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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1975-09-16-MMTECH-min.pdf (34) MINUTES OF THE MINUTEMAN REGJONAL VOCATIONAL TECHNICAL SCHOOL COMMITTEE September 16, 1975 S � PRESENT Mssrs Banfield, Bilodeau, Courtright, Cormier, Hall , Heinrich, Kelsey, Merluzzo, Zeoli , Mrs Smith, Mrs Wales ABSENT Mr Cron - STAFF Dr Ricciuti , Dr Resnick, Mssrs Marotta, Whitney, Gibson, Essman, Garcia, Hayward, O'Reilly, Mayer, Delaney, Graham, Taverna, lannarelli , Ms Kochis, Ms DellaPenna, Ms Lokich, Ms Stille VISITORS Dr Woodruff, Mr Eisenberg of the Parents' Organization, Mr Foley, President of the Student Government, many parents and students, two interested observers , three representatives of the press The meeting was called to order at 8 15 p.m. by Mr Merluzzo, vice-chairman Mr Merluzzo suggested ground rules to expedite completion of business, and asked for questions from the audience to be submitted in writing The agenda was modified with committee agreement, deleting Action Item F and adding five Information Items METALS Mr Garcia reviewed the four-year metals fabrication FABRICATION curriculum, which includes sheet metal work, welding, auto body repair, and in the final year, opportunities for work experience with industry Mr Garcia exhibited useful and decorative articles suggested as "motivator" projects Students fabricate two of each, one for themselves and one for sale by the department proceeds purchase more stock The department is working toward a completely integrated program, although the cluster philosophy cannot always be applied (e g , welding involves very heavy tools and materials and has little correlation with light metalwork) Academically, math is closely related to the program: fractions, decimals and light trigonometry are used in welding, a large amount of math in sheet metal projects ADMINISTRATION/ Dr Resnick reviewed Minuteman's management organization, MANAGEMENT with a printed chart outlining respective responsibilit_ies __ " -OVERVIEW of Superintendent-Director, Assistant Superintendent- -- -- - Director, Planning and Evaluation , Curriculum and Instruction, and the newly created position, Dean of Students 14' ng) r+ r, (35) ADMINISTRATION/ At present Dr Resnick and Dr Ricciuti are covering the MANAGEMENT functions of the Assistant Superintendent-Director, OVERVIEW although this is defined as a separate position (CONTINUED) Mr Whitney, responsible for Curriculum and Instruction, is spending much time this year with teachers in class- rooms and shops, on a daily basis Mr Merluzzo requested that school committee members study the organization outline in relation to their own fields of responsibility SCHOOL Dr Ricciuti reported that the opening of school has OPENING proceeded smoothly, with a full complement of staff, a schedule that worked, all necessary textbooks He thanked all those responsible, including the students Mrs Smith expressed the view of the entire committee when she commented that opening school , which sounds simple, is really a tremendous effort, and the administration deserved public appreciation for their labors and their success SPECIAL Dr Ricciuti reported that the Massachusetts Department NEEDS of Education, apparently having heard that Minuteman FUNDS was reallocating funds to better serve Special Needs students, had tentatively earmarked $9,000 - $12,000 which could be made available when the incoming Special Needs Director Gerald Less has evolved a program and obtained the Department's approval Some members expressed skepticism regarding the Department's having any surplus funds It was emphasized that if these funds are indeed awarded Minuteman, they will be for special needs facilities or services over and above those already planned, and would not free up any currently budgeted funds Mrs Smith reminded the committee that there are many non-core students who do have special needs, and that every effort should be made to find funds to help them as well FORUM Mr Merluzzo asked everyone to note the second forum MEETING meeting, scheduled for 8 00 p.m September 23rd This 23RD is a communications, not a decision-making, meeting Mr Courtright suggested that notice of such meetings should be published in local newspapers BACK Dr Ricciuti reported that a tentative date had been set TOr a for a Back-to-School Night for parents Mr Merluzzo SCHOOL noted some difficulties faculty members had been asked NIGHT (in a memo from Dr Ricciuti) to participate in the event, and to leave school early that day in compensation In response, the President of AFT Local 3191 had written to ' • (36) BACK the school committee, stating that the federation had TO voted to "reject any agreement to come to any extra- SCHOOL curricular activity outside of working hours until a NIGHT contract is signed" The letter added that "we do (CONT ) agree with the concept of a Back to School Night and hope to be able to meet with the parents at some date" TEACHER A course for teachers, in the History and Philosophy TRAINING of Vocational Education, will be given at Minuteman COURSE Completion of this course is required for full certifi- cation in Vocational Education, and 18 members of the present staff have only provisional certification without it Also, teachers from Northeast Regional would like to attend if approved It was MOVED by Mrs Wales, SECONDED by Mr Zeoli , and VOTED UNANIMOUSLY, to include the teachers of Northeast Regional in the course Mr Courtright commented that Minuteman is "happy to do this" and Mr Bilodeau added that this type of cooperation was written into Minuteman's original philosophy SERVICE Dr Ricciuti reported a difficulty in service station STATION plans The school has installed one tank and two pumps STATUS They have now been informed that to sell