Watertown Board of Education
Regular Meeting
Minutes
Meeting Date: October 11, 2005
Meeting Time: 7:30 p.m.
Meeting Place: John Trumbull Primary School Library
Members Present: Ms. Mary Ann Rosa, Board Chairperson
Mr. Victor Vicenzi, Vice Chairperson
Ms. Mary Colangelo, Board Secretary
Ms. Maureen Caine, Board member
Mr. James Marks, Board member
Ms. Joanne Pannone, Board member
Dr. Joseph Erardi, Jr., Superintendent of Schools
Dr. Philip Pelosi, Assistant Superintendent of Schools
Mr. Todd LoFrese, Director of Operations/Technology
Ms. Amelia Grover, Dir. of Budget and Financial Planning
Ms. Betsy Hackett, Director of Special Services
Absent: Ms. Gina Calabrese, Board member
Ms. Mary Dzioba, Board member
Mr. Charles Fenn, Board member
Press: Mr. Tommy Valuckas, Waterbury Republican American Mr. Jim Taylor, Town Times
Guests: Mr. Thad Hasbrouck, Mr. Matthew Geary, Mr. Richard Sansoucy and Mrs. Valerie Petrillo
Other interested citizens: Ms. Marylu Lerz, Mr. Charlie Beliveau, Mr. Whitey Greenwood, Mrs. Sandy Greenwood and Mrs. Fran Palmer.
A. Convene Regular Meeting - 7:30 PM
Ms. Rosa convened the meeting at 7:30.
B. Salute to the Flag
Ms. Rosa led the Pledge to the Flag.
C Recognition
Dr. Erardi introduced Mr. Hamill and asked him to introduce his parents after which Ms. Rosa presented him with his certificate.
The Board of Education wishes to recognize Chalmers Morgan Hamill, grade 12 student at Watertown High School, for having been named a Commended Student by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.
If Chalmers would please come forward, the Board would like to present him with a Board of Education Certificate of Excellence in Academics.
Justin Martin, 51 Franklin Avenue, Oakville
Mr. Martin: Hello, I am a Boy Scout with Troop 52 in Oakville and I am here to propose to you and ask the Board for permission to do an Eagle project at Watertown High School. I’d like to remove the old plant arrangement on the back hill by the track. Once this is removed and the waste is disposed of, I want to enlist fellow troop members to put in a new arrangement in the same place as the “W” that is more attractive and more manageable. I’d be using approximately 50 boxwood plants along with peat moss, Hollytone and mulch. This was suggested by Evergreen Gardens in Watertown. The total cost would be approximately $500. The materials and/or money will be obtained through various donations. I will put a cover underneath the mulch to prevent weeds and I will water until the roots are settled. This will make the area around the track look more appealing to everyone who uses the track or just simply passes by it. This project will benefit not only the people who use the track, but it will benefit the entire town. This will make the town look better for all citizens and improve the quality of life.
Ms. Rosa: Thank you, we will have to add this as a Motion to approve.
Report from Student Council Representative – Mr. Matthew Dzioba
Mr. Dzioba: Good Evening, there are several things to report from the High School. I wanted to first comment on something that Dr. Erardi submitted to the Board for a reading last meeting. Due to the scheduling of our monthly Student Council meetings, I was unable to formally meet with members of the student body concerning the date of the graduation. However, I felt it was necessary to give the Board some feedback on this note. Personally, I am glad that this issue is being settled now. I understand that due to a mix up in scheduling last spring, the date of the graduation and Project Graduation were not initially able to fall in place. Although the June 21 date is a bit later than many people I talked with would have preferred, I can tell you that we all appreciate the Board’s efforts to prevent any mix up that would affect the graduation itself. To my knowledge, by voting on the date now, the Board would be locking in a definite date for the graduation, thus making the scheduling process for other activities more convenient. I cannot find any objection to this plan as it will surely make scheduling around the graduation a lot easier for everyone.
