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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1993-01-25 School Committee MinutesREADING PUBLIC SCHOOLS Reading, Massachusetts SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING REGULAR SESSION MINUTES JANUARY 25, 1993 CALL TO ORDER Chairman Matthew Cummings called the Regular Meeting of the Reading School Committee to order at 7:30 p.m. in the Superin- tendent's Conference Room. All members were present. Also present were Superintendent Robert J. Munnelly, Interim Assis- tant Superintendent Susan Wheltle and a reporter from the Chronicle. Mr. Cummings welcomed and introduced Peter Losinger, the Reading High School Representative to the School Committee for the second half of the 1992 -93 school year. Mr. Cummings thanked Michael Shannon for his contributions as the Reading High School Representative to the School Committee for the, first half of the 1992 -93 school year. MINUTES George Shannon moved to approve the Budget Open Hearing Minutes of January 11, 1993. Susan Cavicchi seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. BILLS AND PAYROLLS The warrant for bills is as follows: January 25, 1993 Bills $209,422.01 The warrant for payrolls is as follows: January 22, 1993 Teachers $410,756.49 CITIZEN INPUT There was no citizen input. OTHER - SUPERINTENDENT'S MEMO Dr. Munnelly stated that the State Legislature will begin making changes to the School Reform Bill on January 26, 1992. The Superintendent stated that State Representative Krekorian advised that Reading in FY94 would receive the $363,000 it got in FY93, plus an additional $461,000. He continued, to be eligible for those funds, Reading would have to increase its expenditure on education by $177,000. REGULAR SESSION MINUTES 2 VTSTTnPR RMHS STUDENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE: OF THE STUDENT ADVISORY JANUARY 25, 1993 PRINCIPAL MIRKIN AND MEMBERS Dr. Munnelly asked Student Advisory Member Michael Shannon to introduce the other members of the 1992 -93 Student Advisory Committee. Members present were Peter Losinger, Andrea Parsons, P. J. O'Leary and Katherine Murphy. Areas of discussion were the high school newspaper, Orbit, whose advisor is Mrs. Starrett; and on March 10, 1993 the senior class is planning to have a prom for the residents of the Wingate Nursing Home, formerly Somerset Nursing Home. Reading Memorial High School Principal Mirkin requested May 12th, an early release day, to carry out the Spring Fest from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. She noted that some of the things students plan to do are paint, clean, fix, and plant. The students are looking for donations from sponsors and added that they are planning a picnic or a barbecue outside afterwards. A School Committee member questioned if the day as described would qualify as a regular day for students. Ms. Mirkin replied that she would get the answer from the Department of Education to that question. The general consensus from the School Committee, depending on the answer to that question, was positive. UPDATE: RMHS GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS AND COURSE SELECTIONS PROCESS - PRINCIPAL RENA MIRKIN Principal Mirkin stated that through the one year self -study in preparation for the NEASC evaluation, the consensus of the faculty at Reading Memorial High School regarding graduation requirements is as follows: nFrTSTnNq Decisions should remain as a 9th grade requirement. The 11th and 12th grade physical education program will in- clude units regarding topics originally explored in the 9th grade such as substance abuse, sexuality, AIDS HIV, etc. The inclusion of a decisions -type model in the 8th grade, the required course in 9th and a continuation in grades 11 and 12, will provide a comprehensive and continuing health education for our students. The consensus of the School Committee was to keep this re- quirement as it reads. REGULAR SESSION MINUTES 3 JANUARY 25, 1993 FINE ARTS REQUIREMENT Ms. Mirkin went on to explain: A Fine Arts experience should be an integral piece of a comprehensive education. The faculty's commitment to remains. The many requirements throughout the curriculum, coupled with the financial realities, have led the faculty to a consensus that one semester Art Requirement should be in place with a strong recommen- dation that students continue to pursue courses in the Fine Arts. This will also provide students one more elective choice in their high school careers enabling them to explore courses in the Business and Technology areas. The faculty is, in this way, ensuring at least one Fine Arts experience and giving