SPRINGFIELD PUBLIC SCHOOLS SCHOOL BOARD MEETING

SPRINGFIELD, OR 97477 MONDAY, AUGUST 13, 2001

7:30 P.M.

MINUTES

3/ A work session regarding Food Services was held August 13, 200 in the boardroom of the Springfield School District Administration Center beginning at 6:30 p.m. Board members in attendance included Tom Atkinson, Jennifer Heiss, Mary Lenk, and Jonathan Light. Garry Weber was unable to attend the work session. Others in attendance included Jamon Kent, Steve Barrett, Judy Land, Dave Johnson, Russ Schallock, Len Arney, Bruce Smolnisky, Charlie Beck, Yvonne Atteberry, Hanalei Rozen, Cherie Kistner and Karen Lewis.

1. CALL MEETING TO ORDER/FLAG SALUTE

A regular meeting of the Lane County School District No. 19 Board of Education was held August 13, 2001 in the boardroom of the Administration Center. Chairman Heiss called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.

In addition to Chairman Heiss, board members in attendance included Tom Atkinson, Marty Lenk, Jonathan Light and Garry Weber.

District staff, students and community members identified included Jamon Kent, Len Arney, Steve Barrett, Roger Jordan, Judy Land, Bruce Smolnisky, Debbie Egan, Charlie Beck, Cherie Kistner, Karen Lewis, Greg James, Merwin Logan, Yvonne Atteberry, John Svoboda, Steve Dustrude, and Kim Sullivan of The Springfield News.

Marty Lenk moved, Tom Atkinson seconded, to approve the following items included in the Consent Agenda (with the removal of Item F) as specified in the superintendent’s recommendations:

A. Approval of July 9, 2001 Minutes

B. Approval of July 23, 2001 Minutes

C. Board Policies Annual Review, First Reading

D. Elementary Reading/Language Arts Supplemental Textbooks, First Reading

VOTE: The motion passed: 5-0.

Item F, Operations Update, was removed from the Consent Agenda for discussion at the request of Board member Tom Atkinson. The operations report contained data on cell towers, fourth quarter 2000-01 vandalism report, irrigation projects, SkyCamp’s first year under the District’s management, and requests for proposals for three-year asbestos re-inspection.

Regarding Item 3, Irrigation Projects Planned, Tom Atkinson asked if the money identified for the irrigation projects could be used for more direct educational purposes. Superintendent Kent responded that the money was previously identified for making irrigation improvements to areas around the district that were high-traffic public areas in agreement with member agencies of TEAM Springfield. Judy Land responded that $200,000 had been set aside in Lottery Funds for the projects, and the funds could be used for projects, equipment, or contracted services, but not for salary and benefits of employees. Mr. Atkinson commented that with the unexpected expenses in the area of technology, he felt that the district should re-direct the funds toward things that would directly benefit students.

Marty Lenk explained that he was the board’s representative to TEAM Springfield when the issue of brown grass was discussed as related to the district’s public image of "looking like a loser" and the public’s support or lack of support in future bond levy’s. Mr. Lenk reminded the Board of the cooperative efforts the district discussed with Willamalane and SUB to strategically improve visible areas around the district and other parts of Springfield.

Garry Weber commented that he remembered discussions held at budget committee meetings about the importance of keeping priorities as close to kids as possible.

Board members discussed the costs involved in the irrigation projects and the legal responsibility of the district for the bids that are in progress.

Superintendent Kent reminded board members of the TEAM Springfield discussions and the impressions of the other agencies about why our bond failed.

Tom Atkinson moved, Garry Weber seconded, to direct staff to bring back more information on the irrigation issue for the Board’s review and action at the August 27, 2001 meeting.

Board members discussed the ramifications of not participating in cooperative projects as discussed at the TEAM Springfield meetings. Chairman Heiss said that, as the new board representative to TEAM Springfield, she would communicate the board’s final decision and rationale to the other TEAM Springfield agencies at their next meeting.

Judy Land clarified that the district is legally obligated for the purchase order that had already been let for one of the projects. Ms. Land asked the board for consensus to move forward with the project, at an approximate cost of $14,000. Board members agreed to move forward with the legal obligations of the let bid.

VOTE: The motion was carried 5-0.

In response to a question from Jonathan Light regarding a master plan for the management of SKY Camp, Steve Barrett advised that SKY Camp was in its first year of a 5-year management plan under Springfield School District’s management. Mr. Barrett provided a brief overview of the plan and advised that the current focus is to market the availability of the property.

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Erin Wolff/Springfield High School and Julee Reinhart/Thurston High School will serve as student representatives for the 2001-02 school year. The student representatives are expected to begin their term at the beginning of the new school year.

Superintendent Kent distributed a packet of information and discussed the board operating agreements as re-confirmed at the July 23, 2001 work session. The operating agreements originally made in 1996, revised in 2000 and again in 2001, will be brought back as a resolution at the next meeting.

