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2003-11-19BEVERLY PUBLIC SCHOOLS BEVERLY, MASSACHUSETTS November 19, 2003 A regular meeting of the Beverly School Committee was held on Wednesday, November 19, 2003, at the City Council Chambers, Beverly City Hall, Beverly, MA. Members Present: Ms. Bell, Ms. Coburn, Mayor Crean, Ms. Cronin, Ms. Norris, and Mr. Tallo. Members Absent: Ms. Brusil Administrators in Attendance: William Lupini, Superintendent of Schools, James Hayes, Assistant Superintendent Heidi Zimmerman, Administrator of Finance & Operations President Coburn called the meeting to order at 7 PM. Mark DeLuca led the Pledge of Allegiance. RECOGNITION - SUCH OTHER MATTERS (KUDOS, CONGRATULATIONS) Mark DeLuca and Sarah Foster were recognized as the 2003-2004 recipients of the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents (MASS) Certificate of Academic Achievement. This award is given annually to the top two students, as measured by current class rank, in the senior class. Mark DeLuca was recognized for having been named as a National Merit Scholarship Semi-Finalist. In addition, Sarah Foster, Allison Kenney, Alison Levin-Rector and Lauren Walk have been named as Commended students through this important program. Sara O’Hare will be recognized at our December meeting. Dr. Carla Scuzzarella, High School Principal, assisted in recognizing these students. Erla Shehu, a senior a Beverly High School, was recognized for winning the program design contest held by Shakespeare Now, a professional theatre company of the greater Boston area that produces Shakespeare for young audiences throughout New England. Erla’s winning design is for Shakespeare Now’s 2004 production of Julius Caesar. Linda Lowy, Artistic Director for Shakespeare Now, stated that Erla’s “picture was a beautifully drawn head of Julius Caesar with a simplicity of design that truly captured Caesar’s nobility.” Erla is an officer in the Beverly High School Art Club and serves as the Arts Editor for AEGIS. Richard King, Director of Fine Arts, assisted in recognizing Erla. Regular Meeting November 19, 2003 Page 2 Beverly High School Marching Band Officers (Josh Terrill, President; Whitney Nelson, Vice President; Adam Fullerton, Treasurer; and Jessica Moody, Secretary), Drum Majors (Sarah Nelson, Josh Terrill and Jade Weston) and Color Guard Captains (Bethany Flaherty and Lauren Walk), represented the 147 Beverly High School students who participated in the Massachusetts Instrumental, Choral and Conductors Association (MICCA) Marching Band Competition 2003 season. The Marching Band earned a silver th rating in the 2003 State Finals held in Framingham on October 26. In addition, they earned five out of five stars for Music and General Effect and four out of five stars for Color Guard, Percussion and Visual Appearance. Richard King, Director of Fine Arts, assisted in recognizing these students. Kevin McGrath, Media Specialist at Beverly High School, was recognized as a Distinguished Secondary Educator by the Massachusetts Department of Education. Dr. Carla Scuzzarella, High School Principal, assisted in recognizing Kevin. Nancy Schalch, John Christiansen and Fred Hopps, all teachers at Beverly High School, were recognized for their participation in the Tufts Engineering Mentor Institute during this past summer. This program is part of the Pre-College Engineering for Teachers Program (PCET), which is a collaborative effort between Tufts, UMASS Amherst, UMASS Lowell and Worcester Polytechnical Institute (WPI). Essex County Community Foundation was recognized for awarding a $5,000 Hardscrabble Education Fund grant to McKeown Elementary School. The funds will be used to create a mathematics literacy library that will include hard cover math-related literature books for oral reading, sets of books for guided reading, and manipulatives to practice mathematics concepts to support MCAS and the state mathematics frameworks. Ms. Karen Burnett-Kurie, Grants Administrator of the Essex County Community Foundation, along with Colleen McBride, Principal of McKeown Elementary School, Sarah DeOreo and Jan Wilhelm (Reading Specialists at McKeown Elementary School) participated in this special “thanks” to the Foundation. A brief recess was declared at 7:15 p.m. The Committee reconvened at 7:25 p.m. OPEN FORUM FOR CITIZENS’ CONCERNS Josh Terrill of 27 Chipman Road is a senior at Beverly High School. Mr. Terrill spoke in favor of the Senior Privilege Program. STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE’S REPORT James Lang, President of the Student Senate, informed the Committee that the Senate is currently planning a Speaker Series and Speaker Forum. He spoke in favor of the Senior Privilege Program, as he feels it would benefit deserving seniors. The parking policy appears to be working well, although he questioned if the revenue from parking passes could be used to repair the parking lot speed bumps that students feel are too high. Regular Meeting November 19, 2003 Page 3 Dr. Lupini explained that this money is placed in a revolving account, which must be spent on buildings and grounds. The revenues from all user fees collected this year allowed the school department to keep teacher positions and small class sizes. MAYOR’S REPORT Mayor Crean informed the Committee that the RFP to address repairs is going forward. He also expressed his concern with a recent letter to the editor regarding high school accreditation that he felt contained inaccurate information. COMMUNICATIONS · Parent concerned about fire safety in our school buildings, referred to Dr. Scuzzarella and Dr. Lupini. · Parent with transportation concern, referred to Dr. Lupini and Mr. Bill