2026-09-09 - School Committee

00:21Good evening. My name is Rachel

00:22Shriefport, chairperson of the

00:24Shrewsbury School Committee. Welcome to

00:26our meeting for Wednesday, September

00:279th. Tonight's meeting is being

00:29broadcast live on Silco channels 29 and

00:32329 and streamed live on Shrewsbury

00:35Media Connections website. Thank you to

00:37Liz Papalowski and Shrewsbury Media

00:39Connection for their assistance with our

00:40broadcast this evening. Tonight's

00:42meeting will be rebroadcast on SMC's

00:44website and their YouTube channel

00:46between now and our next regularly

00:48scheduled meeting.

00:50Tonight, we have a very special opening

00:52to our meeting. We have the tradition

00:54that for the first meeting of the year,

00:55we invite the Shrewsbury High School

00:57Chamber Choir under the direction of Mr.

01:00Michael Lapamardo. Tonight, the chamber

01:02choir is here and they will sing the

01:04Star Spangled Banner. So, Mr. Laamardo,

01:07handed it over to you.

01:19[singing]

01:25[singing]

01:27lights

01:30[singing]

01:36[singing]

01:40and the rockets [singing] red

01:48[singing]

01:49flag there. Oh, say [singing] does that

01:53star spangled banner yet wave

02:00for the land

02:02of [singing] the free

02:06and the home

02:09of [singing] the

02:11brave.

02:16Very nice.

02:18[applause]

02:19Right.

02:23Thank you very much to our chamber choir

02:25and Mr. Lapamardo for being with us here

02:27tonight.

02:29Okay. So, the first item on the agenda

02:32is public participation. Tonight, we

02:34have not received any requests to speak

02:36at public participation. Public

02:38participation is available to all

02:40residents who would like to address the

02:41committee regarding concerns on policy,

02:44budget, and the performance of the

02:45superintendent. In the future, if anyone

02:48would like to speak at public

02:49participation, they can contact the

02:50chair in advance of the next meeting.

02:53All right. The next item on the agenda

02:55is chairperson and members report.

02:58Colleagues, anything to share this week?

03:02>> Um, before we begin our work tonight,

03:06um, I would like to take a moment to

03:08recognize a very special member of our

03:10Shrewsbury School community whom we lost

03:13over the summer. Marcy Rubin, a beloved

03:16second grade teacher at the major Howard

03:18W. Beiel School, passed away this

03:19summer. Marcy began her career with

03:22Shrewsbury public schools in 2010, first

03:24serving as a literacy tutor at Floral

03:26Street before moving on to Calvin

03:28Coolage. In 2012, Marcy became a

03:32long-term substitute kindergarten

03:33teacher at Koolage before accepting a

03:35full-time teaching position the

03:36following year. With the opening of our

03:39newest elementary school in 2021, Marcy

03:41made the transition to her new home and

03:43family at Beiel, where she primarily

03:45taught in the second grade.

03:48The story of Marcy's career tells us a

03:50lot about the kind of educator she was,

03:52and she moved through life with such

03:53beautiful purpose and glowing

03:55positivity. She didn't simply teach our

03:58children. She built and developed deep

04:00relationships with them. During the 23

04:0224 school year, Marcy taught first grade

04:05and then looped with that same exact

04:07class into their second grade, choosing

04:08to continue that journey with her

04:10students, much to their utter delight.

04:13That kind of continuity and devotion is

04:15something that stays with children long

04:17after they leave a classroom. But

04:19Marcy's connection to Shrewsbury Public

04:21Schools went far beyond her role as an

04:23educator. She was also the exceptionally

04:25proud parent of two recent Shrewsbury

04:27High School graduates, Aiden and Hannah.

04:29She experienced our schools as a

04:31teacher, as a parent, as a friend and

04:34neighbor in this community. She cared

04:36deeply about our students, our families,

04:38her colleagues, and the community she

04:40called home.

04:42Her impact is difficult to measure

04:43because it lives on in so many places.

04:46In the students she taught, the family

04:48she supported, the colleagues she worked

04:50alongside, and in the many relationships

04:52she built built throughout her years in

04:54Shrewsbury. Marcy lit up a room when she

04:57walked through it and her smile,

04:58kindness, and sincerity were infectious.

05:02Marcy's career is a reminder of the

05:03profound and lasting impact that an

05:05educator can have on a child and on an

05:07entire community. On behalf of the

05:10school committee and the school

05:11district, I want to extend our deepest

05:13consult condolences to Marcy's family,

05:15her husband Jordan, her children Aiden

05:18and Hannah, as well as her extended

05:20family, colleagues, and friends, and to

05:22all the students and families who are

05:24fortunate enough to experience her

05:26light. I ask everyone to please join us

05:28in a moment of silence and memory of

05:30Mrs. Rubin.

05:50Thank you.

05:52The next item on the agenda is

05:54superintendent report. Dr. Ostrander.

05:56>> Thank you. So, first I want to share my

06:00condolences to Marcy Rubin's family as

06:03well as the Beal and Koolage school

06:05communities. I had the privilege of

06:07working with Marcy directly. Um, she's

06:10known for being a dedicated educator,

06:13one full of humor, kindness, and an

06:16ability to make a deep and meaningful

06:18connection with students. She impacted

06:21hundreds of students and families, and

06:23we will miss her dearly.

06:26So, for my report this evening, I wanted

06:28to share that the opening of schools has

06:30gone very well from preK to high school

06:32and rise. I'm grateful for the hard work

06:35and collaboration and effort from our

06:37staff. Kudos to our family for their

06:40partnerships and preparing students to

06:41be ready to return as well. And want to

06:44certainly acknowledge food services and

06:46bus drivers. Um as all of the logistics,

06:49the prep work, and the coordination um

06:51from these individuals are really what

06:53help um to to make it successful a

06:56successful start to the year. Um it's no

07:00small feat to feed thousands of

07:02students, deliver them doortodoor, and

07:05um be sure that they make it there on

07:07time. So, it takes a village and we're

07:09having a very smooth start. So, just

07:11wanted to say thank you to everybody.

07:13Um, and then in the closing of my report

07:15this evening, I wanted to share a bit of

07:17good news with you. Um, I've collected

07:19some vignettes from principles,

07:21teachers, and directors about just some

07:23recent successes that have happened

07:24across our school districts. And, um, I

07:27have three in particular that I wanted

07:28to share tonight. So, I wanted to um

07:31give a shout out to Sarah Powers um who

07:34is an Oak staff member, Felicity Boare,

07:37who is a district social worker, and

07:39Brian Callahan, who's the new assistant

07:41superintendent of well-being and

07:43community systems who work together to

07:45provide over 120 families um with new

07:48backpacks, school supplies, and clothing

07:50from the Oak Locker. There was recently

07:53a shopping event and it was a huge

07:55success and it took a lot of effort. So,

07:56thanks to them. I also wanted to say

07:59congratulations to a now freshman Gtha

08:02Sandeep who was named this summer as one

08:05of the top 300 junior innovators in 2026

08:09and the Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior

08:11Innovators Challenge. Um this is

08:13actually an online competition and it's

08:16the highest level of science fair

08:17competition that students can compete in

08:19at the middle school level and she was

08:21named in the top um 15% of of innovators

08:25which is really impressive. And um

08:28lastly, I'm very proud to share with you

08:31um that Lily Tomer is our first

08:33graduated RISE student who is going to

08:36be employed in Shrewsbury public schools

08:39and she is an educator at PAR educator

08:41at Calvin Kulage. That's great.

08:43>> So, welcome to the staff to Lily.

08:45>> And that's my report for this evening.

08:47>> Great. I love that. That's good.

08:50>> All right. Our first time scheduled

08:52appointment for tonight is a school

08:53facilities summer maintenance report.

08:55Mr. Dardi, our assistant superintendent

08:57of finance and operations, along with

08:59John Hamilton, the town of Shrewsberry's

09:01superintendent of public buildings are

09:03both here tonight to provide a report on

09:05the summer 2026 maintenance projects

09:07which um included capital repairs and

09:10improvements that were completed across

09:13um all of our school buildings. So, Mr.

09:15Gerardi,

09:15>> thank you. Just a moment here while I

09:18pull this up.

09:35All right. You're always nervous the

09:37first meeting of the year where not sure

09:38how the technology's been working all

09:40summer. [laughter]

09:41>> Well, thank you. I'm really excited to

09:43be here with uh Mr. Hamilton this this

09:45evening. Um, you know, we have a truly

09:48special relationship between the school

09:50department and the public buildings

09:51department. Um, when our students

09:54arrived, when our teachers arrived end

09:55of August, beginning of September, um,

09:58the buildings were noticeably in great

10:00shape. Um, and we're ready to go to

10:02start the school year and that is in um,

10:04you know, a lot of thank you and a lot

10:07of um, you know, respect for uh, Mr.

10:10Hamilton and his team. So, going to walk

10:12you through some of the high points. uh

10:15let John speak to you about um you know

10:17we'll see some of the the the high

10:19points but there are many things that um

10:21are going on that he'll speak to you

10:23about behind the scenes. All right, so

10:25we'll get started here. Thank you Mr.

10:27Gerardy. Good evening everyone. Um so my

10:30name is John Hamilton. I'm the

10:31superintendent of public buildings. Um

10:34been in this role for about seven

10:36months. Um but I have been a manager in

10:39public buildings for the last five

10:40years. So not my first school committee

10:43meeting in September.

10:44>> [laughter]

10:44>> So, um, so I'll just give you a brief

10:47overview of our team. Um, we're the

10:49largest, uh, division in public works.

10:52We staff 25 full-time staff members. Um,

10:55so we have Ryan Cannon, our assistant

10:58division manager of day custodial

10:59operations, so he oversees our

11:01custodians. Uh, Bill Tuttle oversees our

11:04maintenance and repair. Joel Manzy is

11:06our um, Shrewsbury High School plant

11:09manager. and Pat Fincom is our assistant

11:12division manager who oversees our

11:13contract cleaning program, which I know

11:15many of you are familiar with. Um, and

11:18then we have six full-time maintenance

11:20craftsmen. Three of those are swing

11:22custodians, so they sometimes play two

11:25different jobs. Um, and then we have a

11:27licensed plumber, electrician, and

11:29carpenter, uh, who's also now a

11:32locksmith, too. So, we're just adding

11:34stuff on there. Um [snorts]

11:36so of that 25 and of those 14 full-time

11:40custodians, 11 of them are in schools.

11:42Um we maintain roughly 1.2 million uh

11:47square feet of floor space. The schools

11:50account for about 88% of that. So it's

11:52it's quite a bit.

11:55So we can move into the first slide

11:57here. DC. Um, always a great either

12:01summer vacation or winter vacation

12:02project is getting into the gyms, which

12:05are hard to get into with all the

12:07extracurricular activities that go on.

12:09Um, so you see two projects here, one at

12:11the high, one at the high school, one at

12:13Oak Middle School. Um, those are recon

12:16projects. So, our staff complete those

12:18projects. Um, we just go in with a, you

12:21know, special kind of tacking agent,

12:23clean the floor, and then recode it.

12:25That's something we try to do every six

12:28months or so. Um we try to line it up

12:31with basketball season, so it might be a

12:33little bit shorter than six months, but

12:35um and then you see at Sherwin Middle

12:37School, that was done by a contractor.

12:39That is, um a light abrasion of that

12:43floor and then recotating with a

12:45water-based uh wood floor coating. That

12:48is something that will last us a good

12:50five years. So, it's a good investment

12:52for a pretty fair price.

12:57This was a big one. I'm sure you've had

12:59some happy people at Spring Street

13:00School. [laughter]

13:03Um, so this is a unit that services the

13:06administration part of the building, uh,

13:08the gym. Um, something that in my five

13:11years here we've struggled with and even

13:14beyond that probably. Um, we were very

13:16fortunate town meeting get some funding

13:18for this. Um, so that work was completed

13:21in August. um had some hiccups, but

13:25everything's kind of ironed out now. Um

13:27running well, and we anticipate that

13:30this is something that, you know, really

13:32should last a good 15 to 20 years. So,

13:35we're hoping not to revisit this anytime

13:38soon.

13:40Um and then this is kind of tied into

13:42HVAC a little bit more. It's behind the

13:44scenes work that people typically don't

13:46see. Um, you know, we're doing filter

13:49changes, not only on unit events in the

13:52classrooms, but we're also doing rooftop

13:54unit uh filter changes, um, recharging

13:58refrigerant lines, cleaning out exhaust

14:00fans, things like that. Um, lot it's not

14:03the it's not the most fun work, but it

14:06has to get done. And this kind of ties

14:07into our um, you know, trying to improve

14:11our efficiency of everything that we're

14:13running. um the the dirtier that these

14:15rooftop units get with pollen and dust,

14:18the worse they run, the longer or

14:20shorter lifespan they have. So, um this

14:22is one of those things that's kind of

14:24behind the scenes, but very important.

14:29So, I'll I'll admit to you, we didn't

14:31have a lot of great painting pictures,

14:32but we did a lot of painting this year.

14:34[laughter] Um if any of you have ever

14:36been in Spring Street School, um the

14:39concrete stairs are a bit of a challenge

14:41when you try to put safety tape on them.

14:43And so by about the third or fourth week

14:46of school, they they look like we've

14:47never touched them.

