[PC News] November 2 Meeting Minutes,
2004-05 School Board Budget Preperation Calendar
Shelley Payne
shp at alumni.virginia.edu
Mon Nov 29 22:42:55 EST 2004
Parent Council News
November 30, 2004
http://avenue.org/parentcouncil <http://avenue.org/parentcouncil>
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Topics in This Issue:
1. Minutes of November 2nd Parent Council Meeting
2. 2004-2005 School Board Budget Preparation Calendar
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Minutes of November 2nd Parent Council Meeting
Albemarle County Public Schools
Parent Council Meeting
November 2, 2004
County Office Building Room 320, 7-9 p.m.
Minutes
Members present: Debbie Stollings, Agnor-Hurt; Dee Walsh, Albemarle High;
Tom Pajewski, Baker-Butler; Barbara Stevens, Broadus Wood; Bernardette
Hearns, Brownsville; Shelley Payne, Burley & Stone-Robinson; Chip Deale,
Crozet; Joe Abbate, Henley; Craig Wilson, Hollymead; Dan Dunsmore;
Meriwether-Lewis; Doug and Karen Collier, Monticello High; Teresa Hashisaki,
Murray Elementary; Stacy Walker, Sutherland; Cindy Adams, Walton; Lisa
Moorefield, Western Albemarle High.
Staff present: Dr. Kevin Castner, Superintendent; Steele Howen, Executive
Director of Administrative Services; Regina Kirk, Instructional Coordinator
for Health and Physical Education; Christy Sinatra, Deputy Clerk of School
Board; Christina Pitsenberger, Child Nutrition Program Coordinator.
School Board present: Diantha McKeel, Chair.
1) Parent Council President Chip Deale called the meeting to order at 7:10
p.m.
2) Old Business
a. Minutes from the October 5, 2004 Parent Council Meeting were
approved.
b. Sample parent organization budgets from Broadus Wood, Burley,
Crozet, and Meriwether-Lewis were distributed.
3) Make a Difference Day Report – June Smith
a. 100 percent of Albemarle County schools participated on October 23.
An information sheet listing samples of projects and Make A Difference Day
partnerships and recipients was shared.
b. The kick-off event will be re-evaluated for next year.
c. Certificates of Participation will be sent to all schools along with
a thank you letter from the Superintendent.
d. The Division entry to the U.S. Weekend contest is due November 15.
Information is being collected from schools now.
e. The Parent Council was thanked for its support and sponsorship.
f. Mr. Deale thanked Photoworks for the event banners and thanked
June, Teresa, and everyone who helped to make the day a success.
4) Parent Council Website – Lisa Moorefield and Shelley Payne
a. At the last meeting Lisa distributed a proposed website plan and
requested suggestions from Parent Council members. Dee Walsh had asked that
the Parent Council meeting agendas and minutes be posted on the website.
b. Someone will be hired to develop the initial website with the goal
of having the website active by late January or early February 2005. Lisa
and Shelley will begin gathering information for the website and would
appreciate help.
c. Lisa asked that the Parent Council give her and Shelley permission
to gather information and start the process. There was consensus among
Parent Council members for Lisa and Shelley to begin website development.
d. Meriwether-Lewis, Cale, Crozet, Murray, and the Division have
donated funds to Parent Council for this project.
e. Comments/suggestions for the website should be directed to Lisa or
Shelley. Several parents commented that the website needs to list a generic
title for parent organizations rather than “PTA,” or “PTO,” or “PATSO,”
etc., as parent organizations in the county schools do not have a uniform
title.
