DEER ISLE-STONINGTON CSD
SCHOOL COMMITTEE
“Launching life long learners and responsible citizens able to keep our
island community vital”
Deer Isle-Stonington CSD #13 School Committee
Meeting Minutes
Deer Isle-Stonington High School
Tuesday, January 2, 2007 at 6:30 P.M.Board Members Present:
Walter Kumiega, Jim Adams, Donald Sargent, Aimee Hunt and Skip Greenlaw
Board Members Absent: Mark Cormier
Staff Present: Robert Webster, Catherine Ring
Guests: David Walsh
1) Call to Order and Declaration of a Quorum:
Chair Kumiega called the meeting to order and declared a quorum at 6:30 P.M.
2) Moment of Silence:
A moment of silence was observed.
3) Citizen Comments:
Skip Greenlaw indicated that he had received an unsigned letter regarding the girls co-curricular program.
4) Approval of the Agenda:
Addition of Action Item H. Acceptance of Donation. Motion by Greenlaw, second by Hunt to approve agenda as amended. Vote: 5/Y, 0/N.
5) Approval of the minutes of the December 5 and December 19, 2006 meetings.
Addition of Staff: Jane Greenlaw and Judy Rhodes to the December 19th minutes. Motion by Hunt, second by Greenlaw approve the minutes of the December 5 and December 19, 2006 meetings. Vote: 5/Y, 0/N.
6) REPORTS
A. Elementary School Principal Report
Catherine Ring distributed a written report and commented:
• Judy Rhodes came up with the initiative for the Polar Express train tracks. For each 20 minutes that a student read, they added a piece of railroad track. The engine then proceeded up the track. Altogether, the students read 11,280 minutes in a very short time.
• The Kennedy Center for the Arts proposal has been accepted. We are the first school in Maine to receive this opportunity. This is a two year commitment for professional development to integrate the arts into the classroom. Ring distributed copies of the Kennedy Center project proposal.
• Thanked the Board for a great staff party
• Reviewed upcoming events at the school.
Jim Adams questioned how the Lunch Bytes system was working. Ring indicated that the kitchen staff love the program and it is helping the flow of the line go much quicker.
B. High School Principal Report
No report was given.
C. Superintendent
Robert Webster reported:
• At the Union meeting, the general consensus was that each Board would have a representative to meet and discuss the contract adjustment proposal from First Student. Skip Greenlaw volunteered for the committee.
• Warren Berkowitz has completed the special education population count (the December 1st count). The CSD’s special education enrollment has declined to 18% -- 45 elementary students and 31 high school students.
• Julie Mattes has a memo for the Board suggesting ways to streamline the warrant approval process.
• He distributed a financial statement.
• Thanks to Skip Greenlaw for his efforts in raising money for the holiday party.
Skip Greenlaw commented that it could save time during the meeting if the administrators could provide their written reports for inclusion in the packet of materials.
Aimee Hunt questioned the cause of the fire alarm on Christmas Eve. Webster indicated that it was a faulty sensor in the kitchen. Discussion held on fire alarm problems. Webster will find out how much it would cost to routinely replace the sensors.
D) Vision and Mission1. Student Council Report
Robert Webster indicated that he will keep this item on the agenda so that the student council members would not have to make a special request when they wanted to make a report.
2. Workshop on Draft Strategic Plan
Robert Webster indicated that they hoped to have a draft of the strategic plan
later this month for a workshop on the 22nd or 23rd for the Board’s review and discussion. After the workshop the plan would be an action item in February. After discussion, the 23rd was selected for the workshop date. The meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. Walter Kumiega also suggested discussion on Russ Quaglia’s school committee self-evaluation plan.
3. Topics for School Committee Newsletter
Skip Greenlaw volunteered to write the newsletter. Suggested topics were the proposed preschool program, the budget meetings, security and bomb threats, student council development and the high school renovation plans. Catherine Ring reminds Skip that he had volunteered to do an article for the elementary school February newsletter.
7. ACTION ITEMS
A. 2005-06 Audit Report
Motion by Hunt, second by Adams to accept the 2005-06 audit report. Vote: 5/Y, 0/N.
