Jan 06, 2026 Special Board Meetings

[I. Call to Order]

[00:00:03]

I CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER. LET THE RECORD SHOW THAT A QUORUM IS PRESENT, AND THAT NOTICE OF THIS MEETING HAS BEEN POSTED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE TEXAS OPEN MEETINGS ACT. THE TIME IS 6:15. AND FIRST ON THE AGENDA IS PLEASE STAND FOR THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE, LED BY DEL VALLE HIGH SCHOOL ROTC.

I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS.

ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.

HONOR THE TEXAS FLAG AND PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THEE, ONE STATE UNDER GOD, AND ONE INDIVISIBLE.

THANK YOU.

[III. Public Comment]

EXCEPT AS PERMITTED BY BOARD POLICY AND THE BOARD'S PROCEDURE ON PUBLIC COMMENT AND INDIVIDUALS COMMENTS TO THE BOARD SHALL NOT EXCEED THREE MINUTES PER MINUTE.

SECRETARY WEGNER WILL BE TAKING TIME AND YOU WILL HAVE A ONE MINUTE WARNING.

WE HAVE ONE SPEAKER TODAY, AND THAT IS BRETT COVINGTON SPEAKING ON GUARDRAILS.

AS IF I NEED THAT. I APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE.

LAST MONTH, YOU MAY HAVE SEEN ME SITTING IN THE GALLERY AND A BIT FRUSTRATED THAT I DID NOT, IN FACT, GET A CHANCE TO SPEAK. APPARENTLY THERE WAS A COMPUTER GLITCH.

I CAME TONIGHT TO ADDRESS THE SUBJECT OF GUARDRAILS, BECAUSE WHILE I WAS HERE LAST MONTH, I WENT AHEAD AND LISTENED TO THE WHOLE MEETING AND YOUR DISCUSSION OF THE GUARDRAILS UNDER CONSIDERATION, BOTH FOR THE BOARD AND FOR THE SUPERINTENDENT.

A COUPLE OF OBSERVATIONS. I WANT TO TELL YOU HOW MUCH I APPRECIATE THAT THIS BOARD HAS GROWN AND DEVELOPED, BOTH INDIVIDUALLY AND COLLECTIVELY, OVER THE LAST FEW, ONLY THE FEW YEARS I'VE BEEN AROUND.

I'VE SAT IN ON YOUR LONE STAR GOVERNANCE TRAINING MEETINGS ONCE, TWICE, I THINK, AND WATCHED A COUPLE ONLINE, AND I'M REALLY IMPRESSED BY HOW HARD Y'ALL ARE WORKING TO BECOME MUCH BETTER AT YOUR JOBS AND TO FOCUS YOUR EFFORTS AND MAKE BETTER QUALITY DECISIONS, SO I APPRECIATE THAT. NEVERTHELESS, CONTINUES TO BE MY CONCERN THAT WHAT IS SAID IN THIS ROOM IS NOT ALWAYS THE REALITY ON THE GROUND, AND THAT YOU NEED FROM TIME TO TIME TO HEAR THAT, OKAY, YOU NEED TO HEAR THAT.

AND I'M CONCERNED ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT YOU ARE HEARING THAT THROUGH VARIOUS CHANNELS OF COMMUNICATION.

THIS BEING ONE, THERE USED TO BE MANY SPEAKERS AT PUBLIC COMMENT NIGHTS.

I WOULD HATE FOR YOU TO INTERPRET THAT, THAT THEY'RE NOT AS MANY, THAT EVERYBODY'S HAPPY AND EVERYTHING'S GOOD.

I WOULD IN INSTEAD THINK THAT PERHAPS YOU SHOULD WONDER, WHY DON'T WE HAVE MORE PEOPLE COME SPEAK.

DO THEY THINK THERE'S NO POINT. OKAY. THERE WAS A CONTRACT DECISION A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO OVER THE LAPTOPS.

$500,000 CONTRACT. YOU HAVE ONE MINUTE. ONE OF THESE COMMENTS MADE HERE, AND I APPRECIATE THERE WERE THREE QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD, WILL THERE BE TRAINING FOR TEACHERS? THIS IS JUST ONE EXAMPLE.

IT'S NOT THAT IMPORTANT, BUT IT IS ONE EXAMPLE.

YOU WERE ASSURED REPEATEDLY THAT ABSOLUTELY THERE WOULD BE TRAINING FOR TEACHERS.

I WANT TO TELL YOU TONIGHT IT WAS 13 MINUTES.

IT STARTED AT 4:02, WAS OVER AT 4:15. THERE WERE SERIOUS PRODUCTIVITY LOSSES BY SOME IN TRYING TO TRANSITION TO LEARN A NEW SYSTEM. FOR THOSE WHO ALREADY KNOW THE MACBOOK, THEY WERE GLAD NOT TO HAVE TO SIT THROUGH A LONGER TRAINING, I AM SURE, BUT THAT IS ONLY ONE EXAMPLE. WHEN YOU DISCUSS GUARDRAILS AND YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S OPEN COMMUNICATION AND THAT THERE IS NOT A HOSTILE WORK ENVIRONMENT.

WORDS MATTER. AND Y'ALL DEBATED THE WORD CHOICES AT LENGTH LAST MONTH, BUT IT IS THE REALITY ON THE GROUND THAT MATTERS MORE.

[00:05:05]

OKAY. THANK YOU FOR THAT. NEXT ON THE AGENDA IS OUR MONTHLY FINANCIAL REPORT.

[IV.A. Monthly Financial Reports]

GOOD EVENING. PRESIDENT GUADIAN, DR. GUTIERREZ AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD.

THIS EVENING I'LL BE HIGHLIGHTING THE MONTHLY FINANCIAL REPORTS FOR THE MONTH ENDING NOVEMBER 30TH.

SO THE REPORTS WILL BE DISCUSSING INCLUDE THE INVESTMENT REPORT, TAX COLLECTIONS, YEAR TO DATE, BUDGET BY FUNCTION AND THE FUND BALANCE REPORT.

SO STARTING WITH THE INVESTMENT REPORT, THIS REPORT IS LOOKING AT OUR PORTFOLIO POSITION WITH AN AVERAGE YIELD OF 4.14%.

AGAIN, THIS IS CONTINUING TO TICK DOWN SINCE THE FED DECREASES DECREASED THE INTEREST RATE.

WE ARE HEARING THAT INTEREST RATES ARE PROJECTED TO BOTTOM OUT AT AROUND 3% THROUGHOUT 2026 AND 2027.

98% OF OUR OVERALL DISTRIBUTION REMAINS AT 0 TO 1 YEARS TO MATURITY, WITH ABOUT 2% IN LONGER TERM INVESTMENT VEHICLES.

THIS NEXT SLIDE OUTLINES OUR SECURITY DIVERSIFICATION BY VALUE AND PERCENT OF PORTFOLIO.

SO ABOUT 90, I'M SORRY, 78% RESIDES IN OUR LOCAL GOVERNMENT INVESTMENT POOLS WITH ALMOST 10% MONEY MARKET FUNDS AND THEN 12% IN US TREASURIES AND AGENCIES. IN THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER, THE DISTRICT EARNED ALMOST 900,000 IN INTEREST EARNINGS, WITH ABOUT 4.8 MILLION FISCAL YEAR-TO-DATE. AND THEN MOVING INTO OUR TAX COLLECTIONS FOR THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER, WE DID COLLECT A NET TOTAL OF 1.8 MILLION. SO IT'S FINALLY STARTING TO COME IN.

WE WILL SEE THIS ACTIVITY RAPIDLY INCREASING IN DECEMBER AND JANUARY.

AND AS A REMINDER, PROPERTY TAXES ARE DUE JANUARY 31ST.

AND ON FEBRUARY 1ST, A 6% PENALTY IS ASSESSED.

IN LOOKING AT OUR YEAR-TO-DATE BUDGET BY FUNCTION, WE HAVE SPENT ABOUT 42% OF OUR BUDGETED EXPENDITURES AS OF THE END OF NOVEMBER.

AGAIN, WE'RE STILL TRENDING ON BUDGET AT THIS TIME, BUT WE WILL BE WATCHING TAX COLLECTIONS AS THEY COME IN OVER THE NEXT MONTH OR SO TO SEE IF REVENUES SHIFT IN ANY WAY AND SEE WHAT IMPACT THAT MIGHT HAVE ON OUR REVENUE STREAM.

AND THEN FINALLY, OUR FUND BALANCE POSITION IS CURRENTLY UNCHANGED FROM LAST MONTH, REMAINING AT 58.3 MILLION.

AND I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. BOARD, DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? THANK YOU DINA. OKAY. NEXT UP ON THE AGENDA IS POLICY UPDATE 126, DR.

[IV.B. Policy Update 126]

GOOD EVENING MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, PRESIDENT GUADIAN AND DR.

GUTIERREZ. I'M GOING TO APOLOGIZE ABOUT MY VOICE.

SO I'M GOING TO ASK DR. BAILEY TO HELP ME PRESENT TO YOU.

I'M GOING TO TRY TO GET THROUGH THIS ONE, BUT I MAY NOT DO THE NEXT FEW.

SO POLICY UPDATE 126 REFLECTS THE 89TH LEGISLATIVE SESSION, WHICH WE KNOW WRAPPED UP AND TASB HAS WORKED WITH US AND OTHER DISTRICTS TO UPDATE THE LAWS BASED ON CURRENT STATE LAW AND FEDERAL LAW.

OF COURSE, NOW TEA HAS BEEN ABLE TO PUT OUT SOME TEA REGULATIONS.

SO WE KNOW WHAT THE LAW SAYS. WE KNOW WHAT TEA SAYS.

AND THEN OF COURSE, THERE'S BEST PRACTICES AND GOVERNANCE THAT COMES FROM TASB.

SO THERE ARE UPDATES TO THE LEGAL SIDE WHICH WE CANNOT MAKE ANY CHANGES TO.

SO THOSE ARE NOT HERE IN FRONT OF US TODAY, BUT IF YOU WANT TO SEE THE BINDER, IT'S ABOUT THIS THICK.

AND THEN THE ONES THAT ARE IN FRONT OF YOU TODAY ARE THE LOCAL POLICIES.

THERE'S TWO SLIDES OF POLICIES, AND I WON'T GO ONE BY ONE.

BUT IF YOU FLIP PAST THE PRESENTATION, YOU CAN SEE ALL THE MARKUPS ON THE DOCUMENTS WITH EACH OF THESE.

AND SO, FOR EXAMPLE, WE HAVE A CHANGE IN BE(LOCAL) AND BOARD MEETINGS.

ONE OF THE CHANGES IS THAT NOW WE KNOW WE HAVE TO POST THE AGENDA, NOT 72 HOURS IN ADVANCE, BUT THREE BUSINESS DAYS. AND SO THAT'S ONE OF THE CHANGES THAT YOU'LL SEE IN RED.

SAME THING WITH BED. AND, AND THE REST OF THE POLICIES HERE.

THEY CONTINUE IT IMPACTS ALL THE DIFFERENT AREAS OF THE DEPARTMENTS.

[00:10:04]

WE'RE READY TO ACCEPT A RECOMMENDATION. SO TONIGHT WE'RE SHARING THIS WITH FOR INFORMATION ONLY.

WITH, COMING BACK TO YOU ALL NEXT AT THE NEXT MEETING FOR ADOPTION.

