NEWTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE
MINUTES
OF REGULAR MEETING – JANUARY 13
EDUCATION
CENTER, FRAZIER ROOM, 7:30 P.M.
PRESENT: Chairperson
Anne Larner, Vice-Chairperson Susan Albright, Gail Glick, Patricia Kellogg,
Marc Laredo, Nancy Levine, Leslie Schneider, Dori Zaleznik, Mayor David Cohen,
Lindsay Dahlben, student representative – Newton North High School, Keith
Agoada, student representative – Newton South High School
Chairperson Anne Larner called the meeting to order
at 7:35 p.m.
Sarah Ecker, 68 Prospect
Park, presented a petition from parents of second- graders at Cabot Elementary
School, who are concerned about class size.
There are currently 24 and 26 students in the two classrooms, placing
the children’s education at risk. While
she understands little can be done at this point in the year, she and other
parents are eager to see an additional third grade added next year, as the only
appropriate solution. The principal’s
hands are tied to the budget, which is why they are presenting their petition
at this level, in the hopes that appropriate funds be allocated in FY04. Class size must be Newton’s first
priority. No other goals can be
accomplished without first addressing class size. She noted that they are encouraged by the Committee’s budget
guidelines, which place a high priority on this issue, as well as the good work
they have accomplished on elementary class size over the past several
years. However, while the average is
better, there are still areas in need of improvement and Cabot is a perfect
example.
Jennie Gamson, 31 Hyde
St., Cabot parent, talked about the differences that her children experience in
class sizes of 17 vs. 25. While all the
staff at the school are excellent, it is far greater challenge for the teacher
in the larger class. Transitions take
longer and rather than having extra time for more questions or additional
reading, it is spent moving children around.
The dynamics in classroom discussions are also very different. In the larger class, shyer students are less
likely to participate and are called on less frequently. Students are more easily distracted and have
to have lessons repeated. Teachers do
not have as much time to spend on individual students’ needs. This is not an equitable situation because
their peers in other schools are in smaller classes.
Cheryl Lewis, Cabot
parent, is pleased at the commitment Newton has made to class size but urged
them to make sure it is not just an average.
Often her daughter relates incidents where the class was not able to do
something because of its size. She
urged the Committee to add an additional class next year to address this
situation.
Judy Bartek, 32 Ferncroft
Rd., Waban, spoke on behalf of the Newton South High School Council, imploring
the Committee to provide funding for the projected increased population and
larger building at Newton South next year.
Approximately 140 more students are projected as a result of
redistricting, which will require an additional 8.32 full-time equivalencies (FTEs). Even at this staffing level, there will
still be 32 classes with over 25 students.
Guidance counselors will play an important role in this environment, as
the consistent link for students during their high school experience. Any short-term gain by cutting in this area
will eventually result in students being referred to more costly programs. To maintain the present 171:1
student/counselor ratio, they will require an additional .75 FTE. The physical space of the new wing adds
80,000 square feet and previous cuts in campus aide positions have already left
a shortfall in terms of monitoring.
They have to ensure safety of students, as well as maintaining orderly
functioning of the school. Secretarial
support has not been added as the population has increased over the past few
years. Last year 2,200 college
applications were processed; a 50% increase over the previous year. With the addition of the Goldrick House,
more support staff is going to be necessary.
A cut in the library support staff two years ago forced the closing of
the library outside of school hours. A
restoration of that cut would enable them to open the library both before and
after school. She hopes the Committee
will take these issues under consideration as they discuss the upcoming budget.
Andy Hill, Cabot parent,
talked about the crowded physical space in the second grade classes. He hopes they can work together to find a
solution to this problem, as they struggle with all the compelling needs.
None.
The following recognitions
were acknowledged:
Mary Eich, K-8 math coordinator, and Joan Martin, K-5 curriculum specialist, for their presentations “What the Maya Can teach Us About Place Value” and “Stimulate and Satisfy students While Sticking to Standards” at the NCTM Eastern Regional Conference in Boston.
