Culpeper County School Board 3/1/2010 11:35 AM

Culpeper County School Board 5/7/2018 5:18 a5/p5 Minutes February 15, 2010 Page 1 of 10CULPEPER COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD Minutes February 15, 2010A regular meeting of the School Board of Culpeper County was held February 15, 2010 at the Board of Supervisors Meeting Room at 302 N. Main Street, Culpeper, VA. Present were George Dasher (Stevensburg District); Elizabeth Hutchins (Cedar Mountain District); Robert Beard (East Fairfax District); Robert A. Houck (West Fairfax District); Russell E. Jenkins (Catalpa District); Anne C. Luckinbill (Salem District); Clerk Jeff Shomo, Superintendent Dr. Bobbi Johnson, Director of Curriculum and Instruction James Allen, Director of Human Resources Starr Rowe, Director of Administrative Services Dr. Russell Houck, and Deputy Clerk Pearl Jamison. Leanne Malulani arrived at 6:03 p.m.At 6 p.m., Mr. Dasher called the meeting to order and Ms. Jamison called the roll.Budget Work SessionDr. Johnson shared updated budget information with the board members. She noted that as of December 18, 2009 the state number was $2,354,000 based on the calc tool and there could be an additional $1,274,800 cut if the LCI is frozen. Ms. Malulani arrived at 6:03 p.m.Dr. Johnson said the staff has estimated an 8% increase in health insurance ($770,910) and a 2% increase in VRS ($835,250) for a total overall deficit, at this point, of $7,534,960. Dr. Johnson noted possible revenues or changes to the cuts. (See handout for further details.)  Building rental  VRS Holiday – no details available  Possible State Carryover Dollars  Health Insurance at Zero Dollars  Pass VRS to employees  Impact on funding (ADM) if staggered kindergarten is eliminated  Charge food services for maintenanceMs. Hutchins asked if the building rental rate would remain the same. Mr. Shomo said yes. Dr. Johnson asked if the board members have definite items at this point that can be cut. Ms. Hutchins said she felt the board agreed that the following could be cut:  School allocations  National Teacher Incentive Culpeper County School Board 5/7/2018 5:18 a5/p5 Minutes February 15, 2010 Page 2 of 10 SACS Dues  Textbooks  Superintendent Search  Moving Expenses  Technology Capital OutlayMs. Hutchins asked if the savings with insurance is with our current coverage. Mr. Shomo said no, they are focusing on HMO and HSA Savings Account. Ms. Hutchins asked if the PPO is being considered. Mr. Shomo said it was put out to bid; however, it will most likely not be offered to our employees. Ms. Malulani said the board has been saying for over a year they wanted to put this out to bid - why are we just doing it now. Dr. Johnson said the county administration hired a consultant to help with this process. Mr. Shomo said you can only put the bid out so far in the plan year. Mr. Dasher said previously we were talking about a $3.5 million shortfall; however, now we are talking a $6 million shortfall. He said health insurance and VRS increases have already been discussed. Mr. Beard said an additional $1.2 million cut takes out restoration of the composite index.Mr. Beard asked what the total payroll is currently. Mr. Shomo said $41 million in contract dollars but roughly $59 million with benefits.Ms. Malulani asked if the 2% increase in VRS would impact some employees more than others. Mr. Shomo said the $835,250 is 2% on all employees.Mr. Houck asked if VRS deduction could be pre-tax. Mr. Shomo said he was unsure because the school system picks up both sides. Mr. Dasher said he discussed treating the deduction as a cafeteria plan.Ms. Hutchins said she wants to know how much less pay our employees will have in their pockets if we charge them the 2% increase. Mr. Shomo said VRS has to determine if the money would be pretax or not. He said VRS is still evaluating the plan and deciding what to pass on.Dr. Johnson said another possible cut would be to cut school allocations even further. Ms. Hutchins explained what school allocations are used for.Ms. Malulani asked how much middle school sports cost. Mr. Shomo said each school runs about $32,000 each in salaries. He noted that field maintenance and utilities are not included in those numbers. Culpeper County School Board 5/7/2018 5:18 a5/p5 Minutes February 15, 2010 Page 3 of 10Mr. Shomo said the middle school coach’s salaries with FICA total $68,284 and that does not include their teacher salary. Mr. Shomo said the schools use their gate receipts to purchase equipment