the students the responsibility and opportunity to continue in that area and also to pursue other areas of interest. In discussion, Ms. Mirkin noted that 17% of the current Freshman class will have completed two Fine Arts courses in June, 20% will have completed one, and 62% have not begun the requirement. Dr. Munnelly stated that in the past many high school students were missing out on the Fine Arts experience entirely and that was the original rationale for the two - semester requirement. The Superintendent advised he was recommending a one semester Fine Arts requirement now because it was the consensus of the faculty. A School Committee member asked if the faculty have discussed other courses that would meet the Fine Arts requirement. Dr. Munnelly stated they have and discussion is continuing regarding other integrated subject areas. Ms. Mirkin added that a humanities course would probably be prepared for September 1994. Student Representative Peter Losinger stated some students had to drop courses that they really wanted to take in order to fit the Fine Arts requirement in. On the recommendation of the Administration, George Shannon moved to reduce the Fine Arts Requirement down to 1- semester with the incomina Freshman (1997) class. Susan Cavicchi seconded the motion. Discussion continued on the importance of Fine Arts for college preparation. Members encouraged faculty to develop courses which integrate the arts with other disciplines. The vote was unanimous. REGULAR SESSION MINUTES 4 Chair Cummings advised that votes, therefore at the next will be taken on the revised COMPUTER PROFICIENCY JANUARY 25, 1993 policy decision will need two School Committee a first vote written policy. Ms. Mirkin spoke on the computer proficiency requirement: While the computer literacy /proficiency requirement has been in place since 1982, it has never, in fact, been put into practice. The faculty recommends that this require- ment be held in abeyance for one more year while a faculty committee explores the concept of computer inte- gration throughout the curriculum wherever appropriate. The high school's 5 -year goal is to have computer proficiency as a given so that a student would, through his or her course work throughout 4 years at RMHS; be virtually guaranteed to be computer proficient. A School Committee member asked if we have enough equipment to fulfill this requirement. Dr. Munnelly replied that we need to replace terminals and that the bulk of $50,000 in the budget will go to the high school. One of the difficulties, Dr. Munnelly pointed out is the definition of Computer Liter- acy as opposed to Proficiency. He noted students are gradu- ating with Computer Proficiency. Ms. Mirkin stated with further teacher education then more infusion of computers could be made in the curriculum. George Shannon moved to delete the Computer Proficiency Course as a graduation requirement. Barbara Philbrick seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. Principal Mirkin advised that the course booklet is presently being developed with new courses being offered in the Fall. SCHOOL BUILDING COMMITTEE UPDATE: ROGER SANSTAD, CHAIRMAN AND ROBERTA D'ANTONA, SCHOOL COMMITTEE LIASON BIRCH MEADOW Ms. D'Antona informed the School Committee that the School Building Committee's plan along with Mr. Ensminger's report, will add four classrooms and more space to the front of the Birch Meadow School. There will be twenty -one regular classes, one special education class and two portables. She noted in 1997 the population is expected to peak. Ms. D'Antona also advised that the two portable classrooms need to be in place for next year. Ms. D'Antona added that an in- REGULAR SESSION MINUTES 5 JANUARY 25, 1993 crease of $115,000 for a revision of the sprinkler system has to be added on to the Birch Meadow financial total. Mr. Sanstad stated the project has been scaled down, that the library area now will be located in the front of the building and other areas have been reduced. Chair Cummings asked if it would be possible to demonstrate the original School Building Committee request with an overlay of the scaled down project. EATON Ms. D'Antona stated there has been considerable deterioration in the Eaton School since the last proposal, and now $730,000 of replacements need to be made. She advised that these re- placements are at an emergency level and that an addition of $113,000 for a sprinkler system at Joshua Eaton must be made. Ms. D'Antona stated that there would be firm data from the School Building Committee in February, that tonight is an update for the School Committee and the public to realize that this is a