AND SO WITH THAT ASK ANY QUESTIONS. IF YOU WANT TO CLARIFY ANYTHING, WE CAN GO TO THE DOCUMENTS AND ANSWER THAT AS WELL.

BOARD, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE PANTOJA.

JUST FOR CLARIFYING. I SEE THAT ON PAGE 32.

THE CONTRACTS FOR CONSTRUCTION, WE ARE ELIMINATING 50,000 AND MAKING IT THE COMPETITIVE PURCHASING THRESHOLD ESTABLISHED IN LAW.

IS THERE A THRESHOLD LIKE WHAT'S THAT THRESHOLD NUMBER? DO WE KNOW? YEAH. SO FOR THIS ONE I'M GOING TO I'M GOING TO ASK MISS EDGAR TO PROVIDE THAT CONTEXT BECAUSE I KNOW THERE WAS A CHANGE.

AND I BELIEVE THIS WAS THE CHANGE THAT WENT UP TO 100,000.

100,000. 100,000. SO THAT MEANS, HYPOTHETICALLY, $96,000.

DOES IT NEED BOARD APPROVAL? IS THAT WHAT I'M UNDERSTANDING? SO THEN I GUESS SO WE IN COMPLIANCE.

ARE WE GOING WITH LOCAL OR LEGAL? BOARD. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY.

NEXT UP IS A TEACHER CERTIFICATION APPLICATION, MISS MURILLO.

[IV.C. Teacher Certification Application]

THIS EVENING'S INFORMATION ITEM IS A PROACTIVE STRATEGY TO NAVIGATE NEW STATE MANDATES FROM THE RECENT LEGISLATIVE SESSION.

OUR GOAL IN SUBMITTING THIS APPLICATION IS TO ENSURE WE REMAIN IN FULL LEGAL COMPLIANCE WITHOUT LOSING THE TALENTED TEACHERS CURRENTLY SERVING OUR STUDENTS.

SO HOUSE BILL 2 FUNDAMENTALLY CHANGED THE DISTRICT OF INNOVATION LANDSCAPE FOR YEARS DOI ALLOWED US TO LOOK, ALLOWED US LOCAL FLEXIBILITY TO HIRE EXPERTS WHO WEREN'T YET STATE CERTIFIED.

THE STATE IS NOW CLOSING THAT DOOR FOR FOUNDATIONAL SUBJECTS, AND THESE SUBJECTS INCLUDE MATH, SCIENCE, ENGLISH, LANGUAGE ARTS, AND SOCIAL STUDIES.

SO THIS IS A STATEWIDE SHIFT TOWARD UNIVERSAL CERTIFICATION BY 2029.

AND THE PURPOSE OF THE APPLICATION IS TO GIVE THE DISTRICT A RUNWAY TO SUPPORT OUR CURRENT STAFF IN EARNING FULL CERTIFICATION.

SO RIGHT NOW, IN 25-26, THIS IS OUR STATUS QUO YEAR, WHICH MEANS THAT WE ARE ALLOWED CURRENT DOI EXEMPTIONS.

HOWEVER, STARTING IN AUGUST OF 2026, THE STATE BEGINS A HARD STOP ON HIRING NEW UNCERTIFIED TEACHERS FOR ELEMENTARY MATH AND READING.

THEN YOU'LL SEE BY 2027, THE STOP EXTENDS TO ALL CORE SUBJECTS IN BOTH ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY.

THE FINAL HARD DEADLINE IS 2029. HOWEVER, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE MANAGE THIS TRANSITION STARTING NOW, RATHER THAN WAITING UNTIL 2029 TO ENSURE THAT ALL OF OUR TEACHERS ARE CERTIFIED.

THE NUMBERS ON THIS SLIDE REPRESENT THE HUMAN SIDE OF THIS MANDATE.

SO WE CURRENTLY HAVE 789 TEACHERS OF RECORD. AND OF THOSE 789 TEACHERS, 23 OF THEM ARE CURRENTLY UNCERTIFIED AND FOUNDATION SUBJECTS. AGAIN, THESE ARE JUST FOUNDATIONAL SUBJECTS.

THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE CTE OR OTHER COURSES. SO THE PERCENTAGE OF OUR FOUNDATIONAL TEACHERS WHO ARE WHO ARE UNCERTIFIED IS 3%.

SO THIS APPLICATION AGAIN WILL ALLOW THESE INDIVIDUALS TO STAY WITH THE DISTRICT WHILE COMPLETING THEIR CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS AND AGAIN, GIVES THEM THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK ON THOSE REQUIREMENTS AND HAVE THAT LEEWAY UNTIL EVERYONE NEEDS TO BE FULLY CERTIFIED IN 2029.

SO THIS SLIDE OUTLINES THE DISTRICT'S TRANSITION PLAN.

IF OUR APPLICATION IS APPROVED BY THE COMMISSIONER.

WE'VE SET AN INTERNAL MILESTONE TO MOVE 1.5% OF OUR UNCERTIFIED TEACHERS TO FULL CERTIFICATION EACH YEAR.

THIS ENSURES THAT IF A TEACHER STRUGGLES WITH AN EXAM, WE HAVE TIME TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL SUPPORT.

SO YOU'LL SEE ON THERE THAT OUR GOAL FOR 26-27 NEXT SCHOOL YEAR IS TO TARGET THOSE 13 UNCERTIFIED TEACHERS THAT ARE IN ELEMENTARY.

AND THEN FOR 27-28, THAT NUMBER SHOULD REALLY SAY TEN UNCERTIFIED TEACHERS WILL BE TACKLING HIGHLIGHTING THE UNCERTIFIED TEACHERS IN SECONDARY TO ENSURE THAT THEY ARE

[00:15:08]

BY PARTNERING WITH THE PROGRAMS, WE'RE HELPING TO BUILD A BRIDGE TO SUPPORT OUR TEACHERS.

AND THE SUPPORT FROM THE DISTRICT ALSO INCLUDES PARTNERING THEM WITH STRONG VETERAN TEACHERS WHO PROVIDE MENTORSHIP AND HELP GUIDE THEM AS THEY TAKE THEIR CERTIFICATION TESTS. WE KNOW THAT THE BIGGEST RISK TO OUR DISTRICT IS ALWAYS TEACHER TURNOVER.

AND SO BY APPLYING FOR THIS DELAY, IT LETS TEACHERS KNOW THAT WE ARE GOING TO HELP THEM MEET THE NEW STATE STANDARDS.

IT ALSO PROTECTS OUR BUDGET BY AVOIDING THE COST OF RECRUITING AND TRAINING NEW STAFF IN A COMPETITIVE MARKET.

THE APPLICATION WINDOW FOR THE DELAY DOES CLOSE ON MARCH 2ND, 2026.

AND SO THIS INFORMATION, THIS IS JUST FOR INFORMATION TONIGHT AND WILL BE BROUGHT BACK TO THE BOARD FOR ACTION THE JANUARY 20TH MEETING.

AND I CAN TAKE ANY QUESTIONS THE BOARD MAY HAVE.

BOARD, ANY QUESTIONS. THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE FRANCO.

THANK YOU. THANKS FOR THE PRESENTATION. IN THE FUTURE, HOW WILL THIS AFFECT ANY LONG-TERM SUBS? I GUESS A BETTER QUESTION IS IF THERE'S A NEED FOR A LONG-TERM SUB, NOT THAT WE WOULD WANT TO HAVE ONE THERE FOR A LONG TIME, BUT WOULD WE BE OUT OF COMPLIANCE IF FOR SOME REASON WE HAVE TO HAVE A LONG-TERM SUB FOR AN EXTENDED AMOUNT OF TIME.

WE WILL NOT BECAUSE IT'S A LONG-TERM SUB. THIS IS JUST OUR FULLY, OUR CERTIFIED TEACHERS THAT WE'RE THAT WE'RE HIRING WITH THE CERTIFICATION.

SO WE'RE OKAY WITH THE SUBS IF IT'S A LONG-TERM SUB.

BUT WE'RE LOOKING AT THOSE TEACHERS THAT WE'RE HIRING THAT SHOULD HAVE THEIR CERTIFICATION AND HOW THEY'RE MEETING THAT MANDATE.

THANK YOU. BOARD. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS. THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE LEDESMA WOODY.

OKAY. DO WE SEE ANY ISSUES WITH GETTING THIS APPROVED? NO, I THINK THAT WE HAVE A SOLID PLAN. WE ONLY HAVE 23 TEACHERS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT.

AND THEY ARE, FOR THE MOST PART, ON PAR TO GET THEIR CERTIFICATION.

WE CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THEM IN HUMAN RESOURCES BY CHECKING IN ON THEM, ENSURING THAT THEY'RE MEETING THEIR REQUIREMENTS.

SO EVEN THOUGH WE WOULD HAVE THAT RUNWAY I THINK THAT OUR DISTRICT WILL BE ABLE TO MEET THE COMPLIANCE MANDATE SOONER THAN 2029.

BOARD, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.

NEXT ON THE AGENDA, WE HAVE DR. BAILEY ON ANNUAL SPECIAL EDUCATION PERFORMANCE REVIEW AND PUBLIC MEETING.

[IV.D. Annual Special Education Performance Review and Public Meeting]

GUTIERREZ AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. TONIGHT, WE'RE HERE TO PRESENT OUR ANNUAL SPECIAL EDUCATION EVALUATION AS REQUIRED BY SENATE BILL 568. TONIGHT WITH ME, I HAVE OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NICOLE ROBERTS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION, WHO ALSO IS FEELING A LITTLE BIT UNDER THE WEATHER, BUT SHE DID NOT WANT TO MISS THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE TO SHARE WITH YOU SOME PROGRAM UPDATES. SO I'M GOING TO START OFF AND THEN I'LL HAND IT OVER HERE TO HER AND HOPEFULLY GET HER OUT OF HERE TO GO HOME AND LAY DOWN AS SHE SHOULD BE, BECAUSE SHE IS NOT FEELING GOOD EITHER. BUT JUST SO THAT, JUST TO GIVE YOU A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF WHAT WE'LL GO OVER TONIGHT, WE'LL LOOK AT OUR INITIAL EVALUATION AND ENROLLMENT TRENDS AS IT RELATES TO OUR STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES.

WE'LL GO OVER SOME DATA AND REVIEW HOW OUR STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES ARE PERFORMING.

WHAT WE'RE DOING ABOUT IMPACTING OUR STUDENT ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE.

WE'LL PROVIDE AS WE'VE SHARED IN A QUARTERLY UPDATE TONIGHT ON OUR TCASE PROGRAM EVALUATION THAT WAS SHARED WITH THE BOARD LAST SPRING, OUR INSTRUCTIONAL PRIORITIES AND COMPLIANCE PARTIES AS IT RELATES TO OUR STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES AND OUR OVERALL SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAM.

SO STARTING OFF, AS WE LOOK AT SPECIAL EDUCATION ENROLLMENT IN SPECIAL EDUCATION, IT CONTINUES TO INCREASE SIGNIFICANTLY.

AND THIS FOLLOWS BOTH REGIONAL, STATE AND REGIONAL TRENDS.

I'LL SHARE THAT PART. BUT BASED ON OUR ANNUAL SNAPSHOT, THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES HAS GROWN BY ABOUT 600 STUDENTS IN THE LAST SIX YEARS. WHEN COMPARED TO OVERALL STUDENT ENROLLMENT IN DEL VALLE, THAT IS ABOUT A 3% INCREASE EACH YEAR.

