Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutSchool Comm Minutes 3/8/2011MANSFIELD SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING Michael Trowbridge, Chairman R 1-70 E I V Ft� Frank Del Vecchio, Vice Chairman r' -O; s_� , 5 n FiCE Lisa Losiewicz Jean Miller 2U12 DAR 1� P 2:21 Jim Perry 7:00 PM Open Session Adiourn to EXECUTIVE SESSION -7:01 PM - Superintendent's Office Adiourn to OPEN SESSION - 7:30 PM - Room 3 A & B 7:01 PM EXECUTIVE SESSION AGENDA 1.) Collective Bargaining Strategy / Update Food Service, Little Hornet Daycare, MEA, Para Prof., SPED Drivers 7:30 PM OPEN SESSION AGENDA 7:30 PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 7:35 CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED 7:40 1.) Personnel 8:00 APPROVAL OF WARRANTS Enc. 8:10 8:30 OLD BUSINESS 1.) Snow Removal Update 2.) Travel Club Information Update 3.) 2010 - 2011 Calendar - 4.) 2011— 2012 Calendar - 5.) Strategic Plan 6.) FY' 11 Budget Update 7.) FY' 12 Budget Update NEW BUSINESS Enc. Enc. Enc. 1.) Approval of Budget Article for Town Meeting Enc. 2.) Green Earth Hornets request for Greenhouse Enc. 3.) Field Trip Approval - Spanish Exchange Trip Enc. 4.) Dental Hygienists Presentation Enc. 9:00 SCHOOL COMMITTEE NEW BUSINESS OTHER Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, March 8, 2011 Town Hall, Room 3B & C An Open Meeting of the Mansfield School Committee was held at the Town Hall on Tuesday, March 8, 2011. A motion to open the Open Meeting was made by Mr. Michael Trowbridge, 2 "d by, Mrs. Lisa Losiewicz with a roll call vote and called to order at 7:00 PM by Chairman, Mr. Michael Trowbridge. After returning from Executive Session the Open Session meeting was reopened and called to order by Chairman, Mr. Michael Trowbridge at 7:35 PM. Motion U.C. 5 - 0 Members Present —roll call vote to oven meeting; Mr. Michael Trowbridge, Chairman; yes Mr. Frank DelVecchio, Vice Chairman; yes Mrs. Lisa Losiewicz, yes Mrs. Jean Miller, yes Mr. Jim Perry yes Also Present: Mrs. Brenda Hodges, Superintendent of Schools Mr. Edward Vozzella, Director of Finance Chairman, Mr. Michael Trowbridge, read aloud a statement regarding taping of the meeting. Snow Removal On March 2nd at a Selectman's meeting, a discussion took place in regards to the snow removal on Mansfield Schools roof. It was during this meeting that the Town Manager, William Ross, gave incorrect information as to what has transpired throughout that week. I am not sure if he was misinformed or intentionally told incorrect information. Only Mr. Ross can answer that. I know the facts surrounding the snow removal as I had several conversations regarding the roofs with the Building Inspector throughout the week, attempting to be proactive and insure the safety of the children and staff. Mrs. Hodges prepared a lengthy response to the accusations, which I am sure most of you received it. It is unsettling that a Conversation of that Magnitude would occur at the Selectmen's meeting without the School Committee being informed. That is certainly not signs of working together cooperatively. What is more upsetting is that the Sun Chronicle would actually write a story regarding the schools without checking facts or asking the actual persons involved, the Schools. Contract Increase for Mrs. Hodges As the public is aware, we had an Executive Session posted for February 15th. In that time, we negotiated a contract with Mrs. Hodges and in fact she did get a 4 percent raise. She had not received a raise since the time she was hired, 4 years ago. We also agreed to pay her an additional $5,000.00 above and beyond last year's stipend of $10,000.00 for her performing the duties of the Curriculum instructor. SCM Page Z Negotiations for a superintendent can and should be done in Executive Session. That is the way it has ALWAYS been done. That is per legal advice of our school counsel. When I was asked by the Sun Chronicle if we had plans to announce the raise, I informed him, that we have not had the Executive Session minutes typed or approved as of yet. And then, we would need to vote to release the minutes. This meeting covered a great deal of information that was outside of just the Superintendent Contract. Please be clear, that I don't think he intentionally wrote something that was not correct, it is possible that I was not entirely clear in my response. What is most troubling is an allegation by the Sun Chronicle Editor. "The spirit of the Open Meeting Law has surely been disrespected here. The attorney general should decide if there also was a technical violation, and take appropriate action. " - Editorial "We know of no exemption from the Open Meeting Law for voting on a raise." Editorial They had several days to ask the question as to which law. Those chose not to look or ask. A simple Google of open meeting requirements for executive session would