Tuesday, September 11, 2012

live reporting - policy review

3. Discussion Only Items

Policy – First Readings:
1. BL – Remote Participation Policy
clarification on what to do when one who is remote has some technical difficulty
continue the meeting and acknowledge the attempt at participation

motion to move to second reading, passed 7-0

Policy – Second Readings: Elimination of Policies:
1. JICA – Student Dress Code
2. JICDA – Academic Honesty Policy
3. JICF – Gang Activity/Secret Societies
4. JIH – Interrogations and Searches
5. JKAA – Non-Violent Physical Crisis Intervention
6. JKAA-R – Non-Violent Physical Crisis Intervention Administration Procedures/Crisis Team Procedures
7. JKF-E – Memorandum of Understanding
8. JKF-R – Matters Involving Violence, Weapons, Hate Crimes and Drug Distribution
9. JLF-E – Child Abuse/Neglect
10. JLF-R – Statement of Child Abuse and Neglect

no additional comments on the removal, these policies come up in action items

New/Revised Policies (Second Read)
1. JLF – Child Abuse/Neglect
2. JKAA – Non-Violent Physical Crisis Intervention

Live reporting - district improvement plan, life long learning

2. Guests/Presentations
a. District Improvement Plan
Sabolinski, Edwards, Winslow,

over arching goals for the district, each of the school improvement plans derive from this
only 20% of the teachers are involved with MCAS educational programs and yet that is what the reporting is focused on; don't want to ignore the other 80% of what is done in the schools

next week is the current release for the most recent MCAS data

Literacy a broad-based goal
Math program added, guiding the new frameworks to what is happening in the classroom
new frameworks speak to the 'common core'
new goals reflect focus on math instruction

community engagement part of the focus, relationships to be developed with parents and to the greater Franklin community
looking for programs to foster student learning and extend the partnership outside the school walls

community collaboration required to support the educational requirements
this was achieved with the passage of the debt exclusion for the new high school
this goes beyond the building itself, to the ongoing needs for education

the plan (copied published earlier) includes check lists to mark and report on progress

includes an observation checklist for teachers and parents for use in reporting on what is observed in the classroom and school environment

previous plans were focused on MCAS, this is more broad-based as it goes to address the other 80% as mentioned earlier

Trahan - that was extremely succinct
Rohrbach - when I started this process was not so well formatted and clearly trickle down. Is it available beyond online?

Edwards - it is trickle down but it is also bottom up from the schools individual needs, there is a connectivity that was worked hard to achieve

Rohrbach - I guess it is better to say there is a common thread
Sabolinski - this drives what we do, it just doesn't go into a drawer and sit. It is an ongoing process

Jewell - some organizations will do things better than others,how do you share the goodness? If you have a checklist, how does that feedback come into the process?

Edwards - any parent question goes first to the teacher and then to the principal. Remember that the checklist is a guideline, not everything on the listing will be seen in every classroom. At all the schools there are grade level meetings, curriculum people, math specialists meet regularly to help spread the word. Sometimes there is more information than can be used

Sabolinksi - if something works, that will spread very quickly. Each school will be holding an open house for curriculum night. The teachers will be setting parent expectations at that setting, a nice opportunity for parents to engage with teachers. I am setting my goals with each of the principals.

Mullen - prior plans were multi year, this is a single year
Edwards - there is too much change coming, with changes in standards and curriculum, to keep up with them and be flexible we needed to be focused on the one year plan. It still allows for continuation of ideas but re-focuses them slightly to allow for flexibility and delivery

Sabolinski - we have spent four years training teachers on ELL, we have to go and re-train the teachers
The emergency response plan was dropped in our lap and we are one of the first to have submitted our response so we are in good shape



b. Lifelong Learning Summer Update
Pandora Carlucci

(a copy of the presentation will be added later)
The following document is more Pandora's notes that she used to make her update than a full presentation document.





approx 2500-3000 students for the summer program

"ready, set, kindergarten" - one of the fun programs to observe
held at Oak St, classrooms are set up similarly

Star program - about 1000 students, art teachers doing different programs

Star Plus - the middle school option, a more significant involvement
8 week summer, full day program, theme for each week, activities and field trips, water activities
Legos club is hughly popular

Math Academy - 2nd year
K-6, next summer expanding to 7, and the year after to 8
all the learning is math based, no 'real' names tags, the names were math concepts
each learning approached through math

Summer music program
111 students, participating
music mentors have grown with the program, 
music literature compatible with the normal school year programs
a leadership goal set each day, encourage to perform as ensembles during the lunch time
demonstrating different music techniques, etc.

