1. Call to Order

 

2. Remarks from the Chair – T. Cooper

Maura Healey’s historic win as the first LGBTQ woman governor in the nation was recognized; Congratulations to athletes competing in the postseason!

 

3. Comments from the Audience

A parent shared concerns about school lunches this year, asked why we are on the government funded program and what’s being done to improve things, and said parents can suggest ideas too.

 

4. SAB Report – Olivia Richards (Junior)

Everyone is settling in, people like the M block; some find it difficult to have the same two classes rotating in the mornings. Lunch concerns - not just the food, but the order of food-service; Principal suggested they collaborate to help identify better traffic patterns to improve lunch service.

 

5. HS Principal Report – M. Carabatsos

Sophomore Aniqa Zahra presented a new club initiative: Fashion club, which upcycles clothing and other textiles into new clothing based on a theme for each month, to culminate in an end-of-year fashion show.  Meeting weekly with 22 members so far (with no advertising). Using donated sewing machines and materials they’ve collected here at Masco. Advisor is Ms. Smith.

 

Please view the slide deck for overview of Principal Report; Much of the content is also featured in the HS principal’s weekly memos available here.

Some additional notes: 

Have been collecting feedback from students to bring to the schedule committee. M-Block continues to be very helpful for a range of uses. Clubs have been active, Homecoming dance was more successful than anticipated; things like the Musical, sports, trips being planned, and other various activities for school spirit - these are all helping make school “feel good!” Aster is the Topsfield police dept.’s therapy dog, and accompanies the Topsfield SRO Brendan Cahagan when it is his shift at Masco, which brings joy!  ⅓ of PD time is being used for curriculum work, content, skills, and looking at what assessments look like and why. Based on research about student learning, assessments, and future performance, there will be no interruption of learning for a midterm exam schedule again this year, but will assess learning in other ways. Open House for prospective Masco families will feature some of the opportunities that make Masco unique. Hoping to introduce a new initiative for a unified inclusive sports program this winter with “Special Olympics Unified Champions.” Seeking applicants for School Site Council - community members can apply using QR code on the last slide.

6. Superintendent’s Report - Please read the full report at this link. In this edition:

 

• Strategic Planning Update

  • Please note:  For updates on the Strategic Planning Process and for upcoming community conversations, please register HERE today

• Middle and High School Pilot Schedule Review Update

• COVID Test Kit Distribution

• Fall Athletics in Tournament Play

• Upcoming School Events

 

 

 

7. District Enrollment Report – M. Harvey
   a. Masco October Enrollment Summary by Town and Grade

This is the data that is used to determine assessments to the towns above foundation budget.  The FY23 % assessment to towns is now using a three-year average to help alleviate the “dips and bumps” among the three towns. Some discussion suggested that Middleton enrollment had the biggest changes.

 

8. MASC Conference Report

 

Mike, Tasha, Carolyn and Zillie attended the conference. One overall takeaway about the conference, which had a DEI theme, was that DEI is not a checklist but an overlay or lens to look at everything through, and not a sprint but a marathon process that can take ten years to implement. Met a Safe-schools consultant who shared an ESPN story about Masconomet’s Corey Johnson, his journey when he came out as gay in 1999 as football captain, and a recent follow-up story about him 20 years later - the clip he shared can be viewed here. Also  following up on some resources from a workshop with the Mass. Consortium for Innovative Education Assessment (MCIEA).  

 

9. Policy Second Readings

   1. Consent Agenda:  Policies JA-JHD

Approved with the exception of JB, which T.Currier requested to pull from the consent agenda. M.Ogden explained that JB is a policy that is required by law and has been approved by council. T.Currier proposed an amendment to add “political affiliation” to the list. That proposal was tabled in order to allow time for the Policy Subcommittee to review and consult with counsel about it. T.Currier also asked to look at the third paragraph in the policy regarding access to athletic activities to see what impact gender-identity protection has on girls’ sports and female athletes. M.Ogden stated that these protections are in place for the sake of our most vulnerable students and do not pose any threat to girls’ sports. T. Cooper noted that the policy is aligned with state and federal law, DESE, and MIAA guidelines and therefore those protections are not debatable at the school committee level. 

 

10. Policy First Readings

    1. Consent Agenda: Policies JI-JIE

M.Ogden reviewed these with explanations of any changes; many are simply reducing repetition, combining things, or removing things that are procedural and belong in a handbook as opposed to policy. 

 

11. Subcommittee Reports

    1. Community Relations – will meet Thursday, 11/10 at 6:30pm in HS library

    2. Budget – 

    3. Anti-Racism – W. Hodges - met and heard about resources from MASC conference and talked about how solutions are not in schools alone but in community; reached out to some community organizations with positive response; still needs to have a place in the school to support the administration. Will work on a plan for community engagement and proposed goals as well as possible change to the name of the committee. 

    4. Policy – M. Ogden - will meet Dec. 2

    5. Turf Field Task Force – Tasha Cooper - will meet with TurfUp next week and plan to present to full SC on Nov. 30

    6. Liaison Updates - Topsfield reps listening sessions at town library set up monthly, next one will be Sat. Nov 19, 10am-11:30am

 

12. Consent Agenda

1. Approval of October 26^th Meeting Minutes 

2. Warrants $1,148,864.24 (09) signed since October 26, 2022

Approved

 

13. Enter into Executive Session to conduct strategy relative to bargaining with non-union personnel (Superintendent Harvey) (Executive Session Purpose #2). 

 

Upcoming Meetings:

Please refer to the “Public Meetings” page on the Masconomet Website for a list of upcoming meetings and agendas.

NB: School Committee meeting minutes are not intended to be a transcription of the meeting. All meetings are video recorded and the complete videos are posted on-line at: https://www.masconomet.org/domain/41