Coraggio Consulting Albemarle County School Board Regular Meeting, Thursday, August 14, 2025 Date: Thursday, August 14, 2025 Place: Albemarle County Public Schools / School Board meeting, Virginia Length: 1h 56m (video) Official meeting video (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kU5_niLaUwg Machine transcript (speech-to-text) produced by Coraggio Consulting. Not an official county record. Names and numbers may be misspelled; check the video at the timestamp before quoting. Speech-to-text: whisper.cpp, model large-v3-turbo. Produced 2026-10-14. Timestamps are [HH:MM:SS] into the meeting video. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [00:00:02] Good evening, everyone. This August 14th meeting of the Albemarle County School Board is now in session. We have a few items to address before we get to welcoming our guests tonight. First, a roll call, beginning with Dr. Kaiser. [00:00:22] Daphne Kaiser, Assistant Superintendent for School Community Engagement. Rosalind Schmidt, Chief Operating Officer. Chandra Hayes, Assistant Superintendent of Instruction. Allison Spillman, at-large representative. [00:00:34] Graham Page Miller District Representative Kate Acuff Jack Jewett Representative Rebecca Berlin Whitehall Representative Ellen Osborne Scottsville Representative Leslie Pryor Ryo District Representative Josiah Black School Division Counsel Lauren Crawford Administrative Support Specialist Patrick McLaughlin Superintendent Dan Redding Chief HR Officer thank you the next item is approval as the Pledge of Allegiance sorry now we'll pause from [00:01:30] moment of silence. The next item is approval of tonight's agenda. Do I have a motion? I move. We [00:02:06] approve tonight's agenda. I second. All those in favor? Aye. Opposed? Motion passes. Next item is announcements. First, Dr. Kaiser. Good evening, Dr. Acuff, school board members. It gives me great [00:02:42] pleasure this evening to present the after action report for the 2025 back to school bash. The Back to School Bash began more than a decade ago, founded by Dr. Alvin Edwards, pastor of the Mount Zion First African Baptist Church and the Pastors Council to ensure every student began the school year with the necessary tools to succeed. What started as a church-led supply drive has grown into one of the region's largest community celebrations, supported over [00:03:17] the years by Charlottesville City Schools, Albemarle County Public Schools, Charlottesville and Albemarle Local Government, and a wide network of business and community partners. Marking the start of a new school year, the 2025 Back to School Bash brought families, ACPS staff and community partners together for an afternoon of connection, resources and celebration. [00:03:43] This year's event also served as a milestone in the transition to AFE. the Albemarle Foundation for Education, which now leads the project in partnership with the Office for Community Engagement and Communities and Schools of ACPS. [00:04:01] The AFE provides direct district-level strategy, financial stewardship, and moving forward volunteer coordination to sustain and expand the BASH's impact. Planning for the event began early May with the BASH Steering Committee meeting biweekly until July when the pace increased to weekly sessions to finalize logistics. [00:04:26] Over two days, it initially started as one day, July 24th and July 31st, the Stuff the Backpacks event was held at the ACPS warehouse. Nearly 50 volunteers, including AFE board members, school board members, and ACPS staff assembled over 1,400 backpacks. [00:04:50] A special thanks to the leadership and generosity of Mr. Andy Nielsen, ACPS Materials Inventory and Supply Manager who offered the space and guided logistics. In addition, a special thank you goes to Mr. Bill Peters and his students from Uplevel Martial Arts who not only helped during the event but returned later the following week to finish the remaining backpacks and then supported the bash all day from registration to running a resource table. [00:05:23] This year's bash was a success thanks to strong collaboration across ACPS. Fiscal services supported with procurement and budget management. Building services hosted the stuffing event, stored supplies and managed setup, transportation and day of support. [00:05:42] Communications managed promotions, website content and press coordination. Third floor office assistance team provided planning, created registration materials, and day of support, created scavenger hunt passports, delivered displays, and secured raffle prizes. The Office for Community Engagement led community partner recruitment, volunteer coordination, and event management. [00:06:07] Instruction supported family outreach, business and community partnerships, and entertainment coordination. The resource fair included 40 community partners from local nonprofits and civic groups to ACPS departments and schools. Charlottesville City Fire and Police Department and the Albemarle County Police Department are offering valuable resources and services to families. The Friends of the Downtown Mall enhanced the experience with a passport and scavenger hunt, complete with eight donated prizes [00:06:47] and a grand prize iPad from the Albemarle Foundation for Education. We wanted to extend our deepest appreciation to every community partner, local business, faith organization, and civic group that contributed time, resources, and energy to make this year's bash possible. [00:07:08] Whether you staffed a table, donated supplies, sponsored an activity, provided entertainment, or helped behind the scenes, your involvement had a direct and meaningful impact on our students and families. The event is only possible because of the generosity and commitment of our community. Saturday, August the 2nd started early. By 7 a.m., the OCE and office assistance team were at the team setting up community resource tables, arranging backpack distribution lines, [00:07:41] and organizing registration areas on the downtown mall. By 8 a.m., families were arriving. Community partners followed at 8.30. And by 8.45, Moe's Barbecue, Ben and Jerry's, and the DJ were setting up. [00:07:57] The first shipment of backpacks arrived shortly after, with Jack Pace and LaQuentin Bain from Building Services providing exceptional support, moving pallets, positioning bins, setting up tents, and assisting wherever needed. [00:08:13] At 9.50, AFE President Randy Tripp welcomed the crowd, followed by ACPS Superintendent Dr. Matthew Haas, who officially opened the event. Families spent the morning collecting backpacks, visiting resource tables, completing the scavenger hunt, enjoying food and ice cream, and listening to music. Meanwhile, the Herman Key Recreation Center via Blue Ridge Health Department and Sintero Martha Jefferson hosted immunizations and sports physicals. 54 students received physicals that day. Backpacks distributed at the event was [00:08:53] 1,166, 716 elementary, and 450 secondary. The remaining backpacks were were distributed to schools, and that was 533, 283 to elementary, and 252 to secondary. [00:09:14] And the total number of backpacks for this year was 1,700. And again, the sports physicals completed, we had 54. [00:09:29] The 2025 Back to School Bash embodied the best of Albemarle County, collaboration, generosity, community spirit. With the Albemarle Foundation for Education, the AFE, now leading the initiative and strong partnerships across ACPS and the community, the BASH remains a cornerstone event in helping students start the school year prepared and confident. We thank our community partners once again for standing alongside us to support our students. Your contributions make a difference not just on event day but in the lives of ACPS families throughout [00:10:09] the year. And I thank you. Thank you, Dr. Kaiser. The next item of business and announcements is a new teacher academy. Yes, good evening, Chair Acuff. Tonight, I wanted to share information about our new teacher academy and pre-service week. From July 28 through August the 1st, ACPS welcomed approximately 150 teachers, including 50 novice, which is zero to one years of experience, to our division. This This professional learning experience was a collaboration between division leadership and school administrators, and it was held at Lakeside Middle School. [00:10:46] The focus was around our vision, mission, values, instructional priorities, school-based orientation and available resources. Novice teachers were introduced to the ACPS Novice Teacher Support Network, which supports their induction during their first three years. [00:11:02] New this year, we launched a two-year induction program for our veteran teachers joining ACPS, individual coaching and CRE micro-credentialing requirements. Participant feedback was overwhelmingly positive with all sessions rated as informative or highly informative and many appreciated the conference style schedule. From August the 4th through the 8th all teachers participated in pre-service activities that combined school-based and division-led professional learning. For the first time ever we hosted a total of 95 sessions across August 5th and August 8th at several sites across the county. These sessions were designed to strengthen instructional best practices and [00:11:41] curricular implementation ensure high quality learning for all for each of our students I am grateful for the strong partnerships between the various departments and building leaders to organize two weeks of successful professional learning that will echo throughout the school year thank you thank you dr. Hayes start of the school year so I do I've got a couple things to share dr. Acuff first I want to congratulate one of our board members I'd like to take a moment to recognize an important honor received by one of our board members. [00:12:13] At-large board member Allison Spillman has been named 2025 Be Smart Visionary by the Everytown for Gun Safety Support Funds Be Smart Program. This national recognition celebrates individuals who show exceptional leadership in promoting secure firearm storage and community safety. [00:12:34] Ms. Spillman was nominated by Mike Fox, chapter lead for Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, for her dedicated work to elevate the Be Smart message throughout our community. This recognition is especially meaningful given the school board's adoption of a resolution in February 2024 in support of secure firearm storage and the division's collaboration on the following month with the Be Smart program to share an important message about secure gun storage with our community. [00:13:07] Be Smart will recognize visionaries during the SMART week later this month, and we are proud to see Ms. Spillman's leadership honored on a national level. On behalf of our entire school community, congratulations, Allison. Thank you. And thank you for your commitment to the safety and well-being of our students, families, our schools, and our community. [00:13:26] Thank you. Thank you. I appreciate it. Good for having us. I want to just extend my thanks to every member of our Albemarle County Public Schools team for making this year's early opening more than a week ahead of our usual schedule a real success. [00:13:52] Over the past two days, I've visited all 29 of our schools and centers. I saw bus drivers wishing students well as they stepped off the buses, helping them begin their day on a positive note. Our building services staff worked day and night to have classrooms, hallways, and common spaces ready for learning. [00:14:13] While excessive rain, a short summer, and building projects put us a bit behind on groundskeeping, the crews are catching up quickly. In our cafeterias, child nutrition teams were serving food that was both nutritious and appealing. Teachers