Board of Education, Regular Meeting

1. 0:01Order and ask everyone to please rise for the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for it stands one nation under God indivisible. Thank you.
2. 0:25Let's go.
3. 0:51Mark your piece here. Amanda Grubler here. Kirstston Gustiffson here. Wlette Jones here. Calvin Lewis here. Matthew Macker here. Liia Walker here. Thank you.
4. 1:09I make a motion to accept agenda as presented.
5. 1:11Second. All in favor?
6. 1:17So let's move. Student representative tonight.
7. 1:26Okay. Board reports. Audit committee. Uh audit committee has no report at this time. Thank you. Facilities.
8. 1:35Uh yes. Uh so we met uh this afternoon. I have a few updates for personnel. We're waiting on approval to repost a temp position for July 1st. On August 28th, um the uh maintenance crew will conduct their uh annual uh training day and that'll be a a all day event.
9. 1:59We have some building updates. Uh JLE um our department uh or the facilities crew uh is working on getting all of the files to the high school copy room and um working on getting those files digital. Um, currently working with Dan Dan Simpson and Pen Ross on 3D scans, contractors and surveyors. They're in and out of the building.
10. 2:23Um, MC Smith. Also at MC Smith, we renovated the concession stand on the field uh that now has new toilets, sinks, and signage uh was also added that will be uh put to use on the 16th uh where we will have our field day on the track. Um the uh garden courtyard area was uh recently um had a fence added to that for the chickens and there will also be um the planting of the magnolia tree uh donated by the uh mayor's office.
11. 3:03Um there's also uh eight uh roof leaks that were um uh most recently in the new section uh that was uh installed in 2016 of the building. Uh those are currently uh being addressed. Um so no no uh no worries there. Just working out the warranties. Uh we are also working with National Grid to repair pole number 10 uh in the um uh parking lot.
12. 3:30Uh the uh facilities crew will have to dig and national grid will come in to replace the pole. Um the water meter is scheduled to be replaced on the 28th of this month. And at the junior senior high there was maintenance completed on the turf field. There were four repairs that were completed. Uh the field was vacuumed, brushed, magnet swept to uh catch any bolts or nuts uh that um are just kind of miscellaneous. And then the infill, which is the the black stuff that was added to the low spaces.
13. 4:09Um we we will also be installing a uh greenhouse. And so the planning for that is underway. Uh I think the measurements will be a 14 by 24. Um and so there's a lot of excitement with that. I know that we're securing the grant to uh to move that project forward.
14. 4:30Um the EPC updates. Um the audit is in full swing. We're uh 30% complete. Um and we'll have an update once we reach the 60% uh completion mark. Um so that meeting took place. The flex tech application along with the uh Johnson control and architect contract has been uh um given to Dr. Pennyman and so we're just uh waiting to to file those retro commissioning on the HVAC software transformer audits and the boiler room planning has taken underway as well.
15. 5:05And then with the capital project uh John Shy's team they visited both campus both campuses to complete field measurements. They're also working with surveyors for spot elevation on the tennis courts uh just to make sure we uh have the correct pitch boundaries and drainage for the tennis courts. Um they also identified classrooms in the high school to uh refernish the uh carpets and wall partitions.
16. 5:39We also have uh samples uh that we are reviewing um in terms of the auditorium chairs. Uh it'll probably be a similar vendor that uh other schools have used. Um so that's something that uh we're just kind of sampling right now. Uh no purchases have been made and once the contract is signed uh we'll we'll do more of a walk through um that that will take place. That is the facility committee updates. Thank you.
17. 6:12Thank you. On policy uh quicker policy update, we are diving back into the code of conduct. Made some changes based on the staff feedback. They are hoping to have that finalized soon. Um and the policies that are up for like second and third reading here. Um should be good to go. That's it. Thank you.
18. 6:33Okay. Presentations. MVK stronger connection grants and sensory room Dr.
19. 6:45Good evening Bluehawk family. It feels good to be back in the BU board of education meetings with all of you. Thank you for the warm thoughts, prayers while I was out. It feels good to be back. I'm still healing. I'm going to share some good information with you on Cartwheel teleaalth, our regulation stations, and some my brother's keeper uh updates and two of our amazing graduates are here and they are going to present as well. So, I'm looking forward to hearing from Anthony Mitchell and Jared Alert. Let's get started.
20. 7:34Table of contents. We you know about the six keys of improvement to school improvement. We're going to look at grants specifically the learning enrichment after school program supports grant which is called LEAPS and that will be funding our cartwheel teleaalth stronger connections and that grant was used to fund our regulation stations. There is one in every school and we're pretty excited. Stateofthe-art for our students and my brother's keeper fellows.
21. 8:08Looking ahead for that next meeting, our final meeting of the school year. I'm going to be sharing some data from the 21st century afterchool program. Panorama School Improvement, Student Support, Community Team Updates, and of course, My Brother's Keeper, Family and Community Engagement Program, which is also called MBK FSAP, and then some restorative practices information. You know about the six keys that leads and guides our work in the district, the three grants I just mentioned to you. And we're going to start with leaps.
22. 8:54We have a wonderful partnership with cartwheel teleaalth. So the main thing with cartwheel is it doesn't replace our mental health team. Not at all. It's really an additional um source or resource for our students. Our mental health team works during the school hours. Cartwheel is like a wraparound service that picks up after school and on Saturdays, as you can see, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
23. 9:34The staff at Cartwheel are certified. We have many bilingual staff members there and they literally are targeting students needs after school. It's convenient for students. They use their cell phones and a lot of times they feel more comfortable with the teleaalth approach. So, we'll look at that data shortly, but it really has been a positive addition to our district.
