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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-04-07 School Committee Minutesorp'q� Town of Reading rte` Meeting Minutes �5'1ktAYv'�� Board - Committee - Commission - Council: School Committee Date: 2014 -04 -07 Building: School - Memorial High Address: 82 Oakland Road Purpose: Open Session Attendees: Members - Present: Linda Snow Dockser Chris Caruso Elaine Webb Jeanne Borawski Hal Croft Chuck Robinson Members - Not Present: Time: 7:00 PM Location: Superintendent Conference Room Session: General Session John Doherty, Superintendent Craig Martin, Assistant Superintendent Mary DeLai, Assistant Superintendent Conner Traugot, Student Representative Andrea Nastri, Student Representative Alison Elmer, Director of Student Services Others Present: Tom Ryan, resident Rhonda Holt, parent Geoffrey Coram, parent Al Sylvia, Reading Chronicle Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: John F. Doherty, Ed.D. Superintendent Topics of Discussion: I. Call to Order Chair Croft called the School Committee to order at 7:03 p.m. He reviewed the agenda, announced the meeting was being recorded and welcomed guests. Chair Croft welcomed the recently elected members to the School Committee. Mrs. Borawski said she was very excited to continue to work on behalf of the schools. Mrs. Snow Dockser thanked everyone and is honored and thrilled to be a part of the School Committee. Mrs. Webb is glad to be a part of the School Committee and looking forward to getting to work. Page i 1 1I. Recommended Procedure A. Public Input (I) Mr. Coram supported the proposed increase in substitute pay to address the need for qualified substitutes in the buildings. He also asked the School Committee to provide more information on the operational budget impact of an Early Childhood Education Center. Mr. Ryan addressed the School Committee regarding a recent mailing he received from Dr. Doherty. Mrs. Rhonda Holt, HS parent, expressed concerns regarding the proposed Early Childhood Center. She feels the community needs information to make an informed decision. She also supported the proposed increase in substitute pay. Executive Session The Chair declared that executive session is necessary to protect the litigation position of the body. Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to enter into executive session to discuss strategy with respect to litigation and to return to open session at approximately 8:20 p.m. The roll call vote was 6 -0. Mrs. Snow Dockser, Mrs. Webb, Mr. Robinson, Mr. Caruso, Mr. Croft and Mrs. Borawski. The School Committee adjourned from open session at 7:22 p.m. The School Committee returned to open session at 8:29 p.m. B. Reports I) 1. Student 2. Liaison Mrs. Borawski reported that Mr. Ryan attended the office hours and proposed a district -wide spelling bee. She said the School Committee would take the suggestion under advisement. 3. Superintendent 4. Assistant Superintendents Mr. Martin reported that he attended the annual ADL "A World of Difference" Youth Conference. Reading was represented by several middle and high school students. This year's theme was "Voices of Leadership ". Several of the breakout sessions were led by Reading students. Page 1 2 He reported on Artsfest this week. There will be artwork displays and performances by students of all levels. The annual Blue Ribbon Conference is next week. This is a great sharing event with many concurrent sessions. This year's keynote speakers are Debbie Phelps and Lida Winfield. Ms. Winfield will also hold a community performance on April 16tH Ms. DeLai reported on the successful ALICE training and drill at Reading Memorial High School. To date, all schools have gone through the initial training. She thanked the Superintendent, SRO Santasky and Sgt. Abate for their assistance as the district moves toward this protocol. Dr. Snow Dockser asked if this protocol will evolve into an unannounced drill similar to fire drills. Ms. DeLai shared that the Safety Committee has had discussion regarding unannounced drills. C. Continued Business FYI Budget Reductions Dr. Doherty provided a brief context of tonight's discussion. The School Committee has two options; to vote on the Finance Committee's recommended budget amount or wait until after Town Meeting to make decisions on reductions. Ms. DeLai provided information on the budget amounts. The School Committee Approved Budget amount is $40,603,540. The Town Manager's proposed amount is $40,117,793 and the Finance Committee's recommended amount is $40,317,793. Mr. Caruso asked about the elementary teacher cut and how that would be handled. Dr. Doherty said that it would be accomplished by collapsing a grade. He pointed out that the class size would remain within the School Committee guidelines. The personnel cuts at the secondary levels will be programmatic. Mrs. Webb knows that these cuts will impact our students and is uncomfortable going to Town meeting with a reduced budget. Mrs. Borawski asked for direction regarding Town Meeting. Dr. Doherty reviewed the options previously proposed. The School Committee can vote to support the Finance Committee budget or wait until after Town Meeting to address the needed reductions. Dr. Doherty reminded the Committee that we heard two different things from Fincom. They struggled as residents not being able to fully fund the budget but as Fincom members their responsibility was for the fiscal health of the Town. Mr. Robinson agreed and does not feel that they will change their position. Page 13 Dr. Doherty referred to the reduction list and stressed that it will be very detrimental to the district to increase non - personnel cuts. Any further reduction in non - personnel