HomeMy Public PortalAboutBrewster School Committee -- 2009-01-15 Minutes~~~ DDDO
Brewster School Committee
Minutes of January 15, 2009 CG s ~ ~~~~~
Held at Eddy Elementary School ~~~ ~ ~ ~~~~
Chair O'Reilly called the meeting to order at 5:05 p.m.
ROLL CALL:
For the Committee: Steve Jones, Marie Enochty, John O'Reilly, David Telman (Absent:
Jennifer Rabold)
For the Administration: Michael Gradone, Denise Fronius, Keith Gauley, Ann Caretti,
Hans Baumhauer
AGENDA CHANGES -None
CITIZENS SPEAK -None
PRIORITY BUSINESS
Administrators' Reports
Denise Fronius reported that they may be going solar; teachers are working on writing
prompts and she'll report on that in February; kindergarten registration is coming up.
Keith Gauley reported that the Geography Bee will be held on January 23; the band
concert is next week; Stacy Faris and the chorus has been invited back next year for the
Cape Cod Symphony's Pops Concert; the new phone system has been installed.
Chair's Report
Mr. O'Reilly reported that he attended the Selectmen's meeting and expressed his
concern over safety issues of having affordable housing located on Stony Brook
property.
FY 10 Budget
Supt. Gradone reviewed the '09 budget and special education costs that came in after
the budget was set; administration is looking at finding $10,000 to help offset this
amount; the actual expenses are 2.24% higher than Town meeting appropriation. Cuts
made in the FY 10 budget includes reducing one classroom teacher, reducing physical
education staff; instruction time will be increased for the librarian and the technology
teacher; the science lab will be closed at Eddy; there will be four fewer subject
coordinators; total reductions are $169,820.
Principals Fronius and Gauley and Business Manager Baumhauer reviewed the budgets
line by line. There were questions and discussion of various accounts, Supt. Gradone
suggested that the Committee decide what they feel they can support and tell the
administration to come back with recommended cuts to get to that figure. The possibility
of an override was discussed. Dr. Caretti explained the necessary special needs
expenses and the difficulty in finding candidates for OT and speech positions.
Jennifer Rabold was unable to be at this meeting and sent the following to be included in
the minutes.
1 apologize for missing the meeting this evening. 1 met with Mike earlier this week to ask some
questions about the proposed budget. Here are my two cents as the budget stands now:
1 believe that the cuts that Mike and the principals have proposed are, for the most part,
reasonable and responsive to enrollment trends. 1 am a bit concerned about the reduction of
physical education, especially given our recent commitment to wellness. Perhaps we need to
Brewster School Committee Minutes - Januar 75 2009
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discuss, separate from budget discussions, our approach to physical fitness in terms of
curriculum. Partnering with Brewster Recreation or private health clubs might be a direction to
consider.
I am a/so concerned about the reduction of tutoring services at Eddy, particularly for the reading,
writing, and math academies (MCAS preparation). Neither reduction of services nor passing
along charges to students' families seem like good options, as these are the students who most
need the services and those who receive the services are least likely to be able to afford them.
l am very sad about the elimination of the funding for student activities at Eddy, particularly
Destination Imagination, although I understand the rationale: in such a tight budget season,
extras can't be justified in the regular school budget. However, Mike tells me that Keith is
planning to volunteer his services. l would like to recommend another option that will not unfairly
burden Keith: seek a sponsor(s) for the team(s). l am sure that local businesses would be more
than happy to sponsor a program like this. l would be happy to help find one.
Finally, l would just like to make it clear that I am not willing to accept additional cuts in the
budget. 1 know that the 4.86% increase is greater than the 2% requested, but l think that
additional cuts would be irresponsible and would seriously harm the academic program in the
elementary schools, especially given that a 2% increase would actually be a reduction in this
year's budget because of cuts to state aid and circuit breaker reimbursement. l had been hoping
for the past few years that an override this year would help us to replace some of the services
that we have had to cut in the past 4 years. Unfortunately, it appears that an override would
simply maintain the status quo (or slightly less than status quo).
John O'Reilly asked that the administration look at class sizes and indicate what the
impact will be for any cuts to be considered. $160,000 equals 3 teaching positions.
REPORTS AND INFORMATION
Cape Cod Collaborative
Marie reported that the Board held interviews and selected the new director, Paul Hilton.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
It was moved by Steve Jones and seconded by Marie Enochty to approve the minutes of
December 18, 2008. Voted unanimously.
ADJOURNMENT
- It was moved, seconded and voted unanimously to adjourn, subject to paying bills, at
7:10 p. m.
Respectfully submitted,
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B.J. Newmier, Secretary
Brewster School Committee
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