Academics, Innovation, Evaluation, and Technology Committee - Regular Meeting

Welcome to the academics. Innovation, Evaluation, and Technology Committee meeting for February 4th, 2026. I now call to order the Academics Committee. The time is now 3 p.m. Before we get started, I'd like to state the committee membership. Dorothy Bendross-Mendengold, Chair. Ms. Mary Blanco, my vice chair, who looks out for me when I just can't be here. And I started to walk out and let her do this one, Mr. Superintendent. You know what it's like. Dr. Steve Gallin III, member. Mr. Robert G. Alonzo, member. You can see who's absent and gonna be tardy. Mr. Danny Espino, alternate member. You're there, I'm so glad. Ms. Luisa Santos, alternate member. Ms. Marie Jere Rojas, Madam Chair, ex officio member. And Ms. Monica Colucci, Vice Chair, ex officio member. Our first order of today's business is to approve the committee meeting minutes of January 7th, 2026.

Move it.

Second. All those in favor? Aye. Thank you. The minutes have been approved. We have a very short agenda, as you can see, and that's good. We have just a few items, as I said. Our next order of business will be to move the H items to the floor.

Move it. Second.

All those in favor? Aye. Thank you. Let's move on. Our first item is H5. H5. And that is from Madam Chair. Madam Chair, it's your item.

Yes. Thank you very much, Madam Chair. And H5. is a school board endorsement of March 2nd, 2026 as Read Across America Day. This is an item that I bring forth on an annual basis and I'm very excited to bring it again because as I say every year when I bring it, this is to present an idea that is rooted in something very simple and that is the power of reading. Across America, reading opens doors, it builds confidence, it strengthens communities, and it also creates a lot of opportunities for our children. Yet too many children and adults still lack access, encouragement, and time to read. Especially nowadays with all the technology that exists, reading an actual book becomes more and more difficult. Going to the library is less and less accessible for many. So in order to encourage going back to reading, Read Across America Day comes in on a national basis. This is an initiative that is to be celebrated on March 2, 2026, which is a Monday. And it's, again, designed to inspire the culture of reading across our schools, with the families, and with the communities. The goal is not just to promote literacy, but also to make reading a shared American experience for all involved. Read Across America is, again, more about the programs and events. More than that, it's a movement. It truly is a movement, one that reminds all of us that when we read together, we grow together. Children that do well in reading usually are those that are most successful in all of the other subject areas as well, and in their whole educational journey. So on Monday, March 2nd, 2026, we invite every classroom teacher, every member of the school community, the household community, and every single person in the business community to partake in this activity, and in addition, our elected officials in the municipalities or in the county also are invited on an annual basis to attend, and they are very, very appreciative. They enjoy the opportunity to go out and to read to children in all of our schools. That's my item, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Are there questions, comments? Well, I'll just make one as a former principal. We celebrate it big time, and I'm glad you mentioned elected officials and all. They are coming out. They are coming out, and they are reading to our children. Could be more. So, thank you. Let's, by a show of hands, let's vote for the item. Co-sponsorship, Madam Chair. Oh, I'm looking right at it. Are there any board members who would like to co-sponsor by a show of hands H5? Move it. Second. All those in favor? Aye. Thank you very much. Our next H item on the floor is H9 from Member Geller.

Thank you, Madam Chair, and... As much as I love the Read Across America Day, it's a great idea, I also think that it's our obligation, speaking as a man, that we recognize the critical role that women have played in the history of this country. It's often ignored, often overlooked, but it goes all the way back to the revolution itself, where there are a lot of women who played very fundamental roles. We always have that role model of the wife of one president and the mother of another, Ms. Adams, and just the history of America is the history of women as it is for so many other groups. This month we're celebrating black history and the important role that African Americans have played in the history of this country going back to 1619. But next month I want to be sure that we're on record as celebrating Women's History Month. It's the right thing for us to do, and I ask your support.

Are there any members who would like to ask questions or make comments? Yes, Dr. Gallin, I think.

Second.

Why am I reading this wrong? Co-sponsors for H-9. Second.

Second.

All those in favor? Aye. Aye. Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Okay. Motion on the item, isn't it?

Yes. Second. She's got a... Oh, she's got something.

That's okay. Okay, motion on the items, votes on the items as amended. Second. Those in favor? Aye. Thank you. That has been approved to go to the floor. Our next H item on the floor is H14 from Member Gallin.

