School Improvement Team Meeting

September 17, 2014

Agenda

Members present:

Ms. Tidwell – Principal

Mr. Rendon- Asst. Principal

Ms. Luna- Asst. Principal

Laura Reyes – Campus Secretary

Amy Bermudez

Ana Martinez

Brandy Ontiveros

Jeannette Limon

Joanna Gonzalez

Katherine Jimenez

Mark Joosse

Patricia Giorgi

Rose Colleng

Sylvia Garcia

Terry Gilmore

I.  EPAC Update – Ms. Lorena Martinez – Ms. Colleng spoke on behalf of Ms. Martinez.

  1. Accountability- Ms. McBain shared about accountability and showed a video about how Texas Education Agency (TEA) rates schools. In response to a question on testing pase-ins, Ms. McBain stated that there are 4 phase-in levels and we have currently been in phase-in 1 for all tested subjects for the last 3 years. It will continue for this year, while phase-in 2 will begin next year.
  2. School Improvement Team Issues- the member from Butler Elem. Asked for clarification on locking/unlocking of doors according to the emergency Operations Plan (EOP). Ms. M. Macias responded by stating that doors should be in the locked position but kept ajar so that the doors could be closed and locked quickly in the event of an emergency. Ms. Tidwell Stated that Puentes should continue to follow campus policy on this issue.
  3. The member from Butler Elem. Stated an issue with textbooks. Mr. Fraga responded by stating that, because the District follows a year-round calendar and starts early the publisher is trying to meet the expectation. There is a back-order shipment that the District is waiting on, even in light of fluctuation of student population.
  4. Members expressed difficulty with other programs such as Think Through Math, which utilizes particular software.

II.  Safety Update- Mr. Rendon

  1. All of Admin. Is on response team, as is Officer Del Toro and coaches are back-up, Ms. Liz Ortega will handle any issues with diabetic students, and Alex Acosta will handle calling 911.
  2. There is a plan in place for substitutes in the event of a lockdown.
  3. Various staff members will be trained on EVACUTRAC
  4. There will be an OLWEUS video shown through announcements Friday, Sept. 26. Students will reenact a bullying scenario. Video should run approx. 4 minutes.
  5. Ms. Tidwell suggests that during a fire drill, upstairs classes form 2 lines going down the stairs. This will expedite evacuation.
  6. Ms. Tidwell gave a traffic update and reported that many parents are making U-turns on Ralph Seitsinger. This is dangerous, and Mr. Eyeington , Chief Operation Officer is making steps to getting a NO U-turn sign posted.
  7. Ms. Tidwell reminds teachers to practice safety in school zones

III.  Make It Count – Ms. Luna

  1. Ms. Luna reported that at end of July – 99.08%, end of August, 97.81% and currently, 97.31%
  2. Parents are being called via call-out if students are absent / tardy
  3. Ms. Luna reminds parents of HB5
  4. Walk for Success – Saturday, September 20 admin will team up to visit homes of El Dorado HS students who are currently no-shows at school. They’ll be passing out flyers and information .
  5. Parents need to remember to withdraw students from school. We have a high military population, so this is especially important.

IV.  Intersession Plan- Ms. Luna

  1. 8th graders only
  2. Remediation in ELAR and Math
  3. Approx. 80-100 students
  4. September 30- October 2
  5. 15 ELL students will be tutored by Ms. A. Garcia in reading comprehension and vocabulary development

V.  Student-Led Conference

  1. Report cards will be distributed
  2. Conference date is Tuesday, October 21
  3. Teachers will receive training during dept. meeting in how Student – Led conference works. They will also be given the forms at that time.

VI.  CIP- Title I Budget Expenditures – MS. Tidwell

  1. 39% of TI budget is being spent to date
  2. We may receive more funding in January due to increased enrollment

VII.  Champs mentoring Program – Mrs. S. Garcia/Ms. Tidwell

  1. Mrs. Garcia provided a program overview by saying that it helps students to be more successful.
  2. Admin., office staff, elective teachers, counselors, SCEI coaches and librarian will be mentors.
  3. 57 students in total , grades 6-8
  4. Mentors meet with students on a weekly basis
  5. Permission slips will be handed out next week for parent signature
  6. Program to start when we return from intersession
  7. Content area teachers will be given a list of mentors/mentees
  8. Mentors will need a copy of students’ progress reports to keep current with their grades

VIII.  Staff Development – Early Release- September 24

  1. Will begin at 12:45
  2. Math in room 409
  3. ELAR, Science and Social Studies in Band room

IX.  Questions/ Comments

  1. Ms. Ontiveros voiced concern over parents dropping off students in teacher parking lot. Ms. Tidwell reminded teachers to be careful, she is aware of this and that is why we have 2 parking lots at Puentes.
  2. Mr. Rendon is pleased with Music Café on Wednesdays. He invites teachers to show their musical talent and join in! Also, teachers are invited to eat lunch in the cafeteria. Music Café is based on Bobcat points, attendance, behavior, cafeteria clean-up. Students are responding well to it. It is meant to give students the opportunity to show their musical talent. It is not Karaoke.

The meeting began at 3:30p.m. and ended at 4:10p.m.

SIT meetings are held in the Puentes Middle School Library.