1. Comments from the Principals

Masconomet Middle School – Dr. Flaherty

Updates:

• Summer Math camp
• Student Orientation and School Opening Overview
• School Year Themes
• Grade 7 and Football Game
• Open House
• Excels

Good News to Share:

• MEF Gift to renovate and expand MS STEAM Lab

Curriculum Connection:

• 9/11 Remembrance
• Unity Project

Upcoming Dates of Importance

October 7- 9, 2017 Homework Free Weekend

October 9, 2017   Columbus Day, No School

October 13, 2017 Picture Retakes

October 17,2017  Trimester 1 midpoint

October 23, 2017 Early Release Day, 12:20 p.m.

Masconomet High School – Mr. Delani

• School is off to a fantastic start beginning w/Freshman Orientation
• Completed 2 cycles of classes for students & all faculty/administrative meeting cycles
• Class Assemblies for Freshmen, Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors
• CCI Meetings
• Thursday 9/28 HS Open House
• Thursday 9/14 – School Council Meeting
• Friday 9/15 – ACTIVITY FAIR
• Course Selection Fair planned for January – AP Katie DiNardo, Guidance Director Irene Duros & Rich Schonewald (Master Teacher Project)
• Coordinating k-12 Social & Emotional Learning Programs w/Kevin, Scott Morrison – Invited Julianna O’Day, Masco Peer Leader Coordinator to present
• Continue work looking at course and teacher load #s.  What are implications, questions being asked?
• Fall Sports off to a great start.

1. High School Class Enrollment Update

Pete Delani will be providing a class enrollment update to the Committee and bringing back answers to some specific questions asked by members at the last meeting in regard to enrollments. A slide deck will be forwarded to you next week in advance of the meeting.

1. Approval of Facility Request for Men’s Basketball

The men’s basketball league has been using the Masco gym and paying rental fees for many years. They have never paid in advance as is required by policy guidelines and has paid either at the end of their season or made some payments during the season. The league is seeking a waiver of the pre-payment requirement. Mr. Mark Frisch will make a presentation in support of the argument that the league be granted a waiver.

1. Information Technology Report

Seth Goodman, our IT Director for ten years, is leaving the District on September 22^nd. Over Seth’s tenure, the word dramatic may be a word that best that describes the changes in technology and Masconomet’s technology adaptation to the changing environment. Seth has not only been a leader on the strictly IT side, his role has been integral to the development of our academic and student computing and other technologies from our 1:1 program to smart projectors in all classrooms, to many other innovations where software, hardware and the Cloud come together to create solutions to improve teaching and learning.

This will be Mr. Goodman’s last presentation to the School Committee and I know that he will share some highlights from over the past ten years and describe how Masconomet is prepared to continue its leadership in technology systems and digitally enabled teaching and learning.

1. Superintendent’s Report

Hiring Two Unfunded Paraprofessional Positions – One student moved into the District this past summer with an IEP specifying a 1:1 aide. A second student transitioning from Tri-Town School Union to Masco had an IEP change adding a 1:1 aide after the FY18 budget was approved. We are required to hire for these unanticipated positions. Susan Givens will account for this financially when she does the next financial report.

Early Release Day 9/18/17 – I will give a brief report on the District’s professional development activities during the Early Release Day on Monday.

Creating Trauma Sensitive Schools Trauma, September 19th – The theme for a District Attorney’s forum next week is “Kids in Crisis: A Strategic Approach to Identifying Traumatized Youth. Very related to our vision of Teaching Every Student, we are sending all of our clinicians and several administrators to this workshop/conference next week.

Out of this training we will receive multiple copies of a trauma screening tool and our clinicians will have the skills to utilize it.

Essential School Health Services Report – I have included in your packet the 2016-2017 ESHS report. As part of the grant we receive, the School Committee must receive this report each year. Karen Trevenen, R.N., prepares the report.

1. FY19 Budget Goals and Calendar

Vice-Chair Hodges will introduce draft FY19 budget goals or concepts and a draft calendar of budget meeting dates. There is a possibility that the School Committee be asked to approve a version of each draft.