24. 10:07I was fortunate to present with approval from our superintendent at the NISCOS New York State Council of School Superintendent. We had there was a webinar and they talked to me about cartwheel and how it has been really helpful to the district. So that was pretty exciting to share that it's really helping. So here are some points. I'm not going to read them all. So I'd like for you to take an opportunity to read. What I really like is the one onone based therapy.
25. 10:47Let's say a youngster goes home and they're really struggling with some relationship building issues with peers at school. and they go home and they're sad, it's wonderful that they're able to tap into their therapist and talk about it. What we have seen is we've seen students who don't have insurance necessarily and there is some um and gratis if you will there are some sessions that I was able to approve for the students for parents who did not have insurance. We try our best to ensure that every student who needs the services gets served. So, we'll talk about that as well.
26. 11:31Family support. I love it that they have a case manager or program manager who's willing and able to discuss students. There's this collaborative piece where they will they have office hours. If our team would like to speak with them about students, they can. They especially what's important to us ed law to the compliant. So HIPPA fura we we're good there. And that was the main thing before we even got started with all this. That was the question. So we appreciate the platform the data platform that they provide as well.
27. 12:16Here we are data collection requirements. The parents had to consent to the service HIPPA compliant and also they provide data. We have access to the data up to the minute. I know exactly what's going on. So let's look at the three areas of focus. We're going to look at referrals, engagement, and outcomes, and student demographics.
28. 12:43So, this is what the referrals look like for the school year thus far. Look at our peak months. October, November, March are really like peak months. We had a total of 58 now. Well, today it's 59 referrals. In our contract, we have 50, but What that means is there are 59 students who've been referred. Out of the 59 students, 43 of them were being seen. So they only you're only charge for the kids who are actually seen by the therapist.
29. 13:25So some of the referrals did not lend itself to uh the student being served at that moment. So I hope that's clearly understood. If not, just ask. But that's the total number of referrals and I also put them in the little legend at the bottom so you could see how many. So, as I stated, 59 out of the 50. So, I approved 59 referrals. I'm heavily involved in this process.
30. 13:57Whenever there's a recommendation or a referral, I read them and I approve the referrals or I disapprove or I hold them. The team is amazing. Our internal team, their schedules are full. And the only reason why we have the service is because they're unable to see the students during the school hours because their their schedules are pretty full and then after school and on weekends they're unable to see the students. So that's why we have the service. It's not in place of our amazing team.
31. 14:37So when you look at the referrals, all three of our schools have referrals and that's terrific. That means from the elementary school through the high school, if students need that extra support after school and during Saturdays, they get it. And then we've got 60 65% of the staff referring.
32. 15:06Okay, let's take a look at the top reasons for these referrals. Number one, family issues. Number two, academics. We still are dealing with the whole COVID nightmare. We still have students who are struggling because of the learning loss during that period of time. Anxiety. Look at those numbers. So out of the 58 students, look at those numbers. Depression, relationships, school avoidance, anger, self-esteem, trauma, loss, and grief. But look at the top ones. Family issues, academic, school stress, anxiety, and depression.
33. 15:53What's wonderful is that we have professionals who provide that wraparound. We want students to be able to communicate how they feel to a certified counselor. And so that's been really helpful. Here are the referrals by our schools. You can look at the percentages, how many were approved, and the intake numbers.
34. 16:28Engagement and outcomes. So that's our second focus. The first one was referrals. Now let's look at engagement and outcomes. Well, they surveyed families. 95% of the parents whose children are receiving these services will recommend them to a friend. They're pleased. And that makes me feel good because I remember speaking with Dr. Pennyman and the executive team about a way to ensure we add additional supports for students in the areas of mental health seal.
35. 17:03And what's really remarkable I shared with you I shared this with you in January when I presented we didn't do this work without our mental health team. we met and they were able to meet with the cartwell teleaalth staff and we all agreed that it would be a good thing for kids and it it's it's turning out to be pretty terrific and there are no wait lists everyone that's huge if a student is going through something they're not put on a wait list and they're waiting and waiting for months to be seen that's a big deal so I'm very happy about that this is the session count information.
36. 17:49You can take a look at that. Tons of sessions, 293 total so far during the school year. So, the students are using the service. We've got some students who have two services and obviously the students who have one there they're there eight students who just have the one service. All right.
37. 18:17Look at the impact. I'd like to talk about this next part part which is students uh demographics. 37% of the students receiving the counseling services have IEPs or 504s. So that's 22 students out of the 43 that were actually being served. The average age 13 years old. So look at that third bullet. 90% of students prefer teleaalth or have no preference for in-person care. In other words, after school hours they definitely appreciate their in-person services with our internal team, but we're talking after school. These therapists are available until 8:00 p.m. What if they're going through like an emotional struggle?
38. 19:21All right, number one, the first bullet, look at the second sub bullet. Two students so far have graduated, meaning they no longer need counseling. they have enough tools in their toolkits that they're able to choose those options instead of needing the support from a therapist. So, we're pretty proud of that. Quick question. If you go back to the slide before this, where where are the 43 if two have graduated out?
