December 8, 2009 Board Meeting
Synopsis
SYNOPSIS
REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF
BLAINE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 61
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2009 - 6:30 P.M.
DISTRICT OFFICE
I. Call to Order
and Welcome
Chairman Julie Slocum Dahlgren
called the Regular December meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. and
welcomed everyone in attendance.
Present were Board Members Dan
Parke, Mari Beth Matthews, Steve Guthrie and Paul Bates. Also
in attendance were Dr. Lonnie Barber, Superintendent of Schools,
Mike Chatterton, School District Treasurer, and Laurie Kaufman,
Board Clerk.
Chairman Dahlgren stated that a
quorum was present.
II. Pledge of
Allegiance
III. Accolades
a. Principal Tom
Bailey and Hailey Elementary School
As the District starts our
Professional Learning Collaborative days, it is really wonderful
timing to receive an e-mail from the AllThingsPLC.info website
congratulating Principal Tom Bailey and Hailey Elementary School
for their great improvement while using Professional Learning
Community concepts.
Heather Millick, Coordinator of
AllThingsPLC.info, writes:
Dear Principal Bailey,
Congratulations and celebrate, Hailey Elementary
School of Blaine County School District in Hailey, ID
has been added to the www.AllThingsPLC.info website by showing
great improvement while using PLC concepts. You have built a
successful professional learning community, and as determined by
our panel of PLC practitioners your overall strategies,
implementation, and performance will help others learn.
As the allthingsplc.info website continues to grow with
research and discussions, we would like to invite you to create
a hyperlink from your school or district website. You can host
this link to
www.allthingsplc.info with the attached image in
order to easily share your "Evidence of Effectiveness" success
with your school community. Once again congratulations on your
national recognition in PLC practices. Note: Upon successfully
implementing this hyperlink, please email a confirmation.
Please take time to review and take pride in your school's
effort to succeed!
Your school is active on the PLC locator map and your
details page is located at: <http://www.allthingsplc.info/evidence/haileyelementaryschool/index.php>
Heather Millick, Coordinator of
www.AllThingsPLC.info
Solution Tree
555 North Morton Street
Bloomington, IN 47404-3730
Hailey Elementary School’s
details page has been extracted from the website and is shown on
the overhead screen. Congratulations Hailey!
Please click here to view the
Hailey Elementary School details page.
b. Fans and
Players of 7th and 8th Grade Girls’ Basketball
Fritz Peters shared an e-mail
with me that he received from Callae Marcellus. Ms. Marcellus
is the mother of a 7th grade student at O’Leary Junior High
School in Twin Falls, Idaho.
Ms. Marcellus writes:
Hello Fritz! I don’t know if you remember me, but I am Ace
Marcellus’ wife – he is a science teacher at O’Leary. I am
e-mailing because I went to a 7th/8th grade girls’ basketball
game last night at Wood River Middle School and wanted to pass
on my observations. Please know that I had already decided to
do this last night not realizing (until looking up the principal
on WRMS website) that you were the principal.
My daughter plays for the 7th grade O’Leary basketball team
and so I attended her game in Wood River last night. I sat in
the midst of Wood River parents and students not realizing if or
where there was a separation. Several of the parents chatted
with me prior to the game – very friendly. Once the game
started, I noticed that the parents and students all clapped
when their kids scored as well as when ours did. They commented
when there was a good or bad call from the refs for or against
Wood River and were very concerned when one of our players was
injured during the game. After the game, our 7th grade girls
were watching as the 8th graders played and the WR 7th graders
were leaving. Several 7th grade players stopped in the midst of
the O’Leary girls to tell them good job and to give high 5’s.
It was such a breath of fresh air and very encouraging to me
personally. As a huge advocate for good sportsmanship and one
who tries to model this for others (it feels without success
much of the time), I am so impressed by your fans and players in
their effort to go above and beyond in showing that respect for
the visiting team and team supporters. I felt very welcome in
your school and wished to convey that to your players and their
parents as well as your students who attended. Thanks for a
great out of town experience!!
