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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1984-03-26 School Committee Minutes281 READING SCHOOL COMMITTEE MINUTES Call to Order MARCH 26. 1984 Chairman Coco called a regular meeting of the Reading School Committee to order at 7 :31 p. m., on March 26, 1984, in the Central Office Conference Room. All members were present, as were Superintendent Wells and Assistant Superintendents Munnelly and Winslow. There were approximately 15 visitors, including Mr. Leonard D'Orlando, Principal of Reading Memorial High School, Mr. Paul Guerette, Principal of the Pearl Street School, who also served as Chairman of the Advisory Committee on the Gifted and Talented, and representatives of the Citizens Advisory Council, Finance Committee, Advisory Committee on the Gifted and Talented, the League of Women Voters, and the Daily Times and Chronicle. Approval of the Minutes of March 5,1984 On a motion by Mrs. Philbrick, seconded by Mr. Nigro, the Committee voted unanimously to approve the minutes of the School Committee meeting of March 5, 1984. Approval of Bills and Payrolls Warrants for bills and payrolls were authorized as follows: Bills March 9, 1984 March 16, 1984 March 23, 1984 March 30, 1984 Payrolls March 16, 1984 March 22, 1984 March 23, 1984 March 30, 1984 Citizens' Input General Expense - General Expense General Expense General Expense Weekly - Total - Teachers - Total Weekly - Total - Weekly - Total - There was no citizens' input. METCO Budget Estimate - FY85 Total - $39,776.06 Total - $27,300.79 Total - $61,994.46 Total - $54,523.31 $25,583.38 - $315,284.09 $26,118.31 $28,429.01 Before the FY85 Estimated METCO Budget was discussed, Chairman Coco announced that he and Vice Chairman Philbrick will be on Channel 3 Thursday, March 29, at 7 :30 to present the expense portion of the budget and answer questions from viewers. Dr. Wells and Dr. Munnelly then reviewed the estimated FY85 METCO budget, noting that although the "Cherry Sheet" shows a 10% increase (to $231,000) over FY84, it is not believed that the State Department will approve an accross- the -board increase, therefore, the figure being used for budget purposes is $221,899 ($11,599 more than FY84). The estimated budget is made up of: Schedule A - Personnel, $56,860 and other Expenses, $3,100; Schedule B - $89,100, equivalent of the cost of four teachers; Schedule Transportation /+,r.,�..: .-,, .. .. .� �,r ,.�,... Transport) ., r\ C72 5230 FOr a and Schedule l• - 11anspo tation (l'1on-1tors and 1'1oto ranspori ) Y• ,v total of $221,899. ,82 READING SCHOOL COMMITTEE MINUTES MARCH 26, 1984 Following a brief discussion, Mr. MacDonald moved, seconded by Mr. Nigro, and it was voted unanimously to approve the estimated FY85 METCO budget, as enumerated on exhibit B- 2 -a -1. 34 Gould Street Lease Dr. Wells said that the existing lease with Solo -Pak for 34 Gould Street, as voted last year, expires May 17th but has a rider which allows a six -month extension if written notification is given prior to March 15, 1984. He added that Mr. Winslow had written a note to Solo -Pak expressing the wish to extend the lease. He then asked for a School Committee vote to extend the lease, as the Central Office could not relocate by May 17th. Mr. Nissen moved, seconded by Mrs. Philbrick, and it was voted unanimously that the School Committee extend the lease on 34 Gould Street for one year, such lease to be under the same conditions as previously, including the rider. Chairman Coco noted that the Committee has talked about the Pearl Street School as a possible site for the relocation of the Central Office. He added that there have been some inquiries about renting space in that School, but there is nothing definite, therefore extending the lease will allow time to work out details. Dr. Wells, mentioning the various organizations which have expressed interest in renting part of the School, said that the Administration needs some direction from the School Committee as to how to reply to these people, so they may make necessary decisions. At this point Mr. Nissen, as a member of the Space Study Committee, gave a brief progress report, stating that this Committee is looking into a connector being built between the Town Hall and former Library, to make a municipal complex. In order to make the connector large enough to house Public Works and School Department offices there would be an additional cost of approximately $300- 500,000. He added that the Space Study Committee is planning to take the figures to Town Meeting and ask for a discussion of what offices should be in the proposed municipal complex. The