39. 19:59The two who graduated out. Well, what that shows is there are 14 students who have two services and then there are eight students who have one service. Yeah, that's 22. So that's 22 kids. So where where do we get to 43? Like is there another service that's provided? Currently there are two students and there are 14 students and two ser. So that means there are 28 services. Um because if they have two services that's 28. 2 * 14 is 28 plus another eight. So if one kid is getting two services that counts as two towards the 43. Yeah. Got it. Okay.
40. 20:54Sorry. Now, we're going to move on to stronger connections, the regulation stations. Now, the reason why they're called regulation stations and not sensory rooms is because not every student who has an IEP becomes disregulated. And if there is a student who is disregulated and they just need to go into that room and go to the equipment that's either for alertness, calming or movement, then they can we can schedule them.
41. 21:34And what happens first is the teacher will fill out a referral form. I get it. We schedule the student. They're able to go in 15 minutes with a staff member. There is a regulation station data form that has to be completed for every child who goes in because we have to keep track of the data, the progress that the children are making. And just just to know that these stations are really effective in helping students who are disregulated become regulated.
42. 22:14So, you've seen these rooms before, but I just love the pictures. Let's take a look at some data. Regulation station data. MC Smith. So, one of the questions on the form asks the therapist, I mean the uh TA to choose from the following sensory behaviors they've observed or the teacher. And so, here are the behaviors that they've observed. and the percentages and how many children have exhibited those behaviors. So, as you can see, loud vocalizations, humming, those are some of the sensory behaviors they're seeing. Fidgets with desk and clothes, uh that's 71.4%.
43. 23:02Those are the highest two. And then, of course, there's other. Here's another one. what appears to precede or coincide with increased sensory behaviors. And you can see when the student begins to disregulate when they're running out of time completing an assignment, when there is an unplanned change or um let's see increased workload. So those three are the highest and then there's other.
44. 23:45Let's go to the junior high and look at some of that data so far and we just started using the regulation stations in May. So excited to collect this data so far. Choose from the following sensory behavior. So, here at uh Hudson Junior High School, frequently out of seat, rocking, fidgeting, those are some of the behaviors that have the highest percentages. Loud vocalizations, when is this happening? And you get to see when it's happening.
45. 24:24So, two of the students, it was something tactile that kind of set them, you know, got them really worked up. But the rest of them, math class, let's look at what appears to proceed, increase work demands when it's noisy in the classroom. So just looking at the comparison between the elementary school and the junior high school, remember with the elementary school when there was a change of plans or students ran out of time, you saw higher percentages. With the junior high students, it's more of the work work demands and when it's noisy.
46. 25:04So let's take a look at the high school. Same thing. What sensory behaviors you're are you observing? We only have a couple of students. So, the high school isn't really using it as much as the elementary school and junior high, but it's still there for our students whenever they need it. And here class periods when you're seeing in music or the music boards um if they're on the bean chair what precedes it when it's noisy whole group movement.
47. 25:55So let's just look at the aggregate data. This is everything pretty much together. And you're looking at what students are seeking for. Are they seeking for movement? 22 students have been seeking for movement. So that's 88% of the students and three calming for alerting. So we have a total of what um 29 26 29 students.
48. 26:28And here we are sensory behaviors frequently out of the seat rocking and so on. So you get to see individual schools but then you get to see them together as an aggregate. Look at the time of day. 8:30 11:00 that's when students have entered into the regulation station rooms. and some of the activities that were recommended. We have so many wonderful, wonderful pieces of equipment that are helping our students.
49. 27:15So, what were the outcomes? 17 teachers reported students were calm when they returned to class. Six teachers reported they were more focused. One teacher said that the the students regulated longer throughout the day. So, it's working everyone. One teacher reported the student was uh a little confused and just kind of needs to orient themselves to the regulation station.
50. 27:40But I'm really pleased to see that the rooms are benefiting our students and as they use the rooms more, they will meaning they're able to use them for the short 15 minutes or less time intervals and go back to class. And that's what's happening. They go for 15 minutes or a little less and then they go back to class. So, if there is an emergency and a child needs to be in there longer, yes, they can be, but we're noticing that those 15minute intervals are working for our students.
51. 28:21So, if you look at how many times a day the students so far have needed to go into the regulation stations, 88.9% one time. they've gone one time. 11.1% they've gone two times in a day. So, here is a statement I've got to read and I'm going to move this along.
52. 28:46This is a statement about the regulation stations at our Hudson City School District schools from the occupational therapy team. When the grant for the regulation stations was first introduced, the occupational therapy department was so excited to be asked to help design the space by identifying items that would best support sensory regulation. Once the equipment arrived, the OT team worked to ensure that materials were placed in appropriate locations to maximize their effectiveness for students needs with support from our incredible building and grounds team.
53. 29:25Before roll out, the OT department developed drafts for the referral process, daily data sheets, and usage usage protocols under the direction of Dr. Pressie. While the district awaits the onboarding of the TAs for each station, Caitlyn Suter has continued to support implementation by coordinating with teachers as referral forms are submitted. Teachers complete the referral forms by checking off the specific disregulation behaviors they are observing in the classroom.
54. 30:03These referrals are submitted directly to Dr. Pressie for approval. Once approved, Caitlyn is notified of the students name and then touches base with the teacher or staff to further discuss the disregulation behaviors being observed. Caitlyn then provides individualized training to the staff who will be bringing students into the space. During these meetings or trainings, referrals are reviewed and equipment use is demonstrated to best serve the students needs.
