BELLINGHAM PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Bellingham, Washington

MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING

OF THE

BELLINGHAM SCHOOL DISTRICT

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

May 13, 1999

The Bellingham School Board of Directors met in regular session at 7:30 p.m., May 13, 1999, in the Board Room of the Administration Building. Prior to the regular meeting, there was an Executive Session at 7:00 p.m. Purpose of the Executive Session – negotiations/personnel matters.

Present: Directors Ken Gass, Elaine M. Lynch, and Ann Whitmyer, President David Blair, Superintendent Dale Kinsley, and recorder Shirley Knapp

At 7:05 Gass moved to begin Executive Session; Lynch seconded. At 7:34 Whitmyer made the motion to move to regular session; Lynch seconded.

At 7:39 p.m. President David Blair called the meeting to order.

Appointment of new Director

President David Blair gave an overview of the final portion of the process to fill the vacancy of Board Position #5, formerly held by Becky Diaz. The Board met in Special Session on April 29 to interview the two finalists Cheryl Macpherson and Dr. Donald Leu. Following the interviews the Board met in Executive Session to review the materials and information provided by the candidates.

Gass moved to appoint Donald Leu to the Board of Directors of the Bellingham School District; Lynch seconded. The motion carried unanimously.

Swearing in new Director

Superintendent Dale Kinsley read the Oath of Office to Donald Leu and he was seated on the Board.

CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS:

Whitmyer moved and Gass seconded approval of the consent agenda as presented. The motion carried unanimously.

Minutes

Action on the minutes of the April 22, 1999 School Board meeting and the minutes of the special Board meeting on April 29, 1999.

Investments

Action on investments in accordance with Resolution 13-88.

                   GENERAL FUND:

                                   $308,000.00                   LGIP, investment, April 15, 1999

                                   $512,000.00                   LGIP, investment, April 23, 1999

                                   $944,500.00                   LGIP, investment, April 30, 1999

                  CAPITAL PROJECTS

                                      $19,800.00                  LGIP, investment, April 15, 1999

                                      $24,700.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, April 15, 1999

                                      $17,800.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, April 15, 1999

                                    $145,600.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, April 20, 1999

                                    $118,000.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, April 30, 1999

                                    $161,100.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, April 30, 1999

                  DEBT SERVICE

                                    $154,000.00                  LGIP, investment, April 15, 1999

                                    $382,000.00                  LGIP, investment, April 23, 1999

                                    $541,000.00                  LGIP, investment, April 30, 1999

                  ASB FUND

                                        $3,000.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, April 15, 1999

                                        $4,200.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, April 15, 1999

                                      $15,000.00                  LGIP, investment, April 15, 1999

                                      $12,700.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, April 15, 1999

                                           $600.00                  LGIP, investment, April 30, 1999

                                        $1,200.00                  LGIP, investment, April 30, 1999

                                      $14,100.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, April 30, 1999

                                      $11,900.00                  LGIP, investment, April 30, 1999

Expenses and Payroll

Action on expenditures and payroll as approved by the Auditing Committee.

                   GENERAL FUND

                        ACCTS PAY:       4/08/99                  386,507.83

                                                       4/15/99                    71,252.49

                                                       4/23/99                  170,302.94

                                                       4/30/99                     79,188.59

                                 Total General Fund                  $707,251.85

                  CAPITAL PROJECTS FUND

                        ACCTS PAY:       4/15/99                   $42,552.00

                                                       4/20/99                   145,650.69

                                                       4/30/99                   278,929.16

                   Total Capital Projects Fund                  $467,131.85

                  ASB FUND

                       ACCTS PAY:        4/15/99                      72,444.63

                                                       4/30/99                      39,716.99

                                      Total ASB Fund                   $112,161.62

                                                  SEHOME                      $31,526.69

                                          SQUALICUM                      $29,876.43

                                           FAIRHAVEN                       $10,601.41

                                               KULSHAN                      $11,213.68

                                               SHUKSAN                        $9,669.37

                                            WHATCOM                      $19,274.04

                  EXPENDABLE TRUST FUND

                       ACCTS PAY:        4/08/99                          $647.25

                             Total Exp. Trust Fund                          $647.25

                  PAYROLL                                                $4,287,825.16

Out-of-State Travel:

• Dave Dickson to attend a coaching clinic in Nashville, Tennessee, June 3-5, 1999.

Personal Services Contract:

• Ann Oveson to serve as Summer School Principal Coordinator for the 1998-99 school year.

Resolution

Approval of Resolution 8-99 – WIAA enrollment for District high schools.

