Bellows Free Academy Fairfax - 14 September 2009

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Fairfax Board of School Directors

Monday, September14, 2009

Regular Meeting at 6:30pm ~ Community Library

Present: Peg Stewart, Elaine Carpenter, Robin Freeman, Barbara Murphy, Kim Lesny, Ben Langelier, Chris Hogan, Bruce Chattman, Michael Clark, Thomas Walsh, Lisa Delorme, Chris Sumner

Public: Carolyn Branigan, David Fisher, Elisabeth Kirkpatrick

1. Call to Order – Peg Stewart called the meeting to order at 6:30PM.

2. Consent Agenda

Minutes of Regular Meeting: August 10, 2009 – Barbara Murphy noted three corrections to the minutes.

Action: Elaine Carpenter motioned to approve the Consent Agenda with the corrections to the minutes of August 10, 2009. Barbara Murphy seconded. Motion passed unanimously.

3. Public Comment – Carolyn Branigan, one of Fairfax’s State Representatives, was present to hear any concerns and answer any questions. High school choice is a big topic in Georgia and they will be continuing conversations on the topic.

Orientation went very well and school is off to a great start. My welcoming comments to the staff are attached for your information. The days of professional development (Inservice) went very well and kudos to Mary Lynn for her organization and coordination of the activities, and FES got off to a terrific start.

The professional development activities in preparation for the opening of school had a focus on the development of essential curriculum necessary to achieve the Board approved Action Plan. Vertical Teams have been established in the following areas: Early Education; Literacy; Writing; Math; Science; Social Studies; Technology/Media; Personal Development/Health; Art; Music; Physical Education; World Language. BFA Principals have played a significant role in this initiative as key members of the professional FWSU Professional Development Team.

More than 50 people participated in a FWSU Technology Institute this summer, with culminating demonstrations to occur after school resumes. All participants received technology to use for classroom instruction at the conclusion of the institute. We anticipate seeing a difference in BFA utilization this year.

Looming fiscal concerns provide the motivation for the Fletcher and Georgia School Boards to begin dialogue around Act 44 and other potential governance changes. The BFA Board needs to be aware of potential requests and evaluate the capacity/impact on BFA if the voters of these school districts determine that they want to designate BFA as their designated high school. While it may be possible to find short-term strategies to suppress cost increases, lack of state funding, elimination of small schools grants, short-term use of stimulus funds for operations by the State, and the potential shift of teachers retirement costs to the Ed Fund will have significant fiscal impact on all schools in FWSU and may result in the erosion of quality and programs. All three schools need to be proactive in engaging their communities in a dialogue around consolidation models and efficiencies.

Respectfully Submitted,

Bruce Chattman, Superintendent

Bruce also stated that the Superintendents met to get updates on the H1N1 virus. School age students are one of the targets for the vaccine. In schools with over 300 students, the Vermont Department of Health (VDH) will come in and run a clinic for the school. For schools with under 300 students, the school nurses will conduct the program under VDH support. The clinics should be up and running in October. Elaine Carpenter stated that clinical reports won’t be definitive until the end of October and has reservations about conducting a clinic in October before those results are in. The CDC will have a permission slip to have parents allow their children to be vaccinated. There was discussion on how students will handle getting a shot in a school setting. The board was in support to provide a clinic for students to be vaccinated as long as in the planning phases it is taken into account that some fearful students will need to have a parent present with them.

The new school year is off to a great start. Our inservice days were productive and innovative. The majority of our professional development was lead by teachers in content specific vertical teams. Our school teams spent time identifying our values and beliefs in an effort to revisit our mission statement. These vertical and horizontal tasks laid the foundation for work that has been outlined in our newly developed three year action plan. It is an exciting time to be working at BFA.

One of the fall traditions of our elementary school is hike day. Traditionally is has taken place at Catamount in Essex. This year we have decided to make use of the new trails behind the school and to hike right here in our own back yard. We will again invite families to join us as a way to promote healthy lifestyles and to introduce them to this resource in their town. The day is planned for October 1st.

Thank you for supporting the addition of a fourth kindergarten classroom. Classes all have either 16 or 17 students. Five fewer children make such a difference at this age level.

The year is off to an excellent start. The week of in-service activities was productive and set our school off in a positive direction.

We had an outstanding turn out for the “Back to School” night. Many parents commented that the evening was helpful and they appreciated an opportunity to meet all the teachers before the year began.

Co-Curricular activities are also underway. The number of participants for the Cross Country running team is small, but the boys and girls soccer teams have solid numbers.

Try-outs for “Beauty and the Beast” were held last week. We are anticipating that this production will be very elaborate and well attended. Mark your calendar for the shows during the week of November 12-14. Many staff and parents are volunteering their time to support this production.

