2026-10-21 - School Committee

00:00Good evening, everyone. I like to call

00:02this meeting of the South Perth School

00:04Committee to order.

00:07Today is October 21st, 2026 and the time

00:10now is 7:00 p.m.

00:13The meeting is being held at Council

00:15Chambers in accordance with the posted

00:17meeting notice.

00:19Agenda item number one, roll call.

00:23Martina Shea?

00:24>> Present.

00:25>> Frank Kapisky?

00:26>> Present.

00:27>> Maria Torres?

00:28>> Present.

00:29>> Brittany Davidson, excused. Norma

00:32Tisnic?

00:32>> Present.

00:33>> Stephanie Rivers?

00:34>> Present.

00:35>> Carla de la Cruz Davila, present. The

00:37record will show that six members are

00:39present and one member is absent. We

00:41have quorum. Agenda item number two,

00:43Pledge of Allegiance.

00:49>> I pledge allegiance to the flag

00:51of the United States of America and to

00:54the republic for which it stands, one

00:56nation under God, indivisible, with

01:00liberty and justice for all.

01:06>> [cough]

01:07[clears throat]

01:08>> Agenda item number three, Citizens

01:11Forum.

01:12Are there any members in the audience

01:13that would like to speak about something

01:15that is not in today's agenda?

01:22Seeing none, we'll move um to agenda

01:26item number four

01:28to review and approve the minutes. I

01:30would like to entertain a motion to

01:32approve all the minutes in a single roll

01:35call.

01:36>> I have a question.

01:38Um

01:38>> [clears throat]

01:39>> why are there so many meeting minutes?

01:43>> I can speak to that. Um

01:46Miss Matthew, who you know, takes the

01:48notes for the regular meetings, um was

01:50out uh on a medical leave over the

01:52summer, so I think it it just took some

01:54time to get the uh

01:55the minutes all together.

01:59>> And then uh follow-up question.

02:01Um I know we discussed this before, but

02:04an active school committee does have

02:05their own recording secretary. Is that

02:07still

02:08an item that's being entertained?

02:13>> I thought it was.

02:13>> Well, Ms. Matthew is the recording

02:14secretary.

02:17>> Right.

02:18While you're under receivership, my

02:20point was an acting school committee has

02:22their own

02:23hired paid recording secretary that sits

02:25in that chair. So, is that still an item

02:28going forward that's being entertained

02:30to transition to?

02:33Because an actual recording secretary

02:35does more than just

02:37take

02:38a transcript and provide it for meeting

02:40minutes. They also do the roll call for

02:42votes.

02:44They also work with the committee

02:47um during the committee meeting

02:49as far as agenda items are concerned.

02:53So, that's that's what I'm getting to.

02:55>> Sure. Um so, I would say currently there

02:57is not a plan to do that, but it's

02:59certainly something that we could

03:00discuss when we're putting together the

03:02um fiscal year '28 budget.

03:05>> Okay, cuz the actual school policy for

03:07the meeting minutes has an actual

03:09standardized template that should be

03:11followed, and we've I've yet to see that

03:13template followed.

03:15Thank you.

03:18>> Okay.

03:19Um I would like to entertain a motion to

03:21approve all the minutes in a single roll

03:23call.

03:25Motion to approve.

03:26>> Second.

03:27>> Okay.

03:28All right. Um

03:30Martina Shea?

03:34So, okay.

03:35Frank Kobiski?

03:37>> Am I saying yes?

03:38>> Yes.

03:39>> Yes.

03:40>> Maria Torres?

03:41>> Yes.

03:43>> Uh Norma Tisnack?

03:44>> Yes.

03:45>> Stephanie Rivers?

03:46>> Yes.

03:48>> And Carla De La Cruz Avila? Yes.

03:52>> Okay.

03:54All in favor?

03:55>> I'm in favor.

03:57>> Okay.

04:02>> Point of order.

04:03>> Yeah, you did it twice.

04:06>> You did do it twice.

04:07>> Okay.

04:07>> Uh my additional point of order was I

04:09just Mr. Lavabera, we didn't have a

04:11chance to talk before.

04:12Your presentation is on the

04:15computer.

04:19You want to

04:50>> So, agenda item number five.

04:55>> You good to go?

04:57>> Good evening. Uh I'm Joe Lavabera. I'm

04:58the executive director of human

04:59resources, finance, and operations. The

05:02receiver, in light of recent events,

05:04asked me to come to speak with you about

05:06some of the security measures we take

05:08for the district, both in terms of how

05:09we protect our student data, as well as

05:12some of our servers. I'm going to go

05:13through um to some of the different

05:15protocols and things that we have in

05:16place, and then at the end I'll gather

05:18questions. I'll do the best that I can

05:19to answer the ones that I have, and

05:21anything that I'm not able to answer,

05:22I'll be happy to bring back [snorts] to

05:24our IT department, and then make sure

05:26that we have a full response for any of

05:27your questions.

05:29So, the first thing I just want to start

05:30by is one of the things that's really

05:32important in terms of how we protect our

05:34data is

05:36on our actual servers in the district,

05:38we don't store much sensitive

05:40information. Most of our sensitive

05:42information is stored through one of the

05:44third-parties um one of their

05:46third-parties cloud-based platforms. So,

05:48some of the organizations that we use

05:50are Aspen, Google, and Munis. Aspen's

05:52our people services system. It's where

05:54we keep all of the kids

05:56addresses, phone numbers, all those

05:58other things. Google, we use the G

05:59Suite, which is allows for our Gmail. We

06:01also use Google Drive, Gemini. We have

06:03an agreement with them, which we use for

06:05all of their services. And so, as a

06:07result of that, all of our data is

06:09stored within their cloud as opposed to

06:11our our actual servers located in the

06:12district. I think it's important to

06:14realize as well that each of those

06:16vendors per sort of the Massachusetts

06:18general laws is required to meet certain

06:20security provisions to protect their

06:22systems.

06:23Um, so not only are they backed by the

06:25Massachusetts general laws, but they're

06:27also backed by um, the contracts that we

06:29signed with them.

06:31So, I think a big thing that's really

06:32important is is when we think about

06:34potential risks, because most of our

06:36data is not stored on our actual servers

06:39within the district, but within a

06:40cloud-based platform through one of our

06:41third-party servers, um, it allows us

06:44another layer of protection. So, looking

06:46more carefully, um, these are some of

06:48the other servers or services, some of

06:49the other providers that we do use. Uh,

06:52Amplify is one of the organizations that

06:54does, uh, I think Bill mentioned it,

06:57Dibbles. It's a screener for our early

07:00literacy program. So, we use that to

07:02house some of our student data. Um, I'm

07:04sure many of you are aware we are very

07:06excited about Parent Square, which is

07:08the parent communication mechanism that

07:09we use. Um, and so, with each of them,

07:13they're obligated to go through, um,

07:15periodically an independent outside

07:18audit to make sure that their security

07:20measures are up to standard, um, and

07:22review all of those practices. So,

07:24there's, you know, there's a number of

07:25laws that outline the guidelines that

07:27are required as they go through some of

07:29those different protocols. I think the

07:31other piece is, and this is outlined in

07:33our contract with the vendors as well,

07:35is all of our data is encrypted. Um, I'm

07:38going to be honest, I had to also

07:39Google, uh, what that meant in some

07:40different ways. Um, but basically all of

07:43our data is constantly scrambled. So, it

07:46is constantly scrambled on the upload,

07:48it's scrambled as it's stored, so that

07:50this way even if there was potentially a

07:52breach, it's hard to make sense of it

07:53because the data is never actually

07:54stored, um, as it is. So, those are some

07:57of the ways that our third-party

07:59providers support us in maintaining

08:01security around some of our data

08:03privacy.

08:04Something else to look at, I mentioned I

08:05know I mentioned, uh, briefly before,

08:07our contracts also outline that. There's

08:09provisions in each of the service

08:11agreements that we sign with, whether it

08:13is with Google, uh, Level Data, Parent

08:15Square, Amplify, um, that provide very

08:19strict provisions. One of them is is a,

08:21um, specifically about our student data,

08:23so and the data that we house, all of

08:26our providers, they're only, like, um,

08:28you know, don't hold me on the exact

08:29language, but they're only allowed to

08:31use our data for our purposes, so they

08:33can't sell or mine our data in any ways.

