NORTH KINGSTOWN SCHOOL COMMITTEE

Wednesday, April 10, 2002

7:00 PM Worksession

North Kingstown High School Auditorium                                                                                    150 Fairway Drive, North Kingstown

“Challenging Student Excellence”

Minutes

           I.          Pledge of Allegiance

 

           I.          Call To Order                      The meeting was called to order at 7:08 PM.

 

A.            Roll Call                 Present:  Chairperson Lynne Haft, Vice Chairperson Karin L. Forbes, Denise Coppa, Dr. Janice DeFrances, Carol H. Hueston, Michael R. Northup, Patricia E. Watkins and Cathy Kaiser, Jamestown School Committee

                                                Administration Present:  James M. Halley, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools, Daniel J. McGregor, Ph.D., Director of Pupil Personnel Services, Barbara A. Fitzsimmons, Ed.D., Curriculum Director and William J. Daly, Director of Human Resources

                                                                Absent:  Joseph F. Quinn, Jr., Director of Administrative Services

 

         II.          Open Forum

                The following topics and concerns were voiced during the meeting’s open forum.

·         Why were Davisville Elementary grades four and five moved to Quidnessett at the last meeting?; Quidnessett may have come up with different ideas, we were left out of the loop, “disappointed.”

·         Comment regarding the Domino Effect; teacher discussion on the topic; and hopes the whole chessboard is displayed.

·         The committee was asked if the proposals are in place at this time?; at what point did you ask for the proposals that reconfigure the elementary schools?; and commented regarding public input.

·         Comment that laying down the proposals and discussing it tonight is wrong, need them beforehand; and asked the committee to change the time course on these decisions.

·         Thank you to the school committee and asked how far out does the superintendent project for planning purposes; and when making decisions, what is the order of precedence?

·         Comment regarding the reasons for closing Fishing Cove School.

·         Questioned why the public did not receive the proposal before Fishing Cove School was closed; needs the complete plan.

·         Asked what the completion date is for reconfiguration and is this part of the budget?; can we get a presentation and a timeline before the vote?

·         Comment regarding the Position Paper on Returning Kindergarten to Area Schools.

·         Comment that the one constant at Fishing Cove School has been the teachers; would have liked the plans before the two actions were taken last week; asked the school committee to rescind those decisions, put modules at Davisville Elementary for one year and leave Fishing Cove School for one year so we can further discuss.

·         April Brunelle and two other plaintiffs have filed a lawsuit in Superior Court against the North Kingstown School Committee and Lynne Haft, Chairperson regarding a complaint that the March 27, 2002 meeting was in direct violation of the open meeting law and to find the vote to close Fishing Cove School null and void.

 

       III.          Routine Items

A.                  Correspondence- Not discussed.

B.                   Calendar- Not discussed.

 

       IV.          Unfinished Business

A.                  Position Paper: Limitations on obtaining injunctions to prevent a work stoppage- Not discussed.

B.                   2001-02 School Budget- Not discussed.

C.                   2002-03 School Budget- Not discussed.

D.                  2001-02 School Department Goals and Objectives- Not discussed.

E.                   2002-03 School Department Goals and Objectives- Not discussed.

 

 

 

 

         V.          New Business

 

A.                  Preschool Handicapped Program Plan

Preschool Programs for Special Education

The return of the kindergarten program to the home school community allows for a review of all the preschool programs that were located at the Fishing Cove School.  Input was gathered from the Special Education Local Advisory Committee that sought parental input on the preschool programs with a school committee member, paralegal and the superintendent in attendance.  Preschool staff, building administration and support personnel provided input at a meeting with the Director of Pupil Personnel Services.  Minutes were reviewed from both of these meetings.  Also, a letter from preschool parents currently in the program was reviewed.  The Regulations Governing the Education of Children with Disabilities served as a guide for this proposal.  Utilizing this data, the following proposal is offered for next school year.  Of course, if circumstances change with the elementary schools for next year, the proposal may need to be modified. 