Callae E. Marcellus, MSW, LMSW
Filer School District
We all really strive for this
very thing in our sports arenas and classrooms. Thank you,
Fritz, for sharing this heart-warming letter.
c. Jeffrey Loosli
– Human Resources Department, District Office
Our Director of Human Resources,
Katie Palmer, forwarded me an accolade letter to the Board
regarding one of our very own at the District Office.
Katie Palmer writes:
Dear Board Members,
It is with great pleasure that I share with you this Letter
of Accolade for Jeffrey Loosli.
Jeffrey has worked in the Human Resources Department for
over two years now on a very steep learning curve. While
growing within the department, Jeff earned his Masters of
Business Administration specializing in the area of Human
Resources Management (see certificate attached).
Jeffrey is a remarkable asset to this department and
district and deserves your recognition.
Thank you,
Katie Palmer
Director of Human Resources
Way to go, Jeff! Achieving a
Masters Degree is an awesome achievement; we’re all extremely
proud of you!
IV. Consent Agenda
a. Consideration
of Minutes
Regular Meeting of November 10,
2009
Special Meeting of November 18, 2009
b. Acceptance of
Monthly Financial Report –- Payment of Bills
Please click here to view the
November 2009 financial reports.
c. Application for
Student/Travel by Student Group – Lindi Davis, Wood River High
School Math Teacher
d. Application for
Student/Travel by Student Group – Kevin Lupton, Wood River High
School Architectural/Mechanical Design Academy Teacher
e. Application for
Student/Travel by Student Group – Greg Carlson, Carey School
Technology/Academies Teacher
f. Approval of
Student Teaching Contract for Constance Service Under the
Direction of Tracy Atwell, Hemingway Elementary School
g. Approval of
Student Teaching Contract for Regina Sumell Under the Direction
of Heidi Copeland and Lynette Watkins, Hemingway Elementary
School
h. Approval of
July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2010 Agreement for Cooperation in a
Clinical Experience Program Between the University of Southern
California, 2tor, Inc, and Blaine County School District
i. Approval of
Personnel –- Exiting and Entering
Classified Staff –
Exiting
Carl Cottonware – Custodian, Wood
River High School
Earl Buell – Food Server, Wood River Middle School
Classified Staff –
Recommending for Hire
Floyd Padilla – Custodian, Wood
River High School
Certified Staff – Exiting
None.
Certified Staff –
Recommending for Hire
None.
Trustee Paul Bates recused
himself from voting on the Consent Agenda. Chairman Julie
Dahlgren announced that items “g” and “h” are being removed from
the Consent Agenda pending further research into the teaching
contract. Action was then taken to approve items “a”, “b”, “c”,
“d”, “e”, “f”, and “i” of the Consent Agenda.
V. Public Comments
a. Annie Weber
I am Annie Weber, Vice President of Wood River Middle School
PTA and am representing all of the PTAs throughout the Valley.
We have been getting a lot of input and enthusiasm regarding
foreign language at all levels from elementary through high
school. We just wanted to pass on these concerns to you all.
We realize that you are in the process of prioritizing the
Strategic Plan, and Goal #3 of the Strategic Plan encompasses
foreign language. When the Strategic Plan was just starting to
process, there was a survey that several parents took. Near the
end of the survey there was a question; if you had three wishes,
what would those wishes be for our Valley and for our School
District? I made a chart; the second bar on the chart is
foreign language, and there were 145 comments of people wanting
increased foreign language in our School District. It is a big
priority for our community.
At the elementary level the after school program Rosetta
Stone was started; I’m hearing great things about that. I think
it’s very well received and we’re all very grateful that that
has come. There are some conflicts because it’s after school
and there are so many after school programs for our kids. In
that sense, it’s not reaching all of our students; it’s just
reaching a few of them that don’t have conflicts at that time.
