Ashford Board of Education Ashford, Connecticut

Meeting Agenda September 19, 2019

7:00 pm Ashford School

District Office Conference Room

1. Call To Order 2. Vendor Presentations a. Elm Electric (Tina Romano) b. Mechanical Maintenance (Rick Fadus) 3. Communications 4. Approval of Minutes: 09/05/19 5. Opportunity for Public Comment 6. Administrative Reports (Principal, Asst. Principal, Director of Pupil Personnel)

7. Old Business a. Infinite Visions Financial Software Update 8. New Business a. Ratification of Successor Agreement by and between the Ashford BOE and the Ashford Education Association b. Requests for Approval of Intermittent Family and Medical Leave c. Approval of Leave of Absence 9. Second Opportunity for Public Comment 10. Next Meeting Date/Agenda Items 11. Adjournment

Ashford Board of Education Goals

Curriculum – Ensure a Kindergarten to 8th grade curriculum that challenges students to use methods of inquiry to solve problems, think critically, and to express themselves creatively and effectively. Financial - Develop a budget that ensures the best possible education while being fiscally responsible to taxpayers. Culture - Foster an environment of physical and emotional health and wellness for all. Support a community that recognizes professional expertise and provides diverse opportunities that enhance teaching and learning. Community Relations and Facilities - Provide opportunities for enhanced community engagement and serve as a leader for Ashford in enhancing energy efficiency, developing a maintenance and restoration plan that extends the school’s useful life and demonstrates environmental responsibility. All meetings, conferences, programs and activities at Ashford School are available, without discrimination, to individuals with disabilities as defined by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and/or Title II of the American with Disabilities Act. Individuals with disabilities requesting relocation of this meeting should call the Superintendent at 429-1927 or e-mail a request to jplongo@ashfordct.org not later than 2 working days prior to the meeting. Hearing impaired individuals may communicate their request for accommodations by using the e-mail address above, or calling the State of CT TDD relay service (800) 842-2880 or the national relay service number (800) 855-2880.      Enclosures:    Minutes,    Infinite  Visions  proposal  

Ashford Board of Education Regular Meeting Minutes – September 5, 2019

7:00 pm Ashford School District Office Conference Room

Note: Per CGS 10-218, Board of Education Meeting Minutes are provided in a draft format within 48 hours of the date the meeting was held. With the exceptions of motions and votes recorded, the minutes are unofficial until they have been read and approved by a majority vote by the Board. Should edits be necessary, they will be made at a regularly scheduled meeting, noted in the meeting minutes, and so voted upon. Call to Order Chair John Lippert called the meeting to order at 7:12 PM. Present were John Calarese, Shannon Gamache, Kay Warren, Marian Matthews, Jane Urban and Lisa Donegan. Also present was Dr. James Longo, Superintendent of Schools, Business Manager Lisa Dyer and recording secretary Jen Barsaleau. Present in the audience were Rebecca Haeger and Board of Finance chair Chuck Funk. Communications

• Members received a copy of correspondence from the CT State Dept. of Education indicating that the Ashford School district met state requirements for annual performance review (APR) under the Individual with Disabilities Act (IDEA) for the school year 2017-2018.

Approval of Minutes: 08/08/2019 (special) Motion made by Marian Matthews to approve the August 8, 2019 2:00pm special meeting minutes. Motion seconded by John Calarese and carried with two abstentions (Kay Warren, Lisa Donegan). Motion made by Marian Matthews to approve the August 8, 2019 3:00pm special meeting minutes with the following amendments:

• Strike “Session Notes” as document title and insert “Meeting Minutes.” • Call to Order: Insert (5:30pm) after Lisa Donegan’s name to record arrival time. • Call to Order: Correct spelling of audience member to “Haeger.” • Discussion of BOE Mission and Goals: Combine bullet point comments 8 and 9. • BOE Committees: Insert “, Cafeteria” after the words Building and Grounds in first bullet

point and change the word “should” to could. • BOE Committees: Change the word “should” to could in second bullet text. • Board Roundtable: Capitalize the word “results.” • Board Roundtable: Strike the words “Once again” in final bullet, and insert “The BOE

would like a report on grade 7-8 scheduling.” Add periods in bulleted sections throughout the minutes where missing. Motion seconded by Lisa Donegan and carried with one abstention (Kay Warren). Opportunity for Public Comment

• Rebecca Haeger stated she was looking forward to discussion about student dress code at a future meeting. She encouraged the board to provide advanced notice of the meeting using K12 Alerts and other means, as there is likely to be a lot of interest in this topic of discussion.

• Shannon Gamache shared concerns as the parent of a preschool child with regard to the current Pre-K student drop-off location and the parent sign in process. Dr. Longo will look into student drop off.

