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Where Children Learn to Soar and Dreams Take Flight |
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WWaterbury-Duxbury School Board
“UNOFFICIAL”
MINUTES FOR May 4, 2006
Meeting held at Crossett Brook Middle
School Library
In Attendance:
Board: Dale Smeltzer, Susan Flynn, Sherry Ziemke, Dawn Poitras, Michael Roche
Administrators: Don Schneider, Ken Page, Barbara Tomasi-Gay, Kevin Hamilton, Bob McNamara (arrived 7:07 p.m.)
Staff: Jessica Diem
1) Dale Smeltzer called the meeting to order at 6:03 p.m. and confirmed the agenda
2) There were no comments from the public.
3) Discussion Items:
a) Goals Background: Don Schneider summarized the updated enrollment projections that will be sent out to board members tomorrow. Student numbers are leveling off in the high 60’s to mid 70’s per grade now at TBPS. Ken Page pointed out that the Association should get this information, and be notified that it is going to be discussed at upcoming meetings. Dale Smeltzer will ask John Pike if he can give us an estimated equalized pupil count for FY 08, to help the board know how critical it will be to make staffing level decisions this coming budget cycle or whether there is time for a full planning process to address the complexity of the middle school needs.
Ken distributed copies of the VT State School Quality Standards and pointed out sections that were relevant to school boards. He stated that this should be used a guide, and will be a reference to keep on hand.
A discussion followed around the difficulty of these enrollment and staffing decisions. Ken pointed out that how you set up positions will assist in maintaining staff, in that full FTE’s will be easier to keep filled. A question was brought up regarding the rubric that was developed for evaluating the effect of changes, and it was clarified that this rubric was intended for use by the Ed Leaders only and that input solicited from the staff was to make sure that all impacts were being considered. Dale Smeltzer pointed out that the intent was to provide as much opportunity for input as possible from everyone by starting the budget planning process earlier than in the past.
b) TBPS Renovations: Don Schneider reported that the bids from the recent Special Meeting are still being reviewed, and that recommendations are not yet ready as to the apparent low bidders in all the categories. Kristin Fortin, Construction Manager (DEW), is still checking the bids to see if they are comparable. Dale suggested that, given the need to have the work proceed as soon as possible, the Board might want to authorize her to sign the contracts based on the recommendations of Kristin Fortin (Construction Manager) and John Alden (Architect), which are expected at a meeting on Tuesday May 9, 2006. The board concurred that this would work.
Don reported that Clerk of the Works interviews were held. He, Susan Flynn, Michael Roche, Theresa Wood (Chair, Building Committee) and John Alden (Architect) conducted the interviews with 3 candidates and have designated a first and second choice. Don was able to check out all references for their top candidate, Albert DiPietro, who was unanimously the top choice, and recommends that the board take action tonight to authorize a contract with this candidate.
Don provided photos that Gordon Miller has taken documenting the “before” conditions at TBPS. He will be taking more photos both during and after the renovations. Don also distributed a copy of a memo to staff outlining who will be in which spaces during each phase of the renovations, for board member reference. He pointed out that this is a work in progress and that changes might still be made.
c) Professional Development: Ken Page described the current system, which is a pool of funds with rules that divide the pool into three funds (summer, fall, spring). In the past, some Consolidated Federal Grant funds from the SU level have been used in addition to what is funded by the budget, but these funds are now needed for other purposes. Currently, all spring funds for this year have been allocated, as well as most of the upcoming summer funds. The needs depend somewhat on the cycle that teachers are in for their professional licensure. The rules for allocating the funds give preference to professional development that is required by the Ed Leaders, and also to staff who collaborate. Staff prefer professional development to be in small groups, meeting regularly over time to address identified needs, versus the full day sessions for everyone at a central location. Many IA’s don’t end up applying because by the time they decide there is often no money left. People who decide early and apply for a lot of professional development tend to get the largest share. Don and Ken pointed out that the rules of the pool need to be reviewed, and are encouraging staff to apply even if there are no funds so that they can document how much un-met need there is. Another issue is that sometimes the substitute fund is used beyond the normal level when a staff member offers to pay for a workshop him/herself but gets approval for a substitute out of the budget.
4) Reports:
a) NECAP - Barbara Tomasi-Gay handed out this year’s NECAP testing results, and summarized them for grades 4, 5 and 8 as compared to the state average. Both Math and Reading were above state average, but Writing was below. (Bob McNamara arrived at 7:07 p.m.) Testing is done in October. Barbara also handed out and explained an example of an individual student score sheet that is sent home to parents, for a grade 5 student. (Michael Roche left at 7:23 p.m.) Susan Flynn asked if there were any surprises and Barbara replied that there were very few. Some parents had difficulty understanding the sheets that were sent home and they plan to have a PTO forum to help explain it next year when the results come out.
b) Action Plan – Barbara handed out the current Action Plan, which is for 2004-2008 and still in draft form because it was never formally approved. She explained the challenges of creating and maintaining an effective plan. The process to update the plan will begin this spring.
5)
Other
Business
a) Ken Page handed out the Waterbury-Duxbury School District Philosophy, as well as a copy of a letter being sent home to parents regarding the changes in math instruction.
b) Bob McNamara reported that a SU wide Parent Survey is being undertaken this spring. The goal is to get it wrapped up by the end of May. It will be emailed, put on the website, and provided on paper in an effort to reach as many parents as possible.
c) Bob McNamara reported that the Harwood board has not had a chance to review the latest suggestions for the middle school student exchange.
d) Dale Smeltzer reported that the Rob Rosen of the Warren Board had been in contact with her about ways that board members could work together to address issues around school funding. She will inform board members of more details when she gets them.
6)
Action Items
a) Sherry Ziemke moved to approve the minutes, with minor typographical corrections, for April 27, 2006 and the special meeting on May 1, 2006. Susan Flynn seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
b) Dawn Poitras moved to approve Board Orders both dated May 2 for $900.00 and $66,319.45 on the recommendation of Susan Flynn. Sherry Ziemke seconded and there was discussion about the possibility of board member conflict of interest. Bob McNamara said that there was not a conflict of interest currently for Dawn Poitras to receive reimbursement for supervision she is providing, because the contract was approved before she came on the board. If the contract is up for approval in the future, we will have to be careful about the process. The motion passed unanimously.
c) Susan Flynn moved to authorize the Chair to sign contracts with the low bidders for the TBPS Renovations, based on the recommendations of the Kristin Fortin (Construction Manager) and John Alden (Architect). Dawn Poitras seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
d) Sherry Ziemke moved to authorize a contract with Albert J. DiPietro/Construction Services for Clerk of the Works services for the TBPS Renovations. Susan Flynn seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
7) There was no need for Executive Session.
8) Dale Smeltzer passed out the anticipated upcoming schedule for agenda topics.
9) Susan Flynn moved to adjourn the meeting at 7:55 p.m.; Dawn Poitras seconded, and it passed unanimously.
Minutes recorded by Dale Smeltzer