A few remarkable, and sometimes record breaking events, occurred up at the High School since our last meeting. First off, Watertown High students received their first mid-quarter grade reports during their Advisory group meetings last Friday. Rather than receiving slips from select courses in the mail, all students received an updated listing of their grades as they stand, a tool that the administration feels will better help students keep on top of their grades. On a more epic tone, the Watertown High School football team did the unthinkable when they defeated the Ansonia Chargers for the first time since 1986. Also in sports news, both the Watertown High School girls’ and boys’ cross country teams will be headed to the NVL finals next week. This season marks the first time ever that both teams have been undefeated for the regular season at the same time. The teams will vie for the NVL title on the 19th at Veterans, and we wish them the best of luck.
Last Monday, President Bill Clinton paid a visit to the Western Connecticut State University campus to show his and former President Bush's appreciation to schools across the state who raised money to benefit the victims of the Tsunami last winter. Watertown High School was among hundreds of schools who collected money to benefit the victims, and I, along with a few graduates from last year, was present at the event to represent our town. Funds raised by schools across the state will be going towards building a 1,200 pupil campus style school in Sri Lanka., and already plans are underway at the high school to raise more money to help people get back on their feet following Hurricane Katrina.
Finally, I want to end my report with something I'd like to do regularly from now on. I want to help the Board and the public get a better understanding of what actually happens inside the walls of the High School. In order to accomplish this, before each meeting I will be interviewing a different member of the staff, administration and student body in order to get a better feel for the High School. I want to start off with focusing on the varied curriculum at Watertown High School, and this week I'd like to explore the American Studies program. American Studies is a comprehensive program for Juniors that marries English and History together in a more holistic approach to teaching about the American legacy. Last week, I was able to talk with Mrs. Raimo, an English teacher who teaches an American Studies class. Mrs. Raimo started at the High School only a few years ago after teaching at various schools across the region, and has been teaching an American Studies class ever since alongside with different members of the History department. I asked Mrs. Raimo what she liked about the program, and she told me that as an English teacher, she is not only able to teach the fundamentals of the subject, but she is also able to put works of Literature into a historical context. For example, when students are learning about the Jazz age of the 1920's from a historical and factual point, they will also be reading the Great Gatsby in the hopes of achieving a better understanding of that time period.
An asset to the American Studies program is the use of field trips throughout the year to enhance the curriculum. Last week, students took a trip to Ellis Island in order to get a first hand understanding of the early American immigration experience. Throughout the year to come, students will be visiting places like the Intrepid Museum in New York and the Norman Rockwell Museum in Massachusetts to supplement lessons ranging from the Cold War to the Civil Rights Movement. The American Studies program shows that out of school exploration to further education is essential, a fact that I'm sure the Board can agree with. Thank you.
Mrs. Valerie Petrillo, 31 Parkman Street, Oakville, Co-President Heminway Park Parent Group
Mrs. Petrillo: We are off to a great start, welcoming many parents to the membership this year. Our Open House went well and both the Cagno and West teams are going full speed ahead. We just finished our annual fall fundraiser bringing in a profit of approximately $10,000, most of which will be used to offset the costs of the May school trip to the Lion King in NYC. More fundraising efforts are in the planning stages as we still need to raise more funds for the trip as well as other educational programs for the students. Currently, our Scholastic Book fair is underway until this Friday, and we would like to invite any interested parents or friends to attend our family night this Thursday at 6:30 PM in the school library. The Parent Group is sponsoring a school-wide contest to celebrate Red Ribbon Week during the week of October 24th. Each of the 10 homerooms will be decorating their classroom doors in the red theme which represents something about drug prevention or awareness. It is a wonderful way to revisit what they learned with the Watertown officers in the DARE programs in both Judson and Polk last year. We are fortunate to have the assistance of our officers who will be coming to judge the doors on Friday, October 28th. Winning homerooms will win a pizza party for first place or an ice cream party for 2nd. Our first Reward Night is scheduled for November 4th. We are very fortunate to have the assistance of many parent volunteers who have joined committees and agreed to chair events.
Polk PTO news - the Halloween party is October 28th. The Book Fair is next week.
As many of you may have noticed in the Town Times, there was a photo of the new
painting of the map of the USA on the school playground. It was painted by SBC
Pioneers and we are grateful to them.
Judson PTA news - the school year at Judson is off to a great start! PTA volunteers were there on the first day of school guiding and helping students find their teachers. We recently finished our Fall Fundraiser which is our major source of financial support for the school year. We thank all the parents who participated.
