Live reporting - action items

Action Items:

• I recommend approval of the Budget Transfers as detailed on the attached memo.

tabled - no vote no discussion this evening

• I recommend approval of the request of the BICO Board of Directors to amend the preamble of the existing agreement of the BICO Collaborative to include the School Committee of the Town of Easton, MA.

approved unanimously

• I recommend acceptance of a check for $400.00 from the Remington PCC for supplies for RMS.

per earlier discussion tabled to be brought back in a future meeting

• I recommend acceptance of a check for $600.00 from the Annie Sullivan PCC for 8th grade YMCA end-of-year trip buses.

approved unanimously

• I recommend acceptance of a check for $9,028.50 from the Davis Thayer PCC for Field Trips and In-House Enrichment as listed on the attached.

approved unanimously

• I recommend acceptance of a check for $300.00 from the Remington PCC for a 6th grade field trip to the YMCA.

approved unanimously

Live reporting - future agenda items

Cafasso - could we get an update from each of the principals

Trahan - any update on the new building committee?

Rohrbach - an update from Pandora on life long learning

Sabolinski - community health council

Roy - get an update from Chandler on ballot question 1, should bring that before the committee to see if we will take a position

Trahan - if we don't take a position, we should at least let the folks know what it means to the Franklin situation

Live reporting - late bus appears to be coming back

Jeff Roy

previous meeting determined there was no funding for the late bus
after the meeting, parents, administrators, and the bus company stepped up to the plate

the bus company negotiated a better rate, reduced the cost to approx. $10,000
local PCC's started fund raising, commitments made for funding

Roy explored if the Town would be open to picking up the cost of the late bus, Feeley will bring it to the Council, Bartlett also aboard bringing it to the council

a collective effort

Is this for the middle and high school?
Initially for the middle school, could get that answer as the final details are worked out

Live reporting - high school experience

Director: Pandora Carlucci

Facilitors: Kristin Letendre, Kristy Yankee

A first year program to help incoming students to adapt to the high school experience

Student perspective: Emma Kripp

interested in the Freshman transition
The Freshman Collaborative was a good program but the felt there was more to do

four day course, team building/project adventure
incorporated the 7 Habits for Highly Effective Teens

started each day with an ice breaker, merging students from the four middle schools helped to get to know some others they may not have come across before

academic sessions on English, Science, and Math

worked on items from the 7 Habits
goal setting, mission statement creation, collaborative worj
time management, planning

Emma:
liked the program, it helped a lot
coming from the Charter School was an adjustment
met four of her five teachers during the program
I think they should continue this for future classes

next year, get locker assignments
get schedule and planner during the session
to meet some of the Freshman guidance counselors
would like a greater participation of incoming students
incorporate some professional development for teachers to help

Mullen:
good work, had heard about it and this filled in some gaps

Rohrbach:
how do students get lost?

Yankee:
on email conferences, communications between parents and teachers as soon as issues arise

Trahan:
excellent

MacLeod:
Did students have to pay?

Slight:
How are you going to increase the enrollment?

Yankee:
Start earlier, spread word of mouth

Armenio:

Carlucci, Gould:
Scholarship form is available on the website
The more people sign up, the cheaper it will be
logistics were being worked up still so we were later this year than we would like to be

Rohrbach:
sell the t-shirts at Stop&Shop
would have you any this else?

Emma:
I would add a history teacher

Mrs Kipp:
This was great, I wish this had been available for my son who also came from the Charter School to the high school.

Sabolinski:
Loved to observe the culture and climate created during the week

The poster overview of the High School Experience program, including the t-shirt!





This photo can also be found on Flickr at
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3290/2884013510_6a09f67646.jpg

Live reporting - Teacher's Contract

The teachers union and School Committee gave formal signature to the Teachers Contract.

Asst Supt Sabolinski updated that the secretaries contract was also signed this afternoon. They chose not to come out for the formal signature.

Live reporting - School Committee meeting 9/23/08

Full committee present this evening: Armenio, Cafasso, Kelly Mullen, Roy, Rohrbach, Trahan

Student Representatives: Pat Slight, Brittany MacLeod

-----
Call to order Mr. Roy

Pledge of Allegiance

Moment of Silence


1. Routine Business

• Citizen’s Comments -

Chandler Creedon, President of Franklin Teachers Association
asking for the School Committee to endorse the vote against the Question 1
a similar vote garnered 45% of the vote in an earlier election, early polls show that this could very well pass if the public is not fully informed of what impact it could have

would serve to damage our economy, would force property tax increases

those who would say NH has a better model without a personal income tax, should realize that their property taxes are #1 in the nation

• Review of Agenda

Action item # 3 from Remington to be reworked and brought forward in a future meeting

• Minutes: I recommend approval of the minutes from the September 9, 2008 School Committee Meeting.

Motion to approve - unanimous

• Payment of Bills Mr. Kelly

Motion to approve - unanimous

• Payroll Ms. Armenio
• FHS Student Representatives

Cabaret, a theater production in the cafeteria
progress reports already
SAT exams on Saturday
project to watch the media for specific individuals; Ogden, Sabolinski included in the search

• Correspondence

"Educating our kids makes absolutely basic economic sense"

Why, indeed, do we sink far more funding into retroactive punishment than into setting a foundation for a child's success? But it's one thing to demonstrate that a holistic and preventative approach makes economic sense, and quite another to actually change the approach. Most people would rather apply a band-aid or suppress a symptom than identify a root cause and treat it. Transformative innovation doesn't come easy. Innovators need not only to be persuasive and patient, they need to weather the discouraging words of doubters, to do much with little when skeptics won't lend a hand, and to hold a clear vision of what the solved problem will look like. Anyone who has seen a solution from miles away and forged a path to get there knows this.

From the award winning World Changing blog, read the full post here

I had the good fortune to hear Geoffrey Canada speak at the GEL 2006 Conference. He is quite an impressive individual. Persuasive? He defines the word.

Even Ben Franklin said:

If a man empties his purse into his head, no one can take it away from him. An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.