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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000-06-05 School Committee MinutesREADING SCHOOL COMMITTEE Reading, Massachusetts REGULAR SESSION June 5 2000 CALL TO ORDER At 7:00 Chair Dahl called the meeting to order in the Superintendent's Conference Room. Present were School Committee members Cavicchi, Dahl, Griset and Keigley. Also present was Superintendent Harutunian. EXECUTIVE SESSION At 7:02 p.m. Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to enter into executive session for the purpose of conducting strategy trategy sessions in preparation for negotiations with Administrators and Cafeteria Workers to return to regular session at 7:30 p.m. Mr. Keigley seconded the motion. CALL BACK TO ORDER Chair Dahl called the meeting back to order at 7:35 p.m. Student Representative Macari was present. NEW ADMINISTATORS Dr. Harutunian introduced Mr. Finigan as the new principal for the Parker Middle School. Dr. Harutunian introduced Steve Gannon as the new Director of Special Education. Dr. Harutunian advised that he had asked Mr. Gannon to attend this evening so that he could hear the information on the curriculum presentations. HIGHLIGHTS Dr. Harutunian showed the technology highlight video, he thanked John Marion and the Reading Technology Club. COOLIDGE MIDDLE SCHOOL SCIENCE OLYMPIAD TEAM Mr. Griset presented Mr. Keigley with a plaque for being team photographer in 1997. Mr. Keigley thanked the team for the plaque. Mr. Griset advised that the Olympiad Team went to Spokane Washington to compete in the National Science Olympiad Competition. The Coolidge Team finished 9`" in the country. Mr. Griset stated that the 9 place finished was amazing especially in light of the fact that there is no public funding of this team. He stated that each member spent approximately 650 hours since October preparing for his or her events in the state REGULAR SESSION 2 June 5 2000 and the national competition. Mr. Griset acknowledge the coaching team, Ms. Genier, Mr. McCarthy, Mr. Smith, Ms. Clapp and the parent coaches and the students. Mr. Griset especially thanked Chuck and Judy Wayne for their work as the leaders of the parent group, coordinating fundraising. He stated that Mr. & Mrs. Wayne were moving on this year from the Olympiad Team. Ms. Genier stated that it has been a privilege to coach the Olympiad Team this year. She congratulated the team and thanked the coaches, parents, Coolidge faculty, the Committee, the Reading Community and a special thanks to John Doherty. She stated that the team also received many individual awards. She introduced the gold medal winners of "Experimental Design ", Natalie Exner, Margaret Griset and Laura Burns. Dr. Harutunian stated that the Science Olympiad have been state champs every year since 1993. He stated that the Olympiad team shirts this year have the initials JEB on the sleeve in memory of Jim Biller. Mr. Griset also thanked Principal Doherty for his cooperation and guidance this year. Chair Dahl thanked the students, parent volunteers and coaches and stated that he was very impressed with the way the students articulated their experiences at the national competition. Mr. Twomey arrived at 7:55 p.m. At 8:10 p.m. Chair Dahl advised that the Committee would take a short recess. BILLS & PAYROLL Bills and payroll are as follows: PR 93 5/18/00 $658,576.75 PR94 5/22/00 $302,841.65 W96 5/30/00 $136,981.40 PR95 5/26/00 $163,842.91 At 8:18 Chair Dahl called the meeting back to order. CITIZENS' INPUT There was no citizen input. REGULAR SESSIOIN 3 June 5 2000 SUPERINTENDENTS' AND CHAIRS' REPORT Chair Dahl advised that the Superintendent and he attended a meeting with the Town Manager, Chair of Finance Committee and Chair of the Selectmen in preparation for the FY02 budget. Dr. Harutunian recognized Mr. Endslow for his receiving the Outstanding Theatre Arts Educator Award for 2000. Chair Dahl advised that the Committee received a complaint, lawsuit fled in civil court relative to the selection of Flansburgh as the architect on the elementary project. Dr. Harutunian advised that two months ago, Philips, Mandell and Cooper filed complaint with attorney general regarding selection of Flansburgh. He stated that after the hearing the Attorney General ruled that there were no violations. He stated that the cost of that hearing was approximately $5,200. He stated that he was advised late Thursday that a lawsuit had been filed against the Town of Reading regarding the selection of Flansburgh as the architect for the new elementary building project. He asked Attorney Griset to explain this in more detail. Mr. Griset stated that he received a copy of the complaint but has only had the opportunity to briefly review the complaint. He stated that the complaint seeks to stop the Town from expending further funds for design services with Flansburgh Associates and that the court order that the Town of Reading pay for the cost of the suit and the attorneys fees for the individuals involved and for "such other relieve as the court sees fit ". Mr. Griset advised that he has spoken with Town Counsel and he will keep the Committee advised on the progress of this suit. Mr. Griset stated that litigation can be a long and costly process. He stated that since these individuals have decided to involve Reading in this litigation, Town Counsel will need to file an answer and proceed through the discovery process. The lawyer for the plaintiffs has attached a discovery request and they have already requested certain documents be provided to the plaintiffs Mr. Griset stated that after an initial look at the complaint it appears it is very similar to the bid protest filed already filed with the Attorney General and the ruling from the Attorney General was in favor of Reading. Mr. Dahl asked Mr. Griset for his estimate on the cost of this lawsuit. Mr. Griset stated that it could cost the town tens of thousands of dollars to respond to this litigation. Ms. Cavicchi asked if it does anything to halt