 

A full preschool continuum of services is proposed for the northern and southern schools in North Kingstown.  One program would be located at Forest Park and the other at Hamilton.

 

This continuum includes the following array of educational settings:

1.        Temporary placement in an educational setting for a period of no more than thirty (30) days, when necessary to aid in determining educational objectives and the appropriate placement for an eligible child with a disability.

2.        Placement in an early childhood setting with on-site consultation by an early childhood special educator and/or related services provider to the general education teacher and/or to the family.

3.        Placement in a preschool class designed primarily for preschool children with disabilities and including children without disabilities.  The maximum class size shall be no more that fifteen (15) children with less than fifty percent (50%) being children with disabilities.

4.        Placement at an early childhood setting with supplementary placement for a portion of the school day or week.

5.        Full-time placement in early childhood special education setting located in a public school building.

 

A full continuum of services and programs will be made available at the Forest Park and Hamilton locations utilizing a self-contained and a less intensive integrated model at each facility.  These two schools represent four (4) distinct programs for preschool children with disabilities.

 

The two (2) separate locations will allow for dual entry points into the system for preschool age children and eliminate the back log of referrals that happens periodically throughout the year.

 

All support services necessary to implement the IEP will be available at both locations including speech therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, adaptive physical education, guidance and psychological services.

 

Jane McLellan is concerned about the two locations for the preschool programs for special education students.  Dr. McGregor described that there would be two classrooms at Hamilton Elementary and two classrooms at Forest Park Elementary.  Each school would have a self-contained classroom and an integrated preschool classroom.  Sharon Schubert is concerned about services for the children regardless of location.  The Preschool Handicapped Program Plan will be on the April business meeting agenda for approval.

 

B.                   Reconfiguration of Schools for Discussion

Dr. Halley said that none of the proposals need to be done; however, they are beneficial to students.  For the past three years , configuration has been discussed with various people.  A number of proposals were discussed by the Growth Management Committee.  The Capital Improvement Commission had representatives from a broad cross section of the community.

 

Reconfiguration Proposals One and Two are appended to the minutes.  With Proposal One (Moving Wickford Elementary School Students to Fishing Cove School), it is possible to offer full day kindergarten.  With Proposal Two (Establishing Primary and Intermediate Elementary Schools and Implementing Full Day Kindergarten), the superintendent said that if full day kindergarten is offered, this is the way to do it with the current budget.  It also relieves Wickford Middle School crowding.

 

Dr. McGregor spoke about the preschool program for special education and its possible locations.

Motion to table any and all action on Administration’s Proposals One and Two of Agenda item VI.B. (Reconfiguration of Schools for Discussion) until April, 2003 was made by Mike Northup/Dr. Coppa.

Mike Northup and Denise Coppa withdrew the motion.  Discussion.

 

Motion to table Item VI.B. and the two proposals in it to the first worksession to be held October, 2002 was made by Mike Northup/Carol Hueston.  Discussion.

 

Mike Northup called the question.  Motion failed 5/2(Hueston, Northup).

 

Motion to table action on Proposals One and Two in Agenda item VI.B. until October, 2002 but have discussions about these proposals during that time was made by Carol Hueston/Mike Northup.

 

Pat Watkins called the question.  Motion failed 5/2 (Hueston, Northup).

 

Motion by Dr. DeFrances/Pat Watkins:  There will be no action taken on any reconfiguration of schools until Oct/2002, but we will be able to have discussions, forums, focus groups etc. to look at any possible reconfiguration proposals.  Motion passed unanimously.

 

A break was taken at 9:10 PM.  The meeting resumed at 9:29 PM.

Dr. Halley recommended that immediate discussion of these issues take place.  Establish small groups and dialogue among people rather than a hearing format.  Focus Groups meeting were scheduled for April 25 and April 29 at 7:00 PM.  Teachers were requested to participate in these meetings.

The following comments were heard from the audience.

¨          Communication is key; wants parents to know what is going on in the focus groups through possibly a newsletter.

 

¨          Asked what the costs of refurbishments, transportation, and utilities will be.

