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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-11-25 School Committee MinutesOda OPR r ! Town of Reading t Meeting Minutes 'a39` I.W 0 T 4P� Board - Committee - Commission - Council: School Committee Date: 2013 -11 -25 Time: 7:00 PM Building: School - Memorial High Location: Superintendent Conference Room Address: 62 Oakland Road Purpose: Open Session Attendees: Members - Present: 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 Chris Caruso Lisa Gibbs Conner Traugot, Student Representative Andrea Nastri, Student Representative Members - Not Present: Others Present: Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: John F. Doherty, Ed.D. Superintendent Topics of Discussion: I. Call to Order Chairperson Croft called the School Committee to order at 7:02 p.m. He reviewed the agenda, announced the meeting was being recorded and welcomed guests. II. Recommended Procedure A. Public Input (I) Mr. Croft asked for public input. There was none. Reports I) 1. Student Page 1 1 Student Representatives Nastri and Traugot shared information on the following: • RMHS Homecoming Dance was held over the weekend • This week is Spirit Week culminating with the pep rally on Wednesday • Auditions for the Winter Production are underway The RMHS Cheerleaders placed second at a recent competition The fall National Honor Society induction took place last week 2. Liaison Mrs. Janowski reminded everyone of the upcoming Festival of Trees sponsored by the Reading Education Foundation. This is a family & community event. Mr. Robinson shared that he, Mr. Croft and Dr. Doherty attended the annual Rotary Luncheon. This luncheon is held prior to the Stoneham — Reading football game. Both teams were well represented and the speeches were very good. 3. Superintendent Dr. Doherty updated the School Committee on the meeting he attended as part of the NEASC Steering Committee. NEASC has a new Chairperson who has indicated that they are interested in discussing the growing concerns over the process. The Steering Committee will meet again on December 9th He went on to update the Committee on the activity of the Elementary Working Group. They have met 3 times and have narrowed their list of options down to five. The five options include building a new school, finding existing rentable space, prefab construction, Woburn St. and building additions to the middle school and restructuring the middle schools by moving grade 5 up. Dr. Doherty added that the group will be meeting with KBA and Ai -3 to discuss the five options. The hope is to be ready to present a direction at the April Town Meeting. Mr. Robinson added that the committee is diverse, engaged and there have been very productive conversations. Dr. Doherty said the State has released the Educator Evaluation Ratings for all districts in the state. He also mentioned the Boston Globe article regarding concussion statistics. He reviewed the budget impact for testing for all students. Dr. Doherty thanked the elementary principals and Ms. Calandrella for presenting at the incoming kindergarten parent session. The deadline for registration is December 19th. The meeting was attended by approximately 100 parents and was held at Killam. Page 1 2 Dr. Doherty and Chair Croft will be meeting with the parties that have submitted facility naming proposals. The nominations will be presented at our next meeting. Mr. Robinson asked about the new Chairperson at NEASC. Dr. Doherty was unsure how the selection was made. Mr. Caruso would like an update on how the integrated kindergarten classrooms are working. B. Continued Business Second Reading of Revised Policy ACAB /ACAC Harassment & Discrimination Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to approve and accept the second reading of revised Policy ACAB /ACAC — Harassment & Discrimination Mr. Caruso began the second reading. Mrs. Gibbs moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to waive the second reading of the policy. The motion carried 6 -0. The vote on the original motion carried 6 -0. C. New Business First Reading of Policy JICFB - Bulling Prevention Dr. Doherty provided a brief background on the proposed change to this policy. He said on the advice of student legal counsel that this policy and the bullying policy should be separate policies. Dr. Doherty reviewed the policy. Mr. Robinson asked why adults were not included in the policy. Dr. Doherty will ask counsel and provide the information prior to the second reading. Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mrs. Gibbs, to accept the first reading of Policy JICFB - Bullying Prevention. Mr. Caruso began the first reading. Mrs. Gibbs moved, seconded by Mrs. Borawski, to waive the first reading of the policy. The motion carried 6 -0. The School Committee asked clarifying questions. The vote on the original motion carried 6 -0. MCAS Presentation Mr. Martin reviewed the topics for this presentation. He will be providing information on district scores, student growth percentiles and looking ahead to Page 1 3 new assessments. He reviewed the district scores by grade and subject and also how we compared to the state. He then went on to discuss information on the Student Growth Percentile (SGP). This measures a student's growth relative to their academic peers and how much they have improved year to year. Mr. Martin reviewed the transition to new, more rigorous standards that include the PARCC Assessment tool. PARCC will be introduced in 2015. Districts will be able to choose MCAS or PARCC as their assessment tool. The MCAS will continue to be used for grade 10 in 2014 -15 and 2015 -2016 and for competency determination through the Class of 2018. Several School Committee members expressed concerns over the implementation of another unfunded mandate from the state. They questioned how this assessment will affect sub - groups in Reading and how our out of district placements scores will be accounted for in the testing process. Dr. Doherty indicated that the district is required to use this assessment. He finds value in this type of online assessment and it will be to our advantage to move the process forward. Mr. Caruso asked when the assessment will be starting. Dr. Doherty said later in the spring. We will receive guidance from the DESE. The PARCC Assessment will be given to 15 — 20% of the population, classes will be randomly chosen. The School Committee would like to ensure that parents are notified ahead of time and that communication is important to eliminate rumors. Remote Participation Dr. Doherty reviewed the recent action by the Board of Selectmen approving remote participation on a trial basis for a year. He reviewed Article 2 of the Selectmen's policies. After discussion regarding the development of a School Committee policy it was decided to use the Selectmen's policy for the trial period. III. Routine Matters a. Bills and Payroll (A) The following warrants were circulated and signed. Warrant S1421 11.14.13 $173,246.23 Warrant S1422 11.21.13 $284,003.18 b. Approval of Minutes Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mrs. Janowski, to approve the open session minutes dated November 4, 2013. The motion carried 6 -0. Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to approve the open session minutes dated November 12, 2013. The motion carried 5 -0 -1. Mrs. Gibbs abstained. Page 1 4 c. Bids and Donations Accept Donations Accept Donation to Parker Middle School Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to accept the donation of a Yamaha French Horn, to the Parker Middle School, valued at $2,000 from the Bergeron family. The motion carried 6 -0. Donation from RMHS BPO Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to accept a donation in the amount of $13,600 from the RMHS Band Parents Organization to be used to support the instructor stipends. The motion carried 6 -0. Mrs. Janowski asked what the donation would be used for. Ms. DeLai indicated that there are 24 instructors above and beyond the stipend positions. Accept Donation from Friends of Reading Soccer Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mrs. Janowski, to accept a donation in the amount of $1,000 from the Friends of Reading Soccer to be used to support the coaching assistant for the boys' varsity team. The motion carried 6 -0. Accept Donation from RMHS PSST Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to accept a donation in the amount of $2,925 from the Parents Supporting Student Theatre to be used to support the Improv and Shakespeare instructors for the first semester. The motion carried 6 -0. Accept Donation from Winchester Orthodontics Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mrs. Janowski, to accept a donation in the amount of $100 from Winchester Orthodontics to the Killam School as part of their "Embrace a Brighter Future" program. The motion carried 6 -0. Accept Donation from the Friends of Reading Wrestling Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to accept a donation in the amount of $4,000 from the Friends of Reading Wrestling to be used to support the coaching assistant for the boys' varsity team. The motion carried 6 -0. Page 1 5 Calendar IV. Information V. Future Business VI. Adjournment Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mrs. Borawski, to adjourn. The motion carried 6 -0. The meeting adjourned at 8:45 p.m. NOTE: The minutes reflect the order as stated in the posted meeting agenda not the order they occurred during the meeting. r1 iniFT, - Page 1 6