The following staff for their presentations at the Massachusetts
Computer Using Educators (MassCUE) Conference:
Mimi Concannon, teacher, Angier School
Janet Panaggio, teacher, Angier School
Rachel Kramer, teacher, Angier School
Jen Toran, teacher, Burr School
Steve Silverman, Coordinator of Instructional Technology
Trisha Kelleher, instructional technology specialist
Marc Richmond, web facilitator
Chris
Swerling, library media teacher at
Mason-Rice Elementary School & Newton North High School, for becoming one
of only two library teachers in Massachusetts to become a National Board
Certified Teacher in Library Media.
Rachel
Sherman, student at Newton North High School, for becoming a semi-finalist for
a Special Scholarship sponsored by Wyeth and awarded through the National Merit
Scholarship Corporation.
Jennifer Huntington, Principal o Newton North High School, announced that last year’s senior class raised $10,000 to provide assistance to a village in Tanzania where many orphan children suffer from AIDS. The woman who coordinates the program in the village recently visited Newton North and talked about how that funding has bought one hot meal a day for every child. In turn, the villagers presented a wall hanging and picture of the children holding a thank you sign to Newton North.
Anne Larner noted a
correction to the minutes of 12/9/02:
Page 3, 1st #,1st
sentence, should read: Mass. Inc. and
President of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation.
MOTION: It was
moved to approve the 11/25 and 12/9/02
School Committee meeting minutes,
as amended.
(Albright
– Kellogg)
unanimous
REPORTS
NEWTON NORTH HIGH SCHOOL TASK FORCE UPDATE
Superintendent Jeffrey
Young announced that he has asked Susan Albright to provide the Committee with
regular updates on the work of the Newton North High School task force. Tonight will be the first of these updates.
Susan Albright stated that
tonight was the first meeting of the Task Force, all of which are open to the
public. The meetings are also taped by
Newton’s Cable Access channel - New TV - and televised the following evening. Members were introduced and represent a
cross-section of the community. They
will be instrumental in bringing good expertise to the task. Dr. Michael Jellinek, Chairperson of the
Task Force, reviewed the charge of the group and schedule of meetings, which
will be every Monday for 12 weeks (except holidays), from 5:00-7:00 p.m., at
Newton North High School. In addition,
Dr. Jellinek will hold regular meetings on Tuesdays with staff and the
press. The first six meetings will be
information gathering. Dr. Jellinek put
forth the idea of holding an architectural competition, similar to the one he
oversaw at Mass. General Hospital, where proposal are submitted on how to solve
the problem. A subcommittee was formed
to prepare the directive for this competition.
Three questions will be asked of the architectural firms: What would they do with the current plan of
renovating the existing building?; How they would design a new building?; and
what would they do with a partially renovated and partially new construction
project? They will then narrow down the
number of finalists who will make presentations to the Task Force. The last six meetings will be devoted to
these presentations, discussions of same, and developing some options and
recommendations.
Anne Larner added that
there will be presentations and discussions around revenue and financial
constraints in conjunction with this process, in the hopes that there will be
creative but realistic options.
Dori Zaleznik commented on
the increased number of aides that have been hired, but that they are still
short nine positions in special education.
Roberta Dollase, Assistant
Superintendent for Human Resources, replied that there is a lot of turnover
with aides throughout the year, so they are constantly trying to fill those
positions.
Jeff Young stated that while they are still projecting a $65,000 - $70,000 surplus in this year’s budget, it is unlikely that this is going to be the case. The colder than average winter will most likely result in increased heating costs. In addition, the State has announced that they cannot fund their 50% of the 4th quarter payments for residential tuitions. Newton has 17 students in placements, which would mean an additional burden of $288,000 on the City. It still remains to be seen whether or not they can borrow that against next fiscal year. Nevertheless,
the State is not going to be able to deliver this amount in a timely fashion and, therefore, they are most likely going to have to consider a budget freeze.
Mayor Cohen commented that the City will look for ways to share the burden of the $288,000 with the schools. The Governor’s announcement of a 5% cut to local aid for FY03 results in a host of possible adverse consequences. Commitments were made in good faith, with a reliance on the full amount of local aid that was voted in the budget. A mid year cut in local aid has never occurred before. Given that much of the budget has already been expended, this would result in a loss of $1,000,000 to Newton, in a compressed 5 - 1/2 month period, which actually means closer to a 12% cut for the remainder of the budget. In addition, this lowers next year’s base by $1,000,000, so his $5,100,000 allocation becomes $4,100,000. While they are looking to convince legislators not to allow this to happen, they have to have a plan in place so as not to jeopardize their fiscal stability.
