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ROCHESTER
SCHOOL BOARD School
Board Meeting Minutes
Mr. Watson
called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. on a roll call with a quorum
present. Members participated in the
pledge of allegiance. Last Minutes Mr. Allen moved, second by Mrs.
Stevens, to accept the minutes of the Regular Board meeting of February 10,
2011 and the Special School Board meeting of February 17, 2011. The motion carried unanimously. Superintendent’s Report Student Recognition Mr. Hemingway introduced Spaulding High
School Scholar athletes: Annmarie Hall, Shandi
Clement, Breana Goodwin, Alyson Towle, Macy Day, Brandon Bogan, Andrew Bosco, and Hannah Mason. To be recognized as a student
scholar, students must maintain at least a B grade point average and letter
in two or more varsity sports.
Students were acknowledged at the Capital Center for the Arts; met the
Governor and enjoyed dinner with Dover Student Scholar-athletes. Scholar-athletes
not in attendance for recognition at the meeting: Corinne Baita,
Maria Blougouras, , Shannon Douglas, Kimberly
Michaud, Carly Miller, Mary Nelson, Ashley Proulx, Trisha Robbins, Haley Spiers,
Rachel Swett, Alyssa Turgeon, Emily Zeimetz, Cameron Brock, Eric Fortier, Taylor Giullian, Shawn Ham, Ryan McQuade,
Joshua Perreault, Justin Slattery, Zachary St. Cyr,
and Jordan Woodill. Mr.
Hemingway introduced and congratulated Spaulding High School’s NHIAA 2011
State Championship Bowling Team: Liz
Rowan, Colton Castonguay, Tyler Palm, Josh Paige,
Madison Goldstein, Anthony McGee, Cody Bond, Tyler Norman, David Taylor,
Victoria Dillon – Team Manager, and coaches Cheri Allen, Erin Kelly and Dick
Rhodes. Cody
Bond also won the NHIAA Individual Bowling Championship. Bowling Team members
not in attendance this evening: Jordan Woodill and
Joe Basso. Employee Recognition Mr. Hemingway, Assistant Superintendent introduced
the the February employee of the month recipients
with the assistance of Mrs. McKenney, Mrs. Rhodes, and Mr. Seaward: Sarah Keller Toussaint, Grade 6 Math
Teacher at Rochester Middle School;
Jessica Burrows, Special Education Teacher at Gonic School; Allison
Leach, Science Teacher at Spaulding High School; and Brenda Ramsdell, Truant
Officer (District). Recipients
received a $20 gift certificate for Granite Steak & Grill in Rochester, a
certificate of appreciation and floral arrangement. Mavericks Baseball Mr. Hopkins provided an informational
breakdown of the FCBL Mavericks Baseball Team proposal to enhance and utilize
the Bert George Field. He expressed
that the association with the FCBL is a great opportunity to have a college
level baseball team coming to Rochester to play against other established
teams around the area. This is a
wooden bat summer league, the enhancements and opportunities that this venue
would bring to the City and the School Department would be a positive
partnership. Tuition Students The Superintendent’s
recommendation to the Board for tuition students is to allot ten slots at
Spaulding High School; and slots for
any out of district students at the Bud Carlson Academy, if they were current
students and out of the District; with zero tuition openings at Rochester
Middle School or other Rochester Elementary Schools. Mr.
Watson questioned the possibility of opening up some slots for tuition students
at Rochester Middle School. Mr.
Hopkins indicated although it had not been past practice tuition students at
the Middle School could be approved by the Board. Overcrowded classrooms are not an issue
there at this time. Student Senate Report James
Pollard, Student Senate Liaison to the School Board reported that the Senate
has been focusing on increasing student involvement in school
activities. The hope is that by
increasing student involvement it will reduce absenteeism, there will be
fewer discipline problems, student achievement will increase and so will the
graduation rate. Community
involvement is also being encouraged throughout Spaulding; almost 1,000 food
items for the local food pantry and numerous articles of clothing were
collected; a series of fundraisers have been conducted to offset the cost of
Project Graduation. To
encourage better communications with the school administration, meetings are
scheduled twice a month with the Senate President and Vice-President with
administrators. The Senate is also
looking at establishing a Teacher Student Liaison Committee to increase
communication at that level. Public Comment Michele
Paradiso from Ward 1 stated that a good quality education is important for
all students. Ms. Paradiso encouraged
the School Board to vote in support of the proposal presented by Dave Hoyt
for Mavericks Baseball to come to Rochester.
