September 23, 2009
Board of Education
Minutes
September 23, 2009
Roaring Fork School District
Board of Education
4:00 p.m.
Mr. Chuck Perry of Perry & Rose presented an overview of the proposed Affordable Housing Project at the Carbondale Elementary School site in Carbondale. An amended PUD will be presented to the Town of Carbondale Planning and Zoning Committee on Thursday, September 24, 2009 at 7:00 p.m. Mr. Perry presented the revised PUD plan to the board and several community members. Two-story Townhouses, three-story condominiums and single-family homes comprise this plan. There will be a total of 121 units. The project has been divided into three phases; the first phase is located along Capital where the infrastructure is currently in place. Over 400 people responded to a district survey regarding housing in Carbondale. Approximately 160 parties responded that they would be interested in purchasing housing under this plan. 43% of those responding to the survey and expressed interest in purchasing property were from two-person households. The goal is to have this PUD approved by January of 2010 and to start Phase I in the spring of 2010. First priority for this housing would be made to School District employees, Town of Carbondale employees and then residents of Garfield County that work in the area. This housing will be deed restricted. Perry & Rose, the School District, Garfield County Housing authority and all applicable mortgage entities will analyze the appropriate deed restriction guidelines. Longevity of ownership may be an important factor in creating the deed restrictions. The possibility of rental units depends on what type of financing is available.
I. Order Mr. Bair called the September 23, 2009 meeting to order at 4:45 p.m.
II. Agenda Motion: Ms. Bruell moved that the Board approve the agenda, as amended.
Mr. Johnson seconded.
AYE: Mr. Bair, Ms. Bruell, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Lamont, Mr. Rovig. Motion passes.
Amendments: Addition of a New Business Action Item: One-Time approval of the waiver of the 3-bid process for the purchase of truck plows.
Ms. Pelland explained that Larry Estrada, Transportation Director, had requested that the usual bidding process to purchase vehicles be waived. He has had a difficult time receiving bids from auto dealers and has an opportunity to purchase two truck plows that are needed by the district. Auto manufacturers are only taking orders for vehicles of this type at this time and an anticipated 8 - 10 week delay would mean the district would be short the needed plow trucks for the winter season. There are currently two trucks available for sale that could be purchased immediately if the bid process could be waived for this purchase.
Motion: Mr. Johnson moved that the board approve a one-time waiver of the 3-bid requirement for the purchase of two truck plows for the transportation department. Mr. Rovig seconded.
AYE: Mr. Bair, Ms. Bruell, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Lamont, Mr. Rovig. Motion passes.
III. Financial Ms. Pelland reported that some information had been received from the state this week. It looks like there will be additional cuts and that K-12 schools will not be spared from the second round of cuts. A detailed report will be presented to the board at the second meeting in October.
IV. Consent Motion: Mr. Johnson moved that the Board approve the following as part of the consent agenda:
Routine Personnel
Minutes of September 9, 2009, as amended.
Second: Mr. Lamont
AYE: Mr. Bair, Ms. Bruell, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Lamont, Mr. Rovig. Motion passes.
V. Minutes Approved in consent agenda.
5:20 p.m.
VI. New Business
A. Discussion/Information Items
1. Presentation by Megan Talbott, President of Roaring Fork Colorado Education Assoc.
Megan Talbott and Kaet Snyder spoke to the Board about the purpose of the association and to update board members about what is happening with the association. Megan gave the Mission Statement of RFCEA: Committed to collaborative solutions for excellent schools. She read the Vision Statement and the Core Values of the association (attached). Megan stated that RFCEA is a voice for teachers. The association knows what teachers are thinking and is willing to help gather information. As the only organization that represents the teachers' collective voice in the district, RFCEA is the group to work with if teacher input in problem solving is the goal. RFCEA looks forward to opening this avenue with the district. Megan commented that the results of the TELL survey are valuable and can be used to make our district a great place to teach and learn. Megan commented that she was not sure what level of commitment there was at the board and district level for looking at the data from the TELL survey and would be interested in talking about that level of commitment. She assured the board and the district that RFCEA is committed to working with the board and the district regarding these results.
Ms. Haptonstall reported that administrators discussed the results of the survey at the administrator retreat before school started. Each school has an individual report from this survey. There has not been a board conversation about the results from the survey. It is Judy's understanding that this survey is not a report on administrators or about individual schools, but a tool to help buildings work together better. Mr. Lamont stated that he thought the board would be interested in hearing about the discussions the schools might have about concerns the teachers may have and how the teachers and administrators are working on these concerns. Ms. Bruell stated that she felt it would be worthwhile for the Board to look at the results and determine if there was anything they would like to follow up on. Mr. Rovig noted that results from the survey are at a grassroots level and parents, teachers and administrators could present their needs to the board and accountability committees. Ms. Talbott assured the Board that RFCEA is willing to work with the district and administrators in discussing the results of the survey.
