HomeMy WebLinkAbout1993-10-19 Coolidge School Council MinutesA.W. Coolidge School Council rv.
Minutes October 19, 1993
Administration
Attendance. Al Lahood (principal), Deborah Reinemann (faculty), Peter Hichborn (faculty),
Roy Welsch (parent), Carol Perletz (parent), Larry Chomsky (parent), Marjorie Pacino
(community). (Full Attendance.)
Meeting convened at 7:00 PM. Agenda passed out by Mr. Lahood who welcomed the members
and spoke on his expectations for the School Council for this year.
Co-chairpersons. As principal, Mr. Lahood is a designated co-chairperson. By consensus, the
Council agreed to rotate the second co-chairperson on a meeting by meeting basis. It was further
agreed that the Recorder for a given meeting would become the co-chairperson for the following
meeting. The Recorder position will be rotated alphabetically, unless otherwise assigned at a
given meeting. The first Recorder will be Larry Chomsky.
Meetings. It was agreed that initially meetings would be every other Tuesday from 7-9 PM,
unless otherwise determined. This may be adjusted depending on workload or other factors. The
next 3 meetings are November 2, November 16, November 30.
Quorum. It was agreed that a quorum would be 5 out of 7 members.
Minutes/Next Agenda. The minutes for a given meeting, and the agenda for the next meeting,
are to be mailed to all members at least 5 days prior to the next meeting from School.
Consensus. It was agreed that the Council will seek Consensus among its members on all matters
unless it is determined that another method is more appropriate to a given task.
New Business
Handouts. Mr. Lahood provided the Council with several items for review, including:
• 1993 Massachusetts Educational Reform Law Fact Sheet on School Councils.
• Summary sheet on Council composition, membership, operation, etc.
• Tips on School Councils.
• Massachusetts Education Reform Act Questions and Answc.-.c on School Councils.
• A/W. Coolidge Middle School Profile Handout.
• A/W. Coolidge Middle School Student Handbook 93-94.
• Reading Public Schools, School Council Professional Development Moneys information
sheet.
Discussions:
Several items were briefly discussed including the primary task of creating the School
Improvement/Professional Development Plan by March of 1994, potential changes to the
Student Handbook, and the need for an Inclusion Profile.
Also discussed was Coolidge participation in the Northeast Regional Alliance. Mr. Lahood
explained that the Alliance was formed out of the Carnegie Foundation and currently includes 16
schools plus Gordon College and Salem State. The Alliance provides for a number of
professional development activities and access to grants. (A grant in process for Coolidge is ".The
Missing Link: Telecommunications in the Middle Schools".) Members of the School Council are
encouraged to participate in the development activities.
Annual membership in the Alliance costs $1,000. Mr. Lahood indicated that he felt Coolidge had
much to gain from membership and authorized the amount from the Coolidge Middle School
Budget. He asked the Council to transfer $1,000 in Council Professional Development fund§ to
the Coolidge Middle School Operating Budget to replace the money used for Northeast Regional
Alliance membership. This would leave $3,201 $4,201 original - $1,000). After discussion the
Council agreed to the transfer of these funds.
Next Agenda:
Items for the next agenda will include a discussion of the reading materials, and a brainstorming of
ideas. Also, copies of budgets/plans from some inclusion sub-committees may be available.
Action Items:
• Members are to review distributed material prior to the next meeting.
• Mr. Lahood will send copies of the NE Alliance Activities with the mailing of these minutes.
• Mr. Lahood will have copies of the Goals booklets for Council members at the next meeting.
The meeting was adjourned at 9 PM.
A/W. Coolidge c chool Council Minutes --10/19/93 Page 2