Minutes
Quincy, Massachusetts - May 4, 2011
Regular Meeting of the Quincy School Committee
Regular Mtg.
A regular meeting of the Quincy School Committee was held on Wednesday, May 4, 2011 in the City Council Chambers, City Hall. Present were: Mr. Dave
McCarthy, Ms. Barbara Isola, Mrs. Jo-Ann Bragg, Mrs. Elaine Dwyer, Mrs.
Anne Mahoney, and Mayor Koch, Chairman
Chairman
Presiding
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The Superintendent called the roll and Mrs. Lebo was absent. Also present
were: Dr. Richard DeCristofaro, Secretary; Mrs. Tefta Burrelli, Clerk; Messrs.
Mulvey, Mullaney, Draicchio, Murphy and Keith Segalla. Ms. Papile, Todd
and Roberts. Ms. Allison Cox, QEA President, and Tracey Christello, Citywide.
There was a moment of silence for Maureen Crowley, Elaine Long, Dick Haines,
and Barbara Ryan.
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3/23/2011 Mins. Tabled
The regular session minutes for April 6, 2011 were tabled by Mrs. Bragg
Exec.Mins.Approved 3/23/2011
On a motion by Mrs. Lebo, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the Committee
approved the Executive Session minutes for March 23, 2011. On a roll call
vote, the motion passed 4-0. Mrs. Lebo was absent and Mrs. Bragg and
Mrs. Dwyer voted PRESENT.
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Supts. Report
This week is Teacher Appreciation Week and May 11 is Nurses Appreciation
Day. We are thankful for the hard work offered by our professional staff.
David C. Ezickson
The family of David C. Ezickson, a former teacher in the Quincy Public Schools,
were present to give out grant awards for Excellence in Teaching to three outstanding
elementary teachers. Teachers were invited to apply for the three mini grants.
The recipients received a mini grant of $350 each. Winners were chosen by the
Ezickson family. Winners who received the grant were Thomas Natola, Dinnean
Boss and Rachel Bloom.
The winners of the middle school foreign language poster and high school
essay contest winners were present to be recognized by the Committee. This
is the third annual contest year. The students received a certificate and
read their essays.
The Foreign Exchange students and their teachers were present to report on
their visit to Paris. They spoke of the friendships they made, the classes
they attended, the French high schools, played rugby and had a wonderful
experience. Students made friendships they expect to last a lifetime. They
thanked the Committee for allowing them this wonderful opportunity.
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Open Forum
Ms. Linda Perry spoke to Children’s Mental Health Day. The purpose is to
raise public awareness for children who have needs. One out of five children
has a disorder and one out of 10 children has an anxiety disorder. On Monday,
May 9 the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
finalized their guidelines for implementing the Social and Emotional Learning
Curriculum. May is National Foster Care Month.
Ms. Marion Viera spoke to an incident at Quincy High School. Her son was
punched in the face at least 12 times. Her son’s nose was broken and the
other boy was taken to the hospital for injuries to his hand. She believes
the dean was negligent by letting the other boy return to the regular school
population before and not informing security. Her son now lives with a relative
and attends high school 50 miles away. She is concerned that there aren’t
clearer mechanisms to handle these situations.
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Summer Reading
Mrs. Roberts gave an overview of the summer reading process used within
Quincy Public Schools. Each year, lists of suggested readings are compiled
for each grade level K-8. Lists are sent to the schools, posted on the
QPS website, sent to the Thomas Crane Library and to all local book stores.
Beginning last year our process was streamlined. Letters went home telling
parents they could access the reading list on our QPS website. Students are
invited to participate in this reading experience over the summer by keeping a
log of the number of books or pages they have read. Many of our elementary
schools will have open library hours during the summer (all on a volunteer basis).
High school students are expected to read one or more assigned books over the
summer depending on their course level. Choices are given at each level, but
the number of books expected remains consistent. In the fall of each year,
students are given an assessment of the books that were assigned over the
summer, teachers used these grades as extra test scores to enhance the first
years test scores.