Burke, Director of Transportation, who provided training to bus drivers through the MBTA · Written communication, copied to the administration, from parent of a child from the Centerville School, which was addressed by Dr. Lupini and Ms. Emily Rockwell. · Parents concerned about recent newspaper articles about the repair plan for the high school and the money to be spent on those repairs. They urged the Committee to consider whether investing such a large sum of money in the building will result in a facility that is adequate for the future education of our children. · Question concerning the hiring of a basketball coach Dr. Lupini explained that interviews have been held and Dave Manual has o been hired as interim basketball coach for this season. · Citizen questioning if the walking path next to the McKeown School will be closed to the public or if a turnstile would be installed Dr. Lupini informed the Committee that the path will be partially paved o but no turnstile will be installed. RECORDS OF MEETINGS Following discussion, it was moved by Ms. Cronin and seconded by Ms Bell to approve the following minutes: Special Meeting held October 1, 2003 Regular Meeting held October 15, 2003 Meeting held October 29, 2003 Special Meeting held November 3, 2003 Unanimously approved as amended. SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT Dr. Lupini mentioned that although the Superintendent’s Report for this meeting lists 6 action items, one item is withdrawn, bringing the total number of action items to 5. At th the Finance and Facilities meeting held on November 18, administration intended to ask for approval to hire an ESP for the Centerville school in order to meet the conditions of a Regular Meeting November 19, 2003 Page 4 student IEP. Since a similar position was approved earlier for the Choices program and has not been filled, Administration will utilize that position at the Centerville School. Beverly High School Senior Privilege Program Beverly High School students Sara Charland, Senior Class President, and Adam Szajin, Senior Class Treasurer, spoke to the Committee about a proposed Senior Privilege Program, which would allow seniors in good standing to leave school grounds during lunch and academic labs. Upon the recommendation of the Standing Committee on Curriculum, Instruction & Student Life a motion was made by Ms. Norris and seconded by Mr. Tallo to approve the 2003-2004 Beverly High School Senior Privilege Program. Following considerable discussion, the motion was approved, with Ms. Cronin voting in opposition. Students agreed to report back to the Committee following the first quarter. Overnight Field Trip Request Upon the recommendation of the Administration, a motion was made by Mr. Tallo and seconded by Ms. Bell to approve an overnight field trip for 3 students to travel to Plains, Virginia, on May 14-16, 2004 to participate in the Team America Rocketry Challenge 2004 subject to final approval of trip conditions by the Superintendent. Following discussion the motion was unanimously approved. School Calendar Upon the recommendation of the Administration, a motion was made by Ms. Norris and seconded by Mr. Tallo to approve the 2004-2005 school district calendar. Unanimously approved. Surplus Equipment Upon the recommendation of the Standing Committee on Finance & Facilities a motion was made by Ms. Bell and seconded by Mayor Crean that a number of desks, chairs, tables, and athletic equipment as well as the following vehicles be declared as surplus equipment: 1990 Chevrolet Carpenter 23 passenger school bus (VIN #2GHG31K1L4110437); 1986 International 35 passenger school bus (VIN #1HVLNHGM2GHA39932). Unanimously voted Job Descriptions Upon the recommendation of the administration, a motion was made by Ms. Cronin and seconded by Ms. Norris to approve the final job descriptions for the “Administrator of Finance and Operations” and “Director of Personnel” positions. Unanimously approved Inauguration, Reorganization Meeting & School Committee Retreat The Inauguration Ceremony for Mayor-Elect Scanlon, City Council Members, and School Committee Representatives will be held at 12:00 p.m. on Monday, January 5, 2004 @ Beverly City Hall. The School Committee Reorganization Meeting will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, January 5, 2004 @ Beverly city hall. Finally, the School Committee Retreat is tentatively scheduled for Friday, January 9, 2004 (6:30 to 8:30 p.m.) and Saturday, January 10, 2004 (9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.) @ Endicott College. Regular Meeting November 19, 2003 Page 5 High School Accreditation A copy of the report from SMMA was distributed to Committee members. Mayor Crean informed the Committee that first repairs to be addressed would be the KALwall, field house roof, and some drainage issues. Considerable discussion followed about the st document, as well as implications for our December 1 letter to NEASC. FY05 Budget Development Calendar A “draft” version of the proposed FY05 School Department Budget Development Calendar was distributed to Committee members. Prior to our regular School Committee meeting, this proposal was discussed with the Standing Committee on Finance & th Facilities on November 18. In addition, the Superintendent plans to discuss the FY05 budget development process with Mayor-Elect Scanlon in the next few weeks. National Education Week National Education Week will be celebrated in all of our schools during the week of thst November 17 through the 21. Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) Information Release Administration expects that information regarding school and district Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), as required by “No Child Left Behind,” will be released around December 4th. This information will include not only a measure of how our schools and district did overall in meeting adequate yearly progress, as measured against state figures and ourselves, but how our subgroups did in meeting these goals. Subgroups include free and reduced lunch students, special education students, English as a Second Language students, and minority groups found within our district. We expect to be able to share more information on these results at our December School Committee meeting. Northshore Education Consortium Update While the Northshore Consortium continues to move toward purchasing the former North Shore Community College building on Sohier Road, it has become evident that they will require transition space to house programs between their move out date at Holton- stth Richmond (projected at January 1 to February 15) and the renovation completion date at Sohier Road (probably around May-June). Three sites are being considered to house these programs during this transition period: McCarthy School (Peabody), Brown School (Peabody) and McKay School (Beverly). Highly Qualified Teacher Data Administration expects to be able to report that nearly 100% of our teachers will meet the federal definition of “Highly Qualified” when we are asked to update this information with the Department of Education in the next few weeks. This has been accomplished through our hiring practices and the development of Professional Plans by teachers and administrators. In particular, Joan Liporto should be commended for her outstanding work in tracking teacher certifications, as well as following up on the development of professional plans. Regular Meeting November 19, 2003 Page 6 Briscoe Middle School Principal Search Dr. Hayes has outlined a search process for the position of Briscoe Middle School Principal, which is available on July 1, 2004 due to the retirement of John Aucone. A copy of the process guidelines, which will be utilized, was distributed to Committee members. McKay School As noted earlier, Administration is currently looking at the feasibility of housing part of the Northshore Consortium program at McKay for the remainder of this school year. This would need to be a portion of the program where students do not require a handicap accessible facility. Long-term, Administration is continuing to pursue the development of an RFP, keeping in mind issues associated with the handicap accessibility of the building that have been raised by Chris Bradley (Purchasing Agent) and Arthur Daignault (ADA Compliance Officer). Edwards School Dr. Levine, Salem Superintendent of Schools, has indicated that the expected February date to vacate may not be realistic. He feels April will be a more likely time for that move. Dr. Lupini will report further updates to the Committee. Anti-Defamation League Training Recently, as part of the Anti-Defamation League’s “A World of Difference Institute”, Beverly High School educators, as a part of staff development, completed two three-hour workshops in which they examined personal and institutional biases and their manifestations and developed action steps to foster a safer, more inclusive school community. Faculty will now continue to work at the departmental level and school- wide with students as they adopt strategies to foster prejudice free learning and work environments. In addition, fifteen high school students will complete a three-day peer training with their school-based coordinators (Donna Hart and Kevin McGrath) this week. The peer trainers will begin facilitating workshops with other high school students next semester. Their specific goal will be raising awareness on appropriate language and respectful social interaction. Subject specific workshops will include, language, racism, classism, homophobia, etc. The high school faculty, administration and student body should be commended for taking these proactive steps toward addressing issues amplified by our changing demographics, increased sensitivity to cultural differences, and celebration of our diversity. COMMITTEE REPORTS AND UPDATE ON SCHOOL COMMITTEE GOALS Secondary Facilities School Committee Goal I - Develop Plan to Improve Beverly High School Facility The last meeting of the Joint Committee on Secondary Facilities, scheduled for October th 29, was cancelled due to a conflict. Mr. Tallo mentioned that the committee would attempt to coordinate a meeting in the near future. Regular Meeting November 19, 2003 Page 7 Standing Committee on Curriculum, Instruction and Student Life School Committee Goal II - Promote Beverly High School The Standing Committee on Curriculum, Instruction and Student Life last met on November 3, 2003. The Senior Privilege Program, 2004-05 school calendar, and the District Technology curriculum were discussed. Additionally, Ms. Norris updated the Committee on the MASC/MASS conference held in Worcester, and distributed results of voting by members at that meeting. Standing Committee on Finance and Facilities School Committee Goal V - Update District Policy Manual The Standing Committee on Finance and Facilities met on October 21 and November 18, 2003. Topics of discussion were job descriptions, surplus equipment, personnel, athletics, and the FY04 budget. Subcommittee on Negotiations School Committee Goal IV - Review Process and Documentation for Superintendent's Evaluation th The Subcommittee on Negotiations will meet November 20 with Beverly Teachers’ union representatives, and again on December 4, 2003 to review the Superintendent’s goals. The meeting adjourned at 9:50 PM. Janet Norris Secretary