HR committee proposes staffing additions and handbook language changes; NEA informed of updates

The Milton School District human resources committee reported on staffing changes for the 2025‑26 school year and proposed edits to the employee handbook, including revised language around equity and inclusion that administration says was vetted by legal counsel. Why it matters: handbook language and staffing levels affect day‑to‑day operations, employee expectations and bargaining-unit relations. Committee members said the district identified the need to add an additional kindergarten teacher at Harmony earlier in the spring and, as summer progressed, two special-education aides (one at East and one at West) were also needed because two new students will attend this fall. The Department of Teaching and Learning recommended changing an "increasingly advanced learning" (formerly gifted and talented) position from 0.8 FTE to 1.0 FTE; the role would remain split 0.8 FTE at Northside and 0.2 FTE at elementary levels. On the handbook, the committee presented pages with proposed edits and asked board members to review and send questions to administration. A board member asked about changes to policy language on equity and inclusion; administration said the language revisions were suggested by the district's attorney and by outside counsel (identified as USI in the packet), and that they were a response to recent federal guidance and legal review. The district emphasized the revisions do not reflect a move away from the district's commitment to serving diverse students and staff. The committee said it had met with Sarah Brechtel, identified in the meeting as NEA president, to review the handbook edits, and that Brechtel had not requested additional changes at the time of the meeting. The administration said the next step is to bring the handbook back for final board review and possible approval at the Aug. 11 meeting. Also discussed was the superintendent evaluation process for 2025‑26; the committee is collecting evaluation forms used by other districts for comparison and hopes to finalize a recommended process in time for the evaluation later this year. Less critical details: committee members asked clarifying questions about whether attachments in board materials were duplicates and about minor handbook items such as military/civil air patrol leave and PTO management.