NEWTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE
MINUTES
OF REGULAR MEETING - JUNE 24, 2002
EDUCATION
CENTER, FRAZIER ROOM, 7:30 P.M.
PRESENT: Chairperson Anne Larner, Vice-Chairperson Susan
Albright, Patricia Kellogg, Marc Laredo, Nancy Levine, Leslie Schneider, Mayor
David Cohen
ABSENT: Gail
Glick, Dori Zaleznik, student representatives (graduated)
OPEN
SESSION
At 6:55 p.m., it was announced that the Committee
will entertain a motion to convene in executive session.
MOTION: It
was moved, by roll call vote, to convene in executive
session
for the purpose of discussing matters related
to security.
If passed, the Committee will reconvene in open session at 7:30 p.m.
(Levine - Albright)
6 - 0 - 3
Absent for meeting: Glick, Zaleznik
Absent for executive session
only: Mayor Cohen
ROLL CALL VOTE BY WARD:
Ward I, absent (Glick); Ward II, "yes"
(Albright); Ward III, "yes" (Larner); Ward IV, "yes"
(Levine); Ward V, "yes" (Kellogg); Ward VI, "yes"
(Schneider); Ward VII, "yes" (Laredo); Ward VIII, absent (Zaleznik);
Mayor Cohen, absent for executive session
CALL TO ORDER
Chairperson Anne Larner
called the meeting to order at 7:40 p.m.
She announced that the Committee is going to take up an issue that is
not formally on tonight's agenda, but which was asked to be reconsidered from
the last meeting and that has to do with signing onto Brookline's MCAS
resolution.
Anne Larner noted that
they have since determined that Brookline has a sufficient number of cosigners
to assure that the resolution will be brought to and debated at the floor of
the Massachusetts Association of School Committees/ Massachusetts Association
of School Superintendents (MASC/MASS) conference this all. If someone wishes to reconsider the vote on
this subject that was taken at the last meeting, she would suggest they do so
at this time.
Patty Kellogg's main concern was that Brookline has
a sufficient number of cosigners for the resolution to be put on the floor of
the conference. Given that this is a
new School Committee dealing with many complex issues, she would simply prefer
to now wait until the fall when they can have a more in-depth conversation
around this subject matter, along with a discussion on their own graduation
requirements. She does not believe they
need to revisit the vote at this time.
Mayor Cohen appreciates the opportunity for this
discussion since he missed the last meeting and this gives him a chance to
express his views. Had he been at the
meeting, he would have voted in favor of the motion. It is his understanding that the minimum number of systems has
supported the resolution and he is troubled over the possibility of one of
those municipalities changing their minds.
Having an additional signature as a cushion would be helpful. When he served in the legislature in 1993
and they were discussing, debating, and ultimately voting on Education Reform,
the spirit of the law was to provide various opportunities for students to
demonstrate their accomplishments rather than just one test. The other important aspect of the resolution
has to do with local control and this goes far beyond just the MCAS issue. It would be bad precedent to allow the state
to determine what is best for the community.
While some Committee members may be uncomfortable with the wording of
the resolution, that does not preclude them from making an accompanying
clarifying statement.
Nancy Levine continues to believe that voting on
this resolution does not make any guaranty as to what they may later decide in
the fall after a more in-depth discussion.
She supports retaining the right to local control and does not believe
the law is being properly implemented without adequate alternate assessments.
Marc Laredo also supports the notion of local
control and is troubled by the idea of a single standardized test being used as
the sole graduation requirement. He was
concerned by the vote last week because of procedural purposes, i.e.,
discussing and voting on a subject at the same meeting, without sufficient time
for reflection, and because of the wording of the document. However, he is also sensitive to the fact
that only five communities have signed onto the resolution and he believes it
deserves debate at the conference.
MOTION: It was moved to reconsider the vote to
support
Brookline in its resolution for the MASC/MASS
delegate assembly.
(Laredo
- Cohen)
5 - 1 - 1 - 2
In
favor: Kellogg, Laredo, Levine,
Schneider,
Mayor
Cohen
Opposed: Larner
Abstained: Albright
Absent: Glick, Zaleznik
MOTION
PASSES
MOTION: It was
moved to support Brookline in its resolution
for
the MASC/MASS delegate assembly.
