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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-09-23 School Committee MinutesFq O r c Town of Reading b I Meeting Minutes 'sJ9r lNCOAQ�P� Board - Committee - Commission - Council: School Committee Date: 2013 -09 -23 Building: School - Memorial High Address: 62 Oakland Road Purpose: Open Session Attendees: Members - Present: Time: 7:00 PM Location: Superintendent Conference Room Karen Janowski John Doherty, Superintendent Chuck Robinson Mary DeLai, Assistant Superintendent Hal Croft Craig Martin, Assistant Superintendent Jeanne Borawski Alison Elmer, Director of Student Services Lisa Gibbs Arrived at 7:48 p.m. Conner Traugot, Student Representative Andrea Nastri, Student Representative Members - Not Present: Chris Caruso Others Present: SRO Corey Santasky Director of Facilities Joe Huggins Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: John Doherty, Superintendent Topics of Discussion: I. Call to Order Chairperson Croft called the School Committee to order at 7:00 p.m. He reviewed the agenda and welcomed guests. The Chair declared that an executive session is necessary to protect the litigation position of the body. Mrs. Janowski moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to enter into Executive Session to discuss strategy with respect to litigation and to return to open session at approximately 7:45 p.m. The roll call vote was 4 -0. Mr. Croft, Mr. Robinson, Mrs. Janowski and Mrs. Borawski. The meeting adjourned at 7:03 p.m. The open session meeting was called back to order at 8:15 p.m. II. Recommended Procedure Page 1 1 A. Public Input (I) Reports I) 1. Student Student Representative Traugot shared that Back to School night was well attended. He also said the high school clubs have been holding their first meetings. Student Representative Andrea Nastri shared that the Chorus group held a Zumba fundraiser over the weekend and will be going on a group bonding trip to Rollerworld. She also said that the rehearsals have begun for the fall production of Legally Blond. 2. Liaison 3. Director of Student Services Ms. Elmer announced that the new RISE Director /Team Chair has been hired and will start on October 7th. She also said that the PAC will be holding their first meeting on Tuesday evening. 4. Assistant Superintendent Ms. DeLai announced a new partnership with Bay State Textiles offering a textile recycling program. Bins have been placed at all of our schools. This fundraising program will return $100 /ton to the individual schools. Ms. DeLai shared that our Community Service Coordinator is in the process of implementing a Driver's Education program which we hope to have up and running later this school year. She went on to recognize Superintendent Doherty for recently being honored by the Massachusetts Association of School Business Officials receiving the Friend of MASBO Award at their recent meeting. She also recognized the Superintendent for being honored by the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendent's Association receiving their President's Award at the annual meeting last spring. 5. Superintendent Dr. Doherty updated the School Committee on the status of the Elementary Working Group. He has received 18 applicants. The pool of applicants has been asked to provide a brief biography and to tell us a little bit about their interest in serving on this group. He hopes to have the Working Group in place within the next couple of weeks. Dr. Doherty reminded the Committee of the RCASA Annual Meeting on Thursday evening at which time the Youth Risk Behavior Survey results will be presented. Page 1 2 The Superintendent shared information about a program being spearheaded by Veterans Administrator Frank Driscoll. A Veterans chair, representing veterans, prisoners of war and servicemen that have lost their lives, will be presented at the Selectmen's meeting on Tuesday evening. This chair will be rotated around the town buildings to be displayed. B. Continued Business C. New Business School Safety Presentation/ALICE Overview Dr. Doherty presented information on ALICE. He explained that he would give a general presentation to protect the integrity of the program. He said that there are not many changes to the strategy we have in place. ALICE adds different strategic options for responding to situations that involve school safety and security. He explained there have been research studies, using several cases, including Columbine and Sandy Hook that indicate that there may be better options than staying in a lockdown. ALICE is based on the ability to provide real time information to law enforcement and the people in the buildings. Advantages to the ALICE protocol include the integration of technology with common sense human action, providing options when information is available, providing a plan of action to increase chances for survival, increase confidence, and reduce fear and it vastly diminishes the odds of the active intruder's success. The Superintendent went on to outline what the acronym stands for. He indicated that this is not a linear progression. All five parts did not have to occur for every situation. A is for Alert — He stressed that communication in plain language is key. The use of any method to get information to the building and first responders is vital to the successful end of an event. L is for Lockdown — This procedure is not changing but ALICE provides different tools to access the situation. I is for Inform — Using any means necessary to pass on real time information using plain language, can be derived from 911 calls and should be a who, what, where, when and how. It is important to be flexible because the situation will be static and dynamic. C is for Counter — This action will be used sparingly and rarely. It is used only when confronted by an intruder. E is for Evacuate — This is the biggest change from our current procedure. Whenever possible evacuation should be the choice made as long as you have current information and it can be done safely. SRO Santasky shared that the communication piece is vital. The faster information can be transmitted