The good news is that repeat air testing in the High School, after implementation of preliminary mitigation steps, show a significant reduction in the PCE and TCE vapors to levels well below the EPA "Action levels". The district will continue the mitigation (primarily increasing the air flow through the HVAC system) until more permanent solutions are in place. Plans are proceeding to install a "depressurization" system to lower the concentration of vapors beneath the slab to prevent them from entering the building.
The Board did spend more than an hour last night with representatives from Klinke Cleaners, the DNR, the testing company, and experts hired to guide the remediation. I was surprised to learn that soil contamination was first detected on the Klinke site in 2008, and removal of contaminated soil was done in 2010. Klinke Cleaners has been funding the testing and cleanup efforts at the high school. The Wisconsin dry cleaner's association does have a fund to help with the costs of environment remediation.
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In other business:
Technology update: the board heard a detailed report from IT Director Bill Herman on the state of our technology infrastructure. In brief: not good and falling behind, without outdated and inadequate equipment and support. Bill presented an "adequate funding" proposal that included a nearly $200K increase in funding to support our educational goals. You can find Bill's presentation here.
The one bright spot in: a federal stimulus funded program will bring us desperately needed high bandwidth internet access by the beginning of next year.
Buy a Bus seat: The board also considered a "Buy a seat" program where students within our new 2 mile walk zones would have the option to receive school bus transportation for a fee of $150 on a space available basis. It's unfortunate that we have to go this direction.
Nuestro Mundo Dual Language Immersion: The board considered the application process for the Nuestro Mundo program to be operated with the Madison School district in Maywood next year. Applicants have until June 29th this year to apply to enter the Kindergarten class. Monona Grove has up to 5 spots reserved, if more than 5 applications are received there will be a random draw for the positions.
Showing posts with label Monona Grove Board Meeting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Monona Grove Board Meeting. Show all posts
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Upcoming issues:
Wednesday's meeting is a "Committee of the Whole" - we will discuss but not act on any items. Here are some significant ones:
E. Discussion Items/Policy ReviewAs the reconstruction for Monona drive goes past the high school the entrance to the parking lot on the south side of the building needs to be relocated to make room for a protected left turn feature in the center of the road. The board is considering some of the options, which include moving the drive north so that it is opposite Lofty Ave, or moving it south so it is midway between Lofty and Springhaven. This second option would likely result in the removal of some of the trees in the corner of the lot. In either case we would need to reconfigure the parking, but it is possible to add several spaces.
1. Presentation of the Parking Lot Concepts for Monona Grove High School and Access Changes to
Monona Drive – Tom Lynch, Strand Associates
3. Update on Employee Handbook Process (10 Min)Our current contracts with employees will expire in July of 2012. By that time the district has to have a "handbook" in place that replaces the current contract and codifies in policy the relationship between the school district and its employees. I view this document as the most important project before the board as it will impact all aspects of operations for the foreseeable future.
7. High School Course Proposals: Paul Brost and High School TeachersPaul Brost and the High School staff will be presenting information on these proposed classes.
Physics, Honors Physics , Introduction to College Writing , AP Music Theory, and After
School At-Risk Program (30 Min)
Friday, September 30, 2011
Credit where no credit is due--
In this week's Herald-Independent Tom Reason delivers kudos to the school board for the decreased mill rate taxpayers we'll see in next year's bills. But no thanks are necessary, really - because it's not up to us! The tax levy and mill rate are essentially determined by the state funding formula.
This is how it works: the state has a complicated formula based on enrollment and previous funding which dictates the "revenue cap": the maximum revenue each district can raise. The state then tells the district how much of that revenue the state will provide. The difference between that state aid and the revenue cap then can be levied on local property. The mill rate ends up being the amount the district can levy divided by the total value of property in the district. (If property value goes up the mill rate will go down and vice-versa, because the total amount is fixed.)
So the slightly smaller levy this year is a natural consequence of the state budget which cut $650 per pupil from the magic funding formula for the revenue cap, nothing we on the board did.
Of course the school district could choose not levy to the revenue limit, but even after the million dollar reductions to compensation related to the "budget repair bill" the district was still more than $1.5 million in the hole. The deficit was made up by using all our federal stimulus funds and more than $900K in cuts.
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Speaking of budget cuts - the administration reported that there are 29 class sections in the high and middle schools that exceed class size guideline of 30 students. Last year that number was 4.
We can argue about how to best manage the situation, but the big picture is that we can't cut the budget a million at a whack without reducing services to students.
This is how it works: the state has a complicated formula based on enrollment and previous funding which dictates the "revenue cap": the maximum revenue each district can raise. The state then tells the district how much of that revenue the state will provide. The difference between that state aid and the revenue cap then can be levied on local property. The mill rate ends up being the amount the district can levy divided by the total value of property in the district. (If property value goes up the mill rate will go down and vice-versa, because the total amount is fixed.)
So the slightly smaller levy this year is a natural consequence of the state budget which cut $650 per pupil from the magic funding formula for the revenue cap, nothing we on the board did.
Of course the school district could choose not levy to the revenue limit, but even after the million dollar reductions to compensation related to the "budget repair bill" the district was still more than $1.5 million in the hole. The deficit was made up by using all our federal stimulus funds and more than $900K in cuts.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Speaking of budget cuts - the administration reported that there are 29 class sections in the high and middle schools that exceed class size guideline of 30 students. Last year that number was 4.
We can argue about how to best manage the situation, but the big picture is that we can't cut the budget a million at a whack without reducing services to students.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Budget time again
At Wednesday’s (9/14) meeting the Board reviewed the 2011-12 budget that will be presented for approval at the District's Annual Meeting (Oct. 5th). Although the numbers aren’t final until the September enrollment counts and the certification of state aid in October, the estimated general fund expenditures for the year will be $33,753,104. Due to factors including a $650 reduction in the per pupil revenue limit and a $1.4M reduction in state aids, the budget started with a deficit of approximately $2.75M (about 8%) relative to "cost to continue".
The operating fund deficit was closed in three ways:
1)About $900K in cuts that were approved by the board last spring, these include the consolidation of Maywood and Winnequah Elementary schools as well as staff reductions: your student may have noticed larger class sizes, particularly in the high school.
2) Use of $850K in federal ARRA (stimulus bill) funds. The $850K is equal to the cost of about 15 teachers that the district can continue to employ. The ARRA funds have to be used this year and next, we chose to use the entire amount this year.
3) Just over $1M reduction in compensation for the teachers and staff. A teacher will see a reduction in take home pay equal to 12.8% of the health care costs plus half the WRS pension contribution.
Total local property tax collections for general fund revenues are limited by the revenue cap and should be down slightly, but less than 2%.
The operating fund deficit was closed in three ways:
1)About $900K in cuts that were approved by the board last spring, these include the consolidation of Maywood and Winnequah Elementary schools as well as staff reductions: your student may have noticed larger class sizes, particularly in the high school.
