Board of Education Meeting Minutes

January 8, 2008

ATTENDANCE: Susan Hamilton, Chair; Rosa Murray, Vice Chair; Glenn Iannaccone, Secretary, Gregory Burnett, Bruce Kimmel, Jody Bishop-Pullan; Migdalia Rivas, Jack Chiaramonte, Shirley Mosby; Mayor Richard A. Moccia (9:20 p.m.)

STAFF: Dr. Salvatore Corda, Superintendent of Schools

OTHERS: Stuart Opdahl, Bruce Mellion, NFT President; David Davidson, Mark Gorian, Ralph Valenzisi, Dr. Karen Lang

CALL TO ORDER

Ms. Hamilton called the meeting to order at 7:52 p.m.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

Ms. Hamilton led the Board and those present in the Pledge of Allegiance.

SUPERINTENDANT’S PROPOSED OPERATING BUDGET

Mr. Burnett said that he would like to discuss the Wellness Program. While he recognized the priority issues, he felt that this would be something that would help to maintain and attract teachers to the Norwalk School System.

Mr. Kimmel said that he agreed 100% with Mr. Burnett. He said that during the last twenty years, wellness programs have reduced absenteeism and lengthened teacher’s tenures. Although it is $50,000, which is almost another teacher’s salary, this would be something for the existing staff.

Ms. Murray said that Mr. Burnett mentioned “staff members”, but Mr. Kimmel had mentioned “teachers”. She asked for clarification on this issue. Mr. Burnett said that he believed that it would be for all the staff. He added that the City was also moving in this direction.

Another staff member came forward and that she and Mr. Mellion had been attending meetings about this and that it does have some cost savings and that it would be available to all the BOE staff. The staff member said that the funding would be for tracking and that there would also be some funding for financial rewards. Ms. Murray said that the corporate world is already involved in this. Mr. Iannaccone said that the Fire Department has been using this and that he believed that this did reduce absenteeism. Mr. Iannaccone said that he believed that there were grants to help pay for the programs. Mr. Burnett said that he felt that the BOE should pursue the grants, but also continue to move forward and begin the program.

Ms. Bishop-Pullan asked for more information about the program, which was then provided by the staff member.

Dr. Corda said that the District would like the opportunity to pursue the grants. The issue is trying to present a budget to the City that would be received in a favorable way. He then suggested that a motion be made to implement a wellness program and then investigate the costs. In the case that grant funding is not available, the District could look for funding across the budget to identify funding for this. A discussion about various strategies then followed.

Ms. Mosby said that she felt that it would be important to have it included in the budget now rather than adding it after the budget is approved.

Mr. Kimmel said that he was proposing to amend the budget to add $120,000 to add a Finance Director. He pointed out that there is a Director of Curriculum Instruction along with a Chief Operational Officer. Mr. Kimmel said that he feels that this spreads the employees that currently occupies the positions or any employee that will occupy the position in the future too thin. This is also true for the Superintendent. Mr. Kimmel said that he felt it would be important to round out the balance by adding a Finance Director. The staff member who is the Budget Coordinator is doing a wonderful job, but a Budget Coordinator is not a Finance Director.

Mr. Iannaccone said that he agreed with Mr. Kimmel. Mr. Chiaramonte said that he would also agree that a Finance Director was also important to the Board of Education. He said that it would be important not to lose sight of the prize and that the Norwalk students are prepared to meet the real world.

Ms. Bishop-Pullan pointed out that the reason that everyone was here was because of the goals and objects. She said that she was familiar both with the time when there was a Finance Director and when there was no Finance Director. Ms. Mosby said that while she would support a Finance Director, but she would not want to sacrifice a position that was already occupied, such as one of the teaching staff. She said that she would also like to clarify the interview process before the Finance Director position is approved.

Mr. Kimmel said that last year there had been budget reductions, but no one lost their jobs. Every cut is reviewed and weighed before the money is removed or reduced in an account. Mr. Kimmel said that it is important for the Superintendent to be able to visit the schools and get to know the teachers and the students. Mr. Kimmel said that he had recently learned that the last Finance Director had multiple duties and that he also may have been spread much too thin.

