Deerfield School Board Minutes: October 7, 2009

DEERFIELD SCHOOL BOARD DEERFIELD COMMUNITY SCHOOL DEERFIELD, NEW HAMPSHIRE WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2009 6:30 P.M.

Members Present: Bonnie Beaubien, Don Gorman, Maryann Clark, Kevin Barry, Gregg Williams, Supt. Warburton, Dr. Paludi, Paul Yergeau, Kandy Davitt, Harriet Cady 1. Call to Order – Ms. Beaubien

Ms. Beaubien called the October 7, 2009 meeting to order at 6:30 pm. 2. Pledge of Allegiance – Ms. Beaubien

Ms. Beaubien led the board members and those present in the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. Minutes of Previous Meeting(s) – September 2, 2009

A motion was made by Kevin Barry to accept the minutes of September 2, 2009 as written, seconded by Bonnie Beaubien. All In Favor Motion Carried 4. Immediate Business A. Agenda Review No Changes were made. B. Citizens’/Staff Comments Harriet Cady stated that at a school district meeting it was voted to have the Agenda posted at the Post Office. Mrs. Cady also spoke to the school board concerning the amount of travel that is required as the school treasurer. Mrs. Cady asked that the board review and discuss reimbursement for mileage. Mrs. Cady stated that Avis Rosenfield would be interested in the position of Assistant Treasurer. C. Principal’s Report – Mr. Yergeau Pre-School-Mr. Yergeau reviewed with the school board the DCS pre-school program. He stated that the number of students currently enrolled was 31. In the 3-year old program there are 11 students, 6 of those students are identified. The 4 year-old program is split into two sessions. The first session has a total of 12 students, 6 are identified, the second session has 8 students and 4 are identified. Mr. Yergeau also noted that there are2 additional 3 year olds that are ESS students and by January there should be 40 students in the pre-school room. The board discussed the balance of “typicals” /identified students and what was required by state standards.

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Mrs. Clark stated that in May 2009 20 students were forecast for the 3 year old program, but there are only 11 students. Decisions to move the preschool to a larger room and to hire a teacher were partially based on this forecast. Mrs. Clark stated that it should be understood that the current space taken by the pre-school is not guaranteed space and should be reviewed every year. Mr. Yergeau stated that every year space needs were reviewed by him and the DCS staff but the school community needed to note that part of the licensing process for the pre-school included the space that was used. Testing-Mr. Yergeau informed the school board members that NECAP testing was currently taking place. Students were being tested in Math, Reading and Writing and it involved grades 3-8. Mr. Yergeau reviewed with the board members the 08-09 testing results for grades 4 & 8 in the area of science. It was noted that 100 percent of the student population in those grades took the test. The mean score for DCS students was 443 and the state was 441. Trees-Mr. Yergeau noted that the DEA donated 4 trees which will be planted between the school parking lot and the driveway. Grant monies-Mr. Yergeau noted that the school received a grant from Wal-Mart , which allowed them to rent a brush hog to clear the hillside in the back. A DCS parent volunteered to operate the brush hog and clear the area. DCS Dances-Mr. Yergeau reviewed with the member the DCS Dance policy. Currently only 7th & 8th grade students are allowed to attend with 6th grade students attending “invitation only.” The middle school staff would like to see the policy changed so that the 6th grade students could be included. The middle school staff would like “to attend dances where deemed appropriate” added to the policy. Mr. Barry suggested that the board act on the change at their next meeting.

A motion was made by Don Gorman to table any action on the dance policy until the next meeting, seconded by Kevin Barry. All In Favor Motion Carried Self Study- Mr. Yergeau informed the board that DCS will be evaluated by the New England Schools and Colleges visiting team on November 15th. A lot of time and energy over the last year has taken place and the staff looks forward to the teams visit. D. Personnel – Mr. Warburton 5. Old/Unfinished Business E. High School Survey Goals – Ms. Clark Maryann Clark with the assistance of Dr. Paludi worked on organizing and reviewing the goals that came from the results of the high school survey. Mrs. Clark noted that transportation was at the forefront of parent’s minds and one area that needed further review would be the need of a late bus. Mrs. Clark suggested that at the next school board meeting the board take public comments on this issue. Mrs. Clark then reviewed with the board other areas such as preparing DCS students for Concord High, Curriculum needs, etc. that needed to be reviewed. Gregg Williams suggested that a working committee be set up to address these issues. Supt. Warburton stated that working in a two year block of time might help the Deerfield Community to address these areas.

