WINDHAM SOUTHEAST SCHOOL DISTRICT (WSESD) BOARD
TUESDAY, JULY 25, 2023
REGULAR BOARD MEETING – 6PM
HYBRID MEETING: WRCC CUSICK CONFERENCE ROOM, BRATTLEBORO,
AND REMOTELY VIA ZOOM
DRAFT MINUTES
Summary:
● The administration provided updates about District summer camps, use of school buildings as emergency shelters, PCB abatement and window replacement project at Oak Grove School, and the BUHS mascot rebranding process, and a presentation about the school climate surveys conducted in the spring.
● WSESD Head Start classrooms at the Canal Street School will move to Birge Street in the fall and the administrators and Special Education team is developing plans for utilizing space at Canal Street to provide services for more pre-K students with special educational needs.
● The board adopted the following updated policies: E17 Fire and Emergency Preparedness Drills, H8 Access Control and Visitor Management, and F42 Dress Code, which will replace all previous dress codes in WSESD schools, including LSP1, the former BUHS dress code.
● The Board voted to adopt the recommendation of the Social Justice Committee that for job searches requiring a board member to serve on a screening committee, the board representation be chosen by a board vote in open meeting. The Board directed the Social Justice Committee to work with the Superintendent and HR Director to implement the three questions that were developed for job listings. The Committee will also collaborate with administration and HR to create a plan for providing board members with more information about new hires, and a process for acquiring baseline data on staff demographics so there can be a measure of progress towards the goal of a more diverse workforce.
● There are no applicants for the vacant Brattleboro seat on the Board. The Board voted to extend the deadline to submit a letter of interest until September 22, and discussed possibilities for increasing public awareness and interest in the position.
● The Board is planning a retreat for August 11 and authorized the expenditure of up to $1500 to hire a moderator for it.
WSESD Board Members Present: Chair Kelly Young (KY), Anne Beekman (AB), Tim Maciel (TM), Ruby McAdoo (RMC), Robin Morgan (RM), Eva Nolan (EN), Kimberly Price (KP), Deborah Stanford (DS)
WSESD Board Members Absent: Shaun Murphy
WSESU/SD Staff and Administrators Present: Mark Speno, Paul Smith, Nancy Wiese, Frank Rucker, Hannah Parker, Michael Keliher.
Media Present: BCTV, Virginia Ray (The Commons)
Others Present: Liz Adams of Putney, Jody Normandeau of Dummerston, Mindy Haskins Rogers of
Northampton, MA, Sherri Keefe
Please note: attendance may be incomplete.
I. CALL TO ORDER
KY called the meeting to order at 6:03pm.
KY read the hybrid meeting statement.
● Review of Agenda
KY announced changes to the agenda:
1. Move Executive Session A to the beginning of III. Administrative Report.
2. Postpone Executive Session B, to a date to be determined, because there are no candidates.
3. Postpone Executive Session C, which may return to the agenda in August.
II. STUDENT MATTERS
There were none.
III. ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
A. Executive Session
MOTION BY DS TO FIND THAT PREMATURE PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE WOULD CLEARLY PLACE THE PUBLIC BODY OR A PERSON INVOLVED AT A SIGNIFICANT DISADVANTAGE, WHILE ANTICIPATING THE BOARD WILL MAKE A SEPARATE MOTION UNDER 1 VSA §313(a)(3), THE APPOINTMENT OR EMPLOYMENT OR EVALUATION OF A PUBLIC OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
MOTION BY AB TO GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION UNDER 1 VSA §313(a)(3), THE APPOINTMENT OR EMPLOYMENT OR EVALUATION OF A PUBLIC OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE, PROVIDED THAT THE PUBLIC BODY SHALL MAKE A FINAL DECISION TO HIRE OR APPOINT A PUBLIC OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE IN AN OPEN MEETING AND SHALL EXPLAIN THE REASONS FOR ITS FINAL DECISION DURING THE OPEN MEETING.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
KY invited Superintendent Mark Speno, BUHS Interim Principal Hannah Parker, and Human Resources Director Michael Kelliher into the Executive Session.
● The district will apply for this reimbursement funding. Oak Grove is the second school in the state, after Burlington High School, to become eligible for reimbursement so Mr. Rucker is fairly confident the District will receive this funding.
● This communication has been delayed by flooding in Montpelier.
