NORTHWEST EDUCATION SERVICE DISTRICT 189
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
REGULAR MEETING

MINUTES

April 22, 2024; 6:30 PM

Northwest Educational Service District
1601 R Ave, Anacortes, WA 98221

Call to Order / Pledge of Allegiance

The regular meeting of the Northwest Educational Service District Board of Directors was held in person on Monday, April 22, 2024. Board Chair Sue Phillips called the meeting to order at 6:29 PM at the Northwest Educational Service District in Anacortes, WA.

Members present:

Sue Phillips
Merle Kirkley
Oscar Escalante
Jack Thompson
Ann McMurray
Mark Venn
Alan Erickson
Cory Duskin
Kelly Bashaw

Staff present:

Larry Francois
David Forsythe
Lisa Matthews
Deka Smith
Jennifer Longchamps
Maureen Hodge
Tamara Shoup

Approval of Minutes

The minutes of the March 25, 2024, regular board meeting were presented for approval. Alan Erickson moved, and Mark Venn seconded, to approve the minutes of the March 25, 2024, regular board meeting.  Motion carried.

Comments From the Public

No public comment was provided.

Approval of Agenda

Additions to the agenda were identified as:

  • 5.h Approval of Out-of-State Travel
  • 5.i Approval of additional Personnel Report indicating terminations, hiring, and reclassification of NWESD employees
  • 5.j Approval of additional Election of Certificated Staff indicating hiring of certificated employees
  • 7.c Approval of New Position Description – Director of Development, Strategy, and Innovation

Ann McMurray moved, and Oscar Escalante seconded, to approve the agenda as amended.  Motion carried.

Executive Session

Chair Phillips recessed into an executive session starting at 6:32 p.m. to review the performance of a staff member. Chair Phillips estimated the Executive Session would last 10 minutes after which the Board would reconvene the regular session to proceed with the adopted agenda. Chair Phillips reconvened to regular session at 6:57 p.m.

Consent Agenda

Approval of the General Fund Warrants

Approval of the General Fund warrants #206346 through #206410 in the amount of $580,737.97 and accounts payable electronic wire transfer payment #000000076 in the amount of $1,819.04 and warrants #206426 through #206508 in the amount of $500,361.10 and accounts payable ACH payment #9000001338 through #9000001394 in the amount of $24,514.12 were presented.

Approval of the General Fund Financial Report

Approval of the General Fund Financial Report with the total ending net position equity in the amount of $17,425,219.87 was presented.

Approval of Payroll

Approval of March payroll warrants #206411 through #206415 for salaries in the amount of $13,405.88, #206416 through #206425 to payroll vendors in the amount of $46,563.99, repayment to accounts payable for health care authority costs in the amount of $290,778.50, reserve for compensated absence reimbursement in the amount of $14,747.37 an electronic transfer in the amount of $743,636.93 for payroll tax liability and DRS contributions, and an electronic transfer of employee direct deposits in the amount of $1,181,513.77 for a total of $2,290,646.44 were presented.

Approval of NW Washington Workers’ Compensation Trust Financial Report

Approval of the NW Workers Compensation Trust Financial Report with the total ending net position equity in the amount of $508,808.07 was presented.

Approval of NW Washington Workers’ Compensation Trust Fund Warrant

No NW Washington Workers’ Compensation Trust Fund warrants were presented.  

Approval of Unemployment Pool Warrants

Approval of Unemployment Pool warrants #206509 in the amount of $2,924.17 was presented.

Approval of Unemployment Pool Financial Report

Approval of the Unemployment Pool Financial Report with the total ending net position equity in the amount of $11,338,559.45 was presented.

Approval of Out-of-State Travel

Approval of Out-of-State Travel in the amount of $29,896.01 was presented.

Approval of Personnel Report

Personnel Report indicating terminations, hiring, and reclassification of NWESD employees was presented.

Approval of Election of Certificated Staff

Election of Certificated Staff indicating hiring of certificated employees was presented.

It was moved by Merle Kirkley and seconded by Alan Erickson to approve the Consent Agenda as amended. Ann McMurray abstained from the vote. Motion carried.

Board Report

Maureen Hodge, Early Learning Coordinator, presented an update on the ECEAP Expansion. Highlights from the presentation were:

  • Early Learning Defined
  • Federal, State, and Local Priorities and Activities
  • Data Highlights
  • Current Early Learning Activities
  • ECEAP Expansion

New and Pending Business

Approval of New Position Descriptions

Early Learning Program Manager

The new position description for the Early Learning Program Manager – Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) was presented to the board for approval. Superintendent Francois noted that this position is funded by the Department of Children, Youth, and Families and will provide overall program management and oversight of ECEAP services within Bellingham and Ferndale. Salary is recommended at Schedule III, Range 14a.

Merle Kirkley moved, and Mark Venn seconded, to approve the new position of Early Learning Program Manager as presented. Motion carried.

Director of Development, Strategy, and Innovation

The new position description for the Director of Development, Strategy, and Innovation was presented to the board for approval. Superintendent Francois shared that this new position was created based on the work of the directors and leadership teams and will provide leadership and support for resource development and initiatives through all stages of program and business model development. Salary is recommended at Schedule III, Range 15b.