to law enforcement the more likely the situation can be handled in a more informed way. Dr. Doherty reviewed the work of the Safety Committee to develop a strategy and timeline to implement ALICE. The committee was made up of representatives from law enforcement, facilities, DPW, and faculty and staff of the school department. Superintendent Doherty said it is the goal of the school department to train students and staff over the course of this school year. Training will vary by level. The elementary level training will be similar to a fire drill, providing basic information. The middle and high school trainings will be more involved and run similar to our current lockdown procedure. Page 1 3 SRO Santasky shared that the Reading Police Department has been trained in the ALICE protocol and he hopes to train the fire department in the near future. Mr. Robinson expressed concerns over the timetable. Dr. Doherty said that the district still has the lockdown procedure and feels the training cannot be rushed. He also shared that Wilmington spent the last school year to train their students and staff. Mrs. Gibbs was concerned if there was not a step by step approach, staff would not know what to do. Dr. Doherty assured her that there is a more flexible protocol in place. SRO Santasky reiterated that we will now have more tools to deal with a situation with an active intruder. Mr. Croft asked if it was more risky to evacuate younger children. Officer Santasky pointed out that it may be the only option for a given situation. FY2014 -2024 Capital Plan Presentation Ms. DeLai and Director of facilities Joe Huggins presented the FY2014 -2024 Capital Plan. Mr. Huggins reviewed the priority ranking system when determining the needs of the Capital Plan. He shared information on the upcoming vehicle requests that will be included in the Capital Plan. Mr. Huggins reviewed the needs of each school and town building. Several requests have been moved up on the list because of need. Ms. DeLai added that several of the items for the Killam School are needed to comply with ADA regulations. She pointed out that we have applied two times, unsuccessfully, for MSBA funding for these projects. Mrs. Janowski moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to approve the 2014 -2024 Capital Plan as presented. The motion carried 5 -0. FY2013 Budget Update Ms. DeLai updated the School Committee on the final FY2013 budget. She shared that the Town Accountant had closed the books on the fiscal year and is pleased to say that the final balances for School Department budget were very close to the amounts she reported in the July update. FY2015 Budget Calendar Ms. DeLai reviewed the calendar for the FY2015 budget season. She shared that this is a unique time of year when the previous budget has been closed, we are in a new fiscal year and we are preparing for the next fiscal year. Audit Committee Appointment Chair Croft solicited volunteers to serve as a School Committee representative to the Audit Committee. Seeing none he asked for volunteers. Mrs. Borawski indicated that she would volunteer for the post. Page 1 4 Mrs. Janowski moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to appoint Jeanne Borawski to replace the seat vacated by Mr. Spadafora. The motion carried 5 -0. First Reading and Approval of Revised Policy IHBG — Home Education Chair Croft asked Mrs. Janowski to read the proposed change to the policy. Mrs. Janowski then began the full reading of the policy. Mrs. Gibbs moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to waive the first reading. The motion carried 5 -0. Dr. Doherty explained that the reason for the revision is to clarify that home educated students may have access to curricular or extra - curricular activities upon approval of the Superintendent. Mrs. Janowski moved, seconded by Mrs. Borawski, to accept the first reading of revised Policy IHBG — Home Education. The motion carried 5 -0. Approval of Field Trips Interact Club Trip Mrs. Janowski moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to approve the RMHS Interact Club field trip to New York City in November 2013. The motion carried 5 -0. Service Trip to the Dominican Republic Mrs. Janowski moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to approve the RMHS service field trip to the Dominican Republic in June 2014. Mrs. Borawski asked about the emergency medical procedures for the trip. Dr. Doherty said that EF Tours has a protocol in place and know where the local medical facilities are located. Mrs. Janowski asked if this was a new trip. Dr. Doherty said that EF Tours had approached Ms. Gleason about offering this trip. Ms. Gleason traveled to the Dominican Republic over the summer and thought this would be a great opportunity for our students. Student Representative Traugot shared that he had gone on one of the service trips offered by Ms. Gleason and found it to be a great learning experience. The motion carried 5 -0. III. Routine Matters a. Bills and Payroll (A) b. Approval of Minutes Page 1 5 Mrs. Janowski moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to approve the open session minutes dated September 9, 2013. The motion carried 4 -0 -1. Mrs Borawski abstained. c. Bids and Donations Accept Donations Mrs. Janowski moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to accept the anonymous donation to be used to purchase 32 Wads to enhance the learning experiences of the Coolidge students. The motion carried 5 -0. Calendar IV. Information V. Future Business VI. Adjournment The Chair declared that an executive session is necessary to protect the litigation position of the body. Executive Session Mrs. Janowski moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson to enter into Executive Session to discuss strategy with respect to litigation and not to return to open session The roll call vote was 5 -0. Mrs. Gibbs, Mr. Croft, Mr. Robinson, Mrs. Janowski and Mrs. Borawski. The meeting adjourned at 9:41 p.m. NOTE: The minutes reflect the order as stated in the posted meeting agenda not the order they occurred during the meeting. W"b"w Jo . Doherty, E D. Page 1 6