gasoline, they must offer two grades Dr Ricciuti has invited major oil companies to study whether the present arrangement can be modified to meet legal requirements Also, next year, service stations will be required by law to install special nozzles capable of trapping gasoline fumes, at an estimated cost of several thousand dollars It is still hoped that the service station can be opened by January 1 Mr Merluzzo requested that all data be passed on to the building sub-committee, in care of Mr Cron, as soon as possible I TIME Dr Resnick reported that the Regional Planning Board SHARING at its last meeting had considered many possibilities for using vacant seat He produced charts of twelve suggest- ions seriously considered and evaluated; the two most feasible, from the viewpoints of regional benefit and administration, were both time-sharing one plan at the ninth and tenth grade levels, the other at seventh and - - - eighth The latter, it was noted, would be an excellent ----- ----___—way-to recruit regular students Meanwhile, Minuteman has been approached with a proposal by Arlington's STEP program for alternative learning Because of financial implications, it was agreed to defer consideration of this matter to executive session s • (37) METCO Dr Ricciuti announced there was still no news of Metco funding Mr Hall reported on the status of the funding proposal passed by the Senate and now in the House This matter will be discussed at greater length at the September 30 meeting Mr Zeoli reported that Lexington has seven empty seats to which the Metco students from Lexington can return if necessary Mrs Wales reported that she had no commitment as yet from Lincoln-Sudbury Regional INTRAMURAL As requested at the previous meeting, Mr Rose presented SPORTS a more detailed and financially itemized proposal for after-school sports There was considerable discussion, covering the following points among others While some teachers are volunteering to coach without pay, others are accepting salaries which, Mr Rose said, are lower their-those paid in surrounding towns 100 or more students have requested ice hockey, offering to pay the expenses themselves Insurance is already adequate to provide coverage Equipment and facilities are already on hand for several sports (One committee member asked parents to remember that much money had already been spent for athletics, e g , $5,000 for football equipment alone) if a large number of girls express interest in football or other contact sports (which cannot be coed) , equal opportunity should be given The funds to be used are being reallocated, mostly from Student Activities, some from Community Services Winter and spring programs offer equal opportunities for both boys and girls After some discussion as to whether the committee needed to vote on the question at all , since there was no over-all change in the budget, a member of the audience specifically requested a vote It was then MOVED by Mr Hall , SECONDED by Mr Kelsey, and VOTED UNANIMOUSLY, to approve the physical education program as presented (Cheers from the audience) COMMENDATION Mr Merluzzo announced that Mrs Wales had been supported by the League of Women Voters in a letter of commendation, praising her active work for equal opportunity for women He noted that Mrs Smith has also been very active in this field TEXTBOOK It was MOVED by Mr Hall , SECONDED by Mrs Wales, to - approve the following text for ninth and tenth grade students Kirk, Franklyn W , et al , Instrumentation, American Technical Society, Chicago, 1975 (45 copies) VOTED 9 in favor, 2 abstaining (Mr Merluzzo and Mr Kelsey) for reasons previously stated and recorded in the minutes of June 3, 1975, p 119 r • (38) POLICY At Dr Ricciuti 's request, Mr Merluzzo agreed that the three members of the policy sub-committee (Mssrs Bilodeau, Heinrich and Kelsey) would review the admissions procedures amendments proposed June 17, and that the Ways and Means Committee would review student fees for physical education, and report back to 1 the committee RESIGNATIONS It was VOTED UNANIMOUSLY to accept with regret the resignation of Ms. Heidi Wetherell from the Science Department It was VOTED UNANIMOUSLY to accept the resignation of Ms Sallie Katz from Communications/Human Relations STUDENT At the recommendation of the administration, the APPLICATIONS committee VOTED UNANIMOUSLY to accept Paul J Johnson, 53 Seaver Street, Wellesley, as a tuition student at the tenth grade level , at a tuition charge of $2,483; also, to accept David Rodgers, of Stow, as a regular student on the tenth grade level STAFF It was MOVED by Mrs Wales, SECONDED by Mr Zeoli , APPOINTMENTS and VOTED UNANIMOUSLY to approve the following appointments Helen Gillam, staff teacher, Allied Health, salary $14,000, to start September 17, ! Patricia Magnell , staff teacher, Communications, salary $13,000, to start September 17, Sheila Coggan, associate teacher, Special Needs LD, salary $11 ,000, to start September 17, Janet Robitaille, staff teacher, SPC, salary $12,000, to start September 17, David Zoglio, staff teacher, Horticulture, salary $12,000, to start September 17 John Dempsey, staff teacher, Human Relations, salary $13,000, to start September 17 SUPPORT It was MOVED by Mr Zeoli , SECONDED by Mrs Wales, and PERSONNEL VOTED UNANIMOUSLY to approve the following support personnel Robert Macaulay, Custodian, Level 1 , salary $$,000, to start September 17, Ralph Anderson, Duplicating/Press Technician, Level 1 , salary $8,000, to start September 17 CONTRACT It was MOVED by Mrs Wales, SECONDED by Mr Zeoli , and SERVICES VOTED UNANIMOUSLY, to approve contracting with the following -TEACHER personnel as teacher aides, all at the rate of $3 00 per AIDES —hour, at 6 hours a day, all to start September 17 Robert Dangel , Communications Linda Lupien, Mathematics Pamela Pepe, Science Kevin Graham, Physical Education Maryanne Donnellan, I R.0 • (39) At this time Mr Merluzzo opened the meeting to written questions from the audience. Q. How can the Parents' Organization be included on - the agenda when it wants to be heard as an organization instead of as an individual parent? 