Updates on the Fight for Quality Public Education in Brevard County, FL
0:00 (upbeat music)
12:45 - Good evening.
12:46 I’m happy to welcome all of my fellow board members
12:48 and call the August 11th, 2020 school board meeting to order.
12:51 We continue to modify meeting processes
12:53 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
12:56 Public attendance is permitted on a limited basis,
12:58 allowing for 30 persons in addition to staff
13:00 and board members to be present.
13:02 Persons wishing to make public comments
13:05 are able to make them in person
13:06 or were able to make recorded comments.
13:09 Ms. Escobar, roll call, please.
13:13 - Mrs. Belford.
13:14 - Present.
13:15 - Ms. McDougall.
13:16 - Present.
13:17 - Mrs. Deskevich.
13:18 - Present.
13:19 - Mr. Susan.
13:20 - Present.
13:21 - And Mrs. Campbell.
13:21 - Present.
13:23 - The board will now hold a moment of silent reflection
13:26 in memory of one of our BPS family members
13:28 who recently passed away.
13:30 Eugene Binderup, better known as Jeep,
13:32 a teacher from Challenger 7 Elementary.
13:39 (silence)
13:50 Thank you.
13:52 Please join us for the Pledge of Allegiance.
13:57 - Pledge allegiance to the flag
13:59 of the United States of America
14:02 and to the republic for which it stands,
14:04 one nation under God, indivisible,
14:08 with liberty and justice for all.
14:15 - At this time, I would like to offer
14:16 my fellow board members and Dr. Mullins
14:18 the opportunity to recognize students, staff,
14:20 or members of the community.
14:23 Who would like to start us off this evening?
14:25 - I can.
14:26 - Ms. McDougall.
14:28 - I only have two.
14:29 First, I wanna give a big shout out to Principal Reed
14:32 at Endeavor for becoming Teacher of the Year.
14:35 So yay for Principal Reed.
14:40 (clapping)
14:42 And then I also wanna give a shout out
14:43 to another one of my principals at Saturn.
14:47 Ms. Corey Hurst, am I saying her name right?
14:51 Hurst, because she’s very creative
14:54 and she has gone out of her way to register our students.
14:59 Sometimes it’s difficult for our parents
15:01 to get to that school.
15:02 So she was creative enough to go to the local park
15:05 and meet them where they are.
15:08 So shout out to Ms. Hurst, so thank you.
15:12 - Thank you, Ms. McDougall.
15:14 Ms. Duskovich.
15:15 - Sure, of course, we wanna thank all of our administrators
15:18 and school-based teams for getting the schools ready
15:22 and all the facilities teams and getting our schools ready
15:25 for teachers to come back yesterday.
15:27 And we want to welcome back all of our teachers.
15:29 - Ms. Duskovich, can you get friendly with your mic please?
15:32 - Yeah, closer, like really close.
15:36 We want to welcome back all of our teachers.
15:38 Is that better?
15:39 Okay, to their first day back yesterday,
15:42 I know that things were a little crazy
15:43 and definitely very different,
15:45 but feedback so far has been good, at least what I’ve heard.
15:48 So hopefully we’ll continue on that path.
15:51 I also wanna thank Brevard Schools Foundation.
15:53 I know a few of us on Saturday
15:57 went up to Clear Lake Middle School
16:00 or Clear Lake Adult Education Center
16:02 for their annual backpack giveaway.
16:04 Ms. Campbell and Ms. Belford were on the same team,
16:10 were on one of the food services teams.
16:12 And we wanna thank Farm Share Florida.
16:14 They donated 42,000 pounds of fruits and vegetables
16:17 that we were able to, I mean, just huge boxes
16:19 of fresh peaches and all kinds of fruits and vegetables.
16:22 We were able to place in people’s trunks
16:24 and they gave away 2,000 backpacks,
16:25 Brevard Schools Foundation did, and some school supplies.
16:28 So it was a fun day and they had to do it
16:31 completely different than any other year.
16:32 It had to be a drive through this time
16:34 where we were all outside
16:37 distributing the food and the supplies.
16:39 So they did an excellent job.
16:40 It was very well organized
16:41 and we just wanna give them a huge thank you.
16:45 - Awesome, thank you.
16:47 Ms. Campbell.
16:49 - All right, so I also wanna thank Brevard Schools Foundation
16:53 and also the partners in addition to Farm Share,
16:56 I know Parish Health and the Highland Mint
16:59 and so many partners who provided the supplies
17:03 and the backpacks and everything that they always do,
17:05 but just did a great job supporting our students
17:09 and the schools foundation.
17:10 Another backpack giveaway happened this Saturday before,
17:14 one of our great partners down in the south end,
17:17 Center Point Church, who does a huge backpack event
17:20 and they weren’t able to have their traditional,
17:24 with the medical checks and haircuts
17:26 and balloons and popcorn and hot dogs,
17:29 but they even on the first,
17:32 when we were all getting ready
17:33 for what might’ve been a hurricane,
17:34 turned out to be just a little windy day.
17:37 They were there on Saturday morning,
17:39 giving an uncertainty,
17:40 providing backpacks and school supplies
17:43 to the community down there
17:45 and from the pictures that I saw,
17:46 they had a great turnout.
17:47 So thank you, Center Point Church.
17:50 So yesterday as opening day,
17:54 as I like to call it,
17:56 got to spend the morning at Southwest Middle School
17:58 and thank you to Mr. Shaw and all their team
18:01 for a great kickoff for our teachers
18:03 as they came together for a few hours
18:06 before they are gonna do the rest of their prep time,
18:09 mostly via Skype or Zoom,
18:13 but it was a great opening day.
18:15 And also to our new teachers in the district,
18:20 I had a little year old moment last night
18:23 when I realized that a young man
18:25 who was in the third grade when we moved to Brevard
18:29 in a summer music camp that I worked at
18:31 is actually the new music teacher at Columbia Elementary.
18:34 So just had a little year old moment yesterday,
18:39 but just so thankful for all our new,
18:42 brand new to teaching and brand new to Brevard,
18:46 teachers who have joined our team this year
18:48 and excited for what you’re going to bring to the district.
18:54 - Ms. Fuscovich. - Sorry,
18:55 I forgot two very important people.
18:58 This evening we’ll be appointing
18:59 to the City of Satellite Beach Planning Board,
19:02 Melissa Christiansen,
19:02 who has volunteered to serve her time in that capacity
19:05 and Erin Shuck to the Indian Harbor Beach Planning Board.
19:08 So I wanna thank both of them
19:09 for giving their time and service, thanks.
19:12 - Super, Mr. Susan.
19:14 - Yeah, so I don’t have an individual to talk about tonight.
19:20 I wanted to talk about what I’m gonna call my heroes
19:22 and I drive around.
19:25 I’ve been to New Smyrna,
19:26 I’ve been all over the place over the last couple of weeks
19:28 and just taking the kids to beaches and stuff like that.
19:31 And I see these little signs that say,
19:33 “Our heroes, first responders,” right?
19:35 And it’s got nurses, doctors, that stuff,
19:39 but no teachers, no custodians, no any of that.
19:43 So, you know, when I look at our custodians
19:47 who have worked all summer to make sure
19:51 that when these teachers come back,
19:52 we’re prepared and ready
19:53 and they’re getting ready to go through though,
19:55 those are my heroes.
19:56 When I look at the lunch teams that have fed these people
19:58 all summer long and they’re getting ready to feed
20:01 tens of thousands of kids coming in,
20:03 socially distanced, everything else,
20:05 half the staff in some cases, they’re my heroes.
20:08 You know what I mean?
20:10 The bus drivers who are getting ready
20:12 to get the kids on the bus,
20:13 try to force them to wear a mask if appropriate,
20:16 try to get them on there, try to get them off,
20:18 socially distanced, they’re our heroes, you know?
20:21 And I don’t think people sit there
20:23 and they put a lot of, you know, nurses are great,
20:26 everybody else is great,
20:27 but nobody’s sitting in a room on a bus with 40 kids
20:30 or 20 kids in a room with 18, 15, 20 kids all day long.
20:35 And we’re about to do something that nobody else has done,
20:38 nobody, nobody has ever fathomed what we’re about to do.
20:42 And we’re going and plowing headfirst right into it
20:44 to make it happen.
20:45 And these are my heroes.
20:47 Like, I don’t care what anybody says,
20:49 I thought about just trying to go scrounge up some money
20:51 and make some signs and go put them out
20:52 in front of people’s houses,
20:53 ‘cause I appreciate them so much.
20:55 And you know, the support staff and the teachers
20:58 and the administration, I mean,
20:59 these guys are trying to pull together
21:01 and be positive with our teachers,
21:03 trying to be as positive as possible
21:04 in an environment that’s very difficult for everybody.
21:07 And so these are my people and these are my heroes.
21:10 And I wanted to say thank you to them today.
21:12 Not one individual, but all together as one, and I’m ready.
21:16 I’m ready to do what we’re about to do.
21:18 And we are a team in Brevard.
21:19 And this calls out for all of the other churches
21:22 and all of the businesses
21:24 and everybody that’s been sitting back and everything else.
21:26 We need your help too.
21:27 And it’s time, so let’s go.
21:30 All right, I’m done, sorry.
21:31 I’m gonna keep going if you let me keep the time.
21:33 - Thank you, Mr. Susan.
21:36 Dr. Mullen.
21:39 - Thank you, Ms. Belford.
21:40 Thank you, Mr. Susan, for those acknowledgements
21:43 of the team across our great district.
21:45 - The GIs are my heroes too sometimes.
21:48 (laughing)
21:50 - I would like to look back just to acknowledge
21:54 some schools, administrators particularly,
21:57 who hosted our GEAR summer program,
22:03 which I’m not gonna remember
22:05 what the acronym GEAR stands for,
22:06 but it was the governor’s,
22:09 it was a rather late announcement
22:10 that he was providing funding
22:12 for an extended summer enrichment instructional program
22:15 for some of our youngest learners
22:17 and for fourth and fifth graders in certain situations.
22:22 So we had 13 schools step up
22:26 and provide summer enriched learning opportunities
22:30 for a few hundred of our students.