55. 30:30Caitlyn then works collaboratively with the teacher to schedule a time for the student to access the regulation station in a way that is proactive and intended to reduce the disregulation being seen in the classroom.
56. 30:48We're grateful, this is the OT's I love them. They're amazing to work with. We're grateful for the patience and flexibility of the staff who have begun using the rooms as we continue to evaluate what works best through observation and feedback. As a department, it has been incredibly rewarding to collaborate with Dr. Pressie and the teaching staff to bring these rooms to life and see them used to support students experiencing dysregulation during their school day.
57. 31:21As we wind down the school year and begin to gear up for the next, we're excited to see how these spaces continue to grow and evolve and to see the positive impact they will have on our students districtwide. And this letter is from our amazing collaborative OT team, which is our occupational therapy department, Caitlyn Satara, Claire Adams, and Sarah Smiggle.
58. 31:50It's a joy to work with them. This is a roll out and we wanted it to be successful and I tell you they are amazing. Now let's go to my brother's keeper and I will introduce our two students who will be presenting. I have already gone over the vision and mission for MBK uh with all of you in January. Let's look at some highlights.
59. 32:19So, our 2425 fellows are Anthony Mitchell and Jared Alert. I'm very, very proud of these two young men. Very proud. Their mentor is Brick Nod Morrison. They've read four books, attended and participated in what's known as the mastermind book series with over 90 MBK fellows statewide, and they participated in the MBK symposium this year.
60. 32:52So, one of them will be attending Colombia Green, that would be Jared Alert, and Anthony Mitchell would be going to Hudson Valley Community College. Very proud of them. They're going to present on Dress to Impress. And so those are the four books and the reason why they read those books is because they want to help the students develop life skills, make healthy decisions, surround themselves with positive people who are doing positive things.
61. 33:28Learning how to love themselves and be respectful of not just themselves but others. being the best they can be, being accountable, and working hard. So, we saw them last year at the symposium and we're going to So, this year they went on an Albany tour, Sunni Albany, and they met with the financial aid office just to find out all of these wonderful options they have in terms of financing their education.
62. 34:10So you can see Anthony there with his mentor. Nod is his nickname, but his first name is Brderick. And now look at them. They were at the symposium in Albany. And you see them with Nod. There's Anthony and our two new MBK fellows, Christian Rodriguez and Shawn Terry. And there's Jared Alert. and then you see them with Dr. Pennyman. Over 1,000 attendees at the symposium. It's just remarkable. Those are our new fellows.
63. 34:51So, one of the things that I wanted to do, I spoke with Dr. P and thank goodness for her support with this. Many students go to college and we want to make sure they're armed with how to manage money, what to do if credit card companies come to them and offer them credit cards. We're going to have a financial literacy training or workshop for them. And we're inviting everyone who wants to come.
64. 35:30We're hoping to have it. I'm going to confirm this space, this auditorium, but it's very important. So, all of our graduates and their parents are welcome to come. Any board members and families, it's really important that we start the students off with a healthy understanding of how to manage funds when they go to college. Because if you get a credit card, you're not only going to pay the bill, but you're going to pay interest. So, we need kids to understand that's not free money. That's money with an attachment.
65. 36:02So, they're going to learn about budgeting, managing their credit. They're going to learn how to be confident when they're navigating finances. So, we're going to have that on the 24th from 1:30 to 3:00. And families, feel free, you can email me, call me. We would love to see you there. We're specifically looking at our graduates, but we're also looking at our families in general. All right.
66. 36:34Special thanks to you all. It takes a village. And as our superintendent started us on this mantra way back in 23, it remains true today. Together we can. So I'd like to now turn this over to the amazing two students as they come forth. You can stand at the podium and you will be presenting and I will thank you. And please make sure to um tell everyone your names and where you're going to college.
67. 37:26Hello. Hello. Hello. Uh my name is Jared Alert. Uh I will be attending Columbia Green uh for business. Wonderful.
68. 37:37Uh hello, my name is Anthony Mitchell and I'm going to Hudson Valley Community College for electrical engineering.
69. 37:44And before we uh continue, I want to talk about uh dress to impress. Uh my family is from a small country in South Africa called Guyana. And a lot of my family members were teachers. My grandma was a teacher. My uncle was a teacher. Funny enough, taught my mother in the same class as he was going to college.
70. 38:05So dress to impress is in Caribbean cultures, they teach you at a very young age how to dress. and the meaning and you know like the meaning of why we dress but also how to dress. So dress to impress is basically uh a key to the youth on why it's important to dress and how to dress.
71. 38:30All right, thank you.
72. 38:35So number one is uh boost confidence. Uh, in this day and age, a lot of anxiety talks, you know, is ramped up. And when you leave the house, you want to be able to look yourself in the mirror and say, you know what, I'm I'm looking my best. You don't want to go out with a sad face because then people are going to give a reaction. Okay, he's not best. Especially job interview, something like this, you have to dress well because when you dress well, you feel well.
73. 39:02And when you feel well, you act well. And that's that's the first thing on dress to impress is you have to get that confidence going. And some people don't have that naturally. So it might take some time but dressing is one of the first steps you can get to boosting that confidence up.
