Archive 2008 - 2019

May 16 SC Final Budget

by Erica Plunkett
5/19/2013

After member comments on all upcoming and past end-of-year concerts, plays, and art events, Dr. Jackson noted that work has begun on the new HABA concession stand.  As well, the Employee ID Badge program is being rolled out next week, thanks to a grant from the Holliston Federation of Teachers and the PTSA.  Dr. Jackson also shared some new appointments: with the resignation of Mr. Cournoyer, Mrs. Bottomley has been named Interim Principal at the HS for next year; with the retirement of Madame Stewart, Susan Gleason has been appointed new Assistant Principal at Placentino.  At the Miller School, Mrs. Barnowski has decided not to return from maternity leave, and Mrs. Maurao, Acting Principal during her leave, has been appointed Assistant Principal.  

Assistant Superintendent Sara Ahern shared the upcoming theme of May 24 Junior Career Day as a takeoff on Celebrate Holliston, with all presenters working in Holliston, living in Holliston, or being a Holliston Schools alum.  

Under Old Business, the School Committee voted in a new budget of $29,556,396, in response to an amendment made at Town Meeting, offered by residents, of an additional $19,835.  The School Committee then voted to use these funds to return the Drama teacher position at the High School to 1.0 FTE.

Next, the School Committee offered the annual Evaluation for Dr. Jackson, noting that this is the last year they will utilize the current evaluation tool.  Next year, as for all faculty and administrators, the Superintendent will be evaluated under the new Educator Evaluation system.  Dr. Jackson was given a score of 227, placing his performance in the Exemplary category.

Last, the School Committee voted to appoint Dr. Jackson as the School Committee’s Representative to both the TEC and ACCEPT Board of Directors.

The next School Committee meeting is June 6th.  Central to the agenda will be: School Improvement Plans; the FY14 School Committee meeting schedule; and, HHS Handbook changes.  While School Committee Office Hours have concluded for the year, as always, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact any School Committee member or Central Office Administration.  

Prior to adjourning, the Committee thanks Ginny Murphy for her six-year service to the Holliston Public Schools.  Ginny has been instrumental in developing the expanding relationship between the schools and our Senior Community.  We thank Ginny for this and for all her efforts on behalf of the schools and the students.

Kindest regards,

Erica Plunkett

Chair, Holliston School Committee

Did You Know….in a recent Op-Ed in the New York Times, Jal Mehta writes that “…research suggests  that “the best [undergraduate education programs and graduate schools of education] draw people who majored as undergraduates in the subjects they wanted to teach; focus on extensive clinical practice rather than on classroom theory; are selective in choosing their applicants, rather than treating students as a revenue stream; and use data about how their students fare as teachers to assess and revise their practice.” The piece concludes “The changes needed to professionalize American education won’t be easy.  They will require money, political will and the audacity to imagine that teaching could be a profession on a par with fields like law and medicine.  But failure to change will be more costly…” (http://nyti.ms/1728asr)


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Erica S. Plunkett
Chairperson, Holliston School Committee