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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022-04-11-SC-minLEXINGTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING Monday, April 11, 2022 Conducted by Remote Participation Meeting Minutes CALL TO ORDER AND WELCOME: 6:01 P.M. SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT Kathleen Lenihan, Chairperson Sara Cuthbertson, Clerk Eileen Jay, Vice -Chair Larry Freeman Deepika Sawhney (joined later in the meeting) STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE Sara Mei SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS PRESENT Dr. Julie Hackett, Superintendent The minutes were taken by Julie Kaye, School Committee Meeting Recording Secretary. The School Committee convened remotely via Zoom. Members of the public can view and participate in the meeting webinar from their computer or tablet by clicking on the link provided with the meeting agenda. Please note that this meeting is being recorded, and that attendees are participating by video conference. This evening's meeting is being broadcast live and also taped by LexMedia for future on -demand viewing. All supporting materials that have been provided to members of this body are available on the Town's website unless otherwise noted. SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEMBER ANNOUNCEMENTS AND LIAISON REPORTS • Ms. Cuthbertson thanked Lexington Children's Place for the Joy In Learning Celebration that was a few weeks ago. • Mr. Freeman had no announcements or reports. • Ms. Jay had no announcements or reports. • Sara Mei said that in LHS Senate this week they talked about Community Conversations. This is organized by the counseling department and provides a safe space for students to engage in dialog about the impact of ongoing and current events. This will be occurring once every six-day cycle; specifics will be sent out via email and the app Daily. Senate also discussed the proposed district calendar. JK 04/11/22 - DRAFT • Ms. Lenihan announced that the Human Rights Committee is looking for people to share their stories and experiences on the effects of COVID-19 on people with disabilities. You can do this by going to www.lexingtonma.gov/human-rights-committee then under "News and Announcements" on the right side of the screen, click "Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic On Persons with Disabilities, Opportunities to Share Your Stories" Her other announcement is from the Massachusetts State House. Bill H1709 (Act to end child marriage in Massachusetts) is currently in the Joint Juditiary Committee. The deadline for this Bill to be reported is this Friday, April 15, 2022. Ms. Lenihan is happy to answer anyones questions about this topic. COMMUNITY SPEAK No speakers. SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT The full Superintendent's Report is linked here. Due to the time constraints, Dr. Hackett will not be giving a report to the School Committee. DISCUSSION OF TOWN MEETING ARTICLES There are no articles that the School Committee needs to discuss. Ms. Lenihan reminded the School Committee that they are unanimously in favor of Article 25, Appropriate for Worthern Road Recreation and Education Land Use Concept Plan, no one has changed their stance on this. Dr. Hackett suggested skipping Unfinished Business and to go to New Business, item B. NEW BUSINESS An Overview of the Procurement and DecisionjMaking Process and Reguest for Approval of the K-5 After School ro ra Agree ent David Coelho, Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations, joined the meeting for this item. Mr. Coelho explained that all contracts over $50,000 go through a "sealed bid" process. Massachusetts General Law Chapter 30B lists requirements for bids, such as advertising. The RFP describes the process in detail. Four vendors ended up submitting technical and price proposals, the price proposals were opened last. Bids of this size go to a Review Committee, this year the committee consisted of a building administrator, an Elementary School principal, Mr. Coelho (Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations), and four parent volunteers. JK 04/11/22 - DRAFT Each member scored the proposals with a rubric and then the four vendors gave presentations. All of this information was gathered and tallied up by Deb Harvey in the Finance Dept. Kidsborough ended up being the most advantageous on a number of parameters. Mr. Coelho then explained that for the pricing proposal part of the process, the vendors have a minimum rent amount they need to submit for in order to still be considered. Two of the vendors submitted the minimum amount, one vendor submitted a slightly higher amount and Kidsborough submitted a rental amount that was essentially double. Mr. Coelho added that Kidsborough also has a behavioral specialist on staff. All of these factors led to the decision of recommending Kidsborough as Lexington's new After School Program. School Committee Member comments/questions: • Ms. Cuthbertson is happy to see that Kidsborough includes behavioral support for students, this aligns with our Core Values. She asked if any before -school care could be included. Mr. Coelho responded that they didn't run the procurement process to include any time before school, but he will find out if this could be an amendment or if a whole new process would need to be started over. Dr. Hackett interjected that Ms. Cuthbertson would like to know if Kidsborough offers before -school services in other communities. Mr. Coelho replied yes, they do (he believes in Winchester they do before and after school). Ms. Cuthbertson suggested surveying families in the community to see if before -school services would be needed. • Ms. Sawhney asked if the proposed