74. 39:25All right. Uh second we will say creates positive first impressions. So majority of people they do judge you like the way you present yourself like where it's just like your smell your teeth the way you dress you know it is really important to like present yourself well so people don't judge you and respect you the way you look
75. 39:56selfrespect uh kind of goes back to what I was saying at first uh with the mental health conversation has ramped up in the years to a much larger degree than back in the day. Um it's all about how you see yourself in the mirror again. A lot of people nowadays are as Dr. Presley talked about with the uh the uh what was that the uh what you talk about about anxiety levels and depression.
76. 40:20Uh selfrespect is definitely something that is overview, no longer really touched because the younger generation will quickly determine say that I'm not good, I'm not this, I'm not that. A lot of knots, a lot of negativity. So dressing well when you go into an event or just going out teaches yourself, okay, I can present myself or I can put on a casual outfit that will can make me be like, okay, maybe I'm not this, maybe I'm not that, maybe I can be this, maybe I can be that. So it promotes uh promotes selfrespect and just showing that they value themsel in this world, right?
77. 41:01It also will teach you personal responsibility.
78. 41:06Like so for example, if you're going to a job interview, you don't want to be wearing like a tank top or shorts, any like that. You would probably want to wear like a nice suit or some nice clothing. Otherwise, you're probably not going to like probably not get that job off of first impressions because people do judge you like managers do judge you of how you look and how you present yourself. So, it is important. It will also teach you like good responsibilities of how you take care of yourself.
79. 41:38Uh encourages creativity and self-exression. Um at the end of the day, fashion is a form of uh self-expression.
80. 41:45A lot of artist artists when they make clothes, it's what they put out. Um, so learning to dress well allows the youth to explore and communicate their identities and personalities. Obviously, identity, uh, identity crisis has been pretty big nowadays. A lot of people don't know who they are at a young age. So being able to use that in how they dress can definitely encourage that creativity at a young mind at a young age.
81. 42:22All right. So, like back to the working world, like I said like, you know, a couple seconds ago, it is important the way you dress and how you present yourself. And like if you're working at school, it probably wouldn't be like, you know, once again appropriate to be wearing, you know, probably like sag like as a guy like sagging, put your pants down. It's probably not going to look good to like inspire young kids to be doing that. You got to present yourself well in the working world so you can like impress people or the younger generation to just dress responsibly and dress great.
82. 42:58Um improve social perception. Um this kind of goes back to the job stuff. If you go to a job interview with not looking formal, you're probably not going to get that job. And also it creates a first reaction. If like if we came up here with just a t-shirt, you probably think this is MBK. This is this is what they're representing. Because at the end of the day, when you're meeting someone new, they don't know you until you say your name and that's it. You're a blank canvas. So one thing that people will look at other than skin is other than appearance is how you dress.
83. 43:38And how you dress will be how they respond to you, how they answer questions, how they talk to you, or just matters of what they want to discuss to you. If you are dressed to the tea, then that opens up conversations to, okay, this person is a very intelligent person. I see how they're dressed. I'mma not ask the I'mma ask these certain questions and maybe leave these certain questions. But if you come in with a t-shirt to them, it makes it seem like you don't really care for this position.
84. 44:09So teaching the the youth at a young age that you want to present yourself in an outfit that makes you presentable is a big thing that I think the youth hasn't really learned about and should be taught.
85. 44:24Great. And how it supports mental health. So obviously if you leave your house, you know, not in the best outfit and everyone's looking at you weird, you're probably going to be feeling like cramped up, you don't want to talk to nobody, it's probably going to affect you down. So like if you present yourself well, you know, everyone's looking at you, you look good, you smell good, probably going to be feeling better about yourself knowing you did that. So yeah, um reduces peer pressure and insecurity.
86. 44:57kind of goes off with the uh the mental health crisis. Um especially going out to big events. Um and that's also I just want to point out there's not always there is not only talked about like suit and ties. It's also just like casual attire. So uh just want to just pointed out that dress to impress is not only just for suit and ties. is also just expressing your way and however you make it, whatever makes you feel the best.
87. 45:23So for this, it's the same thing. Being able to go outside and feel like nobody can judge you because you feel like that person, that girl, that woman, that man when you come out the house. And a lot of people struggle with that in this day and age where they see on social media then or when they come to school someone talks about their attire and then the next day they don't know what to wear because one person talked about their attire. So just coming out of coming out of the house to go to a job or going to work or going to school just having that that feeling that like okay nobody's going to knock me down because I'm wearing a a red shirt and they're wearing a green shirt.
88. 46:13All right. Uh, building life skills. So, obviously at Hudson High School, we have a dress code. Uh, for understanding the dress codes to budgeting your clothes. Not everybody can afford like designer clothes like Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Gucci. Not everyone can, you know, afford those things. But it doesn't hurt. Just find something like good to wear that will match and you'll be fine.
89. 46:39I don't think you need to spend like thousands of dollars on designer and any of that. As long as you present yourself well, look good, smell good, like I said, you should be fine, honestly. And that was it. Any questions?
90. 46:58Thank you. Thank you. [Applause] Rocky pain. Rocky pain.
91. 47:18Um just a reminder um that uh we're about to convene at a public forum. Um please remember the board is here to listen. uh we'll get back to you accordingly um in response to your concerns. Uh also just wanted to point out that under state and federal privacy laws, we're unable to entertain any comment or questions about school personnel. Each speaker has three minutes.
