Draft Minutes September 8, 2026 DRAFT.REV.1
The Board approved the consent agenda minutes and sealing non-public minutes 5-0. Beltronics received the $109,285.28 bid for two-way radios (5-0), funded by $105,000 from the SAFE Grant and $4,285.28 from Repair & Maintenance. The FY26 fund balance is approximately $2.19 million; the Board delayed a decision on retaining up to 5% or offsetting the 2027 tax rate. The facility rate sheet was approved, exempting Milford-affiliated nonprofits until next year (5-0). Policies 2317, 5012, 6011, and 3551 moved to second readings (5-0). Policy 5005 was waived to policy (5-0). The Board set 2026-2027 goals, including a 3.4% FY28 budget cap, negotiating MESSA and Mason tuition agreements, and preparing March 2027 warrant articles for a second SRO, purchasing Kenmore Stamp property, and selling Bales property. Source: https://4.files.edl.io/9899/09/21/26/122356-7164ddd3-4aa5-4e5f-8daa-66d131943a02.pdf
MILFORD SCHOOL BOARD 1 Milford High School – Lecture Hall, Room #182 2 (Zoom Access) 3 September 8, 2026 4 7:00 p.m. 5 6 6:15 p.m. – Open Public Meeting to Announce Non-Public Session (MHS Room #182) 7 8 6:20 p.m. – Non-Public Session per RSA 91-A:3, II (c) & (k) 9 10 1. CALL TO ORDER 11 12 Board Members Present: 13 14 Ms. Karin Cevasco, Chair 15 Ms. Amy Clark Canty, Vice-Chair 16 Mr. Ryan Freed, Secretary 17 Ms. Tara Davoli, Board Member 18 Mr. John Clary, Board Member 19 20 Also Present: 21 22 Ms. Christi Michaud, Superintendent of Schools 23 Ms. Jan Radowicz, Executive Director of Teaching & Learning and Federal Projects 24 Mr. Benjamin Kilar, Business Administrator 25 26 MOTION: Mr. Freed made a motion to seal the minutes of the September 8, 2026, non-public 27 meeting pursuant to RSA 91:A:3 II (c), matters which, if discussed in public, would likely 28 adversely affect the reputation of any person, other than a member of the School Board, for a 29 period of five years. Ms. Clark Canty seconded the motion. 30 31 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 32 33 Ms. Cevasco read aloud the Milford School District’s vision statement as follows: 34 35 The Milford School District will be an inspiring community where deep learning, and strong 36 relationships empower all students to become designers of their own story. 37 38 The primary goal of the Milford School Board is to provide a free and appropriate public 39 education to Milford students and to realize the district's mission statement. 40 41 The primary purpose of this meeting is to conduct the business of the Milford School Board. 42 We publish our agenda in advance of our meeting, including all exhibits, to give the public notice 43 and ensure you know what to expect this evening. 44 45 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 46 47 MOTION: Seeing there was no public comment, Ms. Cevasco made a motion to close the 48 public comment portion of the meeting. Ms. Clark Canty seconded the motion. 49 50 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 51 Milford School Board Page 2 September 8, 2026 (*Exhibits attached to meeting agenda) 52 53 3. CONSENT AGENDA 54 a. *Approval of Minutes: August 17, 2026 55 b. *Professional Nominations & Hiring Report Approved by the Superintendent 56 57 MOTION: Mr. Freed made a motion to approve the Consent Agenda, as presented. Ms. Clark 58 Canty seconded the motion. 59 60 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 61 62 4. BOARD MEMBER REPORTS (*Exhibit attached to meeting agenda) 63 64 a. Student School Board Representative 65 66 Ms. Shrey Mattapalli, was the new Student School Board Representative but was not present 67 at this meeting. 68 69 c. *2026 – 2027 School Board Goals 70 71 BUDGET 72 73 • Develop a fiscally responsible budget for FY 2028 that provides a free and appropriate 74 public education to Milford students while minimizing the tax impact and representing at 75 most a 3.4% increase over the FY27 budget. 76 77 TEACHING AND LEARNING 78 79 • Support the district's instructional vision by ensuring that Board policies, resource 80 allocation, and strategic decisions advance high-quality teaching and learning to 81 improve student learning outcomes. 