I have a parent letter coming out at the end of the month that will detail all educational activities. I will make sure you get a copy in your mailboxes.

The 2009-2010 school year is off to a great start. In-service was very productive. We clarified our common values and beliefs as a faculty. I was able to combine the work that the faculty did with the work that I did with the community in the principal’s forums during August. You can see this work reflected in the Wordles that I have attached. A Wordle is a Java applet that prioritizes information based on the number of times it is entered and represents it graphically. The more times a certain value or belief was prioritized throughout our discussions, the bigger it is displayed in the Wordle. This work was very exciting and will be used to revisit our mission statement (which we have begun working on).

I have initiated the following six committees to examine various practices at the high school. With the exception of the Professional Development Team I am hoping to have at least one student join each of these groups (so at least 5 different students).

HS Principal’s Advisory Team (PAT)

Principals Advisory Team: meets Wednesdays from 3:15-4:45. This group is lead by the principal and advises the principal on issues and matters of school transformation, implementation of school mission, and matters of school coordination and communication.

The first meeting will set up our structure, talk about in-service, look at the mission activities and think about the future

HS Professional Development Team

Professional Development Team develops and implements a needs based professional development program that is based on best practice, is research-based, improves student learning, and promotes organizational growth though teacher collaboration.

The first meeting will set up our structure, talk about in-service, look at the general direction of the mission and begin planning the use of the faculty meeting time.

Writing Center Set Up Committee

This summer instead of hiring a Drivers Education Study Hall Supervisor I posted an opening for a Writing Center Coordinator that would also supervise the Drivers Ed study hall. This group will determine how to best use this new position.

The first meeting will set up our structure, talk about the limits on time for the writing center and begin talking about the structure of the position

HS Technology Committee

This group of teachers will look at the use of technology at the high school. They will identify needs and make suggestions as to how to address the needs. Membership on this committee is more fluid than on a team.

The first meeting will set up our structure, talk about the use of technology in the school and our Acceptable Use Policy.

Community Fitness Center/Art Room Committee

This group will identify the most effective way to use the old woodshop. The initial recommendation is to create a Community Fitness Center and a High School Art Room. Its second task is to develop an architectural program to support its recommendations.

The first meeting will set up our structure, talk about the potential for the space, and determine next steps.

Work Block Committee

This group will look at Work Block. This groups first charge is evaluate if work block is an effective use of teacher and student time and to make a recommendation to the PAT. Membership on this committee is more fluid than on a team.

The first meeting will set up our structure, talk about work block, and determine next steps.

Co-Curricular Activities

We are underway with our co-curricular programs. Football is using a new field and is adjusting well to the changes. Girls and boys soccer as well as cross country running are also doing well.

Tryout for the combined High School/Middle School Beauty and the beast production are also underway.

Community Bullet-In

This year the high school guidance department and I will team up to put out a newsletter, titled the Community Bullet-In, to the community once a month. This is our effort to ensure that all parents know what is happening at the high school. In the past guidance and the administration have done separate mailings. In addition to giving parents one place to get information this system should also reduce postage at the high school. The September addition will be coming out at the end of the month. I will make sure each member of the board receives a monthly copy.

This year the guidance department will be going into senior work blocks once a week to work on the transition to life after high school with our seniors. Seniors are required to attend these sessions. I will attach a copy of the initial schedule with this report.

Important September Events for High School

14 Fairfax School Board Meeting

15 Vertical Team Meeting

17 College Fair @ UVM 6:00-9:00 p.m.

18 College Fair @ UVM 9:00-11:00 a.m.

18 ACT Registration Deadline

24 BFA Fairfax Open House 6:30-8:00 p.m.

Michael also explained the process for gathering information to create the Wordles from the community and the faculty. He plans to work through a similar process to poll the students in the future to gather what they value and believe in.

c. Financial – Chris Sumner gave an updated financial report. She reported that the audit was completed at the end of last month. Last year ended very close to budget, ending ahead by $99,430. Half of this will be transferred to the Capital Improvement Fund, a total of $49,715.

The construction work to enclose the driver’s ed room from the tech space ended up costing more than was planned. The cost should be able to be made up from the savings in salaries and benefits from the change of maintenance services. The Board agreed to hold off taking this cost from the Capital Improvement Fund unless it could not be absorbed elsewhere.

The Drama Club will be hosting Beauty and the Beast this fall. In order to comply with financial reporting requirements and honor the club’s initiatives, it is recommended that all financial activity for drama be run through the general fund and any profit from the production be added to the FY11 budget as a drama club expense. The net effect to the taxpayer in FY11 would be zero since the fund balance would include the drama club profit. This was explained to the Board and they were in agreement to run the expenses and profits through the general fund.

d. School Board Members.