14:48>> So we switched that up this year. Um

14:50decided to go with safety paint. Um

14:53which we're going to kind of trial run

14:54there. Um and see how that works and can

14:57we apply it to other stairs in the

15:00district and we're not ripping up tape

15:01every year. Um so it's just more it's

15:04more of a time consuming thing and and

15:06it also ties into the aesthetic I think

15:08too. And then um I think you see one of

15:11our custodians there, Mike. uh Milani at

15:14Culage taping off that wall to get that

15:16wall painted. Um we've done a like I

15:19said a lot of painting projects were

15:21we've done the patent main office uh

15:23Shrewsbury High School we've done

15:24multiple spaces in this summer Parker

15:27Road Preschool, Spring Street School. Um

15:29the Oak Middle School office I think is

15:31a nice new shade of blue. So gone is the

15:34mustard yellow walls in there. Um so

15:38that's just a little bit of of the

15:39painting work that we did this year.

15:42This was a big one. Floral Street School

15:45carpet replacement. It's another capital

15:46project that we got funding for at town

15:48meeting. Um

15:50we've been doing this project on a

15:52rolling basis for the past five years

15:54and we were really hopeful that the

15:57funding we had this year would allow us

15:59to finish not the case. Um so we

16:02probably will come back to town meeting

16:04next year in the in the spring um and

16:07see if we can wrap that up. So, we did

16:0810 spaces on the second floor. We have

16:12about seven or eight left. If we get

16:14those seven or eight done, all the

16:16carpeting from the original 1997

16:19construction has been replaced. So,

16:24this is arguably the most noticeable

16:26when staff and students return is floors

16:29um because there's a lot of them. Um so,

16:32most of our floor work is done by

16:35contract cleaning in the schools. Um so,

16:38We'll give credit where it's due. Our we

16:39work with two different companies,

16:41Northeast Janitorial, Dynamic

16:42Janitorial. Um they do a lot of great

16:45work for us. So they're in every school

16:46except for Parker Road. Um and we threw

16:49a picture of Parker Road in here because

16:51I think it's kind of an interesting

16:52thing to see. If you look up in the top

16:54corner, that's part of the floor that

16:56has been done.

16:57>> And to the left there is the part of the

16:59floor that we haven't gotten to. Right.

17:01So that just kind of shows you the

17:03difference between what it looks like

17:04after a school year and what it looks

17:06like at the start. And if you check back

17:08in in about December or January, we'll

17:10we'll start looking the other way now.

17:12So,

17:15>> um this is always a a hot ticket item,

17:17bottle filling stations. Um we had a we

17:19had a couple of them fail in in a couple

17:21different places last year. Oak was a

17:23struggle. Um we've we're also

17:25experiencing some issues at Floral

17:27Street. We were able to get the new ones

17:29installed at Oak in time for the start

17:30of school. Uh we actually had one fail

17:33at Floral last week. Uh so we do have

17:37two on the way. We're hoping to get that

17:39work done um hopefully within the next

17:41couple weeks.

17:45Grounds work. Um one of the things that

17:48I'm really big on and it's something

17:50that I've always especially as a

17:52resident of town is, you know, I've

17:54always cared about is is curb [snorts]

17:56appeal. Um so we did some work at the

17:59high school. Um two different places at

18:02the high school. the the uh the mounds

18:05in the front of the building that I I'm

18:06guessing were just leftover from

18:09construction. And where do we put this?

18:11Uh there was an interesting choice made

18:13there to put mulch beds on top of those.

18:15Uh we've gotten rid of those. Um so

18:18we've planted some new grass there. I

18:19think that improves the aesthetic of the

18:21front of that building. Um we also

18:23cleaned up the senior courtyard at the

18:25high school which was just beyond our

18:27control, overgrown. um Floral Street

18:29School. We did a lot of work in the

18:31outdoor classroom out back. Um some tree

18:33pruning out front. Um we've also done

18:36some work at Beal. And I know this is a

18:40hot button one because it's the most

18:42noticeable when you pull in. Um

18:45that that that that

18:47property is is really hard for us to

18:50maintain and I think we're we're coming

18:53up with a new strategy on how to kind of

18:55reset that property. So I think what you

18:57see now is not quite the finished

18:59product there. Um so that's just kind of

19:01an example of some of the grounds work

19:03that we did. Um

19:06and lastly, this is green communities

19:08funding. Um we get about $84,000 from

19:11the state to do LED light conversions.

19:15These are super popular with staff and

19:17students. Um makes the environments a

19:20little bit brighter while making looking

19:22at the light a little bit less harsh. um

19:25also helps us out on our energy costs.

19:27Every every day we're trying to find new

19:29ways to save a buck. Um and this is a

19:32really easy step to do it. When you can

19:33do it with grant money, it just makes it

19:36all the much more better. So,

19:40um so again, appreciate your time this

19:42evening. Um I I think what you see here

19:45is just a portion of what we've done. A

19:48lot of the work happens um you know,

19:50behind the scenes. Um, and I think Chris

19:53spoke to it a little bit about our

19:54partnership. You know, we all share the

19:56same common goal. We want to make the

19:58learning environment clean, safe,

20:00hospitable. That's our chief concern.

20:03Um, and we think when we do that, it it

20:05promotes that and it promotes a a good

20:07solid learning environment for our

20:08students. So, with that, be happy to

20:10take any questions or comments.

20:13>> Alex questions.

20:16>> Oh, thank you. Um, thanks for the

20:19update. This looks wonderful. I think

20:20the students really appreciate the all

20:22the new walls, flooring and carpet and

20:25everything. Um, thank you uh for all the

20:27service that your team and the entire

20:29team done over the summer. I was just

20:31trying to understand uh two questions

20:32like one is floral state uh carpeting.

20:35>> Yep.

20:35>> So it took like five years to put in the

20:38or maybe

20:39>> Yeah, it was a phase project. I I

20:41actually it might even be you know like

20:43co kind of messed up everybody's

20:44timeline. So it might have been 2020. So

20:47we might be in year number six of that.

20:49There were a couple of gap years there,

20:51I think, in between where we didn't get

20:53funding for it. So, it kind of stalled

20:55that out a little bit. Um, we were

20:57hopeful we were going to get enough this

20:59year to do the whole second floor. Um, I

21:02think just ultimately with the economic

21:05climate and inflation and tariffs and

21:08um, we saw a number, you know, that we

21:10would expect to pay for the entire

21:12floor. We could have taken that number a

21:14couple years ago and it would have

21:15worked. uh just not in today's not in

21:18today's economic climate.

21:19>> But my question is so what's the

21:20lifespan of that car? Like when

21:23>> Well, I think you've seen a good

21:24lifespan of it, right? It's crazy to

21:25think, but Floral Street School is is

21:28just about 30 years old.

21:30>> Um you know, I would say we can be

21:33confident that we'll see another 30 out

21:35of what we put in there. Of course, I

21:37think the way we've done it is going to

21:39require us, you know, when we get to

21:41that point to kind of do it in a staged

21:43uh process, but um I think that's a fair

21:46assessment that it would be, you know,

21:48anytime we can get roughly 20 to 30

21:50years out of something is a it's a

21:51pretty good run. So,

21:53>> one one of the question

21:54>> Yeah. So uh regarding the bill uh

21:58infrastructure outside outside um

22:00gardening stuff. So what's what's the is

22:03that a how it's uh in the in the current

22:06state or what's the pain points there?

22:09>> Yeah. So I I think that you know the

22:13pain points there and what we look at

22:14anytime we construct a new building is

22:17what landscape architects like and what

22:20can be realistically maintained. Right?

22:22because a lot of it looks great on paper

22:24and I will say, you know, for that first

22:26year, Bill looked incredible.

22:29>> Um, a lot of times in those building

22:31projects, they're sold as [snorts]

22:33maintenancefree or low maintenance, and

22:35there's just no such thing as that. Um,

22:39I think for for us, it's just been the

22:42volume of plants there. like I I I don't

22:45know the exact number that we had there,

22:47but it probably could have been h

22:48haveved and we might have been able to

22:51maintain that. Um the other tricky part

22:53there is we only have one staff member

22:55there. We only have one custodian there.

22:57So we always joke upstairs that I could

23:00justify adding a 40hour per week

23:02position just for be grounds.

23:04>> Um so I think you know as we look to

23:07we're not looking to pave over anything

23:09or put concrete anywhere. We're looking

23:11for um just something that's a little

23:13bit easier for us to maintain and

23:15whether that's putting, you know, grass

23:17in those pedestrian islands, things like

23:19that. Um something that's still

23:20aesthetically pleasing um but, you know,

23:23easier for us to maintain.

23:25>> Makes sense. Thank you.

23:26>> Y

23:30um I appreciate the partnership between

23:32the schools and and the the town. I

23:35think um you know I have people that

23:37come into the Shoeser schools and they

23:40um are impressed by how well-kept our

23:42schools are and clearly things break and

23:45things happen. We have 6,000 kids that

23:46are living in our buildings. Um but I

23:49think a lot of people are surprised to

23:50see how old some of our buildings

23:51actually are because of how wellkept um

23:54that we keep it. And I that is a huge um

23:58a huge gratitude to your team that that

24:00keeps us going um because they really do

24:03they're they're something to be proud

24:04of. So, um, I appreciate the the

24:06partnership between the town and all the

24:08work that goes into it and all the work

24:10that the custodians do, um, to having

24:12the buildings the way that they look.

24:14So, Dr. Render, do you have anything to

24:16add? I'll just echo, you know, I

24:18appreciate the work of our public

24:20buildings team, whether you know you're

24:22a division manager, a custodian, um, the

24:24maintenance craftsman, you know, you you

24:27not only do this amazing work over the

24:28summer, but you respond throughout the

24:30school year on an ongoing basis. and our

24:32partnership is is really what you said,

24:34Mr. Hamilton. It makes our schools safe

24:36and welcoming andospitable for learning.

24:38So, thank you for your partnership.

24:40>> Thank you.

24:42>> All right, we're going to keep Mr. Jordy

24:44and Mr. Hamilton here. Um, the next time

24:46scheduled item on our agenda is an

24:48update on the potential Shrewsbury High

24:50School expansion project. Um, we will uh

24:55Mr. Gardy and Mr. Hamilton are remaining

24:57with us to present an update on our ex

24:59potential expansion project that will

25:01address the severe overcrowding that

25:03continues at Shrewsbury High School. I

25:06will hand it back over.

25:08>> Great. Thank you. Now, walk us through

25:09this one here. Um thank you, John, for

25:12staying if there's questions. U because

25:14Mr. Hamilton is part of our uh the high

25:17school building uh committee. So, um

25:19there's definitely some great

25:20perspective from both of us that we can

25:22learn here. Uh but we felt tonight would

25:24be a nice opportunity to update both the

25:27school committee and the public at large

25:29as to where we're at because there's

25:30been a lot going on. Um and as we enter

25:33back into the school year, it's nice

25:35opportunity to come in and to kind of

25:37share where we're at and where we're

25:39moving because things are starting to

25:40pick up pretty quickly.

25:42So, uh just some key facts about the

25:45potential expansion and renovation

25:46project. Um this is a competitive

25:50selection. Uh we were of the 119

25:53applicants statewide in 2024. We were

25:56one of just 22 projects selected by the

25:58Massachusetts School Building Authority

26:00uh to be invited into uh their um elig

26:04uh eligibility period. Uh what we're

26:06addressing are urgent needs. Um MSBA

26:09realized that um you know they

26:11prioritize projects that eliminate

26:13existing severe overcrowding as one of

26:15their key components. Number one is

26:17safety of the building. Uh number two is

26:20um severe overcrowding and we'll share

26:23in a few moments what that severe

26:24overcrowding is. Also with that is we

26:27have a high school building um you know

26:29as far as a renovation goes where we're

26:31at the state as we spoke about floral

26:33it's approaching 30 or it's over 30

26:36years um currently and that's when you

26:39start to see um some aging facility

26:41components.

26:43So, working with MSBA, the goal is to

26:45partner with them um to co-und a

26:47solution for the severe overcrowding at

26:49Shrewbury High School. And an important

26:51piece here um to replace building

26:54systems that will be nearing end of

26:56life, roof, HVAC, windows, electrical um

27:00by expanding and renovating the existing

27:02um high school facility.

27:06So, timeline to present day. In April

27:082024, we submitted our statement of

27:10interest to MSBA uh with severe

27:13overcrowding as our number one priority.

27:16Um in December of that year, they

27:18invited us into the eligibility period

27:20pipeline.

27:22Um we spent the next year working on the

27:25eligibility period. Um and speech we

27:28went to special town meeting in October

27:30of 2025 where they voted to authorize

27:33the feasibility study funding.

27:36We began the work of the feasibility

27:38study with our forming the project team

27:41in May of 2026. This past May, uh we uh

27:45selected the onus project mir uh manager

27:48which we affectionately call our OPM

27:51and then they assisted us once they came

27:53on board to form um the designer

27:55selection team where in August of this

27:58year 2026 we brought on board our

28:01architect and with that as our architect

28:04came on board uh we are beginning the um

28:07feasibility study period with what we

28:09call the preliminary design program the

28:11PDP.

28:12which we had our kickoff meeting end of

28:15August and our um second meeting

28:17yesterday where we're beginning that

28:19work.

28:22So this is just where we're at. Uh we're

28:24what's considered by MSBA is the module

28:27three which is the feasibility study

28:29after we formed the project team and we

28:31went through the eligibility period. Um

28:34the next 9 to 12 months we're looking at

28:37the feasibility study with schematic

28:39design. Um, and then we'll determine at

28:41what time we would go to the town to

28:43say, um, here's what we have as far as,

28:46uh, the building that we're proposing

28:47and the cost for the building. Um, and

28:49that's when funding would be, um, the

28:51conversation for the community.

28:56When we speak of severe overcrowding,

28:59um,

29:01when we were in the eligibility period,

29:02what the MSBA does is they come up with

29:05a a an enrollment. um it's their design

29:07enrollment and that's what they're

29:09willing to work with the town to build a

29:11facility that would support that number

29:13of students. Uh that number of students

29:15came out in their um in their study

29:18which was a significant one was um a

29:22design capacity of 1,940 students as

29:25their baseline over 10 years.