Nancy Levine asked if this cut requires legislative approval.
David Cohen replied that the Governor is filing a bill to give him the legislative authority to make this cut.
Nancy Levine commented that they will need to act quickly via the Massachusetts Association of School Committees and School Superintendents and the Massachusetts Municipal Association to voice their concern.
Dori Zaleznik stated that they will need to explain clearly to the legislators what the impact of this cut will mean. It is one thing to have to face whatever drastic measures will need to be taken next year, but a very different thing to be surprised mid-year with this situation.
Leslie Schneider asked if the State has ever reneged in the past on 4th quarter funding for residential tuitions.
Carol Daynard, Assistant Superintendent for Pupil Services, explained that the funding for this program usually runs short at the end of the year, but supplemental appropriations have always been approved by the legislature. However, it is unlikely that this will occur this year given the fiscal situation.
Mayor Cohen stated that they will continue to work with the legislature in proposing some alternatives.
Susan Albright noted the Governor’s comments about being forced to cut health and human services if he does not get the approval to cut local aid. However, it needs to be made clear that local aid involves services for people. A letter from the School Committee to the Governor and House and Senate leadership might be worthwhile.
Dori Zaleznik suggested the Committee write a letter expressing their concerns and agreed to prepare a draft for their approval.
Marc Laredo believes the place to be heard is with the legislators, who have the ultimate decision with regard to the Governor’s proposal. However, if this does
pass, he requested that the Superintendent prepare a list of proposals for the next meeting on how to address this situation vs. a straight freeze on all spending.
Jeff Young stated that they have attempted other options in the past, such as a partial hiring freeze and freezes on specific accounts. What they need to do at this point is to get a better handle on the gravity of the situation. While the Mayor has mentioned $1,000,000, they do not yet know what their share will be, although it is likely to be significant. They also need to review all accounts, to see what has been budgeted, encumbered, and expended. He does not imagine there will be many options and that they will have to return to the areas which have traditionally been impacted, such as materials, supplies, textbooks, maintenance, and a hiring freeze. He will provide a report at the next meeting.
Marc Laredo appreciates his taking the time to review the accounts. He has great concern about freezing the accounts that have traditionally taken the hits, particularly given the strides they have been able to make as a result of the Override funding. While there may ultimately be no other choice, he would like to avoid that if at all possible.
Dori Zaleznik suggested that they put in place some temporary freezes, in anticipation of the upcoming difficulties and then release the funds if the situation proves less dire. This might be a better approach than rather than facing a desperate situation in several months and having to necessitate a total freeze.
Jeff Young stated that while that allows schools to continue with their business, it means less flexibility down the road because the longer they spend the less there will be to freeze.
Anne Larner believes they need a fuller discussion of this situation at the next meeting, when they will have more information.
Nancy Levine noted that the report indicates projected deficits in electricity and telephone, but not in fuel oil and natural gas, which is where she would have anticipated the increases.
Jeff Young stated that they anticipate increased risk in the fuel oil and natural gas accounts. Conservation efforts are in place, but can probably be reemphasized. Sandy will provide more detail on the electricity and telephone accounts in her next update.
SPECIAL EDUCATION UPDATE
Jeff Young noted that aside from the $288,000 previously discussed in the budget update, they remain fairly close to target in the special education accounts, provided the budget is fully funded.
Anne Larner mentioned the request to include preschool material in the report.
Carol Daynard, Assistant Superintendent for Pupil Services, explained that this report is more of a fiscal vs. program document. She would be happy to provide preschool information as either a separate report or could include the numbers and referral information within this document.
Jeff Young stated that they are trying to get a handle on the children coming into the system and the fiscal implications, so it would pertain to staffing, new programs, number of available slots, etc.
Anne Larner suggested that a separate report may be a better vehicle for what they are seeking, either on a monthly or quarterly cycle. She will leave that up to the administration’s judgement.
Dori Zaleznik asked if she views the $288,000 they discussed earlier as a shifting of funds from one fiscal year to another or if she believes it is reneging on reimbursement.
