Meeting began at 9:10 a.m. with silence.
Lucy Hansen reported that the Consultation Committee reviewed and recommended approving the Director's Note of Agreement for the 2005-06 fiscal year. The agreement increases the Director's salary. The new salary will go into effect July 1. Lucy will meet with Jan Luchini to make the offer prior to the April School Committee meeting. Approved.
Lucy Hansen also reported that Jan has asked that the Committee do an evaluation of her performance during this past year. Discussion about various aspects of the evaluation followed. One concern was the depth of the evaluation " the extent to which various constituencies will be contacted for feedback. Bob Yeats suggested that we contact many parents as an enhancement of the School's communication with parents. The report is due at the May School Committee Meeting. Members of the Human Resources Committee (Anita Allwood and Barb Garlinghouse) will take responsibility for preparing the evaluation. Richard Johnson will be asked to assist with the process.
Lucy Hansen made the observation that Committee members became somewhat carried away with micromanagement during the December meeting. Specifically, ideas that need to be discussed with individuals rather than in a large committee meeting were being discussed during the meeting. She reminded Committee members to be aware of our role and that we have responsibility to policy not solutions. Solutions are the responsibility of the director and the staff. Committee members should not put staff on the spot inappropriately. Lucy asked us to be aware of our inclinations to micromanage and speak up about it when we notice it happening.
Ed Clopton brought up a concern about Committee members being expected to donate to the capital campaign. His concern is that prospective School Committee members should be informed about such expectations when they are asked to serve. Discussion about a variety of aspects of this issue followed. One concern is the manner in which the request is made " The Development Director has been stating a specific desired/hoped for donation when meeting with individuals. Some people are uncomfortable with that approach. The idea that School Committee members need to educate ourselves about the impact of the committee on the capital campaign was also discussed. There was also discussion about what information the Yearly Meeting Nominations Committee has regarding school committee responsibilities. Dan Treadway who serves on the Development Subcommittee will discuss these issues with the Development Director.
Bob Winchell asked about the Director's living off campus and stated his concern that this not be a permanent policy change.
Lucy Hansen reminded us that Page 1 of our handbook contains a description of School Committee members' responsibilities and suggested that it may be helpful for all of us to look at that again.
Dan Treadway suggested a change from the use of "re" to "regarding" in the final paragraph of the closed session minutes.
The Minutes were approved with that change.
Lucy Hansen announced that Mid-year meeting will be held April 16-17.
Lucy Hansen also announced that Irene McHenry has a conflict for our scheduled April 1 & 2 retreat. Irene suggested that Ginny Christensen come as her replacement. The retreat will be on Saturday with our usual School Committee meeting being held Friday, April 1. Barb Garlinghouse and Anita Allwood agreed to assist Lucy with setting the agenda for the retreat.
Ed Clopton announced that he brought yearly meeting minute books for committee members to take to their monthly meetings.
Jeff Cox reported on the subcommittee's meeting this a.m. Jennifer Warneke, who will be the Academic Coordinator next year, attended the meeting. Heather Godley reported that teaching staff's peer review process is going well. Subcommittee members asked about setting standards for those meetings. The Subcommittee talked about structured study hall. Heather Godley reports that students are getting used to the policy, that it is working well and serving its purpose. The Subcommittee also had discussion about the issue of preparing students for standardized testing necessary to application for college. Scattergood students are tested annually on ACT related tests. There was also discussion about advanced placement courses and whether or not Scattergood students can participate and whether or not it will affect students' ability to be accepted to the colleges of their choice. Jeff reported that there is a growing emphasis on SAT 2 subject related tests for college admission.
Jan expressed her belief in the importance of investing in our teachers and her hope that doing so will improve academics at Scattergood.
Jan reminded committee members of the forthcoming ISACS site visit. She stated that the Sunday invitation is a welcoming visit. On Monday afternoon at 5:00 p.m. part of the ISACS team would like to spend time with members of the school committee.
Barb Garlinghouse reported about meeting with the students yesterday. She stated her belief that Erin Lane had done a good job of reflecting the community on campus in her written report to the Committee. Barb believes students are appreciative that staff listened to them, heard them, and that the students felt valued. Students were surprised that staff were not more aware of what their concerns were. The impact of having fewer students than usual upon students and the depth of community activity was discussed. Students felt included in the teacher evaluations. Barb said the subcommittee is working on updating their portions of the Long Range Plan.
