Notes from the Board of Education Work Session, 3/21/11

The Board Meeting on Monday, March 21st will be re-broadcast on Comcast Channel 96, Verizon FIOS Channel 12 and is available via webstream at http://www.ccboe.com/ . To view the full agenda and the various reports, please visit BoardDocs.

The below notes are my personal notes and are not intended to be all-inclusive or official minutes for the Board of Education meetings and are provided as a request from my supporters and the general public in a personal effort to be more transparent. Although I have diligently tried to make these notes as unbiased and accurate as possible, I am only human and do make mistakes.

Call to order 6 p.m.

Pledge of Allegiance

Public Forum - No one signed up

EXECUTIVE SESSION

Discussion on status of St. Charles High School

• Cook - Would commissioners help with emergency CIP items?; Are commissioners aware of extra costs?; and guarantee of operating cost covered
• Pedersen - Relocatables can be used if project is delayed?
• Wineland - Redistricting would be a must if we don't build.
• Lukas - Population in high school projections over next three years; Greatest source of funding, DRRA or excise tax?
• Wineland - Population holds steady and then starts to climb by 2015
• Pedersen - We need the high school; Consequences of delaying a year?
• Wineland - Economy has started to recover; cost is continuing to climb
• Cook - Money given to us for the digital classroom must be used by November 2012
• Pedersen - 3 stipulations she wants initiated to the commissioners ...maintaining the site, inflation and the building could not be changed
• Cook - Would also like to add a stipulation of operating cost
• Lukas - We had a letter of commitment with the last commissioners and that didn't help us out too much.
• Wise - Delay CIP for 5 years...we CAN still do systemic renovations like Jenifer roof?
• Wineland - Still need $475,000 to make it happen this summer, if not next summer
• Abell - Not sure if we want to send 'stipulations' to our new commissioners. Not certain or sold on the idea that we MUST have this new high school right now.
• Wineland - Redistricting could get everyone below core but not state. We could house them with relocatables, but what happens when the economy turns around? If we stop it and have to adhere to new codes, population and inflation could overcome us.
• Wise - State would be upset with us and possibly not fund us again.
• Lukas - Experience of teachers (seasoned) and salary all figured in opening costs
• Richmond - most worried about the operating costs of $10M for every year...equates to 100 teaching positions. If opened on time, the school system would have to come up with ALL the cost of operating.
• Hettel - Cutting two hundred teachers would increase class sizes by 5 across the board in all grade levels

Motion to delay the opening of the school by one year and work with county to cover the operating cost by Pedersen; Second by Wade

• Cook - Cover all the previously discussed items with the commissioners...inflation cost, operational cost, site, structure remains unchanged, emergency CIP items
• Abell - I voted against it from the beginning...we can't afford it, irresponsible financially to continue, we don't have the money, the county doesn't have the money, the state doesn't have the money...no money to build, no money to operate, etc.

Yes = Pedersen, Cook, Wise; No = Wade; Abstain = Abell, Bowie, Lukas

Motion Fails

• Lukas - Too many dominoes lined up for failure; it would be nice, we need it, but can't afford it.
• Wade - Doesn't think the commissioners take this seriously.
• Bowie -

Motion not to move forward with the high school with the way things currently stand by Abell; Second by Pedersen
Rescind her second by Pedersen
Cook Second the recension

Motion Fails

Motion to reconvene on Monday, March 28th at 6:00 p.m. by Lukas; No Second

Motion Fails

Adjournment