Coraggio Consulting Loudoun County School Board, 2nd Tuesday School Board Meeting, Tuesday, October 14, 2025 Date: Tuesday, October 14, 2025 Place: Loudoun County Public Schools / School Board meeting (see BoardDocs / LCPS-TV) Length: 4h 10m (video) Official meeting video (Vimeo / LCPS-TV): https://player.vimeo.com/video/1123751318?rel=0 BoardDocs (School Board): https://go.boarddocs.com/vsba/loudoun/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=DLEGHD43C3A1 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 2026-10-10. Timestamps are [HH:MM:SS] into the meeting video. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- [00:07:06] Good afternoon. I call to order this October 14th, 2025 Loudoun County School Board meeting. At this time, we will read our disclosures, and I'll start. As a member of the Loudoun County School Board, I make the following disclosure to the school board and to the general public in connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding the budget and or health insurance and related benefits and any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees. [00:07:40] 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 while in excess of the statutory three employees whose interest may also be affected, of which I am included. [00:07:55] 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. 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. [00:08:25] 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 this disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the clerk of the school board for five years thank you thank you miss Chandler vice-chair 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 [00:09:05] insurance and 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. 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 I am included. I can and will participate fairly, objectively, and in the public interest. This disclosure will be reflected in the [00:09:44] public records of the clerk of the school board for five years. Thank you, Vice Chair Donohue. Mr. Straffi. Thank you, Madam Chair. As a member of the Loudoun County School Board, I make the following disclosure to the school board and to the general public in connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding the budget and/or health insurance and related benefits and any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees. [00:10:07] 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. [00:10:24] This disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the clerk of the school board for five years. Thank you, Mr. Streffi. Ms. LaBelle. Thank you, Madam Chair. As a member of the Leiden County School Board, I make the following disclosure to the school board and to the general public in connection with tonight's and the item on tonight's agenda regarding the budget and or health insurance and related benefits and any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees. [00:10:54] Specifically, as a school board member, I am eligible to receive health insurance and related benefits as an LCPS employee. In addition, as a former LCPS employee, I, as well as my spouse, receive Medicare Advantage insurance benefits through LCPS. [00:11:11] These benefits, however, affect thousands of employees well in excess of the statuatory three employees whose interests may also be affected, of which my spouse and I are included. I can and I will participate fairly, objectively, and in the public interest. [00:11:28] this disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the clerk of the school board for five years. Thank You Miss LaBelle. Miss Cherna. Thank You Madam Chair. As a member of the Loudoun County School Board I make the following disclosure to the school board and to the general public in connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding the budget and or health insurance and related benefits and any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees. Specifically as a school board member I am eligible to receive health insurance and related benefits as an LCPS employee. These benefits however affect thousands of employees well in the excess of the statutory three employees whose interests may also be affected of which [00:12:06] 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 miss Chernoff um okay before we'll move on to item three approval of consent agenda board members are there any other changes to be made to the consent agenda I I I have a change item 3.05 finance and operations committee rfp number r25310 construction support services [00:12:42] renewal i'm taking it off consent and placing it as action item 12.01 before we vote on the consent agenda we have four proclamations to read our first proclamation recognizes october 13th through 17th 2025 is a National School Lunch Week and will be read by Ms. LaBelle. Ms. LaBelle. Thank you, Madam Chair. Whereas the National School Lunch Program has proudly served nutritious meals to children since 1946, and whereas the National School Lunch Week was created in 1962 by President [00:13:21] John F. Kennedy to highlight the importance of a nutritious school lunch in a student's life and the impact it has on academic success and overall well-being, and whereas the school nutrition professionals, staff, and administrators plan, prepare, and serve over 7 million nutritious meals annually that meet the USDA nutrition guidelines and meal patterns while accommodating special dietary needs and incorporating culturally inclusive recipes into menus and now, therefore, be it resolved, [00:13:56] that the Loudoun County School Board formally recognizes October 13th through 17th, 2025 as National School Lunch Week and encourages families throughout the community to reflect on the importance of developing sustainable, healthy eating habits as a foundation for lifelong wellness. [00:14:21] Thank you, Ms. LaBelle. Our next proclamation recognizes the month of October as Farm to School Month and will be read by Dr. Rasheed. Dr. Rashid? Thank you, Chair, and what a great time to do this in the fall season. [00:14:39] Whereas October is recognized as National Farm to School Month, a month dedicated to celebrating the education around food, school gardens, and lunch trays filled with nutrient-dense local ingredients, and whereas farm-to-school programs support the connections among students, schools, and local farmers throughout Loudoun County, empowering informed food choices while strengthening the local economy, And whereas farm-to-school activities, such as the inclusion of locally grown ingredients in school meals, the cultivation of school gardens, and educational farm visits can help instill lifelong healthy habits, fueling the young minds of Loudoun County. [00:15:14] And whereas supporting local farms and food systems promotes agricultural literacy, increases economic opportunities for local farm businesses, and builds strong regional food networks. and whereas Loudoun County Public Schools is committed to promoting wellness, sustainability, and student engagement through education and local food initiatives. [00:15:35] Now, therefore, be it resolved that the Loudoun County School Board officially recognizes the month of October as Farm to School Month and encourages all students and families to celebrate and participate in activities that support local food systems, healthy eating, and agriculture education. Thank you, Dr. Rasheed. Our third proclamation recognizes October 20th through 24, 2025 as School Bus Safety Week and October 22nd, 2025 as Transportation Employees Appreciation Day in Loudoun County and will be read by Mr. Struffy. [00:16:14] Thank you, Madam Chair. Whereas every day students are transported on school buses by professional school bus drivers who are entrusted with their safety, care, and well-being, and whereas school bus drivers complete rigorous training that includes student management, classroom instruction, and behind-the-wheel preparation, along with thorough physicals and background checks to ensure they are ready to support and protect the students they serve, and whereas school buses are designed and built with safety in mind, including features such as the federally recognized yellow color, interior and exterior cameras, cameras, eight light traffic control systems and crossing stop arms all to safeguard students on [00:16:50] their journeys to and from school. And whereas the yellow bus is a trusted and visible symbol of access to education and it is essential that all drivers in the community respect traffic laws and stop for buses as students board or leave. And whereas Loudoun County Public Schools operates more than 750 buses on over 500 routes covering nearly 8 million miles annually to ensure that every student has a safe, reliable, and caring ride to school each day, and whereas school transportation plays a vital role in a student's daily experience, supporting their readiness to learn by providing a safe, consistent, and nurturing start and finish to the school day, [00:17:26] and whereas school bus drivers and transportation staff are recognized not only for their skill and diligence, but also for their care, patience, and commitment they show to students of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Now, therefore, be it resolved that the Loudoun County School Board formally recognizes October 20th to the 24th, 2025, as School Bus Safety Week, and October 22nd, 2025, as Transportation Employees Appreciation Day in Loudoun County Public Schools. Thank you, Mr. Streffi. Our fourth proclamation recognizes Indigenous Peoples Day, which celebrates the cultures, histories, and contributions of Indigenous peoples and affirms LCPS's commitment [00:18:03] to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and will be read by Dr. Deans. Welcome back, Dr. Deans. Thank you. Indigenous Peoples Day Proclamation, October 2025. Whereas Columbus Day is a federal holiday celebrated in our nation on the second Monday in October, and since a 2021 presidential proclamation, Indigenous Peoples Day is also celebrated in the United States on the second [00:18:36] Monday of October to honor and recognize the contributions, cultures, and histories of indigenous peoples. And whereas Indigenous Peoples Day was first proposed in Geneva in 1977 by a delegation of Native Nations to the United Nations International Conference on Discrimination Against Indigenous populations in the Americas to help promote their rights and well-being and whereas the state of [00:19:13] Virginia is home to 11 state or federally recognized tribes with distinct cultures and histories and whereas Indigenous Peoples Day is a time to honor the diverse cultures, histories, and contributions of indigenous communities and to foster a sense of belonging respect and understanding for indigenous students and families in our schools today and whereas as a community that values [00:19:51] diversity equity inclusion and history louton county public schools will continue to acknowledge and celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day and recognize the original inhabitants of their Americas for their rich traditions, inventories, government, agriculture, astronomy, sports, and medicine. [00:20:21] Now, therefore, be it resolved that the Loudoun County School Board hereby proclaims Monday, October 13th, 2025, as Indigenous Peoples Day for Loudoun County Public Schools, encouraging our school community's collective responsibility to teach and affirm Indigenous Peoples' culture, history, and community. Thank you, Dr. Deans. I'll now entertain a motion to approve the consent [00:20:57] agenda. Yes, Vice Chair Donahue. Thank you, Madam Chair. I move that the Loudoun County School Board approve the consent agenda as amended. We have a motion to approve the consent agenda as amended. Is there a second? Second. I have a second by Ms. Chernoff. It's properly moved and seconded to approve the consent agenda. At this time we'll take a vote to approve the consent agenda. Clerk [00:21:26] please open the vote. Board members please record your vote. Clerk please close and display the vote. [00:21:44] That motion passes unanimously with Ms. Griffiths absent for the vote. Let's move on to item four, which is the Advisory Committee update, Department of Communications and Community Engagement, Loudoun Education Alliance of Families update presented by Ms. Brooke Linville, Leaf Chair. [00:22:10] Welcome. Dr. [00:22:32] Spence, LCPS staff, and members of the community. My name is Brooke Linville, and I'm honored to serve as the newly elected chair of the Loudoun Education Alliance of Families, or LEAF. I represent Eagle Ridge Middle School in the Dulles North District. [00:22:50] I have two children in LCPS, one in middle school and one in high school, and a background in special education. Education has always been a passion of mine. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to give a TED Talk about saving my college by helping to raise $12 million, an experience that reinforced my belief in the power of community and collaboration. Having lived in several different places, I can confidently say that LCPS is unique in its commitment to seeking family and community input in meaningful ways, especially through groups like LEAF. This is my second year as a LEAF member and my first as chair, [00:23:28] and I am truly honored to serve in this capacity and continue building on the great work already underway. This evening, I'm pleased to share the LEAF update, including a brief overview of our work so far this school year and our plans for the months ahead. Next slide. I think we need to go back to the other one, the Our Purpose. There you go. Thank you. As we begin this school year, LEAF continues to focus on what's at the heart of our work, strengthening communication, trust, and collaboration between families, schools, and LCPS leadership. Right now, we're focused on laying the [00:24:06] groundwork for the year ahead, making sure members feel connected, supported, and ready to serve as that link between families and the division. This fall, we've welcomed new representatives, reconnected with returning members, revisited our working agreements, and started identifying the topics that matter most to our community. Our new leadership team is working to build capacity, align with the division's priorities, and prepare for discussions around belonging, communication, and partnership, which are all important to families across Loudoun. [00:24:39] Last year, LEAF members reviewed several policies during our meetings, including the much-discussed grading policy update. Members shared feedback from their schools and communities, helping to make sure a variety of voices were heard. I'll talk a little bit more about policies in just a moment. [00:24:54] We also heard from several LCPS departments, including budget and finance, facilities, school nutrition services, extracurriculars and special programs, and student services. These conversations are so valuable because they help us understand not only the priorities of the division, but also the real-world challenges and logistics that go into making decisions. [00:25:17] While there's still plenty of work ahead, our foundation is strong. The collaboration between parents, staff, and the community continues to show what makes Loudon special, a shared commitment to listening, learning, and working together for every student. Next slide. LEAF has now entered its fourth year, and it's encouraging to see how much the group has grown in both structure and impact. So far, two of our eight meetings have been supported by LCPS staff. Beginning October 22nd, our newly elected leadership team will begin leading meetings [00:25:51] with staff continuing to provide guidance as needed. Our 2025-2026 leadership team was elected on September 18th and includes Chair Brooklynville Eagle Ridge Middle School, Vice Chair of Planning Deanna Pleabuck, Kenneth W. Colbert Elementary, Vice Chair of Membership Monique Buckley, J. Michael Lunsford Middle School, Vice Chair of Communications, Sarah Lebinet, Evergreen Mill Elementary, and the Secretary will continue to be filled by the LCPS staff in an interim role, perhaps with rotating members serving each meeting. Together, this team will help guide [00:26:29] discussions, strengthen collaboration, and ensure our meetings reflect the priorities of our members and the families we represent. Next slide. So far this year, we have 43 of our 100 schools represented including instructional centers and three schools that currently have alternates in place. This slide is missing schools on tonight's board agenda. Building out membership is one of our leadership team's main goals for the year. LEAF is still relatively new to many LCPS families and we want to help more people learn about it and understand the important role it plays in [00:27:05] connecting families in the division. We're working to raise awareness about LEAF through our members and by reaching out directly to schools. We'd also love to see LEAF become more integrated into district and board feedback opportunities. Greater visibility helps families see LEAF as a meaningful way to share their perspectives and stay informed about policy conversations. We would appreciate your help spreading the word in your communities and represented districts. When you visit schools, please ask if they have a LEAF representative. If not, encourage them to connect interested families or community members with their principal or parent organization for nomination. They can