29:28um to share what that means. Currently,

29:31um in October 25 of last year when they

29:34did this study, we had 1,899

29:37students at the high school. Uh what

29:39they do is they factor in other um

29:42things like people moving to town once

29:44you have a new high school. Um new

29:47projects in the pipeline that would

29:49attract families that would have school

29:50age students. um students that may come

29:53or go from private or alternative

29:56schools to attend uh Shbury High School.

29:59So the number increased up to the 1940

30:01as their baseline. Um to put things into

30:04perspective, the original building

30:07design in 2000 was built for 1475

30:11students. What the MSBA does is they

30:14take a look at that and they say, "What

30:15does the modern educational um, you

30:18know, design look like?" If they were to

30:20do that with their current formulas,

30:22they would say that the current Shbury

30:24High School is designed for 1,250

30:27students. What that does is that tells

30:30us that there we are 690 students over

30:33uh the modern state design uh for what

30:37they say our population is going to be

30:39as our baseline for the next 10 years.

30:4255% over capacity. So that explains the

30:45severe overcrowding at Shbury High

30:47School.

30:50So we are in this feasibility study and

30:52there's two pieces to this. There's the

30:54preliminary design program which we are

30:56starting now. Um and that will go into

30:58the preferred schematic report uh which

31:01fine-tunes it into what will become the

31:04schematic design in module 4. the

31:06schematic design will be the full um

31:09plan of what the building would be if we

31:12were to move forward as a town in

31:14supporting that project. So, to back up

31:16a little bit to our per uh PDP, our

31:19preliminary design program, what we're

31:22going to be doing over the next couple

31:23months is

31:25reviewing the existing conditions of the

31:27building, building the educational

31:30visioning where we meet with uh

31:32stakeholders at the high school, with

31:34the community, with students, um as many

31:37stakeholders as we feel we can get uh

31:40the right amount of information that

31:42will help us design an educational

31:44program that the town deserves.

31:45reserves.

31:47Um we will write that educational

31:49program um so it's on paper and that

31:52will assist the architect in developing

31:54space based on what we're asking them to

31:56do. Um we'll do a space needs assessment

31:59which will be a lot with the public

32:00buildings. They'll develop some

32:02preliminary options during this uh

32:04phase. And what we'll also do is we'll

32:07eliminate non-preferred options. What

32:10that means is currently we're looking at

32:12a renovation and potential addition of

32:15the high school to address um severe

32:17overcrowding some um older systems.

32:21They're going to take a look to see if

32:22that's the right way to go. Um or would

32:25a new build be the right way to go. I

32:27don't believe anyone at this time feels

32:28that way, but we have to go through that

32:30process with MSBA because they want to

32:32rule out every different option uh that

32:34we could potentially have uh in finding

32:37the right solution for Shbury High

32:39School.

32:43So, the purpose of this this uh

32:45preliminary design program, the part

32:47that we're going to be in for the next

32:48several months, is to define the

32:51programmatic, functional, spatial, and

32:54environmental requirements of the

32:56educational facility necessary to meet

32:58the district's educational program and

33:01perform the review and investigation

33:03required to clearly define the existing

33:05building deficiencies. So, that is from

33:08SMMA. that is our architect that we

33:11brought on board in August.

33:17So as far as the feasibility study big

33:19picture um town meeting funded uh they

33:23appropriated funds uh to engage the

33:26owner project manager and the designer

33:29and they are working with us to conduct

33:30this feasibility study to create a

33:32schematic design that proposes the most

33:35costefficient solution for a potential

33:37building project.

33:41It's a highly detailed process pro

33:42process and it enables the MSBA and the

33:45town to determine and agree upon the

33:47specifics for a proposed project and the

33:50estimated cost so that a decision can

33:53then be made uh whether to fund the

33:56actual project by our community.

33:59And the earliest that town meeting and

34:00Shbury voters would vote on a potential

34:03project would be fall of 2027. Again, I

34:06want to emphasize that's the earliest

34:08that's not a target. That's the earliest

34:10in which they would um that that could

34:13be allowed by the MSBA.

34:20So, I want to share this slide because I

34:21think it's important for the community

34:22to see the importance of working with

34:24the MSBA, what the payoff is. Um Shbury

34:28currently has a reimbursement rate from

34:30the MSBA of 52.26% 26%

34:34of all reimburseable funds. So, town

34:37meeting back in October of 205

34:41uh voted to um appropriate $3 million to

34:44fund the feasibility study. Hopefully,

34:47it's not the full $3 million, but that's

34:49what has been appropriated and the state

34:51requires us to do that prior to us being

34:54allowed to do any work. So, with our

34:56reimbursement rate, um the estimated net

34:59cost to the town, um out of the $3

35:01million appropriation would be about

35:03$1.4 million if it went to the full

35:05cost.

35:09And just for our community members, um

35:11this would not require um any uh debt.

35:16Um this would all be available via free

35:18cash. [snorts]

35:26And I apologize, but I I skipped a slide

35:30and I wanted to bring it up because this

35:31is the work that this is the group

35:33that's doing that work. And I just want

35:34people to know uh the group that is

35:36doing it. It's called the project team

35:37and we have our Shbury High School

35:39building committee and it's made up of

35:42uh Michelle Conland from the select

35:44board, Miss Aron Bucher from the school

35:46representing the school committee, uh

35:48Kevin Mizakar the town manager, Mrs.

35:51Ostrander the superintendent of schools

35:53Mr. Hamilton, our public buildings

35:54division manager, myself, Chris Gerardi,

35:57assistant superintendent for finance and

35:58operations for the schools, Todd Bis

36:01Bizidlo as the high school uh principal,

36:04Megan Vincent who is a community

36:05representative and Bob Cox as a

36:07community representative. And I wish I

36:10didn't get to the side slide earlier

36:11because I was talking about the OPM and

36:12the designer. Um, our OPM is the is PMA

36:17consultants who if anyone remembers the

36:19bill project, they were our OPM during

36:21the bill project as well. Um, and I

36:23believe they did the Sherwood project

36:25before that.

36:27And our designer, this is a new designer

36:28with us, uh, but we've had a great start

36:31with them. Uh, they are SMMA. Uh, we've

36:34worked with them for a few months now,

36:35and I had to go in and look today what

36:36their actual uh, name was because they

36:40go by SM MMA, but it's uh, Sims Mine and

36:44McKe Associates. So, SMMA.

36:48So apologize for uh skipping that slide,

36:50but at this point if you have any

36:52questions or any clarifications, I'm

36:54happy to John and I are happy to address

36:56them.

36:58>> Thank you, Mr. Gerardi and Mr. Hamilton.

37:00Um just a question and more so a

37:03highlight under um the module fee

37:06feasibility study where you have the

37:08blocks. It's a couple before. Yep, there

37:10you go. Just to highlight that um

37:13eliminating the non-preferred option.

37:15So, just to be clear, it's a requirement

37:17with the MSBA that we put on the table

37:20what it would look like to rebuild. It's

37:21not as though we're saying we want to

37:23have this option to rebuild.

37:25>> That's correct. And they do that with

37:26every community. We had to do it with

37:27old Beal when we were going through the

37:29uh process with Beal. Uh we had to do a

37:32study where we said that it would take

37:33$17 million just to bring Old Beal up to

37:36code. And that allowed us to say that's

37:39not a preferred option by the town. We

37:41wanted to move forward with a new build.

37:43Um so with this project here the

37:46sentiment is we really feel that the

37:48current building is still in terrific

37:50shape. Um it's a overcrowding issue not

37:53a security issue um or an old building

37:57issue which other communities do have

37:59>> but nonetheless it's required.

38:00>> It's required. That's great. We will go

38:02through um and they'll spend a lot a

38:04good chunk of time on it.

38:05>> Right.

38:06>> And that'll be run by the architect.

38:07>> Okay. And then just to follow up um on

38:10the slide that you skipped

38:12the so PMA we've worked with before. Has

38:16SMMA worked with the town or if they

38:19haven't worked with our town, have they

38:20done schools? Presumably this is what

38:22they do.

38:23>> They are new to us, but they are very

38:25familiar with the MSBA and building

38:26projects in in in Massachusetts.

38:29>> Okay. [clears throat]

38:29>> They are uh when we received

38:32applications, they were one of those

38:33that um PMA said, "Oh, good. I'm glad

38:36they applied. They've worked with them

38:38um under multiple projects.

38:40>> Great. Thank you.

38:41>> You're welcome.

38:42>> Mr. Winsky,

38:43>> thank you for the presentation and kind

38:44of refreshing our memories as to where

38:46we are and how we got here. I think it's

38:47very important. Um you mentioned the end

38:50of life for like roof, HVAC, and

38:53windows. Are those considered like end

38:56of life after like 30 years? Is that the

38:58end?

38:58>> So when we talk about end of life,

39:01they're definitely approaching that. Um,

39:02so

39:04as we look at this project, I think one

39:06of the important pieces is these are

39:08things that we're going to have to do

39:10regardless um, within the next few

39:12years. It could be next year, it could

39:13be four years, right? That's I'll leave

39:15that to Mr. Hamilton.

39:16>> Yeah. And it's it's it's almost like not

39:18end of life, but end of useful life,

39:21>> right? So it's not that it would just

39:23fail. Um, you start to see, especially

39:26with roofs, you start to see leak

39:28patterns developing, things like that.

39:30Um, but yeah, I mean, like Mr. Gerardi

39:34said, it's something that we're going to

39:36have to face one way the other at some

39:38point in the short term future, I would

39:40say. I mean, when I think long term, I

39:42would say that's longer than 10 years

39:44from now, and I think we're under that,

39:45you know, at this point. Um, you know,

39:47the building opened in 2002. It's hard

39:49to believe, but we're kind of getting to

39:51that point where we need to have serious

39:53conversations about what our capital

39:54outlook will look like

39:57>> if we don't go forward with with that

39:59project.

40:00>> I mean, we're only six years away from

40:01the 30th

40:02>> birthday

40:03[clears throat] high school. It's hard

40:04to believe, right? Um, and I guess where

40:07I was going with that is those three

40:08components would be considered as part

40:11of the construction project, the

40:13potential construction project.

40:15>> That's correct. If the renovation and

40:16addition is kind of the preferred model,

40:19that absolutely will need to be

40:21addressed um moving forward,

40:23>> right? Which I guess the point being the

40:25difference is if you know if if we were

40:29on our own replacing this, that would be

40:30100% of the cost to the town as opposed

40:32to 52.26%

40:35reimbursement to the town for those

40:36pieces. So,

40:38>> yeah, pretty valuable. So, but thank you

40:39very much for the update

40:40>> and those are reimburseable costs. Yeah,

40:44>> thanks for the presentation and the

40:46update. [clears throat]

40:47Um, couple questions maybe very quick.

40:49Um, with the on the MSBA process

40:51overview, uh, what's the what's the next

40:54uh deadline? So, for module 23,

40:58when is when are we expected to submit

41:01to MSBA? uh one and then also within

41:04that time frame uh I think in the next

41:09slide when you have a module three

41:12schematic when so do we does the public

41:15get an option to preview what's uh what

41:19what's been discussed what's been uh um

41:22proposed um before the town meeting uh

41:26comes in. Um so you know we said that

41:28the earliest that the town could go to a

41:30vote would be next fall of 2027. Um the

41:34work that will be done during the

41:35feasibility study and the schematic

41:37design is intended to be completed just

41:40prior to that with engaging the

41:42community all along the way. Um so

41:44providing updates along the way um and

41:46then um getting engagement for the

41:49community with the hope that our

41:51architect along with our OPM would be

41:54ready to share a product with us. Uh you

41:59know the original target date was August

42:01of 2027. Um so that it would give a

42:05couple months if the town were ready to

42:07go to a vote in in 2027. Um we're not

42:11making any decisions at this point as to

42:14um you know defining a target date. Uh

42:18we're working with the architect. We're

42:20working with the OPM to kind of start

42:22this next piece here which is the

42:23preliminary design plan uh program and

42:26working with the town around you know

42:28what the what the timing is what the

42:31best timing is for this project to um go

42:34to the community.

42:35>> Um yeah just to follow up on that. So

42:36just to clarify so but but from the MSBA

42:40side there is no deadline so 18 months

42:43from let's say feasibility study

42:45initiation of feasibility study you have

42:47to submit this

42:47>> they gave a framework um the framework

42:50would be the earliest being fall 2027

42:52okay and I believe the backside of that

42:55framework is about two years later and

42:58you know within that time frame is when

42:59they would assume that the district the

43:01town would be ready to uh go to a vote

43:04for the um to fund project. Thank you.

43:07You're welcome.

43:10>> Okay. Um I would like to thank the

43:12project team. Um everybody who is on

43:15that project team has is wearing

43:17multiple hats between full-time jobs and

43:19other commitments. Um and this is a lot

43:22of work and right now we're in a really

43:23important part of of this whole process

43:26trying to figure out where we go, what

43:28is needed. Um, I think it's also really

43:31important to say to you because I know

43:33that, you know, some people have said,

43:34"Oh, this is this is going to be a

43:36really expensive project." We do not

43:38have a dollar amount on the project

43:40right now. That is part of this whole

43:42looking at what we need, what needs to

43:44be updated. There is no if there is a

43:46dollar amount floating out there for

43:47what this high school project is going

43:49to cost, that is new to all of us. So,

43:52um, that is just something to keep in

43:54mind. um we are doing our due diligence

43:56with this um and making sure things are

43:58done correctly so that when we are

44:00finally ready to to present to the town

44:03we have all the options, all the

44:04information so we can as a town make a

44:06decision on on what we do with this. But

44:09I do just want to emphasize my thanks to

44:11the project team um because this is a

44:13lot of work and I know I've been

44:14following along all their um their

44:16meetings. Um there's a lot that's

44:18happening in a very short amount of time

44:20but um thank you to everybody who has

44:22lent their time. Dr.

