MONADNOCK REGIONAL SCHOOL DISTRICT

Board Meeting Minutes

October 21, 2003

Gilsum Elementary School, Gilsum, N.H.

6:30 PM R. Marra opened the meeting in order to interview the candidates for the Swanzey Board position.

Present: Don Arguin, Dixie Gurian, Chairman Robin Marra, Sam Johnson, Winston Wright, Alan Gross, Larry Colby, K. Cota, Gus Lerandeau, William Felton and Richard Thackston. Absent: Gene White, Patricia Smith and John Morin.

Also present: C. Cardine, Superintendent; K. Dassau, Asst. Supt.; L. Biron, Business Manager; Dr. D. Hodgdon, Dir. of Curriculum; and Dr. D. Lafleur, Special Services Coordinator. Principals: B. Tatro, D. Stockwell and D. Mousette. Student Council Representative: C. Castonguay.

The three candidates for the vacant Swanzey seat were Colline Dreyfuss, Steve Russell and Bruce Tatro. After answering questions from the Board, C. Dreyfuss was elected and sworn in. VOTE: C. Dreyfuss (4.402); S. Russell (0.809); B. Tatro (3.320).

1. CONSENT AGENDA:

Minutes of October 7, 2003 Board Meeting. MOTION: D. Gurian MOVED to approve the minutes. SECOND: A. Gross DISCUSSION: C. Cardine commented that there are two spelling errors. The correct name is B. Kuhn and Jeanine Leclerc. VOTE: 10.760/0/1.179/3.061. Motion Passes.

C. Cardine asked if the order of the agenda could be changed the School-to-Career presentation, as well as the report on the Gilsum-Wilcox Sped programs, could go first. Hearing no objections, Chairman Marra said that was fine.

NEW BUSINESS

School-to-Career Presentation (S. Kessler): D. Hodgdon introduced Sue Kessler, the School-to-Career instructor. Ms. Kessler explained that the program is for the 8-12 grade students. It helps students find their strengths and weaknesses, and eventually they form partnerships with members in the community. S. Kessler introduced B. Torre, a teacher at Mt. Caesar. Ms. Torre and students in her class were involved in a Vehicle Day and job shadowing. The students talked about the different people who came and discussed their job with them. Another group of students attended Keene State College. S. Kessler explained that the School-to-Career program paid for materials and for the bus. The students that went to KSC told the Board what they thought they would like to do after high school and why. The last presenter a senior at MRHS. She did a job shadowing at Cheshire Medical Center. She explained that by doing so she now knows what she would like to do upon graduation.

Behavior Support Programs at Gilsum & Wilcox (K. Dassau & D. Lafleur): K. Dassau explained to the Board that due to time constraints he was not able to review the Spec. Ed. Budget at the Saturday work session. He handed out a hard copy of his power point presentation. The SAU administers special education services to both the Hinsdale and Winchester districts in addition to the Monadnock Regional district. He said there are 600 students identified with educational disabilities within the three districts. The Monadnock School District has the highest population with 359 students. He then introduced the SAU Special Services Coordinator Dr. Dan Lefleur along with the teachers of the Gilsum and Wilcox programs (Nancy Elliot and Kristen Stroshine, respectively). J. Shapiro, a social worker, works part time in Gilsum and part time at the Wilcox Behavior Support Program. Since the planning of the two programs 12 students have changed placements, thereby affecting the district’s private tuition costs. To balance the costs K. Dassau explained that both programs generate revenues and defer the costs we would bear if we did not have these programs.

D. Lafleur addressed the Board and said these programs have had great impact already. These can be used instead of a private placement, and some students with out-of-district placements have now returned. He commented on the students in the Wilcox Program. Two have come from residential placements and two were being considered for out-of-district placements. He explained that some of the students in this program also attend the high school. The Gilsum Program has 2 students and enrollment is anticipated to increase to 4 next month. L. Colby asked if this program would have been possible last year. D. Lafleur responded “no” due to the lack of space.

S. Johnson asked the current cost of the two programs. K. Dassau responded that the programs are costing the District $118,000.00 and $134,000.00. S. Johnson then asked how much the out-of-district placements would cost. K. Dassau estimated $750,000.00. C. Cardine commented that the revenue side of the budget would be increasing significantly. A. Gross commented that the program was the right thing to do and congratulated the staff. K. Dassau thanked D. Mousette and his staff for their participation. D. Lafleur thanked the Gilsum and junior high school guidance councilors.

