OCTORARA AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT

Minutes of Board Meeting Held on March 12, 2012

The regular work session of the Octorara Area School Board was held in the Octorara Area Jr./Sr. High School Multi-Purpose Room on March 12, 2012. The Lords Prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag preceded the meeting. The President, Ms. Bowman, called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. Other members present were: Mr. Ganow, Mr. Hume, Ms. Johnson, Mr. Lapp, Mr. McCartney, Dr. Melton, Mr. Norris, and Mr. Stoltzfus. Also present were; Mrs. Hardy, Secretary; Dr. Newcome, Superintendent; Mr. Carsley, Business Manager; members of the administrative team; one reporter; and 9 citizens. Under presentations, Mr. Carsley said he applied for Act 1 exceptions in December. These exceptions were approved at $1,185,000. Exceptions allow districts to increase taxes beyond the index to the amount of the approved exceptions. Mr. Carsley said he has received updated health care rates and will update the budget with these figures next week. Ms. Bowman said just because the exceptions have been approved doesnt mean they will be used. Mr. Hume asked if there have been any changes to the budget. Dr. Newcome reviewed the following memo prepared for the Board regarding budget related items: 1. Staffing Reductions Retirements and Resignations (Teachers) a. Health and Physical Education, Full-Time Position We had a resignation mid-year and we placed a Long Term Substitute into the position to finish the year. We will plan the program without replacing this position. b. Special Education, Full-Time Position Retirement. We will plan the program without replacing this position. c. Vocational Agriculture, Full-Time Position Retirement. We will plan the program without replacing this position. d. Music, Full-Time Position Projected Retirement. We will plan the program without replacing this position. Retirements (Administration) a. Assistant Superintendent, Full-Time Position. We will plan the operation of the District without replacing this position. b. Building and Grounds Supervisor, Full-Time Position. We will plan the operation of the District with a reduction in force in the maintenance department but we do not have the projected plan in place at this time. The reductions in work-force outlined above will provide a reduction in spending of about $500,000 in salaries and benefits. A more exact number will be provided after we finalize the plans for the Buildings and Grounds position as well as some minor cost to make the removal of the music position work. 2. Kindergarten Over the past month we have looked at several possibilities for the kindergarten program. As most remember we moved away from our traditional half-day program during the budget discussions last spring and we initiated an Alternate Day, Full Day program for the majority of our students. We maintained two classes of Every Day, Full Day for thirty-five of our most at-risk students and we provided a choice of Half Day, Every Day for parents that agreed to provide mid-day transportation.

In February we surveyed parents to get a feel from them about the options. That report is included in your packet of information. I will not interpret the data for you so as not to bias your reflections. In addition to the survey results included in the packet is some testing data for the present kindergarten students. We have had multiple conversations with the teachers about the strengths and weaknesses of the program as it is presently designed. Consistently, the teachers and their principal advocate that we should offer Full Day, Every Day program for all students. However, if this option is not on the table they have expressed concerns in four areas: 1. They believe we need more Full Day, Every Day classes for the most at-risk students as we experience more students coming to kindergarten with greater deficits in preparation for school. 2. They believe we need to better balance and control class size. 3. They believe that a routine schedule for all children better serves the educational needs of the children. 4. They believe, as stated previously, that every student should have Full Day, Every Day program since so much of what used to be done in Grade 1 is now done in Kindergarten. Having been given these concerns I asked the teachers and Ms. McNamara to discuss solutions that might address these concerns. I present these to the Board in the order in which the teachers recommend them. (I use an enrollment number of 180 students in the following examples): #1 Full Day, Every Day For All Students This option would require eight (8) teachers if we keep class size at twenty-three (23) students per class. We presently have five and one-half (5.5) teaching positions in kindergarten. The additional two and one-half (2.5) teaching positions would cost approximately $150,000 if we use minimal starting rates for teachers. If we add three and one-half (3.5) teachers we would have class sizes near 20 students per class and the additional cost would be approximately $210,000. If we went to Full Day, Every Day for all students without adding staff we would have class size of thirty-three (33) students. #2 Half Day, Every Day For All Students (Except Two Classes of At-Risk Students) This is a return to the program we ran in 2010-2011 and traditionally have run with varying numbers of at-risk classrooms. Two (2) Full Day, Every Day classes for at-risk students with eighteen (18) students per class. Seven (7) Half Day, Every Day classes with twenty-one (21) students per class. Approximately $80,000 addition to budget for mid-day transportation. Teachers agree that transportation would need to be offered. There would be no additional cost if midday transportation was not included. The teachers really see none of the following options as possibilities but there was discussion about each. Therefore, I will not number these options. I did ask the teachers to consider that if we are going to spend additional funds this year for kindergarten would they consider spending these funds in a manner other than for additional bussing. This consideration is included in some of these options.

