Notes from Board of Education Meeting, 2/14/12

The Board of Education Meeting on Tuesday, February 14 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.
Executive session – 12 p.m.

Call to order – 1 p.m. - Pledge of Allegiance, Maurice J. McDonough High School's JROTC unit

Superintendent's update - See report

Correspondence/Board Member updates

• Bowie - Mac Middleton says hello; attended Lobby Day and encourages taxpayers to call, email, visit; No Child Left Behind bills at a standstill
• Pedersen - attended CCASC Middle School meeting; discussion on bullying and food service
• Lukas - Tri-County Concerts for Orchestra & Band; Congratulations to all
• Wise - State Superintendent visit - impressed with telepresence; space flight presentation at McDonough; Richmond won award from Alpha Kappa Alpha

Education Association of Charles County update - See report
Student Board Member update - See report

Student transfers - See recommendation

• Abell - Specific changes from the current policy to this committee's proposal
• Schwartz - employee's child to attend school at place of work or closest school to place of work; space available only for academic and hardship consideration
• Abell - Space available should be for ALL instances
• Schwartz - Benefits to employees outweigh the costs
• Wise - All three levels requested
• Pedersen - Requests numbers from the next few years to observe impact and statistics
• Lukas - Full time employee?
• Hettel - Works for us on a full time permanent basis under the negotiated agreement.
• Cook - Certificated & non-certificated will impact over enrollment
• Lukas - Certificated vs non-certificated ratio for an elementary school

Athletic trainers - Rehabilitation Center of Southern Maryland

• Powerpoint presentation about duties & statistics
• Inclusion of student athletic training services
• Wise - Knee injuries more prevalant in women; Does student athletic trainer abide by GPA?
• Pedersen - Commend company
• Richmond - What can we do to prevent injuries?
• RCSM - Strengthening, conditioning and access
• Abell - Requests presentation to be placed on BoardDocs; How was this company selected?
• Cornette - Bid process
• Cook - Background in exercise physiology -- some coaches still do stretches that are no longer considered current
• RCSM - Therapists build relationships with coaches and work with them.
• Lukas - Stretched thin
• RCSM - Definitely
• student - Why more knee injuries than others?
• RCSM - Prone to overuse and impact and posture and weight
• student - Thought there would be more concussions than ankle injuries in football
• RCSM - Coach works with students to teach them proper tackle techniques, etc.
• student - Why does lacrosse have more knee injuries than football?
• RCSM -Lacrosse is nothing but running and pivoting

CIP update - see report

• SMECO program exchange to LED lights
• discussion on replacing light bulbs in all the schools, hues, affects on students

Redistricting update - see report

• Abell - Did the committee look at how many times we're moving specific neighborhoods or area?
• Weslowski - Based on the policy, we cannot move neighborhoods within a three year time period.
• Wise - Includes allocations already given and potential growth
• student - Special needs students that have relationships
• Weslowski - Not under this plan but through the student transfer policy

Educational Showcase - see report

Policy #3430: Accounts (opening and closing accounts) - see report

Budget update - see report

Teacher evaluation pilot - see report

Legislative update

Non-discrimination policy

Recognition – 4:30 p.m.

• Students - Rida Dhanani, 5th grade, Academic Achievement, Berry Elementary School; Chidera Onyekuru, 5th grade, Academic Achievement, J.P. Ryon Elementary School; Kevon Douglas, 4th grade, Personal Responsibility, Eva Turner Elementary School; Mary Lavery, 12th grade, Academic Achievement, La Plata High School; Kelly Dingess, 11th grade, Career Readiness, Robert D. Stethem Educational Center
• Employees - Erica Strass, science teacher, Berry; Jillian Genua, physical education teacher, Ryon; Pamela Shorter, food service worker, Turner; Brian Craley, alternative school teacher, Stethem; Stephen Williams, administrative assistant, La Plata
• Resolutions: Read Across Charles County; Women's History Month; and Fine and Performing Arts Month
• Rotary Clubs of Waldorf and La Plata - recognition of dictionary donations to schools

Unfinished business

• Pedersen - Subcommittees, such as for goals; work sessions are full
• Lukas - Will send committee's information out tomorrow and then an information item at board meeting
• Lukas - Scouts here for Merit Badge

New business - none

Future agenda items

Public Forum – 6 p.m.

• Eldridge Proctor - resident of Laurel Branch, redistricting concerns, both Plan A & Plan B are the same options for their neighborhood. Wants a Plan C. Doesn't feel the communities perspective was taken into consideration.
• Lordis (?) - both Plan A & Plan B are the same, wants kids to go their community school, lives under 4 miles from current school, petition online, reconsider
• James (BJ) Proctor III - student affected by new rezoning plans, has a 4.0, lives less than 4 minutes away, in numerous clubs and activities, please reconsider and let him go to neighborhood school.
• Lisa Powell - resident for 12 years, has a student at Mudd, 16 students per class now it's 28. Students not doing as well. Why have we not added another teacher and what to do?
• Denise Yates - son at Piccowaxen Middle School - Mandatory after school band rehearsals

Action items

• Minutes
Motion to accept Minutes by Pedersen; Second by Lukas
Yes = Abell, Bowie, Cook, Lukas, Pedersen, Wade, Wise
• Personnel A
Motion to accept Personnel A by Pedersen; Second by Bowie
Yes = Abell, Bowie, Cook, Lukas, Pedersen, Wade, Wise
• Personnel B
Motion to accept Personnel B by Cook; Second by Pedersen
Yes = Abell, Bowie, Cook, Pedersen, Wade, Wise; Abstain = Lukas

Adjournment