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Board hears committee updates on climate action, equity and special education; policy wording edits flagged for fixes
Summary
Superintendent Dr. Clifford and committee leads updated the board on climate action, McKinstry benchmarking under the Clean Buildings Act, equity and SEAC progress, and minor policy wording changes tied to association guidance; board members asked for student recruitment and a timeline for climate goals.
At the board workshop the South Whidbey School District heard a series of routine committee updates covering the climate action committee, equity work, special education advisory council (SEAC), instructional council and several proposed policy wording edits.
Dr. Clifford summarized the board's goal to receive at least two committee updates per year and introduced the climate action committee report, which noted student engagement, a green‑team pilot at the elementary level and earlier small solar projects. A committee representative said the group has focused on facilities review, visibility and policy work and will prioritize recruiting student members for May outreach.
Staff reported the district is working with McKinstry on benchmarking and an inventory to comply with state clean‑buildings requirements, and is pursuing a grant to create a preventative maintenance program aligned with bond upgrades. "This work will help lower energy use and save money in the long run," a staff member said.
On equity, Dr. Clifford highlighted co‑leads Kyla Stelling and Jenny Holbrook and noted the committee's role in training and in shaping principal interview prompts. Ms. Phillips presented the SEAC update, saying membership is roughly 50% parents/guardians, 36% staff and 14% community members; SEAC will prioritize program review feedback and family engagement events.
Director Downs led a brief policy review explaining three updates that align district wording with association guidance (noted in the meeting as "Wazda" in the transcript). The changes are mostly wording adjustments (for example replacing "shall" with "will"), a clarification of field trip language to ease use of public transit for excursions, and insertion of "experiencing homelessness" into the homeless‑student definition. A board member who said they had personal experience with McKinney‑Vento programs praised the wording change. Board members also identified an editors' note/typo embedded in a draft policy; staff agreed to correct it before the next adoption vote.
Board members encouraged deeper student participation across the committees and asked staff for a timeline for climate goals or policy recommendations by June. No formal votes were taken during this workshop; policy changes will return for review after staff correct the draft and incorporate requested edits.
The chair adjourned the workshop after noting the next board meeting will include a curriculum discussion.
