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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1997-06-16 School Committee MinutesREADING PUBLIC SCHOOLS Reading, Massachusetts School Committee Meeting REGULAR SESSION MINUTES June 16, 1997 CALL TO ORDER Chair Susan Cavicchi called the regular session to order at 7:40 p.m. in the Superintendent's Conference Room. All members were present. Also present were Superintendent Dr. Harry K. Harutunian and Associate Superintendent Dennis Richards. A Reporter from the Chronicle was present. Dr. Harutunian explained the Barrows and Joshua Eaton principalship search process that recently occurred. He said four names were submitted to him for Barrows and five for Joshua Eaton. He said he interviewed each candidate then, with Principals Davidson and Guerrette, visited each candidate's school. He said he met with the Barrows and Joshua Eaton staff again last week prior to his decision. The Superintendent said they were all strong candidates with outstanding credentials. Dr. Harutunian said the replacement for Charles Papandreou, who worked in Reading for 37 years, 25 as a principal, is Ms. Karen Callan. Ms. Callan is currently an elementary principal in Wakefield and accepted the position at Barrows as of the end of July. The Superintendent introduced Ms. Callan. Ms. Callan said she was delighted to be here and felt like she was coming home. She said she currently has three children in the Reading Schools. Dr. Harutunian said Principal Papandreou will be in Reading until 8/30/97. Dr. Harutunian said the new principal for the Joshua Eaton Elementary School will be Ms. Lisa Pittella. The Superintendent said how impressed he and Principals Davidson and Guerrette were the day they spent in Haverhill. He discussed her outstanding credentials. Ms. Pittella said she was very excited to be here. Chair Susan Cavicchi said on behalf of the School Committee, they were pleased to have such qualified people join the staff in Reading. She announced that the Committee will take a brief break to introduce themselves to the two new principals. The Committee took a break at 7:47 p.m. and resumed at 7:50 p.m. BILLS AND PAYROLL The warrant for bills was as follows: March 31, 1997 - Bills - $ 136,304.66 April 7, 1997 - Bills - $ 397,041.88 April 14, 1997 - Bills - $ 222,991.28 April 22, 1997 - Bills - $ 448,241.04 April 28. 1997 - Bills - $ 54,204.54 Regular Session Page 2 June 16 1997 May 5, 1997 - Bills - $ 167,390.41 May 12, 1997 - Bills - $ 114,257.33 May 19, 1997 - Bills - $ 550,570.88 May 27, 1997 - Bills - $ 70,313.58 June 2, 1997 - Bills - $ 42,132.90 June 9, 1997 - Bills - $ 97,995.80 The warrant for payroll was as follows: March 27, 1997 - Teachers $ 518,334.74 April 10, 1997 - Teachers $ 520,697.15 April 18, 1997 - Teachers $ 674,695.84 May 8, 1997 - Teachers $ 523,145.84 May 22, 1997 - Teachers $ 523,724.28 April 4, 1997 - Biweekly $ 140,059.38 May 2, 1997 - Biweekly $ 128,786.47 May 16, 1997 - Biweekly $ 147,506.53 May 30, 1997 - Biweekly $ 136,172.65 June 6, 1997 - Biweekly $ 534,619.71 June 13, 1997 - Biweekly $ 138,997.34 REPORT OF THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE CHAIR AND SUPERINTENDENT Dr. Harutunian said our Technology Director, Ms. Cindy Conti, has worked hard to create a web page for the Reading Schools. Ms. Conti gave an overhead presentation on the new web page she developed for each school. She said there is a two -page profile for each school. She informed the Committee what information will be available in the fall. In addition to the schools, Ms. Conti said there is a page on the School Committee members and the Central Office which links to the Town of Reading. Ms. Conti said the address is HTTP:// Reading .MEC.EDU /District/Default.HTM. Mr. Stohlman asked if there were plans to link the School Committee names with e -mail addresses. Ms. Conti said yes. Mr. Stohlman asked if the same is being done for teachers. Ms. Conti said no, not yet. Dr. Harutunian said this was the first step to get a web site and we will be working with the schools to advance further. Ms. Williams asked if Ms. Conti was the contact person for fall information. Ms. Conti said ves. Dr. Harutunian said the educational assistants at the elementary schools may do the updates also. Mr. Spadafora thanked Ms. Conti for an outstanding presentation. He said one of the Committee's goals was communication and this certainly helped to achieve that. Dr. Harutunian acknowledged that she did a great job. LIAISON No report CITIZEN'S INPUT Several parents attended the School Committee Meeting to voice their concerns about busing Birch Meadow Kindergarten students to the Barrows School this fall. Their concerns were: Regular Session Page 3 June 16 1997 • They were upset at the way it was approached. • Children are being bussed to a school where there is no space. • No plan is in place at this time. • The community is being torn apart over this issue. • Parent bought home near Birch Meadow so that children could attend school there. • An opinion was being asked of the School Committee now instead of August on this issue. • Parent with four children in four separate schools, may be forced to do home schooling, they also expressed concern about the fourth grade math program. • Parent asked if families could be look at as well as numbers. Dr. Harutunian asked to have the Superintendent's Report moved up so that he could