EAST GREENBUSH CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT Board of Education Meeting Tuesday, April 24, 2012 Green Meadow School MINUTES 1.
Call to Order – Dr. Harrison – 7:32 p.m.
MEETING BEGINS
2.
Attendance
ATTENDANCE
Ms. Blostein Ms. Curran Ms. Curtin Ms. Dobert Burke Ms. Garrigan-Piela Dr. Harrison Ms. Maciol Mr. Mann Ms. Taylor Also Attending Dr. Nagle Ms. Bowman Mr. Edson Mr. Lyons
Present x x x x
x x x x x
x x x x
Student Council Representatives A.J. Maney Maddie Bove x 3.
Absent
x
Rensselaer-Columbia-Greene Board of Cooperative Educational Services, 2012 -2013 Administrative Budget Vote and Election of Board Members Resolved, that the Board of Education casts its vote for the election of Mr. Christopher Foster, Averill Park, NY (from the Averill Park Central School District) to a term as a member of the Board of Cooperative Educational Services, Rensselaer-Columbia-Greene Counties. Moved by: Ms. Maciol Seconded by: Ms. Taylor Vote: Ayes – 6, Nays – 1 (Ms. Blostein) Motion carried. Resolved, that the Board of Education casts its vote for the election of Mr. Paul Puccio, Castleton, NY (from the Schodack Central School District) to a term as a member of the Board of Cooperative Educational Services, Rensselaer-Columbia-Greene Counties.
BOCES BUDGET AND BOE MEMBERS VOTE
Moved by: Ms. Curran Seconded by: Ms. Taylor Vote: Ayes – 7, Motion carried.
Nays – 0
Resolved, that the Board of Education casts its vote for the election of Mr. Edna Knabbe, Ghent, NY (from the Chatham Central School District) to a term as a member of the Board of Cooperative Educational Services, Rensselaer-Columbia-Greene Counties. Moved by: Ms. Curtin Seconded by: Ms. Blostein Vote: Ayes – 7, Nays – 0 Motion carried. Administrative Budget Vote – Resolved that the Board of Education approves the 2012-2013 tentative administrative budget in the amount of $4,202,000. Moved by: Ms. Maciol Seconded by: Ms. Taylor Vote: Ayes – 0, Nays – 7 Motion defeated. 4.
Adoption of Cooperative Services Agreement for 2012-2013 To authorize the Board President, Superintendent, and District Clerk to sign the 2012-2013 Certification of Final Requests with Questar III and NERIC in the amount of $3,265,180.65. Moved by: Ms. Blostein Seconded by: Ms. Burke Vote: Ayes – 7, Nays – 0 Motion carried.
COSER AGREEMENT
5.
Adjournment of Questar Vote Motion by Ms. Blostein and seconded by Ms. Taylor to adjourn the meeting. Vote: Ayes – 7, Nays –0 Motion carried. Time: 7:36 p.m. Respectfully submitted,
ADJOURNMENT
Deborah L. Mead District Clerk
3.
Business Meeting The business meeting began at 7:36 p.m.
BUSINESS MEETING BEGINS
Ex Officio Student Council Comments Maddie Bove said that on April 23, Columbia High School hosted another successful blood drive with the Red Cross. Altogether with
EX OFFICIO COMMENTS
the help of students and staff members, 85 units of blood were collected which means that 255 lives will be affected. Student Council is getting ready for the annual Music and Arts Festival which will be on Thursday, May 10th. Proceeds this year will benefit the Humane Society. Other clubs are also looking to help out at the event. All are welcome to join as we celebrate the artwork and music of our students. Maddie Bove stated the end of the year at Columbia is always very busy. On top of schoolwork, both juniors and seniors are preparing for their respective proms. The junior prom is Saturday, May 19th. They are planning an after-prom pancake breakfast at the firehouse and are looking for adult volunteers to help flip pancakes. If you are interested, please contact Mr. Sawchuk. The senior prom is scheduled for June 8th. Maddie Bove shared that the Student Council is in the planning process of having student leaders go down to Goff to help familiarize new incoming freshmen with current Columbia students. Together, Mr. Kilmartin and Mr. Sloane are working to ease the transition from 8th to 9th grade. Green Meadow Orchestra Mr. Kuzdzal thanked Mr. Lawrence and the following students: Katelyn Allison Kate Aluise Carmela Carver George Culver Shannon Farley Emma Hadley Ronald Haynie Sydney Hillenbrandt Taylor Inman Benjamin Mager Nicholas Miazga Juliana Paddock Patrick Sheldon Rachel Weissman B. Special Presentation Dr. Nagle said we are proud to recognize our winter athletes for their athletic accomplishments. Although we recognized many of our winter athletes at the March 28th Board of Education meeting, several athletes were away at competition and could not be recognized until this evening. In the area of Wrestling: John McHugh – 3rd place in Class A tournament Kyle Greene – Class A Champion
