marlboroschool.net

Attending: Lauren Poster – Chair, Gussie Bartlett – Vice Chair, Jen Carr – Clerk, Francie Marbury – Principal, Steven John – Superintendent

The meeting was called to order by Lauren at 6:05pm.

Steven recommended that we keep all historical copies of school board agendas and meeting minutes in perpetuity.

We will authorize Tom Simon to talk to Frank Rucker about consolidating our purchases of heating oil with other schools.

It was decided that our June 7th School Board meeting will be held in Dover. We will start our meeting at 6pm and do our business and then convene for a joint meeting at 7pm to discuss issues we may have in common. Lauren will invite Abby Dillon to join our meeting at 6:15pm.

Executive Session held at 5:25pm to discuss a personnel contract.

Executive session ended at 5:55pm.

Lauren made a motion that the School Board direct our Superintendent to settle terms for a continuing one-year contract with Francie Marbury. Gussie seconded the motion. Motion passed.

Francie will work with Abby Dillon for Janie’s replacement.

Superintendent’s report. Attached.

Steven John left the meeting at 6:20pm.

We reviewed the 4/5/10 School Board minutes. Lauren made a motion to accept the minutes as submitted. Gussie seconded the motion. Motion passed.

Principal’s report. Attached.

Frank is working on a unified contract for preschool. This School Board recommends basing the reimbursement to providers based on a percentage of the statewide average.

Lauren made a motion to allow Gail to transfer $37,000 from the transportation fund to the general fund to pay for our new bus. Gussie seconded the motion. Motion passed.

School Board Retreat will be held on Tuesday July 20th from 11am – 3pm. The rain date is Thursday, July 22nd.

Note pay orders 21-23 at bottom of minutes.

Meeting adjourned at 9:00pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Jen Carr

Pay Orders: #21 4/9/10 $83,024.70
#22 4/23/10 $49,532.73
#23 5/7/10 $125,902.24

Our Guiding Principles:
Students will be at the center of our decision-making.
We will keep to the agenda.
The chair will estimate the amount of time necessary for each item
and act as timekeeper during the meeting.
Every voice is heard as discussion goes back and forth.
Decisions will not be made hastily.
We will ask ourselves, “What other information do we need
in order to make a thoughtful decision?”
Decisions/discussion will be recapped before moving on to a new item.
Items requiring action will be identified and we will note who is responsible for each action item.
Follow through will occur before the next meeting.
We will use e-mail judiciously to communicate between meetings.
Implementation Guidelines:
Meetings will be held on the first Monday of each month with the fourth Monday
kept in reserve, if an additional meeting is needed.
The chair will send out the agenda the Thursday before the meeting.
The meetings will start at 6 pm and go no later than 9 pm.

Marlboro School Board
Principal’s Report
Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Student Learning
Costa Rica
Science NECAP
End of year assessments in reading, math
Portfolio scoring calibration
Professional Learning Community work with Margaret Maclean to plan for next year
Update on preschool/WCSU contract

Policy or Regulation Implementation
Benefits Procedures
Harassment Policy F20 – pdf
WCSU Professional Development Policy

Buildings and Grounds
Bus
Energy Efficiency Grant update
Kitchen upgrade – grant update
Library – donation from Meetinghouse

Finance/Accounting
On target to come in close to budget

Enrollment/Staffing
Student enrollment – 85
Staffing
Co-teacher in Primary
Special Educator
.5 assistant in 3rd/4th
.5 assistant in 5th/6th – Celena Lundsted
one-on-one assistant
Professional development funding for Rhythms teacher
Emma to Guilford

Informational items
Wed, May 26, 6-8pm Spring Concert and Art Show
Thurs, May 27, 7pm JH Costa Rica night
Tues, June 1 Hogback Day
Thurs, June 3, 7pm at the Whittemore Theatre 3rd/4th Cabaret
Mon-Wed, June 7-9 8th grade graduation portfolios
Mon, June 7, 7pm Consortium – change to Tues, 6/8
Thurs, June 10, 7pm Graduation

Superintendent’s Report for the Marlboro School Board
Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Note: At 7:00 P.M. I intend to joint the Jamaica School Board for their regularly scheduled meeting.

