November 6, 2013 at 7:00 PM - Regular BOE Meeting

Rationale:  Instrumental Music Students from Greene-Hills and West Bristol

Moment of Silence: Joan Gustafson - Art Teacher

Rationale:  October 2, 2013 Regular Meeting Minutes

Rationale:  Finance
Operations
Personnel

Rationale:  Dr. Solek will report /update the Board on district topics

Rationale:  Kenneth Bagley – CHMS – Interim Assistant Principal – Effective October 22, 2013
Lisa Bernabe – BOE, T & L – Teacher on Special Assignment, Math – Effective Date to be determined
Thomas Carroll – NEMS – Interim Assistant Principal – Effective October 7, 2013

Rationale: 

Kelley Longo – NEMS – Guidance – Effective November 4, 2013
Amy Petrillo – BEHS – English – Effective October 21, 2013.

Rationale: 

Kristy Ricciardone – CHMS – Special Education – Effective November 19, 2013
Shannon Williams – MTV – Grade 5 – Effective October 4, 2013

Rationale:  Sarah Brown – CHMS – Technology Student Association Advisor - Effective October 1, 2013
Gregory Diaz – BEHS – Technology Student Association Co-Advisor - Effective October 1, 2013
Kimberly Hazelton – BEHS – Sophomore Class Co-Advisor - Effective September 27, 2013
Vince Jennetta – NEMS - Technology Student Association Advisor - Effective October 1, 2013
Adam Sample – GH - Technology Student Association Advisor - Effective October 1, 2013
Savva Savides– BEHS – Technology Student Association Co-Advisor - Effective October 1, 2013
Richard Yatsenick – WB - Technology Student Association Advisor - Effective October 1, 2013

Rationale:  Joan Bossi – CHMS – Language Arts Curriculum Coordinator – Effective October 17, 2013

Rationale:  John Stavens – BEHS – Gifted Coach – Effective September 27, 2013
Barbara Tedesco – EPH – K-5 Technology Co-Leader – Effective October 8, 2013

Rationale:  Below is a list of certified professional personnel who have reached continuing contract status (tenure) during the period September 1, 2012 through September 1, 2013.

Bristol Eastern High School	Effective Date
Griffin, Dennis - English	6/30/13
Monaco, Kristine - Art	6/30/13
Chippens Hill Middle School
Porter, Elizabeth - Science	1/31/13
Northeast Middle School
Bronson, Sally - Guidance	6/30/13
Sienko, Klaudio - .8 Spanish/.2 TESOL	6/30/13
West Bristol K-8 School
Lizotte, Amanda - Grade 5	9/30/12
Musumeci, Lisa - Guidance	12/31/12
Radziwon, Keagan - Science	9/30/12
Hubbell School
Tedesco, Barbara - Grade 1	6/30/13
Mountain View School
Clute, Kathleen - PreK	6/30/13
South Side School
Kaletski, Hannah - PreK	6/30/13
Tacinelli, Anne - Grade 3	6/30/13
Citywide
Lewandoski, Walter - Art - SSS/EDGE	6/30/13
Special Education	Effective Date
Fazzuoli, Leslie-Ann - STAF	6/30/13
Fox, Tiffany - SSS	6/30/13
Martino, Amy - BEHS - Psychologist	12/31/12
Maule, Jonathan - BEHS	6/30/13
Administrators
Muska, Paul - BEHS - Assistant Principal	12/31/12

Rationale: 

West Bristol School (formerly at O’Connell School) is in year 3 of a 5-year, 21^st Century Community Learning Center grant.  This program, which has been in existence since 2005, provides high quality before and after school programming involving academic support, enrichment, socialization skill development, and increased parent involvement.  The program runs the full school year, five days a week, from 6:30-8:30am and 3:15-6:00pm. 

This federal grant of $637,500 provides $150,000 for each of the first 3 funding years with a reduction of funding by 25% in year 4 ($112,500) and 25% in year 5 ($75,000).  Families pay tuition on a sliding-scale, ranging from $10 to $70 per week.  This tuition supplements the grant and allows the program to be sustained during the years of reduced funding.