and instructional assistants were already deep into engaging lessons, and school counselors were making sure schedules worked while offering a listening ear to students. School nurses had clinics ready to support student health from day one and office staff welcomed families and kept the day running smoothly. Administrators including central office staff from the [00:14:50] cabinet and our directors were visible in every building and technology staff were making sure devices connected and systems worked. Central office teams, HR, finance curriculum to make this earlier start possible most importantly I saw students welcomed into safe caring and well-prepared environments that's a testament to your professionalism teamwork our board's vision and commitment to our mission on behalf of Almond County administration our families in our community thank you for your strong and inspiring start to the [00:15:27] year. Thank you. Thank you, Dr. Haas. And now we're going to move into a spotlight on education and this is in two parts. We will be honoring the commitment and work that Chuck Pace did as a member of the school board and as a member of this community. Here with us it's in two parts. First part will be a resolution that delegate Katrina Colson introduced in the General Assembly. Katrina was our a former colleague on the school board and she will make that presentation and then we will also [00:16:06] read a resolution from the school board but before we get started why don't we just recognize the family members who are here tonight with us ann marie pays chuck's wife daughters madeline and cali pays chuck's brother michael pace ann marie's sister margaret lacrone and her husband david LeCrone, who donated the kidney to Chuck in 2002 and is a longtime ACPS, parentheses, Greer teacher. [00:16:36] Welcome you all here on this sad but celebratory occasion celebrating Chuck's life. I think the resolution will be read from the General Assembly by Dr. Berlin. It's an honor to read this. [00:16:52] Thank you very much for that privilege. This is from the Commonwealth of Virginia General Assembly, House Joint Resolution No. 597, celebrating the life of Charles C. Pace, agreed to by the House of Delegates February 10, 2025, agreed to by the Senate February 13, 2025, whereas Charles C. Pace, an honorable veteran, esteemed educator, and public servant, and beloved father and member of the Charlottesville [00:17:27] community, died on December 18, 2024. And whereas Charles Chuck C. Pace graduated from Charlottesville High School in 1978 before earning a degree from the Virginia Military Institute in 1982 and serving his country with honor and distinction as a member of the United States Navy. And whereas, following his service, Chuck Pace discovered his life's purpose when he began teaching at Blue Ridge School in St. George. He would go on to teach biology and chemistry at Albemarle High School [00:18:03] for many years and go on to serve as a science instructional coordinator for Albemarle County Public Schools for 11 years before returning to Blue Ridge School, where he retired in 2022. And whereas over his remarkable 39-year career as an educator and coach, Chuck Pace worked tirelessly to support his students and fellow faculty, contributed greatly to their success both in and out of the classroom. [00:18:33] And whereas from 1982 to 2001, Chuck Pace contributed to the safety and security of the nation as an intelligent officer in the United States Naval Reserve, retiring as a commander. And whereas Chuck Pace was appointed in 2023 and later elected to serve as the Rio Discut representative on the Albemarle County School Board, a responsibility that he devoted himself to fully for the benefit of the students and families of Albemarle County. [00:19:05] And whereas Chuck Pace, with the consummate family man who embraced every opportunity to spend quality time with his wife and children, aiding them in their pursuits and cheering them along on every step of the way. [00:19:20] And whereas Chuck Pace will be fondly remembered and dearly missed by his loving wife of 34 years, Anne Marie, his children, Madeline, Callie, Robert, and Laura, and numerous other family members and friends, now, therefore, be it resolved by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, that the General Assembly hereby note with great sadness the loss of Charles C. Pace, a treasured member of the Charlottesville community whose dedication [00:19:55] and legacy of service inspired all who knew him and be it resolved further that the clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for the presentation to the family of Charles C. Pace as an expression of the General Assembly's respect for his memory. House patrons Carlson, Laufer, Cousins, Hope, Martinez, and Ware, Senate Patron, Deeds, Ciphers, Diggs, and Saleem. [00:20:24] Signed, Clerk of the House of Delegates. And now Delegate Coulson will present the resolution. I just want to note that it was my privilege to write this for Chuck. [00:20:44] It was my privilege to know him for the short time that I did. I'm a sympathetic crier, so I'm also struggling here. This was agreed to by all 140 members of the General Assembly. it was unanimously passed. It will forever be in the roll books of the Virginia General Assembly to honor Chuck's memory and thank you. Thank you for letting us borrow him, having him serve all of the students and the community members, and thank you for letting us honor him with this. [00:21:17] Thank you, Delegate Coulson. And we now also have a resolution from the school board in memory of Chuck being read by Ms. Osborne. Thank you. On behalf of the Albemarle County School Board, it is our privilege to honor the life and service of our colleague and friend, Charles Chuck Pace. [00:21:39] We are grateful to the Virginia General Assembly for their proclamation recognizing Chuck's contributions to our community. Their words reflect what we here in Albemarle County Public Schools know so well. Chuck devoted his life to serving others, especially students, families, and fellow educators. [00:21:59] Chuck began his work with Albemarle County Public Schools in 1986 as a biology teacher at Albemarle High School, later serving as our science instructional coordinator. Across more than three decades in education and in his time as coach, technology facilitator, and mentor, he inspired generations of students and supported teachers with insight, creativity, and a steadfast belief in their ability to succeed. From his appointment to the school board as the [00:22:38] Rio Magisterial District Representative in December 2023, and continuing with his election in November 2024, Chuck approached the role with the same energy and purpose that defined his career. He had long wanted to serve in this capacity, and after retiring from teaching and coaching, he embraced the opportunity to give back in a new way. With decades of experience as both classroom teacher and a central office administrator, he brought insight, perspective, [00:23:13] and integrity to every discussion. He made it a priority to spend time in schools, connecting with students and staff, and his dedication never wavered, even while facing personal health challenges. Beyond his many accomplishments, we will remember Chuck for his kindness, his sense of humor, and genuine love for people. He was a steady and encouraging presence, and his absence is deeply felt. Today, we present this golden apple to his wife, Anne-Marie Pace, as a symbol [00:23:49] of our gratitude and respect. It is a reminder of the profound difference one life can make, and of Chuck's lasting impact on the students, families, and colleagues who had the privilege of knowing him. [00:24:03] And the Pace family need not stay for the rest of the school board meeting as fascinating as it will be. [00:27:53] Thank you for coming. The formal introduction of the 2025-26 student school board representatives and Dr. Kaiser, I believe, will be introducing them. [00:28:17] And again, Dr. Eric Acuff, school board members, ACPS staff, students and community members. [00:28:39] One of the greatest strengths of Albemarle County Public Schools is our commitment to ensuring that the voices of our students are not only heard, but actively shape the policies and practices that define our learning community. [00:28:57] Research consistently shows that when young people are given authentic opportunities to They develop stronger leadership skills, a deep sense of civic responsibility, and a lifelong commitment to serving their communities. The role of student school board representative is not symbolic. It is essential. [00:29:18] It embodies our belief that those most directly affected by decisions should have a seat at the table. These representatives listen to their peers, bring forward diverse perspectives, and help us make decisions that reflect the real experiences of our students. [00:29:34] They also gain invaluable skills in leadership, public speaking, problem solving, and collaboration, skills they will carry for life. Tonight, we are proud to introduce our 2025-2026 student school board representatives, along with our alternate. [00:29:56] Each of these students has demonstrated exceptional commitment to their school community and a passion for equity and the courage to advocate for change. Representing Albemarle High School is Amy Wang. [00:30:12] Amy is an accomplished leader serving on the Student Equity Advisory Board, the Countywide Student Senate, and as an officer in the Young Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, or YAPIC, of Charlottesville. [00:30:30] She has spearheaded initiatives such as securing grant funding to expand translation devices for multilingual students and families, removing barriers to communication and fostering a stronger sense of belonging. Amy brings a sharp focus on inclusivity, ensuring that voices from all backgrounds are heard and respected. [00:30:54] Representing Monticello High School is Maximilian Koffler. Maximilian has honed his leadership and public speaking skills to be a strong, confident voice at Monticello. He is committed to improving student mental health supports, strengthening school community connections through more frequent assemblies and activities, and helping students navigate important grade-level transitions. [00:31:22] Representing Western Albemarle High School is Claire Currie. Claire is a passionate advocate for inclusion, equity, and cultural awareness. As a cheer captain, former student council president, and active member of the ACPS Student Senate, she has shown how listening and collaboration can lead to meaningful change. [00:31:45] She helped organize Western Albemarle's Better Together Multicultural Festival, which celebrates diversity and promotes unity. Representing Community Lab School is Layton Cox. Leighton is a dedicated and engaged member of his school, active in sports, events, and fundraisers. [00:32:06] He brings a practical, student-centered perspective to school governance, with a strong focus on mental health, academic support for students who need it, and building stronger communication between students and teachers. Serving as our alternate from Albemarle High School is Maxwell Keyes. [00:32:27] Maxwell is a determined and compassionate leader, serving on the student equity and advisory team to elevate issues facing black students in ACPS. His priorities include increasing representation among black mathematics teachers, addressing inequities tied to race and income, and boosting student engagement and learning. [00:32:52] Please join me in congratulating Amy Maximilian, Claire Layton, and Maxwell. [00:33:15] Our students' voices will guide us toward a more inclusive, supportive, and forward-thinking school system, and we look forward to