Notes from Board of Education Meeting, 12/12/17

The Board of Education Meeting on Tuesday, December 12 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 – Thomas Stone High School
Superintendent’s update to the Board - Report

Correspondence/board member updates 

Education Association of Charles County update - Report

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees update - Report

Student Board member’s update - Report

Eligibility/discipline component - Oral Report (Holstein, Benson, Gill)

• Policy discussions took place with principals, teachers, athletic directors and councils, parents and students.  Presented at PAC and SAC.
• Discipline component addition - overwhelmingly all groups disagreed with adding this component.  Extracurricular activities is a positive influence.
• Recommendations for consideration
• change wording on absences to- 5 lawful absences within five days and will accept a note from parents
• keep GPA at 2.25 but allow one F.
• consider transition years from 8th - 9th so all students are eligible the first quarter of their freshman year.
• One more meeting to discuss what falls under extra curricular.

Dreambox math - Report

Project status update - Report

CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield - Report

CVS Health Update - Report

Unfinished business

• Environmental Scan Survey - move forward with distribution
• Policy 4000 - Palko and McGraw still working
• Bullying Discussion and program - will add to a future agenda

New business and Future agenda items

• New business
• Future agenda items
• Marshall - invite Greek organizations  for participation as mentors and presentation
• Kelly - Parent Involvement Program
• McGraw - Eligibility Policy
• Lukas - Hanson right of way
• Kelly - Grading Policy Committee updates

Recognition – 4:30 p.m.

• James E. Richmond Leadership Excellence Award - Accepting: Board member Margaret Marshall in honor of her late husband, Cecil Marshall, former Board member
• Students - Charlie Shin, twelfth grade, Academic Achievement, Maurice J. McDonough High School, Principal: Steven Roberts; Diallo Barnes, eighth grade, Personal Responsibility, Milton M. Somers Middle School, Principal: Carrie Akins; Lucy Flynn, fifth grade, Career Readiness, Gale-Bailey Elementary School, Principal: Verniece Rorie; Clinton Cupples, III, fifth grade, Academic Achievement , Mary H. Matula Elementary School, Principal: Carrie Richardson; Joya Thompson, fifth grade, Academic Achievement, Arthur Middleton Elementary School, Principal: Louis D’Ambrosio
• Employees - Annemarie Simpson, mathematics teacher, McDonough; Peter Wilt, social studies teacher, Somers; Ann Herbert, prekindergarten teacher, Gale-Bailey; Samantha Clark, special education teacher, Matula; Karen Ferruzza, library media specialist, Middleton

Public Forum – 6 p.m. - None

Action items

• Minutes

Motion to approve the Minutes from the November board meeting by Kelly; Second by Marshall

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

Motion to approve the Minutes from the Legislative Session by Abell; Second by Kelly

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

• Personnel

Motion to approve Personnel by Abell; Second by Marshall

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

Adjournment 

Agenda for Board of Education Meeting, 12/12/17

The Board of Education’s next monthly meeting is Tuesday, Dec. 12 at the Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building on Radio Station Road in La Plata. The public portion of the meeting begins at 1 p.m. The meeting is televised live on Comcast Channel 96 and Verizon FiOS Channel 12, and is rebroadcast throughout the week.

Board meetings are also streamed live on the Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) website, www.ccboe.com. Click on the middle of the main page to start the live streaming. The following agenda is tentative and subject to change.

Executive session – 12 p.m.

Call to order – 1 p.m.

Pledge of Allegiance – Thomas Stone High School

Superintendent’s update to the Board

Reports of officers/boards/committees

• Correspondence/board member updates
• Education Association of Charles County update
• American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees update
• Student Board member’s update
• Eligibility/discipline component
• Dreambox math
• Project status update
• CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, CVS Health update

Unfinished business

New business and Future agenda items

• New business
• Future agenda items

Recognition – 4:30 p.m.

• James E. Richmond Leadership Excellence Award
• Students
• Employees

Public Forum – 6 p.m.

Action items

• Minutes
• Personnel

Adjournment 

Legislative Breakfast, 12/4/17

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.

In attendance were all Board of Education members, the Superintendent and key staff, Delegates Jameson, Proctor, Wilson, Senator Mac Middleton, Commissioners Murphy and Davis.

CCPS Student Enrollment Overview
*Increased by over 500 and is now at 26,891

• 2012-2013
• African American 52%; White 27%; Hispanic 5.7%
• Special Education 9%; ELL 1%; FARMS 33%
• Graduation Rate 89.79%
• 2016-2017
• African American 55%; White 33%; Hispanic 8%
• Special Education 11%; ELL 2%; FARMS 36%
• Graduation Rate 92.17%

Student Costs

• CCPS per pupil $13,724
• Special Education Inclusion +$975 (1,671 students = $1,629,936)
• Special Education Regionalized Program +$8,464 (224 students = $1,895,936)
• Special Education Lifeskills A +$12, 905 (214 students = $2,761,670)
• Special Education Lifeskills B +$28,572 (30 students = $857,160)

Teacher Recruitment and Retention

• Nationwide shortage of teachers - since 2009, 35% drop in students going into teacher education programs
• Diversity
• National AVG for non-white teachers is 22.5%
• CCPS teachers - 78.4% white, 21.6% non-white
• 2017 hiring cohort 37.9% non-white teachers
• CCPS Administrators - 70% white, 30% non-white
• Maryland "Import State" 
• 60% of MD teachers from other states
• COL prohibitive
• CCPS lowest starting salary in region
• Grounds for discipline bill only protects below par teachers
• Data-based recruiting
• efficiently use time and money based on previous year hiring efforts
• build relationships with universities
• instructional focus for recruiting teams
• host job fairs
• highlight mentoring and professional development programs

Student Discipline - Suspension is a last resort

*discipline concerns are often a result of unmet behavioral health needs

• 2012-2013
• 364 suspensions at elementary schools
• 1,243 suspensions at middle schools
• 1,856 suspensions at high schools
• TOTAL - 3,463
• 2016-2017
• 390 suspensions at elementary schools
• 907 suspensions at middle schools
• 1,306 suspensions at high schools
• TOTAL - 2,603
• New strategies
• Restorative practices
• 12 certified trainers implemented in all middle schools this year
• Goal at all schools in 2 years
• Aspire Program
• piloted in 2 elementary schools
• costly, $175,000 per school
• Good results thus far but cost prohibitive
• Therapeutic In-School Intervention
• pilot in all high schools
• Parent Shadowing
• pilot in 8 schools

Please let me know if you have any additional questions.