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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 04-28-2015 APPROVED 6/16/2015 MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS CHAPEL HILL-CARRBORO BOARD OF EDUCATION ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION JOINT MEETING April 28, 2015 The Orange County Board of Commissioners met for a joint session with the Chapel Hill—Carrboro Board of Education and the Orange County Board of Education on Tuesday, April 28, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. at the Southern Human Services Center in Chapel Hill, N.C. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Earl McKee and Commissioners Mia Burroughs, Mark Dorosin, Barry Jacobs, Bernadette Pelissier, Renee Price and Penny Rich COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager Bonnie Hammersley and Clerk to the Board Donna S. Baker (All other staff members will be identified appropriately below) ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION MEMBERS PRESENT: Chair Steve Halkiotis, and Board Members Tom Carr, Lawrence Sanders, Tony McKnight, Debra Piscitelli, and Interim Superintendent Del Burns was also present. ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION MEMBERS ABSENT: Brenda Stephens and Donna Coffey CHAPEL HILL-CARRBORO CITY SCHOOL BOARD OF EDUCATION MEMBERS PRESENT: Chair Mike Kelly and Board Members Andrew Davidson, Jamezetta Bedford, James Barrett, Michelle Brownstein, David Saussy, Annetta Streater, and Superintendent Tom Forcella was also present. CHAPEL HILL-CARRBORO CITY SCHOOL BOARD OF EDUCATION MEMBERS ABSENT: Chair McKee called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. Opening Comments Chair Halkiotis expressed gratitude for the opportunity to meet with the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC). He said yesterday Dr. Todd Wirt was sworn in as the new Superintendent for Orange County Schools (OCS). He said Dr. Wirt will start his new role on July 1, 2015. He said tonight will be the last meeting for Interim Superintendent Del Burns. He commended the efforts and work of Interim Superintendent Del Burns and wished him well as he transitions out of his role. Chair Halkiotis said times are uncertain, not knowing what the legislature will do. He added the children in Orange County Schools deserve the best the School Boards can do for them, regardless of the district in which they reside. Chair Kelly also expressed gratitude for the opportunity to meet with the BOCC. He agreed the times are always uncertain, but Orange County controls its own destiny, and for that he is grateful. He commended the BOCC's ongoing support of education within Orange County, especially last year when State support was lagging. Chair McKee noted several handouts at each place, to be identified throughout the evening. 1. Presentation of Orange County Schools Board of Education, Approved FY2015-16 Operating and Capital Budgets Del Burns said the meeting tonight is to discuss the OCS budget request. He said the BOCC previously received the OCS Budget Document, and he will highlight some points in this document. He said within the OCS Budget Document, there is a Superintendent's budget Message, documents to support the current funding for OCS, and supporting documents regarding the requested amount. He said there is also a set of business cases. He said each change, in both revenue and expenditure, is supported by a detailed business case. Del Burns said there are some changes this year in how the budget was prepared. He said in the last legislative session of 2014, there was a change in the way the Average Daily Membership (ADM) growth is addressed in North Carolina. He said, previously, ADM growth was a part of the continuation budget, and school districts were basically assured of having growth. He said ADM growth was moved to the expansion budget, which is a tremendous change. He said this change will not impact OCS this year as a reduction is projected. Del Burns said some of the other changes that resulted from moving the ADM from the continuation to the expansion budget included no longer receiving a planning allotment on which budget projections are based; as well as the lack of good benefit and salary change information. He said assumptions cannot be made, so OCS will move forward with what is known. He said changes are expected, and adjustments will be made as credible information is received. Del Burns said the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) did provide a projection for the student ADM for next year. He said that number dropped by 172 students for OCS. He said this drop has an impact on funding at the State level, as well as the County level; where funding is provided on a per pupil basis. Del Burns presented the following PowerPoint presentation: Orange