Board Meeting Agenda/Minutes 8-22-16

 

August 22, 2016 Regular Board Meeting
Panorama Village Building - Meeting Room A
240 Villa Crest Drive
State College, PA 16801

I.         CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Mr. Leous called the State College Area School District Board of School Directors meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. He welcomed all in attendance and those viewing from home. Mr. Leous announced the Board held an executive session prior to the meeting on personnel and a legal matter. With the agenda before them, he asked board members if there were any changes; they had no changes.

A copy of all materials distributed to board members for discussion and/or action is included with the official minutes, unless otherwise indicated.

Board members present: Amy Bader, Gretchen Brandt, Dan Duffy, Penni Fishbaine, Scott Fozard, David Hutchinson, Jim Leous, Laurel Zydney
Board members absent: Amber Concepcion
Board Secretary: Mary Jenn Dorman
Student Representative: Hannah Oleynick
Solicitor: Scott Etter
Assistant Superintendent: Jason Perrin
District Personnel: Vernon Bock, Randy Brown, Becky Collins, Jeanne Knouse, Amy Lawrence, Linda Pierce, Nabil Mark, Sharon Perry, Ed Poprik, Chris Rosenblum, Eugene Roucchio
Guests: Harry Hamilton, Alex LeVan, Kevin LeVan, Tom Lundin, Tracey Olexa, Frank Ready, Ann Tarantino

II.         COMMUNICATIONS
Dr. O’Donnell reported the district sent representatives to the White House last week. Congratulations to Park Forest Elementary for receiving the President’s Environmental Youth Award last week at a White House ceremony. Principal Donnan Stoicovy and former PFE students Adam Cooper, Adam Lieb, Robert Rothrock and Elijah Snyder - all of whom are heading into sixth grade - accepted the award for Park Forest’s comprehensive recycling and composting program.

Eighteen teachers and 63 students, chosen from the EPA’s 10 regions nationwide were honored at the ceremony. Today’s Centre Daily Times had a nice story about Park Forest’s recognition. Be sure to check it out, and congratulations again to the Park Forest community.

Dr. O’Donnell noted being busy preparing for the first day of school on August 29, and tomorrow, our teachers and staff members will be back in schools for the annual Opening Day inservice. Good luck to everyone as we head into another exciting year.

We had a successful extra registration day Sunday with several parents stopping by the registration office in Room 101 at 131 West Nittany Avenue. I’d like to remind the community we’re having another one this Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The office’s regular weekday hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Lastly, this fall we will have two more community forums to discuss the District-Wide Facilities Master Plan elementary focus that’s evaluating potential updates to Corl Street, Houserville and Radio Park elementary schools. The forums will take place at 7 p.m. on September 19 at Mount Nittany Middle School and October 17 at a location to be determined.

III.         PUBLIC COMMENT
Mr. Leous announced each individual would be limited to comments of five (5) minutes as time permits for items on this agenda or related to Board business. He asked if any audience members would like to address the Board and the following audience member came forward:
--Harry Hamilton spoke on racial profiling and requested the Board develop a policy for this issue.

IV.          ROUTINE APPROVALS
A motion to approve the Routine Approval Listing as presented.
--Board Meeting Minutes August 8, 2016
--Board Work Session Minutes August 15, 2016
--Budget Amendment for the 2016-2017 school year as presented
--Annual Listing of SCASD and Contracted Bus Drivers for 2016-2017 School Year
--Annual Listing of Bus Stops for the 2016-2017 School Year (Parents access through Parent Portal)
--A motion to approve the annual NHS Autism School Contractual Agreement presented
--Annual Articulation Agreement with South Hills School of Business/ Technology and State College Area High School CTC Program for the 2016-2017 school year
--Human Resources Recommendations (refer to attachment IV-H)
Dr. Duffy moved and Ms. Fishbaine seconded to approve the listing of Routine Approvals. Board Member questioned what exactly the agreement was and Dr. Perry responded the State High Students have the possibility to take credits at South Hills and also take exemption tests for attending post secondary. With the motion moved and seconded above, all board members present voted aye on a roll call vote. (Ms. Concepcion was absent.) The motion passed unanimously.

