PLAINFIELD SCHOOL DISTRICT

Plainfield School Board Meeting

Wednesday, March 8, 2006

Plainfield Elementary School

 

APPROVED MINUTES

 

The meeting was called to order at 6:34 pm. Present were Board members Reynolds, Ferguson, Bucklin, Houde Hardy and Cogan. Also present were Superintendent Collins, Principal Langsner, Finance Director Bill Moorman and members of the public.

 

Public Comments

Board Chair Reynolds invited the public to comment on the budget and to advise the Board on what they should bring back to the continued School District meeting on March 25. She reported that she received 18 phone calls and 16 emails in favor of resubmitting the same budget. She also reported that the Plainfield teacher’s union and the support staff union have voluntarily offered to separate their contracts from the operating budget this year. Reynolds said that the Board supports this decision but they are not sure if it is procedurally possible. They are checking this further.

 

Margaret Drye asked if the town is bound to honor any contract since the budget failed. Reynolds replied that she didn’t believe the town would be bound to honor the money increases in the contracts even though it is in the second year of a two-year contract.

 

Jack McNellis asked what the voting procedure would be for voting on the question concerning the day of the District meeting. Reynolds explained that a pink ballot would be given to every voter and that Board members, Mr. McNellis, and a representative from the town would count the ballots at the end of the day.

 

Dennis Girouard asked for clarification on what happens if the teacher’s contract and/or the support staff contract is voted down on March 25. Reynolds explained that either the union and the Board reopens contract negotiations or they revert to the last approved contract, which in this case is year one of the current two-year contract. Jane Rice requested that the Board makes sure the public is aware of the time and expense necessary to renegotiate a contract.

 

Board Chair Reynolds asked the Finance Committee (all present at the time with the exception of Joella McCarragher who arrived later) for an opinion. She said she wasn’t clear if the Finance Committee had supported the budget or not, that the Board never heard the Finance Committee say that the budget was too large.

 

Margaret Drye replied that the Finance Committee has tried to do a balanced presentation in the last few years, rather than to sway people with a simple vote supporting or not supporting the budget. She recommended against presenting the same budget at the March 25 meeting.

 

Sandy Stettenheim suggested that the Board try to find reductions for the budget and hope that an amendment comes from the floor to reinstate the original budget.

John Gregory-Davis urged the Board not to accept the generous offer of the teacher union and the support staff union to separate their contracts this year from the operating budget. He suggested that the Board present the same budget on March 25 if they can’t find any legitimate cuts. He felt that it was more important to send a message that you believe in the first budget, rather than just make arbitrary cuts.

 

Dennis Girouard asked that if a motion is made from the floor to reinstate the first budget, would it take a 2/3 vote or a majority. Sandy Stettenheim believed that all amendments take a majority vote and Margaret Drye agreed.

 

Stephanie Berman asked the Board to clarify whether or not voters that were not at the first meeting could come to vote at the second. Reynolds stated that anyone on the checklist before March 3 could vote at the meeting. No absentee votes are allowed at District meetings.

 

Dave Chellis was in favor of coming forward with a new budget.

 

The group discussed Lebanon High School tuition and whether or not a cut could be made on the high school tuition line since some students may go to KUA. Reynolds noted that the town directed the Board a few years ago to budget for every eighth grade student which is what they did this year. Brad Atwater did not feel that playing with the tuition number is what the town is asking the Board to do. He urged the Board not to change the tuition routine and Margaret Drye agreed.

 

Board member Houde Hardy asked Brad Atwater where he recommends the Board make cuts. Atwater did not have a recommendation.

 

Chuck Wira said that the fact that the Finance Committee is not prepared to do numbers with the Board tonight does not indicate a lack of interest but a lack of preparedness. He said that it would be arrogant for the Board to bring back the same budget. He also suggested that the Board act as “leaders” during the District meeting and not let personal remarks be made. Board Chair Reynolds replied that the moderator runs the meeting, not the Board.

 

Steve Beaupre said that the Board did act as leaders by offering a responsible budget. He said the Board needs some direction from the Finance Committee.