82 83 COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT 84 85 • Successfully negotiate a new contract with the Milford Education Support Staff 86 Association (MESSA) to begin July 1, 2027, that will attract and retain high-quality staff, 87 while also presenting a reasonable budget impact. 88 89 MASON TUITION AGREEMENT 90 91 • Successfully negotiate a new tuition agreement with the Mason School District (SAU89) 92 for students in grades 6-12, with the goal of having predictability for the number of 93 students who will be enrolled in the Milford School District and setting tuition rates 94 reflective of actual costs per pupil over the term of the contract. 95 96 SCHOOL SAFETY 97 98 • Prepare a warrant article for the March 2027 ballot to request the addition of a second 99 School Resource Officer (SRO) to serve the Milford School District (MSD). 100 Milford School Board Page 3 September 8, 2026 CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN (CIP) 101 102 • Review and act upon the recommendations from the work of the CIP Committee and put 103 into place a Capital Improvement Plan to be implemented over the course of ten years, 104 prioritizing projects based on safety, facility needs, technology, and impact on student 105 learning. 106 107 ENROLLMENT PROJECTIONS AND FACILITIES PLAN DEVELOPMENT 108 109 • Review and act upon the recommendations from the work of the Special Advisory 110 Committee on Enrollment Projections and District Organization and put into place a plan 111 to best utilize district facility resources, including how grade levels are distributed 112 throughout school buildings based on impact to student learning and efficient budgetary 113 impact. 114 115 • Prepare a warrant article for the March 2027 ballot to purchase the Kenmore Stamp 116 property at 119 West Street to house Project Drive and the Milford School District 117 Student Services and Special Education offices and create an education campaign to 118 inform the public why this purchase is fiscally responsible and meets the goal of 119 improving and expanding the Project Drive program. 120 121 • Prepare a warrant article for the March 2027 ballot to receive permission from the Milford 122 voters to sell the Bales property located at 5 Elm Street. 123 124 Ms. Cevasco added that we will hold open houses at each of our schools for families to attend, 125 and we will set up a School Board table. She said the Board would like to speak with families 126 about the district’s goals. 127 128 d. Board Member Comment and Committee Reports 129 130 1. HB1300 Information 131 132 Ms. Cevasco explained that HB1300, an update to RSA 32, was a learning process for the 133 School Board, so as we head toward the November election, they would continue to review it. 134 135 Ms. Cevasco said Governor Ayotte signed House Bill 1300 into law, and it would take effect in 136 November 2026. She added that it would require every town and ward in a city to include a tax 137 cap question on its general election ballot in November 2026 and November 2028, and that it 138 would require a 36th majority vote to pass. She said the new law did not mandate a tax cap, but 139 it would update RSA 32 to mandate that the question go before the voters. 140 141 Ms. Cevasco said that at the School Board’s August meeting, members shared questions about 142 the new law, and they would explore the answers at this meeting. 143 144 Question: 145 146 Is the tax cap effective for 2 years? 147 148 149 Milford School Board Page 4 September 8, 2026 Answer: 150 151 Yes, if the question passes with a three-fifths (60%) majority in November 2026, the cap will 152 remain in effect for 2 years. The law then requires asking the question again in November 2028. 153 It is somewhat unclear at this point, but it appears the tax cap would remain in effect indefinitely 154 if it passes in November 2028. 155 156 Question: 157 158 Could the override go on the March ballot if the tax cap passes in November? 159 160 Answer 161 162 The legislative body, that is, the voters of Milford, may vote to exceed the tax cap or the SAU 163 fixed cap. Typical annual meeting procedures will govern, except when a proposed 164 appropriation will cause the tax cap to be exceeded. The question on the ballot must pass by 165 60% of the vote, so it is not an opportunity to remove and eliminate the tax cap, but there is a 166 process to exceed the cap. 167 168 Question: 169 170 How is the tax cap calculated? 