BUT AGAIN, THAT'S CONSISTENT WITH BOTH STATE AND REGIONAL TRENDS AS WE SEE ACROSS SPECIAL EDUCATION.

WHEN WE LOOK AT HOW WE ARE SERVING OUR STUDENTS OR WHERE WE'RE SERVING OUR STUDENTS MOST, WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR DISABILITY CATEGORIES AND WHERE WE'RE SERVING STUDENTS,

[00:20:04]

AND SO FOR DEL VALLE ISD SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITY, INCLUDING OUR STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES.

AS YOU MAY BE AWARE DYSLEXIA SERVICES USED TO BE SEPARATE AND APART FROM SPECIAL EDUCATION.

A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, THE STATE REQUIRED US TO NOW SERVE STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION, DYSLEXIA SERVICES UNDER THE SPECIAL EDUCATION UMBRELLA.

SO YOU'LL SEE A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THAT, BECAUSE DYSLEXIA IS NOW CONSIDERED A SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITY UNDER THE SPECIAL EDUCATION UMBRELLA. SO WHEN WE LOOK AT WHERE WE'RE CURRENTLY SERVING OUR STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES, 47% HAVE A SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITY, FOLLOWED BY 17% OF OUR STUDENTS IDENTIFIED AS STUDENTS THAT HAVE THAT ARE NEURODIVERGENT OR AUTISM. AND THEN ALSO 14% OF OUR STUDENTS ARE RECEIVING SPEECH OR RELATED SERVICE.

AND SO AS A DEPARTMENT, WE CONTINUE TO LOOK AT THESE TRENDS AND ENSURE THAT EVALUATION STAFF ARE TRAINED SO THAT PROPERLY IDENTIFYING OUR STUDENTS AND WE'RE SERVING THEM WELL.

AND THEN WE'RE ALSO UTILIZING BEST PRACTICES WHEN IT COMES TO IDENTIFYING AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE SERVING STUDENTS IN THE BEST WAY AS WE ARE EVALUATING OUR STUDENTS FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES. THE SPECIAL EDUCATION. SO NEXT WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT OUR INSTRUCTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS.

SO WHERE DO WE SERVE OUR STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES.

SO THE SPECIAL EDUCATION AND STRUCTURAL ARRANGEMENT IS THE SETTING IN WHICH WE SERVE OUR STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES.

IT DESCRIBES WHERE INSTRUCTION OCCURS THE MAJORITY OF THE TIME.

AND SO WHEN WE LOOK AT THIS PARTICULAR CHART AND I'LL KIND OF BREAK DOWN IT A LITTLE BIT FOR YOU, IT'S THE SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES. IT'S WHERE WE SERVE.

IT'S THE ARRANGEMENT IN THE PLACE WHERE WE SERVE OUR STUDENTS FOR THEIR SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITY.

AND SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS PARTICULAR CHART, YOU'LL SEE IT SAYS MAINSTREAM AND MAINSTREAM JUST MEANS THE GENERAL EDUCATION CLASSROOM.

SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS PARTICULAR CHART, YOU SEE THAT WE SERVE ABOUT 26% OF OUR STUDENTS AND WHAT WE CONSIDER TO BE THE INCLUSION PROGRAM OR IN THE GENERAL EDUCATION CLASSROOM. AND THEN FOLLOWED BY THAT, YOU'LL SEE THAT 37% OF OUR STUDENTS ARE SERVED IN THE SPECIAL EDUCATION SETTING.

AND SO THIS JUST DESCRIBES WHERE THAT SETTING TAKES PLACE AND THE PERCENT OF TIME THAT STUDENTS ARE SPENDING IN THAT PARTICULAR INSTRUCTIONAL ARRANGEMENT AS THEY'RE RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES. ONE OF THE BIG THINGS THAT WE DO IN TERMS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION IS JUST THAT ONE, THAT WE'RE IDENTIFYING THE STUDENTS WHO NEED OUR SERVICES. AND SO, AS YOU CAN SEE, OUR TRENDS OVER TIME SHOW THAT WE EVALUATE A LITTLE OVER 300 OR SOMETIMES CLOSE TO 400 STUDENTS EVERY YEAR FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES, AND WE CONTINUE TO SEE THAT TREND OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS.

AND SO IN DECEMBER 2025 OF THIS PARTICULAR SCHOOL YEAR, WE HAD COMPLETED 302 INITIAL EVALUATIONS FOR STUDENTS.

WE'RE ON TRACK FOR THIS CURRENT SCHOOL YEAR TO EXCEED THAT NUMBER, BECAUSE OF COURSE, WE'RE STILL IN JANUARY AND WE STILL HAVE FIVE MONTHS OF SCHOOL LEFT TO SERVICE OUR STUDENTS AND TO IDENTIFY STUDENTS TO RECEIVE SERVICES.

SO WE'RE STILL FOLLOWING THE SAME TREND THAT WE'VE SEEN IN THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS, WITH ABOUT 300, PROBABLY 350 WILL LIKELY EXCEED LAST YEAR'S NUMBER OF IDENTIFYING STUDENTS TO RECEIVE SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES.

SO THAT PROVIDES A GENERAL OVERVIEW OF OUR ENROLLMENT TRENDS, WHERE WE'RE SERVING STUDENTS THE MOST, HOW WE'RE SERVING STUDENTS, AND THEN STAYING ON TRACK WITH IDENTIFYING STUDENTS WHO, AGAIN, SOME OF OUR MOST VULNERABLE STUDENTS WHO NEED INDIVIDUAL EDUCATION PLANS TO BE ABLE TO HELP THEM SUCCEED IN SCHOOL.

SO I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO MISS ROBERTS, AND SHE'S GOING TO PROVIDE AN UPDATE ON OUR DATA AND HOW OUR STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES ARE PERFORMING IN TERMS OF ACADEMIC OUTCOMES.

YES. I APOLOGIZE, BUT THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR INDULGING ME ON THE GRAPH FOR THE ENROLLMENT BY INSTRUCTIONAL ARRANGEMENT.

YES, MA'AM. SO I WANT TO CLARIFY ON THAT AND MAKE SURE THAT I'M UNDERSTANDING WHAT I'M LOOKING AT.

SO THESE STUDENTS, THE 37%, THOSE 37% ARE IN A RESOURCE ROOM OR PROVIDED SERVICES LESS THAN 21%, AND IS THAT PER DAY OR PER WEEK? WE TYPICALLY LOOK AT IT.

I'LL LET NICOLE ANSWER THAT, BUT WE TYPICALLY LOOK AT THAT IN TERMS OF WEEKLY MINUTES.

OKAY. YEAH, YEAH. SO ACTUALLY THE WAY INSTRUCTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS ARE CALCULATED IS PER DAY.

SO LESS THAN 21% OF THEIR DAY IS IN A SPECIAL EDUCATION SETTING.

THE WAY THIS STATE HAS IDENTIFIED INSTRUCTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS THEY CALL IT RESOURCE ROOM.

WE ALSO HAVE A RESOURCE ROOM JUST LIKE THEY CALL SELF-CONTAINED.

BUT WE MAY HAVE A SPECIFIC NAME FOR IT. SO RESOURCE AND SELF-CONTAINED OR THE STATE NAMES.

AND IT'S JUST THE LESS THAN 21% OF THEIR DAY IS IN SPECIAL EDUCATION.

THAT MAY INCLUDE A RESOURCE SETTING. IT MAY INCLUDE SPEECH THERAPY.

[00:25:02]

BUT THEY'RE PULLED FROM THE GENERAL ED CLASSROOM.

PERFECT. THANK YOU. I JUST WANTED TO CLARIFY. SO BEFORE WE GOT TOO FAR DOWN.

SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. NO. THAT'S GOOD. THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE BURTON, I APOLOGIZE. CAN YOU EXPLAIN FOR, I GUESS FOR THE BOARD.

SO WE'RE GOING TO SEND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RESOURCE ROOM AND A SELF-CONTAINED ROOM ALSO, JUST SO WE'RE FULLY AWARE.

YEAH, IT'S ALL BASED ON THE TIME. SO THE WAY INSTRUCTIONAL ARRANGEMENT THEY GIVE THEM A NUMBER.

SO 41 IS RESOURCE ROOM LESS THAN 21%. SO IT'S ALL JUST BASED UPON THE TIME.

SO RESOURCE ROOM LESS THAN 21% OF THEIR DAY IS IN A SPECIAL ED SETTING.

THE NEXT YOU GO FROM 21% TO 60% OF THEIR DAY, AND THEN MORE THAN 60% OF THEIR DAY IS WHEN THEY'RE CONSIDERED SELF-CONTAINED.

YEAH. SO IT'S ALL ABOUT THE PERCENTAGE IN A SPECIAL EDUCATION SETTING.

SO THERE COULD BE KIDS THAT GO IN AND OUT OF A RESOURCE ROOM AND THEN KIDS THAT ARE STILL IN THAT RESOURCE ROOM, BUT 21%, IF THEY'RE LESS THAN 21%, IT'S CONSIDERED RESOURCE.

IF IT'S OVER 60, IT'S CONSIDERED SELF-CONTAINED.

THERE'S NOT A SEPARATE SELF-CONTAINED AND RESOURCE ROOM.

CORRECT, THE LABELS THAT WE PUT ON THEM ARE WHAT WE DO AS A DISTRICT.

THE PERCENTAGE IS WHAT THE STATE LOOKS AT. BUT OPERATIONALLY, I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT I CLARIFY, BUT OPERATIONALLY, THERE ARE SELF-CONTAINED CLASSROOMS. I THINK THAT THAT'S THE QUESTION THAT. YEAH. YES.

YES. SO THEY'RE ALL SELF-CONTAINED CLASSROOMS AND. YES.

IN THOSE SELF-CONTAINED CLASSROOMS, ARE THEY WORKING TO BE IN THE MAIN GENERAL POPULATION AS FAR AS TRANSITIONING AND STUFF? THAT'S THE GOAL. THE GOAL IS NEVER OUR GOAL IS TO EXIT STUDENTS FROM SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES.

I DON'T WANT TO SAY AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE, BUT AS SOON AS WE CAN MEET THEIR NEEDS IN THE GENERAL EDUCATION SETTING.

AND BECAUSE IT'S ALL INDIVIDUALIZED, IT DEPENDS ON THE STUDENTS NEEDS.

THERE ARE SOME STUDENTS THAT DO REQUIRE THAT HIGH LEVEL OF SUPPORT WITHIN A SELF-CONTAINED SETTING.

AWESOME, AND SINCE I'M ASKING QUESTIONS, I KNOW THERE'S A 3% RAISE.

THERE WAS A 3% INCREASE, THAT WAS TALKED ABOUT EARLIER FROM 2020 TO 2025, WHERE WE'RE AT RIGHT NOW.

AND THAT 3%, IS THERE A SPECIFIC MAIN CATEGORY WHERE THERE'S AN UPTICK THAT'S BEING NOTICED OF THOSE THAT ARE BEING ACCEPTED? SO PART OF IT HAS TO DO, ESPECIALLY THIS SCHOOL YEAR BECAUSE WE BROUGHT DYSLEXIA SERVICES UNDER THE SPECIAL EDUCATION UMBRELLA, SO THAT THAT IS THE BIGGEST CATEGORY THAT WE SEE GOING UP IN TERMS OF, BECAUSE WE USED TO SERVE, WE HAVE IN THE PAST SERVED STUDENTS RECEIVING DYSLEXIA SERVICES UNDERNEATH SPECIAL EDUCATION.

