April 17, 2017

LogoSequim School District No. 323

“Inspire and Achieve“

503 North Sequim Avenue, Sequim, WA 98382

Telephone: (360) 582-3260, FAX: (360) 683-6303, www.sequim.k12.wa.us


April 17, 2017

  • 6:00 PM Regular Board Meeting

CALL MEETING TO ORDER/PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE (REF. POLICY 1400/1420)

President Robin Henrikson opened the Regular Meeting at 6:00pm with all Board Members and Student Board Representatives present. The Pledge of Allegiance was conducted.

PRESENT – A Sign-In Sheet was provided and those who wish to sign in are listed below:

Robin Henrikson, President     Jack Walsh

Heather Short, Vice-President     Pam Landoni, District Office

James Stoffer, Director     John Bridge, Sequim Education Foundation

Brian Kuh, Director    Patsene Dashiell, District Office

Michael Howe, Director    Jodi Olson, Sequim Education Foundation

Kaylee Gumm, Student Board Rep.     Joan Ritchie, Citizen

Téa Gauthun, Student Board Rep.    Nola Judd

Heidi Hietpas, Finance & Operations

Dr. Ann Renker, Assistant Superintendent

Paul Wieneke, Human Resources

Gary Neal, Superintendent

Marilyn Walsh, Administrative Assistant

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Director Short moved to approve the minutes from the March 17, 201 Special Board Meeting and Executive Session, and the March 20, 2017 Regular Board Meeting, as presented. Director Stoffer seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

CHANGES/ADDITIONS AND APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA (REF. POLICY 1420)

Vice-President Short moved to approve the agenda as printed. Director Kuh seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

STUDENT BOARD REPRESENTATIVE COMMUNICATION & STUDENT RECOGNITION

Student Board Representative Téa Gauthun reported that the slabs for the 4 modular classrooms at Greywolf Elementary are now completed. Measure of Student Progress (MSP) and Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA) testing begin this week. Teachers and staff are excited for our kids to have a chance to show the state what they know! On April 18th, Greywolf Elementary 3rd graders will go on a field trip, to help with reforestation in our area, by planting new trees. On April 20th and 21st Greywolf Drama Club will be presenting the play “Into the Woods”. Shows begin at 6PM in the GWE gym and last about 60 minutes. The drama club is led by Sheri Burke and Shannon Green with help from Damon Little. Helen Haller also begins state testing this week. About 150 Haller Elementary parents had breakfast with their students at the March 30th Shout-Out breakfast. They showcased students who received a shout-out for exhibiting respectful, responsible, and safe behavior throughout the 2ndtrimester. They also celebrated the Elks patriotism essay contest winners, Colby Ellefson, Payton Weidman, Krista Charters, Kimberly Flores, Cadence Johnson, Tyler Worley, and Ricardo Hernandez. The topic was “Why is it important to vote?” There was a great turnout for the Kindergarten Parent Orientation meeting held on Wednesday, April 12. Registration for kindergarten begins May. 5th grade students are selling Irrigation Festival buttons and 3rd grade students submitted entries for the annual “What My Home Means to Me” essay contest.

Student Board Representative Kaylee Gumm reported that Sequim Middle School staff and students are busy preparing for Student-Led Conferences on Thursday evening, April 20 and Friday afternoon, April 21. They are very excited about this opportunity to connect with families. Sequim Middle School would also like to thank Sequim Community Church for their significant donation to the Hope Academy program, and for their service project at SMS. Connecting with the community and building Social-Emotional programs are critical components of success at Sequim Middle School. Sequim High School has block schedule for the next two weeks for their Smarter Balanced Assessment testing. The Sequim Education Foundation Art and Film Festival is this Friday, April 21 at 6pm in the auditorium.

President Henrikson encouraged Student Board Representative Kaylee Gumm to discuss with an administrator her suggestion for creating an SAT Prep Class for students to study and prepare for the SAT. Discussion followed.

It is time to start the search for a new Junior Student Board Representative for 2017-2019. Discussion followed. The application week will be May 15 through 26, with interviews to be scheduled for the following week. Directors Kuh, Short and Stoffer indicated an interest in participating in the interviews.

PUBLIC COMMENTS – The Board believes that public comments are a very important connection between our community and the Board. This time is set aside for receiving both written and oral communication. (Ref. Policy 1400, 1623, and 1620P)

President Henrikson first asked for comments regarding agenda items.

Ms. Joan Ritchie had questions about an item that was being voted on later in the meeting.

President Henrikson next asked for comments regarding general items.

Ms. Sandy Goodwink expressed concerns about employee workplace bullying, including board members bullying other board members, and wanted to make sure that district policy/procedure addressed that.

BOARD COMMUNICATION AND OTHER ITEMS

Director Howe has been spending time in Olympia and can say for sure that there will be a Special Session of the Legislature.

Director Kuh thanked everyone for their support and help. He especially thanked our Student Board Representatives who he said inspired him to “throw his hat in the ring”.