22:33 Atlantis Elementary School, Principal Jennifer Clark,
22:36 Cape View Elementary, Principal Jill Keen,
22:40 Cocina Elementary, Principal Blair Lovelace,
22:44 Discovery Elementary, Principal Carrie Castillo,
22:48 Endeavor Elementary, Principal Chris Reed,
22:51 Golf View, Principal Maggie Rassl,
22:54 Harbor City Elementary, Principal Joy Salomone,
22:58 Mila Elementary, Principal Donna O’Brien,
23:02 Mims Elementary, Principal Cheryl Haskin,
23:06 Palm Bay Elementary, Principal Michael Mall,
23:10 Saturn Elementary, Principal Corey Hurst,
23:13 Sherwood Elementary, Principal Sandra Marinas,
23:18 and Turner Elementary, Principal Ashley Toll.
23:21 And nearly every one of those principals
23:24 were also hosting our summer feeding program,
23:27 so we had students and individuals
23:29 coming through our schools,
23:31 families coming in and receiving breakfast and lunches
23:35 like we did during the spring session
23:40 and earlier in the summer.
23:41 So just in addition to preparing for buildings
23:44 for our amazing teachers returning yesterday
23:48 and all of the other summer obligations and responsibilities.
23:52 - Heroes. - Absolutely heroes.
23:54 So I wanted to give the shout out
23:55 to those principals as well, thank you.
23:58 - Thank you, Dr. Mullins.
24:02 So the Brevard Schools Foundation event this weekend
24:05 was mentioned, but I wanted to call out an individual.
24:10 She is actually one of our Madison teachers
24:13 and her name is Sarah Ray.
24:15 And she started a group on Facebook
24:17 called Masks for Students Brevard a while back.
24:21 And they started gathering up masks
24:22 and they partnered with Brevard mask makers,
24:26 just totally an organic movement to make sure
24:29 that our kids had masks in schools.
24:33 And so they were able to,
24:35 I don’t know how many volunteers took part in this,
24:37 but they provided 2,500 masks
24:40 to the Brevard Schools Foundation to give out
24:42 during their back to school giveaway this weekend.
24:44 In addition to that, they have provided over 600 masks
24:48 to our North and Central area schools,
24:51 just going and dropping masks off at the school
24:53 along with their contact information.
24:55 So if the school needs more masks,
24:56 they can contact them to get them.
24:58 And so I just thought that was really awesome
25:00 that speaking of our teachers and our heroes,
25:06 not only are they doing great things in the classroom,
25:07 working really hard to make sure
25:09 that they are ready for our students to return,
25:12 but I know for a fact that a lot of the people
25:14 that have been a part of this mask effort
25:16 are representatives from different areas of our schools too.
25:19 So many thanks to them for doing all of that.
25:23 And then I just wanna give a huge shout out
25:27 to Suhan and Russell Cheatham
25:31 and Robin Novelli and our security team.
25:35 If you were not with us for our two o’clock workshop today,
25:39 they did a presentation about our sales surtax,
25:42 our first sales surtax,
25:45 as well as the importance of a second sales surtax
25:47 to the district and where those dollars will be going.
25:50 And they’ve done a phenomenal job
25:52 of laying out all of the different aspects
25:56 of the very detailed data oriented assessments
26:00 that have been done in the district
26:01 to really steer where we need to go.
26:03 And so thank you to all of you for your hard work on that
26:05 and to our public, please go back and watch that.
26:08 It’s available online.
26:10 Lots of great information that I think is important
26:12 to our community to understand exactly
26:16 what that sales surtax means for our district.
26:20 And with that, we will move to the adoption of the agenda.
26:27 Dr. Mohan.
26:29 - Ms. Belford and members of the board on tonight’s agenda,
26:31 we have administrative staff recommendations,
26:33 12 consent items, four action items,
26:37 and three information items.
26:38 The changes made to the agenda since being released
26:40 to the public in August four are as follows.
26:43 Item A7 on administrative staff recommendations
26:47 and G21 on emergency rule policy
26:49 regarding face coverings were revised.
26:52 Items F14 on coronavirus aid, relief and economic security,
26:57 CARES Act, G22 amendment to school reopening plan,
27:01 face coverings, H25 adult education and family literacy,
27:06 integrated English literacy and civics education grant
27:09 for the 2020, 2021 and eight school year
27:14 and H26 on adult education and family literacy programs,
27:19 adult general education, English literacy and civics
27:22 education and family literacy grant
27:25 for the 2020, 21 school years are additions.
27:28 - What are the wishes of the board?
27:30 - Move to approve. - Second.
27:32 - Moved by Mr. Susan, seconded by Ms. McDougall.
27:34 Is there any discussion?
27:37 Please vote.
27:49 (silence)
28:06 And I believe that was five zero on the first floor.
28:09 It disappeared from my screen
28:10 and wouldn’t let me see it for some reason.
28:13 All right, Dr. Mullins, will you please let us know
28:15 about the administrative staff recommendation?
28:17 - Yes, Ms. Belford and board members,
28:18 there are six persons on this agenda item
28:20 for the board to consider.
28:22 - What are the wishes of the board?
28:23 - Move to approve. - Second.
28:24 - Moved by Mr. Susan, seconded by Ms. Duskovich.
28:27 Is there any discussion?
28:30 Please vote.
28:32 (silence)
28:57 - And the motion passes five zero.
29:01 That brings us to presentations.
29:04 And Dr. Mullins, I think you had a brief presentation
29:06 to share with us this evening.
29:07 - Yes, thank you.
29:18 (silence)
29:42 - Good evening, members of the board, again,
29:44 and the audience that’s here in the viewing public.
29:48 I wanted to take this opportunity to actually
29:52 give a formal welcome to our nearly 5,000 teachers,
29:55 educators across our great district
29:58 who returned to their schools,
29:59 as well as our resource teachers
30:01 who returned to ESF yesterday,
30:06 had the opportunity to get through
30:09 a couple of the pods yesterday,
30:11 and welcome back several of our employees
30:14 and talk with them and already see some of the great work
30:19 that they’re committing to
30:20 to support our teachers across our district.
30:23 I also want to take this opportunity
30:25 to commend our principals for working so diligently
30:31 over a very uncertain and changing summer
30:34 in anticipation of the start of the school year,
30:36 which we know the start date changed
30:39 a couple times throughout the summer,
30:42 but also for them just doing an extraordinary job
30:47 of creating a positive start in this realm of new normal,
30:51 to bring their teachers and their teams back together
30:54 to begin working to kick off our school year.
30:58 But in addition, it’s been a challenging summer
31:04 for all of our employees
31:05 as we’ve changed calendars and so on.
31:08 In the coming week, we’ll be welcoming back our bus drivers,
31:11 food service workers, our instructional assistants,
31:14 group leaders, office clerks, campus monitors,
31:18 just to name a few of our employees across our district.
31:21 And again, I echo Mr. Susan’s comments earlier
31:26 that Brevard Public Schools is blessed
31:31 to be an organization that is not made up of walls,
31:37 buildings, structures, but it’s made up of people.
31:41 Heroes across our district who break down barriers
31:46 and obstacles to students’ success and for their future.
31:50 I wanted to take just a few moments.
31:52 I know several of the board members were here
31:55 when I shared just a couple reflections
31:58 with our leaders last week in preparation
32:01 for our school teams to return around leadership
32:04 and bringing just some additional personal insights
32:09 that I had over the last few weeks
32:12 in preparation for our start.
32:16 And we’ve all seen these different words
32:17 that contribute to or define or identify
32:21 what leadership is as an individual.
32:24 And there is power in words.
32:26 We’ve certainly learned that challenge,
32:28 a situation of being faced with something
32:30 that needs great mental or physical effort
32:33 in order to be done successfully
32:34 and therefore tests a person’s ability
32:37 has been the reality for every one of our heroes
32:40 across our organization.
32:44 But yet there’s another word
32:46 and there’s a connection to these two words
32:49 and I’ll ask you just to stick with me for a moment.
32:52 But another word that was brought to my attention
32:54 and that is the word miracle.
32:57 And we know that to be a highly improbable
32:59 or extraordinary event, development or accomplishment
33:02 that brings a very welcome consequence
33:04 or perhaps an excellent achievement
33:08 in a particular area or activity.
33:12 But the interesting thing about these two words
33:14 is I learned recently through one of the graduation speeches
33:18 of our principal at Edgewood Junior Senior High School,
33:21 Jackie Angrada, she shared that those two words,
33:25 their Hebrew origin or root word
33:27 come from the same word, nesayon and nes.
33:32 I’m not sure if I’m pronouncing them correctly
33:34 but they both have the same root word
33:38 which means to lift up or elevate.
33:45 And I would suggest that our leaders
33:47 and our heroes across our district, our teachers,
33:53 our instructional assistants, our bus drivers,
33:57 our cafeteria workers, our resource teachers,
34:01 our district leaders, their commitment to teamwork
34:08 and their commitment to leadership
34:10 took a word like challenge that we’ve had no shortage of
34:14 over the last many months
34:16 and together turned them into miracles.
34:19 And that in fact is what impact elevated is.
34:24 Together we can, we have and we continue will
34:30 turn challenges into miracles.
34:35 I shared with our leaders last week
34:38 that in the midst of all of the challenges we faced
34:41 and even the miracles we’ve experienced
34:43 and those that were anticipating,
34:47 it’s time to come around not only
34:50 our absolute number one priority
34:52 of reopening our school safely
34:55 but also continuing to deliver
34:56 a high quality educational experience for every student.
35:00 It still is our mission
35:04 while also supporting our kids and each other
35:09 because teamwork and team is what is gonna carry us
35:14 through the challenges we face together ahead.
35:20 But also I reminded our principals
35:22 and I share with the board again and our community,
35:26 my commitment to elevating our pursuit of equity
35:31 across our organization.
35:33 And I wanna thank the board for allowing me
35:36 to bring forward the recommendation of a director position
35:39 that will prioritize and focus on our commitment
35:43 to equity and diversity for our district moving forward.
35:47 That job description is on the agenda tonight for approval.
35:51 And then also Ms. Belford thank you for acknowledging
35:55 our bringing to our community
35:58 the renewal of the half cent sales tax,
36:01 an absolutely critical and essential revenue source
36:06 for our, to maintain our facilities.
36:09 But also our priority to ensure
36:11 that we inform our employees, our parents and our community
36:14 of the need for a sales surtax renewal.
36:17 We’re in the education business
36:18 and it’s not just in this case for our kids
36:21 but as for our entire community
36:23 and we’ve made a commitment to do that.
