S A REALLY GOOD EXAMPLE TOO, OF, OF EXPLAINING SOMETHING THAT IS CO-LOCATION THAT ISN'T SO CONTROVERSIAL BECAUSE PEOPLE STILL THINK THAT MAYBE I'M JUST IN THE DARK, BUT PEOPLE STILL THINK THAT AT GEORGE MASON THEY'RE GOING TO BUILD A MIDDLE SCHOOL AND COLLATE CO-LOCATE LIKE, YOU KNOW, APARTMENTS FOR TEACHERS AND SCHOOL SOCIAL WORKERS.
SO I DO THINK IT'S A GOOD EXAMPLE OF USING EXAMPLES LIKE, OH, YOU KNOW, REC CENTERS THAT ARE ALREADY HOUSED AT SCHOOLS OR LIBRARIES OR UM, HEALTH CLINICS, THINGS THAT LIKE THAT.
THAT'S THE BIGGEST ONE THAT I SEE, THAT IS THE MOST CHALLENGING IS JUST, YOU KNOW, IN MOST JURISDICTIONS THE THE CITY LIKE REVENUE OR TAX BASE IS IS SOME OF THE FUNDING STREAM.
BUT THE THE THE COLLABORATIVE NATURE OF THE CITY AND THE SCHOOL DIVISION IS A LITTLE BIT CONFUSING, I THINK, TO MOST TO MOST COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
SOMETIMES, YOU KNOW HOW TO WHAT EXTENT DOES THE CITY COUNCIL INQUIRE AS TO BUDGETARY DECISIONS THE SCHOOL BOARD IS MAKING? IS THAT THEIR ROLE? ARE THEY JUST ASKING BECAUSE THEY'RE INTERESTED? DO THEY HAVE AUTHORITY OVER THOSE DECISIONS? AND I DO THINK THAT A LACK OF CLARITY CERTAINLY EXISTS IN THE COMMUNITY AND MAY EVEN IMPACT SOME OF THE CONVERSATIONS THAT HAPPEN BETWEEN ELECTEDS.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S SOMETHING WE'LL PROBABLY ADDRESS IN SOME WAY.
BUT BUT I DO THINK THAT IT'S AN ISSUE THAT HAS LED TO SOME TENSE CONVERSATIONS WHERE PEOPLE FEEL LIKE THEY'RE NOT SORT OF STAYING IN THEIR LANE, SO TO SPEAK, THEIR WORDS, NOT MINE.
YEAH. AND THINK THE THE VERY GLARING EXAMPLE OF THAT IS STUDENT RESOURCE OFFICERS OR SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS, WHEREIN EVEN THOUGH IT FELT LIKE IT WAS FULLY WITHIN THE DOMAIN OF THE SCHOOL TO DETERMINE WHAT THEY FELT WAS YOU SAW WHAT WAS VIEWED AS AND I'M NOT SAYING WHETHER IT WAS OR WASN'T, WHAT WAS VIEWED AS CITY COUNCIL COMING IN AND SAYING, NO, WE'RE GOING TO ADJUST THAT.
NOW, THAT WAS A VERY UNIQUE SITUATION, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, I THINK IT INTRODUCED THE THOUGHT IN SOME PEOPLE'S MINDS THAT, WAIT A MINUTE, YOU KNOW, THE COUNCIL CAN DO WHAT COUNCIL WANTS REGARDLESS OF WHAT SCHOOL FEELS THEY NEED TO DO.
AND THAT WAS NOT THAT LONG AGO.
SO. KATHY, ANOTHER THING THAT CAME UP IN OUR MEETING THIS WEEK WITH THE SCHOOLS THAT I THINK HAS BOTH A ELECTED AND COMMUNITY COMPONENT WAS THE DISCUSSION ABOUT PRIORITIES AND KNOWING THAT WE HAVE LIMITED RESOURCES. AVAILABLE TO US.
IS SMALLER CLASS SIZES A PRIORITY?
