Minutes
Quincy, Massachusetts - February 6, 2013
Regular Meeting of the Quincy School Committee
Regular Meeting
A regular meeting of the Quincy School Committee was held on Wednesday,
February 6, 2013 in the City Council Chambers at City Hall. Present were
Mr. Paul Bregoli, Mrs. Kathryn Hubley, Mayor Thomas Koch, Mrs. Emily Lebo,
Mrs. Anne Mahoney, Mr. David McCarthy, and Ms. Barbara Isola, Vice Chair.
Vice-Chair
Presiding
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The Superintendent called the roll and all members were present. Also present
were: Dr. Richard DeCristofaro, Secretary; Ms. Laura Owens, Clerk;
Mr. Michael Draicchio, Mrs. Mary Fredrickson, Ms. Jill Greene, Ms. Beth
Hallett, Mr. James Mullaney, Mr. Kevin Mulvey, Ms. Jennifer O’Brien, Mrs.
Maura Papile, Assistant Superintendent Colleen Roberts, Ms. Madeline Roy, Mr.
Keith Segalla, Ms. Judy Todd; Quincy High School Student Representative to the
School Committee Ms. Lindsay Schrier; Ms. Allison Cox, President, Quincy
Education Association, Mrs. Tracey Christello, Citywide Parents’ Council
Representative, and Ms. Jill Gichuhi, President, Quincy Parent Advisory Council
to Special Education.
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Regular Meeting Minutes Approved
1/23/2013
Mr. McCarthy made a motion, seconded by Mrs. Hubley, to approve the Regular
Meeting minutes for January 23, 2013. On a voice vote, the ayes have it.
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Open Forum
Mrs. Tracey Christello thanked the School Committee members for listening to the
many parents who spoke at the last School Committee Open Forum. She reiterated
their request for the restoration of Media Specialists, citing the many positives that
these professionals bring to schools.
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Superintendent’s Report
Superintendent DeCristofaro began his report by recognizing the Quincy Historical
Society, Director Dr. Edward Fitzgerald, the staff and board members. The Quincy
Historical Society has worked with over 1,300 Grade 3 and 4 Quincy Public
Schools students each year for more than thirty years. Dr. Fitzgerald introduced
Andriana Nochi and Ginny Karlis, the teachers who work with the students
relating the events of the past to the current world and making history accessible
by teaching about Quincy’s rich history. Dr. Fitzgerald thanked the current School
Committee and School Committees of the past.
Mayor Koch concluded the partnership recognition by noting how fortunate the
city is to have the Historical Society and especially Dr. Fitzgerald as Director. The
Society’s staff participate on the city’s Historic District Commission and provide
invaluable support on many matters.
The Superintendent continued his report by sharing that the Atlantic Middle
School recently received the National Council of Teachers of English magazine
award for their Young Writers magazine. Broad Meadows Middle School student
Emily Acrosta from Broad Meadows participated in the recent Massachusetts
Music Educators Association Eastern District contest. Quincy Public Schools is
the recipient of a Gateway Cities Grant from the state. This $214,609 grant will
provide a five-week, full-day summer program for middle school English
Language Learner students, with a focus on content area language and literacy and
incorporating Quincy’s history and marine environment.
