##VIDEO ID:GxxSg--dTMw## e e e e e e e e e all right welcome everybody like welcome everybody to the January 6 2025 meeting of this uh Plymouth uh school committee and the P select board call yes at this time I'd like to call the pouth select board to order and our Force order of business is the Pledge of Allegiance please join to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic stands one nation under God indivisible with li Justice for please pull that microphone closer to you all right I believe we have no one here for public comment is that correct all right if not then we will move swiftly on to our um land acknowledgement Mr Jackson we acknowledge that we are meeting on the unseated ancestral homelands of the indigenous people whose enduring presence we humbly recognize we honor the Wampanoag as the original stewards and the Herring Pond W Wampanoag as the surviving tribe indigenous to these lands in our commitment to lifelong learning we acknowledge historical injustices to the native people of this land and vow to educate ourselves our community and our students on the first peoples and the hardships they endured we offer this as a small but essential step towards building a culture of respect truth and accountability thank you M Jackson all right so we will move straight to our uh open open SE candidate uh for thank you all the our seven candidates for showing up and appreciate all the work you've all done already just to uh get here and we sincerely appreciate your participation in tonight's um Forum two of us on this board know exactly what it's like to be in your um seats as we were in this exact same position four four years ago so we know what it's like um so as a reminder each candidate will have 15 minutes to introduce themselves and answer the uh questions that were sent out prior to the meeting in addition to any questions that um committee members um may have so without further Ado we will jump straight into it so first candidate up is Miss Katherine Marini please thank you for having me introduce yourself uh my name is C Marini cther could you pull that microphone closer to you please sure thank you so you're free to make any introductory comments um and then I'll go through the questions um just very happy to be here and have the opportunity to hopefully move forward with this if possible um I'm sure there's some great candidates here I've lived in Plymouth my whole life in a third generation put multiple kids through the school system so um looking forward to any opportunity that can come from this right all right first question what do you see as the role of a school committee member um I would say first and foremost representing the needs of the students the teachers and the the community at large trying to make forward strides every year so that the students can grow as time rolls on we know how quickly technology is moving science is moving the world is moving um I think Plymouth is a wonderful Community with a very strong home base and giving the kids kind of The Best of Both Worlds with the whole world has to offer but a good solid foothold from the town they came from and grew up in um serving as a good role model and protecting all of those virtues is probably what I would say would be the role and is there a particular issue that motivates you to serve on the school committee uh there's a lot of issues I would say um I've raised four children through Plymouth schools uh my fifth is still at West Elementary I think um the schools here are wonderful I've served on Plymouth Youth Development Coalition for a number of years um I served in many ways through the opioid crisis when that became really powerful I was getting my Bachelor's in nursing at the time and had to do a lot of community work for that uh bachelor's degree in nursing and had lost a family member my sister um and through that I kind of remembered all of the things we have been through um especially in our school system as we were very young when this all happened obviously and I actually I wrote a whole book about it a whole story about it representing everything that all of us had gone through um at the time and seeing such a good reaction from young people just from reading and from education really inspired me more to understand the impact we can have just by reaching out and kind of saying hey I've been through this or hey can we try that um pydc was also a a great um experience I served on that for a long time and then opening The Recovery Center too and just seeing the support of the community towards kids of all ages and just understanding the impact we can make of students um impressionable Minds when they're very young and they're very smart and they understand a lot they're going through a lot out there um we don't give them enough credit I think a lot of time after that I did teach high school for five years so I started a whole Allied Health Program um at Silver Lake in Kingston it's still up and running and then I stayed on and taught 9th through 12th grade for those 5 years and uh really got an inside look at the school system and how impactful it was all it had to offer the trades have come a long way since I was in school and um I think that honestly they're very underutilized in our community I think those students have a lot to offer those teachers have a lot to offer so I would just like to help bring a lot of that forward into the community um in the best interest for everyone for businesses for the students um I just think that they're just so underserved really to be honest they're very very talented and um I think we could do a lot more with them thank you what do you feel are the major challenges currently facing our school district I would say probably the the simple biggest one would be the amount of diversity we have in town now the population is just growing so rapidly um we've got a lot of students being raised um by grandparents by aunts and uncles we've got different ethnicities we've got different languages being spoken different cultural beliefs um I think that starting education towards that at a younger age and giving an appreciation for that so that those students grow up just with a deeper understanding of why people are different and how they can be more accepting of that and how they can be more understanding of that will just make things a lot easier for them their whole lives not only here but everywhere in the world um I think we all know our our town is just exploding right now and it's just huge so um I think that would probably be one of the biggest things that we're facing that obviously we just went through covid we all know that so that was a huge challenge for everybody as a nurse that was a huge challenge we saw too um and then the effect it had on mental health so I would say number one answer would be the size population diversity that we have and then those other following all right well this next question is a perfect Segway to your then which is what ideas you have for ensuring that the district is prepared to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse student population so again I think just kind of focusing in on maybe if we could enrich the younger students um with more language with more Arts more music things like that that they're they're going to be experiencing as they grow up kind of alongside all these other sorts of um different populations that we have coming in now and just welcoming them uh We've see it all over town not just in schools we see businesses opening we see restaurants opening so I think that just starting them off at a younger age and just kind of broadening their world and then hopefully getting that to trickle into the homes as well so that what we start in the schools can continue at home students are great at going home and teaching their parents as well it doesn't just have to be us teaching the students so I just think opening up a lot of those um those communication channels and just kind of opening up the neighborhoods to each other we have so much in this town um with sports and with things like that for the kids I would love to see some other sorts of activities that maybe we could start in the school and and get out there for them to continue at home thank you than you next question what principles guide your decision making when it comes to prioritizing the school budget and how would you balance the needs of the district with the available resources so I guess as a nurse of over 20 years we kind of always tend to go onto our trust versus mistrust and our Safety and Security so whatever is going to make those students and those teachers as well feel that they can trust the school board to make decisions that are going to keep them safe and secure as a priority um we know that food insecurities are a big thing physical safety is a big thing we have a lot of kids with mental health problems and drug addiction problems at home so I think if we make them feel really safe and secure generally as humans but especially as young people then they're going to learn more they're going to be more open to learning and they're going to be able to um really absorb all the things we try to give to them if we let them kind of go on facing a lot of these problems by themselves they're not focused on learning they're not excited to learn when they go to school teachers are frustrated so if I had to just simplify that we always go by maslau in nursing trust versus mistrust Safety and Security those would be the focuses thank you what do you see as the number one area that Plymouth Public Schools could improve I'm sorry the number one area that Plymouth Public Schools could improve could improve that's a tough one there's so many schools um I guess if I had to say I would just say with the diverse population we have right now we've got to figure out a way to kind of combine all these kids and and to invest in all the backgrounds that they come from and to find a way to make them all work together understand each other and to make sure that every kid that comes out of our school system wherever they came from that they all come out with the same opportunities I think that would be a beautiful thing great if there was a committee decision that you did not vote in favor of how would you work to support the implementation of that decision well I guess I would have to find where I would be most useful um we all have different talents we all bring different things to the table even if I didn't support the decision I'm sure I could find myself useful in some way if it was better for me to stand back and you know do a smaller task I would do that meanwhile looking Inward and trying to figure out why I didn't support that decision maybe I need to change some ways I'm looking at some things or maybe I'm not looking at things correctly through the right lens maybe I'm looking at it as a parent or a nurse instead of an educator or a school committee member um so taking some time to do that but still making myself as useful as possible and if it was something that was better for the town or better for the school then that's just you know what I would have to work at I I'm sure I would be able to talk to everybody and say this is how I'm feeling like help me out with this here what am I missing um you know communication's important but I certainly wouldn't stop in the way of any progress all right thank you for that so in addition to the seven questions we sent out I want to give the uh board members and committee members opportunity to answer any questions directed at this candidate that may have come up Mr KY thank you Mr Marine sorry to hear about the loss of your sister um what if any experience do you have in preparing or evaluate evaluating a budget in either the um public sector such as Municipal Finance or in the private sector such as a private business um I did serve as vice president of the Plymouth Recovery Center when we opened that so we spent about a year and a half raising funds and making sure we were going to be able to financially support that Recovery Center it was all donation-based um I did spend about six years working as an assistant director of nurses at a nursing home locally so I was able to budget that as well um and I've actually been a supervisor at the hospital for eight years so I had to be aware of course of what we were spending and our staffing needs and all that so all right thank youwood hello Miss Marini hello um when making this is still in the lines of the budget when making decisions about a school budget how would you balance the district's immediate needs with the community's financial realities while also considering the long-term well-being and future impact of both the students and the broader community I mean it wouldn't be an easy decision it would have a lot of um a lot of different areas we'd have to look at and examine if there was any fat that could be trimmed I'm sure there's not usually there's not um but sometimes it's just moving things around um finding better ways to come up with money or um you know I've run a house with a lot of kids for a lot of years so we know how to uh make a dollar into two dollars sometimes it's what you got to do and sometimes um you find it where you didn't know it was but um reorganizing sometimes is important you can take the same amount of money and turn it into more money by reordering it thank you any other questions from the committee Mr Mone uh thank you so uh just to confirm all these questions ahead of time we sent out to all the candidates ahead of time yeah the the first seven that I did correct okay um M Marine just one question same question for all the candidates um you were proping of a secular State and what I mean by that is that there's a separation between State and religion and that government um shows neutrality with respect to all religions and we don't have the Vatican or any other denomination you know trying to dictate policy to government I was under the impression that's how it is now yes separation of is that what you're saying right right that's that's the question so I are you a proponent of that do I support that yes I don't see any reason not to I think that school is school and um I wouldn't tell anyone they can't do something that they believe in unless it was imposing on somebody else's rights I'm not going to stop them from going privately if it was personally up to me but I think the separation of church and school for Now is working for us thank you mhm question thank you very much for coming uh just a question in your in your opening statement you referenced the U vocational program we have here at south and north and south and you said it was underutilized could you could you elaborate upon that please sure um just looking at um the town and sustainability we have uh so I should tell you I I'm getting my masters in Emergency Management so I'm almost done with that so I've been spending a lot of time looking at our risks and that you know protecting our schools and things like that the hospitals the roadways all that stuff um and after working at Silver Lake as a teacher with all of those students in the in the trades Department um just realizing how much they had to offer and I would love to see them out there in the community more doing more for their community and also at the same time building up their resumés and and building up their um their letter of letters of application to colleges I think that those kids are super talented and I can tell you I had no idea the things that they were capable of doing and um I would just love to see them out there showing everyone what they've got thank you MH all right Miss awood okay um in the vein of the emergency preparedness um uh what ideas do you have for improving the district's um preparedness for unexpected challenges such as Public Health crisis as we went through one four years ago and um safety concerns or funding shortages well I think we learned a lot from covid um what we what worked and what did didn't work I would love to see much more proactive approaches I think that um making sure that we avoid that ever happening again obviously is the most important thing I would love to see schools stay open somehow some way I think that was really hard for a lot of people and had a lot of effects I was teaching full-time during that so I can tell you firsthand those kids were it was really tough for them um doing what we have to do to keep everyone physically safe and healthy obviously was great um know that nutrition is a big problem for a lot of kids I would definitely want to have a plan in place to make sure that the kids that needed food and that counted on going to school for proper food and nutrition was in place ahead of time I think that would be great to have for peace of mind um and maybe even making some plans for some sort of child care system or something for the parents that had to work and it was a huge hardship for them to have the younger children home um along those lines also working with the pediatricians around to make sure that students um have everything that they need at home for monitoring their temperatures their fluid intake all of those things are important of course um and then you know we had a shortage of gloves and masks so just making sure that our town had those simple things would be would be huge and helpful and it would help stop the spread okay thank you all right thank you m Mary okay thank you next up we have Margaret Matthews hello hello so if you could please introduce yourself in your background and your qualifications and we'll jump into the questions okay my name is Margaret Matthews but please call me Meg um I have been in education for over 20 years um I am a mom of two two boys in the district I have a seven-year-old at Federal furnace and a um 13-year-old pcis um I actually worked in Plymouth I worked at Plymouth North for 7 years I'm currently at Cohasset Middle School I'm a reading specialist um at Plymouth North I Was A literacy coach um and a kind of like a literacy teacher there um I've worked in middle and high schools I've worked in diverse settings I've worked at the charter school Rising Thai charter school I'm originally from Ohio so I started my career in the Cleveland area um and I've worked with a variety of students again primarily from grades six through 12 first question what do you see as the role of a school Committee Member I think the role