[00:45:02]
IS PAYING OUR TEACHERS MORE A PRIORITY? CAN WE DO BOTH? PROBABLY NOT.HOW DOES THE SCHOOL SYSTEM MAKE THOSE DECISIONS? HOW DO THEY WEIGH THOSE PRIORITIES VERSUS OTHERS? AND. I THINK THAT THAT'S SOMETHING IT GOES BACK TO ONE OF THE ORIGINAL POINTS YOU MADE, CATHY, ABOUT SHARED PRIORITIES.
BUT MY RECOMMENDATION AT LEAST IS THAT I THINK WE SHOULD BE REALLY POINTED ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR ISSUE AND URGE THERE TO BE A SHARED WORK SESSION THAT REALLY AND MAYBE IT'S JUST A SCHOOL BOARD WORK SESSION, BUT BUT DEDICATED TIME TO TALK ABOUT TALK THROUGH THESE ISSUES, NOT JUST WHAT ARE OUR PRIORITIES, BUT HOW DO WE GO ABOUT MAKING THESE DECISIONS TO BOTH FRAME THINGS AND HAVE EVERYONE ON THE SAME PAGE ON THE ELECTEDS AND THE STAFF, BUT ALSO TO INFORM THE COMMUNITY? BECAUSE I THINK THIS WAS A REAL TENSION POINT IN THE BUDGET PROCESS THIS YEAR AND AND THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME TRANSPARENCY AND SOME REAL TIME DEVOTED TO THESE REAL TENSIONS AND AND PRESSURES THAT THAT EVERYBODY IS FEELING.
AND I JUST AND THEY'RE KIND OF FOUNDATIONAL.
RIGHT. SO WHAT WHAT KIND OF COMMUNITY DO WE WANT TO HAVE? THAT'S THAT'S WHAT WE'VE SORT OF STARTED OUT WITH.
AND I THINK THAT THOSE DECISIONS REALLY RELATE TO THAT.
SO IF THEY'RE SETTING THEIR VISION FOR THE COMMUNITY, FOR OUR CITY, UM, I THINK THEY BOTH NEED TO TALK ABOUT THAT BECAUSE IT AFFECTS WHO WAS IT THE OTHER DAY? DOMINIC SAID IT.
HE SAID, STUDENTS ARE PART OF OUR COMMUNITY.
THEY'RE CITIZENS. THAT WAS ROBERT.
OKAY. AND YOU KNOW, THAT'S A BRILLIANT POINT.
UM, SO WHAT ARE WE TRYING TO CREATE TO THEM? SO I THINK ABSOLUTELY, YOU KNOW, COUNCIL MEMBERS SHOULD HEAR WHAT SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS ARE SAYING ON THAT.
AND, YOU KNOW, COUNCIL MEMBERS ARE SOME OF THEM HAVE KIDS IN THE SCHOOLS, TOO, YOU KNOW, SO THERE'S ONE THING, NANCY, AND I KEEP SAYING IS WE GOT TO GET RID OF THE WORD SIDES. YOU KNOW, IF WE COULD ELIMINATE THE WORD SIDE IN OUR LEXICON, YOU KNOW, THAT'S A WHOLE GO A LOT BETTER.
SO IT'S NOT CITY SIDE, SCHOOL SIDE.
KELLY. SEE YOUR HANDS, PLEASE.
YEAH, NO, THANK YOU. AND THANK YOU FOR THAT.
YEAH, ESPECIALLY THE SIDE THING.
MY GOSH, I REMEMBER THAT COMING UP A LOT IN 2013 AND 2015.
AND I'M LIKE, THIS SHOULDN'T BE IN LIKE AN EITHER OR.
LIKE WE'RE YOU'RE PITTING, YOU KNOW, COPS AGAINST TEACHERS.
LIKE, YOU KNOW, THIS IS LIKE PUBLIC SERVICES.
EVERYBODY, WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO SUPPORT EVERYONE FOR OUR COMMUNITY.
RIGHT. UM, BUT YOU KNOW, BUT TO THE.
EVERYTHING THAT YOU'RE TOUCHING ON, I THINK IS REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT.
AND YOU KNOW, THE FALL WE DO A BUDGET PRIORITY SESSION AS A SCHOOL BOARD, BUT I DON'T THINK WE NECESSARILY DO THE NEXT STEP TO LIKE BRING COUNCIL ON BOARD TO WHAT YOUR POINT IS SAYING OF LIKE, HERE ARE THE BUDGET PRIORITIES THAT WE'VE SET.
