October 11, 2005

Wellesley Public Schools
School Committee Meeting - Tuesday, October 11, 2005
Wellesley High School Library

The meeting was called to order by the Chairman at 7:35 pm. Ms. Littlefield, Ms. Jablonski, Mr. Murphy, Ms. Newman, and Ms. Sereiko were present. Also present were Dr. King and Ms. Wong. Representing the Student Advisory Committee was Ryan Speers.

PERSONNEL ANNOUNCEMENTS
Leave of Absence
Stacy Lake, Elementary Teacher, 1.0FTE leave January 2, 2006 - June 30, 2006

Appendix A Appointments
High School Class Advisors, Class of 2008 CORRECTION-- Larry Lovett, Deb Ward

Special Education Team Leaders
Bates Rhonda Silverman
Fiske Beth Pullman
Hardy Lauren Pedroli
Hunnewell Matthew LaCava
Sprague Elana Wolkoff
Schofield Troy Carr
Upham Marci Karp

CONSENT AGENDA
Upon motion made by Ms. Sereiko, seconded by Ms. Littlefield, it was unanimously VOTED:

Memorandum of Agreement
To approve contract between the School Committee and Wellesley Cafeteria Workers covering the period July 1, 2005 - June 30, 2008.

Minutes
Minutes of Regular School Committee Meeting dated September 27, 2005

Salary Lane Change
Constance McGrath - Master’s, effective September 27, 2005

Acceptance of Gifts
Contribution ($1,000) for books to be purchased for Middle School Library, from Wellesley Hills Junior Woman’s Club

RECOGNITIONS
The Middle School renovations project required a weekend power shut down recently. Several key personnel assured that the transition from the Friday closure of school to the Monday reopening of school was smooth and successful. Dr. King recognized especially Production Center Staff May Hunnefeld, Karen Thurber and Beth Gillespie, who have been working under very difficult circumstances since the opening of school, as well as Food Services Director Kathleen Keady. K-12 Technology Systems Manager Dick Heller has worked many extra hours throughout the renovation process. Business Manager Ruth Quinn Berdell and Assistant Business Manager Paul Browne arrived at work very early in order to reprogram all the telephones for the reopening of the Middle School following the weekend power shut-down.

SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT
The defibrillator which was formerly located in the high school fitness center has been relocated into a more central location between the gyms, and has been connected to the town’s emergency services system. Elementary teachers of grades K-4 worked on the math curriculum during the first early release day in October. Grade 5 teachers toured Thompson’s Island, the district’s new site for the fifth grade environmental education unit. Principals and department heads have received guidelines and other materials that will assist them in their work to begin developing the FY07 operating budget. The FY07 capital budget will be presented to
School Committee on October 25. Work is continuing to update enrollment projections, also for presentation to School Committee on October 25. Enrollment is up significantly at the elementary schools.

SCHOOL COMMITTEE’S REPORT
A series of meetings with elected officials is underway to explain the School Committee’s charge to the Facilities Advisory Committee and the anticipated steps to keep the public informed about the proposed project at Wellesley High School. The dates of neighborhood forums are posted on the web site. School Committee has had meetings recently with the Central Council of PTO’s, where the discussion focused on the agenda of this current year, and with the Fiske PTO. Fiske is functioning this year without a designated art and music room, and there is heightened concern about overcrowding at Fiske in light of new housing developments in the community. World of Wellesley will sponsor its annual celebration on Sunday, October 30, at Wellesley College. The Wellesley Bee, sponsored by Wellesley Education Foundation, will occur on Thursday, November 3. School Committee will participate. Ms. Sereiko commended John D’Auria, Sondra Hamilton, and Lynn Moore-Benson for the work they have begun this year on the laptop initiative among all the students of one house at the middle school. The new boiler at the middle school has been fired successfully. The locker rooms will be completed this week. At its meeting this week DAPAC discussed issues of anxiety among parents and children. Ms. Littlefield suggested that the system begin to track enrollment statistics noting when a first-born child is enrolled so that at benchmark transition points, it would be possible to provide more complete information to these families. Mr. Murphy paid tribute to the memory of two recently deceased retired employees of the Wellesley Public Schools, high school mathematics teacher Rod Spurr, and high school secretary Priscilla Bigwood.

STUDENT CONGRESS REPORT
Plans are underway already to develop Seminar Day, which will occur on a half day in early March, 2006. Student Congress presented suggestions to School Council as possible solutions to the issues of overcrowding. The school has already marked the mid-term of the first term this fall. Exchange students at the high school from Chile are well integrated in classes.

CITIZEN SPEAK
There were no citizens present who wished to speak.

DISCUSSION ITEMS
Elementary Facilities Study The committee received and discussed with architect consultants SMMA a draft Master Plan Study analyzing the sites and building conditions of five elementary schools, excluding Sprague and Bates. The study, which will be finalized pending additional review and discussion, provides an analysis of the capability of the five remaining elementary schools in the system to meet current program and enrollment needs. The study also provides building condition information upon which the system can develop short- and long-range capital budget planning. The response options suggested by the architects range from minimal intervention to construction of new school buildings.

In the ensuing conversation with SMMA, School Committee members discussed the basic assumptions underlying the study; durability of mechanical systems; construction phasing possibilities; placement and capacity of each site for installation of modular units; enrollment; parking; parity among all elementary schools in Wellesley; school configurations; school size.

CITIZEN SPEAK
Annie Cohen, Precinct F: Ms. Cohen inquired about the expected duration of modular classrooms already installed at Hunnewell.
Ms. Jablonski replied that a decision to place additional modular units at Hunnewell would include discussion of the conditions of the existing modular units already on the site.

Debra White, Precinct F: With a view towards accessing as much information as possible, Ms. White requested that the report be available to the public in the Wellesley Free Library.
Ms. Wong replied that in the interest of accuracy, it is not yet appropriate to make the report available to the public. The report is still in draft form.

Barbara McMahon, Precinct F: A member of the Steering Committee for the Comprehensive Plan for the Town of Wellesley, Ms. McMahon encouraged the School Committee to consult with the Planing Board, which has been working in its own right with consultants and planners about issues of housing trends and traffic.

Elaine Gillim, Precinct F: Ms. Gillim commended the School Committee for broadening its lens on enrollment concerns beyond the town’s birth rate to include the awareness of housing and real estate development trends.

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting was adjourned at 9:06 pm.

Executive Secretary