 

Dennis Girouard said that he does not believe reducing the budget is the most important job that the Board has. He feels the Board should develop a set of rules with which to develop future budgets. He said that the public is looking for the Board to develop a plan to control the budget in future years. He said that he thinks it would be nice if both unions should offer voluntary cuts from their budgets but he was not qualified to suggest other cuts. Reynolds pointed out that he has been to every Board meeting this year with the exception of one and probably knew the budget as well as anyone.

 

Betsy Rybeck Lynd strongly disagreed with Girouard. She said the Board can’t predict the future and that the Board’s job is to see to this budget this year.

 

Brad Atwater, a member of the Finance Committee, said that it is not the job of the Finance Committee to advise the School Board on what they should do. Carin Reynolds read the charge of the Finance Committee aloud from the Town Report and said she was surprised that Atwater should say that.

 

Sandy Stettenheim advised the Board to inform voters before the continued District meeting about their decision to make cuts from the budget or not to make cuts. She said voters should be prepared before the meeting with this information.

 

Chris Forman said that no one he spoke with after the District meeting, either for or against the budget, could recommend where cuts could be made.

 

Rob Constantine said that he thinks the budget failed because the majority wanted to separate the teacher contracts from the operating budget. He thinks that they didn’t necessarily want to cut the budget.

 

Rod Wendt said he felt the Board should “market” the budget better, that he has not yet been convinced that the budget was a reasonable one. Carin Reynolds invited him to help the Board “market” the budget.

 

Brad Atwater suggested the Board have several recommendations on cutting the budget, and with each recommendation he suggested listing what programs would be cut. He called it a “reality check” for voters.

 

Susan Gregory-Davis said she trusts that the budget the Board first presented was a responsible one and that she would support them if they decided to present the same budget again.

 

Sandy Stettenheim felt that the vote on Friday declining the budget had very little to do with the bottom line of the budget. She doesn’t think it will matter how much is cut from the operating budget.

 

Jane Rice said that teachers have cost of living increases, too, and she urged the Board to make cuts from extracurricular activities so that parents and taxpayers know how a change in the budget will impact the children.

 

Board Chair Reynolds requested that the Finance Committee meet and draw up a list of suggestions for cutting the budget for the next Board meeting on Monday, March 20.

 

Rob Constantine asked if the Board had decided on making cuts to the budget. Reynolds replied that they would not make a decision tonight and that requesting a list from the Finance Committee is just asking for further direction so they can make a decision later.

 

Dennis Girouard said that he doesn’t feel that the budget was voted down on its own merit. He felt that it was voted down because the public is saying “we can’t keep increasing the budget indefinitely”. He urged the Board not to resubmit the Assistant Principal and Kindergarten Aide Articles.

Rich Pullen asked the Board to give examples of things that they didn’t put in the budget or that were cut from the budget before going to District meeting. Reynolds said a few of the items were increased library staffing, some recommendations by the Facilities Planning Committee including money for a new parking lot and increases in the technology area. Rod Wendt said that this was the kind of information he was looking for to convince him that the Board had presented a responsible budget.

 

Judy Houde Hardy said that the conversations from this meeting should also be held in Concord so that it is not a conversation of “my neighbor against me”. Myra Ferguson agreed and said the problem starts in Concord. “However, Plainfield is a creative and intelligent community. We must research and adopt alternate methods of supplementing the school budget. Hence we “beat the system” created by Concord and minimize future property tax increases”.

 

Board Chair Reynolds asked the group to focus on the three other warrant articles (besides the budget). How does the group feel about presenting them or tabling them? Sandy Stettenheim encouraged the Board to leave them and let the public decide. Jane Rice agreed and urged the Board to make sure the voters know how much the percent increase would be for voting on each separate article. Rod Wendt said to leave them on and give the public their chance to vote on each article. Dave Chellis said to leave them on.

 

Board Chair Reynolds thanked everyone for attending and for their intelligent, respectful discussion.

 

There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 8:45 pm.

 

Respectfully submitted,

Annette Moore

Recording Clerk