AND WE WANT THAT TO HAPPEN, THAT WE WANT TO, YOU KNOW, MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE PAYING OUR STAFF, TEACHERS AND SUPPORT STAFF, YOU KNOW, A COMPETITIVE WAGE WITHIN THIS AREA TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE RETAINING AND RECRUITING REALLY GOOD STAFF.
LIKE SHOULD WE BROADEN OUT THAT THAT STICKER EXERCISE THAT WE DO WITH THE BUDGET AND LIKE BRING COUNCIL ALONG AND HAVE THEM BE PART OF THAT CONVERSATION, YOU KNOW, HAVE COUNCIL DO IT, HAVE US DO IT, HAVE, YOU KNOW, DO SOME OF THAT.
YOU KNOW, WHEN WE DO THE BUDGET PUBLIC SESSIONS IN THE FALL RATHER THAN JUST BEING A SHOW AND SHARE YOU KNOW, SHOULD THAT BE MUCH MORE, YOU KNOW, ENGAGING AND GETTING THE COMMUNITY'S INPUT ON LIKE WHERE WHERE THEY STAND, TOO.
SO IT'S, YOU KNOW, WE'RE REALLY KIND OF GETTING LIKE THESE DIFFERENT CONSTITUENCIES.
ALL RIGHT. WELL, WE'VE GOT YOU ON BOARD BECAUSE WE'RE RECOMMENDING A JOINT SESSION THIS SUMMER.
OH, FACILITATED BEFORE THE BUDGET.
BEFORE THE BUDGET? YEAH. BECAUSE YOU ALL HAVE SO MUCH TIME.
YOU'VE GOT PLENTY OF TIME. EXACTLY.
I'M LIKE ALL I WAS THINKING OF, LIKE, SO LONG AS I CAN HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF A VACATION.
[00:50:01]
I'M SAYING, SAY AS I'M COMING OFF OF SPRING BREAK, WHICH WAS LOVELY.YEAH, I JUST WANT TO ADDRESS THE EAST SIDE VERSUS WEST SIDE.
I UNDERSTAND THAT PEOPLE WANT TO TAKE AWAY THAT KIND OF TERM.
HOWEVER, IN REALITY I THINK THERE IS A VERY BIG EQUITY DIVIDE BETWEEN THE EAST SIDE AND WEST SIDE.
I MEAN, MY KID GOES TO PATRICK HENRY ON THE WEST SIDE.
SO I THINK I THINK WE ALSO HAVE TO THINK OF TERMS OF BUDGET FOR FOR REALLY EQUITY FOR ALL, WHICH IS THE MISSION OF CPS AND REALLY KIND OF UNDERSTANDING LIKE, OKAY, WELL, WE AS AN EXAMPLE, WE'VE BEEN FIGHTING FOR SMALLER CLASS SIZES AT PATRICK HENRY ALL YEAR WHERE WE HAVE 28 KIDS PER CLASS IN OUR KINDERGARTEN WHERE WE HAVE HALF OF THOSE KIDS THAT SPEAK A DIFFERENT LANGUAGE AND HAVE A BUNCH OF OTHER DIFFERENT ISSUES IN OUR SCHOOL WHERE AND LIKE IN THAT PARTICULAR CLASS WHERE MAYBE A SCHOOL ON THE EAST END DOESN'T HAVE THAT ISSUE, MAYBE THEY HAVE 28 KIDS, BUT THEY DON'T HAVE HALF OF THE CLASS THAT'S NOT SPEAKING ENGLISH WHERE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THOSE BARRIERS TO LEARNING.
SO I THINK THERE HAS TO BE A LOT OF THAT THAT GOES INTO THESE DECISIONS.
I DON'T THINK WE SHOULD KIND OF ERASE WHAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING.
I THINK WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT IT IN TERMS OF REALITY AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO HOW WE'RE REALLY GOING TO, YOU KNOW, ADJUST IT EQUALLY FOR EQUITY ACROSS ALL SCHOOLS.
BUT I'M I'M REALLY GLAD THAT YOU BROUGHT THAT EQUITY ISSUE UP.
