Coraggio Consulting
Loudoun County School Board, 2nd Tuesday School Board Meeting, Tuesday, October 8, 2024

Date: Tuesday, October 8, 2024
Place: Loudoun County Public Schools / School Board meeting (see BoardDocs / LCPS-TV)
Length: 4h 18m (video)
Official meeting video (Vimeo / LCPS-TV): https://player.vimeo.com/video/1017767350?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.

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[00:00:25] good afternoon i call to order this october 8th 2024 loudon county school board meeting we will now start with our disclosures um i'll start as a member of the loudon 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.

[00:01:03] These benefits, however, affect thousands of employees, while 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.

[00:01:22] 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 other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees.

[00:01:40] 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 interests may also be affected, of which I am included. I can and will participate fairly, objectively, and in the public interest.

[00:01:59] This disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the Clerk of the School Board for five years. Thank you, Ms. Chandler. Ms. 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 connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding employee salaries, the budget, and or health insurance.

[00:02:20] any other discussion that may include or affect salary and benefits for LCPS employees. Specifically, my spouse, my minor children, and I 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.

[00:02:40] These subjects include thousands of employees, well in excess of the statutory three employees whose interests may be affected, of which my spouse, my minor children, my sister-in-law, and myself 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, Ms. Donohue. Ms. LaBelle. 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 the health

[00:03:18] insurance and related benefits in any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for the LCPS employees. Specifically, as a school board member, I am eligible to receive health insurance and related benefits as an LCPS employee.

[00:03:34] These benefits, however, affect thousands of employees well in excess of the statuatory 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 board school board for five years. Thank you, Ms. LaBelle. Ms. Chernoff.

[00:03:59] 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

[00:04:19] 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 record of the clerk of the school board for five years. Thank you, Ms. Chernoff. Vice Chair Struffy. 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'm eligible to

[00:04:57] 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 this clerk of the school board for five years thank you vice chair Struffy and we will now move on to agenda item three approval of the consent agenda board members are there any changes to be made to the consent agenda seeing no changes we but before we vote on it we have one proclamation to be read this

[00:05:34] proclamation domestic violence awareness and prevention month will be read by ms ann donoghue miss donoghue thank you madam chair whereas October is domestic violence awareness and prevention month and calls attention to the fact that sexual relationship and domestic violence are widespread and their effects impact our entire community, and whereas sexual relationship and domestic violence affects individuals of all ages, races, ethnicities, gender identity, sexual orientations, and circumstances, and whereas domestic violence affects one in four women and one in nine men in their lifetimes, in addition one in twelve high school students has experienced violence in a

[00:06:12] dating relationship. Domestic violence and sexual relationship violence cause harm to thousands of Virginians regardless of their age, race, sexual orientation, religion, gender identity, or socioeconomic status. And whereas in 2023, over 78,956 survivors received help from hotline advocates, and over 6,000 people received nearly 238,000 nights of emergency shelter due to domestic violence. Across the Commonwealth in 2023, judges and magistrates issued more than 56,000 emergency protective orders to protect the immediate health and safety of survivors and their families.

[00:06:48] And whereas, during Domestic Violence Awareness and Prevention Month, we honor survivors and provide public awareness on this violation of the basic human right to be free from violence and abuse, removing the stigma and shame surrounding such violence, expanding support for survivors of sexual relationship and domestic violence, and strengthening our response.

[00:07:07] And whereas, although progress has been made toward preventing and ending sexual relationship and domestic violence and providing support to survivors and their families, important work remains to be done. In particular, a focus on teaching the community about healthy relationships and relationship equity to reduce the likelihood of relationship, sexual, and domestic violence occurring in the community.

[00:07:27] And whereas the Loudoun County Public Schools community can come together to increase awareness about sexual relationship and domestic violence, decrease its frequency, hold offenders accountable, support survivors and their families, and heal lives. And, whereas, we recognize that the trauma sustained from experiencing relationships, sexual, and domestic violence is not something that someone gets over.

[00:07:47] It is something that someone survives. And Loudoun County Public Schools and Laws Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Services work together to name the current challenges to address violence, identify strategies to address risk factors, and implement solutions to stop violence before it happens. And whereas the Loudoun County Public Schools students and staff are committed to raising awareness about healthy relationships and body safety, taking ownership in prevention work, and creating a culture where all violence is unacceptable.

[00:08:13] And whereas Loudoun County Public Schools and Law's Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Services work together to name the current challenges to addressing violence, identify strategies to address risk factors, and implement solutions to stop violence before it happens. Now, therefore, be it resolved that Loudoun County Public Schools does hereby proclaim October 1st through 31st, 2024, as Domestic Violence Awareness and Prevention Month.

[00:08:36] We, the undersigned, proclaim that now is the time to take action as leaders in our community to create safety for children, youth, faculty, staff, and families in Loudoun County Public Schools. We must work together to inform members of our community about sexual relationship and domestic violence prevention, support survivors and their families, and speak out against harmful attitudes and actions.

[00:08:55] We join advocates and communities across the Commonwealth and the country in playing an active role to prevent sexual, relationship, and domestic violence. Thank you, Ms. Donoghue. I will now entertain a motion to approve the consent agenda. So moved.

[00:09:12] I have a motion to approve the consent agenda by Ms. Chernoff. Is there a second? Second. I have a second by Ms. Chandler. It's been properly moved and seconded to approve the consent agenda. At this time, we'll go ahead and take a vote. Clerk, please open the vote.

[00:09:30] Board members, please record your vote. Clerk, please close and display the vote. That motion passes with Mrs. Griffiths absent for the vote.

[00:09:47] We will now move on to item four, advisory committee update with the Minority Student Achievement Advisory Committee update presented by Ms. Erin Kunkel, our MSAC chair.

[00:10:24] Last time is the best time. Good evening, esteemed members of the school board, staff, and members of our school community. Thank you for this opportunity to speak with you today. My name is Erin Kunkel, and I serve as current chair of the MSAC Minority Student Achievement Advisory Committee.

[00:10:40] And I am here tonight to share our journey, accomplishments, and vision for MSAC in the 2024-2025 school year. This is our agenda for the evening. Next slide, please. Our mission, MSAC is dedicated to partnering with Loudoun County Public Schools, parents, and the broader community to advocate for minority students.

[00:11:03] We believe that every student deserves a fair, inclusive, and culturally responsive education. This mission drives us daily as we work to ensure that all students, regardless of background, have the support and opportunities they need to thrive. It's not just about equity in education, it's about building a supportive environment where every student can flourish.

[00:11:25] Next slide, please. I'm also proud to introduce the MSAC Executive Board for the 2024-2025 school year. This team is passionate and committed to advancing the mission of MSAC and the work that we do daily to support our students and making a positive impact in our schools this year.

[00:11:44] Next slide. So, this is MSAC by the numbers. This year, MSAC is represented by 76 delegates dedicated across 98 schools. Our goal is to have a delegate in every school so that every student's voice can be heard and supported.

[00:12:01] We're also thrilled to further this mission by welcoming 30 MSAC student delegates this year. We're so excited to have this testament and commitment to youth leadership and to fostering a spirit of advocacy in the next generation.

[00:12:16] Additionally, MSAC has reviewed 16 policies that are either currently under review or we've reviewed prior to the start of the school year. So what's on top for MSAC?

[00:12:34] This year we're focusing on revamping our MSAC delegate training. We want to make it more engaging and we want to make it empower delegates and parents as more effective advocates for their students. We want to work on strengthening our community and engagement and outreach efforts to ensure that MSAC is an accessible resource for all families.

[00:12:56] We're enhancing our social media presence. In today's digital world, we recognize the importance of engaging online. So we're investing in our social media to make it a welcoming and more interactive space. We understand that everybody's pressed for time and sometimes 240 characters is the best we can do, but we wanna make sure we're getting the word out and we're getting that information to everybody as easily and as accessibly as possible.

[00:13:20] Lastly, a passion project of mine has been working on a parent advocacy handbook. This handbook is just advice, things that we learned as parents when we first came to LCPS. I always say that I've been here for five years, but some days I feel like I just got here.

[00:13:37] And some days it's hard to know where to get the information, what to do, what's the next step. There are so many things I've learned as an MSAC delegate that have helped me become a better parent and a better advocate for our for my children and we want to provide that same opportunity and print same support and resource to parents so we're actively working on building this advocacy handbook and working to pull it together our goal is to have it ready and published and in the world by the end of the school year next slide this has been a labor of love and I'm very happy to

[00:14:13] present to you the MSAC minute we have learned in engaging with our community that we need to simplify MSAC's message, it is crucial. We want our work to be accessible and easily understood by everyone, students, parents, and staff.

[00:14:31] That's why this year's theme, Seize the Joy, Impact the Future, is so close to our hearts. We believe that joy is not vital, not only for our students, but also for parents and educators. By refining our message, enhancing our social media presence, we're creating an accessible and welcoming space where everyone can see the impact that MSAC has in our school system.

[00:14:51] This is the September edition of the MSAC Minute. It contains highlights from our general body meeting, dates to remember, what we're doing in the community, and policies up to review. We're also going to include as we go throughout the year, calls to action, next steps, little bits of advice and highlights things, but we're gonna keep it short, brief, and simple.

[00:15:11] I know everybody doesn't wanna read super long emails and probably doesn't wanna get tons of emails from me either. So we're gonna keep it simple, accessible, and we're gonna have a little fun with it. Next slide please. So this year is a year in joy.

[00:15:28] We believe that joy is essential not only for our students but for parents and educators. We're committed to creating and celebrating joyful, inclusive spaces that reflect our shared values of diversity and equity. Together we work towards a culturally confident school system that ensures fair and equitable learning practices and experiences for every student, empowering them to shape a better and brighter future for themselves.

[00:15:53] These are going to be our general body meetings topics for the year. As you can see, when I say we are leaning into joy, we are diving head first and we're gonna do it. Our meetings will still cover hard topics, we'll still dive into deeper discussions, but we're always gonna start with a moment of joy and end with a moment of joy.

[00:16:13] We wanna reflect on what brings us joy, what makes us who we are, what makes us better people. And so we want to make sure that we do that in a mindful, considerate, and thoughtful way. Reflecting on this past year, I can't help but smile at the moments of joy that have defined our journey as MSAC.

[00:16:34] Embracing the culture of seizing joy means that we're leaning into happiness and positivity. We're creating spaces that are welcoming and vibrant, and we're reflecting on the beautiful diversity of our community. Joy, after all, is at the heart of what connects us. And in closing, I want to thank each of you for your collaboration and your support.

[00:16:53] I would like to offer a special thank you to Dr. Ellis Williams, Dr. Ryan Tyler, and Dr. Rasheed, and the entire Division of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility for their unwavering commitment to the work of equity. MSAC's vision and mission reflect a shared commitment to building a future where every kid can seize the joy and make lasting impact.

[00:17:13] As B.B. King once said, the beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take that away from you. Together, we can build a future where every student is empowered to learn, to grow, and to find their joy. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Kunkel. I love that message of joy, because joy attracts joy, right?

[00:17:32] And it just builds upon each other. Yes. I love that. Board members, do you have any questions or any comments? Yes. Ms. Donohue. Thank you, Madam Chair. I don't have any questions. I just wanted to say thank you to Ms. Kunkel for the presentation that you've given us tonight and for the work that you do, which is very inspiring.

[00:17:51] And I'm grateful for what you do for our LCPS community. Thank you. Thank you. Ms. Chandler. Thank you, Madam Chair. And thank you, Madam Chair. I really just want to echo the sentiments of my colleagues here on the board.

[00:18:06] We're just delighted. I shouldn't speak for my... I am just delighted with the new theme. And I just appreciate so much that energy. And, honestly, it's hard to continue staying on message without the joy.

[00:18:25] And so I just want to celebrate that with you. And I really love the idea of a parent advocacy handbook. I think that's going to be a great tool for all of our families. Thank you. Thank you. Dr. Deans? Not a question, but a compliment. Thank you also for you and your executive staff supporting the efforts of the equity committee.

[00:18:46] You show up before sometimes before our members show up, so I appreciate that. Thank you. Thank you Vice Chair Straffi. Thank you, Ms. Kunkel. You all get the word for the best slide designs that we've seen or that I've seen since taking office, but It's very joyful From my perspective, I really appreciate you all doubling down on efforts to make your work more accessible and simplifying that message so that more people can access it and

[00:19:26] Take advantage of that advocacy And then my only question is can you tell us a little bit more about the student delegates and what they're involved in? And do they do they review policy for example? What? What's some of the work that's come out of the student delegates? Well, first I would like to acknowledge that I did not do that presentation or that slide on my own My daughter and Aaliyah Kunkel She's back there, and I won't say anything more.

[00:19:51] She labors over it, and she has helped me set up my game, but it's been an honor and a privilege as her mom to see her grow as a graphic designer. And so I'm very proud of her work and the work that she's done. So it wasn't me. It was all her. And then to answer your question about the student delegates, the student delegates have been a desire and a want for MSAC, as long as at least I have been a member of MSAC.

[00:20:17] And we've always wondered how can we bring the students in and how can we include their voices because the students live in the schools and live under so many vast pressures that we don't understand. And it's very easy as adults to tell them, okay, you know, you're kids, you don't understand, when in fact we don't understand.

[00:20:36] And one of the first questions that I asked when I became chair was, can we do this? I mean, can we have student delegates? I was like, it's either going to be a yes or a no. And it was like, sure, you want delegates? Student delegates it is. And so our goal with the student delegates is to make them feel like an MSAC delegate, that they can provide feedback on policy.

[00:20:56] We're working with DEIA to kind of grow the position, because we want them to feel confident and empowered to go into their schools, like their peers who are student equity ambassadors. We want them to feel confident, empowered, to share what they've learned in MSAC meetings, ask questions, to hear from their classmates and their friends, like what's affecting them and what's happening to them.