08:35outlined strictly in their provisions,

08:37um, and they would be in some

08:38significant trouble if they, uh, didn't

08:40follow that. The second piece is, in

08:42addition to the contracts that we sign

08:45with the providers that outlines the

08:48use, uh, what's permissible for how

08:49they're allowed to use our data, um,

08:51FERPA and Massachusetts general laws as

08:54well are very strict about student

08:56records and how they're protected and

08:57then even how they're destroyed. So,

08:59there's specific provisions in the

09:00contract in the event that we were no

09:03longer say to have Amplify as our Dibels

09:05provider about what the what would

09:08happen with that student data and the

09:09protocols for that data to be destroyed

09:11and then get back to us.

09:13Um, the vendors also too are committed

09:15to, um, again, I think I mentioned it,

09:17not selling their data and then when the

09:18contract returned, um, there's clear

09:21days and, um, timelines for how long we

09:23would have to resolve, uh, the the

09:26the destruction of whatever data that

09:28they may have and the deletion of it.

09:29So, for example, Parent Square and their

09:32agreement outlines that they would

09:34delete any of our data within 60 days,

09:36Google deletes it within 180 days.

09:39Other again, all of our logins are kept

09:41private. And then the other piece too in

09:44the contracts with the security is

09:46they're also obligated in the event that

09:48there's a breach on any way with any

09:50authorized use logins, their contracts

09:54are make sure that they're obligated to

09:56notify us that in a certain period of

09:58time that there was a breach or anything

10:00that happened with the data.

10:02Moreover,

10:03if the vendor experiences a breach, so

10:05these are just some of the examples of

10:07some of the policies that exist within

10:09some of our contracts. So Level data's

10:12privacy policy commits to notify users

10:14within one email business day. Google

10:16says promptly without undue delay.

10:18Amplify is committed to investigating

10:20and reducing harm and then notifying the

10:22school as the law requires. So again, I

10:25think you continue to see that our

10:26contracts outline these things as well

10:28as the Massachusetts General Laws. The

10:30Massachusetts General Laws again also

10:32obligate any of our vendors if they do

10:35experience a breach that, you know, the

10:37language they use is without

10:38unreasonable delay, they should notify

10:40us. So we would be notified if any

10:42sensitive information was assessed.

10:44Key points to things that we would

10:47consider to be sensitive data, things

10:49like social security, driver's license,

10:51financial account information.

10:53One of the things that I say, so we

10:55store all of that in a system called

10:57Munis. In the event that that was

11:00breached or if for whatever reason there

11:02was a breach where someone's personal

11:04information was released, we The example

11:08I give is I don't know if I know it's

11:10happened to me. You get a notification

11:12in the email from your credit card

11:13company saying, "Hey, there was a

11:14breach. We offer you We would be under

11:16some of those same obligations if there

11:17was a breach with some of our data."

11:21A couple other ways that we protect our

11:24network as well as our devices. A really

11:26big piece that we just recently made

11:28sure that we remind all the staff about

11:31is making sure that the only devices on

11:33our network are the district's issued

11:36devices. And the reason for that is by

11:39making sure that we use all of the

11:42district Chromebooks and district

11:43devices, we're able to manage all of the

11:45updates and any patches that may need to

11:47happen on the security side. What there

11:50has been news of is, you know, when

11:53people bring in their personal devices

11:55and put those on to the network,

11:58sometimes those aren't as secure and

12:00that can kind of lead to some of the

12:02breaches that have recently been been in

12:04the news.

12:05Because again, they're not being updated

12:07or monitored. The other thing is with

12:09the Chromebooks, because we use all

12:11Chromebooks and all Google Drive, it

12:13allows us to mass push out updates at

12:15any time.

12:16And there's a number of other things

12:18that we have available to us because we

12:20have all the Chromebooks, so we can not

12:21only push out updates.

12:23There's some cool stuff we can do around

12:25monitoring of of email if need be or

12:28pulling things back. So, an example is

12:31uh

12:31you know, there's a mass email that goes

12:33out inviting everybody to something and

12:36you're not supposed to click on it. Once

12:37we get a note, we can pull it back so

12:39that this way it doesn't keep kind of

12:40duplicating itself. So, we can do things

12:43like that. So again, the Google system

12:44is really helpful to to us maintaining

12:46security.

12:47The second piece is we use a two-step

12:49factor verification. So, not only are

12:51you required to enter your passport

12:54passport, your password, but there's

12:56another piece to make sure you can

12:58confirm your identity.

12:59We put it in place for all of our Google

13:02accounts. We use a lot of our Google

13:04accounts also attached to like there's

13:05another program we use called Clever.

13:07Clever is like a web-based program that

13:09houses like easy links to McGraw Hill,

13:12the literacy website, Amplify, i-Ready.

13:15And so, the Gmail account is tied to

13:18that. So, that two-step authentication

13:20form is also again that has to be

13:21implemented anytime you log into that

13:23Google. So, it's another security

13:25mechanism that's in place to keep

13:26everything secure

13:28and make sure like I said that we're

13:30we're protecting our network. Lastly,

13:32one of the big pieces is is for our

13:33actual servers and again, you know, our

13:36servers don't actually house much in

13:38terms of actual personal data, but we do

13:41still protect them with a firewall

13:43through Spectrum. And so Spectrum

13:45monitors the firewall 24/7. It filters

13:47out any harmful traffic. If there were

13:50anything again similarly, they would

13:52notify us like hey, we want to make you

13:53aware there was attempted breach in any

13:56of your firewall there.

13:58The last piece is is that, you know, we

14:00are trying to work really carefully with

14:02our staff around making sure that

14:04they're engaging in safe practices every

14:07day. One of the biggest ones is is we

14:09remind them about fishing emails and I

14:11think that we are all guilty of it. I

14:13know I my personal self have clicked on

14:15a fishing email once in my lifetime.

14:17And so we try to remind them that, you

14:19know, make sure that you're looking at

14:21your emails carefully. Look at the

14:22sender. Make sure that the email address

14:25for the sender matches the actual email

14:27address. For most of us for our work

14:29conducted stuff, it should you should

14:30see their Southbridge email not

14:33any other variation of it. We remind

14:35them to look and check if the signature

14:38doesn't match up at the end of the in

14:39the email. Look for things of that

14:41nature. Anything that's out of the

14:42order. We also try to remind them to

14:45make sure you hover over any links. See

14:46where the link is bringing you. The link

14:48may say that it's, you know, bringing

14:50you to some form of data and then when

14:52you hover over it or you look into it,

14:53you can see that it's bringing you to a

14:55a different website.

14:57And again, be careful with any

14:58attachment or urgent request. And then

15:00again, we also advise our employees if

15:02you have any concerns, just to reach out

15:04to our AI department. In terms of AI, I

15:07know it's a really popular topic

15:09fairly recently. You know, our only

15:11permitted use for our employees for AI

15:13is Google Gemini because again, that

15:15data is protected under our Google

15:17contract. And so like I said, that's the

15:19only AI that we're permitted to use.

15:22Um

15:23We also want to we also remind our

15:24employees that they should never share

15:27any sensitive information into any AI,

15:30especially not any unapproved AI tools

15:33because any other information would be a

15:34violation of FERPA and a number of other

15:37laws. We're in the process of continuing

15:39to look at how we can develop new AI

15:42policies. It's an ever-evolving and

15:44rapidly evolving area and so that is

15:47something that's on the forefront from

15:48us is really taking a look to see both

15:50for our staff and our kids what policies

15:53we can put in place to support and

15:54protect their data.

15:56>> [clears throat]

15:56>> We also remind our staff, make sure that

15:58they don't share equipment or logins and

16:00then definitely make sure that they're

16:01consistently using the two-factor

16:03verification when prompted. And again,

16:06when in doubt about anything, we always

16:08encourage them to contact AI.