the year ahead, confident that their leadership [00:33:51] will inspire both their peers and all of us who have the privilege of serving Albemarle County Public Schools. Thank you. Dr. Kaiser, before you leave, I'd like to bring to your attention that we have the original student school board rep in the house tonight, Angel Pilkey. [00:34:08] I hear he's going to, I hear he'll be writing laws in Richmond next week or this winter. So you see what you guys have ahead of you. [00:34:26] And with that, we do as a school board welcome both your insights into what students across the division are thinking, but also it will give you a taste of what policy making at a local level looks like. [00:34:43] And feel free to reach out to any of the school board members if you have questions about the agendas or what happened in the meetings. We really look forward to a vibrant exchange of ideas, but welcome all of you. The next item on the agenda then is public comment and I believe miss Tillman has that I do We welcome public input at our school board meetings to sign up to speak during public comment period you can do so in several ways Online sign up is available from 9 a.m. On the Monday of the meeting week until 2 p.m. [00:35:21] Of the meeting day by phone call the school board clerk's office at four three four nine seven two four zero five five to sign up until 2 p.m. of the meeting day or in person sign up at the meeting is available from 6 pm until the public comment period for in-person meetings only please note that the public comment is if public comment is not received at special board meetings unless specified on the agenda each speaker will have three minutes to speak but the chair with board consent may reduce this to two minutes should there be 14 or more speakers the maximum number of people or groups that may speak at a meeting is 20 in the event there are more than 20 people or groups who wish to speak at a particular meeting [00:36:00] each speaker will be assigned a number and numbers will be drawn to determine which people or groups will have the opportunity to speak those who do not have the opportunity to speak at a particular meeting may sign up to speak at a subsequent meeting and or may submit written comments for the school board's consideration speakers should state their name address or voting district address comments to the school board limit comments to school board governance or school division operations provide written statements and supporting materials to the clerk the school board will use a timer to track each speaker's time once the time is up speakers are asked to wrap up their comments to maintain respect please refrain from clapping or other [00:36:38] audible forms of support you may raise your hand instead debate with the school board is not allowed the projection system is for staff presentations only we have five speakers tonight we'll each get three minutes the first one is karen egan hi i'm karen egan from the ravana district many Albemarle County Schools are over capacity but tonight I will focus on the greatest need the high schools ACPS high schools have been over capacity for [00:37:15] far too long in 1997 Albemarle High School was over capacity by only 172 students so they built Monticello High School by 2010 AHS was again over 95% of its building capacity last year AHS was over capacity by over 300 students and and held classrooms in 16 temporary trailers that have been in use for quite some time this year ahs is beginning the school year with 1943 students far above and beyond the number of students at monticello and western and any other nearby high schools in our neighboring districts [00:37:53] nearly half of all high school students in the county are districted to attend ahs the board of supervisors continues to approve new development in the northern feeder area rapidly increasing the number of students districted to attend but no funding isn't allotted to build a new school or fund additional programs for students at albemarle in fact larger schools often result in less money being spent per student for example in 2021 the per student cost at albemarle was nine thousand eight hundred and seventy dollars compared to eleven thousand and four dollars per student at monticello about 30 percent of students at albemarle are from low-income families versus for [00:38:32] example about 12 percent at Western. This inequity needs to be addressed at a county level by rapidly building new facilities. There was a lot of support in the December 2024 long-range planning advisory committee meeting for building a new high school. In addition, Western Albemarle High School is also well over capacity. In the fall of 2024, Western was over capacity by 137 students and there were eight classrooms housed in trailers. At the start of this school year enrollment has already increased again and now they are about 1300 students nearly 200 over their official building capacity we're at [00:39:07] the point where a new high school and an addition at western are needed and they're both needed now we cannot keep waiting monticello high school was also over capacity last year about 55 students over their official building capacity waiting to begin new construction drives higher prices waiting means our children continue to attend overcrowded schools waiting means acps students and staff work in classrooms that are too small for the number of students there waiting means students and staff are in trailers that put their safety at risk every single day waiting means [00:39:42] continuing to use facilities across the county that haven't been refurbished even despite using ratings from the 2023 long-range planning advisory committee that reviewed them and labeled them as inadequate or poor short-term and long-term solutions are both needed immediately acps hasn't advocated enough or invested enough in new school buildings for far too long our high schools need [00:40:05] relief now middle schools too thank you miss egan um next we have bridget rogers hi good evening my name is bridget rogers and i'm a parent of two kids in the ravanna district on april 11 2017 the albano county planning commission had a public hearing with the school board some of you were participants at this meeting growth trends from the early 2000s to mid 2010s were discussed from [00:40:41] a Weldon Cooper study today the landscape of housing and population growth has trained has changed drastically yet the same talking points from that meeting persist statements like the county is aging unless students are attending our schools we have declining student populations and growth and they're often repeated as a reason not to act now the public doesn't need a study to know that these statements aren't true drive north on 29 and look around over 8 000 homes have been approved in the northern corridor and more seem to be added at each and every supervisor's meeting [00:41:17] the same story is true in the rest of the county last year's redistricting data showed that a total of 13 000 new residential units were to be constructed across the county our schools are bursting at the seams and teachers and students are paying the price for these development choices in 2016 the county ran a successful bond referendum and 74 of residents voted to support schools at the 2017 planning meeting I discussed earlier it was stated that if the county was going to build another high school another bond referendum would need to be done ASAP the county ultimately decided to fund centers instead of a new high school but the centers have not solved the high school [00:41:55] capacity issues and students from across the county are not using them as imagined but here we are eight and a half years later still talking about the very same concept of a plan for high schools and no additional bond referendum since the one success in 2016 almost every single school is at or over building capacity it's beyond time to engage an independent engineering firm to assess facility needs and rank these in a non-political way and to work with the board of supervisors closely on a comprehensive approach to address these facility issues and other issues that the county is facing i believe that if leadership works together it is possible for this school board to leave a legacy [00:42:35] bold action that supports our schools thank you thank you um next we have rashmi guy good evening my name is rashmi guy and i'm a parent of a seventh grader at henley middle school from the whitehall district i'm here to express my concerns about school capacity and the state of our school buildings henley western albemarle high school albemarle high school rely on trailer [00:43:13] classrooms called villas and cottages by our school division but they are trailers and they are meant to be temporary they have now become permanent fixtures western albemarle for example has eight trailer classrooms and still over capacity by nearly 200 students this year trailers have serious safety concerns and disconnect students from the larger learning community there's been discussions of using centers more to relieve over capacity but this is not practical for students in the western feeder pattern even with these centers the schools remain over capacity [00:43:49] transportation has already stated they can't guarantee that students bused from center two will return in time for after school activities i believe school enrollment projections are inaccurate in 2024 2025 13 624 students were projected but in reality 13 757 students were enrolled the formulas used do not reflect the reality of housing types such as townhomes where many families with school-aid children live. The data from the county is incomplete and approved but unbuilt housing developments are not included in these projections. In Crozet, there are at least [00:44:29] two developments that are still being built, three others that have been approved but not built, and two others that are in deferred status. The Board of Supervisors continues to approve new housing developments without fully considering the impact on school capacity and resources. [00:44:45] The need for Western Albemarle to be expanded and a new high school should be a top priority. I strongly urge the school board, board of supervisors, county staff, and outside consultants to meet regularly and collaboratively to address these urgent issues before conditions worsen. [00:45:03] Our teachers and students deserve safe, permanent, and connected learning environments. Thank you. Thank you. Next is Robert Perez. Good evening. Thank you for the opportunity to speak. [00:45:26] My name is Robert Perez. I am a father of three in the Ravana district. And my wife and I were remarking how it's hard to believe we already have a fourth grader this year. And if we've got a fourth grader this year, we've got a fifth grader next year in middle school and high school's on the horizon. And so I am also here to speak about the capacity issues that I have heard and read about in advance of this meeting. I'm part of the growth that people have referred to. My family moved here in 2022 from Iowa, via shortstop in Northern Virginia. And one of the things that drew [00:46:01] us here was a strong education system. I myself am a product of an overcrowded urban school. I remember classes and trailers. They were not my preferred learning environment. And in many ways, I feel like I overcame a huge high school rather than benefited from it. I think that the county, the supervisors, yourselves, others, are all doing their best to make Albemarle prosperous, you know, and attractive for everybody. And so, you know, as somebody mentioned, I also live north on 29. I see evidence of that every day with, you know, new framing going up, [00:46:40] forest being cleared, new land being