REGULAR AGENDA ITEMS:

School Board Reports

Lynch reported on the Economic Development Council meeting that she attended with Whitmyer and Superintendent Kinsley. She also attended the ASCD Conference on assessment, hosted by Bellingham School District, the groundbreaking at Bellingham High School, a meeting of Whatcom County superintendents and directors at ESD 189, and the DARE graduation at Sunnyland on May 11.

Whitmyer reported on the District Budget Committee and the ASCD conference where she was part of a presentation on Six-Trait Writing given by Fairhaven Middle School.

Gass reported on the Volunteers for Literacy program at Sunnyland, the groundbreaking at BHS, and his attendance at the ceremony in Olympia honoring Sehome students Katie Gass and Daniel Elkayam, who were named as Washington Scholars.

Superintendent’s Announcements/Reports

Dr. Kinsley reported on the ASCD Assessment Consortium Conference held at Semiahmoo on May 2. Bellingham School District hosted this conference, which was attended by over 100 educators from across the country. Kinsley thanked Wendy Barrett, Curriculum Director, for her efforts to coordinate the event.

Kinsley announced the following grants received by the District:

• $2,000 Community Relations Grant from Fourth Corner UniServ to continue and expand the Silver Beach Tech Tutor Program, in which students tutor senior citizens on the use of computers.
• The Whatcom County Tech Prep Consortium received a Tech Prep Special Projects Grant for $35,000 to develop an Information Technology program at Bellingham High School. The program will provide an opportunity to partner with businesses and will enable students to pursue studies in various areas of information technology.

Dr. Kinsley shared the new District information flyers and Pocket of Facts. Kinsley also announced that Steve Morse and he will attend a weekend pilot program for the Smart Tools Academy on the use of computer technology.

Kinsley highlighted a legislative issue relating to levy elections. The legislature reset the date for the Presidential Primary to February 29. In doing so, they took away the earlier election date for school bonds/levies. There is a movement to request that legislation be passed to redeem the earlier February date for levy elections.

REPORTS:

School Performance Report --Sehome High School

Sehome principal Larry Brown, teacher Jeff Baglio, a Sehome parent, and several students presented the School Performance Report for Sehome High School. Five other schools will present their reports at Board meetings in May and June as part of the District’s school accountability process.

Presentation of Options for Middle School Boundary Revisions

Assistant Superintendent Greg Cowan described in detail each of the four options recommended by the Middle School Boundary Committee. The committee began meeting last fall to review and revise the existing boundaries for middle school attendance areas. The group included staff and community representatives from all areas of the District. Using the District’s boundary guidelines, they developed four options that would provide a balance of student numbers, taking into consideration the schools size and future growth projections. Prior to Board action, community meetings will be held for public comment. The first two meetings are scheduled for May 26, at 7:00 p.m. at Silver Beach Elementary, and June 1, at 7:00 p.m. at Roosevelt Elementary. Additional meetings will be held in the fall. Changes in middle school boundaries would be effective with the 2000-2001 school year.

School Emergency Preparedness Plans

Assistant Superintendent Greg Cowan gave a general overview of District emergency preparedness planning. Carl Cozier teacher Dave Barrett presented his school’s plan for preparation for natural disasters. Birchwood Principal Sharon Camblin reported on the plan for exposure to environment hazards, and Kulshan Assistant Principal Julia Besola reported on the secure in place and lockdown procedures used for threats of violence. Assistant Principal Becky Elmendorf outlined Squalicum’s evacuation procedures for dealing with fires or bomb threats. The District has worked in collaboration with the Police Department and Sheriff’s office to develop the emergency plans. Sergeant Carr Lanham of Bellingham Police Department reported on joint efforts of the Police Department and the District.

ACTION ITEMS:

Approval of FACES Program

Lynch moved and Whitmyer seconded the motion to provide support for the FACES (Families for Autistic Children’s Education and Support) summer program. The motion carried unanimously. This proposal, which will provide additional staff support for autistic children, was developed collaboratively by the parent group, the special education department, and Best SELF.

Call for Bids

Gass moved and Whitmyer seconded the motion for permission to call for bids for desktop computers, notebook computers, and file servers. The motion carried unanimously.

Personnel Recommendations Approved

Lynch moved and Gass seconded the motion for approval of the personnel recommendations as presented. The motion carried unanimously. Superintendent Kinsley announced the

appointments of Jeff Baglio as assistant principal at Sehome High School and Ann Oveson as Summer School Principal/Coordinator. Kinsley also announced the upcoming retirements of the following: Pat Bland, 2nd grade teacher at Carl Cozier; Bette Jo Goff, library media specialist at Whatcom Middle School; Lynn Keating, math teacher at Kulshan Middle School; Susan Lingbloom, 5th grade teacher at Roosevelt Elementary School; Gary Nelson, physical education teacher at Squalicum High School; and Tom Thomas, 3rd grade teacher at Happy Valley.

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 9:50 p.m.