44:25I just also want to echo uh my thanks

44:28and appreciation to the very large team

44:31um and to Miss Buchet who who serves as

44:33the chair of the school building

44:34committee. Um, and I also want to share

44:37that our initial leadership team meeting

44:39with PMA and SMMA is happening this

44:42week. Um, so that we can to have some

44:45more discussion regarding timeline um,

44:48and how we're going to not only um,

44:50engage staff who work at the high school

44:52and all of our Shrewsbury educators, but

44:55also how we will continue to engage the

44:57community over time. um because being

44:59sure that the community is involved in

45:01visioning and what we want um the

45:04educational programming to look like in

45:05our building that will last you know the

45:07next 25 years is going to be really

45:10important. So more will be forthcoming

45:13um regarding how the community can

45:15become engaged in this project.

45:18>> Thank you.

45:18>> Thank you. Thank you.

45:20>> Thank you.

45:21>> Okay. Um, our next time scheduled item

45:24on our agenda is a program update and

45:27fee recommendation for the Sherwood

45:29Middle School Extended School Care

45:30Program. As the committee may recall

45:33from earlier presentations, the Sherwood

45:35Extended Day program has been steadily

45:37declined over the past the enrollment

45:39has been steadily declining over the

45:40past several years. In an effort to

45:42provide families more options, the

45:44extended school care program would like

45:46to pilot an afterchool dropin program at

45:48Sherwood called Beyond the Bell. A memo

45:51to the school committee was included in

45:53our packets for this week. The director

45:54of extended learning, Karen Isacson, is

45:57here with us tonight to provide us an

45:58overview of what the program would look

46:00like in a proposed fee structure.

46:02Welcome, Miss Isacson.

46:04>> Thank you. Um, you know, as I, as you

46:07said, I sat here in the spring and we

46:09talked about this rapidly declining um,

46:13enrollment at Sherwood. I I kind of

46:15reviewed this before the schools changed

46:18start and end times. We had 90 students

46:21coming every afternoon at Sherwood. We

46:24changed the times dropped to 75. We're

46:26we have 40 right now. I mean, this is in

46:29in a five-year time period. We less than

46:32half of what we had. Um, and while I

46:34still don't have a perfect answer as to

46:36why, we've really started to question

46:39what else can we do? We need to do

46:41something different because what we're

46:42doing doing now is not meeting the needs

46:44of the community. Um,

46:47so I went to my fabulous site

46:49coordinators Jillian Hone and Ashley

46:50Prescott and said we let let's start to

46:52brainstorm and you know in about 48

46:55hours from me saying I think we should

46:56do dropins and them saying [gasps]

46:59they had a list you know from here to my

47:01fingertips of fabulous ideas and have

47:03really jumped in to embrace this and get

47:05creative. Um the vision here is that you

47:09know parent there are a lot of parents

47:10who don't need consistent child care at

47:12this age. They need stop gap. they need

47:15fill in. Um, and so we want to meet that

47:18need. We also want to have more students

47:21and families just see the high quality

47:23programs that we run there with the hope

47:25that when they get in there and they see

47:27it and they they realize how excellent

47:29it is, they will sign up for more. So,

47:31we could then both get some short-term

47:34people who need short-term care, but

47:35also boost our core enrollment with more

47:38contracts is the hope. Um, so we're

47:41going to call it beyond the bell to

47:42really encompass what happens, you know,

47:45before and after school. Um,

47:48and families, we have an existing

47:50infrastructure with our software. They

47:52will create an account that doesn't have

47:54a contract and then use that software to

47:57just request drop in days as needed. And

48:00we will then ask to have a at least four

48:04day advanced notice so we can make sure

48:06we have enough staff to meet these

48:07needs. will reply to parents within two

48:09days of their request to say, "Yep,

48:11you're all set." Or, you know, hopefully

48:13never have to say no, but um it just

48:16gives us that little buffer of do we

48:17have adequate staffing to meet the needs

48:19of every student uh safely. Um

48:24the site coordinators then will let me

48:26look at my slide here. Forgive me. Um

48:33there's some great pictures of our show

48:34with kids from last year. Um,

48:38[clears throat and cough]

48:39Sherwood site coordinators will put out

48:40a calendar every month in advance to the

48:42entire Sherwood community advertising a

48:45variety of events. This could include um

48:48like a homework lab that would be um

48:50supported by SHS students. This wouldn't

48:53be like tutoring from sure with

48:55teachers, but to get some honor students

48:57from the high school to come in and

48:58really do some concentrated homework

49:00help. Um it could be special events.

49:03Here's our little activity guide. um

49:05that they had put together as just as a

49:07sample. So it could be oh on one day

49:09it's going to be open gym and we're

49:10playing flag football and anybody who

49:12wants to come on in and take part in

49:14that. Let's do that. Um [snorts] it

49:16might be the stopmotion animation club

49:18is going to meet on a a given day. So

49:21parents would look at this, they'd

49:22request a day.

49:24The cost would include everything

49:26between three and six. So that's our

49:28snack, that's our homework time, that's

49:31all the usual arts and crafts, gym

49:32games, outside time. They could pick up

49:34at six o'clock if they need to. It's all

49:36inclusive. It's not all a cart. It's

49:38just a flat daily rate. And

49:42we know there's a lot of moving parts in

49:44Sherwood. Kids who take music lessons

49:46like maybe you've got a drum lesson at

49:484:30. That's kind of hard to am I going

49:50home and coming back? Am I hanging out

49:52in the office? Um, this might be an

49:54incentive too for parents to say, "Oh,

49:55I'm going to sign up for every extended

49:57on every one of the drum lessons and

49:59then I don't have to coordinate that

50:01care." Um, so I think there's a lot of

50:03potential there. Our proposed our

50:07existing fee structure, families say

50:09they have a two-day contract and they

50:11wanted to just every once in a while add

50:12a third day. We let them and we charge

50:14them $25 because that's really the cost

50:17per day of the program. We don't

50:19upcharge them that. Um, so for the sake

50:22of Beyond the Bell, we would like to

50:24charge a flat $35 fee. This allows us

50:28the the unpredictability of staffing for

50:31these days, knowing we need to build in

50:33some buffer to accommodate families, but

50:36also the risk of overstaffing. So, that

50:38that $35 gives us some comfort there. It

50:41also allows us to add some of these

50:43special programs. Um, maybe we've hired

50:45a presenter to come in, things like

50:47that. And

50:50we feel we'll also we have never allowed

50:53parents to drop in on an early release

50:54day. You have to have a Tuesday contract

50:57to do that. We will now give first

51:00priority to existing extended day

51:02families. If you want to come on early

51:04release day, sign up by this date.

51:06That's a $50 fee. That's what it costs

51:09that day anyway. Every family gets an

51:11additional $25 fee because it's three

51:13extra hours. And the

51:17proposal then would be if you are a

51:19beyond the bell drop in on those days,

51:21you don't have a contract, you just want

51:23to come early release day, we would

51:24charge $60. So that's the $35 rate plus

51:27the $25 early release fee. That's how we

51:30came up with that number. Um so we're

51:32really looking at two two basic

51:34proposals for fees. And let's see if I

51:38have anything else in my notes here. Um

51:45Sorry, that's my

51:48>> Yep. So, we the contracted families, no

51:51change to the fees. It's still $25 for a

51:54drop in or $50 for early release. And

51:56families without a contract, we're

51:58proposing 35 and 60.

52:01So, questions. That's the nut. That's

52:02the thumbnail.

52:05>> Um, thank you so much for the

52:07presentation. I think this is a fabulous

52:09idea. I really appreciate you and your

52:12team coming up with these this new very

52:14creative way to engage more families and

52:17provide more opportunity. Looking at

52:19this sample calendar, I thought it was

52:21fantastic, like really engaging

52:24activities. I think that would be very

52:26appealing to a lot of families. And I

52:28also love the idea that you're going to

52:30open up the early release days um as

52:32well. I you know I I remember hearing

52:34from my kids way back when like oh the

52:36extended day kids get to go on these

52:38great field trips on the early release

52:40days and um so [clears throat] I think

52:42that's going to be very popular um and I

52:44think that's a really great way and you

52:46know they get a taste of it and maybe

52:48you drum up some more business that way

52:49as well. So um I just you know I think

52:52it's a great idea and I think the fee

52:53schedules the fee schedules that are has

52:56have been proposed it seem really

52:58manageable and workable and again it's

53:00you know kind of an evolving thing. So

53:02if it's if you're coming up with um you

53:05know difficulties too, I'm sure we can

53:08you can come back to us and we could

53:09pivot on it as well.

53:10>> Yeah, I really see this as a pilot year

53:12where you know we'll probably roll

53:13things out some things in October and

53:15and keep building on it, but giving us

53:17this chance to oh that didn't work well.

53:19Let's pivot and do something else. Um

53:21you know there the the risk is always a

53:24student we're expecting doesn't show up.

53:27Where are they? We have to find them.

53:28We're calling families. who are running

53:30around or a kid walks in who didn't pay

53:33and now we're like are you supposed to

53:34be here? Does your parent know you're

53:35here? You know that you multiply that by

53:38dozens of students. Um it gets

53:40complicated. So that that's always been

53:43the biggest reluctance to offer drop in

53:45care, but I think the team has a really

53:47good plan for making that work and our

53:49software is exceptional for tracking

53:52attendance. So I think we're at a point

53:54we can we can handle this.

53:56>> Thank you.

53:58Yeah, thanks. Uh, we were having a fifth

54:01grader. We were really struggling to

54:03figure out half an hour gap

54:05whether she should come back to his home

54:07and then we someone drop it off. Well, I

54:10have a perfect um program to enroll her

54:12to. [laughter] So, this is wonderful.

54:14Um, one quick question regarding the

54:16program. So, do we have a cutoff date

54:18when when they should be applying for a

54:22for a drop in for next week? Let's say

54:24uh it should be a Thursday and then they

54:26closes. If not, you don't want someone

54:29who just walks in, right? And then,

54:30[snorts]

54:30>> right, that's why we're thinking a 4 day

54:33advanced notice. Um you know, they could

54:36register a month or two in advance. If

54:38you know your dates, great. Adam, book

54:40them online. Um but at a minimum, you

54:43need the online registration will stop 4

54:47days ahead of time. You won't be able to

54:49request. And you know, we

54:51[clears throat] we still have families

54:52who can call us morning of of I am in a

54:55jam. And it's okay. We know you have all

54:58your information. We Yes, I know I have

55:00staff. Yes, I'll take you. But but there

55:02won't be that ability to just

55:04spontaneously register online and now

55:05this student's showing up who we didn't

55:07know is coming.

55:08>> So the the other question I think we

55:10when we were discussing this last um

55:12last time I mentioned this. So what the

55:15other potential part is the

55:17cannibalizing our own um 4 day or 5 day

55:20committed students because now they have

55:22free option.

55:23>> So why to commit four days or five days

55:25now I rather pick cherry pick and then

55:27so

55:28>> that may happen may not happen but I'm

55:31I'm positive it should be more commit

55:34commitment and as you mentioned um as

55:36kids see the program the value it

55:38increases the participation rate rather

55:40than decrease. It would be interesting

55:42to see how the data show what data tells

55:45us within the next three six months

55:48three months time period

55:50>> what impact that dropins are having. Um

55:54so I definitely support this but

55:57>> I'm very curious too. Um what was in the

56:00written portion I didn't mention is we

56:01are also going to allow a one-day

56:03contract that we've never offered

56:05before. Right now it's a two-day minimum

56:07at um $176 a month. So, we will now

56:11allow a one-day contract at $88 a month.

56:14Um, which is less than three drop in

56:16days. So, you're getting, you know,

56:18usually typically four days in a month.

56:21Um, and I've already had one family of

56:23like, "Oh, I can't wait. I'm definitely

56:24dropping from two from two days to one

56:26day." And I know there will be others

56:28that they've been doing two just because

56:29I make them. And what I'm hoping then is

56:32we compensate for the folks who say,

56:33"Oh, I didn't know I could do a one-day

56:35contract. I'm signing up um to to make a

56:38wash in that, you know, a balance." But

56:40it's risky.

56:42>> I want want a quick follow up on the

56:44timeline because it looks like we may

56:46not take vote on this this week today or

56:48is over.

56:49>> No, we're going to vote on it next.

56:52>> Yeah, that puts us almost into the end

56:54of fe September.

56:56>> The program starts October 1st or

56:59>> and well that you know that calendar

57:00won't it won't look like that in

57:02October. Um I I think my intention is

57:05that after tonight I will put out

57:07communication to families saying I made

57:08this presentation. We're taking

57:10community feedback. Start considering

57:13what you want your October schedule to

57:16look like and if you want to you know

57:18drop down to one day if you want to

57:19withdraw like that kind of thing. Um

57:22families are required to tell me by the

57:24first of the month if they're making

57:25changes. So they can they can change

57:27their contract or withdraw their

57:28contract by October 1st for the month of

57:31October. Um so I think giving them an

57:35opportunity in you know getting a

57:36message from me tomorrow the day after

57:38saying hey great new initiative um

57:40please give public comment and consider

57:42how this might impact your enrollment um

57:45gives us that time to roll it out.

57:47>> Wonderful.

57:48>> Thank you.

