| BSC Preliminary Minutes June 16, 2009 |
| PRELIMINARY MINUTES BOXFORD SCHOOL COMMITTEE (BSC) REGULAR MEETING BOXFORD TOWN HALL JUNE 16, 2009 Members Present: Roger “Rusty” Chadwick (arrived 9:30 p.m.), Cynthia Foster, Rebecca Lundrigan, Pam Messenger (Chairperson), and Cindy Murphy Others Present: Kathryn Nikas (Cole School Principal), Tiffany Stone (Cole School), Lisa Salisbury and Jane Bonaventura (Cole School / Boxford Teachers’ Association (BTA)), Beth Yando (Spofford and Cole Schools), Lawrence Fliegelman (Spofford School Principal), Jean Carosi (Spofford School), Candyce Wainwright (Technical Coordinator), Michael White (Finance Committee), Christina Eckert, Karen Hussey and Heather Fecteau ( Boxford Parent-Teacher Organization (BPTO)), Debbie Hale (Director of Curriculum) Steve Clifford (TTU Director of Facilities), Sharon Lyons (TTU Director of Special Education) and Ellen Gaskell (Recording Secretary) Chairman Pamela Messenger called the meeting to order at 7:35 p.m. ROUTINES: 1. Remarks from the Public: None 2. Reports from Other Committees: a. Tri-Town Union (TTU) School Committee Meeting i. TTU Secretary Cynthia Foster reported that this was a reorganization meeting: the host town is Topsfield, the Chairperson is from Topsfield and the Vice Chairperson is from Middleton. ii. Dr. Creeden stated that prior to the TTU meeting, there was a Regionalization Study Update meeting. 1. Future Management Systems (FMS) presented a broad outline of the final report to the Regionalization Subcommittee. 2. FMS wanted to be sure “they were going in the right direction”. 3. The focus group results were also presented. 4. The preliminary report will be completed by 6-30-09. iii. Cynthia Foster then reported on the Superintendent Annual Review of Dr. Creeden. He was rated 4.5 out of a possible 5.0 by all school committee members. iv. Special Education Director Sharon Lyons gave the SPED Program presentation. b. Report of the Grade 6/7 Social Studies Committee i. Director of Curriculum Debbie Hale and 6th Grade Teacher Jean Carosi presented the report, included in the packet. Teacher Maryellen Sorenson was unable to attend this meeting. ii. Debbie Hale praised the efforts of committee members Jean Carosi and Maryellen Sorenson. iii. Because of a recommendation from Masconomet, the committee formed two years ago to study switching the 6th grade curriculum from Ancient Cultures to World Geography and studying Ancient Cultures at Masconomet in the 7th grade. iv. Boxford’s cost for this curriculum shift is about $10K. Pam Messenger asked if Topsfield and Middleton could afford their cost for this shift and Dr. Creeden said they could. v. Cindy Murphy asked how different would the 6th grade curriculum be from the current 7th grade curriculum; Jean Carosi assured her that the new 6th grade curriculum would be appropriate for them, but not “watered down” from the 7th grade version. vi. Cindy Murphy asked some questions about the book: did anyone on the committee speak to other districts using this book? Debbie Hale said they did not, but she has a close relationship with the New Hampshire representative of the book company and had book feedback from him/her. Ms. Hale also said that the book is the most popular 6th grade geography book in the country. Cindy Murphy wanted to know how current the book was; Debbie Hale said it was a 2009 edition. vii. Cindy Murphy asked if the new curriculum would have interdisciplinary learning and Jean Carosi said it would. viii. Pam Messenger asked that since Boxford’s cost for this shift will be more than the $10,061.00 stated in the report (due to additional purchases besides the books), can the additional costs be covered by existing lines in the current budget? Dr. Creeden said they could; no special actions will be needed to fund the purchases. A motion was made by Pam Messenger to amend the 6th grade Social Studies curriculum to shift from Ancient Cultures to World Geography, using the Glencoe’s book, Exploring Our World and related materials, seconded by Cindy Murphy. Motion passed 4-0-0. REPORTS: 1. Report of the Director of School Nutrition: postponed 2. Report of the Director of Special Education: a. Sharon Lyons presented this report, which will be available online. b. She commented on one of the programs, which combines children from across the Tri-Town with similar learning needs. c. She