[00:21:18] And the only thing we ask is that they bring it back and share with us. And I have had the student delegates tell me some honest truths. I have had several of them say, okay, Ms. Erin, so what are we gonna do this year? And I'd be like, we are working on that. Or they say, Ms. Erin, can we do this? Or I'm coming to give public comment.

[00:21:34] Do you wanna see my public comment? I was like, if you feel passionately about those words and you feel you're speaking honestly and from your heart, there's nothing I need to see. I'm here to support you. I'm here to lift you up. And so we want to encourage them to be better student leaders, and we want them to take control of their action.

[00:21:50] I mean, these kids, I get the impression that they're building a world that they want to live in. And it's a pleasure and an honor to work with them. And I'm encouraged by them and uplifted by the work they want to do. And I'm excited that they're with us and they're here to join us.

[00:22:06] And so I'm taking my cues from them and listening to them and taking them seriously when they offer something they give me feedback or they say this is a concern we listen and we adjust and we adapt and we help them in any way we can that's lovely anyone else board members thank you again thank you for your joyful presentation thank you and i think it made everybody smile thank you um with that we will move on to item five our work session um office of the auditor general 2024 annual report

[00:22:44] presented by Mr. Ahmad Woods, our Auditor General.

[00:22:50] Is he here?

[00:23:44] Mr. Woods, I think your mic is not on. - I'll start from the beginning. Good evening, Chair Mansfield, Vice Chair Estreffi, members of the board.

[00:24:03] Today I'm honored to present the Office of the Auditor General's annual report. The purpose of this report is to maintain compliance with internal audit standards and provide transparency regarding OAG operations, which can aid the strategic alignment the office of one lcps strategic plan for excellence next slide topics we'll cover today include providing a brief background on the oag describing the office discussing the assurance engagements commonly referred to as audits offering insight into the upcoming year's

[00:24:36] initiatives and concluding with a recap of the my concern hotline next slide approved by the loudon county school board in may of 2022 the office of the auditor general consists of one auditor general two internal auditors one and one additional staff member the auditor general assumed office october 12 2022 it soon established the my concern is hotline in january of 2023

[00:25:06] shortly thereafter in april of 2023 the office became fully staffed next slide program description the oag provides independent objective assurance and consulting services aimed at increasing value in enhancing the division's accountability and transparency. It designs, manages, and executes the division's audit plan. Its efforts focus on enhancing operations through these independent and objective services. Next slide. Thank you. In a shortened fiscal year of 2023, the OAG began

[00:25:45] two audits. The Audit of Employment Eligibility Verification, Form I-9, and an audit of the Fine Arts Stipend Program. These engagements marked the first audits executed by the OAG. With the Form I-9 audit being issued on September 27th, 2023.

[00:26:05] The fine arts audit is still in progress and will lead into our board-approved fiscal year 2024 annual audit plan. Next slide. The approved FY24 annual audit plan consisted of six audits.

[00:26:23] We recently issued the special education staffing audit with the audit of the student software application coming soon, followed by the audit of student placement policy and procedures. After these reports are issued the stipend audit will follow. Once the stipend audit report is issued we will have cleared our backlog and then we'll get into the FY25 plan.

[00:26:51] Next slide please. Achievements. Next we have our achievements. Beginning with the appointment of the Auditor General in October 2022 which marked the start of a new division within LCPS. Shortly after the Auditor General assumed office the OAG created an audit committee tasked with overseeing the office. The committee has since merged with the LAMP committee, also known as legislative policy and or legislative audit and policy committee, to form today's LAMP committee.

[00:27:27] Other achievements include launching the My Concern hotline to help prevent fraud, waste, and abuse, securing approval for the FY24 and 25 annual audit plan, and completing the OAG's first internal audit engagement. We also became fully staffed during this period and joined the professional organizations of the Association of Local Government Auditors, and the Institute of Internal Auditors. Next slide. During our first 21 months, we also faced several challenges. These include developing a framework for the office, defining the scope and objectives within the

[00:28:06] division, establishing processes and communication channels, building credibility, and ensuring timeliness. Next slide. This brings us to our FY 2025 initiatives. During the current fiscal year, the OAG will complete its Office of Audit Manual. The internal audit manual will include the requirements for conducting audits within the OAG and will also provide guidance such as work

[00:28:39] paper templates, SOPs, and Policy 3410. The manual and its distribution to audit staff are key components of any external peer review that will eventually be performed in the OAG. This year, we will enact a formal quality assurance and improvement plan, also known as a QAIP. Where While we once had nothing, now we have something to improve upon, and that's why we are now starting the QAIP.

[00:29:08] The QAIP will be an ongoing process, including continuous reviews and lessons learned to identify areas for improvement in enhancing efficiency and economy. Beginning next fiscal year, the OAG will adopt new audit standards released by the Institute of Internal Auditors.

[00:29:25] To prepare for these new standards, the OAG will conduct a conformance readiness assessment during the current fiscal year to identify gaps in our current practices and the upcoming new standards. This will ensure the OAG is properly prepared to adopt the new standards beginning July 1, 2025.

[00:29:45] Lastly, the OAG will continue to perform audit engagements under its current LAMP-approved annual audit plan, two of which we've already begun, the audit of IT third-party risk and the audit of LCPS support and advocacy resources.

[00:30:02] Next slide. We will now move on to the final stages of our presentation discuss the my concern hotline the my concern is hotline is available 24 hours seven days a week and provides a convenient and anonymous way for employees to employees in the community to report suspected instances of fraud misuse of lcps property unethical conduct and workplace concerns the objective of the hotline is to ensure compliance with all applicable laws

[00:30:33] lcps rules and policies and to combat fraud waste and abuse next slide since its launch in january 2023. The hotline has received a total of 13 concerns, nine of which have been categorized as closed, and four as still remaining open. Next slide. Who's reporting? Out of the 13 total concerns, seven reports have come from parents, guardians, or family members. Three have come

[00:31:09] from LCPS staff, and three have come from the community, meaning these reports were either completely anonymous or from individuals without any established direct relationships to students, staff or others within LCPS in the annual report you will find more detail account of everything discussed here this concludes the OEG's presentation and I am happy to answer any questions you may have thank you thank you mr.

[00:31:39] woods board members do you have any questions yes miss Chandler thank you madam chair and thank you mr. woods I just wanted to say as chair of the LAMP committee how much I've enjoyed the opportunity to work with you and and how much I've come to appreciate over the course of this year the strengths that the Office of the Auditor General really bring to LCPS and I'll look forward to seeing how that develops over time But I definitely appreciate the work that your team is doing to make sure that we are

[00:32:12] Assessing risk properly and in compliance. So thank you very much. Thank you. Any other questions? Thank you. Thank you so much, Mr. Woods and with that It looks like we have some time to go ahead with some information items, if the board approves.

[00:32:36] And we could go ahead and start with item 14.01, the Department of Business and Financial Services, County Fund Balance, presented by Ms. Sharon Willoughby, Chief Financial Officer. Looks like Mr. Lewis, too.

[00:33:05] Sorry. He will assist in presenting. So you may recall back in May, you took action to approve spending some of LCPS's projected FY24 operating fund balance. The county has a similar process regarding their year-end funds that allows requests from county departments as well as the school division.

[00:33:27] The same rules apply in aligning these one-time funds for one-time uses. Eligible items would be single purchases with no recurring costs, and that would also be able to be encumbered or spent before June 30th of 2025.

[00:33:50] Mr. Lewis is here with me because we have combined the operating fund request along with the capital funds request. Typically, these had been two separate school board actions, and so we're being efficient by bringing them together as one action. There are 10 items that are being requested for the operating fund and four for the capital funds.

[00:34:11] On the next two slides, and also included in board docs, is a short list of the 10 items for the operating fund, as you also see displayed on this slide. There's the description of the item, the amount associated for that item, along with a short description.

[00:34:31] The total amount of these 10 items for the operating fund is $7.8 million. I also have my colleagues here to answer any questions that you may have regarding the specific requests. The list of $7.8 million is loosely aligned with the funds that we also expect to return to the county. As we finalize closing FY24, we project returning approximately $9 million of LCPS operating funds to the county. So in essence, we are returning $9 million and we are

[00:35:06] asking for $7.8 million in return. I will now hand it over to Mr. Lewis to briefly go over the capital requests. Thank you, Ms. Willoughby. So the first one on the list is the press boxes for the baseball and softball fields at both Loudoun County High School and Briarwoods High School. These are the last two high schools that we have in the county that we haven't already put those facilities in place. We do have a backup plan in the capital budget, but as you know, there's plenty of pressure on the capital budget already, and so we are hopeful to be able to fill that need with this

[00:35:46] request and then be able to remove those from the capital budget itself. The next three are projects that are already underway and have are experiencing some challenges with budgets already and so that's Parkview, High School 14 and Banneker and you can see there some of those things are related to just scope increase but also some of the things like Parkview High School one of the increases there is we're building a field over at behind Seneca Ridge Middle School to allow the the teams to play for the three to four years they'll be under construction for that so that's one example there we also have inflationary pressures on each of the projects with Banneker

[00:36:22] there's also some scope creep as we go through and design that building trying to manage the preservation as best we can with the historic part of the building and then all of those have some energy conservation measures that we are putting in place now ground source heat pumps those types of things that we didn't when the projects were originally put together for CIP's in years past so it's a large number I would say that we've had preliminary conversations with county staff so they are prepared to see this number and so it's not it won't be a shock to them but is a way that we hope that we can you know backfill that CIP deficit without moving forward so

[00:37:01] happy to take any questions for that as well thank you board members do you have any questions if I may one last oh I'm sorry I'm sorry that's okay the next steps we do anticipate bringing this back to the next meeting for school board action and you can see the the action on the slide here so to summarize we're looking at 7.8 million dollars for the operating fund 49.7 for the capital funds if school board members would want to make any amendments to remove or add or a combination of both that that can occur that evening after the school board takes action then

[00:37:38] this information is transmitted to the county and we anticipate final board of supervisor action to occur in december and i would now be very happy to answer any questions you may have so um if board members don't want to make any amendments or remove or add we could just put it on consent for next time possibly board members do you have any questions i don't see any questions um item to

[00:38:08] put it on consent for next time one four five okay we can go ahead and put that on consent for next time thank you um okay i think we could go on to 14.02 and for information item keep going um finance and operations committee revision of policy 8020 relations with school support organizations presented by vice chair Estreffi who's also chair of the finance

[00:38:45] and operations committee thank you madam chair board members of you as you may recall this policy is trying to changes to this policy are trying to delineate the relationship between the school support organizations and LCPS sponsored activities this went through a number of revisions and it's just being being brought back to the full board for any comments or other considerations board

[00:39:13] members do you have any questions yes no no one no questions okay do you guys want to put this on consent for the next one it looks like we'll put that one on consent for the next board meeting and we'll move on to 14.03 human resources and talent development committee revisions to policy 7316 supplementary pay athletic coaches sponsors of virginia high school league activities co-curricular

[00:39:52] and other stipends and I suppose we'll be presented by Ms. Boland. So Madam Chair, Ms. Boland's not here yet and also she's not here either so we probably need to not tackle the HRTD items. Skip those two okay or three. Okay so Superintendent Spence would you like to go ahead with your report?

[00:40:14] Yes ma'am I would be thrilled to do that. I mean that sincerely. It is always my pleasure to share some good news from around our school division and i'm happy to do so this evening first i am excited to share that we are recognizing thursday october 17th as 1lcps celebration day because honestly this school division is just too awesome not to celebrate so on october 17th we will celebrate our amazing students and staff members of my team and i will be visiting schools to

[00:40:52] congratulate our team and thanks and offer our thanks to them and our students and all of our staff who make LCPS shine. On the 17th, we are encouraging students and staff to wear school spirit wear and school colors. The Department of Communications and Community Engagement will be providing schools with fun photo gear, and schools are encouraged to document the fun and share it.

[00:41:13] Schools will be selected for showing the most spirit in a variety of categories, including best lunch spirit, best smiles, and best hallway photos. So get ready to show your LCPS spirit. Also, as I shared previously, LCPS is hosting a workforce summit on October the 18th at the National Conference Center. We are very much looking forward to this half-day event, which will bring together community, business, and LCPS team members to discuss the future of work and how to best partner in support of our students. This initial conversation will include more than 350 invited community members, and the summit will include panel discussions and breakout sessions

[00:41:51] by industry. There is still time to register, so any of our community or business partners who may be interested in attending, we would ask you to RSVP via the QR code on this slide. Members of the LCPS community recently had the opportunity to sample original recipes and products provided by more than 30 chefs and food vendors at the very first ever LCPS Food Show. This was held on Friday, October the 4th, at Independence High School, and samples of food there included student favorites like pizza and burritos, but also included new foods like empanadas, Hawaiian-style hamburgers,

[00:42:28] walking tacos, breakfast frittatas, chicken tikka masala, lasagna soup, and Thai noodles. In addition to being delicious, all of the samples complied with federal school nutrition guidelines, which is quite a feat if you recognize what those guidelines entail. Visitors were asked to rate each dish on taste and presentation to help our school nutrition services team decide which meals should be included in the next school year's menus.

[00:42:54] In addition to food vendors, more than a dozen other community partners shared information on topics ranging from hunger relief to nutrition and exercise. Next, I'm very pleased to note that Broad Run High School, Stonebridge High School, and Woodgrove High School have each been recognized through the Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools Program for their outstanding commitment to inclusive environments.