County Schools 200 E. King St, Hillsborough, N.C. 27278 Local Current Expense Budget 2015-16 Orange County Schools 2014-15 Budget Local: $31,509,181 State: $44,198,480 Federal: $ 3,642,513 Other Restricted: $ 1,856,837 Capital Improvement: $ 6.853.978 Total Funding for the 2014-2015 School Year: $88,060,989 OCS- Local Funding 2014-15 Local: County Appropriation $28,080,975 Fair Funding $ 494,000 Fines/Forfeitures $ 200,000 Interest $ 68,000 Fund Balance Appropriated $ 1,134,400 Fund Balance Carryover $ 1,531,806 Total Operating Budget: Funding (Local) For 2014-2015: $31,509,181 *Considers charter schools and out of district students 2015-16 County Appropriation Request 2014-15 Per Pupil Appropriation $3,571 2015-16 Projected Student Population 7,526 2015-16 Calculated Appropriation $27,466,763a 2015-16 Requested Per-Pupil Increase $81 2015-16 Requested Per-Pupil Appropriation $3,652 2015-16 Projected Student Population $7,526 2015-16 Requested Appropriation $28,080,975a,b a Considers charter schools and out of district students b The appropriation requested is the same as provided in 2014-15 Alternate 2015-16 Budget Scenario BUDGET ASSUMPTIONS 2014-2015 ADM 7,698 2015-2016 Projected ADM 7.526 ADM Change (172) Students No increase in per pupil funding equals a reduction in county appropriation of$614,212 to OCS Appropriated fund balance increased by $415,128 to $1,549,528 Reduction in force not considered Planning allotments not available Salary and benefits changes not available Alternate 2015-16 Budget Scenario, cont. PROJECTED REVENUE CHANGES $5,071 State Per Pupil Funding (172) Students $(872,212) PROJECTED LOSS IN STATE FUNDING $(135,746) PROJECTED LOSS IN DRIVER EDUCATION FUNDING $3,571 Local Per Pupil Funding (172) Students $(614,212) PROJECTED LOSS IN LOCAL FUNDING $415,128 PROJECTED INCREASE IN FUND BALANCE APPROPRIATION $(1,207,042) TOTAL PROJECTED LOSS IN REVENUES Alternate 2015-16 Budget Scenario, cont. Projected Expenditure Changes $ (320,000) Safe Havens (150,000) Facilities Assessment Projects (100,000) Local At-Risk Funds (410,396) 7 Teachers (66,646) 2 Teacher Assistants (60,000) Strategic Planning &Vision ing/AdvancED Review (35,000) IB Exams (State Paid 2015-16) (35,000) Legal Services (30,000) Superintendent Search $ (1,207,042) TOTAL PROJECTED REDUCTION TO EXPENDITURES 2015-16 Board of Education's Approved Budget Budget Assumptions 2014-2015 ADM 7,698 2015-2016 Projected ADM 7.526 ADM Change (172) Students Maintain 2014-15 county appropriation of$28.1 M which would require an $81 per pupil increase Appropriated fund balance increased by $370,916 to $1,505,316 Reduction in force not considered Planning allotments not available Salary and benefits changes not available 2015-16 Board of Education's Approved Budget Projected Revenue Changes $5,071 State Per Pupil Funding (172) Students $(872,212) PROJECTED LOSS IN STATE FUNDING $(135,746) PROJECTED LOSS IN DRIVER EDUCATION FUNDING ----PROJECTED LOSS IN LOCAL FUNDING $370,916 PROJECTED INCREASE IN FUND BALANCE APPROPRIATION $(637,042) TOTAL PROJECTED LOSS IN REVENUES 2015-16 Board of Education's Approved Budget Projected Expenditure Changes $ (410,396) 7 Teachers (66,646) 2 Teacher Assistants (60,000) Strategic Planning &Vision ing/AdvancED Review (35,000) IB Exams (State Paid 2015-16) (35,000) Legal Services (30,000) Superintendent Search $ (637,042) TOTAL PROJECTED REDUCTION TO EXPENDITURES Del Burns said OCS is requesting an increase in per pupil funding of$81, for this coming fiscal year. He said this will allow continued funding for Safe Havens, and deferred maintenance in the Local At-Risk. Commissioner Dorosin extended his personal thanks to Del Burns for his work in Orange County and said he is an invaluable asset to students throughout the state. Commissioner Price asked what would happen if the Driver's Education program was not funded. Del Burns said by Statute, schools must include funding in their current expense budgets for Driver's Education, whether there are funds or not. He said OCS is currently spending $135,000 and around $40 per student to fund this. He said if State funding is cut, the families will not see an increase is the fee; rather the school system will absorb the cost. Chair McKee asked if John Roberts had heard any update from Raleigh regarding this bill. John Roberts said no. Commissioner Dorosin asked if under both budget scenarios, seven teaching positions will be eliminated. Del Burns said yes, but based on the current allotment formula, such a change should not affect class size. He said this decrease in teachers would be handled through attrition. Commissioner Dorosin asked if there was a known reason for the decline in enrollment. Del Burns said a new Charter School opened last year, which took away about 125 students. He said the enrollment projection given by the