Thank you, Madam Chair. This item... reflects our ongoing obligation to review our practices and to consistently contemplate some of the challenges but also opportunities that we have to strengthen our market share of student enrollment issues. Very often we operate under some assumptions relative to students enrolling in our schools. We are a very innovative district as measured by what is happening in our classrooms and in our schools. but also as measured by some of the awards and accolades that we've received at the state and national level for innovation. That being said, that includes a number of digital platforms and technology-based programs that serve to augment learning, that serve to monitor student progress, that serve to facilitate community and family engagement and parents' ability to navigate through what is happening with their students. But many times we operate under the assumption that everyone knows. One of the most significant things when students enroll in schools is their ability to, number one, establish relationships with the families. We know that we are in an open marketplace. Parents have choices. I had a recent town hall meeting, and I proffered four significant tenets that I believe are going to be critically important or at least my principals in schools in District 1. Those four tenets were professionalism. I believe that we have to be professionals at all times. I truly believe that. We have to be performance-based. Our schools have to perform. They have to perform. So professionalism, performance are essential. I also believe, number three, we have to be responsive. to parents and stakeholders, and I did a full presentation at my town hall meeting on these particular tenants and broke them out. Being responsive is critically important, whether it's at the district level, whether it's at the region level, but most importantly at the school and the classroom level, our parents expect us to be responsive, full stop. There's no substitute for not being responsive to issues. And last but not least, through the chair and Mr. Superintendent, I submit that I believe that one of the most significant things that is going to bolster our ability to successfully compete is our ability to establish relationships. So professionalism, performance, responsiveness, and relationships. And we have digital tools for that. We operate under the assumption because of the rapidity of our field, it's a very fast-paced field. Education is very Very fast-paced. We even have something that are called pacing guides, meaning we want to make sure that things are covered in a certain amount of time. But understand that if we were dropped into another country and we're parents or grandparents or aunts or fathers, And we have to navigate through a whole new system in a school. We don't understand the language. We don't understand the technology-based provisions for support and monitoring. We don't understand how they go about communicating at home in the school. We will be lost. But I would assume and expect that that foreign country or that school would not only educate us on their processes, not only orientate us on their processes, but continue to provide training and ongoing support so that we can do what we need to do. Dr. Gallin, I know you went way around the corner, but this is the new landscape that we're in. We operate, again, and it's the fourth time I'm saying it for effect, we operate under the assumption that parents understand what we have to offer them as it relates to navigating through our schools. So if you tell a parent, hey, welcome to the school, we're glad to have you, you just left the private school, you just moved from Georgia, you just came from California, Alabama, Mississippi, and now you're into the Miami-Dade County Public Schools, and we start talking about class dojo. We assume that a parent knows what class dojo is. We assume that. We assume parents know how to quickly navigate the portal. We assume that. And I know that we have the proclivity to quickly say, well, we have the parent academy, and I'm not going to go down that rabbit hole because I do believe in the law of proximity. I believe that the unit of impact and change is closest to where the issue and the people are, and that's at the school. There's a place for centralized delivery of supports and training, but there's a special place for decentralized provision of delivery and support and training, and that is at the school and at the classroom level. I'll bring this in for a landing. There is a gap, but there is also an opportunity for us to establish a framework from a centralized standpoint with an opportunity for schools to tweak it, to adjust it, and make it local, to make it personal, to make it relevant to their educational environment, to their parental and community demographics and needs and interests, but we have to have a framework. Many parents come in and they're lost They're lost. We know the mobility in and out of some charter schools, in and out of private schools. Fortunately, the majority of our charter schools usually adopt what we have, whether it's the comprehensive-based reading program. They know what iReady is. They know what progress monitoring is. But new parents coming into our school, they don't know. I'll give you my last point. Case study, true story, District 1. A former student of mine who's a parent, graduate of University of Florida, a master's degree from FIU, so I want to kind of paint the picture that this parent is learning. She's intelligent. She's well-educated. She had her child in a private school, and she wanted to make Dade County Public Schools, Madam Chair, her what? Best choice. So she called me. We did. And she said to me, in District 1, what school do you recommend? I gave her four schools, Dr. Diggs, and the parent she is, she did her due diligence, and she went to the school, she looked at the environment, she met with the principals, and she made a decision. She was very impressed with the leadership of the school, the environment, the receptivity of the office staff. That is where she wanted to place her child, to remove her child from the private school into the public school system in her community. Week goes by, two weeks go by, three weeks go by. Progress report comes home, Zs, and a call for a failure, okay? No communication. I know it's contractually stated. We don't wanna get into that our teachers work hard, but we always know that's the escape hatch Mr. Patel, we tell the teachers and the parents, hey, you know, at any period when a child is failing, the parents should be notified. That's contractual language. What's in policy, what's in protocols is not always in practice. And in this particular case, the teacher had done some level of due diligence. I communicated with you in class dojo. Nobody ever told me about that. This information is accessible to you on the portal. I didn't know about that. So how do we go about acclimating parents who are new to our schools, but also revisiting parents who are already in our schools in terms of how to navigate some of these systems that we have. That is the fulcrum and the catalyst for the item. I'm known to bring an item that really tries to address a real issue. I know that there are gaps in this particular area. I think this makes us a little more competitive, so the recommend is as follows. Review existing protocols governing the registration, enrollment, and initial entry of students and families new to Miami-Dade County Public Schools. I don't know to what extent we ask that question. Do we make a determination? I know we do the foreign language survey and make those kind of determinations about placement, but do we actually look at parents who are new to Miami-Dade County Public Schools with some level of intentionality. I don't know if that's the question. Being funded through Title I, there are some expectations that we go the extra mile for parental support. Develop and implement number two, a comprehensive district-wide orientation framework which allows for school-based enhancements. So I'm recognizing one size does not fit all. But a framework allowing for school-based enhancements for parents dealing with academic expectations, student progression requirements, graduation pathways, parental rights, and available district and school-based support and related technologies. I'll give you exhibit B. Ms. Lourdes Diaz can tell you, I called her maybe two weeks ago asking about a graduation option. Through the chair, can you speak to my recollection of what I asked you about?

Yes.

Do you remember?

Through the chair. So Dr. Gallin called to inquire about the CLT, and how we utilize, if we utilize it, how we utilize it, how can a student avail themselves of that opportunity, and then I shared with you that we do at school day and et cetera.