[00:43:18] These schools are among nine Virginia schools that have been nationally recognized, and we want to congratulate them on their incredible achievements and look forward to seeing their continued success as they work there to foster inclusion and break down barriers for their students. We're very excited to announce that Loudoun Valley High School's career and technical education teacher, Adam Wilburn, is one of only 103 teachers across the United States to earn the 2024-25 Outstanding Project Lead the Way Teacher Award.

[00:43:51] This award recognizes educators who demonstrate a strong record of delivering an inspiring and empowering student experience while expanding access to Project Lead the Way programs and transforming teaching. Mr. Wilburn teaches all four levels of the engineering program, and students in this program learn the fundamentals of engineering from technical drawing and 3D modeling to finding engineering solutions to real-world issues.

[00:44:16] Mr. Wilburn says he encourages his students to use their math, science, and problem-solving skills to develop those solutions. Congratulations to Mr. Wilburn on this recognition. We're also pleased to note that LCPS was ranked the number four school division in Virginia in Niche's 2025 list of best schools and districts.

[00:44:34] LCPS ranked behind Falls Church, Arlington, and York County Public Schools, and ahead of neighboring Fairfax County, which was ranked sixth, and Prince William County, which was ranked 14th. According to NISH, its rankings are to help families become familiar with schools and neighborhoods, and the platform uses reviews from students, alumni, and parents, plus data from the United States Department of Education to evaluate schools and school divisions.

[00:44:57] In the spring of 2024, we received extensive feedback from educators, parents, and students on the challenges and possible solutions associated with implementing grading and assessment policy 50-30. A summary of the feedback and a timeline for policy review and potential revisions were presented to the Curriculum and Instruction Committee in September, and now LCPS is beginning the process of revising grading and assessment policy 50-30.

[00:45:24] As a part of this process, LCPS is seeking volunteers to participate in focus groups to review the current policy and provide recommendations on proposed solutions and potential policy revisions. This week, LCPS parents and guardians and secondary teachers have received an invitation to volunteer to participate in a focus group. Participants will be randomly selected from those who indicate their interest in being a part of the process.

[00:45:49] These focus groups will be held in person between October 21st and 30th here at the LCPS Administration Building, and we thank everyone in advance for their engagement with this process. And then finally tonight, despite the heavy rain, it was Loudoun County students that were on the minds of the 120 golfers who teed off at the club at Creighton Farms for Loudoun Education Foundation's 23rd Annual Golf Classic.

[00:46:14] With the help of 30 foursomes and a record number of business partners, the event raised over $150,000. These funds will help support LEF's mission of empowering Loudoun County Public School students to reach their full potential.

[00:46:29] And we want to thank LEF for their continued partnership with LCPS as they leverage community resources to enhance critical and innovative programming as well as opportunities for our students and our educators. And Madam Chair, that concludes my report.

[00:46:45] Thank you very much, Dr. Spence. I see that Ms. Boland has now joined us, and I think, I mean, we have quite a bit of time before dinner. If we could just go ahead and continue on, if she's amenable, with item, let's see, 14.

[00:47:05] 03, Human Resources and Talent Development Committee, revisions to Policy 7316. Ms. Boland. Okay, let me pull it up. Give me just two seconds.

[00:47:21] anybody have any questions for dr spence okay i'm so sorry thank you so much for granting me the the time to get prepared um this evening we're bringing before you changes to policy 7316 supplementary pay for athletic coaches sponsors of virginia high school league activities

[00:47:55] co-curricular and other stipends this policy went to hrtd committee as an information item at the August committee meeting and an action item at the September committee meeting where committee members voted 3-0 to bring it before the full board to tonight's meeting as an information item. This policy includes updated language from Virginia Code and to include LCPS terminology used to govern the supplemental pay. The policy beginning on line five also

[00:48:32] incorporates former language that was included in Regulation 7316 to identify the names and corresponding pay of all stipends, pointing prospective employees to the annually published buddy book for the information, hence the Regulation 7316, which listed all of the stipends, would be struck completely and deleted. Public comment centered around the process for adding or removing stipends and access to the buddy packet.

[00:49:07] For reference, the stipend positions still need to be vetted by the school board as they were done in the past through budget approval cycles and through the departments due to the financial and staffing impacts. The buddy packet is readily available on the classification and compensation webpage, which is found on hrtd's web page with a button or tab for employees and the public to access quickly and i'm happy to answer any questions thank you miss board boland board members are

[00:49:42] there any questions yes mr enough thank you madam chair uh miss bowling i think this is a good revision and i support moving everything to the buddy packet but i was just wondering before was when the stipends were changed you had to update this policy every time is that what you had to do previously so the buddy packet has always listed for years and years and years all of the stipends it's not necessarily the policy that has been had to be updated it's the regulation okay and so we

[00:50:18] are recommending the removal of that regulation and just to refer to the buddy packet which will continually list them as we add as your each year we add or change stipends position titles and so instead of having a regulation we just refer to the buddy packet and then how would employees the school board the public be made aware of when the buddy packet has been updated is my other question so an email goes out to employees every year when the new buddy packet is published it is

[00:50:54] published every year and it gets its name because it used to be a buddy to the budget book. We are looking at different names because I get quite a few chuckles every time I talk about the buddy packet. I kind of like the joy that it brings by its name. It used to be a supplemental buddy packet for staff to the budget book. So it comes out after the budget is processed, after all things are completed um between july and august time frame and every year a notification is sent when the new one is listed and we typically keep for some time for example you would you would see the

[00:51:33] 24 25 and for some time you will see 23 24 for reference as well i appreciate that context thank you so much yes ma'am board members any other questions no seeing no more questions um so let's say we can move on to information item 14.04 human resources and talent development committee revisions to policy 7630 tuition programs again miss boland yes ma'am thank you chair man

[00:52:10] mansfield tonight just like the previous policy we bring before you policy 7630 tuition programs this policy was taken to committee in August as an information item and then in September as an action item where the committee voted 3-0 to bring it before the school board this evening as an information item. As a quick reminder with the support of the school board the appropriated fiscal year 25 budget included some funding to initiate a tuition assistance program and this

[00:52:45] differs from the traditional tuition reimbursement program. The school board's approval of this new tuition assistance program and funding prompted this review and change. So you'll notice the initial change is in the title from tuition reimbursement to tuition programs. The goal of the revised policy is to be more comprehensive and to serve as an umbrella for tuition programs not just tuition reimbursement. Additionally, at Ms. Donahue's request, the draft regulation was included with the item for review when it came before committee. And this regulation has

[00:53:25] provided most of the answers to the feedback we received. Therefore, we did include the draft regulation as part of the information item in tonight's agenda. We will plan to remove the regulation if and when it goes to consent and action so the board can take action on the policy but not the regulation. And I'm happy to answer any questions. Thank you, Ms. Poland. Any other questions? Yes, Ms. Donohue. Thank you, Madam Chair. My question is actually if we can possibly

[00:54:04] consider putting the two HRTD policies on the consent agenda for the next meeting. I don't know if I'm allowed to ask or propose that I'm sorry you are and I should have done that before um okay so let's go ahead and um let's go ahead and look at um let's go back well let's go ahead and do this one then we'll go back uh 14.04 um board members well first of all do we have any more questions regarding this one no um can we go ahead and put this on consent for October 22nd

[00:54:42] yes okay so we'll go put that on uh 14.04 on consent let's go back up real quick um because thank you miss donahue for reminding me um and to 14.03 um board members do you want to put this one on consent okay and we'll go ahead and put that one on consent as well

[00:55:11] um thank you okay so we still have a lot of time and we could proceed to action items however that would not give the public an opportunity to provide public comment so we could move on to board member comments and committee reports with the remaining time if you guys would like to go

[00:55:40] ahead and do that yes okay miss labelle do you want to start we have uh several items coming up under action item so i would rather wait on that until we get to that point than to talk about them And now this is what we talked about in our last SBAD meeting.

[00:56:12] Oh, no, I mean, did you want to do your committee report now? Well, that would be in my committee report. So that's what I'm saying. I don't have a committee report that I want to share yet. So, no. Okay, Dr. Rasheed.

[00:56:27] Thank you, Chair. From the Special Programs and Centers Committee in October, LCPS has a deficit of 29 school bus drivers, though transportation assured us that bus runs for special programs at a small percentage of all bus routes.

[00:56:45] There's eight buses running for TJ for 404 students, so these buses are at capacity. We also received background information about the MATA program, or Monroe Advanced Technical Academy, and admissions at the Academies of Loudoun. I expressed some concerns about the PSAT and other academic requirements for the CTE programs at MATA as they may negatively impact students who have the most need for career-focused pathways. The Department of Teaching and Learning is always open to feedback about MATA admissions and they have a deep dive into this data plan for November. HRTD and DDI both provided information about their roles

[00:57:23] in LCPS special programs to help reinforce a holistic view of how several departments help support student outcomes in our special programs. Thank you. Thank you, Dr. Rashid. Ms. Chernoff. Thank you, Madam Chair. Last week, the Curriculum and Instruction Committee met and discussed four key items. The first item was about the elementary instructional schedule. We had addressed this item in the winter, but we wanted to revisit it as we address some continued ongoing challenges with the schedule, particularly regarding how library

[00:57:59] and gifted staffing is impacting the schedule. And the staffing right now is limiting adjustments and options for flexibility within the master schedule. So staff advocated for aligning staffing standards to possibly match other specials to better support students and staff with increased flexibility in the schedule as well as more dedicated time for these positions which have grown in responsibility over the years.

[00:58:23] So we welcome feedback from our elementary school staff on that option and we'll be looking out for some budget recommendations as well. we also talked about as an information item policy 5130 textbook adoption the policy is just up for review and it underwent some minor updates due to state code updates and now includes a cross-reference to the regulation and it's going out to the public for feedback there was no discussion the third information item was from our Department of Professional Learning on career pathways so Lowne County Public Schools is exploring possible career

[00:59:01] pathways for teachers enabling meaningful meaningful professional development leads to classroom practice these pathways will offer incentives while allowing teachers to stay in the classroom aiming to enhance recruitment and retention and so the these are different programs or cohorts if you will that teachers will be able to plug into they'll be incentivized with money honestly and also the ability to have some choice and some coaching follow-up which is really exciting and sounds like a great idea and good program.

[00:59:34] The fourth information item was updates on dual enrollment, advanced placement, and IB. And so I had asked that this be put on the agenda to just kind of understand more the requirements for each individual program and the potential expansion plans, also as a way to understand how they overlap and where there might be some gaps.

[00:59:53] So we talked a lot about the upcoming course planner tool, which is going to help families navigate these options in the future, and just generally had an overview of that program. So, yeah, it was great, and that's all I have. Thank you, Ms. Chernoff.

[01:00:09] Ms. Donahue? Thank you, Madam Chair. So the recent Student Services Committee, the projects that we have been working on, we are on tonight's agenda, so some of them have already been covered under consent, and one of them is an action item.

[01:00:28] But coming up in the future for us, this Thursday on October 10th at 4. 30, we are having our second work session for the Student Services Committee specifically to discuss the special permission process and potential revisions or the direction that we would like staff to go in for potentially considering whether to make revisions to that policy.

[01:00:53] So that meeting is at 4:30 on Thursday. It is of course open to the public the student services committee regular monthly meeting Is on the following Thursday October 17th at 5:30 The monthly HRTD meeting will be on the 24th at 5:00 p.m. I am having office hours this Saturday afternoon And there is a I'll be at the Ashburn library from 1:00 to 3:00 And there is a sign-up genius link for slots that went out in my newsletter earlier today.

[01:01:22] And I am also very much looking forward to the workforce summit and the legislative breakfast. Thank you, Ms. Donohue. Vice Chair Struffy. Thank you, Madam Chair. In last week's Finance and Operations Committee meeting, we discussed a number of things, two of which came to the board earlier.

[01:01:43] Some information items that we discussed that I think are worth noting to the full board One is revision of policy 6320 playgrounds, which is always exciting. And one of the things in the current version of that draft is that all additions or replacement projects for full playgrounds undertaken by LCPS managed funding will be inclusive playgrounds, which to me is pretty exciting.

[01:02:11] And then we had another information item that's worth noting, policy 4180, commercial, promotional, and corporate sponsorships and partnerships, basically how schools and the division can enter into sponsorships and what some of the parameters are around entering into some of those agreements and, you know, how that relates to, you know, the board's ability to, you know, terminate agreements in the future.

[01:02:40] So just parameters around sponsorships or partnerships in the division. So that's it from Finance and Operations Committee. Thank you, Vice Chair Straffi. And we had the Joint Board of Supervisors and School Board Committee last night.

[01:02:58] And our first information item was Staff and Advisory Commission on Youth Representatives. They shared a report on the state of youth of Loudoun County. And we had some good conversation on how we can better collaborate with them. for this particular report.

[01:03:16] They highlighted data in safe spaces for Loudoun youth, mental health supports for Loudoun youth, drug prevention programs and interventions in the local middle schools, and support for a more diverse Loudoun youth population. I'm excited to see what we can do with our collaboration moving forward.

[01:03:34] The second item that was of interest to me in particular, and I think everybody else honestly, was to talk about information on child care or programs considered as child care that are currently provided by Parks, Recreation, and Community Services Department and Loudoun County Public Schools.

[01:03:58] And we discussed the differences between the licensed daycare program, the preschool program, community after school activities, which is CASA, And then the other, Head Start, as well as our STEP program, and ECSE and the differences between all of those.

[01:04:21] One item that I did bring up at that particular point in time is we do not have anything for infant and toddlers. And so that was something we might want to look into in the future. and then the last was the county budget development calendar and process overview by Mr. Hemstreet the county administrator presented on that and we're going through that right now so

[01:04:52] that was our what we lasted what an hour and a half I think mostly talking about daycare okay um that's it for me miss chandler thank you um i'm actually it seems as if um we've spent a lot of or i personally have spent a lot of time um preparing for meetings but it's been a quiet period of time since the last school board meeting i'm looking forward to our next lamp meeting which will be on tuesday and so continuing to plan the legislative breakfast we have been and having some very productive conversations

[01:05:32] with members of our Loudon delegation about some of the items on the legislative agenda. And it's been very exciting to see where we have similar interests. I'm also very much looking forward to attending or visiting the Davis Center tomorrow to continue to learn more about transition programs.

