Board of Education Meeting Minutes

January 8, 2009

ATTENDANCE: Rosa Murray, Chair; Jody Bishop-Pullan, Vice Chair; Jack Chiaramonte, Glenn Iannaccone, Bruce Kimmel, Shirley Mosby, Greg Burnett (7:10 p.m.); Susan Hamilton (7:20 p.m.); Migdalia Rivas (7:20 p.m.)

STAFF: Dr. Salvatore Corda, Superintendent of Schools

OTHERS: Anthony Daddona, District Administration; Dan Cook, BOE COO; Council Member Douglas Sutton

CALL TO ORDER

Ms. Murray called the meeting to order at 7:07 p.m.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

Ms. Murray then led those present in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.

CONCLUSION OF THE BUDGET 2009-2010 BUDGET PRESENTATION

Mr. Burnett joined the meeting at 7:10 p.m.

Dr. Corda greeted those present and proceeded to explain how the upcoming enrollment figures are calculated, using a “cohort survival ratio” for three years, which seems to sustain itself. When the class sizes start to approach the class size limit, the District must be prepared to add a new teacher for a new class for that grade level in that particular school. The error ratio for this calculation has been between 97% and 98%. With such a slim margin tolerance, it is difficult to handle small numbers of students.

Dr. Corda then reviewed how the District had handled this situation in the past year.

Ms. Hamilton and Ms. Rivas joined the meeting at 7:20 p.m.

He then proceeded to review the various class sizes at the different schools, using PowerPoint charts. Dr. Corda also reviewed the formula for determining the enrollment for kindergarten. Dr. Corda reminded everyone that the District was a people intensive business and that approximately 85% of the funding was toward salaries and benefits.

Dr. Corda then reviewed the budget for the Central Office as noted on slides #39-60 in the PowerPoint presentation or on pages 72-90 in the Superintendent’s Operating Budget for 2009-2010.

Dr. Corda then went on to review the organizational chart on page 72 in the Operating Budget or slide 43 in PowerPoint presentation. Dr. Corda pointed out that the Board had not approved the chart in the Operating Budget at this time. He indicated that there had been some responsibilities that had been deliberated over by the Finance Committee of the Board, which had resulted in a recommendation of elimination of one position, that of the Chief Operating Officer, and the creation of two positions, the Director of Administrative Operations and a Director of Financial Operations.

Mr. Iannaccone had a question about budget item line 300 in Human Resources, which Mr. Cook clarified for him.

Dr. Corda then gave a budget overview for the Finance Department and reminded everyone that the Fringe Benefits (Life, Health and Dental Insurances) were determined by contract and by use. The figure that was used for the estimation is one that the District has been given from the insurance companies as to what the District should expect. He reviewed the fact that the District is a modified self-insured model. By doing this, the premiums are held by the District and any interest that is accrued by the funds stays with the District. The employees contribute to the cost of their health insurance. Additionally, there are other funds that are offset against the total cost of $29,000,000 reduces the District’s cost to $25,562,842.

Next, Dr. Corda addressed the Information Technology Budget with the Board. He reviewed the reasons why the request for equipment for the coming year would be reduced. Due to a competitive market, there were some major savings in terms of purchasing equipment. The funds saved were applied this year towards equipment on the Capital Budget request for the coming year.

Regarding the Facilities Budget, Dr. Corda then explained that the District is responsible for 19 buildings. Mr. Gorian worked hard to reduce the cost of the department. Mr. Kimmel had several questions and concerns about the elimination of a head custodian and to reduce custodial services at the high schools. Mr. Gorian came forward and said that the night custodial staff would not be reduced, but that the Office was looking to reduce the day staff while the students are there. The two high schools need more maintenance staff and fewer custodial staff. The discussion then moved to the graph on page 12 of the Operating Budget and how that would be handled. Mr. Gorian said that as the buildings are being renovated, the needs of the buildings have changed and that there is a strong need for maintenance staff. With the new types of systems and equipment, the District must provide the maintenance for the new systems or contract it out.

Mr. Cook said that he and Mr. Gorian would re-evaluating the situation based on the comments made by the Board.