And I use that as an example because as much as I think I know, I had to ask. I'm wise enough to know that, which I don't know, but that parent that inquired with me didn't know about our offerings of that CLT as an option at our school site. So again, that's another graduation pathway, and that's something that's being used for college admittance. Number three, ensure the parents and families receive training and guidance. Training and guidance on accessing and effectively utilizing district digital platforms and tools to monitor student progress and facilitate communication consistent with ESSA capacity building provisions. Identify and incorporate best practices related to family engagement and student transitions. Examine how strength and orientation of family engagement practices can support equity, improve student outcomes, and enhance MDCPS's competitive position within the evolving school choice landscape. Collaborate with relevant district departments, Title I offices, administrators, and parent engagement teams to ensure consistent and effective implementation. Initiate rulemaking to amend applicable school board policies and administrative guidelines where appropriate. We have a policy provision that talks about entrance. I stipulated that policy position 51112, but that is really ministerial. It talks about documents, but it really doesn't speak to academic and related transitions and support. So to the extent that we can amend that policy to be intentional about addressing the academic aspect of enrolling in our schools, that is something that I'm putting forward. And to provide a written update for possible implementation for the upcoming school year, which is 2026, 2027, by April 15th, 2026. Madam Chair, that's the item. Thank you.

Thank you, Dr. Gallin. Questions, comments? Member Blanco? Oh, I'm sorry. I don't ever look that way. Mr. Superintendent.

Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. So I'm excited here because the truth is we should develop a parent onboarding program. We do it with our employees. We should do it with our students as well. So I don't think we've actually looked at that, and that has great potential. Just wanted to mention that.

Board Member Gallin, I was practically doing cartwheels when I saw your item. I think I've said this before. Years ago when the charters were rising, I was in a meeting, another county, as a school psychologist, and the opening of the year meeting focused an hour on customer service, and we had never discussed customer service. And I think that's kind of what this item brings. Currently working in schools, I complain all the time because you send emails to students, you send emails to parents, and they don't read it, right? But we can't continue to hide behind the, well, we informed them, because at the end of the day, okay, we informed them, but if they aren't receiving the information, if they're not reading it, if they're not understanding it, if we're not walking them through the steps to ensure that that they are receiving the best customer service that we are providing, then it doesn't help them, it doesn't help the student, and ultimately it doesn't help us. So I absolutely love your item. And when we talk about a parent onboarding, it can't be watch this webinar and click continue, or I acknowledge, or I agree to the terms, or I am, you know, if we've got portals, right? I think typically parents receive an email, click on this link, create your username, password, I'm assuming that's how it is, and here you have access to your portal. Well, do we track if the parents actually follow through, right? It can't just be this is all the great things we're putting in place to make sure parents are informed. There has to be that follow through component. And especially if there is a language barrier, if they're coming from a completely different education system, I see that all the time where parents are like, I went to school in this country, I don't understand the college process here. Please inform me, right? And so if we can get ahead of that game, if we can provide that excellent service, then we keep those children and those parents. And ultimately, that's something that we need to do. So like I said, I can't really do cartwheels anymore. But I was visualizing my cartwheels. And so at the proper time, I like to co-sponsor. And I know administration heard because I saw Dr. Joe Trist nodding again. It can't just be, well, we informed you. It needs to be that we ensured that you received the information and that you know exactly what to do with it. So, thank you.

That's all we had? No. We wanted to make comments and questions. Yes, absolutely.

Member Santos.

No, go on.

And Vice Chair Colucci had raised her hand before.

It's okay. She's my sister.

Okay. I'll be very quick. I just want to say thank you so much, Dr. Gallen. And I love the way that Dr. Dortch has framed it. This parent onboarding plan is a great summary of what you're doing here. And certainly, having come to this country at eight years old and... Having really been the navigator and interpreter for my mom trying to figure out the system, I sort of had to figure out a lot of this stuff. And that's what many of our students are doing day in and day out. And my mom cared deeply and was always going to be invested and showed up the best she could. But there were simply things that we just were missing. And so I really am grateful for this because I think it's going to set up so many more students for success.

Now, yes, Madam Vice Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair. And Dr. Gallin, thank you. I love this item. I always say you never get a second chance to make a first impression. And it is so critical that we take advantage of that first impression. And this is an ongoing dynamic process because you have students coming in all year long, coming in a school, out of a school. So we gotta make sure that we don't forget any of those along the way. It can't just be okay at the beginning of the year we're doing this. We have to follow up continuously to make sure that this is happening. And it's just like you have someone going to the doctor and hearing all of this medical language that they don't know. It's the same thing for a lot of our parents. We understand it, many of us on this board having served as educators, but we have to put ourselves, and I always, always tried my very, very best when I was in the classroom to always put myself in the position of the parent. If this were my child, what would I want? And when we do that, not only are we more empathetic, and I know firsthand how busy we are as teachers, how much work we have to do, but it's that extra step that makes all of the difference. And when a parent sees that you are genuinely concerned and you have the best interest of their child at heart, I would say 99% of the time, you're always gonna have that exception. You will have that parent on board and on your team working to help you. So I just wanna say at the appropriate time, I'd like to co-sponsor and I really, really do. Love the item and I just hope and I really do pray that this is followed up on continuously. It's not something that's written up and then just done, a follow up is written and it's put on the shelf. I don't wanna see that with this item. Thank you, thank you, Madam Chair.

Yes, Madam Chair.