Rationale:  The Adult Education Grant is submitted for approval.  The state’s reimbursement percentage is 53.78% or $269,727.  Our total grant was in the amount of $537,161.

Rationale: 

Bristol Public Schools have been awarded a continuation grant for Greene-Hills FRC.  The grant for the Family Resource Center at Greene-Hills School will permit the FRC to expand services to families and students.  This FRC will implement the seven components of service provided by FRCs statewide.  These services include preschool programming such as weekly Play and Learn groups and developmental screenings, school age care and collaboration with BBGC program, Parents As Teachers (PAT) home visiting program/parenting education, home daycare provider training, adult education support/collaboration, positive youth development and resource & referral services.  FRC staff will work closely with school staff to ensure the success of all these programs for families.  Our goal is to increase parental involvement in their child’s education and to facilitate a strong school, family and community partnership.  This grant is for fiscal year 2013/14, however, ongoing funding as an approved SDE FRC site is expected.    The projected SDE budget for FRCs this year is $104,500.

Rationale:  Bristol has received a state grant in the amount of $147,474.36 from the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority. This PEGPETIA Grant will support efforts toe expand teleconferencing and video production capabilities in all schools.

Rationale:  The Quality Enhancement Grant is being submitted to the Bristol School Readiness Council for the purpose of enhancing the services provided by the Family Resource Centers (FRC) at O'Connell and South Side Schools.  The FRCs are charged with the responsibility of providing comprehensive family support services and building a strong school-family-community partnership that strengthens healthy family living.   This grant request supports the Kith and Kin Services program.   Kith & Kin refers to families using informal childcare arrangements between or among relatives, friends and neighbors.  The Comprehensive Family Services program supports parent leadership workshops, health fair bags and road to reading which distributes free books for preschoolers.  The grant funds assist in the continuation of these programs that are consistent with the basic goals of the FRCs.  The FRC has been fortunate to receive these funds, yearly for the past nine years.

Rationale: 

Purpose of Grant Program:

1. To significantly increase the number of accredited and/or approved spaces for young children in order to provide greater access to high-quality preschool programs:
2. To significantly increase the number of spaces for young children to receive full day/part day child care services to meet family needs and to enable parents to become employed; and to establish a shared cost for such early care and education programs among the state and its various agencies, the communities, and families.

Rationale:  This grant for the Family Resource Center at SSS will permit the FRC to continue services to families and students. SSS FRC will implement seven components of service including preschool Play & Learn Groups school age care, Parent As Teachers home visiting program, home daycare provider training and support, adult education support, positive youth development and resource & referral services. This is a continuation grant for FY 2013-2014. The budget stands at $104,500.

Rationale:  State Farm Insurance has awarded Bristol a $10,000 grant for our Teens in the Driver’s Seat Programs to promote safe driving.  Funds will be used at both Bristol Central and Bristol Eastern High Schools.                                              

Rationale: 

The Bristol Public Schools received a $1,200 grant from the Thomaston Savings Bank Foundation for support of the Bristol Board of Education Mentoring Program.

Rationale: 

Bristol FRC's in collaboration with The Bristol Community Organization is in the second year of a 3 year grant cycle. This grant from United Way will provide Ages & Stages Screenings (ASQ) to approximately 150 children ages birth to five served by the FRC’s and BCO. FRC staff will conduct Ages & Stages screenings at the FRC and at BCE. The ASQ is designed to screen children for developmental delays during the critical first 5 years of life. The ASQ is completed by the parent and a certified FRC Parent Educator who reviews their child’s development across these developmental domains: communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem solving, and personal-social. The Parent Educator scores the ASQ and reviews findings with parent and makes appropriate referrals and recommendations to the parent. The ASQ has high reliability and validity with strong evidence supporting it as an effective early detection tool.

The totals $17,000 which will be divided between the agencies as 70% to FRC’s ($11,900) and 30% to BCO. United Way disburses funds to BCO as the official 501(c)3 agency partner. BCO will remit payment to the BOE, on a monthly basis to cover the FRC responsibilities/cost under this grant for fiscal year July 1, 2013 – June 30, 2014.

