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HomeMy Public PortalAboutBrewster School Committee -- 2011-11-17 Minutes Brewster School Committee D D D O �, November 17,2011 Brewster Town Hall Present for the Committee:Jennifer Rabald,Donna Kalinick,Dave Telman,and Mara Liebling Present for Administration: Dr.Hoffmann,Dr. Gifford,Mr.Baumhauer, Dr.Caretti,Principals Keith Gauley and Denise Fronius CALL TO ORDER Chair Rabold called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m. AGENDA CHANGES—Chair Rabold will move the Food Service presentation to first on the agenda. CITIZENS SPEAK Dan Rabold, Selectmen,made a monetary donation to cover costs from the Visioning Event. Motion: On a motion by Donna Kalinick, seconded by Dave Telman, it was voted unanimously to accept the most generous gift with gratitude. Patti Taylor,Cafeteria Manager at Eddy Elementary School addressed the Committee voicing concerns regarding the Food Service Program outsourcing idea. Jennifer Rabold,Chair of the RFP Food Service Subcommittee gave a PowerPoint Presentation highlighting recommendations from the Food Service Subcommittee including problems,deficits,expenses,meals per labor hour,participation,partial solutions, insourcing solutions,and outsourcing solutions. Chair Rabold indicated that the subcommittee looked long and hard to be sure about their recommendation. The consensus of the subcommittee is that Nauset does not have the capacity for the in-house plan to make these kinds of changes. They would like to empower the Business Manager to go into negotiations with Aramark and will make this recommendation at the Joint School Committee meeting. The cost of implementing the Point of Sale System is$40,000. The proposal also includes improvement to the Middle School and High School cafeterias as well as Orleans Elementary School. The District would continue to make all decisions relative to staffing and employees will still be municipal employees. Aramark would combine the bookkeeper and manager position. Aramark will have an Advisory Committee including staff and Administration that meets throughout the year to monitor the system. The subcommittee was careful to have a limited contract and an escape clause. Chair Rabold indicated that School Committees may make a conscience choice to subsidize cafeterias but must be reminded what their primary mission is,which is to educate children and that running a$126,000 deficit is not accountable. The Committee asked that a five year chart of the deficits would be compiled and distributed prior to the December 7th Joint School Committee meeting. It was asked that further questions be emailed to Dr. Hoffmann or Chair Rabold. Dr.Hoffmann indicated that if the Commitee votes to do this, it has to be a decision by every committee throughout the district. If the Joint Committee wants to discuss this and not vote at the December 7th meeting,there is another Joint Meeting in January when they can take a vote. It was suggested that Aramark send a representative and perhaps the Insourcing group have a representative as well. RECOGNITIONS Principals Fronius and Gauley recognized the Parent Teacher Organization for a very successful Spaghetti Supper Fundraiser. They also thanked the Lost Dog Pub for their donations of pizza at various functions. The PTO was also recognized and thanked for funding the science program. Principal Fronius also informed the Committee that parent conferences were well attended;the Halloween Parade was a huge hit and a very nice tradition at Stony Brook,and the annual fitness challenge is scheduled for tomorrow. Principal Gauley commented on the wonderful parent involvement at both school and thanked the parents for their continued support. He updated the Committee on Dibels and Writing Benchmark scores. He also reported that the Eddy Elementary School staff will be using the Professional Development Day,November 21,to further analyze student work samples and the difficulties students have showing,explaining,or writing about their understanding of a topic. This will be the first full day that data teams will delve into the data process. Principal Gauley also mentioned the impact the new two-tier bus system has had on attendance over two months'time. Tardies are up from last year 167/217,dismissal are down 131/52. Absences were up slightly—254/274. Principal Gauley also indicated that both schools are working on enrollment figures. M1 Dr.Caretti complimented Dr.Gifford for the diverse Professional Development that is being offered in the district on November 21 and 22 which has a balance of academics as well as social and emotional workshops. In Special