Diane Blevins Posted February 19, 2007 Report Share Posted February 19, 2007 Proceedings of the Board of Trustees District No. 2, Yellowstone County High School District No. 2, Yellowstone County Billings, Montana January 31, 2007 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, January 31, 2007, at 5:30 p.m. Those present included: Trustees Katharin Kelker, Sandra Mossman, Mary Jo Fox, Dale Getz, Susan Messerly, Malcolm Goodrich, Dawn Achten, Joel Guthals via phone, Superintendent Jack Copps, and District Clerk Leo Hudetz. Registered guests included Ann Cole, Jim Duncan and Bruce Parker. 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. Claudia Abbey, 545 Clark, stated several months ago, in August, Dr. Copps was on TV asking for folks to make comments as the mill levies had failed and he wanted to hear from the community. She saved up a few tidbits and wanted to share them tonight. She is an educator herself and holds a masters degree and a grandmother so has concerns what she sees going on in schools today. Ms. Abbey gave a few examples of students’ misspelled words and another who could not count money who was a high school graduate. She voiced her concern that students cannot read, write or make change. Ms. Abbey was also against all-day kindergarten. She also suggested moving the freshman back into the middle schools. Jim Duncan, 2711 Gregory Drive North and President of Billings Clinic Foundation – tonight he addressed the Board on behalf of Celebrate Billings. Partners in Celebrate Billings are the Billings Clinic, St. Vincent’s Healthcare, MSU-Billings and the Billings Gazette. The effort of Celebrate Billings is to work on the needs within the community that cross over into every aspect of a great community and what we plan to do to keep the community thriving and moving forward. The schools always seem to be the topic that rises to the top. Mr. Duncan stated he is the father of a four-year old who will be entering kindergarten soon, either next fall or the year after, and is interested as a parent in our schools Mr. Duncan reported he grew up in Miles City at a time when the city failed its mill levies multiple times. He grew up going in split shifts to school, from 7:30 to 12:00 or 1:00 to 6:00, which was not a good situation. Mr. Duncan did not want to see the same thing happen to his daughter. He represents multiple hats. We have challenges with the schools as we recruit. Mr. Duncan spoke on behalf of the Billings Clinic and knew it was the same for his colleagues at St. Vincent’s and the other partners of Celebrate Billings. We are starting to hear from people who are moving here or potentially moving here, that everything is looking good but there is an unknown part about the schools. Mr. Duncan stated he is proud of the schools in Billings but he wanted to ensure, on behalf of Celebrate Billings, that that continues. We feel it is time to catch up and we need to endorse these levies and get the dollars flowing so that we can make up for some lost time and I think we need to continue to work on the level of trust between the community and the schools and are making great progress there. We are also here tonight to say we want to help. Mr. Duncan stated he did not know all the details nor did Celebrate Billings. We are putting our trust in you, as you are the stewards. We want to see this community have the best schools in the region and be a community that competes with every city in the nation where we are putting ourselves up, whether it is an aesthetic perspective or the schools. On behalf of Celebrate Billings, St. Vincent’s Healthcare, Billings Gazette, MSU-Billings, and the Billings Clinic we are here to support you. Allan Audet, President of Billings Education Association and lives at 3318 Prestwick Road. Looking at these proposals from the administration, he felt they had merit. They put a lot of thought into them and the membership will be very appreciative. Mr. Audet encouraged the Board to run the mill levies and to run them to the cap. We all know where the budgetary concerns are in the elementary and have been an ongoing crisis. Mr. Audet stated he hears on a regular basis from the membership about class sizes. If we do not keep up with the funding levels, we are headed to increased sizes in classes. That is very concerning to the elementary staff and teachers that are there. In the high schools, things are different. There are a lot of proposals in the package that have merit, one of which is the honors and advanced placement and putting emphasis of the program for those students who are achieving at high levels is very much needed. At the same time, there is a significant amount of money put toward those students who are at risk. We are addressing the entire student population with the increasing requirements of AYP and No Child Left Behind we are seeing more and more programs added to our schools. Our staffs are being stretched thinner and thinner and he believed that the funding is drastically needed. Another area that is near and dear to Mr. Audet is the vocational area. He came from a vocational background to see the District moving forward to expanding the vocational opportunities for our students in the District is significant for him and the businesses in the community. He felt people want an easy transition from the Career Center to the College