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These minutes have yet to be approved by the Board.
Fairfax Board of School Directors
Monday, February 8, 2010
Regular Meeting at 6:00pm
BFA Fairfax Elementary Gym
Present: Peg Stewart, Elaine Carpenter, Robin Freeman, Kim Lesny, Bruce Chattman, Michael Clark, Thomas Walsh, Lisa Delorme, Chris Sumner
Public: Nancy Mead, Cynthia Pease Stratton, Marlene Karr, Brian Albarelli, Edward ?, Vanessa Albarelli-St. Louis, Michael M., B. Davis, Lea Wimette, Chris Santee, Deborah Mucia, Janice Lynch, Carolyn Branagan, Gary Gilbert, Lisa Boucher, G.K., A.K., Margo Rome, Dot Meisenzahl, William Meisenzahl, Cheri Harris, Carol Graves, Cathy Larsson, Janice Rocheleau, Dale Bellows, Theresa Rebeor, M. Yandow, Cheryl Yandow, Helen Hartmann
1. Call to Order - Peg Stewart called the meeting to order at 6:02pm
- Consent Agenda –Minutes
· Regular Meeting: January 11th,
· Special Joint Meeting w/Selectboard: January 11th,
· Special Meeting (Student Discipline Hearing): January 18th
· Special Meeting (Budget): January 18th
· Special Meeting (Student Discipline Hearing): January 26th
Elaine noted a correction to the Special Budget Meeting minutes for January 18th.
Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to approve the Consent Agenda with the corrections. Kim Lesny seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
3. Correspondence
· Leave Request – Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to accept the submitted leave request. Kim Lesny seconded and the motion was passed unanimously.
· Lake Champlain Public Access Television Channel 16 request - The Board discussed this request to televise and broadcast their budget information presentation. They felt that since Fairfax residents don’t have access to this channel, it didn’t make sense to accept this offer.
· Retirement – Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to accept the resignation letter from Jeanne LaClair. Elaine Carpenter seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
4. Public Comment - none
5. Reports
a. Superintendent
With the FY2011 budget approve by the School Board, our current fiscal focus in central office has been on preparing the Town Report and developing the public presentation for town meeting. The School Board has again done a good job in developing a budget for FY2011 that reflects necessary expenses and maintains current programs with an essentially level funded budget, resulting in a nominal increase of 0.86% when grant funds are included.
As the citizens begin to review the proposed budget and ask questions about the property tax rate, it is important for the Board to also remember that not all property taxes go to the costs of education. Significant funds are raised through property taxes for the purposes of defraying the tax impact on people with lower incomes and who pay their taxes based upon income, not property. For 2009, the combined total for the school tax adjustment, circuit breaker, and rental rebate for Fairfax was $952,970.
Attention now needs to turn towards the legislature to monitor and influence its actions as they relate to education and the potential transfer (cost-shift) from the General Fund to the education fund, which in turn results in a property tax increase. Several recent reports have been received and are being considered by various committees in the Legislature and/or the State Board of Education. Among these reports are the (1.) Challenges for Change Report and the Financing, and (2.) Financing and Effectiveness Committee Report.
(1.) The Challenges for Change Report from the Public Strategies Group, headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota, who was retained by the state to assist the legislative and executive branches in developing a budget reduction strategies. Of great concern is that the PSG report states a target of reductions in education spending through a reduction in “administrative” spending at a level of savings by 5 percent in fiscal year 2011 and 15 percent in 2012. For special education, the challenge is to improve student graduation rates while reducing expenditure by 5 percent in fiscal year 2011 and 7.5 percent in 2012. Of great concern is that the report identifies “system-wide administrative spending” in Vermont as $266.6 million annually - significantly more than double the total reported administrative spending from superintendent and principal offices - and set a target reduction of $58 Million. Through an analysis, the VSA and VSBA identified areas included by PSG such as “other support services” as a category of spending the report categorizes as administration. “Other support services” includes school expenditure
on fuel, electricity, custodians, plant maintenance, supplies, materials, and interest payments, among other nonadministrative costs. A PSG spokesperson, in testimony in front of the House and Senate Education Committees was not able to answer two key questions posed by committee members: (1) how was the $266.6 million administrative figure arrived at and, (2) what persons affiliated with public education in Vermont did PSG consult with in developing the report? Yet, is spite of the flawed fiscal analysis, some legislators still anticipate that reductions in the amount of $58 Million are attainable. Fortunately, many other legislators are frustrated with the PSG’s inability to articulate the source for their numbers.
