HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006-03-27-SC-min
Lexington School Committee
March 27, 2006
Central Office
1557 Massachusetts Avenue
Lexington, MA
Present: Superintendent Paul Ash, School Committee Chair Helen Cohen, and
School Committee Members: Tom Diaz, Tom Griffiths, Olga Guttag and Ravi
Sakhuja. Minutes taken by Leora Tec.
The meeting was convened at 6:33pm
I. Call to order and welcome
II. Public comment: none
III. Superintendent’s Report:
Paul Ash will meet with Carl Valente tomorrow regarding implementation of potential
override questions 3 and 4. Questions to be discussed: Would the money go in the school
budget or in a separate account? What happens to funds at the end of the fiscal year?
Perhaps the preventive maintenance portion of question 3 should be a separate program
budget within the school system’s budget.
IV. Members’ Reports/Members’ Concerns
Tom Diaz: The Article 40 committee will report to Town Meeting on April 5th. Could
we put it on the agenda for a future meeting, so the students could come and speak?
The Board of Trustees of the library will meet next month and will need a quorum to
ratify the nominations of Helen Cohen and Norm Cohen.
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Olga Guttag: EDCO and CASE collaborative lobby day is April 7. The suburban
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coalition annual legislative breakfast is on April 10. April 26 is MASC’s “Day on the
Hill” followed up by the Stand for Children’s “Rally for Education.” There is momentum
rising for the additional five million dollar increase in METCO funding.
Tom Griffiths: Appropriation Committee meeting: Question 4 kept coming up. The
Appropriation Committee approved the $40K to investigate what to do next in
elementary planning, Capital Expenditures has unanimously dis-approved it,
Appropriation approved the rest of the capital projects. They voted unanimously in favor
of the $400K for technology and they voted 7-2 for Question 4. Paul Hamburger
proposed putting a million dollars in an override question to avoid an override in FY08
and to build a reserve of $2 million for FY08; some supported it some opposed it. There
was no formal vote. Negotiations with the chair of the Capital Expenditures Committee
on the $40K request for elementary planning. He is interested in talking about the $400K
technology budget too.
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Helen Cohen: I participated and enjoyed the Estabrook Read Aloud today. Dr. Ash will
not take at least 10 days of vacation this year, so according to his contract we will pay
him $6700.
Ravi Sakhuja: Attended the German program at LHS; it was wonderful.
V. Discussion Items
A. The capital budget, including technology. In the plan that Dr. Arnoff put together it
will take 8 years to get to the point where our oldest computer is 6 years old. Capital
expenditures is suggesting $300K for technology instead of $400K, Tom Diaz will
investigate why. Olga Guttag brought up the fact that if we eventually go wireless in
the schools the whole technology picture will be different.
The Committee agreed that they don’t want to give up $40K for a master plan for next set
of buildings.
B. The Minuteman teacher at Clarke and Diamond: the position hasn’t worked out
well in our schools. Eliminating this position will not affect the school budget but
needs the School Committee vote so that the Minuteman’s budget can be reduced by
this amount.
Motion to not accept the Minuteman teacher at Clarke and Diamond (Griffiths,
Diaz). The motion passed 5-0.
C. Assignment of people to introduce items at Town Meeting:
Operating Budget: Helen Cohen
Capital budget: Olga Guttag
White House: Tom Griffiths
Response for Article 15: Tom Diaz
Response for Article 34: Ravi Sakhuja
The Committee agreed to put Articles 6, 15, 35, 21, 22 and the sidewalk portion of
Article 28 on the agenda for Wednesday, March 29.
VII. Motion to Adjourn (7:26) (Griffiths, Guttag). The motion passed 5-0.
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