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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-09-21-SC-min SC Meeting 9/21/10 page # 1 LEXINGTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING Tuesday, September 21, 2010 Cary Hall Auditorium 1605 Massachusetts Avenue Present: Superintendent Paul Ash, Acting School Committee Chair Mary Ann Stewart, School Committee Members Sandro Alessandrini, Margaret Coppe and Jessie Steigerwald and student representative Noah Coolidge. The minutes were taken by Leora Tec. (School Committee Chair Rod Cole was not present). The meeting was convened at 7:41 p.m. I. Call to Order and Welcome (Mary Ann Stewart) II. Superintendent’s Announcements Bridge Elementary School has been recognized by the United States Secretary of Education as a 2010 Blue Ribbon School. Seven schools in Massachusetts were selected for the highest distinction from the Department of Education. Three members of our staff will be traveling to Washington D.C. in November to meet with the Secretary of Education. III. Members’ Reports / Members’ Concerns Jessie Steigerwald: We are looking at November 13th for the next site-based school council training. Margaret Coppe: On October 1st the League of Women Voters will have its first First Friday program on the Youth Risk Behavior Survey Report. IV. Discussion Items 1. Update on Estabrook Environmental Issues. Presented by Dr. Ash who first outlined the history of the PCB issue at Estabrook School. He then described the current situation and recommended an aggressive abatement program to quickly remove the sources of PCBs in the schools. Dr. Ash broke the process down into four phases. He also pointed out the need to discuss with the MSBA the necessity of building a new school. The Estabrook Classroom Relocation Plan was presented by Estabrook Principal Sandra Trach. Phyllis Neufeld, LEA President, stated that the LEA has been involved in the process. SC Meeting 9/21/10 page # 2 There were comments and questions from the Committee and the audience. Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum, Instruction and Professional Development Carol Pilarski and Principal Sandra Trach addressed the question of the educational impact on the students. Selectman Peter Kelly spoke regarding the history of school renovation in Lexington. He stated that what was learned from secondary school renovations was that it is not desirable to renovate an elementary school when the children are in the school. He is not in favor of renovating schools. He is happy to see Estabrook be first in line to be replaced. If the Estabrook community wants us to call a special Town Meeting to appropriate funds he will support it but more needs to be understood about the emergency plan and how the Town could fund it. Paul Ash spoke today with Katherine Craven of the MSBA who said if the ballot question repealing the sales tax passes there will be no more MSBA. There is an emergency statement of interest process that we can take advantage of and possibly receive rapid approval. Because Estabrook is already on the ten-year Master Plan to be replaced we have a good case. The high school project has a low likelihood of being approved. Also it is unlikely that we would receive state money for a remediation project. We will certainly not receive both money for remediation and for a new school. There were further comments from the audience. Responses were provided by Dr. Ash, Sandra Trach, Director of Public Facilities Pat Goddard and Dr. David MacIntosh of Environmental Health &Engineering (EH&E). Chairman of the Board of Selectmen Hank Manz stated that the Selectmen as a board are committed to supporting the School Committee and the fact that four of the Selectmen are present this evening emphasizes the importance of the issue, which will be discussed openly and fairly at their meetings. Selectman Deb Mauger stated that she understands the anxiety on the part of parents. An emergency plan needs to be fleshed out more fully in the event that the remediation does not work as quickly as anticipated. It would be helpful to flesh out why a “Plan B” would not work now. The meeting recessed for five minutes at 10:14 p.m. There were more questions and comments from the audience and from the Committee. Dr. Ash stated that it is his intention to begin the process for applying for the emergency SOI. It is the will of the Committee that he move with deliberate speed in doing so. SC Meeting 9/21/10 page # 3 2. Revised Service Model to Deliver Substitute Teacher Services. Introduced by Paul Ash who thanked Robert Harris, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources who gave a brief report on the delivery of substitute teaching in Lexington Public Schools. We will begin to provide substitute teacher services in-house. [This item was discussed before the Estabrook situation]. There were comments and questions from the Committee. 3. Superintendent's Recommended 2010-2011 System Goals. The discussion of this item was tabled due to the late hour. 4. FY12 Budget Guidelines and Timetable. The discussion of this item was tabled due to the late hour. V. Action Items 1. Vote to Approve School Committee Minutes of May 11, 2010 2. Vote to Approve School Committee Minutes of May 25, 2010 Motion to approve School Committee minutes of May 11, 2010 (Coppe, Steigerwald). The motion passed 4-0. Motion to approve School Committee minutes of May 25, 2010 (Coppe, Alessandrini). The motion passed 4-0. VII. Motion to adjourn (Steigerwald, Alessandrini). The motion passed 4-0. The meeting was adjourned at 11:22 p.m. Documents: Letter from Bob Harris, Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources re: New In- House Model for the Delivery of Substitute Teacher Services; Memo from Paul Ash to the School Committee re: FY 12 Goals; “Developing a Powerful District or School Leadership Theory of Action Worksheet”; “Leadership Theory of Action Recommended Format”; Tables enumerating goals in: Curriculum and Professional Development, Student Services Safety, District Technology and Common Goals with columns labeled: Implementation, Timeline, Monitoring and Assessment; a chart labeled “High Achievement for All Students; Lexington Public Schools: Recommended FY12 Budget Guidelines; Lexington Public Schools: FY 12 Budget Calendar (for all funds [operating, grant, revolving]); Letter from Dr. Ash to the Estabrook community; Superintendent’s Recommended Estabrook PCB Abatement Plan; Estabrook Classroom Relocation Plan.