Feb. 9, 2011 School Committee Meeting

Agenda

Regular Meeting of the Quincy School Committee
February 9, 2011

7:00 p.m.
City Council Chambers

I. Approval of Minutes: Regular Session minutes for January 19, 2011

II. Superintendent’s Report:

A. Adjusted Calendar
B. Special Olympics
C. NQHS Auditorium Dedication
D. Winter Institute 2011

III. Open Forum: (7:15 p.m.) An opportunity for community input regarding the Quincy Public Schools. After giving his or her name and address, each speaker may make a presentation of no more than four minutes to the School Committee.

IV. Old Business

A. Update on building projects, renovations, and construction: Mr. Murphy to report.
B. Update on the New Quincy High School: Mrs. Dwyer to report.
C. Update on Central: Mrs. Bragg and Mrs. Mahoney to report.

V. New Business:

A. Student Support Services Program Improvement Plan
B. Quincy Public Schools Grant Booklet (2010-2011)
C. Out of State Travel - Robotics to New Hampshire (A)
D. Out of State Travel - Robotics to Hartford, CT (B)
E. Out of State Travel - North Quincy ROTC to NJ, VA, PA (C)

VI. Additional Business:

VII. Communications:

VIII. Hearings:

IX. Reports of Special Committees:

A. Budget Subcommittee: Mrs. Mahoney to report.
B. Special Education Subcommittee: Mrs. Lebo to report.

X. Executive Session:

XI. Adjournment:

Subcommittees of the School Committee

Subcommittee Date Referred Business Pending
Budget & Finance
Mahoney/Bragg/Lebo 10/7/2009 Half Time Teachers
  9/15/2010 Full Day Kindergarten
  9/15/2010 Opportunities & Challenges
  9/15/2010 Free & Reduced Lunch
  9/15/2010 Short & Long Term Goals
School Facilities Management    
Dwyer/Lebo/McCarthy Major Building Projects  
  3/4/98 QHS/Central/Sterling Building Plans
  10/20/2004 ADA Report
  9/7/2005 Alternative Plans for Central Middle School
  2/8/2006 Conservation
  4/9/2008 Track
  3/3/2010, 9/29/2010 Coddington Hall
Health, Safety, Security & Transportation    
McCarthy/Isola/Dwyer 3/17/2010 North Quincy Traffic Intersection
  3/26/2008 Increase School Breakfast Participation
School Policy    
Bragg/Isola/Dwyer 3/11/2009 MS Interim Letters
  12/16/2009 School Tardiness Policy
  9/15/2010 Attendance Tardy Policy with High School principals
  9/15/2010 CPR/ADE Training
  9/15/2010 Students Use of Electronics
  9/15/2010 Open Enrollment Policy
  10/2010 Harassment Policy
  11/17/2010 Jewish Holidays
  11/17/2010 Polling Places
  11/17/2010 Internet/Technology Policy re: Social Networks
  1/5/2011 CTE Admissions Policy
  1/5/2011 School Calendar
  1/5/2011 SC Calendar
  1/19/2011 Open Enrollment Policy
Special Education    
Lebo/McCarthy/Mahoney 1/17/2007 Emergency Information Form
  1/17/2007 Substitute Teachers for SPED
  3/21/2007 Implementation of IEPs
  9/24/2008 INSPIRE Initiative
Rules, Post Audit & Oversight    
Isola/Mahoney/Bragg 10/29/2008 Faxon Field
     
AD HOC COMMITTEES:    
Channel 22    
Mahoney/McCarthy 10/17/2007 Encourage greater use of

 

Minutes

Quincy, Massachusetts - February 9, 2011
Regular Meeting of the Quincy School Committee

Regular Mtg.

A regular meeting of the Quincy School Committee was held on Wednesday, February 9, 2011 in the Lloyd Hill Auditorium, Quincy High School. Present were: Mr. Dave McCarthy, Ms. Barbara Isola, Mrs. Jo-Ann Bragg, Mrs. Anne Mahoney, and Mayor Thomas P. Koch, Chairman.

Chairman Presiding

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The Superintendent called the roll and Mrs. Dwyer and Mrs. Lebo were absent. Also present were: Dr. Richard DeCristofaro, Secretary; Mrs. Tefta Burrelli, Clerk; Messrs. Mullaney, Draicchio, and Mulvey. Ms. Roberts, Tenaglia, and Todd. Ms. Allison Cox, QEA President, and Donna Niosi (QHS) Student Representative and Tracey Christello, Citywide.

