March 6, 2024 Meeting

Board Members Present: Chair Kris Howatt, Shawn Farrens, Cathy Keathley, David Ligatich, and Holly Riegelmann

Recognitions

Sam Barlow High School Cheer

The school board honored the Sam Barlow High School Cheer Team. For the 2024 season, Barlow cheerleaders competed in multiple events and qualified for the national cheer competition held in Anaheim, California. The Bruins attended the USA Nationals in February and took home a 5th place trophy for High School Situational Sideline/Cheer Small Group. This is a huge accomplishment. Congratulations to the cheer squad and Coach Brandie Seibel.

Superintendent and District Leadership Team Update

Superintendent Hiu thanked classified staff for their work to ensure our schools operate smoothly. March 4-8 is Classified Staff Appreciation Week in the school district.

He shared that the Japanese consulate in Portland invited him to attend the birthday celebration of the emperor of Japan. Both the Gresham-Barlow School District and the city of Gresham have relationships with cities and schools in Japan.

The superintendent expressed his appreciation for the kind wishes and thoughts shared with him regarding the passing of his mother on February 23.

The superintendent and board member David Ligatich recently visited schools and classrooms. Superintendent Hiu was inspired by the incredible teaching and learning taking place.

The superintendent appreciates how licensed, classified, and administrative staff collaborated to develop the student discipline handbook. The handbook focuses on the social and emotional supports needed by our students. In addition, Superintendent Hiu recently watched the February 26 negotiations session and was encouraged by the effort to align principles from the student discipline handbook to the collective bargaining agreement.

Communications Director Athena Vadnais and Executive Director of Technology Jeff Gibbs highlighted the new district and school websites. The websites feature:

-High impact, responsive designs

-Online calendars

-Online forms

-Social media integration

-Translation tool

-Tools to maintain accessibility

-More robust search feature

Presentations

Gresham Arthur Academy Public Charter School Annual Report

Representatives from the Gresham Arthur Academy presented its annual report. The report included information regarding the goals and assessments relating to student performance and a look toward next school year.

View the Gresham Arthur Academy’s Report

Citizens’ Requests of the Board

Hall Elementary School fourth grade teacher Kathryn Unger talked about Policy IGAI -Human Sexuality, AIDS/HIV, Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Health Education. She shared she is opposed to any policy that would allow families to opt out of discussions on gender, gender identity, and gender expression. As required by state law, parents of minors can opt out of any or all of the topics addressed in the policy.

Review of the MESD Local Service Plan for 2024-25 will take place at the March 13 school board work session.

APPROVED, the EverDriven Contract as presented

This agreement establishes coordination with various local transportation providers, such as Lyft, Uber, and local taxi cab companies, to ensure appropriate service levels.

APPROVED, accepting the recommendation to appoint Dan Corcoran to Position 4 on the Gresham-Barlow School District Budget Committee

Information Items

Student Handbook Committee

Highlights from the updated Student Safety and Discipline Handbook were shared with the school board. The process was open, collaborative, and productive, leading to an excellent result that all were pleased with. Vicki Nishioka with Education Northwest facilitated the work. Special thanks go to the certified, classified, and administrative employees for their time and dedication to the work of the committee.

Monthly Financial Update of 1/30/24

Finance Director Dennis Clague presented the monthly financial update to the board of directors.

District finances are trending as expected this year. Expenditures are on trend to be under budget by approximately $3 million. This trend will allow the District to transfer funds to accounts for future curriculum, technology, and turf field replacement.

View the Monthly Financial Statement of 1/30/24

Upcoming Meetings

March 13
Board Work Session
6 pm
Center for Advanced Learning

April 3
Regular Board Meeting
7 pm
District Office

April 17
Board Work Session
6 pm
Center for Advanced Learning

Can't Attend Board Meetings?

GBSD Website: You can watch regular school board meetings LIVE on the the District Website. Look for the link on the homepage in the District News section!

You can also watch regular school board meetings LIVE on Comcast cable channel 27 and Frontier cable channel 35. MetroEast Community Media replays the board meeting at the following times:

Second Showing-Monday at 7 p.m.
Third Showing-The following Thursday at 4 p.m.

If you live in Damascus-

Board meetings are shown on Willamette Falls TV for patrons in the Damascus area. They are scheduled for cablecast on channel 23 every Saturday at 1 p.m.

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