171 172 Answer: 173 174 The formula is the prior fiscal year property tax levy minus bonded capital costs, times one plus 175 inflation plus net new taxable property growth. 176 177 The Department of Revenue (DRA) is responsible for certifying the net new taxable property 178 growth for each taxing jurisdiction annually. In a hearing during the legislative process for HB 179 1300, the DRA testified that it does not know how to determine net new taxable property growth 180 and suggested that municipalities certify it to the DRA. The legislature moved forward without 181 applying the DRA's suggestion. Certifying the net new taxable property growth is another area 182 of uncertainty in this new law. 183 184 Question: 185 186 Can the school district send out information? 187 188 Answer: 189 190 Yes, we can hold a public hearing before the November 3rd election to address both the fiscal 191 year 2028 budget and the public's questions about the November ballot. 192 193 Question: 194 195 What is a School Administrative Unit, an SAU? 196 197 198 Milford School Board Page 5 September 8, 2026 Answer: 199 200 Milford is a single-district SAU. Pursuant to RSA 194.1-A, a single-district SAU shall be 201 considered the same as a single school district; however, for the sake of this new law, they are 202 asking to separate out those budgets. The SAU provides superintendent services, adopts 203 budgets, conducts budget voting, and conducts public hearings. 204 205 Question: 206 207 What is included in the SAU central office budget? 208 209 Answer: 210 211 Superintendent Services, Assistant Superintendent Services, Business Administration, Human 212 Resources, Finance, Payroll, Purchasing, district-level IT Administration, Legal Services, 213 district-level Curriculum Directors, and district-level Secretaries and Administrative Assistants. 214 215 Question: 216 217 What is excluded from the SAU central office budget? 218 219 Answer: 220 221 School-based Administrative Staff, Classroom Instructional Staff, Instructional Support Service 222 Staff, Special Education Services, Transportation, Food Services, Facility Operations, and 223 Maintenance. 224 225 Ms. Cevasco stated that on November 3rd, the ballot question would propose a tax cap on the 226 overall school district budget and also cap the SAU budget at 6%. She said the vote on the tax 227 cap and the 6% SAU budget were inseparable. 228 229 Question: 230 231 Why are Facilities & Maintenance not included in the SAU budget? 232 233 Answer 234 235 Facilities are not considered to be part of the SAU budget because they were applied to each 236 building. 237 238 Ms. Cevasco commented that a group of people filed a lawsuit to try to stop this question from 239 going on the November ballot, based on uncertainties in the law, and that a hearing would be 240 held on Friday, September 11th. 241 242 5. REPORTS AND PRESENTATIONS/ACTION ITEMS 243 244 a. Superintendent’s Report 245 246 Superintendent Michaud said she was pleased to share that the Milford School District had a 247 Milford School Board Page 6 September 8, 2026 very positive school opening the prior week. She shared that they also presented many 248 longevity awards to staff who have been in the district for 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 years. 249 250 Superintendent Michaud said that this year, the district’s continued focus would be 251 strengthening student achievement, engagement, and post-secondary readiness through high- 252 quality instruction and strong systems to support students. She added that they also began the 253 year with the brand-new Teaching, Learning, and Student Support Handbook, noting that every 254 faculty and support staff member received a copy. 255 256 Superintendent Michaud recognized the work done over the summer to prepare our buildings 257 for students and staff, noting that several facility projects were completed, including a roofing 258 project at Heron Pond, paving at Milford High School and the SAU, safety systems, and other 259 maintenance needs throughout the district. 