Thank you very much, Madam Chair, and ditto, ditto, ditto. I want to thank the maker of the item because this is an extremely powerful item. And it starts, as we all know, from the moment you step foot into that school with a customer service portion, where a smile, just a simple smile, a simple welcome. I have been in schools where I walk in and I feel like, wow, I love this place. I feel like part of this family already. And I've walked into some places where I'm standing there and it's kind of like a cold shoulder scenario. And so it starts with that customer service, with that smile, with that welcoming gesture. to have people feel, hey, you know, even though I don't speak a word, I got here when I was six years old, my dad spoke English, my mom didn't speak a word, my dad was working, so my mom was the one that was going with us. She didn't know a word of English at that time either. And so there are many families that are coming from different countries, from different parts of even within our own state, like you said, and this is truly something that is gonna make a very positive impact, but it starts, you and I, Dorothy, And I think that's it for now, the ones that have been principals. We know it starts at the helm. It starts with the principal of that school. And that principal will be the one who will set the tone for others to emulate. And if you don't have that leadership at the top... with that positive can-do welcoming attitude, no matter what we put, no matter what policy states, it is not going to happen. And so I just want to emphasize the fact that the principles play a crucial role in this. Then the teachers, of course. Teachers make a huge impact because those are the ones that are having the daily interaction with those families. And again, a teacher that is welcoming, a teacher that is positive, a teacher that has that smile and is willing to go the extra mile for those families. It's like Vice Chair Colucci said, 95%, no, more than 95% will say, I love this place, I'm going to stay right here because that's what they're looking for. Thank you. Dr. Galland, did you forget that you had H3, June 20th, 2018, and there you were again regarding a review of the enrollment practices. That's how long you've been at it with an interest in this arena. So I thank you for that because I know that when that was addressed years ago, and again, Dr. Bendros-Mendingo was on board, I don't know if Ms. Santos was on board at that time or not, I don't remember, but it made an impact then. So I'm glad that now it takes a different twist. What I would love to see, and especially I believe it's in your number three, I think I put the circle on it, Yes, three. For it to be in English, Spanish, and Creole. so that everybody has an opportunity, because if you don't speak a word of a certain language, even if you give them some information in another language, it's not gonna penetrate, it's not gonna make a difference. That would be my only recommendation. But again, thank you. These are the type of items that are critically important for us as educators, because they will make a difference in the success or lack thereof of our children. And at the appropriate time, I'd like to co-sponsor.

Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Yes. Are there hands down here? No.

Was your hand up before his? Let him go.

Did I see Dr. Lewis's hand?

Mm-hmm.

Okay. Well, you want to go before the superintendent? I didn't think so. I didn't think so. Okay. He said it's okay. Go right ahead. Dr. Lewis.

Well, thank you. Through the chair, thank you, Dr. Vendross-Mendegal. And I couldn't agree more, not only with the superintendent, but of course the maker of the item, Dr. Gallin. Let me also say that I'm aware of the situation that you described, and I know exactly what school, and let me also say that that parent was assisted, and it was a positive solution behind that. I know we have a listening audience, and I don't want them to think that we didn't address the matter. So thank you for the item again, and just for those that are listening, you know, it did have a positive solution to that concern that existed. Thank you.

Thank you for that follow-up, Dr. Lewis. Now. He can go ahead.

Okay. You know, if you don't mind, just because I'm sure he's going to want to comment on what I'm going to say.

Oh, okay. Go right ahead.

So, Dr. Gallin, great item. You must have been following me two weeks ago when I was at Country Club Middle School that is our professional development training center. And I was walking through the halls and I was learning about all the different things that we work on as a district when it comes to professional development. And we think that it's just teaching, right? But we have a whole team there that is working with our district administrators at the higher levels of principals and directors. But we also have a team that's working with our front end staff. our security guards, our clerical staff. And we were just talking about this on the consistency. As Chairwoman Rojas said, you know, we'll walk into some schools and it's like you feel like you're so welcome. And they're giving me cafecito and they're giving me this. And, you know, it's amazing because you walk into those lobbies and all the parents are so relaxed. And then you walk into another school where it's not done purposely. They might just be busy or not focused on those little elements. And then you see uptight parents, parents who just don't feel relaxed. So as we look across the district, creating something, and as Vice Chair Colucci said, not something that just sits on the shelf, but something that we actually implement and that we follow through on. And those teams that we already have in the professional development side are have that as kind of like their guiding book, right? That they then meet with the head of the school, the principal. All right, principal, what are you doing? How is your team implementing these? And are we being consistent across the district? I think it's great. So I love this item. I also want to be a co-sponsor at the appropriate time. And I think we have the team ready. As long as we can give them the guidance, they're ready to go. And I was just there two weeks ago and they were full of energy and wanting to help our district continue to exceed. So thank you for the item. And Dr. Dortch, I'm sure you can add to that experience as well, because I shared it with you.

Come through the chair, he's not the chair. Dr. Dotris.

Thank you, Madam Chair. And so when I hear Ms. Rojas speak about the importance of how parents are received, right, I think she takes it to the level that we need to, right? And we've been talking a lot at our end You know, and she describes it very well. And the only way that I can capture what she describes is we have to go beyond customer service. We have to go into the relationship realm. It's like Dr. Gallen mentioned, and Ms. Rojas just actually described it, right? It goes beyond customer service. It goes about building relationships and having families feel it. So we have been already talking to the principals. We have that as a major goal for us, this relationship building opportunity for existing parents. But today, the concept of what are we doing with new parents becomes even more important because if we really capture them well at the beginning, Then, you know what, it's not about teacher retention and student retention, it's about parent retention as well. So I just wanted to mention that. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Are there others, because I need to make some remarks? You're getting ready to wrap it up?