(2.) The Financing and Effectiveness Committee Report. Has been accepted by the House Education Committee and is being drafted into a bill. Key components to this bill will be the following:
Changes to 16 V.S.A. 261a DUTIES OF SUPERVISORY UNION BOARD (IN FWSU, we do all these at the supervisory union level, except for collective bargaining and transportation)
· Supervisory union-wide curriculum
· Provide professional development for teachers
· 16 V.S.A. 261a(6) will be required to be provided at the S.U. level (as opposed to current law which states that they may be coordinated at the S.U. level):
· Special education
· Compensatory and remedial services
· Other education services
· Business services
· Collective bargaining negotiations (contract terms can still have district-specific stipulations)
· Transportation
· Human resources management support
Changes to 16 V.S.A. 242 DUTIES OF SUPERINTENDENTS (These changes would be different than current practice in FWSU and are a move towards Policy Governance)
Ø Manages all hiring, whether for the S.U. office or for school districts
· For new hires for licensed positions, superintendent will nominate a single candidate for approval by the board. If the board rejects the nominee, the superintendent shall nominate a new candidate.
· For new hires for non-licensed positions, full hiring discretion with no direct board oversight.
· Dismiss licensed and non-licensed employees.
Ø Report all financial transactions for each school district to the commissioner and state board.
· This responsibility moved from school district to superintendent.
Changes to Collective Bargaining Law (This would be a change for FWSU as the exception does apply)
Ø The two exceptions to the S.U.-wide collective bargaining law would be removed.
· i.e., all supervisory unions would be required to collectively bargain with its employees, although district-specific stipulations would still be allowed.
· These changes would be effective for negotiations beginning on or after 7/1/2010.
Class Size Policies (New to all Supervisory Districts)
Ø Supervisory union-wide average class size policy
· Policy will define minimum, maximum, and optimal average class sizes
· May include grade- and district-specific stipulations
· Policy must be adopted by 7/1/2011 and posted online.
In addition, the House Education Committee will soon be taking up legislation to provide incentives for school district consolidation into new larger districts, with a minimum student enrollment of 1,250 students, over a 3-4 year transition period. The proposed “incentives” will allow for a fixed property tax rate, modest budgetary increases during the transition period. It also will prescribe a Pre-K-12 governance model with guarantees of higher education partnerships through Grade 16. While any bill that ultimately comes out of the Legislature will have changes to it to dislike, this bill at it’s core will allow for reasoned and thoughtful participation by local school boards in determining their future school district alignment rather than be arbitrarily assigned to a new district based by the legislature or State Board of Education.
On Monday, February 22 the monthly Franklin County Legislative Breakfast will be held at BFA at 7:30 AM in the Multi-Purpose Room. This will be a good opportunity for local school boards in FWSU and all citizens to hear directly from their representatives on current issues. It is also an opportunity to ask questions and to clarify your concerns and provide direction to your elected officials.
Respectfully Submitted,
Bruce Chattman
Superintendent
Barb commented on the report. She had concerns with the data that is given to the legislators
b. Principals
Elementary
The school year seems to be going so quickly. Tom and I have been busy putting together data for mid year reporting to the state due to our identification status. The requirements for reporting include teams of teachers identifying students who do not meet grade level standards in mathematics or reading and then documenting strategies for intervention. This also involves teams answering a mandated series of questions that address ways we provide additional supports for struggling students. These reporting procedures are new to the school this year. It has given us the opportunity to not only recognize what is in place but to continually look for additional ways to support children. In these budget times it also requires us to be creative as we explore ways to work with existing resources. We have not yet received our audit from Rich Reid. We are expecting this will give us additional insight in how we can continue to provide high quality education for all learners.