Remain As-Is 2 Full Day, Every Day classes for at-risk students (18 per class) 2 Half Day, Every Day classes with parent provided transportation (15 per class) 5 Full Day, Alternate Day classes (23 per class) This option would add nothing to the budget Full Day, Alternate Day For All Students With five and one-half (5.5) teaching positions we would have eleven (11) classes. Class Size would be seventeen (17) per class. This option would cost no additional funds. Add one teacher and we will have thirteen classes and the class sizes drop to fourteen (14) students per class. Full Day, Every Day For Two At-Risk Classes, Eliminate Two (2) Half Day, Every Day Classes, And Have Seven (7) Full Day, Alternate Day Classes Two Full Day, Every Day classes for at-risk students (18 per class) Seven Full Day, Alternate Day classes (21 per class) This option would cost no additional funds. Add one teacher and create an additional Full Day, Every Day class for at-risk students and class size for these classes would remain at eighteen and the class size for the seven alternate day classes would be eighteen (18). This option would cost at least $60,000. Three Full Day Every Day For At-Risk classes, One Half Day, Every Day With Parent Provided Transportation Classes, and Six Full Day. Alternate Day Classes Three Full Day Every Day (18 per class) One Half Day, Every Day (18 per class) Seven Full Day, Alternate Day (18 per class) This requires the addition of a teacher and not a bus cost $60,000. Two Full Day, Every Day At-Risk Classes, One Half Day, Every Day Class With Parent Provided Transportation, and Eight Full Day, Alternate Day Classes Two Full Day, Every Day (18 per class) One Half Day, Every Day (18 per class) Eight Full Day, Alternate Day (16 per class) This requires the addition of a teacher and not a bus cost $60,000. Two Full Day, Every Day At-Risk Classes and Nine Full Day, Alternate Day Classes Two Full Day, Every Day At-Risk Classes (18 per class) Nine Full Day, Alternate Day Classes (16 per class) This requires the addition of a teacher and not a bus cost $60,000. Except for Full Day, Every Day Kindergarten for all students, none of these options address every concern of the teachers. This option addresses only the class size concern if we build in enough staffing. Recommendation: Most of you know that I brought the Full Day, Alternate Day option forward last year and I pushed very hard to implement it. I believe the idea brought some creativity to the long-standing discussion about kindergarten. However, after a good faith effort to implement this program I am left with the belief that we should return to the program as we ran it in 2010-2011.

Please understand, Full Day, Every Day for all students is the recommendation from the teaching staff and many parents advocate for the same. So, while this moves us back to the long-standing program of past years and a more familiar program it will not settle the argument over kindergarten. Mr. Norris said the comments and data are very enlightening. He thanked Dr. Newcome, Ms. McNamara, kindergarten teachers, and the parents for their effort to find out what is best for the students. Ms. Johnson asked how many surveys were sent out and how many were returned. Ms. McNamara said 184 surveys were both emailed and sent through the mail and there were 92 returned with responses. She said the survey was sent a second time to anyone who had not responded. There were no visitors comments for agenda items only or information items. Ms. Bowman presented the following items for action at the March 19, 2012 Board meeting: A. That the Octorara Board of School Directors approve Ms. Caitlin Cellini as a long term substitute sixth grade teacher at the Octorara Intermediate School effective February 29, 2012 for approximately four to six weeks. Ms. Cellinis rate will be $140 per day. (Replacing a medical leave.) B. That the Octorara Board of School Directors approve Ms. Gail Bolger as a long term substitute business education teacher at the Octorara Area Sr. High School effective February 22, 2012 through June 8, 2012. Ms. Bolgers rate will be $140 per day. (Replacing a medical leave.) C. That the Octorara Board of School Directors approve Ms. Debbie Shank as a long term substitute secretary to the principal at the Octorara Area Sr. High School effective February 22, 2012 through June 8, 2012. Ms. Shanks rate will be $16.41 per hour. (Replacing Gail Bolger who is substituting.) D. That the Octorara Board of School Directors approve the following supplemental contracts for the 2011-2012 school year: Mark Barto Kendall Dixon Assistant Track Coach Assistant Track Coach 6 pts @ $570 6 pts @ $570 $3,420 $3,420