Chairman said that at the meeting following the April 2nd meeting a discussion of the Pearl Street School will be on the agenda, adding that presently there is money in the FY85 budget for mothballing the building. Superintendent's Recommendations on the Report on the Gifted and Talented Chairman Coco introduced this agenda item by noting that the Advisory Committee on the Gifted and Talented ( ACGAT) made its report three weeks ago, at which time it was passed on to the Superintendent for his recommendations. Dr. Wells commended the ACGAT for their work and the positive tone of their report. He then spoke on his recommendations, as delineated on Exhibit C -1. Noting that the most conservative estimate places the School Committee budget $319,000 over what the Finance Committee will recommend to Town Meeting, Dr. Wells said this will be a tough year financially and he expects FY86 will be even more bleak. 283 READING SCHOOL COMMITTEE MINUTES MARCH 26. 1984 The Superintendent said he heartily supports two recommendations of the ACGAT, i. e., an improved process for identifying the needs of children - all children, not just the gifted and talented - and in- service training for teachers so they will be able to identify strengths and weaknesses of students and place them in an appropriate program,adding he feels these two recommendations will take all available energy and finances for the first year. Dr. Wells took exception to the charge in the ACGAT report that the School Department has overlooked or missed the gifted and talented. He also disagreed with the narrowness of their definition of the gifted and talented. He further said that he understood their exemption of athletic ability and musical and artistic talent in a Town where education is supported at lower than the average level. Dr. Wells also took exception to the omission by the ACGAT of task orientation. He noted the difficulty in evaluating second and third graders and said the schools should look at what can be done for the gifted and talented, the bright child, and those not task oriented. The Superintendent said he did not support the concept of removing children from the building for special programs, but would prefer finding space within the building for this purpose. He noted that there are funds in the budget for in- service training for teachers. Chairman Coco then called for comments, first from the School Committee and then from visitors. Mrs. Philbrick said the in- service training should go beyond the teachers learning to identify gifted and talented students so that they would also be trained to work with them after they are identified, adding that it is also important to monitor these students. Mr. Nissen said he saw three needs: (1) Consistency - from classroom to classroom and building to building, across the Town, with a set of materials and approaches to meet the needs of students whose needs are above and beyond the curriculum; (2) Continuity - so there will be provisions for a child who has been given extra work when entering the next grade level; (3) Coordination - across Town - must have a methodical method so children's needs are being met through an active process dealing with teachers and making recommendations. Mr. Nissen then moved, seconded by Mr. MacDonald, that the School Committee fund a full -time position for the second semester of next school year. He later amended the motion, with proper second, by adding that the Administration initiate, at the beginning of the next school year, a screening program to identify children's needs and also provide in- service training for teachers to allow them to identify and meet the needs of gifted and talented students. Still later in the discussion Mr. Allen moved, with proper second, to add to the motion that a committee be established by the Administration, as soon as is reasonable, which will at the appropriate time make a progress report to the School Committee. The motion, as amended, carried by unanimous vote. During the discussion which preceded the final vote, Mr. MacDonald said he felt that the use of a resource teacher for gifted and talented students was preferred to the practive of removing children from their school building. 28 READING SCHOOL COMMITTEE MINUTES MARCH 26. 