2) Use of $850K in federal ARRA (stimulus bill) funds. The $850K is equal to the cost of about 15 teachers that the district can continue to employ. The ARRA funds have to be used this year and next, we chose to use the entire amount this year.
3) Just over $1M reduction in compensation for the teachers and staff. A teacher will see a reduction in take home pay equal to 12.8% of the health care costs plus half the WRS pension contribution.
Total local property tax collections for general fund revenues are limited by the revenue cap and should be down slightly, but less than 2%.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
March 30 meeting
The board will meet tomorrow Wednesday with a few items on the agenda. In closed session the board will:
In open session the board will:
III. Motion to Move into Closed Session Pursuant to Wisconsin Statutes 19.85 (1)(c)
(e) for Consideration and Deliberation Regarding Administrative Contracts/Salaries,
Superintendent Evaluation, Possible Contract Extensions for Support Staff,
Possible Negotiation of Resignation Agreement with an Employee and Strategies
for Real Estate Practices Regarding School District Properties.
In open session the board will:
The board will review the planning grant application proposed by a group of Monona residents for "the Monona Grove Environmental and Health Sciences Charter School" designed to serve as many as 75 middle school students with a project based learning environment. You can review the document here.
A. Discussion and Possible Approval of Planning Grant Application for School of
Health and Environmental Sciences - Nancy Gagnon and Stephanie Ramer (30 Min)
B. Discussion and Possible Approval of Open Enrollment Recommendations (30 Min)The proposed 2011-13 state budget puts the district in need of significantly more budget cuts than we had planned- the board will consider recommendations for the administration for different directions we can go.
C. Discussion of 2011-2012 Budget Reduction Items. (60 Min)
Monday, December 20, 2010
Tomorrow evening (Tuesday Dec. 21st)the board will meet in the Winnequah cafeteria with one item on the open agenda:
More can be found in the Herald-Independent article here.
Update: The meeting was anti-climatic with just one public speaker and relatively brief debate. On a 5-2 vote, the motion for the district to proceed with the consolidation of the Maywood and Winnequah in the Winnequah building for the 2011-2012 school year carried.
V. Unfinished Business
A. Discussion and Possible Approval of Consolidation of Maywood & Winnequah Schools
More can be found in the Herald-Independent article here.
Update: The meeting was anti-climatic with just one public speaker and relatively brief debate. On a 5-2 vote, the motion for the district to proceed with the consolidation of the Maywood and Winnequah in the Winnequah building for the 2011-2012 school year carried.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
December board meeting wrap-up
In the public appearances section of the meeting MGEA representative Kevin Mikelbank noted that in consideration of the status of the ongoing negotiations the teacher's union has suspended their "work to the contract" job action, and that teachers would now participate in activities such as writing student letters of recommendation.
Update: I misinterpreted Kevin's remarks above. Although teachers will now write letters of recommendation they are continuing other aspects of the "work to the contract" job action
After the remaining preliminaries, the board heard first from PMA financial consultants who perform a 5 year budget forecast for the district each year. This year's preliminary model assumes zero enrollment growth and $200/year increase in the revenue cap - in all likelihood we will see a smaller increase. Even so, the preliminary projections show a deficit that increases $700K to $1M each of the next five years, and unless a miracle occurs in the state budget process it will quite probably be worse. Ugh.
Two other financial items were on the table last night:
The annual audit report from the firm of Rielly, Penner & Benton LLC. Again we received an "unqualified opinion" -indicating a clean audit with no significant discrepancies or issues.
The second item was the overpayments made in the last two years to some of the teaching staff. It was reported that a total of 45 teaching staff were overpaid a total of $27K over the last two years, and 8 retirees a total of about $4500. The problem relates to calculations of longevity as they were effected by a negotiated one time "step freeze" to salaries in the 90's. The overpayments were the district's mistake: both the paychecks and the salary information sheet distributed to the teachers were incorrect. The error was brought to the administration's attention by one of the teacher. The board agreed to not pursue recovery of the overpayments, considering the relatively small amounts involved, the fact that it was a district error and costs and effort to recoup.
The board heard not one but two presentations from Deb Lyons (perhaps the hardest working person in the district"?). The first was a rundown, with Christa Macomber on ongoing continuous improvement efforts in each building in the district, including discussion of academic and behavioural issues with data and goals.
Deb's second presentation concerned a proposal for a consulting agreement with Brenda Clark and Matthew Fail to provide assistance in "implementing a systems approach to continual improvement focused on strategic planning at all levels of the district." The proposal, which includes a plan and timeline for the next 18 months include all levels in the district in training and implementation of plan driven continuous improvement processes. The total cost of the proposal is about $50K and would be funded out of already budgeted professional development funds and revenue from the district's recent "Aligned by Design" training sessions that attracted participants from around the area.
Brenda Clark is Author of "Running all the Red Lights, A Journey of Statewide Educational Reform", and former Associate Superintendent for Education at Iredell-Statesville School District in North Carolina (where she once held the title of Chief Quality Officer!). Brenda has already participated in training sessions in the district and has our confidence. I support this proposal because it provides a definitive timeline and goals, and provides access to significant expertise that we will need to get these things done.
The board also discussed disposition of the Monona school properties. As you know, we will be voting on the proposal for consolidating Maywood and Winnequah on December 21st. The board appeared to be in consensus on moving forward with selling the Nichols property. The next step is to call a special meeting of the electorate to get approval for the sale. This will indicate our seriousness to proceed with any proposals. If we were to sell Nichols we would have to find a new location for the current occupants, including the administration and MG21. Although I would suspect we will have plenty of time to consider this issue, there isn't any pressing reason to vacate the property until an agreement is reached.
Update: I misinterpreted Kevin's remarks above. Although teachers will now write letters of recommendation they are continuing other aspects of the "work to the contract" job action
After the remaining preliminaries, the board heard first from PMA financial consultants who perform a 5 year budget forecast for the district each year. This year's preliminary model assumes zero enrollment growth and $200/year increase in the revenue cap - in all likelihood we will see a smaller increase. Even so, the preliminary projections show a deficit that increases $700K to $1M each of the next five years, and unless a miracle occurs in the state budget process it will quite probably be worse. Ugh.
Two other financial items were on the table last night:
The annual audit report from the firm of Rielly, Penner & Benton LLC. Again we received an "unqualified opinion" -indicating a clean audit with no significant discrepancies or issues.
The second item was the overpayments made in the last two years to some of the teaching staff. It was reported that a total of 45 teaching staff were overpaid a total of $27K over the last two years, and 8 retirees a total of about $4500. The problem relates to calculations of longevity as they were effected by a negotiated one time "step freeze" to salaries in the 90's. The overpayments were the district's mistake: both the paychecks and the salary information sheet distributed to the teachers were incorrect. The error was brought to the administration's attention by one of the teacher. The board agreed to not pursue recovery of the overpayments, considering the relatively small amounts involved, the fact that it was a district error and costs and effort to recoup.
