Coraggio Consulting Loudoun County School Board, 2nd Tuesday School Board Meeting, Tuesday, September 10, 2024 Date: Tuesday, September 10, 2024 Place: Loudoun County Public Schools / School Board meeting (see BoardDocs / LCPS-TV) Length: 5h 46m (video) Official meeting video (Vimeo / LCPS-TV): https://player.vimeo.com/video/1008405224?rel=0 BoardDocs (School Board): https://go.boarddocs.com/vsba/loudoun/Board.nsf/Public 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 2026-10-18. Timestamps are [HH:MM:SS] into the meeting video. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [00:00:14] Good afternoon. I call to order this September 10th, 2024 Loudoun County School Board meeting. We will start with item two disclosures and I will go ahead and start. As a member of the Loudoun County School Board, I make the following disclosure to the school board and to the general public in connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding the budget and or health insurance and related benefits and any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees. Specifically as a board member, I'm eligible to receive health insurance and related benefits as an LCPS employee. These benefits, however, affect thousands [00:00:54] of employees while in excess of the statutory three employees whose interests may also be effective, of which I am included. I can and will participate fairly, objectively, and in the public interest. This disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the clerk of the school board for five years. And Ms. Chandler. Thank you, Madam Chair. As a member of the Loudoun County School Board, I make the following disclosure to the school board and to the general public in connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding the budget and or health insurance and related benefits and any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees. [00:01:31] Specifically, as a school board member, I am eligible to receive health insurance and related benefits as an LCPS employee. These benefits, however, affect thousands of employees well and excess of the statutory three employees whose interests may also be affected of which I am included I can and will participate fairly objectively and in the public interest this disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the clerk of the school board for five years thank you miss Chandler miss Donohue thank you madam chair as a member of the Loudoun County school board I make the following disclosure to the school board and to the general public in [00:02:08] connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding employee salaries the budget and or health insurance and any other discussion that may include or affect salary and benefits for LCPS employees. Specifically, my spouse and I and our minor children are enrolled in LCPS health insurance that may be affected by any potential changes to employee salaries, the budget, and or health insurance. Additionally, my sister-in-law is an LCPS employee who does not reside with me and is not dependent on me. These subjects include thousands of employees well in excess of the statutory three employees whose interest may be affected of which my spouse my children and my [00:02:44] sister-in-law are included. I can and will participate fairly objectively and in the public interest. This disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the clerk of the school board for five years. Thank you. Ms. Griffiths. Thank you Madam Chair. As a member of the Loudoun County School Board I make the following disclosure to the school board and the general public in connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding the budget and or health insurance and related benefits and any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees specifically as a school board member I am eligible to receive health insurance and related benefits as an LCPS employee these [00:03:23] benefits however affect thousands of employees well in excess of the statutory three employees whose interests may be affected of which I included I can and will participate fairly objectively in the public interest this disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the clerk of the school board for five years. Thank you. Thank you Mrs. Griffiths. Vice Chair Streffy? Thank you Madam Chair. As a member of the Loudoun County School Board I make the following disclosure to the school board and to the general public in connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding the budget and or health insurance and related benefits and any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees. Specifically as a school board [00:04:03] member I am eligible to receive health insurance and related benefits as an LCPS employee. These benefits however affect thousands of employees well in excess of the statutory three employees whose interests may also be affected of which I am included. I can and will participate fairly objectively and in the public interest. This disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the clerk of the school board for five years. Thank You Vice Chair Streffi. Ms. [00:04:25] LaBelle. Thank You Madam Chair. As a member of the Leighton County School Board I make the following disclosure to the school board and to the general public in connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding the budget and the health and or the health insurance and related benefits and any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees specifically as a school board member I am eligible to receive health insurance and related benefits as an LCPS employee these benefits however affect thousands of employees well in excess of the statutory three employees whose interest [00:05:02] may also be affected of which I am included I can and will participate fairly, objectively, and in the public interest. This disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the school board for five years. Thank you, Ms. Labelle. Ms. Chernoff? Thank you, Madam Chair. As a member of the Loudoun County School Board, I make the following disclosure to the school board and to the general public in connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding the budget and or health insurance and related benefits and any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees. Specifically, as a school board member, I am eligible to receive health insurance and related benefits as an LCPS employee. [00:05:41] These benefits, however, affect thousands of employees while in the excess of the statutory three employees whose interests may also be affected, of which I am included. I can and will participate fairly, objectively, and in the public interest. This disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the clerk of the school board for five years. [00:06:00] Thank you, Ms. Chernoff. We'll now move on to Agenda Item 3, Approval of the Consent Agenda. Board members, are there any changes to be made to the consent agenda? Seeing none, before we vote on the consent agenda, we have three proclamations to read. [00:06:19] The first proclamation, School Bus Safety Week and Transportation Employees Appreciation Day proclamation, will be read by Vice Chair Estreffi. Vice Chair Estreffi. Thank you, Madam Chair. School Bus Safety Week and Transportation Employees Appreciation Day, whereas many children are transported daily on school buses by professional school bus drivers who prioritize the safety and well-being of those students, And whereas school bus drivers must complete a rigorous training program of classroom instruction, student management, behind the wheel, driving without students, and driving with students, and a comprehensive physical and law enforcement background check. [00:06:52] And whereas, school buses are manufactured with many safety features, such as the federally recognized school bus yellow color, inside and outside cameras, eight light traffic control systems, and cross stop arms. And whereas, the yellow school bus is a highly recognized means of transporting children to and from school, and it is imperative that the motoring public obey traffic laws and stop for buses that are boarding or discharging students. [00:07:19] and whereas school bus manufacturers construct buses under a set of guidelines mandated by federal and state laws and whereas public school transportation ensures that students from across the Commonwealth of Virginia travel to and from school in a punctual and safe manner and whereas school bus transportation employees are recognized for their diligence in safely transporting the school children of the Commonwealth of Virginia. [00:07:44] Now, therefore, the Loudoun County School Board does hereby recognize October 14th to 18th, 2024, as School Bus Safety Week, and October 18th, 2023, as Transportation Employees Appreciation Day in Loudoun County. Thank you, Vice Chair Streffi. [00:08:00] The second proclamation, LGBTQ+, History Month proclamation, will be read by Dr. Deans. Dr. Deans? proclaiming the celebration of LGBTQ+ History Month. [00:08:18] Whereas, in October of 1994, LGBTQ+ History Month was introduced by a Missouri music teacher, Rodney Wilson. LGBTQ+ History Month is dedicated to celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender achievements throughout history. [00:08:42] As a marginalized and mistreated American community, LGBTQ plus accomplishments are often disregarded and unrecognized, especially in school systems. Whereas inclusivity and understanding are central to equality and affirmation for members of the LGBTQ plus community to live authentically and whereas members of the LGBTQ plus community have the right to the assurances of equality, freedom and open expression. [00:09:20] And whereas Loughton County Public Schools has a commitment to equity where all members of the community are afforded a safe, supportive, inclusive, affirming, and respectful environment. [00:09:36] And whereas Loughton County Public Schools rejects and condemns discrimination based on gender identity, sexual orientation, and gender expression, such non-inclusive behavior and actions do not reflect who we are as a learning community. [00:09:57] And, whereas, we acknowledge and highlight the many achievements and profound contributions made by members of the LGBTQ plus community to the economic, cultural, educational, and political development of the Commonwealth of Virginia and the world. [00:10:17] And whereas our school division is stronger when we reflect and respect the full diversity of our school community that enables 97% of all students in Loudoun County Public Schools to graduate in 2024. [00:10:36] And whereas the school division continues to collaborate and partner with various community-based individuals and organizations to further its efforts of forming strong relationships in a culturally sensitive, responsive, and appropriate way. [00:10:56] And whereas during LGBTQ plus History Month, coinciding with National Coming Out Day on October 11th, it is an opportunity to educate our school community about LGBTQ plus history, highlighting key figures and milestones. [00:11:19] Education is the greatest disruptor to hate and discrimination, and LCPS will hold true to our commitment for all students and staff to teach and learn in safe spaces. [00:11:35] And be it further resolved that the Loudoun County School Board strongly encourages our staff and community to observe and recognize the contributions and achievements of the LGBTQ plus community to the Commonwealth of Virginia, our beautifully diverse county and our schools during LGBTQ plus history month and throughout the school year. [00:12:05] In witness whereof, the Loudoun County School Board issues this proclamation to observe and recognize the rich history of the LGBTQ plus community. The aforementioned impact is evidenced nationally and globally. [00:12:23] Now, therefore, we, the Loudoun County School Board, do hereby recognize October 1st through October 31st, 2024, to be LGBTQ Plus History Month in Loudoun County Public Schools. [00:12:43] Thank you, Dr. Deans. The third proclamation, the Dyslexia Awareness Month proclamation, will be read with me, by me. Whereas, dyslexia is a specific learning disability related to a deficit in the phonological component of language, is neurobiological in origin, and is characterized by challenges with word recognition, writing, spelling, and processing of written language that may result in deficits in reading comprehension and vocabulary. [00:13:15] And whereas dyslexia is the most common learning disability in children and persists throughout life, affecting one of every five people regardless of ability, race, gender, age, or socioeconomic status. [00:13:33] And, whereas early screening for and early identification of dyslexia is critical to ensure that individuals with dyslexia receive focused, evidence-based intervention grounded in science-based reading research that leads to fluent reading, the promotion of self-awareness and self-empowerment, and the provision of necessary accommodations to build success in school and life. [00:13:59] And whereas many successful people, notably people in business, government, sports, and entertainment, have overcome difficulties related to dyslexia. And whereas raising awareness about dyslexia and promoting a greater understanding of the strengths and challenges associated with this learning difference can help create a more inclusive and supportive environment for individuals with dyslexia. [00:14:27] Whereas the Commonwealth of Virginia, through the Virginia Literacy Act, has regulations and programs in place to help children and improve the lives of individuals with dyslexia, including intervention, screening, and service requirements. [00:14:45] And, whereas Dyslexia Awareness Month is an opportunity to acknowledge educators specializing in effective teaching strategies and to celebrate the many achievements of adolescents, students, and adults with dyslexia. [00:15:01] Whereas Loudoun County Public Schools recognizes that reading is the gateway to all other skills by creating opportunities for individuals to pursue higher education, get good jobs, and become full participants in our democracy. [00:15:18] Therefore, the Loudoun County School Board now proclaims October 2024 as Dyslexia Awareness Month in Loudoun County Public Schools and commends this observance to all our students, staff, and families to promote greater awareness, use effective strategies to address this learning disability, and recognize the unique strengths and abilities of individuals with dyslexia. [00:15:47] I will now entertain a motion to approve the consent agenda. yes miss donahue thank you madam chair i move to approve the consent agenda i have a motion by miss donahue is there a second i have a second by miss chandler it's been properly moved and seconded to approve the consent agenda and at this time we'll go ahead and take a vote to approve it clerk would you please open the vote board members would you please record your vote [00:16:22] clerk please close and display the vote and that motion passes with eight and mrs griffiths abstaining from the vote we will now move on to item four on our agenda which is our work session we will start with item 4.01 department of academics state accountability and accreditation [00:16:58] overview and school improvement process presented by dr ashley ellis our chief academic officer miss ellis dr ellis sorry good afternoon chair mansfield members of the board This afternoon I'm joined by Dr. Ryan Tyler, Director of Research Assessment and School Improvement, and Scott Meisensal, Supervisor of School Improvement. We're going to spend some [00:17:35] time this afternoon discussing some significant changes in the Virginia Department of Education's accountability and accreditation system. I'll talk through some of the changes in accountability and accreditation and some of the implications for LCPS and turn it over to Mr. Meisensal to talk more about our internal school improvement process. This new accountability and accreditation system has been approved by the state board of education for full implementation at the end of this school year moving forward in 2025. That being said it may seem like we are talking about this way ahead of schedule but you have likely heard about this or will hear about this and some [00:18:12] of the potential changes in the news across the state and even locally. So the current BDOE accountability system is complex to say the least it's been in place since 2017 and consists of four main components that also overlap each other the first is standards of quality these are currently the essential elements of school functions focused mostly on compliance and resources rather than student achievement accreditation is the second bucket the state this is the state [00:18:48] accountability system that is currently separate from the ESSA federal accountability system. The state uses it to identify which schools meet state benchmarks and standards, and it's a combination of both compliance factors and student outcomes. [00:19:03] The third bucket is the ESSA federal accountability system. Schools currently get a separate federal support designation from the state designation and support. This is focused mainly on student outcomes. And then the final bucket is the school quality profiles, which is the public reporting system BDOE uses for both state and federal accountability that I'm sure you're all familiar with. [00:19:26] So no doubt this is a complex system and confusing for the average consumer of this information. The new accountability framework that will go into place in 2025 is represented by the green circles and arrows, also complex. It takes these four components and streamlines them a little bit. [00:19:45] So the compliance criteria of the standards of quality and current state accreditation will become a new accreditation system that is purely compliance-based. The measures of student outcomes will all be combined into one accountability system. [00:20:01] The new accountability system will also satisfy the ESSA federal requirements. There will be one set of indicators used to evaluate schools, drive improvement, and indicate whether support is needed. And finally, the school quality profiles will meet the reporting requirements, both statewide and for ESSA. [00:20:23] So this slide is just two excerpts from the revised standards of accreditation, just showing the definitions of accreditation and accountability, and I just want to emphasize that accreditation is really related to compliance in this new system, whereas accountability is related to performance. [00:20:44] So going a little bit deeper, on the left side you'll see the new school accreditation system. Again, this meets state statutory obligations and focuses on operational compliance related to the standards of quality. [00:21:01] There are eight categories including things like promotion and retention policies, instructional program requirements, staffing requirements, facility and safety provisions, and things like that. Parental notifications is another important one. [00:21:18] Schools get a status of either fully accredited, conditionally accredited, or accreditation denied based on these eight components. The new, sorry about that, the new school performance and support framework on the right will again serve as both the state and the ESSA accountability system. [00:21:39] The calculation to determine the performance category a school falls into and what, if any federal identification for improvement is needed is what we'll get out of this flowchart. So the calculation is based on percentages in three categories, growth, readiness, and mastery, with graduation being used instead of growth at the high school level. I'll get into what we know at this time of the calculations in just a moment, but based on this calculation in these three categories, schools will receive a summative label and potentially be identified for improvement, [00:22:17] Either for a specific student group, which would be targeted support, or for multiple groups or comprehensive school level support. So how is this going to be calculated? What we know is that there are these three categories that I just mentioned and that each are weighted differently at each level. [00:22:38] And you can see that here on this screen. There's also a separate attachment that is actually a resource from BDOE that explains what these next several slides illustrate. So you may be wondering what it looks like at each level with the different percentages. [00:22:54] This slide shows the breakdown at the elementary level. So starting from the top, mastery includes reading and math and the Virginia Alternate Assessment Program, or VAP, and science. Additionally, it includes progress in achievement for English learners. [00:23:13] I'll note that this is coupled with a significant change regarding the number of semesters newcomer English learners or level 1 EL students can be exempt from SOL tests. Currently, EL students have up to 11 semesters to acquire the English language before being assessed in English using an SOL. [00:23:32] That 11 semesters is changing to three semesters or a year and a half. That will likely have significant impact on our English learners and their performance on standardized tests. Moving on to growth. Growth in reading and math will be calculated. [00:23:48] That's no surprise to us and pretty standard. And now the third category is focusing on readiness. Readiness will include a measure of chronic absenteeism, again no surprise, but is also intended to mean readiness for the next level of learning. [00:24:05] So for example, fifth grade students will be assessed on a performance task focused on the five C's demonstrating their readiness for middle school. And then when we get to middle school, you'll see another performance task, again focusing on eighth grade students at measuring their readiness for high school. You'll see that the performance task has not been created yet nor approved by ESSA for federal accountability, so it will not go into effect until the following year, meaning that chronic absenteeism will count for that total 10% readiness score for this first year. Moving on to middle school, this looks very [00:24:44] similar with slightly different percentages at the middle school level. Readiness is, so mastery and growth are very similar. Readiness is a little different in that there is a separate performance task. This one focused on career exploration and the five C's and again demonstrating the idea is that it would demonstrate a student's readiness for high school. One added component at the middle school level is credit for advanced coursework. Advanced coursework when fully built out will include math, science, and social science. Schools will get credit for the percentage of students [00:25:21] enrolled in those advanced courses in middle school. As you can see in the note, the advanced coursework will only include math for the first year. And as you likely already know, LCPS already provides advanced math opportunities in middle school. We are awaiting guidance from VDOE on what that might look like in science and social science. Just as a side note, last year school divisions did receive guidance from VDOE about adjusting course sequencing in social science courses. That was shared with the CNI committee last year a couple of times. LCPS decided to stick [00:25:56] with our standard course sequencing, and we had a solid explanation for why we did that. We had some concerns about the sequencing being suggested. It was essentially moving the standard sixth grade course, or U.S. history, through 1865 down to fifth grade and shifting everything from world world geography in ninth grade or 10th grade down to eighth grade. So this may have been a hint at what was coming, and we can likely project that that is something similar to what school divisions will be asked to do, but we haven't gotten any additional guidance