prepared for housing for what I expect will be a fair number of families. I understand from my readings that this is not a new issue for the county, that this opportunity has come and gone several times, and each time it's come up, the costs have only increased. [00:46:58] I also understand that as a public board, you are under pressure to innovate, and I see that, you know, the centers and other sort of novel approaches are a part of that. Again, I remember from my own days in high schools, there were magnet schools, there were academies within public schools, different approaches that had their upsides, but in In many ways, the traditional formula maintained large high schools that served as a focal point for their communities, their feeder districts, and for the families. [00:47:30] And so I feel like this is sort of a solution that will keep coming up until we're sort of forced to embrace it. I encourage the board to do so sooner rather than later. As an elder millennial, I've seen shock after shock in my adult life and never has it resulted in cheaper anything. [00:47:48] So I think the costs of this politically, financially, will only go up the farther it's pushed off into the future. So I encourage the board to pursue a new northern-serving high school as quickly as feasible. Thank you for the time. Thank you. And finally, Chris Dilbeck. [00:48:09] Hello. My name is Chris Dilbeck. I'm from the Rivanna District, and I graduated from Altmaro High School back in 2005. Last meeting, there was some discussion about the grading policy, and I wanted to provide some comment and I guess compare and contrast, to use the educational term, of the grading policies of today to the grading policies the way it was in 2005 when I was in school. [00:48:39] First off, the thing that stood out to me was the 50% minimum scores. That was quite a bit of difference from what I was used to when we had a 7 or 8 point scale with 0 being the minimum. I believe that component of the policy is inconsistent because the first point in the 2025 grading scale claims that grading should be done based on achievement alone. [00:49:02] If you give students a 50% minimum score on any assignment, even if they don't hand in that assignment, that sounds like a grade for enrollment or a grade for attendance, which is prohibited by the rest of the policy. Additionally, it greatly reduces the effort that's required to pass a class. [00:49:21] If it allows students to skip significant quantities of assignments, and not engage with every component of the class. The policy is correct in a lot of other areas. It, zero is quite a harsh penalty for students. [00:49:37] I was a B average student at Albemarle. I always had the ability to lose an assignment in all kinds of ways, leaving it in a locker, my football locker, my car, another classroom, the computer lab, and the list goes on for more time than I have. [00:49:53] There's definitely some significant improvements in the policy today, including the formalizing revision policy i would have loved been able to do that to be able to go back and revise an assignment that i left somewhere or handed in late and didn't get to get a zero for it therefore i recommend that the school board try to find a balance between the policy the way it was in 2005 to the way is today some options for that you could apply minimum scores only to a fixed number of assignments maybe the first three or the lowest three you could tie them to the revision policy [00:50:30] so a student has to engage with the revision policy in order to receive the minimum score another option would be you could mark specific assignments as critical assignments that prevent someone from passing the class if they don't hand them in at all finally i believe that policy is going in the right direction for 2026 the one on there's a part in the 2025 policy about allowing a teacher to assign a grade of incomplete or insufficient evidence a student obviously doesn't engaged with the class but there's no specific information in that policy about what that is so [00:51:05] i'd recommend making that more objective and spelling that out for what what criteria would involve there thank you thank you and that concludes public comment thank you ms spillman the next item on the agenda is approval of the consent agenda i move we approve tonight's consent agenda? Any discussion? All those in favor of approving tonight's consent agenda? Aye. Say aye. [00:51:43] Opposed? Sorry, did I not say aye? I'm sorry. Maybe I wasn't listening. Okay. Tonight's consent agenda is approved. The main order of business remaining is a look at some of the things that our public commenters raised with respect to our high school facilities and specifically the goal at the end of tonight or at least at the end of next school next school board meeting is to provide guidance to the long-range planning [00:52:22] advisory committee what is it that we're asking them to study and report back on and I believe we have Maya Kumazawa at the mic good evening dr. Acuff members of the school board. My name is Maya Kumazawa, Director of Budget and Planning, and this evening I will help facilitate the discussion around high school facilities planning. This is our agenda. I'm going to start off by providing some background information, and then Mr. Wirtman here will [00:53:02] provide an overview of various alternatives, and then we'll have some time at the end for clarifying questions and requests for additional information. This is, as you can see, a very short agenda. We plan on reserving some time, as Dr. Acuff mentioned, on September 11th, after you've digested the information for a more thorough discussion. This presentation aligns with our strategic plan, Learning for All, with a focus on the goal of providing equitable and transformative [00:53:35] resources. Before I begin, I just wanted to outline some high school project needs in the short-term, medium-term, and the long-term. For this current year, we have a capital budget appropriated for high school renovations for 4 million dollars 1.4 million dollars of that will be used for the albemarle high school connector wing 2.6 million dollars is remaining to be allocated for the current year in the medium term which is years two through five the board of supervisors have approved about four million dollars per year in high school renovation [00:54:14] funding so over four years that amounts to about 16 million dollars and then in the long term which which is FY29 to 31. That request is not funded, but there are various alternatives that we're looking at that we'll go into more detail later on. [00:54:32] The purpose for tonight is for you to be informed on the background of high school facilities planning and develop an understanding of the various criteria for developing a long-term vision for high school facilities, which may impact near-term renovation decisions. [00:54:48] The Long Range Planning Advisory Committee looks for guidance from the school board by September 11th, so that the guidance can be incorporated into their biannual report that will be presented to you on October 23rd. On the right of the slide, you can see a more detailed timeline. So as Dr. Acuff mentioned, after today, we'll have a discussion on September 11th. And then on October 13th, the committee will come and present their recommendations. And the action will happen in on November 13th in terms of the CIP request. [00:55:23] I'll first start with enrollment and capacity. This chart shows the ACPS projected enrollment for the next 10 years. The orange dotted line is the ACPS projection that we use for planning purposes. And the other lines are other sources that we look to for supplemental information. [00:55:43] We project to grow by 3.5% in the next five years 7.8 percent over the next 10 years and looking a little bit more closely at just high schools and this is totaling up the enrollment projections for our three comprehensive high schools and ace academy seminal place it's about 4 300 to 4 700 students over the next 10 years similarly if you add up all the high school capacity or the seats available to our high school students you can see [00:56:19] those numbers in the second row if you subtract the capacity if you subtract the student enrollment projection from the capacity number you get a projected capacity conflict and that is in the third row so if it's red it means there are more students than there are seats capacity is based on planned instructional programming and staffing for each school building and those can change from year to year so you'll see that last year we were over capacity in all of our high schools by about [00:56:53] 400 students and are projected to be at a similar level for the current year next year when we open the ahs connector wing and we open ace academy lambs lane we do anticipate on resolving the capacity conflicts and that will be the case for several years but then you can see out in the later years years five through ten there's again a significant projected conflict at our high school level. So now let's look at the high schools individually. We'll start with Albemarle [00:57:29] High School. The blue columns represent the student enrollment projections. You can see currently those blue columns are higher than the horizontal blue line that represents the current capacity at Albemarle without the use of trailers. Next year, as I mentioned, we'll be opening a connector wing that will provide additional classrooms and that's that solid orange line next year also when ace lambs lane opens we plan on shifting a significant number of students to fill the seats there so that orange dotted line represents the number of seats we're planning to [00:58:08] be filled by albemarle high school students so um since albemarle is the high the largest school this data represents the table from the slide before where you're fine for a few years but but then in the out years, particularly in the 31-32 school year, the school will be projected to be overcapacity. [00:58:28] This is a similar data for Monticello High School, and they're slightly overcapacity currently. And with Ace Lambs Lane, they'll be fine for the next five years or so, and then they'll be slightly overcapacity in the out years. [00:58:44] And then finally, for Western Albemarle High School, they have a greater capacity conflict currently, you can see by the blue columns that are over the blue solid horizontal line. And then although when Ace Lambsland opens next year and some students we are planning to head over there will not fully resolve the conflicts in any of the years. This is a map of the housing development pipeline as of about last year. The map on the left shows the high school boundaries and then the red outlines [00:59:22] show where the projects are currently planned. These are all various sizes, but the most significant developments are pointed out on the right. They include North Fork and North Point, Hollymead, and Brookhill. The numbers behind those developments are shown here on this table. [00:59:43] You can see all three high school feeder patterns are impacted in a fairly significant way, but the yellow highlights that most of the growth is happening in the Albemarle District. You can see by the k-12 student yield all the way on the right which is a estimate of how many students might be added in the long term another consideration to take in is high school size this is a chart that shows similarly sized school districts in virginia located in rural and suburban counties [01:00:19] the the county is listed across the top and then the number in the parentheses is the number of high schools that are listed. So you can see for Albemarle County, there's a three next to it representing our three comprehensive high schools. And then under