Discussion:
Leslie Schneider does not believe test scores
should be used in isolation as the sole basis for making decisions about the
success of students. However, they need
more information and further discussion with both the public and among
themselves. It is important that this
issue be allowed debate at the convention but she is not comfortable with its
wording.
Marc Laredo noted that two Committee members who
voted in favor of supporting the resolution at the last meeting are absent this
evening.
Anne Larner commented that Gail Glick asked to go
on record reiterating her support for signing onto the resolution.
Susan Albright stated that she still cannot support
the resolution because of its complexity and the fact that she does not feel
fully informed on the subject at this point.
Unfortunately the timeliness of this issue has made their
decision-making problematic. She is
pleased that Brookline has received enough support so that the resolution will
move forward to the assembly, but cannot vote on something that is not their own
language.
Anne Larner concurred with Susan's comments and
will also not support the motion. She
is also pleased that it will be on the floor of the MASC/MASS convention and is
not worried that Brookline will lose any support that it has currently
received. This Committee has a lot of
work to do around this issue, as
well as Newton's own graduation requirements and
she looks forward to that in-depth discussion.
Patty Kellogg wondered if they could go on record
as being considered an alternate if Brookline lost any cosigners and the
resolution was in jeopardy of not being presented at the convention.
Anne Larner noted that a motion exists on the floor
and must be addressed before others can be raised.
Marc Laredo is troubled
that they are talking about taking a position before they have fully examined
all the ramifications. However, he
shares the Mayor's concerns about the minimum number of cosigners and if they
have to chose between the two alternatives, he wants to make sure it gets to
the floor of the convention.
Roll
call vote by ward on motion to support resolution: 5 - 2 - 2
In
favor: Kellogg, Laredo, Levine,
Schneider, Mayor Cohen
Opposed: Albright, Larner
Absent: Glick, Zaleznik
Ward I, absent (Glick); Ward II, "no"
(Albright); Ward III, "no" (Larner); Ward IV, "yes"
(Levine); Ward V, "yes" (Kellogg); Ward VI, "yes"
(Schneider); Ward VII, "yes" (Laredo); Ward VIII, absent (Zaleznik);
Mayor Cohen, "yes"
MOTION PASSES
MOTION: It was moved that the School Committee supports the
measure for the purpose of placing it before MASC/
MASS
convention in the fall. The Committee
reserves
its
rights on the final vote at the convention pending
its
own discussion on this matter in the fall.
(Mayor
- Levine)
6 - 1 - 2
In
favor: Albright,
Kellogg, Laredo, Levine, Schneider,
Mayor
Cohen
Abstained: Larner
Absent: Glick,
Zaleznik
MOTION PASSES
PUBLIC COMMENT
Ronald Nuttall, 106 Washington St., addressed the
Committee re: the anonymous letter that was disseminated during the override
campaign, in what he considers a smear
tactic against the Newton Taxpayers
Association. This letter not only was
not sent by their organization, but it was the Mayor who brought it to the
attention of
the media.
It is his contention that the pro-Override organizers perpetrated this
hoax in order to obtain votes. There
appears to be a lack of willingness on the part of the City to investigate this
situation. He hopes that the $11.5
million that he believes was fraudulently obtained through the Override is not
spent until this issue is settled.
Donna Cohen, 133 Homer St., attempted to discuss a
situation with regard to her child's second grade experience at Angier Elementary
School.
Chairperson Anne Larner instructed Ms. Cohen with
regard to the procedure around issues having to do with individual staff
members and informed her that this is not the appropriate arena for her
comments. She would be happy to speak
with her in another forum.
Donna Cohen insisted upon finishing her comments.
Anne Larner called Ms. Cohen out of order and asked
her to leave her name with the secretary and someone will follow-up with her
concerns.