on that. And again, [00:26:31] at the time, it was optional for school divisions to make that change. So for this year's assessments and what will be reported this time next fall, this readiness component will include chronic absenteeism and advanced math coursework only. It will not include advanced coursework in science and social science, and it will not include this performance task that is yet to be created. [00:26:56] So moving on to the high school level, mastery is no surprise, again. Graduation is also no surprise, and the federal graduation indicator, or FGI, has not changed. In terms of readiness, I did want to point out, again, chronic absenteeism is consistent with elementary and middle school, no surprise. There's also an added calculation for the six-year extended year graduation rate with applied studies. This is new, and we do believe it'll benefit our students who graduate on an extended year timeline. And finally, instead of a performance task for seniors, [00:27:34] schools will be scored on a ready-for-life 3E framework. The three E's being enrollment, employment, and enlistment, and schools will receive points for different numbers of points for students who complete, for example, a certain number of dual enrollment or AP courses or other college courses. [00:27:57] In terms of employment, that will be measured based on CTE credentials in high-wage and high-demand careers or high-demand careers, different points for each category, and then in terms of enlistment, the third E, schools will receive points for students' scores on military preparation tests, such as the ASVAB. Crystal clear, right? Okay, so moving on. So based on those three levels, those, all of those calculations, using all of those criteria and [00:28:35] categories, schools will earn points and be categorized into the four categories you see on the screen. This is very significant, and this is why we think it's extremely important that we are socializing this now making you and other stakeholders aware of this now divisions have been told you may have seen in news articles that videoe is anticipating six between 60 to 80 percent of schools across the commonwealth being labeled as off track or needing intensive support it's a [00:29:09] little startling to me to think about our schools changing changing designation so quickly but that That is what we've been told, and we just think that everyone needs to be prepared for that. So you can see these four categories. You can see the point system that they're using at the top of the screen, and again, schools will be receiving points based on the past several slides I've explained. [00:29:35] So to illustrate this pretty shocking possibility of 60 to 80 percent being off track or needing intensive support, VDOE shared this table on this slide at their state meeting. [00:29:51] A couple things to note about this table. It is hypothetical only. So these are schools statewide. This is not a Loudon-specific table. Schools statewide would hypothetically, using last year's data, but again, it doesn't go into place until 2025, hypothetically, this is how schools would shake out into these four categories. [00:30:14] So I want to point out a couple things. If you look at the middle school column, you'll note that only one middle school is in the distinguished category. Again, it's pretty hard for me to believe that only one of our middle schools in the LCPS, let alone across the entire state, isn't doing good work that would make it a distinguished school. [00:30:32] This chart is based on partially modeled data. It was anonymized in the process. So I'm not able to tell you where Loudoun schools would fall in this chart, but we did receive information from BDOE that they would be sharing that division-specific information with school divisions later this fall. [00:30:55] So all that being said, that's a lot of information. You probably have a lot of questions. I'm happy to hear those questions, do the best I can at answering them and certainly get you the answers we don't have because we don't have a lot of the answers yet. But all of this being said, the message that I really want to convey this evening is that while the goalpost has moved, and it's moved in the past, this is not surprising, and it will likely move again in terms of state and federal accountability, LCPS has a solid continuous school improvement process. [00:31:25] We've made significant changes and improvements in our process. We feel really good about it. We've gotten positive feedback from schools going through this process. Our schools and central office staff continuously monitor student growth. We want every single student to achieve. LCPS is already intervening with schools based on criteria of performance, growth, and readiness. [00:31:48] Factors very similar to what's already in the new accountability framework. And we will continue to do that the very best we can to support schools, again, to ensure that every single student achieves. We want 100% achievement. And if we continue to work toward that goal, we will continue to do the right thing for our students. [00:32:07] So that being said, I do want to turn it over to Mr. Meisensal to provide an overview of this current continuous school improvement process. And then we are happy to answer questions that you have. Thank you, Dr. Ellis. Good afternoon, Chair Mansfield and members of the school board. [00:32:25] All schools in Loudoun County Public Schools do engage in the Plan, Do, Study, Act process to address mastery, growth, and readiness for our students. Continuous improvement is grounded in the understanding that achieving lasting change requires time, collaboration, and ongoing adjustment. [00:32:41] Our school teams bring together key stakeholders to address an identified area for growth. Through a series of repeated cycles, which I will walk you through, new strategies or tools are tested and refined. Data is collected throughout to assess the impact of these strategies, helping to evaluate the effectiveness in improving student outcomes. [00:33:03] So the robust continuous improvement process in Loudoun County Public Schools aligns with the continuous improvement process expected and presented by the Virginia Department of Education. During the plan phase, schools build a team, identify and prioritize needs through a comprehensive needs assessment, select evidence-based interventions, and incorporate the interventions through the development of a school improvement plan. [00:33:29] which would be steps one through four in the Virginia Department of Education plan. As schools implement the plan during the due portion of the cycle, they collect qualitative and quantitative data showing evidence of implementation and impact on student learning. [00:33:44] This data is then evaluated during the study portion of the cycle, followed by how to respond or act. Each school site-based school improvement team includes representatives that bring different perspectives and expertise to the table. [00:34:01] The stakeholders included on this slide are examples of school-based, division-based, and community members that engage in the process with our schools. As part of the planning and the Plan-Do-Study Act, school teams began conducting comprehensive needs assessments this past spring of 2024, analyzing multiple data points. The school teams looked at trends and patterns in academic achievement and student engagement and defined the problem of practice considering additional data sources to build a more comprehensive understanding [00:34:37] of the area of growth. Conducting a root cause analysis helps teams avoid the tendency to jump to solutions before considering all the reasons a problem might exist. So during the root cause analysis, teams break down an initially identified overarching problem into finer grained problems that can be more effectively addressed and get to the root of why things are happening. [00:35:00] Our root cause analysis process includes three parts. First, affinity mapping identifies potential problems, barriers, and other factors contributing to the problem of practice. Then a fishbone diagram organizes the identified causes into categories or patterns. The third part is the interrelational diagram. It's a method for understanding the relationships between emerging root causes and identifies the primary drivers to be addressed when developing strategies. [00:35:35] Based on the identified areas for growth, school improvement goals are developed, Evidence-based instructional practices are identified, and teams develop strategies to implement those practices written in a way that is specific, actionable, and measurable. [00:35:52] In addition to instructional practices, teams identify opportunities for family and community members to support and engage in the school goals. When planning is done, teams begin implementation during the DO part of the Plan-DO Study Act process. [00:36:09] During this time, collaborative learning teams, or CLTs, engage in planning, professional development, and provide teacher feedback. Professional development is delivered aligned to the identified strategies. Strategies are implemented through engaging lessons. [00:36:26] Differentiated instruction and strategic interventions are delivered based on student needs. Data is collected to demonstrate strategy implementation and student impact. And teachers receive ongoing coaching. So after approximately 90 days of implementing those identified strategies in the school improvement plan, school improvement teams study the impact of the implementation where data is shared and analyzed. [00:36:55] When responding to the evidence and data conclusions, the improvement teams act by making decisions to either adapt or continue the strategy in place, abandon a strategy that is having minimal or no impact, or adopt a new strategy to implement for the next cycle. [00:37:13] This Plan-Do-Study Act process is repeated throughout the year as a method for testing changes and improving quality in a systematic way. Professional development support is delivered to school improvement teams throughout the year regarding the implementation of the Plan-Do-Study Act cycle. [00:37:37] Based on multiple data points, staffing resources are assigned to schools that will benefit from additional supports. Additionally, central office staff work collaboratively with individual school improvement teams throughout the Plan-Do-Study Act cycle. While all schools receive professional development support throughout the process, comprehensive support is provided every month through monthly collaboration meetings with schools with greater academic needs. [00:38:06] Enhanced support ensures that central office staff are at the table during the planning process, provide resources to support identified strategies, and participate with school teams during the data analysis, reflection, and decision-making for next steps. [00:38:23] The Department of Academics and School Leadership meet regularly to review school data and align resources and supports to meet the needs of our schools. So in addition to looking at state accreditation reports based on the current accreditation plan, the continuous improvement process digs deeper when looking at student achievement data by breaking down the accreditation rates, which combine both proficiency and growth into a combined rate. [00:38:51] And the sample showed on this slide, the accreditation status for this school demonstrates a level one for English and math. at an 87 for English and an 83 for math based on a combined rate that's combining proficiency and growth. By digging into the data, we see that the same school has a proficiency rate of 60% in English and 57% in math. This shows that while the school is showing incredible growth for students based on the combined rates, there's still a need for improvement for students not demonstrating [00:39:25] proficiency. As a division, we are prioritizing supports for schools based on growth and proficiency data. This established practice will support the VDOE's new accountability system, which is set to begin in 25-26 school year. In addition to school-wide support of the new reading curriculum, staffing and collaborative planning are provided to schools with the greatest academic needs. [00:39:52] So in terms of next steps, we just wanted you to be aware of what's coming down the road. So in In September, so later this month, the state will release the full state accreditation data. As you know, the SOL scores have been released and we are still waiting on some pieces of data. [00:40:13] So all of the state accreditation will be released later this month. Based on all of that information, Dr. Tyler and I will provide you with our annual student achievement presentation on October 10th. So that will include SOL data, graduation data, and we'll discuss map growth and other measurements of student growth. We will hopefully receive sometime this fall a draft or hypothetical school report specifically for Loudon based on the new VDOE accountability system. So that chart that I showed you with the numbers of schools in each category, school divisions should receive [00:40:50] that for their schools sometime this fall. We will receive that information, review it, and analyze it for possible implications for schools, and we will certainly share that with you. As we begin to prepare for the new accountability system in the coming school year we are committed to the ongoing continuous school improvement process throughout this year and into the future and then as I mentioned again just to clarify the 24-25 school year will be the first year of data collection for the new accreditation system and then the 25-26 school year so this time next fall will be the [00:41:26] first time reporting on the new data with full implementation next year. And with that, I will turn it back to you, Ms. Mansfield. Thank you, Dr. Ellis. Thank you, Dr. Tyler. And thank you, Mr. Meisensal. Board members, do you have any questions? Ms. Chernoff. Thank you, Dr. Ellis. I appreciate the presentation and also the extra lengths that you guys have gone to to kind of [00:42:01] get us up to speed on all of this in the last couple of weeks. I have really tried to comb through all of this information and try to understand what the implications are and a couple of questions keep rising to the top. So while I am liking actually the idea of separating compliance and performance as a way, compliance sort of feels like a checklist to me and then performance really zeros in on the achievement piece. I can get behind those two pieces because I think they are separate categories um but I just keep going back to that chart um of the of the [00:42:37] schools and where you know you pointed out one middle school is distinguished and most it sounds like the majority you're saying is projected that we'll be off track or in need of serious support so I know you said that we don't know right now where the Loudoun schools fall but do we have any idea about the cutoff scores are we looking at what is comparable to has been pre-COVID I know there was some shifting around that I think in 2021 and now we're looking at new cut like I'm assuming there's going to be new cut scores so have you gotten any information about what that [00:43:13] will look like where those scores came from so I'm going to ask Dr. Tyler to jump in here because he was exchanging emails directly with BDOE trying to get this information but my understanding is we do not have new cut scores yet. We have been told that they are likely coming but haven't heard anything concrete. But they clearly calculated something to get that chart so we don't I'll let you tell us what you know but. So based upon observations of the August 28th Virginia Board of Ed meeting there was an expert from an assessment center who presented and discussed [00:43:48] a process for establishing a new cut score. It was not announced at that meeting on August 28th So all that was announced was introduction of a process with many different stakeholders, including teachers and the public, to determine a new threshold. [00:44:04] And that expert was very clear about the process really being the validation of that. So there was not, as far as we know, a cut score calculated into what we saw as these projections. Also, as Dr. Ellison mentioned, the CCCRI, meaning the Career, College, and Civic Readiness data for high schools was not included in the calculations. [00:44:28] Okay, thank you for clarifying that. I do hope that we get those soon so we can start knowing what we're aiming towards. And then I noticed also in the state presentation, they talked about schools that are off track and below getting possible Tier 2 and Tier 3 supports from the state, from VDOE specifically did they allude to any of what that might look like? So for the more intensive supports the state is really targeting what they refer to as evidence-based practices and in certain cases if there are divisions that have either 40 percent of their schools [00:45:07] or 10 or more of their schools identify the state would work with the division to support the schools. So the idea of imagining evidence-based strategies thinking of certain reading and math strategies and if needed building district capacity to support schools and that would be through t-tac do we think not determined as far as what i saw from august 28th okay um miss chandler thank you madam chair um and thanks um to each of you for providing this information and for working so hard to get a [00:45:42] handle on this change um as it's coming into play quite quickly um i find that i'm hung up on one particular issue I the change between offering English learners 11 semesters and going to three and so in trying to understand this better myself I went to look at the data so according to the National Center for Education statistics across the board as an average Virginia serves about 9.4% English language learners which is slightly below the national average at 10.6 and in LCPS [00:46:21] according to our dashboard yesterday, it looks like we serve about 13.9. So I'm curious, what is the typical length of time that it takes for an English learner to acquire the linguistic fluency to perform on par academically on a standardized test with an English fluent peer? Thank you for that question, Ms. Chandler. So I did gather some research from our English learner office and our research office. The research indicates that it typically takes three to seven years for EL [00:46:57] students to develop English proficiency. It obviously depends on a variety of factors, including the student's age, prior education, and the quality of language support they receive in school. In the first two years, newcomers, particularly at the kindergarten level, do show more rapid growth, and that does slow down as students get older. Thank you for that. [00:47:25] And, again, I'm sure I will continue to reflect on this, but it does seem that we're starting from a particular place of challenge with this particular change. It seems like it's going to be hard from the get-go. Any other questions, board members? [00:47:44] No. I was looking at the special—I was looking at—so I know that the state wanted to target special education students, low-income students, and English learners. And so I'm curious if we know why they decided to only have English learners be a part of the accountability measures and not the other two populations. [00:48:06] Thank you for that question, Chair Mansfield. And I, too, have that same question. I've processed this with Ms. Richardson and the team. The only specific evidence I can see is the Virginia Alternate Assessment Program. [00:48:23] and we know that not all students with IEPs take that assessment, so that's not even a true capture. And so I don't have an answer to that question. I appreciate it, and we'll keep tracking that and see if we can get an answer. But I, too, have that question. I also find it curious that growth is not a measure in high school. [00:48:42] I mean, do they feel like a ninth grader doesn't have any more growth to do for either literacy or math or just focused on mastery? Is that a reality that we see in our high schools? Another great question, Chair Mansfield. [00:49:02] So I did attend one of the listening sessions when this was still in very much a draft form and the state was getting feedback. There were brief discussions about a performance task at the high school level. And as you can see, that did not appear in the final draft. [00:49:20] I'm not sure why it did not. We are pleased to see this six-year, extended-year graduation rate. I think that is a benefit to our students who are working hard to graduate. And we're still really digging into the Ready for Life 3E framework. I'm not sure the implications that that will have for us. [00:49:38] And then, as Dr. Tyler mentioned, CCCRI was not a factor, so we don't think that is going to be included. My hunch is this 3E framework will replace CCCRI. But we still have some questions about that. [00:49:53] And I do understand, I apologize, I did not answer your question, because I don't really know the answer. That's okay. I just think it's interesting that they're also not considering growth for our special education students, low income, or English learners in high school either. And last, I see that there's percentages for their performance components, like the master, growth, readiness, and graduation. [00:50:19] Is VDOE in their performance categories going to tell us where we are in terms of those percentages as well as their overall like 90 points, 80, 60 points, all the rest of that for distinguished on track, off track and need intensive support? [00:50:36] So to clarify, when you were referring to the performance assessments, this current year, this upcoming year, will be a year of development. And we expect the projection is that we will receive as divisions actual examples of growth performance assessments that we can administer. [00:50:57] So students will receive feedback as far as their performance. Your other question was as far as, could you restate your second question? so they have um performance categories and they have points right right so but then they have percentages according to elementary middle and high school um for all these different categories like reading sols all the rest of that are they going to tell us like where we might need help with mastery growth or readiness or any of that so what we're hoping to get from the reports that [00:51:33] we receive in the fall is a breakdown with the actual data rules kind of showing how it was calculated, how VVAS was calculated. So we're hoping the details will let us know where we may be scoring a little bit lower on a sub indicator, if you will, for possible growth. That's what we're hoping to get in the details. It just gets me too about the VAP test because that's like one percent of our special education population. It's super small. I don't understand why it's so big in here. But thank you so much for your presentation. Ms. Chernoff. Something you said just it's sort of piggybacked off my brain. I didn't want to leave out what Mr. Meisensal [00:52:10] presented because I've been out in schools and been hearing a lot from our building leaders about the shift in our school improvement process. And it's something that I really enjoyed being a part of when I was in schools. The high level data analysis work of all subgroups was so important. [00:52:28] And something that Dr. Spence and I had talked about this week in just asking some questions about the new process is the old way of thinking was kind of like, oh, our kids have a 72% overall, so let's move the goalpost to 74, right? And it was like, but what does that really mean in the day-to-day to teachers? [00:52:45] There wasn't a lot of tangible things there, but educators were a little bit on their heels to say, well, I don't want to say 100% because, you know, are 100% really going to make it? But now, it's my