HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-03-10-SC-minLEXINGTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING
Tuesday, March 10, 2020
Lexington Town Office Building
Selectmen's Meeting Room
1625 Massachusetts Avenue
CALL TO ORDER AND WELCOME: 6:50 p.m.
Chair Eileen Jay welcomed and introduced committee members
SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT
Eileen Jay, Chairperson
Kathleen Lenihan, Clerk
Deepika Sawhney
Scott Bokun
Sara Cuthbertson
STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE
Sara Mei
SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS PRESENT
Dr. Julie Hackett, Superintendent
Mr. David Coehlo, Assistant Superintendent for Finance & Operations
Assistant Superintendent to Curriculum, Instruction, and Professional Development
The minutes were taken by Kristen Cronin, Executive Assistant to the School Committee and
Administrative Assistant to the Superintendent.
At 6:55 p.m. in open session, the Chair moved that the Committee vote to go into Executive Session
under Exemption 3: To discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation if an open
meeting may have a detrimental effect on the bargaining or litigating position of the public body and
the chair so declares. Further, to adjourn and continue into open session - seconded by Ms. Sawhney.
Roll Call Vote - Sara Cuthbertson - AYE; Scott Bokun - AYE; Kathleen Lenihan - AYE: Deepika Sawhney -
AYE; Eileen Jay - AYE
Another Executive Session will be held on March 23, 2020
Ms. Jay moved to go out of executive session and return to open session, seconded by Ms. Lenihan,
unanimously approved by roll call vote at 7:25 p.m. Brief Recess. Reconvened to open session at 7:34
Ms. Jay noted members are already in session due to an Executive Session earlier in the evening
and welcomed newly -elected School Committee member, Sara Cuthbertson.
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SCHOOL COMMITTEE ANNOUNCEMENTS & LIAISON REPORTS:
Members welcomed Ms. Cuthbertson to the School Committee
Ms. Cuthbertson attended the Black History Month Museum at the high school as well as the
Lion King play at DiamondMiddle School. She spoke highly of both events.
Mr. Bokun thanked Town Manager Jim Malloy, members of the Select Board, and Dr. Hackett for
appointing him to the Lexington Human Rights Committee (LHRC) as a voting member, not just
as a liaison. Mr. Bokun said that he is looking forward to starting his new role on the
committee.
Ms. Sawhney is a member of the Finance Sub -Committee, which involves signing the school
warrants every other week. She wanted to share with the public that one of the warrants was
from a club at Lexington High School for "Helping Homeless". They were making a donation to
Rosie's Place in the amount of $1,398.00
Ms. Lenihan announced that the Lexington 20/20 Committee has organized an event titled
"Futures Panel: Challenges & Opportunities for Lexington" on April 2, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. at Cary
Hall. Hopefully, this event will be able to take place during this challenging time.
Ms. Jay thanked Ms. Colburn for her service of three years on the School Committee.
Ms. Jay attended the "Community Partners for the Community" event at the Community Center.
This will be an annual event to help give some input on ideas/usage for the center in the future.
Ms. Jay commented that prior years a Task Force had input on the center; however, the Select
Board decided that particular task force was no longer needed.
Ms. Jay announced the 6th Annual Parent Academy event will be held on Saturday, March 14,
2020. This event is sponsored by the Lexington Public Schools' SHAC (School Health Advisory
Council), the Town of Lexington Recreation and Human Services Departments, Lexington
PTA/PTO President's Council, ABCL, CAAL, CALex, IAL, LexFUn, LexPride, and many other
community partner organizations. Some topics of discussions involve parenting, health for
students, and safety issues. Ms. Jay noted that this event may change due to the ongoing
updates/changes with the coronavirus.
Ms. Mai announced that "Caring for Yourself and Others Day" would be held at LHS on
Thursday, March 19th and Wednesday, May 27th during iBlock.
Ms. Mai thanked Dr. Hackett and the School Committee for how they are approaching the
Coronavirus and for continued communication and updates. She thanked them for continuing to
make the health and safety of the students their first priority.
In closing, Ms. Mai congratulated Ms. Sara Cuthbertson on being the newly -selected member of
the School Committee.
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Congratulations & Celebrations:
Dr. Hackett extended her congratulations to Ms. Sara Cuthbertson and welcomed her as the
newest member of the committee. Dr. Hackett also congratulated Ms. Deepika Sawney for
being accepted into the Masters in Policy Management Program at the Harvard Graduate School
of Education.