The most recent Central Middle School Update was shared with the School
Committee; the next meeting of the Building Committee is Monday, February 25
at 4:15 pm. Upcoming Quincy Public Schools Events include the Special
Olympics on February 8 at the Squantum Elementary School; the Quincy High
School Science Fair on February 13; the Go Math! Parent Information Night for
elementary school parents on February 12 at the Clifford Marshall Elementary
School. In addition, a calendar of upcoming Quincy School-Community
Partnership events was shared with the School Committee. Examples of homeschool connections were provided to the School Committee, including
Curriculum Newsletters from Bernazzani and Wollaston Elementary and Sterling
and Central Middle Schools; the Special Education department Initial Evaluation
Brochure; and the Educational Laboratory Center Program newsletter. Examples
of administrative team communications included the Secretaries Team Newsletter
and School-Community Partnership Newsletter
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New Business
Supervisors of Attendance
Director of Student Support Services Maura Papile and Supervisors of Attendance
Jennifer O’Brien and Jill Greene presented on their department’s focus on residency
and attendance. Mrs. Papile reviewed the recent reorganization of the staff and the
background and experience each Supervisor brings to their position. With the recent
addition of a third Supervisor, this has allowed for re-aligning assignments along
feeder school lines. The Supervisors of Attendance maintain close relationships
with their school staffs and community support members, enforce laws and
regulations relating to attendance and residency. School sites monitor attendance
and provide initial interventions with family; when supervisors become involved,
there are a number of options including home visits. Ongoing interventions
include consultation with the school’s student support team, creative incentives,
addressing the problems directly with parents. If interventions are not successful,
attendance hearings and/or family assistance conferences will be held. The legal
remedies that follow include Child Requiring Aid Application (formerly CHINs),
Failure to Send Petitions (Criminal Complaint), and eventually 51A filings. Under
the new law, every school system is required to have a Truancy Prevention
Program. Quincy Public Schools is one of the few school systems in Norfolk
County that had this program in place prior to the new law.
Verifying residency is the other large component of the Supervisor of Attendance
responsibilities. The state law states that children are entitled to attend school in
the town that they reside; the exception to this being homeless students and
unaccompanied youth. Under the McKinney-Vento Act, a child who has become
homeless is entitled to the stability of continued education. All students register at
their home schools or through Central Registration and are asked to provide two
forms of verification of residency. All parents and guardians are asked to sign a
verification form; students living with adults not their parents have to complete the
RV2 and RV3 forms. Home visits are made to families where schools or Central
Registration have identified that documentation is incomplete. Multiple visits are
made to verify residency, as well as following up on undelivered mail and tips to
the Residency Hotline. Nighttime residency checks are performed in cooperation
with the School Resource Officers and Community Police Officers.
Mayor Koch asked about the volume of complaints made to the hotline. Mrs.
Papile said that the volume of calls is very low, but new efforts will be made to
publicize the hotline. Each Supervisor of Attendance does about 150 residency
checks per year, about 10% are actually issues. Mr. McCarthy asked about the
possibility of students coming to school on the MBTA from other towns. Ms.
O’Brien said that observation and investigation has shown that Quincy student
residents are commuting on the Red Line within the city to the high schools.
Student pedestrians also walk through the train stations to get to the high schools.
Ms. O’Brien cautioned that there are individual situations including homelessness,
foster care, students with divorced parents and shared custody that might cause
students to be commuting from outside the city.
Mr. McCarthy asked about the protocol for verifying guardianship for students not
living with a parent. Mrs. Papile said that court-ordered guardianship should be
documented or parents must sign over their educational rights through the RV3
form when there are informal custodial arrangements. Mr. McCarthy asked about
the number of guardianships; Mrs. Papile will follow up with how many students
are registered under RV3.
Mrs. Mahoney asked for clarification on the QPS Attendance Policy, noting that
there are limited circumstances for excused absences. Mrs. Mahoney inquired
about the caseloads of the Supervisors. Ms. O’Brien said that the additional
Supervisor position and the redistribution of schools is allowing them to spend
more time with each family, as families require individual interventions.
Mrs. Lebo thanked the Supervisors for their presentation. She asked them for an
estimate of time spent on attendance interventions vs. residency issues. Ms.
O’Brien estimated that 75% of each Supervisor’s time is spent on attendance and
25% on residency. Mrs. Lebo acknowledged the complexity of the attendance
interventions and asked about the success of the interventions. Mrs. Papile said
that the Supervisors make referrals for outside services and build relationships,
following families from elementary through middle to high school. Mrs. Lebo
complimented the training and experience of the new Supervisors of Attendance.
