HomeMy Public PortalAbout20230907 - School Committee - Meeting MinutesHopkinton School Committee
Thursday,September 7,2023
Regular Meeting 7:00 PM
HCAM Studio,77 Main Street,Hopkinton
MINUTES
I.Call to Order
School Committee Chair,Nancy Cavanaugh,called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM.
In attendance:Also in attendance:
Nancy Cavanaugh,Chair Dr.Carol Cavanaugh,Superintendent
Amanda Fargiano,Vice Chair Mrs.Susan Rothermich,Asst.Supt.Finance &Op.
Adam Munroe,Member Mr.Jeffrey D’Amico,ESBC-2 Member
Holly Morand,Member
Susan Stephenson,Member
Moment of Silence in memory of Toni DaSilva
II.Pledge of Allegiance
III.Public Comments
IV.Recognitions
Welcome:Jack Ianelli,Student Representative
V.Reports:
a.Student Council -Passed Over -Jack will start on 9/21/23
b.Superintendent’s Report
●Dr.Cavanaugh thanked the entire district staff for all of their hard work in this extreme
heat.
●A summary of the 2023 Summer ESY Program was provided.
●New Educator Orientation was held for 33 new staff members last week.
●US News &World Report data was provided -all state schools Hopkinton was ranked
#13,and with public schools was #7.
●Brief summary of opening day for staff and students was provided.
●Construction at Marathon School is almost complete and the projected move in date is
September 23-25,2023.The project did come in under budget.
●The District started the process of switching to paperless time system.
c.School Committee Chair Report
VOTED TO APPROVE 2023-10-05 2023-09-07 Pg.1 of 6
Payroll Warrant S2402B,S24003,and S24004 have been approved.Warrants #24-003S,
#24-004S,#24-005S,#24-006S,#24-007S,#24-008S,#24-009S and #24-010S have
been approved.Warrants are included in your folder.
●Two emails regarding the calendar from community members were received.
●One person interested in running for SC next year contacted the Chair.
d.Liaison Reports
●SEPAC is holding a coffee session tomorrow morning.
VI.New Business
a.Hopkins Renovation Project
For Consideration:Discussion and Vote on Construction Manager vs.General Contractor for
Hopkins Renovation project.
●Jeff D’Amico,Project Manager,provided the SC with information on the differences of
construction manager vs.general contractor for the Hopkins Renovation Project.
●Mr.D’Amico,Mrs.Rothermich and Dr.Cavanaugh answered questions for clarification
on the proposed project,enrollment,timeline of the potential project.
Motion:to recommend the use of a Construction Manager at Risk delivery method for the
Hopkins School Renovation Project by Mr.Munroe,seconded by Ms.Morand.Passed:5-0
b.2024-2025 School Year Calendar
For Consideration:Request approval for the proposed 2024-2025 School Year Calendar.
Discussion:Questions were raised regarding the December 23,2024 no school day and the
process of creating the calendar based on the Calendar Subcommittee’s work.Members
addressed the questions presented in the community emails received regarding the no school
dates and last day of school.Ms.Fargiano provided background information on how the
Calendar Subcommittee voted on for school year schedules based on the demographics and
inclusivity for all of the students.
Motion:No action taken.Will be brought back for another discussion and reading.
c.Fresh Food Award
For Consideration:accept the grant from the Northeast Food For Schools Grant Award
provided through DESE in the amount of $20,181 for Hopkinton Public Schools.
Motion:Move to accept the Northeast Food for Schools Grant Award in the amount of $20,181
for Hopkinton Public Schools by Ms.Morand,seconded by Mr.Munroe.Passed:5-0.
d.Special Education Staff Requests
For Consideration:Request the following positions for Elmwood and Hopkins Elementary
Schools:
VOTED TO APPROVE 2023-10-05 2023-09-07 Pg.2 of 6
Discussion:Dr.Cavanaugh provided the need for each of the special education staff requests
below due to new students moving into the district.Committee members asked questions for
clarification.
●Addition of .5 Special Educator position for Elmwood -increasing the vacant .5
Severe/Intensive FTE at Elmwood to full time 1.0 FTE.The additional .5 FTE position
will be funded via increase in preschool revolving fund.
Motion:Move to approve the increase of .5 Special Education position to full time 1.0 FTE
Severe/Intensive position by Ms.Stephenson,seconded by Mr.Munroe.Passed:5-0.
●Elmwood -Special Education C Paraprofessional
Request approval for a C Paraprofessional at Elmwood School due to new students in the
district with significant needs.
Motion:Move to approve the Special Education C Paraprofessional for Elmwood by Ms.
Stephenson,seconded by Mr.Munroe.Passed:5-0.
●Hopkins -Special Education C Paraprofessional
Request approval for a C Paraprofessional at Hopkins School due to new students in the
district with significant needs.
Motion:Move to approve the Special Education C Paraprofessional for Hopkins by Mr.
Munroe,seconded by Ms.Stephenson.Passed:5-0.
e.District Improvement Plan (DIP)
For Consideration:Review the proposed 2023-2024 District Improvement Plan
Discussion:Dr.Cavanaugh presented the District Improvement Plan for the 2023-2024 school
year.Dr.Cavanaugh provided the background of creating the District Improvement Plan for the
committee,especially new members to understand the history of the Plan during her tenure.
●Members asked questions for clarification.
Motion:Move to approve the 2023-2024 District Improvement Plan by Ms.Stephenson,
seconded by Ms.Fargiano.Passed:5-0.
f.Policy IJL-Library/Media Materials Selection -1st Reading
For Consideration:Pursuant to SC Policy,Policy IJL-Library/Media Materials Selection is
brought forward for review and possible revisions.
