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HomeMy Public PortalAboutBrewster School Committee -- 2012-08-16 Minutes ii £ E7Ei 0 Brewster School Committee August 16, 2012 Brewster Town Hall Present for the Committee: Dave Telman, Donna Kalinick,Jennifer Rabold(7:22 p.m.), Brenda Cazeault,and Mara Liebling Present for Administration: Dr. Hoffmann,Dr. Caretti,Giovanna Venditti,Principal Gauley Others: Su Ballantine CALL TO ORDER- Chair Telman called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m. AGENDA CHANGES —Chair Telman read a statement as to how meetings will be conducted following Robert's Rules and protocol. He asked that all committee members be recognized by the Chair before speaking. He also requested that members focus on agenda items and not talk about things off topic. This will make meetings run more efficiently and effectively. CITIZENS SPEAK—Trish Hill, President of Brewster PTO addressed the Committee regarding a fundraising event—5K Walk Run and Kids Fun Run. Trish Hill also addressed the Committee as a parent asking whether or not the Brewster School or the Nauset Public Schools serve lean finely textured beef and ammonium hydroxide. She indicated that the USDA has given schools a choice to purchase meat with or without the additive. With the start of school, she would like to know the answer to the question for herself and other parents as well. Director of Finance and Operations, Giovanna Venditti, indicated they will look into this and get back to her with a definitive answer. The new Director of Nutrition and Food Services begins in August and will be apprised of the concerns. Playground Design Presentation Nancy White from O'Brien and Sons and John Kissida gave a presentation to the school committee regarding the playground design as well as a master plan for the playground spaces at the Eddy Elementary School. Principal Gauley indicated that physical education teachers, therapists,Nauset Youth Alliance and Recreation Department were included in the plans. It was suggested that the Brewster Little League be involved in the process as well and Ms. Kalinick agreed to notify them. Chair Telman thanked them for their informative presentation. • First Tee Program Chair Telman gave a brief overview of the program and the nine core values. After talking with the Director of the program,they indicated they are willing to help with grants to get the program into our schools. The cost of the program is $3,500. They would like to incorporate golf training into the physical education classes. Su Ballantine enlightened the committee on the program and training available for teachers. She also indicated that the values of the program will benefit the children of Brewster. Principal Gauley indicated the next step would be to set up a meeting with the teachers, principals and the director, Mr. McCabe. Chair Telman indicated he would forward the email with the handbook to committee members. FY12 Final Expense Review The Superintendent and the Director of Finance and Operations reviewed the final expense reports for Stony Brook and Eddy Schools. The Superintendent is recommending that the committee not vote transfers any longer as recommended by the auditors which will help provide a history and better records of what is actually spent in each account. Eddy Elementary School ended the year with a $25,435.43 balance which was returned to the Town. It was noted that an anticipated out of district placement never materialized. The Committee went through the budget line by line noting overages, deficits and the rationale behind the balances in the various accounts. There was a deficit in the Cafeteria Revolving Account in the amount of$11,343 which was greater than anticipated. The Committee requested that Administration determine why there was such a discrepancy in the actual and estimated figure from May. Some thoughts included: no snow days, field trips, field days and not selling lunch tickets at the end of the school year to avoid carry-over balances. Dr. Hoffmann indicated they would look at the actual June Report. The account balances in June for the last five years was requested for comparison. Stony Brook Elementary School had a$10,969 deficit in the Cafeteria Revolving Account which was less than the estimated deficit projected in May which was $12,911. Giovanna Venditti, Director of Finance and Operations, will update the committee at the next meeting. Dr. Hoffmann indicated that the Point of Sales System in the Schools will probably begin around October 1St. The new Director of Nutrition and Food Services, Susan Murray, will start with the High School the second week of September. Students will use the system that was in place last year until the POS is up and running. Dr. Hoffmann will send out a School Reach call letting parents know and will also put a message on the website. Stony Brook Elementary School ended the year with an$8,451.45 balance which was returned to the Town. Committee members asked questions about the overages and deficits in the line items. Giovanna Venditti will report back to the committee on the SN Therapy line and the SN tuition line. The price of oil was discussed and whether or not the schools are using the county bid. What is the difference from last year per gallon to this year's per gallon price? Dr. Hoffmann indicated that even though transfers will not take place, Ms. Venditti will show the variances in a separate monthly report. MOTION: On a motion by Jennifer Rabold, seconded by Donna Kalinick,it was voted unanimously not to do transfers in the coming year. Revolving Account Update The Superintendent indicated the committee would receive a monthly statement regarding the revolving accounts, revenue, expenses and ending balances. (Building Rentals, Gifts&Donations) It was noted that some custodial expenses were paid out of the revolving account and it was requested that custodial fees be taken out of the regular maintenance of custodian account. It was suggested that this fund be built up to be used on the playground. It was noted that Building Use Funds may be used only for