cuts will severely impact teaching and learning in the district. Mrs. Webb feels that we have done our best to work within the Fincom budget. It will have to be made very clear to Town Meeting that these reductions will have a significant impact on our ability to meet the needs of our students. Mr. Caruso supports using the Fincom number but is not comfortable with the cuts. Mr. Robinson asked what latitude the School Committee has regarding the reductions. Dr. Doherty said the Committee can recommend other cuts. He reminded the group once again of the negative impact reductions in the non - personnel, especially professional development, will have on the district. Dr. Snow Dockser feels that the Fincom understands the district's needs and feels the process has been collaborative and collegial. She also feels that not voting prior to Town Meeting will provide Town meeting with the whole picture. Mrs. Borawski voiced her support of voting the Fincom recommended number and be sure that it is clearly stated what needs are not being met. Mrs. Borawski moved, seconded by Mr. Caruso, to reduce the FY2015 School Committee Budget by $285,000 in order to bring it inline with the Fincom Recommended Budget. The motion carried 4 -2. Dr. Snow Dockser and Mrs. Webb voting against. Mr. Croft stated that this vote reinforces the support of Fincom and the difficult decisions they have to make. Early Childhood Education Center Dr. Doherty reported on the first Community information session held last week. The meeting was attended by residents, Town Meeting members and abutters. They were receptive and provided very good feedback. The Superintendent then went onto review a few key points from the presentation. Research has shown that children that attend full day kindergarten programs show stronger ELA and math test scores. He referred to our grade 3 ELA and math MCAS scores for the high needs subgroup. A high percentage of these students struggled. The high need subgroup contains children that are on IEPs, ELL students and students on Free and Reduced Lunch status. These students probably were not enrolled in FDK. The community needs to be aware that there are struggling students in Reading. He then reviewed the historic enrollment numbers for both kindergarten and RISE. The demand for full day kindergarten continues to climb. RISE enrollment has also grown. This year we have 25 regular education students on the RISE Preschool waitlist. Mrs. Borawski pointed out the educational benefits of an integrated preschool. Page 14 Mrs. Webb asked if the Reading Public Schools were putting private preschools out of business. Dr. Doherty indicated that is not our goal. The Early Childhood Education Center would add 3 classrooms to the RISE program to allow us to accommodate the demand. RISE is different in the fact that as students with special needs turn three they can enter the program. Therefore enrollment changes throughout the year. Integrated preschools must maintain a minimum of 5 I % regular education students in the program. Dr. Doherty reviewed the program changes and classroom space in the district. With the increase in Special Education programs since 2005, the administration has been forced to take over music and art spaces as well as other spaces for programs. If the Early Childhood Education Center is built, classroom space in all of the buildings will open up to meet the needs of the programs. D. New Business Last Day of School Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mrs. Webb, to accept the Superintendent's recommendation to set June 24, 2014 as the official last day of school for students and teachers. The motion carried 6 -0. RMHS Principal Search Update Dr. Doherty reviewed the search process. He said there were 25 applicants and the Screening Committee moved eight candidates forward to the first interview stage. After the interviews with the Screening Committee, five applicants were moved forward to be interviewed by the Superintendent. The field was narrowed to four and each participated in a site visit at RMHS. Two candidates emerged as the strongest and site visits to their schools were scheduled. The site visits to Marlboro and Beverly went very well. Dr. Doherty was pleased to announce that Adam Bakr, Assistant Principal at Marlboro High School has been selected as the next Principal of Reading Memorial High School. Mr. Bakr will be a great fit for the high school community. He has built a strong culture at Marlboro and he uses a student - centered approach, tools he will bring to Reading. Dr. Snow Dockser thanked the Screening Committee and Administration for the work that was done for this smooth effective process. III. Routine Matters a. Bills and Payroll (A) The following warrants were circulated and signed. Warrant S 1441 4.3.14 $243,816.80 b. Approval of Minutes Page 1 5 Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mrs. Webb, to approve the open session minutes, as amended, dated March 31, 2014. The motion carried 5 -0 -1 Mrs Webb abstained. c. Bids and Donations Calendar IV. Information V. Future Business VI. Adjournment Mr. Croft announced that the executive session is necessary to protect the bargaining position of the body. Mr. Caruso moved, seconded by Mr. Robinson, to enter into executive session to discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining, approval of minutes and not to return to open session.. The roll call vote carried 6 -0. Mrs. Snow Dockser, Mrs Webb, Mr. Robinson, Mr. Caruso, Mr. Croft and Mrs. Borawski. The meeting adjourned at 9:56 p.m. NOTE: The minutes reflect the order as stated in the posted meeting agenda not the order they occurred during the meeting. ho)k u '�• ��, of oo Page 1 6