School Committee Meeting of October 18, 2014
Greetings friends,
Below this message is the summary of the School Committee meeting of October 16, 2014, using that meeting's agenda to frame the approvals, discussions and outcomes. As always, the meetings can be viewed on demand on www.hcat.org. As of this writing, the 10/16 meeting has not yet been posted.
Please note: Special Town Meeting is Monday, October 27, 2014 at 7:30 p.m. Among other items of consideration, the Town's Capital Budget will be voted upon. Relating to Holliston Public Schools, the Finance Committee has recommended the approval of the two top priorities identified by the School Committee by appropriating from the Capital Expenditure Fund:
(1) $214,337 for Chrome books at the Adams Middle School. This will round out a 1:1 computing initiative environment at Adams.
(2) $ 54,000 to complete the district-wide wireless access initiative, making the elementary schools wi-fi enabled.
Items listed as priorities three and four by the School Committee for Capital expenditure and not recommended for funding by the Holliston Finance Committee:
(3) $40,102 for Elementary School Student Technology
- $34,317 for Chromebook pilot across grades 3-5;
- $ 5,783 for iPads (primarily used by SpEd department, the applications on this platform much richer than Google at present.
(4) $175,000 Building and Grounds Infrastructure Repair/Replacement:
- $ 10,000 auditorium projector
- $150,000 resurface HHS track
- $ 15,000 HVAC rooftop unit in gym
Please do not hesitate to contact Joan Sousa at joansousaschoolcommittee@gmail.com or any School Committee members with questions.
Warm regards,
Joan Sousa, Holliston School Committee
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Holliston Public Schools
Holliston, MA 01746
School Committee Meeting Time: 7:00 p.m.
High School Library Date: October 16, 2014
AGENDA
I. Call to Order
CAROL EMMONS, CHAIR, PRESENT
DONALD GRAY, PRESENT
ANNE LOUISE HANDSTEAD, ABSENT
IAN KELLY, PRESENT
KATHI PENNYPACKER, VICE CHAIR, PRESENT
STACEY RAFFI, PRESENT
JOAN SOUSA, PRESENT
BRAD JACKSON, SUPERINTENDENT, PRESENT; SARA AHERN, ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDANT, PRESENT; KEITH BUDAY, BUSINESS MANAGER, PRESENT
II. Minutes from the following School Committee Meeting:
· September 18, 2014, Regular Session: ACCEPTED
· September 18, 2014, Executive Session: ACCEPTED
III. Communications:
A: Oral
1. School Committee Individual Comment
JOAN SOUSA:
· PTSA had successful meeting last week, seated a complete new board
· Very successful Celebrate Holliston event
· Magazine/photo cards/calendars/books drive at the middle school to commence next week, only major fundraiser of the year
IAN KELLY: no comment
KATHI PENNYPACKER:
· Reported on recent meetings of HABA,
· HMAPA – grant received from TD Bank for $5,000 toward the new music lab;
· Math Team – did not have an advisor, got themselves into a competition, got an advisor, placed second. Kudos to the strength of those students and characteristic of the Town’s teens.
· SEPAC event in HHS library on 10/23 – meet and agreed the HPS Student Services Team
STACEY RAFFI
· Very successful Genevieve fundraiser, netting ~$5,500 for each elementary school
· Scholastic book fair in Miller Multipurpose room on 10/21 and 10/22
DONALD GRAY: no comment.
2. Central Office Administrator’s Comment
BRAD JACKSON:
· Sad to announce passing of long-time Holliston teacher and mentor, Ann Talbot
· Interim Placentino Principal has tendered his resignation for health reasons, news very fresh and have not yet communicated to community or formed succession plan;
· Outstanding visit from the Secretary of Education at Miller
· Walk for Breast Cancer and Celebrate Holliston very successful due in large part to the students of HPS; testament to commitment to community service.
SARA AHERN:
· College Financial Planning night 10/29 at HHS auditorium
3. Opportunity for Public to Address School Committee
NONE.
AGENDA ITEM VIII. B. WAS THEN TAKEN OUT OF ORDER
B. Out-of-Country Field Trip Request – Spain, April 2015
Ø KIM BUTURLIA and LIZ MORENO, two HHS Spanish teachers, sought permission for a field trip to Spain in April, 2015. After a short presentation and a few member questions, the SC APPROVED this trip, with the proviso that should world conditions warrant, the Superintended reserves the right to cancel the trip for safety reasons.
IV. Presentations:
A. FY15 Budget vs. Actual Report -- Mr. Buday
Ø KEITH BUDAY: Referenced the FY15 October Financial Report.
· Noted projected deficit over last month primarily due to an additional out of district placement and higher number of substitute teacher to cover teacher leaves.
· Early results on electricity rates are positive, and state circuit breaker shows increase over projections.
B. District-Wide MCAS Results – Dr. Ahern
Ø SARA AHERN: Data presentation; analysis to be presented at next SC meeting.
Presentation: http://www.holliston.k12.ma.us/curriculum/2014MCASD.pdf
V. Policy:
CAROL EMMONS AND KATHI PENNYPACKER
Ø Changes to reflect changes in law
A. Amendments to Policy JICFB – Bullying Prevention APPROVED
· Changes all references of “target” to “victim”
B. Amendments to Policy ADDA – Background Checks APPROVED
· Changes reflect law changes to CHRI and CORI
VI. Personnel:
A. October 10th Professional Development Day Review – Dr. Ahern
SARA AHERN: Reported on October 10, 2014 PD, which programs were aligned with School and District Improvement Goals
Sessions varied and included:
· Common, high quality formative and summative assessments
· Collaborative inquiry and date analysis
· District-determined measures and measuring growth
· Developing sophisticated literacy skills
· Incorporating new literacies into the curriculum
· Content that is specific to particular roles including French, OT, speech and language therapy, and high school guidance
· Safety care, confidentiality and first aid/CPR.
VII. Old Business:
A. FY15 Capital Plan
BRAD JACKSON reported that the Holliston Finance Committee recommended appropriating from the Capital Expenditure Fund:
· $214,337 for Chrome books for Adams Middle School
· $54,000 for wireless access in the elementary schools
B. Report from the Communications Subcommittee
JOAN SOUSA presented a high-level summary of the Communications Subcommittee Strategic Communications Plan
AGENDA ADDITION:
C. Holliston’s Application to the Green Communities Program
BRAD JACKSON referenced a memo from Town Administrator Paul LeBeau asking the SC to adopt a policy related to the purchase of fuel-efficient vehicles as part of the Town’s application to be a green community. The SC voted to support the Town’s application and directs the Policy Subcommittee to develop a fuel efficient Vehicle Policy for the SC to review at a future meeting.
VIII. New Business:
A. Overnight Field Trip Request – Nature’s Classroom, April 2015 APPROVED
C. Approve ACCEPT Collaborative Agreement APPROVED
D. October 1st Class Size/Enrollment Reports
The School Committee was presented with an enrollment and class size report. As of October 1, 2014, total enrollment in HPS: 2,884, which includes 169 school choice students.
E. FY16 Budget Development Calendar
F. Draft 2015-2016 School Calendar
A discussion ensued regarding next year’s calendar, the scheduling of Professional Development days, and the HPS survey conducted last year. The administration will survey the teachers regarding Professional Development days.
IX. Warrants:
A. Bill APPROVED
B. Cafeteria APPROVED
X. Items of Information:
A. TEC Newsletter
XI. Next Meeting Date
November 13, 2014
XII. Adjournment of Open Session