ENFIELD BOARD OF EDUCATION
MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING
May 23, 2006
A regular meeting of the Enfield Board of Education was held at John F. Kennedy Middle School, Cafeteria, 155 Raffia Road, Enfield, CT. The meeting was called to order by Chairman Sharon Racine at 7:30 PM.
MEMBERS PRESENT Judith Apruzzese-Desroches, Donna Corbin Sobinski, Joyce Hall, Albert Harrison, Susan Lavelli-Hozempa, Samuel McGill, Sharon Racine
MEMBERS ABSENT Andre Greco, Charles Johnson III
ALSO PRESENT Dr. John Gallacher; Superintendent of Schools, Anthony Torre; Assistant Superintendent, Student Representatives, Megan Cooper, EHS
1. Call to Order Sharon Racine
2. Invocation or Moment of Silence Donna J. Corbin Sobinski
3. Pledge of Allegiance Donna J. Corbin Sobinski
4. Approval of Regular Meeting Minutes – May 9, 2006 & Special Meeting Minutes – May 16, 2006
Mr. McGill moved, seconded by Mrs. Apruzzese-Desroches, that the minutes of the Regular Meeting of May 9, 2006 be approved.
There were no corrections, changes or omissions.
A vote by show of hands, 6-0-1, with Ms. Hall abstaining, motion passes.
Mrs. Corbin Sobinski moved, seconded by Mr. Harrison, that the minutes of the Special Meeting of May 16, 2006 be approved.
There were no corrections, changes or omissions.
A vote by show of hands, 6-0-1, with Mr. McGill abstaining, motion passes.
5. Board Guests None
6. Correspondence and Communications
1. A letter from Asnuntuck Community College, Dean of Administration, Tim Hurlock, endorsing the Terra Nova Program at Asnuntuck.
7. Audiences
Martha McLeod, Elm Meadows Dr. McLeod, President of Asnuntuck Community College, is speaking tonight in support of the Terra Nova Program. Dr. McLeod has seen first hand how successful this program has been for the students who attend. These students have the opportunity to take college classes along with their high school classes. These students volunteer for all sorts of community projects. This is a remarkable program that is a model for our Nation.
Marilyn Cressotti, Enfield St. Mrs. Cressotti is the Department Chairman of the Terra Nova Program. Mrs. Cressotti is in support of the Terra Nova Program. It has been in existence for 7 years and has graduated 93 students who would have otherwise dropped out. Instead, they chose to come to Terra Nova and turn themselves around. The graduates have gone on to Asnuntuck, Baron Institute, The Culinary Institute, Nursing Programs for LPN and RN at ACC or STCC. Some of the students have already graduated college and work as Licensed Real Estate Agents and a Phlebotomist at Rockville Hospital. The staff works with families so that all can work together. The staff at ACC also works with and mentors these students. She urged the Board to retain the Terra Nova Program.
Cody Kellhofer, West St. Mr. Kellhofer is currently a student at Terra Nova. He takes 5 classes a day until noon and then takes college classes in the afternoon. He stated that he messed up pretty bad in his freshman and sophomore year and made the decision to try the program. He started the program with only 4.5 credits and has worked very hard to bring himself up to a high school junior. He stated he needs the 1 on 1 attention to help him stay focused on his studies. He has also earned 12 college credits at Asnuntuck through College Connections Machine Technology Program. He plans on earning another 12 credits next year and then pursuing Machine Technology or continuing for his Electricians License. He knows now that he has the choice to accomplish these goals and credits the Terra Nova Program for his success and the success of many others who have gone before him and who will be following him. He urged the Board to keep the Terra Nova Program intact.
