Loading...
2016-02-10BEVERLY PUBLIC SCHOOLS Regular School Committee Meeting Wednesday, February 10, 2016 Beverly City Hall — Council Chambers Beverly, Massachusetts A regular meeting of the Beverly School Committee was held on Wednesday, February 10, 2016 in Beverly City Hall, Council Chambers. Members Present: Rachael Abell, Lorinda Visnick, Paul Manzo, Kris Silverstein, John Mullady and Paul Goodwin, Mayor Cahill arrived at 8:00 p.m. Also in Attendance: Dr. Steven A. Hiersche, Superintendent of Schools, Suzanne Charochak, Assistant Superintendent, Jean Sherburne, Director of Finance and Operations, Donna Bergeron, Administrative Assistant to the Superintendent and School Committee, Oliver Muise, Student Representative to the School Committee, Principals, Sean Gallagher, Matthew Poska, Elaina Byrne, Lisa Oliver, Gabrielle Montevecchi, Erin Brown, Assistant Principal Terry Conant Call to Order: Ms. Silverstein called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Pledge of Allegiance: Ms. Abell led those assembled in the Pledge of Allegiance. AGENDA Recognition of Students, Employees and Community Members • Ms. Silverstein, Dr. Hiersche, the elementary and secondary principals along with the PTO presidents accepted checks from Doug Walker and Anna Green on behalf of the Beverly Education Foundation. • Ms. Silverstein, Superintendent Hiersche and Matthew Poska, Briscoe Middle School Principal recognized and congratulated Abigail Brauninger, who was chosen as Ambassador for Beverly in the Governor's Project 351. Open Forum for Citizen Input into Non - Agenda - Related Items Sara Sallese, 24 Shortell Avenue addressed the committee regarding full -day kindergarten. She stated that she is hoping that the committee will take into consideration a rate reduction for full -day kindergarten when preparing the FY17 budget. Open Forum for Citizen Concerns or Citizen Input into Agenda - Related Items None Approval of Meeting Records A motion was made by Mr. Manzo to approve the Organizational School Committee meeting minutes from the January 6, 2016 meeting. The motion was seconded by Ms. Abell and approved by a vote of 6:0. A motion was made by Mr. Mullady to approve the Regular School Committee minutes from the January 13, 2016 meeting. The motion was seconded by Mr. Manzo and approved by a vote of 6:0 with one correction. Report from Student Representative to the School Committee Oliver Muise reported that on February 4 BHS held the Parent/Teacher Open House and a Junior Parent College informational meeting. Oliver stated vacation is next week and the 8 Grade Curriculum Night is scheduled for February 23` Oliver reported that third quarter progress reports will go home on March 4th Communications from Committee Members Ms. Abell reported receipt of numerous communications regarding Science fairs and received some budget specific programs, process and timeline inquiries. Ms. Visnick stated receiving much of the same communications regarding the budget and also inquiries Regular Meeting February 10, 2016 Page 2 of 5 on the 2016 -2017 calendar. She stated hearing some feed -back on the SPED presentation, questions regarding kindergarten registration and phone issues at Central Office. She also received questions that were budget and fee based. Mr. Manzo stated he received general communications regarding the budget development process and on a particular program. Mr. Goodwin said he received communications on programs to consider. Mr. Mullady— no communications. Ms. Silverstein stated she received a communication on a bus issue related to the high school's early release and a question regarding the new middle school wanting to know if the grade 5 teachers have been included in the team design. She too received communication that a particular program be included in the budget. Update on A113 Middle School Building Project Troy Randall from the AB Design team provided a summary and update on the Middle School Building Project. Mr. Randall noted the start of the project 18 months ago with educational visioning sessions moving on to 21 sc Century Design which encompassed flexible spaces, clusters of learning, indoor /outdoor connections and sustainability. Mr. Randall noted the 40 page document that was developed by the administration and staff which outlines the proposed education requirements for the new building design. He provided a number of slides showing the floor plans, the maker/builder space, and the open concept in the foyer, library and cafeteria as well as the outdoor learning environment. Mr. Randall wrapped up his presentation with the following timeline: demolition of the building — next week thru March, installation of steel piles — Spring 2016, concrete piles and foundation — Summer -Fall 2016 and erection of structural steel — Fall- Winter 2016. Report from Superintendent Hiersche 1. Update on School Trips Dr. Hiersche stated he would be providing an update on school trips and remarked that he recently surveyed other districts statewide, due to safety concerns and the Zika virus. He stated that out of 41 districts only 2 have actually cancelled their trips, one of which was Boston because of the Zika virus. Dr. Hiersche stated that we will continue to monitor to see if there is any change in recommendations from Homeland Security. He stated that Sean has kept in touch with all of the teachers sponsoring upcoming trips to let them know we will make a decision if we have to and that we are monitoring the Zika virus. 