of Technology and get those qualified workers into the work force as quickly as possible to get high paying jobs here locally. Obviously, when vocational areas are expanded, staff is expanded. Running the mill levy to the cap in the high school will also result in ongoing expenses. Put a program together that provides quality and not a stopgap, and quality for the student in the community. Dr. Bob Merchant, a pulmonary care physician at the Billings Clinic and resides at 3270 Gregory Drive West, addressed the Board. He was interested in the first speaker, who addressed those who could not spell, as he is dyslexic. His education was very critical and the teachers throughout his primary, secondary and college educational community were critical to get him to his full development. At this point he is a parent and has three children, of which one just went to Brown University and is doing well because of the education that she got here. He has been in this community for 15 years, and has seen the mill levies fail and gradual erosion of the quality of care. Textbooks are old and classroom environments are not conducive for people to perform at their optimum so we are starting to see erosion. Yet the quality of education remains very good but now is a critical time to make a change. It is time to refocus on a community level in education. Dr. Merchant felt the community is ready for this now and the business community is saying increase taxes. From a professional level, he is seeing people coming into the community and looking at it and questioning whether the educational situation is what they want for their children. It is potentially having a negative impact on us being able to recruit professional people to this community. Anne Cole, 3733 Tommy Armour Boulevard, reported she has two children in the Billings schools, a sophomore and a sixth grader. She felt that the District has done an excellent job educating her children. She was able to go the best schools in the country, Greenwich Public Schools in Connecticut, and was fully prepared for an Ivy League school in New Hampshire. She was proud to say that her children have learned how to read well, they are very good writers, and spellers and they will be ready for their college experience too. She is also the Executive Director for the Billings Education Foundation for the Billings Public Schools. She receives phone calls from new teachers who have taught elsewhere and are in a panic. They cannot believe that there are no tools, no books, no library and no interesting materials in teaching social studies or science and are going to have to invest their own money in teaching these children. The trend has gotten worse. There is a classroom grant program but the capacity is not great. We give out about $20,000 per year for a District that has approximately 1,100 teachers. We turn down teachers who have great project ideas when all they need is a little bit of money. This fall, the saddest situation for her was her daughter’s science teacher who could no longer repair the microscopes. For extra credit, the students went home and sold coupons to get decent microscopes. There are lot of other needs and she was able to give some of her daughter’s friends $5 to get their extra credit. She asked the Board to approve the mill levy on the election in May and to consider the cap. Kendall Merrick, 2927 Monty Circle, was next to address the Board. Ms. Merrick is manager of Rimrock Mall and the Chair-Elect for the Billings Chamber. She wanted the Board to see one more person from the business community who is in support of this school levy. She has seen widespread community support of this levy and the reason is there is a very direct tie between a successful and thriving school system to economic growth within our community. She is the mother of an almost 11 year-old daughter and she wants her to have fabulous career opportunities when she graduates from school. Ms. Merrick reported, as a representative of the Billings Chamber, the Chamber unanimously voted to approve their support of the school levy for this May ballot. Bruce MacIntyre, 1209 18th Street West, addressed the Board and stated he is one of the 81% who does not have children in the school system. As the Director of Government Affairs for the Billings Chamber of Commerce, he speaks for 876 member businesses who employ 28,612 employees, which basically says when you are done with them we get them. We are the receiving end of your education so it is extremely important to us that we continue to see education move forward and as Kendall Merrick just mentioned, the Chamber Board formerly approved by unanimous vote, to encourage the School District to request the maximum amount allowed by law for the upcoming levy election for both elementary and high school levies. The Billings Chamber further agreed to lend its support to the successful passage of both levies. Bill Underriner, 2605 Westfield Drive, stated it was the first time in 16 years that he did not have students in the Billings Public Schools. He felt his two sons got a fantastic education and the education they received helps them farther along in life. There are 15,000 students in this community today and they are the future of this community. We really need to stop and think that these are the people who might be sitting in this room making