and uniforms. He further noted that the only thing paid out of the school fund is helmet inspections. Dr. Johnson said field maintenance is absorbed by the maintenance budget. Ms. Hutchins asked if there is a utility bill associated with middle school sports. Mr. Shomo noted the only cost incurred would be for lights for the five games that are held at night. Mr. Shomo said all transportation is paid for from the gate receipts. Mr. Jenkins asked for a breakdown on all sports for the next work session.Ms. Hutchins asked for clarification on the decrease in assistant coaches at the varsity level. Dr. Johnson said for some varsity sports they are required to have assistant coaches.Dr. Johnson reviewed proposed cuts under administration, transportation, maintenance and facilities, and technology. Dr. Johnson noted that $250,000 in funding for technology from the state has been cut.At 6:45 p.m., on motion of Mr. Beard seconded by Ms. Hutchins, the School Board recessed the budget work session to reconvene following the business session. Motion carried 7-0 by voice vote.On motion of Ms. Hutchins seconded by Mr. Beard, the Board went into closed session immediately regarding:[a] Discussion of Personnel Recommendations as permitted by the Code of Virginia 2.2-3711 (A) (1)Motion carried 7-0 by voice vote. On motion of Ms. Hutchins seconded by Ms. Luckinbill, the Board ended the closed session at 7 p.m. and certified by show of hands that only public business matters lawfully exempted from open meeting requirements and only the items included in the motion to go into closed session were discussed:YEAS: 7 Robert Beard George Dasher Robert Houck Elizabeth Hutchins Russell Jenkins Anne Luckinbill Leanne Malulani Culpeper County School Board 5/7/2018 5:18 a5/p5 Minutes February 15, 2010 Page 4 of 10Those present observed a moment of silence. Mr. Dasher led the Pledge of Allegiance.On motion of Mr. Beard seconded by Ms. Luckinbill, the School Board approved the agenda with the addition of Action Item 11c - Consideration of Middle School Sports Task Force. Motion carried 7-0 by voice vote.Recognitions/Presentations Dr. Johnson and Mr. Dasher presented Zealous Appreciation for Positive Performance “ZAPP” awards to the following: 1. For selection by audition to the prestigious 2010 All-Virginia American Choral Director’s Association Middle School Honors Choir – Morgan Anderson, Danae Barbee, and Morgan Brown Dr. Johnson presented the board members with a certificate recognizing February as VSBA School Board Appreciation Month. She noted that board members work tirelessly to make sure we have the best education for students and working conditions for our employees.  Mr. Dasher presented Pearl Jamison and Jeff Shomo with a certificate recognizing February 14-20, 2010 as VSBA Clerk Appreciation Week. DelegationsMr. Dasher said persons may present ideas or concerns regarding Culpeper County Public Schools. He said there would be no action taken by the Board at this meeting and that such items would be referred to the appropriate administrators for research and reported back to the Board at a later meeting. He said that personalities and behavior of employees are not to be presented during this period but are to be reported to the employee’s immediate supervisor. Mr. Dasher noted there would be a three minute time limit for speakers.There were no delegations.FY11 Public HearingTimmy Morris (Salem District) – Mr. Morris said he plays football at FTBMS. He encouraged the board not to cut middle school sports from the budget. He said cutting football would take a big part of his life away.Kemp Pullin (Salem District) – Mr. Pullin said most coaches in middle school would volunteer in order to keep sports around. He said CMS could play their games in the daytime to cut back on costs. He said he doesn’t feel there is an extra cost to maintain the field at CMS because CCHS also plays there. He said if you charge $85 to play middle sports you will bring Culpeper County School Board 5/7/2018 5:18 a5/p5 Minutes February 15, 2010 Page 5 of 10 in $14,000. He said all equipment and uniforms are paid for by gate receipts. He said he truly believes middle school sports can be handled with no cost to the budget.Eli Mitchell (West Fairfax District) – Mr. Mitchell said middle school sports allow the students to stay active, stay out of trouble, and prepare them for high school sports. Tim Morris, Sr. (Salem District) – Mr. Morris said our youth face tremendous issues – pregnancy, drugs, gangs, obesity, etc. He said according to numerous surveys the children who participate in athletics are less likely to be involved in those activities. He said this decision goes far beyond the field.Eric Brown (Cedar Mountain District) – Mr. Brown said there is a lot of waste in this county - fancy crosswalks and buying houses, etc. He said our community cannot afford to take away our youth sports. He noted that he wouldn’t have been a good student if he didn’t have to keep up his grades to play. He said the students are our future.Wayne Twomey (Stevensburg District) – Mr. Twomey said Culpeper County is going backwards. He said a child does not understand taking away sports. He asked the board not to take away sports. He said he would give the school system more money for his kid to play.Jeff Walker (West Fairfax) – Mr. Walker spoke on behalf of the CCEA. He said Virginia’s constitution requires the state to “ensure that an educational program of high quality is established and continually maintained’ for all children of school age. He said the most precious commodities in the schools are the children and staff. He asked the CCSB to ask the BOS to use the fund balance to fund a one-time retirement incentive and offset increases in insurance and benefits. He noted that the CCEA supports “pay for play” at the middle and high school level. He said perhaps the school system could charge for facility use Monday through Friday to help offset costs. He said CCEA recommends that those on the higher end of the scale perhaps $85,000 or above take a 2% reduction in pay and hold harmless custodians, cafeteria, bus drivers, etc. He said the CCEA will take the “Keeping the Promise” idea to the Board of Supervisors. (See handout.)Cherie Twomey (Stevensburg District) – Ms. Twomey said the sports programs are important for the children. She suggested shopping out cleaning supplies. She said the community needs more definitive answers relative to the budget.Chris Settle (Salem District) – Mr. Settle said Culpeper Football Association was founded in 2004. He noted that cutting middle school sports will drastically impact all sports programs and create an unbearable strain on CFA (non-profit). He said CFA would be forced to turn kids away. He said football has been a tradition in Culpeper for over 35 years. He said the coaches hold children accountable for grades and conduct. He reiterated that if middle school sports are cut CFA will have to turn kids away. Culpeper County School Board 5/7/2018 5:18 a5/p5 Minutes February 15, 2010 Page 6 of 10Richard Goff (Cedar Mtn. District) – Mr. Goff spoke in favor of combined services. He said procurement could be done by the county and vehicle maintenance by the school system. He said IT would probably require shared responsibilities. He said there are many areas of possible consolidation relative to finance. He said HR is best to be taken over by the school system because of all the licensure issues that are attached. He said he attended Senator Houck’s meeting regarding education and Senator Houck said 47,000 employees in Virginia will become unemployed. He noted that the Lions and Ruritan Clubs could help with funding youth organizations. Billy Mitchell (Salem District) – Mr. Mitchell commended the School Board for creating a middle school sports task force. He said no one in the sports field wants to take away teachers. He said there are members in the community willing to do what it takes to keep sports in Culpeper.Jeremy Engh (Stevensburg District) – Mr. Engh said middle school sports teach the children team work. Japreshia Clark (Salem District) – Ms. Clark said sports have laid a foundation in her home. She said in order to play sports you have to have good grades. She said having sports keeps her children academically challenged and out of trouble.The public hearing ended at 7:48 p.m.Consent AgendaMr. Dasher reviewed the items on the consent agenda for approval. He noted Finance Committee did not meet but reviewed bills on-line and recommend payment of the bills. Dr. Johnson read the Career and Technical Resolution.On motion of Mr. Jenkins seconded by Ms. Hutchins, the School Board considered approving the consent agenda.