260 261 Superintendent Michaud said they had a great deal of important work ahead of them, and she 262 looked forward to keeping the School Board updated on progress. 263 264 Ms. Cevasco thanked Superintendent Michaud, our high school principal, Ms. Iacuzio, and Ms. 265 Soucy in the SAU office for organizing our participation in the Milford Labor Day Parade. She 266 also thanked Mr. Kilar for driving the truck, and Mr. Cooper and his crew for blowing up the huge 267 balloon. 268 269 b. *Teaching and Learning Report 270 271 Ms. Jan Radowicz, Executive Director of Teaching, Learning, and Federal Programs, addressed 272 the Board and shared her report, as summarized below: 273 274 Summer Professional Development Work 275 276 • Title II Grant Curriculum Work 277 278 39 Teachers, 330+ Hours 279 280 • 2-5 Music 281 • 2-5 Math Enhancement, 6-8 Foundations & Interventions 282 • 3rd ELA, 4th Writing, 5th Reading/Nonfiction Unit 283 • 6-8 Innovation Lab, 7-8 Library 284 • 7th & 8th Grade Science/NGSS 285 • AP Language, Marine Biology, NH History, QuickBooks 286 • Executive Functioning, Using SEL to Bridge Achievement Gap, Parent 287 Workshops on Understanding Reading Assessment Scores 288 289 Ms. Radowicz stated that the Title II grant funded the first five things on the list, but she would 290 be talking about some of the summer Professional Development work that was done, such as 291 some instructional coaching training, our new staff orientation, mentor training, PLC lead 292 training, and some IXL adaptive scheduling training. 293 294 295 Milford School Board Page 7 September 8, 2026 Ms. Radowicz said the Elementary level worked on how SEL was used to help bridge some of 296 our achievement gaps, and they were also working on parent workshops to help them 297 understand their child's reading assessment scores. She said that, in addition to this work not 298 funded by Title II, many teachers completed courses and workshops and, again, did some 299 individual work on their curriculum, instruction, and assessment. 300 301 • Instructional Coaching 302 303 • In July, 9 teachers and 14 administrators went through instructional coaching 304 training. 305 • Instructional coaching techniques help focus on improving instructional 306 practices. 307 • To embed in our mentoring and teacher support processes. 308 309 • New Staff Orientation 310 311 • New staff orientation was typically done only with new teachers, but this year, 312 it included all new staff. 313 • New staff was introduced to Safe Schools Training. 314 • Teachers met the Executive Director of Student Support Services, Santina 315 Thibodeau. She discussed their program; we discussed professional 316 development; we discussed our mentorship program; and we reviewed some 317 basic emergency operations plans. 318 • When new staff asked why they chose Milford, they unanimously shared that 319 it was because the whole process from the application to the interview to 320 onboarding was welcoming, supportive, and very friendly; they felt like they 321 were part of a family. 322 • Talked about how students can feed off their energy and passion to build 323 excitement for learning. 324 325 • Mentor Training 326 327 • 19 Mentors – 9 Buddies and 10 Full Mentors 328 • Discussed the importance of welcoming and supporting our new staff. 329 330 • PLC Department Lead 331 332 • 23 Teachers and Administrators trained on August 28th. 333 334 • Reviewed District Teaching & Learning and PLC goals for 2026 – 2027. 335 o To improve student achievement, engagement, and post- 336 secondary readiness by strengthening instructional practices and 337 student support systems through a coherent curriculum, effective 338 lesson design, authentic literacy, and support from MTSS, PLCs, 339 and SSTs. 340 341 342 343 Milford School Board Page 8 September 8, 2026 • IXL & Adaptive Scheduler Training 344 345 • 12 teachers and administrators went through the IXL training in August, and 346 they led that training in their buildings on August 26th. IXL will be in two 347 kindergarten classes, and then grades 1 through 10. 