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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-11-03-SC-min SC Meeting 11/3/09 page # 1 LEXINGTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING Tuesday, November 3, 2009 Lexington Town Office Building, Selectmen's Meeting Room 1625 Massachusetts Avenue Present: Superintendent Paul Ash, School Committee Chair Margaret Coppe, School Committee Members Rod Cole, Tom Diaz, Jessie Steigerwald and Mary Ann Stewart. The minutes were taken by Leora Tec. The meeting was convened at 7:35 p.m. I. Call to Order and Welcome (Margaret Coppe) II. Public Comment Patrick Mehr (Precinct 3): Our Superintendent is associated with a consulting firm that has also been hired by the school system. It is totally inappropriate. III. Superintendent’s Announcements 1. Mary Ellen Dunn updated the School Committee on H1N1 as it relates to the schools: She discussed the Board of Health information on strategies related to H1N1. There will be a clinic on November 22 sponsored by the Board of Health. We also have translations into various languages on our website. We are tracking attendance of children and faculty that are due to cold and flu-like symptoms. We have 35-40 confirmed cases of H1N1 right now. Children should be fever free without medication for 24 hours before returning to school. Mary Ellen Dunn, Gerry Cody, Director of Lexington’s Board of Health, and Jill Gasperini, School Health Coordinator, are meeting weekly to discuss developments. Information about the H1N1 clinics are on our website. 2. Dr. Ash read a statement regarding his having provided services to Ribas Associates, which has in turn provided services to Lexington Public Schools. Dr. Ash stated that he is aware of no conflict of interest. There is a clause in his contract that allows him to engage in consulting activities to the extent that such activities are reasonable, provided that there is no conflict of interest with the Lexington Public Schools and that such activities are not in derogation of the interests of the Lexington Public Schools. The town currently has no contract with Ribas Associates. If they do seek to enter into one, Dr. Ash will make the disclosure required by statute and either the town will not enter into such a contract or Dr. Ash will terminate his contract with Ribas Associates. SC Meeting 11/3/09 page # 2 IV. Members’ Reports / Members’ Concerns Tom Diaz: This Thursday is the Trivia Bee at 7:00 pm at Cary Hall. Please come and support the Twelve O’clock Scholars, the School Committee team. I appreciate Paul Ash’s statement. Any member of the community could have asked this question of Dr. Ash. We negotiated a contract with the superintendent that allowed him to do consulting. He has done nothing that deserved a smear campaign. Jessie Steigerwald: We all aim to create a welcoming environment. Whatever your concern is you should feel comfortable approaching us. I am reading a book called Caucasia, it is related to the achievement gap in Boston. I recommend this book to members of the community. V. Discussion Items 1. MCAS Report. Introduced by Paul Ash. Presented by Thomas Plati, Director of Educational Technology and Assessment. Mr. Plati’s presentation consisted of three parts: a. District Results b. New Data Warehousing System c. New Growth Model There were questions and comments from the Committee. 2. FY11 Capital Budget Recommendations. Introduced by Paul Ash. There are two parts, the capital items that will ultimately be in the School Budget and the capital items that will be in the Public Facilities Budget. Presented by Mary Ellen Dunn, Assistant Superintendent, and Patrick Goddard, Director of Public Facilities. There were comments and questions from the Committee. 3. FY09 4th Quarter Financial Report. Presented by Mary Ellen Dunn, Assistant Superintendent. 4. FY10 1st Quarterly Financial Report. Presented by Mary Ellen Dunn. We are projecting a deficit of $363,203. Motion to transfer $304,973 from the teacher substitutes line 47 to line 17, also called the teacher substitutes line (Diaz, Cole). The motion passed 5-0. Motion to transfer $59,000 from expense line item 43, special education consultants, to salary and wages line item 1 (Diaz, Cole). The motion passed 5-0. There were comments and questions from the Committee and the audience. SC Meeting 11/3/09 page # 3 VI. Action Items 1. Vote to Accept School Committee Goals for 2009-2010 Motion to accept School Committee goals for 2009-2010 (Cole, Steigerwald). The motion passed 5-0. 2. Vote to Approve Diamond Middle School Field Trip to Quebec City, Canada Motion to approve Diamond Middle School field trip to Quebec City, Canada (Cole, Stewart). The motion passed 5-0. 3. Vote to Accept $1,500 Donation in Support of the Activities of Students Against Drunk Drivers (SADD) Motion to accept with gratitude $1,500 donation in support of the activities of Students Against Drunk Drivers (SADD) (Diaz, Cole). The motion passed 5-0. 4. Vote to Approve School Committee Minutes of October 20, 2009 Motion to approve School Committee minutes of October 20, 2009 (Steigerwald, Stewart). The motion passed 5-0. Tom Diaz will send an email to the Committee regarding an additional report to be issued by the fiscal task force. VII. Motion to Adjourn (Steigerwald, Cole). The motion passed 5-0. The meeting was adjourned at 10:07 p.m.