Carol Daynard spoke of the legislation which was passed two years ago that would change the funding on residential programs from a 50/50 to a 60/40 split, with cities & towns taking on more of the burden. However, that has yet to materialize. If they do move in that direction, she would view that as a best case scenario.
Marc Laredo noted that the report indicates that transportation is a vulnerable area and that the number of routes has had to be increased. He asked if she could elaborate on this situation and discuss any steps being taken to keep these costs under control.
Carol Daynard stated that some students have to attend therapy and other programs after school, which are not in their neighborhood. In addition, there are more students in community placements who are working at job sites, as part of their program. In order to contain costs, they are attempting to consolidate one ride for students who work at the same site.
CLASS SIZE REPORT
Sandra Guryan, Assistant Superintendent for Business, Finance & Planning, explained that this report takes a snapshot of the enrollment at a particular point
in time (10/1) and reflects School Committee policies and internal strategies to manage the population. She distributed an errata sheet noting a correction to the report. Horace-Mann Elementary School has opted not to continue the K-1 combination class next year. Last year’s directive was to plan a budget that would support improving class size in terms of reaching some specific standards and they have been successful in moving toward that goal. Improvements have been made in the average class size at the elementary schools, average team size at the middle schools, and lowering the number of classes with more than 25 students at the high schools. If they review a longer period of time, they have also seen improvements in these areas over the past eight years. In the elementary grades, while the average looks good, there are still pockets where improvement can be made, as the Committee heard from Cabot parents this evening. In order to meet this goal for all classes, they will have to have an average that is below their target. This is where the use of resources becomes difficult and critical. She and several principals are available tonight to answer any specific questions Committee members might wish to pose.
Dori Zaleznik noticed that the largest class sizes at the middle schools seem to be in mathematics.
Judith Malone Neville, Assistant Superintendent of Schools, replied that this is not a new phenomenon. Grade 7 & 8 students, with parent approval and teacher recommendation, are able to choose math courses. There are often more students than planned who opt for accelerated math. In trying to accommodate as many students as possible, they end up with larger classes. However, it should be noted that there are fewer sections on the large side this hear.
Susan Albright has been bringing up the issue of tracking in mathematics since she began her tenure on the Committee. She wondered why they cannot project these anticipated enrollments and plan appropriately.
Judy Malone Neville stated that the team structure impacts scheduling. They have tried to address the larger classes in creative ways, such as offering students cross-team and off-team math courses, which poses its own set of problems. Other ways they have attempted to address the problem was by adding an additional teacher on a team or experimenting with cross-grade groupings. They have also done some creative staffing between regular and special education teachers. This is time when students are developing and growing at different rates and they want them to have as many opportunities as possible. However, they are limited to what they can do by the middle school team model.
Susan Albright understands the situations that can develop from this model and agrees that it is good for students to have so many choices. However, they should not continually allow math classes to be so large.
Jeff Young noted that budget plays a major part in the problem. If the system had an appropriate number of reserve teachers, there would be much more flexibility.
Dori Zaleznik asked if aides would make any difference.
Marvin “Murph” Shapiro, Principal of Oak Hill Middle School, stated that the math grouping has a lot to do with the class size. For example, a team of 100 students is split equally into four English sections of 25 students in each class. However, in math there may be 60 in advanced placement, 20 in pre-algebra and 10 in the lower level. Therefore, two classes will have 30, one will have 2, and one will be at 10. You cannot add a math teacher to the team setup and evenly distribute the students.
Susan Albright asked about the possibility of adding just a part-time math teacher.
Murph Shapiro stated that this is doable, although the principals would probably voice their concern about what that does to the team structure. Personally he does not feel 30 students in an advanced math class is necessarily a bad situation.
Marie Doyle, Principal of Bigelow Middle School, hired a part-time math teacher to address the bulge in her school, which was valuable at the time. The dilemma that they often face is in parental overrides. There is also the issue of students who can and cannot afford tutors.
Dori Zaleznik was pleased to see the team sizes decrease, but similar to the situation at the elementary schools, class size distribution is still inequitable. In addition, there are differences among the four middle schools, where Day and Oak Hill suffer the greater number of larger classes. She asked if that is a structural choice within the building or if it has to do with the way students are distributed in a particular year.
