February 6, 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


 

Monday, February 6, 2017 -- 6:00pm Regular Board Meeting

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

President Robin Henrikson called the Regular Meeting to order at 6:00pm noting the excused absences of Vice-President Horan and Director Short, as well as the excused absences of Student Board Representatives Kaylee Gumm and Téa Gauthun. The Pledge of Allegiance was conducted.

PRESENT

Robin Henrikson, President    Jack Walsh

James Stoffer, Director    Randy Hill, Principal Sequim Options School

Michael Howe, Director and Olympic Peninsula Academy

Eric Lewis, Olympic Medical Center

Gary Neal, Superintendent Shenna Younger, Citizens for Sequim Schools

Marilyn Walsh, Administrative Assistant    Tom Kelly

Patsene Dashiell, District Office

Candi Hayden, Citizens for Sequim Schools

Jessica Hernandez

Michael Dashiell, Sequim Gazette

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Director Stoffer moved to approve the minutes from the January 17, 2017 Regular Board Meeting and the January 30, 2017 Special Meeting of the Board, as presented. Director Howe seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

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

President Henrikson requested that Item E-4 be removed from the Consent Agenda, as requested by Ms. Boots, and that Item 11a be stricken from Reports, as Ms. Beckett was unable to be present due to inclement weather. Director Stoffer moved to approve the agenda as amended. Director Howe seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

STUDENT BOARD REPRESENTATIVE COMMUNICATION & STUDENT RECOGNITION

Our Student Board Representatives were absent, due to inclement weather. They submitted their building reports via email, as follows:

  • Student Board Representative Téa Gauthun reported that Greywolf Elementary students are looking forward to a busy week ahead with Soroptimist book club on February 7th, the 100th day of school on February 10th, the Port Angeles Symphony on February 14th, National Assessment of Educational Programs testing on February 15th, and Greywolf Elementary movie night on the February 16th.
  • Student Board Representative Kaylee Gumm reported that Sequim Middle School had an awesome Professional Development day on Jan 30. The morning was dedicated to content professional development where Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Educational Service District, School District, & building level staff delivered significant learning opportunities for each department. The afternoon was centered on their book study, “Why Students Don't Like School”. Overall, it was an engaging action packed day of learning for all staff. At Sequim High School, the talent show was held last Friday and Saturday, with a variety of acts including comedy, dancing, rapping, singing and even Scremo! A big Shout Out to all the high school performers. Winter sports had their Senior Nights last week. Girls basketball will be going to the playoffs and wrestlers are getting ready for districts.

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 asked for any Public Comment regarding Agenda Items. Hearing none, President Henrikson asked for any Public Comment regarding General Items.

  • Ms. Shenna Younger offered congratulations to Marilyn Walsh on her upcoming retirement. She then gave an update on Citizens for Sequim Schools upcoming events, including a phone call night and a levy social gathering the night of the election.
  • Mr. Eric Lewis, CEO of Olympic Medical Center, shared that their board had passed a resolution in support of both the Education Programs and Operations levy and the Capital Projects levy, citing the importance of community support of the schools as a major factor in recruiting, hiring and retaining medical staff.

BOARD COMMUNICATION AND OTHER ITEMS

  • Director Howe thanked Ms. Younger and Mr. Lewis for their support of Sequim School District. Mr. Howe offered kudos to the State Senate for passing an Education bill as a first step toward resolving the school funding question, and to the Pullman School District for passing a Resolution to be more transparent, including opening up employee contract negotiations to the public.
  • Director Stoffer offered to represent the Board at the courthouse on February 14 when the levy results are announced. On January 23 Director Stoffer was in Olympia with Sequim Food Bank Directors for the Anti-Hunger & Nutrition Coalition. There is a bill called Breakfast after the Bell that was introduced to provide funding and grants to provide additional meals after the start of school and improve nutrition options for kids. Director Stoffer attended a meeting of Sequim Cares, a coalition of faith-based groups, nonprofits, the Sequim Police Department and the City of Sequim, whose purpose is helping the homeless in our community. Director Stoffer attended the District Family Reading Night on January 25 which was the most successful so far. The WSSDA Legislative Conference is February 11-12. Director Stoffer met with our Student Board Representatives last Thursday, to discuss the program. This is Legislative Week 4. Hot Topics this past week and into this week are the three funding plans; the Governor’s, the House’s and the Senate’s. The Levy Lid extension Bill (HB 1059) was in play; but now appears to be stalled with discussions on SB 5607 (SEN funding Plan) Today the Senate’s Early Learning & K12 Education Committee were meeting at 3:30; but he has not had the opportunity to review the proceedings. For more, please see the WSSDA Weekly Webinar that then gets posted on the WSSDA Website. Several other bills are in play – HB 1170; HB 2449, & SB 5292 / 5563; all deal with Truancy. The Becca Task Force provides comparison on all the bills and can be found on the links in the WSSDA Week 4 Updates. The House Capital Budget Committee held several work sessions regarding overview of K-12 construction, the School Construction Assistance Program, pre-disaster mitigation and high performance buildings. There are eleven bills in play dealing will all things school construction, grants, maintenance; etc. More information about this will be available at the Legislative Conference. On Wednesday the Senate Ways & Means Committee will be holding a Public Hearing on SB 5664, which would permanently eliminate the deduction of Federal Forest revenue from school districts apportionment payments. HB 1393 is similar. In 2015 Sequim received approx. $127,000 in revenue; currently we would be eligible for $132K. Background; since 1908, the Forest Service has paid approx. 25% of its gross receipts to most western states for use on roads and schools. In Washington State, half of the Fed Forest funds go to school districts in counties with Federal Forest Lands in their jurisdiction. However Washington State has reduced that funding dollar for dollar. This bill will restore that funding without a deduction by the State. Members of the WSSDA Timber Lands Trust Fund Committee have been ask to testify on behalf of WSSDA’s position. Director Stoffer would like to do that if the board concurred with that position. The Bureau of Natural Resources is currently receiving Public Comment regarding the 10-year Sustainable Harvest Plan, with six options up for approval. Director Stoffer is unable to attend the Bureau of Natural Resources meeting on February 7, but will post the presentation in OneNote for the board’s information. Director Stoffer applied and was accepted into the WSSDA Leadership Class. Classes start this week, and although he is paying his own way, he may request some travel assistance. Director Stoffer attended the Sequim High School Junior and Senior Class Open Mic and the High School Talent Show, showcasing student talent. Director Stoffer thanked Superintendent Neal for his outreach to the community; specifically the Tribe and the recently held Public Forums and Coffee Chats. He also thanked Marilyn, Patsene, Tracy Norman for keeping the schedule going and managing the day to day operations.
  • President Henrikson congratulated Ms. Walsh on her upcoming retirement and thanked Citizens for Sequim Schools and Olympic Medical Center for their support. President Henrikson attended the District Family Reading Night and was pleased to see that about 450 people turn out, showing that word of mouth about the value of this program is reaching our families.

