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September 18][2014
Board of School DirectorsMilwaukee, WisconsinSeptember 18, 2014
Regular meeting of the Board of School Directors called to order by President Bonds at 6:31 PM.
Present—Directors Falk, Holman, Joseph, Miller, Sain, Spence (6:43 PM), Woodward, Zautke, and President Bonds—9.
Absent—None.
Awards and Commendations
(Item A)Excellence in Education Award— AlethiaTilford
Each month, the Milwaukee Board of School Directors recognizes an outstanding school, student, staff member, parent, or community member for a display of excellence, achievement, and innovation that may serve as an example to our school district and the entire Milwaukee community.
This month, the Milwaukee Board of School Directors is pleased to present the “Excellence in Education Award” to:
AlethiaTilford
MPS Student
Ronald Reagan IB High School
The MPS Office of the Superintendent was notified via a letter from State Superintendent Tony Evers that Ms. AlethiaTilford, a senior at Ronald Reagan IB High School, had been elected by more than 700 of her peers at Badger Girls State to be the 2014 Badger Girls State Superintendent of Public Instruction. This is a great honor and responsibility to serve as the student counterpart to Dr. Evers. Having been elected to this position by her peers from throughout Wisconsin, Alethia has been invited by Dr. Evers to participate in the annual State of Education Address to take place on September 25 at the State Capitol.
Ms. Tilford is an excellent student athlete who is involved in a variety of activities at her school and within the community. At Reagan, she participates in student government and Huskies on Track and is on the volleyball, softball, and basketball teams. This is a school-based program through which the seniors mentor and support the incoming freshman during their first year. She also volunteers countless hours for all school events that take place on weeknights and weekends at Reagan.
Ms. Tilford’s community-based involvement includes being an active member of the Boys and Girls Club and participating in GEAR UP.
Ms Tilford, a Stein Scholar who will be applying to Marquette University, Carlton College, UW-Stevens Point, and Northwestern University, hopes to study communications with a minor in Spanish, as she greatly values her bilingual capabilities.
Ms. Tilford has many personal characteristics that have served her well during her K-12 education in Milwaukee Public Schools. When she learned about an opportunity for international travel during her
freshman year at Reagan, she saw a great opportunity to learn about and experience Germany. It took her three years to personally fundraise the entire cost of the trip. This represents her persistence, personal responsibility, and the high value that she places on opportunities to learn beyond the classroom.
The Milwaukee Board of School Directors and the entire school community recognize AlethiaTilford for her dedication, outstanding leadership, and commitment to excellence.
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(Item B)Action on a Proclamation in Recognition of Lynne A. Sobczak on Her Upcoming Retirement as Board Clerk/Director, Office of Board Governance
Background
After 30 years of dedicated service to the students, parents, and staff of the Milwaukee Public Schools— the last 12 of them as Board Clerk/Director, Office of Board Governance— Mrs. Lynne A. Sobczak will be retiring on October 17, 2014.
The following Proclamation in honor of Mrs. Sobczak’s retirement and in appreciation for her many years of dedication to MPS is being presented for the Board’s consideration.