of a school Committee Member is to kind of just do a checks and balances of how things are going um and to um just make sure that what we're doing is in the best interest of of kids but also of Educators um of anyone making decisions there's so many staff members that um going into work and and we need to be aware of the the tough job that Educators have as well as students and the diverse backgrounds um so I feel like the role is to kind of just make sure things are running the way they should thank you is there a particularly particular issue that motivates you to serve on the school committee well because I'm a reading specialist and a literacy person um I really interested in all the new science that's come out with the science of reading and just making sure that we're um kind of making sure our our data is what's driving us um so I guess that in particular would be an area that I'm concerned about but um I mean I I see a lot of different things just being in schools for 20 years gotcha uh what do you feel are the major challenges currently facing our school district uh kind of like your the previous um interview I think that our schools are huge and therefore we have a lot of needs and it's growing um so I think um it's very difficult to always be kind of like doing the catch up on what's the newest need there's so many and I think that's a difficult place for everyone to be in so I think maybe putting in some more foundational fundamental um practice is that will kind of like proactively meet some of these needs I think that's just a challenge just in education in general thank you uh what ideas do you have for ensuring the district is prepared to meet the needs of it increasingly diverse student population I think that um as the previous interview you said making sure that we are teaching in a creating a culture for students of all um backgrounds and family situations to be in a school that they feel loved um I also think we need professional development for our teachers and staff to kind of be making sure we're meeting these needs um I work with students that you know English is a second language for them and I know myself I do have some background in that but I could always use more work um so just constantly offering professional development and making sure you're listening to your teachers and um to the students and making sure that you're meeting those needs of the diverse backgrounds thank you what principles guide your decision-making when it comes to prioritizing the school budget how would you balance the needs of the district with available resources I think looking at what you're spending the money on um and making sure that we have a balance of course um but also just making sure like curriculum that we're using is up toate that goes with proven science and data um I you know I I realize like transportation is an area there's so many areas that we have to think of and um just making sure that we're having a balance in all of those areas what do you see as the number one area that Plymouth Public Schools could improve um well one thing I do notice just with my younger son at Federal furnace is the community there from the time my older son went there till now is an amazing place um for students to be and I think that the administrator there has created such a culture as well as like the PTA which I'm a part of um and just really getting kids involved but also families involved um I think that that needs to happen across the board where we're really making our town a place where everyone's in the schools I do see that happening a lot but I think we need to invest more we need to hold families account just as much as we're holding teachers accountable and students accountable um to be involved in what's happening in schools gotta finally if there was a committee decision that you did not vote in favor of how would you work to support the implementation of that decision I mean it happens all the time as a teacher I'm working on teams and you know there are times where decisions are made that I am not maybe it's not my first choice but I'm there to learn I'm a learner so there's got to be something within that decision that I can agree with or buy into and um participate in and you know do my best to it's not just about me it's about a committee of humans so do my best to support the group as well as the community and the schools thank you now I'll turn it over to the committee do we have any questions for this candidate Miss awood yes thank you for coming um Meg yes you pulled it okay so this is a question I guess just um in terms of like a collaborative piece I um going on to this last question that was asked when faced with differing opinions among um committee members or with the public how would you approach conflict resolution to maintain a collaborative and productive environment and yeah how would you approach that so how would I approach like like a conflict resolution yes I think everyone needs a voice I think that um I'm a really good listener so I think I would if I was you know came across two individuals that had a conflict I think I would be listening to both sides making sure everyone had a voice and that they could just explain their point of view um and realize that that's you know everyone's coming from their own place so I would listen to that and then you know I I I don't know know exactly how I would resolve the problem just that we need to take steps that we would have to create steps to get into a more positive space thank you uh thank you uh what if any experience do you have preparing or evaluating a budget in either the public sector such as Municipal Finance or in the private sector like a private business to be honest I do not have any um I'm here to learn but don't have any experience in the budget understood thank you Mr Money make uh secularism U separation of church and state um you know one of the pillars of uh what the founding fathers were put into place in the Constitution First Amendment um you a proponent of continuing is the way we are yes we're a public school so that absolutely should be separation thank you Mr Bon yes he Margaret uh committees if you work with any uh Community committees Town committees or no um I have been I mean I'm in the PTA um my husband is a a lions member so although I am not on that committee or that club I have attended a lot of things that go along with that okay but this would be my first opportunity all right in time frame and I meant to ask the last Lady if she uh making the meetings is not a problem for you because it's very important these are very important meetings right I understand that yes you don't have any time constraints what's that you don't have any time constraints I know you're working in Cohasset and uh right but I I mean I'm a teacher so I'm out by three okay good right thank you MH who else Dr s again thank you for being here uh you have experience at North appreciate that uh you you you spoke of your background in reading and literacy I think that's wonderful you mentioned English language Learners there's a lot a lot a lot to be said about all of that experience but being on the school committee is extremely complex those four things are Dro in the bucket as compared to all of the information that we have to process and and vote on H how able are you to get up to speed to get up to speed well I'm a learner so I realize that my I have like one facet of what all of you contain and what you will have to decide upon so I think I would first have to be a listener and a Learner in research and hopefully get some information prior to our meetings so that I can understand what's happening um but I'd be willing to do that thank you any other questions all right thank you for your time thank you next up RB Canan all right welcome Ronan uh please just introduce yourself share your background include any you know any thing you feel qualifies you for this role got it thank you first of all good evening everyone thank you for having me both the select board and the school committee my name is R buin I'm 18 years old and a senior at P South High School after graduation I attend a major in political science and history I've been heavily involved with the schools specifically P South High School during my time I've been a student council class president I've also served on the school council as well as The Breakfast Club board which is an Advisory board that principal F put together about two years ago to ensure that students who are leaders within the school committee can share their concerns about policy that is implemented in this excuse me implemented in the schools with her and they can advise her accordingly I've also served as a legislative intern for represented Matthew miror from June of 2023 up until November of this past year and I also bring a very unique perspective to this board being a student I Can Shed light on issues that I see every day within the schools that other members might not be able to see as well as I can all right first question what do you see as a role of a scho Committee Member I see as something similar to what a corporate board of directors would be where's supposed to be implementing and crafting policy that ensures the success and nurtures our students and ensures that they can Thrive and that we continue to do what it says right in the board behind all of you and that is making dreams come true perfect is there a particular issue that motivates you to serve on the school committee I would say just with my experience in state government and seeing what happened this past November with question two and seeing that mcast is being repealed that basically drops Massachusetts down to the levels in terms of State Testing with those of Louisiana Mississippi and Alabama obviously those states do not have good connotations with education policy and I want to ensure that we are protecting the value of diplomas that come out of Plymouth and I think part of what comes with that is two things that I think that we could also improve upon is one I think that we should be implementing some sort of a requirement for personal money management and ensuring that our kids can basically do basic Financial skills whether that's filling a W2 form or filling a 1040 form because I think we're seeing in increasing number of students come out of school where they don't have those basic skills that they shouldn't have in the 21st century I'd also say the implementing of what I call standards based grading where we're also tracking in addition to your standard a through F grades you're seeing how engage your students in their classes are they actively participating or they just simply bring byy the material because I think what we should be doing is we want to produce students who are not only able to learn but they know how to apply what they learn outside of their classes and in different classes between classes and I think adding that onto our report cards is going to show employers and colleges that we have some really capable students and that bolers their resumés and it makes their diplomas look a lot better it maintains their value and it also exceeds the value in surrounding communities thank you um what do you feel are the major challenges currently facing our school district first off I would say it's budget shortfalls we obviously need to think about where we could say we might be able to automate different administrative functions that we have in the school district layoffs are obviously not a thing that anybody wants to talk about but we need to ensure that teachers don't get laid off at all and that educational quality remains top priority and that if administrative automation is a way that we can save money we need to look at that I would also say diploma values I just mentioned and I also say that retainment of teachers I've seen that in South that we do have an issue with that you have younger teachers who come in and that might necess not necessarily be there for as long as you see older teachers who are also Hing at a rapid rate as I've seen particularly in the social States Department and we already have a very good body of students who could very well become Educators especially in South being that we have the Child Care Program we have an immense body of students who are very capable becoming Educators and I think we need to reach out to them particularly in their senior year through the guidance Department have you considered becoming an educator in the pH public schools because if you do so you have a very bright future here that's great um what I do is do you have for ensuring that the district is prepared to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse student population so being on both the school councils and student councils those are the leaders in the schools those are the students who that you can trust to relay the district problems to you and I think that committee members reaching out to those schools and visiting them and seeing those students because they're the ones like me who are in the buildings every day they're hearing the concerns of every single student and they see them for themselves going to those students and asking what do you think the district can improve upon to ensure that we're meeting the needs of every single person because if I walked in with any one of you in diploma South High School I could probably point out a Tech student an academic student an automotive student a marketing student somebody who's in AP Physics somebody who's in AP Lang and that could probably happen within the span of maybe five minutes in just the hallway because we already have a very diverse student body and that's not even been accounting for English language Learners and anything else that you could account for so ensuring that we reach out to the leaders is Paramount to that what principles would guide your decision-making when it comes to prioritizing the school budget and how would you balance the needs of the district with available resources I would say that we should look at where money is being allocated what is funding our tech programs is a basic management ensuring that facilities are being maintained or is it grants that we could look into ensuring that we could potentially take a more different route where we're getting money that might not necessarily have been thought of before where we can take advantage of different avenues that can fund these routes because I think that especially with the new presidential Administration that is coming in the Secretary of Education Linda mcah has said that she is very much focused on getting the kind of model into schools where you have tech programs that can prepare students to go out onto co-ops in their senior year and I think that we should definitely harness that through grants in our district because we have in my opinion a very unique District where we have have a planetarium in one of the middle schools we have carpentry we have Automotive we have marketing and we have medical in a lot of our different high schools and I think that we should definitely harness that thanks what do you see as the number one area that Plymouth Public Schools could approve upon being on the school council I would say that's definitely a tenance there's three different bodies that me and principal fry have identified you have students who don't want to be in school at all you have students who potentially work for their parents support them with a job that they might be up late until 11:00 p.m. and that's why they're coming into school at maybe 9 or 10:00 because they could also be driving other siblings and they're just tired and they're also potentially doing their homework as you could see and then the group that we really need to work upon is students who are driving to Dunkin Donuts or Mary L and getting a coffee and they're the ones who are coming in at 7:25 and accounting for I think the majority of problems good if there was a committee decision made that you did not vote in favor of how would you work to support the implementation of that decision I would do the same thing that I would do if a vote was made that I did support and that's reaching out to the involved shareholders and asking them how can I help what can I be as of assistance of to ensuring that you have the resources that you need to succeed excellent all right turn it over to the board members and committee members now questions Miss Haywood yes thank you for coming um can you share an example of a time when you worked as a part of a team to address a significant Challenge and how would you apply that experience to your role as a school Committee Member as far as working on a team I would say that one of the issues that we did tackle on the school council was ensuring that the parking lots are safe in pulit South High School because we obviously do have an issue with speeding so we did actually get some of the issues that I brought forth there is definitely a lot of speeding in there and so we were able to put officer South who was our resource officer down there to ensure the safety and I'd also say that we did a good job maintaining the if you see something say something especially back in October when we did have a school safety threat and that was one of the reasons why we were so successful because we had a lot of collaboration on the school council and insuring we maintain that within the student body and we saw that last October thank you absolutely questions Mr KY Mr Buchanan uh what if any experience do you have either preparing or evaluating a budget in the public sector such as municipal or state finance or in the private priv sector like a private business so I do have experience in the public sector just being in term with representing murator I've identified benefits for State fiscal budgets that come into the first plumet district so I've seen how the money gets allocated how it moves through state government so I do have knowledge concerning that and I think that's definitely going to be Paramount to identifying what can we do as a district to ensure that we get the most money coming in from the state potentially and where is that money in the legislative processes in committee or is on the floor about to be passed thank you Mr blon yeah excuse me hi Ronan I'm very impressed uh with your resume and uh impressed with the way you answered these questions uh you're obviously a credit to