The board heard not one but two presentations from Deb Lyons (perhaps the hardest working person in the district"?). The first was a rundown, with Christa Macomber on ongoing continuous improvement efforts in each building in the district, including discussion of academic and behavioural issues with data and goals.
Deb's second presentation concerned a proposal for a consulting agreement with Brenda Clark and Matthew Fail to provide assistance in "implementing a systems approach to continual improvement focused on strategic planning at all levels of the district." The proposal, which includes a plan and timeline for the next 18 months include all levels in the district in training and implementation of plan driven continuous improvement processes. The total cost of the proposal is about $50K and would be funded out of already budgeted professional development funds and revenue from the district's recent "Aligned by Design" training sessions that attracted participants from around the area.
Brenda Clark is Author of "Running all the Red Lights, A Journey of Statewide Educational Reform", and former Associate Superintendent for Education at Iredell-Statesville School District in North Carolina (where she once held the title of Chief Quality Officer!). Brenda has already participated in training sessions in the district and has our confidence. I support this proposal because it provides a definitive timeline and goals, and provides access to significant expertise that we will need to get these things done.
The board also discussed disposition of the Monona school properties. As you know, we will be voting on the proposal for consolidating Maywood and Winnequah on December 21st. The board appeared to be in consensus on moving forward with selling the Nichols property. The next step is to call a special meeting of the electorate to get approval for the sale. This will indicate our seriousness to proceed with any proposals. If we were to sell Nichols we would have to find a new location for the current occupants, including the administration and MG21. Although I would suspect we will have plenty of time to consider this issue, there isn't any pressing reason to vacate the property until an agreement is reached.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Post Game Wrap-up
I arrived back from a camping trip about an hour and half before tonight's meeting, so couldn't post a preview - but here is the "postview":
We had a long agenda of somewhat bureaucratic items including approval of contracts with Chartwells for school food service; changes to the new alternative High School charter (henceforth to be know as the MG Liberal Arts Charter School for the 21st Century); approval participation in Impact Concussion program; adopting Opportunities Inc. as alternative education site (this is a school to work vocational training program in manufacturing); the new Extracurricular Code of Conduct; and acceptance of a bid from ABM Janitorial Services for custodial services.
In other business we discussed and approved a plan put forward by Craig to restructure the Continuous Improvement/Assessment Coordinator position until recently held by Ed O'Connor. Craig proposed, and the board approved, splitting the duties with Deb Lyons (currently part time Assistant Principal at Maywood) picking up the Continuous Improvement responsibilities part time and School Psychologist Christa Macomber picking up the Assessment Coordinator responsibilities part time. The duties/responsibilities of these positions are expected to evolve over time.
Ed, by the way, has started a consulting business offering districts his expertise in assessment and continuous improvement. Ed apparently was even offered (but didn't accept) a position in Madison similar to the one he held at MG. Given Ed's experience and the great deal of progress he helped us make at MG, I think he is in a position to do a lot of good for his new clients.
On a similar note, the board approved a plan to restructure the Diversity Coordinator position currently held by Charlie Ellis, creating two part time positions: one focused at the High School and including responsibility for he Monona Elementary schools and one focused at Glacial Drumlin and including responsibility for the CG elementary schools.
Craig did give an update on the issue of the over payments made by the district: Due to a clerical error, about 50 teachers were paid more than the contract (I won't say they were "overpaid"!) over the last 2 years. The amount is estimated to be $20-40K in total, less than $1000 per teacher. The error is apparently related to calculation of the longevity of some of those teachers who have been with the district since the pay freeze in 1996.
The board also approved a contract with Jerrud Rossing as the new Director of Business Services. Jerrud comes to us from the Hudson School District where he is the Financial Services Manager.
Lastly, as Craig noted the Board received a summary of the appraisal of the Nichols property in closed session. The details of the appraisal won't be made public for now, but it does raise the question: what do you think the district should do with the property?
We had a long agenda of somewhat bureaucratic items including approval of contracts with Chartwells for school food service; changes to the new alternative High School charter (henceforth to be know as the MG Liberal Arts Charter School for the 21st Century); approval participation in Impact Concussion program; adopting Opportunities Inc. as alternative education site (this is a school to work vocational training program in manufacturing); the new Extracurricular Code of Conduct; and acceptance of a bid from ABM Janitorial Services for custodial services.
In other business we discussed and approved a plan put forward by Craig to restructure the Continuous Improvement/Assessment Coordinator position until recently held by Ed O'Connor. Craig proposed, and the board approved, splitting the duties with Deb Lyons (currently part time Assistant Principal at Maywood) picking up the Continuous Improvement responsibilities part time and School Psychologist Christa Macomber picking up the Assessment Coordinator responsibilities part time. The duties/responsibilities of these positions are expected to evolve over time.
Ed, by the way, has started a consulting business offering districts his expertise in assessment and continuous improvement. Ed apparently was even offered (but didn't accept) a position in Madison similar to the one he held at MG. Given Ed's experience and the great deal of progress he helped us make at MG, I think he is in a position to do a lot of good for his new clients.
On a similar note, the board approved a plan to restructure the Diversity Coordinator position currently held by Charlie Ellis, creating two part time positions: one focused at the High School and including responsibility for he Monona Elementary schools and one focused at Glacial Drumlin and including responsibility for the CG elementary schools.
Craig did give an update on the issue of the over payments made by the district: Due to a clerical error, about 50 teachers were paid more than the contract (I won't say they were "overpaid"!) over the last 2 years. The amount is estimated to be $20-40K in total, less than $1000 per teacher. The error is apparently related to calculation of the longevity of some of those teachers who have been with the district since the pay freeze in 1996.
The board also approved a contract with Jerrud Rossing as the new Director of Business Services. Jerrud comes to us from the Hudson School District where he is the Financial Services Manager.
Lastly, as Craig noted the Board received a summary of the appraisal of the Nichols property in closed session. The details of the appraisal won't be made public for now, but it does raise the question: what do you think the district should do with the property?
Friday, May 28, 2010
Jet lag-
In the public comments section several teachers spoke regarding the contract negotiations, generally requesting that the board remove the modifications to the retirement benefits from the contract proposal. On a related topic we received written notification that several teachers would no longer be participating in some activities viewed to be beyond the terms of the contract.
Other items of note:
In unfinished business the board heard a discussion of, and approved, adoption of new biology text books necessary for the changes to the high school science curriculum.
The board approved administrative salaries with no increase for the coming contract year.
The board discussed the location of the Alt. High School for next year and agreed to move ahead with moving the program to the Nichols building. At the last meeting there had been some discussion of moving this program to Winnequah, but there simply had not been time to thoroughly examine how that option would work or to inform and recieve feedback from the public.