● The Department of Environmental Conservation determines the schedule, but all schools in the state will be tested for PCBs. The only two District schools tested so far are Green Street (PCB- free!) and Oak Grove (currently in remediation). Letters about the testing have gone out District-wide, but no further tests are scheduled yet.
Jody Normandeau of Dummerston asked for the capacity of the BUHS gymnasium. Mr. Speno responded: 1,000 occupants.
– BUHS re-branding and mascot selection
Mr. Speno gave an update. The re-branding is proceeding well. The board working together with the administrative team to develop a process for re-branding has helped things go smoothly and efficiently.
Work is being done this summer so that students return in the fall to an environment that embraces school spirit with the new mascot.
Hannah Parker met with Ricky Aither, Chris Sawyer and a graphic designer/re-branding expert. They conducted a site visit with him, and are currently awaiting some proposal options.
MOTION BY DS THAT THE BOARD APPROVE THE BEARS AS THE BUHS MASCOT.
A discussion ensued on whether this motion was needed or whether the Board had already voted to approve the Bears as the team name. It was determined a vote was not needed because it had already been approved at the June 13 meeting.
DS WITHDREW THE MOTION.
– Panorama Presentation
Curriculum and Assessment Coordinator Paul Smith gave the presentation, which is a follow-up to the February, 2023 presentation. Mr. Smith shared a document, “Summer 2023 Update on School Climate
– WSESD School Board – July 25, 2023.”
He began by reminding the board that consultant Chris Overtree stated that simply asking these questions impacts school culture, and that the asking is more important than the answers. Mr. Smith emphasized that many issues reflected in the survey’s results are not caused by school, but a reflection of conditions in our community and in society. The data survey was not as positive as the administrators hoped, but it’s important because it provides useful information. The results indicate a steady decline in climate since Spring, 2021 in many areas for Grades 3-5; there are some declines for grades 6-12 as well.
There was some discussion about the difference between the custom questions, a category of questions that have been on WSESD climate surveys for many years, and the panorama questions. The data indicates that schools are continuing to see some effects from the disruptions of the pandemic. There was some speculation that the height of favorable responses in Spring 2021 may have been in part an effect of students feeling positive about back in school more days after the months of remote and hybrid schooling.
TM asked that in the future, the board have access to this data as soon as it is available, as the results of the survey are enormously important and should be utilized in decision making. Mr. Smith responded that it does take some time to interpret the data and assemble the results into a useful format but that he strives to get it out to all administrators and the board as quickly as possible.
Board members noticed that some grades had exceedingly low response rates and Mr. Smith spoke about the difficulty of being able to conduct the test for all grades. He stated that low response rates at BUHS were a result of a choice to only give the survey to 9th & 10th grade students.
[However, after the meeting he realized that this was an incorrect statement – the survey was given to all grade levels – and he asked that this be corrected in the minutes.]
The purpose of this data is to assess where the district needs improvement and to measure the effectiveness of improvement strategies already implemented. Brin Tucker noted that students are not living in isolation within school; rather they are impacted by everything going on in our society. This data shows the need to think creatively about wraparound services.
RMC suggested that it might be useful to compare WSESD data with national results on the Panorama questions.
EN asked about more open ended questions that could reflect more about what is behind these responses, and also asked that neurodivergence and other disabilities be considered in formulating the questions. Mr. Smith responded that an interview and/or focus group about school climate could be a project for the middle school leadership teams.
IV. CONSENT AGENDA
● CLERK’S REPORT – Approval of Minutes – June 27, 2023
MOTION BY DS TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF JUNE 27, 2023.
A discussion ensued.
TM requested an amendment to add his recommendation that Board members avail themselves of the Jurassic Parliament trainings, for which they can be reimbursed.
MOTION BY TM TO ADD THIS INFORMATION TO THE JUNE 27 MINUTES.
ROLL CALL VOTE:
RMC YEA
RM YEA
KP YEA
EN YEA
TM YEA
DS YEA
AB ABSTAIN
KY ABSTAIN
MOTION CARRIED 6-2
VOTE ON THE MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF JUNE 27, 2023 AS AMENDED.
ROLL CALL VOTE:
RMC YEA
RM YEA
KP YEA
EN YEA
TM YEA
DS YEA
AB ABSTAIN
KY ABSTAIN
MOTION CARRIED 6-2
RM noted that agenda item in III. Administrative Report about the Restorative Justice Coordinator position that has not been addressed. Mr. Speno responded: The administration is actively trying to fill this position.