Priority one of Goal #3 states that in subsequent years, after
doing the after school program, foreign language will be a part
of the school day. What we’re hearing is that the parents in
this community would really like to see this happen this fall,
so we’re passing that on to you.
In middle school, foreign language currently is not
available to sixth graders, which is a little bit of a
disappointment. This year a language class was dropped.
Seventh graders currently can take one trimester of a foreign
language with a second and third trimester being taken in the
eighth grade. This is somewhat of a problem for retention
because a lot of the students will have nine months in between
their first trimester and their second and third. The Strategic
Plan states that students will have the option of completing one
full year of foreign language for each year in middle school.
This is an awesome goal and we would really like to see this
prioritized and being placed by next fall. Currently there is
an awesome French teacher at the middle school and she’s
currently just a half-time employee. It would be great if she
could be hired full time to implement some of these goals. It’s
a real disadvantage that the students can take a full year of
band, choir, or orchestra, but they can’t take a full year of
foreign language at this time.
In high school, Goal #3 of the Strategic Plan states that
the students can take year-round foreign language for grades 9
through 12. Currently one full year equals two trimesters and,
just like the middle school, this poses a retention problem,
because it’s three to nine months between their two years of
foreign language. This year some upper level foreign language
courses were dropped at the high school due to enrollment. We
feel that if foreign language in the lower grades was beefed up
then this may not be a problem. Basically, we’re just simply
asking that you guys give foreign language top priority in the
Strategic Planning process and get it all in place by next
fall. Thank you.
b. Liz Schwerdtle
I just wanted to say thank you very much for the IB
Timeline, that was really great and everybody is very excited
about that. The other thing is, I wanted to thank the Board for
the way the meetings are being conducted, it’s really
impressive.
There is a group that is starting across the country that is
called “Board Watch.” Board Watch examines Board meetings and
rates them on an A to F scale according to their focus on the
educational mission, how much time they spend on the educational
mission in the district, and how much the Board is providing
policy leadership. We’re going to start to try to do this;
there has to be at least three members of the public. I just
wanted to say that I appreciate these meetings; they have really
become much more focused on these things and hopefully it will
be a two-way situation where it will become more focused down
the road. I appreciate everything you’ve done. Thank you.
Trustee Dan Parke asked, “What qualifications does this
group have to issue a grade?”
Ms. Schwerdtle: “We are the public. They, like you, are the
public representing us.”
Trustee. Parke: “Are there educators involved, or can
anyone in the public be involved?”
Ms. Schwerdtle: “These are public schools and the public is
supposed to be setting the vision for the schools and, in fact,
priorities of the public are clearly educational. I know that
there are a lot of people that think that the pyramid goes from
a certain place down to the public. I personally believe and
think that it is being proven across the country; that public
schools are in fact the public’s schools, and the public should
be the number one people listened to in terms of what those
goals are. I think that the qualifications are no more or less
than this Board has.”
c. Jim Laski
I am here tonight as a parent. I want to follow-up on a lot
of what Annie Weber said in respect to prioritization of goals.
I know my wife has been talking to Matt Murray about it and I
served on the Goal #3 Committee in the Strategic Planning
process. It was an important goal of ours to incorporate second
language education into the elementary school day in school and
the second year of the program. I’m concerned that the
prioritization, based on what I understand is going on, may be
getting pushed back, possibly because of the difficulty of
fitting it in as a special, or finding time in the school day to
fit it in. I just want the Board to know, obviously from the
parents’ and PTA’s perspective, but as a parent myself too, that
I think it’s very important to really prioritize that goal and
to make the difficult decision to get second language in the
elementary school so that we can then work up through the middle
school. Those programs should be in place; we shouldn’t be
putting them off. I think it is incumbent on the Board to
emphasize the educational components of the Strategic Plan over
the non-essential building components of the Strategic Plan. I
know we’ve all spent a lot of time on the levy, I’ve spent a lot
of time on the levy, but we can’t then change our focus to just
working on the construction components of the Strategic Plan.