I wanted to say some other comments, but I'll just let...

Yes, you may, because you know where I'm getting ready to go. Go. Oh, go. And I'll come last. Go.

Thank you, Madam Chair. First of all, I want to thank my colleagues and definitely want to defer to you for punctuation on this particular item and giving you special deference as one who is, for over five decades plus, has really been a champion educationally for the rights and involvement and empowerment of parents. And I'll just say this, and this notion of parental rights That's not new. Those of us, you know, it's not new to this. We've been true to this for years. But I must say, you know, you've always been at the forefront of empowering parents, especially those who, sadly, are castigated to sit on the margins of not only our educational system but of society. And you were able to build them up. So I definitely appreciate the comments of my colleagues but want to acknowledge that particular point. Through the chair, I want to just say Dr. Lewis stole my thunder. I had my note here. I wasn't going to end on a bad note. I was going to give you a shout out. Mr. Goodman has me shook. I have to give everybody their love. So shout out to your team, Dr. Aponte, Mr. Maycock. The story ends well. It's one thing in life to get them, but the new challenge and obligation is to keep them. So that parent is still with us because of the quick responsiveness and engagement of your team. And again, that whole iteration of responsiveness, being responsive to that particular issue matters. So the story does end well. The parent is still with us and I was gonna get to it, but definitely wanna echo the sentiments that it ends well and she and her child are successfully moving through our school system. What we do know about the orientation onboarding process, if you have not gone through it, open house. Open house, clearly, and it's articulated all the time, it's not to have parent conferences. It's a meet and greet. And if you're going to open house at a middle school, I mean, you know, that bell rings three to five minutes, you go to the next class and the teachers is like a, it's a dash. So to really engage in some of those pieces that are critically important to parents, especially new parents, again, our structure really doesn't facilitate that as much. I'm not saying across the district, you may have pockets of schools that really dedicate themselves to that. I know you have grade level and team meetings and, parents meet based on certain grade levels, but that's not always the case. I want to offer maybe two free Pepsis, two Sprites from the cafeteria. Who knows what CLT stands for? I know you know. That's cheating. Through the chair. So as much as I know, I had to do my own research on it. It's classical learning test. So we use a lot of acronyms. And if you don't know, you don't know. I had a parent call me before through the chair concerned about her child could not go on a field trip. Why? It's not because she didn't have the money, but she and our cashless system did not know how to navigate OSP. Okay. What does OSP stand for? Okay. Okay. Okay, so we operate under the assumption of a lot of these things that parents know. When I do my town hall meetings and my student of the month, I always say things to parents and I make them respond in chorus. I'll say PM2. Everybody know what PM2 means? Okay, some people don't know. That's progress monitoring two. Progress monitoring one, which is really the baseline, and then PM3. So we utilize a lot of analogies and we have the assumption that parents know, and this is something we have to be a lot more intentional in terms of educating our parents. And my last comment, and I promise you I'll be quiet Madam Chair, there's a lot of trepidation, a lot of consternation around the expanding choice landscape. And I said at my town hall meeting to the audience and to the principals, Someone can come from outer space and build the most magnificent state-of-the-art edifice with all of the bells and whistles to make Danny Mateo's technology brain spin because he's not seen anything so exceptional in the history of mankind. They could have the shiniest marketing materials and send out the most exciting commercials and flood the TV with all they have to offer our children. But for a parent and a family that has a relationship with that school and with that teacher, they're not going anywhere. They're not going anywhere. Parents know what they know. if they have the confidence and the relationships with a school, with a principal, but at the end of the day with a teacher, I think we're going to be on good footing. But we can't stand idly by. We have to be intentional, we have to be deliberate, and we have to be fully aware of that. So that's the other extension of this item is to really compete in the marketplace and to do those things that we talked about from customer service, but always lead back to those things that support student learning, parent satisfaction, and school and family engagement. Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you for your support, colleagues. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Dr. Gallin, and being that you called my name more than once and told the people how long I've been doing this, and he's accurate. But the assignment, Mr. Superintendent, that made me who I am, and my member Rojas, is Nelson in here? Because he tells everything. But we were out there doing what we were supposed to do. And my assignment as a principal was Lily Carmichael Evans Elementary School, school built on a rock pit. few steps from a dump. Children living on another side of the railroad track. And you probably say, well, where was this? It was in Liberty City. Well, when I went there, I went there knowing that the children didn't come to school until after Labor Day. Why? Because they had to get new clothes. Well, that wasn't going to work with me. So I went to the meeting, as Dr. Gallin said, town hall. Well, this was just a meeting to talk to parents who had made it known to everybody. She doesn't know it, I'm she. But my children are not going to school with those clothes that they had on last year. Well, I told them they were going to come or I'll come get them. Well, I was bad. And the first day of school, my attendance clerk said, They're challenging you. I said, okay. So they didn't come to school. I went and got them. And we made the news. We made national news. Why? Because someone must be out of their mind to go into certain neighborhoods to pick up children. Well, I was there. But the bottom line is, as Dr. Gallin said, those parents learned to just adore me. And many of them went to school, completed their education. Two of them have the same certification that I have. It's just a long story and I have to tell you all this. Dr. Gallin and I have written that book. And in that book it talks about just what I'm talking about. It has to be told, the story has to be told. And that's what I've done and you all will get to see it and you can talk about it at dinner. Nonetheless, we've got to make sure that all parents are received warmly. I notice when we talk about putting different languages in books, believe it or not, many of the children who come to the schools don't speak correct English, and they come from Liberty City. They come from over town. They come from Opelika. They just come. And sometimes those parents are not treated warmly because they don't speak standard English either. But what you have to do as the principal, someone mentioned that, you have to make sure you meet and greet those parents and tell your staff, you represent me. If you mistreat the parents, they're not going to talk about you. They're going to talk about me. So that's a part of teaching our teachers and our custodians and those who are at the very front of the building. Let them know when the parents come out here that you're representing me. So, Dr. Gallin, thank you for reminding us of what our real jobs are like. And this is one of them. Again, thank you. Thank you all to my friends on this dais. Thank you for having such wonderful compliments. But as Member, Vice Chair Colucci, you're right. We've got to make sure it comes off the shelf and work it. And I see the superintendent giving a big smile. I know we have a lot of work to do. And guess what? As a team, we'll get it done. So thank you. And thank you, Dr. Lewis, for following up. You really, you couldn't wait, could you? I tell you. So to all of you, thank you. Now, should we vote on that item? Cosponsors? All those in favor? Okay, do I need to? Item as amended. All those in favor? Okay, so let me do, see if I get this where it should be. All of the H items have been voted upon and approved and they will go before the school board meeting next week. Am I right? Okay. The next item for this committee is a new business. Is there any? Okay, so I have two. Yes, go on. Go on, Mr. Superintendent.