36:26 But being sensitive to the new normal
36:28 and the environment we’re in,
36:30 committing to being responsive, being responsible
36:34 and being reasonable as we work together
36:36 to achieve these goals.
36:39 So I just wanted to take the opportunity
36:41 to share that message with our community at large,
36:45 our leaders again, welcome our teachers
36:48 and our staff across our great district back
36:53 and the commitment to teamwork to turn challenges
36:56 into miracles, thank you.
36:58 - Thank you, Dr. Mullins.
37:01 Okay, at this point we are at public comments
37:03 and in response to the COVID-19 pandemic,
37:05 speakers could record comments through advanced registration
37:08 or can be here in person.
37:10 We have six speakers here in person with us tonight
37:14 and I believe two recorded speakers that we will listen to
37:18 after we’ve finished the in-person,
37:21 present public speaking.
37:23 So our order will be Bill Perlman, Gwendolyn Sisto,
37:28 Chloe Murphy, Dolores Varney, Anthony Colucci
37:32 and Robert Ray.
37:33 Just a reminder, you have three minutes
37:35 and the lights in front of me here will tell you
37:37 when you are running out of time
37:39 and when you are out of time.
37:41 Our speakers will be speaking from the microphone
37:42 in the center of the room.
37:44 Obviously appropriate decorum for any young people
37:49 who may be watching from home is appreciated.
37:52 So Bill Perlman, if you would please approach.
38:03 - Chairwoman Belford, members of the school board,
38:06 Dr. Mullins, good evening.
38:08 My name is Bill Perlman.
38:09 I’m proud to be one of your heroes tonight
38:11 to use the word that was used earlier.
38:14 I’m a district resource teacher.
38:16 I’m here today to share a concern but I come prepared
38:20 with a solution and more importantly,
38:22 the solution has zero cost to the district.
38:25 I’m actually here to request some flexibility
38:27 and grace for your employees,
38:30 especially since we’re often reminded how important this is
38:34 to demonstrate towards our students.
38:36 Like all teachers, I recently received
38:39 my very much anticipated welcome back letter
38:42 and in that letter, it was announced
38:44 a three-hour department meeting to be held
38:47 on the morning of our first day back,
38:48 which was yesterday, August 10th.
38:51 That said, please note that although the meeting
38:55 will be held virtually, all employees are expected
38:59 to report to their office site for their workdays.
39:02 At this time, working from home is not an option.
39:05 Now since this was a three-hour virtual meeting
39:08 and since I share office space here at ESF
39:12 with three other people, I requested that I be able
39:15 to attend virtually from home where for just a small part
39:19 of the day, I wouldn’t be worried about COVID-19.
39:22 But I was immediately directed to risk management
39:25 where the only option was to request an accommodation
39:29 under Americans with Disabilities Act
39:31 and unfortunately, well, perhaps fortunately,
39:34 I am not eligible under ADA because I don’t have quote,
39:39 “A physical or mental impairment
39:41 “that substantially limits one
39:43 “or more major life activities.”
39:46 Do I really have to be disabled
39:48 before I’m afforded some consideration?
39:52 Where is the flexibility and grace?
39:56 My supervisor eventually told me
39:58 that she did not have the discretion
40:01 to offer the flexibility to attend that meeting from home.
40:05 Is that acceptable to the board?
40:08 Do you really want there to be no flexibility
40:10 or grace for employees to attend a virtual meeting
40:14 from a safe location while we are living
40:17 and working in the epicenter of a pandemic?
40:20 Why does my supervisor not have that discretion?
40:24 So let’s fix this right now.
40:27 And I’m not looking for a blanket approval
40:29 but I do request that you please direct the superintendent
40:33 to allow our principals, our directors,
40:35 all supervisors to demonstrate grace and flexibility
40:40 for our teachers and all employees, all of your heroes.
40:46 When they feel it’s appropriate,
40:47 they should be empowered to approve similar requests.
40:50 Let’s fix this.
40:51 Demonstrate some trust towards the principals and directors.
40:54 Allow them to make reasonable judgments.
40:57 Please, please give guidance
40:59 to the superintendent and his staff to be flexible
41:02 and demonstrate grace with their employees
41:05 because we all deserve that.
41:07 As I sit here this evening,
41:09 I will be listening.
41:11 I hope that one of you will provide the superintendent
41:15 with this guidance.
41:16 Thank you so much for your time.
41:17 - Thank you, Bill.
41:18 Gwendolyn Sisto.
41:23 - Thank you for allowing me to speak tonight.
41:25 My daughter is an MIHS student.
41:27 She’s an AP student entering 12th grade.
41:30 Like many parents, I’d like to keep her home
41:32 and do the e-learning option.
41:34 Based on our experience from third
41:36 and fourth quarter last semester though,
41:38 I feel my only option is to send her in person,
41:41 at least for most of her classes.
41:42 This is due to some of the, I’d say, variation that we saw.
41:46 So let me give you two examples.
41:48 So there was some really great examples.
41:51 For example, in her AP government class,
41:53 she was given mostly free response type homework assignments
41:56 about once a week.
41:58 There was an emphasis on quality of assignments,
42:00 not just quantity.
42:02 Every assignment, she received individualized feedback.
42:05 As a result, she got a five on an exam.
42:08 In another class, she was given a disparate assortment
42:13 of online sites to go to.
42:15 Go to this site, submit the response here.
42:18 This is optional, this is not optional.
42:20 Only about four of her assignments
42:22 were even similar to the AP exam format.
42:25 So for me, I feel I have no choice
42:28 but to send her back in class.
42:31 So on behalf of parents, I guess what I’d ask you,
42:33 if I leave you with one thing,
42:35 is can we focus more on more quality of the assignment,
42:39 giving individualized feedback?
42:41 If teachers are just giving endless Khan Academy assignments
42:44 that focus on just getting the answer,
42:46 just filling in the blank, the students aren’t learning.
42:49 And what we learned about the College Board AP exam
42:51 this past year, it was more conceptually based,
42:54 more free response, even for AP Calc and AP Chem.
42:57 So I implore you to please examine that a bit more,
43:00 and I did, by chance, let my local principal know as well,
43:03 which is why I’m here.
43:05 So that’s my comment.
43:08 - Thank you, Ms. Sisto, we appreciate you
43:09 joining us this evening. - Thank you.
43:13 - Chloe Murphy.
43:17 - I’m sorry, I do have to use my phone,
43:19 and may I remove my mask to speak into the microphone?
43:22 Thank you so much.
43:25 I’m not sure how to start.
43:26 There’s no direct line through my speech
43:28 to just get to directly what I want to say.
43:31 So I’ll start with the simple things.
43:33 Hi, my name is Chloe Murphy.
43:34 I’m a rising senior at Astronaut High School.
43:37 It has taken me every ounce of strength and passion
43:39 to come here tonight from where I live
43:41 in Titusville, Florida.
43:43 I’m a normal 17-year-old whose life
43:44 is not so normal anymore.
43:46 On March 13th, I left my school,
43:48 had sang goodbye to my friends and teachers,
43:50 thinking two weeks, sweet, I get to catch up on sleep.
43:54 But as spring break progressed, I slowly saw my life,
43:56 as I knew it, disappear as if it never existed.
43:59 Today I want to speak to you and read some many testimonials
44:02 on the idea of extracurricular activities
44:04 improving academic performance and mental health
44:06 within our schools.
44:08 I know what is to come from this.
44:09 You’ve heard this talk many times
44:11 and you know the ins and outs of it,
44:12 but you haven’t heard me talk.
44:14 And those who have heard me talk know
44:16 that when I start on something,
44:17 I don’t stop until I get my goal.
44:19 I’m a marching band student,
44:21 been one for three years and going on four now.
44:23 I’m also one of the editor-in-chiefs
44:25 of the nationally renowned yearbook, “The Golden Aerie.”
44:28 None of this has to do with my talk though,
44:30 not my credentials or the multiple social media accounts
44:32 I’ve run through for the schools.
44:34 This talk has to do with multiple testimonies
44:36 I have collected over the past 24 hours.
44:38 Former astronaut high school band director,
44:40 Dr. Justin Davis, former varsity football player,
44:43 former cheerleader and former drum major and many others.
44:46 Something that all these testimonies show
44:49 is that I can’t imagine what my year would have been like
44:51 if I had nowhere to place my stress
44:53 without being on the field, the stage or the dance floor.
44:56 And while I could sit here and read these testimonies
44:58 for almost an hour, I don’t have the time to do that.
45:00 These were almost sent all the way from Wisconsin too.
45:04 So my last testimony today, I have to read before y’all,
45:07 is a story of a bright-eyed girl who started as a freshman.
45:11 She started band as a freshman and now as a senior,
45:13 she holds multiple superior titles and championships
45:16 from her day in her specialty.
45:17 She works hard within her community
45:19 to improve mental health advocacy for students
45:21 because somehow it’s the 21st century
45:23 and this country is stuck in the 50s.
45:25 She spends her Friday night
45:26 during the fall season in the stadium.
45:28 It’s her favorite place to be,
45:29 nothing like the smell of fresh football turf.
45:32 None of this could have been done
45:33 without the help of multiple extracurricular activities
45:36 and her high school teachers teaching her
45:37 that tomorrow isn’t promised and kindness is everything.
45:40 She has found her family within a group of students
45:42 that once upon a time were just a group of strangers.
45:46 This story sounds familiar and it’s because it’s mine.
45:49 There is something magical about high school sports
45:51 and extracurricular activities.
45:52 We all have different backgrounds, different home lives,
45:55 but the minute we step on the field in the band room
45:57 or on the stadium, we are a team, a group of individuals
46:00 that ordinary alone, but extraordinary together.
46:03 I am metaphorically on my knees begging you.
46:06 No, I am asking you for please let me have my senior season.
46:11 There shouldn’t be a question
46:13 of if we can have extracurricular activities this year,
46:16 there should be a how can we safely do them this year.
46:19 Our mental health is just as important as our physical.
46:22 Thank you so much tonight.
46:24 - Thanks, Chloe.
46:29 Dolores Varney.
46:44 - My name is Dolores Varney,
46:45 business rep for local 10, 10 Brevard support staff union.
46:52 I’d like to take time to thank each of you
46:54 for all the hard work you’ve done.
46:56 I know you’ve had unbelievable decisions to make,
46:59 very difficult ones, and I commend you.
47:03 I thank you so much for what you’ve done.