Education has to be a priority and I think you, as Board
Members, have to make that priority. I would ask, that in
particular with the Spanish or second language in the elementary
schools, that the Board tackle that problem.
A couple of other things I wanted to say. I know Nick
Miller is here to talk about the Resolution for a Public Meeting
with respect to the Certificates of Participation, which I
understand is a method to get money in advance for the levy so
that we can start construction on some of these construction
activities. I would hope at that public meeting, it would be
more of an open public meeting where there could be some give
and take, ask some questions and get some answers, rather than
public comment at the beginning, so that people can really
understand what those Certificates of Participation mean,
whether we’re agreeing to a format where we’re going to pay a
bunch of interest up front, which was one of the things we said
we weren’t going to do as far as the levy because we were going
to collect the money over time. Obviously it makes sense to
have money for those construction projects to do them
efficiently, but I think at that public meeting there should be
some ability to give and take rather than just public discussion
like at the beginning of these meetings.
Finally, I note that with respect to the levy, that we also
obtained a federal grant matching fund on some of the geothermal
projects. I would like the Board to consider, given the hard
economic times we’re in right now, to possibly give some of that
money back to the public. I think it would be a good gesture to
split that with the public and maybe reduce the levy by part of
the money in the federal grant that we received. While we hoped
that we would get that grant, we didn’t calculate that grant in
the levy. Thank you.
Trustee Mari Beth Matthews: “I too, was part of the
Strategic Planning. I would just like to remind everyone that
it is an eight-year process and we have prioritized certain
things we felt the public was wanting the most. Right now we
are working hard on bringing IB and there is going to be a
presentation tonight on where we’re at with the IB Middle Years.
As Board Members and as parents in the community, our goal is
always student achievement, but we also have to be considerate
of our staff and just how much more that they can take on and
do. I just want you to know that this is not something that we
can say that we can make happen in eight months. The Strategic
Plan was adopted in whole as a plan, so, I just want you to know
that it is an eight year process and we will be working hard to
bring language in.”
Mr. Laski: “We understand that it’s a complicated process
but we also understand that squeaky wheels sort of get the
attention. We want, now that IB and AVID is getting some
attention, this to get attention as well. It seems like if
people don’t come to the meetings and don’t speak up, that it’s
easier to put off those decisions and I think implementing
language education into the elementary schools is going to be a
really difficult thing to do. It’s either going to require
expanding the school day, or it’s going to require re-shuffling
specials significantly, and that’s a difficult job to tackle.
Much of the time difficult jobs to tackle don’t get done because
they’re hard.”
Trustee Matthews: “We are working hard and we do have a
great language program. It might not be for everyone and we are
doing the best we can implementing Rosetta Stone. There are
choices that people have to make, for example, whether Johnny is
in an after school reading program or if he’s going to play
soccer, or ice hockey. I just want you to know that you are
heard, we’re all working on it, we do take it seriously, and we
do hear the squeaky wheels.”
Mr. Laski: “Alright, I’ll continue to squeak.”
VI.
Superintendent’s Report – Dr. Lonnie Barber, Superintendent of
Schools
a. Tentative
Timeline for Middle Years Program (MYP) International
Baccalaureate (IB)
Please click here to view the
tentative timeline fir the Middle Years Programme (MYP) –
International Baccalaureate (IB).