that, we show the minimum, so the smallest high school in that county, the average size high school in that county, and then the largest high school in the county. For the minimum and the mean, you can see that Albemarle County is generally within the range of its peers, with the exception of Albemarle, which is our largest high [01:00:55] school is significantly larger in size than the peers that are shown on the slide so i'll jump next into high school projects background this is how we got here and our current high school facilities plans in 2017 we conducted a high school facility study and in that study it was recommended that we implement a high school center model and so the following year we opened center one now known as A Seminole Trail that opened with eight classrooms. [01:01:29] The following year, we opened a science lab addition at Western Albemarle High School. Because of the pandemic in 2020, the planned Center 2 or A Slam's Lane that was already being designed for was paused, that funding was paused altogether during the pandemic. [01:01:47] So that's what caused the significant delay in where we are today. in 2021 we did complete an albemarle high school and western albemarle high school renovation master plan study that was a direct result of the 2017 high school facility study that not only recommended a center model but also recommended renovations to the existing high schools also in 2021 the school board held a work session on high school centers in 2021 then the funding for [01:02:22] center two or ace lambs lane was reinstated and we began the process for design and construction as soon as that project was approved again as i mentioned previously um the albermouth high school corridor addition will open next year that is a direct result of that renovation master plan study and the high school facility study and that will add about 115 seats and then center two or ace lambs lane will also open next year which will provide 400 seats for our high school [01:02:52] students this slide has links to that study in 2017 that has details around the recommendations and the justifications and all the data that was studied back then in summary though this was the high school center model that was recommended so you can see in the purple circles are comprehensive high schools and then one or more high school centers that are located in a way where transportation would be provided between the base high schools and the high school centers it would also be [01:03:27] located near businesses and community partners with the goal of providing project-based learning in a community setting for all of our students. The goal was also for teachers to engage in innovative program and learning design, leading practices, leadership, and community building, and they could integrate with community experts and advisors for both students and teachers. [01:03:50] This is a similar visual, but it has the enrollment and capacity numbers from 2017, and at that time we were projecting that peak enrollment would be 2024-25 which is our latest actual enrollment data and we were very close to those projections we're slightly under actually because of the pandemic but as i mentioned capacity can fluctuate based on instructional programming and staffing so capacity is also a little bit lower than we were back then [01:04:24] so the ratio of enrollment to capacity is actually the same now as it was predicted in 2017. We're just behind on the timeline. Here's a little bit of overview about Ace Academy Seminole Trail. This was the initial pilot program for the center model. It opened in fall 2018 with a capacity of 120 daily students or 240 total students that attend every other day. The lease ACE was just renewed this summer and it will extend through June 2034 at $6.2 million over [01:05:03] the nine years. A little bit of background on ACE Academy at Lambs Lane, formerly called Center II. This was originally part of the FY19 budget. It was envisioned to be a 90,000 square foot, two-story building with a daily capacity of 600 students that would be open for the 21-22 school year. [01:05:29] And then, however, in April 2019, that scope of the project was reduced from 600 to 400 students, primarily due to budget constraints. In the 21 and 22 adopted budget, the county transferred some property to us as a site for the development of Center 2, and it was going to house the Mesa and HEMSA academies. [01:05:56] But as I mentioned previously, due to the pandemic, the project was paused at the conclusion of the schematic design phase. So since FY23, the budget has been reinstated as a 400-student-per-day capacity. [01:06:15] And then in 25 and 26, it was determined that Center 2 would be located on the Lamsland campus. So here are some visuals of what the center will look like when it's complete on the left, and then some current construction photos on the right. [01:06:31] I'll switch over now to the renovations projects requests that were part of the high school facility study. This is the request as of last year, remains partially funded, and you'll see on the slide that Albemarle High School was prioritized first to be completed in FY26, and as I mentioned, as part of this renovation project, there would be additional classrooms added, and right now that connector wing is under construction and funded. [01:07:07] The total request, though, was $20 million, and that's partially funded. The next priority was Western Albemarle High School. The request was for that to occur in FY27, and as part of that renovation study, we were estimating an additional 10 to 12 classrooms, but that project remains unfunded. [01:07:27] And then finally, there was a proposal to renovate the bathrooms at Monticello High School, also not funded, but at $2 million. This is the overall timeline of looking at our high school capacity projects and compared to the capacity conflicts. [01:07:47] So Ace Lambs Lane or Center 2 is a current project fully funded, which will open next year as well as I've mentioned several times the connector wing at AHS will also open next year. So then you'll recognize those numbers at the bottom. [01:08:02] Those are the capacity conflicts that change due to the new facilities opening. So as you can see, when the capacity conflicts become more significant in the capital needs assessment or in the out years, years six through 10, there was a request to begin design of a high school project in FY29, construct it for a couple of years and have a facility open for the 31-32 school year when those numbers become fairly significant. [01:08:35] This high school capacity project that you saw on the previous slide was a placeholder project. And as part of that scope, as part of the placeholder, we said it could be additions onto Western Albemarle and Monticello High School. But really the project refinement, the scope needed to be refined. Some more discussion needed, including the questions that we are here to discuss. So the recommendation was to direct the Long Range Planning Advisory Committee to develop a more specific project request as part of this upcoming 2025 final report. [01:09:09] So I'll go over some of the long term alternatives. This is a very simplified slide, but here we're showing some alternatives. The first is ACE3, which would be to expand the high school center model. [01:09:28] The second, to build centers slash additions. This would be expansions or separate buildings on existing campuses. Since we're talking about facilities themselves, whether an expansion or an addition on a campus is an addition for that high school only, or whether it serves as a center, that will be an instructional decision, but that's why those are combined, because as a facility, it could go either way. [01:09:55] And then the third alternative is a comprehensive high school. Depending on the scope of projects chosen, the high school center model or expansions or separate buildings would cost in the range of 50 to $100 million in today's dollars. [01:10:12] At a new high school, we estimate to be $110 to $200 million in today's dollars, if we were to start right now. Here are some key considerations when thinking about those alternatives. Capacity, how many seats should be added division-wide? [01:10:30] And when would the facility open? Transportation, will it benefit or challenge transportation resources? How many students might need to be redistricted? And how will student travel time be impacted? Access, who will benefit from a new facility? [01:10:47] demographics who will attend cost how will we pay for the capital cost and what are the recurring operational impacts school size how large should a high school get and land acquisition where will we find the land so i'll first review um oh this is a um preliminary way to look at those metrics that i just described um as you know i'm sure you're thinking of other things these metrics are not meant to be exhaustive and of course they carry variable weights they don't all have the [01:11:24] same amount of weight attached to them this is just a suggested framework for evaluating the alternatives requires further feedback and the colors are designated relative to the other alternatives within that metric so for example there is one red which represents most challenging one yellow and one green which represents least challenging for each metric to represent the relative designations and of course the designations may vary depending on the scope of the projects [01:11:58] and this slide will come back later again i'll first talk about land acquisition these are the various locations that we own or have proffers for and you can see there's some throughout the three feeder patterns and here's a more detailed look about what that land might accommodate so from top to bottom the top requires the least amount of land and the bottom requires the most amount of land and so we show this because a high school requires the most amount of land and we would need further study to see if we can even if we even have the land to [01:12:36] build there but of course there may be other alternatives so there's question marks on the right capital cost this chart is from the county's budget document and it shows one of their debt policies where debt service cannot exceed 10 percent of general fund and school fund revenues The blue line shows the projected debt service payments per year and in FY29 you can see that blue line approaching the red line and it cannot cross there. So does the county have debt capacity? [01:13:13] If we were to pursue 9% of the 10% policy maximum we could issue up to 72 million dollars in debt. Does the county have the related funding needed? So typically on a debt issuance like this there's 5% required, which is a 1% pay-as-you-go funding portion. So at that level, it would be about $3.6 million. And then the ongoing recurring debt service payment would be, depending on the type of the bond, between $5 and $6 million per year for the entire life of that bond. We've also [01:13:52] provided some information about the proposed 1% sales tax that is being worked through at the state level. This revenue could be used for school construction projects. There are other localities who already have this authorization. We don't, but if a new legislation were to pass in the General Assembly, then Albemarle County could have a referendum for the voters to approve this new tax. If approved at the state level and in a local referendum, then the estimated [01:14:27] revenue to the county would be about $26 million per year. All right, I'll turn it next over to - Thank you, Mr. Workman. [01:14:47] - Thank you, Maya. Good evening, Chair Acuff and members of the school board. I'm Matt Workman, Director of Building Services, and I'm happy to be with y'all tonight. This next portion of the