Discussion:Dr.Cavanaugh stated the school librarians requested the Committee look at this
policy for a revision since the last revision was 2009.Dr.Cavanaugh requested they provide
their feedback in editing format for the Policy Working Group to review before bringing it for
the Committee to review.Some suggestions were made that are procedural and they are not in
the school’s purview.
Motion:No action taken.To be brought back at a future meeting.
VOTED TO APPROVE 2023-10-05 2023-09-07 Pg.3 of 6
g.Project Update
Update on Solar Installation Projects and Marathon School Project.
Discussion:Mrs.Rothermich presented an update on the solar installation projects as well as the
Marathon School addition.Marathon Project will be completed one month early and under
budget.
VII.Old Business
a.Capital Plan
For Consideration:Review and discussion of Capital Plan.
Discussion:Ms.Rothermich presented an up-to-date Capital Plan with an updated cost of the
proposed Elmwood Project.This Plan was reviewed by the School Committee and the
Approriations Committee in Spring 2023.The Capital Plan must be reviewed and approved
annually.
●Committee Members discussed the overall project costs and potential shifting of projects
and reducing capital plan costs based on the Elmwood Project and Hopkins Project
approval.
Motion:Move to adopt the FY2024 Five Year Capital Plan as updated by Ms.Morand,
seconded by Mr.Munroe.Passed:5-0
b.Superintendent’s Goals and Indicators
For Consideration:approve Superintendent Goals and Indicators for 2023-2024 School Year.
Discussion:There is no change since the last presentation.Ms.Morand is going to abstain until
the district evaluation discussion is held.Ms.Cavanaugh said the plan was for the district
evaluation discussion to be off until the equity audit results.Ms.Morand thought there was going
to be a working group to gage the district evaluation plan.Discussion with entire committee
regarding the proposed outcome of a district evaluation and what data is being requested.
●Dr.Cavanaugh stated she would include this as a goal-like to assist in gathering data.
Motion:No Action Taken
c.Policy GBEB -Staff Conduct -3rd Reading
For Consideration:Per School Committee Policy,Policy GBEB-Staff Conduct is presented as
a new policy for review.
Discussion:The Committee and Dr.Cavanaugh received feedback from the HTA Rep regarding
the proposed changes.
●Many districts have GBEB Policy and Hopkinton has no policy.This is a new policy for
the district.The first paragraph is directly out of Mass General Law.That portion is
non-negotiable,it’s the law.Dr.Cavanaugh shared which portions the school attorney
VOTED TO APPROVE 2023-10-05 2023-09-07 Pg.4 of 6
revised and the changes the Policy Working Group revised.The numbered expectations
are listed in the employee handbook which every employee signs off on receipt of every
year.
●HTA is concerned with the word ‘fighting’,and states this will need to be negotiated with
the HTA and the possibility of limiting first amendment rights.
Motion:No action taken.
d.Policy BCA -School Committee Member Ethics-3rd Reading
For Consideration:Per School Committee Policy,Policy BCA -School Committee Member
Ethics will be reviewed for possible revisions.
Discussion:Members discussed the policy and if there are procedures that are in place for
violations.
Motion:Move to approve the School Committee Member Ethics Policy as amended by Ms.
Morand,seconded by Mr.Munroe.Passed:5-0
e.School Committee Goals -Passed Over
For Consideration:Review of SC Goals for 2023-2024.
Motion:No action taken.
f.Superintendent’s Evaluation Format
For Consideration:Discuss the format for the Superintendent’s evaluation.
Discussion:The committee discussed whether to evaluate the Superintendent every year or
every two years.The Superintendent prefers every year to receive feedback from the committee
during the school year,and to keep the goals on track.The Committee agreed to keep the
evaluation every year.
Motion:Not necessary.
g.District Evaluation
For Consideration:Discussion regarding proposed district evaluation.
Motion:No action taken.
VIII.Future Agenda Items
●Busses and Bus Safety -how are we ensuring the safety of students
IX.Items by Consensus
The Superintendent recommends the School Committee approve the Items by Consensus as
listed below:
a.Payroll Warrant S24002b in the amount of $1,459.44.
b.Payroll Warrant S24003 in the amount of $363,320.30.
VOTED TO APPROVE 2023-10-05 2023-09-07 Pg.5 of 6
c.Payroll Warrant S24004 in the amount of $353,483.94.
d.Middle School Student Activities Warrant #24-003S in the amount of $3,042.
e.Hopkins Student Activities Warrant #24-004S in the amount of $2,320.
f.Elmwood Student Activities Warrant #24-005S in the amount of $3,630.
g.Operating &Other Funds Warrant #24-006S in the amount of $871,046.72
h.Operating &Other Funds Warrant #24-007S in the amount of $133,423.71.
i.Operating &Other Funds Warrant #24-008S in the amount of $309,195.15.
j.Operating &Other Funds Warrant #24-009S in the amount of $349,741.92.
k.HHS Student Activities Warrant #24-010S in the amount of $70,003.21.
l.Regular Meeting Minutes of July 27,2023.
m.Regular Meeting Minutes of August 3,2023.
n.Special Meeting Minutes of August 22,2023.
Motion:Move to approve the Items by Consensus by Ms.Stephenson,seconded by Ms.
Morand.Passed:5-0
X.Adjournment
Motion to adjourn by Ms.Stephenson,seconded by Ms.Morand.Passed:5-0
Meeting adjourned at 10:05PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Nancy Richards-Cavanaugh,Chair
Amanda Fargiano,Vice Chair
VOTED TO APPROVE 2023-10-05 2023-09-07 Pg.6 of 6