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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999-01-25 School Committee MinutesREADING SCHOOL COMMITEE Reading, Massachusetts Regular Session January 25, 1999 CALL TO ORDER Chair D'Antona called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. in the Superintendent's Conference Room present were School Committee members Cavicchi, Dahl, D'Antona Twomey, Stohlman and Williams. Also present were Superintendent Harutunian and Associate Superintendent Richards and Town Manager Hechenbleikner. EXECUTIVE SESSION At 7:03 p.m. Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to enter into executive session for the purpose of conducting, strategy sessions in preparation for negotiations with the Teachers' Association, Custodians and Maintenance Workers, Cafeteria Employees, Association of Secretaries and Clerks, Educational Assistants, Nurses and Tutors, to discuss the possible sale or lease of real estate and to discuss pending litigation and to return to regular session at approximately 7:30 p.m. Mr. Dahl seconded the motion. The vote was 5 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Mr. Twomey, Mr. Stohlman and Ms. Williams voted yes, Ms. D'Antona was out of the room. CALL BACK TO ORDER At 7:35 p.m. Chair D'Antona called the meeting back to order. Richard Foley Town Accountant and Jim Keigley Chairman of the FinCom were both in attendance. HIGHLIGHTS Dr. Harutunian showed a video from the Eaton School showing the different activities that take place in the Eaton Computer Lab. Dr. Harutunian thanked Principal Pittella, Library Media Specialist Ms. McLean and the two students from Ms. Weatherbee's 5th grade class who narrated the video. CITIZENS' INPUT There was no citizen input. Regular Session -2- January 25, 1999 SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT The Superintendent thanked the Koppell family for their generous contributed to the Birch Meadow School. Their donation of $1,000 will be used towards the development of a Living Science Center at the Birch Meadow School. Dr. Harutunian advised that he had received a letter from a community member regarding the use of the word personal versus personnel in the town and school budget. He advised that he had forwarded the letter to Richard Foley for response. Richard Foley advised that next year he would use neither personal or personnel but would find another appropriate phrase. Dr. Harutunian advised that the Town Manager would be scheduling a meeting with Ted Cohen, Richard Foley and him to discuss the School Town Maintenance Merger. He stated that some of the selectmen were concerned about the use of $18,000 for the GeoTech survey. He stated that he has spoken to some of the selectmen regarding the issue. Dr. Harutunian stated that he is confident that the $18,000 can be replaced. Dr. Harutunian informed the Committee of the Coolidge "Buy A Brick" fundraiser. The "Buy A Brick Fundraiser" would be to raise funds for the library and for software at Coolidge Middle School. Dr. Harutunian informed the Committee that he had included a poem written by a former student in honor of retiring teacher Sheila Richardson. Dr. Harutunian informed the Committee that a policy already existed for prepayment of rental fees. He advised that the administration would move forward with the existing policy and will change the application to state that prepayment is required. SCHOOL COMMITTEE CALENDAR The Committee discussed the School Committee calendar. Chair D'Antona and Ms. Williams both stated that they will be unable to attend the February 10`h Budget Council meeting. It was agreed to try to change the Budget Council meeting to February 9`h FY00 BUDGET Dr. Harutunian stated that two months ago he had asked 35 -38 parents to participate in the budget process. Dr. Harutunian thanked all those that had participated in the process. Mr. Stohlman advised that he would be making motions to adjust the budget. He stated that with the added pressure of the capital budget he felt that the Committee should go Regular Session -3- January 25, 1999 to the Selectmen with a budget that included some initiatives but was more defensible than the Superintendent's recommended budget. He stated that he would be making motions to reduce custodial maintenance heating budget, regular day budget and to move the money for the policy book to the extra curricular budget. Mr. Stohlman made a motion to reduce the recommended FY 00 budget number on page 49 Custodial Maintenance by $50,000 so the number will now read $2,298,548. Ms. Williams seconded the motion. Mr. Stohlman stated that the information provided by Siebe regarding the projected energy savings justified at least a $50,000 reduction in the budget. Dr. Harutunian advised that he had met with the representative from Siebe and Jeff Griffin and that the projected energy savings were included in the budget figure. Dr. Harutunian asked that the Committee not make this reduction until he has had an opportunity to meet with Siebe and Jeff Griffin again regarding the numbers. Ms. Cavicchi asked when the budget was due to Town Manager. Dr. Harutunian advised that the budget was due on February 1St Mr. Twomey stated that he would like the budget figure to remain as it is until the Superintendent has the opportunity to meet with Siebe and Jeff Griffin to confirm the numbers. Mr. Stohlman tabled the motion. Mr. Stohlman made a motion to reduce the regular day number by $200,000 the number to now read $16,128,040. Ms. Williams seconded the motion. The vote was 1 -5 Mr. Stohlman voted yes Ms Cavicchi Mr. Dahl, Ms. D'Antona, Mr. Twomey and Ms. Williams voted no.. Mr. Stohlman stated that regular day is the only account that has flexibility. He stated that SPED is require by law. Mr. Stohlman stated that this would keep the regular day the same and just reduce the number of initiatives. He stated that the things that are proposed are needed by we don't have the money. He also stated that he would withdraw his motion if the Committee agreed to ask for an override. Mr. Twomey stated that in his memorandum regarding budget questions he had commented that regular day has dropped every year as a percent of the total budget. He stated that the per pupil numbers go down every year. He stated he