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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-10-05-SC-min SC Meeting 10/5/10 page # 1 LEXINGTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING Tuesday, October 5, 2010 Lexington Town Office Building, Selectmen’s Meeting Room 1625 Massachusetts Avenue Present: Superintendent Paul Ash, School Committee Chair Rod Cole, School Committee Members Sandro Alessandrini, Margaret Coppe, Jessie Steigerwald and Mary Ann Stewart and student representative Noah Coolidge. The minutes were taken by Leora Tec. The meeting was convened at 7:38 p.m. I. Call to Order and Welcome (Rod Cole) II. Superintendent’s Announcements 1. Dr. Ash introduced the three new principals in the district this year: Interim Bridge Principal Meg Colella, Diamond Principal Anne Carrothers and Fiske Principal Tom Martellone. 2. This year we formally went out to bid for SAT services. Kaplan won the award; they put together the best package of services for the best possible price. 3. For FY 08 and 09 we turned back $1,071,958.26 to the general fund. For FY 10 we turned back $1,940,856 to the general fund. III. Members’ Reports / Members’ Concerns Sandro Alessandrini: I attended a meeting of SHAC (School Health Advisory Council). They are developing a website on student stress. There will be a forum on Sunday Oct. 24th at 3:00- 4:30 at the Church of Our Redeemer, 6 Meriam Street, entitled, “Working Together: A Community Response to Student Stress.” Mary Ann Stewart: I will be attending the first SEPAC meeting of the year the day after tomorrow. I am wondering if the policy sub-committee will be taking up a bullying policy. Dr. Ash stated that they have some draft policies on bullying from nearby communities which the sub-committee might want to look at. IV. Discussion Items 1. Superintendent's Recommended 2010-2011 System Goals. Presented by Dr. Ash. The format is a bit different this year. This year the goals are listed in a spreadsheet format: goals, implementation, timeline, monitoring and assessment. We are clearly stating the steps that need to be taken to achieve each goal. We have also reduced the number of goals. The goals are in the areas of: curriculum and professional development, student services, safety and SC Meeting 10/5/10 page # 2 district technology. These goals are the product of a lot of serious work by many dedicated people. Each school will also focus on an academic goal and a pro-social goal. There were questions and comments from the Committee. District Management Council is preparing a report on our SPED services with regard to how they compare with both other high-performing districts and best practices. Dr. Ash stated that it is his intention to widely distribute the report. Questions were addressed by Superintendent Paul Ash, Director of Student Services Linda Chase and Director of Education Technology and Assessment Thomas Plati. Dr. Ash stated that the system goals are 18-month goals. In the future both the system goals and the budget will be voted on in January. A recommendation regarding fees will be brought to the Committee in November. 2. School Improvement Plans. Introduced by Paul Ash. The principals answered questions posed by the Committee. 3. Update on Estabrook Environmental Issues. Presented by Dr. Ash. The goal is to reduce the PCB levels to below the EPA guidelines. There has been a significant decline in the level of PCBs over the last few weeks but not enough. There was more caulking material in the rooms than we originally knew about. We have covered virtually 100% of the caulking materials. You get a linear reduction of PCBs as you encapsulate the caulk. The ceiling tiles were not manufactured with PCBs but they now contain them. Polyethylene has been put in place on the ceilings in rooms 1-6. Air samples have been taken in those rooms. We are awaiting the results. Within a week we will have a lot more information and we will have to decide whether we need to remove the ceiling tiles in the short-term. The School Committee, Board of Selectmen, Appropriation Committee, Capital Expenditures Committee, advisory committee, EPA, Building Inspector and Fire Department will all be consulted about our plan going forward. Dr. Ash discussed some of the charts provided to the School Committee and the public. A chart showing PCB levels with winter conditions and 100% encapsulation will be up on the website within a week. At the next meeting on October 19th Dr. Ash will ask the Committee for a formal vote on the emergency SOI. There were comments and questions from the Committee. There were comments and questions from the audience. One parent mentioned that the EPA has not received all the information that it should have received from EH&E. Dr. Ash