Joan Goldberg, 148 Sumner St., Cochairperson of
Newton Coalition for Authentic Reform in Education (CARE), thanked the
Committee for signing onto Brookline's resolution. With regard to alternate assessments for special education
student, the nature of those assessments is a disaster. Of the 700
10th-graders in the class of 2003 who
took the alternate exam, only one passed.
In addition, only a small percentage of special needs students are
eligible. The latest information from
the Department of Education (DOE) indicates that 55% of special education
students are still failing MCAS. In
terms of the MCAS exam itself, many experts have labeled it a hastily developed
test. which contains numerous ambiguous questions and wrong answers, with
arbitrary minimum scores. Some research
indicates students in the "failing" category on the MCAS actually do
well on other national tests. Other
evidence indicates that MCAS misclassifies many students as "failing"
who should be in the "needs improvement" category and that there is a
strong association between income and performance. Finally, she commented on the widespread concern raised this year
regarding the 10th grade math test.
Forty-three school districts wrote to the DOE questioning the validity
of the exam. She hopes the Committee
will review all of this research as they continue their deliberations around
this subject.
Ellen Hume, 1212 Hunnewell Ave., presented the
Committee with a petition regarding increased traffic and safety issues in the
Underwood and Bigelow
school districts, as a result of the state's plans
around Mass. Turnpike exits and tolls.
They are working with the city and state on the installation of a
traffic signal at Park and Tremont Streets and believe they are making
progress. Her
reason for attending tonight's meeting is to ask
for the school system's support for crossing guards in this area.
Len Mead, 27 Camden Rd., Auburndale, President of
the Newton Taxpayers Association, talked about how enrollments are tapering
off, but school expenditures continue to rise.
The system does not appear to be attempting to demonstrate any control
over staffing and salaries. He
reiterated concern expressed by a previous speaker regarding the
"mail-gate" smear and concluded by mentioning his support for MCAS
because it forces accountability.
Anne Sullivan, 3 Bowdoin St., anticipates that her
daughter will fail the 8th grade MCAS that she recently took in
mathematics, as well as the one she will have to take in grade 10. She is very concerned about what will happen
to her and is interested in hearing how Newton is going to deal with students
in these situations. She understands
the need for high standards and both of her children have received an excellent
education in the Newton Public Schools, but MCAS cannot be the sole criteria
for receiving a diploma.
Ken Hamilton, 3 Oak Terrace, President of the
Newton Teachers Association (NTA), thanked the Committee for signing onto
Brookline's resolution. People opposed
to MCAS as the sole graduation requirement are not opposed to high standards,
rather they are against the high-stakes nature of the test and the fact that it
is not true to the values of Education Reform.
He has heard Committee members state that they need to be better
informed about this matter and he applauds them for being honest and hopes they
will listen to members of Care, NTA, and the Massachusetts Teachers Association
(MTA) who can talk to them about the issues.
STUDENT
REPRESENTATIVES' DISCUSSION
None.
RECOGNITIONS
None.
APPROVAL
OF SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES
MOTION: It was
moved to approve the School Committee meeting
minutes
of 2/25/02.
(Kellogg
- Laredo)
7 - 0 - 2
Absent: Glick, Zaleznik
COURTESY INTERVIEW FOR HANK VAN PUTTEN, ACTING
PRINCIPAL OF WILLIAMS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Introductions
Committee members introduced themselves to Mr. Van
Putten.
Opening
Statement by Candidate
Hank Van Putten is pleased to have been offered
this position. He grew up in New York
City, where he attended public schools in a high-tracked program. He began his career in Newton in 1974 at
Bowen, Hamilton, Emerson, and Countryside Elementary Schools. In 1993, the system moved to a middle school
model He wanted to take on a new
challenge, so he applied to teach physical education and was assigned to
Brown. When Oak Hill opened, he was
selected as assistant principal, where he has been for the past five
years. He looks forward to taking on this
role, as part of an ongoing journey of assisting children in various ways to be
successful. His strategy is to use
behavior modification, by recognizing the positive strengths and abilities that
people possess, in order to move them in the desired direction. The work of John Saphier in the 1980s was a
powerful tool for developing collegiality, so that teachers are constantly
talking about the craft of teaching. They
were also asked to examine their assumptions about traditional models of
development and move toward building confidence levels, which leads to
improvement. During this time, the
district made a commitment toward raising the achievement of African/American
students. With the work of Beverly
Tatum, they learned how race impacts academic achievement and they continue
this work today. He has been visiting
Williams a great deal over the past month and learning a lot. The literacy initiative that is going to be
instituted at all grades this year will be a major focus of their work.