Mr. Kent passed out information on the conceptual diagram of the MillRace and provided information on how it pertains to Springfield School District property. As a result of the United Front efforts, the MillRace project was awarded $1 million in federal funding for the conceptual study, with the possibility of additional funding for the project.

Also distributed was a back-to-school packet of letters sent to all Springfield families, a letter that was sent to all staff, and a letter that was sent to all administrators. Superintendent Kent pointed out that the all staff and family picnic would be held on August 30, 4-6:30 p.m., at Willamalane Park. This is a change from the meeting usually being held at Silke Field for staff only. Board members volunteered to assist with the cooking/serving at the picnic.

Superintendent Kent passed out the book Who Moved My Cheese, which will be used at the All Administrators’ Inservice on August 16-17, at Agnes Stewart Middle School. Mr. Kent commented on the world of education constantly changing and encouraged board members to review the book.

Mr. Kent also reported on the district’s positive presence at the Filbert Festival and acknowledged the volunteers representing the district. Mr. Kent distributed Springfield Public Schools hats to board members.

Jennifer Heiss displayed the denim and polo shirts with the district logo that she purchased and provided details for other board members who were interested in purchasing shirts.

Chairman Heiss presented Marty Lenk with a plaque in appreciation of his service as board chair for the 2000-2001 school year.

Ms. Heiss reminded board members of the DARE fundraiser sponsored by the Springfield Board of Realtors on August 24. Ms. Heiss asked interested board members to contact her.

Ms. Heiss displayed photos of the district logo and mission statement for the board’s discussion. Board members agreed to place the district mission statement on two panels in the boardroom and the district logo in a prominently displayed place.

Chairman Heiss commented on the OSBA Large District meeting hosted by Springfield Public Schools on July 30. The group discussed common issues concerning districts over 11,000 ADM and was attended by Superintendent Kent and Ms. Heiss. The group agreed to meet again at the OSBA Convention in November to discuss issues of mutual concern.

Tom Atkinson reported that the City Library Committee has been meeting regularly. The committee has directed staff to draft a recommendation to the City Council to consider a city-wide (four-year) tax levy for the November 2002 ballot to fully fund library services. Mr. Atkinson reported that the committee also recommended a special district tax levy for the November 2004 ballot.

Garry Weber shared information from an article in the September 2001 issue of Reader’s Digest, "A" Is for Answers, and an article from the Harvard Business Review on change, which Mr. Weber offered to provide copies of.

Superintendent Kent reviewed the four goals from the July 23, 2001 work session. Mr. Kent encouraged board members to work among themselves and with him to review and develop Goal 4 (to improve board meetings). Information on Goal 1 (to increase student retention through graduation) will be prepared for the next board meeting.

Mr. Kent outlined Goal 2, to design and implement an effective stakeholder engagement strategy, and Goal 3, to use the CDIP to align curriculum and improve student achievement.

Superintendent Kent asked board members for direction on their interest in meeting at 7:00 p.m. to "meet and greet the public" before regular 7:30 p.m. board meetings. Board members discussed various ways to engage the public and agreed that board representation at the five middle schools and feeder schools would be an effective means to engage the public, rather than meeting prior to school board meetings. Public engagement ideas included a variety of open houses, focus groups, cookies and coffee and opportunities for small-group conversations.

Board members agreed to the following board representation by middle schools and feeder schools:

Agnes Stewart Middle: Jennifer Heiss

Briggs Middle: Garry Weber

Hamlin Middle: Marty Lenk

Springfield Middle: Jonathan Light

Thurston Middle: Tom Atkinson

Lane Council of Governments: Marty Lenk

Alternate: Jennifer Heiss

PTA Council: Garry Weber

Site Council: By feeder school representation

Springfield Chamber: Jonathan Light

Springfield Education

Foundation: Jennifer Heiss and Jonathan Light

Springfield Library: Tom Atkinson

Board members also agreed to representation on the following district committees:

Communications: Garry Weber

Curriculum: Jonathan Light

Finance: Marty Lenk

Sites and Facilities: Tom Atkinson

Cherie Kistner and Bruce Smolnisky distributed draft recommendations for the Consolidated District Improvement Plan (CDIP) and data collection and reviewed the information to begin the process of gathering data necessary to carry out Board Goal 3 (Use CDIP to align curriculum and improve student achievement), and Board Goal 2 (Design and implement an effective (focus group) stakeholder engagement strategy).

Bruce Smolnisky provided an overview of the CDIP and Data Gathering work plan, some key features of the plan and timelines. Cherie Kistner discussed the public engagement phase of working with community groups (stakeholders) to develop specific sets of data including opinion surveys.

In response to a question from Tom Atkinson regarding a measurement of our community’s expectation of the district and how are we doing, Ms. Kistner said the district will get two products from the CDIP and Data Gathering Plan: 1) the CDIP which will be submitted to the State on March 29, 2002; and 2) an accurate picture of the district and an idea of what the community’s vision is for the school district.

In response to a question from Jonathan Light regarding the involvement of staff in the plan, Bruce Smolnisky said that classified, certified and administrative staff would be included in the process including surveys and focus groups.