BUT NOW THE STATE REQUIRES ALL STUDENTS, IF THEY ARE RECEIVING DYSLEXIA SERVICES, TO BE SERVED THROUGH SPECIAL EDUCATION.

OKAY. THAT'S THE BIGGEST UPTAKE, I WOULD SAY IN 2018, THE LANDSCAPE OF SPECIAL EDUCATION REALLY CHANGED.

SO PRIOR TO 2018, THE STATE HAD A CAP ON SPECIAL EDUCATION.

SO IF WE SERVED MORE THAN WHATEVER PERCENTAGE THEY THOUGHT WAS APPROPRIATE.

WE COULD BE DINGED AND GO INTO CORRECTIVE ACTION.

SO ONCE THAT WAS REMOVED, SOME OF THOSE BARRIERS FOR STUDENTS GETTING SUPPORTS REALLY OPENED UP, AND THAT WAS SEEN ACROSS THE STATE. AWESOME. THAT BRINGS ME TO MY NEXT QUESTION, MY LAST QUESTION AS OF RIGHT NOW, I APOLOGIZE AGAIN. WHAT DOES THAT COMMUNICATION LOOK LIKE WITH THE PARENTS AND THE SCHOOL NOTIFYING PARENTS OF THE ABILITY TO GET ASSESSED FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES? CAN YOU JUST WALK QUICKLY? NOT. I DON'T WANT YOU TO BE LONG. NOT THAT I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT, BUT JUST KIND OF.

WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. SO WE'VE REALLY BEEN WORKING COLLABORATIVELY WITH TEACHING AND LEARNING ON OUR MTSS PROCESSES.

SO THIS YEAR WE REALLY, WE WORKED ON WHAT THAT MEANS.

WHAT DOES INTERVENTION MEAN? BECAUSE IT'S I THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT STUDENTS RECEIVE INTERVENTION PRIOR TO IDENTIFYING A STUDENT WITH A DISABILITY.

YOU KNOW, IS IT A LACK OF EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES OR IS IT TRULY A DISABILITY? WE LOOK AT THAT. SO WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH DR.

BAILEY AND THE ENTIRE TEAM ON THOSE PROCESSES.

AND THEN WE HAVE A STUDENT SUPPORT PROCESS OR TEAM IF STUDENTS CONTINUE TO STRUGGLE.

SO WE DO BRING IN PARENTS. WE HAVE PARENT NOTIFICATION OF THAT PROCESS.

WE ARE ALSO REQUIRED TO PROVIDE NOTICE TO PARENTS ON HOW TO REQUEST AN EVALUATION IF THEY ARE CONCERNED.

SO WE HAVE POSTINGS. IT'S ALSO PART OF ENROLLMENT TO WHERE WE GIVE THAT INFORMATION TO PARENTS.

THE THIRD WAY WE ALSO DO THAT IS THROUGH OUR ALTERNATIVE PROGRAM.

[00:30:01]

SO THE MAP GROWTH ASSESSMENTS THAT WE'RE GIVING MULTIPLE TIMES A YEAR BEGINNING, MIDDLE AND END OF THE YEAR.

PART OF THAT REQUIREMENT, ESPECIALLY FOR OUR YOUNGEST LEARNERS, OUR KINDER AND OUR FIRST GRADE STUDENTS, SECOND GRADE STUDENTS AS WELL, REQUIRES THAT WE NOTIFY PARENTS WHEN A STUDENT ISN'T ON TRACK TO PERFORM IN FOLLOWING THAT PROCESS, THAT THEY CAN REQUEST ADDITIONAL EVALUATION THROUGH THAT.

AND SO THAT'S AN ANNUAL REQUIREMENT THAT WE DO WITH OUR PARENTS AS WELL.

YEAH. ANY OTHER CLARIFYING QUESTIONS BEFORE WE MOVE ON? I THANK YOU. I'LL ASK REALLY GREAT QUESTIONS.

YES. OKAY. SO I'M GOING TO TRY THIS AS WELL. EXCUSE MY VOICE.

SO THE SPECIAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT IS EVALUATING THROUGH THE RESULTS DRIVEN ACCOUNTABILITY FRAMEWORK.

IT'S A DATA DRIVEN FRAMEWORK WHERE WE LOOK AT THREE MAIN CATEGORIES.

THERE'S OVERALL 15 INDICATORS FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION.

THE FIRST AREA'S ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT, WHERE WE LOOK AT OUR STAAR 3-8.

OUR END OF COURSE EXAMS. OUR YEAR AFTER EXIT FOR ALL LEVELS.

SO THOSE ARE STUDENTS WHO ARE RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES, WHO HAVE EXITED THE PROGRAM AND NO LONGER RECEIVE SERVICES, AND WE TRACK THEM FOR A YEAR TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE MEETING STATE STANDARDS.

AND THEN OUR STAAR ALT 2 PARTICIPATION RATE, THAT'S A REPORT ONLY.

THE NEXT AREA IS OUR POST-SECONDARY READINESS, WHERE WE LOOK AT OUR SPECIAL ED GRADUATION RATE AS WELL AS OUR ANNUAL DROPOUT RATE.

AND FINALLY, WE HAVE OUR DISPROPORTIONATE ANALYSIS WHERE WE LOOK AT THAT LEAST RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENT.

SO WE LOOK AT OUR RATE OF EARLY CHILDHOOD STUDENTS IN MAINSTREAM SETTINGS.

WE LOOK AT OUR STUDENTS IN THE LEAST RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENT, OUR STUDENTS IN MORE RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENTS, AS WELL AS OUR DISCIPLINE DATA. IN ADDITION TO THOSE 15 INDICATORS, SPECIAL ED ALSO IS EVALUATED IN 98 DISPROPORTIONALITY INDICATORS WHERE WE LOOK AT DISABILITY CATEGORIES BY RACE AND ETHNICITY.

WE LOOK AT DISCIPLINE BY RACE AND ETHNICITY, AND WE LOOK AT PROGRAMING BY RACE AND ETHNICITY.

AND THAT EQUALS THE 98 INDICATORS. OKAY. SO WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR DATA WE WANT TO CELEBRATE SOME OF OUR AREAS OF GROWTH WHICH INCLUDE OUR STAAR 3-8 MATH, READING AND SCIENCE, AS WELL AS OUR YEAR AFTER [INAUDIBLE] 3-8 AND SCIENCE, 3-8 READING AND SCIENCE, OUR SPECIAL EDUCATION GRADUATION RATE, OUR EARLY CHILDHOOD SPECIAL EDUCATION RATE.

THIS IS LEAST RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENT. SO THESE ARE STUDENTS 3 TO 5, NOT KINDERGARTEN AGE THAT ARE IN PRE-K OR IN LESS RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENTS.

AS WELL AS OUR OVERALL SPECIAL ED LEAST RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENT.

SO WHEN WE LOOK AT THESE PERCENTAGES FOR LRE, WE WANT HIGHER PERCENTAGES VERSUS THE NEXT ONE, WE WANT LOWER, YOU WANT LESS KIDS IN MORE RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENTS.

OUR OVERALL OUT OF SCHOOL SUSPENSIONS FOR LESS THAN OR EQUAL TO TEN DAYS.

OUR AREAS OF OPPORTUNITIES ARE GROWTH FROM OUR RDA INCLUDE YEAR AFTER EXIT, MATH, SOCIAL STUDIES AND THEN ALL OF THE EOC AREAS, ALGEBRA I, BIOLOGY, US HISTORY, ENGLISH I AND II.

WE DROPPED IN ALL AREAS ACROSS THE BOARD. OUR SPECIAL ED DROPOUT RATE DROPPED SLIGHTLY.

IN SCHOOL SUSPENSION FOR LESS THAN OR EQUAL TO TEN DAYS, AND OUR TOTAL DISCIPLINE REMOVALS.

THE LAST CATEGORY, TOTAL DISCIPLINE REMOVALS, LOOKS AT ALL REMOVALS AND SCHOOL IN-SCHOOL SUSPENSION, OUT-OF-SCHOOL SUSPENSION, AS WELL AS REMOVALS TO DAEP OR JJAEP AS WELL.

OKAY, SO I WANT TO BRIEFLY GO THROUGH KIND OF AN UPDATE.

I KNOW I'VE, SINCE A FEW UPDATES ON OUR CASE SERVICES BY DESIGN AUDIT THAT WAS COMPLETED LAST FALL AND REVIEWED IN THE SPRING.

BASED UPON THAT INFORMATION, WE DEVELOPED FOUR PRIORITY AREAS, WHICH INCLUDED IMPROVING OUR SPECIAL ED SERVICES THROUGH A REDESIGN OF OUR CONTINUUM OF SERVICES, INCLUDING IMPROVING INCLUSIVE OPPORTUNITIES SPECIFICALLY WITHIN THAT EARLY CHILDHOOD SETTING, AS WELL AS STUDENT AND TEACHER SUPPORTS, DESIGNING A COMPREHENSIVE PROFESSIONAL LEARNING PLAN,

[00:35:01]

SO THE FIRST AREA THAT WE LOOKED AT IS OUR INCLUSIVE PRACTICES.

SO WE'VE DEVELOPED AND CREATED OUR INCLUSIVE PRACTICES ROADMAP.

SO THE FIRST STEP IS OUR FIE SUMMARIES. OUR FIE IS THE FULL INDIVIDUAL EVALUATION.

THIS IS THE CORNERSTONE OF SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAMING.

WHEN A STUDENT COMES INTO THE PROGRAM THEY RECEIVE A FULL EVALUATION.

WE ARE TRAINED, WE TRAIN TEACHERS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR HOW TO LOOK AT THE DATA, IDENTIFY STUDENTS STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES IN ORDER TO PLAN INSTRUCTION APPROPRIATELY.

THIS REALLY GUIDES OUR INSTRUCTION. THE NEXT STEP IS WE DID OUR SDI WALKS OR SPECIALLY DESIGNED INSTRUCTION WALKS WHERE WE WALKED OUR CLASSROOMS, OUR INCLUSION CLASSROOMS, OUR RESOURCE CLASSROOMS, OUR SELF-CONTAINED CLASSROOMS. WHAT SPECIAL IS HAPPENING WITHIN THOSE CLASSROOMS THAT HELPS GUIDE? IT'S ALMOST A NEEDS ASSESSMENT OF WHAT WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO IMPROVE UPON.

IT ALSO ALLOWS FOR IN-THE-MOMENT COACHING WITH TEACHERS AND LEADERS.

OUR NEXT FOCUS IS ON COLLABORATIVE TEACHING, NOT TEACHER, THAT IS A TYPO.

WE ARE FOCUSING ON THAT COLLABORATION BETWEEN GENERAL EDUCATION AND SPECIAL EDUCATION.

THEIR PARTNERS, THEY SHOULD BE PLANNING AND COLLABORATING TOGETHER AND SUPPORTING OUR STUDENTS IN INCLUSIVE ENVIRONMENTS.

NEXT, WE HAVE BEEN WORKING THROUGH OUR PLCS ON WHAT IS SPECIALLY DESIGNED INSTRUCTION.

OUR SPECIAL EDUCATORS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE THE DESIGNERS OF THAT SDI OR THAT SPECIALLY DESIGNED INSTRUCTION.