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Reg. Meeting Mins. Approved 1/19/2011

On a motion by Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the Committee approved the regular session minutes for January 19, 2011 with the following amendment. that “Mr. Michael O’Brien, from Gilbane guaranteed if we had any issues from this time over the next couple of years, Gilbane would come in and help us with problems if we had any more reoccurrences at the new high school.” The ayes have it.

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Supts. Report

The 2010-2011 school calendar has been adjusted to reflect the four snow days that we had. The last day of school will be June 23 and the last day for teachers will be June 24, 2011 pending any more school closings.

Special Olympics will be held Friday, February 11 at 9:15 a.m. at the Squantum Elementary School. This is for first and second grades and will last one hour.

On Tuesday, March 8, there will be a dedication at the North Quincy High School High School to name the auditorium after Mr. Peter Chrisom. Mr. Chrisom was a principal at North Quincy for 25 years and two years as the Assistant Principal.

The Committee received a Winter Institute flyer for the Saturday program for students in Grades K-5.

PW evacuation

On January 25, there was an evacuation at the Point Webster Middle School due to a burst pipe. Everyone got out of the building safely. Thanks went to Mr. McGuire, Mr. Draicchio, Mr. Murphy, Mr. Segalla and the Quincy Police Dept. who helped with the evacuation. Buses came to the school and brought students and staff to Quincy High School until the end of the school day. Mr. Santoro opened Quincy High School for the students.

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Movie Studio at old QHS building

Mr. Jim Timmins, City Solicitor, informed the School Committee that the City has entered into an agreement with Columbia Studios to use the old Quincy High School to film a movie. The movie studio will use the parking lot at Coddington Hall for staging vehicles at the west side of the building, away from the new high school from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. They will be here for 19 days. The movie shoot should be done by June. A check for $80,000 will come to the City to a special account. It will be a separate appropriation e-marked for the school music program. The Mayor said he thought it made some sense to give the money to the Music Department because the picture has a musical theme. The Superintendent will work with Mr. Santoro to make sure the company has enough room for the movie people and the people that work there.

Mr. McCarthy asked if the Quincy Police will be involved around Coddington St. Mr. Timmins said they will work with the Quincy Police. Columbia Studios will pay to park at Coddington, and he will have an agreement about vacating the old Quincy High School by June as it is slated to be demolished this summer.

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Open Forum Faxon Field

At the Open Forum, Mr. Chris Chetwyn expressed his concern with the dirt pile on Faxon Field that is contaminated. He said he just learned of the contamination after watching the last School Committee meeting. Mr. Chetwyn asked the following questions:

Mr. Chetwyn’s request

  1. Did the City, before placing the dirt on Faxon Field, know that it was in fact contaminated?

  2. Has the EPA been notified of the contamination of the dirt pile on the site?

  3. What exactly is the dirt pile contaminated with?

  4. Is the City aware that the dirt pile and its contaminants due to rain fall washing through the dirt pile has likely contaminated the soil on the Faxon Field site below the dirt pile which would now need to be dug up and cleaned or replaced?

  5. Will any testing be done to ensure none of this contamination from the site has been released into the wetlands on Faxon Field?

Ms. Debra McDonald spoke in favor of keeping the full day Kindergarten program in Quincy.

Ms. Tracey Christello, Citywide, invited all of the Quincy parents to Broad Meadows Middle School on March 14 @ 7:00 p.m. to hear a guest speaker talk drug abuse.

Mr. Scott Allesandro spoke to the next school budget and is looking for some assurance from the Mayor that he at least fund the next budget at the rate it is now.

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Student Support Services

Ms. Maura Tenaglia, Student Support Services Director, and her staff high- lighted the Student Support Services Department. They are working to implement the key requirements of the new bullying prevention and intervention law. A systematic implementation of school-wide programs and professional development should address the issue of bullying and aid in improving social skills in students creating a safer and more trusting learning environment. All professional staff have been trained on the bullying reporting system. The professional development this year and SMART goals for the Student Support Services department will be directly related to the anti-bullying initiatives mandated by law.