16:11Um, that was just a brief update from

16:13us. I know that I talk really fast as I

16:15rush from one place to the next and I

16:16apologize for that, but I'm happy to do

16:18the best that I can to answer any

16:20questions that you may have.

16:23Councilor Wilson.

16:24>> Okay.

16:25Hi.

16:26Do you have a self-help page set up yet

16:28to for the end user to be able to reset

16:31their password even if that end user

16:34only has a Self Public School Gmail

16:37account issued?

16:38>> Yeah, from my understanding the

16:41IT help desk is still in use and so that

16:45would be the best platform to go through

16:46if there's any issues that anybody has

16:48with any technology.

16:49>> So no self-help password page set up as

16:52of yet.

16:53>> Self-help password?

16:54>> A portal.

16:56A URL to go to.

16:58>> your password?

16:59>> To for the end user to be able to reset

17:01their own password.

17:02>> No, I think that like I said, just for

17:03the sake

17:04>> You know, like Microsoft 365 has that

17:06ability when you have a Microsoft 365

17:09account, you can actually go and reset

17:11your own password.

17:12>> I'm also not sure just so I'm clear too

17:14like I know that like on my own Google

17:15one

17:16um I'm constantly changing my personal

17:17Google email. It's always like uh uh

17:20would you like another way to log in um

17:22and try to go through Is that what

17:22you're referencing about a way for the

17:24user to reset their own password?

17:27>> If at any time an end user wants to

17:29reset their Google Gmail account

17:30password,

17:32as of as of last time I tried,

17:37I do not have the ability to do that and

17:39I therefore have to give it over to

17:42an IT person

17:44at the Selfridge Public School system

17:46and let them know what the password is

17:48for them to be able to change it. Since

17:50that time,

17:51has your department created a self-help

17:54URL for those that do not have a

17:57Selfridge Public School account, but

17:59only a Gmail account for us to be able

18:01to change our own password?

18:03>> Not at this time and I know that for

18:04most of our like we manage a number of

18:07different providers. Um amplify,

18:11um Munis, um

18:12I mean there's so many different ones

18:14that we manage. And so our standard

18:15protocol uh at least for all of our

18:18employees is whenever they are locked

18:21out and any reason, um they always go

18:24through the IT department and then the

18:26IT department resets it. So there's not

18:28a mechanism currently for the user to

18:30reset their own password. Um I can

18:33definitely talk with the IT department

18:35about the logic and the reasons behind

18:37that. I would imagine it's something so

18:38this way we can have a a level of

18:40control over the passwords and there's

18:42security reason behind it.

18:43>> That then presents a security risk

18:45having others know a password for an end

18:48user or multiple end users.

18:52>> I mean I have to again consult with

18:53them. I think generally when I've seen

18:55with the password stuff, generally what

18:57happens is is for most of the platforms,

19:00they send out like a generic password

19:03that they might send out and then

19:04immediately typically what that results

19:06in and I can't speak to I think you have

19:09more recent experience with this than

19:10than than I do, but from generally you

19:12know, from my own experience they push

19:16out like a generic password and then as

19:17soon as you enter the generic password

19:18it asks you to reset that password to

19:20your own password, but I would say we we

19:22don't have access to anyone's personal

19:26passwords. Now, we all are able to view

19:29anything that's on the the server,

19:31anything the users are using within

19:33their domain, but we don't have anything

19:35we don't have any access to their

19:36personal passwords.

19:38>> For the Gmail accounts only as of right

19:41now because I I checked before tonight's

19:43meeting,

19:45sending out a generic password isn't an

19:47option at this point. Can it become an

19:49option? That would be great.

19:51>> Yeah, I mean I can definitely bring that

19:52back to them and have a conversation

19:53with them about like is there a way that

19:55we could push out like a generic

19:56password for for them to use? But I'll

19:58definitely I'll definitely ask them

19:59about that.

19:59>> All right, thank you.

20:02>> Anyone else?

20:04Rochelle.

20:06>> Um the

20:07two-form ID or

20:10two-form login, how does that work?

20:13>> So, on your Gmail account you have two

20:15>> On your Gmail account, if you're logging

20:17in and it doesn't recognize where you're

20:20logging in from, so like once I log in

20:22on a personal computer

20:23for that first time it will ask me for

20:25another way it'll ask that verify my

20:27identity in some other way. Once I do

20:30that, now it says, "Hey, I recognize

20:31this device. You're all set. You can

20:33keep using it." And from there forward

20:34you only really need to use your

20:35password. So, if I went home and I

20:39wanted to log in to my Gmail account on

20:41my home computer, it would say, "Hey, I

20:43need you to verify it some way. It's not

20:44enough just to enter your password." So,

20:48what they might ask you to do is it's

20:49I've seen it done a number of different

20:51ways.

20:52Sometimes it can say, "Hey, we're going

20:54to text you a code." Sometimes it can

20:55say, "Hey, I want you to open this app

20:58on your phone." And what will happen is

21:00is when you do that, you if it's the

21:03code, when you go to the page, you'll

21:05enter the code and then it'll say you're

21:06good to go. It'll ask you open an app.

21:09Sometimes it can get really fancy. You

21:11can open the app, you click yes, and

21:12then a number pops up, and then it says

21:14and then when your computer shows it

21:16says, "What number popped up on your on

21:18your device?" And you have to say, "18."

21:20So, it's just another way and another

21:22layer to make sure that in the event

21:24someone ever got your password, that

21:26they wouldn't be able to get into your

21:27account.

21:27>> get those numbers down fast enough.

21:30>> [laughter]

21:31>> When you don't have service it can also

21:32be a challenge too when you're waiting

21:34for things in the fires.

21:36>> Okay.

21:37Um

21:40I think that's it.

21:42Um there is one question that I have

21:44more for the administrator.

21:47Um

21:47last year we were allowed to get the

21:51the blast that all the parents got and I

21:54don't seem to be getting them this year.

21:56You know, then there's no school cuz

21:58it's

21:59uh the weather is inclement or one of

22:01those things. We used to get them.

22:04We didn't get them for a long time, then

22:06we got them, and now we're not get don't

22:08seem to be getting them again.

22:11>> That's interesting. Um that's a question

22:13that's come up as recently as today. Um

22:15>> Oh, well, it must

22:17we're starting to worry about that S

22:19word.

22:19>> Right. So, the um

22:22the school committee members should all

22:23be on the distribution list.

22:25>> Yes.

22:26>> So, when we send out um

22:29an all staff email, which is you know,

22:31some organizations anybody can send out

22:32an all staff email,

22:34uh we limit it to um

22:38uh you know, some members of the

22:39administrative team

22:40uh and support staff.

22:42Um

22:43I've heard from a couple members that

22:44they were getting, you know, HR emails

22:46um

22:48not personal HR emails, but you know,

22:49general announcements, reminders for

22:51timesheets, etc.

22:53Um which I understand is something

22:55that's clogging your inbox and is

22:57frustrating. So, we can we can pull

22:59people off the distribution list.

23:02Um we could also take a look at um, you

23:05know, I'm a jack-of-all-trades, master

23:06of very few um, about getting you all

23:09access to ParentSquare

23:11um, if you so choose because that will

23:13be

23:14um, where the weather-related

23:15announcements will be coming out of.

23:19>> Perfect.

23:21Anyone else?

23:23Okay, thank you.

23:24>> Thank you.

23:26>> Thank you.

23:27Agenda item 5B, I would like to

23:30entertain a motion to

23:32take it out of order

23:35and

23:36take it out of order from agenda items

23:3810 and 11 as both Maria and Norma no

23:41longer going to MASC

23:43and Norma is seeking a revote to be

23:47going to the conference in Atlanta.

23:50So it's up for discussion if anyone has

23:52any questions.

23:55>> Yeah, so point of order Madam Chair and

23:57you're doing a a great job filling in.

24:00I

24:01am under the understanding that the

24:03committee now is not going to send any

24:04delegates to the

24:06MASC. Okay, then I think the main

24:08question would be yes to reappropriate

24:11those resources to

24:13member Chesnak attending the conference

24:15in Georgia.

24:17>> So we could do a revote?

24:19Okay.

24:22>> So we need a motion and a second.