the progress. Mr. Griset stated that it is too early to tell at this point. REGULAR SESSIOIN 4 June 5 2000 Mr. Phillips asked to speak regarding the lawsuit. Mr. Griset cautioned the Committee that as elected officials the Committee members represent the town and since the town is the defendant he urged all members to allow the town counsel and the attorney of the plaintiffs to work through this process. He stated that since the lawsuit has been filed it would be wise to defer any discussion on the lawsuit to Town Counsel. Mr. Dahl stated that he believed discussion on this matter should be closed. Dr. Harutunian stated that we have new artwork from the high school; he thanked the high school for adding the artwork to the conference room. Chair Dahl stated that he is amazed at the quality of artwork that comes out of the schools. CURRICULUM PRESENTATIONS Social Studies Committee Dr. Delaney, Mr. Darrin, Ms. Howland, Mr. Huston, Ms. Palmer and Ms. Callan were the social studies curriculum presenters. Ms. Callan, Mr. Huston and Ms. Palmer discussed the elementary social studies curriculum. Ms. Howland and Dr. Delaney discussed middle school social studies curriculum. Dr. Harutunian stated that the three instructional specialists and he asked to recognize Ms. Howland for her fine work as an instructional specialist for the last three years. Mr. Darrin discussed the high school social studies curriculum. Mr. Twomey stated losing the instructional specialists is one impact of the override not passing. He stated that the loss of the specialists would create a large hole in the program. These things will not be invisible to the students. He thanked the group for their work. Dr. Harutunian stated we budgeted a significant amount of money to try to be proactive especially with the MCAS social studies on the horizon however the failure of the override is significantly cutting into this. Chair Dahl asked about the comment regarding the DOE sponsoring a summer content institute. REGULAR SESSIOIN 5 June 5 2000 Mr. Huston stated that a proposal was put together for a grant. Mr. Richards stated that this is the third year in a row Reading has been successful in obtaining this grant. He stated that we needed to partner with a college to obtain this grant. Mr. Richards stated that the first year we partnered with the University of Hawaii. and this year we are partnering with Endicott College. Foreign Language Mr. DiSanzo updated the Committee on the foreign language curriculum for grades 6 -12. Mr. Richards stated that this year we put together a team of teachers and administrators to look at how expanding the program would affect the rest of the curriculum. He stated that due to budget cuts we have eliminated the 6`h grade program. Mr. Richards stated that we will do a survey in early fall to find out how increasing the program will effect the curriculum. Ms. Cavicchi asked about the lack of a foreign language lab for the AP exam. Mr. DiSanzo stated that they send a master tape for the AP test and since we don't have language lab we need to put up a makeshift lab. He stated that he hopes next year a college will let us use their lab for the test. Chair Dahl asked when the test was given. Mr. DiSanzo stated that the test was given May 8t' and 9`h and he hoped that some college would allow us to use their facility. Dr. Harutunian stated that this is Mr. DiSanzo's first full year as 6 -12 foreign language coordinator and his presence has helped the district greatly. Mathematics Mr. Guerrette, Dr. Redford, Ms. Macari, Ms. Bruno, Mr. Finigan and Mr. Moscariello were the mathematics curriculum presenters. Mr. Guerrette, Mr. Redford and Ms. Macari discussed the elementary mathematics program. Dr. Harutunian recognized Dr. Redford for her work as an instructional specialist. Mr. Guerrette thanked Dr. Redford for her work as an instructional specialist. REGULAR SESSIOIN 6 June 5 2000 Ms. Bruno discussed the middle school math curriculum. Dr. Harutunian recognized Ms. Bruno for her work as an instructional specialist. Mr. Moscariello and Mr. Finigan discussed the high school math curriculum. Mr. Moscariello thanked Mr. Finigan for his leadership, support and friendship; he stated that RMHS's loss would be Parker's gain. Mr. Twomey asked if our curriculum covers all subject matter for MCAS 10`h grade test. Mr. Moscariello stated that the curriculum does cover all the material. He stated, however that the curriculum must be covered by April or May for the MCAS test and that is the biggest challenge. Dr. Harutunian stated that there has been talk at the state level regarding the change in the direction the state is moving in regarding the curriculum frameworks and the MCAS tests. Mr. Moscariello stated that there is a shift towards a "back to basics" more traditional type of curriculum. He stated that at this point he is not aware of the changes this may have on the MCAS. Mr. Guerrette stated that the frameworks continue to be a moving target. Mr. Twomey asked about the prep course for the MCAS and whether the students would receive credit for this course. Mr. Moscariello stated that it is a semester every other day and the course is a one credit course and does not count towards their math requirements. Ms. Cavicchi stated that she was happy to hear about having different type of instructions for students who may be having problems with the everyday math. Dr. Redford stated that it is the hope that differentiated instruction will help all students. Mr. Richards emphasized the differentiated learning is geared to all students in the classroom, students who may be having a problem with the curriculum and those who are able to move ahead more quickly in the curriculum. REGULAR SESSIOIN 7 June 5 2000 Chair Dahl asked if the length of time it takes to get results from the MCAS would result in a problem for remediation. He asked what the schedule for retesting would be. Mr. Richards stated that the state has not been specific on schedule but that there is talk about getting