Ms. Pierce noted there are still vacancies and as has been done in past years, she is requesting that offers would be made to fill the positions for the start of the first day of school and have retro action on the Human Resources Report in September. All board members were in agreement.

V.         STUDENT REQUESTS to ATTEND CPI for PROGRAMS
A motion to approve two student requests to attend CPI for the 2016-2017 school year. One to continue in the cosmetology program and the other to continue in masonry that the District CTC Program does not offer. Mr. Fozard moved and Mr. Hutchinson seconded to approve the motion. Board member noted these are not programs the District offers in our CTC program. With the motion moved and seconded to approve the requests, all board members present voted aye on a roll call vote. (Ms. Concepcion was absent.) The
motion passed unanimously.

VI.        APPROVE CHANGE ORDERS for the HIGH SCHOOL PROJECT
A motion to approve Change Orders for the High School Project as listed below:
            General Contractor CO #28, in an amount not to exceed $1,200.00
            General Contractor CO #29, in the amount of $16,149.31
            General Contractor CO #30, in the amount of $10,082.00
            General Contractor CO #31, in the amount of $10,082.00
            General Contractor CO #32, in an amount not to exceed $8,000.00
            Site Contractor CO #08, in an amount not to exceed $4,000.00
            Plumbing Contractor CO #06, in an amount not to exceed $8,800.00
Mr. Fozard moved and Mr. Hutchinson seconded to approve the motion. Board member questioned CO #29, #30 and #31 and Mr. Jones provided an explanation that the architect drew a size of steel that was not strong enough to support the stair, so the structure needed increased. Mr. Poprik explained the four types of Change Orders: 1) Regulatory, 2) Document Issues (In conflict with the original document), 3) Owner Requested, and 4) Unforeseen Condition (Like said issue). Board members commented and it was noted that usually all change orders are necessary for safety on any project, you always have some types of change orders. With the motion moved and seconded above to approve Change Orders for the High School Project as listed, all board members present voted aye on a roll call vote. (Ms. Concepcion was absent.) The motion passed unanimously.

VII.         APPROVE NEW COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP CLINICAL AGREEMENT
A motion to approve the new community partnership Clinical Agreement with Nittany Eye Associates, Ltd. and State College Area High School CTC Program as presented. Dr. Duffy moved and Ms. Fishbaine seconded to approve the motion. Dr. Perry noted that eye care was a new area. Board member questioned HIPPA; contract is provided due to HIPPA law to provide protection and let students know the expectations, and students have been trained the last eight years due to clinical observation. With the motion moved and seconded to approve the new community partnership Clinical Agreement with Nittany Eye Associates, Ltd. and State College Area High School CTC Program, and with eight board members present, seven board members voted aye and one board member abstained (Mr. Fozard) on a roll call vote. (Ms. Concepcion was absent.) The motion passed with 7 ayes and 1 abstention.

VIII.         DISTRICT GOAL CATEGORY: FACILITIES and GROUNDS
High School Project Update
Mr. Jones noted they were coming off of a very productive summer and with a PowerPoint presentation, reviewed the overall progress, walls, building elevations, the old bus loop, future courtyard, slabs on deck, Pod B, new entry area, Pod A and the lower South demolition being complete. He and Mr. Poprik spoke on the modular classrooms, three for South and four for North, and the fact they will not be ready for the first few weeks of school. They do have a Plan B in place for temporary alternate rooms. Board members discussed classrooms being displaced, the ramps for modulars, the Westerly crossing and Mr. Jones assured board members the project was on schedule, going as expected and they have been very fortunate with the dry weather. There was further discussion on the air quality in the facilities and noise with the construction.

