Salem School Committee
Regular Meeting Minutes
Monday, December 7, 2009
A regular meeting of the Salem School Committee was held on Monday, December 7, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. in the School Committee Chambers at Collins Middle School, 29 Highland Avenue, Salem, Massachusetts.
Members Present: Mayor Kimberley Driscoll, Mr. Nate Bryant, Mr. Kevin Carr, Dr. Janet Crane, Mr. James Fleming, Mrs. Kerry Martin, Dr. Brendan Walsh
Members Absent: None
Others Present: Dr. William Cameron, Superintendent, Alyce Davis, Assistant Superintendent
Mayor Driscoll called the Regular Meeting of the Salem School Committee to order at 7:30 p.m.
Approval of the Agenda
Mr. Fleming moved to approve the agenda, seconded by Mr. Carr. The motion carried.
Adjourn to Executive Session
Mr. Fleming moved to adjourn to Executive Session for the purpose of discussing collective bargaining issues and the School Committee will be returning to open session. Mr. Carr seconded the motion. Mayor Driscoll called for a roll call vote as follows:
Mrs. Martin Yes
Dr. Walsh Yes
Mr. Fleming Yes
Mr. Bryant Yes
Dr. Crane Yes
Mr. Carr Yes
Mayor Driscoll Yes
The motion carried (7-0)
The School Committee reconvened at 8:00 p.m.
Approval of Minutes
The minutes of the Salem School Committee meeting held on Monday, November 16, 2009 were presented for approval.
Dr. Crane moved approval of the minutes of the November 16, 2009 School Committee meeting as presented. Mr. Carr seconded the motion. The motion carried.
The minutes of the Special School Committee meeting held on Monday, November 30, 2009 were presented for approval.
Dr. Crane moved approval of the minutes of the Special School Committee meeting of November 30, 2009 School Committee meeting as presented. Mr. Carr seconded the motion. The motion carried.
Questions and Comments from the Audience
There were no questions or comments from the audience.
Student Representative Report – Zachary Broughton
The Junior / Senior Winter Cotillion was held last Friday evening in the high school auditorium.
The National Honor Society and the National Art Honor Society will hold induction ceremonies Thursday at 7:00pm in the auditorium. Everyone is welcome.
The Annual Crafts Fair sponsored by the Music Department will be held Saturday at the high school from 9:00am – 3:00 pm. Plan on coming to check out the crafts, have lunch and take chances. Profits from the cafeteria and chances support music and drama activities.
Next Wednesday, December 16th, Salem High School will host their annual Showcase from 6:00 to 7:30pm . This is an opportunity for eight graders and their parents to come to the high school to receive information about curriculum, sports and other extracurricular activities. Displays will be set up by departments and staff will be available to answer any questions. Guidance personnel and all administrators will also be available to speak with parents. Immediately after the Showcase the Music Department will present their Winter Concert in the auditorium. We hope to see a lot of students and their parents for the Showcase.
Service projects are held throughout the year at Salem High, but this time of year especially:
The students of the French Club and the JROTC are sponsoring a food drive to support St. Joseph's Food Pantry. The food collection begins to day and will run until next Friday. Students bring their donations to their A Block class. The A Block class with the most donations will be treated to a bagel breakfast.
The MCJROTC and the National Honor Society will be sponsoring a toy drive that will benefit students at our elementary schools as well as the Toys for Tots program.
Students in Ms. Kontos’ American Government class are starting a winter coat drive.~ The target audience is Salem High students.~ All adult sizes are welcome for either men or women.~ Coats not needed by our students, will be donated to the Salem Mission and the Inn Between.~
Over the next few weeks there will be a Service Learning project to supply items to the Northeast Animal Shelter here in Salem. A few of the items needed are: newspapers, towels, blankets, canned food, leashes, and any type of cat or dog toys.
Superintendent’s Report
Dr. Cameron reported that a Connect Ed message was sent this evening informing parents of the H1N1 Flu Clinic which will be held at Salem High School on December 9, 2009 from 4-8 p.m. He noted that this clinic will be held for students ages 5-24 years of age.
Dr. Cameron reported that he distributed materials regarding the ”Race to the Top”. He explained that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is competing in the “Race to the Top” – a competitive $4.35 billion education reform program enacted as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). He also explained that the Salem Teacher Union will have to sign off on this endeavor and he plans to meet with Union President Joyce Harrington on the matter. He stated that he would have more information on this at a future meeting.
Dr. Cameron reported that he will be attending a Public Hearing scheduled for Thursday, December 10, 2009 at the Lynn Housing Authority for the proposed Road to Success Charter School. He noted that he has serious concerns about issues that are raised in their proposal.
Mr. Fleming agreed noting that he questions how they determined the need for another Charter School in Salem and how they determined their information. Dr. Cameron noted that they never contracted him, Alyce Davis or David Angeramo.