SO HOW ARE THEY TAKING THE CURRICULUM AND DESIGNING IT FOR THE STUDENTS NEEDS, WE'LL CONTINUE TO WORK ON THAT.

AND THEN FINALLY IN THE SPRING, WE'LL WORK ON MASTER SCHEDULING.

WE ARE REALLY LOOKING AT LEVELS OF SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS.

HOW ARE WE ENSURING STUDENTS ARE GETTING THE APPROPRIATE LEVELS OF SUPPORT? WE WANT TO FIND THAT SWEET SPOT. YOU DON'T WANT TO OVER SERVICE A STUDENT OR UNDER SERVICE.

WE WANT TO MAKE SURE STUDENTS ARE SUCCESSFUL BY GIVING THEM THE SKILLS TO BE PRODUCTIVE.

WE HAVE CREATED CAMPUS ROSTERS THAT THE CAMPUSES ARE CREATING TO HELP WITH THAT MASTER SCHEDULING IN MAY, WELL, NOT IN MAY, MORE WILL START IN MARCH. THAT ALSO HELPS INFORM OUR STAFFING RECOMMENDATIONS.

I'M GOING TO TAKE A QUICK SIP. AS YOU'RE DOING THAT, I WANT TO GO BACK TO THE RDA BECAUSE I WANT I WOULD LIKE FOR OUR BOARD AND COMMUNITY TO UNDERSTAND WHAT, WHERE THAT COMES FROM, THE IMPORTANCE OF THAT AND THE IMPLICATIONS, BECAUSE ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE FOUND WHEN YOU FIRST CAME TO THE DISTRICT, JUST DAYS BEFORE I DID, WHEN WE WERE PRESENTING THAT DATA TO THE PRINCIPALS, WE LEARNED THAT THEY HAD NO IDEA WHAT RDA WAS.

RIGHT. AND IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT OUR CAMPUS LEADERS, EVEN OUR TEACHERS, UNDERSTAND WHAT RDA IS.

BECAUSE IF WE DO NOT MEET THOSE STANDARDS, THERE ARE SIGNIFICANT IMPLICATIONS.

SO JUST WANTED TO GIVE A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND, ESPECIALLY WITH SOME OF OUR BOARD MEMBERS WHO ARE NEW TO THE BOARD.

AND THIS IS A LOT OF INFORMATION. IT'S VERY OVERWHELMING.

BUT RDA IS SO CRITICAL. RIGHT, AND JUST TO KIND OF TAG ON TO THAT.

SO OVERALL, THE DISTRICT WILL RECEIVE AN OVERALL DETERMINATION LEVEL.

AND SO WHEN I STARTED IN THE DISTRICT THAT'S THE FIRST THING I DIVED INTO, YOU KNOW, AND I HAD TO JUMP THROUGH SOME HURDLES TO GET THE DATA.

IT'S ALL PUBLIC. BUT I WAS ABLE TO FIND IT AND I CREATED JUST KIND OF A CONTINUUM OVER THE LAST 5 TO 6 YEARS, REALLY LOOKING AT WHERE WE ARE. WE'RE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE PRETTY STANDARD WITHIN THAT DETERMINATION LEVEL THREE, THAT'S THE BOTTOM 10% TO 15% OF DISTRICTS IN THE STATE OF TEXAS.

IN MY OPINION, THAT'S NOT ACCEPTABLE. WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO GROW.

AND PART OF IT IS TALKING ABOUT WHAT OUR CHALLENGES ARE AND HOW DO WE IMPROVE IN ORDER TO GET THE OUTCOMES WE NEED? SO LAST SCHOOL YEAR, WE WERE A DETERMINATION LEVEL TWO, WHICH WAS GREAT.

THAT WAS THE FIRST YEAR I EVER SAW THAT DEL VALLE WAS A 2.

WE DID SLIP THIS YEAR BACK TO A 3 BY 0.02 PERCENTAGE.

AND THE ONLY REASON IS BECAUSE OF SOME OF THE CHANGES WITH DISCIPLINE.

TWO OF THE INDICATORS WHERE WE GREW WERE TAKEN OUT OF THE CALCULATION, WHICH THAT WE WOULD HAVE SOLIDLY BEEN AT 2 STILL.

SO WITH THAT THERE IS CERTAIN MONITORING AND WE'LL GET TO THAT IN THE COMPLIANCE SECTION, WHICH WE'LL HAVE TO DO THROUGH, WITH TA. THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE LEDESMA.

THANK YOU. FOR THE RTA OPPORTUNITIES, CAN YOU KIND OF EXPLAIN TO ME EXACTLY WHAT THIS ACTUALLY MEANS? SURE. SO WHAT THE TOTAL DISCIPLINE IS, IT LOOKS AT STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES WHO HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED IN SCHOOL,

[00:40:04]

SO WE'RE SAYING 50% OF OUR STUDENTS THAT ARE IN SPED HAVE SOME.

NO. YEAH. THAT'S GOOD. IT'S SAYING 50% OF THE STUDENTS WHO RECEIVE THOSE CONSEQUENCES ARE SPECIAL EDUCATION.

YEAH. SO OKAY. YEAH. BUT NOT 50% OF THE TOTAL SPECIAL ED STUDENTS.

YEAH. OKAY. OKAY. SO 50% OF OUR DISCIPLINARY ISSUES ARE FROM SPED STUDENTS, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE SAYING? YES, BUT I WANT TO CLARIFY. TOTAL, IT'S A VERY LONG FORMULA, BUT TOTAL DISCIPLINE, SO IF YOU HAVE ONE STUDENT HOW I EXPLAIN IT TO PRINCIPALS. IF YOU HAVE ONE STUDENT WHO HAS BEEN SUSPENDED EIGHT TIMES.

EIGHT DAYS. THEY COUNT EIGHT TIMES. SO ONE STUDENT CAN COUNT EIGHT TIMES.

IT'S STILL A LOT. IT'S A LOT, AND THIS IS A BIG CONCERN.

AND YOU'RE SAYING 50% OF OUR STUDENTS IN SPECIAL EDUCATION.

OF THE REMOVALS ARE. YEAH, THAT'S A CONCERN FOR ME.

OKAY. I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE. IT'S NOT NECESSARY.

RIGHT. NO, NO, NO, IT'S STILL A HIGH PERCENTAGE.

IT'S HIGH. AND I'VE BEEN SAYING IT SINCE LAST SCHOOL YEAR.

I'VE BEEN MONITORING IT BECAUSE IT WAS LIKE, HEY, GUYS, A LOT OF DISTRICTS GOT REPRIEVE WITH COVID AND THEN THE YEAR OR TWO AFTER THEIR DISCIPLINE RATES WENT REALLY DOWN. THIS DATA IS ALWAYS A YEAR IN THE REAR.

SO THIS DATA IS OLD. I ALREADY KNOW WHERE WE'RE GOING TO BE NEXT YEAR AND IT'S HIGHER FROM LAST SCHOOL YEAR.

SO THEN MY NEXT QUESTION IS GOING TO BE FOLLOW UP IS WHO DETERMINES THAT LENGTH OF TIME? WHO DETERMINES THAT SUSPENSION OR THAT WHATEVER WHATEVER, BECAUSE I WANT TO UNDERSTAND THAT A LITTLE BETTER.

SO IT'S A JOINT EFFORT. TYPICALLY IT'S DECIDED AT THE CAMPUS LEVEL.

AND IF YOU REMEMBER BACK MAYBE MEMBER OR OCTOBER, WE HAD THE DISCIPLINE REVIEW FOR THIS CURRENT SCHOOL YEAR.

AND PART OF WHAT WAS SHARED WAS SHARING AT THAT THAT TIME IS WHY WE'RE STANDARDIZING PRACTICES ACROSS CAMPUSES, BECAUSE WHEN MOST OF US CAME INTO THE DISTRICT, THERE WASN'T A CONSISTENCY.

THERE WERE, THERE WAS CONSISTENT INCONSISTENCIES ACROSS CAMPUSES.

SOME STUDENTS, FOR THE SAME INFRACTIONS WERE RECEIVING, MAY HAVE GOTTEN THREE DAYS AT ONE CAMPUS, MAY MAY HAVE GOTTEN 15 DAYS IN THE DAP AT ONE CAMPUS.

AND THEN WE HAD STUDENTS FOR SOME OF THE SAME INCIDENCES THAT HAD NEVER SEEN THEIR CAMPUS BECAUSE THEY WERE EITHER IN ISS, OSS OR THEY WERE AT THE DAP. SO PART OF WHAT WE'RE SHARED IN THAT DISCIPLINE REPORT IS HOW WE ARE SORT OF MONITORING HOW DECISIONS ARE BEING MADE REGARDING STUDENTS, ESPECIALLY IN TERMS OF ISS, OSS AND DAP. JJ WE DON'T REALLY HAVE A WHOLE LOT OF SOMETIMES CONTROL OVER BECAUSE USUALLY THOSE ARE LEGAL OR COURT ORDERED PLACEMENTS. BUT IN TERMS OF THE DECISIONS THAT WE MAKE, TYPICALLY THE CAMPUS IS DETERMINING, ESPECIALLY IN TERMS OF ISS AND OSS SUSPENSIONS.

BUT WE DO MONITOR THAT IN COLLABORATION WITH MYSELF, MISS BIDDINGS, DR.

CANTU. WE DO MONITOR THOSE AND WE HAVE HAD SOME TOUGH CONVERSATIONS WITH PRINCIPALS THIS SCHOOL YEAR WHO HAVE WANTED TO ASSIGN YOU KNOW, DISCIPLINE INFRACTIONS. AND WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT ONE THAT WE HAVE SAFE AND SUPPORTIVE SCHOOLS, BUT WE ALSO NEED TO KEEP IN MIND THAT OF WHAT OUR DATA IS SHARING, AND THAT'S ALWAYS IN THE BACK OF OUR MIND BECAUSE WE KNOW BUT AT THE AT THE END OF THE DAY, I GUESS THE SIMPLE QUESTION IS IT'S A JOINT EFFORT, BUT FOR THE MOST PART, THE FIRST LAYER IS REALLY IT HAPPENS AT THE CAMPUS LEVEL.

SO THERE'S A LOT OF TRAINING THAT HAS TO HAPPEN WITH OUR CAMPUS LEADERS, WITH WHAT'S HAPPENING BEFORE WE START GETTING TO THOSE DISCIPLINE INFRACTIONS AND CONSEQUENCES. THANK YOU. ON JUST TO TAG ON TO THAT, AS FAR AS SPECIAL EDUCATION GOES, WE'RE MONITORING THE DATA.

I DON'T HAVE A LOT OF CONTROL OVER THE CONSEQUENCES.

AGAIN, I'M COLLABORATING WITH STUDENT SERVICES AS WELL, ESPECIALLY ON REMOVALS.

JUST TO MAKE SURE PROCEDURES ARE, ARE APPROPRIATE AND TAKING PLACE FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES.

BUT THAT ALSO GOES BACK TO WHAT WE'RE GOING TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT KIND OF WHAT WE'VE DONE AS PART OF THIS PROGRAM UPDATE IS LOOKING AT THOSE CRITICAL COMPONENTS, AND WE'VE HAD A LOT OF FOCUS ON OUR BEHAVIORAL PROGRAMING AND WHAT TRAINING HAVE WE GIVEN OUR TEACHERS, WHAT PROFESSIONAL LEARNING AND WHAT SUPPORTS ARE THERE TO BE PROACTIVE RATHER THAN JUST REACTIVE ON REMOVALS? PRESIDENT GUADIAN. I'M SORRY. THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE FRANCO.