Susan Fox announced committee appointments. Appointment of board members are made by the board president, with the citizen membership made in consultation with the committee chairs. The committees will be:
Business Services
Chair: Susan Manning
Susan Fox, Lionel Norton, Kathy Thomas (MN), Jeff Simpson (CG)
Policy: Chair: Lionel Norton
Jessica Ace, Susan Manning, Beth Bingham (MN), Sharon Henes (CG)
Curriculum : Chair: Peter Sobol
Jason McCutchin, Jill List, Andrew Bridell (MN), Jim Foley (CG)
The highlight of the evening was the presentation of continuous improvement activities in the district. This detailed presentation examined efforts and results related to instructional facilitation in the High School, school climate at Glacial Drumlin, reading interventions in Winnequah, and math instruction at Cottage Grove Elementary. We have seen significant positive results with these efforts, but mostly it is good to see that a continuous improvement model of operation is taking hold in the district - and it shows the importance of the resources necessary to support and develop these activities. Although many staff members have made significant contributions, I don't think we would be where we are without the leadership of Ed O'Connor and John Faust, both of whom are leaving the district at the end of the year.
The board also received notice that Mary Ellen Van Valin, Business Services director is leaving the district. The Herald-Independent has coverage here. As Treasurer I have worked closely with Mary Ellen and can't say enough about her talents and how much this district relies on her expertise and experience to keep things running smoothly.
Friday, May 14, 2010
So what's been going on?
At Wednesday's board meeting we received a report from several Maywood staff members who detailed the implementation, management and results of the RtI programming in the school. I thought the presentation was an excellent illustration of how leadership, support services, professional development and science of education all need to come together to deliver a quality education.
Other items of note:
The board approved final notices of layoff for 11 teachers; 5 of the notices are only reductions in hours, and 2 of those eliminated were part time- the total reduction is 6.44FTE.
Some of these reductions are not related to budget cuts, but are the usual changes we see each spring due to things like leave of absence returns and adjustments for changing numbers of students.
We also spent some time discussing committee responsibilities. I have proposed that the board take some action to either expand committee roles or create special committees to address specific issues. I think we have a lot of public interest in helping the district this year and I don't think the traditional committee structures will be able to take full advantage of that support. The areas that I am concerned about are the budget and performance. We have very difficult budget problems before us, and we are really in need of innovative ideas if we are to avoid a death by a thousand cuts in the coming years. I also believe the board should create or adapt a structure to formalize its attention to issues of performance in the district. The idea is to institutionalize a focus on educational performance at the board level so that these issues get the recognition and attention that they need.
The board also discussed the location of the Alt. High School. Currently we are leasing space in a separate building, the idea is to bring the program into a district owned building to both provide more space (needed for expansion and enhanced programming) and save a bit of money. We had been considering moving the program into Nichols, but last night we also considered utilizing space in Winnequah School. The board needs to make this decision by the end of the month. In the end the board asked for the administration to provide additional information associated with the costs and issues of both options.
Other items of note:
The board approved final notices of layoff for 11 teachers; 5 of the notices are only reductions in hours, and 2 of those eliminated were part time- the total reduction is 6.44FTE.
Some of these reductions are not related to budget cuts, but are the usual changes we see each spring due to things like leave of absence returns and adjustments for changing numbers of students.
We also spent some time discussing committee responsibilities. I have proposed that the board take some action to either expand committee roles or create special committees to address specific issues. I think we have a lot of public interest in helping the district this year and I don't think the traditional committee structures will be able to take full advantage of that support. The areas that I am concerned about are the budget and performance. We have very difficult budget problems before us, and we are really in need of innovative ideas if we are to avoid a death by a thousand cuts in the coming years. I also believe the board should create or adapt a structure to formalize its attention to issues of performance in the district. The idea is to institutionalize a focus on educational performance at the board level so that these issues get the recognition and attention that they need.
The board also discussed the location of the Alt. High School. Currently we are leasing space in a separate building, the idea is to bring the program into a district owned building to both provide more space (needed for expansion and enhanced programming) and save a bit of money. We had been considering moving the program into Nichols, but last night we also considered utilizing space in Winnequah School. The board needs to make this decision by the end of the month. In the end the board asked for the administration to provide additional information associated with the costs and issues of both options.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
April 14th meeting...
Items of note:
New Business
A. Discussion and Possible Approval of MG Alternative School revamp, (30 mins)including new charter and implementation grant application to DPI
(Rebecca Fox-Blair and Bill McDonald)
The MG Alt. High School needs to update their charter to bring them into compliance with federal guidelines. At the same time by rechartering the school it will be eligible for a 2 year "implementation grant" that will provide funds for curriculum development, equipment, workstations, software and furnishings - allowsing a significant upgrade to the offerings of the alt. school.
C. Discussion and Possible Approval of 9th Grade Biology, Beginning (30 mins) 2010-2011 - MGHS Science Department Staff & Bill Breisch
In an effort to align HS science offerings with College readiness standards, the high school science staff is proposing to expand biology to a full year for freshmen (2010-2011 school year) and chemistry to a full year for sophomores (2011-2012 school year). Honors courses will also be offered.
D. Discussion Regarding District Racial Issues (45 mins)
(Renee Tennant, Paul Brost and Charles Ellis)
As you probably know we have some difficult racial issues to address. Paul, Rennee and Charlie Ellis will provide us with an update on the situation and efforts to improve the environment for all students.
E. Discussion and Possible Approval of 2010-2011 Teacher Preliminary (10 mins)Notices of Layoff
Teachers contracts automatically extend for the next school year at the end of April, so we need to authorize preliminary layoff notices that reflect the budget cuts agreed to by the board before the deadline.
New Business
A. Discussion and Possible Approval of MG Alternative School revamp, (30 mins)including new charter and implementation grant application to DPI
(Rebecca Fox-Blair and Bill McDonald)
The MG Alt. High School needs to update their charter to bring them into compliance with federal guidelines. At the same time by rechartering the school it will be eligible for a 2 year "implementation grant" that will provide funds for curriculum development, equipment, workstations, software and furnishings - allowsing a significant upgrade to the offerings of the alt. school.
C. Discussion and Possible Approval of 9th Grade Biology, Beginning (30 mins) 2010-2011 - MGHS Science Department Staff & Bill Breisch
In an effort to align HS science offerings with College readiness standards, the high school science staff is proposing to expand biology to a full year for freshmen (2010-2011 school year) and chemistry to a full year for sophomores (2011-2012 school year). Honors courses will also be offered.
D. Discussion Regarding District Racial Issues (45 mins)
(Renee Tennant, Paul Brost and Charles Ellis)
As you probably know we have some difficult racial issues to address. Paul, Rennee and Charlie Ellis will provide us with an update on the situation and efforts to improve the environment for all students.
E. Discussion and Possible Approval of 2010-2011 Teacher Preliminary (10 mins)Notices of Layoff
Teachers contracts automatically extend for the next school year at the end of April, so we need to authorize preliminary layoff notices that reflect the budget cuts agreed to by the board before the deadline.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Final (this year!) Recommendation.
