Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-11-30-SC-min SC Meeting 11/30/10 page # 1 LEXINGTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING Tuesday, November 30, 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, Mary Ann Stewart and student representative Noah Coolidge. The minutes were taken by Leora Tec. The meeting was convened at 7:05 p.m. I. Call to Order (Rod Cole) II. Executive Session (Collective Bargaining) III. Return to Public Session and Welcome (Rod Cole). The meeting was reconvened at 7:50 pm p.m. IV. Superintendent’s Announcements 1. Recognition of Coach Bill Tighe. Coach Tighe is the oldest coach in the United States and coached football here for 36 years. He was not only a football coach but was also a tremendous educator. He has our deep respect and thanks for everything he has done for Lexington. 2. Hastings School and Lexington High School receive recognition from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Department of Public Health for outstanding achievement in wellness. The Hastings School won a gold medal and LHS won a silver medal for outstanding achievement in wellness. Chartwells was cited as a gold standard example of wellness policy in action. 3. Clarke Middle School has been awarded a competitive grant and has been accepted as a member of the second cohort of schools in the Hanban – Asia Society Confucius Classrooms Network. This will allow Clarke students and faculty to visit China and Chinese students to visit Lexington. 4. There will be a public hearing on the anti-bullying implementation plans on December 13 in Cary Hall at 7:30 p.m. Parents will have an opportunity to comment on the plans. 5. The Estabrook PCB results are in from round nine. The mini walls we have installed appear to be the solution. We will continue monitoring and as promised will test every educational space. SC Meeting 11/30/10 page # 2 V. Members’ Reports / Members’ Concerns Margaret Coppe: I attended a lecture that was part of the Nobel Laureate School Visits program. MIT professor Jerome Friedman who was awarded the 1990 Nobel Prize in physics for the discovery of the quark was the speaker. The program is underwritten by the IBM corporation. Mary Ann Stewart: Jessie Steigerwald and I held a site council training on Saturday November 20 with Glenn Koocher, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Association of School Committees. Sixteen site council members attended the training. There is a page on the LPS website that includes all of the materials that were disseminated at the training session. Jessie Steigerwald: The Human Rights Committee held an event on November 21 entitled Peace, Protest and Patriotism. Special thanks to the panelists, HRC members, especially Deb Jackson, and Craig Hall from Lexington Community Education. Craig did a spectacular job presenting edited film footage of the historic events on the Battle Green. If there were to be additional revenue growth in the town, I would like to look at reducing some fees. Ms. Steigerwald asked the Chair and the Superintendent if there is a School Committee liaison to the Equity & Excellence Committee. VI. Discussion Items 1. Recommended Athletic Fees for FY12. Introduced by Superintendent Paul Ash. Dr. Ash stated that the fees at the middle school level were not adequate to support the programs. Naomi Martin, Athletics and Intramurals Coordinator, described the details of the proposed fee hikes. Part of the proposal is an increase in the family cap to adequately cover costs. The fee for the elementary Before School Sports Program would be increased to $200 per year. Another part of the proposal is the elimination of gate fees. There were questions and comments from the Committee. 2. Draft Plans for Bridge and Bowman. Introduced by Superintendent Paul Ash. Dr. Ash described both the base scope and the expanded scope of the building projects. The point of this evening’s presentation is to present the expanded scope. Principals Mary Anton- Oldenberg (Bridge) and Meg Colella (Bowman) gave the bulk of the presentation. The original project did not meet the needs of the schools for 20-25 years down the road. The principals explained the need for the expanded scope of the project, including safety, equity and enrollment considerations. There were questions and comments from the Committee. Motion to accept the recommendation to expand the scope of the Bridge/Bowman renovations (Stewart, Alessandrini). The motion passed 5-0. 