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2000-03-29 with City CouncilBEVERLY PUBLIC SCHOOLS corrected 4-10-00 BEVERLY, MASSACHUSETTS March 29, 2000 A Joint Meeting of the Beverly School Committee and the Beverly City Council was held on Wednesday, March 29, 2000 in the Beverly High School Library, Beverly, MA. School Committee Members Present: Mrs. Bell, Mrs. Brusil, Mrs. Coburn, Mr. McHugh, Mrs. Norris, Mayor Scanlon and Mr. Cahill School Committee Members Absent: None City Council Members Present: Mr. Costa, Mr. Guanci, Mr. Martin, Mrs. McGlynn, Ms. McMahon, Mr. Murray, Mr. Smith, Mrs. Troubetaris, and Mr. Flaherty City Council Members Absent: None Also in Attendance: William Lupini, Superintendent of Schools, Judy DeLucia, Assistant Superintendent, James Hayes, Assistant Superintendent, Judy Mulligan, School Business Manager Michael Cahill, State Representative School Committee President Bill Cahill called the meeting to order at 7:02 P.M. The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Mayor William ScanIon. Mr. Cahill stated that Senator Fred Berry was unable to attend the meeting because he was in session at the State House. Mr. Cahill explained that Joint Meetings between the School Committee and the City Council have been taking place once a year for the past few years and that there has been discussion about increasing their frequency to twice per year. The first presenters were Ron Bouchard on behaff of the School Department and Mike Papamichel and Phil Klimowicz on behalf of the City Department of Public Works. They explained that the inside of the outdoor track at Beverly High School is a project on which they have been collaborating. They estimate that it will cost $100,000 to strip the grass, irrigate and put in new turf. They said that it would later require one person at a couple of days per week in order for it to be maintained. They explained that there is no money in their budget to take on the work and that it would require a commitment on the part of the School Department to fund the project. Mr. Cahill commented that the School Department is in the business of educating students, not building and grounds maintenance, whereas, the Department of Public Works specializes in the latter. He explained that much could be gained by the collaborations that have been initiated. Mr. Papamichel recommended that it would be more cost effective to sub contract for many of the maintenance requirements of the school fields, Mr. Lupini asked Mrs. Mulligan to explain the constraints that the School Department is under due to contracts that specify that subcontractors may not be hired to do certain tasks. Mr. Flaherty pointed out that the condition of the high school fields in not only a safety factor, but that it is also a source of pride for our community when Beverly hosts athletic competitions, Mr. Bill Foye, Beverly High School Principal spoke next regarding the high school accreditation process. He explained that the official report is due next fall so we have nothing in writing yet, however, he was told by the visiting team that: Beverly was well prepared for the visit. · the visiting team found our students to be friendly and engaging and that they like to be at BHS. · our faculty is caring. · the building is "worn". Mr. Lupini commented that the process that BHS just underwent is new and that we were the third school to go through it, that the accreditation process is more focused on teaching and learning than it used to be. He applauded the efforts of Mr. Foye and Joe Clement and Betty Taylor, the two teachers who led the accreditation preparation efforts. Dr. DeLucia and Dr. Hayes, Assistant Superintendents presented information about MCAS testing. Their 11 page handout includes information about which students will be tested this year and what is considered a passing score. They explained that statistics are being kept by the state on how schools do overall from year to year and that if a school does not improve to the extent that the state would expect, it could be declared an "under performing school". They do not expect that any of Beverly's schools will be in this category, They highlighted math scores city wide and overall among grade levels as an area of concern. Title I funds are being used to fund math programs in addition to reading in those schools where the funds are available. Susan Foster, Grants Coordinator for the Schools presented a five page hand-out which outlined the many grants for which Beverly has applied and those we have been awarded. Mr. Mike Cahill, State Representative, stated that he is dismayed that at the state level there has been no money channeled toward child-care programs for middle level students. According to Susan Foster, she is the School Department Liaison to the Beverly Education Foundation which is a non-profit group. They are seeking to gather donations to create a principle amount of money upon which schools would be granted the interest each year. Superintendent Lupini is a non-voting member. Their next meeting is at the Ayers Ryal Side School on Monday, April 10. Mr. Red Hutt presented information about the high level of participation in athletics at BHS and further explained that among participating athletes, the average grade point average is very high. He is immensely proud of the students who participate in the program. He presented a three page letter from the Hurd Stadium Lights Study Committee whose members are listed as: Tom Alexander, Bill Bruce, Bill Hamor, Larry Smith and Tony DiVincenzo. Mr. Hutt explained that his recommendation is that we not install lights at Hurd Stadium. Mr. Hutt further recommended that the Hurd Stadium SubCommittee be pared down from its present 25 members to five. Last to present, was Mr. Lupini on the School Budget. He explained that Don Martin is the City Council Member who is the Liaison to the Finance and Facilities SubCommittee of the School Committee and that he should be receiving all of the notes and minutes of those meetings. Mr. Martin acknowledged that he is receiving the information and that he is hoping to be available to attend a meeting in April. Mr. Lupini explained that them are three major challenges that the schools face with regard to the FY '01 budget. These include: contract negotiations, special education tuition out costs and the number of teachers at the high school. He stated that due to concerns about the current budget, all non-essential spending has been frozen, He explained that last year when the school budget was approved it was agreed that if we ran into difficulties with regard to funds that are usually in a contingency account, we would approach the City Council. Mayor ScanIon concurred that Mr. Lupini's understanding was also his understanding. Mr. Mike Cahill explained that occurring within the House Budget Debate is a local aid resolution. Currently Beverly receives $695,000 and that we hope we can count on additional funds for next year. He further stated that the House of Representatives is making an effort to address Special Education costs through the budget process. The hope is that the state will pay a higher percentage of high cost students, regardless of placement. Mr. Bill Cahill thanked all the members of both councils for coming to this important collaborative meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 9:07PM.