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Home My WebLink AboutSchool Committee 03/28/2017Approved 04-11-17 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, March 28, 2017 Town Hall, Room 3A&B An Open Meeting of the Mansfield School Committee was held at the Town Hall on Tuesday, March 28, 2017. The open meeting session was opened and called to order by Kiera O'Neil at 7:02 pm. Members Present: Also Present: Kiera O'Neil, Chair Zeffro Gianetti, Superintendent of Schools Lynn Cavicchi, Vice Chair Teresa Murphy, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Linda Fernando Jenn Walsh Lauren Scher Members Absent: None -•<z r.: -=m ca Video Ta pin Dana Hourigan 15 Evans Circle _;- _1 COMMUNICATIONS: Letter received from Sara jarjoura, 21 Oakland Street asking fthe Kgnsfiel Public School district was planning a statement regarding recent laws on transgender-siudfllts in= schools. Kiera O'Neil stated that we are consistently reviewing our policies and ensuring the all--') students are protected at all times. ,, _, � �_� ED� SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT: s r No update rn ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT: STEM fair for grades 5 and 6 students: Deb Fournier (MHS) as well as many community members contributed to this well attended event that included several workstations with high tech equipment and tools. STEAM career for grade 8: Teresa thanked Mary Chmielecki and the QMS staff for this tremendous event. This program gives students an opportunity to start thinking of many career options. We had many parents and community members who volunteered to present. Kerri Sankey completed her defense of her dissertation, 'How Principals Develop School Culture' and has now earned her PhD. Congratulations to Kerri. APPROVAL OF WARRANT: Warrants Warrant ft Dates Amount Salary & Wages 2017-17 02/10/17 1,596,967.88 Goods & Services 2017-1029 02/14/17 520,424.37 Salary & Wages 2017-18 02/24/17 1,572,023.12 Goods & Services 2017-1032 02/28/17 319,594.75 $ 4,011,010.12 A motion to approve the warrant was made 1st by Linda Fernando and 2nd by Jenn Walsh. Motion Carries 5-0 Page 1 of 5 Approved 0411-17 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, March 28, 2017 Town Hall, Room 3A&B APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Executive Session Meeting Minutes of 2-7-17 A motion to approve the minutes was made 1st by Linda Fernando and 2nd by Lauren Scher. Motion Carries 5-0 Open Session Meeting Minutes of 2-15-17 A motion to approve the minutes was made ]stby Linda Fernando and 2nd by Lauren Scher Lynn Cavicchi did not attend the meeting and abstained. Motion Carries 4-0-1. Executive Session MEA Negotiation Minutes of 2-15-17 A motion to approve the minutes was made 1stby Linda Fernando and 2nd by Lauren Scher. Motion Carries 5-0 Open Session Meeting Minutes of 2-28-17 A motion to approve the minutes was made lstby Linda Fernando and 2nd by Lauren Scher. Motion Carries 5-0 Executive Session Minutes of 2-28-17 Tabled FINANCE AND OPERATIONS REPORT: Ed Vozzella absent from meeting so no update though Zeff Gianetti noted we continue to be on track. GIFTS: Last week Mansfield High School held the second annual Career Fair. We received several gifts from the community including Red Sox ticket raffle donated by Chris Hall, Dinner provided by Olive Garden, T-shirts provided by Mansfield Bank as well as donations from Grogan Marciano (gift card) and many others. No vote required by school committee. OLD BUSINESS: Sub Committee Updates 1. Audit: Currently reviewing the Charter for the audit committee and looking at items that need to be addressed including the creation of a fraud hotline and setting up more frequent audits. 2. CIP: No updates until the spring. 3. Budget: Meeting was held on Tuesday, March 14. The budget is very close to being met. Jenn Walsh and Lynn Cavicchi attended a Budget Planning Presentation by MASC. 4. Policy: Policies are in progress, currently being reviewed by administration. Committee was asked to revisit the original list of policy needs and work toward completing that list for this year. Page 2 of 5 Approved 04-11-17 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, March 28, 2017 Town Hall, Room 3A&B Student Advisory Committee: Nithin Lankipalle provided the committee with an update of MHS activities. Spring sports have started their practices despite the weather. The One Act Play was a great experience for all involved and they made it through multiple rounds of performing. The Science Olympiad was a great success for this first-time team. The team earned 20th out of 50+ teams and also won several individual ribbons. The Percussion Ensemble held their annual home show and finished first in their category. Assemblies have started for prom and other senior events. Student thoughts seem to be centered on the new schedule and upcoming AP exams. They feel that the curriculum is barely fitting in prior to the exams. Perhaps it is the newness of the schedule and it will resolve itself next year. Student Advisory Committee has met with Mr. Connolly regarding handbook changes, cell phone usage, recycling promotion. They hope to have an upcoming meeting with Ms. Murphy. NEW BUSINESS: MSBA Status Update: Mike Ahern (Highway Department) provided a status update. Mike along with Zeff Gianetti and Ed Vozzella had submitted a request to the state to obtain funding for the MHS replacement wall and windows. Mansfield is one of 73 requests that have made it to the final stages of approval. Last week MSBA toured the high school to seethe needed repairs. If we are approved then the town must show that we received dollar approval at Town Meeting for the remaining amount. VFW Award Presentation: James Morrissey from VFW Post 