Madam Chair, I never add to new business, but I wanted to add one element of what we're doing through Jackie's shop, through communications. I can wait until other board members speak to new business. I typically don't do this, but it provides an opportunity to really share what we're doing statewide, and Jackie has basically been a leader in this space. So when time allows.

Sure. Okay, Vice Chair, and then Madam Chair, is your hand up? Yes, ma'am, but it's okay, Vice Chair. She said you can go, Madam Chair.

Thank you so much, Madam Chair, for allowing me the opportunity. I have two schools that I'm very, very concerned about. I know we are doing a lot. and we're moving in the right direction. I have one school right now that is one point away from a B. I need to find out for those schools that are right there, okay, right there, and they've come way up, but they still have a ways to go. It's a challenging community. I went and I visited the school. We have teachers that are doing the very best they can in the classrooms and then we have those that come and visit the school three times a week. For schools that are in that situation where they are almost there, one point away, are we gonna be able to get those that have been identified to go out to the schools and assist three days a week to go out there five days a week and give them all the assistance they need to push them to that one point pending that could make a difference in that school from being a C school or a B school and getting them up one level. Is that something that we are reviewing and we're visiting and we can try to address through the chair?

Through the chair, yeah, of course, Madam Chair, that we have a, as you know, and I've explained in other times, method, like a tiered method. So we kind of like group our schools based on their needs. But those groupings are fluid because during the year, schools in the different subject areas and the different grade levels, sometimes they are performing better, sometimes they're performing worse because, or struggling a little bit more because it's a different group of students, right? So last year, they were a point away. This year, they may indeed be even closer. Obviously, we won't know until PM3. So we track very carefully students different data points we track, the PMs, as was just mentioned, iReady, different data sources, and we provide support by subject, by grade group. If it's a K-8, the support may be needed in third grade, or it might be needed in seventh grade, maybe in science, maybe in math. So those groupings, whether they are in, if it's an ETO school through Dr. Diggs and her team, if it's a tier one supported school through Dr. Santoyo and his, and we are constantly monitoring and adjusting. Of course, the region also supports, there's a couple of schools where we work very closely with ensuring even more visits because the region is visiting and we're visiting like in sync. So the answer is yes, we are providing for the schools the supports that they need and it changes. They may need very intensive support for a few weeks because it's a new teacher. In January, we had a number of schools that hired new teachers that had just graduated in December and they're great candidates but they needed that extra push. So we were very present and I actually walked into a school and I walked into that teacher's classroom and when the principal said, she started five days ago, I was like, what? The teacher seemed like a veteran. We provide the support as needed, and then we pull it back when it's no longer needed and route it to someone else. So that's our ongoing process. It's not just a fixed number of days. It's what is needed at that moment, sometimes more, sometimes less, but very closely monitored. That I can assure you.

through the chair thank you very much but my point is consistently five days until testing comes around for that school and a school that has a d status that could easily go up or it could go down i'm not talking about the flexibility that we have in the other schools i understand that makes perfect sense i'm looking at those that i see could make a huge difference for this district Again, a D can become an F in a blink of an eye. And that school that's close to being a B could make a huge difference in lieu of going to remaining as a C or maybe even going down as a D. It is both of them very challenging situations. So my point is the consistency of five days intense assistance for the next, I don't know, whatever amount of time we have left before the testing takes place. That's my question, through the Chair. Maybe Mr. Superintendent, you can add on to that.