[01:05:54] And I'm so grateful that Mr. Katone invited me over to Seneca for the, I'm afraid I probably won't get the name of the event right, but the walk, bike, and roll to school day tomorrow. So that'll be so exciting. Thank you. Dr. Deans. The equity committee has developed two subcommittees and they are meeting on Thursday of this week to get organized and move forward. One to review policies and one to study the restructuring of the equity

[01:06:30] charter. Thank you. Thank you, Dr. Deans. I'm wondering if the 13.

[01:06:53] 03 action item for the formation of the renaming committees and 13.04, if we could go ahead and vote for that. What do the board members think? Yes, or do we want to wait? We could have a longer recess too. Okay, thumbs up if you

[01:07:28] want to go ahead and have a longer recess a longer recess now I went for longer recess go ahead and vote for 13.03 and 13.04 okay I think we'll just go ahead and do a longer recess okay so thank you for your patience and the board is now in recess and we will come back at 6 30

[02:00:23] out of recess at this time we'll continue with item 8 pledge of allegiance and national anthem Today, our pledge leaders and national anthem performers are from Freedom High School. The Freedom High School Orchestra performing tonight is under the direction of Dr. Lillian Green.

[02:00:42] It is an auditioned ensemble consisting of dedicated and talented students. Musicians in the ensemble regularly earn positions in groups such as Senior Regional Orchestra, All-Virginia Orchestra, and other youth orchestras and music festivals.

[02:00:59] The Freedom High School Fine Arts Department is a Blue Ribbon award-winning program, and the top orchestra has consistently earned superior ratings at assessment. This year, their performances will include traditional school-based concerts, events around the community and the state, and performances of fiddle and chamber music.

[02:01:19] At this time, please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem.

[02:04:16] And now we'll continue with Item 9, Student Staff Recognition. The one LCPS spotlight, Riverbend Middle School School Improvement, presented by Dave Schaefer, Principal Deb Sheridan, School-Based Instructional Facilitator John Norman, Instructional Facilitator of Technology Katie McGrath, Division Instructional Facilitator Crystal Wallen, Teacher Dr. Valerie DiCarlo, and Assistant Principal Nick Fisher.

[02:04:46] Thank you. Come on up. Good evening, Madam Chair, Vice Chair, members of the Loudoun County School Board, and Superintendent, Dr. Spence.

[02:05:04] My name is Dave Schaefer, and I have a privilege of serving as the principal of Riverbend Middle School. It is a great honor for our team to highlight our ongoing school improvement process this evening, which reflects the collaborative efforts of various stakeholders.

[02:05:21] I want to personally express my appreciation for Gus Martinez, Beth Robinson, Scott Meisenhall, and Jennifer Pajorski for going above and beyond to support not only Riverbend, but all middle schools throughout the SIP process.

[02:05:39] Next slide. As part of the continuous school improvement process, you will hear about how we align the LCPS strategic plan and Dr. Spence's post-entry plan. The ongoing process emphasizes key areas, a focus on learning, building a collaborative culture, and a focus on results.

[02:06:02] Tonight, I am joined by John Norman, our IFT, Crystal Wallen, one of our math teachers, who was also named the 2022 Virginia Middle School Teacher of the Year, Deb Sheridan, our school-based instructional facilitator, Katie McGrath, our division instructional facilitator, and our two assistant principals, Dr. Valerie DiCarlo and Nick Fisher. Next slide.

[02:06:25] Our school improvement process aligns with the LCPS strategic plan and our core values. We have made significant gains within the last year and remain focused on student learning. Next slide.

[02:06:47] At Riverbend, we know that school improvement does not occur in a vacuum. We have to remain in constant collaboration with staff across the division in order to reach our goals. In an effort to build this culture of continuous improvement, Riverbend partners with various stakeholders across the division with a particular focus on sharing our school improvement goals with the Riverbend students and their families. Next slide. Riverbend is committed to a culture of continuous improvement where learning is at the heart of what we do. Riverbend utilized the

[02:07:27] Virginia Continuous Improvement process as a framework for our school improvement process. Our school improvement process involved forming an improvement team that included members from both Riverbend and division specialists who collaboratively identified comprehensive needs by analyzing school data, identifying problems of practice, recognizing trends, and determining root causes.

[02:07:51] Next slide. Additionally, we developed strategies, created measurement tools to address identified needs, implemented plan do study act cycles and established mechanisms for evaluation and reflection on strategy effectiveness Which will ultimately help us to reach our school improvement goals with a continual focus on student learning next slide next slide and next slide It takes a collaborative culture to successfully engage in the school improvement process

[02:08:29] Next slide an asset of a school system like LCPS is leveraging the many resources that are available to support individual schools in meeting their goals. What makes Riverbend unique is that we actively sought out collaboration between these offices and staff members in our English and math departments to ensure our school improvement goals truly matched the needs of our students.

[02:08:56] Supervisors, facilitators, and teachers came together in the same space to analyze our data, identify specific areas of need, and develop a sustainable action plan. next slide when rigorous goals are set for student achievement we implement a multifaceted approach to ensure our teachers are prepared to meet the needs of our learners this requires a balance of developing structures within our school to provide teachers job-embedded professional learning such as data days for our English and math teachers and learning about the PLC process for our

[02:09:35] CLT leads additionally we made decisions around how to provide our MTSS intervention supports such as math labs reading strategies and use of our resource blocks to have students engage in Lexia power up lastly it's leveraging the collective expertise within our buildings by including EL and special education teachers in our CLT collaboration and providing tutoring support within classrooms next slide in today's rapidly evolving educational landscape schools must prioritize tangible outcomes that directly benefit

[02:10:13] students. That is exactly what Riverbend has done and will continue to do with a laser-sharp focus on results. Riverbend accomplished this through clear learning objectives, data-driven decision making, effective differentiation, collaborative professional development, and parent and community involvement. Next slide. Our school improvement plan produced remarkable math growth across the board. All students demonstrated an impressive 11% improvement in math scores. Every subgroup achieved significant growth. Economically disadvantaged students achieved a 13% increase.

[02:10:49] Hispanic students made a 17% improvement. Students with disabilities showed a significant 13% growth. Next slide. Next slide, please. As Dr. DiCarlo mentioned, not only did we see double-digit growth with many of our subgroups in math, we also saw a double-digit growth for our students in reading during the 23-24 school year, including huge growth in our economically disadvantaged students, Hispanic students, and our students with disabilities. Next slide, please. As mentioned tonight by our team we have put a lot of processes and procedures in place and with the

[02:11:28] collective efficacy of our staff we saw a huge improvement in our sol growth with the addition of a full-time division instructional facilitator school-based instructional facilitator and instructional facilitator of technology working as a team to continue to dive deep into the data with our teachers and our stakeholders the upward trajectory of our student success will continue to thrive thank you for the opportunity for us to share our story with you tonight thank you thank you board members do you have any questions comments miss Chandler thank you madam chair and thank you River Bend team as a proud former River Bend

[02:12:05] parent I'm so excited to see you all but really to celebrate your success and to have the opportunity to speak directly to my experience with the amount of expertise in your building thank you for the hard work you're doing and keep up the good work any other comments thank you so much for your presentation okay so now we will move on to item 10. We have one student with here here with us tonight our student

[02:12:38] school board representative. I have the honor of introducing Andy Escalante who is a junior at W.O. Robey High School where he started this fall. Andy is bilingual in Spanish and English and he is grateful for the opportunity to speak today. Mr. Escalante you have the floor. Hello and good evening. My name is Sandy Escalante Alvarenga. First, I would like to thank you the chair of the school board, Mrs. Manfield, and all of the school board members for giving me the opportunity to

[02:13:12] speak here today. I'm originally from El Salvador, and I am here to represent William Obedaya Ruby High School. It is my pleasure to be here to represent my school. I would like to talk to you about Ruby High School. Ruby is a special school. It is for students who need to earn credits more quickly, need a different schedule so they can work, and the students who need a small environment. I come to Ruby to earn credits and graduate quicker. I'm 19 now and I would like to graduate and I will have

[02:13:48] graduated when I was 20 years old if I stay in my old school. At Ruby I will graduate when I'm 19. Ruby High School opened in 2021 and 95 students have graduated so far. Up to 50 additional students will graduate this year. Now I I would like to tell you my story, about my story.

[02:14:11] I started in school when I was seven years old in first grade. I was living on a farm. It was great. I grew up with the farm animals, cows, horses. My parents and grandparents raised me. I learned to ride horses. I would wake up early every morning and milk the cows and then go to school.

[02:14:33] I graduated from ninth grade in Salvador. I come to the United States in January 2023 and went to Parkview High School for one year. I have been in this country for one and a half year. In the biggest classes at my old school, it was hard for me to learn English.

[02:14:52] At Ruby, the small classes helped me. I used every opportunity to learn English. I speak English with cousins, brothers, and neighborhood, and translating for my dad. My whole family tells me that education is very important.

[02:15:09] My parents and older brothers are good examples for me. I know I am doing good for myself and my family. My father told me he didn't have the same opportunity as me. He wants me to learn English so that my life can be better and my family's life will be better.

[02:15:26] I will go to university to earn my bachelor's degree in business. Ruby has helped so many students that may have dropped out of school without it. For us, Ruby is one of the best opportunities for our lives.

[02:15:42] Thank you to the school board for giving me the opportunity to speak here tonight. And my classmates and I are grateful for your support and give us the opportunity to graduate. Good night. Thank you, Mr. Escalante, for being here with us.

[02:16:10] And I look forward to seeing you when I go back and visit Robey. We will now move on. have we got a lot done before the evening the evening part of our meeting so but we are going to start we're going to skip we've already done the superintendent's report so we're going to move on to item 12 the public comment and procedures for a public comment thank you for engaging with

[02:16:46] the school board through the public comment process the school board welcomes comments from the 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 and the agenda this evening, all speakers have been allotted one minute each for public comment. Please be advised that speakers who missed their time slot will not be called at a later time. All audience members shall maintain civility, decorum, and respect for the functioning and dignity of the school board at all times. Please remain seated

[02:17:22] unless arriving departing speaking at the podium or during a break violations of civility decorum and respect include shouting heckling jeering applause or other noise which disrupts or dislays the meeting abstracting 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 speaker staff member or other meeting attendees. Speakers should refrain from vulgarity, obscenities, defamation, profanity

[02:17:57] 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. 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. Per LCPS policy 2520, members of

[02:18:35] 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 for the remainder of the meeting. 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. Copies of materials for board members should be given to the public

[02:19:15] information officer in 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 days the public is reminded that access to school board members meetings sorry school board meetings is available through lcps tv on comcast channel 18 and verizon fios channel 43 the live stream of the meeting may be viewed on the website we look forward to hearing your comments and we'll go

[02:19:44] ahead and start with the virtual public comment. The first virtual public comment speaker is Brenda Bankston, followed by Meredith Ray. Came here for years to disrupt meetings, a glimpse of what Project 2025 intends to destroy public schools. Loudon was smart enough to see through the

[02:20:22] performative attacks. In Wade Byard's riveting, well-documented, spicy account, The Battle for Loudoun County, he exposes disinformation. I didn't enlist in the culture wars, he states. Ended up on the front lines anyway, at the center of a high-profile prosecution through blind, ruthless, political ambition. Alas, he stopped feeding the outrage machine and negative interactions with people whose minds he cannot change.

[02:20:58] Lastly, please vote in favor of the safe storage resolution. We've had enough trauma. Thank you. Meredith Ray. First, my support for the resolution on secure firearm storage.

[02:21:22] With millions of children living in homes with unsecured firearms, this issue is important. Secure storage can prevent accidental shootings, suicides, and tragedies on school grounds where 75% of school shooters under 18 access guns from their homes or relatives. By informing parents of their legal obligations, we are taking an essential step to keep our students and staff safe. I urge you to pass this resolution as several other Virginia school districts already have. Thank you. Thank you. And we'll move on to the in-person speakers, starting with Courtney

[02:21:57] Whitworth, followed by Susan Ruiz. Last week, I contacted my school board rep, Ms. Griffiths, to urge her to support the safe gun storage resolution.

[02:22:13] I explained that we're a family of gun owners who keep all of our firearms in a locked safe and we expect others to do the same. She responded and asked whether we are comfortable signing a document for data collection, adding that it is not the business of the school board to decide what goes on in your home and that she is against the school district collecting data on parents.

[02:22:30] I wholeheartedly agree and am puzzled because what is being proposed has nothing to do with collecting data from parents. Similar resolutions have been passed in five Virginia school districts as well as in places like Little Rock, Arkansas, Phoenix, Arizona, Cincinnati, Ohio, Erie, Pennsylvania, and Duval County, Florida, just to name a few. More than 75% of school shooters under the age of 18 get their firearm from the home, as do the 700 youth who die from firearm suicide each year in America.

[02:22:54] This should be such an easy thing to support, and I hope you all support it. Thank you. Thank you. Susan Ruiz, followed by Kathy Ellen Davis. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends securely storing firearms. Pediatricians are talking to parents about securely storing guns because parents are gun owners and they need to know that securely storing their guns can protect their children and their family. Surrounding counties have already adopted secure storage resolutions because parents can make small changes that can save many lives. And school systems, like pediatricians, have the ability

[02:23:33] to communicate directly with parents. LCPS spends so much time and money preparing our children and school staff on what to do if a violent intruder enters their school. But why wouldn't we want to make the smallest effort to inform parents on how to prevent that intruder from getting that gun.