3264 was in attendance to present awards to two Mansfield High students for the "Voice of Democracy" Essay contest. The two award winners were Stephanie Wright and Daniel Shachat. Mr. Morrissey asked the school committee to encourage future essay entries as there are typically not many from the Mansfield Schools. MHS Dance Club: Michael Connolly represented teacher Laura Brophy in requesting that the current dance club be promoted from club to activity level allowing for more fundraising efforts. Jenn Walsh motioned to approve the MHS Dance Club as an official activity. Linda Fernando seconded the motion. Motion Carries 5-0 Field Trips. Grade 7 Canobie Lake Park (annual trip.) Linda Fernando motioned to approve the field trip. Jenn Walsh seconded. Motion Carries 5-0 Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations: Teresa reviewed the hiring process to date starting with a search committee that interviewed six candidates. Two candidates were brought for day long meetings and interviews with key district staffing areas. From the two, Edward Donoghue is being brought in front of school committee this evening for approval by the committee. Teresa reviewed his education credentials and prior work Page 3 of 5 Approved 0411-17 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, March 28, 2017 Town Hall, Room 3A&B experience (Mendon/Upton and Bourne.) He comes highly recommended. Ed Donoghue was introduced and came to the mic. School committee asked a round of questions: Lynn Cavicchi: How have you incorporated financial information such as budgets and projections into your district's strategic planning in order to support your district's priorities? Ed: My role is whatever I can do to save resources, look for cost savings in order to move as many resources into the classroom as possible. Jenn Walsh: Tell us a little bit about the Innovation Station that you spearheaded. Ed: Approximately four years ago the woodshop was retired. I worked on managing the removal of the existing equipment, clean and prepare for a technology center including 3D printers. It is available to the whole district and is managed by a facilitator similar to a library. Linda Fernando: Discuss your process to collaborate with the Special Education Director to oversee reimbursements and grants. Ed: Currently I meet every month with the superintendent and special ed director to go over line items and to discuss potential outsourcing. Regular communication avoids any surprises. Lauren Scher: Can you explain the steps you plan to take to ensure that you are communicating regularly and providing the school committee and administration with the most updated information? Ed: I make regular updates on a quarterly basis. We also do line item transfers 2 or 3 times per year. I also do a regular'SWAT' analysis highlighting positives and negatives in the budget. Kiera O'Neil: After spending the day here in Mansfield, what do you see as the biggest challenges we face? Ed: Overall, there is a lot of support from the town which is very important. There are state cuts looming and Mansfield will need to plan ahead to avoid as many cuts as possible. Once cut, it is difficult to get it back Jenn Walsh made a motion to appoint Edward Donoghue to the position of Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations contingent on contract negotiations. Linda Fernando seconded. Motion Carries 5-0 Facilities Director.- Approval of job description The position is now open with Bob LaConte's pending retirement. The description was outdated so a modified description has been created. The title will change from Director of Buildings and Grounds to Facilities Director. Teresa also went through the hiring process timeline. Minor changes to search committee members were recommended. Approval is currently scheduled for the May 9Lb school committee meeting though that date will change due to a change in meeting schedule. Lynn Cavicchi made a motion to approve the job description for Facilities Director contingent on contract negotiations. Linda Fernando seconded. Motion Carries 5-0 Page 4 of 5 Approved 04-11-17 Mansfield School Committee Meeting Minutes for Tuesday, March 28, 2017 Town Hall, Room 3A&B Upcoming Meeting Schedule: Review remainder of the year May 9r" conflicts with the town election. The new schedule of meetings will be as follows: Cancel May 9th Add May 16r^ Change May 23rd to a workshop Keep June 20rs until we move closer to end of year. Upcoming Workshop: Discuss date and agenda Date set to May 23rd. Possible agenda items as brought by the committee are the superintendent's evaluation process; transition plan including new superintendent training and entry plan; General communication process between administration and committee. Kiera suggested the use of a 3rd party for the workshop. Zeff had a few ideas for contacts. Committee agreed though would like to see an impartial third parry who is not familiar with the staff or district. Citizens Comments: None School Committee New Business: None School Committee Other Business: None Documents Referenced: Letter from resident Timeline for hiring Facilities Director Timeline for hiring Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning Motion to adjourn: At 8:02 p.m., Kiera O'Neil asked for a motion to enter into Executive Session pursuant to M.G.L. Chapter 30A, Section 21 for the Following Purpose: Under 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 not to reconvene in open session and the chair so declares; Jenn Walsh motioned and Linda Fernando seconded. Role Call Vote: Lynn Cavicchi Yes Jenn Walsh Yes Kiera O'Neil Yes Linda Fernando Yes Lauren Scher Yes Motion U.C. 5-0 Respectfully Submitted, Diane Nugent Secretary to the Superintendent & School Committee Page 5 of 5