Dr. Hackett announced that Mr. Jared Cassedy, K-12 Performing Arts Coordinator, was
nominated for the Global Teacher Prize sponsored by the Varkey Foundation. Dr. Hackett
explained that the "Global Teacher Prize is the US $1 million award presented annually to an
exceptional teacher who has made an outstanding contribution to their profession." Although
Jared was not selected for the prestigious award, he advanced to the third round of finalists,
making him one of the top 100 educators in the world! Dr. Hackett went on to note that Jared
was one of her first hires in Lexington, and was honored to add her letter of recommendation to
his application packet.
SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT:
Dr. Hackett reported on the following items:
Administrative Appointments
Dr. Hackett announced that she would be extending Mr. Tom Martellone's contract as the
Director of Innovation and Instructional Technology, as well as the administrative contracts of
Mr. Brian Baker as Principal and Mr. Chris Wai as Assistant Principal at Fiske Elementary School.
COMMUNITY SPEAK:
Ms. Jay reviewed the rules for the community speaking portion of the meeting.
Ms. Rose Xu, 74 School St.: Ms. Xu spoke on behalf of 150 Lexington families petitioning to
request that Lexington Public Schools allow students, whose parents agree on learning from
home in the coming days, to study from home through online resources and support, without
an attendance penalty, as long as they can finish homework, projects, and makeup tests upon
returning back to school.
Mr. John Zhu, 49 Baskin Rd: Mr. Zhu was concerned about the students who had returned from
Italy at the end of February vacation. He would like the school to give those students and any
students attending a school with a presumptive case of COVID-19 a chance to self -quarantine
for two weeks with no penalty.
Dr. Mo, health care diagnostics director: Based on modeling from Wuhan, China, he explained
the exponential increase of the coronavirus in a matter of days.
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Wei, has 11th grader & 7th grader: She spoke of the dilemma of sending students to school
while risking the health of elderly family members living in the house. Would like to have the
choice of keeping students home.
Ms. Helen Yang, One Solomon Pierce Road: Ms. Yang thanked the School Committee, the
Superintendent, and the Lexington Board of Health for all the work they are doing with keeping
the community up to date. Ms. Yang commented on the attendance policy and asked if the
students could have excused absences if they chose to stay home to self -quarantine due to the
coronavirus.
Mr. Jay Lu, 19 Donaldson St.: Mr. Liu proposes immediate school closure. Chinese -Americans
here in Lexington are monitoring the situation in China and have seen how deadly the
coronavirus is. It is easily transmitted from person to person even before there are symptoms.
Schools should be proactive in stopping the spread, not reactive.
Ms. Lijing Qu, has a LHS student: She teaches at another school which has shut down and is
doing online teaching using Zoom and students do work online.
Ms. , Volunteer Way: She appreciates the sincerity shown by the committee and
superintendent. Some MA cases from Biogen conference, travel, but also community
transmission. Has elderly parents and husband with health concerns at home. She is stressed
and losing sleep because she values academics for her son but wants to keep him home. Hope
school will give an excused absence.
William, has 11th grade & 7th grade children: Would like schools to give options for excused
absence. Bring classes online.
Mr. Qiang Fu, has children at all three levels: Chinese parents here have seen many sad
moments happening in China; many families, doctors, hospital workers have lost their lives. He
is hoping that all schools in the state will close.
Mr. Zhiwan Jiang, 32 Lawrence Lane, has one child in Bowman, one at LHS: The schools' greatest
responsibility is to protect our kids. The biggest accomplishment would be to make sure that no
students in LPS or teachers or staff will be infected by the virus, rather than waiting until they
have it. No school can keep people a safe distance of 6 feet apart.
Ms. Hongmei Jiang, 21 North St.: She just learned today that an alumni friend living in the U.S.
lost both of her parents in China. We may appear crazy, but we are a group of parents who are
so much closer to this virus. We have loved ones in China. All of the cases we've heard about
are so intimidating, so much more contagious. Please let us keep our kids at home with no
penalty.
Ms. Mona Roy: She appreciates the speakers today for expressing concerns of people across all
demographics.
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Student Representative, Ms. Mei expressed concerns for students with lower and suppressed
immune systems that do currently attend school because they are more at risk. She also
commented that with the closing of all schools, this would mean more kids staying home
unsupervised and families would not be sure if younger kids would have the motivation or
responsibility to stay home and participate in the online learning. Lastly, Ms. Mei commented
on the distinction between excused/unexcused absences in the handbook.
