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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-10-04 School Committee MinutesReading Public Schools Reading, Massachusetts: Regular Meeting of the School Committee Open Session z 'i" ~ r :3S L S U s~ f. Date: October 4, 2010 Time: 7:30 p.m. (Open Session) Place: Superintendent's Conference Room School Committee Members Present Chuck Robinson Hal Croft Chris Caruso Lisa Gibbs David Michaud Jared Beaulieu Student Representative Matthew Conway Student Representative Visitors: Joe Huggins, Director of Facilities Bob Mooney, RTA President Matt Casey, Reading Patch Steve Hagan, Reading Advocate Christine Lyons, Reading Chronicle 1. Call to Order Staff Members Present John Doherty, Superintendent Mary DeLai, Director of Finance and Operations Chairperson Caruso called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. and reviewed the agenda. Il. Recommended Procedure A. Public Input (I) Mr. Bill Brown presented research indicating there is no "M" in Alice Barrows and that it should be removed. Mr. Caruso thanked him for his input. B. Reports (1) 1. Student Student Representative Conway reported Reading Memorial High School had 10 students named National Merit Scholars. He shared that he and fellow student representative Jared Beaulieu are among the ten students. Freshman and student s council elections have been held. Several students attended the "Lincoln and the Law" lecture and there is a new Peer Leader program kicking off - "World of Difference". October 4, 2010 The high school administration met with the student leaders today and the student representative to the Human Relations Committee will be Margaret LeLacheur. The golf team is off to a great start. They are undefeated. 2. Liaison Mr. Michaud updated the committee on the Ad Hoc Municipal Building Committee's activities. Mrs. Gibbs recapped the RCASA annual meeting held last week. She is pleased with the work the group has been doing in conjunction with the police and school departments getting the word out. Mr. Croft thanked the committee as well as Dr. Doherty and Ms. DeLai on the efforts to establish transportation for the METCO students. The bus is up and running with 2 runs to Oak Grove at 5 and 6 pm. 3. Superintendent's Report Dr. Doherty followed up on the late bus for the METCO students thanking Dawn Folopoulos and Peter Hechenbleikner for their collaborative efforts. He went on to report that the television monitors have been installed on Main Street. The installation was made possible by a donation from PSST and a future donation from the Class of 1990. Dr. Doherty shared that he has been invited to participate in a roundtable discussion at the upcoming Chancellor's Breakfast at UMass-Lowell. The topic of discussion with be the STEM fields. Dr. Doherty will be presenting the technology piece. 4. Director of Finance and Operations Ms. DeLai reported that graffiti had been sprayed on the walls at Barrows and the Facilities department was in the process of removing it. She also shared that the MSBA will be in Reading for site visits to Birch Meadow and Killam as the Green School Repair grant application. 5. Director of Pupil Services C. Continued Business D. New Business Preventative Maintenance Plan Ms. DeLai turned the meeting over to Mr. Joe Huggins, Director of Facilities, who went on to review the Preventative Maintenance Plan that is in place throughout the town. Having this plan in place allows the facilities department to monitor the condition of equipment and facilities on a October 4, 20 10 predetermined schedule. This enables repairs to be made well in advance of the need for major repairs. Ms. DeLai indicated that the Preventative Maintenance Plan will be submitted to MIIA as part of their rewards program. Capital Plan Ms. DeLai provided a brief overview of the FY2011-2021 Capital Plan. Mr. Huggins presented a detailed description of the proposed work to be done at each of the town and school buildings. The School Committee asked clarifying questions. Mr. Robinson moved, seconded by Mr. Croft, to approve the FY2011- 2021 School and Town Facilities Capital Plan as presented by Mary DeLai, Director of Finance and Operations. The motion carried 5-0. Race to the Top Presentation Dr. Doherty presented an overview of the Race to the Top grant. He reviewed the highlights of the Plan and grant, Massachusetts' strategy and goals, Reading's participation level, what districts need to do now and support and technical assistance. He indicated that Massachusetts had the highest scoring application nationally mainly due to the fact that 70% of stakeholder and district participation statewide. Under the Memorandum of Understanding districts must commit to reforms is 6 areas. Each district must develop a plan and submit this plan and projects to the