E. That the Octorara Board of School Directors approve the attached list of student teachers as test proctors for the PSSA. Dr. Newcome asked the Board for consideration to vote on the agenda item tonight because new rules have been received from the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE). PSSA testing starts this week and we want them to be listed as official employees of the District to fulfill the PDE requirements. There is no salary listed because we will not be paying them for this service. Mr. Ganow confirmed this is a new law because he has never seen this before. He asked if this was a normal number of student teachers. Dr. Newcome said it is probably more than normal. We try to be cooperative with the universities but he has spoken with them about the high number of student teachers this semester. Ms. Bowman asked if by participating in the student teacher program do we take the students that are sent to us or do we have some control over the number that is sent. Dr. Newcome said we have total control over the number sent we try to be accommodating. Student teachers may bring new ideas and it never hurts to have another adult present in the classroom.

Mr. Ganow asked what universities we receive student teachers from. He asked if they have background checks and do we have to pay for those clearances. Dr. Newcome said background checks are in place when the student teachers arrive in our buildings. We do not pay for them. We typically receive students from Millersville, West Chester, Lincoln University, and Immaculata. On motion of Mr. Stoltzfus, second by Mr. McCartney and approval of all members present, the Octorara Board of School Directors approved the attached list of student teachers as test proctors for the PSSA. (Appendix A-3/12/12) Under the Facilities Committee Report, Mr. Stoltzfus said they are tying up loose ends and completing the punch list on the high school renovation project. There may be a few change orders remaining but most of them will be credits. The letters sent to the contractors regarding the water issue in the high school is going back and forth between solicitors at this time. The original contractor will be returning to address the water issue at the Intermediate School. Mr. Stoltzfus reported that isolators were installed on the air conditioning units of the shop wing at the high school on February 15, 2012. They have not run at full capacity yet to see if that resolves the noise issue. The committee is still working on prioritizing future needs including air conditioning pumps and the carpeting and flooring at the PLC. It was brought to Mr. Stoltzfus attention recently that the carpets at the PLC may still be under warranty. It was looked into and discovered the problem was with the adhesive not the carpet. They are still researching the options for this issue. Mr. Stoltzfus said there will be an agenda item next week to accept the bid of $689,607.74 to replace the remaining roof on the Jr. High School. It is possible there could be an increase if drains or decking needs to be replaced when the current roof is removed. The original estimate was $885,000. The committee has authorized a study to be done on the Jr. High to make a recommendation on what needs to be done to repair the brick work. There is ongoing discussion regarding the varsity field and the track repairs. There has been a committee formed with booster clubs, coaches, and other interested parties. A recommendation on what to do with sports playing on the field this fall will be made at the April board meeting. Mr. Stoltzfus said research is ongoing with Energy Services Company to see if they can provide a reduction in energy costs. The facilities garage parking contract has been signed with the contractor who will be using the parking lot. Mr. Stoltzfus reported during the heavy rains last fall the storage room in the basement of the Jr. High was flooded and some of the documents have gotten moldy. The committee is looking into getting a company in to do the clean up. No insurance funds can be used because it will not meet the deductible. The District will apply to FEMA for a refund. Mr. Norris gave a report on the Education Committee that met on February 27, 2012. He said he enjoys sitting with the administrators and seeing their excitement for programs and activities. He said Ms. Wilson gave information regarding the Summer Reading Requirement for all students. Mr. Rohrer and Ms. Wilson gave an update on the senior privilege criteria and allowing students to have senior privilege if they meet proficiency in the 11th grade PSSA. The incentive program for PSSA is Study Island. There are other incentives as well. The kindergarten parent survey results were given and will be discussed further. Mr. Harmer discussed the Elementary School reading block changes for next year. The pilot for reading workshop was very successful. Mr. Norris reported that all teachers are on board

