Windham Southeast Supervisory School Board
Minutes of Regular Meeting—May 10, 2023
Directors present: Kerry Amidon, Anne Beekman, Tim Maciel, Deborah Stanford
Via zoom: Kelly Young
Also present: Hannah Coombs, Jennifer Course, Susan Grabowski, Whitney Lynde, Frank Rucker, Paul Smith, Mark Speno, Brin Tucker.
List of Zoom Attendees as of 6:20 pm follows at the end of these minutes
CALL TO ORDER—6:01 p.m. – Anne Beekman, Chair
On a motion by Tim Maciel the board approved the minutes of April 12, 2023.
On a motion by Deborah Stanford the board approved the Warrants of April 12, 2023 in the
amount of $843,957.90; April 26, 2023 in the amount of $1,310,582.83; and Payroll of April 21, 2023
in the amount of $576,979.59.
FINANCE – Frank Rucker announced that our transportation vendor Kuzmeskus/Beacon has agreed to
extend the existing contract for one year at the 3% price increase. This additional year will give the
business office additional time to investigate possible funding for electric buses. So no full bid
process is required at this time but may need to occur in 1 year.
Food Service RFP – Frank reviewed both the Comprehensive Bid sheet and the Evaluation Rubric
Summary. (Both available on-line under the meeting agenda.) The administration’s recommendation
is to award the contract to Fresh Picks Cafe.
On a motion by Tim Maciel the board approved the awarding of the WSESU food service contract to
Fresh Picks Cafe.
Brin Tucker gave a presentation on the WSESU formal mentor program to support new teachers
discussing the multi-layered levels of support for staff. A discussion ensued on possibilities for
expanding the program to include para-professionals.
Jenn Course and Deb Coombs presented an update on the WSESU Multilingual Learner Program and
its impact on our Pre K – 12th graders. Multiple administrators spoke of the value of this work and
thanked Jenn and Deb for their dedication and hard work.
PUBLIC COMMENT – There were no comments from the public.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS – VSBA training – the chair reported that she is discussing possible dates with
the VSBA and more information will follow.
NEW BUSINESS
On a motion by Tim Maciel, the board voted to accept the resignations of Haiyan Hu and Kaitlin Tafe.
On a motion by Deborah Stanford, the board approved the administrations recommendation to hire the following staff:
● Samantha Betit for the position of Special Education Case Manager
● Brian Buettner for the position of WSESU District Coach focused on foundational reading skills
● Emily Fennes for the position of Integration Specialist
● Kaileigh Cyr for the position of Special Education Case Manager
● Rotina Gong for the position of Special Education Case Manager
● Brenda Lee Lynch for the position of Speech and Language Pathologist/ ECSE
● Heidi Nystrom for the position of special education teacher
● Maureen Parzych for the position of special education teacher
Superintendent evaluation – the chair updated the board on her conversation with the VSBA. The
VSBA suggests starting in October with a fee set at $1,500. The board discussed changing the process
from last year to include both district boards having input to the process and seeing the full results.
On a motion by Kerry Amidon, the board authorized the chair to contract with the VSBA on a
superintendent evaluation process.
On a motion by Tim Maciel, the board approved the Superintendent’s recommendation that the
last day of school be Friday June 16th (being a half day for students and full day for staff).
The following policies were entered for a first reading:
A1- The Role and Adoption of School Board Policies
D17 – Policy on Non-discriminatory Mascots and School Branding
F38 – Prevention of Sexual Harassment is prohibited by Title IX
There being no further business before the board, the board voted to adjourn at 7:49 pm on a
motion by Tim Maciel.
Notes respectively submitted by Kerry Amidon, Clerk.
