BOARD OF EDUCATION MEETING MINUTES July 23, 2013 The meeting of the West Windsor-Plainsboro Board of Education was called to order by Mr. Hemant Marathe at 7:38 p.m. in the commons. The following board members were present: Ms. Rachelle Feldman Hurwitz Ms. Michele Kaish Mr. Hemant Marathe Ms. Louisa Ho Mr. Richard Kaye Board Members Fleres, Krug, Manikandan, and Xu were absent. Present also were: Dr. David Aderhold, Superintendent of Schools; Mr. Larry Shanok, Assistant Superintendent for Finance/Board Secretary; Mr. Martin Smith, Assistant Superintendent, Curriculum & Instruction; Mr. Gerard Dalton, Assistant Superintendent, Pupil Services/Planning; and, Ms. Alicia Boyko, Director of Human Resources. CONVENE In accordance with the State’s Sunshine Law, adequate notice of this meeting was provided by mailing a notice of the time, date, location and, to the extent known, the agenda of this meeting to the PRINCETON PACKET, THE TIMES, THE TRENTONIAN, THE HOME NEWS TRIBUNE, AND WEST WINDSOR and PLAINSBORO PUBLIC LIBRARIES. Copies of the notice have also been posted in the board office and filed with Plainsboro’s and West Windsor’s township clerks and in each of the district schools. BOARD PRESIDENT’S COMMENTS Mr. Marathe welcomed everyone to the meeting and thanked them for coming during the summer. The Board of Education welcomed Dave Aderhold to his first meeting as Superintendent of Schools. Mr. Marathe also thanked everyone for another successful school year and noted that the 2013- 2014 meetings will be held at Thomas Grover Middle School. SUPERINTENDENT’S COMMENTS Dr. Aderhold remarked that it was a great honor to be here serving in this position. He also commented that this is the first meeting for Gerard Dalton, Assistant Superintendent for Pupil Services/Planning. In addition to Mr. Dalton, there has been a number of changes and appointments to the administrative team. The transition is going well. With just a few weeks to the start of school in September, Dr. Aderhold provided insight to the administrative team’s busy schedule. He spoke about the variety of capital projects that are underway this summer; possible expansion to the security services; and, organizing the administrator’s retreat. The retreat brings the district administrators together for team building exercises and professional development covering topics such as teacher evaluations and observations, My Lesson Planner, Infinite Campus, Achieve New Jersey, District Goals, Multidimensional Principal Performance Rubric, Human Resources, Teachscape, and Special Education. It has been a busy summer with a lot of transitions, but Dr. Aderhold is looking forward to a great year! 1 Minutes 07-23-13 PUBLIC COMMENT There were no public comments forthcoming at this time. COMMITTEE REPORTS Administration & Facilities Ms. Kaish stated that the Committee met on July 16, 2013. The Committee welcomed Mr. Dalton and covered the following topics: overview of the summer capital projects; security updates on adding additional cameras in the buildings and the Eyes on the Door pilot program; student proposed projects were discussed and supported; completed the review of the 9000 Policy Series; and, will start the review of the 9200 Policy Series at a later meeting. Curriculum and Instruction Mr. Kaye reported that the Committee met on July 15, 2013, and covered the following: update on the seventh grade math tutorial for honors; collaborative planning with student teachers research project to study ways in which teacher collaborative lesson planning shapes how pre-service teachers think about science education; pilot course for fifth grade social studies and pilot textbook adoption; and, reviewed grants and field trips on the agenda. Finance Ms. Ho remarked that the Committee met on July 16, 2013, reviewed the agenda items and supported them noting the eleven Regular Operating District (ROD) grant conclusion resolution. It is a time consuming process. The State of NJ announced a Round Four for Schools Development Authority grants with an early September deadline; on the agenda is the initial start for applying for these grants. Applying does not commit the district to funding the projects, it only allows for the submission and assigning projects numbers so that the documentation can proceed. Once more is known about the State funding participation and total project costs, then a decision will be made. Discussions included: System 3000 licensing and support contracts; summer construction facility actions in preparation for the start of school; exploring student transportation options due to township’ schedule road work such as the bridge on Old Trenton Road; and, the multiple challenges food service dealt with last year, especially with the new federal nutrition requirements. It was requested to appoint the new administrators at this time. Upon motion by Mr. Kaye, seconded by Ms. Feldman Hurwitz, and by roll call vote with all Board Members present voting yes, the following board action was unanimously approved: Personnel July 23, 2013 It is recommended that approval be given to the following personnel actions as recommended by the Superintendent of Schools. Nature of Date Date Name Action Position Step Salary Loc. Effective Termin. Discussion A:Administrators Appoint Cooper, Carl Appoint Supervisor DIST TBD 6/30/2014 Appoint as Supervisor of Social Studies. of Social $104,536.00 Studies Prorated Santoro, Appoint Supervisor $104,536.00 DIST 8/12/2013 6/30/2014 Appoint as Supervisor of Fine and Jeffrey of Fine and Prorated Performing Arts (Cert pending). Performing Arts K-12 2 Minutes 07-23-13 Mr. Marathe congratulated Mr. Cooper and Mr. Santoro on their appointment and welcomed them to the district. ADMINISTRATION Upon motion by Ms. Kaish, seconded by Mr. Kaye, and by roll call vote with all Board Members present voting yes, the following board action was unanimously approved: Harassment, Intimidation, and Bullying 1. To affirm the superintendent of school’s recommendation for disciplinary consequences and/or remedial actions as required by the State of New Jersey under the Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights for reports dated May 23, 2013, and July 9, 2013: 8381; 8401; 8422; 8452; 8483; 8528, and 8531. IDEA Grant 2. To submit a Grant Application to the State of New Jersey, Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, under its combined Basic and Preschool IDEA of 2004- Part B funds grant program for fiscal year 2014 as follows: Basic (for 3-21 year olds) $1,711,004 (includes $0 of non-public funding) Preschool (for 3, 4, and 5 year olds) $50,336 (includes $0 of non-public funding) Special Services Consultants 3. To approve Yvette Roche Muniz to perform psychological-educational evaluations at a rate of $350 per evaluation, not to exceed five evaluations, effective June 24, 2013, to August 31, 2013. 4. To approve Yvette Roche-Muniz, psychologist at Community Middle School, for case management, not to exceed 24 days, effective September 1, 2013, to November 27, 2013, at a rate of $400 per day. 5. To approve Mary Ford, social worker at Community Middle School, for case management, not to exceed 24 days, effective September 1, 2013, to November 27, 2013, at a rate of $400 per day Extraordinary Aid Grant - Acceptance 6. To accept the following grant: Extraordinary Aid grant from the New Jersey Department of Education the Application for Extraordinary Aid in accordance with the Comprehensive Educational Improvement and Financing Act (CEIFA), fiscal year 2012-2013 for Special Education pupils whose individual educational and support costs exceed $40,000 if in a public school program and whose individual and support costs exceed $55,000 if in a separate private school for students’ with disabilities. Donations 7. To accept the following Eagle Scout donations: 3 Minutes 07-23-13 a) To repair and to improve the Community Middle School Environmental Center; there is no cost to the district. b) To refurbish the center area of grass outside the main entrance of High School South, and to place five benches for seating and to improve the parking lot exit area towards 571; there is no cost to the district. CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION Upon motion by Mr. Kaye, seconded by Ms. Feldman Hurwitz, and by roll call vote with all Board Members present voting yes, the following board actions were unanimously approved: Grant 1. To approve the following StarTalk Hindi/Urdu Program consultants for services provided from April 17, 2013, to February 28, 2014 [funded by the StarTalk grant]: a) Roseanne Zeppieri – Lead Instructor b) Fizzah Sohail – Junior Assistant Overnight Field Trips 2. To approve the following overnight field trips: a) High School South Orchestra to the Gettysburg Address 150th Anniversary Event in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, from November 14, 2013, to November 16, 2013. The cost of the trip is approximately $320 per student. b) High School South Red Cross Club to Okemo, Vermont, from December 13, 2013, to December 15, 2013. The cost of the trip is approximately $325 per student. Textbooks 3. To adopt National Geographic’s Global Issues Series book set as the textbook for the Grade 5 Social Studies pilot course, Living in a Global Community. The cost of the set is approximately $90 per student; the total cost is $20,000. Personalized Student Learning Plan 4. To approve the fourth year and fifth year mentor agreements and grant extensions from July 1, 2012, to June 30, 2014, for the “Personalized Student Learning Plan (PSLP) Pilot Program” from the State of New Jersey Department of Education in the amounts of $7,500 for year four and $6,000 for year five. FINANCE Upon motion by Ms. Ho, seconded by Ms. Feldman Hurwitz, and by roll call vote with all Board Members present voting yes, the following board actions were unanimously approved: Business Services 1. Payment of bills as follows: 4 Minutes 07-23-13 a) Bill List, June Supplemental, for June 30, 2013 (run on 07/17/13) in the amount of $3,293,991.12.