Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015-11-02 School Committee Minutes t "j Q Tow n of Reading Meeting Minutes Board - Committee - Commission - Council: School Committee Date: 2015-11-02 Time: 7:00 PM Building: School - Memorial High Location: Superintendent Conference Room Address: 82 Oakland Road Purpose: General Meeting Session: Open Session Attendees: Members - Present: Chuck Robinson, Jeanne Borawski, Gary Nihan, Linda Snow Dockser, Elaine Webb &Julie Joyce Members - Not Present: Director of Finance Martha Sybert, Student Representative Carl Gillies Others Present: John Doherty, Superintendent, Craig Martin, Assistant Superintendent, RMHS Principal Adam Bakr, Director of Student Services Carolyn Wilson, RMHS Director of Guidance Lynna Williams, Catherine Spinelli, Daily Chronicle Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Linda Engelson on behalf of the Chair Topics of Discussion: I. Call to Order Chair Robinson called the School Committee to order at 7:03 p.m. II. Recommended Procedure A. New Business (out of order) Reading Memorial High School College Admissions Data&New Initiatives Director of Guidance Lynna Williams began the presentation providing some background information on the Class of 2015 plans after graduation. She explained that there may be a drop in the percentages that go to 4 and 2 year schools after graduation because more students are opting to participate in a gap year program before entering college. She said that this is not necessarily a bad thing; many times students need that extra year to really discover what they want to do. Last year's graduating class attended 124 different colleges with the majority being in the New England/New York area. Mrs. Williams reviewed the application data trends and admissions criteria that colleges and universities consider during the application process. She went onto review the SAT scores for the past three years. Reading students scored higher that the state average in math, writing and critical reading portions of the test. Mr. Robinson asked if Page I 1 colleges and universities are still requiring SAT scores. Mrs. Williams shared that more colleges are going test optional. Mrs. Williams looked at average SAT scores vs. median home sale price using our surrounding communities for comparison to see how Reading compared. Reading fell in the middle along with Lynnfield, Andover, Masconomet and Arlington. Mrs. Williams feels that we are in a good place among the surrounding communities but will be looking into ways to improve this ranking within this group of communities. Mrs. Williams moved onto advanced placement participation sharing that 192 of our students took 351 exams last spring withl63 scoring 3 or above on the exams. She explained that more students are taking AP exams for admission purposes, not just college credit. Reading is heavy in math and science but the high school and guidance staff are looking into expanding the offerings for AP courses, potentially increasing the number of students taking these offerings. The goal is not to overwhelm the students. Mrs. Webb asked if we could look at the demographics in our AP classes. Dr. Nihan inquired about virtual AP classes. Mrs. Williams indicated that we do have a contract with VHS and have 6 or 7 students taking an AP Psychology class. Mr. Bakr added that it is the hope that we can challenge students to take AP classes earlier in their high school careers. Mrs. Williams reviewed the current initiatives in her department which include a restructured developmental guidance curriculum to allow more contact between counselors and their own students. The increased contact will allow the counselors to get to know their students, their needs and to support the whole student. Counselors will also meet with their students to discuss course selection options, review the SAT data and how our students do in various areas, reviewing data gathered from other districts regarding college acceptances and looking at options to increase contact with college admissions representatives. Mrs. Joyce asked what the counselor to student ratio is. Mrs. Williams said there are 6 guidance counselors in her department. Her case load is 120/1 because of her responsibilities as Director and the other five counselors are 240/1. Dr. Nihan asked if discussions have taken place with admissions counselors as to what they are looking for in prospective students. Mrs. Williams said that throughout the year college admission representatives visit RMHS and our staff visit colleges where they have opportunities to have conversations with the representatives. We just hosted the annual college fair at which 150 schools were represented. There was an opportunity to have discussions with these representatives regarding the admissions process. Mr. Bakr began his presentation on the RMHS initiatives reviewing the RMHS goals and how they align with the district goals. The high school continues to implement the MA Curriculum Frameworks reviewing the standards and conducting a gap analysis during the PLC time. The high school is also continuing to work on the MTSS supports by improving the data-driven identification of struggling students and corresponding interventions to maintain effective progress. The staff is focusing on being less reactive and more proactive in addressing the needs of students that are struggling. Page 1 2 Mr. Bakr went on to discuss specific goals of the high school which include completing the schoolwide core values. Meetings have been held with all stakeholders in determining what the core values should look like for the high school community. They will also complete a school wide needs assessment and identify a school schedule that supports key RMHS priorities and review the graduation requirements and discuss alternative pathways to college and career readiness. In addition, discussions are taking place regarding academic rigor and the effectiveness of the college level structure in terms of student achievement and college readiness. Mr. Bakr emphasized that it is important to find a balance and really define what"rigor" is. The high school will also begin the accreditation process through NEASC. He said that NEASC has responded to the concerns of the area superintendents making changes to their process. The accreditation work will occur over a four year period. The first year will be used for self-evaluation, year two will identify portions of the School Improvement Plan to focus on, year three the accreditation team will recommend changes to be made and the fourth year will be a follow up by the accreditation team to see what progress has been made. The high school staff will continue to implement the MTSS strategy to ensure all of the student's social-emotional needs are being addressed. A focus is being put on staff collaboration across and within departments. A decrease in staff