The School Counseling goal is to cultivate student success, mitigate the social/emotional barriers to learning, provide students with opportunities to gain knowledge of coping skills and decision making.

The Student Support Services Team spoke to programs and initiatives they have for Pre-Kindergarten guidance services, Elementary Guidance, Middle School counseling and high school guidance services. They spoke to the programs and initiatives that take place in order to facilitate student transition from elementary to middle school and from middle school to high school.

Quincy has been using Naviance, a web-based resource that supports course, career, and college planning. It is specific to our high schools which can be expanded to middle school. We are linked with Naviance Succeed, a service that we use in the school counseling office.

There are 14 guidance counselors at North Quincy and 14.5 at Quincy High, two at each middle school and three at Atlantic and Point Webster.

Ms. Isola asked if Middle School homework assignments were on line for all middle schools so that parents can access that. Ms. Tenaglia said that some of the schools did that, but she will check.

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Bldg. Update Mr. Murphy Reports

The Maintenance Department is still battling old man winter, salt, and sand, clearing drains, parking lots and walkways. Thanks went to all involved in keeping the property cleared. Electricians have repaired the heat at North Quincy High café, gym, and fourth floor classrooms. Carpenters repaired windows, doors and locks at Broad Meadows, Sterling, Wollaston, Atlantic and North Quincy High School. They repaired all the auditorium chairs at Broad Meadows and a sump pump at Sterling. They are still painting at Atherton Hough, preparing for the Centennial Celebration.

Mrs. Mahoney said that she had received many phone calls from parents regarding snow removal issues, specifically at Merrymount, Lincoln Hancock, Squantum, the Early Childhood Ctr., and Quincy High School. She asked who was responsible for plowing what. Mr. Murphy said that the DPW clears the streets and a number of sidewalks, Public Works clears the sidewalks leading to the schools, and the school custodians do the sidewalks around the schools. The Superintendent added that there have been a few situations where we cleared roofs. Mr. Kevin Segalla goes up on every roof making sure the drains rains are clear.

Mr. McCarthy asked about the pool at Lincoln Hancock Community School. Mr. Murphy said the heating unit is slated to be replaced. When the lights go out at Quincy High School, Mr. McCarthy asked if we have a punch list to get at these lights. Mr. Murphy said custodians call the Maintenance Office. They have three lifts they use for lights. Outside on the concourse of the new high school, two lights have been out since the school opened. Mr. McCarthy asked if there was a problem with the water. Mr. Murphy said he will check. Mr. McCarthy stressed that we need to be proactive.
The Superintendent has met with Gilbane and representatives from PJ Kennedy regarding the leaks in the Broadcast Room at Quincy High School. The computers damaged by the leaks haven’t been replaced yet, but they will be. Gilbane will establish the cost and they will be replaced. This is the only place that we had any damage. The Broadcasting area had a Glycol leak. Gilbane did pressure testing over the weekend. They are looking at elbow joints. The Mayor said it appears to be a manufacturing issue. Mrs. Dwyer will report on that at the next meeting.

Mrs. Bragg thanked Mayor Koch for submitting the bond to replace the roofs on some of our schools.

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Central Middle School Mrs. Mahoney reports

The Central Building Committee met on February 1 to discuss the status of the Central project with regard to the purchase of St. Ann for $4 million, the the Chiropractor’s office at $380,000, and $320,000 for the resident homes, ENC is still incomplete, but there was a verbal agreement and a formal vote of the Board of Governors at ENC. We are waiting on the P&S for $2,587,000. The total sale price for the land for the new Central will be $7,287,000. When the City Council approves the bond for $9 million, the site work can begin. There will be $1.5 million left over for demolition costs for the site. The MSBA hasn’t found anything they were concerned about. Geo testing, site borings, asbestos testing will be done on the site. The schematic design and cost estimate will be reviewed and reconciled on March 3. Tishman and Ai3 will be doing the cost analysis and estimate. The schematic designs will be presented to the School Committee by the end of February, then community presentations by the end of February\ beginning of March.

Mrs. Bragg reports

Mrs. Bragg reported that the process now is different than it was when building Quincy High School. The MSBA does not require as many votes as it did in the past. We now have more flexibility and gain more space. The new Central classrooms will be 850’. There will be a full gym, an auditorium. We will have more space, it is less expensive to build, and we are already on the schematic design. We have to have everything in by March 30 or we won’t get another opportunity until May.