5) Superintendent’s Report – Dr. Kevin Castner
a. Kevin said the group with the lowest percentage of people voting is
the group that includes parents of schoolchildren. He suggested parent
organizations keep this in mind as the next election approaches and consider
using their newsletters and other communication tools to encourage parents
to vote.
b. A letter from the School Board Chair recently was published in the
Daily Progress thanking the community for the positive results on a County
Government citizen satisfaction survey. The County Government allowed the
School Division to include one question on the survey. The School Division
question was taken from the Gallup Poll and focused on citizen satisfaction
with local public education. According to the survey results, 92.3 percent
of local residents with children attending Albemarle County schools were
“satisfied” or “very satisfied” with the education their children are
receiving compared to a national figure of 70 percent. About 85 percent of
adults without children in local public schools were “satisfied” or “very
satisfied” with local schools, compared to 47 percent nationwide. The survey
shows that people recognize that the school Division has good community
support and that education is about much more than test scores.
c. The Public Education Fund of Charlottesville/Albemarle is developing
a tax-free fund to allow people to make donations to support local education
through the new foundation. Foundation funding is not intended to replace
local, state or federal funding for public schools; its goal is to provide
funding beyond what’s supplied by tax dollar for “value-added” programs and
purposes. The three areas the foundation will focus its giving in are: Early
childhood education to prepare kids for school; teacher recruitment and
retention; and, developing students into healthy and contributing members of
society. Questions can be direct to Lisa Moorefield, a foundation Board
member.
d. Division enrollment is up about 150 students from last school year.
Next school year our enrollment is expected to grow by less than 50.
e. The Redistricting Committee has been formed with members
representing every feeder pattern. There was a high number of qualified
applicants for this Committee. Committee recommendations should be formed in
March and will then be presented to the School Board. The Committee is
addressing redistricting issues Division-wide, not just for specific schools
like Meriwether-Lewis or Henley. Parents can track the Committee’s work by
visiting the Division website at
http://www.k12albemarle.org/Board/LongRangePlanning.htm to view the meeting
calendar and minutes. The Committee meetings are open to the public.
f. The Parent Council should submit any budget ideas for 2005-06 in
December. The Superintendent’s Funding Request will be presented to the
School Board January 18, 2005. The School Board will host a public hearing
on February 9, 2005. The County Government’s public hearing for the budget
is currently scheduled for April 6, 2005. The Board of Supervisors and
School Board have asked that the Division continue to explore the market
salaries issue for teachers. There will be discussion of this issue as the
budget process moves forward. Last year parent support did help and made a
difference in recruitment.
g. All Albemarle County schools were accredited by the State of
Virginia.
h. On Mon., November 1, the Division hosted the “Making Connections”
staff development day. More than 1200 teachers participated. The event could
be compared to bringing a national conference to Albemarle County.
6) Program Presentation: Diantha McKeel, School Board Chair; Regina Kirk,
instructional coordinator for health and physical education; Christina
Pitsenberger, Child Nutrition Program coordinator.
a. Diantha said the School Board continues to hear health-related
annual reports. The School Board is exploring how to improve physical
education, nutrition, and healthy environments for students in a much more
active way than it has in the past. The School Board has made health and
physical fitness one of its 2004-06 Priorities. They will be seeking input
from parents as the School Board begins factoring improvements into its
programs and budget process.
b. Christina discussed nutritional changes made in the school lunch
program this year in response to School Board goals, information gleaned
from a health self-assessment the Division’s Health Advisory Board
completed, and research regarding child nutrition, fitness, and obesity. The
changes have increased the nutritional integrity of our school lunch
program. The nutritional guidelines the Division implemented stretch beyond
the National School Lunch Program requirements. The major changes are
focused in reducing sugar content of meals, reducing fat content, and
limiting choices to encourage moderate consumption of less healthy foods.
Christina said the response from parents and staff has been positive but
there has been some resistance from students. The following questions were
raised:
i.
Has there been a change in portions? Christina said the national guidelines
are for school lunches to provide one-third of a student’s daily calories.
If a student purchases more than one meal, they may pay more for the second
meal as the second lunch would not be included in the national program.
Kevin noted that food portions in the United States tend to be 30 percent
higher than others worldwide.
ii.
Can the time kids have to eat be extended? Christina said time is a big
issue for schools and her department does not control the time allotted for
lunch; that decision is made by school sites and the Division. It is a
bigger problem at the high schools. They try to have as many points of
service as possible to combat this problem. Steele said the Division has
been studying school schedules and the State does not allow schools to count
lunch breaks as required instructional minutes. To extend lunch breaks would
cut into instructional time.
iii.