Summer Math
Many of our elementary schools provide Summer Math packets to their students
to complete over the summer. Five elementary schools consistently do this. Other
schools with newer principals have asked to participate as well. We are going to
ask the schools that do give our the summer math packets to share those with the
schools that have not been doing that. It is something that they will do if they see fit.
Many schools use a web-based program called Study Island. Students can
continue to do math over the summer. Those students have a user ID which they
can access that program at home. With the new frameworks Mrs. Roberts plans
to encourage all schools to provide math opportunities through kits or web-based
programs.
Mrs. Roberts explained that there are no assessment for middle school. Because
of the budget issues last year, it was not followed through. One school piloted
this. Those students who did read over the summer were given the assessment
and received extra credit for the first term. This year, middle schools have a log,
and students are recognized and given a certificate.
Principals will print some reading lists for those parents who ask for it.
Ms. Isola was concerned about the math packets and the consistency across
the city. She would like to have it available for all students no matter what
elementary school they are in.
Mrs. Roberts is making copies of math packets and sending out to those schools
who think they are best for their students. Mrs. Roberts will ask the elementary
principals to send them out.
The Atherton Hough Centennial was a great success. Thanks went to Principal,
Dottie Greene and all who made the day a big success. The North Quincy
High Atrium of Honor was another successful event. Thanks went to Principal
Metzler, Glen Oriola, Kevin Murphy, and of course, Mayor Koch. The CSL
event will be held tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. in the Terrill Room. The Superintendent
invited the members to attend.
FY12 Budget
Last week, the Superintendent and Mr. Mullaney met with the Mayor and
received the budget numbers. The Team and principals are thankful for a budget
that will sustain all of our current levels. Mrs. Mahoney has called a Budget
Subcommittee meeting for Wednesday, May 11 at 4:30 p.m. The leadership
team will prepare for that meeting.
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Bldg. Update
The heat has been shut off by Maintenance in the schools. Maintenance replaced
floor and ceiling tiles at Squantum, Bernazzani, Central, Wollaston, Point
Webster, Sterling, Broad Meadows and North Quincy. Thanks went to the
Maintenance and custodial staff for all the work done at the Atherton Hough
Centennial celebration. Security cameras were installed at Quincy High School
and a new sink and base cabinet at Wollaston.
Mr. McCarthy inquired about another leak at Quincy High School by the
Principal’s office. Mr. Murphy said he was not aware of it. Mr. McCarthy
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said it was on the first floor, near the guidance office. The carpet needs to be
pulled up. Mr. Murphy will look into this.
Mrs. Dwyer and Mr. Murphy will get together sometime in May to go over
any outstanding repairs or requests that came through the SIPs and report back
to the School Committee before the end of the year.
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QHS Bldg. Committee
Mrs. Dwyer reports
Mrs. Dwyer will investigate the latest leak at Quincy High School with
Tishman and Gilbane and Gary Cunniff. She wants to do a walk through
before the warranty ends in July to make sure nothing needs to be repaired
or replaced. PJ Kennedy did extend his contract for two more years.
Mr. McCarthy inquired about the houses on Saville Ave. The two houses
are under the jurisdiction of the School Committee.
Mrs. Dwyer asked for a presentation from Mr. Cunniff about tearing down
the old high school, the status of Coddington Hall and the two houses.
Mr. McCarthy inquired about the wall behind the two houses. He would like
somebody with an engineering background to check it out. The water is trying
to find a way out and he is afraid the wall will crumble.
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Central Bldg. Committee
Mrs. Mahoney reports
There was a presentation to the City Council on April 26 from Ai3 and
Tishman on the new Central Middle School. It was the same overview the
School Committee received. It was received very well and put into the
Finance Committee.
In the presentation the importance that labor be represented came up and it
was noted at the City Council that the Mayor was going to be meeting with
representatives of the South Shore Trade Council in the upcoming weeks
with regard to Central.
On April 26 and April 28 Ai3 met with school personnel to discuss classroom/
teacher planning areas, science areas, office area designs. The next key
meeting will be on May 10 a public meeting, on May 19 a presentation to
Central parents. On June 13 the City Council will vote on the funding for
Central Middle School.
Emily Lebo arrives at 8:26 p.m.
