ADVANCE COPY, SUBJECT TO THE APPROVAL THE PITTSFIELD SCHOOL BOARD

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
SCHOOL ADMINISTRATIVE UNIT #51
PITTSFIELD SCHOOL BOARD

MINUTES

Pittsfield School Board Meeting
Thursday, December 17, 2015
Pittsfield Middle High School

I. CALL TO ORDER

Members Present: Mike Wolfe, Chair
Bea Douglas, Vice Chair
Linda Freese
Ray Ramsey

Others Present: John Freeman, Superintendent of Schools
Melissa Brown, Director of College and Career Readiness
Tobi Gray Chassie, District Administrator
Derek Hamilton, Dean of Operations
Danielle Harvey, Dean of Instruction
Donna Lehmann, Director of Student Services
Kathy LeMay, Director of Interventions
Ross Morse, Community Liaison
Member of the Faculty
Member of the Public

Chairperson Wolfe called the meeting to order at 5:31 p.m.

II. AGENDA REVIEW

The following items were added to the agenda:
· PES Librarian (Ms. LeMay)
· Nomination (Dr. Freeman)
· Wellness Coalition
· Per Pupil Cost (Dr. Freeman)
· Ice Skating Rink (Mr. Wolfe)

III. ACTION ON AMENDED AGENDA

On a motion made by Mr. Ramsey and seconded by Ms. Freese, the Board voted unanimously to approve the amended agenda.

IV. APPROVAL OF PREVIOUS MEETING MINUTES

A motion was made by Mr. Ramsey and seconded by Mr. Wolfe, to approve the minutes of the December 3, 2015 meeting. A change was made on page 4, changing “view” to “viewing.” The motion passed unanimously with the recommended change.

V. PUBLIC INPUT

Ross Morse acknowledged School Board member, Ms. Douglas, for her efforts to promote student voice and choice in her own school, allowing students to duct tape her to the wall for a fundraising effort.

VI. DIRECTOR OF STUDENT SERVICES

Ms. Lehmann introduced special education teacher, Julie Britton. Ms. Britton will be filling a vacancy created as a result of an unanticipated resignation.

Dr. Freeman nominated Ms. Britton for the position of special education teacher. On a motion made by Ms. Douglas and seconded by Mr. Ramsey, the Board unanimously approved the nomination of Julie Britton.

VII. STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE

In the absence of the student representative, Tucker Wolfe, Mr. Hamilton stated the Site Council recently worked with consultant Bill Bryan to begin the revision of their team charter.

VIII. DEAN OF INSTRUCTION

A. Concerts

Ms. Harvey congratulated Roxanne O’Connor and Kevin Cleary, music teachers, on their winter concerts. Both concerts were a success and students enjoyed themselves. The PMHS music program has doubled over the last year.

B. Work Study Practices

Ms. Harvey stated she has been working with students to discuss the work study practices pilot. She will be working with teachers to determine next steps in implementation and needs for professional development.

IX. DEAN OF OPERATIONS

A. Winter Athletics

Mr. Hamilton provided the Board with an update on winter athletics. He reported that forty-nine student athletes are participating in winter athletics, which represents twenty percent of our student population. Mr. Ramsey asked if this was a decrease, to which Mr. Hamilton stated it was a slight decrease from previous years.

B. Student Organization Update

Mr. Hamilton provided the Board with an update on the IMPACT Team, Site Council, and Student Council.

C. Drama Club Presentation

The Drama Club, according to Mr. Hamilton, will be presenting It’s a Wonderful Life: 1940’s Radio Play Version on December 18 at 7:00 p.m. and on December 20 at 2:00 p.m.

D. Ski and Snowboard Club

According to Mr. Hamilton, the Ski and Snowboard Club has been expanded to include students in grade four through six. Six middle school students and fourteen elementary students will be participating.

X. DIRECTOR OF INTERVENTIONS & TITLE I MANAGER

A. Title I Onsite Visit

Ms. LeMay described the recent on-site visit by the New Hampshire Department of Education to review the Title I program. The state representative praised Ms. LeMay for the work she has accomplished and was satisfied with the compliance of Title I regulations. A suggestion was made to update the policy addressing potential complaints regarding the education of homeless students.

B. Family Engagement

Richard Feistman, a consultant from the New Hampshire Department of Education, will be coming to Pittsfield on Monday, December 21, 2015, to work with Ms. LeMay and community liaison Ross Morse on the district’s family engagement efforts.

C. Progression of Support Update

Program improvements are being made as the program evolves.

D. PES Library

Ms. Jennifer Stevens, librarian at PES, has resigned for personal reasons.

XI. DISTRICT ADMINISTRATOR

A. Communication

Ms. Chassie provided the Board with a copy of the district communications plan and the proposed budget for additional grant funds to support the communications plan from Nellie Mae Education Foundation.

B. Good to Great Team

Ms. Chassie provided the minutes of the recent Good to Great Team meeting to the Board. The team is organizing itself to oversee the continuous improvement process for the district.

C. PES Logic Model

The date for the PES logic model celebration is February 6, 2016, with a snow date of March 5, 2016. The event will begin at 6:00 p.m.

XII. SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS

A. Policies

Dr. Freeman presented the following new or modified policies for consideration: Policy DFA, Investment – recommend approval; Policy IMBD, High School Credit for Seventh and Eighth Grade Coursework – recommend approval; Policy JFABD, Admission of Homeless Students – recommend approval; and Policy JICDD, Student Discipline: Out-of-School Actions – recommend approval.

On a motion made by Ms. Douglas and seconded by Ms. Ramsey, the Board unanimously approved Policies DFA, IMBD, JFABD, and JICDD as presented.

B. New Hampshire School Board Association (NHSBA) Delegate Assembly

The annual NHSBA Delegate Assembly will be held on Saturday, January 16, 2016, from 9:45 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. Dr. Freeman will provide the Board members with additional information, and it will be decided if anyone will attend at a later date.

C. Wellness Community Coalition

Dr. Freeman informed the Board of the work being accomplished by the Wellness Coalition. He stated the charter for the group has been completed. Activities that are thought to impact the issue of substance misuse are being investigated. The Coalition asked if the remaining funds left from the grant from the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation could be used to support their work. The Board stated their support of that decision.

D. Per Pupil Cost

Dr. Freeman distributed a report from the New Hampshire Department of Education on per pupil costs. PES is $14,134, which is lower than the state average of $14,581. The middle school is $17,224, compared to the state average of $13,698. The high school is $22,397, compared to the state average of $14,466. Dr. Freeman pointed out that small high schools in the state are typically more costly than the state average due to the scale of operations. The Nellie Mae Education Foundation grant is impacting the high school amount by more than $4,000 per pupil at the high school.

XIII. PUBLIC INPUT (Second Session)

Mr. Morse extended his best holiday wishes to the Board and administration.

XIV. SCHOOL BOARD

A. Drake Field

Mr. Wolfe informed the Board of a group’s work to create an ice rink at Drake Field. Volunteers from the town will be providing the work necessary to create the rink. The Parks and Recreation Department is developing the plans; contacts for Mr. Hamilton are Tara Ash and Earl Cook. Dr. Freeman suggested a simple memorandum of understanding be developed between the district and the Parks and Recreation Department.

XV. NEXT MEETING

The next School Board meeting is scheduled for January 7, at 5:30 p.m. at the Pittsfield Middle High School.

XVI. ADJOURNMENT

On a motion made by Mr. Ramsey and seconded by Ms. Douglas, the Board voted unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 6:20 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Tobi Gray Chassie
Recording Secretary