The discussion then moved back to the reductions throughout the Central Office, and in particular, possible reductions in the Superintendent’s Office. Ms. Mosby requested the job descriptions be presented at the meeting at the upcoming meeting on Tuesday. Ms. Murray requested a listing of the grants that had been facilitated from the Executive Assistant’s office.

There was a question from Mr. Iannaccone regarding the tipping fees for the garbage, which Mr. Gorian clarified. Up until the beginning of the year, CRRA charged the District a tipping fee. When the City assumed the transfer station, the fee dropped slightly.

Mr. Burnett asked if the leasing costs for the portable classrooms at Rowayton were reimbursable from the State. Mr. Cook replied that the District had reviewed the costs of outright purchase of the units within the State reimbursement guidelines and the cost of purchase without State reimbursement. The State has adopted some acoustic guidelines for modular classrooms, which would add $80,000 to the cost of each unit. The District then looked at purchasing the units with a three year leasing agreement. The first year of the lease purchase is the most expensive because of the installation costs of about $100,000. At the end of the third year, the District will own the units.

There was a reduction in transportation costs because Wright Tech has now closed and the District will no longer transporting students to that facility. Therefore the District will be using two fewer buses.

Dr. Corda then reviewed the organizational chart on pg 94 of the Operating Budget and slide #53 in the PowerPoint presentation. Dr. Corda indicated that there was a drop in the textbook debt service and there would be additional savings due to the elimination of a secretarial position.

The concentration of focus is on the CALI model and less on instruction at this time. The instructional specialists replaced supervisor positions and enabled the District to engage specialist to work with the staff to facilitate the curriculum.

The next budget reviewed was the Bilingual/ESOL Program; slide 55 in the PowerPoint presentation. Dr. Corda then reviewed the situation regarding the ELL program at Nathan Hale. He explained that currently, the ELL students that would normally attend Nathan Hale have been sent to West Rocks. He added that there were currently three students in ELL programs who could chose to return to Nathan Hale in the coming school year. He then reviewed the teaching model for the ELL students as indicated on page 101 of the Operating Report.

Dr. Corda then reviewed the Pupil Personnel Services, as outlined on slide # 58 and page 106 of the Operating Report. Mr. Daddona then came forward and gave a brief overview of the program and the needs of the students. He pointed out that one of the primary responsibilities of the Pupil Personnel Services is provide consistency and to supervise the out of district students. Mr. Daddona added that the CREC report had addressed this issue and the recommendations have been evaluated. As the recommendations are examined more closely, there will be changes made in the District procedures in regards to the PPS Department. Tomorrow, there will be a meeting with the State staff regarding this issue. Mr. Kimmel expressed concern about whether or not the District would have enough staffing to handle these changes. Dr. Corda acknowledged this and said that should this occur, the Board would be informed.

Ms. Mosby asked about the job responsibility of the Assistant Director of PPS. Dr. Corda and Mr. Daddona then reviewed the various responsibilities of the position, including providing the extended year programs for the Special Needs students who require this. A discussion then followed regarding the evaluation and supervision of the PPS personnel. Mr. Daddona stated that the CREC report was very clear in that the job descriptions needed to change and that the District is working on this with the unions and legal representatives.

The Office of Testing and Student Records has gained much importance in light of the CMTs and data for analysis.

Dr. Corda said that the proposed budget was recommending a 3.8% increase. In previous years, the increase was around 4%. In the past, decisions that were made on reductions in staff were never made on the basis that the staff were unnecessary or unimportant, but done in cases in drops in enrollment or other pressing reasons. It is freely acknowledged that every position that is eliminated will have an impact on the services that the District is able to offer its students. This was an extremely difficult budget to produce.

Dr. Corda said that last night; a recommendation was made to add five teachers to Nathan Hale. There were many questions regarding this, including can it be done with fewer teachers. The answer to this question was that it can be done with three, but it would not allow the school to function in the same manner that it has in the past.

It will be important to approach this budget process with a tremendous amount of civility. The difficult times that the community is experiencing should not divide the community. It will not be easy.