AND AND I DON'T KNOW THAT IT'S COME UP AS WE'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT THIS MEMO.
SO THANK YOU. THAT'S A REALLY GOOD POINT.
YEAH. AND AGAIN, I REALLY THINK WE FIGHT REALLY HARD ON THE ON THE ON THE WEST SIDE FOR THAT.
AND I THINK SOMETIMES OUR VOICES AREN'T HEARD FOR MULTIPLE REASONS, BUT I'D REALLY LIKE FOR THAT TO BE KIND OF BROUGHT UP AND, AND, AND REALLY BE, YOU KNOW, THOUGHT THROUGH WITH THE SCHOOL BOARD AND OTHERS.
YEAH. GOOD. THAT'S A REALLY GOOD.
JESSICA, CAN I, I CAN CONCUR WITH YOU ON THAT BECAUSE I'M ON THE WEST SIDE.
BUT FOR ME, I THINK IT GOT WORSE AS MY CHILDREN GREW WHENEVER WE STARTED THE MIDDLE SCHOOL AGE.
UM, HAMMOND IS RIDICULOUSLY OVERCROWDED.
UM, AND THE RESOURCES I DON'T FEEL ARE AVAILABLE FOR THE KIDS.
AND THEN AS IT GETS, YOU KNOW, AS IT GETS, AS THEY GET OLDER, IT JUST, IT JUST GETS WORSE.
YEAH. I THINK ON THE WEST SIDE, I JUST WANT TO SAY, LIKE WITH SELENA AND JESSICA, IT'S LIKE I THINK TO ME, THE ISSUES ON THE ON THE, ON THE WEST END TEND TO BE, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF ISSUES OF POVERTY.
AND SO THAT'S ALSO GOES INTO EQUITY, YOU KNOW.
OH, YEAH. IF I COULD JUST ADD, UM.
SO, JENICA, I'M SO GLAD YOU BROUGHT UP THE EAST SIDE.
UM, YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT SAID, YOU KNOW, THE ADVOCACY THAT THE PATRICK HENRY COMMUNITY AND YOU HAVE DONE AND YOU KNOW FOLKS AT OTHER PATRICK HENRY HAVE DONE ON THE SCHOOL CLASS SIZE WAS REALLY IMPACTFUL.
AND IT'S GREAT THAT YOU DID THAT.
AND AT THE SAME TIME AS IN TERMS OF EQUITY, LIKE YOU GUYS ARE REALLY TAPPED IN.
SO LIKE, YOU KNOW, SELENA, YOU GUYS ARE TAPPED IN LIKE, YOU KNOW, PART OF THE PART OF THE JOB THAT WE HAVE TO DO IS MAKE SURE AS SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS AND ELECTED OFFICIALS IS HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE GETTING THE VOICES OF EVERYBODY.
RIGHT? UM, BUT YOUR, YOUR VOICE IS REALLY CONTRIBUTED TO OUR DESIRE TO MAKE SURE THAT CLASS SIZES WERE BACK UNDER CONTROL FOR THE NEXT BUDGET CYCLE.
GREAT TO HEAR. THANK YOU, KELLY.
EVERYONE IN THE CITY TO HEAR, TOO, BECAUSE I THINK THAT SCHOOLS ARE OFTEN GROUND ZERO.
SO THE FIRST PLACE THEY GO IS A SCHOOL.
SO WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT SHARED SERVICES, I ALWAYS THINK OF, OKAY, IF I'M NEW HERE AND I CAN BARELY SPEAK THE LANGUAGE IF AT ALL, I'D LOVE TO BE ABLE TO GO TO THE SCHOOL, BUT ALSO LEARN ABOUT HOW I CAN DO OTHER THINGS.
AND I KNOW THE FAITH CENTER, YOU KNOW, IS VERY ACTIVE.
I THINK ALSO SCHOOLS HAVE BECOMING A RESOURCE FOR IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES TO SEEK RESOURCES.