Mr. Burnett said that he would like to have more discussion about adding a Financial Director. Last year, there were numerous discussions about reducing the number of staff at the Central Office. Asking for a high level officer to be added is directly in opposition to what was discussed in the last twelve months. Mr. Burnett pointed out that he had not heard from the Superintendent that there was a need for a Finance Director. Mr. Burnett said that there were many questions in his mind regarding how to do this without adding more administration or restructuring other roles, since the other tasks are being performed at this time. As a Chair of the Budget committee, Mr. Burnett said that he would welcome a discussion on this subject in Committee.

Ms. Rivas then distributed copies of an agenda from May 20, 2003 along with several pages from the Board minutes regarding this. There were also some sheets regarding the reconciliation for the 2003-2004 Budget, which is when the Finance Director position was eliminated.

Ms. Mosby said that after the decision five years ago, the issue had come up again. She said that it would be important to come to some decision tonight. This issue would not be brought to the table unless there were numerous Board members who were thinking about it.

Mr. Chiaramonte said that last year he had heard many people support the idea of a Finance Director. He also pointed out that the City has a smaller budget than the BOE and that they have a Finance Director, along with a full department to work on it.

Ms. Bishop-Pullan pointed out that the District has a Chief Operating Officer who is qualified to run the District along with a Budget Coordinator that is as qualified as the former Financial Director was. The Board has the same resources available as they did when a Finance Director was present. Mr. Chiaramonte disagreed.

Ms. Murray said that on the Budget Committee, she said that she believed this was the approach that was being taken regarding this, but that there was still information gathering that has not been done yet. She said that it would be important to allow the Budget Committee to do their job and then bring it to the Board.

Mr. Kimmel said that he did not disagree with what Ms. Murray said, but that he would like to have a regularly scheduled Budget Committee meeting. He then repeated his concerns about the Superintendent and the Chief Operating Officer being spread too thin. Mr. Kimmel then reviewed how he believed the position would interface with the rest of the Central Office staff. Mr. Kimmel said that Mr. Hamilton is responsible for the City’s budget, but does not know about flooding, fighting fires or crime, paving or various other things.

Mr. Burnett said that there would be a regular monthly schedule of the Budget Committee. He then asked if the District was in a state of crisis. He added that the District budget had been recognized by the State of Connecticut as exemplary. Mr. Burnett said that the District was not in a state of crisis and that it had a very capable staff.

Ms. Mosby said that what she was hearing from Ms. Murray, Mr. Burnett and Ms. Bishop-Pullan was that there was not enough information yet. Ms. Mosby said that she was concerned that the issue would be pushed to the side. Ms. Murray said that was the reason she stated that the Committee was still in the fact-finding mode and that the Committee was not ready to make a recommendation to the Board. This is why she stated she felt that this was premature. Ms. Rivas said that she would like to have more information before making a decision.

Mr. Chiaramonte said that he did not mean in any way that Dr. Corda was not capable of doing the budget, but that he would like to have Dr. Corda more available in the schools. Ms. Bishop-Pullan said that she was hearing two things that were separate, a budget and an education. Ms. Bishop-Pullan said that it was important to remember that the budget allows the education to take place. Ms. Rivas asked if there had been any known problems that have arisen since Dr. Corda has been working on the budget. A discussion about the pros and cons of this issue then followed.

Mr. Burnett said that whether or not the Board voted for a Finance Director, the Budget Committee would continue to research and gather information regarding the position of a Finance Director. In response to a question, Mr. Burnett said that he felt there would be ways to find the dollar amount without going to the BET for approval.

** MR. KIMMEL MOVED TO AMEND THE SUPERINTENDENT’S RECOMMENDED AMOUNT OF THE FINAL BUDGET FROM $149,554,772 TO $149,674,772 IN ORDER TO INCLUDE AN ADDITIONAL $120,000 FOR THE POSITION OF FINANCAL DIRECTOR ** MR. IANNACCONE SECONDED. ** THE MOTION TO INCREASE THE SUPERINTENDENT’S RECOMMENDED BUDGET FROM $149,554,772 TO $149,674,772 IN ORDER TO INCLUDE THE POSITION OF A FINANCIAL DIRECTOR FAILED WITH FOUR IN FAVOR (CHIARAMONTE, IANNACCONE, KIMMEL AND HAMILTON) AND FIVE AGAINST (BURNETT, RIVAS, BISHOP-PULLAN, MOSBY AND MURRAY).

