August
19, 2008
The Montgomery County School Board met on the above date in the administrative building at 6:00 p.m. for the purpose of a work session.
Board Members Present
B. Wendell Jones, Chair Penny J. Franklin
Phyllis T. Albritton W. Wat
Jamie M. Bond Joseph T. Ivers,
Jr.
David G. Dunkenberger, II
Staff Members Present
Walter L. Shannon, Assistant Superintendent
Judith K. Barylske Anita P. Johnston
Daniel A. Berenato Katie Miano
Brenda S. Bishop Mark J. Pasier
Rebecca Counts Walter L. Shannon
Harvey C. Goodwin Nelson. W. Simpkins
Lois T. Graham Brad King, Attorney
Carol Jennings
Call to Order
Mr.
Jones called the meeting to order with the pledge of allegiance to the flag at 6:00
p.m.
Adoption of Agenda
On motion by Ms. Franklin, seconded by Mrs. Albritton, the Board voted unanimously to adopt the agenda as presented.
Closed Session
Mr. Ivers moved,
seconded by Ms. Franklin, and the Board voted unanimously to enter into a
closed meeting pursuant to Section 2.2-3711(A) of the Code of Virginia
at 6:01 p.m. for the purpose of discussion of the following specific matters:
Student
Matters: Discussion or consideration of student
disciplinary matters, as authorized by Section 2.2-3711 (A)(2) of the Code
of Virginia.
Personnel
Matters: The
discussion or consideration of prospective candidates for employment;
assignment; appointment; promotion; performance; demotion; salaries;
disciplining or resignation of specific public school officers, employees or
appointees, as authorized by Section 2.2-3711 (A)(1) of the Code of Virginia.
Real Estate Matters: The discussion or consideration of the
acquisition of real estate for the construction of a new school, where
discussion in an open meeting would adversely affect the bargaining position or
negotiating strategy of the public body, as authorized by Section
2.2-3711(A)(3) of the Code of Virginia.
Return to Open Session and Certification
Ms. Franklin
moved, seconded by Mrs. Albritton, and the Board voted unanimously to return to
open session at 7:45 p.m.
Mrs. Albritton
moved, seconded by Ms. Franklin, and the Board unanimously adopted the
following resolution:
WHEREAS, the County School Board of
convened a closed meeting on this date pursuant to an affirmative
recorded vote and in accordance with provisions of the Virginia Freedom of
Information Act; and
WHEREAS, Section
2.2-3711(d) of the Code of
requires a certification by this School Board that such closed meeting
was conducted in conformity with Virginia Law;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED
that the County School Board of
hereby certifies that, to the best of each member’s knowledge (i) only
public business matters lawfully exempted from open meeting requirements by
Ayes: Phyllis T. Albritton W.
Wat
Jamie M. Bond Joseph T. Ivers, Jr.
David G. Dunkenberger, II B. Wendell Jones, Chair
Penny J. Franklin
_______________________________ August
19, 2008
Clerk
of the
Action
Ms. Franklin moved, seconded by Mr. Ivers, and the Board voted unanimously to exempt student A from attendance in Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) for religious reasons.
Mr. Dunkenberger moved, seconded by Mrs. Albritton, and the Board voted unanimously to exempt multiple students from attendance in MCPS for religious reasons.
Public Address
No one spoke during public address.
Item 08/08-134 Personnel
Report: On motion by Ms. Franklin,
seconded by Mrs. Albritton, the Board unanimously voted to approve the
personnel report with an addendum.
The
personnel report is attached and made a part of the minutes as pages A1-A6.
Work Session
Dr. Hopkins moved, seconded by Ms. Franklin, and the Board voted unanimously to enter a work session at 7:47 p.m.
Item 08/08-135 Presentation
on Alternative Education Program: Brenda Bishop, Coordinator of Adult
Literacy, presented the Board with information on the MCPS Adult Education
Program including adult basic education, the General Educational Development
(GED) program, English as a Second Language (ESL) courses, workforce training,
adult high school diploma credit programs, and the Virginia Department of
Education’s Individual Student Alternative Education Plan (ISAEP).
Item 08/08-136 Adequate
Yearly Progress (AYP) and Preliminary Accreditation Results: Carol
Jennings, Assessment Coordinator, provided the School Board with a presentation
on preliminary AYP and accreditation data.
Item 08/08-134, Item 08/08-135,
and Item 08/08-136
Ms. Jennings told Board members that the school
division, as well as all schools in the division, is expected to be accredited (the
state benchmark based on Standards of Learning scores) for the first time. Ms. Jennings said 11 schools are expected to
make AYP (the federal benchmark based on SOL scores). She also noted that many schools in the
division saw dramatic increases in their scores this year.
Ms. Franklin stated that some schools are making great
strides, but there is still an achievement gap between white students and black
students.