V. FISCAL REPORT
Mr. Rucker gave his report. The Business Office staff is getting ready for the annual CPA audit. It is proceeding as expected. They will report the audit to the Agency of Education by August 15, and after that, Mr. Rucker will report to the Board on Fiscal Year 2023. Mr. Rucker expects the audit will be favorable against the budget plan. The plan was to spend $900,000 more than collected revenue to maintain the target-level fund balance and reduce taxes.
Mr. Rucker met with Mr. Speno, Special Education Director Tate Erickson and Early Education Services Special Education Coordinator Brandy Levesque about existing programs at Canal St school and what a vision for the future might be. The building has 3 floors. EES Head Start uses the first floor of the building for pre-K programming. For the upcoming school year, they will be moving those classrooms to the Birge Street facility in order to achieve costs savings and provide more support to those classes. Early Childhood Special Education Services currently use the 2nd floor for speech services, family support, and providing services to students as needed.
The Legislature has passed Act 76 passed and it is focused on expanding public preK, directing the Agency of Education to substantially expand public pre-K by FY 26. Mr. Erickson and Ms. Levesque have a number of ideas of how the building can be utilized to provide more support services and a more inclusive environment. They hope to bring in more pre-K aged children for special educational services and provide Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy services for children in this age range.
TM suggested consideration be given to the building’s air conditioning or fans given the heat and the likelihood that this will continue to be an issue. Mr. Rucker shared that the boiler at Canal St is near the end of its life. Any replacement will include a cooling coil that will mitigate humidity and can be retrofitted to work with a cooling system if one is installed.
Mr. Rucker reported that a citizen approached his office with a proposal to purchase from the District a small parcel of land off South Main Street. This is not a usable parcel for the District, it is separate from any campus, and there is no management plan for it. Mr. Rucker will look into the state requirements for disposing of this land..
VI. PUBLIC COMMENT ON NON-AGENDA ITEMS
Liz Adams from Putney had questions about finding minutes and agendas on the website. Mr. Smith will contact her to assist her.
KY announced the Board will take a break at 7:52pm.
KY called the meeting back to order at 7:57pm.
VII. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
A. Sexual Abuse Investigation Update
KY reported Attorney Goddard had received an additional report, and KY mentioned this at the last Board meeting. She has no further information.
Mindy Haskins Rogers of Northampton, Massachusetts (and a BUHS alumna), asked the Board three questions:
1. What did the Board request from Attorney Goddard?
2. When do you expect to receive information from her to report it?
3. Are you going to report it to the public?
KY responded:
● The Board did not meet with Attorney Goddard; they met with Attorney Kendall Hoechst.
● The Board was expecting to have a report, but the new report submitted to Attorney Goddard delayed that.
● The Board has no information.
Ms. Haskins Rogers followed up with questions and concerns about giving the attorney deadlines and parameters, that it has been two years since The Commons published the article about the sexual abuse allegations, and that some parties mentioned in reports are still working with youth.
KY responded: If someone accused is currently working with children and is employed by the District, the administration would handle that, but the Board would not have that information. All concerns about Attorney Goddard’s process should be directed to Ms. Goddard, or to Mr. Speno.
B. Policy and Amendment Committee presents the following for adoption: F42 Dress Code,E17 (F3) Fire and Emergency Preparedness Drills, and H8 (F4) Access Control and Visitor Management.
MOTION BY KY FOR THE BOARD TO TABLE DISCUSSION AND ACTION ON THE DRESS CODE UNTIL AFTER THE BOARD ADDRESSES “NEW BUSINESS LETTER ‘A’ – POLICY AND AMENDMENT REQUESTS THAT THE BOARD RESCIND ‘LSP1 DRESS CODE.'”
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
Policy and Amendment Committee Chair DS announced there are two other policies up for adoption.
MOTION BY DS THAT “E17 FIRE AND EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS DRILLS” BE APPROVED BY THIS BOARD FOR ADOPTION.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
OTION BY DS THAT THIS BOARD ADOPT “H8 ACCESS CONTROL AND VISITOR
MANAGEMENT.”
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
C. Policy and Amendment Committee presents the following for a 2nd Reading: H7 LeadeCouncils
DS announced she is presenting “H7 Leadership Councils” to the Board for a second reading. It is now in its 10-day reading period, until the next Board meeting. If no objections are received, it will be presented for readoption at the next Board meeting.