also reach [00:27:45] out to staff directly for assistance with the process. The materials provided include the most current LEAF membership list, which is also displayed on the screen here, along with a list of schools in your area that are not yet represented. Next slide. Another important part of our work is supporting the division's policy review process. So far this year, members have received notifications for two policies open for feedback and reviewed three others at our meetings to better understand their context and for clarification. The policy update corner, led by Ms. Chernoff, continues to [00:28:21] be one of the most meaningful parts of our meetings. Members use this time to ask questions, share thoughts, and identify areas where they need more information or support. These discussions build understanding and strengthen two-way communication between families and LCPS. [00:28:38] We've also made it easier for members to share real-time feedback through a live form during meetings. This allows members' thoughts to be captured right away, and it's been very well received. As new policies come forward, members will continue to receive clear information and guidance on how to provide input. Next slide. While this year hasn't seen many reviews yet, you can see from this chart that LEAF members have had the opportunity to review and provide feedback on 111 policies over the past three years. The number of policies reviewed each year [00:29:12] varies depending on when and why they're scheduled for review. I think it's supposed to be next slide hold on I think it's messed up dates and initiatives okay I have a different picture here but we'll go with it we've also been listening closely to member feedback about how we can make LEAF meetings more engaging and meaningful in our end of the year reflection survey members said [00:29:51] they wanted to keep the collaborative conversations rotations but asked for more time to talk during each session to make that possible we've adjusted our format by moving from three rotations to two this year we know this will take some balancing given the amount of information we share at each meeting but our goal remains the same to keep every agenda intentional focused and centered on member voices you'll also find an updated leaf handbook in your materials after three years it was time for a refresh the new version includes essential information tips resources and templates designed to make a practical go-to guide for all members each member has a hard copy and it's also [00:30:28] available on our website our working agreements which members created together with the support from the Department of Families and Community Engagement are included in that handbook. They continue to guide how we interact and collaborate at every meeting. We'll also continue our call-to-action goals between meetings. [00:30:45] These small, meaningful steps encourage members to connect with their school communities by sharing key takeaways, gathering feedback, or checking in with families. They help keep communication strong beyond our meetings. By closing each meeting with clear takeaways and next steps, we're ensuring that members leave with a shared understanding of how to keep the dialogue going and how to represent their school in meaningful ways. Next slide. Next slide. That's what I have. Okay. As I close, I want to emphasize the importance of what LEAF represents. It's more than a group. It's a bridge [00:31:20] between families, schools, and the division. Our leadership team is committed to moving the Alliance forward, expanding representation, strengthening communication, ensuring every member feels confident in their role as a trusted connection point for their school. Throughout the year, we'll continue to gather feedback, review data, and reflect on what we're learning to guide our work and measure our impact. Every conversation, policy review, and call to action brings us closer to a stronger, more connected community. Together we'll keep building on the foundation of collaboration and shared purpose that defines LEAF, creating space where every voice is heard and every family feels valued and supported. Thank you for your continued [00:31:59] support of the Loudon Education Alliance of Families and for your partnership in helping strengthen engagement across our division. Thank you so much. Board members, do you have any questions? Yes. Vice-Chair Donahue. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you very much for the presentation and for the booklet, which I'm very excited to read through more closely. [00:32:27] And I particularly enjoy your Robert's Rules quick reference. Yes. Everyone needs a refresher. So I was going to ask what we can do to help encourage, support the organization, and its continued expansion through schools that don't currently have representatives. [00:32:51] I know in your presentation you did mention, you know, putting the word out, but are there other concrete steps that we can take that would help the cause? Yes, I have some ideas. One idea that I have that I've also suggested to my lovely team over here is on the Let's Talk form is also having some sort of mention of the existence of LEAF. [00:33:17] I think part of it is just letting people know that LEAF exists and is a way to let their voices be heard, not just in the direct feedback opportunities, which are fantastic, but sort of as more of a collective measure. And so even just a note that there are such a thing as LEAF exists and that it is available to people in the community to connect with school-wide. [00:33:42] I think that that would be a great way to just make it more visible. I think that visibility is a huge piece to start because I didn't know that it existed until I was welcomed, and I think that it's a fantastic group. [00:33:58] So I would love to see more and broader participation. Thank you very much, and thank you for everything that you and the organization do to support our schools yep um I was wondering do you um have any plans to do any uh meetings with SEAC or with MSAC or GIAC or is there any collaboration happening so I um I don't know what the plan is sort of between the um the like broader Loudoun meetings I know that it is something that happens at a school-to-school basis so I know that there are schools where [00:34:36] the representatives from each organization meet together to talk and collaborate between them but in terms of a full meeting I'm not sure how that looks because I know that SEAC and MSAC actually do do meetings and things together and GIAC does too with SEAC so I was just hoping to get a more collaborative full good thing yes Ms. Chernoff thank you Madam Chair just to speak to that. Miss Linville is brand new to us this year as the chair, but the chair last year and I did attend other meetings and meet with the chairs of those committees. So there was some [00:35:16] collaboration. I can, I think I'd probably speak for you. I, more collaboration I think would be better. Um, but we did make the circuit and make sure that, you know, we had connected how all the other advisory committees meet, how they operate, um, shared pros and cons and, and sort of had that collaboration. So I hope that we can continue that work together. I think too we'd probably have to talk looking forward at schedules. I know that the leave schedule for meetings comes out at the end of the year so that we're looking forward to this year. So I know that our meeting dates are set so I don't know how that would work but we've also talked about ways to do some sort [00:35:54] of like more casual opportunities for people to connect and so that might also be a way for us to to do something between the groups. Thank you. Any other questions? Yes, Mr. Streffi. Thank you so much. Just a quick comment, and you guys have probably thought of all of this already, but in just the conversations that I'm in these days, just thinking about how within a cluster that we can utilize the energy and the relationships that exist between those schools for a variety of things, that could be one of the ways in which we take, I was just looking at the member list, and there are situations where you have a member [00:36:31] in one school within a cluster, but you don't have a member in another school within the same cluster, utilizing the energy within the cluster to evangelize a little bit, that might be helpful as well. We've spoken about that. I've asked, and part of it, as I understand it, is the way that voting works. And so you can't represent more than one school because of voting, but I have encouraged, like, for example, my son goes to Briarwoods, having, they don't have a representative, so at least being able to present to their PTA so that there's a voice in hearing what's happening. [00:37:08] I do think that that would be a great opportunity. Yes, Ms. Chernoff. Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you so much, Ms. Linville. It's great to have you in the leadership role. I've enjoyed getting to know you over the last year as a member. I would also like to just plug with my fellow board members, and you mentioned it, but I want to elaborate on it, and I want to take a moment to thank Dr. Spence for giving of his own personal time to come to LEAF, and I think he fielded questions for over an hour, and it was unfiltered, and it was on the spot, and it was really, to me, it was one of the most authentic experience I think our parents have had [00:37:44] in terms of access. It wasn't in a school. It was here, and, you know, I just, it was really a powerful moment, I thought, to kick off the year, and so I want to thank you for doing that, but we, they get access to everything that she mentioned, but it's the people that run those programs that come to our meeting so our cabinet staff are really involved and you know parents can sit in a circle and ask them direct questions and they ask each other questions about their kids and policy and so it's become a really safe place for parents to be able to explore that so I don't know if that would be something that would be enticing to parents but certainly I hear sometimes that there's no way to connect I don't know how to get involved I don't know what's going on and I'm like do you have a leaf rep are you would you [00:38:24] would be interested because it is really a one-on-one almost experience with staff here so thank you for being stepping up this year I'm excited for the leadership and I'm very grateful to be a part of the work and you can also plug leaf on your social medias all right well thank you so much thank you miss Linville thank you we'll move on to item five work session 5.01 Legislative Audit and Policy Committee Ombuds Annual Report presented by Ms. Carrie Williams, our ombuds. [00:39:08] All right, good afternoon, Chair Mansfield, Vice Chair Donohue, and members of the board. I'm excited to present to you the third annual report from the Office of the Ombuds. The core values of the ombuds office naturally and seamlessly aligns with LCPS's core values and strategic goals. [00:39:32] While the work of the ombuds can and does support all of the core values, trust through listening and continuous improvement are foundational to this role in how the ombuds supports constituents and the division. Similarly, the work of the ombuds supports all four strategic goals, but with each interaction, the ombuds provides greater opportunity and access for constituents to be an engaged part of the LCAPS community, and the ombuds case data is a metric that is directly linked to strategic goal 4.3. When a constituent contacts the office of the [00:40:09] ombuds for the first time, the conversation begins with a review of the four core values that have been established by the International Ombuds Association. They include confidentiality, independence, impartiality, and informality. The data that will be shared today represents the ombuds' interactions with constituents between July 1st, 2024, and June 30th, 2025. [00:40:36] Of the 476 contacts, 309 are categorized as complete cases, while 167 are categorized as quick inquiries. Quick inquiries are comprised of questions that were answered or resources provided without a complete dialogue with the ombuds, anonymous contacts, and carbon copies on concerns addressed to the appropriate offices. The 476 contacts equated to 544 constituents served as oftentimes more than one individual I meet with as a group. 67.2% of those concerns are [00:41:11] related to employee concerns, 27.5% to family and parent or student related concerns, 4.2% came from the community, and 1.1% from students directly. There were 369 total contacts during the prior school year 23-24, so this data reflects a 29% increase from 23-24 to 24-25. [00:41:37] Of the 476 total contacts, 377 were associated with constituents or schools in a correlating voting district. 99 cases were either attributed to multiple locations, employees who provide division-wide support, or the information was not shared with the ombuds. [00:41:55] As a point of reference, the Catoctin and Little River districts are our largest geographical voting districts, respectively, while Little River and Dulles have the largest student populations. 401 cases were tied to a specific school level, 212 to elementary, 72 to middle, 116 to high school, and 76 were either non-applicable because it was multiple school levels, unknown, or submitted anonymously. [00:42:22] Of the 156 non-employee cases, 128 cases were categorized as general concerns and 28 were categorized as special education concerns. This is a 19.6% increase of general concerns and a 20% decrease of special education concerns from the previous year. [00:42:44] The graphic on the right highlights the subcategories for this group of concerns. The most prevalent categories were staff issues, policies and regulations, special ed and 504, and behavior and discipline categories. Looking further at the 28 special education concerns directed to the Office of the Ombuds last year, Leading categories are related to procedures and or compliance, 504, specific IEP matters, and staff concerns. [00:43:12] You will notice a decrease in, for example, IEP-specific concerns and an increase in 504-related concerns. And it is difficult for me to make inferences regarding these trends as I don't have control over who reaches out to me or what topics that they would like to discuss. But I do work very closely with having over 10,000 special education students in LCPS when special education or any concern arises. [00:43:34] I work closely with the appropriate offices, our special education supervisors, central office leadership, and the parent resource center and school staff as an additional resource to support the students and families when special ed or 504 concerns arise. When reviewing employee cases, of the 320 employee cases, 259 of those cases were tied to school-based staff, 50 were tied to central office or central support staff, and 11 cases were anonymous or unknown. [00:44:06] The correlating concern categories are highlighted by the graphic on the right, and the evaluator, supervisor, and peer relationships account for more than half of the employee concerns, which was a similar trend last year. The most common actions taken by the ombuds include providing information and or referring the visitor to the appropriate office, listening to the issue or concern and discussing possible options, and on 58 occasions, the ombuds raised the concern to the appropriate staff member on behalf of the visitor or anonymously or possibly as a trend that emerged in my data. [00:44:41] Informal mediations or facilitated discussions increased last year, as did requests for the ombuds to attend meetings as a neutral party. Most cases are closed out in one to five business days depending on the complexity of the case and the need for follow-up meetings. As noted in years past, open lines of communication, build trust, maintain positive relationships, and allow for concerns to be resolved more effectively and efficiently. Treating constituents with dignity and respect is fundamental to achieving positive outcomes when issues arise. While non-employee visitors did increase by 10% [00:45:16] from the previous year, employee visitors increased by 40%. This is likely attributed to word of mouth between employees, direct referrals, and repeat visitors. HRTD has also recommended, when appropriate, that staff reach out to the ombuds after formal complaints have been closed out to consider options for repairing relationships and moving forward in a professional working relationship. This could attribute to some of the increase that I've seen specifically from school-based staff, and also, as far as our student concerns, I really do believe that our schools do a wonderful job of addressing parent and student concerns, and not as often do those [00:45:52] concerns need to be elevated centrally. And if they do, they might be referred directly to the cabinet member or staff member involved. Often new visitors say that they wish they knew about the office of the ombuds sooner. It is important to continue existing outreach and marketing opportunities and to explore new and innovative ways to reach internal and external stakeholder groups. And given the need for additional professional development to support navigating conflict and interpersonal relationships between staff, which I've seen in the rise of the requests for facilitated discussions the ombuds will continue to offer proactive learning [00:46:28] opportunities for departments and offices and training by requests for smaller teams and that is everything that i have for you today thank you for the opportunity to share and i'm glad to answer any questions that you might have thank you miss willems um i am wondering is there a space for just a special education 504 ombuds I see that there that's a item that didn't grow it is not as much as it was last year but I'm just wondering if that's something y'all have thought [00:47:05] about and that's why I've been tracking that data separately so that if and when I do need additional staffing either part-time or full-time I know who who I might need to fill that spot with and right now because the increase has not been significantly on the student side I think between myself and Dr. Bowers as my associate we're able to handle the volume at this point in time but I wanted to make sure I was tracking that separately our neighbors Fairfax they have a special education ombudsman but she actually also then supports general concerns as well so if and when the time arises then I can be very specific about the needs that would need to be met because when I was a [00:47:45] parent there was someone who kind of filled that role for a very long period of time it's since moved to parent training and not so much that specific role but it was really helpful when I was going through the process absolutely in my early years Miss Kidwell she refers individuals to me as well if it is something that's more you know outside of the training aspect then she will refer individuals to me and if it is a need for training then I oftentimes refer individuals to her as well. Thank you. Board members, any other discussion? Yes, Mr. Struffy. Thank you very much, [00:48:22] Ms. Williams. My only question was around the special education inquiries. I'm curious as to who, what stakeholders are reporting special education focused inquiries? Is it mostly families or is it, is there a mix with educators and staff and just what that breakup is? So all of the contacts that were pulled out under special education would have come directly from families and staff. If it were an educator and it might be something that is directly related [00:49:02] to their work experience, then it would be captured under the employee categories, and it might be services and administrative issues. So I would keep track of that separately. That would be on the employee category side. Okay, thank you for clarifying. You're welcome. Any other questions? Okay. [00:49:21] Well, thank you very much, Ms. Williams. Thank you for all your work and all you do. Thank you. All right, before we move on to 5.02, I'd like for Mrs. Griffiths to please read her disclosure. Thank you, Madam Chair. As a member of the Loudoun County School Board, I make the following disclosure to the school board and to the general public in connection with the item on tonight's agenda regarding the budget and or health insurance and related benefits and any other discussion that may include or affect benefits for LCPS employees. [00:49:57] 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 while in excess of the statutory three employees whose interests also may be affected, of which I am included. [00:50:14] I can and will participate fairly and objectively and in the public's interest. This disclosure will be reflected in the public records of the clerk of the school board for five years. Thank you. Thank you, Mrs. Griffiths. Okay, we'll move on to 5.02, Department of Business and Financial Services FY 26 first quarter financial review presented by Sharon Willoughby our chief financial officer. Ms. Willoughby. Thank you. So loaded in board docs is the full financial report for the first quarter financial review as well as a copy of the presentation that I'm about to share. This presentation includes highlights that include actuals from July 1 [00:50:50] through September 30th and then projections for activity from October 1st through June 30th at end of the fiscal year beginning with the school operating fund state revenues are projected to fall short of the budget by about seven and a half million dollars this variance is primarily due to lower than budgeted enrollment resulting in an 8.8 million shortfall that is partially offset by sales tax revenues that are actually exceeding the budget by about 1.3 million dollars i anticipate there would be several questions related to the enrollment activity that's happening this year [00:51:29] And so I will just share that a full enrollment report will be presented by Mr. Lewis and his team at the next school board meeting. We are also continuing to closely monitor our federal funding streams. The school operating fund does rely on two federal sources that could potentially be affected. [00:51:47] At this time, though, there are no indications of disruption, but our team remains vigilant and prepared to respond if circumstances change. And I just highlight that here. Related to expenses, we are projecting a surplus of $39 million primarily from personnel savings. [00:52:07] About 1.8% of the personnel budget is projected to fall out with fill rates higher than last year, with 99.2% of licensed positions filled. Operating and maintenance accounts are generating about $7 million in savings. [00:52:23] These accounts consist of supplies, paper, our utilities, professional and contractual services, as just a few examples. It's important to remember that first quarter projections are generally conservative as we only have three months of actual activity to develop trends from. [00:52:42] As mentioned earlier, as we are monitoring our federal funding sources, any potential disruptions to federal funds that are outside of the school operating fund may require shifting certain expenses into this fund to minimize impact on students and school operations. [00:52:58] The federal government shut down the federal budget process and the Department of Education's designation of LCPS as high risk are all key factors that we are actively managing throughout the year. But again, I will stress that there have been no disruptions thus far. [00:53:14] This results in a projected fund balance of $20 million after deducting an assumed $12 million carryover into the FY27 budget, the same level that we have historically carried over from year to year. As a reminder, the Virginia Code prohibits LCPS from maintaining a reserve or contingency funds within the school operating fund. [00:53:37] Any unspent year-end funds must be returned to the county. One factor that could affect the amount returned is a potential transfer to the health self-insurance fund. As in previous years, we may transfer available funds to this account to help meet the 10% reserve requirement as permitted under the county's appropriations resolution. [00:53:57] Additionally, any potential disruptions to federal funding may require strategic trade-offs to minimize impacts on students, staff, and services. Such trade-offs could include foregoing a transfer to the health self-insurance fund, which would increase the burden of stabilizing that fund, or implementing targeted spending restrictions or hiring freezes to free up funds for other operational needs. We could also seek additional funding from the county if needed, as some of their board has signal support to fill any funding gaps we may experience. At this time, though, I will repeat, we have no indication of disruptions [00:54:35] of our federal funding streams. We continue to request reimbursements to VDOE for our title grants and show several have been approved by VDOE but are awaiting actual funds disbursement from VDOE on those approved requests. So again, while there are no disruptions, I wanted to keep the board informed of possible scenarios and trade-offs, and more importantly, that we have plans in place if needed. We will also continue to remain fiscally cautious to ensure that our operations continue without interruption. Moving on to our school nutrition fund, which is one of our special [00:55:15] revenue funds, this fund also feels the impact of reduced student enrollment this year. Despite a 20-cent meal price increase, total cafeteria sales are projected to fall $2.2 million below budget. Simply put, fewer students in school means fewer meals being purchased. [00:55:31] While the meal price increase is expected to generate approximately $736,000 in additional revenue, this amount is not sufficient to offset rising operating costs. This year's budgeted 2.5% step increase, 4% cost of living adjustment, and higher health insurance premiums together increased this year's budgeted personnel expenses by $1.6 million, more than double the additional revenue expected from the meal price change. [00:55:59] projected personnel expenditures are expected to show a 1.6 million dollar budget surplus due to position lapses and turnover. Other areas of spending are also projected to come in under budget resulting in additional budgetary surpluses. It is important to note that personnel costs but account for more than half of total projected expenses in this fund underscoring the ongoing challenge of generating sufficient new revenue to keep pace with annual cost increases. [00:56:28] Because the school nutrition program operates as a self-sustaining business designed to generate revenue to cover its cost, we evaluate its performance by comparing total projected revenues to total projected expenses to determine compliance with USDA profitability guidelines. [00:56:49] For the current year, we project a net loss of approximately $4.7 million with expenditures exceeding revenues. The beginning fund balance of $21.1 million will be used to subsidize operations and cover this shortfall. Although we still anticipate ending the year with a fund balance above the USDA's three-month expenditure reserve limit, we will continue using these excess funds to support operations while working to right-size the program. [00:57:17] Ongoing efforts to control spending, improve operational efficiency, and increase meal participation remain top priorities. That said, it is important to note the growing likelihood that local funding from the county may be needed to help subsidize the school nutrition program in the future. [00:57:37] Next up are three of our self-insurance funds, the workers' comp, short-term disability, and VLDP funds. All three funds are supported with transfers from the school operating fund that must pay for all expenses and maintain our two-month minimum claims reserve. [00:57:55] Claims expenses are forecasted to be above budget for workers' comp related to some large claims and increased payroll costs. Claims for the short-term disability fund are forecasted to be in line with the budget, where claims for the VLDP fund are forecasted to be above budget due to increased utilization for that employee group. [00:58:17] Our fourth self-insurance fund is our health self-insurance fund. The good news here is that revenues are forecasted to exceed budget by about $19 million due to higher subscriber counts and additional rebates from pharmacy expenditures. Included effective January 1 is the 12% premium increase for the employees as well as the employer year that the school board approved for this year's budget. While the rebates are projected to bring in $7.5 million of additional revenue, the downside is that means the pharmacy costs were higher than expected also. The not-so-great news is that claims continue to outpace both [00:58:57] incoming revenue and budgeted amounts. Despite working with our consultant to develop claims growth factors during the budget process, medical costs are projected to increase 10% year-over-year, while prescription costs are expected to rise by 15 percent. We are seeing higher utilization of health care benefits among covered employees and their families. That coupled with the rising cost of care has resulted in claims continuing to escalate. In addition, this year includes a two million dollar cost in new costs associated with maintaining the Medicare Advantage plan. [00:59:34] Previously, our provider Cigna offered this plan at no additional cost as part of their bundled health care package. With Cigna discontinued the plan, LCPS had to either secure a new provider at a cost or explore alternatives. Per the school board direction, we obtained a new provider to continue to offer Medicare Advantage, and this projection includes the new ongoing costs. This results in a projected net loss and a negative fund balance of $25.8 million. These figures already include a $31.8 million transfer from FY25 year-end school operating funds. As in previous [01:00:13] This year's an additional transfer from the school operating funds projected FY26 fund balance will be necessary to maintain a positive fund balance. Alongside ongoing cost-saving measures, future premium increases are anticipated and will be included in the FY27 superintendent's estimate of needs to be presented this January. [01:00:39] And last is our category of capital funds. The first fund is the Capital Asset Preservation Program Fund that holds funding from the county to address major maintenance and system replacement projects. Projects must have a minimum value of $10,000, and the replaced systems have an expected lifespan of 10 years or more. [01:00:59] The CAP funding is flexible to allow staff the ability to manage emergencies and other high priority needs. You will see in the report that the costs are categorized by work types such as HVAC, plumbing, or electrical. [01:01:14] A projected $3.2 million in savings is projected and will be used to address any cost overages, supply chain risks, and any new requirements identified across all projects. The other capital fund is the Capital Improvement Program Fund that accounts for the expenses related to construction and renovation of facilities, land acquisition, bus purchases, and certain renovations. [01:01:38] Embedded in this fund are the Capital Facility Renewal and Alteration Program projects with funding for all coming from the county. The expenses in the report are by capital spending categories such as construction contract and land acquisition. At this time, there is a modest 3.6 million of savings projected with recently completed projects that will be released once they are fully closed out. [01:02:03] And that concludes the first quarter financial review and I'd be happy to answer any questions. - Thank you, Ms. Willoughby. Board members, do you have any questions? - Yes, Ms. Griffiths. - Mrs. Griffiths. - Thank you, Madam Chair. [01:02:19] I see you have new investments for two sustainability specialists. Can you elaborate on that for everyone to understand what that is? To foster a culture of conservation, environmental literacy, are you able to elaborate on that? [01:02:40] I believe you may be referencing the presentation for the next agenda item. Sorry, I might be ahead of myself. Thank you. Any other questions? Yes. Mrs. Chandler. Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you, Ms. Willoughby. [01:02:56] I actually I think like most families we are feeling personally the impacts of the tariffs and the impact on grocery prices have we seen any impact within the school nutrition program as of yet not yet our contracts are written in a way that there are specific language of how prices can change and I don't want to misspeaks i would like to pull like more specific information and i can have that provided but for [01:03:35] example i think there may be language that actually caps you know by how much so that we are kind of buffered if there were to be extreme swings we also benefit from commodities where we can receive actual food product from the federal government that we try to include as much as we can since it is a free, you know, free product. I would be absolutely very appreciative to be able to learn more about that. I mean, I know projections for individual households have an increase of up to [01:04:11] $5,000 a year. And if we have that language in the contract, that does at least give a little peace of mind. So, thank you. Yes, Dr. Deans. I guess I'd just like to make a comment. [01:04:32] It seems that we in Loudoun are very protective over increases in premium. But I just want to share that my Medicare Advantage premium from North Carolina increased before the open enrollment. [01:04:53] So they just sent a letter and said, next time you will be paying this. So I don't want us to get into trouble in Loudoun by trying to protect the employees. I think that the increases need to come ahead of being in trouble that's my comment. Thank you Dr. [01:05:12] Deans. Any other? Yes Ms. Chernoff. Thank you Madam Chair. I do have a couple of questions but first I wanted to thank you for the report and I really want to start by acknowledging some bright spots. I think our staffing success is remarkable and needs to be paid attention to. I think achieving a 99.2% fill rate and continuing to increase that post-COVID feels like a major win for our kids and for our schools. And I'm thrilled and I think it demonstrates the excellent work and dedication that has gone on to those recruitment and retention efforts, which I know [01:05:48] we all have talked about and really share. So I applaud that work because that matters for kids in our schools. And I think that that's amazing. I also think that the report shows that we're managing our day-to-day operational budgets efficiently and especially encouraged by the CIP cap projected savings in with construction costs and the things that the way they are that shows really smart budgeting on our part and I'm very grateful to see that. I don't think it'll be a surprise I mean given some of the language in the presentation and talking about trade-offs and freezes and subsidies new words that we're hearing for the first time in a couple of years. I have [01:06:25] some significant concerns moving into FY27 and I just wanted to make sure that I'm understanding it correctly that is it fair to say that our consistent strategy has been to use the surpluses in the operating fund which are often generated by those staff vacancies to plug the deficits elsewhere in other funds has that been the strategic plan for us in our budget in years past yes for one fund only and that's been the health self-insurance fund as it is specifically outlined in the county's appropriations resolution [01:07:05] that they support that we do that activity. If we were to, so for example, if we didn't have the fund balance that we have in the school nutrition fund and were to run into a negative fund balance situation, then I would be engaging with Dr. Spence, of course, and I think we would have conversation with the county to ensure they were supportive if we had surplus operating funds to transfer to that fund as well, as it is not specifically identified currently in their resolution. [01:07:36] Okay, I appreciate that clarification because I was confused about how that differed. It still feels like to me that some of the holes we're going to need to address are trending to be bigger than some of the surpluses that we've had available in the past. [01:07:51] And with the health care costs skyrocketing that you mentioned across the board and pharmaceutical costs And the declining enrollment, which further reduces potentially our revenue, and I do think that the federal funding is hanging in the balance, so we don't really have clarity there, which could be up to $31.9 million as well. [01:08:12] It just is worrisome to me, and I'm really going to be curious. I feel like this is just a little bit, normally this is just a first quarter report, but I feel like this year I'm learning that these first quarter reports kind of help preview some of the things we're going to be facing. And so with that in mind, I know we have been fortunate to see increases in the past in our budget, almost 10% the last two years each. [01:08:37] Do we feel like that's going to be the case this year? Or do we feel like we're going to have to do some right-sizing and reprioritizing to reach fiscal sustainability? I'm sure as you're aware, the next presentation that I have on deck for the school board is the budget work session for FY27. [01:08:57] And it was intentional that we do the first quarter projection because I think it does help lay some of the groundwork for all the points that you are bringing up regarding the challenges that we're going to be facing in developing the FY27 budget. [01:09:13] I think whenever I present the slides for that, I think it will answer perhaps most, if not all, your questions. And if there were still some outstanding questions, I'd be happy to circle back after that presentation. Yeah, I appreciate that. know I'm previewing the next thing a little bit but I I do I do think that it is important that that does shape the way that we go forward and I know for me personally I know some of those things we just don't have full clarity on yet and we'll have more as we get towards the estimate of needs and so that will definitely I think guide some of our conversations thank you thank you [01:09:46] Michelle not any other questions okay moving on to the next presentation FY 27 budget priorities and direction presented by Sharon Willoughby chief financial officer and it looks like Miss Boland's coming up too all right yes I will start us off and Miss Boland is to help with compensation and collective bargaining when we get to that section so we're here to continue the discussion [01:10:23] that we began back in June and on developing the FY 27 budget since June the budget team and departments have been diligently working on the budget. There have been numerous meetings, calculations, discussions, and lots and lots of analysis. The team continues to scrub the budget looking at each account's historical spending to identify trends or discrepancies between budget and actual that warrant further discussion with departments. [01:10:50] This heavy workload that occurs behind the scenes is a part of every budget process, and as in previous years, savings in areas are already being identified. As we continue with budget discussion i want to emphasize how challenging it is to balance financial stewardship and what's best for students and families the work is hard and you will have difficult decisions to make our goal today is to provide an update on our work so that there are no surprises in january when the superintendent presents his estimative needs also referred to as the sean our continued work together results in you not being surprised with budget recommendations in january and that we [01:11:27] aren't surprised with a new priority as well when we met in june the feedback we heard from the school board was continued support of priority priorities identified last year some examples are listed here such as continuing to prioritize the transition school after school programs special programs and safety and security initiatives additionally there were items that had been mentioned in the prior year but had additional focus from the board in june those items were the CTE programs, enhanced staffing to target areas of need, and additional supports for student behavior. [01:12:06] As before, this valuable feedback helps us prioritize investments as we build the FY27 budget. We will continue to use the investment theme and use the structure outlined on this slide to help categorize budget requests as we move through the process. [01:12:22] So this may look familiar from last year, but our first category is Continuity of Operations, And these are the costs required to continue to operate schools, you know, same as today for tomorrow. Ongoing investments would be investments that have already been approved by the school board but may have continuing multi-year rollout or additional expansion costs. [01:12:46] And then our third category is new investments. And those are going to be new programs, items, or enhancements to the school or division operations. Starting with continuity of operations. These are areas that we consider items necessary to maintain operations into the next school year. [01:13:05] First is a high-level assessment of staffing needed per our adopted staffing standards. We anticipate an enrollment drop for next year, and as I stated during the last presentation, Mr. Lewis's team will provide a comprehensive presentation on enrollment at the next school board meeting. [01:13:22] Despite the anticipated enrollment reduction resulting in position reductions, we expect a net increase in positions our special education and EL student populations continue to increase. It's still early to assess final school impacts. Again, this is a very high-level assessment, but we will work closely with schools, departments, and human resources and talent development as we move through the budget process. Next is the proposed health insurance premium increase. This would be the employer-paid portion with two numbers listed on the slide, one representing a cost for a 20% increase and another [01:13:57] for a 25% increase. As you heard earlier in the first quarter financial projection, we continue to be challenged with maintaining revenues to cover increasing health claim costs. And increasing premiums is not something we take lightly. And the cost associated there is either $24 million for a 20% increase or $30 million for a 25% increase. [01:14:21] Next on the list is a placeholder recognizing that inflation is a factor to maintain operations. While a general placeholder of a 3% increase was calculated, each account is reviewed to refine the amount needed in the upcoming budget. Next is the inclusion of a step increase for eligible employees. [01:14:40] While collective bargaining is ongoing, the superintendent has prioritized the annual step increase for employees. This not only benefits employees, of course, but is integral to maintaining the integrity of the salary scales. On the final row is another placeholder for other pay increases to be determined. [01:14:56] Later in this presentation, Ms. Bowling will provide a collective bargaining update related to this area. A tally of these items alone is $74 million or $80 million, depending on which premium increase is used. Going with the larger amount, $80 million, this increases the budget by 4% to just maintain operations. [01:15:18] And this obviously excludes any additional pay increases or adjustments. And again, as noted on this slide, these are preliminary considerations. The next category is ongoing investments, and it identifies some of the school board priorities that were started this year and have ongoing expansion or rollout costs. [01:15:40] Costs that are in this year's budget became part of the base budget for FY27. Listed on here is the dual language immersion program expansion that would require an investment of about $100,000 to continue the expansion to third grade at Sanders Corner Elementary and provide additional support to Potomac Elementary School. [01:15:59] The continued rollout of the transition school requires funding for positions to support the ongoing planning and opening of the school in the fall of 2028. The after-school program is listed, but you will notice no additional resources are included for FY27. There will likely be funding increases the following year as data is gathered from the pilot program this year to plan for expansion to additional schools. [01:16:22] The Global Linguistics Studies Academy would fund two new world language teachers and a content specialist to launch this academy next fall. The world language expansion also does not have any additional resources identified. While expansion continues, existing staff and the expansion of the Global Linguistics Studies Academy contributes to this priority. [01:16:44] The last identified is the next phase of the camera AI analytics that would expand this technology to our middle schools at a cost just under $1 million. These items would total about $2.1 million. [01:17:01] The last category is new investments, and these 10 examples total about $7.1 million to support identified school board priorities and plans. So quickly going through, you will see there's an FTE for a threat assessment coordinator to assist our threat assessment teams. [01:17:24] There's a placeholder of about $3 million for school-based administrative staff, and this is to support a review of school-based administrative staff to more equitably and consistently support varying student populations at schools. You'll see additional support for the EL program. [01:17:40] You will see the two FTEs for the sustainability specialists to support division-wide programs. You then see additional coaches and math resource teachers to support schools. The next column, you'll notice for CTE programming, there's no cost identified. [01:18:00] The ongoing planning of the CTE program is ongoing, and there will be an update to the school board at the next school board meeting of what that CTE plan looks like. Next on the list are 10 facilitators that are trained in the MANT crisis intervention protocols. [01:18:19] Then we have an additional response to intervention specialists to support schools with students receiving interventions. And last on the list is actually a savings, and this is, again, a preliminary consideration to eliminate the subsidy for credit card transaction fees. [01:18:38] Today, LCPS covers the credit card transaction fee for users that are making payments using their credit card or debit card in our system. Users would have other fee-free methods to make payments, such as cash or check. Again, these are preliminary considerations. [01:18:58] They are just a few examples, and it is definitely not an all-inclusive list, but were a few highlights that we wanted to bring forward. This would bring the total for the three categories to about $89.2 million that would increase the budget by 4.6%. [01:19:16] A note about federal grants, as you've heard me state numerous times now, we have not experienced a disruption in funding, but we are monitoring to determine if we would need to make any changes that would impact the FY27 budget. [01:19:35] This slide lists the current FY26 budgeted award and associated FTEs in our grant fund. If there was a change, we would have to consider the trade-offs in the school operating fund to maintain program support if we were to move these items out of the grant fund and into our school operating fund. [01:19:57] So with that, I would like to pause, because whereas this time last year, we actually had a more formal activity, but since the feedback from the school board in June, again, was more consistent with the feedback we received last year, there's no formal activity, but I would like to just take a moment to hear what we may be missing um from your priorities for consideration thank you um miss willoughby i think something that people don't often realize is just because the enrollment goes down we do have an increase in special education el students that's a lot more money and resources [01:20:37] and finances that you need um and different teachers so i think it's a mistake to think okay we have lower this and so everything's gonna be lower that's not that's not necessarily case any other discussion school board members I'll go with dr. [01:20:55] dr. sheet first thank you chair thank you miss will be for this great presentation when what was listed was after-school programs in one of the tables can you give examples of what kind of after-school programs just so I know because I had a couple in mind but I wasn't sure if they fell in that category thank you dr. Rashid I'll take that one so that line in the presentation was specifically referencing the after-school pilot that the board voted to include in the FY 26 budget those were for the five five elementary schools [01:21:30] in the sterling middle school cluster that pilot is scheduled to start in January and so staff does not feel like we will have sufficient data to make a solid recommendation for expansion in FY 27 and we will gather data from the start of the pilot in January throughout the budget development next year and recommend potential expansion the following year just for clarification it doesn't really deal with any type of after-school activities in a sense of like band or the arts anything of the sort no ma'am this was an academic focus [01:22:07] after-school pilot including transportation for families at those five schools. Thank you. Any other questions? Mr. Streffy. Thank you Madam Chair. Thank you Ms. Willoughby. I just want to piggyback off the point that Chair Mansfield made. Just this idea, I think we've touched on this in previous presentations, but the idea of tying our budget solely to enrollment is something that we have to be very careful of. You know, understanding that 90% of our budget is school facing staff and the need to continue with pay increases and [01:22:44] try to trying to keep the best teachers in Loudoun and knowing that enrollment has read enrollment reducing as you showed in the presentation those staffing ratios will affect the students that have the most need potentially like special ed English learners and the increase in those needs across the county so I just wanted to kind of just harp on that a little bit more I did want to ask about the school-based admin staffing is there some more detail or context you can provide to that I didn't it didn't really come across to me as [01:23:18] to what those positions or what what we are changing in that kind of bucket good evening thank you for the question mr. Sreffi we are looking at adjusting the staffing standard so looking at the number of students that are enrolled a different staffing standard at elementary middle and high and providing different types of support and even for our title one schools what their admin staffing would look like so that's what that is for. Thank you. I still want to [01:23:57] understand what that is then. The staffing standard? The positions. Oh I'm sorry assistant principals and deans. Sorry. Okay thank you. Yeah Ms. Chernoff. Can I ask if that includes special education deans as well or is that a separate staffing standard? It's a different staffing standard as those positions are in a different department and Ms. Richardson and I have been collaborating in terms of what that support might look like. So if you have a school and based on the number of students and or programs [01:24:36] we've worked to say if they have an academic dean they might not need a special education dean for this year and vice versa. So we're going to continue to refine that for the upcoming school year. Yeah I would love to see support especially hearing from some of the itinerant special education deans who support almost seemingly full-time programs at two separate schools when you have five programs at one and five programs at another you're doing two full-time jobs even though it's half-time or you're doing two half-time jobs and you feel like you're not doing them very well and so for serving that population I have been