reported on the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) Coordinated Program Review; the department is now fully compliant in all areas except English Language Learners (ELL) and the ELL program’s 2nd progress report is in process. d. There was a discussion of the Circuit Breaker program. e. Only a small amount of program costs are recovered by Medicaid reimbursement for services provided in school. f. Grant programs paid for with federal stimulus dollars were discussed: the $108K Boxford was supposed to receive in FY’10 will be received this spring; slightly less than that will also be received in the fall. g. American Reinvestment and Recovery (ARRA) funds: no more than 50% can be used on recovery actions, such as preserving jobs. The other 50% must be used on investment; improvements that will have a lasting impact. h. Sharon Lyons thanked Mrs. Roberts for spearheading the Parents’ Advisory Council tulip bulb fund raiser. i. The financial impact of restructuring the intensive preschool was discussed. j. Cindy Murphy asked Sharon Lyons if she new of any additional SPED expenses not in the budget yet; she said she could not give Cindy the final dollar amount yet. 3. Report of the Building Principals: a. Lawrence Fliegelman, Principal Spofford School i. He praised the Spofford School’s Chorus presentation to the Cole School ii. He presented the School Improvement Plan ’08-’09, a copy of which was included in the packet. The report will be posted on the school website. He praised the RTI system. iii. A copy of the School Improvement Plan ’09-’10 was also included in the packet. iv. He also praised the 6th grade Student Council for how they took control of it. v. Cindy Murphy asked Lawrence Fliegelman several questions about the development of reading assessments and staff surveys and feedback about school assemblies. b. Kathryn Nikas, Principal Cole School i. She presented two reports: her monthly report and the School Improvement Plan ’08-’11, copies of which were included in the packet. ii. She thanked her staff and the parents. iii. She noted that SPED teacher Steven Duffy will move from Cole to Spofford and thanked him for his work at Cole. iv. She thanked the teaching assistants and expressed regret that some of them had to be laid off due to declining enrollments in FY’10. v. She noted that Tiffany Stone will stay at Cole, working 4 days a week next year. c. Report of the Superintendent: i. Dr. Creeden presented the Superintendent’s Report, a copy of which was included in the packet. ii. Personnel Update 1. A Foreign Language person will be hired; it is hoped that the position will be filled by July or August. iii. Summer Meeting Schedule 1. There will be one BSC meeting in July and one after the 3rd week in August. An email will be sent to school committee members of determine the best meeting dates. NEW BUSINESS: 1. School Improvement Plan Presentations: a. Harry Lee Cole School i. Kathryn Nikas summarized the School Improvement Plan ’08-‘11, a copy of which was included in the packet. The plan will also be posted on the school website. She acknowledged the efforts of the team members involved in the plan. ii. Curriculum Director Debbie Hale praised Kathryn Nikas and her team that developed the School Improvement Plan and wished to recognize Cole School, its teachers and the process. b. Spofford Pond School i. Lawrence Fliegelman presented the School Improvement Plan ’08-’09 and ’09-’11, copies which are included in the packet. ii. He thanked the Student Council and their teacher advisor. 2. Review of Fiscal Year 2009 Budget: a. Current End of Year Projections i. There was $216K in tailings in the FY’09 Budget; of that $117K will be given back to the General Fund, leaving $99K that must be spent in the next two weeks, or before the school year ends. b. Priorities for Consideration i. Chairperson Pam Messenger asked school committee members to prioritize the items to add back into next year’s budget. Items on the Procurement Options List, included in the packet, were considered. ii. Cindy Murphy listed her priorities in this order: building safety issues in repair and maintenance, addressing classroom deficiencies (e.g. Smart Boards), anything that’ll save money in the long run and the Social Studies curriculum shift costs. iii. Pam Messenger asked Facilities Director Steve Clifford to prioritize