VII. Information
Agenda
a. Board Meeting
Webcasts Update – Paul Bates, Board Member
The issue of webcasting expenses
came up during Paul Bate’s preliminary report during last
month’s Board meeting and since then, Trustee Bates has been
researching streaming video services and their associated
costs. He has found a streaming service (EZStream) that would
essentially cost $65.00 per month allowing an unlimited number
of viewers. Inclusive in the $65.00 monthly fee is the ability
to track the number of viewers tuned in to watch and the length
of time they view the webcasts. Paul estimates that filming and
production costs would run an additional $300.00 per month
depending on who is filming and if School District technology
assistance would be utilized. Paul ran a test with EZStream in
the School District Board Room and invited any of those
interested to go to the
EZStream.com
website for more information about the company or to view Board
meeting webcasts of a school district in Michigan at the
following link:
http://novi.ezstream.com/
Trustee Steve Guthrie said that
he is enthusiastic about proposed webcasts of Board meetings,
especially since he viewed the novi.ezstream website. Steve
also noted that he would really like to see some student
involvement in the process.
Paul and Dr. Barber will gather
more information regarding Board webcasts and possible student
involvement and report to the Board in the Regular January Board
meeting.
b. Blaine County
Recreation District and Blaine County School District
Partnership – Mike Chatterton, School District Treasurer
The partnership on the Community
Campus began in August of 2005 between the Blaine County School
District, Blaine County Recreation District, and the College of
Southern Idaho. The agreement between the parties is to cost
share on expenses. The Community Campus has a board that meets
four times a year to discuss issues regarding the Community
Campus. The cost sharing is based on the percentage of the
total square footage that each entity is responsible for.
Currently BCSD has 38%, CSI has 26%, and BCRD has 36%. Each
entity is billed quarterly for their portion of the actual
expenses.
A budget is presented to the
Community Campus board prior to every new fiscal year for the
board to approve, question or offer suggestions. In the lease
agreements, any of the three tenants has the ability to cancel
the lease with a one year notification. In the case of an
emergency, the BCSD can cancel the lease with a 30 day notice.
The emergency clause can only be invoked on a serious nature,
developed suddenly or unexpectedly in which case the School
District would make it necessary for us to relocate back into
the building.
Please click here to view the
Blaine County Recreation District presentation, Recreation at
the Community Campus.
VIII. Action Agenda
a. Approval of
Resolution to Amend 403(b) Retirement Plan – Mike Chatterton,
School District Business Manager
The IRS has recently suggested
that 403(b) plans that exclude certain employees are unlikely to
pass an audit concerning universal availability. The reason is,
while there are legitimate exclusions under the law, the
application of the law has proven to be more challenging for
many such employers. For example, employers in many instances
have been deficient, with respect to proper monitoring and
accurate recordkeeping of the number of hours worked by part
time employees, who were excluded under the plan. The improper
recordkeeping, combined with the exclusion of those employees,
resulted in a plan failing an audit for universal availability.
To overcome such potential plan
failures, the IRS’ recommended approach is to include
all employees under the plan.
To correct this, Omni has drafted
an amendment to the Plan which makes all employees eligible for
participation in the Plan.
The amendment must be adopted by
or before December 31, 2009 in order to make the amendment
retroactive to January 1, 2009.
Please click here to view the
Resolution to Amend 403(b) Retirement Plan.
Action was taken to approve the
Resolution to Amend 403(b) Retirement Plan
b. Approval of Resolution
to Call a Public Hearing – Nicholas Miller, Hawley Troxell Ennis
& Hawley LLP
Nick Miller presented the
timeline and steps the District needs to go through over the
next few months in order to call for a Judicial Confirmation on
the Plant Facilities Levy.
The
Resolution to Call a Public Hearing and the Notice of Hearing to
Consider a Resolution Authorizing the filing of a Petition for
Judicial Confirmation Under the Idaho Judicial Confirmation Law
documents are book-marked for your reference.
Action was taken to approve the
Resolution to Call a Public Hearing on Wednesday, January 13,
2010 at 6:30 p.m.
There being no further business
to discuss, action was taken to adjourn the meeting.
The Regular December meeting of
the Board of Trustees of Blaine County School District No. 61
adjourned at 8:45 p.m.
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