YEAH. LET ME GO BACK ON THIS ONE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THAT.

AND I THINK THE NUMBERS ARE TRULY IMPACTFUL, THERE'S NO DOUBT.

AND IT'S ANY TIME A STUDENT IS TAKEN OUT OF THE EDUCATION ENVIRONMENT, IT'S DISRUPTIVE, FOR SURE.

BUT I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE, AND I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR CLARIFICATION AS FAR AS HOW THOSE NUMBERS ARE CALCULATED, BECAUSE IT'S NOT EXACTLY THE SAME IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT FROM A MATHEMATICAL PORTION. IF WE HAVE TEN KIDS, JUST TO MAKE IT EASY, THIS IS MY UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT YOU'RE SAYING.

[00:45:04]

RIGHT. BUT THE WAY THEY'RE CALCULATING IT IS IF THAT SAME KID GETS PULLED OUT FOR TEN DAYS NOW, THAT MEANS THAT WE HAVE 100% THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE WE HAVE 100% OF OUR STUDENTS THAT ARE GETTING PULLED OUT, WHICH IS NOT EXACTLY TRUE. SO IT IS IMPORTANT TO REALIZE THAT IT'S MORE ABOUT THE CONSEQUENCES AND HOW THEY'RE BEING APPLIED, AS OPPOSED THE INCIDENCES AND HOW THEY'RE BEING APPLIED AS OPPOSED TO THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS.

RIGHT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THAT CLARIFICATION. THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE BURTON.

OH, I'LL SAY I'LL PIGGYBACK OFF OF THAT, NOT REALLY, BUT YES.

AND HOPEFULLY I WOULD ASSUME THAT TOWARDS THE END OF THE YEAR OR WHENEVER Y'ALL ARE REVIEWING THESE FACTS OR REVIEWING THESE NUMBERS THAT WE'RE ABLE TO SEE, I GUESS INDIVIDUAL STUDENTS THAT MAY BE MAKING THESE NUMBERS GO UP AND RISE AND ACTIONS TAKEN THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, SO ON AND SO FORTH. THAT'S JUST PIGGYBACK OFF OF TRUSTEE FRANCO.

MY OTHER QUESTION IS, BUT IT DOES GO BACK TO THE TOTAL DISCIPLINE, THE 49.9 AND 47.8.

I KNOW YOU TALKED ABOUT JJAEP AND SOME OTHER THINGS, AND I KNOW SOMETIMES IF A STUDENT GETS IN TROUBLE OFF CAMPUS IT CAN BE A JJAEP REFERRAL OR PLACEMENT, DOES THAT STILL COUNT TOWARDS THE SCHOOL EVEN THOUGH IT POSSIBLY DID NOT HAPPEN ON CAMPUS? YES, YES. AND ALSO, WOULD I EXPLAIN TO THE PRINCIPALS.

AND AGAIN, IT'S MAKING SURE WE UNDERSTAND AND KNOW THE DATA IS A STUDENT WHO IS NOT YET RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES, WHO IS SUSPENDED AND BECOMES ELIGIBLE. THEY NOW COUNT IN THIS AS WELL.

THOSE SUSPENSIONS WHEN THEY WERE NOT RECEIVING SERVICES.

THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE LEDESMA WOODY. THANK YOU.

I THINK MY MAIN CONCERN FOR THIS, THIS TOPIC AND THE DISCIPLINE AREA IS I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE EQUITABLE AND EQUAL IN OUR DISCIPLINE, AND WE'RE NOT GIVING OR SENDING OUR SPECIAL ED STUDENTS, GIVING THEM MORE TIME AWAY FROM EDUCATION BECAUSE OF THEIR CIRCUMSTANCES.

SURE, I AGREE. YEAH, THAT'S MY BIGGEST POINT IN THIS WHOLE THING.

SO THANK YOU. AND I KNOW THAT MISS ROBERTS IS GOING TO GO OVER THIS WHEN WE GET TO WHAT'S WORKING, WHAT'S NOT. AND SOME OF THE ADJUSTMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN MADE IN PART OF IT, IT REALLY DOES GO BACK TO THAT.

ONE OF THE REFLECTIONS THAT WE HAD IN THE FALL IS HOW ARE WE RECEIVING OUR STUDENTS THAT WE'RE CONTINUING TO SEE THESE DISCIPLINE INFRACTIONS WITH, AND WAS THERE SOME PROGRAMMATIC CHANGES THAT NEEDED TO HAPPEN? AND SO WE WORK WITH OUR CAMPUS PRINCIPALS LATE IN THE FALL TO ROLL OUT A DIFFERENT PROGRAM MODEL THIS YEAR, WHICH HAS BEEN IT'S BEEN A LITTLE BIT OF, I THINK, A STRUGGLE. WE JUST WERE HAVING THIS CONVERSATION YESTERDAY WITH TRYING TO BRING TEACHERS ON BOARD WITH THAT AS WELL TOO. SO THERE'S A LEARNING CURVE.

ESPECIALLY ANYTIME YOU'RE MAKING PROGRAMMATIC CHANGES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SCHOOL YEAR, BECAUSE YOU RECOGNIZE THAT IT NEEDS TO HAPPEN, BECAUSE IF NOT, THEN WE ARE GOING TO CONTINUE TO SEE STUDENTS, YOU KNOW, REFERRED FOR DISCIPLINARY INFRACTIONS.

AND SO ANYTIME WE SEE THAT ADJUSTMENTS NEED TO BE MADE, WE COME TO THE TABLE.

WE HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS. WE MAKE SOME OF THOSE PROGRAMMATIC ADJUSTMENTS. SO IT'S BRINGING OUR LEADERS ALONG TO UNDERSTAND THESE CHANGES.

BUT IT'S ALSO WORKING WITH PARENTS TO ALSO UNDERSTAND THE RIGHTS FOR THEIR KIDS AS WELL TOO.

BUT IT'S ALSO BRINGING OUR TEACHERS WHENEVER WE'RE MAKING THESE PROGRAMMATIC CHANGES AS WELL TOO. SO I HEAR YOU, BUT JUST KNOW THAT WE RECOGNIZE IT, WHICH IS WHY WE'RE MAKING ADJUSTMENTS EVEN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SCHOOL YEAR, WHICH ISN'T ALWAYS POPULAR, BUT WE RECOGNIZE. IT RECOGNIZES. SECRETARY WEGNER, ONE LAST CLARIFICATION QUESTION.

GOING BACK TO THE RDA CELEBRATIONS, WHAT IS YAE? I PROMISE I TRIED TO LOOK, BUT THERE'S A LOT OF ACRONYMS IN THIS.

YEAR AFTER EXIT. GOT IT. THANK YOU. I TRIED TO CATCH ALL THE ACRONYMS, BUT SPECIAL ED LIVES IN THE ACRONYM WORLD, I APOLOGIZE. I JUST DIDN'T. THANK YOU. CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE BURTON.

I KNOW IT WAS TALKED ABOUT AND TEN DAYS WAS BROUGHT UP, SO I'M JUST CURIOUS.

I KNOW IT USED TO BE IF SOMEBODY WAS GOING TO MISS TEN INSTRUCTIONAL DAYS SPECIAL ED, THEY WOULD HAVE TO GO TO A MDR OR SOMETHING THAT HAD TO BE BROUGHT UP BECAUSE THAT'S STILL IN EFFECT. I'M NOT SURE IT IS. YES. OKAY. YES.

SO AND THE LEGAL WORLD, THEY CALL THOSE THE TEN FREE DAYS.

SO A STUDENT CAN BE REMOVED FROM INSTRUCTION FOR TEN DAYS THROUGH SUSPENSION AFTER.

NOT NOT. I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE WE CLARIFY, BUT NOT AT ONE SPECIFIC TIME THOUGH.

JUST SO THAT'S NOT. YEAH. YEAH. SO LIKE I GOT THREE DAYS SUSPENSIONS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

NOW THE TIME WHEN IT IS CONSECUTIVE IS IF, IF IT TYPICALLY IF A STUDENT GOES TO THE ALTERNATIVE SCHOOL, IT IS FOR MORE THAN TEN DAYS. AND WE ARE REQUIRED TO GO THROUGH THE MANIFESTATION DETERMINATION REVIEW WHERE WE LOOK AT THE BEHAVIOR.

WE'VE DONE A LOT OF TRAINING OVER THE LAST YEAR TO KIND OF PIGGYBACK OFF YOUR QUESTION ON WHAT IS THE MDR MANIFESTATION?

[00:50:03]

CONTINUED. YES. THANK YOU. ARE WE SEEING IT, IS IT BECAUSE IT'S NEWER FOLKS THAT ARE INTO THIS PARTICULAR ATMOSPHERE OR IS IT JUST MAYBE EVEN LONG TIME OR, YOU KNOW, WE'RE SO USED TO DOING IT ONE WAY AND THIS IS HOW I'M GOING TO DO IT.

I THINK IT'S ALL THOSE THINGS. OKAY. IT'S ALL THOSE THINGS.

OKAY. THANK YOU. WELL, AND WHEN PRINCIPLES REALLY HADN'T EVEN DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WHAT RDA WAS, IT'S BEEN A LOT OF TRAINING. I'VE ALREADY SHARED THIS WITH THEM.

I'VE SHARED IT WITH SPECIAL ED LEADERS. SO. SO WE'RE GETTING THE WORD OUT ON WHAT WE'RE FOCUSING AND WHAT OUR PRIORITIES ARE.

AND PRINCIPALS HAVE SEEN THIS. YES. I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT PRINCIPALS THEY DO UNDERSTAND ARE THE.

CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE PANTOJA. THANK YOU, DR.

BAILEY FOR THAT CONFIRMATION THAT WE NOW KNOW.

I'VE HEARD IT I THINK THREE TIMES PRINCIPALS DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THIS THIS ACRONYM.

HOW? THERE'S A LOT OF ACRONYMS. THAT'S HOW. OKAY, I'M JUST CURIOUS BECAUSE I'VE HEARD IT THREE TIMES AND I'M LIKE, OKAY. I THINK IT'S A LITTLE BIT, I THINK IT'S NUANCED.

AND I DON'T BECAUSE NONE OF US WERE HERE, SO I WON'T SPEAK TO WHAT HAPPENED PRIOR TO CURRENT ADMINISTRATION, BUT I THINK RDA IS SOMETHING IT'S, I DON'T WANT TO SAY IT'S NEWER BECAUSE IT'S NOT NECESSARILY THAT, BUT I THINK PEOPLE UNDERSTAND STAR AND STATE ACCOUNTABILITY IN THAT WAY.

AND THIS BECOMES JUST A DIFFERENT PIECE OF IT. SO I THINK PEOPLE LUMP ACCOUNTABILITY INTO ONE CATEGORY AND NOT REALIZING THAT THERE, THERE'S, IT'S, IT ENCOMPASSES MORE THAN, JUST THAN STAR IN ACCOUNTABILITY IN THAT WAY.

AND SO IT'S, AGAIN IT'S, YOU RECOGNIZE WHERE YOU ARE AND YOU RECOGNIZE THAT THERE'S AN EDUCATION PIECE THAT GOES WITH IT.

AND SO AS MY GRANDMA SAYS, WHEN YOU KNOW BETTER, YOU DO BETTER.