Mr. Bregoli thanked the Supervisors of Attendance and Mrs. Papile for their
dedication; they are a valuable asset to students and families. Mr. Bregoli asked for
information on outside resources used for ongoing interventions. Bay State
provides in-home clinicians, therapeutic mentors; South Shore Mental Health;
Leslie Bridson, Homelessness Coordinator; and the Probation Department, are
utilized, among others. Mr. Bregoli spoke of his goal to strengthen the QPS
residency procedures; asked for clarification on what defines residency. Quincy
Public Schools policy is that the student sleeps in Quincy the majority of the time
(with the exceptions for homeless and unaccompanied youth). Mr. Bregoli asked
about the Central Registration staff; Mrs. Papile outlined that experienced
paraprofessionals complete the process supported by English Language Learner
tutors for language testing and guidance staff.
Mrs. Hubley asked about translation assistance for home visits and site-based
meetings. The Quincy Police Department has officers with second language
competency; school sites provide translation support for Attendance Hearings.
Ms. Hallett provided assistance in translating Attendance letters into multiple
languages, with more in development. Ms. Isola expressed her appreciation for all
the work the Supervisors of Attendance do to assist students and families.
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DESE Initiatives Update
Assistant Superintendent Colleen Roberts and Curriculum Coordinators Beth Hallett
and Madeline Roy presented on the many mandates from the federal government and
state and our progress towards meeting these. Administrators and Principals are
continuing to assist teachers in unpacking and analyzing the Common Core
frameworks by school-based grade level teams, system-wide grade level and
content areas, and vertical team meetings. Ms. Roy discussed that all elementary
schools are using a new Math program, Go Math! for Grades K-3. A parent
information night is planned for Tuesday, February 12 at the Clifford Marshall
Elementary School. For Reading, Lincoln Hancock, Wollaston, and Squantum are
piloting the Journeys Reading program and Central is piloting The Common Core
Coach, a Language Arts supplement. Math pilot programs include Go Math! for
Grades 4 and 5 at Wollaston and Squantum and Big Ideas Middle School Math is
at Atlantic, Central, and Point Webster. All non-pilot schools are using OnCore
Math as a Common Core supplement at Grades 4-8. Towards the end of the
school year, pilot teachers and principals will complete a criteria checklist to
ensure the programs align to the Common Core standards. Using this information,
final recommendations will be made for purchasing programs.
As the middle of the school year approaches, analysis of instructional pacing
guides is underway and revisions will be made as needed. Related Professional
Development includes a partnership with the Southeast District Administration
Center (DSAC) and DESE Readiness Centers. For Teachers, Math Coursework
has includes Foundations of Mathematics and standards-focused training; for
Language Arts, a mix of courses, workshops, and consultation.
Ms. Hallett gave an update on RETELL, noting that the Spring courses are full and
registration is open for Summer courses. 464 teachers will need the SEI
endorsement, 52% have already taken the required Category trainings and will
only have to take the RETELL bridge course. Graduate credits will now be
offered for the full RETELL Course. Related professional development will focus
on WIDA Standards and directly link to Common Core State Standards. The new
assessment for English Language Learners, ACCESS, is almost completed (ends
February 13). QPS trained and certified approximately 85 ACCESS Test
Administrators in Grades K-12. Ms. Hallett thanked all of the Principals, Assistant
Principals, ELL staff, and other staff who assisted with test administration.
The new Educator Evaluation system will be implemented in the Fall of 2013.
Collective bargaining is about to begin with the Quincy Education Association on
model contract language. DESE is providing guidance to all non-Race to the Top
districts in the spring; Evaluator and Teacher Training Modules have been
provided by DESE and analysis is underway. A timeline of training and
implementation is to be completed by late spring and will be discussed further at
an upcoming Teaching and Learning Subcommittee meeting.
Mrs. Lebo asked how pilot sites are chosen; Mrs. Roberts said that often principals
volunteer and teachers or department heads initiate a request to pilot new
materials. Mrs. Lebo asked about whether Career and Technical Education
teachers are going to be required to have the SEI Endorsement. Ms. Hallett said
that not right now, but the regulations are evolving. Mrs. Roberts said that noncore teachers will be required to take 15 PDP credits by 2016.
