BOARD OF EDUCATION
REGULAR MEETING
DURANGO SCHOOL
DISTRICT 9-R
April 12, 2005
President Brevik called the meeting to order at 6:06 p.m. President Brevik, Dr. Jones, Mr. Patterson, Mr. Horvath, Ms. Paulson, Mr. Short, and Mr. Seiter were all present, along with Dr. Barter and Reese Miller, board counsel.
Dr. Jones made a motion to approve the agenda as presented, which was seconded by Mr. Patterson and unanimously approved.
Kelly Graves, Elizabeth Gray, and Jade Lucero talked about their experiences with community service through Entrada, Student Council, and Study Connection.
ITEM #4 - ENDS MONITORING:
COMMUNITY SERVICE
Judy Michalski, Cindy Ryan, Marci Denham, Gene Giddings, Sandy Francik, Amy Raso, Greg Spradling, and Brian Hester were available to answer questions about the elementary and secondary community service monitoring report.
The differences between community service and service learning were discussed, the opportunities available for students at the various schools, and whether community service should be a requirement for graduation. The board requested that more information be gathered for the next report, such as which students are involved, instead of just a number.
Pat May, Judy Michalski, Connie Piccoli, Sabine Furtauer, Tara Haller, Scott Emrich, Joan Kellogg, Marcie Denham, and Dave Farkis were present to report on the results of the math curriculum study project.
The secondary teachers were given the challenge to improve math scores in our district and after extensive research and visits to high performing schools, they are recommending a combination of the Interactive Math Program (IMP), and the traditional math courses of Algebra, Geometry, and Trigonometry at the high school level. Integrated Math (IM) will blend the strengths of each program. The group held many parent meetings, provided videos that could be checked out by teachers and parents, and involved as many teachers as possible in the choice. The new blended approach will be evaluated after each unit to ensure that this approach is a success. At the elementary level, the teacher goal was to improve on Math Trailblazers, to find a curriculum that was user-friendly and better paced. Teachers chose “Every Day Math” which addresses all of the national standards, will help close the achievement gap, and parents and teachers will feel more comfortable with it. The board will vote on the purchase of the math textbooks later in the meeting.
The board took a break at 8:25 p.m. and was back in session at 8:40 p.m.
Marilyn Brown, President of the League of Women Voters, commended the board for modifications that have been made in their communication to the public. She urged them to continue to provide clarity on the agenda.
Norm Gottlieb said that his group is frustrated that the board isn’t available to the public, and felt that policy governance isolates the board away from the community.
Jeff Schell again mentioned how many meetings they had attended, but still couldn’t discuss passing time with the board. He felt other groups had been treated the same way, and wondered what kind of message this sends to the public.
Bill Bowlby said that punishing schools for not meeting test scores is not the way to increase achievement. The NCLB system reduces the schools to testing learning. He felt changes in graduation requirements would have a direct effect on the lives of our children.
Barbara Miller talked about the math program failing in California. She asked the board to consider giving the option to take the traditional math courses, as well as the IM program, as kids learn differently.
Vicki Gallegos questioned the intent to take Foundation Skills out of the Ends policies. She felt parental and community opinions should be considered.
Enid Brodsky said that community engagement must be more meaningful. She asked if the work of the career and vocational task force would ever be considered. There is a correlation between foundation skills and academic achievement.
Betsy Pierotti asked the board to allow the students the choice to take traditional math if that better fits their learning style.
Dee Dee DeHarro Brown said that foundation skills are an important piece of all the curricular areas and more input should be gathered before any changes are made.
Bliss Bruen asked the board to use the whole model of policy governance, as it is dangerous to only use parts. She talked about sounding boards, and had handouts to be given to the board.
Tracy Cross decided not to speak.
Ron Estler, Fort Lewis College instructor, said his daughter took IMP and then trigonometry and AP Calculus, and she excels because she can read a problem, integrate the information, and put it into a model. The proposed blended math program addressed his concerns.
Mike Olson with Bechtel Engineering, said his son was offered the McGwain Scholarship because of the traditional high school math program. He applauded the math teachers at the high school and asked the board to give his other two children the same opportunity, by giving them a choice.
President Brevik thanked everyone for speaking and said that with regard to communication, the board would be approving the board calendar tonight, which will show the board meeting dates. At the next meeting the board will discuss what linkages will be addressed and what types of communication we want to do.
She indicated that Policy Governance is not a bible, and each board can utilize it as they see fit. When the board hears concerns that are of a staff nature, they are going to refer it to the appropriate person. This board does not approve counting passing time as instructional time. Lack of a motion in this instance, is in fact a statement that this board does not support counting passing time as instructional time.
She agreed that NCLB is very political and that it was created to fail.
She thanked all the parents that spoke about the math curriculum. She said that the board will be voting to approve the math textbooks tonight, but will continue to monitor the progress to see how it goes.
Foundation Skills is a big issue and is certainly not something we will take action on tonight. Recommendations to move Foundation Skills to Tier 1 have been heard from many different groups. This will require a lot of community input.
President Brevik indicated that a letter from Lisa Tauli regarding drivers education had been received, and it would be passed on to Dr. Barter as the request was to make it a part of the curriculum, and a letter from Cheryle Brandsma, which echoed the comments made tonight by Jeff Schell and Norm Gottlieb.
Because of the time, Dr. Barter postponed her report.
ITEM #7B – STUDENT COUNCIL
Kelly Graves said the high school might be implementing No Trace Left Behind, which Ms. Paulson spoke to them about. She spoke about the drug dogs, dinner with
FLC student government, a leadership conference, the Friday Fun Forum, and Prom.