his department’s expenses. He determined that the interior lighting retrofits at Cole and Spofford would be top priority because the projects would greatly lower both schools’ energy consumption, could be completed with the within the dollar limits of the tailings and contracts for the project could be in place within the next two weeks. Cindy Murphy asked if stimulus funds for green projects could be used for the retrofits; Dr. Creeden said probably not, but the retrofit was already subsidized by grants from NSTAR and there would be discounts for paying upfront. The lighting retrofits at both schools will cost $27K. iv. Members of the BPTO were in favor of spending the surplus on technology. They endorsed Smart Board purchases at both schools for a total of $30K and agreed to pay 40% of the cost, leaving $18K to be covered by the tailings. The BPTO also expressed strongly that the 7-year technology replacement cycle should be followed, at a cost of about $33K, as did Rebecca Lundrigan. v. Note: at 9:30 p.m., the 5th school committee member Rusty Chadwick arrived in time to vote for the next motion. A motion was made by Pam Messenger to move the 2009 tailings in the amount of $216,000 in this manner: $117,000 - Town’s General Fund $18,000 - Smart Boards (note: all 6 Smart Boards needed will be purchased for a total of $30,000; the remaining $12,000 will be provided by the Boxford Parent-Teacher Organization) $27,000 - Lighting Retrofits - Cole and Spofford Schools $33,144 - Seven-Year Replacement Cycle for Technology $12,000 - 6th Grade Social Studies Curriculum Change Not to exceed $8,500 Special Education prepays for 2010 Remainder to go back into the General Fund. Seconded by Rebecca Lundrigan. Motion passed 5-0-0. 3. Fiscal Year 2010 Budget and ARRA Funding: a. These topics were previously covered in the meeting. 4. Correspondence: a. Pam Messenger received a magazine. b. Dr. Creeden received two letters from parents praising school staff and a letter from Secretary of Education Arne Duncan regarding the H1N1 Virus. Dr. Creeden noted that although there were detected cases of the virus at the schools and resulting absences, attendance was still good. 5. Other: None CONSENT AGENDA: 1. Approval of Minutes of Previous Meetings: a. June 2, 2009 – Regular Meeting i. Change the time the Chairperson called the meeting to order from 7:15 p.m. to 7:35 p.m. ii. Under Reports from Other Committees, change the person who reported on the TTU from P. Messenger to C. Murphy. iii. Under New Business Section, FY 2010 Budget Development, Results from Town Meeting Paragraph, line 2, change The Budget to The State Budget. iv. Under New Business Section, Correspondence, line 2, change Mass. Association to Mass. Association of School Committees. A motion was made by Pam Messenger to accept the 6/2/09 Regular Meeting Minutes as amended, seconded by Cynthia Foster. Motion passed 5-0-0. b. June 2, 2009 – Executive Session i. No changes needed A motion was made by Pam Messenger to accept the 6/2/09 Executive Session Meeting Minutes, seconded by Cynthia Foster. Motion passed 5-0-0. 2. Bills and Payrolls: a. Payrolls A motion was made by Pam Messenger to approve the payroll, dated 6/17/09, weeks ending 5/29/09 and 6/5/09, in the amount of $285, 430.06, seconded by Cynthia Foster. Motion passed 5-0-0. Pam Messenger moved to approve the Lump Sum Payroll, dated 6/24/09, in the amount of $843,068.04, seconded by Rebecca Lundrigan. Motion passed 5-0-0. b. Bill Warrants A motion was made by Pam Messenger to pay BW#09-64, dated 6/16/09, in the amount of $20,655.85, seconded by Cynthia Foster. Motion passed 5-0-0. A motion was made by Pam Messenger to pay BW#09-65, dated 6/16/09, in the amount of $4,363.88, seconded by Cynthia Foster. Motion passed, 5-0-0. EXECUTIVE SESSION: At 10:40 p.m., a motion was made by Pam Messenger to move into Executive Session for the purpose of preparation for negotiations with represented personnel, seconded by Cynthia Foster. On a roll call vote, the motion passed 5-0-0 (in favor: Rusty Chadwick, Cynthia Foster, Rebecca Lundrigan, Pam Messenger and Cindy Murphy). ADJOURNMENT: At 10:56 p.m., on a roll call vote, returned from Executive Session for the purpose of Adjournment. Pam Messenger moved to adjourn, seconded by Cynthia Foster. Motion passed 5-0-0. Respectfully Submitted, Ellen Gaskell Recording Secretary |