92. 47:42Okay. Good evening. Um I wear many hats in the school, but today I'm having my AP coordinator hat on and I want to report that this year was our first time offering digital AP exams. We have three classes which culminate into an exam but we actually proctor myself and Miss Davis eight exams and that speaks to the tenacity of our students. They engaged in a self-study or they challenged an exam.
93. 48:08An example is we had a student who challenged an AP comparative politics exam and it was a first time digital and I want to give special thanks to Miss Robinowitz and her staff um specifically Mr. Ellsworth, Miss Wheeler. They helped us. The students were able to test. I would probably say in a stress-free environment. Um, I was more nervous than the students were.
94. 48:29Um, but they did a really great job and um, there weren't any issues. So, I just want to let the board know this is our first time digital. I think digital is the way to go. Um, Mr. Elders and I have said the same thing, but I really wanted to thank Mr. Williams and her staff and say that the students did a really good job.
95. 48:48Thank you. Thank you for sharing. Shannon Sullivan. [Music]
96. 49:04Hi, I'm Shannon Sullivan. I've come here before, but today I'm here in my capacity as second vice president for the Hudson Teachers Association, which is the teachers union. So today we were having our meeting and while we were looking at the update for the meetings for next year for the board, we noticed that the number of meetings that are on the agenda for next year have dropped down to 15 from 23.
97. 49:28And I understand that you won't answer any questions, but the union is very interested to find out why this has occurred. And this is something that we just discovered this afternoon before this meeting. So, if that communication could come back to the union, we would appreciate it. Thank you.
98. 49:46Of course, we'll address that when we get to the consensus agenda. See, that's it. That's it. Okay, we don't need a separate session. So, personnel agenda.
99. 50:12Make a motion to set personnel agenda items 8 1 through 13 be 1 through 4.
100. 50:191 through 14. 14. Right. I'm looking at it. Thank you.
101. 50:261 through 14.
102. 50:31Okay, thank you.
103. 50:37Now we have the superintendent update.
104. 51:03Good evening everyone. So, it's so great to hear great news and thank you Mr. Payne for being positive and just you know letting the board know of the great things are happening. Uh, one of the things that I strive to do this year when I created the spotlight on excellence, etc., is to make sure that I am continuing to promote positive things and great things that are happening across the district.
105. 51:31So within the spirit of that same theme, I would like to um congratulate our students in um Miss Smith's class for um they earned an annual award from the co uh co Columbia Ark for expanding um abilities um one person at a time. So congratulate congratulations to Miss Smith's uh class and co- um CO-ARC is just a Colombia chapter of the Ark New York. Um it's been in existence since 1965 and have been um an advocate and resource for people with intellectual and uh developmental uh differences.
106. 52:24So this year uh this year we have been on a venture to increase our student attendance. So we were a part of a national um a national group cohort group the first inaugural through uh league of innovative schools which our district is a part of. So I gave the task to Mr. Brenamman to lead to lead the process throughout the district and he's done a wonderful job. And so with that um I Mr. Brenamman went to the League of Innovative Schools. He presented there also I was able to present at a round table at ASA but then here comes Ed Week calling and another um publication called T74.
107. 53:13So Mr. Brenamman and I, we did um an interview with Ed Week that was published last week on June 4th. So um with that, I just want to um you know give kudos um to the team, the the school building teams and their teams. They all have attendance teams. They all have attendance meetings. We also have a district-wide committee that's made up and Mr. Brenamman spoke about this before that's made up of community members um that includes Promise Neighborhood and um other community members, the mayor, DA.
108. 53:57We also won uh the TW the highest award we could receive for NISPRA, the 2025 school communication awards for our newsletter. Um this is a very rigorous award and um I've worked in districts that have gone for the awards that was never able to achieve that. So um Hudson received the highest award and once we received that award and it's in conjunction with Boseis because we um work with Bosey's um communications department. Our communications specialist is Bosey's employee.
109. 54:30But this year Avy Avy was Dr. Pennyman. do you think would I said of course let's go ahead and apply and he showed me which newsletter and um we went in together and shows the pictures and everything and so um we received this award and then I got I received a call from a couple of other superintendent colleagues saying oh wow Hudson won so it was just great um to win this national award
110. 54:58so tonight's spotlight on excellence there's several on here tonight but specifically I wanted to make sure that I recognized the building leadership team for their work on the chronic absenteeism um initiative. Uh we they were able to we were able to reduce our chronic absenteeism across all three buildings from the data that I received from Mr. Brenamman by 12% at least we have. So, we're moving in the right direction and I strongly believe that we have to continue to inunciate the positives.
111. 55:37Um, and because we know that there are times when we receive negative things. However, I just want to continue to promote the positivity and the great things that are happening in our district. And so, um, I do believe Mr. Campbell's here, is here. And so I'm just going to call everyone's name and then um everyone else couldn't really be here tonight, but of course it's Mr. Campbell, Miss Zucker, Mr. Bear, Miss Platt, the interim assistant, Mr. Brenamman, Mr. Rearen, Miss Patch, and Miss Hannley. Those are they are all of our building leadership team and [Applause]
112. 56:34I'm just going to give um the principal said to give the spotlight on excellence to Miss Zucker and uh Mr. Campbell and they'll get them to them. However, I'd like for you guys to do like we do take a picture with the board.
113. 56:59You want me to take your use your phone?
