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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSchool Comm. 04/23/2024Approved 05-07-24 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, April 23, 2024 J In Person & Virtual Meeting using GoToWebinar An Open Meeting of the Mansfield School Committee was held in person and virtually on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. The open meeting session was called to order by Chair Lynn Cavicchi at 6:02 p.m. Members Present: Administration Present: Lynn Cavicchi (Chair) Teresa Murphy, Superintendent Jenn Walsh (Vice Chair) Michael Connolly, Assistant Superintendent (Teaching/Learning) Jenifer Sellon Ed Donoghue, Assistant Superintendent (Finance/Operations) Steve Schoonveld Members Absent: Vivian Webster The chair asked for a motion to enter into Executive Session tinder Exception No. 3 to discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation if an open meeting may have a detrimental effect on the bargaining or litigating position of the public body and the chair so—i declares relative to the Paraprofessional Bargaining Unit. _ Motion by: Jenn Walsh / Jenifer Sellon = ;� ROLL CALL Vote: Jenifer Sellon aye o '� Jenn Walsh aye = Lynn Cavicchi aye Motion Carries 3 - 0 > Return from Executive Session at 6:27 pm. Q-1 M Public Hearing on FY25 Budget The Chair asked for a motion to enter into the Public Hearing on the FY25 School Budget Motion by: Jenn Walsh / Jenifer Sellon ROLL CALL Vote: Jenifer Sellon aye Jenn Walsh aye Steve Schoonveld aye Lynn Cavicchi aye Motion Carries 3 - 0 Superintendent Murphy and Assistant Superintendent Donoghue presented the FY25 Budget. Mr. Donoghue reviewed the progression of our budget numbers from December through now; highlighting the reductions made at the request of the Town. Reductions include $900,000 in salary reductions and $791,537 in services and supplies. In addition, $375,000 of textbook costs and $125,000 in technology costs will be moved to capital. He also noted the two biggest budget spikes which are central services (primarily due to an increased assessment from Bristol County Agricultural School) and Special Education costs. Also, grant funding from COVID relief bills are ending so cost is being shifted from grants to the operating budget. An example would be interventionists at the schools. The district placed a priority on keeping these services. Superintendent Murphy reviewed the changes to staffing. She reminded all that these positions represent people who are well lilted and respected. This impacts everyone from our staff, parents Page 1 of 7 Approved 05-07-24 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, April 23, 2024 In Person & Virtual Meeting using GoToWebinar and students. We do not like being in this position. Over the last twenty years, 24 teachers were gradually reduced to reflect the downward trend in enrollments. This process has allowed us to keep class sizes stable. We will continue to have good class sizes with this year's reductions. Elementary classes will remain at 19 - 22 students; Core classes at the middle school will range from 20 - 22 students and at the high school core classes will average 19 students per class. Our staffing adjustments are driven by both enrollments decreases and budget restrictions. The changes of staff at the high school will help address some classes that have fewer than 10 students enrolled. What students may see is that instead of (for example) 4 sections of a class being offered, there may be only 3. The quality of education will not change; we will still provide high quality education. She noted that some have asked how we can move forward with large projects such as the gym and field updates while making these cuts. Municipal budgets can be very complex. The buckets of money for these projects is different than that of our operating budget. We have reached the end of useful life for the gym and field/track. Money for these projects were approved at last year's town meeting. Public Comments: Jim Adams, 20 Lantern Lane, Mansfield, MA is here tonight as a grandparent and former teacher. Our performing arts programs are amazing and he fears that will decline with these cuts. What is the impact of moving the music teacher from MHS to QMS? Teresa noted that with the declining enrollment and as a side effect of COV►D, enrollments in performing arts courses have dropped. Many of our high school courses have very low enrollment. On the other hand, we are starting to see a rise in requests for music classes in the middle school. The move makes sense. Mr. Adams asked if there was any chance of a staff member teaching at both schools. Ms. Murphy noted that although this was done in the past, the class schedules at each school prevent the sharing of a resource. Steve Schoonveld asked for more clarification on pulling out students from classes. Principal Dave McGovern responded by providing