[00:55:01]
SO I'LL JUST GO TO THE SCHOOL AND TRY TO FIGURE THAT OUT.SO I THINK THE SCHOOLS I THINK, YOU KNOW, TEACHERS ARE BEING BOMBARDED WITH A LOT MORE WITH SOCIOECONOMIC ISSUES, ESPECIALLY WITH THE INFLATION RATE AND ALL THAT STUFF AND ISSUES OF POVERTY. I JUST THINK IT'S REALLY, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE BECOMING THE GROUND ZERO FOR A LOT OF THAT STUFF WHERE, YOU KNOW, THAT'S NOT THEIR ROLE.
THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO BE TEACHERS.
YEAH. AND THEY'RE EDUCATING IS GETTING MORE DIFFICULT TOO.
SO YEAH, HOW CAN, HOW CAN THEY BE SUPPORTED WITH OTHER SERVICES THERE? I DIDN'T KNOW THAT YOU WORKED AT NEIGHBORHOOD HEALTH.
YEAH, WE DO A LOT OF GOOD THINGS IN THE COMMUNITY.
YOU DO? NOW, ARE THERE ANY OTHER POINTS THAT WE WANTED THAT YOU CAN THINK OF THAT WE WOULD BENEFIT FROM ADDITIONAL FEEDBACK ON? NOT REALLY.
I LOVE THE WAY THE DISCUSSION WENT, THOUGH.
I MEAN, I THINK WE CAME I MEAN, CERTAINLY THE EQUITY ISSUE I THINK IS WE HAVE NOT WRITTEN THAT DOWN.
SO I THINK THIS HAS BEEN REALLY, REALLY HELPFUL.
UM, NO, I THINK WE'VE GOT A LOT OF GOOD TO GO ON.
WONDERFUL. SO I THINK THE NEXT STEPS ARE THAT WE WILL WORK COLLABORATIVELY ON A DRAFT MEMO AND NOT TO PUT KATHY USUALLY TAKES THE LEAD ON THAT.
SO DON'T WANT TO PUT HER ON THE SPOT BUT WE'LL YOU KNOW, WE'LL YOU AND I WILL SORT OF WORK TOGETHER JUST TO SAY LIKE KATHY AND RYAN AND I AND THEN ALSO KAREN GRAF, WHO'S A FORMER SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER WHO'S ON BACK.
WE'VE BEEN TALKING REALLY FOR SEVERAL MONTHS ABOUT THIS.
SO WE WANT THIS TO BE A TRANSPARENT PROCESS IN TERMS OF PUTTING THE MEMO TOGETHER SO THAT WE SORT OF ADDRESS ANY CONCERNS, YOU KNOW, BEFORE IT'S FINALIZED.
BUT THE CONVERSATION HAS BEEN TERRIFIC.
SO ESPECIALLY APPRECIATE THE CONVERSATION.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU, KATHY, SO MUCH.
ANY FINAL THOUGHTS ON THAT TOPIC? OKAY. SO I THINK WITH THAT, ALL I WANTED TO SAY WAS THANK YOU.
I'M SO GLAD THAT YOU WERE HERE.
OH, THANK YOU. THANKS FOR INCLUDING ME.
IT'S. IT'S BEEN A PLEASURE, KATHY.
SO, UM, I THINK WITH THAT, I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING ELSE ON MY AGENDA OR TONIGHT, UNLESS ANYBODY ELSE HAS ANYTHING TO ADD BEFORE WE ADJOURN.
OKAY. SO WE JUST AS A REMINDER, WE HAVE TWO ADDITIONAL MEETINGS SCHEDULED ON MAY 3RD AND JUNE 7TH.
AND AS I SAID, YOU'LL HEAR FROM US, YOU KNOW, BETWEEN NOW AND THEN, PROBABLY WITH WITH A DRAFT.
AND WE'LL ALL WORK ON THOSE AGENDAS TOGETHER BETWEEN NOW AND THOSE IN THOSE THREE DAYS.
BUT THANK YOU ALL AGAIN FOR EVERYTHING.
AND I THINK I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO ADJOURN.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, RAISE YOUR HANDS.
GREAT. WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH, EVERYBODY.
I WILL NOW ADJOURN THE MEETING AND LOOK FORWARD TO BEING IN TOUCH WITH YOU ALL SOON.
GOOD NIGHT, ALL. THANKS AGAIN, KATHY.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.