How does the school lunch program address different student needs like
vegetarianism, lactose-intolerance, or food allergies? Christina said
schools are conscientious of kids who don’t eat meat and that vegetarian
options are offered. At high schools there are baked potato bars, for
example. Other specific student needs are met on an individual basis based
on physician prescriptions.
iv.
Why are students charged for juice and water, and not milk? Christina said
milk is considered part of the school lunch meal. Juice and water are sold a
la carte.
v.
What drove the changes? Christina said the changes were made in reaction to
a combination of things such as studies, media reports on child obesity,
Board goals, etc. Part of the strategy also includes educating staff. This
year the cafeteria staff had training that included a session on how to
season foods for better flavor and how to use more fruits and vegetables.
Cafeteria managers are now required to do an initiative to increase fruit
and vegetable use as part of their evaluations.
c. Regina discussed the Carol M. White Physical Education for Progress
Grant (PowerPoint presentation attached). The Division received this federal
grant for $496,494 last year. The goal of the program is to increase teacher
knowledge and use of innovative approaches, including tech-based approaches
to physical education instruction. This has been a major change for the
adults who are learning many new things they want to teach kids to do. There
is an emphasis that stretches beyond team sports to lifelong and individual
sports like mountain biking, rollerblading, etc. Through the grant, teachers
are revamping curriculum to support student achievement of the Virginia
Standards of Learning and to encourage lifelong fitness habits. The grant
program includes teacher training in student assessments to help individuals
track their fitness. Through the grant, the following items for physical
education programs are being purchased:
i. Pedometers and heart rate monitors
ii. PC computers for each school
iii. Network printers for each school
iv. Palm Tungsten E handheld computers
v. Fitness assessment equipment
vi. Microfit reporting software for every physical education teacher
v
ii. Digital skill and video cameras
vii
i. Professional development materials
ix. Climbing walls at 10 elementary schools.
x. Mountain bikes for middle schools
xi. Orienteering equipment for all levels
d. Regina said she’d like every school to have a climbing wall and has
committed to raising funds to pay for climbing walls in partnership with
parent organizations. The following questions were raised:
i. In high school, are kids required to have two semesters of
physical education? Regina said students must pass two semesters of physical
education to graduate. By the end of 10th grade, students also must develop
a plan for being physically fit. High schools have elective classes students
can take beyond the two required semesters of physical education.
ii. Is there a way to get more physical fitness into the high school
curriculum? Diantha said the School Board is interested in studying what it
would take for high school kids to be more active but it will open up issues
with class schedules and hiring. If anything were to be pursued in this
area, it would be accomplished in incremental steps.
iii. If we are concerned about child obesity, why don’t we have
physical education every day? Kevin said he would not support this right now
because there are higher priorities in terms of student needs such as
third-grade reading. To add time in any one area, it must be taken from
another or added. Right now, for example, the Division is trying to add
foreign language into the elementary day and it’s challenging. Currently,
our schools are in session 15 minutes less per day than all other Virginia
schools because of a busing issue. If we have to put that 15 minutes back, a
new discussion might take place
iv. Recess is often used as a discipline tool. Kids who probably need
to expend extra energy have to sit out during recess as punishment. Is that
really a productive tool when the child probably has extra energy to expend
and there are fitness needs? Regina said we avoid using exercise as a
punishment. The issue is one parents may want to discuss with principals.