contract is similar to the Food Service contract (Whitsons) where it is a five-year contract but with a one year renewal. Mr. Coelho responded that this is a three-year contract with two one-year options to renew. Ms. Sawhney also asked if there will be a pricing change for families. Mr. Coelho explained that Kidsborough submitted a tuition amount that is the same amount that it is now, also that tuition rates will not rise more than 2% annually. • Mr. Freeman asked if having a behavioral specialist implies that every student that requires special services or some type of support will be admitted into the program. Mr. Coelho doesn't think that it guarantees admission, there is still a process that makes sure that they can provide the appropriate services. Mr. Coelho also pointed out that there is a limit to how many students can be in the program because of the size of the space it's being held in. Mr. Freeman went onto the Kidsborough website and it appears as though all of the instructors present as cis gendered white people. He would like to know if any conversations were had about our DEI initiative. Mr. Coelho responded that Kidsborough touched on focusing on inclusion and diversity, but the inclusion of specific staff members was not discussed. Kidsborough will interview any Lextended Day staff who are interested in continuing similar work. Kidsborough has emphasized wanting to be a JK 04/11/22 - DRAFT part of the Lexington community and they are committed to inclusiveness and everything we stand for. • Ms. Jay is encouraged by the ability of Kidsborough to have more inclusion by having a behavioral specialist. She would like to know if the staff -to -student ratio is the same. She would also like to know what enrichment/structured activities will be offered, especially to the older students. Mr. Coelho responded that Kidsborough offers homework help as well as guest visitors and outdoor/indoor recreational sports, an uncommon community service program, robotics and STEM programs, for example. Kidsborough offers academic opportunities but also puts an emphasis on the importance of free play and they have the flexibility to give kids what they need. • Ms. Jay asked Mr. Coelho if he had a sense from Kidsborough that our values such as our DEI work and social -emotional learning align. Mr. Coelho answered Ms. Jay's question about staffing, Kidsboroughs ratio is one teacher to every eight students (which is below the state requirement of one to thirteen). Mr Coelho also added that culture, language, special needs, inclusiveness, diversity, dignity and respect were all discussed in their technical proposal and he is satisfied that "they hear us" and what we are all about. • Sara Mei asked how many years LextendedDay has been in the district, Mr. Coelho replied since 2008-09. Ms. Lenihan added that her children attended LextendedDay even before 2008. • Ms. Lenihan also touched on the importance of having the behavioral specialist and she is curious about before school care. She appreciated hearing that the program offers flexibility in activities as well recognizing that some kids just want to read a book or draw. Ms. Lenihan also asked if Kidsborough will be reaching out to hire current LextendedDay staff members. Mr. Coelho explained that he spoke with the owner of Kidsborough about a transition plan with the owner and operator, and she plans on reaching out to the current staff to see if anyone would like to continue their work for her company. • Mr. Freeman asked if there was any consideration to the mental health of the student population in terms of all of the changes they have been experiencing. Mr. Coelho replied that they had to just follow the provisions of Massachusetts General Law Chapter 30B to get the best provider, and that additional aspects were not added to that process. He did point out that the transition plans acknowledge the impact of change on students and how to best go about it. Mr. Freeman also asked if the contract has already been awarded to Kidsborough. Mr. Coelho explained that the School Committee is the final arbiter in this process, Kidsbough was told that they have won the contract pending the vote and reference checks. COMMUNITY SPEAK JK 04/11/22 - DRAFT Garrett Frampton, 34 Rawson Ave: He has two children that go to Harrington, one in Kindergarten and one in first grade and they attend LextendedDay. He asked why we would change programs if parents were happy with the care their children were receiving with LextendedDay? He is aware that there is a process but this is about caregivers who spend hours, weeks, months and years with our kids. He wonders: if the majority of parents are happy that this doesn't seem like a risk Lexington should decide to take. The goal is to get the best care and he feels as though the parent representation wasn't strong enough during this process. Jennifer Zacharis, 26 Ridge Ave: Her kids go to Harrington as well. She has concerns that the request for volunteers was sent out March 22 and the process started on March 24th. She does not think this gave enough time or notice. She is also confused as to why there wasn't advanced communication about an important town -wide decision for many elementary families. Jennifer states that the announcement that came to the Town about the decision indicated that best value was considered a priority with no other student -focused language in the description of the process. She would expect to serve our youngest students. At this point in the pandemic, it would be important to consider timing. She feels like a decision like this can not be viewed as a procurement at this point in time. Returning to LextendedDay has been "everything" to her three elementary students and she has been impressed by all