[02:23:49] The resolution we're talking about tonight is simply a commitment to inform parents on how to securely store their firearms. There is no data collection happening. They would simply be provided with important information. So let's go LCPS. Let's get the word out and please vote yes.

[02:24:04] Thank you. Kathy Ellen Davis followed by Guy Tessier. My shirt says moms demand action for gun sense in America. Gun sense means supporting policy and education to work to end gun violence.

[02:24:21] It is not gun control. One of the easiest ways to keep communities safe is to make sure no one has access to guns they shouldn't have access to. This is not an ideologically driven truth like some in our community would dangerously and insultingly suggest. Safe storage saves lives. Children and teens living in houses where guns and ammunition are locked up have an 85% lower risk of unintentional firearm injuries when compared to houses with unsecured firearms. Behind those percentages are real kids, like these Virginia kids this year. A teen was unintentionally shot and killed by another teen. Another teen unintentionally shot and killed himself. A four-year-old, a three-year-old and a two-year-old unintentionally wounded themselves or others, and a one-year-old was

[02:25:00] unintentionally shot by another child. The secure storage notification resolution is not gun control. It's not collecting any data. It's an easy way to keep our community safe and a necessary step to share information that can save lives. Thank you for voting yes on this important resolution. Thank you. Guy Tessier followed by Kerry Kidwell. Anyone who claims that the secure storage notification resolution is political in nature is correct since both Virginia political parties support promoting secure storage of firearms as a public safety priority. In 2023, Governor

[02:25:39] Youngkin signed into law a tax credit of up to $300 for the purchase of a gun safety device with a $3 million annual budget allotment. The credit applies when a storage device is purchased separately from a gun, a separate conscious purchase decision.

[02:25:58] According to WRIC in Richmond, new data from the Virginia Department of Taxation shows that during tax year 2023, 1,905 Virginians took advantage of the new tax credit designed to help upset the cost of life-saving gun storage devices like gun safes, gun locks, and more.

[02:26:17] So Virginia politicians are rewarding responsible gun ownership, and gun owners are taking advantage of it. Thank you for this resolution. Thank you. Carrie Kidwell, followed by Corey Brunet. In September, I was pleased to hear Ms. Griffith support secure firearm storage, and I agree that with her that secure storage is common sense.

[02:26:44] And yet about 4.6 million American children live in households with at least one loaded and unlocked firearm. When LCPS was impacted by the nationwide fentanyl epidemic, parents and politicians demanded immediate notification and education to keep our kids safe. Yet now some have a problem notifying parents about how to avoid another epidemic, one that is the number one killer of children in America.

[02:27:06] Ms. Chandler and Ms. Donahue were endorsed by Everytown for gun safety due to years of involvement in efforts to reduce gun violence that preceded their campaigns. In fact, six of our school board members were Gun Sense candidates, and they committed to prioritizing gun violence prevention. Voters elected them knowing this was a critical issue, and that's how elections work. When I spoke two weeks ago, there had been 139 incidents of gunfire on school grounds in 2024, and today they have been 160. Everytown and Moms Demand Action are non-partisan organizations. Keeping schools safe and children alive should not be a partisan.

[02:27:39] Thank you. Corey Brunet, followed by Tiffany Polifco. Tiffany Polifco, followed by Ann Miller.

[02:28:03] Ann Miller, followed by Conan Shinabasan. Good evening. Unfortunately, once again, laden county school system continues to betray the trust of students and parents the actions of this administrative apparatus tell us that it does not have the best interest of our children at heart three years ago this week a child in the school system's care was sexually assaulted by a student who had been reassigned to her school after sexually assaulting another lcps student

[02:28:39] five months earlier we are aware of the unscrupulous cover-up by the school school system that betrayed the trust of parents so here we are again with the reality that this school system continues to play russian roulette daily with our children with their heads buried in the sand bowing down to the ever-mighty policies and procedures of a heartless soulless administrative system machine how many ticking time bombs are there um like the reassignment of yet another student who poses a significant threat to the safety of students a student with violent gang

[02:29:09] affiliation. Excuse me. Timekeeper, can you please pause the clock? Ms. Miller, I would ask that you please maintain the civility and decorum of the respect for the functioning of the board and refrain from comments on an individual student that could violate applicable confidentiality requirements. Personally identifiable information is any information that a reasonable person can link together and pinpoint individual students and it's not only restricted to students names so the board is requesting that you please refrain from talking about a student without

[02:29:48] parent consent to discuss circumstances thank you you may resume and could you restore some time yes ma'am would you please restore about three or four seconds please um and um is that okay 15? 15? 15 seconds? Okay. So under the Constitution, under the color of law, you are culpable if you are willingly, which every single one of you are willfully doing, subjecting children in a situation

[02:30:27] that may result in injury or death. You may be imprisoned or fined. Thank you. So Mr. Kanan Srinivasan, followed by Chris Countryman. Thank you, Madam Chair, Vice Chair, and members of the school board. I am Kanan Srinivasan, Delegate for the 26th District in Loudoun. I'm here to express my strong support for the Secure Storage Notification Resolution. During this past General

[02:31:03] Assembly session, I proudly supported a similar legislation requiring schools to notify parents annually about the importance of securing storing firearms and the risks associated with improper storage. Unfortunately, this bill was vetoed. That's why I'm grateful that you and Loudoun County Schools are taking up proactive steps to protect our children from unnecessary risks.

[02:31:24] Nearly 45% of Virginians have guns at home, and firearm-related deaths became the leading cause of death in children aged 1 to 19 in 2020. According to Everytown for Gun Safety, there were 411 unintentional shootings by children in 2023, with nine tragic incidents, five deaths and four injuries happening right here in Virginia.

[02:31:45] But these incidents can be avoided by educating parents about their legal responsibilities and safe storage practices. We can help them make informed decisions that protect their children. Additionally, as was mentioned by another person earlier, with a firearm safety tax credit passed by the general...

[02:32:01] Thank you, Mr. Shainavasan. Chris Countryman, followed by Michael Kodonicki. Good evening.

[02:32:23] I truly appreciate the effort that Dr. Spence and the administration are putting into the bill schedules and calendar survey. However, I don't think it goes far enough. I think we can all agree that we would not and should not treat kindergarteners and high school seniors the same.

[02:32:38] They have very different educational and emotional needs. Yet LCPS, with the current way we do things, treats staff that support and plan for these very different needs the same. By treating staff equally, we are not treating them equitably.

[02:32:54] A very simple example is classroom setup. I ask you to think of the classroom setting of an elementary class versus high school. They're very different. The amount of time it takes at the beginning of the year to create these amazing learning environments where elementary students spend most of their day is incredible.

[02:33:10] The other side of that is the time it takes to grade high school essays is very different than assessing whether a kindergartner knows their letter sounds. The needs and the timing of these needs are very different. We have the opportunity to do better by digging deeper into these needs. I know this is not easy.

[02:33:26] Thank you. Michael Koltanicki, followed by Erica Daly.

[02:33:45] Ms. Polifko, I'm sorry, but we have to follow the rules of what the script says. And I'm sorry, but I wouldn't afford that to anybody else. For how many times have I been doing this now? If people are not here, I'm sorry, Ms. Polifko, but if people are not here by the time that their names are called, then we move on to the next person.

[02:34:09] And that's the norms that we have set. So I'm sorry, but your time has been missed. The next person is Michael Kotelnicki, followed by Erica Daly.

[02:34:32] Good evening. Here I am again to talk about a second athletic trainer at each high school. I have sent emails and talked to some of you personally, and I wonder if you understand where I'm coming from when I do talk about this. I am a 20-year collegiate athletic trainer who did professional hockey and professional baseball.

[02:34:51] My wife, who's an athletic trainer for the high schools after she left a major Division I school, said, as she's worked at a high school for 18 years, said, I will never do college. My response was, I will never do high school. And then I had an incredible experience, an incredible gift by Derek Ferry for hiring me here at Loudoun County. What I noticed is the resources I had at the high school and college level were unlimited. I had always a health care, mental health person, orthopedic surgeon, a dentist at my disposal. When 418 rolls around for these high school kids, The amazing staff that we give them for those hours out of day dwindles down to one, to me.

[02:35:29] And I am fully capable, no doubt. But to afford all the kids the opportunity to have two people there to help them is what we need in Alvin County. Thank you. Thank you. Erica Daly, followed by Carrie Michonne.

[02:35:46] Good evening. I come to you as a parent of middle schoolers, a substitute teacher, and someone who talks with parents in our community about ways to keep safe kids from gun violence. as new parents were bombarded with safety information about car seats, choking hazards, wearing bike helmets, but it's uncommon, often until it's too late, that parents are warned about the danger of easy access to firearms, whether that's an unintentional shooting, a suicide, or a situation with a gun in the school.

[02:36:18] As you consider the resolution before you tonight, please think beyond the awful idea of fatalities to the emotional and psychological impact these situations, and the anxiety that kids have currently about going to school.

[02:36:33] I encourage you to continue the good work that LCPS is doing to help families become more aware of things like drug use, social media, and suicide. This resolution fits in with a core value that every student should feel safe, happy, and cared for. Thank you for all that you do.

[02:36:50] Thank you. Carrie Michonne, followed by Abby Platt. The safety of our children is paramount, parents, citizens, and supposedly, LCPS says that.

[02:37:10] You have modified school entrances to have vestibule double entry at the main doors. You require visitors to show an ID upon entering LCPS facility. For crying out loud, you have a jersey wall out in front of this building. All of your show of perimeter security means nothing if within the walls the children aren't safe.

[02:37:29] Knowing that recently a student was carrying a concealed weapon walking to school, Ms. Michonne, I'm sorry, timekeeper, can you please pause the clock? Again, I think, Ms. Michonne, that you were here. when we made a request of the last public speaker to please refrain from disclosing personal identifiable information about a student.

[02:37:53] I am therefore asking you to please redirect your comment. If you continue to discuss a particular student's circumstances, disclosing personally identifiable information about a student, the board will be compelled to conclude public comment for the meeting for the evening thank you timekeeper can you please put back um five seconds

[02:38:21] for miss michon okay you can't do it nearly how many 15 is it all right 15 seconds thank you yeah that's all right i'm not going to speak for a minute 15 i'll i i'll just go from where i was is that good okay yeah just i just and just reminding you again just to redirect your public comment away from a student please my question is what is being done to protect the children should anyone who so much as speaks of threatening with any kind of weapon gets inside our facilities.

[02:38:59] Do you have a reassignment policy? If the student is moved, does the new school know to be on high alert? Our children, our neighbors, our grandchildren, every single child and all the staff and teachers deserve to be protected. That's your job. Make sure you do it because you can't go back.

[02:39:16] I have been at graveside services twice in the past two months, filled with grief. I don't wish that on anyone. Please think clearly on your policies. Thank you. Next, we have Abby Platt, followed by Michael Rivera.

[02:39:39] I'm here today as a mother, and I appreciate all the comments of all these people that are here today to support safe storage. It falls on flat ears, I'm afraid, because my daughter is terrified to go to school.

[02:39:56] a school where others threaten other children and you can cut us off and you can silence us all you want but all this talk about self safe storage which is common sense I literally don't know a single person that does not support safe storage but where's the protection and the safety for our children who are in in school with other children who have known threats who have been arrested and who are back in the school and my daughter's terrified to go to school with him when are we

[02:40:34] going to have that conversation i've i've not given any personally identifying information this child has gone to great lengths to show everyone who he is excuse me just by what you're saying right now is personally identifiable information i've identified all of these people are here to talk about safe storage and i want my daughter to be as safe as the guns that you are asking people to keep safe. I want my daughter to be safe at school. I want my son to be safe at school. I have two children that have attended schools where this child has gone. That is

[02:41:13] terrifying. Again, one more time, and we're going to have to conclude public comment for the evening. Thank you.

[02:41:30] All right, Michael Rivera, followed by J. P. McMichael. Recently, the local media covered a story where a known gang member with a criminal record that was suspended from LCPS was allowed back okay we will now please stop we mr riviera i'm sorry that this is hard for you

[02:41:59] okay uh board members the public comment is going to be ended for the day thank you mr riviera please mr riviera you've been given two warnings already this will be your third okay the public

[02:42:34] comment is going to be ended for the night please cut off his microphone thank you okay thank you very much for your public comment we will be ending it for the night and we will be and we're

[02:42:52] going into uh the board is now going into recess thank you so much okay mr allen we are taking

[02:44:05] you are out of order miss polifco and so we are now going to end public comment and we are going

[02:44:31] to take a recess as we normally do after public comment thank you the board is coming out of

[03:05:12] recess public comment has concluded and as the chair i'm responsible for maintaining order of a meeting we are moving on to the action item on our agenda starting with action item 13.01 gun safe storage resolution presented by miss chandler do i have a motion miss chandler yes thank you madam chair i make a motion that the loudon county school board adopt the secure

[03:05:46] storage notification resolution second i have a motion from miss chandler i have a second by miss donahue uh right yeah yeah as soon as i say is there any discussion yes is there any discussion i'm sorry i would like to make an amendment madam chair you know first um before you make that can

[03:06:25] And I have Ms. Chandler talk to her motion first, and then we can, I'm sorry. Thank you. No problem. Ms. Chandler, would you like to speak to your motion first? I would, Madam Chair. Thank you so much. Last month, when the first round of online threats of violence targeted our schools, the night that it was made public, I spent hours with my child and her close friends sharing with them what I could about the safety mechanisms we have in place in our division to keep them safe.

[03:06:54] They didn't want to go to school because they were afraid. There is no denying that the fear of gun violence at school has an impact on our students. This fear is hurting our kids. This is one of the reasons I am motivated to bring this forward.