Dr. Hackett addressed some of the comments and concerns from "community speak". She
expressed that it is important to let people know that they are being heard and listened to. She
is aware that there is a lot of pain and tragedy being witnessed through loved ones and first
hand in some cases. Hearing the viewpoints expressed this evening, she reminded the
community at large that people's experiences with COVD-19 are very different and there are
different ways that the information is being processed. Before commenting, Dr. Hackett
expressed her love and prayers for the Bowman family currently living with coronavirus.
Dr. Hackett addressed the question of whether children can be carriers and bring it home to a
family that may be compromised. She invited any families who have a unique or special
circumstance, such as elderly parents or grandparents living in the home, to come and talk to
the administration.
Dr. Hackett commented on the concerns over students returning from Italy over February break.
She noted that upon the students' return, Italy was not at geographical risk until February 29th.
aAt that time, students had already returned from Italy and were back at school.
Dr. Hackett reviewed key topics in her letter, Coronavirus 19_gpdate #6
• Governor Baker Declared State of Emergency for Massachusetts
• Cleaning and Sanitation Protocols and Supplies
• Will LPS Impose a 14 -Day Quarantine?
• Excused and Unexcused Absences
• When will LPS Consider School Closure
Complete copy of theSuperintendent's
Ms. Jay opened discussion among School Committee members on the coronavirus concerns.
Ms. Sawhney commended Dr. Hackett and the administration for all their work during this
difficult time. Ms. Sawhney asked what the School Committee can do to help? Dr. Hackett
suggested that getting messages out through social media is incredibly helpful.
Ms. Cuthbertson provided additional information about the Parent Academy as it relates to
coronavirus precautions. She explained that the Parent Academy is in small group sessions the
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entire day. There is not one large group, but people are moving all about the Community
Center. Dr. Hackett explained that SAT's are happening this weekend at the high school. The
high school is already working on eliminating the large group gathering, and students will go
directly to their location. Dr. Hackett reinforced the recommendation that anyone who has a
communal event planned needs to rethink their plan. Ms. Cuthbertson thanked Dr. Hackett for
keeping School Committee members in the loop because they have been receiving a lot of
questions and it has been helpful to have the information provided.
Mr. Bokun thanked the people who spoke this evening and for sharing their honesty. He noted
that School Committee members do read all emails received, even though the emails are not
addressed right away. Mr. Bokun asked Dr. Hackett how remote learning plans would work for
special education, if needed.
Dr. Hackett reported that Special Ed. administrators met to discuss support for our students in
case the district closes for an extended period of time. Discussion focused on materials and
supports that can be provided or accessed to assist with maintenance of skills. In many cases,
families already have access to online and electronic resources that can be used to support their
student(s) at home. Other topics discussed included ways to support families and maintain a
structure for their students' day, encouraging continued use of communication devices for those
students to use them. The Special Ed administrators will continue this discussion with their staff
at the building level.
Dr. Hackett reinforced that if Lexington has an emergency situation and emergency plans, the
level of service for families is unfortunately not going to be the same level of services they
currently have. Dr. Hackett noted that at the building level, administration is approaching this
issue one child at a time and understanding the unique needs. Dr. Hackett commented that it is
going to be difficult to provide the level of service that people want, but at the same time they
are aware that there are things in place to help. Dr. Lyons has been working with all teams to
help sort this out.
Dr. Lyons reiterated that if there was an emergency situation and the district moved to remote
learning, the expectations for the same level of instruction that would happen face to face is
obviously not going to be possible. Dr. Lyons informed the committee that she has been in
touch with all the K-12 Curriculum Instruction leaders and Ms. Ellen Sugita to try to coordinate
with Special Ed., as well as Ms. Robyn Dowling -Grant for ELL, Ms. Caitlyn Ahern, and Mr. Tom
Martellone to help coordinate Professional Learning with his DLC's. The goal is to achieve a
system that will be very manageable for teachers if this happens and meaningful learning for
students at the same time. Dr. Lyons said that they are trying to integrate the services with
special ed students and ELL students as well. She noted that there are a lot of online resources
and literature available already.
Dr. Hackett commented that establishing expectations and having conversations with the Union
leadership are about forming a partnership for how we can best do this and help communicate
with the staff.
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Ms. Mei asked Dr. Lyons what type of online learning would be included? Would it include
technology such as video chats or video calling? Dr. Lyons explained that all teachers are
comfortable enough communicating remotely at this point and noted that it could be anything
from sending out an assignment and asking students to send work back in related to the
assignment to creating videos or other communication tools. Dr. Lyons mentioned that one
thing to consider is the speed of internet connections at people's homes. If file sizes are too big
for anything the teachers are creating it could make it challenging. Dr. Lyons noted that it could
include Google Hangout and Chat rooms.