have been found. I understand the paper, or citizens may not agree with our decision, but to imply that someone is doing something illegal, they should check with the Attorney General and read the Mass General Laws first. That I find to be offensive. The big headlines of accusations make for good print, retractions and apologies, get hidden in the back. I believe it will be determined that we acted in accordance with the laws. Once that is determined, I will expect an apology from the paper for insinuating we did something illegal. I acted upon advice of our School Attorney, prior to my signing of the contract. Mr. Trowbridge then read the correspondence from the Committee's legal counsel. Snow Day As the Chairman, I called an Emergency School Committee Meeting on March 3, 2011, shortly before 4 pm. The reason for the meeting was that we were presented with a grievance on that same day at 3:30 pm. The grievance was something that called for an immediate action by the Schools that I did not feel comfortable in making a decision, nor did the Superintendent, without the Committee's input. Mrs. Hodges did not unilaterally decide to hold School on Saturday's. She in fact was not in favor of that. She was directed by a vote of the School Committee at its February 15i" meeting. To chose 2 Saturdays and set it in motion as soon as she could. Work Days on which schools is cancelled for any reason shall be made up on days determined by the Committee. It is disheartening that people jump to conclusions, but what they might read in the paper, or on a blog somewhere. I actually read three different accounts of our meeting where we discussed the Snow Days, and all three were different. If you have a question, please feel free to ask. You may not always like our answer, but we have never stopped people from asking questions during Citizens Questions and Comments. CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED None SCM Page 3 SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT: Mrs. Hodges had no report to give but read a statement addressing some issues. She also gave an update on the snow removal before Mr. Walter Parker addressed, the now infamous, snow removal issue. The one thing the Superintendent wanted to make clear and hoped the lesson learned, was that people would think before they speak and have a clear understanding of what is going on before making the relationship between the town and the schools more toxic than it already is. Mrs. Hodges hoped that everyone understood that the most important decision that was made that day, and that week, was that it was all about the safety of the children; it was not about the money. Mrs. Hodges then asked Director of Buildings & Grounds, Mr. Walter Parker, to speak to the issue of the snow removal at the schools. Mr. Parker gave a detailed timeline from the preliminary, to the actual, removal of the snow from Thursday, January 28, 2011, to Monday, February 7, 2011. Mr. Parker gave a breakdown of conversations with the Building Inspector Nick Riecio, as well as the Deputy Fire Chief, James Puleo, and The Dempsey Group Structural Engineering Company. A copy of the timeline was handed out at the meeting. NEW BUSINESS Green Earth Hornets Request for Greenhouse: The Green Earth Hornets organization advisor, Robin Organ and Representative Jay Barrows, along with student representatives, requested approval to erect a greenhouse at Mansfield High School. The organization had already met with Mrs. Hodges and Mr. Parker to propose the project earlier. Mr. Parker was present to discuss the details and any issues that may need to be resolved to move forward. The organization is looking for the Committee's approval to begin seeking the appropriate town permits and fund raising for the project. Mrs. Hodges wanted it made clear to everyone that funding must include maintenance and upkeep for the structure, not only the purchase and initial installation of the greenhouse. Mr. Trowbridge wanted to know how close to the wetlands the green house would be located. Mr. Parker thought it was 50 feet but Mr. Trowbridge did not think it would be allowed and offered to look into that for them. Mr. Trowbridge then offered to help them with any of the plans or forms that needed to be done. Mrs. Losiewicz was very excited about. Mr. Perry wanted to know if the group was willing to take on the care and maintenance of the structure. The student representative assured him that they were and that Mr. Platt also has offered to have his environmental science class help out. Mrs. Organ pointed out that it is their wish to be able to link the schools with the community with this project and that there is a strong group behind this initiative. There were three students honored at a meeting at the state house last week. Motion to approve the greenhouse as a town / school project by