the Plymouth Public Schools uh I know I have a daughter that's a senior and I'm very happy with her progress and in where she is in life uh so obviously your principal has done a great job out there with you so uh but I got a couple questions Ronin what's what's next for you I mean actually before you graduate if you get appointed you're going to be a school Committee Member while in school and you might have some controversial issues with your fellow students are you able to handle uh peer pressure as they say uh in making decisions yeah so being a student council school class president I obviously get a lot of complaints from students can you ban homework no I'm not going to do that that makes the district look bad obviously so I do know how to strike a balance between identifying the needs and the wants of our students and seeing what looks best for the district what puts us in the best possible position to maintain our strength and reputation and I like your perspect perspectives you're kind of like an inside guy you know what's going on and it's really it's it's uh I think it would it be very helpful but what's next for you now After High School you're going to obviously you're going to go to the next level College uh what are your plans uh for college so for college I see myself as a D major in political science and history with a minoring either economics or English that just depends on what school I would end up going to I've just been accepted into St a and I'm currently waiting on decisions from about 14 other colleges including Brown yell Princeton Amhurst and Williams to just a few of them and after college I see myself getting a masters in either an MPA or an MBA combined or an MPP after that I would see myself getting a JD and going into corporate law before then returning into the public sector my preferred ambition would be president of the United States in 2052 exactly but you you get a ways to go but uh so anyway so if so is this just you want to get appointed just for the end of the this uh term I would say other words if you go to school in another state obviously you're not going to be able to uh run for school committee and uh and be on the school committee so is this is that what your plan is and that's part of the reason why I'm running I wouldn't run in the May elections one because if I do go to a school in Connecticut or New Jersey I obviously can't come here every single Monday or Tuesday right and part of the reason why I am running is one because I don't have to fund this campaign at all I don't need to dip into any of my own savings that I obviously want to save whether or not it's going to law school or buying a house eventually I want to keep that money aside and foremost is just because as it says right in the board right there PL public schools has made dreams come true especially for me because I've been able to tap into a lot of the different resources whether that be advanced placement programs the personal money management courses accounting and business technology that is offered itself and I really credit the school for doing that and bringing in those tech programs that have enabled me to thrive and make me really confident in going to college and taking myself to the next level so you just want to fill this fill the rest of this term mode I do because I can see it as my way to give that too the school's given me so much I think you have some good ideas and I think uh you'd be a fresh uh some fresh ideas uh for this committee so anyway thanks Mor absolutely Mr Mone Ronan you probably heard the question I asked the prior candidates and I'll have a few more for you um so separation of church and state um kind of falling under the First Amendment you okay with that one where uh we kind of have a fence that is erected between religion and government and you know one doesn't crawl over the climb over the fence and interfere with the other one yeah so I know what you're talking about I can see that playing out on the national Lea particularly with policy that has come out of Governor Jeff Landry's office of Louisiana I don't support any sort of Faith or religion coming into the school system whatsoever I look at this from a historical standpoint because I've seen the Constitutional argument that he's made concerning the Supreme Court I think it's pretty lousy to be honest because when you look at the composition of the colonies when they came together in 1787 at the Constitutional Convention the country already had a lot of religious diversity back then you had the Puritans in New England with the exception of Rhode Island which was the most diverse colony because you had Jews in there and then you had Massachusetts transplants and with concern to Pennsylvania you had the Quakers Maryland you had the Catholics and then the South you had the emergence of Baptists and methodists as a result the great Revival so I would definitely support keeping religion out of public schools for the sake of ensuring that we do have we allow a diverse student body to express whatever beliefs that they have privately okay thank you um so a follow-up question you're not pulling the wool over our eyes you you are going to graduate in June correct yes okay good just looking at your letter Ronin um what are you doing up at 4:30 a.m. to go to school I like to watch the eyner before I go to school and I also want to get a good parking space in the senior L of South what time does the first bell ring uh 7:20 I sometimes go in at 7:00 okay all right so uh wonderful letter I'm very impressed with your composure and the organization um you know this one I've been a proponent of for years which is uh the having individuals who are getting a high school diploma how having some baseline of fiscal knowledge you know you go into um you know writing out a check but uh you know I'm talking about compounding interest um you know understanding that 40 years after graduating from high school you might be on a fixed income things like that you know balancing a household budget Etc so um I think that's excellent are you currently the student president uh no I served in my sophomore ter and I've currently been a delegate in my class student council for the past two years and I've been serving on the two boards I mentioned earlier and I just was recently let go because of the election from my legislative internship okay did you did you lose a race for president because you wanted to implement a no phones and class policy uh no when that policy came out in I could see how that would have endeared yourself with the administration and teachers but not with your colleagues obviously I think people do know that I did support the phone policy I made the decision to run for executive board vice president in the spring of 2023 I lost that race and that's when I moved down to the delegate position people did know that I was in a favor of the phone policy and I think that the student body at South has done a decent job accepting that especially when we gave kblock which is the study period that all students have the ability to use their phones during that time but I think people have gotten better about putting them away during class okay so I think that tension on me has kind of eased off just a tad B okay all right fantastic all right Ronin very impressed great job job thank you and Dr s bran um again thanks for being here thanks for putting time into this um in your response to one of the questions that the chair asked you you mentioned and if I'm mising you please tell me because then we'll just forget the whole idea but I thought I heard you say administrative automation so I'm thinking about robots replacing our administrators it's not a bad idea is that what you're referencing I'm getting kicked back you explain what you meant by that yeah I get what you mean by that the administrators are right behind you just so you know to be clear I'm not calling for any sort of a robot that you might see on God knows whatever platform to come into these schools and take over but I am saying that we should Implement some sort of AI whether that's Google Assistant a because we do use Google as our primary operations in the schools if we can use that to make our systems more efficient and then maybe cut down in some of the manual work that we do then I think that we should definitely invest in that oh okay thank you for answering my question absolutely all right thank you Mr M all right thank you so much everybody thank you thank you all right next up we have wbby dougen did I pronounce that right is it dougen or Duan Dugan Dugan thank you single G that's I ask yes thank you all righty good evening my name is Debbie Dugan I am uh I've owned a home here for 10 years I've lived here permanently the last two before living in Massachusetts I lived in New Jersey for 40 years um I've been a public servant uh elected to a number of U positions I've served on Nursery School boards I was a lche league leader if any of you know what that is you know decades ago um breastfeeding was definitely not the norm and uh there was a group of women in Illinois that said that we need to turn this around and uh I'm happy to say today that is definitely turned around and um people understand the great benefits of mothers feeding their babies from their own bodies uh I was a school board member in New Jersey I served I like to say I served 23 and 12 I was elected to an elementary school board where I served um for the 12 years we were prek to sixth grade I um during that time I was appointed OED to a countywide board of education an Educational Services Commission and we serve the most vulnerable students in our County we also provided transportation for some of the smaller districts for our students and also um we um purchased supplies for some of the smaller districts in our County that would get a better price on things you know if they were able to buy them in bulk you know because now we've combined two and three small school districts um I was on a high school board for four years it was a Junior Senior High School Board the uh regional board that um served 135 square miles um what else did I want to say about myself um I've been a Republican state committee woman I served the second Subic and middle sex District when I lived in Watertown I was an election commissioner that was a very interesting experience I loved getting to know um a lot of the people in the community that way because I did not live there I did not raise my children there I lived in New Jersey um and it was just it was just a good experience I I like meeting the people in my town and because I am newer here and I lived here part-time uh before that I um uh look forward to that kind of experience again thank you all right what do you see as the role of a school Committee Member the role of a school Committee Member is to set policy and make sure that our Administration follows that policy thank short and sweet is there a particular particular issue that motivates you to serve on the school committee um I think it's um I believe I believe that our children need to understand our history here in Plymouth we this is such a special special place this is where it began and I want our children to be proud of that history all right what do you feel are the major challenges currently facing our school district America is financially bankrupt we may not have filed for bankruptcy but we are $36 trillion in debt The Last 5 Years have been devastating to all Americans between covid and the last four years we've all seen businesses go out of business we know how difficult it is for the families that we serve here for the senior citizens that we we represent and the school budgets impact that thank you um what ideas do you have for ensuring that the district is prepared to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse student population I think that um those children if we're talking about the um English as a second language Learners they need to learn English they need to read it write it and speak it as do their parents if they're going to succeed in in an English-speaking land what principles would guide your decision-making when it comes to prioritizing the school budget and how would you balance the needs of the district with the available resources I think um as I said I think because of the finances in the country and in the land today I think we need to be very sensitive to our taxpayers I've never been you know buddy buddy with the taxpayers association in previous towns but um but I'm a taxpayer too and costs are going through the roof they haven't stopped going through the roof hopefully in the future that will change thank you um what do you see as the number one area that Plymouth Public Schools could approve I don't have children here uh I didn't educate my children here I don't have grandchildren in the District so I'm not as familiar I would like to make sure that excuse me that we hire the best possible teachers that will instill a love of learning into their students no matter what the area is I want them to be experts and have an expertise in that subject matter and instill in all their students a great love of learning thank you and if there was a committee decision made that you did not vote in favor of how would you work to support the implementation of that decision does that happen here all the time yes um you know I like to win but it's not always possible so we have to accept uh not always getting our way and I would support whatever it is as long as it didn't conflict with my Christian values I'm a Christian woman all righty I'll turn it over to the committee Miss Shaw can you explain to me a little bit more about your work as a client Advocate at the your options Pregnancy Resource Center in hyas as well as your work as a state chairwoman of the 2018 ballot question no13 sure thank you happy to talk about those things um when I was in lived in New Jersey after I stopped being a school board member member um I started volunteering in a local what I call Crisis Pregnancy Center it's a Pregnancy Resource Center and um I worked with clients there um we do intake we talk to them about their options and we talk about abortion we talk about parenting and we talk about adoption um one of the like towards the end of my four years doing that in New Jersey we had um an ultrasound machine and I did get to work with one client that um uh got to see her her baby and um ultrasounds change um the minds of mothers you know from abortion many times to carrying and to giving birth to that life I am post-abortive and I know the tragedies personally of being post-abortive you know what is explained um and promised as an escape from a situation unfortunately you take on shame and guilt of a lifetime and then you wanted me to talk about um oh and in the noon 3 campaign in 2018 I had been asked to chair um a ballot question we called it no on three it was to repeal the transgender bathroom and locker room law it was never about discrimination it was always about protecting women and children in public accommodations thank you thank you Miss awood thank you for coming um I have two question you have such a gentle voice could you speak a little more loudly please I'll bring it closer can you hear me now I'll tell you if I can't thank you okay so I'm G to ask you two questions um you you mentioned you'd like to win I mentioned what you like to win oh yes so when faced with differing opinions among committee members or with the public how would you approach conflict resolution to maintain a collaborative and productive environment and how would you approach fostering a positive and respectful Dynamic among your school committee members to ensure that the group Works effectively for the benefit of the Community right um I believe in everyone deserves to be respected for their opinions I believe in civil discourse and I think that's lacking not necessarily in a school committee situation but in our in our culture at large today I believe that civil discourse is absent I think everyone needs to be respected for their opinion whether they agree with them or not and I think it's through through those discussions that we learn to respect one another and can grow um and maybe maybe change our minds you know about um whatever that topic might be okay and um and and just to follow up on the question or the statement that you made regarding English language Learners so as a school board me um or School Committee Member you represent all students and families in the district so how would you ensure that needs voices and perspectives of these diverse groups are heard and considered in your decision making or or would you consider it I'm I'm not sure I can you repeat it one more time I'm sorry so um how would you ensure the needs voices and perspectives of diverse groups are heard and considered in your decisionmaking process I think what I just said prior to that you know you respect people and and I I appreciate open discussions and civil discourse and I think we need more of that and um and that's how we we come to a consensus I don't have to necessarily be happy with it but I can come to a consensus okay thank you Dr shorton I just want to follow that up because that was sort of my question too and I'm going to pin you down on it because talk about a love of learning and I appreciate that right uh but you said you set expressed an opinion that English language Learners must read write and speak English absolutely and so you feel very firm on that but sometimes it's hard to create a love of learning when the native language is you're being telling somebody their native language is not up we're not interested in it I think that people who've come to this country you know I mean we all have ancestors at some point in time came to this country right and um they they learned the language because they wanted to assimilate I truly believe that people are at a disadvantage when they come to America if they do not learn to speak English I think that they they can advance much more quickly and further when they speak the English language I have two granddaughters who went to um uh Spanish Immersion schools in Boston and um actually preschools and then and then um Elementary School and um and they read it they write it they speak it their friends are you know their classmates you know they love them and um but I think I think we do people a disservice