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2023 01 11 School Committee Minutes BEVERLY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Regular School Committee Meeting Hybrid In-Person Beverly Middle School & Remote Access (Zoom) Members &Administrators: 502 Cabot Street, Library Community Access: Broadcast BevCam Channel 99 & https://bevcam.org/video/live-stream/& htti3s://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsioEZrieQaRUaraldiSklw Wednesday, January 11, 2023 7:30 p.m. A Hybrid In-Person and remote access meeting of the Beverly School Committee was held on Wednesday, January 11, 2023, following the guidance from Governor Baker's Office. Ms.Abell announced that BevCam would be streaming the meeting live on YouTube and broadcasting on Channel 99. Members Participating: Rachael Abell, Kaarin Robinson, Dr. Jeffrey Silva, Dr. Kenann McKenzie, Lorinda Visnick, Mayor Michael Cahill, Remote: Kimberley Coelho Also Participating: In Person: Dr. Suzanne Charochak, Superintendent; Dr. Dorothy Flaherty,Assistant Superintendent; Erin Brown, Director of Information and Human Resources; Donna Bergeron,Administrative Assistant to the Superintendent; Kailey Quintino, Student Representative Remote: Dr.Andre Morgan, Director of Opportunity,Access and Equity; Bethany Splansky,Administrator of Special Education and Student Services; Dana Cruikshank, Director of Transportation Call to Order: Ms.Abell called the meeting to order at 7:43 p.m. Ms.Abell stated that this was a hybrid meeting with remote participation, noting that the former Governor signed legislation for an extension for the remote meetings to continue through March 31, 2023. Beverly adopted remote participation on May 16, 2016 and thus will also be able to continue.A quorum of School Committee members and Administrators were in-person and the remote platform was offered for leadership and some members. BevCam was broadcasting on Channel 99 for Community access with a captioning tool available. Pledge of Allegiance: Ms. Kailey Quintino led those assembled in the Pledge of Allegiance. Recognitions: (BevCam 1:18:42) Dr. Charochak and Principal Taylor recognized the following Salem News and NEC All Star students: Cross Country Jason Provost-Salem News All Stars, NEC Dunn All Stars Riley McGoldrick-Salem News All Stars Allison Prasse-Salem News All Stars, NEC All Conference Team, Mary Hauck-Salem News All Stars, NEC All Conference Team Tara MacNeil -Salem News All Stars, NEC All Conference Team Calvin Barrett- NEC Dunn All Stars Emma Judge- NEC Dunn All Stars Soccer Wilson de Leon -Salem News All Stars, NEC All Conference Team Ian Visnick-Salem News All Stars, NEC All Conference Team Isabella Sullivan -Salem News All Stars, NEC Dunn All Stars Grace Fitzgerald-Salem News All Stars, NEC All Conference Team Grace Gonzalez- NEC Dunn All Stars Trevor Gilligan - NEC Dunn All Stars Matt Roy- NEC Dunn All Stars Field Hockey Brooke Davies-Salem News All Stars, NEC North All Stars Noelle McLane-Salem News All Stars Ella Maloblocki - NEC All Conference Team Volleyball Mya Perron - Salem News All Stars, NEC All Conference Team Natalie Reynolds-Salem News All Stars, NEC All Conference Team Nikki Erricola- NEC All Stars Abby Ruggieri- NEC All Stars Golf Aidan LeBlanc-Salem News All Stars, Golfer of the Year, NEC All Conference Ian Paddock-Salem News All Stars, NEC All Conference Will Ryan -Salem News All Stars Jack Ryan - NEC All Stars Dylan Hunter- NEC All Stars Ryan Avila- NEC All Stars Football Matthew Sopp-Salem News All Stars, NEC All Conference Team Benjamin Hering- NEC All Conference Team Logan Petrosino- NEC North All Stars Jacob Plakans- NEC North All Stars Coach of the Year David Jellerson - Girls Cross Country Student Representative Report - Kailey Quintino (BevCam 1:30:59) Kailey reported that midterms are starting up the final week of January. The Student Council will be holding their first winter bash on January 201h, Endicott College courses have opened, and DECA competed for districts on January 91h and are moving onto states. Kailey reported that there was a basketball game tonight against Lawrence; the boys were at home and the girls were away. Juniors and seniors are shopping for dresses for the prom. There is no school on Monday in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Ms.Abell added that the Human Rights Committee has invited everyone to join them at the middle school on Monday for the Martin Luther King, Jr. event. Approval of