Anne Larner asked what he will do on his first day
of school.
Hank Van Putten replied that he will be available
to greet the children, parents and staff; to monitor the buses; direct people
to their appropriate places and basically just being visible. He mostly wants the children to know that he
is part of their learning process and not just a person in an office.
Nancy Levine noted that Williams has had the recent
experience of redistricting. Having had
experience with moving children through the south side schools, she wondered
how that might help him reassure parents.
Hank Van Putten stated that parents feel affirmed
when they know that they have been heard.
A very simple way of doing this is to make it a point to use
someone's first name. While it may seem simple, it goes a long way toward developing
relationships. Good things go on in
every school and he will reinforce that with parents. While they may not always get an answer they would like, at least
they will be sure he has listened to their concerns.
Susan Albright asked how he plans to interact with
the literacy program.
Hank Van Putten stated that he will be a presence
in the classroom. Interacting with
students has always been something he has found time for because he finds
sitting in an office all day boring and centrality of the classroom remains the
most important factor. Just the other
day, while visiting Williams, he had the opportunity to volunteer to help a
group of students who were learning about measuring. He proceeded to lay on the hallway floor, while they determined
the length of the hall by how many Mr. Van Puttens it would take to get from
one end to the other.
Mayor Cohen has seen Mr. Van Putten in action and
has no doubt that he will be successful.
Questions
from Candidate to Committee Members
Hank Van Putten had no questions for the Committee.
Closing
Statement
Hank Van Putten stated that he can only be
successful if others around him are successful. He shared the "Lessons from Geese" to illustrate what
he means. Traveling in a v-formation adds 71% greater flying range for geese
than if they flew alone (lesson: sharing
a common direction gets you there more easily); a goose will immediately fall
back into formation once it feels the drag of resistance of flying alone (lesson: we are more successful when we help others
and allow them to help us in return); when the lead goose tires another takes
over (lesson: it pays to take turns
doing hard work); geese honk to encourage one another to retain the speed (lesson: positive feedback keeps you on track); when
a goose
falls from formation from sickness or wounds from
being shot, two others drop out of formation to fly down to be its protection
and stay with it until it can return or dies (lesson: standing by one another in difficult times is important).
PRESENTATION
FROM MASSACHUSETTS TEACHER OF THE YEAR
Roseli Weiss, Assistant Superintendent for
Elementary Education, stated that this is an incredible honor, as only one
teacher is selected annually statewide.
She then introduced Dawn McNair, teacher at Bowen,
as the Massachusetts 2001-2002 Teacher of the Year, who will share some of her
experiences.
Dawn McNair talked about what an honor it was to
travel throughout the Commonwealth representing her colleagues in the teaching
profession. She had the opportunity to
experience other teaching styles, as well as to share her own by modeling
lessons. She talked about the
nomination and selection process. She
mentioned that it was a poignant moment for her family because neither of her
parents had the opportunity to attend college and they were quite proud of her
achievement. She admitted that she was
not prepared for the amount of media attention and that it was a bit
overwhelming. She was able to bring two
of her first-grade students with her for her induction ceremony, as well as the
principal, which meant a great deal.
Some of the perks associated with being Teacher of the Year have to do
with the various appearances she made.
For example, she was honored as part of the "Heroes Among Us"
at a Boston Celtics basketball game, as well as in Dallas with the Teachers of
the Year from all the other states. The
highlight was meeting with the President of the United States and Secretary of
Education in the Rose Garden. In July
she will take her entire class to NASA space camp in Huntsville, Alabama. She talked about what an honor it was to be
selected as the first African/American Teacher of the Year in
Massachusetts. She concluded by
commenting that the only disappointment she experienced was the fact that while
she will be returning to Bowen, it will not be in first grade. She feels it is important that future
recipients of this award be assured of retaining their exact position and is
working with the appropriate people to see that this happens. She is also working to retain the sabbatical
funding, which has been eliminated, so that future Teacher of the Year are not
forced to continue to work while holding the position.