Proclamation
Whereas, Lynne A. Sobczak has faithfully served the Board of School Directors and the Milwaukee Public Schools since 1984, when she began her career with the Milwaukee Public Schools as a teacher at Christopher Latham Sholes Middle School; and
Whereas, Lynne A. Sobczak also served as a learning coordinator and guidance counselor at Alexander Graham Bell Middle School; and
Whereas, Lynne A. Sobczak first joined the Office of Board Governance as a Board Staff Assistant in 1998, then in 1999 became the Board Information Officer; and
Whereas, Among her many other duties as both the Board Staff Assistant and the Board Information Officer, Lynne A. Sobczak was the Board’s Charter School Designee, in which capacity her dedication, integrity, and hard work earned her the trust, respect, and confidence of those involved in developing and operating MPS charter schools and led to her service on the Wisconsin State Charter Team and her participation in federal and state charter grant reviews; and
Whereas, The Board appointed Lynne A. Sobczak to her current position, Board Clerk/Director, Office of Board Governance, in 2002; and
Whereas, In addition to her regular duties as Board Clerk/Director, Office of Board Governance, Lynne A. Sobczak has served as the District’s Special Education Ombudsman; and
Whereas, Lynne A. Sobczak assisted the Board in the development of the Office of Accountability, later the Office of Accountability and Efficiency, which was initially established under the aegis of the Office of Board Governance; and
Whereas, Lynne A. Sobczak has faithfully executed the duties and responsibilities of her office with the highest level of professionalism, and her assistance to the Board has been critical to the Board’s fulfilling its statutory duties; and
Whereas, Lynne A. Sobczak has provided good counsel to all Board members and has been a trusted and respected advisor to the Board; and
Whereas, Lynne A. Sobczak is now retiring after 30 years of devoted service to the Milwaukee Public Schools; and
Whereas, The Board wishes to thank Lynne A. Sobczak for her many years of outstanding and dedicated service and to extend its best wishes to her for a well-earned retirement; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Board of School Directors extend its sincere appreciation to Lynne A. Sobczak for her years of dedicated service to the Milwaukee Public Schools; and be it
Further Resolved, That this resolution be spread upon the permanent minutes of the Board of School Directors; and be it
Further Resolved, That the Board instruct the Board President to have an engrossed copy of this document, suitably signed and sealed, prepared and delivered to Lynne A. Sobczak in tribute to her record of dedicated public service to the citizens of Milwaukee, to the boys and girls in the public schools, and to the Board of School Directors.
Adopted by consensus.
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Approval of Minutes
The minutes of the Board’s regular and special meetings of August 16 and 21 2014, were approved as printed.
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Communications from the Superintendent
(Item A)Communication from the Acting Superintendent of Schools: Monthly Report
Office of the
Acting Superintendent of Schools
TO THE MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF SCHOOL DIRECTORS
This report is designed to provide the Milwaukee Board of School Directors and the MPS community an update on current activities underway to support the district goals of academic achievement; student, family and community engagement; and effective and efficient operations. Activities from late August and early September follow.
We celebrated the first day for schools on the traditional calendar at the Thurston Woods Campus with an early morning bell ringing to walk the students to school. President Bonds, Director Falk, Director Sain, Director Spence, Governor Walker, Mayor Barrett and Superintendent Evers joined us as well. Central employees also spent the day in schools helping as needed to support a smooth and seamless school opening across the city.
I visited 13 schools during the first week of school: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Cass Street, Lincoln Center of the Arts, Thurston Woods Campus, Washington High School, Clemens Elementary, Obama School of Career and Technical Education, Audubon Technology and Communication Center, Lincoln Avenue, Hawley Environmental Science, Milwaukee Spanish Immersion, Starms Discovery Learning
Center and Auer Avenue Elementary. It is my hope to visit all of our schools this year. Our students are full of enthusiasm and come to us every day with unlimited potential. We are working hard to ensure each of our students reaches the pinnacle of their potential while students in Milwaukee Public Schools. Special thanks to the Board for helping us launch the traditional school opening and troubleshooting issues as they arise.
August 21 marked the twenty-year anniversary for the GE Service Day in MPS. GE employees have been so generous with the time and talents and have been to over 80 MPS schools over the years helping to prepare for the start of school. Some highlights from this year include landscaping in front of 81st Street School and a Peace Garden at Lloyd Barbee. On the same afternoon, GE hosted a celebration for all of the volunteers at Miller Park. We are also having discussions with GE relative to expanding the GE Foundation grant to include an emphasis on STEM.