hearing that from school so thank you for [01:25:09] the clarification yes and just to add a little bit more so when we are looking at those staffing standards also looking at school-based need not just simply number of students but to the example you just gave what are the needs of the specific schools and how do we support them in that manner any other question yes vice-chair Donahue thank you madam chair I just wanted to briefly say that I'm very excited to hear that we're looking at those staffing standards again because I have [01:25:47] from early on here I have heard some concerns from some schools for example one school in Leesburg in particular that lost their Dean a couple of years ago because the overall enrollment went down but there was also something to do with the because a new neighborhood opened near the school like the population of the school increased but the percentage of EL and special ed students decreased and that caused and the staff at the school were saying but but our need is still the same because we still have the same number of of students that we have to provide additional services to and that that [01:26:27] seemed like a difficult spot to be in so I'm very pleased that we're taking a look at that issue thank you hardest thing for me is when you take a teacher out of class special education teacher out of the class to make them a special education Dean or any of the rest of that that's that's a hard thing when we need them so badly. Yes, Mrs. Griffiths. Thank you, Madam Chair. I disagree. I think a drop in enrollment is very important because of the money, of course, and looking at this grid. I have a lot of questions here, and I'm sorry I jumped ahead before, but I had read this prior. You know, I mean, [01:27:06] for example, I was asking about sustainability. If you can explain that to the people of Loudoun County. What exactly is that? Elaborate on that. Mr. Estreffy brought up the administration staff. I was curious about that as well. And to be perfectly honest, I don't know MANT, Akuru, facilitators. You know, there's a lot here to unpack. And I think when we do the budget, we're going to have to reevaluate this grid because the enrollment came down. And just like my colleagues mentioned, we do have transition here listed, but we need to have more information [01:27:45] on special ed teachers. It needs to be clear and concise. So as far as sustainability, if you could elaborate on that, because I've said in the past that we're in the now. So parents, students, they want to see the money go somewhere now that would affect them directly, not have something that will help us in the future so if you can explain that to me I'd really appreciate that appreciate that and also the man a crew in case I missed it if you could give details on that I'm not quite sure what that is thank you thank you mr. [01:28:22] griffiths I'll start with the sustainability positions and to reiterate reiterate a couple things that miss Willoughby said that these are preliminary considerations for the board and not the actual budget proposal and we are doing our very best to align these things that we're bringing forward to the board with school board priorities that have already been set and I remind the board that a few months ago you adopted the sustainability framework which helps us and gives us guidance on a number of things. There are several goals in there with environmental literacy being one and you know modeling a culture of sustainability throughout our programs and so these two [01:29:00] FTEs are planned in cooperation with Dr. Ellis and Mr. Slevin to work with the science department and work on what they call MEWI's, meaningful watershed educational experiences. You saw some of that the other few weeks ago when the green team's gallery walk, all these folks went out in the aisleways out in front of the board and provided their projects. [01:29:22] So be working on specific projects, recycling, all those types of things. And these folks will be in the classroom working with students and helping the students incorporate that sustainability in their lessons in their their future and the way they go about taking care of our planet so there's there's a lot to that I do believe it is in the now and there's things that affect us right now and we're saving millions of dollars in energy conservation with our projects and so I believe they this perfectly aligns with the the goals and the framework set up by the board thank you for your clarification and if you could answer I don't know if you would be [01:30:01] able to answer the man a career facilitators that would be other miss Thank you very much for that question. MANT and UKERU are our crisis intervention strategies that are approved here in LCPS. And so those interventions help keep our students safe, our staff safe, and our schools safe. [01:30:22] We currently have one division-wide trainer with over thousands of people to be trained. Our specialized program teachers for self-contained autism, for intensive programs for autism, and our self-contained and intensive programs for our students with emotional disabilities. [01:30:42] All staff members in those programs are required to be trained. Additionally, our behavior intervention teams for which all 100 schools have staff members that are identified must also be trained. [01:30:59] MANT has recently updated to version 3.0, so there's different training techniques. The UCARU system is the system that uses the pad with a decreased level of physical intervention. So these positions have been prioritized for overall safety across all of our schools. [01:31:21] Thank you, Ms. Richardson. I think that per this table, and my colleagues have mentioned it, special ed, maybe we should clarify, because it seems to me that would be more special ed related, we should clarify what is special ed so we know exactly where the funds, I know it's preliminary, where the funds might be going, just for clarification. [01:31:45] Okay, thank you. Ms. Richardson, is it just special education related because you talked about behavioral intervention teams? Thank you for that question, Chair Mansfield. Mant and U. Carew are for the safety of all students in our schools. [01:32:04] Any other questions? Yes, Ms. Chernoff. And we have five minutes and we have Ms. Boland still has to speak. i'll go quick um we've been working a lot through the cni committee on a lot of these initiatives so i'm grateful to see the admin staff on there the el program support of course i'd like to continue to see flexible staffing to meet those needs one thing and coaches and resource teachers is also something that we've talked about in our committee so i'm glad to see those as well one thing that is not on here that we also talked about in committee that i just want to give a plug for is right sizing our librarians we did in the elementary level we treat them like they are a [01:32:43] special but we do not fund them as if they are a special they are staffed at a school population and getting them in that rotation can be really stressful when the rest of their colleagues that are also specialists are paid in a different way so and staffed in a different way not paid in different way staffed sorry so thank you miss boland i'm sorry go ahead five minutes or should Or no, she won't be. [01:33:08] I've got a couple more, and I'm going to talk as quickly as I can. There's still several slides. LCPS has the initial streak of having two fully funded budgets by the Board of Supervisors, and while we celebrate that, I have to point out that this is achieved primarily with working with the county and presenting a budget to them that either meets or is within their budget guidance. [01:33:28] We intend on following the same game plan this year of presenting a budget that is within their final budget guidance. As part of the county's budget process, they meet with their finance committee to discuss initial budget guidance for not only the county, but also funding guidance for LCPS. During their September 9th meeting, the county staff presented four scenarios that are displayed on this slide. [01:33:49] The first scenario estimates a total local tax funding pot of $200 million of additional revenue and no change to the tax rate. From that, the formula is to deduct county and schools capital budget funding and funding for the housing fund first. In this scenario, $25 million is deducted from the $200 million, leaving a balance of $175. [01:34:08] The county has been applying an additional funding split of 60% to LCPS and 40% to the county for the last couple of years. So applying 60% to this subtotal arrives at $105 going to LCPS and the balance of $70 million going to the county. [01:34:25] This would represent a 9% growth for the county and a little less than 8% for LCPS and the $105 as you see in the purple row. The second scenario is the same as the first, but with $22.5 million going towards capital funding and $2.5 million to the county's housing fund. The third scenario is based on a 9% growth factor for LCPS. [01:34:44] You may recall last year that the county discussed capping growth and used 9% as the growth driver. We applied 9% to our current county funding to arrive at an increase of $124 million, and this would leave $6 million that the county had programmed to support capital projects. [01:35:00] So scenarios one through three did not change the tax rate. Scenario four lowers the tax rate by one penny yielding a funding pot of 180 million. This scenario applies six million towards capital budgets and leaves again 105 to LCPS when applying the 60 percent split. The comments from the county committee indicated support for the scenarios that provided funding at the 105 million dollar level for LCPS. Additionally the county board of supervisors has consistently lowered the tax rate and has done so every year since fiscal 14 with the exception of one year in fiscal 17. [01:35:37] Last year alone they reduced the rate by six cents. So I'm sure some of you may be tracking the math and our three investment categories totaled about 89.2 million. Using the county's initial guidance of 105 million would leave a relatively small amount of 16 million available for investment. And for reference as I know I anticipate the question a one percent COLA because As you saw in the numbers, the only number that is plugged in is a step increase. [01:36:05] A 1% COLA is approximately $14.8 million. So then that would fill that up. This is solely looking at county funding, and there may be some additional funds allocated to LCPS from the state, but it's too early to know. Additionally, a number of factors make it difficult to project a state funding amount for fiscal 27. [01:36:25] One, it will be the first year of the biennium for the state, so re-benchmarking activities are occurring. The current governor will propose a budget to the General Assembly, and then the General Assembly, depending on their actions, would work with a new governor to finalize that budget. And our declining enrollment has an impact on our funding levels. [01:36:42] We will know more in December when the governor proposes his budget. I also wanted to share some historical information. Ms. Chernoff thinks this may answer some of your questions. The final budget for FY26 increased the budget by $137 million based on available funding from the county and state. [01:36:59] Specifically, the county's appropriation provided new funding of 113.9, and that was even with the Board of Supervisors reducing that property tax rate. So our request for this current year's budget increased the transfer by 9%, and our budget increased by 7.5%. [01:37:18] Historically, you can see that we hover around 7.5% as an average total budget increase and county funding increase. The anomaly for FY21 and FY22 are solely related to the pandemic, and in the interest of the time, I won't go into explaining the why behind that. [01:37:33] As we work to develop a budget, though, that is within the county funding guidelines, this hopefully provides some historical context of where we would likely land. Additionally, the challenge each year that becomes more difficult is justifying a budget increase when our enrollment is flat or declining. While logically one could understand that to provide pay increases in inflation will increase your budget regardless, if you do not see another student enter the system, the burden is on us to provide solid data to support that request. [01:38:01] I also wanted to share that as we are developing our budget this year, we have our four driving questions. We are really focused on data-supported return on investments or having measurable outcomes. So departments, as they are building their budget, they are tasked with answering these four questions, And it is our goal to answer these questions in providing our budget presentations in January. [01:38:25] And those questions, of course, is what problem will this solve? How do you know it's going to change anything? How will departments show you the school board? And what is the related timeline? And then real quickly, an example of what that can look like would be of an investment in its impact. [01:38:43] Hiring and retaining special ed teachers has been especially challenging. two years ago, a new recruitment retention bonus program was introduced to address hard-to-fill positions. You can see when the bonus was introduced in FY25, and you can see how the retention rates for a special education teachers have increased. So this is one example of showing an investment and its outcome. And now I will turn it over to Mrs. Bolin. And I'm going to try to go quickly in respecting our time, and I may skip two slides and ask you to take a look at them at [01:39:18] another point. As Ms. Willoughby mentioned, because personnel costs represent roughly 90% of our total budget, compensation is always one of the most significant drivers in developing the budget. Before we move into the next slides, I do want to take a moment to frame how collective bargaining is influencing this year's budget process. We've now been at the bargaining table with the Loudoun Education Association since April, about six months of active negotiations with both sides mutually agreeing to pause in July. [01:39:51] This is a significant milestone and an important shift for the division. For the first time, we're navigating two interconnected and sometimes competing realities. On one hand, collective bargaining is directly tied to the budget process. [01:40:06] The board's collective bargaining resolution states that negotiations must conclude by December 1 in any year where an agreement is intended to take effect with the new fiscal year. This ensures that any financial implications can be incorporated into the superintendent's proposed budget. [01:40:27] On the other hand, the resolution also requires that all negotiations remain confidential and take place only between designated members of the bargaining teams. These two provisions create a natural tension. The outcomes will ultimately shape our budget, but the process itself must remain confidential while negotiations are ongoing. [01:40:50] Historically, the board's budget work has been transparent and deliberative, reflecting its commitment to open government. Collective bargaining introduces a new procedural layer. The outcomes will be public, but the discussions that lead to those outcomes are confidential until negotiations conclude. [01:41:10] Our challenge and our responsibility is to balance those two values, ensuring transparency in our budgeting process while honoring the confidentiality that enables productive negotiations. At the direction of the superintendent, I have participated at every stage of these negotiations and coordinated the work of our bargaining teams within the Department of Human Resources and Talent Development. [01:41:34] My goal this evening is to walk that careful line to provide you the context about how the process affects budget planning and timing while fully respecting the confidentiality required by the board's resolution and the ground rules that govern negotiations. [01:41:50] Finally, I want to acknowledge that there have been some recent public comments that may not reflect this same balance between transparency and confidentiality. While it can be tempting to respond publicly, my approach remains consistent. To uphold the process, protect the integrity of the negotiations, and ensure that any updates come through the proper channels, the bargaining table. [01:42:14] That discipline preserves the Board's authority and keeps us focused on reaching a fair, fiscally responsible agreement that supports both our employees and our mission. With that framing in mind this afternoon, I plan to provide a brief update on the bargaining timeline and its connection to the fiscal year '27 budget planning. [01:42:34] I was also planning on providing an update on stipends that I may ask you just to review on the slides, a topic of interest that the board has shown repeatedly interest in. [01:42:51] As we discussed compensation this year, it's important to remember that collective bargaining now plays a central role in shaping our budget and compensation is a mandatory topic of negotiations. In prior years, this update would have focused primarily on our compensation priorities and market strategies. [01:43:08] This year those same goals remain, ensuring LCPS remains an employer of choice and continues to invest strategically in our workforce. But the process