the decisions for the District in the future. For that reason, we really need to try to get this community to pass a school levy and with the business community behind you, he felt it could be done. The first thing was for the Board to agree on the maximum amount allowed by law for the elementary and high schools. He felt that Billings was the best community in Montana and should have the best schools in Montana. He wasn’t sure that we did or didn’t but he felt that the last two or three years we have gotten behind other school districts in this state and it is time to play catch up. The only way to play catch up is to vote to put to the public a full levy that is allowable by law and we have to start today. Today is a new beginning and we have to do the right thing for Billings and that is the maximum amount allowed by law. You have the business community behind you. Lyle Knight, 2555 Blue Creek Road, was last to address the Board. Mr. Knight is the President and Chief Executive Officer of First Interstate Bank. He found this to be exciting times in Billings and was confident we are moving in the right direction. The first was when the business community banded together behind Cobb Field and it took an election that had been lost a number of times. There is power in having the business community involved and the sentiment is changing in Billings. There was a press conference held this afternoon at the YMCA where the announcement was made that they achieved their fundraising goals. It was a year ago that we were concerned that we would lose our YMCA so we step back again and aren’t we proud of the citizens of Billings who got behind the asset of the YMCA. The business community banded together and formed a group called Yes for Kids and they asked me to chair that effort. We have been meeting routinely and it is a rather large, diverse group of business people. It is this group that wants to be the promoter and the flight carriers for this mill levy. We have hired a consultant to help us with the process and the consultant is the same that was used on Cobb Field. We are in the process of raising funds and we know that we are going to need a budget of approximately $100,000 to properly promote the mill levy and get our message out to the citizens. That effort is going on as we speak. We had quite a conversation a few weeks ago about how to come to you and talk to you about whether we go to the maximum that the levy provides or whether we trim it down some what and try to be very specific in where the funds will be used. There was a spirited dialogue and some dissention but there was never a question for the need of the levy. There was a unanimous vote at the end of the meeting from the group of community leaders of Yes for Kids that we ask you to go for the maximum allowed. We realize there are some risks there but we know we have some inertia, some traction, going in the community with people that have enough pride and enough feelings with the progress that is being made, that they are willing to continue to fund progress in Billings. We think the time is right and the message is clear. The business community with its muscle and support can help get this done but we are asking you to go to the maximum allowed and let us put our support behind you to make this happen. Resolution Calling for an Elementary Trustee Election by Single Member District – May 8, 2007 Trustee Kelker made the following motion with a second by Trustee Getz: Motion to adopt the resolution calling for an elementary trustee election by single member district to be held on May 8, 2007. Those voting in favor were Dawn Achten, Mary Jo Fox, Dale Getz, Malcolm Goodrich, Katharin Kelker, Sandra Mossman and Rachel Stagg. The motion passed unanimously. Trustees Guthals and Messerly are ineligible to vote on elementary issues. The resolution is as follows: WHEREAS the trustees of any district shall have the authority under the provisions of section 20-20-201, MCA, to call for a school election and; WHEREAS an election of trustees shall be conducted annually on the regular school election day, the first Tuesday after the first Monday of May; THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the trustees of School District No. 2, Yellowstone County, call for an election of the registered electors of the district to be held on the 8th day of May, 2007, for the purpose of electing three (3) elementary trustees by single-member district. One trustee shall be elected from each of the single member districts numbered three (3), five (5), and seven (7) and each position shall be for a three-year term. If it is later determined that any portion of the election is not required, the Board of trustees authorizes the Yellowstone County Election Administrator to cancel that portion of the election in accordance with 13-1-304 and 20-3-313, MCA. Polls are to be open from &;00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. on the said day of the election. Judges and polling places to be established by the Yellowstone County Election Administrator. Resolution Calling for a High School Trustee Election (Nominating District A – Lockwood) – May 8, 2007 Trustee Kelker made the following motion with a second by Trustee Getz: Motion to adopt the resolution calling for a High School Trustee Election (Nominating District A) to be held on May 8, 