Murph Shapiro explained that there are building-based decisions around whether all team teachers should teach only their subject matter, which means less flexibility, as opposed to having them teach one course that is not their specialty. There type of philosophical approaches vary between schools and have an impact on class sizes.
Judy Malone Neville added that there is more flexibility in a larger building.
Marc Laredo asked if the principals feel that some subjects can entertain larger classes easier than others and, if so, whether or not there is anything the Committee can do in terms of allocating resources in this regard.
Judy Malone Neville stated that they would like to keep class size between 20-25 across the board and attempt to do that as much as possible. It is important that students at this age be able to have time to interact not only with their teachers but also their classmates. They also experiment with and participate in a lot of hands-on work that works best in a smaller environment.
John Jordan, Principal of Brown Middle School, mentioned that their 6th grade has 50 more students than the 7th grade, so they will be configured differently into three teams. In the transition from 6th to 7th grade math, students are placed into one of three levels. The key may be in the attention paid to this placement. However, the class size has to be looked at in conjunction with team size as well, so it gets complicated.
Marie Doyle stated that the whole philosophy around teams is that teachers get to know students very well. Shifting populations to make one class larger than another is not practical and would actually revert the system back to a junior high school model.
Gail Glick asked how practical it would be to add a part-time math teacher.
Marie Doyle replied that it is requires finding planning time so that the person can work with the team teachers. It becomes difficult when moving from one school to another because that time is used for travel. It can be successful if the person resides solely in one building, as there is better communication.
Murph Shapiro agrees that it can be done, but he is not as convinced that adding a person for a specific subject matter is the best solution. In his building there are some teachers who do not teach all the students. It requires careful planning and scheduling.
Judy Malone Neville spoke on behalf of Paul Stein, Day Middle School Principal, who was not able to attend tonight’s meeting. Paul has successfully used part-time staff in the past, especially in mathematics.
Susan Albright admitted that next year is going to be difficult in terms of budget, but there are vulnerable students in a class of 30 that are going to be at risk and she would like to see this addressed.
Judy Malone Neville noted that each school has “team time,” which is a chance for students to meet with teachers in a smaller setting at least once a week, so there is that occasion to have additional mathematics instruction.
Marie Doyle added that the parental overrides are working in her school, where almost 40% of the students are in accelerated math and are doing well on MCAS scores. It appears that the students are achieving at a high level, which makes the larger class sizes less troubling.
Anne Larner moved the discussion onto the high schools, where she noted that they have made some good progress, but still need more work.
Michael Welch, Principal of Newton South High School, provided an overview, which is a daunting amount of information to digest. Both schools worked hard to reduce the number of classes over 25 and were quite successful. Newton South went from 64 to 36 classes in this category. Since the report was completed, there are a few more below 25. When staffing was added as a result of the Override, they were not aware of the loss of grant funding for the Health and Human Sexuality program. This resulted in 20% of their additional full-time equivalencies (FTEs) that were earmarked for larger class sizes to be utilized for covering these courses. At Newton South, he gave the directive that no standard class (one without any attached constraints) will run with less than 12 students. He listed some of the courses that were not offered as a result of this decision even though they had enrollments that were close to qualification: AP chemistry, AP Latin, art history, managerial accounting, advanced acting, Russian for the Native Speaker. One innovative approach they have taken to manage staffing and retain opportunities for students is to combine students from both high schools in a Russian II course taught by a Newton North teacher but housed at Newton South. The teacher and students travel together to the school for first period. This took an enormous amount of effort to plan, but is a revolutionary way of looking at the schools as one high school with two campuses. They have also combined a number of curriculum level courses in-house at Newton South, such as Chinese, Russian, and Latin. This puts a large strain on the teacher in terms of differentiating instruction, but allows them to continue running the program.
Jennifer Huntington, Principal of Newton North High School, mentioned that there are errata sheets for the report, as there were several errors in the high school material. She then talked about the progress they have made in addressing the large classes in science and U.S. History, where almost all of the classes are now below 25. The few anomalies over 30, in math and world language, were programmatic decisions made in conjunction with department heads. The one area where they were not able to make improvements was in physical education, as .9 of the 1.3 PE teachers also teach the Health and Human Sexuality courses, as described by Mr. Welch. Overall she is pleased with the progress they have been able to make as a result of the Override funding and thanked the community for their support.
