Minutes 2014-12-16.pdf - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

A request was made by the Stow representative for a copy of these comments, so that they could be used to raise awareness on the issues,and he agreed to get this to the School Committee. In response to his request for input,the School Committee discussed a number of specific points in the documents.How these proposed changes alter the way things work specifically with regard to exploratory programs,provisional approval,dates,access for out of district students,admissions,and transition period were some of the issues discussed. d. Intermunicipal Agreements(Type A and Type C drafts dated 11.17.14) The Superintendent called attention to the two draft Intermunicipal Agreements included in the packet,and noted that these resulted from the work of the Regional Agreement Amendment Subcommittee,and the group of town managers who met after that group disbanded.A motion was made(Flood)and seconded(Gillespie)to adopt draft Intermunicipal Agreements(Type A and Type C,dated 11.17.14) as templates to be used for"intermunicipal agreements"with non-member communities in the future,with the understanding that such agreements will need to be approved by a majority vote of the full School Committee. That Type C gives preference to members who have left, how it might change the vote for those towns that had voted to "pass over",and the non-negotiability and non- amendability factors were discussed.A friendly amendment was offered(Spalding)and seconded(Weis)to vote A and C separately. This was accepted,and the following vote was taken: ACTION 2014#138 Moved(Spalding)and seconded(Weis) To vote the Type A and Type C drafts dated 11.17.14 separately Vote: 12 in favor, 1 abstention The need for all towns to come to agreement on the Regional Agreement Amendments was emphasized,and the following vote was then taken,relative to Type A: ACTION 2014#139 Moved(Flood)and seconded(Gillespie) To adopt draft Intermunicipal Agreement(Type A dated 11.17.14) as a template to be used for "intermunicipal agreements"with non-member communities in the future,with the understanding that such agreements will need to be approved by a majority vote of the full School Committee Vote: 12 in favor, 1 abstention The discussion continued around Type C, specifically related to whether a Type C version was necessary,the recent votes taken in Sudbury,the history and impact of the discussions around the IMAs in Boxborough,the benefits of non-membership,whether these agreements offer an incentive to leave,the risk factors,and the compromise components. The advantages/disadvantages of Type C,caps,the timing with the building project,the need for tools to negotiate these agreements, that the agreements between School Committee would work differently in each town, and that these are templates for agreements,not the actual agreements were points raised. The following vote was then taken: ACTION 2014#140 Moved(Flood)and seconded(Gillespie) To adopt draft Intermunicipal Agreement(Type C dated 11.17.14) as a template to be used for "intermunicipal agreements"with non-member communities in the future,with the understanding that such agreements will need to be approved by a majority vote of the full School Committee Vote: 9 in favor,4 opposed [At 9:25 PM,Mr.Mazzola left the meeting. There were then 12 members present.] e. Admissions Policy Revision The Superintendent called attention to the draft language for a revision to the Admission Policy,as a result of the above voted Intermunicipal Agreement templates.He pointed out that reflecting the agreements,this language could be considered"housekeeping"at this point,and that a review of the Admissions policy may come before the School Committee in February or March. The narrow cost advantage of not being a member, that the District is at a major transition point that needs flexibility,and the messiness of the process were points raised. A motion was made(Banks)and seconded(Gillespie)to approve the related Admissions Policy revision,and the following vote was taken: