WHEELERVILLE UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT

BOARD OF EDUCATION MEETING MINUTES

Kind of Meeting:Regular meeting – June 17, 2013

Where Held:Wheelerville Union Free School Library

Presiding Officer:Michael Bruce

Members Present: Shannon Wager, Michael Frasier, Fran Miller and Suzanne Hamalak

Others Present:Richard Ruberti, Superintendent; Kristin Barnhill, Treasurer; David Richards, Maintenance; Paul Pavlus, Transportation

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  1. Call to Order

The June 17, 2013 Wheelerville Union Free School Board of Education monthly meeting was called to order by President Mr. Michael Bruce at 6:32 P.M.

  1. Pledge of Allegiance
  1. New Board Member Oath of Office

New Board Member Suzanne Hamalak read and signed her Oath of Office

  1. Public Comments – None
  1. Approval of May 13, 2013Regular Meeting Minutes– Mrs. Wager made a motion and it was seconded by Mrs. Miller to approve themeeting minutes from May 13, 2013. The motion passed 5 – 0.
  1. Treasurer’s Report

The expenses for Warrant #12(12/13 school year) are as follows:

  1. Lunch Fund$ 4,394.24

The expenses for Warrant #32/24 (12/13 school year) are as follows:

b.General Fund$213,178.63

Gross payroll for the month of Maywas $123,735.54

Mrs. Barnhill wanted to make note of the action items that were sent from Tiffany Morris to be approved for reserves and creating a better checks and balance on wire and bank transfers. Mrs. Barnhill handed out some Budget transfers that would need to be approved and also the appropriation status report showing there is currently over $750,000 left unspent in the budget and that the final payroll will be around $200,000 and once all the open purchase orders are made and journal entries and final bills paid there should be around $500,000 left which what was allocated from the fund balance. Mrs. Barnhill also had the Insurance Renewal for NYSIR from Mang Agency and a new proposal from Utica National from Marshall and Sterling. Based on the two quotes, Utica National cost is less and has more coverage. Mr. Ruberti also mentioned that based on the NYSIR renewal – we are in a pool with other schools so if some schools have major claims it could affect our renewal costs and with Utica National it is only based on our claims. There is an action item to approve the the insurance for July 1, 2013.

Superintendent –Mr. Richard Ruberti

  1. AP Biology/Science Fair – Mrs. Hickok-Insogna displayed some of the Science Fair projects and also portfolios from Mrs. Lair’s class with writings of the eighth graders through the years here at Wheelerville. Members of the Board and Mr. Ruberti thanked Mrs. Hickok-Insogna for a great job on the Science Fair and saw how much all the participants enjoyed doing it. Mr. Ruberti stated that there will be an AP Biology course this fall. There were a total of five 7th graders who were tested on an 8th grade science test and four of them passed and will be in the advanced class. We will be changing our sequence of when 6th 7th and 8th grade take the different science classes offered in the fall of 2014. We are also hoping by the fall of 2014 we will be able to offer an advanced math class with a regents.
  2. Greenhouse – Damon Loucks and Dave Richards both gave an update on the new greenhouse that was purchased. This was the second one – the first one was damaged in our first big wind storm. They were able to get a refund and purchase one that is more stable and able to purchase additions to it in the future. They are working on the misting system and a pump. They also need to purchase a special cloth. All the purchases have come from the money raised in the fundraisers. Many of the plants were ruined in a late snow storm, but some have been saved. At the end of the meeting the Board decided to give the Committee $1000 from the sale of the bus garage to help with future costs. Mrs. Barnhill will transfer that in the Greenhouse account.
  1. STAR/APPR – Mr. Ruberti reviewed with the board the way scoring is determined for each teacher based on the guidelines from the state. Much of the scoring is based on the scores of the students in their classes. Next year much of our math and ELA teachings will come from modules that NYSED contracted to have created. We will be sending most of it out for printing so that we will get the aid for textbooks.These modules have helped fill the gaps in the standards. There will be trainings for the teachers.
  1. Art Teacher – Mr. Ruberti interviewed a candidate that Mayfield could share with us; however no decision has been made yet.
  1. Instructional Coordinators – Mr. Ruberti stated there was an action item to approve the new stipends for one elementary coordinator and two middle school coordinators that would share the duties and stipend.
  1. Eighth Grade Graduation – Wednesday, June 19, 2013 @7PM
  1. Capital Project/Panels – Mr. Richards wanted to report that he made a visit to Griffith Air Force Base to look at similar panels and he wasn’t impressed with the installation. He is not sure if we would have the same company that they had to do the actual installation. The person who gave him the tour didn’t have much knowledge about the job. Mr. Richards would like to see a couple more places and hopefully someone that would have the same installation as us where it would be going over existing panels. Mr. Richards is still in constant contact with AJ from Bast Hatfield.

A motion was made by Mr. Frasier and seconded by Mr. Bruce that the Board of Education will enter into executive session at 7:17 pm to discuss specific personnel and contractual concerns. A motion was made by Mrs. Miller and seconded by Mrs. Wager that the Board re-enter into open meeting at 8:33pm.

  1. Action Items

A. FINANCIAL

A motion was made by Mrs. Wager and seconded by Mr. Frasier that the Board of Education approves the Warrants #12 in the amount of $4,394.24, #32 in the amount of $36,672.76, and #34 in the amount of $176,505.87. The motion passed5-0.