With a guarantee to taxpayers this will not cause an increase in their
tax bill, it is a win-win situation. Sue
O’Connor, read a statement for Rebecca Kean which expressed concerns about
the safety of her son at school because of bullying that is ongoing and needs
to be investigated and stopped.
Bullying should not be allowed and will not be tolerated. Robert
Gates stated that the Board needs to address the failure that is going on and
give direction to leadership with regard to bullies being left in the schools. Karen
Carignan, Speech Language Department Head and Rochester resident; addressed
Board regarding the roles and responsibilities of the Speech Language
Department working toward student goals.
Ms. Carignan request that the Board try to save one or two positions
from the proposed budget cut list. Committee
Reports Building
Committee: FCBL Mavericks Dr. Pastelis moved, second by Mr. Brennan, the Board
approve the FCBL Mavericks Baseball Proposal. Mr.
Pastelis moved, second by Mrs. Grassie, to amend the motion to authorize the Superintendent
to sign the Lease with the FCBL Mavericks Baseball Organization. The motion to amend carried unanimously. The
motion on the floor as amended carried unanimously. Instruction
Committee: Alternative
Pathways Mrs. Grassie moved, second
by Mr. Brennan, the Board approve the SHS Administration’s staff
reorganization that is involved with developing Alternative Pathways for
students. After a
detailed discussion regarding the Alternative Pathways program, the motion on
the floor carried unanimously. Magnet School Mrs. Grassie moved, second by Mrs.
Stevens, the Board approve exploration of the Magnet School concept, to
include community forums. The motion
carried unanimously. 2011-12
Calendar Mrs. Grassie moved,
second by Mrs. Logan, the Board approve the revised 2011-12 school year
calendar. The motion carried
unanimously. Personnel
Committee: Resignations Mrs. Stevens moved, second
by Mrs. Parker, the Board accept the following resignations: ................................... Ashley McGowan..................................................... Guidance
Counselor ................................... The
motion carried unanimously. Nominations Mrs. Stevens moved, second
by Mr. Brennan, the Board approve the following nominations: ................................... Kaleigh Betke......................................................... Title
I Interventionist The motion
carried unanimously. Curriculum
Advisor Mrs. Stevens moved,
second by Mr. Gray, the Board approve the resignation of Tyler Nutter as the
Grade 8 Mathematics Curriculum Advisor.
The motion carried unanimously. Mrs.
Stevens moved, second by Mrs. Logan, the Board approve the nomination of
Sarah Nice as the Grade 8 Mathematics Curriculum Advisor. The motion carried unanimously. Extra-Curricular Mrs. Stevens moved, second by Mr.
Gray, the Board approve the following Extra-Curricular nominations: Richard Choate................................................... Middle
School Track Coach Normand Sanborn............................................... Middle
School Track Coach Katie Taylor........................................................ Middle
School Track Coach Warren Buzzell........................................... Varsity
Baseball Coach Assistant Curt Connelly.................................. Varsity
Girls Basketball Coach Assistant Meade Mackay................................................. Varsity
Boys Lacrosse Coach Joshua Torr........................................ Varsity
Boys Lacrosse Coach Assistant Paul Nelson...................................................... Junior
Varsity Softball Coach Joanne Riker................................................ Varsity
Softball Coach Assistant The motion carried unanimously. Special
Services Committee: RMS Survey Mr. Allen moved, second by Mr.
Gray, the Board approve administering the Youth Risk Behavior Survey at
Rochester Middle School. Mrs. Logan
moved, second by Mrs. Gates, to amend the motion to require student
completion of the survey be with parental approval; opt-in vs. opt-out. The
motion to amend failed by a 5 to 7 hand count vote. The
requested roll call vote on the main motion was as follows: YES: Ms. Brown, Mr. Brennan, Mr. Gray, Mrs.
Hubbard, Mr. Watson, NO: Mrs. Stevens, Mrs. Parker, Mrs. Logan,
Dr. Pastelis, Mrs. Gates The motion
carried 7 to 5. Finance Committee: LCD Monitors Mr. Watson moved, second by Mr.