an overview of the proposed changes for next year. The bell schedule is not changing, there will still be 7 periods per day. However, there is a shift in the way we understand student learning. Right now, students are pulled out of classrooms for performing arts or intervention help. One of the changes being made is to create one block during the day that will allow students to take a performing arts or enrichment program or if needed, get extra help without having an impact on an existing class. Superintendent Murphy noted that there has been a fairly stable number of staff members at the middle school even though the total student population has decreased from well over 1000 students to 700 students now and fewer than 700 in the next few years. We have been able to offer several enrichment programs but now the class sizes in some of these courses is very low. Principal McGovern feels we still have a robust set of offerings compared to other districts; and the world language programs vary greatly by district. We are seeing increased participation in performing arts with 40% of the current sixth graders participating. Steve looked at the prior year budget and asked why the headcount went from 628 to 610; this does not equal the cut of 9 FTEs as reported in the budget. Teresa noted that some positions come and go frequently and it is hard to do comparisons. The FTEs represent far more than just the teaching Page 2 of 7 Approved 0"7-24 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, April 23, 2024 In Person & Virtual Meeting using GoToWebinar staff. He asked what our long-term plan is for class sizes. Teresa noted it is difficult to determine at the secondary level as it is based on course leveling and student interest. At the elementary level it is easier to monitor since it is a simple calculation of total students per grade divided by the number of teachers in the grade. What is also hard to predict is registrations. For example, since April vacation, we have been working on 10 new registrations looking to start now. Typically, this time of year, registrations are for next year only. Steve is happy with class sizes and thinks that a slight increase in class size is a positive. He also noted that there has been an approximate increase of 2.9% in per student spending each year since 2017. Andrew Robinson, Cumberland, RI asked why Principal McGovern presented robust course offerings but grade 8 students will not get science and engineering to support MCAS testing. Dave reported that we are in the middle of a shift where this course work will occur in grades 6 and 7 rather than in grades 7 and 8. This will be a big help in balancing out our overall schedule. We are in a bit of a transition time with this but we are compliant with the state and feel that we will be o.k. Greg Penesis, 12 Shannon Lane, Mansfield is heartbroken about the reduction in staff but does recognize that overall student enrollment is down and we need to keep a certain teacher to student ratio. How much of the reductions is due to enrollment changes vs budget restrictions? Steve answered this by noting we have a directive of a 4% increase. Our overall budget increased need is partially due to us using revolving funds last year to help close the budget and due to the increase in special education costs. Teresa followed by noting that declining enrollment certainly played a role as we need to adjust staffing to reflect the trends. However, the budget restrictions were the biggest impact to our final decisions. At the high school we also looked at electives with very low enrollment. Public comments / questions ended so school committee members provided feedback. Jenifer Sellon reiterated her position from last week that she is upset to see cuts but understands the need and appreciates the effort that went into the review process. Jenn Walsh did not have any questions but appreciated the hard work that was done to get to our current budget. Steve Schoonveld thanked everyone for their efforts during this tough budget process. He noted that the budget cuts do not impact our ability to be competitive among local districts and our class sizes are still ok. We are making good on our commitment to the budget. Lynn Cavicchi noted that it has not been an easy budget year and thanked everyone for their commitment. Having heard all comments, the Chair asked for a motion to close the Public Hearing on the FY25 School Budget Motion by: Jenn Walsh / Jenifer Sellon ROLL CALL Vote: Steve Schoonveld aye Lynn Cavicchi aye Jenn Walsh aye Jenifer Sellon aye Motion Passes 4 - 0 We are now back in Open Session. Public Speak: None Page 3 of 7 Approved 05-07-24 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, April 23, 2024 In Person & Virtual Meeting using GoToWehinar New Business (taken out of order Presentation of Best Buddies Activities: Special Education Teacher Christine Riley along with three students