e. Alison Wilson, food educator for Hollymead, gave an overview of the
school’s Food is Elementary Program pilot. She discovered this program when
searching for a way to get children to make healthier food choices by
creating a demand and supply. The Food is Elementary Program is a 28-week,
hands-on curriculum for grades K-12. It includes lesson plans. The first 14
weeks concentrate on nutrition. The lessons for the second 14-week period
are based on the Virginia Standards of Learning and involve learning about
different countries and making recipes from different regions. The program
is being piloted in fourth grade at Hollymead. Baker-butler is serving as
the control group. Alison visits classes to teach lessons and do hands-on
activities such as using foods such as dry beans or grains to make artwork
or cooking different dishes from around the world. Alison said the program
is empowering children to make their own healthy choices about the foods
they eat. They also are becoming more inclined to eat something they’ve
created. In the first eight weeks of the program, she already has examples
of how kids are changing the idea of what they should eat. During the second
14-week period, the students will make recipes in the classrooms and select
one to be served in the cafeteria. Baker-Butler will serve the same dish but
without the background lessons and they will track how many kids opt for the
dish at lunch. Whole Foods has been a generous sponsor of the pilot program.
Whole Foods paid for three days of training for several staff members and
has provided 100 student journals.
f. Shelley Payne gave an overview of the Stone-Robinson Wellness
Fair. The SIP created the Wellness Fair to address the question of how can a
healthier environment be created at school? Planning for the family-focused
Wellness Fair emphasized early and consistent event promotion. Event
planners made a special effort to plan promotional activities to get kids
really excited about attending the Wellness Fair. They had activities during
lunch such as contests for students to guess which sample was whole milk and
which was not; have people dress up as fruits and vegetables and walk around
campus, etc. The event focus was on healthy lifestyles, not just child
obesity. The event features presenters discussing healthy snacks, a t-shirt
design contest, distribution of recipes, ideas about what to do when you’re
bored to increase activity, Jazzercise demonstrations, etc. The event was
well attended and kids were dragging their parents to it. This spring,
Burley is hosting a similar event focused on teen health issues such as skin
care, dealing with acne, etc.
7) Good & Welfare
a. Shelley Payne announced that Burley is hosting a college and career
planning night next Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. for elementary and middle school
parents. The event will feature presentations on saving for college, helping
students plan careers, high school career pathways, work skills, etc. She
asked the parent organizations do whatever they can to promote the event in
their schools
8) Video
a. A 10-minute video about the Food is Elementary program was played.
9) Meeting adjourned at 9:14 p.m.
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2004-2005 School Board Budget Preparation Calendar
October
Thursday, Oct. 14 Joint Board Meeting –
Compensation and Benefits
Thursday, Oct. 28 Approve Budget Calendar
November
Wednesday, Nov. 3 Board of Supervisors receive newest revenue
estimates
Thursday, Nov. 11 Provide Budget Direction to the
Superintendent
December
Thursday, Dec. 9 Additional Budget Direction (if needed)
January
Tuesday, Jan. 18 Presentation of Superintendent’s Funding
Request
Tuesday, Jan. 25 Board Worksession
Thursday, Jan. 27 Board Worksession (part of regular
agenda)
February
Tuesday, Feb. 1 Board Worksession
Thursday, Feb. 3 Board Worksession
Wednesday, Feb 9 Public Hearing
Thursday, Feb. 10 Joint Board Meeting (tentative)
Thursday, Feb. 10 Board Worksession – Pass Request (part
of regular agenda)
Tuesday, Feb. 15 Board Worksession (if needed to pass
request)
March
Wednesday, Mar. 2 Co. Executive’s Rec. Budget
Presented to Board of Supervisors (BOS)
Wednesday, Mar. 9 Public Hearing on Co. Executive
’s Proposed Budget
Monday, Mar. 14 BOS Worksession –
Wednesday, Mar. 16 BOS Worksession – School Budget Discussion &
Presentation
Monday, Mar. 21 BOS Worksession –
Wednesday, Mar. 23 BOS Worksession – if needed
April
Wednesday, Apr. 6 Public Hearing on BOS Proposed Budget, CIP
& Tax Rate
Wednesday, Apr. 13 BOS Adopts FY03/04 Budget, CIP
& Tax Rate
Thursday, Apr. 21 Board Worksession (if
needed)
Thursday, Apr. 28 Board Worksession – Pass
Budget (part of regular agenda)
Board of Supervisors meetings listed in ITALICS
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