Meeting Records (BevCam 1:33:00) 2022 12 07 School Committee Minutes A motion was made by Ms Visnick to approve the December 7, 2022 School Committee minutes. The motion was seconded by Ms. Coelho and approved by a roll call vote. The following roll call votes were recorded: Mayor Michael Cahill -Abstain (was not in attendance) Kimberley Coelho -Yes Dr. Kenann McKenzie -Yes Kaarin Robinson -Yes Dr. Jeffrey Silva -Yes Lorinda Visnick-Yes Rachael Abell -Yes Motion passed 6:0:1 Abstained Open Forum for Resident Voice or Input into Agenda-Related Items The President will consider requests to address the School Committee on items either included or not included as part of the agenda at this time.Any person wishing to make such a request should email residentvoiceO-beverlvschools.ora before 7 p.m. with their comments (<3 minutes)to be read by the chair or to receive a link to address the body themselves at—7:40 p.m. remotely via Zoom. (Please Note:this is an opportunity to simply address the body and is not a discussion. Items by Consensus (BevCam 1:34:17) The Superintendent recommends the School Committee vote to approved a. Warrant#23021 in the amount of$208,411.29 b. Warrant#23022 in the amount of$884,623.85 c. Warrant#23023 in the amount of$287,733.60 d. Warrant#23024 in the amount of$284,952.37 e. Warrant#23025 in the amount of$89,621.94 A motion was made by Ms. Visnick to approve Warrants 23021 through 23025. The motion was seconded by Mayor Cahill and approved by a roll call vote. The following roll call vote was recorded: Mayor Michael Cahill -Yes Kimberley Coelho -Yes Dr. Kenann McKenzie -Yes Kaarin Robinson -Yes Dr. Jeffrey Silva -Yes Lorinda Visnick-Yes Rachael Abell -Yes Motion passed 7:0. School Committee Chair Update (BevCam 1:34:50) A. MASC/MASS Nominations Letter, Resolutions Ms.Abell reported, in their packets is a correspondence from MASC informing them that they have the option to nominate members to any of their standing committees. Ms.Abell stated she wanted to make sure they were aware of this opportunity and if interested they could submit the form. Ms.Abell added that this Committee also has the option to put forward any resolution they would like to see advocated on behalf of all districts. B. Committee Nominees to the BHS Principal Search Committee (BevCam 1:36:21) Ms.Abell reported that Dr. Silva and Ms. Robinson volunteered to be part of the BHS Principal Search Committee and she said she was pleased to nominate both of them. She added that Ms. Robinson has also volunteered to be part of the screening committee. C. Upcoming Meetings & Dates (BevCam 1:36:59) a. January Dates to Remember The COTW and F&F meetings are scheduled for January 25th. Ms.Abell reminded members that they need to submit their campaign finance reports to City Hall by January 20th, also that nomination papers will be available in the month of April. Ms.Abell stated that they are considering a Policy Subcommittee meeting on January 25th prior to the Finance and Facilities meeting at 5:30 p.m. It will be posted as a joint meeting; COTW and Policy Subcommittee, so she can be a part of the meeting as she has much to transition. b. Joint Council Meeting (1:38:12) Ms.Abell reported speaking and confirming with President Flowers that they will schedule the Joint Council meeting on March 22, 2023, in lieu of the COTW meeting. She asked that members to please mark that date on their calendars. Superintendent Report (BevCam 1:39:12) Dr. Charochak stated she would be reporting on the following items: a request for approval of an overnight field trip from the BMS, a presentation of the culmination of the FY24 budget priorities and two (2) informational items from NEC. A. Overnight Field Trip - Quebec City * Dr. Charochak stated that she is recommending the School Committee's approval of the overnight field trip to Quebec, Canada. Marissa Lomas, 8th grade French teacher reviewed the information for the overnight field trip to Quebec, Canada projected to take place April 15-18, 2024. Ms. Lomas shared the sites included in their three-day itinerary they would be visiting. She reported they would travel by bus to Quebec, therefore no passports are needed. The total cost is $973/per person. Ms. Lomas stated she had no hotel information at this time because it is too far out, but will update the Committee. They will also do monthly deposits and fundraising. Mayor Cahill made a motion to approve the overnight field trip to Quebec, Canada. The