Kindergarten has recently completed mid year testing using the Primary Observation Assessment (POA). In looking at the results, 51 out of 66 students met mid year standards (77%). That leaves us with fifteen students that need additional supports. Of that fifteen, ten are currently in the all day program. Two of the students will be attending the full day kindergarten the third trimester. Two of the students were in the intervention during the first trimester but tested out. This shows the importance of maintaining the full day experience for some students. They may finish out the year in the full day program. The remaining student is not able to attend a full day kindergarten at this time. We continually look at the data with a critical eye in an effort to provide supports that meet individual student needs.
Lisa Delorme
Principal
Middle School
We met with Jerry Bailey, Emily Wills, and Melissa Towle at the end of January. They would like permission to merge the middle and high school drama positions in order to run a grades 6-12, spring musical in 2011. We support this proposal and would like to allow the planning to move forward. We would create three contracts by combining the stipends that are currently allocated in the budget. We would also need to meet with Mike Brown to coordinate space and a schedule.
Our Odyssey of the Mind team began practicing for a competition at CVU which will be held on March 6. This is the second year we have had a team. We have ten students involved and seven will compete at the state competition.
We are in the process of hiring two long-term substitutes for the remainder of spring semester. One will teach 7th grade social studies and the other will teach 6th grade language arts. Both positions will begin after the February break.
We will conduct the On Demand Writing Prompt during the testing window of Feb. 1-12. The information from this local assessment will be used to support targeted writing instruction.
The 2nd quarter ended on Friday, January 22 and report cards went home on Monday, February 01.
We will hold the Honors Breakfast on Thursday, Feb. 11 in Lisa Young’s room. Members of the National Honors Society will be speaking to the students.
We will conduct the Rewards Trip on Feb. 12. We will be viewing a movie at the Essex Cinema.
NECAP scores are being released to the public this week. We will be analyzing the data and reporting the information to you in the coming weeks.
Lisa and I are currently completing a mid-year AYP report with our staff members that is due by February 15. We will include a copy of the report for the March meeting.
I have been in contact with Rich Reid about the status of the Special Education Audit. He shared that he is still in the process of writing and hopes to have a copy to us in the coming weeks.
Respectfully,
Thomas Walsh
Elaine questioned the details of the Honors Breakfast and the Rewards Trip. Tom responded with the details of these programs.
High School
JANUARY FACULTY MEETINGS
January 26
Teachers did a peer review of each others’ Maroon Notebooks and submitted an evaluation to the professional develop team (rubric included). In addition I updated teachers on the budget process, we discussed the clear the halls updated protocols, the writing prompt, and I set a date to have a faculty forum regarding formalizing a set exam schedule.
NEASC
I completed the NEASC Special Progress report. Mary Lynn Riggs was a big help with both editing and wisdom. I have attached a copy for you as an FYI.
COURSE FAIR
The Course fair is scheduled for March 4 from 6:30-8:00. This is part of one of the floating inservice days. This was one of the first events that I attended last year and was attended by a large portion of the community. I’m excited for this event and plan to ignore “doctor’s orders” to attend.
Also the spring parent conferences are scheduled for April 15th with the same arrangements as the fall.
NEW STUDENT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
On January 20th a representative from Powerschool ® demonstrated a new student management software package. January 30th we Web2School ® demonstrated their package. I was impressed with the power and intuitive nature of PowerSchool, this has been the consensus of the teachers in attendance as well. Each presentation had about ten teachers, plus guidance, and administration in attendance. We need to replace our student management package this summer as WinSchool will not be supported after June.
SAP ( SUBSTANCE AB U S E PREVENTION TO GROW INTO A STUDENT
AS S I S T A N C E PROGRAM)
The Howard Center has moved a candidate forward for me to meet with. I will meet with the candidate on February 10th. It is possible we will have an SAP available to start meeting with students beginning right after February break.
