REGION 9 BOARD OF EDUCATION
Regular Meeting
Joel Barlow High School
Tuesday, September 25, 2018 – 7:30 p.m.
ATTENDANCE
Region 9 Board of Education members: D’Agostino, Coppinger, Hancock, Hocker, Graziano, Williams
Absent: Denny, Johnston
Administration: McMorran, Pin, Roszko, Desmarais, Czudak
Others: Videographer and 3 members of public
CALL TO ORDER
Mr. D’Agostino called the meeting to order at 7:33 p.m. Ms. Williams arrived at 8:02 p.m.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Motion: move to approve minutes of the August 21, 2018, Region 9 Board of Education regular meeting (Coppinger, Hocker). Approved [3-0]. Graziano, Hancock abstained.
Motion: move to approve minutes of the September 5, 2018, Region 9 Board of Education special meeting (Coppinger, Hancock). Approved. Unanimous.
STUDENT COMMENT
Maha Ulhaq was unable to attend due to weather conditions. Dr. Pin noted that she would likely attend the next meeting.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Dana Grey of Lamppost Drive, Redding, noted her distaste for Dr. McMorran’s and Dr. Pierson Ugol’s handling of certain portions of the graduation ceremony last year. She read an email from a parent in Easton who felt similarly. Both noted their expectations for graduation this year.
BOARD MEMBER COMMENT
None.
DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION: SPECIAL EDUCATION BRIDGE PROGRAM AND DATA PRESENTATION
Ms. Roszko referred to the Board materials and described The Bridge, an in-district pilot service methodology designed to provide appropriate levels of academic and social-emotional support for certain students in the least restrictive environment and in a cost-effective manner. She reviewed the history of the pilot program and how it operates. She discussed the budgetary impact and noted that funding is provided through various grants. She noted that an objective of the program is to avoid additional outplacement costs. Lastly she discussed next steps, student attendance habits, staffing and the physical location of The Bridge within the high school among other topics.
Mrs. Roszko responded to questions from the Board and addressed how the students in the program interact with other Barlow students and the percentage rate of students in and out of district. She also reported on the initial metrics. She reported that the school withdrew its application for a grant related to this program that had been presented to the Board at the last meeting, noting that the terms of the grant were not a right fit for the school at this time.
Next, Ms. Roszko reviewed a summary of the projection data for special services. She reviewed CT SAT Results, transition plans, student enrollment, outplacements, disability categories, the 2018-2019 3E program data, course enrollment numbers, co-taught and consultative courses, special education teacher caseloads, and other projections as summarized in the materials. She responded to questions from the Board throughout her presentation and explained sessions per week vs. sessions per cycle and declining enrollment and its effect on the special education services and the budget.
DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION: MAPPING STAFF SIZE TO CORRESPOND WITH DECLINING ENROLLMENT
Dr. Pin discussed mapping with respect to declining enrollment numbers and its impact on personnel. She referred to the materials and noted the percentage of decline in students since 2013 and the decline in total full-time employees within the same period. She reported on the impact to certain departments over time and, cost benefit analysis and current teacher workload. Dr. McMorran reviewed a report of the Enrollment by Cohort and noted the size of the cohort tends to decrease over the four years at Barlow. The Board commented on its expectation, the format and timing of the reports before the beginning of the budget season. Dr. McMorran stated that more detail would be given in future and as the process evolves involvement from the Curriculum Committee.
DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION: SECURITY CAMERA PROJECT UPDATE
Mr. Reiss reported on the status of the security cameras recently installed at Barlow. He noted that the project was in the settling-in period for the next 4-6 weeks. Dr. Pin reported on the functionality and positioning of the cameras, and the tweaks the vendor is working on during the settling-in period. The Board requested a report on the procedures in place to obtain a CO inspection. Mr. Reiss reported that there was a gap in the process and described the new procedure in place to close those gaps.
DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION: TECHNOLOGY SALE UPDATE
Dr. McMorran provided an update on the recent sale of technology and the amount of monies raised. He referred to the Sales & Disposal of Books, Equipment & Supplies Policy included in the materials and advised that a provision prohibits the sale of equipment to certain categories of persons. He asked the Board to waive this provision in light of the information that historically, these materials were sold to persons within a certain classification noted in the policy. The Board agreed to review the CT General Statutes to see if there are any legal issues and agreed to waive the provision pending a review of the statutes.
Motion: move that the Region 9 Board of Education waive the provision that ‘Equipment, books, supplies may not be sold to employees, board members, or town employees’ in the Sales & Disposal of Books, Equipment & Supplies Policy, pending a review of the Connecticut General Statutes (Hancock, Coppinger). Approved. Unanimous.
DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION: TEACHER SUMMATIVE EVALUATION RATINGS
Dr. Pin reviewed the teacher Summative Evaluation Ratings for the 2017 – 2018 school year. She noted that the full text of the ratings is available on the school’s website. She reviewed the performance ratings of the Barlow teachers and noted that none of its teachers were given the rating of a “Developing Teacher” or “Below Standard Teacher.” Dr. Pin agreed to provide a cumulative comparison against the previous year’s ratings.
DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION: SELECTION OF CONSULTANT FOR PHASE 1 OF CAMPUS IMPROVEMENTS
Mr. Coppinger reported on the status of the Facilities & Fields Committee search for a consultant to address the campus improvements to Barlow Drive, sidewalks, parking lot, tennis courts, and track. He noted that the committee recommends Gale Consultants complete Phase I of the improvements and asked the Board to approve an update to the Capital Plan, approve its selection of the vendor and allocate up to $25,000 to engage their services to give a general description of the layout and cost of the improvements. Mr. Coppinger felt strongly that this consultant had the best understanding and expectation of the work requested by the Board. The Board discussed updates to the Capital Plan.
Motion: move that the Capital Plan be revised to include Phase I of the campus improvement project in an amount up to $25,000, to cover the cost of the Phase I services and any unforeseen site work associated with Phase I (Coppinger, Hancock). Approved. Unanimous.
Motion: move that Gale Consultants be engaged to provide engineering services for Phase I of the campus improvement project, and that the Director of Finance and Operations appropriate money from Capital Fund in an amount up to $25,000 to fund the cost of these services (Coppinger, Hancock). Approved. Unanimous.
DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION: POLICIES FOR 2nd READING
Mr. D’Agostino presented the policies for final reading. Dr. McMorran explained each policy and then noted the regulations that were provided as background materials. The Board discussed the policies.
Motion: move to approve the below policies:
0521 Nondiscrimination
6141.311 Programs for English Learner Students
6141.311 Regulation
6141.311 Appendix A – Recommended Home Language Survey
6141.311 Appendix B – Recommended Script for HLS Administrators
6141.311 Form #1, Form #2, Form #3
6172.12 Magnet Schools
(Coppinger, Williams). Approved. Unanimous.
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS
Dr. Pin reviewed the Administrative Reports included in the materials. She noted that Open House would take place on Thursday and discussed contingency parking arrangements. She noted the upcoming PSAT for grades 10 & 11. She gave an update on the hiring of new staff and recognized several students and professional development opportunities. Dr. Pin asked the Board to accept a grant the school was awarded and whose proceeds would be used to fund the yearly war and remembrance program.
Motion: move that the Region 9 Board of Education accept, with great appreciation, a charitable gift of $1,000 from the Gabelli Family Foundation Jewish Communal Fund, which will be used to promote the Joel Barlow yearly remembrance program (Hocker, Hancock). Approved. Unanimous.
BOARD OF EDUCATION COMMITTEE REPORTS
Mr. Reiss described the various budget transfers included in the Budget Transfer Reports. He asked the Board to approve certain technical changes to move budget items to align the expenditures to the correct accounts or align with recently enacted guidelines. The Board discussed the transfer line items and Mr. Reiss noted that line item 2330 would be eliminated due to the request to complete at least one of the transfers. Mr. Reiss noted that two of the transfers required Board approval due to the amounts; these transfers were acted upon individually.
Motion: move that the Region 9 Board of Education approve a budget transfer in the amount of $59,936 as outlined in the Transfers Report submitted by the Director of Finance & Operations (Coppinger, Graziano). Approved. Unanimous.
Motion: move that the Region 9 Board of Education approve a budget transfer in the amount of $83,600 as outlined in the Transfers Report submitted by the Director of Finance & Operations (Coppinger, Graziano). Approved. Unanimous.
Mr. Reiss reviewed with the Board, certain items on the Budget Object Summary Report and the reports on Health Insurance claims and recent activity. He agreed to notify the Board as soon as he believes the numbers could exceed budgeted amounts.
Ms. Williams reported that the Policy Committee would ask the Board to review more policies at upcoming meetings.
Mr. Hocker reported that he would report on the Pension Committee at the November Board meeting.
Ms. Graziano reported that the Curriculum Committee and Audit Committee would meet in October due to scheduling conflicts in September. The Board requested that the district’s auditors attend and present their report in person.
Mr. Coppinger noted that the Facilities & Fields Committee believed the potential solar energy installation discussed at the previous meeting required more detailed information before moving forward, but that the state program to facilitate such installations was likely to be extended into the next year.
PUBLIC COMMENT
None.
BOARD MEMBER COMMENT
None.
ADJOURNMENT
Motion: move to adjourn the regular meeting of the Region 9 Board of Education (Coppinger, Graziano). Approved. Unanimous.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:51 p.m.
Recorded by
Stephanie Benton
Submitted by
Chris Hocker, Region 9 Board of Education Secretary