presentation is to further explore the additions and center alternatives. [01:15:05] The first alternative would be the design and construction of a third center, or ACE Academy III. Similar to ACE Academy at Lambs Lane, this would be a standalone facility that would be designed to accommodate anywhere from 400 to 800 students per day. [01:15:22] As Maya showed on a previous slide, we believe that there are several locations available to ACPS that could accommodate this building, including the Brookhill proffer, the Schroeder's branch proffer, the parcel next to Henley Middle School that was purchased about a year ago, the Lambs Lane campus, the Monticello High School campus, or possibly even on the Founders Place parcel, which would be made even easier given our recent land acquisitions. [01:15:48] If this option is pursued and funds were appropriated, we would envision design beginning in fiscal year 29, with the school set to open in the fall of 2031. Given the variability in potential capacities and an undetermined site, we estimate that this alternative could cost anywhere from $49.8 to $94.5 million in current dollars. Shifting towards additions to existing facilities, the first location that could accommodate an addition would be a 200-student [01:16:22] addition to Ace Academy at Lambs Lane. This would bring the building's total capacity to 600 students per day. This addition would be a two-story addition that would add 10 classrooms at approximately 11,000 square feet. The visual on the right of the slide shows the approximate location of where that addition would be. As part of the current construction, we have already generally sized the utilities to accommodate a future expansion. Of course, any specific programmatic needs that may be required could affect the size of space required. An expansion [01:17:01] would also require reconfiguring the bike pedestrian path and may require a few additional bathrooms. This project is estimated to cost approximately $7 to $8.4 million in current dollars. Another potential addition would be to add up to 400 seats to Western Albemarle High School to increase the capacity up to a total of 1,500 students. The graphic on the right is actually from a capacity study that was completed in 2006 that would have increased Western to the desired capacity of 1,500 students. Please note that given varying class sizes and the way we [01:17:39] calculate capacity, the proposed number of student increases at that time was calculated differently from how we calculate it now. This addition would add a 52,000 square foot two-story addition to the front of the B wing and the C wing of the existing facility, as you can see in the graphic on the screen. This study proposed 22 new classrooms plus support spaces. The commons would also be expanded via a one-story addition to accommodate the need for more dining space in an expanded school. Lastly, this addition would include a new administrative office and counseling [01:18:15] suite, opening up more internal space for additional classrooms. There are several other improvements that would be required to accommodate this size expansion. These would include the need for additional parking. This would potentially have a ripple effect of losing an athletic practice field. However, the land adjacent to Henley could be considered for additional practice fields as part of that larger scheme. An expansion of this size would also likely require costly utility upgrades, including to the water, sewer, and electrical systems. Depending on the scope and [01:18:50] scale of proposed additions to this school, costs could range anywhere from $19.1 to $45.7 million in current dollars. And it's worth noting that if the board were to direct the LRPAC and staff were to proceed with additions as a future high school capacity solution, staff would recommend requesting funding for design of this project in fiscal year 27. Moving to Monticello High School. [01:19:19] Similar to Western, a previous study was completed in 2012 for potential future additions. That study sought to expand the school by 250 students, which at that point in time would have resulted in a total capacity of 1,350 students. That study recommended the 24,500 square foot addition, which included 14 classrooms and support spaces. It also envisioned expanding the cafeteria into the existing forum to provide for additional dining space. To achieve a capacity of 1,500 students, however, larger additions would be necessary. This would require an additional six [01:19:58] classrooms beyond the 14 from the 2012 study. Initial ideas for where these additions could go are shown in the blue on the graphic to the right. Options could include expanding the wings towards the front of the school, towards the athletic facilities, and towards the back of the school as if you were going towards PVCC. This would likely have a ripple effect of needing to lose an additional athletic practice field in order to offset the lost parking that would occur depending on where you put that addition. Depending on the scope and scale of proposed additions to this school, costs could range anywhere from $19.1 to $45.7 [01:20:37] million dollars in current dollars. So putting all of these additions and centers together, in ACE Academy 3, in additions to existing facilities, present multiple scenarios that would achieve an additional 600 to 800 plus additional seats across the entire division. [01:20:58] This chart is meant to provide just a few example scenario recommendations of how these capacity targets could be achieved. So for example, just looking at that first gray line. One scenario could be to build a 400 student Ace Academy III and then to add additions to Western to add another 400 seats, resulting in a net increase of 800 students across the division. [01:21:27] Alternatively, a construction of a 600 student Ace Academy III and a 200 student addition to Western could achieve the same net increase of 800 students across the division. You can see here several other different scenarios depending on the additions and or academy three that you could consider so as you can see there are several different scenarios that can be achieved with different combinations of new construction and or additions that have been shown on the previous slides it's worth noting however that if the majority of these additional seats are added to [01:22:06] western albemarle high school and monticello high school that redistricting would become necessary to provide capacity relief to Albemarle High School. So in summary, an expansion of the center model and or construction of additions to existing high schools may ease enrollment strain at all three existing high schools more quickly, preserve equitable access for students across the entire division, prevent significant increases to operational expenses, be achieved without the [01:22:42] need for land acquisition, and preserve more available funding or debt capacity for other renovation and CIP needs. Okay. Shifting to examining the third alternative, a new comprehensive high school. Oops. Maya showed a chart earlier in the presentation that outlined the projected housing development pipeline within existing feeder patterns. This map is a graphic representation of that chart that shows the housing development pipeline with respect to existing high school [01:23:16] attendance areas. The purple circles show the housing units that are approved for construction but remain unbuilt. And the blue circles show additional housing units that are currently making their way through the county's development process, but are not yet approved. The size of the circle indicates the number of units, with larger circles representing larger applications with more residential units. As you can see from this chart, while there are some unbuilt residential units in both the Western and Monticello attendance areas, a majority of the unbuilt residential units either approved or being reviewed fall within the Albemarle High School [01:23:53] attendance area. If the board were to pursue a fourth comprehensive high school, significant boundary changes would be required. We completed a hypothetical redistricting scenario to better understand the impacts of what that could look like. And I want to emphasize that this is purely hypothetical for the purposes of understanding capacity impacts. If the board were to pursue a fourth comprehensive high school, a full redistricting study would be required per school [01:24:27] board policy. In this hypothetical scenario, to provide adequate capacity relief to all current schools and adequately use the new capacity, approximately the following number of students could be impacted. Over 1,100 students from Albemarle to the new high school, about 140 students from Monticello to the new high school, about 400 students from Western to Albemarle, and about 150 students from Monticello to Western. A new high school may relieve capacity conflicts at existing high schools and leave room for future growth. [01:25:06] These charts seek to examine how those boundary adjustments would impact demographics within our existing high schools and a new high school. The top charts show current demographics, and the bottom charts show the demographics that resulted from the hypothetical boundaries created by a fourth comprehensive high school in our study. [01:25:26] As you can see, with a fourth high school, demographics at three of the four high schools closely match the overall division totals and maintain the rich diversity that exists in our school division. So what would this look like? This map shows what these new hypothetical boundaries could look like in relation to that same housing development pipeline that was on the previous slide. Using existing elementary school boundaries, two factors were analyzed in determining estimates for future capacity needs, population growth and the planned residential [01:26:02] development. Using these same growth patterns, the chart on the bottom of the slide projects both a low-end and a high-end estimate for what capacity could look like at four comprehensive high schools over the next 10 years. Lastly, the cost of a comprehensive high school is the most expensive alternative being considered. This chart aims to show a few examples of the cost of new high schools that have been constructed or in the process of being constructed in Virginia. It's worth noting that while some of these examples have more aggressive sustainability initiatives [01:26:40] than others, each school on this chart includes a full comprehensive athletics facility. Because of the variability and when these projects were awarded, we adjusted each project to June 2025 pricing using inflation data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics PPI for new school construction. [01:27:01] As you can see, the average construction cost for an approximately 1,900 student high school at 282,000 square feet is approximately $135 million in two days costs. Please note that this is purely construction costs and does not include any soft costs such as design fees, contingency, value engineering, construction administration, furniture and equipment or land acquisition costs. [01:27:29] As you can see, we sought to include the total project budget for projects where we could find the information on other locality school division websites or public news sources for those that were found the average total cost for a comprehensive high school is nearly 200 million dollars in today's costs so in summary the benefits of a fourth comprehensive high school placed along us 29 may ease enrollment strain at all three existing high schools and allow flexibility for future growth align student demographics at albemarle monticello and the [01:28:07] the new school more closely