Summer Art Institute
2 weeks, intense focus on the arts
fine arts academy also participated in this 

Academic support at the high school
remediation occurs throughout the year rather than wait until the summer time

college essay
3 day workshop first time, this year was 3 x three day workshops
so popular we ended up turning folks away even with three session
looking to address additional needs during the school year

high school experience
approx 2/3 of the incoming class participated
photos and video were captured this year to better show other students what happens during the sessions
Could the advisors be available during the sessions?
The advisors were posted so the students were able to meet them at the beginning

class motto - 1980 last yearbook that had one, seemed to have disappeared since then
what are our guiding principles?
difference between motto and slogan
on the final day, cohorts came up with four finalists
itslearning will be used to vote on the finalists, closed voting to class of 2016 only
inclusive of students who did not have a chance to participate
over 300 students fed via Whitson's help

Mandarin - online learning, 90 distinct lessons
Cisco networking academy, 2 target populations; student not going on to higher ed but interested in technology; also good for folks who are retraining; 
mass open online courses (MOOC) - a meet up for anyone in the Franklin area to share what the experience is like; share what they have learned and what the issues are 

Adult ed - grown child care provider courses, folks coming from 10 different towns
indoor walking expanded
hula hoop dance cardio workout
Downtown Abbey tea to be hosted, (flyer available here)

McIntyre - I was trying to find the word for you, you are creative and visionary, we are very appreciative of that
Sabolinski - beside visionary, she makes it happen! Pandora is the queen of schlepping things around, she is phenomenal  at that!
Carlucci - it is a team, I try to say all the names of those involved, they are the ones who come up with the ideas. We all schlep!

Rohrbach - life long learning is the entrepreneurial arm of the district, it is self sustaining so we need to disclose that.
Carlucci - we'll be posting in Oct for next summer, so we'll be starting soon; I think this is my 15th year

Mullen - "respect, value, and include" really speaks to what you do

Live reporting - School Committee - 9/11/12

Present: Douglas, Donahue, McIntyre, Rohrbach, Mullen, Trahan, Jewell
Absent: none

1. Routine Business
Citizen’s Comments - none

Review of Agenda
Minutes: I recommend approval of the minutes from the August 21, 2012 School Committee Meeting.
motion to accept, passed 7-0

Payment of Bills Mrs. McIntyre
Payroll Mrs. Douglas

FHS Student Representatives
Connor Morrissette, Nicole Higgins
more blanks with schedules this year than prior, resolved quickly this year

itslearning.com - online learning platform for the district (replaces Blackboard)
400 students on the site at 9:00 PM last night being used for student government as well as classes

A summer government class required 2 books to read, and then provided online discussion with the thoughts on the books

English classes use this for submitting papers, has checks to plagiarism checks as well as allowing the teachers to grade the papers online.


Correspondence:
1. Budget to Actual – Miriam Goodman


Remembering 9/11

Where were you 11 years ago?



Do you have a story you want to share?

Weight Watchers to help the Food Pantry


Weight Watchers will be hosting a “Lose For Good Open House” event on Saturday, September 15th, at their location in Franklin. Join us for this very special one-day-only offer, prizes, refreshments, recipes and more! The Open House will host a “Lose For Good” food drive to benefit The Franklin Food Pantry. So remember to bring a non-perishable item to donate. If you have ever wanted to find out more about Weight Watchers there has never been a better time to come in.





Saturday, September 15th from 7am to 3pm
Franklin Weight Watchers
Horace Mann Plaza, 255 East Central Street
Franklin, MA 02038



6th Annual Halloween Costume Drive

Summer is over, Halloween candy is already in the aisle. So that must mean that good things are happening at Berry Insurance!

It's that time of year again! Berry Insurance and Four Points by Sheraton Norwood are holding the 6th annual Halloween Costume Drive benefiting Children's Hospital Boston!

We are collecting only NEW & UNOPENED costumes and accessories (nothing scary or violent) for children of all ages and sizes. Children's Hospital Boston is a 395-bed facility, and it is our hope that with your help, no child will miss Halloween this year! Accessories like masks, wands, etc. are great for the kids who are unable to get fully dressed in costume. 
We are also collecting stickers, coloring books, crayons, games, puzzles, etc. to give to the children as their "treats" since they can't go trick-or-treating. 
We greatly appreciate any donation you can give. And if you don't have time to shop, we are also accepting cash donations and we'll do the shopping for you. 
Donations can be brought to our Franklin or Quincy offices, but must be received by October 26th. Please call Kaitlyn @ 508-440-2290 with any questions. 
We truly appreciate your support this year would encourage you to share this post with your family and friends! Many thanks from all of us at Berry Insurance!


For additional information on Berry Insurance, please visit their wbepage
http://www.berryinsurance.com/


Franklin Veterans and/or Residents

From the Franklin webpage:
If you are the Holder of the Silver or Bronze Star Medal or if you, a Resident know someone who is please contact Franklin Veterans Service Officer Bob Fahey 508 520 4973 or bfahey@franklin.ma.us
We would like to recognize and honor you at our upcoming Veterans Day Breakfast on Fri Nov. 9