motion was seconded by Ms.Abell. School Committee members had the following questions: Ms. Visnick inquired about travel protection. Ms. Lomas stated it was part of the package. Dr. Silva asked if she knew how many students and chaperones may be attending. Ms. Lomas stated, similar to the other trips, she would like to cap it at 30 and has two (2) colleagues wanting to travel with her. Mayor Cahill remarked that it sounded really exciting and asked if students, who are not citizens, would need to provide a passport? Ms. Lomas said she would check with the travel agency. Ms. Visnick asked if this would be the April vacation week. Ms. Lomas stated yes. Ms. Abell remarked she feels that student travel is very important and that it sounds like a wonderful opportunity, she appreciated her bringing it to the Committee early for approval. Ms. Visnick asked about having a nurse chaperone or if she had a plan if health care is required. Ms. Lomas stated she would check with the travel agency on that as well. A roll call vote was taken. The following roll call vote was recorded: Mayor Michael Cahill -Yes Kimberley Coelho -Yes Dr. Kenann McKenzie -Yes Kaarin Robinson -Yes Dr. Jeffrey Silva -Yes Lorinda Visnick-Yes Rachael Abell -Yes Motion passed 7:0. B. FY24 Budget Priorities (BevCam 1:52:21) Dr. Charochak reported some updated information on the FY24 budget process to date. The budget is built keeping in mind the Goals for the District and focus areas for 2023. Dr. Charochak outlined factors and provided information on items impacting the budget which included: contractual obligations, enrollment, resourcing for high quality curriculum materials, department funding requests and special education increases. Dr. Charochak reported meeting with the School Committee and Stakeholders to identify their priorities. They collaborated with principals and central office to develop a shared framework, identified administrative efficiencies and restructuring opportunities, assessed enrollments and impact on staffing. They will be meeting with the City at a later date to discuss the proposed City's contribution. Dr. Charochak reported in the meeting with School Committee members she felt the message was to stay true to the direction they are going in, social emotional/mental health, curriculum/teaching and learning, operational, and communication. She and Ms. Sherburne are in the process of meeting with department administrators as well. Dr. Charochak outlined the Capital Expenditures, some of which included; roofs, playgrounds,A/C and HVAC. In regards to the roofs, Dr. Charochak noted that the MSBA has suspended their Accelerated Repair Program (ARP) and that we will need to watch for updated information. Under Buildings and Grounds the list included cafeteria tables and classroom furniture, bus cameras, which have already been addressed, exterior cameras and campus signage. Dr. Silva asked if there were any thoughts on having speed bumps at the high school. Dr. Charochak stated it's been discussed but she was not a part of the meeting and stated it has not been brought forward. Dr. Charochak reported that the FY24 budget calendar is pretty much on track, asking members to keep in mind that in a typical year they would be looking at the Governor's potential budget now but because of the change in leadership the Governor is not required to present their budget until March 1st. Dr. Charochak said they would proceed with some of the assumptions given by the DOE. Ms.Abell stated she had attended a few PTO meetings and wanted to remind all constituents that this is the time to bring forward any of their concerns. School Committee members should let their constituents know about the timeline. Dr. Charochak remarked she is meeting with PTO Presidents on Friday if individual constituents wanted to reach out to their PTO representative they could share their concerns with her then. Dr. Charochak shared the enrollment numbers, saying they are relatively steady in Beverly. The numbers showed the last four years for elementary, middle, and high school and some of the data for the drops in some grades. Preschool numbers, Dr. Charochak noted, tend to go up and down based on the number of students, Special Ed vs. peers. Out of district numbers, Dr. Charochak stated that we are doing a great job keeping our students in the district and the homeschool numbers are down from 105 to 82. Ms.Abell asked if we are accurately capturing all the students