47:07 I want today to ask each of you
47:09 to please do not forget about the support staff.
47:12 I know that most of you have them in your mind
47:15 when you’re making decisions,
47:18 but I would like you to please continue to do so.
47:21 Close the mic for me, they’re not getting a good.
47:23 - Now, can you hear me?
47:24 I need to get more personal like Tina, right?
47:29 We all have the knowledge that if not for the students,
47:32 there would be no Brevard public schools.
47:35 Without the teachers,
47:36 there would be no one to instruct the students
47:39 and encourage them to grow in knowledge.
47:42 If not for the bus drivers,
47:44 most students would not be able to attend school.
47:48 Transportation is a must, excuse me.
47:52 Without the custodial staff,
47:53 students and staff would not have a clean school facility
47:58 to learn and work in.
47:59 Instructional assistants, personal care assistants,
48:03 those that assist in the classrooms are very needed.
48:06 Please do not forget about them.
48:09 Food service employees,
48:10 have you ever tried to teach a hungry student?
48:15 The food service employees are very important to everyone,
48:19 to every student and their everyday life.
48:23 Clerical, financial, accounting, risk management,
48:27 administrative secretaries, clerk typists,
48:29 office clerks, bookkeepers, accounting specialists,
48:33 payroll specialists, media assistants,
48:35 just to mention a few positions.
48:38 and the support staff that do a wonderful job
48:41 in assisting with keeping the schools
48:43 and facilities running smoothly.
48:46 BPS, maintenance department, carpenters,
48:48 electricians, grounds technicians,
48:51 electronic technicians, equipment operators.
48:54 Think about the HVAC technicians.
48:56 Without them to keep the air conditioning working,
48:59 rooms would be hot, learning and teaching
49:01 would be very uncomfortable.
49:03 Lawn care technicians, locksmiths, masons,
49:07 painters, plumbers, and roofers.
49:09 And yes, there are many other support staff positions
49:12 that keep BPS schools operational.
49:15 We take pride in the hardworking, dedicated support staff
49:19 and hope each of you will appreciate them
49:21 and never forget their positions
49:23 and how important they are
49:25 to the operation of Brevard Public Schools
49:27 in any decisions that you may make.
49:30 Thank you very much for your time
49:32 and I hope each of you have a wonderful evening.
49:34 - Thank you, Dolores.
49:35 And thank you for making sure that all of those people
49:37 get their recognition.
49:40 Anthony Colucci.
49:53 - My name is Anthony Colucci.
49:54 I’m the president of the Brevard Federation of Teachers.
49:57 First of all, I urge all stakeholders
50:00 to watch the board’s workshop that was held this morning
50:03 about a reopening metric.
50:05 It is posted on the Brevard Federation
50:07 of Teachers Facebook page
50:09 and offered a great deal of information for everyone.
50:12 Most notably, I urge all to watch Ms. Belford’s comments
50:16 at 49 minutes into the meeting.
50:19 She offers a thorough and pointed critique
50:22 of the governor’s reopening plan.
50:25 BFT supports developing a reopening metric
50:28 and that metric must be developed before it’s too late.
50:32 Without a reopening metric in place,
50:34 we are simply opening schools based on politics,
50:37 not science.
50:39 As our teachers are now in buildings,
50:41 we need strong leadership from this board.
50:44 The reopening plan and the protections offered in our MOA
50:48 must be carried out with fidelity.
50:51 This is how we mitigate against the spread of the virus.
50:55 I remind you that the Department of Health
50:57 clearly said that this morning.
50:59 While I realize admins are trying to wrap their heads
51:03 around a lot of information right now,
51:05 I am concerned that some of them are choosing
51:07 to ignore our efforts to mitigate against the spread.
51:11 For instance, we secured language
51:13 that essentially says a virtual link will be sent ahead
51:17 of a staff meeting or professional development
51:20 so those who are uncomfortable attending a person
51:23 can attend virtually.
51:25 Having less people in a room is a mitigation strategy.
51:29 One you’re using right here at this meeting.
51:33 Should our teachers not be afforded
51:35 the same protections as you are?
51:38 We’ve already got numerous calls
51:40 where admins are trying to get people
51:42 to come to meetings face-to-face.
51:44 Come on now.
51:45 Why am I even here having to explain why this is an issue?
51:50 Furthermore, we secured language
51:52 that says teachers can work remotely
51:55 after students leave for the day.
51:57 We did this so teachers would be in the buildings
52:00 less time and out of the way of custodians.
52:03 Those are called mitigation strategies.
52:05 What I’m asking for from this board
52:07 is for public support of these
52:10 and other mitigation strategies.
52:12 We need you as elected leaders to right here and now
52:16 say you’re supportive of these protections.
52:19 Clear the air.
52:20 I know most of you are supportive.
52:23 Please say it so we can keep people safe.
52:25 The superintendent takes direction from you
52:28 and principals from him.
52:30 So you need to lead on this.
52:32 I will say on BFT’s part,
52:34 we are educating all members on the protections in place
52:37 and we are telling them to fight for those protections.
52:41 On top of that, we are urging them
52:43 to not let their guards down.
52:46 We must all do everything we can to ensure safety this year.
52:50 Anything less than everything puts our community in peril.
52:54 Thank you.
52:55 - Thank you, Mr. Colucci.
52:57 Mr. Ray, you are our last speaker for this evening.
53:01 Our last in-person speaker, I should say.
53:05 - Dr. Mullins and the school board,
53:07 thank you for letting me speak today.
53:08 Whoa, hello.
53:09 My name is Robert Ray.
53:10 I’m one of your substitute teachers
53:11 and I’m just wondering what we can do
53:13 to prepare for the coming year.
53:16 That’s it.
53:17 - Thank you, sir.
53:21 All right, do any board members wish to respond
53:24 to any of those evening speakers, Ms. Deskevich?
53:26 - I do.
53:27 Mr. Perlman and Mr. Colucci seem to have the same concerns
53:31 and I think it would be responsible
53:35 of us to maybe address them a little bit right now
53:37 since teachers are already back at school.
53:42 I know we’re a big organization
53:44 and I know we try to set some high level rules,
53:47 but I think at a time like this,
53:50 it’s important to allow the grace and flexibility
53:52 that Mr., is it Perlman?
53:53 Did I get that right?
53:54 That Mr. Perlman mentioned.
53:57 Do supervisors and principals have the authority to say,
54:02 as Mr. Perlman requested, that he could call in from home?
54:05 Mr. Dr. Mullins, can you help me with that one a little bit?
54:09 - I don’t know the specific circumstance of Mr. Perlman
54:12 in his department.
54:14 We did set the expectation to communicate to our supervisors
54:17 that employees were to return in person to their work sites
54:21 beginning no later than Monday of this week.
54:24 - Okay, so do we have the flexibility?
54:26 If we don’t, I mean, we need to be open and honest
54:29 with our staff because they seem to think that we should
54:31 and Mr. Colucci is saying that it’s even written
54:34 in the MO, it’s not an MOU, it’s an MOA.
54:40 I’m sure people are watching right now
54:42 and want this to be clarified.
54:45 Do supervisors or principals have the authority to do that
54:48 or do we definitely need them all live all the time?
54:52 - The MOU with the union addresses building level teachers
54:58 is my understanding.
54:59 I’d have to get additional clarification from my team
55:03 and principals, that is understood that principals
55:06 can extend attending a faculty meeting
55:10 at the school virtually.
55:13 I don’t know the circumstances of Mr. Perlman
55:16 is not a building level teacher is my understanding.
55:18 He’s a resource teacher here at ESF.
55:22 So I don’t know the circumstances to that.
55:26 I do trust our leaders to make sound decisions
55:28 but we also have employees that provide direct support
55:32 and services to our employees across the district
55:36 and their work attendance is essential to make sure
55:40 that we meet the needs of our schools
55:42 as we take on the very big task of supporting them
55:46 to reopen and support now two platforms of learning
55:49 for our students both in person and through e-learning.
55:54 - I understand and I don’t want to give a pass
55:56 to maybe the one employee out there
55:58 that might try to take advantage
55:59 but I do want for us to send a clear message
56:02 if we are willing to do it for teachers in school
56:06 where appropriate when a supervisor thinks so.
56:09 I would hope that we could extend that to employees
56:11 in this building if it’s appropriate
56:13 and it’s not absolutely necessary that they’re live.
56:15 I just, this is a little personal for me
56:17 if I look back when I worked for Northrop Grumman,
56:20 for example, there were times that I had a sick child
56:22 and I was a single mother
56:23 and there was work I could do from home
56:25 but the corporate policy was you couldn’t work from home
56:28 and it used to just frustrate me
56:29 because I would think my supervisor sees
56:31 I can work from home right now.
56:33 I know I can get the work done.
56:34 I could be with my sick child but no one had the authority
56:37 because someone up high said it wasn’t okay
56:42 when those of us that could see it could be okay.
56:44 I’d want us to empower our supervisors.
56:47 I don’t know Mr. Perlman said maybe he needed to be here,
56:49 maybe he didn’t but just in general,
56:51 is that something we can address?
56:54 - I’ll certainly address it with the senior staff.
56:57 - Okay.
56:58 - If the board wants to give me direction
56:59 to extend that indefinitely,
57:01 I certainly will take direction from the board.
57:04 - I feel pretty strong about it
57:06 for the reasons that I just explained.
57:07 Not that I want everybody to be able to go rogue
57:09 on their own decision but I think their supervisor,
57:12 if they feel it’s feasible,
57:13 I don’t want them to feel contained
57:15 by something that we’ve said,
57:16 that you have to be there because we think that’s best.
57:18 I feel like a supervisor would know.
57:20 I don’t know.
57:21 Anyone else wanna chime in?
57:22 - I would just recommend that there’s,
57:24 within the spirit of grace and flexibility,
57:26 that there’s a place between be in a pod
57:29 with two or three other employees and be at home.
57:33 There are lots of places here on this campus, for example,
57:38 that you can go and still be in the building
57:40 and still be present and on the patio
57:45 or another conference room.
57:46 I would suggest that before we say,
57:47 “Hey, let’s, can I be at home?”
57:49 Which there’s reasons why people need to be on work site
57:53 for accountability above anything else probably,
57:57 that there’s another option there
57:59 and that is to find a place
58:01 if you don’t have an office of your own to do that.
58:03 I would say that would be somewhere that you can comply
58:07 without feeling concerned.