Dr. Rafer Byrdsong, Hazard Ave. Dr. Byrdsong is a Clinical Psychologist for Child’s Advocacy with the State of CT and a parent of four children attending the Enfield Public Schools. Dr. Byrdsong urged the Board to retain the counselors in the elementary schools. Our School Counselors serve a very important purpose for the children. There are a lot of latchkey kids and kids who are not sure of themselves. They need someone they can go to and someone that can help them navigate their way through the school years. Teachers are overwhelmed now and cannot always address the personal issues of these children. The School Counselors fill that void. Funding is tight everywhere, but the Board needs to realize how important these positions are to the children. The problem is growing as there are more and more latchkey children every year and they need someone to count on.
Stacie Byrdsong, Hazard Ave. Mrs. Byrdsong, accompanied by 3 of her children, stated she is also concerned about the removal of School Counselors because of budget cuts. Her children addressed the Board and spoke highly of Mr. Spiwak, their School Counselor at Eli Whitney. He has helped them to deal with issues and problems and has taught them how to develop conflict resolutions to solve their problems. They all consider him their friend. Mrs. Byrdsong urged the Board to keep these positions in the school system. As a parent, she is very grateful to have them available to her children during the school day.
Jenilee Alejandro, Brett Lane Miss Alejandro stated she is in support of the Terra Nova Program. She is an alumnus of the program and has made it her civil duty to come here tonight and support this program. She stated that she can never repay the Terra Nova Program for the help and support they have given her. There is no such thing as a normal kid, but there are special kids like her. She is not a statistic; rather she is a graduate with honors from the Enfield Public Schools Terra Nova Program. She urged the Board to get the word out about this program and what it does for teens like her and maybe there would be a lot more support for the program.
Mary Ann Turner, Meadow Rd. Ms. Turner stated that she is speaking on behalf of Deb Giddings, Chairman of the Book Buddies Program. This program is a Literacy Program for the Head Start and kindergarten children of Enfield. She wished to thank the captains of each school who put in several hours to make this program work. The letter lists all who participated. She thanked the staff at each school for all their help. She especially wanted to thank the many “Book Buddies” who donated books on behalf of the children. This year alone, over 1,600 books were delivered to the children of Enfield. She thanked all the companies and businesses in Enfield who also made this a great success. Ms. Giddings letter went on to state that this would be the last year for the Book Buddies program. Over the course of five years the program has delivered more than 7,500 books to children. Due to organizational needs and the desire for those involved to move on to other endeavors, she felt the Board needed to know this is the last year. She stated she takes great pride in knowing the program was so successful.
Chuck Lauria, 122 Oldfield Farm Mr. Lauria is a teacher at JFK. He distributed information regarding the statistics of having a remedial math teacher at JFK before the position was cut a few years ago. The statistics show the need to re-institute the program at JFK. Mr. Lauria urged the Board to consider adding the position back for next year.
Robyn Shumsky, Missile Dr. Miss Shumsky is a junior in the Terra Nova Program. She stated she would have dropped out of high school if this program was not an option for her. She would like the Board to keep the program. This program has been so helpful to her and she could not deal with the thought of this program ending. She really needs this program. Please do not get rid of this program.
Joseph Saroce, Briarwood Dr. Mr. Saroce stated that we can get rid of a lot of frivolous items in the budget such as fringe benefits. He stated that the 3 and 4% raises teachers receive each year never end and insurance costs keep going up but the contributions by employees never seem to go up at the same rate. The private sector contributes 30 to 50% of insurance costs. He also feels travel allowances for teachers to go back and forth to schools and stipends for seniority are frivolous and greedy. There is a lot that can be done if we do away with the ignorance of thinking you are worth more than you are getting. It is time to face up to that and stop giving away our tax dollars. It is time to think of other people such as senior citizens on fixed incomes who earn less in a year than teachers make in 2 months. When you start thinking of other people instead of your own greedy ways then things will be accomplished.
