HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-12-19-DIAMOND-min Diamond Site Council Meetings 2019 - 2020
December 19, 2019 Meeting Minutes
Members in Attendance: Jen Turner, Sam Bosbach, Emma Burtenshaw, Remy Coombs,
Hallie Wells, Katina Lawdis, Remy Coombs, Kar-Hwee Koh, Dongzi Yi, Ed Dube, Nancy Cowen
Approval of 10/31/19 Minutes: Approved
Principal's Report:
• Budget request was submitted
o Town has said not to expect increases this year. Nothing has been settled, yet.
May have to consider reductions to cover new items. Town is looking to build up
reserves.
• Parent conferences seem to have gone well (from perspective of main office).
o Fewest emails, complaints, etc. Not a lot of negative feedback from parents.
Seventh and eighth grade teachers report nothing negative. Parents were
pleased, too.
• Scheduling has been moving ahead.
o Draft presented to department heads, LEA building reps, and superintendent for
more feedback. Soon will be shared with staff then Site Council.
• January 9 will be hosting a 6th grade chromebook parent information night. All grades
will be invited. Sixth graders will begin taking home chromebooks by the end of January.
o Concerns with parental controls expressed. Will school be addressing what
parents can do to address these concerns? Use of chromebooks at the library
with no controls.
o There will be audits for the amount of time students are using devices in classes.
o Teachers spend time teaching students how to use google classroom and
navigate use of the internet.
o Our digital learning coach runs professional development for staff on a regular
basis. He also presents to classrooms to educate students.
o Tool is great for equity and access.
o Could there be an ongoing WIN block to continue educating students? Should
we be having more regular coffee meetings for parents?
o History curriculum addresses google searches. When students go home, are
they reporting that all they did was google all day?
o Homework should not be three hours of online. Need more communication
around this between home and school.
• New website will be launched at the beginning of the year.
Staff Report:
• Climate student group has been active. Still need to bring it to the larger audience at
school and discuss plans with principal.
• Teachers have been more visible in the hallways. Has opened up more communication
with students. "Everyone has been more friendly."
• Grade level lunches has been very positive from a teacher perspective.
o Quiet lunches have been received well.
Member Input:
• Redistricting conversation has been quiet lately. Plan C was adopted which has less of
an impact than original proposal.
o All middle school students will be "grandfathered" and will not have to transfer
schools.
• Question about recess in the new schedule.
0 15 minutes of break time is in the proposal. Teachers can decide how they will
use this time. Prioritized the break.
o Considerations were around too many transitions each day. Amount of
homework, so dropping a class each day. Classes are going to be longer.
o IEPs will need to be considered for amount of service time.
• Washington, D.C. update.
o Same numbers staying for local trips is the same as usual. Fundraising and
direct donations very successful. Still need to decide how much to give back.
Adjournment 7:58 am
Next Meeting: