Superintendent Kirsten Rue and the School Board formally recognized Cassie Jenson, a teacher and coach at Griffin, following a colleague nomination. The Board presented Miss. Jenson with formal recognition honoring her exceptional dedication to students, her active leadership across classroom and athletic programs, and her positive contributions to district culture.

The Board opened the floor for community comments. It was noted that no members of the public were present in person or registered online. Consequently, the public comment portion of the meeting was concluded.

The Board reviewed a proposal to adjust the calendar for the November board meeting.

Technology Refresh 2026

Technology Supervisor Kyle Nixon provided an operational update covering summer projects funded through capital levy dollars and federal E-Rate reimbursements (which covered 50% of the network infrastructure costs):

-Charging Cart Refurbishments: Modernized and re-wired existing iPad charging carts, installing all-port active power units to ensure reliable daily charging while avoiding expensive cart replacements. A brand new charging cart costs approximately $1,000 per cart, and Mr. Nixon was able to retrofit existing carts for under $100 per cart.

-Device Fleet Refresh: Retired obsolete 7th-generation iPads that could no longer accept security patches or state testing software, replacing them with current-generation hardware.

-Network & Wireless Infrastructure Upgrade: Replaced 10-to-15-year-old wireless access points with modern 6 GHz units across classrooms, upgraded all switches to Power over Ethernet (PoE), and deployed WPA3 encryption protocols to improve speed, density, and data security.

Strategic Plan Progress Report

Superintendent Rue, Principal Keiser and Assistant Principal Hagen presented the district's first standardized monthly progress report tracking Strategic Plan Goal 1D (Results-Focused Professional Development).

-Literacy & MTSS Integration: Staff detailed a collaborative effort with the Educational Service District (ESD) focused on the Science of Reading across TK–8 grade levels, designed to align Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) and prepare for upcoming state special education transition models.

-De-escalation & Crisis Prevention: District leaders outlined the rollout of the Crisis Prevention Institute (CPI) model. All staff received training on behavior de-escalation, while a designated emergency response team completed advanced non-violent crisis intervention protocols.

Superintendent Rue informed the Board of Directors that at each Board Meeting, they will have a Strategic Plan Monitoring & Feedback form, in their red folders. They are welcome to fill it out and return to the folder for the Superintendent's review.

Board Director Emma Rose, serving as the Board's Legislative Representative, provided a summary of the recent Washington State School Directors’ Association (WSSDA) General Assembly. The Board discussed the process for selecting and submitting the district’s top legislative priorities prior to the October 1 deadline. Key priority areas reviewed included Transitional Kindergarten (TK) funding stabilization, basic education funding, protection against unfunded state mandates, state frameworks for artificial intelligence in education, and student mobile device policies. Director Rose will gather each member's top priorities and submit them to WSSDA on behalf of the district. 

The Board conducted a batch vote under the policy consent agenda format for policies that underwent first readings and discussion in the prior Study Session.

Superintendent Rue provided administrative updates regarding district operations, ongoing leadership initiatives, and administrative planning. Details were shared regarding monthly tracking mechanisms for the strategic plan, district leadership steps, and ongoing collaboration with district staff to ensure operational alignment across all grade bands.

She also noted that it has been an excellent start to the school year.

Business Manager Kyler Mower presented the monthly financial report for August 2026, outlining the district's fund balances, revenues, program expenditures, and year-end budget status:

General Fund Summary & Fund Balance:

-Ending Fund Balance: The General Fund closed August with an ending fund balance of $1,033,012 (approximately 8.83%), which successfully remains above the district’s minimum fund balance policy requirement of $960,005.

-Total Year-to-Date Performance: Total YTD revenues received were $11,699,236 (98.19% of budgeted revenue), against YTD expenditures of $12,150,436 (97.22% of the revised budget).

Revenue Highlights across Funds:

-General Fund (GF): Collections reached 98.2% ($11,699,236 of $11,914,361 budget). Local property taxes and non-tax collections came in above budget, while state apportionment and special-purpose revenues were nearly complete for the fiscal year.

-Capital Projects Fund (CPF): Revenues exceeded expectations at 110.1% ($1,510,923 received vs. $1,371,867 budgeted).

-Debt Service Fund (DSF): Revenues reached 273.6% ($23,259 received vs. $8,500 budgeted).

-Associated Student Body (ASB): Revenues reached 118.8% ($20,618 received vs. $17,350 budgeted).

-Transportation Vehicle Fund (TVF): Revenues came in at 125.2% ($198,265 received vs. $158,331 budgeted), boosted significantly in August by state depreciation revenue.

General Fund Program Expenditures:

-Regular Instruction: Spent $7,249,350 (103.1% of the $7,033,889 allocation, representing a $215,461 variance).

-Special Education Instruction: Spent $1,513,561 (96.3% of the $1,572,437 allocation).

-Support Services: Spent $3,101,638 (94.5% of the $3,282,664 allocation).

-Compensatory & Other Instructional Programs: Compensatory Education spent 92.0% ($254,390), Other Instructional Programs spent 9.3% ($30,854), and Community Services spent 51.5% ($643).

Other Notable Items & Fiscal Year-End Outlook:

-Capital Projects: Total expenditures and encumbrances stand at 34.74%, with an ending fund balance of $4,434,388 as major project expenses continue to post through year-end.

-Transportation: The planned district bus purchase has been moved to Quarter 1 of 2027.

-Next Steps: The Business Office will continue monitoring final year-end closing entries, cash flow, and capital project spending as the fiscal year officially closes.