¨          Plan Three was mentioned- what we currently have with a need to bolster some servicing.

¨          Comment regarding the Wickford Elementary School SALT Report.

¨          Comment regarding high performance and our model being better that neighboring communities.

¨          Comment regarding Wickford Elementary School’s playground, transportation system, parking, and historic buildings.

¨          Asked why split elementary schools after Kindergarten goes to the elementary schools where kindergarteners will benefit.

¨          Need a plan that provides stability; shuffling kids around isn’t good.

¨          Need a written document of priorities.

The school committee received the following petition signed by 150 people from the Fishing Cove School community:

 

We the undersigned citizens of North Kingstown believe that our rights were ignored when we requested an open forum to discuss ANY changes to the school system.

 

The parents and taxpayers of North Kingstown requested an Open Forum to discuss the reconfiguration of schools and the closing of Fishing Cove School.  We asked that this forum be held before any decisions were made.  We were denied.  We still believe an open forum on the issues needs to be held, and the School Committee’s vote needs to be revisited.

C.                   Recommendations regarding High School Summer School Offerings and Middle School Summer Opportunity School (SOS)

 

A memo from Donna Thompson to the school committee regarding recommendations for 2002 Summer School.

 

It was agreed that I would make a recommendation to the School Committee regarding the Summer School Program offerings for high school students for 2002.  It was further recommended that there be a review and recommendation(s) made regarding the middle school Summer Opportunity School (SOS Program).  To that end, the following recommendations are made:

 

High School Offerings

After reviewing past years programming, consulting with Mr. Foley, Ms. Mort, Department Heads and past summer school teachers at the high school the following recommendation is made:

·         That Summer School offerings will consist of Algebra I & Algebra II only.  Up to two sessions of each course, with 15 students in each classroom will be planned for.

·         That classes be held for 3 weeks (July 8-26), two hours per day (8:30-10:30 AM) for a total of 30 hours.  (This is a change from 4 weeks, 1.5 hours per day).

·         That classes be available to NK students first, (opened to others if space available).

 

In order for this recommendation to move forward, the following has been requested of the high school principal:

·         That Summer School be assigned one contact staff member in both the guidance & the math department to (a) ensure that early notification of student failures is communicated to parents and that early Summer School registration is offered, and (b) to assist in recruiting and securing math teachers.

·         That the high school math department provide a syllabus of required coursework for each class and requirement for final exams.

 

                                Cooperation and assistance in these areas is critical.  It is doubtful that high school classes can be offered that are academically appropriate, substantive and cost effective without this component.

 

Summer Opportunity School (SOS) – Middle School

 

After reviewing SOS programming, participation and staff / student compliance the following recommendations are made:

 

One Year Recommendation  (2002)

·         That the SOS program be offered contiguously with all other district Summer School Programs (this is a change from starting SOS the day after school ends).

·         That classes be held for 3 weeks (July 8-26), three hours per day 8:00-11 AM, for a total of 45 hours (this is a change from classes being offered up to 20 days, 4 hours per day, or 80 hours).

·         That no student be admitted to class without a folder containing all uncompleted work, a detailed plan for completing that work, and all study materials needed.

 

                                Further Recommendation:

·         That an aggressive review of the effectiveness, philosophy, content and design of the SOS Program be conducted by principals of both Wickford and Davisville middle schools.

·         That the review process include staff, parent and district input and that areas to be reviewed include program purpose, goal(s), accountability, curriculum, continuity with other district policy & programming (summer school included), and the programs cost effectiveness.

·         That recommendations will be made to the Director of Curriculum no later than February, 2003.

·         That the Director of Curriculum bring district recommendations to the School Committee for final approval.

 

Donna Thompson answered questions on the topics of Physical Education in summer school and the D grade impact on the program.  Recommendations regarding High School Summer School Offerings and Middle School Summer Opportunity School (SOS) will be on the April business meeting agenda for approval.

