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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1983-02-28 School Committee Minutes107 READING SCHOOL COMMITTEE MINUTES FEBRUARY 28, 1983 Call to Order A regular meeting of the Reading School Committee was called to order by Chairman Garroway on February 28, 1983, at 7:30 p, m., in the Central Office Conference Room. Mr. Nigro was absent. All other members were present, as were Superintendent Wells and Assistant Superintendents Munnelly and Winslow. There were eight visitors, including Mrs. Ruth McNaney and Mrs. Mary Blake of the Cafeteria Employees Union, Food Services Director Miss Catherine Cook, and repre- sentatives of the Citizens Advisory Council and the Daily Times and Chronicle. Executive Session Immediately after the call to order the Chairman announced that the regular agenda would be suspended so that the Committee could hear a Level III Grievance brought by the Cafeteria Workers of the Reading Schools (AfSCME, Council 93, Local 1703). Mrs. Philbrick moved, seconded by Mr. Allen, that the Committee enter into execu- tive session to hear a grievance. The motion carried on a unanimous roll call vote. The Committee remained in executive session until 7:54 p. m., when the open session resumed. Bills and Payroll Warrants for bills and payroll were authorized as follows: Bills February 25, 1983 - General Expense - Total - $52,199.09. March 4, 1983 - General Expense - Total - $25,557.34. Payroll March 4, 1983 - Weekly - Total - $23,906.58 Approval of Minutes of February 14, 1983 On a motion by Mr. Landers, seconded by Mr. Allen, the Committee voted unanimously to approve the minutes of the meeting of February 14, 1983. Citizens' Input There was no citizens' input. Policy Review The Chairman postponed this agenda item until Mr. Nigro, who is chairman of the Committee to Review Policies, returns from vacation. Budget Review Dr. Wells recommended that the School Committee go on record that they would not pursue relocating the Central Office in FY84 but instead vote to allocate the $50,000 budgetted for the move for items previously deleted from the FY84 budget. This would mean the budget would still be within the Finance Committee guidelines, that many nrinrity ;tamg rmild he restored to the budget. and that the School Department budget base would not be lowered for future years. Dr. Wells presented a list of 12 items (document B -2 -b) that he recommended be restored to the budget. READING SCHOOL COMMITTEE MINUTES FEBRUARY 28, 1989 Chairman Garroway noted that these items had been deleted from the budget only, because the School Committee felt the Central Office relocation was more important, but in light of the Finance Committee vote against the move and their announced intention to sponsor a Town Meeting article to address Town -wide space needs, he supported Dr. Wells' recommendations, for the reasons he stated. Mr. Allen moved, seconded by Mrs. Philbrick, and it was voted unanimously to delete the amount of $50,000 from the 7200 series of the FY84 budget. Mr. Allen moved, seconded by Mrs. Philbrick, that the sum of $50,000 be restored to the FY84 budget for the items enumerated on document B -2 -b. Mr. Landers moved, seconded by Mr. Coco, to amend the motion by deleting Item #5 (for a word processor for the Central Office) and add the amount of $8,000 to Item #4 (for insgructional equipment - computer hardware and software). Dr. Wells pointed out that the Department of Public Works and the Town Clerk's Office both had word processors, adding that many small offices now used them. He said the Central Office had many uses for a word processor and it would enable them to accomplish many tasks more efficiently. He asked that if the Committee did not want to vote for the $8,000 would it consider allocating a lesser amount to lease a word processor. Mr. Landers said he was not negative about a work processor, rather the intent of his motion was to increase the amount spent on instructional materials and improve computer literacy. Mr. Coco agreed that a word processor would be convenient but felt they required skilled operators, another person may be needed to operate it, and there would be maintenance costs. He mentioned the possibility of the Town purchasing a word processor which would interface with its new computer. Mr. Coco said he favored allocating the entire $50,000 to