test results back to us faster. At 9:30 p.m. Mr. Keigley left the meeting Science Mr. Davidson, Ms. Harney, Ms. Rickerhauser, Mr. Bruno and Ms. Galvin were the science curriculum presenters. Mr. Davidson, Ms. Harney and Ms. Rickerhauser discussed the elementary science curriculum. They all passed their thanks to Ellen Mounteer for her work with the science kits. Ms. Bruno discussed middle school science curriculum. Ms. Galvin discussed the high school science curriculum. Chair Dahl asked if the Internet would be used in the meteorology course. Ms. Galvin advised that we have purchased a weather station and that students will be using the weather station and incorporating web sites into this course. Specialty Teaching Mr. Guerrette and Ms. Rickerhauser updated the Committee on specialty teaching. Mr. Guerrette stated that by running this pilot program they were looking to provide students with a comfortable learning experience that exposed them to different teachers with different learning styles and aided the 5th graders in making a smooth transition to middle school and help them to become more organized. He stated that feedback from parents and students has been very positive. Mr. Guerrette advised that he has met with both middle school principals and has discussed doing two surveys, one in the fall and one later in the year to help track whether this program has helped 5th grade students better adjust to the middle school years. Ms. Rickerhauser stated that the teachers are working to come up with an acceptable schedule for the five 5th grade teachers next year. REGULAR SESSIOIN S June 5 2000 Chair Dahl stated that he was pleased to see specialty teaching being piloted at Killam. He stated that he felt it was a great way of teaching the same curriculum to students yet in a different manner. Mr. Griset thanked Mr. Guerrette and the Killam staff for their spirit of cautious experimentation. English Language Arts Ms. Pittella, Ms. Chomsky- Higgins, Ms. Howland, Mr. Orlando and Ms. Montejunas were the English language arts curriculum presenters. Dr. Harutunian thanked Lisa Pittella for her work at the Eaton School and her work with the English language arts curriculum committee. Dr. Harutunian also thanked Pam Chomsky- Higgins for her extremely hard work in the area of English language arts. Ms. Pittella and Ms. Chomsky- Higgins discussed the elementary English language art curriculum. Ms. Howland discussed the middle school English language art curriculum. Ms. Montejunas discussed the high school English language art curriculum. Dr. Harutunian thanked Mr. Orlando for his leadership at Reading Memorial High School and the staff at RMHS. Mr. Griset asked how many students were served in the humanities courses. Mr. Orlando stated that this year approximately 50 students were served and he had requests by 100 students. Mr. Twomey asked for some examples of the John Collins writing across the curriculum system that was discussed. Ms. Howland stated that the system encourages quick un- revised writing exercises in all classes, math, science, etc. These writings are when a student is asked to articulate something he already knows. Chair Dahl commented on the enthusiasm displayed by each of the curriculum committees. Dr. Harutunian stated that this remains a very connected program K -12 and all of this works because of the great leadership of Dennis Richards. REGULAR SESSIOIN 9 June 5 2000 Mr. Richards thanked all the committees and their professional members who have helped in all areas of curriculum. ACTIVITES ACCOUNT Mr. Twomey moved to adopt on a first reading the Students Activities Account policy identified as DBEE. Ms. Cavicchi seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -0 Ms. Cavicchi Mr. Dahl, Mr. Griset and Mr. Twomey. SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETINGS After discussion, the Committee will hold the election meeting on June 28th. MINUTES Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to approve the minutes of February 28, 2000 with changes as noted. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -0 Ms Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Mr. Griset and Mr. Twomey. Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to approve the minutes of March 13, 2000 with changes as noted. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -0 Ms Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Mr. Griset and Mr. Twomey. Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to approve the minutes of March 15, 2000 with changes as noted. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -0 Ms Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Mr. Griset and Mr. Twomey. Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to approve the minutes of March 20, 2000 Mr. Twomey seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Mr. Griset and Mr. Twomey. Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to approve the minutes of March 27, 2000 Mr. Twomey seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Mr. Griset and Mr. Twomey. Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to approve the minutes of March 28, 2000. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Mr. Griset and Mr. Twomey. REGULAR SESSIOIN 10 June 5, 2000 Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to approve the minutes of April 4, 2000. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Mr. Griset and Mr. Twomey. Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to approve the minutes of April 10, 2000 with changes as noted. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Mr. Griset and Mr. Twomey. Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to approve the minutes of May 1, 2000. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Mr. Griset and Mr. Twomey. ADJOURN At 11:10 p.m. Mr. Twomey made a motion to adiourn. Ms. Cavicchi seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Mr. Griset and Mr. Twomey. Respectfully submitted, Harry K. Harutunian, Ph.D. Superintendent of Schools