Notes from Board of Education Meeting, 3/10/15

The Board of Education Meeting on Tuesday, March10 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, Westlake High School JROTC

 Superintendent’s update - See Report

• Highlights - Weather, Spring Break, assessments, testing, Bunkyo University, graduation, PreK registration

 Correspondence/Board Member updates

• McGraw - Thank you to all staff that had to work through the inclement weather; thank you to Abell and Kelly for testimony at joint commissioners meeting; Read Across Charles County; and Spelling Bee
• Marshall - Two concerns - recruitment and retention of teachers; testing
• Kelly - serving on the Parents Matter; Attended MABE Conference Planning Committee; Aware of typos on worksheets going home with students; concerns regarding teaching to the test; Allocations Committee; Read Across Charles County
• Palko - invited to Teacher Academy of Maryland at McDonough;
• Crawford - attended state board of education meeting
• Abell - Attended Healthier Partnerships of Charles County; and Joint Commissioners School Allocations Meeting
• Lukas - Read Across Charles County; Chess Tournament

Education Association of Charles County update - See Report

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees update

• Highlights - thank you for the $1,000; future negotiations

Student Board Member update - See Report

Security update

• This was an oral update and I do no not post my notes on this topic for obvious reasons.  Please watch the video for more detailed information if so desired.

Overview of robotics program

• Students from Piccowaxen Middle School presented on STEM and Robotics - awesome demonstration

Legislative update

• House looking to restore some of the governors educational budget cuts
• HB486/SB595 Charter School Expansion Bill - heard in house and senate not moved out of committee yet in either; not helpful to public schools
• HB135 Charles County Excise Tax - Still in committee
• SB 390 Burden of Proof Bill for children with disabilities - still in committee
• HB389/SB455 - Labor Day Bill - school to start after Labor Day; still in committee
• McGraw/Crawford - requested amendment to HB135 wording to include renovations....Hill responded that she is working through commissioners and delegation to conclude who sponsored the bill.

Unfinished business

New business

Future agenda items

• Abell - Requested the formation of a committee to include  teachers, central office staff, board members, parents, students to review and understand assessments and testing the process and the data as a collaborative effort.
• Marshall - Board Goals sub-committee requesting submission by April 1st.
• Marshall - Teachers Academy of Maryland
• Marshall - Testing, Assessments, review, costs, etc
• Kelly - parent involvement; how to get involved in your child's school
• Palko - visited New Orleans; North Point students involved with renovations of a ship/submarine in New Orleans
• Palko - SLO's and teacher evaluations presentation
• Lukas - GWWO Survey

Recognition – 4:30 p.m.

• Students - Wesley Thompson, 5th grade, Academic Achievement, William Diggs Elementary School, Principal: Sandra Taylor; Nehemiah Strawberry, 5th grade, Personal Responsibility, J.P. Ryon Elememtary School, Principal: Robert Opiekun; Veronica LeBeau, 8th grade, Career Readiness, General Smallwood Middle School, Principal: Kathy Perriello; Rainey Southworth, 12th grade, Academic Achievement, Thomas Stone High School, Principal: Michael Meiser
• Staff - Jennifer Jenkins, special education instructional assistant, Ryon; Jacqueline Stancliff, fourth-grade teacher, Diggs; Anita Riggans, special education teacher, Smallwood; Nancy Jeffrey, German teacher, Stone
• Resolutions: Month of the Young Child - Accepting: Octavia Butler, kindergarten teacher, JP Ryon Elementary School; Tionna McAllister, kindergarten, J.P. Ryon Elementary School; National Student Leadership Week - Accepting: Student liaisons

Public Forum – 6 p.m.

• Calvin Compton - doesn't like that we used the inclement weather make up dates during spring break.  People have vacations planned, surgeries, etc. urges board to reconsider and make an emergency reconsideration.

Action items

• Minutes

Motion to accept the Minutes as amended by Kelly; Second by Marshall

Yes = Abell, Crawford, Kelly, Lukas, Marshall, McGraw, Palko

• Personnel

Motion to accept the Personnel by Lukas; Second by Kelly

Yes = Abell, Crawford, Kelly, Lukas, Marshall, McGraw, Palko

 

Adjournment