Director and Legislative Representative Stoffer reminded the board that it’s time to start planning for the WSSDA Legislative Assembly; which is in Sept 22-23 at SeaTac. The proposal solicitation begins on 31 Mar and goes through 2 Jun. Information on the process can be found on the WSSDA website under Legislation items will be posted in OneNote. He invited the public to ask any questions or contact him by email. Monday, April 24 is the last day of the 2017 Legislative Regular Session. Though not announced at this time, a Special Session is expected to finalize several bills in play; especially the Budget & Funding of Education. 296 out of 2000 Bills introduced were related to Public Education. Six of those have been delivered to the Governor; another 8 have passed through the Legislatures are expected to be submitted to the Governor within the week. There are approx. 60 Bills introduced relating to Funding/Allocations, along with another 15 in the Learning, Teaching, Governance Categories that are necessary to implement the budget. Several of these are being attached to bills in play as provisos, so there is a lot of work to be accomplished. The bills that he recommends keeping a close eye on are – The Capitol Budget Progress; the High School Assessments Required for Graduation, Public Records Act Updates; & Educator Recruitment, Retention, & Certification. At the Federal Level - Congress did not end up reauthorizing the Secure and Rural Schools funding as we had hoped in December. What it means is essentially the policy for these revenues (Federal Forest Land Revenue) will revert back to what is called a “25 percent payment”, essentially reducing the amount of dollars states receive by 75%. Director Stoffer commended Superintendent Neal for excellent work with the Strategic Planning Session.

President Henrikson concurred with Director Stoffer about the Strategic Planning sessions. A great mix of people are participating.

Board Members were asked to indicate in OneNote if they were available to participate in Graduation practice on Friday morning, June 9 and also who would be available to hand out diplomas at Graduation the evening of June 9.

President Henrikson also asked Board Members to add agenda items to the Summer 2017 Board Workshop page in OneNote, and to suggest dates and formats – such as two 3-hour meetings or one six-hour meeting. Discussion followed.

A short Executive Session needs to be scheduled regarding the Superintendent Evaluation. It was suggested following the second meeting in May, with the final evaluation following the second meeting in June. Discussion followed.

CONSENT AGENDA – REQUEST BOARD APPROVAL: Any item may be moved to New Business with a motion from any Board member.

a. General Fund Vouchers No. 187935 thru No. 187935 in the total amount of $89.99; and No. 187936 thru No. 187946 in the total amount of $2,469.13; and No. 187947 thru No. 188046 in the total amount of $225,857.34; and No. 188047 thru No. 188126 in the total amount of $368,408.07.

b. ASB Fund Vouchers No. 10813 thru No. 10840 in the total amount of $25,817.72; and No. 10841 thru No. 10848 in the total amount of $14,837..

c. Payroll for the month of March, 2017 in the total amount of $2,159,806.90, as presented.

d. Personnel – Employment with the District will be conditional upon the district’s receipt of a criminal conviction history record that is clear of any convictions, adjudications, protective orders, final decisions, or criminal charges in accordance with Washington State law and conditional upon receipt of a sexual Misconduct Disclosure Form from prior Washington State employer(s), where employment was in a school setting, indicating that no sexual, verbal or physical misconduct materials were found in the records of such employer(s) pursuant to RCW 28A.400 and WAC 180-87-080.

1) Approve Leave Without Pay Request from Michelle Haman, Bus aide, for April 12 through April 17, 2017 as presented.

2) Offer Classified Homeless Liaison Specialist position to Samantha Troxler, for the 2016-2017 school year, effective March 13, 2017 as presented.

3) Offer High School Assistant Cheer coach position to Tiffany Mote, for the 2017-2018 school year, effective August 21, 2017 as presented.

4) Approve Leave of Absence Request from Kathy Troglia, Sequim High School Math teacher, for the 2017-2018 school year, as presented.

5) Approve Leave of Absence Request from Bill Isenberg, Sequim High School Special Education teacher, for the 2017-2018 school year, as presented.

6) Approved Letter of Resignation from Stacy Hughes, Greywolf Math Specialist, effective at the end of the 2016-2017 school year, as presented.

7) Offer Supplemental Services Contract to Maria Seabolt, to perform the duties of Interim Director of Technology, for the remainder of the 2016-2017 school year, as presented.

8) Offer Supplemental Services Contract to Maria Roragen, to perform the duties of Interim Assessment Coordinator, for the remainder of the 2016-2017 school year, as presented.

9) Offer Supplemental Services Contract to Trayce Norman, to perform the duties of Interim District Testing Coordinator, for the remainder of the 2016-2017 school year, as presented.

10) Accept Letter of Resignation from Carol Wagner, Sequim High School Cooking Teacher, effective at the end of the 2016-2017 school year, for the purpose of retirement.

11) Accept Letter of Resignation from Jack Webber, Sequim High School Math and Social Studies teacher, for the purpose of retirement, effective at the end of the 2016-2017 school year, as presented.

12) Accept Letter of Resignation from Joan Trindle, Elementary Counselor, effective at the end of the 2016-2017 school year, for the purpose of retirement, as presented.

13) Approve Leave of Absence Extension for Lauren Powell, Greywolf Paraeducator, from April 1 through April 17, 2017 as presented.