Ms. Talbott noted that teachers at two elementary schools were interested in developing a faculty council like the one that GSHS has implemented. This council is modeled after one that CMC has developed. It would be comprised of all teachers, not just those belonging to RFCEA. RFCEA would like to pursue using this model as a way to get teachers more involved in their schools. Megan also mentioned that CEA is sponsoring a campaign to support the implementation of Amendment 23. Their campaign will be titled Honor 23 Put Students First.
Ms. Talbott asked the Board if there were any areas they thought RFCEA could work on to improve teacher relations with the district. Mr. Rovig commented that the one item RFCEA could work on would be to ask colleges and universities that have teaching programs to teach their students about ELL and give them more background on language and methods for teaching students who come to school without English as a first language. He also encouraged RFCEA to promote a mentor program in our schools to help new teachers. Ms. Talbott commented that CEA does have a teacher training program that RE-2 is planning to use. Mr. Ray mentioned that our district also has a teacher induction program that has been in process for three years.
Ms. Bruell asked if there could be an informal forum with board members and association members to brainstorm ideas - ideas already brought up and perhaps new ideas about how to connect with teachers. Ms. Haptonstall commented that this type of forum would be possible if it complimented what is already in place. Mr. Rovig suggested having a specific topic for each meeting. Ms. Snyder suggested having a brown bag lunch type meeting. That type of setting would be comfortable for everyone and would allow teachers to get to know important people in our district.
Ms. Bruell proposed that a plan be created for addressing concerns that have been raised at a board meeting about the association having negative messages for teachers. Ms. Bruell said she herself hasn't had any negative experiences with the Teachers’ Association, but these concerns have been raised at a previous board meeting. Mr. Ray suggested making this the topic for the first brown bag lunch. Mr. Johnson suggested that this issue be addressed at the start of the this year’s Interest-Based Bargaining meeting.
Mr. Lamont is concerned that all teachers should be heard from, not just teachers who belong to RFCEA. Ms. Talbott confirmed that only teachers who are members of RFCEA are in the IBB process. The association makes a point to garner information from all teachers by surveying teachers in all buildings. These teachers have a voice. Mr. Ray expressed interest in learning what level concerns are coming from (elementary, middle, high), not necessarily which school, but at what level is a concern coming from.
2. Reports
Judy Haptonstall: Parent commitment letters were sent to administrators this week in English and Spanish. They have been encouraged to include this letter in their next newsletter home with students.
Debra Schoeberlein has volunteered to be the point of contact for information on the H1N1 virus. She has posted information on our website and has given school secretaries information about prevention of the spread of the virus. Maintenance staff members are taking extra precaution to clean high traffic areas in each school. State of Colorado Dept. of Education will not be granting waivers for school closure days because of the H1N1 flu virus.
Judy has contacted administrators about school schedules in October as relates to scheduling a board community meeting. Judy suggested showing video examples and scenarios of student progress during the community meetings. Judy has asked Paula Marr to assist her with this project. A possible date was determined for Thursday, October 22 at Carbondale Middle School cafeteria.
Mr. Johnson expressed his appreciation to Judy for her messages about health safety during this flu season. He feels it is important that parents and students understand the importance of staying home if you are sick and not spreading the flu to other students and teachers. Ms. Bruell commented that perhaps the perfect attendance goal is not always appropriate.
Mr. Rovig complemented Ms. Haptonstall on her work with CMC to offer vocational education. Specifically, that we are focusing on current programs. Let's keep the current programs at the forefront. Ms. Haptonstall noted that there is a meeting of this group in December that the Board would be welcome to attend.
Brad Ray: Mr. Ray attended a Carbondale Rotary meeting where Karen Olson and Rick Holt made an impressive presentation. Mr. Lamont invited Brad to the Rotary meeting on the 30th where Cliff Colia will be the guest speaker. Brad attended a Family Resource meeting. Ruth Muse has increased Medicaid funding from $9,000 to $57,000 for services rendered within our district to students who qualify. Brad has spoken to the Tech Dept. about posting the meetings to the website. He framed the question around the cost and capability of our system to handle this request.
Brad led an einstruction training last Saturday for teachers and principals from each building. The training went well. Special Ed teachers will also get this training. Einstruction donated an interactive whiteboard to the district. This will be very helpful in trainings. Special Ed teachers are planning to present their additional curricular needs to Brad in the near future. Brad and Judy are planning to meet with teachers from each building to get feedback from the interim assessments so changes can be made to streamline this process.
Shannon Pelland: No report.
Mr. Lamont: The Carbondale Culltural Council will sponsor Mr. Michael Feinberg of KIPP at a presentation at the Thunder River Theatre on October 16. Bill would like to send a letter to Mr. Feinberg giving him background about our district thinking that information would be helpful at the reception to be held with Mr. Feinberg on Saturday, October 17. There may be concern about Mr. Feinberg coming to promote another charter school in the Carbondale community.