Barbara Murphy reported that she was interviewed by the audit team at the end of their audit.

Elaine Carpenter reported on the VSBA board meeting. The main topics were consolidation and teacher retirement.

Ben Langelier reported on the start of school and the football record.

Chris Hogan reported on the soccer records and the cross country running records. On behalf of the cross country team, he invited the Board to attend the Fairfax Relays after school on October 6th.

Robin Freeman got an email from the County Courier in regards to the school choice issue and has not responded to it. He attended the middle school back to school night and felt it went very well. A lot of information was provided for new parents. He will be attending a night to talk about Kindergarten expectations this week.

Peg Stewart thanked the Board and administration for the support she had received. She noted that there are sufficient parking spaces for all students and that it seemed to be a smooth start the school year.

Kim Lesny reported the library meeting was postponed. She reported on the FWSU meeting.

5. Board Business

a. School Meal Program Approval – The school cannot locate a newer contract with the Abby than 2007. According to that contract, the school may renew the contract for 5 years. The school needs Board approval for extending the contract for 1 year even if the most recent contract can’t be located. If, when the latest contract is found, it is found to be up for bid, it will be brought forward in the spring for next year.

Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to approve the Abby Group as the hot lunch provider through 2009/2010 school year based on the most recent contract being found and that it reflects the agreement as being the same as in the 2007 contract. Robin Freeman seconded. Motion passed unanimously.

b. Recreation Area – Peg provided a report on the present agreement with the Recreation Department concerning grounds maintenance. The agreement is that the Town hires a school employee who uses the school’s mowers to maintain the recreation area. Considering that budget planning for next year will be approaching for both the school and the Town, a decision needs to be made if the present agreement will be followed or if a new agreement needs to be formed based on the fact that the land spaces and work requirements have changed. Robin was concerned what will happen if the school relinquishes control of the maintenance of the football field. The Board engaged in discussion on whether the school should require the Recreation Department to purchase equipment or hire out maintenance and how that would affect taxes. If the school took on the maintenance and was reimbursed by the town, it would require more personnel and more money for overtime. Tom Walsh agreed to meet with Katrina at the Recreation Department and have her initiate the process of looking into how to proceed if she felt there was a need.

c. FWSU Consolidation – The Board continued discussion on whether or not they would support school consolidation. Fletcher is looking at Act 44. Most of their students already come to Fairfax. Georgia is interested in the concept of consolidation but is worried about proper representation. Robin questioned how much savings in administrative costs can be seen from consolidation. Bruce outlined the next possible steps if the Boards decided to look at consolidation. The FWSU Board will make the ultimate decision as whether or not to move forward. The Board gave their consent to let the FWSU Board pursue the consolidation process in order to gather needed information on the subject.

d. Policy Governance Model – The Board received a presentation on policy governance at their annual retreat and now need to decide if they would like to receive more training. The Board engaged in discussion around what the further training would be and look like. Elaine will look into bringing the issue to the SU and see how the other boards feel about bringing it forward at the SU level. Bruce stated that Georgia is interested. The Board encouraged Bruce to remind them if they are straying from policy governance during their sessions.

6. Other - Peg mentioned the information on the annual fall conference in October. There is also a VSBA regional meeting on September 24^th.

a. Prevention of Harassment of Students (Update)

Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to approve the Prevention of Harassment of Students Policy. Kim Lesny seconded and the motion passed unanimously.

b. Board Member Education (Update)

Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to approve the Board Member Education Policy. Elaine Carpenter seconded and the motion passed unanimously.

c. Board Goal Setting & Self-Evaluation (Update)

Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to approve the Board Goal Setting & Self-Evaluation Policy. Kim Lesny seconded and the motion passed unanimously.

d. Board Member Conflict of Interest (Update)

Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to approve the Board Member Conflict of Interest Policy. Elaine Carpenter seconded and the motion passed unanimously.

e. Community Use of School Facilities Policy

Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to approve the Community Use of School Facilities Policy. Kim Lesny seconded and the motion passed unanimously.

The Board entered executive session at 8:35pm

The Board exited at 8:55pm.

Action: Elaine Carpenter made a motion to approve up to 18 additional days of paid sick leave for Courtney Boutin for family illness per Article 11.2 of the Master Agreement, and to approve 8 additional days of paid personal sick leave for Deb Walford. Motion seconded by Robin Freeman. Motion approved by the Board.

Action: Elaine Carpenter moved to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Kim Johnson-Lesny. Motion approved by the Board.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:57pm.

Respectfully submitted,