School Board Minutes

Falmouth School Board Minutes

Falmouth School Board
Regular Meeting
Monday, December 18, 2006

1. The meeting was called to order at 7:02 p.m. in the Town Hall. Present were Chairman Beppie Cerf, Linda Cote, Karen Farber, Beth Franklin, Kathy Hillman-Reed, Mark Terison, Superintendent George Entwistle and approximately 11 others (Lydick, Bennett and Hebson out).

2. Pledge of Allegiance: All in attendance recited the Pledge of Allegiance.

3. Adjustments to Agenda: There were none.

4.          Minutes:
             a.         Mrs. Hillman-Reed with a second from Mrs. Farber moved the Board approve the minutes of November 28, 2006. The motion was approved 6-0.
             b.         Mrs. Franklin with a second from Mrs. Farber moved the Board approve the minutes of December 4, 2006. The motion was approved 6-0.

5.          Communications:
            a.         Brady Bohrmann of “Game On” gave a brief presentation on the turf fields for Falmouth. It was Mr. Bohrmann’s hope to get the School Board’s endorsement of this project. All Board members felt the proposal is very well thought out and well done and said that they felt it should move forward so the voters of Falmouth could decide. One Board member also felt that the cost should be solely through private funding.
            b.         Position Paper on School Consolidation, Regionalization, and Collaboration from MSSA
            c.         Letter from D.O.E. was distributed
            d.         Newsletter from MSMA was distributed

6. Comments from the Public: There were none.

7. Recognition:
a. Robin Haley, Substance Abuse Coordinator, was given a certificate of recognition. Ms. Haley recently received the “Making a Difference Award” from Day One Substance Abuse Services for Youth and Families for her exemplary dedication and accomplishments over the past 16 years to help reduce substance abuse in Maine.

8. Superintendent’s Report:
a. Superintendent Entwistle mentioned the addition of “current openings” to the agenda, which reflects openings in the district as of the time the agenda is mailed (almost one week prior to the Board meeting). He also elaborated on the 25-member cohort from Portland and the five CBEA districts who have participated in a graduate level course as part of their Leadership for Tomorrow’s Schools cohort entitled “Organizational Behavior” taught by MaryJo O’Connor and Dr. Entwistle. The Falmouth cohort participants are April DeCourcey, George Conant, Josh Plati, Rick Hogan, Andrew Njaa and Sue Palfrey.

9. Leadership Council Reports:
a. Lunt School: Mr. Flaherty announced that Audrey Briggs earned the National Board Certification. He also briefly reviewed the work of the RTI group and said that there have been weekly cross-grade-level meetings where many issues can be discussed so there is more consistency within the grades. The Six Pillars of Character program continues with Caring being the theme for December and there was a successful lockdown training with Lunt staff members on December 13.

b. Plummer-Motz School: Mrs. Boffa announced that starting today, December 18, the “Countdown to Wellness” program started with clementines in each of their mailboxes. She also gave a special thanks to Allyn Hutton for being the Falmouth administrator representative at the “Celebration of Leadership Luncheon” in Freeport on December 1. Mrs. Boffa and Mr. Flaherty recently attended an ASCD Conference in Boston and several good workshops were presented. Mrs. Boffa invited all to attend the All School Assembly on December 22 and the January 9 PTO meeting on “Technology in the Classroom.”

c. Middle School: Mr. Rodman was not present.

d. High School: Mrs. Hutton reported that Falmouth “leads the pack” of National Board Teachers and announced that Suzanne Stacey, Cathy Stankard and Suzan Nelson are the latest high school staff members to achieve this designation. She also reported that Robin Haley will present the MYDAUS data (which has already been reviewed with the entire high school staff) at the next regular School Board meeting. The enrichment offerings continue to create a lot of excitement with students and the teachers have discussed the new schedule and feel that some adjustments need to be made. Mrs. Hutton gave a big thanks to the Lions Club for the $2,150 donation to the “Safe Passage” group to defray the costs of that intersession offering, and also mentioned that this same group received a $1,400 FEF grant. Mrs. Hutton commented that the students have done a good job promoting the trip.

