PLAINFIELD SCHOOL DISTRICT

Plainfield School Board Meeting

Monday, January 28, 2008

Plainfield Elementary School

MINUTES

The meeting was called to order at 6:35 pm. Present were Board members Reynolds, Ferguson, Forman and Cogan. Also present were Superintendent Collins, Principal Langsner, Finance Director Beth Bierwirth, and members of the public.

Announcements, Communications

Superintendent Collins told the Board that he has received a letter inviting NH schools to join in a lawsuit against the State of NH for expected and realized increases in the Teacher Retirement System. The letter invites New Hampshire schools to be a part of the litigation for a fee of $329.55. The Board discussed this briefly and Board Chair Reynolds said she would be interested in exploring it further at the next meeting.

Board member Ferguson congratulated custodian Bill Fleming and the students and staff of Plainfield School for their effort to reduce electricity consumption in the school. Their efforts have reduced electricity costs almost $1500 so far this year!

Consent Agenda

A. Minutes January 7, 2008

Upon a motion made and seconded, the School Board voted 4 in favor to accept the minutes of the January 7, 2008 meeting with the following changes: add “be” into the first sentence under Announcements, “Board member Ferguson said she is going to be…”; change the sentence under Nominations to, “Upon a motion  made and seconded, the School Board voted 4 in favor to authorize a contract to Margaret Kogut as an Education Assistant”; change “start” to “starting” in the second sentence under 2008-2009 Draft Budget;

Minutes January 22, 2008

Upon a motion made and seconded, the School Board voted 3 in favor, one abstention to accept the minutes of the January 22, 2008 meeting with the following changes:  in the third paragraph on the second page, change “V. Raise $30,000….” to “V. Raise $20,000….”; in the last paragraph on the second page, change the second sentence to, “After much discussion, the Board expressed its view that the parking lot renovation is necessary because the current lot and pick up/drop off configuration is dangerous and too small to meet the needs of the community”; in the same paragraph, change the fourth sentence to, “The current rough estimate for the parking lot is $50,000, but this does not include new lighting configurations necessary to meet building code, which could be costly.”; same paragraph, sentence six, change “several unpaid volunteers” to “one unpaid volunteer”.

Steve Beaupre and Thom Lappin from the town Finance Committee joined the Board at this point.

Business for Discussion and/or Action

A.    Finalize Budget

The representatives of the town Finance Committee posed several questions and comments to the Board regarding the proposed budget. Thom Lappin asked if the increase in Staff and Curriculum development was to “train teachers to train teachers” and if that increase would not be necessary in future budgets. Principal Langsner said that it wouldn’t necessarily decrease in the future because she sees a need for continued improvement in that area. Steve Beaupre felt that the Board needs to do more thinking about the organization of the front office and, furthermore, needs to better inform the public of their findings. He thinks the Board needs to be ready to justify their current and proposed administrative structure. He also stated that he doesn’t believe the town understands about curriculum development and the work and time put in by the Principal on curriculum development. Board Chair Reynolds thanked the Finance Committee for their comments and suggestions.

Upon a motion made and seconded, the School Board unanimously approved  the 2008-2009 Budget.

B.     Finalize Warrant

Upon a motion made and seconded, the School Board unanimously approved the Warrant for the 2008 School Board Meeting.

Upon a motion made and seconded, the School Board unanimously approved the Election of Officers and SB2 Article.

C.     Discussion District Meeting, Town Report, etc.

Superintendent Collins told the Board that his office is working on handouts for the School Board meeting that are similar to those used in the past and that entries in the Town Report would also be similar to those done in the past. He requested that the Board think about any additional reports or information they may need from his office in preparation for the annual meeting.

D.    Discussion SB2 Warrant Article Hearing

Superintendent Collins explained that the only available day for the SB2 Warrant Article Hearing is Monday, February 25. All Board members except Myra Ferguson should be able to attend this Hearing, which will have to be held rain or shine or snow.

There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 7:30 pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Annette Moore

Recording Clerk