3. High School Roof and Window Repairs (MSBA Green Repair Program). Presented by Pat Goddard, Director of Public Facilities. The MSBA invited us to participate for LHS for roofs SC Meeting 11/30/10 page # 3 and windows, but not for the boiler. The boiler is definitely a priority. It would be a good idea to have a discussion about whether to go ahead with both the roof work and the windows or only the roof work. We must determine the scope and the funding sources and then submit the necessary documents to the MSBA. 4. First Reading of Anti-Bullying Policy. Presented by Margaret Coppe who serves on the School Committee Policy Sub-Committee. The discussion illuminated the need for several changes to the document: 1). On page one a definition of bullying should be added; 2). The district already has a harassment policy, these two policies should be distinct. Therefore, the word harassment should be removed from this policy except for the reference to the harassment policy; 3). On page two, line six, the word “may” should be changed to “can;” 4). On page three, line 37 add that confidentiality will also protect the alleged aggressor and the alleged bystander; 5). On page four, line 15, the whole sentence should be deleted and 6). The requirement that the superintendent provide a quarterly report would be the only report he is required to provide, so that directive should be omitted. The Committee may direct the superintendent to provide such reports, but it need not be part of the policy. There were questions and comments from the Committee and the audience, which were addressed by Chris Greeley, Assistant Director of Student Services. The second reading of the policy will take place on December 14th, at which time it is possible that the third reading will be dispensed with and the policy voted on. VII. Action Items 1. Vote to Approve Lexington High School Field Trip to Golfito, Costa Rica. Motion to approve Lexington High School field trip to Golfito, Costa Rica (Steigerwald, Stewart). The motion passed 5-0. 2. Vote to Approve First Reading of the Anti-Bullying Policy. Motion to accept the first reading of the anti-bullying policy (Stewart, Alessandrini). The motion passed 5-0. 3. Vote to Continue to Participate in the LABBB/EDCO Transportation Network for School Years 2012-2014 (9/1/11 – 8/31/14). Dr. Ash explained the background of this item. Motion to continue to participate in the LABBB/EDCO Transportation Network for school years 2012-2014 (9/1/11 – 8/31/14) (Steigerwald, Stewart). The motion passed 5-0. 4. Vote to Accept a Donation of $5000 for the Purchase of $20,000 of Hewlitt Packard Equipment through their Employee Donation Program. Thomas Plati Director of Educational Technology and assessment explained the gift. Part of the donation is from Lexington resident Joseph Pato--the entire purchase price will be covered. Motion to accept with gratitude a donation of $5000 for the purchase of $20,000 of Hewlitt Packard equipment through their Employee Donation Program (Steigerwald, Stewart). The motion passed 5-0. SC Meeting 11/30/10 page # 4 VIII. Motion to adjourn (Stewart, Coppe). The motion passed 5-0. The meeting was adjourned at 11:08. Documents: Meeting agenda; memo from Superintendent Paul Ash and Coordinator of Athletics and Intramurals Naomi Martin to Miriam Sousa re: Coach Bill Tighe; letter from Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education Mitchell Chester and Commissioner of Public Health John Auerbach to Coordinator of School Health Services Jill Gasperini, re: The Hasting’s School’s winning of the Gold-Level Massachusetts School Wellness Award; letter from Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education Mitchell Chester and Commissioner of Public Health John Auerbach to Coordinator of School Health Services Jill Gasperini, re: Lexington High School’s winning of the Silver-Level Massachusetts School Wellness Award; letter, agreement and press release from the Hanban-Asia Society re: Clarke Middle School’s acceptance to the Hanban-Asia Society Confucius Classrooms Network; memo from Naomi Martin to Paul Ash re: FY 12 Athletic Fee proposals and operational changes; Presentation on the Proposed Renovations to Bridge and Bowman Elementary Schools; Power Point Presentation on the MSBA Green Repair Program for Lexington High School; collection of documents regarding the LHS field trip to Golfito, Costa Rica; First Reading of the Bullying Prevention and Intervention Plan Policy; form entitled “School District Authorization for Participation in the LABBB/EDCO Transportation Network: School Years 2012-2014.