if they don't learn the language okay thank you MH M candy thank you Miss Dugan um what if any experience do you have preparing or evaluating a budget in either the public sector like municipal or state finance or the private sector like a private business I was a school board member in New Jersey for 23 years I mean 23 terms so I helped prepare those 23 budgets okay when you were a prior school committee or School Board member in another Community um I assume there were instances where you were not in the majority vote on a decision is that correct oh absolutely yeah I voted a couple times against the budget okay you mentioned earlier that not too often but a couple times understood you mentioned earlier that you would have in in response to question number seven about how you would support the implementation of a decision that you were on the losing side of despite being on the losing side that you would be able to do that as long as it did not interfere with your Christian values correct could you expand upon that please um as a Christian I believe that God created man and God created woman and um I think that um our schools need to teach that I think that's science that's the truth you believe that the creation of the universe by God is science I do I think it's been proven okay are you you aware of the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States that provides not only freedom of religion but also freedom from religion in the public sphere I believe that's um a letter that Thomas Jefferson wrote I think it's called the wall of separation and it was to protect the churches from the government but you can check well it's I have checked I have a uh I have significant experience in constitutional law um but um would you when you take if you were elected in this particular election you would take an oath to adhere and uphold the Constitution of the United States including the First Amendment and its freedom of religion and from religion for members of this District would you be able to fulfill that oath despite your Christian values yes I believe in the US Constitution I support it so if a decision were to come down that was not in support of your Christian values but you and you were on the losing side of it you would still support that decision and advocate for that decision in the community it was a board decision and um I support the board I may disagree with the board but I would support the board would I go out and be an advocate for it necessarily it just depends on what the issue was or can you help me understand how that answer gels with your earlier answer that you would support a decision if and only if it didn't confront conflict with your Christian values well like I said to you before I think that um God created man and God created woman and I think unfortunately in America's schools today we are teaching things that conflict with that understood thank you Mr bler yes he miss Dugan uh you've worked on committees I've just heard you and to not to keep beating up this question but give me an example of uh working on a committee where your opinion or the decision on that committee went against you and how you handled that situation oh my goodness it's the reason why I'm asking this it's very important to me because I'm on a committee of five and we don't agree all the time but you have to kind of agree to disagree and be civil and and I just want to hear how you handled the situation like that you know I haven't been a school board member in a little over 20 years now so it's a little hard to remember I mean like with the budget um uh the two times it was not the last two budgets I voted on but maybe you know the one out of the last three or four I I voted no on um a certain topic and I mean it's my my right as a school board member you know not to vote in favor of that that and um I didn't go out and campaign to defeat it um I didn't make a statement as far as what I disagreed with but I disagreed with some of the spending increases um you know I think we have to be very very careful with our budgets I believe that we need to go back and look at them line by line and really evaluate what it is that we have in our schools you know as a school board member I saw programs that were implemented um this was going to be the latest and the greatest fix to spelling and um and then after a few years oops all of a sudden another program came in and you know those those things need to be evaluated by the department supervisors and and your um those people in our districts to make sure that it is a program that's going to be beneficial to all our students I'm sorry if I no no no I just you seem like a strong woman and uh you know I'm listening to your answers and uh I just hope that if something you just wouldn't uh embarrass the committee or a board because they don't agree with what you agree with because you have some strong opinions which is your it's your right to have that so I respect it anyway thank you you're welcome any other questions all right thank you Mr thank you very much you have a lot of very C able candidates I know it'll be a difficult decision for you and I'm very pleased to know that we have so many good people that came out to serve thank you thank you all right next up we have Bethany Rogers good evening go yourself and give us your background questions Bethany Rogers uh my background I am a Plymouth South graduate class of 2024 every uh school committee election appointment season I think I'm going to be the youngest and then someone swoops in last time it was Hunter this time so um happy to know that I'm not uh I am a practicing attorney um on Cape Cod my office is right in Dennis uh mostly do litigation um the background educationwise in um contracts and uh legal transactions murgers and Acquisitions is my actual concentration from law school um I do not currently practice that a lot of people uh when I graduated law school during covid not all lowed to murgers and Acquisitions but there was a lot of crime so I I do a fair amount of uh criminal defense and family law um in terms of background for the purposes of school committee I did serve um on the advisory and finance committee for a little shy of three years um I've also worked in the juvenile court system with with children um both involved in the uh delinquent side and the care and protection side of uh of the juvenile justice system and um I'm an advocate every day that I go to work thank you we jump into the questions um what do you see is the role of a school Committee Member so I think the role of a school Committee Member is is uh I'd say multifaceted first I think uh School Committee Member is a bridge between the school department administration uh teachers and students and the community and then again between the state and the and the local community and the administration I think it's um important that the school committee balances our community's values um and our school values which may or may not align um I also think that school committee members are policy makers um sometimes we're given the policy and we have to figure out how that policy fits sometimes we have to create a policy to fit the issue that we have um at the heart I think that a school Committee Member is uh someone who's you know willing to engage in a partnership and in leadership um I think it's part of being a team both on the committee as well as with the town with other stakeholders um so I don't know that it fits into one budget other other than someone that can play a role in in multi areas thank you is there a particular issue that motivates you to serve on the committee um I think my biggest desire to serve on the committee is I am um at my core a product of the Plymouth Public Schools um I am a first generation college student uh therefore a first generation law school student um I up until about 8th grade uh I didn't realize that I had some form of math dyslexia wrote my fives backwards I couldn't figure out commas um and the teacher who helped me get through that is sitting in this room tonight um Lisa Murray in the back uh finally in eighth grade taught me where a comma goes um and so I pride myself on having graduated from P myself and I have an opportunity to give back to the district that made me who I am um I don't have children currently I am not an educator I thought I wanted to be my senior year of high school uh freshman year of college I took one education class and I was like nope that certainly is not for me uh I went to law school now I have a background a little bit in policy and um in budgets and I think it's my way to kind of tie back what I thought I wanted to do when I was 18 years old what I'm doing now and give back to the community that gave so much to me excellent um what do you feel are the major challenges currently facing our school district I thought about this question a lot uh all afternoon on my way here um and I think a lot of the the fellow uh candidates have have pointed it out I think our issues within Plymouth are issues you know broad spectrum for public schools uh a finite budget a growingly diverse Community uh students who need more assistance okay now we need you know when I say more assistance maybe it's whatever it is need more assistance but we still have that finite budget so how are we getting there um and I think there's a lot of creativity that could happen um and I think that our issues are not yes there are some that are are Plymouth specific but I think there're more National even Global um so I don't know that there's one particular issue I think back to the election season and that issue at that point was you know the the collective bargaining agreement and and things of that nature and yes that's always Ono but I think that goes back to a finite budget and teacher retention so I think there's going to be issues that pop up every year every week every month and it the issue that's this week could be crisis number one of 365 so I don't know that there's one specific issue that's fair um what principles would guide you your decision- making when it comes to prioritizing the school budget and how would you balance the needs of the district with available resources um so I think when I was thinking about this I think Equity transparency efficiency and long-term sustainability um so we talk a lot about diversity inclusion and what that means um and I think Equity um is a is a huge part so making sure that each of our students are you know getting not the same education because they not all of our students are going to learn the same way um but in equity transparency I think um having been in the advisory and finance committee position having you know seen a lot of the joint budget meetings I think transparency is huge uh the amount of Facebook arguments over where money is being spent um it's all right there but I think that that's a big step in being transparent with the budget um efficiency I think is important um and that ties into a long long-term sustainability um again we might have a crisis that needs to be fixed immediately but how is that going to sustain long term because if you're robbing Peter to PayPal someone's going to have to be paid at the end of the day thank you um what do you see is the number one area that P public school is could improve upon this is another question I thought quite a bit about um and I think it leads back to the transparency y portion um I think that we currently live in an instant gratification World um so for example all things Plymouth does anyone know if there's a snow day today as if they couldn't check the website but I think that um sometimes the way that uh information is being sent out to the community um and not just from the school committee side not just from the town side but in general can be a lot to digest um and meeting the community where they are and a transparent manner um I think is probably the biggest thing for me thank you and lastly from the prepared questions if there was a committee decision made that you not vote in favor of how would you work to support the implementation of that decision um I think a lot of some of my fellow committee members have had had similar um answers and first is learning um you're not always going to come out on top but taking a second to to really learn what the other was um and in doing that finding what my my role is um I might not be the person that should be giving the the whole demonstration to whether it's advisory and finance or the the select board to give the presentation because I might not know enough about it um but finding my role um I do a fair amount of just that every day um I might not agree with what my client wants me to do but at the end of the day I represent my client so I have to get up there and hope my face doesn't turn purple giving whatever argument they want me to give but that's it's not my opinion that matters at the end of the day if if the committee votes one way it's not my feelings that should play a role in moving forward that that ballot measure that measure in any way thank you and I realiz and read questions that I skipped one over so I'll go back to that so you have an opportunity to answer it like everyone else did what ideas do you have for ensuring that the district is prepared to meet the needs of an increasingly divers student population um I think that one of the biggest things I'm a huge proponent of professional development uh that was my senior project out of Plymouth self High School uh I ran a professional development day but um I think professional development including you know trauma informed teaching and cultural um sorry I lost my train of that but um cultural awareness things of that um and I also think that another Committee Member had pointed out another thing that I thought is is starting at a younger age um with some of our uh doesn't necessarily need to be a full lesson plan or a curriculum but starting at a younger age that um you're going to see someone who looks like me who isn't you know I don't wear dresses I wear a suit to court uh I get mistaken I get misgendered all the time and if you start that at a younger age then it's not this big scary thing when you're a freshman in high school and you're it's the first time you're seeing someone who looks like me um and starting that from a younger age and the same thing not necessarily with just gender and you know but socio economic status all of those things are things that can be taught at a younger age when children are so young they haven't developed any preconceived notions so if we give them the opportunity to develop good ones like I'm a great person just because I wear like have my hair short and wear a suit doesn't make any different um I think that's a big step in addressing diversity that's great mwood yes thank you for coming Bethany and thank you for your um I guess continued commitment to this um position I'm going to ask you just a couple questions um you you mentioned the willingness to engage in a partnership um and I want to ask you how would you work to build stronger connections between the school district and the broader Community including parents local businesses and Civic organizations so um I'm a big fan of meeting people where they are um so whether that's you know Facebook whether that's social media of some sort but meeting people where they are and getting them the information and whatever means that that is um I've learned a lot from my career um working with the Indigent population I'd say 60% of my clientele do not speak English um so I have had to meet them where they are I can't expect them to read a document that is completely written in English for someone who's over the age of 18 maybe they read a little bit I have to break that down into something that is a fifth grade reading level um so I'm a big fan of meeting people where they are and just connecting with people um on a personal level I might not have anything in common or think I have anything in common but finding some mutual connection to build that partnership and back to the kind of social media portion because I'm going to be candid that's where a lot of the bickering happens but being able to be that person that's like well that's really not it here's the correct information but knowing once you've given that information if it's not going anywhere then there's like a fine line of I'm not going to change your mind you're not going to change mine but in a respectful manner trying to like get the correct information where it needs to be you you talked about this ensuring transparency so how would you ensure transparency and accountability in the decision- Mak process as it relates to the community as it relates to the district so do things Step One is obviously the meetings are recorded um I have been known to post the link to a meeting uh with the time and date stamp to say why don't you go watch this portion so you can see it doesn't necessarily need to be negative um or condescending in any way but I think step one I think step two is again kind of breaking down some of the the larger chunks of our of our budget or of a of an issue that we're talking about into like a snippet I think we're still in that instant gratification mode if we break it down into okay here's the budget and I'm being factious but we spent a quar of a million dollars on toilet paper last year like that is where our money is going and maybe it kind of helps people realize that okay we're not just throwing money at whatever the Hot Topic of the week is thank you Mr KY thank you Ms Rogers and I know aspects of the answer of this because I had the opportunity to serve with you on the advisory and finance committee and you alluded to it as well but I asked everybody else I'm going to ask you what if any experience do you have preparing or evaluating a budget in either the public sector such as Municipal Finance or in the private sector like a private business um so as I did allude to I did uh just shy of three years on the advisory and finance committee so two budget Cycles beyond that I um have I do work somewhat get to use my concentration in uh transaction merges and acquisition so there are is some budgeting in terms of that um do a fair amount of family law I have to look at you know taxes and and budgets and kind of make all of the numbers fit so do have a little bit of public sector a little bit of private sector thank you Mr bler so