BOARD OF EDUCATION

MIDDLETOWN, NEW YORK

JULY 20, 2006

A regular meeting of the Board of Education of the Enlarged City School District of Middletown, New York was held Thursday, July 20, 2006, at the Board of Education Office, 223 Wisner Avenue, Board President Vincent Crescenzo, presiding.

Present:      Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen Mr. Crescenzo – 9.

Others         Kenneth W. Eastwood, Superintendent of Schools
Attending:   Elizabeth McKean, School Business Administrator
                     Richard DelMoro, Director for Secondary Education
                     Darlene McDonough, Director for Elementary Education
                     Thomas Scott, Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds
                     Michael Tuttle, Chief Technology Officer

Mr. Crescenzo called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Mr. Perrino made a motion, seconded by Mr. Paul, to have an executive session to discuss the employment of particular persons. Motion was unanimously approved.

Public session resumed at 8:00 p.m.

Mr. Crescenzo led the pledge to the flag. He asked for a moment of silence to remember Arthur Barrett, a devoted English teacher in the Middletown City School District.

Mr. Estrada made a motion, seconded by Mrs. Knapp, to approve the minutes of June 29, 2006.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mrs. Knapp made a motion, seconded by Ms. Perkins, to approve Personnel Memorandum #4.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.
Mr. Estrada made a motion, seconded by Ms. Tobiassen, to approve Personnel Memorandum #5, copy attached.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mrs. Botti made a motion, seconded by Mrs. Knapp, to approve Personnel Memorandum #6, copy attached.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mrs. Knapp made a motion, seconded by Mr. Estrada, to approve Personnel Memorandum #7, copy attached.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mrs. Botti made a motion, seconded by Mr. Paul, to approve Personnel Memorandum #8, copy attached.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mrs. Botti made a motion, seconded by Mr. Estrada, to approve Personnel Memorandum #9, copy attached.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Personnel Memorandum #10, copy attached.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mr. Paul made a motion, seconded by Mr. Estrada, to approve Personnel Memorandum #11, copy attached.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mrs. Kaplan introduced Michelle Towle, newly appointed District Clerk.

Dr. Eastwood introduced Alan Gonzalez, our newly appointed executive principal. Mr. Gonzalez thanked everyone. He looked forward to starting his new position at the High School.

Dr. Eastwood continued by introducing our two new house principals: Michelle Zernone and Carl Pabon. Ms. Zernone thanked everyone and looked forward to being part of the Middletown City School District. Mr. Pabon also thanked everyone and the looked forward to the opportunity to serve the students and the community.

Mrs. Kaplan introduced Courtney Guasp, newly appointed guidance counselor at the High School. Ms. Guasp is a graduate of Middletown High School.

Mrs. Kaplan also introduced Joseph Calderon. Mr. Calderon is the new music teacher at Maple Hill Elementary School.

Mrs. Kaplan also introduced the two newly created K-12 Department Chairpersons for art and music; Dana Herm for art and Greg Bennett for music.

Mrs. Knapp made a motion, seconded by Mr. Paul, requesting personnel folders for the purpose of conducting personnel business in executive session.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Board Member Reports:
Mr. Perrino presented the following two tentative dates to meet with the Middletown City Common Council: September 18th and 26th.

Mr. Perrino stressed the importance of reading throughout the summer.

Mr. Mitch Palais of JMOA Construction presented a construction update to the Board regarding the High School. It was reported that the construction was on schedule and within budget.

Mr. Perrino complimented our Building and Grounds Department for their efforts during the construction. Mr. Perrino asked for clarification on the scheduled opening of the High School. Mr. Perrino also asked about the progress of the media center. Mr. Palais said the media center most likely would be ready a by late September and the auditorium should be ready by November.

Dr. Eastwood explained that the media center and the auditorium require a lot of work and that the classrooms are the priority at this time.

Dr. Eastwood also explained why the High School students would be returning to class on Thursday, September 7th; to allow the extra time for the classrooms to be ready. The middle schools and elementary schools would be returning to class on Wednesday, September 6th. Information will be provided to parents via Channel 20 and a newsletter.

Mrs. Botti asked if the one day would have to be made up and Dr. Eastwood explained that it would not have to be made up because it was built into the 180 day requirement that we follow.

Mrs. Knapp asked if we have a plan in place for sports to start in August. Dr. Eastwood said yes we do and that we will be on schedule.

Mr. Estrada asked about the parking lot. Dr. Eastwood again stressed the safety issues involved and the fact that 50 additional spaces have been created.