This is the final administrative recommendation for the budget cuts. Two lists have been sent to the board, they include $773,500 in cuts, plus an additional list of items to be cut should the board choose not to consolidate Maywood and Winnequah for a savings of $259,000.
Recommendation:
Additional Cuts without the Maywood/Winnequah Consolidation:
These last 3 items are of grave concern to me as they will clearly have a negative impact on learning, and our core mission, district wide.
Recommendation:
Staffing reductions per class size guidelines policy (3 FTE) $165,000
Staffing reductions of 2.0 FTE Paraprofessional per class staffing needs $66,000
Special Education: Reduce Occupational Therapy Staff by .4 FTE $14,000
Special Education: Reduce Speech & Language by .3 FTE $10,000
District Administrator’s Office Budget $32,000
Building Budgets/Department Budgets – decrease by 5% $25,000
Increase student fees by 5% $10,000
Elementary Related Arts: Increase the instructional minutes that define FTE workload for Related Arts from 1280 to 1350 minutes of weekly instruction $17,500
Class Size: Change class size suggested ranges Middle School/High School $80,000
Reduce Maintenance/Custodial Overtime $20,000
Class Size: Increase High School Class Size to 26 $105,000
Reduce Staffing in 6-8 Music programs by 1 FTE $55,000
Reduce Athletic Budgets across middle and high school by 5% $23,000
Diversity Coordinator: Change to non-administrative position $10,000
Outsource Custodial Staff: 4 of 12 positions outsourced $116,000
SUBTOTAL $773,500
Additional Cuts without the Maywood/Winnequah Consolidation:
Extend walk area to 2 mile maximum $35,000
IMC Paraprofessionals – Eliminate all (4 FTE) IMC paraprofessionals (CG, TP, GD & HS) $132,000
Elementary Related Arts: Reduce instructional minutes per week (Art, Music, PE) grades 3-5 and K-2 (Art only) $91,000
Elementary Assistant Principal- Reduce to 40% at Maywood $22,000
These last 3 items are of grave concern to me as they will clearly have a negative impact on learning, and our core mission, district wide.
Monday, March 8, 2010
A change of venue....
Wednesday's meeting will be held in Winnequah school, in order to accomodate the expected turnout. The full agenda can be found here.
Items of note:
We again received a large number of open enrollment requests, a total of 212 in and 41 out. The majority of applications (77) are for the high school, another 47 are for Glacial Drumlin. The next largest group is T4K which has 21 applications. Each OE student brings with them 2/3 of the usual funding, so under the right circumstances they can improve the budget picture. We can't turn down OE applications unless we don't have space
Information about the possible move is found by clicking here.
The administration has made an educational and management case for combining the the 6th grade student into Glacial Drumlin. Against that I balance the "contract" of the last referendum that placed the 6th graders in their home communities. The communication I have had on this one has been mixed.
Class sizes are big drivers of cost in the district, they impact our open enrollment options and teacher overload pay, but clearly the individual attention a student gets decreases as class size.
Items of note:
IX. New Business
C. Discussion of Open Enrollment Report (30 Min)
We again received a large number of open enrollment requests, a total of 212 in and 41 out. The majority of applications (77) are for the high school, another 47 are for Glacial Drumlin. The next largest group is T4K which has 21 applications. Each OE student brings with them 2/3 of the usual funding, so under the right circumstances they can improve the budget picture. We can't turn down OE applications unless we don't have space
X. Unfinished Business
B. Discussion and Possible Approval of Location of 6th Grade Programming (30 Min)
Information about the possible move is found by clicking here.
The administration has made an educational and management case for combining the the 6th grade student into Glacial Drumlin. Against that I balance the "contract" of the last referendum that placed the 6th graders in their home communities. The communication I have had on this one has been mixed.
C. Discussion of Budget Reduction Proposals (30 Min)
D. Discussion of Possible Consolidation of Maywood & Winnequah Schools (30 Min)
E. Discussion and Possible Approval of Revisions to Board Rule 343.2
Guidelines for Class Size (20 Min)
Class sizes are big drivers of cost in the district, they impact our open enrollment options and teacher overload pay, but clearly the individual attention a student gets decreases as class size.
F. Discussion of District Split Study 2005 (10 Min)This issue has been raised by members of the community and board members. I dug up the editorial I wrote that was featured in the Cap Times after attending the 2005 split study report:
Recently the results of a study examining the impact that splitting the Monona Grove School District would have on programming was presented to the MGHS School Board and the citizens of Monona and Cottage Grove. The study identified four small school districts, similar in size and funding to the Monona only district that would result from a MGSD split, and compared those programs to the current Monona Grove High School. According to the study, when compared to MGHS, these small schools:
1. Offer half the number of core courses (average 37 vs. 70).
2. Offer half the number of elective courses (average 38 vs. 74)
3. Struggle to offer AP courses because of a lack of willing or qualified teachers.
4. Rely on “creative solutions”, such as distance learning and online courses, as a substitute for classroom instruction.
5. Offer fewer athletic options outside the “major” sports
6. Have only one or two teachers per subject area.
7. Have difficulty retaining qualified administrators as they use small districts as stepping-stones to larger districts.
8. Share staff between middle and high schools.
9. Often have all K-12 students in a single facility.
10. Have special education students attend regular courses because there are not resources to offer separate classes.
11. Have fewer co-curricular offerings (example: none of the comparable schools offered an Orchestra)
12. And in at least one case were unable to offer the foreign language of choice because of the inability to find a qualified teacher.
Despite the stated theme of the presentation (”Not Good, Not Bad. - Just Different”) the issues identified in the study are, indeed, objectively bad. The issues raised by the study are certainly not consistent with the kind of educational opportunities this community expects for its children, nor are they consistent with the quality schools that drew us to Monona. For these reasons we oppose splitting our great Monona Grove School District!
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Tomorrow's board meeting...
Tommorrow board meeting agenda can be found here.
Items of Note:
X. Unfinished Business
A. Discussion and Possible Approval of 6th Grade Programming - Content and Location (30 Min)
In the past we have asked for an evaluation of best practices for 6th grade school programming, i.e. whether or not a middle school or elementary curriculum better serves students. The board will receive an administrative report summarizing the research and the practices of other districts.
B. Discussion of Possible Consolidation of Maywood & Winnequah Schools (30 Min)
The board will hear about the details of a possible consolidation, including the logistics of Winnequah as K-6 and any capital expenses incurred.
C. Discussion and Possible Approval of Addition of Modular Units in Cottage Grove (20 Min)
We will also hear an assesment of possible needs for additional space at Cottage Grove elementary for next year.
XI. New Business
A. Presentation by Deb Lyons: A Comparison Analysis of the United States and the Chinese Education Systems
What this district needs is new ideas for ways to provide quality education within the budget constraints. Comparison to other systems is an excellent way to develop ideas and creative solutions.