felt it would be the wrong message to send to reduce regular day budget. He stated that the believed the budget was well thought out and reflects the School Committee's goals. Regular Session -4- January 25, 1999 Mr. Dahl stated that he agrees with Mr. Twomey and that he believes the Committee's job is to provide the best education possible to the children of Reading. He stated that he was not in favor of reducing regular day at this time but he was aware that the Committee would have to be flexible when finalizing with the town and stated that the Committee may want to look at the additional Coolidge teachers first. Ms. Williams stated that the administration's job is to create a budget that is needed for the children. She stated that she is aware that we may have to make cuts but that now is not the correct time to cut. She stated that the town is able to give a bare bones budget because they are not dealing with children in classrooms. She stated that if the Committee is going to think about cutting, the cut should come from unanticipated SPED estimate. She stated that she did agree with Mr. Stohlman on moving the funds for the policy book to extracurricular. Ms. Cavicchi informed Mr. Stohlman that she felt he should have brought his proposed changes to the Superintendent before this evening so that the Administration would have been prepared to respond. She stated that it is incumbent on the Committee to provide the children of Reading with the best education possible and now is not the appropriate time to make cuts to the budget. Mr. Stohlman stated that every bit of information he had used to come up with the proposed changes was given to the entire School Committee over the past three months. He stated that if tonight was not the appropriate night to discuss these issues, he didn't know when the appropriate night was. Chair D'Antona stated that when going through the budget nothing seemed in excess and she felt strongly about moving the budget forward as it is and revisit it later if necessary. She stated that she believed in prudence in the budget but that the needs of the students should be taken into account. Mr. Dahl stated that state revenues are still unknown and that at this time he felt that the Administration should look again at the energy budget and if necessary reduce the budget but that at this time he was not willing to look at reducing regular day. Dr. Harutunian stated that the budget process started in August and he requested that the Committee wait to make any cuts. He stated that state revenue figures will be available soon. Regular Session -5- January 251 1999 Mr. Stohlman made a motion to reduce the Administration Budget on page 49 by $9,000 from the Professional Services line so it now reads $731,211 and add $9,000 to Other School Services page 65 distributed appropriately into the Extracurricular account. Ms. Williams made an amendment to the motion to reduce the Administration Budget on page 49 by $4,500 from the Professional Services line so it now reads $735,711 and add $4,500 to the Other School Services page 65 distributed appropriately in the Extracurricular account. The vote on the motion as amended was 6 -0 Ms. Cavicchi Mr. Dahl Ms. D'Antona Mr. Stohlman, Mr. Twomey and Ms. Williams. SCHOOL YEAR 1999 -2000 CALENDAR Ms. Williams suggested that the elementary conference day in November be noted. Mr. Stohlman made a motion to approve the School Year 1999 -2000 Calendar. Mr. Dahl seconded the motion. The vote was 6 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Ms. D'Antona, Mr. Stohlman Mr. Twomey and Ms. Williams. SUPERINTENDENT'S EVALUATION Chair D'Antona advised that she had prepared a composite evaluation of the Superintendent using all School Committee members evaluations. Chair D'Antona then read a summary of the evaluation. The School Committee members thanked Dr. Harutunian for his work. Dr. Harutunian thanked the Committee and also thanked Dennis Richards and his office staff for their hard work and dedication. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Mr. Stohlman made a motion to accept the minutes of October 14, 1998. Ms. Cavicchi seconded the motion. The vote was 5 -0 -1 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Ms. D'Antona, Mr. Stohlman and Ms. Williams voted yes, Mr. Twomey abstained. Mr. Stohlman made a motion to accept the minutes of October 26, 1998. Ms. Cavicchi seconded the motion. The vote was 6 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Ms. D'Antona, Mr. Stohlman Mr. Twomey and Ms. Williams. Regular Session -6- January 25, 1999 Mr. Stohlman made a motion to accept the minutes of November 30, 1998. Ms. Cavicchi seconded the motion. The vote was 6 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Ms. D'Antona Mr. Stohlman, Mr. Twomey and Ms. Williams. Mr. Stohlman made a motion to accept the minutes of December 14, 1998. Ms. Cavicchi seconded the motion. The vote was 6 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Ms. D'Antona Mr. Stohlman, Ms. Williams. ADJOURN At 9:45 p.m. Ms. Cavicchi made a motion to adjourn and enter into executive session for the ppMose of conducting strategy trategy sessions in preparation for negotiations with the Teachers' Association, Custodians and Maintenance Workers, Cafeteria Employees, Association of Secretaries and Clerks, Educational Assistants, Nurses and Tutors and to discuss the possible sale or lease of real estate and to discuss pending litigation. Not to return to regular session. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion. The vote was 6 -0 Ms. Cavicchi, Mr. Dahl, Ms. D'Antona, Mr. Stohlman, Mr. Twomey and Ms. Williams. Respectfully submitted, Harry K. Harutunian, Ph.D. Superintendent of Schools Summary of the Superintendent's Evaluation January 1999 Robin D'Antona, Chair The Policy: The School Committee shall evaluate the Superintendent twice annually. The purpose of the January evaluation is to give the School Committee the opportunity to appraise the Superintendent's performance early in the budget cycle and before contract negotiations with the Superintendent. The Evaluation Instrument: The instrument, which was revised in February of 1998, consists of a series of inquiries -- 59 in total - -that are divided into five categories of evaluation criteria. These criteria include: Educational Leadership; Personal Characteristics; Relationship with the School Committee; Professional and Administrative Staff, Students and the Community; Planning and Organization; Business and Finance. Each query may be described by the evaluator with categories labeled -- unsatisfactory, satisfactory (marginal, average, above average), outstanding, or not applicable. The form includes space for comments on each specific question. The Process: Each member of the school committee received a copy of the evaluation instrument, were asked to fill it out and return it directly to the chair. The results were tabulated and the individual comments were compiled into the report of the school committee chair. The narrative highlight comments made by the members. The report is then discussed in open session. Each member has the opportunity to add any further thoughts or observations to the report or to focus on any items of particular interest. The report reflects the collective view of the School Committee and the individual evaluations are on record with the cumulative report. 7 The Performance of the Superintendent: The School Committee members rated the performance of Dr. Harutunian in the above average to outstanding range. Some of the totals do not represent one opinion for each member because some members chose to select more than one category. In one instance, a school committee member chose to separately evaluate the Superintendent's performance according to elementary /middle and high school building projects therefore the total is greater than six. In the area of Budget and Finance one member gave the Superintendent check plus in several categories, thus skewing those totals as well. This clearly is an expression of exuberance for the Superintendent's performance. 1 Educational Leadership For twenty -two of the twenty -three questions the majority of the School Committee rated the Superintendent in the above average to outstanding categories. The Committee recognized Dr. Harutunian's deep- seated belief that the Reading Public Schools are to be operated foremost and primarily for the children. The committee also acknowledged that the Superintendent actively and visibly participates in school - related events and they unanimously recognized the availability of the Superintendent to individual citizens and community groups. The Superintendent is very knowledgeable of curriculum and keeps abreast of educational issues and furthermore has made great strides in coordinating all educational experiences from entry to grade twelve. One member wrote, "There has been a seismic shift from the chaos of the past." This is supported by the view that Dr. Harutunian promotes avenues of educational innovation and fosters professional development for all the professional and nonprofessional staff. The Superintendent's ability to take the lead in promoting promising areas of educational innovation was clearly recognized by a majority of members. The majority of the members of the committee recognized the Superintendent's outstanding ability to support upgrades for the school system through his efforts in upgrading the school buildings. Overall in the area of Educational Leadership, the Dr. Harutunian was recognized for his above average to outstanding ability to lead the school system. 11 Personal Characteristics The Superintendent displays outstanding ability to demonstrate good judgment, common sense and excellent perception. The committee rated his ability to demonstrate personal convictions as outstanding as well as his ability to remain true to his convictions in the face of controversy. He remains poised during those difficult situations thus projecting a positive image for the school system. 3 The Superintendent considers the recommendations of the School Committee when making decisions. He also solicits input from staff and the community when appropriate. The committee acknowledged that the Superintendent demonstrates fairness and consistency when handling problems. Dr. Harutunian always represents the School Committee. All his actions are forward looking and progressive thus fostering a positive educational environment. 111 Relationship with the School Committee, Professional and Administrative Staff, Students and the Community The Superintendent was given high ratings for his communication with the School Committee, staff and the community. He never hesitates to report to the committee and facilitates open discussions on the goals and means of the system's educational programs with his administrative staff during the regular Administrative Council meetings. The strategic planning process is a good example of how well the Superintendent works with the professional staff and the community. The Superintendent was rated outstanding by three members and above average by two members in providing timely information to the committee. In terms of responding appropriately to parental and community concerns, Dr. Harutunian has been outstanding. While the response may not be what the individual may be looking for, the Superintendent has a record of responding timely and courteously. VI Planning and Organization Dr. Harutunian does an outstanding job organizing and planning ahead to meet the needs of the school system. One of his key strengths is his custom of keeping the School Committee informed -- there are no surprises. The School Committee meetings are well organized. V Business and Finance. It is important to note that in the opinion of one member of the committee, since there has not been a full budget cycle since the last evaluation of the Superintendent, that members response in the area of Business and Finance were limited to judgments on the budget process for the FY00 Budget to this point only. The Superintendent is outstanding in his efforts to guide the total process of fiscal planning and accounting for the school system — in fact one member gave the superintendent a check ++ in most of these categories. The School Committee is well informed which enables them to be fully participatory in the in the budget process. Not only does Dr. Harutunian place the welfare of the students before all considerations in making his budget recommendations, but also he accepts full responsibility for the operation of the system.