Michael Welch added that both schools have placed an emphasis on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) tutorial courses, which have proven very successful. Every student in this year’s graduating class passed the English portion of the exam and only two have not yet passed the math portion. Much of this is due to the intense effort that went into this program. In terms of efficiency, they have only a .5 FTE more today than they did two years ago when he first became Principal of the school, but 70 more students. He concluded by offering a word of caution when looking at efficiencies because it is difficult to be efficient and effective simultaneously.
Nancy Levine is intrigued by the participation of students from both schools in the Russian course and wondered if they would be able to expand on this method.
Michael Welch stated that they cannot reverse the situation and have Newton South students moving to Newton North because of the schedule. Since Newton South starts 10 minutes earlier, it is possible for the North students to be back for their next class on time, whereas that would not be true for South. This only worked because of the cooperation of the joint oversight committee and by tweaking schedules, so that the first block met at the same time each day. This caused some other unanticipated problems, but they are cooperating in attempting to do more of this and are moving in the right direction.
Dori Zaleznik has heard a great deal about this joint effort and noted that the specific program and teacher has a lot to do with its success. It would be a far better option than to lose a course and she hopes they can do more of this type of creative thinking. She asked if there is a standing committee working on these type of efforts.
Judy Malone Neville replied in the affirmative and stated that they discuss a number of issues around sharing resources and joint planning.
Susan Albright noted that in the past there was a disparity in the class sizes of Curriculum I and Honors, where the former were larger, but sees that there is now more of a balance, which she appreciates. She asked if the Curriculum II numbers increased.
Michael Welch stated that they did increase slightly, although they are smaller than the other levels because they want to provide some additional support for those students. He believes this is the most appropriate place to invest more staffing and resources.
Susan Albright concluded her remarks by stating her desire to see technology used as a tool for holding classes between the high schools, which would not require the movement of students.
Jennifer Huntington agreed that this is something worth exploring once they have an appropriate technology infrastructure.
Marc Laredo noted that it is remarkable that the two high schools share an average class size ratio of 20.4. This indicates that the principals deserve a lot of credit for good resource allocation, as they move toward the goal of equity
between the buildings. He then asked them the same question he posed to the middle school principals, i.e., if they feel that some subjects can entertain larger classes easier than others and if that impacts on allocation of resources.
Jennifer Huntington stated that it is easier to have larger classes in the higher levels of math than in a Curriculum II class, where some students may be struggling to pass MCAS. They do factor these scenarios into their programmatic decisions.
Michael Welch agreed with Jennifer and added that it is more likely to find larger classes in students’ senior years. Given the difficult choices they have to make, they tend to have larger classes where the students are most able.
Leslie Schneider asked about the classes under 12 at Newton South.
Michael Welch explained that those are classes that have to be limited, such as electronic music, which is taught on computers and a finite number of work stations. Some of the courses, such as jazz combo, appear small but are actually combined with other sections. However, this is also a class that requires more individual attention because of its very nature, so they attempt to keep the numbers down. A few courses are taught voluntarily by teachers, in addition to their regular workload, which is probably not contractually appropriate, but is what the teacher wanted to do for the students.
Leslie Schneider asked if there are any classroom strategies in place for dealing with the larger numbers.
Michael Welch replied that there are strategies for breaking up the largeness of the class, but that usually occurs only in situations were students are very capable and working independently in their learning.
Dori Zaleznik asked if there will be room at Horace Mann Elementary School given that in a few years it appears there will not be enough classrooms to accommodate the projected number of students. It does not seem that assigning more teachers will necessarily solve the problem and wondered if there was any thought being given to some shifting of the population.
Jeff Young agreed that assigning teachers is not going to address the long-term problem. While they are going to have to look at various solutions, this is not on the table at this point in time, as the Newton North High School project takes precedence.
Dori Zaleznik admitted that no one wants to talk about redistricting again, but it may need to part of a long-range plan.
Jeff Young made it clear that he has no intention of recommending any type of redistricting for the upcoming school year. However, it would be shortsighted not to always be looking several years ahead, to think about the best way to make use of the facilities.