Items of Note:
X. Unfinished Business
A. Discussion and Possible Approval of 6th Grade Programming - Content and Location (30 Min)
In the past we have asked for an evaluation of best practices for 6th grade school programming, i.e. whether or not a middle school or elementary curriculum better serves students. The board will receive an administrative report summarizing the research and the practices of other districts.
B. Discussion of Possible Consolidation of Maywood & Winnequah Schools (30 Min)
The board will hear about the details of a possible consolidation, including the logistics of Winnequah as K-6 and any capital expenses incurred.
C. Discussion and Possible Approval of Addition of Modular Units in Cottage Grove (20 Min)
We will also hear an assesment of possible needs for additional space at Cottage Grove elementary for next year.
XI. New Business
A. Presentation by Deb Lyons: A Comparison Analysis of the United States and the Chinese Education Systems
What this district needs is new ideas for ways to provide quality education within the budget constraints. Comparison to other systems is an excellent way to develop ideas and creative solutions.
Friday, January 29, 2010
The third rail...
Peter McKeever kicked things off last night with a thoughtful call to the board not to cut the budget. Peter is right that the future rests on the investment we make in educating the next generation, and that cut backs can be short sighted. This is particularly true in the situation where we are not talking about a one time reduction due to the economy, but an ongoing structural deficit that will year after year erode public education. Peter called for additional public investment and taxes to restore school budgets and asked the school board to take a leadership role in strengthening public education. I would add that according to http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/index.php, WI state and local spending on primary and secondary education has declined by 7% (as a percentage of GDP) since the year 2000.
The board moved to hearing the results of the annual financial audit, and received (as usual) a clean unqualified report from the auditors. We also heard from a reports concerning the new teacher project and the January head count (up 12 students since September). The board also decided to issue preliminary notice of non-renewal to several administrators. These are due to budgetary considerations and unrelated to any job performance issues, it also does not necessarily mean we will be terminating these staff members. In a related action the board approved one year (down from the standard two year contracts) for several other administrators, in order to keep these options available for next year. Again, none of these actions are performance related.
The board then had a brief discussion concerning the Nichols property. Although no consensus was apparent, IMHO the location is a valuable piece of real estate and the best interest of the district is that it should be on the tax rolls and working for the economic development of the community.
The board then approved a recommendation from the administration concerning the 4k-8 study report. I don't have the language, but essentially the motion stated that in consideration of the costs the district not pursue separate 4k-8 programs in each community. We talked about some of the other grade configuration committee's recommendations, there was particular focus on the issue of studying combining 6th grades in GDS. The consensus from the staff seems to be there may be significant cost and educational benefits to this move. Personally, I would be reluctant to approve this without a significant show of community support as the current configuration was approved in the 2006 referendum.
The board then reviewed the board and administrator surveys of the budget cut items. The surveys were designed to solicit judgments about the impact of each proposed budget cut relative to the board goals. A copy of the board version of the survey can be found by clicking here.
The compiled survey results can be found clicking here. There are three pages: administrator averages, board averages and a comparison of rankings.
In general I found no surprises in the results, with general agreement between the board and administration on nearly all items.
I don't have access to my original answers on the survey (when I clicked the "next" key it disappeared into cyberspace) I will reproduce my answers to the best of my ability and post them here tomorrow. Its the best I can do.
Craig then presented an initial proposal from the budget reduction list totalling $1.008M dollars. I will publish that list separately also. There was some discussion about a few items on the list, such as the teacher mentor program, and some items that aren't, such as the proposal for Maywood-Winnequah consolidation.
The board and the district are faced with some stark choices, and the current proposal falls heavily on our music, related arts and encore curriculum. The Maywood-Winnequah consolidation may give us the opportunity to significantly mitigate the impact of these cuts to staff and curriculum; I believe that we owe it to the community, students and the dedicated teachers responsible for these programs to take a hard look at this option.
The board moved to hearing the results of the annual financial audit, and received (as usual) a clean unqualified report from the auditors. We also heard from a reports concerning the new teacher project and the January head count (up 12 students since September). The board also decided to issue preliminary notice of non-renewal to several administrators. These are due to budgetary considerations and unrelated to any job performance issues, it also does not necessarily mean we will be terminating these staff members. In a related action the board approved one year (down from the standard two year contracts) for several other administrators, in order to keep these options available for next year. Again, none of these actions are performance related.
The board then had a brief discussion concerning the Nichols property. Although no consensus was apparent, IMHO the location is a valuable piece of real estate and the best interest of the district is that it should be on the tax rolls and working for the economic development of the community.
The board then approved a recommendation from the administration concerning the 4k-8 study report. I don't have the language, but essentially the motion stated that in consideration of the costs the district not pursue separate 4k-8 programs in each community. We talked about some of the other grade configuration committee's recommendations, there was particular focus on the issue of studying combining 6th grades in GDS. The consensus from the staff seems to be there may be significant cost and educational benefits to this move. Personally, I would be reluctant to approve this without a significant show of community support as the current configuration was approved in the 2006 referendum.
The board then reviewed the board and administrator surveys of the budget cut items. The surveys were designed to solicit judgments about the impact of each proposed budget cut relative to the board goals. A copy of the board version of the survey can be found by clicking here.
The compiled survey results can be found clicking here. There are three pages: administrator averages, board averages and a comparison of rankings.
In general I found no surprises in the results, with general agreement between the board and administration on nearly all items.
I don't have access to my original answers on the survey (when I clicked the "next" key it disappeared into cyberspace) I will reproduce my answers to the best of my ability and post them here tomorrow. Its the best I can do.
Craig then presented an initial proposal from the budget reduction list totalling $1.008M dollars. I will publish that list separately also. There was some discussion about a few items on the list, such as the teacher mentor program, and some items that aren't, such as the proposal for Maywood-Winnequah consolidation.
The board and the district are faced with some stark choices, and the current proposal falls heavily on our music, related arts and encore curriculum. The Maywood-Winnequah consolidation may give us the opportunity to significantly mitigate the impact of these cuts to staff and curriculum; I believe that we owe it to the community, students and the dedicated teachers responsible for these programs to take a hard look at this option.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Squeezing in...
The Herald-Independent complained about the lack of space in the Nichols Board room during our last meeting, at this time I don't know if there is a plan to fix the problem for Wednesday's meeting.
Items of note:
IX. New Business
B. Report on Second Friday in January Enrollment Count (10 Min)
Enrollment edged up again between September and January.
E. Discussion and Possible Approval of Preliminary Notice of Non-Renewal of Administrator
Contracts – Craig Gerlach (5 Min.)
Admin contracts automatically roll over at the end of January unless we issue Notice of Non-Renewal. In order to keep our budget options open we will need to issue notices.
F. Discussion of Use of Nichols School Property (15 Min)
What direction should we take with the Nichols property? IMHO this is a valuable piece of real estate that should be on the tax rolls and working for the economy of our district. (P.S. any sale of district property requires approval of the electorate, the board doesn't have authority.)