that are not attending our schools and what programs parents are using. Dr. Charochak remarked that they are required to complete a Homeschool application. Julie Smith, our Homeschool Coordinator reviews and approves all plans at the beginning of the year. Ms.Abell asked if students go in and out of public and homeschool situations. Dr. Charochak said that students that left due to the pandemic, some loved homeschooling, but a great number of them have returned. Mayor Cahill asked if we similarly track the number of charter and school choices out. Dr. Charochak stated yes that she has all of those numbers. Dr. Charochak went over the numbers for the contractual obligations stating that they are pretty accurate because they already have the signed contracts and know our obligations, the only variation would be if there is any change in AFSCME. Dr. Charochak stated that they are looking at 2.6 million in contractual obligations over budget. She stated that last year's appropriated budget with the FY23 City Contribution and Chapter 70 totaled $69,343,934. The FY24 numbers are all TBD and in terms of the Legislative process, at a minimum, she said they could see an increase in Chapter 70 funding of$180,000, possibly more. The rest are all TBD; Governor's Budget, House Ways & Means, Senate and Final Chapter 70. Dr. Charochak stated that the next steps are to finish with principals and department heads, then she and Ms. Sherburne will work together on the orange sheet, then meet with the City to discuss the City's contribution. Dr. Silva asked if the powerpoint will be shared. Dr. Charochak said it will be posted. Mayor Cahill asked Dr. Charochak if she had gotten any input on logistics of the roll out of the ballot questions that's creating additional resources and will it have an impact on the next fiscal year budget. Dr. Charochak said no, but that a great deal of legislative advocacy from MASS and MASC is ongoing as to how they would like to roll it out. Mayor Cahill stated the question he was asking is would that increase on the tax rate kick in with the tax year 2022 or a year later. Dr. Charochak stated she would guess it would be for this year's budget season. Ms. Visnick asked about the 40S money from the state relative to the newly built affordable housing. Dr. Charochak remarked that she believes there is a threshold and did not think we made the threshold. Mayor Cahill further explained the money comes from a different lettered piece; money based on the number of units, money based on the students. Dr. Chaorchak added that the project opens in phases and it is the size of the project, the number of students and whether we have met the threshold. Ms. Visnick stated suppose we were in phase 2 and tripped the threshold, asking if we see that money as a line item income for the school committee or will it go forward to the "city side" and the schools won't see it until/unless it comes from a city appropriation back into the schools. Mayor Cahill said he was not sure and requested that they look into it together. Ms.Abell stated that they typically invite our representatives to their meeting, if the Committee is interested she will reach out to Representative Parisella and Senator Lovely's office to see if they are available in February to talk about funding for this year. Dr. Charochak said that she is part of a subgroup of Superintendents that meets monthly and at a recent meeting Representative Parisella and a representative from Senator Lovely's office were in attendance, commenting that any advocacy they can make to legislation is very important. C. NEC -2021-2022 Annual Report and NEC Annual Financial Audit 2022 Report (BevCam 2:35:01) Dr. Charochak stated that the reports she had included, 2021-2022 Annual Report and NEC Annual Financial Audit 2022 are informational items.As a member of the NEC Board she is required to provide these documents to School Committees and if they have any questions to please reach out to her. Committee Reports Standing Committee on Finance & Facilities - Lorinda Visnick, Chairperson (BevCam 2:36:02) Ms. Visnick stated the Finance and Facilities Committee last met in November where they received a presentation for the Hannah Outdoor Learning Center and the Finance and Facilities Committee unanimously approved the building of the outdoor learning center. Ms. Visnick stated she is now bringing it forward for School Committee approval. A motion was made by Ms. Visnick to approve the