Needs they will be running workshops in 504's,How Children's Experiences Impact Their Ability to Learn,Data Collecting,the Role of Ed. Assts. in the Classroom,Co-teaching, Special Needs Identification(critiquing our own practices)and Child Abuse. Dr. Gifford thanked Dr.Caretti for the collaborative effort in planning the Professional Development Days. A written report was distributed to School Committee members and the Math Initiatives were highlighted at the meeting. Job embedded Professional Development for K-5 teachers is being offered in 15 full day sessions which will include Lesson Planning- Classroom modeling/Co-teaching-Debriefing. The experiences will also illustrate the Standards for Mathematical Practice and the content clusters and domains in the Massachusetts Frameworks. Dr.Gifford also reported that Dona Apple,Senior Math Consultant for the Regional Science Resource Center at the University of Massachusetts Medical School,a member of the Board of Directors of the James J. Kaput Center for Research and Innovation in Mathematics Education at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth,and board member of the Mathematics and Computing Science Collaborative Bridgewater State College is offering teachers a graduate level course with 15 participants. Dr.Hoffmann thanked Brewster residence for voting in favor of the Green Repair Project at Nauset High School. The subcommittee will be meeting with the architect in a couple of weeks and plan to bid the job after the holidays. The Subcommittee on Sustainability has met and prepared a SWOT analysis of the district. Future meetings will focus on efficiencies, School Choice,and working cooperatively with the towns. Members from Brewster include: Frank Cummings, Ed Lewis,Herb Montgomery,and Greg O'Brien. Dr.Hoffmann also mentioned that it was"Parent Involvement Day"and expressed appreciation to the community for their tremendous parent and community involvement in the schools. He especially thanked the teachers for playing such a major role in involving parents in their classrooms and activities whenever possible.He reported that at the December 7th Joint Meeting there will be a food service update,policy manual discussion and the committee will get their first look at the Central Office Budget. FY12 Budget Update Hans Baumhauer,Business Manager,reviewed the monthly expenditure reports and transfers. It was noted going forward HVAC repairs will be part of the Capital Repair Plan. The Committee requested to see the Revolving Accounts. Mr.Baumhauer indicated he would get this from Lisa Souve. It was also noted that Brewster does not have any out-of-district placements this year. A correction needed to be made in the secretarial summer salary account. An unanticipated alarm repair is due partly to"Irene"and partly because the alarm was defective. The part time custodial position and funding was also discussed. Motion: On a motion by David Telman,seconded by Mara Liebling,it was voted unanimously to approve the transfers as submitted. FY13 Budget Process Timeline Principals Gauley and Fronius reviewed the Capital Plan in priority order. Discussion ensued relative to the HVAC. A question was raised as to whether or not this would be a project partially funded by state reimbursement. Dr.Hoffmann indicated this has not been pursued. The Superintendent will contact Charlie Sumner,Town Administrator,to see if a building study is being done in Brewster and what his thoughts are on spending$50,000+each year for maintenance of the HVAC units. Mr.Baumhauer indicated this was looked into and Evergreen came up with a design and the cost. He indicated Mr. Sumner has the study. Dr. Hoffmann indicated that the state has an annual repair process that you can apply for and the MSBA tells you when and if you will be funded. You are on a list competing with hundreds of other schools for the funding. The Superintendent indicated he will get information about placing this on a list. He also indicated that he would like a building needs assessment for all schools in the district. Chair Rabold requested that Barbara Lavoine,Technology Director,come to the next Brewster School Committee meeting for introductions as well as an explanation relative to the Brewster Technology Capital Plan. It was asked if grants had been looked into for the Stony Brook Playground and Principal Fronius indicated there is a grant that could be available,but must be submitted through the contractor. Chair Rabold indicated the Playground Subcommittee should look into this. Principal Fronius informed the Committee that the Whitecaps would like to make a contribution. Motion: On a motion by