• Marian Matthews inquired as a member of the Clean Energy Task Force, how long busses and vehicles are idling in front of the school.

Motion made by Jane Urban to add “Next Meeting Date/Agenda Items” to the agenda as item 8.5. Motion seconded by Kay Warren and carried unanimously.

Regular Meeting Minutes – Page 2 of 3 Ashford Board of Education – Sept. 5, 2019

District Administrative Reports (Superintendent, Business Manager) Dr. Longo reported that school opening went very nicely with 3 good professional development day activities prior to the first day for students. Dr. Longo met with members of the PTO and teacher Carly Imhoff. Dr. Longo and Ms. Imhoff will be attending a HOT Schools conference next month. He noted that the administrative team would be presenting rather comprehensive reports at the 9/19 board meeting to address topics discussed at the Strategic Planning Meeting. The agenda should be shortened to accommodate the anticipated length of these reports. Lisa Dyer reported that the Educational Finance System (EFS) report, formerly known as the ED001 was filed on time. Mrs. Dyer addressed the current status of the employment vacancy in the business office and updated the board on the search process. There were approximately 60 applications received. Interviews will be scheduled following resume screening. There was brief discussion that 2 part-time employees may be an option if it benefits the needs of the business office. Old Business a. BOE Committee Updates/Committee Planning 1. Approval of Committee Restructuring The board chair revisited the reasons behind restructuring. The suggested groups and representatives are as follows:

• Building & Grounds/Cafeteria/Long-Term Planning: Marian Matthews, John Calarese, Shannon Gamache

• Personnel/Transportation/Finance: Lisa Donegan, Kay Warren, Jane Urban • The Policy Committee will operate as an Ad Hoc committee. • The BOE will provide a liaison to the school level committee. Marian Matthews will fill

this role with Shannon Gamache as a back up. Motion made by Marian Matthews to approve the committee restructuring as presented. Motion seconded by Kay Warren and carried unanimously. The restructured groups exited the meeting (8:03pm) for the purposes of committee planning. The meeting resumed (8:44pm). Committee’s reported the following discussions:

• Jane Urban reported the finance committee would like to investigate having its own checking account.

• Marian Matthews noted that the B&G committee would need information prior to meeting. Requests for information needed for such meetings will be sent to Jen Barsaleau.

• Jane Urban mentioned that another town is using software to track bus location, speed and time on route.

b. Update on Purchase of Financial Software A request to purchase financial software for the business office was approved during the last capital planning budget cycle. Lisa Dyer has a contract in hand for the purchase of Infinite Visions that needs to be signed by the Superintendent and the First Selectman. A letter will be sent to the BOF by the BOE requesting the release of $30K in unexpended educational funds to fund the purchase. c. Second Reading: Transportation Policy Amendment (Walking/Biking to School)

The item was tabled until the school level committee completes its work and offers a report to the BOE. d. Negotiations Update John Lippert attended teacher negotiations and stated it was a very pleasant experience and a tentative agreement was reached. New Business a. Staff Resignation

Regular Meeting Minutes – Page 3 of 3 Ashford Board of Education – Sept. 5, 2019

A letter of resignation was received from special education teacher Kathleen Knecht effective August 7, 2019. Motion made by Jane Urban to accept with regret the resignation of Kathleen Knecht. Motion seconded by John Calarese and carried unanimously. b. Staff Appointment Motion made by Kay Warren to appoint Catherine Robacker to the position of special education teacher. Motion seconded by Lisa Donegan and carried unanimously. c. Requests for Leaves of Absence A request for maternity leave of absence was received from teacher Kathryn Craven. A request for child rearing leave was received from Emily Deliberto, School Psychologist. Motion made by John Calarese to approve the maternity leave request of Kathyrn Craven. Motion seconded by Lisa Donegan and carried unanimously. Motion made by Kay Warren to approve an unpaid child rearing leave request of Emily Deliberto. Motion seconded by Marian Matthews and carried unanimously. d. Approval of Medical Standing Orders Copies of the confidential medical standing orders prepared by Dr. Christopher McDermott, School Medical Advisor were given to the BOE members for review. These are not public documents. Motion made by Kay Warren to approve the 2019-2020 medical standing orders as presented. Motion seconded by Shannon Gamache and carried unanimously. e. BOE/BOF Financial Office Combination Study Committee The Board of Finance recently suggested the formation of a committee to study combining the district and town finance offices. BOF chair Chuck Funk noted that the charge of this committee would be to investigate and advise if combining these offices would be feasible and effective for both parties. Neither chairperson of BOE or BOF will participate; the committee will be ad hoc in nature and ideally would be represented by 2 members of the BOF and 2 members of the BOE. There is no urgency and the matter can wait until new members are seated after the November 2020 elections. Motion made by Marian Matthews to develop and Ad hoc advisory committee to study the combining of the BOE and BOF finance offices. Motion seconded by John Calarese and carried unanimously. Next Meeting Date/Agenda Items The next regularly scheduled meeting is 9/19. Agenda items: Administrative reports, teacher negotiations follow up, financial software update. Second Opportunity for Public Comment Rebecca Haeger spoke favorably about the board committee changes saying she was hopeful that it results in more committee meetings being held and that the board liaison to the school curriculum committee would serve as a source for gathering information for the BOE. Adjournment Motion made by Marian Matthews to adjourn the meeting at 9:31pm. Motion seconded by Jane Urban and carried unanimously. Recorded by: Jennifer Barsaleau, Recording Secretary