X. Unfinished Business
A. Discussion and Possible Approval of Recommendation of Report on 4K-8 Grade
Configuration (10 Min)
The 4k-8 report generated very little discussion at our last meeting, the costs pretty much spoke for themselves.
B. Discussion of Additional Recommendations on the Ad Hoc Committee to Study Grade
Configuration for Grades 4K-8 (45 Min)
C. Discussion of Budget Reduction Proposals & Hearing Schedule
More budget cutting discussions. We should have the results from the administration survey collated for our review.
Items of note:
IX. New Business
B. Report on Second Friday in January Enrollment Count (10 Min)
Enrollment edged up again between September and January.
E. Discussion and Possible Approval of Preliminary Notice of Non-Renewal of Administrator
Contracts – Craig Gerlach (5 Min.)
Admin contracts automatically roll over at the end of January unless we issue Notice of Non-Renewal. In order to keep our budget options open we will need to issue notices.
F. Discussion of Use of Nichols School Property (15 Min)
What direction should we take with the Nichols property? IMHO this is a valuable piece of real estate that should be on the tax rolls and working for the economy of our district. (P.S. any sale of district property requires approval of the electorate, the board doesn't have authority.)
X. Unfinished Business
A. Discussion and Possible Approval of Recommendation of Report on 4K-8 Grade
Configuration (10 Min)
The 4k-8 report generated very little discussion at our last meeting, the costs pretty much spoke for themselves.
B. Discussion of Additional Recommendations on the Ad Hoc Committee to Study Grade
Configuration for Grades 4K-8 (45 Min)
C. Discussion of Budget Reduction Proposals & Hearing Schedule
More budget cutting discussions. We should have the results from the administration survey collated for our review.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Wednesday's meeting
Next Wednesday's board meeting agenda can be found here.
Items of note:
X. New Business
B. Discussion and Possible Approval of Writing Basics II New High School Course Proposal – Diane Jensen (10 min)
Diane will present a proposal for a new high school elective designed to improve the writing skills of students identified in the bottom quartile in the EPAS writing assessments.
F. Discussion and Possible Approval of Preliminary Notice of Non-Renewal of Administrator
Contracts – Craig Gerlach (5 Min.)
Administrator contracts renew each year at the end of January, several administrators were on the list of potential cuts, so in order to keep our options until final budget cutting decisions we will need to provide non-renewal notices before the deadline. The board has made no decisions to renew or non-renew anyone at this time.
B. Discussion and Possible Approval of Resolution Regarding Report on 4K-8 Grade
Configuration in Each Community Study (30 Min)
The board will discuss and perhaps make a recommendation concerning the 4k-8 grade configuration option based on the report we received in December.
C. Discussion of Budget Reduction Proposals and Process (60 Min)
The board will review additional information requested after the first round of discussions.
Items of note:
X. New Business
B. Discussion and Possible Approval of Writing Basics II New High School Course Proposal – Diane Jensen (10 min)
Diane will present a proposal for a new high school elective designed to improve the writing skills of students identified in the bottom quartile in the EPAS writing assessments.
F. Discussion and Possible Approval of Preliminary Notice of Non-Renewal of Administrator
Contracts – Craig Gerlach (5 Min.)
Administrator contracts renew each year at the end of January, several administrators were on the list of potential cuts, so in order to keep our options until final budget cutting decisions we will need to provide non-renewal notices before the deadline. The board has made no decisions to renew or non-renew anyone at this time.
B. Discussion and Possible Approval of Resolution Regarding Report on 4K-8 Grade
Configuration in Each Community Study (30 Min)
The board will discuss and perhaps make a recommendation concerning the 4k-8 grade configuration option based on the report we received in December.
C. Discussion of Budget Reduction Proposals and Process (60 Min)
The board will review additional information requested after the first round of discussions.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
4k-8 study report
At last nights board meeting former Winnequah Principal Patti McGinnis presented the results of the 4k-8 study commissioned by the board last summer. The report detailed the costs of implementing 4k-8 grade configurations in each community. The proposed configuration would require significant changes to Winnequah school to accomodate programming for Monona 3-8th grade students and some changes to Glacial Drumlin to shift CG 4th graders into the building.
The report (I'll link it here when it is up on the district website) was very thorough, and I found it a useful exercise to see all the costs and factors that go into making a school laid out in one place. It is worth a read on that basis. One issue identified from the study was that the scheduling wouldn't work with the current encore staff and additional staffing would be required. These additional requirements hadn't been worked out, but they would add to the costs included the study.
The bottom line of the study is an estimated $1.05-1.1M in the first year with an ongoing cost of $150-200K each year thereafter, plus the additional staffing costs.
This study was involved significant effort from much of the administrative staff, I'd like to thank them for the care and thoroughness of this report.
Update: The report has been posted on the district website and can be accessed by clicking here (Adobe Acrobat required).
Update: Patti reminds me that the Winnequah and Glacial Drumlin staff made significant contributions to the report, and deserve our thanks!
The report (I'll link it here when it is up on the district website) was very thorough, and I found it a useful exercise to see all the costs and factors that go into making a school laid out in one place. It is worth a read on that basis. One issue identified from the study was that the scheduling wouldn't work with the current encore staff and additional staffing would be required. These additional requirements hadn't been worked out, but they would add to the costs included the study.
The bottom line of the study is an estimated $1.05-1.1M in the first year with an ongoing cost of $150-200K each year thereafter, plus the additional staffing costs.
This study was involved significant effort from much of the administrative staff, I'd like to thank them for the care and thoroughness of this report.
Update: The report has been posted on the district website and can be accessed by clicking here (Adobe Acrobat required).
Update: Patti reminds me that the Winnequah and Glacial Drumlin staff made significant contributions to the report, and deserve our thanks!
Monday, November 23, 2009
Next Wednesday which is this Tuesday...
There is no school on Wednesday, so this week's board meeting was moved from Wednesday to Tuesday (11/24) evening.
Items of note on the agenda:
IX. New Business
B. PMA Five-Year Budget Forecast Model Presentation (30 min)
-This is probably the most difficult situation we are facing. Most people don't know that for the last several years the PMA budget forecast shows a significant structural budget deficit that starts to increase by nearly a million dollars a year by 2011. The problem has been simple: state revenue caps and the funding formula limit the annual increase in revenue to less than 2%, while the QEO results in average annual increases in personnel costs (80% of the budget) of about 4.5%. The difference between revenue and expenses -more than 2%/year- will quickly start adding up.
Of course the QEO law was recently repealed, but I doubt that will result in reductions in costs that will bridge the gap, nor should it.
There isn't any good news in this, but the vast majority of school districts in the state are facing the same problem. We are fortunate that our facilities are in very good shape compared to other districts, with little defered maintenance or significant pending infrastructure requirements. Couple that with our energy reducing efforts and a healthy budget reserved and MGSD is probably in better shape to weather the coming years than the vast majority of Wisconsin districts.
