PLAINFIELD SCHOOL DISTRICT
Plainfield School Board Meeting
Monday, August 21, 2006
Plainfield Elementary School
MINUTES

The meeting was called to order at 6:36 pm. Present were Board members Reynolds, Ferguson, and Cogan. Also present were Superintendent Collins and members of the public.

Public Comments

Town member Dennis Girouard encouraged the Board to consider having the public forum on contract negotiations on a Saturday and to advertise it widely. Board Chair Reynolds replied that the expert on contract negotiations that the Board invited is not available on the weekends so the forum will be held on Monday, September 25 at 6:30 pm. The Board discussed advertising the forum starting with the first school newsletter. They will also advertise it in PlainFacts and the local newspapers.

Announcements, Communications

Board member Ferguson announced that she sent a letter of thanks to Mike Schafer at KUA for allowing the Board to use the Coffin Room for their recent retreat. The Board also discussed the staff breakfast they traditionally give on one of the first days the staff returns to work.

Consent Agenda

A. Minutes August 7, 2006

Upon a motion made and seconded, the School Board voted all in favor to accept the public and non-public minutes of August 7, 2006 with the following revisions: to correct the spelling of Dana Arey (spelled incorrectly Aire) throughout the document; to add to the fourth paragraph, “Taylor, Arey and Collins all felt that $40,000 was a reasonable budget and the project was not likely to go over it.”

B. Nominations: Summer Hires

Superintendent Collins notified the Board of the following summer hires:

            Suzanne Blaire, Special Education Assistant, grade 2

            Janna Downs, Education Assistant, grade 1

            Martha Redpath, Special Education Assistant, grade 4

            Rebecca Griggs, Long Term Substitute as Special Education Assistant, grade 6

Reports

A. Superintendent’s Report

Superintendent Collins reported the following:

  1. Enrollment at PES is 292 students today but usually changes a lot the week before school starts.
  2. The audit is complete. The preliminary surplus figure is $77,120 versus the $70,000 projected in the Annual Report.
  3. The auditors requested that all emails sent or received by School Board members need to be archived so the auditors can review them when they review the Minutes at the next audit. Collins explained that he will keep an archive for Board members if they will send him a copy of all their board related correspondence. Board Chair Reynolds said that she understood that you need three or more board members to warrant a meeting with minutes but that an email between two members shouldn’t be considered a meeting and shouldn’t need to be documented. Collins said he will continue to try and clarify the reason for the request.
  4. Collins distributed draft copies of job descriptions for the principal and for the assistant to the principal. The Board will review them when all members are present.
  5. Collins distributed information on charter schools to the Board. Town member Dennis Girouard informed the Board that it is his understanding that a Charter School will not be pursued by Plainfield residents.

B. Committee Reports

Superintendent Collins reviewed the work that has been done on the facility this summer, as follows:

  1. Four HVAC systems have been installed. He is not sure that all the work is completed.
  2. The trench for the septic system hookup has been dug, the pipe laid and the trench filled in. The work took about 1 ˝ days. The pump has been ordered.
  3. The insulation discussed at a previous meeting will probably be done after school starts.
  4. The carpet in the lobby has been repaired but not replaced. The custodian will watch to make sure the fraying does not occur again and create a hazard.
  5. The work being done on the property by the Meriden Water District will be completed before the first day of school.

Business for Discussion and/or Action

A. Policies

Superintendent Collins presented Policy JR (Surveys and Physical Exams) with no changes since the first reading. The Board looked it over and found the content similar to the first reading. They made one small change to Policy DJ/DJC (Purchasing of Goods and Services). Upon a motion made and seconded, the School Board unanimously approved for adoption Policy JR (Surveys and Physical Exams) and Policy DJ/DJC (Purchasing of Goods and Services).

B. Kindergarten Waiver

Superintendent Collins presented a copy of a letter from the guardian of a Plainfield child who will be five years old on October 5. The guardians wish the child to attend kindergarten this year. School Board Policy JEB states, “A pupil may enter kindergarten if his/her chronological age will be five (5) on or before September 30 of the year of entering school.” Some discussion followed with Board members expressing concern that approving a waiver would constitute the need for an evaluation system for all requests. Superintendent Collins said that he and Principal Langsner do not recommend allowing the waiver. The Board decided not to grant it.

C. Authorization to accept funds

Upon a motion made and seconded, the Board approved unanimously to accept monies from any source, including state and federal funds, for the 2006-2007 school year.

D. Approval of Student Handbook

Upon a motion made and seconded, the School Board accepted unanimously the Student Handbook for the 2006-2007 school year with the changes and modifications discussed at the last meeting.

 

E. Board Goals 2006-2007

Superintendent Collins distributed a preliminary version of the school board goals which was drafted at the retreat on August 14. The Board will discuss this further at the September 11 meeting.

Board Chair Reynolds mentioned that she would like to see a continuation of the discussion the Board had a few years ago with the town for sharing a director for the town recreation department and the school athletic department. Collins will speak with Steve Halleran on coordinating that meeting.

Superintendent Collins explained that he has been working on updated numbers for the school profile. He wished to express his concern that some ratios, such as the teacher/student ratio, are arrived at differently for different schools and that trying to compare Plainfield School with others is difficult and not always accurate.

Collins asked the Board to review the negotiated contracts in anticipation of a non-meeting which will follow a regular meeting in September.

 

There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 7:56 pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Annette Moore

Recording Clerk