Board Members Present: Mr. Joe Doering Mr. Jim Grenon-Francoline Mrs. Michele Holt Dr. Rafael Adames Mr. James Feeney Mr. Bob Ravens-Seger Mr. John Welsh Mr. M. Tom Short Mr. Rob Crocker Board Members Absent: East Granby Board of Education Regular Meeting Minutes for Monday, November 9, 2015 Others Present: Dr. Christine Mahoney, Superintendent Mrs. Susan Greco, Business Manager Ms. Lisa Kline, Board Clerk Matthew Borsari, Student Council Representative Sarah Martin, Student Council Representative Sharon Shepherd, Visitor Annie Brose, Visitor Mattia Brose, Visitor Emily Farmer, Visitor Sarah Soucy, Visitor Paul Soucy, Visitor Suzanne Soucy, Visitor Diane Kelly, Visitor Colleen Gosselin, Visitor Annmarie Sirotnak, Visitor Kristen Strzegowski, Visitor Cassandra Fiore, Visitor Marie Nardi, Visitor Susan Tracey, Visitor Lynn Monegan, Visitor I. Call to Order and Pledge of Allegiance With a quorum present, Joe Doering Chairperson, called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m., and all recited the Pledge of Allegiance. a. Approve Minutes from the October 13, 2015 and the October 26, 2015 regular meetings MOTION: a motion was made by Jim Feeney, seconded Bob Ravens-Seger, to approve the October 13, 2015 regular meeting minutes as presented. (FOR: Joe Doering, Jim Grenon-Francoline, Jim Feeney, Bob Ravens- Seger. ABSTAINED: Rob Crocker, Michele Holt, Tom Short, John Welsh, and Dr. Adames). Motion approved. MOTION: a motion was made by Bob Ravens-Seger, seconded by Jim Feeney, to approve the October 26, 2015 regular meeting minutes as presented. (FOR: Joe Doering, Jim Grenon-Francoline, Jim Feeney, Bob Ravens-Seger, Michele Holt, and Dr. Adames. ABSTAINED: Rob Crocker, Tom Short, and John Welsh). Motion approved. b. Additions to Agenda Dr. Mahoney would like to include the first read for policies 1110.1-Parental Involvement and 5110-Student Attendance under item Va. Policy. MOTION: a motion was made by Bob Ravens-Seger, seconded by Jim Feeney to add the first read for policies 1110.1-Parental Involvement and 5110-Student Attendance under item Va. Policy to the agenda. Motion approved unanimously. Joe Doering would like to add item IIIi. Letter from Selectman to the agenda. MOTION: a motion was made by Jim Grenon-Francoline, seconded by Jim Feeney to add Item IIIi. Letter from Selectman to the agenda. Motion approved unanimously. c. Comments from visitors regarding agenda items Annie Brose, a student at East Granby High School, read a letter she wrote concerning the way grades for Advanced Placement (AP) courses are weighed in comparison to a student taking honors classes, and how it can affect a student s grade point average (GPA). As a parent, Paul Soucy feels that he was caught off guard regarding the differentiation in AP and honors classes. Mr. Soucy would like the administration to look into adjusting the way AP grades are weighed. For the record, Michele Holt, commented that a parent sent an email to Mr. Peling, Dr. Mahoney, and the Board of Education members expressing her concern about AP classes.