Mrs. Jean Miller, tad by Mrs. Lisa Losiewicz. Motion U.C. 5 — 0 SCM Page 3 APPROVAL OF WARRANTS The following warrants were presented and accepted by the School Committee on March 8, 2011, 2011 Salary & Wages, #2011 -14 dated 01 -07 -2011, in the amount of $1,254,954.72; Goods & Services #2011 -1021 dated 01 -11 -2011 in the amount of $239,844.28; Salary & Wages, # 2011- 15 dated 01 -21 -2011, in the amount of $1,269,608.96 ; Good & Services # 2011— 1023 dated 01 -25 -2011, in the amount of $350,781.25. Motion to approve the warrants was made by Mrs. Jean Miller, 2 "d by Mr. Frank DelVecchio. Motion U.C. 5 — 0 Dental Hygienists Presentation: New Business moved ahead A proposal for a school based preventive dental service was presented by Public Health Dental Hygienists Jacklyn L. Ventura, RDH and Kathleen M. Luisi, RDH of MASS Children Healthy Smiles, LLC, a company they formed through a grant from UMASS Medical School after Governor Patrick signed into law in 2009 a new category of "Public Health Dental Hygienist" to increase access to preventative dental services for residents of the state, including Mass Health members. Dental Hygienists must meet the regulations set by the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Dentistry to provide dental service in a school setting. This proposal was brought forward by Mrs. Pat Harrison, head school nurse. Mr. Trowbridge noted that the hygienists must be Cori checked and asked how long the approval would be good for. The Grant is good for two years and the approval is good for as long as the Committee would like them. There is no contract. The students would receive preventative care in cleaning and sealants applied to their teeth and rechecked the following year, as a condition of the grant. There is no cost to the school district. The grades of pre K to 8t" grade are the target ages for this service. The time lost out of the classroom would be for 20 minutes, twice a year. Mr. Vozzella asked if they had encountered any liability issues, to which they responded no, there is no more liability than if a parent were to enter the school. They are required to have insurance. The motion was made to approve the Hygienist Program for grades Pre K through 8 by Mrs. Miller and 2 "d by Mr. DelVecchio. Motion U.C. 5 - 0 OLD BUSINESS Strategic Plan & FY111 The Superintendent spoke to the fact that the FY' 11 Budget and the Strategic Plan go hand in hand and turned the discussion over to Mr. Vozzella, Mr. Vozzella noted he did not foresee overspending the budget, we don't have any issues we can't handle. To the positive side we were awarded more IDEA money than what is in the budget. They held back some of the money without letting the districts know, which is a nice surprise. They gave us a little over $100,000 that we did not expect. / On the negative side, the snow and removal costs have been significantly over budget. We are waiting for the heat and light bills for February and we may have a student coming in from another town with significant issues, so we would have to go over the IEP and calculate the costs for the remainder of the year and next year. They are moving from another state. Mi•. Vozzella did not see any other issues. SCM Page 4 FY'12 Budget A handout was given to the audience outlining the budget. Mrs. Hodges wanted to speak to the budget and the request from the School Committee to present a budget that will bring the district back to where we really need to be, not where we are because of the very deep cuts that have occurred over the past few years. The Superintendent was emphatic when she stated that we could not cut any more staff this year. We have cut so deeply over the past few years that we are struggling this year to be able to provide the services that are indicative of what Mansfield has always provided. Mrs. Hodges wanted to start with Qualters Middle School, and how we have made so many cuts they are limping along right now, with teams that have as many as 135 students, which should never happen. We have cut at the high school so far that we have eliminated programs that served students well and a population of students are struggling to be served now. The numbers in some classes are extremely hard to manage. We need to bring some staff back. Mrs. Hodges has worked with her administrators to try and pinpoint what needs to be done. The hand out shows the priorities needed by each school and show a trimming of the budget from the original request of 43 new staff to a request of 28.2 staff members. This reduces the budget by I.4M from the original submission to $1,066,000. Mr. DelVecchio wanted to speak to a couple of facets, first being that you worked with your administrators and your staff to get to what you need for the district to remain a quality system, 43 positions are a lot of positions. There was talk of having a Strategic