Student/Staff Learning
1. I am pleased to report that all schools in the WCSU achieved adequate yearly progress (AYP) as required by NCLB. This includes Marlboro Elementary School and I commend the effort of the students, staff and Francie to meet this goal. Unfortunately, due to demographic and statistical conditions beyond our control, I anticipate that this favorable status will be particularly challenging to sustain in the future.
2. MAPs testing is scheduled this month. The results will be included in each school’s Schoolwide Title I Report for 2009-2010. Coupled with the NECAP performance scores, these will form the basis for the needs assessment required for each school’s Schoolwide Title I Plan for 2010 – 2011. The principals will submit these reports and plans to my office by June 4 and June 15 respectively. Both are required for the federal funds audit and the Title I and ARRA grants we receive.
3. On the May 28 half-day in-service all teachers will meet in small groups to compare their assessments of students’ portfolio pieces in writing and mathematics. The portfolio scores are another indicator of student growth and progress that may be included in the Schoolwide Title I Reports and needs assessment to plan for next year.
4. The group of 17 L&G students I appointed to interview candidates for the L&G Principal position served very well in fulfilling their confidential responsibilities. Dr. Dorinne Dorfman will officially begin her work July 1, but she visited the school 4/30-5/1 to meet with Brian Crego, teachers and students. She will also take part in the hiring process to fill two vacant positions— one counselor and one special educator. We have consulted extensively by phone since her appointment.
5. 27 students returned from China and performed a fabulous show on May 2 at L&G. The live music, singing, dance and gymnastics were all quite impressive. Marlboro’s Jackson B. was great. We are very proud of their accomplishments!

Policy/Regulation
1. Since the legislature adjourned late last Wednesday, I hope to receive a briefing on possible implications for our school districts and the WCSU from Jeff Francis (VSA) or John Nelson (VSBA).
2. The WCSU Governance Committee met April 27 and recommends that school boards meet with one other board to explore common interests and potential for collaboration. The committee suggested the following boards meet together: Stratton and Winhall; Dover and Marlboro; Jamaica, Wardsboro and Windham; Brookline-Newfane and Townshend. Thank you, Gussie for representing Marlboro’s views on this committee. No additional meetings are scheduled.
3. You are cordially invited to participate in the WCSU Board Member orientation and training meeting at the Cooper Hill Inn on Wed., May 19. A social hour begins at 5:00 followed by dinner at 6:00. Laura Soares will lead the workshop on board member/administrator roles and responsibilities. Laura has a wealth of experience as a school board member and board chair. She also serves as a VSBA consultant.

Finance/Accounting/Operations
1. Due by May 30, Frank is preparing the required DOE budget data collection for FY 11 for all WCSU school districts.
2. FYI: Forecasting FY 2010’s end, we are preparing to close the accounts managed by the WCSU and prepare information for the audits.
3. Frank is also preparing anticipated revenue notes for those districts that need to address their cash flow over the summer.
4. FYI: Frank has issued a request for bid for audit services for the following school districts for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2010:
Brookline School District
Jamaica School District
Newfane School District
Townshend School District
Wardsboro School District
Windham School District
Leland & Gray Union High School District
Winhdam Central Supervisory Union #46
This will make for a very demanding summer in the WCSU Business Office.

Enrollment/Staffing
1. Deborah Wood was hired as our new WCSU Accounts Clerk to replace David Patterson. Ms. Wood began work Monday, May 3.
2. Hillary Newton continues to update the demographic, medical and emergency contact data for all WCSU schools in PowerSchool.
3. All professional contracts have been issued with a return deadline of May 15.
4. We have posted (on SchoolSpring and Firstclass WCSU email) the L&G school counselor and two special education teacher openings. I have granted approval of Janie Bell’s request for a one-year leave of absence. We appreciate her excellent service to Marlboro students. Applications close for the counselor on May 17 and the Sp. Ed. teacher on June 1. Interviews will follow shortly after the closing dates.

Informational Items
1. WCSU Board Meeting May 19 with a working dinner at 6:00. A social hour starting at 5:00 P.M. at the Cooper Hill Inn, Dover.
2. WCSU Board Annual Meeting May 26 at 7:00 P.M. at Jamaica Village School.
3. WCSU half-day in-service for all teachers to validate portfolio scoring on Friday, May 28th.
sbj – 5/16/10