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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSchool Comm Minutes 11/16/20100 MANSFIELD SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING MichaelTrowbrid Qe,Chairman € rr*IVEO Frank De1Vecchio, Vice Chairman 1 O W, . t 'FRY`S O F F I C E ( Lisa Losiewicz 10l2 Jean Miller ppn I4 P 2 2b Jim Perry TUESDAY, November 16, 2010 7:00 PM Open Session Adiourn to EXECUTIVE SESSION - 7:01 PM - Superintendent's Office 7:01 PM 7:30 PM 7:30 Adiourn to OPEN SESSION - 7:30 PM - Room 3 A & B EXECUTIVE SESSION AGENDA 1.) Collective Bargaining Strategy /Update OPEN SESSION AGENDA PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 7:35 CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED Joint School & Town Strategic Plan • Dr. John Mullin Mullin Associates, Inc. 7:40 SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT 1.) Personnel 2.) Retirement ■ Anne Marie Rodriguez - letter ■ Carolyn Bourget - letter 8:00 APPROVAL OF WARRANTS Enc. 8:05 APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1.) Executive Session Minutes of October 19, 2010 Enc. 2.) School Committee Minutes of October 19, 2010 Enc. 8:10 OLD BUSINESS 1.) X2 Update • Attendance 2.) District Bullying Prevention DRAFT Plan 3.) District Data Analysis / MCAS Enc. 8:30 NEW BUSINESS 1.) Mansfield Green Schools Program • Robin Organ 2.) Summer Institutes Summaries Enc. 3.) School Improvement Plans Enc. 4.) Food Service Program 5.) Travel Reimbursement 9:00 SCHOOL COMMITTEE NEW BUSINESS Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, November 16, 2010 Town Hall, Room 3B & C An Open Meeting of the Mansfield School Committee was held at the Town Hall on Tuesday, November 16, 2010. 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. 3 - 0 Members Present — roll call vote to open meeting: W. Michael Trowbridge, Chairman; yes Mrs. Lisa Losiewicz, yes Mr. Jim Perry yes Not Present: Mrs. Jean Miller, Mr. Frank DelVecchio, Vice Chairman; Arrived late — 7:45 PM Also Present: Mrs. Brenda Hodges, Superintendent of Schools Mr. Edward Vozzella, Director of Finance Joint School & Town Strategic Plan: The Board of Selectman, along with the Town Manager were present at the School Committee Meeting for the purpose of a presentation by Dr. John Mullin regarding the proposal being put forth for the Joint Strategic Plan. The Chairman of the BOS, Mr. Kevin Moran, asked for a motion to open their meeting at 7:45 PM as part of the School Committee Meeting. A motion to open was 1 sc made by Mr. Jess Aptowitz, 2 "d by Mr. Olivier Kozlowski with a roll call vote. Mr. Kevin Moran, yes; Mr. Jess Aptowitz, yes; Mr. George Dentino, yes; Mr. Doug Annino, yes; Mr. Olivier Kozlowski, yes. Mullin Associates will assist the Town of Mansfield to initiate a community—wide planning process designed to stimulate the implementation of both school and municipal master planning goals. It is the philosophy of Mullin Associates to empower communities to take charge of their own future through educated decision - making. It will be with the experience of Mullin Associates and a Steering Committee, comprised of community members, along with representatives of both the schools and town government, that will serve as a strong combination for ultimately aligning both sides to work toward a common goal. It was noted by the Town Manager, Mr. Bill Ross and Dr. Mullin, that they will need the input from our own Town Planner as part of the Committee. Mr. Trowbridge, Chairman of the School Committee, asked for a motion to vote to approve Mullins Associates for the Joint School & Town Strategic Implementation Plan. Motioned by Mr. Jim Perry; 2 "d by Mr. Frank DelVecchio. Motion U.C. 4 — 0. Mrs. Miller was not present at the meeting. SCM Page 2 Mr. Moran, Chairman of the Board of Selectman, asked for a motion to vote to approve Mullins Associates for the Joint School & Town Strategic Implementation Plan. Motioned by Mr. Jess Aptowitz; 2 "d by Mr. Olivier Kozlowski. Motion U.C. 4 — 0 -1. Mr. George Dentino abstained. A motion was made by the Selectmen to adjourn the Joint Meeting with the School Committee of November 16, 2010 at 7:50 PM for the sole purpose of leaving the joint meeting. A roll call vote was taken Mr. Moran, yes; Mr. Aptowitz, yes; Mr. Dentino, yes; Mr. Annino, yes; Mr. Kozlowski, yes. Motioned by Mr. Jess Aptowitz; 