W. Felton asked what happens when the students reach the 9^th and 10^th grades. D. Lafleur said that they would be speaking on that subject next month. W. Felton asked how long the District is liable for these students. D. Lafleur said that we are responsible for these students from age 3 to age 21. L. Colby asked how these programs will be affected by the No Child Left Behind legislation. K. Dassau explained that all students would be tested in grades 3, 6 and 10. The students that have a severe developmental disability will use an alternative state assessment. According to the NCLB Act, 95% of special ed. students are expected to be at “proficiency” (basic level and above) by 2005. D. Lafleur said that each student has an individual program and writing is a particular problem. The staff will assess and work to help improve that problem.

The Board took a 10-minute break to look at the Gilsum Behavior Support Program room.

Chairman Marra addressed the Board and the audience explaining there had been a mistake in vote tabulation for the vacant Swanzey seat. He said had explained this situation to C. Dreyfuss and she had graciously agreed to step down. R. Marra expressed his apologies on behalf of the entire Board. L. Colby asked for clarification. He thought that R. Marra had indicated earlier that we would be voting on a “one person, one vote” basis. R. Marra commented that we are required to use a weighted vote for every action, but that what he had said was that a simple plurality would be needed for election. R. Marra then swore in B. Tatro as the new Swanzey Board Member. D. Arguin thanked R. Marra for his attention to detail and for finding the mistake. The CORRECTED VOTE: Dreyfus (4.402); Russell (0.809); Tatro (4.435).

The Board returned to the scheduled order of the agenda.

2. CORRESPONDENCE AND ANNOUNCEMENTS: C. Cardine informed the

Board that the College Board has named four students as Advanced Placement Scholars. The students are Ian Burke, Rebecca Guion, Bevin Kennedy and William Mitchell. Congratulations to those students.

C. Cardine announced that the Huskies are ranked #1 in football.

G. Lerandeau commented on the passing of G. Holmes. C. Cardine said that they would be sending condolences and flowers in the Board’s name.

3. STUDENT COUNCIL CONCERNS: C. Castonguay informed the Board that he had nothing to report.

4. PUBLIC COMMENTS: K. Castonguay read a letter concerning the Oct. 7, 2003 Board Meeting where he came away very concerned about the security of MRHS. He explained that when W. Kassotis was asked about the security plan it seemed to him (K. Castonguay) that no plan existed. He has concerns as to whether there is a security plan, who is in charge of preparing it, and are there any mandates regarding security plans. The Board secretary and the Assistant Supt. received a copy of the letter. He said that he was proud of his son for bringing this issue to the Board, and asked that this issue be investigated. R. Marra assured him it would be.

5. Other School Board Business:

A. Board Committee Reports:

1. Community Relations Committee: D. Gurian reported that the committee met and discussed the Monadnock Informer. They also discussed next steps on the building project (e.g., meeting with the selectmen in the individual towns). She felt it important for Board members to attend the meetings with the selectmen in their towns, and if this is not possible we need to think of other ways to reach out to them. Communication with the teachers is essential; a presentation will be given to them on Wednesday. They would like to get the teachers informed and involved in the process. She asked Board members to return the phone calls of the students writing articles in the Monadnock Informer. L. Colby informed the Chair that he would like to step down from the Community Relations Committee and move to Facilities (where they seem to have problems getting a quorum).

2. Facilities Committee: G. Lerandeau reported that they met and 5 out of the 6 members attended. L. Biron gave them a list of suggested capital improvements, and the committee asked him to identify priorities. G. Lerandeau asked if F. Marinace has been in contact with L. Biron. L. Biron said that he was working on a utilization study and how to deal with the auditorium. G. Lerandeau asked L. Biron to get something in writing. L. Biron said that he still has concerns about the water at Mt. Caesar. They have contacted Cushing and Sons.

3. Finance Committee: W. Wright reported that the committee would meet on Oct. 31, 2003 at 8:45 AM. C. Cardine explained that the MS-25 has been adjusted by the state to reflect a surplus of $101,663.00. That amount will be used to reduce taxes. He also said that the Spec. Ed. Warrant Article and all warrants have now been fully funded.

4. Policy Committee: D. Arguin informed the Board that the committee continues to work on Section I. The issue of quorum requirements for Board committees has also been discussed and a recommendation will be brought to the Board at the next meeting.

