Kensington School Board
Meeting Minutes February 6, 2008
The Kensington School Board met on February 6, 2008.
In attendance were Mrs. Dana Donovan, School Board Chairperson; Mrs. Alice Mower, and Mrs. Cheryl Camacho, School Board members; Mrs. Barbara Switzer, Principal; Mr. Paul Flynn, Associate Superintendent of Schools, and Mr. Dick Wendall
~ The meeting was called to order by Mrs. Donovan at 6:13 pm.
~ Mrs. Donovan made a motion to approve the minutes from January 2008, as amended.
The motion was seconded by Mrs. Mower. All in favor.
~ There were no visitors wishing to address the Board.
PTO
Mary Larson reported that the PTO’s Spaghetti Dinner has been cancelled for this year due to lack of volunteers. The PTO is currently seeking nominations for Executive Board members for next year.
Principal’s Report
Mrs. Switzer reviewed the February calendar. The stage was a wonderful addition to the school. The author visit with Maryann Coca Leffler and the Cultural Passport program were successful. As part of the cultural passport program, students “traveled” to Jamaica and New Zealand. Students worked with Randy Armstrong on acting classes, and his colleague Genevieve Aichele, worked with students on the music scapes portion of the program. In the opinion of Mr. Armstrong and Ms. Aichele, Kensington has a few students who are gifted in their musical/acting abilities. Mrs. Switzer has been given the names of those students so their parents may pursue additional education in those areas if they choose. Parents made food from recipes given by Janet St. Lawrence. Amy Phifer and Cindy Eaton made and served jerk chicken, rice and beans, and salad. People had a great time and the evening received great reviews from parents.
Report cards went home January 25th. An Internet Smarts program was held at Exeter High School. Mrs. Switzer was unable to attend and was not able to say how well attended the event was.
The Sargeant Camp representative met with 5th graders today. The Parent meeting was postponed due to the weather forecast, and will be rescheduled.
Upcoming events: The 3rd grader field trip to the Science Center, Jump For Heart, Read Across America – Feb. 22nd School Board members and Mr. Flynn are invited to come and read to students if they are able.
At the Spelling Bee, DJ O’Donnell was the finalist and Erin Congdon was runner-up. The kids were excited and it was fun to watch.
Mrs. Switzer reviewed curriculum initiatives and NECAP results. KES staff is looking at how students writing can be documented from kindergarten through grade five, as well as how it potentially can be used as an assessment tool.
Grade level book meetings on Critical Friends format will continue with East Kingston and Newfields 2/18 + 2/22, with final assessments March 11th.
Enrollment is at 212, a 4th grader has moved.
Mrs. Switzer reviewed her report on NECAP scores for the Board this evening and public reports are available on the website. She stated that when reading scores KES and the District are one in the same. She also stated they are now able to compare three years of results. The state is looking for students to score proficient or better. Linda Stimpson, from the state department has looked at scores with Ms. Small and the staff is very aware of those students who are in need of additional attention.
The state average for math is 345, KES’s average is 348. The state will continue to increase performance level expectations every two years until 2013 when all students achieving proficient or better should be at 100%. Results show improving scores up to grade 5. Some figures indicate a “bit of slippage” from grade 5 to 6, and it has not yet been determined whether it is due to coming in to a new school, but educators are looking to find the reason for this. Writing scores have consistently gone up. Grade 6 scores show that students leaving KES are well prepared and score very well.
Average Yearly Progress information will not be released until April. This data is from last August.
Mrs. Camacho asked about Performance Pathways. Mrs. Switzer said the state has not yet added that data into these results. She believes it will be available soon and it would be helpful since it makes it easier to pinpoint any areas of concern.
The Board thought the test scores looked good and that they show improvement from last year. Mrs. Donovan reminded people that they could go to the SAU website and follow the links to the Department of Education- NECAPS and that all testing results are available to the public for any school in the state.
Associate Superintendent’s Report
Mr. Flynn reported that he and Mrs. Donovan had met with Mr. Dick Wendall to review cost projections for the kitchen project. Mr. Wendall presented a budget estimate which adhered to the $100,000 benchmark. He expressed the need to make sure the plan meets all the purposes needed for the school and the community.