Ashford BOEPrincipal’s Report

September 19, 2019

School Improvements

Homework Expectations

Wolf Den

WOLF DEN is designed to motivate, emphasize, and accentuate the natural desire and instinct to learn possessed by each of our students in grades 5-8. An essential part of the learning process is the independent processing and practice of information, concepts, and skills. Students will use this valuable time to advance their learning! Wolf Den is not break time. Each student is responsible for informing the supervising teacher how they will spend their time.

7th and 8th grade scheduleHomeroom

Wolf Den

Recess

Dress Code - Proposed ChangesIssues brought up by students:

1. Sunglasses2. Shirts and/or blouses3. Spaghetti straps4. Shorts and skirts5. Spandex6. Backpacks

Next steps: get input from students and parents, and recommend policy changes

Mindful Transformations - EASTCONN Interdistrict Grant

Grade 4

Ashford, Putnam, Windam, Hartford

Goals: Community and cultural competence

Personal mindfulness for academic achievement

Biking UpdatesCommittee met 5 times

Committee includes community members, BOE members, and school representatives

Biking Assembly Planned - October 7th

Discussed Biking Club to teach biking technique and safety

Recommended wording for BOE policy

PK Drop OffCommittee formed of PK teachers, administration, and transportation coordinator

Piloted a solution with parents (dropping off in front of school after buses leave)

Committee met with superintendent

Decided to continue pilot and monitor

Actions taken in order to increase Smarter Balanced Assessment scores

Ashford School takes tremendous pride in offering an education that focuses on the whole child, resulting in students who love learning, have impressive character, and possess the skills and knowledge needed to be successful. Our Smarter Balanced Assessment scores are just one indicator of student progress. When compared to similar school districts, our scores are generally similar. Even so, we know our scores can be higher and are working to that end. Every year the State of Connecticut Department of Education compiles data from each school district to determine an accountability index. This index number is calculated from performance scores and growth scores from math and ELA assessment, chronic absenteeism, and physical fitness scores from students in grades 4, 6, and 8. Last year, Ashford School’s index was 68. By examining the table below, one can see that our fitness scores were low compared to other districts, resulting in a lower overall accountability index.

2017-2018 District Profiles

District Reduced/Free

Lunch DPI* ELA DPI* Math Fitness Accountability

Index

Ashford 30.9 72.1 63.6 29.2 68

Willington 24.3 73.1 68.3 52.9 78.1

Columbia 16.9 70.6 63 81.5 74.8

Brooklyn 31 74.4 64.9 47.2 72.3

Mansfield 22.9 80.3 76.3 76.3 77.7

Franklin 17.6 71.9 60.7 60.9 74.3

Canterbury 25.7 68.8 61.9 41.7 68.4

Bozrah 27.5 68.3 62.9 72.9 75.2

Sprague 9.2 64.4 58.8 50 67.8

*DPI is the District Performance Index What did we do last year, 2018-2019, to increase scores?

● Transition in universal screen from STAR to iREADY ● PD for math grade 2-8, PD ELA 4-8 with outside experts ● Assigned one person to teach math in grade 5 ● Incorporated iReady intervention software schoolwide ● Developed Interventions based on iReady scores

What are we planning on doing this coming year, 2019-2020, to increase scores? ● Increase work expectations including reading and writing volume ● Increase reading across the content areas ● Add Wolf Den for grades 5 and 6 every other day ● Add Wolf Den period from grade 7 and 8 on Tuesdays and Thursdays ● Reduce teacher subject preparations in grades 5 and 6 ● Special Classes - make connections to academic skills and knowledge ● Revision of Professional Learning Community (PLC) processes ● Increase examination of Smarter Balanced, and iReady Data ● Increase focus on students practicing skills and content ● Hired a part-time math intervention teacher ● Use extra prep periods to work directly with students ● Build a Culture of Reading - New Library Media Specialist ● Explore new math curricular resource ● Implemented weekly PAWS Paragraph system for grades 3-8