2 "d by Mr. Olivier Kozlowski. Motion U.C. 5 — 0 Correspondence: None Superintendent's Report: Retirements: The Superintendent announced the retirements of two outstanding, longtime district teachers. Mrs. Carolyn Bourget, of the Jordan / Jackson Elementary, has been a teacher in the district for the past 35 years. Mrs. Ann Marie Rodrigues has been in the district for the past 36 years, first as a classroom teacher and then as the Assistant Principal of the Robinson Elementary for the past 6 years. These two educators will be greatly missed. Approval of Warrants: The following warrants were presented and accepted by the School Committee on November 16, 2010, Salary & Wages, #2011 - 7 dated 10/01/2010, in the amount of $1,320,466.98; Goods & Services #2011 -1006 dated 10/05/2010 in the amount of $271,525.24; Salary & Wages, # 2011- 08 dated 10/15/2010, in the amount of $1,302,186.16. Good & Services, #2011 - 1008 dated 10119//2010 in the amount of $447,835.69. Salary & Wages, # 2011 — 09 dated 10/29/2010, in the amount of $1,308,182.90 Motion to approve by Mrs. Lisa Losiewicz, 2" d by Mr. Jim Perry. Motion U.C. 3 - 0 Approval of Minutes: The Executive Minutes for October 19, 2010 were approved. Motioned by Mr. Michael Trowbridge, 2 "d by Mr. Jim Perry. Motion U.C. 3 — 0 -1 The School Committee Minutes of October 19, 2010 were approved. Motioned by Mr. Jim Perry, 2 "d by Mr. Michael Trowbridge Motion U.C. 3 — 0 -1 SCM Paee 3 OLD BUSINESS: X2 Update: Mrs. Lori Letendre, Director of Technology, presented the School Committee with an update of the present status of the new X2 student information system. Mrs. Letendre discussed the reporting of the district attendance policy in keeping with the state requirement. The State only recognizes absences for medical and religious reason and identifies a limit of seven (7) absences, to include excused absences, within a six (6) month period. Presently, the Mansfield District recognizes absences for numerous reasons and far exceeds the number identified by the state. Given that the state reporting on teacher and student achievement will include absences as a part of the total picture, the district is best served by reviewing our attendance and reporting policy and working to more closely align with the state regulations. The information given tonight was merely an informational update to provide information pertaining to attendance regulations and the estimated timeline of late February for the implementation of the X2 System, District Bullying Prevention DRAFT Plan: Ms. Teresa Murphy, Co- Principal of the Jordan /Jackson Elementary and chair of the District Bullying Prevention Committee updated the School Committee on the DRAFT proposal of the Bullying Policy. She asked if there were any changes that they would like to make. Mr. Jim Perry wanted to know if there could be a copy of the policy placed at the town library to allow the public to access it. Mr. Frank DelVecchio noted that the public needed to understand that this is the DRAFT document not the final copy, and that there may be some fine tuning to be done. The School Committee will have the final document at the next meeting on December 14 °i, which will require approval of, and a vote to accept the District Bullying Prevention Plan. District Data Analysis / MCAS: The Superintendent provided the School Committee with 3 vital recommendations and a plan for the district. Mrs. Hodges, along with her administrative team, analyzed the MCAS data, as well as the district data and pinpointed areas of decline. Mrs. Hodges provided information as to the process by which we can now have the ability to analyze MCAS data with district scores, individual student scores, student growth and individual classroom teacher and student performance and growth. This information would allow the district to analyze and assess the individual student growth, or lack of growth, in terms of curriculum strength & weaknesses, and at the same time, enable the district to assess the same strength & weaknesses of each teacher. The district is also analyzing the data gathered through district assessments to determine if this supports the same findings as the MCAS data. The second area is based upon the information above, but with a recommendation for significant increase in professional development time for teachers so that the district