24:23>> Motion.

24:24A motion.

24:25>> Motion.

24:27>> To accept. Second.

24:29Second.

24:30Yes.

24:31>> All in favor.

24:31>> first discussion.

24:32>> Discussion.

24:36Send postcards.

24:40All in favor?

24:43>> The eyes have it.

24:44>> Hm?

24:44>> The eyes have it.

24:45>> Okay.

24:46They what?

24:47>> You're good.

24:48>> Okay.

24:50All right, agenda item number six,

24:52receiver announcements.

25:17>> Thank you, Madam Chair, and through you

25:19to the members. I'm going to pick up um

25:23as certainly you all recall and as a

25:25reminder to the the public at home, uh

25:27we did have to uh adjourn the meeting

25:30last week before we were able to move

25:32through the agenda. So, I'm going to um

25:33complete the accountability uh

25:35presentation that I had begun.

25:37Um

25:39I I tried to be uh as responsive in in

25:41scheduling um this meeting as quickly as

25:44I could. I think you can see uh I have a

25:46lot of fewer members uh of my team here

25:49this evening. Um so, I will try and

25:52answer school-specific questions as best

25:54I can, but I may need to um tag the

25:57principals in and report back to you.

26:00So, where we left off was we had talked

26:02to uh generally about uh performance

26:05across the district and we were going to

26:07drill down into what was going on in

26:09each of our schools.

26:12Um so, Eastford Road is our pre-K, K,

26:15and 1. It's our early childhood center.

26:17Um

26:18so, they don't they're not in they don't

26:20test. They're not in those aren't MCAS

26:22grades. So, we don't we don't have that

26:24type of accountability um data for them.

26:27But, I think a a couple things worth um

26:30noting. Uh we surveyed the staff

26:32frequently and uh they are very happy

26:35with the leadership of Principal Galeno

26:37and uh Vice Excuse me, Assistant

26:38Principal Callie Mesh. Um we started uh

26:42school quality reviews uh there last

26:44year through our partnership with the

26:46School Empowerment uh Network, and we

26:48see

26:49um six of the 11 uh indicators um rated

26:52proficient, including learning

26:54environment and

26:56student support.

26:58Um, want people to be aware that we have

27:0155 minutes of daily reading intervention

27:04in the room with three adults in the

27:06room plus 30 minutes of math. And we

27:09reassess the kids

27:11every 6 weeks or so so that we are

27:14constantly changing our intervention

27:16groups and the types of interventions

27:18that our students are

27:21receiving.

27:23And we've seen some great results with

27:25our partnership with the high dosage

27:27early literacy tutoring through our

27:30colleagues at Catapult. And then there's

27:32progress monitoring through Dibbles

27:35every 2 weeks.

27:38Um, I asked the principals in addition

27:40to setting academic goals

27:43to think about

27:46and and

27:47throughout the district the academic

27:48goals are around proficiency and

27:51you know, improving by no less than 20

27:53percentage points

27:55beginning of the year benchmarking to

27:56end of the year benchmarking in terms of

27:58proficiency

27:59in English language arts and

28:01mathematics.

28:03Also, as the system continues to

28:05stabilize and see some academic gains,

28:08some noteworthy academic gains, I've

28:10asked

28:11the principals I've tasked them with

28:13instructional vision and instructional

28:15strategies. So, a focus

28:19of ERS this year will be letter and

28:21sound identification

28:22and more active engagement, more

28:24student-centered

28:26learning, which will be a theme

28:27throughout.

28:33Charlton Street School, we saw um

28:37you know, growth in every subject.

28:42Raised average scores in ELA, math and

28:45science and beat its target in all

28:47three.

28:49This is why its progress score is 68%.

28:52Again, you may recall from last week,

28:54you want to be hit it you want to be

28:56aiming for 50 or above. 50 is like the

28:59state median, right? So, we're outpacing

29:01the state

29:02in growth.

29:04>> [clears throat]

29:05>> Despite the fact that it is still, you

29:07know, a school in need of significant

29:10support and in the bottom percentile, I

29:12think another year of gains like this

29:14will see

29:15you know, some movement in the in the

29:17percentile.

29:18English learners and attendance also

29:21improved.

29:22Students are growing beyond the typical

29:25rate.

29:26However, last year's grade five results

29:28are very low.

29:31Last year's fifth grade,

29:33the current year's sixth grade

29:36were the the students that were the

29:38youngest in the system

29:40during the pandemic disruption.

29:42Our fifth grade and and fifth grades

29:44across the state and across the country,

29:46quite frankly, have have had real gaps

29:49in learning.

29:51You know, the middle school is a

29:52workhorse

29:53and I we're very hopeful that they're

29:55able to close some of those gaps in this

29:57upcoming year.

30:05We want to

30:08you know,

30:10focus on continuing the achievement

30:13growth at Charlton Street.

30:15We were really encouraged by what we saw

30:17in grade three. And look to build

30:20upon that. Sorry, I skipped ahead here.

30:22I was wondering why it wasn't making

30:23sense to me.

30:28Questions about Eastford or Charlton so

30:30far?

30:36The West Street School,

30:38um

30:39again, some significant gains, right?

30:42And

30:43you look at 25 percentage points English

30:45language proficiency.

30:47Production of 10% chronic absenteeism.

30:50Um

30:51even more so doubling that for our

30:53English language learners, which I is

30:55critical.

30:56Um increase in the ELA average scaled

30:58score.

30:59Um and our lowest performing students

31:02had some significant gains almost 10

31:04almost 10 points.

31:07Principal Adande's focus is going to be

31:09increasing opportunities to respond or

31:12what we call OTR in the business.

31:15And utilization of higher level Blooms

31:17text taxonomy instructional changes.

31:20Um so

31:21you know it's basically think rigor,

31:24right? We don't want kids just

31:28you know kind of kill and drill

31:30regurgitating working on worksheets. We

31:32want them analyzing. We want them

31:34thinking. We want them engaged in

31:35academic discourse, which again like I

31:37said is is a theme throughout um

31:40all the grade levels for this school

31:42year.

31:43And um

31:45drilling down even further in the the

31:47the data we get from our benchmark

31:50testing to form flexible math and ELA

31:53intervention groups.

31:55Um West Street's biggest story is the

31:57English language learners.

31:59Um

32:01they've made significant gains. I think

32:03this is particularly noteworthy because

32:05as you may be aware the dual language

32:07program for the elementary grades is

32:09housed at West Street school and we are

32:13thrilled this year to actually have two

32:15visiting teachers from Spain who are

32:19providing instruction on the Spanish

32:20side of

32:21>> From where?

32:22>> dual language from Spain.

32:23>> Oh.

32:24>> Yeah, it was

32:25so

32:28ELA ESL special education some of the

32:30higher level

32:32STEM subjects the everybody is looking

32:34for these teachers. They are few and far

32:37between. Uh and the department started a

32:39program a few years ago where they they

32:41do they bring teachers over um from

32:44Spain and they are certified, licensed,

32:46credentialed.

32:47Um the department works with um their

32:51counterparts in Spain and does kind of

32:53the pre-vetting of candidates and you

32:55know, we were able to interview and meet

32:57several over the summer and and did um

32:59have two

33:01join us for the year.

33:02Um and as I see the interest in the nods

33:04of approval, I think I will invite them

33:06to a future meeting to share some of

33:08their experiences with you.

33:11>> [clears throat]

33:19>> Southbridge Middle,

33:20um again, it's no secret. Uh it it's uh

33:24it's the crown jewel of the system. Um

33:26for the first time in its turnaround,

33:28students grew at a high rate in both ELA

33:30and math in every grade.

33:33The school is out of assistance for a

33:34second straight year and has climbed

33:37from the first percentile in 2019 to the

33:4021st. Uh math achievement beats its

33:42target for every group reported.

33:45Congratulations to Principal Wool and

33:47her team.

33:49The work here is science in making sure

33:51English language learners and students

33:52with disabilities

33:54share fully uh in these gains. Um I'm

33:57very excited about the work our new

33:59director of student services is already

34:00kind of embarking on in our first couple

34:02months uh on the job and I I see

34:06um

34:07our special educators are already doing

34:08a great job, but I I see some real

34:10potential for growth um in our student

34:13services department this year.