D.                  Spanish Course Offerings

 

A parent of a Spanish III, Phase III student requested an amendment to the Program of Studies to offer Spanish IV, Phase III.  Forty-one students signed a petition requesting the course to be offered at the Phase III level.  Currently, Spanish IV is offered at the Phase IV level only.  The school committee will hear the request at a Parent Appeal on April 25 at 7:00 PM in the Central Administration Building.

 

E.                   Proposed 2002-03 School Committee Schedule of Meetings- Not discussed.

F.                   Interscholastic Hockey Proposal

The following letter was sent to the superintendent from Keith Kenyon, Director of Student Activities/Athletics.

 

In the past two years, I have informed the School Committee, during my annual report, that Interscholastic Hockey was on the horizon.  That time has come, and I am looking for support from the School Committee to initiate this program. 

 

In February of 2002, a survey was conducted of grades 6 through 12 including North Kingstown High School, Jamestown School, Davisville Middle School and Wickford Middle School.  It was determined through this survey that student athletes demonstrated a strong desire to play Interscholastic Hockey at North Kingstown High School in 2002-03.  With the strong support of a local hockey parents’ group, I have researched the interest in hockey and the availability of the new URI hockey rink for our proposed program.  I have found URI to be extremely cooperative in this endeavor and are eager to host us as they open their new rink in August of 2002.

 

It is my recommendation that we operate this program as a co-educational team at no expense to the taxpayer for the 2002-03 fiscal year.  We would compete at the Metropolitan C Division with the intention of moving up in the future, mirroring our level of success in other programs. 

 

Since the survey was conducted, we have had a wide range of interest from hockey families in North Kingstown and Jamestown.  We have been told that several 8th graders will forego plans to attend parochial schools and stay at North Kingstown because of Interscholastic Hockey.  We have also been informed that several students will be returning to North Kingstown from parochial schools because of the proposed addition of hockey.  Therefore, I highly recommend the addition of Interscholastic Hockey at North Kingstown High School for the 2002-03 school year with financing from our Booster Club, private donations and fund raising.  On the evening of April 10th, I will further outline the proposed budget and expenses to startup this program. 

 

Thank you for your anticipated support of this program.  I look forward to bringing this proposal before the School Committee on April 10th.

 

The school committee requested the following information for the next meeting.  What is the cost of the program?  Does this increase our cost of insurance?  Denise Coppa wants no child to be excluded from playing for financial reasons included in the plan.  Parents provide the transportation.

 

Colleen Pickering asked how much money is in the athletic budget and how much is spent on non-athletic activities.  Ms. Pickering expressed a need to diversify. 

 

The Interscholastic Hockey Proposal will be on the April business meeting agenda for approval.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

G.                   Policies- Tabled to the April 24 business meeting agenda.

 

1.                    Request Discussion on Issue Papers Regarding Proposed Policies

a.                                Home Schooling- IHBG

b.                               School Volunteers- IJOC

 

2.                    Approval of Policy Amendment

a.                    Tobacco Product Use on School Property- JICG/GBED

 

3.                    Approval of Administrative Regulations

a.                                Student Conduct on Buses- Administrative Regulation- EEAEC-R

b.                               Deviation from Attendance Boundary Policy- Administrative Regulation- JCAC-R

c.                                Maintenance of Student Conduct- Administrative Regulation- JLIA-R

 

4.                    Recommend Rescission of Old Policies

a.                    Sexual Harassment- GBCD

b.                               Policy on Walking Distances – Walkers and Riders  EEAA

c.                                School Day (Opening Schools for Sessions)  IDA & IDB

School Day (Opening Exercises)

d.                               Maintenance of Orderly Conduct  JFC

e.                    Student Conduct – Drugs, Alcohol, Weapons, Student Lockers  JFCH, JFCI, JFCJ

 

       VI.          Comments

·         Teri Ohs requested a list of “Whys” for moving kindergarten to the elementary schools.

 

     VII.          A motion to adjourn was made by Pat Watkins/Mike Northup (7/0) at 11:40 PM.

 

 

                                                                                                Respectfully submitted,

 

 

 

                                                                                                _______________________________________

                                                                                                Donna F. Keough

                                                                                                School Committee Secretary