(a) Approval of Minutes – January 11 & 25, 2010 (b) Payroll and Payment of Bills (c) Personnel Recommendations (d) Resolution Recognizing February as Career and Technical Education MonthMotion carried 7-0 by voice vote.Mr. Dasher thanked Randi Richards-Lutz for her dedication to C&T.The board considered the following action items:(a) First Reading of School Calendar 2010/2011 Culpeper County School Board 5/7/2018 5:18 a5/p5 Minutes February 15, 2010 Page 7 of 10Dr. Houck said the calendar committee worked very hard on the calendar. He briefly reviewed the differences in the two calendars presented. He said the committee felt it was better to start before Labor Day. He noted that both calendars offer three at home workdays.Dr. Houck said the committee recommends “Calendar B” based on staff support.On motion of Ms. Hutchins seconded by Ms. Luckinbill, the School Board accepted the staff’s recommendation of “Calendar B” on first reading. Ms. Hutchins thanked Dr. Houck and the committee for all their hard work. She said she was disappointed in the staff response to the questionnaire. She noted that adding time to the school day previously was a disaster. She said in the past it created havoc with sports, after-school programs, etc. She said she would not support adding additional time to the day.Ms. Malulani said she would like to see us look at banking some time. She said her understanding is there are one or two schools that don’t get enough time in. Dr. Johnson said middle and high schools have enough instructional time; however, at the elementary level you can’t include lunch and recess as instructional time. She said all elementary schools need to go to 3 p.m. or start 10 minutes earlier without lengthening the middle and high school day. She said if we did that we could bank 11-13 days a year. She said that will be reviewed in the future.Ms. Malulani said she likes the idea of a shorter spring break being guaranteed. She said instructional days are not the same in June as they are in August. Mr. Dasher commented that he appreciated the hard work on the calendar. He noted that lengthening the day creates a bussing issue.Motion carried 7-0 by voice vote.(b) Consider Rescheduling March 22, 2010 Work Session to March 15 th or 29th Mr. Dasher said VSBA has scheduled the Central Regional Forum on March 22nd in Stanardsville, VA. He suggested moving the work session to March 15th as an opportunity to polish the budget prior to the briefing to the Board of Supervisors. On motion of Ms. Luckinbill seconded by Ms. Hutchins, the School Board rescheduled the work session to March 15th. Motion carried 7-0 by voice vote.(c) Consideration of Middle School Sports Task Force On motion of Mr. Beard seconded by Mr. Jenkins, the School Board considered the following resolution: Culpeper County School Board 5/7/2018 5:18 a5/p5 Minutes February 15, 2010 Page 8 of 10Be it resolved by the Culpeper County School Board 1. That the board establish an ad hoc middle school sports task force 2. That the task force be charged as follows: Consider options to continue Culpeper County middle school sports programs so that they are both budget neutral and in compliance with applicable laws and regulations; and report recommendations in writing to the School Board by March 1, 2010 3. That the School Board delegate to the Superintendent the authority to appoint members to the Task Force from the list of volunteers collected at the February 13, 2010 meeting of the board with the addition of any such additional members as she may deem advisable.Mr. Beard said he was extremely impressed by the presentations and attitude of “what can we do to help” with middle school sports. He said he is excited to have this opportunity to respond to the community in this way.Mr. Dasher said the board is not trying to be unreasonable with the March 1st deadline; however, the budget briefing is due to the Board of Supervisors by March 17th.Ms. Malulani said the recent TAB meeting had the best turnout in her entire time on the board. She said it is aggravating as a taxpayer to not have the kids needs met.Motion carried 7-0 by voice voteThe board observed a 10 minute break at 8:15 p.m.Reconvene Budget Work SessionMr. Jenkins noted that he has a personal interest in the budget discussion because his spouse is employed in the school system. He noted that he is able to participate in the transaction fairly, objectively, and in the best interest of the public. He said that he filed a copy of his disclosure statement with the clerk on January 25th and will disclose his interest at each meeting where there is discussion pertaining to the budget.Mr. Houck said the board has talked about but not made decisions relative to a retirement incentive for employees. He asked for confirmation that all retirees