57:50>> Yeah I just like to thank you for the

57:51overview and uh for the outside the box

57:53thinking here. I think it prevents

57:55presents a uh a really good value to

57:57families. just the program has always

57:59presented great value and I think this

58:01pre presents more flexibilities for

58:03families. Uh be curious to hear uh

58:05feedback from the community. Anytime

58:07we've talked over the years about, you

58:09know, fee increases or whatever, we've

58:11gotten

58:12>> very positive feedback through email

58:15just saying what a value the program is.

58:17So, I think this is just going to uh you

58:19know, yield the same type of response

58:20because of the flexibility. So, thank

58:22you very much. you know, at that $35

58:25price point, if you used the program

58:26three days a month, that's $105. You may

58:30as well sign up for, you know, either a

58:34one-day contract or two-day contract and

58:35just get a lot more value out of it.

58:37That's that is part of the hope.

58:38>> Yeah. And I like the idea, too, of

58:40promoting this to maybe families that

58:41aren't using it because maybe these

58:43flexibilities aren't there yet. So,

58:45>> and we will continue to offer our

58:47reduced fee structure for families who

58:49qualify for free and reduced meal. they

58:50would get a 60% discount and um I did

58:53include the math in there but it it is a

58:55very lowcost drop in day um again to

58:58keep this be really affordable to all of

59:01our families who may need this care.

59:04>> Thank you so much.

59:06>> Um thank you for this. I think this is

59:08um a really good idea for a problem that

59:12you've identified is you know how can we

59:14how can we fix this? how can we offer

59:16something because obviously we don't

59:18want to cut this program because it is

59:20it is a good resource for a lot of

59:21families I know that you know for this

59:24type of the way that you've set it up

59:26when I look at my week and I you know I

59:29now again this is this is just for

59:31Sherwood this is not just so everybody

59:33knows this is not across the board right

59:34now this is just Sherwood but you know

59:37there are families that look at their

59:39schedules and they say I don't know how

59:40I'm going to make Wednesday work and

59:42that's not a day that I send my child to

59:43extended day I think this is a really

59:45good option where you know you might be

59:47able to fill in that that amount of

59:49time. Um and I think also you know

59:52looking at the sample calendar that you

59:54had a lot of these days these themes

59:57sort of remind me of the summer programs

1:00:00that we have. So you're getting like a a

1:00:02week's worth in one day. Um and you know

1:00:05we get a lot of of families that like to

1:00:07do the summer programs too. And here you

1:00:09are, you can have a quick, you know,

1:00:11three hours, kids come in, do what they

1:00:14need to, homework, whatever. Um, and I

1:00:16think this is a good example. I am

1:00:18curious though, um,

1:00:20>> just because we have, you know,

1:00:23significantly, we have four, four

1:00:25different elementary schools. How many

1:00:27fourth graders do we have enrolled in

1:00:31the program that then when they come

1:00:34over to Sherwood, they drop? So, are we

1:00:36going from 60 kids down to 40 or are we

1:00:39going from 200 kids down to 40? I'm just

1:00:41thinking like, you know, when families

1:00:43are making that decision

1:00:44>> because fifth grade, sixth grade are

1:00:46still young. Um, and are are they doing

1:00:50it because they don't want to have that

1:00:52that big contract? Is this going to be

1:00:55something that

1:00:56>> um is appetizing to them? I'm just

1:00:58wondering how many students we have at

1:00:59fourth grade that then end up not doing

1:01:02extended day once they get to Sherwood.

1:01:04>> Absolutely.

1:01:05full-time equivalent after school only.

1:01:09>> Last year we had 51 fourth graders

1:01:14who are now equivalent of 24 fifth

1:01:19graders. So we lost about half of our

1:01:21fourth grade population coming into

1:01:23fifth grade this year who did not renew

1:01:25their contracts.

1:01:26>> I wish I could say I pulled this off the

1:01:28top of my head, but I

1:01:32>> I was ready for this one.

1:01:34Um and and I look back one year further

1:01:36and it was very similar. We you know

1:01:38about half we

1:01:39>> about half we lose about half of our

1:01:40students by when they come over to show

1:01:42it.

1:01:43>> It'll be interesting to see how many

1:01:45>> pick up you know even if it's just a

1:01:47couple times a week.

1:01:48>> Yeah.

1:01:48>> Just to see what that is.

1:01:49>> Yeah. You know I'm glad you mentioned

1:01:51the summer piece because this is one of

1:01:52the ideas of when we talk to summer

1:01:54teachers they say I wish I had a way to

1:01:56try something out

1:01:58>> before I put in a proposal for a weekl

1:02:00long class. Well here's the way. you

1:02:02know, like we have an existing

1:02:03infrastructure to pay teachers to teach

1:02:05these afterchool classes. We use that

1:02:07same rate of pay to say you want to come

1:02:08in and run a two-hour workshop. This is,

1:02:11you know, this is the rate you get. And

1:02:12that that's a win for them because they

1:02:14get this opportunity to try out an

1:02:16enrichment class. It's a win for the

1:02:18kids. Um that's already included in your

1:02:20$35. There's no extra fee to that. So,

1:02:22that is one of the features that um my

1:02:25site coordinators have already got in

1:02:26the works.

1:02:30Um, all right. Before I hand it over to

1:02:32you, um, I just want to mention, um,

1:02:35especially the community, those who be

1:02:36watching, if you'd like to contact the

1:02:37school committee about this proposed

1:02:39program, um, and fee schedule and

1:02:42provide us with feedback, you can do so

1:02:43by emailing us as school committee at

1:02:45shrewsbury.k12.m

1:02:48us. We will be voting on these proposed

1:02:51changes um and the fees at our next

1:02:55regularly scheduled meeting which is on

1:02:57September 23rd. Um and I think Miss

1:02:59Isacson said that she was going to reach

1:03:01out to the families um most likely at

1:03:04Sherwood who would be affected by this.

1:03:06Um so if you have feedback please reach

1:03:09out um before our next meeting so that

1:03:11we can take that under consideration.

1:03:14Dr. Arstrander, you have anything to

1:03:16add?

1:03:17>> I do. Um, I just want to start by saying

1:03:19thank you to Miss Isacson, Jillian Hone,

1:03:22and Ashley Prescott for putting this

1:03:24work together. And I just wanted to

1:03:26piggyback on the comment about the

1:03:28discount for students who may qual

1:03:30qualify for a reduced um discount to

1:03:33attend. And that cost would be $14. Um,

1:03:37and that that seems really affordable.

1:03:39Um, and I know that Miss Isacson and her

1:03:41team are always looking to support

1:03:42students and families in need to attend

1:03:45after school programming. And I just

1:03:47think this is a really great example of

1:03:49the ways that our educators are working

1:03:51together to create a school climate and

1:03:54culture that is engaging and makes kids

1:03:56feel seen and valued. And I know these

1:03:58calendars are really built um around

1:04:01topics that kids are have high interest

1:04:03in. So I'm I'm excited to to see this

1:04:06program and I will be very disappointed

1:04:08if I don't get an invite to Harry Potter

1:04:10day.

1:04:11I [laughter] said it,

1:04:12>> it's coming by.

1:04:13>> Um, so, um, I again just appreciate your

1:04:17efforts and, um, feel that the $35 is a

1:04:20really affordable price. So, thank you

1:04:22for making that attainable for our

1:04:23families.

1:04:24>> Thank you.

1:04:25>> Thank you.

1:04:25>> Thank you.

1:04:27>> Okay. Um, the next item on our agenda is

1:04:31a superintendent entry plan report. Dr.

1:04:34Ostrander will summarize her

1:04:35superintendent entry plan which includes

1:04:38using conversations, school and

1:04:40classroom visits, community engagement,

1:04:42and a rigorous review of district data

1:04:44and documents to understand the

1:04:45strengths, challenges, and opportunities

1:04:47in our district. Additionally, as part

1:04:50of her presentation, Dr. Ostrander will

1:04:52share a general timeline for completing

1:04:55her entry plan and how the Shrewsbury

1:04:57community can participate in the

1:04:58process. Um, a copy of Dr. Dr.

1:05:01Ostrander's plan was included in our

1:05:02packets for this week. Joining Dr.

1:05:04Ostander tonight is Miss Jane Tremble.

1:05:07She is Dr. Ostrander's new induction

1:05:09superintendent program coach through the

1:05:11Massachusetts Association of School

1:05:13Superintendent. Welcome, Miss Tremble.

1:05:15>> Thank you,

1:05:16>> Dr. Ostrander. I will let you take the

1:05:18lead on this.

1:05:18>> Thank you.

1:05:21>> Look at that. It worked. That's a great

1:05:23>> Awesome. Um, so thank you for providing

1:05:26me this opportunity to share my entry

1:05:28plan with you this evening and to

1:05:31introduce um my new coach. Um so Jean is

1:05:35with me tonight. She is part of the

1:05:37Massachusetts Association of School

1:05:38Superintendent. Um and she specifically

1:05:41is a coach for uh the new superintendent

1:05:44induction program. And I'm very lucky to

1:05:47have her uh leadership and guidance uh

1:05:49to support me through this first year.

1:05:51So she's going to share a little bit

1:05:52about herself, how we were paired um and

1:05:55a bit about the program and then I will

1:05:57share an overview of the entry plan.

1:05:58>> Great. Thank you, Tiffany. Well, I am

1:06:00thrilled to be here um tonight. As

1:06:03Tiffany said, I work for Mass

1:06:05Association of School Superintendent,

1:06:07specifically in the new superintendent

1:06:10induction program. Um first, a little

1:06:12bit about me. I am a retired

1:06:14superintendent from Lynfield and um I

1:06:17spent my entire career in the Lynfield

1:06:19public schools. First as a teacher, then

1:06:21as a building principal, an elementary

1:06:24principal, and then um ended my career

1:06:26as superintendent in Lynfield. That is

1:06:29one of the reasons why Tiffany and I

1:06:31were matched together because we had the

1:06:33same trajectory. And um I'm sure some of

1:06:36the same challenges and struggles that

1:06:39um I went through coming from a building

1:06:42principal to a superintendent um Tiffany

1:06:44may share some of those. So I'll be able

1:06:46to help her through that. So a little

1:06:49bit about the program. It's been a long

1:06:50time since Shrewsbury has hired a new

1:06:52superintendent. So, um, a little bit

1:06:56about the new superintendent induction

1:06:58program. Tiffany is part of, um, cohort

1:07:0117. So, the program has been running for

1:07:0517 years. I actually went through the

1:07:08program myself when I first became a

1:07:10superintendent. I had a phenomenal um,

1:07:13coach, Joan Connley, who was still

1:07:15involved in the program. Um, the program

1:07:18is really designed as a support.

1:07:21>> [snorts]

1:07:21>> Um, the program is not designed for any

1:07:24one person or any group of people to

1:07:26tell Tiffany what to do or how to do a

1:07:28job. It's really to be a sounding board

1:07:31and to be a support for her as she

1:07:33navigates her leadership through the

1:07:36superintendency.

1:07:37One of the strongest pieces of the

1:07:39program is the cohort. There are 34 new

1:07:43superintendent in this cohort. It is one

1:07:46of the biggest cohorts that we have had

1:07:49um since actually since I think the

1:07:52beginning of the program. And so Tiffany

1:07:55and I will spend up to six hours

1:07:58together a month. And those hours can be

1:08:00either on phone calls, on Zoom calls. I

1:08:03plan on spending a lot of time here on

1:08:06the campus with Tiffany, going through

1:08:08buildings, working with principles,

1:08:11sitting in on leadership team meetings,

1:08:13giving her feedback about some of her

1:08:16leadership style. Um we she also will

1:08:21have content days that are mandatory

1:08:23part of the program and it's pretty much

1:08:25once a month. Some of those content days

1:08:27will where she's expected to be in

1:08:30person in Malboro for the entire day and

1:08:33then another month it may be a Zoom

1:08:35meeting that is most of the day. During

1:08:39those content days we're talking about

1:08:41entry planning. We are talking about how

1:08:44to collect data. We are talking about

1:08:46putting together report of entry

1:08:48findings once her entry plan is done and

1:08:51then how does all that go into your

1:08:54current district strategy? How does it

1:08:56change the strategy? All of those sorts

1:08:59of things. So, it's really about

1:09:00thinking, leading, and working

1:09:03strategically as she begins and

1:09:06continues to build relationships

1:09:09um with everybody in this community.

1:09:12Rebuilding relationships as a

1:09:14superintendent. The a relationship with

1:09:16the superintendent is very different

1:09:17than a relationship as a building

1:09:19principal. Um, I can say that we met

1:09:23earlier this summer and I am thrilled

1:09:26that I am paired with Tiffany and I am

1:09:28really excited about working here in

1:09:30Shrewsbury with her and I'm excited

1:09:32about meeting the rest of the leadership

1:09:34team and working with her side by side

1:09:37through this journey. It is a three-year

1:09:39program. So, this year um I just said

1:09:42what some of the expectations are. Next

1:09:44year it's pretty much the same. She gets

1:09:46a little um less coaching hours from

1:09:50from me. She will go from six hours to

1:09:52four hours. I say that I will always

1:09:55pick up the phone. I will always come

1:09:57out here. I would never say I'm sorry. I

1:09:59have reached my max of time this month.

1:10:02We can't have that conversation. Um so

1:10:05that's what the second year will look

1:10:07like. And then in the third year, she

1:10:09will move to a consultancy group, which

1:10:11means that she will get assigned a

1:10:13facilitator. It could be me. might not

1:10:15be me who will run a consultancy group

1:10:18of probably six to seven superintendent

1:10:22um where they mainly would work on

1:10:24problems of practice and sharing um

1:10:26whatever's happening in their district

1:10:28as well as some additional content days

1:10:31but not nearly as many as the first two

1:10:33years. So that's just a brief overview

1:10:36of the program, a little bit about me.

