The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About2024-02-08 School Committee MinutesTown of Reading ,.r.. i[-nV tv 3 Meeting Minutes P. ERA, Oyu Board - Committee - commission - Council: School Committee Date: 2024-02-08 Time: 7:00 PM Building: School - Memorial High Location: School Library Address: 62 Oakland Road Session: Open Session Purpose: Open Session Version: Final Attendees: Members - Present: Tom Wise, Sarah McLaughlin, Shawn Brandt, Charles Robinson and Carla Nazzaro Members - Not Present: Erin Gaffen others Present: Director of Finance and Operations Dr. Derek Pinto, Assistant Superintendent of Learning & Teaching Dr. Sarah Hardy (remote) and Superintendent Dr. Thomas Milaschewski Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Olivia Lejeune on behalf of the chairperson. Topics of Discussion: A. Call to Order—Mr. Wise called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. to review the agenda. B. Public Comment Public Comment —Student members of the Students of Color and Allies for Equity, Justice and Inclusion (SOCA4EJI) followed up with the School Committee on the review and change of policy FF — Naming New Facilities. Focus on Excellence 1. Parker Kindness Kits — Dr. Milaschewski welcomed the Parker students, Principal Rubino and teacher Ms. Peterson to share about their work creating and distributing "kindness kits" for the Pine Street Inn. Consent Agenda 1. Minutes (01-25-2024) 2. RMHS Basketball Support Team Donation 3. Habitat for Humanity Field Trip Request 4. Request to Surplus Property Warrant Reports 1. 12-22-2023 Page I 1 2.01-05-2024 3. 01-19-2024 4. 01-25-2024 5. 02-01-2024 Mr. Wise provided one correction to the minutes from January 251h correcting "RIF to "RFI". He also noted Habitat for Humanity is a field trip the committee should review in the future as it occurs outside of the school year. Mr. Wise motioned to approve the consent agenda as amended, seconded by Mr. Robinson. The vote passed 5-0. Reports 1. Director of Finance & Operations — Dr. Pinto briefly discussed his participation in the Killam sustainability meetings. Dr. Pinto and Food Service Director Ms. Franzetti met with the acting Town Manager and other town officials recently to discuss the composting initiative to move that forward. Dr. Pinto has met with Mr. Feudo at the YMCA to learn more about services and programs provided in the community. At the end of the month, Dr. Pinto will present the recommended budget to the Finance Committee and will review year-to-date expenses with principals and cost center managers. 2. Assistant Superintendent for Learning & Teaching— a. Dr. Hardy and other central office leadership have been invited into elementary classrooms over the last few weeks to observe as a number of classes are finishing up unit two of ARC Core Literacy Program. Students have published research books as a result of ending this unit. It has been great to see the student work in action. b. Recently, a virtual parent information night was held for families at the high school to walk them through the math pathways and how we are supporting students. We will be providing information in the district newsletter about the summer geometry course so everyone has access to the information. 3. Superintendent — No report 4. Liaison/Sub-Committee a. Mr. Brandt —The select board has been in the process of appointing a new town manager. They will be meeting again next week. b. Mrs. Nazzaro—No report c. Ms. McLaughlin — No report d. Mr. Robinson— i. The Charter Review Committee met with town counsel to review the proposed changes. The committee will be going to other committees for feedback. ii. SWEC met and received another presentation from the RFI — Edge Sports. Mr. Robinson also attended the select board meeting last week to share feedback on the capital discussion. e. Mr. Wise—No Report Page 1 2 E. New Business 1. Killam Building Project Update with Designer Lavallee j Brensinger Architects (LBA) Dr. Milaschewski introduced LBA and Colliers who shared a presentation updating the committee on where we are to date with the Killam School Building Project, what to expect ahead and how the community can stay engaged. Highlights of the presentation included: - Review of the preliminary overall project schedule and feasibility study work plan Project goals Educational visioning Community engagement Existing conditions assessments Next steps as we move forward in the process The full presentation can be found in the packet Z. FY25 School Calendar Initial Review & Discussion Dr. Milaschewski reviewed the draft 2024-2025 school year calendar. Afinalized draft will be provided on February 291h for a vote. The union will also be reviewing between now and then to provide feedback. We have received consistent feedback regarding religious holidays, and we have kept our practice to not have any religious days off. A lot of students celebrate a variety of religious holidays and traditions making it challenging to capture all those days in the calendar. We adhere to the policy around religious holidays and have tightened up on our end by putting more mechanisms in place to make sure everyone in the school community is aware of the policy. The committee discussed the RISE back to school nights and difficulty for families attending with students in multiple schools. The committee also discussed the number of days off in the month of November and the fact that the last day of school as it stands currently would potentially be on a Monday which can lead to high absences. A potential idea was shared to hold school the Friday after the first day to have the last day in June be a Friday. Dr. Hardy mentioned the idea of in future years moving the in-service day to October instead of November. Dr. Milaschewski reminded the committee the calendar could require amendments if the high school pilot schedule goes through. There was a request for the committee to review policy IMDA—Accommodations for Religious and Ethnic Observances to review language with respect to the classification of major non -national religious holidays and test scheduling with respect to these holidays. 3. FY24 Q2 Financial Report w/ Potential Budget Trans Approvals Dr. Pinto reviewed the FY24 Q2 financial report. This report spans from July 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023. Dr. Pinto noted the projected end year balance at this stage of $565,000. There is a plan to use those funds in the remaining months of the school year on the following: new curriculum purchases, tutoring and academic support for students, refresh of existing technology and augmentation of the special education reserve fund. Page 1 3 Mr. Wise motioned to adjourn, seconded by Mr. Robinson. The vote passed 5-0. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxQD3D4nkLo Meeting Adjourned from regular session at approximately 8:32pm. Gage 1 4