e. Assistant Superintendent: In Jeff Rodman’s absence, Mrs. Powers informed the group that Rick Hogan of Falmouth Middle School also received the National Board Certification. All recipients will be present at the next School Board meeting. Mrs. Powers announced that she is looking forward to the December 20 Graduate Review Study, where Juniors and Seniors will have an opportunity to ask questions to a group of 2005/2006 graduates who have accepted our invitation to participate in this study group. She also informed the group that 16 staff members recently went to Corning, NY to study their International Baccalaureate program. More details will be forthcoming once the group debriefs. Also, there will be a foreign language summary given at the January workshop.

f. Director of Student Planning & Learning Options: Ms. Palfrey provided an overview of the exemplary work being doing by Holly MacEwan, Service Learning Coordinator,including the weekly visits to The Essentials Pantry and the Qarabagh District Girls’ School Project. She also encouraged any community member who is interested in providing an experience for a senior to contact Holly MacEwan.

g. Business Manager: Mr. O’Shea reported that a request for Qualifications for Comprehensive Energy Efficiency Improvements will be advertised shortly and that the goal is to look at all school buildings and to also include town buildings as part of the study.

h. Director of Special Services: Ms. Crowell reported that as of December 1, there are 245 students in Special Ed. Ms. Crowell mentioned the RTI process in the elementary schools and that she would like to get all schools thinking about the process. Also discussed were the proposed Special Education Regulations and that RTI is considered part of the regular education program. In the future, we will have to have RTI in place for K-12. She commented that the process is long, but will be worthwhile.

i. Athletic Director: Mr. Hurley provided the number of participants for winter sports in the high school and discussed which sports have reached their limit and which ones can accommodate more participants. He also stated that participation in sports at the Falmouth High School continues to grow.

10.       Committee Reports:
            a.         Finance Sub-committee: Mrs. Hillman-Reed informed the group that the Finance Sub-Committee had just met prior to this meeting. The primary agenda item was the ’07-‘08 budget process. The next meeting of this committee is scheduled for Tuesday, January 16, 2007 at 6:00 p.m. and there is a tentative joint meeting with Town Council members scheduled for January 29.
            b.         Facilities Sub-committee: Mr. Terison reported that the deadline for architect submissions was December 8; nine letters of interest were received and reviewed. The sub-committee selected three firms as finalist. The Ad Hoc Buildings Advisory Committee accepted the recommended finalists at the December 14, 2006 meeting. These three firms will be interviewed at the beginning of January with the goal of selecting an architect by mid-January.
            c.         Policy Sub-committee: Mrs. Franklin reported the next meeting will be January 24, 2007 in the Superintendent’s Conference Room from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. The first reading of school governance policies will be at the January regular School Board Meeting.

11.       Items for Information:
            a.         Current Openings as of the mailing of the agenda on December 13, 2006:
                                    Literacy Ed. Tech. III (Long-term Sub) – Lunt
                                    JV Softball Coach
                                    JV Baseball Coach

12. Unfinished Business: There was none.

13.       New Business: There was none.

14.       Executive Session:
            a.         Mrs. Farber with a second from Mrs. Hillman-Reed moved the Board go into Executive Session pursuant to 1 M.R.S.A. §405 (6) (D) to discuss labor contract negotiations between Falmouth School Board and Falmouth Education Association. The motion was approved 6-0 and the Board entered Executive Session at 8:01 p.m.

The Board came out of Executive Session at 8:40 p.m. Mrs. Hillman-Reed made a motion that the Falmouth School Board accept the contract proposal between Falmouth Education Association and Falmouth School Board for 2007 through 2010. Mrs. Cote seconded and the Board voted 6-0 to approve the motion.

b. Mrs. Hillman-Reed with a second from Mrs. Farber moved the Board go into Executive Session as per 1 M.R.S.A. §405 (6) (A) for the purpose of discussing the annual evaluation of the Superintendent. The motion was approved 6-0 and the Board entered Executive Session at 8:45 p.m.

The Board came out of Executive Session at 9:30 p.m. Mrs. Hillman-Reed made a motion that the School Board offer Dr. Entwistle a three-year contract effective July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2010 with a 3% salary increase for the first year. Mrs. Cote seconded and the Board voted 6-0 to approve the motion.

15. Adjournment: The Board adjourned the public session at 10:35 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

George H. Entwistle 3rd
Secretary

Last Updated: 1/11/07

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