Ready, Willing and Abell: June 2020

Tuesday, June 09, 2020

Notes from Board of Education Teleconference Meeting, 6/9/20

The Board of Education Meeting on Tuesday, June 9 was conducted via teleconference and streamed live on ccboe.com and aired live on Comcast Channel 96 and Verizon FiOs Channel 12. The meeting 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. Individual names are spelled to the best of my ability.

Executive session – 11:30 a.m.

Call to order – 1 p.m.

Swearing in of new Student Board Member – Ian Herd, La Plata High School

Superintendent’s update to the Board - Report

Correspondence/Board member updates

Wilson - Welcome to Ian and new student board members; kudos to Dr. Hill and entire system.
Battle-Lockhart - Thank you to entire system
Hancock - Congratulations to Ian and all liaisons; to all students and parents; diversity and inclusion month
Brown - congratulate to all staff and Ian and seniors that graduated and their parents
Lukas - thank you to staff and to seniors ($125M in scholarship offers) best of luck.
McGraw - strength and worth of organization is only as good as staff. Thank you to our staff and all graduates and Ian.

Education Association of Charles County update: Linda McLaughlin, president - Report

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees update: Sarah Burch, president

Student Board member update - Report

Summer school: Amy Hollstein, deputy superintendent

Re-opening of schools: Jason Stoddard, director of school safety and security - Report

Re-Opening Purposes and Principles
Bibliography
Hancock - liklihood of state slecting openings of schools by regions
Stoddard - thinks it will be local control
Hancock - how much local control will we have on the operation of opening
Stoddard - local control
Lukas - State Supt will make decision on openings and local tailoring; opening is tied to the Gov. plan of Stage 3?
Stoddard - Indication is yes.

Project status update: Michael Heim, assistant superintendent of supporting services - Report

Educational Facilities Master Plan questions: Michael Heim - Report

CARES Act funding plan: Charmaine Thompson, chief of instructional technology, and Sherri Fisher Davis, budget manager

Received $3.1M; 9400 devices will be purchased for all high school students
Lukas - how many devices were handed out during COVID?
Thompson - 7500+

State Board actions: Eric Schwartz, staff attorney

CARES ACT - allows private schools to get money based on total population not just FARMS students. MD state, amongst other states, will not be doing this but basing on FARMS. Private schools not happy and may be taking legal action.
MD HS Assessment Waivers - seniors were waived this year and have expanded it to all students that would have taken assessments, i.e. Algebra 1 etc. These students will never have to take the assessment and will receive credit if passing the class.

Unfinished Business

Battle-Lockhart - 1969 graduates

Hill - recognition was scheduled and due to COVID, plans have been put on hold.

New Business

FY2021 tuition rates

Motion to accept the tuition rates by Abell; Second by Wilson