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LITCHFIELD BOARD OF EDUCATION REGULAR MEETING September 5, 2007 |
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A regular meeting of the Litchfield Board of Education was held on Wednesday, September 5, 2007 at 7:00 p.m. in the LIS cafeteria.
Board members present were: Mr. Shuhi, Chairperson; Mrs. Reardon; Messrs. Fairchild, Falcetti, Gorman, Katzin, Noone, and Simone. Mr. Tourtellotte was absent.
Also present were: Dr. Vita; Mr. Johnson; Mrs. Perusse; Dr. Breslin; Ms. Marinelli; and members of the public.
MOTION made by Mr. Falcetti and seconded by Mr. Fairchild: to approve the minutes from the August 14, 2007 special meeting, the August 22, 2007 regular meeting and the August 29, 2007 special meeting as submitted with the following corrections on the first page of the 22nd meeting where the motion is carried “form” should be “from” and Mrs. Marinelli should be Ms. Marinelli.
MOTION carried. All votes were in the affirmative. Mr. Katzin abstained.
Public Comment and Correspondence
Mr. Waugh reported on the building committee update including the following: progress being made; temporary CO good until November; ceiling panels; exterior painting; flooring status; chemistry labs; library status; gym lobby status; P & Z issues for the parking lot; gym area complete; and 7th and 8th grade entrance.
Board members discussed the following: status of utility tray at LIS; peeling paint; and kitchen issues at the high school.
Dayna D’Amico reported on the student council activities at the high school.
Mr. Murphy commented on the possibility of the Board having clear guidelines in case anything similar to the Anzellotti issue should occur in the future. He noted that this was a comment and not criticism.
Mrs. Penney commented on possible follow up suggestions for parents to consider doing after receiving the CMT results.
Mr. Murray commented on a possible philosophical statement from the Board stating the importance of academics over sports.
Mrs. Penney commented that sports are a very important part of some students’ lives who are sometimes non academic.
Mrs. McKenna commented on the importance of addressing the arts, sports and academics in students’ educational experience.
Mrs. Reardon commented on the ribbon cutting for the new tiles at Center School, which was very enjoyable and possibly needs a press release.
New Business
Mrs. Perusse reported on the final budget status for 2006-07 including: books finished in the black with $2,372.50; new software is a challenge; and the general fund will have unexpended funds of $13,466.07 returned including excess from past encumbrances.
MOTION made by Mrs. Reardon and seconded by Mr. Gorman: to approve the payment of invoices and adjustments to line item expenditures for 2007-08 budget as required.
MOTION carried. All votes were in the affirmative. Mr. Simone abstained.
Dr. Vita reviewed two seniors, who live out of district, requesting completion of senior year at LHS consistent with Board policy and past practices.
MOTION made by Mrs. Reardon and seconded by Mr. Fairchild: to approve a request for Kaleigh Mierzwinski, to complete her senior year at LHS as a non-resident per Board Policy #5118 with recommendations of the high school principal and superintendent.
MOTION carried. All votes were in the affirmative. There were no abstentions.
MOTION made by Mr. Falcetti and seconded by Mrs. Reardon: to approve a request for Jordan Fischer, to complete his senior year at LHS as a non-resident per Board policy #5118 with recommendation of high school principal and superintendent.
MOTION carried. All votes were in the affirmative. There were no abstentions.
Board members noted that this is in the best interest of he students.
Old Business
Dr. Vita discussed the possible 2008-09 calendar as presented. A meeting will be held on Friday with the other Superintendents from the county to discuss a possible regional calendar. There was also a request from a resident to possibly have the 3 Jewish holidays included in the calendar. Presently all days off are legal holidays.
Board members discussed the following: not beginning with a full week; possible February vacation; county-wide calendar; care in granting days for religious holidays since there are so many celebrated; stick with legal holidays; clear delineation; easy to defend; early dismissal issues; shortened day on the last day of school; March needed for state testing; need to be consistent with Wamogo.
AppliTrack on-line presentation was tabled.
Superintendent’s Report
Dr. Vita noted that 100% of the certified positions for 2007-08are filled including the following:
Some non-certified part time positions still need to be filled.
Administrative Reports
Dr. Breslin reported on Jamey Blake being one of two students appointed to the State Board of Education, with full participation except in voting. It was a vigorous application process and he was sworn in today in Hartford.
Don Johnson, Director of Curriculum and Instruction, noted that he is looking forward to working in the district.
Mr. Crowe reported on the status of the school facilities including the following: smooth opening; better conditions than last year; good crew that worked extremely hard; playground complete; C.S. playground resurfaced; status of C.S. roof; and town cooperation.
Committee Reports
Policy Committee
A meeting will be coming up to attend to updating and overhauling policies. Some will need grammatical errors corrected.
Negotiations Liaisons
Dr. Vita reported that the initial meeting has been held with AFSCME to discuss negotiation strategies. Hopefully this will conclude by the end of October.
Other
Board members discussed possibly scheduling a retreat in the near future and finalizing the Superintendent’s evaluation including: wait until after the upcoming elections; purpose of a retreat; expense and time; retreat may not be appropriate but workshops might be; evaluation could be completed at next Board meeting in Executive Session; and possible second one needed.
MOTION made by Mr. Simone and seconded by Mr. Falcetti: to adjourn the meeting at 8:05 p.m.
MOTION carried. All votes were in the affirmative. There were no abstentions.
Respectfully submitted, Donald Falcetti, Secretary Joanne Bertrand, Recording Secretary
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