State last year was likely over projected. He said this year DPI is adjusting numbers for next year based on the real numbers from this year. Del Burns said parents have choices regarding schooling, which will cause enrollment to continue to be a challenge. He said the goal is to provide the best schools possible in OCS, so that parents will want to send their children. Commissioner Burroughs asked if growth is expected, just not at the rate projected by the State. She said the reality is that the District is not losing students, but rather it is not growing as quickly as the State expected. Del Burns said yes and no. He said growth exists in school aged students in Orange County. He said the question is whether these children are attending public schools. He said last year not as many children came to public schools. He said both DPI and school systems are finding it very difficult to accurately project numbers due to the variety of educational options available to parents. Del Burns said there is a current campaign for Virtual Charter Schools in North Carolina. He said such schools would not only have an impact on the number of students enrolled in public schools; but would also have an economic impact. He said schools systems will have to pay a portion of the County appropriation to that Charter School for any Home Schooled child that enrolls. He said the payment of this portion of the appropriation would be a straight net loss. He said the challenge is to make OCS the first choice for families. Commissioner Rich asked if it is known from which grades the projected 172 fewer students come. Del Burns said he does not have that information. He said this year the majority of the 125 students that were lost to the new Charter school were elementary aged children. He said it is his experience that if children leave the traditional public schools, it is during Elementary School, and as they age children tend to migrate back into the Public Schools by High School. Commissioner Rich asked if the school systems are required to include Charter Students into sports events. Del Burns said no. He said to participate in OCS extra-curricular activities one must be enrolled in OCS. He added this standard is also true for home schooled and virtual students. Chair Kelly said there is currently a bill proposing that public schools be required to allow charter students to participate. 2. Presentation of Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education Approved FY2015-16 Operating and Capital Budgets Tom Forcella said the CHCCS PowerPoint will provide a general overview of the financial needs through a needs based approached, utilized by the school district. He said this approach focuses on the CHCCS long range plan and the vision for the schools. He said times are difficult in the State of North Carolina, but at the same time they are exciting in CHCCS. He expressed thanks to the CHCCS Staff, Administration, Board of Education, Finance Office and Doctor LoFrese and Ruby Pitman. Tom Forcella presented the following portion of the Power Point presentation: 2015-16 CHCCS Board of Education Budget Request to County Commissioners Superintendent Tom Forcella Assistant Superintendent Todd LoFrese Agenda • Return on Investment • Budget Priorities - Long-Range Plan Implementation - Teacher Recruitment and Retention - Project ADVANCE • Facts and Figures Impact of Financial Support • K-12 Curriculum Coordination • Maintain High Quality Programs • Support for our Most Fragile Students • Support for Teachers Points of Pride • Dropout Rate at All-Time Low • Highest SAT Scores in NC • 93% Continue Education • Closing the Gap - Discipline -Advanced Classes and Minority Enrollment • 42% of Teachers Possess Advanced Degrees • 250 National Board Certified • All Three Comprehensive High Schools Earned a Grade of A from State Rating System Budget Priorities: Long-Range Plan Goal 1: Instructional Excellence 1.3— Highly Trained Instructional Coaches 1.7— Procedures in Place for Best Instructional Practice - Learning Walks - Train-the-Trainer - Learning Focused/Understanding By Design Budget Priorities: Long-Range Plan Goal 2: Equity 2.2— System of Academic Support and Interventions (EOS) 2.4— High Functioning Equity Teams at All Schools 2.6— Discipline Data...ISS Budaet Priorities: Lona-Ranae Plan Goal 3: Culture 3.1 — External Program Review - Guidance/Social Work - Mental Health Budget Priorities: Long-Range Plan Goal 4: Project ADVANCE 4.1 — Career Advancement Model 4.2— System for Professional Development 4.4— Leadership Development and Compensation Plan Project ADVANCE Planning and Implementation - Create a model for career and financial advancement based on instructional excellence, student achievement and professional growth - Create new systems and/or adjust current systems that will sustain