dialogue with the parents. Mr. Twomey suggested a time limit of a half hour. Dr. Harutunian explained the enrollment figures in Reading for the past five years. He explained the renovations needed at Birch Meadow. He said the two portables at Birch Meadow need to be removed. He said the year before he came to Reading the figures went up (290 to 350 in 1995). He said this would potentially mean 400 young people attending school in the year 2000. He said this past fall there were over 293 births. He said for the past two years the numbers have been going up and continue to stay up. The Superintendent said in January 1997, the School Committee made the decision to limit Kindergarten class size to 25 children. He said the Birch Meadow facility is inadequate for the current enrollment, so the decision was made to go to redistricting. Dr. Harutunian said he would be putting a task force together this fall involving parents, teachers and community members to address this issue. He said there is no fast solution. The Superintendent said the last thing he wanted to do was to upset first -time school age parents. He said that everyone needs to work together to resolve this issue. The parents continued to voice the following concerns: • This should be a community -wide decision. • Four portables outside of a school is unacceptable. • A decision should be made immediately and it should be to sit tight for one year. Chair Susan Cavicchi said that by law we cannot have over 25 students in the Kindergarten class. The parents continued to voice their concerns: • More than 8 -10 weeks is needed in the fall for the task force to decide on this issue • Busing looks like a favoritism issue Chair Susan Cavicchi said she did not know what rationale was used by Principal Davidson, but the Committee could not override his decision. Dr. Harutunian said there was great strength in the Birch Meadow community. He said he will meet with the task force at the beginning of the process and at the end. He said it may take three or four months. Regular Session Page 4 June 16 1997 Mr. Spadafora acknowledged what an emotional issue redistricting is. He said the Committee was not here to cause division in the town and he supported Dr. Harutunian's decision to set up the task force. He said he hoped everyone would stand behind this decision. Chair Susan Cavicchi ended the discussion by saying the task force in the fall that will address the issues and concerns discussed this evening will be implemented. Chicago Math Dr. Harutunian read the Parental Rights Policy in relation to the Chicago Math issue. He said a report will be issue the end of June. He said a test will be given this fall to fourth graders and to date, the test has not been found. He said CPR has made several requests relating to this issue which he would like to put on hold until the administration issues the report. The Superintendent said a preliminary report will be given to the School Committee the end of June or early July. The Committee decided to discuss this issue at the August 4, 1997 meeting. A parent expressed concern regarding her child's workbook that she was unable to take home. The Superintendent suggested calling the principal and if the answer they receive is unacceptable, please call the Associate Superintendent. MINUTES Mr. Spadafora moved to approve the minutes of April 7 1997. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion The minutes were amended to reflect changes. The vote was 6 -0. Mr. Spadafora moved to approve the minutes of May 1, 1997. Mr. Stohlman seconded the motion The minutes were amended to reflect changes. The vote was 5 in favor and one abstain. Mr. Twomey was not present. NEW BUSINESS Non - resident Students Attending Reading Public Schools Dr. Harutunian discussed the memo dated June 11, 1997 regarding Non - Resident Students attending Reading Public Schools. There is a freshman who attended Reading Memorial High School this past year. Mr. Stohlman asked if there was a policy on this issue. The Superintendent said no. Dr. Harutunian said since Educational Reform, many districts have this as a contract item. He said he has some concerns about this issue and was interested in the School Committee input. Mr. Spadafora suggested putting this on hold. Ms. D'Antona asked if there was any sense of long -term commitment to the student. The Superintendent said last year it was made clear it was a one year commitment. Ms. Williams said unless he is a problem student, we owe it to him to stay. Dr. Harutunian discussed the year 2000 enrollment figures and said he did not have a recommendation at this point. Mr. Twomey said the School Committee was passive on this issue, he felt the School Committee needed a recommendation from the administration. He said he agreed with Ms. Williams. Once the child comes to the school system, we should keep him. Dr. Harutunian recommended this be Regular Session Page 5 June 16 1997 done through individual contracts. He said he agreed with the Committee that the student should be allowed to stay at the high school. In the fall, open the issue up to the bargaining units. Mr. Lundberg, Parker Middle School English Teacher was in the audience and discussed the issue with the Committee. He thanked the Committee for addressing the issue of teachers having their children attend school in Reading. He said it was a nice benefit to teachers and Town employees. He requested