Plan and we hope this would coincide with, and dove with a strong community input as to where we want to go. Maybe at that point, with some adjustments, 43 positions may be where the community wants to go. However, that process has been impeded, it's not going forward at this point. Last year we ended up with $1M less than the state said we were required to spend so cuts were made that would not have been made under ( other circumstances. That is reflected in this number. Mrs. Hodges wanted to speak to the Strategic Plan. Mrs. Hodges did state that had we had the monies that were required to be spent by our town on education, some cuts would not have been made. We were under funded by $978,000. We were hoping to have our Strategic Plan in place. We had a conversation with the Town Manager regarding the 30B regulations, the public procurement law, that requires a bid process, was not followed. Mr. Vozzella spoke to this issue and that it had not happened. Before we started the process, 30B regulations say you must go through the bid process. That process began with the Town Manager. The Town Manager believed we would not have to go through that requirement. Mrs. Losiewicz stated she was there for this conversation, so a while later Mrs. Hodges was presented with a document from the Town Manager and asked to sign the contract, to which Mrs. Hodges said she could not put her name on this because we did not go through the requirements and we had discussed that this would have to happen. Mrs. Hodges refused to sign and said it had to go to Town counsel and if he said this is an exemption, then bring it back and she would take a look at it. The information later showed that Mrs. Hodges was correct and the Town council did say they had to go through this process. So, this happened in November and it has delayed the process. Mr. DelVecchio wanted to know where it stood right now. Mr. Trowbridge said there were two bids so far, but had no idea about a time frame Mr. Vozzella then spoke to the changes in the budget and what they were and how it got to where it is right now, as well as the Net School Spending. Mrs. Losiewicz spoke to the fact that the Curriculum Director position was not on the list and noted that with it requiring so much time and that there was so much data to process, it really should be there. Mr. Hodges agreed but did state it would be difficult to add another $110,000 to the budget, but would add it on. The Superintendent did say she would make sure that the old budget information would be in their packets so they would have something to compare to. SCM Page 5 Calendar: The attendance on Saturday was not much different than it is at the last week of June. Mrs. Hodges was happy to report that most every teacher reported to school on the Saturday school. The attendance by the students was varied. The seniors were the lowest and the elementary were the highest. The Qualters Middle School had the highest attendance. The Superintendent shared a breakdown of the attendance for the School Committee. Mrs. Losiewicz was not in favor of canceling the next snow Saturday school but Mr. Perry and Mrs. Miller felt that there really was no reason to go through with it right now and recommended adding it on at the end of the year if necessary. Mr. DelVecchio stated that originally Mrs. Hodges wanted three days in April, along with Mrs. Losiewicz, but April would have impacted more families. The Committee decided to cancel the next Saturday date, after much discussion. The motion to eliminate the next Saturday school day made by Mrs. Miller, 2 "d by Mr. Perry. Motion U.C. 4 —1 ( Mrs. Losiewicz against) Calendar 2010-2011: Mr. Trowbridge mentioned that surrounding towns had a survey on line for parents and staff, regarding the school calendar he was interested in doing a survey to provided some scenarios and get a better idea of what the community would like in the calendar. A few of the questions would pertain to the vacations, holidays and days leading up to holidays. Mrs. Hodges said she would send the School Committee a sample survey to which they could give her some input to design a survey. Mr. Trowbridge wanted to make sure that there would be a way that you could only access it once. Mrs. Hodges said she was confident that Lori Letendre would be able to make sure that would happen. Mr. DelVecchio's only concern was that once we send out this survey it was not a democratic decision of the parents, but of the Committee to decide what went into the calendar. Mrs. Hodges wanted to remind everyone that the starting date of Labor Day to June 30th was a contractual issue, not a choice that could be changed by the Committee. Travel Club Information Update: Mr. DelVecchio noted that this information was very thorough and answered all his questions. He appreciated all the information but was still concerned