with each other and with division-wide averages, and decrease the size of ACPS high schools and decrease travel time for students. And it's worth emphasizing that land acquisition and costs will be challenges with this option that may not be fully controllable by ACPS. [01:28:27] If this alternative is desired, ACPS staff would recommend consideration of alternative delivery methods so again here now that we've gone through all of the different alternatives here is the preliminary evaluation metric chart that maya showed earlier in the presentation this can serve as a guide a guideline for you as you consider the questions and your discussion in september i'm actually going to skip this slide for a second so again just to remind you our next steps [01:29:05] the long-range planning advisory committee is looking for guidance from the school board by September 11th. September 11th will be the the opportunity for discussion on this topic. You'll also receive the building services annual report at that time which will include updates on the CIP maintenance program. LRPAC has their final meeting scheduled for September 17th and will present their CIP recommendations to you on October 23rd. These are the topics that we have initially [01:29:38] proposed for discussion at your next september 11th meeting so again for this evening or well for this evening we are happy to provide any clarifying questions or take any requests for additional information as you prepare for that september 11th discussion and with that thank you very much a question of any questions but the first one is um you at the very end of your last kind of content slide you used you said the term you're recommending alternative delivery models can you [01:30:14] talk about what that means yep no i appreciate the question uh historically in acps we have followed what's called a design bid build delivery method which is when you hire an architect you design the defined scope as defined in the cip we go through our typical design process we come to the board at the end of schematic design for approval we proceed with design we come to the board at the end of design development for approval and that is the final approval from the board for us to proceed with development of construction documents and then proceeding to bidding [01:30:51] in that scenario by law we are obligated to take low bid it increases competition but you have to take low bid by law and then once you receive bids you proceed with issuing a contract to a general contractor and proceeding with construction there are other delivery methods that are out there there is construction management at risk we have an example of that here in albemarle county the first phase of the courts project was delivered through a construction manager at risk uh delivery method there is design build um i should let me back up [01:31:30] i'm sorry in a construction management at risk you would hire a construction management firm who would come in a lot earlier in the design process and then that then gives you to the ability to effectively start hiring individual trades as opposed to per se a general contractor and that construction manager is coordinating all those who we would have a contract with they would then be coordinating all those individual trade contracts there is also [01:32:03] design build which is probably easy to think about from a residential perspective but it's very similar you effectively you hire a contractor first and then the architect engineer works for the contractor there are pros and cons to all three i think that that would probably be something that we could absolutely put some slides together for september 11th to go over those pros and cons if that's something that the board would like more information on i would also add i think one [01:32:38] of the other things that is an option would be potential for different financing mechanisms for example and i apologize i forget the acronym but ppea which is effectively public private partnerships there are several school divisions across the state that have utilized those funding mechanisms but effectively it allows you to fund your project through a private entity as opposed to directly issuing bonds again like anything else there are pros and cons to that namely [01:33:15] unlikely to get as good of a favorable rate as we would with a triple triple a bond rating it's the first thing that comes to mind but it is a separate funding mechanism that is an option by law i mean just off the bat i definitely for the september meeting would like to see the the a little bit more on the the alternative delivery models and kind of pros and cons of those particularly around timing and cost and then um i've definitely been looking at pp ppea options personally just i'm interested and would love to see some more information on that [01:33:51] in examples from districts that have done it within the state absolutely um i have a few questions whenever you're ready I know you're taking notes um so I'm curious why we why you combined the um the high school enrollment numbers um because um it doesn't you know that if you can go back it was towards the beginning but you were talking about um the slide yeah for the capacity [01:34:31] conflicts I think it was um we're combining all the comprehensive high schools um to show that there's no conflict in two or three years but that's not really accurate because it's really yes combining them all seems to be misleading because it really i think it's solving the ahs problem a little bit sooner but it it kind of does a disservice to western and monticello in my opinion um especially because i don't think our numbers for our uh studios or centers or [01:35:05] whatever are anywhere near capacity you're right and this was supposed to just be a summary and that's why we wanted to focus on this which shows the actual school's capacity yeah and we'd also acknowledge that if for example these projects are not all timed at the same time and we acknowledge that the greatest concern is at western yeah so we can provide that summary table by school I think that would be more helpful in determining what our priorities are going to be. [01:35:40] And I think that, you know, the size of AHS is concerning. And have we done any sort of studies with the staff or the students on how they feel about being a mega high school? Because we're talking about continuing to add to that facility and potentially add one of the suggestions was an additional addition to that. [01:36:03] agree with some of the public comment tonight it feels disproportionate in a lot of ways and maybe not equitable so i would love to get some feedback on if we have it and if we don't what that might look like being such a mega high school compared to the other ones i mean i do have a lot of questions so i'm going to try to not give them all to you right now but as we're looking with With Western especially, you know, we're 200 over capacity now and there continues to be [01:36:36] growth in Crozet and we keep talking about the Northern feeder pattern, but I would love to know more about what our short-term plans are with Western because even if we add in any of these things, it's a really long time to wait and our methodology seems conservative in our projections as well and if we were to go any less conservative than that I think it puts Western even more over capacity. [01:37:11] So the most short-term solution for Western would be what was recommended in the Western Albemarle High School facility master plan renovation study which would add 10 to 12 classrooms. And for the discussion in September we were hoping to really get that long-term vision first because what is decided then would then sway what we might do in the short term we want to be efficient in the limited resources that we have mm-hmm so once that we have direction for that then we could come back and start talking about well what can we do now right anything it's a constant battle of [01:37:51] putting band-aids on these big issues versus planning long term and how do we balance those two it's a constant problem a few other things I would like to see in order to make this decision is what is the actual enrollment in our centers in the studios because we talk about capacity and that these buildings can hold 400 people or 200 people but I don't think we're anywhere near that and I think it's an important conversation to have at what point do we maybe say these aren't solving our problem that it's not working the way we intended and [01:38:26] we redirect resources or to solve our capacity issues and also meet the needs of our students because Western students and Monticello students are not utilizing these at the same rate as Albemarle students because it's really close to Albemarle and we talked about opening a center between Albemarle and Western but that's not anywhere on our plan anytime soon. [01:38:50] So I would love to get those actual numbers of enrollment and if we're not going to hit capacity then maybe we need to be rethinking those plans as a board of what we're going be doing with those resources to better serve our students and then i think i had one more question oh you asked about the color chart i think it's a little confusing because like for example like what why is it yellow for each of these things i would really like some more information [01:39:25] because for example you talk about the new high school is now demographics is green but for a long time the pushback that we got was that high school in the northern feeder pattern would be inequitable there would not be as much diversity i'm guessing it's because of this potential redistricting is what would maybe play into that but i would love some more information on specifics on those colors what makes it green and you know why yellow or whatever and also [01:39:59] specifically on the transportation why that would be red for the new high school that jumped out at me seems like if you had a high school that was closer to all these new neighborhoods transportation wouldn't be an issue so i'm curious it's questions like that where it's why is it red needing more specifics would really help with that and then i just want to note that on the sales tax and the bond referendum I think it's really important to note that it comes down to electing [01:40:34] people and this is more of a public comment that are going to fund public education not having a governor that's going to veto it twice because there's only so much that we can do up here and there's only so much that the board of supervisors can do but if you're talking about 25 million dollars a year even if not all of that comes to the schools and some of it does go towards affordable housing like board of supervisors has mentioned that's still a huge increase in our capital improvement that we don't have now and a lot of other counties in the state do a bond referendum every two years we haven't done one since 2016 and there has been pushback [01:41:11] from the board of supervisors in the past on doing that again and i think that those are all things that we need to consider when we're looking at this big picture anyway i'll get off my high horse on that. Thank you, Ms. Spilman. Mr. Page, do you have any? I guess what I have, or what I'm thinking about, is not really related to the two questions that you mentioned, but first, we had a lot of good speakers tonight about overcapacity, and I really wish that those speakers would go to the Board of Supervisors also and let them know what problem we are facing. Oh, okay, right. Just make [01:41:48] sure that you really go there as often as possible yes to let them know that you know we really have a problem and maybe the other thing that I'm thinking about also which would be related to the supervisors would