School Board Meeting Summary 11.28.22

Fayette County Board of Education

November 28, 2022

As part of our commitment to providing timely, clear, and accurate information to students, staff, families, and community members, we are pleased to provide a recap of our monthly school board meetings.

WELCOME, SPECIAL REMEMBERANCES, and STUDENT PERFORMANCE

Board Chairman Tyler Murphy welcomed members of the public attending the meeting at the John D. Price Administration Building, located at 450 Park Place, as well as those watching the board meeting online.

Board Member Tom Jones invited the audience to observe a moment of silence and asked everyone in our community to pause to acknowledge the tragic deaths of five members of the Fayette County Public Schools community, including:

Jason Howell, who was a teacher and athletic director at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School and had been a member of Team FCPS for 17 years.
Ann Gateskill, who worked in the Fayette County Public Schools Human Resources department and had been a member of Team FCPS for 26 years.
Maci Wyan, who was a junior at Lafayette High School and had previously attended Frederick Douglass High School, Southside Technical Center, Edythe J. Hayes Middle, and Julius Marks Elementary.
Holly Edelstein, who was a speech language pathologist at Mary Todd Elementary School and had been a member of Team FCPS for 24 years.
Cody Taylor, who was a ninth-grader at Frederick Douglass High School and had previously attended Crawford Middle, Yates Elementary, Harrison Elementary, Mary Todd Elementary, and Dixie Elementary.

Tonight's board meeting also featured a video performance by the student musicians of the Frederick Douglass High School Orchestra under the direction of Sarah Payne. Since Douglass opened in 2017, the program has grown from 30 students to nearly 100 students in three ensembles. The group presented a traditional Jewish composition which translates to "I Believe."

Watch the video here.

BOARD MEMBER RESIGNATION

Members of the Fayette County Board of Education voted unanimously Monday to accept a letter of resignation from fellow school board member Christy Morris.

“It has been an honor to serve alongside our team and help lay the necessary foundation for the future of our schools,” said Morris, who has served on the board for three years. “I can't wait to see what the future holds for our schools and hope that while serving in this role, I have done my part to ensure a great future for our kids.”

Morris represented District 1 in west Fayette County, which pulls from areas roughly between Leestown and Harrodsburg Roads. Morris was elected in 2019 to fill an unexpired term representing District 1 and ran again in 2020 to continue to fill the post through 2024.

WHAT HAPPENS NOW?

Recent changes in state law have made local school boards responsible for filling vacancies among their ranks.

The Fayette County Board of Education is seeking the public’s assistance to help guide the selection process and community members are encouraged to take a brief survey to help identify key characteristics and priorities for the District 1 board seat. Community feedback will be accepted online as the Board develops a profile for the vacant board member position. Online feedback will be collected through December 31, 2022. Access the input survey here.

Anyone interested in applying for the District 1 school board seat can:

Submit an application online here.
Pick up a paper application at the John D. Price Administration Building 450 Park Place, Lexington, KY 40511.
Receive help filling out an online application at the John D. Price Administration Building 450 Park Place, Lexington, KY 40511.
Email fcpsdistrict1@fayette.kyschools.us to ask questions or request that an application be mailed.

SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT

Under the Superintendent's Report:

1. Fayette County Public Schools Chief of Middle Schools Tracy Bruno and FPCS Police Chief Martin Schafer provided an update on school safety in light of the national and local increase in gun violence. Bruno reviewed steps the district has taken to bolster school safety in recent years and noted that leaders have held after-action reviews of the recent lockdown incidents at Henry Clay High and Tates Creek Middle schools in order to identify areas for improvement and reinforcement.

Beginning after winter break, the district will begin a review of the Fayette County Public Schools Comprehensive 10-Point Safety Investment plan with significant opportunities for public engagement, including a public update on progress made, surveys, and panel presentations.

View the school safety presentation here

2. Assistant Superintendent Meocha Williams and Director of Assessment and MTSS Brooke Stinson reviewed the process of developing the comprehensive district improvement plan, which includes data analysis, goal setting, and action planning.

View the comprehensive district improvement plan presentation here

CONSTRUCTION PROCESS AND CAPITAL FUNDING

Chief Operating Officer Myron Thompson shared the November construction highlights and announced that the groundbreaking ceremony for the new middle school located at 2185 Polo Club Boulevard is planned for December 8 at 3 p.m. Members of the community are invited to attend and asked to RSVP by emailing events@fayette.kyschools.us.

View the construc tion update

Representatives from Compass Municipal Advisors, LLC – the board's financial advisor – provided an update on funding for facilities projects. Michael George and Anthony Strong shared the good news that the bonds sold to finance the new middle school on Polo Club Boulevard and purchase the land along Versailles Road came in at an interest rate of 4.48% over 25 years, which is an excellent rate under current market conditions. They also presented projections showing that after funding the new Career and Technical Education Center the board will have roughly $420 million in bonding potential available immediately for renovation and new construction.

View the capital funding presentation here

PUBLIC COMMENT

During the portion of the meeting for remarks by citizens, the following individuals shared comments with the Board related to the renaming of Carter G. Woodson Preparatory Academy and facility issues at Henry Clay High School:

Rosz Akins
Donna Florence
Ferren Shrensker

BOARD ACTION

The board voted to:

Postpone a decision on renaming the Carter G. Woodson Preparatory Academy until its planning work session on December 5 to allow more time to solicit public input.
Accept an offer of $460,246 through the Kentucky Education Technology System to help fund devices, programs for students, and staff development.
Purchase 21 new buses at a cost of a little less than $3.2 million through the Kentucky Interlocal School Transportation Association.
Approve the internal audit plan.
Implement a pilot program for the remainder of this school year to pay substitutes more money if they accept an assignment at schools that have had a difficult time filling vacancies in recent months. Under the plan, substitutes would earn an additional $50 per day for special education assignments and $25 a day to work in schools where recent data showed more than half of substitute requests had not been filled. The plan also includes an additive for those who are multilingual – $15 a day for teachers and $2 per day for those filling hourly posts. The effectiveness of the program will be monitored.
Enter into contracts with:
Footsteps 2 Brilliance to enhance early childhood educational offerings by providing an online platform where families can access activities and resources to support the development of their children.
Andrews Counseling and Consulting to supplement the mental health support services provided by the district in response to needs identified by families at Edythe J. Hayes Middle School through the comprehensive needs assessment process.
Accept the Monthly Financial Report.

The official minutes from the November 28, 2022 action meeting will be posted within the agenda of the next meeting of the Fayette County Board of Education.

WATCH A PREVIOUS MEETING

The school board's action meetings are televised live on the FCPS YouTube channel. Meetings are archived through the FCPS YouTube channel and Video on Demand service.

Fayette County Public Schools | www.fcps.net