** MR. BURNETT MOVED TO AMEND THE BUDGET TO INCLUDE AN ADDITIONAL $55,000 FOR THE INCLUSION OF A WELLNESS PROGRAM. ** MS. MURRAY SECONDED.

There was a brief discussion regarding how this proposal should be handled.

** MR. BURNETT WITHDREW HIS MOTION TO AMEND BUDGET INCLUDE AN ADDITIONAL $55,000 FOR THE INCLUSION OF A WELLNESS PROGRAM.

Ms. Murray concurred with this.

** MR. BURNETT MOVED TO AMEND THE SUPERINTENDENT’S RECOMMENDED FINAL BUDGET FROM $149,554,772 TO $149,609,772 TO INCLUDE THE ADDITION OF A WELLNESS PROGRAM AT THE COST OF $55,000.

Ms. Bishop-Pullan said that she as a health care professional she would rather see the funding go to health care resources for the students.

** THE MOTION PASSED WITH EIGHT IN FAVOR (HAMILTON, MURRAY, IANNACCONE, CHIARAMONTE, KIMMEL, BURNETT, RIVAS, AND MOSBY) AND ONE AGAINST (BISHOP-PULLAN).

** MR. BURNETT THEN MOVED THE AMENDED RECOMMENDATION OF 2008-2009 OPERATING BUDGET OF $147,609,772 BE APPROVED ** MS. MURRAY SECONDED.

Mr. Chiaramonte asked if the budget was not approved tonight, what would happen. Mr., Kimmel said that he was not aware of any Charter changes and that budgets were due in the middle of the month. Dr. Corda said that the District has been given a date by the City and that a meeting had been scheduled for Tuesday. This meeting had been changed several times to allow everyone who needs to be there to attend.

Mr. Chiaramonte said that he felt pressured and felt that receiving the budget during the holidays was not positive. Hopefully, he said that he would like to start in early autumn in order to review the budget in detail.

Mayor Moccia joined the meeting at 9:20 p.m.

Mr. Burnett asked what the procedure would be if the budget was defeated. Mayor Moccia asked if there had been an alternate budget proposal. He was informed that an alternate had not been prepared.

Mayor Moccia said that he would have a chance to review the budget at the BET and again at the Common Council. Therefore, he would be voting in favor of the budget as proposed not because he was for or against the specific proposal but in order to move the Budget process forward.

** THE MOTION TO APPROVE THE AMENDED RECOMMENDATION OF 2008-2009 OPERATING BUDGET OF $147,609,772 WITH FIVE IN FAVOR (BURNETT, BISHOP PULLAN, MURRAY, HAMILTON AND MOCCIA), FOUR AGAINST (CHIARAMONTE, KIMMEL, IANNACCONE AND MOSBY) AND ONE ABSTENTION (RIVAS).

Mayor Moccia left the meeting at 9:28 p.m.

APPROVAL OF THE 2008-2009 CAPITAL BUDGET. Mr. Kimmel said that the City was facing major flooding issues, repaving issues, and the issue of rebuilding the primary Fire Station.

** MR. KIMMEL MOVED TO REDUCE THE CAPITAL REQUESTS BY AMENDING THE RESOLUTION TO REDUCE THE BUDGET BY REMOVING THE STAGE RIGGING AND CURTAINS AND THE GYM DOORS AND GYM EQUIPMENT FROM THE CAPITAL BUDGET TO $918,505.

Mr. Kimmel said that he was not against the projects but realized that City was really pressed to replace the main Fire Station, repave roads, and handle the flooding issues.

** MR. CHIARAMONTE SECONDED.

Mr. Iannaccone said that the Mayor had mentioned the funding for the renovations and that this could be handled via the renovations. Dr. Corda said that these two projects had been discussed with the City yesterday and that there would be some research into how this might be done.