VIII. BOARD MATTERS / TRAINING
A. Leadership Council Updates
There were none.
B. Board Sub-Committee Updates
– Social Justice Committee
RM reviewed items from the minutes of the Social Justice Committee’s recent meeting.
● The 2021-22 WSESD Social Justice committee developed three questions related to diversity and equity that should be included on all job applications. Currently only part of the first question seems to be included on job listings. The Social Justice Committee recommends that this be remedied and that all three questions are asked on every job listing for the district.
1. Explain your experience(s) working with historically marginalized groups. What have you learned from this (these) experiences? Include times when you have made mistakes.
2. Describe your framework for equity and social justice in the classroom (or workplace) and its origin.
3. Where did you hear about this job posting?
Mr. Speno requested that this be tabled until the August Social Justice Committee meeting and the subsequent Policy Council meeting so that the new Human Resources Director Michael Keliher can be part of this process.
MOTION BY RMC TO DIRECT THE SOCIAL JUSTICE COMMITTEE TO WORK WITH MARK AND THE NEW HR DIRECTOR TO DEVELOP A PROCESS TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THESE QUESTIONS.
EN spoke to the strength of these questions and gave context that they were first recommended for use at a WSESD board meeting on February 8, 2022 and the topic was tabled over and over and never voted on. She warned against delaying the process even further. RMC said that the intention of her motion was to create some movement on it. RM noted that these recommendations have already been sent to the superintendent and HR Director.
ROLL CALL VOTE:
RMC YEA
RM YEA
KP YEA
AB YEA
EN NAY
TM NAY
DS NAY
MOTION CARRIED 4-3.
RM stated that they will discuss this at the August 3 Social Justice Committee meeting and bring it for a vote at the August 8 WSESD meeting. RM continued her report on the recent Social Justice Committee meeting.
● The Committee would like the Board to consider asking principals to submit, before Board meetings, more information on potential hires, including their cover letters, CVs, and applications, which should include their answers to the three questions. Mr. Speno noted the process now is to give the Board a summary to introduce each candidate. He recommended that the committee discuss this at the next Social Justice Committee meeting with Mr. Keliher. A discussion ensued on this request, the process, and who would make this request to the principals.
RM continued her report:
● For committees that include Board members that review job applicants, the Social Justice Committee requests that Board representation be determined by the Board in a vote in open meeting. This could be incorporated into Policy D1.
MOTION BY RM THAT FOR JOB APPLICANT SCREENING COMMITTEES THAT INCLUDE BOARD MEMBERS, BOARD-MEMBER REPRESENTATION ON A COMMITTEE SHOULD BE DETERMINED BY A BOARD VOTE IN A PUBLIC MEETING.
A discussion ensued. Mr. Speno suggested that, while these are all good ideas, there is value in waiting until the next Social Justice Committee meeting to collaborate with Mr. Keliher. DS noted that this is Board business, which is covered by Policy D1.
VOTE ON THE MOTION: MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
RM confirmed this motion does not apply to school committees with no Board presence. RM continued her report:
● The Social Justice Committee recommends the development of a survey to collect baseline data on the current WSESD staff for the purpose of evaluating progress toward the goal of increasing staff diversity. Mr. Speno requested this item be discussed at the August 3 Social
Justice Committee meeting with Mr. Keliher.
– Communications Council
RMC noted the Council does not meet frequently. RMC reminded the Board that the Council has a goal to post meeting agendas and notices to Facebook and will begin posting minutes, including the summary of actions taken at that meeting in the text of the post. She asked Board members to be mindful of how they respond to comments on those posts. The meeting norms will also be posted to the WSESD Board Facebook page.
KY said she likes the idea RMC suggested of showing a slide of the meeting norms at the beginning of the meeting, when she reads the hybrid-meeting statement.
TM acknowledge that many Leadership Councils are looking for increased participation and asked the Council to remind families that Leadership Council meetings are for everyone, not just those who see themselves as leaders.
– Policy Performance and Equity Committee
RMC noted she has fallen behind on submitting minutes, but they are coming soon. The focus of the next meeting is on access to equity in Pre-K programs, partly in response to the statewide legislation regarding Universal Pre-K. The Committee will be working with Mr. Speno and Mr. Rucker on that.
RMC said the Committee is working on a proposal for rotating Board-meeting locations to all the different schools. Mr. Smith noted there may be challenges posed by some schools’ internet connections.