Dr. Cameron reported that he received a letter from Assistant Superintendent Alyce Davis informing him of her intention to retire from the Salem Public Schools in August of 2010. He noted that she recently earned her PhD. Mayor Driscoll congratulated Dr. Davis on her completion of her PhD and noted that she does not know how we are ever going to replace her. Other members of the School Committee expressed their surprise at the news and congratulated Dr. Davis.
Curriculum Report
Dr. Alyce Davis addressed the School Committee and explained that School Improvement plans will be presented this evening from all schools except the Saltonstall and the Nathaniel Bowditch.
David Angeramo, Principal of Salem High School presented the School Improvement Plan for Salem High School.
Mary Manning, Principal of Collins Middle School, presented the School Improvement Plan for Collins Middle School.
Thomas LaValley, Principal of the Bates School, presented the School Improvement Plan for the Bates School.
Nancy Pelletier, Principal of the Bentley School, presented the School Improvement Plan for the Bentley School.
Philip Burke, Principal of the Carlton School presented the School Improvement Plan for the Carlton School.
Diane O’Donnell, Principal of the Horace Mann Lab School presented the Horace Mann School Improvement Plan.
Mark Higgins Principal, of the Witchcraft Heights School, presented the Witchcraft Heights School Improvement Plan
Mark Higgins also noted that the annual Salem Children’s Charity Christmas Party will be held on Tuesday, December 15, 2009 at Victoria Station. He explained that this event provides money that is used to help Salem families all year round, noting that there is a teacher representative in each building and in most cases as in the event of a fire, help is available to families the same day. He urged everyone to support this great cause.
Finance Report
School Business Administrator Timothy Sheehan addressed the School Committee and reported that corrective action has been taken on the school lunch program in response to an audit finding regarding bank deposits. He explained that daily records are being kept and deposits are being made daily.
Mr. Sheehan reported that the School Department has purchased a new lap top computer for him as well as Quick books software which has tremendous potential for managing the finances of the School Department.
Deliberation on the School Department Warrant:
November 27, 2009 in the amount of $1,043,051.19
December 3, 2009 in the amount of $ 191,871.45
Mr. Fleming moved approval of the warrant. Dr. Crane seconded the motion. The motion carried.
Action Items
a. Deliberation on the recommendation of the Superintendent to hire a Marine Corps Jr. ROTC Assistant at Salem High School/ 8 hours per day/ 2 days per week at a rate of $105.00 per day
Mr. Fleming moved approval. Mr. Carr seconded the motion. The motion carried (6-1) with Dr. Crane opposed.
b. Deliberation on the approval of the recommendation of the Superintendent to hire an Assistant to the Food Services Director to be responsible for financial controls, at an annual salary of $16,380.00 for not more than 19.5 hours per week
Mr. Fleming moved approval. Dr. Walsh seconded the motion. The motion carried.
- Deliberation on the approval of the recommendation of the Superintendent to hire an Assistant to the Food Services Director to be responsible for grants and technology services, at an annual salary of $16,380.00 for not more than 19.5 hours per week
Mr. Fleming moved approval. Mr. Carr seconded the motion. The motion carried.
School Committee Reports
Building and Grounds
Mr. Bryant reported that the Buildings and Grounds Subcommittee met this evening to consider the request of the Salem Academy Charter School to use the Saltonstall School gymnasium for their basketball program. He explained that the Subcommittee tabled the matter and requested further information from them regarding specific dates that they would need the facility.
School Committee Concerns and Resolutions
Dr. Crane questioned what the status of the Superintendent’s Evaluation is. Mr. Carr reported that he is still waiting for some members to turn in their evaluations and when he receives them he will compile them and make a report to the Committee.
Dr. Crane suggested that the School Committee take a vote in opposition to the proposed Road to Success Charter School . Mayor Driscoll noted that she is planning to attend the public hearing in Lynn on Thursday and suggested that the School Committee spend some time discussing this at the next meeting and come up with a list of reasons why we are opposed to it. Dr. Crane agreed and noted that the School Committee should craft a letter that is in substantive opposition to the proposed Charter School.
Mr. Fleming noted that changes enacted by the Massachusetts State Legislature this past year regarding ethics limit the amount of gift to teachers to be no more than $50.00 in value. He noted that this included pooling money together for a gift for the teacher as well. He cautioned parents to be mindful of this when remembering teachers and staff this holiday season.
Dr. Walsh noted that Mr. Higgins already reported that the Salem Children’s Charity Christmas Party will be held on Tuesday, December 15, 2009 at Victoria Station and urged the public to attend this great event for the benefit of Salem children. He noted that people have been very generous in the past and it is known as Salem’s Christmas Party.
Questions and Comments from the Audience Regarding the December 7, 2009 Agenda
There were no questions or comments from the audience this evening.
Adjournment
There being no further business to come before the School Committee this evening, Mr. Fleming moved to adjourn the meeting. Dr. Walsh seconded the motion.
The motion carried.
The meeting adjourned at 10:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted by:
_________________________
Eileen M. Sacco, Secretary
Salem School Committee
Approved by the Salem School Committee December 21, 2009
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