Mrs. Mahoney asked whether the Go Math! parent presentation could be recorded
and rebroadcast on Channel 22 and posted on the QPS website. Mrs. Mahoney
asked Mrs. Roberts to review why Quincy is not a participant in the federal Race
to the Top program which began several years ago. The program participation
required the Mayor, Superintendent, and Teacher’s Union signatures. There were
two opportunities to apply to the program and the QEA declined to participate on
both occasions. Mrs. Roberts noted that there were advantages and disadvantages
to not participating; QPS gained another year for implementing the new Educator
Evaluation system, but was not able to participate in the decision-making process.
Ms. Isola thanked the presenters for keeping School Committee informed in both
the Teaching and Learning Subcommittee and the regular School Committee
meetings.
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Grant Booklet
Dr. DeCristofaro presented the annual Grant Booklet, noting some of the format
and organizational changes. He thanked Grant Administrator Cindie Lally
for her work. Mrs. Lebo expressed her appreciation for the Gateway Cities Grant,
noting that the opportunities seem to be dwindling. Mr. McCarthy cited the
dedication of the Grant Team, the nineteen grants they administer total $6 million,
a substantial amount of money contributed to the school system operations.
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Out of State Travel
Mr. McCarthy made a motion to approve the out of state travel of the Sterling Middle
School Chorus to perform at the Providence Bruins game in Providence, RI on
March 10, 2013. Mayor Koch seconded the motion and on a voice vote, the ayes have it.
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Additional Business
Mr. McCarthy asked whether the Central Middle School construction project is
on schedule for September completion. Dr. DeCristofaro said that the latest
information is that we are on schedule, the weather has continued to be favorable.
Mrs. Mahoney agreed that the school will be move-in ready for the opening of
school, based on information shared at the most recent Central Building
Committee meeting, with some punch list items to be completed in Fall 2013.
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Communications
Ms. Isola noted that a student writing sample about the importance of school
Custodians had been shared with the School Committee and how timely it was,
given their recent recognition. Ms. Isola asked that the writing sample be shared
with the Custodial Staff.
Mr. McCarthy announced that an Athletic Rules Subcommittee meeting will be
held on Tuesday, March 5 and the next Facilities and Security Subcommittee
meeting will be held on Monday, March 18. Both meetings will be held in the 2nd
floor conference room of the NAGE Building at 5:00 pm.
Mrs. Lebo respectfully requested that Student Eligibility be added to the agenda
for the Athletic Rules Subcommittee meeting.
Dr. DeCristofaro mentioned that he’d attended the taping of WGBH’s High School
Quiz Show for the North Quincy High School’s competition and was impressed by
the students who competed and the large number of students who came out to
support the team
.
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Reports of Subcommittees
Joint Teaching & Learning/Policy Subcommittee
Mrs. Lebo reviewed the joint Teaching and Learning/Policy Subcommittee Meeting
that was held on January 24, 2013. The first item on the agenda was the presentation
of the Annual System Profile and Progress Report by Mrs. Fredrickson and Mrs. Papile.
The booklet has been organized into three sections: Enrollment, Assessments, and
Indicators and will be posted on the Quincy Public Schools website at
www.quincypublicschools.com.
The next item on the agenda was Graduation Requirements, specifically
considering adding a fourth year of Math. Most of the neighboring cities and
towns require four years of English, but other requirements vary, including Math,
Science, and Social Studies ranging from two years to four years. Mass Core, the
new state recommendations, suggest four years of Math. State colleges and
universities are going to expect this beginning with the class of 2016. Quincy
Public Schools currently requires four years of English and Social Studies; three
years of Math and Science, and two years of Foreign Language. Currently, 95.6%
of Quincy High School students take four years of Math, as do 96.2% at North
Quincy High School. Dr. DeCristofaro suggested that we continue the discussion
and Mrs. Lebo agreed. QPS offers the courses that allow our students to get into
any college or university, it is a matter of guidance. All agreed the topic, including
the Physical Education Requirement, would be tabled until a later meeting. Mrs.