Our Open House, which was held on the night of the Budget referendum, was a great success. It included a Scholastic Book Fair and Ice Cream Social. We had a fantastic turn out.
Judson had our first Educational Enrichment program in which the children heard about the Monarch Butterfly and its migration to Mexico. The program moderator continued the discussion over the next few days with each individual classroom. Our first PTA meeting was attended by approximately 60 parents. At our PTA meeting tonight, we have a State Board Member of the CT PTA speaking about what the PTA stands for and how it supports our children both at the state and national level.
Watertown High PTO news - the WHS population is awaiting the NEASC results.
The College Fair has been moved from the Spring to the first week of November. A number of parents have signed up to help clean up the courtyard outside the cafe (prune bushes, weed, etc).
John Trumbull PTO news - the John Trumbull PTO has been busy since before school started. Before opening, the front area was mulched and flowers planted. Folders were stuffed and delivered to all classes along with pencil cases, pencils and glue sticks. Deck boxes were restocked on all three playgrounds with balls, chalk and trucks. The PTO also supplied and scooped all the ice cream for the open houses in September. Our PTO membership for the second year in a row has included 100% of classroom teachers. Our membership drive is still open. Over 800 tulip bulbs have been purchased to plant along side the building behind the music rooms and the art rooms. Mr. Skelton, the music teacher, will be working with the children so that each child will plant a bulb outside, then watch the result of their handiwork bloom in spring. The area behind the library has been marked for a butterfly garden. Parts of this garden will be planted before the first frost this fall.
Upcoming events include our book fair next week and the Halloween party on October 22. Also, our first educational enrichment program has been scheduled for November 2. The Fidelco guide dogs are coming. The children will learn how the dogs are raised and trained and how they help their visually impaired partners lead a more independent life.
As always, our PTO meetings for all schools are open to Dr. Erardi and the Board of Education members. Please feel free to stop by and take in all the good the parents are doing to enhance the children's learning environment.
Swift PTSO news - the fall Yankee Candle fundraiser was completed and it was successful.
"Films for Friends" was a program that was started this year in order to raise money for
the victims of Hurricane Katrina and they raised over $3,000 dollars which will be sent to
Habitat for Humanity.
Shakesperience, an enrichment program, was booked for a date in April.
We meet the 3rd Wednesday of the month and the next meeting is October 19th.
The Book Fair was a huge success and we raised $1,700 which will be used to help
support the school library.
All school PTO meetings are also open for Dr. Erardi, Board of Education members and family and friends, please stop by and take in all of the good things that parents are doing to enhance our children’s learning environment.
E Budget Summary – (Information Only – No Action Required)
There were not any questions from Board members.
F. Committee Reports:
1. Advertising Committee, James Marks, Chair
Mr. Marks: We had a joint meeting with the Park and Rec. Dept. to discuss potential joint sales of advertising space both at the High School field and Deland. We ended up with an agreement in principle that we would work together and we’ll be working over the next few weeks to develop pricing. We will work out the details on how the revenue and the mechanics of our share will be given to us, so that is in progress. On another happy note, we did receive a proposal from Pepsi which we had been waiting for a while and that looks good and we will be getting a proposal from Coke on the 25th, so I’ll have more to report on both of those at a later meeting.
2. Athletics and Facilities Committee, Mr. Victor Vicenzi, Chair
Mr. Vicenzi stated there was no Report this evening.
3. Curriculum & Instruction Committee, Gina Calabrese, Chair
Dr. Pelosi: There will be a meeting scheduled in the next couple of weeks.
4. Policy and Labor Committee, Mary Colangelo, Chair
Ms. Colangelo: The Policy and Labor Committee did meet last week Monday, October 3, and we did work on a few issues. One we are bringing to you this evening for the First Reading is the Policy for Volunteers in the Schools. We have some more work to do so we are going to try to schedule a meeting for next week.
5. Cablevision, James Marks
Mr. Marks stated there was no Report this evening.
G Communications - Secretary
Ms. Colangelo read a thank you note from Ms. Amelia Grover, See Attachment C.