Mr. Estrada also asked if consideration could be given to having an informational meeting held at another school regarding the construction and its progress.

Dr. Eastwood explained that the new floor plan will be put into a document showing the flow and will be shared with staff and students.

He said that this information would be included with the class schedules that will be sent out within the next week or two.

Ms. Perkins asked if the change orders from the High School project were within reason. Mr. Palais explained that they were within reason.

Mr. Geiger asked about the use of the High School parking lot this year for the fair and if extra security measures had been taken to safeguard the High School during the fair. Mr. Scott explained that we do have extra security on duty.

Mr. Scott has arranged for four inspections at the High School. They will be held on August 1, 15, 29 and 31.

Anna Niemann, of Cooper, Niemann & Company, CPA, LLP, presented a taped presentation explaining the new regulations regarding audit functions. She explained the duties of the Internal Auditor, the External Auditor and the Claims Auditor.

She explained the Audit Committee and how it can be comprised:

• Can be the entire Board
• Can be sub-committee of a portion of the Board
• Can be comprised entirely of persons other than the Board or a mix of Board and non-board members

Our district has chosen a sub-committee of the Board with outside volunteers from the public.She also explained some of the requirements of the Internal Auditor:

• Shall follow generally accepted auditing standards
• Be independent of the District
• Have requisite knowledge and skills
• May use an inter-municipal cooperative agreement
• Cannot be the External Auditor or the Claims Auditor

Although the Internal Auditor woks closely with the Audit Committee, the Internal Auditor reports directly to the Board of Education

She then explained the requirements of the Claims Auditor:

• The Board may establish the position of Claims Auditor
• Claims Auditor shall have the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively audit the claims
• The Claims Auditor shall have experience with District operations
• Does no have to be a resident of the District
• Cannot be a Board member, clerk or treasurer of the District or any other individual responsible for business management, or purchasing agent, or clerical or professional functions

Also explained, the requirements of the External Auditor:

• Every District must have an annual audit except certain smaller districts
• Cannot be the same individual as the Internal Auditor or the Claims Auditor
• The regulations for the external audit are the same as before except: Audit reports are now due October 15th instead of October 31st. Districts must go out every five years for RFP for auditing services, however the District does not have to choose the lowest bidder, it is a professional service and the District can hire the same firm as before. The District must respond in writing to any audit findings in the annual audit issued by the External Auditor or management letter as well as any audit report issued by the Internal Auditor

Mr. Estrada is in the process of forming the Audit Committee comprised of 3 Board Members and 2 to 3 community members. He will report back to Mrs. McKean. If the Board then approves the Audit Committee, the next step is for the Audit Committee to draw up the charter and to complete the facilitation of the Internal Auditor. Then the Internal Auditor communicates with the External Auditor.

Dr. Eastwood explained our obligation to the Middletown City Civil Service Commission. Because we reside in the city, we have to share the expenses of that office. Dr. Eastwood said that he would be contacting the Newburg School District. Newburg School District is one of the other districts in Orange County that also has to pay into the Civil Service Commission.

Mr. Paul made a motion, seconded by Mr. Perrino, to approve Special Services Memorandum #2.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mr. Estrada made a motion, seconded by Mr. Paul, to approve Financial Memorandum #4.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mr. Paul made a motion, seconded by Mr. Estrada, to approve the Revised Professional Plan.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mr. Geiger made a motion, seconded by Mrs. Botti, to accept the participation of International Exchange Students.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Dr. Eastwood explained the need to approve the attendance of the international exchange students. The Board is amending the attendance policy to allow the students to attend school in our district tuition free.

Mr. Perrino suggested inviting the exchange students to a Board Meeting.

Mrs. Botti made a motion, seconded by Mrs. Knapp, to accept the recommendations by the Health and Wellness Committee.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mr. Perrino made a motion, seconded by Ms. Tobiassen, to approve the offering of surplus textbooks to our parochial/private schools.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Ms. Tobiassen made a motion, seconded by Ms. Knapp, to approve change orders-MHS construction project.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Mr. Estrada made a motion, seconded by Mr. Paul to approve the revised District calendar.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Roundtable:

The Board had a discussion and made decisions as to which conferences and workshops to attend in the upcoming months.

Mr. Estrada thanked the Middletown Recreational Department for a job well done at the sports camp, which is held at Monhagen Middle School.
Mrs. Knapp asked about the pre-k grant that we received. Dr. Eastwood explained how the money would be used and how more pre-k classes would be made available.

Mr. Perrino discussed legislative issues and the possibility of having a meeting in September with some of the legislators. He also discussed the Summer Reading Challenge, a program being held at Thrall Library. Mr. Perrino asked about summer graduation.