for the 2-1/2 hour reading block which will push students out of their comfort level as well as allow for more one-on-one conferencing between student and teacher. He said Mr. Czetli and Mr. Rohrer gave a presentation on getting iPads for the students and the potential it would give students for programs moving forward. There are many details that still need to be worked out such as cost and how it will be rolled out. Dr. Newcome reviewed program changes due to staffing. Ms. Wilson gave an update on the Summer Literacy Camp and the changes in cost. Students who dont have an IEP or who arent Title I or ESY students will pay $400 for all five weeks or $100 per week for anything less than five weeks of attendance. Mr. Harmer, Mr. Haller, and Ms. McNamara provided After School Enrichment Program information. Mr. Norris said this could be a very beneficial program for the most at risk students. The approximate cost would be $141,000. Mr. Stoltzfus said the Intermediate Unit is looking into purchasing iPads for students. They asked Apple for a special deal for a quantity purchase but the iPads are so popular, Apple is not offering any deals. Under other items or concerns Ms. Bowman said last month Ms. Lorraine Harmer brought one copy of a document she compiled on area charter schools. This document was copied and included in the Board packet. An additional page labeled Recommendations from Ms. Harmer that was not included in the original document was passed out to Board members. Ms. Bowman asked if there was any discussion, questions, or comments on the document prepared by Ms. Harmer. Mr. Norris said he appreciated the detail of the document. He had the opportunity to read Ms. Harmers document and Dr. Newcome response back-to-back. He found the level of conversation regarding charter schools interesting. Ms. Bowman thanked Ms. Harmer for putting together the information. She said this information is not new to the Board. She said Board discussions are not aimed at whether charter schools are good or bad but rather are they significantly better to justify the additional spending of tax dollars. Under visitors comments in general, Ms. Lorraine Harmer, Highland Township referred to her charts of test results in reading and math in grade 3 comparing Avon Grove Charter School and Octorara, and reading and math in grades 6 and 11 comparing Avon Grove Charter School, Octorara, and 21st Century Cyber Charter School. She said Octorara is struggling in reading. She said Dr. Newcome knows this and said he is working on the problem. Ms. Harmer said it is like smoke and mirrors. She said she doesnt know what you are doing in your school. She said she believes there is a real deficiency in reading. Ms. Harmer told the Board members to focus with a critical eye. She said if students get reading everything else will fall in place. Ms. Harmer said she did research and chose Avon Grove Charter School for her children to attend. She said they put all kids together and have one regular teacher and one special education teacher in each classroom. She hopes the districts can work together. Ms. Harmer said she did research and sees every schools weaknesses and every schools strengths. She wants the schools to work together for a coalition. She said the kindergarten teachers want full day kindergarten Ms. Harmer believes the reading scores reflect not having all day kindergarten. She asked if there is increased funding from the state if we have all day kindergarten. Ms. Harmer said she doesnt know what specialties people have who are on the Board. Does anyone have an MBA or does anyone specialize in grant writing? She said I dont know what is happening but I think the District could be losing money with substitute teachers. She said most districts use placement services for substitute teachers. She recommended the Board use SWOT analysis. She gave ideas to increase student retention. Ms. Harmer said she read in the minutes where parents brought students out to support the band program. She said she wasnt at that meeting, but it sounded impersonal in the minutes. Ms. Harmer felt some of her children werent given scholarships by the Education Foundation because her older children were attending charter

