Special Meeting Minutes - January 22, 2008
BERLIN BOARD OF EDUCATION
January 22, 2008
MINUTES
SPECIAL MEETING
Attendance: Gary Brochu
Julie Erickson
Michelle Hartel
Gary Lukens
William Lutz
Kathleen O’Donnell-Moss
Christopher Puzio
Anthony Recck Excused Absence
John Richards
Also in attendance: Superintendent of Schools Dr. Michael Cicchetti; Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Rena Klebart; Director of Business Operations Roman Czuchta; Director of Pupil Personnel Services Margaret Butler; Director of Human Resources Joseph Costa; Principal of Griswold School Laurie Gjerpen; Principal of Willard School Robert J. Sullivan II; and Principal of Hubbard School Alfred Souza.
I. CALL TO ORDER
Mr. Brochu called the meeting to order at 7:12 p.m. in the Board of Education (“the Board”) meeting room at 238 Kensington Road, Berlin, CT. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. A Moment of Silence was observed.
II. BOARD AND ADMINISTRATIVE COMMUNICATIONS
Ms. Butler reported preschool screening will take place this Friday and Saturday with 127 students being screened. Ms. Butler remarked that enrollment is less than usual.
Ms. Klebert reported on her meetings with the Math and Literacy vertical teams over the last two weeks.
Mr. Richards reported on his attendance at CREC on behalf of Berlin Public Schools wherein the Commissioner of Education, Dr. Mark K. McQuillan, gave a presentation on school reform. Mr. Richards provided the Board with information regarding the Commissioner’s listening tour entitled Secondary School Reform: A Conversation, encouraging Board members to attend. Mr. Richards reported on the Resources and Capacity-building Committee meeting held this evening.
Ms. O’Donnell-Moss reported on the Communication and Alignment Committee meeting held this evening, indicating the Committee is looking to reassign liaisons to the schools. Ms. O’Donnell-Moss reported on her attendance this past Saturday at East Catholic High School for the Eagle Classic wherein Berlin’s wrestling team placed third.
Dr. Cicchetti reported mid-term exams have begun at the high school as scheduled and the failure of the intercom system on the first day of exams.
Mr. Brochu reported on his attendance at the CABE Board of Education Meeting with Commissioner of Education, Dr. Mark K. McQuillan, Associate Commissioner of Education, George Coleman, and state board members wherein a presentation on high school reform was held. Mr. Brochu also encouraged Board members to attend the listening tour. Mr. Brochu reported the CABE Area Legislative breakfast will take place at the Legislative Office Building on February 8, 2008. Mr. Brochu reported he has been invited by the Willard PTO to speak with them on March 13, 2008 and will provide information on the Board-adopted budget. Mr. Brochu shared with the Board a congratulatory note received from Alison Schultz of the Willard PTO for the CABE Board Leadership award the Berlin Board of Education had earned for the second year in a row. Mr. Brochu reported on the Leadership, Accountability, and Measurement Committee meeting held this evening. Mr. Brochu reminded Board members that on January 24, 2008 the Town Council will hold a public forum at McGee Middle School wherein the Board will be presenting its proposal for a new high school.
III. AUDIENCE OF CITIZENS
Mr. David Bernard of 50 Stocking Brook Road, Berlin, Connecticut, addressed the Board concerning Berlin’s Youth Lacrosse program. Mr. Bernard provided the Board with a brief history of Berlin Youth Lacrosse. Mr. Bernard requested that consideration be given to adding men’s lacrosse at the high school level as it is the fastest growing sport in the country. Mr. Bernard thanked the Board for all they do, as well as for their time this evening.
Mr. David Evans of 1233 Worthington Ridge, Berlin, Connecticut, addressed the Board concerning the recent NEASC (New England Association of Schools and Colleges) accreditation process self-study and site visit. In response to Mr. Evans’ question regarding the accreditation visit report, Mr. Brochu indicated that the report is not yet available but will be made available to the public when received.