Lebo requested the Math POS Pathways Information be shared with the School
Committee.
The last item on the agenda was a School Improvement Plan Update for the
Lincoln Hancock Community School for 2012-2013. Revised goals were shared
and the School Improvement Plan was approved by the Teaching and Learning
Subcommittee.
Mrs. Hubley made a motion to approve the January 24, 2013 Teaching and
Learning Subcommittee Meeting minutes. Mr. McCarthy seconded the motion
and on a voice vote, the ayes have it.
The next Teaching and Learning Subcommittee is Monday, February 11 at 5:00
pm. Items on the Agenda include New Educator Evaluations and Media
Specialists.
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Health, Transportation, and Safety Subcommittee
Mrs. Hubley reviewed the Health, Transportation, and Safety Subcommittee Meeting
held on February 4, 2013. The first item on the agenda was an update of the Health,
Nutrition, and Wellness Team by Mrs. Kisielius and Mrs. Morrissey. The Team
met recently and discussed a number of topics, including the completed revision of
the Wellness Policy. All agreed that more education about the new nutritional
regulations is needed for schools, PTOs, and the Booster Clubs. Mrs. Kisielius
reviewed the BOKS program now being piloted at the Squantum School; this very
popular program has over 60 students participating before school twice a week.
Mrs. Morrissey reviewed that the USDA is allowing more flexibility with grain
and protein servings by eliminating the maximums allowed. A recent review of
menus required by the USDA showed that QPS is close to the calorie limit with the
meal patterns already established. The USDA also released their guidelines for
competitive foods; they mirror the state’s guidelines but are focused on foods sold,
not given to students as part of classroom or school events. The USDA guidelines
are in the comment phase and will not be finalized for another year. Mrs.
Morrissey reminded the Subcommittee that there are still conflicts between the
federal and state guidelines. For example, low-fat chocolate milk can be served
with meals sold or provided per the federal regulations but cannot be sold a-lacarte per the state regulations. Ms. Isola suggested that the School Committee
send a letter to the state delegation alerting them the issues with the conflicts
between the state and federal regulations. Mrs. Morrissey will draft a letter about
the issue that School Committee can review.
There is an outstanding item in the Health, Transportation, and Safety
Subcommittee about formalizing the QPS meal charges policy. Mrs. Morrissey
will send a draft so the Subcommittee can review and discuss before referring it to
the Policy Subcommittee for finalization.
The next item on the agenda was a report on the Positive Behavioral Interventions
and Supports (PBIS) pilot currently underway at the Lincoln Hancock, Clifford
Marshall, and Parker Elementary Schools. QPS received a Massachusetts Tiered
System of Support grant of $10,000 and assistance from the May Institute in
piloting this program. PBIS involves all students, reaching them in a tiered system
of support. PBIS supports social and emotional competencies, which has long
been a focus in QPS, but this program has a data collection piece that will help
tailor the school’s responses. The School Wide Information System (SWIS) is
used to collect data to help the staff see where intervention is needed. For
implementing the data collection piece, SWIS is being piloted at the 3 pilot
elementary schools and all five middle schools. School teams (principals, assistant
principals, secretaries, school counselors) have undergone training and common
Office Referral forms were generated. Elementary pilot schools will generate
goals for their School Improvement Plans for next year based on PBIS data. Ms.
Todd also shared information in upcoming changes in the School
Discipline/Dropout Reform Law that will take effect on July 1, 2014.
Mr. McCarthy agreed that the School Committee should send a letter to the state
delegation about the conflicts in the state and federal regulations. Ms. Isola
reiterated that we want to educate parents about the issue, provided specific
example around chocolate milk and the conflict. School Committee will have no
control over the issue and we need to let legislators know that this is a conflict that
must be addressed.
Mrs. Lebo made a motion to approve the February 4, 2013 Health, Transportation,
and Safety Subcommittee Meeting. Mr. McCarthy seconded the motion and on a
voice vote, the ayes have it.
