Dr. Liesa provided updates on completed and ongoing reports due in October. All reports are being completed on time, with a noted delay in the State rolling over EdPlan and the new students with special education IEPs. This delay slows completion of reports for which this data is needed. We continue to be in communication with the State on this matter.

The exploration into the consideration of a possible authorizer change continues. An initial conversation with TPS suggests that a 10-year renewal could be requested. The research has identified the contacts we may pursue in this exploration. Eric Doss will provide consultation as we research all available authorizers.

Next week a few of the Admin team, our architects and our general contractor will visit Kiefer Public Schools to see a 100-year-old school that was recently renovated by our architects.  This field trip will launch our renovation planning, for repairs and improvements to take place next summer.  Work is occurring on our boiler to prep it for the annual city inspection and planning is underway to arrange for a temporary technician to operate the boiler until our custodian, Steve Romero, completes his training and takes his exam to become certified.

Initial planning for our research grant may recommend that we contract with consultants to complete long-term financial planning to direct the school for the next 5-10-15 years.  Another consultant may be secured to complete a needs assessment to help the school determine the appropriateness of developing an adult-ed virtual diploma completion program. Other academic improvement research will be completed by TSAS leadership and teachers to align with data and identified areas of growth.

Dr. Dan provided an update on school events and initiatives. The first trimester will end the first week in November and a PLC led by the teacher-leaders will be held on the November 6th teacher's work day. 

Preliminary review of our State Report Card indicates areas of progress and a notable improvement in our chronic absenteeism. Middle School math continues to be the primary academic area where we are working to achieve student growth. There is a national trend reflecting these same areas of academic challenge.

Our initiative to address student attendance has proven effective, and our current ADA is 90.3%. We exited 12 ELA students from WIDA testing which reflects strong language acquisition through literacy support offered across the curriculum. 

Our efforts at prioritizing a humanizing approach to student growth, improvement and achievement are meaningful and we are seeing results. Our emphasis on the TTT element of communication with parents through increased student-led progress reports is one component of this humanizing approach.

Mary Nicholson, Math Department Chair and 9th grade Biology teacher, presented the report for the Faculty Council. Mary provided an update on the beginning of the year which always includes some elements of a chaotic first few weeks followed by encouraging developments. The 9th grade team has noted reading challenges, but the faculty is very encouraged to observe students moving beyond apathy that was common after Covid, to real engagement and interest in the classroom. 

The SPED department has a heavy lift of documentation in the first months of school, and this onboarding overlaps with students' needs for support. The TTT communication plans are beneficial, but experimentation with various approaches to reaching parents will continue. 

Teachers are also experimenting with grade-level team parent conferences, and while these are beneficial for parents and teachers, determining how best to schedule them will need further experimentation. 

Daniel Sharples presents that the Friends of TSAS are planning their first big fundraiser as a trivia night on November 12th.  The first of three "TSAS Talks" speaker series will be held on October 22nd and will focus on local journalism. Three journalists from local publications will participate in a panel discussion moderated by Daniel Sharples. Two other speaker series events will take place later in the year. 

In addition to the new FoT member on the agenda tonight, another parent is interested in joining the foundation board and working to support fundraising specifically for the building. He is an architect who has close ties to our building through a previous academic project. 

Mickey Peercy reviewed the financial summary for September.  Of note is our continuing elevated PSO bill.  Ongoing supervision of the budget continues to hold us steady and our financial projections remain consistent.