The Fountain Hills Unified School District Governing Board met last Wednesday, Jan. 25, tackling the topic of building names before rolling forward with consolidation.

The current middle school will become McDowell Mountain Elementary School next year due to consolidation plans, but the preschool classes are relocating to the kindergarten wing of the current MMES building. To avoid confusion, the Board voted 5-0 to rename the preschool “Little Falcons Preschool.”

Superintendent Dr. Cain Jagodzinski said he is excited about the name change because he believes it will inspire “Falcon pride” from a young age. Jagodzinski still remembers when the schools had different mascots and the Board voted to make “Falcons” the consistent mascot across the district.

Jagodzinski also shared a plan for the first ever staff picnic with the Board. The picnic will take place in early March and staff will be treated to hotdogs and hamburgers from Kiwanis, and pretzels from the Rotary club. Jagodzinski wants to make the staff picnic an annual tradition moving forward.

There were no public comments, so the Board moved into a work study session with a discussion about a college tour. Delaney Kazee, the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) teacher sponsor, wants to take 10 AVID students from grades 10 to 12 to Northern Arizona University this March.

The Board did not approve the trip since it was a work study session, but expressed appreciation for Kazee’s preparation. She included behavioral agreements, release of liability statements and other parental permission forms with the information regarding the trip.

AVID serves to help encourage kids who may not have thought college possible. According to AVID’s website, 56% of AVID students nationwide have parents with no college experience, and 75% come from low socio-economic backgrounds. In the 2020-21 Arizona graduating class, 99% of AVID students graduated with an average GPA of 3.2 and 69% were accepted into a four-year college.

Discussions turned toward incomplete grades after AVID. Students will receive an “I” letter grade for incomplete if they miss a final exam, are unable to complete assignments due to illness or other unforeseen circumstances, or for missing reteach sessions.

Following every nine-week grading period, or half of a semester, students will have four weeks to make up work they missed and earn a different grade than incomplete. Letter grades are still at the discretion of the teachers, but students will not automatically fail if they meet the criteria for an incomplete grade.

Policies, Security

The Board did first readings of policy advisories No. 739-741. Members of the Board want to discuss the wording of No. 739 again at a later meeting, which relates to parental consent forms for sex education curriculum and material deemed “sexually explicit” by the state.

The Board also discussed security camera upgrades for the second straight meeting and Jagodzinski provided quotes for what he calls “phase one.” Jagodzinski wants to install Verkada cameras, not more Panasonic cameras, because Verkada cameras can send real-time alerts and are more proactive than reactive.

The motion sensor cameras can be accessed remotely, so first responders could look at real-time footage before they even arrive at campus. Staff can also access security footage remotely with Verkada. Jagodzinski’s first priority is outdoor protection, and after the perimeter is established, he’d like to see more cameras installed inside.

The whole plan would cost more than $700,000, but the outdoor perimeter, or “phase one,” will be less than half that and is already budgeted. Jagodzinski said the high school quote is $249,000, and the middle school, or next year’s McDowell Mountain, is $83,308.

Board member Libby Settle asked how much FHUSD spent on the last security camera upgrade in 2019, but the figure was not readily available at the meeting. Board President Jill Reed asked Jagodzinski to get feedback from other administrators that use Verkada and verify the quality.

The Board discussed possibly bidding for the software provider, and also increasing the number of Security Resource Officers. Security will continue to be discussed at future meetings, but the Board turned their focus toward vacant buildings to end the meeting.

Property

Jagodzinski wants to alleviate community concerns that FHUSD is not doing anything about the mostly empty Four Peaks Elementary School. Jagodzinski has informed Four Peaks renters that FHUSD will not renew contracts past December 31, 2023. The Board will try to arrange for the Town Manager, Grady Miller, to come and speak with them at a future work study session about potential options including tearing down the building, or land leasing the space.

The Board has two meetings next week, a Board retreat at 4 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 6, and a regular business meeting at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 8. Both meetings will take place in the FHUSD Learning Center and are recorded on the FHUSD YouTube channel.