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Facilities and Security Subcommittee
Mr. McCarthy reviewed the Facilities and Security Subcommittee Meeting held on
February 5, 2013. Mr. McCarthy reviewed the Powerpoint that was presented at
the meeting outlining the analysis completed to date for building exteriors and
interiors, alarms, cameras, access control, id badge systems, and visitor protocols.
The decision was made to focus on classroom door lock issues, emergency
procedures, and Public Address system issues as immediate prioritize. The School
Committee has will do additional work to prioritize other items. The ongoing
projects in Maintenance from School Improvement Plans and the Safety, and
Lighting Audits were integrated into a spreadsheet; completed or scheduled items
have been noted with others flagged for prioritization as well. Research will be
ongoing for additional vendors and materials, grants and other funding sources.
Mr. McCarthy thanked Ms. Cox who spoke on behalf of the QEA membership and
the Montclair parents who were in attendance. He also thanked Mr. Draicchio, Mr.
Kevin Segalla, Mr. Murphy, and Superintendent DeCristofaro for their focus on
these issues.
Mr. McCarthy made a motion to approve the February 5, 2013 Facilities and
Security Subcommittee Meeting minutes. Mrs. Hubley seconded the motion and
on a voice vote, the ayes have it.
On the motion, Mrs. Mahoney asked whether we have utilized Homeland Security
resources to assess all of our public buildings, including the schools for their
suggestions. Mr. McCarthy said that this has not been done to date and each
school has been individually assessed. Several years ago, a private security firm
did an assessment and most of the issues they cited are the same as our internal list
of issues. Mr. McCarthy has reviewed the public records about Homeland
Security assessments for other districts and feels we are on track with the items
cited there. He would like to see if we would be eligible for a Homeland Security
grant.
Mayor Koch said that a general security audit was done of city buildings several
years ago and changes were made to building access. The Mayor thanked the
Public Buildings department, Kevin Segalla, and Michael Draicchio for all their
work; knows the issue is being thoroughly reviewed and looks forward to having
cost estimates to consider during the budget process. The Mayor reiterated that
school safety is the priority for the city. Mrs. Mahoney asked if there were older
reports that could be shared with the School Committee; the Superintendent said
there was not a formal report, but a series of conversations. Mrs. Mahoney
requested that we do a formal, documented assessment, since this might be helpful
for future School Committees.
Mayor Koch noted the cooperation between the Quincy Police Department and the
Quincy Public Schools. As a city, we have been proactive in constantly
reassessing our safety and security procedures and processes, and have not waited
for an incident to response.
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Mr. Bregoli asked to remove three items from the Policy Subcommittee since they
have been completed and approved: the update of the Wellness Policy, the 2013-
2014 School Year Calendar, and the 2013-2014 School Committee meeting
calendar.
Dr. DeCristofaro apologized that during the Superintendent’s Report he meant to
mention the many North Quincy High School teachers and staff members who
supported the students competing on the High School Quiz Show by attending the
taping. He also thanked all of the School Committee members for the work done
over the course of the school year through the Subcommittees.
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Executive Session
On a motion by Mrs. Lebo, seconded by Mrs. Hubley, the School Committee
went into Executive Session at 9:00 p.m. for Collective Bargaining. On a roll call
vote, the ayes have it 7-0. The School Committee will return to the Regular Meeting
at the close of Executive Session.
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The School Committee returned from Executive Session at 9:35 p.m.
Approval of MOA Between Quincy School Committee and the
QEE Union SEIU 888
Mrs. Hubley made a motion to approve the Memorandum of Agreement between the
Quincy School Committee and the Quincy Educational Employees Union SEIU 888.
Mrs. Mahoney seconded the motion and on a roll call vote, the ayes have it 7-0.
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Adjournment
Mayor Koch made a motion to adjourn at 9:40 p.m. The motion was seconded
by Mr. McCarthy and on a voice vote, the ayes have it 7-0.