34:17Again,

34:18um

34:19student engagement, big.

34:21Student-centered

34:22learning.

34:23Right? The way we all went to school

34:26where the everybody's in a row and the

34:27teacher's in the front doing 90% of the

34:30talking,

34:31uh we we want to move away from that.

34:33There's a decades of research that

34:35proves student-centered learning

34:38is the way to go.

34:41And kids consume information differently

34:44now

34:45than they used to.

34:48I think about

34:49you know, I was a history major and I

34:51loved giving history lectures.

34:53And I went to school for a long time to

34:55gain all that subject matter expertise,

34:57but now you know, the kids can

34:59they're not impressed anymore when

35:00you've memorized everything about the

35:02War of 1812. They can pull it up on

35:03their phones. So it's analyzing the

35:05information using it

35:07in a modern context.

35:14So again, the middle school every grade

35:15now I'll perform their 2019 proficiency.

35:21And I just really want to call attention

35:23to

35:25this growth in math particularly in last

35:27year's 8th grade. I mean, that's

35:29competitive with any district in the

35:31state.

35:35In fact, statewide most grades have not

35:37recovered to their pre-pandemic

35:39proficiency. At Southbridge Middle

35:41again, every grade both subjects and in

35:43some cases two or three times higher

35:47of students meeting or exceeding

35:48expectations.

35:52Last year principal Hull and her math

35:53team were invited to present

35:55at a conference in DC about their

35:57practices around mathematics. We are um

36:01You know, the narrative is changing. We

36:03are being invited places to share our

36:04successes and talk about our strategies,

36:06which is a far cry from where we were as

36:08a system

36:10a few years ago.

36:11Though there is a lot of work left to

36:13do.

36:19The high school like high schools across

36:21the state

36:22were having trouble getting the students

36:24to engage meaningfully

36:26in in the 10th grade MCAS as it's no

36:28longer

36:29a a graduation requirement. Um

36:32however, we do have some very good data

36:36from the high school in other areas.

36:38Again, that

36:40uh

36:40over 9% increase in the graduation rate

36:44and a 30% increase in graduation rate

36:47for current and former English language

36:49learners.

36:51Um a 20% increase in 1 year in advanced

36:55coursework

36:56um that students are accessing at the

36:58high school. So, that's a combination of

37:00advanced placement uh courses and

37:03continuing to build out our

37:07early college offerings with

37:08Quinsigamond Community College. Almost a

37:1010% reduction in chronic absenteeism. I

37:13did mention at last week's meeting and

37:16last year when we became aware we're one

37:18of

37:1965 districts across the state last year

37:21that was recognized for reducing chronic

37:23absenteeism by at least five percentage

37:25points in all buildings.

37:28Um

37:30increase of almost 5% English language

37:32proficiency

37:34which was above the target

37:36and an increase in the scaled science

37:38scores.

37:39Um we really still very much are

37:40focusing on math and ELA

37:43as our as our as our true north, but we

37:45are very encouraged also to see the

37:47growth in science.

37:52The school's overall rating like I said

37:54doesn't tell the whole story.

37:56Um we beat all of our targets in

37:58graduation, chronic absenteeism, English

38:00language learner progress, and advanced

38:02coursework, right? Uh

38:05and all that, you know, feeds into the

38:06increase in the graduation

38:09rate. Um

38:13We're not in the business of

38:14entertaining, but we are in the business

38:15of engaging and providing value to the

38:18students. Um and I think you're really

38:20starting to see that take hold at

38:22Southbridge High. Like the kids see the

38:24value in being there. Um and I can't

38:27wait to have some of you uh in the

38:29building for your visit this year. It's

38:31um

38:32It was very strong academic programming

38:34there last year and it's only improved.

38:35So I can't wait to

38:36share that with all of you.

38:43Achievement and growth did fall, right?

38:45Uh I want to you know, I told you when I

38:47took this position I I'll be

38:48transparent. Uh and that's what I'm

38:50going to do. I do want to be equally

38:51clear about what did not go well, right?

38:54Grade 10 scores and growth dropped most

38:56steeply in math.

38:58Um again,

39:01that is a pain point I think that is

39:03being experienced across the state. Um

39:05and test participation fell below the

39:0895% DESE requires,

39:11but uh itself keeps the school which by

39:13itself keeps the school in the requiring

39:15assistance category.

39:17Um

39:18while our graduation rate did increase

39:20significantly, our dropout rate also did

39:22tick up, which again is it's so

39:24important for the students to see and

39:26understand the value in coming to school

39:28and receiving

39:29um the high school diploma. Um but

39:32again, like the increases in the

39:34graduation rate and the coursework show

39:36that the kids that are coming are

39:37engaging and are taking it seriously.

39:40Um our core instruction, so math and

39:43ELA, does need focus in grades 9 and 10,

39:46and that is one of our priorities this

39:48year. Um

39:50we uh again uh have some support from

39:52the School Empowerment Network and

39:54Principal Doucette and um really much

39:57more clearly defining the scope and

39:58sequence of the 9th and 10th grade

40:00English and math offerings.

40:11So overall, here's how the data shapes

40:13up.

40:14First, elementary literacy and math with

40:16particular attention to grades four and

40:18five is great. Um

40:21we do need a reset of core instruction

40:23at the high school which we are in the

40:25midst of doing.

40:26Um making sure also that students with

40:29disabilities and English learners share

40:31in the gains. I was looking at the

40:33special ed data today. We are fully 30%

40:37a third of our students are in the

40:38special education uh under the special

40:41education umbrella.

40:43And you know taking what's working in

40:44the middle school and scaling it out

40:47both to the lower grades uh and the high

40:49school grades.

40:51I really think some of the growth I'm

40:52convinced some of the growth we saw in

40:55the elementary grades this last year was

40:56our adoption of new writing and

40:58mathematics curriculums last year uh at

41:01the elementary school um as well as the

41:04departmentalization of grades five and

41:07four

41:08uh at both Charlton Street and West

41:09Street School and I'm you know I'm

41:11cautiously optimistic that we'll

41:13continue to see gains um when they take

41:15the tests this

41:17upcoming year.

41:24You know in summary the district's

41:25progress

41:27rose sharply. Um we're very thrilled

41:29that the middle school is out of

41:30requiring assistance for the second year

41:32and that more of our students are

41:33graduating.

41:35I want to be clear I'm very excited

41:37about the data as is my team but we know

41:39it's nowhere near where we need to be to

41:42be a thriving system.

41:44Um and I just really want to thank and

41:46it was my hope we could do this um last

41:49week with them all here. I mean the

41:50principals and their staffs are working

41:53extremely hard to drive this turnaround

41:56and it's uh it's a credit to them.

42:03Questions?

42:06>> Ms. River?

42:07>> [clears throat]

42:08>> Thank you. Through you.

42:12Um we talked about

42:14drop out rates uh

42:16in previous meetings of of that 6% of

42:20students,

42:22what services are being offered to them

42:25to

42:27provide to them to make them change from

42:31uh failure to thrive to try and keep

42:34them in the school system?

42:38>> So, I can talk I mean,

42:40every student's situation is unique. I

42:42can talk in broad strokes about um some

42:44of the things. One, like I said,

42:47um

42:48is adding uh agency, right? Uh so, I

42:52think the early college offerings are

42:54are showing kids that there's value in

42:55staying in school and starting in on um

42:58college coursework.

43:00We also um our guidance staff is in

43:03frequent communication with um students'

43:05families that are deemed to be high

43:07risk, encouraging them, trying to

43:09provide um connection to wrap-around

43:11services. You know, we've had a lot of

43:13human service providers in here over the

43:14last year or so explaining uh all the

43:17ways in which we provide wrap-around

43:18services to support students,

43:21focusing on the whole student um and

43:23their social emotional well-being.