AND WE'RE KIND OF IN A PLACE WHERE WE KNOW BETTER NOW.

AND SO NOW WE'RE TRYING TO DO BETTER BY OUR KIDS.

THANK YOU. OKAY. SO WE'LL GO ON TO JUST THE UPDATES FROM THE TCS PROGRAM REVIEW.

WE'VE GONE OVER A LOT OF THIS ALREADY, BUT KIND OF WHAT'S WORKING AND WHAT WE'VE BEEN OUR WORK MOVING FORWARD.

WE'VE DONE THE INCLUSIVE PRACTICES ROLL OUT THAT WE WENT OVER.

WE WERE AWARDED THE EMPOWERING EARLY CHILDHOOD SPECIAL EDUCATION EDUCATORS TO IMPROVE STUDENT OUTCOMES GRANT, WHICH EQUALED $12,000, WHICH WILL INCLUDE PROFESSIONAL LEARNING FOR OUR PRE-K AND ECSE TEACHERS, AS WELL AS COACHING. THAT WILL START WITH THE FEBRUARY PD DAY WHERE WE'LL BRING IN ALL THE STAFF.

WE'LL FOCUS ON HOW TO SET UP INCLUSIVE PRE-K CLASSROOMS AS WELL AS BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT.

THOSE WILL BE THE TWO TOPICS. WE'VE DEVELOPED AND IMPLEMENTED THE STUDENT SUPPORT PROCESS TO ENSURE STUDENTS NEEDS ARE BEING MET.

WE'VE DEVELOPED THOSE PROGRAM OR CRITICAL COMPONENTS OF WHAT YOU SHOULD SEE WHEN YOU WALK INTO SPECIAL EDUCATION CLASSROOM OR AN INCLUSION CLASSROOM.

WE'VE DEFINITELY INCREASED OUR PROFESSIONAL LEARNING FOR OUR ADMINISTRATORS, LEADERS, AND TEACHERS.

WE'VE ALSO ESTABLISHED THIS YEAR OUR SPECIAL EDUCATION LEADERSHIP TEAM, WHICH INCLUDES CAMPUS GRADE LEVEL LEADERS OR DEPARTMENT CHAIRS, OUR FACILITATORS, AS WELL AS CENTRAL SPECIAL EDUCATION AND EVALUATION STAFF.

SO WE'RE ALL ON THE SAME PAGE. WE ALL KNOW WHAT OUR PRIORITIES ARE AND WE'RE ALL WORKING TOWARDS STUDENT OUTCOMES.

WHAT NEEDS MORE ATTENTION OR WHERE OUR FOCUS IS GOING TO CONTINUE IS ON THAT COLLABORATIVE TEACHING.

AND THEN LATER ON I TALK ABOUT THAT PROFESSIONAL LEARNING FOR GENERAL EDUCATION TEACHERS.

SO HOW CAN WE GET WHETHER IT'S DISCIPLINARY AWARENESS, BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT, THOSE STRATEGIES THAT ARE NEEDED FOR OUR GENERAL EDUCATION TEACHERS.

ADDITIONAL SPECIALLY DESIGNED INSTRUCTION, PROFESSIONAL LEARNING. IN THE SPRING, WE'RE GOING TO WORK ON THE MASTER SCHEDULE.

WE'RE PLANNING FOR THE GRANT. AND THEN ALSO, OUR GOAL IN THE SPRING IS TO BEGIN A SPECIAL ED PARENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE, OR SEPAC. I ALSO JUST WANTED, THIS IS NOT IN THE PRESENTATION BECAUSE IT WE GOT INFORMATION AFTER THE PRESENTATION WAS SUBMITTED. BUT AS YOU'RE AWARE, I JUST WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THAT WE WERE AWARDED RIGHT BEFORE THE HOLIDAYS A FEDERAL GRANT. IT'S UNDER THE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES PROFESSIONAL DEMONSTRATION GRANT.

[00:55:05]

THEY WILL COME THROUGH DEL VALLE. IT ALSO PROVIDES ADDITIONAL TRAINING FOR OUR SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS ON BEST PRACTICES AND MENTAL HEALTH, AS WELL AS ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR OUR STUDENTS.

THE INITIAL AMOUNT WAS JUST AROUND $5 MILLION, AND WE DID RECEIVE NOTICE OF AN ADDITIONAL 2.5 MILLION.

SO IT IS TOTALING $6,531,913. SO WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT WHAT THAT'S GOING TO DO TO HELP DEL VALLE IMPROVE OUR SERVICES. YES. AND I DO HAVE TO SAY, WE WERE THE ONLY SCHOOL DISTRICT IN THE COUNTRY THAT WAS AWARDED.

THE REST WENT TO STATE SERVICE CENTERS OR, YOU KNOW, LIKE REGIONAL SERVICE CENTERS.

[APPLAUSE]. OKAY. AND FINALLY, WE'LL JUST TALK ABOUT THE COMPLIANCE.

SO WE'VE TALKED A LOT ABOUT INSTRUCTIONAL PRIORITIES.

I TALK A LOT ABOUT SPECIAL EDUCATION. YOU CAN'T HAVE INSTRUCTION AND COMPLIANCE SEPARATED.

WE HAVE TO DO BOTH. SO LAST SCHOOL YEAR WE WERE JUGGLING FOUR CORRECTIVE ACTION PLANS.

SOME WERE LEFT OVER AND ROLLED OVER FROM THE PREVIOUS SCHOOL YEAR.

ON IEP DEVELOPMENT. THAT WAS FROM A DESK REVIEW THAT HAPPENED IN THE 23-24 SCHOOL YEAR.

WE HAD A CORRECTIVE ACTION FOR OUR INITIAL OUR TIMELINES.

WE MISSED IT BY ONE THAT SCHOOL YEAR. WE HAD A STRATEGIC SUPPORT PLAN BASED ON OUR RDA LAST YEAR, AND THEN WE ALSO PARTICIPATED IN THE SEVEN-YEAR CYCLICAL REVIEW OR SIX-YEAR CYCLICAL REVIEW WITH TEA, AND WE HAD FOUR CORRECTIVE ACTIONS THAT CAME OUT OF THAT.

SO AS OF NOVEMBER 2025, WE HAVE BEEN CLEARED OF ALL CORRECTIVE ACTIONS, WHICH IS SUPER EXCITING.

WE WANT TO STAY THAT WAY. UPCOMING, WE DID SUBMIT OUR STRATEGIC SUPPORT PLAN, BUT IT'S NOT NECESSARILY A CORRECTIVE ACTION, BUT IT IS MONITORING AND WE WILL MEET WITH OUR TEA MONITOR THREE TIMES.

WE'VE DEVELOPED OUR GOALS IN COLLABORATION WITH TEACHING AND LEARNING TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE MOVING THE NEEDLE WITHIN OUR RDA.

SO THOSE ARE KIND OF OUR COMPLIANCE PRIORITIES.

AND I ALSO WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR WORK AND EFFORTS COMING IN BECAUSE THIS IS WHAT YOU INHERITED.

AND AND I'LL SHARE THAT WE WERE GIVEN MONTHS IN ADVANCE.

HEADS UP THAT THIS REVIEW WAS GOING TO HAPPEN AND MINIMAL EFFORTS WERE MADE TO PREPARE FOR IT.

AND SO NICOLE JUST HAS DONE AN OUTSTANDING JOB LEADING THIS WORK AND LEADING HER TEAM TO GET US TO THIS PLACE. AND SO I WANT TO COMMEND YOU AND RECOGNIZE YOU IN FRONT OF THE BOARD FOR YOUR EFFORTS, BECAUSE YOU HAVE JUST DONE SOME OUTSTANDING WORK FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION.

AND I'M JUST VERY OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THE FUTURE OF SPECIAL EDUCATION UNDER YOUR LEADERSHIP.

THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. WE HAVE A LOT OF WORK AND IT CONTINUES.

SO I APPRECIATE THAT. I KNOW I ANSWERED A LOT OF QUESTIONS, BUT ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? BOARD, ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS? THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE SIERRA.

WE'VE HEARD QUITE A BIT ABOUT STAFFING SHORTAGES WITHIN SPECIAL EDUCATION.

I'M JUST CURIOUS. THAT DIDN'T REALLY SHOW UP HERE, BUT SORT OF HOW DO YOU WEAVE THAT NARRATIVE? IT'S DEFINITELY A CONCERN. I THINK RIGHT NOW WE HAVE 12 VACANCIES OR LESS.

WE ARE WORKING WITH CONTRACT AGENCIES RIGHT NOW WITH CERTIFIED TEACHERS IN ORDER TO ENSURE THAT THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED.

BUT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S BALANCED BECAUSE IT FALLS ON THE OTHER TEACHERS TO ENSURE THAT THE SERVICES ARE HAPPENING.

WE ARE IN A GOOD PLACE WITH OUR EVALUATION STAFF, WITH OUR SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS AND DIAGNOSTICIANS.

WE ARE FULLY STAFFED. BUT AS YOU SEE BY THE NUMBERS ARE INCREASING.

WE'RE REALLY ANALYZING, IS IT ENOUGH STAFF? BECAUSE WE STILL ARE HAVING TO CONTRACT SOME OF OUR EVALUATIONS OUT.

WE DO HAVE A CONTRACTOR, OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST.

THOSE ARE SOME OF OUR THERAPY IS VERY HARD TO FIND, BUT WE'VE HAD SOME GREAT CONTRACTORS THAT HAVE COME IN.

SO IT'S HARD WHEN YOU'RE COMPETING WITH THE MEDICAL WORLD FOR SOME OF THOSE THERAPISTS.

YEAH. BUT WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO RECRUIT.

I WORK REALLY, REALLY CLOSELY WITH HR ON OUR RECRUITMENT EFFORTS.

AND THEY LIKE, THEY HEAR FROM ME A LOT OF, YOU KNOW, GO FIND ME SOME SPECIAL ED TEACHERS.

I VOLUNTEER TO GO TO THE JOB FAIRS, WHATEVER WE CAN DO IN ORDER TO TO HIRE.

[01:00:03]

QUICK QUESTION GOING BACK TO THE ECSE GRANT. YES.

YOU STATED THAT THAT AMOUNT WILL BE USED TOWARDS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.

IS THAT GOING TO INCLUDE OUR PROFESSIONAL, OUR PARAPROFESSIONALS? YES. OUR TEACHERS. IT'LL BE OUR PRE-K TEACHERS AND THEIR TAS, AS WELL AS OUR ECSE TEACHERS AND THEIR TAS.

AND THEN WE ADDED IN A COACHING COMPONENT, BECAUSE I JUST THINK DOING THE PROFESSIONAL LEARNING IS STEP ONE, BUT THEN WE NEED TO SEE IT IN ACTION. OKAY. THANK YOU.

THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE FRANCO. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THAT, FOR THE PRESENTATION.

THANK YOU FOR DOING SUCH AN AMAZING, SUCH AN AMAZING JOB AS WELL.

WITH REGARDS TO THIS SLIDE YOU MENTIONED, AND I THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR POINTING OUT THE, WHAT NEEDS MORE ATTENTION, THE SPECIAL OR THE CREATION OF THE SEPAC. I THINK THAT'S FANTASTIC. THANK YOU. COULD YOU ELABORATE A LITTLE MORE ON, SO ON THIS SIDE WE HAVE THE TEACHER SUPPORT, BUT WHAT OR THE STUDENT SUPPORT PROCESS. COULD YOU ELABORATE OR IS THERE A THOUGHT PROCESS.

WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE FOR PARENT SUPPORT, ESPECIALLY THOSE PARENTS THAT MIGHT BE COMING IN FROM ANOTHER COUNTRY, YOU KNOW, FOR THE FIRST TIME, NOT REALLY FAMILIAR WITH OUR SPECIAL EDUCATION PROCESS, DON'T KNOW THE LANGUAGE, YEAH. FOR SURE. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID HERE IN OUR FEEDBACK SESSIONS FROM SOME OF OUR PARENTS IS THAT AND THIS IS NO VALUE JUDGMENT WHATSOEVER, BUT NOT ALL OF OUR PARENTS NECESSARILY HAVE THE SAME GRASP OF NEITHER THE ENGLISH NOR THE SPANISH LANGUAGE.

AND SO COMMUNICATING THE THINGS THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO THEIR CHILD IN IN A WAY THAT IS NOT NECESSARILY, YOU KNOW, THE WRITTEN LANGUAGE IS ALSO VERY IMPORTANT TO TO THOSE FOLKS.

WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE, ESPECIALLY WITH SOMEONE LIKE SPECIAL EDUCATION? YEAH, AND SO WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SEPAC, WITH THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE, WE'RE GOING TO HELP DEVELOP SOME TRAININGS FOR PARENTS.

YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHERE THAT ADVISORY COMMITTEE ULTIMATELY, WE WOULD HOPE, WOULD GROW INTO SUPPORT FOR PARENTS.

WE ALSO HAVE A SPECIAL ED PARENT LIAISON THAT IS UNDER CENTRAL SPECIAL EDUCATION, WHO DOES A LOT, WHO HAS LOTS OF CONNECTIONS WITHIN THE COMMUNITY, WORKS WITH A LOT OF OUR PARENTS.

SO WE REFER PARENTS TO HER. THE ULTIMATE GOAL THAT IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT NEEDS MORE ATTENTION, IS REALLY WORKING ON PARENT SUPPORT. GOTCHA. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THAT BOARD.

ANY MORE QUESTIONS? OKAY. THANK YOU. OKAY.

AND ADMINISTRATION HAS POOLED INFORMATION. ITEM E, THE NORTH DEL VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL/WISPER VALLEY CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING FOR A FUTURE MEETING. WITH THAT, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND GO INTO CONSENT AGENDA.

[V. Consent Agenda]

[VI.A. Board and Superintendent Guardrails]

THIS EVENING WE BRING BACK THE BOARD AND SUPERINTENDENT GUARDRAILS. AS YOU KNOW, LAST MONTH YOU WERE ABLE TO DISCUSS THOSE AND HAVE A CONVERSATION.

THIS EVENING WE BRING IT BACK FOR ACTION. I AM NOT GOING TO GO THROUGH THE PRESENTATION.

SO SINCE WE'VE GONE THROUGH THE PRESENTATION, BUT WE'RE OPEN FOR ANY QUESTIONS. THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE PANTOJA. I WAS JUST GOING TO MAKE A MOTION AS PRESENTED.

I WAS JUST GOING TO MAKE THE MOTION AS PRESENTED IF THERE WAS NO QUESTIONS.

OKAY. TRUSTEE PANTOJA MAKES A MOTION AS PRESENTED.

DO I HAVE A SECOND? TRUSTEE. VICE PRESIDENT CISNEROS MAKES A SECOND.

IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? NO, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? ACTUALLY, YES. OKAY. GO AHEAD. I AM NOT SUPPORTING THIS BECAUSE IN MY OPINION, THESE ARE.

AND I DON'T WANT THAT TO TRICKLE DOWN FROM THE BOARDS.

THAT'S MY COMMENT. THANK YOU. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? ALL THOSE OPPOSED? MOTION PASSES 7 TO 1.

NEXT UP IS CONTRACTS OVER 50 K AND FOR INTERIM STAFFING FOR CAMPUS AND DISTRICT ADMINISTRATIVE VACANCIES,

[VI.B. Contracts over 50K — Interim Staffing for Campus and District Administrative Vacancies]

AS YOU WERE AWARE, WE HAVE INTERIM PRINCIPALS AT CREEDMOOR, BT AND THEN ALSO IN OUR DISTRICT DIRECTOR, EXCUSE ME, OF INTERVENTIONS. AND AS SHARED LAST MONTH, ALL CONTRACT POSITIONS ARE FUNDED THROUGH THE SALARY THAT HAS ALREADY BEEN ALLOCATED TO

[01:05:06]

AND SO IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, I WILL TAKE ANY AT THIS TIME. CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE PANTOJA.

THANK YOU, DR. BAILEY, FOR. SO FOR THE COMMUNITY TO UNDERSTAND THE 50,000 BECAUSE SOMEONE BROUGHT IT UP TO ME, THEY'RE LIKE, WAIT, IF THEY ALREADY HAVE MONEY ALLOCATED AND WE'RE BASICALLY COMING TO THE BOARD.

SOME FOLKS CAN INTERPRET THIS AS THEY'RE GETTING MORE MONEY. SO THE QUESTION THAT I HAVE IS, HOW CAN ONE I UNDERSTAND THAT I'M JUST GOING WITH THE FIRST ONE.

CREEDMOOR ELEMENTARY. IT'S THIS AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED THIS AMOUNT.

CORRECT, SO IT'S THE SALARY THAT'S ALLOCATED FOR THE POSITIONS THAT WE'RE USING.

SO WE AREN'T HIRING FULL TIME. WE DO HAVE FULL TIME PEOPLE SERVING IN THESE POSITIONS, BUT THEY'RE NOT THE ACTUAL STAFF THAT WILL SERVE IN THESE POSITIONS LONG TERM. SO WE'VE HIRED THEM AS CONTRACTED POSITIONS FOR NOW, SIMILAR TO WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH OUR SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES AND SOME OF THE VACANCIES.

AND BECAUSE THOSE SALARIES WILL GO OVER $50,000, AS WE KNOW THAT'S WHY IT'S BEING BROUGHT TO THE BOARD BECAUSE THEY'RE CONTRACTED POSITIONS, OTHERWISE WE WOULD HAVE JUST HIRED THEM THROUGH THE HIRING PROCESS AS WE WOULD NORMALLY DO. CHAIR RECOGNIZES SECRETARY WEGNER.

WITH THAT STATEMENT, I WANT TO CLARIFY THAT THEY ARE CONTRACTED THROUGH THE END OF THE YEAR BECAUSE YOU SAID NOT LONG TERM.

CORRECT, THEY'RE CONTRACTED THROUGH THE END OF THE YEAR, BUT NOT TO EXCEED THE SCHOOL YEAR. OKAY. THANK YOU. SO OUR HOPE IS THAT WE'RE GOING TO GO THROUGH THE HIRING PROCESS TO HIRE PRINCIPALS THROUGH OUR NORMAL HIRING PROCESS IN THE SPRING.

FOR NEXT SCHOOL YEAR. FOR NEXT SCHOOL YEAR. OKAY. PERFECT. THANK YOU. CHAIR RECOGNIZES TRUSTEE LEDESMA WOODY.

OKAY. SO, TO CLARIFY THESE INDIVIDUALS UNDERSTAND THAT IF THEY DO NOT GET HIRED ON AS A FULL TIME, THEN THAT'S THE END OF THEIR CONTRACT, OR ARE WE KEEPING THEM FOR OTHER POSITIONS AT THE SAME SALARY? CORRECT. THEY WELL I DON'T WELL, LET ME CLARIFY.

THEY'RE NOT INTERESTED IN THE POSITIONS LONG TERM. SO THE FOLKS THAT WE'VE HIRED, ESPECIALLY IN OUR CONTRACTED POSITIONS, ARE THOSE WHO ARE RETIRED AND THEY'RE FILLING IN THE INTERIM UNTIL WE CAN HIRE FULL TIME.

AND PART OF THE REASON WHY WE'RE KEEPING THEM TO THE END OF THE SCHOOL YEAR IS ESPECIALLY FOR OUR CAMPUS LEVEL POSITIONS, WE DON'T WANT TO HAVE TURNOVER IN LEADERSHIP, WHICH JUST CREATES AN UNSTABLE POSITION FOR THE CAMPUS. SO TO HAVE THAT STABILITY, ESPECIALLY AT THE CAMPUS LEVEL AND IN POSITIONS THAT ARE SUPPORTING CAMPUSES, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE STILL IN THAT.

SO YES. SO THEY'RE NOT NECESSARILY INTERESTED IN THOSE POSITIONS PAST THIS SCHOOL YEAR.

THANK YOU. TRUSTEES, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU [INAUDIBLE].

YOU'RE WELCOME. OH, THAT'S RIGHT. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE? I'D LIKE TO MAKE THE MOTION TO APPROVE THE CONTRACTS AS PRESENTED.

OKAY. TRUSTEE, SECRETARY WEGNER MAKES A MOTION.

DO I HAVE A SECOND? VICE PRESIDENT CISNEROS MAKES A SECOND.

ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? MOTION PASSES 8 TO 0.

THE TIME IS 7:23 P.M. AND THE DATE IS TUESDAY, JANUARY 6TH, 2026.

[VII. Closed Session]

TGC 551.074, DISCUSSION OF PERSONNEL, CONSIDER SUPERINTENDENT RECOMMENDATION REGARDING POSSIBLE HIRING OF POPHAM ELEMENTARY ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL.

REVIEW AND APPROVE EMPLOYMENT RESIGNATIONS, TERMINATIONS OF PROFESSIONAL STAFF, AND CONSIDER SANCTIONS FOR ABANDONMENT OF CONTRACT.

AND TGC 551.076 DISCUSSION OF INTRUDER DETECTION, AUDIT AND SAFETY AND SECURITY PROTOCOLS.

ALL RIGHT. THE BOARD ENDED ITS CLOSED SESSION AT 8:11 P.M.

WE ARE NOW BACK IN OPEN SESSION AT 814. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE EMPLOYMENT RESIGNATIONS AND TERMINATIONS OF PROFESSIONAL STAFF? I MOVE.

I SO MOVE. TRUSTEE FRANKEL MAKES A MOTION. DO I HAVE A SECOND? TRUSTEE SIERRA MAKES A SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? MOTION PASSES 8 TO 0. OKAY. DO I HAVE A MOTION FOR, REGARDING THE HIRING OF POPHAM ELEMENTARY ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL.

I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO HIRE MISTER JOSE ZUÑIGA AS THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL FOR PAPA ELEMENTARY.

[01:10:08]

DO WANT TO SAY BEFORE WE ADJOURN THAT I DID GET AN EMAIL FROM OUR ATTORNEY THAT THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE A WEBINAR ON ROBERT'S RULES OF ORDER, AND IT'D BE GOOD A GOOD REFRESHER FOR SOME OF US IF YOU WANT TO.

AND I WILL FORWARD THAT EMAIL TO YOU. AND YOU CAN REGISTER.

IT'S SCHEDULED FOR THE 13TH FROM 7 TO 8 P.M..

BUT WITH THAT. I'LL FORWARD THAT TOMORROW. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO ADJOURN? TRUSTEE PANTOJA MAKES A MOTION. DO I HAVE A SECOND SECRETARY? WEGNER SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? MOTION PASSES 8 TO 0.

IT IS 8:16.

* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.