looks different because we are now operating within the framework of formal collective bargaining. [01:43:23] We have been at the bargaining table with Loudoun Education Association since April. Under the school board's resolution, negotiations are required to reach a tentative agreement by October 1. When that date passed without agreement, the resolution triggered what's known as automatic impasse. [01:43:41] While that sounds final, it simply means that both parties now move into the formal impasse resolution process outlined in the resolution. We are still meeting regularly. In fact, this Thursday, October 16th, both teams will participate in a full-day mediation session with a professional labor mediator to continue working towards an agreement. [01:44:05] The next key date in this process is December 1, which is the deadline for any ratified agreement to be incorporated in the upcoming budget. I do want to emphasize that the union has indicated their internal ratification process for approximately 12,000 members will require concluding bargaining later this month to allow time for both parties to complete that process before the December 1 deadline. [01:44:32] So that shortens our timeline slightly. So in short, we are in the final and most critical stages of negotiations. Both teams are working diligently to reach a responsible agreement that rewards and supports our employees, while also reflecting fiscal prudence and long-term sustainability. [01:44:50] As we move forward in both the budget development process and collective bargaining, stipends provide a good example of how we're balancing the realities of open government with the requirements of negotiation. [01:45:07] Since 2021, stipends have been a priority area for the school board, and in a moment, I'll walk through a brief chronology of that work. Under the current collective bargaining resolution, Section 4 outlines the management rights reserved to the school board, including the authority to hire, promote, transfer, assign, and classify employees. [01:45:28] Those rights allow for a degree of discretion in planning, even as we move through collective bargaining. However, because stipends are inherently tied to compensation, that discretion must be exercised carefully and in alignment with the ongoing negotiation process. [01:45:44] In practical terms, that means we are not in a position tonight to present detailed proposals or specific approaches to stipends as those discussions are interwoven with the broader compensation conversations taking place at the bargaining table. What I can share is that the work completed to date provides a strong foundation, and as negotiations conclude, will be better positioned to bring forward clear, actionable recommendations for the board to consideration. This slide demonstrates a chronology of the work done [01:46:15] to date in regards to stipends. This work was paused in 2023 when a tiered stipend structure was developed and had an estimated implementation cost of about 5.3 million dollars and unfortunately that work could not be funded at that time but again did develop a strong foundation for moving forward. As we prepare to look forward to make the stipend position summaries available online for greater transparency and consistency we are revisiting that tiered structure for potential [01:46:52] implementation when funding and timing may allow. So again, while we can't specifically discuss stipend adjustments while negotiations are underway, this body of work represents significant progress. This final slide provides a broad comparison between our current stipend structure and the proposed model that was developed and shared in 2023. The intent here is to simply illustrate the type of structured thinking that has informed our ongoing review, not to preview [01:47:26] or suggest any bargaining positions. As you'll recall, the 2023 proposal moved toward a tiered structure designed to better align stipends with factors such as time commitment, supervision, complexity, and market competitiveness. That approach provided a more consistent framework that increased transparency across roles. As we move through collective bargaining and broader budget discussions will continue refining this work to ensure that any updates to stipends are equitable sustainable and reflective of the responsibilities associated with each role [01:47:59] and i will turn it back over to miss willoughby for the last few slides so in the spirit of no surprises um real quickly with our school nutrition fund we are seeking to increase meal prices again by 20 cents to you know generate additional revenue and then on the expense size expense side the by us no longer subsidizing the credit card fees would save approximately 1.5 million in this area. So these are two measures proposed to help make this operation profitable. And then on the health self-insurance fund, you saw earlier two options related to increasing premiums. There's [01:48:39] no benefit plan changes anticipated at this time, and any future benefit changes would fall under collective bargaining. So in terms of next steps, we'd return in either late November or early December once we get updated budget guidance from the county to provide a fiscal forecast to the school board in December we will see impacts on state funding once the governor presents his budget and then that would kick off the formal school board review and adoption process in January of the budget and that concludes our slides thank you miss Willoughby I'm gonna ask the school [01:49:17] board to hold their questions and ask via email. Okay, so with that, thank you for your presentations and for all that information, and we will move on to recessing our meeting, and the school board will now recess for dinner, and we convene in like 15 minutes, 6 30. School board's now on recess. [02:09:26] The board is now coming out of recess at this time. Thanks. We will continue with item eight, the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem. The Parkview High School Marching Patriots are a 10-time All-Virginia Honor Band. The Marching Patriots, under the direction of Claude LeGrand, have performed for many events such as home and away football games, band competitions, Sterling community events, Loudoun United soccer team, and have just recently been invited back [02:10:04] for a fourth time to perform the National Anthem for the NBA team, the Washington Wizards, on october 28th and if everybody would please stand for the pledge of allegiance and the national [02:10:17] anthem thank you so much i can see why y'all are going to be with the washington wizards that was [02:13:05] beautiful thank you so we will continue with item nine our student school board representative comment tonight our student school board representative is david olorunda from riverside [02:13:40] High School. David Olorunda is a senior at Riverside High School. He is the SCA president as well as a varsity swimmer. In addition to his activities at school, David is also a 4-H all-star and the founder and president of 4-H Young Professionals Club, where he interviews career professionals for his podcast. For the past four years, David has served as a junior business mentor for budding entrepreneurs with the Young Entrepreneurs Academies hosted by the [02:14:13] Loudoun County, Loudoun Chamber of Commerce. David also mentors youth as a junior coach with his community swimming team, the Belmont Sharks. In addition to school and his extracurricular activities, David works as a licensed lifeguard at local community pools. Upon graduation, David plans to attend college and pursue a degree in economics and business. Welcome, and the floor is yours. I appreciate the introduction. Good evening, members of the Loudoun County School Board. My name is David Olorunda. I'm a senior at Riverside High School. It's a pleasure to serve on the [02:14:51] Diocese Month, and I'm excited to represent my fellow peers at Riverside. Riverside just celebrated its 10-year anniversary and has truly embodied a decade of excellence. To commemorate this milestone, the Riverside PTSO is building a patio where students, faculty, and families can purchase and personalize a brick to add to the patio. Riverside is a school that encompasses excellence all throughout. It's evident in its academics, athletics, as well as fine arts. As an AP scholar recipient, a varsity athlete, and a member of the Riverside Jazz Ensemble, I can attest [02:15:26] that this excellence is exhibited throughout all departments at Riverside. I'll discuss a little bit more on that in a bit, but first I want to take this opportunity to congratulate and recognize our LCPS 2025 Principal of the Year, Riverside's very own Mr. Doug Anderson. The success we have at our school would not be possible without his dedication and leadership, so thank you Mr. Anderson. [02:15:54] Our school celebrated homecoming festivities during the week of September 15th. That included our spirit week with grade level competitions and close to 100% school participation. As SCA president, I had a pivotal role in planning our homecoming festivities, organizing Spirit Week, and emceeing our pep rally, which I can truly say, Riverside's spirit is unmatched. That school pride was evident on our Friday parade, our pep rally, our homecoming football game, in addition to a successful Saturday night homecoming dance to cap off the week. Moving to athletics, our state [02:16:28] champion girls 2024-2025 lacrosse team was recognized last month at our school's March of the Champions Parade. That added championship number 19 to our school's total in just 10 years. Riverside Decca planned a successful Goldout Spirit Week-themed game last month to raise awareness for childhood cancer. They look to replicate that success this week in the organization of our Pink Owl football game this Friday to raise money and awareness for breast cancer. [02:16:57] Both of these events have been a tradition at our school for the past decade, and we are excited to see what's to come. Pivoting to fine arts, coming off the heels of playing at the London New Year's Day parade last school year, our Riverside band hosted a county-wide band competition here at Riverside. In fact, our marching band will be playing at MetLife Stadium this Saturday. [02:17:19] Additionally, we had four students this year recognized for Allstate guitar and three orchestra students in regional orchestra. Riverside is home to driven and opportunistic students looking to succeed inside and out of the classroom. Riverside offers close to 40 AP and dual enrollment classes, many of which are unique to Riverside. For example, I'm a candidate for the class of 2026 AP Capstone Diploma, which is a unique opportunity that Riverside offers for students who take and [02:17:50] pass AP Research and AP Seminar exam, in addition to four other AP exams. Per 2025-2026 data, Riverside has a graduation rate of 98%, placing it in the top five of Loudoun County. [02:18:06] Riverside's graduating, students graduating from Riverside go to top universities all throughout the country, many of which include UVA, Virginia Tech, and even some Ivy League schools. The culture and excellence of Riverside is powered by hardworking, driven, and social students who build a strong community and are prepared to become the leaders of the next generation. [02:18:26] I'm proud to be a part of that community. Again, I want to thank you guys for your time, the opportunity to speak today. I'm excited to be here, and I hope you guys all enjoy your evening. Go Rams. Thank you, Mr. Oloranda, for being here and for your comments. [02:18:51] We'll now move on to item 10, the superintendent's report, which is presented by Dr. Aaron Spence, our superintendent. Dr. Spence. Yes, thank you, Madam Chair, and it's always my pleasure to share some good news from around the school division. First, I'd like to start with this. [02:19:08] Riverbend Middle School recently partnered with the LCPS English Learner Family and Community Engagement Teams and the Division of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility to host its first family feedback circle. More than 200 families attended this event to share their voices and help shape the future of the school. [02:19:24] Family feedback circles create a space for listening and learning, so Riverbend and other schools can build programs and support reflecting the strength of their diversity and their families. Next, Alfonso Nation, school security officer at Parkview High School, is this month's Shine Award winner. [02:19:40] Mr. Nation was nominated by fellow school security officer Stephen Santana, who shared that Mr. Nation reconfigured the entry area at Parkview High School to ensure a safer and more controlled process for entry. He also designed and built a standing desk and outfitted it with school maps and a directory so that student staff and visitors can quickly access essential information about the school. [02:20:02] His initiative reflects his commitment to safety and also his care for ensuring that everyone in the building feels informed and supported. Just a reminder that Shine is a joint Loudon Education Foundation and LCPS initiative that recognizes LCPS staff members who go above and beyond nomination forms are available on the division's website. [02:20:21] We are incredibly honored that our students, staff, family, and community have empowered LCPS to achieve the ranking of number four best school district in Virginia on Niche. Additionally, we will rank the number two best school district in Virginia for student-athletes. This is compared to approximately 130 other school divisions. [02:20:39] This recognition highlights our commitment to providing a world-class education, high-quality student support, an inclusive experience, and a rich variety of opportunities to help all students build their futures and achieve their dreams. Just a reminder that on Thursday, October the 16th, LCPS will proudly host the second annual 1LCPS Celebration Day, a division-wide event recognizing our incredible students, staff, and community members who continue to make LCPS shine. [02:21:05] To join the celebration, students and staff are encouraged to wear school colors, department shirts, or spirit wear, and show off their LCPS pride. Throughout the day, senior staff, division teams, and myself will visit schools to take pictures, share congratulations, and honor the heart of LCPS, our students and staff. [02:21:21] We can't wait to see your spirit. And then finally this evening, I'd like to highlight another event happening soon. On Friday, October the 24th, LCPS will host our second annual Workforce Summit. This half-day event brings together business leaders, educators, students, and community partners to strengthen connections between education and industry. [02:21:42] The summit will showcase innovative strategies and real-world partnerships that help prepare students for future careers, while highlighting the many ways partners can be involved with LCPS. From supporting career pathways to engaging families in the broader community, the summit demonstrates how workforce connections can be tailored to benefit both students and partners. [02:22:04] With a focus on collaboration and action, this event aims to inspire new partnerships, expand career readiness opportunities, and ensure our graduates are equipped for success in a rapidly changing world. And Madam Chair, that concludes my report. Thank you so much, Dr. Spence. [02:22:20] Okay, and that will bring us to our public comment. - Thank you for engaging with the school board through the public comment process. The school board welcomes comments from Loudoun County residents and believes that strong community engagement and outreach are important components of a successful school system. [02:22:40] Speakers must limit comments to the time allotted and 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 miss their time slot will not be called at a later time. All audience members shall maintain civility decorum and respect for the functioning and dignity of the school board at all times. [02:23:01] Please remain seated unless arriving, departing, speaking at the podium, or during a break. Shouting, heckling, jeering, applause, or other noise which disrupts or delays the meeting. Obstructing speakers from being able to see the school board and vice versa. [02:23:18] These are violations of civility, decorum, and respect. Interrupting speakers, attempting to speak when not called to do so by the chair, and approaching a speaker or otherwise attempting to intimidate, disparage, or distract a speaker, staff member, or other meeting attendees. [02:23:34] Speakers should refrain from vulgarity, obscenities, defamation, profanity, or other like breaches of respect, nor may speakers target, criticize, or attack individual students and or individual division employees during public comment. As a reminder, School Board Policy 2520 states speakers may not target, criticize, or attack individual students during public comment. [02:23:57] Speakers should communicate those concerns to their school principal or an appropriate school official. The school board requests that the comments on an individual student or employee related matter not be shared at public meetings where this closure could violate applicable confidentiality requirements. I do want to take a moment to clarify a few things. As I've explained previously, speakers can personally identify a student or employee without stating a student's