SPECIAL PRESENTATION
Angelo Kress – Class A and Section II Champion, place 6th in the NYS Championship Evan Wallace – Class A and Section II Champion, placed 3rd in the NYS Championship El Shaddai Gilmore-Vanhoesen – Class A finalist, placed 2nd in NYS Championship Brian Adriance – Class A Champion Matthew McHugh Wrestling Coaches: Anthony Servidone Robert Crain Joseph McCabe Joseph DeNisio Bowling Dr. Nagle also mentioned the following bowlers for specific accomplishments as recorded by Mr. Leonard. Zach Doty – S.S.C. Co-MVP (bowled a perfect 300 game) James O’Hara and Eric Assaf – Suburban Scholastic Council Honorable Mention Volunteer Recognition Dr. Nagle said the recognition of staff and community members who have supported and contributed to the East Greenbush Central School District throughout this past year and over the past several years has become part of our end of the year board meetings. The individuals or groups have been recommended by staff members in our elementary and secondary level buildings. A general characteristic of these people is that they have contributed to our school success and promoted programs for children. They have given unselfishly of their time to work with staff, school programs or directly with students. We know that our schools and programs would not be as successful without volunteer support. The following individuals were recognized for their volunteer service: Bell Top School Pastor John Westfall has volunteered at the Bell Top Elementary School for the past six years. Pastor Westfall has fed over 80 Bell Top School families at Thanksgiving. Along with the support of his congregation and the Bell Top staff, Pastor Westfall has organized complete Thanksgiving dinner baskets that have been delivered to many of our school families. Pastor Westfall has provided Christmas gifts to 36 of our Bell Top families. His initiative has resulted in gifts being provided to over 88 children.
Pastor Westfall has also annually volunteered as Junior Achievement instructor in many of our classrooms. Donald P. Sutherland School Ms. Antonette Perry and her dog Maggie has volunteered at the Donald P. Sutherland Elementary School for the past four years. Ms. Perry and Maggie have come to DPS for monthly reading sessions with 1st graders, some of whom believe Maggie is really the fictional character Mudge, from the “Henry and Mudge” children’s books. Maggie is introduced to the entire first grade during the fall. She then returns monthly to listen to rotating sets of three students who take turns reading her a “Henry and Mudge” story. It is a privilege to recognize Mrs. Perry and Maggie for their years of service. We are very fortunate to have them as volunteers at our school. Genet School Ms. Kendra Durivage has coordinated Genet’s “Explore and Grow” after school enrichment program for two years. “Explore and Grow” is offered to students in the fall and spring of each year for four week sessions. Offerings have been varied and have attracted, at times, nearly 200 students. Ms. Durivage has recruited and coordinated all of the volunteers and schedules for each semester’s offerings. Under her supervision, and through her dedication, the program has continued to grow and expand. Red Mill School Ms. Linda Furnari has served as Red Mill’s PTO president for the past several years. In this capacity she has given countless hours to our students, staff, and parents. Under Ms. Furnari’s leadership, Red Mill has moved forward with many new initiatives including our Holiday Breakfast, Craft Fair, Movie Nights, and After School Enrichment classes. Her kind and caring manner makes her very approachable. This is evident as the attendance at our monthly PTO meetings has tripled during Ms. Furnari’s time as president. Ms. Furnari brings a sense of calm to her role as PTO leader. She is a class act. Mr. Nicholas Furnari is also a big supporter of Red Mill. He does so in a quiet unassuming way, usually behind the scenes. If we need something Mr. Furnari is always willing to assist. Mr. Furnari plays the part of Santa each year during our holiday breakfast. Our students and their parents enjoy having their pictures taken with Santa. Both Mr. and Ms. Furnari give an enormous amount of time to Red Mill. They make a positive difference. Green Meadow School Ms. Linda Hefferon is a long time PTO member, volunteer, room mother, and supportive parent at Green Meadow School. Ms.