Bob Tkacz, Bernadino Ave. Mr. Tkacz stated that Enfield’s production in education is very dismal. Census data shows that people with a bachelor degree is 18% of the population of Enfield. The State average is 31%. 16% of the Enfield population does not have a high school diploma. Maybe it is time to start evaluating the staff and see if they are qualified to teach math before we hire a remedial math teacher. Mr. Tkacz stated there are 831 employees in the school system and 6,617 students. 8 years ago there were 6,873 students and 733 employees. Something is wrong if we are hiring more staff with fewer and fewer students. He also stated that there are over 400 employees in the food service program which doesn’t even get talked about. He feels the problem with our budget is too many employees and poor performance. We should start to evaluate the teachers and administrators. It feels like there are a lot of people who will not admit that this is the problem in the school system.
Raymond Peabody, Washington Rd. Mr. Peabody stated that he left CT and then moved back. One of the reasons he came back to Enfield was because of the school system. Compared to other towns, we were good, but over the years the school system is going down. He applauds some of the teachers in the school system and some he does not feel are any good. He recently worked with some of the school secretaries and they are very valuable to the system. He has concerns such as test scores – are they where they should be? His answer is no, but he would like to know how the Board plans to get them back up there. He would like to know what the ratio of administrators is to staff. He feels there is no accountability in the school system. When his child had a problem in school, a lot of blame went around but nothing was resolved. He was flabbergasted. Colleges are looking at well rounded students. There has to be other ways to trim the budget without losing programs. He also asked that the Board give more of an advanced notice of their meetings as he did not know until today’s paper about the meeting tonight.
Mary Lombardo, Northfield Rd. Mrs. Lombardo stated she is proud to be one of the 531Enfield teachers and that she teaches 5th grade at Alcorn School. She also stated that she is very proud of her former student, Jenilee Alejandro who spoke here tonight. She has grown-up to be a very wonderful young lady. Mrs. Lombardo stated she is surprised that we are still discussing the budget this late in the year. She feels it is in the Board’s power to keep the programs that we currently have. She stated that School Counselors are a valuable asset and very needed in our schools. She also supports the Terra Nova program and the recalling of the non-tenured teachers who should have been called back as soon as you knew there would be funds in the budget.
Bridgette Birchall, Farmstead Circle Mrs. Birchall stated she had served on the Budget Advisory Council and is pleased to see the award that was given to the Board. She stated her concerns about the budget discussions though. There is enough of an award to take care of the fixed costs and continue with the programs that are already in place, including Terra Nova. The recommendation of the BAC was to form an Advisory Committee to review the existing program before next year’s budget, not the proposed budget year. She encourages the Board to follow that recommendation. She stated that the Board should be addressing the needs of the system over and above the fixed costs. We need supplies, additional days for the New Directions Drug and Alcohol Counselor, address issues from the FHS accreditation that must be settled within 5 years. She suggested that the Board form an Advisory Committee to take a look at and talk to the Town Council about what we can go out for in a referendum on capital improvements. There are a number of things in the FHS Accreditation Report that are considered capital improvements, such as computers. They should be removed from the school system’s yearly budget and handled as a Capital Improvement. There is no way to afford the computer technology year after year for the school system with the allocation of funding that we get. Mrs. Birchall also supports the ongoing Curriculum Development of programs and the professional development that goes with it. This directly affects K-12, NCLB, AYP, CAPT scores and CMT scores. She also thinks the Board should develop programs for early childhood literacy programs.
Jack Sheridan, Buchanan Rd. Mr. Sheridan stated that he has not finished yet, but is up to $722,000 of the Town’s side of the budget that goes to schools. That is above what was allocated for the school budget. So the per pupil expenditure is much higher than what we report in our ERG. Mr. Sheridan suggested that remedial math and reading intervention needs to be identified at an earlier age so we can avoid the need for remediation in the secondary schools. He asked Board Members how many people they are willing to displace from this town. He feels there are fewer students because fewer people can afford to move into our town. We need to look at taxpayer affordability. We should look at what programs we can double up on. It is a fine line between what we would like to have and what we can realistically afford.