[03:07:11] Now is not the time to play politics with student safety. After the shootings in Georgia and Maryland and the recent threats that have happened in our own community, our constituents and community members are asking what more can be done and requesting additional gun safety measures.

[03:07:29] gun violence is a public health crisis. We know some fundamental things. A 2023 study by the American Academy of Pediatrics found that guns are the leading cause of death for American children and teens, with rates of firearm fatalities among children under 18 surging by 87% from 2011 to 2021. The Secret Service analyzed more than 20 years of school violence data and found that 76% of school shooters' guns come from the home of a parent or close relative.

[03:08:05] Similarly, nearly 80% of gun suicides of people under the age of 18 involve a gun that belongs to a family member. Currently, the Code of Virginia, Section 18.2-56.2, allowing access to firearms by children, states that it is unlawful for any person to recklessly leave a loaded, unsecure firearm in such a manner as to endanger any child under the age of 14, and the penalty for doing so is a class one misdemeanor. The Johns Hopkins National Survey

[03:08:40] of Gun Policy has tracked American support for gun policies every two years since 2013. Despite portrayals by politicians, lobbyists, and the media of gun policy as controversial and starkly divided, survey results show that a majority of Americans support gun policies that have been proven effective at or show promise for reducing gun violence. 72% of Americans support laws that require a person to lock up the guns in their home when not in use. I've gotten many emails in support of the resolution and some opposed, but I noticed that even some of those

[03:09:19] who are opposed have acknowledged that safe storage is a common sense measure. There's been some dis or misinformation in the community and I would like to clarify what this resolution is intended to do. The resolution offers parents and families information about a law already in place so they can make the best decisions for their family. The resolution does not collect any information from the parents except that they have received the notification. Absolutely no information is collected or received about gun ownership. To make it easier to operationalize

[03:09:55] for the division and to clarify confusion over the resolution in the community, I have already submitted an amendment changing the language to which receipt will be acknowledged accordingly. One of the most basic actions we can take as a school division is to ensure that LCPS families are aware of this information so that they can make informed decisions about how to keep their children and our community safe. I believe the school board has an obligation to ensure that our students are safe at school. In fact, to protect our students' health and safety,

[03:10:29] LCPS included a fentanyl notification in the back-to-school packet. Parents were asked to acknowledge that they received the information. This resolution and the action it requires is exactly the same. It is just providing information to parents about a public health crisis and offering standard preventative safety measures. As mentioned, this safety measure has been adopted by similar resolution in several other jurisdictions in Virginia, including Albemarle, Alexandria, Arlington, Charlottesville City, and Montgomery County.

[03:11:06] The actions I ask the division to take through the resolution are just common sense. It's a nearly no-cost communication to educate the community. Now is not the time to play politics with student safety. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Chandler.

[03:11:21] Chair Mansfield, can I have a point of clarification? Yes, Ms. Scherner. I'm just wondering which when you made the motion Ms. Chandler we have several versions in board docs if we could just clarify which one we're going to be working off of I know you mentioned the resolution we also had a red line version last time and now I believe that you have mentioned in your statements that we are looking at the gun safety storage resolution with amendment and I just want to make sure that I know what we're working from as a base yes thank you Ms. Chernoff that is correct it is the red line version and you'll see in In the same paragraph, towards the end of the resolution, there are two suggested edits.

[03:11:59] One that was presented last time and one that is presented for the school board's consideration tonight. I appreciate the clarification. Thank you. Thank you. Yes, Ms. Donahue, and then...

[03:12:19] Thank you, Madam Chair. I wanted to just take a brief moment to thank Ms. Chandler again for putting forward this resolution, to thank our colleagues in the community who have advocated for this resolution, for this piece of improving the safety and security of our schools I have been as similar to Ms. Chandler we have both been volunteers for gun sense priorities for several years and from the day that I launched my campaign one of my goals

[03:12:54] was to bring safe storage information to be put out from the division to the LCPS community. So for me, I'm very excited to have this in front of us to vote on tonight. I am a gun owner, and I am also the parent of two elementary school students in LCPS. And I'm thrilled to hear all the people who have said, well, yes, safe storage is common sense. I'm glad to hear people say that. But the facts show that a lot of people are not responsibly storing their firearms in a safe way, which is why I think it is appropriate for the division to put out some of

[03:13:32] that information to the community, just like we do about the opioid crisis, just like we do about the mental health crisis, just like we do about other threats to the safety and security of our children and the families in our county. I would also like to note some of the other organizations that are in support of safe storage practices and information, including the National Parent Teacher Association, the National Education Association, the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, a number of advocacy groups including Sandy Hook Promise, Brady United, March for Our Lives, the Giffords Foundation, and End Family Fire, as well as the American Academy of

[03:14:12] Pediatrics, whose research has shown that the majority of deaths, 85 percent of firearm deaths in children ages 0 to 12 occur in the home. 85% of the deaths by firearms of children ages 12 and under occur in the home and many of those are preventable if firearms are stored safely and responsibly. That is why I'm very proud to be supporting this motion and this resolution tonight.

[03:14:44] Thank you Ms. Donahue. Ms. LaBelle you had an amendment. I would like to move that we add a verbiage to this. Let me get it here. That the first section, therefore be it resolved, include an active link to our webpage dedicated to safe gun storage. And that in the next section,

[03:15:24] the word community be changed to communities, plural. Okay, could you, I know we don't have it numbered i know i was trying very hard which paragraph could you tell me which paragraph for the first one okay let me pull this back up all right if you if you go through the third to last paragraph that starts now therefore be it resolved okay that the board directs the superintendent

[03:16:04] and staff to update the student handbook to include information about parents legal obligations I want that also to state or provide an active link to our web page about safe storage.

[03:16:23] And that in the next paragraph, where you see the word represent the community, it should be communities, I-E-S, plural. Because we are more than one community. Agreed.

[03:16:38] Okay, I'm just trying to figure out how to do that. April has a question. Yes, Ms. Chandler. delighted Miss LaBelle by your suggestion I do want to point out that I made a conscious choice to include the word community because I think of our LCPS division community as one community and I think that's that's something that we refer back to in our organizational documents we are one LCPS although I think we serve many languages but I am I'm that's where I saw the

[03:17:13] discrepancy languages so i mean respectfully i am delighted by your suggestion to include the okay yeah so i'm still trying to figure out what that what the motion would be the first one um to include a link that he update the student handbook to include the information about parents' legal obligations and information that links to LCPS's web page on safe gun storage.

[03:17:50] Unless somebody else has another way to say it, I'm fine with that. Okay, so those are the words you're asking for, and information? On accessing LCPS's web page on safe gun storage.

[03:18:12] Okay, so that is her motion. she has given a motion. Do I have a second? Second. Okay. I have a second by Ms. Chandler. Okay. Now we can discuss. Okay. Ms. Chernoff, did you have a, okay. Okay. I want to say that I am not against this resolution. I'm not against gun safety. Anything that helps keep our students safe

[03:18:45] is fine with me. I would definitely support it. I am disappointed that Mrs. Donahue's idea of adding a gun safety class to our student curriculum has somehow been removed when Mrs. Donahue's idea went to committee and somehow morphed into a resolution. Well, while a resolution is less effective than direct instruction, I have no problem with that.

[03:19:11] This resolution contains factual information demonstrating why proper gun safety storage is important in keeping our schools safe. The problem comes when one realizes that it lacks any reference to our webpage regarding gun safety.

[03:19:28] This information should be provided in this resolution as well as included in the student handbook as it demonstrates that the basis for this resolution is LPS's desire to work with parents to keep our students safe. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. LaBelle. Okay, so any more discussion? Yes, Ms. Griffiths. Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to say my colleagues have good intentions, and we all want safe environments for our children. I just wanted a clarification, Ms.

[03:20:06] chandler this amendment now does not require a signature i was hoping i'm i'm i'm happy for miss labelle's uh amendment because i'm hoping we can just provide the safety information that is required without signatures if you could just clarify for me thank you well i was happy that we were able to talk offline about this and and have a reasonable discussion and and to share our perspectives with each other. I really want to say thank you for doing that. One of the reasons why I brought forward the new language tonight is because I want to make it easier to operationalize

[03:20:45] for LCPS, and the most important thing is to get the information out. So I'm willing to say it's operational. It is up to the division to decide how they implement the resolution if it gets passed tonight but i wanted to make it easier and not require any extra work or follow-up from principals and staff and i mr allen if it would be permissible i would love for you to

[03:21:13] please clarify for us how the new language outlines the process please thank you miss chandler give me a moment to pull it up so the proposed language here indicates that there will

[03:21:52] be, I'll just read it for clarity, be it also resolved that the board directs the superintendent to create an appropriate notification accessible in the languages that represent the community or communities, depending on the board's will, we serve to parents and guardians that explains the importance of secure gun storage and the legal obligations to protect minors from accessing irresponsibly stored guns to be included in annual registration materials at each school site which receipt will be acknowledged accordingly so to be sure the revised

[03:22:31] language does not require parents to provide a signature acknowledging such notification instead it allows the flexibility operationally for LCPS administration to either incorporate the notification and the SRNR each year as one of the many notifications that's included in the SRNR and/or as a as a standalone notification that is acknowledged by clicking through when accessing parent view, akin to how students acknowledge the standalone Fentanyl notification annually through student view.

[03:23:06] So as I see it, this acknowledgement would be similar to a PSA on the importance of secure gun storage and the legal obligations to protect minors from accessing irresponsibly stored guns set forth in the resolution so we do have a motion on the floor and it's been seconded

[03:23:37] um is there any other discussion yes miss labelle i would like to retract my comment on communities versus community just to make that clear okay so now we don't need communities we just you're just adding the link okay um but we've already motioned and seconded it so mr allen do we have to like

[03:24:09] she can retract it and it's fine no no i did not read the word communities when i made the motion she corrected me and so when i read the full motion i did not read it the second time with the word communities but if we need to do it again i will be happy to do so mr allen do we need to read this again or is it okay uh based on that proffer miss labelle i my understanding is that you only said community not communities when you repeated the motion and that's what was

[03:24:47] seconded so that's motion on the floor okay thank you okay miss labelle one more time okay so what you're asking for is the third paragraph up now therefore be it resolved that the board directs the superintendent and staff to update the student handbook to include information about parents legal obligations regarding the secure storage of firearms and and information as to how to

[03:25:20] access our web page on secure gun storage I actually put that before the other part but you want me to do it again yeah would you just write just read that whole paragraph how you want it so that we're all clear all right let me get back to that page now that's okay it's also helpful for now therefore be it

[03:25:57] resolved that the board directs the superintendent and staff to update the student handbook to include information about our website and secure gun storage and information about parents' legal obligations regarding the secure storage of firearms.

[03:26:22] - Thank you. Okay, now let's take a vote. There's been a motion, it's been seconded. Clerk, please open the vote.

[03:26:38] This is on Ms. LaBelle's amendment. Okay. Clerk, please open the vote. Board members, please record your vote. Clerk, please close and display the vote. That motion passes unanimously. Okay. Now we will vote, go back and vote on the

[03:27:11] base motion as amended by Ms. LaBelle. Is there any discussion before we do that? Yes, Ms. Sherna. Thank you, Madam Chair. I just, we've all had a lot of conversations about this in our community. We have people here tonight, and I really appreciate the language change. I think it does make it operationally more sound. Additionally I think the required signature was was creating some angst in our community about what that meant and I had discussions with Mr. Allen about how you know can we could we even keep a

[03:27:50] list of gun owners and what guns they have and that would not be legal that would not be something that we could do and so I think that this kind of takes that away and I'm really just asking that we as a community come together right now and really think about the safety of our kids and that we partner together I think that this is important I think that people safe storing their guns is common sense and I know we've said that before but this is an opportunity for us to work together as a community and a school division to say we're committed to keeping kids safe and even though it's just an

[03:28:24] acknowledgement of that I've seen that the the district wants us to do what the law says which I think also is common sense it is a small way for us to say that we are committed to partnering together and I think that's the bigger message here and so I am going to support this but I wanted to make sure that we acknowledge that we heard from people that were nervous about a signature and not understanding what all that means and sometimes we do need to provide that extra context and I am grateful for the reflective work that

[03:28:56] was done to mirror that. So thank you. Thank you, Ms. Chernoff. Any other discussion? No. Okay. So clerk, will you please open the vote? We are now voting on the base motion as amended by Ms. LaBelle.

[03:29:13] Board members, please record your vote. Clerk, please close and display the vote. And that motion passes unanimously. You can hold your applause. We are now moving on to action item 13.02, Student Services Committee Revised Policy, 8420 Student Medication, presented by Anne Donahue, Chair of Student Services Committee.

[03:29:44] Thank you, Madam Chair. This policy, the revisions were presented to this board as an information item at our last meeting. The policy was up for its cyclical review. There were several revisions that were suggested by staff, Most of them relatively straightforward and included, this is the policy that governs what medications students may carry and self-administer within LCPS facilities.

[03:30:18] And some of the additions and changes that were made in the proposal that is before the board for a vote today would include students being able to self-administer medications such as insulin, glucagon, pancreatic enzymes, hydrocortisone, solucorteft, and a few other things.

[03:30:45] The biggest change to the policy is the proposal that would allow students to carry naloxone, which is the generic form of the brand name called Narcan, the substance that can, if inhaled, can stop and reverse an opioid overdose.

[03:31:05] So that is the biggest and most biggest change to the policy and we did of course get feedback from the community and that is reflected in in the notes on board docs and I will I will ask Ms. Richardson if I'm missing any important points. Thank you Mrs. Donahue. You did a wonderful job of summarizing the work of the committee with regards to policy 8420 student medication. Again And the most notable changes are to the student self-carry of Naloxone in our schools.