Hefferon has co-chaired the Green Meadow Carnival and has assisted in all PTO activities such as the tag sale, picnic days, Kindergarten registration, and enrichment programs. Ms. Hefferon is always positive, friendly and supportive. Her youngest, Megan, will be moving on to 6th grade in the fall. We will miss her many talents. Ms. Michiyo Powhida is a long time parent at Green Meadow School. Ms. Powhida has been a room mother, active member of the PTO, and involved in all fund-raising activities. Ms. Powhida is always smiling and a great school supporter. Her son, John, her last elementary student is moving on to 6th grade in the fall. We will miss her dearly. Goff Middle School Dr. Kristine Heck is a dynamic parent and community member who goes above and beyond to help all of our students at the Howard L. Goff Middle School. Dr. Heck has helped with costumes for our school drama productions. She does almost 100% of the measuring, fitting, cutting, sewing, assigning of costumes, and steaming them so they look great at each show. Dr. Heck is our doctor in resident on our 7th and 8th grade field trips helping many of our students who get heat exhaustion, sick to their stomach, and suffer from minor scrapes and bruises. Dr. Heck has volunteered with the Science Olympiad Team on a consistent basis helping students with their Anatomy events. She is a dedicated, compassionate, and inspiring volunteer. Columbia High School Mr. David Durkin is a STAR Volunteer who works with our ESL students in literacy. Mr. Durkin has made great connections with our students and his support is greatly appreciated by our ESL teacher and all of our reading teachers. We are fortunate to have Mr. Durkin volunteer his time and talent to our school community. Athletics Mr. Mark Seeberger has a long history of outstanding volunteer service to the East Greenbush Central School District. Since 1998, Mr. Seeberger has supported our athletic teams and programs such as Iron Devil and Weight Training by generously donating and delivering baked goods for various events. When called upon, Mr. Seeberger never hesitates to assist in all athletic events, projects, and fund-raising efforts. Mr. Seeberger is a positive community member, helping our athletic programs, staff, and students. Special Education Ms. Elizabeth Irish is a librarian at the Albany Medical College and the parent of a 3rd grader at Green Meadow School. Ms. Irish has been very giving of her time and talents in research and
in writing a joint grant application with the Special Education Department through her employer that if successful, will bring additional training and resources to the district. Ms. Jessica Lansing is the Chairperson of the East Greenbush Central School District Parent Support Group. Ms. Lansing has held this post for several years, and will be stepping down at the end of this year. She has given much of her time and talents organizing informational sessions for parents on relevant and timely topics in special education, and has assisted many new parents in understanding the special education process. She will be greatly missed. Administration Center Ms. Sarah Hurley has coordinated the Odyssey of the Mind program for the East Greenbush Central School District for the last six years. Odyssey of the Mind is an international program that promotes creative problem solving for students from Kindergarten through college. Under the guidance of a coach, students learn creative thinking and problem solving skills while finding innovative solutions to a variety of technical and performance problems. Ms. Hurley took over the lead position forming and organizing Odyssey of the Mind teams for our district including our five elementary buildings and our middle school. Safety Dr. Nagle presented Dr. Harrison with the Utica National School Safety Excellence Award recognizing the District for its efforts to promote safety in all buildings, transportation, maintenance, and athletics. The Superintendent also thanked Mr. Edson for completing the application process with Utica National. 4.
Public Forum None at this time.
PUBLIC FORUM
5.
Board Forum Ms. Blostein thanked the volunteers who do so much for our students and school community. She also said many of the volunteers conduct enrichment programs that are not otherwise available to students.
BOARD FORUM
Ms. Burke also thanked the volunteers for their outstanding service and ability to add to the students’ instructional experiences. Ms. Curran spoke about the great value of volunteers to our schools. She enjoyed the music performance by the Green Meadow orchestra and said it showed how our music department is thriving.
Ms. Taylor congratulated the student athletes for their achievements and said how proud she was of them. She said our volunteers are the heartbeat of our school community. Ms. Maciol enjoyed the orchestra performance and was pleased to see the incredible progression of student talent from earlier in the year. She thanked Mr. Kuzdzal for the outstanding job he is doing at Green Meadow. 6.
Minutes MINUTES Be it Resolved, that upon the recommendation of the District Clerk, the Board of Education approves the minutes of March 21, 2012, Budget Meeting, March 28, 2012, and April 4, 2012, Budget and BOE Meeting. Moved by: Ms. Blostein Seconded by: Ms. Curran Vote: Ayes – 7, Nays – 0 Motion carried.
7.
Regular Business Approval of Programs for Resident Children with Disabilities Be it Resolved, that upon the recommendation of the Superintendent, the Board of Education approves the programs for resident children with disabilities as presented. Moved by: Ms. Taylor Seconded by: Ms. Blostein Vote: Ayes – 7, Nays – 0 Motion carried.