Ms. Kistner said that as the district moves into the engagement phase of the plan, the district will conduct surveys and focus groups involving all stakeholder groups, including parents, volunteers, community leaders and students.

Mr. Light commented that he felt that there is a distinction between district administration and site administration within the community. Mr. Smolnisky commented that the plan hadn’t developed yet to that level of detail. Ms. Kistner responded that the district could develop a survey or focus group question that would seek information on this topic. She reminded board members that in 1999 an employee satisfaction survey addressed that question as did the district’s internal communication focus group.

Tom Atkinson discussed the PBS series that will air this fall and the Round Table resources that were discussed at the National School Boards Association conference. Ms. Kistner said the district will incorporate useful information into a selected environment such as a large group TEAM Springfield meeting.

Superintendent Kent described his analogy of the process for the CDIP and Data Gathering work plan as an "upside down Y" with the district using the data for development of the CDIP (one side of the Y) and the board using the data to engage the community (the other side of the Y). Mr. Kent reviewed the use of the information gathered for the CDIP and its value as it’s used in other areas of planning throughout the district.

In response to a question from Garry Weber regarding teacher retention, Roger Jordan reported that there have been 134 certified retirements from the 1994-95 school year to present, with 403 teachers employed during that same time. Mr. Jordan said that approximately 200 of those individuals are eligible for retirement over the next four to five years. Superintendent Kent discussed recent data from Northwest Regional Labs that documented the importance of school districts recruiting outside of Oregon for 2/5 of their teaching staff.

Superintendent Kent reviewed the list of work sessions that board members expressed interest in at the July 23, 2001 work session. Regarding the topic of zero tolerance, Bruce Smolnisky reported that for the 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 school years there were 22 weapons offenses resulting in 17 expulsions (six full year) and five probations.

Board members discussed other work session topics including continuation of the Baldrige effort, utilization of the book "The Data Connection," hiring a District Volunteer Coordinator, increasing co-curricular grade requirements, decreased shared staff, attraction and retention of staff, the 2002-03 budget process, revision of board goals/CDIP, revision of school improvement plans and board goal setting for 2002-03.

Board members agreed to remove use of the book "The Data Connection" from the work session topics as staff were already utilizing the book.

Regarding the topic of shared staff, Len Arney reported that three staff members for the 2001-02 school year are assigned to three buildings; two are speech therapists and one is a music teacher. Thirty-eight other staff members are assigned to two buildings, mostly in the area of speech/language, music, library and counseling.

Chairman Heiss asked staff to present any of the topics they could as reports at board meetings. Board members agreed that staff schedule work sessions throughout the school year with priority given to the topics of volunteer coordinator, Baldrige, attracting/retaining staff, high school graduation requirements, and further discussion of "zero tolerance" language in district policies.

In response to a question from Garry Weber regarding Board Goals 2 and 3, Bruce Smolnisky and Cherie Kistner responded that the district can accomplish CDIP activities and engagement activities at the same time.

In response to a question from Jonathan Light regarding use of the CDIP to align curriculum and improve student achievement, Bruce Smolnisky explained that information is part of the data collection process. Len Arney pointed out that the district is currently in the process of putting all syllabi, approved textbooks and links to the Oregon Department of Education website onto the district’s Intranet site as a resource for staff.

Superintendent Kent also pointed out the availability of funds for site council use for staff development as an effort to align goals with the CDIP. Len Arney explained that individual school improvement plans must align with the CDIP.

Superintendent Kent asked board members to write the "charge" for the individual committees working with directors.

Superintendent Kent said that a final work plan would be brought back to the board at the August 27, 2001 meeting. Cherie Kistner advised that, according to the work plan presented tonight, the next formal report would then be made in October 2001.

Chairman Heiss asked Superintendent Kent to summarize the board’s representation to the five feeder middle schools, agencies, civic organizations and committees and place it in the board packets for reference.

It was recommended that the Board of Directors review proposed changes to board policies KB as presented and review the following board policies needing legal reference updates:

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Motion: Tom Atkinson moved, Garry Weber seconded, for approval; carried 5-0.

It was recommended that that Board of Directors approve the Student Responsibilities and Rights Handbook with the recommended revisions as referenced above.

Motion: Tom Atkinson moved, Jonathan Light second, for approval; carried 5-0.

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Chairman Heiss announced the next board meeting would be held August 27, 2001, at the Administration Center boardroom, 525 Mill Street, Springfield.

Chairman Heiss announced the need for an emergency Executive Session under ORS 192.660 (1)(b) complaints against the district and called a recess of the regular board meeting at 9:46 p.m.

Chairman Heiss called to order the Executive Session at 9:49 p.m.

Those present included Chairman Heiss, Tom Atkinson, Marty Lenk, Jonathan Light, Garry Weber, Superintendent Kent, Len Arney, Judy Land, Roger Jordan and Karen Lewis.

The Executive Session was concluded at 10: 11 p.m.

With no other business, Chairman Heiss announced adjournment 10:11 p.m.

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