representing Best Buddies (Ellie Blacquier, Katie Dacey and Leonard Dimitrov) updated the committee on the activities from this past year including Wards Berry Farm, United Basketball, Poster Designing, Buddies Match Party, Friendsgiving, Cookie -making, a holiday movie night, Valentines Dance, celebration of autism awareness month and much more. Next year they hope to continue with these events and make improvements to bring Best Buddies the best that they can be. They would also like to continue to improve education of peers and be more inclusive. Consideration of Best Buddies Field Trip to Indiana for Annual Leadership Conference: Christine Riley presented an overview of the annual event which is jam packed with programs and fun for our students. This year, she will bring Katie Dacey and Leonard Dimitrov. Students from all over attend and it is an extremely busy, fun and educational weekend for all. Lynn Cavicchi asked where the district stood with a middle school program. Kristen Higgins and Heather MacPherson (QMS teachers) have started various programming though it has not yet been formed as an official program. We hope to see that soon. Jenn Walsh thanked Christine and her leadership team for all of the enthusiasm that Christine and her student leaders bring to the Best Buddies Program. Motion to approve the Best Buddies Field Trip to the Annual Leadership Conference in Indiana by Jenn Walsh / Jenifer Sellon Motion Passes 4 - 0 Administrative Reports: Superintendent Teresa Murphy updated the committee on the following: The QMS Principal Search is underway with a large group of QMS staff, parents, administrators and Lynn Cavicchi. The group met to review the criteria and will interview candidates Wednesday and Thursday. We will interview 5 out of 30 applicants. The interview process for the new Roland Green Director has completed and the District is happy to announce that Kris Delaplain will serve as the Director moving forward. School Choice applications are coming in from several districts. We have 13 applicants to date. Application period ends on May 10rh. The FY24 Q3 Financial Update by Assistant Superintendent Ed Donoghue has been moved to next week in order for the budget subcommittee to first review the report. Approval of Warrant: Motion to approve the Warrant Memo dated 04-17-24 by Jenn Walsh / Jenifer Sellon Salary & Salary & Salary & Wages Goods & Services Wages Goods & Services Wages 2024-18 24036S 2024-19 24038S 2024-20 3-1-24 3-5-24 3-15-24 3.19.24 3-29-24 General Fund 1,687,587.69 399,617.56 1,709,213.73 671,878.95 1,759,961.54 Medicare 2,539.20 - 2,539.20 - 2,539.20 Page 4 of 7 Approved 0"7-24 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, April 23, 2024 In Person & Virtual Meeting using GoToWebinar Capital - 241,814.30 - 64,000.00 - Revolving 49,859.23 3,160.10 53,517.06 7,133.63 55,585.20 Food Service 25,180.31 63,162.61 32,508.12 23,914.11 37,021.57 Gifts - 838.67 - - - Student Activity - 1,440.00 - 18,856.11 683.37 Grants 80,781.83 10,606.83 84,687.98 24,269.29 79,112.21 Prior Year - - - - - 1,845,948.26 720,639.97 1,882,366.09 810,052.09 1,934,903.09 Motion Approved 4 - 0. Aunroval of Minutes: Date ist I end I Discuss YN Vote Roll Call 04-09-24-2Open JW JS 4-0 Committee Updates / Old Business: Budget: Chair Jenn Walsh noted that the Town Budget Meeting was held to continue work on the FY25 budget. Steve Schoonveld noted that the school budget was well received. He also noted that he is very concerned about the budget for next year. Audit: Jennifer Sellon reported that the committee met briefly today to prepare for the auditors. She also met at length with Assistant Town Manager Matt Violette who provided a very detailed review of the audit functions. New Business: Consideration of the QMS Program of Studies for 2024-25: Tonight's presentation by Principal Dave McGovern will address a portion of the program of studies that needs to be approved so that the school can start to send placement letters to parents. The focus is literacy, world languages and math. To provide history, Mr. McGovern described how he has worked on the Program of Studies in parallel to both budget changes and proposed class changes. As we needed to wait for final approvals of the budget and the new schedule offerings, we are months behind schedule regarding placements for next year. He is coming to the meeting tonight to get a portion of the program approved. The bell schedule will remain the same but some offerings will change. The average small class sizes are 15-16 students but there are classes with as few as 9 students. The way the new schedule will work is that one period per day will be saved for a new class block to be used for intervention services and support, special education and enrichment programs like performing arts. Teresa asked Dave to explain how this will affect students who do not need additional services. Currently 40% of the grade 6 and 7 