1984 When the Chairman opened the discussion to visitors, Mr. William Griset, a member of ACGAT, took exception to some points in Dr. Wells' recommendations, i. e., that the ACGAT was result oriented, and that public schools shouldn't allocate resources to one group at the expense of another. Mr. Griset also felt that the Superinten- dent's recommendations did not go far enough to meet the needs of the gifted and talented and said there was a certain elitism regarding sports activities. Mr. George Shannon, another ACGAT member, expressed concern about the amount of money spent for athletic programs and for refurbishing the track, which, he said cater to a small group. He said education should come before athletics. Mr. Daniel Boucher, also of the ACGAT, said that group had, over the past six months, studied everything discussed during the evening, and added that he felt the School Committee was not taking the work done by the ACGAT seriously enough. Discussion concluded when the School Committee voted on the amended motion, as recorded above. Planned 1984 -85 Elementary and Middle School Computer Purchases Dr. Munnelly said the planned computer purchases outlined on Exhibit C -2 were for elementary and middle schools only, and the Administration would make recommendations concerning the High School at a later date. He then went over the anticipated purchases and how they will be used at grade levels 3 -8. Mr. MacDonald remarked that the purchasing of further computer equipment for the schools was one example of the opportunities being provided for the gifted and talented students. After some discussion of what the School Department hopes to do in the future regarding computer purchases and instruction, Chairman Coco noted that since the introduction of computers in the schools three vears ago the program has progressed very well and there are now opportunities for computer instruction . at nearly very grade level. Official Names of Coolidge and Parker Schools as of September 1984 After a brief discussion, Mr. Allen moved, seconded by Mrs. Philbrick, and it was unanimously voted that, effective July 1, 1984 the official names of the Coolidge and Parker Junior High Schools would be changed to the Coolidge Middle School and the Parker Middle School. Massachusetts Educational Legislation - Overview Dr. Wells reviewed with the Committee the State Legislature's House Bill 5000, an omnibus bill dealing with educational reform. He noted that it appears there will be major differences between the Governor and the Legislature regarding Chapter 70 funds. He also touched on parts of the Bill which call for more testing of students, new standards for high school graduation, and the possibility of much of the power of local school committees being transferred to the State Department of Education. Dr. Munnelly noted that there are three very expensive reforms in the Bill - one concerning increased teachers' salaried, another binding arbitration replacing court review on tenured teacher dismissals, and a third the imp tOVeiiient of 285 READING SCHOOL COMMITTEE MINUTES MARCH 26, 1984 teacher retirement benefits. He added that the Bill is still permeable and that the Committee could still play a part in legislation which may be a benchmark for the next few years. Salary Account Projection - FY84 Addressing the GY84 salary account projection, as enumerated on Exhibit C -6, Chairman Coco noted that there was an almost zero surplus. Dr. Wells noted that $40,000 had been removed from the salary account at the request of the Finance Committee, shortly before Town Meeting. The Committee then asked the Administration to make a projection on the FY84 expense accounts. Leaves Mr. Nissen moved, seconded by Mrs. Philbrick, and it was unanimously voted to grant child- rearing leaves for the 1984 -85 school year to Mrs. Judith A.Carter, home economics teacher at the High School and Mrs. Nancy L. Bryant, first grade teacher at the Killam School, and a child- rearing leave from April 23rd to the end of this school year to Mrs. Eileen Shine Litterio, second grade teacher at the Barrows School. Dr. Wells said a third year child- rearing leave had been denied to another teacher by the Administration and there may be a grievance filed. Resignations Mr. MacDonald moved, seconded by Mr. Nissen, and it was unanimously voted to accept the following resignations, effective immediately: Mrs. Diana Levy King, Psychologist at the Killam School, Mrs. Gail M. Amiralian, fifth /sixth grade teacher at the Killam. School, and Mrs. Tina C. Peach, second grade teacher at the Killam School. Executive Session - Adiournment At 9:51 p. m. Mr. Nissen moved, seconded by Mr. Nigro, that the Committee enter into executive session for the purposes of discussing bargaining and negotiation matters. The motion carried on a unanimous roll call vote. Following a short recess the Committee remained in executive session until it adjourned at 11:09 p. m. espQc uful,;;- �u�. __ ttc.d I�, Robert S. Fells, Secretary