Beth I have I have to ask you this question I asked you know on on a committee you've been on committees advisory and finance how are you going to handle a situation if you're on school committee and something doesn't go your way and you have problems there's some negative things in that you think uh you know similar to what happened on advisory and finance and I don't mean to I'm not trying to embarrass you but uh will you be able to handle it yes differently than what happened so I just I understand what you're saying to be clear I did not uh resign from advisory and finance because I came out on the losing side um there were probably On Any Given night five or six issues that I came out on the losing side of not necessarily but I didn't always always come out on The Winning Side I resigned from advisory and finance committee because of the lack of decorum and I find and um I don't typically make statements about that I found that particular meeting to be extremely uncomfortable as did the presenters which is why I chose to leave I didn't necessarily have an issue with the ACT actual substance um but the lack of decorum and so having watched and listened to many of the the school committee meetings um I think it's a different Dynamic than what was occurr uring at advisory and finance um and I do think in part of my reason like my reasoning to leave is was not the actual substance it was what was happening at the meetings okay so it's the lack of decorum from The Advisory on finance yes I don't know if you were privy to that meeting but it was pretty horrible uh the presenters that presented to that meeting said that they've presented across multiple towns uh in Massachusetts and have never been treated that way okay so you you're comfortable that this is a much more there's much better decorum in this room right here um I think that it's a different we're dealing with a a different population so if it changes if something happens how are you going to handle it um I think I'm in a better position than I was you know a year and a half go to say something um I don't think that I felt comfortable on that board at that time I was still I don't want to say fairly new because I wasn't and I'm going to be new here um but it was just not a comfortable position to be in because this is it's an important committee and there a the budget it's a it's a very large budget and uh they need all hands on deck so uh okay thank you Al senson oh Mike oh Mr B thank you um Bethany just back to the um separation of church and state just let us know where you are on that issue I am 100% Pro separation of church and state okay thank you Bethany um I was going to ask you a question about your experience on the fincom totally unrelated to that dialogue that just took place that I have zero knowledge of so be aware of that I have zero knowledge of that dialogue okay and I think you did a very good job answering those questions but my question you spent three years on the advisory and finance committee if were be on this committee and uh you have to vote on our budget and ask questions about our budget having spent three years on the advisory and finance committee is that an asset or a liability when it comes to evaluating our budget um I I think it can be both um I think it's an asset and the fact that I have the budget background and I think that um I don't maybe I don't think it's really a liability I think I can see you know the bigger picture of the entire town budget um but I'm also fairly decent at you know compartmentalizing and forgetting that portion and focusing on on our job which is the school budget um not the entire town budget but I do think um that the town and the school budget are the they're two hands they have to they have to work together so I think having the background of the entire school bud or the entire town budget can be helpful thank you you have any other questions Miss awood yeah I'm just going to expand on that and it's just a question I asked um to um a a previous person so in taking your experience on the advisory and finance um committee um how would you take that and actually balance or attempt to balance the district's immediate needs with the community's financial realities because you are you you're better seated in a sense um to understand what the communities you know Financial realities are and so but also in this spectrum considering what your decisions will how your decisions not only impact the present but the long-term well-being of our students our families and the community so I think that goes back to my like the long-term sustainability idea that I was trying to allude to so I um obviously there's needs for every school in in what is go back to toilet paper right something that we got to pay for um and then prioritizing and you know okay this is an immediate need that we need right now there's you know a broken can lock that's a safety issue and prioritizing those types of things um and then maybe saying okay this is a a five-year issue or or a three-year issue and and seeing how far you can I don't want to say how far you can kick the can because that's not the right word but like can we start planning now for something that we know we're going to need in next year's budget in two to three to four to five years budget um rather than okay this is enough to get us through for right now um because I I think that that's been happening for a long time is like this is what we need um and not saying that I will be the end all Financial Beall of of what we we do need three to five years but I think focusing on you know stop the bleeding in terms of all right let's put a tourniquet on this and then move on to like the next few items I think that um there is seems and I don't know how to put this properly so forgive me there seems to be sometimes this this town vers School vers Town vers school budget um I really think that looking at all of you there's a lot of great minds that we could all work together in a in a more cohesive manner um and I'm not saying that means we're going to make 25 and you're going to make 25 but like working together to to not be okay the Town versus the school because at the end of the day the school is part of the town so I think that that's the the bigger point there Mr KY M Rogers so when you were on the advisory and finance committee you served on budget subcommittees right yes you ever serve on the school budget subcommittee um I did my first year with um Mr Zoli and yourself and you served on over the course of your three years other Budget subcommittees on the town side as well right yes did the um safety like public saf um and then I think that might have been the last one that did was Public Safety twice okay so you're so one thing that the school committee and the select board have been endeavoring to do certainly in the last year is trying to collaborate and work together better in regards to budget planning collaboration things of that nature but you would say I would think it's fair to say that your knowledge of the budgetary issues on both the town and school side um would help you hit the ground running at the school committee in terms of knowing the details of what goes into the towns side's budget realities as well as the school sides budget reality would that be fair to say I think so I think it um recognizing both sides and the needs on both sides kind of I don't want to say makes me a prime candidate but I understand that it's not as like I said black and white on making a 25% cut on the school side and a 25% cut on the town side um so I do think that it it will help me in the long run right and you're aware you know you might not know off the top of your head but the the school committee the school department has 61% of the Town budget the schools the town side rather has 39% of the budget there are unfunded mandates on both sides many of which are on the school side and you're aware of those challenges and those realities I would assume yes and um if we collectively as a as two boards were able to come up with decisions and and plans and strategies to try and alleviate some of those strains on Town Side School side or both um your experience on the advisory and finance committee would prepare you to engage in those discussions in a active manner right from the beginning I think so yeah I mean yes I did do that like I said on the on the school side um been part of the joint budget meetings between both uh school committee and and the town board and I think that experience helps um I'm not going to say that there I might not have questions along the way but I do think that I have the the strong background to kind of put one foot in front of the other and and Jump Right In certainly thank you I have no further question all right thank you Mr Rogers and I know you did endure about an extra 10 minutes of questions from and finally we have Miss Christina Bryant good evening I'd like to just add a disclaimer I'm neurod diverse so it's very important for me to be able to read when necessary I get very nervous um just in this setting at the moment but just wanted to put that out there as well as I have a cough so I may have to drink water frequently all right but good evening all right feel free to introduce yourself and get PR your background great so hello my name is Christina Bryant first and foremost thank you so much for the opper to be here tonight a huge thank you to all the current and past committee members I admire your continued support and dedication also congratulations to everyone who's raised their hand to participate in this effort thank you really for leaning into the future of our Plymouth lifelong Learners Ronan you are definitely one to watch so best and love best of luck in your future endeavors I've lived in Plymouth for 20 years I'm a parents have five children who have all been students in the district three graduates of the system one at North into two from South High School I'm active in the Plymouth Community as a member of the Plymouth Public Schools Dei committee Vice chair for Plymouth no place for hate active volunteer and board member for the South Plymouth Jaguars for over a decade I have a strong background in operations as I am currently a chief operating officer at a shelter in Dorchester for women and children experiencing homelessness I have experienced um for over five years leading Dei efforts for major health insurer that has won multiple Awards both professionally and personally for those efforts I'm certified in Dei practices through crinel um a member of Dei committee for Big Sisters organization of greater Boston graduate of genuity housing equity and homelessness cohorts genuity is a Civic leadership nonprofit that s supports diverse everyday adults to critically evaluate navigate and drive change in community issues I've been twice nominated for their change maker Awards both in 2023 and 2024 I'm a member of the Dei advisory committee for the providers Council it's Formerly Known known as the Massachusetts Council of Human Service Providers it's an association for community- based Human Services agencies in Massachusetts with more than 220 members I'm a co-leader for a national network organization that was created to connect diverse professionals together to develop M mutually beneficial relationships I have provided consultation in Dei practices for both us F skating programs as well as is life science cares in 2023 I was awarded top influential woman in diversity from diversity Global Magazine from my work in Health Equity that's it all right appreciate the background we'll jump into the questions what do you see is the role of a school Committee Member so I've said it before the work is hard and it really takes a collective to get there a school Committee Member to me should be able to help establish clear goals and focus on the needs of the student by being trusted Partners in progress Community collaborators strategic sounding boards and amazing Advocates I think that the combine strengths of the members provide an opportunity for us to really be as Innovative and forward thinking as possible for the community thank you is there a particular issue that motivates you to serve on the committee I would definitely say accessibility and Equity as a parents five children who have all been students in the district I found that depending on what side of town you live on with additional factors in regards to lived experiences provides a different trajectory excuse me for the student I want to continue building on the efforts that I've partnered in through being a Community member of Plymouth Public Schools diversity equity and inclusion committee as well as Plymouth no place for hate to make recommendations and change I also want to be able to just continue to promote all the wonderful opportunities that are available that fames just may not be aware of um there was a a time about a feels like a a year or so ago but it was probably longer than that that there were issues that I W wasn't aware of till someone tapped me on the shoulder so once recognizing that I've tried to be more so an advocate of promoting all things rather than just when things go wrong thank you and what do you feel are the major challenges currently facing our school district so I strongly feel that the 2024 to 2027 strategic plan really lays out many of the challenges in the district nicely it's very transparent and intentional and the challenges are really laid out where it has the assessment for both current needs as well as opportunities for the future success I see the Strategic Focus human Capital Finance and Facilities as being one of the major and most urgent needs with as everyone spoke about budget um cuts taking place in 2024 continued aging infrastructure and the continued Town growth decisions will have to continue to be discussed on the need to do more with less I also see the needs of the multilanguage student growing and the lack of resources is both locally and further out than Plymouth being a real challenge to help address the needs of our community all right following on the last part of your answer what what ideas do you have for ensuring that the district is prepared to meet the needs of a increasingly diverse student population so as mentioned in my introduction I do have a strong background in Dei practices so for over um so during our Retreat Within um the Plymouth Public School diversity committee I offered Dei strategy recommendations on building an internal Dei committee who would be really responsible in ensuring that the work is carried out as it's they part of the SC scope and Dei shouldn't be something that's done off the side of someone's desk it should be baked in with all the policies and work that's being done across the district um by making sure that it is C of all that we do we're really ensuring that all children deserve spaces in their development to be seen heard and welcome we'll be able to empower the adults to lead the changes that they want to see and incorporate their voices into the work we'd be able to leverage best practices throughout the district to ensure we're building ex Equitable access and experiences I would also look for OPP opportunities to build Bridges and really form Partnerships specifically within Plymouth rather than looking to attract from other parts of Massachusetts um it's really been wonderful having the Plymouth Public School Dei committee to have that sh space to really share be able to share the student voice as well as the district voice thank you and what principles would guide your decision- making when it comes to prioritizing the school budget how would you balance the needs of the district with the available resources um I appreciate the approach that the school committee has taken with the past school year budgets really ensuring that the student is first that they're looking for the opportunities to maintain class siiz teachers programming and services trying to be as collaborative and transparent as possible and allocating the resources equitably we need to just communicate as often as possible where we're using facts and data to support any work cuz when we do that really the results would lead to empowerment protection partnership accountability honesty and integrity thank you and what do you see as the number one area that Pou Public Schools could approve um I would say consistency and practice um often what comes up is people speak so specifically to their experience with one school and not recognizing how many schools are within the district and how many of the elementary school or the middle school or the high school level are doing things really well and there's practices that can be adopted and shared with in the other schools so I think that's something that can be approved um I know that there has been some active work to make changes there but again we have a large District so change takes time and I think even just by addressing the fact that change takes time is leaning into being as transparent as possible I recognize from a district perspective Dr Campbell came in at probably the worst time anybody could have transitioned into a rle and navigated something so knew as best as anybody could have ever saw so bouncing back with that with all of the changes that weren't expected as well as the social justice movement that coincided with covid we're catching up and we're navigating something that is very different than the expectation of the board or the superintendent so um yeah I I I think the biggest thing is the communication of change taking time thank you and if finally if there was a committee decision you did not vote in favor of how would you work to support the implementation of that decision so I've display displayed disagreement in previous committee decisions before and really what the way I navigate that is working to express the need to understand the rationale behind the decision that we're making actively listening to other perspectives communicating clearly with stakeholders fostering and executing the decision effectively and then looking for opportunities to positively influence future decisions within the community's framework all while respecting voicing my own concerns and advocating for potential improvements in the future where it's appropriate but it's a collective decision and we stand by the collective decision it's fine to express that you don't agree with something