H Minutes
1. Regular Board of Education Meeting – September 26, 2005
Motion presented by Ms. Colangelo, seconded by Mr. Vicenzi that the minutes of the Board of Education meeting of September 26, 2005 be approved as presented.
Motion Defeated.
(3-In Favor, 0-Opposed, 3-Abstained)
In Favor-Mr. Vicenzi Ms. Colangelo and Mr. Marks
Abstained-Ms. Rosa, Ms. Caine and Ms. Pannone
Minutes will be presented at the next Board Meeting for approval.
I Superintendent's Recommendations and Report
1. Appointments – (Information Only – No Action Required)
a. Ms. Camille Mikenas to the position of Pre-School Paraprofessional (Category #2 – Sp Ed Program) at John Trumbull Primary School, starting September 26, 2005 for 28.5 hours paid per week, at an hourly rate of $14.39.
b. Ms. Susan Chowaniec to the position of One to One Paraprofessional, Category #1, Special Ed Program at Heminway Park School, starting October 11, 2005 for 6.5 hours paid per day at an hourly rate of $11.45.
2. Resignations – (Information Only – No Action Required)
a. Ms. Margret Jensen from the position of Library Clerk at Watertown High School, effective November 1, 2005, for the purpose of retirement.
3. Volunteer Policy – First Reading
The Policy and Labor Committee reviewed the Volunteer Policy at its meeting on October 3, 2005 and recommends it to the Board for the first reading this evening. (See Attachment A.)
4. Review of SAT and CAPT Test Results
Mr. Thad Hasbrouck, Principal of Watertown High School and Mr. Matthew Geary, Vice Principal, are present this evening to give a review of the SAT and CAPT Test Results for the Class of 2005.
(See Attachment B.)
Dr. Erardi introduced Mr. Hasbrouck Mr. Geary and Mr. Sansoucy.
Mr. Hasbrouck: Thank you for having us here this evening. It’s a pleasure to talk to you about testing at Watertown High School. We have a number of tests. Sometimes I think our kids feel like human pin cushions they get tested so much but, the SAT’s and CAPT tests are certainly an integral part of the testing program, not only here but at every high school in the State of CT.
I’d like to begin with the SAT’s; the class of 2005 is a bridge class in the SAT program. Every standardized test should be re-visited every ten years and if you remember the furor ten years ago over the changes that were made to the SAT test and “how could it happen?” It was the “dumbing-down” of the test and yet it was something that was about thirty years overdue, the test was originated in the late 1940s. It has been about ten years now since it was re-normed and it is time to revisit it again and beginning with this year’s Senior class, the new SATs are being presented. I want to provide a little bit about those tests and ways that they may differ from the earlier versions that you and I fondly remember.
They are in the test room for a slightly longer period of time with a little over 3 hours and 45 minutes. As well as you and I might recall; the Verbal and Math sections of the test; the Verbal has been broken down into two components, one of which is Critical Reading and the other is Writing. The Math has changed in it’s composition as well and the College Board feels that the current test program is better aligned with today’s curricula and the way instruction is delivered at high schools across the country. We still have what we called the SAT II, they are now referred to as Subject Tests, they look and feel very similar to those which students who have taken them in the past would have seen. Some of the advantages to the SATs are that they are standardized, so that regardless of the student, the school or the State the score is what it is. Therefore, there can be some comparisons made not only within the year, but from one year to the next. This test has nine sections in it. You and I will recall that there were three when we took the test. They are shorter in duration, but still nine segments and one of which includes a 25 minute essay, which is in response to a writing prompt. There are now three scores that are provided on a scale of 200-800, much as in the past, instead of informally in Verbal and Math they now have a Critical Reading, Mathematics and a Writing score so that the sum score which used to max out a 1600, is at 2400. Several changes have taken place. In the Writing component, much as in the CAPT test, there is a multiple choice section which involves students in discerning correct grammar and punctuation. As well, they have their writing prompt as was described earlier. In the second generation of the SATs, the antonyms were eliminated and the analogies as well and instead again, similar to what our students have been exposed to in CAPT, they have both short and long reading passages which they are asked to read and analyze and respond to a variety of questions. In Mathematics, instead of applying Algebra I and Geometry, we now go to a third year of Mathematics as part of the testing component and the quantitative comparisons, much like the analogies were felt not to be as educationally as sound a testing device, so the quantitative comparisons have been eliminated as well.