1. Reports of the Subcommittees
2. Budget Subcommittee - W. Hodges
3. Policy Subcommittee – Miller
   1. Policy KA, School-Community Relations Goals - New - 2^nd Reading
   2. Policy KBA, School/Parent Relations Goals - Proposed Revision - 2^nd Reading
   3. Policy KBD, Communications with Parents - Proposed Revision - 2^nd Reading
   4. Policy KCB, Community Involvement in Decision-Making - Proposed Revision - 2^nd Reading
   5. Policy KCD, Public Gifts to the Schools - Proposed Revision - 2^nd Reading
   6. Policy KDD, News/Media Relations/News Releases - Proposed Revision - 2^nd Reading
   7. Policy KE, Public Complaints - 1^st Reading
4. Community Relations Subcommittee – K. Sherwood
5. Turf Up Masco – W. Hodges

1. Consent Agenda
   1. Accept Gift Donation of $44,141.00 (Ck. # 1157) from the Masconomet Education Foundation to Be Used for the Middle School STEM Lab
   2. Final Approval for Spanish Exchange (10/2017), French Exchange (10/2017) and Chinese Exchange Trips (4/2018)
   3. Accept FY18 IDEA ($420,004), Title I($42,744) and Title IIA($27,563), Grants
   4. Warrants $2,152,811.11 - Nine (9) Warrants Signed Since Last Meeting

1. This incredibly generous gift from MEF is an installment for the creation of a Middle School
   Steam Lab in Summer 2018. 2. These trips received preliminary approval by the School
               Committee to proceed with fund-raising and booking. This is a request for formal approval of
               the trip per School Committee policy. 3. Annual acceptance of IDEA, Title IIA and
               Title I grants.

1. Approval of July 19, 2017 Executive Session Minutes

1. Other business, old or new

None known at this time.

1. Adjournment

All meeting documents can be found at this  LINK.

As always, please contact me if you have any questions about the report, packet, or agenda.

School Facilities Summer Projects Report

Doug Batchelder has provided a report on summer projects completed by the Buildings and Grounds Department. Consistent with a new report format, you have his report in your packet. He will not present slides, rather a headlines only verbal report and he will stand for School Committee questions and comments.

 Approval of Bay state Textiles Recycling Program

The Committee heard from representatives of the High School Environmental Club and DECA in June. They asked for support to begin a textile recycling program with several purposes that included a real-world learning context for DECA students to learn and practice management, accounting, and marketing skills as well as to create a small income stream that could fund DECA competitions similar to the one in California last year.

For the Environmental Club, this is a perfect match for their club objectives aligned with environmental consciousness and action. This club would also participate in the income stream to help them fund more activities and initiatives.

I recently met with the Bay State Textiles director and I am satisfied as to the quality of the initiative and its match for us. I included a number of documents about Bay State Textiles, including their contract for services, in your meeting materials. We have not yet determined the exact spots where 4 containers would be placed if the program is approved. I will return with a siting map for School Committee feedback before actual placement of the containers, if the program is approved.

 School Start Times Update

Dr. Morrison and I have met numerous times since the close of school to learn about other start time initiatives that have been successful or not successful. We have had conference calls with numerous consultants, Superintendents, and individuals in the school transportation industry. With the assistance of Susan Givens, Pete Delani, and Steve Greenberg, we are drafting a scope of work for transportation consultation and we have been screening potential consultants on the phone.

We had an important meeting with NRT management including the CEO on August 24^th. Susan, Pete and Steve were also involved in this meeting. We did a white board exercise with NRT that we had prepared in advance. This exercise helped NRT to gain a depth of understanding about what we are trying to achieve in regard to “Option Y” and an implementation in fall 2018 if feasible.

Through this meeting we learned of NRTs interest in actively participating in our feasibility work and the development of multiple scenarios that could be alternatives to Option Y if it cannot be implemented as currently written.

We decided to pay NRT a consultant fee for developing its view of feasibility with “Y” and for NRT to develop alternative scenarios. NRT charges $50. per hour for this work and the total time is yet to be negotiated. NRT cannot engage in this work until all of their school start-up challenges are settled in early October. We are convinced that an approach that will allow NRT to develop scenarios that it would have to deliver on, will be a most helpful appendix to our RFP being developed for an external consulting expert. It should also reduce the groundwork for the external consultant and lower the consultant’s time and cost to the District. We do not intend to exceed the monies allocated for consultant services.