1 � A. Agendas are mailed out five days before the meeting; an officer of the organization should contact Dr Ricciuti or Mr Cron well before that Notice should include nature of the topic, and approximate time expected for discussion Q. Why the delay in hiring more staff? (Four vacancies) • A. The administration is close to selection on the Assistant Librarian; the incoming Special Needs Director will fill the Special Needs position; next meeting will probably see all positions filled Note also, that one of these positions has just been created, and two are the result of recent resignations Q. Can people be informed of the general nature of things to be discussed in Executive Session? A. The minutes of the Executive Session are usually made public Q. What have you done to plan a placement program with outside companies? A. This is the responsibility of Student Program Coordi- nators Bill Hayward has tried to make a start, but has been told it is too early, wait until we have a twelfth grade He personally believes it would be valuable to establish relationships with companies now, especially in view of the employment situation Planning will go ahead i on this program. Q. Why is money to be spent on outside students, and programs in athletics being denied my son? A. The "outside students" refers to Metco No Minuteman funds are being used for Metco As for athletics, the committee has just voted to approve the program. Q. Why couldn't the SPC's plan with students last year before the choices were made? Several students did not get their choice of program • (40) (AUDIENCE A. There was considerable discussion on this question, QUESTIONS since the school committee had understood that every CONTINUED) student had been given his/her first choice. It was emphasized that student input is needed, too, that students not satisfied must so state and request a change if that is possible Q. I recommend the (submitted) article on The Perceptu- ally Handicapped Adolescent A. Mr Merluzzo offered to have copies made and given to committee members Q. (From a student) Why was geometry discontinued this year? A. Discussion brought to light that the course had been dropped at the decision of the senior teacher, but without knowledge of administration or school committee Members expressed great concern that an approved program could be changed without approval Mr Merluzzo requested that Mr Whitney attend to the student's request the following day, investigate whether any other changes had been made in other programs, and report back to the next school committee meeting SUPERINTENDENT- Mrs Smith reported 61 responses in hand to advertisements DIRECTOR for a superintendent-director All had been acknowledged SEARCH the day of receipt, and all candidates would soon be sent more information about the school Some of the candidates were very, very impressive, Mrs Smith said Once again there was a request for criteria from staff, parents, students, everyone concerned Mrs Wales suggested that the strongest candidates be given a specific "task problem" and asked to respond in writing as to how they would organiza the available resources "Experience itself is not enough," noted one member "One can have experience in doing things badly " POLICY Mrs Smith requested that the policy sub-committee meet MANUAL soon, choose a chairman, and begin a review of the policy manual TENNIS Mr Zeoli thanked the committee and administration for THANKS allowing the Lexington Tennis Association to use the school courts for their tournament TREASURER'S In the absence of Mr Lombardo, Mr Essman reported a REPORT balance of $59,093 08 in the Regular Budget Account, and $15,881 26 in the Site and Construction Account • (41) SEPTEMBER It was VOTED UNANIMOUSLY to accept the minutes of the 2ND September 2 regular meeting MINUTES Mrs Wales asked if there had been an inventory made of all 9 equipment in the building, and was told that there had OTHER not Mr Hall suggested that a formal inventory should BUSINESS be made as soon as possible Mr Hall MOVED, and Mrs Wales SECONDED, and it was VOTED UNANIMOUSLY, that the Administration be asked to investigate outside firms capable of developing a complete and formal inventory of all equipment and furnishings, and to then come back to the school committee with recommendations Mr Cormier asked if there were an active program of soliciting equipment donations from industry At present, he was told, resources are not adequate for such an effort So far, all donations offered have been accepted A member questioned the need for a 41-volume set of the Annotated Laws of Massachusetts, already delivered it was explained that school districts waste a lot of money calling legal counsel with questions they could easily look up, and that those concerned should become familiar with the statutes A staff roster will be printed and distributed as soon as the staff is complete Dr Woodruff, noting that a number of labs are still not fully equipped, suggested using Tools for Schools and defense surplus as sources Tools for Schools used to require too much red tape but has improved considerably Dr Resnick noted that much equipment has already been purchased through surplus, and that Mr Gilio visits the school regularly with lists of currently available items The meeting was adjourned at 10 40 p.m. to be reconvened in executive session (Reespect`ffully submitted, Recording Secretary Approved `tel tXD, i 77C etiza 1{0C-904 Ruth W Wales, Secretary