Mr. Johnson: Bob wanted to thank the Roaring Fork Public Education Foundation for the incredible job they did holding the carnival last weekend to raise money for technology grants for our school district. The foundation board is very excited about continuing to support our district. He suggested sending a thank you to the foundation board expressing our appreciation for their hard work. Judy will draft a letter for administrators to sign at the next leadership team meeting. Bob mentioned that our maintenance staff was very helpful with the carnival setup and kept things running smoothly. There seems to be a unity among the foundation and the community that wasn't there before.
Mr. Johnson would like to see more involvement and information about our efforts to close the achievement gap at board meetings.
Ms. Bruell: Ms. Bruell distributed an article from The Sopris Sun about the energy savings at RFHS and CRES through the Garfield County New Energy Communities Initiative. Together, RFHS and CRES cut energy costs by more than $15,000 in June and July compared with the same months in 2008.
The board agreed to have its first meeting in October on the 7th instead of the 14th to accommodate several members who would not be able to attend on the 14th.
Ms. Bruell would like the board to be more careful about how we raise concerns about groups of people. If it is important enough to bring up at a board meeting, the particular group should be present and be part of the conversation or a plan should be made to communicate the specific concerns to the people involved and to work with them toward a solution.
Mr. Johnson commented that he thought this conversation may have begun after he reported going to a conference discussing how technology is used to increase student achievement. He was interested in how our district uses technology to increase student achievement and asked to receive more information.
Mr. Rovig commented that as a board, we should be aware that comments be made on the basis of fact, not rumor, heresay, etc.
Mr. Lamont commented that when the board reaches a concensus of concern, it should be given to the appropriate staff to investigate. Let's increase our sensitivity to this issue.
Mr. Rovig:. Myles would appreciate learning about how library staffing decisions are made. He has noticed differences between schools about how many teachers are in a particular location and it differs from building to building. Myles would also appreciate receiving information about how administrators and teachers actually dealt with showing or broadcasting President Obama's speech. It would be helpful in framing his response to people who have asked him about the outcome of this situation.
Mr. Rovig attended the BOCES meeting with Judy and found it very interesting. It seems that the new director, Troy Lange, wants to be of service to our district's schools. Myles was impressed with the representation from participating districts at the meeting and the great opportunity there for discussion.
Mr. Rovig asked Judy about her management process among Brad, Shannon and Nikki. Judy shared that she continually asks them about decisions to be made. Mr. Rovig encouraged Brad to be a part of this process, since we have been without a voice in this capacity for a while. Brad complimented Judy for her mentoring skills and her willingness to always listen.
Mr. Bair: No report.
3. Discussion of parameters for policy regarding speakers who request unilateral access to students.
Mr. Lamont commented that Judy's draft was acceptable with the exception to the 15-day notification period. Bill would like to respect the office and not require a time limit for these offices.
Mr. Rovig distributed a draft policy. He believes that approval by the board is necessary for the simultaneous access to students and staff.
Ms. Bruell appreciates the spirit in which the policy was drafted. She would like to see the board discuss what we learned and how we will handle this type of situation in the future. She would like to see a board role in decision making.
Mr. Johnson does not see a point in reliving the past. He would like to move forward.
Mr. Bair commented that the board already has a role in decision making. There is a process that is followed.
Ms. Bruell stated that when a situation like this comes up again, it could be in a different form than a speech to all kids. For this reason, it is important to review our decision-making process and not just create a new policy about speakers. Also, very few districts made the decision we did – this is not because we were lacking a policy about speakers, but because our decision-making process was not adequate.
Mr. Rovig stated that we should allow the Superintendent and her team make important decisions, but not hesitate to call on the Board to help make a decision when time allows.
B. Action Items
1. Approval of Policy on First Reading
a. Policy GDPD - Discipline, Suspension and Dismissal of Support Staff
Motion: Mr. Rovig moved that the Board approve Policy GDPD on first reading, as presented. Ms. Bruell seconded.
AYE: Mr. Bair, Ms. Bruell, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Lamont, Mr. Rovig. Motion passes.
VII. Unfinished Business
A. Discussion/Information Items. None at this time.
B. Action Items
1. Routine Personnel
VIII. Open Forum
There were no requests to speak before the Board.
IX. Executive Session - not necessary.
X. ADJOURN.
Motion: Mr. Lamont moved that the Board adjourn at 7:25 p.m. Mr. Rovig seconded.
AYE: Mr. Bair, Ms. Bruell, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Lamont, Mr. Rovig. Motion passes.
Board members attended the Dedication Program for the Jeannie Miller Theatre at Glenwood Springs High School.
Respectfully submitted, Respectfully submitted,
Cynthia L. Hallford Myles Rovig
Recording Secretary Secretary/Treasurer of the Board