school. She said staff has made comments to her since she has chosen to send her students to charter school. Her students went to the Summer Reading Program and she was told they dont help charter school students because they cost us money. She said it was very disrespectful. Ms. Harmer said parents send students elsewhere because we dont offer full day kindergarten. She said charter schools lose students to their home schools in grades six and nine because they dont offer sports. Ms. Harmer said regarding performance if scores are low, it is hard to retain students. She told the Board they should look honestly at themselves and talk to students. She said there are a lot of students in study hall and students would rather have something to do. She believes staff has seen an imbalance in scheduling. Ms. Harmer said she spoke to Dr. Newcome earlier in the day about his attempt to have Dr. Brady talk to him. She said she spoke with Dr. Brady and he said he was not aware of the letter Dr. Newcome sent. She told Dr. Newcome that Dr. Brady and Mr. Delfin are open to talk to him. Ms. Harmer said she would love to see a coalition to get everyone working together. Dr. Melton said she appreciates Ms. Harmers comments. She asked what year is represented on the graphs of test scores on page four of the document. Ms. Harmer said she believes they are last years scores. Dr. Melton said when only one year is represented, you cant see the trend. She asked why Ms. Harmer picked only those three grades for the graph. Are they the only grades that took the PSSA? Dr. Melton said it would have given a better picture if the all grades who took the PSSA were included. Ms. Harmer said the graph shows math and reading scores for grades 3, 6, and 11. She said she can compare all schools in the county. Ms. Harmer said the big picture shows that Octorara is struggling in reading. Dr. Melton said the critical eye would have looked at the big picture over time. Ms. Lois Lantz, West Fallowfield Township, said she wanted to focus on two positive things. She said there are a lot of good things going on at Octorara. She feels one of the positives is music. She was never involved with the music program before and this year her son in the Intermediate School wanted to play an instrument and she was against it. She said her son and Mr. Reynolds talked her into it. She is amazed at the program. She said Mr. Reynolds is a great teacher and she is grateful he and her son talked her into it. She hopes to have the opportunity to continue in music. She also wanted to publically congratulate the boys basketball team. She said it is exciting to watch and be part of the enthusiasm of the players and the coach. Ms. Lantz said there are a lot of good thing going on at Octorara and we should focus on the positive. Mr. Larry Lavenberg, Atglen, said he noticed the Auditor General sent two letters to the Governor one each last year and this year saying funding for charter and cyber schools is out of whack. He said with that in mind all that does is put more tax load on the people that are paying for public schools. It is inconsistent. He said this needs to be fixed before there are more charter and cyber schools. He said he has nothing against those schools but the burden comes back to taxpayers. Mr. Lavenberg said he would like to know if there is anything up for a vote in the senate to address this problem. Under Administrator comments or announcements, Mr. Harmer announced Payton Bromley, Heather Scribner, and Maura Hurley will be traveling to Westtown School to perform at the Chorus Fest on March 30. They will join 130 other students in grades four through six from Chester and Delaware Counties for this performance. Mr. Rohrer said he had the opportunity to join students in grades seven and eight at the National History Day competition recently. Brian Robinson, Alexander Meek, C.J. Huntsinger, and Andrew Agen took second place and Anna Cassidy took first place in the event. They will advance to the state competition to be held next month. Mr. Rohrer announced Brandon Arnsberger took eighth place in State competition in wrestling and the