students participated in performing arts last year. These students will now attend these classes during the new block rather than being pulled from a class. Additionally, we will offer a variety of enrichment programs to students who are in good academic standing. We Page 5 of 7 Approved 05-07-24 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, April 23, 2024 In Person & Virtual Meeting using GoToWebinar see the current schedule as a problem. Going forward we need to follow the DESE best practices of providing enrichment without giving up core academic time. Grade 6 and 7 students will get art and theater and exploratory language offerings. Grade 7 will take a world language and for a core class: science&engineering or health. Grade 8 students will continue with the world language class and then take the core class that was not taken in grade 7. Students lacking in literacy skills do not show growth by jumping into a world language. We can now offer additional literacy to those students who need it. The path is grade 6 world language exploration, grade 7&8 world language or literacy. We estimate that approximately 40 - 50 students will take the literacy course in grades 7&8 which is a two-year commitment. Students will not be able to switch from literacy to world language in 8th grade. There may be students in a grade 7 world language who struggle and may be switched to literacy in grade 8 but we expect that to be a rare situation. Lynn asked if there is still a path toward AP world language if a student takes literacy in middle school. Yes, the pathway still exists. With approval tonight, we can finalize our formal recommendation process. In math, Dave proposes two changes. He thanked Math Department Chair Jamie Mintz for her hard work at improving the alignment process over the last two years. At QMS, the math classes will be renamed to fit into the framework. Grade 8 accelerated math will be changed to Algebra as Algebra honors will no longer be offered at the high school for freshmen.) Grade 7 accelerated math will be changed to pre -algebra. The difference between these courses are as follows: Enrichment math was intended to move faster and deeper than standard math using the same curriculum. The new courses use a different curriculum. This is the right time to make these changes. The two paths from QMS to MHS are: Grade 7 and 8 math to Algebra; Grade 7 pre -algebra and grade 8 algebra students will take geometry. Steve asked if the grade 8 algebra students are typically ready for geometry. MHS Principal Russ Booth indicated that the students are ready. Dave also noted that middle school is not a good time to divide students and in the previous math programs, there was a lot of leveling which limited future tracks. Jamie Mintz noted that going forward a student may take math 7 and in the new block take enrichment offerings to improve the mastery of math and then be ready to move to grade 8 algebra. Teresa Murphy asked if it is possible for a student to take honors geometry as a sophomore. Yes, there may be a student who matures in grade 9 and gains mastery of math. Dave highlighted the timeline which will occur this spring. We need to start notifying parents immediately. As the recommendations and requests come in we can start to put together schedules for next year. Teresa thanked the staff at QMS for being so supportive of the idea of new scheduling offerings. This is not a change they initially supported but have worked with the district to create what is best for our students. Steve asked if a student who is currently in grade 7 enriched math will be able to take grade 8 algebra. Yes, there will be some students who are eligible. Motion to approve the World Language, Literacy and Math portions of the 2024-25 Student Handbook changes by Jenn Walsh / Jenifer Sellon Page 6 of 7 Approved 0"7-24 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, April 23, 2024 In Person & Virtual Meeting using GoToWebinar Motion Carries 4 - 0 Other- Items not anticipated by the Chair 48 hours prior to this meeting_ School Committee Business: Chair Cavicchi asked that we establish a date for a summer workshop on district goals. She also encouraged the committee members to review the recent MASC newsletter which highlights that Representative Adam Scanlon is putting forward an amendment to create a committee to review the Chapter 70 formula. Documents Referenced: Warrant Minutes FY25 Budget Presentation Best Buddies Field Trip Request QMS Program of Studies highlights of changes QMS Program of Studies presentation slides Motion to adjourn: At 8:30 p.m., Chair Lynn Cavicchi called for a motion to adjourn Motion to adjourn by Jenn Walsh / jenifer Sellon. Roll Call Vote: Steve Schoonveld aye Lynn Cavicchi aye Jenn Walsh aye jenifer Sellon aye Motion Carries 4 - 0 Respectfully Submitted, Diane Nugent, Administrative Assistant to Superintendent & School Committee Page 7 of 7