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IT Department
Mr. Segalla reports
At this time, Keith Segalla, Ellen Garofalo, Ellen Hunter and Chuck Phelan
gave an overview of the Information Technology Department. The IT
Department has a three year plan submitted to the state which is approved
until 2012. The IT department has several teams--the Program of Studies/
Scheduling Team consistently communicates scheduling issues, timelines,
appropriate tasks and data dissemination, the Secretaries Team has been
formed for the purpose of training, mentoring and communicating individual
school and system issues, The Educational Technology Team facilitates,
enhances and implements curriculum integration through the use of instructional
technology in the 21st. Century Classroom. Quincy Public Schools has 2,750
computers (a 4.1 student to computer ratio), 169 Interwrite Boards and 45
Mobi Tables. Four Technicians provide support to staff and schools. Computrace
Track has been installed on our computers. In 2010, 86% of our students
have computer access at home or at the library, a friend’s/family house.
This year we are in the process of upgrading Microsoft Office 2003 to
2010. Teachers are using Easy Grade Pro. This is an electronic grade book
designed for educators at all grade levels who want a computerized tool to
manage student data, including grades, attendance, seating assignments, etc.
This program allows teachers to generate summaries and reports to
communicate student data with others. The Committee saw a sampling of
an Easy Grade Pro Gradebook Form.
Eighty percent of QPS teachers at the middle/high school level utilize
Easy Grade Pro and/or a similar grading management system. Easy Grade
Pro is available and is optional for all QPS teachers to utilize. The IT
Department provides professional development for this program.
Data Processing consistently communicates issues relating to administrative
computing needs and the DESE data reporting requirements. Star Base is
used for student reporting, EasyIEP for Special Education, SNAP for nurses,
Naviance is a College/Career Planning program. The Data Processing reports
to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education,
student information, education personnel information, student course schedule
system, school safety and discipline reporting and Civil Rights Data Collection.
In 2003we reported to the state 750,000 submissions, in 2011 we have gone
up to 4,500,000. Data Processing is responsible for parental communication,
Middle/High School Interim Reports, report cards, Summer School letters.
Informational Technology communicates effectively with staff, students and
parents as well as provide technological training, guidance, information and
services to school administrators and personnel that support state and local
learning standards and contribute to the academic performance and development
of all students.
Mr. Chuck Phelan, spoke to the infrastructure, network servers, email, and active
directory. He has been applying for ERATE money which he puts back into
the schools. There have been problems with Quincy Public Schools e-mails.
However with the upgrades, there should be drastic improvement. Some of the
teachers are using Gmail. Mr. Phelan cautioned that this is an insecure site.
He wouldn’t use it for children’s information. FERPA Family Educational
Rights and Privacy Act is a Federal law protects the privacy of student records.
Data Processing does not use any students’ social security numbers at all.
Updating the infrastructure is a massive undertaking.
Quincy uses funding resources from ERATE, Partnerships donate computers,
Comcast money, grant opportunities and the QPS Budget.
We communicate by Instant Alert, School Messenger, QPS website and
our educational station, Channel 22.
Mrs. Lebo suggests a policy mandating teachers use the QPS emails after
we get these new systems.
Ms. Isola asked for a computer inventory with the breakdown of elementary,
middle and high school.
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Montclair to Canobie Lake
On a motion by Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the Committee
approved the trip for Montclair School to go to Canobie Lake Park on
June 20, 2011. The ayes have it.
Parker to Canobie Lake
On a motion by Mr. McCarthy, seconded by Mrs. Bragg, the Committee
approved a trip for Parker School to go to Canobie Lake Park on
June 15, 2011. The ayes have it.
Gift – 50 Dell Laptops
On a motion by Ms. Isola, seconded by Mrs. Lebo, the Committee accepted
the gift of 50 Dell Latitude D620 laptops valued at $14,000 from Harvard
Pilgrim Health Care. The ayes have it.
Gift – American Flags
On a motion by Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the Committee
accepted the gift of 24 5”x8” American flags for school buildings around the
City from the NAGE. The ayes have it.