understanding that that's sort of the new model, is we're going to say our goal is always for 100% of all of our learners to get there, right? [00:53:04] And I love that. I love that idea. And then we're going to get in the trenches and do the growth work that needs to be done. And so I think it's really important, you talked about goalposts, that no matter what, the goalposts change and things will come and go. And we know that with VDOE, it happens. It happens in government. [00:53:20] We all know that now. I think it's really important to highlight that I see a really bright, high expectation-based future here in Loudoun with this new process. And so I'm excited to see that play out. I think our buildings are excited. They seem energized around the new process. So I wanted to thank you for that work. [00:53:37] And, you know, if the state isn't going to include it, I know LCPS is. So thank you. Well, and with that, let's hope the board votes yes on the Performance Monitoring Committee. Yes, please. initiated by vice chair, vice chair Streffi and Ms. Chernoff. And because I think that it's going to become even more important for us to dig through this, these numbers ourselves and provide a better picture of what LCPS is doing. So I know y'all have been working real hard on that. Thank [00:54:11] you so much. And we will now move on to item 4.02 from LA and P policy committee, the ombuds annual report. I think it's presented by Ms. Carrie Williams, Ombuds. Ms. Williams. [00:54:41] Good afternoon, Chair Mansfield and members of the board. I'm excited to present to you the second annual report from the Office of the Ombuds. The core values of the Ombuds office naturally and seamlessly align with LCPS's core values and strategic goals. While the work of the Ombuds can and does support all of the core values, trust through listening and continuous improvement are foundational to this role and how the ombuds supports constituents and the school division. Similarly, the work of the ombuds supports all four strategic goals, but with each [00:55:20] interaction, the ombuds provides greater opportunity and access for constituents to be an engaged part of the LCPS community, and the ombuds case data is a metric that is directly linked to strategic goal 4.3. When a constituent contacts the office of the ombuds for the first time, the conversation begins with a review of the four core values that have been established by the International Ombuds Association. They include confidentiality, independence, impartiality, and informality. [00:55:53] The data that will be shared today represents the ombuds' interactions with constituents between July 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024. Of the 369 visitor contacts last year, 321 are categorized as complete cases, while 48 are categorized as quick inquiries. Quick inquiries are comprised of questions that were answered or resources provided without a full dialogue with the ombuds, anonymous contacts, and carbon copies on concerns that were addressed to appropriate offices. The 369 contacts led to a total of 565 meetings with visitors and involved staff. [00:56:34] There were 207 contacts during the 22-23 school year, and this data reflects a 78% increase between year one and year two since the office was established. There has also been a significant increase in utilization of the ombuds office by employee groups. Of the 369 total contacts, 299 were associated with constituents or schools in a correlating voting district. [00:57:02] 70 cases were either attributed to multiple locations, central support employees who provided division-wide support, or the information was not shared with the ombuds. 316 cases were tied to a specific school level with 125 linked to elementary schools, 115 to high schools, and 76 to middle schools. Of the 142 parent, family, community, and student cases, 113 were complete cases and 29 were quick inquiries. 107 cases were categorized as general concerns and 35 were categorized as special [00:57:40] education concerns. The graphic on the right highlights the subcategories for this group of concerns. Looking further at the 35 special education concerns directed to the office, leading categories are related to specific IEP matters, procedures, and or compliance, and staff concerns. With over 10,000 special education students in LCPS, I work very closely with our special education supervisors, the Parent Resource Center, and school staff as an additional resource to support students and families with special education and 504 concerns. [00:58:17] When reviewing our employee cases of the 227 employees who contacted the office, 208 were complete cases and 19 were quick inquiries. 186 of the employee cases were tied to school-based staff while 41 cases were tied to central office or central support staff. The correlating concern categories are highlighted by the graphic on the right and evaluator and peer relationships account for half of the employee concerns. The most common actions taken by the ombuds include listening to [00:58:55] the issue or concern in discussing possible options, that happens in every case, providing information and/or referring the visitor to the appropriate office, and on 49 occasions, the ombuds raise the concern to the appropriate staff member on behalf of the visitor or anonymously. [00:59:11] Most cases are closed out in 1-5 business days depending on the complexity of the case and the need for follow-up meetings. When reviewing the data as a whole, three notable observations emerged. I've expanded upon each of these in my full report which is also linked on board docs. [00:59:31] Observation one is that relationships are essential. When trusting relationships and open lines of communication exist, constituents are able to navigate issues and concerns and explore options for potential resolution with greater ease and confidence. Observation two is that clearly defined processes are appreciated. [00:59:50] In many cases, when there is a concern related to a topic that is clearly outlined in policy regulation or guided by protocol, constituents have defined expectations, predictable timelines, and potential outcomes and experience, and they experience greater transparency. [01:00:07] An observation three is that confidential spaces are valued. All constituent groups, especially our employees, have provided feedback which place value on having an impartial and confidential space to be heard without fear of retaliation for voicing concerns or dissatisfaction. [01:00:26] As the Ombuds enters year three, the focus will be on the following four goals: expanding outreach opportunities targeted towards families and employee groups who are less likely to engage in formal processes; continuing to build and strengthen relationships with constituents and leadership both internally and externally; expanding professional development opportunities for school-based staff and central office leadership; and creating resource documents for the Ombuds webpage to support families and employees with the navigation of issues and concerns. [01:01:00] Thank you for the opportunity to share this information with you today, and I'm happy to answer any questions that you might have at this time. Thank you, Ms. Williams. Board members, do you have any questions? No questions? Oh, yes. Mr. Vice Chair Stravi. [01:01:16] I appreciate the report. For me, I was looking at the report and really just focusing in on input from teachers or school-level staff, actually whether that's central admin or not, but employees in general, and just seeing how much they have utilized this resource. [01:01:35] I think it goes back to the core values, kind of that neutrality, confidentiality, and just an escalation point that creates a safe space, because I think a lot of the, I mean, we've received outreach from staff or teachers, even at the school board level, emailing us and just seeing sometimes that communication just breaks down and just understanding that at the school community level, you have the admin at the school community and there's process, there's lots of formality in that process, and when relationships, you know, [01:02:10] break down, it's important to be able to, you know, for someone at the school level to be able to reach out to a neutral party, and just to have options, and even adequate time and space to be able to process things, and just seeing how much some of our staff, educators, and school community utilize this resource is really good to hear. [01:02:37] For me, I think, just wondering if we can compare some of this data coming out of the ombuds to other data in the division as well, just to see if there are some trends that we should be looking for. But yeah, and then also goal one, I was looking at goal one as well, and that is to have more proactive outreach in the future. [01:03:00] And so rather than waiting for folks to utilize this resource, How can we reach out to folks that may be less likely to engage? What are some ideas on how to do that? Have we thought about that? Yes, thank you. I've been working closely with our support services supervisors this year, which I did not attend last year. [01:03:18] I was in our food nutrition services back-to-school meetings as well as our transportation meetings. I've provided my resources in all of the languages that I have translated to our support services offices, and I will be attending a custodial manager meeting when they meet again. [01:03:36] I will attend any vendor event that if you have anything coming up that you know that they are looking for people to set up tables to be able to share just my basic information. I'm happy to do that. On the family side, engaging with our family liaisons as well as our PTO and PTA entities and any of our virtual fairs that, you know, weekends after school and then attending all of our advisory committee meetings as well. [01:04:07] Thank you. It looks like a quarter of the family, parent, student cases related to special education matters. And it looks like, according to here, that most related to IEP procedures and compliance, I think it's like 25 out of 35 contacts. [01:04:28] My predecessor, Mr. Morris, had thought about a special education ombudsman, someone who was dedicated to that. Is that something, is that a recommendation or a suggestion for looking further? Just curious your thoughts. [01:04:44] So it's actually why I track those separately. Our neighboring county, Fairfax, does have a designated special education ombudsman. I wanted to see what our data looked like to see if we were at the level of needing a part-time or full-time FTE for that. And I think that in the grand percentage of all of the concerns coming my way and because they're so specific to the individual IEP or case need, that's where I've really been partnering with our special ed supervisors and school staff to make sure that the families are heard and that they may be outside of the formalized process have an opportunity to engage so that their concerns are heard prior to those meetings. [01:05:24] So at this time, that's not a recommendation that I'm making. I'll continue to work closely with those staff members. But if those numbers increase, that's why I'm tracking them separately to see that if we do need to hire additional staff that we are utilizing and making the right decision for who that person might be. [01:05:43] Thank you for that, because sometimes it can get contentious, having been an IEP parent with two with IEPs. It can get contentious and hard to talk with. And the worst thing that can happen with an IEP team is no communication. [01:05:58] And so if there's anything that we can help with that communication, I think that would be a benefit to all. And having those conversations prior to the meeting and our special education supervisors have been phenomenal with, and our parent resource center as well, because sometimes the questions come in through that avenue as well. [01:06:20] And then we'll all meet prior to that meeting if needed so that the parent feels heard and validated. and then before going into that higher stakes meeting that they know that their concerns have been hurt. I didn't realize the parent resource was still around because that was around when I was old school, right? [01:06:36] That was our only avenue. So are we tracking together with them at all? Not side by side, but we do refer to one another. If it is maybe more around just needing a resource or a workshop, I might refer a parent to Leanne and then she might refer individuals back to me. [01:06:54] But we do connect around certain families who have requested resources from her, but then it might be a little bit outside of her scope, so then she refers them to me, but we'll all meet together so they know that we're not just separate silos, that we're all working together to support them. [01:07:11] Thank you. It's a beautiful thing you do. Thank you. Thank you. Any other questions, board members? No? Ms. Chandler. Thank you, Madam Chair. I just wanted to say thank you for your work and thank you for your presentation. [01:07:28] One of the things, I am lucky to have been able to see the presentation before in the LAMP committee, but the piece that has really resonated with me are your observations, and they ring true from my experience in LCPS in general, and I think it's great to be able to capture that relationships are essential and that clearly defined processes are always appreciated and that confidential spaces are valued, And I'm glad that we can offer this service to our educators and community. [01:08:01] Thank you. Thank you. And I do anticipate, you know, seeing additional growth this year. And I look forward to that. And then also collaborating with other local ombuds in the DMV and seeing their data. I think all of our offices are seeing an increase. [01:08:18] Because now with Northern Virginia, D.C., Maryland having ombuds, it's not so much of a, well, what is that position? I think more and more people are utilizing it, and then I'm seeing repeat visitors and then recommendations and referrals from staff and administrators, but then also within the employee groups between colleagues. [01:08:40] Thank you. Board members, we have like 20 more minutes, and I think that might be time enough for the superintendent's report. Would you guys be okay to move on up to our agenda item 10.01 presented by Dr. Smith? [01:09:01] Yes, thumbs up. Yes, let's go ahead. Dr. Smith, that's all you. All right. Thank you, Chair Mansfield, board members. I'm honored to be able to deliver tonight's superintendents report. We'll start with our family liaisons. [01:09:30] LCPS family liaisons started, let's see, let's get this going here. Okay, there we go. LCPS family liaisons attended a start of school professional development meeting last week. This event also welcomed 12 new family liaisons. Each LCPS school has a family liaison and they play a vital role in our schools. They help to connect families with their schools and the broader LCPS community. [01:09:48] During last week's professional development workshop, the family liaisons engaged in a presentation from community partners and received a demonstration from an on-demand virtual interpretation platform. Key stakeholders from Loudoun County's environmental community met with members of the LCPS leadership team for the Environmental Industry Partners Roundtable on Wednesday, August 28th at Woodgrove High School. [01:10:10] The goal of the meeting was to bring together partners to help support building students' environmental literacy so they are equipped and inspired to address environmental issues. Three schools, Blue Ridge Middle School, Farmwell Station Middle School, and Woodgrove High School have been recognized by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources for including environmental literacy in their curricula through the Virginia Naturally School Recognition Program. [01:10:35] This is the 16th year Blue Ridge Middle has been recognized, the second year for Farmwell Station, and the first year for Woodgrove. These three schools are among 58 schools statewide to receive this recognition for the 23-24 school year. The Virginia Naturally School Program honors exemplary efforts to increase environmental awareness and stewardship among K-12 students. [01:10:58] These three schools recognized, engaged in environmental awareness activities and studies year-round are illustrated in photos here. The one on the left is a photo of a hike that Woodgrove High School students participated in last spring to observe nearby vernal ponds. [01:11:15] And the one on the right is a photo of Farmwell Station students participating in a young naturalist club in which they observe and record the natural world around them. Clark Seip, Director of Sustainability, has been selected to participate in the U.S. Green Building Council's 2425 Leaders in Sustainability Fellowship Program. [01:11:36] Ms. Seip is one of five fellows selected from a pool of nationwide candidates. As a leader in sustainability fellow, Ms. Seip will receive coaching and mentorship, access to industry experts, targeted professional development, and assistance in advancing green initiatives. Ms. Seip began her tenure in LCPS in December of 2023 as LCPS's first sustainability director. [01:12:00] We are proud to report that LCPS students demonstrate a continuous improvement as measured on the 2024 Standards of Learning Test. The results indicate that SOL proficiency rates are returning to pre-pandemic achievement levels and that school support systems and division initiatives have helped students achieve increased improvement across all subjects. [01:12:22] LCPS pass rates for all SOL content areas increased from 23 to 24, and the graphic on this slide shows pass rates by subject for 2024 as compared to 2023. Thanks to our dedicated educators who helped us to achieve these results, and thank you to our families and our community for their continued support as we work to provide the best education and opportunities for all LCPS students. [01:12:47] That concludes my report. Well, thank you, Dr. Smith. Since we have 15 more minutes, how do you guys feel about going on to our first information item, 13.01? [01:13:03] Let's do it. Okay, so let's see. 13.01, Department of Business and Financial Services, School Board Calendar for the Development of the Fiscal Year 2026 Annual Budget, presented by Ms. Sharon Willoughby, our Chief Financial Officer. [01:13:23] Thank you. We have begun the development of the FY26 budget and one of the initial steps is to bring forward the budget calendar for the school board to review and approve. In board docs is an outline of that calendar and I would like to draw your attention to a few dates. First is on October 22nd we will have a work session with the school board to discuss the priorities as well as obtain further direction on development of the budget. This is about a month earlier than what we did last year and we hope that this will help facilitate the budget process. Beginning in January through [01:14:02] the beginning of February would be the dates of the official school board review and approval of the budget. This follows a similar time frame as last year and is in accordance with the county's budget timeline. On January 14th we would have the superintendent's presentation of the FY26 estimate of needs, followed by a series of work sessions. What is different, though, this year is that we are proposing moving from a department-focused presentation to an initiative-focused [01:14:36] presentation. Last year, you heard from each department come forward, do a short presentation or long presentation on their budget in the request for the upcoming year, followed by a short session of Q&A during each work session. I've been using my department as an example, business and financial services, where we may not have a lot happening in the budget from one year to the next. So we think a better approach would be to really focus on the items of interest and [01:15:10] of importance in the budget regarding the initiatives. So each night we would have a presentation focused on those initiatives being presented perhaps by multiple cabinet members so that's the schedule of the work sessions we have january 30th also listed if necessary to follow our past practice of giving ourselves a cushion just in case and then on february 4th we would have the adoption of the school board budget along with one of the public hearings so unless otherwise directed this item would come back to the school board for action on [01:15:47] September 24th thank you miss Willoughby board members do you have any questions no questions may I get a thumbs up to put this on consent for the September 24th it's just it's just the calendar okay it looks like it's unanimous consent we'll put this on the consent for September 24th and we'll just keep [01:16:20] on moving on um item 13.02 office of superintendent fourth quarter's forecast presented by dr daniel smith our chief of staff dr smith thank you chair mansfield board members i'm going to wait just a second while we get this up on the screen i can talk through it um so you have in board docs uh the forecast for the fourth quarter forecast of topics which include the last five board meetings for 2024 from October through December. On this forecast, you'll notice that we have updates from [01:16:59] school board advisory groups built in to the forecast with MSAC updates on October 8th, SEAC on November 12th, and CTAC on December 10th. At the first meeting in October, we are anticipating a presentation on the student achievement data and also an information item about county year-end funds. The second meeting in October, we're projecting a work session for the FY26 budget. We're also anticipating an update from transportation about the start time studies. [01:17:27] We'll have the Auditor General's audit report, annual report, excuse me, annual student enrollment report for September 30th enrollment, and first quarter financial projections. Lastly, the county year-end funds request would then move to an action item at that time, so a very busy second meeting in October. November starts with a work session and around the capital improvement plan or the CIP. [01:17:50] We're also anticipating that we'll hear information about the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, School Activity Funds Annual Report, and the FY26 Preliminary Fiscal Forecast. At the second meeting in November, staff is proposing a work session about the work taking place across LCPS with artificial intelligence. [01:18:09] We're also anticipating an update on program evaluation and the FY24 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report. I'll also be back with the first quarter forecast at that meeting. We have one meeting in December and we're projecting an update and information about the college and career readiness platform at that meeting. [01:18:28] Finally, I'll mention that this is just an overview of the forecast of board topics for the fourth quarter and all items are subject to change as we get to each meeting as the board chair has the discretion and authority over the school board agenda. But that's what we're projecting at this time. Happy to answer any questions you might have. [01:18:44] - Board members, do you have any questions? - Yes, Vice Chair Straffy. - Thank you very much. I think the only comment that I would have and just that this is more of a discussion point is As I look at the next few months, it's a lot, and we have a good amount of work in each of these items. [01:19:04] I'm just thinking about, aside from the CIP work sessions and the work that we're doing to get up to speed on that, there are a bunch of different budget priority areas that we are considering, and we've kind of expressed as board members, whether that's in special programs, CTE, whether that's transition center or other initiatives that we've kind of voiced across the board. [01:19:27] Are there any thoughts around having more