IV. CONSENT AGENDA
A.Approval of Minutes
1.Regular Meeting of December 10, 2007
2.Special Meeting of January 7, 2008 (5 p.m.)
3.Special Meeting of January 7, 2008 (8 p.m.)
B.Payment of Bills – Period ending December 31, 2007
C.Out-of-State Field Trip Approval – Berlin High School Chorus – Williamsburg, VA
Principal George Synnott is requesting permission for the high school chorus and chaperones to travel to Williamsburg, Virginia to participate in the 2008 Heritage Music Festival. Participants will leave on April 17th and return on April 20th.
Moved by Ms. O’Donnell-Moss, seconded by Mr. Puzio, to approve the consent agenda as presented.
FAVOR: ALL
MOTION CARRIED: 7:0
V. INFORMATION AND REPORTS
A. Activity Fund Reports
1.Berlin High School Enterprise Fund – Period ending November 30, 2007
2.Cafeteria Fund – Period ending November 30, 2007
These reports were noted with interest.
B. Educational Specifications for New High School – Status Report
Director of Business Operations Roman Czuchta reported on Thursday, January 24, 2008, at 7:00 p.m. at the McGee Middle School the Board will present to the Town Council its Statement of Need for the new high school.
C. Technology Bond – Status Report
Director of Business Operations Roman Czuchta reported the Town-Wide Technology Committee will meet tomorrow evening to review the report from the consultant, looking at infrastructure pieces and IPT systems as an option.
D.Indicators of Success Related to Board of Education Goals
Members of the Board’s Goals Committee provided an update on the work that has been done to develop indicators to measure the Board of Education goals for 2007-2012. A copy of the proposed indicators for the Facilities and Educational Adequacy goal for 2007-2012 developed during the Goals Committee meeting on December 20, 2007 was provided. After a discussion of the proposed indicators, the Board did adopt same with a modification made to one of the indicators. Dr. Cicchetti will provide Board members with the revised set of indicators. Proposed indicators for the final goal, Board Governance, will be developed by the Board’s Goals Committee and brought to the Board at a future meeting.
Moved by Mr. Lukens, seconded by Mr. Richards, adopting the indicators for the Facilities and Educational Adequacy goal for 2007-2012 as modified.
FAVOR: ALL
MOTION CARRIED: 8:0; including President Gary Brochu
A short break took place from 7:53 p.m. to 7:57 p.m.
VI. 2008-2009 PROPOSED BUDGET PRESENTATION
Elementary Principals’ Budget Presentations
The three Elementary School Principals presented the Board with their Budget requests for the 2008-2009 school year. The presentation was framed by the five budget priority areas.
Staffing: Ms. Gjerpen discussed the need for a 0.5 FTE special education teacher at Griswold to enable more appropriate groupings for students who function significantly below grade level and need this specialized instruction in reading and math. Students need intensive instruction to improve their skills and overall test performance to meet Adequate Yearly Progress under the Federal No Child Left Behind Act. In addition, the complexity of students’ disabilities is increasing. Additional students have been newly identified with disabilities this year at Griswold and additional students with complex disabilities will move from the Kindergarten Learning Center at Willard to grade 1 at Griswold for the upcoming school year. Students are receiving specialized reading and math instruction using programs that need to be taught in groups of one to four students.
Student Support: The principals discussed the requests for a 1.0 Math Instructional Support Teacher, a 1.0 Social Worker, and 6.0 Kindergarten Paraprofessionals.
This additional Math Instructional Support Teacher would allow the District to provide 4.5 days of math instructional support at both Willard and Griswold and increase math instruction support time from 1.5 days to 2.5 days per week at Hubbard. This additional Math Instruction Support Teacher would provide direct services for students in need.
Currently there is no elementary level Social Worker who can provide direct therapeutic intervention to elementary school students. In terms of therapeutic intervention, the Social Worker is most skilled.
