CABE has recognized two students from the high school and two students from the intermediate school for their annual Student Leadership Awards.  At the high school, Mr. Micari has invited Stamatina Haveles and Taavi Barclay to the meeting, and Mrs. Kempain has invited Mikayla Pasco and Jon Dyson to the meeting so that the Board can present them with the award. They were nominated by their respective schools.

Bonnie Beland, March's employee of the month, should be at the meeting since she was not able to make the last Board of Education meeting. 

April's employees of the month should also be at the meeting.  They are Sarah Hebert, Arminda Hudon, Gretchen Grudier, Michelle Percival (sub teacher), Sun Srinivasan and Sara Sumner.

National Teachers Day was May 4 and National School Nurses Day is May 12th.

The committee met and chose two students for next year's Student Representatives of the Board of Education.  They will be present for introduction at the meeting.  Also later in the meeting a formal approval of their appointment is on the agenda.

In accordance with BOE By-Law 9160, the ad hoc committee to select student board members recommends Chris Haveles and Matthew Mullen to be student representatives to the board of education for the 2010-11 school year.  The ad hoc committee, composed of Alexis Rich, Angela Brower and David Marcotte interviewed candidates during the week of April 19.

Recommended motion:  to appoint Chris Haveles and Matthew Mullen as the 2010-2011 Killingly High School Student Representatives to the Board of Education.

Members of the Killingly community are encouraged to share their thoughts with the Board of Education and are invited to do so during this segment of the meeting.  When appropriate to do so, members of the Board and the administration may respond to comments. However, in consideration of those in attendance and in an effort to proceed in a timely manner, follow-up discussion may need to take place outside of the meeting setting.

Lynda Fosco will be giving a brief presentation on what has been taking place at Goodyear.

With the move of the high school, all bus routes needed to be reworked for next year.  Art Vogel will be at the meeting to give you a brief overview of the status on next year's bus routes.

Both searches have resulted in the committees recommending two finalists to the superintendent.  Finalists will make site visits to KIS (May 12) and KHS (May 25); the Board will interview candidates on May 25.  Information and a recommendation to the Board will follow the site visits.

A brief update on the high school project, including construction status, FF&E and technology contract and delivery status, and anticipated move dates will be shared.

This list is current information as of Thursday, May 6.

The Town contacted NXEGEN, a firm that specializes in installing energy efficient electric lighting and components to reduce electric consumption.  They partner with CL&P in the energy rebate program to offset the costs of making the changes.  NXEGEN subsequently conducted an electricity energy audit of all town and school buildings.

Several years ago the district participated in an earlier program, and replaced metal halide lighting in gyms and cafeterias with higher efficient fixtures and bulbs, and  motion sensors in hallways and classrooms.  In that program, there were up-front costs that the district needed to expend, paid back through lower electric use.  In this program, CL&P makes "loans" of up to 36 months that are repaid through lower electric use.  The cost of the specific changes determines the loan length and payback period.

The Town has already agreed to participate in the program for town buildings.  I'd recommend that we do the same for Goodyear, KMS, and KIS since those schools are essentially budget-neutral - the loan payment matches the projected monthly savings.  The payback period for KCS is far too long (too little in savings), and the existing high school will not have the use during the next year to offset costs.  Since this is an ongoing program, we can re-apply for the high school when we are ready to occupy the building.

MOTION:  to approve the consent agenda:

a.  regular meeting minutes of April 14, 2010 and April 28, 2010
b.  payment of bills for the 2008-2009 year in April in the amount of $638.78 and for the 2009-2010 year in April in the amount of $1,110,705.39
c.  Employee of the Month for May 2010
d.  Grants: Elementary & Secondary Education Act, McKinney-Vento Homeless Grant, Primary Intervention Program, Interdistrict Cooperative Grant, School Readiness Grant, Family Resource Center Grant, Carl D. Perkins Vocational Education Act

The Ad-Hoc Textbook Approval Committee (Richard Murray, Diane Summa, Angela Brower) and Board Chair, Alexis Rich, met on Wednesday, April 28, and approved the purchase of new textbooks for the following high school courses:

Forensics (grades 11, 12) - Forensic Science:  Fundamentals & Investigations, 2008.

Chemistry in the Community (grades 11, 12) - Chemistry in the Community, 2006.

Algebra IA (grade 9) - Algebra I: Concepts and Skills, 2010.

CP Physics (grades 10-12) - Conceptual Physics, 2008.

Note:  The physics book will be the first digital textbook purchased by the district.

Recommended motion:  that the Board endorse the purchase of the textbooks approved by the Curriculum Subcommittee, should funds be available.

At last month's meeting, Lynda Fosco presented an updated and simplified rate schedule for the pre-school program and for BASP.  It retains the sliding scale, and costs are competitive (or lower) than rates for other programs in town.  This new scale, if adopted, should increase revenues by approximately $33,000.

Recommended motion:  that the BOE approve the rate schedule for 2010-11 for the Goodyear pre-school program and for BASP, as presented.

As you know, the state's application for Race to the Top (RTTT) funds in Phase I was not funded.  The SDE has been engaged in an extensive re-conceptualizing and re-writing process prior to submitting an application for Phase II.  Once again, SDE is looking for superintendents, boards of education and local teachers unions to formally sign a memorandum of understanding, committing the district to implementing the state plan if it is approved by the Federal Department of Education.

There is a significant shift in this application.  Instead of a focus on secondary school reform, the new application is centered on the SDE's curriculum standards and model curricula, data systems, and "CALI" (CT Accountability for Learning Initiative) initiatives.  It still includes elements of secondary school reform, school to college or work transitions, development of benchmark assessments, 21st century skills, and changes to teacher and administrator evaluation systems.  [All of this is in much greater detail in the attached documents.]  Additionally, the SDE has "sweetened the pot" for all districts, reallocating the fund distribution so that all districts receive at least $100K or $140K (K-6 or K-12 districts, respectively) over the four year period.  For Killingly, that means we would receive $436,037 over four years.

Although I do not agree with all elements of the state's plan, I believe we ought to support the application for several reasons.  First, there is more good than bad in the plan, and much of it was just enacted into law by the General Assembly (see attached Hartford Courant article).  Secondly, we are already doing, or have started doing, many elements of the plan.  For example, we have started training of staff with CALI, we are a pilot district for the student success plans, we are expanding our AP offerings through Project Opening Doors, and we are implementing SRBI.  Thirdly, although $436,037 over four years is not enough money to change our lives, it could have a significant impact on the quantity and quality of professional development we might offer staff.  And finally, the resources available to SDE in the current economic climate would exponentially improve their ability to provide services and support to school districts.

Recommended motion:  that the Board authorizes the Chairperson of the Board to execute the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the Phase II Race to the Top grant project between the district and State Department of Education, as presented.

Due to a change in schedule options, a reduction in staffing, and certification restrictions, Mr. Micari has requested that the BOE consider waiving the three-credit science requirement for the class of 2011.

Recommended motion:  to waive the three-credit science requirement for the class of 2011.

Shannon Mercier, a special education teacher at KMS, has requested an unpaid leave of absence for the 2010-11 school year to enroll in a Masters of Arts program at University of Hartford.  This leave is requested under the provisions of Article 13 of the KEA contract.  Her successful completion of the program will, upon her return to Killingly, enhance her skills and our special education program.

Recommended motion:  that the BOE approve a one year unpaid leave of absence for Shannon Mercier for the 2010-11 school year, in accordance with the provisions of Article 13 of the KEA contract.