HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013_07_09 Board MinutesBOARD OF TRUSTEES — ANNUAL REORGANIZTION MEETING
BOARD MEETING
DISTRICT OFFICE BOARD ROOM - 7:00 P.M.
JULY 9, 2013
Present from the Board of Trustees:
Dave Lent, Chairman
Lisa Burtenshaw, Vice Chair
Deidre Warden, Treasurer
Larry Haws, Clerk
Brian Hillman, Trustee
Bryan Zollinger, Incoming Trustee
Present from the Administration:
George Boland, Superintendent
Trina Caudle, Assist. Superintendent
Lisa Sherick, Assist. Superintendent
Carrie Smith, Director of HR & Finance
Camille Wood, Director of Technology Services
Margaret Wimborne, Communications & Community
Engagement Coordinator
Debbie Wilkie, Recording Clerk
Chairman Lent called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm.
The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Compass Academy Director Matt Bertasso.
SPECIAL ORDERS OF THE DAY:
a. Recognition of Outgoing Trustee Brian Hillman
Chairman Lent recognized Trustee Brian Hillman for his service to the students, staff and patrons of District 91.
Brian came to the board at a time of many changes in the district and did an excellent job of getting up to speed
with everything. The board thanked Brian for his dedication, his time and the contributions he brought to district
over the past year.
b. Oath of Office Zones 1 and 2
Trustee Larry Haws administered the Trustee's Oath of Office to Mr. Bryan Zollinger, Zone 1, and Trustee Dave
Lent, Zone 2, and presented each of them with the official Certificate of Election plaque.
c. Reorganization of the Board of Trustees
Chairman Lent declared the current board of Idaho Falls School District #91 Board of Trustees dissolved.
Superintendent George Boland declared the office of chairperson for the 2013-2014 school year open and called
for nominations.
Trustee Lent made a motion nominating Trustee Lisa Burtenshaw as Chairperson for the 2013-2014 school year.
Trustee Haws provided the second. No other nominations were made. Motion carried 5 ayes, 0 nays.
Chairperson Lisa Burtenshaw declared the office of Vice Chair open and called for nominations.
Page 1 of 4
D91 Board Minutes 7/9/2013
Trustee Haws made a motion to nominate Trustee Dave Lent as the Vice Chair. Trustee Warden provided the
second. Motion carried 5 ayes, 0 nays.
Chairperson Lisa Burtenshaw called for nominations for Treasurer, Clerk and Deputy Clerk of the Board.
Trustee Lent made a motion nominating the following slate of candidates for the 2013-2014 school year:
Deidre Warden as Treasurer
Larry Haws as Clerk
Carrie Smith, Director of HR & Finances, as Deputy Clerk of the Board
Trustee Zollinger provided the seconded. Motion carried 5 ayes, 0 nays.
d. Set Dates and Times of Regular Board Meetings
Superintendent Boland reviewed the list of meeting dates for the 2013-2014 school year. The superintendent
pointed out that there were conflicts with the work sessions dates in November, February and March which the
board could changes now or wait until closer to the dates in question to reschedule them.
Trustee Lent made a motion to set the 2013-2014 Board Meeting Schedule as presented. A discussion was held.
Trustee Warden provided the seconded. Motion carried 5 ayes, 0 nays.
ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA:
Trustee Haws made a motion to adopt the agenda as amended, removing the monthly report from the Education
Foundation and adding staff actions to the Consent Agenda, as presented. Trustee Zollinger provided the second.
Motion carried 5 ayes, 0 nays.
REPORTS/INPUT/INFORMATION:
Written reports and comments, if provided, are attached.
a. Patron Input — Mr. Suketu Gandhi introduced himself and shared comments regarding public
confidence/opposition to the Common Core Standards.
b. IFEA Report— President Angela Gillman reported.
c. Superintendent's Report
Superintendent Boland reviewed several informational items with the board including staffing and summer
maintenance project updates. The superintendent shared that the State Department of Education will administer
the Smarter Balance Assessment in place of the ISAT (with the exception of 10th graders) next spring. The
superintendent also provided recommendations for reviewing Board Policy, Sections 400, 700, 1000 and 1100 this
year in order to make the necessary revisions needed to meet statutory requirements. The superintendent
reviewed past board committee assignments and gave an overview of each of the standing committees for
Trustee Zollinger's benefit. Chairperson Burtenshaw asked for volunteers from the board to fill the committee
seats. A discussion was held.