1:10:39I'm happy to answer any questions that

1:10:41you might have.

1:10:45Not at this point.

1:10:46>> No, not right now.

1:10:47>> It's pretty straightforward. [laughter]

1:10:50>> Thank you.

1:10:51>> Great.

1:10:52>> Awesome. Um, so you know, I have already

1:10:55had we had a few days this summer where

1:10:57we did some professional learning. Um,

1:10:59we have we had another day in uh we had

1:11:02two in July, one in August, and one next

1:11:04week in September on just various topics

1:11:07getting us to think about, you know, how

1:11:08are we building culture, how are we

1:11:10opening schools? Um and a majority of

1:11:12the work has really been focused as well

1:11:14on the superintendent entry plan. Um and

1:11:17this is really a requirement for all new

1:11:19superintendents in Massachusetts and it

1:11:21is really the plan for me for the year

1:11:23ahead. Um so I'll share some detail with

1:11:26you about the plan this evening and I'll

1:11:28provide questions time for questions at

1:11:30the end. Um so although I am new to uh

1:11:34this role and feel very privileged to

1:11:36sit in the seat of superintendent

1:11:38um I am I am still learning about our

1:11:42district. Um, even though I have been

1:11:44here for 14 years, there's a lot for me

1:11:46to know and understand. And really, the

1:11:49entry plan is an opportunity and a

1:11:51roadmap for me to have a more

1:11:53comprehensive understanding of our

1:11:55district by listening, learning, and and

1:11:58really digging deeply into our systems.

1:12:00So, the point of the entry plan is

1:12:02really to come up with a more

1:12:03comprehensive understanding from my

1:12:05perspective as superintendent.

1:12:09It's opp it's also an opportunity for me

1:12:12to create new relationships, build trust

1:12:14with different interest groups,

1:12:16understand um where we're doing things

1:12:19really well, understand where there's an

1:12:21opportunity for improvement or growth or

1:12:24change um or systems level decision-

1:12:27making that that um could impact the way

1:12:30that our schools run, our policies are

1:12:33written. um and really just a chance to

1:12:36listen very deeply to as many people as

1:12:39I can. So as I go through this entry

1:12:42plan process and build my understanding,

1:12:44I really want to look at it through the

1:12:46lens of our current strategic plan. And

1:12:48I'm using the our strategic plan as the

1:12:50framework for this work, thinking more

1:12:53about um educational excellence,

1:12:56well-being of all and the optimization

1:12:58of resources.

1:13:01So the entry plan is you know all about

1:13:04collecting data and um it's

1:13:07intentionally collecting data through

1:13:10counting seeing and hearing and these

1:13:13procedures will help me to engage with

1:13:15internal groups. So thinking about um

1:13:17teachers, para educators,

1:13:20um parents as well as external groups

1:13:23which could include you know police and

1:13:25fire um the Shrewsbury Public Library

1:13:28alumni who may not be in the community

1:13:31anymore or maybe they've returned to our

1:13:32community. So um through the counting

1:13:36and the quantitative research that I'll

1:13:37do this is really thinking about um

1:13:40looking at academic data um the the

1:13:44review of MCCAST or WEDA scores

1:13:47enrollment and demographic information

1:13:49budget analysis for example will be

1:13:51under the count data that I'm

1:13:53collecting. When we think about how I'm

1:13:55seeing things it will be direct

1:13:57observations. it's school visits,

1:13:59classroom visits, engaging in community

1:14:02events, and then um actively engaging

1:14:05through hearing um specifically thinking

1:14:07about individual interviews, focus

1:14:10groups, listening sessions, and you

1:14:13know, this is work that I've already

1:14:15begun. Um, I'm excited to share with you

1:14:17that so far I've met with 39 families,

1:14:21um, 18 district leaders and several

1:14:24outside organizations including, um,

1:14:27Central One, Credit Union, Shrewsbury

1:14:29Youth and Family Services, and um, I

1:14:32actually met with a student one-on-one

1:14:34so far as well. I was waiting for

1:14:36students to return, but I'm really

1:14:38looking forward to engaging more deeply

1:14:40with our middle school and high school

1:14:42students and thinking about um their

1:14:44input and how they view our systems. And

1:14:46over the course of time as I collect

1:14:48this data, I'm going to be reviewing

1:14:51that um in my superintendent reports

1:14:53with you um just to share with you the

1:14:55update on how many people I've spoken

1:14:57with and also looking at the data to

1:14:59make sure that we have a representation

1:15:01across our community of a diverse group

1:15:04of um participants. So, making sure that

1:15:06everybody is represented as I as I think

1:15:08about the information I'm hearing and

1:15:10gathering.

1:15:13So, the timeline for this work really is

1:15:16like I said earlier is the course of the

1:15:18school year. Um, so I will begin this

1:15:20fall with the listening sessions, the

1:15:23interviews, uh, school visits, and the

1:15:26document analysis. In the winter, I will

1:15:29kind of stop the collection of

1:15:31information. Certainly not stopping

1:15:33school visits. I'll keep those going.

1:15:35Um, but I'm going to start to reflect

1:15:36and analyze and triangulate the

1:15:38information that I've gained um to begin

1:15:40to build patterns and trends. And then

1:15:43in the spring, I'll have more

1:15:44information that I'll be sharing more

1:15:46publicly um to share with you, you know,

1:15:48celebrating our strengths, outlining

1:15:50areas for opportunity or further

1:15:53inquiry. And then using that same

1:15:55information um in the later spring and

1:15:58through the summer months to work with

1:16:00the central office leadership team as

1:16:02well as the school leadership teams, our

1:16:04principles and assistant principles to

1:16:06review the findings, evaluate the

1:16:08information together and start to begin

1:16:10our efforts on how this um information

1:16:12and the trends will impact our strategic

1:16:15plan and our improvement um moving

1:16:18forward.

1:16:22So, I am excited, especially tonight, to

1:16:26share this with the community because

1:16:27this is something that I've certainly

1:16:28been percolating with all summer,

1:16:30gaining feedback from Gain and other

1:16:32colleagues about. Um, but I really would

1:16:34like the community to be as involved in

1:16:36this entry plan um as as we can get

1:16:38people to be. So, there's a couple of

1:16:40ways that people can participate in the

1:16:43entry plan and and certainly the active

1:16:45engagement in the listening portion is

1:16:47to attend a listening session. And when

1:16:49I say a listening session, I want to be

1:16:51clear that I'll be doing the listening.

1:16:54Um I often am entering a room and people

1:16:56are like, I'm ready to listen. Um and

1:16:59it's really me who's going to be doing

1:17:01the listening. I I really do want to

1:17:02deeply understand our school

1:17:04communities. Um our our hopes and dreams

1:17:07for Shrewsbury students. And I will be

1:17:10having listening sessions at each of the

1:17:12school buildings. Um families can attend

1:17:14uh one of the planned sessions that you

1:17:16see here. I'll be sending communication

1:17:18out um more publicly as a standalone

1:17:21document where people can RSVP so that I

1:17:24can plan to engage everybody in the

1:17:26listening session um appropriately. Um

1:17:28but I'm I'm hopeful that people can come

1:17:30to a listening session. Uh in addition,

1:17:33there's going to be a thought exchange

1:17:34survey that will collect information

1:17:36anonymously

1:17:38so that we have additional data for

1:17:40trends for people who may not be able to

1:17:42go to a listening session or um for

1:17:44individuals who want to make sure that

1:17:46they they have their voice heard. And

1:17:49I've also been sending anyone who went

1:17:51to a listening session a survey that

1:17:54says, "Was there something you wished

1:17:56you told me that you forgot? You got in

1:17:57your car and you thought, oh, I meant to

1:18:00say the following." So there is a

1:18:02follow-up survey that will be just for

1:18:03listening session participants as well

1:18:06to make sure that they really felt like

1:18:07I captured everything from them. So um I

1:18:12hope that this plan really shows you

1:18:14that I am uh ready to listen. I'm ready

1:18:17to learn and I'm certainly grateful and

1:18:19doing this work together with our

1:18:21community and I will take your questions

1:18:24calls.

1:18:26Um thanks um thanks for the taking care

1:18:29of the the new superintendent because

1:18:31that's a big cohort of 37 34 new

1:18:34superintendent. So um you're in good

1:18:37hands u Mr. Dr. attendant. Uh one quick

1:18:40question uh with the with the listening

1:18:42sessions at this at our school uh

1:18:44buildings is is that expected that

1:18:47particular be community attend is or is

1:18:50it entire community near be can come in

1:18:53and uh sit in?

1:18:54>> I think the intention is for be families

1:18:58to attend the be night. I also recognize

1:19:01that it's you know it could be that the

1:19:02night be is scheduled we'll say is

1:19:05soccer practice or you know fill in the

1:19:07blank and and then I would certainly say

1:19:10come to a different session. My hope is

1:19:11to gather as many people as possible. Um

1:19:14having them at the home buildings was

1:19:16just to provide an opportunity for

1:19:17people to kind of stay near their

1:19:19neighborhood um and to also be in a

1:19:22similar situation where other people may

1:19:23be having a like experience to you. Um,

1:19:26so if you're an elementary parent and

1:19:27you go to the middle school, you may end

1:19:29up having more con, you know, more

1:19:32conversation and engagement about a

1:19:33topic that may not be as, you know,

1:19:35meaningful to you. Uh, but no matter

1:19:37what, I will be sure that everybody's

1:19:39voice is heard in those listening

1:19:40sessions. So you could attend any

1:19:41session.

1:19:42>> Okay. It's widely open for Yes.

1:19:44>> public. One followup. Um, within the

1:19:47leadership sessions, I think you

1:19:48mentioned that um, you'll be listening

1:19:50and then providing the feedback. So we

1:19:52are taking a ex a survey after this

1:19:54community sessions. Are you also going

1:19:57to take a 360 survey after the

1:20:00leadership sessions a certain period of

1:20:03time and see provide that feedback back?

1:20:06>> Will Tiffany be doing a 360 survey

1:20:08>> or you will between two of you is

1:20:11anybody like that would be helpful right

1:20:13so after the like how we are taking

1:20:16survey after the community sessions.

1:20:18>> Yes.

1:20:19So as as we the as you are working with

1:20:24her along the this program in the first

1:20:27year at least as you are attending all

1:20:29the leadership meetings um meetings with

1:20:31the teachers and all those thing all the

1:20:34stakeholders it would be interesting to

1:20:36see what the feedback would be uh and

1:20:41like a 360 would be possible if not as a

1:20:44thought. Yeah, there will be lots of

1:20:47lots of opportunities for us to get

1:20:49feedback from the leadership team, from

1:20:51the teachers, for me to get feedback

1:20:53from Tiffany, from Tiffany to get

1:20:54feedback from her leadership team

1:20:56without a question or a doubt. One of

1:20:58the big things that we try to keep

1:21:00sacred in the Nissa program is that that

1:21:03information is really confidential

1:21:05between Tiffany and myself um because

1:21:07it's a chance for her to grow her

1:21:09leadership. I am not an evaluator of her

1:21:13and um we we try to keep that as as

1:21:16close to the two of us as possible. But

1:21:18we definitely will be getting feedback

1:21:20from people and I will definitely be

1:21:23giving giving um Tiffany feedback from

1:21:26all the different meetings that that I

1:21:28attend with her with because the whole

1:21:30idea is for her as every brand new

1:21:33superintendent. It's a brand new job and

1:21:35so it's a different set of skills. It's

1:21:38similar skills to other leadership roles

1:21:40that you've had, whether you've been an

1:21:41assistant superintendent, a special

1:21:43education director, a finance director,

1:21:45whatever it is, but the but the set of

1:21:47skills really is different. And it's an

1:21:50opportunity for her to grow and get

1:21:52better and get stronger every single

1:21:54year in those. So, there will be lots of

1:21:56opportunities to give and get feedback

1:21:58without a question or a doubt. and for

1:22:00Tiffany to really sit back and be

1:22:02reflective about that feedback and and

1:22:05for us to, you know, sometimes have hard

1:22:08conversations that that feedback was

1:22:09hard, but what do you know about

1:22:11yourself as a leader now? How are you

1:22:13going to grow from this? What are you

1:22:15going to do with this? Where is the

1:22:16shred of truth in that feedback that you

1:22:19got? What do you now know about yourself

1:22:21that you didn't know in July or you

1:22:23didn't know in September? Does that

1:22:25answer your question?

1:22:26>> Perfect. M

1:22:27>> that's question sorry within the program

1:22:29do you also do a follow-ups the analysis

1:22:32like so so this is year one

1:22:35>> so let's say the cohort is in of year

1:22:38five or whatever or year six what do do

1:22:41you does a program offer such thus like

1:22:44a comparison comparative analysis how

1:22:47the growth happened over the years you

1:22:49>> that is a great question we do do that

1:22:52we actually have people that come in and

1:22:55they will um do a whole analysis of how

1:22:59our superintendents are going, how they

1:23:02how they're doing in the job, who is

1:23:04still working, who is not still working.