There have been many school supply drives conducted during August and early September thanks to our many generous partners. They include but are not limited to Office Depot’s Sack Pack Giveaway; the Salvation Army’s Back Pack Give Away; and the Feeding America, Sendik’s and Fox 6 backpack distribution. We are so thankful to our many generous donors that have gone the extra mile to ensure our students have the supplies they need to start the school year on a positive note.
Since last month’s report, important district trainings have taken place such as the New Educator Institute, the Parent Coordinators’ Institute and the PTA Officer Training. Retired Colonel Consuelo Kickbusch gave the keynote address to the Parent Coordinators and all of those in attendance, including the Parent Information Specialists, received the new MPS Customer Service training delivered by Kellie Sigh, a member of the Customer Service Bureau. This is going to be an exciting school year with a parent coordinator in every school. We anticipate increased parental involvement and positive home/school engagement.
Members of the Administration meet daily to monitor school opening concerns such as transportation, food service and enrollment. We are making every effort possible to make sure schools and families have what they need to start the school year. We are also reaching out to families as needed to make certain all students are in school every day.
Alderman Hamilton and Mayor Barrett are co-chairs of the City of Milwaukee Black Male Achievement Council. We were invited by them to share our district-wide initiatives, which address the needs of African American male students in our comprehensive high schools. We shared this information with various aldermen, city-wide officials and visitors from the National League of Cities and My Brother’s Keeper Initiative.
Our planning efforts relative to the Council of the Great City Schools conference are ramping up daily thanks to Ann Terrell’s leadership! From my vantage point we are poised to showcase our district and our city when leaders from across the country converge on our fair city in October.
We are in the process of creating the District Multilingual/Multicultural Advisory Committee (DMAC) that will begin meeting this month. The committee will be comprised of principals, teachers, parents, instructional assistants and community members. The DMAC will provide ongoing recommendations on issues relating to the implementation of standards, instruction and program design for our language learners. The 2014-15 school year has 6,791 students in the bilingual programs and 4,899 students in the ESL program. We feature bilingual programs in over 22 of our schools.
District leadership continues to build capacity through our management intern program. The district currently has six management interns and I meet with them regularly to discuss the projects they are working on, offer suggestions and learn more about their professional qualifications so as to connect them with potential long-term employment opportunities in the district.
Milwaukee Public Schools is participating in the Community Eligibility Program, which now allows all students – regardless of income – to receive breakfast and lunch at no charge. The district still collected income information from families this month to assist us as we apply for grants and for other projects.
We are off to a strong start and I anticipate that this will be a great year for MPS.
Dr. Darienne Driver,
Acting Superintendent
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(Item B)Action on a Request for a Closed Session to Discuss Strategies Regarding an Update and Potential Action on Property Located at 2760 N. First Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
The Administration requests a closed session for the purpose of discussing strategies regarding an update and potential action on the property located at 2760 N. First Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
This request is made pursuant to Wisconsin Statutes:
1)Section 19.85(1)(e), which allows a governing body to go into closed session for the purpose of deliberating or negotiating the purchasing of public properties, the investing of public funds, or conducting other specified public business, whenever competitive or bargaining reasons require a closed session; and
2)Section 19.85(1)(g) which allows a governing body to go into closed session for the purpose of conferring with legal counsel.
The Board may reconvene in open session to take action on matters considered in executive session, including a proposed assignment and assumption agreement between MPS and the developer, and/or to continue with the remainder of its agenda; otherwise the Board will adjourn from executive session.
Administration’s Recommendation
The Administration recommends that the Board retire to closed session pursuant to Wisconsin Statutes, Section 19.85(1)(e), and Section 19.85(1)(g) for the purpose of discussing strategies regarding an update and potential action on the property located at 2760 N. First Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
By consensus, consideration was postponed until the end of the meeting.
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Communications from the Board Clerk
(Item A)Possible Action on the Rescheduling of the Special Meeting of the Board Tentatively Scheduled for October 23, 2014
To the Milwaukee Board of School Directors:
The budgets for Fiscal Year 2015 School Operations, Extension, and Construction Funds as finalized and adopted by the Milwaukee Board of School Directors are to be transmitted to the Common Council of the City of Milwaukee prior to the adoption of the City’s budget in November 2014.