will make sure that any data that EPA requires is sent to them. 4. Recommended Revisions to 2010-2011 School Committee Meeting Dates. The following changes were agreed upon: The Committee will meet on November 30th instead of December 7th; SC Meeting 10/5/10 page # 3 the Committee will meet on December 14 instead of Dec. 21st and a public hearing will be added on Tuesday, Jan 25th. 5. FY12 Budget Guidelines and Timetable. Dr. Ash stated that the budget guidelines this year are the same as last year except they are for FY12 instead of FY11. The Committee agreed to this. Dr. Ash is anticipating a challenging budget cycle. There were comments from the Committee and from the audience. Among issues raised by the Committee: the possibility of adding programs and eliminating the kindergarten fee. V. Action Items 1. Vote to Approve Jonas Clarke Middle School Field Trip to La Guácima de Alajuela, Costa Rica. Presented by Clarke Principal Steve Flynn, and Clarke Spanish teachers Sarah Partridge and Doug Tran. Motion to approve Jonas Clarke Middle School field trip to La Guácima de Alajuela, Costa Rica (Alessandrini, Stewart). The motion passed 5-0. 2. Vote to Approve Jonas Clarke Middle School Field Trip to Quebec City, Canada Presented by Principal Steve Flynn and French teacher Michel Berjoan. Motion to approve Jonas Clarke Middle School field trip to Quebec City, Canada (Steigerwald, Alessandrini). The motion passed 5-0. 3. Vote to Accept a $200.00 Donation from the Harrington Korean Families to the Harrington Gift Account. Motion to accept with gratitude a $200.00 donation from the Harrington Korean families to the Harrington Gift Account (Stewart, Coppe). The motion passed 5-0. 4. Vote to Appoint Two School Committee Members to the new BOS-SC Ad Hoc Committee Being Formed to Deal with Current and Future Situations Requiring Close BOS-SC Collaboration. The vote on this item was postponed until such time as the exact charge of the ad hoc committee is clarified by the School Committee and the Board of Selectmen. 5. Vote to Appoint Official and Alternate Voting Delegates to the MASC Annual Business Meeting. Motion to appoint Margaret Coppe as the primary voting delegate and Jessie Steigerwald as the alternate voting delegate to the MASC Annual Business Meeting (Stewart, Alessandrini). The motion passed 5-0. 6. Vote to Approve School Committee Minutes of June 8, 2010. SC Meeting 10/5/10 page # 4 Motion to approve the School Committee minutes of June 8, 2010 (Stewart, Coppe). The motion passed 5-0. 7. Vote to Approve School Committee Minutes of September 7, 2010. Motion to approve the School Committee minutes of September 7, 2010 (Stewart, Steigerwald). The motion passed 5-0. 8. Vote to Approve School Committee Executive Session Minutes of September 21, 2010. Amendment: change “to go into public session” to “to return to public session.” Motion to approve School Committee executive session minutes of September 21, 2010 as amended (Stewart, Steigerwald). The motion passed 5-0. VI. Motion to adjourn (Steigerwald, Stewart). The motion passed 5-0. The meeting was adjourned at 10:52 p.m. Documents: Meeting agenda; Memo from Superintendent 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 and District Technology; a chart labeled “High Achievement for All Students”; School Improvement Plans for all the schools in the district; Recommended revisions to 2010-2011 School Committee Meeting Dates; Lexington Public Schools: Recommended FY12 Budget Guidelines; Lexington Public Schools: FY 12 Budget Calendar (for all funds [operating, grant, revolving]); Lexington Public Schools Field Trip Request Form-Updated 12/07, La Guacima, Costa Rica; Flyer entitled, “Study Abroad 2011: Costa Rica”; “Homestay in Costa Rica: Jonas Clarke Middle School”; Lexington Public Schools Field Trip Request Form-Updated 12/07Jonas Clarke Middle School, Quebec City; Jumpstreet Tour Proposal for Quebec City trip; Letter from Harrington Principal Elaine Mead thanking the Korean families of Harrington for their gift of $200 with a copy of the check; Massachusetts Association of School Committees, Inc. (MASC): memo to school committees re: Voting delegate to annual business meeting; Official Delegate Form from MASC; School Committee Minutes June 8, 2010; School Committee Minutes September 7, 2010; Executive Session School Committee minutes (provided only to the Committee);Table entitled, “ Air Sample Results for Total Poly chlorinated Biphenyls, Estabrook Elementary School, 117 Grove Street, Lexington, Massachusetts July 22, 2010- September 19, 2010; Graphs entitled, “Air Concentrations Over Time: Average and Range;” “Precision of Air Measurements;” “Effect of Encapsulation;” and “Estimated Effect of Further Encapsulation: Cooling Conditions.”