John Murph, Robert Martinez, and Kent Bosworth of 3 D/I were present to report on the close-out of the construction project. The work was completed in a shorter length of time, saving the district millions of dollars. This is the value of having a construction management team, and this story should be told at the national and state associations level. The firm is proud of the work that was accomplished, and thanked the district by doing a facility assessment of the deficiencies that still exist. This report and software will enable the district to cost out projects and work over the next ten years. Board members thanked the firm for their hard work and efforts over the past three years.
ITEM #7D – SCHOOL VISITS: FT. LEWIS MESA, ANIMAS VALLEY
Mr. Short and Ms. Paulson visited Animas Valley, talking with Mrs. Wilkie about the elementary math curriculum and the process used for staff and parents, and visiting an ELL class. Ms. Paulson and Mrs. Brevik visited Ft. Lewis Mesa, and talked about the wonderful exhibit in the foyer of the school explaining the history of the area and school.
ITEM #8 – DISCUSSION
There were no discussion items.
ITEM #9 – DISCUSSION/ACTION
ITEM #9A – MONITORING REPORT: GP-9 BOARD MEMBER CODE OF ETHICS
Dr. Jones put together the new language for GP-9 that is being recommended. Mr. Short made a motion to approve the monitoring report with the new language as presented. The motion was seconded by Mr. Horvath and unanimously approved.
ITEM #9B – MONITORING REPORT: GP-10 PROCESS FOR ADDRESSING BOARD MEMBER VIOLATIONS
Mrs. Brevik stated that there were no board member violations with regard to this policy. Dr. Jones made a motion to approve the monitoring report as presented, which was seconded by Mr. Patterson and unanimously approved.
ITEM #9C – MONITORING REPORT: BSR-2 ACCOUNTABILITY OF THE SUPERINTENDENT
Ms. Paulson questioned whether language in the policy allowed the board to move forward creatively. After a brief discussion, Mr. Short made a motion to approve the monitoring report in compliance, which was seconded by Dr. Jones and unanimously approved.
ITEM #10 – ACTION
Mr. Seiter made a motion to approve the 2005-06 board calendar as presented, which
was seconded by Mr. Patterson and unanimously approved. Dr. Jones was absent during the vote.
ITEM #10B – PROPOSED REVISION OF FOUNDATION SKILLS ENDS POLICIES
Mr. Horvath made a motion to defer further discussion on the revision of the Foundation Skills policies pending the outcome of the board’s determination of its linkage and board development schedule for 05-06. The motion was seconded by Mr. Short and unanimously approved. Dr. Jones was absent during the vote.
ITEM #10C – ENDS MONITORING:
EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES K-12
Ms. Paulson’s memo requested additional data showing a breakdown of extra curricular involvement, requiring the creation of a new database. Dr. Jones made a motion to approve the Ends Monitoring report for Extra-Curricular Activities K-12 showing that reasonable progress has been made in attaining the Extra–Curricular Ends, and that the monitoring assessments are appropriate indicators. However, in the future, data should be disaggregated by sub-group and a non-duplicated count provided. Mr. Seiter seconded the motion, which passed unanimously.
ITEM #10D – PROPOSED
REVISION TO EL-3 TREATMENT OF STUDENTS, PARENTS, AND COMMUNITY
Mr. Short made a motion to revise EL-3 Treatment of Students, Parents, and Community as presented, which was seconded by Mr. Seiter and unanimously approved.
ITEM #10E – PROPOSED
REVISION TO EL-17 STUDENT CONDUCT NAD DISCIPLINE
Mr. Seiter made a motion to approve the proposed revisions to EL-17 as presented, which was seconded by Mr. Patterson and unanimously approved.
ITEM #11B -
MONITORING REPORT: EL-8 FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION
ITEM #11C -
MONITORING REPORT: EL-19 CONSULTATION WITH LEGAL COUNSEL
ITEM #11D -
FINANCIAL REPORT
ITEM #11E -
HUMAN RESOURCES
ITEM #11F -
REGULAR BOARD MEETING MINUTES, FEBRUARY 8, 2005
ITEM #11G -
SPECIAL BOARD MEETING MINUTES, MARCH 8, 2005
ITEM #11H -
REGULAR BOARD MEETING MINUTES, MARCH 8, 2005
Mr. Horvath pulled Item A, and made a motion to approve Items B through H of the Consent Agenda. The motion was seconded by Dr. Jones and unanimously approved.
Mr. Horvath questioned why the students couldn’t have a choice in the math curriculum. Board discussion centered around all the research and work that had gone into making this decision, the fact that this would strengthen the curriculum, that the district is not dropping Algebra and Trigonometry, and that the future dictates that kids need to learn how to problem solve and work as members of a team. After this discussion, Dr. Jones made a motion to approve the recommended K-12 math textbooks, as presented in Item A of the Consent Agenda. The motion was seconded by Mr. Patterson, and approved with all members voting aye, except Mr. Horvath.
ITEM #12 –
EXECUTIVE SESSION
ITEM #12A –
NEGOTIATIONS
Mr. Patterson made a motion to go into Executive Session at 11:00 p.m. for the purpose of discussion relative to matters that may be subject to negotiations and for the purpose of instructing negotiators as authorized by C.R.S. 24-6-402(4)(e). Those present in Executive Session shall be members of the board of education, the superintendent, the board clerk, the director of human resources, the director of business services, and board counsel. Dr. Jones seconded the motion, which passed unanimously.
The board returned from Executive Session at 11:48 p.m. Dr. Jones made a motion to return, which was seconded by Mr. Horvath and unanimously approved.
The upcoming school visits to Riverview and Needham were discussed.
ITEM
#14 - ADJOURN
A motion was made to adjourn at 11:52 p.m. by Dr. Jones and seconded by Mr. Horvath. The motion passed unanimously.
Respectfully submitted,
Kristy Rodri
District Clerk to the Board of Education
Approval:
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