At its regular meeting on January 9, 2014, the Board adopted a timetable for the FY15 budget process. This timetable set October 23, 2014, as the date on which the Board is to finalize the FY15 budget and transmit any changes to the Milwaukee Common Council.
This year, the Milwaukee Public Schools has the honor of hosting the Council of Great City Schools’ 58th Annual Fall Conference, which runs from October 22 through October 26, 2014. In light of the time
and resources which the District has to devote to ensuring that this conference will be a success, the Board may wish to reschedule its special meeting to another date in October or to consider the adoption of the final MPS FY15 budget at its regular monthly meeting scheduled for October 30, 2014.
A copy of the current tentative October 2014 Board calendar has been provided under separate cover for the Board’s reference.
Lynne A. Sobczak,
Board Clerk/Director, Office of Board Governance
Director Holman moved to move the Special Board Meeting previously scheduled for October 23, 2014, and combine it with the October 30, 2014 agenda.
The motion prevailed, the vote being as follows:
Ayes—Directors Falk, Holman, Miller, Sain, Spence, Woodward, Zautke and President Bonds—8.
Noes—None.
Temporarily absent—Director Joseph.
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(Item B)Possible Action to Fill the Upcoming Vacancy in the Position of Board Clerk/Director, Office of Board Governance
To the Milwaukee Board of School Directors:
The position of Board Clerk/Director, Office of Board Governance, will become vacant with the October 17, 2014, retirement of the incumbent, Mrs. Lynne A. Sobczak. The Board may wish to appoint someone to fill the position of Director, Office of Board Governance, to be effective upon the retirement of Mrs. Sobczak.
State statutes require that the Board have a clerk appointed at all times.
The Board may retire to executive session pursuant to Wisconsin Statutes, Section 19.85(1)(c), which allows a governmental body to retire to closed session to consider employment, promotion, compensation, or performance evaluation data of any public employee over which the governmental body has jurisdiction or exercises responsibility.
The Board may reconvene in open session to take action on matters discussed in executive session and/or to continue with the remainder of its agenda.
Lynne A. Sobczak,
Board Clerk/Director, Office of Board Governance
By consensus, consideration was postponed until the end of the meeting.
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Reports of Standing Committees
Separate consideration was requested of he following items:
Report of the Student Achievement and School Innovation Committee, Item 4, Action on Bilingual Education; and
Report of the Accountability, Finance and Personnel Committee, Item 5, Action on Prevailing Wages.
Director Holman left at 9:12 PM.
On the motion of Director Spence, the balance of the reports of the Standing Committees was approved, the vote being as follows:
Ayes—Directors Falk, Joseph, Miller, Sain, Spence, Woodward, Zautke and President Bonds—8.
Noes—None.
Committee on Parent and Community Engagement
Director Zautke presented the following report for the Committee on Parent and Community Engagement:
TO THE BOARD OF SCHOOL DIRECTORS:
Your Committee on Parent and Community Engagement presents the following report:
(Item 1)Action on a Request to Enter into Contracts for the Partnership for the Arts and Humanities
Background
The Partnership for the Arts (since the 2006-2007 school year) and Humanities (since the 2010-2011 school year) has served as a unique resource for local arts- and humanities-based organizations and schools interested in partnering to design afterschool and summer arts and humanities programs that serve students and the community. Since 2006, over 73 different partner organizations have served an average of 31,000 youth annually.
Through a dollar-for-dollar matching requirement, the Partnership for the Arts and Humanities encourages partner organizations and schools to seek out additional resources that can also be used during the regular school day. The matching requirement doubles the resources for arts and humanities opportunities and builds a network of partnerships among schools, community organizations, and the philanthropic community.