but when you don't agree being able to provide being able to be offered the space to share the why and it is what it is but we stand together as a collective thank you I'll turn it over M of the committee any questions Miss awood thank you for coming um what is your vision for the future of the ply public schools and how do you see the role of the school committee in shaping that Vision I love that um I see the vision where if I lived in South school system and for whatever reason decided to move to North it would be little disruption my child and I will specifically talk to my lived experience I'm biracial I'm raising black children my experience has been different navigating from south to North that should not be the case as one District my child should be able to go from the school that they were previously in and just meet more wonderful people in a new setting but be exposed to the same opportunities the same type of programming the same even School curriculum where it's not going to be a detriment to my child catching up or navigating the change um and I would I share that from a personal perspective because I expect that for all students whatever their lived experience is for them to pick up from one space to the next and have a really great fulfilling love of learning that will take them all the way from high school and Beyond and when I think about us with thinking of attracting a diverse population of teachers that are reflective of the community we serve that's the future we're raising these lifelong Learners who want to raise raise lifelong Learners to come back and be able to pour into the community so I would say that's my my vision thank you Mr keny M Bryant uh what if any experience do you have preparing or evaluating a budget uh either in the public sector such as Municipal Finance or in the private sector such as a private business yeah so in my role as Chief Operating Officer I partner very closely with our Chief Financial Officer to manage our budget in addition to that where our agency is in the process of a multi-million dollar Capital campaign where we're ma managing that budget as well thank you thank you Mr bletzer yes hi Miss Bryant uh how you doing good how are you that's that's uh the comment you made about uh transition from south to North that's kind of concerning to me uh that that that problem uh and uh I know you're in the no place for hate so you must have some ideas how do we solve that that problem how do we because that surprises me and I don't mean to be naive but it really does surprise me that that's that's that's happening well so qu concern one of the things that I really value about being able to literally sit in the middle of this room with school committee on one side and select board on the other is I've been able to to bring concerns to both parties and have those concerns addressed it's wonderful that with no place for hey we have so many participating members from Schoolboard where it's honestly that bridge that I had mentioned before to be able to share that information back and forth the Plymouth um Public School Dei committee to be able to have a forum that offers public Comon and bring things there where um it's directly com connected back to um Dr Rogers and Dr Campbell so I feel confident that by raising my concerns my concerns are actively being addressed so my question is what are your concerns and how do we solve the problem it's a if it's a problem what you what ideas you have some solutions some ideas to get to it I'm just asking because you know how I feel about no place for hate that is a very important committee you you know that you remember that yep and uh so I'd just like to hear because this this is very important so one of the ideas that have come out of that is basically that bridge to be able to bring forward any really active issues that may have happened within the school to no place for hate to be can you be specific what issues I mean it's is I do not feel comfortable in this particular setting bringing it up where I feel like the issues have been actively addressed by the school well next time no place for hate comes in and you come in I want you to answer some of those questions I really because I'm interested I'm not okay okay thank you I will no problem Mr Mone yeah Christina the um the separation of church and state question I had asked everybody else so the luxury of being last I am going to quote Ronin his answer was chef's kiss but I also think it's um important for the opportunity to learn that there's difference in experiences and perspective and that religion is part of one's identity so while we should be able to discuss the basis of respective difference without fear of it being looked at as an infusion of agenda I believe it's important to keep them separate but it's important to acknowledge that if for instance I'll use an example if a child is Jewish and doesn't celebrate Christmas we're making sure that during the holidays we're taking that into consideration versus all things Christmas thank you you're welcome any questions over here all right thank you very much Bri thank you thank you all right thank you all the candidates for going through that uh process so this time we'll move on to the uh selection process so we'll start with uh nominations anybody on the on the joint board is weling to make nomination for any of the six candidates and then we will vote among those uh those nominees so Mr golden thank you Mr chairman uh I'd like to nominate uh Ronan Buchanan second right other nominations M sha I'd like to nominate Bethany Rogers second second all right other Nom Miss Jackson I'd like to nominate Christina Bryant second all right other nominations all right so far we have nomin oh sorry nom Margaret Matthews Margaret Matthews I'll second that all right we have first and seconds for RONA Buchanan Bethany Rogers Christina Bryant and Margaret Matthews any others all right this time we'll vote then we'll do go one at a time uh votes for Ronin Buchanan four what for Bethany Rogers we have three votes for Christina Bryant three no four Miss fourth four who for V for uh point of order question so if you vote for one candidate you vote for vote for another one correct everyone should be voting for one actually I make sure that's the rules there should only be 11 votes here I'm going to withdraw my vote on that last one because I'm gonna go twice otherwise that's what I thought that's what I thought all right so let me confirm so Christina Bryant was three correct was four no actually this is this is complicated these people are very good all talented and I'm really torn between three really good candidates so I'm gon to uh I'm G to vote for uh Christina Bryant okay forth I'll also vote for Christina Bryant me get this back so we start over let's start over all right Ron Buchanan one two three all right you should really let's put our hands up in the it's got right Bethany Rogers one two three all right Christina Bryant one two 3 four five uh mag Matthews all right we have no candidates who' have gotten a majority but however I don't know the runoff will do much as we we have Christina Bryant with five votes Bethany Rogers with three and Rona banon with three adding to 11 so we can do another round but I I don't know that it'll change so do you entertain any any lobbying I will entertain lobbying at this point because otherwise we're going to be we share with the committee my reason for supporting Christina Bryant and I'll give you that I felt that she recognized the complexity of being on the school board in some of her statements was very clear to me that she recognized that she you don't get stuck on one issue or she sees it's a comp it's a complex issue she also uh communicated as many philosophers have said it's always better to be curious than judgmental and in her style of listening it's pretty clear to me that she is curious to know what the other side is saying about a particular issue Michelle um just to lobby for Bethany Rogers I I not to Discount the other candidates because I have personally worked with Christina Bryant and I think she's amazing um and Ronan you are very very well spoken and I was very impressed by you um but Bethany Rogers was the only one to actually run in the regular election and I think that that matters um I think that her background with the finance committee and her commitment to the town um is really important and showing her commitment by running in the regular election I think is a very important piece thank you thank you Mr Gold thank you Mr chairman uh is that ronan's Mom in the audience hi there uh you should be real proud of your son um he was uh thoughtful in all of his responses uh I think even the uh on the Fly questions he knocked it out of the park um he obviously knows the material very well he's knowledgeable about not only the the uh the role of the school committee but about local government and really this this the state level politics that are play here uh for for the school district um he was articulate uh he spoke very clearly U and very uh concisely um and and most of all I think he was passionate uh about this work and and I think um for my own experience as a student uh I had some uh incredible mentors who uh really helped to um uh encourage my my own passions and and I think uh ronan's a testament to this school system um and I think we should we should absolutely support his passion for involvement in local government Mr bler so I'm going to use the running for election I think it's it's an asset to Ronin that he hasn't run and that he's not going to run made ronam wants to volunteer for the next four months he wants to bring some new energy to this uh committee uh and some new ideas from the inside what I heard tonight there's some great ideas and he knows because he's there he's in school every day and he knows what's going on and and I can tell from the big smile on his principal back there that that this kid's a kid that gets it so I think they have him for the next four months sitting with you folks giving you some insight information and some ideas would be an asset to this board and he's not going to be worrying and concentrating on running and making decisions that might help him win an election he's not going to do that he's going to he's going to stand up for what he believes in and just like he does at school he believed that the phones were were which which I know and he's absolutely right they're a detriment to school there's other things too that are detriment to school but he wasn't afraid to to to talk about that you know afraid of his peers so I think I think you get a chance to put somebody on this Committee just for four months with ideas and he's going to move on to yield or har it or wherever the heck he's going and he's going to do and hopefully he comes back he'd may be the first mayor of Plymouth maybe who knows so anyway that's why I'm supporting that I think this is a good vote and and again miss Bryant no place for hate I we appointed her she's great there was woman the woman left I thought was fantastic so we had good candidates but I think this this he's the right guy for this committee Mr KY right person excuse me so um I appreciate the efforts of all the candidates um I Mr Buchanan for as young as he is he he's certainly very qualified in terms of his answers um my only concern with Mr Buchanan is that he's only going to be on the the committee for four months by the time he gets his bearings he's going to be off the committee um with Miss Bryant um I think the answers were very good I appreciated the uh the thoughtfulness of that um but the differentiating factor for me is Miss Rogers is ready to go from day one she has three years of experience in Municipal Finance members of The Advisory and finance committee your first years really getting your bearings learning how this form of government works learning how this form of Finance works even if you have private financial sector private sector Financial experience how Municipal Finance works is a unique animal in and of itself and M Rogers uh lived experience uh demonstrates to me knowing her work from having worked with her on the fincom that if she's appointed today next week she's going to walk into this room and be ready to perform at a high level that the other candidates are going to need time to build up to uh and I think this is an important committee Michelle Badger left large shoes to fill and I think the best person to fill those shoes is Bethany Rogers uh so for those reasons because of her experience because from day one she's going to be able to move this committee forward in the ways that it needs to and she understands the challenges on both the town side and the school side which is something that we all have been talking about over the last year in a way that with the exception of Miss Shaw who also served on the fincom and Mr Morgan whose position I actually took on the fincom when he first came to the school committee uh many other people do not have that L uh experience uh and I think it's a valuable asset so for those reasons I will be supporting Miss Rogers and I encourage you to do the same M Jackson um I agree that I think we have three very strong candidates um my reservations for Ronin are the same as Mr ky's that I feel like this is a long game and while I was really impressed with what he had to say there's a lot that happen there's a short amount that happens in four months and there's a lot that happens over years and so um I feel like by the time he got up to speed in the Committees he'd be leaving um and I loved what M Rogers had to say also um I think she is definitely a strong candidate I voted for her in the last election um but I really liked the no Nuance that Miss Bryant brought to not only the diversity but also the budgetary and I really appreciated her last answer when it came to integrating and the thoughtfulness that she put into integrating all perspectives I really thought that solidified for me my feelings towards somebody who really is vested in working with multiple different peoples on multiple different layers and so while it's a hard differentiation between Miss Rogers and Miss Bryant my vote will be for Miss Bryant Mr Morgan um yeah um the three finalists are terrific um I appreciate um Miss Bryant's work um on a place for hate and discussion Dei um I also appreciate the fact that U Miss Rogers ran for school committee and also um served on advisory and finance and has that perspective but um I'm really advocating for Ronin one I served with him on the school council South High School um but just his answers were concise I know there's not many adults that gave better more concise and more informed answers to questions than he did as a senior um and yes he's only going to be if he got a point on before four months but whoever gets appointed has to run for re-election anyway so they may not do that and these four months are going to be the busiest four months of the school year um coming up um so I don't think that's necessarily A detriment and then we can have a um um candidates can pull papers and run for election for the full term um and I just you know in terms of um talking about um um personal money management uh I think a couple board members had mentioned that's that could be um that's very important he brought that up as well um also supporting keeping mcast got voted out but replacing it with something I think that's very important too so I think he has a grasp of the issues uh my only concern is whether he would have to um recuse himself for some votes depending on his position being in high school I'm not sure about that um that being said I'm an advocate and I would I support uh ronan's uh ceny for the appointment all right I will add my my my my my two cents so I don't disagree with anything that was said about run for one extremely impr impressed my one reservation is just the lack of um longevity as Mr KY um described these this job is not easy it takes probably that long to know you know to have a half a clear what you're doing and then to immediately replace that person to me in as Mr BG is obviously whoever gets this position may not win may not run or may not win re-election anyway but knowing that U Mr and is kind of already out in May um is my one reservation there when I think about um my support from Miss Rogers is for three main reasons one what M said I heard being ready on day one I think that's you know huge that learning curve is big and I think she would have much less of a learning curve the budget experience is massive but what puts it over the edge for me is is when I look at the composition of the existing uh committee the six of us or even our you know member that just left she had something that's unique that we don't have one she would be by far the the youngest member as wood Ron and if we if were were elected so no question there but when I think about just that her personal experience we have six you know you know heterosexual people here having somebody on the committee that finally represents the lgbtq student body of this District which we've never had I think is huge um you know having somebody that can represent and speak for that community and someone that's actually pretty you know much closer in age to our students particular high school students I think would be big and that's why I I think about you know and it's not a disrespect to Ron nor to miss briyan who would be completely you know great um members when I think about if we have if I look at the six people we already have who add something that's completely different different flate you know flavor to me it's Miss Miss Rogers so that's why I strongly uh support her so I think everybody spoke on who they supported not sure that any Minds were changed but we'll go through the uh vote again through the for the three people that had votes so first up votes for Ron and Buchanan one two three we're at still Bethany Rogers one two three we're at still and that leaves I presume five for Christina Bryant one two 3 four five hold that Lobby and work out all that Lobby So Def M KY and uh Mr kinle you guys go through the appointment process quite often on the select board any suggestions for how you would uh move on from here short of a majority that we obviously have one one candidate leading well we have a sub run off yeah yeah yeah thought we do a sub run off between