As we take a look at the class of 2005, we are still thinking in terms of the SAT I and the SAT II test, this year as well as this past year’s graduating class, about ¾ of them took the test and that is a slightly smaller number of what we had in the past. Their scores, as you can see, in Verbal were 514 and Math were 496. I arrestingly, the students who took both the SAT I and SAT II scored significantly higher as you can at 627 and 648. The student who is taking the SAT IIs is typically applying to a more competitive college and will typically be in the higher ranking as far as their graduating class. As we look at a comparison of Watertown to the State and the United States, you can see that we are holding our own in Verbal. We are slightly below in Math. If you take a look at a comparison of 2004 and 2005, you can see that we have made some significant gains. When you look at CT scores they are fairly flat; a 2% increase in each area and a fairly flat score in the National level. Our kids are making gains and I think if we continue to make some curricular adjustments, we will continue to see those kinds of gains being made.
I am now going to turn the program over to Mr. Geary who is going to talk about the CAPT testing.
Mr. Geary: Thank you, I am going to try to give you a brief overview of what the CAPT testing is like and the score reports from the Spring of 2005, focusing on the Sophomore class. The kids are now Juniors and we gave those results to them today, so it is interesting that we are having this meeting tonight.
The CAPT test has four basic study areas, Math, Science, Reading across the Disciplines and Writing across the Disciplines and these tests measure specific curricular objectives and it’s not just your standard multiple choice tests; most of the questions are open-ended so that if it is Math you aren’t good in then with the multiple choice, you have a greater chance of a true response for some students.
The nice thing about the CAPT is you can compare it from year to year. You can look at students and how they did on their 8th grade CMTs and their 6th grade CMTs and compare it to their 10th grade CAPT. We can look at other schools to see where they fall in our ERG and across the State, so the CAPT test tells us how we compare to other schools in the Districts.
In the CAPT test we measure two different things; we look at students we are at the Proficient level compared to students who measure at Goal and above. So there are two different things that we can talk about in this report, with No Child Left Behind we have every student in Grade 10 take the test, we have a binder full of data here that we have crunched together but it is really interesting when we pull the students that re-took the test, so that is available for you. All of the students took the test with one student last year who took a checklist test as opposed to the regular test but all but one of our students took this test. Special education students get the same modifications that they would get for a regular classroom test but they do take the same test as every other regular ed. student and that is important to recognize.
There are five levels for scoring on the CAPT, five Bands; and Band 1 is Below, Band 2 is Basic, Band 3 Proficient, Band 4 is Goal and Band 5 Advanced. If you look at the bottom, it talks about No Child Left Behind and for that we look at students who are in Band 3 or above. The CT Goal we look at students in Band 4 and above, so we are looking at two different things here, one for the State and one for the Country.
You’ll see the way Watertown High School students excel and if you notice again, we have this by percentage Across the Disciplines and again we are looking at two different things. We are looking at Level 3 or better for No Child Left Behind and who is Level 4 or above for the State Goal. You have a handout that is highlighting these numbers if you need them.
The next slide gives you an idea as far as adequate progress met as No Child Left Behind. You’ll notice that at Watertown High in Math and Reading there are No Child Left Behind adequate progress standards. We have got 80% of our students at Level 3 or above and adequate review progress at 69%, so we are in compliance with No Child Left Behind. You look at Reading and it is the same idea with 87 % at Watertown in Band 3 or above and adequate at 72%. Math and Reading we are in good shape.
Another way to look at this information is that instead of giving you percentages, we gave you the number of students. Again, 253 sophomores took the test and as you can see outlined, the number of students that met standards for Bands 4 and 5 compared to Bands 3, 4 and 5 and you’ll notice that more students meeting the National Goal with No Child Left Behind than you have in Band 3.
This next slide talks about the different ways you can break this down and I was a Math teacher so I like this stuff. We have a lot of information that you can look at as far as gender and students who are regular education and students who are special education so you can compare those back and forth. We can also look at how students who are in our Honors level English class perform on the CAPT, compared to students in our College Prep level English class and we are currently working on that right now, we are taking a look to see where we can support them to help to increase those scores. There is a tremendous amount of things that this data can tell us so we are at the tip of the iceberg looking at this.