critical issue. A School Committee member stated we need to make replacements now and if this is not part of the Town's 60% State funded project, that funding will have to be done out of the Town's pocket. Ms. D'Antona added that because of the Disabilities Act other changes may need to be made. PARKER Ms. D'Antona advised that the Building Committee has a sub- committee reviewing the thirteen proposals for the Architect Committee. She added that they are working closely with financial people for the amount to be bondable. Dr. Munnelly stated he has been impressed with the Building Committee, who have broken up into sub - committees to work with the Town Manager and talk with him. He noted that they are moving with great speed to bring in a complete plan that Reading can afford. The Superintendent added the cooperation of the Town Manager, Beth Klepeis and the FinCom needs to be recognized also. Roberta D'Antona, along with herself representing the School Committee, updated the School Building Committee members: Administration Don Farnham Teacher Representative Dave Williams Town Meeting Russ Graham REGULAR SESSION MINUTES 6 Citizen -at -Large Citizen -at -Large Citizen -at -Large Citizen -at -Large Citizen -at -Large Citizen -at -Large Superintendent Principal -B /M Principal -Eaton Principal- Parker Architect JANUARY 25, 1993 Roger Sanstad Bob Grasso Margaret Cowell Joe Lupi Paula O'Leary Barbara Poock Dr. Robert Munnelly Richard Davidson Don Farnham Jack Delaney David Finney Dr. Munnelly advised that the time -line needs to be understood. OLD BUSINESS BUDGET FY94 Chair Cummings advised that the School Committee will meet Wednesday, January 27 with the FinCom. He invited the public and stated that anytime the public would like a presentation of the FY94 School Budget that School Committee members are available. FinCom member Nate White stated the $768,000 shortfall needs to be raised in public presentation. School Committee members explained that people in the Town do not realize the shortfall and advised that in order to maintain a level service budget it will take three quarters of a million dollars more than what we are spending this year. They stated the shortfalls and their impact on the school system need to be discussed tonight. Mr. White asked if the School Committee expected the dollar amount for the same level of services without an override. The Superintendent again reviewed the School Committee's budget message and shared that because of money received by the State we were able to add staff members, teacher aides and custodians for the 1992 -93 school year. Dr. Munnelly stated that the areas that would suffer if cuts were to occur are the teaching staff, department heads, custodial staff, teachers aids, library /media staff and staff development. He added that in addition, student fees for athletics and extracurricular activities would be raised considerably. The Superintendent noted that there would be an increase in elementary class sizes if teachers are dropped - 12 classes of 28 -29 and several others 26 -27. He went on to say there would be cutbacks in the secretarial staff, a re- REGULAR SESSION MINUTES 7 JANUARY 25, 1993 duction in the computer investment, a step down of teacher reimbursements, raises in the rent for facilities, and other cuts and increases. He added that every one of these changes would have to be implemented to bridge the gap. Along with this, he added raises to our employees have to be seriously talked about. The Superintendent asserted that everyone who has a stake in the community needs to be involved. He noted that even residents who do not have children in school could potentially suffer from school cutbacks if property values decrease as a result of a weaker school system. Reading resident Jim Riley asked if school choice was an option. Dr. Munnelly replied that he would like to bring this up as an issue at a future date noting it may not be an option to attract students if drastic cuts are made. INFORMATION AND PROPOSALS REPORT ON STANDARDIZED TESTING: ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT SUSAN WHELTLE DISCUSSION OF RESULTS OF MEAP RESULTS OF 1992 ADMINISTRATION OF STANFORD ACHIEVEMENT TESTS Dr. Munnelly advised that with the support of parents and Mr. Berger standardized testing was done last year. He also noted that the Department of Education has awarded a Commonwealth Inservice Institute Grant of $2,305 to the Reading Schools for the purpose of teacher training in alternative assessment. The Superintendent noted that Killam's Assistant Principal and Grade 5 teacher Karen Rickershauser is the convener for this project, which