SENIOR CAMP
Senior camp started with 13 students. Ten students “graduated” from senior camp before the end of second quarter by providing a note from the teachers of the classes they were failing that indicated they were passing. I will compile the quantitative results of senior camp for the next board report.
GRAND I SL E HI G H SCHOOL FAIR
The Grand Isle High School Fair was held on January 19 from 6:30-8:30. I attended the fair and talked with 10 families. Transportation was a significant issue. Two families did express some interest however so far we have not had any formal indications that these students will choose BFA Fairfax as their high school.
GEORGIA HI G H SCHOOL FAIR
The Georgia High School Fair was held on January 27 from 6:30-8:00. David Buckingham and I attended the fair. We had about 14 families attend our original presentation most of which seemed very interested in attending BFA Fairfax. Additionally throughout the night we met with at least another 10 families and had significant interest.
Many students and their families were excited about the prospect of transportation being provided.
Michael J. Clark
Michael added to his report and gave the NECAP data for the high school.
Elaine asked questions about the success of the Senior Camp and also the success of the Montreal field trip that was approved at the last meeting.
c. Financial – Chris Sumner distributed an updated financial report for this fiscal year. Spending is being carefully monitored.
d. School Board
Ben Langelier questioned some rumored financial changes in the Driver’s Ed program. Mr. Clark squashed the rumors.
Chris Hogan reported that the high school has instituted composting in the lunchroom. He also reported on the Winter Ball.
Robin Freeman has been attending the negotiation meetings and will give a negotiation report in executive session.
Barbara Murphy thanked the board for their kind thoughts and understanding during her absence.
Elaine Carpenter reported that the next meeting of the VSBA will be meeting with the House Ed Committee. Kim Lesny reported on the library committee meeting.
Peg Stewart has been helping to organize the Legislative Breakfast which will take place at 7:30am on February 22nd in the Multipurpose room.
6. Community Forum – The Board presented the FY2011 school budget to the public. Following their presentation, questions were asked from the public on topics including: the elimination of the technology integration position, the future plans for the old woodshop space, and full day kindergarten. Carolyn Branagan and Gary Gilbert then gave a legislative update.
7. Board Business
a. Approve Audit Report –Chris Sumner gave a rundown of the audit report. Barbara requested that in the future the company provide a contact name of who was in charge of the audit. Chris stated that she is comfortable with the report.
Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to approve the audit report. Robin Freeman seconded and motion passed unanimously.
8. Policies *
a. D1. Personnel Recruitment, Selection, & Appointment
Action: Elaine Carpenter moved to approve the Personnel Recruitment, Selection, & Appointment Policy. Kim Lesny seconded and the motioned passed unanimously.
b. D15. Criminal Record Checks
Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to approve the Criminal Record Checks Policy. Robin Freeman seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
c. D2. Professional Development
Action: Barbara Murphy motioned to approve the Professional Development Policy. Elaine Carpenter seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
d. Support Services Policy – 1st Reading – Tom Walsh suggested to have a collaborative group formed to look at this policy. This group would include representation from the School Board, the Administration, the Business Office and the Para-educators. Barbara made some suggestions for the policy. Nancy Mead spoke to the importance of letting a collaborative group work on making adjustments and updated to the policy. Tom stated that he will form a group after the break to address this policy.
e. FMLA Policy – 1st Reading – The Board will take a close look at this policy and it will be brought back.
f. Substitute Policy – 1st Reading – This policy was changed so that it aligns with the statute.
9. Other – The Board discussed their presentation and what changes and additions/deletions they should make to it before it is presented at Town Meeting.
Barbara Murphy thanked the Board since it was her last meeting and the Board thanked her for her service.
- Executive Session (Title 1 §313 (1) & (2))
The Board entered Executive Session at 9:00PM.
No action was taken.
11. Adjourn – The meeting adjourned at 9:30PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Julie Filiberti
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