Page 2 of 4
D91 Board Minutes 7/9/2013
d. Other Items —
i. Pancheri Road Construction Project Meeting
The City of Idaho Falls will hold a meeting on Thursday, July 11, 2013 at 8:30 a.m. regarding the Pancheri
Drive construction project. A discussion was held regarding the district's recommendation for a traffic
light at the Pancheri and Grizzly intersection near Skyline, Eagle Rock and Ethel Boyes where students will
cross the five lane road being constructed. Superintendent Boland stated that both Kevin Klingler and
Ralph Frost are planning to attend on behalf of the district.
ii. Welcome Trustee Bryan Zollinger
Chairperson Burtenshaw welcomed Bryan Zollinger, the newly elected trustee, asking him to introduce
himself and tell a little about himself. Bryan introduced himself and his wife Shara and stated they have
four children, two school age children in the district and two younger ones. Bryan stated he is an attorney.
He enjoys spending time with his family and coaching his children in every sport possible. Vice Chairman
Lent thanked Bryan for his taking on this role and thanked his wife Shara for her support.
iii. ISBA Resolution Proposal
Chairperson Burtenshaw reviewed that the board had discussion at an earlier meeting about preparing a
resolution to present to the Idaho School Board Association's Annual Meeting in November. Chairperson
Burtenshaw provided a copy of the draft resolution prepared by herself, Superintendent Boland and
Katherine Holyoak, a Madison District trustee that they would like to present at the Region 6 Idaho School
Board meeting tomorrow night. A discussion was held.
CONSENT AGENDA:
Trustee Lent made a motion to adopt the consent agenda as presented. Trustee Haws provided the second. Motion
carried 5 ayes, 0 nays.
Items approved include:
Meeting Minutes: June 11, 14 & 25, 2013
Payment of June 2013 Claims: $4,027,099.11
Staff Actions:
New Hires:
Bradley, Susan A Harmon, Becky S
.40 FTE English teacher 6th grade teacher
IFHS Bunker
Carver, Stephanie Hennefer, Elizabeth A
English teacher English teacher
Taylorview Eagle Rock
Cornforth, Marianne Immel, Jody A
.50 FTE kindergarten Assistant Principal
teacher Skyline
Linden Park
D91 Board Minutes 7/9/2013
Roberts, Jessica A
6th grade teacher
Bunker
Stillman, Rebecca
Spectrum teacher
Sunnyside
Wheelwright, Rhonda J
Math teacher
Emerson
Page 3 of 4
Military Leave:
Jeff Crouch
PE/Health
Eagle Rock
Matching Funds:
Compass Academy
Video Cameras & Accessories $ 11,597.21
Total Matching Funds requested $ 11,597.21
PROPOSALS:
a. Second Reading- Board Policy Revisions, Section 1012.0 -Athletics
Superintendent Boland reviewed the changes and additions made after the first reading of the policy on
June 10, 2013. No public comments have been received to date. A discussion was held. This item will be
carried forward to the August 13, 2013 agenda for the final reading.
ACTION ITEMS:
a. Approve Paws to Read Literacy Pilot Project
Superintendent Boland reviewed that Katie Fielding, a District 91 volunteer and ISU Education student, had
presented the Paws to Read Literacy Project during the last work session on June 25, 2013. The
superintendent stated it is the recommendation of the administration to approve the Paws to Read Literacy
Project at Hawthorne Elementary for the 2013-14 school year.
Larry Haws made a motion to approve the Paws to Read Literacy Pilot Program at Hawthorne Elementary
for the 2013-14 school year as presented. Trustee Warden provided the second. A discussion was held.
Motion carried 5 ayes, 0 nays.
b. Accept Board Policy Revisions, Section 107.6 Order of Business for Board Meetings
Superintendent Boland reviewed the recommendation was made to have the monthly Superintendent's
Report moved up on the agenda with regards to the sequence of reports provided at the monthly business
meeting. The recommendation is to have the Superintendent's Report given before Patron Input is taken so
that patrons will have a chance to hear the information he is providing before comments are received.
Trustee Warden made a motion to accept the changes to Board Policy, Section 107.6 — Order of Business for
Board Meeting as presented. Trustee Zollinger provided the second. A discussion was held. Motion carried 5
ayes, 0 nays.