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. 187568 thru No. 187650 in the total amount of $168,083.61.

b. ASB Fund Vouchers No. 10745 thru No. 10760 in the total amount of $13,165.02.

c. Capital Projects Fund Vouchers No. 2600 thru No. 2600 in the total amount of $340.00.

d. Payroll for the month of January 2017 in the total amount of $2,123,291.20.

e. 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. Accept Letter of Resignation from Kevin Barnett, Sequim Middle Head Building Custodian, effective February 6, 2017 as presented.

2. Accept Letter of Resignation from Tom Saffold, Sequim Middle School Drama teacher, effective August 31, 2017, for the purpose of retirement, as presented.

3. Accept Letter of Resignation from Marilyn Walsh, Administrative Assistant to the Superintendent, effective at the end of the 2016-2017 school year, for the purpose of retirement, as presented.

4. Accept Letter of Resignation from Patra Boots, Executive Director of Technology and Assessment, effective February 16, 2017 as presented. (Rescinded)

f. Approve Memorandum of Understanding between Sequim School District #323 and Olympic Education Service District 114 regarding Healthy Youth Survey Data, as presented.

g. Approve Consultation Services Agreement Between Sequim School District and Washington State Center for Childhood Deafness and Hearing Loss, to provide an evaluation and follow up consultation for district students, for the 2016-2017 school year, as presented.

h. Accept Cash Donation in the amount of $10,000 from Praxair, Inc. for the purpose of supporting the Sequim High School Robotics Team for equipment and tournament entry fees, as presented.

Director Stoffer moved to approve the Consent Agenda, Items ‘a’ thru ‘h’ as presented. Director Howe seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

OLD BUSINESS

a. Director Stoffer moved to Approve at Second Reading and Adopt Policy #3115 – Homeless Students: Enrollment Rights and Services. Director Howe seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

b. Director Stoffer moved to Approve at Second Reading and Adopt Policy #3140 – Release of Resident Students. Director Howe seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

c. Director Stoffer moved to Approve at First Reading Policy #5240 – Evaluation of Staff. Director Howe seconded. The policy has been updated to remove procedural implementation language. The procedure has been deleted entirely to avoid confusion with collective bargaining agreements, which typically address evaluations. Classified Essential. Vote taken; motion carried.

NEW BUSINESS

a. There was no New Business at this time

REPORTS

a. Student Performance Report for Science – Deb Beckett, District Science Coordinator Postponed due to inclement weather

b. Superintendent Gary Neal thanked Eric Lewis on behalf of Olympic Medical Center and Shenna Younger on behalf of Citizens for Sequim Schools for their support. Superintendent Neal reported that he met with the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribal Council. They were very supportive of the levies and made a sizeable donation to Citizens for Sequim Schools. School was cancelled due to overnight snowfall and icy roads. Superintendent Neal informed the board how the decision was made and ways parents were notified of the closure. Discussion followed.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION

President Henrikson drew board members' attention to the following:

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

b. Upcoming Board Meetings, etc.

o February 12-13 – 2017 Legislative Conference at South Puget Sound Community College

o Monday, February 20 – Regular Board Meeting Moved to February 21 due to Holiday

o Tuesday, February 21 – 6pm Regular Board Meeting followed by a Board Planning Workshop

o Monday, March 6 – 6pm Regular Board Meeting

c. Other Events of Interest:

o February 10 -- the 100th day of school

o February 14, 2017 – EP&O and Capital Projects Levy Election ♥

o February 17 -- NO SCHOOL, District Office is OPEN

o February 20th – President’s Holiday / District Office Closed

d. February 6-10 is National School Counseling Week in our schools.

FOR THE GOOD OF THE ORDER

President Henrikson announced that the February 21 Board Workshop will take place following the meeting instead of preceding the meeting, to better accommodate the work schedules of board members.

ADJOURNMENT

At 6:28pm Director Stoffer moved to adjourn the Regular Meeting. Director Howe seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.