of the thoughtful and age appropriate work that is being taught. She has one child with special learning needs who has been well served by the current program. The Lextended team is as much a apart of the Harrington community as all of the LPS employees, she is sadden to see this decision. Lauren Buhl, 58 Baskin Rd: She has two children in the LextendedDay program at Bridge, one in the first grade, one in the fifth, and one she was hoping to be in LextendedDay who is currently eight months old. She feels that there was not adequate parent representation for the selection of the review committee. She reiterated how not enough notice was given to the community about this committee. She also pointed out that the meeting occurred on a Tuesday morning which automatically eliminates most of the people who use LextendedDay because of their work schedules. She made a statement about the 200% profit that has been promised by the new program, insinuating that this can only be done by either overcharging their customers or underpaying/overworking their staff. She asked what was done to level the playing field of the procurement process and asked for more background and references for vendors. Ms. Buhl has been very happy with LextendedDay and believes the program has been crucial in her child's social development. She stressed the importance of this decision and how it will be shutting down a business that has been a part of Lexington for 40 years. Sarah Conrad, 176 Cedar St: She is the current president of the LextendedDay Board. What has been previously said by parents has captured a lot of her own points. She would like to know JK 04/11/22 - DRAFT what the process was to solicit and select parent volunteers. Ms. Conrad would like to know if references have been checked on the behavioral specialist and if they will provide individual aide to students. She brought up that 100% of parents surveyed would recommend LextendedDay, but she also acknowledges that 100% are not satisfied with the program. She hopes that the School Committee received her email about her experiences over the past two and a half years. She is disappointed with the process and decision of choosing Kidsborough. Joshua Apgar, 31 Barberry Rd: He is a Town Meeting Member (Precinct 3), and his statement of support for the change of after school providers is on behalf of LexSEPAC/SEPTA. He says that LextendedDay has struggled to meet the needs of students who need additional supports and this has been a concern for many years. More students will now have access to the program which can provide important social opportunities. It is his understanding that the new vendor will be able to serve all of our children and the importance of this needs to be acknowledged. He thanked LPS for this decision, it will hopefully bring more inclusiveness to the community. Avon Lewis, Head of the LEA: She is "baffled" by the finances, the new vendor is promising the district more money and more things but to not wildly increase tuition. Her concern is that the plan is that they will be paying the people who do the work substantially less than what they are currently paid. She pointed out that many of the LextenedDay staff are also LPS employees. She would like to hear more about how they propose to pay people. Dr. Hackett suggested that the vote on the after school program contract be postponed to the next meeting. This will give time for questions to be answered. There was discussion about when the vote will happen, a final date wasn't chosen but they will let the public know. UNFINISHED BUSINESS Dr. Hackett consulted legal counsel and found out that we can change half-day Thursdays to half-day Fridays. In order to do so, we would have to impact bargain. If this change is implemented, the calendar will look different. Ms. Cuthbertson moved to approve the 2022-2023 academic calendar as proposed with the exception of the determination of the half days; Mr. Freeman second. Ms. Lenihan took a roll call vote, passesd5-0. JK 04/11/22 - DRAFT Ms. Cuthbertson moved to authorize Dr. Hackett to proceed to impact bargaining for the half-day Fridays instead of the current half-day Thursdays as in the contract; Ms. Sawhney second. Ms. Lenihan took a roll call vote, passed 5-0. Approval of Foo Service Agee ent Ms. Jay moved to award School Food Services management contract attached, substantially as to form, to Whitsons Culinary Group for the period of July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023, with the ability for school administration to award up to four additional 1 -year terms; Ms. Sawhney seconded. Ms. Lenihan took a roll call vote, passed 5-0. 2022-23 Academic Calendar (con't) Dr. Hackett asked the School Committee to explain why they voted her to enter impact bargaining for the switch of the half day. Ms. Lenihan responded that they have heard from many parents that having the half day be on Fridays works better for their schedules. Ms. Cuthbertson agreed that it would be an extremely challenging switch. Dr. Hackett is aware of other changes that are to come and she is cautious about when and how to implement change. EDCO Dissolution Update Ms. Lenihan asked Dr. Hackett if she has any updates on the EDCO dissolution, Dr. Hackett said that the thing to know is that we are "set". She thanked the School Committee for going above and beyond on this particular issue. NEW BUSINESS DEI CIT Liaisons Ms. Cuthbertson announced that the two DEI CIT liaisons will now be Mr. Freeman and Ms. Jay. Ms. Cuthbertson had been a School Committee liaison to the DEI CIT, but with Mr. Freeman's election, she will step down to allow him to remain a member of the DEI CIT. The School Committee adjourned this meeting at 7:30 PM to attend Town Meeting. JK 04/11/22 - DRAFT