2. Budget FY17UPdate Dr. Hiersche presented information on the FY17 budget to date. He reported some of the impacts on the budget are; projecting funding of Circuit Breaker at 72% noting that it is still early in the legislative process, health insurance increases, Chapter 70 funding, City appropriation and continued strong school choice numbers. Dr. Hiersche listed the administration priorities being considered, some of which are HR Administrator, curricular and preschool leadership, also the potential loss of the kindergarten grant. Some of the School Committee priorities included progress to full day kindergarten, fees, social/ emotional support, technology and research and taking advantage of efficiencies. Dr. Hiersche said we also need to pay attention to future planning which includes predictable cost projections for future growth and changes once the middle school opens. He listed some of those changes may include increases to staff, programs, tech support and software as well as the potential revenue changes. Dr. Hiersche included slides that listed the items under consideration. At the elementary level: No change in staff, increase number of ELL students, Paraprofessional and Fellows. At the pre - school: Intensive Special Needs Class and Pre - School Leadership, at the middle school: Teach 6 increase and Natures Classroom. At Beverly High School: Three full -time positions, Teach 6 and Program Funding after Loss of a Grant. Special Education: Speech Language Therapist, Physical Therapist and Tuition Increase. Dr. Hiersche also presented the considerations for all other departments: Transportation, Buildings and Grounds, Athletics, Technology, Health Insurance, Administration and Contractual Obligations stating the total considerations amount to $2,652,096. Dr. Hiersche stated the potential revenue changes include; Retirements to Date, Circuit Breaker, Chapter 70 and Grant Fluctuations which are still being determined. He stated that the additional revenue changes are the Revolving Account Use which includes fees, tuition and rent, School Choice Regular Meeting February 10, 2016 Page 3 of 5 Revenue and the City Appropriation. He commented that he really wants us to be paying attention to the $58,000,000 because of the ups and downs within all of the revenue streams and commented that there is much more work to be done and conversations to have going forward. Ms. Visnick stated that under School Committee priorities slide — taking advantage of efficiencies, that it was her understanding that they were not pulling in electricity off of the solar field near the high school because it is broken. She stated she would like to see the new middle school, beginning on day one, making use of some sort of alternative energy and requested this be discussed at an upcoming meeting. Dr. Hiersche stated that they are looking at utility costs but had not included it in his presentation. Mayor Cahill stated that he felt this conversation was best had with him then going forward with the Middle School Building Committee. Mr. Manzo asked about increasing 6 at the middle school, if it was tied to specific courses. Dr. Hiersche stated it was expressive arts. Mr. Manzo referred to a discussion that took place sometime ago regarding high school scheduling. He stated that at some point they may want to look at what the staffing level would look like if they carried a full schedule again as opposed to block scheduling. Ms. Visnick stated that although she likes the block scheduling for some students it is very difficult to carry 8 classes at once and maybe we could re- evaluate that also. 3. Draft 2016 -2017 School District Calendar Discussion Dr. Hiersche stated that he included a draft of the 2016 -2017 School District calendar for discussion. He noted the calendar concerns with the week of September 5' which includes the holiday and closing for the staff development day (Primary Day) and the month of November; the same issue with the professional development day (Election Day) closing followed by the holiday later in the week. Dr. Hiersche stated that the calendar has been sent to the Beverly Teacher's Association for their approval. Dr. Hiersche reported that with regards to this year's calendar schools will be in session for the upcoming March 1 st primary. He stated this will give us the ability to see how it will work in the four schools that will be affected and to be sure they are safe and secure. Dr. Hiersche stated that he had a conversation with Wes Slate the City Clerk regarding the possibility of moving the early release day for elementary from March 2 nd to March 1 st . Dr. Hiersche stated he spoke to the principals and they felt that the half day dismissal was more disruptive then the normal dismissal. Dr. Hiersche stated that the only thing that could change on the 2016 -2017 calendar would be whether schools are in session on the voting days. Ms. Visnick commented on the BHS late start and early release days stating the need for discussion regarding the busses. She commented that this does not work well and we need to look at ourselves as a service provider and we need to make that service as convenient as possible. Dr. Hiersche stated that the discussion has already begun. Mr. Manzo stated he wanted to go on record that having the public in the schools while schools are in session on Election Day is an unnecessary risk that should be avoided at all costs. Report from School Committee President, Kris Silverstein 1. School Committee Retreat Ms. Silverstein reported that the School Committee retreat is scheduled for March 7th at 4:00 p.m. it the McKeown School, Room 103. She stated that Mike Gilbert from MASC will be joining them to discuss norms and protocol, policies and how MASC could revamp the policy manual and at what cost. She stated he will also discuss the Governance Project and