or employees' names. That is, personally identifiable information is any information that a reasonable person can link together to pinpoint an individual student or employee, [02:24:34] and where that individual student or employee is known to others in their school and surrounding community based on the context that is shared. The school board welcomes you to share your concerns, but asks that, to the extent you have prepared remarks that target, criticize, or attack any individual students or employees, you generalize such remarks to ensure compliance with board policy. [02:24:57] For an example, comments that target, criticize, or attack a student, or an employee, or a student or an employee from a specific new name school, or a student or an employee with any characteristics where the information would personally identify that student or employee to others in the school or broader LCPS community would violate school board policy. However, comments that discuss general concerns with students or employees at schools and do not [02:25:33] target, criticize, or attack an individual identifiable student or employee are permissible. Under school board policy, I as a school board chair am charged with the responsibility to maintain order during school board meetings. Accordingly, when reasonable, I will warn of breaches of decorum, civility, and respect, and ask speakers to redirect their comments prior to possibly discontinuing individual speaking privileges or taking other actions to preserve the civility, decorum, and orderly conduct of the meeting. Such actions include calling a recess in [02:26:08] order to maintain and or restore order. If speakers fail to comply with board policy regarding public participation, you will receive a warning and request to redirect or generalize your comments. Should you fail to redirect or generalize your comments after that warning, you may be asked to yield the microphone, at which time you should yield the microphone, as well as the floor, and take your seat. [02:26:32] And I will then call the next speaker. To the extent necessary, I will also warn of breaches of decorum, civility, and respect from attendees prior to taking other actions to preserve the orderly conduct of the meeting. Speakers should face the dais and direct their comments to the school board. [02:26:49] For School Board Policy 2520, members of the school board will not answer questions or respond directly to the public during the public comment period. Violations of decorum or civility by any meeting attendee may result in the chair directing staff to remove the attendee from the remainder of the meeting. [02:27:06] Repeated or persistent violations of decorum or civility by the audience may result in, on the decision of the chair, public comment being tabled until a later point in the meeting's agenda, limiting the number of attendees in the meeting room during public comment for safety reasons or the public comment period ending for the evening. [02:27:26] Copies of materials for board members should be given to the public 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 dais. [02:27:42] The public is reminded that access to school board meetings is available through LCPS-TV on comcast channel 18 and 1070 hd and fios 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 will now start with our virtual public comment um one moment we have no virtual speakers in the room [02:28:20] tonight um okay well then we will move on to katie herbert good evening um a lot has happened since I was last here in the world of boys volleyball. [02:28:45] Oregon, just last week, sanctioned for the entire state boys volleyball, so that is amazing news. And in Loudoun County, we have almost completed all the phases that we need to go through to get boys volleyball sanctioned. The last hurdle is the budget. I'm here to request that you all vote to approve the budget for boys volleyball. [02:29:05] The cost is a drop in the bucket compared to everything else that we're doing in this county. But the opportunity that sanctioning this sport will provide to the boys in Lowndon County could be a tsunami. It will be amazing for these boys. So please vote to fund boys volleyball when the time comes. [02:29:21] And just a side note, my son, Kellen, who's an eighth grader at Eagle Ridge, was set to speak after me. He was sick from school today, so he can't be here. But he said, he just requests that you do the boys a solid and improve the budget when the time comes. It's an easy yes, guys. [02:29:37] Thank you. Thank you. I have to say I was looking forward to saying Kellen like Mellon and Herbert like Sherbert. That's how he said. I should pronounce his name. It was awesome. Okay, the next one is Hadley Sorensen, followed by Caden Sorensen. [02:30:00] Good evening. My name is Hadley Sorensen, and my son is a sophomore at Briar Woods. And I am here to reiterate the request for you all to approve boys volleyball in the budget for the 26-27 season. [02:30:17] My son has been playing volleyball for six years, and to play competitively, we travel to Fairfax County three nights a week. The options in Loudoun are just very limited for boys without having the sport here in our high schools. As Katie said, the sport is growing rapidly in popularity across the country, and with it now in our neighboring counties, it seems like Loudoun should get ahead of the curve. [02:30:40] Bringing it to our high schools here in Loudoun will make the sport more accessible and affordable for those who might not otherwise be able to play. And it would really mean a great deal to the students here who are passionate about the sport and want the opportunity to represent their high school. Thank you for your time and consideration. [02:30:59] Thank you. Caden Sorenson, followed by Peter Kwan. My name is Caden Sorenson. I'm a sophomore at Briarwoods High School. I want to ask the school board to approve the request to bring boys volleyball to our schools. [02:31:18] I've been playing for six years now, and I hope to continue playing in college. I have to go to Fairfax County to play competitively, and I'm the only player on my team who doesn't have a high school team, which puts me at a disadvantage. Boys volleyball is growing fast across the country, and it seems like Loudoun County should be a part of that. [02:31:37] There is more interest here. We have more than enough players to create a single varsity team in our high schools. Those of us who love the sport would really like to have a high school sports experience before we graduate. Thank you. Thank you. [02:31:54] Peter Kwan, followed by Jessica Owa. Good evening, members of the board. My name is Peter Kwan. [02:32:09] I'm a 10th grader at Light Ridge High School, and I'm here to ask for a boys volleyball team. Many of us already play, after school, in club teams, and on our own sometimes. But we don't have the chance to represent our school. Volleyball has taught me teamwork, discipline, and focus. It's built a community that's pushed me to grow on and off the court. [02:32:28] Just like with women's volleyball, men's volleyball is growing at a rapid pace. However, the ability for boys in Loudoun County to access this amazing sport is significantly hampered by the lack of a proper voice volleyball team within the school system. Unlike our neighboring Fairfax County, Loudoun County is not represented at all in the VHSL High School League. We need to fix this problem. We have the players, the passion, and the dedication, and all we need now is support from the school board. Thank you. [02:32:56] Thank you. Jessica Awuah, followed by Isabella Brodsky. Good evening. My name is Jessica Awuah, and I'm a junior at Broad Run. I'd first like to thank Miss Griffiths and Dr. Spence for helping reach out to our student population and helping us advocate. However, there are still critical issues that need to be resolved for a theater program. [02:33:23] For example, we often have to move our large set pieces into the small wings when other departments, such as the band, need to use the stage. Our backstage area was already quite small, but with the added set pieces, it becomes almost impossible to move around. Not only is this inconvenient, but it poses safety hazards such as tripping, which has happened many times before and could cause injury. While there are plans for Broad Run to be rebuilt in six years, these issues are not something that can wait for such a long time. [02:33:46] To safeguard the students, we need to take steps to resolve these now. Please consider funding to improve Broad Run's theater facilities. Thank you. Thank you. Allie, oh, sorry, Isabella Brodsky, followed by Allie Kelly. [02:34:06] Hi, my name is Isabella. I'm a senior at Broad Run High School. The past school year, I worked on painting sets for our theater productions. Since there's little space to work inside, we did a lot of the painting outside. One of my concerns about that was how we could only work by the sidewalk and the road, and oftentimes people on the sidewalk would look at us. [02:34:26] There was one instance of a stranger walking up to the school and staring at us, a group of students, until we had to move because we felt unsafe. And that's not the only time theater students have had problems with strangers outside. That's why we're hoping for implementation of a closed-off workspace for the Broadbent Theater Department to use. [02:34:42] I'd also like to thank Ms. Griffiths for advocating for us before, and thank you to everyone for listening. Thank you, Allie Kelly, followed by Tripura Gunty. Thank you, Ms. Griffiths. [02:35:08] - For your continued support of our theater department, I am Ali Kelly, I'm the stage manager for our school. And while I understand there are plans to rebuild Broad Run in six years, we as students are facing issues now. We face safety issues related to a lack of storage, emergency lights and signs that don't always turn on, strangers approaching us outside and more. [02:35:26] We want to spend our time learning, not worrying about the lack of a PA system or sprinklers in our wood room, not worrying about safety in our workspace outside. Currently we have to store our set in the wings, making them a hazard to walk through. and we will soon need to move additional parts into the set into our classroom. [02:35:42] I appreciate the plans to rebuild Broad Run, but current and future students need help now. My 12-year-old sister won't even get to experience the benefits of your plan, and our theater will only face more issues. Please continue to follow your goal of working to empower students by giving us the space to learn, grow, and exceed. [02:35:59] - Thank you. Tripura Ganti, followed by Amug Ganti. - Good evening. As a parent of two sons who love volleyball, I urge you to add boys volleyball to our Loudoun County Schools. [02:36:18] Right now, we travel far to join clubs just so my boys and many others can play. Volleyball is a fast-growing sport that builds teamwork, athleticism, and confidence. It brings students together, strengthen school spirit, and teaches skills valuable both on and off-court. [02:36:33] Volleyball has taught them how to work together, overcome challenges, and make lasting friendships. By offering boys volleyball locally, we make the game accessible for all, keep families invested in our schools, and give our boys a chance to compete and belong. Please consider making this opportunity available to all the boys who are passionate about volleyball. [02:36:51] Thank you for listening and supporting our kids. Thank you. Amog Ganti, followed by Karthik Ganti. Hello, my name is Amog Ganti, and I'm a 7th grader at Willard Mill School. [02:37:13] I started to play volleyball around this time last year, and I've loved the sport since. The commute is very tough. We have to drive a minimum of 40 minutes to get to any volleyball club or academy. I never understood why there are girl volleyball teams and opportunities, boys volleyball is not offered even in the clubs or academies they're very few and very far boys should be given the opportunities to play volleyball in high school because it gives scholars like me the chance to play locally and also potentially train for a team in college or even compete to get a scholarship in addition I also want to advocate for flag football although both these [02:37:49] sports are now in Fairfax County many kids like me are not allowed to quite tackle as their parents worry. It's a rough sport. This will give kids like me the chance to enjoy the sport that they love and be safe. Please add boys volleyball and flag football in all Loudoun County. Thank you. [02:38:06] Thank you. Karthik Gunty followed by Yanis Balasas. Hello my name is Karthik Gunty and I'm a freshman at Light Ridge High School. I've been playing volleyball for around three years. Since Loudoun County does not have a boys travel or boys team, I have to travel an hour to get a practice every day. This is a struggle for my parents and me. As soon as I get home, I have to leave. I think it's unfair that boys don't have the opportunity to play on a club and in school like girls do in [02:38:42] boys in other counties like Fairfax. So please approve the funding for boys volleyball in Loudoun County. Thank you. Thank you. Giannis Balas followed by Kevin Loganathan. Hello. My name is Gianni Balas and I'm a junior at Broad Run High School. I am here again today to discuss our theater department's woodroom, safety, space, and utility problems. [02:39:17] The room's extremely small size and limited storage space causes many logistical and safety concerns when working. As a member of set crew, we and paint crew are often forced to work outside as the woodroom does not provide sufficient space. With actors working on stage, it is not an option to work on stage. [02:39:33] Our outside space is also limited, as most of it is grass with little sidewalk, which is uneven and unlevel. We are constantly moving large set pieces outside to be built and painted. which is very difficult due to the small size of the woodroom and the doors. [02:39:48] The same issue occurs when moving things on stage. The room also has no sprinkler system, fire alarm, or PA system. It has insufficient HVAC, ventilation, and electrical capacity. We understand that a full woodroom expansion is probably not in the cards for us, but we ask that you please renovate our woodroom and build a paved fencing area for us to work outside, because while there may be long-term renovations for Broad Run... [02:40:09] Thank you. Kevin Loganathan, followed by Serena Vimani. [02:40:27] No, Kevin. or cabin serena firmani followed by james montgomery no serena james montgomery followed [02:40:48] by jack wright jack wright followed by phil woodis no jack wright okay phil i'm sorry phil woodis followed by chris countryman hi good evening i'm concerned about planned changes to special [02:41:27] permissions policy 8155 there was a first meeting of the student service committee in this building last Thursday, chaired by Anne Donoghue. A second meeting will take place this Thursday at 4.30pm where the committee plan actionable changes to bring to the full board on October the 28th. [02:41:48] Special permissions can be used for good to offer parental choice or alleviate pain caused by rezoning, but this board uses it to rigidly enforce assigned home schools. Policy 8155 also discriminates against special ed students without specifically referring to them. It discriminates against my son with ADHD, a condition that impacts lots of our students in the post-COVID and AI tech era. I plan to expand on these comments this Thursday. The system is fundamentally flawed, [02:42:22] and I hope others will advocate my point. Thank you, Chris Countryman, followed by Anjali Viramanini. Good evening. As Ms. Bolland shared earlier today, October 1st triggered automatic impasse in collective bargaining. And it's easy to fall into the mindset that LEA and LCPS are adversaries, but we are not. We are different pieces of the same puzzle, working to get toward [02:42:56] a shared goal, a strong, thriving Loudoun County public school system. I represent the dedicated employees who are the heart of LCPS, delivering essential services to our students every day. Our voices deserve to be heard, and our expertise must be valued. [02:43:16] Ms. Countrywoman, could you wait one second? It doesn't look like the clock is working. I mean, we can hear you loud and clear. But can we just give her 45 seconds, pretty please? [02:43:35] 42. That works. I represent the dedicated employees who are at the heart of LCPS, delivering essential services to our students every day. Our voices deserve to be heard, and our expertise must be valued. We need more than praise and decorative coins. [02:43:52] We need manageable workloads and living wages. One full-time job should be enough. We are partners in delivering the outstanding educational experience that Loudoun families expect and deserve. We are calling for contracts that reflect this partnership and the values of an employer of choice. [02:44:10] Thank you. Thank you. I'm sorry for butchering your name. I really do try. Can you say it for me? [02:44:30] Anjali Virmaneni. Thank you. Good evening, members of the board. My name is Anjali Virmaneni, and I'm a student who's involved in the Broadfront Theater Department. Firstly, I want to thank Ms. Griffiths for advocating to get our department new developments like our wood rooms locked doors. We really appreciate it. [02:44:46] Theater provides