B. Return to New Business:

R. Thackston commented on the Surry Selectmen Meeting he had attended with Supt. Cardine. R. Thackston said he felt Surry School should be removed from the 2004-2005 budget. He explained that there are 38 students including the kindergarten, which draws from Gilsum and Sullivan, and they cannot justify the running of a school. The $450,000.00 being put back in the budget would benefit everyone. He noted that Richmond has more students and they do not have their own elementary school. He also spoke of Spec. Ed. space as an issue and suggested the district use Surry for that purpose. MOTION: R. Thackston. MOVED that the Surry School be removed from the 2004-2005 School budget. Chairman Marra ruled the motion out of order, stating that it was a money issue and the required 48-hour notice was not given. He also said that some of the Board Members have not seen the budget. D. Gurian suggested getting a study group together on this issue. R. Thackston said that this was a big topic at the selectmen’s meeting. R. Marra will place it on the Nov. 4, 2003 meeting agenda.

B. Old Business: NHSBA Delegate Assembly Resolutions: MOTION: W. Wright MOVED to appoint D. Arguin as the representative to the NHSBA Delegate Assembly. SECOND: R. Thackston. DISCUSSION: D. Arguin commented that he had been the representative for the past 5 years and feels that something can be learned from attending this meeting and would be happy to have someone else travel with him. A. Gross volunteered to go along with D. Arguin. W. Wright and R. Thackston agreed to change the motion to read: Motion to appoint D. Arguin and A. Gross as the representatives to the NHSBA Delegate Assembly. VOTE: 8.963/0/2.976/3.061. Motion passes. R. Marra commented that the resolutions to be discussed had been handed out to the Board at the last meeting. He said that in the past the Board instructed the representatives to do what they thought was best. MOTION: W. Wright. MOVED to authorize the representatives to use their own discretion on behalf of the Board when voting on the resolutions. SECOND: R. Thackston. VOTE: 8.963/0/2.976/3.061. Motion passes.

C. Curriculum Report: State Testing Results (D. Hodgdon): D. Hodgdon reported that the information he handed out to the Board has already been given to the staff and principals. He said that he tries to look at the trends of the students. He informed the Board that according to the No Child Left Behind Legislation every child must perform at proficiency. He explained that schools not meeting these criteria would be tagged as schools in need of improvement. R. Marra asked the Board Members to examine the information given by D. Hodgdon and raise any questions at the next meeting. D. Hodgdon has received a grant in the amount of $10,000.00 for Service Learning.

D. 21^st Century Report: Surry School Tour: D. Mousette invited the Board to tour the Gilsum Elementary School at the break. He was asked about the condition of the gym floor. L. Biron responded that they are working with a company and nothing has worked thus far. He said that after touring Camp Spofford they might have a solution.

F. Action on the Manifest: G. Lerandeau. MOVED to approve the manifest in the amount of $1,502,633.01 SECOND: D. Gurian. DISCUSSION: K. Cota asked if the students are purchasing the pizza listed on the manifest. C. Cardine responded that it was. R. Thackston added that Troy Elementary also had pizza when they had no kitchen. VOTE: 10.76/0/1.179/3.061 Motion passes.

6. Superintendent’s Report: No Report.

7. PUBLIC COMMENTS: None.

8. SETTING UP THE NEXT MEETING’S AGENDA:

1. Committee Reports

2. Timeline for District Building Projects

3. Accepting the $10,000.00 Grant

4. Surry School Budget

5. Security Plan MRHS

6. MC2 Report

9. NON-PUBLIC SESSION

9:31 PM A. Gross MOVED to enter into non-public session for the purpose of approving the minutes of the non-public session on October 7, 2003, a student issue, and personnel.. SECOND :G. Lerandeau VOTE: Unanimous for those present.

9:50 PM D. Gurian MOVED to return to public session and to seal this portion of the non-public minutes indefinitely. SECOND: S. Johnson. VOTE: Unanimous for those present.

Public Session

R. Marra asked the Policy Committee to review the current policy with respect to recusal and abstention by Board Members during hearings where they may know the parties involved.

10. Adjournment

10:50 PM W. Wright MOVED to adjourn. SECOND: D. Gurian. VOTE: Unanimous for those present.

Respectfully submitted,

Laura Aivaliotis

MRSD Board Secretary