effective professional development and proven evidence-and research-based practices Budget Priorities: Long-Range Plan Goal 5: Accountability 5.1 — Electronic Portfolios 5.4 — Grading Practices and Learning Todd LoFrese, CHCCS Assistant Superintendent, presented the following portion of the Power Point presentation: Board Priority Issues • Teacher and School Employee Wages and Recruitment • Technology Support Budaet Drivers: • Student enrollment projections • Fund balance dilemma resolved • Mandates and teacher/employee wages • Aforementioned priorities and the strategic plan • Older facility needs 2015-16 Student Enrollment Projection • 2015-16 State Enrollment Projection 12,203 • 2014-15 State Enrollment Projection 12,353 • District Projected Enrollment Decrease (150) Projected Enrollment (graph) Unassianed Fund Balance 2013-14 Audit 5.27% 2014-15 Year End Estimate 5.57% Policy Target 5.5% Our 2015-2016 budget is based on appropriating $1,000,000 of unassigned fund balance. The 2014-15 year end estimate includes this appropriation. Local Continuation Budget Requests (chart) Local Cost of Mandates (graph) Salaries and Waaes (chart) Teacher Pa • Current State Average (42nd Nationally) $47,783 • National Average $57,379 • Handout: Compares 2008-09 Salary Schedule to the Current Schedule — Historic raise did not keep pace with inflation across entire schedule — Governor's 15-16 rec. budget provides an increase only to new teachers (0-4 yrs) and those scheduled to move to the next step — Recruitment and retention struggles — We can't rely solely on the state to address these challenges • Sources: www.ncae.org, www.ncpublicschools.org Local Continuation Budget Requests (chart) Local Expansion Budget Reauests (chart) Local Budget Summary (chart) Local Budaet Allocations • Reduce Utility budget by $25,000 to fund Sustainability supplies, software, hardware • Elem. School Staffing Adjustments based on school needs; exchange 1 Literacy Coach for a full-time Math coach • Reallocate $150,000 contracted services to Project ADVANCE, planning, implementation, and administration Todd LoFrese said CHCCS had a decrease in student enrollment of 150 students, and their Charter School enrollment had also increased recently. He said the CHCCS budget request for 2015-16 is $3,529,191 which equals $302 per pupil. Commissioner Rich asked how the schools respond if a student cannot afford to pay the $40 towards the cost of Driver's Education. Del Burns said in OCS, there are fee waivers for certain situations. Commissioner Rich asked if it is the goal of the School Districts to insure that every student of age learns to drive. Del Burns said OCS follows the Statute. Todd LoFrese said CHCCS would probably take a similar approach regarding inability to pay. Chair Kelly said CHCCS does waive other fees based on ability to pay, and Driver's Education would be handled similarly. Commissioner Rich asked if the Statute requires the School Districts to teach students of age how to drive, but not how it is financed. Chair Kelly said yes. He said School Districts must pay for two thirds to three quarters of the Driver's Education Program. He said the School Districts can charge up to $65 per student, but the actual cost per student is several hundred dollars. Del Burns clarified that the Schools must offer the opportunity for Driver's Education. Chair McKee said one can wait until age eighteen and take a driving test without having completed Driver's Education. Commissioner Rich said the Driver's Education fee allows those with financial means to drive earlier, while discriminating against those without the means to pay the fee. Todd LoFrese said the cost to provide both the classroom and road instruction for CHCCS is about$205 per student. Commissioner Burroughs asked if CHCCS was in the same situation as OCS, where there is not actually lower student enrollment but rather lower enrollment than the projections given last year, which were actually over projections. Todd LoFrese said there were fewer students than projected; however, CHCCS did grow this year and anticipates growing next year as well. Commissioner Dorosin asked for the average teacher salary in CHCCS. Todd LoFrese said the average salary is about$56,000. Commissioner Dorosin said that is closer to the national average. Commissioner Dorosin asked if Chapel Hill pays a teacher supplement; and, if so, how much it is. Todd LoFrese said both Districts pay a supplement to teachers. He said the supplement depends on how many years of experience the teacher has. He said new teachers receive 12 percent; at fifteen years of service, teachers receive 15 percent; at twenty years of service, teachers receive 20 percent; and at twenty five years or more of service, teachers receive 25 percent. He said the Project ADVANCE supports switching to a model