Rationale: 

The grant for the Family Resource Center at West Bristol School will permit the FRC to continue services to families and students.  West Bristol FRC will implement seven components of service including preschool Play & Learn Groups, school age care, Parents As Teachers home visiting program, home daycare provider training and support, adult education support, positive youth development and resource & referral services.  This is a continuation grant for FY: July 1 2013 to June 30, 2014.  The budget is $104,500

Rationale: 

PROCEDURES FOR PUBLIC COMMENT

 

 

Members of the public are invited to comment to the Board on any topic related to school business.

 

Items requiring consideration by the Board must be approved as an agenda item by a 2/3ds vote of the Board members present.  Such items may be referred for further study and not necessarily acted upon at this meeting.

 

Anyone wishing to address the Board should adhere to the following procedures:

 

1. Sign in on the Public Comment sign-in roster.
2. Wait to be recognized by the Board Chair.
3. Proceed to the speaker’s table.
4. Preface your remarks by stating your name and address.
5. Direct your comments to the Board Chairman.
6. Please try to limit your comments to three minutes.
7. Any comments should be made in an appropriate manner, particularly if concerning a personnel matter.

 

Rationale:  On Thursday, April 9, 2015, Mrs. Andrea Rajotte, Mrs. Paula Cruz, Mrs. Kathy Archibald and students from Eastern and Central High School will be expanding their classroom by embarking on a nine day, educational adventure on an EF Tour to Spain.  Rather than just reading about the Alhambra, Palacio Real, Don Quixote’s windmills and the Prado, they are going to experience these historical treasures first hand.  The tour will start in Madrid, the capital city which has its own distinct voice and culture.  They will experience more of Spain’s artistic side, from the hand-clapping and emotive singing of the flamenco to the priceless masterpieces on the walls of the Prado Museum. The students are going to take their understanding of world history and cultures to a new level. Other historical cities included in the tour are Toledo, Granada, Seville and Costa del Sol.  In addition to gaining greater cultural sensitivity and an international perspective on their studies, students return home feeling more confident and independent—qualities that stay with them throughout their academic, professional and personal lives.  We will be touring with EF educational Tour; an accredited company with 40 years of experience.   The dates of our proposed trip are from Thursday, April 9^th, 2015 to Friday, April 17, 2015. This allows for students to settle back into their homes before starting classes on Monday, April 20th. Two school days will be taken in order to go on this trip.  This trip is being presented 18 months in advance in order to allow families to make affordable monthly payments.

Here is a link to view the trip:

http://www.eftours.com/preview-tour.aspx?pt=1441298wt   SPAIN

Rationale: 

On April 14, 2016, Mrs. Andrea Rajotte, Mrs. Paula Cruz and students at Bristol Eastern High School will be expanding their classroom by embarking on a nine day, educational adventure on an EF Tour to Peru. Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil. The country is divided in 3 well-distinguished types of terrain: the Coast, crossed by green valleys separated by desert plateaus; the Andes mountain chain with its snowcapped peaks, deep valleys & canyons and never-ending winding roads, and the Amazon rainforest covered by a lush and evergreen forest.

From the shores of the Pacific Ocean to the banks of Lake Titicaca, the students will immerse themselves in the natural splendor and rich history of Peru.  The land has been home to some of the world’s most ancient civilizations.  The roots of the Inca Empire in Cuzco are like no other on earth.  Machu Picchu, the fabled “Lost City of the Inca” and one of the New Seven Wonders of the World will be a train ride away.  In addition to gaining greater cultural sensitivity, global citizenship, environmentalism and an international perspective on their studies, students return home feeling more confident and independent—qualities that stay with them throughout their academic, professional and personal lives.  We will be touring with EF educational Tour; an accredited company with 40 years of experience. 

The dates of our proposed trip are from Thursday, April 14, 2016 to Friday, April 22, 2016.  This allows for students to settle back into their homes before starting classes on Monday, April 25^th. It is understood that these dates may vary slightly when the 2015-2016 calendar is approved.  Two school days will be taken in order to go on this trip.  This trip is being presently 30 months in advance in order to allow families to make affordable monthly payments and plan ahead.

Here is link to view the trip:

http://www.eftours.com/preview-tour.aspx?pt=1488421jx    COSTA RICA

Rationale:  Central office staff will review October 1 enrollment figures for the Board