that a decision not be made until a survey is taken. If the response is around a dozen and it is a stresses the system. he finds that alarming. Ms. Williams stated that it would be a "red flag" to the School Committee and the administration if the few anticipated teachers' children would stress the system then we should be revisiting our commitment to METCO. Dr. Harutunian discussed with the committee the METCO program. He said the METCO program has been in Reading for 24 years and the enrollment with that has not changed. Dr. Harutunian said if a survey was done, he feels there would be a fair amount of interest. He said Reading has a good school system and it would be a wonderful opportunity for employees and there is no honor higher than that. Mr. George Hines was not in favor of allowing non - resident students attend schools in Reading. Mr. Lundberg said in N. Andover, the policy is revisited yearly. He felt more facts were needed before a decision is made in Reading. He said he would feel privileged to send his children to school in Reading. Ms. Williams moved that the freshman student be accepted to attend Reading Memorial High School for the next three years or until he graduates and receive all of the rights and benefits as if he was a Reading resident. Ms. D'Antona seconded the motion. Mr. Stohlman suggested adding an amendment saying at the end of the school year, if there is a problem with the student population, notify the School Committee and suggested addressing it on a year -to -year basis. Mr. Spadafora did not agree with the amendment. The Superintendent agreed with Mr. Stohlman. Mr. Twomey discussed a one year pilot program. Mr. Stohlman moved to table Ms. Williams motion. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion The vote was 3 in favor and three opposed. The vote for Ms. Williams motion was 5 in favor and one opposed Ms. D'Antona was opposed. Mr. Twomev moved to have the School Committee investi ag to a program for all employees of the Reading School System who are not resident to allow their child to attend the Reading School system Ms. Williams seconded the motion. Mr. Spadafora said the Committee currently has many issues on their plate and he wasn't sure this was a current priority. Mr. Twomey agreed with Mr. Spadafora and said the decision should be left at the discretion of the Superintendent. Dr. Harutunian discussed the N. Andover teachers' contract and said he would agree with Mr. Twomey to leave it to his discretion. Ms. Williams moved to table the motion. Mr. Spadafora seconded the motion. The vote was 5 in favor and one opposed. Mr. Stohlman was opposed. Mr. Stohlman moved to eliminate the pilot program for non - resident school employees requesting their children attend Reading Public School. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion The vote was 5 in favor and 1 opposed. Ms. Williams was opposed. The Committee took at break at 10:30 p.m. and resumed at 10:40 p.m. Regular Session Page 6 June 16, 1997 Parental Notification Law Dr. Harutunian referred to the memo dated June 11, 1997 regarding Parental Notification. He said he was notified a three or four weeks ago by the Department of Education a piece of legislature that needs to be implemented by September 1, 1997. He said there is a draft in the packet which was reviewed by Attorney Cohen, Town Council. Mr. Richards said on the June 16, 1997 version, Attorney Cohen's comments are underlined. Mr. Richards did an overhead presentation to the Committee. He discussed the Parental Notification Law and Implementation. He said the policy would be implemented next year. Dr. Harutunian said it is similar to the Harassment Policy, the administration will need three readings. Mr. Spadafora expressed concern regarding the conservative tone of this. He said the moral issue needs to be taken out of this. He suggested that this issue be tabled because the Committee needed further time and public input. The Committee discussed the mandates of the policy. Dr. Harutunian said the mandate requires the administration to notify parents before it is taught. A parent has the option to have their child exempt. He felt they should be pro- active and show the materials to the community. He asked the Committee how they would like to proceed. Ms. D'Antona moved to accept the draft policy dated June 16, 1997, Reading School Committee Policy: Parental Notification Relative to Sex Education. Mr. Twomey seconded the motion. Mr. Spadafora said the only reason he would support the motion is because he is mandated. Mr. Twomey was concerned about children not getting any information on this topic. Dr. Harutunian said by Friday, if anyone has any questions, he will bring them to the appropriate people to get answers. A parent asked what grade level this begins. Dr. Harutunian said Grade 5. The vote was 6 -0. Strategic Planning Dr. Harutunian referred to the memo dated June 11, 1997 regarding Strategic Planning. He said last year the School Committee heard two proposals from two different consultants on Strategic Planning, he asked the Committee how they would like to proceed with this. He recommended that the Administration go out and talk to other school districts and come back with three proposals not to exceed $10,000. He would then submit these to the School Committee with a brief presentation. He planned on doing this on August 4, 1997 or the early fall. Mr. Stohhnan