focused discussion around those before we reach January? Just to do a little bit of more pre-work before arriving directly at the budget in December. Just to kind of sift through some of the thoughts of the board. [01:19:47] Thank you, Mr. Streffi. Yeah, I think we are hoping that that is going to come out in the FY26 budget work session on October 22nd. And the CIP work session on November 12th. Depending on where some of those may lie. We would work with the board chair, but anticipating that's going to take a majority of that work session and hoping for a robust discussion during that time and happy to build any additional other time that you feel like you might need so that you are prepared going into January. [01:20:12] You've got a little bit more time this go around. Okay, thank you. Any other questions? No? I think we're going to need more than 10 minutes for our next items. Okay, so thank you, Dr. Smith. [01:20:32] And I think at this point we're going to go ahead and recess our meeting. which is item 5.01, for dinner, and we will reconvene at 6.30. [02:00:13] Good evening. The board is coming out of recess at this time, and we will start our meeting with item 7, the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem. Our pledge leaders and National Anthem singers today are the Rock Ridge Singers, led by Jordan Markwood. [02:00:35] The Rock Ridge Singers have performed for the U.S. Department of Education, the Virginia Music Education Association Conference, and on the Millennium Stage at the Kennedy Center as a part of a Music in Our Schools Month celebration. [02:00:52] Members of Rock Ridge Sings are consistently selected for district, state, regional, and national honor choirs in addition to the Virginia Governor's School for the Visual and Performing Arts, National Young Arts Foundation winners, and others. This year, Rock Ridge Sings is excited to announce that the chamber choir was one of the two high school choirs in the state selected to perform at the VMEA conference in November. Congratulations. At this time, I ask everyone to stand for the [02:01:27] Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem. Next item on the agenda is item eight, student [02:03:45] staff recognitions, and we will start with item 8.01, the one LCPS spotlight, English learners, Presented by Charisse Rosario, Director of English Language Learners. Good evening, Chair Mansfield, members of the board, and Dr. Smith. [02:04:11] I'm Charisse Rosario, the Director of the Division of English Learners, and I am humbled and honored to speak with you this evening. Next slide. Today we are highlighting the exceptional efforts of three schools that have implemented reflective and effective differentiated learning strategies to support our English learners. [02:04:36] These schools exemplify our commitment to providing equitable and inclusive education for all students, regardless of their language background. I will provide you a brief overview of the Division of English Learners' professional development offerings and our alignment with Dr. Spence's post-entry plan in support of the LCPS strategic plan. [02:04:59] Next slide. Dr. Spence's post-entry plan has brought a focus on supporting individualized and differentiated learning, which is highlighted in Aligned Actions 1.1 and 2.1 of the strategic plan. [02:05:16] I appreciate Dr. Spence including this as an important focus within his post-entry plan. Next slide. For the past three years, our office has taken a reflective approach to supporting our educators in meeting the diverse needs of our students. [02:05:34] On the left is a snapshot of the Division of EL tiered professional learning plan which is focused on the educator's experience and understanding of ELs. The plan is categorized into three pathways: emerging, expanding, and enhancing to provide differentiated approach for educators. [02:05:56] Under each header is a description of the intended audience. Participants are supported with feedback via walkthroughs, lesson plan enhancements, and side-by-side conversations by the EL Deeper Learning facilitators. I've highlighted three professional learning offerings, one from each tier to share. [02:06:17] EL Foundation's training includes the why, the who, how, and what of teaching English learners. This professional learning includes best teaching techniques and strong research-based practices for ELLs, including brief overviews and elements of Quality Teaching for English Learners, better known as QTEL, Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol, also known as SIOP, Expediting Reading Comprehension for English Language Learners, also known as Excel, and the English Language ELD Standards Trainings. [02:06:54] Participants obtain a basic understanding of how to scaffold and meet the needs of their English learners. Society Teaching for English Learners develops expertise in designing equitable and quality learning opportunities by implementing high-challenge and high-support instruction while simultaneously developing disciplinary knowledge and participation in authentic performance tasks. [02:07:21] ELD standards workshops focus on English language development standards framework which does support the development and delivery of lessons that integrate content and language concurrently. They align the ELD standards with the Virginia SOL standards. By enhancing the professional learning of all educators in their schools to build knowledge of best practices of English learners, we are exemplifying our commitment to providing equitable and inclusive education for all students. Next slide please. Goshen Post Elementary School, Sterling [02:07:58] Middle School right behind me and Heritage High School will present their specific strategies and the impact they have had on their students. The dedication of these schools to professional development, cultural diversity, inclusivity, and collaborative learning is focused on enhancing language proficiency and improving academic performance and overall student well-being. The positive outcomes achieved by these schools serve as a a testament to the power of differentiated instruction in focusing success for our English learners. We are proud to share their stories and successes with you today. First up is Goshen [02:08:38] Post Elementary School. Next slide. Good evening. My name is Brian Klippel and I'm the very proud principal of Goshen Post Elementary School. Next slide. At Goshen Post Elementary, we take immense pride in providing our students with authentic learning experiences every single day. Our Our commitment to excellence is reflected in our comprehensive approach to supporting every child, particularly our English learners. [02:09:12] To ensure success, we continue to implement a school-wide project-based learning instructional framework. This approach not only engages students in authentic learning experiences, but also fosters critical thinking and problem-solving skills. [02:09:28] We also emphasize high-quality co-teaching practices by pairing teachers with diverse expertise. We create a dynamic and inclusive classroom environment where all students can thrive. Our ongoing co-teaching planning sessions are crucial as they allow us to embed quality teaching for English learners or QTEL strategies into daily lessons seamlessly. [02:09:50] Consistent use of QTEL strategies such as interactive notebooks, collaborative posters, and anticipatory guides is another cornerstone in our instructional practices. These strategies ensure that our English learners receive the targeted support they need to to develop their language skills effectively. [02:10:07] Our collaborative learning team structure and staff-led sustained professional learning initiatives are vital to our success. These structures promote continuous improvement and ensure that our educators are always equipped with the latest best practices. Next slide. Additionally, our school-wide Gator to Gator peer mentor program provides students with valuable peer support, fostering a sense of community and belonging. [02:10:32] This happens weekly during our morning meetings where students leverage QTEL strategies engage in meaningful conversation we also integrate computer science regularly into our lessons in order to support the generalization of language skills this innovative approach not only enhances language proficiency but also prepares our students for the digital age these efforts have led to consistent high quality instruction which helps every child due to our continuous efforts an amazing english learner and general education staff who have joined me here tonight or viewing virtually we have seen significant progress in our students proficiency rates and [02:11:12] continued success in as we prepare our students to make meaningful contributions to our community we are incredibly proud of the work being done at Goshen post and remain steadfast in our commitment to achieving excellence through authentic rigorous providing rigorous experiences for every child every day now i will turn it over to sterling middle school next slide good evening chairwoman Mansfield Dr. Smith member of the board my name is Fitzroy Fru and I'm the proud [02:11:48] principal at Sterling Middle School where each day we do great things for each of our students I'd like to introduce the team with me this afternoon and they represent over 200 dedicated staff in the land of the pioneers Mrs. Elena Barham assistant principal Mrs. Juliana Johnson-Lewis assistant principal Dr. Gonzalo Gallardo assistant principal and Dr. Mabel Lamprea EL teacher at Sterling Middle School we are lucky enough to handle the middle [02:12:25] and what you see on this slide are several of our consistent practices that all of our teachers use to help and benefit all of our pioneer students and to support instruction this year we are using QTEL strategies across the content area but we're also developing the foundation of new staff in the electives in other classes and incorporating various opportunities to instruct not only language learners but access all students across the areas. In the video that we're about to see [02:13:02] we hope to capture some not only of the strategies and practices that our teachers are implementing with students as part of the professional development and creativity they bring to the table but the deep relationships that they form with students as well as the high expectations [02:13:19] we'd have for a collective student population we don't accept idk anymore that's not a proper response or i have nothing miss that's not a proper response you may even repeat what you heard someone else say by saying well i agree with what someone so said one of the things we have done is [02:13:59] a little podcast where they can tell about their own stories or they can create stories so creativity is allowed there. To me, storytelling permits students not only to imagine the worlds, but to change their own narratives, to change their own stories. Using the anticipatory guide, the collaborative posters, and the jigsaws, we really encourage them to engage in that academic conversation and stay on track throughout the entire process and allow them to be more confident in their responses and their answers and presenting in front of their peers. We start playing games to [02:14:34] get to know each other and like we would talk and like it will help me more to communicate and like pronounce things better sometimes i help others because they might need help and they don't know what the thing they're talking about or the subject you can like help them so like they can get more like comfortable with the english i've been writing english better than i used to what's your favorite class english or math all right thank you at this time we'll turn [02:15:13] and over to Mr. Jeff Adams, Heritage High School. - Good evening, everyone. And it's hard to follow that, but at Heritage, could advance the slide, please. [02:15:31] But at Heritage, we aim to provide a high challenge, high support learning experience for each of our students and in every one of our classrooms. This slide represents the connection between our instructional models at Heritage. [02:15:47] We used the metaphor of the map to help draw connections between the LCPS framework, the map itself, the International Baccalaureate approaches to teaching and learning, the compass and chosen direction, and the professional learning many of our teachers have experienced through quality teaching for English learners, or QTEL, or foundations, or even book studies, such as visible math. [02:16:12] So that represents, that professional learning represents sort of the how, the turn-by-turn directions on how to get to our destination, all of which supports the LCPS mission of empowering students to make meaningful contributions to the world, and which supports our efforts for equity to ensure that success for students cannot be predicted by demographic factors, but as a result of the high quality learning experiences they have during their time at Heritage. [02:16:42] Next slide, please. So this shows you some pictures from this year. And so on the left, or on my left, You'll see the professional learning our staff engaged in at the beginning of the year. [02:17:02] That was provided by a collaboration between myself and the instructional facilitators within the division of EL Learning. And you'll see that we do some of the collaborative posters and jigsaws. We did that. We asked our teachers to produce what they felt like high challenge, high support learning looked like, sounded like, and felt like. [02:17:25] And so that was one of the things. And then if you look on the right, you see what our students are doing and how that translates. So these are pictures from a math class led by Tanya and Sarah Smiths. They are not related. We call them Smith squared though, but they are not related and they do an amazing job. [02:17:45] And so you can see how those strategies that our teachers are learning and that they're experiencing are then translating to what happens in the classroom. And Ms. Smith, Tanya Smith, is here tonight, I think. I thought I saw her. There she is, way in the back. [02:18:01] And one of the telling statistics about the meaning, the changes that these are making in our students and the difference it's making, our EL math scores, our EL pass rate for math was the highest subgroup that we had in all of our math pass rates, including our overall pass rate. [02:18:23] So it's working, right? in the alignment that we have between the instructional framework, the IB program, which you all also have generously supported at Heritage, and the strategies that we're using to really provide the foundation for our students and for making sure that we can provide that high challenge, high support environment for our students, it's working and it's making a difference. [02:18:47] And we are very excited because that focus and support for all of our students increases the acquisition of English for our non-native English speakers, but increases the engagement of all of our students, regardless of their background and language, which of course just opens up more pathways for all of our students as they journey through high school and through heritage. [02:19:10] So we know that we still have work to do, but at least we now have a more clear, aligned pathway that's ahead of us. Next slide. So I get the honor of just saying thank you for all of your support, for all of our students. [02:19:26] The programs that we have had the opportunity to institute at Heritage are making a difference. And I know that that is also true for Goshen Post, Sterling Middle, but for all of our schools throughout Loudoun County. [02:19:44] Thank you. Thank you. Board members, do you have any questions? Yes, Ms. Chernoff. Not a question, but a comment. I just wanted to thank the EL department for pouring into a lot of this professional development and really leaning into that kid talk portion of the QTEL strategies. [02:20:04] And I'm a big fan of vertical alignment. And so this presentation really hits home in terms of, you know, what we're doing in elementary is following through those strategies. And we know that that consistency is so key for our kiddos. So having those questions and having that maintained throughout the grade levels, You can really see the power, and we love hearing when things are working. [02:20:24] So thank you so much for being here and all that you do. Thank you. Any more questions or comments? Yes. Vice Chair Streffi. Yeah, I just wanted to echo Ms. Chernault's comments as well. I haven't had the opportunity to visit all three schools, but I have had multiple visits to Sterling Middle, and I am just astounded by the amount of eagerness and openness for you all as leaders to highlight all of the things happening in the classrooms and in leadership specifically in this case EL learners but across across the school [02:21:01] communities this openness and eagerness to highlight all the things that our educators are doing is really the key to so much positivity in the school community and so as we go and visit you all that eagerness and openness really shines so it's really important to us as well to be able to hear some of these things and I think this focus on allowing educators to reinvent themselves translates directly into our students being able to transform themselves as well. And so how all the opportunities that exist for our teachers to reinvent themselves, our educators to reinvent themselves, I think is really one of the keys that we have as a school [02:21:35] division. So thank you. Any other comments or questions? No, I have to say my favorite phrase was high challenge, high support. I think that's really important. I guess it's better than high challenge. I think I like better than high expectations even. Okay, thank you so much for your presentation and we are going to move on to item nine our student school board [02:22:09] representative comment 9.01 Cooper Carroll from Briarwoods high school our student tonight is obviously Cooper Carroll a 17 year old senior at Briarwoods high school he has lived in Ashburn his entire life and has been in LCPS since kindergarten Cooper is a member of the SCA and is currently the co-president. Last year he was inducted into the National Honor Society and the National Art Honor Society. Cooper is a proud member of both the varsity golf team and the [02:22:48] varsity baseball team. Cooper has a part-time job at Fitwise where he works after school with the kids programs. In his free tie he enjoys playing golf, spending time with his family at their Lakehouse, wakesurfing, enjoying concerts, drawing, and his dog Smokey. He looks forward to his senior year and is busy applying to colleges. Mr. Cooper, welcome, and the floor is yours. Thank you. Hello, my name is Cooper Carroll, and this is my fourth year at Briarwoods High School and a 12th year as [02:23:24] a student in Loudoun County Public Schools. I would first like to thank Ms. Alzate and Ms. Edinger for granting me this opportunity to speak with you. Over my time at Briarwoods, I have had wonderful opportunities to become engaged with school programs, clubs, and sports. [02:23:40] I am the current president of SCA, and I'm a member of both National Honor Society and National Art Honor Society. I'm a member of both the varsity golf and baseball teams. I have also gotten to work with many outstanding teachers, and I've been given the chance to truly understand what it means to be a student at Briarwoods. [02:24:01] Our school has countless opportunities to get involved with each student. As students at Briarwoods, we have our core values, which are known as FLY, to be fearless, to be loyal, and to be you. Fearless students should actively and constructively participate in class, as well as take smart academic risks to challenge themselves. [02:24:24] Students should be loyal by supporting classmates in their work, following classroom routines, and respecting school items. Finally, to be you, students should express themselves and let others do the same. I can't go over all of the wonderful programs at Briar, but I would like to highlight a few and discuss a new one. [02:24:47] I may be biased, but our Briarwoods SEA is one of the best SEA programs in the nation. SEA provides students with a chance to develop leadership skills by organizing events, making decisions, and representing their peers. We are very lucky that we have a dedicated block for SEA team members to work together during a study hall. [02:25:08] Speaking in front of peers, working with our school administration and teachers, and handling responsibilities has greatly enhanced a student's self-confidence. We have 29 events scheduled for the year already. They are fun and engaging, and organizing or participating in the school events makes it both a social and educational experience. [02:25:30] Our DECA program has 203 members last year, with 75 competitors representing Briar at our school district leadership conference. hosted at Briarwoods, and around 50 of our students represented us at the state leadership conference last March. Briarwoods DECA is also proud to be represented all year at the state level through our very own Pranita Kudapudi, who is the current vice president of Region 1 for Virginia DECA. Briarwoods has a long history of sports programs. Last year, our cheerleading team [02:26:09] won the 5A state title. Our girls basketball team made it to state semifinals, as well as our girls soccer team, and my teammate Ben Baker was an individual golf state champion. Our football team came off another winning season going eight and three and is projected to exceed that record this year. Briar Woods is honored to be one of the two high schools in Loudoun County to be home of the Health and Medical Sciences Academy. It is designed to expand opportunities for students in health sciences related fields. Briar welcomes 75 new students from around the county that are now [02:26:46] full-time Falcons. We are looking forward to participating and having these students become a part of our school and other activities, as well as feeling welcome as a new Falcon. Finally, I wanted to let you know how life is like at a student at Briar Woods. As students, we strive inside the classroom, but the way students interact outside the classroom is unmatched. We come together as a community to go out and support our peers, whether it's a football game, an advisory event, or a school play. We are proud of the academic success our [02:27:22] school has. We strive to not only have strong athletic teams, but to be as proud of being a supporter of our athletes. We have a wonderful teaching and administrative staff that supports our students, sponsors clubs, and coaches our sports teams. Being a student at Briar Woods isn't just about being in the classroom, it's about being part of the Falcon family. Thank you. Mr. Cooper, thank [02:27:56] you so much for being here and for your remarks and we will now move on to item 11 our public comment thank you for engaging with the school board through the public comment process the school board welcomes comments from loudon county residents and believes that strong community engagement and outreach are important components of a successful school system speakers must limit comments to the time allotted based on the number of speakers in the agenda this evening all speakers have been allotted two minutes each for public comment. [02:28:34] Please be advised that speakers who miss their time slot will not be called at a later time. All audience members shall maintain civility, decorum, and respect for the functioning and the dignity of the school board at all times. Please remain seated unless arriving, departing, speaking at the podium, or during a break. [02:28:52] Violations of civility, decorum, and respect include shouting, heckling, jeering, applause, or other noise which disrupts or delays the meeting, obstructing speakers from being able to see the school board and