David Telman,seconded by Mara Liebling, it was voted to approve the Capital Plan for FY13 in the amount of$347,000,with proposed revisions at a future date. Superintendent Hoffmann reviewed the timeline for the budget with the Public Hearing scheduled for January 31,2012. The Committee felt more charts would improve the budget and would like a chart with Revenue Sources. The Superintendent felt that citizens should understand what was done with the override dollars. Principals were asked to submit a budget within 2.5%. If the Committee had any other suggestions regarding the budget,they were asked to email them to Dr.Hoffmann. Dr.Hoffmann reported that he attended a session regarding the budget stating"it is not about the numbers but about what the numbers bring for the children." He also indicated an enrollment chart will be included in the budget after projections from NESDEC are received and compare with Nauset's figures. Chair Rabold requested a five year history of the Brewster Kindergarten enrollment. A staffing chart was included in the packet and questions were raised regarding the Special Needs Teacher who is split between the two schools. It was indicated that this would not be the case next year. Principal Gauley reported that 3 Grade 3 teachers are retiring. He also indicated that Mrs.Johnson and Mrs. Souder will mentor and coach new teachers. These positions will be advertised after the holidays. Cafeteria personnel were discussed and it was decided to hold further conversations until after the Joint School Committee meeting.Chair Rabold requested information regarding the assignment of the Educational Assistants. The custodial staffing at the schools was discussed and it was mentioned that Ryan Sullivan has been very successful in the 16 hours per week position assisting with the grounds so that Barry Schofield has more of a facilities manager role. MASC Conference Update The Superintendent indicated that all Resolutions passed. Committee members who attended various sessions found it to be very beneficial and informative. Open Meeting Laws,Robert Rules,and improving budget submissions were some of the topics discussed. REPORTS AND INFORMATION Cape Cod Collaborative David Telman reported that he went to the first hour of the meeting which included discussion about new legislation, expanding the Collaborative to other schools off Cape,getting Superintendents involved,and voting rights. This was a very heated discussion. Dr.Ann Caretti stated this was one of the reasons why Nauset tries to keep students in the district. The bulk of services are at the other end of the Cape. Dr.Hoffinann stated that the Lighthouse Charter School is requesting to become a member of the Collaborative and stated further that he wants to make sure our district has seats at the Collaborative if we need them. Other Superintendents felt the exact same way. Transportation Subcommittee Hans Baumhauer noted there was no representative from Brewster on the Subcommittee. Mr. Baumhauer reviewed the summary that was in the packet. A questions was raised as to whether or not the district pays for School Choice buses. It was indicated,no, if there was a seat on an existing route,then the choice students got a seat on the bus. It was also indicated that these students could not be charged as the state would lower the district's reimbursement. Choice students are charged on Regional Transportation with a reimbursement rate of 60%. Mr. Baumhauer noted there is increased ridership at all a levels. He also indicated the district will not get the savings they anticipated. He will have more information for the Committee at the Joint Meeting. Playground Subcommittee Chair Rabold informed the committee that the first meeting of the Playground Subcommittee had been scheduled for November 30t. Members of the subcommittee included: Ellen Ojala,Christine Seger,Denise Fronius,Keith Gauley, Sharon Price,Jessica Larsen,Marcial Galazzi,and Les Bevin. Space Utilization Subcommittee David Telman informed the committee that the first meeting of the Space Utilization Subcommittee is November 30Th Members of the subcommittee include: David Telman,Keith Gauley,Denise Fronius,Su Balentine,Peter Norton,and Charlie Sumner. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion: On a motion by David Telman,seconded by Donna Kalinick,it was voted unanimously to approve the minutes of October 26,2011,with a typo correction in the Chair's name. ADJOURNMENT On a motion by David Telman,seconded by Mara Liebling,it was voted unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 9:50 p.m., subject to payment of bills. Respectfully submitted, Ann M.Tefft