Mr. DelMoro stated that summer graduation would be held at Monhagen Middle School on August 17, starting at 6:00 p.m. Rehearsal would be at 5:00 p.m. Also, for the first time, this year’s summer graduates would be included in the total number of students graduating.

Ms. Tobiassen asked about diplomas. Dr. Eastwood stated that the diplomas were not at the High School. Because of construction at the High School, the diplomas will be held at Mechanicstown School. The information about diplomas will be aired on Channel 20 and on the school’s website.

Mr. Geiger referred to Governor Pataki’s veto on the legislation that states how much fund balance a school can carry. Mrs. McKean attended a conference in which NYSSBA was trying over-ride the veto.

Mr. Paul made a motion, seconded by Ms. Tobiassen to remove the agenda policy from the policy book.

Ayes: Mrs. Botti, Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mrs. Knapp, Mr. Paul, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Ms. Tobiassen, Mr. Crescenzo-9. Noes: None. Motion was unanimously moved.

Ms. Perkins welcomed the new principals, guidance counselor, and District Clerk. She thanked Mr. Bennett for his contribution to the graduation ceremony.

Mr. Paul also thanked Mr. Bennett for the performance at graduation. He suggested that students who participate in Electronic English, be given the opportunity to submit the video tapes to Channel 20 for airing. He also suggested that the school’s mission statement be posted in all of the school buildings.

Mr. Perrino asked again about the possibility of having a senior from the High School being on the Board as an ex officio board member. Mr. Crescenzo explained that the proposal would have to be presented as a referendum during the May vote.

Also discussed by Mr. Paul and Dr. Eastwood was the Liberty Partnership Program. The program involves a college providing after-school tutorial assistance for students at risk. The intent is to keep the children enrolled and to ultimately graduate. Dr. Eastwood acknowledged Congressman Hinchey for his part in submitting an application to the US Department of Education for a health and safety student partnership grant for $1.9 million a year for 3 years.

Mr. Geiger suggested we put in place a means to honor those that made this grant and others like it possible.

Mrs. Botti thanked Dr. Eastwood for his efforts in obtaining grants for the school district.

Ms. Tobiassen reminded everyone about Middletown’s Night Out celebration which will be held on Tuesday, August 1st at Festival Square in Middletown. She suggested that the reading list be posted on our website. She asked for the statistics on summer school attendance.

Mr. DelMoro explained the 13 employee recommendations for the review classes that were held in January. He explained that they were necessary in the preparation to take the regents in June.

Mr. Estrada also asked for statistics for summer school participation.

Dr. Eastwood explained some of the requirements and regulations regarding participation in the summer school intervention program.

Mr. Crescenzo presented the options for approval to attend conferences by board members. There are two options. One, to have the board approve each conference. Or, approve the board president to have the authority to approve the attendance to the conference.

By a show of hands to approve by resolution for each conference: Mr. Estrada, Mr. Geiger, Mr. Paul, Ms. Tobiassen-4.

To give the president the authority to approve attendance to conferences: Mrs. Botti, Mrs. Knapp, Ms. Perkins, Mr. Perrino, Mr. Crescenzo-5. Yes, to give the president the authority to approve attendance at conferences.

The following Board Committees were approved:

New York State School Boards Association:
Mr. Edwin Estrada, Representative
Mr. Roy Paul, Alternate

Orange County School Boards Association:
Mr. Will Geiger, Representative
Ms. Lynne Perkins, Alternate

Safety and Security:
Mr. John Perrino, Representative

MHS Reconstruction:
Mrs. Linda Knapp, Representative
Mr. Edwin Estrada, Alternate

Teacher Center:
Ms. Lynne Perkins, Representative
Ms. Rose Tobiassen, Alternate

Local Government

City of Middletown:
Mr. John Perrino, Representative
Mr. Roy Paul, Alternate

Town of Wallkill:
Mr. Will Geiger, Representative
Mr. Ed Estrada, Alternate

The Board Retreat will be discussed at the next Board meeting. The actual dates have not been decided upon.

Mrs. Botti asked that the Board Norms be addressed. She suggested that the Board Norms be discarded and to start a new set of Board Norms.

Mr. Crescenzo suggested that the Goals and Objectives also be replaced.

At 11:20 p.m., Ms. Tobiassen made a motion, seconded by Mr. Estrada, to have an executive session for the discussion of the employment of particular persons.

Public session resumed at 12:00 a.m. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at this time.

Respectfully submitted,
Patricia Popstein
Acting School District Clerk