Mr. Kimmel pointed out that the District would be losing more than one million dollars from the State. He added that in the past, the District has been able to maintain the employees when difficult times have been encountered.

Ms. Mosby reiterated that she wanted to see equity from the top down and that there should be no sacred cows.

Ms. Bishop-Pullan asked for the enrollments for the next three years broken down by school.

PUBLIC COMMENTS

Ms. Natalie Alonso came forward and she said that she was a concerned resident, a PTO member, parent, and school bus driver. She expressed concerns about the budget cuts affecting Silvermine School. Both the CREC and the Cambridge reports cited the school as in need of attention, along with No Child Left Behind. The enrollment has dropped because of this and students are opting to go out of district. Hope came to the school in the form a new principal and assistant principal. They have inspired the families by focusing on the students and their education.

Ms. Marge Costa, PTO at Norwalk High School, came forward and said that the Dean of Students was critical at Norwalk High by taking on the responsibility of liaison between students and parents. Often his role is preventative rather than reactionary. He has become one of the best resources regarding keeping students on track and in focus in order to graduate. There are many other responsibilities that the Dean of Students handles and works closely with the House Masters. House Masters need to focus on the academic issues and the Dean of Students

Ms. Marisa Noonan, 7th grade student at Nathan Hale came forward and said that her experience at Nathan Hale has been great, but she was worried about the classes being too big. She said that her mother had thought there were 25 students in her class, but there were actually 28. With the split team, it is hard to get help from the teachers. The teachers have done a great job, but the staff needs that sixth team so that the students can receive the help they need.

Ms. Sue Haunie came forward and said that she was a parent and a taxpayer. Both of her children are dyslexic, and had been in the special education program. She removed her children from the school for ten weeks and paid for a private program. Her children learned to read during that time.

Ms. Haunie said that she had a student at Nathan Hale before Mr. McCain arrived and saw the change that Mr. McCain had on the school. She then referred to the previous night’s budget presentation and said that she had concerns about the proposed changes and the adding only three teachers rather than the five teachers. She then wondered how the special education students would be treated and what the privacy concerns would be.

Ms. Donna Spellman, the PTO president and the parent of three students at Columbus Magnet School. She said that she did not think that there was anyone present who wanted to see cuts in the school budget. She said that it would be important to have all hands on deck. One discouraging thing she used to hear from mothers of young children was that they were planning on moving out of Norwalk before their children reached school age. Norwalk hasn’t had that problem lately, but it

Ms. Margaret Bustell came forward to represent the Special Education students. She said that Special Education has been underfunded historically. It would be important to examine the number of OT and other therapists because the numbers of special needs children are increasing. She said that she would like to see the budget meet the State average. She requested that the Board not forget these students when setting the budget. Ms. Bustell said that parents of Special Needs students often have critical ill children and that others have special emotional needs.

Ms. Diane Lauricella came forward and said that she was the president of the League of Women Voters. She said that she appreciated the efforts of the staff and the Board to open up the budget process and the dialog.

Ms. Laurciella said that one issue that could help reduce the budget would be by reducing the trash by recycling. Ms. Lauricella said that she had problems with DPW regarding this, but she would appeal to Mr. Cook and Ms. Murray regarding this. There was no reciprocity when the League asked to work the Board on this issue.

Ms. Lauricella said that she and other person had urged the schools and offices to turn off computers, TVs and rechargers to reduce the electricity costs, which are going up rather than down.

Ms. Lauricella also suggested that the District regionalize the gas and fuel costs, to re-examine the legal fees, which are too high. She added that using double sided paper would reduce the amount of paper used.

Ms. Kerry O’Neill said that she wished to comment on the budget process, the transparency and the overall issue. She said that the State had intervened because there were eight schools in need of improvement. She said that she thought the budget process would have started with the eight schools being protected from budget cuts. She then asked a series of questions. She then asked if the citizenry had been asked if they would require additional funding for the schools. She then suggested mothballing one elementary schools, and balancing out the student population. It appears that there are two schools that are engaged in a turf battle, but Roton is ignored.