walk them through a superintendent's evaluation. Ms. Silverstein stated that there will be a light dinner provided with the principals joining them giving them a chance to meet one another. Report for School Committee Liaison to the Middle School Building Project — Paul Manzo Mr. Manzo reported since the last meeting the working group met on January 26 and February 2 "d , the Green Subcommittee met at the end of January and the full Middle School Building Committee met last evening. Mr. Manzo stated that in addition to design updates they expect to see additional information on the site evaluation. He stated the evaluation will help to determine the length of the piles that will support Regular Meeting February 10, 2016 Page 4 of 5 the new building, if they are shorter than originally thought it could be a cost savings. Mr. Manzo reported at the Green Subcommittee meeting they discussed what the anticipated leadership in energy and environmental design rating will be, looked at interior finishes and reviewed changes to the grading near the loading area. Mr. Manzo reported that the City and MSBA have executed the project funding agreement and are still on target with the building schedule. Committee Reports Standing Committee on Finance & Facilities — Lorinda Visnick, Chairperson Ms. Visnick reported that the Finance and Facilities Committee has not met since last reported. The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, February 24, 2016 at Beverly High School beginning at 6:30 p.m. Curriculum, Instruction and Student Life Sub - Committee — Paul Manzo, Chairperson Mr. Manzo reported the Curriculum, Instruction and Student Life Committee met on February 3` welcoming new members and citizen representatives. He stated they received a review of the Foreign Language program and a detailed presentation from Assistant Superintendent, Sue Charochak on collecting and analyzing student assessment data. Mr. Manzo stated that they tabled the Student Safety policy until the next meeting scheduled for March 2, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. in the McKeown School Room 103. Negotiations Subcommittee — Paul Manzo, Chairperson Mr. Manzo reported the Negotiations Subcommittee reached a tentative agreement with Unit C (Paraprofessionals). He stated they continue to work on some of the language issues and once that has been agreed upon it will come forward for a vote. Policy Review Subcommittee — Rachael Abell, Chairperson Ms. Abell stated they have not scheduled a meeting yet but she is looking forward to the retreat and hearing from MASC representative, Mike Gilbert. Community Engagement Mr. Goodwin stated he attended the North Beverly art fair, PTO meetings at North Beverly and Centerville and some track meets and basketball games. Mr. Goodwin said he also attended the Centerville Science Fair. Mr. Mullady reported attending the Briscoe PTO and the MASC Conference. Mr. Manzo stated he attended several PTO meetings i.e. Cove, North Beverly, Briscoe and Centerville. He reported attending the open house and the Junior Parent College night as well as numerous BHS basketball games. Ms. Visnick stated she attended some PTO meetings including the monthly City -Wide PTO meeting noting an upcoming event they have planned with the Chief of Police. She stated she attended the Charting the Course conference and remarked that Beverly High School will be hosting their first Science fair in two weeks. Ms. Abell stated she attended the MASC Charting the Course conference and the Polar Plunge. Mayor Cahill reported spending a couple afternoons at the Centerville School observing the pick -up and stated that they have some good ideas to help with that situation. He stated that this week is the opening of the first art show at City Hall commenting that the work being displayed is from the North Beverly kindergarten students. Mayor Cahill said he was invited to read at North Beverly and while attending the Polar Plunge received another invitation from one of the students to visit the Ayers School. Ms. Silverstein reported attending many of the same. She stated she continues to attend the Be Healthy Beverly / Opioid Abuse Prevention Committee which she stated are part of a new substance abuse prevention grant. She stated she escorted some BHS students to the UMass honor band. There she said the students spent the day with professors learning, rehearsing and at the end of the day present a onetime only concert. New Business - Reminders Mr. Manzo reported approximately 30 BHS students will be participating in the Drama Fest taking place on February 27 at St. John's Prep beginning at 9:00 a.m. and the Grade 8 Curriculum Night is scheduled for Tuesday, February 23`d. Regular Meeting February 10, 2016 Page 5 of 5 Ms. Visnick expressed her appreciation that some of the BHS students had made themselves available to be judges at the Centerville Science Fair and she reported that there is going to be a Summit at Gillette Stadium: "Breaking the Cycle of Poverty — One Meal at a Time" on March 8 where they will be discussing social /emotional learning issues. Opportunity for Questions from the Press None in attendance Consider Executive Session None Motion to Adjourn Ms. Visnick made a motion to adjourn. The motion was seconded by Mr. Manzo and approved by a vote of 7:0. The meeting adjourned at 9:20 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Lorinda Visnick, Secretary Beverly School Committee Documents Reviewed at the meeting: Minutes for approval: January 6, 2016 Organizational School Committee Meeting January 13, 2016 Regular School Committee Meeting 2016 -2017 Draft Calendar FY17 Budget Powerpoint Presentation