348 349 c. *Safe Grant Project: Two-Way Radios 350 351 Mr. Bill Cooper, Director of Buildings & Grounds, addressed the Board and said the two-way 352 radios would be for the entire district. He said he would like to purchase 107 two-way radios, 353 including six base stations and four repeaters. He said one would be located at Jacques 354 Memorial Elementary School, one at Milford Middle School, one at Milford High School, and 355 one at Heron Pond Elementary School. 356 357 Mr. Cooper said he sent out RFPs, and Beltronics sent a quote for $109,285.28; Data Radio 358 provided no bid, and Northeast Two-Way also provided no bid. He said Beltronics' bid was 359 $4,285.28 over the $105,000 Safety Grant funds for the digital two-way radios. Mr. Cooper 360 suggested using Repair & Maintenance funds to cover the cost. He said the project could be 361 completed by the end of October. 362 363 Mr. Cooper stated that Beltronics wanted to use the old base stations configured to transmit 364 with the bus companies, and he said he knew that was a big part of the conversation. 365 366 MOTION: Ms. Clark Canty made a motion to award the bid to Beltronics in the amount of 367 $109,285.28, with $105,000 to come from the SAFE Grant and the remaining $4,285.28 to come 368 from the Repair & Maintenance fund. Mr. Freed seconded the motion. 369 370 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 371 372 6. OLD BUSINESS/ACTION ITEMS 373 374 There was none. 375 376 7. NEW BUSINESS/ACTION ITEMS 377 378 a. Fund Balance Retention Options 379 380 Mr. Benjamin Kilar, Business Administrator, addressed the Board and stated that they were in 381 the process of finalizing the required annual DOE 25’ expenditure report, and the town had 382 provided them with their MS9, which was their trust fund report, noting that it was the last outside 383 piece of information that they had been waiting for. 384 385 Mr. Kilar explained that the last piece of information would be what the School Board wanted to 386 do with the FY26 fund balance. He said the general fund currently shows a balance of 387 approximately $2,190,000. 388 389 Mr. Kilar reminded the Board that the prior year, they retained $100,000. He said they had 390 approximately $500,000 in savings between special ed and related services, as well as 391 approximately $ 500,000 in savings in transportation, spread mostly across special services, 392 Milford School Board Page 9 September 8, 2026 transportation, and homeless transportation. He said, however, that a student could incur costs 393 if they needed out-of-district placement. Mr. Kilar stated that beyond that, they had 394 approximately $600,000 in savings across all employee benefits categories. 395 396 Mr. Kilar requested that the School Board identify what they would like to do with the FY26 fund 397 balance at the next meeting. 398 399 Mr. Kilar explained that there were two options: mix and match, or retain up to 5% of the net 400 assessment for unforeseen or emergency needs, or manage the tax rate. He said this could be 401 up to approximately $1.926 million, based on information he received from DOE. 402 403 Mr. Kilar said the Board could also use the fund balance to offset the 2027 tax rate, which is set 404 in the fall; they could choose a combination of the aforementioned options. 405 406 b. *Use of Facility Rate Sheet 407 408 Mr. Kilar stated that the Board had passed an updated facilities policy. He reviewed rental 409 areas, standard rates, and non-profit rates. 410 411 Mr. Kilar noted that Milford historically had a rental rate of $0.00 for most spaces and fields for 412 nonprofits, so approving the rental rates in the current format would be a significant change. He 413 said, however, that there were real costs associated with using the facilities, and some costs 414 were not waived; for example, we have always charged people who wanted to use the field 415 lights, and if they needed to open and close a building on a weekend, there would be a cost. 416 417 Mr. Kilar explained that rates, depending on the specific item, increased by 50% to 100%. 418 419 Mr. Kilar said he wanted to ensure they could assess funds for items with a direct cost, such as 420 field lights and opening and closing the building. 421 422 Ms. Cevasco suggested that, for something like Junior Spartans, rather than a per-use fee, they 423 establish a seasonal fee so they can use it an unlimited number of times, with a portion of the 424 fee contributing to maintenance. 