Suzanne Soucy agrees that we need to give AP students the opportunity they deserve. II. Student Representatives Report Sarah Martin shared that both the boys and girls cross country teams participated in the Mudder Race which is a 5K run with the last stretch being a muddy hill. Sarah Martin also reported that East Granby Travels is planning a trip to Quebec Canada this winter and hoping to plan a trip to France, Spain, and England in the future. They are holding fundraisers to defer the cost. Sarah concluded by reporting that the next As Schools Match Wits competition will be held at Western Connecticut State University and will be filmed. Matthew Borsari reported that the boys varsity basketball team qualified for states and their next game will be played against Oxford. Matthew also shared that Veterans will be visiting the history classes on November 10, 2015 to share stories about their military experiences and the National Honor Society is hosting a food drive. III. Chairperson s Report a. Welcome New Board Members Joe Doering introduced new board members John Welsh and Tom Short. b. New Board Member Training Joe Doering explained to the new board members that Dr. Mahoney will schedule a time to meet with them individually for an orientation and that they will begin to receive correspondence from the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education (CABE). Mr. Doering also provided information on a new board member orientation being held by CABE on December 9, 2015. c. Advance Placement Course Discussion Dr. Mahoney will address the matter of AP grades affecting student GPAs with faculty. Students should be rewarded accordingly for taking challenging AP courses. d. Board Goals Joe Doering reviewed the 4 categories of board goals and what has been done and what needs to be done. e. Searchable Policies Dr. Mahoney reported that Lisa Kline is currently working on changing the policy format on the district website. f. School Year Calendar 2016-2017 Dr. Mahoney reviewed the proposed calendar and explained the legend to new board members. We schedule 182 instructional days to allow time in the event we have issues that prohibit us from having school. The state will not recognize fewer than 180 days. If necessary, we will revisit the calendar at the end of winter to make any adjustments necessary due to inclement weather and to get the opinion of the project graduation co-chairs so they can schedule project graduation. g. Capital Plan Susan Greco distributed the five year capital plan spreadsheet and explained the sections including a tracking option indicating the original year an item was placed on the list and that the facilities portion is broken down by school. Also, the Board of Finance asked us to include an additional year (2020-2021). The need for air conditioning at Carl Allgrove School as well as new electrical services to support it was added to the plan. Using the capital advisory report, we followed up on the May 2014 findings per school and indicated where we are with the initiatives. Susan Greco reviewed the list of what is completed and what needs to be done. Mrs. Greco noted that we have a paper system in place for following up on work orders. A computer program is not ideal for us because we do not have our own plumbers and electricians. Tom Short inquired about heating units. Mrs. Greco explained that she will be looking at additional items. h. Efficiency Study Report Jim Grenon-Francoline reported that the consultant is reviewing the content of the efficiency study so it is acceptable and the report is scheduled to be presented at the November 23, 2015 board meeting. i. Letter from Selectman Joe Doering received a letter from Jim Hayden regarding organizing a subcommittee to examine shared costs between the town and schools. The subcommittee will be made up of several people
including two Board of Education members. Mr. Doering asked if any board members would like to serve on the subcommittee. Jim Feeney and Bob Ravens-Seger volunteered to be members of the subcommittee. IV. Superintendent s Report a. Close Out of R.D. Seymour School Construction Project Dr. Mahoney shared that the building committee met last week to discuss the R.D. Seymour School construction project and that all invoices have been closed out. In order to get reimbursed, the board of education has to approve and accept closure of the project. MOTION: a motion was made by Jim Feeney, seconded by Bob Ravens-Seger in accordance with the CGS Section 10-287c-11, the East Granby Board of Education approves and accepts the completion of the R.D. Seymour School Construction and Renovate as New Building Project, dated November 9, 2015; and authorizes the submission of the closing documents to the State Department of Education for grant reimbursement purposes. Motion approved unanimously. V. Committee Reports a. Policy - Bob Ravens-Seger explained what the subcommittee does to the new board members. Recently they worked on the wording of policies 1110.1-Parent Involvement and 5110-Student Attendance. Dr. Mahoney explained that for the entitlement grant, we had to demonstrate that we had parents involved in the discussion of policy 1110.1 so she invited parents to participate at the policy meetings. This is the