Through the Chair. Sure, thank you. So one thing that I think Lourdes described it well, And I know where you're going with this, Madam Chair, and always it's going to be an issue of resources and the time that we have to apply of support. But there is a change. Prior to December, there's a lot of coaching and support to the teacher, right? Once January kicks in, we call it all hands on deck. The support that we deploy from the district, it's not about teacher support, it's some teacher support, but it's direct support to students. So basically you have the cycle where you're supporting the teachers, but right now, as we get closer, you will see that the support is more directly directed to the students in order to provide direct assistance. So that will intensify, Ms. Rojas, the approach of what we're doing in each school. And if absolutely, if we feel that there's a school that needs, there's one in particular that we're working very heavily with that requires more than three days, more than four days, we will do it. But we balance the resources, but I wanted to let you know that the support to the schools has a different characteristic prior to December than after we come back from winter break. And that's the way we intervene a little bit closer. We have Datacom, and in Datacom, Ms. Diaz knows, if we find a gap, we immediately address it right there to begin the next day. So we have constant points of increasing, whether daily, I don't wanna call it a visit, daily support structures, and if we see a need, we absolutely will do it. Absolutely will do it, but every school is different, and then we're dealing with this change in approach of support to schools. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Madam Chair, if I have one more follow-up, please. Thank you, I appreciate that, and I hope that that's looked at very, very closely, and you two, I'll tell you the schools personally later. The other issue that I want to bring up and ask, how many open teaching positions do we still have that have not been filled by a regular classroom teacher? Through the Chair.

Madam Chair, may I? Sure. Okay, so we have been addressing this. Yeah, I know. We've been having meetings about this every single day.

Okay.

So we have approximately, which is a very, very low number, we have approximately 48, right? We have an immediate plan to resolve those vacancies immediately, okay? and that is through deployment and analyzing that we should not have at this point all hands on deck is a response to that, Ms. Rojas. Very few in the core. Special ed is always an area of difficulty. But remember, we have vacancies that do not have children attached, and then we have vacancies that are vacant. And to be honest with you, they will not be able to secure a teacher until the end of the year or so we need to be able to intervene. So it's 48, but with a definitive plan, a definitive plan, this year to locate internal talent to cover those positions, not only for a savings to the school district, but also for the additional support that is needed at this time of the year. In the past, we provided deployment that was intermittent for those vacancies. The approach that we're taking is going to be pretty much placement and support until the end of the year.

Thank you, I appreciate that because that's the most critical area that we have to address. We have to make sure that every child has a teacher, certified teacher, teaching them. They deserve nothing less than that.

Yes, in fact, I'm sorry, Madam Chair, may I? We're also looking at the fact that, again, the concept of all hands on deck. If you're in a school and you have a teacher or a coach, that is not in the class that supports teachers, but you have a vacancy, you have to prioritize that class at this time of the year versus any other work or support to other teachers. So we're actually looking at that as well. So it's multi-layered.

Approach.

A multi-layered approach, absolutely.

Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you, Mr. Superintendent.

Yes, go right ahead.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I don't want to drag this on very long, but it's a very big concern that I have as a constitutional officer. I received a call to my office from a constituent about a material that was in clear violation of parental rights. made contact with the appropriate offices. It was addressed immediately, so I thank you for that. However, I do have a very big concern. I have proffered three items since I got on this board to address this matter. One back in December of 2023, of 2022, on district compliance with Florida law. One in March 9th, 2023, comprehensive review of social emotional learning because it was after thorough review, I saw there were many things that were in violation of Florida law within the content of those videos. And that was addressed as well. And then in April of 2023 I proffered an item called comprehensive review of all Miami Dade County public school websites digital links resources and learning management systems. So I find it very concerning that when I get that call and had I not gotten that call, I wouldn't have known. It's very concerning that when I asked for all of the supplemental materials that are being used, And if they are state adopted or not, and I requested a list of this, I have not yet received it and I was told that I could not get it until later. That is something that should be readily accessible. I need to know who is monitoring all of these supplemental materials. Are they state adopted? Are they not? Because the last thing I want is a letter from the Commissioner of Education is that we are not in compliance with Florida law. And two of my items were the result of letters from the Commissioner of Education. Two of my items that I sponsored were in response to that. So through the chair.

Sure.

Through the chair so we're in the process of compiling the list for you. We have Many many resources throughout the different subject areas and grade levels Generally speaking the Supplemental materials are not adopted by the state the state provides the list of textbooks that go through that process But other supplementals different books that we would purchase things that may be needed for interventions or reading interventions are adopted but that we may need for small group or phonics workbooks things like that those there is no comprehensive list that the state gives that says pick from here it would be it would be great if we had that because that would make it easier so um We review them in the Division of Academics, and we have a process for that that will be included in our response to you. The reason that we requested additional time is because it is a lot. We're going through all the pacing guides to ensure that everything that is linked there, we provide in that response to you.

So through the chair, if I may, a follow-up. Who is monitoring this when it is purchased? That is my question through the chair. And I know it's a tedious task because there is a lot of information and there's a lot of individualized instruction that comes and there are thousands of things that can be out there. But we have to do our due diligence because I find it very concerning. We are not, and I know that I don't need to give a history lesson here, but every state has different laws because the Constitution delegates that to the state. So as constitutional officers, we need to be sure that we are in compliance. So I look forward to that list. And now, We are not using Schoology any longer, correct? Through the chair?

Through the chair, no, we are still using Schoology, we're transitioning to Google Classroom, so this is kind of like a transition year, but our primary LMS remains Schoology.

Okay, through the chair. So I would like to see that list, but I do, I hope that this does not happen again, because it is something, I thought we had made a lot of progress with this, and to see that now... three years in is very, very concerning to me from a constituent who came to me about this. And the child was six years old with special needs. And I will leave it at that. Thank you, Madam Chair.