1:23:05Our goal is to keep these

1:23:07superintendents in these seats because

1:23:09the turnover in Massachusetts is it's

1:23:12very very high. And so we ha we we have

1:23:16um a group of people that come in and

1:23:18they will actually reach out to

1:23:20superintendents five years out, six

1:23:22years out, seven years out and um do an

1:23:25analysis of you know how is the

1:23:27strategic plan doing? Are you still

1:23:30working on that? How is your principal

1:23:31evaluation going? Um and there mass mass

1:23:36association of school superintendent

1:23:38also offers after the NIST program

1:23:41another cohort program of superintendent

1:23:45for support because one of the things

1:23:47that we have found in our own leadership

1:23:50and as we're working with new

1:23:51superintendent is that one of the

1:23:54greatest strengths is being able to sit

1:23:56in a room with other superintendent and

1:23:59do problems of practice or talk about

1:24:01some of the challenges and struggles

1:24:03Because if you think about it, it it in

1:24:06a lot of ways it can be a very lonely

1:24:07job. It's the only she's the only one in

1:24:10this district that has that job. And so

1:24:13to surround Tiffany and and new

1:24:15superintendent with a cohort with like

1:24:18people who can share some of those

1:24:20struggles, we have found that that has

1:24:22been instrumental in helping our

1:24:25superintendent be successful in

1:24:27Massachusetts.

1:24:28So that's a that's a great no one's ever

1:24:30asked me that question before. It's a

1:24:31great question. So, thank you.

1:24:35>> Thank you very much for the um

1:24:37presentation this evening. I just am

1:24:39very impressed with how thorough it all

1:24:41is and um I think it's also going to be

1:24:44extremely helpful to us as a district.

1:24:48Um the work that you're putting in

1:24:49because our strategic plan is coming up.

1:24:52You know, we're getting to the end of

1:24:53our five-year plan and this work, I

1:24:55think, will help inform us moving

1:24:57forward. um the time that you're taking

1:25:00to investigate and to listen and to do a

1:25:03deep dive into the data, I think, and

1:25:05the the findings that you're going to,

1:25:07you know, be able to synthesize. I think

1:25:09it's really um in addition to help guide

1:25:11your work, I think it'll help guide the

1:25:14district's work going forward. So, I'm

1:25:16looking forward to this process and, you

1:25:18know, we're we're here to support you in

1:25:20anything you need along the way as well.

1:25:22So,

1:25:23>> thank you.

1:25:24>> Yeah, just a quick comment. Welcome to

1:25:26Shrewsbury Public Schools, Miss

1:25:28Trembley. Feel like, you know, you're

1:25:31going to be along for this journey with

1:25:33us, right? So, I love the thought that

1:25:36was put behind pairing you with Tiffany,

1:25:39Dr. Ostrander, sorry. Um, and you were

1:25:42elementary. I was building principal.

1:25:44So, again, I I heard that prior to this

1:25:46meeting and I I just love that that part

1:25:48of this. And and you say the program was

1:25:50around 17 years ago.

1:25:52>> It's it started 17 years ago. be the

1:25:54duration of time that we that we had.

1:25:56>> That's great. That is [laughter]

1:25:57absolutely I was actually thinking about

1:25:59that when I sat down at the table

1:26:00tonight.

1:26:01>> Yeah. And then on average, you said so

1:26:02the cohort this cohort's 34, which is

1:26:05large, but you you have a ballpark of

1:26:07average cohorts previously.

1:26:08>> It's usually in the mid 20s, but we had

1:26:11it was a very large turnover this year.

1:26:14And so we have um we only have two

1:26:17superintendents in the state who did not

1:26:19take part in the program. and one um of

1:26:23the superintendent was a superintendent

1:26:25in another state prior. But we do have

1:26:28we do have superintendent in our program

1:26:30who have been in other states, but we

1:26:33know the stakes are high in

1:26:34Massachusetts. It's not easy to be a

1:26:36superintendent in Massachusetts. So,

1:26:38they are joining the program and then

1:26:40the other person is only staying in the

1:26:42position for a year and so um she chose

1:26:45not to be in the program.

1:26:46>> Welcome

1:26:48and thank you so much.

1:26:49>> Thank you. Appreciate it.

1:26:50I'll echo everyone's sentiments. I think

1:26:52it's a perfect pairing to go from the

1:26:54elementary level to the superintendency.

1:26:56I think that's fantastic. This reminds

1:26:59me of uh when you were going through the

1:27:01application process and you were the

1:27:02only candidate to put together a

1:27:04PowerPoint during um I think it was a

1:27:06listening session which was just really

1:27:08incredible to me. Um so thank you for

1:27:10that the continued effort on the

1:27:12timeline for the work. So, you know, you

1:27:16stated it you're going to really reflect

1:27:17and analyze in the winter and then share

1:27:19findings in spring. Um, presumably, will

1:27:23you be updating us kind of at each of

1:27:26those benchmarks and we can see what

1:27:28you're up to?

1:27:29>> Yeah, for sure. So, my hope is to um

1:27:32just give tiny updates maybe through the

1:27:33superintendent report um including some

1:27:36of those to the whole community in the

1:27:38new um newsletter that I've been sending

1:27:40on the first Friday of every month,

1:27:41which I'm sure you're all reading.

1:27:44>> [laughter]

1:27:44>> um so that the community does see over

1:27:46time and I also am hopeful that in this

1:27:49forum I can also share if there are

1:27:50different you know constituencies that

1:27:52I'm looking to have more participation

1:27:54from that we can help get the word out

1:27:56that way too but the goal will be to

1:27:58give um benchmark updates over time.

1:28:00>> Great. Thank you.

1:28:01>> Thanks.

1:28:03>> Um I appreciate the thoughtfulness of

1:28:06your entry plan. I've been able to spend

1:28:09extra time Dr. Astrander. Um, but in

1:28:12particular the emphasis on the listening

1:28:15and learning before you make any kind of

1:28:17decisions. Um, I think it's especially

1:28:20important as you're stepping into this

1:28:21role, you have the benefit of having

1:28:24been in Shrewsbury, so you know the

1:28:26culture, you know what Shrewsbury is.

1:28:29Um, but you are taking this with a

1:28:32healthy curiosity about and a

1:28:35willingness to hear the good and the

1:28:37bad, right? There's there's plenty of

1:28:39good, but there's going to be things I

1:28:41you know, you touched on it. There's

1:28:42going to be uncomfortable things that

1:28:43you're going to hear and you know,

1:28:45something that you maybe you thought was

1:28:46working well that we thought was working

1:28:48well that the district was, it may not

1:28:50be and we are looking at it at a

1:28:52different lens. So, I appreciate that

1:28:53you're you're putting yourself in that

1:28:54position to really hear all aspects of

1:28:57it. Um, but I really also value the

1:29:01breath of voices that you're going to be

1:29:04listening to. So that includes our

1:29:06educators and our administrators, our

1:29:08students, our families, municipal

1:29:10leaders, community organizations,

1:29:13um, and anybody else who has a stake in

1:29:16the success of our schools. Um, and this

1:29:20is a very intentional effort that is

1:29:23being done. Um, and especially it's it's

1:29:25being done so that you're giving voices

1:29:28that maybe haven't been heard heard. Um,

1:29:32and that's groups that's that's

1:29:35different people that didn't think that

1:29:36they could step up and say something

1:29:37before. And I think that's really

1:29:39healthy. Um, um, and I hope that you

1:29:42know that we we are excited to partner

1:29:45with you. Um, and we are going to listen

1:29:48alongside you. I'm excited to learn from

1:29:51what you hear and then ultimately take

1:29:54those findings and translate it into the

1:29:56priorities for the district and and how

1:29:58does that what are our new priorities

1:30:00and where does that that push through.

1:30:02So I appreciate this. I think this is a

1:30:04a great idea. I hope that everybody

1:30:07takes

1:30:08um takes advantage of these listening

1:30:11sessions. I know that when uh we were

1:30:13going through the superintendent

1:30:14process, which was a very lengthy

1:30:16process for us, um you know, we had

1:30:18reached out to the community to to see

1:30:20what was the feedback. What are you

1:30:21looking for? What worked? What didn't?

1:30:24Um and we got feedback and that that

1:30:26went into what was our ideal candidate,

1:30:29which ultimately led to you. Um, and I

1:30:33hope that those who who did respond back

1:30:37to us take the time to sit at whether

1:30:41it's the family sessions, whether you're

1:30:42meeting with with the buildings um to

1:30:45giving that that feedback too because

1:30:47your voices were heard before and we

1:30:49want to continue to have that. So

1:30:51anyway, I'm excited about this. Um, the

1:30:54only question I had I guess maybe with

1:30:56the thought exchanges once we do that is

1:30:58the thought exchange going to be able to

1:31:00be translated into different languages?

1:31:01So,

1:31:02>> so I'm glad you said that. That was

1:31:04going to be my closing comment. Um,

1:31:05because I I think you all know a core

1:31:08value for me is really being as

1:31:10inclusive as possible. And so, um, in

1:31:13these listening sessions, when you go to

1:31:14RSVP, all of that information is going

1:31:17to be available in different languages.

1:31:19Um, in addition, you can also share if

1:31:21you prefer to communicate in a different

1:31:22language and I can have translators

1:31:24available to attend the listening

1:31:26sessions with me so that everyone can

1:31:27communicate with me and be with them.

1:31:30Um, in addition, all of the thought

1:31:32exchange information will be in multiple

1:31:34languages. Um, I've been meeting with

1:31:36the with the software team so that we

1:31:39can do that. They'll be all of our all

1:31:41of the languages that we have uh

1:31:42represented in the survey. And um, that

1:31:44goes not only in the questions, but in

1:31:46the responses, I can also have those

1:31:48translated for me. So, my hope is to be

1:31:50as inclusive as possible and ensure that

1:31:53really we do have um, a diverse group

1:31:56represented that that is our community.

1:32:02All right. Well, thank you. Thanks. I

1:32:04appreciate your time.

1:32:07>> Okay. Um, the next item on our agenda is

1:32:11under policy, and it is a first reading

1:32:15of a proposed policy, which would be

1:32:17policy 637, which is interacting with

1:32:20law enforcement officers engaged in

1:32:22civil law enforcement, which is the

1:32:24Protect Act. On August 5th, 2026, the

1:32:28Protect Act was signed into law. As part

1:32:31of the legislation and the guidance

1:32:32issued by the Department of Elementary

1:32:34and Secondary Education, DESIE, on

1:32:36August 21st, 2026, districts are

1:32:39required to adopt a policy and develop a

1:32:42companion procedures to align with the

1:32:44new law by September 1st of first day of

1:32:46school, whichever was earliest. This

1:32:49policy subcommittee, which this year is

1:32:51comprised of Miss Torres and myself, met

1:32:53with Dr. Ostander to develop the

1:32:54proposed policy that we have here. Um,

1:32:57tonight we'll be presenting a reading of

1:32:59policy 637. A draft is enclosed or was

1:33:02enclosed in our packets this week. So,

1:33:04I'm just going to give a overview of

1:33:07what it was. Um, the policy before us is

1:33:11a new policy required under the

1:33:13Commonwealth Protect Act. Most of the

1:33:16language in this policy is standard

1:33:17language that reflects the requirements

1:33:19of the new state law. So, I I won't read

1:33:21through the policy line by line tonight,

1:33:23but a full policy will be available on

1:33:25our website for anyone who would like to

1:33:26review it in its entirety.

1:33:29At its core, uh this policy is about

1:33:32ensuring that our schools remain safe,

1:33:34welcoming, and accessible places for all

1:33:36students to receive their public

1:33:38education. The Protect Act places

1:33:40specific limits on civil law enforcement

1:33:43actions on school grounds, during the

1:33:45school day, during student drop off and

1:33:47pickup, before and after school

1:33:48programming, and school sponsored

1:33:50events. In general, civil arrests,

1:33:53including federal immigration

1:33:54enforcement, cannot take place during

1:33:56those times unless there is a judicial

1:33:58warrant or judicial order or unless

1:34:00otherwise required by state or federal

1:34:02law. The policy also establishes that

1:34:04our superintendent will follow the

1:34:06procedures and guidance provided by the

1:34:08Commonwealth on for how schools should

1:34:10respond if civil law enforcement

1:34:12officers seek to enter a school or

1:34:14interact with members of our school

1:34:16community. Um, for families, I think the

1:34:19most important takeaway is that this

1:34:21policy reinforces our responsibility to

1:34:24provide every student with access to a

1:34:26safe and welcoming public education

1:34:28regardless of their immigration or

1:34:30citizenship status. It also gives our

1:34:33schools clear procedures for responding

1:34:35to civil law enforcement activity in a

1:34:37way that is consistent with state law.

1:34:40Um again this policy and the procedures

1:34:43associated with it will be available on

1:34:44our website for anyone who would like um

1:34:48more detail.

1:34:49Um does anybody have any questions or

1:34:52comments on the policy? Okay. Um our

1:34:57legal council has been sent our proposed

1:35:00policy and um will weigh in prior to us

1:35:03accepting this as a policy. So, um, a

1:35:06copy of the policy will be made a

1:35:07available on our website tomorrow. As

1:35:09with everything that we do, uh, we

1:35:11welcome all feedback on this policy and

1:35:13encourage those of you who are watching

1:35:14at home to read through this and if you

1:35:16have comments to please email us as

1:35:18school committee at shrewsbury.k12.mma

1:35:22us. Um, our policies at district are

1:35:26only made stronger with the input from

1:35:28our community. Um, so we will uh have

1:35:32this up on the website and we will do a

1:35:34second reading and a vote proposed vote

1:35:36at our next school committee meeting

1:35:38which will be on September 23rd. So if

1:35:40there is feedback, please um send that

1:35:42in prior to the 23rd.