education. Mrs. Philbrick pointed out that when cuts were made in the budget pupil cost items were not deleted. The Chairman called for a vote on the amendment offered by Mr. Landers. The amendment failed to pass. The vote was 2 -3, with Mr. Landers and Mr. Coco voting for and the Chairman, Mr. Allen and Mrs. Philbrick voting against. Mrs. Philbrick then moved, seconded by Mr. Coco, that the Administration be directed to investigate leasing a work processor, which would greatly reduce the cost, and that the excess amount be applied to Item X14. The motion carried, 4 -1, with Mr. Allen casting the dissenting vote. Mr. Coco then requested that all items on B -2 -b be voted upon separately. The Chairman agreed to his request. Mr. Allen moved, seconded by Mrs. Philbrick, to add to the 4210 series $5,000 for Item 1 - Hot Top King Street Driveway - P. J. H. The motion carried 4 -1, with Mr. Coco voting in the negative. Mrs. Philbrick moved, seconded by Mr. Allen, to add $2,800 to the 4200 Series for Item 11- = Flo ti 1° torrid ^r and 3 ___ - Paton. The motion carried; 4 -1; �, with Mr. Coco casting the dissenting vote. 109 READING SCHOOL COMMITTEE MINUTES FEBRUARY 28, 1983 Mr. Allen moved, seconded by Mrs. Philbrick, to add to the 4220 series $3,000 for Item #3 - Painting- various places- R.M.H.S. The motion carried on a 4 -1 vote with Mr. Coco voting in the negative. Mr. Allen moved, seconded by Mrs. Philbrick, and it was voted unanimously, to add to the 7400 series $3,530 for ITem #6 - Instrusion alarm (replacement) for the Business Education Department. Mrs. Philbrick moved, seconded by Mr. Landers, to add to the 7400 series $500 for Item #7 - shade replacement - R.M.H.S. Mr. Allen said he felt Item #7 and Item #8, also for shade replacement, were not exactly the same type items as the others under consideration and he hoped the Committee would vote against them and add the amounts to instructional equipment. The motion of Item #7 was defeated on a 4 -1 vote, with only chairman Garroway voting in favor. Mrs. Philbrick moved, seconded by Mr. Landers, to add to the 7400 series $3,170 for Item #8 - for blackout shades (replacement) Eaton. The motion was defeated, 4 -1, with only the Chairman voting in favor. Mrs. Philbrick moved, seconded by Mr. Allen, to add to series 7400 $300 for Item #9 replace door -metal shop - P.J.H. The motion carried 4 -1, with only Mr. Coco voting against it. Mrs. Philbrick moved, seconded by Mr. Landers, to add to the 7400 series $2,250 for Item #10- copier with stand - Barrows. The motion was defeated by a unanimous vote. Mr. Landers noted that when the Pearl Street School closes their relatively new copier could be transferred to the Barrows School. Mr. Landers moved, seconded by Mr. Coco, and it was voted unanimously to add to the 7400 series $6,500 for Item dill - replacement light fixtures - P.J.H. Mr. Allen moved, seconded by Mr. Landers, to add to the 7400 series $2,900 for Item #12 - replace Master Clock- C.J.H. The motion carried 4 -1, with Mr. Coco opposed. Chairman Garroway noted that there was $5,970 left from the $50,000 - the total of Items #7, #8 and #10. Mr. Landers moved, seconded by Mrs. Philbrick, and it was unanimously voted to add to the 7300 series $5,970 for Item X14 - Instructional Equipment (computer hardware and software). Cafeteria Budget Mr. Winslow gave an overview of the projected FY84 Cafeteria Budget, along with comparison figures for FY82 and estimates for FY83, as enumerated on document B -3 -a. The salary portion of the budget could not be discussed because negotiations have not been completed. Food Services Director Miss Catherine Cook was on hand to answer questions. After a brief discussion Mrs. Philbrick moved, seconded by Mr. Allen, and it was voted unanimously to approve $232,295 for the expense portion of the FY84 Cafeteria Budget. 