I just want to follow up. What I'm hearing is extremely concerning. And it's not just from the legal standpoint. Those laws are in place to protect our children. bottom line and so while I understand your frustration with not getting the information my bigger question and I would like to know how we're going to get an answer to it is who is monitoring I believe my understanding is teachers cannot use anything that is not coming from the district and so I would I would think the first step is, was that something that came from the district? And then if it was, how are we monitoring? That would be my question, right? Great to get a list of resources. I'm not going to be able to look through those resources. Who is, and I get that it's a big task, but like Board Member Colucci, Vice Chair Colucci said, three years down the road, we need to have this cleaned up.

I can answer.

That was your question? You had, okay. All right, Mr. Superintendent. Mr. Superintendent, go right ahead.

Sure, Ms. Diaz will be responding to this. But I just want to assure the board that we've come a long way with this. We've really cleaned out a lot and is a lot a result of the board items that we've had here, Ms. Colucci. So this came up, I wish, I mean, the material is extensive, but I can tell you that we've cleaned up a lot that we went through, and any example that pops up that principles bring to our attention, we immediately attend to it because it's a world of material, right? A world of material, but I can tell you that we are very intentional, and we have been. Maybe we haven't been vocal about some of the things that we've done, because it's the right thing to do, but we have done a lot. We have done a lot, and we will continue to filter what is not appropriate, not appropriate, and what's not in the law, what is not protected by law. You have that commitment from us, but examples do pop up that are very surprising, and we attend to it immediately. immediately, and Ms. Diaz, I can tell you she's done a phenomenal job with Danny Mateo regarding the library books, which was a huge project, and we continue to look out for that because this is not just done once. We have to continue, and so Ms. Diaz, take it from there in terms of the monitoring and the aspect of what we're doing. My issue here is I want you to know that we've been very responsive to the board items that have come up regarding this topic, and we're very much aware of the state that we're living in and what laws we have to follow in order to protect our children.

Thank you, sir, through the chair. So something I wanted to add, When we purchase software and other materials in our contracts, it indicates that any material that we purchase needs to be in adherence to Florida law. And it's a standard. I mean, it's more language than that. Because many of the companies that we work with are national companies. So they are good partners to us. And over the years, we have worked with them to tailor the material that they provide for Florida students only. And the removal of things that that cannot be taught here in Florida, cannot even be mentioned. Occasionally, rather rarely, we find things that we address, as Dr. Dutra said, immediately. If it is something that is brought to us by a parent, if a parent has an objection, you know we have a procedure for that, and we follow through. So a parent or a resident can object to a particular item, and if it is in violation of the law, it's removed immediately. So we have procedures in place for that. The team in academics is always monitoring prior to purchase, during, while using. Sometimes, shortly before the one that you shared with me, there was a similar situation on a platform that, although not necessarily state adopted, state recommended, and it had a very similar image. we contacted the state immediately, they pulled it. So when we're dealing with millions of pages, millions of images, millions of documents, sometimes things are found, but that we are diligent prior to purchase, that it is explained to our vendors, that it is documented in contracts, that that is all there, and it is an ongoing labor. Sure, go right ahead.

Thank you, Madam Chair, and I'll close with this. I'm very leery now that we're moving to new software because now there is even more available. We have to be very, very careful because we have to protect our children. We have to. And that's what our job is. Especially, you know, when you are talking about a five-, six-year-old with special needs, for me it's just not acceptable. So I want to end it on that note. I had to bring it to... the attention of my colleagues, to the attention of the administration, and I believe that we should have a list compiled as soon as something is brought up and adopted so that it doesn't have to take so long to get that information. And I will end with that, because I know we have a lengthy agenda today. So thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you. All right. Who did we have? That was a new business, ATO updates. Am I missing something?

Madam Chair, I just wanted to add to new business, that's all. Whenever the time comes.

Yeah, go right ahead.

Thank you, Dr. Dolcherson. Through the Chair, thank you for being your new business. Together, Miami-Dade County Public Schools, together with the Florida Association of District School Superintendents, we launched a statewide communications initiative that's called Florida's Future Powered by Public Schools. And the idea is to be able to have this coordinated statewide effort to elevate public awareness of the value and positive impact of Florida's public schools. We launched it in January and ideally this is something we would like to do annually. But starting off we will be highlighting different themes. In January we highlighted advanced academics. This month we're focusing on CTE. with a couple of other themes throughout each month through May. In May, we will be celebrating success through commencements. For National Public Schools Week, which falls February 23rd through the 27th, we have some exciting days that we would like to have everybody help us commemorate. We will be sharing that very, very soon. But just to give you guys a preview, some of the things we will be asking for is for our schools to share some of their parent voices on social media, Throwback Thursday, some vintage photos, yearbook photos, so if you guys have any handy, please start pulling them out for the end of February, and also to tag a teacher, somebody that made a difference in their life. I can already think of the many examples in mind, so we're very excited about this, and I'm excited to be able to share it with you, and happy to be able to continue pushing this forward, so thank you, Dr. Doltris.

Yes, sir.

And again, this is like 67 school districts coming together and thematically sharing what's happening in the schools. We're doing this through DASA, and I think it's very powerful that we're bringing all districts together to kind of create a similar message. And I want to thank Jackie for her leadership in taking this on at the state level and helping other school districts. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Okay. ETO update.

Madam Chair, we transmitted ETO updates on February 2nd. Dr. Dix is here to answer any questions.

Okay. Thank you. I believe that's it for today. I'd like to get a motion to move it. All those in favor?

Aye.

We're adjourned.