58:11 - Ultimately, I think the safest place right now is home.
58:14 If they need to be here, they need to be here
58:16 and I’m not going to fight for them to stay home
58:18 by any stretch of the imagination.
58:20 But if the employee feels like they can get the work done
58:22 and the supervisor feels like they can get the work done,
58:26 I would hope our supervisors are holding them accountable
58:29 for getting the work done.
58:31 Just, it seems like that’s grace and flexibility right now.
58:36 - Ms. McDougall, are you wanting to speak?
58:38 - I do.
58:40 So I just want a little clarification if we can
58:42 with Mr. Colucci.
58:44 Is this in the MOA that we’re talking about?
58:47 And are we talking about meetings?
58:49 Is that what we’re talking about?
58:52 Okay.
58:53 - Ms. McDougall, I would suggest Dr. Thetty could address
58:57 the MOA on behalf of the district.
59:01 - The MOA does allow for teachers
59:03 who need to attend the meeting virtually
59:06 from their classroom.
59:06 It does not allow for working from home.
59:09 - Okay.
59:12 Thank you for that clarification.
59:16 - So, yes, I think grace and flexibility
59:22 were appropriate for the role.
59:26 But the first thing that I thought of
59:28 when I heard Mr. Perlman is if he is in a very small space
59:31 with three other people, that’s probably an issue
59:33 that we need to look at as a whole,
59:36 as far as making sure that the working space
59:38 is appropriate and safe.
59:40 And so that would be an area that I’ve just asked
59:44 that we take a look at and see if that is in fact an issue.
59:48 And obviously, we don’t necessarily need to get down
59:52 into the weeds on all of it,
59:53 but I know that we’ve made some accommodations
59:55 to ensure that our employees feel safe in their space.
59:57 And so I think that would be important as well,
1:00:02 just to make sure that there’s no hindrance
1:00:04 to being in your workspace when it’s needed.
1:00:06 - We have sent a memo to staff outlining
1:00:10 what the expectations are for cubicle workspaces.
1:00:15 Entering them, we provided staff plexiglass barriers,
1:00:20 as well as ensured that they can adhere to
1:00:22 and maintain social distancing.
1:00:24 I don’t know Mr. Perlman’s workspace personally,
1:00:29 but I would be very surprised to hear
1:00:31 that we hadn’t already addressed any concerns
1:00:33 related to social distancing,
1:00:34 but I could certainly follow up with staff
1:00:36 to ensure that’s true.
1:00:37 - Thank you, sir.
1:00:40 Mr. Susan.
1:00:41 - I’d like to say some stuff too.
1:00:42 I didn’t want to interrupt you, but you were–
1:00:44 - Yeah, no, and I have to apologize
1:00:46 because I have, Louis is standing here waiting on me
1:00:48 because I was actually supposed to go
1:00:50 into our recorded comments before I open it up
1:00:53 for board comment and I completely got off track,
1:00:55 but go ahead.
1:00:56 Well, is it– - It’s okay, we’ll wait.
1:00:58 - Are you sure?
1:00:59 - Yeah, yeah, ‘cause more people might talk about something.
1:01:02 - Okay, we have just two recorded comments.
1:01:04 Are you guys okay if I get back on track
1:01:06 and then we’ll come back to any discussion of the,
1:01:08 I apologize for messing that up.
1:01:09 Louis, thank you so much.
1:01:16 - Good afternoon, Sue Han.
1:01:18 I’m the assistant superintendent for facility services
1:01:21 for Brevard Public Schools.
1:01:23 In considering the concerns during the COVID-19 emergency,
1:01:27 guidance from the Centers for Disease Control
1:01:29 and Prevention, as well as Executive Order 20-91
1:01:32 issued by Governor DeSantis,
1:01:34 it is necessary to modify our procedures for public comment.
1:01:37 Tonight, your comments will be recorded
1:01:39 and we will play them back under the public comment section
1:01:42 of the board meeting tomorrow.
1:01:43 Each speaker is limited to three minutes.
1:01:45 Our moderator will keep track of your time
1:01:47 and ask you to conclude your comments
1:01:49 when you have reached three minutes.
1:01:51 Always keep in mind that reasonable decorum
1:01:53 is expected at all times.
1:01:56 It’s appropriate for our children
1:01:57 who may be watching or listening from home.
1:01:59 Before speaking, please state your name,
1:02:01 the organization you represent, if any,
1:02:04 and identify the topic we’ll be discussing.
1:02:06 We won’t be answering questions on tonight’s call,
1:02:08 but our staff will follow up with you
1:02:10 if you have a question or need a response.
1:02:12 Thank you, go ahead.
1:02:14 - Okay, well, Ms. Logsdon, you can go ahead
1:02:18 with your comments.
1:02:19 State your first and last name, please, and then go ahead.
1:02:22 - Yes, good evening.
1:02:23 My name is Reba Logsdon and I am a school bus driver
1:02:27 for Brevard County Public Schools,
1:02:30 and I come out of the North Area compound.
1:02:32 I am a veteran bus driver of 26 years,
1:02:35 and I am also the union steward
1:02:37 for the local 1010 for my compound.
1:02:41 In my 26 years of driving,
1:02:43 I have been able (indistinct)
1:02:46 from kids throwing up five minutes after mom
1:02:49 puts him on the bus to all out brawls
1:02:52 and even concealed weapons.
1:02:55 But this COVID-19 virus scares me the most.
1:02:58 It is a silent killer.
1:03:00 You can’t and won’t see it.
1:03:03 Your reasoning behind opening the schools
1:03:06 is that children are less likely to contract
1:03:10 and spread the virus.
1:03:11 According to the Florida Department of Health,
1:03:14 over 31,000 children under 17 tested positive
1:03:19 for the virus statewide as of July 2nd.
1:03:22 That is up from 23,000 from February until July 16th, 2020.
1:03:28 The latest death row on record is a nine-year-old girl
1:03:33 with no known conditions.
1:03:36 Florida has the third highest number of COVID-19 cases
1:03:40 after New York and California.
1:03:42 Epidemiologists agree community spread of COVID-19
1:03:46 can’t be controlled if positively rate is above 5%.
1:03:50 That’s 5% here today.
1:03:54 The school board says that students are to wear mask on bus
1:03:58 and are to sit two per seat.
1:04:01 Sitting two persons per seat is not six feet apart.
1:04:05 What will be the mandate if students show up at the bus stop
1:04:08 without a mask or do not keep the mask on?
1:04:11 I’ve had had parents drop off their children
1:04:14 at the bus stop and run.
1:04:17 Drivers will be expected to wipe down all seats
1:04:20 in common touched areas between.
1:04:25 This will surely cause delays
1:04:26 in picking up the other students,
1:04:28 which could cause delay in getting those students to school
1:04:31 and delay school start times.
1:04:34 Many of our drivers are what could be considered high risk.
1:04:38 Many are over the age of 60 and half under.
1:04:42 I am 63 and relatively in good health,
1:04:45 but my husband is 72 and a cancer survivor
1:04:47 and also has diabetes.
1:04:49 My daughter and my grandson have recently moved in with us
1:04:52 and I do not wish to bring this virus home.
1:04:55 I have a mantra.
1:04:56 You cannot leave unless you have followed.
1:04:58 How can you recently expect us to follow
1:05:01 when you yourself will not shake our hands
1:05:04 or sit on a bus just a foot away from your seat now?
1:05:08 The school board needs to reconsider face-to-face openings
1:05:11 of the school for.
1:05:14 Please take into consideration the health and wellbeing
1:05:17 of the support staff, the bus drivers,
1:05:19 the lunchroom ladies and the custodians.
1:05:22 Most of all, take into consideration the health
1:05:25 of our most precious resources, our children.
1:05:29 Thank you.
1:05:31 - Great, so go ahead and say your first, last name
1:05:33 and then your comment.
1:05:36 - Yes, my name is Kathy West.
1:05:39 I am a substitute teacher.
1:05:45 I would like to also say that we’re still in a sub crisis
1:05:50 and now we’re in another situation
1:05:54 where we’re dealing with COVID-19.
1:05:58 My suggestion is to start the school year out
1:06:03 as it paid for all employees, because as it is,
1:06:08 sub pay is not adequate as it is right now.
1:06:13 And so those are very concerned and I’m sure most of them
1:06:17 are scared to have to work environment with inadequate pay.
1:06:27 And I also would like to suggest that we start
1:06:31 to also start the year off as virtual learning
1:06:34 because they’re so, we’re in the epicenter
1:06:37 of this coronavirus and it doesn’t seem like
1:06:41 it’s getting a whole lot better, especially for Florida.
1:06:47 And that concludes my announcement.
1:06:50 - Thank you, Ms. Lester.
1:06:53 I believe that’s all the comments that we have
1:06:55 for this process and I appreciate your patience
1:06:57 with our technical difficulties tonight.
1:06:59 So thank you everyone.
1:07:04 - Thank you, Mr. Francisco.
1:07:05 And thank you to all of our speakers who took part
1:07:09 in the opportunity.
1:07:11 Just to let the board members know
1:07:13 and our public know for that matter.
1:07:15 I typically try to log on and listen to the calls
1:07:18 when they’re recorded, just in case we have
1:07:19 any technical issues and Ms. Han and I work through them
1:07:23 and figure out what our best course of action is
1:07:25 to respond to those.
1:07:27 She was really jumping through some hoops last night
1:07:29 because our vendor that provides the recording
1:07:31 is in Idaho, Iowa, I have something.
1:07:40 - Colorado and their servers are in Iowa.
1:07:43 They were knocked out by a major storm.
1:07:45 I guess they had hurricane force winds in Iowa last night.
1:07:48 So they knocked out their systems,
1:07:52 but they came through with a zoom alternative for us.
1:07:55 - Yeah, so they ended up working it all out.
1:07:57 I had the opportunity to listen last night
1:07:59 and I did send an email out to Reba Logsdon,
1:08:03 our bus driver, just with some additional information
1:08:05 for her so she understood the situation that we were in
1:08:08 with, you know, the mandates as far as reopening schools.
1:08:13 And I understand Dr. Mullins,
1:08:15 that Dr. Thadi has some additional information
1:08:18 on our previous topic of discussion.
1:08:22 - Provide, sorry about that.
1:08:24 I just wanted to provide some clarity
1:08:25 around the language in the MOA.