custodial overtime and expenses associated with the building. More detail will be forthcoming as to where money is being spent. The Committee would also like to know the breakdown of how much money has been spent on the Eddy roof& HVAC for the past five years. Dr. Hoffmann indicated that $137,000 has been expended to one vendor over the past five years. Last year the same vendor received approximately$50,000. (regular appropriations, budgets, and capital funds) Lisa Souve and Giovanna Venditti will come up with a system for reporting revolving accounts. O FY13 Special Needs Expenses—Dr. Caretti explained that in June a student was placed in an out of district placement. The tuition, after applying IDEA funding in the amount of$16,600, will be $27,210. Transportation is approximately $29,400 for the year. When Dr. Caretti has updated figures she will report back to the Committee. The Committee asked Administration to review the McKinney- , Vento Law as it pertains to transportation. ($56,600 not budgeted for including transportation and tuition) Dr. Hoffmann indicated that the state recently set aside funds to help districts pay the cost for transportation and the Administration will be submitting for that assistance. Financial Reporting and Budget Development Dr. Hoffmann requested that if the Committee had thoughts about financial reporting going forward, they let him or Giovanna know. Chair Telman asked committee members to look through old budgets and monthy expenditure reports and see if there is something else they would like to see on the reports. Motion: On a motion by Mara Liebling, seconded by Donna Kalinick it was voted unanimously to add the FY13 Capital Plan Item to the agenda. Items approved at May 2012 Town Meeting included: 1) HVAC Maintenance and Repairs -$50,000 2)Technology Project - $30,000 3)Air Quality Improvement Repair/Replace Windows—Stony Brook School - $20,000 Items for Fall 2012 Town Meeting included: 1) HVAC Maintenance& Repairs—Eddy and Stony Brook Schools - $25,000 2) Roof Feasibility Study—Eddy School - $50,000 3)Repair/Replace Windows—Stony Brook School - $10,000 4) Replace/Repair Water Fountains—Stony Brook School - $12,000 5) Lavatory Repairs—Eddy School - $10,000 6) Replace Playground—Eddy School - $100,000 7) Interior/Exterior Painting—Eddy& Stony Brook Schools - $23,000 8) Carpet& Tile Replacement—Eddy& Stony Brook School - $30,000 9) Replace Cafeteria Tables and Chairs - $75,000 10)Replace/Upgrade Clock& Intercom System—Eddy School - $9,000 Discussion ensued regarding the feasibility study for the Eddy School roof and HVAC as well as the windows at Stony Brook. All other items have been on the capital plan for a few years. It was noted that Town Meeting is early this year and a"draft"plan had to be submitted. The Playground Subcommittee is meeting later in the month and will have cost estimates for the next meeting. Chair Telman asked that Administration get actual costs for a feasibility study. He also indicated that the roof and HVAC units have to be the number one priority. The windows at Stony Brook were also discussed and after receiving quotes for repair, it was decided that this too requires a feasibility study. The Committee would like more information on MSBA and the process for submitting a request for assistance. Stage curtains were mentioned and the need to replace for fire safety reasons. The Superintendent will report back to the committee after the meeting with the town's Capital Plan Committee. Ms. Kalinick asked that the committee give the Superintendent authorization to apply for a grant and to push forward with the application to repair the roof and HVAC. Dr. Hoffmann reminded the committee that when applying to the MSBA, there are time constraints such as the building remaining a school building for the next 20 years. Dr. Hoffmann will contact the MSBA regarding completing a Statement of Interest. (SOI) Dr. Hoffmann indicated he will meet with Mr. Sumner in the next few weeks. Motion: On a motion by Jennifer Rabold, seconded by Mara Liebling it was voted unanimously to approve the FY13-18 Capital Plan. Superintendent's Evaluation Update The Superintendent gave the committee an update of meetings that had taken place with the Joint School Committee in July and decisions regarding the Superintendent's Evaluation tool. The Committee decided to adapt the Dept. of Education's process with minor changes. A guide to rubrics and a sample of the evaluation form was distributed. The Joint School Committee decided to look at 10 elements of the 42 in the evaluation rubric. Dr. Hoffmann is requesting each committee choose 10 elements and turn them into their Chair. The Chairs will then meet and pick the ten they feel are most important to the district. This will be an item on the September agenda. The Superintendent will also have to set goals for himself which will include: 1) OneProfessional Practice, 2) One Student Learning Goal, and 3) 2-4 District improvement goals. He will take these from the Strategic Plan. Chair Telman requested that committee members email their choices to him and he will make a tally sheet for the next meeting. Self-Assessment The self-assessment will be on the agenda in September and the form will be sent to committee members. Email Addresses Through committee consensus it was determined they would use the Nauset email. On a motion by Jennifer Rabold, seconded by Donna Kalinick, it was voted to post the email addresses on the Nauset website. Chair Telman stated at the beginning of the meeting next month he would like to set ground rules to make meetings more productive and will limit the number of items on the agenda. Dr. Liebling felt one goal should be to set a time limit on the length of meetings. Approval of Minutes On a motion by Mara Liebling, seconded by Jennifer Rabold, it was voted to approve the minutes of the June 14, 2012 meeting. Adjournment On a motion by Mara Liebling, seconded by Jennifer Rabold,it was voted to adjourn the meeting at 10:40 p.m., subject to payment of bills. Respectfully submitted, Ann M. Tefft � \ \ \ ƒ « \ \ / � � . � � � . � d � �