first read; the second read and any discussion will take place at the next board meeting before motions to approve the policies are made. Bob Ravens-Seger explained that the changes to policy 5110 came from the state. Dr. Mahoney explained chronic absenteeism and the related attendance issues that will be addressed accordingly. The next policy subcommittee meeting is scheduled for November 25, 2015. b. Budget - Dr. Mahoney informed the board members that she is scheduling meetings with administrators if they would like to attend and that she is gathering information for the community forum. c. Curriculum - Dr. Adames explained what the subcommittee does to the new board members. Currently, they do not have any curriculum to review. d. Facilities - Bob Ravens-Seger explained what the subcommittee does to the new board members and that they sometimes invite Dave Wing to the meetings to discuss capital improvements. e. Negotiations - Joe Doering stated that negotiations will be discussed tonight in executive session and that board members are invited to attend scheduled negotiation meetings. All three contracts expire this year. f. Communications - Michele Holt reported that the communications subcommittee focuses on community engagement and that she contacted Ann Baldwin for a proposal to work on communicating the budget to the public again this year. VI. Recommended Actions a. Approve 2016-2017 School Year Calendar MOTION: a motion was made by Bob Ravens-Seger, seconded by Jim Feeney, to approve the 2016-2017 school year calendar as presented. Motion approved unanimously. b. Approve Field Trip Dr. Mahoney presented a field trip for 62 grade 8 students to travel to Symphony Hall in Springfield Massachusetts on December 16, 2015 to see the performance of Short Stories. Students will depart at approximately 9:15 a.m. and return at approximately 1:15 p.m. Cost to the student is $28.00. MOTION: a motion was made by Bob Ravens-Seger, seconded by Tom Short, to approve the field trip to Symphony Hall in Springfield Massachusetts on December 16, 2015 as presented. Motion approved unanimously. c. Approve October 2015 Financial Report Susan Greco explained that she is working on solidifying encumbrances and that the noncertified personnel line is down two paraprofessionals. Mrs. Greco is concerned that lines 430, 435, and 612 are almost depleted and it is only the end of October. Not everything is encumbered yet for line 510, and we still have not received all the invoices for out of district students.
MOTION: a motion was made by Bob Ravens-Seger, seconded by Jim Feeney, to approve the October 2015 Financials are presented. Motion approved unanimously. d. Approve Close Out of R.D. Seymour School Construction Project Previously approved. VII. Board Representative Reports a. CREC Joe Doering reported that he has not had the opportunity to attend a meeting recently. b. CABE Michele Holt shared that CABE is having a conference on November 21, 2015. It is a great opportunity to see what other district are doing and to bring back important information to share. Jim Grenon-Francoline added that they also have CABE on the Hill in the Spring. VIII. Agenda Items for Future Meetings a. Schedule Communications Subcommittee Meeting b. Enrollment c. Add New Committee Report IX. Comments from Visitors Sharon Shepherd asked the board to continue to monitor student enrollment and to monitor and track maintenance in buildings. Mr. Pitney reflected on the Veterans Day program at Carl Allgrove School. Lynn Monegan shared that both of her daughters are happy with their class size. X. Executive Session (Executive Session, if required, is held in accordance with P.A. 75-342) MOTION: a motion was made by Rob Crocker, seconded by Bob Ravens-Seger, to move into executive session to discuss negotiations. The board invited Dr. Mahoney and Susan Greco to attend. Motion approved unanimously. The Board moved into executive session at 9:05 p.m. XI. Adjournment The Board returned to regular session at 9:32 p.m. MOTION: a motion was made by Bob Ravens-Seger, seconded by Jim Feeney, to adjourn the meeting. Motion approved unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 9:33 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Lisa A. Kline Board Clerk These minutes are issued pending Board of Education approval.
East Granby Board of Education Executive Session Meeting Minutes for Monday, November 9, 2015 Board Members Present: Others Present: Mr. Joe Doering Dr. Christine Mahoney, Superintendent Mr. Jim Grenon-Francoline Mrs. Susan Greco, Business Manager Mrs. Michele Holt Dr. Rafael Adames Mr. James Feeney Mr. Bob Ravens-Seger Mr. John Welsh Mr. M. Tom Short Mr. Rob Crocker The Executive Session was called to order at 9:05 p.m. MOTION: a motion was made by Rob Crocker, seconded by Bob Ravens-Seger, to move into executive session to discuss negotiations. The board invited Dr. Mahoney and Susan Greco to attend. Motion approved unanimously. The Board returned to regular session at 9:32 p.m. MOTION: a motion was made by Bob Ravens-Seger, seconded by Jim Feeney, to adjourn the meeting. Motion approved unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 9:33 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Michele Holt, Board Secretary