Retreat Minutes of August 12, 2006

[Diane Blevins]

Proceedings of the Board of Trustees

District No. 2, Yellowstone County

High School District No. 2, Yellowstone County

Billings, Montana

 

August 12, 2006

 

Call to Order

 

The Special Meeting of the Board of Trustees of School District No. 2, Yellowstone County, Montana, and High School District, Yellowstone County, Montana, was duly held at the Lincoln Center, 415 North 30th Street, Billings, Montana, August 12. 2006, at 8:45 AM.

 

Roll Call

 

Trustees and officers present included: Chairman Malcolm Goodrich, Trustees Katharin Kelker, Sandra Mossman, Mary Jo Fox, Dawn Achten, Dale Getz, Joel Guthals, Superintendent Jack Copps, and District Clerk Leo Hudetz.

Also present were District staff Kathy Olson, Scott Anderson, Thomas Harper and Gail Surwill. Laura Tode was also in attendance.

 

Pledge of Allegiance

 

The Chair led those assembled in the Pledge of Allegiance.

 

Communication from the Public

 

The Board recognizes the value of public comment on educational issues and the importance of listening to members of the public in its meetings. The Board also recognizes the statutory and constitutional right of the public to participate in governmental operations. The Board encourages members of the public to participate in and express opinions about issues important to the District. This part of the Board’s meeting is dedicated to public comment on any public matter that is not on the agenda of this meeting and is within the jurisdiction of the Board of Trustees. Members of the public may also address particular items on this agenda either now or at the time the Board considers the particular item. There was not any public comment.

 

 

Board Retreat

 

The meeting was a retreat for the 2006-2007 school year. The following is a summary of the items discussed.

 

 

Superintendent Copps gave his views on the current educational environment in the schools and the community. Mr. Copps recommended that the District’s committee structure be evaluated and revamped to make the better use of the Board’s time. He stated that the District needs an Office of Development and this idea was discussed by the Trustees.

 

Gail Surwill, the Director of Curriculum, discussed recent test scores of students participating in the Read 180 program implemented by the District in the past year. The results showed dramatic improvement and Ms. Surwill stated that the District will be receiving an award and recognition this fall.

 

Kathy Olson, the Director of Elementary Education, discussed enrollment in the elementary schools. Ms. Olson also discussed other educational programs such as ELI and ERIK which are working to improve the education of targeted groups of students. Malcolm Goodrich asked if these programs were required to meet state accreditation standards and Ms. Olson replied that they were not. She stated that these programs are extra effort the District is performing and something that should be celebrated by the community.

 

Ms. Olson then discussed the implications of a full time kindergarten program in the District. She stated that it would cost the District an additional $4,138,170 to implement a full time kindergarten. Currently the District offers a half time kindergarten program. Ms. Olson stated that part of the total dollars mentioned would be one time expenditure to get the program established.

 

Optimum class sizes were discussed by the Board and Ms. Olson stated that as an average, a class size of 20 students for every teacher was ideal. She stated some schools’ ideal would be greater or less than 20 students.

 

Scott Anderson, the Director of Secondary Education, gave a report on the Middle and High Schools. Joel Guthals asked about the attendance requirements in the middle and high schools. Mr. Anderson stated that the middle schools do not have an attendance requirement in order to pass a grade but the high schools do have attendance requirements. This creates a problem when students move to the high school level.

 

Mr. Anderson talked about some of the intervention programs in the schools that focus on at risk students. He mentioned the success of the Rustler Café at Will James Middle School.

 

Mr. Anderson discussed the efforts to provide guidance and retain the students from Crossroads High School which closed in June. He stated that most of the students who attended Crossroads on regular basis will continue to be enrolled in other High Schools in the District.

 

Another program implemented by the District in the High Schools is the Credit Recovery Program where student attend summer sessions in order to recover credits in classes. Malcolm Goodrich pointed out that the program was very important because it not only keeps students in school, it also increases potential revenue for the District through the state funding formula and it saves taxpayer dollars by developing citizens who contribute to society and do not end up in the legal or social welfare system.

 

This concluded the presentation on the state of the schools. Dawn Achten thanked Kathy Olson, Scott Anderson and Gail Surwill for the excellent and informative presentation.

 

Sandra Mossman and Thomas Harper discussed Budgeting for Results(BR) which is being implemented for the 2008 fiscal year. Ms Mossman discussed the resources and needs in order for BR to succeed. She pointed out that research and data analysis are very important in this process.

 

The Board discussed the process to follow in order to make sure BR succeeds. Katharin Kelker suggested that an effective approach would be to ask each budget manager to prepare a budget that is 85% of their current budget. A budget manager would then need to submit a proposal and justify any amounts above the 85 % level.

 

Malcolm Goodrich stated that he was interested in creating an environment of creativity where educators would seek innovative ways to deliver quality education. Jack Copps stated that BR must focus on the goals and indicators developed by the community wide committee and approved by the Board of Trustees. Katharin Kelker stated that in her suggestion of using the 85 % baseline, federal or state grant funds would not be included in the 85% budget.

 

 

Thomas Harper led a discussion on the Fiscal 2007 budget. Mr. Harper stated that this budget had a lower risk of being deficient than in prior years. He stated that barring any unusual events, both the elementary and high school districts should increase their reserves at year end.

 

The Trustees then discussed upcoming labor negotiations. Dale Getz said that, while negotiating, the District should ensure that our employees are paid a competitive compensation package which includes salaries and benefits. He stated that it is important to attract the best teachers by offering a competitive package.

 

Malcolm Goodrich led a discussion regarding the need to get community support for education. Rachel Stagg suggested that as part of a successful communication plan the District should have a monthly editorial in the newspaper and to promote the school through public service announcements and billboards.

 

Malcolm Goodrich, Katharin Kelker, Dale Getz and Rachel Stagg volunteered to serve on a committee that coordinates and promotes community involvement.

 

The Board then discussed the current committee structure of the District. Malcolm Goodrich suggested that a sub-committee be established to examine our current committees and recommend any appropriate changes. Kathy Kelker, Joel Guthals, Sandra Mossman, Mary Jo Fox and Jack Copps volunteered to serve on this committee.

 

 

 

 

 

Adjournment

 

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 3:20 p.m.

 

 

 

 

 

Malcolm Goodrich, Chair

 

 

 

 

Leo Hudetz, Clerk