TOWN OF ISLE LA MOTTE
SCHOOL BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING
November 18, 2009
Call to order – 3:04pm
Members present – Chet Bromley, Tara Liloia
Also in attendance – Diane Reilly, Richard Taylor
Adjustment to agenda – Richard Taylor requested an additional item about Colchester High School, there is additional building request form from ILMCO
Approval of minutes – October 21, 2009, Chet Bromley motioned, Tara Liloia seconded
Superintendent’s Report
Colchester Designation Discussion
Richard Taylor received a call from Larry Waters, Superintendent of the Colchester School District. He called under his board’s authority to extend an invitation to all island schools to designate them as their town’s high school. One provision of Act 44 allows towns that don’t maintain a high school and are in a Supervisory Union to designate a high school where we’d send all high school-age kids. Some island towns (and non-island towns) are looking at this as a way to contain their budget. Designation makes budgeting easier for school boards, tuition becomes easier to predict across the town’s high school students.
Colchester’s tuition for this year is $10,500. In contrast, South Burlington is currently $13,100 and Burlington is $14,500. Towns should look at the offerings at each school, not just the price tag. Parents can still send kids to other schools, but they must pay the difference between Colchester’s rate and the rate of the school they choose (public or private).
Colchester currently sends a bus to the Harbor Store. If we designate, they may consider sending a bus to our island itself.
If the Board would like to suggest designating Colchester, the town has to vote as an electorate.
Richard Taylor says we could have someone from Colchester come out and speak to us. That would be a good time to ask if they’d provide transportation. If we put it up to a vote it’s likely potentially a $50-70,000 savings on the school budget. It’s possible to build a budget and pass it, then have surplus in the high school line item.
Tara Liloia asks if there is a check on the designated school from increasing their tuition to extremely high levels. Richard Taylor says there’s a state formula which keeps their tuition costs in line. As a sending school, we can negotiate, but that becomes the new de facto announced tuition rate. This conversation is being held in other island towns as well, so we may be able to join our collective bargaining power to negotiate a lower rate.
Diane Reilly says an advantage is that our kids would be together, we might be able to get an activities bus late in the afternoon, carpooling, etc.
Tara Liloia asks how many of our kids go to Colchester now. Richard Taylor replies that there is one Isle La Motte child who currently attends Colchester.
Richard Taylor will extend an invitation to Colchester to come to the next regular School Board meeting. He will also send Tara and email with confirmation and she’ll do a write up for the Islander inviting community members to join in the discussion.
GISU Budget
Richard Taylor reports that teachers in the other towns have opened their contracts for negotiations. There is a GISU budget meeting at GISU HQ Thursday night at 6:00pm; however, none of our Board is available to attend. Heather Luce will write up her concerns about health care contributions for Richard Taylor to present at the meeting.
Commissioner Vilaseca’s recommendation is that all licensed teachers should have a 20% co-pay for health insurance. Heather Luce asks if we can do that at a GISU level. Richard Taylor says that the reduction in other costs has offset the health insurance premiums.
Principal’s Report
New Students
There are five new students who moved onto the island and four out of five are going to need special education services. One is likely to need one-on-one services with someone who is more highly trained than a para-educator. There is also a need for adaptive art, music, PE, social skills groups, and speech.
Heather asks if this student was previously taught in a mainstream classroom. Diane Reilly says yes, but the child was pulled out an instructed for several hours per week. Diane Reilly and Sandra Moulton are going to meet with the providers in the child’s previous school environment. There is no indication of behavioral issues; the needs are cognitive and physical.
With the other incoming children, there’s nothing behaviorally which is external which will affect instruction in the classroom. Chet asks what grades the new children are in. The new kids are in preschool, kindergarten, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades from three families.
Heather asks what kind of changes we’ll anticipate for this year. Diane Reilly says we’ll need a high-end para-educator, more special education service time, and we may need a para-educator in K/1 depending on how things work in there. Richard Taylor says that these changes may be covered under Special Education spending.
Richard Taylor says that we’ll work to provide whatever is required in the IEP as soon as possible. We inherit the IEP which is already in place from the child’s previous school. We can call an IEP meeting to amend it slightly based on school configuration differences, but otherwise it should be followed.
Richard Taylor says that we built the budget based on what we knew at the time and we’re now adding service needs to the mix. He is going to look at the special education service requirements of the school to determine how to move forward.
Heather Luce asks what kind of degree is necessary to provide special education services? Richard Taylor says you don’t have to be a special educator but a special educator has to plan the services and should deliver as much of the instruction as possible. Training often includes a master’s degree and special certification, but they are not abundant.
Heather Luce asks that we discuss the special education situation before our next regular meeting to have some resolution and time to review what we need to do to provide for the incoming students with special needs.
Community Use
Cathy Tudhope requests to use the multipurpose room at an indeterminate time for a memorial service. She is anticipating the 28th of November – the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
On Thursday, afternoons a group of community members are coming in to use the computers. Cathy Tudhope is computer savvy and willing to help people.
Diane Reilly also has an idea to offer morning coffee and snacks out for community members before school opens when the South End Café is closed for the year. The Board agrees that this would be a good idea. Heather Luce asks that the school document community use of the school for our annual town payment for school usage.
Grant Funding
Diane Reilly reports that we were granted $12,500 from the Vermont Department of Education for using technology to implement health education.
Board action
Approval of Bills for Payment
Motion to pay the bills as approved made by Chet Bromley, seconded by Tara Liloia.
Contract for Signature
Executive Session – 4:17pm – 5:01pm
FY11
Personnel
Chet Bromley motions to adjourn the meeting. Tara Liloia seconds.
Adjourned – 5:02pm
Respectfully submitted,
Tara Liloia
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Heather Luce, Chairperson
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Chet Bromley
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Tara Liloia