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School Council -J Warren Killam Elementary
Date: 2021-01-11 Time: 3:00 PM
Building: School - Killam Location: Conference Room
Address: 333 Charles Street Session: Open Session
Purpose: Quarterly Version: Draft
Attendees: Members - Present:
Sarah Leveque, Kim Adamo, Tonia McGuire, Bryn Panee Burkhart
Members - Not Present:
Christine Strack
Others Present:
Minutes Respectfully submitted By: Bryn Panee Burkhart
Topics of Discussion:
The second quarterly meeting of the J.W. Killam Elementary School Council was conducted
virtually via Zoom on Monday, Jan. 11, 2021 from 3 - 4 p.m.
Call to Order: Once a quorum of members were present, Sarah called the meeting to order
shortly after 3 p.m.
Review and Acceptance of Minutes: Members had the opportunity to review the draft
minutes from the November 2020 meeting, and members vote unanimously to approve
them, 4 - 0.
New Business: Sarah began with an update to the School Improvement plan. Teachers
just concluded first-round literacy assessments for all students. Typically, these would have
finished in the fall but this year has been different due to the hybrid/remote learning model.
Sarah felt her team was able to pivot well to a new, virtual format and will analyze the data
to determine if there are significant differences between prior years and the new methods
used this year.
Sarah mentioned how proud she was of the adjustments Killam teachers and staff have
made in order to meet students where they are at. She looks forward to the day where
everyone can return in person, but noted the Killam team is working hard to take care of its
children in the hybrid/remote model.
With regards to General Education Tier 2 - they are focused on doing the work that is
possible to do given limited staff (e.g., social/emotional)
Another component of the School Improvement plan is in the space of diversity, equity and
inclusion. Sarah stated that the Killam team set norms for this work in a December
meeting, and shared an exercise that was done with staff around identity. Sarah stated her
intention was to begin this important work with the staff before they can confidently,
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impactfully have conversations with students and the larger community. Her intention is to
have every member of the Killam community feel welcome and included.
She also noted that community members have contributed new books that support DEI
which have increased the offerings on this topic exponentially. These books have also been
used in staff meeting discussions.
Update on school budget: Sarah submitted the Killam budget to School Committee and was
pleased to report there was not a deficit. She said it has been an interesting year trying to
manage what amounts to running two school experiences (remote and in-person/hybrid),
and the result has allowed her to drill down on what resources are necessary versus what is
extraneous.
Update on WASH (Wellness, Allergies, Safety & Health) program: Guidelines for WASH are
set by the district, and Sarah has a goal of updating Killam WASH protocols to make them
more specific to our school. Sarah gave the example that because of COVID, safety and
health protocols have been added and her long-term goal is to have a comprehensive
update of Killam WASH policies.
Finally, Sarah invited school council members to participate in the aforementioned identity
exercise that was done at December staff, called "What's in a Name?"This exercise was
based on a book that Mrs. Adamo and other RPS teachers have used (Alma and How She
Got Her Name). The purpose of the exercise was to allow people to share the story of where
their name comes from and any other information they choose to share about how their
name has informed the shaping of their identity. Each member chose to participate, and we
had a rich discussion that allowed members to learn more about one another and deepened
understanding about who they are and where they come from. All agreed it was a great
experience.
Adjournment: The School council adjourned at 4 p.m. with plans to reconvene Monday,
April 12, 2021.
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