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SC Minutes 4/6/2011
Mrs. Mahoney made a motion to amend the School Committee minutes
for April 6, 2011 as follows:
“Mrs. Mahoney asked Jim Anderson about adding language to the contract
stating that we establish a goal of hiring Quincy Trades people on this public
job. Many of our residents are trades workers and they are on hard times
due to the economic crisis and it would be great if we could get these people
back to work.
The Mayor stated that this would be Illegal – Mrs. Mahoney followed up with
the fact that surrounding communities are already doing this and we should
try to do the same. She will research details of how other communities are
accomplishing this.
Section under flooding Central:
“When inquiring about the issue of flooding Mr. Timmins addressed the
questions and stated that the area of St Anne’s road is like a fishbowl. All
the water collects at the end of the street. He stated "We will not be
addressing this issue with the construction of the New Central Middle
School".
Mrs. Mahoney moved her question to Mayor Koch asking about the 25m
Capital Improvement Bond. She is aware of the neighborhood areas
experiencing flooding that are being addressed in her own Ward, but asked
if the Mayor planned to include this area end St Anne’s Road in the Capital
Improvement Bond. The Mayor stated "NO" this area will not be addressed.
If they were to deal with all the areas of need throughout the city, the city
would be looking at $300 million dollars to address flooding issues in Quincy.
Mrs. Mahoney stated that "this would seem like the time (during construction
of the New Central Middle School) to address this flooding issue.”
SC Mins. tabled
Mrs. Bragg tabled the minutes.
Exec. Session Mins Approved 4/6/2011
On a motion by Mr. McCarthy, seconded by Ms. Isola, the Committee
approved the Executive Session minutes for April 6, 2011. On a roll call
vote, the motion passed 5-0. Mrs. Bragg and Mrs. Dywer ABSTAINED.
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Additional Business Coddington Hall
Mrs. Bragg asked if the Evening School students were out of Coddington
Hall and in Quincy High School. The Superintendent said he is looking at
Coddington Hall as a whole. He is looking for offices for Mrs. Morrissey,
Jim Rendle, and Central Registration. The Evening School will be at Quincy
High School this summer. It is too late to move the whole program to another
location. The movie people are out of Coddington Hall. However, they do
have the right to come back if they have to reshoot. The movie people were
not CORIed but they were never alone with our students at any time. Mrs. Bragg
asked for copies of the movie contracts.
Teen Mothers graduation will be Thursday, May 26 at 7:00 p.m. in the
Bethany Congregational Church.
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Policy Subcommittee
The Policy Subcommittee met on May 3 to discuss the Service Animal
Policy, Sexual Harassment Policy and the Harassment Policy. Mr. Mulvey
was present to review all of them. Mr. Mulvey will make additions/corrections
to the policies and email them to the members for their review. A paragraph
on the Harassment Policy was tabled and will be reworked by Mr. Mulvey
and Ms. Isola. Mrs. Bragg also spoke with Mr. Shea, City Clerk and asked if
there is a possibility they may move the voting out of the Merrymount School
to the Good Council Church on Sea St. Mr. Shea will get back to Mrs. Bragg.
The policies will be on the next agenda for approval.
On a motion by Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the Committee
approved the April 4, 2011 Policy Subcommittee minutes. The ayes have it.
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To Exec. Session
On a motion by Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the Committee went
into Executive Session at 9:53 p.m. for the purpose of negotiations related to
Food Services division. On a roll call vote, the motion passed unanimously
7-0.
Return to Open Session
The Committee returned to Open Session at 10:04 p.m. and on a motion by
Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mrs. Lebo, the Committee approve an agreement
between the Quincy School Committee and the Quincy Food Services Employee
Association Local Chapter 888 SEIU that the parties agree that the latest collective
bargaining agreement which expired on June 30, 2010 under the same terms
and conditions shall remain in full force until a new collective bargaining agreement
is reached by the parties, notwithstanding the aforementioned agreement at no time
would the parties enter into an agreement that will results in a contract period in
excess of three years. On a roll call vote, the motion passed unanimously 7-0.
Adjournment
On a motion by Mrs. Bragg, seconded by Mr. McCarthy, the Committee
adjourned for the evening at 10:05 p.m. The ayes have it.