Mr. Burnett said that it was his understanding that the stage rigging and the gym equipment might pose a safety hazard. He then asked if the information regarding the level of safety. Mr. Kimmel said that the Informational Technology budget and that the Fire Suppression System would remain intact. Mr. Burnett asked if there was a dollar amount available for the schools that were in dire need. Mr. Opdahl said that in discussions with Mr. Hamilton, the general agreement was to move the budget forward and that the dollar figures would be analyzed. Ms. Murray said that a number of the schools were not currently under renovation. Mr. Opdahl said that there had been an agreement to get the secondary schools completed and then turn the attention to the elementary schools. Dr. Corda said that the secondary schools would possibly be addressed via Capital funding. However, there are four elementary schools that would not be covered by the funding in the Capital fund.

** MR. KIMMEL MOVED TO MODIFY THE REDUCTION OF $620,158.00 TO INCLUDE THE $44,427.00 FOR STAGE RIGGING FOR THE FOUR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS THAT HAVE THE HIGHEST SAFETY CONCERNS (BROOKSIDE, COLUMBUS, FOX RUN AND CRANBURY).

A discussion then followed about the folding doors in the gym. ** MR. KIMMEL THEN MOVED TO MODIFY HIS PROPOSAL TO REDUCE THE CAPITAL BUDGET TO $620,158.00 TO INCLUDE THE $159,000 FOR THE GYMNAISUM DOORS.

Ms. Rivas said that the students are the ones who end up with problems. By not maintaining the facilities, the cost of repairing or replacing increases.

** KIMMEL MOVED TO REDUCE THE CAPITAL BUDGET BY $156,158.00 TO REMOVE THE FOLLDING DOORS IN THE GYMNASIUM. ** MR. CHIARAMONTE SECONDED.

Mr. Burnett said that he felt that there would be a better strategy by submitting the full amount to the Planning Commission and then use the reductions that were just presented as a back up plan. Ms. Rivas asked if there was any way to insure that the funding that the Board was not using would be used for flooding. Mr. Kimmel reviewed the Capital Expense procedure and explained that Capital funding was designated funding and could not be use for anything else.

** MR. BURNETT MOVED TO APPROVE THE 2008-2009 AS RECOMMENDATED BY THE SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS. ** MS. MURRAY SECONDED. ** THE MOTION PASSED WITH SEVEN IN FAVOR (HAMILTON, MURRAY, CHIARAMONTE, BISHOP-PULLAN, KIMMEL, BURNETT, RIVAS, AND MOSBY) AND ONE AGAINST (IANNACCONE).

Mr. Burnett said that the next meeting would be held at Norwalk High School for the January 15th meeting. He pointed out that there would be a varsity basketball game scheduled for the same time. Mr. Kimmel asked if the meeting should be on the 22nd instead. Ms. Mosby commented that there were specific reasons why the meeting was going to be held at the High School. A discussion about this then followed.

Ms. Rivas left the meeting at 10:20 p.m.

Mr. Chiaramonte said that his biggest concern was about the issue of the students wandering around. Mr. Mellion said that he had made an unannounced visit to the High School, walked all around the building including through the halls and that there were no students in the hallway or wandering around outside. Those students who were in the halls all had passes.

Ms. Hamilton said that the sense of the Board to try and get February 5th.

Ms. Mosby said that when a member is absent from a meeting, it would be helpful to have the information and handouts be sent to the absent member.

Mr. Chiaramonte said that the library at NHS was small and suggested the Board meeting be held in the cafeteria. Dr. Corda said that was already the designated meeting plan.

Ms. Murray said that the Martin Luther King March will be held on January 21st.

ADJOURNMENT

** MS. MURRAY MOVED TO ADJOURN. ** MS. BISHOP-PULLAN SECONDED. ** THE MOTION PASSED UANNIMOUSLY.

The meeting adjourned at 10:25p.m.

Respectfully submitted.

Sharon L. Soltes Telesco Secretarial Services

Category: Minutes