the two threes and you vote between between I thought this was Mr Buchanan and Miss Rogers and then that winner of that Miss Bryant all right let's see that so everyone gets one vote you will be voting for either Rony beanan or Bethany Rogers in order to do a runoff between the winner of that and Christina Bryant if we're going to reduce it to two people then I want to Lobby again that's that's my fellow committee members in in in U in voting for a uh High School senior who answered all of the questions very well very articulate uh Mr he understands all of those questions but I do not believe that he has the maturity or the depth necessary to sit on this board Miss award just a point of order I think um just in terms of the last time we went through this process I don't recall runoffs we did a runoff and the person that won got the majority so yeah I don't call having Liv through it I can specifically okay I just I don't recall it I'll just make a blanket blanket statement um and this just is to an addendum to what Mr Golden said when he talked about um the success of the public school committee um both um this doesn't change my vote though both Bethany and Ronan are successes of this public school committee um of of this District um and and I'm you know coming up to this process tonight always ensure as to who from the community will you know um come out and say yes we will um we will make a commitment in terms of um giving back um to the community and I was happy to see the amount of people who decided to put their names in the ring and and then for those to come back um who who did this process before um and and has have this continued commitment um my um and so I just I just wanted to be you know clear about that I I'm not going to Lobby I've I've made my decision um but I just wanted to be clear as to you know and just make that statement that these are both of them are successes as it relates to um our community agre I would like to Lobby Please Mr bler so let's take po we get we're going to have a chance to take politics out of this this committee for this for this appointment if we appoint Ronan Buchanan Ronan Buchanan has got four months before he graduates and moves on he's not going to run in the May election he's already said that uh so he'll be able to it make decisions not worried about whether he's going to get elected and made and that's a big thing it makes makes a big difference I listen to his answers and yeah he is Young he is Young and but his answers were were they weren't general answers they were very specific he had ideas I mean he he come out and and he said things that made a lot of sense a lot of sense to me so uh I think this kid is Head and Shoulders uh his maturity level it it's incredible and he's been he's been working in the state of for a few years volunteering you know he he he's he's the whole package and I'll tell you right now we should be proud to have if he sits up there for four months it shows an example of what can what our public schools are producing and and he can sit up there and I'm going to tell you I'm I'm going to make a prediction that he's going to be very helpful to to the rest of you folks here if we appoint him because he's going to have some new fresh ideas he's going to know because he knows what's going on in the school he knows what the problems are maybe the budget stuff but he's involved the state house uh he he's worked on some budgets so he's been around it you know he's 18 but he's uh he's a lot you know he's got a lot of experience for an 18y old so I think it this is a chance to let Bethany and all these other folks let them run for school committee in May appoint this young man let's get a few months out of him before he leaves to go into bigger and better things and let him uh you know be an asset to to this to the school committee I I it's a no-brainer for me it really isn't let me say one more thing pleas in the next 3 months a high school senior could get a telephone call from an Irate parent whose son or daughter is not graduating because they didn't meet the requirement and that parent is irate with School administration as going to talk to a high school senior about whether or not their child meets criteria well I think you should have asked that question Mr Dr senson of the the candidate and see how he answered that question you might be surprised how we answered that question so if that concerns you it does because i' I'd be surprised if he didn't answer that uh perfectly right Mr golden thank you Mr chairman in due respect to you Mr uh Dr senson um this young man's standing up here and saying he's ready to take that challenge on so I think it shows a level of maturity that you're discounting um in your earli statements Mr KY so I'm going to continue to support Miss Rogers but it's not because I question the maturity or the depth of Mr Buchanan uh forget a senior in high school there are senior citizens that don't have the maturity and the depth to serve on the school committee uh so um I just want to make that clear I I think um what I said earlier about the the onboarding process and the four months is my con concern something personal I'm sure you're going to do great things and and and uh have a great experience in the next uh chapters of your life so thank you for your willingness to serve and subjecting yourself um it's if you don't get it don't take it personally all right assume all the lobbying is completed we'll do a vote between Ron and beanan and Bethany Roger so there should there should uh everyone should be voting once for either one so I'll take hands first for R Buchanan one two three four and votes for uh Bethany Rogers one two three four five all right seven all right so Bethany wins that runoff that puts a runoff between Bethany Rogers and Christina Bryant R thank you very much for going through this I think any You know despite some of the comments I think we would have been very fortunate to have you on the committee I don't think any one of the 11 of us would have you know minded you on the board so all right we move on to final round between Bethany Rogers and Christina Bryant so first up for votes for Bethany Rogers one two three four all right for complete to say Christina Bryant 1 two three four five six all right s M Bryant congratulations Mr chairman uh just as a point of order I abstained from voting actually me I I I vote no on that on that you V okay thank you six yeah so six to four thank you yeah thank you all right Miss Bryant you are now on the school committee I think that's why I don't she but all right um moot yeah motion to adjourn the joint session motion to adj join the joint session second all those in favor I I motion to close the select board meeting second moved motion by Mr KY second by Mr Mahoney Mr Golden yes Mr bletzer yes Mr Mahoney yes Mr KY yes and myself yes thank you for having us happy New Year to everybody we'll take a five minute uh recess e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e thank youbody for sitting through that it was a great great process and I think we we have a great new uh addition to the uh board so we will continue our regular uh agenda so first up I think we have uh where we at local competency determination graduation requirements so thank you we're gonna wait for Kristen to just get the slides up for one second so as Kristen's getting that ready as people know um in the fall election of 2024 the Commonwealth of Massachusetts voted to discontinue um the Massachusetts competency determination known as mcass um and kicked it back to the local level for us to determine um competency determinations at our local high schools I have both of our principles here although Mrs fry doesn't want to come up because she was at a hockey game um and so she does you were both at a hockey game and very cold so but they are here to help us answer any questions that people have with regard to um the update on competency determination I believe it was Louis at our last meeting had said there's two sort of pieces to this is one is the current class of 2025 um as they're approaching graduation very quickly but then also moving forward um what does a competency determination look like in Plymouth Public Schools there's also been convers at the state level of you know could we use mcast as a competency determination and we've been advised by legal counsil um that that would override sort of our Democratic process um and so they have advised against that um Dr Campbell put together a couple of slides just to go through so people understand um what we mean when we say competency determination um remote control oh this all right because it's not going all right y sorry there we go oh yeah it's working um so this first slide really just kind of talks about what how the language changed um so as you see sort of in the middle of this paragraph they struck out measured as measured by assessment instruments described in section one which was known as the mcast and instead replaced it with by satisfactory completing coursework that has been certified by the students district and showing Mastery of the skills competencies and knowledge contained in the State academic standards and curriculum Frameworks in the areas measured by the mcast high school test described in section one administered in 2023 and any other additional areas determined by the board um again this sort of just reiterates um what districts must set for the competency determination for the class of 2025 um I'm underestimating how challenging this is when you're looking at your screen and the other screen at the same time um for the class of 2025 competencies must be certified by the district which is our meeting tonight um this competency determination can be achieved by satisfactory completing coursework that has been certified by the students District as showing Mastery of the State academic standards so in pth when we on our list serves and things like that that we've been talking with other districts we're actually in a really good place um because our handbook does outline our academic requirements so this just talks about our promotion requirements so in grade 10 grade 11 and 12 what is required for credits and this next slide um talks about what the course requirement for graduation is so an academic student English is 20 credits which equates to four years of English social studies is 15 which is uh three years of social studies which includes US History 1 and US History 2 mathematics which has to include Algebra 2 is four years science is three years and physical education is 10 credits so I don't know if the High School principles have any they're thrilled else say about that no okay and health education is also yep and students are required to take PE each year they're also required to take health education and freshman and sophomore year and they're required to take math and English each year that they're in high school which equates to the 20 credits four years one thing that I think is unique to Plymouth um a lot of school districts have done away with final examinations with the on when mcast was brought onto um the scene in Plymouth we continue to have final exams in all grades 9 through 11 and those are um created by each department um so it's consistent across high schools math Ela science social studies so we also talked a little bit at our last meeting about Mass core and as Dr Campbell said um this would create a a hiring situation for us and would increase um increase our budget exponentially so if we looked at Kristen I might need help thank you um so this is the mass core framework this is a recommendation from the Department of Education um it's not required by law but it is sort of a framework for U Massachusetts High School's program of study so four units of English which Plymouth has four units of math um which Plymouth has science is three units social studies three units World Language we do not have a World Language requirement physical education as required by law that's consistent in pth um we don't have an art requirement um and then any other additional core courses so we're pretty close the one piece would be um the World Language requirement which again we would have to hire World language teachers and I think everyone can speak to the fact that they're very challenging to find right now and I think the reason we the overwhelming majority of our students do take foreign language particularly those students that are going off to college we do have students that have um language-based disabilities that choose that have a hard time with um language so sometimes they will opt out of taking a foreign language in the high school have experienced difficulty initially perhaps in Middle School um we also have of um some students in through Vocational Technical that may not take those courses as well but um over 80% of our students actually are taking Mass core uh classes um a lot of the kids that are not um might be our English language Learners who aren't taking those foreign language classes in addition to as they're learning English in school um in addition to some students that perhaps are you know are exceptions because of their IPs um or students that are going off to a trade and choose not to take it after after a year or so so it's the recommendation of the administrative team that we continue with our program of studies and graduation requirements as they currently are written did that but I think it's on the next slide oh I think it's only questions oh there is one more slide yep n Go Back one that darn control I so as Dr Rogers said our our competency is determined by that language and that statute is successful completion of grade 10 English um successful completion of Algebra 1 and geometry uh before they graduate to reach that competency and successful completion of biology because that's the tested subject that we did in 20123 with our students so um that is the recommendation of central Administration as well as the High School principles um sort of await what desie says to await what the board of Elementary and secondary say as well because we have no doubt that there may be some revisions additions uh changes forthcoming so to change anything now when we overwhelmingly meet those requirements keep in mind they're they're still taking mcast they're still taking the test um they're still taking the courses that are reflected in mcast and they have to pass those classes in order to graduate so we do feel strongly that um currently based on the prior statute you know with the exception of passing mcast that our courses if the students again successfully complete those courses meaning that they pass those courses um that that is again we're only looking at this graduating class that's what the Department of Education has asked us to do just the class of 2025 not for 26 27 these are things that there will be more information as I said at prior uh committee meetings forthcoming from the department and there could be something coming from um the Board of Education as well so it's really um not to get ahead of anything um in the anticipation that there may be com something forthcoming to us Dr I think an important piece too is that this is in parallel or in addition to the existing course requirements of graduation the credit requirements it's not like this is all you need to do to graduate they still have to do all those other things as well absolutely so the graduation requirements will not change so everything that's in there all the credits that Dr Rogers talked about um successful completions you know that's well beyond that I mean that when you add up all those credits that's a small fraction of that there so there's a lot more that our students are taking and participating in and um we offer a rich curriculum um there's a lot of opportunities um some of our students um you know I mean our AP participation is incredible our Vocational Technical program is incredible we have a lot of students that double up in Junior and Senior year and they're going off and and they're in the trades and they're working you know um on sites so to take some of the additional courses or to add anything right now would be a challenge for us because we'd have to consider their schedules and now we're taking away something or adding something which is going to interfere with their program of studies so yes back to your original question though Mr Pano it's um it's this is just for again it's not a graduation competency it's 10th grade competency mcast was never um you know a high school competency test it was really a grade 10 competency and this is what we're recommending as our competency determination questions Michelle so just to reiterate so these are all things obviously seful successful completion of grade 10 English is self-explanatory but Algebra 1 geometry and biology are all things that a 10th grade student would have completed yes right okay okay yes and if they don't complete it by 10th grade they may be taken into the junior year or their senior year so they still have until yeah they as long as they passed it by this there's multiple opportunities for students that may struggle with that there always has we' had courses we've run additional courses for students that of um you whether it's English or science um math certainly um to to make sure that they are successful with um these these competency skills and these standards so yes this would be um again this is just for this current senior class and yes they' all have an opportunity perfect thank you you're welcome M Jackson um when we look at the things that we've talked about tonight um and we look at comparisons with other states of the same magnitude how does this compare as far as I I don't I know that we talked about states that have gotten rid of requirements that are less comparable in their standards to what we have but how does this relate to states that are at a comparable level I'm sorry how does which piece compare the require ments that we're talking about yeah I think um you know when I yeah um I think Massachusetts put mcast aside I think Massachusetts has a very comprehensive and Rich curriculum or in terms of expectations and I think Plymouth certainly does as well um I you know getting rid of the test that's a personal decision for for the voters um I am concerned how students will Faire with the test now that it's not a graduation requirement but