REPORTS
SUPERINTENDENT'S
PERSONNEL REPORT
Superintendent Jeffrey Young referred to the
personnel booklet commemorating 42 retired employees for the 2001-2002 school
year and thanking them for their years of service to the system.
OPERATIONS
STATUS REPORT
Jeff Young reminded the Committee that at the end
of the budget process last year, significant reductions were taken in this
account. He recognized Michael Cronin,
Chief of Operations, for managing to get so much done with such a tight
budget. The passage of the Override
will provide them with more flexibility for next year and they can expect to
see some significant improvements.
Summer work will be commencing shortly and Memorial-Spaulding is on schedule and will be ready for the
students to return in the fall.
HIGH
SCHOOL BUILDING PROJECT
Jeff Young noted that the high school program
continues to move along, with building projects at Newton South and planning at
Newton North.
Anne Larner asked what students will experience at
Newton South upon their return in the fall.
Heidi Black, Administrative Assistant, stated that
Phase 1B - the 80,000 square foot wing - will be near completion. Phase 2 should begin sometime over the
summer and includes the gym, cafeteria, student center, and band room. There will be a need for changes in movement
patterns as work progresses both inside and outside the building and those have
yet to be determined.
Anne Larner asked if there will be an impact on the
use of playing fields.
Heidi Black replied that to some extent there will be
an impact, but all parties are aware of this and they are working on
plans.
ACTION
ITEMS
DISCUSSION/VOTE
RE: NAMING OF HOUSE AND COLLDGE/CAREER
ROOM AT NEWTON SOUTH HIGH SCHOOL
Anne Larner stated that in March people from Newton
South requested that they be allowed to create a local naming committee to name
a house and room at their school. The
Committee's policy allows them to either act as the naming committee or
delegate that role, which is what they did in this case. It is now the responsibility of the
Committee to either approve or deny the recommendations.
Nancy Levine is pleased with the committee's
recommendations. If ever there was a
name that should be forever attached to part of a school building, it is that
of Janet Goldrick, who has held the roles of teacher, principal, associate
superintendent, deputy superintendent, and acting
superintendent. She regrets that she
does not know Ms. Addis, but given the committee's selection of Janet, she can
only assume they have chosen an equally excellent educator.
Susan Albright commented that this is the first
time that a house has been named after a woman and she too is pleased that it
is Janet.
MOTION: It was
moved to name the new fourth house at Newton
South
High School the "Goldrick House," in honor of
Janet Goldrick, longtime Newton Educator and to
name
the
college/career resource room "The Margaret Addis College/Career
Room," in honor of Margaret Addis, past guidance department head.
(Levine
- Albright)
7 - 0 - 2
Absent: Glick, Zaleznik
VOTE TO APPROVE GRANTS
MOTION: It
was moved to approve the two grants totaling $68,400, as outlined in Attachment
F.
(Mayor
Cohen - Levine)
7
- 0 - 2
Absent: Glick, Zaleznik
VOTE TO ACCEPT DONATION
MOTION: It was
moved to accept the donation of $1,000 for Day Middle School learning center
programs from Kathleen O'Connor and Larry Manchester, parents of
a Day student.
(Levine - Schneider)
7
- 0 - 2
Absent:
Glick, Zaleznik
COMMUNICATIONS
Nancy Levine acknowledged
this difficult school year and thanked the administrators, staff, parents and
everyone who was involved in working so hard to make it a successful year for
students.
Susan Albright hopes those
who did not support the Override will follow the Committee's deliberations this
year, so that they can demonstrate that they are a fiscally responsible group.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Ronald Nuttall commented
that he has done a lot of research on the MCAS and it is a tough but good exam,
with high reliability.
Anne Larner requested that
he send along any information he might have on the topic, so that the Committee
can gather as much data as possible for their deliberations.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned
at 9:20 p.m.