Anne Larner agreed that it is always important to be reviewing the facilities, but they will certainly be limited in terms of resources over the new few years.
Jeff Young asked David Castelline, Principal of Underwood Elementary School, if he could explain how he so well managed the influx of additional students in his building in August.
David Castelline stated that Underwood saw the addition of34 new students in one week this summer. They had 27 and 28 students in their two grade 2 classrooms. With the support of the administration and school Committee, they were able to add another teacher. However, the process of redistributing classes, preparing the room, and finding an excellent teacher was not an easy endeavor.
UPDATE ON K-5 EQUITY PROPOSALS
Judy Malone is pleased to be working with the K-5 Equity Committee. This group has been laboring long an hard on this matter. They are moving toward making a recommendation to the PTO Council and tonight’s report summarizes the status of their accomplishments to date. They will be looking at ways of bringing equity to the schools. One of the recommendations they are discussing is citywide funding that would address disparities.
The Committee had no questions. They thanked the group for the report and look forward to the recommendations.
INTERIM REPORT ON GRADUATION
REQUIREMENTS
Jeff Young noted that one of the School Committee’s goals is to complete this matter this year. This is an area where both program and budget combine.
Anne Larner admitted that it is difficult to come into a conversation around a report that has had a subcommittee working on this complex issue for quite some time, when they have not been privy to these discussions. She does not feel she has enough background information to participate meaningfully in a conversation. She wondered if they might be able to get backup materials, similar to what was provided for their MCAS discussion, as a means of getting people up to speed on the subject.
Nancy Levine was part of the subcommittee that worked on this subject. At one point they felt prepared to move toward some recommendations, but the budget situation put everything on the back burner. The process involved people from all parts of the system and the work was focused on an overview of what a Newton Public School student should know upon graduation. She has some concerns about the “less is more” attitude and losing some of the breath of program they currently offer. Eighty-seven percent of the student body is far exceeding what is already in place for graduation requirements. In a global community, foreign languages are important, as are the sciences. They need to strike a balance between what is necessary to be successful in today’s world, as well as maintaining some flexibility and options.
Gail Glick is trying to get a better understanding of the conflicts and tradeoffs between expanding requirements and maintaining choice and whether they necessarily have to be mutually exclusive.
Leslie Schneider stated that graduation requirements are what prepare students for work and life. Many people feel that it is not just the academic content that is important, rather what students can do with the knowledge they have attained.
Carolyn Wyatt stated that the subcommittee was focusing on competencies and requirements and what they would ask students to demonstrate. It might be helpful to summarize some of that for the School Committee.
Leslie Schneider commented that in some ways they are allowing colleges to define their graduation requirements.
Marc Laredo noted that it would be helpful to know when the standards were defined.
Judy Malone Neville stated that there has not been a change in the graduation requirements since 1978.
Marc Laredo noted that this is a significant period of time. He thought it would be helpful to see the requirements from other school systems, as well as the educational research around the subject. Increasing requirements does not necessarily equate to more staff, but could be a shifting of assignments. This Committee needs some significant time devoted to discussing this subject as a group after the report has been presented in May.
Susan Albright agreed that changing requirements should mean focus on the shifting of resources rather than additional staff. Students have to be in school for 990 hours, so they would not be adding more time, rather doing different things. Universities are now mandating what they expect students to know upon entering college and this is happening by default. She asked about NEASC.
Carolyn Wyatt replied that NEASC stands for new England Association of Secondary Schools and Colleges, which is a group that accredits the high schools in Massachusetts. They utilize a series of standards based competencies that all schools should include in the curriculum. They have revised the standards to meet the Education Reform agenda and Newton has a couple of years to make sure they are in compliance with the new standards.
Anne Larner wants to have a better understanding of what it means to have graduation requirements in a standards-based framework and does not feel she can participate intelligently in a conversation without that information. She would not want to see a final report developed and then have to backtrack if the Committee finds they did not a sufficient discussion and understanding of the material. The problem is that the people working on this are immersed in the subject, but the School Committee is not.
Jeff Young suggested Committee members forward their questions, concerns, and suggestions to him over the next few weeks and the administration will attempt to formulate a plan.
Judy Malone Neville added that they will be happy to share any of the research that the Curriculum Council has been reviewing this year.