C. Board Retreat
KY announced the retreat is on August 11, and she and DS are working on the agenda. A moderator has been selected. If Board members have additions to the agenda, to please submit them to KY and DS.
IX. NEW BUSINESS
A. Policy and Amendment Committee requests that the Board rescind LSP1 Dress Code
MOTION BY DS THAT THE BOARD RESCIND LSP1, STUDENT DRESS CODE.
A discussion ensued. DS noted that LSP1 exists, it is specific to BUHS, and it is antiquated and problematic.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
VII. UNFINISHED BUSINESS (continued)
B. Policy and Amendment Committee presents the following for adoption (continued) – F42 Dress Code
MOTION BY DS THAT THE BOARD ADOPT F42 DRESS CODE.
A discussion ensued. DS noted that this is an adoption, not a readoption.
VOTE ON DS MOTION: MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
IX. NEW BUSINESS (continued)
B. Board Vacancy
KY gave an update: One candidate submitted a letter of interest, which they subsequently withdrew. Thus, there are no candidates. KY asked the Brattleboro Selectboard Chair to announce the opening and to encourage people to apply. The deadline is extended.
A discussion ensued on how to encourage people to apply. Some ideas were to conduct informal, one- on-one conversations with a Board member and interested parties; having a warned meet and greet event for folks to learn more about serving on the board; and engaging the Leadership Councils to do recruitment.
A discussion ensued on the deadline for, and process of, working with the Brattleboro Selectboard on this appointment.
Mr. Speno recommended postponing this to the September 8 Board meeting.
MOTION BY RM TO MAKE THE DEADLINE SEPTEMBER 8.
Other members suggested waiting longer to have a chance for Leadership Councils to promote this at their first meeting.
RM WITHDREW THE MOTION.
MOTION BY RMC TO EXTEND THE DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTING A LETTER OF INTEREST TO SEPTEMBER 22.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
Please note: AB was not in the room during this motion and vote, so she did not vote on this motion.
RM requested Board members bring specific proposals for ideas and dates for engaging with the public around filling this seat, to the next Board meeting.
DS reminded Board members that with a reduced Board, the quorum is lower, so be mindful of not exceeding four people in any conversation about board matters to avoid violating Open Meeting Law.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
MOTION BY KP TO FIND THAT PREMATURE GENERAL PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE WOULD CLEARLY PLACE THE PUBLIC BODY OR PERSON INVOLVED IN SUBSTANTIAL DISADVANTAGE, WHILE ANTICIPATING THE BOARD WILL MAKE A SEPARATE MOTION UNDER 1 V.S.A. §313(a)(1)(A) CONTRACTS.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
MOTION BY KP TO ENTER INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION UNDER 1 VSA §313(a)(1)(A), CONTRACTS.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
KY announced action is expected.
The Board entered into Executive Session at 9:12pm.
The Board rose from Executive Session at 9:16pm.
MOTION BY AB THAT THIS BOARD AUTHORIZE THE CHAIR TO SPEND UP TO $1,500 ON A MODERATOR FOR THE BOARD RETREAT.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
MOTION BY KP TO FIND THAT PREMATURE GENERAL PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE WOULD CLEARLY PLACE THE PUBLIC BODY OR PERSON INVOLVED IN SUBSTANTIAL DISADVANTAGE.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
– Under: 1 V.S.A. §313(a)(1)(B) labor relations agreements with employees, 1 V.S.A. §313(a)(1)(A) contracts, and 1 V.S.A. §313(a)(1)(D) grievances, other than tax grievances
MOTION BY KP TO ENTER INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION UNDER 1 VSA §313(a)(1)(D), GRIEVANCES, OTHER THAN TAX GRIEVANCES; 1 VSA §313(a)(1)(A), CONTRACTS; AND 1 VSA §313(a)(1)(B), LABOR RELATIONS AGREEMENTS WITH EMPLOYEES.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
KY announced no action is expected.
The Board entered into Executive Session at 9:19pm.
The Board rose from Executive Session at 9:30pm, taking no action.
MOTION BY AB TO ADJOURN THE MEETING.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:30.
Documents presented:
● “Summer 2023 Update on School Climate – WSESD School Board – July 25, 2023.”
Submitted by Robin Morgan, WSESD Board Clerk, from minutes taken by Wendy M. Levy