REGULAR BUSINESS
8.
Reports and Presentations – Superintendent of Schools
REPORTS AND PRESENTATIONS POLICIES-FIRST READING
A.
Proposed Change in Policies – First Reading Policy #0100, Equal Opportunity and Non-Discrimination (Modification) Policy #0100-R, Equal Opportunity and Non-Discrimination Regulation (Modification) Policy #0110, Sexual Harassment (Modification) Policy #0110-R, Sexual Harassment Regulation (Modification) Policy #0110-E.1, Sexual Harassment Complaint Form (Modification) Policy #0110-E.2, Sexual Harassment Complaint Appeal Form (Modification) Policy #0115, Student Harassment and Bullying Prevention and Intervention (Modification) Policy #0115-R, Student Harassment and Bullying Prevention and Intervention Regulation (Modification) Policy #0115.E, Harassment and/or Bullying Complaint Form (New)
Mr. Edson said that major changes in 3 policies have occurred due to the Dignity for All Students Act which becomes effective July 1, 2012. The Commissioner of Education has not yet issued regulations, however, school districts must comply with the law, and the compliance deadline has not been extended. Mr. Edson stated that the situation is similar to the requirement to develop a Medicaid Compliance Program and Policy. The Assistant Superintendent shared that more changes will be forthcoming related to the Code of Conduct policy and document provided to parents and students. He said the current changes relate to three policies on equal opportunity, sexual harassment, and student harassment. Mr. Edson said the new Dignity for All Students Act emphasizes the definitions of protected classes, training and awareness, prevention and curriculum, and remediation, discipline, and penalties. Ms. Bowman will serve as the District’s Dignity Act Coordinator to coordinate information through the Code of Conduct Committees and professional development. 9.
Tabled Motions None at this time.
TABLED MOTIONS
10.
Old Business Set Organization Meeting Date Motion by Ms. Blostein and seconded by Ms. Taylor to establish the date of the East Greenbush Central School District Board of Education organization meeting as Monday, July 2, 2012. Vote: Ayes – 6, Nays – 0, Abstentions – 1 (Ms. Burke) Motion carried.
OLD BUSINESS ORGANIZATION MEETING DATE
11.
Consent Agenda A. Financial Reports 1. Warrants - #69, 71, 72, 73 2. Treasurer’s Report – February 2012 3. Activity Report – Goff School, March 2012
CONSENT AGENDA FINANCIAL REPORTS
B.
Personnel 1. Instructional/Instructional Support Personnel #586 as Recommended by Superintendent 2. Non-Instructional Support Personnel #586 as Recommended by Superintendent
PERSONNEL
C.
Request for Grade 1 and Grade K/1 from Bell Top School to Attend Field Trip to Hancock Shaker Museum in Massachusetts, April 27, 2012
BELL TOP TRIP-SHAKER MUSEUM
D.
Request for DOME and Peer Leadership Clubs to Attend Field Trip to Boston, Massachusetts, Boston Aquarium, May 3, 2012
DOME AND PEER LEADERSHIP TRIP TO BOSTON, MA
E.
Acceptance of Gifts and Authorization to Increase the 2011-2012 ACCEPTANCE OF Budget GIFTS, INCREASE BUDGET
F.
Request to Correct Tax Rolls
CORRECT TAX ROLLS
G.
Questar III Lease Agreement
QUESTAR III LEASE AGREEMENT
Be it Resolved, that upon the recommendation of the Superintendent, the Consent Agenda be approved as presented. Moved by: Ms. Burke Seconded by: Ms. Blostein Vote: Ayes – 7, Nays – 0 Motion carried. 12.