Presentation: Electric School Bus Feasibility
Mr. Todd Rhodes, Vice -Chair for Sustainable Lexington Committee, reported on the feasibility
study task force for electric school buses in Lexington.
Mr. Rhodes reported that emissions from transportation represent a large portion of Lexington's
greenhouse gas emissions and have a negative impact on public health. Many school districts
around the country and in neighboring towns in Massachusetts are purchasing electric school
buses to replace diesel -powered buses to address both climate change and children's health.
Sustainable Lexington would like to work with the Lexington Public Schools to assess whether
the use of electric school buses would be feasible for the Town of Lexington.
Mr. Rhodes highlighted on the following:
• Health Impacts
• Financial Impact
Mr. Rhodes believes that electric vehicle buses are coming. Across the country, and in
neighboring towns, communities are investing in electric buses.
Ms. Lenihan commented on the cost in light of recent budget conversations and shortfalls in
Lexington's allocations. She is concerned that there might be some very difficult choices where
something we currently have would have to be cut in order to provide the electric buses. If that
were the case, Mr. Rhodes thought that a model or approach might be found where the cost
would be at least comparable or cheaper.
Ms. Sawhney acknowledged the budget restraints, but wondered how electric buses would
model and fit the environment with all the restraints. The concept is desirable, and the idea is
to do a quick study to get some sense to see if it is feasible at some point, whether a year or
two years.
Committee members thanked Mr. Rhodes for his patience in waiting for the chance to do
tonight's presentation. They look forward to hearing an updated report of his findings sometime
in June -July of 2020 with recommendations for next steps.
NEW AND UNFINISHED BUSINESS:
Second Reading: Policy UOA -Field Trips &Policy KCD -Fundraising/Contributions -Tabled
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Vote to Approve the Submission of the Statement of Interest (S01) for Lexington High School:
Mr. Bokun stated "Be it resolved having convened in an open session meeting on March 10,
2020, prior to the SOI closing date, the School Committee of Lexington Massachusetts, in
accordance with its charter, by-laws, and ordinances, has voted to authorize the
Superintendent to submit to the Massachusetts School Building Authority the Statement of
Interest Form dated March 12, 2020 for the Lexington High School located at 251 Waltham
Street which describes and explains the following deficiencies and the priority category(s) for
which an application may be submitted to the Massachusetts School Building Authority in the
future:
Priorities:
1. Replacement or renovation of a building which is structurally unsound or otherwise in
a condition seriously jeopardizing the health and safety of school children, where no
alternative exists.
2. Elimination of existing severe overcrowding
3. Prevention of the loss of accreditation
4. Prevention of severe overcrowding expected to result from increased enrollments
5. Replacement, renovation or modernization of school facility systems, such as roofs,
windows, boilers, heating and ventilation systems, to increase energy conservation
and decrease energy-related costs in a school facility
7. Replacement of or addition to obsolete buildings in order to provide for a full range of
programs consistent with state and approved local requirements,
and, hereby further specifically acknowledges that by submitting this Statement of Interest
Form, the Massachusetts School Building Authority in no way guarantees the acceptance or
the approval of an application, the awarding of a grant or any other funding commitment
from the Massachusetts School Building Authority, or commits the Town of Lexington to filing
an application forfunding with the Massachusetts School Building Authority. Seconded by
Ms. Lenihan (Approved 5-0).
CONSENT AGENDA: LIST ITEMS
1. Acceptance of Donations/Gifts
a. Approval of 2020 LHS PTO Mini -Grant Award in the amount of $750.00
b. Approval of Prom Donation to Class of 2021 in the amount of $1,000.00
2. Payroll and Accounts Payable Warrant Approval
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a. February 28, 2020 - Accounts Payable Reconciliation (BMO - Bank of Montreal)
the amount of $36,863.86
b. February 28, 2020 - Accounts Payable in the amount of $1,367,621.73
c. February 28, 2020 - Payroll in the amount of $3,863,055.87
3. Approval of School Committee Minutes
a. February 25, 2020
Ms. Lenihan moved to accept the consent agenda items from March 10, 2020 as noted in the
School Committee agenda packet, seconded by Mr. Bokun (Approved 5-0)
Ms. lay made a motion to adjourn at 11:11 p.m., seconded by Mr. Bokun (Approved 5-0)
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