43:26Uh we have credit uh recovery academies

43:29over the February and April vacations

43:32where students can come in

43:34and have an opportunity to regain

43:36credits that they lost through uh

43:38attendance or course failure. Uh we also

43:40provide

43:42um

43:43credit recovery opportunities over the

43:45summer for our students. Um also,

43:49uh when a student uh officially

43:52communicates to the system, so dropouts

43:54happen in one of two ways.

43:56Uh one is the student makes like an

43:58affirmative, "I'm I'm withdrawing from

44:01school," right? Um and we do invite them

44:03in and talk about like, "Hey, what

44:06obstacles can we help you overcome? We

44:08would really like to you to stay in

44:10school.

44:12If you've really decided like we also

44:14want to plug you in with opportunities

44:15for like the high set or GED program.

44:19If the students are under 22 years of

44:21age, even if they've been out of school

44:22for a year or a year and a half, we can

44:24get them back in and try and um

44:27you know, get them the the courses that

44:29they need. We have the alternative

44:32program at Southbridge Academy for

44:33students of a particular profile that

44:35struggle with schools. So, I mean we are

44:38we are doing as much as we can to

44:40encourage kids and provide them

44:42opportunities to

44:44you know, come back into the system and

44:45and get the credits.

44:48>> Go ahead, Ms. Rowe.

44:48>> Thank you. I appreciate you. Of that

44:50data,

44:51um

44:52does that also include students with

44:55IEPs?

44:57>> So, I don't have like the subset of that

44:59data available right now, but yes, that

45:01the the data is all students.

45:04>> Okay.

45:04>> overall dropout data.

45:07>> Thank you.

45:07>> Um I would suspect

45:09uh based on my experience, I'm I'm sure

45:11there's a correlation between the

45:13special ed umbrella and dropouts.

45:18>> Anybody else?

45:20>> No.

45:21>> Thank you.

45:22>> Sure.

45:23>> Thank you. Again, just I wish they were

45:25here to hear it. Like the credit goes to

45:28the principals and their staffs. They're

45:29they're working extremely hard.

45:32>> Thank you.

45:33>> I do have a couple other announcements.

45:46So, the uh the following events are

45:48going to take place between now and the

45:50next regularly scheduled committee

45:52meeting.

45:53Um

45:55actually right before this meeting uh

45:57came what was over at Eastford Road

45:59School. They had a great family

46:00engagement night going on with arts and

46:02crafts activities and the last

46:05communication I got from Principal

46:07Galeno was over 271

46:10people had come

46:12to

46:14to have some fun at DRS with their

46:15children after school.

46:17Um

46:19all the elementary schools do a great

46:20job with hosting community Well, all the

46:23schools do a great job with hosting

46:24community events. We get really robust

46:26attendance from the elementary school

46:27events. It's great It's great to see.

46:29It's great to partner with families.

46:31Um

46:33Tomorrow night at West Street School is

46:35a Hispanic Heritage event.

46:39Um a reminder to students, not that they

46:41need reminding, I don't think, but

46:42there's no school for them on Friday.

46:44It's a professional development day for

46:47um teachers and staff.

46:50Uh this

46:51Saturday night at Southbridge High

46:53School is the homecoming dance from 6:00

46:56to 9:00.

46:59On the 28th, next Wednesday, uh our

47:02eighth graders will go to uh Bay Path

47:05Technical

47:06to learn about the programming that is

47:08offered there.

47:10Uh and a reminder to our middle and high

47:13school students that on Thursday the

47:1630th

47:17quarter one closes. So, if you have some

47:20outstanding assignments, middle and high

47:23schoolers, I suggest you get them done

47:26by the 30th.

47:28Uh in November, on Wednesday the 4th,

47:31there will be parent-teacher conferences

47:34at Southbridge Academy.

47:37And on

47:38Friday the 6th, secondary report cards,

47:42so grades 6 through 12, will be

47:44distributed.

47:52In the packet that I sent out

47:56last week, uh there was a year-to-date

48:00budget report. I have Mr. Robidou here

48:02from the business office.

48:04I'd ask him to come up and answer any

48:05questions you guys might have.

48:13>> Thank you all for having me. Uh

48:15pretty much same message as last time.

48:17Still pretty early in the year. Uh we're

48:19continuing to monitor all of our

48:21accounts

48:22on a bi-weekly basis. Pretty much

48:24anytime payroll hits, we run a

48:25projection to see where we're at.

48:28Um we haven't gotten into the lovely

48:30months of winter yet, so we're a little

48:33bit status quo on a lot of our

48:34utilities, but

48:36we have just finished up the first

48:37quarter of the year. So, we are

48:39continuing to make adjustments as

48:41needed.

48:48>> Michelle?

48:50Um

48:51when we were at the curriculum

48:53subcommittee meeting

48:55on the receiver spoke to us about some

48:57of the um

48:59quite large expenses uh at the uh cold

49:02trade building and um

49:06the roofs at two of the elementary

49:08schools. Could you keep us up on that?

49:11>> Yeah, uh we just replaced a portion of

49:14the roof at Charlton Street. I know um

49:17there is another portion that we likely

49:19will have to go to the town for 28 for a

49:24uh capital improvement request.

49:26Um

49:27>> Can you move the mic up?

49:29>> I'm sorry.

49:30>> Can you move the microphone up?

49:31>> Oh.

49:32Yeah, I'm sorry. Um

49:34so, as far as I'm aware, we do need to

49:36replace another portion of the Charlton

49:38Street School roof. Um

49:40this year we don't have the funding. Uh

49:43Cole Avenue had a pretty catastrophic

49:45event with the boiler system, and Mark

49:48and his team are in the final stages of

49:51correcting that issue, but that depleted

49:54a significant amount of resources. So,

49:56we're trying to be just strategic in

49:58case any other surprises pop up

50:00throughout the year.

50:01Um but I know uh Mark and also Joe have

50:05been working on a 5-year capital

50:07improvement plan which the town manager

50:09has requested. So, we are currently

50:11working to identify and prioritize

50:14any uh building issues across the

50:17district to be able to address them

50:18appropriately and request the funds from

50:21the town on an annual basis.

50:24>> Uh he also mentioned something about two

50:26of the elevators.

50:28>> Yeah, uh

50:30I'm not exactly sure the full extent of

50:32the issues with the elevators. Um I know

50:34we did fail some inspections and he is

50:37working to gather some quotes for those

50:40so we can try to address them properly.

50:43>> Thank you.

50:45Anybody else?

50:49>> Dr.

50:50Can you just uh repeat the meeting for

50:52the

50:53uh 5-year capital improvement plan that

50:56is going to be due to the town?

50:58>> Um usually it's it's due during the

51:00budget cycle. Um

51:02so, I would say probably in March we

51:04have to have that in. Uh no, Mark is

51:06fairly generally aware of what's going

51:08on in the buildings here. So, he'd be

51:10able to detail more of his higher

51:12priority items than I can. Um I just

51:14kind of help facilitate

51:16where the money comes from and making

51:19sure that we follow procurement laws.

51:20So, um you know, I know he

51:24constantly keeps track of the buildings

51:26there to try to see where they're at and

51:28figure out what what his highest needs

51:30are.

51:31>> Perfect. Thank you.

51:36>> I have a question.

51:37>> Okay. Ms. Desilets.

51:39>> Um on the item zero top line um for

51:43school committee budget, um

51:46the budget report reported available

51:48budget for our school committee being at

51:49a 5,392.

51:52Um, but

51:54given the month prior, I believe in

51:56September, the budget was at available

51:58budget for 36. How did that, um, come

52:01about?

52:02>> Yep. Um, so the school committee budget

52:04covers our lawyer services for the

52:06special education department, but it

52:08also covers our

52:10lawyer who does our employment law. So,

52:13we had a encumbrance for the special

52:16education lawyer that hit the books in

52:19between months. So,

52:21um, it

52:23once [clears throat] it hits as a

52:25purchase order, it reduces the available

52:27amount.

52:29>> So, our So, the, um, item

52:33number zero

52:34zero zero zero for school committee

52:36current budget is at 5,392?

52:41>> That's the available balance. Yep.

52:43>> And is that with the, um, trainings, um,

52:46budgeted out already?