Carolyn Wyatt concluded by talking about the opportunity they have at this time. As a high-achieving school district, they can shape a program for secondary education that is not based solely on the notion that all students will go on to college, but rather on competencies and unique ways of offering instruction and outcomes for student learning. The subcommittee ended at a point where it was uncertain if resources for a full restructuring would be available. However, their work was intense and in-depth. It included discussion about smaller learning communities; how foreign language factors into the curriculum in today’s global economy; how their recommendations might impact staffing; researching other school districts’ requirements; discussion around clustering; how community service factors into the program; and new ways of engaging students.
Judy Malone Neville concluded by stating that it is their goal to make sure all students are actively engaged in four years of study and that they are all successful in gaining diplomas. This will require creativity in program and resources.
Leslie Schneider stated that at some point she would be interested in hearing about the system’s values in relation to this work.
Dori Zaleznik hopes that even if they are not prepared to complete their work on the graduation requirements this year, that at least they begin moving toward beginning the process, while they determine the full scope of the matter.
Anne Larner suggested the possibility of another discussion on this topic prior to the meeting in May, when a final report is anticipated.
Marc Laredo agreed with this approach. Even if they do not have a final product, some additional historical context and comparative data would be helpful. They have been working on this topic for many years and, while it may never be perfect, clearly some changes are required.
Gail Glick would like to also have some discussion around the obstacles they might face in terms of changes to the requirements and the pros and cons of various options, because this is more than just a philosophical discussion.
Carolyn Wyatt stated that without more clear guidance from the School Committee in terms of the direction they would like this subcommittee to take, she is not sure how to proceed. She wondered if there might be a way to narrow the focus around what items they feel should be included and to what degree. This would assist the administration in being more succinct and direct in their responses. They have five books filled with the study of this topic.
Anne Larner noted that the administration has all this material but the School Committee is approaching the topic with practically a blank slate. If the administration can help them get to a better comfort level with the material, they can respond more intelligently to her question.
Nancy Levine commented that if they focus on the students for whom higher education may not be in their future, this could help them in developing some responses on what it is they feel students should know upon leaving high school. If this is the sum total of a child’s education, they should define what he/she should be able to demonstrate in terms of competencies.
Dori Zaleznik expressed concern about doing nothing while spending more time evaluating. As a way of moving things forward, she suggested taking the standards, which have become the basis for their curriculum, and incorporating those into the graduation requirements. That way they can have the basis for what students need to achieve, while continuing to provide some flexibility rather than rigidly prescribed courses.
Marc Laredo stated that if there are choices that the subcommittee does not agree on, it would be perfectly appropriate to come back to the School Committee with those issues, which would provide a framework for discussion around the pros and cons of each.
Patty Kellogg asked about the different requirements between the two high schools.
Judy Malone Neville replied that while the structures are different at the two schools, the graduation requirements are the same. Their work has focused on looking at the program as a whole.
ACTIONS ITEMS
VOTE TO ACCEPT DONATIONS
MOTION: It was moved to approve the donations, as outlined
in Attachment (G):
photographic equipment to Newton South High School;
Harvard Pilgrim Community Spirit mini-grant for Oak Hill Middle School, to provide transportation for students involved in the Community Outreach Program;
Harvard Pilgrim Community Spirit mini-grant for Franklin Elementary School, to support the poet-in-residence program;
Monetary donation from Stephen and Cindy Kane, to be used toward Day Middle School's mediation program;
Danas (digital electronic input devices), from AlphaSmart
to be assigned to Lincoln-Eliot and Burr Elementary Schools.
(Zaleznik – Levine)
unanimous
COMMUNICATIONS
None.
PUBLIC COMMENT
There were no members of the public who wished to address the Committee at this time.
ADJOURNMENT
MOTION: At 10:20 p.m., it was moved, by roll call vote,
to convene in executive session for the purpose of
discussing matters related to contract
negotiations. discussing
matters contract negotiations.
The
Committee will not reconvene in open session.
(Zaleznik
– Levine)
8
- 0 - 1
Absent for vote: Mayor Cohen
ROLL CALL VOTE BY WARD:
Ward I, “yes” (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, “yes” (Zaleznik); Mayor Cohen, absent for
vote