Trustee Warden made a motion to adjourn. Trustee Zollinger provided the seconded. Meeting adjourned at 7:55 pm.
Suketu Gandhi's Comment on the Opposition to the Common Core July 9, 2013
There is a vociferous opposition to the Common Core Standards. Beneath the headline making
statements are the underlying reasons. The headlines making comments are easily refuted, but
the changing the opponents' mindset requires confidence building measures. Financial support
for the schools should increase when the public has the needed confidence.
Principal apprehensions expressed on the Common Core Standards are that they are designed to
let the corporate interest group dictate the contents, and transfer the precious tax dollars to
corporations. Their perception is justified by propping up of online schools that stagnate students
learning, poor quality textbooks selection that prevent students from learning mathematics
rigorously, and asking very easy questions on standardized tests. The decision makers remained
ignorant of the effective ways to impart knowledge in both math and science curricula. (For
English, teachers know what students need, how to meet their needs, and they deliver results.)
Because of poor quality test questions on ISAT, the results that designate students at advanced
level are meaningless. In 4th grade math ISAT, the exam writers don't even know the correct
answer to a legitimate question that they ask: How many lines of symmetry are in a rectangle?
The curriculum teaches mirror symmetry, but not about the rotational symmetry. The choice of
the exam writers is 2, but not infinite, the correct answer. The state mandates SAT for 1 lth grade
students, but we note that SAT exams in English are biased. The questions are not based on
curriculum, or the vocabularies that students must master. Writing portion lacks credibility as
students learn that quality writing requires several iteration of the draft. It cannot be completed in
a span of 25 minutes. Dr. Saul Geiser's research show that the SAT scores do not predict college
student's lst year performance based on the data generated over a number of years from entire
University of California system. Despite these flaws, Idaho imposes SAT, and transfers precious
money to College Board without providing credible information on the future college success.
Legitimate suggestions and objections made to the Common Core Math Standards during the
public comment period were systematically ignored at both the national and the state level. What
are the objections? Consider a math topic in Common Core for the 4t" grade. It states that mirror
symmetry has to be taught, but it remains silent on the rotational symmetry. The knowledgeable
public wants students to know both the mirror and rotational symmetry. Is this view legitimate?
There are many additional objections and suggestions, but the example illustrates the point.
The objectors of the Common Core readily acknowledge their own limitations. To them, the
reasoning that accumulated into the development of the Common Core remains unknown. They
remain clueless as to how external financing accelerated development of the Common Core
Standards. They lack familiarity with the relevant reports, or the content of a first rate
curriculum. They comprehend the texts that they understand, but could not provide specific
solutions to the problems that they don't understand. They feel that Common Core prepares
students for community college education. The public wants students receive education that
prepares them for those colleges that offer rigorous education.
The confidence building measures require answering all legitimate questions to the public's
satisfaction. Listen to their arguments, but refute and correct them when they are factually
incorrect or exaggerate the issues. Post every question and the response on the webpage. This
gives the public the information. In other words, the Public does not want Orange Drink when it
seeks Orange Juice, and pays for the juice.
Wilkie, Debbie -D91
From:
Gillman, Angela -D91
Sent:
Tuesday, July 09, 2013 7:26 PM
To:
Wilkie, Debbie -D91
Subject:
IFEA Report July
July board meeting
IFEA Report
By Angela Gillman
IFEA President
Intro of myself
Returned from Atlanta, Georgia where our yearly national representative assembly was held. 11,000 people were gathered
to listen discuss and vote in NEA business items and legislative amendments. The power of such a large group debating and
voting is incredulous! I apologize again, as I did last year if I chime in with the board on your actions items. I will try to
refrain! My greatest gain this year was to meet association support and establish relationships from across the United States
that can help us here in our local.
One new business item that will begin this year is to create unity and support education is to wear red, second Tuesday of
each month. This is not only for educators but any who will support including admin, patrons, volunteers, etc
Summer Celebration to be held on July 27th for members to gather to celebrate those members who are leaving our district
and for those who are staying. We look forward to a fun social night together.
Summer trainings for membership and advocacy held in August
New Teacher Breakfast to be held August 27th at 7:00 am. Speakers as of yet will be George Boland and IEA president Penni
Cyr. Invited and please plan to attend.
Angela