[03:31:43] As discussed in committee and as discussed before the board as an information item, we did add a component of naming the current approved educational training by the Virginia Department of Health to this policy, and that's the REVIVE training.

[03:32:03] We also added language to that section that says, and another approved opioid overdose training should there be one or one that is supported by the Virginia Department of Health.

[03:32:19] We also added the naloxone authorization form which does require parents to provide signed informed consent of their students being able to carry this medication in our schools we did receive feedback and some recommendations on amendments i don't want to speak for mrs shorn off unless you would like for me to go through your recommendations but i will hand it back over to you so that the board can consider some of the wording changes that you have suggested first i would like to have first the whole thing is we have a motion and then second it and then

[03:32:57] then we have a discussion so uh do i have a motion miss donahue yes thank you madam chair because particularly because of the importance to of the proposed changes to this policy to the safety and health and well-being of the students and our entire lcps community i move that the board adopt and approve the revisions proposed to policy 8420 i have a motion by Ms. Donahue do I have a second? I have a second by Ms. LaBelle. The motion has been properly moved

[03:33:36] and seconded that the Loudoun County School Board adopts revised policy 8420 student medication. Is there any discussion? Ms. Chernoff. I wanted to wait if anybody else wanted to jump in first. I appreciate the work of the committee and I appreciate many of the conversations over the last two weeks that I have been able to have as a result. As you know from last meeting I had some concerns and reservations about moving forward with this policy the way it is, and tonight I will be proposing several amendments which were posted in board docs with the agenda on Friday, and

[03:34:13] if I didn't get to talk to you, I hope that you had a chance to review them. Before I do that, I just wanted to ask you to continue as a board to just consider the implications this could have on our young people. Last meeting, I felt like I was the only one with reservations, and it made me question if I just wasn't getting something or seeing something or understanding something so in that case I went to staff and got some clarification which was very helpful but I also went to my constituents I reached out to parents teachers I talked with school nurses I talked with school counselors and school student support advisors I talked to principals and I quickly found out that

[03:34:52] I was not alone in my reservations while some are supportive I do feel a need to express that some questions and concerns have arisen as a part of those conversations and that's mainly where my amendments are coming from. So as best practice I believe that we should be thinking about and engaging the people that this will impact. We've worked hard as a board to do that. I see examples of that with our focus groups for 80/40 and our grading policy. I partnered with board members to visit schools and discuss the cell phone policy. I watched how Student Services Committee brought leadership in to review the special permission process and

[03:35:26] And when the diabetes policy was updated, there were countless school visits and research, talks with nurses, and thorough evaluation of the impact on the policy on our people. And I think we've set a nice precedent in terms of engaging our community. So I just want to genuinely ask if collectively we feel that we have done the same here, because after engaging some of these groups, I think I have more questions and reservations than I did before.

[03:35:49] I especially want to emphasize that engaging the groups of high school teachers as well as high school principals were overwhelmingly opposed to the policy as written. While some argued that most students will not even carry because they don't want to go near this situation, there were many concerns about putting this heavy responsibility on our young people and questions about do we need to be the grown-ups here and try and put some provisions in place to protect them.

[03:36:14] Additionally, multiple people asked if we might take a smaller step first. Perhaps there was a suggestion of perhaps having Narcan available near AEDs that are more accessible for students, but not necessarily on their person. I'm not suggesting that, but I'm just letting you know that that was something that came to me.

[03:36:30] These suggestions and concerns are coming from the professionals that work with our young people every day. They know them best, and they will bear the burden of dealing with students now acting as first responders. And so if it's okay with you, Madam Chair, I would like to make my first amendment, unless there's other discussion before I do so.

[03:36:46] nope go ahead all right hold on I gotta jump all right so I move that we add to line 129 that we not add I move that on line 129 we change the word should to must the section would now read students requesting permission to carry naloxone nasal spray must have completed revived training or opioid or naloxone education training okay there's a motion on the floor by Ms. Chernoff do i have a second i have a second by mrs griffiths it's been properly moved and seconded

[03:37:21] is there any discussion can i speak to it yes well didn't you just speak to it well i didn't say why they've added the word must sure enough would you like to speak to your amendment i would actually um i just want it's it's quick i promise um i'm adding the word must would require students to get training we require staff to be trained before they carry and i think that if we're putting this responsibility on them.

[03:37:48] We as a school board have a responsibility to ensure that they, the students, are educated and that the training would be provided before they jump into carrying naloxone. Is there any discussion? Yes, Mrs. Donahue. Thank you, Madam Chair.

[03:38:05] So I do appreciate Ms. Chernoff bringing up her concerns about the policy and particularly speaking on behalf of stakeholders who have an interest in the decisions that we're making here who might not otherwise have had their opinions taken into account that being said I think that we discussed this in committee even if we didn't discuss that specific language change whether that should be should or must in that location I am I'm opposed to changing it and the reasons for that are

[03:38:43] I have a couple one is I should is already there we are already saying that that students should have done this my understanding is a practical matter is that it's not possible for the students or for anyone else to obtain naloxone without either a doctor's prescription or having taken a training course and how to use it so as a practical matter if they have it they would have received

[03:39:10] training on it. And finally, I am opposed because I just don't want to create any more barriers or obstacles. I think that it's important to make it as easy as we can for the students who want to do this, and I think that's a key important point that needs to be emphasized. Ms. Chernoff mentioned a heavy burden that we're putting on our students this is completely optional this in no way is obligating any student at lcps to carry naloxone it is simply saying if they want to they will be

[03:39:50] allowed to i think it's important to give them that autonomy if they feel that it's appropriate if their families feel that it's appropriate and i don't want to i don't want to add unnecessary burdens or obstacles to allowing them to do that is there any other discussion no okay so let's go ahead and take a vote on changing line one two nine change the word should to must is that correct

[03:40:20] okay um clerk would you please open the vote clerk please close and disclose okay um and that motion does not pass. Four yes with Ms. Chandler, Ms. Mansfield, Mr. Vice Chair Struffy, Ms. Donahue,

[03:40:54] and Dr. Rashid in opposition. So then we go back to the base motion. Is there any discussion? Yes, Ms. Chernoff. Thank you, Chair Mansfield. I move that on line 146 after the phrase, understand what is happening during an overdose, that we add a comma, of course, and the phrase understands the implications of intervening to try and save a life. Do you want me to read what

[03:41:29] it would read as now? If that makes things more clear, that's fine. Yeah. So the policy would then read, students authorized to carry naloxone nasal spray should be mature enough to recognize the signs of an overdose, understand what is happening during an overdose, understand the implications of intervening to try and save a life, use the medication appropriately and take steps to ensure the individual receives further medical attention. I have a motion on the floor by Ms. Chernoff. Do I have a second? Second. I have a second by Vice Chair Struffy. Is there any, Ms. Chernoff, would

[03:42:04] you like to speak to your motion? I think that I've summarized this and I do appreciate your comments, Ms. Donahue, that this is a choice and that kids want to. And I know a lot of kids want to do a lot of things and that doesn't always mean that they understand that what they want is what's best and in adding this language it makes me feel have a little bit more peace of mind that we are asking our students to really contemplate entering into those situations. I realize they may already be in those situations and having the Narcan may allow them to intervene in a way that could be

[03:42:40] helpful and save a life and I honor that but I I feel again as the people who are in charge of making the decisions for the school district that it would be better to fully cover our bases and make sure people know that these situations are not to be taken lightly. Thank you Ms. Chernow.

[03:43:00] Is there any other discussion? Seeing no more discussion we will vote. Oh yes Ms. Donahue. Thank you, Madam Chair. I have a question for Ms. Richardson. So this proposed amendment would, sorry, this is about the being mature enough, not related to the training. Okay, never mind.

[03:43:32] I retract. Sorry. Is there any other discussion? Seeing no more discussion, we will vote on Ms. Chernoff's second amendment. Clerk, please open the vote. Board members, please record your vote.

[03:43:53] Clerk, please close and display the vote. And that motion passes with Ms. Mansfield and Dr. Rasheed in opposition. All right.

[03:44:11] Third, and then, so now we are back to the base motion. Is there any, yes, Ms. Chernoff. I'm having deja vu. I move that on line 154, we change the word will to add the words must immediately.

[03:44:34] So now section 4C would read, the students must immediately notify, and I believe there's a spelling error here, an LCPS staff member, if they administer naloxone to an individual and EMS 911 will be called. Second.

[03:44:58] Okay, yes. Okay, so the motion, wait, could you say that one more time? Sure. I move that on line 154, we changed the word will to must immediately.

[03:45:14] So section 4C would now read, the student must immediately notify an LCPS staff member if they, no, yes. The student must immediately notify an LCPS staff member if they administer naloxone to an individual and EMS 911 will be called. Okay.

[03:45:30] And Ms. Chernoff made a motion and Ms. Donahue seconded it. It's been probably moved and seconded. is there any uh Ms. Chernoff would you like to speak to your motion yeah this one comes from some of the discussions I had with um the principals in my district about student privacy and just the expectations and I did have a couple of questions last time about um student privacy and reporting I in our this side of the job I understand the privacy aspect a lot more I've learned a lot more about that. When we report overdoses to the parents in the community, we

[03:46:08] often don't even name the school because we are trying to protect the privacy of students and make sure that there aren't any disclosures to give that away. Now we're asking, we're allowing students to intervene when someone is overdosing and administer Narcan. So I think that we should make sure that they they are required to that they must immediately notify I think they should be required to notify for a couple of reasons one so that an LCPS staff members know about it obviously and for the protection of the

[03:46:46] students involved privacy wise to be able to follow up with that as well as I don't want to assume that students wouldn't tell but if something were to happen in private and the kid were to come to and another student were to say hey let's keep this between us the student that overdosed or the student that gave Narcan could experience something that they need to share with someone and so again as adults we have to report things we're putting what I feel to be a very adult thing on our children if they take that responsibility and I think it is important that they are held to the standard of you have to

[03:47:23] immediately notify LCPS so that we can properly handle those situations I still don't quite know what to do about the privacy issue. We can't really require students to sign off that they won't say anything, but I think to have that provision, this language would help us protect that. Thank you, Ms. Chernoff. Is there any other discussion? Yes, Dr. Rashid. I just wanted to ask, so with the statement, the student must immediately notify an LCPS staff member if they administer naloxone to an individual and ems will be called is that i'm assuming you're you're saying

[03:48:02] give it before you administer the naloxone is that contingent on giving the naloxone that you have to notify that first or you're saying the opposite no it's after the naloxone has been administered you must that's how the policy reads sorry in that section that's what it's saying so it's saying after it's administered and right now it says the student will i just think we need a little bit tighter provision there that we want to make sure we ensure that that is a requirement for our students okay and then another uh just point i wanted to make in the first aid training if i'm not mistaken in in pe i what they call it nowadays that was gym in pe um i thought that was

[03:48:41] part of the first aid training to inform an lcps staff member um that's what i thought it was part of. So seeing it here, I feel like it's going into the weeds. Just in general, I can appreciate how we want to make this tighter, but I do feel we're getting a little too lost in the weeds with this whole thing, and that's all I wanted to say. Thank you. Ms. Richardson, would you mind talking a little bit about what's the training that happens, CPR, all the rest of that during

[03:49:17] their first aid certainly yes so dr. Rasheed you are correct that that is a part of our first aid and CPR training for students and truly anytime someone in the school setting is administering any sort of emergency medical response and they're not a staff member they do have a duty to inform an LCPS staff member and call 9-1-1 so all of those things should be happening at the same time and i'm sure that all of us have experienced emergency situations right and so we do have to

[03:49:54] be thoughtful and think through those steps students typically if there's an incident that takes place will immediately reach out to the first staff member that they can reach absolutely yes miss shirnav miss richardson um sometimes what miss what dr rasheed said kind of made me think of something do you think that this would be more appropriately outlined in a regulation and to that go ahead I'll let you answer and then I'll you're fine we do have a supporting

[03:50:30] regulation to 8420 currently we have not updated the regulation because the revised policy has not passed in our current reg we do have section e which is on stock naloxone so that's the naloxone that we stock in all of our health clinic offices and it outlines the procedures that our health clinic staff and other trained staff in our building, such as those folks that are on our medical emergency response teams, the steps that they must take when handling naloxone in the educational setting.

[03:51:07] Should the policy pass tonight, we would have to update this regulation to reflect the additional medications that we have outlined, such as the digestive end zones and enzymes and the solucortef. And then we would also have to add a section about student self-carry of naloxone.

[03:51:27] And so to answer your question, yes, we could add more specificity to the regulation. Thank you, Ms. Richardson. Any other discussion? Yes, Ms. Scrivis. It is only about this amendment. Okay, so we will go ahead and vote on Ms. Chernoff's amendment to change on line 154 will to must immediate will to must I think or is it will to

[03:52:00] must immediately so will promptly to must immediately okay clerk please open the vote board members please record your vote clerk please close and display the vote and that motion passes with Ms. Mansfield in opposition um okay and now we vote on the base motion is that correct any more

[03:52:37] Okay. Now, is there any discussion on the base motion? No. And it looks like Dr. Rasheed was in opposition, too. Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to say I appreciate everyone's thoughts on this. I still have reservations and concerns.