about the cost. Mrs. Losiewicz echoed Mr. DelVecchio's sentiments. Mr. Perry felt that this was an enrichment experience and those that can take advantage of it, great, it is not part of the curriculum or like the fees. Mr. Trowbridge mentioned that it was expensive but students have already signed up for this trip. I guess in the future we could give some guidelines for less expensive trips. Mr. McGovern came forward to answer some of the questions and stated that when we started the club, we decided not to take our trips during the school year, due to the other clubs that travel. He then stated that he always begins planning by coming before the Committee, first, before having any meetings, so no one has signed up for this trip yet. We try and get the students interested a year before, so that they can save their money for the trip and work jobs to pay for this. We have changed the name to the World Travel Club so that we can broaden the scope. The travel company they use is called EF, which was the cheapest company around, and based in Boston. Motion was made to approve World Travel Club trip to Australia by Mrs. Miller, 2nd by Mr. Perry. Motion U.C. 4 —1 ( Mrs. Losiewicz opposed) SCM Page 6 Approval of Budget article for Town Meeting: Mr. Vozzella shared a copy of the Article that had to be submitted by March used as a place holder. Mr. Trowbridge noted that we had already vote on this with Mr. DelVecchio agreeing. The Chairman decided to retake the vote and read the Article. Motion to approve the Budget Article by Mrs. Miller, 2"1 by Mrs. Losiewicz. Motion U.C. 5 — 0 Mrs. Miller noted that this is a place holder for the Town Meeting, the number can be changed by going down not up. Field Trip Approval for the Spanish Trip: Mrs. Hodges brought forward a request from Ms. Jenny Donahue, Spanish teacher and advisor for the Spanish Exchange Program. Ms. Donahue has been doing this for the past few years where our students would go to Spain and they would come here. Motion to approve the Spanish Exchange trip by Mr. DelVecchio, 2nd by Mr. Perry. Motion U.C. 5 — 0 SCHOOL COMMITTEE NEW BUSINESS The School Committee voted to approve the Executive Session Minutes of January 25, 2011. Motion to release made by Mrs. Jean Miller, 2 "d by Mr. Frank DelVecchio. Motion U.C. 5 — 0 The School Committee voted on the release of the Executive Session Minutes of January 25, 2011. Motion to release made by Mr. Jim Perry, 2 "d by Mrs. Jean Miller. Motion U.C. 5 — 0 The School Committee voted to approve the Executive Session Minutes of February 15, 2011. Motion to release made by Mrs. Jean Miller, 2 "d by. Mr. Jim Perry. Motion U.C. 5 — 0 The School Committee voted on the release of the Executive Session Minutes of February 15, 2011. Motion to release made by Mr. Frank DelVecchio, 2 "d by Mrs. Jean Miller. Motion U.C. 5 — 0 CITIZENS COMMENTS Mr. Forget asked the question if Mrs. Hodges had asked for a raise or if you gave her a raise. Mr. Trowbridge said that she had asked for one and then went on to explain his own view of why this was supported by the Committee. Mr. Forgets' next question was whether or not Mrs. Hodges' had to pay any increase in her insurance like everyone else to which Mrs. Hodges answered that her insurance costs were just like everyone else's and hers went up just like theirs. Mr. Forget then wanted to know if the Superintendent's pay was retroactive to which Mr. Trowbridge said, yes. It went back to July, which is when we should have done her contract. Mrs. Hodges went on to say that everyone, all the teachers, have never gone without a raise. The administrators did not receive raises for the past three years.. It was my recommendation that the administrators receive raises this year. Ms. Jennifer Favor, Ms. Molly Miller and Rabbi Jodi Sewald Smith wanted to thank the School Committee for the cancelation of the Saturday school. Having school on the high holidays is not good for students, or for families, and to please not consider it in the future. Mr. Trowbridge went on to clarify what he actually said in the Boston Globe, which was, he was not advocating elimination of Jewish holy days or Good Friday. He was putting everything out on the table for discussion. Ms. Ann Baldwin questioned the process to which the Committee came up with the Superintendent's salary. She was told that the School Committee followed the advice of legal counsel. OTHER Motion to adiourn Motion was made to adjourn the School Committee Meeting of March 8, 2011 at 10:15 PM for the sole purpose of adjourning. Motion to close by Mr. Frank DelVecchio, 2 "d by Mr. Michael Trowbridge. Roll call vote to close: Michael Trowbridge, yes: Jim Perry, yes; Frank DelVecchio, yes: Mrs. Lisa Losiewicz, yes; Mrs. Jean Miller, yes. Motion U.C. 5 - 0 Respectfully submitted, Mmy O. Jackson Secretary to the Superintendent & School Committee