1:08:27 The MOA speaks to administrators making every effort
1:08:30 to have face-to-face staff meetings
1:08:32 or professional development in spaces
1:08:34 that six feet of social distancing is attainable.
1:08:38 In meetings where that cannot be possible,
1:08:40 face coverings are obviously required
1:08:42 per our board direction.
1:08:45 If members of the bargaining unit do not feel comfortable
1:08:48 attending a meeting where face coverings are not worn,
1:08:50 they can attend the meeting virtually
1:08:52 and principals are to send out a link prior to that meeting.
1:08:55 The other piece that I wanted to clarify
1:08:58 is with the exception of early release days,
1:09:01 members of the bargaining unit will have the option
1:09:03 of working off campus after student dismissal
1:09:06 when there are no other obligations
1:09:08 such as team meetings, IEP meetings, parent conferences.
1:09:11 Just wanted to provide that clarity.
1:09:14 - Thank you, ma’am.
1:09:16 Okay, we’ll pick up where we left off
1:09:18 with board members wishing to respond to speakers
1:09:23 or additional discussion there.
1:09:24 Ms. Campbell, I think you were giving me a nod
1:09:26 that you wanted to speak.
1:09:27 - Yeah, unless Mr. Susan, did you?
1:09:30 - I was just gonna go through and just make the promise.
1:09:32 - Okay.
1:09:34 Similar, first of all, I know that we always love
1:09:38 when students come and advocate for themselves.
1:09:41 I think that’s the word that Dr. Sullivan especially,
1:09:43 she especially likes when students come.
1:09:45 So thank you, Chloe, for coming and sharing your heart.
1:09:48 And you know, last year’s seniors talked about
1:09:51 how tough it was for them and it was,
1:09:53 but this whole summer I’ve been thinking
1:09:54 about this year’s seniors.
1:09:56 And again, that grieve the loss phrase comes to mind.
1:10:00 And no matter how much we can get back to normal,
1:10:04 it still won’t be what you had dreamed that it would be.
1:10:06 And so I thank you for sharing your heart.
1:10:08 Some of the things that you talked about tonight,
1:10:10 we don’t, some of them will be in our control
1:10:13 and some of them won’t.
1:10:14 And so, but we, I know I understand as a parent
1:10:17 of musicians especially that our extracurriculars
1:10:22 are very important.
1:10:23 And I am so thankful for our band directors and our coaches
1:10:26 and our choir directors and all those
1:10:27 who are really working to try to figure out
1:10:30 how do we make this happen in such a strange year.
1:10:32 So, but thank you for coming.
1:10:35 I wanted to give, oh, Miss, is it Cisco?
1:10:40 Cisco, sorry.
1:10:41 I wanted to just share, and I, you know,
1:10:44 I don’t expect our public to have watched all the,
1:10:47 like 20, 30 something hours worth of meetings
1:10:50 that we’ve had over the last month.
1:10:52 But I just wanna reiterate that what we all experienced
1:10:56 last quarter is not going to be what we’re gonna experience
1:11:00 this year because really our teachers did it
1:11:03 and our staff did a commendable job
1:11:04 for throwing it together in a week.
1:11:06 But our students who are doing e-learning
1:11:10 will actually have their teacher in front of them
1:11:14 on the screen doing the same in real time.
1:11:18 And tell me if I’m getting off, Dr. Sullivan.
1:11:22 But doing the same real-time instruction
1:11:23 that their peers who are in the class,
1:11:25 the same instruction that they’re receiving.
1:11:27 And so, and some of that will be,
1:11:29 there may be part of that block,
1:11:30 ‘cause we’re doing block schedule,
1:11:31 part of that 90 minutes where they say,
1:11:33 okay, now go and spend the rest of the time
1:11:35 doing this research or this reading or whatever.
1:11:37 But it will be rigorous instruction,
1:11:41 preparing them for those AP exams or whatever it may be.
1:11:46 So when people think about what it was like in the spring,
1:11:50 just don’t.
1:11:55 No, but I would encourage you
1:11:58 to go and to contact your school.
1:12:02 It is not too late to choose e-learning,
1:12:04 correct, Dr. Sullivan?
1:12:05 So if you wanna get some more specific information
1:12:07 about that, I would contact your school.
1:12:10 You won’t know your schedule yet
1:12:12 until your school does their registration.
1:12:14 That’s a little different for each one.
1:12:17 And then also, Dr. Thede, would you speak to,
1:12:20 for the substitutes, I know I had heard some information,
1:12:23 thank you, Mr. Ray, for coming, about how we’re gonna
1:12:26 prepare our substitutes for this coming year.
1:12:30 - Thank you, so we’re working out some training
1:12:33 for substitutes related to safety protocols,
1:12:35 related to PPE, things that you’ll do with your students.
1:12:40 I’ve got a team working with Mr. Cheatham’s team
1:12:43 on how substitutes will be able to manage
1:12:46 all the different platforms in the classroom.
1:12:48 That is not ready to roll out yet,
1:12:50 but they are working on that.
1:12:51 - Good, good, good.
1:12:53 So, and, ‘cause we completely understand
1:12:57 how essential you guys always are,
1:12:59 but especially this year, it’s gonna be a big year.
1:13:01 So, and I knew that you guys hadn’t forgotten them,
1:13:04 so I wanted to make sure that Mr. Ray knew that as well.
1:13:06 That’s all I have.
1:13:08 - Mr. Susan?
1:13:09 - Thank you, I truly believe in grace and flexibility.
1:13:15 Where my concern comes from is I was under the impression
1:13:21 that we would try to take every aspect
1:13:24 and every opportunity to keep people socially distanced,
1:13:27 but then also online.
1:13:28 So when we had, when we came back and I hear movements
1:13:31 that we had people inside of a room, you know,
1:13:34 staff inside of a room where they can be socially distanced
1:13:37 six feet apart, to me, it was kind of counterproductive
1:13:41 in my vision, and it may not have been
1:13:43 what the board’s decision was and everything else,
1:13:44 but the bottom line is is that if we’re gonna move
1:13:47 to an e-learning platform in the event
1:13:49 that we’re closing schools and everything else,
1:13:50 then everything that we do should be hooved
1:13:52 to practice and prepare for that movement.
1:13:54 So if we’re coming back and we’re in the same room
1:13:57 for four hours, eating lunch, doing all that stuff,
1:13:59 I think that’s counterproductive or counterintuitive
1:14:02 or counter whatever it is that we would be moving towards.
1:14:04 So I’m all about that, and I applaud the district
1:14:07 for giving the teachers the opportunity to leave
1:14:10 during early releases and get out.
1:14:11 It gives us an opportunity to do deep cleaning
1:14:13 over the time period that’s there.
1:14:16 The other reason that I think that it gives us
1:14:18 an opportunity at the end of the day to leave
1:14:20 is because those custodians need as much time
1:14:23 inside those classrooms to clean up and get to the next day,
1:14:25 which is gonna be difficult.
1:14:27 But the idea that we have some principals
1:14:31 bringing in staff members into a big room
1:14:34 instead of just letting them be virtual
1:14:36 inside their classrooms, I don’t think that’s a good idea.
1:14:38 I would talk against that.
1:14:40 And I think that the opportunity should be
1:14:43 that we move towards an e-learning type situation
1:14:47 where if the teachers can attend a virtual meeting online,
1:14:51 that they attend that online.
1:14:52 So that was that piece.
1:14:54 So Mr. Perlman, that was,
1:14:55 and that would be what I would say to that.
1:14:58 The next thing is, is that second speaker,
1:15:00 and I forgot your name, ma’am, but my daughter takes AP.
1:15:04 I was an AP teacher.
1:15:05 I told her, holistically understand
1:15:06 what you’re talking about.
1:15:08 I’m sorry that you had a bad experience.
1:15:10 We have some of the most amazing like resource teachers,
1:15:13 AP people to contact at the district.
1:15:15 So if you are experiencing something like that,
1:15:17 if you can immediately please reach out to them.
1:15:20 I do know as a former AP teacher,
1:15:22 that that is an unacceptable behavior
1:15:26 that you may have felt.
1:15:28 So if you can reach out
1:15:28 so that we can take corrective measures to take care of that,
1:15:31 that would be amazing.
1:15:34 So you would, it depends on which one of your,
1:15:37 if you are in secondary,
1:15:38 you would start with the secondary schools.
1:15:40 And then you would, depending on science has one,
1:15:43 history has another.
1:15:44 If you call the front office and you ask them,
1:15:46 they’ll get you to the right person eventually.
1:15:48 Or Dr. Sullivan can speak up too.
1:15:50 Okay, I don’t want to speak.
1:15:51 She is in charge of all of that.
1:15:52 And she has much, there we go.
1:15:54 Go ahead, go ahead.
1:15:56 So that’s Dr. Sullivan.
1:15:59 And she’s, and she will definitely take care of that.
1:16:01 But I hear you, my daughter’s taking AP right now.
1:16:03 Same thing.
1:16:04 I would encourage you to make the decision
1:16:07 that’s best for your family.
1:16:08 Not so much what’s best for, you know,
1:16:10 because of that piece.
1:16:11 I do know that the e-learning piece,
1:16:13 my daughter is going to be attending in-person,
1:16:16 but I felt very comfortable with the e-learning also.
1:16:19 So there’s that piece, if that helps.
1:16:23 Ms. Chloe, I agree with you 100%.
1:16:25 My daughter right now is there also.
1:16:28 When I was a teacher, I taught eight,
1:16:30 I had eight or nine extracurriculars in my class.
1:16:32 I mean, I had a strategy club
1:16:33 where these kids came in and talked strategy, right?
1:16:35 I know that the meaning behind a student
1:16:37 feeling a part of a school gives them the attachment
1:16:41 that sometimes they don’t have at home.
1:16:42 So I applaud you for bringing this up
1:16:44 because not only clubs and activities, but sports.
1:16:47 And when you said that you can have access
1:16:51 to something that you can get your feelings out to,
1:16:54 it is a huge opportunity.
1:16:56 And I, and everybody on this board,
1:16:58 I will tell you advocates for exactly
1:17:01 the extracurricular activities that you are looking for
1:17:03 and they fight for them.
1:17:04 I know Ms. Deskevich was,
1:17:06 I can tell you right now that everybody on here
1:17:08 fights for that and we’ll do our best job,
1:17:10 but at the same time remaining safe
1:17:13 for all of our staff and everything else.
