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Ellensburg School District board meeting, Aug 26, 2026

1 h 29 min · 9 public speakers

Phones in school ▶ 1:25:42

This board doesn’t post agenda times. Click a board member to jump to where they first speak; we list only members whose voice our check named. Video length 1 h 29 min.

  1. Who spoke · first speaks at
What happened

What happened at this meeting

Ellensburg School Board adopts 2026⁠-⁠27 budget; public comment focuses on girls basketball 3:12

  • Speakers at public comment raised concerns about the high school girls basketball program, its head coach and how the administration responded to complaints. 3:12
  • A consultant representing Consortus presented an approach to long-range facilities planning, and a district staff member said the board was not deciding anything on that topic. 32:50
  • The board adopted Resolution 220826 on the 2026⁠-⁠27 budget and approved Policy 6225 on the use of electronic signatures. 1:21:38
Item by item (10)
  1. Opening, agenda change and consent agenda 0:20
    • The board voted to move public comment to directly after the consent agenda. 1:02
    • The chair said board members had reviewed the consent agenda items and sought clarification from district administrators before the meeting. 1:14
    • The consent agenda passed. 1:50
  2. Public comment on girls basketball 1:50
    • The chair said each speaker would have up to 3 minutes, with 30 minutes allowed in total. 1:50
    • Several speakers at public comment raised concerns about the conduct of the girls basketball head coach and said administrators had told parents to talk to the coach. 4:04
    • A speaker said 8 of 13 girls chose not to complete a camp this summer because of the way they were being treated by the coach, and another speaker asked who would monitor an improvement plan and what would be measured. 10:16
  3. Long-range facilities planning presentation 31:42
    • A consultant representing Consortus described a 6-phase approach to long-range facility planning and said the process takes about a year to do right. 32:50
    • Jeff Dermond asked how the consultant builds a coalition without relying on repeated surveys, and the consultant said the work involves reaching out to community groups where they meet. 53:27
    • Jeff Dermond asked about time commitments, and the consultant said the community committee usually meets once a month for 2 hours. 58:59
  4. Teaching and learning update 1:01:09
    • A presenter said 53 people attended Into Reading training on the 13th and 35 were signed up for a second session. 1:02:41
    • The presenter said professional learning days on the 31st, 1st and 2nd would focus on SEL and that 14 new teachers attended induction. 1:04:13
  5. Superintendent's update 1:06:42
    • A district staff member said the Morgan roof project was completed and awaited an inspection from the manufacturer. 1:08:18
    • The staff member said the bus lane would not be done before school starts but would be completed this fall. 1:09:11
    • The staff member said a professor from Central reached out about aerospace careers, and the district plans to create at least one round of experiences for some Morgan students this year. 1:09:11
  6. Financial update 1:14:55
    • A district staff member reported the general fund spent a total of $5.2 million in July, including $3.8 million on salaries and benefits. 1:15:05
    • The staff member said the district has $59 million in debt outstanding and that air conditioning repairs at Valley View were scheduled for September 1st. 1:19:01
    • A speaker asked that operating cash on hand be added to the financial update, and the staff member agreed. 1:21:16
  7. 2026-27 budget resolution 1:21:38
    • Mike Rowley moved to approve the 2026⁠-⁠27 budget resolution as presented. 1:21:52
    • Resolution 220826 passed. 1:22:24
  8. Electronic signature policy 1:22:24
    • A district staff member said the policy was new for the district, was not necessarily required and was based on the WASDA model policy. 1:22:41
    • Policy 6225 was approved. 1:23:29
  9. Board chair report and future topics 1:23:38
    • The board chair said the board would discuss the cell phone policy in September and raised broader questions about screen use in schools. 1:23:38
    • Madeline deMaintenon asked for an update on cyber attacks and on an issue at the middle school. 1:26:54
  10. Meeting closing 1:27:26
    • A speaker asked whether the board could hold an executive session to debrief public comment, and another speaker said that was not allowable for an executive session. 1:27:45
    • The chair said there would be no executive session, and the meeting adjourned. 1:28:36

Written by software from the meeting's transcript and checked sentence by sentence against it.

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Video: posted by the district as “Ellensburg School District Board Meeting - 8/26/26”