Mayor Koch thanked the Superintendent and Mr. Timmins who did a lot of the work. He is confident the City Council will move forward on the bond. The MSBA needs to know we have title of the land. The $9 million bond is for the acquisition of the land and some money to start demolition. The acquisition is not reimbursable. We could get some reimbursement for the demolition. We will begin demolition of the site and building with a 73-75% reimbursement. It is time to replace Central Middle School.

Central Middle School

Mrs. Bragg asked that Jim Anderson be invited to come to the City Council Committee meeting on Monday. He has a unique perspective. The Mayor said he will touch base with the City Council Chair to see how they want to proceed.

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Robotics to CT

On a motion by Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the Committee approved Robotics Team to go the Hartford, CT from March 30 to April 3, 2011. The ayes have it.

Robotics to NH

On a motion by Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mrs. Mahoney, the Committee approved the Robotics Team to go to New Hampshire from March 4 to March 6, 2011. The ayes have it.

ROTC to NJ, VA, PA

On a motion by Ms. Isola, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the Committee approved the trip for the ROTC students to go to New Jersey, Virginia, and Pennsylvania from April 8 to April 12, 2011. The ayes have it.

SMS to RI

On a motion by Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mr. Mahoney, the Committee approved a trip for Sterling Middle School to go to Providence, RI on March 27, 2011. The ayes have it.

CMS to Camp Wing

On a motion by Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mrs. Mahoney, the Committee approved a trip for Central Middle School to go to Camp Wing, from June7 to June 10, 2011. The ayes have it.

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Grants Booklet 2010-2011

The members received the Grants booklet for 2010-2011. Thanks went to Ms. Cindie Lally the Grants Managers for putting the booklet together. Quincy received $9.3 million in grants. We have 117 staff positions and $1 million in stipend for our teachers and professional development money. The members asked questions on the various grants and asked that the next booklet have a glossary -- a key of the terminology used in the grants.

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Additional Business

Mrs. Mahoney asked the Superintendent to check into the bus being late 20 days in January at Montclair School and one day the bus didn’t show up at all. The Superintendent will look into that and check with Mrs. Malvesti, the Principal.

Mrs. Mahoney told the Mayor she was surprised to see a new director in the City budget and asked if this position was just created? The Mayor answered that the position was put in last Spring. This person will oversee the whole capital outlay program. Specifically for roofs for the schools, the Coddington School issue, etc. That was in the budget last year.

Mrs. Mahoney asked how much Quincy High School contingency money is left in the contingency fund to use to take down the old building. The Quincy High School demolition is not in the bond the Mayor presented. Mayor Koch said he was not certain yet as the numbers are being finalized. The asbestos, lead, etc. have to be analyzed, etc. We may even wait until the bid goes out and then go back to the City Council. We have approximately $2.5 million. This is an estimate. He doesn’t know how much it will cost to taking down the old Quincy High School. The question is what happens to the site itself once we demolish and grade it. There are some grade changes between the Coddington School property and the high school property. This committee has to make some decisions with parking on that site. We have some work to do before we determine the cost on that piece. Certainly the goal is to get the building demolished this summer. Perhaps the site doesn’t have to be completed as long as it’s graded and safe and fenced off.

Mrs. Mahoney went on to ask how many bucket trucks we have in Quincy as the Mayor is asking for a new one in the bond. The Mayor answered that there are four bucket trucks in Quincy. The bucket truck identified in the Capital Outlay is 20 yrs. old and out of commission.

Mrs. Mahoney asked the Mayor when does he anticipate his first attempt forecasting the budget. The Mayor said sometime in April he will be meeting with the Superintendent on the budget and let him know what the numbers will be. His goal is to remain at status quo across the City.

Under additional business; Mrs. Bragg inquired about the dirt on Faxon Field. Mrs. Dwyer had reported that this dirt had to do with the oil leak and this is the dirt taken out of that ground. The Mayor will address those questions at a future meeting. All the fill there was from the high school construction. There was some additional material brought over from the public works yard, but that was clean. Mr. Walter MacDonald, City Maintenance Department, will get the total amount due back from Faxon Field.

The Move Coordinator, Don Martin, is no longer on the payroll. His salary is coming out of the construction money.