1:17:15 But I do wanna say thank you for coming all the way up here.
1:17:16 It means a lot when we have teachers
1:17:18 or our students come up here, so thank you.
1:17:21 Dolores 1010, thanks, I agree with you.
1:17:24 The one thing that always gets missed is,
1:17:26 and I’m a very big problem with it,
1:17:28 is that I’m always talking about teacher this, teacher that,
1:17:30 ‘cause I used to be a teacher.
1:17:32 And sometimes I forget to say that the support staff
1:17:37 is just as committed inside their heart to what they do
1:17:40 and the mission, and you can see that
1:17:41 just with this facilities crew, with everybody else.
1:17:44 So Dolores, thank you for coming down and speaking today.
1:17:47 Anthony, I spoke about the same protections.
1:17:51 Robert, I do miss, as far as the substitutes,
1:17:55 which is Robert and Ms. Kathy West,
1:17:57 which we love having Ms. Kathy, come on.
1:18:01 Preparing for the substitutes, we’re two weeks out, right?
1:18:04 Is there a deadline, Dr. Thede,
1:18:07 that we are going to get these information to them
1:18:09 so that they can, do they know to be prepared
1:18:12 that they are going to have to take something?
1:18:14 Do we have them having to take whatever it is
1:18:16 that you’re doing prior to them coming back?
1:18:18 Can you talk about that process?
1:18:20 ‘Cause I get it that we have all these things coming,
1:18:21 but it’s getting down to be the 14-day mark.
1:18:24 Can you give them some guidance?
1:18:25 Is that what you’re looking for, Mr. Ray?
1:18:28 - I don’t have the data rollout yet,
1:18:29 but it’ll be before the start of school
1:18:31 for substitutes to be able to work
1:18:33 with the tech associate at the school,
1:18:35 because there are some challenges
1:18:37 with how things are set up that we’re trying to work through
1:18:39 so that a substitute who might be in a secondary class
1:18:43 with students in class face to face
1:18:45 may have some e-learning students
1:18:47 could potentially have a teacher who’s quarantined
1:18:49 due to being a contact to a case
1:18:51 with a close familial relationship,
1:18:53 trying to work through all of that.
1:18:55 There are a lot of logistics we’re working out,
1:18:57 and as soon as we have that done,
1:18:58 we will be getting it out to our 700,
1:19:00 and I believe we’re up to 46 substitutes
1:19:02 that have responded to us
1:19:04 that they will be returning this year.
1:19:05 We did do a letter of request to all of our substitutes,
1:19:10 and we’ve heard back from the majority of them,
1:19:13 and of them, over 700 are planning to come back.
1:19:17 What that will look like is virtual, obviously,
1:19:20 and we have all of your email addresses
1:19:22 and a way to push it out through our SmartFind system
1:19:25 so that you’ll have access to everything.
1:19:28 Thank you.
1:19:28 - So Dr. Thede, are you saying that this would be something
1:19:31 that the substitute comes onto campus,
1:19:33 talks to the tech about,
1:19:35 or is that something that you think
1:19:36 a video’s gonna come to them?
1:19:37 I think they’re kinda wondering what that’s gonna,
1:19:39 that piece is they’re gonna look like,
1:19:40 or is it still, they’re going to get something,
1:19:42 and we’re working that piece out,
1:19:44 and they’re gonna get that within the next seven days,
1:19:46 and it’ll be before school or something, I mean.
1:19:48 - Mr. Seuss, and we’re working it out.
1:19:49 The logistics are pretty intense
1:19:51 that we’re trying to fix with access
1:19:54 to the teacher’s computer to be able to,
1:19:56 or not the teacher’s computer,
1:19:58 but to a computer to be able to monitor
1:20:00 and log into all the different sites.
1:20:03 So once we have that, we will roll that out to subs.
1:20:05 The tech associate at the school will be integral
1:20:08 in helping out with making sure they’re set up
1:20:11 to go live, I guess, on that day they’re there.
1:20:14 - Okay, thank you.
1:20:15 Does that help you out, Mr. Ray?
1:20:17 Get ready?
1:20:18 It’s gonna be interesting for you,
1:20:20 and we love the opportunity that you came here tonight,
1:20:24 and that you’re willing to ask those questions
1:20:26 and put it on the radar.
1:20:27 Our substitutes are, again,
1:20:29 are just the same as everybody else.
1:20:30 We’re all in this together, we’re big heroes,
1:20:32 and going forward, it’s gonna be tough.
1:20:35 And I think the message that some of the unions
1:20:37 said last Friday, what I hear from many
1:20:39 of our school board members, along with Dr. Mullins,
1:20:42 is that we are all in this together,
1:20:44 and that it’s not going to be perfect,
1:20:46 but somehow we’re going to have to find a way through it.
1:20:49 And that’s a perfect example with the substitutes,
1:20:51 and I applaud Dr. Thede in your office
1:20:53 for trying to take that on, I know that’s a huge task.
1:20:56 With the school bus driver, I agree with you 100%.
1:21:00 It’s a difficult situation.
1:21:02 We are coming back to schools,
1:21:04 and it’s gonna be a difficult situation
1:21:07 for many that are in that risk class.
1:21:09 And I apologize for ahead of time
1:21:14 for the situation and conditions that we’re under,
1:21:16 but this is what we’re gonna be faced to do.
1:21:19 So I appreciate everybody,
1:21:20 and I hope that helps everybody with the comments.
1:21:23 That’s the first time I’ve ever gone through everybody,
1:21:24 but I think it’s something that we needed to do,
1:21:26 if they’re gonna come down here and talk to us.
1:21:28 - I’m just glad we didn’t have 136 speakers tonight,
1:21:30 Mr. Susan.
1:21:32 That would have been a lot of you talking.
1:21:35 Anyone else before I have a couple of comments
1:21:38 about Ms. McDougall, you wanna speak?
1:21:39 - I just wanna, yeah, I wanna.
1:21:43 I have a question.
1:21:44 So we’re at this point in phase two.
1:21:48 So I can envision in a high school
1:21:52 because there’s many more teachers and support staff
1:21:56 in a high school than there would be in,
1:21:58 let’s say an elementary school.
1:22:00 So I’m trying to think of a space that would be big enough
1:22:05 to have people six feet apart, Dr. Setti.
1:22:08 So I guess I’m just concerned that people are so rigid
1:22:11 and I don’t want them to be so rigid
1:22:13 to as we’re using the word flexibility and grace that,
1:22:17 and I don’t want to take away the power
1:22:20 from our administrators because that’s their school
1:22:22 and they know their spaces,
1:22:25 but at the same time, people are scared.
1:22:28 People are scared and you all know how I feel.
1:22:35 And so I feel that we do need
1:22:37 to be a little bit more flexible.
1:22:41 And again, I don’t wanna step on any of my principal’s toes,
1:22:43 but at the same time,
1:22:45 we need to be reasonable about for our teachers.
1:22:49 And I’m trying to think of spaces in my elementary school.
1:22:53 I can’t.
1:22:54 - Cafeteria.
1:22:56 - But even the cafeteria though, I mean, think about it.
1:22:58 We’ve only got two at a table.
1:23:00 I mean, so I just, I don’t know.
1:23:02 I just would like us to be open-minded
1:23:05 and flexible about that.
1:23:12 - Thanks, Ms. McDougall.
1:23:14 I will make just a couple of follow-up comments
1:23:17 and it’s nothing that I haven’t said before,
1:23:20 but I think the more I can say it
1:23:22 and the more our public can potentially hear it,
1:23:24 the better off we are.
1:23:27 The bottom line is that,
1:23:28 unless we keep our numbers of people down,
1:23:32 our risk is going to be higher.
1:23:34 There is not a zero risk return to school.
1:23:39 And so most people have heard me say,
1:23:42 and I’ve shared it with the media as well,
1:23:44 if parents are able to take advantage of e-learning
1:23:48 and it is workable for their student.
1:23:52 And I say that because for some students,
1:23:54 it simply is not.
1:23:55 But if they are able to, and it is workable
1:23:57 for their student, I encourage parents to take advantage
1:24:00 of that e-learning opportunity,
1:24:02 because it’ll provide a seamless opportunity
1:24:05 to roll back into the classroom when numbers are lower.
1:24:08 It’ll help us keep our numbers low in the school.
1:24:11 But there are some other things that go along with that too.
1:24:14 Transportation is going to be a real challenge.
1:24:16 And what we heard from our bus driver is no joke.
1:24:18 It’s going to be a serious challenge.
1:24:21 So if parents can provide their own transportation
1:24:23 for their children to school,
1:24:25 if the children can walk or bike safely,
1:24:28 we need to keep our numbers down on our buses, absolutely.
1:24:33 And we also need to make sure that we are being cognizant
1:24:35 of numbers of adults coming together in a school.
1:24:38 This morning, Ms. Kimball referenced a letter
1:24:40 that was put together by our three
1:24:43 Central Florida Children’s Hospitals.
1:24:45 And they clearly say that in all honesty,
1:24:49 the most dangerous place in a school
1:24:51 is probably going to be the faculty lounge,
1:24:53 because people are going to feel
1:24:56 like they can take their masks off
1:24:57 and relax and have lunch together.
1:25:00 And that is something that we absolutely have to consider
1:25:04 as we are rolling back into school,
1:25:06 is making sure that we’re not congregating.
1:25:10 And then the two other elements
1:25:12 that are going to be incredibly important to our success
1:25:14 are making sure that we and all of our community
1:25:18 is making good choices outside of the school.
1:25:21 Because we’ve heard over and over again
1:25:23 that what’s going on in our community
1:25:24 is probably more important than what’s going on
1:25:26 in our schools with regard to spread rates.
1:25:28 So if we have a high rate,
1:25:30 if adults in our schools are going out
1:25:33 and celebrating after they get off work
1:25:37 and spending time together at barbecues on the weekend
1:25:40 with people that they’re not familiar with,
1:25:41 those are the areas where we see the spread.
1:25:43 And we’ve seen it in all of the hospitals,
1:25:45 they will tell you people at the hospital
1:25:47 are not getting sick at the hospital,
1:25:49 they’re getting sick in the community.
1:25:51 And then probably the most important thing
1:25:54 that we need to ask of our community
1:25:56 is if you are sick or your child is sick, stay home.
1:26:01 That’s gonna be critical to our success to return.
1:26:04 And much of what we’re hearing
1:26:06 falls in with all of those elements.