C. Discussion of Revised Policy #425-Open Enrollment (and Rule #452-Open
Enrollment Procedure) (20 min)
- The concern here relates to establishing criteria for refusing OE students. State law requires us to take OE students provided that there is sufficient space, but how is "space" defined? Are we allowed to turn down students because we won't be able to accommodate them after a few years in the next school?
XI. Future Agenda Items and Meetings
A. December 22 - Report of 4K-8 Grade Configuration in Each Community Study
At the December meeting we will hear the report from the administration regarding the results of the -4k-8 study. This study is primarily focused on the costs required to implement 4k-8 in each community, rather than the environmental or education benefits.
B. Gifted and Talented Policy
- Jill List asked that we review this policy because of parent concerns. One of the general trends under NCLB (no child left behind law) is for districts to focus attention on the lower performing students, often shifting resources from higher performing students. I believe one of the biggest problem with NCLB is that it sets a single status goal, rather than growth or averages. To meet AYP requirements districts need to just get an increasing number of students over a fixed bar, there is no incentive to expend energy on those students who are comfortably over it or who are too far below to have a reasonable chance of making it. I also think that we have an obligation to challenge every student to their fullest potential, regardless of their level of proficiency.
Items of note on the agenda:
IX. New Business
B. PMA Five-Year Budget Forecast Model Presentation (30 min)
-This is probably the most difficult situation we are facing. Most people don't know that for the last several years the PMA budget forecast shows a significant structural budget deficit that starts to increase by nearly a million dollars a year by 2011. The problem has been simple: state revenue caps and the funding formula limit the annual increase in revenue to less than 2%, while the QEO results in average annual increases in personnel costs (80% of the budget) of about 4.5%. The difference between revenue and expenses -more than 2%/year- will quickly start adding up.
Of course the QEO law was recently repealed, but I doubt that will result in reductions in costs that will bridge the gap, nor should it.
There isn't any good news in this, but the vast majority of school districts in the state are facing the same problem. We are fortunate that our facilities are in very good shape compared to other districts, with little defered maintenance or significant pending infrastructure requirements. Couple that with our energy reducing efforts and a healthy budget reserved and MGSD is probably in better shape to weather the coming years than the vast majority of Wisconsin districts.
C. Discussion of Revised Policy #425-Open Enrollment (and Rule #452-Open
Enrollment Procedure) (20 min)
- The concern here relates to establishing criteria for refusing OE students. State law requires us to take OE students provided that there is sufficient space, but how is "space" defined? Are we allowed to turn down students because we won't be able to accommodate them after a few years in the next school?
XI. Future Agenda Items and Meetings
A. December 22 - Report of 4K-8 Grade Configuration in Each Community Study
At the December meeting we will hear the report from the administration regarding the results of the -4k-8 study. This study is primarily focused on the costs required to implement 4k-8 in each community, rather than the environmental or education benefits.
B. Gifted and Talented Policy
- Jill List asked that we review this policy because of parent concerns. One of the general trends under NCLB (no child left behind law) is for districts to focus attention on the lower performing students, often shifting resources from higher performing students. I believe one of the biggest problem with NCLB is that it sets a single status goal, rather than growth or averages. To meet AYP requirements districts need to just get an increasing number of students over a fixed bar, there is no incentive to expend energy on those students who are comfortably over it or who are too far below to have a reasonable chance of making it. I also think that we have an obligation to challenge every student to their fullest potential, regardless of their level of proficiency.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Some business...
The board had an important meeting Wednesday, although the meeting went past eleven we heard detailed reviews of the district's RtI (Response to Intervention) program, our disproportionally data, and a review of our standardized test results (A district "report card" if you will). The data was put together and presented by John Faust, Ed O'Connor, Bill Breisch and Charlie Ellis. These gentlemen did an excellent job putting together thorough and clear presentations for the board.
RTI is a system to service students with special needs, it relies on assessment of the effectiveness (the response) to enhanced instruction provided (the intervention) to these students. The emphasis is on results, not identification. RTI is a response to the problem that student achievement tends to stagnate once students are identified as having special needs in traditional special ed systems. Our district is still in the process of implementing this system, but we do have a leadership role in Wisconsin. Some of our data already shows apparent success of this approach in MG schools at the elementary level.
“Disproportionally” refers is the difference in achievement between our minority and white students, it is manifest in academic achievement data as well is the ratio of students identified with special needs or challenges, these ratios are often 3 times greater for minority students. This is a significant problem state wide, and our district is no different.
Overall our district's academic data is not as encouraging. While both growth and achievement are well above average, results are stagnant and not improving as much as I would like to see. It’s the reason the board needs to focus on achievement and not the issues of buildings, buses and fields that have been such a distraction over these last several years.
On the subject of the budget, a succession of little things over the summer has added up to increase our projected budget deficit for the current year. From an estimated $250,000 it is up to about $600,000- but we won't know precisely until the 3rd Friday count is in next week. This will take our fund balance down to the minimum acceptable or below. Bad news, and unfortunately the state budget means that next year will be significantly worse - we will probably be needing to find $1M in the next budget.
One more thing: This year we moved the annual meeting a few weeks earlier to make it easier to meet the state deadlines at the end of October. We didn't know at the time that the date we picked, Monday October 5th, was going to conflict with the Packers vs. Vikings game. Sorry 'bout that!
RTI is a system to service students with special needs, it relies on assessment of the effectiveness (the response) to enhanced instruction provided (the intervention) to these students. The emphasis is on results, not identification. RTI is a response to the problem that student achievement tends to stagnate once students are identified as having special needs in traditional special ed systems. Our district is still in the process of implementing this system, but we do have a leadership role in Wisconsin. Some of our data already shows apparent success of this approach in MG schools at the elementary level.
“Disproportionally” refers is the difference in achievement between our minority and white students, it is manifest in academic achievement data as well is the ratio of students identified with special needs or challenges, these ratios are often 3 times greater for minority students. This is a significant problem state wide, and our district is no different.
Overall our district's academic data is not as encouraging. While both growth and achievement are well above average, results are stagnant and not improving as much as I would like to see. It’s the reason the board needs to focus on achievement and not the issues of buildings, buses and fields that have been such a distraction over these last several years.
On the subject of the budget, a succession of little things over the summer has added up to increase our projected budget deficit for the current year. From an estimated $250,000 it is up to about $600,000- but we won't know precisely until the 3rd Friday count is in next week. This will take our fund balance down to the minimum acceptable or below. Bad news, and unfortunately the state budget means that next year will be significantly worse - we will probably be needing to find $1M in the next budget.
One more thing: This year we moved the annual meeting a few weeks earlier to make it easier to meet the state deadlines at the end of October. We didn't know at the time that the date we picked, Monday October 5th, was going to conflict with the Packers vs. Vikings game. Sorry 'bout that!
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