The plan includes a 7.5 foot opening in the wall to accommodate the milk cooler and serving station. This will incorporate an overhead door which rolls down to secure the opening. Mr. Wendall reviewed the floor plan which included the layout of ranges, sinks, dish wash system, electrical, storage, etc. A decision needs to be made whether to use gas or electric ranges. Gas is the preferred choice. Mr. Wendall recommends gas.
Mr. Wendall indicated the fire suppression system for gas is more costly. It would also require an enclosure for the tank or another possibility is to bury the tank. Mr. Wendall will look into this as well.
There was discussion regarding how much power is received from the generator during a power outage. Mr. Arthur Wiggin was asked into the meeting, and he indicated the small generator shared with the fire department, currently operates only the heat and a few lights. East Kingston has a full size generator. The current generator is provided and maintained by Seabrook Station. Mr. Wiggin relayed that he was aware of discussion about Seabrook replacing the current generator with a smaller one. He reminded members of the need for lights in the multipurpose room if the school were to be used as an emergency shelter. Mr. Flynn asked Mr. Wendall to research the cost of an additional generator.
Mr. Wendall presented the following figures for the kitchen renovation budget estimate:
Masonry 13,500.00
Concrete Floor Cutting and New Flooring 5,120.00
Carpentry 1,178.00
HVAC 16,950.00
Electrical 8,680.00
Fire Alarm 1,600.00
Roofing 1,440.00
Overhead Door Curtain 4,835.00
Plumbing 7,725.00
Total Construction 61,028.00
Total Kitchen Equipment 38,972.00 (+/- new vs. recond.)
TOTAL PROJECT $100,000.00
Some work can be done “in-house” using SAU vendors at the Co-Op rate offered to all towns within the SAU. The mason is currently working at SST and is willing to give Kensington a special rate (bill only T&M) if able to keep men working during February vacation. Mr. Flynn asked Mr. Wiggin if he would be able to obtain a building permit. Mr. Wiggin felt three weeks was plenty of time. The Board thanked Mr. Wendall for his efforts.
Mrs. Donovan made a motion to give Mr. Flynn authorization to move forward with the masonry portion of the project during February vacation, as presented by Mr. Wendall, and within monetary constraints. After discussion, Mrs. Donovan amended her motion. She moved to proceed with the entire kitchen renovation as presented, within financial restraints and if all permits were obtained, under the supervision of Mr. Flynn, Mrs. Camacho seconded, all in favor.
There is a joint board meeting 2/18/08. The chairs meeting for tonight was cancelled. They will be moving forward with advertising the position being vacated by Stephen Kossakoski.
School Board seats with terms ending: Exeter school district had one seat on a five member board, the incumbent is running unopposed; Brentwood has two seats, only one person has signed up and one spot remains available one spot open for a write in; East Kingston has one seat and the incumbent is running; Kensington has one seat and the incumbent is running unopposed: Newfields has one seat open; Stratham has two seats open and no one is running opposed.
On the Co-Op Board: In Exeter, Dr. Oxnard is not running again; East Kingston, Kim Casey is not running again, Dave Miller is running and will serve on dual boards.; Stratham, Lucy Cushman is not running again. All Co-Op seats are unopposed.
The Co-Operative deliberative session is tomorrow. There is a citizen petition for a separate article requesting a forensic audit of renovation of the old high school.
Mike Morgan is the Superintendent Elect. His contract was successfully negotiated. The official copy still needs to be signed by Ann Marie Chesno. He will begin his position on July 1st.
Review Criminal Records Check Procedure…
A parent has asked Mr. Flynn about Kensington’s policy regarding background checks for staff, aides, volunteers and parents. All of these people are, potentially, unsupervised with children. Mr. Flynn suggested that the board discuss whether all these people should be required to submit to a CRC. The board would also need to decide if it would be possible to reimburse people for this service. Mrs. Camacho spoke with Chief Sheehan several years ago and he assured her that there was no member of the community that should be feared or that people should be concerned about. There was lengthy discussion on this subject as well as concerns about Enrichment classes, which will be starting again soon. Mrs. Switzer said she would bring it up at the upcoming Enrichment meeting. Mrs. Switzer asked if other schools in the SAU require the check. The Board will take this matter under advisement, research the policies of other districts, and continue the discussion in March.
Mrs. Mower made a motion to adjourn, seconded by Mrs. Camacho, all in favor. Meeting adjourned 7:56pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Susan M. Lalime
Kensington School Board Secretary