1:26:10 We all wanna get back to extracurriculars, Chloe, we get it.
1:26:14 We all wanna get back to having faculty meetings in person,
1:26:19 but we need to do what we can in the interim
1:26:21 to make sure that we can do it safely
1:26:23 and consistently keep our schools open.
1:26:27 Any other comments before we move on to our consent agenda?
1:26:31 - Ms. Balfour, may I?
1:26:33 Just wanted to address a comment from Mr. Colucci.
1:26:36 He actually brought to my attention his concern yesterday
1:26:40 when we met about the expectation and the adherence
1:26:45 to the safety measures and protocols we put in place,
1:26:48 specifically wearing masks and so on.
1:26:50 And he addressed it in his comments tonight.
1:26:52 And I’ll share publicly what I shared with him last night.
1:26:55 It is absolutely my expectation
1:26:57 as a superintendent of Brevard schools
1:26:59 that we adhere to our requirement of wearing masks.
1:27:03 And that transcends to all of our schools.
1:27:07 There are exceptions that are allowable
1:27:09 and we’ll certainly understand those.
1:27:11 But we have to take personal responsibility
1:27:15 and we have to take group responsibility
1:27:19 to model and demonstrate our commitment to this.
1:27:22 So Mr. Colucci, I say to you again,
1:27:25 we’ll absolutely, and if there are concerns,
1:27:27 bring them to the attention that we discussed yesterday
1:27:30 and it will be addressed, so.
1:27:34 - And Dr. Thaddea, I believe that you wanted
1:27:36 to respond to a comment.
1:27:37 - Mrs. McDougall, I didn’t jump in quickly enough before,
1:27:40 but what I would really like to say
1:27:42 about what the schools have set up,
1:27:43 schools did a variety of things.
1:27:45 No principal did the same thing as the other principal.
1:27:48 We had schools that split their faculties in half
1:27:50 and were able to social distance in a library
1:27:53 or, well, media center or cafeteria
1:27:55 or auditorium in the high school level.
1:27:57 We had principals who sent out virtual links
1:28:00 and did everything virtually
1:28:01 and teachers were in their classrooms.
1:28:03 They wanted to provide some sense of camaraderie,
1:28:06 but monitoring and holding to the social distancing
1:28:10 and the facial covering wearing
1:28:12 and making sure that teachers felt welcome
1:28:15 and felt supported when they came back also.
1:28:17 So I saw a variety of things happening
1:28:19 and I’ve talked to a lot of principals
1:28:20 over the last few days, over this weekend as well,
1:28:23 as they were getting things set up
1:28:24 for their first day of school
1:28:26 and they were trying to meet their faculty’s needs
1:28:29 to the best that they could
1:28:31 and I saw pictures of what they’ve done
1:28:33 and I did see six feet of social distancing
1:28:35 in those cases where they brought people together,
1:28:39 but other principals chose not to bring people together
1:28:41 and chose to have teachers work from their classrooms
1:28:44 and work virtually while they did
1:28:45 their back to school activities.
1:28:47 So it just depended on the school
1:28:48 and the needs of the school.
1:28:50 - Thank you.
1:28:53 All right, that moves us into the consent agenda.
1:28:55 Dr. Mullins.
1:29:09 - There are 12 agenda items under this category.
1:29:12 - Thank you, Dr. Mullins.
1:29:13 Does any board member wish to pull any item
1:29:14 from the consent agenda?
1:29:17 Then I will entertain a motion
1:29:19 to approve the consent agenda as presented.
1:29:21 - Move to approve.
1:29:22 - Second.
1:29:23 - Moved by Mr. Susan, seconded by Ms. McDougall.
1:29:25 Any discussion?
1:29:28 Please vote.
1:29:39 - And the motion passes five-zero.
1:29:44 - Ms. Belford.
1:29:46 - Yes, ma’am.
1:29:46 - Sorry, it wasn’t discussion related to the vote,
1:29:50 but I just wanted to point out one of the things
1:29:51 we just approved in the consent agenda
1:29:53 was the CARES Act, the first round of CARES Act approval,
1:29:59 which we got for our plan this last week, right?
1:30:03 And so if people want to follow up on the agenda
1:30:05 to see some of those things
1:30:07 that have already been approved,
1:30:08 they can check that out on our agenda page.
1:30:11 - Thank you, Ms. Campbell.
1:30:14 We will now move on to the action agenda, Dr. Mullins.
1:30:17 - Ms. Belford and members of the board,
1:30:18 there are a total of four action items
1:30:20 for us to go through this evening.
1:30:26 Item G-21 is on the emergency rule policy
1:30:29 regarding face coverings.
1:30:32 - We had discussion this afternoon
1:30:34 and determined some amendments to the policy as presented.
1:30:36 Do I have a motion to approve
1:30:38 the recommended emergency policy
1:30:40 authorizing the superintendent to require face coverings
1:30:42 consistent with the policy effect of August 11, 2020
1:30:45 to remain in effect for 90 days
1:30:47 and less extended pursuant to section 120.54(4)
1:30:52 for the statutes and amended for the following.
1:30:55 Remove the future policies
1:30:56 on the top of the policy document.
1:30:58 In section two, add an IEP and 504 exception
1:31:02 that removes the mask requirement based upon documentation
1:31:04 that has been provided during the IEP and 504 process.
1:31:07 And in section two, remove supervisor approval for employees
1:31:10 if they are maintaining social distancing
1:31:12 to find us six feet.
1:31:13 And in section four, change faculty are encouraged
1:31:16 to use face shields.
1:31:17 The faculty are allowed to use face shields.
1:31:20 - Move to approve.
1:31:22 - Second.
1:31:22 - Moved by Mr. Susan, seconded by Ms. McDougall.
1:31:24 Any discussion?
1:31:27 Please vote.
1:31:34 (silence)
1:31:48 - And the motion passes four one.
1:31:53 Dr. Mullins.
1:31:58 - Item, sorry, catching up here.
1:32:02 Item G-22 on the amendment to school reopening plan.
1:32:06 - What are the wishes of the board?
1:32:07 - Move to approve.
1:32:09 - Second.
1:32:09 - Moved by Mr. Susan, seconded by Ms. McDougall.
1:32:12 Any discussion?
1:32:14 - Yes.
1:32:15 - Ms. Campbell.
1:32:16 - Yeah, and this is related to the last item as well.
1:32:20 I still feel the way that I have felt for the last weeks
1:32:24 and you guys understand it.
1:32:25 So I won’t repeat the things that I’ve said before,
1:32:29 but one of the reasons why we had to have the emergency
1:32:33 rule that we just had is because we changed the language
1:32:35 from expected to required, then we have to have a policy.
1:32:43 The reason why I can vote yes on that item
1:32:46 and on this is because the policy as it’s written
1:32:51 has the exceptions that I was hoping we would have
1:32:54 for the people who, the younger students
1:32:56 who it’s difficult for, the ones who have the medical
1:33:01 exceptions, but I, you know, at this point the board,
1:33:06 even if it was three to two, the board made the decision
1:33:10 to a few, two weeks ago when we met to change the language.
1:33:16 And I think that we have tried to make this as easy
1:33:21 of a transition for our students and parents as possible.
1:33:25 While I still don’t agree with the idea of, you know,
1:33:31 letting it be something that’s, you know,
1:33:35 requiring discipline over something that we can teach into
1:33:40 with expected, which again, I appreciate Dr. Mullins
1:33:43 continuing to say that he expects it from the top down.
1:33:46 I do appreciate the work that the staff has done,
1:33:48 including Mr. Gibbs over there, to try to help us formulate
1:33:53 a plan that we can all come around.
1:33:56 And I certainly want to,
1:34:01 you know, not continue to fight the battle.
1:34:07 But I just, I do appreciate the work that the staff
1:34:10 has done no matter what my initial thoughts have been.
1:34:13 - Thank you, Ms. Campbell, any additional discussion?
1:34:16 Please vote.
1:34:23 - And the motion passes four to one, Dr. Mullins.
1:34:37 - Item G23 is board action on procurement solicitations.
1:34:42 - What are the wishes of the board?
1:34:44 - Move to approve.
1:34:45 - Moved by Mr. Susan, seconded by Ms. Duskovich.
1:34:48 Any discussion?
1:34:51 Please vote.
1:34:53 - And the motion passes five, zero, Dr. Mullins.
1:35:06 - Item G24 is on department school initiated agreements.
1:35:09 - What are the wishes of the board?
1:35:11 - Move to approve.
1:35:12 - Second.
1:35:14 - Is that you, Ms. Campbell, with the second?
1:35:15 - Yes.
1:35:16 - Moved by Mr. Susan, seconded by Ms. Campbell.
1:35:17 Any discussion?
1:35:21 Please vote.
1:35:23 - The motion passes five, zero, Dr. Mullins.
1:35:34 Oh, no, it is me.
1:35:35 We will move on to the information agenda,
1:35:37 which includes items for board review
1:35:39 and may be brought back for action at a subsequent meeting.
1:35:42 No action will be taken on these items tonight.
1:35:44 Dr. Mullins.
1:35:46 - There are three items under the information category.
1:35:48 - Does any member wish to discuss any item?
1:35:53 Okay, does any board member have anything else
1:35:55 they would like to report at this time?
1:35:57 - Is this board report?
1:35:58 - Yes, ma’am.
1:35:59 - All right, I have one thing that I’m remiss
1:36:01 and I feel very bad.
1:36:02 So when I was giving a shout out
1:36:04 to our principal of the year,
1:36:08 I forgot the assistant principal of the year.
1:36:10 - Ms. McDougall.
1:36:11 - Oh, I know, my microphone’s not on, I’m so sorry.
1:36:15 As I was saying that I forgot to give a shout out
1:36:18 to our assistant principal of the year who is at Rockledge
1:36:21 and that’s Carrie, oh boy, thank you, Kalaga.
1:36:27 So congratulations to Terry at Rockledge
1:36:28 for the assistant principal of the year.
1:36:30 (audience applauding)
1:36:34 - Thank you, Ms. McDougall for reminding us to celebrate
1:36:36 that we appreciate it.
1:36:37 Any other board members have anything
1:36:38 to discuss at this point?
1:36:41 Dr. Mullins, do you have anything more?
1:36:44 There being no further business,
1:36:45 this meeting is now adjourned.
1:36:46 Have a great night.
1:36:50 (upbeat music)