moved on the recommendation of the administration to seek three qualified consultants for approximately $10,000 to provide a strategic planning process to help the School Committee move on a strategic plan. Mr. Spadafora seconded the motion. The vote was 6 -0. Superintendent's Contract Chair Susan Cavicchi discussed four points of the Superintendent's contract. Mr. Stohlman requested and Executive Session vote to be made public. A parent asked when that might be. Chair Susan Cavicchi discussed the negotiated items and said the School Committee will have a brief meeting to release the minutes. The four points were: • 2.5% base salary increase • Pro -rated merit bonus of $5,000 Regular Session Page 7 June 16, 1997 • Up to two weeks unused vacation buyback allowed for FY 97 and FY 98 contract • 2.5% increase for travel and miscellaneous expenses REPORT OF THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE CHAIR AND SUPERINTENDENT (continued) School Committee Liaisons Chair Susan Cavicchi reviewed the memo dated June 11, 1997 regarding School Committee Chair Report. She reviewed the School Committee Liaisons. Dr. Harutunian said the 766 PAC isn't needed anymore. He said the PAC feels comfortable having Dr. Ardi attending. Ms. Williams suggested adding 350 Trust. The Committee decided to discuss this in more detail at the August 4`h School Committee Meeting. Reception Dr. Harutunian notified the Committee that there will be a reception on Thursday, June 19, to meet the new principals: Karen Callan and Lisa Pittella. They will be held from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Barrow and Eaton Elementary Schools. School Committee, administration, teachers, parents and children are welcomed to attend. CALENDAR AND MEETINGS Dr. Harutunian said another School Committee Meetings is needed prior to the new school year. A parent asked about the nurses contract. Mr. Twomey said they are still in contract negotiations and nothing has been decided to date. Ms. D'Antona said they do not expect resolution prior to September 1, 1997. Dr. Harutunian said for the short term, the nurses will be here in September; for the long term it is undetermined at this time. Chair Susan Cavicchi said it is a long process and the nurses do not have a current contract. Chair Susan Cavicchi said there are still items left on the agenda: School Committee Goals and School Improvement Plans. Dr. Harutunian suggested doing the School Committee Goals and the School Improvement Plans at the August 5`h School Committee Meeting. He said the School Improvement Plans will take effect June 27 but any reasonable input from the School Committee will be looked at. Chair Susan Cavicchi said the Committee agreed to August 5`h. Chair Susan Cavicchi brought up the issue of NOBLE. Dr. Harutunian suggested that be discussed with the goals on August 51h A parent requested the School Committee meet with parents to discuss the Birch Meadow Kindergarten busing issue. Dr. Harutunian said a memo was going home to all parents today. Ms. D'Antona said if the Committee was to meet with parents it would not be to second guess the administration. Mr. Twomey said he was not in favor of discussing reversing the policy on class size. He also discussed the legal issues involved with moving the portables from Birch Meadow Elementary School to the Barrows Elementary School. Mr. Spadafora agreed with Ms. D'Antona and Mr. Twomey, he said this is a reeducation issue and the Committee does not have veto power. Dr. Harutunian suggested that he contact some of the parents that were present this evening. Chair Susan Cavicchi said a meeting would be scheduled for June 23 to listen to the parents and Dr. Harutunian would talk to some of the parents tomorrow that were present this evening. Regular Session Page 8 June 16 1997 Reorganization of School Committee Chair Susan Cavicchi turned the gavel over to Dr. Harutunian. Dr. Harutunian accepted nominations for the Chair position. Ms. D'Antona nominated Mr. Twomey. Mr. Spadafora seconded the nomination. Ms. Williams nominated Mr. Stohlman. Mr. Spadafora seconded the nomination. Dr. Harutunian said the nominations were closed. The vote was four in favor of Mr. Twomey by a show of hands, Chair Susan Cavicchi, Ms. D'Antona, Mr. Spadafora and Mr. Twomey, and two in favor of Mr. Stohlman, Mr. Stohlman and Ms. Williams. Mr. Spadafora nominated Ms. Cavicchi for the Vice -Chair position. Ms. D'Antona seconded the nomination. Mr. Twomey nominated Ms. D'Antona. Mr. Spadafora seconded the nomination. Ms. Williams nominated Mr. Spadafora. Mr. Spadafora thanked Ms. Williams and declined the position. Ms. D'Antona also declined the position. The consensus of the School Committee was 6 -0 in favor of Mr. Twomey for Chair and Ms. Cavicchi for Vice - Chair. Dr. Harutunian asked for a unanimous vote for Mr. Twomey, it was moved and seconded and voted 5 to 1, Mr. Stohlman opposed. A parent asked of the Chicago Math issue could be added to the next School Committee Meeting. Dr. Harutunian said meetings are still going on regarding this subject, he said he was not at a point to present it to the Committee. An.inrJUN At 12:10 a. in., Mr. Twomey moved to adjourn. Mr. Spadafora seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous 6 -0. Ms. Cavicchi Ms. D'Antona Mr. Spadafora Mr. Stohlman Mr. Twomey Ms. Williams Respectfully submitted, Harry K. Harutunian, Ph.D. Superintendent of Schools