boys basketball team will play Arch Bishop Carroll in State playoffs tomorrow night at Coatesville High School. Mr. Propper said although we dont offer swimming we are represented by several students. Caitlin Coughlin qualified for swimming in the State competition. Mr. Rohrer said many of our students placed in the art awards. He will give that information next week. Dr. Newcome asked Mr. Carsley to address Ms. Harmers question about state reimbursement on full day versus half day kindergarten. Mr. Carsley said he will have an answer for next week. Dr. Newcome said he has a response to Ms. Harmers document on charter schools that he will give her at the end of the meeting. He said he was careful in developing his response to be supportive of a community member bringing data to the Board. He said he wanted the tone to be respectful and fair. Dr. Newcome said for nine years he has guarded against misstatements and partial truths directed toward the volunteers that sit at this table. When someone steps up to the microphone and uses language like the Board needs to have honest dialogue or the discussions are just smoke and mirrors he feels compelled to respond. If one wants to advocate for open, honest dialogue, one should take care to measure their words when addressing the volunteer Board. Under Board Comments, Dr. Melton said she is still learning what she does as a Board member and takes her responsibility seriously. She does a lot of research in her spare time. She is interested in conversation on charter schools and thinks changes will take place because of budget issues. She believes what we are doing now is unsustainable in regards to taxes. She appreciates the conversation and hope it continues. Mr. Hume said he didnt understand if Ms. Harmers document was for comparison or assistance. He said everything in the document the Board knows and understands. He said there is nothing in the document about the financial difficulties the community is facing. He said he thinks our school is doing a good job. He said a few years ago we had only a few AP classes with not many students in those classes. He said we have tripled the program and none of that information is included in the document. Mr. Hume said Ms. Harmer did not include anything about the poverty level or the amount of single family homes in the District. Mr. Hume invited Ms. Harmer to join the Octorara Communities that Care to help do things for the community. Mr. Hume said he would like to see all day kindergarten. He thinks we should look into a parent donation figure to help with the cost. Mr. Hume expressed his concern about the voucher program. Mr. Hume made a correction to his comment last month when he mentioned House Bill 1 it is actually Senate Bill 1. He said it is in committee and there are no scheduled meetings to deal with Senate Bill 1. Mr. Hume hopes people notify their Senators to stop SB1 as he feels it is aimed at wrecking public schools. Mr. Lapp said he thinks charter schools are a discussion worth having. He said his kids went to private school in the elementary grades and are now attending the high school. Mr. Lapp said he believes charter schools need to charge tuition. He believes the competition is good. He said he would be okay with the voucher system to let parents choose where to send their kids. He said let the free market work out and lets not be scared of competition. Dr. Melton said competition is great but when one entity has no mandates and the other entity has mandate upon mandate, you are competing with that entity having one hand tied behind their back. It has to be a fair competition. She said competition is good but not when the rules are different for different entities. Mr. Ganow said one thing in Ms. Harmers document he doesnt understand is if the tuition cost is $6,000 why are we paying them $10,000? Mr. Ganow said this document furthers his opinion that charter schools are a racquet. He said there is a disconnect and asked if anyone is bringing this to the attention of Harrisburg. Dr. Newcome said he put a document together that he shared with Representative John Lawrence and he is reaching out to others to make sure they hear us.

Mr. Ganow said Representative Lawrence is not a good one to talk to. He said every time we have this conversation, he gets mad. Ms. Bowman said we have to focus on what we are here for to get students from kindergarten through grade 12 with the budget and tools we have. We have some concerns but we are doing very good things here as evidenced by the accomplishments of the students. She said when she hears comments prefaced with I dont know what you are doing in your school or Im not sure what is happening, but I think she questions the accuracy of those complaints and suggestions. Ms. Bowman said our staff is working very hard to improve any deficiency we have. It is hard to hear criticism that may not be founded in truth. She said we need to focus on what we do at this table. Mr. Ganow said 60 Minutes featured a story of parents red shirting their kindergarten students so they have an advantage. He asked if we have any of that happening here. Ms. McNamara said we do not have a lot of retentions but if a parent demands it, we have to comply. Ms. Bowman reported on the following meetings to be held: Executive Session for personnel Monday, March 12, 2012 Following the Regular Meeting in the District Office Conference Room Policy Committee Meeting Monday, March 19, 2012 6:00 p.m. in the District Office Conference Room Finance Committee Meeting Monday, March 19, 2012 6:30 p.m. in the District Office Conference Room Next regularly scheduled Board Meeting Monday, March 19, 2012 7:30 p.m. in the Octorara Jr./Sr. High School Multi-Purpose Room Education Committee Meeting Monday, March 26, 2012 6:00 p.m. in the District Office Conference Room There being no further items of business the meeting adjourned at 8:45 p.m. on motion of Mr. Stoltzfus, second by Mr. McCartney and approval of all members present. Respectfully submitted,

Jill L. Hardy, Secretary Octorara Board of School Directors