114. 57:35And last, but definitely not least, I'd like to speak a little bit about one of our teachers at the junior high social studies teacher, Mr. uh Brian Hulahan. And the reason why I'm spotlighting Mr. Hulahan tonight, he's not here. However, is if you ever go into Mr. Hulahan's class, the ambiance in there, the classroom atmosphere is great. However, he is an innovative teacher. He finds ways to um engage our students. I've seen him use cereal boxes. If you go into his classroom, um he's got t-shirts. I mean, you see all of the hands-on activities that he uses to draw students and engage students and hook students.
115. 58:21And I know that yes, you can say it's his job, but there's never a time that I've visited his classroom that I did not see students enjoying his the lesson. And it's just not a sit and teach or stand and deliver. He is a great model of what um you know all of our teachers um should be doing. Not that they all don't do but however I strongly believe that I have to give credit where credit is due and he goes above and beyond. He's very innovative. So if you have a chance please um visit Mr. Hulahan's class. I know he would really appreciate that.
116. 59:02And so spotlighting Mr. Hulahan. And um I will continue to find those bright spots throughout our district and spotlight them at the board meeting. Our district um pun track and field championships. We actually have two of our students who will be heading to state championships this weekend in Middletown. So we're really excited. And um believe it's Jeremiah and um that is uh I can't think of her sister Olivia. They're going this weekend. So very exciting times for us.
117. 59:44No, it's Elijah Walker. Elijah.
118. 59:48Elijah and Elijah. That's right. El Elijah Walker is going.
119. 1:00:01Yeah, but that's not Elijah. That's why he said Jeremiah. It's Jeremiah.
120. 1:00:08All right. So, our high school team placed second at the Environ, which is wonderful. Um on May 29th, so kudos to them. Our Environ team, as you know, they're excellent group of students and um our teacher that leads them is is is also um excellent. But they also got to sit with the king and queen of Netherlands. So that was the highlight of last year. So but congratulations to them and kudos. That's concludes my superintendent report for tonight. And thank you.
121. 1:00:46Thank you.
122. 1:01:05So um see we uh we're going to pull consensus item uh E which is the 2526 um board of education meeting schedule like to pull it. I think we could have a little discussion around it. Um and also need to table it for another reason. Um but uh yes, there are some changes um to the schedule for next year. Um as a board, I think we've all recognized that we have a lot of um work to do on policy.
123. 1:01:37Um so one of the main goals is to uh cut down on the number of business meetings and increase the number of and the um length of our policy committee meetings. Um we're also have a policy today that we're going to be approving that changes the structure of uh policy committee meetings to make them more inclusive. Um, so yeah, I think our goal is just to give the board more time to focus on policy.
124. 1:02:08Um, we've got policies on the books that are from 2007 that still need to be updated. Um, and so yeah, our our goal is to move through those more rapidly um and uh separate those from our business meetings. Um, those meetings are still open to the public. There will be more members of the community invited to attend um and be on the policy committee. So, we think it's an overall um positive thing that will lead to um more change.
125. 1:02:34Yeah, I just want to add to that. I think it's not about reducing the amount of time that the board is spending on this business, but it's about spending more time actively working on things rather than sort of like passively sitting. And there's a need to really like have our policies or have our committees in general like there may be a need for expanded committees or other things as we're thinking about this that we need to be working on.
126. 1:02:57And so I um I'm really excited about the prospect of moving the board meetings once a month so that we can have a longer policy meeting and then that policy committee like um Mark talked about that will be open with community members, teachers, leaders. Um so we'll be able to really use that like I'm picturing a you know sort of multi-hour session every other week opposite the board's meetings to really be able to like drive and make moves on policy.
127. 1:03:26Um, so I just want to like double stamp that it's not about spending less time. In fact, it may still end up being net more time, but it's about like really adjusting so that we're doing the things that impact and we can like move things forward in a way that we need to and bring more community involvement into the work that we're doing.
128. 1:03:45Yeah. Um and then the second thing um with the draft meeting schedule um we're currently looking into when we need to file our tax warrants. Um we had initially made a motion to have the organizational meeting on um July 15th. Uh but apparently that's also the deadline for um putting tax bills in the mail. So, we you're looking at the um the date for the reorc meeting um or alternative solutions for um approving our tax warrant so that tax bills get in the mail at the right time.
129. 1:04:25That just reminded me of one more thing. I think one other things that we um is that recognizing that often in the fall if there's like late hires, if there's other things that happen, I think that as a board we're committed to making sure that we do hold like an emergency board meeting as needed. If there are things that need to move so that personnel issues can move on, right?
130. 1:04:45So like also recognizing with this shift that there's flexibility to hold additional meetings as needed around specific items to make sure you know obviously like if a staff member got hired at the beginning of September we wouldn't say like oh this has to be approved by the board in October right like making sure that we're doing what we need to do there.
131. 1:05:04Yeah exactly.
132. 1:05:08Um so yeah so I'll make a motion to table um item E until our next board meeting.
133. 1:05:16Second. All in favor?
134. 1:05:19And then so that brings us to uh make a motion to approve consensus agenda items A through D and uh F through T.
135. 1:05:26Second.
136. 1:05:33All in favor.
137. 1:05:41All business.
138. 1:05:45Should we approve some of these?
139. 1:05:48I believe they're all ready to approve.
140. 1:05:50Yeah.
141. 1:05:52Um, make a motion to adopt policy 4750, promotion and retention.
142. 1:06:00Second. All in favor.
143. 1:06:03Uh, along with that, make a motion to retire policy 4750R. It's no longer needed. It's the Hudson Junior High School grade promotion policy credit record.