that is not based on years of service. Commissioner Dorosin asked if a teacher would make more money working for OCS or CHCCS. Chair Halkiotis said CHCCS. Tom Forcella said at entry level teaching positions, the two Districts are fairly equal. Commissioner Dorosin said if Orange County is competing with Wake County, is it also competing with itself between the two Districts. Chair Halkiotis said a teacher working in OCS for twenty five years will max out at a 14 percent supplement versus the 25 percent in CHCCS. He said if teachers are looking for money, they go south; if they are not, they go north. Todd LoFrese said CHCCS is seeking to decouple longevity and teacher pay. He said rather CHCCS seeks to link teacher pay to professional development and its implementation in the classroom, as well as positive student results. Commissioner Dorosin referenced the expansion request slide in the Power Point, asking about the $236,500 for living wage adjustments. He asked for context around these figures and if contracted staff positions are included in this figure. Todd LoFrese said a large portion of this financial request is linked to a classified employment compensation study that was conducted last year, which identified recommendations regarding current market rates for classified staff and what they should be paid. He said an example is teachers' assistants, who are all being paid the same amount whether they are in a kindergarten class or a self-contained Exceptional Children's (EC) class, although in the latter they may serve children with greater needs. He said one of the recommendations was to provide a higher rate of pay for teacher's assistants in the EC classrooms. He said about$36,000 of the requested sum is for the living wage adjustment to insure that every District employee is earning at least the County living wage number. He said it does not apply to District contracted services, which include cleaning services and child nutrition management services. Chair Kelly said there has not yet been a full discussion about the contracted employees. Commissioner Dorosin said, based on the aforementioned study, there are some District employees who will need salary increases in order to bring them up to the living wage, exclusive of the contracted employees. Commissioner Dorosin said the ADVANCE model is interesting. He said there has been some controversy about the school grades statute and how much emphasis it puts on high stakes test results. He asked if the ADVANCE model will move away from the high stakes testing outputs and move towards growth. Tom Forcella said the original goal was to look more at the professional growth of CHCCS teachers. He said this focuses more on the growth of the students during a school year rather than their test scores. Debbie Piscitelli said the goal is to teach students how to drive. She said the instructors are visibly promoting classes throughout the year at various times. She said the instructors aim to be very flexible regarding scheduling of road instruction, working with the students' schedules and extracurricular activities. She said once the $40 fee was instated, her first concern was to insure that students who had financial struggles were being offered flexibility in submitting their payments. Commissioner Price asked if there is anything that is an obvious immediate cut. Todd LoFrese said no, those discussions have not occurred at this time. Commissioner Pelissier asked for the teacher turnover rate in both counties, and if the teacher turnover rate was different from that of the year prior. Del Burns said he did not know the exact number for OCS, but that the percentage did increase significantly. He said information gathered through exit interviews points to this turnover being due to retirements at the top of the scale. He said that teachers with 25 to 30 years experience have no financial motivation to continue teaching. Todd LoFrese said CHCCS had turnover that was a combination of teachers at the earlier end of their career, along with those retiring at the top of the scale. He agreed with Del Burns regarding teachers hitting a wall in financial compensation after 25 to 30 years. He said the turnover rate in CHCCS was at about 14 percent, which is a 10-year high. James Barrett said the numbers circulated by DPI are done on a March to March comparison; therefore, it takes a full year to reflect the turnover that happens at the end of the school year. Commissioner Pelissier requested, in the future, that both of the School Districts provide the BOCC with quick reference figures regarding any progress made in achievement gaps and graduation rates. Chair McKee said, should the BOCC allocate the $302 request from CHCCS, that amount would have to go to both systems, which would drive the tax rate to about .03, assuming