425 426 Mr. Freed said the standard rate sheet could have an asterisk next to nonprofit; for example, 427 could put, in lieu of a fee, you know, a standing MOU or something. 428 429 Superintendent Michaud suggested that the Board could consider approving the facility rental 430 so that, for non-Milford-affiliated, standard rates as well as non-Milford-affiliated nonprofit rates, 431 and then we could consider revising it to include a seasonal rate for Milford nonprofits. 432 433 MOTION: Mr. Freed made a motion to pass the current rate sheet with the revision that the 434 non-profit rate exempting any Milford-affiliated nonprofit organizations using the facilities 435 remains unchanged until the item can be addressed the following year. Mr. Clary seconded the 436 motion. 437 438 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 439 440 441 Milford School Board Page 10 September 8, 2026 c. *Policy Proposals 442 443 1. Policy 5005 (JICD) Student Discipline and Due Process (1st Reading) 444 445 Ms. Cevasco noted that the policy passed at the last School Board meeting in August; however, 446 the definition of the Pivot Program was unintentionally omitted. 447 448 MOTION: Ms. Clark Canty made a motion to waive the first reading of policy 5005 (JICD) 449 Student Discipline and Due Process and send it to policy. Mr. Freed seconded the motion. 450 451 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 452 453 2. Policy 2317 (EEAEA) School Bus Driver Requirements (1st Reading) 454 455 MOTION: Mr. Freed made a motion to move policy 2317 (EEAEA), as amended, to a second 456 reading. Ms. Clark Canty seconded the motion. 457 458 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 459 460 3. Policy 5012 (JLDBA) Behavior Management & Intervention (1st Reading) 461 462 MOTION: Mr. Freed made a motion to move policy 5012 (JLDBA) Behavior Management & 463 Intervention to a second reading. Mr. Clary seconded the motion. 464 465 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 466 467 4. Policy 6011 (EBBCA) Use and Location of Automated External Defibrillators (1st 468 Reading) 469 470 MOTION: Ms. Clark Canty made a motion to move policy 6011 (EBBCA) Use and Location of 471 Automated External Defibrillators to a second reading. Mr. Freed seconded the motion. 472 473 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 474 475 5. Policy 3551 (JJJ) Access to Public School Programs by Non-Enrolled Resident 476 Students (1st Reading) 477 478 MOTION: Mr. Freed made a motion to move policy 3551 (JJJ) Access to Public School 479 Programs by Non-Enrolled Resident Students to a second reading. Mr. Clary seconded the 480 motion. 481 482 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 483 484 8. PUBLIC COMMENT 485 486 Ms. Lori Alston, 77 Ball Hill Road, addressed the Board and said that a new policy for volunteer 487 drivers for fall sports had recently been announced. She said she was told that anyone who 488 wanted to drive students to sporting events had to become a volunteer and get a background 489 check. She added that if a parent wanted to take their child home from a sporting event in their 490 Milford School Board Page 11 September 8, 2026 own car, they still had to fill out a form to excuse the child from taking the bus. 491 492 MOTION: Seeing that there was no further public comment, Ms. Cevasco made a motion to 493 end the public comment period. Mr. Freed seconded the motion. 494 495 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 496 497 Ms. Cevasco reminded everyone that parents and members of the Milford public may contact 498 the School Board via email at any time between meetings with questions or concerns. She said 499 the full Board could be reached at schoolboard@milfordk12.org. 500 501 9. ADJOURNMENT 502 503 MOTION: At 8:50 p.m., Ms. Clark Canty made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Mr. Freed 504 seconded the motion. 505 506 MOTION CARRIED: 5 – 0 – 0. 507 508 509 510 511 512 513 ____________________________ __________________________ 514 Karin Cevasco, School Board Chair Date of Approval 515 516 517 518 Respectfully Submitted, 519 520 521 Trish Gedziun 522 Recording Secretary 523 524 525 526 527 528 529 530