Next slide gives you an idea of where we stand as compared to the ERG across the State. You can see for example in Math, the Watertown average score is 254 compared with the old average of 260 and the State average of 258 so we are a little below there and the other number there is the percentage of kids at Goal. Again, that is Band 4 or better, so we had 51% in one town and 56% in the ERG and 48% in CT, so we are a little above State percentages and a little below ERG.
This slide shows a comparison from year to year. If you notice in 2004 to 2005, we went up in Math. We went up on a scale of four, down a little bit in terms of the percentage that is passing so you have two sides of the coin there. If you look at Science, we are down a little bit; Reading is the same thing and Writing we are also down a little bit from 04-05.
Again, you are comparing two completely different sets of kids which makes it difficult and also it makes it valuable to look at CMT scores for this class of kids. This particular class, as I said before, everyone took this test so there is a 2-4 point swing there. Like I said, we have just started getting into this and there are a lot things we can do with this data in the coming months and there is a lot of room to improve
Mr. Marks: I noticed on those charts that the Science scores are all higher than the Reading, Math and Writing. Is that the norm or do we happen to have some pretty bright future scientists or do we happen to have some brilliant Science faculty?
Mr. Hasbrouck: Yes, yes and yes.
Dr. Pelosi: What we did Mr. Marks with curriculum with all students is that all students are enrolled in Earth Science, where only some had before over the last 3 years. We also blended levels so we have eliminated the lowest level, so we don’t have that much of a line of demarcation between the levels, maintaining however, the top level. That is part of the reason, the Science Department had told me that they feel this is it, when I met with them last year and this year and we continue to see an increase, so hopefully we will in the other areas as well. Thad, do you agree with that?
Mr. Hasbrouck: Yes, one of the critical factors was in an earlier data analysis we saw that some of our students just weren’t being presented with information where they could, because this was an objective-based test; they weren’t receiving information relative to some of those objectives. So by re-tooling the curriculum, students were exposed to and learned information for those objectives and we have seen the scores notching up. We are anticipating with some of the curricular adjustments in Mathematics that we will be seeing that change. We have already started to see an increase and I expect we will continue to see that on the rise. Virtually all students, there are those with some cognitive issues who obviously aren’t ready for Algebra, but all, virtually all of our students start freshman year in Algebra and that is a change from prior years. We are beginning to see the fruits of that.
Dr. Erardi: When Board members hear, data-driven decision making throughout the year, Mr. Geary and Mr. Hasbrouck eluded to that, that this pile of data from the test that will direct those decisions for curriculum and instruction. My final thought is that when you saw the adequate yearly progress from 2005 in Math at 69% and Reading at 72%, the year 2013 will mark the year of retirement for many superintendents. That is the year that the Federal Government expects 100% of every student in this country to meet Goal, and hopefully, we will get there.
5. Artwork on Display
The artwork on display this evening was done by the following young and talented artists:
Katrina Pruitt, Grade K, John Trumbull Primary School
Emily O’Donnell, Grade 3, Judson School
Olivia Moaddel, Grade 3, Polk School
Mohamed Shaw, Grade 6, Heminway Park School
Cydnee Spillane, Grade 7, Swift Middle School
Melissa Traver, Grade 12, Watertown High School
6. Update on Swift Expansion Project
The Superintendent of Schools will give an update on the Swift Middle School expansion project.
Dr. Erardi: The town hearing on the Swift project will take place on October 17, Monday at 6:30 p.m. at Swift Middle School in the auditorium. It will be a joint meeting where the community will receive information on the Swift project and on the Fire House project.
7. Update on 2005-2006 Budget
The Superintendent of Schools will give an update on the budget for school year 2005-2006.
Dr. Erardi: I have two handouts for Board members and the audience. I’d like to thank the entire Administrative team, especially Ms. Grover who has spent hours and hours getting these numbers down for the Superintendent and this community. I’d like to talk through these items that you have in front of you and I share it with you as information, hoping that you will put together questions and be prepared for our next meeting to move on the item.