Dr. Anderson said the school division is continuing to
look at individual subgroups and achievement gaps. She added that some schools now have no gap
whereas others have smaller gaps than in the past. Dr. Anderson noted that this year the school
division would be given individual teacher scores by class for the last three
years. She said this would allow the
administration to spot trends over time.
Mr. Ivers asked how many schools met AYP last
year. Ms. Jennings responded that 11
schools met AYP last year but not necessarily the same schools as this year.
Dr. Lois Graham, Director of Elementary Education, told
Board members that some of the elementary schools are looking at specific
students to target efforts. She said meeting all benchmarks is a goal in the comprehensive
(six-year) plan.
Ms. Franklin stated that the school division still has
a way to go, and she wants to make sure the issue is always at the forefront.
Return to Regular Session
Dr. Hopkins moved, seconded by Ms. Franklin,
and the Board voted unanimously to return to regular session at 8:30 p.m.
Superintendent’s Reports, Recommendations and
Announcements
Item 08/08-137 Policy 7-2.2, Admissions (Second
Item 08/08-136 (Continued) and Item 08/08-137
Dr. Hopkins said he plans to vote against the
admissions policy because there is no rational reason for establishing the
non-resident tuition for the children of employees at $371. He stated that it should be based on a
percentage of full tuition or some rational formula.
The Board voted six to one to approve Policy 7-2.2, Admissions. Voting in favor were Mrs. Albritton, Mrs. Bond, Mr. Dunkenberger, Ms. Franklin, Mr. Ivers, and Mr. Jones. Voting against was Dr. Hopkins.
Item 08/08-138 Appropriation of Fiscal Year 2007-2008 Carryover Funds (Action): Walt Shannon, Assistant
Superintendent, presented the Board with a proposal for carryover funds to
include $615,478.58 for capital improvement projects and $200,000 for the
School Nutrition Program (SNP).
Mr. Jones asked why $200,000 is needed in the school
nutrition fund.
Mr. Shannon noted that food costs continue to rise, but
the state and federal government have not increased their reimbursement for
meals. He said the school division
increased meal prices a little, but there is still a deficit and the program is
self-sustaining.
Ms. Franklin moved, seconded by Dr. Hopkins, and the Board voted unanimously to request a supplemental appropriation to the 2008-2009 School Operating Budget in the amount of $3,698,453 (codes specified by the administration), and $200,000 in the 2008-2009 School Nutrition Budget (Code 650000).
Item 08/08-139 Capital
Project List (Action): Dan Berenato, Director of Facilities, presented the
Board with the capital project list proposal for the coming year as well as a
status report on last year’s projects.
Mr. Shannon noted that the school division
would probably only be able to fund the first ten items on the list.
Item
08/08-137 (Continued), Item 08/08-138, and Item 08/08-139
Mrs. Albritton moved, seconded by Ms. Franklin, and the Board voted
unanimously to approve the capital project list as presented.
Item 08/08-140 Teacher
Evaluations (Action): Mark Pasier, Director of Human Resources, provided
the Board with revised evaluation instruments for specialty teachers.
Board members asked questions and
received clarifications on the evaluation instruments.
Ms. Franklin moved, seconded by Mrs. Albritton, and the Board voted
unanimously to approve the teacher evaluation forms for specialty teachers.
Unfinished Business by School Board Members
·
Joint
Meeting with the Board of Supervisors: Mr. Jones informed Board members that the joint meeting with the Board
of Supervisors would take place on September 9, 2008 at 6:00 p.m. at
Mrs. Albritton asked if there is any possibility that the School Board
could fund the additional personal leave day for employees. Board members
agreed that this would not be possible at this time.
Mrs. Albritton said she would like an update on old
Mrs. Albritton asked if new Board members could receive a copy of the
resolution for old
Dr. Hopkins stated that he would like to know if it is possible that the
building would be needed for school use in the future.
Mrs. Albritton asked if this item could be discussed at the joint
meeting. Dr. Anderson said she would
like to have current enrollment projections presented prior to discussing this
item.
Item 08/08-139 (Continued) and Item 08/08-140
New Business by School Board Members
Mr. Ivers told
Board members that he has developed the timeline for the superintendent’s
evaluation process.
Announcements/Information
Dr. Anderson
shared the video presentation from the opening day event for staff and the
banner celebrating full accreditation for MCPS.
Ms. Franklin
reminded Board members about the event at the Rosa Peters Park celebrating the
45th Anniversary of the March on
Agenda Preparation
There was no agenda preparation
listed on the agenda.
Adjournment
The
meeting was adjourned at 9:25 p.m. on motion by Ms. Franklin, seconded by Mrs. Bond,
and passed unanimously.
School Board Chair Clerk of the School Board