that everything else within the County stayed the same. He said the .03 increase would be on top of the .02 increase from last year, which is significant for those on fixed incomes. Chair McKee said the upcoming bond would also add to the tax rate going forward. He said that Paul Laughton mentioned that the increase given last year was also $302. Commissioner Jacobs asked if staff would take the last 10 years of school requests and calculate what the tax rate would be had all requests been fully funded. Commissioner Price said asked if CHCCS could get back to the BOCC regarding their priorities if the per pupil increase were to be only $81, or even an average between the $302 and the $81. Todd LoFrese said the big question is what is going to happen at the State level. He said salaries traditionally make up the biggest component of CHCCS requested increases over the years. He said what happens at the State level affects what CHCCS does at the local level. Tom Forcella said the salary increases are such a big piece of the CHCCS request but are not a part of the OCS request. Chair McKee said the budget cuts by the State are not exclusive to the Schools, and that the County too is facing these same challenges. Chair Kelly said if the tax rate increase being requested this year had been made 10 years ago, then a tax increase would not be needed this year. He said the requests are not really cumulative over time. Chair Kelly said CHCCS have approached their budget in a similar fashion for years. He said when items are prioritized ahead of time, it adds a great deal of stress to their staff and teachers. He said the monies that are ultimately received typically warrant a new discussion anyway. Chair Kelly said good things would happen in OCS if they too had the $302 increase in per pupil funding. Jamezetta Bedford said this year and last year's efforts have been made to tie the budget to the long range plans, and she said she is adamantly opposed charging anything for Driver's Education. She said looking forward, if nothing changes, then the achievement gap is not going to improve. She said it will be necessary to think outside the box, repurposing the dollars to help achievement gaps and improve instructional excellence in the classroom. Commissioner Price said the reasoning for her question is to look at the worse-case scenario, and what it would look like to CHCCS if they did not get their full funding request. She said both school systems are doing great things and all should be proud. Chair Halkiotis said OCS has two retired Highway Patrolmen that teach their Driver's Education courses. He said the State has been considering letting private driving schools take over Driver's Education, costing families $400-$600 per child to participate. He said if that course were followed, there will be children with financial means having the advantage of being able to drive earlier, but there will also be children driving without licenses leading to accidents. Chair Halkiotis said he believed at some point the State will pass along the costs for the yellow school buses to the Counties which are a significant financial burden. Chair Halkiotis said he believed that there will be more and more of these types of challenges. Chair Kelly said that many students are opting out of driving at a younger age in the CHCCS. He said it is an interesting phenomenon. Commissioner Rich said she also knows children who do not drive and prefer the bus. She expressed concern for the students who want to drive but are "locked out" because they cannot afford the fee for the course. Chair Kelly said they will do their best to answer Commissioner Price's question. 3. Discussion of a November 2016 Bond Referendum for School Capital Needs Bonnie Hammersley said the BOCC discussed and approved the scheduling of a November 2016 bond referendum totaling $125 million for school capital needs and supported the concept of a Bond Education Committee. She said this committee's composition, appointment process, and public outreach responsibilities will be discussed and decided on at a future meeting. Bonnie Hammersley said there is no immediate financial impact for this discussion tonight, and she recommends for the Boards to discuss the issue of a November 2016 Bond Referendum, discuss the Schools' older assessment findings, and provide direction to staff, as appropriate. Chair McKee said the BOCC vote was to move forward with the single issue of school capital needs. Chair Kelly asked if the intent of the bond is for older schools. Chair McKee said the discussion moved across the board. He said older schools and issues of safety and design of the older schools were discussed. He said the BOCC did focus strongly on renovations of existing schools in order to increase school capacity. He said the conversation mentioned