HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-12-01 School Council - Wood End Elementary MinutesWood End Elementary School RECEIVED
School Council Meeting TOWN CLERK
READING, MASS.
MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE SCHOOL COUNCIL
December 1, 2011 2012 JAN -9 ,P h 34
A meeting of the Wood End School Council was held on Thursday, December 1, 2011,
from 3:15 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the conference room of the Wood End Elementary
School, Reading, Massachusetts.
Council Members Present:
Richard Davidson, Sandy Emery, Debbie Hattery, Joanne King, Barbara Sheehan,
Monette Verrier, and Maria Walsh.
Council Members Absent:
Sally Mucica
Call to Order
Principal Davidson called the meeting to order at 3:15 p.m. and Joanne King recorded
the minutes. A quorum of Council Members was present, and the meeting, having been
duly convened, was ready to proceed with business.
Agenda, Minutes, and Introductory Business
All members present reviewed and approved the minutes of the previous meeting held
on November 3, 2011. Principal Davidson reviewed the agenda and asked for feedback
on the recent standards -based report card conferences from those members present. It
was noted that the first grade rubric did not print out completely on Edline and the third
grade rubric needed one item changed. These corrections will be made prior to the
next report card date in March. Questions arose about how a student's progress will be
measured over time. The progress is measured using the Student Growth Percentiles
on MCAS testing. Teacher goals must now include one "SMART" goal for students, and
in 2014, data will be available through the state which includes a student's growth rate
over time.
The standards on the report card are based on what a child is expected to be able to do
by the end of the school year. Areas not taught during a term would be shown using '.
Teachers in the upper grades appear to have set clear expectations with students
around the meaning of "progressing" prior to parent conferences. More explanation is
needed around personal and social growth. This was unclear to parents and it was
suggested to have a rubric available to more clearly define this information.
Reading Education Foundation
Principal Davidson provided information from the website, which states that part of its
mission is to provide "funds for projects that go beyond the scope of traditional
classroom learning." The REF accepts grant applications from teachers, principals, and
members of the community. They have expanded their focus from technology to
encourage more diverse requests that support collaborative learning projects. One
such grant submitted on behalf of Wood End is for a kiln for the art program.
School Improvement Plan - Goals
One of the goals is to develop a survey for new families. Debbie Hattery has taken on
this responsibility with the help of a small committee; they successfully called every new
family to welcome them to Wood End. Families were contacted by grade level and
feedback was provided during those initial contacts. The goal is to call back all those
families to follow up. It was suggested to offer an online survey to find out what worked,
or didn't work for those families.
Another goal is to set up Parent Focus groups off site to provide parents with an
opportunity to give feedback to Principal Davidson. He will pose questions to parents
and families, and they will have the opportunity to do the same. One focus group will be
held at the home of Monette Verrier during the day in January, and an evening time will
be hosted by Debbie Hattery in March.
Building Based Technology Committee
Principal Davidson is looking to put together a committee of people who have some
technology expertise to brainstorm ideas and get the perspective of others to develop
and move forward with a 3 -year plan on technology at Wood End. He noted some
frustration with maintaining the current technology (computer lab overused, Smart
boards not always working), and that the school is not completely wireless. Laptops are
not available for use throughout the building. The council members present felt this was
something that should be looked into further.
Blue Ribbon Site Visit
Wood End will host a site visit for the Blue Ribbon Conference on Thursday, April 12,
2012. Council members would like to find ways to involve the students in preparing for
this process, to take pride in their school. More details will follow on this.
Sandy Emery will contact a Wood End parent who is a graphic designer to ask for
prices and information on creating a digital color brochure to highlight Wood End.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 4:30 p
the next meeting on January 5, 2012.
school budget.
Respectfully submitted,
Joanne King
Recording Secretary, 12/1/11
m. The School Council will resume discussions at
Supt. John Doherty will attend to discuss the