Ann McMurray moved, and Kelly Bashaw seconded, to approve the new position of Director of Development, Strategy, and Innovation as presented. Motion carried.

Resolution No. 2024-01, Authorizing a Reduction in Force of Certificated Staff

Resolution No. 2024-01, Authorizing a Reduction in Force of Certificated Staff was presented for approval. This resolution provides Superintendent Francois the authority to notify certificated staff by May 15 if cooperative program funding assurances are not provided by then. Superintendent Francois noted that we may require one reduction in the Snohomish Discovery program.

Jack Thompson moved, and Ann McMurray seconded, to approve Resolution No. 2024-01, Authorizing a Reduction in Force of Certificated Staff, as presented. Motion carried.

Items for Information

Independent Contractor Agreements

Independent Contractor Agreements were presented to the board for review.

2024-25 Board Report Topics

Suggested 2024-25 board report topics were presented to the board for review. A survey will be sent to the Board to determine consensus for the 2024-25 board report topics.

Superintendent Evaluation

Superintendent Francois shared an update on the annual superintendent evaluation process. The anonymous staff plus/delta feedback regarding Superintendent Francois’ performance was shared with the board along with his reflections on his 2023-24 performance goals. The electronic evaluation instrument will be sent to the board for their input with a return date of May 6, 2024. The evaluation information will be compiled and presented during the end-of-year conference that will be held during an executive session following the May 28, 2024, board meeting.

Superintendent’s Report

Binding Conditions Update: Larry Francois shared an update on the districts currently in binding conditions. He noted that La Conner remains on track and should exit binding conditions next fall. The Mt. Baker School District is working hard at their plan. They are likely to need one more year in binding conditions, possibly 2 years. They are doing everything possible but they are losing their regionalization (3%) as well as working to fund the state COLA for their employees. They may not make their goal of reducing their budget by $2.4 million for 2024-25.

The Marysville School District was required to submit its plan on April 15, 2024, to show how they are going to meet their binding conditions. The plan was submitted but it did not include all of the OSPI required information. Larry Francois, Lisa Matthews, and Dr. Vivanco met with OSPI to discuss the next steps. OSPI Leadership met last Friday with their legal counsel to assess options for the next steps. The NWESD is waiting to see what OSPI’s next steps are and then we will respond accordingly.

Regional Superintendent Transitions Update: Superintendent Francois provided an update on the NWESD regional superintendent transitions. He noted that Shannon Leatherwood was selected as the new superintendent for the Coupeville School District. The Lake Stevens School District announced that Dr. Mary Templeton will serve as their new superintendent. The Mount Vernon and La Conner school districts are still in the process of finding their superintendents. The Mt. Baker and Lopez Island school districts are still determining their plans for next year.

NWESD Superintendent Transition Update: Larry Francois shared that he and Dr. Vivanco are continuing to meet about every other week. Dr. Vivanco has been involved with recent Special Programs and Services Director interviews.

Outcomes of OSPI Leadership, ESD Superintendents meeting at the AESD Conference: Superintendent Francois shared with the board that the ESD superintendents and OSPI leadership team met following the AESD Annual Conference earlier this month. He noted that there were some relational struggles between the ESDs and OSPI. State Superintendent Reykdal has indicated that OSPI no longer wants to contribute to the AESD network nor have a formal partnership agreement with ESDs. During this meeting, it was agreed that AESD and OSPI may need to invest more time to meet in person with the leadership groups to build stronger relationships and have deeper conversations than are sometimes allowed in quarterly Zoom meetings.

Sound Transit Interest in WSIPC/NWRDC site: Superintendent Francois shared information that was received from Sound Transit noting their interest in putting a light rail station at the current location of the WSIPC/NWRDC site. NWRDC is co-located with WSIPC in Everett, WA. There is another meeting scheduled in June 2024, to continue the conversation. Sound Transit would like to start its planning and environmental studies in 2026. The NWESD owns 39% of the facility. We wouldn’t need to move with WSIPC but we would need to find another location should Sound Transit acquire the WSIPC/NWRDC site. Francois added that the current facility has an issue with its cooling tower and plans are being made to have that replaced in the upcoming months.

Anacortes Facility Cathodic Protection System: Superintendent Francois provided an update to the board on the state of the current cathodic protection system at the Anacortes office. He shared that the building sits on steel pilings. The pilings are hooked up to the cathodic protection system that provides an electric charge to keep the pilings from corroding. The protection system needs to be replaced. The NWESD has contracted with a company to design the replacement system. Once the study is complete, we’ll have to get bids to complete the project. This will likely be a costly repair funded through the existing long-term facility reserve.

Items Originating with the Board

AESD/Legislative Report

Board member Merle Kirkley reported that Melissa Gombosky provided an in-depth legislative update at the AESD Conference. And, currently, we are waiting to see who is running for office again.

De-brief AESD Annual Conference

The board discussed the AESD Annual Conference and provided feedback for Merle Kirkley to take back to the AESD Executive Board Meeting in June.

Adjournment

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:19 PM

Minutes approved on May 28, 2024, in regular session of the NWESD Board of Directors.