144. 1:06:14Second. All in favor?
145. 1:06:18Third reading. Make a motion to adopt policy 2410 policy development adoption implementation uh and review.
146. 1:06:27Second. All in favor.
147. 1:06:30Um and this is the uh policy charter that we mentioned. Uh so make a motion to adopt policy 2410e. Uh the policy charter.
148. 1:06:42Second. All in favor?
149. 1:06:53Leslie, sorry. Joshua K.
150. 1:07:09Joshua K. Yes. Okay.
151. 1:07:12Good evening, planning board. Um, or school, I'm sorry. Good evening, uh, Hudson City School Board. That meeting is tomorrow. God, where did I go?
152. 1:07:25My name is Josh Kip, a neighbor and a resident on Mill Street across across the street from Charles Williams Ballfield. Last week's city planning board decision on the Charles Williams Ballfield development was disappointing, but neighbors and I are united.
153. 1:07:45Show you what happens down here. Um, this photo proves the ball field's role as a natural catch base in protecting our homes. The city and developers claims that our homes will be unaffected lacks proof risking worse flooding than we already endured in this age of global warming, rising sea levels.
154. 1:08:19In 1983, you sold the land with a forever recreational clause. Reports show Mayor Kamal Johnson pressured you to remove this reverter for an insignificant amount of money. This will potentially expose the district to liability if the deed is violated. Legal actions will follow if this proceeds, jeopardizing the district's interest.
155. 1:08:44I ask you to please reconsider your decision and uphold the 1983 agreement to avoid such risks. The city's planning board decision and ignored SRA or environmental concerns and we are preparing an article 78 challenge.
156. 1:09:02Your role in this land's history demands you protect its recreational use and per recreational and purposeful use. So please again I urge you to safeguard our homes, lives and trust. Thank you.
157. 1:09:15Thank you. Thanks for speaking.
158. 1:09:25We have Jack.
159. 1:09:32Hi. Good evening. Uh, thank you for your service to the community. Congratulations to the board members who are terming out and those that were elected. I'm new to the Hudson community. This is my first time even entering the high school. So, thank you for having me.
160. 1:09:44I come here just to uh humbly agree with my neighbor Josh Kips. I also live on Mil Street. Uh, we have raised reasonable concerns to the planning board about this development that have gone unheard and unressed.
161. 1:09:55The school does have an important role in releasing the reverter clause which is in the 1983 deed which commits the property to public recreation which it has been used in that capacity for the the intervening 40 years. Um so I just wanted to agree with my neighbor and and ask you for your consideration in uh determining whether the sale of this property for a development of this scale is in the best interest both of Hudson at large but the school district.
162. 1:10:23Um, if you have any questions about the development or the project, my neighbor and I will be happy to speak with you afterwards. And I did also just want to say I was at the informal meeting, common council meeting last night with the presentation from the JLE developer, which is very impressive and exciting opportunity.
163. 1:10:40And um, so this board is aware there is a separate parcel below JLE at the same sort of level in the same sort of floodable capacity. It's the overflow of Underh Hill Pond. Uh, it's a sensitive place down there. there's no road access. So, I ask the board to uh consider what its policy is for these surplus properties um before it gets pressured to do one thing or the other with them. Thank you.
164. 1:11:03Thank you.
165. 1:11:10That's it. That's it. Thank you.
166. 1:11:19Is there any any new items anyone want? Um, no. Only thing, um, just two recent community or school events. The heroes breakfast is always like a lovely community event.
167. 1:11:31Um, and then just wanted to shout out the elementary school PTO who did a uh '9s themed karaoke last Friday night. Um, and so I think, you know, they raised a hopefully a chunk of money for the elementary school. So just all the effort that went into that.
168. 1:11:48Yes, it's great seeing the PTO's at the elementary school and the junior high school doing events that the community really comes out for and people really uh seem to enjoy and hopefully it's a trend we um see continue.
169. 1:12:03I'd like to shout out the uh high school concert that was this past week, the band and choir. I always respect the diversity of uh music options that are available for students here. Um and the really exceptional work that our students do as as musicians.
170. 1:12:24It's really thrilling not just to see how far our seniors have come uh but to see uh our underassmen advancing and watch them rise to those levels as well.
171. 1:12:38Well, I guess I'll talk about the prom. Even though it rained, it was really nice turnout. The kids was beautiful. There was no incidents that occurred or that we know of. So, and the food was really good.
172. 1:12:57Okay. Anyone else?
173. 1:13:02Okay. Important dates. Policy committee meeting Wednesday, June 25th, 2025 at 5:00 pm in the high school library. Regular board meet my voice cracking. Regular board of education meeting. Huh? It's Oh, it's right. Okay. I thought it was incorrect.
174. 1:13:23Regular board of education meeting. Wednesday, June 25th at 2025 at 6 PM in the high school library. Annual organational meeting July 15, 2025 at 6 pm in the high school auditorium.
175. 1:13:42Uh, can I just add we've got an audit committee meeting one week from today, 9:00 a.m. in the district conference room. Okay. Thank you.
176. 1:13:53Okay. At this time, we do have a need for executive session. 714. There will be no further business. I make a motion to adjourn the meeting at 7:15. Uh, no. Make a motion to enter executive. Oh, enter the second session.
177. 1:14:15Second. All in favor?
178. 1:14:19Thank you all for being here.

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