110 READING SCHOOL COMMITTEE MINUTES FEBRUARY 28, 1983 Mr. Coco noted that participation in the school lunch program was up about 9 %. He commended Miss Cook on how well she was operating the food services program and commented particularly on the success of the fast food program she initiated at the beginning of the school year. The Chairman, too, said he felt the operation of the program was very impressive. Finger Printing Dr. Wells said he had discussed the matter of voluntary finger printing of school children with Police Chief Marchand. He said the Chief felt strongly that he would like his officers to do the finger printing, rather than volunteers, because they were trained in proper procedure. He added that the American Legion and V.F.W. have both offered the use of their facilities. Dr. Wells said he had heard also that the photographer who takes the school pictures is willing to donate a suitable card for finger prints, with space for a photograph, and would furnish a small black and white picture free of charge. Following some discussion, and upon the suggestion of the Chairman, Mr. Edward Coletta of the Daily Times and Chronicle and Mr. Donald Shepheard, Chairman of the Citizens Advisory Council, agreed to jointly work out the logistics of the project. School Committee Report for Town Report Mr. Allen distributed copies of the School Committee report he had written for the annual Town Report. Permission for R.M.H.S. Athletes to Perform on Sunda In response to a request from Athletic Director R. Gilbert Congdon, Mr. Allen moved, seconded by Mrs. Philbrick and the Committee unanimously voted to grant permission to six members of the High School Girls Track Team to perform in the MIAA sponsored Eastern Girls Track Meet, to be held Sunday, March 6th, at Harvard University. School Committee Policy IGDD requires School Committee permission for groups of students representing Reading Schools to participate in activities scheduled on Sunday. Dr. Wells noted that the invitation to participate is an honor to the School as well as the girls. The girls so honored are : Cheryl Vedder, Chrissy Harris, Monica Holahan, Gail Saunders, Claire Rittenburg and Jane Schloth. Financial Reports Noted for the record were the following financial Statements: Cafeteria Statement for January 1983; Expense and Salary Accounts as of February 25, 1983; and Account Balances as of February 28, 1983. Data File Dr. Wells presented the Committee, for its information, with a list of statistics, published by Report on Education Research, under the title "Data File," showing projected school -age populations, 1985 -2000. He noted that while an 18% increase is expected nationwide for those years only a 2% increase is predicted for Massachusetts. III READING SCHOOL COMMITTEE MINUTES FEBRUARY 28. 1983 National Merit Scholarship Finalists Dr. Wells announced that R. M. H. S. students Barbara L. Bashore and Donna L. Richards are finalists in the 1983 National Merit Scholarship competition. Chairman Garroway, on behalf of the Committee, congratulated the finalists and expressed their pride in the two students. Field House Rental for "A Salute to the Excellence of Our Youth" On the suggestion of Dr. Wells, Mr. Allen moved, seconded by Mr. Landers, and it was unanimously voted to waive rental and custodial charges for the "Salute to the Excellence of our Youth" event, scheduled for March 19th in the Field House. Mr. Allen, liaison to the sponsoring group, said there has been a lot of positive reaction and support for the event. Resignation Mr. Allen moved, seconded by Mr. Landers, and it was unanimously voted to accept the resignation of Joseph Ruderman, custodian at R.M.H.S., effective February 18, 1983. Leaves Mr. Allen moved, seconded by Mr. Coco, and it was unanimously voted, on the recommendation of the Administration, to grant an unpaid leave of absence for the 1983 -84 school year to Ronald C. Morrison, science teacher, Coolidge Junior High School, for the purpose of exploring other opportunities related to the field of education. Mr. Coco moved, seconded by Mr. Allen, and it was unanimously voted to grant to Mrs. Claire Bitinas, third grade teacher at the Pearl Street School, who is now on maternity leave, a child- rearing leave for the remainder of the school year. Other Mr. Allen announced that Bryan O'Connell, Coolidge Junior High School Student, has been named as one of 35 on the Pop Warner Football League All- Scholastic Team. The criteria for choosing the team includes academic essay writing ability as well as academic and athletic achievements. Executive Session - Adjournment At 9:36 p. m. Mr. Coco moved, seconded by Mrs. Philbrick, to enter into executive session to discuss matters pertaining to bargaining and negotiations. The motion passed on a unanimous roll call vote. The Committee remained in executive session until it adjourned at 10:34 p. m. Respectfully submitted, 0& . ! lAa-1 Robert S. Wells, Secretary