Mr. McCarthy asked for the punch list for the A building at Quincy High School. There are a handful of items on his list and was wondering if they had wrapped this up.

Mayor Koch said he attended the Marshall School where they celebrated Chinese New Year. They did a great job. Congratulations to them.

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Budget Subcommittee Mrs. Mahoney reports

Mrs. Mahoney reported on the Budget Subcommittee held this evening to review the Quarterly Budget. The areas of concern are buses, rentals, instruction, substitute teacher line, drivers, and tuition for special education.

Mr. Mullaney said he spoke with Nick Puleo regarding the Lowes and BJ’s mitigation money. The $30,000 is going to the Lincoln Hancock Community School and Sterling Middle School. Mayor Koch said there are other mitigation accounts. The monies will go into a separate account.

On a motion by Mrs. Mahoney seconded by Mrs. Brag, the Committee approved the Quarterly Budget. The ayes have it.

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Special Ed. Subcommittee Mr. McCarthy reports

The Special Education Subcommittee met on February 3, 2011. Ms. Todd and her team walked the group through the PIP and its essential elements of mission and alignment with the District Improvement Plan. Ms. Todd and her team took several questions related to the PIP. Ninety percent of all contact cards are in. Ms Guchuhi reported on the posting they are putting on their website:

First Responder forms were done and distributed and will be included on contact cards in the future. We are working on Transition Related resources starting at age 14, including assessments. QPAC events on transition are planned and a guide book is coming.

On a motion by Mr. McCarthy, seconded by Mrs. Mahoney, the Committee approved the Special Education Subcommittee minutes. The ayes have it.

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Policy Subcommittee Mrs. Bragg reports

A Policy Subcommittee meeting was held on Tuesday, January 8, 2011. They discussed the Attendance and Tardy Policy. Both high school principals were present and Mr. Santoro and Mr. Metzler agreed that the present policy was fair and they wanted to keep it with no changes. CPR, AED and First Aid were reviewed. A student asked that CPR/AED/First Aid certification be a graduation requirement. The Superintendent and the principals will work with the student council and work with Mrs. Kisielius to implement a plan and come back to the Committee and share it with them. The principals and Superintendent are very supportive of the Student Use of Electronics policy and requested that it not be changed. Both schools are in favor of this policy.

Jewish Holidays - The Superintendent will send a letter to all principals highlighting the holidays and that teachers should give those students until the next day to get any reports/tests in.

SC Calendar 2011/2012 Approved

On a motion by Mr. McCarthy, seconded by Ms. Isola, the Committee approved the School Committee calendar for 2011-2012. The ayes have it.

School Calendar 2011/2012 Approved

The members reviewed the School Calendar for 2011-2012. They discussed starting school before Labor Day, but all agreed school will begin after Labor Day. On a motion by Mrs. Dwyer, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the committee approved the School Calendar for 2011-2012 with a reversal of a date on the backup page. The ayes have it.

HS Open Enrollment

High School Open Enrollment: The members discussed a memo from Dr. DeCristofaro regarding Assignment to Schools 2010-2011. His memo states that he will establish a base enrollment before we open it up to out of district students. The system will guard the educational capacity of each high school before out of districts students are allowed in. Siblings will be the first ones approved. Mrs. Roberts will be working with everyone. The granting of school transfer request to either of our high schools will be granted on a space available basis and sibling preference.

Parents requesting a transfer should be aware that they will not hear until much later. It may be over the summer. Mrs. Bragg reminded him of the CTE admissions policy. We cannot restrict entry with the policy that we had.

The members asked that Easy Grade Pro be presented at a televised School Committee meeting in March. They would like some teachers and principals there to show how to work it.

SC Mtgs. in March changed to 3/9 & 3/23

On a motion by Mrs. Dwyer, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the committee changed the School Committee meetings in March of this year to March 9 and March 23. The ayes have it.

Policy Subcommittee mins approved

On a motion by Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the committee approved the Policy Subcommittee minutes. The ayes have it.

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Adjournment

On a motion by Mr. McCarthy, seconded by Mrs. Bragg, the Committee adjourned the meeting at 10:30 p.m. There was no executive session. On a roll call vote, the motion passed 5-0. Mrs. Lebo and Mrs. Dwyer were absent.