Social/emotional support to the general education population as well as crisis intervention is extremely difficult to provide. Ongoing follow up is not available; nor is collaboration with and education of parents and provisions of topic-focused intervention. The Social Worker, shared by all three elementary schools, would follow the model currently in place at middle and high school levels. Mr. Lutz proposed that the administration consider completing the complement of elementary developmental guidance counselors before adding a social worker.
The Kindergarten Paraprofessionals would provide an additional adult in the classroom and increase the kindergarten teachers’ capacity both to challenge students and to provide support for at-risk students. As the literacy curriculum is implemented and differentiated instruction is provided to kindergartners, it is essential that kindergarten teachers be able to provide small group literacy instruction to students who come to school with a wide range of experiences. Having received specialized training from the District Language Arts Coordinator and K-8 Math Coordinator, the paraprofessionals would support the teachers’ instruction by working with small groups or individual students to reinforce skills.
Ms. Gjerpen spoke about the request for a 1.0 Reading Instructional Support Teacher for Griswold and Willard Schools. Currently these two schools are each assigned one principal and one assistant principal. The present schedule allocates half of the assistant principals’ time to reading instruction support and half of their time to administrative responsibilities. Given the current enrollments and the responsibilities of the administrative team in terms of staff supervision and evaluation, ongoing support to continuous improvement work, and student supervision, it is imperative that the assistant principal be allowed to fully devote their administrative work in these areas. This additional reading instructional support teacher would be split between Griswold and Willard and would be directly responsible for remedial instruction for Berlin’s most at-risk students.
Teaching and Learning: All three principals discussed the need for 3.6 Duty Paraprofessionals. Research repeatedly points to the benefits of common planning and time and opportunities for professional conversations and collaboration. Duty Paraprofessionals will assume non-teaching supervisory responsibilities, allowing administrators who currently assume these responsibilities to schedule additional grade-level and department common planning time. Teachers will gain time for professional collaboration and communication, reducing teacher isolation and increasing opportunities for teams to analyze student work and develop model lessons based on shared experiences and best practices.
Technology: All three principals are requesting that student desktop computers be replaced on a five year cycle; acquisition and installment of Smartboards in Grade 5 classrooms; and the acquisition and replacement of laptops for staff, not just for instructional purposes but for management of their classroom responsibilities.
Facilities: Each principal reviewed prioritized capital equipment needs and site and building needs. The common requests were keyless entry systems and upgrades to the intercom/phone system.
VII. EXECUTIVE SESSION
At 9:19 p.m., a motion was made by Mr. Lutz, seconded by Ms. Erickson, to go into Executive Session to discuss materials relative to negotiations regarding Berlin Cafeteria Employees Contract.
FAVOR: ALL
MOTION CARRIED: 7:0
In attendance for Executive Session were Board members Brochu, Erickson, Hartel, Lukens, Lutz, O’Donnell-Moss, Puzio, and Richards. In addition, Dr. Cicchetti and Mr. Czuchta were present.
At 9:37 p.m., a motion was made by Ms. O’Donnell-Moss, seconded by Mr. Richards, to return to regular session with action recommended.
FAVOR: ALL
MOTION CARRIED: 7:0
VIII. RECOMMENDED ACTION
Possible Ratification of Berlin Cafeteria Employees Contract
Mediation with the Berlin Cafeteria Employees was recently completed and a tentative agreement was reached. It is recommended that the Board approve the tentative agreement.
Moved by Ms. O’Donnell-Moss, seconded by Mr. Puzio, to approve the tentative agreement reached between the Berlin Board of Education and the Berlin Cafeteria Employees.
FAVOR: ALL
MOTION CARRIED: 7:0
IX. ADJOURNMENT
Moved by Mr. Lukens, seconded by Ms. Erickson, to adjourn the meeting at 9:38 p.m.
FAVOR: ALL
MOTION CARRIED: 7:0
Respectfully submitted,
Michelle Hartel, Secretary, Berlin Board of Education