1:35:46Um okay, the next item uh agenda item is

1:35:50under finance and operations and it is a

1:35:52report and vote on FY27 grants. Federal

1:35:56and state entitlement grants are an

1:35:57important source of funding for our

1:35:59school operations. Entitlement grants

1:36:01are established and allocated at the

1:36:02state and federal level. These grants

1:36:05are non-competitive

1:36:07and are awarded automatically on the

1:36:08basis of defined formulas that differ by

1:36:10grant. Enclosed in our packets was a

1:36:13report that included the amount of

1:36:14funding the district is receiving for

1:36:17FY27

1:36:19as well as a 5-year history. Mr. Jordy

1:36:21is back up here and will summarize this

1:36:23information as presentation to us. Thank

1:36:25you. Not the greatest segue, but uh

1:36:28[laughter]

1:36:29uh but very important and um thank you

1:36:31for allowing me to present this tonight

1:36:33as we're beginning the year with our

1:36:35FY27 budget. Um a very important piece

1:36:38of that budget are the state and federal

1:36:41grants that we receive both um

1:36:42entitlement grants as you were sharing

1:36:45um just a moment ago and our competitive

1:36:47and earmark grants. So again, when I say

1:36:51it's a very important piece of our

1:36:52budget, uh we are scheduled to receive

1:36:54at this time just over $2.5 million in

1:36:57state and federal grants.

1:37:00Um these are awarded through um both the

1:37:03competitive and earmark grants, which

1:37:05are competitive application processes

1:37:07and state budget earmarks. Um these

1:37:10grants here are non-recurring. They

1:37:12expire at the end of their designated

1:37:15funding cycles. Sometimes that's a year,

1:37:17sometimes it's two years, sometimes it's

1:37:19multiple years. Um, and on top of that,

1:37:22we also have our entitlement grants. And

1:37:23these are non-competitive funds that are

1:37:26awarded automatically based on what we

1:37:28call statutory, state, and federal

1:37:30formulas. These are grants um for

1:37:32specialized populations such as special

1:37:34education, English language learners,

1:37:36and such. And they're often based on

1:37:39community poverty thresholds.

1:37:42So when we take these total grants again

1:37:44um for FY27 we're looking at just about

1:37:46over $2.5 million. Um the difference

1:37:50between FY27 and FY26 where in FY26

1:37:54uh we received just over $2.7 million is

1:37:58a change of um just under a negative

1:38:01$154,855.

1:38:04So, uh, we've had a decrease in our, um,

1:38:08competitive, uh, nameark grants and

1:38:10entitlement grants of just under 6% from

1:38:12last year. Um, just to share with the

1:38:16team that this is something that we were

1:38:17aware of. Uh, we knew that many of these

1:38:19were coming, especially [snorts] at the

1:38:21federal level where it was signaled

1:38:23early, that we would, um, receive lesser

1:38:26less funding than we did in FY26. Um

1:38:29there are some also some of those that

1:38:31we just saw the writing on the wall and

1:38:33even though we didn't know at the time

1:38:34we made a conservative estimate that we

1:38:37wouldn't be receiving as much as we had

1:38:38in previous years and unfortunately some

1:38:41of those did come true. Um but there are

1:38:43also some earmark grants that came to us

1:38:45that we weren't expecting um that have

1:38:47helped us. Uh so it's kind of um kind of

1:38:51the give and take there. uh an example

1:38:54of some that we knew uh some of the

1:38:56change that we were preparing for. Uh if

1:38:58you remember back in uh when we did our

1:39:00first budget presentation in February,

1:39:03um Dr. Sawyer's initial budget

1:39:04presentation, we had a slide that showed

1:39:07uh here's positions that have to come

1:39:10off of grant and we had to move into the

1:39:12appropriated budget because we knew we

1:39:14would not have grant funding the next

1:39:15year. Um some of those positions were um

1:39:19we have a ELLL EL teacher that we had to

1:39:22move out of a grant and into um into the

1:39:25operating budget. We had a therapeutic

1:39:28learning teacher and a therapeutic

1:39:29learning adjustment counselor. So these

1:39:31are some pretty large dollar amounts

1:39:33that we knew were no longer going to be

1:39:35grant funded that we moved into the

1:39:37appropriated budget because we knew they

1:39:38were essential positions for our

1:39:40operation. What that does is it had to,

1:39:43you know, force us to look at other

1:39:45things that we were not able to include

1:39:47in the budget because these were

1:39:49essential functions of our operation.

1:39:53Listed in um the report here are some

1:39:55increases um some anticipated increases.

1:39:59There are some that we're anticipating

1:40:00receiving that we're in the process of

1:40:02filing on. Um these are earmark funds

1:40:05that we know we will receive once uh

1:40:07we're they're applied for. Um but those

1:40:09will happen within the next two weeks.

1:40:11Um one of those is the fair share uh

1:40:14earmark 2518

1:40:16which has been you know pretty high

1:40:18profile for Shbury or for all

1:40:20communities across the district uh the

1:40:22Commonwealth. Uh we are um looking to

1:40:25receive $182,500.

1:40:28Um and these earmarks are for very

1:40:30specific things. $50,000 for Shbury

1:40:33public schools and that's for the

1:40:35students. $82,500

1:40:37for capital expenses, $50,000 to offset

1:40:40special education costs. Um, this is one

1:40:43where um it's a multipleyear spendoff,

1:40:47but the state really is asking us,

1:40:49please spend these funds this year. they

1:40:51are meant for FY27 to offset costs that

1:40:55they know school districts are uh

1:40:58occurring. Um that you know will um

1:41:02they'll be able to assist school

1:41:03districts um who you know where dollars

1:41:06are tight. Uh but it does give some

1:41:09flexibility as to when uh when they can

1:41:11be spent.

1:41:13Um, we have again some those increases,

1:41:16anticipated increases, um, and then some

1:41:19decreases or expirations, right? We have

1:41:21some of our grants that they're just

1:41:23expiring. Um, so they they have a term

1:41:26on their life and they come to the end

1:41:29of their life and those dollars are no

1:41:31longer available. A good example of that

1:41:33is the expanded homeless shelter uh,

1:41:36funding program, uh, fund 997. We

1:41:39received some pretty sub substantial

1:41:40funds to help um support our expanded

1:41:43homeless population here in Shbury.

1:41:46Those were very well those were so

1:41:47appreciated um at the time. The

1:41:49populations have declined um and the

1:41:52state is no longer providing uh that

1:41:54assistance um to communities. That's one

1:41:57where we saw was drying up. We we knew

1:41:59that was going to happen and we uh made

1:42:01sure that um we were able to adjust

1:42:03before uh the funding ended.

1:42:07And then again some federal entitle

1:42:09entitlement grants. Uh these we knew

1:42:11we're going to decrease our special

1:42:13education entitlement which is our IDA

1:42:16240 fund. Um we're receiving $31,000

1:42:20just over $31,000 less than we had last

1:42:22year. Um title one, title 2a, uh title

1:42:26three. These, you know, are education

1:42:29for disadvantaged children, high quality

1:42:32teaching, English language acquisition.

1:42:35um these are all uh less than what they

1:42:39were in FY26. So when we see the

1:42:41decreased funding, something that I

1:42:42think is important for you and for the

1:42:44community to know is things that we have

1:42:46budgeted in those areas, you know, those

1:42:49whether it be staffing or materials,

1:42:52those have inflation rates of, you know,

1:42:54that are probably higher than four and a

1:42:56half% of what our bud, you know, what

1:42:58we're budgeting for. So, not only are

1:43:01they decreasing, but we'd also have to

1:43:03make up inflation if we're going to

1:43:05continue on with either those materials

1:43:07or funding those staff. Um, so there is

1:43:10a kind of a hidden cost as well when we

1:43:13look at how we're receiving less funding

1:43:16uh from some of our grants.

1:43:21So, I have a recommendation. And you

1:43:23know, our grant funds, they do play a

1:43:25critical role in supporting educational

1:43:27programs and operational objectives

1:43:29across Shbury public schools. Um, each

1:43:32grant does carry distinct compliance

1:43:34rules, usage criteria, strict reporting

1:43:37requirements. Uh, we have Kim

1:43:39Fitzpatrick in our office. She is our

1:43:40grant specialist and she is wonderful.

1:43:42Um, and every grant that we apply for,

1:43:45that we receive, uh, that we, um, use

1:43:48dollars for, she is tracking every one

1:43:51of those dollars, uh, where they're, uh,

1:43:53where the funding is going, reporting to

1:43:54the state. Again, grant funds are

1:43:56terrific, but they have a very specific

1:44:00use that we have to use them for, and we

1:44:02cannot use them for other areas, even

1:44:03when we might be struggling in those

1:44:05areas.

1:44:05>> Uh, so, um, we have a great team who who

1:44:08who does that work. We have a great team

1:44:10who's out there looking for grants each

1:44:13and every day when new grants pop up. Um

1:44:16we are jumping on the application

1:44:18processes which can take lots of time uh

1:44:21to do but those funds again are critical

1:44:23and um our third party financial report

1:44:26says you know don't rely on you know

1:44:29funds that um are beyond appropriation

1:44:32because you may not have them next year.

1:44:35This is a good example. our state and

1:44:36federal grants. Uh they are volatile. Um

1:44:40but we do our best to manage them and

1:44:42use those funds the best we can and to

1:44:45obtain every dollar we can from state

1:44:47and federal government or private

1:44:49organizations when those when those

1:44:50arise. So it's it's our recommendation

1:44:53um that the school committee vote to

1:44:55accept the funds using the follow using

1:44:57the motion that's provided to you in

1:44:59your packet.

1:45:05Thank you for the report, Mr. Gerardi.

1:45:07Um I had a question on the federal

1:45:08entitlement grant decreases. Do any of

1:45:11those are any of those dependent on um

1:45:14student population? Like if um a a

1:45:16cohort of student goes down in number,

1:45:19we get less funding. Is that is that

1:45:22some of why we're seeing decreases?

1:45:24>> Sure. So there's percentages of criteria

1:45:26that you you can meet. So um sometimes

1:45:29you go down by a small amount and you

1:45:31may not get uh you may not lose the

1:45:33funding that year but if it continues

1:45:35you may lose the funding beyond that. Uh

1:45:37so there is a grace period that's built

1:45:39into some of these federal funds that um

1:45:41you can rely upon on a second year. Um

1:45:45they have moved kind of the goalposts

1:45:47around uh the funding that's being

1:45:49provided based on the students who

1:45:51qualify. So there's less funding being

1:45:53provided this year that was identified

1:45:56at the end of last year for things like

1:45:58the title one grant specifically. So the

1:46:00the goalposts for qualifying for title

1:46:02one um have have moved.

1:46:05>> And I think your comment is a good one

1:46:07that we you know we just have to be

1:46:09mindful of this grant funding in terms

1:46:11of being relying upon it as it's gone

1:46:14down 6% this year. And um you know it's

1:46:17just something we need to keep in mind

1:46:19as you know again as we head into our

1:46:21budgeting process for this year that you

1:46:24know we can't count on these funds

1:46:25always being available to us. It's

1:46:27something that we we definitely have to

1:46:28keep a close eye on. Um we were lucky

1:46:30that some things broke our way um this

1:46:33year um to kind of make up some deficits

1:46:35that we saw. So I appreciate the report.

1:46:37Thank you.

1:46:38>> Welcome.

1:46:40>> Yeah. I think that's important as we're

1:46:42having like our our budget conversations

1:46:44is that this is this goes into when we

1:46:46talk about how our our budget is so

1:46:48volatile and can change. This is the

1:46:50perfect example of that it's hard not to

1:46:52rely on on funds and you know we or

1:46:54grants we've been told when we had DMG

1:46:57come and said that u fees and and that

1:47:00extra money we shouldn't be relying on

1:47:03which is true um but it's hard because

1:47:05when there's money there and that we

1:47:07need this to supplement the budget um

1:47:10but thank you for um for the work for

1:47:12your office and keep you on top of

1:47:14these. I know grants can drive people

1:47:16crazy and it's hard to stay on top of.

1:47:18So, um I appreciate the the work that

1:47:20goes into securing these and making sure

1:47:22that we're up to date and that we have

1:47:24what the school district needs. Um

1:47:27before we vote, do you have anything to

1:47:28add before?

1:47:30>> Just again an appreciation to Mr.

1:47:32Gerardy, Kim Fitzpatrick, and the many

1:47:34individuals who work to secure the

1:47:36grants um that lead to these enhanced

1:47:38opportunities for students. grants do

1:47:40still remain a vital part um of us being

1:47:43able to uh support the work we want to

1:47:46see completed in our schools and for

1:47:48supplementing supplementing our

1:47:50operating budget.

1:47:53>> Um okay so we do need to take a vote on

1:47:56this. Um so can I please have a motion

1:47:59uh that the committee vote to accept all

1:48:01FY27 grant funds noted in our enclosed

1:48:04chart and use such funds for their

1:48:06intended purpose.

1:48:08>> So moved. Second.

1:48:09>> Moved and seconded. All those in favor,

1:48:11please do so by saying I.

1:48:13>> I. Motion carries. Thank you.

1:48:15>> Thank you.

1:48:16>> The next item on our agenda is the

1:48:18approval of minutes. The minutes from

1:48:19the school committee workshop held on

1:48:21August 19th was sent to us for review.

1:48:23Does anyone have any changes or

1:48:25revisions? No. Seeing as there are no

1:48:28changes, these can be marked as accepted

1:48:30as distributed. We do not need to go

1:48:33into executive session tonight. So if

1:48:35there's no further business before the

1:48:37committee, may I please have a motion to

1:48:38conclude our meeting?

1:48:40>> So moved.

1:48:41>> Second.

1:48:42>> This requires a roll call vote. Miss

1:48:44Torres.

1:48:44>> Hi.

1:48:45>> Mr. Wensky.

1:48:46>> Hi.

1:48:46>> Mr. Valleut.

1:48:47>> Hi.

1:48:47>> Miss Buchet.

1:48:48>> Hi.

1:48:48>> Myself. Miss Shrior. I thank you and

1:48:51good night.