February 3, 2021 at 7:00 PM - Regular BOE Meeting

The Board of Education will recognize the following staff or students:

1. Fire Prevention Poster Contest Winner - Ivy Drive- Niveea Williams - Grade 5

2. Fire Prevention Poster Contest Winner - Ivy Drive- Isabella Guzman- Grade 4

The Board of Education should vote to approve any Regular or Special Meeting Minutes:

1. January 6, 2021 -  Regular Meeting
2. January 19, 2021 - Budget Workshop Meeting
3. January 26, 2021 - Budget Workshop Meeting

Student Representatives from Bristol Central and Bristol Eastern will share activities, surveys, suggestions, and topics of interest in their respective schools.

Bristol Central                                                          Bristol Eastern

Chair Jennifer Dube will update the Board and the public on:

1. 2021-2022 Budget Presentation Update

Dr. Carbone will report/update the Board on:

1. District Priorities

•  Update Reimagining BPS 2023

2. Budget Workshop Review

3. Board of Education Retreat -  February 4, 2021

Guarda, Karen – WB – Grade 2 Teacher - Effective January 19, 2021

Siegel, Liza – GH – Special Elementary/MS/HS Performing Groups - Effective August 25, 2020

Sirianni, Scott – WB – K-8 Curriculum Coordinator - Effective August 25, 2020

Zadrozny, Patricia – SSS – Technology Coordinator - Effective February 2, 2021

Consonni, Claire – BECC – Building Tech - Effective October 9, 2020

Riley, Megan – WB – Special Education Teacher - Effective December 9, 2020 through February 12, 2021

This grant is for the FRCs at GH and WB to continue services to fulfill our mission to provide collaborative, integrated and comprehensive services that strengthen families, promote the optimal development of children, and create strong school-family-community partnerships. Bristol FRCs  implement seven components of service including preschool school readiness programming, support before/after-school care programs/working parents, Parents As Teachers home visiting program (for children birth to 5), Families In Training program(parenting education, home visits and support for parents of children grade 1 through grade 8),  home daycare provider training/support, adult education/parent education and support, positive youth development/SEL groups,  and resource & referral services. 

 This grant for the 2020-21 school year, totaling $203,060 based on $101,530 per center

The Family Assessment Support Team consists of certified FRC Parent Educators providing home visits and needs assessments for parents with school aged children in need of support. Parent Educators can quickly assess the family’s needs and link them to needed community services. The Parent Educator in partnership with the parent will develop a plan to address the social-emotional, behavioral challenges interfering with the child’s academic progress at school. School Administrators, teachers and support staff will refer students/families to FAST which will initiate a home visit, assessment, development of a partnership plan along with other recommendations. FAST plan will be completed within a 2 to 3 week (up to 3 visits) time frame with follow up support to the family as needed. The FAST team will work closely with teachers, administrators, support staff as well as with the parents/guardians to ensure these struggling children get the support they need to thrive at school and at home.

The "WORKS" grant request provides resources and key supports needed by working parents, especially those who have been negatively affected by the COVID pandemic. The before/after school programs at West Bristol & Greene-Hills will receive 1 to 2 outreaches a month targeted to working parents. Each month will have a theme, literacy, nutrition, community resources, learning games, help with homework etc.  Parents will receive a bag with resources based on the theme.  Each resource bag will include a book for their children. Most of Budget is salaries and supplies. 

The Quality Enhancement Grant from Bristol School Readiness Council (BSRC) has been approved for 4k.   This grant will enhance the services provided by the Family Resource Centers (FRC) at Greene-Hills, South Side and West Bristol 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 activities and the Road to Reading program which distributes free books to preschoolers enrolled in BSRC programs.  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 eleven years.

Bristol FRC’s in collaboration with Imagine Nation, A Museum of Early Learning received a three-year grant from United Way for the SEARCH grant from July 1, 2018 – June 30, 2021. Due to the Pandemic, the grant was automatically extended to: July 1 - June 30, 2021.

Each year, of the grant period, an award letter is distributed.  Bristol FRCs has been allocated $4,150 and is expected to receive another $4,150  for grant period July 1 – June 30, 2021. This grant from United Way will provide Ages & Stages Screenings (ASQ) to approximately 100 children ages birth to five served by the FRCs and Imagine Nation. 

The FRC Director will submit a quarterly invoice for services under this grant to Imagine Nation and they will remit payment to BOE c/o Jodi Bond, totaling $8,300 on or before June 30, 2020.

The FRCs at West Bristol, Greene-Hills, South Side offer BOOST to grade level students (k-3) who need a boost in confidence, social skills, assertiveness. The program offers one-one-one sessions for 20 to 30 minutes weekly utilizing an “expressive play” intervention facilitated by trained FRC staff.  The program is offered in two cycles.  Cycle 1 from Sept - Dec 2020, and another group of students identified for Cycle 2: Feb - May 2021. This program is monitored with specific outcome measures through SDE/National Children’s Institute and through on-line data collection center called COMET.  Oversight of program is under BOE Special Education Supervisor Amy Martino.

 The good people of the Stocker Foundation wanted to help Bristol FRCs challenged by the pandemic  in a “small way”.  This was a BIG help, unexpected and not requested.  The funds will be primarily used to cover salary cost and any expenditures not currently covered by grants.  Funds will be in the munis Annual Appeal fund to cover he cost of salaries as needed.

Bristol FRCs were invited by invitation only to apply for an unrestricted grant to help offset salary/overhead costs that were negatively impacted due to the pandemic.

All three FRCs normally engage in significant fundraising efforts in the spring to raise funding to cover costs for the summer and upcoming school year.  This year, due to COVID-19, all of our usual fundraisers were canceled (Dodgeball tournament, Bingo, Chili's Restaurant fundraiser, etc).  Our annual appeal raised significantly less funds than we had projected, both because it was initiated very shortly before schools closed, and because so many of our usual individual donors may have lost employment due to the pandemic.

BACKGROUND:  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. Send your comments to: susaneverett@bristolk12.org
2. Be sure to put PUBLIC COMMENT – BOE in the subject line.
3. Include your name and address.
4. Direct your comments to the Board Chair.
5. Your comments will be read at the meeting by the Board Chair.
6. All comments should be written in an appropriate manner, particularly if concerning a personnel matter.

This is the first reading.  After this presentation, the calendar will be provided to BAPS, BFT, AFSCME 818, AFSCME 2267, AFSCME 3551 and the PTO Presidents for input.

The Superintendent’s recommended budget was presented at the budget workshops held on January 19, 2021, and January 26, 2021, for the Bristol Public Schools for the 2021-2022 School Year in the amount of $123,578,000. 

The budget has been approved by the Finance Committee and will be presented to the Board Finance on Tuesday, March 16, 2021.

The Board of Education recognizes the need for youth suicide prevention procedures and will establish program(s) to identify risk factors for youth suicide, procedures to intervene with such youth, referral services and training for teachers, other school professionals and students to provide assistance in these programs.

Any communications/information regarding building projects:

1. MBIAMS Update
2. South Side - HVAC Project

Commissioners will report to the Board on any groups/organizations in which they serve as Board of Education Liaisons and information pertinent to the Board.

This month commissioners at elementary schools will share their reports.