2007. Those voting in favor were Dawn Achten, Mary Jo Fox, Dale Getz, Joel Guthals, Malcolm Goodrich, Katharin Kelker, Susan Messerly, Sandra Mossman and Rachel Stagg. The motion passed unanimously. The resolution is as follows: WHEREAS the trustees of any district shall have the authority under the provisions of section 20-20-201, MCA, to call for a school election and; WHEREAS an election of trustees shall be conducted annually on the regular school election day, the first Tuesday after the first Monday of May; THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the trustees of High School District No. 2, Yellowstone County, call for an election of the registered electors of the district to be held on the 8th day of May, 2007, for the purpose of electing one (1) high school trustee (of the Nominating District A). The position shall be for a two-year term. If it is later determined that any portion of the election is not required, the Board of trustees authorizes the Yellowstone County Election Administrator to cancel that portion of the election in accordance with 13-1-304 and 20-3-313, MCA. Polls are to be open from &;00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. on the said day of the election. Judges and polling places to be established by the Yellowstone County Election Administrator. Resolution Calling for and Setting the Amount of an Elementary Levy Election – may 8, 2007 Trustee Kelker made the following motion with a second by Trustee Achten: Motion to adopt the resolution calling for an elementary levy election to be held on May 8, 2007 and declaring the amount of the elementary levy election to be the full amount allowable, currently at $1,391,000, such amount being approximately 74.22 mills. Those voting in favor were Dawn Achten, Mary Jo Fox, Dale Getz, Malcolm Goodrich, Katharin Kelker, Sandra Mossman and Rachel Stagg. The motion passed unanimously. Trustees Guthals and Messerly are ineligible to vote on elementary issues. The resolution is as follows: WHEREAS, the trustees of any district shall have the authority under the provision of section 20-20-201, MCA, to call for a school election; WHEREAS, the trustees of this district shall have the authority under the provisions of section 15-10-425 and Title 20 of the Montana Code Annotated to set the amount of a mill levy; THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the trustees of School District No. 2, Yellowstone County call for an election of the registered electors of the District to be held on the 8th day of May, 2007, for the purpose of voting upon the question of whether or not the trustees shall be authorized to make a levy for the purpose of providing funds to support the general fund for the proper maintenance and operation of the elementary district for the 2007-2008 school year, beginning July 2, 2007; and, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the trustees of School District No. 2, Yellowstone County declare that the amount of the elementary levy election to be held on May 8, 2007 shall be the full amount allowable, currently at $1,391,000, such amount being approximately 74.22 mills. Resolution Calling for and Setting the Amount of a High School Levy Election – May 8, 2007 Trustee Kelker made the following motion with a second by Trustee Messerly: Motion to adopt the resolution calling for a high school levy election to be held on May 8, 2007 and declaring the amount of the high school levy election to be the full amount allowed by law, currently $3,048,000, such amount being approximately 39.24 mills. Those voting in favor were Dawn Achten, Mary Jo Fox, Dale Getz, Joel Guthals, Malcolm Goodrich, Katharin Kelker, Susan Messerly, Sandra Mossman and Rachel Stagg. The motion passed unanimously. The resolution is as follows: WHEREAS, the trustees of any district shall have the authority under the provision of section 20-20-201, MCA, to call for a school election; WHEREAS, the trustees of this district shall have the authority under the provisions of section 15-10-425 and Title 20 of the Montana Code Annotated to set the amount of a mill levy; THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the trustees of High School District No. 2, Yellowstone County call for an election of the registered electors of the District to be held on the 8th day of May, 2007, for the purpose of voting upon the question of whether or not the trustees shall be authorized to make a levy for the purpose of providing funds to support the general fund for the proper maintenance and operation of the high school district for the 2007-2008 school year, beginning July 2, 2007; and, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the trustees of High School District No. 2, Yellowstone County declare that the amount of the elementary levy election to be held on May 8, 2007 shall be the full amount allowable, currently at $3,048,000, such amount being approximately 39.24 mills. The Chair stated this was the first time that he could remember the Board unanimously agreeing on the mill levies and amounts. The District has strong community support and it is time to make our case to the public. As there was no further business, the meeting adjourned at 6:05 p.m. Malcolm Goodrich, Chair Diane Blevins, Recorder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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