Kensington School Board
Meeting Minutes April 9, 2008
The Kensington School Board met on April 9th, 2008.
In attendance were Mrs. Cheryl Camacho, School Board Chairperson; Mrs. Alice Mower, and Mrs. Dana Donovan, School Board members; Mrs. Barbara Switzer, Principal; and Mr. Paul Flynn, Associate Superintendent of Schools
Mrs. Camacho called the meeting to order at 6:10 pm.
Visitors
No visitors wishing to address the board at this time, however Mr. Andreasse from KYAA would like to address the Board when he arrives from another commitment.
Minutes
Mrs. Mower made a motion to accept the minutes of the meeting in March as amended, Mrs. Donovan seconded, all in favor.
PTO
Today a notice went home to parents seeking volunteers for board positions as well as individuals to help with all PTO sponsored events. Mrs. Larson indicated that tonight the PTO is sponsoring a Buy 1 Get 1 book sale during parent conferences.
Principal’s Report
Mrs. Switzer presented the April calendar and the KES Times. Jacob Dearborn represented KES at the National Geography Bee held in Keene, NH. Ms. Knightly also attended. He did very well in the first round and should be proud of his accomplishment.
Spring Pictures were taken April 1st. PTO held a Fall Festival planning meeting which was attended by approximately a dozen people. Parent conferences were held today and this evening. The Health Reach Dental bus will be visiting KES tomorrow and again at the end of the month.
Next Monday the 5th grade will leave for Sargent Center. Mrs. Hill, Mrs. Hodgen, and Mrs. Burwell will be attending as well as day visits by KES staff members during the week; Mrs. Spinosa on Tuesday, Mrs. Schwartz on Wednesday, and Mrs. Switzer on Thursday. .
Grades 1 and 2 will be given the Gates Reading test on Tuesday.
April 21 – 25 will be Wellness Week. Mrs. Spinosa has written a grant to help with this event. There will be a food tasting and fun! A packet will be sent home with students to reinforce the lessons taught.
Guidance Councilors from CMS will visit Kensington on April 22nd to talk with grade 5 and staff about CMS. Students will go to CMS for a tour in May and parents will attend an information night on June 5th.
Amy Sanderson is coordinating the Invention Convention which will take place on April 23rd. Mrs. Greenwood or Mrs. Switzer will attend.
Student Council has declared April 25th “Crazy Hair Day”.
Enrollment remains the same.
NWEA applications are due June 30th. There is a $1200 fee for the license to give the test at KES. The staff has been instructed on how to utilize the information from the test results. However, due to time constraints regarding the issue of test results, it is felt that the information is not able to be used to its fullest potential at KES grade levels. Mrs. Switzer and the KES staff feel that it is quite possible that the hours spent testing could be utilized in a way that would be more helpful to KES students. Mrs. Switzer relayed that the Cooperative School Board would like to continue with the assessments. CMS utilizes scores for the math when considering placement, but the tests are no longer being given at the elementary level in Exeter. Exeter has implemented the California Achievement/TerraNova (CAT) tests to assist with math placement. There will be a Chairs meeting on April 16 to discuss the matter further. Mrs. Switzer asked the board for their thoughts. Mrs. Donovan asked how long ago KES began administering the test. Mr. Flynn believed it was 3 to 4 years ago. East Kingston tests only grade 5.
Mrs. Switzer and the KES staff also suggest administering the NECAP tests in the fall only. This would provide teachers with the same result information and take far less class time away for testing. The Board will take the subject under advisement.
The New Kindergarten parent orientation will be Monday April 14th. Wednesday April 16th, the incoming kindergarteners will come to KES for their special day which includes the greatly looked-forward-to ride on the school bus!
Science NECAPs… The 4th grade will take the test 5/12 – 5/16/08. RI, VT, & NH will test 4th, 8th, and 11th graders. At the last meeting, Mr. Flynn stated this was a pilot test, and he noted this evening that the scores will be reported. It should also be noted that this test will be looked at as a base line since it will be the first time students have taken the entire test not just portions of it.
Early Release Days 2008- 2009… Mrs. Switzer needs to have this information clarified so it may be submitted to the NH Dept. of Education. There has been a proposal to change the number of early releases at the beginning of the year instead of spreading them out over the winter months. Currently there are seven early release days in the school year; four are in the fall and three are during the winter months. Proposed dates or times are 9/24, 10/10, two in the fall for conferences, two in April for conferences and one in May. Mr. Frew would like to keep school calendars uniform within the SAU.
B&G from the Principal… Mrs. Switzer reported that recently there has been the need to review car pool and bus procedures. Mrs. Lawler, Mrs. Spinosa, Mrs. Fife, and Mrs. Klamarzek have been monitoring the drop off and pick up process throughout the year and they are doing a great job. Mrs. Switzer has contacted Chief Sheehan and Chief LeBlanc to get their thoughts on a few issues. A letter was sent home to parents reminding them of the procedures and staff continues to speak with parents. Mrs. Switzer has had to stand at the fire station to remind parents not to use that driveway.
Chief LeBlanc also reminded Mrs. Switzer that the capacity for the multipurpose room is 500 guests. The Holiday and Spring concerts may come close to maximum levels. Mr. Flynn expressed the need to remember that someone trained in CPR as well as First Aid, must be designated to attend each event for safety and insurance purposes.
Visitors: John Andreasse, KYAA President, addressed the board. He relayed that the pick-up basketball program has taken off with varying ages and abilities. The addition of two nets would allow another half court game to be played. The KYAA would like to purchase two nets although they have only been able to raise $6000 towards the purchase. Mr. Andreasse believed that the cost of one net was close to $9000, but the cost of two nets purchased and installed would be $11,000. KYAA is hoping the KES School Board will consider helping with the cost of purchasing the second net. Mrs. Camacho asked if the vendor doing the installation was insured. Although the answer was uncertain, the vendor is the same that installed the original nets and assurance was given that it would be a certainty before any work was initiated. Mrs. Mower and the other board members said they were happy to consider the idea.
Associate Superintendent Report
The Chairs meeting is Wednesday 4/16/08. The Joint Board meeting will be held 5/19/08. The search for an Assistant Superintendant continues. Dr. Hanson will brief boards next week at their meeting. Eleven resumes have been submitted for the position and will be narrowed down to three or four. Once the candidates are narrowed down, the final decision will be left to a smaller group. Mr. Flynn, Mr. Frew, Dr. Hanson, and Mr. Morgan will be included in the process.
The names of the three candidates selected for the Principal’s position at Main Street School will be presented to the School Board on April 22nd.
The Co-Operative Board has three new members. Ray Trueman will chair and Patty Lovejoy will be vice-chair.
Exeter High graduation is scheduled for June 13th all other students in the SAU will attend school until June 19th.
Job Postings Eight applications have been received for the reading specialist and many applications are coming in daily for the grade 5 teaching position. There are also openings at Exeter, Lincoln Street, and East Kingston.
Building and Grounds The kitchen project is on budget. The floor tiles have been chosen. The overhead doors are in but are not to be installed until the floor is completed and all the piping tested and approved. The doors will be painted manually to match the gym wall. It is hoped that the kitchen will be self sufficient in funding, enough to pay for a cook and helper.
Any surplus funding will be used to cover Maternity leave(s) and Mr. Wiggin is putting together a repair wish list which includes paving out back. The stone dust walking track wreaks havoc with the floors of the school.
Mrs. Donovan made a motion to adjourn, Mrs. Mower seconded, all in favor.
Mrs. Camacho adjourned the meeting at 7:35pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Susan M. Lalime
Kensington School Board Secretary