Dan Treadway shared his experience while assisting with changing some light fixtures. What seemed a simple problem became larger than it appeared. He expressed his appreciation for the complications of keeping up the facilities at the School. Joey Giffen-Hunter reported that family camp may not be held due to construction projects. The intent is to set it aside for this year only. Joey reported that he has received a contract from architect John Shaw for design of the construction project. The School attorney is reviewing the contract. Joey reported that the farm cottage is difficult to live in. The furnace goes out. It has a composting toilet, and the water is freezing. He said that there is a need to make a decision regarding continuing the upkeep on this building and that may not be worth fixing. The problems are placing our staff person in an untenable living situation.
Bob Winchell reported that the Farm Subcommittee had a meeting last night. He reported that Farm Staff are resting up until the Spring begins. They are ordering seeds. There are going to be lambs and calves this spring. He said there are no concerns to report at this time.
Jan Luchini reported that tuition income will be off by $71,000 which is 7% of budget. She said that she and staff are limiting discretionary spending. The staff have considerable pride about being good at getting good deals, and do not waste school money in any way possible. Jan stated that this effort won't make up full amount, but they will do best that they can. She expressed her hope that this is a one year hiccup. Jan reported that part of this loss is due to the fact that four(4) students decided they were not coming back this semester. We don't try to collect second semester tuition from people who choose to leave the school. Jan explained that when parents are signing their child's admissions contract they are committing for the full year. Jan stated that if we ask students to leave it is reasonable that we would forgive second semester tuition. She stated her belief that it would be good to consider taking ifs, ands and buts off the tuition agreement so that it states more what school's practice is. Jeff Cox suggested charging a penalty for withdrawal. Jan will change the term of the admissions agreement to a year and discuss with the ISACS team what their terms are. The new agreement will need to be reviewed by an attorney. Jan will bring the new agreement to our next meeting. Approved
A Committee member posed a question about "other assets" listed on the balance sheet. Jan explained that it is a prepaid 5 year gift and that the school is able to draw down from the gift twice a year.
Margie Figgins reported that she has been working with the IRS in an attempt to verify our tax exempt status. The IRS is currently stating that Scattergood is not part of the Iowa Yearly Meeting. The IRS says the status has not been in place since 1981 though we have a 1984 letter stating that the status was in place. The school is not listed on the IRS's list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions. Margie has been talking with a variety of people hoping to get clearance from the Iowa Yearly Meeting trustees to get the School's accountant to act on their behalf with the IRS.
MINUTE: The School Committee authorizes Jan Luchini to empower our accountants to work with The IRS to resolve issues about our tax-exempt status. Approved
Margie also reported that she and the Development Subcommittee are working on revision of Goals IV and V of the Long Range Plan.
Jennifer Warneke presented information about admissions over the past 6 years. She noted an increase in 5 day boarders. She observed that enrollment has been tough this year. The School is at 70 % of enrollment. She described this as a recovery year and attributed the lack of full time admissions director last Spring. She reported that inquiries are coming in. She said that many inquiries are for students who have mild to serious learning disabilities. Their parents see Scattergood as an alternative to what the students are in now. Jennifer believes that there are good viable applicants for next year. One Freshman has been admitted. Thirteen applications are in progress. Her goal for next year is 55 students. That means looking for 30 new admitted students for next year. She is also working on retaining current students. She reports receiving much positive feedback about the web site. Visiting families have stated their belief that Scattergood is represented accurately on it. Some Committee members stated that a Year-to-date comparison would be useful in future reports.
Technology -- Jan Luchini reported that she has a weekly meeting with Adam Kurth to discuss technology issues. She reported that two students did not have a lap top for a couple of days due to needed repair. Jan states that Adam is an excellent technology person. She also reported that Adam is currently exploring the feasibility of developing ways for teachers and staff to access the school server from off campus.
Jan Luchini announced the appointment of Jennifer Warneke as the new academic coordinator for next year. She reported that she is pursuing former students to join the School in the role of admissions director. She will be using a hiring group who will start writing up the actual position available announcements. Jan reported that mid-year evaluations are finished. Employment opportunities will be posted on the Scattergood web site, Teach Iowa and the Friends Council on Education web sites.
Dwight Schumm stated that he found it effective to have reports early and having comments only on the highlights of the reports during the meeting. Lucy Hansen reminded committee members to let her know if they have trouble receiving email messages. She reminded that it is helpful sometimes to put attachments into the text of the message.
Adjourned with moment of silence -- 2:00 p.m.
April 2, May 21, July 23
Mid-Year Meeting -
- April 16-17
Iowa Yearly Meeting Conservative -- July 26-31, 2005