vice versa, interrupting speakers, attempting to speak when not called to do so by the chair, and approaching a speaker otherwise attempting to intimidate, disparage, or distract a speaker, staff member, or other meeting attendees. [02:29:17] Speakers should refrain from vulgarity, obscenities, defamation, profanity, or other like breaches of respect, nor may speakers target, criticize, or attack individual students and or individual division employees during public comment. Speakers should communicate those concerns to their school principal or an appropriate school official. [02:29:37] The school board requests that comments on an individual student or employee-related matter not be shared at public meetings where the disclosure could violate applicable confidentiality requirements. Speakers should face the dais and direct their comments to the school board. [02:29:53] Per LCPS Policy 2520, members of the school board will not answer questions or respond directly to the public during the public comment period. Violations of decorum or civility by any meeting attendee may result in the chair directing staff to remove the attendee from the remainder of the meeting. [02:30:10] Repeated or persistent violations of decorum or civility by the audience may result in, on the decision of the chair, public comment being tabled until a later point in the meeting's agenda, limiting the number of attendees in the meeting room during public comment for safety reasons, or the public comment period ending for the evening. [02:30:30] Copies of materials for board members should be given to the public information officer at the media box at the back of the boardroom before the start of the meeting. Please provide 12 copies of the materials. Under no circumstances may a speaker approach the dais. The public is reminding that access to school board meetings is available through LCPS-TV on Comcast Channel 18 and Verizon Fios Channel 43. [02:30:55] The live stream of the meeting may be viewed on the website. We look forward to hearing your comments. My understanding is we have no virtual public comments today. We only have in-person. So I will start with Michael Kotelnicki, followed by Shelly McCullers. [02:31:17] Good evening. I'm Dr. Michael Kotelnicki. I'm an athletic trainer employed by Loudoun County Public Schools, speaking on the addition of another athletic trainer employed by Loudoun County Schools and giving you some specific reasons why our profession leads to a great transition that the resources we provide during the school day, how it can translate into the evening when there's only one of us there with 100-some-plus students, and if we have games, 100-some-plus students, fans, and often multiple locations. [02:31:53] We as a profession are one, if not the only, professional staff member or academic that has to have a master's degree just to do our profession right out of college. We don't drift into that. It needs to have it happen as we become board-certified and licensed by the State of Board of Medicine. [02:32:12] Our continuing education is twice that of other medical professions. That of physical therapists, PAs, OTs, chiropractors, nurses. We're required 50 each two years. Those other professions are required 20 to 25. One might ask why. [02:32:28] The athletic trainer has to have that transition from those professions into their professions. speech pathology, vocal cord disruption, or emergent care, EMS, concussion, neurology, first aid, nurses, Narcan. [02:32:44] All those things the athletic trainer does translates from the other professions. And we want to translate those resources we provide during the day to that lone athletic trainer in the evening to two, to provide those resources for our students. So at the end of the day, competent care counts after that bell rings. [02:33:02] And as the athletic trainer at Briar, Ms. P would say, we want those students to fly. We want all our students to fly. Thank you. Thank you. We'll continue with Shelly McCullers, followed by Corey Brunet. [02:33:19] Hi. I'm here tonight as a parent and also as vice president representing Woodgrove's Booster Club. I urge this board to be proactive and to add a second full-time athletic trainer to each high school. Several counties, including Fairfax, have already added a second trainer, and Loudon should have done this a long time ago. [02:33:36] The safety of our students is paramount, so this is a need, not a want. Last winter, my daughter tore her ACL at basketball practice. She was in pain and a state of shock, and it resulted in our athletic trainer having to help her leaving a wrestling meet with no athletic trainer on deck. Luckily, a mom who just happens to be an LCPS athletic trainer was volunteering at the snack bar and sprung in to help. [02:33:58] Situations like these happen all the time, and LCPS does not always have a safety net of a mom just happening to be there. On that girl's basketball team alone, there have been seven ACL tears. Adding an additional trainer would not only protect our county, but could open doors to injury prevention programming and equitable rehab for those that cannot afford it. [02:34:17] Luckily, our family has insurance, but as a result of that, last year our daughter had 37 tardies and 14 early dismissals in order to receive PT at an outside practice. A second trainer could reduce that and keep kids in the classroom. Earlier today, 305 Woodgrove students suited up for practice or to compete on a campus with facilities spanning 221 acres. [02:34:41] This results in an athletic trainer having to ping pong around trying to provide coverage, often leaving the training room unattended. 305 athletes relying on one. I repeat, one athletic trainer. Is that the standard our county thinks is safe? Having been through so many devastating injuries with my kids, whenever they are injured, nine times out of ten, a trainer helps them navigate getting to the other side. [02:35:03] I don't think you understand how much these trainers really do and how much student-athletes need them in all aspects of life, mentally and physically. We don't need contracted trainers. We need two athletic trainers per school that know these kids. Thank you. Thank you. [02:35:18] Corey Brunet, followed by Valerie Hughes. Good evening. My name is Corey Brunet, and I'm an English learner teacher at Broad Run High School. [02:35:34] LCPS employees are professionals, right? I mean, I assume that when people are hired to work for LCPS, they are considered professionals. Cafeteria workers and managers, they get the job done every day. [02:35:50] Those who work for transportation, from mechanics to office staff to bus drivers and attendants, I think we can all agree that these people are professionals. When you walk into a school on a school day, I'm sure you find the school clean, the main office organized and well-staffed, And when you walk down the halls during instruction and peek into classrooms, you would probably describe the teachers and teacher assistants as professionals and hopefully experts in their field. [02:36:19] When I'm in this building, it never occurs to me that the people I encounter are anything but professionals. And I bet you feel the same. On August 27th, all LCPS employees got an over-the-top bully email that was grossly disrespectful concerning how to behave ourselves with regard to the upcoming election, and squeezed in were some lies that were walked back in a late email sent last Thursday. [02:36:49] Why are we treated like untethered hooligans? We vote every November in Virginia, and we have never received an email like the one sent on August 27th. We are professionals, and most of us work with children. [02:37:04] We understand our role in the lives of our students and take it seriously. We must be treated better. LCPS will never outperform its educators. Thank you. Valerie Hughes, followed by Chris Countryman. [02:37:26] Hello again. Just to reintroduce myself, my name is Valerie Hughes, and I have a Ph.D. in molecular medicine. I'm a subject matter expert with approximately 20 years of experience in public health. [02:37:44] Firstly, I want to thank the Finance Committee for taking our grievances to heart and taking the time to research our concerns and the rest of the school board to hear us out. There's currently sufficient evidence noting health effects and potential health effects to include a recent July 2024 study out of Germany. [02:38:05] In their paper, they reported that people living near cell phone towers show significant genetic changes and that low-dose radiofrequency exposure can increase the incidence of a number of different types of chromosomal aberrations, which can lead to health effects to include cancer and neurological diseases. [02:38:28] There's also been a reported case of a cell tower being removed in Rippon, California after four students and three teachers were diagnosed with different forms of cancers within a three-year period of it being erected. Loudoun County is not the only location where residents are showing concern over cell tower placement. [02:38:49] The following locations have either banned, restricted, or have ongoing litigation for cell tower placement. And I'm just going to name a few of those. Montgomery County, Maryland. Fauquier County, Maryland. Palo Alto, California. [02:39:04] Dewey Beach, Delaware. Ocean City, Maryland. Montego Bay, Maryland. there are over two dozen of them with a quick google search i hope this information proves useful in demonstrating that we currently don't know all the risks and lastly i would highly recommend adding another red line to the policy stating that previous those previously approved by the school board will no longer be considered after the expiration of the current lease thank [02:39:33] you. Thank you. Chris Countryman followed by Lynn Farkas. Good evening board. I want to thank and congratulate you all on passing the collective bargaining resolution last month and holding your heads high above the misinformation and the disinformation that was put out there. Last year I shared my vision with you of a newspaper headline that read Loudon gets it. The details of the story [02:40:10] would read that LCPS understands the importance of a strong collective bargaining agreement to attract and retain quality employees. Last month you took the first step and last week we took the second. We have officially requested the representative election. The next step is hiring an LRN or labor relations neutral to help navigate an open and smooth as well as fair election. LEA looks forward to representing all LCPS employees in bargaining a contract in good faith that benefits It's the employees, the students, and the entire community. [02:40:48] What we can accomplish when we truly empower and engage employees to enhance LCPS has the potential to become the best school district and the educational employer of choice in Virginia. We can do it if we work together. [02:41:05] We're excited to move forward in partnership with the school board and LCPS administration to not just avoid emails like the one Ms. Brune spoke of, but to actually take it further and to create the best practices in the state. I can confidently say that with us being the final school district in Northern Virginia to adopt a collective bargaining resolution, that they saved the best for last. [02:41:30] I look forward to what's to come. Thank you. Lynn Forkus, followed by Nalini Tanden. Chairman Mansfield, Dr. Spence, members of the board, it's very nice to meet you. [02:41:49] My name is Lynn Forkus, and I'm the founder and owner of Milestone Towers. And since 2020, we've had a partnership with the schools to build wireless communication facilities to create better connectivity on school campuses. Two of the sites are at Rock Ridge and Woodgrove High School, as well as the Mickey Gordon Park. [02:42:07] We also have a 10-year partnership with Loudoun County Government, where we've built over six cell phone towers that have provided additional public safety. Two of those towers are exclusively for public safety towers for the 911 systems. At the finance committee that was held on August 6th, many of the members of the finance committee had indicated an interest in further studying the issues associated with radio energy from wireless communication. [02:42:34] Even though they still put forward their recommendation with respect to the use of school properties, I wanted to, and I've got a flyer that I can share with you, to inform you that last week the World Health Organization did a review and posted a study of over 5,000 studies that have been published over the last three decades since 2022. [02:42:57] to. And they concluded, the World Health Organization concluded, that the risk of brain cancer and leukemia in children and adults had not increased even with extended cell phone use over 10 years or more. There are no studies that are credible where data has ever been replicated that indicates that wireless communication, the radio energy, same form of radio energy as Wi-Fi routers, the same radio energy as the 911 systems, cause any harm. In addition, the Boston Children's Hospital just recently partnered with T-Mobile to build a 5G wireless system to replace all of their Wi-Fi routers. [02:43:33] My only request for you is this, is to please, at the very least, give the full board the opportunity to have a larger conversation about the risks and the issues associated with wireless communication and public safety. [02:43:49] Thank you. Thank you. Nalini Tandon, followed by Miriam S. Farzani. I took this type stool. Just kidding. Hi, my name is Nalini Tandon. I am a parent in Loudoun County and an active community member, and I'm here today to talk to you about policy 6350 and the amendment that's been put forth by all of you. I want to say first and foremost, thank you to the finance committee [02:44:24] for your thoughtful amendment that truly, truly, truly puts our children first and protects them against the building of cell towers for which we do not currently have full information. I would also invite you to take a look at the sea of white, mostly white, of people here that are here in support of the amendment that you have put forth and passing it as it stands today. [02:44:49] They are just a small representation of the over 800 people that have signed the petition, and that's just with a small grassroots group of people trying to get the information out there. As parents, every single day we are faced with difficult choices. [02:45:07] Do we buy the organic strawberries? Do we let them ride their bikes around the neighborhood? Do we let them play freshman football? That one's personal for me. But the key word there is we make a choice and we accept the responsibility of the consequences of that choice. [02:45:25] When it comes to cell towers, that choice very virtually could be taken away from us. so that choice is in your hands and today you will make that decision and are you willing to accept the consequences that come with the responsibility of making that choice for our students I know I wouldn't want to especially with the information that we currently do not yet have about these towers thank you thank you Miriam Esfrajani no clapping please um followed Followed by Jamie Bishop. [02:46:02] Good afternoon. [02:46:20] Thank you for the opportunity to speak today. I'm Mary Masforjani, a mother of a 9th grader at Dominion High School and a professional with extensive experience in wireless systems and radiofrequency exposure. In fact, I have testified in court in many cases regarding this policy as an expert witness. [02:46:38] I am here representing over 840 parents who have signed a petition against the original policy 6350. Our primary concern is the health effects of electromagnetic fields on children, as current studies on this topic are insufficient. [02:46:56] What we just heard from the milestone tower is related to cell phone, not cell towers from World Health Organization. So I want to caution you about that. Despite assurances from wireless companies that radio frequencies are safe, substantial evidence suggests otherwise. [02:47:13] For instance, a bipartisan study from New Hampshire investigated health effects of 5G technology and uncovered critical issues. Today, the insurance industry recognizes wireless radiation as a significant risk and will not include it in their policies. [02:47:33] That's a finding from New Hampshire, right? Thousands of peer-reviewed studies, including a recent $30 million U.S. toxicology program, show evidence of DNA damage. That's a finding from the New Hampshire study. [02:47:50] The U.S. exposure of RF emissions is 100 times more than those in countries like Russia, China, and Switzerland. These findings, the New Hampshire study also found a disturbing disconnect between the regulatory assurances and scientific evidence, suggesting that agencies like FCC are influenced more by interesting interests than public health. [02:48:20] We urge you to please adopt the Finance and Operations Committee. Thank you. Thank you. Jamie Bishop, followed by Ann Miller. [02:48:36] Good evening. Thank you for allowing us this time. My name is Jamie Bishop, and I'm here to make a few comments about Policy 6350. [02:48:56] I'm an LCPS parent with three kids at Dominion High School who have been in the LCPS system since kindergarten. They are very active within the school community. In fact, I had to leave my boys' freshman football game to be here today. I represent many other people, parents, that have multiple competing priorities and can't be present for this very important school board meeting. [02:49:15] but I hope I can be a voice for other parents who are concerned about their children's well-being. These are my boys, whom I wish could be here to voice their own opinions, but as I mentioned, since they're playing football, on the very field where a cell tower has been proposed, they can't be here. [02:49:34] My daughter, who is now a senior, will have spent her four years at Dominion cheering on the sideline at these football games and running track in the spring. Dominion High School shares a campus with their middle school, Seneca Ridge, where last year my boys were able to participate in the inaugural year of intramural sports for Loudoun County. [02:49:53] They played football and soccer for the middle school right at the base of where this proposed tower would be placed. I have asked my kids how they feel about the possibility of a cell tower being placed right where they spend a great majority of their waking hours. And they simply just said, if we don't know what the impact it could have on our bodies and our health, why would they take that chance? [02:50:16] And that's saying something, as they, like most teenagers, love being on their phones. I'm in support of the amendment to the policy and sincerely appreciate the Finance Committee for members that listen to community feedback, the facts, and the data that is or isn't available at this time on this topic, and made some really well-thought-out edits to the policy. [02:50:38] There's no question there are improvements that can be made to help bolster cell signal throughout our communities, but placing these towers on the same property as elementary, middle, or high schools is a short-sighted solution with an unknown, immeasurable impact to our children's future health. Ann Miller, followed by Natasha Hashmi. [02:51:06] Is it Annie or Ann? I guess we'll move on to Natasha Hashmi. Good evening, everyone. [02:51:27] Hi, April. My name is Natasha Kasuri Hashmi, and I have two boys that attend Seneca Ridge Middle School, soon-to-be Dominion students. And, of course, I am here today with the concern. I'm not wearing white but I'm with that group back there and I'm sure what I'm about to say it's not stuff you've already not heard before we've all heard all the downsides we've heard all the negatives whether it's the American Cancer Society whether it's the National Institute of Health whether it's the international research for cancer all evidence all our internet research [02:52:04] everything leads to the same direction this is not good for you and especially children, their brains, I believe, I learned actually researching this, that a child's brain is so much thinner since they're still developing, and it's so much easier for those waves to get to there deeper in their brain cells. [02:52:23] So my point is here, you know, we're Loudoun County. This is LCPS. Loudoun County is the richest, the most affluent, most affluent county in the country. We don't need cell tower companies to be sending us a yearly source of fund generation to fund our schools. [02:52:41] We don't need them. We should be, you all here are elected officials. You are here to, you've been chosen to represent our children and LCPS families. So I really, really hope you will consider and do the right thing. Look, the way I look at it is, I had thought I would say so much more, but now that I'm looking at my timer, the way I look at it is that you have a population that you build the tower and there's a large population of people that are unhappy. You don't build a tower. There's no unhappiness. Everything goes on. Life carries on the way it existed before the tower. I just don't know why sell towers when [02:53:19] other parts of the world don't allow these on their schools. The systems, the FCC practices here or are not even considered, they're looked down and frowned upon in other parts of the world. So please do the right thing. Thank you all for coming out today and providing your public comment. [02:53:38] Board members at this time will take a short recess and reconvene at 7.30. [03:01:28] All right, we will now continue. Let's see if I remember where we were. We're going to continue with our action items, starting with 12.01, Policy 2310, Committees of the School Board, presented by Vice Chair Estreffi. [03:01:52] Do you have a recommendation? Do you have a motion? Yes, I do. I move that the Loudoun County School Board approves the revised Policy 2310 as presented. I have a motion by Vice Chair Estreffi. Do I have a second? Second. [03:02:07] I have a second by Ms. Donahue. It's been properly moved and seconded that the Loudoun County School Board approves the revised policy 2310 as presented. Is there any discussion? Vice Chair Struffy. [03:02:23] Thank you, Madam Chair. Just to reintroduce this, board members, the proposed revisions to policy 2310 address updated protocols for committee operations, including procedures for handling committee member absences and ensuring quorum. The revised policy aims to improve committee efficiency and accountability within the school board. [03:02:41] Additionally, the policy introduces the new Performance Monitoring Committee, PMC. The purpose of the PMC is to routinely analyze and monitor division-wide performance data, such as student achievement metrics and strategic plan progress, as well as to set priorities, goals, and ensure alignment around student achievement and performance monitoring metrics. [03:03:01] This committee will focus on identifying trends, areas for improvement, and developing policies to enhance student achievement, transparency, and resource allocation. And to me, this committee is an effort to spend more of our time as a board and our energy, as well as that of the division, talking about planning, evaluating, and setting priorities around student achievement and division-wide performance metrics in a way that brings a new level of focus, attention, and transparency, and it creates a dedicated space for that work to happen. [03:03:32] Thank you, Vice Chair Struffy. Is there any other discussion? Seeing no more discussion, we will go ahead and take a vote. Clerk, will you please open the vote? Board members, please record your vote. Clerk, please close and display the vote. [03:03:54] And that motion passes 8 to 1 with Mrs. Griffiths opposed. We will be moving on to Action Item 12.02, Student Behavior and Accountability Committee, Policy 8273, Student Speech and Expression. [03:04:20] Ms. LaBelle, do you have a motion? Yes, Madam Chair. I move that the board pass policy 8273 speech and expression as presented tonight. [03:04:37] I have a motion by Ms. LaBelle. Do I have a second? Second. I have a second by Dr. Rasheed. It's been properly moved and seconded that the Loudoun County School Board approves policy 8273 with the changes made by the Student Behavior and Accountability Committee meeting at its August 26, 2024 meeting. [03:04:57] Is there any discussion? Yes, Ms. Donahue. Thank you very much, Madam Chair. I just wanted to say a couple of quick things. First of all, I wanted to thank the SBAT Committee for your diligent consideration of this policy. [03:05:14] As we all know and I think agree, it's incredibly important for our students and for our school community. And I'm really relieved that we took the time to get it, that you took the time to make it the best that we can possibly make it. And I also appreciate that you all took my concerns and thoughts into consideration. [03:05:34] Each of the three of you reached out to me either before or after your last committee meeting. I wasn't able to be at that meeting, but I do very much appreciate you entertaining my comments and thinking about them thoughtfully. I support the version that is before us now. [03:05:53] I will be voting in support of it. I think that it will do an excellent job of protecting our students' rights while also safeguarding them, safeguarding our students from the kind of speech and expression that we don't want, such as hate speech, for example. [03:06:13] And I also just wanted to say I've received a fair amount of email about this, as I'm sure we all have. including from individuals who are concerned that this policy isn't restrictive enough to protect our students from hate speech or from other extremely harmful language and expression. [03:06:36] And I do understand the concern. I'm concerned about it too. But I think we're at a good place with the drafting of the wording of this policy for right now. And as other people have noted, it keeps in place both the restrictions that are in 8210 for student conduct and also the restrictions on speech that is likely to disrupt school activities. [03:07:08] And I think that that will be a good way for us to guard against potential hate speech in our schools, which I know none of us wants to see. So that's all. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Donahue. Ms. LaBelle, I forgot to ask you if you had any more, if you wanted to say anything to the motion. [03:07:27] Would you like to say something? Yes, I would like to specifically say that both the United States Constitution and Loudoun County Public Schools acknowledges the First Amendment right to freedom of speech and expression. Policy 8273 confirms that and even offers some examples of how that right could be used in the school setting. [03:07:49] However, the court has also recognized specific instances in which free speech in schools may be limited. These instances are covered in policy 8210, which is listed in the body of this policy. It is an active link, although it might not look like it. [03:08:08] You need to click on the words policy 8210, and it will take you where you need to go. It is also cross-referenced at the bottom of the page. Additionally, I'd like to note that the board will be updating policy 8210 to ensure it incorporates ethnic origin as a protected class in section F-12 to account for the recent amendment in the Virginia Human Rights Act that was passed over the summer. [03:08:40] It will be making sure that all board policies that list out protected classes are update in light of that amendment. Thank you. - Thank you, Ms. LaBelle. Any other, yes, Ms. Chernoff? [03:08:55] - Thank you, Madam Chair and the committee for sort of working, I guess, backwards from one place to another, and I think we've gotten it in a good place. I will say one of the things that I was really grateful for through this process was actually digging deeper into the cross-reference policies, and particularly the student rights and responsibilities that is part of LCPS, and while we have received, and I've had many discussions with different constituents as well about the measures. [03:09:24] I actually think that the cross references I went through and highlighted every time it addressed where if it infringes on the disruption or the rights of other students, the protocols and the different things, whether it be dress code or discipline measures or hate speech, that we actually have multiple provisions for all of that and that really this policy is just kind of tightening all of that up together. [03:09:48] And so I am appreciative of that. With that though, I still have one tiny ask to do my due diligence because I do believe that instructional time is what we are here, safety first always, but instructional time must be protected. [03:10:05] And so I do have one tiny amendment. I had sent it to the committee and I apologize. I don't know where that fell, but I don't see it here. So I am going to ask that we, I'm going to ask to amend the policy. So I will go ahead and move to amend the policy, and I move that on the second to last line, we add the words, quote, instructional time after substantial disruption or material interference with, and then additionally, we will need to add a comma after the word activities. [03:10:39] So the last sentence now of the policy would read, this right does not extend to or include speech or other expressive conduct that violates policy 8210 introduction to student discipline and or that leads to or is likely to lead to substantial disruption or material interference with instructional time comma school activities or an invasion of the rights of others second [03:11:10] i'm sorry i was looking at the at looking at this um it's posted in board docs too i know but i was looking at like where it would be like in the numbers and we don't have we don't have numbers so that's why it said second to last line so gotcha okay so we have a motion by miss shirnoff we have a second by miss donahue it's been properly moved and seconded that let's see let me get back to the other thing the shirnoff amendment um online on the second to last line [03:11:49] add the words instructional time after a substantial disruption or material interference with additionally add a comma after the word activities are there any uh questions yes miss labelle originally thank you not a question but a point when we had originally worked with this policy we had included instructional time in there somehow or other it got lost in the many iterations we [03:12:24] did. I apologize for that. And thank you so much for bringing it to our attention again. Yes, Ms. Chandler. I'd like to ask a question in terms of the intent, I guess, not necessarily to Ms. Chernoff. I would be more than open to hearing the philosophy and the reason for bringing this forward. But I would like to know from Mr. Allen how the insertion of this one word [03:12:58] materially changes the policy thank you mr chandler uh to clarify do you mean the word instructional given that the proposed policy change includes in the first line that students have the right to freedom of speech and expression during instructional and non-instructional time i don't say that it does materially um change but if the board's will is to clarify that in [03:13:31] last sentence there it certainly can include that yes dr. Dean no sorry necessary in our committee we we vetted this with the with counsel as well as the department and we had included the instructional and a non-instructional time in the first sentence which covers the entire policy so I don't think that we need to change it from what we have here because putting the word instruction [03:14:09] And then a second time does not add to or delete from the intent of the policy, that the policy is in effect both during instructional as well as non-instructional time. [03:14:32] Yes, Ms. Chernoff. I actually disagree on just because in the beginning it says students have the right to freedom of speech and expression during instructional and non-instructional time. And then we specifically list out school activities at the end, which would be a non-instructional time so for me that's kind of where the parallel lies is that we're addressing school activities which may or may not happen within instructional time or not and I believe that adding instructional time at the end adds additional clarity and protection of instructional time so I'm gonna stick to my guns on this one [03:15:09] but I really I really do think that we we need to be explicit when we make sure that it's not just school activities and that school activities doesn't assume that that's always instructional time but I understand where the discrepancy would be. Thank you, Ms. Chernoff. Ms. Griffiths, I'm sorry. I was also looking at Dr. Dean's, but Mrs. Griffiths. Thank you, Madam Chair. My issue with this policy, it's a little concerning and I know we've gotten emails about it. It really opens up the door to activism. I appreciate the cross-references and I [03:15:47] really appreciate Lauren's amendment but that's my real issue when you are saying a freedom of speech and expression during instructional non instructional instructional time that's what I get from it what I'd like is to hear the full policy again with Lauren's amendment if you don't mind just so I have some clarity because I'm not sure that I feel comfortable with it yet Thank you, Mrs. Griffiths. Do you have [03:16:22] Yeah, it's all together the whole thing and yeah, so look [03:16:48] Yes, dr. Deans would you please Further I had a parent to actually come in and talk about this policy and we have to accept I think one of the speakers talked about the professionalism of the staff we have to accept the professionalism of the staff at the school including a classroom teacher in terms of her implementing all of these policies together and the principal and their system principles and so if we trust them to implement all these policies then I think when you get too [03:17:25] specific you are going to give a hole for someone to to to to fall through so think that leaving it as it is is inclusive enough to include both instruction and non-instruction and it would be up to the professionals the teacher the the activities director the principal the assistant principal to call the students into alignment when they step outside of the the intent of the policy okay miss Chandler thank you I had actually planned to ask some [03:18:04] questions and I think they're relevant to this motion just as they are relevant to the policy and the amendment. I would like to seek some further guidance. I actually have questions that are legal in nature and questions that are also tied to how the policy is applied in action so more educational in nature so if I have the permission of the chair and the board would it be okay if I ask three questions? I think if it's germane to the motion that has been put together, [03:18:39] put forth, which was Ms. Chernoff's amendment, then I think it's okay to ask those questions. Is that correct, Mr. Allen? Yes, Madam Chair, that's correct. Okay, I am actually struggling in terms of coming to a decision on the amendment myself, because I would like to understand more of the underlying law. And one of the concerns I have is that having it at the beginning and having it at the end is duplicative and may imply some room where violation of rights of students could occur. [03:19:14] So in that case, I would like to understand exactly what legal rights to freedom of speech students have in school at a high level and where those rights derive and what legal risk the division has, if any, if the division deviates from legal norms and standards. [03:19:33] Thank you, Ms. Chandler. So the overarching legal case, it's a 1969 case out of the U.S. Supreme Court called Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District. And in that case, the U.S. Supreme Court says that students do not shed their constitutional rights to freedom or speech, freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate. [03:19:58] And so those rights are not unlimited, particularly where such speech and expression causes a substantial interference or disruption to school operations or invades the rights of others. So that's the standard set forth by the U.S. Supreme Court. [03:20:16] Again, where speech and expression causes substantial interference or disruption to school operations or invades the rights of others. So at a high level, the First Amendment free speech rights that are afforded to students apply in the classroom, for example, during lessons and discussions and in all other educational programs and activities of public schools, such as public meetings, speakers on campus, campus debates, student newspapers, journals, other publications. [03:20:47] So consistent with the requirements of the First Amendment, school boards are responsible for ensuring a safe and non-discriminatory environment for students that is conducive to learning and protects both the constitutional and civil rights of all students. [03:21:03] So therefore, threatening and intimidating actions, targeting at a particular student or group of students, even though they contain elements of speech, those would not be protected by the First Amendment. Schools are responsible for addressing, including through disciplinary action, if necessary, to stop the harassment and prevent future harassment. [03:21:25] So to that end, policy 8273, as I see it, currently provides and will retain language that clarifies such rights to freedom of speech and expression that they would not extend to if they're violative of policy 8213, which is the introduction to student discipline. [03:21:46] Thank you so much for that context. that's very helpful. As the final step in my processing, I would like to acknowledge that certain symbols have been adjudicated under United States laws, like swastikas, and those symbols are clearly adjudicated, and we know that they're not appropriate in an education setting. [03:22:09] In the event when protections, I would like to understand for the items that are not necessarily clearly adjudicated. What processes we have in place to address these gray areas and what subject matter experts are available to help our staff at from every level but especially our classroom staff understand what is appropriate for LCPS and what is not. Ms. Chandler I'll start and I know I have my colleagues [03:22:48] here as well that can can weigh in. I will say in terms of matters like this we do need to rely on the professional judgment of our administrators, as I think someone referenced, to be able to investigate, to conduct investigations, which we do provide training for our administrators on investigations, to take a look at what is taking place, to interview others involved, to assess impact, to really look into any disruptive or interference that may occur with school operations or activities, especially around these things that may not have been adjudicated and so i will share often we have administrators that reach out and [03:23:26] to our central support office which includes our office of department of school leadership which also includes the office of school administration the division of diversity equity inclusion and accessibility also our department of communications that all provide wraparound support and work together with administrators to to help them so they can make these decisions around that and Every case is different and so sometimes requires a little bit of a different approach. [03:23:51] But we also have standard operating procedures. So when, if it is determined to be hateful speech or hate speech and how we address that appropriately and consistently throughout. So I know our, my colleagues, like I said, are here and can answer any more specific questions around that. [03:24:14] Madam Chair, would it be fair if I asked Dr. Ellis-Williams if she has any context she would like to add? Yes, Dr. Williams, Dr. Ellis-Williams, sorry. - Thank you, Madam Chair, thank you, Ms. Chandler. [03:24:29] I was prepared to speak to the ways in which we do have standard operating procedures and as per Dr. Smith's explanation of how we collaborate across divisions to support our administrators, our teachers, and those supports happen in a cadre of different ways, which I can be more than happy to socialize with the board in depth. [03:24:49] But for example, when we have any reporting of particularly hate speech, which is based on a protected class, their SOP directly states what has to happen, how it is tracked in our student information system, the protocols that also include denouncement and communication to community of those who are peripherally harmed or directly harmed, as well as the steps to help mitigate proactively in other spaces, as well as the response and the supportive measures that are inclusive for students to have with the wherewithal with the administration. [03:25:23] So we do have, to the point that was made earlier, We have a cadre of safety factors in place and protocols, and they are unique to each situation. As we look towards 10, 7, 23, we have proactively put together steps to help support every student in leaning into three pillars, but specifically leaning into empathy as an example. [03:25:50] So we don't wait until we have circumstances. We are proactive. It is not a one-size-fit-all with any circumstance. and we call it having the sentence starters so that we can work with the school depending upon their demographics, the impact, who's impacted, the ways in which they're impacted to provide a supportive, affirming, and asset-based environment so that students feel welcome and can come to school and be their authentic selves despite whatever the ills of society has happening at the moment. [03:26:21] Any other questions? No, thank you very much. So getting back to the Chernoff Amendment, Can you, Mr. Allen, could you help me understand a little bit more as to the reason why we might not put that in there? [03:26:44] Thank you, Madam Chair. So I don't say that it cuts either way. The standard encompasses that under the Tinker standard, which is, again, is it going to cause a substantial interference or disruption to school operations or activities broadly? [03:27:04] But to the extent the board would seek clarity to include that in addition to the other language that's provided in that last sentence, it certainly could. I don't see that it's going to be dispositive one way or the other. [03:27:22] Could you say that last sentence a little again? Yes, Madam Chair. I don't see that it's going to be dispositive one way or the other. Thank you, Mr. Allen. [03:27:45] Okay, yes, Mrs. Donahue. Ms. Donahue. Thank you, Madam Chair. I wanted to, I had some thoughts in response to some comments that Dr. Deans made earlier in our discussion. And starting with, I absolutely agree, if we get too specific in a lot of our policies, we run the risk of causing gaps that we don't intend for there to be, and then there can be loopholes that we didn't mean for there to be, and that can be problematic. [03:28:15] And I also agree 100% our staff and our educators are professionals, and we need to value their abilities and their autonomy and trust them to do their jobs. That being said, I haven't discussed with any staff or educators this particular policy, but I have discussed with them some other policies that we have been looking at, and they have frequently said to me that they feel more comfortable if they have more clear support in a policy to do what they want to do. [03:28:45] So from that perspective, I don't see the harm on adding the phrase instructional time to make it more clear that substantial disruption of instructional time would be a basis on which speech and expression could appropriately be restricted under this policy. [03:29:06] I don't know that it would have occurred to me to suggest the change myself because I do look at where it says school activities and I think, to me, instructional time is part of school activities. But it's also a very different, the nature of instructional time is very different from the nature of other school, like extracurricular activities, recess, you know, lunchtime, clubs, after school things. [03:29:32] Those are all also school activities, and I would imagine that the reasonableness on what speech or expression is causing substantial disruption is going to depend on the context that it's happening in. So it may be different when it's instructional time versus when it is during lunch or after school. [03:29:54] So that's my take on it, so I will support it. Thank you. Okay. Let's go ahead, and Ms. Chernoff, you can tidy it up, and then we'll go ahead and vote on your amendment. That sounds good. I just thank you, Ms. Donahue, for saying that, and it was never my intention to question the professionalism of our educators, and I just want to go on record and say that, and I don't think that was the intention of your comment, but my intention actually, I think that adding this actually does help respect the job that they're supposed to do by actually defining that we are going to call out when there is [03:30:32] substantial disruption or material interference with that instructional time. This gives teachers the teeth to be able to say, this is happening in my classroom. I need support. And that's where I'm coming from with this. It is totally purely intentional to support our educators and that protected time, which is what kids are in school to do, which is to learn. So that's just where I'm coming from. I just wanted to clarify that and make sure that I'm on the record with that. [03:30:57] And with that, I'm good to go. Okay, if there is no other discussion, we can go ahead and vote on Ms. Chernoff's amendment. All right, so we had a motion. [03:31:13] It was seconded. It was properly moved and seconded. There was discussion. And now let's go ahead and vote on the amendment. Clerk, please open the vote. Board members, please record your vote. Clerk, please close and display your vote. [03:31:31] And that motion passes 6 to 3 with Dr. Deans, Ms. Chandler, and Dr. Rasheed in opposition, opposed. All right, we are moving on to the original policy. [03:31:53] Is there any more discussion now? No? Okay. So let's go ahead and, clerk, please open the vote. Board members, please record your vote. Clerk, please close and display the vote. [03:32:12] And that motion passes 8 to 1, with Mrs. Griffiths opposed. All right. Now we are going to be moving on to our information items, I think. [03:32:34] And we've already done information item 13.01, and we've done information item 13.02. And so we will move on to information item 13.03, Department of Support Services, formation of a renaming committee francis hazel reed elementary school presented by miss beverly tate director planning and gis services welcome miss tate thank you so this evening we are bringing you two items this is the first of two for the formation of the renaming committee for francis hazel reed elementary school [03:33:13] at your june 11 meeting the board voted to move forward with potentially renaming both mercer and francis hazel reed so as staff is working towards securing volunteers from the school base by policy board members are allowed to appoint an individual to serve on each committee and the chair actually has the opportunity to name the chair of the committee once it is appointed so we are here tonight to just relay that information if you would like to appoint someone or nominate someone to serve, we would ask you to either email Mr. Lewis or myself [03:33:51] by the 27th so that we can have an item prepared for October 8th. And I'm happy to answer any questions you may have. Board members, do you have any questions? Who is the person that we should email? I'm sorry. Either Mr. Lewis or myself. Okay. Mrs. Griffiths. I know we have an event coming