A motion was made by Mr. Frasier and seconded by Mr. Bruce that The Board of Education approve the following motion as suggested by Tiffany Morris, Internal Auditor of Wheelerville School:

The Board of Education insists on clear, complete and detailed accounting of all financial transactions for which the Board is held accountable. The transferring of funds via on-line banking services between various accounts and the transfer of funds from District accounts to non-district accounts for various purposes are financial transactions to be properly monitored and controlled.

The following are on-line banking activities the District engages in:

  1. Viewing bank account information.
  2. Inter-fund transfers.
  3. The remittance of employee payroll tax withholdings & other deductions.
  4. The payment of the District’s debt obligations.
  5. The remittance of employee payroll direct deposit.
  6. Transfer of district funds into investments.

The District Treasurer, with a separate established username and password, will have the authority to process on-line banking transactions. The Superintendent, with a separate established username and password, will be responsible for on-line banking transactions in the event the District Treasurer is not available.

To verify the accuracy and legitimacy of on-line transfer requests, the District will establish an approval process. Prior to the transfer of funds, the Treasurer will indicate in writing the amount of monies and the purpose for the transferring of funds. The Superintendent will approve the transfer of funds prior to the transaction being processed. The Treasurer will report all transfers as part of the monthly Treasurer’s Report to the Board of Education. The motion passed 5-0.

A motion was made by Mr. Bruce and seconded by Mrs. Miller that the Board of Education approve the following resolutions at the recommendation of Tiffany Morris, Internal Auditor:

WHEREAS, the Wheelerville Union Free School District previously established an Employee Benefit Accrued Liability Reserve in accordance with General Municipal Law §6-p in anticipation of payment of accrued employee benefits due employees upon termination of the employee’s service, and whereas the Board of Education has determined that it would be prudent at this time to increase this reserve. So be it resolved, that the District increases the fund balance reserve entitled Employee Benefit Accrued Liability Reserve, effective June 30, 2013, in accordance with General Municipal Law §6-p, by an amount not to exceed $30,000.

BE IT RESOLVED that upon the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools, the Board of Education establishes a Retirement Contribution Reserve in accordance with General Municipal Law §6-r in anticipation of payments to the New York State and Local Employees’ Retirement System. Be it further resolved that an amount not to exceed $60,000 be transferred from Unassigned Fund Balance.

The motions passed 5-0.

A motion was made by Mrs. Miller and seconded by Mrs. Hamalak that the Board of Education approve the Budget transfers suggested by the Treasurer for the 2012-13 School Year. The motion passed 5-0.

A motion was made by Mrs. Miller and seconded by Mrs. Hamalak that the Board of Education approve the proposal from Marshall and Sterling for property and liability insurance coverage by Utica National effective July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014. The motion passed 5-0.

B.CSE/CPSE

A motion was made by Mrs. Hamalak and seconded by Mrs. Wager that the Board of Education approve the Committee on Special Education (CSE) recommendations for the following students as part of their Annual Reviews. The motion passed 5-0.

Student ID# 000000266

Student ID# 000000227

Student ID# 000000294

Student ID# 000001061

Student ID# 000000305

Student ID# 000000292

Student ID# 000000237

C. OTHER

A motion was made by Mrs. Wager and seconded by Mr. Frasier that the Board of Education approve the school use request submitted by the American Red Cross for the purpose of a Blood Drive on October 29, 2013 from 12PM – 5PM. The motion passed 5-0.

A motion was made by Mr. Frasier and seconded by Mr. Bruce that the Board of Education approve the Sports Mergers with the Greater Johnstown School District for the following modified sports:

Girls & Boys Track

Football

Boys Baseball

Girls Softball

Wrestling

Boys Soccer

A motion was passed 5-0.

A motion was made by Mr. Bruce and seconded by Mrs. Miller that the Board of Education approve the Instructional Coordinator positions for the 2013-14 school year. The position will create a direct resource for teachers in the area of Data Driven Instructional (DDI), the new NYS modules, the process of integrating writing and literacy into all subjects and finding relevant professional development opportunities for their respective levels. The stipend for each level (Elementary and Middle School) is set at $4,000 based on the number of hours for the position. The motion passed 5-0.

D. PERSONNEL

A motion was made by Mrs. Miller and seconded by Mrs. Hamalak that the Board of Education approve a 3% salary increase for the following administrative employees:

Nancy Insogna - $46,546.00

Damon Loucks - $41,178.00

Kristin Barnhill - $43,152.00

Paul Pavlus - $21.11/hour

David Richards - $49,100.00

The motion passed 5-0.

A motion was made by Mrs. Hamalak and seconded by Mrs. Wager that the Board of Education approve the salary amount of $102,900.00 for Superintendent, Richard Ruberti. The motion passed 5-0.

A motion to determine Damon Loucks Summer wage was tabled for the July 8, 2013 meeting.

A motion was made by Mrs. Wager and seconded by Mr. Frasier that the Board of Education approve the appointment of Jim Hines as a Summer Maintenance Worked at the wage of $12.00/hour and not to exceed more than 20 hours per week. The motion passed 5-0.

A motion was made by Mr. Bruce to adjourn the meeting at 8:45PM.

The next Board of Education Meeting will be a Re-organizational Board of Education Meeting on Monday, July 8, 2013 at 6:30 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,

Richard Ruberti

District Clerk

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