School Board Monitor

The district delivered its first required annual report under Policy 5695 on student personal electronic devices, following New York State's new statewide classroom phone ban.

Enforcement data was compiled across secondary schools and reviewed for disproportionality; the district reported no discrepancy and therefore no obligation to develop a mitigation plan.

The electronic device section of the code of conduct was reworded while the district reconsiders phone storage — staff said they "may be going off pouches, we may be keeping them" and wanted flexibility.

Cell phone policy enforcement retooled with NFT: the device must not be on the student's person — "whether it is in a Yondr pouch, whether it's in a book bag or whether it's in a locker."

A board member turned that into a direct challenge to the district: "Over the last 12 to 18 months, AI has exploded. What is the city of Buffalo doing to prepare our students?"

The student advisory report made an unusually direct case for classroom AI, arguing students should "efficiently use these resources such as AI" for research, fact-checking and breaking complex problems into steps — and that AI reaches students who "cannot learn with certain teaching styles."

The academic dishonesty definition was updated to include plagiarism committed using artificial intelligence.

A board member argued media literacy now has to contend with an environment where "everything's AI driven" and fact-checking is unreliable.

The district "continues to work through artificial intelligence integration and ethical use."

Magic School AI named the district's artificial-intelligence tool, chosen after months of AI policy work "to make sure we stay within the guardrails."

"Right now our Students are using AI 100%... with their personal accounts unmonitored, unfiltered" — the district instance is monitored, excluded from model training, and redirects self-harm or violence queries to resources.

Executive Director of Instructional Technology Tim Johnson lists foundational AI regulation 8636R, a data-privacy and IT vetting process for new AI tools, a Learning Technology grant and a public AI website; the goal is "universal AI literacy for all staff and students"

Commissioner Santiago — "as long as AI is not teaching our students" — learns from general counsel there is no board AI policy, only a superintendent's regulation giving "procedural flexibility," and asks that policies be considered

A trustee, citing AI company CEOs' warnings, said "I don't want to say we're going to slow walk it, but we're going to slow walk it"; Clark: "we are moving slowly."

ParentSquare launched district-wide on July 1, 2026, with all district and summer program communications migrated off the Remind app, which is no longer accessible.

The district is replacing School Tool with Infinite Campus as its student information system.

The Privacy and Security for Student Data policy was updated to move the NIST cybersecurity framework from version one to version two.

On the national K-12 threat picture: 1,400 learning days were lost to cyber downtime or attacks, and MS-ISAC finds criminals target human behaviour far more than technical vulnerabilities, with phishing the leading entry point.

Doggett draws a firm line: iReady "won't be predictive towards the New York state" — a separate state assessment presentation is promised for October.

Evans asks who the untested students are and why; Doggett says most are non-verbal students on alternate assessments, leaving "a void of a few hundred," with those results not yet available.

Commissioners pushed on why iReady and the district's common formative assessments diverge; staff explained iReady gives "a much broader perspective" while CFAs test specific grade-level standards.

Moss: "last month we were embarrassed to learn that we have $133 million in unrestricted funds" — asking how much of the tax levy was offset by them "and why wasn't more of the unrestricted funds utilized to lower the tax rate." The question went unanswered.

Dawn Ford: "I would like to ask for an audit committee investigation and report regarding the unrestricted reserve fund for the past 10 years."

On item D1F: "I would like an answer to this publicly. I do believe that the public deserves to know. How much is the settlement agreement for?" The board voted the settlement through at [48:01] without stating a figure.

The district faces a $28 million deficit this year, projected at $61 million next year and potentially $130 million within five years.

A candidate confronted the board with its own numbers: a prior-year deficit of "$64 million, $65 million. This is unacceptable. It can't go on. Where's the money going to come from?"

A $196,000 draw from unassigned fund balance funds a position that was not included in the current year's budget — "rather than look to find money in a code, we're making a draw from fund balance to increase that budget line."

Santiago presses again for fund balance in the monthly report: "even if a month is 0 transfers... I'll keep bringing it up until we see it"

New York State Office of Audit Services is auditing the district for the 2021 through 2025 school years, with weekly meetings

The board president recommended formally requesting an external fiscal review by expanding the scope of the current audit — an implicit statement that the board does not trust the numbers in front of it.