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Mr. Yergeau stated that currently the DCS Guidance Dept. works with Concord Guidance Team to set up an Open House with Rundlett parents, the Concord Guidance Dept. and the Athletic Director have come to DCS to introduce and discuss with the DCS 8th grade students programming offered at Concord. Mrs. Clark will work with Mr. Yergeau to review and set in place a working document to be published on the efforts being made to address the issues brought forward by the survey. 5. High School Tuition Procedure – Mr. Warburton It was noted that the revisions to tuition procedures has been added to SAKAI. 6. New Business A. Executive Board Meeting Review – Mr. Barry, Mr. Warburton Mr. Barry noted that the Executive Board meets a couple of times a year. Mr. Barry noted that that the employee evaluation process will take place once a year. It was noted that SAU 53 is the 6th largest SAU in the state. Supt. Warburton informed the board that because of the size of the SAU it has been determined that having an additional Assist. Supt. would be beneficial. Patti Willis who currently serves as the Director of Special Ed............will become an Assist Supt. She will over see Home Education, Section V, Homeless Liaison. Dr. Paludi will oversee Curriculum Development, Assessment and Data Team. The Executive Board, Mr. Barry noted voted to go forward with the changes. Mr. Gorman asked what the change would mean financially. Supt. Warburton noted that the changes were cost neutral. B. Deerfield Education Association Negotiations Request – Ms. Beaubien Chairperson, Bonnie Beaubien informed the board members that a letter from the DEA had been received, requesting a meeting to discuss contract negotiations. Mr. Gorman and Ms. Beaubien will represent the board and contact the DEA for meeting dates. A. Deerfield Paraeducators Association Negotiations Request – Ms. Beaubien Chairperson, Bonnie Beaubien informed the board members that a letter from the Para educators Association had been received requesting a meeting to discuss contract negotiations. Mr. Gorman and Ms. Beaubien will represent the board and contact the Association for meeting dates. D. NHSBA Resolutions – Mr. Barry, Mr. Warburton Mr. Barry informed the board that the 2009 resolutions had been distributed and the deadline for the Deerfield board to suggest additions would be October 23rd. It was noted that Bonnie Beaubien and Gregg Williams would attend the NHSBA meeting January 16th. E. NH Municipal Association Retirement Cost Litigation – Mr. Barry, Mr. Warburton Mr. Barry brought to the attention of the board information concerning the NH Municipal Assoc. Retirement litigation. Mr. Barry noted that this is a statewide effort including towns and school districts. It is requested that each town and school district that supports the litigation to pay $582.09 for litigation costs. A motion was made by Kevin Barry to approve $582.09 to be given in support of the litigation process, seconded by Don Gorman.

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All In Favor Motion Carried F.

National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Certification – Dr. Paludi

Dr. Paludi reviewed with the board the National Board Certificate process. The cost for a teacher to pursue this endeavor is $2,500. Dr. Paludi stated that results of this process establishes better Teachers, better learning and better schools. Dr. Paludi noted that she has been discussing with several teachers the process and how to find creative ways to partially fund the endeavor if pursued by a teacher within SAU 53. G. Policy Review – Mr. Warburton, Dr. Paludi Policy Review was tabled for the school board’s next meeting. 7. Informational Items A. Citizens’/Staff Comments Mrs. Cady (citizen) noted that it is now budgeting time and that her research shows that the cost of educating a student in Deerfield is $16,000. Surrounding towns such as Candia and Auburn currently Mrs. Cady noted is $12,000. Mrs. Cady wanted the board to determine why there is such a cost difference. Gregg Williams shared with the board information concerning the Concord High School meeting that he attended. He noted that the trend in enrollment is down. Concord serves approximately 10-20 homeless students and 106 home school students. The Concord Board members discussed the need to review the class sizes in Algebra. Currently there are 28-30 students in the Algebra class. It was noted that 26 classes are either below or above the population threshold. Concord is establishing a Wellness Program that includes bike paths. Mr. Williams noted that the Reg. Tech enrollment is up and the Pembroke is the highest user. The board members discussed the loss of revenue and out of district placement costs. Maryann Clark shared that based on data on the Dept of Education’s website Deerfield’s Catastrophic Aid costs are in the top 15% statewide in one category and in the top 35% in the second category. These costs are directly tied to out of district placements. Members of the board agreed that they would appreciate the out of district placement process explained and reasons why the Deerfield Community School‘s costs are so high. A motion was made by Maryann Clark to form a task force to study out of district placement costs, seconded by Don Gorman All In Favor Motion Carried A motion was made by Don Gorman to have Maryann Clark be the Chair of the task force, which will study out of district placement costs, seconded by Don Gorman All In Favor

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Motion Carried B. Thank You Letter to Maintenance Department – Mr. Warburton, Dr. Paludi The board was informed that letters were sent to all Maintenance personnel that worked this summer in preparing the school for the fall start. C. Special Education Questions Update – Mr. Warburton, Dr. Paludi D. Deliberative Session Date Discussion – Mr. Warburton Kevin Barry reviewed with the board and asked for the sense of the board the choices of dates for the 09-10 Deliberative Session for the school. The members agreed on February 6th, 9:00 a.m. Mr. Barry will speak with the Board of Selectmen and give them the information.

At 9:05 P.M., a motion to enter non-public session under RSA 91-A:3II(c) was made by Kevin Barry, seconded by Maryann Clark. All In Favor

Motion Carried Non-public: A personnel issue was discussed. A motion was made by Don Gorman and seconded by Gregg Williams to come out of nonpublic session. All In Favor

Motion Carried Out of non-public at 9:44 P.M. Ms. Beaubien stated that no decisions were made in non-public session. *A motion was made by Kevin Barry and seconded by Gregg Williams to approve the leave request submitted by Sarah Plater. All In Favor

Motion Carried *A motion was made by Kevin Barry and seconded by Gregg Williams to adjourn the meeting. All In Favor

Motion Carried The meeting was adjourned at 9:45 P.M.

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8. Adjournment Next Scheduled Meeting: _____November 4, 2009 _6:30 P.M.

Deerfield Community School_

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