[03:53:02] We really should have a zero-tolerance policy regarding drugs. I also think there should be a minimum age requirement to carry naloxone. we are asking students to become emergency responders and I feel like it's putting a heavy responsibility on the students you may also lose actual confirmed reporting by students if they are administering naloxone so naloxone excuse me so I really feel there's still a great concern here and I just wanted to let everybody know I will be voting no but I do appreciate everybody's

[03:53:39] thoughts on this. Thank you. Thank you, Mrs. Griffiths. Any other discussion? Yes, Mrs. Chandler. Thank you, Madam Chair. I just wanted to share, I know it's not a surprise, I like data and clinical studies, but the American Academy of Pediatrics just released some new guidelines around naloxone as recently as September 30th, and they're now saying, as in their clinical practice guide that opioid prescribing for acute pain management in children and adolescents in outpatient settings, marking a shift in the clinical practice by also recommending

[03:54:17] routine prescription of naloxone. So anytime an opioid is being prescribed, they're also recommending that naloxone go along with it. And I think the situation is evolving and we are understanding more how impactful naloxone is and therefore I'm really pleased to see us take this motion or take this action forth for our students in schools. I also will acknowledge that I have struggled with the idea of asking children to do it. I think I'm comfortable with it mostly because

[03:54:53] it's their choice and I really tried to weigh whether or not it would be I mean it's in this situation if you're faced with an overdose of your classmate it's traumatic either way so are you empowered to do something that could save a life or are you going to be traumatized by the fact that you saw somebody pass away it's it's impossible to consider so I'm happy that we're able to offer some tools to our students again to keep them safe thank you thank you Ms. Chandler any other discussion before we yes Ms. Donahue thank you Madam Chair I just wanted to add as

[03:55:31] well that in some peer-reviewed research that was published by the Journal of the American Medical Association and also from the National Institutes of Health in other, studying other jurisdictions where they have allowed students to start carrying naloxone in schools, they have found an average of 6% decrease in opioid overdoses without any corresponding increases in drug use or increased drug behavior.

[03:55:58] And obviously every state or district is going to be different somewhat in its reactions, but I think that those are heartening indicators that this step can help the opioid situation around here without corresponding negative effects as far as increased drug use or drug dependence in our schools.

[03:56:25] Thank you, Ms. Donoghue. We will go back to vote on the base motion as amended by Ms. Chernoff. Any more discussion? No? Okay. Clerk, would you please open the vote?

[03:56:43] Board members, please record your vote. Clerk, please close and display the vote.

[03:57:02] That motion passes 6-3 with Ms. Griffiths, Ms. Chernoff, and Dr. Rasheed in opposition. Okay, we'll now move on to action item 13.03, Department of Support Services, Formation of Renaming Committee, Francis Hazel Reed, Elementary School, presented by Kevin Lewis, Chief Operations Officer.

[03:57:39] Thank you, Chair Mansfield. Tonight, we have the opportunity to name the committees for, in particular, the first one is for the Francis Hazel Reed Naming Committee. We talked about this at the information item at the last time, so I don't have a lot more information to add.

[03:57:56] I will say that I've had a couple of comments and questions from board members about, there are still some vacancies on the committee. We have had committees in the past that have operated with vacancies on there. I will point out that at this point in time, the Francis Hazel Reed Committee is up to 21 persons, so that's a pretty hardy bunch, and I think there's plenty there to be able to have a good conversation.

[03:58:21] If the board were to be aware of some other community volunteers, could always appoint them at a separate at another time um so um i'm happy to take any questions you have and look forward to a conversation uh do i have a motion yeah well can we start with a motion then we'll have a discussion yes i move for the board to approve the nominees as members of the

[03:58:59] renaming committee for francis hazel reed second okay um there's a motion that the loudon county school board appoint the committee to review and suggest recommendations for the potential naming of francis hazel reed elementary school as recommended and identified herein and we have by miss donahue and we have a second by miss shirnoff is that now is there any discussion yes miss donahue thank you madam chair i just wanted to follow up uh with mr lewis um regarding

[03:59:32] the statements he made a little while ago so we did there was a deadline for community volunteers to submit interest however there are still some vacant seats so if i understood you correctly mr lewis i believe i understood you to say that if there were other community volunteers who fell into the categories that have vacancies they could still express interest and the board could choose to approve adding them to one or the other of these committees did i understand that correctly that's correct it would be a board action to appoint them at a later date yes ma'am

[04:00:10] thank you mr lewis any other discussion yes mrs griffiths thank you madam chair i guess my question is why do we have a town hall for the people of laden county that were not able to attend the francis reed town hall mostly everyone did not want to waste money on renaming this school. The fact that we are continuing this committee process is a little absurd. Wasting time when we could be home with our families on October 17th instead of going to smarts middle

[04:00:45] school. I do want to mention optics matter. The optics do not come across as fair and do not help our students. I've spent time with parents of different organizations at our schools that have to fundraise to send their kids to band events, sports, theater. There are equipment and storage issues as well. Parents have to pay for their students to participate in all these events.

[04:01:09] Why are we not supplementing these activities? They also asked me, why are we even wasting time and money on the renaming of schools when our kids need these much-needed programs? There are so many other areas this money can go, including to help sports and the arts. I was also informed that this money would come out of separate operating funds and not the CIP program. Let me just state that the optics are pretty bad on this. I have said this over and over again. This is highly unpopular and destroys communities built around these schools. Thank you. Thank you, Mrs. Griffiths. Would Mr.

[04:01:48] Lewis, would you please help educate us about what the town halls really were about? So the town hall is the first step in the process that was developed by the previous board and in the policy and regulation that starts the process and just gains interest in from information from the committee to help the school board decide whether or not to move forward and so um it is all part of the process and at this point you know the board's not taking any action on renaming a school at this point they're simply forming the committee to have the conversation yes miss donahue thank you

[04:02:28] madam chair thank you mr lewis for that information and can you also please address uh cost is there any cost to the division of the setting up the renaming committee i'm not aware of any i mean what there is staff time involved but you know that's really not attributed to to those types of activities so um you know we just we'll have materials for the meetings and maybe some copies for the for the group but other than that there are no costs incurred for having the

[04:03:01] conversation. Thank you. Any other discussion? Yes, Dr. Deans. I just want to voice that we talk about the students' mental health coming out of COVID, and we talk about the students' mental health with using cell phones. I think that there are some studies that tell us that it impacts the students' mental health to attend a building or to participate in a building where the name is not

[04:03:38] commensurate with their values. So I am saying that I believe that we should go forward with the committee and let the committee play it out, not that we should stop it before the committee plays out the process. Thank you, Dr. Deans. My understanding of the town halls was just to gather more information. The decision had already been made to go through with the process, process and the town hall was just to inform a little bit more not whether or not to go ahead

[04:04:15] to do it or not do it it was just to inform the um the the naming committees is that is my understanding correct Mr. Lewis yes you said it much better than I did thank you for that clarification thank you Ms. Chernoff thank you Chair Mansfield and if you'll remember I was the one that that we weren't going to have an extra town hall I was the one that put forward to have it because the community was saying that they wanted another chance to chime in. It's later in the date, later in the time period now. And also they, I felt like, you know, there were around 30

[04:04:55] people there, I think, and it was well attended and we did learn a lot. And in fact, the representative that I appointed, I met that night because she was very engaged in what was going on. She's a mom of the school. And so I think it was very beneficial, not just for the community, but also for us who will ultimately make the decision on each individual building so I just want to clarify as well and reinforce that the town hall and committee are they were joined together as part of this whole process it wasn't to be separated and in fact with FHR it was just going to be go straight to committee but I

[04:05:31] think we gleaned a lot from having the extra town hall so I just wanted to say that too because it was my doing kind of with your support. Thank you. Is there need more discussion on uh this motion no okay um seeing no more discussion we will move forward with the vote to appoint the committee to review and suggest recommendations for the potential renaming of francis hazel real military school as recommended and identified herein board members

[04:06:04] please record your vote and clerk please close and display the vote that motion passes with mrs Griffiths in opposition. Yes, Dr. Rasheed. Thank you, Chair. I would like to revisit, if I could, action item 13.02. I'm not comfortable with how I voted. In the very last vote that we made, I'd like to correct my vote because I misinterpreted what we were voting on,

[04:06:36] and I apologize for that. So you are making a request to, does she have to make a motion to re-vote or does or can you have to make a motion to re-vote i'd like to make a motion to re-vote on item 1302 okay thank you i have a motion do i have a second i have a second by vice chair

[04:07:05] streffi so going back to yes and that would be 13.02 and this is a motion this this vote will be on the base motion as amended by Ms. Chernoff twice okay um so but we first have to vote on the

[04:07:39] first on the motion for Samara to vote is that correct Mr. Allen that is correct okay so let's take a vote to allow a vote pretty much okay clerk will you please hope for the vote

[04:08:12] board members please record your vote okay clerk please close and display the vote that motion passes unanimously okay now so let's go back up to that 13.02 dr rasheed is now allowed to re-vote um on the uh 13 what is it 13.02 i think with miss shiranoff's two amendments okay clerk would you please open the vote board members please record your vote wait what this is oh wait do I

[04:08:50] need a second for that no I'm good right yeah we didn't need a second for that or anything right Mr. Allen second we just revoted you just just to revote yes so there was a motion to to revote that was approved is that right yes and we voted to revote and so now we're voting on the base motion but we don't need to have a no okay good great so we learn something new every day okay

[04:09:19] it yeah board members please record your vote clerk please close and display the vote that motion still passes seven to two with mrs griffiths and ms shiranoff in opposition okay thank you chair you're welcome dr rasheed actually it was everybody who voted to allow you to vote thank

[04:09:46] you everyone okay are we are now okay where are we now i'm confused 1304 thank you okay we will now move to action item 1304 uh department of support services formation of renaming committee mercer middle school i'm going to go ahead and make a motion i move that the loudon county school board appoint the committee to review and suggest recommendations for the potential renaming of mercer middle school as recommended and identified herein do i have a second i have a second by vice

[04:10:22] chair streffi the motion's been uh moved and seconded is there any discussion mr lewis do you want to present a little bit before we start? I don't think so, Ms. Chair Mansfield. I think very similar comments from the first one, so we're ready to take any questions or comments.

[04:10:43] Thank you, Mr. Lewis. Yes, Ms. Griffiths. Thank you, Madam Chair. We already have recordings from the last committee meeting where this was agreed to not to change the name. Again, I'm asking why we're revisiting this. It's been brought to my attention the employees of Mercer are also being pushed to buy school gear. It is coming across like the decision was already made. I will continue to call these out because it's pretty much utter nonsense and unfair to the people of Loudoun County, especially those who will find out at the last minute what this board is doing

[04:11:21] regarding renaming of schools. Optics are very bad on this. I just want to mention what a constituent had said to me. I did not say this. From this constituent it is regrettable that an LCPS functionary tactlessly revived a proposal which was which the previous school board had set aside. You as a new school board are now being taken advantage of. Now LCPS endures another moment of rhetoric and anger setting the stage again for controversy. I have asked that we do not go down this path path and listen to the public that has already spoken out about the

[04:11:57] renaming of this school mercer uh thank you thank you mrs griffis um i'm sorry mr lewis one more time could you explain to us what happened with the how this came back as a proposal again for us what happened with the last school board so the last school board was engaged in the process but did not get it finished and so they did not hold the votes or appoint the committee so they got to the same point that we are now and they ran out of time in their term is that is that what you're

[04:12:32] asking for yes sir that's what I'm asking so there was no set aside there was no tabling the discussion none of that as a vote that's correct thank you mr. Lewis is the end of discussion no okay uh so clerk would you please this is uh to this the motion on the floor is that the loudon county school board appoint the committee to review and suggest recommendations for the potential renaming of mercer middle school as recommended and identified herein clerk please

[04:13:05] open the vote board members please record your vote clerk please close and display the vote and that motion passes uh eight to one with mrs griffiths in opposition okay we are now we're going to move on to board member comment and committee reports. Mrs. LaBelle wanted to

[04:13:39] wait until the end to do her committee reports. Ms. LaBelle, do you want to do your committee report? The committee met on September 23rd. At that point in time, there was no action items.

[04:13:59] We had three presentations, one regarding the appeals process coming up to become reviewed. The other was on, oh Lord, now my mind just went fluff.

[04:14:20] Yeah. Another one was information that we had coming up. Let me see if I can pull that up. I'm sorry. It got dunked. All right.

[04:15:01] First one was on policy 8230, appeals and hearings, because that will be coming up for review.

[04:15:17] The second one was from the Department of Digital Innovation, a review of policy 8650, student technology, acceptable, responsible use. And the last one was a presentation on student substance use, intervention, and response.

[04:15:34] That was the full program that we had. There was no new business, no comments, and that's what we're up to. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. LaBelle. Mrs. Griffiths? Thank you, Madam Chair.

[04:15:52] I'm happy to report some news that not everybody might know. On September 6, 2023, Riverside High School received a letter from Robert Bone, chairman of the founder of London's New Year's Parade and Festival, announcing that Riverside High School was selected to be part of the parade and festival.

[04:16:13] This is a once-in-a-lifetime and unique opportunity for students, giving them a broader perspective of the world around them. The Riverside Band was selected for the New Year's Day Parade and is the largest event of its kind in the world, with a street audience of well over half a million people and a worldwide television audience counted in the hundreds of millions.

[04:16:33] The Events Gala Concert Series is presented in its prestigious venues before large and enthusiastic audiences. I would like to point out that the marching band at Riverside is trying to raise money to send the band to march at this parade. Unfortunately, they are not receiving supplemental money from LCPS to do this at this time.

[04:16:53] They held a fundraiser and donated leftover items to the victims of Hurricane Helene. I was happy to deliver those items. Per my previous thoughts on supplementing organizations at our schools, this needs to be changed or updated. I feel like we are stifling students' creativity due to not supplementing trips such as this one.

[04:17:12] I will continue to advocate for the arts and sports organizations that may only receive money through booster fundraisers. It is important to supplement these fundraisers and our students. Thank you. Thank you, Mrs. Griffiths.

[04:17:28] With that, do we have any new business? No new business. Okay. And with item 17, we are now adjourned. The October 8th school board meeting is now adjourned. Thank you for your work and drive home safely.

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