retiring this year would be offered the incentive, if they are eligible. Dr. Johnson said that would be the staff’s intention should the board adopt an incentive plan. Mr. Houck asked how annual leave would be handled if 12 month employees are converted to 11 months – do we have a liability to pay them immediately. Dr. Johnson said they would be allowed to use their leave accumulated thus far. Ms. Hutchins restated that leave accrued already could be used. Dr. Johnson said yes.Mr. Houck noted that Spotsylvania is going to charge $125 per sport per student. Culpeper County School Board 5/7/2018 5:18 a5/p5 Minutes February 15, 2010 Page 9 of 10Ms. Malulani stated that 12 and 11 month employees will lose a month of pay as well as annual leave.Mr. Dasher said a retirement incentive would come out of the FY10 budget.Ms. Malulani said it would be helpful to know what staff members plan to retire.Mr. Beard said he was intrigued by the CCEA request to ask the Board of Supervisors to help fund a one-time retirement incentive. He said it can’t hurt to ask. He said they might consider a one-time expense relative to a reoccurring expense.Ms. Hutchins said the retirees are more concerned with insurance rather than a few hundred dollars. She said we have to know how many and what it will take to get the employees to retire.Dr. Johnson said several employees are considering retirement but waiting to hear if an incentive is offered.Mr. Beard said we are talking about removing the equivalent of 80-125 positions. He asked for further clarification because not everything is a real life job. Ms. Hutchins said some of those questions were answered in closed session. Ms. Hutchins said she did not feel she could ask our employees to take a 2 digit pay cut because of their financial commitments.Ms. Hutchins asked if the 13 permanent sub positions were eliminated would we still have to hire subs. Mr. Shomo said yes. Ms. Hutchins asked if the $280,000 takes into account the subs that would have to be hired. Dr. Johnson said the staff feels there is enough money in the sub line to cover the subs needed.Ms. Malulani asked if we have looked at sub pay and how competitive we are. She noted that we might be able to reduce the substitute pay and still be competitive. She reiterated that people have financial commitments.Ms. Luckinbill said she feels the board needs to give Dr. Johnson more guidance.Dr. Johnson said, at this point, we can use the resignations and retirements to help with numbers.Mr. Beard said there will be an impact on the entire community. He said the real questions is can we keep the boat afloat or is someone going to have to drown. Ms. Hutchins said there are items that some of us can agree on that do not affect employees. She said perhaps school allocations could be cut to $50. Culpeper County School Board 5/7/2018 5:18 a5/p5 Minutes February 15, 2010 Page 10 of 10Mr. Beard said 12/11 month employees should not take a double hit on their salary. Ms. Luckinbill said it unrealistic to think we can do this without a RIF. Ms. Hutchins said we are going to lose people – there is no way we can’t.Ms. Malulani said in all actuality 12/11 month employees could take a 1 month pay deduction, lose vacation, and take a percentage reduction.Mr. Jenkins asked if we could check with Roanoke City on outsourcing transportation and get information from them as far as numbers.Mr. Jenkins asked if we are allowed to charge for music, band, strings, etc. Dr. Johnson said we can’t charge fees for an academic class but we can charge fees for extracurricular – marching band, football, etc. She said art students could be required to buy art materials. Ms. Hutchins noted that marching band is not extracurricular.Ms. Malulani asked if we could look into the legalities of charging for transportation. Mr. Beard said the Attorney General says you cannot charge. Mr. Beard said you can charge for instrument rental. Ms. Hutchins stated that we already do. Ms. Hutchins said you cannot charge for textbooks. Mr. Beard said there are strict regulations on what school systems can charge for. Mr. Beard said with the proposed “pay to play” we could make up about $80,000 but we are talking about a $4 million deficit.On motion of Ms. Luckinbill seconded by Ms. Malulani, the School Board voted to adjourn at 9:00 p.m. Motion carried 7-0 by voice vote.______JEFFREY R. SHOMO, CLERK GEORGE T. DASHER, CHAIR

Culpeper County School Board 3/1/2010 11:35 AM

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