that I again I think there'll be something forthcoming from the state that will kind of put the pressure on us um in that regard but I do think that one thing that Massachusetts has always prided itself in is having high expectations and I I don't think that that will go away um and I certainly think that Plymouth um in comparison to the state there the common wealth um is right up there in terms of expectations Miss awood just going back to the the mass core um requirements in terms of this um Second Language piece um the World Language piece you were mentioning that the difficulties arise with some students and if you could just complet just um reiterate what what you stated yes so we there in in my experience and I'm sure the principles can speak to this too um I I remember as a director of special education being involved in meetings with students who had language based disabilities where it was very challenging uh for students to to participate in foreign language um and that was in a district that had that as a requirement we would exempt them from that because there was an option you could do that um so when I talk about the percentage of students again roughly 82 we're about 81 82% of our students that meet all this MTH core and that's not just World Language it's the Arts it's the additional courses it's um everything that's included there but um it's really we have students that are either going vocational that will double up or students with dis language-based disabilities that perhaps will opt out of you know that as an option in their program of studies at high school I don't know language based disabil so there's language based dis disabilities and there are also student that are in terms of English being yes correct all right so I just want a clarification because when I heard it initially you were mentioning um students who did um speak a different language and philosophically we are essentially introducing Another World Language to them oh yes yeah right so they're they're really exempt from they're not really factored into that number in terms of mass core they are taking a second language yes they're multi lingual Learners already yes yeah by definition so it's really um in terms of they may not be taking a third language I should say in school because they're taking English so it's not necessarily Equitable but I just move like not necessarily at this time in 2025 but looking forward I I looked at that and I thought to myself you know years ago that was a requirement I know that even when I and I don't know necessarily the foreign language the word language yes yeah um um when I graduated high school it was a requirement to have a foreign language so it's interesting you know to see that that's something that so for the like El students for example like we'll have kids who move in um who have graduation requirements they probably came in maybe with Brazil uh like they took biology in Brazil and they took another class in Brazil but they have to have a certain number of minutes because they're a beginner e and they wouldn't be able to fit the world language into their schedule but they are getting language service so a lot so so a lot of times when you see when you look at this it looks like they're missing out on something but really it the kids who who are in that not in included in the 82% our kids are maybe you're doing a tech uh program because they're focusing on a skill instead of taking the world language for the college requirement or an e kid to maximize their number of minutes to maximize their El minutes uh for the beginner number of minutes that they have to have so a lot of times it's not that they're just not accessing that stuff and we're leaving them out of it it's because they're you usually replacing it with something that's within our curriculum kind of like to the curriculum stuff that Dr Campbell mentioned I apologize for my attire north south it was it wasn't just a Bruins game it was a north south TI game by the way the rink was freezing tie overtime game we love a tie go Panthers and Eagles we sorry um but I'm I get cold quicker than him um the the thing that has changed so much as Dr Campbell mentioned is years ago we had open blocks in schedules so when we transition probably when you were in high school Ashley um when we transitioned to an 8 period schedule the reason behind that whenever we did that Chris that was in like 200 that was 14 13 around there we did that for a number of reasons it's better for kids the use of time because in every other day schedule but we also did to add another section into the day because of the breath of offerings and at that time we raised the requirements to the four years of math four years of English three years of science three years of social studies and the kids who go further I was a Spanish teacher so I I love the world languages but the kids who go on It's usually the College Bound student because the colleges do require the two years but they are getting one year usually in the middle school out of the way um but what we have with biom if you think of all our offerings biomed the APS Kids double up in science all the time um we we're letting them follow their passions so that's where those blocks that used to be extended study halls went which is fantastic so we have no unassigned students and our graduation credits went up so within the again the the historical perspective of when we aligned the mcast with the curriculum Frameworks that raised the bar the test raised the bar but the academic programming went up so what's great is that our our courses are so high level that they're taking they never took through Algebra 2 that changed about six or seven years ago I can't remember the years right now but so the level is there and they're also going through Algebra 2 all kids Tech kids regular kids are all embedded together which was a big shift about 10 years ago so they doing that but then they also which is amazing have the opportunity to do co-op to do you know AP Spanish to do um to work on an outside job um to go into Cad and work in an architect firm on the side so I think we think of it in eight they all have eight periods and they would like to have 10 periods some of these kids like that's the the constant why our guidance council is work so hard that's the constant shifting if they are on an IEP they have a study skills program so those eight blocks are the magic and theen that would the slide that was shown earlier of the actual credits to get to graduation are the 135 which they have so many a year but then they fill the other blocks up in addition to those requirements if that makes sense so um but it it did all align back when we the changing in the schedule was huge when we added the the vpa students I mean if they're in an advanced course there's so many options in that program of studies which is is great so and the science classes all have the labs built in as well so that's a big piece so Dr s yeah this question is because I'm just confused so uh we have 135 credits that's a requirement four years of English four years of math four years of uh what's the other one of getting uh English math English math three years of social studies three years of science lab science right right so we have those 135 credits all right what I'm confused about is the slide about class 2025 they still have to meet all those we're not we're not asking you to vote on a new graduation requirement I want to be clear on that so this graduation requirement we just share that so the community understands that we have a rigorous graduation requirement we our students are expected to take a number of courses and a number of credits in order to get promoted and to graduate um as a senior um from this District um with mcast going away as a graduation requirement for competent y as Dr Rogers said the state is saying as a district you need to vote on what your competency determination will be in addition to graduation which is already okay um for the purpose of the class of 25 so our recommendation as Administration is to have the competency determination for the class of 2025b um to have successfully completed up to grade 10 English to successfully complete biology and to also successfully complete Algebra 1 and geometry again that's um by the end of this year for this graduating class and that's not just the gra that's not the graduation requirement that's the competency determination portion of graduation in in in stating that the the social studies requirement gets dropped off as a as part of Competency you well never it never was it never it never was they correct it very well may come like down the road I I wouldn't be surprised if we see something down the road but the us became a two-year State requirement us and fette two years of US history and fette are the true state requirements but obviously we have well above and beyond that but they have the kids do a year World lit in great world world history than they do us one and us2 but a lot of kids in the the reason for the three and threeyear science and social studies a lot of kids double up on social studies because they love social like Ronan has taken every social studies class we offer um some kids love science so they go they take their bio the class that Chris mentioned the compy determination class but then they go off into chemistry organic chemistry the physics all that so well you don't have to pass four years of it they still take the classes based on their interest level if they interest in going into the Sciences or that so but what I was saying is I wondering why US History isn't part of the competency but you're saying it's probably going to come I I would imagine that something will come and and other things may come as well so again we have graduation requirements which we're not voting on which this board has already supported in years past which Mrs FR mentioned which is all those courses and all those credits the competency is a small piece of that larger puzzle so what we're looking for is a Rec a support to support the recommendation um of that core competency to be the algebra one the geometry the biology and grade 10 English for the graduating class which is when they took the MC so take the mcast at the end of biology they take the mcast at the end essentially of geometry so you try to get those two courses in and then they take the test anyway so when it's in grade 10 it's difficult because we're talking about two different things so the state requires you to have kids take specific courses like fed but the mcast wasn't measuring which course you took it was measuring if you knew the material well enough and so the Gap now for mcast is how do you make sure that the kids have learned that material um and so they never really required necessarily them to take biology they could take physics or they could take engineer or something like that um we are G every freshman takes biology and if they pass that that's going to be our District's determination that they have you know successfully shown that they know biology content and it arguably since we're all kind of rushing across the state to try to figure out what this answer is we're all kind of doing something really similar to that is making sure that the kids have passed these classes to be very honest I think the the teachers and the kids in the classroom are pretty good at measuring that I think more kids will actually meet the standard uh by having them just pass the class so yeah and as Dr Rog just mentioned we have exam final course exams that are consistent within both high schools in those areas as well so in the the core areas they're all the same exam and a course exam as well that's right thank you so um the irony is I was actually the first class that experienced getting mcast voted in and what are we going to do with this graduating class so it's ironic the first item I'm talking about um I just wanted to say as a piece of historical knowledge one of the um challenges is exactly what this discussion is facing today mcast was being introduced when's the right time to introduce it and if students hadn't taken mcast what would be their graduation requirements as well as the comp completion components and I would just say I think that this is a choice that would make a lot more Equity across the district um because if we decide to if you would move the gold poost we may be losing kids along the way within months of graduation and that is not fair all right so this is an info action item do we have any motions SE I'll move to um implement the administration's recommendations for the competency determination we I get that all right since Miss Bryant doesn't have system access we'll do uh roll call uh vote so miss Bryant yes yes sha yes M Haywood yes Mr Morgan yes Mr Jackson yes Mrs Jackson Dr senson yes and I vote Yes so unanimous thank you thank you very much we'll we'll put that up I think we have to put that on our website now that's been finalized too so appreciate you uh go Panthers go Eagles go home all right next up we have reports and proposals from the superintendent oh yes EXC promise to be brief it's been a long night um just a sort of update now that the msba is um put us into eligibility or um process which we're very excited about for a new Elementary School uh we attended a orientation on December 18th msba board of directors voted to invite us in as you know to the eligibility period based on our statement of interests uh and the msba staff recommendation so this vote initiates a 270-day period for us to complete certain prelim preliminary requirements so just to kind of mention these to you so we will be providing a certification of the district's understanding of the rules and execution of um this process um which this the the school committee myself and the select board will need to sign we'll have that coming uh to this committee forthcoming uh forming a school building committee and submitting the membership to msba uh completing an educational profile um and then giving a summary of The District's existing maintenance practices we also have to um certify um there's a certification of design enrollment for the proposed project so they look at msba works with us to look at upcoming Housing Development student migration patterns um School openings any closures there is someone who's actually applying for a private school that may come before this committee we haven't heard from them in months um but that's a possibility uh potential School cons consolidation space deficien they look at all of this and they really determine what our enrollment could be in a school um that's a process that we've had to go through with the high schools um once we do that and get in confirmation and msba vote um we would and then get the funding uh approved for a feasibility study we enter that feasibility stage we do have um an article at town meeting for the April town meeting for the feasibility study that we've already have that language up you know so we're ahead of the game in that regard so um I think we'll be able to expedite this 270-day process much quicker than um much quicker than that uh just a reminder the FY 26 budget presentation to the Joint board board will be uh next week uh January 14th uh we'll we'll be presenting Dr blaz Del and I will present the proposed 26 budget to the boards the presentation will take place at 6m at Town Hall in the Great Hall um if you could let us know if you expect to to attend um in person or remotely I believe that Miss lisov may have sent a communication out regarding that so that they can make arrangements in in the hall for everyone who's in attendance um be they're also beginning with a celebration for uh Matt Mur at 5:00 um everyone's welcome to attend in the 1820 courthouse so um um if if you plan on attending that let me know too and I'll let I'll let the um the town know so that will be for an hour before um before the joint meeting which starts at 6 and then just La lastly uh again real brief our Saturday meeting is well it's a few weeks away it's a few weeks away so Saturday February 1st we'll have our second Saturday meeting so if there's anything um that you want to ensure that we discuss at that session just let me know and I'll make sure that we plan accordingly that's all I have this for this evening Mr Pano thank you any questions from the committee for Dr Campbell no all right uh next up we have reports and proposals from committee members any updates all right uh Master planing committee update you guys met both um yeah there's um there's a meeting tonight actually a community Forum in cederville it seems like lately the meetings have coincided with school committee meetings so I have not been able to attend um but there's some uh on Thursday January 16th there's a a community meeting manat and then on the 29th of January there's one in red so I'm hopefully they attend those meetings but unfortunately last two have been same night at school committee all right and we have report from Plymouth building committee Lon but we have not met this month yet we meet Thursday be Thursday all right appointments sanes and resignations Mr yes good evening so we had two resignations that we accepted we had seven classified appointments and one school committee appointment tonight yeah all right thanks any questions for Mr chy all right move on to approval of the consent agenda we just have some minutes uh homeschooling approval plan plans and uh accountable warrants so any exceptions to the consent agenda or anything needs to be pulled no all right we'll do consent agenda we have motion second second all right we'll do roll call vote on the consent agenda Miss Bryant yes yes m m Haywood yes Mr Morgan yes Mrs Jackson yes Dr s yes and I vote Yes all right with that I will call the January 6 meeting of the school committee question please um now that we have a new uh Committee Member um right now we have an acting chair and acting Vice chair sh an open slot are we is do we are we planning a reorganization for January 27th meeting or next what's the process yeah we had discussed that before so um didn't realize we would have someone appointed so quickly and sworn in so congratulations and we'll get an email be um we'll get we'll make sure you get an email so I'll be be in touch with you our Tech staff will be in touch with so you um but yes Mr Morgan the next meeting the reor possible e e e