Treasurer Joe Lin: July began with $39 million cash, receipts just over $76 million, and closed at $79.6 million — "27.7 million higher than where we were last year."

Trustee McDonough on the December floor: "Are you comfortable with that number? Because I'm not entirely comfortable with that number."

Audits in progress: an internal/external audit for the year ended June 30, 2026 and an Office of the State Comptroller audit that "will go take look back to 2020."

COO defends the contract: RPD intel, arrival/dismissal traffic control, strobe-lit cars, and past "shooting attempts right outside of Padilla" and at all-city on Austin Street

LeBron-Harris: "RPD should not have access to our children"; having police present "has never prevented or stopped kids from fighting"

Superintendent clarifies the two resolutions: officers in marked cars at arrival and dismissal, and officers at sporting events; the student representative says constant presence at arrival and dismissal is "unnecessary"

Santiago: if 87/88 fail, "administration got to bring something back next month so we have something for September"

Parent Isabel Rosa, speaking for about 75 parents from the Children's Agenda: "there is not clear evidence that a permanent police presence makes schools safer."

"If a serious situation occurs, response time truly matters" — median 911 response of about 5 minutes for highest-priority calls, 16 minutes for Tier 2, more than 30 minutes for Tier 3.

The safety plan vote carries on a voice vote — but with at least one audible "Nay," unexplained and undiscussed.

The grant funds physical measures such as metal detectors alongside restorative hubs in schools.

The board authorised the superintendent to execute a contract with Raptor Technologies alongside adoption of the district-wide safety plan.

A district safety center now monitors the schools 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with a published emergency contact line.

This is the first year the district will actually drill shelter-in-place procedures rather than only document them.

Another questioned whether one annual drill per building is enough.

The district employs close to 70 security guards and is reducing that number by six.

He learned the same thing happened to other students, "some as young as three years old," at that building and in other buildings.

Hawkins recounts a "melee" of a hundred students at the Amherst transit station with "not an NFTA person inside," questioning what the security payment buys.

A trustee raises children waiting in private driveways — an ambulance responding to a medical emergency "had to actually worry about running children over."

The only substantive change was the roster of Dignity Act coordinators — otherwise "code of conduct looks exactly the same as it did last year."

The code of conduct is re-approved "every single year," alongside process policies up for review in this cycle.

The board held its required annual public hearing on the code of conduct; no member of the public spoke.

Parents defending the P-TECH principal cited his approach to discipline specifically — "I have seen him be restorative with children as opposed to punitive, which is something I as a parent value."

Restorative hubs — spaces where students can "sit and talk and try to get our students on the right track" — are funded alongside the security measures.

Findings cite inconsistency in the code of conduct and minimal use of restorative practices.

A member pushed back on the framing of aligning policy with the code of conduct: "except it is our policy that's supposed to lead."

The board has had approximately five discussions on its suspension policy.

Trustee Evans: "do we do like a contract evaluation at the end of the year... how did they earn the extension? Did they meet certain KPIs?"

A board member challenged the vendor's track record directly: "we've contracted Whitsons in the past and they've also told us, I believe last year, that things are going to be changing."

The board votes to send items 3.1 through 7.8 to the consent agenda "with the exclusion of 7.5, 7.7 and 7.8" — Delta Electric, Valencia landscaping and the uniform bid extension; motion carries.

A resident demanded it be read aloud before the vote: "what is the text of the memorandum of agreement in D1G? I think it's important that we all hear exactly what the Brentwood Teachers association is moving."

LeBron-Harris objects that the resolution shows $650,000 but lets administration spend "350k every year without coming to the board back for approval"

Everyday Labs adopted: bi-weekly text nudges and monthly letters delivered "in a trauma-informed, non-punitive way" — "your son has missed five days of school. How can we help?"

A trustee adds that "there's accountability on the parents too," citing same-day calls for tardies and absences at every level.

New in the platform this year: "positive nudges" sent when a student on an absenteeism trend improves after intervention.

The superintendent's stated strategy: "create intentionally inviting environments" so schools are "desirable for students to come through every day"; no board questions followed either report.