Marta McAllister Posted March 29, 2010 Report Share Posted March 29, 2010 Proceedings of the Planning and Development Committee School District No. 2, Yellowstone County High School District No. 2, Yellowstone County Billings, Montana February 22, 2010 CALL TO ORDER Chair Kathy Aragon called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, February 22, 2010, in the Board Room of the Lincoln Center. Committee members in attendance were Trustee Kathy Aragon, Sandra Abraham, Doug Armknecht, Margaret Aukshun, Deana Elder, Amy Griffin, Jennifer Molk, Josi Wilgus, and Kathy Olson, Elementary Executive Director. Members absent were Annette Cabrera, Krista Hertz, and Lance King. Also in attendance were Sandra Baker, Transportation Director, Dr. Shanna Henry, Miles Principal, Marta McAllister, and Kathy Gonzales. COMMUNICATION FROM THE PUBLIC Hearing no communication from the public, Chair Kathy Aragon moved to the next agenda item. DEMOGRAPHIC DISCUSSION Marta McAllister and Kathy Gonzales gave a demonstration of GIS capability ArcEditor, and SchoolSite mapping software. SchoolSite computer program has projection capabilities and a program that can be used for setting new boundaries. As you change boundaries, you can see how the student numbers in the schools are affected. SchoolSite is used in conjunction with ArcEditor. A layer is created showing where each student lives. This information is then used with SchoolSite. Ms. Mcallister and Ms. Gonzales explained what a study area represents and how Davis Demographics developed the district’s study areas using ArcEditor. Doug Armknecht presented maps he created to illustrate different ways the software can be used to analyze data. His maps included information on where city side walks are located in relation to schools and indicated each student address to get the average distance, per student, per area for a percentage. Transportation Director, Sondra Baker gave her perspective on the general idea of safety bussing for students who live under 3 miles from their school. She made the following points for the general rule; safety bussing applies only to K-8 students and there has to be a major safety factor that can not be rectified. Lake Elmo is an example, because it is narrow, has no sidewalks, and is a major thru street. Please remember that these rules only apply to major arterial or thru streets. Ms. Baker said the general rule is not applicable in every situation and gave two examples of what she considers courtesy or convenience safety bussing; students who attend a different school due to a school closure and boundary shifts that were made by the district. If there are enough students to justify a bus route, a bus will be provided. There is a $75 per semester per student charge for bussing unless the student qualifies for free or reduced lunch count or the student attends a Title 1 K-8 school. Sandra Abrahams asked Sondra Baker if she works with the city to identify ideas for safer bus routes and street lights. Sandra Baker said, “no” as she does not have anything to do with the walking to school part, but if the distance is under 3 miles and the city wants to know what she could do to help improve the situation she can provide information to the city. Kathy Aragon provided large maps for study. She explained that having the same data in one place is necessary in order to share consistent information with the community. Kathy Aragon asked members to mark the following items on the maps, which include information on: - Safety bussing routes - Total student population - The core west value population, (data shows fewer students over a larger area) - Free and reduced lunch count students - The 8 schools where there are no bussing costs Bitterroot, Broadwater, Highland, Eagle Cliffs, Orchard, Poly, Rose Park, and Sandstone - Current accessible city side walks - Population changes in schools that do not bus Sondra Baker stated 1 bus route currently costs $215.04 per day x 180 days = $38,707.20. This is the minimum cost and it includes 3.5 hours and 60 miles. We are charged $18.02 per excess hour and $1.46 per excess mile. A typical bus route averages 73 miles and 4 hours. Sondra Baker said she will be making recommendations to reduce bus routes as city side walks are completed and accessible in different parts of the city. Sandra Baker explained that the elementary boundaries reach into the county past the city limits. Kathy Olson said the district is responsible for these students. Amy Griffin asked what the official February child count is. Kathy Olson said in K-6 the district’s student count is up by 12 students and down by 12 students in grades 7-12. Amy Griffin asked questions about what “grandfathering in” for out of area students is and how it is determined. Kathy Olson stated “grandfathering in” for out of area students resulted due to school closures and boundary shifting. Kathy Olson gave examples of other reasons the district honors out of area requests which included; working parents, significant day care issues, students living with a grandparent, students that have become homeless, etc. Kathy Olson added, that for students to attend a school out of area there has to be available space at that school, the principals must agree, parents have to transport students, students must be on time, and students must behave. Jennifer Molt noted that it is important for the public to know that even though Billings is growing the enrollment has stayed flat. Kathy Aragon passed out a sheet on enrollment trends from 1988 Yellowstone County Data, that also confirms enrollment has stayed flat. Kathy Aragon stated that in 2007 due to the district going to full day kindergarten the district felt a “space crunch”. Kathy Olson explained that seat space for full day kindergarten increased. Kathy Aragon noted the district is serving the same number of students over a larger area due to city annexing. She noted this costs the district money for bussing. She suggested that the district work with the City County Planning department regarding the city county annexing issue. Amy Griffin asked when a school is considered a Title 1 school. Kathy Aragon said that a school is considered a Title 1 school when the school is 35% to 40% free or reduced lunch according to the federal guidelines and the school has to hold that percentage for 2 years. Amy Griffin asked what is considered a Title1 targeted school and a Non-Targeted Title 1 school. Shanna Henry said that the Title 1 targeted school has to target the students identified as not proficient and the school must maintain for a period of time, and a Non-Targeted Title 1 school serves the entire population. Doug Armknecht and Kathy Aragon asked Kathy Olson for a consolidated list of the 500 out of area student addresses, the school they currently attend, and the home school they should have attended to analyze the information on a map. Amy Griffin suggested reviewing the combo-class concept as a way to keep kindergarten students at their home school. Kathy Olson stated that on the flip side, it could prevent having combo-classes at some schools, and suggested that many schools and situations must be reviewed. Amy Griffin noted that neighborhoods go through cycles, and it is just as important to study those trends as it is to study under developed or un-plotted subdivisions. Kathy Aragon suggested the following items be added to the agenda for next months meeting, which included: - An article that was currently in the Billings Gazette on new sub-divisions - Population changes - Historical enrollment data - TIF districts data - Accessible city side walk locations in the city - The Strategic Planning Committee plans - A list of the 500 Out of Area request; student addresses, schools student currently attend, school student should attend/home school Kathy Olson passed out a revised sheet of the “on site self contained special education classrooms” to replace the one found on page 10 in the agenda packet. She noted the one on the district’s web-site is incorrect at this time, but it will be updated. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Margaret Aukshun made the following motion with a second by Sandra Abraham: Motion to move to approve the February 1, 2010 minutes as presented in the agenda. Pg 4, Change “2010” census to “2000” census. Sandra Abrahams made the following motion with a second by Josi Wilgus: Motion to move to approve the February 1, 2010 minutes as amended. Those voting in favor were Kathy Aragon, Sandra Abraham, Doug Armknecht, Margaret Aukshun, Deana Elder, Amy Griffin, Jennifer Molk, and Josi Wilgus The motion passed unanimously. Adjournment There being no further business Kathy Aragon adjourned the meeting at 7:40 p.m. Kathy Aragon, Chair Brenda Cross, Recorder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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