District-Wide Facilities Master Plan Elementary - Planning Update for August 31 Work Session
Mr. Poprik and Mr. Brown were at the table to discuss planning for the August 31 Work Session. Mr. Brown reviewed what would be reported on (Attendance Area Analysis, Student Enrollment Projections, Class Size Guidelines and Capacity Definition, and Proposed Scenarios. He noted there would be a more significant update at the August 31st Board Work Session. He showed elementary school locations, boundaries, where elementary students live, student projections and proposed capacity through 2025-26, the class size guidelines and the capacity definition. Mr. Brown reviewed scenarios that have already been shown and also new scenarios giving an explanation on each. Points that came out of a lengthy discussion with board members:
      ● #4 and #5 scenarios are to show possibilities but are not being considered
      ● The 333 scenario would add one classroom each grade at Corl Street
      ● Having capacity of 80% to 90% for each building and try to stay close to 90%
      ● Map showing data of current students is only students enrolled currently in our District
      ● Administration could bring a recommendation for redistricting depending on the option selected
      ● Growth areas, questioned swing areas, and recognizing differences from school to school
      ● PDE shows 25 students/classroom that is larger than our District number/classroom for elementary
      ● Looking at spreadsheets does not tell the whole story, but the more Board understands, the better
      ● Equitable schools, and equity in each school, is the key point

Board members took a break from 8:53 p.m. to 9:01 p.m.

IX.         DENTAL SERVICES AGREEMENT
Ms. Knouse provided a memo and the Dental Services Agreement with Dr. Kilarseski’s office. This is a mandated dental program for kindergarten, third grade and seventh grade students. There was interest from a few dental offices but some backed out. The District used to have a dental hygienist but will no longer have one with this in place. Board members discussed time limits and the amount paid by the District and Ms. Knouse noted that surrounding Districts do this already. It was decided to move this item
to action. Ms. Zydney moved and Mr. Fozard seconded to move the item to action. All board members present voted aye with a voice vote. The motion passed unanimously. (Ms. Concepcion was absent.) There was no further discussion. Ms. Fishbaine moved and Mr. Hutchinson seconded to approve the Dental Services Agreement as presented. All board members present voted aye on a roll call vote. (Ms. Concepcion was absent.) The motion passed unanimously.

X.         BOARD COMMITTEE REPORTS
Culture, Climate, and Learning Mr. Hutchinson noted they met to discuss Graduation Requirements. An increase of two credits was proposed by the High School administration and discussed the specifics of the 24.5 credit total. Would like to include a .5 credit for Financial Literacy, .5 credit for Phys. Ed., and will bring to the full Board for discussion. At the next meeting (September 20, 10:30 a.m., Room 200 W. Nittany Ave. building), the committee will take a look at Inclusive Excellence and School Climate policies.

Upcoming Committee Meetings: There is a Finance and Audit Committee meeting this Thursday, August 25 and a Facilities and Grounds Committee meeting Wednesday, September 7.

XI.         REPORTS
--Central Intermediate Unit (CIU) Report Nothing specific, meeting this Thursday.
--National School Boards Association (NSBA) Report/PA School Boards Association (PSBA)/Legislative Mr. Hutchinson reported on PSBA’s report on charter schools. They did a Right to Know request, slightly more than half replied and received one third of those. The highlight is that charter schools presently receive more than $100 million than they spend for special education costs.

Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) Liaison Reports There were no reports for Athletics, Facilities, Finance, Safety or Technology.

XII.        FUTURE AGENDA PLANNING
Mr. Leous noted the August 31 work session for the DWFMP Elementary Update with information that will help provide a better understanding, reviewed September 12 meeting items and noted the Community Forum to be held September 17 at MNMS, 7:00 p.m. Board member questioned when they would see something on budget and Mr. Brown responded, late September.

XIII.        ADJOURNMENT
Mr. Fozard moved and Dr. Duffy seconded to adjourn the meeting. All board members present voted aye with a voice vote. (Ms. Concepcion was absent.) The motion passed unanimously. Mr. Leous adjourned the State College Area School District Board of School Directors’ regular meeting at 9:18 p.m.

Submitted by,

Mary Jenn Dorman
Board Secretary