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Roanoke City Public Schools work session, Sep 22, 2026

1 h 34 min · 0 public speakers

Safety, weapons and police ▶ 46:53

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 34 min.

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What happened

What happened at this meeting

Roanoke school board adopts 2027 legislative priorities, fills search committee seat temporarily 56:56

  • The board heard an update on the Community Builders program, which a presenter said produced a 54% reduction in chronic absenteeism among regular program participants over the 2-year pilot period. 32:42
  • The board unanimously adopted its 2027 legislative priorities and authorized the superintendent to proceed with the development of position papers. 56:56
  • The chief of staff and operations presented proposed medical, dental and vision benefits for 2027, which a staff member said would come to the board for approval at the October 13th school board meeting. 57:10
  • The board unanimously appointed Franny Apel as a temporary member of the superintendent search committee after another board member recused from the search firm procurement. 1:26:37

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Item by item (9)
  1. Opening and agenda approval 14:17
    • Franny Apel called the special meeting and workshop to order and asked for a roll call. 14:17
    • The board voted unanimously to amend the agenda, retitling the legislative priorities item as review and adoption and adding a temporary appointment to the superintendent search committee. 14:52
    • The motion to approve the agenda as amended carried unanimously. 16:23
  2. Superintendent's updates 16:39
    • The superintendent highlighted a football event held the previous Friday, a ribbon-cutting at Preston Park Elementary School on September 10th and the 2026 Regional College Fair, which the superintendent said had nearly 70 colleges. 16:23
  3. Community Builders program update 16:39
    • A presenter said the program saw a 54% reduction in chronic absenteeism, a 55% reduction in out-of-school suspension days and a 62% reduction in average report card failures per participant over the 2-year pilot. 32:42
    • The presenter said the district will host visiting school divisions during spring and summer of 2027 as a demonstration site. 33:27
    • Board members Donna Littlepage and Michael L. Cherry II commented on the program, with Michael L. Cherry II saying it answered the what else piece for children and families. 39:51
  4. 2027 legislative priorities 46:15
    • A staff member said the priorities include no unfunded mandates, local control, safety and security, governance and budget, employee compensation, and assessment accountability and modernization. 46:53
    • The staff member said the item was made an action item because City Council is tentatively planning to adopt its legislative positions at its first October meeting. 48:50
    • The motion carried unanimously, adopting the 2027 legislative priorities and authorizing the superintendent to proceed with the development of position papers. 56:56
  5. Employee benefits update for 2027 57:10
    • The chief of staff and operations said there would be zero plan design changes to the traditional and HRA plans, while the traditional plan reflects a 9.5% adjustment. 58:37
    • In response to a question from Donna Littlepage, a staff member said the increase was $3.25 million and the overall cost was about $34 million. 1:07:58
    • One board member said there is no conceivable way that healthcare costs can grow at 9.5% a year. 1:10:58
  6. Student representative reports 1:17:57
    • The student representatives described attending the regional college fair, and one said there were over 60 colleges there. 1:18:56
  7. Work of the board and conferences 1:20:58
    • Franny Apel noted an upcoming board retreat and ongoing work on board member visibility. 1:20:58
    • A staff member said the district submitted and received acceptance for 2 conference proposals. 1:23:36
    • One board member said the board must balance conference attendance with budgetary concerns. 1:25:10
  8. Temporary superintendent search committee appointment 1:25:10
    • Michael L. Cherry II read a letter from an absent board member who recused from the search firm procurement because the Virginia School Board Association, on whose board the member serves, submitted a response to the request for proposals. 1:26:37
    • Deidre E. Trigg moved that the board temporarily appoint Franny Apel to the committee through completion of the search firm procurement process. 1:29:56
    • The motion carried unanimously, temporarily appointing Franny Apel to the superintendent search committee effective September 22nd, 2026. 1:29:08
  9. Announcements and closed meeting 1:31:41
    • Franny Apel announced a fall retreat at the beginning of October and a different meeting schedule in November. 1:32:05
    • Auraliz C. Quintana moved to convene a closed meeting on personnel matters and to consult with legal counsel on actual litigation. 1:32:48
    • The motion to convene in closed meeting was approved by a unanimous vote. 1:33:50

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 “Roanoke City School Board Special Meeting & Workshop: September 22, 2026”