Gray, the Board approve the bid from MA Laboratories of San Jose, CA in the
amount of $9,360 for 80 LCD monitors. The
motion on the floor carried unanimously. Adobe Creative
Suite Mr. Watson moved, second by
Mr. Gray, the Board approve the bid from Digital Information Services of
Potomac, MD in the amount of $5,312.70 for Adobe Creative Suite 5. The motion carried unanimously. Grant Funded
Stipends Mr. Watson moved, second by
Mr. Gray, the Board approve a SINI Grant funded stipend for Michelle
McAlister in the amount of $750 for co-managing the SINI grant; and an IDEA
ARRA Grant funded stipend for Jessica Carloni in
the amount of $5,000 for contracted services. The motion carried unanimously. FY 2012 Budget The Committee recommends to the
Board for first reading the FY 2012 Operating Budget in the amount of
$54,235,312. Lengthy
discussion ensued regarding the importance of not cutting frontline
personnel. Mrs. Gates distributed a
breakdown of possible cuts to alleviate reducing teaching positions, which
could be considered at the next budget reading. Mr. Hopkins reviewed the proposed cuts as
presented in the current budget. Special
Meeting A Special School
Board meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, March 24, 2011 at 7:00 p.m.
for second reading and adoption of the FY 2012 Budget. The meeting will be held at Spaulding High
School Technology Center – Room V200. An
additional Special School Board meeting was scheduled for Thursday, March 31,
2011 at 7:00 p.m. for consideration of a contingency budget if the Governor’s
Budget is passed resulting in a 2.1 million dollar budget cut for the School
Department. This meeting will be held
in the School Department Board Room (150 Wakefield Street). Discipline
Committee: Mrs. Parker
moved, second by Mr. Brennan, the Board uphold the Committee’s recommendation
for discipline case #22514. The motion
carried unanimously. Policy
Committee: First Reading The Committee recommends to
the Board for first reading; policy DJC, Bidding Requirements as amended. Old Business None New Business Tuition
Openings Mr. Watson moved,
second by Mr. Gray, the Board approve accepting up to ten tuition students at
Spaulding High School; and slots for any out of district students at the Bud
Carlson Academy, if they have moved out of the District while attending the
Bud Carlson Academy; with zero tuition openings at Rochester Middle School or
other Rochester Elementary Schools. Mrs.
Stevens moved, second by Dr. Pastelis, to amend the motion to allow
enrollment of up to ten tuition openings at Rochester Middle School. The amendment carried unanimously. The motion
on the floor as amended carried unanimously. SHS Drama Mrs. Stevens offered a reminder
that the High School Masque & Dagger Drama Club will present their
production of Beauty and the Beast starting next Wednesday with shows running
through Sunday afternoon. The talent
showcased in these productions is well worth seeing and enjoying. SHS
Basketball Mr. Watson
congratulated the Varsity Boys Basketball team for moving on to the Division
I quarter finals. The quarter finals
are scheduled on Friday at Bishop Guerton High
School; try to make the game to show support for the team. Non-Public
Session Dr.
Pastelis moved, second by Mrs. Parker, the Board enter non-public session at 8:38
p.m. in accordance with RSA 91-A:3, I & II ( 1) to discuss matters that
would adversely affect the reputation of any person, other than a member of
the board. The roll call vote follows: YES: Mr. Watson, Mr. Brennan, Mrs. Gates, Mrs.
Stevens, Mrs. Parker, Mr.
Gray, Mrs. Grassie, Dr. Pastelis, Ms. Brown, Mr. Allen, Mrs.
Logan, Mrs. Hubbard NO: None After
a short recess, the Board entered non-public session at 8:45 p.m. Public Session Mrs. Logan
moved, second by Mr. Allen, to enter public session. By unanimous vote, the Board entered public
session at 9:04 p.m. Mrs. Gates
moved, second by Mrs. Logan, to support the Superintendent’s disciplinary
action for a five day suspension, without pay for JS. The motion carried
unanimously. Adjournment Mrs.
Hubbard moved, second by Mrs. Stevens, to adjourn. On a unanimous vote, the
Board adjourned at 9:06 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Michael
Hopkins Board
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