incredible opportunities for students to learn teamwork, creativity, and technical skills. However, some of the spaces where we work are not as safe or secure as they could be. We often build and paint sets outdoors and in open areas, and at times, people from outside the school approach us while we're working. [02:45:05] This makes many of us feel unsafe. We respectfully ask that the school board could consider ways to improve the safety and security of our theater workspaces so we can focus on learning in a protected environment. Thank you very much for your time and consideration. Thank you, Ms. Bernini, followed by Hannah Visser, followed by Kaylee Von Cleek. [02:45:25] Kaylee Von Cleek, followed by Katie Hudson. Good evening. [02:45:43] I'm speaking for Hannah Visser, who serves as the president of Broad Arms International Thesmene Society. I'm here today to emphasize the need for immediate action towards creating equitable spaces for our fine arts program within our school. While we acknowledge and appreciate potential commitment to future reconstruction of our school, we must also realize that such developments could take many years to realize. [02:46:01] In the meantime, students in the arts are expected to create, rehearse, and perform in spaces that are often inadequate and outdated compared to other programs, such as our small woodroom. Students such as myself will graduate without seeing any done help to our spaces. We must begin to address the resources and facilities currently available. [02:46:18] Our students deserve environments and spaces that reflect the value of their work, not years from now, but today. Thank you. - Thank you. I just want to reiterate that it needs to be the person who signed up, who's speaking for. I know that it's just our policy and our rules. [02:46:43] Okay, Katie Hudson. Hello, members of the school board. This is my fourth time coming to you all in the past two years for the exact same issue. So I didn't come with a speech because I'm just going to speak from the heart here. [02:47:01] I'm very appreciative of Ms. Griffiths for constantly advocating for broad runs, theater spaces, as well as Ms. Chernoff for listening to me. And Dr. Spence, it's amazing that you came to our students and let them tell you what they find important. There's nothing I can say more that my amazing students behind me haven't already said. [02:47:19] They deserve a safe place to create. They deserve to know that their school members and school board care about their education in theatrical arts. There is a reason. They are the ones who organize us coming here. They are the ones who work on meetings to know what to say to you, to come and approach, And please reward that experience with paying attention to the needs. [02:47:40] I have told so many stories, far and few between, about the absolute safety dangers that we face on a day-to-day basis. And these kids deserve an investment in their education. Thank you. Thank you. And thank you all for coming out today and providing your public comment. [02:47:56] Board members, typically we would be able to go and take a recess. But I think we should just go ahead and continue on. Is that all right? We have two action items. [02:48:29] Okay, so our first is 12.01 Finance and Operations Committee RFP R25310 Construction Support Services Renewal presented by Mr. Streffi, Chair of Finance and Operations Committee. Mr. Streffi, do you have a motion? [02:48:45] Yes, thank you, Madam Chair. I move that the Loudoun County School Board renews RFP R25301 Construction Support Services effective November 1st, 2025 through October 31st, 2026. I have a motion. Do I have a second? [02:49:02] Second. I have a second by Dr. Rasheed. It's been properly moved and seconded. Mr. Straffi, would you like to speak to your motion real quick? Sure. So this is an RFP contract valued at $600,000, and it is for construction consulting services. [02:49:22] There are some time constraints with this item, with the award being November 1st, and the RFP allowed for multiple awards with the option to renew for three additional one-year terms. So that's about all the context I have. [02:49:38] Thank you, Mr. Streffi. Is there any discussion? Yes, Mrs. Griffiths. Thank you, Madam Chair. I would like to continue my disclosure regarding this item. In addition, this evening I will be voluntarily abstaining from my vote on the consent, not the consent agenda, on an item moved from the consent agenda. [02:50:02] I am employed by a business associated with a contract that is proposed for award by the board that was on the consent agenda today. And as a result, I have a personal interest in the transaction. The clerk will please note my absent tension and reason in the record today and in the record at any future meeting where the board discusses or considers this matter. [02:50:25] So I'm abstaining from this vote today. Thank you. Thank you, Mrs. Griffiths. Any other discussion? Okay, board members, we're going to have to old school it. We have no boarding that's not working right now. All right. [02:50:41] Uncharted territory, old school. All right. So, board members, all in favor, please say aye and a thumbs up so I can get a count. Aye. [02:50:58] Okay, that is Ms. LaBelle, Dr. Rasheed, Ms. Chernoff, Mr. Streffy, Vice Chair, Donahue. Gosh, I'm not thinking today. Dr. Deans, and Ms. Chandler, and that is unanimous with Mrs. Griffiths abstaining from the vote. [02:51:21] All right. We will continue with 12.01, Legislative Audit and Policy Committee, Deletion of Policy 2320, School Health Advisory Board, presented by Ms. April Chandler, Chair, Legislative Audit and Policy Committee. [02:51:39] Do I have a motion, Ms. Chandler? Yes, thank you, Madam Chair. I move that the Loudoun County School Board delete policy 2320 School Health Advisory Board. Second. I haven't even asked yet. I have a motion by Ms. Chandler. [02:51:59] I have a second by Vice Chair Donahue. It's been properly moved and seconded. Ms. Chandler, would you quickly like to speak to your motion? Yes, I promise to be very quick. This really is a housekeeping matter. As the primary points that were encapsulated in the original policy 2320 on the school health advisory board have now been incorporated into policy 2310, the committees of the school board. [02:52:25] Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Chandler. Is there any other discussion? No, seeing none. Okay, so it's been probably moved a second. We will move forward with the vote. All in favor, say aye and raise your thumb. Aye. That motion passed unanimously with Ms. LaBelle, Dr. Rasheed, Ms. Chernoff, Mr. [02:52:45] Streffy, Vice Chair Donahue, Chair Mansfield, Dr. Deans, Ms. Chandler, and I think I saw Mrs. Griffiths with her thumb up. Yes. Unanimous. All right. We will continue with information item 13.01, Curriculum and Instruction Committee, New Policy 5440, Division-Wide Literacy Plan, presented by Ms. Chernoff, Chair, Curriculum and Instruction Committee. Thank you, Madam Chair. [02:53:13] policy 5440 literacy plan went through the CNI committee it's a new policy it went through the CNI committee early in the spring in April and then it did come to the full board previously back in June it was decided that it would be better for the language to be updated to more closely aligned with the Virginia Literacy Act and provide more consistency between the policy and the literacy plan and so that happened on June 10th and now we have voted it back to the full board after reviewing it in committee and I will ask Mr. Slevin to elaborate on the details. Thank you, Ms. Chernoff. No elaboration needed. You [02:53:52] captured the spirit of the updates and I'm available to answer any questions the board may have. Mr. Slevin, board members, do you have any discussion? I just want to thank everybody and Mr. Slevin and Ms. Chernoff and the members of the committee for kindly relooking at the policy and better aligning it with the virginia literacy act it was very kind of you to to go forward with that request okay any other questions nope thank you mr. seven yeah can we go ahead and put that on consent for the october [02:54:28] 28th school we're meeting yes for consent okay that's unanimous it'll go on consent okay we'll move on to item 14 our closed meeting vice chair donahue do you have a motion yes madam chair one please it's not expecting us to get to this point quite this promptly I to this point mr. not to this point all right yes thank you madam chair I move that the Loudoun County School Board recess this public meeting and enter into a closed meeting pursuant to section 2.2 - 3712 of the Code of Virginia for the following consultation with legal counsel pertaining to actual litigation where [02:55:07] such consultation or briefing in open meeting would adversely affect the negotiating or litigating posture of the public body as authorized by section 2.2-3711 sub a sub seven of the code of virginia and consultation with legal counsel employed or retained by a public body regarding a specific legal matter related to a former public employee as authorized by section 2.2-3711 sub a sub eight of the code of virginia vice chair donahue has made a motion to have a second second i have a second by miss shirnoff it's been properly moved and seconded the loudon county school board going to close session is there any discussion seeing none we [02:55:45] will go ahead and take our old school vote all in flavor raise your hand and say aye aye that vote passes unanimously with miss labelle um dr rasheed mishernoff mr astreffy vice chair donahue chair mansfield dr deans miss chandler and mrs griffiths in favor of the vote okay the board is now in [02:56:09] closed session. [04:02:06] Okay, the board is now coming out of the closed meeting. Vice Chair Donohue, do you have a motion? Yes, thank you, Madam Chair. I move that the closed meeting be adjourned, that the Loudoun County School Board reconvene its public meeting, and that the minutes of the public meeting reflected no formal action was taken in the closed meeting. Vice Chair Donohue has made a motion to adjourn the closed meeting. Do I have a second? Second. I have a second by Ms. [04:02:28] Chandler. It's been properly moved and seconded that the Loudoun County School Board adjourned the closed meeting. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, we will ahead with the vote clerk please open the vote board members please it is back please record your vote clerk please close and display the vote that motion passes unanimously um vice chair donahue do you have another motion yes thank you madam chair i move that the following resolution certifying the closed meeting be adopted and reflected in the minutes of this public meeting [04:03:07] resolution number one three dash two five slash two six whereas the loudon county school board has convened a closed meeting on this date pursuant to an affirmative recorded vote and in accordance with the provisions of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act and whereas section 2.2 - 3 7 1 2 sub D of the Code of Virginia requires a certification by the school board that such closed meeting was conducted in conformity with Virginia law now therefore be it resolved that the Loudoun County School Board hereby certifies that to the best of each member's knowledge one only public business matters lawfully exempted from open meeting requirements by Virginia law were discussed in the closed meeting to which the certification applies and two only such public business matters as were identified [04:03:47] in the motion convening the closed meeting were heard discussed or considered by the Loudoun County School Board. I have a motion by Vice Chair Donahue. Do I have a second? Second. I have a second by Ms. Chernoff. It's been properly moved and seconded to certify the closed meeting. Is there any discussion? Seeing none we'll go ahead and take an electronic vote. Clerk please open the vote. [04:04:09] Board members, please record your vote. Clerk, please close and display the vote. That motion passes unanimously. Moving on to item 15, board members comment and committee reports, three minutes each. Would you guys would like to do your three minutes? [04:04:31] Okay. All right. Vice Chair Donahue, three minutes. Thank you, Madam Chair. Our next student services committee meeting is this Thursday at 430, and we are looking at additional revisions to policy 8155. [04:04:49] Which is titled the school assignment policy and does contain the procedures for a special permission Also, the LE the Loudoun Education Foundation's annual golf classic is on the 24th, right? No Monday 27th is on the 27th And that is one of their biggest fundraisers of the year so encourage people to To support that and and promote it and and in general support LEF and help them support our schools Thank you. Thank you, Vice Chair Donahue. [04:05:24] Any other, Mrs., oh wait, did you want to go? Did you want to go? Yes, please. Okay. I skipped you because I didn't think you wanted to go. Yeah, I know, but I'm full of wonders. Okay, Dr. Rasheed. Thank you, Chair. Thank you, Chair. All right. [04:05:41] At last week's special programs and centers committee meeting, we received an important update about the dual language immersion program for elementary school students. The DLI program at Sanders Corner Elementary will remain as is at this time, for upcoming kindergarten students from throughout the county to apply. [04:05:59] However, the program at Potomac Elementary will shift to a school priority model to prevent school over-enrollment. This means that going forward the only students from outside the attendance zone who can enroll are those currently in the DLI program and their younger siblings. Beyond that, only students within the Potomac attendance zone can apply. Affected families were notified in September. So to maintain program availability, LCPS is now looking for another elementary school where DLI can be offered as school priority initially if capacity allows then enrollment can be offered to students outside the attendance zone this is a lot of information and you can visit my social media for a written review of these details further [04:06:39] information will come from LCPS as plans develop thank you thank you Dr. Rashid um Vice Chair Donohue just real quick I wanted to for the specials uh for the student services committee There's not going to be a vote on this school assignment, correct? [04:06:57] It's not going to action. That is correct, Madam Chair. At our last meeting, which was last week, we had anticipated putting 8155 on for action this coming week. However, we are not going to be doing that. [04:07:12] It will be on for information again this week and hopefully on for action at our meeting in November. Thank you, Vice Chair Donohue. Dr. Deans, do you have anything? Ms. Chandler. Mrs. Griffiths. Thank you, Madam Chair. First off, I wanted to thank the Broad Run Theater for coming to the board again tonight. [04:07:32] They're not getting the renovations they need, so I wanted to start off there. I also wanted to take a moment to share comments I wasn't able to express at our September meeting. You know, the tragic assassination of Charlie Kirk was a sobering reminder of the dangers of hostility and division in public life. [04:07:53] Despite misinformation, Mr. Kirk stood for dialogue and keeping conversation alive. Since September 10th, Delegate Geary Higgins and Congressman Suhas have also faced threats, along with recent inflammatory rhetoric from a candidate running for attorney general. [04:08:11] This cannot continue. As a mom and school board member, I believe our responsibility extends beyond academics. We must prepare young people to participate in democracy by modeling respect, dialogue, and empathy when we disagree. [04:08:29] So with that, violence, intimidation, and personal attacks have no place in civic life. They silence voices, deepen divides, and threaten our shared values. The loss of Charlie Kirk reminds us all to recommit to civility. I also was deeply moved watching the release of the hostages and seeing them reunite with their loved ones this week. [04:08:49] It was a powerful reminder of precious life. The resilience of human spirit and the hope that endures even in our darkest moments. I am equally encouraged that Columbus Day has been restored, a recognition of our history and the spirit of exploration that built this nation. [04:09:06] It's an opportunity to teach our students about courage and discovery. So with that, I will continue to emphasize that disagreement can be expressed constructively and that every student deserves to learn in this democracy with dialogue. [04:09:24] I'm also hoping, as far as our students are concerned, they will take this time to maybe consider forming chapters of Turning Point USA throughout our high schools. That would be fantastic. That would keep the dialogue going because we really do need to have dialogue. [04:09:44] it's very important that we have civility and we teach our students that having conversation is very important so that's all i wanted to mention i didn't get to mention it last month thank you thank you mrs griffiths uh we'll move on to item 16 new business board members do you have any new business seeing none we'll move on to item 17 adjournment um seeing as there no more business the october 14 2025 loudon county school board meeting is now adjourned please drive safely home. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Coraggio Consulting ยท aguyonx.com