HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-02-06-SC-min LEXINGTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE
Monday, February 6 2017
Cary Memorial Building, Estabrook Hall
1605 Massachusetts Avenue, Lexington, MA
Present:
Chair, Alessandro Alessandrini;Judy Crocker; Eileen Jay;Jessie Steigerwald;
Superintendent, Dr.Czajkowski
Absent: Student Representative, Matt Campos
The minutes were taken by Kristen Cronin, Executive Assistant to the School Committee and
Administrative Assistant to the Superintendent.
The meeting convened at 8:15 p.m.
Call to Order and Welcome:
Chair, Alessandro Alessandrini called the meeting to order, and introduced committee members.
Public Comments:
Mona Roy 36 Bertwell Road & Bronte Abraham 22 Hudson Road: SEPAC Liaisons to School Committee -
on behalf of the Executive Committee—Lexington Special Education Parent Advisory Council otherwise
known as"SEPAC" has prepared a statement to the community in response to many questions they
have received in light of Dr. Czajkowski's February 3, 2017 press release regarding Harrington
Elementary School.
Many of those requests indicated they are not sure who SEPAC is or what our role is. SEPAC is a group
of volunteer parent and guardians of children receiving Special Education Services that provide
Lexington Public School community with information related to Special Education, and work with Special
Education Department to advocate for and ensure that all children have equal access to educational
opportunities in a safe, nurturing and academically appropriate learning environment. All school
districts are required by low to have a SEPAC to advise public schools on the education and safety of
students with disabilities. School officials are also mandated to meet regularly with their SEPAC parent
representatives to participate in the planning, development and evaluation of school programs.
Furthermore, here in Lexington we're fortunate enough to have a Special Education PTA,that provides
enrichment and is a non-profit organization to support the work of the SEPAC, as well as to offer a
broader range of social and educational opportunities for parents, students with disabilities and staff.
We the volunteers of LEXSEPTA and SEPAC are committed to working with all special education parents
in the district towards these goals. In accordance with our mission we would like to let folks know that
we are meeting with administration this week to discuss process, communication, and areas for
evaluation that were highlighted in the press release. Thank you.
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Superintendent's Announcement:
• Dr. Czajkowski updated the School Committee on LHS Principal Search. On Monday, Feb. 13,
HYA will be based at the High School for the day, conducting focus groups with the students and
staff. Later that evening HYA will host a public forum for parents.
• Dr. Czajkowski will be attending the METCO Legislative Breakfast this Thursday at the State
House at 10 am with Barbara Hamilton, extends invitation to School Committee Members.
• Budget Summit 5 will be held this Thursday, Feb. 9th at 7:00 pm in the Public Facilities Building.
Asked by Town Manager to provide the public with a vote on our Operating and Capital Budget
• Interviews for the Director of Human Resources position will begin on Monday, Feb. 13. Sandy
Trach will be chairing the committee along with Dr. Czajkowski; 4 potential candidates will
interview on Monday, Feb. 131H
School Committee Member Announcements:
J. Crocker:
• Science Fair will be held on Friday, February 10th at Hastings Elementary& Friday, March 2nd at
Harrington.
• Jessie thanked Dr. Czajkowski for the work the Homework Task Force has been doing. Draft
policy will be on the docket in March
J. Steigerwald:
• Shared update on Curriculum work group with Eileen Jay now that Dr. Chase is back,they would
like to schedule a meeting with Ms. Lasa soon before she heads out for retirement to get HS
feedback.
• All aware of complex issues in the news at Harrington Elementary this past week, and would like
to thank Dr. Czajkowski and the Administrators for staying on top of the situation and keeping
the School Committee updated.
Consent Agenda:
1. Vote to Accept$300.00 Donation from Arbella Insurance Foundation Transportation Grant.
Transporting Estabrook students on a field trip to the BSO on April 7, 2017.
Motion to approve consent agenda items 1. (Steigerwald/Crocker)
The Motion was approved (4-0).
Agenda:
1. Agenda Item:Vote on Transportation Contract for FY18—FY22
• Mr. Daily,Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations, updated the School Committee
on the bids conducted for a new five-year contract for bus transportation.
• As part of the bid process, advertisements were placed in the Lexington Minuteman and posted
in the Goods and Services Bulletin as well as COMMBUYS.
• Total amount of school bus transportation bid award is$15,772,120.00 over the course of 5
years. Should be noted that the basis of the award for the school bus transportation bid requires
the present value of the total contract be calculated utilizing the Wall Street Journal Prime Rate
as the annual discount rate. On January 27, 2017 that rate was published at 3.75%The item
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before you tonight calculates that present value awarded for transportation at$14,641,740.52;
Athletic bid award at$201,920.00 per year; Field Trip bid award at$41,040.00 per year.
Motion to award School Bus Transportation Services contract, including Athletic and Field Trip
transportation,to C&W Transportation for the period of July 1, 2017 through June 30,2022.
Motion to approve: (Sandro/Jay)
Motion approved 4-0
2. Agenda Item: Discuss Recommendations of the 2020 Vision Report and Discuss Diversity
Coordinator Position
• Discussion revolved around Diversity Think Tank recommendations and suggestions, particularly
regarding whether it belongs as a coalition or a sub-committee.Town officials have suggested it
be part of the Human Rights Committee to give it ties to town government. We do not want this
committee to be a "stand alone" committee.
• School Committee and Dr. Czajkowski are in agreement that we need to learn more about what
the Diversity Think Tank should be. We could begin by learning more and getting a better
understanding from Walnut Valley and their experiences; possibly meet with their facilitators.
We might look into assessing and selecting a Diversity Training Program; what is the best training
program? We want to find out what the plan would be for Town Leaders, Municipal, Civic
Leaders, Boards &Committees to really engage in the training, and what their commitment in
the training would be. Other considerations include: Who should be on the committee; Goal
setting; Strategic Plan; Investigation into how it should operate.
• Conversation shifted towards the job description for the Diversity Coordinator position.
Superintendent, Dr. Czajkowski expressed her concern regarding the importance for a dedicated
position. We need a point person to coordinate, Addressing these diversity concerns involves
training, working with parents, looking at curriculum, and more. It warrants a more intense level
of work and dedicated effort than we currently have. It needs to be a priority.
• J. Steigerwald wondered if this position could possibly be a shared position between school and
town. A.Alessandrini had mixed feelings about its being a shared position. His concerns were
that school needs are different from town needs;that it's too big of a burden on a person to
understand the town needs vs. a school needs, at a student level vs. a family level. The
requirements and needs for the town are different from the needs of children in a school system.
It seems like two different positions. We could reach out to other communities who have this
position to see what they have done to make it work.
• Eileen Jay and Jessie Steigerwald agreed to reach out to other School Committees/School Board
members in other towns for feedback on how they handle a position similar to this one. Dr.
Czajkowski will meet with Carl Valente to discuss common goals and suggestions that were made
tonight.
Motion to adjourn. Sandro/Steigerwald
The Motion was approved 4-0.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:13
Meeting Materials:Agenda; A.1- No attachments A.2-2020 Vision Committee ReportA.3- Proposed
Position: Coordinator of Cultural Diversity, LPS; LPS-Coordinator of Cultural Diversity Crosswalk with
Recommendations from the Lexington 20/20 Asian Sub-committee 2016 Report.
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