School is back in session, and the Fountain Hills Unified School District Governing Board held its last meeting of the summer on Wednesday, Aug. 2. The members built off conversations of Board goals and a district forecast they conducted the week prior during the Board retreat on Wednesday, July 26, and members approved six spending items for the new school year.

Goals and forecast

Each member submitted their own ideas for Board goals during the recent retreat, and they worked collaboratively to come to an agreement on a set list. Member Libby Settle’s goals provide most of the framework for the group, and member Lillian Acker made one comment for change during the Aug. 2 meeting. The goals will come back for final approval on Wednesday, Aug. 16.

During the district forecast, President Jill Reed sought clarity about what direction members want the Board to go. Madicyn Reid and Settle were given time to better explain their positions on issues and why they have voted “yes” or “no” on several different items. Settle explained she had issues and thought the budget was too expensive to approve a multi-playground installation at McDowell Mountain Elementary School. The playgrounds have been discussed for weeks, and Settle also did not like that the need for new roofs was not brought up until recently. Settle said academics are a top priority and she wants to see more presentations on test scores, and that she’ll vote no to anything related to Social Emotional Learning.

Test scores from the previous year will be available soon, and Reed said the presentation will most likely be in September.

Reid said there is often too little time to research a topic in between receiving the agenda and hearing a presentation at a meeting. She feels the presentations are one-sided, and she’ll vote no when she believes there isn’t sufficient data or if she believes the costs outweigh the benefits to students. Reid further clarified at the Aug. 2 meeting that she will vote no for any purchase order to a company that is part of a cooperative and did not go through a bidding process.

“I’m just going to say it publicly because I do not feel comfortable voting ‘yes’ on bids of this kind of magnitude constantly when there has not been three bids received,” Reid said regarding a Shade N Net discussion. “I understand that they’re part of a co-op, and that we use that as our reason for not going through the procurement process, but I sat in the same training as you guys, where the guy mentioned that it does not guarantee that we get the lowest price. I know that lowest price is not the only thing to consider but…I think we can almost guarantee that we are overpaying.”

FHUSD Superintendent Cain Jagodzinski continues to say cooperatives are widely used by school districts and governing bodies and are legal and legitimate. Of the six purchase orders on the agenda, Ried voted in favor of custodial services, which went through a bidding process last year, and voted against five other cooperative agreements.

The shade structure passed 3-2, and Settle asked Jagodzinski to clarify permit costs and installation costs that were outlined in the Board packet as not included. Jagodzinski said in conversations those items were taken care of or not needed but will work with his financial team and Shade N Net to clear up confusion. The quote presented to the Board was $115,220.25 for shading over soon-to-be-installed playgrounds.

Contracts

The Board approved contracting Fruth Group for IT services, WEX for fleet fuel, Climatec for HVAC and fire safety, and Bel Aire Mechanical for AC service and maintenance all by a 4-1 vote. The district saved roughly $75,000 to $85,000 by using Fruth Group instead of maintaining an in-house IT staff, and the cost is approximately $185,000. The district spent $139,566.11 on fuel last year and the quote from WEX said services are approximately $140,000 depending on fuel costs.

Building off the retreat where members talked about having more appropriate information provided in advance, Settle and Reid asked for documentation in the future when the district changes businesses, like from Voyager to WEX, or hires a third party to see before and after prices.

FHUSD has been on contract with Climatec since at least 2006 and has been with Bel Aire Mechanical since 2014. They are a combined $340,000 in approximate annual costs, and the district renewed their contractual agreements.

The Board voted 5-0 to approve RNA custodial services for approximately $32,000 a month, and the members all voted in unison to update the BE policy, extracurricular fees schedule, ESI Staffing Agreement Addendum, MCCCD Dual Enrollment IGA, instructional time model and sole source provider list. FHUSD had over 30 sole source providers on May 10, 2022, but Jagodzinski has shrunk that list down to seven. Several members expressed appreciation for the change.

New position

Jagodzinski wants to add a Native American Education Specialist position to the high school and wanted to make a commitment by getting the position description approved. He hopes the position will be grant-funded by Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation (FMYN) but hasn’t heard back yet since submitting paperwork. According to Jagodzinski, FMYN students make up roughly 25% of FHUSD students, and 90% of FMYN students choose to attend FHUSD schools.

Reid said she did not like that the Board was voting on the position without knowing if the position would be grant funded, and Settle worried about paying teachers competitive rates if FHUSD adds more staff. Jagodzinski said if the grant does not come through, he’ll look at funding the position next year though district funds. The Board approved the position description 3-2.

MMES

During the Shade N Net discussion, Settle asked Jagodzinski if he had an “all in dollar amount” for McDowell Mountain expenses. Jagodzinski said the figure was roughly $765,000 for everything outside of playground space. Reid asked if that total included the Lu Interactive system, indoor playground and planetarium-themed library before Reed redirected the conversation toward the shade structures.

Jagodzinski responded to each question and repeated how the Lu Interactive system is grant funded outside of installation costs, and said the planetarium is funded through donations. Reid said she disagreed about the planetarium funding and said it was misleading for Jagodzinski to say that.

At the end of the meeting, Reid also called into question the legitimacy of an earlier vote by the Board to approve spending over $100,000 on signage for the middle school. She believed the price had changed from what they originally saw, and Jagodzinski confirmed that he had been able to reduce the price.

The Board pulled items related to the planetarium and indoor playgrounds from the agenda, and they will be discussed on Aug. 16. President Reed wanted Core Construction and Orcutt Winslow to present their projects and be available for questions Board members may have.

The Board agendas will start to include future agenda items under Future Action Items, as discussed in the Board retreat. The next meeting is a work study session and business meeting on Aug. 16 at 5 p.m., and then the Board will meet again on Wednesday, Sept. 6, at 6 p.m.

All meetings are held in the FHUSD Learning Center and are livestreamed and recorded on the FHUSD YouTube channel.