B. 2006-07 Committee Appointments
Addition of Aimee Hunt and Skip Greenlaw to the Literacy committee; Nita Barbour and one K teacher to the PreSchool Development committee; and Don Sargent, Aimee Hunt and Nick Caros to the Technology committee. The policy committee consists of Skip Greenlaw, Jim Adams and Robert Webster. Motion by Greenlaw, second by Hunt to approve the 2006-07 Committee Appointments with additions. Vote: 5/Y, 0/N.
C. Personnel Nomination1. Technology Coordinator
Robert Webster commended Mark Arnold for doing a very thorough job in the interview process. Webster recommended Nicolas Caros for the position. Caros bring many years and a wide range of experience to the position. Motion by Hunt, second by Greenlaw to approve Nicolas Caros as the technology coordinator. Vote: 5/Y, 0/N.
Jim Adams suggested some compensation for those who helped keep the computers running. Discussion on compensation.
D. Proposal to Amend Title 20-A § 1653 School Committee Vacancies
Skip Greenlaw commented that he had a draft and would e-mail it to the Board members.
E. 2007-08 Budget Development Schedule
Motion by Hunt, second by Greenlaw to accept the budget development schedule. Vote: 5/Y, 0/N.
F. New or Revised Policies
1. School Committee Bylaws Policy 1.02
Motion by Hunt, Second by Greenlaw to approve the policy. Vote: 4/Y, 1/N (Sargent).G. School Committee Election Warrent
Motion by Hunt, second by Greenlaw to prove the school committee election warrant with the name change. Vote: 5/Y, 0/N.
H. Acceptance of a Donation
Robert Webster indicated that an anonymous donator has donated 187 shares of Phiser stock (worth approximately $5,000) as an unrestricted grant to the Reach Performing Arts Center. Discussion held on what should be done with the stock. Discussion held on how Maine Community Foundation handles RPAC donations. Discussion also held on acceptance of donations for the RPAC facility. Motion by Hunt, second by Adams to accept the donation. Vote: 5/Y, 0/N.8. DISCUSSION ITEMS
A. Revised Bus Contract Terms
Robert Webster inquired on the Board’s opinion on First Student’s proposal for the contract change. The Board reviewed the figures. Discussion held on First Student’s record keeping. Consensus reached not to eliminate an additional bus.
B. New or Revised Policies1. Student Assessment Policy 3.09
Addition of “… graded and” returned … to first paragraph. Policy is ready for a second reading at the next meeting.
2. Student Computer and Internet Use Policy 3.24
3. Employee Computer and Internet Use Policy
Robert Webster indicated that the policy had been sent to Mark Arnold for review and included his suggestions. No changes made to the policy.
4. Title 1A Program 4.03
In the second paragraph, change grade 1 to grade K. Policy is ready for a second reading at the next meeting.
5. Teacher Job Description Policy 9.11
Discussion held on certifications. No changes made to the policy. The policy will be ready for a second reading at the next meeting.C. High School Renovation Update
Robert Webster indicated that he met with Mike Young last month. There was some asbestos found that was not included in the asbestos inventory. Some abatement will be necessary which will incur additional costs. The budget will handle the additional costs without difficulty. Webster indicated that the new heating vents won’t respond as fast as the older ones, but will be quieter and work better. He will be in contact with the Maine Bond Bank in April for their bond bank sale.
D. Length of Meeting/Presentations
Walter Kumiega asked for suggestions on how to keep with meetings within the time limits. He has thought of assigning time limits to the presentations, but would like to avoid this practice. Jim Adams stated that he would support time limits to the regular discussion items, but not the presentations. Skip Greenlaw stated he felt it was perfectly reasonable to ask people to limit their presentations. Greenlaw also suggested that the administrators, groups or committees should include any materials with the school board packet for review before the presentation. Aimee Hunt suggested that groups could assign a spokesperson who would make a summary. Don Sargent suggested that committees could make presentations at the parent/teacher conferences where they would have a larger audience. Kumiega thanked everyone for their ideas.
9. COMMUNICATIONS
10. Adjournment
Motion by Greenlaw, second by Hunt to adjourn at 8:40 p.m. Vote: 5/Y, 0/N.
Respectfully submitted,JoAnna Haskell
Administrative Assistant