duties allows half the staff to work in block-based collaborative groups, while the other half to cover the duties. This will switch mid-year allowing the group that covered the duties to work in the block-based collaborative groups. In addition, the administrators have stepped in and taken on some of the duties making them visible and accessible to the students. Mrs. Borawski applauded this initiative saying it sends a powerful,positive message to the staff recognizing the importance of the opportunities for collaboration. Interest-based collaborative groups are teacher driven professional development groups which meet once a month after school to share best practices and discuss student achievement. To date there are eight different topics for these groups. A change in the roles and setup of the assistant principal's offices has also been positive on improving the culture and understanding of behavioral expectations of the students. All student affairs, by grade level, are handled in one office and changes in the discipline and attendance procedures are intended to hold the kids responsible for their actions. Senior privileges have been instituted allowing seniors with first or last block studies to come in late or leave early. The student privileges are linked to discipline, grades and attendance. The students are appreciative of this privilege. Dr. Nihan thanked and congratulated Mr. Bakr on the changes he is implementing and feels they are being well accepted. Chair Robinson thanked Mr. Bakr and Mrs. Williams for sharing this information. Page 13 Approval of Field Trips Model UN—Harvard Mrs. Borawski moved, seconded by Mrs. Joyce, to approve the RMHS Model United Nations Club field trip to attend the Harvard Model United Nations conference in January. The motion carried 6-0. Model UN—Boston University Mrs. Borawski moved, seconded by Mrs. Joyce, to approve the RMHS Model United Nations Club field trip to attend the Boston University Model United Nations conference in February. The motion carried 6-0. B. Public Input (I) Chair Robinson called for public input. Brian O'Neill, a middle school parent, asked about the possibility of starting a Jr. ROTC program in Reading. He indicated that he has been corresponding via email with the Superintendent about this possibility. He feels this program would provide discipline and structure to those students that participate. Chair Robinson thanked Mr. O'Neill for bringing this to the Committee. C. Reports Student Mrs. Nazzaro reported that the Drama Club production of Mary Poppins will be presented this weekend and next. The volleyball, football, swimming and boys' soccer teams have qualified for the post season tournaments and football, swimming and volleyball were Middlesex League champions. She also reported on the recent Marching Band competition held at RMHS and the first quarter closes tomorrow. Liaisons Mrs. Webb reported on the RCASA presentation by Dr. Kevin Hill. She said there was a great question& answer session as well as a great discussion. She also reported that the cross country team ran in the league meet today. Dr. Snow Dockser said the Human Relations Advisory Committee will be presenting to the Board of Selectmen on November 3rd. The HRAC will also be contributing a tree to the REF Festival of Trees and the next meeting is December 3rd. She reminded the public that the Annual Martin Luther King celebration will be held on January 18m. She also attended the SEPAC meeting held last week and is happy to report that there is a group of parents that are interested in taking on the organization of the group. Page 14 Lastly, she reported on the recent Killam School Meeting that focused on trustworthiness. The School MTSS team led the meeting and the kids were engaged. Director of Student Services Mrs. Wilson reported on the recent staffing additions to the Student Services Department which includes a school psychologist, an ELL teacher and a new Administrative Assistant for Student Services. Superintendent's Report Superintendent Doherty reported that the school and district PARRC results will be released next week and that he received the Foundation Budget Review Commission Report that includes the Chapter 70 recommendations. The report really shows how underfunded public education is and not much has changed since 1993. How these findings will be addressed is still up in the air. D. Continued Business MASC Governance Program Update Mrs. Borawski moved, seconded by Mrs.Joyce, to approve the revised School Committee Operating Protocol. Mrs. Borawski reviewed the work done to date as part of the MASC Governance Program. During the last session the Committee reviewed and made changes to the operating protocol. The Committee asked clarifying questions. The motion carried 6-0. Consent Agenda Dr. Doherty reviewed the Consent Agenda Guidelines. Mrs. Borawski asked for clarification on the procedure to have an item removed from the consent agenda. Dr. Snow Dockser wanted to ensure that the donations and field trips were recognized in public session. It was agreed that the use of the consent agenda will begin at the next meeting. III. Routine Matters a. Bills and Payroll (A) The following warrants were circulated and signed. Warrant S1617 10.22.15 $683,728.91 Warrant P1618 10.29.15 $250,857.58 Warrant P1609 10.23.15 $1,481,287.14 Page 15 b. Bids and Donations (A) Reading Cooperative Bank Mrs. Borawski moved, seconded by Dr. Snow Dockser, to accept a donation in the amount of$1,400 from the Reading Cooperative Bank Charitable Foundation to be used to support the RMHS "A World of Difference" program. Dr. Snow Dockser thanked the Reading Cooperative Bank for their continued support. The motion carried 6-0. Northern Bank Mrs. Borawski moved, seconded by Dr. Nihan, to accept a donation in the amount of$1,000 from Northern Bank to be used to support the Challenge Day Program. The motion carried 6-0. Friends of Reading Soccer Mrs. Borawski moved, seconded by Dr. Nihan, to accept a donation in the amount of$1,000 from the Friends of Reading Soccer to be used to support a coaching assistant for the Fall 2015 season. The motion carried 6-0. c. Minutes Mrs. Borawski moved, seconded by Dr. Snow Dockser, to approve the open session minutes dated September 26,2015. The motion carried 6-0. Mrs. Borawski moved, seconded by Dr. Nihan, to approve the open session minutes dated October 5,2015. The motion carried 6-0. Mrs. Borawski moved, seconded by Mrs. Webb, to approve the open session minutes dated October 19,2015. The motion carried 6-0. d. Calendar IV. Information V. Future Business VI.Adjournment Mrs. Borawski moved, seconded by Dr. Nihan to adjourn. The motion carried 6-0. The meeting adjourned at 9:33 p.m. Page 16 NOTE: The minutes reflect the order as stated in the posted meeting agenda not the order they occurred during the meeting. ►w ki MIA Jo 1 . Do erty, i d.D. Page 17