WOLF DEN

WOLF DEN is designed to motivate, emphasize, and accentuate the natural desire and instinct to learn possessed by each of our students in grades 5-8. An essential part of the learning process is the independent processing and practice of information, concepts, and skills. Students will use this valuable time to advance their learning! Wolf Den is not break time. Each student is responsible for informing the supervising teacher how they will spend their time. The following activities are expected during Wolf Den:

● Homework/Practice (H) ● Reading assigned by teachers (R) ● Note taking or research (N) ● Writing (W) ● Studying for a quiz or test (S) ● Preparing for a presentation (P) ● Independent Reading (I)

Other Uses of WOLF DEN

● Music Lessons (M) ● Counseling Sessions (C) ● Academic Interventions (A) ● Language on Rosetta Stone (L) ● Other administrator-approved activities

Rules of Wolf Den

● All students work independently for the entire time ● Each student is self-reflective of their learning process ● Students may use technology only for research, writing, or reading ● Students should practice their creativity and innovative thinking

Grade Amount of Homework Number of Days/Week

7-8 15-20 min/subject 3-4 days/week

5-6 30-40 minutes 3-4 days/week

3-4 20-30 minutes 3-4 days/week

1-2 10-20 minutes 3-4 days/week

K As appropriate When appropriate

 

Grades  7  and  8  Schedule  2019-­‐2020  

Ashford  School  BOE  Assistant  Principal’s  Report  –  Garrett  J.  Dukette  

September  19,  2019    

Curriculum  and  Instruction  • Working  with  Stephanie  Noheimer  and  Melissa  McDonough  to  re-­‐establish  a  school-­‐wide  

commitment  to  the  SOAR  program  o SOAR  is  a  curriculum  focused  on  character  education  that  leads  to  WINGS,  SWINGS,  etc.  o Focuses  students  on  developing  skills  that  help  them  cope  with  day-­‐to-­‐day  life  o Done  through  experiential  education  o Ongoing  work  this  year  will  focus  on  developing  a  cross-­‐referenced  overlay  of  how  SOAR  

and  our  Second  Step  program  fit  together    • Working  with  Shawn  Dimmock  to  assess  varying  math  curricula  that  are  available  around  the  

state  o Current  math  curriculum,  Envisions,  is  outdated  and  is  not  supported  by  our  Smarter  

Balanced  scores  o Our  math  group  will  research  various  curricula  and  visit  schools  that  use  them,  with  an  eye  

on  making  a  recommendation  for  the  2020-­‐2021  school  year.    • Working  with  Mandy  Makuch  on  assessing  our  PK-­‐4  reading  curriculum  

o Emerging  research  is  resounding  in  the  critical  nature  of  explicit  phonics  instruction  o Both  strong  and  struggling  readers  show  improvement  in  their  skills  with  direct  phonics  

instruction  o The  reading  group  will  research  various  curricula  in  order  to  make  a  recommendation  for  

the  2020-­‐2021  school  year  • Partnering  with  UConn  to  provide  reading  intervention  for  struggling  readers  

o Involved  curricula  as  well  as  brain  mapping  o Totally  voluntary-­‐  high  interest  thus  far  

 Student  Motivation  and  Behavior  

• Implementation  of  ECSU  boys’  group,  focused  on  providing  mentors  for  some  of  our  young  men  who  face  challenges  at  home  or  in  school    

• Continuing  to  run  the  ECSU  girls’  mentoring  group.  This  is  year  3  for  this  program.    • Introduced  the  Student  Leadership  Team  (SLT)  

o Open  to  grades  6-­‐8  o Focused  on  providing  students  leadership  opportunities  within  the  school  o Provides  a  unique  opportunity  for  students  to  collaboratively  work  with  the  administrative  

team  to  solve  problems  within  the  school    School  Safety  

• Implementation  of  the  Raptor  screening  system  o Streamlines  the  visitor  process  and  ensures  that  office  staff  know  who  is  in  the  building  at  

all  times.    o Ensures  the  safety  of  students  and  staff  by  screening  visitors  against  specific  registries.    

• Continued  work  with  town  emergency  management  personnel-­‐  o The  fire  department  joined  our  school  for  our  first  fire  drill  of  the  year  on  September  4.  o The  town  Emergency  Management  Director  joined  us  for  a  whole-­‐school  evacuation  drill  

on  September  13  • Applied  for  a  school  safety  grant,  seeking  funding  for  an  overhaul  of  our  door  lock  system  

o Seeking  to  change  over  all  internal  door  locks  from  physical  keys  to  a  FOB/e-­‐key  system  o Allows  for  all  doors  to  remain  locked  and  easy  entry  by  staff  with  FOB  keys.