the possibility of pushing back the need for new schools by renovating existing buildings. Commissioner Price said there are numerous safety concerns with many school campuses not having appropriate security for the times in which we live. Chair Kelly asked, for the purpose of educating the public, if there is a central theme around older schools and their needs (safety, code violations, mold, capacity, etc), or are they thinking about adding school wings or building new buildings. Chair McKee said since the Commissioners did not establish the composition for the task of a bond education committee and the November 2016 is 19 months away, there is time for the BOCC to discuss the components of this bond. He said this needs to be a collaborative effort with both School Boards to decide the specifics of the bond. Chair Halkiotis said their Board had an opportunity to listen to their staff, school by school, regarding what their facility priorities are going to be. He said most of their schools are at least 55 years old. He said both of the High Schools are over capacity. He said Cedar Ridge High School (CRHS) is 215 students over capacity and Orange High School is only 13 seats under its full capacity. He said the CRHS academic wing is a priority. He said there is some room with the elementary and middle schools. Chair Halkiotis said safety within OCS is a top priority, citing Grady Brown Elementary School as a particularly egregious example. He said renovations are critically important: bathroom facilities, HVAC systems, roofing systems, unfunded state mandates, antiquated science wings, etc. Chair Halkiotis said Orange County Schools realize the bond will not be split 50/50 but probably a 60/40 split. He said OCS will provide the BOCC with a 40 percent priority list with safety as their top priority. Commissioner Dorosin said the School Board came to the Board of County Commissioners with a list of renovations for older facilities. He said he was confused as to why Chair Kelly would think the bond would be for something else given the repeated emphasis placed on the older buildings by the CHCCS School Board. Chair Kelly said while the School Board makes requests, it does not assume approval. He said the agenda abstract stated "Capital Needs" and he just sought clarification. Andrew Davidson said CHCCS are very fortunate to have a supportive Board of County Commissioners. He said the capital needs of both schools are about $320 million and $125 million would only cover about 40 percent of these needs. He said they have their work cut out for them, but they are very appreciative of the Commissioners' support. Michelle Brownstein said she applauded all the hard work thus far and was thrilled to hear the BOCC's decision to have the Schools be the single issue on the bond. She said the focus must remain on the older facilities for the sake of the entire County and its children. She said there are a lot of capital needs, but the huge needs of the older schools are paramount, and the focus must remain clear. She added that the very careful planning done thus far are now documents of public record. She said the logistics of making renovations while continuing to educate the children is going to be tricky, and focused collaboration across the County will be crucial. James Barrett said he has heard repeatedly from the public that the current state of the schools is from chronic deferred maintenance. He said it will be important to have and be able to demonstrate a plan for keeping up with ongoing maintenance needs going forward. Commissioner Pelissier said there must be a serious conversation about how to address the remaining maintenance issues the bond will not be able to cover, in order to assure the public there is a plan in place. Commissioner Jacobs said the dynamic tension between capital needs versus per pupil needs must also be looked into. He said the more money there is per pupil, the less money there is for capital needs. Chair McKee added the schools' needs are not the only needs in the County. He said there are Senior Centers bursting at the seams, undeveloped and therefore unusable park lands, affordable housing issues, child care, and other needs. He said making the decision to focus the bond solely on schools did not indicate an abandonment of those issues but rather a choosing to take them off the table at this time. Chair McKee said the bond will not address all the needs of the schools, but it will make a start. He said the Commissioners did not address the Education Committee until there had been conversations with the school boards about their priorities. A motion was made by Commissioner Dorosin, seconded by Commissioner Rich to adjourn the meeting at 9:02pm. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Earl McKee, Chair Donna Baker, Clerk to the Board