New Business NEW BUSINESS A. Personnel Matter PERSONNEL Resolved, that the Board hereby suspends Debra Harting from her MATTER position as Senior Clerk, pending completion of disciplinary proceedings pursuant to Section 75 of the Civil Service Law, subject to the following conditions. Mrs. Harting’s suspension shall start when so designated by the Superintendent of Schools, and shall be without pay for thirty (30) days, effective when so designated by the Superintendent of Schools. In addition, the Superintendent shall be authorized to temporarily stop any suspension pay if the proceedings are unreasonably delayed through the fault of the respondent, or if otherwise permitted by Section 75 and the case law thereunder. Moved by: Ms. Blostein Seconded by: Ms. Burke Vote: Ayes – 7, Nays – 0 Motion carried. B. Letter to Questar BOCES Dr. Harrison read a letter being sent from the Board to Questar III BOCES: April 24, 2012 Dear Dr. Baldwin, The East Greenbush Central School District Board of Education would like to express its grave concerns to Questar BOCES about the serious budgetary mistake made by your organization. The impact of unexpectedly losing approximately $300,000 in aid has obviously negatively affected our ability to provide certain educational
LETTER TO QUESTAR
services to students in our district. The circumstances in discovering this mistake are most troubling. First and foremost, as stated in the letter of explanation you circulated on April 4th, 2012, is that Questar did not provide written notice to the component school districts, including East Greenbush, about the decision to not rehabilitate the Rensselaer Educational Center and its subsequent impact on school aid. While it is a positive step forward to indicate this will be done in the future, the fact that written communications about changes in budget were not distributed is remarkable to discover in this day and age. In any realm – academic, commercial, industrial – this would be unacceptable and quite honestly unthinkable in 2012, when organizational communication has so many avenues. The second concern relates to the timing of discovery for the aid reduction. As of March 30th, the East Greenbush Board of Education had conducted public budget meetings for a month, and in fact was set to approve a proposed budget for public vote just days later on April 4th. The general state of the economy and the challenging budgetary times for school districts already present significant strains. To have this situation arise so late in the process only adds to our dissatisfaction with the Questar BOCES organization. The fact that the scramble to recover from the BOCES aid reduction did not prevent the Board from voting on April 4th is a testament to the effort and capability of our school district administration, in particular Dr. Nagle and Mr. Edson. Lastly, and most troubling, is the fact that you and members of your BOCES team came to the February 8th East Greenbush Board of Education meeting. At no point did you mention this aid reduction. According to your communication on April 4th, school district business officials in the Questar system were verbally informed of the budgetary changes and associated aid reductions in a meeting in late January. It is difficult to understand why this significant fact was not related to the East Greenbush Board during your February appearance. The irony that this Board finds is that at that February 8th meeting, you did offer up business office and human resources services as being available through Questar BOCES. That offer is extremely unlikely to be explored due to this aid situation as long as any present members serve on the Board of Education. Since you have previously served as a Board of Education member in East Greenbush, the hope is that you have a certain degree of empathy for our reaction to this significant mistake by Questar BOCES. Obviously, the relationship between East Greenbush and Questar is long-standing and will continue through the variety of services offered and utilized. We hope that the degree of communication will improve and expect that a situation similar to what has unfolded recently will not happen again. If you feel
that this situation requires further conversation, the East Greenbush Board would be willing and interested to participate. Sincerely, The East Greenbush Central School District Board of Education Dr. Harrison said the letter explains the Board’s unanimous no vote on the BOCES administrative budget. 13.
Committee Reports Ms. Curran said the Safety Committee met and discussed the recent award from Utica National Insurance Company. She said that maintenance reported on air quality testing at Genet and preparation for asbestos work at Bell Top when school is closed. No concerns were reported from transportation.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
Ms. Taylor said the Education Committee hosted Mr. Kilmartin to speak on the advantages of Apex compared to the current NovaNet for credit recovery. Mr. Tooker, Ms. LeRoy, and Ms. Farrell presented information on student learning objectives (SLO’s). Mr. Tooker’s SLO’s are being utilized by the State Education Department. Mr. Sloane reported on the MAP program and said that it needs to be implemented as presented in the previous proposal to the Board. Mr. Edson reported that the Finance and Audit Committee will meet on Monday, April 30. He invited everyone to attend the informational meetings on the building consolidation and closure study at Columbia High School on Wednesday, April 25 at 4:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. 14.
Public Forum None at this time.
PUBLIC FORUM
15.
Board Forum None at this time.
BOARD FORUM
16.
Executive Session Motion by Ms. Taylor and seconded by Ms. Curran to go into executive session to discuss collective bargaining and the employment history of certain persons. Vote: Ayes – 7, Nays – 0 Motion carried. Time: 8:48 p.m.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
Dr. Harrison said the Board might return to public session following the executive session other than to adjourn.
Respectfully submitted,
Deborah L. Mead District Clerk 16.
Executive Session The executive session began at 8:55 p.m. and concluded at 10:48 p.m.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
Ms. Garrigan-Piela entered executive session at 9:15 p.m. 17.
Adjournment Motion by Ms. Maciol and seconded by Ms. Taylor to adjourn the meeting. Vote: Ayes – 8, Nays – 0 Motion carried. Time: 10:48 p.m. Respectfully submitted,
Karen J. Curran Assistant Clerk
ADJOURNMENT
