Regular Meeting of the AMHERSTSchool Committee
Tuesday, January 16, 2007, 7:00 p.m.
High School Library
Present: Andy Churchill, Chair Jere Hochman, Superintendent
Tom Flittie Susan Kennedy Marx, CF Asst. Principal
Elaine Brighty Mark Prince, WW Principal
Alisa Brewer (arrived at 7:23 p .m.) Russ Vernon-Jones, FR Principal
Paul Wiley, CF Principal
Nick Yaffe, MM Principal
Rob Detweiler, Dir. of Finance & Operations
Public
Press
Debbie Westmoreland, Recorder
Absent: Sonia Correa Pope
1. Welcome 7:00 p.m.
A. & B. Call to Order/Agenda Review—Mr. Churchill called the meeting to order at 7:04 p.m. He then reviewed the agenda and welcomed everyone to the meeting.
C. Minutes—None
2. Announcements and Public Comments None
3. Superintendent’s Update 7:05 p.m.
Dr. Hochman noted that on Wednesday, January 17 there will be a parent input meeting for the elementary school budget at Crocker Farm beginning at 7:00 p.m. In addition, Dr. Hochman’s Budget 101 presentation will air on ACTV several more times during the next two weeks. It was noted that the next Budget Advisory Committee meeting is scheduled for January 24 at Noon. The group will continue the discussion of the pros and cons of an override.
4. Unfinished/Continuing Business 7:10 p.m.
A. Policies for Approval—Mr. Flittie made a motion to approve the following policies, which have already been approved by the Regional School Committee, as a block:
Ms. Brighty seconded and the motion passed unanimously. Mr. Churchill thanked Ms. Brighty for all of the work she is doing in updating the policies.
B. Budget Development Meeting #3: General Overview—Dr. Hochman noted that January is the month during which the district is gathering input regarding the budget. He emphasized that the budget is not built at this point. What is being presented tonight is a working booklet for use as the budget is being built. Dr. Hochman then briefly reviewed the assumptions that are being followed in the budget-building process. Mr. Detweiler then distributed and reviewed a worksheet outlining the projected changes in the FY08 budget. He noted that as the budget building process begins, most budget items are being moved forward with no change. Line items that reflect a change are those that have a known, fixed cost that must be factored in. Mr. Detweiler explained that to meet the Finance Committee guideline of a 1% maximum increase, the budget will require net cuts of $706,447.00. Mr. Detweiler then distributed and reviewed the document “Amherst Public Schools: FY08 Base Budget Preparation Document.” He noted that the bulk of the lines show an increase of 0% to reflect what the budget looks like when it is simply rolled forward with only the required increases and decreases as outlined in the worksheet. Dr. Hochman explained the process that will be followed to review and determine what will be added and what will be cut in order to build the final budget. Mr. Churchill reviewed the items that were cut in the budget in FY07 as a reminder of what has already been lost in the district budget. He noted that these cuts are on top of major cuts that were made in FY06. Mr. Churchill expressed his concern about the effects these cuts will have on all students, but particularly on those students who are most at risk. Dr. Hochman asked the School Committee if they want to provide any particular direction regarding priorities as these cuts are considered. Ms. Brighty noted concern about the different experiences students are having class by class due to class size variations at the schools. Mr. Churchill noted that he is glad Dr. Hochman is meeting with staff and parents for input. He stated that he would argue hardest for trying to save those things that support students at risk. Mr. Flittie asked about the possibility of shifting boundaries of the schools to save money. Dr. Hochman said the idea has come up in budget discussions with staff and that it is part of the demographic discussion. Ms. Brighty noted that the entire supply budget for the whole district has been cut to $70,000 in a budget of more than $19 million. As a result, teachers must buy supplies on their own. Mr. Churchill stated that professional development has been cut drastically, too, so teachers are also being asked to do new things without training. Ms. Brewer asked what the timing is for releasing the specifics about the cuts that will be made. Dr. Hochman stated that the original plan has been to gather input during the month of January and to release the final list in the first week of February.
5. New Business 7:49 p.m.
A. School, Program and District Organization Discussion Related to Demographic Study—Mr. Churchill noted that the district is about to undergo a demographic study made by a non-profit organization (New England School Development Council) to assist in making decisions about the best configurations for the Amherst elementary schools. He noted that the current boundary lines are somewhat arbitrary and that there are some equity issues among the schools. Dr. Hochman said that this is a good opportunity for the School Committee to give input about concerns they would like to see addressed by the demographic study. Mr. Churchill noted the following equity issues:
He stated that he feels it is important to consider whether these are significant enough issues to warrant making a change in the schools. He is also interested in looking at whether there are any professional benefits to clustering the schools by grade level. Mr. Churchill noted that some drawbacks to moving from neighborhood schools to grade-level schools could be reduced parent involvement, transportation issues, opportunities for inter-grade level interactions among students, and the ability to implement a grade-level system with the buildings we have. Ms. Brighty stated that it is also imperative to learn from the demographic study how the population is changing since these changes have a huge impact on the schools. Mr. Vernon-Jones expressed his appreciation that the district is gathering data; however, he noted that there will be very different cultures developed in grade-level schools. He encouraged School Committee members to ensure that there will be visits schools that have any alternative type of structure that may be considered. Mr. Churchill stated that if other configurations come under consideration there will definitely be visits to other districts before any changes are made. Mr. Yaffe encouraged the School Committee to look at The Cambridge Model when they are considering any potential changes. Ms. Brewer asked who will be in charge of determining models that should be considered during this process. Dr. Hochman noted that the public engagement process will be important, much as it is in the Town’s Master Plan. In addition, it will be important to map out a long-range plan.
6. Reports None
7. School Committee Planning 9:12 p.m.
A. Sub-Committee Reports—Dr. Hochman reported that the Budget Advisory Group met for the first time last Friday morning. He noted that the idea of the group is to gather input on the school budgets from community members whose expertise is in finance. They will be asked to scrutinize the budgets and ask the tough questions. The group is scheduled to meet again on January 26th at 8:00 a.m.
B. Calendar Review—AmherstSchool Committee on February 13, Elementary Budget Meeting, January 17 at Crocker Farm, January 30 AmherstTown Budget Forum
C. Items for Upcoming Meetings
8. Adjournment 8:37 p.m.
Ms. Brighty made a motion to adjourn at 8:37 p.m. Mr. Flittie seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
Respectfully submitted,
Debbie Westmoreland
Approved 2/13/07