DESE by October 22nd. Dr. Doherty indicated that the administrative team is working on this submission and he will provide the School Committee and RTA with the plan prior to submitting it. The six areas of reform are; (1)improve teacher and principal effectiveness based on performance, (2)ensure effective teachers and leaders in every classroom, (3)use data to improve instruction, (4)increase college and career readiness, (5)help develop and use a statewide teaching and learning system and (6)turn around lowest achieving schools. Reading will be participating in the first five reforms. We are working is the direction of some of these reforms. The reforms are required as part of the grant and the Superintendent indicated these reforms are good for teaching and learning. Dr. Doherty reviewed several projects that will be implemented as a result of this grant which include the implementation of a statewide educator evaluation framework and alignment of curriculum with the Mass Common Core standards. He is hoping that our TAP evaluation tool will just need to be adjusted to align with the framework being developed. He also went on to indicate that the RMHS curriculum aligns well with the MA Common Core standards but adjustments will be made as needed. There are several projects that will be required by all districts whether they are part of the grant or not. These projects include: (1) implementation of statewide educator evaluation framework, (2) alignment of curriculum to Common Core State Standards, (3) strengthen climate, conditions and school culture, (4) implementation of the Schools interoperability framework (SIF), (5) an additional project ensuring effective educators in every school and classroom. The Superintendent the reviewed the project options under each MOU and the option Reading would most likely be doing. Reading Public Schools will be afforded many opportunities that October 4, 20 10 would not be available without the RTTT grant. The state is providing many no cost professional development opportunities as well as access to a variety of assessment/curriculum data. Approval of Field Trips Dr. Doherty outlined the Parker Middle School Costa Rica field trip. Mr. Robinson moved, seconded by Mr. Michaud, to approve the Parker Middle School field trip to Costa Mica during April vacation 2011 as outlined in the Superintendent's memorandum dated September 30, 2010. The motion carried 5-0. Dr. Doherty outlined the Parker Middle School field trip to Washington, D.C. Mr. Robinson moved, seconded by Mrs Gibbs, the Parker Middle School field trip to Washington, D.C. at the end of May 2011 as outlined in the Superintendent's memorandum dated September 30, 2010. The motion carried 5-0. Dr. Doherty asked student representative Jared Beaulieu to review the proposed Model U.N. field trip. Mr. Beaulieu explained that this conference affords the students an invaluable experience in public speaking and problem solving in an international event. The Model U.N. Club attended the conference last year but missed out on several activities that took place after the conference session. The have received a $500 donation from the Boosters Club and will be involved in fundraising activities. Mr. Robinson moved seconded by Mrs Gibbs, to approve the RMHS overnight field trip to Boston for the Model U.N. Conference in January 2011 as outlined in the Superintendent's memorandum dated September 30, 2010. The motion carried 5-0. III. Routine Matters ® Bills and Payroll (A) • Approval of Minutes Mr. Robinson moved, seconded by Mrs Gibbs to approve the open session minutes dated September 27, 2010. The motion carried 5-0 e Bids and Donations (Out of Order) Mr. Robinson moved, seconded by Mr. Croft to accept a donation to the RMHS Drama Program from PSST to be used to fund two positions as outlined in the Superintendent's memorandum dated September 30, 2010. The motion carried 5-0. Mr. Robinson moved, seconded by Mrs Gibbs, to accept a donation of 20 cases of paper from Office Depot to RMHS thanks to the efforts of Bob Gregorowicz as outlined in the Superintendent's memorandum dated September 30, 2010 The motion carried 6-0 Calendar Chair Caruso reminded the committee that the October 18'h meeting will take place at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston at 7 p.m. October 4, 2010 Dr. Doherty reminded the committee that the school locations for future meetings are on the calendar and that the retreat is scheduled for November 6th. IV. Executive Session V. Information VI. Adjournment Mr. Robinson moved, seconded by Mrs. Gibbs to adjourn The motion carried 5-0 VI. Future Business Meeting adjourned at 8:50 p.m. NOTE: The minutes reflect the order as stated in the posted meeting agenda not the order they occurred during the meeting. Ns id F. Doherty, is d.D Sub erintendent of Schools