up soon to discuss all this so I just wanted to get some information for [03:34:29] that event basically does I guess you just answered every the school board members don't vote on every committee member is that correct the school board will appoint the committee yes ma'am we are working with the schools because in policy it involves the appointment of administrators of staff from the schools and parents and so in past practice it has been that we work with the principals to seek volunteers because they have that connection and then they will submit those to us we'll offer them to you as an item and we will add any [03:35:07] other nominees you have individually I have a couple other questions are these members of the committee being vetted at all or you just you're just being put out there are they being vetted like background or anything like that to make sure they live in the county live in the air live near the school or anything like that we are asking them to provide their connection to the school so we will certainly work with the principals to confirm if they are a parent that they [03:35:42] actually have parents in the school we are by policy also seeking community members who live in the school's attendance zone who do not have children currently enrolled in schools and so we're going to be working with the communications staff as well as putting notice in local print media to seek volunteers as well that way so we will have letters or emails indicating who they are and providing their contact information or will there be handouts given out at the town halls like any handouts like information on the history of the school or anything like that why it was named the way it was named [03:36:21] previously so certainly that will be shared with the committee when they convene for the first time but at next Tuesday's Town Hall for Francis Hazel Reed specifically we will be providing them the how we got to this point we will provide the policy and we'll give a little background it is a community Town Hall which wouldn't these have been held in the past their board member held but staff is there to support and provide that background history as part of that meeting agenda yes ma'am and will attendees be able to speak as well [03:36:57] that yes it's it's a it is it timed for every attendee it speaks I the past two we did not time it no ma'am we just it was it was an open Frank conversation but I will defer to the three board members who represent if they wish to set time I understand that miss Chernoff miss Donahue and Miss LaBelle we'll be doing the next event will other school board members be able to speak as well or just [03:37:29] the three facilitate the reason that we reached out to Ms. Chernoff Ms. LaBelle and Ms. Donahue is because they do represent the community they their election districts do but it is a public call and so anyone has the opportunity to speak and I again defer to how the board members wish to run that meeting. Okay, thank you. Yes, Ms. LaBelle. I'm still a little bit confused about the [03:38:01] people that we select to go into the committee. If we, the three of us, selected someone to go in and be part of this committee, when it came up to another school, would they still be part of that committee, or does each district have its own committee members? Are they all different, all the same how does that work so as a board member you can select anyone to serve on the committee by policy it doesn't stipulate that you have to be [03:38:37] a Loudoun resident or have but that's typically been the practice or have affiliation we know that in the past black history committee members have been part of it they're part of the Thomas Balch black history they might reside in Falkyard County but they they are part of that group that is a Loudoun County But each individual board member can choose who he or she wishes to appoint. [03:39:01] You may appoint an individual to serve on the Francis Hazel Reed Committee. You may appoint another individual to serve on the Mercer Middle School Committee. If you have one person who wants to serve on both, that is your prerogative to put them through and to nominate them to serve on both. [03:39:19] It will be a time-consuming process. And so being respectful of that, typically board members will appoint different individuals for each committee. I'm still a little bit confused. I'm Catoctin District, far west. [03:39:37] I'm looking after our western schools and appointing individuals. Now, we have something come up in Ashburn or something come up in Parkview. May I still appoint someone from my list to participate in that discussion? [03:39:55] Does every board member have the right to send a representative to every one of these nine schools that we are considering? Yes, ma'am. Okay, thank you. Yes, Dr. Rasheed. [03:40:12] Are we only talking about Francis Hazel Reed at the moment, or are we talking about Mercer, or both? This item is specifically on Francis Hazel Reed. The next item is specifically on Mercer. Any other questions? [03:40:30] No. Okay. Thank you very much. Ms. Tate, and you can stay right there. For item 13.04, Department of Support Services Formation of Renaming Committee, Mercer Middle School. [03:40:46] So again, this is the same process. We will be forming a renaming committee to consider the renaming of Mercer Middle School. And again, we ask if any individual board member would like to nominate a person to serve on the committee, we ask that you just submit their contact information and their name to us so it can be part of the October 8 action item. [03:41:08] And again, I'm happy to answer questions. - I think it's interesting that we can have, that there's two different lists of people that are allowed to be on the, you know, the parent, the Arcola Elementary School student, Cardinal Ridge Elementary student, like all of that. [03:41:27] I think that was interesting to me. - And thank you for pointing that out because I failed to articulate the difference. So as Frances Hazel Reed, we do not typically, by policy it doesn't say that students would be on the renaming committee but when you get to the secondary school level even for naming committees in the past we involve students but yes specifically for Mercer part of the outreach will be to seek persons interested to serve that feed to Mercer middle school so a parent from Arcola or a parent from Goshen post and so it [03:42:03] does expand and specifically with Francis Hazel Reed thank you again for pointing out the differences, we would reach out and seek a person from Leesburg Town Council to also serve on the committee. Also, I think that I would be interested in making sure that there was some education, even we're having a town meeting, which is different than just the naming committee, and I would want to make sure that we have some education at the naming committees as well the neat at those meetings is that part of it I just want to make sure it [03:42:40] yes ma'am it will certainly be and as stipulated in policy it will actually begin with the initiation of a community-wide survey we're working with communications on how to best facilitate that but I would envision and again we've never had a renaming committee so I'm we're working through kind of the logistics of it but I would envision that the committee would meet at an initial point and kind of indicate how they would like that survey and kind of questions they would like to ask to be more inclusive and all of those results will be part of will be posted on the web because that's outlined by the policy [03:43:17] board members any other questions yes dr. Sheed thank you chair for Mercer you haven't formulated the the committee yet am I correct that's still to come that is correct that will be on October 8th that's what we're seeking nominees okay you all thank you all right thank you Ms. Chernoff. I had a couple people reach out to me about the recording from the Mercer Town Hall that Mr. Morse led. Is that public? I know you all sent me the link so I could listen. I was very grateful, but I had no idea where to point them to find it, and I wasn't sure if I should [03:43:50] share it. So it was public, but I believe in our transitioning of the website, we had posted it after the migration date, and so when we migrated, it didn't. And so we just discovered it in the past week so we're getting ready to post it again yes thank you so much i appreciate that great yes mrs griffiths thank you madam chair um just to clarify again um a school board member can speak at the town hall yes ma'am it's a public meeting okay and um i did have another question it just went out of my head um and we get to appoint i guess two people because it would be one for [03:44:30] francis reed and one for mercer correct just to clarify yes ma'am okay thank you okay thank you so much miss tate um we will now move on to information item 13.05 finance and operations committee revision of policy 6350 wireless network facility co-location uh it will first be presented by vice chair astreffi madam chair um at this point in time i'll just invite uh mr socks to [03:45:26] to present the information item thank you sir i am uh here to present the uh policy uh 6350 wireless network facilities co-location as it is up for review through our lcps policy review cycle this policy's been reviewed and staff edits have been made and the amended version as uh moved forward by the finance and operations committee is before you here today thank you mr stocks um [03:45:56] board members do you have any questions yes miss donahue thank you madam chair um i i have a couple of questions. My first question was if you could tell us a little bit about the background of how we came to be here with cell towers being installed on LCPS properties. The history, it's a lengthy history, but in, I believe, 2016 time range, the school board had an interest in entertaining the [03:46:33] opportunity to put cell towers on school property, and we were tasked with developing a policy and regulation that would allow us as staff to facilitate that request from a contractor requesting to place a tower through the school board and therefore we built criteria and then a regulation that takes a step-by-step process for community input various different things and to bring forward for the school board consideration of cell tower locations we vet that as staff for site location on the property once it's brought forward to us but then we facilitate all of that conversation for you guys to make your determination and [03:47:13] do you know or if anyone else in if any other staff knows what the initial motivation was for the board and back in 2016 to allow the towers to be built I do not recall I could we could look back and I could get that information for you before it comes back as an action item to there's there's a lengthy history of the conversation being had prior to 2017 that predates my involvement, but I can look back at the history and see what might have caused the initial interest. [03:47:48] Thank you. If it's not too much trouble, I'm curious what the impetus was then and if it's still a reasoning that we would want to take into consideration now. And I had one other question, if I may, Chair, thank you. So my other question was, I understand that not all of our schools have ideal Wi-Fi access in the buildings, right? [03:48:12] I believe that was one of the recommendations from the Blue Ribbon panel, or at least cell service within the buildings. And I believe that was a concern for us in the Student Services Committee with moving forward with the continuous glucose monitoring, Is there going to be able to be Wi-Fi and or cell phone access in all parts of the LCPS buildings? [03:48:37] Is that issue affected either way by if we have more cell phone towers on our properties or not? Broadly, I can say that as policy indicates, there has to be an identifiable benefit to Loudoun County Public Schools, which oftentimes communications improvement across the campus is an identifiable benefit, but I would defer to Mr. Aaron Smith regarding the specificity or detail of Wi-Fi and cellular coverage in our schools. [03:49:12] Thanks, Mr. Stocks. So we do have several school locations that just are in dead zone locations for cellular service. That might have been the impetus for the previous board. I don't want to speak or assume that that is what it is, but we do have several schools where it is difficult to get a cell signal. [03:49:31] And as I believe that's what the Blue Ribbon panel was speaking to when they were discussing being able to receive those calls in emergency situations. If there's a dead zone, it doesn't matter what else is there. They just cannot get in touch and communicate. So that was one of the items. I don't think it was specifically Wi-Fi. [03:49:47] I think it was more to that cellular coverage for those first responder devices when they're inside of school locations. Thank you very much. Any other questions? Yes, Ms. LaBelle. Can you tell me why the cell tower was built at Woodgrove, but has no equipment on there? [03:50:09] It's been there for a number of years now, totally empty, just the structure. I don't know the exact timeline, but that tower was approved and began construction, I believe, last winter. [03:50:26] It should be active, and I know that is one site that first responders and life safety equipment is going to be mounted on. Again, I would ask if Aaron Smith may know when that will be turned on, but I don't know the exact date, but it should be, I believe it was targeted for this fall if it's still on track. [03:50:48] LCBS is not directly involved in managing that equipment or installing. Those would be done by cellular providers or by the county of Loudoun. So we could try and get an update on those things, but they wouldn't be direct projects under our purview that we would be managing. I just want to make clear, I'm not in a hurry to have them operational. [03:51:07] I just want to know why it's sitting there, standing there between the baseball field and the road. There's nothing in between, and nobody's done anything or been there in over a year. I will take back and find the timeline of when it was approved, when construction began, and when it's anticipated to be operational. [03:51:30] I can get that information. Yes, Dr. Deans. Your change in the policy indicate that beginning now and into the future, we would not have any. [03:51:47] For those cell phone towers that are already there, is there not an ending date of the contract? Yes, that is spelled out in the master license agreement and then the site license agreement. And I don't know the terms directly off the top of my head, but I can get that information to you as well. [03:52:05] I think Mr. Allen, do you know the contract? Thank you, Madam Chair. I have it pulled up, and if you give me a moment, I can provide further insight. [03:52:27] I will say my general understanding is that it would extend to 2030, I believe. Any other questions? [03:52:51] Yes, Ms. Chernoff. Thank you, Chair Mansfield, and my question is actually for you. Would you just kind of talk us through your amendment in committee? I was able to read about it later, but can you just give us a little bit of context in how that changed the scope of the policy? And I know many of the speakers mentioned it tonight, so I think it should be good to kind of summarize that for our public body. [03:53:13] So my understanding of our contract is that we are able to decide what we want to put on our property. And because we have that leeway, I was going to, we decided to, the committee decided to say that it would not be considered on an elementary, middle, or high school, primarily because they are pretty much all together and there's not enough room. [03:53:48] But we would not be getting rid of the current cell phone towers, as well as they would still be able to be considered on administration property and so we did it prior to October 1st thinking that we would be passing this policy right and it takes a while to do that does that help yeah I appreciate the context thank you yes Dr. Deans so in 2030 they would [03:54:23] no longer be operational on our property that's a question Mr. Allen when the contract is up in 2030, what happens to those cell towers? So I'm looking at the master license agreement that's being referenced. It was signed in August 2020 for an initial term of 10 years with up to five five-year extension terms, which would be an additional 25 years. So I think it's up to the school board at the conclusion of that 10-year initial period what its will will be at that [03:54:59] at that time. Does that answer your question, Dr. Deans? Yes. Okay. Any other questions? Yes, Ms. LaBelle. So the existing towers that are already in place, do they start when they become, does the timeline of five, 10 years start when they become operational or when they were put there? Thank you, Ms. LaBelle. I think for that level of detail, we'd need more time to review the [03:55:34] master license agreement in depth. Thank you. Okay. Any more questions? Okay. So thank you very much, Mr. Stocks. Thank you, Mr. Allen. We are going to be moving on to 13.06 from the Finance and Operations Committee School Proffer Funds presented by Vice Chair Estreffi. Thank you, Madam Chair. For members, in this information item, we're considering the use of proffer funds, which are contributions from developers to offset the impact of residential development on public [03:56:12] facilities, including our schools. The Finance and Operations Committee identified several school improvement projects to benefit from these funds within the requirements of each proffer fund. So each proffer fund has its own parameters and how the funds could be used. These projects include installing an inclusive playground at Ashburn Elementary School, walking tracks at multiple schools, outdoor basketball hoops at Eagle Ridge Middle School, and library materials and resources for various schools, including HamSci Academy, environmental science books, which we saw as a priority in our last environmental science update, and also a book break subscription. [03:56:48] Thank you. Board members, are there any questions? No. Would you guys like to place this on consent for the September 24th school board meeting? Yes. [03:57:05] Thumbs up for consent. Okay. That's unanimous. It'll go on the consent calendar for the September 24th school board meeting. We'll move on to information item 13.07 from the Legislative Audit and Policy Committee 2025 Legislative Program, presented by April Chandler, Chair of L.A.N.P. [03:57:24] Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm delighted tonight to bring forth for the school board the legislative program for 2025. As you know, this outlines our policy positions to guide our advocacy in the upcoming General Assembly session. We have worked together with board members and staff to develop the program. [03:57:41] This year's program begins with five key priorities. Enact the JLARC recommendations and fully fund Virginia's public schools. Continued support for the Loudon-based Recovery School. Audit of higher education teacher preparation programs. Comprehensive student mental health policy and funding. [03:57:59] And commitments to the teaching profession. These legislative priorities communicate the foundation of the legislative program. New legislative positions include support for the special education transition programs and services. Review and evaluation of mandated professional learning for teachers. [03:58:17] Firearm safe storage information for school communities. Parental and community notification for drug overdoses. There was a change to our free school meals for all students as we updated the school meal debt for fiscal year 24. Some items that were deleted from last year's program include diplomas for students with disabilities. [03:58:40] of deletion of the regional governing board for Thomas Jefferson, and a broadband access and hazing education curriculum. Given some of the discussions we had in our last committee meeting, I wanted to offer some context regarding the inclusion of Title IX. The position on Title IX regulations has been in our legislative program since 2021. After our discussion in the committee, my team and I researched how the item was originally added to the legislative agenda. On October 26, 2021, Mr. Ian Sorokin made a motion to add a Title IX position. [03:59:16] His motion was that the Loudoun County School Board supports changes to the Title IX position that strengthened and restored protections against sexual harassment, sexual violence, and sex-based discrimination, and further supports restoration and modifications to Title IX that recognize the unique needs of students in the K-12 environment, and that prescribes compliant grievance and resolution processes that are clear, understandable, and equitable. [03:59:47] Lastly, it supports changes to Title IX that allows local discretion and flexibility in providing supportive measures that include options to exclude respondents from school and school activities in order to provide greater protection for victims and the student body. At that time, the motion passed with all six of the school board members who were present voting in favor and three school board members absent for the vote. [04:00:12] The language in the 2025 program has changed from the 2024 program. These changes were made in consultation with our own Title IX office to reflect the federal language that was released earlier this year. I understand that there's some friction between the current status of the federal updates and the Commonwealth's position on those updates. [04:00:32] But given how this came to be part of the program, I hope we will consider keeping the provision in place so that we do not lose sight of this position as a priority. Thank you. - Thank you, Ms. Chandler. Board members, do you have any questions? [04:00:48] - Yes. - Ms. Sherna. - Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you, Ms. Chandler, for the summary and for highlighting the concerns. It was me that in the committee brought forth the Title IX, and it's exactly the last part of what you said. It's about the friction that exists right now, especially in terms of the uncharted territory that we're in and the unsettled law of our highest courts. [04:01:09] And I've had this conversation with lots of people, and court cases do come and go, and I said this in committee, and normally I don't like to always base it off of that, but being where we are with Title IX, I do feel that it is a little bit preemptive this year to take a stance on Title IX when so much is kind of up for grabs, if you will. [04:01:30] And then also just in terms of the topics that overlap with our 80-40 policy, I think that, you know, we've decided to move forward with stakeholder feedback and having a very thorough process of making sure that every group is represented in those focus groups, and we're bringing that back to inform our own decision-making on policy. [04:01:50] I just, for me personally, it feels a little bit like that may undermine that feedback process if we simply move forward with the stance before they have occurred, but I know in committee we agreed to disagree, and so I just wanted to clarify and put that out there. So I would prefer we let these things evolve in the court as the next year goes, and then reconsider taking a formal position once that has occurred. Are there any other questions? No? Okay. [04:02:19] we will move on to um is this something that we need to vote on next week next next time we do okay okay so we will move on to 13.09 no actually we're at 13.08 do you guys want to try and do this for oh sorry i had it in my thing but do you guys want to try and uh put this for consent next time [04:02:54] thumbs up for consent yeah 1307 no okay then it will go for action next time um 13.08 legislative audit and policy policy 3410 office of the auditor general again presented by adam chan april chandler chair of