will involve fifteen members of our elementary staff this spring. The Interim Assistant Superintendent Susan Wheltle reported on the MEAP testing for this year. She stated that the greatest gains in scaled scores, 1998, for Reading occurred at the elementary and middle school levels, with the most dramatic improvements appearing in mathematics, reading and science. Ms. Wheltle added that there was a 100 point increase in math, and a 90 point increase in reading in the elementary and middle schools over four years. She continued by pointing out composite science scores increased by 80 points in the elementary schools and 60 points in the middle schools. She noted that by the standards of the Department of Education there was only a slight increase in the high school scores in reading, math and social studies, a pattern which other high schools experienced as well. REGULAR SESSION MINUTES 8 JANUARY 25, 1993 The Assistant Superintendent pointed out that several factors might contribute to Massachusetts' high school students' low performance. Ms. Wheltle stated that one possible factor is that high school seniors are not motivated to try hard on a test that is given in second semester and which will have no bearing on their college applications. Ms. Wheltle reported that Reading students in Grades Two, Five and Seven took the Eighth Edition of the Stanford Achievement Tests in 1992. She noted that these multiple choice tests measure primarily reading, mathematics and language skills. Ms. Wheltle added that Reading students continued to perform well in comparison to other children taking these tests throughout the country. Ms. Wheltle informed the School Committee that these tests provide a snapshot of children's performance at a particular point in time and that these test scores are but one of many indicators of a child's abilities. The Assistant Superintendent added that in the real world in and out of the classroom, students must be able to demonstrate their knowledge and skills, not simply select one of four pre- determined answers. Ms. Wheltle continued by stating the consensus of faculty and administrators is that multiple choice tests produced by the major publishers are neither valid nor appropriate measures because they do not match our curriculum and instructional strategies well. Ms. Wheltle discussed the ERB (Educational Research Bureau) Writing Assessment Program that provides a direct measure of writing ability by asking for a writing sample from each student in one of three levels. The Administration's recommendation for testing would be for Grades Five, Seven and Ten. She advised that students write on the same prompt regardless of grade and the modes of discourse emphasized for each level and the scoring criteria reflect increasingly demanding and sophisticated skills as students progress. The final drafts are then mailed to ERB and are evaluated by a team of trained readers. Ms. Wheltle advised that this method, besides evaluating a student's knowledge of grammar and writing conventions, is a direct assessment of how well a student can think, plan and use language to convey meaning. The Assistant Superintendent stated that ERB provides comparison scores based on national, suburban public school and private school norms. Ms. Wheltle informed the School Committee that the Administration, supported by faculty, would like to drop standardized testing for this spring. Dr. Munnelly added for this Spring he would like to substitute in Grades 5, 7, and 10 the two day ERB writing assessment test. School Committee members said that they appreciated the faculty's appraisal of REGULAR SESSION MINUTES 9 JANUARY 25, 1993 multiple choice tests, but observed that parents wtill would want to have them continue. Dr. Munnelly noted there is $10,000 in the budget for testing and that this amount could cover both the writing assessment and more traditional standardized testing. He added that a search would continue for a performance assessment in math. George Shannon moved to direct the Administration to conduct both the ERB and Stanford Achievement testing to be able to make both comparisons to parents and the School Committee. Timothy Twomey seconded the motion. Discussion continued regarding the best way to proceed to see what is the most effective measure of testing. The vote was unanimous. ADJOURNMENT At 11:00 p.m. George Shannon moved to adjourn to Executive Session for matters of discussion of bargaining and negotiat- ing. Barbara Philbrick seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. Susan Cavicchi Matthew Cummings Roberta D'Antona Barbara Philbrick George Shannon Timothy Twomey