14) Accept Letter of Resignation from Donna McSherry, Greywolf Elementary Paraeducator, effective at the end of the 2016-2017 school year, for the purpose of retirement, as presented.

e. Accept donation of four soccer goals for our elementary schools, from SequimFC and Sequim Junior Soccer, as presented.

f. Approve Memorandum of Understanding between Olympic Educational Service District 114 and Sequim School District to provide for stipends for a maximum of six teachers to attend each of the three Future Ready Cafes, as presented.

Vice-President Short moved to approve the Consent Agenda, items ‘a’ thru ‘f’ as presented. Director Stoffer seconded. Discussion followed regarding item f. Vote taken; motion carried.

OLD BUSINESS

There was none at this time

NEW BUSINESS

a. Director Short moved to approve overnight travel for Sequim High School Future Farmers to travel to Washington State University in Pullman, Washington, from May 10, 2017 to May 13, 2017 to attend the State FFA Convention, as presented. Director Stoffer seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

b. Director Howe moved to approve overnight travel for Sequim High School photography students to travel to Yakima, Washington from April 27 through April 29, 2017, to participate in the SkillsUSA Washington Conference, as presented. Director Short seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

c. Director Stoffer moved to approve overnight and out-of-state travel for Sequim High School Robotics team to travel to Houston, Texas from April 18-22, 2017 in order to to compete in the World Championships, as presented. Director Howe seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

REPORTS

a. Mr. John Bridge, Sequim Education Foundation President and Ms. Jodi Olson, new Sequim Education Foundation Executive Director, talked about the Foundation serving as a catalyst to promote vibrant student growth in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Math (STEAM). Discussion followed.

b. Ms. Pam Landoni, District Professional Development Coordinator, gave an update on how the district is providing tailored K-5 reading instruction using the Core Knowledge Language Arts curriculum and utilizing the Assessment and Remediation Guide to individualize instruction for students. Comparative scores in literacy skills show that this method is working to improve instruction and student understanding of the material. Discussion followed.

c. Ms. Heidi Hietpas, Executive Director of Finance and Operations, shared with the board various financial documents including a March Summary Budget Report; March Comparative Budget Report; March Budget Status Report and a Finance and Operations Update. Discussion followed.

d. Superintendent Gary Neal reported that construction is going on all around Greywolf Elementary, with the Carlsborg sewer project and the construction of the four cross-laminated classrooms. Everyone has worked together well to mitigate the impact to children and families.

A question was raised about how much a district should have in reserve. A good rule of thumb is one month of payroll.

The Future-Ready Cafes are a series of Career and Technical Education workshops that the ESD is providing stipends for up to six teachers to attend, to learn how to lay out guidelines and priorities for expanding CTE courses in our schools.

Friday, 14 was the cutoff for submission of RFQ for our Capital Levy project manager. Interviews of the top three groups will follow soon.

Two planning sessions have now been held for our Strategic Plan. Twenty-two organizations are represented. Thirty-six participants attended the first session and forty-seven participants attended the next session. The next session will be held on Monday, April 24.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION

President Henrikson drew board members’ attention to:

a. PDC Filing for Board members is open online. Due April 15th

b. Upcoming Board Meetings, etc.

o April 24 – Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:15am at Sequim Transit Center

o May 1 – Regular Board Meeting @ 6:00pm

o May 11 – Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:45am at Sequim Transit Center

o May 15 – Regular Board Meeting @ 6:00pm

o Saturday, May 20 – WSSDA Regional Meeting in Bremerton from 10am-1pm

o May 25 – Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:45am at Sequim Transit Center

o June 5 – 5:30pm Reception for Retiring Administrative Assistant Marilyn Walsh with Regular Board Meeting @ 6pm. Student Board Representative Kaylee Gumm’s last board meeting!

o June 8 – Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:45am at Sequim Transit Center

o June 19 – Regular Board Meeting @ 6pm.

o June 22 – Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:45am at Sequim Transit Center

c. April Enrollment Data

d. April Free & Reduced Lunch percentages

e. Other items of interest:

o May 4 through 20 – Sequim High School Operetta (Seven Brides for Seven Brothers)

o May 15-19 ~ School Board Candidate Filing Week!

o May 29 – Memorial Day – NO SCHOOL, District Office Closed!

o May 31 – Scholarship Awards Night

o June 2-3 ~ Olympic Peninsula Academy Play Performance

o June 4 – Baccalaureate @ Dungeness Community Church

o June 6 – Middle School Choir Concert and High School Band Concert @ 7pm

o June 7 – High School Choir Concert

o June 9 – 9am Practice, 6pm Sequim High School Graduation (Reserved seating for the board)!

o June 12 – Olympic Peninsula Academy Graduation and Awards Ceremony

o June 13 – Greywolf Elementary Music Concert

o June 16 – Last Day of School (Early Dismissal)

FOR THE GOOD OF THE ORDER

Exit slips were distributed to Board members

ADJOURNMENT

At 7:20pm Director Stoffer moved to adjourn the Regular Meeting. Vice-President Short seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.