If you go back to our August presentation and go back to our Referendum 4 reduction, we spoke a few meetings ago about $186,000 deficit. That was our starting point and in order to balance the 05-06 Budget, Administration recommends the following:
These are reasonable projections that Mr.LoFrese did for the Board of Education:
$146,000, which has been broken down over a period of time, and as Todd mentions in his Memo, if nothing sensational happens, we are now projecting an approximate $140,913 deficit.
I spoke two meetings ago about an $11,000 contract concession from First Student. I am recommending that we do not re-hire an Instructional Assistant at Heminway. The Board of Education was briefed on the JTPS testing, Spring Sports we spoke about two meetings ago. I have an asterisk next to Spring Sports item for the following reason, shortly after the public announcement of elimination of the Spring Sports at Swift, there was a community member who I believe represented many members of this community, who came forward to my office and assured me if the Spring Sports were cut, there would be a gift giving in the amount of $6,318 in lieu to allow our softball and baseball players to participate in the Spring. We also included in August a moratorium on the School Psychologist position, we have found with the complexity of our children that we do need to hire a half-time Psychologist, the original savings of $51,925 when cross-referenced with this line item, will result in only a $25,962 savings. At Watertown High School we have a resignation which you acted on tonight, we are putting a moratorium on that position for an additional $12,000 savings. Objects 611, 642, 690 and 730, 611 is Instructional Supplies, 642 is Library Books and Periodicals, 690 is Other Supplies and 730 is Equipment. I have a detailed breakdown on areas that we have on hold in those four line items, Ms, Grover again put this information together for me, I can share it with the Board in greater detail if the Board would like me to at some point this evening or at our next meeting. We feel that if we freeze the four accounts this could result in an additional $86,600 savings. Unbeknownst to us until the start of this school year, we have three children who have moved into our town as tuition students, the revenue generated from these three students is approximately $9,000 per month. The mobility of these three students is not solid enough for us to project a $90,000 revenue share back to the Board of Education however, through the first two months of the school year, our projection is holding at approximately $9,000 a month. I used $25,000 and change as a placeholder to balance your $186,000 deficit. The last few items I just wanted to mention to the Board are areas of great mobility and flexibility and volatility that we really don’t control. If, and that is the operative word, if revenue tuition projection on our in District tuition students holds, and the energy line items we are now forecasting remain somewhat, as reported by Mr. LoFrese, at the close of the first quarter which is in approximately three weeks, there is at least a percentage of the line items that we are currently freezing from administration and staff. It continues down with the same precursor we would look again at Spring Sports on or before January 1 and we would also look again at hiring the Watertown High School Library Clerk. This represents hours upon hours of scrutiny on the part of administration, there is simply nowhere to go without effecting teaching and learning. Our $186,000 deficit again is brought to you with the belief that nothing out of the ordinary will happen this year, as you remember most, if not all of our contingency in nearly every line item, was reduced as the referendums passed from 1 to 2 to 3 and to 4. I am prepared to answer questions at this point and I’d also like to pass out to you the data breakdown of energy that was put together by Mr. LoFrese.
J. Report from the Chairman
Ms. Rosa stated there was no Report tonight.
K Action Items – Adoption of Items to be Approved by Consent
Motion presented by Ms. Caine, seconded by Mr. Vicenzi to Add Item as K-e; Consideration to accept donation of services of an Eagle Scout project at Watertown High School.
Motion Passed Unanimously
(6-In Favor, 0-Opposed, 0-Abstained)
Motion presented by Ms. Colangelo, seconded by Mr. Vicenzi Motion to Add Item as K-f; Consideration to accept Superintendent’s Budget recommendations for 2005-2006.
a. Consideration of Approval of No Child Left Behind Lawsuit – Second Reading
Approximately sixty local school districts have taken action to support Connecticut’s lawsuit regarding unfunded mandates connected to the No Child Left Behind Act. Legal Counsel has advised administration that if the Watertown Board of Education votes to support the State’s Attorney General, there would be no financial impact to the local taxpayer. Support of this lawsuit was presented to the Board for the first reading at its meeting on September 26, 2005 and it is being presented this evening for the second reading and for Board approval.