l.a.np thank you madam chair l.a.np is bringing forth a new policy to encapsulate the work of the auditor general the language is fairly standard and in line with the recommendation set forth by the Institute of Auditor Generals, the governing body that [04:03:31] details the office of the Auditor General's authority. It is our feeling that every organization can benefit from having an internal audit division and an internal audit division policy is vital to the success of the internal audit activity. I'm pleased to present this for the board's consideration. [04:03:48] Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Chandler. Board members, do you have any questions? Would you guys like to put this on our consent? Okay. [04:04:05] It will not go to consent for our September, it will go to action for our September 24th school board meeting. We'll now move on to item 13.09 from the LANP committee, policy 2610, Loudoun County School Board aides, presented by Ms. April Chandler, chair of LANP. [04:04:25] Thank you. As part of the fiscal year 24, Loudoun County School Board approved budget, an allocation for board aides was provided for each board member. The allocation for this budget item is nearly a million dollars. To ensure the school board is fiscally responsible with this taxpayer-funded allocation, it is necessary to update this policy to ensure that it is balanced and aligned with LCPS current practices and responsibilities. [04:04:50] The school board aid position was actually created in 2019 to encompass a range of responsibilities, including producing complex documents, preparing and communicating information to other parties, arranging events, assisting with constituent services, and maintaining the schedule of the school board member. [04:05:11] The Loudoun County School Board Staff Aid Policy 2610 was created and adopted in 2020 prior to the positions being filled before school board members ever had the opportunity to work with aides and was budgeted for only seven hours of work a week since that time in conjunction with the school board and LCPS is shared goals of increased responsiveness transparency and communication with parents stakeholders in the community this position has grown in scope and budget with allocation of up to 40 hours per week based on the need and discretion of the individual school board [04:05:47] members. As such, the school board has an obligation to protect the taxpayers' investment of nearly a million dollars by ensuring the policy reflects both the increased responsibilities of the role and the increased fiscal commitment to the division. I'm quite pleased with how hard we work together as a committee and with staff to come up with revisions that are being brought forward now and an updated policy draft that is particularly responsive to the community's desire for clarity and clearly defined processes and consistent expectations thank you thank you miss [04:06:22] chandler board members do you have any questions yes miss donahue thank you madam chair i just wanted to make a couple of brief comments um two for clarification um one because uh some people have reached out to me with a question about the amount as miss chandler quoted at our previous committee meeting the million dollars which is accurate but I just wanted to make clear each of the nine of us is allotted a budget and that budget is can be used to pay our board aides and other expenses that we may incur and the [04:06:59] total for all nine of us is near a million dollars it is not the case that it's a million dollars for each of us or anything like that I feel that there might have been some confusion also for clarification there's a couple of different versions of the policy on board docs and the ones that are labeled 820 are the ones that we looked at at our last committee meeting the one that is labeled 827 is the one that encapsulates the changes that we discussed [04:07:32] and agreed on at our last committee meeting I did want to note one raise one One issue/concern in the 827 red line document in the section about political activities on the part of board aides. [04:07:52] This red line is showing that we struck out lines 324 through 329, which is essentially the language that would require if aides are engaged in political activity or campaign activity during their personal time. [04:08:08] Normally, this language required them to make clear that they were not representing the views of the school board or the division, and that language is stricken in this redline version. I remember, obviously, we talked extensively about this entire section related to political activity by the board aides, and I don't recall us coming to a decision to definitely remove this language. [04:08:37] And so I'm not sure if that's just an oversight on my part. If it is intentionally stricken here, I have some concerns about crossing it out and might like to be reminded why we decided to do that. [04:08:56] Thank you, Ms. Donahue. Who is Dr. Smith? Do you remember? I do not recall, but I'm happy to go back and look at my notes and listen to the recording and making sure that we got that right, But happy to do that between this and the next meeting for you. [04:09:15] And then, Mr. Allen, if it was not an error, then we would have an amendment. Then Ms. Donahue might have an amendment for next time. If it was an error, then it would be fixed. Yes, that is correct. [04:09:33] Yes, Ms. Chernoff. Thank you, Mr. Allen. Thank you, Ms. Donahue. If I remember correctly, which there was a lot, but if I remember correctly, we had a long conversation about whether or not school board aides needed to provide like a disclaimer if they were outside of school activities and like participating in like a political town hall or some kind of activist activity or a group that's political and I thought that we had agreed that that would be a little bit too much and so we [04:10:07] added the language here in section g line 320 to basically say that the when they're being paid which those records are all public that they are responsible for not participating in those political activities and that that was going to be the accountability measure for which we would hold them to and that that would be our responsibility as the board member to make sure that those things were not in conflict but that it would take it maybe a step too far to have them always having to disclose that they are school board aides and so therefore I'm here on my individual time I'm not wearing my school board aid hat so i know there was a conversation about the hats that people wear that's coming back to me now [04:10:47] as i'm april's nodding um it's a it's a thrilling session you should listen in um but i don't know if it's coming back to you now but i know we did kind of talk about that i thought this is where we landed but um i know there was lengthy discussion thank you ms sharonov any other questions um yes mrs griffiths um i have a question as far as um if my aide who has three children wanted to speak in an event or speak here rather um is she allowed to do that or does she have to do her disclaimer [04:11:23] mr allen would you like to weigh in on that sure thank you madam chair and mrs griffiths so as i read the policy or proposed policy um board aides have the right to to speak so long as they are wearing their you know individual hat and not their board aid hat and so um as long as they aren't holding themselves out to be board aides when making such comments, that, as I read the [04:11:56] policy, would be permissible. I think it was that we're not paying them for that time. Okay, any other questions? Seeing no more questions, I guess this will move to, we'll figure out, Dr. Smith then will help us figure out where y'all landed and if that is correct, and then this will come back for action at our September 24th school board meeting all right we will move on to item 1310 [04:12:33] from the specialized programs and centers committee Hillsborough Charter Academy lease renewal presented by Dr. Rashid thank you chair the the Hillsborough Charter Academy lease is up for renewal the LCPS and HCA you know had a desire to extend the HCA lease to June 30th 2029 the committee SPCC voted to present the ACA lease as an information item at the September 10th school board meeting and here we are here we are about I [04:13:09] wanted to ask if I think if mr. Allen had any comments about it or wanted to add to what I said thank you dr. Rashid I think you've encapsulated the the changes quite nicely primarily this was to extend the term for five years from July 1st 2024 to June 30th 2029 and then also bring it in conformance with changes that were made to the renewed charter agreement that the board approved earlier this year with respect to [04:13:43] capital investment which is on page six redlined and there was some other legalese that were was updated as well to include the court where the courts where this if there were any lawsuit filed arising out of this lease could be filed as well as we proposed striking the waiver of jury trial so that either party could have the option to pursue a jury trial if a legal action did arise [04:14:16] and I believe those summarize the proposed changes and my understanding was HCA was their board was agreeable to those changes. Thank you Mr. Allen. Board members are there any other questions? No? Would you guys like to put this on consent for the 24th meeting? Okay that's not unanimous. So we will put that on action for the September 24th school board meeting and now we [04:14:55] We will move to item 14, our closed meeting, and 14-01, a motion to convene a closed meeting. Vice Chair Streffi, do you have a motion? Thank you, Chair. Yes, I move that the Loudoun County School Board recess this public meeting and enter into a closed meeting pursuant to 2.2-3712 of the Code of Virginia for the following. [04:15:15] Consultation with legal counsel employed or retained by a public body regarding specific legal matters requiring the provision of legal advice by such counsel. - I have a motion by Vice Chair Struffy. Do I have a second? I have a second by Ms. Chandler. [04:15:31] It's been properly moved and seconded that the Loudoun County School Board go into closed session. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, clerk, will you please open the vote? Board members, would you please record your vote? [04:15:55] Clerk, would you please close and display the vote? And that motion passes unanimously. [04:16:00] The board is now in closed session. [05:30:30] All right, the board is now coming out of the closed meeting. we'll move on to 14.03. Vice Chair Streffi, do you have a motion? Yes, Madam Chair. I move that the closed meeting be adjourned, that the Loudoun County School Board reconvene its public meeting and that the minutes of the public meeting reflect that no formal action was taken in the closed meeting. I have a motion by Vice Chair Streffi. Do I have a second? Second. I have a second by Ms. Chandler. I think I heard first. Is there any discussion? Seeing no discussion, we'll take [05:31:06] an electronic vote to certify the closed meeting to adjourn it sorry uh clerk please open the vote board members please close oh gosh please record her vote clerk please close and display the vote and that motion passes vice chair astreffy do you have another motion yes madam chair i move that the following resolution certifying the closed meeting be adopted and reflected in the minutes of this public meeting whereas loudon county school board has reconvened has convened a closed meeting on this date pursuant to an affirmative recorded vote and in accordance [05:31:46] with the provisions of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, and whereas 2.2-3712D of the Code of Virginia requires a certification by the school board that such closed meeting was conducted in conformity with Virginia law. Now, therefore, be it resolved that the Loudoun County School Board hereby certifies that, to the best of each member's knowledge, only public business matters lawfully exempted from open meeting requirements by Virginia law were discussed in the closed meeting to which this certification applies and only such public business matters as were identified in the motion convening the closed meeting were heard, discussed, or considered by the Loudoun County School Board. [05:32:21] I have a motion by Vice Chair Streffi. Do I have a second? Second. I have a second by Ms. Donahue. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, we'll take a vote. Clerk, please open the vote. Board members, please record your vote. [05:32:43] Clerk, please close and display the vote and that motion passes unanimously i think that's the last so okay um we'll move on to because we don't have a motion we'll move on to boards members item 15 board member comment and committee reports uh miss labelle do you have any report yes ma'am i would like to uh say that [05:33:21] mrs donahue and i attended the ribbon cutting for our elementary school in lovetsville we have a wonderful adaptive playground and we had a great time and the kids were wonderful and the kindergartners were kindergartners were so excited because they hadn't been allowed to play yet and they were the first ones to get to use it. That's awesome. Thank you Ms. LaBelle. Dr. Rasheed? I have no updates. Ms. Chernoff? I'll make it fast. We had our curriculum and instruction meeting last [05:33:56] week. We covered three topics. The first was about fine arts allotments which was a follow-up which ended in a recommendation for the budget season that each elementary school will get a stipend to use for arts for required concerts and such. [05:34:12] So that's very exciting. And HRTD is working up those numbers. We also officially kicked off the revision process for policy 50-30 on assessment and grading and be on the lookout for a form for interest for focus groups by teachers, students, and family and community members. [05:34:30] I'll be sending that out to you all or Dr. Ellis will to make sure that you can ask your constituents to participate in the focus groups as well as a let's talk if people don't want to be in the focus groups there's going to be a specific let's talk just designated to the revisions of that policy so that is on its way and then we also had an update about the HMH new reading program into reading for K-5 and just want to ask teachers and staff to continue to send feedback to staff to us to let us know we know that the resources are cumbersome and hard to manage we're working through streamlining [05:35:09] that as well as working on sort of how to use the digital component of the intervention so we can talk more about that if needed and then I just wanted to outline an opportunity that I had which was to join a community book club through Loudoun County High School they're reading The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt and it was really well attended and very timely considering our device policy and it's open to anyone and the next meeting is October 1st if you want to join it was an excellent time and then just one last pitch for the Francis Hazel Reed renaming town hall [05:35:45] which is September 17th at 7 p.m. but it's being held at Smarts Mill which is a little bit confusing so that's all I have. Thank you. Thank you Ms. Chernoff. Ms. Donahue. Thank you Madam Chair. I was also going to mention, as Ms. LaBelle did, what a great time I had going to the ribbon-cutting at the new inclusive playground at Lovettsville Elementary School. [05:36:09] It is an absolutely beautiful facility. If you have a chance to get up there and visit, I strongly encourage everyone to do that. The kids had a fantastic time, and I was entertained to see the return of merry-go-rounds to school playgrounds, which my kids do not have at their elementary school. [05:36:28] Also, the Student Services Committee is tackling special permission. We are having a work session this Thursday at 5.30 here at the Admin Building where we will continue our discussion of the special permission policy, how it's working right now, and what changes we might want to see for the policy and the process going forward in the future. [05:36:53] Also, I am having office hours on September 22nd, I think, and April 12th. There are sign-ups online. And the Loudoun Education Foundation golf event, classic fundraiser, and banquet is coming up on September 30th. [05:37:14] So I encourage anyone who is interested to try and make it to that because LEF does a lot of great work supporting our educators and students in the county. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Donoghue. Vice Chair Stripey? Yes, thank you, Madam Chair. We saw a few updates come to the full board from the Finance and Operations Committee. [05:37:35] In our last F&O Committee meeting, we also saw the schematic design review of HS14, which would be Dulles North, which is pretty cool, and just seeing some of those designs kind of take life. I wrapped up part one of my facilities tour of some of our older schools, specifically in the Sterling District. [05:37:59] So I got to visit with Mr. Lewis, Guilford Elementary, Sully Elementary, and Sterling Middle School, which was fantastic. This was just basically a tour of really looking at the needs of some of our older schools in the division in advance of our CIP discussions and work sessions. [05:38:19] really trying to understand where the needs are for some of the older facilities. We went over everything, I mean, from pest control to ventilation and airflow, HVAC systems, and really trying to understand where the needs are, what's been done at each of those schools in our CIP, what's scheduled out in each of those schools, where the critical needs are. [05:38:40] We talked about everything from, you know, staff bathrooms and locations of those bathrooms to, you know, the difficulty of procuring specific tiles in some of our schools and the paint, you know, getting chipped and other types of things, the modular classrooms. [05:38:57] And so, so many things came out. Got to speak to a lot of folks in the school community about those things. So, it's been really revealing. Happy to share more with fellow board members around my experiences and potentially additional tours that will come up. Thank you, Vice Chair Struffy. I'm going to pass. [05:39:14] Ms. Griffiths? Thank you, Madam Chair. I just wanted to give a little background. When I decided to run for a seat on this board, I did not know anyone sitting on this dais. I was not politically connected, but I was determined to make a difference for our children to help with common sense solutions. [05:39:32] I was not wedded to ideology. Instead, I committed to answer constituents and do whatever I can for my constituents and their children. What's not impressive to our constituents, the renaming of schools is highly unpopular. I sat in a CIP meeting, capital improvement program, that went over costs to support all LCPS schools, per what Mr. Ostreffi was just noting. We have so many projects in the queue. Some projects get pushed back when new projects arise. We already know that we will have a shortfall of funds for the CIP in FY2026 of over $25 million. Renaming projects will [05:40:10] push back much-needed projects for LCPS schools. A total of 100 schools and centers, including the Academies of Loudoun, the North Star, and both charter schools. Hillsboro definitely needs a lot of work and maintenance. So with that, as we get to the renaming of schools, I plead with you to consider the work and maintenance that goes into all these schools, old and new. There are 100 schools. Think about the security. Do these costs to rename schools help in improving our security and Loudoun County Schools. Let's think about the events in Georgia and the potential threat [05:40:46] we could have at LCPS schools. And I thank you for your attention to this and for listening to me. And I want to get away from that for a minute and also mention on a lighter note, well, it's actually not a lighter note. I'd like to mention tomorrow, we're on the eve of September 11th. Let's make sure to honor this important day tomorrow and on the 15th. Please come to Riverside High School this Sunday on the 15th for the 3rd Annual 9-11 Memorial Stair Climb. [05:41:14] This stair climb will honor 343 firefighters who made the ultimate sacrifice when the World Trade Center was attacked 23 years ago. I ask everyone to come and support this great fundraiser. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Griffiths. Ms. Chandler? I'm going to pass at this time. [05:41:31] Dr. Deans? I just wanted to share that the Equity Committee will not meet in October because the first Thursday in October is a holiday. And as a result, our next meeting will be the first Thursday in November, as well as the fact that the equity committee is creating two subcommittees for the purpose of looking at the charter, because it was developed so long ago. [05:42:04] The charter needs some attention, as well as we need to have someone designated to review policies that come up for review from the equity committee. So those are the two subcommittees that we are in the process of creating by way of a QR code where they can volunteer to be on those committees. [05:42:30] Thank you, Dr. Deans. Next one is item 16, new business. Anybody have new business? Well, I have new business. I'd like to bring to the board's attention that policy 8065 solicitation distribution and posting is long overdue. [05:42:47] I think it was adopted in 2015. A new policy 6330 was created to replace the existing policy and was brought as an information item at the October 3rd, 2023 F&O committee meeting. I believe it was brought to us at the school board meeting on January 30, 2024, and now I can't really find what happened to it in the school board meeting notes. [05:43:12] I want to say that the board decided to send it back to F&O, and then the committee decided that it warranted more research and the policy would be worked on and then come back to F&O. But in the meantime, policy 865 is still in effect, and for the past couple of years, LCPS has sent information about expectations for back-to-school night and open house. [05:43:33] This year, LCPS sent one community message division-wide, reminder messengers about our policy to the Loudoun GOP and LCDC, and information to all principals. Unfortunately, there were numerous verbal complaints and comments from school-based staff and parents about issues at events. [05:43:53] including 9-4-24 when a subject was not only handing out flyers too near the door, but also entering Briar Woods to hand out the flyers after they had been asked to be 40 feet away. Many of these issues required multiple warnings and instructions from LCPS staff to correct the behavior. [05:44:11] We've heard from principals that it's frustrating to have to handle during an event that is supposed to focus on students and their families. One principal had to clarify to families that he did not endorse the sentiments on the flyer and that the information did not come from the school division. I think we need another look through the lens that many parents have expressed concern about politics being injected into our school events, such as back-to-school nights. [05:44:35] I feel that these events should focus on students' education and engagement with the school community and not on political campaigning or issues that may be divisive. That said, I'm wondering if there is any appetite from the board to work on this policy back in F&O Committee. [05:44:52] I realize our policy processes take several months, And I wouldn't anticipate any policy change to go into effect until after the election. Can I get a thumbs up for going to having it done in F&O committee? Yeah? [05:45:08] One, two, three. Looks like majority. Okay. With that, I will... Any other new business? Okay. With that, I end our September 10th, 2024 school board meeting. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Coraggio Consulting · aguyonx.com