and staff can effectively address the previously identified needs. Over the past two and a half years professional development has decreased dramatically. ( The third area is the superintendent's recommendation that there be no further reductions in staff to close future budget gaps. Over the past 4 years we have reduced regular education teachers by 42.6 teachers and increased, by state mandate, the SPED teachers by 18.2 teachers. SCM Page 4 NEW BUSINESS: Mansfield Green Schools Program: Ms. Robin Organ is a Mansfield parent of two children at the Jordan Jackson and Qualters Middle School. Mrs. Organ began her Green Schools Program four years ago after she and her family had been ill due to contaminates used in daily living. Mrs. Organ has an office at the high school and began her Green Schools Program which is a charitable organization organized for environmental education purposes. Green Schools offers a number of educational programs and resources to help our schools and community Go Green & Stay Green. Summer Institutes Summaries: The Summer Institutes Summaries were presented to the School Committee. This year Summer Institutes included Curriculum Development in the areas of English Language Arts, Western Civilization, Earth Science and Biology. School Improvement Plans: The school improvement plans from each school were given to the School Committee. All improvement plans are presently posted on the district website for anyone that would like to read them. Food Service Program: Mrs. Hodges addressed an article that had been written by a student and appeared in the Sun Chronicle. The student solicited comments from a few high school students who addressed some concerns regarding the lack of variety and healthy choices within the menu offerings. Travel Reimbursement: Mrs. Hodges informed the School Committee that she had discovered an error in travel reimbursement during the FY'08 school year. She stated that a check had been provided to Mr. Vozzella for reimbursement for the difference. Citizens Comments: Ms. Antonia Glen spoke to the School Committee regarding their opportunities to stay current with educational initiatives Ms. Glen shared information regarding professional development opportunities available for SC and Educators around 21St Century skills. Mrs. Mary Barton Rau asked when the budget would be presented and when it would be made public. The Committee did mention that the budget number would be presented at the December School Committee Meeting. The January meeting would include presentations by district & individual schools. SCM Paee 5 School Committee New Business: Motion to adjourn Motion was made to adjourn the School Committee Meeting of November 16, 2010 at 9:25 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. Motion U.C. 4 - 0 Respec(trlly submitted, Mary O. Jackson Secretaiy to the Superintendent & School Committee Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday. November 17, 2010 Superintendent's Office An Open Meeting of the Mansfield School Committee was held at the Superintendent's Office on Tuesday, November 17, 2010. A motion to open the Open Meeting was made by Mr. Frank DelVecchio, 2 "d by Mr. Jim Perry, with a roll call vote and called to order at 5:10 PM by Chairman, Mr. Michael Trowbridge. Motion U.C. 3 - 0 Members Present — roll call vote to open meeting; Mr. Michael Trowbridge, Chairman - yes Mr. Frank DelVecchio, Vice Chairman - yes Mr. Jim Perry yes Not Present: Mrs. Lisa Losiewicz, Mrs. Jean Miller - Arrived late Also Present: Mrs. Brenda Hodges, Superintendent of Schools Mr. Edward Vozzella, Director of Finance The School Committee met tonight and approved the trip to Quebec with the following understanding. There will be 1 - 8 chaperone ratio with a trip cost of $489.00. Students must be in good standing and selection will be on a first come first serve basis. NO student will be un chaperoned during " free time." Please remind parents of passports. Motion to adiourn Motion was made to adjourn the School Committee Meeting of November 17, 2010 at 5:15 PM for the sole purpose of adjourning. Motion to close by Mr. Frank DelVecchio, 2 "d by Mr. Jim Perry. Roll call vote to close: Jean Miller, yes: Michael Trowbridge, yes: Jim Perry, yes; Frank DelVecchio, yes. Motion U.C. 4 - 0 Respectfrlly submitted, Brenda J. Hodges, Superintendent of Schools