I have charged Mr. Delani and Dr. Flaherty with creating school teams to develop a schedule for 2018-2019 that will meet our criteria for having a later start time while not diminishing our after-school programs that are critical to our Vision 2025 “whole student” priorities.

A significant challenge in determining feasibility for “Y” or alternative scenarios will be the need to conduct collective bargaining with the Masconomet Teachers Association and bargain with some or all of the three towns teachers’ associations at the elementary level.

The Masconomet Teachers Association must first agree to reopen the contract and then to consider proposals from the School Committee. I recommend waiting until we know our feasible options before taking the step of making a request for reopening the contract. I do not know the contractual details of the elementary unions but I am sure that that there will be some type of bargaining required there also.

I will provide updates to the School Committee as we begin to see what emerges from NRT’s work once they get that underway.

Superintendent’s Report

Welcome Back Letters from Superintendent and Principals – I included Welcome Back letters from me and the Principals in your meeting materials.

Readiness Meeting and School Safety – Please see the Readiness Meeting Agenda included in your meeting materials. This agenda highlights the important review and planning work that we do cooperatively with public safety. At the meeting, I will take a minute to introduce the A.L.I.C.E. concepts mentioned in the Agenda. Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate. The A.L.I.C.E. active shooter training will be an essential part of our Crisis Intervention and Response planning beginning this fall and going forward. Information will be provided to parents and there will be a community informational forum in late October. The information will be shared with staff and students prior to incorporating the use of A.L.I.C.E. concepts into our drills and practices. School administrators and police officers in the Tri-Towns have been trained and certified as A.L.I.C.E. trainers. Learn more about A.L.I.C.E. at https://www.alicetraining.com/ .

Letter on Civility – Dr. Morrison and I recently re-sent our May 2017 letter on civility and the expectations of our students, staff and community to all families and staff. As with the first mailing of this message, we both received an extraordinary response, much more than all of the other communications we send out. Feedback was 100% positive.

Vision and Strategic Plan and District Read – The School Committee received an update on the strategic plan that is beginning to emerge during the School Committee retreat on August 16^th. Since that meeting I have had the opportunity to take School Committee feedback and work by the Leadership Team back to Advisory Council for further discussion. We are in the process of formalizing the objectives while noting that much of the work is already underway or being planned.

If I could sum up the vision and values and the emerging strategic plan in two words, it would be to say that personalizing learning is our number one priority. To promote our staff understanding of what personalizing learning means, we will be doing a District read of the book, Students at the Center: Personalized Learning with Habits of Mind, Kallick and Zmuda, ASCD Press, 2017. I provided a copy of this book to each member of the School Committee in August and I look forward to this book informing our discussions about our vision and strategic plan in the coming months and years. 

Other Opening Events and First Day of School – I have included some documents related to opening events in your meeting materials. I will have a few comments about the related events as well as other comments from my observations next Tuesday and Wednesday.

 Reports of the Subcommittees

1. Budget Subcommittee - W. Hodges
2. Policy Subcommittee – Miller
   1. Policy KA, School-Community Relations Goals - New - 1^st Reading
   2. Policy KBA, School/Parent Relations Goals - Proposed Revision - 1^st Reading
   3. Policy KBD, Communications with Parents - Proposed Revision - 1^st Reading
   4. Policy KBE, Relations with School-Community Organizations - Proposed Revision - 1^st Reading
   5. Policy KCB, Community Involvement in Decision-Making - Proposed Revision - 1^st Reading
   6. Policy KCD, Public Gifts to the Schools - Proposed Revision - 1^st Reading
   7. Policy KDD, News/Media Relations/News Releases - Proposed Revision - 1^st Reading
3. Community Relations Subcommittee – K. Sherwood
4. Turf Up Masco – W. Hodges

 Consent Agenda

1. Approval of July 19, 2017 Regular School Committee Meeting Minutes
2. Warrants $3,675,131.91 - Twenty-Three (23) Warrants Signed Since Last Meeting

 Other business, old or new

The administration may be able to identify athletic teams who do not have requisite participation numbers to run. Recommendations will accompany any such situation.

 Adjournment

All meeting documents can be found at this  LINK.