52:48>> Uh,

52:49those trainings, once the encumbrances

52:52hit, it'll reduce that available

52:54balance. So, I know we haven't done the

52:58expense reimbursement process yet or the

53:00forms to complete that. Uh, I believe

53:04Linda was working on some of those with

53:06you or may have reached out to start

53:07that process once you guys finalize the

53:09conferences.

53:10So, you'll see that number reduce once

53:12we get those encumbrances in.

53:14Um, but that 5,392 is across the, I

53:18believe there's three or four lines

53:20total. I can get the full information

53:21for you for all of your lines as well,

53:23so you'll have it. Um, but that is the

53:27full available balance between two or

53:30three different lines, if I remember

53:31correctly. And one of those is the

53:33travel and conferences thing.

53:35>> Thank you.

53:36>> You're welcome.

53:38>> Anyone else?

53:41>> Thank you.

53:42>> Thank you.

53:43>> I wanted to add just a few thoughts

53:44listening to Mr. Robideau speak and and

53:46hearing some of your guys' questions. Um

53:50First, I would like to shout out to town

53:52who has been great with um unanticipated

53:54capital needs that have come up uh at

53:56the beginning of the school year. I

53:58think there's a recognition by everybody

54:00that um

54:01we need to take more substantive action

54:04uh on long-term building strategies uh

54:06and I'm happy that um

54:08a committee has formed to that end.

54:10Uh also, it's it's worth noting that um

54:15we're past October 1st now, right? Uh

54:17and

54:19why I'm bringing that up specifically

54:20when talking about finance is

54:23um

54:24on October 1st, we certify our

54:26enrollment for the year, right?

54:28Uh it to the state and that's

54:30everywhere. That's not just a

54:31Southbridge thing. Um

54:33so

54:35any students

54:37we gain

54:38now

54:40we don't get additional funding for

54:42until

54:44the next school year.

54:45Um I think it's also worth noting that,

54:49you know, we do continue on a monthly

54:51basis to have

54:54some very high-need students move into

54:55the district. Um and, you know, need to

54:58appropriately place them. Um often

55:01times, they are coming in with

55:03placements um you know, that we have a

55:05fiduciary responsibility to

55:08um continue.

55:09And those are those are real strains on

55:12the budget.

55:20>> Number two.

55:20>> What is What is our total enrollment as

55:23of October 1?

55:24>> Our total enrollment as of October 1, if

55:26you give me a moment, I can tell you.

55:30>> Since that's the magic day.

55:48>> Should have figured I'd get that

55:49question. I should have had it up.

55:53>> If you give it to us next month, that's

55:55fine.

55:56>> I think I can do it in just one more

55:58second here.

56:00But if I'm having a technical issue,

56:01then yes, I'll send it either in a memo

56:04or just discuss it at next month's

56:05meeting.

56:06>> Perfect. Perfect.

56:19>> I'm going to give it about 10 more

56:20seconds.

56:241,830.

56:26>> 1,830.

56:30>> I knew it was around 1,800, but I wanted

56:32to be precise.

56:36>> Thank Thank you.

56:38>> All right. Agenda item number seven,

56:40chair announcements.

56:42The only thing I'm going to add is our

56:44chair is okay, and she wants to thank

56:47everyone for their support

56:50for her

56:51what took place last time we were all

56:53here together. So, we're looking forward

56:56to seeing her next month.

57:00Agenda item number eight,

57:04subcommittee updates,

57:06policy subcommittee.

57:09Martina, Shay.

57:11>> We had our meeting right before the

57:14beginning of the

57:16last the first half of this meeting.

57:19It was the first time

57:21with our new team

57:23Carla and Brittany, and

57:27they fit in perfectly.

57:30We're still working with the

57:31Massachusetts Association of School

57:33Committees. We were working on section

57:36E. We will continue to work on that in

57:39our November meeting. Um

57:42the year is slipping by so quickly. I

57:44mean, first quarter is already over. And

57:47uh hopefully we will have this um policy

57:51done and um

57:53tied up by the end of the year. Uh there

57:56is was one question uh that people have

57:59brought up a couple of times and our

58:02MASC representative Tracy Novak has

58:05suggested that instead of bringing

58:08individual pieces to the committee to be

58:11voted on, that when you do the whole

58:13policy book you do the whole policy book

58:17as one because different um

58:21policies refer back and forth to other

58:24ones and it we get very

58:26um messy um

58:29keep changing numbers and letters. So,

58:32we will bring you the whole new policy

58:35book. Anything that we've absolutely had

58:38to update. Um one of them is going to be

58:41the one on uh reading. That's a change

58:44in the state law. When it's a a change

58:48like that, we will that those will be

58:51enacted immediately by um the school

58:54system.

58:56Any questions?

59:01We missed you.

59:06>> Negotiations, I can say there's um

59:09no new information at this time. We're

59:10still waiting um to hear from the uh SEA

59:14about their intentions to enter

59:16bargaining.

59:17We're, you know, doing our own internal

59:20prep work to the extent possible and um

59:23we're waiting to hear from them.

59:24>> Perfect.

59:26Finance subcommittee?

59:27Maria?

59:28>> Yes, good evening. Uh

59:30So, I don't really I only have a brief

59:32update,

59:33but I will say my priorities

59:37you know, making sure that the

59:38priorities in working moving forward

59:42with focusing and making and ensuring

59:45that you know, we're transparent when it

59:47comes to

59:49the district's financial resources. I

59:52also believe you know, that

59:54um

59:55that it is important to understand

59:57where we stand financially. So, I'll be

1:00:00preparing myself to ask the necessary

1:00:02questions. So, in the meantime right

1:00:04now, I'm reviewing the current

1:00:06district school budget as well as the

1:00:09monthly financial reports and

1:00:12my next step will be to meet with the

1:00:14superintendent and

1:00:17our financial

1:00:19our director of finance our financial

1:00:21director

1:00:23and I'll have more updates for you

1:00:25as as we move forward.

1:00:27Thank you.

1:00:29>> Thank you.

1:00:30Curriculum?

1:00:31Miss Texiera.

1:00:33>> Good evening everyone. So, last week

1:00:35October 15th

1:00:39I was

1:00:40in attendance with Frank and

1:00:44Martina.

1:00:45We

1:00:47were able to hold our very first sub

1:00:51curriculum meeting. In attendance was

1:00:55Bill, Joanne and our vice chair Carla.

1:00:59Um

1:01:00we were able to discuss

1:01:04well, not discuss, but we were presented

1:01:06the turnaround plan

1:01:09which

1:01:10you know, a little bit of homework from

1:01:12the committee is you know

1:01:14you know, to be inputted so we can learn

1:01:18about that turnaround plan for the

1:01:19curriculum

1:01:21Um, and with our next meeting for

1:01:23November 12th,

1:01:25um, to discuss, um, what was, um,

1:01:29you know, read through, um, the plan and

1:01:31any open, um, questions um, that would

1:01:35be, um,

1:01:36on that day. Um, so as I shared, um, our

1:01:39next sub curriculum meeting would be

1:01:41November 12th.

1:01:44That'll be a

1:01:45>> Thank you.

1:01:47Agenda item number nine, I wanted to

1:01:49entertain a motion to table it.

1:01:51This item, uh, till our next scheduled

1:01:55meeting so that way our chair could be

1:01:57present to discuss the goals and

1:01:59objectives.

1:02:00>> So moved.

1:02:01>> Second.

1:02:02All in favor?

1:02:05Thank you.

1:02:07All right, agenda item number 12,

1:02:09progress towards meeting DESE plan

1:02:11expectations.

1:02:13Um,

1:02:16Ms. Rivers, would you like to go first?

1:02:19>> Should we just skip over 10 and 11?

1:02:22>> Those Those are the ones that we No, I

1:02:24thought that you were talking about

1:02:25>> nine.

1:02:26>> Nine, 10, and 11?

1:02:28>> We just did nine. That was that

1:02:29entertaining the motion to to table.

1:02:32>> To skip over nine, 10, and 11?

1:02:35>> No, point of point of order.

1:02:37You took 10 and 11 out of order

1:02:40to be to have the conversation about

1:02:43that there was not going to be an MASC

1:02:44delegate and that, um, member Tisnic was

1:02:47going to attend the conference in

1:02:48Georgia.