be with all of the residential construction that's being approved whether or not they are aware of what you presented to us tonight whether or not they have ever seen that material or whether or not that material is ever directly presented to the supervisors and/or the Long Range Planning Commission's report going to the supervisors. There is a joint work session scheduled for December and at [01:42:27] that time we can prepare any information that you would like to help facilitate that. But this is new information. We've pulled this together for the LRPAC in the last few months and this has not been shared because it needed to go through you all first but I would really like it to be shared with them okay do you have any the other question I have is just about maybe digging into the [01:43:01] this slide 13 the k-12 student yields and I know determining what capacity right is going to come out of housing particularly because our housing is getting more expensive and we're seeing more people without children moving in But I just did some quick math. [01:43:22] And so the way I'm reading is that that 1500 to 4,300, right, is it would be kind of total additional K-12 capacity. And the question is, like, in what year? But like, if you just took that, you know, divided by 13 grades, then multiplied that number by four, we would be getting at least an additional 460 students for a high school any to almost 1400 students right in that high school range so the question is like over what [01:43:58] time frame is that um and just and i think understanding a little bit more about how we how we are looking at those um dwellings um and the calculations you're doing around um townhouses I will come back to the first slide here. I mentioned that the orange dotted line is our ACPS projection. There is a line called PEA, which is the blue line. And that projection was developed [01:44:33] by using the data from the development pipeline and then staggering out when those units would be built using historical data on how quickly they get built so using historical data on how quickly these development projects get built and then putting it on top of that pipeline adding it to our projections that's the blue line so yeah you can kind of see more aggressive growth in the out years but the overall trend really does not change too much from what we're looking at and then the [01:45:10] The other lines are the projections from Weld and Cooper. They provided three different projections and that's why there's multiple lines there. Can I just add to off of Dr. Berlin when she was talking about the PPEA, I would like more information on that and what that would look like. [01:45:28] Having spoken with a few of the Board of Supervisors, I know several of them are in favor of it. And I think because they care so much about their bond rating that they're looking for alternatives. that is something that they've brought up to us and I've talked to developers in the area who are interested so I think it might be worth exploring a little bit more and getting some more information on it if there is interest on their side it's probably not a answer easy answer to this but is there an ideal size of high school some sometimes when you go into a high school it feels so [01:46:05] overwhelming even to me as an adult are there studies about what what's too big what's too little I mean I know there's cost factors and for smaller schools and things like that but yeah it seems so big we we will revisit it we we had a discussion with the school board about school sizes there was a community survey on it so we'll bring that back I believe I know we did for elementary I don't remember all three levels so we will bring back that data two or three [01:46:41] years ago? Has there been any talk about the zoning issues in the city? I worry that those zoning issues are going to push developers even more out into the county, even more than they are now, and that our numbers may even be ultra-conservative given that. Just something to throw out there. I'm not sure, but I worry that, you know, we're in a donut, right? Like, whatever happens with them is going to affect things that happen with us I know you don't have [01:47:19] to answer it right now but it may be something to think about Ms. Pryor do you have anything I think Allison actually Ms. Spillman touched on most of the questions that I did have or comments but I would like to know I think you shared that the study from 2017 high school center is available but I was curious as to the Western study in 2006 is that yes it's not a very comprehensive study it was really I think the whole study is like five pages [01:47:55] it was really just if we needed to add to that school where could we add it included a cost estimate which obviously is not helpful today so really the the meat of that study is the graphic that was in in the slide slide presentation but happy to provide it to you uh but as i say the cost data is very outdated and i just hope that we have enough time i think you said september the 11th too that's good just to kind of clarify process and expectations um first i just want to commend uh miss kumazawa and mr workman that's a lot of [01:48:34] information that i think you did a nice job consolidating it in a somewhat digestible manner one of the reasons that we broke this up was it's a lot for you to digest and react to there is some urgency because as we're going to advocate for funding we need to know what we're advocating for but the intent is not to have a fully flushed out vision for if the desire is a new high school a fully fleshed out vision for a new high school or a fully fleshed out additions plan we just need some direction which way so that we can fully flesh out does that new high school have full athletic suites what are your land options for what are your delivery [01:49:11] methods so don't i don't want to be like you need to know exactly what it is but we need some general direction where to put our efforts where to start engaging the feet of the community on and will there be an opportunity to get input from staff students etc um yes i mean that's the other point of that timeline was it's not your final decision right again it's just general direction we would encourage as those that are coming to public comment to engage in these board conversations long-range planners are a key input as well there is a series of decisions that have [01:49:48] to be made along the way welcome input at every step just a couple of comments i think graham and I Mr. Pace and I were the only two involved with the decision-making in 2018 after the 2017 study. At that time it was clear that it was not feasible to get a new high school funded period. Those prices have just continued to increase. The conception of the center model was to have a series of centers and we really looked hard for either something [01:50:26] between Albemarle and Western, or between Western and Albemarle. We looked at a lot of different properties. And then it was delayed. It was delayed and reduced in size, and now we're faced with, of course, it does not satisfy or it cannot meet the capacity issues. [01:50:49] Even with our plan, which was a series of centers, it was tightly coupled to modernization and maybe some small expansions of the existing high schools we got underfunded with that as well so I mean I am frustrated with our lack of funding even with the two new facilities now in the ground and one funded in you know two more years we'll still have over 50 classrooms and trailers and you know this is not and you know people are getting squeezed at all of the high [01:51:25] schools they're just simply not large enough my questions in terms of I don't know if long-range planning would look into this there are significant differences in operating costs so even if we're looking mostly at construction costs there are big differences that will have an impact in our annual operational costs that we cannot ignore we've just gone through two extremely tight budgetary seasons and part of the part of the original rationale for the centers it would be the least disruptive in terms of our students they wouldn't [01:52:03] have to be redistricted it would be the most cost-efficient because overhead operational costs were the lowest and if you did them in time position them correctly it could have a real benefit right now though I'm not willing to condemn the model, but it does not. [01:52:23] And I agree with Ms. Spillman. It does not address the capacity issues which are becoming acute. My other question-- and I don't know if this is a question for long-range planning-- given that we've waited a decade to get $14 million for six elevators, how would funding a new high school push every single thing else that we want to do off the agenda? [01:52:49] Because we, well, I don't, that's all I can say, is that with a price tag like that, we won't be able to do anything else for a decade, unless my math is wrong, and it could be, and I hope someone can inform me otherwise. [01:53:09] Does anyone have any further comments or questions? I'm going to make the comment I always make, and everyone's probably sick of this, but I continue to use this example, right? 'cause I think it's just important for the community to put this in the face of a child, right? [01:53:28] So I give the example. So my son was born in the county. He went to preschool in the county. He went to 13 years of school in the county. He took a year off because of COVID. He went to four years of college and he has now thankfully started a job in that entire time, right? [01:53:48] So entire life, entire schooling, We have never opened, we still did not open a school. I am so excited that we will be opening to schools. However, like you have to see this in the life of the kids, right? [01:54:08] And I know all of us here, so this is kind of, as Ms. Bilden said, this is not as much for you as for the people, you know, kind of listening or documenting in the Board of Supervisors, But it's so important that our students are in the best schools and that we prioritize them. [01:54:30] And so I think as I think about my goals, and I think that this entire board will say this for the county, we are steadfast in figuring out with you all and advocating to the Board of Supervisors that this is an absolute. If this is going to be a county that people continue to want to move to, We've got to invest in our schools because, again, 23 years without a building puts us at a huge loss for what our students made. [01:55:01] So just yes, I completely agree. I mean, my concern is that with our original center model, and I can yield on that, like I'm educable. [01:55:16] It was coupled with significant modernization of the schools, asking for $200 million to solve capacity only. Well, we'll have one gleaming new high school up toward Rutgersville, and we'll have our unimproved existing schools that have an average life of over half a century. [01:55:43] Big challenges. Thank you for putting together a great presentation. And I look forward to our meeting in whenever that month is, September. Is there... Are there any further comments or questions? No. [01:55:58] My only other comment would be, you know, we put a lot of emphasis on expanding our jails, but we really need to think more about our students and our schools. Right. Okay. Amen. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Thank you very much. Wonderful presentation. [01:56:14] Just as usual, to get the materials out to us, you know, well before the next meeting so we can study them. That would be great. Is there any other business tonight? Dr. Haas, we're good. Dr. Hayes. With that, this meeting is adjourned. Thank you all. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Coraggio Consulting ยท aguyonx.com