November 16, 2023 at 6:00 PM - Bethel Board of Education Regular Meeting

Rationale: 

• Congratulations to the BHS Marching Wildcats and Guard they are both Connecticut State Champions and National Champs 2023 class II AA.  They received Best visuals, Best color guard, Best music, and Best overall effect. A parade on campus was held on November 13th to honor them.
• Congratulations to the Boy's Soccer Team for winning the SWC last Thursday night. 
• Congratulations to the BHS NJROTC Marching Drill Team for placing 2nd overall at the SUNY Maritime College Drill Meet. Our Varsity and JV Color Guards placed 1st, we placed 2nd in the academic competition and the physical fitness competition, and 3rd in platoon drill.
• Congratulations to Cindy Feuerman, Audio/Visual Tech., BHS for receiving the Bonnie B. Carney Award of Excellence for Educational Communications - HONORABLE MENTION - Special Project (AV) - Bethel Turf Fields - Thank You for Your Support 

Rationale: 

The CABE Board Recognition Awards are designed to recognize boards which provide effective leadership to their districts through the use of good practices. This program, which acknowledges the importance of school board members and superintendents working together as effective teams, strengthens public education in Connecticut and across the country.  This award recognizes Boards which are truly exemplary. The award will be presented at the 2023 CABE/CAPSS Conference tomorrow.  

I would like to thank the Board for their hard work and dedication to the families and children of Bethel Public Schools and their tireless commitment and support to fulfilling the mission of the Bethel Public Schools. 

Rationale:  Gift
Rockwell School - $230, Rockwell School Library. Donors Choose

Rationale:  Dr. Grieco and Ms. Soucy will be presenting their 2023-2024 School Improvement Plans.   While their presentation will provide a broad overview, the plans contain greater detail, which is focused on literacy, intellectual engagement of students and work around emotional intelligence.  

Rationale:  This presentation is being provided at the request of the Board of Education.  Dr. Brooks and Mrs. Rutledge will be reviewing our SRBI or intervention systems within the Bethel Public Schools.  

Rationale: 

• Letter from BHS hockey families regarding Bethel's hockey fees.

Rationale:  (Please note:  The Board welcomes Public Participation and asks that speakers please limit their comments to 2 minutes.  Speakers may offer objective comments of school operations and programs that concern them.  The Board will not permit any expression of personal complaints or defamatory comments about Board of Education personnel and students, nor against any person connected with the Bethel Public School System.)

Rationale:  Monthly Data  -  We include in the BOE agenda the monthly data as requested by the BOE.  

Rationale: 

• We are bringing forward the American Studies curriculum (Grade 11) for approval:

• This is an interdisciplinary course (English and Social Studies) that requires collaboration, and inquiry, demands a high level of reading and writing skills, and focuses on diverse American experiences and perspectives.

•  Units include:

  • Unit 1: Searching for American Identity and Voices

  • Unit 2: A Changing American Identity

  • Unit 3: American Identity in the World

  • Unit 4: Contemporary Challenges to American Identity

Rationale: 

Rationale: 

The Bethel Board of Education requested a review of all dues and fees charged to families.   The attached spreadsheet provides an overview of the results.  

In the analysis of the information, it is important to note that not all dues and fees are collected by the school system and most are a result of optional participation in after-school clubs, athletics, or activities.  If a student is not able to pay the fees due to being eligible for free or reduced lunch, then the fee is waived. 

In the first spreadsheet BHS & BMS Student Dues & Fees, there is a list of all fees charged to students, including all extracurricular activities.  We were also asked by Mr. Foster to get data from a few other communities, which is indicated in the spreadsheet.  There is a worksheet for BHS, BMS, and dues we pay to outside organizations (part of the operating budget).  Some of the fees listed are outside the scope of what you might consider extracurricular activities.  We can discuss that more at the meeting.  Again, we just wanted you to have a comprehensive list.  

The fees listed only apply to the core activities.  If the team makes any type of advancement in the competitions, there are additional charges for families.  

The Director of Athletics put together a cost analysis for some sports to show the cost per students.  The amounts include revenue from Pay to Play because that is our current structure.  We knew that hockey would be the highest, followed by swimming.   This is due to the rental fees for the facilities for practice.  

In addition, Mark put together a rough cost for the addition of girls golf. Lastly, attached is the proposal from last year for boy's volleyball.  

The second spreadsheet is a current list of Pay to Play (just athletics) in our region and DRG.  2023-2024 Pay to Play by Region and DRG

It was noted at the last meeting that Board members have to highlight lines where they have questions or suggestions to include in the budget directly on the user fees sheet for discussion.

Rationale:  Bethel High School - This weekend, ERU 2 will be replaced.   As you are aware, the project was delayed due to difficulty getting a unit.  The crane will be arriving on Friday, November 10th.  

Bethel Middle School - There will be an emergency repair this weekend to the heating system.   There were two drips located due to aging pipes that were rusted.  The system needs to be drained, pipes repaired, and the entire system will need to be put back online.   

Rationale: 

By November 30th of each year, the Board of Education needs to submit to the Board of Selectman the Capital Plan.  The Board needs to vote on the plan at the November Board meeting.  

Capital Plan 2023-2033

Rationale:   District Safe School Climate Plan. 

This is a regulation, but does require Board approval by statute.  The district Social Emotional Learning and School Climate Collaborative, made up of parents, students, teachers, PPS staff and administration provides input and provides revisions within the document.   I wanted to send it to you in advance in case you have any questions.  Once it is approved, Dr. Brooks will update it on our website and we will send it out to parents and staff.