1:02:49>> Oh, earlier.

1:02:49>> Yeah, those two. And then table nine.

1:02:53>> Got it.

1:02:53>> Yeah, mhm.

1:02:54>> Thank you, Madam Vice Chair.

1:02:55>> Mhm.

1:02:57Let's see.

1:03:03I follow all the school updates online

1:03:04on Facebook and every week I share their

1:03:07posts for the positive updates

1:03:11that, um, they're posting each school

1:03:14for learning, um, on both my school

1:03:16committee page and on the parents page

1:03:19on Facebook.

1:03:20I would like to acknowledge West Street

1:03:23grade four

1:03:25for having perfect attendance of 100% on

1:03:28Monday, October 5th.

1:03:31Excellent work, guys.

1:03:33Also, West Street School, Miss Hammel's

1:03:37fifth grade dual language class for

1:03:40achieving the most days with 100%

1:03:45attendance.

1:03:46Keep up the great job.

1:03:49Also, Eastford Road Elementary shared

1:03:51their September perfect attendance rolls

1:03:54for September.

1:03:56Congratulations to all of the students

1:03:58for preschool, kindergarten, and first

1:04:01grade that achieved perfect attendance

1:04:04for the month of September. Keep up the

1:04:07great work.

1:04:09I would also like to welcome back our

1:04:10student rep to the dais, although she's

1:04:12not here this evening and she was here

1:04:14last week.

1:04:15We didn't get to just welcome say that.

1:04:18So, welcome back.

1:04:20Finally, I want to wish everyone a happy

1:04:22Halloween. Each year, the town of

1:04:24Southbridge holds trick-or-treating on

1:04:26Halloween from 5:30 to 7:00

1:04:29preceded by the Horribles Parade that

1:04:32takes place right here in front of town

1:04:34hall

1:04:35at 5:00.

1:04:37Um, this year Halloween falls on a

1:04:40Saturday and so the Horribles Parade

1:04:43will take place here. It will begin here

1:04:45and they will walk down Main Street to

1:04:47the common where candy will be handed

1:04:49out by our Southbridge Police

1:04:50Department. And afterwards,

1:04:52trick-or-treating, because it's

1:04:54Saturday, is going to be from 5:30 to

1:04:577:30. So, here's hoping for nice

1:05:00weather. Don't forget to have your

1:05:01flashlights with you and make sure to

1:05:04have fun, be observant of traffic, look

1:05:07both ways before crossing the street,

1:05:09and as always, get lots of candy. Happy

1:05:12Halloween to all. Thank you.

1:05:15Thank you. Mr. Tisnic?

1:05:20>> Um

1:05:21good evening, everyone. Thank you um for

1:05:24being in attendance and watching um or

1:05:27will be watching. Um the past month I

1:05:31have been in continuance in um trainings

1:05:35um from NSB

1:05:37as to round

1:05:40round tables um to countless of

1:05:43trainings. Um I do

1:05:45um monthly um

1:05:49As discussed earlier in our meeting, I

1:05:52will not be attending the Emma MASC

1:05:56conference this year. I was invited to

1:05:59attend the

1:06:01um collective powers um

1:06:03conference with the N

1:06:05SP um association, so that is pretty

1:06:09exciting. Um and as um continuing to

1:06:15keep my promise and my oath is to learn

1:06:17as much as I can to serve my community.

1:06:20That's it.

1:06:22>> Thank you. Mr. Kopitsky?

1:06:24>> Yeah, I'd like to thank Norma for

1:06:26leading our first curriculum meeting and

1:06:28for the very detailed information

1:06:31uh from our receiver. That was

1:06:33very informative.

1:06:35Perhaps uh

1:06:36we'll overload on some areas, but

1:06:38>> Noted.

1:06:39>> Yes, you know. Uh

1:06:41but uh look forward to reviewing all

1:06:43those materials uh at a slower pace,

1:06:45which would be my pace, for our next

1:06:47meeting in November. So, thank you.

1:06:50>> Thank you.

1:06:51Ms. Shay?

1:06:53>> I want to thank our administrator for um

1:06:56presenting particularly on the AI and

1:06:58the attendance issues because I shared

1:07:01with him things that I had read in the

1:07:03paper. Um Fitchburg doing very, very

1:07:07poorly in attendance record. They're

1:07:11below 50% and I couldn't wait to call

1:07:14and tell Bill that

1:07:17we were we were at the top of the pile.

1:07:20I know it's not nice

1:07:22and the questions again with Springfield

1:07:26that they had had a big break in their

1:07:29AI and

1:07:31he got right back to us on what we

1:07:34what we are doing. But I do wish that we

1:07:37will I do hope that we will continue to

1:07:40be very strong because they lost not

1:07:43just student data, but they lost staff

1:07:46data.

1:07:48And um

1:07:50the curriculum meeting was excellent. Um

1:07:53I would suggest that any of the rest of

1:07:55you come because as Steve just said, it

1:07:58was

1:07:59heavy information and we have a lot to

1:08:03to to

1:08:05That that is the core of our building up

1:08:08our

1:08:09and getting out of receivership.

1:08:11It was excellent. Thank you.

1:08:15>> Ms. Torres?

1:08:16>> I don't have much at this time, but I do

1:08:18want to thank all the principals and

1:08:21admin for the great work that you guys

1:08:23are doing and keep it up. I'm greatly

1:08:26appreciative

1:08:28of everyone and looking forward to the

1:08:31next quarter as well. Thank you.

1:08:34>> Thank you.

1:08:35>> Uh for myself, I started actually a

1:08:37fellowship through Latinos for

1:08:39Education.

1:08:41Uh it's about leadership, the challenges

1:08:43and um built skills to develop like

1:08:45relationships with educators across the

1:08:47country.

1:08:49Uh I continue going to meetings with our

1:08:52DESI mentor Juan, meetings with the

1:08:54chair and superintendent. Um

1:08:57rescheduled school visits, so I'll be

1:08:59starting those soon.

1:09:01I attended the curriculum subcommittee

1:09:04meeting and we also had the policy

1:09:06subcommittee.

1:09:08Um just want to say thank you to our

1:09:10Dassy mentor Juan for inviting me to be

1:09:12a panelist for their Ola.

1:09:15Um

1:09:17Uh

1:09:19what's it called? Employee Resource

1:09:20Group, I guess they have out there. Uh

1:09:22so that was

1:09:24pretty amazing to be part of. Um I also

1:09:26attended the EHS meeting.

1:09:29Um and congrats to Norma for receiving

1:09:32the Latino on the Hill award.

1:09:34Uh and I believe

1:09:36that is all I have.

1:09:39>> I'm sure point of order before the

1:09:40motion for adjournment.

1:09:41>> Mhm.

1:09:42>> Um I'd like to add a few thoughts. Uh

1:09:44one, I've never given a presentation

1:09:47over two different meetings. Something

1:09:49I'm realizing now was lost on the

1:09:51cutting room floor somewhere and I'll

1:09:52bring the hard data for the next

1:09:53meeting. We did beat all urban districts

1:09:57in growth.

1:09:59>> Wow.

1:09:59>> And um not in scaled score.

1:10:02>> Mhm.

1:10:03>> In growth. Um

1:10:05and I just want to let all the families

1:10:07and particularly the students know if

1:10:08you feel like you have too much candy

1:10:10after trick-or-treating, we'll be happy

1:10:12to accept donations at the

1:10:13superintendent's office, 25 Cole Ave.

1:10:16>> And thank nature for having it on

1:10:17Saturday.

1:10:19Um I'm I'm saying that on behalf of the

1:10:21all the teachers. They'll be a little

1:10:23wind down before Monday.

1:10:28>> Okay. Um agenda item number 13, our next

1:10:31scheduled meeting is for November 10th

1:10:33at 7:00 p.m. in council chambers. Do I

1:10:35have a motion to adjourn?

1:10:37>> So moved.

1:10:39>> Have a second?

1:10:40>> Second.

1:10:41>> All in favor?

1:10:43>> All right.

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