Lauren Rosato came forward and said that she was the Executive Director of the Norwalk Public School Foundation and a parent. She said that she felt that the budget should start with the students first. Otherwise cronyism, politics and favoritism happen. She then spoke about the various issues with Silvermine. Ms. Risotto said that Silvermine gained a reputation as a failure, but now things have started to change. The greatest need in Norwalk is the students learning. She suggested smaller Central Office departments be absorbed and that duties be redistributed across the board. She added that perhaps the staff could take a voluntary pay freeze. As the director of an independent foundation, she took a sizable pay reduction as did many of her staff. She then asked if the District’s mission was clear to the Board.

Ms. Linda Sumpter came forward and said that she was the principal at Ponus School. She said that she did not attend budget meetings, but felt compelled to speak at this time. She said that she was not interested in second guessing other’s needs or services, but simply bringing equity to her own school. She said that she had requested two additional teachers to ease the overcrowding in her school. Ms. Sumpter then presented the various percentages for her student body to the Board. She reminded everyone that the school had reached safe harbor repeatedly, including most recently in 2008, along with receiving a Vanguard award at that time.

Ms. Sumpter said that previously, two sixth grade teachers had been able to teach eighth grade. She said that with two additional teachers, she could create a split team. She then repeated that it was only about the equity.

Mr. John Mosby came forward and said that he had two grandchildren in the public schools. He said that he had been head custodian for 25 years for the District. He said that he was very upset when he heard that the head custodian position, which he negotiated for, was being cut. Mr. Mosby then said that with a head custodian would be responsible if there was a fire in the school. He said that when he was at Norwalk High recently, there was no paper towels, the sink and toilet were broken.

Dr. Lynne Moore then came forward and said that the superintendent must provide the four year enrollment data for the Board. The principals of the buildings where the cuts are being recommended should be afforded an opportunity to address the Board about the impact of the cuts on their schools. She asked how the Superintendent could cut custodial positions when they were so needed for set up, clean up and various other work orders. She said that she hoped that the Board would ask for an evaluation for this process and to develop a new method for the budget cuts.

Ms. Mollie Medico, a parent and Ponus PTO president. She said that the good and bad news was that Ponus was doing really well. When Ponus does well, something seems to mess it up and the school has to beg for equity. When the classes are larger than 22, the school risks slipping backwards. She asked that the Board stop putting the District at risk.

Mr. James McDonald then came forward and asked some questions, such as streamlining the Central Office, evaluating the staff and other issues. He pointed out that there was a low public attendance at the three budget meetings and wondered if this was because it was done over the holidays deliberately. He then asked the Board to debate the issues and provide high quality education regardless to which school they attend.

Mr. Mellion came forward and reiterated his statements regarding pages 11 and 12 of the Superintendent Operating Budget Request 2009-2010 regarding the lack of transparency and data. He then suggested that wholesale cuts were made, and that there needed to be equity. He said that the deans provide a service and needs to be left in place. He also asked why revenue sources were not examined.

Mr. Michael Carroll came forward. He said that as one that worked in the corporate world, one does not cut the strongest asset. He said that Nathan Hale had become a strong asset and it was important to handle it carefully.

Ms. Krishna came forward and said that it was important to evaluate the various positions. She then said that speech therapists provide a valuable service to the students. She encouraged the Board to re-examine the budget carefully and not to cut vital services. She then suggested that the District use emails to the parents rather than sending paper announcement.

BOARD OF EDUCATION DISCUSSION.

Ms. Murray said that she felt that the Board should wait until next Tuesday for a full discussion because there was some information that Dr. Corda would be providing. Ms. Rivas requested information on referrals for disciplinary problems at the high schools and other information. Mr. Burnett requested that there would be some type of priority listing for the budget, both in the reduction category and the expense category.

ADJOURNMENT

** MR. IANNACCONE MOVED TO ADJOURN. ** MR. CHIARAMONTE SECONDED. ** THE MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY.

The meeting adjourned at 10:15 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Sharon L. Soltes Telesco Secretarial Services

Category: Minutes