As always, please contact me if you have any questions about the report, packet, or agenda.

 2017-2018 Opening of School, Updates, Looking Forward

Open Letter 

Dear Members of our School Community and Greater Tri-Town Community,

 Last May we wrote a letter to you in regard to our expectations for school climate and in support of the notions of respect and civility that should be a foundation for our schools and our larger community. We noted that there was no precipitating event factor for our letter in May. We were recognizing all of the positives that we have experienced in the Tri-Towns.

 The recent events of violence, hate and bigotry on display in Charlottesville, Virginia and other events and rhetoric of the late summer 2017 move us to resend our letter of last May again at this time to emphasize that our values remain constant and our expectations for students, staff, and school families in regard to respect, tolerance, and appreciation of difference are stronger than ever.

 Please review our May letter that is attached. Our schools in the Tri-Town are resolved to maintain a safe and supportive learning environment for all students. We are seeking to build a culture of kindness and we ask for everyone’s help in achieving this goal.

With warm regards,

Scott R. Morrison                                            Kevin M. Lyons
Superintendent of Schools                              Superintendent of Schools
Tri-Town School Union                                  Masconomet Regional School District

File attachments:
May 2017 Letter from Superintendents on Embracing Differences.pdf

Participate in the Tri-Town School Start Time Choice Survey Open from March 10 to March 20, 2017 

OPEN PDF

The Institution for Savings “Credit for Life Fair” will be hosted for the second year in a row by Masconomet High School on April 11, 2017 in the Masco Field House. Here is a link to the 2016 Community Relations Subcommittee article on last year’s fair.    IFS 2016

Mascononomet Regional School District will maintain transgender student rights and maintain its transgender guidelines irrespective of changes in federal guidance. Massachusetts Commissioner of Education Mitchell Chester today issued a letter to Massachustts Superintendents, Charter School Leaders and Principals explaining Massachusetts laws and regulatory guidance. [Text Follows]

Dear Superintendents, Charter School Leaders, and Principals:

I would like to affirm for you that Massachusetts remains dedicated to protecting the rights of transgender students even in light of recent federal actions. No one should be discriminated against based on their gender identity, and under existing state statute and regulations, protections for students and families will remain in place in the Commonwealth.

States can issue their own guidance, which can exceed federal guidelines. The Massachusetts state statute, which predates the federal guidance, ensures protections for all students and prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identity. An Act Relative to Gender Identity (Chapter 199 of the Acts of 2011), amended several Massachusetts statutes prohibiting discrimination on the basis of specified categories, including gender identity, and subsequently, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education issued guidance (http://www.doe.mass.edu/sfs/lgbtq/GenderIdentity.pdf) to school districts to implement the gender identity provision.

That guidance includes the following:

• “All students are entitled to have access to restrooms, locker rooms and changing facilities that are sanitary, safe and adequate, so they can comfortably and fully engage in their school program and activities.”
• “…it is essential that the principal and student address access to the restrooms, locker rooms and changing facility. Each situation needs to be reviewed and addressed based on the particular circumstances of the student and the school facilities.
• “In all cases, the principal should be clear with the student (and parent) that the student may access the restroom, locker room, and changing facility that corresponds to the student’s gender identity.”
• Some transgender students may be uncomfortable using sex-segregated restrooms and should be provided an alternative, such as the nurses’ restroom or a unisex bathroom.

Additional resources are available at http://www.doe.mass.edu/sfs/lgbtq/default.html.

We are proud that Massachusetts was a leader in this area and that schools have worked constructively and without great controversy to support their students. Please do not hesitate to contact our Safe Schools Program team at safeschoolsprogram@doe.mass.edu or 781-338-6319 if they can be of assistance.

Sincerely,

Commissioner Mitchell Chester

The Masconomet Regional School District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability in admission to, access to, employment in, or treatment in its programs and activities. The Masconomet Regional School District is committed to maintaining a school environment free of harassment based on race, color, religion, national origin, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability. Harassment by administrators certified and support personnel, students, vendors and other individuals at school or at school-sponsored events is unlawful and is strictly prohibited. The Masconomet Regional School District requires all employees and students to conduct themselves in an appropriate manner with respect to their fellow employees, students and all members of the school community.