Motion presented by Ms. Colangelo, seconded by Mr. Vicenzi that the Board support the State’s Attorney General and vote to support this lawsuit as presented this evening for the second reading and for Board approval.
Discussion:
Mr. Marks: I intend to vote for this Motion but I have think at some point we should consider asking the people in Hartford who are doing such a wonderful job telling the Feds to stay off their back, we might tell them to get off of our back.
Ms. Colangelo: I agree with that.
b. Consideration of Approval of Watertown High School Graduation Date – Second Reading
The graduation date of June 21, 2006 for the Watertown High School class of 2005-2006 was presented to the Board of Education for the first reading on September 26, 2005. It is being presented this evening for the second reading and for Board approval.
Motion presented by Mr. Vicenzi, seconded by Ms. Pannone that the Board approve of the Graduation date for Watertown High School as
June 21, 2006.
c. Consideration of the Approval of Acceptance of Gifts
1. The following people would like to make donations to the Future Business Leaders Association at Watertown High School:
Dale K. Ciccarelli, C.P.A. - $50.00
William Dunbar, Copes Rubbish Removal, Inc. - $50.00
Elizabeth Jacobson, J&J Lock - $25.00
Motion Presented by Mr. Vicenzi, seconded by Ms. Pannone that the Board accept the donations from the following people who would like to make donations to the Future Business Leaders Association at Watertown High School:
2. Ms. Linda Burmeister would like to donate a Dell Computer Monitor with an approximate value of $350.00 to the nurse’s office at Watertown High School.
3. Mr. John Vassallo would like to donate art prints with an approximate value of $320.00 to the Art Department of Watertown High School.
It is recommended that the Board accept these generous donations and letters of thanks to be sent to the donors.
Motion presented by Mr. Vicenzi, seconded by Mr. Marks that the Board accept the donation from Ms. Linda Burmeister who would like to donate a Dell Computer Monitor with an approximate value of $350.00 to the nurse’s office at Watertown High School. Also, that the Board accept the donation from Mr. John Vassallo would like to donate art prints with an approximate value of $320.00 to the Art Department of Watertown High School.
d. Consideration of the Approval of BEST Program
A Selection Committee for BEST met on Wednesday, September 21, 2005 to interview a candidate interested in becoming a cooperating/mentor teacher.
The committee members were: Marylu Lerz – BEST Interview Chairperson, Sally Rinaldi – BEST Facilitator and Lauren O’Toole – Grade 2 teacher and mentor.
The recommended candidate is Ms. Donna Iacoviello – John Trumbull Primary School Kindergarten Teacher.
It is recommended that the Board approve of Ms. Donna Iacoviello, John Trumbull Primary School, Kindergarten Teacher, to become a cooperating/mentor teacher.
Motion presented by Mr. Vicenzi, seconded by Ms. Colangelo that the Board approve of Ms. Donna Iacoviello, John Trumbull Primary School, Kindergarten Teacher, to become a cooperating/mentor teacher.
e. Consideration to accept the donation of services for an Eagle Scout project at Watertown High School.
Motion presented by Ms. Caine, seconded by Mr. Vicenzi that the Board accept the donation of services of an Eagle Scout project at Watertown High School.
Ms. Rosa: Can I ask when approximately you start this project?
Mr. Martin: During the April vacation.
Ms., Rosa: You would coordinate with the School principal?
Mr. Martin: Yes, I would.
Mr. Marks: Is there any problem with the Maintenance people as far as union rules?
Ms. Rosa stated there was not a problem.
f. Consideration to accept Superintendent’s Budget recommendations for 2005-2006
Motion presented by Mr. Vicenzi, seconded by Ms. Colangelo that the Board accept the Superintendent’s Budget recommendations in the amount of $186,000.
L. Future Agenda Items
Board members did not request any Future Agenda Items.
M Public Participation
No one wished to address the Board at this time.
N. Adjournment
Motion presented by Mr. Vicenzi, seconded by Ms. Colangelo to adjourn the Regular Board of Education Meeting of October 11, 2005
Meeting adjourned at 8:29 p.m.
************************************************************************
Respectfully submitted by
Mary Colangelo, Board Secretary
Barbara Mordenti, Board Clerk