Hannah School Outdoor Learning Center. The motion was seconded by Ms. Robinson. Mayor Cahill asked where the balance would be covered Ms. Visnick stated it would be out of ESSER funds. Mayor Cahill asked if the project will be managed in house. Ms. Sherburne stated she assumed our Buildings and Grounds will oversee it. The following roll call vote were recorded: Mayor Michael Cahill -Yes Kimberley Coelho -Yes Dr. Kenann McKenzie -Yes Kaarin Robinson -Yes Dr. Jeffrey Silva -Yes Lorinda Visnick-Yes Rachael Abell -Yes Motion passed 7:0. Ms. Visnick reported that the next F&F meeting is scheduled for January 25, 2023 at 6:30 p.m. Standing Committee on Curriculum, Instruction and Student Life (BevCam 2:38:59) Ms. Robinson reported at the earlier CISL meeting the Committee received student updates from middle and high school. BMS fundraiser was a big success raising $4,000 bringing the total raised to $11,000 for Nature's Classroom. BMS is sponsoring another fundraiser, the Winter Waffleland Family Breakfast scheduled for January 28th and it benefits all grades.At the high school they are holding on the spot admissions at Salem State University and North Shore Community College and seniors are solidifying their Reach internships, 85 students moved on from DECA districts to States. The CISL Committee reviewed the proposed Grading Policy change, for the second semester, that Ms. Taylor proposed and the Committee approved. Members of the BHS administration team provided highlights of curriculum, college and career readiness, and other programs and initiatives ongoing at BHS. Ms. Robinson stated the next CISL meeting is scheduled for February 8, 2023 at 6:30 p.m. Negotiations Subcommittee - Rachael Abell, Chair (BevCam 2:41:43) Ms.Abell stated the Committee has not met since last time. She reported she received a few communications from the AFSCME unit and expects to receive a letter sometime soon. Policy Subcommittee - Dr. Kenann McKenzie. Chair (BevCam 2:42:09) Dr. McKenzie reported that the Policy Committee has begun to organize the process and are proposing to meet on January 25th. Dr. McKenzie said she will confirm with the other members. Communications (BevCam 2:32:34) Ms. Visnick stated she received communication around the program of practice to continue to encourage our children to have fun and joy.At the same time to be inclusive and how to balance that line vs. being discouraging.Another constituent, whose student is on IEP and has not met the new higher MCAS threshold, asked what is our path as a district in providing assistance. Ms. Robinson stated she wanted to share that North Beverly and Ward 5 lost a great friend with the passing of Frank Forti. Ms. Robinson said he was a great friend to Beverly Public School and all student athletes. Ms.Abell stated she continues to receive communications if, as a Committee, we would be interested in returning to masking.Also asking about any willingness, on the District's behalf, to encourage more vaccinations. She directed them to our Nurse Leader, Jodi Elder and Dr. Charochak. She has also fielded a number of concerns from parents that received MCAS Scores and first report cards asking what additional homework help and tutoring opportunities might be available. Ms.Abell shared with Dr. Charochak, concerns from high school students about music being an all or nothing with it being a full year commitment and some students can't make that commitment and what can we do to encourage schools to offer a part time or club base music program. Ms. Visnick reminded everyone that Monday the Martin Luther King event will be held here at the middle school. Doors open at 8:30 a.m and the program starts at 9:00 Motion to Adjourn (BevCam 2:47:38) A motion was made by Ms. Visnick to adjourn the School Committee meeting. The motion was seconded by Ms. Robinson and approved by a roll call vote. The roll call vote resulted in the following: Mayor Michael Cahill -Yes Kimberley Coelho -Yes Dr. Kenann McKenzie -Yes Kaarin Robinson -Yes Dr. Jeffrey Silva -Yes Lorinda Visnick-Yes Rachael Abell -Yes Motion passed 7:0 The meeting adjourned at 9:17 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kaarin Robinson, Secretary Beverly School Committee Documents Reviewed at the meeting: 2022 12 07 School Committee Minutes MASC/MASS Nominations Letter, Resolutions Overnight Field Trip - Quebec City NEC 2021-2022 Annual Report NEC Annual Financial Audit 2022 Report Hannah School Outdoor Learning Center